Disclaimer- I don't own Vampire Knight

Chapter 3

Fear is Relative

"Why don't you run?" Michael asked her. His voice was low, cold.

"Why should I run? I don't fear you, and I don't fear death. It might even be a nice respite from the worthless life I live," she answered evenly, her eyes hadn't once left his.

A harsh laugh erupted from his lips before they twisted into a cruel snarl. "I was made a fool of because of you. I will not allow you to make a fool of me again."

Thunder clapped loudly over head, rattling the window before the rain started to fall faster. It sounded as if the house was being pelted by millions of small stones.

There was a flash of lightening that lit the room with an eerie ghostly glow, elongating the already frightening, twisted shadows.

Reina stood proudly while Michael advanced on her. She didn't utter a sound when his cold hand wrapped around her throat and he forced her up against the wall.

"I should have known you wouldn't give me the satisfaction of hearing you scream," he growled.

Reina didn't speak, but she still never took her eyes from his.

There was a thud when she was thrown roughly into the corner of her room. She hit the wall with so much force that it splintered around her with a loud series of cracks. Falling to the ground, she felt the blood from a cut to her arm trickle its way down to her hand.

"Such a sweet smell," Michael leered. He was suddenly standing over her and he grabbed her arm to pull her back up to face him. He growled at her when she looked up at him with eyes that still showed no sign of fear.

"Why don't you fear me?" he barked.

"Don't you remember? I've grown up in this house surrounded by people my parents trusted and I have rarely ever left. Fear isn't something I have much knowledge of," she answered in a monotonous, disinterested tone.

"Then let me teach you," he snarled before slapping her across her right cheek.

She felt the sting of his palm as it connected with her skin and forced her head to turn sharply. Her hair cascaded over her face, hiding her eyes from his view. After taking a moment to let the sting dull down, she raised her head and again met his eyes with not fear, but a coldness that was almost unnerving.

There was a cracking noise that echoed through the room, the glass in her window had began to break from the sheer force of Michael's anger and hatred. It looked like a spider was quickly creating a web over the glass as the cracks spread throughout the window.

Another flash of lightening and she was suddenly flying across her room. Her back collided with one of the bed posts, shattering it into a spray of sharp splinters.

She grunted when she fell to the ground and landed roughly on her side. She could feel as a number of pieces of the splintered wood bit into her flesh.

Michael stalked towards her while she struggled to stand up, dusting herself off before looking at him defiantly.

The window shattered completely then, the glass shards flying inwards and straight at her as the scent of fresh rain and wet earth drifted into the room.

She didn't move as the sharp pieces of glass flew at her, not that she would have had the chance to anyways.

A surprised cry tore from her lips when the glass pieces embedded themselves in her body. She hunched over, holding her stomach with both hands, her hair falling into her face. In the dim light she could see that her white dress was now stained with her bright red blood.

"Do you fear me now?" Michael asked with a harsh laugh, grabbing her by the hair and forcing her to look at him again.

She was still defiant, but he could see the beginnings of fear in her blue eyes, more noticeable was the pain that he could tell he had inflicted upon her. Her face was no longer slack and devoid of emotion. Her lips had parted and her teeth were clenched, sharp white fangs were visible and her eyes had taken on a slight reddish glow.

"So the princess begins to understand?" Michael taunted.

He forced her to tilt her head so that he would have access to her neck and slowly began to lean in towards her.

Pain lanced through her as he bit into her neck hungrily. The pain quickly faded as he began to suck the very life from her. The sound of her blood being sucked through her veins echoed through her body, it would have been an enjoyable sensation had the person gulping down her blood not been Michael. She didn't struggle or try to force him off of her, she was already resigned to dying, she had nothing left anyhow. This man had broken a cardinal rule, it may have been unspoken, but harming a pureblood was simply something one didn't do. Yet this man had just killed her parents without a wisp of remorse and now she would join them.

