Hi! ^_^ This is the bonus chapter I was talking about in chapter 9 (I hope y'all noticed that I've uploaded chapter 9 on Wednesday). :D And it's extra-long! Yay! (Longest chapter I've ever written... :D )

At the beginning, I wrote the last part of the Ryou & Bakura scene of chapter 8, so that you know what has happened before. :] Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!

Chapter 10

Interesting is the fact, that stories about blood-drinking creatures have been existing

for thousands of years, in various parts of the world.

On top of that in times without internet!

Ryou's Past

-Ryou and Bakura-

"Bakura?", Ryou began and dared to ask a question that has been on his mind for an eternity. "Have you... ever regretted that you changed me?"

Bakura looked up into Ryou's dark chocolate brown eyes. His brow furrowed, the taller vampire left the living room and went upstairs into his bedroom without replying to Ryou.

"Have I?", Bakura wondered and slumped down on his bed.

After Ryou had asked this the past night, the two white haired vampires had been thinking, either of them in their own bedroom. Thinking about the past, their first encounter and everything that followed.

...

*flashback*

The flames surrounded her like a warm fur coat and muffled her bloodcurdling screams. She couldn't move, as she was tied to the stake. This was her end. The flames began to eat away at her body. All ablaze, a little later her screams and cries faded away, and so did her hopes.

Among the people, the villagers, who viewed the spectacle, there were also five figures dressed in black coats, their white hair signalizing that they belonged together. The light of the fire danced on their skin while tears ran down their pale cheeks. Their gazes were averted from the sight that met their eyes. The two smallest figures squeezed each other's hands, whispering "Everything will be fine", even though they had lost their hope long ago, and tried to block the cheers of the villagers around them out.

Tonight, they had lost their mother.

Their dear mother, the person who'd raised them, who'd showed them love and...

This wasn't right! This couldn't be true! This... was a nightmare!

Ryou couldn't pull himself together anymore. He burst into tears and fell on his knees, his fists clenched tightly, sobbing and gasping.

"Brother", the smallest black-dressed figure fell on her knees next to him and hugged him. "Brother, stop crying, please, please...", Amane begged.

Ryou looked at her, his eyes wide, tears flowing down his face like rivers. "Amane...", he whispered. There was his younger sister, trying to comfort him in their worst hour whereas it was actually his duty to do that for her.

Later, when the other villagers were already gone, the five white haired persons stayed until the body of her mother had burned to ashes completely.

None of them spoke while they were walking to their house. And after having arrived there, still no one uttered a single word, all night long.

Ryou lay down on his bed and looked up at the wooden ceiling.

The judges must have made a mistake. His mother couldn't have been a witch... She was so kind and... caring. In the end, she'd been just... ill. But not a witch!

Ryou clenched his fists. After an argument with one of their neighbors, his mother suddenly had been accused of witchcraft. And then... the worst time in Ryou's life had begun.

Men working for the court came into the little village, which was located 60 kilometer to the west of London, conducted his mother away, all of a sudden, leaving behind four speechless children who didn't know what was going on and where they brought their mother, and an angry husband.

While Ryou's two elder sisters cared for Ryou and Amane, their father went and searched for his wife. When he'd found her, weeks later, they had tormented her senseless and had driven her insane. She was not recognizable, almost a completely different person!

And no matter how often Ryou's father told the judges to let his wife leave since she was definitely not a witch, all they did was ignore whatever he said. He didn't stand a chance. There was nothing he could do. No one could rescue his wife, the mother of four children.

Under torture, they forced a confession out of Ryou's mother, because no one was punished without having confessed the use of sorcery.

And so she was brought back into the village, where everybody knew about what was going on, of course, and there she was burned alive at the stake, and her death was acclaimed.

How would Ryou's life go on? Without his mother? What should they do?

The following weeks were hard for the family, especially for the children. The disgusted glances of their fellow villagers and the fact that everyone disowned them were hard to stand.

Ryou's oldest sister left the village in order to work and earn some money as a maid in the house of some nobles in London.

His father got drunk every day; in fact, there was not a single day where he was sober anymore. He didn't work anymore and he didn't care about what happened to his children.

And Ryou's older sister was cleaning the house and cooking all day. Of course, Ryou and Amane helped her as often as possible.

The situation stayed like that for about a year, then the next tragedy befell the family. They got a letter that told them, that their oldest sister, who had worked for those nobles in London, died of the sweating sickness within a few hours, just like the nobles themselves as well as the other maids and servants.

The shock was profound. First they lost their mother, and then their oldest sister. And without even noticing, they lost their father as well, somewhere, some when, since he wasn't there for them, never.

Desperate, the three remaining children tried to find a way out of their misery.

Sitting in their kitchen around the small table, their older sister began to talk to them.

"Ryou, Amane...", she said. "I... I can't work, keep house and care for you, all at once. I'm... I cannot do this! I can't... Do you understand?", the girl asked, sobbing.

