Note update: Hunter dude with a scar has an official name! Raijin is now called "Jinmu".
A/N: Alas, late again, be it by just a few minutes, seeing as I intend to keep the 10 day release pattern. I could have released when I wanted to, but then I would have cut out the very last scene, and you guys wouldn't have wanted that. ;)
"ღ*~+~*ღ"
"You're safe now. He won't hurt you anymore."
Shiki yawned and turned over. It was still late afternoon, he could feel it, and some of the early risers would be waking up by now, but especially after how late everyone stayed up last night, he doubted that anyone would bother getting up before sunset. Still...
What had he been dreaming about before waking? He never really took a keen interest in what any of his dreams were about, if he dreamed at all, but today was different. There was a note of peace that washed through him, something that he had never felt before.
Over in the other canopy bed, Ichijou was still dozing peacefully, his blond hair in disarray over his pillows. He would need to cut it soon, Shiki noted, as he saw the tips shift and tickle his collarbones. The brunette lifted a hand to scratch his scalp, noticing how incredibly light he felt.
So that's what she meant.
Rising from his covers, Shiki quietly crossed the room, taking care to make as little noise as possible when he left the room, making a left at the end of the hall, and descending down the staircase. It didn't matter that he wasn't dressed to be going outside, his designer pajamas would have to protect him from the late afternoon sun as he wandered across the grounds, preparing to hop the gate.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Shiki heard a click and locking of metal. He turned to find Yagari pointing his single barrel shotgun at his head. The brunette frowned.
"I need to go visit the Chairman, there's something I have to confirm." he explained shortly, walking over to the shade of trees since the sunlight began to irritate his skin.
"He's in a meeting at the moment." Yagari's eyes thinned, not trusting the teen.
"Will you take a message?" Shiki raised a slender brow, sarcasm thick.
The older hunter took a long drag of his cigarette, cherry glowing a bright golden red before casually flicking the filter aside and dragging the heel of his shoe over it.
"So you have jokes, that won't get you anywhere regardless. Whatever it is that you need to talk to him about you can clear through me."
Shifting uneasily, Shiki took a moment to ponder the consequences of informing more people than he had to. The smoke that had been curling from the man's mouth dispersed into the air, vanishing with his hesitation.
"It can wait."
He turned to head back to the dorm, disappointment hiding beneath the surface of his stoic expression. There was more than enough time to burn if his hunch was correct, but somehow, he had a feeling that he would find the answer soon.
"ღ*~+~*ღ"
"Have you ever tried to keep melting snow in your ice box, Chairman?" Sara asked, sipping on rose flavored tea from a soft pink teacup as she sat across from Kaien, the desk in between.
"It depends on how you perceive melting snow, Sara-san." his cup sat to his right, untouched and still steeping with the tea leaves.
The Chairman kept his hands folded before him as he sat semi-rigid in his seat, anxious of the discussion taking place on the academy grounds. Fortunately, no one would dare approach his office, as it was just too close to the crime scene for anyone's comfort. Only a select few and Yagari would seek him out if there was anything in dire need of attention, a fact that Sara was exploiting to have this conversation.
"Well it's not a very useful thing to keep around, waiting for it to turn back into ice, and even then when it solidifies, it's not the same. Surely you know enough of the world to have made such a simple observation by now. You must also know enough of biology to realize that organisms change in order to adapt to their environment, and that is how new species are formed, something physiologically different from their original ancestry."
"But you have to realize, Sara-san, that it takes several generations in order to achieve that." he said, giving her a pointed look. "By the way, I thought we were talking about snow."
"Yes, forgive me for deviating from our topic, but you must realize how troublesome it is to preserve."
"If you choose to take the snow from the cold to preserve it for whatever later purpose, then you brought the inconvenience upon yourself. You know my standpoint on the matter." Kaien looked her square in the eye, dropping all pretenses. "I've held up my end of the bargain, if you fail to uphold yours then it will only hurt you in the end."
"It may have been the warmth of my hand that made the snow melt," she began, pausing when Kaien subtly tried to hide a snort. "I could have you killed, you know." Sara's voice was dangerously thin, no longer the sweet acid it had been a moment ago. "Where will your dream go then? You don't honestly think that the vampire society would take your views to heart, do you?"
