Disclaimer: The story will now include things that have happened in Chapter 72. So if you haven't read that, then stop reading this, go read the manga, and then come back :)
Chapter Nine: Such Simple Creatures
She was born into nobility. And though she often didn't take too much notice of it, Ruka had to admit that she was raised with a silver spoon in her mouth. Her clothes were all crafted by the best seamstresses using only the finest of materials. Her lessons were taught by the leading scholars in their respective fields. She had lived in the finest of accommodations, tasted the most exquisite of meals and travelled everywhere in a style that was befitting of her noble status.
But, never in her life, had she travelled in the back of a police van.
For one, it was small. Standing up, her head was only centimetres away from the ceiling. There were no windows on the sides. The only one window – if one could call the small opening on the door with vertical bars across it a window – only provided a view of the gravel road behind them. The other opening, also with vertical bars across it, connected the holding cell to the front of the van. Again, hardly a view to be excited about. The road was bumpy. The van was constantly lurching from side to side. The engine was making an annoying click-click-click noise.
Oh, and the company wasn't that great, either.
Sitting on one of the hard unyielding benches, Ruka pointedly ignored the vampire hunter sitting across from her. She tested the handcuffs that were still around her wrists. The power was still there, humming along ominously. Fortunately, the chains were long enough to allow her some movements. Crossing her arms across the front of her chest, she looked up at the ceiling and waited for whatever was coming next.
Fortunately for her, Zero Kiryu didn't seem to be the talkative type either.
When he loaded her onto the back of the van, he gestured at the bars across the window and warned her, "Don't even bothering trying to escape. If you shake those bars hard enough, you'll get an electric shock. Your cousin found that out the hard way."
Hanabusa...
Ah, that's right. Seiren mentioned that the Vampire Hunter Association had taken Hanabusa into custody for questioning. She was given the task of delivering a message to the association from Kaname-sama. And that was all Ruka knew. She wasn't told the details. The last time she heard her cousin's voice, it was a strangled scream full of pain and anguish.
Unconsciously, she clenched her hands.
The van continued to sway from side to side. Trying to block those painful thoughts out of her mind, Ruka stared down at her shoes. Her hair fell forward and shielded her eyes from the views of her surroundings. All she could see was her red stiletto heels resting on the white floor of the van. And she was content with that.
Suddenly, the van hit a bump on the road, forcing it to lurch heavily towards the right.
Thrown forward, Ruka barely had time to uncross her arms and reach forward to stabilize herself. Quick as lightning, a hand shot out and grabbed her by the shoulder, pushing her firmly back in her seat.
"Thanks," she muttered to Zero.
The vampire hunter shrugged indifferently. "Don't mention it."
For the first time since she got into the van, Ruka looked across at Zero. There was no doubt about it. He has most definitely changed in the past year. Yet some things still remained the same. His nonchalant posture. His shaggy white hair. And those judging eyes.
He was staring at her and it was disconcerting.
Unable to help it, Ruka stiffened her shoulders. "What?"
His gaze did not waver. "You vampires are such simple creatures."
"Excuse me?" She was determined to remain unaffected but nevertheless, her voice came out low and icy.
It took him an eternity to answer. "All societies need a structure in order to function. There needs to be rules and regulations in place to maintain peace. Equality. Freedom. Basic rights. True, there needs to be some order to prevent anarchy. But there also needs to be some degree of freedom, giving individuals control over their own lives. That's why totalitarianism always ends up failing."
Ruka blinked, unsure how to respond.
Zero's lips stretched into a humourless smile. "Yet you vampires seem to be quite happy handing over your freewill to your so-called 'lords.' You are content being at their beck and calls. You seem oblivious to the fact that they have their own agendas – no, you are delighted to be able to carry out their agendas. You are beyond yourselves with joy because your 'lords' plays with you like puppets on a string. You don't even blink an eye when they do something unforgivable. You brush it off, determined you were imagining things and convince yourselves you must still be loyal to them."
Ruka's entire body was trembling with rage. And icy cold fear – because there was a part of her, a very small part she didn't want to admit, that knew what he said made sense. But Zero was wrong. They weren't puppets. They were loyal. There was a stark difference.
"You don't believe me," Zero nodded slowly. "Then explain this to me, why did Kaname-sama kill your uncle?"
She broke. Snarling furiously, she lunged forward. It was a stupid move, she knew it. But in that moment, all she could see was red.
Quick as lightning, Zero reached out, grabbed her shoulders and pushed her back firmly in her seat. He wasn't violent but neither was he gentle. She struggled against his hold, the van lurched dangerously from side to side but no matter how hard she tried to fight back, she couldn't. After a few moments, she gave up. What was the point anyway?
"What's going on back there?" The driver demanded as he struggled to get the van under control.
