Things that go Bump in the Night
Chapter 1
Snow fell in soft puffs and swirls, making silver patterns in the sky that came apart and reformed simultaneously as they drifted towards the ground. It was the kind of snow you watched from your window while sitting by the fire. The kind of snow that was strange and mysterious, and made you hold breath, waiting for something, anything, to happen.
A couple sat by the fire looking at the sky.
"Wonderful," the woman breathed.
"Breathtaking," the man agreed softly.
Next door, the neighbor's dog had stopped barking long ago, and lay silently, gazing at the flakes with the sort of inner peace only a dog has.
The waitress in the local tavern hummed sweetly while wiping a glass with a cloth.
In the local church, the priest sat calmly in the glow of his candles.
A mother entered her house, shaking off her coat and hanging it up by the door. She walked to the kitchen and found her youngest son sleeping quietly at the table, his hand still around a mug of coco. She smiled softly, gathered her son into her arms, and brought him upstairs to bed.
Everything was quiet and calm.
In the woods, a small figure, hardly more than a shadow, could be seen. The soft crunch of snow under a worn pair of boots was the only sound to be heard for miles.
The figure walked, slowly but steadily, through the misty swirls until it came across a stone wall. The head turned, as if silently contemplating what a wall was doing there, before the figure turned and walked, this time on a parallel path to the wall.
It wasn't long before the person came across a wrought iron gate.
The figure stopped.
A plaque had been set into the wall by the gate. The figure turned towards it and took a step forward. A hand reached out to softly brush the snow away.
"Cross Academy," read the figure, in a soft voice that was undeniably female. "It looks like we've found a new home, Hermes."
A sound, like the rustle of twigs in the wind, accompanied her statement.
The girl reached out her arm again, and placed her hand on the iron. She shivered slightly as her hand came in to contact with the cold metal. She pushed gently but the gate didn't move. The girl sighed, a white puff coming from her mouth. She muttered something under her breath and pushed again. This time, with a creak, the gate swung forward slightly, just enough for the girl to slip through.
Once on the other side, she looked up, and upon seeing what looked like a shadow move smoothly over the wall, she shut the gate with one last glance behind her.
The girl looked at the ground, and noticed she was on a path. Looking where it lead, she saw a manor a little ways down, she supposed this was the school, it was certainly big enough to be.
The path she was on was lined by trees, but led to a courtyard of sorts which faced the large door of the manor. Once reaching the fountain that stood, silent, in the center of the courtyard, the girl stopped and looked around.
"You know, most people knock," came a voice behind her.
The girl gasped softly and whirled. Now in front of her stood a man, he wore glasses and his long hair was tied back. If given a chance, the girl would have said he was in his forties. A drab shawl was wrapped around his shoulders.
She bowed, "I apologize," she said quietly, "I did not think any one would be awake."
"What is your business here," the man's inquired gently.
She paused a moment. "I must confess; I am looking for a place to stay."
The man smiled gently and cocked an eyebrow, "I am sure you read the sign Miss. This is a school; all those who stay here must enroll in classes."
She bowed her head, "Of course," she replied.
"Are you willing to do so?"
"Hai," she answered, "I do not mind."
He smiled at her again, "Then follow we, we'll get you registered and settled in."
"Thank you," she said, smiling for the first time.
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This man had lead her to a house that was built off the main structure of the manor. It was warm and cozy inside. The fire threw streamers of light and shadow that danced around the room.
"This way," the man called over his shoulder, and led her to a smaller room. The back wall was almost entirely window and most of the space in the room was taken up by a desk and two chairs.
"Please," the man waved his hand, "take a seat."
As she sat he walked to the other side of the desk.
"I am Chairman Cross, the administrator of this academy." He said sternly. "If you enroll here, you must obey school rules and do what your teachers, and I say. Can you do that?"
She looked into his eyes and saw there was no hint of a joke in them, so she replied steadily, "I can, and will sir."
His face brightened visibly and he flashed her a cheerful smile. "Just 'chairman' my dear. 'Sir' makes me feel so old." He reached under the desk and pulled out a large book placing it heavily onto the table. The chairman flipped to a page about two thirds of the way through.
"Now," he said cheerfully, "I shall need to know your name."
"Yuuki" There was a pause and the chairman looked over his spectacles at her.
"And your last name dear?"
The girl, Yuuki, looked sad for a moment, and her eyes glazed over. "I don't have one," she whispered."
"That's ok! We can just make one up." Said the chairman.
She looked up at him, a questioning look in her eyes.
"We can't enroll you without a full name, first and last." He said by way of explanation. "But you don't have one so you can make it up."
Yuuki pursed her lips. As she watched, the moon peeped softly from a hole in a cloud and cast a soft, but brief, ray of light across the room.
"Luna*." She said, "Yuuki Luna."
The chairman took his pen and quickly copied the name down into the book.
"Welcome to Cross Academy, Miss Yuuki."
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What do you think? I really love Vampire Knight so I decided to write a fanfiction for it. I've had this idea running around in my head for at least a week, and I knew if I didn't get it down soon, I would forget it.
*Luna* means 'moon' in Spanish
I hope you enjoyed it, and I'm not posting this until the second chapter is written, so I will post both at the same time. None the less, please review!
-XOXO Casey