You wake up one morning, seeing your orange turtle-boyfriend is sketching you. It's so beautiful, and you're not really sure if you're really as beautiful as the sketch makes you out to be...
Warnings/tags: MikeyxReader, insecurities in appearance, comfort, fluff
Waking up, you listened to the sound of a pencil scribbling on paper.
You opened your eyes and turned your head, seeing your turtle-boyfriend sitting with his sketch book on the bedside. You smiled a little at his concentrated look on the paper, while in his orange pjs he always wore at night. He was just too adorable sometimes.
You had slept over at the lair again. Ever since you and Mikey got together, you slept over quite a lot. It was easy and comforting to next to the orange clad hero. He always made you feel warm and safe in his arms… as long as you didn’t watch any scary movies before bedtime, then neither of you would get any sleep at night.
Suddenly the scribbling stopped, and his eyes met yours. He smiled sweetly and your heart already melted for the first time today.
“Mornin’ Beautiful.” His voice was always cheery first thing in the morning.
“Good morning,” You answered, still rubbing some sleep out of your eyes, “what time is it?”
“It’s just about 8:00.” Mikey chuckled.
With a tired groan, you slowly sat up and leaned onto Mikey, placing your head against his shoulder.
“Too early for a Saturday…” you grumbled, which just made your boyfriend laugh. You knew he had probably been awake for about an hour, if not more. He was always an early riser.
You glanced down at the sketchbook on Mikey’s lap to see what he was working.
It was you!
A portrait of you in profile, to be exact. It looked like he had been working on that sketch for a while.
“What do you think?” Mikey grinned excited, handing you the sketch book when he noticed you were looking at it.
You took it in your hands, observing the drawing closer.
Mikey’s talent never ceased to amaze you. He usually drew you in a more cartoonish style, but this was more realistic, not something you saw him do a lot.
The shades, the form of your head, the details in your hair and your eyes, as you stared off into the distance.
It was amazing.
It was beautiful.
Very beautiful…
“Mikey-” you almost sighed, and handed him back his sketchbook, “I… I’m not that beautiful at all…”
You raised your head from his shoulder and glanced the other way.
You were flattered of course, the sketch of you was amazing… but was that really what you looked like to him?
Michelangelo hummed at your comment and looked back at his sketch for a moment, with a hand on his chin.
When you finally looked back at him, his face was suddenly very close to yours with a surprising serious look in his eyes, as if he was studying you.
You felt your cheeks warm a little.
“I don’t agree…” Mikey then said at last and removed his hand from his chin, “You know what I see?”
Before you could even think of an answer, you felt his finger on your lips, gently tracing them.
“I see a pair of perfectly formed lips…” he smiled softly. He removed his finger form your lips and traced his hand now, up your cheek and held the whole side of your face, as he now gazed lovingly into your eyes.
“I see two eyes, filled with wonder…”
Your heart fluttered.
His hand moved to the back of your head and stroked back your hair gently.
“Your hair has a special shine, when the light hits just right…”
You couldn’t help but smile at this point. He was just so sweet…
Mikey now chuckled, “Your smile is like a clear sky… all my worries just seem to drift away like clouds.”
You then felt his hand trace back down the side of your face, down your cheek, down your neck and stopped right by your chest. You blushed even more.
“I can feel the warmth from your heart, as it beats against my palm…” he almost whispered now, as if it was a secret between the two of you.
“It’s as if there’s a whole world hidden inside of you…” his hand moved from your chest to your chin, gently cupping it, “A chaotic, unpredictable, beautiful world… that I get to see glimpses of whenever we’re together.” his lips were inches away from yours now. “It’s a world that I love and adore…”
Finally, he kissed you.
You melted once more.
“You really think all that of me?” you managed to ask now, after Mikey had gently pulled away from the kiss the two of you had just shared.
He giggled and wrapped his arms around you in a warm and gentle hug.
“I do,” he answered, “and I think I managed to catch all that in my sketch,”
He then kissed your nose a little more playful now, and grinned.
“don’t you?”
You looked down at the sketch in the ninja turtle’s hand once more.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Saiyuki (Anime & Manga)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Genjo Sanzo/Son Goku, Cho Hakkai/Sha Gojyo, Cho Hakkai & Son Goku
Additional Tags: slight Hakkai/Goku hints, Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day Fluff, Minekura Valentine's Gift Exchange 2023
Summary: Hakkai learns about Valentine's Day customs from Hazel, and decides that he wants to make sweet treats for the other guys in the group. The others respond in kind to his earnest feelings.
This was written for the Minekura Valentine's Day exchange, and gifted to Ivyhoo. @minekura-fan-events
Hakkai spotted the calendar in the restaurant they were eating and smiled. It was already that time of year, wasn’t it? There were only two weeks till Valentine’s Day. He had first learned of the odd holiday from Hazel, but grew fond of the custom once he had learned of it. A day to show your appreciation for others, both family and friends, and also romantic interests. It seemed quaint, but he wanted to have some fun with his cooking. Plus, Goku likes sweets, so even if the others didn’t want any, his effort was guaranteed not to go to waste. He reminded himself that he would pick up some supplies before they left town.
The next morning, after they had breakfast, Hakkai told the others that he had some additional grocery shopping to do and got up to leave.
“Hakkai, can I come along too??” Goku looked at him eagerly, with a bright smile on face. He knew that the chance of scoring some extra snacks was extra high if he helped Hakkai with the groceries. Hakkai hesitated for a moment, which piqued both Sanzo and Gojyo’s interest. Normally the other man was happy for the company and the help, and the other two were happy to have Goku out of their hair for a little while. They’d never seen Hakkai consider turning Goku down when he asked for something, especially when he begged so cutely like he was doing now.
