A/N: This was originally posted as a flashback in chapter 4 of my other story called Point of No Return, but somehow it didn't feel right. It just didn't fit into that storyline and I decided to take it out. (As far as PoNR is concerned, this never happened)
Though my muse wouldn't stop bugging me about this plot bunny... Something about the idea of Zero and young innocent Kaname traveling to safety, while war between humans and vampires raged... (I have to fully thank a certain reviewer who mentioned The Road. My muse seemed to like it too much and happily ran off with it. So thank you! XD)
So you can read it as a prequel, spin-off or a completely separate story. Or If you don't like the idea of it being related to Point of No Return at all, feel free to completely ignore it.
For those who didn't read that other story and are only interested in this one, I posted a part of PoNR's first chapter (in italics) to not make it too confusing for new readers. (You can skip it if you have read it already)
Lengthwise it could be anywhere from two shot to multiple chapters, that is if anyone will be interested.
Chapter 1: Home, Bloody Home
Soon after the war started, important leaders on both sides became the main target. Of course, Kuran was among the first. They shouldn't have known where his mansion was hidden, but it seemed that somebody leaked the information. As soon as Zero found out about this, he couldn't just stand by and do nothing. Yagari tried to stop him, telling him it was treason, but he had to. Zero could tell himself that he hated all the purebloods and wanted them dead all he wanted, but truth was that he wouldn't be able to live with himself if anything happened to Yuuki and he did nothing to prevent it. Somewhere deep inside he still saw her as that innocent girl she was in high school.
So he stole one of the association's cars and drove as fast as possible to warn her, to save her. Yet that wasn't enough. He was too late. From his car he could already see the Kuran mansion in flames, No doubt the result of the newest human weapon. The explosion wasn't so bad, it was those blue flames, those could burn absolutely everything organic even vampire bodies which were more resilient to damage than human ones. The blue color was result of the gas that was leaked the moment the bomb exploded, strong enough to sedate any vampire. He floored the speed pedal. When he arrived, Zero had to stop himself to not just run into the flames blindly from anxiety. That would be a suicide. He looked into the trunk, suddenly very glad that he took one of the hunter cars. There were protection suits and breathing masks stocked. He quickly dressed into one and grabbed a spare breathing mask.
The inside of the mansion looked like hell itself. Zero tried to avoid the flames as much as he could, knowing his suit wouldn't help him much when exposed for too long. Almost everything in the hall was burning but the worst were all those bodies inside. It seemed that the servants were trying to evacuate, but the gas hindered their successful escape. Most of them were just turning to dust, meaning that Zero must had gotten here shortly right after the explosion. It seemed that no one here survived. But that couldn't be true, could it? No, he had to go further.
After a while Zero started to feel really hot, almost dizzy. It seemed the suit was reaching its limit. But he pushed further into the corridor, down the stairs heading to the basement, where the secret escape path was supposed to be. It seemed that at least in this part of the house the flames were scarcer, as if something tried to put them out. There were strange puddles of water here and there. He prayed that it meant the masters of the house somehow managed to avoid the gas and escape in time. Suddenly, he felt something crunch under his feet and looked down... The world stopped for him in that moment, for he saw Yuuki's bracelet lying on the ground. The one she got from Cross to be able to tame Zero. It lied in the pile of ashes. Ashes of dead vampire. Zero fell to his knees, suddenly losing all his will to live. He picked the bracelet up, clutching it painfully in his hand as silent tears fell down his face. No, it couldn't be true. Yuuki was dead? This was the end then... He failed everyone again. But this would be his last failure. He'll make sure of it...
Just as he was about to take of his breathing mask to fall to oblivion and die here with her, he heard a noise. A whimper. Zero forced himself to follow it, as if it was the last straw of hope itself calling to him. It was hard to see in all the smoke, but after taking a few hesitant steps he couldn't believe his eyes. There laid Aido, covered in ice crystals that were already melting. The weaker flames in this part of house must have been his doing too, but it seemed he was quickly losing his strength as the ice melted quickly. He was half-conscious but alive. He had a cloth tied over his mouth in attempt to minimize the effects of the gas. Zero crawled to him, desperate and thankful; at least someone survived. He checked Aido's breath which seemed to be weak but regular and gave him the spare breathing mask. He had to get him out of this house as quickly as possible. But when he tried to pick him from the ground, Aido opened his eyes and recognizing Zero, he started struggling to try to say something. They really hadn't time for this, but something made Zero stop and lean closer to the noble's mouth to listen.
"I...I tried to save... both of them... but my ice was melting too quickly... " It was hard to understand between the coughs, but it seemed Aido was redeeming himself. They could certainly discuss this outside. Zero continued to carry him, but Aido wasn't about to give up and started struggling more vehemently with all the strength that was still left in him.
