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“Kyoko Sakura, professional Vampire Hunter and Inquisitor of the Church, at your service.” Yawning, the girl fixed her hair into a ponytail while addressing a tall, slender man. His suit was nice, albeit cheaply made, and his hair was peppered with gray. Compared to her youthful appearance, he looked old.
“You read the contract, yes?” The accented man asked. Eastern Europe was full of unique, though thick, accents, particularly when speaking Japanese. Could she have spoken in Russian for the man? Oh, sure. But it was neither fun nor the easiest option for her.
“Sure did. Vampire queen, killing livestock, kidnapped some girl, yada yada. Same old shit I’ve been dealing with for ages now.” Scowling, the man pulled out a piece of parchment, holding it out to her. She looked at it with a kicked-up eyebrow before glancing at his bespectacled face inquisitively. “What’s this?”
He cleared his throat and recited some memorized speech. “To ensure the contracted party understands the peril the county of Blütvania is requesting they put themselves in, Lord Petrov Velysnokov requires said contracted party read and sign this waiver.”
“A fuckin’ waiver?” Kyoko muttered, staring wide-eyed at the paper. “You lot are a bunch of fuckin’ bureaucrats? We sure I’m huntin’ the proper bloodsucker here?”
Unamused, the man gave her a stern look and held the paper out further. With a grumble, Kyoko snatched it, angrily scribbling her name on it before tossing it back to him. He huffed indignantly, attempting to press the creases she had made.
“Thank you,” he said, obviously not meaning it. “Follow me to your accommodations so you may store your belongings.”
“Ain’t got any. Take me to your Lord Petrol or whatever.”
“Lord Petrov Velysnokov,” he growled, pushing his glasses up. “It would behoove you to remember his name.”
“It would behoove you to take that damn stick out yer ass,” Kyoko mocked him, rolling her eyes. Waving him onward, she yawned again. “Whatever. Take me there so I can get all the details.”
With a scoff, the man turned around and Kyoko followed. The path to Lord Petrov’s house was a short one, mirroring the rest of the village perfectly; small and uninteresting. Kyoko had been to similar villages hundreds of times, each with their own master with batshit crazy self-importance that was only followed within said villages. Ask anyone outside a 10-kilometer radius who they were and, 10 times outta 10, you’d get shrugs and confused stares.
The house Lord Petrov stayed in was equally boring. Three floors tall, the stone bricks it was comprised of were cracked and showing their age. Moss dominated the eastern side of the house, covering even the windows that barely peaked out from beneath. The chimney had smoke billowing out, which, with the already dreadfully dreary atmosphere around the village, only added to the bleakness. The smoke blended in with the gray clouds above, as though they originated directly from the chimney.
“Do you people hate color or somethin’?” She asked. The man didn’t answer, not that she expected him to.
Her guide knocked on the door before getting down onto one knee. Kyoko glanced at him, disgust welling in her stomach. He looked at her harshly, silently telling her to do the same. She crossed her arms and remained standing, shaking her head with a harumph.
The door opened, revealing a young man, no older than 15, wearing a brown bear coat. His fireplace was directly behind him, illuminating his silhouette and making it difficult to look for any distinguishable features. Kyoko’s eyes, trained to spot minute details in nearly pitch-black environments, weren’t strained to see the surprised look on his face.
“You’re the Inquisitor, I presume?”
Kyoko nodded, looking him up and down. He was attractive, though not Kyoko’s type, since Inquisitors weren’t really allowed types. Still, his Japanese was admittedly pretty good. “Yep. The best this side of the pearly white gates.”
Her guide gasped and stood up, his face flushing with anger. “You shall speak to Lord Petrov with only the utmost respect, not like some… Some hooligan!”
“Relax Resnovitch. I don’t mind.” He smiled at her, though Resnovitch, the uptight jackass he was, sputtered before fixing his suit, face still a bright red.
“My Lord, I must insist! You should be treated with untold fealty and reverence!”