"That's the beauty of having children. They can extend my dreams far beyond what I am currently capable of doing. The one who calmed me enough to be able to sleep, was the one who allowed me to see the sense in this so called 'crazy' dream. Not to be rude, Sara-san, but she was a far greater woman than yourself." the Chairman picked up his cup to sip at the fragrant tea, savoring its sweet flavor and scent that reminded him so dearly of Juuri.
"Yes, and she's dead."
Kaien felt something long dormant stir in his chest. Never before had he wanted to break his pacifist ways more than he did at this moment in time. To do so would have been an insult to Juuri's memory, so he rationalized. Sara was feeling hurt, backed into a corner, and less than self-efficient. Deep down, she was just scared. Had Kaien changed so much to be able to find light in one of the seemingly darkest corners?
"And yet I sit here as living proof that dreams don't die with the dreamer."
Sara's eyes thinned. She had already known that Kaien wouldn't fear for his own life. Those threats were futile...
"What is it that you want? I've already falsified information on your behalf. I wouldn't doubt that the desired outcome was achieved. You know how capable hunters are, otherwise you wouldn't have mentioned anything to me."
"I know just how capable you all are, and it's a problem."
"With the current situations, I would have to agree with you."
"This shouldn't have to be like pulling fangs with you, Chairman. The original purpose of hunters were to clean up our messes in the first place. I've no idea why the maids feel that they are running the house when they only tidy it."
"In exchange for my silence and favors, you will keep everything exactly as it is."
"Snow can be as beneficial as it is burdening." she allowed with a tight lipped smile.
"What are you guys talking about?" Ichiru asked, widening the crack in the office door to lean back into the room.
"The weather." Sara and Kaien replied in unison.
"That's great and all, but we've got a problem."
He supported a weak Yori from the side as he entered the office. She looked rather pale, but otherwise fine, aside from the occasional dizzy spell. The two had on city clothes, suggesting how urgent they felt the situation was.
"Wakaba-chan, I'll be with you momentarily." Kaien said, trying to instill a note of 'not now' in his voice.
"Poor dear, are you anemic?" Sara smirked, eying her with interest.
"I suppose I am." she shrugged, instincts telling her to tread lightly.
Sara stood from the winged armchair in front of Kaien's desk, placing her half empty teacup down onto a low coffee table before smoothing the backside of her dress. She approached Yori, the heels of her booties clicking ominously with each step she took. Reaching out a gloved hand, she took the guardian's wrist, examining her red, scarred hand. The pureblood positioned her thumb strategically, pretending to check her pulse.
"You've been damaging your skin, dear, have you been scrubbing them because of the wounds you've received here?"
"Warm water helps the pain."
"Perhaps you should see a specialist?" a corner of her mouth curved up, the twisted smile making Yori nervous. "I happen to know one who would be willing to help you."
Yori looked to Kaien, who offered no advice. She turned to Ichiru in need of help in making her decision. The answer was clear in his cold, violet eyes.
"ღ*~+~*ღ"
Zero came back to the apartment after nearly an hour of dodging questions about his clothes, finding cheap prices, and avoiding the disgusting bloody stench coming from down the street.
After starting on the ramen soup, Zero decided to go check on Kaname while it boiled, since he still heard the water running through the pipes in the walls.
The first thing he noticed when he entered the bathroom, was how drastically different the temperature was from the last time he had set foot in the room. The second thing he noticed was the sound of the falling water from the shower splashing when it reached the floor, instead of bounding against the tile.
He went forth to investigate, knocking on the shower door.
"Kuran?"
There wasn't a response, even though his amber scent still lingered in the bathroom. He opened the door, peeking inside, surprised to confirm that his original fear may have been valid, though it wasn't at all funny as he originally thought it might have been. He was laying on his side, beneath the cold spray, laying over most of the drain so only a little water could drain at a time. He was laying in a small pool of icy water, sort of pale.
"Kaname!!"
