Kasumi sat up in bed, stretched and yawned, and swung her feet
around to the floor. She stared a moment in puzzlement as she noted that
she was fully clothed, and her sleep-dazed mind took a moment to offer an
explanation.
        "I wonder if I've been sleepwalking again?" she murmured to
herself.  Kasumi had walked in her sleep when she was younger, in the
aftermath of her mother's death.  She had been so consumed with grief over
her mother, so worried about the rest of the family, so totally overwhelmed
by the weight of her new responsibilities...  Her restless mind had prodded
her into sleepwalking for months afterwards.
        The first time it had happened, she woke up to find herself in the
kitchen, stirring a panful of burned food - luckily, the charred smell had
interrupted her dream before a fire started.  Then she dug a shallow,
splintery hole in her bedroom floor while dreaming about working in the
flower garden.  She had moved her bed to cover the spot, but the incident
only gave her something new to fret over.  Her family first discovered it
the night she took a stroll on the Dojo roof... she still shuddered at the
thought of what might have happened, if Father and Akane hadn't found her
in time.  As time had passed, Kasumi gradually worked through the worst of
the grief and stress, and the sleepwalking incidents stopped.
        Now she wondered if it hadn't all begun again; to be sure, she had
been concerned over Ryoga's situation, and delighted when he began to
improve.  This recent sudden turn for the worse had her worried, though -
it was so much like Mother....
        With a sigh, Kasumi got up and went to prepare the family
breakfast.  She'd have to hurry, it was well past the time she would
normally have started cooking.  She did hope Ryoga would be better today...


        Akane stumbled into the kitchen, her eyes red-rimmed from crying,
and threw herself into Kasumi's arms.
        "Akane, w-what-?" Kasumi stuttered, dropping her spatula in surprise.
        "Oh, Kasumi, he's gone!  Ryoga's dead!"  Akane buried her face in
her sister's hair and sobbed violently.  Kasumi's own eyes filled with
tears as she wrapped her arms around her sister's shaking form and held her
tight.  Gone.  Just like Mother...
        "Oh...my..." Kasumi gasped, and then she, too, began to cry.
        Neither of them noticed when Ranma wandered into the kitchen,
struggling with his own ill-concealed grief, and shut off the heat under
the burned remains of the breakfast Kasumi had been preparing.  He gazed at
the sisters for a moment, opened his mouth as if to say something, then
left silently.  He would mourn later, in private, for the closest thing to
a best friend he had ever had.   For now there were phone calls,
arrangements to be made... he'd have to break the news to the rest of the
household.


        Cold.
        <Wake up, little one.>
        So cold.
        <Wake up now.>
        Cold, cold, cold.
        <OPEN YOUR EYES!>
        Ryoga's eyes snapped open.  He was staring up into darkness, seeing
nothing.  He was cold.
        <Look around you.>
        Against his own volition, Ryoga's eyes scanned the room.  A morgue.
He was lying in an open drawer in a morgue.
        <Sit up.>
        Ryoga's body sat up, his eyes unblinking, the sheet covering him
sliding down to pool around his hips.  He wanted to shiver with terror, but
couldn't.  Everything was so...still...  It occurred to him suddenly that
he wasn't breathing.  There was a hollow stillness in his chest where his
heart should be beating.  He was dead, stone cold dead.  No wonder
everything was so cold.
        <Open your mouth and drink.>
        A hand in front of him, holding a glass filled with dark liquid.
Without thinking about it, Ryoga knew that it was blood, and to his horror
a dark, overwhelming yearning filled him.
        <Drink.  It will ease the Hunger.>
        But if he drank, he would have to continue drinking.  He would
become a Monster...  He Hungered, and his mouth remained closed.
        <Drink, and you will not be cold.>
        That was the worst part of the Hunger, the paralyzing cold.
Everything in him yearned to drink, but still his mouth remained closed.
If he could choose in this moment, he chose to die, to be forever cold.  He
would not, he WOULD not drink!
        <You will do AS I SAY!>
        Ryoga's mouth snapped open, and he swallowed greedily as the
contents of the glass poured down his throat.  He felt flushed suddenly,
warm and content... for now.
        <Get up, we have to leave this place.>
        But why the hurry?  Ryoga got up, and saw the Vampire for the first
time.  His new master placed a dead body in the spot Ryoga had just
vacated, covered it up with the sheet, then turned to face Ryoga.
        "You!" Ryoga choked out, then had to consciously draw a breath to
speak again.  "Murdered me!"
        The Vampire chuckled.
        <I took your life, and gave you another.>
        "Why?"
        <It suited me to do so.  It was practice.  Now come along, little
one.  There is not much time left.>
        The Vampire raced out into the Night, still chuckling, and Ryoga
unwillingly followed.


