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Long December	By : DrunkenScotsman Category: +M to R > Rosario Vampire Views: 6725 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I make no money from the writing of this story. All characters and locations of Rosario+Vampire belong to Ikeda Akihisa.

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
- 11
Chapter 10: Kicks Fast as Lightning

Realizing the intent behind her father’s words, Moka assumed a defensive posture. Lord Shuzen closed the distance in a blink. What the young woman couldn’t have prepared for, however, was the kick her father landed, one which launched Tsukune into the far wall. The young man crumpled bonelessly to the floor.
Lord Shuzen chuckled darkly. “Mr. Aono should’ve left when I so graciously gave him the chance. I’ll grant it took courage to stay, though perhaps it was instead a species of folly.”
Moka stared in horror, her heart leaping into her throat, flashbacks of the near-disaster with Student Security Chairman Kuyo haunting her mind’s eye. “Father! Your quarrel is with me!” she snarled. “Leave Tsukune out of this!”
“Now, now, dear daughter, I know I taught you better,” tutted the vampire. “Defeating an opponent requires attacking their weakest point until they break; your fondness for Mr. Aono is yours.” He fixed his daughter with an almost malicious glare. “Love is weakness. Never forget that.”
Moka dashed to her boyfriend’s side and breathed a sigh of relief when she found his pulse. With renewed confidence, she resumed her defensive stance, now standing over Tsukune’s supine form. “You’re wrong, Father,” she challenged. “Love is a strength, and I’ll prove that to you, here and now.”
The vampire lord’s eyes narrowed. “What, exactly, do you mean by that, daughter?”
“Tsukune’s love for the other Moka brought him here,” Moka explained, “and his love for the other girls has kept him alive, despite your attempt to end him.” Why can I still not express my true feelings? she berated herself.
Lord Shuzen chuckled again. “Is that all?” he taunted. “I thought it was that trace amount of your blood in his veins. What could have driven you to donate such a precious gift to this human?”
Moka blanched as images of Tsukune, charred almost beyond recognition, arose unbidden from her memories. The despair she’d felt that day threatened to overwhelm her, but she pushed it down. I can’t let Father distract me, or he’ll certainly finish Tsukune, she reminded herself. “If you wish to accomplish what the fox-demon failed, Father, you’ll have to destroy me as well,” she declared.
From her spot on her knees, seemingly forgotten at this point, Kokoa looked up in shock at her beloved Big Sis. She can’t be serious! the young vampire fretted silently. I know she loves that loser, but is she truly willing to die for him?
“Very well,” conceded Lord Shuzen as he readied himself to attack. “You leave me no choice. Understand that I take no pleasure in this.”
With that, he struck.
Unable to dodge because she was protecting Tsukune, Moka blocked her father’s kick with both forearms, though the force of the impact nearly knocked her aside anyway. The subsequent flurry of punches and kicks flew so fast that she could barely keep up. After the initial shock of her father’s ferocity, though, she found small gaps in which she could counterattack. Even though Lord Shuzen blocked them easily, they drove him back enough for her to stand between him and Tsukune, rather than directly over the fallen human, giving her some limited room to maneuver.
“You surprise me, daughter,” Lord Shuzen complimented her. “I’ve never seen you fight so well. You must understand you can’t sustain this pace indefinitely, however.” A cruel smirk twisted his lips. “Despite your defiance, I shall forgive you and Mr. Aono if you wake him and break off your relationship with him.”
From her place at Tsukune’s side, Moka took stock of the situation. She was breathing a bit heavily and perspiring a little, but she felt as if she could fight like this for hours if needed. Father’s trying to psyche me out, she realized. He should’ve plastered me all over the walls already. What’s his game?
Aloud, she replied, “I won’t insult my boyfriend by throwing in the towel so easily, Father.” Maybe he doesn’t want to actually hurt me, she mused. If that’s the case, I only need to last until he tires of this charade.
Rather than continue to needle her, the vampire lord launched another intense assault, each combination flowing seamlessly into the next. Moka held her ground and repositioned each time her father tried to move around her and strike Tsukune. Gradually, she lost feeling in her fingers from blocking so many punishing punches, and her toes followed suit after jamming one too many crushing kicks with her shins.
This renewed onslaught lasted much, much longer than the previous one, leaving Moka increasingly short of breath due to her father’s relentless pace. His scarlet eyes burned with intensity as he slowly wore down her defenses, and the young woman realized that her earlier estimates of her stamina were overly optimistic. She knew, though, that if their places were reversed, Tsukune would never yield.
Neither, then, would she.
A momentary opening provided Moka the opportunity to strike back, a hard kick to her father’s midsection that staggered him. She only received an ephemeral moment’s respite to savor the look of surprise on Father’s face, though, for he countered with a backhand across the cheek. Moka tumbled from the impact, converting the momentum into an impromptu handspring, though her vision swam for a moment after landing. She caught Lord Shuzen’s strike aimed at Tsukune and tossed him into the nearest pillar.
