Entwined

Arrival

Disclaimer: I do not own nor profit from any of the ideas, characters, names, etc that I have used from Vampire Knight. Original characters are all mine of course.

A/N: As usual, review responses for the last chapter can be found in the appropriate post on my review response forum. Thank you for all the encouraging reviews so far! I wrote half of this chapter whilst in L.A. Nothing quite like visiting another country for a good bout of inspiration. :)

I experienced some computer issues when I returned to Sweden and along with the other multi-part fan fiction I started recently, that explains why I didn't get this chapter out until now. I ask for much forgiveness. :P

The chapter is short, but it was a natural place to leave things, and I really didn't want you all to wait too much longer for it. I'll make up for it in the next chapter. :)

Zero shuffled back a few paces, putting some distance between him and Kaname. The pureblood's words from mere moments ago were beginning to sink in. Kaname wanted his blood, and his alone. He wasn't entirely sure what that meant, but the brunette had been right about one thing. He had been completely blind. The signs had been there; the subtle innuendo, the pureblood's slight edginess around him. He just hadn't seen them for what they actually were.

Kaname hadn't made a move to get any closer to Zero, which relieved him somewhat. He was still in control of himself, but he could see that control was wearing very thin. The pureblood's narrowed eyes still sported that deep crimson hue, and it bore no signs of receding any time soon. His lips were pursed together in a thin line, but Zero could see they were trembling ever so slightly.

Abruptly, the ex-human brought a hand to the cuff of his shirt, unbuttoning it and rolling the sleeve up past his elbow. The stubborn pureblood needed some of his blood. If it had been a week ago, the mere thought of complying with such an act would have been absurd. Heck, even a day ago the result would have been the same. Yet now, Zero had come to a realisation. The vampire that stood before him was nothing like the horrifying creature he had believed them all to be. He had weaknesses, he had feelings. He had even gone to the extent to deprive himself of sustenance, to suffer, merely because he knew of Zero's distaste, his fear, of being fed upon. Kaname had done so much for him, even if he had failed to realise it until now. It was about time he returned the favour.

Zero raised his bare arm in front of him. "You want my blood? Here, take it."

To say that he was not afraid would be a lie. Even as Kaname's eyes widened in surprise, tendrils of doubt were beginning to curl into the back of his mind. Before they could take a firm hold, the pureblood was standing directly in front of him, one hand holding his arm lightly to his side. The movement had been too quick for even Zero's enhanced eyesight to follow, and he began to take a step back instinctually, before stopping himself.

"Are you sure?" Kaname's voice was low and slightly hoarse.

"Do it, before I change my mind," Zero hissed, beginning to feel more uncomfortable with his decision by the second.

Kaname slowly and deliberately raised the ex-human's arm, pulling it across his body so that it was level with his lips, never once breaking eye contact. He turned Zero's arm over and brought the wrist close to his mouth.

Zero had thought it would be easier to let Kaname feed on this part of his body, rather than his neck. All the negative memories he associated with feeding had revolved around the area where the tattoo now was. That simple logic was doing nothing to curb the apprehension that was forming a solid lump in his gut, though.

Zero jolted as he felt Kaname's tongue flick against the skin of his wrist. The pureblood had broken eye contact, his focus fully on the offering before him. The ex-human felt another sensation joining the apprehension in his gut. Arousal. What the hell? What kind of sick, twisted person was he? Here he was, about to get bitten, and he was getting off on it?

He suddenly had the urge to pull away, to stop this before it got to a point of no return. Yet, he somehow couldn't tear his eyes from Kaname's tongue gliding along his skin in long graceful strokes, caught up in some kind of rapt awe. The sensation in itself was not unpleasant. He knew this sort of act was to help the blood flow in the intended bite area, to make the vein or artery more accessible. He also knew that because the skin was so thin on the underside of the wrist, this coaxing was completely unnecessary.

