Eternal Night

-----Kaede's POV

Yui: "...Mmmm~"

Kaede: "Good morning."

Yui: "Kaede?"

I refused to let go of her throughout the night. We shared the longest kiss we ever had, right up until she eventually passed out, but even after that, I held her body close, just like now.

Yui: "D-did it work?"

Kaede: "Yes."

She probably can't tell considering I'm a vampire, but even with her in my arms like this, I can barely smell her blood. There is some lingering essence of human left, but that will soon fade over time. Not to mention that as we stare into each other's eyes, her blue, crystal like eyes have now been dyed in scarlet red...

After enjoying our embrace for a few more moments, Yui soon sits up to look over herself, patting down her body for any changes.

Kaede: "Hehe, you probably won't change much like that."

Yui: "Mm... Good."

Kaede: "...Mhmm."

She's probably happy in knowing that she won't age, being able to live as long as me. The smile steadily growing on her face is proof of that. I'm just glad she's happy.

Yui: "Feels a bit strange though..."

Kaede: "What does?"

Yui: "I'm not sure... But my body feels incredibly light."

Kaede: "Well, that's normal I think."

I'm so used to it that it's become the norm for me. It's why it was difficult for me to match the others during club. Although at some point I gave up and showed off in front of the boys.

Kaede: "You don't feel any pain?"

Yui: "Just a bit... But it's nothing too bad. Just a small pinching feeling in my chest."

Kaede: "Yeah. Your hearts probably settling down. It was pounding quite heavily throughout the night."

Yui: "So, we still have a heart?"

Kaede: "Of course."

I say that in a matter of fact, but I do recall normal vampires being unable to bleed. Judging from that, it would be weird for us to have a heart, to be able to bleed. I'm still curious about the other vampires out there if there are any left, but right now, I want to be here with Yui, along with Mell and the others when she inevitably gets born.

Yui: "..."

Kaede: "Yui?"

Suddenly, Yui leans into me before nestling her head against my chest. It came as a shock, but I don't move from where I am and instead I move my hand up before gently caressing her head, just like I did last night.

Yui: "I hear it. Your heart."

Kaede: "Fufu."

Yui: "Thank god..."

I wrap my other arm around her, bringing her closer into me as I pull her down with me, only this time with her on top, resting her head against me. She doesn't move her head in the slightest and instead enjoys the sound of my beating heart.

Yui: "...Thank you."

Kaede: "Hmm? What for?"

Yui: "For granting my selfish request..."

Kaede: "There's no reason to thank me. I may have been a bit reluctant before, but now that I have you in my arms like this, I don't regret it in the slightest."

Yui: "Mmmm~"

It's true that I don't regret it now, and I hope that it doesn't change in the future. No, I'll make sure I don't regret it. As if to reaffirm myself, I tighten my hold around Yui as she lets out a pleased giggle. I promised her parents that I'll cherish her, and I'm not about to break that promise.

Yui: "Now all that's left is to get Mell?"

Kaede: "Yes. And Sicily and Lillian."

With everything now sorted out with Yui, all that's left is to find those three. Mai is currently on the lookout so I guess I can wait until she finds any leads, so for now I'll enjoy my time with Yui.

Kaede: "But I will have to train you."

Yui: "Huh?"

Kaede: "You may think you knew what you were getting into, but it's going to be painful for a while. Your parents too..."

Yui: "...Mm."

She seems to have caught onto what my words meant. Last night, she was able to hug them without a care in the world, but how will she fare now that her body will start craving blood? I'm sure she'll feel disgusted with herself, seeing her own parents as a meal, but I'll help her through it as best I can. Thinking that-

Yui: "Eh? Kaede?"

I grow out a nail before cutting my hand, letting the blood pool up in my palm. I did it discreetly, out of Yui's sight, but it appears she has already noticed the smell of my blood.

Kaede: "It's okay. Here-"

With Yui having moved off of my chest, we sit back up once more as I left my hand in front of Yui, her eyes locking directly on my hand that's steadily pooling with blood.

Kaede: "It's not human blood, but it should still be having an effect on you, right?"

Yui: "Y-yeah... My heart suddenly tensed up and is now beating out of my chest..."

So she's reacting more on the stronger side... Maybe even stronger that Faye. This might be a problem. Even now, I can hear her heart beating from here. It's faint, but her body's definitely craving for my blood. But for her to not immediately take my hand shows a good deal of restraint.

Kaede: "Try and focus on your heart."

Yui: "Th-that's... A bit difficult."

Kaede: "I know. But you need to at least do this much if we're to leave this room."

She'll be exposed to many different smells, smells she's unfamiliar with that'll quickly drive her crazy. I don't want what happened to me in the past to happen to her. I'm not about to have another Silas incident with her.

Kaede: "Take a deep breath in."

Yui: "I-I can't."

Kaede: "You have to."

Yui: "B-but-"

Kaede: "As you do, try and stay awake. Try and focus on anything else. The sound of my voice, your heart, anything."

Yui: "...Okay."

Here we go. There's a good chance that she'll lose herself upon taking a deep breath of my smell, but this is the first step. I never had to do this for Mell, Fleur or Faye, but I'm being extra careful with Yui.

Yui: "Hnng!"

Kaede: "You're alright, Yui~ Hang in there."

Once she took a deep breathe, She immediately tenses up as she clutches at her chest.

Kaede: "You're doing good. Now just let it out~"

Somewhat forcefully, she begins exhaling in a staggered manner as I feel her breath tickle my skin.

Kaede: "Well done."

And in the next few moments, I feel her heart begin to calm down little a little as Yui soon composes herself. I was ready for her to pounce on me if things went wrong, but it looks like there was no need.

Kaede: "You did very well."

Yui: "Th-thank you..."

Kaede: "Can you do one more?"

Yui: "...I can try."

We repeat the process once more as Yui takes in another deep breathe. Just like before, her body tenses up, but no way near as intense as the first time around as Yui didn't need to latch onto her own chest. She held her breath in for a few seconds before exhaling. I can't help but stare at her in awe, watching her slowly conquer her bloodlust little by little. That said, this technically is easy mode compared to the real deal with human blood. But hopefully Yui remembers what she learnt here and hopefully she can get through it when the time comes.

Yui: "It's a bit better..."

Kaede: "Mhmm! You're pretty amazing, Yui."

Yui: "N-not really..."

Kaede: "Mhmm! You definitely are."

Yui: "Maybe because I have such a good teacher..."

Kaede: "Hehe. Well I did have to learn myself."

Oh how many times I struggled in the past... With no one to teach me, growing up felt like a nightmare. But right now, with Yui with me like this, it feels like a dream in comparison.

Kaede: "Now, here. You earnt it."

I lift my hand closer to Yui, sparking her to tense up once more. Even with my hand right in front of her face, she still shows restraint? Impressive.

Kaede: "It's okay. It's better to drink now. You might not feel it now, but you'll be getting hungry pretty soon."

Yui: "O-okay..."

And just like the first time I ever did this for her, she's using my palm as a makeshift cup as she slowly begins to drink my blood. With my free hand, I start gently patting her head while I watch her calmly drink my blood at a slow pace. I had thought that maybe with the taste, she'd lose herself and bite into my hand, but it appears she's still full of surprises.