'All love that has not friendship for its base,
Is like a mansion built upon the sand.'

:Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Just Friends

Night One – Evening

Glancing for him in the swarm, she twirled this way and that hoping to catch a glimpse of his silhouette amongst the roaring crowd of girls. This was no ordinary day. This was the day she would pluck up the courage to ask him an important question. This question was one that she felt depended on her very life. Tia could not afford to miss the opening of any opportunity. She was determined. She was ready. She was deeply in love and very, very… hyper.

"Yuki!" She shouted with an immense smile, waving her arms in the air to get her sister's attention.

The Headmaster of Cross Academy had been ever so kind as to take her in after her family had been slaughtered by a Level E. Since that night all those years ago Tia could still remember the first time she had stepped foot into the Cross household…

She was about nine and the man she knew back then as Cross-san led her up a path. He was mumbling about police and councils. She had no idea what or why he was speaking of such things, but as she grew she learned. Learned about the beast that destroyed her life.

He opened up a door and took her tattered coat from around her shoulders. "Yuki! Zero-kun! I have a surprise for you!" He called out into the room beyond the hallway.

Tia gasped when he first appeared. He was quite tall for his age - around ten. Yuki was the same age as Tia and they were immediately friends, as she helped clean the blood from her hair and fair skin. Zero had merely stood off to the side, his arms crossed and a glare fixed in place. He obviously was not used to other people stealing Yuki's attention. Perhaps he just didn't like to share.

Eventually though, he seemed to warm up to her and they had some good times…

Tia jumped, as arms encircled around her, "Ha heh ha… jumpy today aren't we?" Takuma chuckled brightly.

Tia wrenched herself out of his arms, "I am not!" She shouted with a pout, stomping her feet and balling her fists tightly.

He grinned at her, rubbing his jaw thoughtfully. "Could it be that you have been thinking of you-know-who again? Eh?" He lightly teased, smiling widely, "Well, have you Tia? You're going to ask him today, aren't you?"

Tia gasped, blushing so madly that even her ears were tinged a passionate red, "Well, I, um… I was thinking of- going to… uh, yes. Yes I was going to ask him…" She finished quietly as she began to notice the lack of screaming fan girls and night class students.

She gave Takuma a questioning look, as he bashfully smiled. Rubbing his neck nervously, Takuma confessed, "I decided to skip some of my class to come see you."

Tia smirked, "Well as lovely as that sounds my good friend I do believe that you have to get back to class! I will not have you being late mister!" She yelled, pushing him towards the entrance doors. "Do you understand how much trouble you'd get me in with my father, sister and, and, and - Zero?!" Tia froze, as the very boy she was hoping to talk to earlier stepped forward from the darkness that now surrounded them.

"What are you doing out here vampire? You should be in class by now." He asked darkly, as Tia kept hurrying Takuma to move.

However, he happily strung an arm around her, "I was merely checking up on my friend. No harm done, don't worry about her Zero. She's in good hands."

Zero glowered at him, as he motioned for Tia to step away from the vice president of the moon dorms. Shaking her head fiercely, Tia gave one last forceful shove at Takuma and successfully got him moving towards the main building. "He's already leaving us… alone. Just the two of us." She insisted, looking pointedly at the cheeky grin Takuma was throwing the pair.

"Very well then Tia. Here I go. Leaving you both very much alone… together… in the dark." She hit her palm to her face in exasperation. She could still hear his laughter even after the front doors had closed.

"What is wrong with him?" She asked herself quietly.

"He's a rat!" She jumped at the malice in his words, "That should be reason enough as to why he acts so insanely."

"Hey!" Tia growled, spinning round to face Zero head on, "That's one of my best friends your bad mouthing!"

It was quiet for a moment, as Zero contemplated this, "So…"

Tia roared with frustration and hit him in the arm, "You leave my friends alone! Pick on Aidou if you have too, but leave them alone! Okay?"

Zero grunted, rubbing his arm up and down, "Whatever, I don't really care."

Tia sighed, as she watched him walk off to his post.

"No, Wait. No!" She wailed, dramatically falling to her knees on the cobbled path hollering to the sky, "I didn't get to ask him! Grrr!" She scrunched up her face and gripped her head in both hands. Sighing again, she hastily got to her feet and dashed away from the area, as she heard Yagari-sensei shouting out of his classroom window.

Day Two - Early Morning

"Did you hear about Misa and Luke." A low whisper hissed, as another replied with an excited, 'Oh! Yes! Isn't it wonderful!' Whilst another voice hastily asked, 'What? What did I miss?'

"Misa and Luke are going to the valentines dance together. I can't believe she bagged him – he's so hot!" The girl behind Tia, Yori and Yuki squealed excitedly.

