I recently discovered that I am totally addicted to Vampire Knight, so I decided to write a little one-shot about a certain paring that's got me very interested.
Summary: Sometimes when you're looking for something, it can turn up in the most unexpected places. ZeroxYuuki
Patrol Duty
To say that Cross Yuuki was mad would be an understatement. It would be a very, very big understatement. To say that Cross Yuuki was seething, fuming, and insanely mad would be a slightly more accurate statement.
She was; of course, mad about what she was always mad about when it came time to go on patrol duty. It happened every time, practically. Well, sometimes it wouldn't, but usually it did.
Zero had, as usual, bailed from his duty as a Guardian to make sure that none of the Day Class students were prowling about for the sake of their hormones and that no Night Class students were prowling about for the sake of their bloodlust.
Still, it wasn't that he'd bailed that got her so mad. It was the fact that he'd promised her. He had sworn up and down – albeit grudgingly – that he would come to help her patrol tonight. Of course he wouldn't run off halfway through, or not show up at all. Zero kept his promises, right?
Wrong, and Yuuki was going to wring his neck for it.
"Zero you stupid, stupid jerk…" Yuuki grumbled as she stalked through the forested area just outside the Moon Dormitory. Had she not known any better, she would have been totally freaked out walking about alone. It was, after all, the daily haunt for a dorm full of vampires. Regardless, Yuuki had been left to patrol by herself far too many times to get stressed out about it anymore.
It just wasn't worth the effort, really.
Besides, if she was worried, she wouldn't have enough time to plot, and Yuuki was going to plot. In fact, she'd come up with a couple different ways to reap her revenge upon Kiryuu Zero, and all of them would be extremely satisfying.
Provided Zero didn't kill her for his own revenge. That would suck.
She rounded the corner of the stone wall protecting the Moon Dorms from the rest of the campus, and was met with a flash of moonlight silver hair as a shadowed form passed around the opposite corner of the wall.
Yuuki snarled under her breath. She'd found him.
Maybe he was running away. Perhaps he'd sensed her, and had decided to take a hasty retreat. That coward…he was such a jerk.
"Oh no you don't," Yuuki hissed, and took off after him at a dead sprint. She would catch him no matter what. Zero was going to pay for this.
Once she'd finally made it around the other corner, Yuuki could finally make out the black Day Class uniform, and tall, lithe form of her fellow Guardian. He was walking at a leisurely pace, as if he had something to be casual about.
Well, he did. That is, until Hurricane Yuuki got a hold on him. Then he'd have something to seriously worry about.
"Kiryuu Zero, I'm going to kill you!" She shouted, taking a flying leap at the body just ahead of her.
The body stiffened, and Zero turned. His light lavender eyes widened in surprise as she jumped towards him. Unable to stop herself now that she'd jumped, Yuuki brought a grunt from Zero as she slammed into his chest. They toppled to the ground, Zero having been unprepared to carry her weight. To her own surprise, she felt his two arms form a cage of protection around her body, and when they hit the ground, Zero had taken the brunt of the blow.
"You…idiot…" He coughed out, flattened to the ground by her body, which was sprawled on top of his.
Yuuki felt an embarrassed blush flare onto her cheeks, and she quickly pushed herself up off of him, dusting off her uniform to give her a reason to avoid eye contact.
Zero leered at her, and with another grunt, got up onto his feet, "What…the hell…possessed you to do that?" He asked, accusation colouring his tone.
Yuuki, suddenly recalling the reason as to why she'd accosted her friend, narrowed her eyes at him. "You broke your promise, Kiryuu Zero." 'There, take that'. She thought with smug triumph.
"What promise, exactly, did I break?"
He appeared annoyed with her, and seemed to be finding no reason as to why he were guilty of the heinous deed Yuuki had him pinned for. In fact, he looked about to blame her for jumping on him without reason. She had a very good reason, thank you very much!
Yuuki jabbed a finger at him, getting right up into his face, "You promised to patrol with me tonight! But did you show up? No! You didn't even give me a reason! You just up and left after class! What's wrong with you?"
He leaned away from her, his eyebrow knitted in frustration, "Jeez…" He murmured, scratching the back of his head and rolling his eyes at her behavior, "You don't need to get all excited about it. It's not like I've got perfect patrolling attendance anyways."
"That's exactly why I made you promise!" Yuuki protested, anger blazing through her, "You promised me and you broke that promise!"
"I wasn't trying to break any promises!" Zero exploded, causing Yuuki to reel back in shock. She took a few instinctive steps back from the angry vampire, and crossed her arms to avoid appearing too frightened.
"Then explain how you didn't break your promise to patrol tonight." Yuuki said softly, her eyes averted still. She was really getting sick of his attitude today.