As if Kaname had been reading his thoughts, he pulled his tongue away from the ex-human's wrist and curled back his lip, baring his fully extended fangs. Zero tensed in readiness for what would come next. He felt the tips of Kaname's fangs scrape against his skin and had to fight back a renewed urge to jerk away.

The pureblood's grip around his arm tightened, holding him steady just as his fangs penetrated his wrist, sinking in smoothly and deeply. Zero sucked in a deep breath at the sharp pain that shot up his arm. It faded surprisingly fast to be replaced by the strange sensation of his blood being sucked from him. He could tell Kaname was restraining himself. He obviously was in desperate need of his blood, but he wasn't drawing it frantically, instead taking long, slow pulls, which he seemed to savour in his mouth before swallowing. The brunette's eyes had fluttered closed and the expression on his face had smoothed. He looked almost tranquil.

Zero had dreaded the sensations he would feel, thinking all those awful memories from many years before would come flooding back to him. Yet, this time it felt completely different. Apart from the initial penetration, he felt no pain. In fact, it felt rather pleasurable. A warmth had spread from the puncture area up his arm and into his shoulder, like a slow blooming flower.

Kaname was still drawing deep mouthfuls from him and he was beginning to feel a little lightheaded. How much more was he going to take? He had to place a hand on the pureblood's shoulder to stop himself from wavering. Even his breathing was starting to get a little erratic.

Slowly, Kaname opened his eyes, those crimson brown depths staring directly at Zero. He withdrew his fangs from his wrist and proceeded to lick the wounds, tenderly. Zero couldn't fully stifle the gasp that passed his lips at that strange, but pleasant sensation.

A pureblood's saliva had healing properties, and he could feel the puncture wounds beginning to close up.

Takuma had to almost physically stop Aidou from storming into the rear cabin. A few moments before, he had the urge to do so himself, but had restrained himself, putting his trust in the pureblood.

Kaname had been unsettled by something. Knowing that he was craving blood, he was sure Zero had said or done something to anger him. They were on a plane flying at around thirty thousand feet above sea level – the slightest violent outburst could kill them all.

Still, he had appeared to settle down, although the sudden scent of Zero's blood in the air did nothing to assuage his concerns. He glanced at Aidou uneasily, seeing the barely restrained anger on his face.

"Calm down, Aidou," he said soothingly, feeling a little hypocritical.

The other noble spun on him abruptly, seething. "How can you say that?"

Takuma glanced at the door to the rear cabin warily, before returning his attention to Aidou.

"Keep your voice down-" he started, trying to placate the other vampire, but he was interrupted as the compartment door swung open.

Kaname stepped out and both nobles tensed visibly.

"Is there a problem?" the pureblood asked, his voice silky smooth. He looked decidedly calmer than Takuma had seen him for quite some time.

He walked in front of Aidou before he could open his mouth.

"Are you alright, Kaname?" he asked, softly.

The pureblood's eyes slid over to him, gazing at him for a few moments before he replied.

"Yes," he said, simply.

Takuma's eyebrows furrowed together slightly. "And... Zero?"

Kaname's expression darkened briefly. "He's fine."

Was he annoyed that he thought he would harm the ex-human? Or was it something else? He tried to peer behind the pureblood, but he couldn't spot the other vampire in the cabin from his limited view.

"How long until we land?" Kaname's voice brought Takuma's attention back to him.

"Um... about an hour, I believe."

"Good. I don't want to be disturbed until we're making our final approach."

With that said, the brunette turned on his heel, entering the cabin and closing the door behind him.

Takuma blinked at the closed door. Kaname had been rather curt. No doubt, he had been irritated by the fuss he and Aidou had made, but if he had indeed taken some of Zero's blood, as would seem the case, then he would've thought that the pureblood would be back to his usual self. Perhaps something else was bothering him?

He heard Aidou slump into a seat behind him and he turned to look at the noble. He looked relieved, although a little shaken.

"I'll be glad when this business is over with," he muttered.

Takuma was inclined to agree with him.

The rest of the journey was uneventful, except for a slight bout of turbulence as they made their descent towards their destination.

