ALOOOOHA MINNA-SAN! 'Tis I, Penguin-sama!

Zero: You don't deserve the title

Kai: *throws stapler at sexy Vampire Prefect*

-and welcome to the much awaited seventh chapter of *drumroll* Vampire Freakin' Light!

Everyone else: *sweatdrop*

I haven't died yet! Don't worry. Life's hectic and I had to find a new beta because Coriana darling couldn't find the time anymore :( BUT, I found a new beta and she's just as good. crystalbleach208, thank you for accepting the grueling task of being my beta! *fireworks display*

In other news, THE RESULTS ARE IN! The 'Who brought sexy back and why?' poll is closed OFFICIALLY! Thank you for voting, results are in the bottom author's note as per usual :)

Also, I made a facebook page for you to find me if you wanna chat ^^ also if you're wondering about other chapters in the story just hit me up, the link's in my profile.

iamyourfriend: Don't worry, a bit of her past will be revealed in this chapter, not all of it though. I'm not gonna hand over her entire story over to you on a silver platter. That's not how Penguin-sama rolls!

Now for the disclaimer so my lawyers are satisfied ^^Rima! Come and do the disclaimer for Penguin-sama!

Rima: iwuvpenguins101 does not own Vampire Knight in any shape or form. The only things she owns are the plot for Vampire Light and her OC's

BELIEVE IT!

Enjoy and dare to be different :)

Chapter VII: Threat

When Zero and I had made it back to the Academy we parted at the garden path as he made his way over to the Sun Dorms. Once I was sure he was gone though, I let out a cry of frustration. I didn't want this to happen, but that flower only meant one thing.

I speed walked along the garden path and I looked for Ryu-kun. I needed to find him. Even if I was supposed to be ignoring him.

It didn't take me long and I quietly thanked my lucky stars that he had gotten back before us so I wouldn't have to bite my nails in anxiety.

The red-head was by the fountain staring at the water falling. I felt that my going up to him would be incredibly awkward, but I couldn't help it. I needed more information. I needed proof and evidence to support my theory and, much to my annoyance, everything I've come across did that a little too well.

"Ryu-kun," I called.

He turned around and when he saw it was me his face exploded into a grin as he squeezed the life out of me. I tried to squirm out of his grasp, but there was little to nothing that could be done about his massive bear hugs.

"I thought you were ignoring me," he said.

I pried his arms off me and took a giant step back to give us some distance. "I am…I mean I'm supposed to be but this is too important to wait." I took a deep breath to psych myself up to say the next sentence. "Ryu-kun, I saw it. The flower."

And just like that, his smile fell and his expression went completely serious. Only he knew what I meant by that. "Are you sure?" his voice was barely above a whisper and I could hear the anxiety.

I nodded briskly. "As sure as Light is Kira."

He nodded too, but in way that showed he was trying to take everything in. "I was hoping you wouldn't say that."

My head snapped to look at his amber eyes. "You mean…?"

"I saw it too," he whispered. "I wanted to tell you, but I didn't hoping that it would be a fluke."

"A fluke?" I asked. "What with both Level E's having a flower –"

"And were both made at the same time," he added.

"Ryu, the chances of this being a mere coincidence are abysmal."

I waited for him to say something. For him to joke and say that he didn't see the flower and that he was just pulling my leg, but I knew that was a false hope since there was no sign of him joking in his animated eyes.

My worst nightmare was becoming reality. The very thing I had prayed wouldn't take place was happening to me right now.

I couldn't handle this now, it was too soon. There had to be some kind of mistake and I needed to be absolutely sure. "Ryu, do me a favor?"

-0O0-

"Right, I assembled you all here for a reason," Kaien said, pacing back and forth in front of the line we had formed.

He had called the members of the Disciplinary Committee in for an emergency meeting. And when I say 'all' I mean excluding Yuuki considering she was in the infirmary.

It was Sunday evening, the day after night of the hunt. Kaien had insisted that his 'poor daughter' should stay close to him when 'she needed him most'. His words, not mine. Frankly, I was hoping that she would be sent to some kind of medical facility

"I call this meeting to order," he declared. By now he had seized pacing and was using a pencil as a mallet against the table. "Order in the court! Let justice be heard!"

Zero pinched the bridge of his nose irritably while my lips pressed together in a grim line, not in the mood for my father's best friend's antics at that point. "Kaien, are you going to continue fooling around, or did you actually call us here for a reason?"