"Tia, you don't seem as lively as usual. Are you feeling alright?" Yori asked her with a worried frown of confusion.

Tia's gloomy visage picked up, as she cheerfully replied, "Yes, I'm fine. Don't worry!"

Turning round in her chair, she glanced at the gossiping, giggling girls. "And you, Sara, do you have a date for tonight's dance yet?" Tia queried loudly for all of the class to hear.

"Oh," Sara said, "Well… not yet, but there's still time!" She finished with a small smile, as she looked over at the boy closest to their table, which happened to be the snoozing Zero whose face was being smudged up against the stain glass window.

Tia chuckled at him, "Well if you think you'd ever have a chance with Zero, I'd think again Sara."

Huffing, Sara picked up her books and moved further to the front of the class while her two friends followed like squabbling squirrels.

"I need to ask him soon." Tia said, as Yuki began to fall asleep.

"Perhaps you should just ask him at break like I told you to yesterday." Yori commented, whilst finishing her math questions.

"No!" Tia protested, "Too many people!" She shook her head, "I need somewhere quiet and secluded.

Yori gave a short laugh, "Like what, the forest?"

Tia's eyes light up, "That's it!" She shouted. Not only did this grab every student's attention, and wake Yuki and Zero, but she was also able to draw the attention of the teacher.

"What's 'it', miss Cross? Please, do tell. Don't skip out on details." Yagari demanded harshly, slamming his text book onto the desk.

"Er… heh, heh, heh…" Thinking irrationally, Tia rashly picked up her things and ran, "I've gotta go!"

Glaring, Yagari shouted for someone to have her back by next period, as it was a double lesson.

"You never came back to class. Is something wrong?" He asked her, as they sat under one of the trees near the forest edge. "You know you can always trust me." He whispered. It was as though he thought he himself had done something wrong.

"No, I'm fine, really I am. I just have a lot on my mind right now." Tia replied sullenly while leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Zero," She pondered aloud, as he gave a grunt to show that she had his attention, "If you like someone, but don't know how they'd take it… do you tell them anyway? Just to get the stress off of your shoulders."

He remained silent. After twenty minutes of this silence Tia thought it was quite clear that she was not going to receive an answer from his brooding self.

"Is that why you're acting so different?" He suddenly asked curiously with a frown, "If this guy is the reason that you're acting so down lately then I say stuff him." He told her seriously, as Tia's mouth began to fall open a little. "If this man is messing with your head so much so that you aren't the same Tia I - we all love…" He trailed off in thought, "Then forget him."

Tia blinked.

It was all she could do. Zero was basically telling her to forget about being anything more than just friends. He had no idea, but it still hurt.

She bowed her head sadly, regretfully. "Okay," she whispered, "Okay."

Zero nodded firmly and turned his gaze away from her and back to the blue sky, as they both sat and watched the clouds go by.

"Hey, Zero," Tia ventured with a sigh, "Since neither of us has a… partner for the dance. Should we go together?" As his eyes widened, she quickly corrected herself, "As friends!" She blurted with ruby cheeks.

He seemed to ponder the suggestion with a cute pout before nodding with a small smile, "Sure, why not?"

Immediately grinning like a moron, Tia leaned back and placed her head comfortably on his shoulder…

Glancing back and forth, she scanned the crowd for her knight in shining armor, only to find that he was missing. "Zero, where are you? You said you would pick me up." Tia whispered to herself in disappointment. After waiting for him to show up at her dorm for thirty minutes she decided it would be best to head straight to the dance. However, it seemed that not only had he forgotten about her, but he also skipped the celebration altogether. It made no sense. He appeared to be as eager about going to the dance as she was… and yet, there was no sign of him.

"Tia, may I be of assistance. You look a little… distracted." Takuma asked her once he had managed to push through his throng of fan girls.

"I'm, I'm, I'm…" She sighed, as a small tear fell down one of her rosy cheek, "Where is Yuki?" She asked.

Takuma gaze tore itself from the beautiful dress that adorned his best friend and gave her a sad look of pity, "I saw Zero chasing after her."

Tia sniffled. "It was supposed to just be us," she whispered harshly, as a dark scowl grew on her face, "Just us!" She broke out crying, as Takuma pulled her to him in a bear hug.

"I'm so, so sorry Tia." His own voice quivered. He was not used to ever seeing her cry. She was always up-beat. Stroking her back, he turned his head this way and that, hoping to catch sight of Kaname-sama, Yuki or Zero. He found none, but his nose picked up the scent of blood. His body became ridged. That was a pureblood's scent. It filled the air and he could tell more of his class mates could smell it… Shizuka.

"Takuma? What's wrong?" Tia asked, breaking away from his cold touch. He shook his head, morphing his frown into a big smile as he glanced to the balcony.

