Kaito was tired for lack of a better word or expression in his eyes that could possibly say, "I am excited to be outside with some random guy waiting at a train station for my foster mother to visit me." He looked down at his watch to see that it was 11:28 in the morning, and he was oddly impatient with the train. The man next to him at the station was Dylan Nagasaki from a few days ago. He had been waiting at the station for an hour now. Kaito looked up at him for a moment and then viewed his surroundings. This was a private train area within the station. There were three trains directly across from him that had passengers boarding and disembarking from the cars. Fathers carrying their weight with their sons, husbands helping their wives, children with their mother, and playful siblings jabbing at one another. The smoke from the exhaust stacks on the driving cars were blocking out the sun in a faint gray mist, but the sun was in rare, powerful form today. It was actually quite a beautiful day.
When he met his beloved foster mother, Kaasu Nix, it was a gorgeous spring day. Minoru, his former teacher before Toga, was teaching him how to become a vampire hunter like his brother, Taito. At first, he would always cause trouble for Kaasu. He stole her underwear when she hung her laundry to dry, released her horse into the fruit garden, slipped salt into her wines, and wrote on her walls in the bathroom. At the time, he thought that she didn't like him so he wanted to teach her a lesson. When Minoru caught him dumping chocolate, which she was quite allergic to, into her food, his mentor had finally had enough of his pranks and showed him something very important. They followed Kaasu into the city and witnessed a mother scream at her.
"What's a monster like you know about raising children? All you do is murder innocent people! Don't think I don't know about your blood money!"
"Kaito," Minoru called out.
"Huh?" Kaito questioned, looking up at his master. His eyes were wide with shock from the aggression of the mother, but, even though she was screaming at Kaasu, Kaasu showed no signs of fear. In fact, she kept her gaze on the child in the mother's arms.
"I want you to keep your eye on the woman. Do you see what Kaasu is doing in front of her?"
"She's not moving. She's not saying anything at all. Why won't she fight back, sensei?" Kaito asked.
"Because the child is protecting his mother even though he doesn't want to. Look at his arms," Minoru commanded. Kaito looked at the boy and saw that he was actually pushing his mother away from Kaasu while the mother was pulling the boy to her. "I bring you and Taito to Kaasu's home because she can provide for you what my wife can't: a place to belong. Kaasu leaves her house every night to defend humans from uncontrollable vampires. For years, she has been the hardest worker. She sometimes won't return to her house for months or years. Every day, when she goes shopping, this is how she is treated by humans like us. She gets yelled at, pushed away, and beaten for reasons that have nothing to do with her efforts as a vampire hunter. Do you honestly think it's fair for you to treat her the way you do?"
"I'm nothing like that woman!" Kaito snapped.
Minoru silenced the boy when he looked down on him with such an enraged glare that it frightened Kaito. The teacher then looked back at Kaasu and said, "So stealing her belongings, poisoning her food, trashing her home, and disrespecting her is better?"
"No..." Kaito argued, throat burning and head shaking to stop the tears from coming down. "I was just kidding around! I wasn't trying to - "
"Go back to hell, you bitch! Stay away from my child!" the woman shouted, slapping Kaasu across the face.
That strike against Kaasu and the silence Minoru kept changed him. Who was there to trust in this world? Vampires drain your blood and prey on the living, and humans are willing to destroy each other even if they did all they could to protect humanity. Kaito's mentor taught him something quite valuable that spring day: vampire hunters don't win every battle. Some never win. One was destined not to win. Maybe that was why he was so impatient to see Kaasu. Maybe he wanted to prove that he could be trusted and that she didn't have to worry about being abused anymore. He would shop for her and protect her the way she did for him. On that particular spring day, Kaasu went to the shopping district in Aisu to buy him a toy airplane that he wanted and his brother some new clothes. She didn't have to be there. She wanted to be there. Even after he misbehaved, she risked getting things for him just to make him happy - just to give him a place to belong.
Dylan heard the train's horn in the distance and hummed. The blonde walked over to the small control tower of the private station and began pressing buttons to close any routes coming in. A small red train was slowing down as it pulled up next to Kaito. He gulped thickly, heart pounding in his chest, and wafted through the smoky vapors building up at his feet and crawling up to his chest. His legs carried him to the door that was opening. First, a tall, middle-aged man stepped out; next, a shorter male about Dylan's height exited and he was dressed in the superior's cloak; lastly, like a breath of fresh air, his beloved Kaasu came out of the train. He was practically frozen in place! She was elegant, graceful, and almost regal. Her hair was a blend of white and black. She even had a few trace wrinkles along her eyes, but she was still beautiful.
"Kaasu," he whispered.
