Hiro's Monday passed without incident. He went to class, he ate, he did homework, and he hung out with his friends. But somehow, he didn't see Zero Two once. The lack of her boundless energy left him feeling empty and almost restless. But he did his best to not let it bother him and pressed on.

Tuesday was a similar affair. Not a single sign of the pink-haired girl. Hiro even made a point to sit in the common room between their rooms in the hopes that he would at least catch a glimpse of her. All he managed to do was waste an hour playing on his phone for an hour after he had finished every bit of homework he could find. He ended up going back to his room downtrodden and filled with the same feeling of emptiness.

Zero Two, for her part, hardly noticed the days passing, due to her spending most of them asleep in her bed, face pressed into her blankets to try to capture every bit of her darling's scent that she could. She didn't bother going to her classes, did the minimum amount of homework assigned, and ate whatever she could find hidden in her room, which mainly consisted of an unhealthy number of sweets.

It was only when the last of the entrancing scent had fled her blankets that she considered leaving her room for an extended period of time. She had long ago come to the realization that her darling was close by and probably smelled, and tasted, even better than her sheets, but then she would have to deal with his friends, who didn't seem to like her very much, other people, and life in general. Not to mention the flip-flopping of her chest got even worse when she saw him, and she wasn't sure she liked the feeling. It wasn't bad, per say, but it wasn't good either.

Eventually though, she found she had no choice. If she wanted to have any tangible reminder of Hiro, she would have to actually see him again.

Luckily, she wouldn't have to go far.

It only took her a minute to spot her darling sitting in the dorm common room picking over a few papers. She quickly made her way behind him before he noticed her standing there.

"Daaaaaarling…" she crooned over his shoulder, loving the way he jumped as she trailed her hands over his shoulders and down his chest. "I missed you…"

"Z-zero Two! Um…hi? I haven't seen you recently. Where have you been?" Zero Two felt a quick pang or sadness. Her darling had noticed her missing. Maybe she should have tried to find him sooner.

"Sorry darling, I've been…busy." She wasn't about to tell him she had been sitting alone in her room for the past few days. "But I'm willing to make it up to you if you'd like," she said, her hands roaming his slim chest more aggressively. She wasn't quite sure what inspired her assertiveness, but she felt a need unlike any she had felt before and this seemed like the best way to quench it.

Hiro sputtered cutely, thrown off by her forwardness and tried to turn around to face her properly. Taking advantage of the brief opportunity, Zero Two quickly leaned in and kissed him solidly on the lips.

Tingling erupted from her lips and sent uniquely pleasurable sensations rushing down her spine. She groaned involuntarily into Hiro's mouth, which had hardly moved. Zero Two quickly found herself pushed backwards and the contact between their lips was broken. It only took a moment that the hands pushing her away from her darling were, in fact, her darling's. She looked at him, confused by his sudden rejection.

"Wait, wait. Just wait a minute, Zero Two," he said slightly breathlessly. "You can't just kiss me like that. I mean, I don't want you to. I hardly…" his voice faded away as his words sunk in. He didn't want her. He didn't want to kiss her, didn't want to sleep with her, probably didn't even want to see her. No one had ever said that to her before. She was the one that turned them down, not the other way around. She was the one in control. Until now.

Zero Two jerked away from Hiro, cutting off whatever he was saying. She felt the fear in her heart as she stared at him with wide eyes. But fear made her weak, so anger stepped in. She grabbed Hiro's arms and gripped him as tightly as she could.

"You think you can turn me down?" she snarled, suddenly aggressive. "I was just using you anyways, you don't mean anything to me. Nothing!" Now he wasn't the one throwing her away, she was throwing him away. "I could have a different guy every night if I want. You're not special!"

"Zero Two, that hurts." Hiro's pained words slipped into her mind, breaking her out of her frantic thoughts. She blinked and looked down to where her nails were biting into his skin. Small beads of red blood were welling up where her nails had dug too deep. She abruptly let go of him, stumbling backwards and gazing at her pink-tinged nails before her eyes flicked back up to Hiro's. The pain in his eyes stung her more than any of his words, breaking down the last wall in her fracturing emotional barrier. Before any traitorous feelings could slip out, she stormed back to her dorm, ignoring Hiro's desperate calls from behind her as she slammed the door and sank to the floor, staring in numb shock at the blood staining her fingertips and the memory of pain in blue eyes.

