A/N: In case anyone was wondering, the title of this story actually comes from the chorus of the same song that Yuki was singing in the first chapter which is called "I'm Gonna Be" by the Proclaimers. Yes, I'm dating myself, I know it's a really old song, but it, eh... has special significance later on in the story. ;) Also, in case anyone really wanted to know (you probably don't, but I'm going to tell you anyway) the movie they were watching that had the song in the credit track and which Zero summarized so... descriptively... was "Benny and Joon". Thank you to everyone who has reviewed! Don't forget to check the review responses forum for individual replies. :)
Chapter Two: "Mayday"
There was a sound of digital chirping and Kaname lifted his head from where it was refsting against Zero's chest. They'd spent a delicious afternoon in one another's arms, and Kaname, even more completely exhausted than before, had been on the verge of dozing off to the warm, steady sound of his lover's heartbeat.
Zero, half-way to dozing himself, gave a soft groan of protest. He knew that sound – it was Kaname's cell phone. "I thought you were going to turn that off while we were here..." he mumbled, regretting the loss of Kaname's warm body as the pureblood dragged himself up and slid from under the sheets, padding over to where he'd left his phone on Yuki's dresser.
Kaname, comfortably naked and not caring in current company, shot Zero a look that was trying to be guilty, but didn't quite manage it as flipped the phone open. The truth was he simply hadn't thought anyone would call. This was his private number, and anyone who had it knew better than to disturb him when he'd indicated very clearly that he was going to be out and was not to be disturbed. The fact that someone was calling, and the caller ID indicated one of his branch office locations, could only mean that there was some kind of emergency, hence the reason he was answering.
"What?" Kaname demanded quietly by way of greeting as he held the phone to his ear. It'd better be an emergency, or whoever had called was fired.
Zero watched Kaname's posture change from relaxed to tense as he listened to the voice on the other end of the line and the hunter pushed up to sit, leaning against the headboard and pulling the sheets with him as his brows furrowed in a questioning frown. Kaname kept his phone volume intentionally turned down so low that only a vampire holding the phone could hear it – to prevent other vampires from overhearing his business when he was in public. So Zero couldn't hear what was being said, but he could read in his friend's face that it was nothing good.
Kaname looked peeved, maybe even a little frustrated. "I thought this might happen. No, you acted correctly." He sighed. "This is something I'll have to handle personally. I sent the jet back to corporate. It'll waste time flying it back out here. Get me a commercial flight out, immediately, and send the jet to pick me up. I have to be back here by Saturday. If we can't work the situation out by then, then they can go to hell and I'm dumping the whole operation." Kaname's voice was tense. He obviously didn't want to have to sacrifice whatever operation he was speaking about, but he was sure as hell not missing Yuki's graduation.
Zero tipped his head back against the headboard with a look of resigned disappointment. Kaname was leaving... Yuki wasn't going to be happy. Zero started when his own phone started ringing. He would have ignored it, except that Kaname was already up and on the phone and something made him scoot out from under the warm covers and glance at the caller ID. It was the hunter association's dispatch
number. Well hell... he could ignore them, but he probably shouldn't. Damning his own sense of duty, he resignedly he thumbed the talk button and took the call. He was curious too... it was a little too coincidental that both he and Kaname had been called at more or less the same time.
Kaname got off the phone first and was already in the shower by the time Zero's call ended. He emerged a few minutes later to find Zero partially dressed, obviously waiting for the shower, and tucking things into his duffel bag. Zero did not look happy.
Kaname watched him for a moment. "I have to go," he finally said quietly as he started dressing, feeling no more pleased about it than Zero looked.
"There's been another flurry of guerilla attacks in São Paulo. Amid a lot of other general damage, we lost a critical supply convoy and now Mayor Covas is trying to use it as an excuse to weasel out of our contract, after having accepted the millions of dollars I've poured into his crummy little state." The city of São Paulo was the biggest city on the American Continent, but Kaname was speaking of the state, not just the city, and he was obviously peeved. He'd already made one emergency detour to Brazil this week, it completely put him out that he had to go all the way back there again, but this deal was too big to let it fall apart, and too delicate to entrust to anyone else.