The woman snapped her head to his voice and opened her eyes in shock. When he stepped towards her, she raised a hand up, felt his warm belly, dragged her hand up to his chest to feel his heartbeat under her palm, and brought it to his face. He could feel her hand shake and see tears creeping down her soft cheeks as she looked into his shirt buttons. Her eyes were silver and white now, so she truly was blind. Kaito wanted to cuss right then. Why was someone so strong and righteous always at the short end of the stick?
"Hi, mom," he said gently, pushing her wavy hair to the side to wipe her tears. "How was the trip?"
"Tocchan!" Kaasu whimpered, embracing Kaito in her arms. "You've gotten so big! What are you doing here?"
Kaito smiled gently at her and said, "I came to see you. Where's Kidateyoi-sensei?"
"He's at home with his family, but he said he'd visit in a few weeks to help with the investigation," Kaasu answered. "This case is very serious. I'm surprised this city managed to get away with it for this long."
"Is it okay to talk about this kind of thing here?" Kaito asked, looking around but seeing no one else close by to eavesdrop.
"This part of the station is private. Only vampire hunters like Superior Delacroix and government officials are allowed to use this area, but the government seems to forget about this spot since they have other means of transportation," Kaasu replied. "We'll talk about this in the car. It's important that we go to the Association."
"Sensei?" Zero called.
He and Kaien had just returned from the President's estate after speaking with the Bookkeeper, and they made a vow to keep quiet about their findings until they were able to speak privately with Toga. Although he became an agent for hire later in life, Toga had rights to know all the details concerning the president just as Zero did. For a moment, Zero began to wonder if his omnipotent mentor knew about the ancient vampire in the president's home or the black blood that the president was trying to obtain. Toga was standing in front of the president's desk while reading a file on someone. It would have been a normal thing for the veteran hunter if he wasn't gritting his teeth with visible anger, making his shoulders tremble and the muscles beneath the blades tense. When Zero got through to his mentor, the veteran suddenly relaxed and seemed like himself again.
"Yeah, Zero?" Toga responded, turning to Zero's voice.
"What are you reading?" Kaien questioned suspiciously.
"A file on the detective Zero hired," Toga answered.
"You're reading your friend's file?" Zero asked, raising an eyebrow. "What's on it that's making you tense?"
"It's a private matter," Toga said, exhaling a ragged breath of fury. "Where's Kaito?"
"On his way now," Kaien replied, walking towards Toga. "We have to talk."
"About what?" Toga inquired, placing the file down and leaning on the desk.
"It'll have to wait until our guest leaves or until we meet someplace in private, but this...whole case goes deeper than we expect," Kaien said.
"That's doesn't sound good."
A voice said from behind the men. Zero already knew who it was when he felt a light pat on his shoulder and was greeted with a smirking Kaito. He sure was in a good mood today. Kaito was dressed in a white long-sleeved shirt and black coat with red pants and black dress shoes. Zero guessed he may have come from a date. It was a little after noon, but Kaito never really dressed up for dates yet he was really dressed up in fancy attire today. The fact that he was smiling shocked Kaien and threw Toga for a loop. While Zero was surprised by the new burst of joy, he also became very suspicious of the reasoning behind it.
"Before you ask about my pudding face, Cross-san, Kiryuu-san, Yagari-sensei," Kaito called, going behind the door to pull someone inside of the room, and continued in a soft voice, "I'd like you to meet someone."
Zero's eyes widened at the woman before him. Toga and Kaien had less of a surprised reaction but were silently curious about Kaito's new arm trophy. If this woman was his girlfriend, they were rather impressed. She was strikingly beautiful! Her skin was fresh and a light tan in color, and her hair was a gorgeous moon-like color, even down to the patches of faded black that resembled the lunar shadows that cascaded down to her hips. If Toga or Kaien said or thought anything about her body, they'd be in trouble so Zero was free to think that her body was pleasantly curved and shaped very well in the green dress she wore. For a moment, Zero thought that Kaito scored some hot rich girl. For a moment, Toga and Kaien almost called Kaito a lucky bastard. Their only concern with the woman would probably be her age because of the cane. While she looked young, she needed support to walk and her eyes were closed which could mean her sight is failing if it hadn't already.
This woman... Zero thought. Who is she?
Superior Delacroix, Dylan Nagasaki, and Guillame were trickling inside after the white-haired beauty was brought closer to the desk. When Dylan was about to pull Kaito back, Delacroix stopped him and watched as Kaito led Kaasu straight to Toga. The blue-eyed hunter began to feel something familiar about the woman as she was brought closer to him. There was something about her lips that woke little memories in his mind, something about the waves and curls in her hair that made his hands twitch and ball into fists, and something about the way she stood before him with her eyes closed that made him remember his training days with...
"Officer Nix, do you know who you're standing in front of?" Delacroix asked, relishing Toga's reaction.
