Chapter 2

"Arrange marriage!"

Kaname's father looked surprised at his son while Zero's father was to glad to express his own emotions. The servants from both kingdoms came in to the ball room to congratulate the two. Finally would the both races be united into one strong country, a tint of hope had been lit in everyone's hearts. Zero's father shook hands with his new family member and gave his blessings. Kaname's father did the same to Zero who still was in shock. He and the Kuran heir were going to get married? He hadn't even said the words! That vampire had! "I'm just as shocked as you are." Haruka told Zero. "What do you mean King Kuran?" A maid came with refreshments and the king took two glasses of champagne and gave one to Zero. "You see... Kaname wasn't going to say yes to what should have been your marriage proposal. He had planned to turn you down to get an end to this. But still he was the one who said that you two were going to become married." Zero stared at his new family member. He changed his mind when I entered this room? He looked around in the room, everyone cheered and laughed.

"Wait..." He said but no one listened. "Hold on a second!" He shouted. The room got quiet and everyone stared at him. "Zero! What is this supposed to mean?" His father questioned. Zero went to Kaname and stood face to face. "What about my feelings?" He said. All the people in the ball room held their breath. "You can't just decide on your own that we are going to get married! Think of how I feel about this! It's not an easy choice!" God, what was he saying? He had gotten exactly as he wanted but why did it feel so wrong? He had promised his mother but at this moment he wasn't sure if he could stand a shallow relationship like this.

"What are you talking about?" Kaname asked just as surprised as the rest of the small crowd that had now gathered around them. "You are I ever wanted. Zero, you are so beautiful. More beautiful than anything on this planet."

Zero looked uneasy as Kaname told why he had proposed. It was just as he had thought, the vampire had only judged him on his outer appearance not his inner. "Thanks, I'm flattered but...what else?" Zero asked.

"What else?" Kaname repeated as if he hadn't heard what Zero had asked.

The Kiryu heir sighed and looked seriously at him. "Is beauty all that matters to you?" Zero looked uncertain at his father who shook his head. The silence in the room was pressing, Zero found it almost hard to breath. He returned his gaze to Kaname who still didn't seem to understand the seriousness in this.

Kaname's father cleared his throat and helped Zero a bit by asking; "Kaname tell us, what else?" Stunned, Kaname looked around at all the people who were expecting something smart and genius of him. "I-I...Uhm..What else is there?" Zero lowered his gaze and took a step back. "So it's true..." He whispered. Zero held back his tears and ran out form the big room.

Why did it always have to be like this? Everything that they had worked for all these summers had been thrown away, just like that. He believed that he was going to be able to keep his promise to his mother but he had gravely mistaken. It was just so hard to know that the man that you were going to spend the rest of your life with and to rule two united kingdoms, only chose you because your face fitted his taste. Zero slammed his hand in to the brick wall, why had his life to be this complicated? "Zero..." His father laid a caring hand onto his shoulder, while he saw how the blood ran from his hand. "I know that you are frustrated right now but we need to get that injury patched up before all the vampires here go crazy. We shouldn't make more trouble than we already have." His father followed him to the room that he had occupied earlier and helped him with his hand. King Kiryu's son sat with his head held low and hid behind his silver bangs. Right now Zero felt so betrayed. He had actually become to love that vampire for the being he was and not his appearance. He didn't even know if Kaname loved him but it didn't seem to matter to that vampire bastard as long as you got a nice face that pleases him. What a jerk. Zero tried to move his hand as his father had finished patching it up. It hurt a little but it was nothing compared to the ace in his heart. "Let's travel back home and get back another time when all this has calmed down." Zero put on his jacket and made himself ready to leave. "It won't be a next time." He said. His father sighed and went out to the carriage with him.

Outside the front gate Zero went into the carriage with his father. Kaname and Haruka came out to say their goodbyes'. Zero felt that he was unable to stare Kaname right in the eye so he wandered with his eyes. Kaname was also unable to look at Zero, he had been such an idiot before. "I'm sorry for this inconvenience." His father apologized. "Oh, no the apology should come from our side, since the son of mine was rude to prince Kiryu." King Kiryu watched how his son clearly wanted to leave. "Say goodbye, Zero." Zero fisted his hands and looked at Kaname. "Farewell...prince Kuran." Haruka let out a sound of disapproval but Kaname stepped forward, closer to the carriage. "Farwell, Zero." Zero couldn't believe his ears when he heard that Kaname had called him by his first name despite of him calling Kaname by his surname. The carriage started to move and Zero turned his gaze to inside the carriage. Kaname had finally the courage to look at the hunter's direction and saw how the carriage disappeared from their kingdom. It wasn't until now that he truly understood that he actually felt for the hunter. It hadn't just been the beauty, he had fallen in love with him, the first time Zero had set his foot in the ball room. But now it was too late. His first love had disappeared from his grasp and it was entirely his fault.