"He says my failing to protect our joint business ventures nullifies the agreement." Kaname shrugged into his jacket. "Which might almost be a valid point, except that my operatives inform me his men torched that convoy themselves, under the cover of the other riots." The pureblood rolled his eyes. "He's an ass and a fool. If he's going to waste my time like this, he could have at least tried to be a little clever about it. But, as it is, this isn't something I can confront him with over the phone, and the situation's too volatile to send anyone else."
Kaname ran his fingers through his hair with a sigh. He had a lot of money tied up in trying to gain a foothold into that continent, one of the few places to which Kuran Corporations reach did not yet extend. He wasn't willing to give that up without a fight, but the timing sucked.
"Yeah," Zero replied, mirroring Kaname's put-out expression, but not because he was upset with the pureblood. "I know. I just got a call from the hunter's association. Seems some of the deaths in those riots were obvious vamp kills and they've got reason to believe that there's at least one vampire running with the rebels who has recently fallen to Level E status." That could definitely explain why the violence of the guerilla attacks had increased so sharply and the casualties had skyrocketed. As long as the rebels were letting the Level E sate his or her raging blood lust on the victims of their riots, then the crazy vampire would probably continue to run with them for now, but the situation would no doubt degrade swiftly and Zero had been ordered to make it an immediate priority.
Kaname shot Zero an unsurprised, but sympathetic look. Zero guessed he'd probably known already about the suspected Level E involvement, but he also guessed that for once, Kaname wasn't the one who had asked for him to be assigned. "So they're sending you." It wasn't a question. "I thought you could specify when you wanted time off."
Zero shrugged, zipping his duffel closed. "Yeah, about as well as you can, apparently," he said ruefully. "It's an urgent situation, people are dying and hell, Kaname, the association isn't stupid. They know you're trying to get your claws into that country and they know better than to send any other hunter onto your turf."
"Well, at least we can take the same flight then," Kaname quirked a wry almost-grin before sobering again. "I'm sorry, Zero. I wouldn't have asked you to go," he said quietly. At least one of them should have been able to stay here with Yuki, she was going to be so disappointed and he hated that.
Zero shrugged again. "I know," he said quietly. He turned, gaze fixing momentarily on Kaname. He supposed he could have ticked off his superiors and said no, he wasn't their slave after all and he did have the right to refuse runs he didn't want. He knew Kaname would have tolerated another hunter operating on his territory this once, considering the situation. But... the situation wasn't that simple, and the brief overview that the Dispatcher had given him on the current state of affairs down there made him uneasy. It sounded like Kaname was heading into a dangerous situation with a government that was foolish enough to think they could use him and then double cross him. Zero didn't like it. He knew Kuran was perfectly capable of taking care of himself but... it was so far away. If something went wrong, it would be a day or more before he could get out there. He would feel a whole lot better about it if he was in the same area, ready to have Kaname's back if needed, even if their missions were different.
He felt guilty as hell about Yuki though.
"Graduation isn't until next Saturday. We have a week," Kaname said quietly, as if reading Zero's thoughts on his face. "We'll make sure we're back by then, and then we'll have plenty of time to spend with her afterwards." They had a nearly month-long trip for the three of them planned as a surprise present for her upcoming graduation. That was part of why Kaname needed to deal with this situation now. He would NOT have it interrupting them on their vacation afterwards. "She'll understand."
Zero looked away with a small sigh. Yes, she would, she always did, but he still felt bad. "As long as we're back in time, I guess," he agreed slowly, heading for the bathroom to take his own shower.
Yuki sighed as she turned onto the sidewalk leading up to her apartment. It was bitterly depressing to know that Kaname and Zero wouldn't be there anymore. They'd crashed her class a few hours ago to tell her what was going on before they left. She'd been extremely disappointed that they were leaving so soon, but she could see that they were too and she hadn't been upset. It wasn't the first time this had happened. Kaname and Zero had busy lives and people depended on them each in different ways, she knew that. Didn't make the loneliness any easier to swallow. Her friends at school had tried to coax her into going out with them this evening, but she didn't feel like it. She wanted to curl up in front of the TV with ice cream and sulk a little.