Nonplussed, the vampire lord landed on his feet and glowered at his daughter. “You’ve improved,” he noted dryly. “Not only did you land a blow, you managed to land the first one.” He assumed a new, more aggressive-looking fighting stance. “At this point, there would be no shame in conceding. Don’t let your pride destroy you.”
Moka openly snarled at her father. “I’m not fighting because of pride,” she responded.
Lord Shuzen’s eyes narrowed. “Pride is everything to us vampires,” he countered. “If not that, why do you continue?”
Before the young woman could answer, a low groan behind her forestalled her. Risking a sneak attack from her father, Moka turned partway to see Tsukune’s eyes open and gaze up at her, unfocused from the slow return of consciousness. Moka’s heart leapt at the sight of those warm, gentle brown eyes, not to mention the befuddled smile on the young man’s face.
With a shy smile of her own, the silver-haired vampire returned her attention to her father, at which point her smile took on a hard, determined edge. Moka delivered her response to her father’s question: “I’m fighting for Tsukune Aono, the most important person in the world to me – in other words, the man I love.”

~~~~~

In the infirmary of Yokai Academy, Ruby and Yukari still slept on the other bed, their faces a picture of beatific serenity. Kurumu and Mizore sat on one of the beds, playing cards in hand. The awake duo willed the lazy Saturday hours to pass faster so they could welcome their beloved Tsukune home that much sooner.
Without warning, Kurumu cried out and clutched her sides, and the cards in her hand fell into a scattered pile atop the coverlet. Tears sprang from her eyes. The succubus panted for several long moments, her labored breathing and scrunched-up face indicating great pain.
Eyebrows furrowed in confusion, Mizore craned her head. “Kurumu? What the hell?” she asked in her usual flat tone. “I know I’m kicking your ass at this game –“
“Tsukune’s in pain,” the succubus interjected through clenched teeth. “Somehow… I can feel it…”
The snow-woman rolled her lollipop with her tongue and mulled over that revelation. “Something to do with that ‘Destined Mate’ bullshit you keep bringing up?” she guessed.
“Mmm-Makes sense,” Kurumu managed as the pain subsided. “I think… he’s unconscious now.” Breaths still coming with effort, the young woman sat up and even leaned back against the metal framing at the head of the bed. “And it’s not bullshit – Tsukune is my Destined Mate. He’s the man I’m meant for.”
Mizore’s lips curled into a small smile; she loved messing with her friends, especially Kurumu. “I guess it’s a good thing your figured it out before you fucked every guy in school, huh?” she teased. “I wasn’t around then, but I heard about your ‘harem plan.’”
Kurumu stared down at the scattered playing cards, a fierce blush lighting her cheeks. “I… was a different person then,” she explained in a soft voice, deeply embarrassed about that period of her life. “At the time, Mom claimed that sort of behavior was just the succubus way. Ever since we found out about our moms’ high school rivalry, though, she says that’s how she wishes she’d handled things back then.”
“Awkward,” Mizore muttered, recalling her own mother’s shameful behavior at various points since meeting Tsukune, including trying to spy on her and Tsukune in bed when they visited the village of the snow-people a few weeks ago.
After a lengthy silence, Kurumu sighed. “You’re right, though – I’m glad I didn’t sleep around,” she admitted. “Knowing that Tsukune will be my one and only makes… doing it… that much more special every time. Maybe it’s a succubus thing,” she shrugged.
Mizore, her own cheeks now tinged red, giggled. “I feel the same way, actually,” the snow-woman replied. “After that bastard gym teacher molested me, I felt… tainted; but when I’m with Tsukune, I feel pure as the fresh-fallen snow.”
“Good! You should! The idea that assault victims are somehow ‘damaged’ needs to die in a fire,” grumbled the succubus. “Hell, even women who choose to sleep around aren’t ‘damaged goods,’ either.”
Mizore rolled her lollipop around in her mouth thoughtfully. “Even though that bastard’s gone now, I still struggle with my feelings about what he did,” she admitted. “It’s gotten better, of course, since he was fired, but… having your support really helps too, Kurumu.”
Kurumu favored her rival-turned-friend-turned-lover with a grin. “What’re friends for?” she asked, but immediately turned pensive once the words were out. “No,” she amended, “you and Yukari, and the two Mokas, and even Ruby – you’re the sisters I never knew I always wanted.”
Mizore giggled. “I feel the same way.” Kurumu leaned forward and took the snow-woman’s cooler-than-average hand into her own.
A soft yet still-audible rumble from both their stomachs informed the two young women that lunch time had arrived. With an embarrassed laugh, the succubus offered, “I’m not quite feeling up to cooking like I usually do, but I’m also feeling a bit cooped up. I’d love a chance to stretch my legs a little, so why don’t I find a vending machine?”