"NO! If there is... some flesh left... we could save them... please... look... around!" But Zero already knew there was nothing left of Yuuki. Nothing but ashes. He shook his head and started dragging Aido again. "No, please... Kaname-sama!" And for some reason that actually made Zero stop and look around. He hadn't seen Kuran's body yet, did he? He decided to quickly look around and then, he saw it. Further in the corner, almost completely hidden by the smoke laid mutilated corpse, still half frozen. Almost all the flesh was burned but still something clung on the bones. Zero saw quite a lot of dead bodies in his life but this sight would give him nightmare for a very long time. The figure had one hand stretched to direction of where Yuuki's ashes were, as if reaching for her, trying to save her. And failing, as Zero failed, too.
The hunter put Aido down and looked around, He grabbed a half burned curtain and packed what was left of Kuran into it. He tried to not think too much about what he was almost literally scraping from the floor and tied the package on his back. The flames started to burn anew, when Aido's ice stopped preventing them anymore and Zero quickly picked up the noble again, running out of the house.
Finally reaching outside Zero collapsed on the ground, tearing the gas mask from his face and taking a large dose of fresh air into his aching lungs. He looked over to where he dropped Aido trying to check him for injuries. Noble's body was badly burned but it seemed that he will live to see another day.
"Thank you." Were Aido's last words before fully loosing consciousness. He was thanking for saving his master's body not his own life. Zero untied the package from his back but didn't open it. He was not very eager to look at that thing again. He was not even sure what to do with those badly burned and mutilated remains. Zero really doubted that the pureblood would be able to survive in the state he was. And didn't care if he did or not at that moment... but Aido believed Kuran could somehow recover from it and it was what Yuuki would have wanted. Zero looked behind him for the last time, knowing exactly who he didn't manage to save. The noise of the mansion engulfed by flames, hiding his silent sobs
"Ugh." Aido groaned. Every little part of him hurt like hell. And why was it so hot here? He remembered the explosions, then the fire, and then Zero came and...
"Where is Kaname-sama?" The blond vampire tried to sit up quickly, but that turned out to be too much for him at the moment. He was too weak and slid quickly back to bed. Especially, since someone's strong arms helped him by pushing him back into lying position.
"Take it easy, vampire. Kuran is here, too." Probably not all of him tough. The familiar voice sounded. Despite the brash tone, the hand that just put something cold on Aido's forehead was rather gentle. The blonde vampire sighed in relief. It felt nice.
After a while, Aido seemed to gather enough strength to fully open his eyes and looked around. It looked like your average bedroom. Well, children's room actually. There were two beds, shelves full of toys and pictures with cartoonish characters hang on the walls. "Where are we?"
"My parents' house." Zero replied solemnly. It was obvious he wasn't really happy to be here again.
"Kiriyuu, what part of making it hard for other vampire hunters to find us was too much for your little brain to comprehend?"
"Relax, it might be quite surprising for you but I am not that stupid. There are only a few people left, who know about this place but they wouldn't think of looking for us here. We're save here." Zero replied glumly, the wet cloth patted the blonde's face with a little more vehemence than was necessary.
It was true. There weren't many people who knew about this house. And those who knew were familiar enough with Zero to believe that he wouldn't come back here no matter what. Zero made it very clear that he will never again set foot in this place. That's why it was the safest place for them to hide for now. They will come looking for him here at some point, if they were looking for him that is, but that won't be for some time yet. They were safe here for the time being.
Zero scowled. Not only did he dare to set his ex-human feet into this house, but he even brought a pureblood vampire and a noble into their house, hiding them from vampire hunters here. His parents must be rolling in their graves right now. He really was a disgrace to his hunter lineage.
Zero finished wiping the sweat from the other vampire's face and stood up to bring him something to drink and eat. Maybe even some more bandages, the hunter made a mental note when he noticed that the old ones were already seeped in blood. Aido was burnt badly, but nothing he wouldn't be able to recover from over some time. Not like certain other's body in this room. Or more like corpse. Yuuki, I'm afraid it's too late for him.
"Kaname-sama?" As if reading his thoughts the blonde asked again.
"Your master is over there" Zero gestured towards the bundle of cloth lying on the opposite bed, but refused to look at it himself.
Once they arrived and the hunter took care of Aido's most serious wounds, he decided to take a look at that body again. Zero opened the half burnt curtain the body was stashed in carefully, almost hoping that Aido was right and the pureblood started to heal, but no. It was the same pile of charred up meat and bones it was before. It made the hunter almost sick all over again just looking at it. No one deserved a death like that. No one. Why did Aido think that that - thing - can still be saved was beyond him. The least Zero could have done for Kuran was bring a set of fresh sheets and wrap what was left of his body in it, arranging it in more dignifying manner. Instead of sack of bones, now it looked like a mummified body wrapped in cloth.
