chapter xii.
There was something off. Asuka couldn't quite put her finger on it, but there seemed to be something fraught with tension in the air. But unsure what the reasoning was behind the charge in the atmosphere, she chalked it to the fact that Kaname was probably worried that she as the lost Kuran princess was finally being introduced to the nobles later tonight, and eventually would have to do the same with the rest of the Aristocratic society. That, and Senri's new presence to the school. Wringing her fingers in her hands, she fixated her attentions upon her two-favourite people (outside of Yuuki) as she redirected her thoughts to the pair that seated opposite of her.
"Nee, why are you guys so quiet? It's so gloomy in here with your silence." She teased, as she moved to pick up one of the breakfast items from the platter upon the table as she daintily nibbled at it as she tilted her head to try and gauge why Senri seemed quite tense. Trying to think from what she remembered from the anime, she couldn't quite recall if Senri and Kaname had got along, as their relationship hadn't been one that had been concentrated on within the series. But no matter, she would strike the match to get them along like a house on fire.
Shifting her position upon the couch, she continued to fill in the silence as she remarked, "Did you know Ka-chan that Senri doesn't like sweet things like you? But you both seem to have a weakness for cinnamon scrolls. Do you still like them?"
If it weren't for his sister in the room, he was sure that the conversation between himself and Senri would have gone very differently. And whilst his sister seemed oblivious to the tension that held between himself and his cousin, he remained as the perfect gentleman, steeling his anger and jealousy behind a façade as he watched his sister carry the conversation.
Well that, as well as taking his time to gauge his opposition. Senri wasn't anything remarkable, was he? How could he compare to the purest of Kuran blood coupled with the fact that he was the first Kuran ancestor and first vampire? So, what was it about him that drew Asuka towards him?
Yes, he understood that they had been together through her ordeal, but he didn't like the fact that now his sister's attentions which had once solely had been focused upon him was now divided between him and well, that. Or him. Whatever.
What was it Asuka had said?
Shifting his attentions away from the vampire that sat beside him, and instead placing it on his dear sister, he allowed a small fond smile to appear as he watched her eat the muffin before her, picking at it. How her mannerisms hadn't changed in the time they had spent apart. "Is that so? Of course, but none of the cinnamon scrolls that I've had could compare to the ones we used to make when we were younger. Have you had a chance to have the ones that Asuka has made, Senri?" Kaname asked challengingly, raising an eyebrow as he indirectly conveyed, 'Do you know all the intimate parts of Asuka, like I do? Fate may have split us apart, but I still know my twin like the other half my soul.'
How Senri both loved and detested his oblivious cousin. Her head up in the clouds, not sensing the brief glares and calculations that lay beneath both facades of the vampires as they judged who held the most of Asuka's affections. And whilst he crossed his legs, relaxing in the couch, he wasn't unaware of Kaname's roving and disapproving glance at himself.
And he couldn't help but gift the pureblood a brief challenging smirk before schooling his lips into a fond smile at Asuka as she tried her best to start a conversation between the trio. And how he hated that he had any similarities to her brother. No matter, he would take Kaname's challenge head on, chuckling as he replied, "Cinnamon scrolls have always been a favourite of mine, haven't they Ka-chan? And yes Kaname-sama I have. They are simply scrumptious, and it's been one of our favourite pasttimes over the last few years to be able to make them together."
And with that, he chalked the score between himself and Kaname: 1 to 0. After all, who had spent the most time with her over the past few years? Not Kaname. But he would take this win as the first of many in the battle for Asuka's heart.
Not that his oblivious cousin had any idea of the underlying meanings between any of their conversations, no she truly was a special one.
A brief crack appearing in the glass held in his hand, Kaname refrained from letting his power slip any more and allow for Senri to realise just how affected he was from that remark as his eyes moved to glare at the audacity of Senri. How dare he insinuate those things and reply to him like that? Oh, how lucky the vampire was that his dear twin was in the room, lest he be injured for his words.
Other vampires had been killed for lesser infractions by his hand.
Now just to have his sister distracted so he could finally catch Senri by his lonesome without Asuka by his side so that he could warn the other for staying away from what was not his.
"Nee As-chan, you should probably get changed so that we can meet the Night Class to have your introductions. Why don't you go get dressed in your room, your uniform is on your bed. I'll give Senri one of my old ones, and then we can meet them all together." Kaname replied smoothly, noticing the time as he downed the rest of his drink and placed it loudly upon the table with a thunk, before placing his attentions back upon his wayward cousin.
Finishing her muffin finally, Asuka nodded with a smile as she watched the sun begin to set in its twilight hours. "Of course. Thanks Ka-chan for always being so prepared." She replied, as she fondly placed a hand upon his shoulder to squeeze it briefly before glancing towards Senri to give him a nod as she let a hand linger upon his own shoulder before moving into her room, closing the door behind her as she looked to further inspect the uniform that had been placed upon her bed.