~~~~~

Lord Shuzen, in a thoroughly unexpected reaction to Moka’s declaration of love for Tsukune, laughed. His laugh, short and sharp, echoed through the chamber. “My, my,” he declared into the stunned silence, “so you finally admit the truth, daughter. I had wondered how severely I would need to injure Mr. Aono before you’d come clean.”
Moka blinked in confused shock. “You… you perpetrated this whole fight merely as a means to force a love confession from me?” she asked, incredulous. “That’s low, Father.”
“I had other purposes,” the vampire lord parried. “I also wanted to see how quickly Mr. Aono would recover from my attack, thanks to the lingering effects of the blood you donated to him last year.”
The young woman gritted her teeth. “I can’t believe you, Father. Why would you attack Tsukune and me if you already approved of our relationship?”
Lord Shuzen shook his head. “I never said I approved, only that I knew you were hiding the depth of your feelings,” he replied smoothly. “Now that you’ve expressed your true feelings, my dear, I hope you can see how Mr. Aono has strung you along this whole time, hiding behind your protection while failing to love you the same way.”
“With all due respect, sir,” grunted Tsukune as he sat up partway, “you’re wrong. Although I fell in love with that other girl first, this Moka and I have grown closer ever since we started spending more time together.” He flashed a pained smile at his girlfriend, knowing he should have told her what he was about to say much sooner: “I’ve fallen in love with you.”
The normally-reserved vampire’s face lit up with one of the most genuine smiles Tsukune had ever seen, and the young man responded in kind. Kokoa stifled a sob. On her shoulder, Kou fluttered his wings, feeling the agitation of his mistress through their familiar link.
“How touching,” Lord Shuzen mocked them, adding sarcastic applause for additional effect. “Unfortunately, none of these declarations of love change the fact that I do not approve of this relationship. I presume you intend to continue defying me, daughter?”
Moka returned her attention to her father, preparing herself for another onslaught. “Wouldn’t you have done the same, Father, for your most precious person, my mother?” she challenged.
“There was never any need,” answered Lord Shuen as he renewed his assault, fists whistling through the air with each strike. “My darling Akasha could stand on her own; she never needed to cower behind a protector like your Mr. Aono.”
Although the combinations came faster this time, Moka, having recovered a bit due to the interlude of conversation and confession, stayed just ahead of her father’s attacks for now, a state of affairs she knew couldn’t last. She therefore decided to try to bait her father into a mistake: “Except for the night she died, of course, and you failed to protect Mother when she most needed you.”
Lord Shuzen paused, eyes widening as Moka’s words struck home. The young vampire followed the comment with a kick to her father’s chest, but the now-enraged vampire lord caught her by the ankle. A vicious snarl gnarled his face into a wholly monstrous visage as he threw his daughter through one of the chamber’s support pillars and into the wall on the other side.
“You go too far, dear daughter,” he taunted as he struggled to her feet. “Your impudence has sealed Mr. Aono’s fate, since you clearly require a lesson in the agony I experienced that night your mother died.” Lord Shuzen strode over to Tsukune and raised his hand into a claw-like shape; he seemed intent to tear the human’s still-beating heart from his rib cage and drink the young man’s lifeblood right in front of the daughter who’d just professed her love for him.
Moka raised a futile hand; she’d never make it in time to deflect her father’s killing blow. All her efforts – and those of the other girl with whom she’d shared a body for so long – to keep Tsukune alive crumbled before her eyes. Once Father’s stroke fell, her whole world would crumble as well.
A blur of red streaked in. With a mighty clang, steel met flesh and bone; the latter gave way with a wet crunch, as Lord Shuzen’s forearm shattered. The power of the swing carried through and launched the vampire lord into the nearby wall next to his previous impact point.
Tsukune stared upward in shock at the stay of his execution. Standing over him, Kokoa brought her familiar, in the form of a giant steel club, into a ready position. “Tsukune is my friend too, Father!” she shouted. “Besides, if he makes Big Sis happy, I’ll fight to protect that!”
“This showdown has been going on all chapter, but it’s not over yet. Whee!” crowed Kou.
_________________________________________________________________________
A/N: My main concern about this chapter is the pacing. My normal inclination in writing a fight scene is to hyperfocus on minute details in a blow-by-blow narration, like something you might see in a Batman or Daredevil story. Here, though, I went more for a "broad strokes" philosophy, so that it hopefully reads like a good Dragonball fight (like Piccolo vs Android 17).
Of course, the scene with Mizore and Kurumu in the middle serves to give you, the reader, a breather from the action, as well as letting them reflect on their growth as people and the effects that their relationships have had on them.
Long story (paging Ruby!) short, I think I got it right, but I'd like to hear from you readers on the matter, via review or forum PM.
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Long December