*Oh Gods! Why don't I own Fairy Tail or Vampire Knight? Why!
General POV
The next night, Lucy felt lighter than she had since Takuma's birthday party. The hunters hadn't stormed the dorm to kidnap or kill her, Takuma's grandfather hadn't ordered them to break up, and she was still living with her friends in the Moon Dormitory. At that moment, all seemed right with the world and she was determined to enjoy it as much as she could before the next inevitable disaster came about.
As they left the dorm that night, Lucy was just as animated as Aidou usually was while still holding onto her boyfriend's hand. The Day Class boys and girls still refused to accept their relationship, but were not hostel about it. The girls would glare at her with jealousy and envy while the boys would send the same kind of glares at Takuma but look longingly at her. It was almost entertaining.
Not long after they got to class, Zero was there to see her. Though she hadn't had a chance to speak with him in days, she could tell that he was more collected than before. She hoped that meant he was taking the blood tablets and had control over his hunger.
"Hi, Zero!" She greeted him in her usual cheery fashion, all the while hoping that she wasn't over-doing it. Since he was doing better, she didn't want to let on that she knew about him being a vampire.
"The Headmaster wants to speak with you about something before you begin tonight," he told her.
"Sure," she smiled as she began to skip past him. As the door closed behind her, she was surprised to find that Zero was walking along with her. "You don't have to escort me if you don't want to. I promise I won't get lost."
"I was told to that he wanted to speak with me after he was done talking to you," he said without even looking at her.
As Lucy continued to walk with him, she realized that she wasn't scared of him the way she had been scared of the others when she had first arrived at Cross Academy. She couldn't say specifically why that was, but was sure that it had something to do with the fact that he had been forced into his predicament against his will. Plus, he just struck her as someone that she could rely on... Strange, considering that he had lost control and attacked Yuuki. But then, Aidou had also attacked Yuuki and she trusted him. And Hikaru had attacked her and she trusted him with her life.
"You know, Zero, I'm glad to see and talk to you again," she said before she could stop herself. "I miss having lunch with you and Yuuki, I think we should start doing that again. And I know that it was almost always us girls doing all the talking, but I liked hearing your opinions in the mix. If I made lunch for us next Monday, would you come?"
He closed his eyes and suppressed a grimace. "I don't see why we should. You made your choice when you and Takuma-"
"That's not fair, Zero!" She snapped at him as she grabbed his sleeve and pulled him to a stop, forcing him to look at her. "There was a reason I decided to be with Takuma, and that was your hatred towards vampires!"
He wanted say something, but she didn't give him chance.
"It's not like I don't understand why you hate vampires. You're a hunter, so you're meant to kill them." She couldn't help but look away from him as she continued to speak. "But I can tell there's more to your hate than just being a hunter, something personal. You haven't told me about it and I promise I won't hound you about it either. But you have to realize that I live with vampires, most of my friends are vampires, and I doubt that's going to change any time soon. And to have a boyfriend who hates my friends..." she shook her head, "it would have made everyone uncomfortable."
Zero couldn't help but stare at her in shock, He wanted to deny her reasoning and insist that he was the better choice, but she was right. He hated that she hung out with vampires, but she had such a big heart that it didn't bother her in the least. If they were in a relationship right now, he'd make her feel guilty and she'd make him angry.
"And I'm not saying that I'm going to be with Takuma forever either," she told him as she felt her cheeks heat up. "We're in a relationship right now, but that might change in the future. So, if you want a chance with me, you need to be my friend and accept that I'm friends with vampires. I don't expect you to be like Yuuki or the Headmaster, but a few less glares would be nice. Besides," she smiled up at him, "you're cute when you smile."
Unable to help himself, he did smile at her a bit before gently pulling his sleeve from her grip and turned to continue walking to the Headmaster's office.
Lucy smiled at him as she jogged a few steps to catch up with him. "So... should I be expecting all three of us for lunch on Monday?"
"Fine."
Not wanting to press her luck, she didn't say anything but continued to smile. When they arrived at the Headmaster's office, it felt as though she had bridged the gap that had been forming between them since St. Xocolatl Day.