"Sis... We... I... You don't have to do everything! I can help, too!", Ryou piped up. "I'm almost sixteen years old. The other boys in the village work ever since they're thirteen or fourteen! Why can't I...?"

"Ryou, listen. Mother and father never expected you to work as soon as all the other boys did", his sister explained. "You're such a... tender... boy. Do you understand? No offense, but... you're just not as strong as the other boys. Mother and father were happy that you were here and that you could take care for Amane."

Ryou gulped and looked at Amane, into her tired big brown eyes. "I understand", he whispered. "I really do." He paused. "But, I... I really could help you! I can work! I can!"

"Listen to me, Ryou", his older sister demanded. "I beg you. Do as I say. Otherwise..." She sighed as tears started to roll down her cheeks. "You and Amane will go to aunt Anne. I've sent her a letter explaining our situation and everything else and she replied and told me that it's possible for you to come to her. She doesn't have a husband, she was never able to get a child, so she'd be happy to care for you two. She has a nice house and lives only about 10 kilometers away from Halifax. That means that it's possible for you to go into the city once in a while! Isn't that great?"

Ryou looked at her, his face serious and unbelieving. He and Amane, they should... leave their home? Leave their sister and father behind?

"Sis... I... I don't know whether that's a good idea", Ryou said. "Amane and I, we don't even really know aunt Anne."

"You've seen her before", his sister protested. "Even though you probably don't remember her."

"Yes, but... she's not our family. Not like you, not like father. She's just a relative of ours. Nothing more", he explained and patted Amane's head.

"Ryou, don't make this even harder than it is. Do you think I want to send you away?", his sister questioned.

"Why don't you come with us?", he asked her.

His sister began to laugh. A sad, creepy laugh. "Don't you think I would if I could? Don't you think I would love to leave this village and all our problems behind?" She paused and shook her head, looking down. "But our father is still here. Someone has to care for him. He's our father. It's as simple as that."

"But-", Ryou began, but his sister interrupted him.

"No, Ryou", she shook her head. "It's alright. This is what I want. So please do as I say."

A moment of silence followed.

The three siblings looked at each other.

Frowning, Ryou looked down at his lap and shook his head. "Alright. If that's what you want."

Then he looked at Amane who forced a tiny smile onto her pale round face.

"We'll go. This is the best we can do", he announced.

The small girl tilted her head and her siblings stroke over her long white hair.

...

A few days later, the two white haired children sat in the coach on their way northwards, to their aunt. None of them knew, what would await them there. Would their life there be better or worse?

/It can't get worse/, Ryou thought. /Amane and I, we've come through the worst time of our life. Things can only get better now./

However, things could get worse. Ryou just didn't know it at that time.

When they finally arrived at aunt Anne's house, the welcome was anything but warm and friendly. It turned out that aunt Anne was an old hag and if Amane and Ryou's future wouldn't have been put into her hands, he would have accused her of witchcraft, because he knew at first sight that this woman wasn't good for them at all.

And his fears were proven to be true sooner than expected. Aunt Anne harassed them from the very beginning and let them do hard, dirty work. It was obvious that the letter she'd sent to their sister had been dripping with lies. She used Ryou and Amane as servants and she herself didn't lift a finger. They had to clean the house and work on the field, even though Ryou's older sister had written a letter to her telling that their siblings couldn't do work like that. But aunt Anne did not care. The two white haired children didn't even have a proper room, but a small, dirty closet with two small beds and a tiny table.

...

Two weeks flew by.

It was almost midnight, when the siblings could finally slump down on their beds, exhausted and hungry.

"Br-Brother", Amane sniffed. "Why...? Why...?"

Ryou breathed noisily. "I don't know, Amane. I don't know why this woman does this to us after all we've been through. I can't believe someone like that is our relative."

"I... I want to go home", Amane whispered.

"We can't", Ryou told her. "I would go, run away, if we could, but she would tell our sister and we've promised to live here without causing trouble."

"Do we... have to stay here the rest of our lives?", Amane asked, fearfully.

"No", Ryou answered firmly and clenched his fist. "In a few years, I will take you with me to a place far away and we'll live happily and... I'm sure. I promise."

"I'm glad", Amane whispered. "To have you as my brother, Ryou."

"I'm glad as well to have you as my sister, Amane", Ryou assured her.

"Please, Ryou. Don't ever leave me alone", Amane demanded. "Please, always take me with you, wherever you go."

Ryou smiled. "I promise", he said, without understanding the meaning of these two words.

Then, the two of them lay down and held each other's hands, since the space between their beds was small enough to do that. Soon, they were asleep. This was the first time, Ryou had the slight feeling of somebody watching the two of them on the quiet.

...

