Kleenex warning maybe? Sappy moments alert?
IV
Kaname held back from groaning in frustration. His entire body had been paralysed for what seemed to be the longest of times. Quite possibly, had he been in his optimum condition, the hunter's weaponary effect would have worn off ages ago. It was not helping that Zero was stuck in the same room as him, the sweet yet coppery scent of blood intoxicating his senses. He had to do something about the latter, if they wanted to make it 'til dawn. Alive, that it.
"Kiryuu."
Without looking at the other, Zero asked 'what?'.
"It would be a lot more... convenient if you are able to possibly, sit a little further." The last thing the pureblood wanted to do was lunge for Zero's throat and suck him dry. When he could finally move, of course. His fingers were already twitching, indicating that his body's normal function was returning.
Zero merely replied with a snort. "If I could, I would," he partially lied. Although his mobility had not been as compromised as the pureblood's, his injury, bullet still imbedded, was burning in its wake. He had to get that damn bullet out soon, before his vampiric healing returns and decide to encase the metal with flesh. That would be a bitch.
Another hidden agenda to his stay, of course, was to watch over the other vampire. Jyouma could have decided to turn around to finish them off. It was clear that the pureblood was unusually weakened, and Zero knew it was partially his fault. He had taken a fair amount of Kaname's blood earlier in the night.
"I thought you usually had that underling of yours to protect you. Seiren, was it?" The hunter questioned. Where ever that woman was hiding, she was sure to appear to her lord's defence. With her, they might have actually stood a chance against the older hunter, or by the least avoid the casualties.
"Hanabusa had been attacked prior to Daine's visit here. I had to make sure he was watched over, and that the other nobles are informed of his doings," Kaname explained, feeling weary all of a sudden. It was not the only feeling that was growing, though. His eyes had began to stare at the red stained patch on the hunter's white top.
"There's something called a phone," the other snorted, as if stating the obvious.
"You've been oblivious to what's been happening, Kiryuu." Those words made Zero frown a little, but he made no comment about it. "The Association and the Council have been spending tremendous amounts of effort into tracking you down. They've been alert to every persons and calls of those who know you. I had simply resorted to the traditional ways of sending a messenger."
"So even you are made to grovel at their feet? That's a first."
That had the pureblood chuckling for a second. "It's not so much of 'groveling at their feet'. Many decisions are left to the Association and Council who govern the people. My position as a pureblood is a high status. Affairs not concerning me are left to them."
"But because this concerns you, you've decided to take action, huh." Concerning Yuuki.
Zero hid the ache in his chest. He had been used to various forms of harsh words and treatment. The fact that he had been shoved under the bed like dust was nothing new.
"I'm sorry." The hunter froze. Had he heard wrongly?
Glancing over his shoulder, lilac met orbs which held a maroon shade, somewhere between Kaname's usual hazel ones, and crimson of the vampiric side. From Zero's perspective, it had been the first time he had seen the pureblood laying down like this. The fine, brown locks curled beneath the vampire's head on the floor. Without the menacing aura Kaname tend to elicit, he looked pretty normal. A little vulnerable, even.
"I had mistaken that you had intentionally hurt her."
The hunter lowered his head, averting his gaze. "...No. Charm or not, it doesn't change the fact that I had..." Feeling a sudden stinging sensation in his eyes, Zero used the hand that was not clutching his wound to clasp over his eyes.
It was not often, but he recognised the signs of tears. Funny... He hadn't even shed a single one since the day he drove the sword through her chest. He swallowed back the lump that formed in his throat, along with the tears that threatened to slip. "She shouldn't have sent me that note, and I should have never gone there to meet her. It was a grave mistake on my part. And now, there's no way to rectify it."
Kaname could finally move the upper half of his body. He listened to the hunter's words carefully, as he came to sit. His eyes never once left the other. Zero was shaking without his own knowing.