They had given her her surprise present early though... and the promise of being able to spend all that uninterrupted time with them after graduation helped ease the pain considerably. She was still a bit irked, but willing to have to be patient. It was just a week, right? They'd promised they'd be back by next Saturday, and they'd yet to ever break a promise to her. She could wait a week.
Besides... if they had to go, part of her was actually glad they had gone together. She didn't have to worry about them so much when they had each other's backs. She wondered if they were in the air already.
Her steps slowed as she noticed a flashy sports car that probably cost more than all the other cars in the lot combined, double parked nearby. She knew it didn't belong to anyone in the building and idly wondered who had a visitor. Then she saw the two young men emerging from it when they spotted her approach and she realized that she did. Both of the new arrivals had fashionably wild hair and were dressed in preppy chic that looked good on them without looking overly snobbish. Yuki smiled despite herself in surprise.
"Kain! Aido! What are you doing here?" she hadn't seen them in several years. Both vampires gave her a friendly hug of greeting... Aido's intentionally lingering long enough to make her flush a little as he turned his head and sniffed her neck. Not threateningly, just teasingly.
She smacked his shoulder lightly as she pulled back, giving him an amused look that was resisting being flustered. Something about the blonde vampire always made her feel like she was 16 again and he was giving her a hard time. But she was very fond of both cousins.
"It's good to see you both... well," she amended, shooting Aido a look before turning to Kain. "It's good to see you anyway. Kaname ask you to come over?"
The question was matter-of-fact, and the way the two vampires hesitated, tripping over a correct response confirmed its truth. Yuki supposed she should be ticked that Kaname was trying to send her replacements, but she knew that wasn't the case. He just didn't want her to be lonely; she couldn't blame him for that, even if he sometimes had an ass backwards way of going about things.
"Wanna go for a ride?" Kain asked, nodding back towards the hot little sports car when it became obvious that Yuki didn't actually need an answer to her question.
Yuki really wanted to be alone, but then again... maybe she didn't, and she couldn't bring herself to be rude after these two had driven all the way out here. She glanced thoughtfully at the car, then grinned. "Sure, if I'm driving."
"No way, that's my car!" Aido protested, but Kain tossed her the keys.
"OUR car," he corrected with a smile. "I own half of it, and she can drive if she wants to."
Yuki couldn't help grinning as the two bickered lightly all the way to the vehicle.
"Flight 1246 now boarding at Gate 10..." the polite, female voice droned over the PA system, but Zero wasn't paying attention as he stood by the ticket counter next to Kaname. He had his duffel slung over one shoulder. It was compact enough to be considered carry-on and he didn't have any checked luggage. He liked to travel light. Kaname usually had more luggage but since this was an unplanned occurrence, he was also going with only a carryon bag, which was good because there was only one flight leaving for Brazil today and it should have already departed, save that Kaname's people had actually gotten it to halt on the runway and wait for them. It was handy, occasionally, to have that kind of power.
Just at the moment, though, Zero was trying very hard to pretend that he didn't know the man he was standing next to. If he could have moved to another ticket counter... or perhaps another airport... he would have. Kaname was giving the lady behind the ticket counter hell and Zero was embarrassed. The airlines had nothing available in First Class, only coach. And they couldn't even get seats together. The flight was packed, the plane had already been held for thirty minutes on the runway just so that Kaname and Zero could make it on time and none of the cranky passengers in First Class were about to move to coach for the long flight no matter how much monetary incentive was being offered. If you could afford First Class to start with on a flight this expensive, money was much less of an issue than comfort and no one was willing to give that up. The shaken, apologetic lady behind the counter insisted there wasn't anything she could do short of pulling two other passengers off the plane.
Zero was afraid Kaname was going to insist that she do just that and he quickly laid a hand on Kaname's arm. He knew the pureblood hadn't slept in days and upset at having to leave, but taking it out on the ticket lady wouldn't help and Zero's ears were flushing pink at the way people were staring at them. It completely embarrassed the hell out of him when Kaname went off on people like this over something that to Zero seemed trivial and that made them sound so hideously arrogant and spoiled. Geez... it wasn't that big a deal. Not like it would kill Kaname to fly coach once in his life.