It didn't take long and midsummertime arrived. It was warm and in spite of the hard work, Ryou and Amane were happy. Happy to still be alive after staying here for more than three months. How much longer could they stand or rather survive living and working here?

And even though they silently wished to be able to go back to their father and sister, knowing that life there would have been better, none of the two siblings damned their older sister for the decision she made. She'd meant it good.

...

When the midsummertime was slowly coming to an end, it began to rain. And it didn't stop for days. Nevertheless, Ryou and Amane had to do their work outside. Aunt Anne didn't care whether it was hot or cold, sunny or rainy or whether Ryou and Amane were ill or healthy. To her, they were but servants.

The rainy days carried consequences with them. It was Ryou's birthday, 2nd September, when Amane became ill and couldn't work as much as usually. Ryou would have helped his younger sister, he really wanted to, but he couldn't since he had to do his own work.

The censorious eyes of aunt Anne didn't miss anything and aunt Anne knew no mercy. She was a cruel woman and Ryou didn't wonder why she was unmarried and all alone.

As soon as she spotted that Amane neglected her work (she was ill after all), she dragged the small skinny girl into the house and locked her into a tiny, dark chamber. When the sobs of the girl didn't stop, aunt Anne went into the chamber, and the only things Ryou could hear were blows followed by cries that made his blood run cold. No matter how long Ryou stroke against the wooden door of the chamber and shouted Amane's name and that aunt Anne should punish him instead of his little sister, neither the blows nor the cries would stop. Completely exhausted, he slid down along the door, and waited, continuing to whisper his sister's name. When the door finally opened, his aunt walked past him, looking down at him as if he were scum. Quickly, Ryou crawled into the chamber, finding his sister sitting in one corner in the darkness as quiet as a mouse. He helped her up, trying not to touch her, since she winced whenever he did that. He brought her into their room and stayed at her side all night long.

Only at the next morning, the two of them could look at the whole extent of Amane's punishment. Scratches, open sores and bruises everywhere on the small girl's body. It was more than shocking and anger rose in Ryou's heart. Doing something like this to his sister... What should he do? Whatever he would do in order to revenge his sister, nothing would get better because of that. Everything would get only worse and he didn't want that. The two of them had it hard enough already. So all he could do was swallow his anger.

Amane wasn't able to work that day, due to her injuries as well as the fever that came all of a sudden.

When Ryou appeared alone on the field to work, aunt Anne didn't say anything, surprisingly, and Ryou was glad that she didn't punish his sister once again.

The only thing on Ryou's mind was Amane. Her fever was serious. He knew that. Would she be able to take it? All he could do was hope and pray that she could. As often as possible, he checked on her and brought her herbs he found, herbs thought to be antipyretic.

However, it didn't take long and he felt ill himself, though he told no one. His sister would only worry and aunt Anne didn't help his sister, so why would she help Ryou?

That night, Ryou woke up in the middle of the night, all sweaty and dizzy. He felt really bad and he didn't know what to do. This didn't feel like a normal cold.

/I cannot die now/, he told himself. /I have to be there for Amane and stay with her.../

In panic, he stumbled out of their closet and then outside into the darkness. There was a brook somewhere nearby, he was sure, since he'd seen it often enough, but where was it? He had to cool himself, somehow, since he felt like burning from the inside. Ryou couldn't see anything in the darkness, and the fact that he felt lightheaded and feverish didn't help at all.

Again and again, he tripped over stones and stuff lying around on the ground. He skinned his knees and elbows and after a while, he started to throw up blood.

"This... is the end... dammit", he muttered and tripped once again.

Lying on the cold grass felt good. Ryou turned over onto his back, so that he could look at the stars up there in the pitch-black sky. When he reached out for them, a bad feeling overcame him and Ryou felt his heart beat speed up. He gulped. This feeling... he had felt it already often since he and Amane had arrived here. It was the feeling of being watched.

He could hear footfalls approaching.

Panicky, he jumped to his feet, ignoring the fact that he was barely able to stand. His first thought was that aunt Anne had noticed him going outside and wanted to punish him, but he was wrong. When he looked into the direction of the footfalls, a person paler than he was came closer. Still, something about that person was alarming, and Ryou backed away from them instinctively.

/RUN!/, a voice in Ryou's head ordered. /RUN!/

An appalling grin appeared on the person's face and exposed sharp fangs.

"Oh my...", Ryou gasped and stumbled backwards. In the same moment, the person dashed to Ryou's side and tried to cut him off.

Ignoring his dizziness and pains and fever, Ryou ran as fast as he could, away, away from this creature.

/VAMPIRE!/, Ryou shouted mentally and kept running. /AMANE!/

He didn't see where he was running, but he thought he was approaching the forest, since the grass there was higher and more and more bushes appeared, which scratched his skin.

Ryou didn't know where this energy came from all of a sudden, but he was thankful for it and kept running. Somehow, he had to find back to the house and rescue his sister, but how?

