To know: Present/ Flashback

She watched her brother pour his coffee into a mug as she sat on a bar stool at the island in his apartment, her elbows leaning on the faux marble. 

"Why'd you request to drive back alone with him? You took way longer than necessary to get back." Kaito said. 

"We stopped to take a smoke break. I needed to question him about what happened yesterday."

"You can't smoke and drive?" He teased.

"I don't like the car smelling like cigarettes." She replied, slowly sipping her coffee, causing him to snort in disbelief.

"I doubt that. Kaien thinks you two are a couple."

Maya choked, nearly spitting her coffee all over the counter. "We are not a couple!" She snarled. 

Kaito raised an eyebrow as she ripped off a paper towel from the ring and wiped what she had spilled. "What's with that reaction? Did you do something with him?"

"NO! I told you, we just talked. He said that he knew something was the matter and came to investigate. He probably suspected Kuran was going to do something like this and was making sure nothing bad happened as a result." Maya rattled out and hid her anxious expression behind another sip of coffee. 

"And nothing did," Kaito replied. "He seemed particularly concerned about you...almost as if he cared about you."

Maya caught herself before spitting out another mouthful of coffee, hiding her surprise behind the mug. "Is that so?"

"Do you think he does? I highly doubt that the bloodsucker would come all the way out there just to rescue a few random hunters."

She shrugged. "I don't know how in the heck I managed to get him to like me, all I've been is sour and cruel to him. If he were any other pureblood, I'd be in the ground."

Kaito snorted and wandered over to the living room, sitting down on the couch with a tired groan before flipping the TV to a sports channel and leaving her to sit there alone, her mind wandering back to that particular conversation between her and the pureblood. 

Maya leaned up against the side of the car after pulling off to the side of the road, taking a cigarette out of her pack and lit it with her lighter. Heisuke stood a few feet away.

"What did your little gift show you this time?" asked Maya, not looking at him.

"I saw your friends die." 

"Which ones?" She asked. "Was it one of the three that already died?"

He nodded. "I saw you too. I thought you would be dead too, but I saw that wasn't the case when you appeared after two hours."

Maya stilled ever-so-slightly, wondering if he'd had a premonition of her conversation with Kaname but it didn't seem like it. She was sure that if he had seen it, he would bring it up at the right opportunity. A part of her was nervous, knowing not when that moment would come and she knew she would have to tread with extra care. "You shouldn't interfere with the Hunter Association and their business. I'm sure that what you saw is what could have been, not what was going to happen."

"My visions are absolute. There are no 'guesses' as you so implied." Heisuke said, leaning weight on one foot. 

"Oh?" Maya took a long drag of the cigarette, watching the white smoke escape her lips, a stark contrast in color given the black forest around them. "I remember the first time we met, you said that you saw me in one of your visions. What was I doing?"

Heisuke didn't answer.

"If I was in a coffin, well...now I know that my final days probably would have been interesting." She said.

"You weren't dead." He replied. 

Maya laughed without humor. "I find that hard to believe, considering my lifestyle." She dropped her cigarette on the ground and crushed it under a booted foot. "What triggers your premonitions?"

"If someone I know is in pain, or is about to die, or if it something that will change my future."

Maya huffed in reply and opened up the car door, she got in and then stuck her head out of the open window after a few seconds. "You coming, bloodsucker?"

Heisuke glared, but eventually got into the passenger seat and they drove back towards town.

____________________________________________________

"Maya-sama! I'm surprised at the  invitation to see you so suddenly." Isaya said, gracefully seating himself at the four-person table just to her left. It was dinner time for vampires, which meant staying up late once again, but Maya didn't mind in the slightest.

"I'm just happy that you accepted, I thought you would be busy, Isaya-sama." She replied, smiling. Time to play the curious and innocent girl, she thought. 

"As I said before, I am not a busy man. I have too much free time." He replied. "What can I help you with?"

"Curiosity got the better of me. I was wondering if you could tell me a bit more about my grandparents. Besides you, how many vampires did they associate themselves with?"

"They were a rather friendly couple, I'd say at least three. Myself, the Kuran's and the Tanaka's. Especially the Tanaka's."

