My first Vampire Knight fanfiction... Please don't be horrible. Constructive criticism would be nice but anything would be good! Thank you so much for reading!

I never realized how quickly life could change. As a vampire, I had lived longer than most and the thought of time had seemed to become an abstract idea rather than a prominent thought. One action or inaction can lead to an entire change of lives, or relationships.

Small things- such as letting a Level E live one second longer, standing in the sun one too many minutes, or one flippant comment directed at the wrong moment can lead to one change, then continue in a dominoe effect, changing the path originally intended.

Before him, I had never really thought about the consequences of said tiny actions. I had never really been concerned about anything before he changed everything. I had never cared so much for people, they all seemed to just be little pawns that are intended to make life that much harder.

My mother, a slight madwoman, had never seemed to be more than just a prick in my side, a person to be cared for. She could do very little for herself and became barely more than a chore to be done from day to day.

My father, a great and powerful Pureblood, had been absent and had never really mattered to me. He had never been around, and that may have been for the best.

My cousin was a revered ancestor of the prominent Purebloods come to be again living. He was never really a particular piece in my life. I did as he said when it came to me being in the Night Class, as what was the point in fighting him?

Alas, only one change, one movement, can change all your values, all the things you have believed for your entire life.

I leaned farther into the column, content to just watch as people milled about, dancing, talking, and laughing. I smiled as I saw Ruka keeping her eyes on Kaname, never so much as wavering to Kain, who stood beside her, murmuring to her. Occasionally, she would nod or speak, but she never focused on Kain.

My eyes went to the whole point of this party, a blonde haired, green eyed vampire, content on watching others, amicable as always. I could hear him laughing from across the courtyard. The moonlight touched each person's face, lighting it up and yet still making it obvious what we were. So called, "Monsters" of the Night.

I chuckled at the words, at how childish hunters could be. Not all of us are insane bloodsucking monsters that care for none but ourselves. Many are, but truly? They aren't the worthwhile ones.

I took a soft sip from my glass, grimacing at the taste. Though it could sate our thirst, it was nothing compared to blood. Real blood. Dark red, warm, straight from a human. Nothing artificial could compare to the magnificence of it. I swish the glass around, my eyes staying on it.

"Shiki-san, why are you all alone?" The bubbly, boisterous voice came from beside me. I'd been so caught up in my thoughts, I hadn't noticed Ichijo come up beside me. I looked up slowly, not showing my surprise.

"Why not?" I murmured as I took another drink. Ichijo smiled and watched as I drank, his eyes passing over all the people around us.

He shook his head and turned back to me, "Shiki, stop being so anti-social! Come with me, please?" I began to say no, but as I raised my head to see Ichijo's expectant face, the words died on my lips. His green eyes were so excited, I couldn't say no. It was his birthday party, after all. Why not endulge him? I nodded and he lighted up.

"Come on, Shiki-san!" He slipped his hand into mine to pull me into the mass of bodies with him. A tingling sensation came when he touched my hand, making me want to smile. A sort of electricity seemed to float around our joined hands. He pulled me along with him, but I didn't mind. He was so charismatic- he could make even the grumpy, vampire hating Zero like him, if Zero could like any vampires.

Ichijo's hand left mine and I looked around to find we were beside his large cake. I smiled and watched as everyone intermingled. The cake had four tiers and was white. I frowned, "Such a big cake... Sure you can eat it alone?"

Ichijo turned to me, pulling a cutting knife up and smiling, "Would you like to try it? This was made by everbody's effort." His smiled got wider, if that was even possible. I shrugged, uncaring.

"Let me have your hand, Ichijo." I raise my hand, watching him. He offered it to me and I took the knife, my eyes on his hand. I pulled the knife from his hand, making sure the blade slide across his skin. Drops of blood began to beed on the cut and he looked down, surprised.

"Ah. I cut myself," he murmured, his eyes dropping to look at his hand, which hadn't moved since I took the blade. He let the blood begin to slip down.

I set the knife down on the table beside us, "I'm sorry." I murmured, and took his hand in mine, lowering my hand. "No problem..."