All he heard while he was running were his gasps, his heartbeat and the vampire's laughter that came closer and closer.

Suddenly, Ryou found himself pinned down on the ground and he couldn't move anymore.

Smirking, the vampire looked down at his prey and watched the horror crawl onto the boy's face.

Trembling, Ryou tried to break away, but he stood no chance. He was too weak at that point.

"Please", he whispered in mortal fear. "Have mercy and let me go. I have a younger sister... I... I have to-"

"Shh-shh, Ryou", the vampire told him calmly.

"My name? How-", Ryou wanted to now.

"You know, this is not the first night I've come here", the vampire explained, grinning, and a cold shiver ran down Ryou's back. "I've watched the two of you." That was the truth. The vampire had observed them ever since they'd come here. The way the old hag who lived in the house tormented the children had amused him, at first. It had been an interesting little game to him. A game, he'd watched all too often in the past.

The vampire's crimson eyes stared into Ryou's frightened chocolate brown ones. The boy gulped.

But then, his feelings had changed. He'd felt pity for the two of them, especially for the boy. He'd never felt pity for anyone before, but this boy... he was different.

The vampire had noticed the fact that Ryou and Amane were ill and that they wouldn't survive this illness as long as the hag didn't help them. And the vampire noticed also that he needed this boy at any rate.

Whenever he'd watched him, he'd had this strange feeling, a mixture of greed and passion.

Whenever he'd watched him, he could almost feel his heart beat again, even though that was definitely not possible.

He couldn't let him die, this pure soul. So he had to interfere before it was too late. And that point of time was now.

The vampire had no intention of killing him, but he wanted to make Ryou his partner. He'd been alone for millennia. Having a partner... was the right thing. Changing Ryou... was the right thing to do. The young boy would die, otherwise. And after all these torments he had to suffer and the misery he had to bear... wasn't it only just that Ryou survived, if not as a human, then as a vampire?

Never had the vampire hesitated when he wanted to change or kill someone. And he wouldn't do it this time either!

One last time, he looked at Ryou's trembling body and into his scared face.

One last time, crimson eyes met chocolate brown ones.

Then, the vampire got on his knees, bent forward and licked Ryou's throat.

Terrified, Ryou began to struggle and struggle, to no avail, since the vampire's strong hands simply wouldn't let go of him.

"No", Ryou whispered. "No, please, stop! No!"

But the vampire didn't stop. He opened his mouth and his fangs reflected the moonlight.

One last time, Ryou called for his sister. "NO! AMANE!"

And then, the sharp fangs pierced through his delicate skin and went deeper until they reached his aorta. Blood flowed out of the wound and down along his throat. On the ground next to him was already a pool of his own blood. Shocked, the boy looked at the vampire who was still slurping. Ryou felt nauseated.

Then, his eyes widened and a wave of pain came over him and he couldn't think anymore, he couldn't comprehend what was going on, he couldn't see and couldn't hear. All he thought about was the pain, the pain, this burning pain.

The vampire pulled his teeth out of Ryou's throat and tried to hold on to the boy's head. Then he bent forward again and placed his lips on Ryou's. Carefully, the vampire opened his mouth and let Ryou's own blood flow into the boy's mouth.

Ryou choked, gagged and squirmed with pain on the soil, the blood trickling our of his mouth and down to his chin. The vampire let go of him. The boy wasn't able to run away now anyways.

The young boy could hear his heart beat louder and stronger and faster than ever, as if it knew that the next beat could be its last one.

What Ryou didn't notice was that the vampire stayed at his side and tried to calm him; of course he failed.

The pain wouldn't stop and Ryou screamed since it burned its way down through his entire body. Was it just his imagination or did he burn for real, like his mother did at the stake?

And then he was flying, all of a sudden. This, Ryou couldn't understand. Was it again just his imagination? But he wasn't able to ponder in this situation. Not now.

The feeling of flying faded, slowly, and Ryou's heart began to beat slower and slower.

The moment the last, loud beat made his body shake, he felt like drowning. Gasping for breath, Ryou clutched at his throat, still writhing in pain. Did someone throw him into the sea? First they burned him and now they wanted him to drown?

What sort of sick game was this?

He felt his last bit of air disappearing and then everything wet black and he lost consciousness. ...

When he woke up and opened his eyes, Ryou was confused. Even though it was pitch-dark, he could see everything. Just... where was he? And more importantly, what had happened?

He couldn't remember anything at all.

For a while, all he did was stare up at the stony ceiling. This... seemed to be a cave.

"How did I get here?", he wondered aloud.

"I brought you, of course."

Startled, Ryou looked to his right. A pale, white-haired man stood there.

All of a sudden, the memories of what had happened streamed back into his mind like an ocean of thoughts.

"Ugh", Ryou groaned with pain and clutched at his head. Then he looked to his right again and flinched. "You...", he mumbled wide-eyed. "You're the... vampire!"

