Klaha: Vampire Hunter 2

Klaha sat in the dark alley, hitting an empty beer bottle against the cold pavement until it finally shattered. He sighed, and he could see his breath in the cold night air.1

“Oh, Bob!” he cried, turning to the man sitting across from him. “My life is in ruins!”2

“Mhm…Wednesday…turkey salad,” mumbled Bob.3

“I’m cold, I’m hungry…and I’m so alone!” cried Klaha. Bob mumbled an indistinguishable reply. “I have no food, no money, and the love of my life is-” Klaha stopped abruptly as he saw the shadow of Mana walk past the alley. “RIGHT THERE!” He jumped to his feet, running out of the alley and chasing Mana down the road. Mana glanced behind and saw Klaha, so he quickly started running in the opposite direction.4

“Mana my love, come back!” yelled Klaha, running faster. He caught up to Mana, flinging his arms around him, nearly knocking Mana to the ground. “Oh Mana, my love, I missed you so much!”5

“Please let go of me,” said Mana. “Now.” Klaha complied, and Mana started to walk away. 6

“DON’T LEAVE ME!” screamed Klaha, grabbing onto Mana’s arm. Mana turned to look at him, an annoyed expression on his face.7

“What do you want?” asked Mana angrily.8

“I want you and I to-”9

“Just stop talking,” said Mana, cutting him off. “Now, please let go of me…I have to go home.”10

“TAKE ME WITH YOU!” yelled Klaha, still clinging tightly to Mana’s arm. “I have no food, no money, no home…”11

“And I should care because…?” said Mana.12

“Are you truly that heartless?” said Klaha, on the verge of tears.13

“Yes,” said Mana, pulling his arm away from Klaha. “Goodbye, Klaha.” Klaha sank to his knees as he watched Mana disappear into the night, and pale snowflakes began to fall.14

Mana pushed through the door, dusting the snow off of his jacket. 15

“Where have you been?” asked Kozi, walking down the stairs.16

“Out,” Mana answered simply, pulling off his jacket and hanging it on the nearby coat rack.17

“Well I can see that,” said Kozi. “Anything particularly interesting happen?”18

“Actually, I ran into Klaha: Vampire Hunter!” Mana said, mocking Klaha’s overly dramatic voice. 19

“Oh God,” said Kozi, rolling his eyes. “Anything but him…what did he do when he saw you?”20

“Well, I don’t really know where he came from…but I heard some noise and I looked behind me and saw Klaha, who was running after me like an idiot…so I started to run, because I never want to be near him again. Anyway, he caught up to me and started hugging me and telling me that he loved me.” Mana cringed, along with Kozi.21

“Disgusting,” said Kozi. “I feel dirty just listening to that.” He pulled out a cigarette and stuck it in his mouth.22

“Smoking is really bad for you, you know,” said Mana, looking disapprovingly at Kozi and he lit the cigarette.23

“Aw, relax, it’s not killing anyone,” said Kozi, exhaling a puff of smoke. 24

“Except you,” said Mana, walking away. 25

Klaha slumped back down on the cold concrete in the alley, picking up the already broken beer bottle and hitting it against the pavement. He sighed and looked up at Bob.26

“Bob, I just saw my love…” said Klaha. “And yet again, she slipped through my fingers!” He made so over-dramatic hand gesture and then went back to playing with the broken beer bottle.27

“We are never given dreams without also being given the power to make them come true,” said Bob. Klaha stared at him in disbelief.28

“Wow…” said Klaha, stunned. “That’s the deepest thing I’ve ever heard you say…heck, it’s the only thing I’ve ever heard you say that makes sense!”29

“Meh…paperclip…lampshades,” mumbled Bob. 30

“I think I know what you meant by that…” said Klaha, thinking. “I have to find Mana and explain to her how much I really love her! And maybe…she’ll realize that she loves me too!”31

“Hm…pine tree…Alaska,” said Bob.32

“I’ll go right now!” yelled Klaha, standing up and running out of the alley. He turned down the street where Mana had gone, and he continued to walk down the long, dark road, following the footprints in the newly fallen snow.33

“How…much…longer?!” said Klaha, exhausted after only ten minutes of walking. But soon enough, he saw a light in the windows of the giant mansion on the hill. He smiled at the thought of seeing Mana again, and continued walking on.34

A few minutes later, he got to the top of the hill, and collapsed in front of the house.35

“Klaha…” whispered Mana, pulling her fingers through his hair.36

“Mana?” said Klaha, opening his eyes and staring up at Mana’s beautiful face. “Did you come to save me?”37

“Oh yes,” said Mana. “And I came to tell you how much I love you! I want us to be together forever!” She flung her arms around him, pulling herself on top of him and leaning in for a kiss. “Oh Klaha…”38

Klaha’s dream quickly ended as he felt a sharp pain in his stomach, his face buried in the snow.39

“Klaha!” yelled Mana, kicking him in the stomach again. Klaha groaned, turning over in the snow and looking up at Mana.40

“Mana?!” said Klaha. “Did you come to tell me how much you love me?”41

“Hell no,” said Mana. “I just walked outside and you were lying unconscious in front of the door.”42

“Oh…” said Klaha, remembering what happened last night. “I just wanted to come here and tell you that-”43

“Save it for someone who cares,” said Mana, turning around and starting to walk away.44

“No!” said Klaha, grabbing onto the hem of Mana’s dress. He turned around, annoyed. Klaha pushed himself out of the snow, and took Mana by the hand. “Mana…I know you don’t feel the same way about me as I do about you, but I have to tell you that I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone in the world! Please, give me another chance!” By this time, Klaha had fallen to his knees and was looking up at Mana with tears forming in his eyes. Mana stared down at him in disgust.45

“How long is it going to take for you to get this through your head?” said Mana, pulling his hands away. “I don’t want anything to do with you…I’d prefer it if I never saw you or spoke to you again.” Klaha shuddered and looked down, tears falling down his cheeks and onto the cold snow. Mana felt suddenly sorry for him, and quickly went inside, pulling the door shut. 46

“Is he still there?” asked Kozi. Yu-ki pulled aside the curtains and peered out the window, seeing Klaha still sitting on his knees in the falling snow.47

“Yup,” said Yu-ki. “He’s just sitting there…how many hours has it been?”48

“About three,” said Mana.49

“You think we should let him in?” said Yu-ki. “He seems pretty devastated…”50

“Yeah,” said Kozi. “What did you say to him?” He looked at Mana.51

“He proclaimed his love for me,” said Mana. “And it was disturbing…I told him I wanted nothing to do with him and that I didn’t want to see him again.”52

“Oh Mana,” said Yu-ki. “You’re so heartless.”53

“He deserves it,” said Kozi., smirking.54

“No one deserves that!” said Yu-ki, storming off to open the front door.55

“Oh great…” said Mana, crossing his arms. 56

“Better brace yourself…” said Kozi, smirking at Mana, who just glared at him. 57

Yu-ki walked back into the room with Klaha behind him, staring at his feet.58

“Mana, I think you should apologize to Klaha,” said Yu-ki. Mana just glared at him and walked out of the room. There was a long, awkward silence. 59

“We’ll make it up to you in some other way, I guess,” said Yu-ki. Klaha was still silent.60

“Look, Mana is a bitch,” said Kozi. “He – er, “she”…usually doesn’t get along with anyone…so don’t feel bad. Really…it took me a while to get “her” to even speak to me.”61

“It doesn’t matter anymore,” said Klaha, still staring at the floor. “My life is ruined…”62

“Aw, don’t say that!” said Yu-ki. “We’ll help you get your life back on track!” Kozi looked at him incredulously.63

“Really?” said Klaha, looking up from the floor for the first time since he came in.64

“Really!” said Yu-ki. “We’ll help you get a job, and find your own place to live…and in the mean time, you can stay here!” Klaha became instantly happier, while Kozi glared at Yu-ki.65

“Thank you so much!” he said, smiling at Yu-ki. “And if you don’t mind, I could really use some cheese sticks right now.” 66

“Klaha, wake up!” said Yu-ki, poking Klaha with his cane. Klaha groaned and sat up, looking at Yu-ki.67

“Klaha: Vampire Hunter demands more sleep!” he fell back down into the bed and pull the covers over his head.68

“Kozi and I are taking you to your first job interview,” said Yu-ki. “You better get up if you want to have time to make yourself look presentable.” Klaha mumbled something about lobsters and got out of bed. 69

