Okunen Anime 2.0

Shadows From The Past, a Black Blood Brothers Fan Fiction

I have to rate this one more of a somewhat older audience, fyi. maybe more middle/high school? Just so yo uknow.

Disclaimer: I do not own Black Blood Brothers or its characters. I'm just going with the flow of other story tellers, with my own flair and style so if you like it, go ahead and fave, if not, just ignore. No flaming, k?

Chapter One


Clouds scudded across the night sky, covering the half moon as they passed. Somewhere, a clock struck the hour, three loud gongs that reverberated through the chill autumn air. Jiro Mochizuki stared out the window from the second story of the warehouse turned apartment that he shared with Mimiko Katsuragi and his little brother, Kotaro. He held his long, silver katana to one side, the blade about an inch out of its sheath.

He could hear Kotaro's soft snoring coming from the next room, something he was very glad for. And if he let his senses roam a little further, he could hear the soft breath of Mimiko, followed by the occasional groan as she dreamed. But those were not the sounds that had piqued him this night. He let his senses roam again, listening, smelling for the faint scent that had woken him in the first place, a scent he didn't know, followed by the most peculiar sounds.

He heard it again, the slight, quiet banging of something hitting metal. Judging from the direction, it was somewhere on the street level, near the back of the building. There was a door down there, old and disused. He and Mimiko had talked about it once before, but it had been dismissed merely because it did not seem to want to open when the young woman had tried it. The hinges were apparently rusted shut, and though Jiro was sure any Black Blood, or anyone determined enough, could have forced it open, he'd let it be, for Mimiko's sake. Now, he wished he hadn't.

The sound came again, along with the faint sound of metal slowly being bent. Whoever was down there could not be a normal human. Red Bloods, as they called themselves in the Special Zone, did not have the strength to bend steel.

The moonlight glinted off of Jiro's exposed teeth, fangs protruding past his lips as a low snarl issued from them, a warning and a challenge. "If I were you," he said, speaking clearly but quietly. He didn't want to wake Mimiko or Kotaro. "I would rethink what you're doing. I don't think either of us want a confrontation tonight." If it truly was a vampire down there, and he was fairly sure it was from the smell, he knew they would be able to hear him.

There was a moment of silence, followed by more faint scratching and the moaning of already abused metal. Jiro let out a slightly louder growl. "This is your last chance to leave while you still can."

After another long pause, there was the sound of quick footsteps in the ally, then silence. Jiro strained to hear, closing his eyes as he sought out any other sounds, but the night was silent. He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, the leather of his gloves protesting slightly at the strain. He waited a moment or two longer, then let his grip relax, the blade to slide back into the sheath.

With a sigh, Jiro let his shoulders sag momentarily before leaning against the window's large frame. A slight breeze came through the window. The scent was clean. In the back room, Mimiko murmured in her sleep. It was time he went back to bed as well. He slid the window closed and headed to his coffin.

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Mimiko yawned hugely as she headed for the kitchen, her eyes only half open as she stumbled around. She felt like she hadn't slept a wink and figured her dreams were to blame, though she couldn't remember what they were. Something about a vampire she felt sure she didn't know, but that was about it.

Without realizing where she was going, she found herself knocking into the corner of the table, jabbing herself just below the knee. "Ouch!" She looked up in surprise, realizing that she'd overshot her mark and gotten a bruise in the process.

"Mimiko," Kotaro piped up in the background of her muddled thoughts. "You okay?" The young vampire tugged at her robe, trying to get the distracted girl's attention. "Hey, Mimi!" Jiro was always reminding him of how fragile Red Bloods were.

Mimiko let out another huge yawn and turned towards the stove, subconsciously waving him aside. "Morning, Kotaro," she said out of habit as she fumbled to fill the kettle with water and set it to boil. It didn't even strike her that the young vampire was usually still asleep when she got up.

Figuring that his human friend was probably okay, even though the sound of her running into the table had been rather loud, Kotaro zoomed happily around the kitchen, chattering a million miles a minute about his plans for the day. "And don't forget that Sei and I are going to play today," his words interrupted the murky depths of her thoughts as she struggled to keep her eyes open.

"Sei, right," Mimiko almost parroted as the kettle began to steam. She stared absently at the patterns of the evaporating water. "Where's Jiro?"

Kotaro stopped to blink. "He's still asleep," he stated. "Maybe you are too," he added.
Mimiko reached for a mug on the counter top and poured hot water in, dropping a tea bag in with it. "Just another long night," she tried to assure him as she dipped the bag up and down, one elbow resting on the counter top.

Silence filled the air as Kotaro watched Mimiko bob her tea, practically falling asleep as she stood. He glanced over to the clock and wondered if the compromiser realized the time, not that it really mattered to him. He liked hanging out with Mimiko, but then, her boss would probably get mad if she were late. His brother might get mad too, especially if he knew that Kotaro could have done something about it. He deliberated for a moment, one finger on his chin as he thought about.

"Um, Mimi," he hesitated. "Shouldn't you be at work right now?" He looked up at her with his large blue eyes, blinking questioningly at her.

Mimiko blinked back at him. "Huh?"

"You know, you're usually gone to work by now," Kotaro said in a slightly worried voice. "You wouldn't want to be late, right?"

Mimiko glanced at the clock, taking a moment to focus on the numbers. She suddenly jumped. "CRAP! Is that the time?!" She ran to her room, robe trailing behind her as she slammed the door, had to reopen it to pull in the garment, and closed it again.

Kotaro stared after her. He didn't know she could move that fast. Less than five minutes later, Mimiko was flying past him again and out the door. "Wow. She sure can move when she's in a hurry," he thought to himself, then looked around. The tea she'd been steeping was getting starting to get cold in the forgotten mug.

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Jiro woke to an empty apartment. Outside, he could hear the sounds of people walking, vehicles moving, the usual banter of the day. Their current schedule was messing with his sleep pattern. He put one hand over his eyes, as if he could just ignore everything and go back to sleep, but the events of last night nagged at the back of his mind.

He sat up and looked around. Kotaro was gone. Not hugely surprising, considering he'd been hyper most of the previous evening because he'd been invited over to Sei's. He smelled the air to get a sense of the hour, sometime in the afternoon, he decided. And with that, he got up, walking slowly through the apartment and down the stairs to the main level.

The sounds from last night definitely had come from the direction of that sealed door and so he headed in that direction, deep in thought, trying to place the scent that still lingered in the back of his mind. Definitely not someone he knew.

Scents from outside found his nose, drifting in on a faint breeze from the direction he was headed. And, after skirting a few more boxes, he found himself looking at the door in question. Upon initial inspection, nothing seemed out of place, at least not to a human's eye. But Jiro noted that there was now a slight gap to one side, where someone had tried to peel the metal away from the outside.

He stared at the small crack for a while, then absently went out and around, keeping to the shadows as much as possible, silently berating himself for not grabbing his umbrella. The faint imprint of fingers met his inspection as he looked at the door from the other side. Any normal vampire could have easily taken the door with a swift pull, probably making more noise than they wanted though. Whoever had tried to break in was careful. After all, throwing a door would cause a lot of attention.

Jiro mused in the shadows, one hand to his chin as he thought. He'd have to do something to reinforce that door while Mimiko was out. If she saw the activity, she'd definitely want to know what was going on. He didn't know what to tell her, and for the sake of protecting her, he wasn't about to tell her until he knew more.

"I'll have to find someone to fix this," he finally decided and headed out to find someone to do just that, stopping to pick up his umbrella on his way.

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"Earth to Mimiko. Earth to Mimiko."

The brunette girl moaned and tried to wave away whoever was trying to wake her. Why couldn't they just let her sleep?

"Hey, Mimiko, time to get up," the same voice continued, its owner bending over the dozing girl. "Wake up!"

Mimiko raised her head from her desk and blinked. "Hey Hibari," she said groggily. "What are you doing here?"

Hibari Kusunogi glared down at her senior compromiser. "I work here," she retorted. "And so do you, unless you don't get up, that is. Jinnai's coming!"

"Jinnai?" Mimiko's face was blank as she stared at her junior.

Hibari changed her glare to a scowl, hands on her hips. "Oh come on! You really need to stop staying up so late with that Silver Blade!"

Something stirred in Mimiko at the sound of Hibari's tone. She sat bolt upright, blushing, eyes wide at what the girl was implying. "You know it's nothing like that!"

Hibari gave her a smug look. "Right! As if anyone could believe that face of yours!"
Mimiko turned away, face still burning.