Petrov laughed awkwardly, adjusting his bear coat with a cough. “I said it’s fine, stop being such a worrywart. She’s an outsider, you can’t blame her. Besides, the whole lord and lady stuff is pretty old… I’d rather just relax and let people be themselves.”
Crossing her arms and tapping a foot, Kyoko glanced around, already droning out the conversation between the two. She didn’t care about their politics, their etiquette, or their culture. She just wanted to go kill this vampire chick, get paid, then go get some tasty food. Simple as.
Luckily, Petrov shook his head and beckoned her inside with a short apology. Resnovitch walked off, his fists clenched at his side as he marched angrily away. Uncaring, Kyoko stepped through the doors and into the warm house, letting the heat from the fire wash over her. Sighing, she plopped down on a nearby couch, crossing a leg over the other with pursed lips. “Cozy place you got here, I guess.”
“Thank you, it’s been passed down in my family ever since the first settlers made their way up here.”
“Cool, cool.” She tapped her fingers on the back of the couch, watching as the young lord took his own seat in a chair near the fireplace. Hanging above it, she noticed, was a painting, though far too worn to tell exactly what it was depicting. She could just make out the figure of a woman with long, dark hair, though the face and body were far too worn to be recognizable.
“So… Uh, Petrov, right? What’s the juice?”
“I need you to kill the vampire queen.”
Straight to the point. Nodding, Kyoko licked her lips and smirked. “Won’t be my first vamp queen kill. Where’s she at?”
“No,” he said, leaning forward. His hazel eyes shone in the dimly lit room and his face took on an uncharacteristically hateful look. “She’s unlike any you’ve encountered before. She’s ancient. Since before the age of Christ, before the Romans. Possibly older than even Noah.”
Frowning, Kyoko scratched her ear and clicked her tongue. “Sounds a little heretical. God killed all sinners in the flood, that includes the supernatural. Noah and his family were all that remained, ‘sides what animals were on the boat.”
Petrov shook his head, clasping his hands before him while resting his elbows on his knees. He sighed deeply, seemingly aging a decade before her very eyes, before looking up at her once more. “She is my ancestor.”
Kyoko looked into his eyes, staring intensely for any sign of deceit or trickery. Seeing none, she reached under her coat and pulled out a small rosary, rubbing the silver chain between her pointer finger and thumb. “So you’re a vamp too?”
He nodded. “I am.”
“The rest of the village?”
He nodded. “They are.”
“Village of vamps… Blütvania. You lot are fuckin’ corny.”
He cracked a smile before leaning back, shrugging impishly. “My great-grandfather had a bad sense of humor.”
“This village was founded 1100 years ago. You tellin’ me you’ve had only four generations in that time?”
“Our bloodline is rather peaceful. Our dietary needs are supplemented fine by wildlife, and, more recently, by donations from a hospital a hundred kilometers away. All the blood we receive is about to expire, so it’s not hurting anyone,” he added quickly, noticing the scowl on Kyoko’s face. “And since we don’t hunt people, we don’t draw attention.”
“You sure did a great job at not drawin’ my attention.”
“I am aware,” he said quietly, lowering his head. “I had no other option. I can’t kill her… Vampires grow stronger the older they are. She’s almost as old as the world itself. I’m only 70.”
“Only…” Scoffing, Kyoko shook her head, holding the rosary out before her. “You’re young enough, I guess. Can’t have built up any resistance to blessed artifacts. Touch this to prove your story.”
Gulping, Petrov stood up and walked over, showing only the slightest bit of hesitation. She watched as he placed his hand on the rosary, his skin turning a bright red before he reeled it back, letting out a slight hiss as smoke rose from his palm.
“Fuckin’ hell. You weren’t lying.” Kyoko stashed the rosary, glaring up at him. “You can try to be all fuckin’ peaches and roses all you want. You’re still damned.”