"Hi, Headmaster Cross," she said in a cheerful voice as she stepped into the office. "What can I do for you tonight."
When he hesitated to answer her, she knew it was something important. Her smile faded as she waited for him to respond. "As I'm sure you've guessed, Yaguri has reported you to the Hunter's Association and they are quite curious about you. I've been attempting to placate them, but they refuse to let up and have insisted upon meeting you in person."
"Do you think they would force her to leave the academy?" Zero asked.
"At this point, I have no idea," Cross told them. "She does have Kaname Kuran on her side, so that will help, but they had demanded that she go to headquarters tomorrow to meet with them so they can do a proper assessment."
"How do we know that they won't use that as an excuse to lock her up?"
"We don't, but since I am listed as her guardian, I will be accompanying her." Cross tilted his glasses down to look at Lucy.
She had remained quiet during the whole exchange since she'd had no idea how to respond. But as she looked at him now, she couldn't help but pause when she noticed how serious and focused the man's eyes had become. I don't know what it is, but he suddenly reminds me of Erza or Mira when they're preparing for a serious fight. Maybe... Headmaster Cross used to be a hunter with the Association.
"Whatever your plans are for tomorrow, you will need to cancel them," he instructed her. "It is for the best that we play along with them for now and make our move when the time is right."
"Understood," she nodded. Damn it, I'll have to cancel the photoshoot with Rima and Senri. Well, it wasn't an important one so I shouldn't get in too much trouble.
"What's going to be your game-plan?" Asked Zero.
The three of them were quiet for a few moments before Lucy spoke. "Since they know I'm different and that I carry a weapon, I should probably tell them what I am and how I can use my whip. But unless they specifically ask about my keys, I'll keep that information to myself. That should satisfy their curiosity a bit, right?"
"I believe it will, but they might also want to see you in action against some Level E vampires," Zero told her, causing a chill to rush down her spine.
"Oh, I don't think they'll go that far," the headmaster interjected in his usual manner. "If anything, they'll probably just have her spar against one of the other hunters."
The meeting quickly wound down from there and Lucy excused herself so Zero and the Headmaster could have their own meeting. By the time she got to class, she had calmed down and was able to tell Hikaru, Takuma, and Lord Kaname what was going. None of them seemed happy with the situation and Hikaru even protested the whole thing, saying that the hunters had no right to demand such things and insisted that he accompany her as well. It was probably the most vocal he had ever been around her. It took Lord Kaname and Lucy both to calm him down and assure him that she would be fine with the Headmaster. When Kaname hinted the Cross would be able to handle any hunter himself, it confirmed Lucy's suspicion that he had been a hunter in the Association at some point.
After that, Hikaru forcefully escorted her to the gymnasium where he proceeded to train her on evasive tactics and sensing coming attacks for the rest of the night to make sure that she would be able to take care of himself when he wasn't there to watch her back. By the time the Night Class was returning to the dorms, she had to ride on Takuma's back because her muscles were so tired. It wasn't exactly how she had expected to spend her night, but she was grateful for the training and made Hikaru promise to continue the training after she came back.
~oOo~
Lucy was nervous and she couldn't hide it this time. Headmaster Cross was prattling on in the driver's seat but she wasn't paying attention to anything he was saying. She just kept thinking of what Zero had told her just before they had left.
*Flashback*
They were inside the Headmaster's house, waiting for him to find his misplaced car keys when Zero turned his lilac eyes to her, a more-serious-than-usual expression on his face. "I've seen that high class act of yours, it might have worked while surrounded by other people who were acting in a similar fashion, but it won't work in the hunter's home turf."
"So what should I do?" She asked him, grateful for whatever advice she could get in this situation.
"Hunter's are warriors. Treat all of them like their an opponent in a fight, like you did when you fought Aidou. Doing that should make them recognize that you won't be an easy target and prepare you in case they do attack," he told her. "And don't be surprised if they attempt a surprise attack on you when you get there. They'll be able to sense that you're different just like Yaguri did, and that will prompt them to go after you."
*End Flashback*
Trusting her friend, she was going to follow his advice, though she was having trouble getting into that battle mode at that moment.
