Sorry it took me so long...again -;; Thanks to all who read, reviewed, and/or added to their favorite/alert lists!!!
Disclaimer: "Vampire Knight" is Hino-sensei's. Arashi's mine. Please direct all other inquiries to my imaginary lawyer.
Chapter 10:
It had been another routine evening. The screaming fans came out. The three guardians pushed, shoved, and yelled to hold them back. The Night Class passed by, and the giggling girls finally went off to bed. Three weeks had passed since Arashi's little "discussion" with Aido, but without his nightly jokes and visits, it seemed as though no time had passed at all.
Aido hadn't shown the smallest sign of giving in and settling for "just friends," so he had taken to avoiding Arashi like a batch of salty cookies and sticking to Kaname-sama like a Care Bear who thinks someone needs a hug. It worked out pretty well all around. Aside from the occasional especially malevolent glare Aido threw whenever Kain talked to his hunter, Arashi was completely free of the little pest. Even Kuran had been giving her a little more space since that disastrous party. And, as an added bonus, Aido's vow of silence towards Arashi appeared to extend to his cousin as well, so Kain was getting many more peaceful days of sleep.
As the last of the vampires filed into the classrooms, Arashi glanced longingly towards the woods. While her powers had long since adapted to the environment and she no longer needed to constantly rein them in, fire was still a wild element. It didn't like being caged, and a night of running through the trees, flames licking at every branch and leaf, sounded marvelous. Sighing in disappointment, the elemental forced the happy image from her mind. Who knew what the headmaster would do if she went out and started a wildfire right next to his school?
"Arashi-chan?" Yuki poked her fellow guardian, effectively snapping her out of any lingering fantasies of savage bonfires.
The poked person turned her attention to the dark haired girl standing next to her, a question obvious in her eyes. If Arashi had learned anything about Yuki during her three weeks free of harassment from Aido, it had been that the girl's questions usually lead in interesting directions. Knowing she'd probably regret it later, she said, "Spit it out, Yuki-chan."
The other guardian's face immediately lit up despite the resigned look on her friend's face of one about to jump into a black hole. "Did something happen with Aido-san?"
Mentally, Arashi immediately stiffened, but her body retained its relaxed posture. "He decided it was time to end our friendship." Her tone seemed almost bored, but the hunter was seriously worried. If Yuki thought something was wrong, there was no telling what Kuran guessed.
Why was she worried? Not even Aido would be stupid enough to admit that he'd considered having a forbidden relationship with a human, right? It didn't matter either way.
Yuki looked so sad at the news. Maybe it had been nothing, but she had been almost positive that Aido liked Arashi. And if one vampire and human alliance could work, why couldn't another? But Arashi didn't look too upset, so maybe she had been wrong about it all along.
There the two girls stood, one looking bored as could be, the other looking as if her cat just died, and neither one doing her job. Into the midst of this happy, sunny conversation strode Zero.
"You're late again, Zero!" Yuki yelled as soon as she noticed his approach, which turned out to be when he stopped right next to her.
Zero ignored her reprimands, as usual, but turned to Arashi and said softly, "The headmaster wants to see you."
Grateful for a distraction from the burning desire to, well, burn something, Arashi trudged back over to the school. Still, she was loathing the idea of another audience with the eccentric idiot who insisted she call him "Papa." Even though the now-cooperating flames gave her plenty of energy to carry out her ridiculous work schedule, she still hated keeping the waking hours of both a vampire and a human. And this was certainly going to be another long night.
"Arashi-chan! My beautiful daughter!" the headmaster squealed, again. Did he have to start every meeting in that obviously fake "happy mode" of his. Honestly, he was just as bad as Aido…who shouldn't have been invading Arashi's thoughts unbidden.
Patiently waiting for the overly caffeinated "educator" to calm down, the Kiryu examined the fascinating scenery of tree branches outside the office window. It took a few moments before a wonderful silence set in.
When it did, Arashi finally returned her attention to the pouting man at the desk and asked, "Why did you call me down here, Headmaster?"
Then, he exploded, "I TOLD YOU TO CALL ME 'PAPA!' WHY IS MY DAUGHTER BEING SO MEAN TO ME?" A fiery wolf's gaping jaws dared him to continue his shouting tirade. Once the idiot had calmed himself, again, Arashi drew the flames back into her eyes and waited for an actual answer.
Finally, Headmaster Cross seemed ready to get down to business. Those bouts of energy were tiring for someone of his age, not to mention taxing on the minds and tempers of those around him. "Ahem, Arashi-chan, have you been talking to Aido-san lately?"
Shooting a death glare at her "father," Kiryu wondered why in the night everyone was asking her about Aido on this particular evening. Did they plan this? Dismissing that thought as ludicrous, she answered, "No."
