Disclaimer:

I do not own Vampire Knight or any of its characters no matter how hard I wish for it to be.

WARNING: Rated M for language, rape, sexual harassment, torture, boyxboy, seductive lemons, supernatural themes and the pure awesomeness that is Vampire Knight.

Enjoy!

Phoenix

Kill Me Softly

-Save Me-

5 Days Ago...

Akatsuki stared after the hunter and let out a tired sigh. Why did the boy have to be so difficult? It seemed every time they talked they were fighting over something; being late, drinking blood, going out, drugs-was Zero really that blind in not knowing that most club owners sold their own drugs to increase customer ratings? Was he really that innocent?

Yes.

Akatsuki scanned the crowd looking for the silver-haired beauty that he'd lost in the rave lights...nothing. Kain stiffened. There was no way that the hunter would disobey a direct order and leave the club...- Akatsuki shifted in his seat, sliding along the booth, just enough to see the whole floor. His gaze instantly fell on the hunter. A small smirk touched the corner of his lips.

Zero was sitting at the only place in the entire club where he wouldn't be in the noble's direct line of sight and he was drinking what appeared to be the strongest drink on the menu.

Careful Zero. Akatsuki murmured to himself, sliding back to his original position in the booth. Too much of that and you won't remember your own name...

Kain took another sip of his blood wine, savoring the smooth texture and the intriguing warmth it brought to his senses, a small smile coming to his lips. Maybe having an intoxicated Zero wasn't a bad thing. Akatsuki could do sooo many things to him and the hunter wouldn't even remember...

-Well not for a few days at least-

At the thought, images of a flushed, beautifully naked Zero lay stretched out before him. The hunter's eyes were half-lidded with sleep and lust, his cheeks lightly flushed and his smooth pale skin trembling as Akatsuki explored every inch of it...

Akatsuki blinked the image away, the increasingly aware of how such thoughts had begun to affect him. Akatsuki finished off the last of his cigarette and retrieved another one, trying to use the nicotine to calm his nerves and his growing need.

Akatsuki scanned the dance floor, trying to look indifferent as he waited for the hunter to return. This time he would not chase after the hunter as he had before, this time he would wait until the hunter returned and admitted that he had been out of line...then maybe he would see to Zero's punishment.

Akatsuki's small smile returned. Yes, a little bit of discipline for such rude behavior is necessary.

Akatsuki waited, smoking the last of his cigarettes and four more glasses of blood wine in the process.

Nothing.

Akatsuki finished off another few rounds of blood wine before glancing at his watch. It was almost time to head home. Maybe he should just punish the hunter for making him wait...

Akatasuki eventually slid beck to the edge of the booth to look out where Zero's seat at the bar.

It was empty.

Akatsuki froze. His eyes scanned each barstool looking for the silver-haired hunter.

Nothing.

Akatsuki rose in his seat, his eyes now madly searching the club. He hadn't seen Zero leave, he hadn't seen Zero leave that seat at all-

Zero was gone.

Akatsuki's heart skipped a beat and began to drum faster. Kain strode over to the bar where he had last saw Zero a woman behind the counter spotted him.

"Master Kain, may I help you?"

"Where's Zero?"

"Excuse me?"

"The silver-haired boy- he was here a few hours ago." Akatsuki growled daring her to not to remember him. She did though, he saw the recognition in her eyes.

"He left four hours ago."

"What?"

"He was with a little boy, brunette fellow, they headed for the back."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." Without another word, Akatsuki stormed out to the back of the club, passing through the back rooms and ignoring the staff that tried to assist him. Akatsuki was able to pick up the hunter's scent in a matter of seconds. Zero had defiantly been here and the bar tender had been right... Zero hadn't been alone.

Akatsuki was picking up the smell of a stranger, a youth, but a filthy one at that. The boy's body oder lingered like a bad smell as if the boy hadn't washed in weeks.

Why would Zero follow him?

Akatsuki suddenly found what he was looking for; back doors. He passed through quickly and found himself outside of the club. The cool morning air was like a cold bucket of water being tipped over his head after being in the heat of the club. Akatsuki looked around, trying to determine which way the hunter went. This was easier said than done, in the six or so hours he had been at the club, it had rained...heavily.