This woman is...? Zero thought, staring widely at the woman. My master's friend? Nix Kaasu-sensei?
Everything in him froze. He didn't breathe. He didn't speak. He didn't blink. He just remained absolutely still. This woman was his... kouhai, rival, childhood love interest, nurse, teacher? What could he possibly call his beloved friend? Toga swallowed thickly, trying to push the frog down his throat, and hesitantly reached his hands out to touch Kaasu's face. He hadn't seen her in years, but she suddenly became this gorgeous, fragile, yet mature woman. His arms were so heavy that they trembled just to hold themselves up!
"Your name..." Zero started, licking his lips, "is it...Kaasu Nix?"
The woman turned to Zero's voice and parted her lips. There was something strange about the boy on the side near her. How did he come across her name? Ignoring her thoughts, Kaasu said, "Yes, it is. Forgive me for not greeting you at the door. That was very rude of me. I am usually better at sensing another's presence, but age makes fools of us all it seems. Are you Kiryuu-san? The one who hired me for this mission?"
"Yes, I am Zero Kiryuu."
Kaasu bowed low before Zero to show her respect for him and then reached a hand out for a shake. Zero walked towards the woman and took her hand gently, feeling that the slightest touch might distort her. It was a good thing he didn't shake her hand so firmly. Her skin was incredibly soft with minor callouses along the fingers where years of hunting vampires might have caught up with her. It was hard to imagine such a delicate flower ever wielding a gun or sword to kill vampires. Nevertheless, Zero was surprisingly interested in Kaasu and her sweet smile. When he turned to look at Toga, he saw his own master playing with his fingers and shifting his weight in such a nervous tension that he looked almost like a child. Toga was never seen in that sort of position! It almost scared Zero senseless as he directed the woman back towards him.
"I was hoping to meet you because you know my mentor," Zero said, erasing Kaasu's smile. "Yagari Toga-sensei."
Kaasu was silenced from that point on, earning a small chuckle from Delacroix. She opened her eyes by a fraction and scoffed. Suddenly, she made a very interesting face that contradicted the elegant woman Zero was staring at a moment ago. Her lips showed a very shrewd smirk and her eyes became strangely cat-like; in fact, she developed cat ears and a long white tail to show that she could be rather mischievous if you let her. For a moment... Zero did.
She then said, "I know several things about your mentor when he was younger. If you want dirt, you'll have to wait when we're not trapped in this business ordeal."
The men escorting the lovely Kaasu Nix all grinned in unison because they all seemed to have dirt on the blue-eyed veteran. Toga was silent and remembered quite well why he appointed Kaasu as his rival at first. He walked up to her, gaining her attention, and looked down on her frame. When he finally cupped the woman's face in his hands - startled that he frightened her - and pressed his forehead against hers in a familiar, loving gesture, he whispered to her in one of the softest, happiest voices he had ever produced.
"My little librarian."
She placed a stretched hand over her mouth and backed away from him in a hunched over position as though she were cowering from him in suspicion. Her hair was standing straight up like the ends of a crown, and her face somehow turned blue. Zero's eyebrow twitched even more. Kaasu looked like an accusing white cat. He thought he saw pointed ears and a tail wiggling on her body for a moment, but he was sure it was just his imagination.
Kaasu stood straight but her head drooped down. She turned to Guillame, head still bowed, and said, "I'm a failure..."
"Madame, you are no failure," Guillame said, smiling gently. "You simply thought Master Yagari was not in the room. It has been some time since you've been in his presence."
"That's not what I meant," Kaasu said, turning to Zero. "I just thought you would be interested in hearing some of the worst moments I've had with this douchebag of a man who picks on people!"
"I pick on people?" Toga questioned, furrowing his eyebrows.
"You picked on me every day!" Kaasu argued.
Every day? Zero thought, tilting his head to the side slightly.
Damn, Miss Nix was gorgeous even when she was upset with his mentor. She was a curvatious woman and looked very young. A diamond rose necklace sat between the line of her breasts and glimmered in the office lights; also, diamond rose earrings were hanging from silver briars in her ears. She had a dark green silk ribbon with a diamond rose on the side of it in her hair that tied most of her hair up in a ponytail but left the rest hanging about to frame her small face. Zero's face began to heat up a bit when Kaito nudged his elbow.
Zero turned to a smirking Kaito and asked quietly, "What exactly is this woman to you and Yagari-sensei?"
"She means a lot to me," Kaito said, looking at the woman arguing with Toga. "Without her, I probably would be dead from being killed or killing myself."
"Are you in love with her?" Zero asked, surprised at the intimacy Kaito had just shared.
"No, I'm too young for her. Plus, she's like a mother to me. I think Yagari-sensei is the one you should ask about that," Kaito answered.
