Disclaimer: Matsuri Hino owns VK.

"Are you coming to class, Hisana?"

"No."

"Why not?" Shindo asked, taking a seat on the side of her bed.

"Feel fucking awful," Hisana croaked. "My throat is on fire. Shouldn't have patrolled in the rain the other night."

"Yeah, well, strep is going around campus," Shindo replied. "You should go to the nurse. Maybe you have the kissing disease~?"

"You've gotta be kissing someone in order to get that if I recall right," Hisana grumbled, pulling her blanket to her chin. "Can you get me some water please?"

Shindo rolled her eyes but did as she asked, setting the glass on the bedside table. "I'll let the teachers know you won't be in."

"Thanks," the huntress said weakly. Shindo gave her a pitying look, gathering her books for the day before exiting their dorm.

Hisana rolled onto her side with a groan, reaching for the glass and taking a swallow, wincing in pain. "This sucks."

She set the glass down, dragging herself out of bed to her wardrobe. She couldn't really afford to miss class but it felt like she was swallowing broken glass with every drink of water.

"Sooner you get to the nurse, sooner you can get back in bed," she sighed, pulling on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Hisana knelt before her trunk of hunter goodies, withdrawing a shoulder holster and her Beretta PX4 Storm Compact, affectionately nicknamed 'Thorn'. Since she wasn't wearing a skirt she couldn't tote her knives around; she would have to rely on her handgun if anything were to happen.

Not that she expected anything to go wrong but it was better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it…

Checking the clip and making sure the safety was on she tucked it into her holster, grabbing a jacket from her wardrobe to conceal it.

Once she was properly attired Hisana slipped her sneakers on, lacing them up with a sigh. When she was done with the nurse she would head to see the Chairman. If nothing else he could make her some scrambled eggs for breakfast.

"You have strep."

"Great."

"And a double ear infection."

"Great."

"You'll be alright. You're not contagious after you've been on antibiotics for 24 hours," the nurse explained, fussing around in one of the medication cabinets.

"Great," Hisana said flatly once more, glaring down at her shoes.

"Any allergies to any medications?"

"No."

"Some penicillin should do the trick. I imagine you'll be 100% in the next day or two," she explained, retrieving a bottle. "One three times a day for 10 days. Take it with food."

"Yes ma'am," Hisana grumbled, accepting the bottle from the nurse with a grimace.

"Try some salt water gargles. I also have some throat lozenges you can have," she said, grabbing a handful from a jar on the counter.

"Thank you," Hisana sighed, wincing as she did so. "Can I have a note for class?"

"Yes. I'll send it to your homeroom teacher. Go get some rest."

"Definitely will," she replied, hopping off the stretcher, exiting the clinic.

"I need a haircut."

"I think you look adorable with longer hair."

"I don't think so," Hisana sighed, pulling her hair out of her face into a ponytail as she picked up her fork again.

"So no class for you?" Kaien asked, taking a seat at the table with a mug of coffee.

"Nope. Running around in the rain the other night got me sick," Hisana said, wincing when she took a sip of orange juice before digging into her omelet. "Thanks for making me food by the way."

"Oh, no problem. Anything for my darling daughter."

"I'm not your daughter."

"You may as well be at this point," Kaien shrugged, pulling his shawl around his shoulders as he gave her a smile.

Hisana hated how she blushed at those words, lowering her gaze to her plate, pushing a piece of sausage around with her fork.

"How do you feel about Zero remaining in the Day Class?" he asked suddenly.

"What do you mean? I'm happy he's still in the Day Class-."

"You know the risks associated with having him around the other students."

"Yeah, and you know good and well I would never let anything happen to the other students," she bit out angrily.

"So if it came down to it you'd be able to pull the trigger?" Hisana opened her mouth to reply and was dismayed when she found herself unable to answer him. "That's what I thought. That's the reason why I gave Yuuki that bracelet, in addition to it being Kaname's request."

"I understand-."

"No, I honestly don't think you do," he interrupted her. "But hopefully you will eventually."

Hisana remained silent, setting her fork down, having lost her appetite.

"Anyways, would you like to run some errands for me since you're playing hooky?"

"I'm not playing hooky-."

Kaien waved his hand dismissively, glancing at the clock on the wall. "Should be just about time. Let's go."

"Time for what…?"

"This is so great! I can't believe the Chairman sent us on an errand run," Yuuki said, turning to smile at Hisana and Zero as they headed into town. "This is fun."

"Not really," he muttered moodily though the brunette simply ignored him, taking in her surroundings.

