Zero was tense. His body was wound tighter than a spring.
After the incident, as he had taken to calling it, a week ago when he attacked Yuuki, he had been expected to be bodily dragged before Kuran and have the shit beaten out of him. Only, that didn't happen.
Well, it kind of did. Four of Yuuki's bodyguards, Aidou, Akatsuki, Rima, and Senri, had told them it was their duty to see that he hurt ten times worse than their master's mistress, and thoroughly turned him black and blue. He wondered if Kaname had ordered them to do so, but then realized all of Yuuki's protectors would have participated if that was the case, so these four were acting on their own because they felt he deserved pain for hurting Yuuki.
And Zero whole heartedly agreed with them. Didn't mean he didn't hurt though.
And their display did nothing to help his nerves. Knowing that they beat him because they could let him know that Kuran still had something planned for him.
Given what he knew of the vampire, which wasn't much because he did everything he could to avoid associating with them, Kaname should have dealt with him immediately after the incident, laying down rules and consequences and generally threatening him.
But he hadn't. It had been an entire week since he had attacked his best friend and Kaname had yet to retaliate. Unless letting him walk around on eggshells, broken glass and nails was his retaliation. And if it was, Zero could certify that his methods were torturous and worked. He had been acting as timid and jumpy as a jackrabbit the past week waiting for the moment when the Pureblood would approach him.
A knock sounded on his door practically given him a heart attack. 'Can vampires get heart attacks?' he thought as he answered it.
It was that blonde vampire that followed Kuran around like a second shadow, Takuma Ichijo.
"Lord Kaname wishes to speak with you."
Zero took the polite request for what it was, an order from not only his Dorm President but his leader and lord now that he was becoming a vampire, and followed Kuran's right hand to Kuran's office. As far as offices went, it was certainly grand, complete with fancy furniture, hundreds of books, a chess set, and the generally imposing feeling one got when they walked into an office.
The silver haired once human sat reluctantly across from the more sophisticated vampire. Kuran steepled his fingers, leveling him with a calculating look that set Zero on edge.
"Do you know what happens to a human bitten by a vampire, Kiryu?" Kaname's voice was velvet and dangerous.
Zero didn't answer. This was not what he had been expecting when he finally received the Pureblood's summons. His thoughts had been more along the lines of death threats, not philosophical discussions.
"An answer, Kiryu. Yes or no will do."
"No."
"I thought so." Kaname said with a small smile. It did nothing what so ever to comfort Zero, not that he thought it was intended to. "There a five types of vampires. The highest level, as I'm sure you can imagine, is that of a pureblood vampire. They are the elite of vampire society. Then comes the Nobles and Aristocrats. The Vampire Council of Elders is mostly made of Purebloods, Nobles, and Aristocrats. The third level is the common vampires. That last level consists of the ex-humans, those vampires that have been turned."
Zero interrupted even though he knew it was a bad idea and something that Kuran was probably bargaining on. "But you said there were five levels."
"Yes. The final level isn't truly a vampire. They are the ex-humans that have fallen into madness, lost all sense of themselves. They no longer retain sanity, reason or humanity and are driven only by their desperate and inescapable hunger for blood." Zero gulped.
"The only way to avoid falling into that state is to drink the blood of the vampire that bit you. And this poses a slight problem because only a Pureblood can change a human and there are laws in place that enforce the death penalty for harming a Pureblood because of their growing rarity.
"However, if you don't receive that blood, you will become unstable and descend to Level E status. My blood can keep you from fallen for a time, but you will eventually have to find your creator." Kaname's eyes glowed red and his face darkened. "If you ever harm my Yuuki again, I will allow insanity to take hold and destroy you."
The Pureblood that held his sanity, his life, in his hands was clearly done speaking. Zero wasted no time in assuring that he would never again harm Yuuki and ran from Kaname's office.
Xxxwherethedicefallxxx
It had never crossed her mind that someone was capable of hating her so much.
Yuuki was sitting at a table in the Moon Dorms library. Ruka Souen was supposed to be educating her on vampire society, customs, politics, etiquette, and so on so Yuuki would be able to be seen at meetings with Kaname. But instead the girl was glaring daggers at her.
Ruka had slammed a stack of books on the table, "Read these," and took a seat in a chair to keep guard over her like she had been ordered. Obviously, she wasn't happy "babysitting the human" as she had already said.
The brunette wondered how on earth she had managed to anger someone she had never talked to before.