Ugh, these uniforms were so different to her ones from her home world. And so short! Her uniform at least back home had reached her knee, but this reached halfway down her thigh and she certainly wasn't a fan of that. At least she wasn't alone in wearing this. Grimacing as she glanced at the skirt and shirt against her own body, she finally began to dress herself, a short sigh escaping her breath as she reconciled that at least she only had to wear this dreadful uniform for classes. She wondered if the other vampires would be difficult to get to know. That and if they would be standoffish because she was a pureblood and they were nobles. She hoped not.
Meanwhile, the moment that Asuka shut the door of the adjoining room, Kaname and Senri became locked in a heated glare. But who would make the first move? His eyes tinting a dark crimson red, Kaname remarked, "I would be careful just where exactly you step Senri. After all, it would be all too devastating if you were to suddenly disappear, hm?"
How predictable. The threats. Lucky enough for him, he had the favour of Ka-chan, and not to mention, he did have some of her blood flowing through him from the time they had escaped Rido's clutches. But Kaname didn't have to quite know that yet, did he? "Oh, I'll make sure to fall in line Kaname-sama. After all, it wouldn't do for Ka-chan to lose her dear companion, would it?" He replied, unfazed as he stood up, knowing that it wouldn't take long for Asuka to change and come back in.
"We'll continue this later." Kaname warned darkly, his temper almost arising from the depths of his mind as he shoved the majority of it behind his façade as he moved to pick up a spare uniform for the other to wear. "Go and dress before Asuka comes back."
And wasn't the pureblood a ball of sunshine?
Ever since the disappearance of Kaname-sama the previous night, the nobles had been gossiping what could have possibly caused his summoning by the headmaster. Not to mention the smell of two new vampires now in the Academy, ones that hadn't been glimpsed at yet. And whilst many thought of them to just be another two nobles, Takuma knew better. He was one of the only people that knew of the existence of Kaname's missing twin, and the one person he had been searching for over these past few years.
And when he had penned a note to appear to Takuma before the end of class briefly describing that he would be unavailable for the next twenty four hours, he guessed that it was something to do with his sister. Perhaps she had been found?
Or perhaps he was completely on the wrong train of thought, but he knew it was something important when he had told Takuma to make sure to gather the nobles twenty minutes before class for a meeting held by him.
Briefly glancing at the other vampires, he could see Hanabusa whispering frantically to his cousin Kain about what he thought the meeting was about, and who the two new smells could possibly be, and Ruka and Rima discussing whether this meeting would take long.
Well, looks like they were about to find out.
His attentions shifting from the other vampires towards the appearance of Kaname and two other individuals at the top of the staircase, his eyes widened briefly as he realised that his guesses had been correct. Or at least he was 95% sure that they were.
Could this be the missing Asuka Kuran, by her brother's side at last?
The other vampires coming to silence at the appearance of his figure at the top of the staircase, he decided to address them from above to ensure that he had the attentions of all the nobles. After all, this was the first time they would glimpse his dear sister, and he had to ensure that he would convey that her safety was their utmost priority.
"Good Evening. Thank you for coming here early for this meeting. I'm sure you smelt two new scents late last night, and I would like to introduce you to two new students that we will be having here in the Night Class. One of them is my cousin, Senri Shiki." He began, gesturing for Senri to walk forward so that the other vampires could see him clearly before continuing, "And the other is my sister, and twin — Asuka Kuran. I'm sure you are wondering why they haven't appeared before now, but they were preoccupied with certain tasks overseas, but have finally come home. I'm sure you will be welcoming both of them warmly into our school, won't you? Please hold your questions for later, as both are still new and slightly jetlagged form the time difference."
Surveying each of the vampires with a slight glare to imply that failure to comply to his underlying message would result in unpleasant circumstances, he ushered Senri to walk down the staircase, whilst offering his arm to his sister. Pleased that the nobles nodded their head to heed his words, he nodded his head at Takuma to begin to move towards the entrance of the dormitory as he allowed for Asuka and himself to move at their own sedate pace, trying his best to ignore Senri that remained a pace behind them.
"It might take a while to get used to this." He murmured to his sister's ear as the doors were pushed open, to hundreds of fangirls screaming out various vampire names, the volume only ascending the closer that they got towards the exit.
Thank goodness she was familiar with the anime. And whilst she had been entirely uncomfortable with the noble's attention that had been placed upon her the moment she had been introduced, she knew that this was part and parcel of being a pureblooded vampire. Briefly glancing at some of the other females such as Rima and Ruka, she knew that she would most likely make friends with them easiest out of all the nobles, even though she wasn't sure that socialising would be easy since the only other person she had made a 'friend' here in this universe apart from her parents and Kaname had been Senri. Her thoughts shifting the moment they stepped outside and she heard the loud screams, she gritted her teeth briefly as she clutched Kaname's arm tighter.