Her body was beginning to grow weak and tired and her knees gave way beneath her as the blood loss began to steal her senses and strength from her. Michael caught her around her waist and pulled her to him forcibly. She made a small sound of discomfort but didn't struggle as her bloody body collided with his tall, lean frame.

"Release her."

Reina couldn't see who the voice belonged to, but there was something familiar in the cold, smooth male monotone as it spoke.

Michael detached himself from her neck to turn his head slowly towards her doorway. Two people, both male, stood in the shadow of the hall. One had brown hair and crimson eyes, while the other had somewhat long pale blond hair and eyes that seemed to be a mix of gold and pale green.

"Kaname Kuran, what a coincidence running into you here," Michael sneered as he held Reina close to him, her body limp in his grasp and her hair gripped tightly in one hand as he held her head back so that her neck was exposed. Two thin lines of crimson leaked from the puncture marks he had left.

"Kaname?" Reina questioned in a weak whisper.

"Release her," Kaname commanded again, the threat in his tone as sharp as the fangs that were revealed from behind his delicate lips.

"I'm not finished yet," Michael answered arrogantly, he turned his head back towards Reina.

The glass coverings over several of the paintings in the room cracked loudly, echoing in the quiet rain washed night as Kaname stepped forward.

Michael grunted when his body was thrown backwards, he released Reina in his surprise, her body limply began to fall to the glass and wood littered floor, but she was caught before she could land. Strong arms lifted her small body and held her against a hard chest.

"Take her to the car," the brown haired Kaname ordered the blond who held her.

"Kaname," Reina whispered.

"We'll talk later, Reina. Ichijo, don't let her out of your sight," Kaname stated.

With a nod the man began to walk out of the room. Michael jumped up from the ground and made to follow, but he was thrown through the air once again and his body crashed through a wall, sending a spray of wood and plaster into the air.

The blond holding Reina had stopped to look back but when he saw the glint in Kaname's eyes he knew better than to say anything and continued walking.

Carrying the bloodied white haired girl to the car that was outside the house, the blond noticed just how light she was, and he found himself staring at the lines of her face. The girl was beautiful which in itself wasn't a surprise, all vampires possessed an unnatural beauty, but she seemed to have an air of innocence about her that he had never encountered in another vampire before, or a human for that matter. She was pure, just like her name implied she was. The troubles of the world hadn't reached this pure soul.

He almost felt sorry for her. She knew nothing of life outside of the manor she had been raised in, he thought that it must have been a very sad and lonely existence for her.

A black car stood in wait outside the open double doors of the house and the driver hurriedly opened up the back door as he approached the vehicle. Gently lying the girl in the back seat of the car, the blond stood in the rain and waited for his friend. The scent of her blood was a little overwhelming, it was sweet and crisp, the delicate scent reminding him of orchids. While he did have immense self control and would never think of drinking the blood of a pureblood, he was also still a vampire and the scent of blood stirred the beast inside him.

He didn't have to wait long before the brown haired man walked regally from the house and towards the car.

"Ichijo, how is she?" he asked.

"She needs medical attention. There are glass pieces in her stomach and a few in her arms as well I think. She's lost a lot of blood, but I don't think she's in any danger of dying," the blond Ichijo answered.

Kaname nodded. "Let's take her to the Academy, there's nothing left for her here. I'll ride in the back with her."

"Ok," Ichijo replied before stepping around the car to sit in the front seat.

Kaname slid himself into the backseat of the car, gently lifting Reina's head and placing it on his leg. He tenderly moved a few pieces of her hair from her face and gazed down at the girl with a look of what was a mix of sadness and anger. Her sapphire eyes fluttered open as his fingers brushed over her cheek.

"Why didn't you fight back, Reina?" Kaname asked quietly.

"I'm...sorry...I...I was scared," Reina whispered in reply.

"Scared of what, Reina? Being alone?" Kaname asked, his voice was still quiet but there was an undertone of anger in it now as he spoke.

Reina squeezed her eyes shut, she was a pureblood and she would not let anyone see her tears. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Kaname sighed. "Rest, Reina, we'll talk about this later."