"Good afternoon ladies," Jinnai said as he entered the room, ignoring the awkwardness of the situation he'd walked into. A chorus of "good afternoons" from around the room followed his greeting as the various compromisers turned to give him their attention.

"I don't want to take long," their supervisor assured them. "We've had reports of strange activity in the Special Zone, nothing to really worry about, but I thought I would give you the heads up in case you're called in to mediate. So far it's just minor things, but one never knows if that will change. Just keep your eyes open and let us know if you see anything out of the ordinary."

Murmurs filled the air as Jinnai left, various compromisers talking amongst themselves.
"Did you hear that, Mimiko," Hibari practically squealed in her senior's ear. "What do you think could be happening? What if the vampires rise up in rebellion? What if we have another Kowloon infiltration!?"

Mimiko let out a low growl of frustration. "Aren't you forgetting that there's no easy way another Kowloon child could get in," she hissed through her teeth. "And why would the vampires rise in rebellion when we live in harmony with them!"

Hibari stopped briefly in her ramblings, looking up at Mimiko like she was stupid. "But it was so easy the last time! What if it happens again! I don't think I could take it!" And with that, Hibari was off in her own world of imagining, leaving Mimiko out, which was just fine with her, even though the younger girl's wild imagination was overflowing verbally.

Mimiko took a look at the clock. The day was almost over, finally. Having longer and later shifts was definitely messing with her schedule, but they were necessary to get her used to being able to be up and about at night. But the day had dragged on and on from the moment she'd made it to work, an hour late. And it dragged now that she only had another half hour until she could call it good, unless an assignment came in, something she hoped didn't happen.

"I'm going to get something to eat," she stated, her stomach reminding her that not only had she not had breakfast, but she'd somehow managed to skip lunch. "Want something?" She didn't really expect an answer from her chattering companion but had to ask all the same. She blinked a few times on her way to the vending machine. She stumbled over her own feet, wincing as the bruise she'd gotten that morning was jarred in the process. Maybe she'd be wise to skip the last half hour and go home early, she thought as she stared at the vending machine. There was no way she had enough energy to deal with anything else today.

Abandoning the idea of just getting a quick bite, Mimiko headed towards the main doors, pushing out into the dying sunshine. She tried to block the last rays from blinding her as she walked towards the nearest taxi stand. Jiro would probably be less than happy with her if she tried to walk the distance back to the apartment, especially as tired as she felt and with night coming on. It would leave her defenses way too open for the Black Blood's liking, she decided.

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Jiro heard a car door slam outside the apartment just as the repair crew was cleaning up. The door was now safely welded shut from both sides. It may not keep a determined vampire from entering, but it wouldn't make it easy on them either.

He could hear money being exchanged. Taxi cab. The repair crew opened the main door to leave, letting a slight breeze enter the large room, bringing in Mimiko's scent with it, ginger and oranges. He blinked a few times in confusion. The brunette was decidedly early. He went swiftly to the door before she could reach it from the other side, the taxi driving away as he reached the opening.

"Mimiko, is everything all right," he asked, his voice a bit tight as he looked at her from top to bottom, trying to find anything visibly wrong. She had shadows under her eyes, he noted, and she was walking slower than her usual pace. He took the last few steps towards her, trying not to look too worried.

Mimiko looked up, hearing Jiro's concern, her eyes opening wide. She blinked a few times to clear her tangled thoughts. "Fine," she finally managed. 'Everything's fine. I'm just tired."

He stepped back to let her inside the building. "Long day," he asked solicitously.

"You could say that," she replied as she rubbed at her temples and tried to stumble up the steps at the same time. Jiro reached out a steadying hand for her, which she took without thinking. "Where's Kotaro?"

Jiro kept her steady as they climbed. "He's at Sei's house," he replied. "I believe they decided to make it a sleepover."

"Oh." She let go of his hand as they reached the top of the stairs, where she kicked off her shoes and headed for the kitchen. "Who were those people I saw leaving?"

Jiro followed after her, ready if she should need him again. "There was a leak. I had them repair it," he said matter-of-factly. "You needn't worry about it. It was very simple to have repaired." He hung his hat.

She nodded absently as she searched in the cupboard for something to nibble on. She settled on a box of graham crackers, heading to the fridge for some milk. "Thirsty," she asked over her shoulder.

Jiro smiled, wondering if she'd realized what she'd asked him. "Not at the moment." He felt the heat of her blush as she realized her error.

"You know what I meant!" She quickly closed the fridge, milk in hand, her back to him.

Jiro tried not to laugh. "Of course, Mimiko. But you left yourself wide open for that one." His eyes narrowed as he caught the shadows under her eyes once more as she turned around. "Are you sure you're all right?"

She sat at the table, dipping crackers into her cup and eating them slowly. "Aside from a lovely bruise from this morning," she began but stopped at his expression. "Jinnai mentioned that there was the possibility of some restlessness among some of the Black Bloods," she amended, trying to distract him. He could be rather fussy when she hurt herself. "He didn't use those exact words, but that's what he meant."

"Hmmm," Jiro pursed his lips, arms folded. "Did he say why?"

The compromiser shook her head. "No, just a general warning that we might be called in to help mediate if something comes up. Why?" She looked up.

Jiro looked thoughtful as he replied. "No reason. I just hadn't heard anything about it."
She waved a milk sodden cracker. "It's not like he'd give us any details unless we're called in anyway," she continued.

"You're probably right," he conceded, wondering if Jinnai had brought that up with the compromisers because word had reached his ears of the vampire who had tried to break into their apartment. Unlikely, but still possible, he decided. Mimiko was draining the last bit of her milk when he looked up again.

"You mentioned something about a bruise…?" He let his words dangle in the air, eyebrows raised with the question.

He did miss much, Mimiko sighed to herself. She stood up, heading over to the cupboard again. "It's fine. I just bumped into the table this morning," she said, brushing it aside. "No big deal."

Jiro gave her a doubtful expression. He was all too aware of her tendency to downplay any injury. "Mimiko…"

Mimiko resisted the urge to scowl as she reached for something on a higher shelf. She wasn't quite tall enough without doing something to give her a boost, even going on her tiptoes. Grumbling under her breath, she sprang lightly to lunge at the box she wanted, not bothering to ask the much taller Jiro to get it for her.

A loud thump announced her knee hitting into the counter top, followed by a low outcry of pain. No more than half a second later, Jiro was by her side, hands around her waist to keep her from doing any further injury by banging something else or falling backwards and cracking her skull.

Mimiko was taken by surprise, her hands still raised as if to reach the box that seemed to stare back at her tauntingly. Her knee stung and she had to blink a few times to be sure that no tears had come because of it. She grit her teeth. She suddenly found herself turned around, sitting on the counter, the cupboard closed behind her. "Wha..?! Jiro!"

Jiro ignored her protests as he gently pushed her skirt up to rest just above her knee. The deep bruise stood out against her pale skin. Jiro frowned. "Mimiko, what have you been doing to yourself?"

The girl laughed nervously. "Does it really look that bad," she asked. "I hardly felt it!"

He looked up at her with an expression she couldn't read. "Mimiko, it's turning black and blue."

"It is?" She bent to look for herself.

Jiro sighed. "Must I look after you every waking moment," he asked under his breath.

Mimiko put her hands on her hips. "Sorry, I didn't catch that."

He ignored her. Instead, he began to gently probe at the discolored skin, noticing when she winced. "It hurts more than you're willing to admit, doesn't it," he said, using a matter-of-fact tone.

She tried to slide off the counter top but he stopped her. "Jiro, it's just a bruise," she complained. "It will heal."

"It will heal much more quickly if you put some ice on it," he countered. "Now stay there." He turned to the fridge, opening the freezer compartment.

"Yes mother," Mimiko muttered.

"I heard that," Jiro said as he rummaged with an ice tray.

She rolled her eyes but made no further comment as he brought over a bag filled with the frozen cubes, wrapped in a dishtowel. She took it with a sigh, placing it over her knee. "You know, I feel kind of silly sitting on the counter," she said. "It's not exactly sanitary."

Jiro let out a laugh. "Then we'll have to move you to somewhere a little more appropriate." Before she could protest, he had her in his arms and was carrying her to the main living area where he set her on the low couch. Surely she couldn't protest about that.

"Hey!" she protested, though the deed was already done. "Could you at least warn me before you do that again?"

