AN: I don't know why, but I like it when 2 characters have totally different views of another character. XD Anyway, lots more Ai, Ren, and Ichijou.


It had been a few years since Hoshiko had been to the manor. She visited Ai there on occasion, but usually they met in town, since their houses were far apart. This was the first time she'd set foot in the mansion for at least five years and it hadn't changed at all. Every speck of furniture was in the same position. The paintings on the walls were the same. The curtains were the same mahogany color. Everything was exactly as it had been before. Hoshiko was sure that even the welcome mat hadn't shifted an inch since she'd last come. She wondered why vampires were so set in their routines and rituals. Even herself, although she often strove to break out of her own monotonous ways.

Following Ai down the hall, she wondered why her friend had asked her over today. It wasn't unheard of, but such a request was a bit odd and unexpected, especially considering how long ago the last one had been. Naturally, Hoshiko had accepted immediately, partially from curiosity. She somehow doubted that the pureblood had invited her over for a mere chat. That would have been uncharacteristic at best. The dark-haired girl always had a reason for everything, even when those reasons were flimsy or needless.

"Thanks for coming out here," Ai told her, pushing open the door to the massive library that the manor housed.

"No problem. What did you need help with?" Hoshiko questioned, eyeing the shelves of books with something between awe and envy. The smell of leather and ink imbued the air, an aroma she particularly loved, and her fingers itched to pull down a book and settle herself into the corner to read.

"I'm doing some research on existing purebloods. I'd like to make a list of details about them," Ai informed her, moving towards a table where she had laid out paper and pens.

The blonde blinked. "Why?" she asked, brow furrowing slightly in confusion.

Her friend crossed her arms, contemplating something as her dark eyes shifted across the rows of books. Then, "Well, at the soiree the other night I started thinking... I haven't really involved myself in politics... It's actually a responsibility I'm supposed to have. It's very tiresome, but you reminded me of it when you told me about your job. So, I'm going to make an effort. Or something..."

Hoshiko giggled and held up a hand to forestall any further explanation. "Okay, okay, got it. I'll help you look them up. Are you really planning to meet all of them?"

Ai scowled. "I guess. I'd rather not."

Hoshiko paused, then raised both eyebrows. "Don't tell me...are you planning to get married?"

A scoff. "No way." Then, in a quieter, angrier tone, she heard the dark-haired girl muttering, "Even though in the back of my head I can hear annoying voices. 'I want to see Ai-chan in her wedding dress!' 'No matter what, I want Ai-chan to get married!' Kaien-kun was a very persistent person..."

Hoshiko hid a laugh behind her hand. Then, clearing her throat, she inquired, "So, where should I start? What do you need?"

"I need their names and where they live. And anything else interesting, if there's anything like that."

"Well, they are purebloods. I'm sure there'll be something. Is there anywhere in particular I should be looking?" The dozens of bookshelves loomed overhead, daunting.

"Oh. Here." Ai gestured to one shelf in particular. "That's full of historical vampire nonsense and such."

Nonsense? To the contrary, Hoshiko's interest spiked. Historical vampire literature sounded fascinating. She wondered if Ai would mind if she came around now and then to borrow some books. Certainly Ai wouldn't miss one...or even ten...and she knew that Ai was not very bookish. She doubted her friend had picked up more than one or two novels since school. Hoshiko, on the other hand... Needless to say, she'd read more than her fair share of novels and manga since.

"I'll start there, then," the blonde stated, moving to the shelf to begin sorting through the titles for something promising.

Ai nodded absently, picking up a pen and musing, "I should be able to start the list myself anyway. There's obviously Shin Hio, since he invited me to his soiree, and Yahiro and Ayase Touma..."

"Don't forget your mom's acquaintance, Isaya Shoto." Hoshiko didn't particularly care about purebloods, and although her father had taught her to strictly address them as 'sama,' with the exception of Ai who was a childhood friend, she certainly wasn't going to refer to them by the title when they weren't anywhere near her to hear.

"And the Hanadagis. Misaki and...right, Tomoya." She jotted those down.

The blonde vampire wasn't obtuse enough to ask 'Didn't your father kill one of the Hanadagis?' She remembered hearing that somewhere, though. Probably from Ai. Instead she kept quiet, pulling a book down and flipping through it for pertinent details. She preferred not to bring up such gloomy topics with Ai, since she always took them to heart. It was too easy to affect the dark-haired girl's mood.

