Zuko fell back against the rocky earth with a groan.

He could hear the laughter in the normally aristocratic voice, "Know your place."

Levering himself up onto his elbows, he shot a glare at Inner Moka, "I assure you that I have been shown many times just where I stand. The world seems to delight in it."

"Well the world decided that you needed another reminder, if you thought you could challenge me." Moka smirked at the downed firebender in the most infuriating possible way. Zuko decided that he had to up his training again, She looks just like Azula after she pulls one of her games on me.

Crunching steps brought his eyes up to meet the slitted red of the vampire, who had a hand out, "Don't just lie there all day, boy, get up. We have school to get to and you smell like a wet dog."

With a growl, Zuko ignored the hand and stood up, "I can get up myself, thanks." He trudged over to pick up his discarded dao swords. They had held off the vampire for a little while, until the girl decided to up the level and sped up again. At least he knew his strategies to fight against a faster opponent worked. Walls of flame were intimidating to anyone, even a vampire.

Moka walked alongside him and held out her hands towards the two swords, "Let me see them."

His incredulous eyes asked just what she was thinking to demand something from him.

Moka kept her hands out and returned the look as if to say, 'Just what are you thinking to deny me?'

Sighing, Zuko handed over the weapons, "And why the sudden interest in my swords?"

The girl ignored him and inspected the matched weapons, holding them a little awkwardly. She eventually deigned to respond, "I am surprised at how skilled you are with these. I usually refrain from fighting with my hands for it seems...inelegant. But when you use these you have a certain...grace."

She glanced at him, "For a human, anyway."

Zuko surreptitiously admired the beauty as she ran a hand up and down one of his swords. The two weapons matched her, somehow. When he caught what he was thinking, he yanked his thoughts back on track, And that's yet another reason why you lost. You couldn't stop thinking about her! Idiot!

As he got lost in his errant mind, words forced their way from his lips unexpectedly. It was an extremely disconcerting habit that he had recently picked up. "Do you want to learn how to use them?"

Red eyes considered his offer for a few seconds, silently measuring him, "...that would be interesting."

A slight smile tugged at Zuko's lips, for what reason he knew not, and he reached for his paired dao, "If you show up tomorrow morning, I can show you some forms. For now, I still need to take a shower and dress for school."

Inner Moka's lips also twitched, but she ignored the involuntary movement and handed Zuko his swords, which he sheathed. She grabbed the rosary from Zuko's sash and reached up to replace it, "I...look forward to the lesson."

By the time Zuko had grabbed his clothes and turned around, he had to twist himself under a falling pink-haired Moka so that she didn't hit the ground.

A half hour later, after a quick shower and a change of clothes, Zuko met Moka just outside the dorms.

As a matter of course, the situation had Zuko extremely nervous.

"It's...it's really alright, Zuko?" asked Moka.

Face flaming and shifting from one foot to the other, Zuko nodded jerkily, "Y-yeah." I can't believe I, a Crown Prince, am doing this!

Moka leaned forward, and Zuko's temperature skyrocketed when she told him, "Oh...I'm so happy, Zuko..."

She got closer, and Zuko lost himself in her green eyes, "It's...the first time, you know..."

Fangs clamped onto Zuko's pale neck and he resisted the urge to flinch away, "The first time that you let me suck your blood!"

A minute later Moka was happily prancing towards the school building and Zuko soldiered on behind her, Between the two of them, I'm going to be dead before the month is out. First one beats me to hell and then the other sucks out my blood and leaves me light-headed. This can't be healthy. Somehow I doubt that either one has even considered what they're doing to me. That and I think I lost my mind somewhere on the way to this school...

By the end of the day, Zuko was groaning into his hands while Moka and Kurumu sat on either side of him, glaring at each other. They had been forced to enter the newspaper club, though Zuko had honestly only wanted to join one of the martial arts clubs so that he could continue getting stronger.

I can't believe we're the only three members of the club. This is just ridiculous. Not only does this cut into my time even further, but it also looks like I'll have way to much work to do.

What the hell is a newspaper anyway?

Raising his head, he fixed his annoying teacher and club moderator with a demanding stare, "Ms. Nekonome...I really didn't choose to join this club, and I have no idea what it is that we do...but are we really the only three people in the club?"