They would be landing in roughly ten minutes, according to the message Takuma had just given Kaname.

The pureblood shifted in his chair, crossing one leg over the other as he gazed at Zero's slumbering form on the small bed. How he had managed to sleep through the turbulence, he wasn't entirely sure. Perhaps he had drained him more than he had realised.

Kaname had taken the lightheaded and unsteady ex-human to the bunk to rest after he had fed from him. By the time he had finished speaking with Takuma and returned to the cabin, Zero had already been sleeping.

It was probably just as well. He knew the atmosphere between them would be a little awkward for a while. Even though Zero had given him his permission, he had felt his intense discomfort when he had been draining him. Blood didn't lie. Though, he wasn't entirely sure if it was the act of being fed upon or something else that had made him uncomfortable.

Initially, he had been taken aback by Zero's offer. He hadn't imagined that he would open up to him so quickly. He had been equally surprised to detect affection towards him in the ex-human's blood. No, affection was perhaps the wrong word. There was a distinct lack of hate or derision there, though. Now, he was beginning to doubt his initial assessment of his motives. Perhaps he wasn't trying to play him after all?

Kaname shook his head. It wasn't like him to second guess himself. He would just see how it panned out, and adjust accordingly.

He tore his gaze away from the ex-human as he heard the plane's landing gear being lowered. He should focus on more pressing matters. Namely, the mess that was the Aera Enterprises situation. He went over the decisions he had made in the past day in his mind, making sure there were no holes in his preparations.

It was relieving to not have the craving for blood incessantly thrumming at him. He could finally focus properly. His eyes slid back over to Zero. He hadn't taken his fill from the ex-human, so he would no doubt need to feed again soon, but he hadn't wanted to harm him in any way or leave him out of commission. His mind drifted back to the pleasant memories. Yes, he was definitely looking forward to feeding again.

Kaname groaned inwardly as he realised he was thinking unnecessary thoughts again. He eyed Zero as if he were to blame. Damn, he was so distracting.

The pureblood's eyes widened slightly as he saw amethyst orbs blink back at him. When had he woken up?

"Feeling better?" came Zero's groggy voice.

Kaname gazed at him for a moment before nodding slowly. "Yes. And you... how are you feeling?"

The ex-human groaned under his breath and buried his face into the pillow. He heard his muffled voice a minute later. "Like crap."

Kaname's expression softened. He felt a little guilty, but he couldn't help the smile that threatened to spread over his lips. He hadn't seen this side of Zero before. He was still sleepy and was practically unguarded.

"It seems I may have taken too much blood from you," he said, by way of explanation.

Zero turned to face him again.

"You think?" he muttered, dryly.

He ignored his sarcasm and cocked his head to one side. "Are you feeling any adverse effects, other than tiredness?"

The ex-human pushed himself to a sitting position, grabbing his head with one hand, his fingers threading into his hair.

"You mean, other than the dizziness, nausea and beginnings of bloodlust? No, I'm absolutely fantastic. Thanks for asking."

Kaname uncrossed his legs with a sigh. "Well, if you're capable of making retorts like that, you can't be feeling that bad."

Zero scowled at him before planting both hands on the bunk and began to push himself to his feet.

"I'd stay seated, if I were you. We're about to land," Kaname suggested.

He glanced at the pureblood, pausing mid-motion, then obviously deciding to heed his advice, slumped back onto the bed.

Silence descended onto the cabin, the two vampires glancing at each other occasionally as they waited for the plane to touch down. Kaname wondered what was going through the ex-human's mind. He seemed to be acting strangely normal.

"So..." Kaname's attention slid back to Zero as he spoke. "What do you expect me to do on this little trip of yours?"

"Keep me company," he replied, smoothly. Zero's eyebrows furrowed together in the start of a frown. "I'll let you know if I need you for anything else, should the situation arise."

The plane jolted as the landing gear met tarmac, interrupting Zero's intended retort. He settled with a grunt and a scowl instead.