The Chairman cleared his throat in embarrassment and pushed his glasses up as if it could make up for him being a complete nut job not ten seconds earlier. "Yes, well I wanted to ask you about your thoughts on the Level E's."

I clamped my mouth shut at the mention of them, not wanting to say anything.

"It's not difficult," Zero said in annoyance. "Only purebloods can make Level E's and that Kuran is the only one around."

The way the silvery-white haired prefect said Kaname's name was with such poison and hatred, I winced at the sound as if it pierced me. I hoped that Zero didn't say my name like that, or even thought of me that way.

Kaien flapped his arms in defiance, snapping me out of my musings. "Now, now Zero-kun! Let's not jump to conclusions!"

"You can't just make assumptions, Zero," I said coolly, tucking a stray strand of raven colored hair behind my ear. "As Otou-sama says English people say, 'If you assume, you make an 'ass' of 'u' and 'me,' or something."

Zero gave me a daft look at the sentence I had recited in English and I rolled my eyes like it was obvious, although I probably had the same look on my face when Otou-sama said it to me. "In Japanese that basically means that if you jump to conclusions as Kaien said, you make yourself look like a complete retard. We need evidence."

"What evidence do we need?" Zero asked through gritted teeth. "Pureblood's aren't that common. It has to be Kuran."

"But it's not," I said, my voice slightly louder and stronger than before.

Zero's scowl became even more pronounced. "You're taking his side."

He said it with in such an accusatory tone that I felt my fists clench in anger. "I'm not."

"Why else would you cover for him?"

Cover for him? Who the hell does he think he is? "I have a theory, but I need more evidence. Ryu-kun went out to get it for me, until then I can't –"

I was interrupted by someone knocking at the door. The three of us turned to find out who was bugging us and a muffled voice came through. "Kaien? It's Ryu."

"Come on in," the chairman responded enthusiastically, as if we weren't just discussing the person behind the murders.

The door opened to reveal my favorite amber eyed rebel giving me a soft smile. But his hair was dyed a deep blue, almost black, not that I was surprised considering that it was a major habit of his. I can't even remember the last time I saw his natural hair color.

"Hey, I came here as per my favorite girl's instruction," he said with a smile, waving papers that he was holding in his hands. Kaien was intrigued as Ryu set them down on the table and sent a wink in my direction.

"What are these?" Kaien asked.

"Descriptions of the people in the city the last couple of years that were either murdered, went missing or went missing and then found murdered a week or so later."

It was quite a list, at least thirty people. Kaien went through each of them. "So you're saying you think the Level E's and these murders are related."

Knowing that his question was directed at me, I shook my head. "No Kaien, I'm saying I know."

The sound of papers being looked over and crinkling stopped suddenly and Kaien had a thoughtful look on his face. "Ryu-kun, do you mind calling Kuran-sama, Aido-sama and Ruka-sama for me. I have the feeling that we're going to need all the help we can get."

"Roger, Chief," Ryu said with a mock two-fingered salute before leaving.

I couldn't help but think that with those three added on to our little investigation unit, there was no doubt that things would get…interesting.

-0O0-

I couldn't have been more right. Later, when the Hitachiin amber eyed vampire brought the three of them into the office the tension levels spiked up immediately. Telling from the glare Zero gave Kaname, I knew the hostility I sensed between them wasn't something I had just made up. That there was nothing more, nor less, than pure unadulterated hatred.

The thought sent chills up my spine and I shuddered. I really didn't want to get on his bad side at that point. I was even thinking of apologizing for earlier.

Next thing I knew, Ruka was giving me one of her serious glares as well, as if the tension and hostility levels already evident in the room weren't near enough. I brushed it off, however, knowing that I had to focus on something far more important. "Okay, um, firstly thanks for coming. I, uh, we need all the help we can get." My voice sounded rather squeaky and unclear so I quickly cleared my throat. "Here's the situation. There's a pureblood out there that's trying to attract attention."

"Why even bother saying 'out there' when the person we want is right in front of us," Zero muttered.

Ruka shifted her glare from me to the prefect in a rage. "Excuse me? How dare you disrespect Kuran-sama so blatantly."

"He couldn't have done it," Aido agreed and although there was less passion I could still feel his admiration for the pureblood reflect through his voice. I suppressed a groan and telling the both of them that they were 'so whipped'.

