Third Night

The dark luminous night dawned into a radiant sunny morning as Yuuki lay snug in her warm bed under comforting covers. She had only just gotten into bed a mere hour ago, tired from the night patrolling—being a prefect sure was tedious work, or so it would appear. But in no time, she self someone shaking her shoulder gently as she heard a voice whisper into her ear,

"Yuuki, class starts in twenty minutes."

Yuuki knew that it was Yori, her best friend in the academy, and her dormitory room partner.

"If you don't wake up, you're going to be late." Yuuki heard the noises of textbooks being shoved into a bag, and then the footsteps of Yori as the door creaked open. "You already missed breakfast, so…Jeez, Yuuki, I feel sorry for you." She heard a soft giggle escape from Yori lips in a jokingly friendly manner. "Well, see you in class."

The door shut with another creak as Yori's footsteps descending down the wood paneled hallway decreased in sound in a matter of seconds. Yuuki did not want to go to class. She did not want to wake up. Ever. Remaining in a tranquil dream of pleasurable sleep. The sudden news of Zero entering the Night Class still strewn her with beads of sorrow deeply. Tonight. Yes, it was tonight. Tonight, Yuuki would be the only prefect patrolling the grounds of the academy in the cold night. Alone. Zero…Zero would be in the mysterious Night Class…with all of the other high aristocrat…vampires. That's right; Zero was a vampire himself now. He fell short of the existence known as "human." Well, he still was a human, but now he also acquired a beasties side; the beast within him that lusted and thirst for the crimson metallic liquid; blood. Zero was now different from Yuuki. That much was certain. With much exhilarating effort, Yuuki climbed out of her bed sluggishly, dressed properly with the academy's appointed uniform, and then rushed to class to commence her forced studies. But she only approached these studies with a meager cautious anticipation.

The first thing that Yuuki noticed as she stepped into the classroom is that Zero was nowhere within sight.

"He could just be late…" She thought as she set her set of textbooks on her desk, and took a seat next to Yori.

"Hey, you made it on time." Yori said quietly, hinting sarcasm in that aspect. Yuuki feigned a small wry smile at her friend as her eyes wandered across the room hazily. Still no Zero. She bit her lip slightly in a worried notation.

"All right." The teacher addressed the class with a tap of his fingers clacking on the wood desk loudly. Yuuki's thoughts relapsed back as she looked at their teacher as he continued on with his address:

"I just thought I'd point this out and say this so there's no confusion or misinterpretations. Kiryuu Zero will no longer be attending the Day Class anymore."

From the beginning of the assumed "dire" address, Yuuki's interest swayed away in bored-ness, but now she looked up with a new interest at the teacher's words.

"He will be, instead, transferring to the Night Class." Many voices broke out at this point stating various things about the sudden news.

"Kiryuu? No way. Isn't the Night Class for smart students only?"

A small laugh was contrived in reply to that remark. "Yeah, really. He's not exactly the brightest one."

"He's always late and having to take supplementary classes all the time."

"Hey! With Kiryuu gone, we'll be ale to get better glimpse of the Night Class!"

At this last comment, many of the Day Class girls idiotically giggled at the pleasurable thought of it. Pleasurable to them, anyway. But these voices soon drowned in Yuuki's mind as she dismally stared at the board of her desk with lowered eyes, as if dazed phantomsly.

"Hey…Yuuki?" Yori cautiously said as her eyes dimly narrowed at her phased friend. "You all right?"

"H-Huh?!" Yuuki exclaimed as she darted her lowered glance upwards as if waking from a dream. "Y-Yeah. I'm fine." She smiled nervously, feigning yet another smile, but trying to ease Yori's concern for her.

"You and…Kiryuu-kun are pretty close, aren't you?"

"W-What? Uh…yeah. I guess." She slouched in her chair, gripping her knees underneath her desk, trying to succumb her mixed emotions that she wanted to spurt out on the vehement matter.

"Are you going to miss him?" Yori said quietly, in a soft manner as she tilted her heard at Yuuki's downward gaze.

"…Yes." A shadow seemed to encase Yuuki's troubled expression, fading slowly into nothing, becoming…empty.