"You're just upset you're the pack mule," Hisana chuckled, shoving her hands into the pockets of her jeans.

"If you have energy to crack jokes, you have enough energy to carry some of this stuff," he replied though Hisana simply grinned, waltzing past him.

"And you would do that to someone as ill as me?" she ribbed him playfully, following Yuuki around the small market.

It was almost like old times. For a moment she felt like everything was normal again but then she saw the bracelet on Yuuki's wrist glitter in the waning sunlight and she was brought back down to earth again.

"How about this one for Zero?" she heard Yuuki say. The brunette was examining a brown jacket.

"Nah, he's got a lot of jackets like that. He needs something with a bit of color," Hisana said, beginning to rifle through the clothing.

"Are you two done yet?" they heard Zero ask tiredly.

Hisana waved her hand dismissively, shushing him as she returned to perusing the hangers.

"Look Hisana! This is totally something you would wear!" she heard Yuuki exclaim excitedly. Hisana looked up, seeing Yuuki holding a cream-colored dress with a red floral design and a matching sweater.

"Um, have you seen my wardrobe?" Hisana snorted, rolling her eyes.

"W-well, what do you think Zero? Wouldn't Hisana look adorable in this?" Yuuki turned her attention to the tallest member of their group. Hisana glanced over her shoulder, surprised to see a bit of pink coloring Zero's cheeks.

"I don't know," he grumbled, flushing darker when he realized Hisana was staring at him. "Let's just go."

"Aw, Zero. You're no fun," Yuuki pouted, hanging the dress back up before pulling a jacket from the rack. "Alright Hisana, what about this one?"

"Now that I like," Hisana said with a nod of approval. It was red with black trim, flaring out tastefully at the waist down to the knees with bell sleeves. "That's super cute, but I don't need another jacket."

"But Hisana-."

"No Yuuki," Hisana said firmly, eliciting a pout from the smaller prefect.

"Fine," she pouted, hanging it back on the rack. "Let's go grab some ice cream. It'll help your throat feel better."

"I don't need an excuse to eat ice cream but I can accept," Hisana grinned as they looped their arms together and headed off to a small café.

"This place has really good parfaits. I came here with Yori the other day," Yuuki said after the waitress brought their orders.

"I wanted to eat ramen," Zero muttered, taking a sip of his coffee.

Yuuki blushed at his words but shrugged it off as she began eating. Hisana gave him a look, sipping on her milkshake.

"So, Zero-," Yuuki began. "Do you know that new teacher?"

"What new teacher?" Hisana asked, looking between the pair.

"We have a new ethics teacher."

"I-well-he-," Zero stammered, looking down at his lap with a pained expression.

"You don't have to answer me if you don't want to. He just seems really scary."

"He's not. He's actually-," Zero wasn't able to finish as he was interrupted by their waitress.

"Excuse me-," the trio looked up at the sound of the high-pitched voice of their waitress. "Are you a member of the Night Class of Cross Academy?"

Yuuki gave Zero a worried look but Zero remained silent, shocked that he was just asked that.

"I knew it right away. You're different from the others. There's a boy there named Aido, right? He likes to come in and have sweets."

Hisana drank her shake, wishing the floor would open up and swallow them whole. The waitress seemed unfazed by the fact that they were all uncomfortable with her presence. Zero began gathering the shopping, standing up.

"I'll wait for you outside," he muttered, not sparing a glance at the waitress as he exited the café.

"D-did I say something wrong?" she asked, a worried look on her face. Yuuki gave her an apologetic smile but Hisana simply rolled her eyes.

"Do you want me to answer that-ouch!" Hisana hissed when Yuuki landed a hard kick to her shin.

"He's not in the Night Class," Yuuki said. Hisana rolled her eyes but remained silent.

"O-oh. Okay. Well, um, I suppose I'll just have to wait for him to come in again. Thank you."

"Wouldn't bet on it," Hisana muttered to the waitress's retreating back as she finished her shake. "Go wait with Zero. I'll pay for our stuff." Yuuki nodded, exiting the café.

After paying Hisana walked outside, groaning in annoyance when she realized neither Yuuki nor Zero were around. The shopping they had done was sprawled across the ground and Hisana knelt, gathering as much as she could.

"Oh crap," she swore, suddenly aware of a faint vampiric aura. Hisana lurched to her feet, running towards it.

She stopped at the entrance to an alleyway, dropping the shopping onto the ground when she saw Yuuki, Artemis Rod in hand, staring down a vampire.

She moved on autopilot, fluidly withdrawing her gun from its holster, thumbing the safety off as she raised it towards the vampire. He merely smirked, inhaling deeply, a satisfied sigh escaping his lips.