"As much as I hate to admit it, I agree with this obvious kiss ass over here," I said pointing my thumb back at Aido. "For one thing, Kaname has an alibi, and it's as good as any." I grabbed the newspaper clippings and reports that Ryu had obtained and held them up. "Over the last two years, the city near here has had at least thirty cases of murder or missing persons reports. Now I sure as hell know this isn't a coincidence. So what I'm hoping is if we take these reports and examine them each, we'll be able to find a clue as to who this mysterious pureblood is and what it wants." I gave each of them some papers to look at. "Let's make haste, people. The sooner we figure this out, the better."

"Why should we listen to you?" Ruka asked. It was a simple question, but I could sense the challenge in her tone of voice.

I turned and gave her a steady gaze. "Because if you don't, people like Zero will think that it's your precious Kaname-sama's fault and then you'll be powerless to protect him. Now hustle." I thrust the papers into her hands and gestured her to go on with her business. She gave in, but not without giving me another glare which I brushed off easily. I have to admit, I admired her spirit and dedication. It took a lot of strength for someone to actively dislike someone else for no apparent reason. I'd usually forget that I wasn't supposed to like a person after a few hours.

But then again when I had a reason to hate someone, a real reason, I could hold a grudge.

And man did I hold a grudge.

After an hour of us going through each piece of paper as much as we could, I could begin to feel everyone getting frustrated. I was too, considering what it could mean if my theory was correct.

"This is ridiculous," Ruka finally said. "There is absolutely no connection between these people. Just listen to these: 'Forty-five year old married man with three kids', 'Fifteen year old girl who was adopted at the age of five', 'Twenty-six year old female prostitute that dropped out of school at sixteen' I'm starting to think these aren't related."

"There's no connection," Aidou repeated with a slow nod of his head. "And without that, we can't find a motive."

"No guys, there's something connecting them all. I just know it," I said in determination.

"The murders don't even sound remotely like a vampire's," Ruka carried on. "'Shot through the heart', 'Choked to death', 'Suffered from blood loss caused by multiple wounds' the list goes on."

"Just because they weren't sucked bone-dry doesn't mean they weren't killed by a vampire," I defended. I then bit my lip in anxiety. There was something that was missing. Something that I knew would be so painfully obvious, we were overlooking it.

I stared at the documents sprawled in front of me and the pictures Ryu had managed to obtain that were pinned on the wall. I scrutinized it as an engineer would do with a piece of broken machinery.

Something painfully obvious…

That's when it hit me. I swear I could see the light bulb flashing above my head.

"Wait a second…Ryu-kun! Take a look at this," I said loudly, gesturing frantically for the deep blue haired vampire to come to where I was standing.

He walked over to me, almost cautiously. " 'Sup?"

I pointed to the pictures erratically. "What do they all have in common?" I asked in a rush.

He raised an eyebrow and stared at me. "Uh, nothing? I thought Tweedledum and Tweedledee over there established that for us."

I shook my head vigorously, enough for it to feel like it was going to fall off my neck. "No. There's a definite connection. This pureblood's trying to send a message."

"And how would that be?" Kaien asked, more than a little intrigued.

"They all have black hair. And guess who in this room fits that description perfectly."

There was a stunned silence in the office for a while as everyone was taking it all in. It was one of utter disbelief to say the least.

"Why would anyone target you, though?" Aido asked, a bit confused.

Without saying anything, I grabbed a pen from the chairman's desk and began drawing on the palm of my hand. I first drew a stylised flower in a form of a dot and then four large petals.

"Kai, you shouldn't draw on yourself," Kaien cautioned, but I ignored him as I carried on adding two giant leaves and a sword underneath it.

When I was done, I looked at my handiwork. I never really was much of an artist, but I thought the flower was pretty good. For me, anyway.

"Kaien, what does this look like?" I asked, thrusting my hand toward him.

The Chairman adjusted his glasses to take a closer look at it. "It looks like the Hanada family crest."

"Bingo," I said. "The same crest I found on my Okaa-sama's body before she turned to dust."

"I'm still confused," he admitted. "It could still be a coincidence."