The headmaster wasn't that shocked. Just the other day, Yuki had spoken to him about how worried she was for Zero's sister. She'd been performing her duties flawlessly, but instead of befriending more vampires and strengthening ties between their races, she'd clammed up and reverted more and more back to her hunter state each day. Kain had seemed to be the one exception, but even he was leaving her relatively alone. It was very troubling. Of course, he wondered if Yuki received a more detailed answer when she asked. He had to say, coordinating their interrogating sessions as they had was certainly one of his more brilliant plans.
"Headmaster?"
"Oh dear, did I space out there? Well, no matter." The detached look on his face made Arashi doubt that he had managed to completely come back to their conversation, but she couldn't exactly walk out. What if it actually was something important? "Are you at all familiar with the name 'Asato Ichijo?'"
Immediately snapping to attention, Arashi said, "Possibly."
Gee, as on guard as ever…Preparing for the worst, the headmaster continued, "He is the grandfather of our Night Class vice-president, Takuma Ichijo. He's also a member of the vampire Senate."
"What about him?"
"Well," Cross trailed off. "He's expected here at the academy for a visit tomorrow night." Despite his sheepish smile, the headmaster was deeply worried. Last time this man came, they had gotten through without any major incidents. However, with the death of the pureblood Shizuka Hiou so recent, there was little chance that this would be a mere social call.
Arashi dragged him out of his mulling. "So?"
Headmaster Cross looked up in something akin to shock. What did she mean by "so?" Wasn't it obvious? She was a school guardian! She should be guarding and stuff!
Seeing the poor man's obvious confusion, Arashi clarified, "Under normal circumstances, such information would mean killing a target. I'm assuming that is not the case here."
Apparently, it wasn't obvious. "Keep an eye on him, but do not engage in any type of fighting unless he becomes a threat."
"Understood, Headmaster. Good night."
As soon as the door clicked shut, Cross let out a huge sigh of relief. He hadn't spoken to this Kiryu very often since his first meeting with her, but it was always an adventure. This time seemed even tenser than the first. Perhaps I should do something…Arashi-chan needs to lighten up…she'll kill herself at the rate she's going.
Not bothering to dig into her superior's mind for anymore information, Arashi Kiryu headed off to bed. Asato Ichijo...he's coming for Hiou's killer… She didn't need to read Cross's thoughts to put two and two together. A pureblood's death was an important occurrence, and if she guessed rightly, her brother would be the prime suspect.
Hopefully, the menace of a man would tread cautiously once he realized she was there. Asato Ichijo- Arashi had last seen him on the night she assassinated his former master, Senri Shiki's father: Rido Kuran was Kaname's uncle and the cause of a lot of mischief in the vampire world, enough so that the Hunters sent their best to eliminate what was left of the leech, body and soul. Asato Ichijo would be wary once he saw her, but if he did do anything stupid, she'd crush him.
"Nooo!" Takuma Ichijo, the Moon Dorm's distinguished vice-president, wailed. In roughly an hour's time, he'd be face to face with his grandfather. Frankly, being locked in a room full of vampire hunters was preferable to spending a night in the midst of such evil. There was no other word to describe the feeling that surrounded the ancient vampire who would be upon their steps soon.
After hearing the cries of agony and distress emanating from his best friend's room for the fifth time in ten minutes, Kaname finally decided to walk down the hall and investigate. Opening the door to find Ichijo furiously stashing away his hordes of manga in the closet, under floorboards, inside hollow tomes, and anywhere else that wouldn't bend the pages, Kaname was a little surprised. Sure, a visit from the great Asato Ichijo usually put everyone a bit on edge, but this was ridiculous.
"Ichijo, what are you doing?"
Immediately ceasing his hiding frenzy, the shocked vampire straightened up, grinned, and attempted to look relaxed. "Kaname, what are you doing here?"
Shaking his head at the abrupt change in his friend, he replied with a genuine smile, "Since we don't have class tonight, I thought I'd walk around, talk, and maybe find out which banshee was making that horrible racket."
Guiltily looking from side to side, Ichijo said, "Well, I hope you find him! Good luck!" With that, he turned back to see how many volumes remained on his bed to be safely tucked into their shelters. The boy resembled a squirrel burying all his acorns before the winter snow hit.
Both eyebrows raised in amusement over his friend's antics, Kaname left the room and descended down to the main parlor. It was funny how some things never changed. When he had been a young orphan living with Ichijo's family, Kaname had constantly seen little Takuma shoving a book under his pillow every time he heard a creak of floorboards outside his door. His grandfather had never approved of the portrayal of vampires in the manga he read.