Dusk. The scene of a far-away sky being painted with bright, flaring strokes of gold and orange like swirling embers, alighted. After having to stay afterwards for supplementary classes, Yuuki immediately procured her duties as a prefect, as soon as the unglamorous studied ended. She rushed over to the Moon Dorm as quickly as her legs would allow her in a hurry. For, it was that time. The time when the elegant Night Class makes their departure from their Dorm at twilight to proceed to the school building where their classes were held in session. As mentioned before, they were advance, highly intellect studies, with the vampires acquiring the choice to stay as long as they desired to attend. As soon as she reached the building, she saw that it was nonetheless, packed with the Day Class girls already, as usual. The Day Class girls admired and greatly admonished the beautiful vampires with such respect. Probably more respect than what the vampires even deserved. Yuuki sighed at the sight of the crowd, then gritted her teeth and pushed her away through the boisterous girls. Could she really control all of the hustle and bustle of the crowd alone? Without Zero? She had to. She stood amidst the front of the crowd, ordering everyone to back away, wielding Artemis carefully. All of the floundering girls reluctantly obeyed the prefect, with such short tolerance that Yuuki could handle. Then, they opened. The gates. The hinges swung slowly as the squealing of the crazed girls increased rapidly. They all randomly shouted out the name of the vampire they adored the most, as Yuuki rolled her eyes at the desperate, idiotic behavior. Yuuki concentrated her eyes on the opening door, with timid feelings of loneliness, as the two doors finally came to a standstill. The vampires emerged from the open space with seemingly graceful movements as the still excited shouting of the girls remained. Yuuki's dark eyes scanned the crowd of the vampires as they walked past her and down the pathway, and, as the very few remaining of the crowd came out, her eyes fell as she saw leaving the Moon Dorm very lastly, Zero.

Zero walked behind the very last of the vampires, as he seemed to be looking away with a distant gaze. Eyes that are harboring hidden secrets that whispers in the deep of the night. Melancholy, softly, quietly. His footsteps moved slowly, almost as if hesitantly, as an aura of cool, calm and collectiveness wavered about him. Many of the love-stricken Day Classs girls became silent as they saw the appearance of Zero. Strangely different to see him amongst their beloved Night Class. Yuuki also resorted to a silent demeanor as her steady eyes never once left Zero. And then, their eyes met; as if almost fated. The now Night Class student Kiryuu Zero, and the still guardian prefect Cross Yuuki. Zero's face seemed to flush in a slight tint of red embarrassment as Yuuki held back a stifling giggle.

"All right. I can do this." Yuuki thought to herself as she took a few steps towards Zero, her boots clacking on the marble stones. "Things are still going to be the same between us." She put the best kind of smile she could possibly conjure upon her face, as she approached Zero in a couple of minutes.

"Zero!" She called out, trying to sound cheerful. She stopped and stood a few feet in front of him, as he looked back at her with a blank expression.

"You don't look so happy!" She titled her head as she twisted her arms behind her back, connecting her hands in a folded position. "So, how is it?" She asked in a low voice. "Being in the Night Class…"

"Yuu…ki." Zero replied slowly, his speech stuttering. "I…" he looked away swiftly, his silver hair obscuring his serious face.

"Huh…the uniform really suits you, eh?" Yuuki patted his shoulder lightly of the new pure white uniform that Zero now wore, still smiling with a forced conviction.

"I-I don't know…" He looked back at her with a doleful expression.

"Zero…"

"Are you…how you can be…happy…"

"What?"

"No. Never mind." He took her hand that she still gripped his shoulder with gently, as he removed it and let go immediately. "I have to go now." He took a few steps past her as Yuuki still only stood there quietly.

"Yuuki…" Zero spoke that one last word, her name, in such a soft tone that Yuuki barely even heard him. Then, she could distinctly hear the light footsteps of Zero walking away, without even looking back once. An increasingly large gap formed between the two, issuing a riddle that could not be deciphered. The riddle of asking in its taunting verses if their relationship would ever be the same again. To dissipate…that fractured piece of an empty, hollow…lonely feeling, that was embedded deep within the hearts of each of them. Feelings of affection locked up in iron cages; desperately searching for the key to unlock them free.