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Chapter 23
Yui was kneeling on the rough floor. The coldness of the rain was simply a numb sensation. Balling her fists, hot tears flowed down her cheeks before they dripped down her chin, turning cold as it mixed with the pouring rain.
"No..." she quietly said. A sob escaped her. "I hate this place!"
"Really?"
Shoes met her vision and Yui slowly looked up, loosening her grip on her forearms.
She blinked in surprise. "Subaru?"
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Subaru didn't even bat an eyelid as he stared at the vulnerable figure beneath him.
"Ah...Subaru...?" Yui hugged herself tighter. Her tears ran vigorously down her face, surpassing the raindrops and splashing onto pavement. "I don't...want to be here..."
Subaru sighed. "And you were so determined to stay here moments ago. Do you want to leave this place?"
All Yui heard was her heartbeat. The pitter-pattering rain and the howls of the wind were merely background noises, muffled along with Subaru's voice.
"...Did you know about the triplets?" she quietly asked.
"Yes."
"They kill—they killed their mother."
"What of it?"
Yui looked up and was met with Subaru's indifferent expression.
"Why are you so surprised?" he said. "You should have realised that monsters aren't exactly angelic."
"I..."
"You can't run away...or are you planning on doing what the triplets did?"
Yui's eyes flickered. "Wh...what do you mean?"
Subaru leaned down. "Are you planning to kill us monsters?"
"No!" Yui placed her hands over her ears. After a long pause, her squeezed lids loosened. After another few seconds, her eyes slowly opened.
"Of-of course not," she stuttered. "Please don't say things like that..."
Subaru dug his hands in his pockets. "Then what is a powerless human like you gonna do?"
"I-I don't know," Yui replied. "I...I can't do very much..."
"Oh? Took you long enough to realise that."
The corner of Yui's eyes began to sting. She raised her head. "Y-You don't have to say it like—"
Subaru lifted her into his arms. Yui's eyes were wide.
"S-Subaru?! What are you—"
"Shut up," the albino said. "Don't be mistaken. Guinevere won't be pleased if the both of us caught a cold. That's all."
Yui softened for the first time. "...Thank you."
"Don't thank a monster like me." Subaru was looking away, but the disgust and shame in his voice were unmissable.
"Eh? But...you're not a monster."
Subaru tensed before coming to an abrupt halt in his steps. He faced her with a glare.
"What do you know?" he sneered.
Yui winced. "Su-Subaru, my shoulder...!"
Subaru blinked in surprise. He then resumed his walking, his steps quicker as he walked straight through the puddles, fiercely splashing water as cold as his eyes.
...
'I hope Subaru's okay...' Yui thought, her head bowed underneath a soft towel. 'He was acting stranger than usual...and he refused to acknowledge me. Is it because I called him...a monster?'
Yui tightened her grip on the mattress. 'Why did he think of himself that way? Why must he be so harsh on himself? Is it to do with the past? His mother was locked up, after all...'
She then shook her head. 'No. It's none of my business...I don't want to know any more than this...It's probably similar to the triplets, filled with misfortune...
Ah. I understand their odd behaviours now. They've been ruined.'
Yui sighed. 'Though, I've had enough. I need some rest.'
She settled beneath the blankets. Her eyes begin to droop, and warmness overtook her, causing her to finally relax.
'It seems that Guinevere was right...knowing too much can do more harm than good...' After a long exhale, her eyes closed.
+++++++++++++
Yui's blood ran cold. Three metres ahead of her were the bodies of Cecelia and Damian, their bloodied hands intertwined.
The ruins of their carriage surrounded them, slowly being devoured by flames.
The smell of burnt wood entered her nose, though it was nothing compared to the heavy, metallic scent.
Oddly, it was sweet. So irresistibly sweet that it clouded her brain for a good few seconds. Her canines suddenly ached, and her throat grew parch. It was as if the flames have reached her and was slowly burning her alive.
When she came to her senses, Yui wanted to hurl. She wanted to break down in tears and scream and run away until her feet burned more than those flames.