“I know,” Petrov said, nursing his hand against his chest. He stared at her, almost pleading. “But please. She’s been kidnapping girls from nearby villages, and it’s drawing attention. I… She’s been dormant for so long, I forgot she was still alive. I want to know why she acted now, and what for. Please, before you kill her, get me those answers.”
Standing up, Kyoko sighed, fixing her coat with a hum. “We’ll see. I ain’t one for polite conversation with blood-suckin’ vermin, but I’ll do what I can.”
“Thank you. She’s up north, against the Lena River.”
Snow crunched beneath her boots as she looked at a small, seemingly abandoned cabin, sitting only a hundred meters off the river bank. Kyoko’s lit cigarette hung from her mouth as she scoped it out, staring through her binoculars and into the windows. Seeing no movement, she contemplated moving further up north, but decided against it, as this was the first real shelter she had seen in hours.
Even if the vamp wasn’t here, at least she could get warm. Taking a deep breath of her cigarette, she flicked it away before letting it out in a large billow of smoke.
The door creaked as she pressed against it. Pursing her lips, she shrugged and opted for kicking it open. The cold air was sucked inside and Kyoko took a look around. An old couch sat in the middle, destroyed by the elements, and the rest of the room was barren. With a roll of her eyes, she closed the door and sat on the pitiful thing, her hands rubbing against each other for warmth. “Fuckin’ Europe.”
“You must be rather tired so as to not check the rest of the cabin,” a voice as cold as the snow outside said behind her. Throwing herself forward, Kyoko pulled out a dagger hidden in her boot and turned around. The space behind the couch was empty, devoid of any sign of life. Breathing rapidly and eyes wide, Kyoko glanced around, trying to force her heart rate down.
“Where the hell are you hiding?” Kyoko called out, pulling herself to her feet as she pressed her back against the cold wall. “Fuckin’ vamps and their shadows…”
“And you have a preference for the profane.”
Scoffing, Kyoko replied, “As if. Just ‘cause my speech ain’t pretty doesn’t mean I’m profane!”
“Profanity isn’t profane?” Kyoko glanced left, to where she heard the voice coming from. It, too, was empty, but she kept her guard up regardless. “I knew you Inquisitors were zealous to the point of irrationality, but I didn’t expect it to go this far.”
“Shut up, bitch!” Grinding her teeth, Kyoko growled. “You don’t know jack shit!”
From behind her, a hand reached around her head and caressed her cheek as breath tickled her ear, as the voice whispered softly, “Have you ever thought that it was you who doesn’t know anything? That your faith blinds you?”
Whirling around, Kyoko stabbed her dagger into the wall, the outcome being her weapon getting lodged into the wood. Cursing, she pulled out another knife from her waistband, her narrow eyes whirling around the cold cabin. “My faith ain’t your business. You’re already damned beyond salvation, so I ain’t gonna bother preachin’ to you.”
“Thank you for that. It’s dull when you religious types attempt to educate me on topics I lived through firsthand.”
“So you’re this ancient vamp queen?” Kyoko reached into her coat, keeping her right arm out with the knife. “Woulda thought you’d live in a cozier castle or some shit.”
“A castle wouldn’t suit my goals, I’m afraid.”
“And what are your goals?” Pulling out a bottle, she began unscrewing the cap with one hand, her heart rate finally slowing down. “Tryna drink up as many young virgins as you can?”
“Please,” the vampire laughed, the sound chilling her to the bones. “If I wanted that, all I’d need to do is cosplay as a member of the clergy.”
“Shut your fuckin’ mouth,” Kyoko growled, tossing the cap aside. Holding the bottle up, she sucked in a deep breath and poured the contents out. Misty fluid fell out, coating the floor with a thin layer of fog that slowly rose upward, eventually encompassing the entire room.
The room was motionless as the fog filled the room, not even the wind leaking in through the cracks managing to move the mysterious fluid.
“Interesting.” Kyoko’s eyes widened and she spun her head around futilely. “This is a new trick. Some sort of holy fog? I wonder.”