He eyed her critically. "Do you plan on having this happen again, Mimiko," he asked.

"That's not the point!" she spluttered. "A girl does like to have some warning!"

Jiro sighed heavily. He wasn't sure if he'd ever completely understand her. One moment, he thought he had a pretty good grasp on that, the next, he was thrown for another loop. If nothing else, humans were very complex creatures. "My most sincere apologies," he said while bowing.

Mimiko couldn't stay mad at him, especially not since he'd apologized. "Ugh," she finally uttered. "Just no more drama tonight, okay?"

"As you wish." He bowed slightly.

Chapter Two


The clock read exactly eleven as Mimiko booted up her computer. For once, she was on time. Her fingers skimmed across the keyboard as she typed in her password, then waited for the machine to log her into the system. Last night had been rather uneventful, once everything had settled down. She didn't remember dreaming. But at least she'd had breakfast, even if it was only a little granola. Jiro hadn't been awake to protest.

The voices of her fellow compromisers fell all around her as they came and left the office for their various assignments. She was diligently typing in a report when Hibari suddenly put her hands over her fellow compromiser's eyes. "Guess who!"

Mimiko tried to pry the hands from her face. "Hibari! Stop it," she complained.

Her junior finally let go, sticking out her tongue. "You're such a sour grape," she complained. "Can't you lighten up for once? Honestly!"

Mimiko did her best to try and ignore the energetic girl, continuing to type around her attempts to get her attention.

"Where did you go last night," Hibari finally managed to get her attention. "I mean, really! You just up and disappeared! And there was a really cute Black Blood who came asking for you, not that he's better looking than the Silver Blade, but you could always have used him to make him jealous."

Mimiko looked up in surprise. "What vampire?"

Hibari flipped an errant strand of her hair. "That's what I was trying to tell you," she replied impatiently. "He was incredibly handsome! Almost as handsome as the Silver Blade! I almost fainted, wondering if he was going to ask me if he could suck my blood!" She pretended to faint.

The older girl growled. "What did he want?" she tried again, pushing Hibari away from the keyboard.

The girl stood straight. "He wanted to see you," she said, "obviously."

Mimiko tapped an impatient finger. "Did he leave a name?"

Hibari thought for a moment. "No, not really. He just asked if you were here and left when we couldn't find you."

"He just left. Uh huh, right." She gave her junior a disbelieving look, sure that she'd made the whole thing up.

Hibari took a step back. "Honest, Mimiko! That's all he said! He didn't leave a name or anything. He just wanted to know if you were there. He did seem a bit weird though," she admitted after some more thought.

Mimiko glanced quickly at her face. "What do you mean? How?"

Hibari cocked her head to one side. "Well, he seemed a little nervous, anxious about something. Maybe he was in a hurry." She glanced at her watch, as if speaking about time had reminded her of something. "Oh no! I've got to go! Later Mimiko!" And she quickly ran out of the room.

Mimiko rubbed at one temple. That girl! But why would a strange vampire be asking about her? And why would he act nervous about it?

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Jiro inspected the welding around the door. He even used the Hide Hand against it, just enough to know that it had not been tampered with since the crew had sealed it the evening before. Finally satisfied, he stood from his crouch and headed back to the front of the building. He could already hear Kotaro's voice from out front, bubbly as usual as Rinsuke brought him home from Sei's house. Likely, the purple haired human would want to talk. He sighed, knowing it was inevitable.

"Welcome back, Kotaro," he smiled as he opened the door.

The young vampire launched himself at his older brother, a giant smile plastered across his face. The giant teddy bear he'd nicknamed Lord Bowwow was strapped to his back like a school bag. "Brother! You wouldn't believe how much fun I had!" And he proceeded to go into detail about the various goodies and games they'd had.

Rinsuke waved lightly as he watched the slightly surprised Silver Blade detach his younger brother so that they could go inside. "Long time, Jiro, darling" he called as he walked behind them, entering without real permission given. "Kain asked me to give you his regards." It was hard to get Rinsuke down, especially when he was always teasing his friends.

Jiro didn't turn around but used the Hide Hand to close the door behind everyone, with perhaps a bit more force than was necessary. "Is that so," he said without breaking stride. He kept his face neutral, even though part of him really enjoyed the fact that Rinsuke had jumped when the door closed.

Rinsuke trotted to keep up with the young Black Blood and his brother, Kotaro ahead of them all on his way to put his large bear down. "Jiro," he stopped halfway up the stairs, his tone more serious. "Can we talk for a moment?"

Jiro stopped and looked back, noting that his friend wasn't smiling now. In fact, his face was uncharacteristically serious. He took a step down and raised his eyebrows in question.

Rinsuke fidgeted a little. Kotaro's happy chirping could be heard in the silence as he zoomed around the upper level of the apartment. "There's something you should know but I don't think Kotaro should hear this."

Jiro folded his arms. "I'm listening."

Rinsuke tugged uncomfortably at his collar. "Well, you see, it has to do with Mimiko."

Jiro was almost instantly in his face, growling. He'd noticed something was off, though he hadn't had a real chance to ask about it, aside from what they'd discussed the night before. And with the attempted break in the other night… "What about Mimiko?!"

The purple-haired man tried to take a step back but couldn't. "Uh, Jiro, darling, you're standing on my foot. Could you…?" Jiro's expression instantly went contrite as he took a step back, Rinsuke wincing slightly as he let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you!"

"Now, what about Mimiko?"

He tried to clear his throat as he stare into the vampire's eyes. He blinked quickly, in case Jiro tried to Eye Raid him. "It's just that… Well…."

"Out with it, Rinsuke," Jiro almost snapped. "I'm losing my patience."

He leaned against the railing. "Well, Jinnai asked me to pass on that some strange Black Blood was asking about her at the office. I guess she'd already left for the day when he showed up, but he was acting very nervously, for some reason. At least that's what I'm told!" He put his hands up in defense as Jiro's expression darkened.

"No one seems to know anything about him," he continued quickly. "At least no one was able to accurately describe him. The testimonies are all mixed up, but Jinnai thought that you should know. He's not sure what to make of it himself, and as he did ask you to look after her…. Well, you know how it goes." He tried to shrug casually.

Jiro ground his teeth, fangs protruding. "Does Mimiko know about this?"

Rinsuke blinked a few times. "I… don't think so? At least they were all asked not to mention it," he added quickly. "Though some of them do have rather big mouths," he muttered to himself.

"BROTHER!"

Both vampire and human turned to look up to the top of the stairs where Kotaro was now calling down at them.

"I'm hungry! When's Mimi coming home?" The young vampire's eyes were large as he took in how close the two men were to each other, not to mention his brother's stance.

Jiro immediately made himself relax and smile. "I'm sure she'll be around fairly soon," he assured. "But, remember, she does work later now."

Kotaro blinked a few times. "Oh right. I forgot." He thought for a second. "Do you think she'd mind if I helped myself to something?"

Jiro looked back towards Rinsuke who shrugged. "Uh, I don't think that's a good idea," he replied. "You should wait."

Kotaro's face fell. "Aw! But I'm really, really hungry!"

Jiro sighed, rubbing near the bridge of his nose. "Can't you be just a little bit patient?"

Rinsuke put his hands up. "Don't look at me," he said as Jiro turned to him once more. "I've done all I came to do. I really should be getting back." He started to edge down the stairs. "Just don't do anything stupid! We don't know what he wants," he reminded. "And I don't think Jinnai wants her to know, at least not for now. Bye!"

"Brother!" Kotaro called again, distracting the older vampire long enough for Rinsuke to slip out the door.

Jiro's shoulders sagged. "Fine," he said in defeat. "I'll order something, but you'd better be extra nice to Mimiko when she gets home because she'll have had a long day."

"Kay!" And with that, Kotaro zoomed out of sight.

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Mimiko let out sigh of relief as she finally reached home. As if the day hadn't been long enough, one of her superiors, thankfully not Jinnai, had called her in on some errors she'd made in one of her reports. It had taken what seemed like for forever to fix it.

She slumped into the apartment, wondering what she could possibly make quickly for dinner. No doubt, everyone would be hungry. But there really wasn't much food in the house. She'd forgotten to go grocery shopping earlier. She paused as she took off her shoes at the top of the stairs and sniffed at the air. Was that teriyaki?

She let her tired senses drift with the aroma for about five seconds, then stopped abruptly. She could hear Kotaro's voice from the kitchen. Wait a minute! Was Kotaro trying to cook something? She dashed for the room. He couldn't be!