The rain was a tracker's worst nightmare, it washed away scents and covered up foot prints. Akatsuki followed his gut, turning left down the back ally way, only to stop a few moments later. Behind Blackout there was a maze of alley ways, all of which Zero could have traveled. It left too many options open. Even if Akatsuki did search every ally way in sight and every nook and cranny, there was no way he'd be able to find where Zero's company had taken him and into which establishment- that was if the hunter hadn't exited in a car...or left town completely.

Wherever Zero was, he certainly didn't want to be found. Kain closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. The Hunter must have been planning this from the moment Akatsuki purchased him; get out as soon as he could, escape when he could.

Zero had run away.

Akatsuki straightened and dug into his coat pocket to find a small metal device. More than anything he was hurt by the hunter's actions. He'd thought he'd been kind to the hunter, had treated him well...apart from a few incidents but they were defiantly excusable as they were part of the pet's training, Akatsuki had even told him about his family- about his father. He'd never told anyone apart from Aidou about that day, about how his great and noble father who he adored so much was dead for twelve hours before anyone went looking for him. Kain had allowed the hunter into his life, into a place he hadn't allowed anyone else. Worse yet, he had begun to let the hunter into his heart, to fill up the dark and lonely holes with his presence. But despite all this...the hunter had left him.

Akatsuki gripped the tracking device in his hands. This was a betrayal that could not go unpunished and when Akatsuki found the hunter he was going to make it one lesson the boy never forgot.

Kain pressed down on the button and watched the in-built map for the location of the hunter whereabouts. A moment passed...

Nothing.

Akatsuki frowned and punched the button again and received the same reading; a complete and utter blank. Akatsuki gripped the metal device until it crumbled in his grasp.

How had the hunter planned this? How had the hunter known which person would have the rare, not to mention, expensive device needed to disable a top of the range tracking device on a personalized collar? Hadn't the bartender said that Zero's companion was a mere boy? How could someone like that have this device, how-

Akatsuki suddenly froze, an icy shiver creeping up his spine.

There was really only one kind of person who kept these rare devices, ones who needed to use it for they're everyday trade and it wasn't a hunter;

Snatchers.

Snatches were much like kidnappers except instead of stealing ordinary people, they stole pets. Pets were usually broken and tame, much too obedient to struggle with their new captors or whoever the snatches resold them to. Zero certainly hadn't been unwillingly snatched, but rather lured in by the young boy. The thief had probably promised the hunter his freedom saying he could remove the collar and disable the hunter's tracking device so Zero would never be bound to another again.

Akatsuki swore softly, quickly becoming aware of the fact that his bite mark was artificially silent, as if it had been muted, telling the noble that at this moment the hunter was probably drugged. Akatsuki fisted his hands silently. His body shook in anger. Nobody stole from him, nobody took what he had already claimed, Zero was his, his pet, and he'd be dammed if he'd let anyone else touch him.

Within split seconds Akatsuki had his cellphone in hand and was barking orders. Zero was his, he had to get him back. He just had to.

Kain sat at his desk, rubbing his throbbing temples. For days now there had been an ongoing search for the silver-haired hunter and his captors, yet they still came up with nothing. Akatsuki poured himself yet another drink and gulped it down before lighting another cigarette.

"You're going to make yourself sick if you keep doing that." Peter, Akatsuki's personal assistant commented from where he sat; perched on the edge of the study's lounge, mounds of paperwork and information laid out before him spread across the coffee table. Kain snorted softly.

"Vampires may not be able to die from excessive smoking or drinking, but they can certainly make themselves sick." Peter continued. Akatsuki sighed.

"You're point?"

"You drink too much, eat too little and you smoke worse then a chimney" Akatsuki lifted his head to shoot his assistant a demeaning scowl. Peter was the only one, among his entire staff, that clearly stated his opinion about Kain without fear of punishment. It was one of the reasons Akatsuki hired him in the first place.

"Mothering again?" He taunted lightly. Now it was Peter's turn to sigh. Akatsuki always referred to him as a mother or mothering, it was a nickname gained from how Peter handled Akatsuki's trademark behavior; scolding the noble as if he were a child and forcing Kain to see error in his ways.

"We will find him." Peter murmured softly, knowing the noble was greatly troubled by the situation, the tell-tale signs of just how much the noble was smoking and drinking was adequate proof of that.

"I know."

"So stop worrying"

"I'm not." Peter gave another scowl. Akatsuki heaved another sigh. "They stole him from me-"

"Is that what this is really about? A bit of vampire possessiveness?" Akatsuki's brows knitted together in confusion. "Aren't you worried about Zero at all?"

