Chapter One
"Here. You're scared, I get that. I'm not going to hurt you."
The young girl merely looked up at me from her spot in the snow. Her long, brown hair was blowing around her face, and even though she was wearing a warm jacket, she must have been cold. I was on my knees, but the snow whipping around my face wasn't bothering me. I kept my arms outstretched, waiting for her. Kaname stood behind us, looking a bit scary in the darkness. I wondered briefly if the small girl recognized us, but I knew it'd be bad if she did.
I twitched my fingers. "Come here."
As if something had clicked into her mind, she scurried into my arms and buried her face into my neck. I assumed it was because she had finally realized she was freezing, because as I put my arms around her, she shivered violently. I brushed my fingers through her hair and lifted her up in my arms, suprised at how little she weighed. I wasn't a strong girl, but this wasn't difficult. "There. Now, let's go somewhere warm, okay?"
Turning back to head to the house of the man who would be looking after this girl, I glanced up at Kaname, who was following us from behind. I knew it must be a bit harder for him: he was always more attached to her, anyways. I let out a soft sigh and continued to walk through the snow. I could feel her breathing agaisnt my neck, and I wondered how tough this was for. If I was to be wiped of all my memories...
The house was a welcome sight.
Opening it myself and going inside, I relaxed a bit as the heat started to warm us all up. I set the girl down on the ground. She glanced towards the couch, wanting to go over and sit on it. "You might want to take off your coat first," I told her, and bent down to take it from her. "Don't want to get the couch dirty, do you?"
Once she settled into the couch, I sat up and noticed that the man had already come into the room. "Kaname. Sachi. What brings you here?" So we were playing stupid, huh? I had already figured something like that might come up, so I remained quiet and decided to let Kaname do the talking.
I took a seat to the left of the girl and placed my hands in my lap.
"Can you take care of this girl for us, Kaien?"
"Of course I will. You both are the children of someone I owe a lot to."
I bit back my tongue and sat up. "I'm going to go get some food for her, okay?" They both merely nodded at me and I headed into the kitchen, finding some pudding in the fridge. Not caring if he was saving it for some special occasion or something, I took it out, placed a spoon in it, and brought it back out. "Here you go," I said, handing it to the young girl.
With a confused look, she took it from me.
I turned my attention back to Kaien, and frowned slightly. There was something inside me that didn't want to give this girl up, no matter what, but I knew for her sake it'd be for the best. That's all we needed: some time to get everything settled before we could bring her back for good.
Suddenly, he laughed, startling me. "She doesn't understand that it's food..."
Kaname leaned forward and took the spoon from her, trying to teach her how it worked. At first, a small smile appeared on my lips, and I watched contently. Then, she reached forward, and I saw her fingers poke agaisnt his mouth. I inwardly prayed he wouldn't show her, but he went anyway and opened her mouth.
I winced when she let out a shriek.
The young girl fell back, and landed on me. When she felt the impact, she looked around and faced me. She almost seemed to connect the fact I was related to Kaname, so she pointed weakly towards my mouth too. Come on, don't fail me now, I prayed to myself, and felt the atoms in my head vibrate for a second. Then I opened my mouth, too.
I could see her let out a sigh when she found I had no sharp fangs on my teeth.
What she didn't know was that the pointy teeth had been shrunk back into my gums. It was something I had been practicing for ages, and it finally payed off. She snuggled closer to me, and as I smiled down at her, I could see Kaname's eyes piercing into my head. That little brat was jealous.
"You know what," said Kaname suddenly, "I think it's better if we leave and never see her again."
I looked up sharply. "You don't make my choices, Kaname."
"We're going home," he repeated, and when his eyes flickered dangerously, I was reminded of how much stronger he was than I, and felt my anger ebb away. I tightened my grip on the young girl one last time before standing. She looked up at me curiously.
"You guys are going back?" asked Kaien. "After you were finally able to leave?"
Nodding curtly, I grabbed my coat.
"But they just want to use you. Your parents aren't there anymore..."
I knew he was referring to the fact they were dead. I didn't respond, but rather bent down to say my - hopefully not - last goodbyes to the girl sitting in front of me. As Kaname and Kaien conversed a bit more, I patted the girl's head. "Don't forget me, okay?"
She nodded eagerly, although I don't think she understood.
Standing, I turned my back on her. I could feel something inside me become very, very sad, but I pushed it back and continued to press a mask of no emotion on my face. I nodded to Kaien as I approached the door, my hand on the doorknob. Kaname said goodbye, and then we were back outside.
