As if time had slowed itself, the walk to the Headmaster's private living quarters seemed unrealistically long. Needless to say, with each step we took, I could feel myself becoming a little more nervous about what was to come. There was no possible way I was not going to get in trouble for what I almost did. Especially, as Akatsuki pointed out, not after biting Yuki only two weeks prier. The only thing I could really hope for was that the Headmaster would understand my reasoning and be merciful in not telling Kaname-Sama what he will learn. In that I nearly broke two of the most important rules the Night Class has.
As we finally stepped into the opening and neared the house the Headmaster lived in, I glanced around the area. While I have been to his office plenty of times since I came to this school I've never actually been to his home before. It looked rather... cozy. Pretty small compared to my own, and I doubt I could ever live in something so small, but for the former hunter it seemed cozy enough. After all, it was pretty much just him, Yuki and Kiryu living here. I just hoped those two were staying in the Sun Dorms tonight. With how much trouble I know I'm going to be in, I didn't want to have to deal with them along with the Headmaster.
When we approached the door, Akatsuki gave me a look that told me to knock on it. Since he was currently holding Ashley in his arms, I knew I had no choice but to comply. So, sucking in a deep breath, I accepted the fact that there was no getting out of this, took a step forwards and knocked on the door. Stepping back, we only had to wait for about a moment as we heard movement coming from the other side before the door opened and revealed the Headmaster himself looking out at us.
"Oh, Aido-Kun, Kain-Kun. Is everything alright?" He asked in concern, clearly not having been expecting it to be us standing there. And why would he? We've never so much as been to this part of the school grounds before let alone to his house.
Before either of us could answer, not that I even wanted to, the Headmaster's eyes directed themselves towards Akatsuki and who he was holding in his arms. The moment he saw her they widened and a flash of worry crossed his face. In an instant he let go of his shawl, which he had been previously gripping, and took a step closer to us; something that made me want to flinch but didn't seem to bother Akatsuki.
"What happened?" The Headmaster demanded, sounding just as worried as he looked as he reached out a hand to touch Ashley's face.
"We're sorry for intruding at this time of night, Headmaster, but there's been an incident. Can we come in?" Akatsuki asked while I just stayed silent. Instead I simply resorted to watching as the former hunter's expression shifted into one of understanding as he pulled his hand away and nodded.
"Yes, of course, come in." He told us, stepping back inside and holding the door open so we could enter. Once inside, the Headmaster shut the door behind us and lead us through his house until we reached what I assumed to be his living room.
Much like the outside of the house, the room was decently sized but still much smaller than the ones I was used to. There was an single couch, an arm chair, a coffee table, a cabinet that held pictures of Yuki and Kiryu and a fireplace against the side of the wall. The living room in my mansion was at least three times this size though, then again, I'm rich and have a much bigger family. I suppose it shouldn't really matter what size the Headmaster's house was though, as there were more important things I needed to worry about.
"Place her down on the couch." Kaien instructed, motioning towards it with a nod of his head. Akatsuki did so while I remained standing where I was; trying to hide just how uncomfortable I was feeling. Especially when the Headmaster took on a more serious expression.
"Now, tell me what happened. Was she trying to run away again?" He asked, his tone both worried yet held a seriousness that, in that moment, was rather unnerving. Even though Kaname-Sama was by far scarier than this man could ever be, this was one human I didn't want to get on the wrong side of.
"I don't know much of what happened. Hanabusa told us he was going for a walk and when he didn't come back after a while I got worried. So I went looking for him. I have no idea what this girl was doing outside, or if she was trying to run away, but when I found Hanabusa, he was trying to bite her." Akatsuki explained as he gently placed the girl on the couch before turning to face the both of us. I then tensed as an icy sensation shot down my spine as the former hunter directed his eyes over to me.
"Can you explain yourself, Aido-Kun?" He asked me. Though he spoke rather calmly, just the tone in his voice was enough to cause me to gulp as I tried to force down my nervousness.
