Blood Of The Moon (ch2)

FOR ALL MY PATRONS!

If you've decided to give this story a try, thanks! Glad you made it to chapter 2! We'll learn more about our wolf here.

Disclaimer: I do not own Shoujo Kageki Revue Starlight.

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							Chapter 2. Vigil

By the time Maya has neared the edge of the forest with the unconscious girl in her arms, she encounters her next dilemma.

The sun has risen, but her main concern isn't that the light is going to bother her sensitive skin. Rather, she can't allow anyone to spot her hurrying through town with a bleeding person in her arms.

She has no choice but to keep to the cover of the woods to get as near to her apartment as possible, sticking to the shade the trees cast just several yards from the sidewalks. She maintains a hurried pace; even with her strength and speed, it's been almost ten minutes since she'd collected her patient, and the girl's condition is only suffering by the second.

There's still fresh blood oozing from several places beneath her clothes, as well as a few on her neck and face. Though at the very least, most of it seeps into her clothes before it can fall and leave an incriminating trail so close to the town.

Maya has already tried several times to rouse her to no success, and when she tries it again now with a gentle shake of the girl's shoulders the results are the same.

Maya pauses briefly and is still for a moment, just trying to confirm if she's still breathing. Whatever air is traveling through the girl's body is feeble at best. Maya grits her teeth and pushes onward.

She can't possibly take her to a hospital. While Maya knows enough about her kind to understand most werewolves only transform at night, she can't risk the secret being uncovered by humans. Besides, there would be no explanation Maya could give for the girl's grievous wounds.

Maya continues keeping to the shade for as long as possible, until there is only a stretch of alleyway and parking lot between herself and the building. Glancing again at her charge, Maya halts and reassesses the situation.

The last thing she wants to do is aggravate this girl's injuries any further or cause her more pain, but she decides she has to carry her differently. Like this, Maya won't be able to open her door quickly when she gets there, and being swift is of the essence for several reasons now. Carrying the girl on her back will make her appear more like a companion who had fallen asleep, instead of a stranger in crisis. Plus, most of her injuries are on her front, so putting the girl on Maya's back would conceal a lot of the blood and avert suspicion if they're seen.

Therefore, Maya crouches down and carefully, carefully shifts the injured girl onto her back, positioning her limp arms across her shoulders. Maya loops both of her own arms around her passenger's legs and hunches forward to keep the girl's helpless weight balanced.

Being mindful of her guest, Maya stands very slowly to ensure she won't slip. There's barely any warmth coming from her, and her pulse is worryingly faint.

Maya is certain that, much like herself, any other person bearing a curse had been given enhanced abilities in return. This girl probably also possesses a fair amount of physical strength beyond mere human degrees. So for her to have been put in such a state in spite of that means she must have endured unspeakable things.

Maya reminds herself of her vow, of her promise not to let this girl perish without doing everything within her power to prevent it.

Stepping to the edge of the forest now, Maya peers out into the awakening apartment complex. She takes note of a few people moving about here or there, and waits until they've gone.

Willing herself to stay unnoticed, Maya emerges from the brush and hurries across the empty street, taking immediate shelter in the shadows of the alleyway where the sun hasn't reached yet. Her skin prickles from where the residual light had touched her, but it's a minor nuisance in the face of everything else going on.

Maya maneuvers her hand to her pocket to pull out her key in advance, then steals across the parking lot. If any of the few people out and about do notice her, they don't show it. Maya climbs the stairway as quickly as she dares, having to keep her weight forward beneath her passenger's.

Maya's apartment is on the top floor at the very end of the hall, and most of the other rooms on this level are vacant. She hurries to her door, fiddles the key, and pushes her way in with a gasp of relief.

The place is just as she'd left it, quiet and clean. Now that she's made it undetected, she has an entirely different problem to face.

Maya rushes for the bedroom, where all the curtains cover the windows to keep out the sun. Since she tended to sleep in the daytime, she'd made sure to get a place that faced west so the light wouldn't pester her as much.

First, she leans her hip against the mattress, lying on her side and releasing the girl's legs to let her roll gently onto the blankets. Maya scoops her into a more prostrate position on her back to let her breathe more easily, resting the girl's head on the pillow. She hurries to turn on the main lights of the room, which don't bother her like the sun does.