The reply of "Don't be silly!" encouraged him but the follow up of, "See, here he comes, the only other member!" had Zuko's head back in his hands and a long suffering groan drowning out the the shouted "Excuse me!" from the new arrival.

The slightly older boy stood in the doorway, ignoring Zuko and the two girls looking at the firebender's bowed head in concern, "Man, I'm sorry! Here I am, late on the first day."

To find out who he could possibly delegate too, Zuko lifted his eyes and watched as an, to him anyways, annoyingly charming smile stretched across the guy's face. The teen held a bouquet of flowers as he introduced himself, "Greetings! I'm the president of this newspaper club, Morioka Ginei. Pleased to meet ya!"

With speed that startled everyone but the presiding teacher, the president raced in front of the three other club members, but his eyes passed over Zuko as he turned from Moka to Kurumu, giving both flowers, "Ooh! The teacher told me about you two! What beautiful new club members you are!"

Zuko felt anger rising at both the dismissal and over something else that he was disinclined to name.

Scarred as he was, Zuko had been angry for so many years that he had given up on searching for the deeper reasons behind it. He knew better than to peer into his heart: it wasn't a very nice place after his mother left and his father banished him.

This guy is starting to get on my nerves. I have half a mind to fry him.

The student in question happily introduced himself, "You can call me 'Gin.'"

A small thumbs up and bright smile gave rise to even more annoyance in Zuko, "Ahh...red flowers are always suitable for such lovely ladies!"

Ms. Nekonome finished introducing Gin, "Gin is the only 2nd year member. Just ask him anything you don't know or understand about the club, ok?"

He preened at the responsibility, "Heh, you can always count on me!"

Kurumu pressed herself up against Zuko and whispered, "Zuko, I'm not very good with this kind of flirty guy!"

The deadpan stare Zuko gave her ascended into legend.

Apparently done for the day, Ms. Nekonome headed out the door, "Well, I must be going, since I have a staff meeting. Take care of the rest of the club proceedings, Gin."

Zuko shook his head at the events unfolding while Gin waved, "Okay, leave it to me!"

"Sorry. See you later, everyone! Make friends with your senior, ok!"

After the door closed, Gin stood behind the desk at the front of the room, "Hmm, well let's see. First I'll give you an explanation of just what kinda club this is!"

His voice enthusiastic and his eyes glinting, Gin smiled at the two girls, again ignoring Zuko, "The goal of the newspaper club is to publish the school newspaper! Most of your activity will be reporting on all kinds of things within the academy and putting them in the newspaper!"

"We'll be put into dangerous situations time after time for the sake of reporting! I'll tell you right now, this ain't gonna be no easy ride! Once you've joined, you should prepare yourself."

Zuko pretty much passed right over the speech. He'd faced similar things from instructors when he was younger, and since then he'd faced more life and death situations than he could count. Whatever this 'reporting' and 'newspaper' was, he could figure it out.

Then again, he really should find out what he had, once more, stumbled into, "What's a newspaper?"

Gin finally looked at him, and his eyes told Zuko exactly what was coming: mockery disguised as concern, political maneuvering under a veil of affability and innocence, cruelty hidden by kindness.

It was childhood all over again.

The voice was all smiles and friendly incredulity, "You don't know what a newspaper is? Where did you grow up?" The rhetorical question implied the unspoken continuation, 'the backwoods?'

Without waiting for an answer, Gin went on, "A newspaper is a collection of stories and reports published and printed for whoever buys it. It's actually kind of hard to explain to someone who doesn't know what it is..."

Zuko heard what Gin really meant, 'How do I describe something to an idiot who's obviously too stupid to understand?'

Zuko ground his teeth and glared at a smirking Gin while Moka turned to him, "He seems like someone we can depend on, right?"

The reply held a hint of fire that surprised the other two but made Gin's grin into a full blown smile, "Of course..."

Gin spoke and held up a poster, "Just messing with ya! Let's have some fun without all the strict talk. This is our poster ad, let's put it up on the back wall!"

The two girls chorused, "Ok!" while Zuko imperceptibly nodded, never taking his eyes off of the club president.

Using chairs, everyone put posters above the chalkboard, though Gin stood by and gave orders, "Just a bit higher, you two!"

