To reviewer Mayb: I don't mind hearing your opinions and criticism. I appreciate that you take the time to write to me. I am always trying to improve my writing and characterization, and hearing from my readers is a great way to do that. Thanks for pointing me toward the right VKM chapters, by the way, I found a useful reference for Yuuki's familiar, and it was a very good scene just like you said! But I was a little confused by the timeline. Do pureblood pregnancies last for years or something?
Ai is such a darling, but Zero's future child is a secret, so I can't answer your question yet!
Zero can't ask the chairman for birth control pills for two reasons. One, as Takuma said, they don't work on vampires, as many human medicines don't because their biology is different. Two, Cross is the President of the Vampire Hunter's Association. Cross might do it, if the pills worked, but if he did provide Zero with birth control it would be a diplomatic nightmare. Cross and Kaname are basically the heads of state for the Hunters and the vampires. Can you imagine how it would look if the vampires found out that their rivals/enemies were conspiring to keep a pureblood's consort from conceiving? Really, really bad. It would likely put the treaty at risk. They wouldn't think of it as Zero's personal choice, because the treaty was made because of Zero's omega status and ability to have children. The vampires would see themselves as having been cheated, and assume that Zero was acting in bad faith. If Zero's reputation now with the vampires is poor, it would be a thousand times worse if he did that.
You'll just have to see about how Sara's manipulation works out this chapter!
I've had a few inquiries about references for Zero's clothes. While the original inspiration was clothing from Japan's Heian period, I ended up with something closer to Chinese hanfu - googling "Chinese men's hanfu" should give you an idea of how that looks. The black outfit with the jacket over a long undergarment in chapter 9 is probably closest to his everyday wear - a three piece outfit of a jacket/robe with the distinctive sleeves, a long tunic-like undergarment, and hidden leggings or loose trousers underneath. Zero's not comfortable in very feminine pieces of clothing still, even though omegas are expected to look more female than male. Chapter 10's white and silver gown resembles the medieval houppelande, which was worn by both men and women, for example.
Also, the wonderful pixeled has drawn a gorgeous fanart of Zero in his red outfit from chapter eleven! I can't include links here, but if you head over to the AO3 version of this story, you can find the link in the chapter one comments. It's wonderful, so absolutely check it out!
XII. Will Be Brought to Light
"What do you mean it wouldn't work?" protests Zero with his arms crossed, interrupted from his pacing halfway across the floor.
Takuma sighs and looks apologetic; he's still kneeling at the low table where the two omegas were taking tea together, before Zero's agitation drove the Hunter to his feet. "It would be your word against hers. Even if you are Kaname's consort, the testimony of a Level D means nothing against a pureblood's word."
"I have physical evidence! Shirabuki suggested that I kill Kuran and offered to help me, right to my face. The Council must care about that, at least!" Zero argues.
Takuma grips the porcelain cup tighter, the cheerful blue birds painted on the sides at odds with their conversation. "I know, and I believe you're telling the truth that Shirabuki-san approached you with the intent to harm Kaname. But purebloods set their own rules, except when their actions endanger the vampire race as a whole, as they did when Hio Shizuka's attack on your family violated the treaty. Shirabuki-san could easily claim that she was testing your fidelity to Kaname; she will say that she offered you that deal to be certain you were trustworthy, and that she didn't really intend to plot against him. That's also why we can't feed her false information - she could use it to blackmail you by accusing you of trying to harm him. Vampires will accept any excuse, no matter how flimsy, to avoid investigating a pureblood."
"Even if you turned your evidence over to the Council," the blond continues with a serious mien, "and provided testimony about your meetings with Shirabuki, there is no way the Senate would remain uninvolved. And many nobles in the Senate would welcome Kaname's death - and perhaps even a few left on the Council would as well. Instead of protecting his life, you might unite his enemies instead. The investigation would be a farce - they would never look deeply into a pureblood's affairs - and ultimately all the inquiry would accomplish is making you look publicly weak and foolish."
"What is the point of having laws if the people enforcing the laws won't do anything?" the Hunter gripes, turning on his heel to continue pacing.
"Shirabuki hasn't actually committed a crime yet. And if we outlawed plotting," Ichijo points out, hiding his smile, "I'm not sure there would be any nobles left outside the prisons."
Zero huffs, and casts himself down on the squishy mat of cushions laid out where the moonlight streams through the windows. "Fine. I won't give the evidence to the authorities. But I won't do nothing with it! I know the Hunters don't have jurisdiction, but there must be something I can do!"
Takuma looks as though he's weighing his response; finally the noble puts his cup down deliberately, gets up, and lies down next to Zero on the pile of cushions, hands folded on his stomach as he studies the moon through the skylight. The Shouto Estate is old and a bit drafty, but somehow it feels more like a home to Zero than the carefully manicured and arranged Ichijo estate ever did.
"Have you considered speaking to Kaname?" Ichijo asks, voice carefully neutral.
"Why would I do that?" Zero mumbles into the pillow his face is buried in.
"Kaname puts hard work into appearing omniscient," Ichijo responds with a laugh, "But it's not as easy as he makes it seem. He misses things sometimes. On the slim chance Kaname is ignorant, you probably need to warn him, in case Shirabuki finds another assassin."
Calming down from his anger, Zero says, "Sorry that I was rude earlier. I don't mean to lump you in with the rest of them. You may be the Head of the Council, but you would help if you thought it would do any good."
"I know. I didn't take it to heart - you were just frustrated," Ichijo replies.
"I'm worried that Shirabuki mentioned you," Zero admits quietly. "She looked...hungrier, when she said your name. It disturbed me when I saw it."
"Shirabuki Sara courted me after I presented. If Isaya had not come for me, I would not have been able to escape bonding her."
There's a tone in Takuma's voice that Zero doesn't like; he turns his head so he can study the elder. "I assume that means you didn't want to bond with her. She hasn't done anything since you refused her, has she?"
The noble's body stiffens.
"Takuma-sempai," Zero urges, angling his body to face the blond.
"There have been times when I see her familiars nearby," Takuma confesses. "And someone sent me an inappropriate gift, with an unsigned note in her handwriting."
Truly alarmed, Zero says "You've the one that got away, and Shirabuki's not the kind of person to let a loss go. You need to be careful, Takuma-sempai. Have you told Shouto?"
"Isaya doesn't need to know," Takuma says tersely. "I don't want Shirabuki-san to hurt him if he confronted her. And we were speaking about you and Kaname, not Shirabuki and I," he counters. "Are you going to tell him what happened?"