“Um.. sure! I guess I wouldn’t hurt to have someone help carry everything. Are you ready to go now?” Hakkai asked, after gaining his bearings again. It was unlikely that Goku would realize what he was buying stuff for, considering that Valentine’s Day wasn’t even that well known here. It was even possible that the market didn’t have any of the necessary ingredients. If they didn’t, he would probably improvise and make other types of sweets.
Goku nodded, and walked out the door first. “We’ll see you guys later!” He said cheerfully.
Sanzo snorted. “Make sure to get me another pack of cigarettes too.” he said, as he tossed his credit card to Hakkai.
“Okay~” The other man said in a sing-song voice, as he followed Goku outside.
Sanzo looked at Gojyo with a puzzled look. “He’s definitely up to something, isn’t he?”
Gojyo shrugged. “Yeah probably. But the monkey is with him, so how bad could it possibly be?”
+++
After picking up their usual groceries (and Goku’s reward for helping out), Hakkai strolled through the markets, looking for something particular.
“Whatcha looking for, Hakkai?”
“I wanted to try making some new sweets, but they require some rare ingredients, unfortunately. Hazel gave me some new recipes.”
Goku’s eyes started shining brightly, as a wide grin spread across his face. “Maybe I can help look too! That sounds super tasty!”
Hakkai chuckled. “Okay, we’re looking for this specific type of fruit, it’s probably being sold by a merchant from….” Hakkai explained what a cacao fruit looked like, and who was likely to be selling one.
“Okay! Let’s do another loop and check all the stalls!”
They diligently checked all the produce selling stalls and merchants. Goku went up to each seller, and asked them the same question. “Do you guys sell cacao fruits here?”
Most of the merchants and produce sellers looked puzzled, but the last merchant had a look of recognition. “Oh! One of my buddies in the stall next to me has that cacao-something! But I don’t think it was a fruit.”
Goku sighed dejectedly, but Hakkai intervened. “We’d be quite interested in purchasing it if it’s the correct product.”
The merchant called his friend over, a darker skinned man with black hair and black eyes. “These two are looking for something called “cacao”, didn’t you say you had a hard time selling something like that?” the first merchant said.
The second merchant smiled. “Yes, I do! Let me go grab it now.”
He returned with a bag of brown powder. “You two are quite discerning customers! This is such a rare and valuable product, but nobody in this area seems to be interested in this! It’s powder made from the cacao fruit.”
Hakkai flashed Sanzo’s signature golden credit card. “We’ll take it.”
+++
Hakkai and Goku returned, with groceries and supplies in tow.
“We’re back!” Goku said loudly, instantly annoying Sanzo as usual.
Gojyo sighed. “Ah… our precious few minutes of quiet…gone…”
“Shut up Gojyo!” The two of them began their regular bickering, while Hakkai returned Sanzo’s credit card.
“You guys were gone longer than usual.” said Sanzo, not looking up from his book.
Hakkai gave a slight chuckle. “I thought I would give you guys a little more time to relax.” He began sorting the groceries into groups, some to be packed away with Hakuryuu, and others to be used sooner. Mysteriously, there was an extra set of supplies set aside.
Sanzo wanted to ask what those items were for, but Hakkai cleared everything away before he could muster up the curiosity to ask. Whatever, we’ll probably find out later anyways.
+++
They were stuck at that particular town until the blockage at the mountain pass leading to their next destination was cleared. It was one of their rare breathers during their hectic journey.
Hakkai had asked the inn’s owner if they wouldn’t mind him using the kitchen to cook, since they were stuck there anyways, and it was a little cumbersome to eat out for every single meal. The owner and their family agreed, since it was a rare chance to experience a different cuisine.
One week passed without any significant demon attacks or occurrences, leaving plenty of time for Hakkai to experiment with the cacao powder in different sweets.
After coming up with a couple different variations of chocolates, cookies, and cake, Hakkai felt satisfied that he had come up with something that everyone in the group would like. One night, while he was cleaning up after his most recent test batch, Sanzo knocked on the wall next to the entrance, letting him know that he was there.
“So this is what you’ve been holed up all day working on? Are you planning on opening a bakery or something?” the blonde man asked. “It smells disgustingly sweet.”
It wasn’t exactly a secret, but Hakkai was hoping that he could keep it a surprise. But, well, there was no helping it, considering how close the four men were.
“Ahaha~ Can’t keep anything from you, right Sanzo? I’m actually working on something for an upcoming… celebration? Hazel told me about these sweets from his country.”
Sanzo raised his eyebrows at the mention of Hazel. As far as he knew, neither Hazel nor Hakkai had really had the chance to have a civil conversation. But maybe he was wrong.
“What, like someone’s birthday?” Sanzo paused for a few seconds. “I’m pretty sure none of us were born in February.”
Hakkai couldn’t help but laugh. Maybe he should just include Sanzo as part of his preparations.
“You see, Sanzo, it seems like there’s this thing called Valentine’s Day where Hazel is from….”
Afterwards, both Hakkai and Sanzo spent time in the kitchen, cooking up who knows what.
A couple days later, Gojyo came back from a local bar, only to see that the room they were used to hanging out in was pretty empty, sans Goku playing with a wooden kendama toy he had found laying around.
“Hey Monkey, where’s the shitty priest and Hakkai?” Gojyo said.
Goku looked up, and the ball fell to the side, rather than the point that Goku was aiming for. It fell onto the floor, making a rattling sound.