"Kaname, please..." he muttered in frustrated mortification. "Let's just take the damn tickets and go. It's just one flight."
Kaname shot him a frown. Zero had an objectionable habit of letting people walk all over him if it made the situation more pleasant and tolerable for everyone. That was not one of the pureblood's traits, nor was it likely to ever be. But... maybe this once, he was right. Kaname was dead tired, he intended to sleep the entire flight anyway and he was so exhausted he could probably sleep anywhere. It was more worthwhile to just go and get this over with.
Zero could see in Kaname's eyes that he was actually going to listen to him and he felt a small surge of relief.
"Fine," Kaname muttered, reaching over and snatching the tickets from the lady behind the counter. "Fine, we'll take these. I'll take it up with the airline later." They'd better give him a complete refund for his and Zero's tickets after this, or he'd buy the whole bloody airlines just so he could fire them all. He rubbed his aching eyes as he stalked away with Zero trailing after him. He pondered the fact that maybe he was a wee bit on the over-tired and cranky side at the moment. He'd better wait to make any important decisions until he didn't feel like ripping someone's throat out.
"Hey, you okay?" Zero asked, giving Kaname a concerned look as they walked down the gangway to where the plane had been pulled back in for them to board.
Zero's quiet voice and the light, gentle hand on his arm helped calm Kaname some. The pureblood nodded with a small sigh. "Yes, I'm just tired. Don't worry, I'll sleep on the plane and I'll be fine."
The other passengers were well aware that they had been held up waiting for the late arrivals, and the looks Kaname and Zero got when they boarded the plane, making their way towards the rear for their seats, were less than friendly. Their separate seats were in the very back of the plane and they had to walk the entire length. Zero kept his eyes down and tried not to look at anyone. Kaname pulled an aura, subtly dropping the temperature in the cabin and glaring at anyone who dared glare at them as
they passed. The other passengers quickly looked away, not understanding the feeling of crawling dread that shot up their spines and settled in their stomachs, but completely distracted by it.
It was too much for a small family seated near the front of the coach section. The mother, already afraid of flying and unbearably nervous, started having a panic attack and the two young kids freaked out completely, leaving the poor father to try and calm all three of them without success. They ended up having to leave the plane entirely before the woman went ballistic. They couldn't know it yet, but this was one flight they were going to be very glad they had skipped.
Kaname saw them leaving and retraced back up the aisle, his hand on Zero's arm drawing him along. "Looks like these seats just opened up," he said simply as he tucked his carry-on into the overhead compartment and nodded towards the row of recently vacated seats. They were nearer the front of the plane and they were together. He obviously saw nothing wrong with taking them now that they had been abandoned.
Zero didn't argue only because it would just have caused more of a scene and he wanted pretty desperately to be forgotten just at the moment. He slipped into the window seat, knowing Kaname preferred sitting on the aisle side, and slumped down in his chair as if he'd like to disappear into it, face flaming.
Kaname settled next to him, shooting him a curious look when Zero glared at him. "What?"
Zero snorted softly. "I can't take you anywhere, you know that? I swear, if you pull a stunt like that and cause a panic when we're at 30,000 feet I am never flying with you again."
Kaname looked mildly amused, rather than offended. Zero was cute when he was angry, even cuter when he was embarrassed. Kaname loved the way his ears turned all pink, his heart rate increased and his scent changed subtly. It was quite intoxicating actually.
"Take me? And here I thought I was the one taking you..."
Zero scowled. "I'll pay you back. You know the Association covers my travel expenses." Zero hesitated, scowl faltering despite himself when Kaname fixed him with those warm, dark, meaningful eyes of his.
"That wasn't what I meant," the pureblood murmured with a soft, deep, suggestive smile that drew a warm shiver from the hunter. Kaname briefly wondered if they could fit two people into the airplane's lavatory, but that sounded like an adventure for another time. He really did need to get some sleep.
Zero swallowed and turned to stare at the back of the seat in front of him, trying to keep his internal body heat down. Kaname heard him mutter something that sounded like "twit" and the pureblood chuckled.