"Just call me Bakura", the vampire told him and smiled.

"No... this... has to be a nightmare! I-I..", Ryou stuttered. Suddenly, he thought of what was most precious to him. "Amane.. Where's...Have you?" In panic, he jumped up, more easily than ever before. He looked around and wanted to run, but Bakura seized him at his shoulder and stopped him. "I've done nothing to her, Ryou", Bakura assured him.

"Liar! Let go of me!", Ryou shouted and tried to wrest himself free. However, Bakura was stronger. "I have to see my sister! I've made a promise...!" Bakura shook his head and shoved Ryou against the wall of the cave.

"Listen! You cannot go back! Never!", he told him firmly. "Remember what has happened and look at yourself!"

The boy furrowed his brow and looked at his arms. All wounds had disappeared and his skin was even paler than before, almost transparent!

Ryou gulped. Slowly, he understood, but... it couldn't be true!

He moved his right hand to his chest and searched for a heartbeat, but he found none. Wide-eyed, he looked up at Bakura, who looked back at him with a serious expression.

"Do you finally understand?", Bakura asked.

Disbelieving, Ryou shook his head. "No, no", he muttered over and over again.

"Ryou, face the reality", Bakura ordered. "You're a-"

"NOOO!", Ryou screamed, pressed his hands on his ears and fell on his knees. "No. No. No."

The boy looked as if he was about to go insane.

Bakura didn't know what to do. Never in his millennia-old life had he experienced something like that.

So he waited, quietly. Bakura waited for a long time, for hours, for days in silence, until Ryou had finally calmed down.

"I... don't want to be a monster", the boy whispered finally. "I don't... want to be a beast that kills humans and all that stuff..." He might have calmed down, but he had not accepted his existence as a vampire and everything else. That was for sure.

Bakura looked at him, taken aback, and wondered whether this was the boy's only worry.

"You... don't have to be one", Bakura told him and Ryou sat up.

"My sister... what will happen to her? She's ill... very ill. And I've promised her to stay at her side forever and take her with me wherever I go...", Ryou explained. "She'll worry... She'll think that I lied to her... What shall I do?"

"There is nothing you can do, Ryou", Bakura answered calmly. "Like you said... she's very ill. She'll probably succumb to the disease. If she hasn't already."

"Why should I believe you?", Ryou shouted, desperate. "You're a vampire! Humans detest creatures like you!"

"You're like me now, too, remember?", Bakura snapped. "If you don't believe me, then whom should you believe? Don't think the humans would welcome you as soon as they see you! Believe me, humans are not dumb. They'll recognize what you are sooner than you expect! And sometimes the humans are crueler than us vampires."

The two vampires stared at each other.

Ryou bit on his lip and tore his hair. "It's my fault..."

"There's nothing you could have done to help her. With or without you at her side, her end is near", Bakura said, his arms crossed over his chest.

"But if you hadn't changed me, I would at least be dead, too!", Ryou yelled. "My sister and I... we would be together, like I promised. But now..?"

Silence filled the cave. The two vampires didn't talk, nor did they breathe.

"What now?", Ryou asked and broke the silence.

"Hmm?"

"What will you do to me, now that I'm like you?", Ryou questioned. "What do you expect from me? You didn't change me without reason, did you? Vampires... kill humans, usually, don't they? But you...didn't. Why?"

Bakura didn't answer immediately. He thought about what he should tell the boy.

"I... This is not the right time to tell you", the older vampire stated.

Ryou wanted to talk back, but he knew it would lead to nothing. His entire existence would lead to nothing from now on. Why wasn't he dead? Why did this monster not kill him? Just why?

"Aren't you thirsty?", Bakura asked casually.

Ryou gulped. "Thirs...ty?" He knew he was a vampire now, and he felt a burning sensation in his throat, that felt more like hunger than thirst, but did he really have to... drink blood? Blood... of humans?

"Come on, it's about time to show you how to hunt", Bakura grinned, satisfied and pulled Ryou through the cave into the direction of the exit.

"No, please, I don't want to...", Ryou stuttered. "They're humans! I cannot kill them! I was one, too!"

"Tss, you'll get used to it, believe me", Bakura told him. "I'm a vampire already for such a long time, I don't even know anymore what it was like to be human."

Ryou's eyes widened at these words. Would he, too, loose all his humanity as time goes by? Would he end as a bloodthirsty monster?

"No, I won't do that!", Ryou protested and stopped walking.

Bakura turned around, his eyes narrowed and his face twisted into an angry grimace. "Listen, you stop whining now, okay? We won't die if we don't drink blood, but it's what keeps our body from rotting. Though our bodies wouldn't rot completely. But... it's really unpleasant, especially the smell. And it's not the only reason why we drink blood! The other reason is much more important! If you don't drink blood, you'll really end up as an insane bloodthirsty, murdering monster!", he shouted. "And that is exactly what you don't want to be, if I'm right."