"I'll tell Kuran about what happened with Shirabuki, if you tell Shouto about how she watches you sometimes. That's not safe, Takuma-sempai. He needs to know."
Isa, who had been sleeping in the room next door, must have awakened; in the silence, the two omegas can hear the click of the dog's nails on the wood floors as Takuma considers Zero's bargain.
"Zero, do you wish that Shirabuki succeeds with her plan, and Kaname dies?" asks Takuma, eyes still fixed on the moon floating above.
"No, I don't," the Hunter admits so quickly he doesn't even need to think about it. "I know you were raised with Kuran, but I hate him. That fact doesn't mean I want him to die. Not to mention that Yuuki really loves him - she would be devastated if that happened. He's my enemy, but I need him to stay alive."
"Then I accept your deal," says Takuma, offering his hand to Zero, and the two shake on it. "Now, you haven't eaten anything at all. How about some cake?"
"Takuma-sempai…."
Now that Kaname has reluctantly judged a single meal every day insufficient time to reinforce their germinating bond, Kaname and the ex-human have been forced to spend more time in each other's company. As anyone who who knew them could have guessed, the pair took to this as well as cats to water - with poor grace, sullen resentment, and a great deal of snapping, snarling and posturing. Without Yuuki around, the only way to manage this forced proximity was through absolute silence and studiously ignoring each other's existence.
Today Yuuki is out visiting Cross at the Academy again - Kaname suspects that Cross is either trying to wheedle more money out of him for new facilities, or trying to convince his wife to reopen the Night Class. Which left Kiryuu and Kaname, like prisoners forced to become unwilling cellmates, to refrain from killing each other while she was out.
Glowering at one another from opposite chairs in the library - because Kaname was not allowing the Level D to invade his study - was their solution. It works, after a fashion; Yuuki no doubt was hoping that their forced nearness would improve their cooperation or understanding or something. It has proved a wasted effort.
Kiryuu's posture, messily draped across his armchair, shows off the habitual trousers he wears underneath his skirts in a way that is completely inappropriate and immodest for an omega, and reveals his lack of training as anything except a male Hunter. What a completely unsuitable Consort for a Kuran, Kaname thinks. A proper Consort would be quiet, obedient, docile, and wouldn't interfere with Yuuki. In short, the opposite of any trait Kiryuu possesses.
Kaname is just settling down to work on some financial papers - Rosehill does not fund itself, not that money means much to the pureblood, except as a tool - when he catches Kiryuu studying him out of the corner of his eye. Kaname lets the corners of his mouth turn down briefly, and waits for Kiryuu to air whatever thought is brewing in his dull brain.
"I assume you already know Shirabuki Sara contacted me?" the Hunter says tonelessly, without any inflection or direction, and without meeting Kaname's eyes - as though he's speaking to thin air rather than the pureblood in the room.
"But of course," Kaname drawls, equally bored and dismissive. "Shirabuki is not as discreet as she thinks she is, though she outdoes most. Unfortunately for her, I'm her opponent this time, and she won't dethrone me so easily. Sneaking you away while I was in the next room was a little too bold for me to overlook. The overconfidence of youth - she'll improve if she lives long enough."
"Shirabuki is older than you," Kiryuu reminds him. "You talk as though the same warning doesn't apply to you."
Kaname controls his expression of annoyance - being with Kiryuu requires fewer masks than usual, and the pureblood relaxed his guard too much.
"I know she gave you something - we left with one more box than the amount we purchased. What was it?" Kaname asks, changing the subject.
Kiryuu raises an eyebrow, questioning Kaname's avoidance of the earlier topic, but goes along with the flow of the conversation.
"She told me it was a coin, but I don't know for sure; I never opened her box. I buried it in the gardens as soon as I could. With purebloods, you never know everything their powers are capable of."
"That was probably a wise decision. The Shirabuki family specializes in poisons and drugs, among other things. Never drink her blood if you can help it," Kaname warns.
The pureblood steeples his fingers and studies Kiryuu. "I find it interesting that you are telling me this. Would you not prefer that I am blindsided by her attacks - or better yet, launch your own?
Kiryuu gives him a disapproving look, shaking his head. "I'm not you, Kuran. Just because I don't like you doesn't mean you deserve to die. You may be a bastard to me, but you do care about Yuuki, and you care for the vampires under your control. So I can't allow you to be hurt. There's more at stake here than my need to gratify to my feelings."
Curious, Kaname persists. "You didn't consider working with her, even for a moment?"
Kiryuu snorts, struggling up to sit properly in his chair. "Not a chance. I hate you for personal reasons, but Shirabuki Sara is a professional enemy. I worked a case in northern Europe - about a year and a half ago, now - cracking a human trafficking ring dealing in Level D feeders. There were over a thousand victims identified, and probably many more we didn't find. We couldn't prosecute, but the Hunter upper ranks are certain that she was the one Turning them."
"Shirabuki's favorite targets are young, attractive girls who are insecure enough that she can manipulate them into voluntarily being Turned. Those make the most money when they're sold, because if someone doesn't want a feeder, they might still make a purchase for uglier reasons. She once victimized an entire girls' school - Turned every single child there, and we couldn't do a thing except stand aside and watch, because she'd broken no laws according to the Treaty."
Kiryuu leans forward, watching Kaname intently. "I would turn myself to ash before I would lift a finger to help Shirabuki Sara. I've seen with my own eyes what happens to her victims, and between the two of you, your brand of manipulation is the one I prefer."
The Hunter rises, and advances step by step toward where Kaname is seated, intense lavender gaze not flinching away, "So instead, Kuran Kaname, I offer you an alliance. Shirabuki Sara is a threat to both humans and vampires. Should the opportunity arise, I will work with you to Hunt down our mutual enemy and eliminate her.
Kaname had not expected such a boon, and minutely inclines his head. "As the head of the Kuran family, tasked to ensure the stability of the vampire world, I cannot turn aside such an offer. I accept your alliance, Hunter. May your Hunt end in victory."
"Zero," Yuuki asks quietly one night when the two of them are returning to their rooms after dinner. "Do you think I'm being unfair to Kaname?"
The Hunter casts a sideways glance at Yuuki, walking side-by-side down the palace halls with him, the morning sun just beginning to break across the horizon.
"Since I don't know why you're mad at him, I can't say for certain. But I know you. You're always soft on that bastard. For reasons I cannot fathom, you respect and love him. Whatever shit he pulls, you let him get away with just a slap on the wrist. If he did something bad enough to make you stay angry with him for three weeks, then I probably would have shot him by now," he responds bluntly.