“Uh, I know Hakkai is in the kitchen, but I dunno about Sanzo. Maybe he went for a walk?” Goku answered nonchalantly. It would be problematic if the man they were supposed to protect suddenly got himself killed wandering around, but neither of the men could imagine that anything that dramatic would happen in such a peaceful town. Plus, even if something did happen, the sound of gunshots would have alerted them to the trouble anyways.
Goku shrugged, and went back to playing with the Kendama. Gojyo laid down on the bed, allowing a pleasant feeling of drunkenness to wash over him. First Hakkai, now Sanzo? What were those two up to?
As Gojyo started to drift off to sleep, he heard a faraway sound of the door opening and closing, and smelled a strong, richly-sweet scent entering the room.
+++
The next day was February 14th. Unknown to Gojyo and Goku, it was Valentine’s Day. The day began normally, like any other. The four men washed up, got dressed, and then proceeded downstairs to the dining area. It was a little late for breakfast, so they decided to go ahead and eat lunch directly.
After finishing lunch, Hakkai took their plates back to the kitchen, and appeared once again with a tray.
On it, was a chocolate cake, and three little cloth bags, bound with different colored ribbons. Sanzo snorted.
Goku saw the cake, and started beaming. “Oh my god! Hakkai, is that our dessert!!?” The younger man was sitting at the table, but seemed to be bouncing with joy. “Is this the super special treat that you’ve been working on?”
Hakkai set down the tray, and distributed some smaller plates. He ruffled Goku’s hair while patting his head.
“It’s part of it! I told Sanzo about this before, but today is actually a festival called ‘Valentine’s Day’ where Hazel is from. I thought it was a nice thing to celebrate, so I’ve been working on the customary sweets made from chocolate that people normally use to celebrate.”
Hakkai then handed an appropriately colored bag to each man, and then cut each of them a slice of cake as well.
They all received their presents, and then dug into the cake.
Goku’s reaction was the most obvious. He took a big bite, and then squealed. “This is so good! This is seriously delicious! Thank you so much, Hakkai!!” He said, gobbling upt he rest of the cake as fast as possible.
Gojyo and Sanzo took much smaller bites, but smiled after they tasted the result.
“Wow, what’s the occasion for such luxurious sweets? What kind of festival is Valentine’s Day?” Gojyo asked.
Hakkai ate his own slice, satisfied with the positive reactions. “I’m told it’s a holiday where friends and lovers give each other chocolate as a symbol of their affections.”
Gojyo looked at Hakkai with a raised eyebrow.
Goku, meanwhile, looked at him innocently, before asking the first question that came to his mind. “Hakkai, does that mean you love us?”
Both Sanzo and Gojyo sputtered, almost choking on their cake. Hakkai smiled.
“Of course I do, Goku. I made these sweets as a symbol of my feelings towards you all.”
Goku smiled back, beaming as he opened his present. His bag contained an assortment of milk and white chocolates in cute heart shapes. He ate one, and loudly proclaimed how delicious the chocolate was too.
“The dessert was amazing! Thanks a lot Hakkai!” exclaimed Goku. After a pause, he continued. “I love all of you guys too! I’m glad we’re traveling together!” Before running off outside in a rush.
Hakkai blushed slightly, before composing himself. He picked up the rest of the dirty dishes, and went back into the kitchen to clean up after themselves.
Gojyo sat unmoving, stunned at what had just occurred. He then looked at Sanzo, who casually opened his bag, revealing some dark-chocolate-dipped biscuits.
Sanzo proceeded to pour himself a cup of hot tea, and then relaxed, eating his biscuits. The priest returned Gojyo’s confused look.
“You bastard, did you already know what Hakkai was doing?!” Gojyo said.
Sanzo smirked. “Unlike you, I don’t go gallivanting off to the bar.”
“And the holiday is romantic?!” Gojyo exclaimed.
Sanzo nodded, but also interjected. “It can also be platonic. But I did make some sweets for Goku myself.” The priest then pointed towards the bag that was next to Gojyo. “You should open yours too.”
Gojyo opened his bag, revealing similar heart shaped chocolates. When he ate one, he realized that the filling was made with alcohol, giving it an interesting taste. He popped another one in his mouth, and then stood up from the table.
“Um, I have errands to take care of. I’ll be back later probably, bye!” Gojyo said, taking his chocolates with him.
“Tch, amateurs.” Sanzo muttered. Goku had run off before Sanzo had the chance to give him his gift, but that could wait until later. They were sharing a room anyways.
Hakkai came out of the kitchen again, and sat across from Sanzo. He poured himself a cup of tea, and sipped it leisurely.
“You know it’s unfair to surprise them like this, right?” Sanzo said.
Hakkai smirked slightly. “I just thought it would be cute to see their reactions.”
+++
Goku came back after wandering around a bit, and then deciding on his next course of action. He wanted to do something nice for everyone too!
He couldn’t make chocolate things like Hakkai, but he figured other sweets were probably okay. There was a stall selling sweet red-bean buns, and he thought those would be perfect! They all liked those, and fought over them when they ordered them in a restaurant.
Goku returned to their room in the late afternoon, and found Sanzo doing a crossword in today’s newspaper, while Hakkai was reading a book.
“Um, hey guys! I wanted to do something nice for today too, so Happy Valentine’s Day!” said Goku.
Hakkai smiled, while Sanzo’s usual grumpy expression lightened up to one of mild amusement.
“Aw, thanks Goku. Happy Valentine’s Day to you too.” Hakkai said. They all ate the buns, but in a strong show of self-restraint, Goku left some for Gojyo too. They continued to chat, and Gojyo returned some time later, closer to sunset.