Zero bared his teeth at no one in particular, obviously mulling over some internal struggle…again. Suddenly very guilty, Yuuki reached out towards him, her hand closing some of the distance between them.
"Zero…I'm sorry. What's wrong? Why couldn't you patrol tonight?" Yuuki took a step forwards, closing some more distance.
He looked away, now the one who was unable to keep eye contact, "I was…out."
"Out…?" She queried, confused, "Out where?"
"Out…getting something."
"Getting what?"
"A…present."
"For who?"
"For someone."
"Who is this someone?"
"A person."
"Do they have a name?"
"Yes," Zero murmured. He appeared kind of…embarrassed. Why in the world would Zero, of all people, be embarrassed?
Yuuki felt a tug on her lips. This was certainly…different. Usually Zero's exterior was a hard, cold mask: impenetrable and unwelcoming. Right now he seemed like a normal, flustered guy.
"Does Zero-kun have a crush on someone?" Yuuki asked slyly, and Zero's entire body twitched. His head sunk lower in an effort to totally block her out.
There was a sudden silence as Yuuki waited impatiently for an answer. Who would Zero have a crush on? She suddenly started flipping through the faces of all of the Day Class girls. It wouldn't be a vampire, would it?
Zero fumbled in his pockets for a second, "I don't have a crush on anyone." He said finally, lifting his head to stare at her evenly. The coldness was creeping back up onto his face…
"Neh? Then why the reaction?" She asked, smirking insanely.
He twitched again.
"C'mon Zero," Yuuki whined, closing the distance between them. She placed both hands on his shoulders, "You can tell me."
"No, I really can't."
"Yes you can."
"No, I can't."
"Yes you can! You can trust me Zero!"
"And…?"
"If you trust me, you know I won't tell anyone anything!"
"I trust you."
"So, who is it?"
One fang protruded from his lower lip as he gave her an annoyed frown, "Just because I trust you doesn't mean I'm going to tell you."
"But I want to know who it is!"
Zero rolled his eyes, "I already told you that I don't like anyone. I'm just not telling you who the present is for."
Yuuki huffed, pouting in a childish way. "Well, you didn't have to lead me on like that. You got me all excited…I wanted to meet the lucky girl."
Zero cocked an eyebrow at that statement, "Lucky…?" He asked skeptically, flashing an appropriate show of fangs.
"Oh please, Zero." Yuuki snapped, annoyed with the self-disgust that was eminent in his expression and tone, "You can't seriously ignore the fact that lots of the girls in the Day Class are interested."
She giggled suddenly, and Zero cocked an eyebrow. "What's so funny?" He demanded, furrowing his brow.
"I take it that you're…not aware of the little club they've made for you." Yuuki said; smirking as the little colour in his skin drained away completely. "Some of the girls seem to prefer you to the Night Class boys."
To regain what little of his composure he had left, Zero scoffed and turned on his heel, "That's only because I'm…a vampire like them."
"You may be a vampire," Yuuki pointed out, "But you're not like the Night Class boys. I mean, I was your best friend for four years, and I didn't figure it out until you bit me."
"Thanks for the pick-me-up." He droned sarcastically, scowling at her.
Why was Zero always scowling? She rarely, if ever, saw him smile. In fact, she couldn't even pinpoint what his laugh sounded like. That wasn't healthy…
Yuuki sighed, digging her toe into the dirt, "So…what were you doing? Seriously, Zero."
He sighed also, apparently no longer willing to humor this topic. His hand went back into his pocket, apparently to touch something, "Do you know…what today is?"
She smiled. Yes, she did know what this day was. This day was the four year anniversary of the first day she'd met Zero, the beginning of their friendship. Part of the reason why she'd been so angry at him for not showing was that she'd been really eager to give him the present she'd bought for him…
Oh…oh.
Yuuki looked up at Zero, wide-eyed, "You were…?" She trailed off, unsurely.
"Yeah, I was getting you a present." He sighed again, pulling out from his pocket a small box, wrapped in green paper and laced with a pretty gold bow. Hesitantly, Yuuki accepted it.
"I got Zero a present too," She told him as she carefully undid the bow, tucking it into her pocket. Okay, so she was a bit of a pack rat. "But I left it in the Chairman's office so that I could give it to you after we went patrolling. I'm sorry."
"Don't worry about it," Zero replied quickly, "It was my fault anyways." He still looked kind of uncomfortable.
Yuuki caressed the top of the gift for a moment before lifting the lid. She gasped when she saw the delicate, pretty silver bracelet lying in the satin folds of the box. It was just a silver band with a few small violet jewels in them, so simple. It was simple, but it was breathtaking in its simplicity.
