A/N: Long time no see, this is the second (and theoretically last) chapter of this fanfiction and before you even start reading I'm so sorry for what I do to these guys! Please don't hate me I'll be uploading other VK fics soon that aren't this terrible. I also apologize for the semi OOC-ness that happens and that I changed Zero's mother's name and appearance but I felt as though it fits better soooo I don't really apologize for that XP. Regardless I hope you all enjoy! ~Rena-chan
Ch.2: It's Over
"Where did kaname-sama go?" Ruka asked when Seiren came back downstairs. It was rare that she didn't hide her aura and presence around the night class but for whatever reason after Kaname had left to his study she didn't bother trying to remain unnoticed.
"I assume he went to find Kiryuu Zero." the trusted monotone noble replied. She knew the younger vampires would not push her, because of her age and status she could dismember them all by her own power. That being said there was no such thing as free information.
"Why would he do something like that. Not only did the headmaster tell him to take us back here but clearly the hunters don't want him out there looking for Kiryuu either." Kain pointed out in thought though he didn't expect to get a reply from the gray-haired vampiress. Unshockingly he didn't receive one.
"I think you're missing the big point here Kain, the fact that kaname-sama is spending his time searching for a lowly level D to begin with. Who cares if he dies anyway, it makes it easier on us." Aido blurted already coming into one of his rash hissyfits as Takuma called them.
"I care." the whisper, from the top of the stairs sounded. "We both care, the headmaster cares, Kaito-san cares and I'm positive Touga-sensei cares too." Yuuki's eyes were downcast and shadowed, her body was still trembling slightly as she held onto her best friend's hand who watched her concerned. Aido pursed his lips in regret. He hated upsetting the girl, she cried like no other vampire he knew when it came to things that upset her like this. And of course, that lead to Kaname being upset at him which was way worse.
"Yuuki-sama, please pay him no attention, we are worried about Zero-kun as well and I'm sure the other can do something about all of this, or at least make sure he gets back to the academy safely." Takuma attempted to console the pureblood princess though it didn't seem to be working super well.
"Everything that Kaito-kun said, it's all true isn't it? I know Zero's an outcast to both hunter and vampire society...but when I thought everyone was working towards co-existence I didn't think...I didn't think things would turn out so terribly. Seiren, why did my brother leave to find Zero?" she asked, turning to the ancient noble with determination sparking in her voice.
"Without Kaname-sama here, I should not tell you Yuuki-sama. It would be unwise." she replied taking notice of the tension that was starting to build in the dorms. Everyone knew that when Yuuki was too upset there was no such thing as consoling the princess. Half the time they ended up getting Zero to deal with her somehow which seemed to work well enough.
'We'll be at a real loss if she goes ballistic right now, with neither Kaname or Kiryuu here we could have a serious problem on our hands. Not to mention the headmaster, Touga-san and Takamiya-san are also gone.' Sayori thought to herself with minor alarm. She knew the nobles would follow Kaname's orders to the fullest, but maybe she could help Yuuki out this time. Not to mention she wanted to know the details behind this as well. "Did Kaname-san tell you not to tell us? Surely you can ask him through telepathy if he said nothing about you keeping quiet or not." she spoke up eventually, everyone turned to face her. Sayori was not normally one to speak out against the nobles rules or word, but then again Yuuki was her best friend since the beginning.
"You should know we do not disturb Kaname-sama when he is out on business." Ruka hissed back at the day class perfect, she never really held a grudge against Sayori for anything personally. But if the girl was going against their customs there would be blood.
"But you don't see him as doing business do you. You see him as wasting his time on someone that you don't even consider "worth the air you breathe" isn't that right?" Yuuki spoke up again, the anger clearer than day in her voice; so much so that the windows cracked and a nearby vase shattered. Takuma glanced over at Seiren in prompting while Yuuki and Ruka stared each other down. It wasn't the first time something such as this had happened, but the nobles were not keen on engaging the pureblood. Seiren gave a slight nod to Takuma turning to Yuuki and Sayori.
"I was sent to search Kiryuu-kun's dorm room, I assume he expected it because there was a letter there waiting. Addressed to no one in particular but open to read...Yuuki-sama, you're not going to like what it said." she began, Yuuki nodded and prompted her to keep going.
"I know, Seiren, but I have to know what is happening. We both do, we all do because even if you hate him Zero is still a large factor at this academy. Without him, Rido, Shizuka, Ichiru...all those things that happened. Where would we even be? Even the everyday things he does like watch crossovers, it's not easy waking up to people hating you just to protect the secret of more people that hate you. So I have to know, for him and for myself." she argued, Takuma couldn't help but agree to what she was saying. He just hoped that telling her wouldn't bring more problems than the ones they were already having.
