Is there a point to pretend he doesn't know the name?

"He asked me out when I was in Tokyo."

"When was it?"

Tsukki sees where it going.
"A few weeks ago."
Vladimir hums.

"Right before you left the country, right?"

Tsukki feels his legs muscles tense, but nods.

"Do you know what Kentaro Kyoushi is famous for, Tsukki?" Vladimir asks after a short pause.

"He's famous?" Tsukki chuckles nervously. Vladimir chuckles too, savouring the look on Tsukki's face.

"Oh, yeah. He's famous even here, in Russia. Not like blogger or politics, his fame is quite ...specific." Vladimir's fingers are twirling the teaspoon, he thinks for a second and says:
"I would say he's famous as one of the most dangerous men in the northern hemisphere."

"Good I got away from him then?" Tsukki suggests, but he already feels like the floor is crumbling underneath him and he's falling deep into the vortex.

"The thing is, Tsukki." Vladimir sips the tea, pointedly, "He isn't the one who let go of his goals easy."

Tsukki's jaw hardens. Does it mean Kentaro found out where he is? Did he ask Vladimir about it? Why Vladimir is telling him this? What does he want? To get Tsukki away? To frighten him?

"He's in Moscow right now."

Fuck! The sense of the highest insecurity and inability to do something spreads all over Tsukki's limbs once again. If he could, he would scream it out. He knew modern technologies made nearly impossible to disappear. But it wasn't even a few months of quiet life. He shouldn't have been taken flight to Moscow, where they have cameras on every step. Should've go to another city

Though he doubts now whether it would help.

"When my brother told me he's going to have a friend over, I was surprised. Who would've come straight into the middle of russian Siberian winter willingly I thought. But I let it go." There's a sense of threat in Vladimir's voice.

"When he told the friend probably has some troubles with Yakuza, I was worried. He might bring his troubles right into my brother's house I thought. But I let it go too." Tsukki thinks hardly how to get out and barely listens.

"Yet now, when I know Kentaro is searching for my brother's friend... Tsukki, I'm on the verge of panic." Vladimir stares at him, "Hell, no. I'm panicking. Cause if Kentaro wants someone, that someone means danger. Do you know what kind of danger I'm talking about, Tsukki?"

There was no way Vladimir didn't know who was in front of him.

"I would never hurt Marat," Tsukki only say, voice is barely out of his throat.

"Funny you should say it now when you what, twenty days without any... food?"

"Fifteen," Tsukki mumbles.

"Grabbed a bite on the way here? Wise move. But time isn't helping you, is it, Tsukki?"

What should he say? They both know it's true and if there won't be any chance to drink someone else, Tsukki can reach the state where it doesn't matter for him whom to sink his teeth in.

"I bet you already feel it. See how my veins are pulsing," Vladimir strokes the neck with his palm and Tsukki gulps, watching, hearing the essence of life running underneath the skin. "Tempting , isn't it? I once has seen how one of your kind was three months hungry," Tsukki shudders, the imagination takes better out of him. "That was both frightening and pitiful scene. He was so out of his mind, he tried to bite a chunk of wood I threw him. Got his canine broken."

Vladimir laughs like he told the funniest joke. Then stops abruptly.

"I have also seen how vampires tore apart a young girl, barely ten. Not out of hunger, just for the sake of it."

Tsukki wrinkles his nose. He's heard about it and didn't approve it in the slightest. Bastards come up in every kind. He notices Vladimir getting out of the table.

"You know, I can't let anything like that happen to my brother, Tsukki, right?"

Next second Tsukki lunges for the door, ducks under Vladimir's hand and runs to the house entrance. He's faster, he gotta do that. He thinks he's done it when feels the metal handle under the palm, yanks it and breathes in frosty air. But at the same instant his legs are tied together and he smashes the snow on the porch face front.

He turns the head and sees Vladimir coming at him, holding the weapon in his right. Tsukki tries to crawl away, hears the snow crunching underneath him. But he's immediately on his back  and his hands are pinched down on the cold surface by Vladimir's knees.