"Wow Zero…it's so…pretty."
It was certainly the lamest thank you she could have mustered, but Yuuki was quite at a loss for words.
Zero looked away, shoving both of his hands deep into his pockets, "Yeah, well…the Chairman thought up the idea anyways."
Zero was such a liar. The Chairman hadn't been in all day.
Instead of pointing out the fib, Yuuki stepped towards Zero and gave him a tight, friendly hug. "Thank you, Zero."
He stiffened in her embrace, "You're…welcome." He choked, craning his head away from her as far as his neck would allow.
Realization stung Yuuki like a prick on the finger, and she leapt backwards, "Oh! Zero! I'm sorry! I forgot that…my being so close would, well, you know…" She put her hands behind her back and bowed her head apologetically.
A low chuckle escaped Zero's throat, and Yuuki glanced up at him in surprise. It wasn't a laugh, but it was pretty darn close.
"What's so funny?" She quipped, quoting his exact words from earlier.
Zero shrugged, an annoying hint of smugness in his expression, "You. You never think about me being a…vampire. It just never occurs to you, does it?"
"Not really, no." Yuuki admitted truthfully. It was moments like this when telling the truth was better than a little white lie or two.
"…This is why you're such an idiot."
Or…maybe not.
The seriousness had returned to his face, and Zero leaned down towards Yuuki's semi-exposed throat, "Are you thinking about it now?" He asked huskily, drawing a shiver down Yuuki's spine.
Yuuki shook her head, "O-Only that Zero is being awfully close."
Another chuckle. His head descended further, until Yuuki could feel his hot breath on her neck. His fangs were barely an inch away from her skin, "How about now? Are you afraid of me?"
Her knees buckled, and she dropped to the ground. Zero caught her, however, and eased both of them down onto their knees. His lips were still close to her throat, having not moved at all.
"What are y-you trying to prove, Zero?" Yuuki demanded, another shiver raking up and down her spine.
"That you're an idiot." He replied simply, and his head moved down that one last movement that closed the distance between them. Instead of biting her this time, however, he brushed his lips against her neck before resting his head in the crook of her shoulder.
"Z-Z-Zero?" Yuuki exclaimed, shocked at the very blatant display of affection.
"Mm?"
"What are you-?"
"Stay still." He instructed, before lifting his head again. Now their noses were practically touching, and his eyes were sharply focused on her. Yuuki was having a hard time not getting lost in those twin pools of violet.
His eyelids drooped slightly, and he leaned towards her face. Yuuki closed her eyes. He was going to kiss her. Was he going to kiss her? Yuuki wasn't sure if she was ready to have Zero of all people, kiss her.
"Z-Zero…!"
She was jolted, however, when he chuckled again. There was an odd, satisfied smile on his face, and pulled away, stealing a kiss on the tip of her nose instead of her lips.
Yuuki blinked. What had just happened?
"Come on, let's finish patrol." Zero told her, standing up swiftly and offering her a hand. She took it, letting him pull her up onto her feet. She was still feeling kind of shaky, actually.
Yuuki bit her lip, "Zero…what were you doing? Why did you k-?" She cut herself off, choosing instead to touch her nose and blush at him. He barked out a laugh at her, turning away and snickering under his breath.
"Zero," She murmured, "Does…does Zero care about Yuuki?"
Zero turned around, his eyes clouded with an indecipherable mix of emotions. Suddenly an odd expression flashed across his face, and he turned his head towards her, smirking.
"Maybe." He said simply, shrugging slightly. Who knew that one word would be so cryptic. But his face softened, and the realization was like a punch in the stomach.
Yuuki blinked, "Maybe…Zero cares about me?" She paused, letting the full realization sink in. Zero…cared.
Maybe Zero loved her? Her mind's eye flickered to a different face; a pale face framed with beautiful brown hair and deep brown eyes flecked with red. The image distorted into another image, one of the moonlight haired boy with violet eyes.
Both were equally dear to her heart, though she was loathe to admit that she was a little bit…stuck.
Zero loved her.
He began to walk away, not really needing to hear any more. The satisfied smile remained, because to confuse her emotions was as good as her saying out loud that she cared about him too.
Then a very derisive recollection hit her, and Yuuki's eyes snapped open wide, "Zero! You said that you didn't have a crush on anyone!" The absolute conviction was enough to make her face turn red, even as she accused him.
Zero stopped mid step, and inclined his head slightly towards her, the smile widening into a very smug, very mean smirk.
"I lied." He said simply, and resumed walking away at a brisk pace.
Yuuki stood, rooted to the ground. Her mouth flapped open and closed like a fish before she finally exploded.
"Zero, you jerk! I'm going to kill you!"
End