Yuuki can't suppress an unladylike snort - she's bone tired from practicing her powers at Cross Academy again without any real progress, and exhausted by this emotional stalemate, her halfway house between trust and doubt - and tries to mask it with a cough.
"He just looked...very forlorn tonight, don't you think?"
"Kuran is a manipulative person." Zero says flatly. "I don't trust anything that he says or does unless I know he's getting something he wants out of it. How am I supposed to believe he's not acting and trying to manipulate my emotions?"
Yuuki bites her lip; she's been asking herself similar questions about trust lately, and she knows now just how few boundaries her brother respects. What he's willing to do for his desires. But she wants to believe Kaname would be honest about his feelings with her. She wants to believe. Is that her love moving her, or her reason?
"How can you call this unfair, anyways? I can hardly tell you're angry with him; you two do the same things either way. You say goodmorning, you have dinner together, and you politely ask each other about your day, the same as always. You and Kuran don't shout or fight, you just avoid talking about things and don't have sex."
Yuuki winces, both at the accuracy and the embarrassment of having Zero notice her and her husband's celibacy.
"Onii-sama doesn't allow himself to be close to many people. I feel like I'm letting him down," she defends, but her heart isn't in it.
They've stopped walking entirely, paused by a wall of east-facing windows. Vampires or not, Yuuki and Zero were sun worshippers by nature and habit. Yuuki has to squint, but the pinks and oranges brightening the eastern sky are too pretty to look away from.
"Can I ask you a rude question?" Zero says, earnest and open, the antithesis of her brother once again.
"Anything, Zero."
"Why do you two have separate bedrooms?"
Blunt as always. The pureblood can feel her cheeks heating, but she doesn't have to keep up her composed Kuran princess act around him, so she lets the flush bloom. She knows that if she refuses to answer, Zero will accept her response without holding it against her. Whatever she chooses, whatever she tells him, it won't change his opinion of her. And that thought gives her the courage to tell him the truth.
"I was ashamed." Yuuki thinks of her untouchable brother, above her and out of her reach for so many years when she was human. "I wanted him to see Kuran Yuuki-hime, the pureblood princess who wouldn't look out of place by his side. I couldn't let him see the Yuuki who drooled on her pillow and woke up with her hair a mess, or who left toothpaste stains on the sink. He didn't ask me to stay, when I told him I wanted my own bedroom. So I thought that's what he wanted too."
Yuuki contemplates the dawn. "Do you mind staying a little longer? Just until the sun comes up."
Zero's lavender eyes are tender, patiently understanding as he watches Yuuki wipe at her watery eyes, and he nods.
Witnessing this slow hollowing-out of Yuuki's marriage is like watching a line of stitches sewing someone else's wound being cut, one by one. Even when they aren't holding your flesh together, you wince and grit your teeth out of sympathy, as though the thread is being drawn out of your own skin. A raw, red empathy that flows as freely as blood.
If you had asked Kiryuu Zero how he would feel about Yuuki's marriage to Kuran atrophying down long-buried fault lines, he would have told you something about how pleased it would make him, or how his fondest wish was coming true.
The reality, Zero finds, is far different.
He feels pained and sorrowful, because Yuuki values what she has built, and she is finding out that it isn't as strong and durable as she thought. His hatred of Kuran is a pale and weak thing in the shadow of that hurt.
It would be easier if they did shout, Zero often thinks. But no - the Kurans don't talk about it.
They edge cautiously around the hole as the edges crumble and the hole widens into a chasm, crippled by their own fears of that very thing happening. And the wider the hole made from all the things they won't say grows, the farther and farther apart the Kurans stand on opposite shores.
Neither of them would ever end their marriage, Zero can tell, but if this decay doesn't halt, then all that's left will be a hollow shell. They'll sit down to the same dinners, and make the same public appearances, but everything they say to one another will be the empty, meaningless conversation of acquaintances.
Zero does not know exactly what caused this break, but it's likely the result of his introduction to the situation. Guilt - in part because he knows he unintentionally broke their fragile balance - has come creeping into his thoughts. If Zero was the cause, and Yuuki and Kuran cannot fix this on their own, then it falls to him to intervene.
"Kiryuu, are you going to watch me all night, or are you going to leave?" Kaname does not invite the Hunter inside his study. There is nothing for them to discuss, and the pureblood has no desire to speak to him.
Leaning against the doorframe and back in his usual plainer robe and undertunic tonight, Kiryuu doesn't rise to the bait; he just continues to watch Kaname with that assessing, considering look.
"From your mood, I'm guessing that your newest plan to apologize for whatever Yuuki is upset about failed?
Kaname narrows his eyes, temper spiking dangerously; his grip on the pen in his hand tightens just short of snapping it, but the pureblood's control is not so weak that one ex-human can break it - conveniently overlooking for the moment all the times it already had. There was no plan anymore; Kaname's emotions are simply disordered enough to escape his control.
Kiryuu asks in a dry voice, "Did you even try actually apologizing to her - with words - rather than doing it in some underhanded, silent way that she's just supposed to figure out on her own?"
Kaname's silence and increasingly poisonous stare seem answer enough.
Kiryuu exhales and lowers his head. "Forgiveness is given, not earned. You can't just do things and expect Yuuki to forgive you because you did them. That's trying to buy forgiveness."
Kiryuu pushes off from the doorframe and comes inside, ignoring Kaname's unwelcoming attitude. "When did Yuuki stop going to the human world, and break off contact with Wakaba Sayori?"
A little thrown by the change in subject, Kaname has to think for a moment about the answer. For some reason, the pureblood doesn't simply throw Kiryuu out of his study and go back to what he was doing before. Boredom, perhaps. The desire for a distraction. (The wish to not feel lonely.)
"Yuuki hasn't visited the human world in quite some time, I believe. Years," Kaname answers. "She visited Wakaba a few times about a year after she came to Rosehill, but they broke off contact at some point."
"Why do you think that is?" asks Kiryuu, helping himself to a chair, much more graceful now after nearly two months of practice managing his wardrobe.
"Why should she still have any interest in the human world, since she is no longer human? I would guess that Wakaba and Yuuki decided that their interests no longer matched and drifted apart."
Kiryuu shakes his head. "Wakaba still wanted to maintain their friendship, even with the difficulty. It was Yuuki who stopped seeing Wakaba. Do you know why?"
Is this some kind of power game, where Kiryuu mocks him by holding information Kaname doesn't have above his head? Kaname is finished being amused. "No," he snaps.
But Kiryuu doesn't look triumphant, now that Kaname has admitted his ignorance. Rather, Kiryuu is studying him again. "Yuuki misses her visits to the human world very much. It's the place she feels most at home in - she was raised there, after all."