        Tofu returned to his office wearily in the dark hour before dawn.
He hadn't even had a chance to stop at home yet, and he had barely slept
for the past few days.  All he had to show for his time were the rantings
of a madman.
        As he walked into the small room of his office, his answering
machine's blinking light caught his attention.  Filled suddenly with
foreboding, he pressed the "play" button.
        "*beep*  Dr. Tofu, this is Ranma.  Look, I know the machine said
you were out of town, but we need you.  Please call back-"
        "Oh, God," Tofu whispered.
        "-taken a turn for the worse.  I think he's about the same as
before," the machine continued.
        "What have I done?" Tofu moaned, as he sank down into his chair.
        "*beep* Dr. Tofu, it's Ranma again.  I, uh, don't know how to say
this, but... Ryoga's dead."
        Tofu covered his face with his hands and shuddered.  Ryoga wasn't
dead, that much was certain.  Tofu had failed, and by that failure he had
betrayed everyone's trust in him.  The machine went on with its message,
and the doctor put his head down on his arms and wept while Ranma's broken
voice droned on.


        Ryoga crept up silent stairs, a shadow among shadows.  As swift as
thought, he ducked into the bedroom and froze.  A familiar scent assailed
him, the delicate scent of the woman he adored underlaid by an intoxicating
aroma only vampiric senses could detect.  He stared, breathless, at her
slender hand uncurled against her pillow, the palest hint of moonlight
tracing the curve of her cheek as if the moon itself must love her, too.
Her lashes lay damp against her cheeks, and the occasional hitch of breath
gave evidence to the fact that she had cried herself to sleep.  The thought
that she might have been crying over him wrung his heart with equal parts
of sorrow and joy.
        The slow, steady rhythm of her pulse filled his senses, and he
merely watched, more in awe than ever.  It was such a miracle to him that a
woman like her even existed...
        She stirred slightly, and he couldn't bring himself to leave.  Her
eyelids fluttered, then opened, and she stared directly at him.  It wasn't
until she opened her mouth and screamed that he found the will to move
again.  He was gone long before any of the others came rushing in.


        The sun was casting the first blood-red light of dawn across the
horizon when Tofu pulled himself together, washed his face and then left
for the Tendo house.  By the time he made it to the doorway, the sun had
risen.  He looked up as the last pale pink threads of sunrise faded, then
took a deep breath and knocked.  He only prayed it wasn't too late...

