Chapter 9

It was dark inside the classroom. I sat on my usual place on the window sill with the manga book in my hand. I was nearly finished with it. Who could blame me, I read almost the whole day while waiting for the others to come down. To be honest it was more because of the fact I didn't want to have those nightmares again. Those nightmares.

I sighed, looking out of the glass pane to the sky, which was hidden from me by a thick curtain of clouds. Tonight we would get a new teacher, so it was said to us by Ichijo. In fact, we should have him right now, but he wasn't there yet. Yet.

Footsteps and voices came from just outside the door of the classroom. I strained my ears and made out Yuuki's. My eyebrows furrowed themselves. What was she doing here? She was talking to somebody.

The somebody, who came in.

We all quieted down as I turned my head to see him. He, the new teacher, walked slowly to the front, his face hidden half from his dark hair, that reached down to his shoulders. An eye patch covered his right face, but the hair did it fine enough already in my opinion. I realized, who he was. Toga. Toga Yagari.

He smirked at the glares he received. Of course, everybody found out they had a vampire hunter in front of them. His mere aura told us all. The new teacher placed his single book on the desk.

"I'm Yagari Touga" he introduced himself. Visibly or not, I tensed. "Your substitute teacher for morals. Yoroshiku...vampires"

"Yagari..." Suma, of all people, spoke to my surprise. "The number one vampire hunter, that appeared in the news had the same name..."

"You'd know..." I muttered slightly, my eyes fixed on the half-seeing face. His one piercing eye flickered to me for a second, before he placed his hands on the table.

"Relax everyone" he tried to make us calm down. "I've gotten a teaching license. I'm now a qualified educator."

"Last I heard you were in a far off place" I couldn't help but voice out.

"So you're back..." Kaname continued, his eyes calmly set on the book in his hands. "Still gathering info on the night class?" I heard the flip of a turning page. "Or do you have target among us? Yagari 'sensei'?"

I believe it had never been so quite in a class before. At least not with Tomo and me in one room together with Suma, who by the way was sitting right between her fiancée and Kaira.

The smirk came back on Touga's face. "All in all Kuran Kaname. So sorry, but I still have a clean sheet. But...if you fall asleep in my class, I'll probably add to that record" Did I hear right or did he really threaten a vampire in front of many vampires? This man had some guts, seriously. Respect. My mouth twitched up a bit at this thought.

"I'll take note" Kaname responded with the slightest chuckle as he shut his book. "sensei"

Toga Yagari stared at him for a moment, his blue eye narrowed, but he turned away from him then, deciding to grace us with his attention. "Any other questions?" My keyword. Or sentence?

I raised my arm as nobody else did, laying the book aside. Yagari turned to me. "Yes?"

'Oh no' I thought I heard Akatsuki say, but opened my mouth nonetheless, smirking.

"Any other questions?" he asked after many, many other question, mainly coming from me...well I was the only one who voiced any. And I wasn't finished yet. But no...somebody had to be the joykiller and shut my mouth with his hand, not budging no matter how hard I struggled. And it had to be Akatsuki.

Traitor.

"No other questions?" he asked and I was sure I heard very good concealed amusement in his tone. I sent a glare at my dear cousin, but he was only looking at the window over my head. "That was it was tonight then" With that he walked as slowly away as he came in.

As soon as he was out of sight, Akatsuki let go. "Traitor" it slipped out as soon as I was free since I thought it all the time. "I wasn't finished yet"

"You'd have never finished if I hadn't stopped you" was all he replied.

"So?" I shot back, my eyes wide. I pouted, moving away from him. Why is he a teacher in this school? A vampire hunter of all things...and not an unknown one as well. What is his purpose?

I stared out of the window. The moon was hidden behind dark clouds. A dark night. I sighed heavily. And where's Yuuki now? Her presence ran away from my reach. I had noticed, she was there, right behind the door, waiting for that Yagari-'sensei' to come out. "Must have something to do with Kiryuu..."

"What did you say?" I opened my eyes, only now noticing I had closed them. A slow throbbing told me I would get a headache soon. A headache and a vampire. Funny how that works.

"Aila-chan?"

"Hm?" I glanced at my right. Ichijo stood there with a book in his hands, his eyebrows furrowed a bit. "Are you alright?"

"Sure" I replied, maybe to quick. Hey, I was really alright. For now. Two arms engulfed me, his weight almost making me fall.