"Your blood smells so nice. Let me drink it all!" He lunged for Yuuki who seemed to be frozen in fear. Hisana grit her teeth, not confident in her ability to hit the vampire without hitting Yuuki too. There was a reason she used knives; she was a close-quarters fighter. The only reason she ever handled a gun was because He trained her to. Once He vanished from her life she didn't bother picking up a gun unless she was shooting on the range with Zero.

Sure the bullet wouldn't kill her but it would still hurt like a son of a bitch and Hisana would feel awful if she injured Yuuki*.

A blur shot by her and Hisana spun around reflexively though she lowered her gun when she realized it was Zero. He was standing with his chest against Yuuki's back, gripping the Artemis Rod.

Electricity sparked around his hands and he looked down at it. "Guess it doesn't like me handling it," he murmured, looking up at the Level E.

"Zero, move," Hisana said calmly. He did so, allowing Hisana to take a shot at the vampire who easily evaded the anti-vampire round. "Oh, shit-."

The Level E leapt over Zero and Yuuki, landing behind Hisana. A grunt of pain escaped her lips when she felt him plant a foot in her lower back, sending her sprawling for a moment. She flipped nimbly to her feet, getting ready to shoot him again before seeing the vampire split neatly into two halves.

It screamed in agony, bursting into dust. Hisana raised a hand, shielding her eyes for a moment before hearing Yuuki gasp. Squinting a bit, Hisana couldn't help but feel relieved when she recognized the Night Class students before her.

"Ichijo-senpai…Shiki-senpai," Yuuki stared at them, confused.

"All done," Takuma said, sheathing his katana.

"You didn't even need my help," Shiki muttered, sounding disappointed.

"You have impeccable timing, senpai," Hisana sighed, holstering her gun. "Thank you."

"My pleasure, Hisana-kun," Takuma said, giving her a warm smile. Hisana blushed a bit before hearing an irritated growl elicit form Zero.

Hisana turned, seeing he was glaring at Takuma though Takuma was unfazed by the show of aggression. "What are you doing here?" Zero asked.

Takuma's smile became much more mischievous at those words. "If you're curious, come to the Moon Dorms later tonight. I'll tell you why we dealt with the Level E."

They stared at the pair as they walked away.

"Uh, what just happened?" Yuuki broke the silence after a few moments, stowing Artemis under her skirt once more.

"That's a damn good question," Hisana sighed, resting a hand on her hip.

"The Night Class would never leave the Academy to hunt down some Level E's so why now?"

"I know one thing. They didn't do so of their own accord. Someone gave them an order," Hisana stated. "And I have a pretty good idea of who gave it to them…"

Later that evening Hisana decided to humor Ichijo and go to the Moon Dorms. She went prepared, taking her handgun in addition to her knives. She finished up her first half of patrol and started towards the dorms. However, upon reaching the gate she realized a certain silver-haired teen was leaning against a nearby tree. His arms were folded over his chest and he fixed her with a hard look.

"Figured you'd be here. Let me guess, Yuuki isn't far behind you?"

"Why would you think that-?" Hisana trailed off, hearing soft footsteps on the sidewalk behind her. She turned, seeing Yuuki give her sheepish smile and small wave.

"Uh, hi guys?"

Hisana dragged her hands over her face in disbelief, lacing her fingers behind her neck. "Well then, I guess we should get going Yuuki."

"I'm going too."

Hisana arched a brow. "You're meaning to tell me that you actually want to be in a place surrounded by vampires?"

He didn't respond, instead rolling his eyes and pushing himself away from the tree. "Let's get this over with."

"If you say so," Yuuki grinned nervously, falling into step alongside him, leaving Hisana to bring up the rear.

After a small scare courtesy of Aido and Kain, the trio found themselves escorted to a common area on the dormitory grounds. Hisana inhaled deeply to settle her nerves, consciously reminding herself that vampire students had vampire parents that would be very displeased if their child were to go 'poof' at boarding school.

It seemed as though they were having a party of sorts. Lights were strung around the courtyard, soft music was playing, and she could see punch and sweets laid out.

Odd.

"Welcome Yuuki, Kiryuu, and Hisana-kun! Tonight's my birthday! Please enjoy yourselves."

Hisana grabbed for the back of Zero's jacket, hearing him growl lowly in annoyance as Yuuki laughed nervously.

"S-so, h-how old are you Ichijo-senpai?"

"I'm 18 now, all grown up. For my present, I'll take a kiss from Hisana-kun," he shot her a megawatt grin, sidling closer to her.