“Hey Hakkai, got a moment? I need to talk to you alone.” said the red-haired man as soon as he got back.
Hakkai nodded, and followed Gojyo out to the room that they were sharing.
Sanzo saw his chance, and grabbed another decorated bag from his things. “Hey monkey, catch!”
The blonde threw his present at Goku, who caught it easily despite not anticipating it. “What’s this for?” he asked.
“Happy Valentine’s Day. That’s your present from me.” replied Sanzo.
Goku opened the bag swiftly, revealing what looked like chocolate sugar cookies. He took a bite from one of the cookies, and grinned. “These are really good too! Did you make them, Sanzo?”
Sanzo huffed. “I can do at least that much.”
Goku walked over to the table that Sanzo was sitting at, and then leaned down. He quickly gave Sanzo a chaste kiss on the cheek.
“Thanks for the cookies!”
Sanzo grabbed Goku before he could straighten up again, forcing him to lose balance, and fall into his lap.
Goku twisted and maneuvered himself into a sitting position where he could look at Sanzo, who was holding him by the waist.
“Where’s my gift?” Sanzo asked innocently.
“Pervert priest.” Goku joked.
Sanzo stroked Goku’s face gently before leaning in. “Shut up, idiot monkey.”
+++
Gojyo and Hakkai returned to their room; Hakkai didn’t even need to ask what Gojyo wanted to talk about, because he already knew.
After they reached their room, Gojyo grabbed some flowers and a bottle of wine that he had bought in town, and presented them to Hakkai, a faint blush revealing itself on his face.
“Sanzo told me that Valentine’s Day is considered a romantic thing too, so I wanted to show you how I felt.”
Hakkai laughed. “You didn’t have to go out of your way to-”
“Of course I did! You’re the kind of idiot who always does things for others, but never expects anything in return!”
Hakkai joyfully took the flowers and bottle, accepting the present. He set the flowers down on the table in their room, and internally reminded himself that he needed to dry some, to save as a memento.
“Should we open this now?” Hakkai asked teasingly. Gojyo presented him with two glasses, not exactly for drinking wine, but they would do.
They poured themselves a drink, and sat on one of the beds together.
Hakkai finished his drink after some time, and then set it down on the floor.
“Done already?” Gojyo asked, surprised. The man could usually hold his liquor quite well, and this wasn’t a particularly strong alcohol to begin with.
Hakkai looked at the red-head with a pointed look, before reaching for an embrace. Gojyo wrapped his arm around the other man.
“I was just thirsty for something else.”
“Hah, that’s a request I can answer!” Gojyo smirked.
Rain: Yes, well... just because I made Dash’s clothes, doesn’t mean I have to like them. Right?
Dash: Well, I guess, but... *frowns* Why make them if you don’t like them?
Rain: Well... they’re the type of thing that makes Dash comfortable.
Dash: Uh...
Rain: Dash prefers to be in over sized clothing that fits him poorly, yes?
Dash: *shifting in embarrassment* Well, yeah, uh...
Rain: So, while I do appreciate Dash’s style overall... I really wish Dash would let me make him something that fits properly.
Dash: But-
Rain: *places a finger against his lips, making him blush immediately* I understand, alright? I understand Dash’s discomfort and fear. Which is why I continue to make the clothes Dash asks of me.
Dash: *grumbles under breath*
Rain: But Dash trusts me, right...?
Dash: *without missing a beat* Yes. With my life. With my heart. With everything I am.
Rain: *blushes darkly but tries to ignore it* Then... will Dash trust me and allow me to make him something that fits his body?
Dash: *frowns and hesitates for several seconds* ...Yeah, alright. I will.
Ever since he started having feelings for Ronaldo, Draluc quit drinking the supplemental blood packs that he was used to. It felt cold and wrong, drinking some stranger’s blood in front of someone you were interested in.
And so, he hungered. He wanted. He craved Ronaldo’s blood.
Drinking your friend’s blood from a cup was as sacred an act as sharing a promise. Drinking from someone directly was best reserved for those you intended to court.
Draluc’s family assumes that Ronaldo is his donor (and that they’re dating), but once they learn that it’s not the case, they quickly procure another handsome young man as a suitable donor.
Chapter 1: Mistake
Chapter 2: Panic! At the Party
Chapter 3: The Long-awaited Explanation
Chapter 4: Childhood Friends
Chapter 5: Pre-Gaming
Chapter 6: First Drink
Chapter 7: Scandal
Chapter 8: Breakfast
Chapter 9: Vampire Vacation
Chapter 10: Guild Gossip
Chapter 11: Hunter and Prey, Part 1
Chapter 12: Hunter and Prey, Part 2 (NSFW)
Chapter 13: Epilogue
It was an hour before checkout time, and the two men had maybe gotten a few hours of sleep due to their nighttime activities. Draluc had awoken to his alarm, and realized that they had very little time before they needed to check out and get back home to avoid the morning sun. He shook the other man awake.
Ronaldo opened his eyes at the gentle prodding, but reached out for Draluc, dragging him back into his embrace.
Draluc rolled his eyes. “I feed you too well, you don’t need that much stamina”
“Shut up you hedonist psycho, I wasn’t the one screaming for more after the 4th time.” the hunter said with very little disapproval in his voice and a smirk on his face. He couldn’t stop smiling.
Draluc pushed Ronaldo away, and stretched his back like a cat, before realizing the state they had fallen asleep in. Feeling the certain substance trickle out, he rushed to the bathroom. Ronaldo followed so that the two of them could get cleaned up.