"Well I... well I just... I was only... No." I admitted with a deep sigh and hung my head, unable to explain myself. At least not in the same way I tried with Akatsuki. Damn it, why did he have to tell on me like that? Some cousin he was.
"Well, thank you for bringing her here. I will take things from here, you may return to the Moon Dorms." The man sighed, turning his piercing, guilt tripping, eyes away from me to look down at the unconscious girl. In doing so I suppressed the urge to breath in relief and lifted my head again.
So I guess this means I wasn't going to get punished for this then? That was kind of surprising. Especially considering what happened last time, but it wasn't like I was going to complain. Of course, I'd still like some answers on what exactly was going on with this girl, but I didn't want to push my luck. I guess I'd just have to try again some other night because there was no way I was just going to give this up. If this girl was dangerous I wanted to know. I had the right to know.
"Thank you Headmaster, and again sorry for the intrusion." Akatsuki apologized and I silently turned to follow him as we made our way out of the small living room. We barely made it a few steps, however, as the Headmaster's voice spoke up behind us.
"Not you, Aido-Kun. I'd like you to stay for a moment. Kain, you may leave; I would still like to have a word with your cousin." The man said, stopping me in my tracks as a sense of dread washed over me. Well, so much for thinking I was going to get out of this scot-free. I should have known it was too good to be true.
"Good luck." My cousin told me, giving my shoulder a small pat before walking off without another word. I glared after him and didn't stop until I was left alone with the former hunter.
Now that it was just the two of us, I felt more uncomfortable than ever before. It was no secret that Kaien Cross had once been the deadliest vampire hunter in history. I used to hear many bedtime stories of how he'd ruthlessly kill countless vampires without so much as a second thought. In fact, parents used to use Kaien Cross as a threat to make their children behave. I myself was always well behaved, though my sisters did like to scare me with stories every now and then.
So the fact he wanted to speak to me alone was more than just a little unnerving. While he may seem like a different person now, I knew he wasn't someone be taken lightly. I may have personally never seen him get angry before but I've heard enough stories to give me nightmares. Of course, then again, even after learning after I bit Yuki, he did nothing but agreed with Kaname-Sama's punishment of a ten day suspension. So I had no idea just what he intended for me. Being that he is trying to help Kaname-Sama establish peace, I don't think I had to worry about my safety but it did little to help cool my nerves.
"You can relax, Aido-Kun. While we will discus what you tried to do at a later date, this isn't about that." The Headmaster told me and I blinked at the lack of anger in his voice. If anything, he sounded much more calm than I expected him to be.
"I'm not? I mean, it isn't?" I asked, correcting myself out of surprise before snapping myself out of it. "Then what is it you wanted to talk about?"
"First, let's take Ashley here to a spare bedroom. She'll probably be more comfortable laying on a bed than remaining on the couch." He told me, bending down to gather the girl in his arms. She barely made a sound as she was lifted and as the Headmaster began to walk out of the room; Akatsuki's sleeping spell being that strong.
"This way, Aido-Kun. I'm sure that you must have many things you want to ask."
My eyes widened at that and, perhaps a little too eagerly, I quickly followed after him; looking around as I did. Much like the living room we were in a moment ago, the rest of the Headmaster's house seemed pretty small. Decent for someone like him, but still pretty small to what I was used to. So it didn't take very long at all until he stopped in front of a door. Much like when Akatsuki had been holding her, as the Headmaster's arms were full, it fell onto me to open the door for him. Which I did and let him in before following soon after.
The room itself seemed to be a standard bedroom. A decent size bed, a small dresser pushed off to the side and a desk in the corner. Nothing overly impressive but nothing to turn my head at either. Of course, if I were to stay somewhere like here, I'd need my special lavender sheets, silk blankets and expensive pillows. But for a human? Yeah, it was comfy looking enough. Closing the door behind me, I waited and watched in silence as the Headmaster took Ashley over to the bed and laid her on top of it.