The Hunter leans forward, his intent gaze meeting Kaname's. "She stopped because of you, Kuran. You wanted her to be satisfied staying only by your side, in the sunless world of the vampire. And she loves you, so she tried to please you, and cut her ties to the world of humans. Wakaba was Yuuki's best friend, and Yuuki let her go because she felt like she wasn't supposed to belong with humans anymore. Because you implied that she wouldn't."
"You say you love her, don't you? What have you sacrificed for Yuuki, in exchange? She lives in your world, following a pureblood's rules. She gave up her entire human life for you, relearned the rules she lived by and remade herself in the image vampire society demanded from her. When was the last time you made yourself vulnerable or uncomfortable for her instead?"
The Hunter rises, but his eyes are still meeting Kaname's shocked stare. This was not the conversation the pureblood expected.
"I know we hate each other, Kuran, but we both want Yuuki to be happy. The current situation can't go on. You need to figure out how to repair it, and make sure that it doesn't happen again in the future. So I hope that you'll think about what I've said."
When Kiryuu leaves Rosehill again in a Hunter's coat and gear, a few days after their conversation, Kaname opens his hand and sends forth a raven to follow behind, winging its way out to a meeting site where Kiryuu encounters a man that Kaname believes is Takamiya Kaito, and five strangers - three female and two male.
So many Hunters, including one of Kiryuu's caliber, indicates either a very powerful opponent, with whom the Association is taking no chances, or a nest of ex-humans. Since four of the unknown Hunters are young teenagers, Kaname guesses that Kiryuu has been called out as backup to clean out a swarm's nest.
One of the male Hunters, who has an ugly, twisting, ropey scar across his cheek, mutters slurs at Kiryuu when Takamiya has his back turned, issuing last minute instructions to the younger Hunters - have those leeches taught you to spread your legs like a good bitch yet - but Kiryuu remains impassive, taking the abuse in stride.
Without the feedback of Kiryuu's scent and aura, Kaname's alpha instincts react very little when Takamiya enfolds Kiryuu in a backslapping embrace that Kiryuu steps into, rather than away from. The freedom is enjoyable. If Kaname could, he would only interact with Kiryuu through a familiar, to better keep his ridiculous impulses in check.
The swarm have chosen their nest well - a remote, long-abandoned industrial complex, rotted down to its shell, now a verdant half-wilderness reclaimed by the forest. Piles of rusty equipment and dumped garbage tower over the Hunters' heads, made even more precarious by the vines creeping and winding their way through, a green carpet disguising any pitfalls or weak spots. Any of the Hunters could easily twist an ankle or take a bad fall if they put a foot wrong. To help offset this danger, the Hunters are making their entry in mid-afternoon, right when their quarry will be the most tired and unwilling to leave the dark.
Kiryuu takes point in the treacherous terrain, aided by his hearing and faster reflexes to pick a safe passage through the rubble, likely following the paths marked out by the very vampires they are hunting. Once they enter the striated shadows of the inner core of the main building, walking on carpets of moss and grass, the Hunters split into groups of two and three, each with an older Hunter to lead, methodically clearing the building of half-awake Level Es. It requires little of Kiryuu's specialized skills; the other Hunters would have been adequate, but utilizing Kiryuu is safer.
The Level Es flee rather than fight the Hunters, surprised and scattered, until they are trapped inside the mostly intact, pitch black room they used to hide from the sun. In one last burst of furious struggle, like any animal caught in a trap, the Hunters and the Level Es clash as the Hunters storm the doors.
Kiryuu moves untouched through the fray - and then one of the Level Es, still human enough to think clearly, pulls a knife that sparks and burns when he grasps the hilt, and flies at the unprotected back of the scar-faced Hunter.
But Kiryuu saw it too, somehow, and pushing his speed to the limit, interposes himself between the Level E and his fellow Hunter. Then Kiryuu hesitates oddly for a fraction of a millisecond, and a strangely distant expression flashes across his face.
The Level E takes his chance.
By saving the scar-faced Hunter from a knife in his heart, Kiryuu barely has time to ensure his own safety, and though the strike fails, it is not harmless. The Level E's knife skates across Kiryuu's ribs as the two vampires fight to control the weapon, before Kiryuu's training prevails and he wrests the blade from the E's hand.
Where did a Level E get an anti-vampire weapon from, anyway? Even in the blackened room, Kaname's raven can see the dark line spreading down Kiryuu's side. The Level E got lucky, finding an unarmored weak spot instead of being deflected. Fortunately for Kiryuu, his chestplate protected his vital areas and belly from the dagger sinking deep. Not a glancing blow, but not a fatal one either.
The Hunter with the ugly scar doesn't even thank Kiryuu, or help him tend his wound. Ungrateful bastard; Kaname would have let him die, were he in Kiryuu's place. Takamiya is the one who wraps Zero's side in a layer of gauze as the Hunter lifts his shirt and complains that he will heal soon enough, and the dressing is a waste of bandages. Kiryuu is correct, but Takamiya stubbornly continues to wind bandages around his fellow apprentice's waist.
Kaname would know, even if his raven were not gliding behind on the road, the precise moment when Kiryuu returns to Rosehill. That strange, impersonal scent of blood spreading over the estate, brought to his nose by the wind currents. The scent is too heavy - fresh, still bleeding, not the tang of old dried iron. Even under powerful scent-dampening charms, that can't be hidden. Kaname frowns imperceptibly.
When Steward Inukai comes to report Kiryuu's return, he finds Kaname on his feet, unsettled and restlessly stroking the feathers of his raven, watching the blood-red glow of the setting sun. The house is quiet; the staff are just beginning to wake and begin the day. Yuuki is likely still asleep. The smell of blood is making the vampires stir earlier than normal; Kaname orders his steward to control their agitation if necessary. Why has Kiryuu not yet returned to his suite? The Steward cannot tell him.
A niggling unease has taken root in the back of his mind, a pattern half-glimpsed through smoke. What the pureblood ought to do is ignore it, go back to bed for a few hours, and wake up to see Yuuki at breakfast before completing his plans for the day.
Even stripped of its omega sweetness, Kiryuu's blood teases him, like a red ribbon undulating sinuously in the wind, brushing his cheek.
Without quite understanding why, Kaname dispels his familiar with a clench of his fist, fingers passing through once-solid feathers like mist. And then he tips his head back, scents the air, and follows the smell of blood, beckoning him forward the same way the smell of freshly baked bread would tempt a human to come taste. When the ribbon of scent leads him outside into the sun, the pureblood hesitates, but presses on; the blood trail is getting stronger.