Tonight would be very interesting. It was amazing that a visit by a grandfather could disrupt the calm of Cross Academy so much, at least the calm for half of it. All of the vampires would be on their best behavior, Kaname was sure. However, as always, the resident hunters, the Kiryus, presented an unknown factor he could not pretend to understand. Of course, Ichijo-sama was coming to the school to investigate Shizuka Hiou's death, but if he tried to accuse Zero, things could get messy. If he made the mistake of accusing Zero of so much as killing a ladybug, the younger Kiryu's gun would be the least of his worries.
"NOOO!!!"
Well, Ichijo's screams were getting louder. Maybe he was running out of hiding places for the books.
A black limo pulled up to the door of the Night Dorm. Inside, all was still. The evil presence of the ancient vampire outside was almost tangible in the air. Not a white-clad student moved as Kaname and the vice-president opened the front entrance to admit their guest. If the tension in the room got any thicker, the whole vampire class would soon look like Han Solo in carbonite.
Into the midst of this relaxed environment strolled Asato Ichijo, looking for all the world like he owned the place. He spared but a moment to bow before Kaname before making himself comfortable on a nearby, conveniently vacant sofa. Even sitting and no longer towering over half the dorm residents, Asato still cut an imposing figure. His sharply cut face and broad shoulders belied none of his immense age, and his eyes struck more surely than a sniper's rifle. Unfortunately for his grandson, Takuma, that piercing gaze was locked on him.
"Are your studies going well, Takuma?" As he addressed his grandson, his deep voice managed to convey his utter disdain while sounding completely cheerful. Speaking to the whimsical little boy with whom he happened to share blood was more of an expected duty or chore than anything else. But as with most unhappy jobs associated with his post and prestige, Asato tended to it with an impeccable acting ability.
Having opted to remain standing while Kaname-sama sat in the chair across from their guest of honor, the younger Ichijo gave a respectful affirmation but stayed as far away as politeness would allow. Participating in this short conversation was just as much of a pain to him as it was to the elderly vampire.
Minutes passed by without so much as a whisper. The other students were far too wary of this senior member of the Vampire Council to risk his displeasure, but Asato-sama seemed content to remain silent, idly glancing here and there.
Or was he? No, there was a sharpness to his wandering gaze that suggested restlessness, a need to charge ahead. But he was reining it in, willing to wait. What was this for? Well, most of the Night Class had no idea why, after such a long journey, the man would sit there without so much as a comment on the weather. Luckily for them, else it could have been a very long night, Kaname had some idea of where this meeting was headed.
With a regal wave of his hand and a pointed look in the direction of Aido and Kain, the rest of the Night Class was silently herded upstairs to their rooms. Kaname closed his eyes, leaned into the soft cushions of the couch, and patiently awaited the return of his two right-hand men. They were not long. Asato-sama's audience had quickly been reduced to four. Kaname, Takuma, Kain, and Aido all appeared attentive, so perhaps it was finally time to make this trip worthwhile.
"A pureblood was murdered here at this school recently, as you are, doubtless, all aware," Asato-sama began. His eyes took on a darker glare than before, if it was possible. "I am here to bring the killer to justice."
Silence hung heavy upon the grand entrance hall. Aido and Kain immediately tensed. Knowing of Kaname-sama's guilt in the matter, they immediately hoped with all their might that Asato had not found out. Even a pureblood could not escape punishment for the murder of another pureblood. Takuma was a little confused, but he stood there alongside the others waiting to see how things would play out. Kaname looked as calm and relaxed as ever, except for his eyes which were cautiously surveying the old vampire.
"The Council believes that a questioning of Zero Kiryu would prove productive to our search for the truth," Asato-sama continued. Aido and Kain withheld their sighs of relief, and Kaname's eyes cooled to match his stance. Looking over in the cousins' direction, Asato ordered, "You, Aido, isn't it? Go and fetch the Kiryu boy."
After receiving an almost imperceptible nod from Kaname-sama, Aido complied and set off to "fetch" Zero. What did this guy think he was? A dog? Amidst his grumbling thoughts, an even more unpleasant one poked through: What will Arashi-chan- I mean, Kiryu-san- do if she finds out about this?
He was there. She could smell him. The evil scent clung to the air and made everything seem colder, darker. She almost smiled at the memories this feeling evoked. For a moment, all her hard work ignoring the never-ending tide of blood within her mind was thrown to the wind. But only for a moment.
This was not the time for reminiscing, not when trouble was afoot. Speaking of trouble, there goes Aido…the little wretch…and he's headed for the…boys' dorm.
All her senses on high alert, Arashi slipped from her perch on the roof of the girls' dorm, noiselessly landing in the shadows on the ground below. There was no reason to make herself known yet, but she didn't intend to be peacefully sleeping this night away. It appeared that Asato Ichijo might be needing a visit from her after all.
AN: Wasn't particularly happy with this chapter...but I usually say that on every chapter. Well, review and let me know what you think. Ideas, questions, criticism...all are welcome breaks in my otherwise boring days.