"Now that you know what had truly happened, you should just get over and done with it. It doesn't matter anymore, because at the end of it, I'm still as good as dead. Be it Association or Council... I would rather that you be the one to-"
"Stop this nonsense!" The brunette snapped, catching Zero totally off guard. Strong hands grabbed the hunter's arms and pulled him around so that the two vampires faced each other. Zero winced greatly at the tug, shoulder firing off another wave of intense pain. "I'm sorry," Kaname's voice softened to a much gentler tone. "Yuuki... Isn't the first woman I've lost. There was someone else in my past... life that I found myself loving dearly. She sacrificed herself for a great cause.
"Because of this, I grew to be very protective. I became selfish, to the point that it had driven Yuuki over the edge. She couldn't take it anymore. She still loved you, Kiryuu. I admit... I was jealous of that. When I heard that you had... supposedly killed her, no words could have described my anger. Because I knew she loved you. Yet, she had fallen to such fate after meeting you."
Kaname sucked in a lungful of air. The scent of the hunter's blood was overwhelming at this point. However, he did not want to give in. He resisted the urge to sink his aching fangs into the delicious neck before him.
"Please, Zero. Tell me... everything that had happened."
=Flower=
The hunter received an anonymous note in his apartment that was written in a handwriting he knew too well. It stated to meet him at the place where 'they' had first seen each other. That meant the old cottage on the mountains far from town. Zero had to tread through snow just to reach to the lone structure that still stood strong against the harsh weathers. Nothing inside changed, save the cloths shielding the furniture from dust.
He removed the one that was on the couch, and sat down, waiting for her arrival. While doing so, the place brought back the past. Subconsciously, he could see the figure of his young self with Yuuki, sitting around in the room he was in. There were images of when Yuuki, kind-hearted as she always was, would try to engage the solemn child of him to play games. To do things kids their age would be doing, together with Kaien who had been a great, but not always the ideal, father figure. He recalled the ups and downs of the times he had within this little cottage.
For three years, they had been apart. The memories they had created when they were younger seemed almost surreal. Yet, when they had met once more, it was clear that they were not mere dreams. Even the vow they both swore to was a distant thought, never to surface again.
"Zero..." A voice called out softly at first. Lilac eyes glanced up without malice. In fact, they widened a little, when a lithe form rushed forward. Yuuki had, quite literally, charged up into the seated form. The hunter could not help but give a small smile. His hands came to wrap around the lady who had began to sob against his coat. Zero patted Yuuki on the small of her back, soothing her back to calmness.
"You didn't even think twice about running towards me... What if I had done something bad?" The ex-human sighed, breathing in the famliar secnt after.
The brunette pulled back to an arm's length, and giggled despite the tears trickling down her cheeks. "Woman's intuition."
Zero could only nod. "The scariest intuition of all." Yuuki merely laughed in reply.
"Did you escape the estate?" Zero asked as he watched Yuuki settle beside him. She folded her legs underneath her, the black dress covering them. He did not mind the girl looping her arms around his, leaning against him.
"No, Kaname let me go. I told him that I was a child no longer, and cannot forever be in his protection."
"He couldn't have let you off just like. You must've done something, didn't you?" The hunter snorted, knowing the girl. A small giggle confirmed his suspicion.
"That's a secret," Yuuki placed a finger on her lips, indicating that nothing was going to be revealed. Zero could only shake his head to it. If there was only thing the female could keep, it was secrets. "Hey Zero, do you still love Kaname?"
The sudden question had the hunter blushing right away. Zero looked ahead where the door of the living room was situated. "Even if I said that I didn't, you'd know I'm lying."
"I would," came another giggle. Yuuki fell silent after, and the entire cottage was quiet for about a minute or so. She merely snuggled closer to the taller male."Zero, I'm going to leave tomorrow."
"Where are you going?" The hunter asked out of curiosity.
"Somewhere far, where no one can reach me. Not even you, or Kaname."
"Will you come back?"
Yuuki smiled. "Perhaps." She snuggled closer to the other for warmth, not that she really needed it.
"Will you stay with me 'til dawn?"
"Yeah..." Zero tilted his head and his chin easily rested on the shorter person's head. It came to remind him of the days when they were back at the academy. Yuuki had the tendency to fall asleep anytime, anywhere. Sometimes, during their guardian watch, she would sit beside him, only to snooze off. He would often make fun of her, stating how she would snore or drool. That tend to land him a few fists in the arm.