"Ah, Mimiko," Jiro's cheerful voice greeted her and she relaxed. Kotaro wasn't alone.

Kotaro jumped up from the table and threw himself at her, wrapping around her in a huge hug. "Mimi's home!"

The girl froze in surprise at the sudden attack, looking up at Jiro who merely shrugged.
"Kotaro complained of hunger earlier," he explained. "I didn't believe you would be too appreciative if he tore the kitchen apart to satisfy himself."

Mimiko shuddered at the thought, taking a quick look around to make sure everything was still in order. It was.

"We actually had them deliver twice," Jiro continued apologetically.

Her shoulders sagged as she noticed the takeout containers, not sure if she felt relieved or defeated. I'm such a terrible housekeeper, she scolded herself.

Kotaro pulled away and returned to his seat, brandishing his chopsticks. "It's really good," he smiled. "You should try some!"

The compromiser smiled weakly. "Thanks," she finally responded as she sat down, avoiding the table legs as best she could, still groaning a bit as her bruise complained.

"How's your knee tonight," Jiro asked cautiously as he passed a pair of chopsticks. It was obvious that she was stressed, and though he worried, he didn't want to add to that.

She put on a feigned smile. "Oh, you know. As good as new, unless I bang into something."

Jiro leaned forward slightly from his place across from her. "Would you like me to look at it again," he offered.

She clenched a fist under the table, marginally upset. "No, that won't be necessary. It'll go away in a few days anyway. Nothing to worry about."

He let it drop and they ate in silence for several minutes. Well, almost silence. Kotaro started chattering about his day happily. The sound of his voice fell into the background of both the Silver Blade and the compromiser's thoughts.

Mimiko began picking at her food, moving it around in the carton with her chopsticks. Jiro tried to watch her without seeming to, wondering if she'd been eating well lately but not bringing it up in front of his brother.

Kotaro stuck his chopsticks in his empty container and sighed happily. "That was good!" He looked around at the two adults still picking at their noodles. "Can I be excused," he asked.

Mimiko turned to him with a smile. "Of course. Why don't you go play with your bear for a while?"

"Yeah!" The boy jumped up again and zoomed towards the room he shared with Jiro, arms spread out like he was an airplane.

Mimiko dropped her chopsticks on the table. "Where does he get all that energy," she asked. "And so late in the day!" She sighed as she ran one hand through her hair. "Oh well. At least I have a chance to catch up on sleep tomorrow."

Jiro stood and began clearing the table while she fidgeted. "Another long day," he asked, picking up her discarded container.

She rubbed at her temples. "You could say that. I got called in on a mistake I'd made in my paperwork. Of course, it could have really been Hibari. She always likes to hover, making my work more difficult. It took forever to fix! But only because the supervisor wouldn't listen. I think I need a vacation."

Jiro swept the last few crumbs into his gloved hands. "I can always ask Jinnai for you," he offered.

"No," Mimiko replied as she got up. "It's fine. Tomorrow's a day off anyway, unless I get called in on something, which isn't likely." She smoothed her skirt. "Besides, with the potential of being called in to mediate, I doubt I'd get the time, not until they figure out what's going on, that is."

Jiro watched her as she headed to her room, probably to change out of her work uniform. He wondered if she knew about that vampire Rinsuke had mentioned. He frowned. Well, he couldn't bring it up unless he went against Jinnai's wishes. Jinnai was, after all, very protective about the girl, almost as protective as he was.

The sound of the shower brought him out of his reverie. She would probably take her time now. And he couldn't blame her. No one liked to be bawled out by a superior, no matter for what reason. He just hoped that was all the reason she felt the need to de-stress tonight. She hadn't eaten much, he realized. He'd have to talk to her about that after she was done with her shower.

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Mimiko let the water run down her body as she closed her eyes and turned her face into the warm stream. She'd come so close to telling him what Hibari had told her earlier that day. She wasn't entirely sure why she hadn't, or why she didn't feel like doing so either. Maybe she just didn't want Jiro to worry needlessly. After all, no one knew why the strange Black Blood wanted to see her. For all she knew, he was someone she'd helped settle a dispute with and he wanted to merely thank her, not as likely, but possible.

She put one hand against the wall. At least she would have the opportunity to sleep in as long as she wanted, to forget that she'd ever heard anything about it. She'd just pretend nothing had happened and go on as usual.

She opened her eyes, looking down at her purple knee. It didn't hurt as much today, well, not in the usual way, but it did ache. She wasn't sure if the hot water was making it ache more or if it was helping. But it was obvious that the purple had spread. She wouldn't be able to hide it with her skirt if it spread any further, something she knew would make Jiro worry. But it was just a bruise, albeit a good one. Oh well, there were worse things he could worry about, she decided.

She turned the water off and reached for her robe, wrapping it around her slight frame. The warm water had made her drowsy, but she had to make it back to her room before she let herself drift off, preferably changing into pajamas before then. She hated it when the robe twisted.

Not sure where Jiro was, mainly because he was usually just so quiet, she made a quick dash to her room, trusting that he was trying to keep Kotaro occupied while she de-stressed. She was in luck and made it safely to her room where she quickly dried off and put on a comfortable pair of sweats, forgoing a comb through her hair. In minutes, she was fast asleep under the covers.

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Jiro listened to the sound of Mimiko's breathing as he stared out into the night. It was well past midnight now. Supposedly, in a few weeks, their schedules would sync and he would officially become her "closer", the one who made sure everything went well during mediation, which generally meant keeping the compromiser safe and out of trouble. And from what he could tell, Mimiko really needed one. He had a lot of words for her about taking better care of herself.

It was true that since the battle with Cassa, Jinnai had tried to keep Mimiko out of the thick of things, something Jiro felt he owed him for. But he knew it wouldn't last forever. And, now with this strange vampire looking for her, he didn't know what to think. He'd have to keep a closer eye, he decided, and match his sleep schedule more to hers until hers became more like his usual one, something both he and Jinnai hoped for. Perhaps, though, Mimiko's human-ness would win in the end and Jiro would simply sync with her for however long he had left with her.

Chapter three


It was dark, too dark to distinguish the shadows from their counterpart objects, at least at first. Slowly, her eyes were able to focus and make out the difference. She whimpered, not sure what had woken her. A sound? A light? She pulled the covers up to her eyes and shivered. "Momma?"

The floor outside her room creaked as someone walked down the hallway. A second creak followed the first. Two people. Light shone through the crack at the bottom of her door, shadows moving back and forth. Low voices came through the light wood barrier, including some hissing. How many were out there?

Without knowing why, she realized that none of them were her parents. She quickly pulled her blankets all the way over her head, trembling under them. Why were there strange people in their house? Where was her mother?

The sounds stopped, the shadows no longer moving along the bottom of the door. She lowered the covers enough to see the door across from her. It began to open. The little girl cowered lower under the covers, knees drawn to her chest, breath coming fast. She had to peek.

A dark shadow crept into the room, low to the ground, slowly moving towards the bed, closer and closer.

The little girl's heart accelerated. Large tears streaked down her face as she shook, closing her eyes to hide. But when she opened her eyes again, the shadow was still there, moving forward, now rising from the ground and looming over her. Something glinted off the shadows.

She screamed.

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Loud footsteps pounded as Jiro ran to Mimiko's room, sword in hand. "Mimiko!" he yelled as he wrenched the door open, expecting the worst from her almost blood curdling scream. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darker interior of the room as he swept it with his eyes.

The girl was sitting up in bed, her shoulders heaving. The smell of the ocean and fear washed over Jiro's senses as he stared at her blank eyes. She clenched her covers in both hands, knuckles white. He could hear her heart racing. Another cursory sweep of the room told him that there was no physical threat present.

He placed his long katana against the wall, easily in reach if he needed it, and walked carefully into the room. "Mimiko," he called, his voice urgent but no longer shouting.
A large yawn came from the doorway and Jiro recognized the scent of his brother.

"Aaah! Brother," the young child said groggily as he stretched. "What's going on?" He stopped halfway into the room, blinking. "Brother, why does it smell like the ocean?"

Jiro stopped, turning to face the younger vampire. "It's all right, Kotaro. Mimiko just had a bad dream. You should go back to bed. It's nothing to worry about."

Kotaro nodded slightly, his eyelids sliding closed as he turned around. "Okay," he said. Jiro wasn't even sure if he was entirely awake as he watched him run into the doorway, correct himself, then disappear from sight. He waited a few more seconds until he was sure Kotaro had made it back to his bed before he moved over to the still unresponsive Mimiko.