Now, as she returns to the girl's side, she can see the extent of her injuries very clearly. Blood is already seeping into the blankets and sheets and smearing the pillowcase, and Maya's aware of warm spots of it smeared on her own clothes as well. She knew little about treating wounds, but had read up on just about every topic during her nights hiding out in the library as a child.

She hurries to the bathroom and opens the cupboards beneath the sink. When she'd first begun frequenting bars and clubs for her hunting grounds, she'd purchased a lot of first-aid supplies in case she ever got mixed into confrontations or other dangerous situations. Luckily, due to her ability to mask her presence in places where any potential adversaries were already drunk into a stupor, nothing of the sort had ever happened. But now she's very glad she'd bought these things.

She gathers the box of supplies as well as several towels, which she wets with warm water before hurrying back to the bedroom. Maya deposits all of it on the bed, her mind racing as she rationalizes what to do first.

She begins by murmuring apologies before gently removing the girl's topmost layer of clothing. The blouse and leggings had been hardly more than shreds anyway, and as Maya removes them she flinches to find more and more wounds streaked across her body, and beneath the more recent ones are dozens upon dozens of old scars. Almost every inch of her is marked in some way, though most are covered with blood from the fresher wounds. Most of them seem to be scratches, but it's clear there are punctures made by several rows of teeth as well.

Maya can only assume she had been savagely attacked by her own kind. Though there are so many wounds it wouldn't surprise her if teeth and claws weren't the only things that had drawn her blood.

Maya begins cleaning out the worst of the wounds with the wet towels, covering the girl with a blanket as best she can. The worst wound is on her chest, an ugly ragged bolt of crimson down the middle to the top of her stomach. Maya washes and dries it, lathering another towel with gauze and ointment before dabbing it over the area. She gets the bleeding to stop where it hasn't already, then begins the tedious process of wrapping her torso in bandage.

Maya moves meticulously, slipping her arms beneath the girl's back, turning her onto her side, and then passing the bandage wrap to her other hand until she's circled her several times and secured it.

Next, Maya tends to the girl's shoulders, neck, and upper arms, where most of the bite marks are located. She repeats the process of cleaning, applying ointment, disinfecting, and then wrapping the worst of them. They're all fairly terrible, and she's certain she'd have to wrap up just about every last inch of the girl if she had enough bandage.

But Maya is mindful to use her supplies sparingly for the largest wounds first. She traces a line of ointment over each scratch on the girl's face, as well as some on her ears and the side of her head beneath her hair.

Once Maya is sure she's done all she can for the injuries on her upper half, she moves the blankets aside to tend to the blood on her legs. There's one gash on her left thigh which Maya cleans and wraps, and then several more on her shins, calves, and ankles. Considering what she had looked like in her other form as a wolf, and if her attackers were others of the same species, Maya notes the injuries to those places make a lot of sense.

There must have been a whole pack of them, ones that had come from behind as well as charged her from the front. Though she still isn't sure why those men had been chasing her, unless they had turned into the animals that had done this to her. Maya is equal parts intrigued and dismayed that there might be an entire pack of werewolves in this place that she'd never even known about.

When at last she finishes all she can do, Maya stands and cleans up all the bloodied towels and clothes. She goes to her wardrobe and picks out her warmest, most breathable pants and sweater, then dresses her patient in them.

The only thing Maya couldn't do much about was her hair, which is still streaked with dried blood, the pretty ash-gold locks stained orange.

Maya has touched her plenty up until this point out of necessity, but now that it's an option she hesitates to make contact. She only finally does so in order to remove the black headband from her crown and put it aside on the night stand. Maya strokes her fingers gently through the girl's hair, trying to see if there are any more open cuts underneath. Thankfully there don't seem to be any.

Maya next lowers her gaze to the girl's collar, where scratches are still peeking from the bandages beneath the sweater. Her chest rises and falls very slowly, so slowly that when Maya tries to match the pace, she gets lightheaded with anxiety.

She can't fathom how this girl is still alive. She's breathing in a way that seems so fragile that Maya fears if she touches her, her ribs might cave in on themselves.

