First Encounter ~Hidden in the Daylight~

Aoyama Mitsuko sneered at the cowering boy, her glistening fangs on full display. She took a step toward him.

Charles Martinshaw took a step back. He revealed the crucifix in his hand.

Mitsuko hissed. She raised a veiled arm to shield her face.

"You don't have to pretend with me," Charles said delicately as he approached the trembling vampire. "I know who you really are." He dropped the crucifix and pulled Mitsuko's arm away. Then he reached into her mouth. With a tug, her false fangs came loose. Charles tossed them away. Mitsuko whimpered as the boy caressed her cheek. He brushed her dark crimson bangs aside to get a closer look at her quivering maroon eyes. Then he pushed her head back. "And now I will show you who I really am."

Charles opened his mouth to reveal a set of piercing fangs. These ones were real. With a soft, intimate hiss, he leaned in toward Mitsuko's supple neck.

"Charles..." Mitsuko murmured.

"Aoyama-san…" A mysterious voice interjected from somewhere.

"Aoyama-san..." It grew closer; louder.

"Aoyama-san!"

Mitsuko sprang her head up from her desk and wiped the string of drool from her cheek.

"Do you intend to spend the night? You looked quite comfortable." A seething anger punctuated each of her teacher’s words.

Mitsuko flushed red, her skin almost matching the shade of her twintails. Her classmates chuckled. Mitsuko darted her eyes toward the desk closest to the front window. It was where Charles, the transfer student from Europe, sat.

With a carefree smile, chin resting in hand, Charles met Mitsuko’s eyes.

Mitsuko's cheeks grew even redder. She averted his gaze, stood up, and bowed deeply toward her teacher. "I'm terribly sorry, Tsubomi-sensei! It won't happen again!"

Mitsuko peeked at Charles. He was back to gazing out the window.

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"Hey, Mii-chan!" The high-pitched sound of that voice never failed to surprise Mitsuko.

A short beauty with long black hair, thick, combed-over bangs, and a ponytail leapt onto Mitsuko's back.

Mitsuko barely managed to keep her balance as she let out a frightened yelp.

"Kaori-san, how many times do I have to tell you not to sneak up on me?!"

"You know, for being so obsessed with vampires, you sure do scare easy."

"Those are two different things. Can you get off now?"

Kaori giggled and leapt to the floor. "So, that was pretty embarrassing, huh, Sleeping Beauty?"

"You don't know the half of it."

"Oh, don't I?" Kaori's eyes lit up. Then she puckered her lips. "Charles, oh, Charles!"

All of the color drained from Mitsuko's face. "Please don't tell me I was actually saying that." Mitsuko hung her head in shame.

"I'm afraid so, Mii-chan!"

"Just drain my blood and make me an undead, Kaori-san! Please!" Mitsuko playfully exposed her neck to Kaori, despite the fact that her heart was in agony.

"Hmm... Tempting, but I have a better suggestion."

"A stake through the heart? Because I think I already got that."

"No, no. I think now's actually the perfect time to go for it!"

"Go for it?"

"Yeah! Didn't you see how Charles was looking at you? If you're his type, hearing you mutter his name like that wouldn't be a turnoff! Just the opposite, actually! You've just scored extra points, Mii-chan!"

"There's no way I could do something like that..." Mitsuko brought her hands to her cheeks. The thought of a love confession was too much for her to handle.

"You have to, Mii-chan! This is a great chance! Don't lose your momentum!"

“Okay…” Mitsuko was still hesitant. “But he’s not done with astronomy club until 6:00.”

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Mitsuko fiddled with her bangs in the mirror. She puffed out her cheeks. The girl couldn't decide on a good look.

Would Charles really want a girl like me, anyways? she thought.

Mitsuko stared at her reflection. A black choker with a small metallic cross hugged her neck. Her black and red school uniform was adorned with charms, her arms were hidden by bracelets, and her legs were covered by mismatched, thigh-high socks. Her school had a very relaxed dress code, and she took full advantage of it.

But her sense of style marked her as different. So did her interests.

Mitsuko’s vampire obsession spanned from the original Bram Stoker novel, the classic films, and the modern cult classics to things like anime, manga, and video games. If it had a vampire in it, Mitsuko knew about it.

She didn't like the word otaku, but it fit her well.

Mitsuko pulled a small smokey glass bottle of perfume from her book bag. Sauveuse—a French word. It was a gift from her parents for her sixteenth birthday.