"What is wrong with my cute, little sister?" Aidou cried into my ear, making me flinch.

"Hell...Nothing is wrong, Onii-chan. Maybe I should ask you that?"

"But you're so quiet. My Aila-chan has never been quiet before" Oh jeez

"Aidou-san" I flinched again.

"What's with you all turning up and scaring me" I whipped my head to my left, successfully pushing my brother away on the way. Seiren, the silent bodyguard of Kaname stood there with a straight back.

She seriously bowed to me. "I apologize for this"

"No need for" I stared at her oddly. Was I a pureblood now? "What did you want?"

"Kaname-sama was asking for you to come outside" Huh? Looking around, he was nowhere to be seen.

"I haven't even noticed him going" Aidou voiced my thoughts. I sighed, irritated. "Why now I ask myself..." I went to go to out from my right, but Ichijo was still standing there, watching us. Whatever we had done, it had certainly amused him. On the other hand, he is always smiling now, isn't he?

"I will be...on my way" Hushing my brother away, I went out of class. We had a short break before the next teacher came to teach us things, we already know. So it was easy to leave without excuse.

"You wanted to see me?" I spoke as soon as the door behind me was closed.

"Did you notice?" he asked, ignoring my question, much to my annoyance. Questions have to be answered.

"Noticed what?"

"Yuuki..."

"Yes, I noticed she was here...if that is what you mean" He sighed, shutting his book he still had in his hands. I observed his form. On the outside he had the calm aura around him like every pureblood should have. Yeah right, should have. I always pondered what was going on inside him. He held his body at ease, leaning against the wall beside the large window. Small light shone on him from the outside. I had known him long enough to see he wasn't all that calm at all.

"What is she doing?"

"Yuuki...she is...very kind-hearted" Why does he always have to speak in riddles.

"No idea what you are talking about. That much I've found out long ago..." He stared out of the window, not giving me a glance. His wine-red eyes were visible enough to see the worry in his eyes. And what made him worried had to have something to do with Yuuki. And if he was worried about Yuuki, then something happened to her or was happening.

"Is she in danger? Oh wait, stupid question. You wouldn't be here then..." I replied to my own question, frowning. Kaname closed his eyes. "That Kiryu..."

"What?"

He moved out from his spot without answer, walking down the hall. So he wasn't going to come to next class. Interesting. Him of all people skipping a lesson. I stared quietly after him. And why did I have to come here?

He could explain himself better to the pieces of his chess, honestly.

I stared off into space, out of the window. Kaien Cross really built something up here, that much I had to say. The school grounds were beautiful. Let alone the building. I had to tell him that someday. Someday, that's it.

"Aila-chan?" For a moment I thought, Kaname came back, but then again; he wouldn't call me Aila 'chan'. I recognized the voice immediately though.

"Hm? What is it, Ichijo-san?" I turned around.

"Next class is about to begin, aren't you coming in? And where is Kaname?" He looked around in wonder as he didn't spot the pureblood.

"He said he's not interested in that old man's class and rather wants to go out for some fresh air" I smoothly replied. Half of it might have been true. The teacher was the most boring one in this school.

"Is that so...Well, are you coming in then?" he asked, opening cheerfully the door wider as he fully came out. Uncertainly I hesitated. Should I go in or find Yuuki to help her out with whatever is happening to her? But Kaname was already going, wasn't he? He would never let her get hurt. Kiryu he had said his name. Had it something to do with him?

But I had warned him to never do something to her ever again. And he still did it, didn't he? At the night of Ichijo's birthday.

"Yeah, I will come" I responded, still pondering. If he was biting her...I frowned. He wouldn't now, would he? He hates us bloodsuckers and then doing it by himself. On the other hand, had he a choice? Not really. Just like us.

"Is everything alright, Aila-chan?" Was that the second time he asked me that? I looked up to meet his eyes. They were shining in a warm, emerald green, deeper than oceans. Concerned they were. Concerned about me. I smiled a bit at this.

"No, not really" He blinked, frowning.

"What is wrong?"

"My manga is finished. I need the second volume" He cocked his head to the side. For a moment I thought he wouldn't believe me, but then he smiled broadly.

"Don't worry, Aila-chan. I can give you some of mine" I smiled back and moved to go in. Glancing back for the last time at the direction Kaname had gone, I passed the vice president to listen to another boring class.