The silver-haired Hunter has tucked himself away in the gardens, hidden off the paths in a knot of trees; beneath the thick canopy of branches, Kaname comes upon Kiryuu curled in the hollow of their roots, with his back against the largest tree's trunk. Were it not for the blood speckling the dirt, the scene - with its dappled shadows and cool greens, pale Kiryuu like a snowdrift - would be fit for a painting of some forest spirit.
Both of Kiryuu's hands are pressed against his side; his forehead is lined with pain. He's removed his overcoat and chestplate, leaving him in his undershirt. All of it - the bandages and his shirt - is soaked through with wet red blood.
The sight is disturbing. Even with an injury caused by an anti-vampire weapon, Kiryuu should have stopped bleeding by now, especially since his Hunter ancestry gives him some resistance.
Kiryuu is watching him, frozen motionless and staring unblinkingly at Kaname through the break in the trees, a wounded stag watching the tiger come prowling, drawn by weakness to consume. A good Hunter knows not to provoke his prey's instincts; Kiryuu has dragged his body to face Kaname rather than show the pureblood his back, likely as soon as he sensed him draw close.
The two rivals survey one another, neither one breaking that shared gaze, lavender to russet; the wind shakes the trees with a shushing sound, ruffles silver and dark auburn hair; the moment lengthens, draws out their frozen tableau.
Kaname could turn his back and walk away, right this moment, without consequence. He doesn't even know why he's here in the first place - one of the servants will follow the blood scent and find Kiryuu soon enough. The Hunter's life is not in danger.
Kiryuu expects nothing from Kaname; ignoring the Hunter's injury would not change that. Nor would it harm Kaname's reputation - Kiryuu would say nothing to anyone, even Yuuki. His wife would never know. No one would have to know that Kaname found Kiryuu, and left him bleeding in the dirt without lifting a finger to help him.
But Kaname would know. Kiryuu would know.
"I'm not you, Kuran. Just because I don't like you doesn't mean you deserve to die. So I can't allow you to be hurt."
The pureblood grits his teeth, and his jaw tightens.
Kiryuu would have helped him, if their situation was somehow reversed. Kaname knows that for certain. Kiryuu is crouched here bleeding in the first place because he helped someone who despised him, selflessly and at risk to his own life.
Yuuki would be disappointed in Kaname if she knew what he was considering. Yuuki would want Kaname to do something for Kiryuu. And she asked him to care for her descendant, as well.
Kaname hates feeling in someone else's debt.
Kaname hates the idea of Kiryuu being superior to him in any way.
(Kaname is also pretty damned tired of feeling guilty for his actions. He may pretend he doesn't have a conscience - a deeply buried, selectively sensitive one - but that doesn't stop him from knowing he's at fault, even if he feels no regret for what he's done.)
Without realizing it, Kaname takes a step forward. Kiryuu's lavender eyes widen in surprise, and the pureblood has to look down at his own feet to confirm that yes, he has in fact moved.
With that first step, a second one isn't so difficult, and Kaname strolls over to Kiryuu at a leisurely pace, as though it simply caught his fancy to hunt down recalcitrant, missing Hunters in broad daylight, at an hour the pureblood ought to be asleep.
He raises a questioning eyebrow at Kiryuu, and the Hunter glares back. A satisfyingly normal exchange, but then Kiryuu's face falls and the Hunter winces. How much blood has he lost by now?
"It won't - I can't get the bleeding to stop," admits the Hunter.
Kaname says nothing in response, hands laced together behind his back, examining Kiryuu with his normal composed expression. This seems to signal Kiryuu to keep talking.
"I saw your creepy raven following me, so I know you already know what happened. I didn't want to come in the house smelling of blood, so I thought I'd change my bandages. But I didn't realize it was worse than I thought."
"I don't think I can get up," Kiryuu confesses, avoiding Kaname's gaze and staring at the dirt by his feet. Admitting weakness to his rival must be painful.
If Kaname doesn't want to help Kiryuu, than Kiryuu probably doesn't want Kaname to help him either. Therefore, Kaname justifies to himself, helping Kiryuu would be going against the Hunter's wishes. Kaname wouldn't be doing anything out of the ordinary then, he convinces himself. Just one more way to torment the Hunter - entirely natural and normal. So it wouldn't mean anything, if the pureblood were to assist Kiryuu now. Reservations satisfied, Kaname happily goes for the kill.
"What are you doing? Put me down, you fang-licking bastard!" Slung over Kaname's shoulder, Kiryuu shouts and struggles, beating at Kaname's back with his firsts, but unless the Hunter uses an anti-vampire weapon on him, Kaname won't release his grip around Kiryuu's waist. It would be wiser to stop fighting; Kiryuu is merely reopening his wound, and Kaname is far too strong to overpower. His struggles dwindle and stutter as Kaname enters the house, either giving up or losing strength after so much blood lost.
Kaname sighs; the shoulder of his suit is thoroughly ruined; Kiryuu is bleeding into the fabric now, his wound pressed against Kaname's shoulder and jostled every time the Hunter bucks against his hold. Without Kaname's immense self-control, the pureblood's eyes would certainly glow red by now.
Of course, with Kiryuu so close, and the wind no longer dispersing the scent, Kaname can now pick up the hidden traces of Kiryuu's natural smell underneath the scent-dampening charms. Kaname is holding an omega - a bleeding omega - and his lagging instincts are now realizing that fact, triggering one of the most primal biological responses in an alpha vampire to defend a threatened omega. And Kiryuu isn't just any omega - Kiryuu is an omega he is technically courting. A rumble builds in his throat.
Mate is bleeding. Someone has made their omega bleed.
Intending to deliver Kiryuu to the consort's suite, Kaname swerves toward his rooms instead. He can't leave their mate to be tended by others, now can he? Mate must be kept nearby, safe and protected, so the pureblood can slaughter anyone who would try to harm him. Kaname's prized control collapses - he doesn't stop himself from turning his head and inhaling the heady fragrance open-mouthed; his eyes burn vermilion, and his mouth shows the tips of his lengthened fangs. The servants in their path dive and scatter like mice.
"Kuran, where are you taking me? Are you even listening to me?!" Kaname tips the Hunter off his shoulder into his arms, where he can restrain the omega more easily from hurting himself. This position is better anyway - without putting pressure on it, his mate's wound will bleed less.
"No! You lying bloodsucker! Don't!" shouts the omega, scratching and punching at Kaname's chest when he sees the massive bed in the master suite, a last ditch, frenzied attempt to break the pureblood's iron hold. Kaname lets the omega fight to exhaustion, grip carefully gentle, but immovable; their mate must be very frightened to fight so hard. But the wetness against his side worries the alpha, so he lays the omega down on the scarlet coverlet to get a better look.