+++
A couple days after the incident, Ronaldo and Draluc had discussed their relationship with Fukuma, and had planned an official press release alongside Ronaldo’s next novel, so that they could put an end to any rumors.
That didn’t stop them from being a shy couple in public, but everyone who knew the two personally breathed a sigh of relief. Ronaldo and Draluc had always been stupidly obivous, and not having to tiptoe around the issue was totally worth it.
About two weeks after Mihai left Japan, he received a fairly large package from Autumn Shoten with a Thank You note from Draluc. He unwrapped it, and sure enough, it was the Limited Edition Vintendo Switch that he had been dying to get his hands on!
He laughed, holding it in his hands carefully. [Babe, you have to come see this!]
Another vampire, who looked about 40 years old in human years, walked into the room holding a half-empty cup of coffee. He had slicked back white hair and glasses with thick, dark librarian frames. He was wearing a golden ring on his left hand.
Underneath his shirt, Mihai was wearing a golden ring on a necklace, too.
Authors Note: AND THAT'S A WRAP!! I apologize for the long wait, and hope that this series was worth it for you guys to read! Thank you so much for all the lovely comments.
I really tried my best on the nsfw scene, though it might have turned out badly, sorry about that.
Ever since he started having feelings for Ronaldo, Draluc quit drinking the supplemental blood packs that he was used to. It felt cold and wrong, drinking some stranger’s blood in front of someone you were interested in.
And so, he hungered. He wanted. He craved Ronaldo’s blood.
Drinking your friend’s blood from a cup was as sacred an act as sharing a promise. Drinking from someone directly was best reserved for those you intended to court.
Draluc’s family assumes that Ronaldo is his donor (and that they’re dating), but once they learn that it’s not the case, they quickly procure another handsome young man as a suitable donor.
Chapter 1: Mistake
Chapter 2: Panic! At the Party
Chapter 3: The Long-awaited Explanation
Chapter 4: Childhood Friends
Chapter 5: Pre-Gaming
Chapter 6: First Drink
Chapter 7: Scandal
Chapter 8: Breakfast
Chapter 9: Vampire Vacation
Ronaldo assumed that Draluc would be out completely for the next couple days while they were out sightseeing (going on dates). But instead, the vampire seemed to come back home during the early mornings, often right before the sun rose.
He didn’t see the vampire much during those days, but he could feel his presence. Every morning, Draluc cooked up Ronaldo’s favorites, and portioned them out into meals so the hunter wouldn’t go hungry.
The first day Draluc did it, Ronaldo assumed that Draluc had packed “lunch” for their trip to Yokohama Sea Paradise, and had simply made enough for Ronaldo to eat too.
But the food was too messy for a picnic, and it was Ronaldo’s favorite flavor of fried chicken hot wings. He scarfed them down quickly for dinner, wishing he could let Draluc know in person how good it tasted.
One day, soon, maybe, he wouldn’t be able to tell him.
The second day, Draluc woke up a little later than usual, shuffling into the bathroom. Ronaldo heard the shower and tub running. But more than forty five minutes had passed, and he still didn’t hear him come out of the bathroom.
Worried, he knocked on the door.
“Oi, Drac! Are you alright in there?” he said. He heard shuffling and the clinking of some items on the bathroom counter, before the door opened.
Steam filtered out of the room, as Draluc opened the door. The man was always well dressed, but even Ronaldo could tell that the suit he was wearing was particularly nice and fancy, with a nice subtle print and an adorable bowtie. His hair had been styled into its usual style, but it looked like not even a typhoon would break the kitty-eared look he always wore.
The hunter could smell a light, musky fragrance wafting off of the vampire.
Ronaldo froze in place, unable to take his eyes off the man. Without the cape that he normally wore, the lines of the suit drew him in, leading him to scan the vampire down and back up. Draluc’s normally small waist was accentuated even further, and Ronaldo wondered if he could fit his hands around him. Unmistakably, his face grew warm at the thought.
The two of them stood on opposite sides of the doorway, neither moving a muscle.
After a few seconds passed, Draluc folded his arms and leaned against the molding. Ronaldo’s face was bright red, and his eyes hadn’t made their way back up to his face.
“I don’t look that weird, do I? We’re going to a very high-class establishment.” said Draluc.
“W-wha…” Ronaldo sputtered. “N-no!” He turned around quickly.
“You were taking so long in the bathroom, I thought you might have passed out or gotten sick again…”
“Hmnnn….?” Draluc hummed. Ronaldo wore his heart on sleeve, so it was easy for Draluc to read him and understand what was going on in his head. But he didn’t dare draw conclusions from what he had just witnessed. He knew he looked great in suits when he wasn’t hiding behind his cloak. That didn’t necessarily mean anything about any deeper emotions.
“Well young man, thank you for the concern.” Still, that didn’t stop giddy feelings from bubbling up, knowing he had this effect on the other man. Even if it was only temporary.
A knock was heard at the main office door, and was answered by John, donned in a bowtie that matched Draluc’s. Mihai greeted the armadillo, and then picked him up, cooing at his cute outfit.
The man was dressed in a rather modestly boring, but appropriate, black suit and tie. Seeing neither Ronaldo nor Draluc in the main office, he walked into their living area.
“Draluc! We’re going to miss our reservation if we don’t leave now.”
“Sure, I just need to grab my wallet.” Draluc responded. After finding it in his coffin, he took one last look at Ronaldo; the man was hiding his face from the vampire’s eyes.
The hunter had walked away with the pretense of making himself some coffee. The tips of his ears were bright red, giving away the blushed expression that he was doing a bad job of trying to play off.
Draluc almost laughed out loud, but barely kept it under control.