Sitting on the bed next to her, he tried gently shaking her to snap her out of it but she continued to stare blankly ahead of her, breathing way too quickly, tears streaming down her face. "Mimiko," he called her again. "It's all right. You're safe. It's all right."

She shuddered at his touch, but it seemed to bring her back from whatever dream held her. "It was so real," she whispered. "Momma, it was so real." She turned into Jiro's shoulder, sobbing. Her blankets were pulled up, hands still clenching them.

Jiro hesitated. She obviously wasn't coherent or she'd have realized that her mother wasn't there. He knew that her mother was beyond reach for either of them. He didn't know the particulars, but had heard from Jinnai that he considered her his foster child and so had assumed that Mrs. Katsuragi had to have passed on some time ago, along with her father.

Without thinking about it, he put an arm around her slight shoulders, feeling each shudder of breath, each rapid beat of her heart. "Shhh," he said quietly. "It's all right, Mimiko. It was just a dream." He began to rock her gently, humming a rather melancholy melody he used to hum for Kotaro when he was very young.

Slowly, the compromiser's breath and pulse slowed, the tears to trickle off. Her grip on the blankets loosened as her head lulled against Jiro's chest. He looked down at her tenderly, gently moving her to lie back against her pillows. Her dark lashes brushed her cheeks, still slightly wet with tears. He pulled the blankets up around her, tucking her in, and bending down to kiss her forehead lightly. "Sleep well, Mimiko," he whispered. "No night demons will bother you will I keep watch."

She groaned slightly in her sleep, shifting to lay more on her side, slightly curl around him. He moved an errant strand of hair from her face. She was so fragile, so very fragile. In the distance, a clock struck the hour, three ringing chimes. Jiro sighed. He would get no sleep tonight.

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Kotaro sat coloring in the living room. The large crayons made satisfying lines on the large pad of paper Mimiko had bought specifically for him. Next to the small boy sat his giant bear, Lord Bowwow, silently watching his portrait being sketched in bright colors.
Mimiko yawned hugely as she came into the room, stretching her arms towards the ceiling as she came. She felt stiff all over, for some reason, though she wasn't sure why.

"Morning, Kotaro," she greeted the young vampire as she plopped down on the sofa to watch him.

Kotaro laughed happily as he held up his drawing. "What do you think," he asked, presenting it to her.

She took the drawing, studying it. The ten-year-old's scribbles were a fairly good depiction of his faithful companion, bow tie and all. "It's really good," she complimented, handing it back so he could color in some more areas.

She casually glanced at the clock, the hour hand just coming to rest on ten. "Goodness," she said in surprise. "I must have really been tired or something. Are you hungry, Kotaro?"

The little boy didn't look up from his coloring. "Nah, Brother and I had some cereal before he went to bed a couple hours ago. Guess he was out patrolling or something," he added importantly.

"Patrolling is it," she half asked as she got back up and headed to the kitchen. It wasn't uncommon for him to keep watch at night, but if he'd only gone to bed a couple hours ago, he sure had stayed up a long time, she reasoned. Not that she knew when he got up, as of late. She was usually still at work when that happened. Oh well.

Mimiko went directly to the corner where she stashed the cold cereal, surprised when she found it empty. The last box stuck conspicuously out of the trash. "Great," she muttered and put the kettle on instead, settling for some crackers until she made up her mind on something else. The cupboards were starting to get a little more bare than she cared for.
She stuck her head back into the living room. "I need to go to the store," she said. "Want to come with me?"

Kotaro contemplated. "Brother said he doesn't like it when you go off on your own," he mentioned innocently, recalling his conversation that morning before Jiro had gone off to bed. Apparently Jiro didn't want to let Mimiko out of his sight for a while, though he didn't understand why.

Mimiko placed both hands on her hips. "I won't be alone," she countered. "I'll be with you. Surely such a young, strong vampire as yourself can protect me." She smiled at him, with the usual quirk he loved.

He jumped up. "Course I can!" The crayon in his hand dropped to the floor. Wow, he thought. She called me strong! Surely brother won't mind if I'm there to protect her!
The kettle whistled in the background and Mimiko went to get it. "Just let me get ready first," she requested as she rescued the steaming water.

"Kay!" Kotaro called back happily. He went to put his crayons and paper away in his room. Jiro's coffin loomed in front of him as he pushed the door open. He stopped with a gulp. Would his older brother get mad if he found out?

"Surely such a young, strong vampire as yourself can protect me." Mimiko's words echoed in his ears.

He set his shoulders as he put the crayons and sketch pad away. He could handle this. After all, Mimiko thought him strong. What could go wrong?

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The grocery bags were heavy. The cupboards sure must have been empty, Kotaro thought as he strained under his share of the load.

Mimiko stopped with a smile, her simple jeans and t-shirt out of place with his usual view of her. "Here," she offered. "Let me take another bag. Mine are pretty light."

Kotaro clung to his bags protectively. If he surrendered even one of them, he couldn't call himself strong. And if he couldn't call himself strong, how could he protect Mimiko? "No thanks," he said. "I'm okay."

Mimiko rumpled his hair with the hand she'd freed to take the extra bag. "All right," she conceded with a laugh. "You really are quite strong."

Kotaro smiled proudly at that, beaming up at her as they started walking again.

It probably would have been faster to take a cab, the older girl thought, as she watched him valiantly hoisting his bags high up for better balance. But walking sure was nice on such a bright day. She was very glad that the sun didn't affect Kotaro the same way it did Jiro or the whole outing would have been ruined.

The two smiled and laughed over little things as they walked. Thankfully it wasn't too far back to the apartment. All the same, with the extra load of the groceries, it was taking longer than Mimiko had expected. They'd been gone for two hours already and she wondered if Jiro had woken by now or if he was still safely asleep.

The compromiser stopped abruptly, Kotaro running into her. Someone was blocking their path.

"Ouch," Kotaro complained as one of the many items jabbed into him. He looked around the girl's waist to see what was going on. "Mimi, what's wrong?" He looked ahead of them to see a male vampire standing in front of them, blocking their path.

Mimiko's face set into determined lines. "Excuse me," she said, annoyed, "but could you please move so we can pass?"

The vampire smiled, his fangs flashing in the light, dark hair hanging over his eyes. "Don't be like that," he said softly, a hint of mirth in his tone as he took a step forward.

Mimiko held her ground. "Please step aside," she said more firmly. "We'd like to pass."

The vampire laughed openly now. "What's the hurry?" He pulled his hands from his pockets. "It's a nice day."

Kotaro tried to not hide himself behind Mimiko's legs, shaking slightly as he stepped in front of her. "Mimiko asked you to move," he frowned.

The vampire looked down at him with a slight sneer. "What're you gonna do, small fry? Shoot a spit wad at me?"

The younger vampire grit his teeth, fists clenched around the shopping bags' handles. "You'd better move! Or… or else!"

Mimiko looked nervously down at her young charge, then back at the older vampire who was obviously leering at her. "Kotaro," she muttered at him. "This isn't a good time to-"

Kotaro turned to her. "Mimi, I promised I'd protect you! I'm no good as a man if I can't do that," he protested. His bright eyes shone earnestly up at her. If nothing else, he would certainly do his best to keep her safe, and she knew it.

The Black Blood laughed again, like he'd just heard the world's best joke. "That's funny! Why don't you run along home and leave me and your momma to talk about private stuff?" He took a few more steps closer, grabbing Mimiko by the arm.

Her eyes flashed. "Let me go!" She swung around her groceries around, hitting him square in the face as he bent towards her neck.

Almost immediately, Kotaro was banging his bags of groceries at the strange vampire as well. "Let go of Mimi!"

The compromiser wrenched her arm free from her assailant, jabbing her right knee up into his groin with all her strength just for good measure. "Run, Kotaro," she said breathlessly as she turned to go, slipping past the downed man with a lurch, adrenaline pumping.

Her young charge skirted the growling vampire as he followed her advice, following right behind her, running for all he was worth. After several blocks, they finally slowed down.

Mimiko's legs trembling, her breath coming hard. Looking behind her, however, she couldn't see any sign of the vampire who had accosted them.

Kotaro stood next to her, panting. "That was close! Mimi, are you okay?" He looked up at the older woman who was a little red in the face. "Maybe you should sit down," he offered.