Kurumu strained a little, "What? Even higher?"

Gin smiled, "Yeah! Much, much higher!"

Grabbing another poster to hang it, and wondering why Gin, the tallest, wasn't doing the work, Zuko kept half an eye on Gin, He's just as crafty as Azula...but I don't sense the coldness. He has some other reason to do what he does. What is his motivation...?"

As Zuko watched, the two girls stood up on their tiptoes and Gin got down onto his knees, looking upwards.

Turning fully, Zuko wondered what the hell was wrong with his club president, What is he looking at? And why does he look so...happy?

With a jolt, he figured out what the president was doing when he looked over and saw the two girls...in compromising positions, So that's it. He's just a pervert.

He walked over and pulled Gin to his feet, glaring at him, "What are you doing? Are you really so low that you would make them put the poster up high just so you can do something so pathetic?"

Gin smiled at him, "Huh? What are you talking about?"

Zuko snarled, "Don't you dare pretend you don't know! You were just looking up their skirts!"

Gin just eye smiled and waved a hand back and forth, "Heh, nonsense! There's no way I'm that kind of guy who'd do something so lame."

Zuko's anger again grew, while the two girls got down from hanging the posters and Moka looked on in confusion at Zuko's angry face, "What's going on?"

Gin answered quickly, "Oh, well, this dude says he got an eyeful of your panties!"

Moka and Kurumu were aghast, "Eh!?"

Zuko was thrown off by the sudden lie, and he did his best to shift the blame, "Wait, that's a lie. I mean, I did kinda accidentally see your panties too, but this bastard was intentionally," two loud slaps interrupted him.

Gin laughed as the girls marched off angrily, "You really are a moron! Thanks to you, today's meeting is done for."

Practically spitting in anger, Zuko rounded on Gin but the boy moved with blinding speed out of the door, leaving Zuko to slam a fist into a reinforced table. The fiery fist print confused the desk's owner the next day.

Zuko headed towards the forest to take out his anger on some unfortunate trees and gravestones.

The next morning, Moka didn't meet Zuko after his katas. Instead, she confronted him on the path to school, "I-I don't like dirty guys!"

The glare and icy voice turned upon her made Moka flinch, "And I don't like people who accept lies so easily. I've had enough of that in my life, and I don't think I need a friend who so readily accepts such things. If that's what you're gonna say to me, I guess I didn't really know you at all."

Zuko stomped off towards the school while Moka gazed after him forlornly, But...but I didn't really mean it. I just wanted to get revenge for peeping!

Nearby, Gin watched the two interact and Zuko marching off.

Gin walked over to a pair of girls, "Excuse me! There's a little something I'd like you to tell me!"

The two friends, happy to have a cool looking guy talk to them, eagerly agreed, "What is it?"

Gin pointed to the fuming Zuko and a Moka who had gathered herself up, stalking down the path in a huff, "That Zuko dude and Moka are always together, but...are they dating?"

One of the girls waved her hands, "Well, I'm not really sure, but...they don't really match, do they?"

The second student nodded, "Yeah! Zuko is always too angry. Sure, one half of his face is really handsome, but that scar is off-putting, even if it does give him a bad boy air and some mystery. Moka has the kind of beauty and personality that charms even other women!"

The first girl broke into the description, "But listen...rumor has it that people have seen Moka kissing Zuko on the neck!"

Gin's face fell, his long hair shadowing his face, "Wha...his neck!? You say a kiss on his neck!?"

He spun around, hands on his head, "No WAY! You've gotta be kidding me!? You've gotta be KIDDING me! Zukooooo?!"

Later, Kurumu spotted Zuko walking through the school halls, It's Zuko!

Not really sure what to say, she refrained from her customary sprint-into-tackle-hug, "Zukoooo...hmmmm..." While the blue haired girl tried to decide whether to say hi or not, Gin walked out of nowhere, surprising Kurumu, "Huh?"

The club president called out to Zuko, "Yo, Zuko!"

He was greeted by a heated glare.

A happy smile was his response, "No need to be so hostile, Zuko! Today's club activities will be held outside! Why don't you come with me?"

Zuko narrowed his eyes, "Is that an order, club president." He placed all of the contempt he could on the title.