At least there was a volume button on the television, but here in real life, her sensitive hearing winced at the sounds that were emitted by the various females and males. God, she felt sorry for every vampire that had to get used to this every day.
But wait! At least she could finally see her baby sister. How she wondered what the other would be like, and whether the other would like her. God, she hoped so. Especially since she had no siblings in her past life and had dearly hoped for at least one. And now she was blessed enough to have two! Her eyes scouring the crowd, she gently detached her arm from Kaname's as she realised that whilst she enjoyed having Kaname so close by her side, this would probably not come across well to Yuuki to have another vampire hanging off of the vampire she liked.
And she definitely didn't want to step any toes upon their relationship! Especially when the other girl didn't even know who she was. And whilst her heart ached to have to distance herself from her twin, she knew it was right when they were in front of the girl that was to become his fiancee one day. Oh how she hoped that she would make a good first impression upon the other and that they could become friends. She would be devastated if she couldn't. After flashing a small smile at her twin, Asuka stiffened as she noticed Yuuki suffering with a stampede of girls. Poor thing, where was Zero? Probably off suffering with his blood thirst. Now that wouldn't do.
Appearing by her younger sister's side to help her the moment she stumbled, she turned to briefly glare at the girls as she chided, "Now that wasn't very nice was it?"
Cowed by the appearance of Asuka, the girls began to babble their apologies to Yuuki as the girl widened her eyes at her saviour. "Ah thank you so much! Who are you?"
Smiling warmly at the naivety and innocence of her younger sister, Asuka replied, "I'm Asuka and I just transferred to this school. And no worries, this must be tough work to do every day. And what's your name?" Helping the other girl stand up properly, she ignored the rest of the individuals in the area as she allowed her attentions to fixate upon Yuuki, her heart lightening at the fact she was finally seeing her for the first time.
"Oh, it's no problem! It's my duty as a Guardian. Lovely to meet you, Asuka-chan — my name is Yuuki." Yuuki replied, a blush appearing upon her features at the vampire who had helped her. It was easy to be intimidated by her immense beauty if it weren't for her seeming kind nature, especially since she helped her up! Most vampires didn't care, apart from Kaname-sama. And here she was, helping her up and even thanking her for her job!
Finally taking attention to the vampires who had stopped to watch in confusion at the new pureblood who seemed to fixate her attentions upon the same human that Kaname was interested in, she knew that it was time to go. "I'll have to chat to you later Yuuki-chan, but take care okay?" Asuka continued as she finally moved back to her brother's side as she squeezed the other's hands briefly before she left.
"Okay! See you!" Yuuki replied, blissfully unaware of the other nobles' internal thoughts as they wondered just why both Kuran purebloods were so invested in a random human, and one that was allowed to so informally address both of them.
This would not do.
But those thoughts were for a later time. Their interests were firstly upon the appearance of a new pureblood, one that had been unknown before today. Just why had her existence been hidden? What had she been doing overseas? And what was her relationship to be with Kaname-sama? Were they to be engaged, as was the Kuran way? And what was she like? It was evident that she was a much kindhearted and open pureblood, unlike her brother, from first impressions with her interaction with the Guardian. And what difference would she make to the dynamics of the Night Class, and the rest of the Vampire Society?
Time would only tell.
But one thing was for sure, Kaname and Senri would not be alone with their affections for the brunette.
Both from vampires and humans.
author note: okay i know, i'm evil! but at least this weekend you have been blessed with two brief updates. we are finally getting into the first episode of vampire knight and yuuki has finally met asuka! just how will their dynamic develop — will they become close friends or estranged? and poor senri and kaname, still dealing with an oblivious asuka who truly just wants all the people close to her to get along and be happy. that and the fact that she is upon the thought that kaname and yuuki will end up together and isn't even on the radar of romantic feelings (she isn't even thinking romantically of either boy yet, she thinks that the reason she is so possessive over both of them is because they are close friends lol). partly this is because she never had a romantic relationship in her past life so she is naive about that, and the other part is because she is oblivious. i hope you guys are keen to finally see the vampire knight arc begin, please continue to review and send in any plot ideas you would like to see!
and i am so glad to see you guys pm and send in reviews for which relationship you would like to see most with asuka, i am leaning more in one specific direction but i am still open to the public's opinion so please do let me know if you would rather see asuka with kaname, senri or to have them in all together (asuka/kaname/senri). and if you have any ideas for the ship for yuuki, or any plots you would like to see with her or zero. whilst they aren't the sole focus of this fanfiction they will definitely be considered for the plotline!
i am just so grateful to have you guys favourite, follow and review this story so sorry i'll say it again — thank you so much! i really do feel touched every time you guys do it and it is one of the reasons i will update faster, because i know there are people out there that want to see what happens next. apologies if there's an grammatical errors, i am again running on little hours of sleep but i wanted to do a quick update because i had a spark of inspiration, and once i started writing i couldn't stop! hope you enjoyed this chapter, and are keen to see the next one.
till next time. xx