        Kasumi answered the door, looking pale and tired.  On seeing him
she smiled fainlty, and pulled the end of her ponytail down over her
shoulder to toy with its silky ends.  Tofu found the gesture both coy and
utterly charming.
        "Dr. Tofu, I'm so glad to see you," she said.  She seemed to
suddenly notice that she was playing with her hair.  Her hands dropped
quickly, and she folded them in front of her as if to prevent any other
nervous gestures from betraying her state of mind.  "Won't you please come
in?" she asked.  "We were just about to call you, for Akane."  The thought
that Akane might have become the new victim sobered him up before his usual
reaction to Kasumi's presence could manifest.  Tofu entered wordlessly and
began climbing the stairs.
        "Ranma, you jerk!" Akane's voice carried clearly throughout the
house.  Tofu winced.  Chances were good that her voice had carried
throughout the whole neighborhood.  "I'm telling you the truth," her voice
continued at top volume, "I SAW him!"  Tofu reached the top step.  Now he
could hear the low murmur of Ranma's voice through the door, evidently
trying to placate his fiancee.  Tofu opened the door just in time for
Akane's next outburst.
        "It wasn't a dream!  I saw him; he was real!"
        "Good morning," Tofu said quietly.  Ranma turned to him with
undisguised relief, and Akane looked at him pleadingly.
        "I'm not crazy," she said in a much quieter tone of voice.
        "You saw Ryoga," Tofu said flatly.
        "It wasn't a dream!  I swear, it was real!"
        "I believe you," Tofu answered solemnly.  Ranma and Akane both
gaped at him.  "It's time I told you what I know."
        "This better be good," Ranma muttered.
        "There are some things I should explain about Ryoga," Tofu began
hesitantly.  Was this really something Akane should know?
        "What's left to explain?" Ranma snapped.  The doctor's calm
demeanor infuriated him.  He hadn't prevented Ryoga's death; how could he
be so cool about it now?
        "I mean," Ranma continued, as Akane and Tofu turned to him in
shock, "He's dead.  Nothin' else to say about it."
        "How can you be so cruel?" Akane cried, reaching out to slap him.
"He was your friend!  And he's...gone..."  She started crying again and
allowed Tofu to put a comforting arm around her shoulders.  Ranma rubbed
his sore cheek and wisely decided to keep his mouth shut.
        "He does have a point, though," Nabiki said from the doorway.  Cool
and composed, she stepped into the room and drew the door shut behind her.
"What could you possibly need to explain, unless there was something about
the way Ryoga died.  Are you saying there was foul play involved?"
        "Well, I-"
        "I hope you have evidence to back up such an accusation," Nabiki
interrupted.
        "I'm not accusing anybody," Tofu said, startled.  Akane stiffened
against him and then pulled back, her tears forgotten.
        "Are you saying Ryoga was MURDERED?"
        "Could you keep it down, please?" Tofu asked with a wince.  "I
really don't want Kasumi to overhear this."  The three teenagers exchanged
glances, then sat on Akane's bed.  Tofu pulled the chair around to face
them and began again.
        "Now, as you know, Ryoga was severely anemic when he first came to
my office.  I ran several blood tests to try to determine what could be
causing his condition, and they all indicated that there was no reason he
should be anemic.  There was also that wound on his throat..."
        "I thought you said that didn't mean nothin'," Ranma interrupted.
        "At first, I didn't think so.  But there were other odd symptoms.
Each time he took a turn for the worse, the change would happen at night,
and the wound would appear fresh again.  And then there was his aversion to
the smell of garlic -"
        "So what does garlic have to do with anything?" Nabiki asked curiously.
        "-And Akane's sighting of him last night, after he supposedly died."
        "Supposedly?" Ranma cried eagerly.  "You mean, he's alive?"
        "No," Tofu said regretfully.  "No, he's not alive."
        "So he is dead, then," Ranma said glumly.
        "Not exactly."
        "Well, which is it?" Nabiki asked.  "It's an either/or situation.
He's either dead or alive."
        "He's... neither."
        "Excuse me?" Nabiki said, arching an eyebrow quizzically.  "Are we
talking vampires here?  Things that go bump in the night?"
        "Actually...yes."
        "R-Ryoga?" Akane mumbled hesitantly, then started shaking.
        "Dr. Tofu, we appreciate your coming all the way out here, but I
don't think this is helping Akane any."  Nabiki said, moving to place a
protective arm around her sister's shoulders.
        "What if I could prove it?" Tofu asked.  Akane stared down at her
hands knotted in her lap, and Nabiki nodded agreement.
        "I don't  know how you could prove such a thing, though,"  she answered.
        Tofu looked once at Ranma, who seemed to want to say more, then
back to Nabiki and Akane.   "All right," he said.  "I'll just show myself
out."  He left without a backward glance, determined to find some kind of
proof.  The members of the household needed protection, and he couldn't
provide it on his own.

        Hungry.  He was so hungry, and seeing Akane had left a dark
yearning in him like a giant, gaping wound.  So hungry.  He wanted Akane,
wanted her forever, wanted her soul...
        No!  He wanted Akane to be happy, not dragged down into this black
horror!
        He Hungered.  He leaped from one building to the next, soaring
through the inky night like a giant bird of prey.  There!  Just below
was... a girl.  A pretty girl, and all alone.  A sweet pang started low in
his throat, and his teeth ached for her.  So hungry...