Reina reached near her head where Kaname's hand was resting on his knee, and placed her hand over his before letting her eyes flutter closed.

Ichijo watched as Kaname seemed to be unusually caring towards the girl. He had only ever seen Kaname be caring and tender towards one other person, and it was odd to see the normally cold and stoic man show a softness for the unconscious girl.

All Ichijo knew of their relationship was that they had been acquainted as children, but that was all.

Reina's sapphire eyes blinked open and she was greeted by the face of a smiling golden brown eyed man with blond hair wearing glasses.

"Ohhhh," he sang happily, clapping his hands in front of him. "She's awake, she's awake."

The man then proceeded to do a small jig around the room, pumping his arms and skipping from foot to foot while a large smile spread over his face.

Reina watched him curiously, unsure just what to do. She had never seen anyone act in such a way before and it was a bit frightening.

"You're scaring her, Headmaster," a girl's voice scolded.

"Call me Father, Yuuki dearest," the man replied happily.

"Uh huh," the girl answered with little interest.

The man clearly was saddened by this for his face fell and he walked back over to Reina's side, defeated.

"How are you feeling, dear?" the man asked her warmly.

She just stared up at him. He was unfamiliar to her and she didn't know where she was, besides given the state of her body she thought the answer to be fairly obvious. Not well.

A short haired girl came into view, smiling happily and her big brown eyes dancing with kindness and innocence.

"Don't mind him, he's always like that," the girl said to her as she waved at the man beside her.

Still Reina didn't say anything.

"I'm Yuuki," the girl offered. "That's Headmaster Cross."

The girl jerked her thumb at the man and he seemed about to cry and little tears collected in his eyes. "Why do you never call me Father," the man whispered quietly, tears forming in his eyes as he stared at the girl.

"How is she?" Someone asked from somewhere behind her.

She didn't recognize the voice, but turned her head to look at a tall boy with soft blond hair and pale golden green eyes. A small frown crossed her features when she realized she didn't know the boy, but she felt that she had seen him somewhere before.

"She's awake, but she hasn't said anything," the headmaster Cross said.

"Well, Kaname did say she was fairly quiet," the blond boy chuckled.

"Do you remember anything that happened the other night?" Headmaster Cross asked, directing the question to Reina.

Reina thought over what he meant for a moment before the events of the previous night filled her mind. She sighed and nodded to signify she did indeed remember.

"Where am I?" she asked quietly.

"Cross Academy. Kaname and Ichijo here brought you last night," Headmaster Cross answered.

Reina nodded, now she understood why he had been introduced to her as Headmaster Cross, he was a headmaster.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Headmaster Cross said, referring to her parents.

Reina smiled at him. "Thank you."

"You should really rest some more, dear. We'll talk about your living arrangements later," Cross said to her.

Reina nodded once again and the three people filtered out of the room.

'So, I'm the last Tsukina. I really am alone now. I wonder just what he had meant about my 'living arrangements'... The house belongs to me now, everything belongs to me now,' Reina sighed and glanced around the room she was in.

It was fairly simple, painted a warm white, there was a single window in the room that was over a dresser across from the bed she lay in. The bed was against a wall that seemed to lead to a hallway of some sort, she figured the door into the room was over there since when Ichijo had entered, it had sounded like he was behind her.

"So Kaname's here, is he? That should be interesting," she said aloud.

She stood up from the bed and noticed that she was wearing pale pink pajama bottoms and a matching long sleeved, loose fitting top. Shrugging, she figured they must belong to the Yuuki girl she had met. There were bandages wrapped around her torso and her left arm, she could also feel something on her neck where Michael had bitten her as well.

'So it was Kaname that saved me...He should have let me die, it's not like it would make any difference. I don't have any value anymore, not that I did before,' she thought to herself.

She walked over to the window that was over the dresser and pushed the heavy brown curtains aside. It was midday judging by the intense glare of the sun and she let the curtains fall back into place with a small groan as the bright light burned her eyes.