The weather that night changed drastically. It poured down and the rain was followed by thunder and lightning. His father hadn't spoken to him since after the Kiryu kingdom left earlier that day. The whole royal court was whispering and gossiping about him. He and Ichijo were playing chess to keep his head occupied with other things than the biggest mistake in his life but his dear friend just couldn't let it go.

"Kaname, what did you think when you said that to him? "What else is there?" That must be some kind of joke!"

Kaname sighed and moved his next chess piece. "I just didn't know what to say. Everyone was looking at me, he was looking at me, and I couldn't say what I actually felt."

As Kaname looked away Ichijo took his chance to take away one of the black pieces from the board. "Come on! He is clearly one of the most beautiful men available in these two lands and you just blew your chance away! Kaname, you could at least have lied to him." Kaname moved another piece and stared out through the window. I wonder if he is okay? He thought. Ichijo took advantage of Kaname's daydreaming again and cheated some more before he moved his chess piece.

"Ohh.. You lost your queen Kaname." Ichijo said as he had made his move.

"Not again!" Kaname said.

"But what do you feel about him at this moment?" His friend asked. Kaname stared at the chess board and thought long before he took up a piece and held it in his hand. "I...you know? When I look at him it just...This and then...I." Ichijo shook his head, his friend was really an idiot. Kaname stood and rolled the chess piece between his fingers and Ichijo moaned. "Just make your move already!"

Kaname looked at his friend and saw that everything didn't have to end here. "Ichijo you are right, I should make my move. I will prove my love to him! That way he must accept me. Check mate!" He said as he put down the piece on the board again. His friend could only laugh at him. You really are an idiot aren't you, Kaname?

Zero stared out trough one of the windows and saw how the rain drips ran down on the glass. He sighed for what his father thought was the hundred time since they had left the Kurans'. Zero pulled the curtain so that he didn't have to see the depressing weather outside. "Zero what was he supposed to have told you?" His son put his feet up and hid his face between his knees. "Sometimes I can't understand you Zero. When did you become like this?" Zero looked up from his knees and stared in front of himself instead. "I just wanted to know if he loves me for the person I am." His father stared out through the window since he didn't know what to answer his son. What he had said was right if you wanted a relationship based on true love but this agreement wasn't one of those. Hadn't Zero understood all that before all this started? That a relationship like that wasn't possible or had he simply just ignored it when he found something he hadn't expected. True love. The carriage suddenly stopped and King Kiryu opened the door and peeked out. Zero followed his father but got pushed back down in the seat. "Stay here."

"So we meet again?" King Kiryu said as he saw what had been the reason for the carriage's sudden halt.

"Out on a little family trip?" Rido answered.

"No, I'm out on business by myself." Rido took a few steps closer and all the guards gathered in front of the king, ready to fight. Not frightened by it Rido walked causally towards them 'cause he didn't want to prolong this more than necessary.

"But that's not true isn't it?" The king took a step back and Rido smirked. "Right on the spot then..." He said as he bit his finger and drew blood.

The guards didn't wait for the enemy to attack. Rido threw his hand towards the humans and his blood whip hit them one by one. Despite being well trained hunters, they all fell to the ground like fragile dolls. It was only one who wasn't that easily defeated, the kings head hunter and best friend Touga. He stood ready with his gun despite his huge gash across his shoulder. Touga aimed at the vampire and fired his gun. The first shot missed but he reloaded and shot again. Rido ran towards him, dodging all the bullets that came flying out from Touga's gun. He threw his whip again and it hit successfully Touga's gun and crushed it into million pieces. Touga backed away from the impact and reached for his knife in his back pocket. Rido was unfortunately faster than him and didn't waste time for the hunter to reequip. Another cut coloured his body red but this time the blood whip hit him across his chest, Touga struggled for air as blood filled his lungs. He found the knife in his pocket and threw it against Rido. His blood whip defended him perfectly and sent the knife back where it came from. The knife hit the hunter in his leg. Excruciating pain made the hunter scream loud, Touga had received the last strike that brought him down. As he lay on the ground, he coughed up blood that quickly was washed away by the rain, as he kept fighting for air. Rido ignored the dying hunter and walked over him as he headed towards king Kiryu.