I crossed my arms and heaved a sigh, mentally preparing myself to tell my father's best friend and everyone else in the room a bit of my past. "Listen, I've never told you this but apart from finding the crest on Okaa-sama's skin, I found something else. A note, addressed to me." I dug around my pockets to look for the piece of paper I never left home without. I soon found it in my pants and I pulled it out. It was wrinkly and yellow with age and it was somewhat stiff. "'To the heir of the Kurosaki family,'" I read. "'You're next. Hanada Reiko.' It doesn't say much, but it did the job. It instilled a fear in me that I had never before felt. I feared for my existence. And now, she's after me. I don't know what Hanada Reiko has against me, but she's out for my blood."

Ryu gave me a sympathetic look as he squeezed my shoulder comfortingly. "It's okay."

Was it? Was it really?

"Kaien," I bit my lip as I mustered myself to say the next sentence. "If you'll allow it, I want to leave the Academy."

There was a stunned silence as Kaien and Ryu both looked at me with shocked expressions. "Why?"

"I'll be putting the entire school in danger just by being here. I can't stay. I can't put all your hard work down the drain. You worked too hard to –"

Before I could finish my sentence, Kaien's hands snaked around me and pulled me into the tightest bear hugs I had ever experience, and it was practically cutting off my air supply.

"Kai-chan, in case you haven't realized, I made a promise to your father," he said into my ear as I tried to squirm out of his grasp. I knew the chairman to be quite the huger, but this was nothing like the other embraces he had given to me. "I promised to keep you safe. And I intend to keep that promise."

I couldn't speak because of the massive squeeze he was giving me so instead I shook my head.

"Um, Kaien, I think she's trying to breathe," Ryu said with a hint of amusement.

It took him a second, but he finally let go and I inhaled as much as I could. I just knew my face was completely red from struggling to breathe. "You are a danger to my life," I said between gasps.

Kaien smiled broadly at me and ruffled my hair. "We can even ask Kaname-sama if it's okay with him."

And just like that, all our gazes were directed at the pureblood who hadn't said a word since he arrived. He was sitting quietly in the back observing us and suddenly realized the attention was on him.

"I don't mind. This Hanada doesn't seem like that much of a threat."

His voice was velvety and smooth. His face as expressionless as ever. But before I could stop myself, I launched myself into him and gave him the tightest hug I could ever muster. In no way did I want to leave the Academy. I had grown too attached to the way of life there, to all the people – humans and vampires alike.

"Arigatou," I said. And I meant it, because I still didn't realize what I was doing, that I was holding on to a pureblood. The kind of vampires I was supposed to hate. And to be honest, when I look back I don't think I care or regret ever doing that. It was in that moment that Kuran seemed to be some kind of ally. I don't think I'll ever know whether he said what he said because he really was concerned for me or if he thought that Hanada really wasn't any kind of threat to him. But I do know that I was extremely grateful, and my joy had blinded me, and I was hugging him because he was helping me, purposefully or not.

But then I realized what I was doing after a split second and I stumbled backwards into Ryu, who thankfully caught me. I blushed a bit at my foolishness and avoided eye contact with the pureblood, or Zero whom I knew was giving me a massive death glare.

"That's ridiculous," Ruka said in a rage. "She's endangering the entire school just by being here."

"And what do you expect us to do? Leave her out there alone?" Ryu snapped, tightening his grip on me. "In case you haven't realized, Ruka, Kai-chan here is vulnerable out there. If she's alone at any time outside the Academy, she could get killed."

"Better than her being here," Ruka responded angrily. "Cross-san's work will be for nothing, and we don't want that to happen."

"Who's 'we'? As far as I know, all you care about is getting inside Kaname's pants."

I inhaled sharply, not wanting to believe that my best friend had gone that far. God, what on earth was happening?

"Calm down," Kaien said tersely. "Both of you, this isn't the time or place."

The two vampires still glared at each other, and then Ruka turned her glare to me. I shivered and walked more into Ryu's arms, knowing that he would protect me if the claws came out.

So, Ruka likes Kaname, huh? I thought, avoiding her gaze as usual. I can't believe I never saw that. And yet it's so blatantly obvious. No wonder she doesn't like me.

I felt Ryu's grip on me slacken, but not enough for me to get out of his arms. To be honest, I didn't mind. It reminded me so much of the good old days when I wasn't the target of some crazed pureblood.

"Do you know anything about Hanada-sama, Kaname-sama?" Kaien asked, trying to keep us on track.