Immediately, their mate throws himself away from Kaname and kicks out, forcing the alpha to climb overtop him and pin the omega motionless on his back. The smell of distress and terror only grows more deafening, drowning out everything but the scent of blood. Kaname shushes the omega, nuzzling him, confused why their mate thinks he's going to be hurt. He must be disoriented by his wound, the pureblood decides. When the distressed scent ebbs, and the omega's body goes limp, Kaname carefully releases him, pausing to see if their mate will continue his struggle.
When the omega doesn't move, Kaname starts to peel away the blood-drenched shirt from his skin, and then uses one sharp nail to gingerly and delicately cut away the equally sodden bandages. A happy rumble escaping his lips at all that bare skin revealed, Kaname surveys the damage; the omega's left side has a clean, curving slice that goes all the way down to the bone, stopping just before the ribcage ends.
Kaname leans down to fit his mouth on the lower edge and licks at the ripped skin, working his way upward, urging the wound to close and heal. He resists the temptation to seal his mouth to the cut and suck, contenting himself with laving the wound to apply as much healing saliva as he can, and cleaning the surrounding skin of blood. Just this taste of omega pheromones isn't enough to produce the same high as a feeding, but they are pleasant nonetheless. After a few minutes, the injury begins to clot, and the delicious blood's source dries up. Kaname wants to chase that taste, but mate is healing and can't afford to lose any more blood.
With the stimulus gone, Kaname begins to return to his senses and come down from his instinct driven frenzy. The pureblood is not sufficiently restored yet to care about the bloodstains everywhere, the fact that he is in bed together with Kiryuu, or to be appalled at his lack of control and primitive urges. There will be time later for those unpleasant revelations, when his hormones aren't running so high.
But his reason returns enough for him to pull his mouth away from Kiryu's skin, cleaning away more blood from the pale expanse, and to shape a question that has been troubling him since he saw the Hunter.
"Why couldn't your body heal?"
Kiryuu studies the pureblood with bewilderment and wariness, likely thrown by Kaname's temporary spell of madness. "Are you back to normal now?"
Kaname rolls his shoulders in a shrug. He can't tell the difference; he's still hazy and his inhibitions are in pieces.
"I don't know why," the other man hedges, looking away from Kaname. He's lying, but no matter. Kaname has more important concerns.
"You need to feed," the pureblood states matter of factly, and smears more blood on his stained shirt front as he unbuttons his collar.
None of those nasty blood tablets this time, triumphantly crows the alpha. We will feed him properly, as our mate lies in our bed, surrounded by our scent and safe in our den. The only thing he will feel, smell, taste, is us. Won't he see how well we can care for him? Taste how pure and strong we are? Perhaps he will even invite us to mount him!
The only way this could be better would be if Yuuki was with them, but if Kaname opens up the bloodbond - just like that - she will feel his welcoming summons and come join in.
"No," Kiryuu flatly refuses. But Kaname can see the tinges of red in his lavender irises, and it won't take much to overwhelm his control.
"Come on, Kiryuu," the pureblood coaxes, lowering himself down on knees and elbows, one hand on the back of the Hunter's neck guiding his mouth up to Kaname's throat, and the sound of his heartbeat rushing underneath.
The Hunter shakes his head emphatically, trying to turn his face aside, but Kaname's other hand puts a stop to that, pressing soft pink lips to his vein in a parody of a kiss. Kiryuu's mouth refuses to open, though his eyes have turned red and he's biting down so hard he might crack a tooth.
Kaname sighs. "Stubborn as always, Hunter," and slices his skin with a sharp nail, right above where Kiryuu's mouthing his neck. His pure blood flows down to touch the ex-human's lips, the divine smell and taste so close - and Kiryuu's control snaps.
The Hunter makes a high noise like a whine, and sinks his fangs in like a child, no skill or finesse. At the first taste, Kiryuu gives needy little cries and takes desperate, messy gulps, like a dying man in a desert overwhelmed by the taste of water.
While nothing can match the high of blood drinking, being fed on has its own kind of sensual allure as well. Rather than pure pain, when done willingly in the right state of mind, a vampire's body can find sharp pleasure in having another drink their blood. Such an intimate act of offering nourishment often leads to sexual arousal between partners, and Kaname is no exception, savoring the delicious mixture of pleasure-pain as only a pureblood can.
The feeling of his blood being drawn, the brush of lips on his flesh, the little sounds of his partner's enjoyment, the aroma of another's skin, the warmth and weight of a companion's body, the bliss of touch - all of these lull the pureblood into a pleasant trance, the closeness to an omega satisfying the alpha instincts, purring happily in his mind.
"Good boy, Zero," he praises, as though he's watching someone else form the words. This position, with the Hunter underneath his body, has served its purpose, but now that Kiryuu isn't fighting to get away, they can move to a more comfortable position. With one hand still on Kiryuu's neck, and the other on his back, Kaname flips them over so the Hunter is sitting on his thighs, and he can rest his back against the pile of pillows at the headboard. The Hunter whines to protest, before going back to his drink. Just like a puppy. "Such a sweet boy," his mouth murmurs, carding his fingers through silver hair.
"Kaname. What did you do?" In the doorway, still wearing her white nightgown, Yuuki displays a kind of horrified terror at the bloody scene before her eyes - Kaname, Zero, and the bed are are liberally coated with gore, white shirts turned brown, both their faces streaked red. The whole room reeks of it.
"My dear wife," he welcomes her, "come join us."
"Did you hurt him?" she demands, stalking over.
"No," he tells her, reveling in the lightness of complete honesty. He's rather surprised about that himself.
Zero pulls away from Kaname's throat, disrupted by the intrusion. "No, you're not finished yet," he scolds. "Not until you're full."
"Go on, Zero." Leaning over, Yuuki touches the Hunter's cheek and gently bends his head back down. "It's okay to take what you need. We want you too," she pleads earnestly.
The Hunter whimpers, shaking, his pupils blown wide, and buries his fangs again in his sloppy child's bite. Yuuki strokes Kiryuu's back, rubbing reassuringly, and he settles back down to feed.
"What happened?" she asks more calmly.
"Kiryuu went hunting, and suffered a moderate injury from an anti-vampire weapon. I found him as he returned, and he was still bleeding," Kaname explains. "So I closed his wound and convinced him to feed from me."
