Disclaimer: Same as always :}
Zero took one look at the tearing up Yuuki outside the moon-dorm and closed his eyes.
"Yuuki, come with me" he said, knowing what had happened.
"Zero, I" she started but the hunter cut her off by grabbing her wrist.
"Not yet" he said, not knowing on what exactly he was aiming. Not yet, what? That she shouldn't talk yet? Or that she was not yet a vampire? Zero didn't know. But he also knew that right now, it didn't matter. Nothing did, except Yuuki.
"We'll skip today's classes" Zero said as he dragged his adoptive sister inside the chairman's residence where they could be alone.
"But crossover" Yuuki said and Zero led her into the kitchen.
"We'll do crossover when it's time. For now, forget about your duties as a guardian" Zero said as he placed her down at the kitchen island. It didn't take long before Zero placed a steaming mug of hot cocoa with whipped cream, marshmallows, caramel and chocolate sauce in front of the brunette. While it wasn't exactly the weather for it, it brought comfort, which was all that counted.
"You knew" Yuuki said soft as she wrapped her hands around the mug. Zero paused as he moved the small pan to the sink.
"Knew what?" he asked as he filled it with water to clean later. Yuuki came first.
"About me. Being a pureblood, I mean" she said even softer and Zero sat down in front of her.
"I overheard" he admitted, not mentioning that he had been in Kaname's bed when it had happened.
"This happened before, didn't it?" she asked as she looked up at the hunter with scared eyes. Zero didn't have it in him to lie.
"Yeah, it did" he said and Yuuki looked down again, biting her lip.
"Let it all out, Yuuki. No-one but me is going to hear you" Zero said and Yuuki's dam burst. She told him everything Kaname had said, most things he already knew, but tiny bits he didn't yet know. She told him how confused and scared she was and how shocked she was by the revelation.
She ranted about how unnatural it was for brother and sister to be married and create an offspring. Zero was happy to just let her rant, knowing where her feelings came from, but also knowing what was under it all.
"But you're relieved, aren't you?" Zero asked as Yuuki was done ranting. He saw her eyes widen guiltily as her underlying feelings were dragged out in the open without mercy.
"You finally know what Kaname was hiding from you, you know what the nightmares and hallucinations are and above all, you can be with the one you love the most. Whether or not you are siblings or not, doesn't matter in the vampire society. The purer the blood, the better, in fact" Zero said, a hint of bitterness and disgust slipping in his voice.
"Your relationship with Kuran is acknowledged and even encouraged, isn't that great?" he said and Yuuki flinched, making Zero sigh. He hadn't meant to be that rude, but this wasn't easy for him either.
"But, Zero, your feelings" she said and Zero narrowed his eyes at her.
"What about them?" he asked and she looked up before down again, as if she couldn't bear to look at him. Clearly, she knew about his feelings and didn't want to hurt them, but at the same time, she didn't want to be untrue to her own. Zero knew the feeling painfully well, though he was confused to who his own feelings went out for.
He was ashamed to admit that he did feel something for the pureblood back in the moon dorms. It wasn't the same as what he felt for Yuuki, but it was something. What he felt for Yuuki was surrounded by guilt and atonement.
But what he felt Kaname was different, more mature, filled with shame, understanding and lust. He couldn't name it correctly yet since it was still growing, but it was inside of him none the less. Kaname had a presence within him as much, if not more, as Yuuki had. There was no denying that.
Zero sighed as he dragged his own thoughts away from the betrayal he and Kaname were committing behind Yuuki's back.
"Look, Yuuki, this is not about me" he said, gaining back Yuuki's attention.
"It never was. Whether or not I have feelings for you, doesn't change yours. You can't betray your feelings, and that is the last thing I want you to do" Zero said and Yuuki looked sad but the hunter continued.
"What you really need to think about is what you want to do now. What will you do now that you know what's going on? Will you let Kuran change you now, or at the last moment, after you've suffered through all the nightmares and hallucinations? Will you accept your betrothal to him or not? Will you transfer to the night class to finish your school and graduate, or will you move away with your big bro" Zero said and looked at Yuuki.
"That's the choice you'll have to make, and that's all you need to think about. Not my feelings, not Kuran's, not the chairman's. Nobody but your own feelings, since you'll be the one who'll have to live with it" he said and Yuuki looked down.
"You're cruel, aren't you, Zero?" she said, her voice trembling with withheld tears.