Hisana was both pleased and surprised she didn't blush from her chin to her hairline. "We're here on business Ichijo-senpai. We came because we wanted to know what happened today."

"Yes. Why did you destroy the Level E? You're vampires as well so…why?" Yuuki asked.

"Oh, don't lump us in with them. We're hardly the same," they heard Aido say snootily from somewhere behind them. He went ignored by the prefects though Hisana noticed Zero stiffen at his words.

"Picture the vampire heiarchy like a pyramid. The vampire society is ruled by several purebloods and a handful of nobles. Everyone in the Night Class are ranked noble or higher. Below them are the common vampires, also referred to as Level C's. Below them are vampires who were once human-."

"And then there are those who fall outside the pyramid, Level E's," Shiki finished Takuma's sentence. "The vampires who were once human ultimately degenerate into Level E; the end."

"See, we're totally different from vampires who were humans," Aido said once more. The face of the young Level E she had fought a few days earlier flashed through her head at his words and she spun around to face him, gritting her teeth and balling her hands into fists.

"It's not like they chose to become a vampire. It's because of your kind that some humans have to suffer such an awful fate. Purebloods are the ones responsible for creating former humans. If you did a better job controlling your 'elites' then maybe-."

"Hisana," Ichijo said evenly, getting her attention. "Please calm yourself-."

"Don't tell me to calm down-," Hisana snapped before feeling a hand on her shoulder. Glancing out the corner of her eye she realized it was Zero. He shook his head minutely at her, signaling for her to stand down. She inhaled shakily, attempting to settle her rattled nerves and obediently shut her mouth.

"Anyway, that's why we must oversee them. Before they reach the point where they will attack others indiscriminately. I know you understand that, being a vampire hunter, Hisana."

"But that doesn't answer our question on why you two decided to kill that Level E-."

"It's because I ordered it."

The trio turned in unison to face none other than Kaname Kuran. Yuuki's face brightened at the sight of him though Hisana remained impassive.

"I'm surprised that you would come to such a dangerous place Yuuki…but I'm more surprised to see you here, Kaguya-kun. I didn't think you would want to be in a place like this."

Hisana refrained from smarting off and instead gave him a tight-lipped smile. "Well, I couldn't very well leave Yuuki all alone, could I?"

Kaname frowned but said nothing more, instead turning away, heading for a more secluded area of the party. "Please, follow me Yuuki, Kiryuu…Kaguya."

Hisana shared a look with Zero but they followed him nonetheless. Kaname took a seat on a couch beneath a small pavilion, leaning back against it. "Will you come sit with me, Yuuki?"

She heard Yuuki gasp softly, immediately looking to her for support. The huntress exhaled sharply through her nose but gave her a nod. Yuuki hesitantly sat beside Kaname, leaving space between them though Kaname simply wrapped an arm around her shoulder, pulling her against his side, causing her to blush once more.

"Beside me is the safest place you can be," he said loud enough for the two teenage hunters to hear. Hisana frowned, folding her arms over her chest as she went to lean against a nearby railing beside Zero.

She swept her gaze over the party, hearing Kaname tell Yuuki about how vampires came into existence and the purebloods 'duty' to oversee former humans.

"It's the duty of vampire hunters to hunt vampires," Zero said suddenly, giving Kaname a hard look.

Kaname tilted his head to the side, lips curving into a small mocking smile. "Then why didn't you kill the Level E first?" Hisana's lips twisted into a snarl at his words. "Did you perhaps sympathize with him-?"

She barely had time to react.

Zero had Bloody Rose in hand pointed at Kaname's head, Seiren (the pureblood's bodyguard) had her sharp nails against Zero's throat, and Hisana had a knife pressed against the soft flesh of Seiren's cheek. A bead of blood appeared on the blade though Seiren didn't react.

"It's alright Seiren. I said something I shouldn't have." Seiren regarded him with a look before bowing her head and lowering her hand. Zero holstered his handgun and Hisana stowed her knife away once more.

"Pointing a gun at Kaname-sama…tearing you limb from limb is too good of a punishment. Luckily for you, I won't do that so long as we are in this academy. I don't want to shatter the Chairman's ideas of peace. But you mustn't forget the entire reason us vampires are here is solely due to the presence of the pureblood, Kaname-sama," Aido hissed at Zero.

Zero ignored him, turning from Kaname and moved back towards the railing.

"You're a pureblood…?" they heard Yuuki ask.

"Is this the first time you've heard this?" she nodded slowly, fisting her hands in the fabric of her skirt, a nervous habit she had. "Are you afraid?"