"Convinced?" Yuuki asks, heaving herself onto the bed and sitting down next to Kaname. Their thighs press together, and the pureblood kicks his mind back to the safer topic of her question.
"Perhaps not convinced," the pureblood allows. "But it wasn't hard - like getting a starving man to eat."
The two purebloods watch Kiryuu finish drinking in a comfortable silence, like their weeks of distance and silent separation had never happened.
"I'm really proud of you," Yuuki tells him, watching fondly, one hand resting on each of her spouses' bodies.
The glow in his chest is almost enough to make up for all the ridiculous hormone-fueled things he's just done - and the reality that Kaname allowed Kiryuu to feed from him again, this time in front of Yuuki.
Kiryuu is swallowing more slowly now, and when the Hunter draws away a second time, Kaname does not stop him.
"Full?" asks Yuuki, smiling and wiping away a smear of blood at the edge of Kiryuu's mouth with her thumb.
Blinking at the two purebloods like he doesn't understand where they came from - or how he came to be in bed with them - the Hunter nods.
"That was a considerable amount. When was the last time you fed, Kiryuu?" inquires Kaname without really wanting or caring about the answer.
"Mmmmmm. Ichiru," mumbles the Hunter, sleepy and sated, slumping forward to go limp on Kaname's shoulder. Clearly the Hunter's not in his right mind either, because if he were, he'd never do that. Imagining Kiryuu's future reaction to learning this fact is priceless.
"Ichiru?" Yuuki repeats, a sad look on her face. "He's been gone a long time, Zero. When after that?"
Kiryuu stubbornly shakes his head. "Ichiru," he insists. "Let me sleep. Tired. My power went weird today. Practice tomorrow."
Kaname does some swift calculations. He thought that he'd simply taken more blood than he meant too, when he drank from Kiryuu. But the servants reported Kiryuu's poor recovery time after their wedding night as well. And there was the incident with Kiryuu's inconvenient bloodlust. And now, the Hunter's inability to heal from what should be a simple injury - his blood could not even clot properly.
"Do you mean to tell me that you haven't fed in over thirty years!?" demands Kaname.
"Course not. Blood tablets, stupid," sullenly replies Kiryuu.
Then the Hunter promptly falls asleep.
"How are you not dead?" demands Kaname of Kiryuu's slumbering dead weight on his shoulder.
Aido is called to the house, as the only skilled researcher Kaname trusts.
Kiryuu tried to hedge and deny his admission when he woke, but not convincingly enough that Kaname or Yuuki believed him, and eventually he caved and returned to his first story.
Frankly, Kaname would have preferred to ignore the matter, but Yuuki raised a fuss, and being back in her good graces was too great a prize to resist. Kiryuu gets a full medical exam - agreeing only after a temper tantrum and Kaname reminding him that his body belonged to the Kurans - and Aido leaves with strict secrecy instructions and a medical case full of samples.
"I knew Kiryuu's biology was odd, but I never guessed it was this bizarre," Aido tells him as Kaname escorts the noble to his car. "I mean, the blood tablets are meant to deliver the same nutrition as real blood, but they were never designed for such long-term use. Even when we tested them, the study's subjects were supplemented on rare occasions with real blood. It will take me several weeks, at a minimum, to get preliminary results. But I'm so curious to see what that Hunter's hiding in his DNA!"
The blond's expression becomes more serious. "In the meantime, like I told Yuuki-hime, feed Kiryuu as often as you can. If his eating habits caused long term damage to his body, it will take work to reverse that. If he's miraculously unharmed - which for all we know, thanks to his Hunter blood, he might be - than the overfeeding won't harm him."
"I'm fine, really - I don't need any more so soon after feeding from Kuran." Zero's nose wrinkles in disgust. "I'm not even hungry!" Zero protests.
"Aido said that we can't trust your instincts to tell you when you need to feed, if you can ignore them so easily," Yuuki counters, sitting beside him on the library couch.
"I don't want to feed," the Hunter objects. Any other vampire would have jumped to pierce Yuuki's pureblood neck at the barest hint of an offer to obtain her blood. Except for Zero, who has to be bullied into drinking the most desireable blood in the world.
"Do you - do you not want my blood, Zero?" Yuuki asks tentatively with a wounded, uncertain expression, shoulders drooping as though he's hurt her.
Zero wilts, immediately contrite. "No - I mean yes - I mean that's not what I meant!"
He runs a hand over his face, frustrated by his inability to explain. "I didn't mean to hurt you. It's just - you know that I don't like feeding. It reminds me that I'm -"
A monster. An animal. A beast in human form.
"- a vampire."
Yuuki gathers up her dark auburn hair, and pulls it aside, exposing her neck as she tilts her head invitingly - to vampires, a very provocative gesture meant for spouses and lovers.
"Please just try to drink, Zero. Even if it's not my blood that you want," she pleads.
"That's not true," he tells her, feeling his face heat with a blush, but continues to speak. "I do want your blood. Your blood is the only blood that's ever really satisfied me. It's the blood that I want to drink, more than anything."
"Then please," Yuuki says, watching him, and flushing pink as well, "go ahead and take it. Drink from me like you used to, when I was human. I want you to. Please, Zero."
It's hard, with Yuuki tipping her head back, but they hold each other's gaze as long as they can, until Zero has to break their connection when he bends down to Yuuki's throat. She shivers when she feels his breath fanning over her flesh, and again when he licks over the place he's chosen to bite.
There's a nostalgia between them, but at the same time a feeling of newness and discovery, as though they are doing this for the first time. Zero guesses that Yuuki decided to offer her blood now, when Kaname was out of the house, to avoid fueling his jealousy - not that it would help much - but he's not bitter or resentful because of that. He values her generous gift, however she chooses to present it, and Zero has dreamed of Yuuki's blood as long as he's known her. His whole body feels alert, sensitive, seeking out nourishment with all the predator's fixation his vampiric nature bestows.
"I'm out of practice," the Hunter apologizes preemptively, when he can't draw this moment out anymore with the excuse of preparation. "I'll probably hurt you."
"It's okay. I don't mind if it's you," Yuuki says; Zero can feel her skin move over the muscles of her throat when she speaks. The stimulation is too much, and he opens his mouth with his fangs already lengthened, resting the tips on her skin, as though he's waiting for her to refuse him.
But Yuuki only brings her hand up to rest on the back of his head, and he can feel her heartbeat under his lips. "Go on, Zero."
So he does, a careful tensing of his jaw, just the right amount of pressure. He marvels at that - he has so much more control when he isn't hovering perpetually at the edge of starvation. Then Yuuki's blood hits his tongue and Zero unashamedly groans.
