Chapter 3: A Vampire Dances (oooouuch!!)

Kai looked down at the paper in his hand, reading the numbers over and over in his head. It was true that he and Kokona were on better terms now, but it still sort of felt like he was going behind enemy lines. What was worse was she was going to be teaching him how to dance. Kai didn't have two left feet, he had no left feet and he knew it.

The last time he had even tried dancing was about four years ago at a Hinata family wedding. It was supposed to have been a two-week vacation to California. Instead, it had turned into more of a chore after he broke Himari's foot and she'd had to go to the hospital to get a cast. The result was he'd pretty much had to cater to her every whim since the doctor had ordered her to stay off the foot. The thought of what Kokona would make him do if he broke her foot sent a shiver down his spine.

The ground under his feet cracked a bit as it changed from smooth pavement to tiny pebbles of gravel. The neighborhood he had just entered seemed nice enough—most of the houses were large and homey. A couple of cats, an orange tabby and a calico, were lounging on the hoods of cars.

"35, 37, 39," he muttered under his breath as he looked for the right address. He really wasn't sure what to expect. Up until this point, he had never really thought of seeing Kokona outside of school. Was she more relaxed and lazy at home, or was her family more "traditional?" If they were, how would he come across to them? Not that it mattered much, he wasn't going to make a habit of visiting her at home… was he? No, of course not. It wouldn't come to that.

He bit his lip as he finally came to the correct address. The front yard was a bit fancier than he'd expected, with what looked like a cobblestone path that led to the front door, and some kind of garden, though he couldn't really tell what was being grown there. His shoes made small muffled sounds as they hit each stone on the path.

Yep, traditional, he thought to himself as he reached the sliding door. Lots of people had gotten rid of those for the much preferred open and shut, tight lock doors. But some preferred to keep the traditional style, not wanting to lose their roots to Western architecture. Knocking gently he called out, "Konnichiwa, Haruka-San!" He wanted to be as formal as possible. He checked his watch, trying to make sure he hadn't gotten there too fast.

Just then the door slid open to reveal a man wearing a traditional black Hakama which tied at his waist and fell to his ankles. The Hakama was secured by four himo or straps; two attached at either side of the front of the Hakama, and two attached on either side in the back as well as the traditional koshi-ita below. The man's hard face was fixated on the younger man with an intense stare as Kai proceeded to perform the traditional greeting bow.

"Konnichiwa, Haruka-San," he repeated before standing upright. The man returned his bow but his eyes were glued onto Kai as if silently judging him, making him feel a bit self-conscious. He realized that his school uniform probably looked a lot more modern than the man was used to. Not to mention he was wearing western-style flats rather than the traditional Geta that his elder wore. Silently, the man let him into the house. It was a bit cozier than Kai was used to and decorated in a traditional manner.

The man led him out to the backyard where a large tent stood.

"Keep it down," the man said coldly. Kai simply nodded and made his way into the tent.

"Haruka-San!" he called out just as something curled around his arm, yanking him sharply into the tent. "Whaaa!"

When he regained his composure he looked up to see Kokona, arms crossed. "You address me like that again with my parents not around, I tie you from the waist up in thorns, got it?" she said sharply, receiving a nod from Kai. "Just because my parents are traditional does not mean I am."

Now that he had regained his composure he was able to get a better look at Kokona. Her normal black T-shirt and jeans had been replaced by a more traditional red Kimono, which wrapped around the left of her figure. The traditional obi tied at the back.

"My mother," she said simply, a scowl playing on her face. On her feet, however, instead of the traditional Geta, she wore a nice pair of red heels. "More comfortable than wooden shoes," she said, arms still crossed.

The inside of the tent was pretty empty except for a single speaker on a table with an iPod connected to it. "Chances are, at a party like this, there will be slow dancing, like the waltz, and some faster, more upbeat types like swing dancing. Please tell me you have at least a little dancing experience."

There was a pause as Kai took in the information, looked over at her, then took a brief step forward. "Last time I danced I broke Himari's foot."

Kokona looked him dead in the eye then got really close. Her warm breath made his skin tingle as she got close to his ear. "You break my foot, I break your arm," she whispered.

A bead of sweat dripped off his forehead as she smirked, backing away slowly. She looked at him and took a deep breath. "That look of yours is just pathetic. Forget the waltz, let's just focus on music with a slow beat." She walked over to the iPod, tapping the play button with her finger and nodding her head as the song began to play.

Right away Kai recognized the tune. Himari used to listen to it a lot. "Simple and Clean," originally performed by Utada Hikaru. This, however, was the orchestra version, much more suited for a slow tune.

"Come here and take my hand," she directed. Kai slowly stepped forward, grabbing her right hand with his left while she guided his left hand around her waist. It felt strange—unnatural even.

"Closer," she growled. He slowly scooted himself closer to her. The height difference didn't help, either. Kokona was about two feet shorter than Kai.

"Just listen to the music and move your feet according to the beat." He took a deep breath, closing his eyes and moving his right foot.

"Damnit!" Kokona exclaimed, shocking Kai out of focus, which in turn caused him to take a step back, stepping on her other foot. She pushed him away, grabbing her foot and hopping on one leg. "What the hell!" she exclaimed.

Kai stepped back. "Sorry, I tried to warn you. Most people who can't dance say they have two left feet. I have no left feet."

She looked up at him with cold eyes. "Baka! You broke my heel!" she growled, stepping back further. She sighed, smoothing out her Kimono.

