Yuki was waiting for them all at the dormitory, Akari watched the girls' innocent eyes hid hurt for love she could never attain unless Kaname chose to have it.
"Yuki-chan, what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?" Kaname spoke sweetly and let Akari's arm go.
"I was hoping to talk to you and Akari-sama." Yuki spoke quietly, nervous about their reaction.
"Come this way." Kaname told her, leaving Akari no choice in the matter. Proving to Akari that she would be second to Yuki for the rest of Yuki's life. Not that it mattered, she would soon be with Rido. But she knew that Rido had to get rid of Yuki to make Kaname vulnerable. Even then, it was still a gamble.
She had spent some sleepless days thinking about the worse possible outcome. If Rido lost and was killed by Kaname, what would Kaname do to her? She wondered if he would kill her too, something she considered the best option. She would be with Rido in whatever afterlife there was if there was one. But it was still better than living without him. The other outcome if Rido was killed, Kaname would take her back as his. She knew he would never trust her; she would be locked away from the world. This scared her the most. She knew she could always run, hide. But she refused to be a coward. She would always dare him to do something if he killed Rido. She would always stay in the open, be a reminder of what his family did to Rido.
Akari followed Kaname with Yuki following them like a lost puppy. It sickened her to see. Yuki had always been viewed as weak by most of the purebloods that were still alive. It had long been rumored that Juri had been too soft on the girl growing up. It had always been assumed that Kaname would take the crown and find his own bride and fund Yuki's lifestyle until he managed to marry her off, most likely to an aristocrat.
Kaname gestured for Yuki to sit on the red velvet lounger. Yuki sat down, stiff and unsure of herself. Kaname sat down next to her, giving her a smile. Akari held back her annoyance and sat down in the green leather arm chair opposite him. "What can we do for you Yuki-chan?" Kaname asked once they had all sat down. Akari had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. She felt Kaname's eyes on her, warning her.
"I was hoping that one of you may be able to help Zero." Yuki finally spoke up. It had appeared that she had learned of Zero's status in the world. Akari sat up a bit straighter, wondering what Kaname would do now.
"There isn't much we can do Yuki-chan." Kaname spoke up after a short silence. "Zero needs to be helped by the original pureblood that bit him." He added, trying to distance them from the boy. It was clear that Yuki had not only taken a shine to Kaname, but also Zero. Something Kaname didn't want.
"Maybe you could talk to that pureblood and get them to help?" Yuki then asked hopeful.
"I can ask but I can't promise anything." Kaname pretend to cave. Akari knew he no intention to help Zero. She was sure that if Kaname had his way, Yuki would die as a virgin.
"Oh…" Yuki whispered, sadness filling her voice. "Can you talk to him, help him with this before… before…" She added, unable to finished her sentence.
"We will try to talk to him Yuki-san." Akari spoke up. She felt anger radiate off of Kaname. "But Zero isn't fond of us so it will be up to him to speak one of us." She continued, making Yuki smile a little.
"Zero seems to like you. I think he'll talk to you." Yuki jumped up and hugged Akari where she sat. Akari stiffened at the contact. Unsure about what to do, she looked over at Kaname for a hint. He simply smirked in amusement as Akari slowly and loosely hugged Yuki until the girl finally released her. Yuki thanked them one more time, bowing quickly and rushing off to find Zero.
"Why did you do that?" Kaname almost growled at Akari, pulling her from her chair.
"I thought you would want to keep her happy?" Akari answered as he pulled her to his office.
"I don't want that thing anywhere near her!" He hissed at her. Akari didn't even flinch at his glare, she refused to scared of Kaname anymore. She had to learn to stand on her own two feet in case Rido's plan failed. "You will only talk to him if he ever approaches you." He ordered her. "The only reason he is here is because of Cross's obligation as a retired hunter. Zero's family were vampire hunters, they were killed and Cross took him in." He then explained to her once he realised that she was no longer scared of his anger.