Gin grinned, "Yeah...I think it is."

When they got outside, Gin lead Zuko to the back of the school, "Outside? Isn't this just the back of the school? Are we really having our activities here?"

"Hahah, don't you worry, everybody'll be comin' soon!" reassured Gin

Turning around, Gin smiled at Zuko, "By the way, sorry about yesterday! Moka got majorly pissed didn't she?"

No longer near anyone, Zuko gave vent to his frustration, "She's not half as pissed as I am! You're a bastard, you know that?"

Gin rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah, and to make it up to you, I've decided to hold the club activities here."

Zuko looked around, slightly mollified, "...here?"

"Look over there! There's a little window up there. Why doncha take a peek inside?" Gin pointed and stood back while Zuko regarded him with suspicion.

"Why...?"

Gin placed his hands in front of himself, "Don't worry, it's not gonna bite, just take a look. It'll be interestin'!"

Zuko couldn't really see a problem with looking through a window, so he walked over, "Interesting...?"

As the younger boy climbed up to look in the window, Gin turned away and voiced his thoughts, "Oh..and one more thing!"

"Moka is even better than I heard, y'know...I really like her!"

Zuko paused, not really liking what he was hearing. A small spark of fire flared to life in his chest.

"She's even got me falling in love at first sight."

Zuko turned around and felt it...jealousy. Okay...I really need to figure myself out. The only thing I've ever been jealous about was my sister's favor with father and her skill. Why would him telling me he loves Moka make me jealous?

Gin turned around and faced Zuko, "I'm serious! I'm gonna make sure that Akashiya Moka becomes my woman!"

Zuko pushed away his emotions and kept up his indifferent mask, "...and just why are you telling me this?"

He turned to look into the window, more to keep his inner turmoil in check than at the prompting of Gin. What he saw had him falling backwards with a startled oath, "Gin, this is...!"

A snap and a flash of light and Gin smiled at him, one hand making a peace sign and the other holding a strange device, "The girl's changing room!"

Gin grinned slyly, "Peeping is a crime, Zukoooo!"

The contraption in his hand slowly printed out a small square of paper, to show Zuko leaning up to look into the window.

"And the photo evidence has been taken. If Moka sees this picture, she's probably gonna hate you forever!"

Zuko jumped up and roared at Gin, "Are you trying to frame me? Manipulative little snake!"

Sudden shrieks quieted Zuko down, "Kya! Did you just hear a boy's voice outside!"

Gin laughed heartily, "Ain't you a dolt, of course they're gonna find out if you yell! If you don't want this picture getting out, keep your mouth shut about me, got it!?"

Zuko growled and threw a fireball, but Gin vanished in a blur to the side, "Heh, I'll stop at nothing to get a woman in the palm of my hand! Later, Zuko!"

With another flash, Gin was gone and a crowd of girls opened the window to point at Zuko, "Kyaa! There he is! The peeper, there's the peeper!"

With no other options, Zuko raced away before anyone could catch him. He was up over the wall and long gone by the time the monster girls could even get out of the locker room.

Watching the stampede from a safe perch, Zuko snarled inwardly, If I ever catch that bastard, I'll teach him just what it means to anger ME."

As Zuko avoided girls, the rumor of the peeping scar-faced boy had raced through the academy like a wildfire, Moka caught him in the woods.

"Zuko! Is it true, about the peeping?"

Turning to her, Zuko felt his frustration at the situation mount, memories of his sister's stories bringing his temper to a boil, "Hell no! There's no way I would stoop that low, Gin set me up! I can't believe you just believe everything you hear!"

Moka, who had spent the day annoyed at Zuko for his earlier dismissal, got angry right back at him, "Oh, really!? That was your excuse the last time wasn't it! Well if that's the way you're gonna be, maybe I shouldn't be your friend anymore!"

She ran as Zuko roared back, "Well I think you're RIGHT!"

He didn't see her crying as she ran.

Later that night, Gin walked onto the roof of the school, "Oh! So this is where you've been Moka."

Striding forward, he gazed up at the starry night sky, "It's evening already. Look, it's a beautiful full moon tonight."

Moka stepped back from the railing she had been leaning against, "Gin..."