Hiro stared in worried confusion as Zero Two stalked away, threw open her door and slammed it shut a moment after. Something he had said or done had set her off, but he wasn't sure what it could be. Girls in general were a mystery to him; he could hardly be expected to understand a girl he hadn't known for a week when he still get Ichigo, whom he had known since they were kids. Speaking of which…

"Hiro!" Ichigo exclaimed, springing up from where she was sitting across from him when she noticed the thin trails of red running down his arms. "Oh my gosh, did she cut you?! What kind of crazy person is she? Grabbing you, then k-kissing you, then clawing at you and then running away?! What is wrong with her?!"

"Ichigo, calm down," Goro said gently, watching from where he was sitting next to Ichigo's now vacated seat. "It's not like his arm is going to fall off." Hiro shot Goro a grateful look, though his words did little to calm Ichigo.

"That's not the damn point, Goro! She practically mauled him for turning her down! What kind of person does that?" She looked at Hiro's wounds a moment longer before quickly walking off towards her room. "I've got some disinfectant in my room, I'll be right back," she said over her shoulder as she disappeared around the corner to the girls' rooms. The two boys sat in silence, Hiro smearing away drops of blood as his wounds clotted before Goro spoke.

"Why do you think she did that?" he asked quietly, trying to decipher the strange girl's actions. Hiro didn't say anything, just played with the sticky blood between his fingers, watching it stretch between the digits before the tenuous strands snapped. He stood and walked over to the nearby sink, rinsing the blood from his fingers. He quickly dried his hands and sat back down, looking at his now clean fingers for a moment before gazing emptily at the wall.

"She looked afraid," he said finally. Goro didn't have a moment to ask what he meant before Ichigo came back and started cleaning Hiro's small wounds with a disinfectant wipe.

Hiro eventually managed to assure Ichigo he was fine and remove himself from her doting reach. He took the homework he had been poking at back to his room before walk back across the common room to stand in front of Zero Two's door. Goro and Ichigo both peeked around the corner to see what he was doing. He hesitated a moment before knocking on the wood of the door.

"Zero Two?" he called out, hoping she would answer. He didn't hear anything other than his own breathing. "Zero Two, I need to talk to you," he tried again, once more to no effect. "Please?" Silence.

Realizing it might take longer than he hoped, Hiro went back to his room, ignoring Ichigio and Goro trying too hard to be inconspicuous, grabbed one of the books he'd been meaning to read, and returned to Zero Two's door. "Whenever you want to talk, I'll be here," he said to the door. This time, he heard quiet shuffling from the other side. Content that he had been heard, Hiro sat down across from the door, cracked open his book, and settled in to wait.

Zero Two had heard Hiro asking her to talk, but his voice only reminded her of his pained words when she had dug her hands into his skin, piercing his flesh and letting blood flow out…. She had been forced to suppress her horrified shudders as the feeling came back to the forefront of her mind. Just thinking about it left her feeling curiously nauseous and sorrowful, both sensations unfamiliar and uncomfortable. She had breathed a sigh of relief when he had left, but was back on edge when he returned and made himself comfortable outside the door.

She had peered out the peephole in the door at him, conflicting feelings warring inside her. A part of her thought he looked so peaceful sitting there, eyes roving over the pages of his book, occasionally turning a page or mouthing a particular section to himself. Another part could only focus on the irritated, red skin of his arms where her nails had sunk into him and the revulsion she felt for those marks.

Neither feeling made any sense to her. Tenderness was not something she was used to or had much experience with, particularly not with a guy. She was used to getting what she wanted from a man and that being the end of it. So what did she do when that wasn't the end? What came after sex? More sex? But Hiro didn't seem to want that, if his reaction to her suggestions were any evidence.

Her hatred for the wounds she had inflicted on him didn't make sense either. She had clawed, punched, kicked, and even bitten guys before when they got too aggressive, overbearing, put on unwanted advances, or just caught her in the wrong mood. Never before had she felt any remorse for those actions. Now it was practically crushing her.

She needed to stop feeling these feelings, but all her usual distractions were out of reach. Going for a swim or a walk, eating until she burst, or fucking a guy were her fallbacks, but to do any of that, she'd have to leave her room. Which meant facing Hiro.

He had trapped her more effectively than she had thought possible.

Of course, now that she thought about it, she was hungry. Very hungry. 'I guess that's what happens when I don't eat for two days,' she couldn't help but think with a hint of humor. She'd just have to hold out until Hiro gave up.

