Miss Darcy Blackwood,
We are pleased to inform you that you're transfer to Cross Academy as a student in our day class has been confirmed.
Within the next month we shall expect you to arrive to attend the next semester of school.
Attached is a list of supplies needed for your studies.
We look forward to welcoming you to our prestigious establishment.
Signed,
Kaien Cross
Headmaster at Cross Academy
The sun was bright through the bay windows of the dining room. I was sat at the table, sipping a cup of earl grey whilst I read the letter. It crumpled in my long, feminine fingers as I placed it on the table. I was elated to finally have confirmation of my transfer to Cross Academy.
"Mum, come read the letter from Cross Academy." I called to my mother, who was busy in the kitchen putting together breakfast with our butler, Jeremy. I heard the sound of fine china being cluttered together as she swept into the room, her midnight black hair bouncing about her shoulders in a well groomed, soft bob and her eyes blue like a warm summer's day.
"Did they accept?" She asked with a voice like liquid honey, picking up the letter from the table and sitting down next to me.
I nodded, taking another sip of my tea as her eyes skimmed across the page.
"That's wonderful, darling!" She gasped, enveloping me in a warm embrace and tucking my chin into her shoulder. "Oh Jeremy, did you hear. My little girl is off to Japan to study at one of the best schools in the world!" She released me, smiling brightly.
An elderly man walked out of the kitchen, wringing his hands on a tea towel and his clear eyes twinkling.
"That's great news, Miss Blackwood. I'm very glad to hear it." He exited the room, before returning with breakfast. He set the food down on the table in front of us before standing by the door awaiting any requests.
"Your father would be proud, Darcy." Mother took my hands in hers and she met my gaze with watery blue eyes.
My father would be proud to know that I was going off to Japan to study under a headmaster that was also the Vampire Hunter's Association President. He would be pleased to know that I was going to be at the academy run by the best, that being said my father was a vampire hunter and if he were still alive – he would be training me himself.
My father was killed in action ten years ago when I was seven. He was killed by a pack of level E's that teamed up to take out some of a small town on the outskirts of London. My father was a brave man, and a fierce lover of family, he would have been happy to die in an honourable way.
"I know, mum." I smiled, squeezing her hands in mine.
Two weeks later, I was at Heathrow Airport ready to board a plane to Japan. My mother was crying incessantly and from the looks of it wasn't planning on stopping any time soon. She held on to me tightly as the flight security looked over my passport and ticket.
I was handed back my papers with an uninterested look from the security guy.
"Mum, you're going to have to let go now. I've got to get on the plane." I pleaded, trying to pry the woman from my body.
"I know, darling, but it's just that after seventeen years it's hard to see your baby go." She cried, holding me at arm's length.
I sighed and kissed her tear stained cheek. "I love you, mum. I'll write to you all the time." I bent to pick up my flight bag.
"I love you, Darcy! Be a good girl!" She called to me as I walked through to board the plane that would take me to Japan in as little as six hundred and ninety minutes or eleven and a half hours if you want to depress yourself.
The flight was incredibly dull and I was glad when we finally landed in Japan, where I could sleep in a car until I got to the Academy. Everything was going according to plan, there were no hiccups with my luggage and when I eventually got to sit down in the car that was dropping me off I fell asleep.
I don't know what it is about cars, maybe it's the rocking of the vehicle on the roads or maybe it's the darkness that comes with tinted windows, but I never fail to go to sleep in one.
It was a dreamless sleep, well. Dreamless by my standards, I would always see these blood thirsty glowing red eyes in my sleep. Every single night was haunted by these eyes, but it was such a regular thing I thought nothing of it now.
"Miss Blackwood, we've arrived."
I stirred from my fitful slumber to stare up at tall wrought iron gates through the windscreen. They were accented at the top by a sun and a crescent moon and the Academy behind those gates looked very promising. It was a fashioned out of an old English castle that made me feel right at home, having lived in England for the past seventeen years.