The ex-human smiled a little at the memory. Although their meeting was going to be short, especially since they had not seen each other for three years, he was happy.
When morning came, Zero woke to Yuuki missing from his side. That was not a common occurence. Add the fact that he had never even sensed her moving. Alarmed, he immediately stood from the couch, stepping out of the living area. He searched the coridor, and saw that the front door was ajar. Snow coated the doorway, indicating that it had been open for a while. He went outside right away.
Nothing could have prepared him for the scene he witnessed. It made his blood turn to ice.
Yuuki was there, some ten yards away, back pressed against a large cross that was embedded in the ground. Her wrists and ankles were tied to the structure behind her, like some sort of crucification. The brunette's head hung low, her long hair and dress flowing in the winds.
"Yuuki!" Zero shouted, running towards the pureblood.
Just as he was about halfway, a jolt of electricity coarsed through his entire body and he fell on his knees, gasping out. The snow around where he stood seemed to have melted, and lilac eyes widened at the sight of a symbol on the ground, and he was standing right in the middle of it.
"Zero, Zero... Has all your training been for naught?" A male's voice questioned. It echoed from Yuuki's direction, and the hunter glared at it. From behind the cross, a man in his forties stepped forth. He had short, cropped black hair and a set of dark brown eyes. A cigarette hung from his mouth, and the man rubbed at his unkempt stubble. "One would know better than to rush in unprepared."
"Jyouma-san..." Zero uttered out, eyes widened in disbelief.
"Miss me, boy?" The older male took a drag from the cigarette before tossing it into the snow. "It seems like you've been well, despite being a 'D."
The young hunter turned away, as if ashamed. He had long accepted his place in both the human and vampire society, but it had not meant that he liked it rubbed in his face.
"It took quite some time and effort to find you. Then again, I did make a few stop overs as well."
"Why are you here?" Zero growled out. He could not move. The charm on the ground activated again, and this time it brought him to all fours on his elbows. Another cry escaped him as an electrical current was being dispersed through his body. It targetted certain points of his body purposefully, drawing out the vampiric side of him. His eyes were crimson when they glanced up at the cause of all this.
In Jyouma's other hand that had not been holding the cigarette, was a charm folded into an origami. It took the shape of a paper crane.
"Fulfil your duty as a hunter, Zero. Kill this vampire here."
"No, I will not," the ex-human hissed out. He tried to fight the charm's bindings, using all his might to pick himself up. However, every inch of his muiscle that moved caused his entire form to tremble under an electric current. It felt like he was being jammed with a tazer over and over again.
"Are you turning your back against the Association?"
"I'm just not breaking any laws." Yuuki was not an E. There was no need for an execution. In fact, it would be a crime instead.
Jyouma knew this, of course. He was under a five year house arrest because of such a complacent rule.
"Still such a kid. Hadn't Yagari taught you well?"
"Don't bring sensei into this!" A roar erupted from the vampire that was now baring its fangs.
"You're being fooled, boy! You will now learn what being a true vampire hunter is! Unbound by laws or rules – our only goal is to remove the existence of every goddamn vampire, pureblood or not!" That instant, the symbol under Zero glowed even brighter. Jyouma recited something under his breath, and Zero felt every nerve fibre in his body scream in reaction. The pain had been so instense that he was sure unconsciousness took over him for a few seconds.
When he did recover, he found himself standing right before Yuuki's slumped form. The hunter could now see the wires that had bound the pureblood to the cross behind her. Whatever material they were made from, was strong. There were minimal coils around the wrists, but it was tough enough to keep the slumped figure pressed against the cross.
"Yuu-" Zero froze, when he realised that he could not move. Not voluntarily, anyway. For some reason, his brother's katana he had always carried along was clasped in both his hands, unsheathed. When he willed himself to let the sword go, nothing happened. Move... move, dammit!
"Your irrational love of these vampires makes you unworthy of being a hunter," Jyouma's voice said. The voice sounded behind the younger hunter, but Zero could not move a muscle, much less turn and face the man.
"Release me," Zero hissed out. The katana was shaking in his grip, torn between remaining in place and attempting to move.
