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The first time Makoto oh-so-gently bit her neck, when she was a second-year and Ann was a first-year, it stung.
To be fair, she wasn't expecting it, or any of the events that transpired after she entered the nurse's office during lunch break. Shiho had disappeared citing a headache, and a greasy boy who was eyeing Ann's chest told her that she was still in there lying down. And she was, on a cot hidden behind a robin-egg blue curtain placed to give the sick some semblance of privacy. The unexpected part was Makoto Nijima, top candidate for student council president and Ann's crush ever since she entered high school practically, leaning against the wall and breathing like she has just run a marathon. Which she definitely hadn't done, because running in the halls was against the rules, and Makoto Nijima would never break a rule.
"Um...excuse me..." Ann squeaked. "Is everything okay?"
Makoto stood up straight and turned around, her fangs retracting into her mouth. "Never better." She said.
A beat passed.
"You're a vampire?" Ann whispered, eyes widening, suddenly scared for Shiho only a few feet away. All her instincts screamed at her to run, but she stayed rooted to the spot. Makoto was a vampire? But she was nice and had a sense of justice and was really, really pretty. She was under the impression that vampires had none of those qualities.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Makoto said, crossing her arms. She refused to look Ann in the eye, which strengthened Ann’s resolve.
"Look, I saw your - " she lowered her voice on the next word, " - fangs, so don't even bother." Ann finished indignantly. "And I know you were gonna hurt Shiho, and I'll have you know that if you take one step in her direction I will kill you. I really will." Ann said fiercely, trying her best to stand tall and look intimidating when she was honestly really scared.
"I wasn't going to feed on Shiho." Makoto murmured. She cast her gaze down to the floor. She didn't look scary at all, Ann thought. She looked a little bit pathetic. Ann’s anger flagged a bit. "I haven't fed properly in a few days and I was going to come in here to calm down, but that was harder than I anticipated. I would really appreciate it if you just pretend you never saw this."
Ann was quiet for a minute as she turned an idea over in her head. "Maybe you could feed on me." She said quietly.
Makoto didn't look completely opposed to the idea, but nevertheless stuttered out an "A-are you sure?"
Ann nodded. To be honest, she kind of liked the idea of Makoto Nijima, renowned girl crush, biting her neck. Maybe after she fed on her Makoto would be so grateful that they would become best friends and maybe later girlfriends. But she shoved that fantasy to the back of her mind.
"A-alright." Makoto looked like she was ready to just bite in right then and there but then she came to her senses and gently but insistently tugged Ann into the girls' bathroom across the hall and into a stall, which she promptly locked. Neither of them wanted another interruption. Ann closed her eyes, and Makoto took that as her cue.
Makoto's fangs pierced her neck and a sharp spike of pain lanced through Ann. She hissed, but the pain was already ebbing away, replaced with soft warmth spreading from her neck throughout the rest of her body. She sighed softly, and her knees went weak. She thought through her haze that it would be hard to feed off of someone if they were thrashing in pain, and this felt very nice could it maybe continue for longer. But before she knew it, Makoto's fangs withdrew, leaving two angry red holes. Makoto licked them, and Ann felt them itch as they closed up. When she looked in the mirror later, she would see that the only trace of them was a faded purple bruise.
"Thank you." Makoto said. "I feel a lot better." She looked a lot better, too - less stressed out, less sallow. She looked invigorated, and Ann felt a rush of satisfaction.
"It's no problem." Ann said, and was a little shocked that she was telling the truth. Sure, she was nursing a little crush, but draining the blood from her body should at least be an incident.
Makoto snorted and exited the stall. Before she left the bathroom entirely, she turned back to Ann. "I trust you'll keep this a secret?” Makoto’s gaze was like steel despite the desperation behind it. Ann nodded.
Makoto smiled. “Good.” Makoto left, and the bell rang for the next period. Ann swore and left for history. She had never wanted to just skip class more than in that moment. She still didn’t know if Shiho was feeling okay.
She could barely keep her eyes open in history, but she couldn't say she regretted it.
/
The second time was after Makoto had awakened to her Persona in a blue blaze of power and joined the Phantom Thieves. Makoto’s Metaverse outfit was a sleek black catsuit that was not good for Ann’s health. But she managed.
The weeks moved by in a blur of school and work and trips into the Metaverse, and Ann had almost forgotten about Makoto’s little quirk. Of course, she could never completely forget, not when blood sprayed from fallen Shadows during Akira’s flashy finishing move and Makoto opened her mouth ever-so-slightly like a cat to taste the air, small sharp fangs peeking out.
One particularly dull afternoon, Makoto had come to her after school asking her if she was available to discuss something in the student council room with a desperate look in her eye Ann recognized. She said yes, of course she could. Makoto sighed with relief and now here they were, Ann seated on Makoto's lap while Makoto sat on a chair. Makoto had of course, clarified once they entered the room that she wanted - rather, needed - to feed on Ann again.
"I broke up with my last partner, and I've been surviving as long as I could but - " Makoto said pleadingly but Ann cut her off.
"You can bite me." She said. "It's fine." She smiled, and Makoto sighed with an eagerness like Morgana in front of a plate of sushi.
It felt just as good as the first time, maybe better, and as she came down from the high, she asked Makoto what she had meant by 'partner'.
"Oh, vampires often have feeding relationships with humans, that's what I meant. It wasn't romantic, that's not - well, it kind of was." Makoto explained, turning pink.
"Why don't we just do that?" Ann asked. "I'm okay with being your platonic feeding buddy." She would have preferred it to be a bit more than platonic, but this was okay too. This was fine.
"Just platonic...?" Makoto mumbled.
"What was that?" Ann asked playfully, wrapping her arms around Makoto's neck. Makoto flushed scarlet.
"I-I keep forgetting the capabilities of human hearing." Makoto said softly, mostly talking to her lap.
"Do you wanna romance me, Makoto?" Ann asked sweetly, despite her heart beating faster than anything. She tilted Makoto’s chin towards her, making the older girl look up. Makoto’s red, red eyes were uncertain, but behind her uncertainty was such want.
"I...yes, and I hear your heart beat faster whenever I sit near you." Makoto said, and now it was Ann's turn to blush. "So...I think you also want to. But if you don’t, I - “
"I do, Makoto." Ann said sincerely. "Being your girlfriend sounds...maybe too awesome." Ann pressed a kiss to Makoto’s lips, gentle. Makoto tasted like iron, like blood, and it was sweeter than any youthful loose tooth had been. “It feels so nice when you bite me.”
Makoto laughed softly as they broke apart, face flushed. "Alright, now I need to pull out my old-fashioned vampire manners. Do you want to get a milkshake?"
"How is that old-fashioned?" Ann asked as they walked out of school hand-in-hand.
"It's traditional for a vampire to get their human partner a sugary drink after feeding to help them recover. Feeding makes humans feel sluggish, or dizzy." Makoto explained. “There’s an old recipe for a potion of sake and herbs and stuff...but we’re underage, and I’m awful at potions.” Makoto confessed.
“Didn’t know there were things you aren’t good at, Mako.” Ann said, faltering as she looked to Makoto for permission.
“You can call me Mako whenever you’d like, Ann.” Makoto said softly. Ann pumped her fist in triumph.
Ann did feel sleepy and kind of hungry, but she was so used to pushing these feelings aside for her job's sake that it wasn't bothering her. Nevertheless, her chocolate-strawberry milkshake was delicious. Makoto’s kiss? Even more so.