“What am I wearing to this interview?” asked Klaha, rubbing his eyes. “Like, a suit or something?”70

“Wear whatever you want…just something nice,” said Yu-ki. “But not over-the-top.”71

“But over-the-top is the best kind!” whined Klaha. 72

“And you’ll also have to drop the whole “Klaha: Vampire Hunter” thing,” said Yu-ki. “I’m not sure people will ah…appreciate that.”73

“What’s not to be appreciated about Klaha: Vampire Hunter?” said Klaha defensively. “I am an all-knowing being!”74

“I see you’re back to your old self…” mumbled Yu-ki. “But anyway, we’ll be leaving in an hour, so you’d better hurry up and get ready.”75

About half an hour later, Klaha walked down the stairs in a nice suit with his hair all styled and sat down at the kitchen table.76

“All ready for you’re job interview, I see,” said Kozi, looking up from his plate of pancakes.77

“Oh yeah!” said Klaha. “I’ll get this job for sure. No one can resist the awesome power of Klaha: Vampire Hunter!”78

“What did I tell you about saying that?” said Yu-ki, sitting down at the table.79

“Oh yeah…” said Klaha. “Um, I’ll get this job for sure. No one can resist my…charm and good looks?”80

“That’s a little better…” said Yu-ki.81

“Are you trying to teach him to be normal?” asked Kozi. “Because I don’t think it’s gunna work.”82

“SILENCE!” yelled Klaha. “I can be just as normal as any of you!”83

“Well, for starters, you might want to stop screaming “silence” at the top of your lungs when things don’t exactly go your way,” said Kozi. “Because I’m sure there’ll be a lot of that.”84

“Fine,” said Klaha, crossing his arms and glaring at Kozi. “When are we leaving? Oh, and where’s Mana?”85

“We’re leaving in about ten minutes,” said Yu-ki. “And as for Mana, I have no idea where “she” went.”86

“I think “she” ran off to go somewhere extremely early this morning,” said Kozi. “Or maybe it was extremely late last night…I can’t remember.” 87

“My love was out late at night all alone?!” said Klaha. 88

“I’d prefer it if you stopped referring to Mana as “my love”,” said Kozi. “It disturbs me just a little.”89

“Why?” asked Klaha.90

“Because Mana is a frickin’…well, never mind,” said Kozi. “You call “her” whatever you want.” He put a particular emphasis on the word “her”.91

“You guys, stop your stupid argument,” said Yu-ki. “We have to leave now anyway.” They walked up to the front door, and just as Klaha reached for the doorknob, the door flew open, smacking him in the face. Mana walked in and stepped over Klaha, who was lying on the ground.92

“Sorry,” said Mana with fake sympathy. “I had no idea you were there.”93

“Mana, we’re just leaving to take Klaha to his job interview,” said Yu-ki as Klaha sat up, groaning and holding his head. “Would you like to come with us?”94

“No thanks,” said Mana. “I’ve got better things to do.” He walked upstairs and out of sight. 95

Yu-ki pulled Klaha off the floor, and they set out to find Klaha a job.96

Yu-ki and Kozi sat on a bench outside the restaurant, waiting impatiently.97

“How long is a job interview anyway?” said Kozi.98

“I don’t know,” said Yu-ki. “I can’t remember what any of my job interviews were like…”99

“They must’ve been really boring then,” said Kozi, smirking and lighting a cigarette. Suddenly, the door to the restaurant flew open and Klaha jumped out, running up to Kozi and hugging him. Kozi looked at Klaha, disgusted. He pushed him to the ground and stepped on his head.100

“KOZI!” yelled Yu-ki. “What are you doing?!”101

“Sorry,” said Kozi, taking his foot off Klaha’s head. “It’s just an instinct.” Klaha rubbed the part of his head Kozi had stepped on and then stood up.102

“Good news!” said Klaha. “I got the job!” Yu-ki smiled at him.103

“That’s great!” he said happily. 104

“Yeah, now you can finally get out of our lives,” mumbled Kozi, taking a puff of his cigarette.105

“Ah, don’t talk that way Kozi!” said Yu-ki. “We should be happy for our friend”106

“Since when is he our friend?” asked Kozi.107

“Kozi, you shouldn’t be so…well, mean,” said Yu-ki. “Why can’t you just accept Klaha as a person? He’s changed! He’s no longer a crazed vampire hunter who is totally stupid and full of himself!” 108

“How do you know?” said Kozi. “People like that can’t just suddenly decide to become normal and intelligent.”109

“You know, I’m right here…” said Klaha.110

“Shut up,” Kozi said flatly. Klaha looked down at his feet in sadness. “I didn’t agree to help him! It was all your idea, Yu-ki! You’re too damn nice for your own good.”111

“You know Kozi,” said Yu-ki. “Sometimes, I can’t stand you! You never want to help anyone, and all you think about is yourself! I don’t know how or why Mana has put up with you all these years-”112

“Don’t bring Mana into this!” said Kozi. “It has nothing to do with him!” 113

Kozi and Yu-ki continued their argument, until Klaha had had enough.114

“STOP!” he yelled, stepping between them with his arms spread out. “You don’t have to argue like this about me…I’m right here for God sakes! And you don’t have to help me Kozi, but if you actually cared about something more than yourself maybe you could stay and help.” Kozi glared at both Klaha and Yu-ki and walked off hurriedly down the street.115

Mana walked down the road into town, the bottom of his dress dragging across the freshly fallen snow, when he saw Kozi storming through the streets.116

“Kozi, what-” Mana started.117

“I don’t want to talk to you,” said Kozi, obviously angry.118

“What ha-”119

“I said I don’t want to talk.” He pushed past Mana and stormed off down the road towards the house. Mana looked back and watched him disappear down the road as light snowflakes once again began to fall. He folded his hands together and walked down the road, and arriving at a park. He walked over to a bench and sat down, watching as all the people walked by. 120

“Hey pretty lady,” a voice seemed to say out of nowhere. Mana quickly snapped back to reality and looked to his left to see a little boy sitting on the bench.121

“Oh…hello,” said Mana. The boy waved at him.122

“I’m Andrew B, the fine young man!” he said, smiling.123

“Oh, well that’s nice to know,” said Mana, staring off into space.124

“What are you doing here?” asked Andrew.125

“I just had to get out for a while,” said Mana. “You know how it is sometimes…” And then Mana realized that Andrew probably didn’t know how it is sometimes. “Well, never mind.”126

“Do you mean like times when your Mommy and Daddy fight?” said Andrew.127

“It’s sort of like that, I guess,” said Mana.128

“And then Daddy gets out the gun and shoots Mommy and then he runs away with all the money?” said the little boy. Mana looked at him, shocked.129

“Is that what happened to you?” asked Mana.130

“Yeah,” said Andrew. “But I’m ok now!”131

“Uh, how long ago was this, if you don’t mind me asking?” said Mana.132

“Yesterday,” said Andrew. “But I got over it this morning!”133

“So, do you have any brothers or sisters?” asked Mana. “Or a place to live?”134

“Nope,” said Andrew. “And I live in a box in an alley with a nice man named Bob!”135

“Oh…” said Mana, thinking. “Here, come with me.” He took Andrew by the hand and they walked out of the park.136

“You could live here if you wanted,” said Mana, standing in front of the orphanage with Andrew. “It’s warm, you can get free food, and you can play with all the other children!” 137

“Yay!” said Andrew, smiling and jumping up and down. “Thanks pretty lady!”138

“Oh, you can call me Mana,” said Mana.139

“Let’s go inside!” said Andrew, pulling on Mana’s arm. A hint of a smile crossed Mana’s face as Andrew pulled him up the sidewalk to the front door of the orphanage. Mana opened the door and Andrew ran inside.140

“Hey, can I live here?!” said Andrew, running up to the reception desk. Mana walked in and shut the door.141

“Oh, sure!” said the receptionist, who was wearing a green wig and extremely huge sunglasses. He looked at Mana. “Are you with him?”142

“Oh…” said Mana. “Well, kind of.” He tried to speak as quietly as possible. “I found him in the park…he says he has no parents, so I brought him here.”143

“I’m hungry,” said Andrew. 144

“Oh, then let’s get you some food!” said the receptionist, leading Andrew to a door on his left. Andrew quickly ran through the door, and the receptionist came back to the desk. 145