Mitsuko wasn't the kind of girl that typically wore perfume. She took a whiff. The aroma was alluring, and very overpowering. She wondered if Charles might get the wrong idea.

Her reflection looked back at her with a steely resolve. "You can do this."

Mitsuko clipped her bangs to the side with a shiny spider hair clip. Then she raised the perfume bottle to her neck. Before she could spray it, somebody grabbed her arm.

Mitsuko yelped. She almost dropped the bottle.

A familiar voice berated her. "Come on, Mii-chan! You're not the perfume type!"

"Kaori-san! You came out of nowhere!"

"No charades, okay?" Kaori took the bottle and returned it to Mitsuko's bag. "Show him who you really are."

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Mitsuko stood behind the front gate. The sun was beginning to dye the sky a soft orange. She pulled her phone from her skirt pocket to check the time. The tiny bat-shaped charms jingled as she flipped it open.

Thursday, October 4th, 2007 – 6:15 PM

He must have already left, she thought.

Mitsuko clenched her book bag. She found herself wandering back toward the school. The dark was setting in. The property was practically empty.

Mitsuko wandered through the halls. They seemed enormous with nobody in them. Finally, she reached the astronomy club room. Mitsuko took a deep breath, placed her hand on the door, and slid it open.

"Um... Charles-san..."

Silence. The room was empty.

An open window carried a soft breeze that rustled the lonely plants on the window sill. Mitsuko sighed and slid to the ground, defeated. "What am I even doing here?"

She peered out the window into the courtyard. It was then that she caught glimpse of a figure.

"Charles-san?"

In the glow of the sunset, she could see his distinct outline.

Mitsuko rushed behind the school. Charles was following an overgrown trail that lead into the forest. Mitsuko looked on from behind a bush, unsure of what to do next.

Charles was pale, and his steps were staggered. The boy stumbled into a tree. He was breathing heavily.

Mitsuko ducked back behind her bush as his gaze fell in her direction.

Oh no! Now it totally looks like I'm stalking him! Mitsuko panicked in her head.

Charles continued into the woods. Mitsuko followed.

Eventually, Charles disappeared inside the rotting structure of a long abandoned building.

Mitsuko hesitated for a moment.

Should I really keep going? What's he doing all the way out here? she wondered.

The sound of clamoring metal reverberated from somewhere within the structure.

"Charles-san!" Mitsuko found herself instinctively dashing toward the noise. "Are you alright?!" she called out, even though he was nowhere in sight.

Among the overgrown plants, heaps of scrap metal, and piles of crumbling cement, Mitsuko eventually found him. Charles leaned weakly against a wall. His face was even paler than before. It contorted in pain.

"Aoyama-kun..." he spoke with exasperation. "What are you doing here?"

Mitsuko suddenly went stiff. "Um... Well... To tell you the truth, I'm not really sure anymore." Mitsuko grabbed Charles' arm. "Here, let me help you up."

He shook off her hand. "You really shouldn't be here." Sweat rolled down his forehead. His breaths grew short and shaky.

"Charles-san..." Mitsuko dropped her book bag. She backed away.

Something's wrong here, she thought. This isn't right.

"You know, Aoyama-kun, I've always found your sense of style somewhat... alluring." Charles inched his way closer to the frightened girl. His eyes had completely glazed over. "Not to mention that cute hairstyle of yours. And that delicate little nose." He was salivating at the mouth. His tone grew more excited with each word.

The smell of sulfur tickled Mitsuko's nostrils. She continued to back away.

"I've always wanted to get to know you better…" Charles whispered.

A thick fog rose from the soil beneath their feet.

A million thoughts raced through Mitsuko’s mind. But one outweighed the others. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was a...

Charles sneered at Mitsuko, revealing a sharp pair of pointed fangs.

...vampire!

Mitsuko bumped into the wall behind her. She had cornered herself.

Charles closed in on her.

This kind of situation had always been one of Mitsuko’s fantasies. But the reality of it proved to be far more terrifying than she ever could have imagined.

Mitsuko was defenseless. Holy water, silver, garlic—she had none of it. But there was one thing! She grabbed the cross from her choker and held it out toward Charles.

This was all so unbelievable, but if it was truly happening—if she wasn't dreaming, and she was truly in danger—then this was her best defense.

Charles only seemed amused.

Terror filled Mitsuko's face as the vampire before her grabbed the cross out of her hand.