The gates swung open, inviting the car to drive inside. The car crawled up the paved entrance. There weren't any students out and about as it was very late and the day classes were restricted by a curfew. The night class would be in succession at the moment.
My door was opened for me to climb out of the car, and I looked up at the enormity of Cross Academy. I listened to my driver open the boot of the car to collect my belongings, before closing it again with a thud.
"Ah. Miss Darcy Blackwood." I turned to face a bespectacled man with long golden blonde hair and a handsome smile. "Welcome to Cross Academy."
He came to stand in front of me and that's when I noticed his shoes, which were some manner of slipper that had plush lion heads at the toe. I looked back up at his face somewhat confused.
He appeared to be around thirty years old, but looking at his shoes I wondered if there was anything wrong with the man, or maybe he just had an affinity for children's bed shoes.
"I am Kaien Cross, the headmaster of Cross Academy." He held out his hand for me to shake, which I took in a firm handshake. But was suddenly thrown into a very uncomfortable hug and was being spun around in this strange man's embrace. "Darcy! Welcome!" He sang.
I was placed back on the ground feeling very delicate. This man is insane.
"I don't think she liked that very much, old man." Came an unfamiliar voice from beside me, I looked up to see a hard faced teenage boy in the day class uniform.
"Zero!" The headmaster whined at the handsome silver haired student before thick fat tears began rolling down his cheeks.
Feeling rather unsettled at the headmaster's strange reaction I played with my long black curls which had become rather matted from the very long journey and began combing the knots out with my fingers.
"Mister Cross, can't you see you've made her very uncomfortable?" I looked up from my black locks to see another student had joined in the frivolity. A girl now, with short choppy brown hair and russet eyes, she was rather petite but I could tell she could be fiery.
"Yuuki! Not you too!" The headmaster began flailing his arms like a child, his crying becoming louder and more disturbing. "Why don't my son and daughter love me?" He wept.
These two were his children? I would have never guessed.
"I'm not your son, old man." Growled the tall male student, Zero, I think Cross said his name was. The headmaster if possible cried louder.
"Now now." Yuuki hushed, patting her father on the back reassuringly. This was most definitely the most dysfunctional family I'd ever seen. Headmaster Cross settled down before beaming happily at the petite girl.
"Yuuki, Zero, this is our new transfer student from London - Miss Darcy Blackwood." The headmaster, having finally calmed down introduced us. I eyed him warily, just in case he tried to hug me again or something.
"A pleasure to meet you both," I sighed feeling rather stiff and awkward from the whole situation.
"And you too, Darcy!" replied the bubbly brunette with a bright smile. Zero just nodded with a grunt, like he could barely be bothered to acknowledge my presence. What an arse.
"Don't take Zero too seriously; he's not really nice to anyone." The headmaster reassured me with a waving hand gesture like he was trying to dismiss my immediate dislike of his son/student.
"That's good to know." I answered, looking up at the tall, strong and silent Zero, that's when I caught a glimpse of a tattoo on his neck, behind his collar. My eyes widened momentarily, it looked to be a hunter's tattoo.
"Well, Yuuki, if you've finished your patrol perhaps you could show Miss Blackwood to her dorm." Suggested Cross with a sincere smile.
"Of course."
Yuuki bowed respectfully, before turning to me with another warm smile.
"Shall we get going, I bet you're exhausted."
"That would be great," at least I know that it's not Japanese people that are insane, just the headmaster. She took off, taking one of my trunks with her and I followed hauling the second, looking back briefly to catch Zero and Headmaster Cross walking off talking in hushed tones. Yuuki led me around the buildings, advising me on which way was the quickest to the main building from the day class dormitories.
After winding around the dorms, she stopped in front of a door and pulled out a set of keys. Inserting the key into the lock and turning it, Yuuki pushed open the door.