On Aido's insistence and mindful of his injures, the hunter helped the blonde to rise up and cross the short distance over to the body. Zero watched as the younger vampire started to uncover the cloth and looked quickly away. Maybe now with a clear head will Aido realize that it really was a game over for Kuran.
"This is good. Better than I expected." The amount of enthusiasm in Aido's voice made Zero look up in surprise. Against his better judgment he glanced at the body, wincing. There was no change, was the blonde delusional? Maybe there was some slight hope since the body refused to turn to dust, but Zero was doubtful.
Zero brought another box full of blood packs up the stairs. He knew they needed supplies, especially with the way the war was developing, but robbing the blood truck was something the hunter would never imagine to do in his life. If he wasn't so sure he would go to hell before, this definitely had sealed the deal for him. At least he tried to take only the necessary amount. There were a lot of other injured people who needed them during these times.
A series of explosions made him quickly look out from the window. His parents' house was situated on the hill outside the city and Zero could clearly see the city below from here. The new set of fires was rising from multiple places in the city. Another air raid, it seemed.
Zero looked over to Aido who was sitting by the table, trying to listen to any radio broadcast he could find. The blonde vampire glanced up, his face grave. They wouldn't be save here for much longer, it was time for their plan.
The attack on Kurans' stood at the beginning of it all. The vampire existence could no longer be kept secret and soon the conflict turned out to be 'full on' vampire-human war with both sides using more and more destructive arms. It was only a matter of time before someone will think of using the weapon of highest caliber. They needed to go underground before that.
Aido told him about an underground shelter not so far from Cross academy that was used as a secret vampire test laboratory for making blood pills, supposedly long abandoned now. The problem was it was quite a distance from here. And since the gasoline quickly became luxurious commodity, they had to cross the distance either on foot or more preferably by using civilian transport. But the transport was guarded by human soldiers and no vampire would be able to cross. No vampire that wasn't tamed that is. And it would be impossible to try to smuggle Kuran's body through that.
That's why they came up with this plan. Even though the blonde vampire didn't have any visible wounds anymore, Zero still thought Aido must have damaged quite a big part of his brain in that fire weeks ago to come up with something like this. There weren't exactly a lot of other alternatives tough, so the hunter reluctantly decided to go with it.
"Are you sure it will work?" Zero glanced skeptically towards the corner of the room where a stash of blood packs, candles and weird old books has been placed.
"For hundredth time, yes" Aido took off headphones, a grim look still clear on his face.
"Bad news?" It was a rhetorical question, Zero was quite sure of the answer.
The hunter walked over to the minibar and pulled out a bottle of whiskey. His father had quite a supply here. He poured two glasses and brought one to the blonde vampire. They sat in silence for a while, watching how the numerous fires in the city illuminated the dark sky above.
Zero wondered how other hunters were faring right now. Was master Yagari still alive? And if he was, did the older hunter think that Zero deserted to the other side? Zero hoped not. He sincerely hoped his sensei thought that Zero had fallen victim to the first series of surprise bombing attacks that hit the Kuran estate. For him it was much more preferable to be considered dead than being branded a traitor. Zero's hold on the glass tightened, almost breaking it. He will help Aido and Kuran to get to that damn shelter. He will do it for Yuuki. He will at least save her brother and then return to the side he belonged.
Aido too, was lost in his thoughts. The blonde wondered about what he heard in the broadcast. Another city has been wiped out. This one had a large vampire population. A lot of his friends from Cross academy were studying at the university there. How many of them survived? Probably none. Aido didn't feel sad, not anymore. Now, he felt just… numb. His own hometown was destroyed a week ago. There was no contact with that place since. He hoped that at least his little sister was able to save herself. Please at least let her be alright.
"Let's do it now." The blonde vampire announced with a new resolve. "I'll pour the blood into the bathtub and prepare candles. You bring Kaname-sama here."
Zero didn't even get a chance to protest, before the other vampire ran off to prepare everything, so the hunter just reluctantly made his way towards his old bedroom where Kuran's body still laid on his bed. He brought him down to the bathroom, noticing that Aido was almost finished with his preparations. The tub was filled with blood, the empty blood packs now laid bundled in the corner. The candles were placed in specific positions and the blonde vampire was currently drawing strange signs on them in his own blood. All this was made by following instructions in large, an ancient looking tome that was now lying open in the middle of the room.
It was an old book full of vampire magic and a pain in the ass to find. Zero was even contemplating breaking into vampire hunters' archives at some point. Fortunately, he didn't have to, because he found the book by chance in his father's study. Why was his family in possession of ancient tomes of vampire spell craft Zero had no idea, but he didn't give it much thought back then, he was just glad he didn't have to break anymore laws.