Unable to hold her breath any longer, Kyoko pushed the door open and stepped outside. The fog remained indoors, somehow managing to not spill out, and Kyoko sucked in some air. Coughing, she glanced about, scowling deeply. “Gotta stop smoking… How the fuck did you do that?!”
“Do what?” The soft crunching of snow to her right grabbed her attention. Looking over, she noticed a girl, taller than her by a whole head, and wearing a dress made of much finer material than Resnovitch. “You’ll have to elaborate.”
“You-!” Picking her knife back up, Kyoko sprinted towards the vampire. With a swing of her knife, she felt the gentle resistance of flesh give way as-
She toppled over, having hit only air, and barely managed to prevent herself from face-planting into the snow.
“Pitiful.” The woman said from behind her. Kyoko’s eyes, wide, turned around to stare at the dark-haired woman, her mind flashing to the painting above Petrov’s mantle. Her purple eyes stared down at her emotionlessly, her pale face reflecting the dim sunlight perfectly.
“W-What are you?” Kyoko whispered, picking herself up as she cursed herself for stuttering. Gulping, she adjusted her grip on her knife, her teeth clamping down on the interior of her cheek anxiously. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”
“We’ve both seen something new today, hm?” Flipping her hair over her shoulder, the vampire looked over at the cabin. “My trick made you trip. Yours ruined my abode. I’d say that’s not entirely fair.”
Scoffing, Kyoko placed her scowl back on her face, glaring heatedly at the woman. “Your kind don’t know shit about ‘fair’ anyway. Killing hundreds throughout your single lifespan to keep yourselves alive. Talk about fuckin’ unfair.”
Smirking, her opponent looked back over at her, her eyes gleaming dangerously. “Do you really not see the hypocrisy in your statement? It’s the circle of life brought upon you by the eviction of man from Eden. Don’t blame us.”
Silently, Kyoko reached into her coat, pulling out a short silver pole. Snarling, she flicked it, causing it to unfold, revealing a long spear, tipped with a cross where the blade protruded. “I’m gonna show you the fuckin’ circle of life real quick.”
“Hm,” with little interest given, the vampire looked back at the cabin. “You humans are more bloodthirsty than my kind ever has been.”
“Shut your ass up with your faux intellectual sewage before I cut your fuckin’ tongue out.”
Rolling her eyes, the vampire turned towards Kyoko, holding her hand out. With a simple flick of her finger, the wind pelted Kyoko, pushing her back and nearly causing her to lose her balance. “Enough games. Your little toys can’t hurt me. Turn around and go home.”
Outwardly unperturbed, though admittedly freaked out, Kyoko held her cross spear out. “As if. Only way I’m goin’ home is with your head in a bag.” Lunging forward, she stabbed toward the vampire, making sure to follow up with a series of slashes as the woman stepped to the side. She avoided every attack, her eyes never leaving Kyoko’s as a smirk grew on her face.
Suddenly, she was beside her, breath once more brushing against her ear. “You’re cute when you’re angry,” she whispered, her sultry voice thick with an unknown emotion. Her hand ran across Kyoko’s hand, her skin colder than the ground beneath them. “Much cuter than those other girls I’ve seen.”
Face flushing, she shoulder-checked the woman, causing her to let out a gentle laugh as she vanished into thin air. Kyoko stumbled back, holding her spear out defensively. Snow crunched behind her and she whirled around, slamming the end of her spear into her opponent’s hand. Smirking, she yanked Kyoko toward her, catching her in her arms to prevent her from moving.
“See? This is nicer. Much better than needless fighting.”
“W-What the fuck? Let go of me!” Thrashing, Kyoko grit her teeth as her face burned with an intense, unbearable heat. Her feet dangled above the snow as the vampire lifted her, her grin taunting her as she utilized her superior height to pick her up. With her arms wrapped around Kyoko’s abdomen, and her strength leagues above her own, her thrashing amounted to little more than an annoyance to the vampire queen.
Stepping toward the cabin, the vampire hummed quietly. “No need to struggle. I’ve no plan to harm you, as much as you might deserve it.”
