Author's note: Christmas ain't Christmas without red. Lots of it.

Seeing Red

"Look at this!" Yuuki exclaimed in excitement akin to a youngster. In her outstretched hands held a cookie. The crumbly snack was speckled with drops of red candy. If he showed anymore than slight fascination he would eating it. The Christmas holiday season was upon them all once again, and once again Yuuki cherished her homely tradition of baking delectable doughy goodness.

"What is it?" Zero asked in obvious boredom. Sitting back on the Chairman's couch, he was concentrating on wiping Bloody Rose. A bit of downtime after an early round around the Academy didn't mean he couldn't be productive. That is, after he startled awake upon dozing during his methodical polishing. Zero felt hazier than usual today. It was weird; when everyone else was excited, he was plain lethargic.

Yuuki had the same goal of success in mind when she sped off to enjoy her free evening. Too bad she wasn't reaching it tonight. Perfect snacks weren't her thing.

The hopeful girl rotated her prize around. "A masterpiece!"

"Like your other two batches?" he couldn't help murmur.

"Hey, making these aren't easy!" A familiar sheen began creeping in her expectant eyes. Zero sensed the inevitable coming. The tingling dread already began its ascent from the base of his spine...

"Care to try it?"

Zero eyed the remarkably scorch-free biscuit, at the red dots of candy. The crimson deepness; he didn't like it. This time of year had so much of the color.

When he didn't speak, Yuuki's face scrunched up. "This batch is great!" she exclaimed as if to convince him she wasn't feeding him poison.

"No." Zero answered her curtly. Nothing more, nothing less. He stared back down at his pistol. The bane of vampires. A vampire such as himself. He pretended not to notice the falling hurt on her face from the corner of his eye. She wouldn't understand. He felt adventurous enough to venture a taste today, but not when those candies hung there like bloody droplets. "I'm not feeling too good," he tossed out as an excuse.

He supposed if he had put more emotion into his reply he would've believed himself. So would Yuuki. Her feet shuffled. "You're not too tired to clean your gun."

"I said I don't want it," Zero responded a bit testily.

"You haven't tried any of the cookies I made today!" Yuuki tilted her head in an attempt at appeal. "One bite?"

Zero's eyes narrowed. If he bit, it wasn't going to be into any cookie. He ignored her and resumed buffing the cold metal barrel of Bloody Rose.

He paid attention when Yuuki snatched his gun from his grasp. Zero automatically reached for it.

"No," Yuuki scolded when she saw argument spring to his lips. "This doesn't get returned until you eat this." She punctuated her statement with a shove of her baked appetizer in front of Zero's face.

Yuuki never listened. Zero began wrestling with her, trying to wrench Bloody Rose from her hold. He noticed then that he had foolishly left the safety off. His nodding off during cleaning caused it. He seized her wrists. In turn, Yuuki held his gun farthest away from his grasp and urged her cookie closer to his eyes like she was wielding a knife. She wiggled it very close and Zero felt his eyes crisscross at such a close object in his vision.

Growls and grunts were the only sounds between them as each one attempted to overcome the other. Zero was impressed with how much Yuuki fought back. Usually she would have given up because fighting wasn't worth the effort. She was strong when determined. Knowing this, Zero resorted to prying at her gripped fingers. "Let it go," he commanded.

"No way!" Yuuki smirked haughtily. "All you need to do is-"

A reverberating bang shook the air. Zero hissed when the burning purple energy sheared through the side of his thigh. He dropped to his knees. Pain stung like wildfire at the site of the wound. Dark blood splotched on his pant leg. The redness gleamed through the rip of fabric.

The prized items in Yuuki's possession fell to the floor heavily when her hands flew to her mouth in horror. "I didn't mean-"

"I didn't want it!" Zero yelled with more ferocity than he planned. His voice quieted but its intensity didn't. "I can't stand red. Keep it away!"

The burning in his leg sparked anger to snatch his fallen weapon off the ground. He rose slowly and limped towards the doorway. Bloody Rose was gripped in his hand with a tenacity that forbid followers.

Some time later, Zero had calmed considerably after dressing his injury. He had backtracked to the Chairman's living room some hours later and found it empty. He remained there with a novel and the door closed. He had tranquility to himself.

The door sounded. "Are you ok?" came Yuuki's hesitant question.

With his annoyance subsided, Zero had relaxed, feeling almost sedated. He looked up from his book. "Yeah."

The door creaked open a crack and her voice floated through. "Sorry about what happened," Yuuki apologized, not pushing open the door.

"I hope your cookie wasn't ruined." That was some sort of apology on Zero's end.

Yuuki remained hidden. What was up with that? Zero remarked, "I'm not disfigured. You can recognize me when you step in."

A nervous laugh. "Y-yeah, I know that." There was one more pause before the crack of the door widened and Yuuki finally entered. A hooded cloak draped over her small frame, obscuring everything in her features apart from her eyes. She crossed the room and stopped at the couch Zero was reading on.

"New look. It's nice." Why Yuuki was wearing such a thing Zero figured must be a phase. Or was it that cold out? He switched his gaze out a far window and saw night. Tonight was supposed to be frigid outside.

"I want to help you like red again."

The serious tone in Yuuki's voice made Zero slowly close his novel and pay attention. Before he could say anything else, Yuuki flipped off the cloak with a sweeping flourish. Zero's eyes widened at her choice of outfit. Santa Claus was the theme and she was dressed in red outlined with fuzzy white trim. A Santa hat, a heavy sweater, and a skirt revealing much leg, Zero undeniably noticed.

"You like?" Yuuki winked at him.

Zero's body reacted before he could stop himself. It traitorously heated despite his cool exterior. Responding out loud might prove disastrous so he kept silent. He kept his stare on the ball of white attached to the end of her hat.

His injured leg faced the opposite side Yuuki stood at and she sat on his open side. Yuuki smiled coyly though she blushed something fierce. "You'll like red a different way now." The white fuzz moved off Yuuki's head as she removed the hat to plunk atop Zero's head. He raised an eyebrow.

"I'll make you like red," Yuuki repeated, determination alight in her gaze.

-- THE END --