Zero put down the pureblood's body and took it out of sheets. He looked over to the blonde vampire as if to protest again, but Aido just shook his head. He had decided. This way it was for the best. Shrugging the hunter stepped over the candles and placed the body into the tub, watching him sink slowly. Was it just his imagination or did that body seemed to start absorbing some of the blood at the contact? He took that as a good sign, but still…
"I still think this is absolutely crazy. What makes you think it will really work?"
"As I said before, it's ancient vampire spell that was used to wake up our ancestors, the first vampires. After thousands of years spent in hibernation their bodies don't look that different from what Kaname-sama's one looks like now." Though they weren't so severely damaged, Aido thought to himself. "Actually, some of the Egyptian mummies really were our vampire ancestors. The unexplained series of deaths that sometimes occurred to scientists that uncovered the sarcophagus was not the result of some curse as humans tend to believe, but just a wrath of an ancestor that was woken up by those insolent humans before it was his time. That's why I'm almost certain this will work."
"But it says we need to sacrifice a flesh of another pureblood for it to work." Zero glanced at the open book. It was one of the main ingredients actually. He looked at the younger vampire questioningly. The hunter might have been able to get them blood packs and even contemplate breaking into vampire hunter archives to get that old book, but if Aido thought he can sent him to hunt down some pureblood now, he was sadly mistaken. He can say goodbye to this little plan of his at this moment. Despite everything, Zero wasn't suicidal anymore. Not enough to try hunt down a pureblood without any backup.
"Well, that would be quite impossible to get, isn't it?" The blonde vampire said condescendingly, which earned him an angry frown from the hunter. "But that's ok, we'll use a substitute. It should be enough to stabilize Kaname-sama for days, even weeks. Enough time to move him to safe location."
"What will happen to him after that time has passed?"
"Since we don't have any purebloods to sacrifice, Kaname-sama's body will fall back into coma and his body will quickly degenerate back to its broken form. It will take him years to heal completely. It's possible he might not even remember this happened. It's even more possible that we wake up just his body with a few basic instincts. He might not be self-aware, just his deepest conscience." Aido frowned, he didn't like that possibility. Pureblood without self-consciousness and only with some basic survival instincts was a very, very dangerous thing to set free. But they had to risk it. They needed him to be able to move and then get him to the shelter as quickly as possible.
"Okay then. Kiriyuu, do you have any vampire weapons that can cut through flesh?" The blonde asked suddenly.
"Maybe." Zero shrugged. His father's weapon was a silver katana. He looked at the other vampire suspiciously. "Why?"
"It doesn't matter, can you bring it?"
Zero made as if to protest, but the moment he saw the look on Aido's face, decided against it. There was no deceit in blonde's eyes, only a sincere plea. "I'll be right back."
The hunter walked past the main hall, keeping his eyes down. He hated this part of the house. It was where it happened. Zero inwardly thanked to whoever cleaned this place after the incident. Yet no matter how many times they might have scrubbed this place, to him it will always smell after his parents' blood here.
He made his way quickly up the stairs and walked towards his father's study. It was where he remembered they stored their weapons. He opened the large wardrobe and indeed found all weapons stashed there. Zero wondered if the same person that cleaned the house, had put those weapons back into their place. It must have been Yagari. He was one of the few that knew this place and his parents well enough.
Zero's respect for his master grew with that thought. But it was accompanied by the sting of the ex-human's possible betrayal. Zero decided right then and there that once the situation calms down he will find Yagari and try to explain everything to him. Though, he wasn't sure what exactly to say yet. The hunter wasn't even sure why he was doing all this himself. Was it all for Yuuki, who he once cared for so much? The girl who once gave the ex-human all her care and blood? Sure Zero felt betrayed when he found out what she really was and left with Kuran, but that didn't change the fact that he owed her his life. And deep down maybe even loved her.
Lately, with all that was happening there was rarely enough time to think about stuff like that. Thankfully. But these thoughts still caught up with Zero eventually and for numerous nights kept him awake and wondering if it would all be different if...
"Will you hurry up, please?" Aido's shout from downstairs tore him out of his musings.
The hunter quickly shook his head to get rid of his thoughts. He let his hands slide over silver shurikens and daggers, before finally grabbing his father's katana. There were quite a number of well-kept weapons here. Maybe he'll come back later and pack some before they leave this place.
The sword felt strange in his hand and he tried a few swings with it. He remembered it much heavier, but that was probably because he was still a child when he last held it. Of course, Zero had been trained in the sword fight, but unlike his parents, his talents laid in ranged weapons, much to Yagari's delight. The old hunter didn't have his own kids and he proudly taught Zero all he knew about the art of shooting. Ichiru on the other hand, was much better with katana than Zero ever was. But because of his sickness their parents never let him perfect this skill.