"Oh." Ai glanced up from her paper. "I only plan to search for an hour or so today. I have other plans after this."

"Do you mind if I stay awhile after you leave?" Hoshiko queried eagerly, eyes shining as they passed over the rows of mismatched tomes.

"You are such a nerd," Ai teased.

"Well...yeah." The blonde stared at her friend hopefully.

"Of course you can." Dark eyes rose, obviously unable to understand the appeal of the library. "Although I don't understand why you'd ever want to shut yourself in here with all this dust."

"I'm sure your household servants keep it clean in here," she replied serenely.

"Honestly. If you're looking for dark, dusty shelves of books, maybe you should just move in with Ichijou-san, bore extraordinaire."

Hoshiko sucked in a short, quiet breath. Ai was unaware that the blonde was in love with that very same bore... Although Ichijou was anything but a bore. He was silly, easy to joke with, a touch whimsical, a touch mysterious... He was sometimes pensive, too, but that just made those moments when he genuinely smiled all the more precious. She loved when she was able to make him forget himself and truly, really laugh for a moment. Loved how the sound came louder and less musical than it normally did, how his eyes squinched up at the corners and brightened, like the sun peeking out from behind rain clouds...

She had been in love with Ichijou for 186 years and she supposed that with time, while it didn't get easier, she got better at hiding it. Hiding how it scratched up painfully through her chest and clogged her veins.

Sometimes it got unbearably hard. Like when she saw the loneliness in his eyes, a loneliness he hid behind layers upon layers of smiles. When she knew she could ease it if he'd let her. When she also knew that he wouldn't. Even so, she persisted. It was infinitely preferable to remain close to him, as a friend, than to live without him. She didn't know what she'd do without that scent of vivid summer and sunshine, accented with undertones of something darker, something intriguing and powerful that she was dying to know.

She jerked herself back to the moment. "First of all, I'd die of claustrophobia." Ai laughed at that. "Second of all, he only owns manga, not books, and I don't want to sound snobbish, but as much as I love manga I also require some real novels..."

"Not snobbish at all," Ai teased.

"Not at all." She giggled. "And third, I can't function on a diet of tea and cookies."

Ai laughed again. "He's a total loss." With a click of her pen, she joined her friend at the bookshelf. "But we're getting distracted."

"Okay, I'm totally serious now." Hoshiko pulled a face.

"Alright, activate your nerd skills to scout out these books."

"Activate your pureblood powers to summon them, instead," she retorted.

Ai snickered. "Okay, I'll take this side, you take that side."

"Deal."

No powers were used, but the two of them passed the evening amiably together anyway.


When Ai had informed Hoshiko of her plans later that day, she hadn't mentioned that they included the blonde's friend: the bore extraordinaire. Now that she'd decided to take action, however, and restart her parents' quest, she definitely needed that man out of the basement. She had just the thing in mind to get him out, too. The problem would be getting him to accept it... Glancing at him across the room where he piddled about preparing refreshments, she wondered how arduous such a task would be. She had high hopes, though, that her name, status, and father would all work to her advantage.

"Ichijou-san, do you plan to continue your role as caretaker?" She ran a hand over the worn spines of the dozens upon dozens of volumes of manga that cluttered his shelves.

"Of course. It's the least I can do. Tea, Ai-chan?" he asked cheerfully.

Facing the bookshelf, she lifted her eyes skyward. Were they going to have teatime like in one of his silly manga, now? A condescending sneer almost marred her lips, but when she turned back to him there was only an amiable smile as she nodded and replied, "Yes, thank you."

"I hope you like rhubarb," he said, and she itched to get to the point of this visit.

Honestly, she had no idea why Ichijou cooped himself up inside the old Association basement like some kind of hermit cave-dweller. At the very least, he attended council meetings and visited Aidou and occasionally Rima and Shiki when they were in town, but for the most part he remained here. Although, he certainly didn't come to visit her. His daily routine was probably an inane combination of drinking tea, reading manga, and staring at her father's comatose body. Her eyes fastened on the box of blood tablets on his desk and she blanched. Really, a noble vampire feeding himself off of those things was a disgrace.