Once they were in the air, Kaname laid his seat back as far as it would go – all whopping two and a half inches of it – and closed his eyes. He was exhausted, but he was still finding it hard to sleep. It was hard for him to relax when surrounded by so many strangers, hard to let his guard down enough to rest. There were so many people crammed into the relatively small space around him. The scent of all those humans mingled together, the sound of their talking, shifting and movement as clear as if he was sitting next to each one of them, and the sensations that being aware of their emotions and even just their existence caused in his extra senses was harder than usual to ignore in his current state.
There was a baby a few rows back that would not stop crying and a woman gossiping with her friend about a rather lewd night on the town across the aisle. A couple somewhere nearby was having a tense argument – the man was lying, Kaname could tell by the guilty, angry sensation rolling off of him, in contrast to the hot, hormonal energy rolling off another couple closer at hand. Kaname wished they would just use the lavatory and get it over with, it was driving him crazy. Then of course there was the damn teenage kid in front of them that was chewing his gum with a loud, disgusting smacking sound while listening to heavy metal on his iPod which was cranked up high enough (in Kaname's opinion) to wake the dead. The pureblood was starting to get a really nasty headache.
Zero looked up from where he was leafing disinterestedly through the in flight magazine and glanced over at Kaname. He could read tension and discomfort in every line of the pureblood's apparently relaxed body. He frowned slightly. He knew Kaname had issues with lowering his guard enough to sleep in public, which was why he didn't usually sleep on planes. He also knew Kaname didn't like crowds in general, and he knew why. The pureblood's senses were so keen it wore him out to be around that much input for long periods of time. Zero also realized that was probably one of the reasons he preferred to fly First Class. More room, less people jammed in so closely around him. Usually, Kaname was perfectly able to tune his extra senses out when they were too much to deal with, but Zero knew from experience that the pureblood was less able to do so the more worn out he was.
Drink service was coming around. Kaname ignored them, pretending he was asleep like he wanted to be, but Zero got a cup of hot water. Shunning the little red tea bag that came with it, he reached down and opened a side pocket of the duffel under his feet. He sorted carefully past the non threatening looking assortment of pens and what looked to the rest of the world like trinkets of jewelry, all of which were actually potent anti-vampire charms. It was impossible for him to bring his gun or knives when he flew commercially, especially when he didn't have time to bring checked baggage, but many objects could be created or charmed with anti-vampire abilities. So the hunters simply started producing things that would pass airport security. They weren't really as useful as actual weapons but it was better than traveling with nothing until Zero was able to get his feet on the ground and get his hands on his real weapons which were either shipped ahead, or stored in a cache box at various locations. The emergency backups had saved his life at least once. Of course... Kaname had also accidently learned the hard way to not go searching for a pen in Zero's bag.
Zero found what he was looking for and fished out a small plastic zippy bag of what looked like herbal tea. Scooping a few pinches of it into the hot water, he zipped the bag and tucked it away again. He waited until the herb leaves had unfolded in the bottom of the cup and the water had colored to a light amber hue and then reached over, giving Kaname a small poke and holding the steaming cup out to him.
Kaname opened one eye with an accusing look at being disturbed, but he was already curiously sniffing the air, having been wondering what Zero was brewing.
"I made you some tea," Zero said quietly. "It'll help."
Kaname looked at it a little suspiciously as he took it, bringing it in close to sniff it and taste it with his tongue. "What is it?" He was ready to bet it wasn't regular tea, but he couldn't place what it was.
Zero could have just told him, but instead he looked at Kaname. "If you trust me, then drink it."
Kaname drank it. He didn't like when Zero put him on the spot like that, but the fact was he did trust him, implicitly, and he knew it was important to the hunter to know that. By the time he'd finished the tea, Kaname felt a comfortable warmth spreading through him and the noise, chatter and grating sensations of the people all around him started to fade blessedly. He raised a sleepy, grateful eyebrow as he sank back in his seat again, head turned towards Zero.
"Nice..." he murmured softly. Zero was right, it did help. "What is it?" he repeated, still curious.
"It's just a tea mix I made. It's got some natural sleep aids and it dampens vampire senses, I thought it might help you rest," he said quietly. He knew Kaname didn't like things that messed with his natural abilities, which was why he hadn't told him before he drank it.