“Do I have to do any…paperwork or anything?” asked Mana.146

“Oh no!” said the receptionist. “Any poor, unfortunate child can come to this orphanage whenever they choose!”147

“You seem vaguely familiar,” said Mana, staring at the receptionist and thinking.148

“No, I have no idea who you are, and you don’t know me!” said the receptionist, walking in the direction of the door that Andrew went through a few minutes earlier. “Now, I’ve got to leave…I have a lot of hungry children to tend to!” He flashed a smile, and Mana could’ve sworn he saw fangs in that freakishly white set of teeth.149

“I really need to get more sleep,” Mana mumbled to himself as he walked out.150

Mana arrived back at the house, where Klaha was sitting (and actually being quiet for once) in an armchair while reading a book. Mana could hear Yu-ki in the kitchen, and Kozi was nowhere to be seen.151

Mana shut the door, which caused Klaha to look up from what he was reading.152

“Mana!” he said. “I haven’t seen you all day! How are you?”153

“I’m…fine,” said Mana, walking past Klaha and into the kitchen. Yu-ki was sitting at the table, chewing on a chocolate bar. Mana sat down next to him.154

“So, how was that job interview?” asked Mana. 155

“Well, why don’t you ask Klaha?” said Yu-ki.156

“Ugh, I’m not talking to him,” said Mana. 157

“Well fine then,” said Yu-ki, taking another bite of his chocolate bar. “If you really wanna know, Klaha got the job.”158

“Great,” said Mana. “When does he get out of our house and leave us alone forever?”159

“He starts work tomorrow,” said Yu-ki. “Personally, I’m happy for him.” He glared at Mana.160

“Personally, I’m happy I’ll have my sanity back when he’s gone,” said Mana, getting up from the table and walking out of the room. 161

He half-ran past Klaha and went up the stairs as fast as he could. He turned down the hallway opposite his bedroom, and he stopped and knocked at a small red door at the end of the hall. No one answered, so he quietly opened the door and slipped inside. Kozi was sitting on the windowsill, looking outside as the snow fell.162

“What do you want?” he asked, not turning around.163

“I was just wondering where you were,” said Mana. “But if you want I can leave you alone...”164

“You don’t have to go,” said Kozi, turning his head slightly to look at Mana. “I thought you were Yu-ki.”165

“Oh no,” said Mana. “He’s downstairs eating chocolate again.” Kozi let out a little chuckle and moved over to let Mana sit down beside him.166

“So, where have you been all day?” asked Kozi.167

“Oh…around,” said Mana.168

“Anywhere in specific?” asked Kozi. “Or I’ll just assume you were doing something naughty.” He smirked at Mana.169

“Well I went to the park,” said Mana. “Where I met this peculiar little boy named Andrew…he told me his father killed his mother and then ran off, though he wasn’t fazed by it at all.” Kozi looked slightly shocked and disgusted. “So, I took him to the orphanage…and…I know you’ll think this is um, weird, but I swear that the man working there was Gackt.” Kozi sighed.170

“Gackt isn’t coming back,” he said. “And why would he? He’s famous now…and he wouldn’t be working in an orphanage of all places.” Mana stared sadly out the window.171

“I know,” he said. “But sometimes, I just wish that I’ll see him somewhere on the street, and that could be my excuse to talk to him.”172

“Ah, you’re both too damn proud for your own good,” said Kozi. “You’re just waiting for him to talk to you, and he’s waiting for you to talk to him. It’s not gonna go anywhere! I mean, you guys used to be friends…and then he left, and I don’t think you’ve spoken to him since.” Mana continued staring out the window and didn’t reply. There was a long, uncomfortable silence.173

“Mana, I-” Kozi started as Klaha opened the door.174

“Sorry if I interrupted you,” he said. “But Yu-ki told me to come tell you that dinner’s ready.” 175

Everyone was seated silently at the dinner table, staring down at the food placed before them. Klaha was playing with his spoon, trying hard to bend it, until it finally snapped in half. Everyone stared at him.176

“I was just testing its durability,” said Klaha, throwing the spoon off to the side, where three other broken spoons lay on the table.177

“I think you’ve broken enough of our cutlery today,” said Mana.178

“I wasn’t breaking it!” whined Klaha. “I was testing the durability!” Mana gave Klaha an icy stare and went back to poking at his food. There was another long silence.179

“So…” said Yu-ki. “I thought that maybe the four of us could spend some time together this evening.”180

“Doing what?” asked Kozi.181

“I…don’t know,” said Yu-ki. “But you and Mana are always off somewhere else, and I barely saw you all day…”182

“We could share our life experiences!” said Klaha. Everyone stared at him. “Like…talking…you know…”183

“We could go out somewhere,” said Kozi. 184

“Like skating in the park!” Yu-ki said happily.185

“That sounds fabulous!” said Klaha, snapping a fork in half. “Oh, sorry.” He threw the fork over with the rest of the broken cutlery.186

Mana sat on the bench next to the frozen lake, where crowds of people where skating. Kozi walked over to the bench and sat down next to him.187

“I hate skating,” grumbled Kozi.188

“I just hate being here,” said Mana. 189

“Yu-ki shouldn’t have dragged us out here,” said Kozi. 190

“Especially with Klaha,” grumbled Mana. He looked out on the lake and saw Klaha skating around, and occasionally falling. He stumbled his way over to where Mana and Kozi were sitting and sat down next to Mana. Klaha smiled at him, but Mana just gave him an icy stare in return.191

“Mana, you look beautiful this evening,” said Klaha, taking Mana’s hand and kissing it. Kozi snickered and Mana glared at him.192

“I see you two need to be alone,” said Kozi, getting up from the bench, smirking at Mana, and walking off down the park path.193

“So, Mana,” said Klaha, draping his arm around Mana, who shuddered and made a disgusted face. “Would you like to go out sometime?”194

“Um, no,” said Mana, moving to the other side of the bench. Klaha moved next to Mana and put his arm around him again.195

“Mana…” Klaha leaned in closer to Mana’s face, and Mana tried to move away from him. “Your lips are like rose buds…” He leaned in to kiss Mana, who punched him in the face. Klaha recoiled and held his hands to the side of his face that Mana had just punched.196

“If you hadn’t noticed,” said Mana. “My lips are actually blue.”197

“I know,” said Klaha. “Roses are the blue ones, right?” Mana rolled his eyes and got up from the bench, walking down the path where Kozi had just gone. 198

Klaha sighed and buried his face in his hands, leaning his elbows on his knees. A man sat down next to him on the bench.199

“Lady problems?” he asked. Klaha peered at him through his fingers.200

“Yeah,” he said, sitting up and turning to look at the man. “Uh, may I ask who you are?”201

“Oh, sorry for not introducing myself,” said the man. “I’m Gackt.”202

Mana walked down the path hurriedly, seeing Kozi leaning over the edge of a bridge, staring down at the frozen river underneath. Mana stood next to him, and Kozi glanced at Mana and nodded, then went back to looking down at the frozen river. They stood together in silence for a few minutes, before Kozi decided to speak.203

“This night has been pretty unsuccessful,” said Kozi. “So much for spending time together.”204

“It’s all falling apart…” said Mana, lacing his fingers together and leaning further over the side of the bridge. Kozi looked at Mana sadly, taking Mana’s small, gloved hands in his, and Mana looked up at him, surprised.205

“Mana!” said Andrew, tugging at the bottom of Mana’s dress.206

“Oh, hello Andrew,” said Mana, slowly taking his hands out of Kozi’s and turning around to face Andrew. “How have you been?”207

“I’ve been great!” said Andrew, smiling. “I even got a new suit!” He stepped back, showing off his new suit. Mana gave a little smile.208

“Ah, you look so handsome,” said Mana. Kozi stepped around Mana and looked at Andrew.209

“And who’s this?” he asked, smiling at Mana.210

“Oh, this is Andrew,” said Mana. “I told you about him before.”211

“Glad to meet you Andrew,” said Kozi, holding out his hand. Andrew shook it and smiled at him.212

“So, why are you at the park today?” asked Mana.213

“Oh, Gackt takes us out to the park every Sunday!” said Andrew, smiling.214

“Gackt?” repeated Mana, looking confused.215

“Yeah, you talked to him before!” said Andrew. “He owns the orphanage!” Mana and Kozi exchanged a glance.216