It surprised her when they came to a stop so soon after leaving the academy; apparently, she had been very distracted by her thoughts and the Association's headquarter's wasn't too far away to begin with. After getting out of the car, she stayed close the Cross but not so close that she would accidentally strike him if they were attacked.
They had barely crossed the first threshold into the large hallway with arches lining the ceiling when she felt people watching her. Keeping her head high, she continued walking and tried not to let her fear show.
If it hadn't been for the training she had done with Hikaru the night before, she might of missed it, the shift in the air behind her. Lucy quickly struck out with her foot as she pulled her whip from her belt around her waist and activated it. The man stumbled back as he raised a hand to his jaw and glared at her, his other hand was still holding a katana.
Before she had a chance to fully grasp what was happening, she heard footsteps to her left and jumped back as a club swung and hit the spot where she had just been standing. Snapping her wrist, the end of her whip wrapped around her second attacker's ankle before she swung it as hard as she could. It took a lot of strength, but she was able to take him off his feet and slam his body into her first attacker before the whip released it's hold on the man. The impact sent both men to the floor in a tangled heap of limbs while losing grip on their weapons.
Another hunter cursed and pointed a gun at her. She had a moment of panic, knowing that she wouldn't be able to dodge a bullet. But then the hunter fired and she belatedly realized that it was a vampire hunter's gun. That kind of gun had never been fired at her before and she was relieved to discover that her she had been correct in her assumption that those kinds of weapons were better used as a clubs against her. While the hunter stood there, confused that the bullets hadn't done any damage, Lucy snapped her whip in his direction and easily disarmed him. He didn't seem to be in a hurry to retrieve it, deciding to step away from her instead.
The next attack, she couldn't have avoided completely even if she had seen it coming. A handful of throwing knives came sailing in her direction and she flipped back while using her whip to deflect the worst of it, but she still ended up with cuts on her right thigh and hip. Hissing in pain, the first hunter charged at her again. She ran towards him at full speed. A moment before they would have collided, she turned her body so that her back rolled over his and she landed on the other side of him. Unable to track her movements, he took a moment to turn and got a boot to his jaw again, this time sending him head first to the floor where he was knocked unconscious.
Attacker number two was after again as well, swinging his club with amazing speed. If Lucy hadn't gotten used to dodging projectiles at the guild, he might have gotten her, but she kept a step ahead of him and was able to avoid his attacks. She would admit that he was very good, but she knew that she was better even without using her spirits. Then, she feint left and straightened up before he could make contact. The hunter put too much force into the swing and lost his balance for a moment, that was the opening she was looking for. Her whip lashed out, wrapped around his wrists, and began squeezing as hard as she was willing to do. The hunter held onto his weapon longer than she thought he would, but eventually dropped it. As soon as he released his weapon; she shortened her whip to almost nothing, turned her body, and flipped him over her shoulder so he would land on his back. He groaned when he landed and Lucy lifted her leg straight up before bringing her heel down on his chest as hard as she could. She heard his pained gasp just before he passed out.
Turning back to the remaining hunters that had been watching the fight, she prepared herself for the next attack. To her surprise, she was met with a round of applause, but she didn't let down her guard. Though, she would admit, when two specific people stepped away from the crowd she became a little shaken. Headmaster Cross and a woman in modern/traditional Japanese clothes and holding a fan were the ones that stepped forward. Now that the adrenaline was wearing off, it occurred to Lucy that the Headmaster had disappeared from her side after the first initial attack. That could only mean...
"You bastard," she glared at the blonde man. "You set this up! You let all those hunters attack me without any warning!"
"That's not true, I did mention last night that the Association President would want to test your abilities against other hunters," he said nervously.
"Liar! You said that I might possibly spar against one of the other hunters, you didn't say that a bunch of them would try to kill me in a sneak attack!" Then her glare turned evil and the elder hunter got nervous. "You just wait until I tell Yuuki what you did!"
"NO! Please don't tell my little girl!" He gushed as he dove at her feet to hug her legs. "I swear, it wasn't my idea! He made me do it," he said, pointing back at the person who had walked out with him.