Once again, Ryou gulped. Was that true? Could he believe this vampire's words? "Isn't there an alternative?"

"A what? Come on, Ryou. You're a vampire, and once you see me hunting, you'll see that it's only natural if you do it, too", Bakura explained. "Humans eat beings that are weaker than them, and vampires do that, too! This is the circle of life!"

"No, it's not a circle!", Ryou disagreed. "Unless there is something that hunts vampires."

Bakura frowned. "Believe me, Ryou, such beings exist. And our only way to die is to be caught by such creatures."

"What are they, these beings?", Ryou asked, carefully.

"Werewolves and... angels", the older vampire answered.

"Angels? Well, that's not really surprising then", the boy muttered. "They exist to annihilate evil, after all."

"You think that because you've never met one", Bakura grunted. "Angels are far more evil than you think! They're not those divine creatures everyone believes in. They can be quite devious and sinister."

"I don't believe you", Ryou mumbled.

Bakura groaned. "Well, whatever. Now, follow me!", he said and began to run, run with inhuman speed and pulled Ryou along.

Suddenly, Ryou knew why he'd thought that he was flying earlier when he'd been in so much pain. This speed with which Bakura ran was the reason. It was... incredible!

They got to the exit of the cave rather quickly and Ryou found himself in the middle of a forest.

The boy looked around.

"Where are we? What day is it?", he wondered aloud.

"This is a forest not that far away from your aunts house. I stayed in the cave at daytime ever since I began watching you", Bakura explained. "Today has to be the 10th September, I guess."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, turning into a vampire lasts exactly two nights and one day", Bakura told him. "I found you on the 5th. You woke up on the 6th and took four nights and days to calm down. It's as simple as that."

"Oh, I see", Ryou mumbled.

"And now come one", Bakura urged. "We don't have that much time. It'll dawn soon and we still haven't eaten."

"Where are we going?", Ryou wanted to know.

"There's a cabin nearby, far away from the next village. No one will notice what we did."

Desperate, Ryou tried to think while he followed Bakura. He couldn't do this! This was against morality... against his ethics.

However, he couldn't ignore the burning feeling in his throat any longer either. It got worse and worse. Ryou clutched at his throat.

/Come on, Ryou. Get hold of yourself/, he told himself, but the closer they got to the cabin, the thirstier Ryou got. He could smell it, the blood. The human blood.

... But there was also something else.

Without Bakura noticing, Ryou stopped and looked around until he spotted it. His mouth was watering as he watched the pulsation of his prey's aorta. No longer in control of himself, he dashed through bushes directly to the being that would satisfy his hunger.

Instinctively, he rammed his fangs into his prey's throat and sucked every drop of blood he could get. And the feeling was overwhelming! Never in his life had Ryou felt so pleased.

When he regained control of himself, he was panting and looking down at the poor deer he'd just killed.

/Barbaric... barbaric!/, he told himself over and over again. How could he? What had gotten into him?

But this... this was the alternative he had searched for! Wasn't killing an animal better than killing a human? He'd eaten meat when he'd been a human, too, so the difference wasn't that big.

"W-What the hell are you doing?" Bakura appeared next to him, all of a sudden, perplexed.

"I...I...", Ryou stammered, wiping away the blood from his lips.

"You do know the difference between a bat and a vampire, do you?", Bakura questioned. "Vampires need human blood!"

Ryou stood up and shook his head. "No, I won't. I'm different."

"You're crazy!"

"That doesn't matter! As long as I can save a human life, I'm satisfied", he told the older vampire.

His eyes narrowed, Bakura stared at him. Then he shook his head ans closed his eyes. "Well, do whatever you want. Wait for me, right here. I have to eat something. Now. I'll be right back."

And there he was gone.

This was Ryou's chance. He could run away, away from this vampire.

But of what use would that be? He couldn't go back to his sister, he couldn't live among humans, he didn't know anything about this new life. And he still didn't know why Bakura had changed him into a vampire.

So he waited. It didn't take long and an overwhelming sweet smelling whiff reached his nose and brought back his thirst.

"No...", he whispered and hold fast onto the next tree to keep himself from running into the direction of the scent. This was the scent of human blood, Ryou knew. But this time, he wouldn't lose control. He... was not... a vampire! At least not one that killed humans. He would not get that low. Never.

A little later, Bakura came back, the scent of blood glued to his body. Ryou stopped breathing, much to Bakura's amusement.

"You won't be able resist forever", he smirked. "One day will be the day when you kill a human, Ryou."

"I disagree", Ryou stated.

"Well, we will see", Bakura said. "Now, let's go. It's dawning already."

While they were going back, Ryou wondered what would happen from now on. Bakura had told him that he was several millennia old and that the only way for a vampire to die was to be killed by either an angel or a werewolf. What would Ryou do, now that he was practically immortal? How for heaven's sake was he supposed to spend thousands of years on earth? Without his family, without his beloved Amane...