"How were they associated with the other two, besides you, I mean."

"Your grandparents and the Kuran's shared the same ideals, and were friends for many years, considering how long a dire-wolves life span lasts. I'd say almost one hundred years before they passed, and then your parents in the beginning, but I think your parents decided to stray on a different path though they did keep in touch on occasion. I remember they attended at least three soirees before you were ever born."

Maya looked at the empty glass in front of her, frowning slightly. "They never mentioned their dealings with any purebloods, not ever."

"It could have been for good reason, they even stopped coming to me for things around the time that your brothers were born."

She gave a small shrug. "What about the Tanaka's?"

"Their dealings go further back, but all in good nature of course. The Tanaka's are a rare breed of vampire indeed, not as arrogant or hardhearted as most of us are. From what I knew, your family had agreed to protect them if any situation were to rise that was against the pureblood race. From the smallest gesture to a large one like guarding their estate against those who wanted to harm the family. They became rather good friends over the years, but it ended with your parent's unfortunate death." said Isaya, his eyes filling with a bit of regret as if he missed them as well. 

Maya looked back up at the blond vampire. "Do you think they'd still want to stay friends with my family? I haven't exactly been on the best terms with their youngest son."

"I'm sure if you brought it up with Jurou-sama, he'd understand your rather abrupt appearance. You had no knowledge of the dealings between your parents and the Tanaka family."

"I suppose." She stayed silent for a moment. "How did they become friends in the first place?"

"Your grandfather rescued Jurou-sama after an assassination attempt on his life with Jurou-sama was young."

"That's it? I thought it would have been more...more..."

Isaya chuckled. "Exciting? I can't help but agree, but the Tanaka's are a grateful group of people who appreciate those who would protect them, especially those who are not of their own species." There was a moment of silence from him. "Was there anything else that you needed?"

Maya smiled. "No, but I thank you for taking the time to talk to me." She glanced at her watch and then back up at Isaya. "I'm sorry that this meeting didn't last long."

"Think nothing of it, Maya-sama."

_________________________________________________

The night was perfect. It there was a cloudless sky, revealing millions of stars, and there was no wind. Maya stood across the street, shrouded by shadow in an alley that was across from The Gallery. The large glass windows expelled light and view of the vampires inside. Her gaze was primarily focused on a round table  in a corner, the family of ginger-haired men were the subject of her interest. Her feet were beginning to ache from standing in one place for so long. It had been almost three hours since she had stepped into this alley. She was dressed in her Hunter gear, having gone out on a mission just a few hours prior. It was so that she had an alibi, a reason why she had been out there in the first place.

"How much do you want?" Maya asked, slightly impatient. She wanted this plan hashed out by tomorrow. She had met the man in an alley, a rogue hunter who had separated himself from the Association years ago. Maya had done some digging and talked to several people, finally finding the man who was the one for this kind of work. This man was one who was willing to get his hands dirty for any amount of cash. She'd also found out where the Tanaka's were eating dinner tomorrow night. 

"How much do you have?" He said, chewing on a toothpick. She pulled out a rather large wad of cash from her coat pocket and placed in his hand and watched the man count it. She saw his eyes widen as they looked back up at her, then he smirked. "What can I do for you, miss?"

"Can you get to the rooftop across from The Gallery tomorrow evening?"

"I can get anywhere."

"Around 2 a.m., I'll meet you at 1:30 to make sure you're in place." She replied, glancing at the passerby's on the sidewalk.

"Alright. What would you like me to do?"

"I need you to shoot me."

Maya's patience was rewarded when  she saw the Tanaka's get up from their table. She exited the alley and quickly made her way to a stoplight further up the street before crossing over to the other sidewalk, her feet leading her toward The Gallery.  Her eyes flickered to the rooftop across from the restaurant, her incredible eyesight catching the slightest outline of a figure on the roof. Showtime, she thought. She set her shoulders and strolled down the cement sidewalk, keeping an observant expression and looking down each alleyway when she saw Heisuke, his father, and his brothers exit the restaurant. They turned towards her and began walking, talking among themselves. The street was vacant, with no one else around, a perfect place for a Level E to be around. She could sense at least one in the area, another that she had been assigned to kill. Level E's would be drawn to the smell of blood, which was perfect for what she was about to do next. 