"Kiriyuu, have you fallen asleep up there or what?" Once again Aido's anxious voice pulled the hunter out of his thoughts.
"I am coming, chill out, will you?" Zero wondered what the blonde vampire was so nervous about. Sure they were going to wake up Kuran, but still, who cared about some pureblooded blood sucker. Well, except for Aido obviously.
Though, Zero found out soon enough why was the other vampire so agitated. While he was upstairs Aido tightened a bandage around his upper arm to stop the blood flow and positioned it over the rim of the bathtub. He looked up at the hunter expectantly. Suddenly, with a sinking feeling the hunter understood quite perfectly why they needed the katana.
"Whoa, whoa slow down. I think there is quite a big part of this plan you didn't feel like sharing with me. First of all, I am NOT cutting your arm off." Zero looked at the other vampire like he lost his mind. There was no way.
"I knew you wouldn't agree. That's why I didn't say anything till now. But how did you think we're going to revive enough of Kaname-sama... with blood alone? Don't be naïve. My flesh will be just enough to keep him up for a few days, hopefully. Come on, don't make it worse for me and just get it over with."
"No Aido, just NO!" Zero still shook his head vehemently. Part of the reason he hated sharp weapons was that it involved quite a lot of cutting into flesh and severing limbs. It tended to be quite messy and the hunter much more preferred to shoot things form distance.
"Zero, please." Aido's blue eyes pleaded with him. They were fearful of what was to come. Fearful but determined at the same time. "We're running out of time. That broadcast right now, they said the whole city just north from here has been wiped out. They used one of the nuclear bombs and nothing in one hundred miles radius survived, Zero. Nothing. We have to get to that shelter, but we won't be able to cross the hunter patrols with Kaname-sama's body in that state."
"This is crazy, Aido. You don't even know if your precious Kaname-sama is still alive. Just look at that thing, it's probably long dead already!" Zero protested. Even if he didn't mind, cutting someone's arm off just like that, madness.
"Shut up!" Aido grabbed the katana from hunter's hands. "I'm doing this with or without your help." If Zero refused to cooperate he will do it himself then. The sword handle stung the blonde's palm where he held it, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. Not compared to the pain he was about to experience.
"My arm will grow back in time. It might take a few years but it will, eventually. But if we lose Kaname-sama... with the way this war is escalating... it might mean the end for the entire vampire race. You have to understand Zero." He pleaded with him for the last time, before closing his eyes as he prepared himself to deliver the blow.
"Stop!" Zero caught Aido's hand before he managed to swing the sword down, his eyes wide. Had the blonde lost his mind? Was this some kind of vampire instinct - to ensure the pureblood's survival no matter the cost?
He looked at the blonde vampire to talk some sense into him, but seeing his determined features, he almost gave up. It was clear nothing will change Aido's mind at this point. Still Zero tried. "Even if we manage to wake him, by using your - arm. It won't change anything, because you wouldn't be able to travel in that state."
Aido smiled bitterly. "You don't have to worry about me, because I won't be going with you. I already contacted Ruka and Kain. They are on their way here. We will set out to that shelter, too. But we'll be taking a different route. One that avoids all human and hunter settlements and it will take us months to reach that place. But in those months there is a big chance that one side of the war decides for terminal solution. They already used that bomb and it's only a matter of time before they settle on biological weapons. That's why you have to go first. You as a hunter would be able to cross cities. You can reach that shelter with Kaname- sama in much shorter time."
"I don't understand. Why are you sacrificing so much for him?" Zero shook his head, he definitely hadn't signed for this.
Aido met the silver gaze and smiled sympathetically. "There is no way you would understand, hunter, so I'll just say it like this: do it for a future of vampire race." The blonde paused, realizing that Zero was probably the last man on earth who would care about the future of his kind. "And if not for our future, at least do it for Yuuki. Save her brother, Zero. She would want that." It was a low blow and he knew that. If he had any doubts about it, the pained look that just crossed Zero's face confirmed it.
There was a long moment of silence, when both of them just looked at each other, measuring, contemplating. Finally, Zero dropped his gaze and sighed. He gave up. Why did he care anyway for whatever this crazy vampire wanted...
"Alright then, I'll cut your damn hand off if you want it so badly." He said grimly. If Aido tried to do it himself he would only cause himself unnecessary pain, since the hunter doubted the blonde vampire had any experience with cutting off limbs. It was not like Zero had any experience either, but he had been trained in sword fight as a child and he remembered his father teaching him how to position your sword and how much pressure to apply to cut through bones. "At least let me prepare some hunter drugs for you to counter the pain."
