Vision

“Hey! You look like a mummy!” I teased my sister, right after wrapping a bandage around her face.

“Hey! Don't make fun of her like that!” Rio scolded me, but the three of us ended up laughing.

After taking care of her injury for a while, we wrapped it up, both literally and figuratively.

“See? Good as new,” I commented.

Rio put a hand on Yukina's head, stroking her hair.

“Now go change your clothes and get ready for bed, okay?” she said, almost like a mother.

“Okay...”, my sister grumbled, grumpy as usual.

“You have a knack for these things, Dee,” I said, as my sister left the scene again, taking the first aid kit with her. “I never asked you. Do you have any siblings?”

“No, no... It's just me,” she replied, almost melancholically.

"I see... Well, then it's even more to your credit. You're so careful," I commented, trying to praise her in my own way.

With just the two of us there at that moment, the moonlight and the cityscape seemed to place us at the center of a stage, in a large amphitheater.

“Hey, Samuel... A quick question,” she asked for my attention.

“Yes?” I let her speak.

“Are you a fool or what now?” she asked.

“What?” I was embarrassed, without reaction, and without an answer.

“I mean... Are you seriously thinking of destroying the photo after burying Cubas?” she rephrased. “And going back to living in blissful ignorance?”

“Well...” I tried to think up an appropriate reply.

"The way I see it, it's a gift that we've been blessed with knowledge of the Apparitions. And with such power, too... It's something beyond all possible and imaginable expectations for our future. It's something greater than our preconceived notion of humanity ever thought of. It's magic, real magic. And magical creatures. The power of imagination, of fantasy, in the palm of our hands. And you want to throw that away? Why!? I can't, I can't understand..." she revealed her feelings, and I couldn't help but see myself in that same situation.

“Oh, come on, seriously... It's your turn to obsess over this stuff, huh? Over the power. The greatness. The freedom. The first two days as an apparition are really tough, you know? But you learn to subside the exhilaration,” I told her.

“What!?” she reacted, raising her voice a little, clearly showing her indignation.

“You know, when I fought Akashi on equal terms for the first time... I felt incredible. After all, who wouldn't be euphoric after fighting on equal terms against a centuries-old and extraordinarily powerful vampire?” I told her. “But it means absolutely nothing. A vampire, or a photographed one... It's like Franz Kafka's cockroach. It will only bring isolation. Distance. Loneliness. I am human. Regardless of the metamorphosis that may occur in life, I will remain human," I explained my views on the matter.

“What makes you human, Akito?” she asked, indifferent, as if I were some kind of lunatic. “You don't die. You don't need to eat or drink water. Or sleep,” she pointed out.

“Yeah, that part's true,” I agreed. "But is a baby not a baby until it breastfeeds for the first time? Or sleeps for the first time? Our needs aren't what make us human,“ I argued. ”And what's more, is a human only human after they die? Or after they are fatally wounded? That's crazy."

“I... I don't know anything anymore...” she confessed, staring at the floor, her head bowed. "You don't suffer. You have no worries. You are free. To be human is to suffer!" she argued.

“Well, I admit that suffering does happen to babies from birth... Our arrival in the world is suffering for us, while our departure is usually suffering for others,” I pointed out. “However... Who says I don't suffer? Who says I don't yearn? Who says I don't get frustrated?” I asked her.

“But, come on! Nothing in the world can make you suffer! You are untouchable... And only you can decide to die, voluntarily. You are not limited by the constraints of time, weakness, mortality... And yet, you want to abandon all that?” Rio continued to ask me.

“Death isn't the only bargaining chip you have in life, you know? I may be less fragile since the photograph, but... Didn't you yourself say that I'm more human now?” I asked.

“You, maybe... But what about me? Is it wrong for me to be happy that I've been turned into a vampire? That I'm no longer human?”, she needed to know.

“You're a silly one, aren't you? Just by needing to know that, you're demonstrating your humanity. You're still the same Rio Igarashi, human. You're just in a different body,” I argued.

“So...” she tried to start talking, but I interrupted her.

“Will humans cease to be human when they learn to implant their consciousness into robots? I don't think so. They will still be human. They will just be that and something else at the same time,” I concluded my reasoning. “Just like you, and just like me, and just like Akashi, this very moment.

“And in a hundred years, when we no longer have families? When we become completely separate from human society?” she insisted.

“Do hermits cease to be human? What about eskimos? And corpses, Rio, do they cease to be human?” I asked her, knowing she would understand.

“But…” she tried to think of an argument.

“Can a human being only be human in function of others? Isn’t it possible to be human alone?” I argued.

“If no one can observe your humanity, how do you expect to be human?” she replied.

“Tell me something, Birdie. Are you worried? For your family? For mine? For Yukina?” I asked.

"You know, Aki...", Rio sighed. "At home, my father once told me… He was very grateful that I was so independent, so self-sufficient", she explained. "That day, I think, something was taken from me. A fundamental right of what it means to be human. Fragility, maybe. You, for example. You were fragile, and you lost that part of your humanity because of the Camera. I had already lost that long, long before I got involved with Apparitions", she explained, melancholically.