"You don't belong here."
"Excuse me?"
"A human has no place in our world." The honey blonde snarled. "I don't understand what Kaname-sama sees in you. You're just a human. And because of that he's had to order the Aristocrat class to protect you. You're not worth it."
'That explains everything. She's jealous of me because Kaname chose me as his consort.' Yuuki could understand Ruka's interest. Kaname was the ideal partner. But she wasn't with him just because he was gorgeous as she expected was Ruka's reason. Yuuki cared more for his caring and attentive nature than she did for his unbelievably outstanding handsome looks.
The human girl gathered the books she had been given and stood.
"Just where do you think you're going, human?"
"I'm going to find someone who will be willing to actually instruct me in the ways of a vampire and my position as Kaname's consort since you are not." Yuuki swept out as gracefully as a human could in search of Aidou who she knew would do just about anything for her, leaving behind one gob smacked and incredulous female Aristocrat.
Xxxwherethedicefallxxx
Yuuki walked slowly through the halls of the Moon Dormitory. Ruka's words, harsh and cruel as they were, gave her cause to think. Did the rest of her bodyguards feel the same? Did they resent essentially being order to tail her and be her friend in order to protect her? Would they rather Kaname had a vampire consort instead of her, the human?
Ruka's position was quite clear. She didn't believe Yuuki belonged in the vampire world. But what about the others?
Aidou was expressive and dramatic. But he genuinely liked her and he was the one to push Yuuki towards Kaname with the suggestion that she offer Kaname her blood. Being an Aristocrat he had to know what such an act would mean and wouldn't have told her if he thought she didn't belong. Yuuki was certain that Aidou didn't mind being assigned glorified escort duty because he enjoyed spending time with her.
She didn't know much about Akatsuki Kain, aside from his being Ruka's and Aidou's cousin. But the orange haired Aristocrat had been the first to jump to her defense last week, grabbing Zero by his throat and ripping him off her. So he probably didn't mind protecting her.
Yuuki was unsure about Takuma Ichijo. He hadn't been present when the incident had occurred, but he was always friendly to her. She also knew that he was Kaname's best friend, so he would most likely do anything Kaname asked him to.
Rima and Senri, she felt, didn't feel for her one way or the other, with was understandable considering she had never spoken to them before, and therefore were just loyal to Kaname and doing as he wished. Seiren, although loyal to Kaname to the extreme, would protect her when she could because Kaname had ordered it, but if any time came when Kaname was in danger she would be at his side immediately even if it mean abandoning her to get hurt. Yuuki didn't mind that Seiren would focus on Kaname because she thought he should have somebody who was as devoted to protecting him as he was with her.
Yuuki took a deep breath and knocked on Aidou's door, hoping he wouldn't mind her coming to him and that he wouldn't ask too many questions.
The door opened and his blonde disheveled hair appeared in the space between. It reminded her of when she came to visit yesterday and he had been the one to open the door then too, and made a bright smile bloom on her face.
"Yuuiki-sama? What are you doing here?"
"You don't have to call me Yuuki-sama, Aidou." Yuuki frowned. "We're friends. Just Yuuki is fine."
For some reason, Aidou looked nervous at that. "It wouldn't be proper, Yuuki-sama."
Yuuki's frown deepened. "And why not?"
"Because you're Kaname's lover. As his consort, you get addressed with the same amount of respect that Kaname-sama would." It made sense, but Yuuki didn't like it. She would have rather earned the respect than have it given to her because she was Kaname's lover.
Yuuki decided to let it go for now and maybe talk with Kaname later. "Anyway, I was hoping you could help me with this rules of vampire society stuff. I can't understand when Ruka explains it."
Aidou looked at her shrewdly, "You mean that Ruka's not even attempting to teach you. She's just letting you struggle on your own."
The brunette smile sheepishly. "Yeah. But don't tell Kaname. If he tries to make her she only get angrier at me."
Aidou shook his blonde head, but he opened his door wider and invited her in.
He let her sit down before he started lecturing. "There are seven main Pureblood families. The Kuran, Ouri, Shirabuki, Hio, Hanadagi, Toma, and Shoto families. A Pureblood is a vampire whose blood has no traces of human blood in it and they can trace their blood back to the first Pureblood ancestor."
Yuuki took diligent notes as Aidou explained the different levels of vampires and how one interacted with each one. She was determined to learn everything there was to know about the vampire world.