A wave of guilt came over Ryou once again. Even though Bakura, whom he still didn't dare to trust really, had told him that he could have done nothing for her, since he would've died, too, Ryou felt very guilty. He had promised his sister to stay with her, and now she had to die alone or would have to die alone. Aunt Anne wouldn't care, after all.

And what would his older sister think? Would aunt Anne tell her that her younger brother had disappeared and her younger sister had died? That she was all alone now with her father? That nobody of her family would come back?

"Stop thinking about what was", Bakura grunted. "Think about what will come!"

The two of them had reached their cave and went along the long tunnel until they arrived in the huge circular part of the cave, that was as big as a ballroom, where Ryou had awakened earlier.

"How did you now what I was thinking about?", Ryou asked him. "Is this some magical trick or power you have?"

Bakura laughed. "No, but it was obvious. Even a human could've read your thoughts on your face."

Ashamed of being so easy to see through, Ryou quickly changed the subject.

"I wonder...", he began. "Is it true that vampires cannot go into the sunlight and that they sleep at daytime? In coffins?"

Again, Bakura laughed. "Nah, all that's nonsense!", he told him. "We can go into the sunlight. I've told you before that we cannot die that easily."

"Oh, yes. I forgot...", Ryou mumbled. He was relieved, since he loved sunny days so much.

"But it is true that we avoid the sunlight", Bakura explained.

"Why is that?", Ryou questioned.

"It hurts", he stated.

"What?", Ryou's eyes widened.

"Yeah, but don't worry. It's bearable. That pain is nothing compared to the pain of changing into a vampire", Bakura assured him, much to Ryou's relief. "It's more like an unpleasant feeling in your body and on your skin. Not really a pain."

"That's... good? I suppose...", Ryou muttered.

Bakura shrugged.

"Now, what about sleeping?", the boy asked again.

"We don't have to", Bakura told him. "But it's not impossible."

Ryou nodded. So he would be able to keep at least some human manners.

Bakura watched the white-haired boy, his new partner. Everything... worked easier than expected. Ryou seemed to have accepted that there was no way back and that it'd be best to stay with Bakura. And the older vampire was glad about it.

"What... are you going to do now?", Ryou asked and brought Bakura out of his thoughts. "We won't stay here in this cave forever, will we?"

"No, 'course not", Bakura grinned. "We can do whatever you want. Traveling to faraway countries, climbing the highest mountains, things like that."

"Why?", Ryou questioned, leaned against the wall and looked down at the ground.

"Hmn? Because we can", Bakura, who stood in the middle of the hall, told him. "There's nothing we have to do, we have enough time to do it and no one will keep us from doing it."

"No", Ryou shook his head, his white bangs hiding his eyes. "Why do you tell me that we can do whatever I want. What... was the reason behind changing me?" He looked up at Bakura and his gaze seemed to pierce through the older vampire.

Should he tell him his reason? Bakura sighed inwardly and let his hand run through his white mane.

"You know... I've watched a lot of humans in my life out of boredom", Bakura began and also began to slowly walk towards Ryou. "Farmers, servants, humans of low degree, murderers, doctors, but also nobles and all those other rich men and women. I've watched old people dying and children being born. I've watched humans kill one another. I've watched happy families and families like yours, destroyed, humans like you've been, desperate.

"It amused me. It was my hobby, in a way. I found humans pathetic and interesting, the way they let their emotions take control of them or how love effected them seemed always funny to me.

"At first glance, humans were different from one another. But if you watched them only long enough, you got to know that they were all the same. Egoistic beings wearing masks.

"And then, you appeared. Your sister and you, you've been through a lot and would live with your aunt now. That was what I got to know. I don't know why, but I was curious and decided to watch the two of you and your aunt.

"She used you as her slaves. It happened to be an interesting little game I'd seen all too often in the past, but I was still curious. Curious how long you would be able to take it."

Bakura paused to see Ryou's reaction, but the only thing he did was clench his fists.

The older vampire went on.

"However, you surprised me, Ryou. No matter what you had to do and what your aunt did to the both of you, you kept calm and didn't let your anger take you over. You thought about what was best for your sister. You tried to protect her.

"You were probably the first honest human I'd seen for a long time. You weren't egoistic, you had a pure heart and soul.

"And then, you and your sister got ill and I could see that death was waiting for you. I felt pity for you. For the first time in my existence, I felt pity for someone. That wasn't like me at all", Bakura grinned. "I, the cold, numb, bloodthirsty creature, felt pity for a human."

He paused.

"I didn't want to let you die. And I realized something..."

By now, the older vampire was only a step away from Ryou. He bent forward and whispered into the boy's ear.

"I needed you."

Ryou froze.

"You would be my partner."