"I know I am. I never claimed to be the opposite" he said and stood up to leave her alone so she could think. It was two days later, when Zero was in the stables to wash Lily, that the scent of Yuuki's blood drifted through the air, followed by the scent of Kaname's.
When he had gotten home at the chairman's, the ex-hunter had looked at him with so much pity, Zero had to talk a walk to town to calm down, using the excuse of grocery shopping. Kaien had to stay the night out at the HA headquarters to take care of some business, so Zero was glad to have the house to himself.
Until there was a knock on the door from a very familiar presence. Zero stood in front of the door, doubting whether to open it or to shoot.
"Zero, I know you're inside. At least open the door before you decide to shoot or not. The door doesn't deserve being destroyed" Kaname's voice came and the clock ticked by before the hunter opened the door with a glare.
"What did you come here for?" he asked and Kaname held up a bottle of wine.
"Dinner" he said and Zero raised an eyebrow.
"You're last, you know" Zero said as he decided to let the pureblood inside. Maybe it was the slightly broken, nervous look in burgundy eyes, or maybe even the wine, but Zero couldn't let Kaname stand outside.
"Last how?" Kaname asked as he walked inside, taking off his shoes and exchanging them for the indoor slippers that were used by visitors.
"Everyone else from the inner circle has already been here. Aidou, I stopped counting. Shiki and Rima, four times. Kain and princess, three times. Takuma, three times too" Zero said and shook his head slightly, not seeing Kaname's startled and betrayed expression that was quickly hidden behind a mask.
"You'd think they take turns to slave me in the kitchen" Zero said with a very tiny hint of fondness in his voice. Like his mother had always said, it didn't matter who or what you were, when it came to food, the best payment you could get were empty plates and grateful smiles.
"So, shouldn't you be at your sister's side?" Zero asked, trying to keep his voice monotone but without success.
"She will awaken in the early morning to afternoon" Kaname said as he followed Zero into the kitchen.
"Shouldn't you be with her then? What if she wakes up and is thirsty?" the hunter asked and Kaname placed the bottle of Merlot down on the table, having remembered that Zero liked to drink it.
"Aidou is with her" Kaname said and Zero glanced back at the pureblood, noticing the unreadable underneath his mask. He was breaking with nerves inside, Zero could tell.
It was subtle, but there was a furrow between his brows that deepened every so often as his thoughts no doubt took a bad turn. They were probably thinking about the same thing.
"She'll be fine. She is a strong girl. She'll wake up and she'll be at your side right after" Zero said as he turned to the stove to start on dinner.
"She won't hate you" he added and Kaname looked up at him as he leaned against the kitchen island in the middle of the room.
"You don't know that for sure. She might once she regains her memories and wakes up to find out that I'm a monster no different from the one that gave her a trauma" he said and Zero narrowed his eyes at the food in front of him.
"But so is she, when she wakes up. If she hates you for what you are, but doesn't think of herself as a monster, she's a hypocrite who needs to have her eyes opened" he said and Kaname gave a mini smile.
"That's harsh" he said and Zero glanced at him, continuing to cut the potatoes up.
"That's the truth. Vampires are monsters in human skin, all of them. Including me" Zero said and shook his head slightly.
"She can't keep her eyes closed now that she's made her choice" he said and snorted.
"Besides, do you really think the she, of all people, would go back on her word?" he asked and noticed the littlest of tension leaving Kaname's shoulders.
"She won't" he agreed and Zero hummed, taking out a kitchen knife from the wooden cube. The tension came back to Kaname's shoulders as the blade caught the light and reflected it ominously, especially in the hands of a hunter. Zero found it a tiny bit amusing to see the reaction from the pureblood.
"Make yourself useful and cut the vegetables, Kaname" he said and turned the handle to the brunet, who blinked in shock, completely taken off guard.
"M-me?" Kaname asked and Zero revelled in the stuttered he had managed to draw from the ever composed vampire.
"You see anyone else here? Honestly, why the hell should I even need to comfort you like this? The least you can do is help out a little" he said and Kaname looked like the knife would bite him as he rolled up the sleeves of his light blue shirt, under a chocolate brown cardigan.
"What do I do?" he asked as he carefully took the knife.
"Cut the cucumber and put it in that bowl" Zero said and pointed at the large empty bowl.
"How do I cut it?" Kaname asked and Zero forced the corners of his lips to stand down.
"You're holding a knife, no? What do you think a knife is used for, expect for stabbing someone" Zero said and Kaname looked at him as if the hunter was going to do just that any second. Zero decided to take pity on the newbie.