Kaname was too sleepy and comfortable now to be upset that Zero had essentially drugged him. "You used one of your anti-vampire potions on me?" he raised an eyebrow, a thin thread of anxiety briefly flaring behind his tired brown eyes. Not because of Zero. He trusted Zero... but having his defenses lowered on a plane full of strangers...
"Only a very, very little bit," Zero promised. It was only the equivalent of a human taking a normal sleep aid. "It wasn't enough to mess with your abilities, just your senses. It'll wear off in a few hours."
He leaned over and kissed Kaname's forehead lightly.
"I'll be right here," he whispered softly. You'll be fine, I won't let anything happen to you. The rest of the promise was unspoken so as not to bend Kaname's pride out of shape, but it was clear in Zero's eyes. He wouldn't leave Kaname's side while the drug was still in effect. He'd be Kaname's senses for him so the pureblood could let go and get the sleep he obviously needed so much.
As long as it was unspoken, Kaname could accept that, and he did, gratefully. He really needed to rest and only with Zero did he feel safe enough to let go and do that, even in a situation like this.
"Okay," Kaname murmured, his eyes sliding shut. Thanks.
Kaname's body slowly relaxed in slumber, and when his head started to slump awkwardly to the side, Zero carefully tipped it to rest on his shoulder, fingers sliding gently through the dark brown hair for a moment before he finally turned his attention back to the magazine resting on his lap. There was a warm, comfortable ache in his chest. It felt... good... that he could be a safe place for Kaname like this sometimes. The pureblood seemed so indestructible and strong, but Zero knew that the strongest of warriors still needed somewhere they could lay down their swords for a while.
Unconsciously, Zero's head tipped slightly to the side so his cheek could rest against the top of Kaname's head as he read.
Kaname slept soundly through a good portion of the long flight, even after the drugs in his system wore off, and it was Zero's turn to be dozing on the pureblood's shoulder when a loud, disturbing sound shuddered through the aircraft, tearing him from his light slumber.
Zero sat up quickly, wondering for a moment if he had imagined or dreamed it, but the tension he felt flooding the cabin and the alarmed clamor of the other passengers voices quickly told him he hadn't. He looked quickly to Kaname, who was sitting very straight beside him. The pureblood's face was calm and impassive, giving away nothing, but Zero knew that that meant little.
"Kaname?" he inquired, turning to glance out the window and wondering how long he'd been asleep. He glanced out the window, seeing around the spotty cover of the clouds no longer the blue of the ocean beneath them, but instead the vast browns and rich greens of sparsely populated jungle terrain.
"Something's wrong," Kaname answered quietly. "I smell much more jet fuel than a few minutes ago, and smoke. The airplane is losing altitude and it's dragging a bit to the right. I think we lost an engine," the pureblood said calmly. His tone was more appropriate for discussing the possibility of an afternoon shower than the reality that they were God knew how many thousands of feet in the air in a ten-ton hunk of flying metal that had probably just lost one of the things keeping it in the air.
Zero resisted the urge to scowl at Kaname for speaking like that. He knew it was the pureblood's way. Kaname emotionally shut down in the face of danger to keep his head cool and his thoughts clear, it was almost instinctual. And anyway, panicking really wouldn't help anything, would it?
The plane was rocking like it was encountering severe turbulence. Zero felt his stomach clench in fear, but he tamped it down, also knowing the benefits of keeping a clear head.
"How far are we from São Paulo?" Planes could lose an engine and keep going… they were made to compensate for that kind of thing, right?
"Still a good ways out," Kaname replied distractedly. He was looking intently towards the front of the plane and Zero bet he was trying to hear what was happening in the cockpit. "We've been over land for a while, but I believe we just crossed over into Brazil a few minutes ago."
The stewardess came on over the com system to assure the passengers that everything was all right and point out that the fasten seat belts light had been turned back on and could everyone please return to their seats at this time.
"She's afraid," Kaname mused quietly. "The pilots too. Something's going wrong up there. There's a short, some kind of electrical fire in the control circuits..."
Zero really didn't want to know that.
There was another loud screeching sound and the plane jerked crazily. This time Zero smelt the instant surge of jet fuel and smoke in the air as well and his head jerked back to the small window beside him. Several passengers on this side of the plane started screaming. You didn't have to be a vampire to know something was wrong with one of the engines this time. The wing mounted engine was trailing black smoke, flames licking up at the wing despite the way the wind was whipping wildly at them.