"I was only doing what I assume siblings do for each other. Help them and keep them happy." Akari countered. Kaname sighed and sat in his chair. He had forgotten that Akari was an only child cared for by nanny's and staff. She didn't know about feelings of extreme protectiveness for younger siblings. He did want Yuki happy but he had to keep her protected from Zero.
"I'm sorry." Kaname finally spoke up. "I didn't mean to get angry at you. I'm just very protective of Yuki." He then added, hinting to her about what else she should take into consideration in the future. He realised that she had a lot to learn, despite spending a lot of time socialising with other vampires and being in herself a fierce vampire when she desires, she knew very little about family dynamics. He would have to teach her, he wanted her to be the perfect mother and wife.
"I'm sorry too. I didn't mean to overstep." Akari told him and looked down at her feet. She had to learn where she could push him and were, she couldn't. She had to learn all about him and Rido the best chance of winning.
"Don't worry, we will have to learn how to sort issues out together." Kaname told her. "I will make you my queen consort when we marry." He then added, taking her by surprise. "I believe that we are equal and you have a voice. You are more than a trophy to show off." He then added. "But I have something more important to talk to you about." Akari sat down in the chair in front of his desk.
"What is it?" She asked, half expecting him to start planning their wedding right then and there.
"Do you have feelings for Senri?" He asked her and her jaw dropped.
"What?!" Her temper got the better of her.
"It has come to my attention that you dislike being away from Senri and vice versa." Kaname told her calmly. "I just want to make it clear to you that if you wish to keep Senri close, you will need to prove that you have no feelings for him. In turn I will be warning Senri that any inappropriate action will result in punishment." He went onto explain.
"I'm close to Senri because he's what I think a bigger brother is meant to be." Akari told him, not sure what she could say to keep him off the scent. "I don't know how to explain it." She huffed to herself, folding her arms over her chest. Kaname watched her closely, waiting for her to slip up. "He made me feel welcome here, didn't judge me. He held no standard to me and allowed me to be myself. I made a true friend in my opinion and I haven't had that since…" She stopped herself before she could say his name.
"Since Rido?" Kaname questioned. Now he was sure she had feelings for Senri.
"Yeah, before anything romantic, we were friends for years before that." Akari reassured him. "When you spend all your time with someone and they protect you from those who want to use or hurt you. You do start to feel things for them. But now I've learnt from my mistake." She added.
"You don't think having Senri around you all the time and protecting you, will stir up romantic feelings?" He questioned her, he wanted to make sure she understood the situation she was in with Senri sounded the same as her situation with Rido.
"No." She shook her head. "Like I said, I have learnt from my mistakes. Also, I will be sure to regularly send him home to his mother and find someone else to trust as my bodyguard too. Rotate them." She told him, reassuring Kaname. He was glad that she had thought ahead about their future. She was making things easier for him. "In some ways, I feel that Rido may have engineered my feelings for him though isolation." She then pretend to admit. Rido had never isolated her, in fact he had pushed her to see the world and socialise, something she learnt she didn't particularly like doing. But he had pushed her to learn about what she wanted to be in the world and who she wanted in her life.
"I understand you a little more." Kaname suddenly spoke up. The sentence alone sent fear though her body. "You keep trying to protect yourself by being quiet and pushing people away because you don't know what family is and everyone has taught you that this life is hard and harsh." He unknowingly insulted her. She glared at him and he ignored her. "But now you're safe, you don't have to keep that defence up." He continued, clearly thinking the glare was her telling him to back off because he was right. Akari just wanted to punch him, he thought he had her all figured out. All she wanted to do was to tell him how wrong he was. She still and always will love Rido. That Senri was possessed by Rido and she was working with him to destroy him. But she had to keep her mouth shut.
"I'm going to my room." Akari told him harshly, she had to leave before she screamed in his face.
"You don't need to push me away Akari." Kaname said, standing at the same time as she did. "You're safe with me, you can let me in." He told her, trying hard to sound caring. He was hoping by do this, she would feel something more for him.
"Right now, Kaname, I just want to be left to think." She told him and marched out. Kaname sighed to himself, at least it was better than her completely blanking him like before.