"There was no need to be jealous, you know," I said. "She'll always like you better."
He didn't say a word, but I could tell that he was satisfied.
...
Without telling Kaname, I had been emailing back and forth with Kaien. He had named the young girl Yuki, and I had told him I loved the name. We had been brewing a plan to finally get Kaname to allow me to come back to visit her, and I finally put it into action.
"Can you get Kaname?" I asked one of my guards, who nodded briefly.
When the brown-haired boy had come over to where I sat at the computer, I merely gestured towards the computer screen. He narrowed his eyes and peered down at it. When he had read all of it, he sat up straight. I knew he had decided to go back, so I grabbed my jacket, and we both made a mad dash towards the door.
Kaname had been the one to shake the guards, not me.
He was also the first to barge in, slamming the door open. I followed, containing my happiness quite well. "Ah! Sachi and Kaname. What brings you two here?"
As Kaname talked a bit with Kaien - who got the yelling - I snuck into the room and grinned when I saw Yuki. She had tried putting her clothes on, but all in the wrong ways. "Let me help you there." I bent down and attempted to take off some of the wrong items she had put on. She stared at me, and I think I saw some flicker of recognition there.
"Look! Yuki got dressed by herself!" Kaien gushed.
I rolled my eyes. "Is he annoying?" I asked Yuki, and she giggled at me, but kept her eyes firmly on Kaname, who stood behind me. As I reached for the sock she had misplaced, she suddenly brought up her towel and covered herself with it, being shy.
As I giggled, I heard Kaname laugh behind me. That in itself was shocking - Kaname Kuran never laughed. I turned my head and watched as he had fallen down, supporting himself with the door, his eyes shut. Kaien looked down at him, eyes wide, and then up to me.
"Kaname's gone beserk!" he yelled. "Sachi, has this ever happened before?"
"I didn't think he had a sense of humor," I laughed. I turned back to Yuki, patting her back. "See what you did? You made Kaname all crazy." I realized she wasn't going to reveal herself anytime soon, so I stood. "It was wonderful seeing you, Yuki."
I turned, grabbing Kaname's collar and pulling him up.
"I didn't mean to laugh," Kaname said, brushing off his jacket and shaking off my arm. He wiped a tear from his eye and turned to Yuki, who had poked her head out of the top of the towel. "I didn't mean to scare you, either. We'll leave now. Right, Sachi?"
"Right. Goodbye, Kaien."
"Bye, you two." The tall man smiled at us lightly.
We both went to leave, but something caught the back of our coats. "Sachi? Sa...chi? Kaname. Kana...me." I tried to ignore the fact that she had almost questioned my name, but said Kaname's name almost as if she adored him.
I could see the faint smile on his face.
...
"Sachi-sama! Kaname-sama!"
A young girl rammed into me and I scooped her up in my arms, swirling her around before placing her back on the snow-covered ground. Yuki then turned to Kaname and hugged him, and he touched her shoulders lightly before smiling shortly at her.
"Happy birthday!" she sang. "It's my birthday!"
I bent down and smiled at her cute little face. "Today is the day you both rescued me a year ago," she recalled, and I hugged her tightly. Being away from her for so long wasn't happy for me, especially since she was so cute.
"I heard she had been kidnapped," said Kaname, glaring at Kaien, who stood in the doorway.
"Well," he chirped, and I laughed quietly.
"And why does she call us sama?"
Kaien didn't respond.
Yuki tugged me over to Kaname, and she took both of our hands and peered into our faces, her eyes wide. "Happy birthday, Sachi-sama! Kaname-sama!" When we both didn't respond, but looked at each other, amused, she stopped. "Right...?" she questioned again, curious.
"Yuki," I said softly. "It's your birthday. Happy birthday to you."
"But," said Kaname, leaning down. "Thank you."
...
We were only able to see Yuki on her birthdays now. It was kind of upsetting, but I knew I'd rather see her then than never. She was turning eleven today, so Kaname and I were heading through the town to get to her house.
"What did you get her for a present?" I asked curiously.
He only sent me a look. I rolled my eyes. He had never been good at expressing emotions.
We had been halfway through town when I spotted Yuki standing before me. She looked scared, almost, and there were a few people in front of her. I recognized them quickly as our kind - vampires - and hurried forward, placing a small hand on her shoulder. Kaname stood behind us, looking dangerous.