Mimiko wobbled a little. "Maybe you're right." She looked around, finally settling for a set of stairs. Her knee throbbed.

Kotaro settled for standing. "I sure hope that guy didn't ruin our groceries," he commented.

Mimiko groaned. "Oh no!" She lifted one of her bags. A mass of fluid and shells filled the bottom. "The eggs!"

They were both suddenly cracking up, laughing so hard that tears were running down their faces. It took a good ten minutes for them to regain control of themselves.

Mimiko rubbed at her forehead. "Guess we need to go back for more eggs now," she said absently, almost setting off into another fit of giggling. She took a deep breath and leaned back against the stairs, covering her eyes with one hand. "What a day off," she sighed.

Kotaro shielded his eyes as well, looking to the sky to judge the time. "We should probably be heading back soon," he commented. "Brother'll probably be waking up before too long."

Mimiko sat back up with a sigh. "You're probably right. No time to go back to the market now."

Kotaro's stomach grumbled and he laughed nervously.

"I guess that means you'd probably like some lunch too," Mimiko said wryly.

The young vampire turned slightly red as he looked down in embarrassment. "Well, yeah." He looked shyly back up at her.

She set her feet firmly on the ground, gathering the bags in her hands. She made as though to stand, wincing as she put weight on the injured knee. She groaned and sat immediately back down. She clenched her teeth and her fists, eyes closed tightly for a moment. "Great. Just great," she muttered.

Kotaro watched her with wide eyes. "Are you okay, Mimi?"

"No! No, I'm not okay," she tried to not snap, causing him to cower. Her already abused knee throbbed. She turned her face to the sky once more, with a silent "why me" attached. It had started out as such a nice day too.

"My, my," a silky, not too deep voice interrupted her thoughts. "Mimiko Katsuragi and Kotaro Mochizuki. Who'd have thought I'd run into you here."

Mimiko looked up into the mocking eyes of Zelman Clock, the head of The Coven, as well as one of the main vampire voices in the Special Zone. "Zelman," she said in shock. "What are you doing here?"

The red-haired vampire grinned at her. "Oh, nothing out of the ordinary," he replied. "Just a lazy little stroll to keep me occupied."

Kotaro smiled shyly at the older vampire. Even though he knew his brother didn't like this Old Blood, he had found the vampire very informative and friendly. "Hello," he greeted in his usual little chirping voice

Zelman ruffled the young blonde's hair, giving him an almost brotherly smile. "I hope you're staying out of trouble," he lightly admonished, "though, judging from the state of your groceries, I might wonder." He looked pointedly at the bag of broken eggs.

"Just a small accident," Mimiko said briskly, trying to brush aside any implications he might be making. "We were about ready to be on our way. Right, Kotaro?"

The blonde nodded firmly, picking up on her tone. "Right."

Zelman laughed casually. "I assume that the ability to stand straight is a necessity to being on your way, or did I mistake your attempts at that just now?"

Mimiko's cheeks flamed. "That's none of your business!" She reached for the railing. "Come on, Kotaro. We're leaving." Using the railing as a support, she pushed to her feet, anger sustaining.

Kotaro jumped up beside her, grabbing up his bags "Uh, Mimi," he began but stopped at the expression on her face. He had a feeling Jiro wouldn't exactly be happy about any of this but what could he do?

Zelman eyed her wryly as she tried to prove him wrong. Red Bloods were so amusing, and this one in particular. He leaned against the opposite railing, arms folded, content to see how far she could get.

Mimiko's anger sustained her for about three steps before the pain broke through her concentration. But still trying to prove the older Black Blood wrong, she continued another step before her leg gave out under her and she went down with a crack. She gasped, turning as white as a sheet, and bent over.

Zelman's eyes widened in surprise, his mouth slightly open. Then he let out a low chuckle. "Always so stubborn," he said under his breath as he pushed away from the railing.

Kotaro dropped his groceries and ran to Mimiko's side. Trying to be helpful, but not really knowing what he could do to help, he patted her back. "Mimi," he looked at her with big, worried eyes, "are you okay?"

She wasn't sure if she dared answer or not. The answer should have been obvious, she thought, but Kotaro stared at her with such large eyes that she had to say something or they'd pop out. "No," she hissed through her teeth so that only he could supposedly hear. "Not really."

Zelman lit a cigarette with a snap of his fingers, watching the girl and young vampire with amusement. Would she try to stand again or would she admit defeat? One thing for sure, Mimiko was one tough cookie. Maybe that was part of the reason her liked her, for her spunk. Or was it because her mother and he had once been friends?

Kotaro fluttered, making worried noises as he tried to figure out what he could do to help because patting her back obviously wasn't much help at all. In the back of his mind, he could see his brother giving him evil looks, maybe even punishing him for letting her go without him being there. "What can I do? What can I do? Brother'll be so mad!"

Well, it looked like she'd given up, Zelman decided as he took another drag, then flipped the butt to the ground. Ah well, she was a Red Blood, after all. "Kotaro, let's go," he ordered as he stepped forward. "Leave the groceries. They probably won't do anyone any good now."

Kotaro looked up questioningly, blinking his confusion. "Why? Mimi can't walk." He jumped as a thought crossed his mind. "You don't intend to leave her here, do you?!"

Zelman didn't pause to answer as he took the remaining steps to the two huddled people and scooped Mimiko up into his arms.

Mimiko cried out in surprise and alarm. "What do you think you're doing?! Put me down!"

Zelman just chuckled as he shifted her to rest more comfortably in his arms, knees over one arm, back supported by the other. "Let's go, Kotaro," he called again as he started off.

Kotaro quickly got up and trotted to keep up with the long stride of the older vampire. His eyes remained wide and he occasionally tripped as he tried to keep his eyes on Mimiko and Zelman.

"Put me down," Mimiko tried again. She tried to struggle but stopped as fire shot up her leg, causing her to gasp.

Zelman smiled knowingly down at her. "You might not want to try that again," he smirked. "Don't worry. I'm not going to eat you. I just have the strong suspicion that the Silver Blade would be less than happy if I didn't bring you home in one piece." With that, he looked away, a slight frown creasing his face. What would Jiro do when he did bring Mimiko back? Probably fly off the handle, knowing him. He wondered if he'd have the chance to explain. Oh well. Either way would be amusing.

"Why don't you just call a cab," Mimiko asked impatiently. Her thoughts ran similar to Zelman's. What would Jiro think of Zelman bringing her back, carrying her across the threshold like a bride? Just thinking about it made her blush. She was too young to be treated like that!

Zelman didn't look down again, keeping his eyes focused on what was ahead. "Because, compromiser, I'm not taking you home just yet."

Kotaro stopped in shock. Mimiko could only drop her mouth in surprise, unable to say anything. "But…" Kotaro's lip quivered. "But… Brother…?"

Zelman stopped, looking back and let out an exasperated sigh. "I'm not looking for a fight with your brother, Kotaro," he said seriously. "Did you really think I'd return Mimiko in the state she's in?" He tisked. "So he'll have to wait a little longer to have his compromiser back. It won't hurt him. But I'd have other people to answer to as well if I let matters lie as they are now."

Both boy and compromiser looked up at his face questioningly. "What do you mean," Mimiko finally asked, hesitantly.

Zelman shrugged and continued walking. "Never mind. I doubt you'd understand anyway. But just so that there's no more questions about where I'm taking you, I'm sure you'd at least like to know how much damage you've inflicted upon yourself."

"The hospital?" Mimiko blinked in surprise.

Zelman let out a hint of a grin once more so that his fangs showed. "Where else?"

Mimiko gulped as his smile widened.

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Kotaro swung his legs from the chair he sat on, hands on his knees as he tried not to fidget. This was definitely taking longer than he thought it should. He could just imagine Jiro doing all kinds of horrible things to him when he got back. The very thought made him tremble. After all, he'd let Mimiko talk him into going out without his older brother.

Zelman blew out another bout of smoke, ignoring the disapproving looks of several nurses in the area. "And you're sure that's everything that happened," he asked as he leaned casually back in his chair.

The young vampire nodded. "Brother's going to be so mad at me! It's all my fault!"

The red head took another pull on his cigarette. "Hardly," he countered. "Once things are properly explained… Well, I'm more interested in that vampire you encountered anyway." He stared ahead, thinking. Something definitely wasn't adding up right. Why would two different vampires go after the compromiser? Surely the dark haired girl didn't have many enemies, at least not that he knew about.