"Did either you or your cousin erase her memories?" The human asked as he gave the girl a quick exam. Likely to make sure neither I nor Akatsuki had done anything than what was already admitted. I shook my head, biting back a pout as I watched him put a light blanket over the girl's body.
"No, Akatsuki wouldn't let me and just put her to sleep." I answered, still a little irked that my cousin blatantly said he didn't trust me. I mean, come on, yes, I may have lost myself to my blood lust just a little, but I'm not some bad guy here. I would have only erased what was needed, no more.
To my surprise, relief flashed across Headmaster Cross's face and he released a small sigh as he stood up. "Good. I have a feeling she might already know the truth about vampires, so it would be a waste of energy to erase her memory."
For a moment, the admission caught me even more by surprise and my eyes widened as I turned to look at the unconscious girl. But then I began to recall all of my own suspicions and everything I've seen so far. Honestly, I've already considered the possibility she knew the truth about vampires. As scared as she may have been the other night, and unintentional as it may have looked, she did kill a Level-E. With strange vine powers no less. So I suppose my surprise really dwelled with the Headmaster sharing my suspicions. Or at least some of them. In that case, I maybe should tell him what I had seen last night. He mentioned me having questions to ask so I could only assume he had the answers I was looking for.
"Actually, Headmaster, just the other night a Level-E had snuck onto school grounds. Kaname-Sama ordered me to kill it but, before I could, she did it first." I admitted, crossing my arms as I kept my gaze on the girl. When I finally looked away from her, I saw that the Headmaster was giving me a look of confusion and concern so I quickly explained what I had seen the night before. Once I was done, the man hung his head and sighed sadly.
"I was afraid something like this could have happened. For it to effect her in such a way though, I never would have thought." He muttered to himself, bringing a hand up to his face as he contemplated something. I just stared at him in confusion, my brows furrowing as I wondered what exactly he was talking about and just what he knew about this girl.
"What do you mean by 'effect', Headmaster? What were you afraid could happen? And what do you know about this girl?" I asked, uncrossing my arms and letting them drop back to my sides as I stared blankly at the former hunter.
Lowering his hand from his face, Headmaster Cross looked over to me, his expression troubled. Almost as if the human man had been holding onto some horrible secret this whole time and was hesitate to share. In all honesty, the look on his face both made me a little nervous yet very more eager to get the answers I've been soughing after. Finally, after only a few seconds had passed, the Headmaster sighed once again. Readjusting his glasses, which I guess must have slipped down his nose when he looked down, he manoeuvred himself so he was better facing me but still had a direct line of sight of Ashley.
"Well, since I know you'll figure it out on your own sooner or later, I might as well just tell you now." Headmaster Cross said and motioned a hand towards the girl as he looked directly towards me; something that made my heart give a small jump. "Aido-Kun, Ashley is from another dimension."
So... 7 years since my last update; and that was an author's note talking about how I was getting into a new fandom. ^^' Honestly, if you read my "Galore" story, you'd have seen I already had some of this written many years ago. Only that has since been edited and I got the inspiration to continue. I don't know how many people are even going to be reading this but that's okay. I updated more for my sake than my readers. I like reading over my old stories and, while my motivation hasn't been the best, do think of how I would continue them if I got back into them. Or edit them now that my writing has gotten better over the years.
Anyways, as for what this story is concerned, I am going to try to do more. I still haven't thought how to continue the original, but have some ideas how to edit the next few chapters. As well as how to edit the previous chapters after reading them over again. I am going to take some time to read my manga and perhaps even start watching the anime again to see if it ends up helping get me back into the swing of things. So, hopefully, the next chapter won't take me weeks, months or worse of all, years. Anyways, for those that do read this, and remember the original, I hope you like the change I did. It only made more sense to me, though I did enjoy my idea about the private infirmary room for vampires. Now I just think they'd have that in the Moon Dorms.
As a final note, the next chapter will be the last that will be in Aido's point of view