“What are you planning?” Kyoko said, fear leaking into her voice. She had been trained from a young age to steel her heart and remain courageous even in the face of death, but the prospect of something grimmer put a crack in her impregnable defense. “Tryna make me your fuckin’ blood cow?!”
“Even now you are uncouth,” the vampire said coolly. “No, I’ve long since passed the need for blood. I simply want to have a conversation.”
In an instant, the two were sat opposite from one another, each in an independent chair. Kyoko was restrained to the chair, her abilities incapable of escaping the bondage, while the vampire queen sipped on a cup of steaming liquid. It almost smelled like tea, and she would believe it to be tea, were it not going into the gut of a vampire.
“First off, introductions,” the woman said, smiling politely at Kyoko. She brushed her long black hair out of her face and behind her ear, revealing the surprisingly rounded helix. “I’ve had many names, far too many to list off in a reasonable time, but while I was in Japan, I took on the name Homura Akemi. You may call me that.”
“Piss off,” Kyoko spat. “The only name you’re deserving of is blood-suckin’ whore.”
With a sigh, Homura crossed one slender leg over the other, her dress pulling back slightly to reveal the cream-colored skin on her calf. Running a hand over the ceramic surface of her cup, she stared into the liquid quietly. After a moment, she spoke again, keeping her voice nearly inaudible. “Need I remind you I have you bound and trapped until I’ve gotten what I want?”
“And what is it you want? I ain’t playing your games. We ain’t pals, we ain’t fuckin’ amigos, and we sure as fuck ain’t fuckbuddies. Either kill me or get straight to the point, ‘cause I ain’t doing anything until then.”
“Small talk is important. It may seem meaningless, but it can give insight into a person’s priorities, even if most talking points are uninteresting. My priority is setting a foundation of, if not trust, at the very least understanding. Carrying on without that understanding will be a fruitless endeavor.”
“Ain’t that a pickle. Guess you should just suck me dry and try with someone else.”
Smirking, Homura sipped her drink, staring at Kyoko over the rim. “Regrettably, you’re the only one I can try with.”
“What’s so special about me?” Squinting, Kyoko squirmed against her restraints, growing frustrated with her lack of progress. “I’m just a gal from a small town in Japan, born and raised in the Church. You could find a dozen others like me.”
“Isn’t it a preaching topic in Christianity that each person is unique?” Homura hummed, running her finger across the rim of the cup. “I’d have to agree with it. I’ve never met the same person twice after our final departure. Even now, after my long life, I’ve never met anyone like you.”
Scoffing, Kyoko gave up on her futile struggle and leaned back against the seat. Rolling her eyes, she licked her dry lips before speaking. “I’m sure. I’m super fuckin’ special. Can we get to the murder yet?”
“You’re cute when mad, but you’re a petulant child when impatient,” Homura said, clearly annoyed. Allowing herself a smirk, Kyoko shrugged, taking the small victory over her captor. “You’ve heard that I’ve been taking girls from local villages, no?”
“Yep,” Kyoko said, glaring at Homura. “Despicable bitch.”
“Where would I keep them?”
“Eh?”
“Where would I keep the girls in this small cabin?”
Looking around, Kyoko could see the entrance of the cabin from this room, as the door was open. From this vantage, it appeared to be the only room, save for the main room, in the building. “Underground,” she said eventually. “A basement of sorts.”
“I regret to inform you that this cabin has no basement. Nor does it have a shed, an attic, or a second room. Everything you’ve seen here is all there is.”
“So where are you keeping the girls?”
Smiling, Homura set her cup aside, intertwining her fingers across her lap. “Nowhere. I haven’t kidnapped anyone. I’ve simply been living here and haven’t left in quite a while.”
“So…”
“Petrov lied to you, yes. He wants me dead because I’m the only one keeping the village in check. It would draw undue attention if four dozen vampires got out and started preying on nearby towns, which I’d rather not deal with.”