"This is one of the only free rooms. You don't have anyone to share the room with which is nice." She walked in, setting down the suitcase by the wardrobe and I did the same with mine, before sitting on the edge of the bed.
"Thanks for showing me to my room, Yuuki." I said, covering my mouth as I yawned.
"You're welcome, I could come meet you in the morning to take you to class, if you'd like?"
This girl is too nice, it puts me to shame. "That would be really helpful, thank you."
"No problem, I'll be going then. Sleep well." Yuuki smiled warmly, placing a key to the door on my suitcase before departing.
"Goodnight." I replied as the door closed. I lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling feeling a sudden pang of something in my chest. It's not a pleasant feeling, not painful more uncomfortable than anything. I suppose it's because this is the first time I've been away from my family before, I'm used to having someone there to talk to always.
This will take some getting used to, but from the hype of this school. It will all be worth it.
After another haunting crimson eyed dream, I awoke still feeling a bit jet lagged and I had a painful crick in my back from the unfamiliar bed. I arched my spine hoping to crack it back into position. I sighed with relief when I heard a soft crack.
Sitting up in the bed I looked about the now well-lit bedroom. It was bland and boring, and I wondered if I could decorate it, being that I had no one to share the room with.
I slid off the bed and stood to look out the window. The Academy was beautiful, bright and airy with a feeling of old money and history in the buildings. I could see the gardens just past the path to the main building of the school. They were well kept with a large fountain and flowers blooming along with topiary and small water features.
If I looked in the other direction I could make out the Moon Dorm, which housed the night class students, looking at it I felt a familiar chill go up my spine - a chill that I hadn't felt in years and one that I recognised immediately.
I jumped when I heard a soft rapping at my door.
"Darcy, are you awake?" called Yuuki through the wood of my dormitory door.
"Yes, Yuuki." I gasped, my hand rubbing at the back of my neck, coaxing the hairs that were standing on end to smooth down. I sighed, "Do you know where the showers are?"
I moved to unlock the door, opening it wide to see fresh faced Yuuki, her bush baby eyes wide and trusting.
"I'll show you to them. You'll have to be quick though, classes start in an hour." She smiled, waiting for me to grab a towel and my uniform.
Yuuki showed me to the showers, which were just down the hall from my bedroom. I scrubbed and lathered and combed out my mess of black hair. I felt thoroughly refreshed and wide awake after the shower.
After towel drying off, and dressing for the first time in my Cross Academy uniform, I was ready for my first day of classes.
Yuuki led the way to the main building, we passed the dorm gates. Students of the day class started piling out of the Sun Dorm and were making their way to classes. I was stared at by a few bolder male students which I effectively glared off. I was not here to fraternize with boys. I was here to learn and possibly study under one of the best Vampire Hunters in Japan.
"Yuuki, are the boys in class always so creepy?" I asked after we'd taken our seats in class and I was introduced to her friend Sayori who was nice enough. I motioned towards the male students who were sat at the back and seemed to be dribbling all over themselves like babies.
"Eh?" She turned to look at said boys and her face turned grim. "I've not seen the boys act like that before, it's normally the girls that act like that over the night class." She mumbled to herself.
"Don't worry about them, Darcy. Boys are like dogs, they need training." Sayori joked quietly, before turning back to her studies. I smiled; snorting to hold back a laugh and taking one last look at the boys behind me, spotting Zero with his eyes narrowed in interest. His tattoo bringing back memories of my father that I'd long forgotten. So I wasn't wrong, that is a vampire hunter tattoo. But, that is a seal to-
I watched him more suspiciously, his almond shaped lilac eyes locking with my golden hazel and in that moment, I think we both realised that I knew what he was. Of course I knew. How I had not sensed it before.
Zero Kiryu was a vampire, the sad thing was I was almost certain he was bitten by another vampire and so he would slowly degenerate to a level E.
"Miss Blackwood, would you be able to recite the last paragraph of chapter thirteen?" I turned back to my teacher with a start.