"Is it as good as before?" Yuuki's voice quavers and breaks halfway through her question, like she's about to cry, and trying not to.
Sensing that this is important, Zero withdraws just long enough to speak, head fogged by the scorching power and rich taste. "Yuuki still tastes like Yuuki. It's so good. Such warm feelings..."
"He went straight to sleep again?" Sasaki asks fondly, smiling at the image of Zero asleep in Yuuki's arms, his cultivated stoic image ruined by how vulnerable he looks loose-limbed with his mouth slightly open, quietly dreaming.
"Yes, as soon as he was done," confirms Yuuki cheerfully, stepping through the door into the anteroom of the Consort's suite as Zero's head maid moves aside. The waiting junior maids giggle at the endearing sight.
Aido told them that Zero's first near-coma nap after feeding from her brother was nothing to be worried about. Zero's body was just trying to recover by shutting down to process his desperately needed meal, and it might even be a good sign that Zero is healing more quickly. After such a terrifying revelation about Zero's health, Yuuki hardly wants to let him out of her sight, and she'll take whatever positive news she can get.
Her whole body sings with satisfaction. The alpha is pleased simply because their mate fed eagerly and willingly, and they left their scent clinging to him.
But Yuuki is happy because Zero accepted her blood again. Zero still wanted her blood! And he still thought it tasted good!
Yuuki had been deeply afraid that Zero wouldn't find her blood appetizing anymore, now that she was a pureblood. What if he only wanted the human Yuuki's blood, and found the vampire Yuuki's blood a poor, miserable tasting substitute, yearning for something she could not give him anymore? But her fears were groundless, and she feels light as a bird, despite how her training and investigation have stalled lately.
"Here, you should take him," the pureblood says as she stops short of entering Zero's personal rooms, but she doesn't move Zero from his resting place. "I don't want to invade Zero's space without permission. Zero needs to have his own place to retreat to, a sanctuary that Kaname-sempai and I won't enter unless he asks."
Sasaki's eyes soften but her mouth quirks, as though she can't settle on one emotion to feel. "You are very considerate of your Consort's privacy, Kuran-hime, but I don't think Consort Kiryuu would mind as much as you think. At any rate, it wouldn't be a problem if you came as far as the Noble's Room - that's considered a public space for the Consort to have visitors, not a private one."
Yuuki considers for a moment, weighing her desire to respect Zero against how good it felt to hold him. Sasaki is an experienced elder vampire - she probably knows best, Yuuki tells herself, and nods to the maid, following her into the ornately decorated Noble's room, and reluctantly setting a sleeping Zero down on a green and gold divan.
Sasaki bows to the pureblood when she turns to leave. "If you would, Kuran-hime, please allow me to serve you on behalf of Consort Kiryuu. My master would be disappointed if I did not see to your needs, and he would not wish you to be exhausted by his hunger. Please refresh yourself by taking a little food and drink before you go."
Truly, Yuuki feels like she could use a blood tablet or two, and to be allowed the chance to do so while also being able to watch over Zero a little longer as he slept? That is priceless, so she assents to Sasaki's suggestion, and sits down at the small tea table in the room to much on the light snack the maids bring her.
"This is a wonderful recipe, Sasaki-san," compliments Yuuki. "Please give my compliments to the staff; I don't think I've had this before."
Sasaki beams. "It's my own mother's creation, Kuran-hime. I asked the kitchens to make it for Consort Kiryuu, but he hasn't much of a sweet tooth."
"She must have been a wonderful cook," Yuuki says as she takes a third treat.
The older woman nods, a nostalgic look in her eyes. "She was that, Kuran-hime. I'm not a legacy servant; I'm from a small village in the north. I used to visit my mother there, before she passed. I miss her very much, and I still visit my birthplace now and then. Sometimes it's good to go back to your roots. Our beginnings make us what we are, after all."
Yuuki pauses, biscuit halfway to her mouth.
"Kuran-hime, are you alright?" Sasaki asks with concern.
"I'm fine," the pureblood reassures her. "I just thought of something. A solution to a problem I'm having. Nothing important." Yuuki smiles, and bites into the biscuit with relish.
"I'm taking Zero to visit Kuran manor," Yuuki announces to her brother that evening in his study, as the fire crackles and he goes over the intelligence reports from their agents monitoring the Senate.
Kaname stops cold, and pushes his papers aside to give her his full attention. Yuuki makes certain that none of her doubts and insecurities show in her controlled expression. He can't be allowed to suspect anything, not now that she has a new lead and possible answers to her questions. If he perceives even the tiniest part of her plan, her brother will destroy all possible evidence left at the estate.
"How long do you think you'll stay," he asks, a cold stiffness in his face.
"Only a few days. Certainly not much longer than a week," she replies, smiling a little to show that she isn't trying to leave him, and that his fears are unnecessary.
Her brother's face relaxes. "Are you certain?" Kaname asks with concern. "You haven't been there since Juuri turned you human."
"I think I'm ready," she tells him with as much confidence as she can muster. "And I want to show Zero the place where I grew up before I came into the Chairman's care," she argues.
Yuuki isn't really sure that she's prepared to see the place where their parents were murdered. But returning to the place where everything began is the best way she can think of to search for more clues regarding Kaname's secret. And if she brings Zero, Kaname won't want to come along, and she has a plausible excuse to visit somewhere she's never wanted to return to before. She needs her brother far away if she's going to search for answers. Yuuki feels a twinge of guilt, but reminds herself that this is what she's chosen, and it's for the good of all of them.
Nearly a minute passes while Kaname considers Yuuki's plan. Let him believe that Yuuki is simply trying to put more distance between them in her anger. Let him suspect nothing.
"If you're sure it won't upset you," her brother finally says, eyes burnished red in the firelight. "I'm afraid that I won't be able to accompany you; I need to keep monitoring events here."
Yuuki smiles tightly. "I'm sure you know what's best. It's just a little trip; Zero and I will be fine on our own."
If Zero hadn't gotten caught here, his plan to force his body to have a fallow heat would have absolutely worked, even if he could only manage it for three or four months. But it would have wrecked his health pretty badly. He could still possibly have a fallow heat, because new omegas - especially male ones - often haven't settled into their hormone cycles yet. But since he got caught early enough, he has a chance at still being fertile.
Appreciate, for a moment, that the one time Kaname isn't a terrible human being to Zero, he manages to singlehandedly ruin Zero's most important plan. And that the whole thing happened because Zero did something selflessly moral in the first place. Two different kind acts, and they accidentally preserved their chance at a baby neither of them want. Such irony.
Next chapter: two truths and a lie.