Kaien sighed, sensing that Kaname had left the academy grounds. "What is he doing...if he goes searching for the kid Zero may just pull the trigger before we can even get there. Hell, we don't even know where there is to begin with." Touga grumbled as he came up beside Kaien with Kaito just behind him.
"Well, if anyone would have an idea of where Zero could be it would be him. I suggest we follow and try to keep anything from going disastrously wrong before we can stop it." the headmaster replied with a nervous smile at the glare he received. Despite what Touga felt personally, he knew that because Kaname and Zero shared a bond even though heavily one-sided they could locate each other much better than anyone else could. "Touga you do realize that this is not your fault." he added in a soft whisper as they sped off in chase of Kaname's trail. Touga stiffened slightly but gave him a sharp barely noticeable nod that Kaien knew better than to believe.
'Where would Zero go, if he wanted to escape everyone from the academy and the association at the same time...think Kaname! You've watched the boy for how many years now? You should know a simple detail such as that.' Kaname hissed to himself as he ran though the trees, trying to catch the trail of the ex-human hunter somewhere. Pausing in his search the pureblood looked around him, he was far off campus now but there were few people around since it was night. Briefly he felt as though there was someone trailing him, either the nobles or the hunters. He hadn't exactly explained his sudden disappearance after all. Then again, he didn't even know how he'd explain the sudden need to find the hunter turned boy for himself any better than anyone else could. Why was he so keen on finding the boy?
'Because you care about what happens to him.' a voice sounded in his head, not entirely unfamiliar but one he wasn't used to hearing on a basis by any means. His mother's. The voice of Kuran Juri drifted over him like a breeze on the sakura blossoms in spring.
'I do not care any more than the fact that he is my knight.' he protested in his head, unaware if the deceased pureblood would reply once again, did she have any idea where the boy would be?
'It is unbecoming of you to lie to yourself like that Kaname, if he was only your pawn you wouldn't have saved him. You wouldn't be here, I've been watching your interactions with the remaining Kiryuu child. Has your pride clouded your ability to be sensible?' she questioned, despite how gentle she sounded her words were like a slap in the face to the pureblood prince.
'Not at all, mother, you simply don't see that our relationship is formed on the thinnest bond and even for that I am lucky I did not receive a few silver bullets to my person.' he argued though he did not know if he was completely right anymore. He had always thought his interactions with the hunter were either for necessity or business. The boy didn't want to be saved from the beginning, rather he fed off of his burning desire to bring peace to himself by ending his parents' murderer.
'But then, if you've no need for him why are you out here searching? It is not hard to find someone loyal to the Kuran bloodline that would do anything for you even if it means protecting Yuuki to their fullest. That is what nobles are for after all. They are your loyal allies and your protectors.' Juri pointed out, once again leaving her son in thought.
'The other nobles...' Kaname hummed to himself. She wasn't wrong after all, Takuma and the others would put their lives on the line for anything he said. They respected him more than anyone else and would bend to his every shift of the wind no matter how uncomfortable they may end up. They'd do so without protest. In comparison to them Kiryuu Zero was hell's child. He was rude, he didn't care for Kaname's wants or wishes, rather he did everything he could in order to do as little for the pureblood as possible. He would not bend to Kaname's words, he would stand against them like a wall made of the strongest steel and he would not break. Kaname admired his will and his power equally, to stand up against a pack of nobles and the pureblood himself on numerous occasions. He faced this word with a glare harder than anyone the pureblood had ever met. And to think the boy would direct that same glare at him. Everyone was equal on his playing field, equal in life and equal in death.
'You keep feeding the boy with rage to keep him after you, Yuuki is not the boy's target and you know that. He isn't aiming to kill anyone, Shizuka is dead and he has no reason for aimless revenge. He is too smart for that. This leaves you, Kaname, you mean something to him too.' Juri explained before Kaname felt her presence in his mind vanish completely. Leaving him to be brought back to his surroundings once again.
'I keep him after me...I am not positive your prediction that Zero thinks of me as anything aside from 'that bastard pureblood' mother, but...he does mean something to me. I don't know what it is but he does. Please, if you have any idea of where he is, I must find him.' the prince pleaded into his mind. With his mother's words Kaname came to realize he had long been in denial about the truth behind why he always kept Zero around. It was not for Yuuki's sake, she was protected just fine; no, he kept the angry skilled hunter turned ex-human around because Kaname wanted him around. Because Kaname himself needed someone on a level playing field. He needed Zero just as Zero needed him to stay alive. No matter how much he protested or was trying to go against the bond they shared.
