DDLC & Monsters

The First Steps

I lay in my bed for the first time in a long time. As I try to close my eyes I see Yuri and the members of the literature club. They are smiling and laughing. The scene makes me smile, but as I do they all look at me... and scream in terror. Not this again. I wake in a cold sweat, sitting up quickly.

"Why can't I have peace in my own dreams?!!" I shout at the walls. I fall back on the bed, covering my face with one arm. "I WILL have my salvation!!"

It seems like an eternity, of staring at the ceiling, before I hear a knock upon my door. 

"Come in." I say, in a rather gruff, uninviting voice.

Hitomi and Monika walk in, carrying with them two large boxes. They set them down near my desk.

"Hey there, Roman, hope it was okay that I came with Mrs. Hitomi!" Monika smiles nervously.

"Sure, while you're at it you can spoon feed me." I say sarcastically.

Hitomi laughs. "You make yourself sound like an old man.

I glance at her. "Well, you both have some idea how old I am."

Monika playfully sits on the bed and leans over. "Age is only a number." She says, smiling.

I can feel my face turning redder by the second. "Can we just get on with this!"

Hitomi opens one of the boxes and presents what looks to be a soda can. "Here you go!"

I take it and examine it for a moment. The can seems normal enough, but I can tell it is thicker than the outside would suggest. I stare at Hitomi. "You have to be kidding me. What do I do, pop it open like a soda and drink it?"

Hitomi motions for me to do exactly that.

Monika watches as I pop the top and drink the contents in three gulps. 

It takes me a moment, but suddenly a rush over energy crashes over me. I leap from the bed onto the ceiling, walking and twirling about as if possessed by some ungodly specter. "I feel AMAZING!"

Hitomi laughs uncontrollably. "Of all the vampires I have met, you are the oddest one!" 

I rush from the room to the nearest row of books and lift them all with ease. "This is FANTASTIC! I have not had this much energy since 1926! OH! The party I threw in his honor was one to remember!"

Hitomi abruptly stops laughing and thinks for a moment. "Are you talking about when Emperor Hirohito took the throne?!"

I put the bookshelf down slowly and turn to her. "Yes, INDEED!"

Hitomi stares at me. "But you are over two hundred years old, why would you be so invested in Hirohito?"

I laugh heartily, something I had not done in years, sort of drinking with Victor. "Because he was my protozoa!"

Monika looks on in surprise. "You mentored the longest raining emperor of Japan?!"

I smile wide. "Indeed I did, and did he not make me prouder than any son for his father! OH! How I loved that boy!" I suddenly become very silent as I remember his final hour. "You know.. I offered to turn him."

Hitomi looks curious. "What did he say?"

I laugh, but only for a second. "He thanked me, kindly, as he was in the habit of doing often, but refused my offer. He told me that he had lived a full life. He was ready to accept his rest as he hoped I one day could accept also." I slowly walk back into my room, past Hitomi and Monika. 

They follow behind. 

I look at the boxes. "Will there be more?"

"Yes, as much as you will ever need. The donors are very excited to find out the oldest vampire in Japan seeks a peaceful alternative, and they hope you will influence others to do the same." Hitomi looks questioningly at me. "You WILL, right?!"

I think for a moment, then I turn to her with a menacing expression. In a dramatic voice, I speak my next words. "All my memories are coming back to me! I shall burn this nation to the ground in the memory of my honored brother, killed in your Saga Rebellion!"

Hitomi slaps me, nearly breaking her hand. "OWWW! That really hurt!"

I laugh evilly, then I take her hand in mine and lightly rub it. "Relax. I was joking. I will see that this highschool prospers, no matter the cost to myself."

Hitomi pulls me in quickly and kisses me, pulling away she smiles sweetly. "You better, or I will slap you again."

I laugh. "You nearly broke your hand trying!"

She laughs back. "I didn't say I would use my hand NEXT TIME!"

Monika just stands by smiling as we go back and further with our teasing. She whispers to herself, but I hear it. "I hope I can have a relationship like that someday..."

I open another can and sniff it. It does smell like Yuri's blood. There is no doubt now! I chug it just like the first. At this point, I feel like I am bouncing off the walls. So this is what Sayori feels like! "I am ready!" I throw on my coat and look at Monika. "Let's do it right this time." 

Monika smiles. "Right!"

We head out of my room, as Hitomi looks around the room, with wide eyes. "This vampire might actually be able to save us all from the disaster of a civil war."

As we walk on, I feel more determination than ever before. Yuri... I will heal those scars for you... for all of you.