Chapter One - Contradiction

Though it may be, it seems that all I've ever known was angst and painful drama. It has tightly coiled itself into my life to the point I've died.

It's hard to find a memory that in some way didn't reek of your essence.

I lived and breathed, but in the long run my heart always fell back to you.

I tried my best to live out your desires, and it truly has been hard.

My life has definitely been happy, please don't misinterpret that. It's been full of amazing people, events, and love, of course.

But it's always been lacking. It's lacked ever since you left me.

I understand that you felt what you did would in some way atone for your past mistakes, but it made being alive hard when I thought of you.

I took down your pictures, sealed off your tomb, and did my absolute best to take over your roles and make them mine own.

Kaname Kuran, my life has never been completely full without you.

I loved my husband, Zero, dearly. He was my best friend, companion, and even the father of my children.

Oh, Ai… I remember when I first realised I was going to bear your child, my daring Kaname… it was a happy moment. When I looked at her for the first time, I saw your eyes. It was a time I felt alive again.

I suppose, you'd had loved her as much as I did, if not more.

Yuuki put down her ball pointed pen, as she finished up her letter. She glanced down at it. It'd been awhile since she wrote to Kaname, knowing he'd probably never read it while she was alive. She had a box she kept them in, locked safely away. She let out a sigh, brushing her long brown strands from her face.

She didn't really feel alone, especially since she had her lovely babies with her; her daughter Ai, and her son Ren. Ren looked like an exact duplicate of his father Zero. He even carried his fashion choices.

Yuuki influenced Ai to dress very proper and elegantly, since that is how her mother taught her as well.

Ai was pretty much Kaname.

Long, wavy, thick hair that draped her shoulder blades, and eyes the colour of chocolate, tinted with a mystic crimson.

She was beautiful, just like her father… that's what Yuuki thought, anyways.

It'd been a few years since Zero passed away.

Yuuki really didn't keep track after that. It hurt like hell when her companion left her again. It was more acceptable this time since it was of natural causes.

She smiled in thought of him. He was alas a forgiving soul. He turned rather gentle, and fought for Yuuki's love for half a century, before she truly wanted to marry him.

Yuuki was the "queen" of the vampires for a long time.

It took many years to find a "peace" between the human and vampire world, and thanks to Kaname's sacrifice, everything was put into place.

Everyone but Zero and Kaname were here. They'd still frequent each other, all looking the same. Their personalities weathered down with years of aging, but their enthusiasm remained.

Yuuki had developed a sisterly like relationship with Ruka, who'd once felt otherly toward her.

Ruka was there for her, though Ruka had felt the same hardships Yuuki did when Kaname faded away.

Ichijo Takuma yearly visited if he wasn't watching over Kaname.

It made Yuuki happy that someone would always be there with him.

The pure-blooded queen didn't feed off anyone anymore, either. ]

It was exhausting carrying around memories that didn't belong to her, especially when that person was gone.

Surprisingly, even Juuri's memories came and went from time to time on accident.

Every single time it'd happen, Yuuki always, ALWAYS was reminded of her true lover.

The feelings Yuuki experienced of Juuri's was strong toward her father.

It was no surprise Yuuki could relate to them so easily.

She sometimes pondered if Juuri would struggle similarly if she was alive and Haruka wasn't.

What was it about Kaname that kept her attached?

That was never an inquiry she questioned.

It was natural, even if it bound her to a lifetime of difficulty because of it.

She merely knew she needed to live in a world where he consciously existed.

It always left a hole, no matter how long time took to pass.

To fill the hole, she had grown extremely close to Aidou Hanabusa.

He'd never gotten over his swollen demand for respect, and always made mean comments, but that's what Yuuki enjoyed so much.

Since Zero's death and since her children were serious creatures, Aidou has been the one who made her smile most, even if it were barely genuine.

She thought of him as an extremely intelligent person.

Almost immediately after Ai's birth, which was two and some years after Kaname's initial sealing, Hanabusa found Kaname's old research journal regarding the core of what vampirism was.

But it was incomplete, obviously given up on.

There's a sudden knock at the door.

Yuuki doesn't look up or respond to it, taking it merely as a sign someone's about to present themselves into the room.