Kaname didn't notice it at first, but his surroundings were slowly changing, changing into a scene he did not recognize. There was a house a little ways ahead of him, the trees around him receded in the background leaving a front lawn and a gate that lead to the driveway of the white elegant yet comfortable looking place. Kaname was now standing in a road, not on the grass he saw before. It was a bit of a secluded area, away from the town and hardly looked out of the ordinary to anyone passing by, not that there would be many passing by as he figured they were a while away from other civilization. 'Where is this place?' he asked himself, as though he actually knew the answer.
"Welcome Kaname-kun, it's a pleasure to meet you at last." a voice, completely new to his ears, sounded from somewhere around him though he could not sense anyone there. In a sudden sense that he was being trapped Kaname's eyes narrowed dangerously in search of his captor in this strange illusion. "You have no reason to wear that expression, I have no reason to hurt you nor could I even if I wished to. Come, it is time we talked. You are asking a question that I can answer but only if you follow me." tHe voice said again, clearer this time and less wispy. Looking to his left Kaname watched as a figure walked from behind him to lead him towards the house. A woman, which was obvious, with long light silver hair that seemed to glow as it flowed in the non-existent wind. Now that he looked at her though, her whole body was glowing angelically. Her complexion was pale, pale even for a vampire and when she turned to look back at the pureblood bright lilac-amethyst hues stared back at him unwavering yet kind. Instantly he realized who the woman was, as well as where he was.
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Kiryuu-san." he greeted, politely, dropping his guard he followed the woman that reminded him so much of the current Kiryuu he was trying to find. He had once heard the Kiryuu clan was that of angles according to the hunter world and he could very much understand how they came to that conclusion.
"Please, call me Luna. We might as well get acquainted. I'm sure this is not the last time we will be meeting." she replied before turning and heading once again to the house ahead of them, the Kiryuu house. "I spoke to your mother before she went to visit you, we have become good friends in the years that have gone by. We have kept a close eye on all of you everyday. But that is neither here nor there, Zero will come home, I would be surprised if he was not already there. You know what it looks like from the outside but he will most likely be in hiding. A place where not even Shizuka or your uncle could reach." Luna informed as she lead the pureblood down into the dim-lit home. Kaname assumed the view he was looking at right now would not mirror the one he would see in the actual Kiryuu household. He figured the real one was a bit more torn apart from the attack, but if it was also a safety for Zero then the pureblood could understand why he would return to the core of his anger.
'Slightly ironic though, no matter how one looks at it.' he couldn't help but think to himself as he took note of the portraits on the clean walls. Everything was in shades of white, gray and lilac except for the wooden floors and some curtains that they had passed in the library. It was a nice home, sure one that was chosen for its geographical location. A perfect place for hunters no matter where they needed to go. Not to mention the house was much larger on the inside than it appeared from the outside, a perfect way to hold a lot of people without seeming busy or suspicious to unwanted onlookers. "Your home is quite lovely." he decided to say admiring the roses he passed that were untouched on the windowsill.
"Yes, well, this is how I remember it which is why it looks the way it does. Part of my last memories before the attack. We always prefered keeping a lower profile, both to benefit us as hunters and because of our position in society. Despite the Chairman wanting us to use our money to live in extravagance. This turned out better for us on numerous occasions." Luna answered, opening a door leading to what Kaname assumed to be a basement of sorts. "You must watch your step when you come down here, the handle is charmed so you will have to either hope that Zero left it undone for you or that one of the hunters following you is close enough to help you out. Our charms are not to be taken lightly Kaname-kun." she warned, leading him through a labyrinth of passages and explaining where not to go in order to avoid either sudden death or harm to his person.
"All of this, what was it done for?" Kaname questioned when they reached a large stone door at the end of their walk. He hoped that this was the last one and that he'd be able to remember everything he had been told when he came to the real thing.
"Behind this door holds the secrets to our family line, our reason for existing, our ancestors ashes and most importantly it will hold Zero once you arrive here. We are not normal hunters Kaname-kun, we have a lot of secrets that are to be kept from the association and council alike, I am allowing you to come here because your desire to save my son has proven you worthy. I am not only trusting you with the life of my child Kaname, I'm trusting you with the location of the secrets that could very well undo everything that has been done in the past and more. If you betray that trust I will have no choice but to kill you." the seriousness in Luna's voice almost caused Kaname to shrink back from the door. As a pureblood he possessed a lot of secrets and information that could kill thousands with the flick of his wrist should he ever need it. But so many secrets are attached to one hunter family and he was the sole key to it all? That was a bit much to take in. even for a pureblood of his age and brain. The death threat didn't help either. Not able to find it in him to speak Kaname numbly nodded to the woman who was putting so much trust in him. In return she pulled out a silver key and pressed it into his palm, giving him a nod before she disappeared as did her surroundings. Leaving Kaname standing in the road looking at the gate that lead him to Zero.
