Okay, so it's a short chapter, but at least it's something, right? The ring is explained (which I really didn't expect anyone to get anyway) and there's some foreshadowing, but I don't really want to spoil it for you, so here you go!


Yuuki walked down the busy street hanging on Kaname's arm and pointing at windows. Mid-thigh in the back, her light blue dress angled down to her knees in the front. Kaname was wearing long sleeved shirt with a black vest and black pants. Overall, the couple dressed simply but elegantly, with luxurious fabric and a quality that hinted wealth.

"Onii-sama, let's eat!"

The brunette dragged her startled brother into a fast food restaurant – "I'm tired of fancy food!" she had proclaimed earlier – and shoved some paper money into Kaname's face. She let go of the hand she was leading him around by and called over her shoulder "My treat! You've already bought me a bunch of stuff today!" Yuuki filled a couple of cups with iced tea and set her bags down by a secluded table in a back corner.

Leaning back into the semi-circle of the small bench she listened to her fiancé talk to the flirting cashier. She wouldn't stop talking, at least not until Kaname mentioned in passing "Oh, really? My fiancé would love that. Where did you say that amusement park was again?" She stopped bothering him after that. He masked it well, but she could practically feel his irritation and smug satisfaction as he drew close. She did know him best, after all.

Oddly enough that made her feel good, not that he would be interested in a human girl. But she had been human... Yuuki shook her head vigorously. That wasn't accurate, she was born a pureblood! Never human to begin with.

The other pureblood headed towards her hidden table balancing an awkward tray. He slid in beside her and set it down gently. She inhaled his scent as her hands lifted a double Big Mac.

"Onii-sama, you've got sauce on your face!" Yuuki grabbed a napkin and wiped the corner of his mouth.

"Leave it. I'll just get more on my face." He snatched her wrist and leaned towards her. He breathed his next words into her face. "I thought I told you to call me by my given name, did I not? Kuran Yuuki-sama?"

Her breath caught as he assessed her reaction. He slowly leaned even closer and licked the corner of her mouth. "Onee-sama, you've got sauce on your face!" he gently mocked.

"Kaname, you're mean!" Yuuki sighed and blushed as she poured blood-tablet water into her ketchup. Her delicate fingers mixed it together with a fry and raised it to her lips. She didn't taste any blood, but it did help sate her other hunger. She sprinkled a little ketchup on her burger and took a bite.

"You've undone all my work."

Before Kaname had a chance to repeat his actions the door slid open and another set of smells invaded the room. Instantly recognized, Yuuki jumped up from her seat and walked quickly to the front of the restaurant. She ignored the glares that she – and Kaname, who was following close behind – were getting from couples and both genders from other tables. Well, that was a first, Kaname getting glared at by someone other than…

She rushed to the pair that had just stepped in the door and embraced her best friend tightly. From the corner of her eye she saw her fiancé give their nephew a bear hug. For a split second she stopped moving completely, she was that shocked.

Ryuji was too. His eyes were wide and slightly wild as he stood there stiffly. Yuuki stifled a giggle when Kaname let go and gave her a wink, leaving the other Kuran standing there like a statue in the middle of the floor. She ran to their table to pick up their bags while he ordered food for the frozen couple.

"You know, Kaname, he reminds me of a character from a manga Ichijo made me read." She politely covered her mouth as she yawned. "A guy named Ikuto, or something like that."

"I know."

The brunette tugged on Yori's arm. "C'mon, you can come with us. We were going shopping and I thought it would be nice to pick up something for our nephew and his girlfriend."

The blonde's eyes grew even wider. She swung around to the tall man beside her. "You never told me you were related to my best friend!"

Her exclamation snapped him out of his reverie. "Oh, I forgot. My father was their brother."

"How could you for-" Suddenly her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Wait a minute… Does that also make you a pureblood?"

His blue hair swayed as he looked away uncomfortably. "Um… Yeah, I guess."


As the group wandered through town, Kaname and Ryuji kept their heads together. They were speaking quietly behind the enthusiastic girls, nodding and shaking their heads at something the other had said. Finally they came to an agreement and shook hands.

The girls weren't paying any attention to them. Something had caught Yori's eye, and now they were examining it. The object of curiosity was the beautiful ring on Yuuki's left hand. They marveled at how old it looked, and the quality of the gems. Yori pointed out a small engraved picture on the band opposite the stones.

"Oh, this? It's the family crest. This ring has been in the family for generations, and my parents were over three thousand when they died. It's existed for… well, let's just go with 'A long time.'"

Something occurred to her friend then. "If so, do the gems have any special meaning?" She gestured with her arm, making a wide sweeping motion in front of her as if to do a pirouette, indicating the world at general. "For some reason, all family heirlooms seem to come with a story."

Yuuki visibly hesitated. "Yeah. The small dark gems represent the previous generation and their influence on the younger generation, the lighter and larger gems. The white gold is for the purity of purebloods. Originally, Mother was supposed to give it to me when I became old enough to marry, but she…" The young pureblood felt her lower lip tremble slightly and felt moisture touch the corner of her eyes.

Sayori clasped her friend's hands in her own for a moment before taking out a handkerchief and lightly patting her tears. "Come now, we're supposed to have fun!"

That's when the men decided to take the women by surprise, Kaname by circling his fiancé's waist with an arm and pulling hers behind himself to walk together. Ryuji swept Yori up and slung her on his back, where she quickly clambered up to sit on his shoulders, since she was wearing a short skirt. The quartet walked down the street laughing, with the nephew teasing the uncle about letting the aunt sit on his shoulders.


Kaname had just swung Yuuki onto his shoulders – after she complained for the millionth time about being too small to see anything in the crowd – when they ran into Luca, Cain, Shiki and Rima. Luca shot Yuuki a disapproving look, but said nothing.

"Oh, Luca, Rima, we were about to pick out some bathing suits and head to the pool."

"B-but Yuuki-sama! Your skin!" Luca protested. "It's too bright out!"

"C'mon, we'll find an indoor pool. It'll be fun!"

And so they went.


Yuuki slipped the pen back into its stand on the desk and sighed, but smiled at the same time. At least she would have something… She refused to acknowledge the thought as it surfaced in her mind. A light tapping sounded on the door, and she shoved the small book she was writing in into a desk drawer.

"Yes?" she called.

The voice on the other side of the door warmed her heart instantly. "Would you like to have dinner in my room, love?"

The ghost of a smile from moments ago became genuine.

"Sure."


Okay, so I need my reader's help. Big time.

Lately I've had no drive to write. At all. It's not writer's block, just complete lack of inspiration. I got out of school last week, so I'm recharging my batteries from insanely busy days, and would like to start writing a lot for the summer. To get in the mood I would like to write some oneshots, but I can't think of anything. All I know is that I want to do something with each of the more important characters that don't get mentioned very often (Night Class, ect, ect.), and at one point I wanted to put together a collection of Yori oneshots. In other words, I need prompts and suggestions. You can either message me or put it in the a review. I also have to admit that I absorb reviews like a dying man in the desert drinks water. Since I can't convince any of my siblings to finish the anime or follow along with the manga, it makes me infinitely happy to see your optimism (-- hopeless pessimist). This is not a threat, btw. I hate when authors do that.

So now that you have heard my plea, you can go on with your lives and hopefully get that creative wheel of yours working, since mine seems to have gotten stuck in a pothole.