They bowed, and hurried off.
Shocked, Yuki turned. Her eyes lit up as she spotted us, and she hugged me tightly around the middle. "Sachi-sama!" she sang, and I ruffled her hair.
"Happy birthday, Yuki."
She turned to Kaname and hugged him as well. "Kaname-sama!"
"Happy birthday as well."
Kaname glanced at me, and then back at Yuki. I assumed he noticed we both shared the same question. "Weren't you scared walking by yourself in the town?" he asked.
"Well...when we're all together, I'm not scared." She looked at both of us.
Not able to help myself, I swooped in and hugged her tightly as Kaname ruffled her hair. "Us too," I said, speaking for Kaname, although he shared my opinion.
...
These nice times came to sort of rocky jump then. Kaname had to speak to Kaien about something important, and he brought me along so I could visit Yuki. She opened the door, and I watched her face spark to life as she noticed us. "Sachi-sama! Kaname-sama!"
She grabbed our hands and tugged us into the room.
I sensed another human in the room, and covered myself over with as much human-like qualities I could muster. I had been practicing this for awhile now, and when I felt the heat rush to my cheeks, I knew it was working.
"Uh, Kaname-sama, Sachi-sama, uh..."
"What is it?" asked Kaname.
Inside, I saw Kaien, and a boy behind him who couldn't have been but a year younger than me at the most. This was the one he had been talking about in his emails. The one whose parents had died. He seemed about the same height as me, too. I felt short all of the sudden, and glanced away, hating how the human-like blush stayed in my cheeks.
"Zero," said Yuki calmly.
The silver-haired boys hand had been near the table, and I watched as he grabbed a knife. My eyes flickered up to Kaname, but I wasn't scared for him. Rather, I was nervous about the boy - Zero. Kaname was known for being powerful. I reached up and squeezed his arm, reminding him to be careful.
As he rushed forward, Kaname brought out an arm. The knife hit him, but I still wasn't worried.
"Vampire!" the boy spat, and I knew he had something agaisnt our kind. I wasn't too fond of them, either, to be honest. He looked towards me, and seemed to get angrier. "And why do you have a human with you?"
Inwardly, I breathed a sigh of relief. He thought I was human.
As Yuki made sure Kaname was alright, I took the boy's arm and pulled him away from Kaname. "I'm fine, okay?" My eyes flickered to the bandage around his neck, but I remained quiet. "He hasn't done anything to me, I'm not being held against my will, and he will not hurt you or Yuki. I promise." Did humans get out of breath this easily? I felt myself start to shake from over-exerting the human powers.
I swayed a bit, and Zero started to get alarmed - I bet he was thinking Kaname was using some weird mind powers to drain my energy - but I stayed calm and lightly touched his cheek. "Don't be so hard on yourself, okay? I heard about your parents. I'm sorry. But now all his kind are like that, okay?"
His eyes locked with mine, and softened.
Turning back to Kaname, who was talking to Yuki, I reached down and pulled her into a tight hug. She returned it, and when I pulled away, looked up at me sadly. "Are you leaving already, Sachi-sama?"
"We both are," I responded. "But we'll be back soon. Be a good girl for me, okay?"
"Of course!" She ran to hug Kaname and tell him goodbye.
When we left, the car we had come in was still waiting. I headed inside, waving hello to Ichijo, and slumping in my seat immediatly. The human powers were getting to be a bit too much, but I would work on it.
"You guys are back early," commented Ichijo. "Finish your errand?"
I listened to them dully as I faded back into my vampire form. As we drove away from the house, I couldn't help but think about Zero.
He hated our kind. And I hated them too, sometimes.
...
Coming to visit Yuki again, Kaname and I had walked in on Kaien telling Zero and Yuki about the school idea - which Kaname had come up with himself. "The plan is to show that vampires and humans can co-exist peacefully, and also to educate young vampires."
"Kaname, Sachi, you guys came?" asked Kaien, happily suprised.
"Sachi-sama? Kaname-sama?" asked Yuki.
My human instincts made me reach forward and hug her tightly. "Hello, Yuki!"
As she hugged me back, I listened to Zero yell about how vampires couldn't get along peacefully with other vampires. Kaien fought back, saying that Kaname would be a whole different group, while I'd be with Yuki and Zero and the humans. Kaname and I had decied that if I had aced my human powers, I could stay with the humans to keep a closer eye on Yuki.