He stood up, taking his katana with him. Just in case Aido might still decide to maul his hand himself. Fortunately, they were in a house that was full of hunter appurtenances. It didn't take him long and he was back with a multiple vials in his hand. "I made enough for you to last for quite some time." He settled it down on nearby table and handed the blonde one vial. "Drink now."
"Thanks." Aido looked at him gratefully. "Zero, if something happens to me or I don't make it to the shelter in time, there is a notebook on that table. I've written everything you need to know: the code to let you inside the shelter, how to operate its generators and air and water filtration systems, and other things. There should be some supplies already from the time it functioned as a laboratory. The rest be bought in the city. I've wrote down a list for it, too. If you get everything it should last us for twenty years."
"Twenty years?" Zero asked skeptically. Aido didn't really think they would need to be holed up in some shelter for that long, did he? "How do you even know about such place anyway?"
"It used to be a blood pill test laboratory, I used to provide my expertise there while I was still studying at Cross academy. The positive thing is that it should have enough blood pills there to last us a lifetime." Aido quipped. He was starting to feel a little light-headed, probably the result of the hunter drugs. Good. It was highest time. "Let's do this already."
Zero saw that the painkillers were working and nodded reluctantly. He checked the blade if it was sharp enough and finding out it was, he positioned himself, waiting for the blonde vampire to close his eyes and turn his head away. The hunter drew breath and prayed to all deities to give him enough precision to make one clean cut.
The hunter swung the sword. The blade sparked as it made contact with a vampire flesh, but the cut was strong and went all way through. Aido gave cried out loudly and curled up, almost sobbing from pain.
Zero threw away the katana with disgust and quickly knelt down beside Aido, trying to keep him up and not let him fall to the floor. He forced the blonde to drink another vial of painkillers and almost cradled the smaller vampire as he supported him and waited for his pain to subside enough. Thanks to the tightened bandage the wound didn't bleed at all, only the cut off part left a small puddle on the floor.
"I am sorry." The hunter whispered once the blonde's sobs eased enough to only a hitches and Zero was certain the other would hear him.
Aido shook his head. He didn't blame the hunter for anything. How could he when he was the one who asked for this. "Zero, take... my hand and... put it into bathtub." The blonde vampire said hoarsely, trying to not to whimper from pain. "Then read aloud the incantation from the book."
Zero hesitantly let go of the other vampire and did as he was told. Wincing, he grabbed the hand and put it beside the body into the tub, then picked up the old tome and started reading. Despite his hunter upbringing he was usually reluctant to trust such spell craft. He used a few hunter charms here and there himself, but those were just simple spells that didn't require any special rituals, not as the one he was about to do right now. Zero felt almost silly at first, but as he continued reading, he felt as the air in the room started changing. Soon he had goose bumps form the sudden chilliness. He paused when one of the candles went out.
"Go on. It seems to be working." Aido whispered. He momentarily forgot about his pain as he watched the ritual. For it to start working so quickly, it meant that Zero was either a really strong vampire or a powerful hunter. Since Zero was a level D, Aido's money was on the hunter part. He shouldn't have been so surprised, after all Zero came from an old vampire family and even had a silver hair trait. The same color of hair that the legendary woman that is rumored to give birth to all hunters had.
As he continued reading Zero had a feeling he saw a movement in the tub from the corner of his eye. If nothing else, it seemed to be absorbing the blood more quickly as the blood level in the tub started decreasing slowly. But it wasn't until he finished the spell that the real chaos started. With the last sentence, the pureblood's charred body started moving with a newfound strength, almost as if it was possessed. It gave an inhuman growl before grabbing the hand hungrily. It started eating the hand, burying its claws deeply in it and tearing the flesh with fangs, chewing it like a predator would do with raw meat. All this, while making those inhuman growling sounds.
Zero averted his gaze quickly unable to watch anymore. He had seen some pretty nasty things during his whole life, especially in last few weeks, but this still managed to top it all. Even when he was not looking, he could still hear the sound of tearing flesh and soon he felt like throwing up. He needed to get some fresh air and quickly.
He hurriedly checked on Aido if he was alright. The blonde vampire wasn't looking at the scene either, but he seemed to take it with more calm than the hunter. Maybe he was used to such things thanks to his vampire upbringing or was just high enough on painkillers to not care anymore. Once he made sure the blonde was in stable enough state, Zero headed quickly out of the house.
The hunter stayed on the front porch for a good while, just taking deep breaths in attempt to calm himself down. He was grateful that the smell of flesh and blood didn't reach here. If anyone ever needed some proof that vampires were inhuman beasts, he could just take a look at whatever was happening in that bathroom right now. It was just a heap of bones and charred meat and yet... How could that thing even move, or make sounds like that or... eat?
