Servamp: Of broken bonds and sorrows

Prologue

--Before you start reading, please know that you may get spoilers from the manga if you haven't read up until chapter 80. This story will likely follow the events from latest chapters. That's all--

A young brunette with chestnut eyes was cooking ramen in a simple but still well equipped kitchen. It was his partner's favorite food- well, partner was a bit vague but he was more than a friend and not exactly a teammate-  and he hadn't been able to make it for him because of his injury, the one he got when fighting against Touma. He had heard from his uncle the man survived in the end, which he was somehow relieved for but in all honesty he didn't want to see him so soon either. It had been an awful battle, and he had trouble realizing it had already been a whole month since then. What's more, it seemed Misono had seen his brother from afar but with the building collapsing he couldn't insist on talking to him. It appeared Mikuni had something to do with the subclasses' release and maybe more, as he left with a strange and unknown object. Mahiru wondered what could have motivated him to get this involved in the war, and why was he talking to one of Tsubaki' s subclasses but-

"Hey, Mahiru. The water is boiling." His partner, Kuro, said making him snap out of his thoughts.

"Oh, you're right."

"You were thinking about last time in C3, uh? You do this too often. Anyways... even Tsubaki hasn't made a move in ages. Maybe you could relax. Learn from me, right?" The blue haired vampire gave a lazy thumbs up.

"In your case, you're too relaxed." Mahiru replied. "But, that's right... everyone is okay now... though the other servamps are still weakened by their jinn loss..."

Kuro said nothing on that matter. He didn't know if they should really worry about it- that was, he wondered if it was a life or death matter. Sure, the others had changed in a way but... they were alive. He didn't know if perhaps they would become weaker and weaker with time, and it was too troublesome for him to think about.

-"That, they will probably be fine. I'm more worried about my poor stomach right now." He said eventually, making his eve's eyebrow twitch.

"May I remind you that you are a vampire, you don't need those ramen."

"No, I do. Ramen is vital for me."

"Ah, sure. We're going to the convenience store after this. I need to buy water, milk, and-"

"Can't deal. I will die in sunlight and your arm just healed. You can't carry heavy objects."

They went on arguing for about three minutes until Mahiru won, as usual. Or to be accurate, until Kuro gave up because he couldn't deal with arguing. So here they were, their meal taken, strolling through the streets. Well, Kuro was on his eve's shoulder in cat form, but it was amazing in itself that he was outside and not playing games on the couch.

After walking for a while though both the teen and the immortal felt something like a presence. It was hard to describe, the being felt like it was dangerous but not exactly in the way they were used to. 'It' had a strong presence and they sensed it, but it wasn't a vampire. Mahiru expected the individual to be watching from above or following them, he didn't think he-at least that posture made him believe he was a man- would actually appear right in front of them. The person was wearing a large cape with a hood that covered his face, and he thought someone like that should have been noticeable but no one seemed to pay any mind to him. 'Wait,' Mahiru realized, 'there is no one here. Only this person and us. When...?' Looking closely, there was another striking matter: the weather had drastically changed since they felt him coming, as when Tsubaki made his illusions. However, this felt different in a way. The enclosed space he assumed they were in oddly ressembled the world he knew. Just what kind of individual had he encountered.

And, suddenly, he heard two distinct words he didn't comprehend at first: "Found you." What dit that mean? Surely, he was talking to them but... was he actually like Tsubaki, a little brother the servamps didn't know of? There was no sign of response from Kuro for now, and Mahiru doubted he was acquitanced with him. However.

-" Ah, what great news. I see, though, that you eves like to keep your pets close... It makes things more difficult..."

At that Kuro visibly tensed. He still hadn't reverted to his human form, but he was clearly alert.

-" Do you have business with us...?" He avoided saying Mahiru's name just in case.

The hooded man seemed to ponder on it for a few seconds, but then the brunette thought he distinguished what might be a smile.

-" That is, how to say... I do, but, I'm afraid it isn't what you think. Not at all."

This time Kuro stood next to Mahiru, ready for battle or to make them get out of here, whichever sounded best. 

-" I see you are all very protective of them. " The stranger said, not minding the sudden change of behaviour. 

"Wha- you met the other eves? Wait, no... You fought them?" The teen asked while trying to remain calm.

"'Figth' isn't the right word. I do not take pleasure in attacking others. If possible, I would have prefered meeting when you were alone, Shirota Mahiru." 

The latter didn't have the time to enquire on how did he know his name, as Kuro nearly growled and materialized claws.

"Sorry, man, but that's not gonna happen." 

He expected the man to at least adopt a defensive position, but it never happened. That person walked to them completly relaxed, making Mahiru take out his lead as well. He heard Kuro tell the man to stop, saw him lash out when he ignored him, and the next thing he knew, his partner was on the ground. 

-"Kuro !?" He was blocked by a hand when trying to run to his partner, and although he had earned some experience in fighting it was as if his movements were far slower than this person's. He had knocked out Tsubaki's subclasses once, and yet he felt he didn't stand a chance against him. 

-"I'm sorry about this. The cat is sleeping, though. As for you... could you also shut your eyes for a while?" 

No matter how hard he tried to think of something, it was too late. Mahiru's vision was blurry and he fell on the floor without realizing what happened. He remembers thinking 'who is he' all the while, but everything went blank at some point.

He awoke with a start, then looked around frantically when he recalled what had occured. He was quite shocked to see he was in his own room and felt no pain anywhere. He went searching for Kuro, only to find him casually lying on the couch. As usual.

-" Ah, good morning." 

Mahiru blinked. "What do you mean, 'good morning?' More importantly, are you okay?"

It was the vampire's turn to stare quizzically. "Ugh, can't deal. You're the one who looks strange. You had a weird dream or something?" 

What, a dream? No way, this had been too realistic to be one. Mahiru took his phone to look at the date but then he saw a text from Misono. 

'Come at the cafe next to my place for 2:00 pm. I insist that you come alone. This is important."

Mahiru read the text in silence, wondering if it was wise to go by himself. Though he was starting to think maybe he had indeed had a dream.

-"... Kuro, I'm going out."

"Eh? You don't want me to-"

"No, it's okay. See you later." He smiled. 

What was goign to ensue, none of them could have predicted it.