"You pick. You can cut it in slices, cubes, matchsticks, triangles, diagonal slices" Zero said and looked at the pureblood.
"Just do what you feel is easiest" he said and Kaname gave a nod. Zero started on seasoning the two slices of steak, keeping an ear open to the sound of the knife hitting the cutting-board.
"Don't cut yourself" he warned as he noticed the brunet trying to go as fast as possible. Just as he had said it, the scent of blood rose up from next to him.
"I just said it!" Zero hissed as he looked at the pureblood, grabbing his wrist.
"Honestly, what's with you Kuran's, klutzes in the kitchen" he mumbled as he looked at the cut. When Kaname's finger pressed against his lips, they easily parted like pavlovian response. Even if the wound was surprisingly deep, it didn't take long for it to heal.
But by then, their eyes were already locked and it was hard for them to look away. However, as soon as Kaname started to lean in, Zero's guilt rose to the surface and he broke eye-contact.
"You don't have to try and be a five-star chef. I'd rather not eat cut off fingers between my salad. Bones are pretty tough to chew on" he said, turning his attention back to the meat and away from the disappointed glint that had flashed through burgundy eyes.
They continued cooking in silence, with Zero preparing the warm dishes and Kaname preparing the salad. It didn't take too long before they were seated at the table with their dinner and a glass of wine.
"Do you mind if I ask you something, Zero?" Kaname asked and Zero frowned but hummed, shoving a cut of steak in his mouth.
"At the time, did you realize that you were being photographed for an 18+ magazine?" Kaname asked and Zero almost chocked in his bite. He smacked his chest with his fist as he struggled to swallow, throwing back his glass to get rid of the cough he got after not managing to choke to death.
"What?!" he asked and Kaname smiled as he held up a picture that had Zero gaping. On the picture was a pair of twins, about twelve years old. One had long wavy silver hair while the other had long straight silver hair, both pinned up to resemble a traditional oiran style with too large kanzashi pins, several flowers and long beads of pearls flowing down their back to curl around their ankles.
The wavy haired twin had half of his hair hanging down and a large pale lilac glass butterfly on the back of his head, surrounded by three large pins pointing downwards and lilac peonies.
The straight haired twin had only two bangs hanging down his shoulders, the back pinned up by a black large glass butterfly, framed by four large kanzashi pins pointing downwards and light pink oriental lilies, two smaller pins situated on top of his head towards his bangs.
They were sitting on their knees with their back turned to the camera, but looking over their shoulders towards the camera, twisting their upper bodies ever so slightly towards each other.
The wavy haired twin had a bright smile on his face, wearing a printless pale green yukata on top of a pale lilac and white one, all three tied together by a purple white flowered obi at the front.
The other twin had a dull expression that managed to look sultry, wearing a black yukata with large flowers on top of a pink and white one, tied together by a pink obi in the same style as his counterpart.
Both of the twins had their tops hanging off their shoulders and sinking around their hips, baring their backs to the camera. The picture was sensually suggestive but at the same time still rather innocent.
Despite this, Zero's mind had blanked and face had paled while trying to blush at the same time. Way past yelling and destroying the picture even before it entered his mind, Zero groaned as he leaned his head in his hand.
"Yes, I knew" he admitted and Kaname looked caught between amusement and displeasure.
"Kaito was a sly fuck and roped my brother into earning some cash by modelling for pictures and being watched for a few hours. I knew what exactly it held in but Ichiru asked me to join him. I couldn't say no to him. I never could" Zero said and Kaname put the picture away again, knowing fully well that if Zero got his hands on them, it would be burned.
"I must say, I liked the Chinese edition too" he said and Zero groaned again.
"At least the hairstyle was better. That day, it felt like my neck was going to break by the end of the night" he said and they moved their now empty plates to the kitchen.
"Did your parents never say anything about you being watched like a doll on display by eager paedophiles?" Kaname asked as he stood a bit too close behind the hunter, pressing his chest up against Zero's back.
"They didn't know, because one, they were out hunting those nights and Toga was supposed to watch us, who put Kaito in charge, who technically did watch us. When I wanted to tell my parents, Ichiru asked me not to because he was saving the money to buy them a vacation trip for Christmas" Zero said, trying to make himself move away from the hands sliding around his waist and lips brushing against his shoulder where his wide neck T-shirt left his skin bare. However, he couldn't and frankly, he didn't really want to either.