Zero kind of felt sorry for the house. It seemed to witness a little too much bloodshed already. If he ever decided to rent or sell this place he will make sure to tell the new owners that the house is most probably haunted. He hoped his parents weren't really watching from heaven or something like that and if they did, they would forgive him for this.
Finally, a few minutes later, Zero no longer felt like throwing up and headed back into the house. Though the sight he was greeted with made him froze in place. The bathtub was empty now, even the blood was completely gone. Yet a child sized creature, from head to toes completely covered in blood was sitting on top of Aido, biting into his neck with hungry little growls. The hunter cursed, he should have never left the blonde vampire here alone. What was this thing anyway? It almost looked like child but it was hard to tell with all that blood and with those wild, animalistic moves.
Zero quickly ran up to them and tore that little monster from Aido's neck. The child started fighting him like an angry cat, burying its little claws into him. The hunter felt a sharp sting of pain in his left hand and with all his strength threw that creature of himself. The small body smacked against the tiles and remained crouched in the bathtub in fighting position, hissing warningly. Instinctively, Zero lurched forward to eliminate the threat, but Aido caught him quickly.
"Stop it, Zero! You're scaring him." He tried to arrest the hunter's movement, which wasn't that easy from his sitting position. "It's just a child! It was hungry so I let him feed from me. It didn't attack me or anything, so calm down!"
Zero looked at him like he was crazy. "That thing was not just feeding. It looked like it was trying to bite your head off. And you just let it!"
"Will you calm down already? So maybe I dozed off a bit. It's not like I feel much of anything right now… which is probably a good thing." Aido looked at the stump where his hand used to be. "Thanks to those drugs I don't feel much pain."
Speaking of pain, Zero remembered that his left hand was stinging quite painfully and looked down. "He bit my fucking finger off!" Indeed, a big part of his left little finger was missing.
The hunter looked at the monster child accusingly and in return, the boy growled at him, warning him to keep his distance. Bloody red eyes blazing and sharp fangs bared.
Aido threw him a look that clearly said 'do you really want to complain about missing finger to me of all people.' Zero took a calming breath, running a hand through his hair. So maybe he was overreacting a little, but a vampire looking like he was murdering someone or generally biting someone's neck off was not an easy sight for him. Especially not in this house. This place was the birthplace of his most traumatizing memories. Geez, his heart was ready to jump out of his chest when he saw that scene.
The hunter walked out of the bathroom without saying another word and returned shortly with a semi bandaged hand, quickly gulping one vial of painkillers before turning to Aido. For now Zero seemed to settle on ignoring the child - thing - whatever it was. He looked over the bite marks on the younger vampire's neck and disinfected it before going over to his missing arm.
"Leave it. It will close itself off over night. Just tighten the bandage around it a little more to prevent the blood flow." Aido supplied as he saw the other's hesitation. "And Zero, don't even think about something as stupid as feeling guilty about it. After all, it was me who made you do it."
"Right." The hunter smiled sardonically, but with a hint of appreciation, and helped the smaller vampire to stand up. "I'll take you to bed and bring you something to eat and some blood packs. You should rest"
The blonde vampire looked ready to drop off to sleep, but stirred. "Wait, what about him?" He gestured toward the bloodied child that has been watching them quietly the whole time.
Zero sighed at no longer being able to ignore that thing. "Yes, what about him? Did that old magic book contained only recipes for S sized purebloods or something? I thought we were about to revive Kaname."
"But it is Kaname-sama! Just in a child form it seems. It's brilliant if you think about it. We used a substitute instead of another pureblood's flesh, so it was clear we wouldn't be able to revive him completely. But instead of adult sized vampire with a possibility of limited mental capabilities we got a fully functional child. Their physiology really is quite incredible."
"Are you certain about that fully functional part?" The hunter asked skeptically. After all, he behaved more like a wild cat and he had yet to hear a word from him.
Aido felt like smacking the hunter. "Zero it's just a scared child. A scared vampire child." He decided to clarify it more for the hunter. He guessed that vampire children were a little wilder when they had a tantrum than human children probably were. Maybe that's why the hunter looked at Kaname like he was some kind of animal. Aido looked apologetically at the pureblood child before turning back to Zero. "You scared him when you suddenly attacked him while he was feeding. But really, it's just an innocent child, who doesn't seem to remember who he is or where he is."
Scared innocent children covered in blood. Ok, that tugged at Zero heartstrings a little. He sighed. "I'll take you to bed now and then take care of him, ok? Don't worry, I won't hurt him."
It didn't take long before the hunter reappeared in the bathroom, wincing at the sight. The room looked like they murdered someone in it. "I brought you a fresh set of clothes. They used to be mine." He stepped closer, but the child growled at him in warning once again, still wary of him.