He? Oh, I thought he was a woman... okay, no one to judge, but that's just a little weird for the leader of a bunch of vampire hunters to be dressed as a woman. Switching her sights from the sobbing Headmaster to the stoic Association President, she didn't both to hide her glare. "Well, I hope that you enjoyed the show, cause I'm out of here."
"Don't be so hasty, my dear. I just wanted to see your true potential, and that's not something one can measure when the subject is expecting a fight." The Association President explained, his feminine voice matching his appearance perfectly.
"The only reason I came here was to prove that even though I'm different, I'm not a threat."
"True, and judging by the display we just saw, I'd say that you are a threat." The President countered, amusement in his voice. "Anyone who can neutralize multiple hunters while only receiving minor injuries could be detrimental to us."
Lucy couldn't help but glare harder. "I disagree. After all, they attacked me for no reason with deadly force, but I made sure that none of their injuries would be life-threatening. If anything, I'm the peaceful one in this exchange. And I'm used to taking on opponents with abilities that the aristocratic vampires possess, you should have pitted the hunters who specialize in going after them to come after me. Anything less is an insult."
He chuckled again, still hiding his mouth behind his folded hand-fan. "I concede to you on those points. That being the case, please allow one of our physicians to tend to your injuries."
She was tempted to turn him down, but it was less favorable to return to the Moon Dormitory while bleeding. She would have to accept or risk feeding problems at home. "Fine, but it better be done quickly. I'm sick of this place."
~oOo~
While being treated, the Association President attempted to ask her questions about what she was and the extent of her abilities. Lucy answered some of the questions while being vague on others, like if she could do anything other than use her whip. She kept her keys secret while admitting that she was learning to sense the auras of vampires and training evasive maneuvers.
"And where did you get your weapon, my dear?" He finally asked her.
"It was a gift from some very dear friends of mine," Lucy told him as the final bandage was secured to her hip. "They're always worrying about my safety and wanted to make sure I could defend myself even if they weren't there. And before you ask, it's not a hunter's weapon. And as far as I know, only my friend Yukino and I have the ability to use it the way you saw earlier."
"If you don't mind, I'd like to test that theory," the President said, Lucy just barely catching a smirk behind his fan.
Not knowing what else to do she shrugged. "I don't see why not, so long as you don't damage it and you understand that it is mine. If you try to claim it as Association property, I will not be happy."
"I wouldn't dream of it," he replied as he held out his hand for her whip, completely unaffected by her silent threat.
She reluctantly handed it over, keeping a close eye on it as he turned it over in his hands. "How do you activate it?"
"I pour my personal energy down my arm and into the handle. After that, it's basically an extension of myself. That's how I get it to do what I want during a fight," she explained.
The President held it out in his hand, a look of concentration on his face. After a couple minutes, his forehead began to perspire and his arm was shaking. He let out a frustrated scoff before calling a different hunter over to attempt to activate it, then another.
After six different attempts and two hunters collapsing from exhaustion, it was impossible for Lucy to keep the smug expression from her face. "Like I told you, only myself and Yukino have the ability to activate this weapon." She said, taking back possession of her whip. "If it helps any, the only reason she and I can activate it is because we're different from everyone else. She and I are the last two of our kind."
The President suddenly got an amused/thoughtful expression on his face that set Lucy on edge. "If that's the case, perhaps you should think about marrying and having children soon. There are many hunters in the Association wi-"
"Shut up," she said in a cold voice. Everyone in the room suddenly flinched away from her as her energy changed from almost inviting to something that brought forth the kind of instinctual fear one comes across when facing a dangerous predator without a weapon. "First, I'm not a dog meant for breeding. Second, bringing up a subject like that so freely on our first meeting is blatantly rude and I would slap you right now if I didn't want to embarrass the Headmaster. And most importantly, I have a boyfriend!"
"Please, forgive me," he replied, trying to keep the regal edge to his voice and failing. "You are right, that was rude of me to even contemplate such a proposition at this point-"
"Wrong," Lucy interrupted again.
