Hi guys!Thank you for your patience. Internet has been down for a few days but it has finally come back! ^^ Here is chapter 10. :0) There is a slight description of an injury if anyone doesn't like reading anything like that.

To Cosmic-lover: I agree! I think that Zero wants things to be the way they used to be as well, and I believe that he would never harm Yuki even though he makes out like he might. I also enjoy the little rivalry that Kaname and Zero share concerning Yuki. If neither of them cared at all it wouldn't be very interesting. :D Because of your review, I have put in a little spot in the beginning to display a bit of jealousy. I will try to evolve it more as the story continues. Thank you so much for your reviews! :0)

To Pink Bead Girl: Thank you! :D I love the relationship that Kaname and Yuki both share and I love Kaname's inner struggles, though in the end I hope that he finds peace and gets to stay with Yuki. Thank you for your kind review. :0)

To DivineRose91: A little bit! :D I liked the tree part too lol. Sara is truly a threat but I guess she makes the story interesting at the same time. Job is getting better though very busy for Christmas season! Thank you for your reviews! ^^

To GabriellaBrigantRedfern: Me too! :0)

To DamonSfreak121: It's a bit difficult to describe lol. The wolf is Kaname's familiar. Here is what one web site says:

"Creation of a familiar in any form he (Kaname) chooses, such as a bat able to convey messages and a wolf from which he can receive information instantly, and used to watch over Yuki when she left the Kuran manor. His familiar is also strong enough to carry another person and wields his telekinetic powers."

So even though he is in one place and Yuki is in another, his familiar (wolf) is with her and watching over her. If something happens to her, he will know. :0) I hope that sort of clarified things lol.

Thank you guys for your reviews!

The last Saturday in November had arrived along with crisp temperatures and a soft sprinkling of snow. It was 7am, the sky was just beginning to become brighter, and Kaname Kuran wasn't taking any notice. He stood in his past burial chamber deep below the Kuran mansion standing next to the spot where he had slept so peacefully for such a long time. He often did much of his contemplating in this spot where his mind always seemed unusually active. This particular morning he was contemplating whether he should have allowed Yuki to visit Cross Academy alone. Should he have gone with her? Should he have sent Aido along? She wasn't very safe outside of the mansion that was for sure, and she seemed to have a talent for winding up in trouble often.

He had seen Ichijo silently enter Yuki's room while she was investigating the night class dorms, and watched him place a packet of blood tablets inside her purse. Kaname knew that his friend's conscience and actions were being tampered with and that Ichijo would never do these things on his own willingly. Kaname had taken care of the tablets, so Yuki was safe from that threat thankfully, though he still worried. If the tablets were put in her possession, would something possibly happen to her today that would require her to take them? He had to watch her carefully.

His eyes stared ahead, dark and serious as he thought about Yuki's safety when his thoughts turned to another person. The notorious hunter. The one who would never betray Yuki. The other half that received attention from Yuki's large heart. The beast who fed from her like an imprudent level E. The monster who pointed that gun at her, and not for the first time...

His eyes glowed red as anger welled up within him, his dark hair hanging in his eyes while his hands balled in to fists. The hunter who now wanted to hunt Yuki, and she still let all of her defences down when with him. Too trusting, he thought to himself with deep concern. Deep down he felt that Yuki believed that everyone was pure at heart despite everything she had witnessed. He tried to calm himself before speaking aloud:

"Just play your part Kiryu, or I'll have to intervene and make you wish that you had."

Yuki laid in her bed sleeping deeply, her long hair spread out along her pillow and down the bed sheets. It was a dreamless sleep, deep and peaceful, and with the sky becoming lighter her body told her to stay asleep. A soft knock on her door didn't disturb her and neither did the Chairman's calls.

"Yuki?...Yuki?"

He opened the door with caution and was surprised, momentarily, to find her still asleep. Of course she would still be asleep though, he thought to himself and chuckled, she was a pureblood vampire after all. He walked over to her window and drew back the curtains revealing a rather grey day with softly falling snow.

"Yuki!" He called her name loudly and she stirred slightly. "Yuki wake up!"

She mumbled incoherently as her eyes opened and then shut again from the light. She had just been woken from such a deep and peaceful sleep and her entire body felt heavy, still one with the bed.

"Chairman?" She spoke sleepily, her eyes trying to focus.

"Yuki, you need to wake up and get ready. It's 7:30 and Yori will be here for 8:30 for breakfast! Then a trip in to town..."

"Yori!" Yuki sat upright then, remembering where she was and what was planned that day. "I'll get ready, I'm sorry!"