A sudden tightening in her chest caused her to stumble slightly in her steps on her way back to bed. She raised her hands and brought them to her chest which was rising and falling rapidly as the invisible band around it tightened further. Her breath caught in her throat and she fell to her knees gasping for air, strands of her white hair fell over her shoulders and into her eyes. She didn't have the strength to move them and so she left them where they lie.

She knew what was happening and it frightened her. She had lied when she said she didn't know fear the night before. She did, but she wasn't scared of death, she hadn't lied about that. She was scared of what she was capable of doing if the hunger in her wasn't quenched.

She had lost a lot of blood the night before, and she had yet to try and replenish what she had lost. On top of that, vampires heal quickly but it drains them physically and requires them to need more blood than they would normally require.

There was a light tap on her door, but she was unable to call out for help as the pain in her chest worsened and her lungs felt as if they were on fire. Her hands clutched at the fabric of the pink shirt and her eyes squeezed shut, she let her head fall to her chest so that she was sitting in a small ball on the floor of the room.

"Tsukina-sama?" a voice called from the door when it slowly creaked open.

A strangled sob passed her lips and the door opened completely to reveal the blond Ichijo looking at her worriedly. He ran into the room, the door closing behind him with a soft click and knelt at her side, he placed a hand on her shoulders and could feel the heat rising off her body.

"Tsukina-sama," he whispered quietly. "Are you alright?"

She was far from alright, but she couldn't speak only move her head so that she was peering at him from behind a curtain of white strands.

Her eyes were glowing a dim red and her fangs had made themselves noticeable as they pressed upon her pale pink lips.

She tore her gaze from the boy and scooted away from him.

Ichijo stood up and walked quickly to the bathroom, he knew what was wrong and he knew she needed to drink something or risk hurting herself, or someone else.

There was a small glass on the counter which he picked up and filled with water, beside the glass was a little tin which he opened. Inside the tin where a bunch of little white pills, he grabbed two and dropped them into the water. The pills began dissolving, immediately changing the clear water to a blood red.

He walked back into the little room and once again knelt beside Reina who had drawn her knees into her chest and had buried her head in her arms that she had wrapped around herself. She was slowly rocking herself back and forth to try and calm the urges that where rapidly making themselves known to her.

When Ichijo knelt before her she made a little hissing noise to show she wasn't pleased with his closeness to her at the moment. She had no desire to feed and hurt anyone and she just wanted him to leave.

"Here, drink this," Ichijo said holding the glass out to her.

Reina lifted her head slightly and her eyes hungrily ran over the glass. She eyed Ichijo warily for a moment, but he only smiled kindly at her and continued to hold the glass out for her. She reached out with shaking hands and took it from him, slowly bringing the glass to her lips she tilted the cup and drank the red liquid greedily.

When she had drained the cup the red glow began to leave her eyes and they returned to their natural sapphire color. Color returned to her cheeks and her breathing became less labored and painful.

"Thank you," she whispered to Ichijo after she set the empty glass beside her on the floor.

"Of course," he answered with a smile.

Reina smiled wanly back at him before resting her head back in her arms.

"How are you feeling?" he asked she thought that there was genuine concern there and it confused her. She didn't know this person and usually people didn't treat her with genuine emotion.

"Tired," she stated.

"After the night you had I don't blame you... May I ask you something?"

Reina nodded her head which was more like a slight dip since her head was buried in her arms.

Ichijo saw this and continued on, "Why didn't you fight back? You're a pureblood too, you could have stopped him."

Reina made no response to his question, and after a few minutes he figured he wouldn't be getting one from her and sighed. He stood up from the floor and ran a hand through his long, wispy locks.

"I should let you rest. Kaname would kill me if I kept you awake," he said.

She nodded again, but made no attempt to move from her spot on the floor.

Ichijo watched the girl for a moment before leaning over and picking her up off the floor, one arm behind her back and the other under her knees.

She let out a startled yelp and looked up at him with wide eyes.

"He would also kill me if I left you on the floor like that," he told her, a smile on his face as he set her gently down on the bed.

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