Feeling the harshness of her energy and smelling the acidic scent in the air, Cross was beginning to worry for his own safety. He had heard about her almost losing control at the academy before St. Xocolatl Day and that it had been terrifying. He understood what they meant now and was beginning to be frightened of her. Wanting to preserve his future, he decided that he would follow her lead from here on. If she left, he would follow without argument and cry to Yuuki when he got home about how scary the mean mage was to him.
"This is not a subject open for discussion, ever! I chose who I will be with, and if or when I have children. You will never bring this subject up again, are we clear?" She waited for the hunter to nod his head before standing from her seat. "If that is all, I'm leaving."
"Please wait," the President said, almost desperately. She stopped but didn't turn to look at the man, so the hunter kept talking. "Apparently, I have made a mess of things. After witnessing your abilities and feeling the extent of your powers personally, I would like to offer an alliance."
"Meaning what?" She asked, her voice clipped.
"Meaning, that in a time of crisis, we are allowed to call upon you for your services to protect the people."
"I have no desire to join the Hunter's Association."
"And you will not have to," he said quickly, all the while thinking that he could work her into the fold at a slow enough pace that by the time she realized what was happening, she would be a full member of the Association. "You may consider yourself a paid consultant or even a mercenary if you wish. So long as we can call upon you in case of an emergency."
The blonde was silent for a while, before turning to look at the hunter. "Fine, but I want a show of faith so I know that you won't be able to force me to join permanently."
The President couldn't keep a relieved sigh from escaping him as he stood from his own seat. "Absolutely, my dear. Would you please follow me, I'm sure we will be able to find something that will please you."
The air around them quickly calmed down as he began to give her a tour of the facility. Lucy would admit that it was very well done, the library had her itching to leaf through every book there, and the armory was the most well stocked she had ever seen in person. But when they were passing by a certain, door, she felt something that caused her to pause. Cross noticed this and watched her closely. When the President tried to speak to her, he waved him off.
Lucy POV
There were voices calling out to me behind the door, but I couldn't hear them with my ears or even my mind. I couldn't tell what they were saying, but I could hear their sorrow and pain. A part of me realized that the President was about to stop me, but Cross held him off and signaled for me to go in. So that's what I did.
The door wasn't locked, but the hinges creaked in protest and I could tell that this door hadn't been opened for a long time. There were shelves lining the walls of the room and covered with different boxes of varying sizes. The voices continued to call out to me as I circled the room, trying to figure out where they were coming from.
That was when I felt it, the unmistakable draw on my soul, and it was pulling we towards a box on a lower shelf. It was about the size of a computer keyboard and light enough to easily lift. As soon as I touched it, I felt warmth race up my arms. I didn't have to open it to know what I would find inside, I was just surprised that I would find them here of all places.
"If you don't mind, I'm claiming this box and everything inside of it," I said, not caring if my demand seemed rude. I just knew that there was no way in hell that I was going to be leaving it here.
"Why would you want those old relics? All they've been doing for the past millenia is collect dust." The President asked, sounding flippant but curious.
"I don't know if I can really describe it in a way you would understand. I don't even know what's in here. I just know that it called out to me and I want it," she told him. Well, that might not be the total truth. I have some idea of what's in here, but I don't know what is in here specifically.
"I'd have thought that you would like to have a proper hunter's weapon. But if that is what you desire, consider it yours," he said, sounding insulted by her choice. "And now that all of that is settled, allow me to escort you out."
"Of course," I replied, as I began to follow him.
It wasn't until Cross and I were in the car and away from the Association Headquarters that he said anything to me. "Why that box specifically? You didn't even look inside yet you were willing to accept the President's offer to obtain it."
Not being able to help myself, my hands brushing the top of the box to remove some dust that I hadn't seen before. "I couldn't just leave them there. They were suffering from being alone in the dark for so long without anyone else to talk to. I just really hope that I can be friends with all of them."
A/N: This chapter hit me very quickly and I was able to type up the whole thing in under two days! I even pushed back doing my Italian homework to do this. I'm really impressed with the way it turned out and I'll be working on the next chapter after I get everything done!
Warm-Fuzzies and please review! Love you all!