"I will... after you quell your ridiculous love for your enemy."
"What-"
The hunter's face paled, when his limbs moved on their own accord. He could feel them shifting, but it was not under his control. Dread was sinking into his gut, along with anger. His arms and fingers were twitching in their wake, and Zero was gritting his teeth hard to fight for dominance over the charm. His gaze flicked over at the brunette who still remained umoving.
Yuuki was stronger than this. She could break out of these binds easily. All she had to do was open her eyes. She would be their key to their escape. No... her escape. Wake, and kill him, along with Jyouma.
"Yuuki, wake up!" Zero yelled, desperation in his tone. Please, oh god...
The katana was raised at Yuuki's chest level, inches away from her heart. The very tip of the katana was trembling.
"YUUKI!"
The brunette's head was thrown backwards when the steel blade pierced through her chest, left of her sternum. Blood immediately seeped through the wound, staining her black dress a darker shade. The scent of blood struck Zero, and the hunter was paralysed.
Slowly, but surely, Yuuki lowered her head, so that she could meet Zero's eyes that were wide in shock.
"Yuuki..." She had been awake the entire time. "Why...?"
"Please live, Zero," Yuuki whispered. There was not a single trace of fear or sadness in her eyes. Not even pain. Instead, she smiled at him. It never faded even as her head lowered further, her body turning limp.
"Yuuki..." The name escaped his lips once more before a blow struck him in the back of his neck. Zero felt his consciousness start to fade. Just as he did, he distinctely heard the person he loved speak a few more words. He slipped into a black abyss, wishing that he would never wake again.
=Flower=
"When I woke... She was still there, tied to the cross. Ichiru's katana was still in her..." Zero uttered, staring at the hands that had executed the murder. Though the blood which stained them were his own, he could only imagine them being hers. "I... couldn't leave it in her, so I had to pull it out. It took a while since it was embedded deeply, and the Association witnessed that very moment. So, it wasn't wrong that I killed her. I took Yuuki's life."
Kaname could not identify the emotions that were coarsing through his blood. A part of him told him it was anger, and another sadness. Guilt and pity seemed to be present as well. But most of all, it had been pain. That was something he could not lie to himself about. Now that he knew what had truly happened, he felt utterly lost for the first time in his life.
A hand of his was raised, and the pureblood reached over, clasping the back of Zero's neck. He could not see the other's face clearly from his angle, and the latter still had a hand shielding his eyes. Kaname's nails had darkened a few shades near grey, and his nails grew longer at an inhuman rate, their ends razor sharp. His grip on the vulnerable neck tightened a little, and it had caught the hunter's attention.
Zero stiffened at the contact. The hand on his neck was cold, and there was the unmistakable prickling of sharp points. He knew what it had meant – this was not the first time he had experienced it. Well, he had been prepared for this ages ago.
"When I found you before Yuuki's grave..." The pureblood started, almost in a whisper. "What were your intentions then?"
The ex-human took a quiet, deep breath and swallowed. It was also meant to clear another lump that had formed in his throat. With just about all information leaked from him, he found no further need to lie. "Atone for my sin," he whispered back. "To give back Yuuki the life that belonged to her a long, long time ago."
"You are a fool, Kiryuu."
Said person was almost tempted to smile. Yes, he was a fool. A fool who should have never perservered living, when all he could bring was death. He hated himself so, so much.
"Yuuki had told you to live. Your brother would have wanted you to live. Are you simply going to abandon their wishes and choose the easiest way out?" Kaname hissed out. The hand on Zero's neck shifted and grabbed the silver locks, forcing the hunter to face him. "I will not let you, Kiryuu. Not after what they've done for you."
Zero's eyes were wide, staring into blazing crimson orbs. He was at a loss for words, hearing what the brunette had just said. Anger started to swell in his chest, and it did not take much to set the hunter's emotions on fire.
"Why!?" The ex-human spat, moving his hand to grab the front of the pureblood's shirt. It had not even mattered to him the searing pain of his wounded shoulder. He pulled both of their faces close. "Why can't you do it, you coward!"