"Of course, if they laid a hand on him-"

"So it is vampire possessiveness." Peter sighed. "Your more worried about his captors than Zero."

"And your point is?" Peter stared at Akatsuki's blank expression with exasperation. He released another loud sigh and turned back to his work.

"Nothing Kain, forget I said anything." Akatsuki frowned at Peter. Although Peter had served him for years, he was still a human and still had problems understanding vampire culture.

"He's not my lover Peter, or even my friend, he is a pet- my pet and someone took him. It's like stealing someone's wallet or someone else's belongings."

"So he's a thing to you?"

"He's a pet."

There was a pause. Kain's voice had been firm, final and yet Peter still didn't understand.

"Dose he mean anything to you?" He asked softly.

"Dose it matter?" Peter shook his head sighing.

"Guess not."

The pair lapsed back into silence for a few more moments.

"I don't know what he means to me." Akatsuki murmured softly, his eyes staring at the documents before him unseeing. Peter paused for a moment, partially stunned by Kain's reaction.

The business tycoon of the century- the Nightlife King- unsure about something? God what is the world coming to?

"We'll get him back Kain." Peter repeated, offering the only words he knew to be comforting. Akatsuki sighed.

"I know."

Akatsuki sat staring out the tinted black window of his limo, remembering the conversation he'd had with his personal assistant five days ago. Just as Peter had predicted, they did find Zero or more correctly, Zero's captor's meeting place and hopefully a new lead to where Zero was located. Akatuski took another calming sip of his blood wine, he hadn't stopped drinking the stuff since Zero had left his side. It was his own silent coping method, that and smoking, though the noble didn't think his black suited thugs would appreciate the smell in the enclosed environment.

Gossip. It was the thing that Akatsuki hated most and yet, it was gossip that had lead Kain to the Snatcher's whereabouts. A whisper of a new, silver-haired beauty there, a hushed conversation of the Snatcher's leader there and in one swift interrogation, Akatsuki had found out that the boy who had taken Zero was actually a snatcher's slave and that Zero was supposed to be a gift for the Snatcher's older brother Ryuu, a rich human who had trained for some time as a hunter. Ryuu had left the association though, he disapproved of their philosophy in killing and hating vampires. Ryuu found that he loved vampires, or more correctly, loved breaking them before killing them.

Akatsuki's felt himself grip his glass tighter and had to force himself not to break it. If Zero was in Ryuu's clutches now, who knew what kind of hell the hunter was experiencing.

The limo pulled up at an abandoned-looking shack. The black suits piled out of the car, Akatsuki followed only to be pulled up by the hesitant hand.

"Master Kain it would be safer for you to wait here."

"You doubt my capabilities?"

"O-of n-not-"

"Good." Akatsuki cut the man's rambling short. "Shall we?" One by one the black suits plowed through the decayed front door. Within moments of entering the vacant house the professionally trained team had discovered the trapdoor leading to the lower levels of the house. They'd barely made it halfway down the steps before gunshots rang out all around them. Apart from the obvious deafening sound the vampires were unaffected and continued their siege. The stairs lead them down to a living quarters of sorts where more snatchers dwelled, hording away from the outside world. Akatsuki knew the man he was after.

"Where's Katashi?" He demanded, naming the owner of the small boy that had kidnapped Zero. The snatcher's clearly knew about vampires and obviously knew that they were about to die in a most inhumane way if they remained tight-lipped. They gave up Katashi's location in a heartbeat.

Akatsuki barged in Katashi's 'room' and had him pinned against the wall within seconds of entering.

"W-what do you want?" the dark haired man spluttered furiously. Kain glared. This? This was Zero's captor? The man was in his twenties and had some physical appeal, but he was weak. No muscle, no strength just a whole heap of attitude.

"Where is he?" Kain hissed dangerously, his eyes black in utter hatred.

"Who?" Akatsuki's grip on the man's throat tightened in a silent threat.

"Where's Ryuu?"

"D-downstairs he's with the b-boy." Akatsuki felt his heart skip a beat. Ryuu was already here, already with someone- was it Zero? Was it someone else? Akatsuki paused. Part of him wished desperately that it was Zero downstairs so that he could finally rescue the hunter, however if it was Zero and Ryuu was with him, who knew what state Zero would be in now.

"He's downstairs" Kain barked flinging Katashi into the arms of a black suit. "I'll deal with you later." He hissed over his shoulder before rushing to the next floor down. Akatsuki could feel his heart pounding in his chest, the rush of adrenaline flowing through his veins. He was close, so close.