The pureblood shook his head 'no'. "I have never heard of the family before. They might be a family long since forgotten."

"Hiding in the shadows," I added with a mutter, my gaze on the ground.

"Right. But what I would like to know is what a pureblood family would have against the Kurosaki's," Aido said thoughtfully. "They're not the kind of noble family you would care about, no offense Kai-chan."

"None taken," I said immediately. And I wasn't kidding, I understood what he meant. Compared to the other families here – Aido, Ichijou, Souen, Kuran – we were nothing. Ours was the family that would be the last to be invited to a ball, if remembered at all.

"She's not targeting her dad," Zero reminded. "I don't think she has a thing against the Kurosaki family itself."

I shook my head and was about to speak before Aido did so for me.

"Her dad isn't a Kurosaki," he informed. "Or at least he wasn't born into the family, nor is he even a noble. He runs things for the family as if he's in charge but since the last head, Kurosaki Misaki, died Kai-chan is technically the head of the family."

Ruka snorted. "Figures, she can't even take her own responsibility seriously and has to have her dad do it for her."

That bitch! I thought in anger. My hands clenched into tight fists at her pronouncement but I refrained from breaking out of best friend's hold and strangle the living hell out of her. Another aspect that held me back was not knowing what she could do to me. I was at a disadvantage there since I had never experienced her powers nor had I seen them in action and not knowing what I could get myself into seemed childish and rash.

Hypocrite, much?

There was some quiet in the room for some time. I used it to my advantage to compose myself and let my anger die a little. What wasn't surprising was that it never seemed to boil down. I was too worked up, too emotional, too angry to stomp out the feelings I had in the pit of my stomach. My rage had reached its near boiling point in such a short amount of time and I tried desperately to dim it slowly. I had finally decided a distraction was in order and spoke up to break the silence. "I didn't mean to put anyone in danger when I came here. I knew she was after me, but I didn't think she'd want me so soon. I was hoping that she would wait until I was at least out of school and became the Kurosaki family head."

Nobody responded, but Ryu's arms tightened around me again comfortingly. I smiled softly at him in a form of thanks. This entire process was a little disheartening for me.

"Well, the important thing is to keep the Day Class completely oblivious to what's going on," Kaien said thoughtfully. "And that means carrying on as if nothing has happened."

"You don't mean…?" Zero asked, with a sense of dread in his voice.

Kaien nodded enthusiastically. "The St Xocolatl's day celebrations will proceed as planned."

There was a chorus of both frustrated groans and satisfied hums resonating throughout the office, leaving both me and Ryu both more than a little confused.

"Eh?" the blue haired vampire asked. "St. Xocolatl's day? The hell is that?"

"It's a day where the Day Class gets the opportunity to give the members of the Night Class chocolate to show their affection," Kaien said, all romantic like.

"So…like Valentine's Day," Ryu said.

"No! The chocolates are homemade and the girls give it to the gentlemen in the Night Class," Kaien tried to explain.

"So…like Valentine's Day," I repeated.

Kaien shook his head. "No, they're wrapped in little gift boxes and –"

"So…like Valentine's Day," both Ryu and I said in unison, then looked at each other as we realized we said it at the same time and cracked a smile.

"The two of you are impossible," Kaien said in defeat.

We carried on smiling. "We know," we said at the same time yet again, causing Ryu to chuckle lightly.

It was amazing how we were so in sync, so aware of each other and in tune with each other's thoughts like we had some kind of psychic connection or something.

"Well, you all best be leaving," the chairman said. "Kaname-sama, if you would be so kind as to tell the rest of the Night Class the latest developments, and Zero if you could tell Yuuki as well. I'm increasing the security here as much as I can to tie up all the loose ends. No one is to go outside without telling me first, and if I agree you must travel in pairs or more, that way you're not alone."

We all nodded as we began to shuffle out of the office. I began to walk out with everyone else before Kaien stopped me. "Not you, Kai. We need to talk."

Ryu and I exchanged glances and he reluctantly let me go, but not without looking at Kaien with a look that said 'hurt her, and you're dead', to which I rolled my eyes. It was Kaien, what could he possibly do to hurt me?

The door finally shut and I looked at Kaien earnestly. "Yes?"

He sighed as he sat on his office chair, leaning on the table with his elbows and propped his chin on his knuckles in a thoughtful pose. "What you did was rather chivalrous of you."