Yuuki was speeding ahead of the other nobles as they raced through the woods. Trailing her brother and the hunters as closely as she could without being too obvious. Of course Kaname's inner circle was following her closely as expected. 'How annoying, I'd like to lose them but I don't have time.' she growled slightly to herself while keeping on Kaname's trail. She had an idea of where she was going and she didn't like it, she would have to make some adjustments to her plan.
"Yuuki-sama sure is adamant about finding Kiryuu-kun isn't she?" Rima voiced as she ran alongside Takuma and Shiki with the others closeby.
"Yes, I don't know why, but I have a very bad feeling about how this evening is going to end up..." Takuma answered with narrowed eyes, a look of worry passed over his features but there was something more that neither Rima nor Shiki could place.
"Let's just hope it's not too late by the time we get there." Shiki mumbled, he didn't entirely understand where they were going or how long they had been on Kaname's trail, but he knew if his cousin was this determined to find the ex-human the stubborn teen would be found one way or another before the night ended.
"Where in the hell did Zero go?!" Kaito growled as he brushed passed branches and snapped sticks in his way while they ran.
"I don't recognize this path, and by the trails I can say it hasn't been used often enough for him to come down here regularly by any means." Kaien replied with slightly narrowed eyes, he had a theory of where they were going, but he didn't know if he wanted it to be true or not.
"It's not used regularly, that's for sure, but it's not hard to think where Zero would go. They only place he could get through where no one else would be dumb enough to follow." Touga sighed, in his age keeping up and predicting where a young pureblood was going became tiring, but he knew Zero and he knew where Zero would feel safest if he really was going to take his own life. "He's going home." the words hit Kaien and Kaito like large boulders, Kaien didn't want to be right in his theory but he supposed he knew there was no other clear answer. Kaito was surprised, though he probably shouldn't be, he didn't think Zero would venture back to that place.
'Does he expect Kuran will take his life once he gets there like Shizuka took his parents?' he wondered but decided not to voice it, Kaname had stopped moving, meaning the pureblood had reached his destination so they weren't far away.
"Yuuki and the nobles are following us as well, that could cause a problem." Kaien sighed though he didn't look behind him or venture to check how far away they were from himself and his companions.
"If anything theoretically that Cross girl could help, she has better connections with Zero anyway. She's like his little sister." Touga gruffed. Kaien nodded and fell silent as the trio approached the familiar but completely different gates to a driveway they all knew better than they wanted to right now.
"Welcome to the Kiryuu household..." Kaito mumbled, bringing a wall down on his emotions before they even stepped on the driveway, looking ahead he saw Kaname staring back at them with an air of expectancy and urgency around him.
"He is here." was all the pureblood said when they group met him at the door, all he got in response were silent nods. Kaname didn't fully trust the door handle so he allowed Touga and the others to enter first, the smell of dried blood hit him like what he assumed a small train would feel like had he ever got hit by one. It overwhelmed his senses entirely making him wish he would have brought a few blood tablets with him. The Kiryuus had been dead for how long? And he had smelled Zero's blood how many times? And yet the smell almost made him growl in hunger.
"You better be able to control yourself, vampire, I don't need my idiot pupil in more danger than he already is." Touga snipped at him. Kaname nodded and looked around for the door he had nees in his...vision? Illusion? Whatever the hell it was called, for a moment before he found it and motioned for one of the hunters to open it. This time it was Kaien who stepped forward and undid the seal allowing them to pass through.
"In all my years of coming here I never knew this whole thing existed." Kaito mumbled looking around at the steel walls and charmed floor tiles.
"It's a labyrinth of charms and death traps. No one but the Kiryuus know how to make it in and out of here unscathed. How did you know about this place, Kaname." Kaien questioned, as the pureblood lead them by his memory.
"I was told. While I was searching for this place Kiryuu Luna came to me, I'm not sure how, she showed me every step I needed to take in order to get to where Zero will be." Kaname replied gingerly, he wasn't sure if he was supposed to tell them or not everything else the woman had said. From behind him Touga snorted bemused.
"Typical Kiryuu." he grouched, though the others could tell he was just worried.