In a wild motion Tsukki aims for Vladimir's groin with his teeth, thinking if he got lucky, he'll be able both harm the opponent and have some blood, but a fist connects with his jaw.

"Don't you even think about it!" the man, sitting on him growls and hits him a couple of more times, knocking Tsukki off.

****
When he comes around, his head is splitting. Every breath brings pain to it. So do the lights above. His eyes are watering. And he's hungry.

How many days are gone to get him that hungry?

"You were out for three days. Sorry, didn't realise you're so fragile."

That's Vladimir's voice.

Tsukki tries to move.

"Stop it there, Sleeping Beauty," immediate response. "If you'll try to do anything, I'm gonna doze you with this." Tsukki gets his eyes on the voice source and notices the syringe in Vladimir's hand. "Though I would prefer to hit you once again, cause I know this shit doesn't work on you, vampires, effectively like it does on humans."

Tsukki flinches involuntarily, expecting the blow.

But it doesn't come.

"Unfortunately, I was told to keep you safe and sound and all your limbs intact. Otherwise, you'd would woke up missing a finger or two."

"Why?"

"Kentaro wants something from you. And though I personally disagree with some of his opinions, I prefer don't argue with him. At least not now, when..."

Vladimir cuts himself. It spikes Tsukki's interest, but Vladimir doesn't go on and Tsukki decides not to nudge him, but the question sets in his head. What was he intended to say? Does he have a brawl with Kentaro? True, there were a lot of disagreements between hunters, but if there were some real dangers, they were tend to combine their forces.

Maybe it's possible to use one against the other? If there's the slightest opportunity, he should use it. It looks like Vladimir admits Kentaro's authority. But does he do it willingly? Oh, if it was Ran on his place, he would definitely come up with something that might cause a split in the common work of the hunters.

"He's gonna be here in two days. The flights are still cancelled in the western part due to the weather, so he took a train. Until he comes here, please be a good boy and don't do anything that might make me want to kill you." Vladimir says and leaves the room.

Next couple of days Tsukki spends in considering his way out. He's not in Marat's house, looks like he's in Irkutsk. He could see a high building from his room's window and hear cars signalling occasionally.

If he'll free himself, he might get lost in the city. It's big enough and doesn't have a lot of cameras.

But there's nothing around that might help him to get rid of handcuffs and the tightness in his stomach grows with every hour.

He doesn't know exact time when Kentaro will come. But somehow he senses it.

***

Blood. It isn't hot, it isn't fresh and pumping.

But it's blood. His veins are singing prayers for his saviour. He makes a tentative sip, but the canine tears the packet and next second he is splashed with dark, metallic smelling liquid.

"No! No!" He tries to make huge swallows, finding the packet emptying too fast and becoming flat. "No!"

Infuriated, he jerks only to feel the metal of handcuffs sinking deep into his wrists. He's thrashing, they dig deeper. If only he drank the whole packet, he would be able to rip the wood of the bed where handcuffs are attached off.

"Hey, hey. It's okay, Tsukki, everything's fine. I've got another one, I've got plenty, look," The hand stretches in the invitation gesture.

Tsukki turns the head and notices the big plastic container, filled with the packages alike the one that had been torn. He gets his eyes up and meets honey brown ones. The next second the hand grabs another packet, makes a tiny hole and brings it to Tsukki's mouth.

He's sipping, more patient now. Screwing his eyes on the side, on the raven haired man he hoped he won't see again. He asks when empties the packet.

"What do you think doing, Kentaro?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm saving you."

"Why the fuck do you need this?"

"I know you've seen those vampires I killed in the dungeon. But trust me, I didn't do it out of spite."

"Oh, really?" Tsukki feels humiliated, taking food out of hands of hands of his enemy, but he needs to get his strength and ability to think calm and straight back. "What was that then? A charity massacre? In the name of god or whatever?"

Kentaro wrinkles his nose.

"I told you I'm not religious. And those vamps were doomed to die anyway."

"Of course they did, you..."

"You don't understand, Tsukki, they were the ones we tried to cure from vamp virus, but they didn't make it."

"What?"