"W-well, I've always been a little afraid of you, just a little though," she muttered. Kaname frowned slightly at her words.

"Hey guys! Don't forget this is my birthday party!" Takuma exclaimed, clapping his hands. "You've all got to celebrate. Yuuki, Zero, and Hisana are my precious guests too."

The aristocrats present murmured amongst themselves before flocking away from the prefects and Kaname. Music filled the air and the tense atmosphere began melting away slowly.

Hisana leaned against the railing beside Zero, dutifully observing the vampires while Yuuki kept glancing over at Kaname almost nervously.

"Hisana-," she looked up at the sound of her name, seeing Takuma holding a plate. "Here. For you."

"I don't really like sweets but thank you," she said. Takuma pouted a bit at those words.

"But it's strawberry shortcake. Everyone likes strawberry shortcake," he whined.

Hisana fought the urge to roll her eyes and took the plate if only to pacify the noble in front of her. She took a small bite, the taste of strawberries exploding on her tongue. It was almost too sweet though she choked it down with a smile. "Thank you, senpai."

He seemed pleased with her response and meandered back over to the comically large cake. Hisana took the opportunity to set it down on a nearby waiter's tray, wiping her hands on her skirt before hearing Zero inhale sharply.

"What is it-?" she began to say though he ran past her down the sidewalk. "What-?" Hisana turned her attention to Takuma, seeing Shiki lapping up blood that had spilt down the blonde's hand.

Her nose wrinkled in disgust and she turned away, only to realize that Yuuki had decided to make herself scarce as well.

Hisana pushed herself off the railing, catching sight of Yuuki's retreating back. As she made to follow the slighter teen, she felt a hand grasp her wrist.

"Hisana-kun. You should dance with me," Takuma smiled, pulling her flush against his body.

"N-no thanks," she declined, wiggling out of his grasp. "Have to get back to work."

With that, Hisana took off down the sidewalk in search of her partners.

"You're really just gonna let her go like that?" Takuma heard Shiki ask.

"I would never force her to stay where she doesn't feel welcome," Takuma replied after a moment, accepting a glass of tablet water from the younger noble.

"Is this that whole 'if you love someone, set them free' thing?" Shiki asked. Takuma forced down a blush at those words. "You're playing with fire, Ichijo."

Takuma's lips curved into a slight smirk, lifting his glass to his lips and took a drink before replying.

"Yes, well, there is a certain…charm…about the forbidden which makes it unspeakably desirable, after all," he told Shiki, pitching his voice just loud enough to carry over to where Kaname was sitting.

The pureblood didn't react though Takuma didn't miss the way his eyes narrowed a fraction at his words.

'You of all people should know that well enough, Kaname…' he thought to himself.

"Where did you guys go!?" Hisana seethed angrily, skidding to a stop when she spotted Zero's blazer lying on the ground. Blood tablets were scattered around the fabric and she felt her stomach knot painfully. "Don't tell me he can't-."

A crack like a gunshot tore through the air, eliciting a sharp gasp from the huntress. Hisana lurched forward, racing towards the swimming pool.

She saw Zero and Yuuki in the water with a tall figure standing on the lip of the pool, wearing a long coat and a brown hat, toting a shotgun in his left hand. Blood was pouring from a wound in Zero's shoulder and Yuuki looked absolutely terrified.

What the hell is a hunter doing here…?

"Even if it's just a graze, the pain is excruciating, isn't it?" the hunter commented almost casually. "That's because the bullet has an anti-vampire spell etched into it."

Hisana withdrew Thorn from its holster beneath her arm, a well-placed shot knocking the hunter's hat clean off his head but he didn't even flinch.

"What is your business here, hunter?" Hisana all-but snarled.

"Ah, the third guardian, eh? Spunky little thing, aren't you?" he chuckled, taking a drag of his cigarette. "Sunshine mixed with a little hurricane."

Her heart dropped at those words and she tasted bile on the back of her tongue.

It can't be…I thought he was…Kaien said he was…

"Your grip is awful, girl. Who taught you how to hold a gun?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder at her, pale blue eyes meeting stormy gray.

She swallowed thickly, throat tightening painfully in that way that told her she was seconds away from crying.

"If I remember properly, you did…Father…"

Ohh shit! Plot time! I've had this chapter planned since I started writing this. Like I said last time, more Takuma/Hisana moments will be coming up, especially in the next two or three chapters. Just have to get some Main Story Plot out of the way. Love you all.

*Taking creative liberties that bullets that come from anti-vampire guns are still bullets, even if they are magical ones. Hence they can still harm humans if they're hit by them.