Once, before Ren had grown, she'd imagined that she could have turned Ichijou into her prince. He would have swept her off her feet with chivalry and charm and left his exile for her alone. It was laughable, now, to think this man could ever be anyone's prince. He was far too lost down here, between the pages of manga, for that. He was still, however, very beautiful and very loyal. And she admired how he'd looked after her father's body for two centuries. She would have gone insane long before the first one was finished. Most of all, he remembered her father far better than most, if not all... So she seated herself across from him and stirred a single cube of sugar into her tea.

"Have you visited Aidou-san recently?" she inquired, for the sake of conversation.

"Yes, just last week," he answered.

"And how is his research coming along?"

"Actually, I think that's a question better directed at Aidou." He tapped the side of his nose secretively.

A frown quivered behind her lips. She suppressed it. "You go to visit him. Surely you know something about his progress?"

"Ehh...mostly he stays in the lab, these days... I usually end up visiting with Seiya-kun and Hoshiko-chan, instead."

Seiya... It had been a while since she'd seen the star of their graduating class. Going to school with him had been...difficult. Seiya was one of those rare, annoying individuals who excelled at everything. He'd been the most popular boy of the Night Class, and his cool but confident manner had won him both male and female fans alike. She was close friends with his sister, Hoshiko, but she preferred avoiding Seiya if she could. Nevertheless...he would certainly be helping his father with the research, wouldn't he? It was something to think on, at least.

"Have they mentioned anything?" she pressed.

Ichijou shrugged. "Only that he seems to be close to a breakthrough."

"That is good news." A pause as she sipped her tea. Then, "I wonder how he's getting on... He hasn't visited us in a while."

"As well as can be expected."

"Come to think of it, he probably is taking those disgusting tablets, just like you." She didn't try to hide her disdain.

Out of the blue, the blond remarked, "You know, whenever I saw Yori-chan, she never had a bite mark."

"You mean to say he never bit her?" She was skeptical. Vampires needed the blood of their beloved for psychological reasons. Aidou wouldn't have neglected himself to that extent.

"No. I mean to say, to not leave a mark, he'd have to have taken her blood very carefully." Ichijou laughed. "Haha, a guy like that... Who would've thought him capable of it?"

Ai selected a cookie from the tray and bit it in half. "I'm guessing you wouldn't have been able to do the same, since you say it like that." The other half of the pastry followed the first.

"At least chew!" he cried in dismay; she ignored him by swallowing down a second. She'd come straight here with no lunch, anyway. Then, to answer her question: "No, I don't think so."

"Something like that doesn't matter, anyway, between vampires." She eyed a third cookie hungrily. Perhaps teatime wasn't such a bad idea after all.

"Help yourself." He pushed the tray towards her. A laugh. "You eat like your mother."

She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. That was definitely an insult. A beat later, she quickly recovered her composure. She needed to flaunt her authority here, to keep him from refusing. She needed him outside of this room and more accessible to her. The basement was okay, but the academy would be better.

"Congratulations," she said simply and without transition. At the confused look on his face, she added, "I'm promoting you as the new headmaster of Cross Academy."

Green eyes stared at her in shock. Then, "Ai-chan, I have responsibilities here."

"I am aware. That is why I'm asking Seiren-san to replace you." She already had, actually. Seiren had been a little taken aback by the request, for sure, but once Ai had explained that Ichijou would be headmaster she'd easily agreed. She'd even gone so far as to say that it might be a pleasant change from hunting Level E's and training new hunters.

"Seiren-san?" his voice was coated with disbelief.

"Yes. Like you, she hasn't forgotten her loyalties to my father. If you don't mind my saying, there is no one as qualified as you to be the next headmaster." A compliment never hurt. Ruka often said that one could catch more flies with honey than with a stick.

"Thank you, but-"

She cut him off. "I've already arranged everything. You'll start next month, after the break ends. After all...you've been close to humans your whole life, haven't you? And Hoshiko-chan told me that you can understand their sentiments as well as the sentiments of both Kaien Cross and my father, who hoped to maintain peace between vampires and humans."

"Yes...it is...as you say..." He seemed in a daze, his brow furrowed in something akin to disbelief.

"Very well, then it's settled. I'll come back to check on you before the start of the term and to answer any questions. I'll have everything you need brought here." She stood, brushing crumbs from her skirt.

"Ai-chan..." He seemed to be forming a protest.

She mustered every ounce of authority and stood at her full height, staring down at him along the length of her nose. "Yes?"