“Andrew!” They heard a familiar voice say from across the park. They all looked up to see Gackt with all the other orphans, standing at the park gates. Gackt motioned for Andrew to come join them.217

“One second!” Andrew yelled to Gackt. He then turned back around to face Mana.218

“Well, I guess you have to go now,” said Mana.219

“Oh, I just have to ask you something first,” said Andrew. “The orphanage is having a little winter festival as a fundraiser, and I wondered if you wanted to come.”220

“That sounds nice,” said Mana. “When is it?”221

“It’s in two days,” said Andrew. “At the orphanage, of course.” He smiled at Mana.222

“Well, I’ll see you there,” said Mana, smiling back at him. 223

“Okay!” said Andrew happily, skipping away to the crowd of orphans and walking out of the park. Mana and Kozi stood on the bridge in silence.224

“I guess you were right about the Gackt thing…” said Kozi.225

“Yeah,” said Mana. “But why is he here?”226

“I have no idea,” said Kozi. “It’s just another one of life’s mysteries.”227

“Maybe he’s doing it as a publicity stunt,” said Mana. “You know, helping the needy children, getting more fans because of what a nice guy he is, and all in all, making more money.”228

“It’s always been about the money with him,” said Kozi. “And he was also really stupid and had too much plastic surgery.” Yu-ki and Klaha walked up to them, their skates slung over their shoulders.229

“So this is where you ran off to,” said Yu-ki. “We were looking for you.”230

“Oh, I’m so happy we found you!” said Klaha. “We’d been looking for hours! I thought you were lost to us forever!”231

“We haven’t even been here for an hour,” said Kozi.232

“Well…uh, SILEN – I mean…excuse me,” said Klaha. 233

“He’s learning quite well,” said Kozi, smirking at Yu-ki.234

It was the middle of the night, and Klaha’s fear of the dark had returned after that fateful night at the graveyard, where he had actually seen his first vampire. He lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, when he thought he heard something under his bed. He pulled the covers over his head; afraid that if he got out of bed, whatever was underneath would get him. 235

What am I gonna do?! He thought. Whatever is under my bed is sure to get me if I try to get out…but I can’t get to sleep! I need to get out of here! 236

The inner battle raged on until Klaha finally came to the decision to get out of bed. He sat up slowly, so not to wake the monster under the bed. He pushed himself as far away from the bed as he could, and when his feet touched the ground, he ran out of the room and shut the door. 237

He stood in the hallway, staring at his door, hoping nothing would come out to get him. He turned left and walked down to the end of the hallway, the wood floor creaking with every step he took. He reached a door at the end of the hallway and slowly turned the knob and pushed it open. He looked around the room and started to walk inside. He saw Mana asleep on his bed in the corner of the room.238

“Mana…” he whispered, walking closer to the bed. “Mana?” Mana didn’t respond. “Mana…wake up…Mana?” Klaha poked Mana in the shoulder, and he grumbled and turned over. 239

“What do you want?” he asked groggily, his eyes slowly opening.240

“I can’t sleep,” whispered Klaha. “I’m afraid of the dark…can I sleep with you?”241

“Ugh, no way,” said Mana, turning over and burying his head under his covers. “Leave me alone.”242

“Can you at least read me a bedtime story?” asked Klaha.243

“Go away,” said Mana. Klaha sighed and walked out of the room. He shut the door quietly, and walked further down the hall, stopping at the next door. He slowly opened it and tiptoed inside.244

“Yu-ki?” he whispered, walking up to where Yu-ki was sleeping. “Yu-ki? Are you awake?”245

“I am now,” mumbled Yu-ki, sitting up in bed. “What do you need?”246

“I can’t sleep,” said Klaha. “I’m afraid of the dark…can I sleep with you?”247

“Uh, I don’t swing that way,” said Yu-ki.248

“No, not in that way…” said Klaha. “Ew. No. Gross.”249

“Can you just go back to bed?” asked Yu-ki. Klaha sighed and left the room. He walked further down the hall until he reached the last door in the hallway. He turned the knob and pushed it open.250

“Kozi?” he whispered. He looked around, but he couldn’t see anyone in the bed. “Are you in here?”251

“Yes,” said Kozi, walking out of the shadows. “What the hell are you doing in my room?”252

“I couldn’t sleep…” said Klaha. “Could you maybe…read me a bedtime story or something?”253

“No,” said Kozi. “Now get out of here and go back to bed.”254

“But I can’t sleep!” whined Klaha. Kozi sighed and rolled his eyes, walking over to a cupboard and taking out a bottle of chloroform and poured a little onto a towel.255

“Are you gonna read me a story?” asked Klaha, watching Kozi take things out of the cupboard. Kozi smirked at him, walking towards him with the chloroform soaked towel in hand.256

“No,” said Kozi. “But I think this’ll help you get to sleep.” He placed the towel over Klaha’s mouth, and he fell to the floor, unconscious. Kozi nudged Klaha’s body out the door, which he quickly shut afterwards. Klaha lay unconscious in the hall, and finally had a good night’s sleep.257

Klaha woke the next morning, still lying in the middle of the hallway where Kozi had put him last night. He looked around, confused.258

“What am I doing out here?” He asked himself. 259

“Klaha!” said Yu-ki, coming up the stairs and seeing Klaha at the end of the hall. “Good thing you’re awake…you have to be at your first day of work in half an hour!”260

“WHAT?!” said Klaha, jumping to his feet. “What time is it right now?”261

“Um, about ten thirty,” said Yu-ki, glancing at his wristwatch. “But that’s enough time to have breakfast and get ready, right?”262

“Hardly!” said Klaha. “I need to draw on my eyebrows!”263

“Your eyebrows are not as important as food,” said Yu-ki. “Come downstairs, Mana made a nice breakfast of pancakes and bacon.”264

“NO!” said Klaha, running into the bathroom. Yu-ki could hear his muffled voice from outside the door. “Must…draw…EYEBROWS!” Yu-ki sighed as he heard loud clattering noises inside the bathroom, and he walked back downstairs to join Mana and Kozi at the kitchen table. He sat down, and Mana and Kozi were eating their food in silence.265

“THIS ONE’S TOO LONG!” They all heard Klaha scream from the bathroom.266

“What, may I ask, is he doing?” asked Mana.267

“He’s drawing on his eyebrows,” said Yu-ki. “Which is apparently more important than food.”268

“Well, it is his first day of work,” said Mana. “He’s got to look presentable.”269

“Plus, he works in a restaurant!” said Kozi. “He can just steal food when no one’s looking.”270

“I guess so…” said Yu-ki. There was another loud crash from the bathroom. “So, what do you two have planned for today?”271

“Nothing, as usual,” said Kozi. He looked across the table at Mana. “Well, for me at least.”272

“I’m actually not sure what to do today,” said Mana.273

“I don’t have anything planned either,” said Yu-ki. “We should all do something together.”274

“As long as it doesn’t involve Klaha, I’m fine,” said Mana. Klaha walked down the stairs, his hair perfectly in place and his eyebrows drawn on.275

“I am off to work,” said Klaha. “Farewell!” He made some dramatic gesture with his hands and opened the front door, walking off down the road to the sushi restaurant where he worked. 276

“I am so glad he got that job,” said Kozi. “Now I can have a nice, peaceful day without him.”277

“I’m just happy to help someone in need,” said Yu-ki. 278

“Oh yes, all our suffering goes to a good cause,” said Kozi, rolling his eyes. “But did you ever stop to think about what Klaha’s gunna do after he gets his life back on track? He’s probably still going to bother us on a daily basis, since he has no friends. Well, no friends that I know of.”279

“Don’t you see?” said Yu-ki. “He could change! He’ll be successful in whatever he chooses to do.”280

“And how are you so sure?” said Kozi. “What if he screws up and comes to feed off of us again?”281

“Let’s just drop it,” said Mana. “You don’t need to have this argument again.” Everyone sat there in silence, poking at their food.282

“So, what do you think we should do today?” asked Yu-ki, breaking the silence. “I thought that maybe we could go shopping or something…”283

“Shopping sounds like a fine idea to me,” said Mana. 284

“Yeah, shopping sounds good,” said Kozi. “I need to pick up some things.”285

“When do you two feel like going?” asked Yu-ki.286

“Now seems like a good time to me,” said Kozi.287

“Well, let’s just wait a few minutes,” said Mana. “We might run in to Klaha if we leave now.”288