"Look, I am sorry about before. I didn't want to scare you. I just panicked because I thought you were hurting my friend." The hunter decided to be sincere. If this really was Kuran, he was probably too smart for his own good even in a form of small child.
The boy inspected him for a while before nodding slowly. Zero walked over and let the water run. Once the temperature was warm enough, he gestured for Kaname to come closer. With a moment of hesitation the pureblood did and let himself be washed. Zero handed him a soap while he concentrated on washing the pureblood's head carefully, scrubbing all the blood away. The hunter was suddenly reminded of the old days when he had been taking care of Ichiru.
Once the child was dried off, dressed and seated at the table and carefully chewing his sandwich, Zero could no longer call him monster or anything like that. When the bloody red eyes and bared fangs were replaced by the mop of brown hair and clear brown eyes he indeed started looking like child version of Kuran. It also helped that he wasn't covered in blood anymore. Seeing him now, Zero felt even more guilty for his behavior before.
Still, there was something creepy about this child. He kept his posture too straight and his table manners were a little too refined for a kid. Even his eyes looked like they were much older and wiser than the ones that should belong to someone so young. Maybe that's just how pureblood kids were. Or maybe it was because it was Kaname somewhere inside this little body.
As Zero busied himself by musing about these things he hadn't noticed that the boy was watching his every move for quite some time.
"I am sorry about your finger, sir. I didn't mean to hurt you." Kaname spoke up finally.
Zero looked up in surprise. So the boy can speak after all. "It's okay. It was my fault for scaring you." The hunter glanced at his bandaged hand. It stopped bleeding a long time ago. What bugged him more was, that he couldn't find the bitten off part. Did the boy... no way. Anyway, it will grow back up in time. "And call me Zero."
"Zero." The pureblood repeated, memorizing it. "Is my name Kaname?"
"Yes." The hunter answered carefully, not sure where this conversation was heading and how much he should reveal to this kid.
"Then, is what that blonde man was saying true? Am I just some kind of revived version of some other pureblood named Kaname?"
Zero raised his eyebrows at the unexpected question. So he was listening. The kid really was too smart for his own good. "You're not just some revived version, you're the same person. You just don't remember it."
"Hmm." The boy mused. It was clear he had more questions, but for some reason he let the topic drop for now. "You have my blood in you, I can feel it. And you don't seem to have any intentions of hurting me. Well, not anymore." Kaname referred to their little fight in bathroom. "Then, are you my ex-human?"
"Definitely not!" Zero said sharply.
His reaction made the boy's eyes glint with some unreadable emotion. "Perhaps we were friends then?"
Once again Zero was left wondering. What was he supposed to say? That they were enemies, who once cared for the same person? Then fought each other to death but eventually separated, only for Zero to appear years later and for some reason try to warn and save that certain person. Yet instead of managing to save her, he managed to save only her brother?
"It's quite complicated." Yup, complicated just about surmised it. "But yes, you could say we used to be... schoolmates."
"Good. Then I guess I could trust you." Kaname decided. "For now."
"Good." The hunter shrugged, fighting a smile. These purebloods, they must be born with this attitude. Strangely, he found it more amusing than annoying.
"Are you finished with your sandwich? We should really get some rest. There is a long journey ahead of us tomorrow." Zero said finally. He also wanted to avoid any more questioning. Child version of Kaname was slowly proving to be as difficult to deal with as the adult one was.
Since Aido was sleeping in the children's room and Zero didn't want to disturb the injured vampire, he led Kaname into his parents' bedroom. He pulled out a pair of fresh sheets and hurriedly made the bed. Zero waited for the boy to climb into the bed, before settling the sheets around him, making sure he will be warm enough.
As the hunter was about to leave and made his own makeshift bed on a couch downstairs Kaname's voice stopped him. "Zero, will you stay and sleep here? The bed is big enough for both of us."
Zero paused at that. He shouldn't be surprised, really. Even if the boy behaved like an adult, he was still a child. At least at this moment. A child that woke up with no recollection of who he was or where, in a room full of blood and with two strange men, one of which was missing arm and the other tried to attack him on sight. Really it was no surprise he might be a little uneasy at the thought of staying alone in an unknown darkened room.
"Are you sure about that? Aren't you afraid I might do something?" The hunter didn't mind sleeping here, but still...
"No." Kaname answered simply and patted a place next to him on the bed resolutely. With a shrug Zero decided he was too tired to argue anymore and took the offered place.
The pureblood turned to him for the last time. "But if you try something I will bite off another of your fingers."
Zero chuckled at that. "Fair enough."
The hunter was already dozing off when he felt a small, warm body snuggle towards him. He smiled slightly and made a little more room under his sheet, before falling asleep completely.