"Who is the coward here, Kiryuu!" The pureblood's fingers tightened on the silver hair, eliciting a small wince from the other vampire. "I will not let you run from reality."
"I will run, as much as I want, if it means that I have to face the reality that I killed Yuuki." Zero's fist on the black shirt slackened. His head dropped, landing on the pureblood's shoulder. He could not even bring himself to care about the embarrassment his actions would bring. "I can't live... if it means that you will hate me forever."
Kaname felt a sudden, warm wetness on his shoulder. It was accompanied with the scent of something salty... tears?
"Either the Association or the Council will do away with me in any case... I'd rather leave my life in your hands, Kaname."
"Kiryuu..."
Zero reared up all of a sudden, on his knees either side of Kaname's. The latter could finally see his face then. Tears were trickling down the side of the boy's cheeks. This was the first time the brunette had seen him cry. It had been an astonishing sight, if not endearing. There was a temptation to reach up and brush away the tears, if it were not for Zero initiating a movement quicker than he could.
Both of the hunter's hands clasped Kaname's face gently by their palms, and Zero lowered his face to meet the others. Lips touched each other, but there were no further intimacy other than that. The very location they both came in contact at tingled at the loss.
Kaname understood, then, what Zero had meant by the words he had last spoken. The hunter loved him. So much that he would rather not live. But since when? They had only met again a mere two weeks back.
"Ever since we were in the academy..." A soft whisper seemed to answer the unsaid question. "No, maybe even after the first time I met you at the mountain cottage. I should have never let myself fall in love with you." Zero turned away, letting Kaname's face go. "It's wrong of me to... so I should lea-"
The hunter's wrist was snatched, preventing him from retreating further. Lilac eyes stared into bloodred ones. However, he felt no animosity. They were simply staring in contemplation.
Something in the brunette tugged at his heart. It felt as if he was going to lose something that he could never retrieve again.
"You said that you'd leave your life in my hands, didn't you?" The pureblood questioned. When he received no response, only a confused gaze, he repeated his question in a stronger, more demanding tone.
Zero succumbed to his fate. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "Yes." He was ready. He had always been. Now the only thing he could really wonder about was what Kaname intended to do. Slash his throat? Rip his heart out? Or maybe-
The ex-human let out a muffled gasp when his lips were crushed against firmer, stronger ones. In midst of protesting, Kaname deepened the kiss, dragging his tongue against one that had been more unwilling. One of his hands pressed against the back of Zero's neck, forcing the latter to remain in place to be devoured. The other assisted by keeping a firm grip on the wrist that was trying to push him away.
The older vampire sucked, licked and caressed with surprising gentleness, and eventually Zero gave in to it. The hunter never saw this coming at all. As he was being eased into the kiss, he winced a little when his tongue was being cut by an abnormally sharp fang which was not his. It was immediately being lapped at. He ended up moaning into the kiss, having a new found will to try and push the pureblood away.
"Your life is now mine, Zero," Kaname whispered, and the ex-human shuddered a little at the call of his name. "That means I control everything that is yours. Your body..." He trailed off, a hand dwelving under the white shirt before him. Zero held back a gasp. "Your heart..." The very hand drifted across the skin to rest over the warm chest. "And your soul."
The hunter had to bite through his own lip to prevent a shout from escaping. Kaname had plunged his fangs through the very spot on Zero's neck that pulsated the greatest. A pale hand fisted the front of the brunette's black shirt, gripping so tightly that it had started to tear a little. The pureblood paid no heed to that, since his senses were filled only with Zero. The blood he swallowed had been deliciously warm, bitter yet sweet at the same time. He had not taken much, maybe a few shallow gulps at most. Zero had his own injury to heal from, and Kaname had kept that fact in mind.
Releasing the quivering form, the brunette licked the puncture wounds. There was a brief sigh of relief when Zero felt his neck turn numb slightly, before it healed under the pureblood's ministrations. That left the other wound to deal with. Tugging the collar over the injured shoulder, Kaname was slightly amused by how the garment had easily slipped off. It was partially due to the stretchy material of the clothing, but Zero had been leaning on the skinny side for a while now. That allowed full access to the gun wound right next to the shoulder joint, but the pureblood frowned when he saw the state of it.