"Nothing." Zero let her go and sat back. There was a small smile playing around the edges of his lips. "Even now," he mused. "You vampires still defend your pureblood lords with your dying breath. Nagamichi Aidou may have only been your uncle, but he was Aidou-kun's father and despite his murder, Aidou-kun is determined to remain loyal to Kaname. Tell me, what does Kaname have to do to earn your animosity?"
Hanabusa.
That nearly set Ruka off again. But she knew anything she tried to do would be futile. She kept her eyes fixed on one corner of the van and tried to keep all her emotions in control.
"It's okay if you don't answer," Zero looked out the front opening to the road ahead. "We're almost there."
As a child, she was told of this place. It was one of the first things that their history teacher had taught them. It was a tale as old as time itself. The origin of vampires. The formation of massive vampire armies. The creation of anti-vampire weapons. The rising of vampire hunters.
And from that moment forward, vampires were no longer invincible.
Over the course of ten thousand years, their ancestors were all but wiped out. The number of pureblood vampire clans dwindled down to a measly seven – no, six. The last "Kuran" king relinquished his control over the vampire race and handed it over to the former vampire council. And through all that turmoil and unrest, the humans remained oblivious to the fact that creatures of the night lived among them.
Ignorance was truly bliss.
As they climbed out of the van, Ruka wanted to be brave and nonchalant, just to show Zero that she wasn't afraid of anything he was going to throw at her. But despite her determination, she visibly hesitated at the threshold.
The whole building, an ancient gothic styled cathedral, was illuminated with the aura of "the woman." Like the ocean waves, it came in ebbs and flows even during the troughs, the underlying strength was unmistakable. The aura had the comforting touch of a woman but the threatening growl of a predator. It was nerve-wracking and confusing.
"Come on," Zero gave her a gentle nudge in the small of her back. "The handcuffs will keep you safe."
Forcing herself to ignore it, Ruka took a step into the cavernous hallway. It was lined up on both sides by arching columns made of grey sandstones. It was obviously the central hub of the association. There were streams of hunters going in every which direction. Some were carrying thick piles of paperwork. Others were chatting in muted voices among themselves. Others were checking out the rosters on the walls. Most stopped and stared as Zero and Ruka walked in.
But their stares and whispers were the last thing on Ruka's mind. Straightaway, she was assaulted with the growls and rumbles of the anti-vampire weapons. She thought the ominous hum of her handcuffs was bad but this... this was on a completely different level. Each weapon – be it a sword, a trident, gun, whip, or mace – was like an individual beast chafing at the bit with impatience. They wanted blood – vampire blood to be exact. They were so dark
"Hey Zero," a tall brunette strode over. Thick, long strands of unruly hair framed his face, obscuring his pale green eyes. "Where the hell have you been? You haven't showed up to school for four days now! I had to step in and keep things under control."
"Sorry, Kaito," Zero didn't sound the least apologetic. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah," the hunter rolled his eyes. "I thought the school girls had it bad for me when I first came to the school. But man, they went absolutely insane for the night class students. Keeping those girls in line every single night was not what I signed up for."
"You've re-established the night class?" Ruka blinked in surprise. What exactly has happened in these past few weeks?
Kaito shifted his eyes to her. "She the reason you've been away? Another lackey, I assume?"
"Says the guy who self-reported spending the past four nights herding fan girls around," Ruka glowered at him, smarting over the lackey comment.
"I'm not sure I like her," his eyes were as judging and cold as Zero's.
Zero shrugged. "An informant reported sightings of her and another guy in their local area. They may be able to tell us what Kaname has been up to."
"Why didn't you bring in the guy?" Kaito demanded as he and Zero escorted Ruka down one of the corridors. "How are we supposed to threaten information out of a girl?"
"He wasn't there," Zero was calm as a millpond. This was very different from the guy she remembered two years ago. "But don't worry. He'll be here in the next few days."
"Oh?" Kaito lifted an eyebrow. "Devoted boyfriend?"
"I'm right here, you know," Ruka snapped. "And he's not my boyfriend. He's just –" She stopped herself short.
"What, exactly?" Zero asked, though his tone clearly indicated he didn't care much for an answer.
Ruka fell silent. She didn't know the answer to that question. It was still something she was trying to figure out in her head.
Kaito watched their exchange with narrowed eyes. "So should the doormen be on the lookout for anyone in particular?"
"Tall." Zero thought about it. "Redhead."
"That's it?" Kaito stared at him.
"It'll be enough."
The three of them fell silent. The only sounds Ruka could hear over the threatening aura of their surroundings was that of their footsteps down the empty corridor.
"So what are Kaname Kuran's plans?" Kaien Cross asked Ruka from his seat across the room. The room was set out like a court. It was mostly bare, save for the long broad table and chairs placed at the far end of the room. At its head sat the Headmaster of the Cross Academy. On his right was Toga Yagari and to his left, Zero, with Kaito behind him.