Unfortunately, an hour later, he still hadn't moved. He had remained buried in his book, occasionally jotting notes in the margins with a pencil he had produced from somewhere. A few people spent a minute or two talking to him, always asking what he was doing. Every time, he said he was waiting to talk to her. No one really pressed him, just accepting the statement and going about their days. Only the blue-haired jealous girl actually sat with him for a while and tried to convince him to give up. Hiro adamantly refused. Zero Two felt a strange mix of victory and disappointment. He was still choosing her over his friend, but he didn't go away.

To make it worse, her hunger was slowly overpowering her, making her contemplate making a run for it or climbing out her window on the fourth floor. Neither of which were good options. Slowly, she stood from where she was sitting against the wall and walked over to the door. Looking out the peephole again, she saw that, against all hopes, Hiro was still sitting there.

He wasn't reading his book though. He had put it aside and was running his fingers over the clotted punctures on his arms. Then, as if he could sense her looking at him, he looked up and stared at the door, his bright eyes piercing her even through the wood. She could see in his eyes that he wasn't going to move any time soon. She immediately knew she wouldn't win the standoff. Which left her with only one choice, as much as she hated it.

Taking a deep breath, she jerked the door open, sending her long pink hair flying, some of it catching on her lips and nose. She pushed it back just as Hiro was getting over his surprise.

"Zero Two! I wasn't sure if you'd actually come out…" he said unsteadily, clearly having not thought past getting her out of her room. Zero Two, for her part, wasn't even sure what he wanted to say or what to say about her earlier outburst.

"You wanted to talk to me, so talk," she said tersely, crossing her arms and staring him down, unwilling to give him another inch until she knew what he was going for. He immediately destroyed all her expectations.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly, his voice laced with concern. It turned out that was all it took to get her going.

"Am I okay? Am I okay?!" she sputtered. "I clawed you and cut you and you ask if I'm okay? You don't even want to see me again and all you can ask if I'm okay? I'm not the one who got hurt, Hiro!"

"Aren't you?" he asked, just as quietly as before, silencing her outburst as easily as he caused it. "Before you left, you looked…afraid. Why were you scared? And why wouldn't I want to see you again?" She wished she had a way to stop his words from cutting her to the bone but could do nothing against his pointed questions except answer honestly.

"You…pushed me away. You said you didn't want me," she said quietly, barely above a murmur.

"Why did that scare you?" he pressed. Why did he have to ask such hard questions?

"I…I don't…no one ever said that," she finished, her voice becoming even more timid.

"Said what?"

"That they didn't want to be with me, to sleep with me. No one ever turned me down. Only you. I…I thought you must hate me," Hiro sighed for a moment before talking.

"Zero Two, I don't hate you. You've never had someone turn you down? Well I never had someone want to sleep with me at all. Even my last girlfriend never made any move towards it. And…I guess I don't want to be just another guy that you throw away. You're more unique than anyone I've ever met. Plus, you seem…" his thought died on his lips, not wanting to voice the strange sense of familiarity that accompanied her presence. "Like someone really interesting," he finished, trying not to focus on how lame that sounded.

Zero Two looked at him, looking for the lie that she thought must be there. There was no way Hiro was being honest with her, was there? If he was like all the other guys, he was just saying that to hold on to her for a moment longer. But…that didn't make sense, did it? If that had been the case, he wouldn't have said anything in the first place. Right? Which meant…he was telling the truth? Her mind whirled, trying to make sense of it all. Hiro's actions didn't fit with anything any other guy had done. Maybe he really was different.

Hiro, not being privy to her thoughts, was becoming restless as Zero Two stared off into space. Gathering his courage, he dared to break the silence.

"How about this? Let me…take you out to eat tomorrow after classes. After that, if you want nothing to do with me, that's fine." Zero Two had broken out of her thoughts, but still wasn't making eye contact. Hiro sighed. "Please, Zero Two, just give me a chance." Her mind grabbed hold of his words, fixated on his earnest plea. Before she was really conscious of what she was doing, she heard her voice, far more timid than she'd like, agree.

Hiro's face lit up at her quiet 'yes.' Already, he was formulating plan after plan, determined to find the best one to keep her from running off. He forced himself to calm down. 'I don't even know what I'm doing. Plus, she's clearly has a tough history. Take it slow.'

"How about we meet at the Werner Science Building at 4 then. I know a place nearby that's really good." Zero Two didn't say anything, just stared at the floor before nodding. "Okay…see you tomorrow then," Hiro said, slightly thrown off by her demure attitude. She just nodded again before backing into her room, closing the door. Their eyes caught for just a moment. The glimpse was enough to betray the happiness in Zero Two's eyes before the door snapped shut.