I shrugged. "I learnt that making sacrifices was the only way to get anything in this world."

"I know. Your father told me how hard it was to watch you grow up without a mother."

We were quiet as I let his words sink in. Growing up without Okaa-sama was probably the hardest thing I ever had to endure. We were so close, always together. You didn't have one without the other. You couldn't have one without the other. Like socks. You never bought just one, they always came in pairs. Otou-sama even compared us to a jigsaw puzzle. One piece didn't make sense without the other. But when a piece goes missing, the puzzle isn't complete…

"Your mother was an amazing woman," Kaien said softly. If it weren't for my vampire hearing, I doubt I would've caught it out.

"I know," I repeated sullenly. I bit my lip, clenching my fists in what felt like despair. "She could've done so much more. She had plans, incredible plans. She was passionate about pacifism ideals like you Kaien, but almost even more. She was amazing. So selfless, so kind and nurturing."

"Kai, take care of yourself while I'm gone, 'kay?"

"Sure thing!"

"I can't…" I closed my eyes tightly before I blurted, "I can't believe I let her die! I can't believe that I didn't go with her that day! I could've prevented it Kaien! Maybe Hanada would've taken me instead. All my life has been is a string of disappointments. One screw up after the next. I've never felt good enough to be called her daughter. To say that Kurosaki Miaki was my mother, or even to say that I myself am a Kurosaki. I loved her so much, Kaien. I should've taken her place. The only reason I'm not running outside of the safety of the Academy is because I would be leaving Otou-sama behind and he doesn't deserve that. He doesn't deserve knowing the feeling of being alone, because it's the most awful, horrible feeling to have the only thing you have torn away from you."

I gasped for air and my face was red from the impending tears that never fell. I was struggling to hold it together after pouring out my heart and soul to Kaien.

He didn't do anything except watch me and give me a chance to regain my composure. I breathed slowly and calmed myself down before I continued. "I just want to be able to do one thing, Kaien, and that's to make Otou-sama proud of me, to make up for that treacherous mistake I had made…"

"Kai…" Kaien said soothingly, knowing that I wasn't talking about leaving my mother alone. "There's nothing you could've done. It was an accident."

"An accident that had a detrimental effect on my father," I retaliated. "I have never felt so ashamed and every day I think of what had happened."

"You couldn't have known –"

"The same way I couldn't have known about Okaa-sama, right?" I asked sarcastically. "That's the thing, I should've known, and that's what eats at me, Kaien. I mean look at what happened to Yuuki for instance. I left her alone when I should've known better."

"It wasn't your fault."

"Like hell, it wasn't my fault. It was my fault. Another thing to add to my continuous list of royal screw ups."

"She doesn't blame you."

"That's not going to help the fact that she's in the infirmary in a critical condition."

Kaien pinched the bridge of his nose. "Kai, could you stop acting so hysterical for five seconds."

I could hear the sternness in his voice so I seized my rant.

"The reason I had wanted to talk to you is because I know that you're being put under a lot of stress. I just wanted you to know that you can always talk to me, Kai. Whenever you want to."

I knew he had good intentions, but to be honest I was blinded by emotion which caused me to lose all sense of thought. "So what? You think I'm so messed up that I need a shrink, eh Cross-san? Well I'll have you know that I don't need anyone's help, not even yours. The fact that you think you're that much better than me because you have it easier sickens me. I don't have to take this. Thanks for letting me stay and all, but I don't want your pity, or anyone else's for that matter. So do me a favor and take it and shove right up your ass because in no way am I gonna take it."

I turned on my heel and left the office before he could say anything else, making a point to slam the door as hard as I could behind me. I was so sick and tired of people feeling sorry for me, of people judging me because of the many mistakes I've made in the past.

But, to be honest…I was so sick of myself. It seemed as though hurting those around me seemed to be my forte. My temper had left just as quickly as it came and soon I found myself feeling confused, conflicted and most of all…guilty.

I clutched my hands together, wringing my fingers as I tried to sort out my inner turmoil. I really shouldn't have shouted at Kaien like that, he was my dad's best friend and he had good intentions after all. He didn't want to see me suffer and he's been nothing but good to me since I had arrived. I suppose I needed to get my temper in check and apologize.

Maybe he was right…maybe I should talk to someone. But someone on the outside that doesn't know my home situation. Someone with a fresh perspective.