The king reached for his sword that he had attached by his thigh, then again Rido was fast and trapped the king's hand before he had the time to unsheathe his sword. The blood whip sent Zero's father flying through the air and into a tree. The body landed hard on the ground but stood up quickly. The whip took a hold around the foot this time and sent him flying down on the ground in front of the carriage. Zero heard his father's struggling and was about to go out to help him. "I s-said stay...inside." His father desperately shouted. Rido smiled a wicked smile as the king stood up and shielded the wagon with his body.

"Do you really expect that an attempt like that really will work?"

"Of course not!"

"Then you are finished." Rido said as he sent his blood whip straight trough king Kiryu's chest. Zero stared in horror as the whip protruded through the door into the carriage. Blood coloured the wagon door red before the whip disappeared. His father's heavy body fell to the ground, leaving a long red sliding mark. Zero was so mad at himself since he had trained for something like this but when it really happened he couldn't even freakin' move. The door opened revealing the drenched villain that almost certainly had abducted his brother and killed the rest of his family. Rido.

"W-what do you want from m-m-me?" Zero stuttered.

"I-I-I want you to c-c-come with me of course." Rido mimicked.

"So you don't want to k-kill me?"

"You aren't any useful if you are dead, aren't you?" A bright light came from the vampire before Zero fell into the pleasant dark.

Kaname felt the uneasiness in the room as Ichijo tried to teach him some seducing techniques' since he believed that Kaname was a lost case in getting laid. The sky was unusually dark and the rain didn't seem to stop. "Ichijou can't you just mind your own business?" He complained as his friend started to poke in his hair to make it more attractive. A lightning struck and the door opened. Touga fell down on the floor half way through the door. "He's injured! Ichijo go and get the doctor!" His friend ran to the doctor and Kaname kneeled on the floor next to the hunter. "What in the world happened?" He asked. Touga gasped after air and tried to sit up but Kaname pulled him up in his lap instead.

"We…g-got attacked."

"Attacked? And where's Zero?" Touga did his best to stay awake so Kaname could get all the necessary information but he knew that he had no time left.

"He… took Zero." The old hunter lost consciousness in Kaname's arms before the doctor could arrive to the scene. "What are we going to do?" Ichijo asked.

"You are going to inform my father that Rido has come back. I am going to save Zero."

Ichijo looked doubtful. "But Kaname, you must understand that he's already gone? You can't possibly believe that you are going to find him at the scene?"

"I'm going. Go and tell my father."

"You need someone to come with you! It's too dangerous to go by yourself!"

"And since when did you become the most rational one?" Ichijo sighed and before he knew it Kaname had already left.

Kaname rode through the forest in the rain and still had a long way to go before he had gone outside of their barrier. As soon as he had gone outside it he would be in direct danger. The trees' branches whipped him as he rode some short cuts through the forest instead of going on the main road. It would hopefully go faster and it would be safer. Then he saw the abandoned carriage…with all the dead bodies. His heart beat fast in his chest. Kaname jumped down from the horse's back and ran toward the first corpse closest to him. Zero? No, this was a guard. He continued to search after the Kiryu heir in the rain, Rido hadn't spared a single life. Then Zero must also be? Through the rain Kaname heard a wheezing sound from the direction of the carriage. He ran towards it and found the king lying in a pool of his own blood.

"King Kiryu? Oi! Where's your son?" Kaname said as he shook the man gently. His life was almost drained but he tried to speak despite his injuries.

"Rido…He took h-h-him!" He made a pause to collect more energy to speak.

"Don't say no more. You are too weak." Kaname covered him with his coat knowing that he was in the brink of death.

"S-save him." The king begged.

"I promise." Blood splattered on the soaked coat but was washed away by the rain instantly. The king reached for Kaname's face with a bloody hand and cupped his cheek. "H-he loves you." The king said weakly. Kaname placed his hand over the king's. "I know." Kaname said.

The hand fell down heavily on the ground as the Kiryu king had drawn his last breath, leaving a bloody hand print on Kaname's face. He closed the deceased's eyes and covered the head with his coat. Kaname tried to calm down but his frustration was bigger. His uncle was trying to split families again, only to regain power for his own sake and what had he done? He sat and played chess with his best friend while Zero's father was murdered. Zero… Where are you? Are you unhurt? Are you even alive? Kaname stared up into the dark rainy sky til' he sank down on his knees. Defeated. He threw down his fist hard into the ground. It hurt but not as much as the biggest mistake in his life did.

"Zeroooooooo!" Kaname desperately screamed out in the night.

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