She picks up one of the girl's hands and holds it, looking at all the cuts over her knuckles. Turning the girl's hand over, she notes many, many old scars along her forearm. Balancing her fingertips over the girl's wrist, Maya checks her pulse and finds it nothing more than a flutter. Her own heart sinks at the possibility that she may not survive after all.

Maya doesn't want her to die. She has so much she wants to ask her, so much she wants to tell her. And though she'd never known her or cared for her or even heard her voice, Maya knows she would cry very much if she lost her.

She can think of nothing more to do now than to stay by her side and wait.

Maya fetches clean blankets from the closet and lays them over the girl. As a being who couldn't stand very much sunlight, Maya was often very cold, hence her excess of covers. Again, she's glad for that now, for this girl's sake.

She cleans everything up, throws away some articles and puts the rest in the laundry, making sure to get rid of anything with blood on it. It would be troublesome if humans somehow found out about any of this, as Maya would have no plausible means of explaining so much blood in a way they'd comprehend. She wouldn't be able to erase their memories either; that ability was solely used on whomever she fed on. She couldn't just do it to anyone for any reason.

Worse than if humans found out about this would be if the other werewolves did. Presuming there was a vengeful pack after her guest, Maya isn't certain even she'd be able to fend them off on her own, even with her strength. Her greatest concern right now is if they'll be able to pick up the girl's scent and trace her back here.

And finally, the worst piece of it all is her own instincts.

Since Maya had only just fed last night, the sight and scent of this girl's blood isn't enticing her as much as it normally would have. But she knows if she doesn't get the smell out of her residence quickly and it ends up lingering, it will drive her mad in a few days' time.

Only when Maya is certain the place is free of any blood that isn't still on the girl's body directly does Maya return to her side.

Normally, Maya would be sleeping at this time. With an apartment and living expenses not discriminating between humans and vampires, her source of income came from a humble job at a local grocery store, where she had elected to take only night shifts so she might travel to and from in the dark, and then sleep during the daytime. She would hunt before or after her shift, or on the days she was off, and tended to sleep the day away until sunset.

But she can't possibly sleep now. She doesn't feel tired at all anyway, only anxious that she might not have done enough to help this girl.

The worry keeps her awake, until she starts doing household chores just to keep herself busy.

Every so often she checks the girl's pulse and temperature, and every time she feels a trill of hope that her condition is stabilizing.

Maya prepares herself a small meal, food that's all tasteless to her palette, but necessary for her body nonetheless. The blood she'd drank last night will keep her satisfied for a few more days still.

She lingers at the bedside, eventually sitting down beside the girl and bringing a book into her lap. Though Maya doesn't retain much of the story; she's much too focused on other things.

Before long she puts the book aside again, frustrated and flustered that the girl still hasn't woken. Maya reaches out for her, gingerly resting her hand at the base of the girl's throat. She can feel her heartbeat, a bit stronger than before, and her breathing has become studier as well. Maya sighs, her voice croaking out for the first time in many hours.

"Please wake up…"

The hours pass, and soon evening is upon them. Maya holds many debates with herself about leaving the girl long enough to shower. She doesn't want her to wake when Maya isn't there, because Maya knows she will probably try to escape in her absence. Or, conversely, she fears the girl's condition could sudden take a turn for the worse, and if Maya isn't there to respond, it could be the end of all this. And the worst-case scenario would be if whoever was hunting the girl finally followed the trail here and harmed her - or worse - while Maya wasn't by her side.

So many things tell her not to leave the sleeping girl, and yet by this hour Maya is fearing she herself will soon fall asleep, which will present the same troubling possibilities.

So she decides to shower quickly, just to keep herself awake and refreshed. She keeps her senses on high alert all the while and hurries out as soon as she's dressed.

But she doesn't find the room in disarray or covered with blood and intruders storming the place. Instead, the girl is exactly where Maya had left her, still and quiet.

Maya exhales and returns to sit on the bed beside her, once again resting a hand on her chest to ensure she's still breathing.

Typically, whenever Maya was hurt or feeling under-the-weather, her strength alone could combat it. And even when that couldn't handle it, a bit of rest would be all she required to be back at peak health. If the same rules applied between vampires and werewolves, then this girl was truly in awful shape if she hadn't woken by now.