She ran around the room grabbing things she needed with haste and then ran in to the bathroom. A moment later running water could be heard as she drew herself a bath. The Chairman smiled and then left for the kitchen to prepare breakfast, happy to have his daughter home again.

Yuki sank in to the hot bath and immediently felt enveloped in its warmth as she laid back submerging herself more deeply. She wanted to enjoy her bath more but her plans made her hurry. She slipped her head under the water and then re-emerged, her hair now wet and sticking to her body. She washed it quickly and found herself silently wishing that just for one day, it could be shorter again. She had thought before about cutting her hair again but Kaname wouldn't allow it. She plunged herself back under the water again to rinse, and when she broke the surface once more she laid back to soak in the lather for a moment which smelled strongly of straberries and honey. Steam floated off the surface of the water as she inhaled the lovely scent while it infused itself in her hair and skin. She soaked a few moments longer and then pulled the plug from the drain. She stood and reached for a towel to dry herself as her skin broke out in goosebumps. She now had the daunting task of drying her long hair with limited time.

Forty minutes later and her hair was nearly dry, and luckily for her, Yori was running slightly late. She retrieved a thick red cable knit sweater from her luggage and a dark pair of jeans that hugged her legs firmly. As she dressed herself she noted that she could probably stand to gain some weight but then shook her head. She ate loads of food yet rarely gained a pound. Once dressed, she threw her long hair back in a neat pony tail, grabbed her purse and coat, and headed for the kitchen.

Yuki and Yori had enjoyed a wonderful, and massive, breakfast with the Chairman before heading in to town, and they had to walk slowly at first until they didn't feel full any longer. The town was decorated with Winter decorations and Christmas lights though they wouldn't be alight until it was dark. They had visited many of the shops in town before noon and stopped at their favourite café for lunch, first enjoying hot soup and then an ice cream parfait. Yori had bought Christmas gifts for her parents and while she had, Yuki had gone in search of gifts for Kaname. After lunch the girls headed back out to search through more shops and wound up in a jewellery store. Yori looked happily at the silver bracelts while Yuki admired the white gold necklaces. They're so pretty, Yuki thought to herself while wondering how she could hint to Kaname that she would like one. She spotted a butterfly necklace and was about to declare it the winner when she saw another. A white gold chain with a flower pendant the same colour, complete with a red diamond stone in the centre. Yuki stared longingly at the necklace, imaging what it would look like around her neck for Kaname to admire before he treated himself to her tantilizing blood...

A scream broke her thoughts, bringing her back to reality, her eyes widening as she turned to look outside. A dark and menacing presence was close by and terrorizing civilians in the street. Her vampire instincts made her senses very clear to the threatening enviroment. She had to put a stop to it.

"Yuki! What's happening?" Yori looked fearfully towards the door.

"Yori! Stay inside this shop and whatever you do, don't leave it!"

Before Yori could protest, Yuki was out the door and running up the main street which had been deserted it seemed as everone had ran and hid indoors. It was nearly completely dark out but the many Christmas lights lit the main street beautifully as snow softly fell. In the silence, nothing could be heard except for the crunch of her boots in the snow and her breath escaping her mouth as she ran. She stopped at the main intersection in the town while breathing heavily. The threat was incredibly close, she could feel it.

Suddenly, from behind her, she felt a sharp pain fly across her right arm, severing her coat and sweater to cut her skin. Crimson red blood trickled down atop the pure white snow at her feet. Shocked, she brought her left arm across to hold her right and turned to face her culprit. A figure stood about fifteen feet in front of her dressed entirely in black, a hood covering their head while a black scarf covered their face. In the stranger's hands were weapons that she hadn't seen before. Shiny, sharp, metal, and circular with jagged points surrounding their shape, she realised she was dealing with someone dangerous. She reached within her coat to retrieve her primary means of defence and then froze as she realised that she must have forgotten it.

"Artemis..." The whsiper left her lips quietly as she stood in shock at the realisation that she had no way to defend herself. As the discovery sunk in, the stranger threw another of the sharp rings her way and she screamed as it grazed her cheek, more blood falling along with the snow. Her hands flew to her face in an attempt to calm the pain when another ring cut through her side. Her eyes grew wide as she stared ahead before gracefully falling bakwards towards the waiting snow.

Warm arms caught her firmly, preventing her from attending her abrupt meeting with the ground. She felt weak and in pain, a comforting blackness beckoning her. She struggled to glance upwards at her protector and managed to recognise lavendar eyes before she succumbed to the darkness. A gunshot rang out and then everything faded away.