Suddenly as they neared the bottom of the stair, Kain caught a whiff of a familiar scent.

"Zero."

Without waiting for the door to even be opened Akatsuki hurled a fire bomb at the door, allowing some of his nervous tension to break free. He strode though the melted hole in the door, fighting to see beyond the remaining smoke. His senses honed in on the occupants of the room.

Zero was defiantly here and he was alive.

So was his captor.

"Akatsuki...?"

Kain literally felt his heart stop. Zero lay naked, covered head to toe in bruises and unhealed cuts. He lay upon a double bed, chained to the headboard by anti-vampire cuffs.

His eyes were empty.

A snarl formed at Kain's lips before he could even try to stop it. Utter rage and hatred pulsed out of him in deep murderous waves.

"Ryuu." He growled venomously as blood lust clouded his vision. Akatsuki felt his men shift nervously beside him, sensitive to the dark pulsating waves that erupted from him. Akatsuki marched forward towards the vile filth that sat up on the bed a hand still fixed between the hunter's legs. Noticing this, Akatsuki's rage grew. He could literally see red.

Someone had touched Zero, Someone had hurt Zero!

Akatsuki wasn't sure when he'd allowed his vampiric side to fully take over, but when he realised it had he was lunging across the room. Clawed hands locked around Ryuu's throat and flung him against the back wall.

"You" Akatsuki hissed. Bewildered eyes met his own. "What do to him?"

"W-wh...-" Ryuu choked out as the hand that grip his throat tightened.

"My pet, what did you do to him?" Akatsuki fangs throbbed painfully. He wanted this man, he wanted to watch, wanted to feel Ryuu's life slip away.

"Y-y-your..-" The expression on Ryuu's face was that of pure terror. Touching a vampire's pet was illegal, but touching a noble ranking pet or higher was forbidden and Ryuu knew it.

"I-I-I-I...-" Akatsuki snarled loudly, his lips curling in distaste at the sound of Ryuu's voice. A powerful man they had called Ryuu, A brave one, a fearful one. Akatsuki snorted, the man didn't know the meaning of the word. Though Akatsuki was all too happy to educate him on the term.

Kain wrenched Ryuu's head to the side, ignoring the screams of protest. In a single movement he had plunged his fangs into the neck bared before him. He bit down and ripped at the skin. A bloodcurdling cry came from his victim and Akatsuki drank it in with sick pleasure.

No one, absolutely no one fucked with him or his belongings.

Kain spat the foul chink of flesh to the ground and returned to the wound. He gouged down, biting again and again, tearing and flesh and bone with his teeth and claws, determined to keep Ryuu alive for as long as possible. Akatsuki drank deep, savoring the blood of his opponent until he finally felt Ryuu's heart beat one last time.

Akatsuki dropped released the body instantly and watched as it dropped, dead weight, to the floor.

Zero.

Akatsuki wiped his mouth on his sleeve and raced over to the terrified hunter. With a well-placed aim, Akatsuki blasted the chains away before pulling the hunter into his arms. The pale, trembling body felt so tiny in his arms as Kain gripped him.

"Zero, it's me." Kain felt the bone-thin fingers grasp his shirt in a death-grip.

"Akatsuki...?"

"That's right- I'm here"

"Akatsuki...?" Kain gripped the boy tighter, fear creeping once again into his heart. The boy in his arms was Zero, he smelled like Zero, had the same hair as Zero, same pale skin as Zero and yet this was not Zero. The real Zero would never address him in such a needy, scared tone that sounded so much like a frightened child, the real Zero would never call him by his name and cling to him so desperately without biting him first, the real Zero would never, ever allow himself to be this vulnerable in front of another- in front of him.

"It's okay Zero, you're safe now. I won't let anyone hurt you ever again." Akatsuki felt the hunter bury himself deeper into the Noble's arms as if he were trying to hide from the world and disappear into the vampire himself.

Zero clung to the noble and pressed closer to the beautiful warmth that was completely different to the cold, forcing hands of his captors.

You came...you came for me...for me.

"Of course I did Zero." Zero only realized he had spoken the words out loud when the noble answered him. He felt warm fingers gently raise his chin so that he now looked into soft amber eyes. "Did you really think I would let you get away so easily?" Zero felt a tear slid softly down his cheek.