"Yes, of course." I replied, calmly turning the pages until I reached said section.
After class had finished Yuuki and Sayori invited me to come out to a café off school premises for dinner. But, as much as I'd enjoy going to eat out, I was a curious teen. I wanted to explore the Academy grounds, or at least that was my excuse.
"Thanks, but I'd like to have an in depth exploration of the Academy – perhaps another time?" I smiled politely before bowing my head and wishing them a nice evening. I expect that I'll see Yuuki later anyway, if she is patrolling the grounds.
The two girls left, leaving me to my own devices. I walked back to my dorm room, and began rummaging through my suitcase until I pulled out my bow and my sling full of arrows. It was varnished maple and caught the light beautifully. I had named it Windrunner, and my father had passed it down to me. I loved the size of her, long to the point where it was just over half the length of me.
Along the bow was an engraving in Latin, it read 'Ut Maneat Mortui Mortuos' which translated to 'May the Dead Stay Dead'. It was a Vampire Hunter's weapon and despite my lack of training I was rather deadly with it, though mother had always told me that she didn't want me to follow the same path as father and would confiscate Windrunner often.
I took a deep cleansing breath, pulling back the bowstring and focusing on the sound of the string as it became taut and grazing on the arrow as I released it. I had taken archery from a young age, which is why I suppose, I was so handy with the bow and arrow.
I twisted, thrusting the arrows tip out aggressively, before crossing my legs to turn again and swiftly releasing the bow in an attack, it lodged deep into the fabric of my suitcase. I felt the heavy weight of Windrunner in my right hand and balancing it on my palm, testing the weight and counter balance.
Windrunner had not seen the light of day for quite some time. I smiled brightly; it was almost like she was an extension of my arm. Hanging the bow across my back again, I prepared to head out.
I had to be able to sense his presence, to be able to tell where he was now and to be able to sneak up on him without him noticing me. This would be a true test of my very rusty skills.
I left the room, locking the door behind me.
"What's that?" I spun around on my heel, swiftly pulling Windrunner from my back and loading it to point it menacingly at the owner of the voice. Which happened to be the person I was about to set out hunting for.
His eyes darkened and he stood completely motionless as my arrow pressed at his chest. I watched him warily his vampire hunter gun pointed at me. It was a standoff, how interesting.
I smiled mischievously and began to square off.
"You think I don't know what you are, Zero?" His eyes widened a fraction before he covered his emotions flawlessly.
"What I am?" He feigned innocence, yet still dared to point his gun at me.
"Drop it, Zero. Your bloody rose won't work on me, I'm no vampire." My eyes sparkled as he realised I had seen through his obvious flaw. Slowly he lowered his weapon, keeping his parma violet eyes locked with mine.
"Who are you?" He seemed genuinely curious, still flicking his eyes between Windrunner and my face.
"I am Darcy Blackwood, daughter of James Blackwood - a famous Vampire Hunter in London, England and I have been trained to show no mercy to level E Vampires," Especially after my father was murdered by a coven of them.
"A Vampire Hunter - you should recognise my name then." This confused me, I understood that his tattoo was a vampire hunter seal to prevent the vampire nature in him from taking over, but the name Zero Kiryu wasn't one that I had ever heard of.
"Don't flatter yourself." I smirked, no I hadn't heard of him.
"I come from a family of well-established Vampire Hunters." He said keeping his calm, disinterested tone of voice.
"That doesn't mean that you aren't a vampire." I shot back.
"No, I suppose it doesn't." He replied, and after a pause he pushed the arrow out of his way and walked off leaving me with my bow strung and my mouth wide open like a fish out of water. He had the audacity to just walk away from me.
"Where do you think you're going?!" I shouted after him, shoulders tense with irritation loosening the tension of my fingers across the strings.
Zero didn't reply, he just nonchalantly waved as if to say 'I can't be bothered to talk to you'.
It was incredibly frustrating.