“So, where are we going to go shopping?” asked Yu-ki, walking down the busy street with Mana and Kozi.289

“I need more dresses,” said Mana.290

“How could you need more dresses?” asked Kozi. “You change outfits every five minutes, I think you have enough.”291

“That’s an exaggeration,” said Mana. “I do not change every five minutes.”292

“You’re right,” said Yu-ki. “It’s more like every half hour.”293

“Well why don’t you just go buy some more sticks?” said Mana. “You carry them around all the time.”294

“It’s not a stick!” said Yu-ki. “It’s a cane.”295

“You don’t even need that!” said Kozi. “As ugly as you may be, you’re not an old man.”296

“Hey, shut up,” said Mana. “I see a shoe store.”297

“I love shoes!” said Yu-ki.298

“Me too!” said Kozi.299

“At least we can all agree on one thing,” said Mana, leading the way into the shoe store.300

After much shoe shopping, Mana, Kozi and Yu-ki stopped in the park to rest for a while.301

“So, where are we off to now?” asked Yu-ki.302

“I’m kinda hungry,” said Kozi.303

“Me too,” said Mana.304

“Well, I know a great place we could go to eat!” said Yu-ki.305

“Please don’t take us to the restaurant Klaha works at,” said Mana.306

“Why would you think I would do that?” said Yu-ki, smiling nervously.307

“Well, you’re just like that,” said Mana. “Plus, you’re smiling nervously.”308

“Well fine,” said Yu-ki. “But we’re still going there.” Mana frowned and Kozi rolled his eyes.309

They got up from the bench and walked down the road to where the sushi restaurant was, and they walked in and sat down at a table, waiting to be served.310

“Hey guys!” said Klaha, running towards their table. “What are you doing here?”311

“We’d like some food,” said Kozi. “Considering this is a restaurant.”312

“Oh yeah!” said Klaha, flipping out his notepad and holding his pencil at the ready. “What’ll you have?”313

“Um, I’ll just have some regular sushi,” said Yu-ki, flipping through the menu. “Except, without the raw fish. Make it cooked salmon.” Klaha quickly wrote this down and turned to look at Kozi.314

“I’ll have what he’s having,” Kozi mumbled. Klaha scribbled more things on his notepad and turned to Mana.315

“I’m not hungry,” said Mana. 316

“Okay then!” said Klaha happily, closing his notepad and walking back into the kitchen.317

“He seems to be doing pretty well,” said Yu-ki.318

“Who has salmon in their sushi?” asked Kozi, completely off topic.319

“Hey, I like salmon in my sushi,” said Yu-ki. “And you ordered the same thing.”320

“Yeah, well I’m just gunna pick out the salmon!” said Kozi. “And then you can eat it if you really want to. And why don’t you ever eat?” He pointed to Mana, who just stared at him. “You’re already as skinny as you could possibly get…and it really wouldn’t hurt if you ate more you know.”321

“It really wouldn’t hurt if you could shut up for a while,” said Mana, getting out of his seat and walking out the door. Kozi cursed under his breath and got up and walked out of the door, running after Mana. 322

“Mana!” yelled Kozi, catching up to Mana. He grabbed him by the shoulder, and he turned around, annoyed.323

“Hey, I’m really sorry about…well, everything,” said Kozi. “It’s just that…things have been really messed up lately…with Kami and Klaha…and Gackt showing up…everything’s just really crazy. I guess I shouldn’t be such an jack ass, huh?” He smirked a little, and Mana’s expression stayed the same. He turned away from Kozi, staring down at the snow-covered road.324

“You’re right,” said Mana. “Things aren’t going so well…” He paused and stared sadly up at Kozi. “We’ve been experiencing tragedy after tragedy…”325

“But once you hit the bottom, things can only get better, right?” said Kozi, placing his hands on Mana’s shoulders. Mana sighed.326

“I guess so,” he said. 327

“Now, do you wanna go get our food?” asked Kozi. Mana shook his head.328

“I’ll just go home, you guys can stay here,” he said.329

“No, I’ll come with you,” said Kozi. “I just have to go tell Yu-ki we’re going…you can head home if you want.” Mana nodded and started walking down the road, while Kozi went back into the restaurant.330

When Kozi walked through the door, he was met with the sight of Klaha standing over the counter, spraying vinegar on a knife and reading out of a People magazine, and everyone was standing around trying to stop him. Kozi stared at Klaha, and then sat down next to Yu-ki.331

“Um, what is he doing?” asked Kozi, gesturing to Klaha. 332

“Oh, he was making our sushi, when he accidentally cut himself,” said Yu-ki. “He called the knife a vampire, and then proceeded to take out his “holy water”, and started screaming, “the power of Christ compels you!” at the top of his lungs, and he also started reading from a People magazine…I don’t know why.”333

“Well that sounds interesting,” said Kozi. “I hope he won’t get fired.”334

“YOU’RE FIRED!” yelled the manager, pointing at Klaha. 335

“THE POWER OF CHRIST COMPELS YOU!” yelled Klaha, splashing vinegar onto the knife on the counter. Some of the other chefs grabbed him and pulled him off the counter, his arms and legs flailing in all directions.336

“Let go of me, you vampires!” screamed Klaha as they threw him out the door. Kozi sighed and walked out the door. Yu-ki threw some money on the table to pay for the food they ordered, and followed Kozi out the door. 337

They found Klaha facedown in the snow, not moving.338

“Hey, get up,” said Kozi, nudging Klaha with his foot. Klaha squirmed around on the ground, pushing himself out of the snow and shaking it off his face.339

“Damn vampires,” he mumbled. “They’re out to get me!” Kozi rolled his eyes, and Yu-ki gave an aggravated sigh.340

“Let’s just go home,” said Yu-ki, walking down the street, followed by Kozi. Klaha jumped to his feet, running after them. 341

“Guys, wait for me!” he said. Suddenly, a small, fluffy white cat appeared in his path. He jumped over it, nearly running into it. He tripped on his own feet as he landed and fell face first in the snow. The cat meowed and rubbed itself against Klaha’s leg. Klaha hoisted himself out of the snow and turned to look at the cat.342

“Aw, how cute!” he said, picking it up. The cat rubbed itself against Klaha’s cheek, and Klaha giggled. 343

“What are you doing?” asked Kozi, appearing by Klaha’s side.344

“I found this cute cat!” he said. “She’s so cute!”345

“How do you know it’s a she?” asked Kozi. 346

“I don’t actually know, I’m just assuming it’s a girl since it’s so pretty and cute!” said Klaha.347

“Well, you better get up, we’re going home,” said Kozi. “And leave the cat.”348

“No!” said Klaha, standing up with the cat still in his arms. “She’s so cute…and she likes me! Can I please, please keep her?” Kozi sighed.349

“Fine,” he said. “But she’s your responsibility. You’ll have to feed her and take care of her…understood?”350

“Yay!” said Klaha, jumping up and down with the cat in his arms. She purred and rubbed up against his chest. “I’m going to name you Atora!” The cat meowed and Klaha giggled some more, petting her head.351

Mana sat on the windowsill, playing his violin softly, staring out the window. He saw Yu-ki, Kozi and Klaha approaching, and he placed his violin back in its case and scribbled down a few notes on the music papers in front of him. He put the papers into a nearby cupboard and walked downstairs, where Yu-ki and Klaha where playing with Atora, who was rolling around on the floor. Kozi walked past Mana on the stairs, going up into his bedroom. 352

Klaha smiled at Mana as he came down the stairs. He walked over to Mana and put his arms around him, and Mana pushed him away and sat down next to Yu-ki on the floor. Klaha joined them soon after.353

“So, who’s this?” asked Mana, looking at Atora.354

“Her name is Atora!” said Klaha. “I found her on the street. Isn’t she cute?!” Mana chuckled a little as he picked up Atora, petting her. Atora purred and rubbed herself against Mana’s arm. 355

“Aw, she likes you,” said Yu-ki, smiling. Mana smiled back at him and continued petting Atora. Klaha stared at the two of them, with envy burning in his eyes. Yu-ki looked up at Klaha.356