But then again who could I talk to? Was I willing to open up my makeshift shell just a little so I could do such a thing? Was I willing to let someone else in?

I shook my head. No, if I did that chances were that I would get too attached to that person, and then they'd get hurt because of me. I couldn't. I built these walls for a reason and they were staying up.

I needed to avoid this Reiko person for as long as possible, just so I could spend more time with Otou-sama and make sure he was okay if I were to…pass on.

I realize that I was just delaying the inevitable, but it needed to be this way. Maybe I could even help out Ryu and help him with his family, as I have done since I was ten. But, unlike the rest of the times, he'd at least get somewhere.

Until then, I needed to focus on the present and the situation I was in now. I needed to apologize to Kaien and maybe find Ryu – wherever the hell he was – and tell him what happened. He'd probably tell me to apologize to him too.

But first I needed to visit a certain prefect in the infirmary and see if she was faring okay. Maybe find her a rose in the garden or something. I might even whip together some instant ramen for her, and just to show how much I care, I would give her one of my prized boxes of pocky and a couple of manga. Truth be told, I wasn't even sure she would like half of the stuff, but it wasn't like I knew her inside out. I probably should've asked for Zero-kun for help, but I let my Kurosaki pride get the best of me and decided it best to do everything myself.

The thought of helping Yuuki-sempai out put a smile on my face. She was such a sweet person, and she was the closest I had ever gotten to a friend with girls. To have her be a close friend of mine would've made me positively ecstatic. She reminded me so much of my mother…

Perhaps that's why I've taken a liking to her, I thought. Her overall optimism and wanting to find the best in everyone makes her so similar to Okaa-sama.

Or maybe after living a life surrounded by men I was desperate for a little feminine contact, I wasn't too sure. But one thing was certain: her being around made my crappy life that much better and I was grateful. Sure, I had Ryu and the others, but she was human. Her frailty won't be something I haven't come across before considering the work Otou-sama does, but it did provide a breather from being around vampires for so long.

And after everything I had been through with vampires, man did I need a breather.

Et voila! C'est fini!

Again, thank you my awesome beta! You did a great job ^^

Aido: What're the poll results?

Oh, yeah! Hold on. *puts on fake reading glasses* the poll reads as follows:

Zero: 10

Penguin: 2

Aido: 1

Kai: 1

Kaname: 0

...Holy shit. I did Not see that coming

Kai: Stop lying

Okay, so I did. But I did expect Kaname to get at least one vote

Kaname: ...

Ryu: *laughs hysterically* everyone else has vote except for him! That's fucking priceless!

Kai: *laughs with him*

o.o...okay, so I guess that our dear Zero-sempai has the super special awesome chocolatey fudge coated title of Sexy Boss Man (or SBM for short ^^) ALL HAIL! *bows*

Zero: NO, don't you dare call me that!

Kai: Too late :)

SBM: Goddammit

As for the best reason, it comes from a user named Ayanna Yume and she said:

I think Zero brought sexy back because he is sexy and Kaname kinda killed some of his appeal when he used Zero and was a total a**hole.

*tears well up* wiser words have never been said. Zero brought sexy back BECAUSE he is sexy and Kaname became a horrible person because he used our precious Zerorin-chan!

Kaname: The only reason I did it was because Yuuki's my-

SPOILER! THOU SHALT PAYETH FOR THE INJUSTICE THAT IS SPOILING THE SHOW FOR THOSE WHO HAVE YET TO WATCH GUILTY OR READ THE MANGA WITHOUT SAYING 'SPOILER ALERT'! NOW BEGONE TO THINE CORNER AND THINKETH OF WHAT THOU HATH DONE!

Kaname:...I don't have a corner -_-

Joke's on you, I made sure to have one made for you ^_^. Ryu-kun, if you'd do the honours

Ryu: My pleasure *takes Kaname away to corner*

Now, feel free to ask questions and I'll answer them quickly ^^ I'm also responding to reviews now, so if you send me an anonymous review I'll show my response in the next update. Reviews are loved and cherished in this place XD

Yuuki: It's time to sign out Penguin

...*death stare* Penguin what?

Yuuki: Uh, Penguin-sama

Okay! ^^ I have Chapter VIII written out and waiting for shipping to my beta so look out for that soon-ish

Penguin and the VK crew are out. Peace! :)