The aircraft jolted again and everyone's ears popped as the cabin pressure shifted. Breath masks dropped from the ceiling above each of the seats, causing another chorus of shrieks from the already alarmed passengers who didn't immediately realize what they were.
The plane was angling down steeply now in an obviously barely controlled dive. One engine they could have probably survived, but not two and the ensuing fire. This plane needed to land, immediately, but there was nowhere to land.
Most of the passengers were scrabbling for the breath masks, but Zero didn't bother and he noticed Kaname wasn't either. The oxygen in the cabin hadn't really thinned that much, and at the rate they were descending, they'd be back in breathable atmosphere before too long. They'd also be in about a million tiny pieces.
The captain was on the intercom now, telling the passengers in a tensely controlled voice that they were going to have to make an emergency landing and that everyone needed to brace for impact. The shaky, but determined voice of the stewardess reminded everyone of the emergency landing postures printed on the back of the preflight briefing card that everyone had pretty much ignored.
Keep seat belts fastened. Bend all the way forward and wrap your arms around your knees, or cross your wrists and hold onto the back of the seat in front of you, keeping your head down. Don't try to take anything off the plane with you when you leave...
Kaname wondered if anyone was listening. Then he supposed it didn't really matter. The mantra of preparation was nothing but a way to give the doomed passengers a sense of being able to do something, when in reality, there was nothing they could do now to control their own fates. Most of them seemed to realize that.
Zero felt his stomach lurch, like the first drop on a roller coaster, only prolonged and much more terrifying. Because there was only one end to this ride and he knew it. Panic hazed momentarily through his senses, but he sucked his breath in slowly, forcing his racing heart to remain under control. Losing it wasn't going to help matters. Vampires were very sensitive to fear in others, it tended to make the crazy ones more aggressive, so Zero had learned some time ago as a hunter that controlling his fear was important. That stood him in good stead now as the plane hurtled towards the ground and he managed not to hyperventilate.
People were crying, praying and screaming almost loud enough to obscure the rattling screech of the shaking plane. The aircraft lurched sickeningly and most of the overhead hatches on the right hand side of the plane snapped open, throwing carryon bags and suitcases into the opposite side of the cabin, eliciting even more shrieks and chaos.
Kaname smelt blood from multiple sources. The roar of intense emotion filling the falling plane pounded in his sensitive extra senses like a migraine the size of a freight train. The dangling clear and yellow oxygen mask nearby twapped frenetically against the side of his face and he yanked it out of the ceiling with a distracted gesture.
"Kaname..." Zero's voice was very quiet, tensely controlled. He was afraid, Kaname could smell it, a more familiar scent among the positive reek of human terror that filled the cabin. The hunter was afraid, but not panicked. He watched the verdant, jungle terrain rushing up swiftly towards them with the forced calm of one who accepted with dignity a destiny they could not change.
Zero slipped his hand into Kaname's as they sat next to one another, tearing his gaze away from the doom rushing towards them. "I..."
Kaname squeezed his fingers tightly, reaching over and cupping Zero's cheek with his free hand. "I know," he whispered.
Kaname's face was grim as his gaze once again skirted briefly across the panicked, crying passengers around him. He'd already done the math in his head. Trajectory, speed, terrain, likely amount of fuel remaining in the tanks... These people were right to be afraid. They were dead and just didn't know it yet. In a matter of moments, everyone here was going to be obliterated.
Nothing from this plane would survive the impact. Nothing... but the pureblood.
Kaname tried to ignore the wailing of the baby a few rows back, which now made him sick at heart instead of giving him a headache. There was nothing he could do for any of these people. He would only just be able to save himself... hopefully... and even that wasn't enough. Kaname's gaze locked back on Zero. Zero didn't have his abilities or a pureblood's regenerative power. He would not survive the crash. Kaname's chest tightened, momentarily cutting off his air. That was completely unacceptable.
Unbuckling his seatbelt, Kaname moved with vampire speed. He turned and straddled Zero's seat, unfastening the hunter's buckle and quickly passing the strap around both of them instead, clicking it shut behind his back.
