Author's Note: This story is the first story written by us (NaraShikamari/'Rukia' and Mrs Kirito Yuuki/'Asuna' – our account name consists of the two names Rukia and Asuna merged into one) so we hope that you enjoy it. It is situated around the beginning of Vampire Knight Guilty just after the banquet where Yuuki is in Kaname's room. If you find any errors or things that don't make sense, please let us know in a review so that we can fix it.

Yuuki's Decision

"Yuuki!"

I started in surprise as Zero came bursting through the door to my bedroom. He looked very handsome in his white shirt which must have come out of his black trousers during the run to my room.

"Zero?" I asked, wondering what on earth he could be wanting with me at this time of night, simultaneously forgetting about my open math book in front of me as I stood up.

"Do you really want to be a vampire?" Zero asked with a ragingly calm look on his beautiful face.

"Wha–"

"I overheard you and Kaname. Please tell me you were not serious about letting him take your blood."

Kaname was leaning over me, his face inches away from my neck, with his fangs elongated. He pulled back a bit and asked: "Do you want to live a long and arduous life with me as a vampire?"

I was shocked, to say the least, and also a bit taken aback. I didn't really know how to reply to something like that said so suddenly, so I just stared at him in silence.

"If you had the chance to live the rest of your life with me, would you take it?" Kaname asked.

I still couldn't fathom what was happening so I remained silent.

"Well, would you?" He pressed impatiently, his eyes flaming with anger.

Before I knew it, I had dazedly answered that I would, scared of the consequences of upsetting Kuran Kaname-sama.

I hadn't realised that I'd started crying until he reached out and wiped a tear off my face, his harsh expression softening slightly.

"I'm sorry, Yuuki. I didn't mean to scare you. I've spent so long distancing myself from you and I can't take it anymore. I want to spend my life with you. I don't want you to be scared of being around me anymore. I want to protect you. Would that really be so bad?"

I stared at him in surprise, not having expected him to say something like that and not knowing how to react. I was less terrified and wanted to reach out to him but I didn't want to say something that might make me seem foolish and immature. I decided to fish for an excuse.

Thinking frantically, I grasped at the first thought that came to mind: "Ka-Kaname-senpai...I still have math homework to do. Please excuse me. I will think about your offer."

After stammering out the excuse, I escaped out of the nearest window before he could say anything to guilt me into staying.

"What were you doing outside of Kaname's room?" I asked Zero suspiciously.

"I saw Ichiru at the banquet and I needed someone to confide in. I caught a glimpse of you during the banquet and, since I hadn't seen Kaname again that evening, I figured that you might have been in his room with him."

I wanted to be mad, but I understood where he was coming from. I stared at him sympathetically but didn't say anything, waiting for him to continue.

"I found out that Ichiru is working for the Senior Council of Vampires and he asked me whether I knew about the Curse of the Twins or something like that. He seemed rather smug about it and it's really bothering me because I've never heard of it in my life. It sounds like nothing good can come from it though."

I sighed. "I'm sorry, Zero."

"Why do you like Kaname?" He asked, catching me off guard.

"Wha-what are you talking about?" I stammered nervously, feeling my face flush.

He stared at me pointedly with a raised eyebrow. "I'd have to be blind not to notice the way you act around him... it's obvious that you like him."

An awkward silence fell between us. Just as it started to become unbearable, Zero calmly stated: "Kaname was the one who killed Hiou Shizuka."

"What?"

"You know it wasn't me – and do you really think anyone else would have been powerful enough to kill her? He didn't admit it was him, but he sure didn't deny it when people accused me of being the murderer. Honestly, Kaname wouldn't not know who killed her, being the president of the Night Class and all."

I stared at him in disbelief, almost as if my mind was automatically rejecting such a preposterous idea. But I knew that Zero would never lie to me, regardless of the situation, and my mind slowly began to process what he had just told me.

How could Kaname lie to me about this? Pretend that he has no evidence to prove Zero's innocence, even to himself? How can I believe anything that he told me tonight if he can't even tell me the truth about that?

My mind was buzzing with questions and objections, still semi-rejecting that information. For a moment I forgot about Zero still being in the room. It wasn't until he cleared his throat uncomfortably that my gaze fell on him again.

He slowly started walking towards me. "I'm sorry, Yuuki, I didn't mean to upset you. But I just don't understand what you can possibly find attractive about him. Don't you ever feel that he just sees you as an object that he can use?"

I couldn't say that I had never felt that way, but Kaname made me feel things that no one else ever had. I suppose that things were changing now and, even though I felt like Kaname was busy betraying my trust, I couldn't help but feel some strength in my feelings towards him. But I couldn't explain that to Zero. He could and would never understand.

"You mean a lot to me, Yuuki," he continued. "I don't want to see you get hurt. You put a lot of effort into trying to protect me so I have to do the same in return."

"Zero –"

By now he was standing so close to me that I could hear his shallow breathing. "If you just give me a chance, I'll show you that you belong with me, not with Kaname."

Before I could take a moment to collect my thoughts, he started leaning closer to me. "You can walk away right now if you don't feel the same way. I give you a moment to decide."

A moment passed and I felt his soft, warm lips brush against mine and for the first time since Kaname had come into my life, I was able to forget about him. Right now, in this moment, it was just Zero and I.

It was now clear that I definitely did feel something for Zero and he kissed me again, this time more confidently. He passed his tongue across my lips, asking for entrance, and I willingly granted it. His tongue swept over mine softly, slowly intensifying the moment. Our tongues danced together until we had to break apart to breathe.

I stared at him in awe, trying to recover my thoughts again. I tried to search my jumbled mind for something to say, but it seemed that he was at a loss for words as well. I couldn't help but smile. Suddenly I remembered a question that he had asked at the beginning of our visit.

"I don't want to be a vampire, Zero," I admitted in a rush. "I could never let Kaname drink my blood. It would feel like I'm betraying you because you are the only one that I could ever allow to feed on me." I bared my neck and watched as his eyes began to glow red from his craving for my blood.

"Yuuki..."

"It's okay, Zero. I trust you."

He leaned forward and I felt his fangs sink into my neck. The pleasure of being able to quench his thirst completely nullified the dull pain caused by the vampire-bite.

"My blood will forever be yours alone, Kiryuu Zero," I managed.

I felt his lips curl into a smile against my neck and felt the happiness radiate from him. At that moment I realized how lucky I was to have someone like him in my life.

The End