"So, to please your little brother, you continued being dressed like a porcelain doll to be watched by greedy, perverted eyes?" Kaname asked and slowly started walking back towards what Zero recognized as the direction of his bedroom.
"Don't tell me that your past bed-partners were the costumers coming to see you once" Kaname said and Zero couldn't help but tilt his head to the side to give the pureblood more space.
"No, they weren't. And do you really want to talk about my past experiences?" he asked and noticed the tightening of the arms around him.
"If you really want to know, they were just young men who had nothing to do with that club. They did recognize me from the photographs and were fans, but it was all strictly sex and only once" Zero said and tensed as Kaname closed the door to his room behind them.
"I don't like it" Kaname half growled and Zero's face pinched up.
"Kaname, we shouldn't" he said and took noticed of his use of 'shouldn't' instead of 'can't'. God, he had fallen far.
"Sure we should. I don't like the thought of anyone else touching what's mine" Kaname whispered heatedly against the hunter's neck.
"I'm not yours, Kaname. But she is. She's your fiancée and I'm your side-bitch. We should stop doing this" Zero said and closed his eyes when he felt Kaname nip at his neck.
"Don't refuse me half-heartedly, Zero. You want this as much as I do" he said and brushed his lips over the silverette's ear shell, his hands roaming the hunter's body in places he knew Zero to be sensitive.
"You crave me as much as I crave you" Kaname whispered seductively and Zero bit on his lip. He knew he was going to regret this later, but he arched his back, pushing his ass into Kaname's pelvis and reaching back to braid his hair through wavy chocolate lock, turning his head to lock their lips in a passionate kiss.
Zero was right. He did regret diving in the sheets with Kaname that night, but not for the reasons he had expected. Looking out of the window in his room with a plaid wrapped around him and Kaname still sleeping on his bed, Zero allowed his feelings to flow through him, even if it threatened to crush him.
"If I told you once, I told you a thousand times, my dear. Never to fall in love with a man, who drinks from the well of despair. I thought from the very start, I'd made it quite clear I fear.
Now you're righteously fucked, as you swing from the rope, at the top of the stairs. If I told you once, I told you twice. I was held in the grip of incurable vice. Lips turning blue like the shade of your eyes. Limbs shudder and twitch as you met your demise.
You must've looked pretty as you stepped off the chair. Pink satin slippers, how they danced in the air. Your dainty tongue swelled to an alarming degree.
Hope you were thinking of me. Hope you were thinking of me. Thinking of me.
If I told you twice. I told you two thousand times my dear. Never to fall in love with a man. Who's broken beyond all repair. I knew from the very start. You'd end up right here so queer. Now you've left me with naught. But a suicide note and a lock of your hair.
If I've mentioned it once I've mentioned it twice. I was bound in the throes of unearthly device. Radiance bloomed as I lay you to rest. Shadows of moonbeam alight in your breast. Deep in the ground where the worms have their feast.
At last you can taste an incurable peace. Now that you're dead and you're finally free. Hope you were thinking of me. Hope you were thinking of me. Thinking of me.
If I told you thrice. I told you three thousand times my dear. Never to fall in love with a man who'd draw you into his lair" Zero sang but stopped when he felt someone watching him. He looked over his shoulder, seeing Kaname laying on his back, his eyes open and looking right at him.
"Why'd you stop?" Kaname asked and Zero looked back through the window, hiding his blush at being caught singing. But then again, it was his own fault since he knew what kind of hearing the pureblood had.
"Because you were listening" he answered and Kaname sat up, letting the cheap sheets pool around his waist.
"Come back to bed, Zero" he said and Zero sighed soft before walking back to his bed, stepping into Kaname's arms because there was just no other space in his one person bed.
"Don't be ashamed of your voice, darling. Let me hear it more" Kaname said as he dropped a kiss on the top of Zero's hair.
"No way" Zero muttered but didn't rebuke the petname part. As he rested his forehead against Kaname's collarbone with closed eyes, he would forever curse the moment when he had realized he had fallen in love with the pureblood.
It was not the innocent pure-hearted love Yuuki felt for Kaname, but it was the only type of love Zero was capable of. The fearing kind that caused him to watch from a distance and get his already hurting heart get cracked that little bit more.
He would forever wait for the moment when his heart caved under the damaged. Maybe Zero would be the first one to die from an actual broken heart?
Arigatou Gozaimasu! ^^