With an airy, casual voice, Gin turned to look at Moka, "D'ya hear about Zuko...seems he got caught peeping and he's still being chased?" The voice turned questioning and almost accusatory, "Are you waitin' for that guy Moka?"

Wiping a hand across her face to remove the tear stains that had gathered, Moka gazed away.

Gin smiled as he revealed his trump card, "I don't know who took it...but, this picture's been goin' around."

With a start, Moka recognized Zuko leaning forward into the window of the girl's changing room, "This is...!"

Gin cleaned one of his hands, "...A picture of the peeper!"

While Moka tried to reassure her thoughts, Gin walked over and placed a hand around her shoulder, "Well, keep quiet about that picture to Zuko. It's so pathetic. And Moka, just forget about a guy like that!"

Now getting nervous along with confused, Moka looked up at him, "Um..."

Gin smiled reassuringly down at her, "Tonight, I'll console you!"

Further away from the school building, Zuko avoided yet another mob of enraged girls, "Dammit, this is insane. One picture and the whole school's up in arms..."

As he crept through the trees, Zuko thought about his fight with Moka, I can't believe she just assumed that I was lying. I know I got angry at her, but I had every reason too!

But...I don't trust that guy Gin at all. He said he would do whatever he had to in order to get Moka...and I know what that means around here. Not a single one of these monster's seems to have honor.

A voice from nearby had Zuko roll into cover, "...ko! Zuko!"

Hesitant, but recognizing the voice, Zuko used a loud whisper, "Kurumu? Is that you?"

"KYAAA! No! Let GO!" screamed Moka.

The rooftop reverberated with the shouting of the distressed girl, "What are you doing, Gin!?"

Gin held tight to the girl, but his voice stayed level and almost mischievous, "What? Am I not just holding you tenderly?"

"No...! You just felt me up!" cried Moka, attempting to push him off.

Gin chuckled, "Haha, well it is a full moon, isn't it? On nights with a full moon, I'm overcome with a feeling of power and I suddenly lose all control!"

He leaned in to try and kiss Moka, "So just give in to it! When I go wild, my sudden urges just make me go crazy!"

Moka squirmed in an attempt to hold him off, "No...NO STOP!"

A mighty shove slammed Gin into the stairwell on the roof. "Zuko...Zuko said he didn't peep!"

Throwing away the picture she still held, she declared her decision, "So I'm waiting for him! Rather than this picture...I want to believe Zuko!"

From the dust of the impact, Gin laughed lightly, "Haha...are you serious? How admirable! I'm falling for you harder and harder, Moka..."

His face began to morph along with his body, fangs and muscles growing, "But...I told ya...right? That on nights with a full moon, my self control weakens! "

Wild youki began to flare along the rooftop, blasting away from Gin, "When my...emotions excite me so much...I suddenly lose control over myself!"

Moka stepped back at the suddenly feral Gin, "Then I'll make you my woman by force, Akashiya Moka!"

Moka screamed, but a familiar, slightly raspy voice called out, "STOP!"

Gin came to a halt at the unexpected interruption, "What...? What are you doing here?"

Zuko dropped into a crouch as Kurumu let him fall onto the roof. Gin turned around to face him while Moka yelled happily, "Zuko! Kurumu!"

Gin growled, "You...weren't you being chased?"

Zuko gestured back at the flying succubus, "Kurumu got me out of the woods."

Kurumu flew up beside him, "No one believed me but..I saw it!"

"Gin called Zuko over, and after that, I saw him make Zuko peep!"

Getting angry, Gin snarled at the two in impatience, "Damn! How dare you...get in the way of our special moment!"

His eyes flashed and he howled, "Back OFF!"

Zuko pulled out his dao, which he had picked up while he was being hunted, and got ready to fight, So this is Gin's true form! A wolf!

"No, I think you need to back off, little puppy."

Zuko wanted to kick this tricky dog's ass personally for the humiliation and snarky comments, so he used one of his blades as a medium and swung an arc of fire at the werewolf, "I'll show you what happens when a mongrel messes with me!"

Kurumu, however, knew exactly how powerful a werewolf was, "Zuko! Wait, it's dangerous! A werewolf and a vampire are both equally strong monsters! Even if Moka attacked him directly, her chances would be..."