“Klaha, what’s wrong?” asked Yu-ki.357

“Nothing,” mumbled Klaha, still staring angrily at Mana and Atora.358

“Don’t be ridiculous,” said Yu-ki. “I can see the envy burning in your eyes.” Klaha growled at him and stormed off upstairs. Mana and Yu-ki stared at him as he went up the stairs, and Mana just shrugged it off and continued petting the cat. 359

Klaha stared down at them angrily as he stormed upstairs. He walked down the hallway into his bedroom, slamming the door shut. He sat down on the bed and stared angrily at the floor.360

“Stupid Atora,” said Klaha. “Getting more attention from Mana than me! Well, there’s only one thing I can do about that…I must put my head on Atora’s body!” He picked up a pencil from the bedside table and a conveniently placed piece of paper and started scribbling crudely drawn plans on it. 361

After a few minutes, he set his pencil down to admire his work. He chuckled a little to himself and walked downstairs. He stopped in the entrance to the kitchen, to make sure Mana and Yu-ki (who were still playing with Atora) weren’t watching. Fortunately, they were too distracted by the cat to notice Klaha running out of the kitchen with a giant knife and a roll of duct tape. He quickly went back upstairs and set the things down on his bedside table next to his plans. He sat down on his bed and laughed evilly to himself.362

“And now, we play the waiting game…”363

Hours later, he heard Mana and Yu-ki saying their goodnights to each other out in the hallway, and Atora was meowing outside his door. Klaha reluctantly got up from his seat on his bed and opened the door a crack, and Atora scurried inside. He quickly shut the door, and walked over to where Atora was sitting on the floor. He picked the cat up and placed her on the bed, holding her there with one hand. He took the knife off the bedside table in his other hand.364

“You think you’re so great, don’t you?!” yelled Klaha. Atora just stared up at him. “Well you’re not that great! You just spend time with Mana to make me jealous! You’re so mean to me! After all I’ve done for you!” Klaha held the knife to his own throat, and he heard knocking at the door.365

“Klaha, what are you doing?” asked Mana, pushing open the door. He looked at Klaha, shocked. “Don’t do it!” he said, rushing forward and taking the knife out of Klaha’s hands.366

“Why did you stop me?” said Klaha. “You…you love me, don’t you?!”367

“No,” said Mana. “Do you know what kind of a mess it would make if you slit your throat? And on this carpet! What the hell where you trying to do anyway?”368

“You like Atora so much!” said Klaha. “I was going to cut my head off and put it on her body so I could spend more time with you!” Mana stared at him in disbelief.369

“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,” he said. Klaha slumped down onto the ground, and Atora bounded off the bed and rubbed herself against Mana’s legs.370

“Now, go to sleep,” said Mana, picking up Atora. “And no more yelling. Or trying to kill cats.” He turned around and started to walk out of the room.371

“Wait!” said Klaha. Mana turned around, annoyed. “Where are you taking my precious Atora?”372

“Away from you,” said Mana. “Until you show me that you’re responsible enough to care for a pet.”373

“I’m responsible!” said Klaha. “I got that job, remember?”374

“Yeah, and then you got fired the same day,” said Mana. “Goodnight, Klaha.” He shut the door behind him, and Klaha sat on the floor, alone and defeated. 375

The next afternoon, Mana, Kozi and Yu-ki were standing at the front door, getting ready to go to the orphanage for the winter festival. Klaha came into the room and looked at them questioningly.376

“Where are you guys going?” asked Klaha.377

“The orphanage,” said Mana.378

“Are you adopting a child?!” said Klaha.379

“No,” Mana replied, buttoning up his jacket. “We’re - ”380

“Are you going to see that Gackt guy?” asked Klaha. “Because I met him, and apparently, you were very good friends at one time. I just have to say, he kinda creeps me out…he was going on about some evil plan he had.”381

“Evil plan?” repeated Yu-ki. 382

“Yeah,” said Klaha. “He said he had this great evil plan, and uh, there was something about Mana in there…” Mana looked shocked. “And he said we can’t stop it, because it’s already begun. And then he laughed maniacally and went to get the children. But anyway, I just think he’s a total nutcase. I didn’t take him seriously at all.”383

“Um, okay,” said Kozi. 384

“So, can I come to whatever you’re going to?” asked Klaha eagerly.385

“Sure,” said Mana. “Just don’t publicly humiliate yourself. Or us.”386

“Of course!” said Klaha. “Anything for you, my love.” Mana glared at him and walked out the door, followed by Kozi and Yu-ki. Klaha quickly pulled on his jacket and went after them, shutting the door behind him.387

When they got to the orphanage, there was no one in sight.388

“Well, what kind of festival is this?” asked Kozi, lighting up a cigarette.389

“Kozi, don’t smoke at an orphanage,” said Yu-ki.390

“Hey, I can smoke wherever I want,” said Kozi, exhaling a puff of smoke into Yu-ki’s face. Yu-ki coughed and glared at him.391

“So, you think we should head home?” asked Klaha. Gackt walked out of the front door and waved to them. Klaha waved back, while the rest of them just stared at him.392

“Hello, friends!” said Gackt, smiling. He walked over to where they were all standing.393

“Hi,” said Klaha. Everyone else was silent.394

“What a warm welcome,” mumbled Gackt. “Anyway, if you came for the winter festival, I’m sorry to say that we had to cancel it! All of the children fell ill last night.”395

“All the children?” repeated Kozi, with a suspicious look on his face. “At the same time?”396

“Oh yes!” said Gackt. “I’m not sure what it is they have, but we have a doctor in there trying to work things out. Would you like to come inside for cookies and tea?”397

“With all those sick children, I don’t really think we should,” said Yu-ki.398

“Oh, nonsense!” said Gackt. “We’ll be in my office, which is totally germ-free…none of the orphans have ever set foot in it. No Kozi, I do not have any llamas.” Kozi looked at Gackt, confused.399

“Uh, what?” he asked.400

“Oh, I’m psychic, remember?” said Gackt. “I could tell you were thinking about llamas.”401

“No, I wasn’t thinking about llamas…” said Kozi.402

“You were. You’ve just repressed it now,” said Gackt. “Now, come with me. The tea will get cold.” He grabbed Mana’s arm and began dragging him inside, while the others followed. 403

They walked through the door of the orphanage, and Gackt led them to his personal office, which seemed to be much larger than necessary. There was a desk, a giant big screen TV on the side of the wall, with a mini-fridge on the other wall, next to a small table. The table had a teapot on it, with a tray of cookies next to it.404

“Go ahead and sit down,” said Gackt. “I’ll get the tea cups.” Everyone sat down around the small table, still in silence. Klaha stared at the tray of cookies and grabbed at least three, shoving them all in his mouth at once.405

“That wasn’t very polite,” said Yu-ki.406

“I know, but I’m so hungry,” said Klaha through a mouthful of cookies. “I didn’t have breakfast this morning.”407

Gackt came back into the room carrying five teacups and little saucers to match each of them. He placed one cup and one saucer in front of everyone at the table, and then sat down, smiling at them.408

“So, how have all of you been?” asked Gackt, pouring tea into his cup.409

“We’ve been doing just fine,” said Kozi. “And you’ve been doing well, I assume.”410

“Being extremely famous has its ups and downs,” said Gackt. “I mean, sure I have truckloads of money and I can have anything I want, but it tore me away from my precious friends.” He smiled at them.411

“It didn’t tear you away from us!” said Kozi. “You made the decision to leave!”412

“Don’t be so angry Kozi,” said Gackt. “I know you’re thinking about doing dirty thing to penguins right now.”413

“I am not thinking about doing dirty things to penguins!” said Kozi. He sighed. “This is totally ridiculous.” Gackt ignored this and continued talking.414

“So, why do you hang around Klaha anyway?” asked Gackt. “Where did you meet him?”415

“Well,” started Klaha. “I met them when they were being terrorized by a vampire, who I heroically defeated.” Mana rolled his eyes. “And now they’re helping me get a job and a place to live! They’re the nicest people I’ve ever met! Well, Yu-ki, anyway.” Gackt chuckled.416

“Mana and Kozi were always a little…hard to get along with,” said Gackt, sipping his tea. There was a knock at the door, and Gackt got up to answer it. He pulled the door open, and a man in a white doctor coat was standing in the hallway. He said something to Gackt, and then left the room. Gackt stood in the doorway and looked at Mana with a sad expression on his face.417