Someone had come for him, had come to save him...no one else.

Zero buried his head back into Akatsuki's shirt to hid his tears. Up until this moment nobody had ever cared whether he lived or died. He was an ex-human, an outcast of the human world and filth in the eyes of the vampiric world... and yet...Akatsuki had come for him.

Akatsuki pulled back for a moment, taking off his bloodstained suit jacket and wrapping it around the hunter.

"Come on Zero, let's go home." Strong arms slipped under his knees and wrapped around his shoulders as the hunter suddenly found himself lifted off the bed and carried back out the concreted room.

Zero ducked his head into Kain's neck, unable to face the curious stares of the black suits or the hated glares of the other snatchers. Zero just closed his eyes and breathed in the noble's familiar scent. It didn't take long before the horror of the past week faded to nothingness as waves of blood lust overtook Zero's senses.

Acting on instinct, Zero's fingers began to wrap around Kain's neck unconsciously pulling the noble closer as a soft, needy moan erupted from his throat.

"I know Zero, wait until we're inside the limo." Akasuki murmured softly bowing his head slightly to whisper in the hunter's ear. Akatsuki thanked the black suits for their work and gave specific orders as to what should be done with the snatcher before climbing into his own private limo.

"Home Dorian, now."

"Right away sir." Kain pressed the button for the black, soundproofed screen to slid up. Akatsuki unbuttoned the top of his shirt and quickly pushed it aside.

"Now Zero." The hunter didn't need further encouragement. In a split second he had his lips locked around his original bite mark area and drinking in deep, gratifying gulps. Kain held him there, still cradling the hunter in his arms and over his lap. Akatsuki stroked the hunter's silver hair softly. "Take all you need Zero." The hunter moaned in gratitude and dug his fangs deeper, encouraging a gasp from the noble beneath him.

Zero drank as much as he dared without harming Akatsuki and although his body begged and pleaded for more, Zero forced himself to stop. He'd survived on much less, in much harsher environments, at least he was safe in this one.

Zero licked the wound closed, leaving not one drop of blood before he tucked his head back down to drift peacefully. He was always like this after drinking, happy, hazy, content. This time he felt more safe than ever.

Someone had come for him, someone actually cared whether he lived or died.

Zero cuddled closer to the warmth. His mind focusing on the softness of Akatsuki's shirt, the texture of the leather seats, Akatsuki's expensive cologne and his natural scent underneath of cigarettes and blood wine. He listened to the soft purr of the car and the gentle rhythm of Akatsuki's breath. Zero focused wholeheartedly, using all of his senses of what was happening in that moment to prevent himself from remembering, from thinking about anything at all.

The truth was, Zero felt more scared and more vulnerable than he had ever been. What he felt in this moment was very similar to what he had felt as a child when his parents were murdered before his eyes. Zero felt as if a part of him, a large part of him, a piece of his very soul, had been ripped out and snatched away from him. What very little he had left of himself had been abused, torn at the seams and instead of dying, he'd been forced to go on living with it. The hollow, aching pit in his gut was raw and vast filled with every moment every memory he'd had in that hell hole. Yet instead of facing it, the hunter buried under the layers and layers of what he now clung to for support; Akatsuki's smell, the sound of Akatsuki's breathing, the feel of Akatsuki's warm body encasing him and Akatsuki's sworn promise that he would never let anyone hurt Zero ever again...

Zero was so vulnerable, so terrified of what would happen if he were left to his thoughts, that he was willing to do anything as to kept those memories from the forefront of his mind...including cuddling up to the very vampire he'd plotted to kill for purchasing him as a slave and forcing him into a state of semi-submission.

Zero didn't even want to think about how pathetic he was at that moment.

Okay so I know it's short and I know I made you guys wait like forever for this one.

But HEAR ME OUT!

I had to end it here because in the next part of the story there was no way I could cut it off without it been horribly disjointed. This chapter for me was mainly about kain's side of the story and placing Zero in the needed mindset for the next chapter.

Thankyou so much for all your reviews and a big thanks to those who continue to favorite this story and me as a writer and AN EXTRA BIG THANKS to those who wished me plentiful rest and were concerned for my sanity. I can't tell you how much it means to me that you guys actually give me feedback on what I write good or bad- just no flames okay guys!

Keep reviewing, as I've said so many times before, you guys keep me sane and writing more.

Oh and before I forget, please vote on the poll located on my profile as to what should happen to Hibiki and Katashi!