Smirking, he said, “I left you some dinner in the fridge, make sure to heat it up in the oven before you eat it!”
Then, the two well dressed men and a well dressed armadillo left the apartment, on their way to a fancy restaurant in the same district as a Noh theater they had tickets to attend.
+++
At the restaurant, once they had settled into their seats, Draluc studied Mihai.
[Oi, do you have some kind of magic powers that I don’t know about? Like, something that turns what you say into reality?]
Mihai attempted to keep a straight face, but started laughing instead.
[I’m definitely human, so no. The only magic power I have is seeing the obvious. I’ll be expecting my new system to be in pristine condition, just so you know.]
[Yeah, yeah. I’ll start checking around at the game stores].
+++
At home, Ronaldo couldn’t keep himself from scrolling through Twitter. Even though he knew what Draluc’s actual plans were, he felt an impulse to check online to see if anyone else had witnessed the man in his finery. Sure enough, there were plenty of comments.
‘Oh my god, Dora-chan is on a date!’
There were a few discreet pictures taken of them entering the restaurant.
‘Do you think they’ll announce the breakup soon?’
‘I just really want this all to be a lie T-T. My otp can’t break up like this!’
I wish this wasn’t reality either , Ronaldo thought to himself. Were they really so close that almost everybody in Shin Yokohama already assumed they were committed? How had he never noticed?
Although Ronaldo asked himself these questions, he knew the answer. He had taken his partner, and all the things he had done for him, for granted. If he had even thought a little deeper about his inclinations, deep down he had wished that their lives would have continued like this, unchanging.
There were plenty of human customs designed to indicate that you wanted someone to stay by your side forever, now weren’t there?
Ronaldo struck that thought from his mind. Too late now, clearly. He kept scrolling.
‘D/ora-chan’s ass looks *chefs kiss* in those pants.’
Ronaldo was inclined to agree, but he threw his phone in frustration anyways.
+++
The third day of their excursions, Draluc was dressed in a kimono, as if going to a festival.
“Where are you guys going today?” Ronaldo asked.
“Mihai wants to see the Sankeien Gardens, and thought it would be fun to dress up in traditional Japanese attire.” He answered, adjusting the cloth belt. “We’re going to a sea-side bathhouse afterwards.”
“I see, sounds fun.” Ronaldo answered, deflated.
Draluc paused for a moment to collect his thoughts. He took a quick intake of breath, but before asking quickly:
“Would you like to come with us? If you don’t have any requests today.”
Ronaldo’s eyes widened. Why was he asking him to come along? Wouldn’t it be awkward to include a third person on their date? He really wanted to just say yes, even if just to ruin the quality time that the handsome bastard was getting with Draluc.
Pushing down the burning desire in his heart to say yes, Ronaldo averted his eyes.
“Unfortunately, I have business at the guild so I can’t.”
Draluc sighed, and nodded. “Of course, it’s too short notice. I hope you’ll look after John while I’m out.”
With words unsaid, Draluc left their apartment once more.
John, busy playing with his DJ set, turned to look at the hunter. When Ronaldo met his gaze, the armadillo shook his head in disapproval.
Notes:
All the places briefly mentioned in this chapter are real tourist sites I found on the official Yokohama tourism website!
Ever since he started having feelings for Ronald, Draluc quit drinking the supplemental blood packs that he was used to. It felt cold and wrong, drinking some stranger’s blood in front of someone you were interested in.
And so, he hungered. He wanted. He craved Ronald’s blood.
Drinking your friend’s blood from a cup was as sacred an act as sharing a promise. Drinking from someone directly was best reserved for those you intended to court.
Draluc’s family assumes that Ronald is his donor (and that they’re dating), but once they learn that it’s not the case, they quickly procure another handsome young man as a suitable donor.
Chapter 1: Mistake
Chapter 2: Panic! At the Party
Chapter 3: The Long-awaited Explanation
Chapter 4: Childhood Friends
A couple days passed, but Draluc never brought up the subject again. Ronald sat at his desk with his laptop open, apparently writing the next section of his manuscript. Sneaking glances at the other man sitting on the couch, he could see him humming along to the battle tune of a game the vampire was currently playing on his Vintendo Switch.
Ronald would have been annoyed, but this was the healthiest he’d seen Draluc in the past week. He no longer looked as gaunt, though the man was always ridiculously skinny. The bloodwine that Draus had given him seemed to have done the trick, the vampire was insufferable as usual.
There was a knock at the door. It was still late afternoon, too early for the vampires to be roaming outside and causing problems. The curtains were drawn in the main office where they were sitting.
“Go get the door.” Ronald said, as he pretended to type another word.
“I’m in the middle of a level! I can’t save.” Draluc spat back.
Ronald tsked at the man, and went to open the door with his best customer service face.
He opened the door to reveal a man at least a few inches taller than Ronald, which was surprising considering that the hunter was already taller than the average. He looked up and saw a face that wouldn’t be misplaced on a cologne or fancy menswear ad.
The man wore an alarmingly nervous but polite smile. Ronald remembered that this was probably a job, and remembered his manners.
“Hello, can I help you?”
“Hi, this is Ronald’s Vampire Hunter Agency, correct?” the mystery man spoke, with a pleasingly deep voice.
Ronald nodded. Damn, this guy is probably some sort of famous foreign actor right? What the hell is he doing here?
“Is Draluc here?”
Ronald’s brain fizzled out, all processes stopped working. “Uh…what?”
“Draluc, your vampire partner, is he here?” The other man repeated again, politely.
Ronald’s brain couldn’t find any words to say to the man, but he opened the door wider, letting him in.
