I felt a little discomfited, but nodded all the same, waiting for him to carry on. “It’s about Akatsuki. I know that you were supposed to be meeting him later.” It wasn’t phrased as a question, but I nodded in agreement anyway. “Well,” he continued, “you can’t.” My eyes widened indignantly, but he kept speaking regardless. “There is something that you have not been told. It was something that he was planning on telling you tonight. President Kuran spoke to him, used his talents to, erm, get the truth, but he refused to use the same gift to prevent this. Kaname said that it wasn’t his right to take away someone’s freedom. Anyway, this ‘something’ is…dangerous, to say the least. There’s a dark secret about the Night Class that the Day Class is not allowed to know. You are not allowed to know.”

I stood up angrily, tearing my hand from his. “How is it your right to tell me what I am and am not allowed to know? Akatsuki believes I deserve to know! And so does Zero Kiryuu; he knows himself and he said that I ought to know. Would you just leave me alone now? I have plans.” Aido stood up too, now, his eyes blazing with something that looked curiously like melancholy. “You are better for not knowing! If you find this secret out it will shake your life; nothing will be the same – nothing will ever be normal again. I am trying to help you.” I shook my head. “Maybe I don’t want your help.” I clenched my fist, making the cut from earlier smart again.

“You’re bleeding…” said Aido in a strangled whisper. His eyes flashed crimson momentarily, but it was over so quickly that I assumed I had imagined it. I examined my finger quickly, and sure enough a few more droplets were squeezing out. In the immeasurably small time that took, Aido had glided forward and leaned his head in until his soft hair tickled my cheeks. His hands hovered over my shoulders before gripping on tightly while his eyes closed, seemingly unintentionally. “What are you doing?” I asked, in a voice that was barely audible. But he gave no answer; instead he inhaled deeply, shaking his head.

“No…” he moaned. “What’s the matter?” I asked, suddenly worried about him. Aido had slipped into a zombie-like trance that he couldn’t fight, and despite his earlier words he did seem like the decent sort. “I don’t want to…don’t make me hurt her…but she smells so…so…” Aido was chanting to himself in an undertone, swaying where he stood. And then his head snapped up. His irises were an unusual, swirling blood colour as he pushed me back onto the bench with an immortal strength. He fell to his knees in front of me, his eyes trailing over me. Still he seemed to have no restraint over his actions, but I couldn’t push him away; he was simply too strong. He leaned ever closer, his slender white fingers brushing my shirt away from my neck.

I tensed myself unintentionally as Aido pressed his cool lips to my collarbone. His unusually pointed incisors scratched over the skin gently for a minute, before he exerted a little pressure. That was enough for his teeth to pierce my skin, and I fell limp as the creature in front of me began to draw my blood out.