Some of the hunter's muscles had already regenerated over the bullet, which complicated things a whole lot more. Zero noticed it as well and he mentally groaned at the trouble it could bring.
"We have to get the bullet out."
"No shit, Sherlock..." The hunter grumbled. Kaname smirked at the remark. "Get it out." That had the brunette raising an eyebrow, wondering if he had heard wrongly. Zero's serious expression said otherwise.
"Are you sure?"
"It's not deep... And I think it shouldn't be in there for too long. I can't really feel my arm anymore." That said, Zero had not really moved that arm for a while.
Kaname was not entirely sure what the bullet's effect could be. Had it been a normal one, Zero could probably wait hours before it required attention. However, knowing that it was manufactured by the hunters... Time should probably not be wasted. As Zero had mentioned, the boy was already losing sensations in his arm. Who knew what it could progress to.
The pureblood leaned over close to the wound, starting off by licking away some of the dried blood on the skin below the wound. He felt Zero's other arm encircle his neck cautiously, as if in encouragement. He was not going to look too much into it, though. Kaname continued licking the area around the wound, numbing it first.
Kaname used the chance to clean up any blood, not letting it go to waste. He tossed the lilac eyes a brief glance, signalling to the other that he was going to make his move. Without much of a hesitance, the pureblood drove a fang through the flesh, and Zero let out a cry. It had hurt a lot more in the deeper muscles, as the teeth were traumatising it once more. A strong arm held the hunter in place, ensuring that he could not pull back.
By the stroke of luck, Kaname had caught the groove of the bullet's rim with his fang on the first bite. Not waiting another second, he tugged the foreign object out. Zero unintentionally held onto the other's shoulder, burying his face into the crook of the pureblood's neck. His breath was heaving, trying to prevent himself from going into shock. Kaname tossed aside the bullet before tending to the re-opened wound. Blood was spilling once again, but the muscles regenerated a lot quicker with the pureblood's help. He never stopped lapping at it, even when skin had fully sealed the injury.
"Kuran... that's enough..." Came an almost meek voice. When Kaname peered to the side, he saw that Zero's face was red. He could only smirk at it.
"No. You started this," the vampire accused.
Moving away from the skin that had now healed flawlessly, Kaname continued licking and nipping the skin along the shoulder, creeping towards the pale column. He intentionally let his fangs harmlessly drag over the flesh, knowing it would be sending chills down the hunter's spine. On the side opposite to the tattoo, he made a hard nip at the junction of the neck, sucking it hard after. Using his expertise, he made sure that his infliction would last for days as a red mark on the other's skin. It had been a little trick the pureblood had under his sleeves for ages.
Zero evidently winced, even though the pain was not as bad as what he had experienced a moment ago. He was clueless to what the pureblood had done, thinking that the latter was simply teasing him. When he pulled back a little, he stared down at hazel brown eyes, which returned the gaze with equal intensity.
Kaname could see the slight redness of the hunter's eyes from the crying earlier on. It was a sight to behold, seeing the usually prideful Zero in tears. There was no denial that it had caused Kaname to waver in his emotions. Zero's words played a part as well. Though, now he knew it was partially his fault. He had not been treating the ex-human fairly, having only acted according to the circumstances. But there was much hidden behind those closed doors. He had been blinded by Yuuki's death that all his logic had been misplaced.
"I'm sorry, Zero," the pureblood uttered out another time as his thumb brushed against Zero's cheek. "To have entirely blamed you for her death without knowing."
Lilac eyes closed, and the younger vampire tilted his cheek to the warm touch. "No... You have every right to think that way." Zero's hand reached up, and took the hand that caressed his faced. "For a while... be it an hour... no. Even if it's just for five minutes... Can you make me forget everything?"
Did that make you cry? Lol. I admit, I was tearing a bit (okay, a lot. A whole packet of disgusting tissue is in my bin). So, the story is unfolding, and we're pretty much there.
Anywho, for those who had been following my stories for a while... I guess your patience shall be rewarded(?) The next chapter, by hook or by crook, will be a smut scene. I shall now go hide under a rock XD
KanaXZero ftw?