I let Kaname say hello to Yuki, and I headed to Zero.
"Hey, there," I said softly.
"You," was all I got in reply.
"I'm Sachi Kuran," I said, introducing myself.
His eyes narrowed and flashed. "You're related to the vampire?"
"You could say. But I'm not a vampire, or anything. It's a bit complicated." I smiled to myself and shrugged. We were both the same height, and even though I was only a year older - as we had found out - it felt as though I were older by twenty years. "But, I'll do a good job of making sure any vampires who go out of line get punished. Alright?"
He locked eyes with me again. "Promise?"
"I promise." My word was true.
"Okay."
...
Before I knew it, school had started. The people in the moon dorm - where the vampires were - were very nice, and I found myself staying with them as much as I could. I hated that they were always making sure to treat me with respect, even though I told them I didn't want to be treated like Kaname, sister or not.
I was talking over some small things with Kaname when we noticed a figure on the stairs.
"Oh, no," I said softly, and we both headed down the stairs. Someone was leaning over Yuki's sleeping body, and I pushed them away violently, allowing Kaname to talk to them. I sighed and sat down behind her, brushing her hair over her ear.
Kaname took off his coat and put it over her.
I went rigid as I watched him move the hair away from her neck and lean closer. I clutched his shoulder, eyes wide. "Not now, right? You said you wouldn't do it so soon. What are you even thinking?"
"Calm down, Sachi. I wasn't going to."
When we got back to the room, he set her on the bed. Inside, I made sure Yuki was all safe and fine and non-bitten, and then watched as the door to the room opened. I heard another female - Ruka, I think her name was - talking to Kaname. I knew what it was about immediately, and at first I didn't want something like that going on with Yuki in the room.
But hey, since when does he ever listen to me?
I sat down on the edge of Yuki's bed, trying not to listen to the sounds of what was going on behind me. Drinking blood had never been a favorite thing of mine, but hey - you had to do it to survive, right? I clutched my hands together and watched Yuki. When she started to stir, I ducked down, knowing she couldn't see me in the moon dorm.
She looked at the figures of Ruka and Kaname, and I couldn't blame her running away.
Sitting back up on the bed, I glared at Kaname before heading outside myself, although going through the window. I landed on the ground and caught Yuki as she was running. "Wow!" I said, grabbing her arm. "Where do you think you're going, little miss?"
"Sachi-sama!" she gasped, and buried her head in my shirt. My heart faltered, and I felt angry at Kaname for scaring her so much. She had cut her hand, and was holding it close to her chest. I was suddenly bursting with happiness that being human meant that my thirst for blood was cut off.
"Are you okay? Let's get you back to the headmaster, alright?"
She nodded, and I took her free hand and brought her to the headmaster. He thanked me before I left.
"Mind go getting Kiryu? I told him to find Yuki?"
I nodded, and headed back outside. It didn't take me that long to find Zero, and he was looking around. I assumed he was still trying to find Yuki. I smiled lightly. "Hey," I called softly, and his head turned quickly, eyes locking with mine.
"What do you want?" he snapped.
"I found Yuki," I told him. "Headmaster wanted me to tell you."
"Well, thanks."
He went to storm past me, but I grabbed his arm and held him back, my eyebrows furrowed together. He tore his arm away, but stayed. "I just wanted to tell you, that you don't have to redirect your anger at me. I may be Kaname's sister, but that doesn't mean I'm a vampire, and it doesn't mean I'm evil, okay? He's not either, but I can understand if you don't trust him."
Zero looked at me, suspicious.
"We're in the same boat, you know. My parents were killed by a vampire as well." I was condensing the truth, but I couldn't tell him the whole thing. "But I find that's it betters to be nice to others who aren't like them. Like Yuki. Yuki's someone you can talk too. She's a sweet girl, and she's not a vampire, although she may be friends with one. And me, too. You can always talk to me, okay?"
We waited in silence for a few minutes. "Okay."
As we headed off back to the headmaster, I could tell we had somehow started a weird, probably twisted, friendship.
...
Author's Note: Hey! I know this isn't really that long, but the rest will be longer, I assure you! And I want you to know that Sachi is eighteen, the same age as Kaname. This was starting back with the first memory Yuki had, as you know, and it'll go on for awhile. Trust me. I don't expect this story to be short. Also, this'll go along with the manga. The first part won't, because I don't have the first manga, but then it will. Thanks for reading!