“Mana, could you come with me for a second?” he asked. Mana nodded and got up from the table and walked towards the doorway. “You three can stay here.” Mana walked out the door, and Gackt shut it as he left.418

Gackt led the way down the hallway, and they walked into a small, dimly lit room, lined with beds filled with small, sleeping children. They walked down to the end of the room, where Mana saw Andrew asleep in his bed.419

“I’m afraid he just passed away,” said the doctor, leaning over the side of Andrew’s bed. 420

“Did you figure out how?” asked Gackt.421

“No,” said the doctor. “They all have very weird symptoms…I’m not sure what’s going on with them.” They all stared at Andrew’s motionless body, when his eyes suddenly opened, glowing red.422

“Oh my God!” said doctor. “He’s a vampire!” Andrew sat up and hissed at the doctor, showing his fangs.423

“Hello Andrew!” Gackt said happily. “I’m glad to see you’re awake.”424

“I’m hungry,” said Andrew, staring at the doctor. Gackt suddenly appeared behind him, pulling the doctor’s arms behind his back to restrain him.425

“Well, he’s all yours then,” said Gackt, smiling evilly at Andrew, who smiled and jumped on the doctor, knocking him to the ground. The doctor cried out in pain as Andrew’s fangs pierced his neck. 426

Gackt smiled evilly at Mana, who started to slowly back away from him.427

“Oh, don’t go Mana,” said Gackt, smiling to show his fangs. “The party’s only just begun!” All the other sleeping children rose from their beds, their eyes glowing red. Mana turned around and started running towards the door, when Gackt suddenly appeared in front of him. Mana crashed into him, and Gackt wrapped his arms around Mana’s tiny body, holding them together.428

“Oh Mana,” said Gackt, smiling at him. “Come with me and be my little vampire princess.” Mana glared at him.429

“Let me go,” he said, staring angrily up at Gackt, who laughed a little.430

“I can’t do that, Mana,” said Gackt. “I get whatever I want…and I want you.” Gackt leaned it to kiss him, and Mana squirmed around, trying to free himself from Gackt’s grip. Their lips met, and Mana tried to push Gackt away. Gackt put his hand on the back of Mana’s head to keep him there, and Mana punched Gackt in the stomach. Gackt backed away, clutching his stomach in pain. He looked up at Mana angrily, hissing and baring his fangs.431

“Don’t go there, girlfriend!” said Gackt.432

“Oh, I went there,” said Mana, smirking. “And I came back, bought a bucket of chicken, and went there again!” Gackt hissed at him, and leapt forward, knocking Mana to the ground. He sat on top of Mana, grabbed his wrists and pinned them above his head.433

“Well, this is a rather…provocative position, isn’t it?” said Gackt, smirking. Mana glared at him, and struggled to free himself. The vampire children slowly started gathering around them in a circle, their eyes glowing red in the darkness. 434

“I’ll ask you one more time,” said Gackt. “Are you going to come with me willingly?” 435

“No!” screamed Mana. “You’re crazy! Let me go!” He squirmed around underneath Gackt, who smiled evilly at him.436

“As you wish,” he said, getting off Mana and standing to the side. Mana sat up and glared at him. Gackt used his mad vampire skillz to lift Mana off the ground with his mind.437

“What the hell are you doing?!” yelled Mana. Gackt laughed maniacally and used his mad skillz to throw Mana against the wall. He slid down the wall and hit the floor, unconscious.438

Gackt walked over to where Mana lay on the floor, and he nudged the unconscious man with his foot to turn him over. He bent down and brushed the hair out of Mana’s face, and he could see blood seeping from a wound on the side of his head. Gackt planted a small kiss on Mana’s bloody forehead, and turned back to the vampire children, who were standing around them in a semi-circle, giggling. 439

“Silence, my children,” said Gackt, holding his hands in the air. The children suppressed their giggles and stared at him attentively. “Now, we will go out into the night, to feed on the blood of the innocent! And maybe some of the not-innocent if we can’t find enough innocent people!” The children all started giggling again, and they all disappeared from the room.440

“They’ve been in there a while,” said Kozi, playing with his empty teacup. “I think we should go check on them.”441

“Well, we don’t want to interrupt…whatever it is they’re doing,” said Yu-ki. “I remember that one time I walked in on Mana and Gackt…that was gross.” He shuddered and poured himself some more tea.442

“I’m concerned about my love,” said Klaha. “She shouldn’t be alone with other men…especially one that attractive.” Kozi and Yu-ki stared at him. “Um, I mean…I didn’t say Gackt was attractive! Ew! Gross! No.”443

“Whatever you say,” said Kozi, rolling his eyes. He got up from the table and walked towards the door. “I’m going to check on them.”444

“I’m coming too!” said Klaha, jumping up from the table and running towards the door. They both looked back at Yu-ki.445

“Well, I don’t wanna be here alone,” he said, getting up from the table and walking out the door behind Kozi and Klaha. They walked halfway down the hallway when Kozi stopped and turned around to look at Klaha and Yu-ki.446

“Do we even know which way they went?” asked Kozi. Yu-ki shrugged and Klaha stared off into space, not paying attention. 447

“We can split up, I guess,” said Yu-ki. “Just…go wherever.” Kozi continued walking down the hall, until they got to the main lobby, where they split up. Yu-ki walked into the kitchen to see if they had any chocolate. 448

Kozi went into the little playroom to see if anyone was in there, but more importantly, to play with the little toy dinosaurs. 449

Klaha made his way into a dark room, and his hands fumbled along he wall, looking for a light switch. He couldn’t find one, so he just walked into the room, extremely afraid of what could be in there. After he walked about halfway through the room, he decided no one was there, and turned around to walk out. The light from the doorway cast a shadow on the ground, and he could see a hand sticking out from the space between two of the beds. He screamed and ran out of the room.450

A few seconds later, Yu-ki and Kozi met him outside the door to the room he had just been in.451

“What the hell are you screaming about now?” asked Kozi.452

“There was a hand!” said Klaha.453

“And…?” asked Yu-ki, pressing him to go on.454

“Well…it was just there…and it was really scary…I think it was a monster!” Klaha screamed, burying his head in his hands. Kozi rolled his eyes and walked in to the room, followed by Yu-ki. Klaha slowly came in after them, looking around apprehensively.455

Kozi walked over to where the hand was sticking out, and looked down to see Mana’s unconscious body lying on the floor, a tiny puddle of blood seeping from the side of his head.456

“Oh my God!” he yelled, sitting down on the floor next to Mana. 457

“What do you think happened to him?” asked Yu-ki as Kozi pulled Mana onto his lap.458

“I don’t know,” said Kozi. “But it was probably Gackt’s doing. The guy’s a nutcase.”459

“And where is everybody?” asked Yu-ki. “All the sick children suddenly felt better, so Gackt beat up Mana and then they went out for ice cream?”460

“That’s totally ridiculous!” said Klaha. “They wouldn’t go out for ice cream, it’s winter!” Kozi stood up with Mana in his arms.461

“Let’s just go home,” he said. Yu-ki nodded and started to walk out the door, followed by Kozi and Klaha.462

Mana’s eyes fluttered open, and he turned over in bed to see Yu-ki sitting in a chair against the wall.463

“Mana!” he said, smiling at him. “You’re awake!” Mana looked around the room groggily. Klaha was sitting in an armchair on the other side of the room, with Atora on his lap. 464

“What are you too doing in my bedroom?” asked Mana, looking at Yu-ki.465

“Well, you got hurt,” said Yu-ki. Mana looked confused. “When we went to the orphanage…don’t you remember?” Mana shook his head.466

“I don’t remember ever going to the orphanage…” he said. “What happened to me?”467

“Well, we…don’t know,” said Yu-ki, shrugging. “We found you on the floor…well, what’s the last thing you can remember?”468

“I remember…” Mana thought. “Standing outside the…orphanage.”469

“And you don’t remember anything after that?” asked Yu-ki. Mana shook his head.470

“You must be repressing it,” said Klaha. Mana and Yu-ki turned to look at him. “People repress their traumatic experiences, because they can’t bring themselves to think about it.” Yu-ki stared at him in shock and amazement.471

“That is the smartest thing I’ve ever heard you say,” said Yu-ki. Klaha smiled wryly, and Atora bounded off his lap and jumped onto the bed with Mana, settling herself in his lap. 472