Dammit, I should have skipped class, too. I couldn't concentrate the least. Not that I ever tried, but even if I did actually I couldn't. I sat beside Ichijo, watching Suma and Rideo having a one-side conversation. Kaira gloomily sat on the other side of the black-haired beauty while Rideo tried to make eye-contact to her. She didn't give him a chance, though.

And I couldn't amuse myself with the scene like Tomo did all the time, snickering far behind the class. I sighed, pulling my knees up to my chest. To distract myself, I watched Ichijo, who was totally sunk in his book/manga.

I smiled at his face. At least he could be concentrated of the two of us. Us...

I looked out of the window, shaking my head. The moon glimpsed a bit out between the spaces of the clouds. I wanted to know, what was going on.

No smell of blood had reached my nose. So no one was bleeding. Yuuki wasn't bleeding. Unless, I couldn't smell it. Hell knew, where she was right now. Maybe on the other side of the building?

"This...won't...work" I muttered as I stood up. I barely noticed Ichijo looking up as I went to stay beside the window, unnoticed by the teacher, who had his back on us, writing something on the board.

I reached for the window pane, touching the cool surface. There was a knob in the middle. I fiddled with it a while (as non-concentrated as I was I needed sometime), before it clicked. Pushing the two window sides open, I let the cold wind refresh my mind as it breezed through me. I inhaled a bit of it, enjoying the scent of leaves and forest, permitting from the wood, going through my nostrils.

"I didn't know we could open the windows here" I muttered to myself.

"Neither did I" Akatsuki replied nonetheless as he moved beside me.

"How interesting..."

"Hey, you..." he laid a hand on my shoulder. Startled I looked up to him with raised eyebrows. With his tall body he was quite intimidating, but he was my dear cousin after all.
"What's up with you?"

"What do you mean?" I looked back out at the grounds, letting my eyes wander.

"Something is bothering you" he stated soberly.

"Is that so..." I should use this sentence more often. I backed my back a bit behind to look past Akatsuki to the teacher. He was still not facing us. "I will go then"

"Wha-" I didn't hear the question anymore as I jumped through the window.

"What is going on with her?" the taller cousin asked himself as he stood still in front of the open window.

"She was like this through the whole class" someone replied behind him. The cousin looked over his shoulder to the green-eyed blonde. "Something is bothering her. Since Yagari-sensei came into class"

"You noticed?" he pondered. Even her friends didn't seem to notice. They were too preoccupied with their own problems going on. The blonde looked out as well, standing beside the cousin, worry stretched on his face. Why worry, he didn't know himself.

I rushed past the trees. Kaname's presence was close, I could feel it. The urge to bow the closer I came, swirled with me, unnerving. I stopped as I saw the petite frame of a girl. She was standing in front of the pureblood, near him indeed. Yuuki...

Moving closer, I rested on a branch, crouching down as I felt tiredness coming over me. Tiredness of the bad kind. When was the last time I drunk a blood tablet again?

"In this ten years...only this aspect of you has changed" he had his arms around her, embracing her small body, which needed so much protection. So, Yuuki couldn't see the sadness in his eyes as he only muttered those words.

He released her after a moment, rather reluctantly. "Good night, Yuuki"

"Good night...Kaname-sempai" she mumbled, backing away slightly. I couldn't see what had made him so sad. But as she turned it was more than visible. As she turned her back to him and her throat to me. Her covered throat. Covered in a plaster. I stared at her in awe.

Did she do that on her own accord? Otherwise Kaname wouldn't have let this happen to her twice. Kiryu. Hatred boiled up inside me, but I tried to stay calm. As calm as Kaname. If he could bear this, I would have to as well.

"A pureblood vampire hugging a girl so warmly..." another voice reached my ears, close by. At the other side of the path. "I don't know why you break tradition to favor that little girl" Toga Yagari appeared from the trunk of the tree, a cigarette placed between his teeth. "You should know what she just did" he smirked. "After all, the evidence is still there"

Zero Kiryu had bitten Yuuki.

I will just stop here. To show you I'm still quite alive with this story. Thanks to some reviewers here.

TwistedHumor510; Thanks so much for your review. Actually yours made me finish this chapter and post it, you know. :D

Alliana2312: Your review was quite interesting. I had to translate it before I understood. XD

For all the other reviewers, I'm thankful. Really. And I hope you will give me some advices and criticism is nothing but welcome.

Please review!