Zero shot him a surprised, questioning look, but Kaname pulled Zero's head to his chest, curling over him and gripping the back of the seat tightly with both hands.
"Stay down, Zero! Keep your arms in, hold onto me!" the pureblood commanded. It was his turn, he knew, to be asking for Zero's trust without explanations.
For once, Zero did as he was told, pulling his arms into the shelter of Kaname's body, his fingers gripping tightly into the front of the pureblood's dress shirt and jacket. Cocooned and half-smothered by the pureblood who was pressing him almost suffocatingly into the chair, Zero couldn't smell the rest of the plane anymore – the fear, the sorrow, the fuel and smoke... all he could smell was Kaname, he could even hear his heartbeat, pounding near his head. With the strange calm of one facing annihilation, he supposed he could think of worse ways to die.
Kaname was treated to a last glimpse of the hopeless faces of the passengers in the seats behind them. He closed his eyes and ducked his head, pressing it to the seat above Zero, below where he was holding onto the headrest with crossed hands. His fingers went long and claw-like, punching into the frame of the seat. He knew he was going to need a strong grip. Zero was warm against his body. He had to believe he could protect him too. He had to.
The plane plowed into the jungle.
There was a horrible lurch that snapped Kaname violently back against the belt binding him to the seat and to Zero. He grit his teeth in agony as the weight of his body and Zero's crushed the vertebra the strap rested against, snapping his spine. Only the strength of his grip and the way he had himself jammed against the seat kept his head from whipping back and breaking his neck too. Not that that would have killed him, but he didn't have the luxury of the time it would take to heal. His reaction speeds in the next few instants were critical or both of them were dead.
Forward momentum checked, but not stopped, the plane broke apart upon impact. The nose smashed into the ground, disintegrating the cockpit and first class section almost instantaneously. The body of the plane up-ended, the fuselage separating, tumbling as it impacted again. The world rolled and jerked sickeningly around Kaname and Zero, luggage, bodies and seats that had been torn loose flying through the air. Kaname was mentally pushing the flying debris away from them as the wreckage tumbled, but everything was moving so fast and there was too much of it for him to keep a grip on all the pieces – he couldn't keep all of it away. Something sharp sliced across Kaname's back and slammed into the back of his knees with a stabbing shock of pain. He grit his teeth harder, but his concentration didn't waver.
Barely a heartbeat after impact, the fuel tanks ignited and passengers, trees and wreckage were blasted with a super-heated explosion that blew apart what remained of the aircraft and obliterated the jungle for miles in each direction.
This was the critical moment Kaname had been waiting for. Let this work...
At the same moment that the flames exploded around them, he let go with a massive wave of telekinetic energy. Warping and manipulating the air around him and Zero, he sucked all the oxygen out of it and blasted the de-oxygenated air outward, combating the flames by giving them nothing to burn, starving them off in a small, protective bubble around him and the hunter.
The explosion and the impact was too massive to completely shield against. Kaname had known it would be – that's why he was on top. Unbearable heat seared his back, his shoulders, his arms... pain exploding raw through his senses and making his head swim. He screamed against Zero's hair, his fingers gripping tighter to the back of the semi-smoldering headrest as he blasted another wave of de-oxygenated air and energy outwards with all the strength he had, creating a counter-explosion that blew the rain of death and fire away from them.
Zero, trapped between Kaname and the seat, couldn't see what was happening as he was thrown around, banging against the pureblood and the urethane cushions. The horrible screeching of metal and the agonized screams of the dying filled the air, painfully deafening to already heightened hearing. To Zero, these few moments would always seem like an auditory glimpse into hell. Heat surrounded him. The hunter felt pain sear across his exposed legs, worse than anything he could have imagined. His agonized cry was muffled against Kaname's chest, mingling with the pureblood's pained voice. He felt the familiar rush of Kaname's aura balling around them as the pureblood gathered his strength. It reverberating like an aching pressure in Zero's chest as Kaname manipulated the elements his power could affect. Everything was a dark blur. There was a painful pop inside Zero's head as his eardrums shattered and then nothing but a sea of black oblivion.