I held his hand gently in mine and lifted it to my lips, running my tongue over the cut and surrounding area in one quick motion. I moved closer to Ichijo and placed my lips over the cut, letting his vampire blood run over my tongue and down my throat as it continued to send blood pumping. It tasted so good and I was tempted to bite but didn't want to overstep my boundaries. It outdid the tablets by miles and made me yearn for more.

As the flow stopped, barely seconds after it had been cut. I pulled my lips away and licked the blood from where it had spilled onto his thumb and forefinger. My head raised but my eyes stayed shut in ectasy.

Ichijo's voice came from close to mine, his breath soft against my face, "You did it on purpose, right?" He murmured and I could feel him tilt his head closer to mine. Only I could hear his words. I shrugged slightly, letting out a soft moan as I let my eyes open and looked up at him, at his beautiful green eyes.

There was a soft swishing sound and I looked down to see a glass in Ichijo's hand, "Take care of your wound, Shiki." His face was still looking down, even though I had moved away and he closed his eyes slightly. "I hadn't originally intended to do this," he murmured under his breath.

"You were bored to death in the first place..." I murmured and looked down at the glass, shaking it then taking a sip, trying to get my hunger and ache for his blood to a minimum.

"No!" Ichijo exclaimed in surprise and smiled slightly before turning away as people continued on with the party.

My eyes slipped over him and an emotion welled up inside of me as I watched him.

I watched the sun rise from my window. I'd retired early from the party, bored to death with the people. I also had wished to distance myself from Ichijo's blood so close to me before he had to sleep together in the same room. He was still downstairs in the courtyard, cleaning up, most likely.

I sighed softly and slipped the curtains closed, bowing my head. A hand touched my shoulders and my entire body seemed to tense in surprise. I relaxed as I smelled Ichijo behind me and whispered, "I'm sorry about what happened earlier." I murmured but we both knew I wasn't really sorry.

"Look at me, Shiki-san," came his soft reply from behind me. I turned around, taking his hand from off my shoulder, gently holding his wrist.

"Did I taste good?" He was smiling, his eyes dancing with curiousity. I nodded and suddenly his body pushed forward, he pulled his hand from my wrist and reversed it, pressing me against the wall. Electricity seemed to curl between our bodies and I gasped in surprise.

"You care so little." He murmured and lowered his head towards mine, our foreheads touching softly.

A feeling came over me, "Oh, really?" I murmured and before I could understand what I was doing, I pressed my lips to his, giving him an insistant kiss. I expected to hear him yell or jump back in surprise. Instead, I was the one to be surprised when his lips responded to mine.

We both pulled back and his hand holding my wrist slipped down my arm to rest on my cheek, "Shiki..."

I slipped my hand to the back of his neck, twirling my hand into the soft hair at the nape of his neck, "Ichijo..." I murmured softly and pressed my lips on his, more fiercely than before. His lips pushed harder onto mine, pushing me on to bite his lip softly.

"Let me drink your blood, Shiki." Ichijo murmured and I nodded, it was only fair. I took his hand in mine and walked to my bed, sitting down. I looked up at Ichijo, who smiled, his fangs showing. He put his hands on either side of my hips, leaning down so our faces were close. He pushed his lips against mine again, pushing me back until I was laying on the bed. He smiled lightly and pulled back before nuzzling my neck and biting softly.

I gasped and raised my arms, wrapping them around his neck, closing my eyes. Ichijo moaned and pulled back slightly after a minute, "You taste good." He murmured, his lips bloody. I smiled slightly and raised my head, biting into his throat, letting the blood run down my throat. It wasn't deep yet blood still welled up around my fangs, full of their wonderful taste. I felt him move but it seemed to be in a whole other world. Finally, I pulled back to find myself laying on my side on the bed, Ichijo's hands on my chest, him on his side beside me.

"I love you, Shiki-kun," he murmured softly and smiled at me. Feeling welled inside my chest and I felt absolutely wonderful.

"I love you too, Ichijo-kun."

Just one moment, one taste of blood changed everything for me. Ichijo made me realize that other people can make life worth it, can splash life with colour. Love isn't fake, not when your with the right person. Not only did his blood fill me with a huge boost and clear my mind, but I also fell in love.