"It's nothing…"

"Why did he act like that? Takuma never loses his smile; unless it was something really important." Tia said to herself, as she laid on her bed lost in thought, "And what about Zero. Ugh! He's broken my heart." She whined. There was a knock at her door and Tia knew it was him.

"Go away Zero! I don't want to talk to you!" She shouted, running up to the door and flipping the latch to lock it shut.

"Tia?!" He called back, struggling to open the door.

"I said go away!" She yelled with a screech, jumping back onto her bed and throwing a pillow at the wood that separated them both from one another, "You not only left me waiting for you here, but you abandoned me! Do you know how that feels? To have someone you care about just forget you?! You left me for Yuki! Of all the people you could have chosen and it had to be one of the closest to me!" She gasped, her heart wrenching painfully. "I hate you," She choked out quietly, as her heart contracted continuously, "So why does it still hurt so much?"

Zero leaned his head against the door in fatigue. He had just spent the night fighting Shizuka and that bastard of a brother. How could he? Ichiru, why would you do that and how could you ever have known?

"Tia you need to let me in!" He shouted through the door. He heard shuffles and a muffled cry of pain, "Tia? Tia?!" He banged against the wood and tried to tear his way through when it didn't budge.

"Zero?" Tia asked in confusion, as he took a step toward her, "How?"

"The window in the bathroom. You really should learn to close that thing… Tia." He said lightly with a smirk.

She frowned, "What? Has your hair grown?" She asked, backing away into the wall. His right hand reached for the sword strapped to his side, "It was nice to finally meet you Tia, but I'm afraid our meeting must be cut short, as you have an appointment."

She stared at him with a raised eyebrow, "From the looks of that sword I figure that you aren't the Zero I know and that your about to kill me. That line was the best you could come up with? Come on! Your killing me here, at least come up with something original or something that's not so cheesy!"

He gaped at her for a few seconds before regaining his murderous stance and gleaming eyes. "Very well," he muttered arrogantly, "I am going to kill you. My reasons are my own so just deal with it, all right?" He took a swing, as she screamed and ducked down to the ground. Diving at his legs, she was able to knock him off his feet. Getting up, Tia ran for the door, but as she unlatched it and pulled. Nothing happened.

"Zero?" She shouted in panic, as Ichiru came at her again, "What did you do to my door?"

"Damn," Zero hissed, as Ichiru's sword was thrust through the wood and almost stabbed him, "I think I jammed it!" He hollered with a horror struck face when he noticed the blood on the shining blade, "Tia?!"

She gasped, as her hand covered attempted to remove the blade from her stomach, "No," she gasped in pain. Ichiru chuckled, "A life for a life… Zero." He said smugly when he heard Zero's frantic shouts.

"Ichiru! Let her go!"

"Never." he murmured with a hard glare that pierced into Tia's tearful gaze.

Her eyes glazed over, as she gasped for air. "Zero?" she asked, looking up into Ichiru's eyes, "Zero?"

"No! Tia hold on! I'm coming to get you!" She heard his voice, but the man in front of her that resembled her Zero so well did not even speak.

The sword was still in her abdomen and burned her skin. She hissed and fell to the floor when he took the blade from inside of her and wiped it off with a cloth. "I'll be seeing you, I guess…" He mumbled to her, turning from her frail body that leaned against the door. He left though the bathroom and just as Zero had done earlier that very same night, Ichiru abandoned her.

Tia's mind was racing, showing clips that ran through her memory again and again. Blood poured from the wound that she no longer clenched to with her hand with pressure. They fell limp by her sides, as a vaguely familiar voice sprang into her mind, "I'll help. I'll get help. You're going to be okay…"

Gasp! She flew forward out of the bed and inhaled as much oxygen as possible. The pain increased more, as the numb feeling in her body lessoned to a dull throb of pins-and-needles. Tia glanced around and found Yuki in the corner, sleeping at a desk by an open window. It was bright outside. She looked down, as a hand slowly rubbed her cheek, "I'm sorry." He whispered, "This would never have happened if I had warned you. If I had trusted you enough to inform you of the horrors in my past," Zero mournfully stared into her eyes, as she bade him to continue, "I should have told you about Shizuka and Ichiru - my brother. I will too, but after you are better." He pulled her close, hoping not to harm her.

"I forgive you." Tia cried, tears falling down her face, as she smiled, "Not because we're friends, because I love you."

"I love you," He murmured back, his eyes closed, smelling her hair and stroking her back in soothing circles, "They'll never get you again."

Lying half on the desk and slowly inhaling air at a slow pace, the sneaky Yuki smiled a little as she heard her two best friends confess to on another, 'It's about time…' She gladly thought, as she was lulled back to sleep by the sunlight's smooth rays of heat.