“I always thought that... You were proud. Of being independent, of being good at everything…”, I commented.

"What seemed like pride to you was just loneliness in disguise… Back in our school days, you were the only one who crossed that barrier. Now, this may sound corny to you, but... There was an implicit intimacy when you tapped me on the back, and I knew it meant you wanted me to adjust my posture, so that you could see my answer sheet better", she replied.

"I... I felt the same way. About the tests", I told her.

"And, just then, I finished school before you did. I do know that having you use me to get better grades wasn't exactly a healthy kind of relationship, but... It was what I had. Afterwards, I realised I had no future”, she sighed again. “Rather, I could have whatever future I wanted. But I still had nothing", she then corrected herself.

"What do you mean, nothing?!", I asked, indignant.

"It's simple, really. I looked ahead, and I saw nothingness. That's why I hate it when people say they're doing nothing. I know what nothing really looks like. It's an abyss. I felt like I could be following any path, any one that matched my ambition. However, I couldn't see a thing. I had no idea how to walk a path. I was like a baby, who hadn't even learned to walk, because I’d always gotten where I wanted to go without putting in any effort," she elaborated.

“Rio…”, I had no reaction other than to call her by her name.

“Maybe that's the price you pay for being such an independent, capable person. No one sees that you need help, advice, or affection. You carry the weight of life on your shoulders, and you do it so well that no one even thinks of splitting it with you. I hated that. I hated everything. I always said that I loved college because that’s what I was supposed to be doing. Then, I decided to go after you, that night at the temple. Worst case scenario, I would explode with you. A romantic suicide, as Osamu Dazai would have loved to see. At least I wouldn't be alone anymore," she concluded.

“You bloody idiot!” I shouted. “The future exists, whether you like it or not! Whether you're in it or not!” I insisted. "The future isn't something to have, to possess. You'll never be able to hold it in your hands, so give it up! When it gets to you, it won't be called the future anymore. It will be called the present, and it will be totally different from what it was, or what it could have been. It always is,“ I argued. ”Why do you worry so much? Live a little, damn it! You've become immortal... Haven't you even learned how to live yet!?" I asked.

She, in turn, stared at me silently and sat down on the low stone wall in front of my house, still staring at the ground.

“Is it wrong? That I want to continue like this forever?” she asked, reiterating her previous question.

“There's no right or wrong, Rio. Things won't stay the same forever, whether you want them to or not. And even so, you'll continue living. If one day I'm no longer here, someone else will be. And if I am, great! It'll be another day for us to share our thoughts, in this attempt to understand this crazy world we live in,” I said resolutely.

“I...” she began to say, and I interrupted her again. Frankly, I wanted to tell her so many things right there and then…

“Are you worried that I'll cease to be immortal? Now that you are immortal too? Don't worry. Being a mortal doesn't mean I'm going to die tomorrow, you know. And, by the way, I haven't made a final decision yet. For now, I'll continue to be the exact same Akito Itabashi. Identical to the day you met me at the mall, literally," I tried to reassure her, and sat down next to her.

“Good... Because I like this Akito”, she leaned her head on my shoulder, still melancholic.

“Don't worry. I'll make you like the next ones too. The Akito of tomorrow, and the one after tomorrow,” I told her, resting my cheek on her head.

“Okay...” she said softly.

“Honestly... And then you go and complain that you can't be fragile,” I teased her a little, affectionately.

“Hey... Could you...,” she began to say, softly.

“Blood?” I asked her directly.

“Blood,” she replied, assertively.

“Go ahead. You're already leaning on my neck anyway...” I turned my head slightly to expose my jugular vein to her.

“... Thank you, Aki,” she thanked me, and I felt in my heart that her voice wasn't just talking about the blood.

“You're welcome,” I replied briefly, letting her feed.

And, just as we had started, we stayed there for a few moments.

“... Hey,” I called Rio's attention.

“Yes?” she said, her mouth still on my neck.

“Isn't it a little weird?” I asked.

“What is?” she continued talking with her mouth full.

“That Akashi agreed with us splitting up. After all, even if Braz Cubas knows how to hide his presence... The other apparitions hardly knew, and he could supposedly sense that they weren't the Dry-Corpse,” I argued.

“Ah...” Rio sighed, taking her mouth off my neck and wiping her lips with her wrist, as if cleaning herself after a meal. “It's kind of weird, isn't it?” she agreed, looking me in the eyes.

“He seems a little inconsistent at times... You know? He didn't tell me the truth about the apparitions at first, and he wasn't honest about his own powers either... Who is he, anyway?” I asked into the void.

“Who knows...” the vampiress shrugged, calmer after her feast.

“He said he has a relatively long history with Cubas,” I commented. “His master guarded the tomb before him, and he took over guarding it...”, I added.

“Yeah... Did he tell you what happened the day I photographed you?” Rio asked.

“I found out during the fight against Toshiki. He went partying, and got drunk...,” I said.

“And he missed Braz Cubas' resurrection,” Rio added.

“And he lost the camera, too,” I chimed in.

“Yeah…” Rio shrugged again.

“Have you ever thought about it, Dee?” I asked.

“What?” she didn't get what I meant.