Maya curls her fingers through the girl's matted bangs where the headband used to sit.

"You must be in so much pain," she murmurs. "Please wake up soon. I'm afraid I don't even know your name…"

Maya has felt many emotions since her curse had overtaken her. But sadness had never been one of them. Not sadness like this, at least.

She'd been sad to run away from home, from her old life, from the future she could have had. But she had never before been worried for someone else's sake like this, let alone someone she'd never heard the voice of or learned the name of.

Maybe it's just because she is the same as Maya, and Maya doesn't want to see a tragic ending for her just as she doesn't want to suffer one herself.

But even then, it feels like it could be more than that, though she can't explain it.

Maya picks up the girl's scarred hand and cups it in both of hers. Her skin is still very warm, and Maya has come to believe it isn't from fever like she'd initially thought. This girl seems to have a naturally high body temperature, which is also likely due to her curse.

Recalling that now, Maya looks to the window with the curtain pulled aside. Nightfall is approaching, and she isn't sure what that means. She isn't sure if this girl will transform into a wolf again once the moon appears, if it's a voluntary transformation or not, if it happens every night or only when the moon is visible. Either way, if she does turn into a wolf, it might cause her to wake, and Maya isn't sure how she'll deal with a no-doubt confused and frightened wolf in her apartment.

She holds her breath and watches the colors of the sky shift from warm pinks and golds to colder blues and purples. Stars begin winking, and the sun sinks over the horizon.

Maya returns her attention to the girl, trying to feel if her skin is growing fur, or if her nails are becoming claws.

But nothing of the sort happens, even after the moon has appeared behind the clouds.

It would make sense that she had reverted back into a human last night due to extreme exertion. The curse would mean it takes energy to turn her into a wolf, but not back into her rightful shape as a girl. That would also explain why she wasn't turning into a wolf now either, being that she is very clearly still in precarious condition with no energy to spare on a transformation.

Once Maya is sure there will be no shape-shifting tonight, she relaxes just a little. She continues her vigil, keeping quiet and closing her eyes to rest them, listening to the girl's breathing and keeping hold of her hand.

"Please," she murmurs over and over. "Please wake up. I would very much like to meet you."

Maya bows her head, letting her vision dance in and out of darkness as she travels her gaze over the sleeping girl.

For several hours, her wish goes unanswered.

But it must be right around midnight when she hears a small sound.

Maya opens her eyes right away, biting back a gasp. The hand in hers twitches slightly, the nails weakly curling against her palm. Maya holds tightly to it, willing her to open her eyes. She is torn between keeping her distance not to startle her, and keeping close out of curiosity.

The girl's breathing becomes a bit uneven, and a few more sounds escape her throat. Her brown furrows, and her eyelids tremble.

It happens quickly and without warning.

The next thing Maya knows, she is gazing down into two dazzling eyes, the color of a rosy sunset. The girl wakes with a gasp, but any effort she makes to try and move is crushed as all the pain registers and floods through her body.

Maya keeps a firm grip on her hand, her eyes and voice quivering in earnest.

"Please-" she says. "It's all right."

The girl tries to sit up, tries to get away, her eyes ridden with terror. She snarls, then seems to realize her form, and more panic sets in.

Maya keeps her voice calm and low, and makes sure to keep her fangs concealed.

"Please-" she says. "It's all right. I won't hurt you."

She needs to earn her trust even just a little, just to calm her down so she won't hurt herself.

Maya gives another squeeze to her hand in a gesture of reassurance, just enough to have the other girl look up at her. She holds her gaze just long enough for Maya to see something else in her eyes.

It's faint, smothered by so much more fear and panic and pain, but it's there.

Past the less prominent confusion, and the anger and the loneliness, there's a shimmer of something so tiny and weak it would have been easy to miss had Maya not been searching for it.

Because it's something she's been searching for, too.

Hope.

She and this girl are one and the same.

Maya lets go of the girl's hand with one of her own, and brings it to her chest in a motion of endearment. She dips her head and smiles at someone else for what must be the first time in years.

"Good evening. My name is Tendo Maya."

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A/N:Their first meeting!