By the time they reached the last door they all could feel Zero's presence, it was a ways back from where they were standing but by no means small. Pulling out the key Kaname inserted it into the keyhole and turned, for such a trip leading to this point he wondered why they chose such a simply means for getting through this door. Then again he supposed if you didn't have the right key there'd probably be some trouble waiting for you on the other side. For the first time since his own parents murder Kaname felt himself tremble with an emotion he had almost forgotten existed. Fear. he was scared of what he would find on the other side, or worse, what he wouldn't find. But he could feel Zero's heartbeat through their bond, giving him promise that he was still alive no matter what condition he was in. With that in mind, and the words of his mother, and Zero's mother, he opened the door. "I wondered how long it would take you to get here." Zero's voice called out from a side room, Kaname's eyes narrowed as he followed the sound.
"You expected us to come?" he asked, though it was more stated. 'Then what was the point of coming all the way out here?' he wondered but said nothing allowed. Walking into the moonlit room he saw Zero sitting, casually as ever, on a window sill that looked out into a garden of white lilies and red roses with some sakura trees lining the background.
"I expected you'd have someone search my room, and yes, I expected that you'd eventually find me here after reading that letter. Though I have to admit you did exceed my expectations of how quickly you got here." the silverette answered, though he didn't bother turning to face the pureblood, as he looked at him Kaname wanted Zero to look his way. The moonlight that was falling over his frame made him look stunning, he couldn't deny that he wanted those piercing lilac-amethyst eyes to stare back at him. Was this the type of thing his mother had been talking about?
"If you expected someone to search your room then why write the letter?" Kaname didn't approach further, and the other three held back from the two waiting to see what would happen between them, Zero simply shrugged seemingly lost in thought. He had taken time to change before he left, Kaname noticed, as he was now wearing faded jeans and a white button down shirt instead of his school uniform.
"I suppose part of me felt obligated to since 'famous last words' isn't really my style. The other reasons I don't know." finally Zero turned to actually look at Kaname, his eyes still shone brighter than the vampire could believe. And the emotional walls that had always been firmly in place had crumbled long before they got there. The fight, Kaname assumed, the fight that Zero had held onto so long up until this point was over.
"And you feel obligated to end your own life as well, or is there something more to that too?" the brunette eventually asked, mainly just to get the question out on the floor. Unknowing of how the teen would respond to that, Kaname would be the first to tell you Zero didn't like others in his head or personal business. Unexpectedly, to all four of the room's occupants, Zero shook his head and gave Kaname a saddened smirk.
"No, I no that even if I continue living beyond tonight and didn't kill myself in the future someone would do it for me eventually. That's how the cycle goes after all isn't it? In all honesty though, I don't really know why I came here, I don't really remember writing the letter either not that I think about it...it's all just in a haze." he frowned at his own words that time, as did Kaname and the others. Why didn't he remember writing that letter? He knew he wrote one...he knew he left school and changed his clothes before he did, but he didn't remember why nor doing it. As though his body was on autopilot without his brain knowing it.
"You don't remember?" Kaien spoke up this time stepping forward, looking over the teen that had become more like son to him than he could express. When Zero shook his head, Kain walked over and put a hand on Zero's head. Wondering if he was suffering from some sort of fever. Finding none he frowned slightly and took the boy's hand in his own. It looked a lot smaller than he remembered it to be just days ago. In fact looking up at Zero the teen himself looked a lot smaller than he last remembered. Was his brain playing tricks on him? 'What is going on?' the ex-hunter wondered and cast a look back to Touga and Kaito. "You should come back to the academy Zero, this place is doubtfully good for your mental health." he decided to voice, being completely serious, he wanted to leave as soon as possible.
"I can't, I don't know why I can't but I can't. I can't make my body move past that door." he confessed, pulling a knee up to his chest and clasping his hands around it.
"What do you mean you can't?" Kaito questioned, feeling the presence of Yuuki and the other nobles behind them at the door. Turning he had to dodge out of the way as the pureblood princess crashed into the silverette, pinning him against the window.
"Zero!" she cried out, unable to help the grin that spread across her face. "I'm glad you're still alive...for now." she whispered, her hand dropping down and swiping Bloody Rose from it's secured place at his side. Turning around to face the rest of the room's occupants she held the barrel firmly to Zero's temple and glared into the eyes of her shocked older brother and adopted father whom she had blown out of her way as well to reach her target. "No one move or I blow his head off." she ordered.
A/N: Aha plot twist, I guess this is going to end up a three chapter fic since I don't want to make this one extremely long and there's still a bit to do as you may have figured out. Anyway, I hope you've all been enjoying my shitty writing and stick with me to see what happens next. Thanks as always and reviews are highly appreciated but don't feel obligated to write one! Helpful criticisms are also appreciated but do note the bold and underlined helpful. Flames will only be shoveb back in your face with a canister of gasoline. ~Rena-chan