“Where’s Kozi?” Mana asked, petting Atora.473

“Well, he’s been acting…weirder than usual,” said Yu-ki. “I don’t think he’s come out of his room in…well, since we came home from the orphanage, two days ago.”474

“I’ve been unconscious for two days?!” said Mana, surprised. “Ugh, I need to shower.” Yu-ki laughed, and Mana ran his hands through his greasy hair, making a disgusted face. 475

Later (after Mana had showered and convinced Kozi to come out of his room), everyone was seated at the kitchen table, enjoying a nice lunch that Mana had made.476

“So, what do we have planned for today?” asked Yu-ki. 477

“I think we should go back to the orphanage,” said Klaha. “And destroy every, last child in there. Including Gackt.”478

“What?!” said Kozi. “Why would you want to kill a bunch of children?! That’s sick!”479

“They need to be destroyed!” said Klaha. “They’re all vampires!”480

“And what gave you that idea?” asked Kozi.481

“Did you read the sign in front of the orphanage?” asked Klaha. When Kozi shook his head, Klaha sighed. “It said “Orphanage” in normal letters, then “We are not vampires!” written across the bottom in dripping blood! Don’t you find that the least bit suspicious?”482

“No,” said Yu-ki. “It said on the sign they weren’t vampires, so they’re not!”483

“Fine,” said Klaha. “Live in your little delusional world. They are vampires, and I am going back to kill them…it’s my job! Besides, I owe it to you guys.”484

“You’re going to repay us by killing a bunch of homeless children?!” said Kozi. “You are totally insane.”485

“Mana!” said Klaha, getting Mana’s attention. “The vampires attacked you! That’s how you got hurt, right?”486

“I honestly don’t remember anything,” said Mana, staring at the table. Klaha turned back to Kozi.487

“Let’s at least go there, so I can prove to you that they’re vampires!” said Klaha. Kozi sighed.488

“Fine, we can go,” he said. “But just to prove to you that they are not vampires.”489

They were all standing outside the orphanage, the snow falling lightly. They walked up to the door, and Klaha knocked. 490

“I’ll show you…they’re vampires! No one will answer the door!” he said. They waited in front of the door for a few minutes, and no one answered. “I told you, they’re vampires!”491

“Just because they don’t answer the door doesn’t mean they’re vampires!” said Kozi. Klaha tried to open the door, only to discover that it was locked.492

“The door is locked!” Klaha exclaimed. “That’s suspicious…”493

“How is that suspicious?” said Kozi.494

“No, he’s right,” said Mana. Kozi and Yu-ki stared at him in bewilderment. “The door of the orphanage isn’t locked during the day.”495

“Ah, Mana my love, I’m glad you agree with me!” Klaha said, hugging Mana, who pushed him away and moved to the back of the group. Klaha went back to facing the door. “I say we go in.”496

“Are you suggesting that we break in to the orphanage?” asked Yu-ki, raising a drawn-on eyebrow.497

“Yes,” said Klaha. “Because this isn’t an orphanage anymore…it’s a vampire orphanage! The people who adopt these children will be in great danger!” He tried to open the door again, and then kicked it with his giant five-inch platform boots. The door instantly collapsed under the weight of the shoes, and Klaha walked into the orphanage. Kozi, Yu-ki and Mana followed reluctantly.498

They walked into the lobby, and then into the room lined with beds, where the children were sound asleep.499

“This seems pretty normal to me,” said Kozi.500

“No!” said Klaha. “It’s not normal! Not normal at all! Do you know what time of day it is?! It’s the middle of the afternoon! These children would be wide awake and playing outside right now, if they weren’t vampires, of course.”501

“They are not vampires!” said Kozi.502

Klaha grabbed one of the children and opened their mouth.503

“See?” he said, pointing to the fangs. “Fangs! That is not normal!” Kozi sighed and rolled his eyes.504

“Can we just get out of here?” he asked.505

“Oh, so you want to leave now?” said Klaha. “It’s because you know I’m right! These are all vampire children!”506

“Shut up,” said Kozi. “I have better things to do than hang around an orphanage all day.”507

“Fine,” mumbled Klaha. “You guys go…I’m staying here to take care of the vampires…”508

“Okay,” said Yu-ki walking out the door. Kozi ran up behind him.509

“We can’t leave him alone here!” Kozi hissed at Yu-ki. “He’ll kill the children!”510

“Oh, relax,” said Yu-ki. “He doesn’t know how to kill a vampire, remember?”511

“Oh,” said Kozi. “I almost forgot about that.” He smirked at Yu-ki, and they walked out of the orphanage. Mana came outside to join them soon after. 512

“What do you think he’s gonna do?” asked Yu-ki. 513

“Probably spray vinegar on them,” said Mana. Yu-ki chuckled. Suddenly, Klaha came walking out of the orphanage, pouring gasoline in the snow as he went.514

“What’s he doing?” asked Yu-ki.515

“I don’t know,” said Kozi, lighting a cigarette. “And I really don’t care.” He took a puff of the cigarette and exhaled smoke into the air. Klaha dropped his now empty tank of gasoline and ran up to the group.516

“Any of you have a lighter?” asked Klaha. Kozi nodded.517

“Yeah, but what are you gunna use it for?” he asked.518

“Oh, I’m just going to light the orphanage on fire,” Klaha said casually. Everyone stared at him, shocked expressions on all their faces.519

“In that case, you can’t have my lighter,” said Kozi. Klaha frowned.520

“Fine then,” he said, grabbing the cigarette out of Kozi’s mouth. “Then I’ll just steal your cigarette!” He stuck it in his mouth and inhaled, then doubled over coughing with smoke coming out of his mouth. He dropped the cigarette in a puddle of gasoline, which quickly lit on fire, making it’s way down the line he had made towards the orphanage. Klaha continued coughing, and hadn’t noticed the arm of his shirt had caught on fire.521

“You’re on fire!” yelled Yu-ki.522

“You’re gunna burn down the orphanage!” yelled Kozi. 523

“I smudged my make up!” yelled Mana, staring at himself in a compact mirror.524

“OH MY GOD!” yelled Klaha, waving his flaming arm around in the air, as the flames on the ground crept ever closer to the orphanage. “What do I do?!”525

“Stop, drop and roll!” yelled Yu-ki.526

“No way!” said Klaha. “The ground is all wet and snowy! I’ll ruin my clothes!” Kozi rolled his eyes and kicked Klaha face first into a snow bank, and the flames on his arm instantly went out. They glanced back at the orphanage, which was now engulfed in flames.527

“Oh my God Klaha, look what you did!” yelled Yu-ki, staring at the burning building. Klaha got up from the snow bank and brushed the snow off his face, staring at the flames.528

“Well, I put a few barrels of gun powder in there too,” said Klaha. “I wonder why it hasn’t exploded yet.” Suddenly, the orphanage exploded in a fiery massive chaos. Of destruction. 529

Luckily, everyone in the group was a safe distance away, and remained totally unharmed, though Klaha’s arm was slightly singed. 530

“Do you know what you just did?!” yelled Kozi, grabbing Klaha by the shoulders. 531

“I just heroically defeated a large number of vampires,” said Klaha. 532

“No! You just killed a bunch of children!” screamed Kozi.533

“They were vampires!” yelled Klaha. “VAMPIRES!” Kozi gave an aggravated sigh.534

“Let’s just go home,” he said. “Before you get arrested.”535

Gackt sat on his throne of evil, staring into the darkness like he usually does, when Andrew appeared in front of him.536

“What do you want?” asked Gackt.537

“Well, Klaha just blew up the orphanage…and every single one of the children got a random piece of wood from the floors and walls stabbed through their hearts,” Andrew informed him.538

“What?!” said Gackt. “That’s totally ridiculous!”539

“I know,” said Andrew. “But I guess your plan won’t work now.”540

“Oh, it’ll work,” said Gackt. “We just need to be more direct.”541

“I think you were pretty direct with Mana last night,” said Andrew. “You didn’t have to beat him up like that.”542

“Hey, I can beat up whoever I want,” said Gackt. “After all, I am Gacktula, all powerful vampire lord!” He raised his hands in a dramatic fashion. “I will have my revenge on you, Mana! I swear!” He laughed maniacally, and lightening struck off in the distance.543

“Wait, why do you want revenge on Mana?” asked Andrew. Gackt glared at him.544

“It’ll explain in the next one! God, can’t you wait?!”545