In the heat of battle though, nothing got through Zuko's instincts but a sudden flash of movement in the corner of his eye, Fast as I thought he was...crap.

A quick kick knocked Zuko over, but he rolled into an attack and swept a blade at Gin's feet, the other sword coming in an upwards slash to hopefully catch the werewolf between the two edges.

Gin was way to fast for him though, "Don't even think you have a chance, idiot!"

Another kick flashed at Zuko, but he reflexively placed his blades in front of himself and the kick only shoved him into a rolling slide across the rooftop. Unlike Moka, Gin had little real martial arts training, instead relying on his speed to defeat his opponents rather than technique.

That, and a lack of real battle experience, or any way to get through Zuko's flames, told Zuko all he needed to know: this battle was not already lost.

With a roar, Zuko spun himself upwards into a stance, flames swirling about him in a manner reminiscent of the master waterbenders he had watched in the Siege of the North Pole.

Without the sun, Zuko had far less power than he would like, but the walls of flames and weaving steel kept Gin at bay as the wolf circled him like a deadly predator.

Flashes and sparks flew as claw met blade, sheets of flames keeping Gin's far superior speed at bay. On Gin's part, the firebender's delaying tactics quickly wore on his already short temper, "Hurry up and die!"

Zuko did his best to predict where the next strike would come from, but Gin was simply to fast when he started to take him seriously, a maw snapped in his face, and the instinctive slash let Gin materialize behind him and claw his shoulder to ruin.

Snarling, Zuko spun his swords in a deadly pattern again, raising up a tornado of flames that reached well over his head. The pain slowed him but the wall of burning orange and red forced Gin to back off.

The fire continued to swirl and roar as Zuko kept up the defensive pattern that he had cobbled together, "Moka! Do you trust me!" His attention never diverted from the speeding Gin.

Moka looked directly at Zuko and gave him the same answer she gave Gin, "I believe in you, Zuko!"

With a small nod, Zuko gathered the tempest of fire and, bringing his swords down, forwards, and up, slashed fire towards the pink-haired girl.

Green met gold, and Moka's gaze never wavered as two massive, snapping lines of flame raced towards her until they curved right past.

Zuko leapt forwards in a full sprint, racing to reach Moka and remove the rosary. Much as it galled him to admit it, Gin was simply to fast for Zuko to beat. Having a fast and strong ally like Inner Moka would make the fight far easier.

Angered at the impenetrably hot walls of flame that Zuko had raised, Gin was forced to wait for the crucial second that it would take for the swirling flames to recede behind the sprinting teen.

Zuko reached out and grasped the rosary, but let out a watery chuckle, "Heh, looks like it's your problem now, Moka."

Gasping, Moka looked down at the bloody claw protruding from Zuko's chest. Her hair began to swirl and change as Gin ripped his claw away from Zuko, who fell against the shocked vampire.

"I guess you want to die...since you can't keep your hands off Moka, Zuko!"

A sudden blast of violent and angry youki had Gin instinctively retreating, "What...what is this!?"

Now a little cautious, Gin crouched lower, "Red eyes...could it be? Could it be she's a vampire?"

Inner Moka's beautiful face looked slightly sad as she lowered Zuko to the ground, his breathing labored and his lips flecked with blood. Her face twisted into a snarl as Gin laughed, "Heh! This is...this is Moka's true form!"

His tongue lolled out as he howled, "Hahaah! Awesome! Even after transforming, you are still beautiful, Akashiya Moka!"

Leaping high, he disregarded the furious expression on the silver haired girl's face, "I could care less that you are a vampire! I will definitely defeat you and make you my woman!"

With a snap, Moka's hand raced forwards to stab Gin, who grinned and disappeared in a blur, "Hah! What are you fighting way over there for? You didn't think I used my full speed against Firebrand over there, did you?"

Moka got ready to fight as Gin leapt from the roof of the stairwell he'd landed on, "If a vampire's power is strength, then a werewolf's power is speed! And the strength of the moonlight also strengthens my speed! Tonight, the full moon is shining as brightly as ever!"

The rooftop seemed to shimmer as Gin blurred all over, flashes of distortion and a smiling maw full of teeth surrounding Moka with reverberating laughter.