"You know no God. You hold a gun without a bullet. A useless piece of metal. You should know that." Charles pinned her arm against the wall and leaned in close. His warm breath tickled her neck.

Mitsuko shivered. A strange feeling had awoken within her. What should have been fear had become arousal. She was completely at his mercy.

"Is this really happening?" A timid squeak escaped her lips. "Are you really a—"

"Vampire?" Charles cut her off. "You tell me, Aoyama-kun." He wrapped his lips around Mitsuko’s neck, and then he sunk his teeth in.

For a moment, Mitsuko tensed up. The pain was sharp, but momentary. In an instant, the feeling became something she couldn't understand. Her muscles weakened as she gave in. She could feel her blood being drawn to the surface. A pulsing sensation with a slow and soothing rhythm. Mitsuko closed her eyes. Was this something she really wanted, or had her mind fallen under Charles' seductive spell?

Charles took a deep breath. Then he pulled his mouth away. With disgust, he spat out what little of her blood he had drawn. The glaze over his eyes disappeared. His fangs retracted, and the fog at their feet began to dissipate.

"Impossible!" A steam rose from Charles' mouth as he wiped Mitsuko's blood from his lips. His vampiric side was gone. His words carried a newfound clarity. "Aoyama-kun... You're a Freeblood?"

Mitsuko brought a hand to her neck. Her lips quivered as she tried to find the words to express herself. The danger had passed, or so it seemed, but she still stood frozen against the wall.

"Speak, would you?! Why did you follow me here?!"

"Charles-san... This is a dream, right? I'm sleeping at my desk again, aren't I?" Mitsuko slid to the ground, head in her hands. "Vampires? For real?"

"Aoyama-kun..." Charles sounded more sympathetic.

"I finally get to talk to you, and this is how it goes?"

Charles extended an arm toward the girl. "Give me your hand; I'll help you up."

"Stay away from me!" Mitsuko sprang to her feet.

"Aoyama-kun, I don't want to hurt you. I was going for my reserves when you showed up. It had been so long that I couldn't control myself. I'm sorry, but you were just so... tempting."

Mitsuko flushed red. She didn't know how to feel. Anger, excitement, fear, and love were all battling for control of her heart.

"You said I was a Freeblood. What did you mean by that?"

Charles looked at the splotch of blood on the ground. "You really don't know, do you?" he asked, turning to get a closer look at Mitsuko’s neck.

Mitsuko bashfully covered the bite marks.

Charles sighed. "Freebloods are special. They descend from a blessed lineage. Vampires can't drink their blood. Not without getting hurt."

Mitsuko gasped. "I didn't hurt you, did I, Charles-san?!"

"Just a little burn is all.”

"I don't understand. If you're a vampire, how come you're able to go out in the sunlight?"

Charles laughed. "You're kidding, right?”

Mitsuko gave Charles a perplexed look.

He sighed again. "Vampires perpetuated that myth to keep hunters off our tails. Less time we need to spend looking over our shoulders."

"So if you're a vampire, does that mean that you…” Mitsuko gulped. “...kill people?"

Charles scoffed at the suggestion. "Don't be ridiculous. We're not all like that, you know. Like I said, I have my reserves. It's the Inversion Clan you need to be worried about."

"Inversion Clan? Just how many vampires exist in modern Japan?"

"Not as many these days. Not since your ancestors started making a name for themselves hunting them down by any means necessary."

"My family? Vampire hunters?" Mitsuko was ablaze with curiosity.

"You really don't know anything, do you?" Charles chuckled and offered Mitsuko a smile.

A kindness shimmered in his eyes, one that Mitsuko didn’t quite understand. She smiled back at him.

"Mii-chan!" A familiar voice called out from the distance. It was Kaori.

Charles suddenly got defensive. "You didn't bring her here, did you?!"

"What? No! I promise!"

"Okay. I take it this will be our little secret.” Charles slipped away into a shadowy corner. “Right, Aoyama-kun?" Then he disappeared from sight. A thick fog was left in his place.

Kaori tapped Mitsuko on the shoulder. "What are you doing all the way out here, Mii-chan? Didn't you get my messages?"

Mitsuko opened her phone. Sure enough, there was a flood of messages, all from Kaori.

"Sorry. I guess I must have been distracted."

"Hey; that's the first time I snuck up on you without you screaming!"

"Yeah..." Mitsuko returned her phone to her pocket. "I guess I finally realized there are scarier things in this world..."