Ryou looked up into Bakura's crimson eyes, not understanding what the other was telling him.

"Damn it, I think I l... like you. That's the reason."

Bakura took Ryou's head carefully into his hands and pressed the boy's lips against his own.

When they broke away, Ryou pushed him to the side, staring at him with wide crimson eyes.

"Ba... kura..." Ryou called Bakura by his name for the first time, but.. It was not the way Bakura had imagined it to be.

The boy began to walk, walk into the direction of the exit.

"Ryou, where are you going?", Bakura shouted after him, not sure how he should feel about this.

"Leave me alone", Ryou whispered quickly.

"What? I make the confession of my life and you run off?", Bakura yelled angrily. "Fuck, Ryou. I just told you I love you!"

"You just turned me into a vampire! What do you expect?", Ryou whirled round, panting. "I-I..." He paused. "I'll come back, I promise. Just... let me think for a while."

And so he disappeared in the darkness of the tunnel, leaving Bakura alone in the hall.

He did not feel hurt. Of course not. He was still Bakura, after all. But the fact that he was rejected... he did not know how to feel about it. So he waited until Ryou would come back.

The vampire waited and didn't even move one centimeter, his crimson eyes stonily pointed at the spot where Ryou had disappeared.

Bakura did not know how long he had waited, when the pale figure of Ryou appeared in the darkness again.

When Ryou approached, Bakura looked at him with a questioning expression and tried to look into Ryou's eyes, but the boy averted his gaze and only as he stood directly in front of him, the young vampire looked up at the older one, his lips pressed tightly together.

"I've thought about it", Ryou told Bakura. "I... This is definitely not what I had expected", he said, smiling slightly. "But I'll give you a chance. I'll... try to be your partner."

Bakura grinned, triumphing, and laid his hands onto Ryou's shoulder. He wanted to say something, but nothing came to his mind.

Ryou shook his head, smiling. This... was such a great taboo and he'd agreed to it. However, whether he loved Bakura or not was yet to be found out. He did not know him, after all. Ryou had to find out what the older vampire was like before he would made a decision.

He knew that Bakura's acting had been egoistical, since he didn't want Ryou to die only because he'd fallen in love with him, Ryou was sure. But Ryou also knew, that he would forgive Bakura some day for what he did. Some day. Not right now, but maybe as time goes by.

*flashback ends here*

And Ryou did end up loving Bakura, because when you stay at someone's side for a time as long as the time the two of them had spent together and when you come to know everything about your partner, his past, his thoughts, his strengths and weaknesses, then you will fall in love with them at one time or another, regardless of whether you notice it or not.

Bakura knew that he didn't regret what he'd done. The beginning of their existence together might have been hard for the two vampires, but they'd had so many great times together and he had prevented Ryou from dying. So no, he did not regret a single thing he'd done.

Sighing, he brought himself to stand up and walk over to Ryou's room. In front of the wooden door, he stopped. What should he tell him? How should he begin?

In the end, he decided that he'd take it as it comes and would make the best of it.

So Bakura knocked, even though he knew that Ryou'd noticed him by now. "Ryou, can I... come in?", he asked carefully.

"Go ahead", was the low answer that came from inside.

The older vampire opened the door and entered the room. He spotted Ryou on his bed, his arms crossed under his head, his right knee pulled to his stomach.

The boy's eyes were closed tightly, his lips formed a thin line.

"Ryou...", Bakura began and sat down on the edge of the bed. "I don't regret a single thing I've done since the first time I've seen you."

Ryou opened his eyes and looked at the older vampire, whose back was facing him.

"It's alright", the boy whispered. "It's... alright."

He sat up straight and put his hand on Bakura's side. The older vampire turned his head and looked at him, directly into his brown-red eyes and he could still remember the boy's chocolate brown eyes, the colour they'd had before Bakura had changed him into what he was now.

"Should we... start over?", Ryou asked, smiling.

Bakura kept looking at his smile for a moment or two, before he answered.

"Hi, I'm Bakura. Pleasure to meet you", he said with a feigned serious expression on his pale face.

Grinning, Ryou gave him a playful nudge and placed a kiss on the other's lips.

He was glad, overly glad, that the iciness between them was gone. He was glad that both he himself and Bakura had acknowledged their faults. He was relieved, that everything was like before.

Ryou was happy.

-To be continued-

:D Sweet.

I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I think, this is my favorite chappie of this story up to now, since I really put all my heart and soul into writing this. ^_^

I hadn't planned to write down that much about Ryou's past, but I'm happy that I did write down all of it in the end ('cause when I read a story, I personally love getting information about a character's past. :3 Don't know what you think about it...) ^^

Please tell me what you think about this chapter! Your comments motivate me so much! *Ineedthem* ;D Did I make any grammar mistakes or misspellings?

Whatever it is, please tell me!

~Crystal of Moonlight~