"On the night of a full moon, a werewolf is invincible!"

Moka did her best to dodge or stop the attacks, but even for her the fight was one-sided, "What?" I can't see him! So this is the speed of a werewolf... If only I could raise my own defense of fire...

Gin ducked in for blows that Moka could do nothing to stop, though they did little damage even as he howled, "Give it up! As long as the full moon is out, it will be my victory!"

With a muffled boom, Moka caught hold of one of the darting claws. Gin looked up towards the sky, "What? I stopped? Oh shit! The Moon is hidden by the clouds! I can't use my true powers if the moon isn't out!"

Facing back towards Moka, Gin met her glaring red eyes. Inwardly, he felt fear at the anger in them, but he wouldn't be cowed that easily, "Wait! Don't be so hasty! I can still beat you, with or without the moonlight! I'll show you what the natural energy of a monster is!"

Before Gin could say another word, a foot slammed into his head.

As the werewolf slammed through the fence of the roof, Moka leapt forward to try and catch his arm to get another kick in, but the fence gave and Gin fell with a loud, "Kyaaaaaaa!"

Getting ready to leap down after him, Moka snarled when Kurumu cried, "Wait, Moka! We need to help Zuko! His breathing is getting worse and I can't stop the bleeding!"

The girl raced to Kurumu, who was holding Zuko's head up and getting ready to take off for the infirmary with him. Moka held out a hand and stopped Kurumu, "Just a second, I can help him."

Careful to not to do any more damage, Moka leaned forward and bit into Zuko's neck. The teen groaned as Moka injected a small amount of her blood into him. Kurumu sputtered indignantly, "W-what are you doing? We don't have time for this, idiot!"

Moka looked at the succubus sharply, "I'm saving his life, fool."

Kurumu had a glare and smart comment ready when Zuko jerked up, looking around wildly. The hole on the right side of his chest had closed up with a hiss but his state panicked him, "Where's Gin?"

A snort attracted his attention, and the sight of the silver-haired Moka, a slight halo of moonlight playing about her head, calmed him, "That mutt probably ran away after I kicked him off the roof. If he ever gets near me again I'll be sure to finish our fight for good."

Zuko struggled to stand, ignoring the pain of his chest and wondering what happened to the hole, "If you let me get some kicks in I'll search for him tomorrow. I've always been good at tracking, and I did learn a thing or two from my sister's little games. Or maybe..."

He was interrupted by a harsh slap across the face. Wincing, he turned to look at the angry vampire, and almost wilted under the pair of fiery ride eyes. So he did what came naturally and snapped at her, "What the hell was that for?!"

"For making Omote cry! I can't stand men who only think about themselves. Last time you did it, you made up for it by standing by her. This time, you fought against Gin, but I'm getting sick and tired of your temper." By this point Zuko was alternating between anger and shame. Strange how this girl could get to him as easily as his mother had.

"If you don't shape up I'll tell Omote to stay away from you for her own good, am I clear?"

The two hadn't broken eye contact the entire rant, and Zuko slowly nodded, "So long as Moka stays away from certain topics, we're clear. Can you tell her I'm sorry? Or do I have to wait for you to go back to sleep?"

Inner Moka flipped her hair over her shoulder dismissively, "You'll have to inform her yourself. I expect you to do a damn good job teaching me how to use those swords of yours later." She fixed him with another piercing stare, "and if you really are her, and my, friend, then you'll have to tell us about those topics at some point. I won't deny that you've got me curious, and I will never take no for an anwer. Just how a human came to be at this school intrigues me."

Zuko finally broke his gaze and turned away, "Some things aren't meant to be told. They can be dangerous. Or just...unpleasant."

By the end of the week, the newspaper had cleared Zuko's name and Gin had to face the wrath of the school girls.

"So this is a newspaper. Just a public notice really. Hey Moka, you have any idea what else we're supposed to write abou-URK!"

Zuko fell back, clutching at his now red face and wondering if the girl had left a footprint.

Moka scolded him from above, waging a finger, "No looking up now! I've had enough of perverts already!"

With a scowl, Zuko huffed in annoyance, "Not like I even need to try. These school uniforms are ridiculous," he muttered.

Another boot to the face shut him up.