She wanted to wake up from this nightmare...but her feet were rooted to the ground.
Instead, she was forced to stare at them, bounded and broken.
Her shock and disgust were washed over by calmness in a flick of a switch. She now felt delight.
Yui's eyes widened at its own will as they locked with Cecelia's. The last tear dripped down the dying woman's dirtied skin, yet her hooded, silver eyes contained storms of malice.
Her sticky, bloody mouth parted slightly. "Defectum," she hoarsely spat, before she became perfectly still.
A wave of emotions hit Yui at once. Anger. Humiliation. Hurt...They dampened ones of triumph and glee.
'Why am I...?' Yui thought. She was supposed to be shocked, frustrated—she wanted to break down, but she couldn't. Her heart wasn't beating. Her legs weren't shaking.
It was as if this body was refusing to acknowledge those signs.
She then felt a pang and looked down to see blood dripping from her clenched fist. Yui mentally winced before surprise rolled over.
At this point, she wasn't sure whether the surprise was her own or not.
She then came to realisation. 'Wait, that hand...it isn't mine...'
The hand unclenched and Yui found herself gazing at the bodies once again. The overwhelming emotions were slowly dying down as she was forced to watch the flames eating the letter in Cecelia's hand, blotched with the glow of fresh blood.
Then, like red curtains drawing at the end of the show, the flames closed over the view of two bodies, soon turning them black.
The crackles scared her, yet Yui's body wouldn't budge. They sounded clear in her ears, echoing grotesquely in her head.
The burnt smell grew stronger, and Yui would most definitely have gagged if she could.
She felt herself slowly walk away. The swooshing sound of fabric reached her ears. She then—unwillingly—looked down and saw a floor-length, black dress. The right side was made of white frills that flowed down in layers, ballooning outwards as they were ruffled up by the conducting of the wind.
Yui noticed a white rose pinned on her full chest before she found herself bending down and brushing the tiny, camouflaged piece of ash off her dress's hem.
'I thought the hands were slender and too pale...' Yui thought. She then mentally sweat-dropped. '...but this chest confirmed it. This body is not mine!
...But whose body is it? The clothing looks familiar, but why don't I remem—'
A gust of wind blew by, and from the corner of her eyes, Yui saw purple strands fluttering past.
Everything clicked. 'This body's—'
"Cordelia, it is finished." A masked figure appeared in front of Yui's vision, cloaked in a black hood.
"Oh? Where are the other two?" The voice that came out from Yui was lower and far less soft than hers.
'As I thought, I'm in Cordelia's body...!'
Before she could process anything else, the man replied, "They had other matters to attend to. However, they completed their task splendidly."
Cordelia then rested her hand under her breasts. "Good. Now, make sure the fire doesn't head towards the mansion. Karl will be paying a visit in a minute."
"Very well," the man said.
"Not that you have to do much, though. Rain is predicted to arrive soon, and the wind is also blowing in the easterly direction. As for the village, do what you wish. I don't care."
The man showed surprise behind his mask. "I see. This must have been an important task."
Cordelia smirked. "What makes you say that, Seiji?"
"You seem to have thoroughly planned everything. From foreseeing the storm to knowing your sister's exact schedule. Though that is unusual, I applaud you for that."
"As expected of a high-class vampire hunter," Cordelia giggled. "You know your predators almost to the bone."
Seiji chuckled. "I thank you. However, in order to survive, the prey must observe the predator twice as much as the predator to the prey."
Cordelia narrowed her eyes, her smirk still intact. There was a hint of cautiousness, though, catching Yui off-guarded as she too felt it.
'Seiji? No, it could just be someone with the same name...But his voice sounds almost...nostalgic...' Yui thought sadly.
Cordelia moved closer the man. Yui saw his honey-coloured eyes, and the familiarity increased, despite the eyes being duller and hostile than when she last saw them.
'No...' Yui mentally repeated the statement a few times. '...It can't be...'
"Can I see the face of my saviour?" Cordelia said.
The anxiety and the confusion washed away as Yui felt curiosity that was not hers.
Seiji sighed. He then removed his hood—
'It can't be...'