Ruka was offered so such comfort. Like any proper interrogation, the subject was to be placed in the centre of the room, on a witness stand, surrounded by high metal railings. She felt boxed in and trapped. A chandelier was hanging down from the ceiling, directly over Ruka's head, illuminating the whole room.
On the bright side, they've taken off the chains that bound her wrists together, leaving just the cuffs around her wrists. It was for her own protection in the building, they had claimed. And while that may be true, Ruka knew it was more than that. The cuffs kept her powers at bay and without it, the hunters had the advantage.
"I don't know." And it was the truth.
"Since Nagamichi Aidou's death," Ruka clenched her hands. "You've accompanied Kaname as he escaped capture and left this town. What has he been up to?"
"I don't know." She repeated. For the forty-seventh time. "Like I told you, Akatsuki and I have been residing in that town for the past few weeks, and apart from getting rid of some rogue vampires, we haven't done anything out of sorts."
Sighing, she shifted her feet. At first, she was determined to keep quiet and not diverge in any information but as the questions dragged on, she realized in actual fact, she didn't know anything anyway.
Zero was looking at her with a pair of knowing eyes. "Such simple creatures," he murmured quietly, the whisper carried across the room.
It was an obvious bait.
"Look," she began, annoyed at the string of incessant and seemingly identical questions. "I may not know what Kaname-sama's plans are. But the thing both you and I know is that for Kaname-sama, there is only ever one motive – to protect Yuuki-sama. With that in mind, you should be reassured that his activities, whatever they may be, would not break the peace treaty."
The hunters glanced at one another.
"Should we tell her?" Kaito asked quietly. The others remained silent.
"Tell me what?" Ruka gritted her teeth in annoyance. There had never been a patient bone in her body.
"Yuuki-sama is in our custody at the moment," Kaien said. "She's taken over Kaname's role in maintaining peace between the vampires and humans with the re-establishment of the night class at the Cross Academy."
So the night class had indeed returned. But that doesn't explain why the hunters were so worried about Kaname-sama's whereabouts.
"Yeah, so?"
"Patience, young vampiress," Kaito admonished her mockingly. "Despite Yuuki Kuran's insistence that peace can still be retained, Sara Shirabuki has been visiting a lot of all-girls boarding schools and turning the students into vampires."
"Was the conversion consensual?" Ruka wanted to know.
Kaien inclined his head in assent.
"Then it's not in breach of the peace treaty," Ruka stated. "If they were, I have no doubt Kaname-sama would have approached Sara-sama to settle this issue. So if he hasn't done so already, then you shouldn't be too concerned."
"Did you not study the history of your ancestors when you were a kid?" Zero stirred in his seat. "Back then, when purebloods were battling it out for supremacy, they created massive armies of ex-human vampires, every single one of whom were enslaved to do the wills of their masters."
"Then shouldn't you be going after her, instead of trying to track down Kaname-sama?"
"She's in our custody too," Toga Yagari spoke up.
That was news. "You've managed to capture Sara-sama?"
"No," he shook his head. "She came to us voluntarily, saying that Kaname has been on a pureblood-killing rampage and she feared she would be next. She claimed that Kaname was responsible for Ouri and Hanadagi's demise. She now seeks the protection of the night class and vampire hunter association."
"That's impossible," Ruka vehemently denied. "Kaname-sama would never do something like that. It's, it's the most," she faltered and gripped the railings of the stand with both hands for strength. She shook her head. "Kaname-sama would never commit the most heinous crime in the history of purebloods. Sara-sama must have been mistaken."
Her words were met with doubtful looks.
Frustrated at being unable to get through to them, Ruka turned to Zero. "Come on, you may dislike Kaname-sama but you know he's incapable of such things."
Zero stared back at her with an unreadable expression. "Incapable?"
He then slowly got up from his seat, walked around the table and walked across the room to where she was. Alarmed, Ruka tried to take a step back but Zero reached out and grabbed one of her arms. He pulled her in until they were almost touching. His scent hit her nose and she froze. It was unmistakable.
The scent of the Kuran blood.
"Two years ago, at the academy," she realized. "It was you who spilt his blood."
"I took what was freely offered." His pale violet eyes were boring holes into hers. "But thanks to his blood, I've been – what's the word? – stable ever since."
That doesn't make sense. He was turned by Shizuka-sama. Without her blood, Zero would inevitably descend into Level E. So how can he be stab– no. That can't be right. It was impossible. She shook her head, unwilling to accept it.
"Think about it." He released her arm and took a few steps back. "Now, what do you know about..."
Author's Note: I tried my best to fix up this chapter but after three days, I threw my hands up in the air and gave up. I know this chapter is... terrible. There were days I wanted to delete the entire story and start from scratch again. So even getting this out was a minor accomplishment.
Cheers,
Witless Fool