“That our lives have changed, beyond recognition... Because of something so stupid? Because of a vampire being irresponsible with alcohol?” I explained. “It wasn't fate, or anything grand. It was just a mistake, someone's mistake, which had consequences, both good and bad.”

“It's true, isn't it? That's why I think it would be impossible to truly predict the future,” she said.

“Yeah...” I let that be the end of the subject.

“You know... I think he blames himself,” Rio commented. “Akashi, that is”.

“How so?” I asked, wanting to know more.

“From the way he talked to me while you and Yukina were going to school this morning... Well, you and your sister are, technically, just children. I consider myself an adult, but I'm not so different from you in his eyes, she explained.

“That's obvious. He's a centuries-old man, after all...,” I interrupted her briefly.

“Of course, but... What I mean is... In his perspective, it’s as if he and Cubas were two adults fighting each other, and Akashi's own irresponsibility dragged three — in this case, four — children, who had nothing to do with the matter, into the middle of the fight,” she explained.

“And one of the children lost his life because of it...” I added, thinking of Toshiki.

“Exactly. He sees himself as responsible for us, regardless of how powerful or mature we are,” Rio summed it up.

“I've already told him to stop trying to carry the world on his shoulders...” I mentioned.

“Isn't it a bit presumptuous of you to assume that we are his world? He-he,” she laughed.

“Pfffffft,” I couldn't help but laugh too. “You could say that,” I admitted.

“But oh well…”, Rio changed the subject. “It's a beautiful night tonight, isn't it?” She looked up at the sky and, inevitably, at the moon.

Enamored, I did the same as her, boldly allowing our hands to touch, since we were still sitting side by side.

For a moment, I contemplated the city. I also contemplated the mysteries that permeated the existence of apparitions.

Fantastic creatures, capable of using extraordinary magical abilities, and possessing unique properties that defied common sense and biology. Born from imagination, creativity, and humanity's intrinsic desire for fantasy.

It was really fantastic, if you want to know.

And the vampire next to me made this world even more unbelievable.

Even without saying anything, her very existence whispered in my ear for me to continue being immortal.

“Yes... The night is beautiful,” I said softly, staring at her instead of staring at the night.

“... I wish every night could be like this,” she whispered, holding my hand a little tighter.

“No two nights are the same,” I commented.

“Shall we invent Theseus' Night now?” she replied, jokingly. “Or the panta rhei of nights instead of rivers...”

“Who knows? He-he,” she laughed. “Have you ever thought about it? All the stars we've never seen because they died out before we were born,” I asked.

“And all the stars we'll never see, because they'll be born after we die...” she added.

“Well, in our case, it's not quite like that, is it?” I observed.

“Oh! That's true!” she was surprised by my answer.

“For now... I want to believe that it will be a pleasure to see the birth and death of stars with you,” I confessed.

“You darn romantic...” she whispered, and her hand slipped from mine, sliding down to my arm.

She hugged me from the side, resting her head on my shoulder.

I let my hand rest on her thigh, which was touching mine.

“Hey, Aki...” she called.

“Yes?” I let her speak.

“Your blood is... really tasty,” she said, embarrassed, lowering her voice with each word.

My cheeks flushed immediately.

“How do you know it's not blood in general that's tasty?” I asked, awkwardly and bewildered.

“Don't ask such rude questions!” she exclaimed, her cheeks turning pink as well. “I don't want to taste anyone else's blood!”

“Ha-ha...” I let out a shy laugh. “Thanks for the compliment, Dee”.

“Speaking of which...” she continued.

“Hm?”

“Can I get seconds?” she asked, her eyes locked on mine.

What a strange way to ask. For a moment, I considered telling her she didn't even need to ask.

“... Of course,” I finally replied.

There she was, again on my neck. Her fangs, cold. Her mouth, warm. My eyes, closed. Her breath caressed my neck and the back of my head. One of her hands held my face, firmly but gently. There was no need to make excuses, even though it would be ideal for her to be well fed in the face of the constant threat from Braz Cubas. Even if she wasn't hungry, even if she just wanted to bite me for fun.

It was as Akashi had said. It wasn't just an act of feeding.

My heart raced, as if it wanted to voluntarily give more blood to Rio.

When she moved her lips away from my neck, I was surprised, as she didn't let go of me completely.

Rio raised her head, bringing her face close to mine.

And she kissed me, albeit briefly.

The city lights twinkled, easily mistaken for the stars in the sky. Whenever my blood was sucked, I felt a little dizzy, and my vision became blurred for a few seconds.

Still, I could see her clearly. The moon had eyes only for her and graced her with its light, exclusively.

Fortunately, because she was so close to me, a little bit of that light found its way to me.

For a moment, I felt that I didn't have to be that character who existed only to annoy the audience.

“... Thank you,” Rio said.

I finally let out a wide smile.

Suddenly, however, something covered the moonlight.

My vision returned to focus, like a camera adjusting to the focal length of its chosen subject.

In the sky, a shadow passed in front of the lights, visible only because of its contrast with the background.

From it emerged bat wings, torn, crooked, clearly wounded.

It was Akashi, and something was off.