"Hmmm," he mused, only mildly noticing Kotaro as he wiggled in his chair in obvious misery. He stood abruptly. "I'll be right back," he promised as he headed towards the exit.

Kotaro watched him go with surprised eyes. What was that all about, he wondered.

Chapter Four

Jiro woke to red silk and silence all around him. For a moment, he allowed himself to just lie there, thinking. Then he realized that it was too quiet for a day when Mimiko did not work and Kotaro wasn't off playing. He thrust out of his coffin and immediately headed towards the kitchen. Out of the corner of his eye, he noted the time, a little past four o'clock.

"Kotaro. Mimiko," he called but didn't get any answer. A piece of paper fluttered from the counter, Mimiko's scent of ginger and oranges coming from it. He quickly crossed over and picked it up.

Gone to the market. Kotaro's with me. Don't worry. Be back soon. - Mimiko

He crumpled the paper up in his hand, his eyes hard. What was that woman thinking? And hadn't he told Kotaro not to let her go off without him being there with them? He smoothed the paper out again, reading every word carefully. He wondered how long ago it had been written. Judging from how faint her scent was, at least an hour, possibly more. A lot could happen in one hour.

Anger burned through him. Couldn't Kotaro ever do as he was told? He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to contain the anger, his other hand tight in a fist. And how could Mimiko go out and about as if nothing had happened when she'd woken in the middle of the night screaming, not to mention everything else that had been going on? He regretted not telling her what Rinsuke had passed on. Maybe if he had, she wouldn't have gone off without him.

Mimiko. He released his nose to stare thoughtfully into the room. Something was obviously bothering her. The nightmare, her small appetite the night before, being overly tired the past few days, all pointed to that. But what was bothering her? And why was she being so stubborn about hiding it?

He remembered the sound of abused metal being bent in the middle of the night, warning off the culprit. Rinsuke's confession that someone was looking for the compromiser, someone who acted overly nervous about it. Even Jinnai was worried.

Jiro's mouth twisted down into a rigid frown as he strode over to the door that separated the apartment from the stairs to the main level. He slid into his long coat, hat firmly placed on his head, and reached for his katana. He was going after them, and so help anyone who had done anything to her.

He was just about to storm down the stairs when the main door opened and he could hear voices, along with a very peculiar double-tapping noise that he couldn't immediately place. It was almost metallic in sound and very out of place. But the voices were familiar, the younger voice chirping a bit anxiously at something the older female voice had said.

Kotaro appeared first, carrying some heavy bags with him, straining slightly under the load. He turned to look behind him, almost anxiously, Jiro thought.

Jiro found that he couldn't move as he also waited to see what Kotaro was looking at. His mouth opened in surprise as Mimiko entered on crutches. What the…?! His initial instinct was to rush down the stairs and take her up into his arms, demanding an explanation, but his movements were further arrested by the sound of another voice, a male voice. He gave a low growl.

Zelman walked through the doorway, several bags in his hands as well. "Where would you like me to put these," he asked with a far too carefree voice, putting them on the ground without any direction.

Jiro saw red, literally. "ZELMAN!!!" Before he'd even thought about what he was doing, he had drawn his sword and was charging down the stairs.

"AH!" Kotaro cried out and jumped out of the way, dropping his bags in the process.

Mimiko saw Jiro launch himself, murder in his eyes, and quickly planted herself right in his path, crutches firmly under her arms. "JIRO! DON'T!!!" She spread her arms wide to block him.

The silver katana brushed past her face, cutting a few strands of her hair as it flared out with the sudden breeze. The blade stopped with the hilt just past her right ear to point directly at Zelman's heart.

"Get out of my way," Jiro growled through his teeth. "I'll kill him! I'LL KILL HIM!"

But Mimiko didn't move, standing her ground, arms still spread as she tried to balance on one leg. "It's not what you think, Jiro," she pleaded, tears pricking at her eyes. "Please!"

Zelman didn't so much as flinch, the blade less than an inch from his chest. "Quite a feisty girl you've got there, Silver Blade," he said with a mischievous smile. "I think I'm beginning to really like her."

Jiro swore. "Damn you, Zelman. What did you do to her?!" He scowled over the compromiser's head, his eyes darker than pitch.

"Brother," Kotaro spoke up hesitantly but was waved aside by Jiro. He cowered at the expression given him.

Zelman laughed lightly. "Do? Absolutely nothing!" He pushed the tip of the blade away from him with one finger. "At least, not in the way you're thinking." He folded his arms with a smirk.

The katana began to shake in Jiro's grasp, the point wavering.

"You might want to put that away," Zelman commented. "It would really be a shame if you were to accidentally cut her."

One of Mimiko's crutches fell to the floor, distracting the enraged vampire. But she didn't dare reach down to retrieve it. She was the only thing standing between Jiro and Zelman and she would not have Jiro kill someone when there was no justified reason for it. "Jiro, please," she said quietly, her face turned to the ground, not daring to look into his rage filled eyes.

Jiro checked himself. Seeing the expression on her face, his sword wavered, then fell away from her to land by his side, still exposed, but no longer threatening either her or the red-haired Black Blood.

Kotaro clambered back from his hiding place, seeing some reason return to his brother's eyes. "It really wasn't Zelman's fault," he faltered. "Honest! Blame me! Cuz I'm the one who didn't do what you told me to!" He cringed; bracing himself for the clobbering he knew was coming.

Jiro sighed, his blade echoing the sound as it slid back into the sheath near his waist. "Kotaro," he began but was cut off.

"If you want to get angry at anyone," Mimiko broke in, "get mad at the vampire who waylaid us. Zelman only helped." She took an involuntary step back at the sudden change of expression on Jiro's face, almost tripping over the fallen crutch.

Zelman steadied her from behind, noting that Jiro wasn't exactly in a position to be reasonable. "Don't worry," he said companionably. "I sent a few of my men to find him. I almost pity the vampire though," he laughed. "Judging from what I've been told, he won't be getting too far."

Jiro tapped the end of his sword irritatedly. "You might want to explain yourself," he warned, fangs clearly showing against his frown.

Zelman's cell phone rang. He looked down at his pocket in surprise, then pulled out the device. "Excuse me," he said with a raised finger, then answered the call, totally ignoring Jiro's glare. "Sayuka," he greeted with a frown. He was silent for a full minute while Jiro ground his teeth. "I'll be right there," he said, then flipped the phone closed, turning to leave in the same movement.

"Zelman!" Jiro took an angry step forward.

The red head waved absently. "Sorry, Silver Blade, Compromiser. I have some pressing business to attend to. My apologies." He strode out the door and was gone.

Mimiko let her arms drop to her side, the left banging into her crutch with a slight ping as she let out her held breath.

Jiro stared out the still open door, warring with himself. He really wanted to go after that bastard, tear him limb from limb. The red haze in his eyes only encouraged him to do just that. But everything was suddenly put back into focus as he heard Mimiko gasp.

She was dangling a little precariously, clinging to one crutch as she reached for the other, desperately trying not to fall over in the process.

Jiro sighed. "Allow me," he said courteously, and helped her back up, reaching for the recalcitrant object as he did so. That act brought his face closer to her knee and he started in surprise at the sturdy brace now wrapped around it. "Mimiko…"

The compromiser snatched the crutch from him and firmly put it under her arm, hobbling quickly towards the stairs. "I'm fine," she snapped. "Kotaro, grab the groceries."

Jiro stood in shock for about five seconds, long enough for Kotaro to jump up and grab the closest bags to him, edging nervously around his brother. The tap, tap of the crutches woke him back to reality and he turned to instantly stand just behind her as she struggled up the stairs. "Mimiko."

Mimiko grunted with the effort of navigating upwards. "What, Jiro?" She stopped to rest, leaning ever so slightly against the railing to her left. She'd never get used to using those ridiculous things, she moaned.

He stared at the gentle curve of her shoulders, noting how they were hunched forward. Her hands clenched the rests between the two metal parts of each crutch, elbows locked as she held herself up. He could feel the anger and frustration rolling off of her, though he wasn't entirely sure where it was directed. "Would you like me to carry you," he finally asked.

"No." Her tone was sharp and definite. "I can do it. I'm not an invalid, you know."

Jiro's lip quirked at the irony and he had to resist the urge to laugh. What was it about her that caught him off guard and set him more at ease when he least wanted? It was completely irrational. He wasn't sure that he understood it.

Mimiko's grunting broke him from the thought as she struggled up a couple more stairs.