"Just a minute," she muttered, poking her head out the other end of the tent and grabbing another pair of heels. When she came back, she took a deep breath. "All right, let's try something else. I want you to gently put your feet on mine."Kai nodded. "You sure?"

In response she gave him a do-it-or-I'll-kill-you look and he promptly complied. "Now, don't worry so much about moving, let me lead you. Just listen to the music." Kai nodded as Kokona began moving her feet slowly. Closing his eyes, he allowed Kokona to move slowly around the tent as he let the music flow into him. When the song ended Kokona nodded. "All right Kai, did you feel the beat of the music?"

He nodded, carefully getting off her feet. "I think that helped."

She rolled her amethyst eyes. "It better have, the party is tomorrow night."

A sigh escaped Kai's lips. "Tomorrow? I—I don't think I'll be ready."

She shook her head. "You better be. Let's move on to the next type of dance. In some ways, this might actually be easier—it's more of a flowing dance, lots of movements, so you're not constrained." She walked over to the table and started shuffling through the music on the device. "Let's see." Finally, she settled on one and smiled.

Kai didn't recognize the song, but he started tapping his foot as he took in the tune. Kokona nodded. "Take my hand and follow the music." He nodded, taking her left hand in his right again. This time, however, he began moving across the tent. Suddenly he let her go, twirling her around but keeping their fingers laced just enough to bring her back across his body.

"Okay, so faster dancing works better for you," she said in a rather impressed tone.

He chuckled. "Like you said, less constricting." She nodded, looking into his eyes. A small noise escaped as she cleared her throat and he unleashed her for another twirl. Again she spun almost like a professional off to the side as they linked fingers for the re-entry. Her body spun back over to his, facing him again.

"Okay, I think that's enough practice for today," she said, her voice cracking a little. "You, okay?" he asked. She separated herself from him, smoothing out her Kimono and looking a bit flushed.

"Yeah...h, I just don't want you to run out of your luck. You still haven't shown me you can slow dance." She smirked, walking past him and tapping his shoulder with hers. "As far as swing dancing goes, however, you got the moves fang-face."

She turned sticking her tongue out at him as she took off her shoes and placed them outside the tent. "We're about to have tea, you staying or what?" she called out from outside.

He poked his head out slowly. "Umm, I'm not sure your parents would like that very much. I didn't get a very good feeling from your dad."

Kokona walked up pinching his cheeks, taunting him with a baby voice. "Aww, what's a matter, did da big bad man scawre you?"

He growled, swatting her hand away. "That's not funny." "Says you," she said, walking away from him. "Come on, you can borrow some of my brother's clothes."

Kai raised an eyebrow running to catch up with her. "You have a brother?"

She nodded but her attitude and tone seemed to drop. "He moved to America six years ago to help with the supernatural task force in that part of the world." She sat down on the step just outside the door looking at the grass. He decided to sit down with her. "Did you get along?"

She nodded. "We did, till he decided to just up and leave us." Her fists began to clench as she sat there. "He was supposed to stay and help me with my powers. Mom and Dad say he had a job to do, but I know the truth. He followed that…girl," she said with a darkness in her voice that he had never heard before.

"I'm sure he would have stayed if he could have," Kai said softly.

Kokona didn't even look at him, she just shook her head and got up, turning to enter the house. "Stay there, I'll bring you the clothes. You can get ready in the tent." Kai sighed as she disappeared inside.

Kokona sighed as she lightly stomped her foot on the ground. "What does he know, anyway? Nothing," she told herself as she made her way down the hall to what used to be her brother's room. It didn't take her long to find his Hakama. He was usually pretty organized after all. She plucked it out of his closet, looking it over carefully. "This should fit him…I hope."

Slowly, she made her way to the back door and out into the yard. She looked down at the Hakama in her arms before tossing it to Kai in the tent. "Hurry up and put it on," she said, crossing her arms.

"Umm…thanks," he said as he changed, then stepped out of the tent. "How does it look?"

Kokona slowly looked him up and down. For some reason, the fact that the Hakama fit him perfectly annoyed her.

"It looks fine," she snapped. She turned toward the house and stepped inside with Kai close in tow.

Inside, Kokona's parents were already sitting around a small center table in the living room, with three cups of tea set out.

"Oh, Kokona, is your friend staying for—" The words seemed to get stuck in her throat as Mrs. Haruka looked up.

"Haruka-Sama, are you all right?" Kai asked. The woman nodded.

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry. It's just that, in that Hakama…you look so much like Akio." She shook her head and smiled. "Give me just a second, I'll get you some tea." She carefully got up and headed for the kitchen.

"Actually, Haruka-Sama, I was kind of hoping you could tell me what happened to Haruka-San?"

Kokona slammed her fist down on the table causing Kai to gasp. "I told you that was a hard subject, and now you're asking my parents and I to drudge up those memories? Dumbass!" she said, picking up her cup and throwing the contents into Kai's face causing him to jump back in surprise as the hot tea burned his skin. Kokona slammed down the mug walked away.

"Kokona!" Mrs. Haruka turned toward her daughter, but Kai put up his hand.

"It's ok, Haruka-Sama, I said something I shouldn't have. I'll take my leave now," he said heading for the back door to change out of the Hakama and back into his regular clothes inside the tent.

When he walked back into the house Kokona still refused to look at him. She simply turned her body, crossing her arms as he walked out the door and down the driveway towards the street, clenching his fists. Nice going, Hinata...