The mystery visitor took the cue, and walked in. Draluc heard different footsteps walk in, and saved his game quickly. It was probably another person with a request, so he would at least pretend to help. Setting down the game console, he finally looked up to see a buff man taller than Ronald, probably close to his 30s, walk into the room. He had curly brown hair and hazel eyes that looked oddly familiar.
A second passed, before Draluc exclaimed, “Mihai?! What are you doing here?”
Ronald heard an unfamiliar accent slip out of Draluc, one that he had never heard before. Normally, the man spoke perfectly standard Japanese. But it seemed like he had instantly switched back to his mother tongue after a quick exclamation.
Mihai smiled, speaking more confidently in his native language.
Ronald felt annoyed at being left out of the conversation, but closed the door and went to sit back at his desk. Whatever the case, this visitor was clearly just a friend of Draluc’s and not an actual customer. John waddled in from the other room, clearly curious at the commotion, before he spotted the visitor in question.
John quickly ran up to the visitor, circling around him and “Nu”ing excitedly. Mihai picked him up joyously, cuddling the cute creature.
[John! Sweet precious John! I’ve missed you so much buddy!]
“Nu nu nu!” John responded.
[Mihai, really, what are you actually doing here?] Draluc asked.
[I heard about your condition from Draus, so I came here as quickly as I could! Geez Draluc, why haven’t you been feeding?] Mihai glanced around the room, noting his surroundings, before studying Draluc’s partner sitting at the desk. He smirked.
[Trouble in paradise?] he said, pointing to the hunter. Ronald didn’t know what the two were saying, but he definitely noticed this stupidly handsome bastard pointing at him and smirking.
[Can you not! Do that! Maybe!] Draluc screamed, covering his face. Why did everyone already know about this already?!
Ronald glared at the intruder, annoyed and curious about what was going on. Mihai took pity on the poor man and started speaking in Japanese.
“Sorry, I haven’t introduced myself yet! My name is Mihai, I am a friend of Draluc’s.” The man said in charmingly accented Japanese.
“Oh…Okay? Nice to meet you.” Ronald managed to blurt out, manners having rebooted and started running on autopilot.
“I’m here to be Draluc’s donor!”
“WHAT!” screeched Draluc.
The vampire’s face, against all laws of physics, turned bright red. Ronald didn’t even know that Draluc had enough blood in his body to blush.
In the span of 5 minutes that the mystery intruder was here, Ronald had already seen two things that he’d never seen Draluc do before. And somehow, he felt an unexplainable annoyance at the cause being this new guy’s sudden entrance into their lives.
+++
After Draluc had managed to calm down, he scurried off to the kitchen to make their guest tea. Mihai sat down on the couch, petting a comfortable John in his lap.
Ronald closed the laptop with a thump, leveling an unimpressed glare at the guy. “I heard about the donor thing from Draluc.”
“Yes?” Mihai said.
“How does that all work? Did you get a blood draw before coming here?” Ronald asked.
“Normally, yes, I would just send some blood packets after getting them drawn for donation. They can be refrigerated and saved for quite a while.” Mihai returned a mischievous look. “But since he’s not feeling so well, I decided to come here in the flesh so that he can take it raw!”
Ronald tightened his fist, trying to hold in his surprise at what he just heard.
Mihai saw the other man frown deeply, unaware at just how displeased he looked. He decided to tease the issue further. It’s not like he was lying anyways. He put on an innocent facade before continuing.
“Yes, Draluc needs to drink from someone directly. Draus contacted me since we’re childhood friends, and I just so happened to be in the area.”
Ronald crossed his arms, frowning further. “How could you be childhood friends? He’s more than 200 years old, and you’re human.”
Mihai grinned.
“I met him when I was 17! My family has been donors to his family for generations, and one of my relatives is married to a distant cousin of his. I saw him at the wedding, and we had a fun time dancing and just hit it off”
Ronald’s face blanched.
“At the very least, he’s my childhood friend. I think I started donating to him not long after that actually.”
Mihai observed that Ronald was clutching the side of his jacket sleeve, effectively pouting. He had never met someone whose buttons were so easy to press, he could see why Draluc was so intrigued by this hunter.
Draluc walked in humming, carrying a tray of tea and cookies. He set down the tray elegantly, before handing Mihai a cup.
“Two sugars and a splash of milk, just how you like it, right?” Draluc asked. Mihai beamed and took the cup graciously.
Ever since he started having feelings for Ronald, Draluc quit drinking the supplemental blood packs that he was used to. It felt cold and wrong, drinking some stranger's blood in front of someone you were interested in.
And so, he hungered. He wanted. He craved Ronald's blood.
Drinking your friend’s blood from a cup was as sacred an act as sharing a promise. Drinking from someone directly was best reserved for those you intended to court.
Draluc’s family assumes that Ronald is his donor (and that they’re dating), but once they learn that it’s not the case, they quickly procure another handsome young man as a suitable donor.
Chapter 1: Mistake
Draluc woke up slowly in his coffin, and lazily reached for his phone. He checked the time, and realized that it was evening the next day. Figuring it was safe to open his coffin, he popped open the door and sat up from his bed.
What a mistake that was. A strong, sharp sense of malaise settled in his stomach, and he quickly felt the rising need to vomit. He cupped his hand over his mouth, getting up much more carefully, stepping out of his coffin bed. Stabilizing himself against the couch, he made his way to the bathroom.