        Tofu called the Tendo house very late that night, and was answered
by a very cranky Ranma.
        "What?" Ranma mumbled, scrubbing at his eyes.  He hadn't slept much
at all since Ryoga... hadn't slept much at all in the past few days, and
now that he had finally gotten to sleep the phone had to start ringing.
        "I've got proof, if you want it," Tofu said, wincing a little as he
realized how late it was.
        "Ok..."  Ranma was suddenly wide awake.


        Akane woke suddenly, vaguely aware that she had heart the phone
ringing and Ranma's voice a while ago.  Her wide-open eyes strained to see
in the darkness, and she unconsciously held her breath as she listened
intently.  There was nothing out of place, no odd noise... but a sense of
wrongness prevailed.  She might just be overreacting because of the vision
she had had of Ryoga, but it wouldn't hurt to check things out.  She slid
out of bed, her bare toes curling against the chilly floor, and began to
make her way through the silent house.


        Ranma moved quickly through the too-clean, too-white halls of the
hospital, and almost ran into Dr. Tofu as he stepped out of one of the
semi-private rooms.  The doctor looked at least as tired as Ranma felt.
His clothes and hair were uncharacteristically rumpled, there were dark
circles under his eyes, and the corners of his mouth were pulled down in a
weary half-frown.
        "Right here," Tofu said quietly, leading Ranma into the patient's
room.  A young woman lay unconscious on the bed, looking thin and frail.
Long, dark hair fell in a silky curtain to her shoudlers, and Tofu silently
brushed it aside, revealing two ragged puncture woulds on her throat.
        Ranma inhaled sharply, and Tofu quickly led the way back out into
the hallway.
        "That's just like Ryoga's-" Ranma whispered.
        "No," Tofu whispered back.  "Come with me."  Ranma followed the
doctor through the hallways and down several flights of stairs, clenching
his fists in anticipation.  He'd find whatever had done this to Ryoga and
the girl, and when he did...
        "In here,"  the doctor said in a normal tone of voice, and Ranma
jumped a little at the sudden volume, then read the sign on the door.
        "The morgue?" he asked.  Tofu nodded, walked in and stood waiting.
After a few moments' hesitation, Ranma followed.
        "Why the morgue?" he asked, his voice dropping to a whisper again.
        "This," Tofu answered, indicating one of the refrigerated drawers.
"This is where Ryoga should be."
                "Should be? He's dead," Ranma said uncomfortably.  "It's
not like he's gonna get up and walk away..."
        Tofu pulled the drawer open and drew back the sheet, revealing the
face of a young man.  Ranma gaped for a moment, swallowed hard and then
looked away.
        "It's not Ryoga," he finally whispered.  Up until a few days ago,
he'd never even seen a dead body before.  He was finding to his dismay that
it wasn't the sort of thing he would get used to easily.
        "That's the point," Tofu answered, his voice echoing eerily in the
sterile chill.  "It should be.  This is where we put him... before he got
up and walked away."
        "What are you trying to-"
        "Think, Ranma!" Tofu said urgently.  "That girl's bite was like
Ryoga's, but bigger.  Ryoga isn't here, but he should be.  Doesn't that
mean anything to you?"
        "So a bigger whatever it is bit the girl, and you got the wrong drawer."
        Tofu wordlessly opened the drawer further, and pointed out that the
corpse's toe tag identified him as Ryoga Hibiki.
        "Someone stole the body?" Ranma suggested.
        Tofu sighed.  "Ranma, I know it's hard for you to believe.  But you
saw for yourself what happened to Ryoga.  I believe that he did get up and
walk away.  He died from the bite of a vampire, and now he's become one
himself."
        "Are you saying-?"
        "I'm saying I think Ryoga himself bit that girl.  Didn't you see
how much bigger her bite mark was?"
        Ranma nodded weakly, too bewildered by lack of sleep and the sheer
unbelievability of what Tofu was saying to argue.  Ryoga was a vampire?
Then that meant he'd go after...
        "Akane!"  Ranma cried, and ran out of the morgue as though his life
depended on it.


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