Frowning, Kyoko chewed on her cheek, eyes flickering across Homura’s form. “I got two vamps telling me opposite things. The hell am I supposed to do here? I might as well just kill all of you at this point.”
Shrugging, Homura uncrossed her legs, shifting so that her opposite leg now rested over the other. It gave an admittedly tantalizing view of her thigh, the fabric shifting enough to do so. Kyoko gulped, looking away before she was caught staring.
“Let’s assume you’re right. What am I gonna do against fuckin forty vamps? I got my ass handed to me by you. Put me up against four or five of ‘em and I can handle it, no prob. Ten times that? I’m fucked.”
“I’ll help, of course.” Homura tried to reassure her, failing miserably as Kyoko glared. “I understand this seems like an underhanded attempt at revenge, and you’ve no reason to believe me, but I have no intent on misleading you. I could’ve killed you then them all by myself, but I’ve no desire to kill anymore humans. I’ve lived a long time, I’ve killed too many people, and I’m tired of it. I may not be able to repent, but I can at least try.”
“You tryna be religious?” Kyoko spat, huffing angrily. “Your kind can’t enter Heaven, no matter how saintly you are. You ain’t God’s children.”
Homura nodded. Her stoic face stared unblinkingly at Kyoko. “I do not do good in hope of reward. I do it because it is the right thing, even if, in the end, I am punished for it.”
“Spoken like a true altruist,” Kyoko shook her head. “Fine, fuck it. Either way, I’m dead. Might as well kill a few more vamps on my way out. Can’t have ‘Here Lies Kyoko Sakura - Died Failing To Kill A Single Vampire’ on my tombstone. Or something.” Clearing her throat, Kyoko looked up at Homura, a light blush coating her cheeks. “Just get me outta this and we can get moving.”
Letting out a gentle laugh, Homura did so instantly with a snap, the bindings falling to the ground as though cut from a string. “I assure you, if you work with me, you won’t die. Though, if you do miraculously die, I’ll be sure something better gets written on your grave.”
“Like hell you will, I’d rather have shit on there than have you write anythin’,” Kyoko grumbled, rubbing her wrists gingerly. “Now…” Grinning, Kyoko glanced up at Homura, mischief dancing in her eyes. “How about we fuck up some fuckin’ undead bastards?”
Kyoko sat on the front steps of Petrov’s house, staring at the eerily quiet village before her. She rubbed her hands slowly, trying to keep them warm in the cold winter air, and she resisted the urge to look at the person to her left. Her eyes stayed glued to the pile of bodies in front of her, the peak of which reached over the second floor of the manor.
Killing the town was laughable easy. They were malnourished, fed just enough blood to stay alive, though they had managed to gain some strength from the kidnappings of those very same girls mentioned in the job. She grit her teeth as she recalled the lifeless eyes of those innocent girls, her head bowing and her eyes closing in a quick but silent prayer.
“Why are you grieving? I figured you’d be ecstatic at having killed more vampires than most would ever even see.”
“You wouldn’t get it,” Kyoko said, opening her eyes to look at the body pile. “Your kind are heartless.”
“Try me,” Homura urged her gently. “You might be surprised.”
“Those girls-” Kyoko paused, licking her lips as she contemplated her next words. Why was she thinking of expressing her pain to one of the beings responsible for it? Irrationally, she carried on, speaking with a subdued voice. “They didn’t deserve this. No one does. Entire lives, gone . Not just are their own ruined, but their families and their friends, too.” Closing her eyes, Kyoko leaned against her knees, letting out a long, shaky sigh.
“I’m sorry.”
“One of those girls looked like my little sister.” Kyoko continued. “When I was a kid, my father, a member of the church and a very religious man killed my mother and sister before killing himself. I don’t know why he did it or why I was spared.”
Homura stayed silent, listening to Kyoko patiently. Kyoko rubbed her hands faster, anger welling up in her stomach at both the cold and her own vulnerability.