It was no surprise that he had ended up this way. Last night, after finishing up a job with Ronald, they both had made their way to the Hunter’s Guild to relax and hang out with friends (Draluc felt confident that he could call the other hunters his friends too by now. He had spent more time hanging out with them than even Ronald had). Ronald had felt particularly tired from a combination of manuscript deadlines and a deluge of lesser vampire hunts that had ended up on his desk. After a brief 30 minutes, he went home before Draluc, muttering about how he needed his sleep. Ronald had taken John with him, so Draluc felt comfortable staying alone to drink.
This was his first mistake.
He was feeling a little more faint than usual. Although he barely received any blood in the last 5 years, the last time the lack of blood had been a huge problem was when he was a child. Superior adult vampires hardly needed to drink blood regularly to survive, it was merely a preference. As a child, drinking blood was an act of need. Young vampires need blood in order to grow up healthy, and he wasn’t ever particularly that healthy or robust to begin with. So as a child, he often received donations from a friendly human donor.
But adult vampires, the situation was different. Although most dhampirs could receive sustenance on human food, and occasionally craved blood, Superior adult vampires treated drinking blood as an act of trust, friendship, and love.
Drinking your friend’s blood from a cup was as sacred an act as sharing a promise. Drinking from someone directly was best reserved for those you intended to court.
Hence, his problem. The last time he drank any human blood was probably last year, before his castle exploded. After he met Ronald, he didn’t want to rely on blood packets from strangers he had never met. And somehow, drinking from them in front of him felt wrong.
So he hadn’t. And now he was feeling faint, and a little woozy, No Big Deal. But the other hunters had wanted to play beer pong. So he joined them.
This was his second mistake.
They substituted beer for milk, for Draluc. And despite his great talent at video games, playing a game in real life required real dexterity from his physical form just didn’t have. Trying to aim the ball on top of feeling dizzy just wasn’t happening, so he was 5 cups down before Satetsu stopped him. Shot, his opponent, also looked slightly worried.
“Draluc-san, are you alright?” Satetsu asked him kindly. Draluc glanced at him confused, but quickly understood. The humans thought he was drunk off of the milk. Well he’d tell them, he was perfectly fine!
“Maybe I’m just exhausted from keeping up with that damn gorilla all day.” Draluc answered back. He sighed, cleaning up the cups on his side of the table. “Sorry master, can you put this on Ronald-kun’s tab?”
The bartender nodded. Draluc deposited the cups on the bar’s counter before heading out. Draluc waved goodbye to Shot, Batter, and Satetsu, who waved back before turning back to the group to start the setup for their next game.
Draluc debated walking back to their office apartment, but he wasn’t feeling well enough for the 20 minute walk. He hailed a cab.
This was his third, and final mistake.
To be fair, he didn’t know that getting into a car would do this to him. He normally never had car sickness, not even as a child (though cars didn’t exactly exist when he was a child). However, the combination of 5 cups of milk and dizziness made for a nauseating car ride. By the time he got home, it took all of his willpower to climb the stairs and make his way into his and Ronald’s shared office/apartment space. He opened the door into the living room to see John curled up in his coffin, sleeping.
Draluc climbed into his coffin, shut the door, and passed out, hoping to feel better tomorrow.
+++
And that’s how he found himself in the bathroom, retching into the toilet. Draluc could hear a tearful “nuuu” outside the bathroom door, along with the front door opening and closing. Ronald had probably returned from whatever errand he had been on. He had already spilled most of the contents from last night, so there was nothing left in his stomach to empty. Draluc was probably going to have to stay away from milk for a while.
He washed out his mouth, and then brushed his teeth. While brushing his teeth, he heard a hard knock at the door.
“Hey! Idiot! Are you alright in there?!” Ronald said loudly.
Draluc finished his task before opening the door.
“I’m fine. I just drank too much at the guild.” the vampire said, hoping it would end the matter there. John jumped into his arms, and he picked him up, petting him comfortingly.
Ronald took a good look at his vampire friend, studying his condition. Draluc looked more sickly than usual, with bags under his eyes and pale cheeks, far more pale than usual. Furthermore, he had a bit of a grimace, betraying how unwell he was feeling.
“Can vampires even get a hangover from drinking too much milk?” Ronald asked. Draluc snorted.
“No. But I got carsick from the cab yesterday.” He said back.
Any other time, Ronald would have laughed straight in his face at such a ridiculous reason to feel sick. But something didn’t add up; it had been a whole day since Draluc took the cab, that couldn’t have been the reason he was feeling so sick right now.
However, rather than press him for the reason, Ronald let it go. Whatever the issue was, Draluc didn’t want to talk about it right now.
“By the way, wasn’t your family’s party today? I picked up my suit from the cleaners. Do you still want to go?” Ronald asked. Draluc froze up; he had forgotten all about it. If he showed up in his current condition, his dad would for sure figure out what was happening and make a big fuss out of it.
But calling out sick was out of the question; he wouldn’t be surprised if his father showed up in person the next day, hounding him about his health and bringing a basket of goodies and get-well gifts. Not that Draluc wouldn’t have appreciated the gifts and attention, but having his Dad figure out that he had been abstaining from blood due to his stupid crush on Ronald was probably the most mortifying thing that he could think of.
“Yeah, I’ll get ready. It’d be more annoying if I missed it.” Draluc responded.
Ronald quirked his eyebrows. He wasn’t sure why Draluc was so determined to go, but he guessed they could just make an appearance. Unlike before, the whole family was aware that he was a hunter, so there wouldn’t be any more stupid games trying to hide his real identity. If Draluc still wasn’t feeling well, his family would probably be the best people to ask about recommending a vampire doctor.
And even if Draluc resisted, he would give him a quick chop and then drag his stupid ass to get professional help.
He was clearly feeling ill, why would that idiot try to hide it so much?