Hiro stood there for a few seconds before a feeling of relief swept across him and a smile spread across his face. For better or worse, he had a date with Zero Two. He was walking back to his room when Goro fell into step beside him.

"I'm surprised she agreed," he said, not even attempting to hide the fact that he had been listening in. "But I'm glad she did."

"Me too," Hiro said, the relief evident in his voice. He had been doubtful that Zero Two would even open her door, much less that she would go on a lunch date. His smile widened at the very thought. Goro looked on, not missing the happy expression on his best friend's face.

'Dang, he's got it bad,' he thought, amused. 'Well, not like I can really talk,' the realized wryly. "Congratulations. Where are you going to take her?" he asked.

"I thought I'd take her over to Café 13. It's close and pretty good."

"Ooo, romantic." Hiro shoved the taller boy away even as his cheeks became tinted red. They got back to their room and Hiro puttered about for a minute, putting the book he had been reading back on his desk before something out the window caught his gaze. Someone was positively sprinting towards the dining building, long pink hair fluttering behind them. Hiro watched with surprise as Zero Two ran at what seemed like superhuman speed across the grass until she dashed into the dining hall and out of sight.

The pink-haired girl ran across the campus, happiness swirling in her chest. She wasn't used to people asking her to lunch, but the very thought of getting to spend more time with Hiro made her pulse pound. Surely, if he had asked her out, he didn't hate her. He wouldn't possibly want to have lunch with someone he hated.

'But then what does he think of you?' a small voice whispered to her before she shoved it away. Everything else could wait until after she had eaten. A minute after closing her door, she remembered the original reason for leaving her room. Without a moment of pause, she burst out of her room and ran out of the dorm building towards where she knew there was food. Her stomach growled at her after her inattention for the past few days. She grabbed a plate and began loading it with food, but even then, she was hardly paying attention. Her thoughts were instead on tomorrow and what she could wear.

Greetings once again, faithful readers! I have returned from the infinite void to bestow upon you all this chapter. Savor it well, for I must soon return to the darkness that I come from. What am I on about? No one knows.

Onto things that are actually coherent, thank you to everyone who took a bit of time to read this. I'm so glad that you are enjoying it and even happier that some of you decided to leave a kind word. I extend this to all of you that caught my post over on Reddit and commented over there. I thank you earnestly and hope you enjoyed this chapter as well. Behold, the real beginning of it all. The set up is finished, now it's time to get to the good stuff. I hear your question: how broken can I make these characters? Oh, oh boy, you do not want the answer to that. I apologize in advance.

On to reviews over here, Order, thanks for stopping by, glad you enjoyed it and thought it was good. My greatest achievement! P4ND4, (that's not the correct use of numbers), glad you like it. I don't think there's nearly enough AU content for DitF, especially given how the anime ended off. Like, come on. The show basically screams at you to take it from there. Opportunity wasted. Once again, thank you. Warriors, I'm glad you like the start, its always the hardest part for me. So much to set up, and if you're like me, writing the first chapter is hardly the beginning of the process. I already had to come up with at least half the story before I could really even start. On the plus side, now I only have to write it (only...), but on the other side of it, it takes so long to get to the fun part, and even further to get to the point where I feel comfortable posting it. Don't worry about length on this, it's shaping up to be a doozy. I've got plans for at least 25 chapters, and that's only what's planned out. Who knows how long it'll take to write (it's going to be a while...*sad, concerned face* but per my promise to you all and myself, it will get written eventually. At least, assuming we all survive the next year. Guest, glad you appreciate the proof reading, I'm actually not sure how some of the stories on this site get written. I assume if you can write something, you can also read. And I would hope that you can pick up on certain grammatical conventions in the process. Ignore me, I'm venting. I'm not really trying to do anything crazy with the setting or the characters, just trying to re-imagine them in a different setting. In fact, the point is kind of just reliving all the great drama and cuteness (okay, it's mostly the cuteness. I have a severe weakness to fluff). Lucky you, you no longer have to wait, for this is the next chapter!

Okay, that's done, thank you all once again for reviewing. And to all of you that favorited and followed the story, I get an email for every single one, and it always brings a smile to my face. And if you want an excuse, if you follow the story, you'll get a notification whenever I update (provided you have things set up properly). My update schedule is...chaotic at best. I post when I'm done writing and I write when I have the time and feel like it. So much anime to watch...anyways, it'll happen eventually, so stay tuned. Until then, remember to be generous, but not too generous. It's called a 'blood drive' not a 'blood dry'. That probably sounded better in my head, but too bad, I'm out! Cheers!

~Aro