—and uncovered the mask from his face.
Yui's mind went blank, contrasting the intrigue running through Cordelia's body. The face appeared to be in the twenties, the light skin smooth of wrinkles and hair still a rich, youthful brown.
Yui finally mustered a clear thought. '...Father?'
Cordelia giggled. "My, you're quite attractive, aren't you? Shame you aren't anything more than livestock."
"I'd much prefer being a livestock then a repulsive mosquito," Seiji replied.
Yui felt Cordelia's cheeks flush, in both anger and embarrassment. "How dare—"
"Now if you'll excuse me, I must make haste in preventing the sight of your mansion in ashes." With that, Seiji turned and blended with the woods, almost becoming one with the shadows.
Yui tried to call out to him. The scene shifted.
++++++++++++
'...Eh?' Yui was flustered at the sight in front of her.
She was currently embraced between solid arms.
"Karl~" Words that were not her own slipped from lips that felt like hers. "Thank you hiring the men for me. They were incredibly useful."
Karl stiffened. "...That's good to hear."
Cordelia looked up in question. A smile was sent her way, and golden eyes betraying nothing looked down at her before Karl's white curls brushed her cheek.
"Cordelia, there's something waiting for you in the mansion," he said. He was back to normal.
'...I almost forgot. I'm in her body,' Yui thought.
Cordelia pouted. "But it's lonely there. The boys are in America right now."
Karl tilted his head and began twirling her hair.
"If it's a gift, you could have just given it to me now."
"No," Karl said. "It's better if they're there."
"They? Is it more than one?" Excited bubbled up inside of her.
Karl still smiled that gentle smile of his. "You're that eager even though you don't know what it is?"
"I am. They are gifts from you after all~"
Yui felt awkward. Well, she would have. 'How much longer must I be this body?'
"Well, I'm afraid I'm quite busy," said Karl, instantly dampening Cordelia's joy.
Cordelia tightened her embrace. "Now? But I don't want to leave."
Karl chuckled and pecked her lips. "That's why I'm trying to finish this as soon as possible, dear. It'll all be over by tomorrow."
Somehow, Yui immediately felt wary. However, Cordelia's smile was practically glowing, drowning Yui's cautiousness with lovesick.
"You're so sweet," she giggled. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
Just when Yui thought she could tolerate this once more, she found herself mentally screeching when Cordelia opened her mouth. She then had a mental breakdown when she felt two dancing tongues along with the intense heat of lips moulding deliciously with each other.
Her mind was still blank by the time the two broke apart. Cordelia opened the door, and the scene changed the moment she stepped out of the room.
...
"Kaa-san, you're home?"
Cordelia turned around, surprised. "Ayato. Aren't you meant to be in America—"
Ayato was suddenly in front of her. Yui felt immense pain as his hand went through Cordelia's body.
Cordelia's agonising screams rang through the air.
'Fi...nally,' Yui thought. The pain was becoming unbearable. It was difficult to think straight. 'I have control...over this body—'
Cordelia coughed up blood. The world flickered, and the last thing she saw was Ayato's smirking face before everything turned black.
+++++++++++++
The situation was awfully familiar as Yui woke up with wide eyes and drenched in sweat. She instantly scrambled backwards and her back hit the headboard. Her hand automatically went to her torso. She realised she was shaking.
'Why do I have a feeling...that it's nowhere near the actual pain?'
Yui then allowed herself to silently cry a little longer.
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A/N: Sorry guys, I haven't been posting lately. Thank you much for being so patient. Sincerely. I don't think I'll be able to put up with an author like myself.
Anyways, here is the glorious, latest chapter. Two people in one body...gosh, that was hard to write. It's much better animated in my head, trust me. Hope that wasn't too bad.
I also reuploaded the previous chapter and corrected a few minor grammatical issues. They're not that significant, so it wouldn't matter too much if you choose to read it or not.
Thanks for understanding! I'll update again in about a week or two (since I'm going overseas on holidays and everything'll over), sooooo I'll be updating more frequently then.
¡Adiós, gente increíble!