Haruka is watching him with his deep brown eyes, nodding quietly. Finally having diverted his attention from his books and papers, Nino meets his eyes, playful. “But at least I’ll be armed with lots of information when the time comes?”
“Indeed.” Haruka mirrors his grin. “Valuable research.”
“Lots of sex positions.”
“Some may inevitably yield a higher success rate than others,” Haruka notes thoughtfully. “I’ll leave the analysis and research to you.”
“Wow, thanks a lot.” Nino chuckles, and Haruka’s deep, throaty laugh soon echoes within the space as well.
Eight
It’s windy on the third day. Nino turns, absently looking out the window above the padded sill. The breeze is so strong that he can hear the whistling howl of it rattle the glass. Gray, hefty clouds stretch endlessly across the sky—a promise that some form of precipitation is coming.
He glances back down at the oversized book resting in the hollow of his folded legs. It’s been a lot to take in, but Nino is especially intrigued by this particular section of the book.
Article III. Intrinsic Compatibility
The third and least scientifically discernible component of forming a vampiric bond is the natural compatibility of a couple’s conjoined natures. While compatibility cannot be outwardly measured to any quantifiable extent, this section examines the specific number of attempts made before successfully activating a bond. Thus, fewer attempts presupposes that a couple is “highly compatible.”
“There’s a couple here that bonded after three tries,” Nino says, scanning the entries. “That seems pretty good compared with the rest. Looks like the average number of attempts for higher-ranked couples ranges from five to ten?”
“Correct,” Haruka confirms from his desk. “Cases lower than five are exceptionally rare. The lowest documented is twice. In section eight thousand twenty-four, a couple in France attempted twenty-seven times over the course of six months.”
Nino’s mouth gapes open, his eyes wide. “Twenty-seven? God, I hope we don’t have to watch that many times.”
Haruka laughs in his deep, throaty way as he writes, not stopping to look up.
“Well…” Nino continues. “I guess… it’s not as if they weren’t enjoying themselves?”
“It was quite literally a labor of love.”
Nino runs his palm down his face. After three days of reading through the reference book, he understands its fundamental value. To have research that uniquely details, tracks and analyzes bonding is unprecedented within their culture. Pioneering. It’s shocking that Haruka has kept something so valuable to himself.
But the manuscript is also pretty invasive. Our ancestors were perverts.
“If it takes twenty-seven times to activate a bond,” Nino says, flipping through multiple pages to view the final sections of the book, “maybe that’s their intrinsic natures telling them no, this isn’t a good idea?”
Haruka rests his chin in his palm as he leans with his elbow on the desk. “On the contrary, perhaps it shows their genuine conviction to each other?”
“Maybe. I can respect sheer will and determination, but I think things like this should happen naturally, you know?”
“You are a romantic,” Haruka declares, standing from his desk and moving toward the door. “Some of these vampires were mating for economic gain and social status. My grandfather and father did not thoroughly document the surrounding circumstances of each couple’s mating.”
“That’s a huge gap in the research, Haruka. Who was mating for love and who was mating for business? The rate of activation might be vastly impacted based on the couple’s intent.”
“Says the obvious romantic,” Haruka teases in his roguish way. “Lunch should be ready. Shall we gratuitously indulge in table food?”
“Sure—” Nino pauses when he comes to the final heading in the book. He frowns, reading the oxymoronic title. When he turns the pages within the section, they’re completely blank. “Haruka, why do you have a section here called Broken Bonds? Bonds between vampires can’t be broken once they’ve been established.”
It is fact. Nino might be ignorant about the deeper mechanisms of forming vampiric bonds, but everyone knows they can’t be broken.
Haruka shrugs, his eyes emotionless as he returns Nino’s gaze. “Or so they say. I believe curry is on today’s menu. Chicken katsu, to be precise.”
“Chicken katsu curry…” Nino whispers, mesmerized as he stands and follows Haruka out the room.
Walking beside him, Nino realizes that the nervousness he’d felt a few days earlier has dissipated. He’s calm—comfortable with Haruka now. But his nature deep within him is still restless and twisty, like a small child throwing a tantrum. It’s an odd juxtaposition.
He discreetly glances at Haruka’s profile. He doesn’t know why his instincts are reacting this way toward him, but Nino is very glad that he accepted Haruka’s generous offer.
“We’ll leave for Hertsmonceux tomorrow afternoon. Do you feel more prepared after reading through the research?”
“I do,” Nino confirms. It’s true. He feels intellectually equipped for the confirmation. Emotionally, his anxiety is stirring. An isolated castle full of high-level vampires is not his idea of a fun-filled weekend. “You’re already finished with the confirmation certificate, right?”
“I am,” says Haruka, stretching his arms up and rolling his neck. “The rest of today will be spent reviewing my work and making certain I have the names, titles and rankings of each vampire’s lineage correct. It is tedious, but not wholly unpleasant. Scripting the legal verbiage within the document was much more monotonous.”
Nino shakes his head in amazement. “I can’t even imagine.” He’s never met anyone like Haruka. Just as he’d suspected, simply being around him has exposed Nino to new ideas and deep cultural insight.
Haruka is smart, but not condescending. Sophisticated but not arrogant. When Nino is confused about something, Haruka approaches him with patience. Kindness. When Nino speaks, he listens. He counters his opinions and challenges him, but with respect (except for those odd times he’s being threatened with corporal punishment tactics from the Middle Ages). Haruka has been timidly playful too, and Nino is always surprised by his wry, discreet sense of humor.
Aside from his best friend, Nino hasn’t ever met another ranked vampire that he’s felt this comfortable with. Going into the confirmation event this weekend, Nino decides he needs an ally. He needs someone who understands him—someone he can open up to about his past should any issues arise. It’s only been three days… but he wonders if Haruka could become a genuine friend?
Nino grips the edge of the bench. He cautiously looks up at Haruka, deciding to trust his instincts.
“Can I tell you something personal?” Nino asks. “About me, I mean.”
Haruka is leaning against the table with his elbow, his chin resting in his palm and his eyes closed. Finishing the official confirmation document has clearly been challenging. Arduous. Even when Nino has gone to bed at night, Haruka usually remains in the library, busily writing and focused on his notes.