"Excuse me, Mother", the light chiming voice began, "I'd just like to remind you, you have that meeting with the Association tomorrow".

Yuuki nodded.

"Ai..." Yuuki trailed off.

Her daughter stood there in an elegant, ruffled satin dress in the colour of white with a bow at the collar.

"What is it"? Her daughter asked her, concern filling her features.

"How about you and Ren come with me"?

Ai stood still, now surprised.

It'd been a long time since she'd been asked to accompany her mother anywhere, especially at a meeting with the Association.

Daughter Ai placed her hand on her mother's shoulder.

"Alright", she agreed, as she pulled at Yuuki's arm.

Yuuki's eyes looked toward what she felt, followed by a head turn.

She flinched. She wasn't expecting this.

"Please"? Ai asked, with a light face.

It was holding an embarrassed expression.

Her mother gave a small nod before wincing as a small amount of blood squirted on their faces.

Ai slurped and gulped numerous times before finishing.

Using the sleeve of her dress, she wipes off the excess blood.

Thank you, mother, she thought.

Being able to tell Yuuki was in one of her darker moments, Ai excused herself and exited the room.

She instead visits the lounge where her brother is, who is reading some scratchings on paper about god knows what.

She popped up from under his book with a dorky smile.

"Hi"! She laughed, now blocking his view.

He simply blinked.

She continued to stand in his way as he stared at her dumbfounded.

It only caused more laughter.

"You're annoying", he sighs, putting the book on his lap.

Placing herself next to him, leaning down, she began, "Mother suggests us attending that meeting with her, the one Seiren reminded us about".

This even took Ren aback with surprise.

Yuuki never invited them to official business.

What could be cooking in her mind, Ren pondered the thought.

"Maybe she's ready to hand some of the duties to us"? She guessed.

"That could be it. Time to find our own roles in life. Share the responsibilities", he added.

The night carried on with small guesses until they retired for the evening, along with Yuuki.

For the past ten centuries, the Hunter's Association had handled many affairs regarding the existence of vampires and their crimes.

The fresher weapons made exterminating the fiends easier, bringing the raging dangerous occurrences down to a small and rare occasion.

They still graced the many parties and meetings and did regular checks on purebloods to keep them in check as well.

The nightly society definitely still existed, but didn't thrive quite as it used to.

Regardless of the amount of powerful weapons created from Kaname's own power, it wouldn't wear down the possibility of another uprising with the last remaining pure ones.

For the longest time, Zero was its head.

His heart changed over time and he was full of a newfound forgiveness, but it didn't stop him from getting the job done.

He was a stern man, well in his ways as a natural leader.

He had carried out his work beautifully to the point of a comfortable coexistence.

The government no longer hid the vampires' existence, nor their history to the society of day, but Yuuki didn't want the allowance of humans access to their history.

Though her father Kaien Cross and Zero had passed, it didn't get in the way of the hunters and Yuuki to agree on a new suitable replacement to keep all the initial order that was in place for the society head.

His name was Shinra, who'd come down Toga's family line.

He looked just like him, just held more class in his walk.

He looked to be around the physical age of mid fourties and some.

The association's location remained the same.

It was still as dreary as it had ever been - that's why the meetings took place in a common location; the Cross School.

Anyways…

A day had passed.

Everyone gathered as expected to the school for the meeting that was scheduled to take place.

They were in a large, old looking room, similar in structure to that of an office.

The wait was killing Yuuki, her immaturity begging time to speed up in her mind.

She managed to keep her composure anyways.

Finally, it was that time.

High noon.

As the associates gathered around a lengthy table, Yuuki at one end, Shinra Yagari at the other, and the seats randomly taken up by more senior hunters.

Ai and Ren stood behind Yuuki, who held a tight composure during the length of the silence.

Shinra coughed as he began.

"Miss Kuran Yuuki", he stated, his voice gruff and aged.

"Yagari Shinra", she replied politely, her own tone light.

He adjusted himself almost uncomfortably, delaying his answer.

He looked around the room toward his associates in search of assurance of whatever information they wanted to discuss.

"Kuran", he said flatly, "it's been decided we're going to put the fire out of the furnace".

Ai gasped and was overcame with a sudden sweat, then looked town toward her trembling mother.

Yuuki's eyes were widened in shock.