As Maya walked, she made sure to scuff her boots a couple of times to catch the man's attention on the roof, a signal to be prepared. When she could feel the man's eyes on her, her expression changed to one of fear and desperation and she picked up her pace until she was sprinting down the sidewalk towards the family of four. 

She saw Heisuke stop, eyes widening, and then grabbed his father by the shoulder. She couldn't hear what he was saying, but the brother's began looking at each other, unnerved to whatever had been said.

"Heisuke!" Maya shouted, catching his attention at the last second before she phased. She jumped, shoving Jurou back with her front paws just as three shots went off. What would have hit the pureblood in the head, hit Maya straight into her arm and side. The momentum she had when she jumped kept propelling her forward and she tumbled onto the cement past the family, rolling to a stop not fifteen feet behind them. 

Maya cried out, but gave a wolfish grin, seeing that the man had vanished form the rooftop. 

"Maya!" Heisuke cried, running over to her fallen form. Maya replaced the smile with a pain filled grimace as she sat up after turning human once more. 

___________________________________________________

Maya heard the door close behind her as she left the Tanaka Manor, a hollow and desolate pit forming in her heart. She had been taken back to their home after she had saved Jurou's life. Just as Isaya had said, they were a generous people, and Maya had made a deal with them. This would allow her to get close to them, to finish what Kaname had asked of her, and she would make sure that it went as planned, but it hurt her to the core. 

"Here is what I want you to do. I want you to get rid of the Tanaka family."

Maya's eyes widened. "I can't do that!"

"In continuing Naomi's goal the reality, there have to be sacrifices."

"You know them! Taro Tanaka was Amara's husband! They aren't going to be a threat to society."

"You will. I order you to."

She let out an unbelieving scoff. "I can't believe you! You're making me do it so that I can feel the fault and not you, do you know how heartless that is?"

Kaname's face stayed blank."If I'm hearing you correctly, you don't want to do it because you care about them, is that right?"

"No, I just think that this is all wrong." Maya snapped. "Do you not see what you are doing? Vampires will turn against their own kind to become stronger, then there could be more Level E's. You will endanger the lives of humans, and the peace you wanted between Hunters and vampires will diminish. Dire-wolves will no longer be a neutral species and that is a dangerous thing to think about. I'm already a result of the manipulation and threats. You're pissing on me without the courtesy of calling it rain."

"If you want to interpret it that way, then yes." He replied, hair moving gently in the breeze that blew through the vast clearing.

"Fantastic," She growled. "What if I say that I won't do it?"

"Then you can be sure that your brother will die, by my hand or by someone else, make no mistake."

Maya bit her lip, looking back at the treeline where her brother had disappeared. She'd made a promise to herself that she wouldn't let anything happen to her close friends and family, especially Kaito. Her brother earned the right to grow old and have a family of his own. He'd done enough and she knew that better than anyone.  "How do you want me to go about it then? Heisuke Tanaka thinks I hate him, that I despise him. I'd want to do this the clean way, or as clean as I can be without rousing any suspicion. If I were to be found out, I'd get in a world of trouble." Maya stated. 

"I know you can think of something, put that heart of yours to use. You said you weren't naive, so prove it. I will not harm your brother as long as you get it done. Going behind my back will not make me hesitate."

"I understand."

She was going to regret this forever if it went right. Having to carry the shame of going against someone she had started to care for. She had never had to do it before, and she feared that it would break her. The thought of Kaito dying would have sent her over the edge in the beginning, and the killing of a friend would only confirm her destination. 

Author Note: Who else is curious as to what Heisuke saw in his premonition about Maya when they first met? < The answer to that won't be exposed until later. Mwahaha. XD

My apologies for the long delay in posting. Finals are almost finished, and then I will be free to write to my heart's content. This chapter is long because of that reason. 

How do you guys feel about Maya's situation? What do you think about her in general? 

 THANKS   Shokugeki_No_Soma   for commenting, voting and supporting my work! You're awesome!