To her astonishment and delight, he bent immediately, shoulders falling. "Yes. Alright. There is no helping it, I guess I will be the Chairman... Even if I say I don't want to lose even a little of the time I have reading manga and watching over Kaname for social contributions such as this. Being a grave keeper is a fine job, you see..."

"It's more than a social contribution, Ichijou-san." Her words chastised, while inwardly she felt a surge of victory.

"Did you want to see your father before you go?" he asked.

Ai considered. And then shook her head. It would not do to get distracted by too much hope right now. "Another time."

Her heels clicked up the spiraling stone stairs, a staccato sound punctuating each breath of triumph that filled her lungs. It was time to start pulling the strings, in preparation for the day when the cure would at last be ready. Takuma Ichijou was not the only one she needed if she was going to proceed with her plans; he was merely the first step in that direction. She would make the world safe, just as her parents and Kaien had wanted. Just as Ren, Ichijou, and Hoshiko wanted. A place where vampires and humans could coexist without fear. A place where her father and her could meet, at last.


"Father, Mother... I miss you..." The words dropped down like rocks to the ground. Ren knelt, placing identical bouquets before the tombstones. As he stood, his fingers touched the imprinted dates. Yuki, his mother, only 184 years old. His father, Zero, 168 years. Their family should have lasted thousands of years...and yet it had not even lasted two centuries.

What legacy had his parents left for him? His father had been a renowned hunter, and certainly, both parents had played a huge role in the conflict that had led to the renewal of the furnace...yet... There was nothing left of them now. Nothing was left behind but his own feeble memories.

He longed for their guidance. Longed for his mother's gentle touch and kind words, for his father's quiet presence and quieter smiles. There was no one to soothe his nightmares, now. No one to teach him. No one to help watch over his impulsive, hot-headed, and manipulative sister. He bowed his head. He was selfish, but he wanted someone to watch over him, to wish him happy birthday, to celebrate the holidays and even more importantly...to celebrate all the little moments. Ai wasn't good at those things. Instead, he found himself taking care of her, cooking for her, checking her temper, remembering all the details that their parents would have.

He wasn't angry or bitter, although perhaps he should have been. But how could he be? His father had died a good death, a hero's death, and his mother had followed as vampires sometimes did... They hadn't abandoned him, hadn't willingly thrust these responsibilities onto his shoulders. But he was riddled with melancholic wounds and set adrift like the snow that flurried around him. It may have been winter, but the world was continuously cold without them. The season never really changed anymore, even in the heat of summer.

"Ai is up to something," he murmured, as though they could hear him. "I have a bad feeling this time... She's been acting odd since the soiree, and now she's made Ichijou-san the headmaster of the academy and... I don't know what she plans, but..." He shook his head. "It's only a bad feeling."

Just a bad feeling, and last night he'd dreamt that she'd chased him through a maze. At every turn, she'd been just behind him, always rounding the corner just after him, and each time she was stained with more and more blood. At the end, before waking, her entire figure had been soaked with it. She'd reached for him with soaking, crimson fingers, and just before she'd touched him, he'd jolted awake, sweating and shaking.

When he was a child, his mother would stroke his hair when he had a nightmare and stay with him until he fell asleep again. He longed for that touch now, longed for her murmured reassurances that she would remain at his side to protect him until he fell asleep again. Swallowing past the sudden, painful lump in his throat, he sat between their graves, arms winding around his knees, and breathed deep to steady himself.

"We love you, Ren." He could almost hear it, his mother's voice.

"Tell me again," he whispered hoarsely.

No answer.

"Mom..? Dad...?"

Silence. The wind chilling his skin, the snow transforming him into a white graveyard sentinel, there was not even a stir in the night.

He felt very, very alone.


AN: A huge thank you to all those who reviewed. -heart!- You guys are the best~

Also what do you guys think about the fact that Ichijou might have been engaged to Yori? That never made any sense to me. Like, why would a human be engaged to a noble vampire? But it DID seem like Hino was hinting at it? Anyway, I decided to just throw that whole thing away and her daughter can just have a crush on him instead. I don't want to totally disregard whatever Hino was thinking so I think that's a good compromise. But...honestly...Yori being engaged to Ichijou is so random. Sadly, it's not the weirdest thing that's happened in VK, though.

Anyone else have any completely nonsensical VK moments that leap to mind? LOL.