“I’ve seen this scene a thousand times. Dead girls, their lives taken too soon only because they were virgins and therefore fuckin’ better meals. I’m used to it. But…” Rubbing her face against her sleeve, she sighed again, her shaky breath warm against her wrist. “It’s the ones that look like her that fuck me up.”
A hand landed on her shoulder and Kyoko looked over, her eyes lighting up in fury at the contact, only to quickly die out at the sorrowful look on Homura’s face. “I was an only child. No parents; I was just… Here, just as I am today. I lived an empty life for centuries, going day by day pursuing the satisfaction of my carnal desires. Drink, kill, rest, repeat. An endless cycle.
“I wound up in Japan eventually. My memory is hazy, but I remember meeting a girl… Her hair mirrored the leaves in spring. I have never seen pink hair before or since then, but I find it fitting to have belonged to her. A unique color for a unique person. I don’t know why I didn’t kill her, but eventually… I loved her. For the first time, I felt something beyond lust and gluttony.” She smiled, taking a seat next to Kyoko, uncaring of the dirt and soot dirtying her somehow unstained dress. “Her name was Madoka. She was my first friend and love.”
Kyoko sniffled, the cold air and emotions catching up to her. “Vampires can’t love. That’s a fact old as the Earth itself.”
For the first time, Homura looked angry, though it was temporary and vanished without a trace as quickly as it came. Taking a deep breath, Homura spoke slowly. “I loved her. Say what you want, but I did. We lived together until she died of old age… I had never cried before that day.”
“Sounds like you were mournin’ a dead cow.”
“I loved her!” Homura yelled, grabbing a fistful of Kyoko’s shirt. Eyes widening, Kyoko raised her hands, glancing down at Homura’s revealed fangs. “I loved her… She changed me. I haven’t killed anyone since. I haven’t hungered since. I moved here because Japan hurt too much, but I’ve kept to an oath of pacifism since her death.”
“Okay, okay… I got it. I believe you… It’s just hard to believe.”
Homura released Kyoko, having the decency to look ashamed. “I understand… I wouldn’t believe it either. Vampires only have sex to either reproduce or just because it’s fun. Love is a foreign concept to my kind.”
Kyoko glanced at her rounded ear, then looked into Homura’s eyes, her eyebrows furrowing in thought. “Only those with souls can love. Maybe this Madoka girl did the impossible and… Gave you a soul. Somehow.” Homura didn’t reply, instead staring down at her hand idly. Kyoko, hesitantly, reached out, grabbing the same hand awkwardly. “I ain’t sure how, but… I mean, I’ve never heard of a vampire goin’ basically celibate with blood. Or a vamp with round ears. Or one who can love. Or, well, anythin’ you got goin’ on.”
“Your point?” Homura asked, a rare show of sarcasm coating her words.
Blushing, Kyoko cleared her throat, squeezing her cold hand. “Maybe the way to redeem your soul is love, s’all I’m saying. I-I mean, I might be an Inquisitor, but uh, it’s still my duty as a servant of the Lord to try to save those around me. It might be, um, worthwhile to, you know.”
Raising an eyebrow, Homura glanced down at their hands, then back up at Kyoko’s burning red face. “You’ve done quite the 180 here.”
“L-Look,” Kyoko growled, releasing her hand from embarrassment, and crossed her arms. “I’m curious about it alright? ‘Sides, you’re pretty, look human enough, and haven’t ripped my jugular out yet. You even helped me kill a whole ass town of vamps. I ain’t gonna lie, that’s pretty fuckin’ hot.”
“I don’t even know your name,” Smiling tauntingly, Homura raised her hand, brushing her fingers against Kyoko’s cool cheek. “And here you are, saying I’m pretty.”
“Kyoko. Kyoko Sakura,” said Kyoko, gulping at the touch, but not moving away, and she averted her eyes. “N-Nice to meet you.”
Homura leaned in, cupping Kyoko’s cheek gently as their faces neared. She whispered against her lips, leaving a minute space between them, “And it’s nice to meet you, Miss Sakura.”