She certainly was something, he decided. Not entirely all grit, but definitely stubborn and firmly set in her ways. And yet so completely innocent and vulnerable.

Kotaro tried to sneak past both of them, lugging the groceries with him. The stairs were just barely wide enough for him to scoot past the struggling compromiser, and it wouldn't have been a problem if her crutch hadn't slipped on the stair in an attempt to not get his foot.

Before Mimiko could even register that she was trying to place her weight on air, she found herself in Jiro's arms, back to his chest, crutches dangling from her hands. She let out a sound of surprise.

Kotaro scurried up the last few stairs. "Sorry!" He apologized as he disappeared towards the kitchen, clearly intent on hiding from his brother, grocery bags banging behind him.

Mimiko's heart skipped a few beats and the grip on her supports loosened. They dropped from her fingers, sliding down the stairs with a lot of jarring clacks and bangs. The next second, she found herself swept up into the same position Zelman had used to carry her earlier that day. She was too surprised to say anything as he carried her up the remaining stairs, then gently set her on the couch, feet resting on the cushions as he slipped her shoes off.

Taking one of several smaller cushions, Jiro used it to prop up Mimiko's right knee so that wouldn't strain in the brace. He then placed the other small cushions behind her back. Sure that she was safe for the moment; he went to retrieve the crutches,.

"Thank you," the girl stammered as Jiro returned, setting the metal supports next to the sofa where she could easily reach them. The entire process had taken less than two minutes.

Pulling another chair closer to her, he sat down. He looked at her critically, comparing her current state to her usual one. The shadows were back under her eyes, he noticed. And she looked a little too pale. Then there was the brace, possibly little better than a cast. It looked like she'd had a busy day.

Mimiko watched the emotions scrolling across his face. He probably had a million questions he wanted to ask her, though she didn't know that she was in the mood to answer them. Sure, the day had started out all right, but, like the last few before it, it had turned out to be a lot longer than she'd wanted.

Jiro put his head in his hands, elbows on his knees. "Mimiko," he said quietly, almost imploring. "What were you thinking?! I asked Kotaro to make sure you didn't leave the house without me and I wake to find you coming home with Zelman Clock, and injured! Why do you do this to me?"

She blinked in surprise. Of all the questions he could ask, that wasn't the one she'd expected. She'd half expected him to go off about the vampire that had attacked her on the way home. Obviously Zelman was first on his mind. "It's not like I went out to find trouble on purpose," she retorted with less heat than she might have used earlier.

He looked up at her through his ebony bangs, expression pained. "Mimiko, do you have any idea of how worried I was?" It was evident on his face, his voice strained as he spoke.

She blinked at him in surprise. "But I just went out for groceries," she exclaimed. "I even left you a note so that you wouldn't worry!"

He took her right hand in his, caressing her palm with his gloved fingers, tracing the creases between her fingers. Inside, he was debating on whether or not he should tell her about the vampire who was looking for her at work. It would be easier to express his concerns if he did.

Absently, he turned her hand over, massaging the back portion below her wrist. He stopped abruptly, leaning in closer to look, his expression intent.

Mimiko gave him a strange look, wondering what was going through his mind. His mood kept changing on her and she had no idea why. "Jiro?"

He pulled her hand slightly closer, then pointed at a discolored section on her wrist. "Mimiko, what is that?"

The compromiser sat up to look for herself. "Another bruise, I guess," she hazarded. "That's where that vampire grabbed me before we got away. I didn't notice it before."

Jiro gently lay her hand back down, then looked intently into her eyes. She was immediately entranced by the intensity of his gaze, not even sure what expression he now wore. "I need to know exactly what happened," he said firmly. And without realizing it, she was telling him everything that had happened since she got up that morning.

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Zelman leaned wearily against the back of his favorite couch, one hand to his temple. This was all giving him such a headache, he decided. Why couldn't all vampires be rationally chaotic like he was? Just plain chaotic was causing problems.

He held up the reports Sayuka had brought him, once again amazed at her details and sleuthing skills. There was a lot of information missing that he definitely would have liked, but what she had managed to pull together in so short a time was definitely worth applauding.

A face peered up at him from the top sheet, vampire, male, around his early twenties in appearance, closer to sixteen in vampire years, still fairly young, as far as Zelman was concerned. But still such a force to be reckoned with, and accosting a compromiser in broad daylight. Granted, Mimiko hadn't been wearing her uniform, but it did seem that the vampire had known exactly who she was when questioned. Unless Sayuka had gotten something wrong, which was less than likely. It was a pity that the Coven boys had been so rough him with.

He tapped his knee with an errant finger. Two different people seeking out the same compromiser. And he'd heard rumors of someone trying to break into the compromiser's apartment, another fragment of information Sayuka had extracted from a repair team sent to fix the damage. But why were they after Mimiko Katsuragi of all people?

"Sayuka," he called and the woman who served as his personal assistant stepped out of the shadows. "I need to know if there's any kind of connection between these three incidents. Even the smallest piece of information or gossip will be helpful. I must know why she's being targeted."

Sayuka bowed, her glasses sliding slightly down her nose. "Of course, Lord Zelman." She turned to go.

Zelman leaned forward slightly. "And Sayuka, don't let the Silver Blade or anyone in the Company find out you're looking." He watched the light brown-haired woman incline her head before she opened the doors to the hall. He leaned back against the couch once more. He just hoped his suspicions weren't valid.

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Jiro paced the kitchen. Half of him wanted to go out right that moment and hunt down the vampire that had hurt Mimiko. The other half of him wanted to stay by her side, protecting and watching over her.

He still couldn't believe it had happened. Three times was far too many for mere coincidence. And he still didn't know the contents of her nightmare from the previous night. He couldn't help but wonder if it hadn't somehow been triggered subconsciously by the stress she was under. Would she be able to sleep at all tonight, he wondered in anger.

He stopped, remembering why he'd escaped into the kitchen in the first place. He needed to calm down. And he needed to get a glass of water for Mimiko, a far simpler task. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or not by learning just how badly she'd been hurt. At least it wasn't an outright break. But with a bruised and slightly chipped bone, it would certainly be painful and take some time to heal.

"I won't leave her side," he vowed. "Even if it means that I have to be the world's strictest guardian." He clenched his fist as he silently vowed that he would catch the vampire responsible for this and personally kill him.

He could hear Mimiko's cell phone ringing, bringing him, once more, back to reality. He was supposed to be getting a glass of water. But he had to regain control of himself again. He breathed in deeply, eyes closed, then exhaled.

----------------------------

Mimiko hung up the phone with a sigh of relief as Jiro reentered the room, carrying the promised glass of water. She was mildly curious about why it had taken so long, but seeing his face more composed gave her the answer.

"Thank you," she said as she took the offered glass with one hand and tried to open a bottle of pain pills with the other.

He gently took the bottle from her and opened it. "How many," he asked casually.

She glanced up into his eyes briefly, then looked away. "Two, I think," she responded, not sure why he was asking.

"Hmmm," he mused, quickly scanning the information printed on the side, then handed her two white pills, pocketing the bottle. At least she'd gone with the designated dose. If she'd asked for more, it would only prove to him how much pain she really was in, not that she was prone to abusing drugs.

She took the pills gratefully, downing them with the entire contents of the glass, then slumped back against the cushions. "Thank you, Jiro," she breathed. "Hopefully they'll kick in soon."

"Who was on the phone," he asked while taking his vacated seat.

Mimiko closed her eyes. "Jinnai," she sighed. "He heard about what happened today so he's giving me a whole week off." She blinked, looking up at him again. "He didn't sound too happy."

I can imagine why, Jiro mused. "Remind me to thank him next time we meet," he requested with a touch of irony in his tone. He wasn't exactly giving her a vacation, but at least it was time off, and a more convenient way for him to keep an eye on her.

"Sure," she conceded, eyelids drooping once more. "Sorry," she said slowly. "So… tired…" She yawned.

"It's all right," he assured her. "You have the right to be tired. Sleep, Mimiko. I'll wake you in a few hours so you can eat something." He'd force feed her if he had to. She definitely wasn't eating properly.

"Thanks," she replied as she drifted, the powerful pain medication starting to kick in on her mostly empty stomach. It only took a few minutes for her to be completely out.

Jiro retrieved a blanket and tucked it around her, then headed back to the kitchen. "Kotaro," he called firmly. "Come out here, please. I need to talk to you." He clearly heard his younger brother gulp from the bedroom.