Zero climbed in, not caring if he got wet. He pulled the pureblood up from the floor and turned off the water, examining his airways for blockage or any signs of drowning. He felt himself mentally panicking for a moment when he realized Kaname wasn't breathing, heart squeezing tightly, stomach filling with lead.
"Oi, wake up!"
Kaname's brows knit as he turned his head, inhaling suddenly, exhaling once more before he fell into not breathing again. Zero tapped his face with his fingers a few times, preparing to perform CPR before the pureblood again repeated the breathing pattern.
He was only asleep.
Zero fought off his blush in anger, belatedly realizing that most people took less breaths when asleep. The wonky pauses may have been one of the lingering effects from the poison that Kaname had been talking about earlier.
"You finally said my name..." Kaname murmured as he stirred, blinking up sleepily at Zero. "It's about time."
Zero frowned, at the warm and fuzzy feeling blooming within his chest, choosing not to say a word as he silently dressed and dried the pureblood, taking angry pity on the exhausted vampire. He tried to be as respectful as possible, a first coming from him to Kuran, as he clothed his lower half, avoiding touching him any more than necessary. Still, he decided to place all of the accessories on him anyway, making him look ridiculous, in his opinion. Zero tried his hardest not to think 'ridiculously hot' at the amount of skin he was showing.
Kaname woke up enough to cooperate, still groggy as the hunter slapped leather cuffs on his wrists, noting with shock that what he thought were cuts, were actually healing bite marks. Had Kaname been so starved that he resorted to trying to draw blood from himself? There were two sets, one more healed than the other. Zero knew that he must have been craving blood for some time if his healing powers had gone so slowly. For a pureblood, it was pretty bad.
Still less than happy with him, the hunter drug him into the small kitchen, where he perked up at once when he smelled the food. He turned a chair around to sit on it, his chest pressing against its back, legs straddling the seat. It felt good to not have to be so formal with the hunter, though he didn't think he would be able to get so casual with the night class.
Zero filled a bowl with the soup as he heard a noise behind him.
"Ahh." the pureblood opened his mouth expectantly, like a child waiting to be fed.
"Excuse me?" Zero asked, browns knitting.
"You cuffed me, how can I feed myself?"
With a sigh, Zero employed a favorite expression to this situation, one that he had been using an awful lot lately - why the hell not? He scavenged a pair of chopsticks and cleaned them, before approaching him.
"Such an upset face you're making." Kaname commented as he opened his mouth wider.
Zero shoved the warm mound of ramen noodles into the pureblood's mouth, not particularly careful to avoid jabbing the chopsticks forcibly against his tongue. It was rather uncomfortable, and Kaname thought better of trying to tease or take advantage of him when he realized just how annoying the feeding was going to be. He didn't bother to chew, swallowing to clear his mouth to try and reason with the hunter.
"Nevermind, I may be stiff, but I can feed myself, you really don't have to - mnff!"
"Now now," Zero smirked, shoving another bit of noodles into his mouth. "You must be worse off than I thought if I had to pull you out of the shower, dry you off, and dress you. It's clear that you need my help, and I am here for you. And remember, you asked for it!" he finished in a falsely cheery voice.
Was Kaname messed up for liking the fact that he was being choked by Zero, who was feeding him the food he made? The hunter felt rather cynical for having to tend to him like a servant, and had used the accessory leather cuffs to bind his wrists together, the pureblood's temporarily weak muscles working in his favor.
"It tastes weird." Kaname pouted as he finished the new mouthful. "You overcooked it."
"Go to hell, I'm not here to please you. Be grateful I even made you something." Zero commented, looking down into the bowl.
Taking a gob between the sticks, he brought the food to his lips, sampling the dish. It was just as he thought, there wasn't anything wrong with it. The noodle was perfectly cooked along with the bits of egg and vegetables.
"I don't know what you're talking about." he took another bite, still hungry since he had opted to feed Kuran first. "It tastes just fine."
"I know, I lied." the pureblood smirked.
"Why would you lie about something... like..." Zero's brow furrowed in frustration as he again fed Kaname, who bit down on the chopsticks, closing his eyes like he was tasting something wonderful. "that..." he tried to pull them from his lips, feeling his tongue lave the wood on the other end...
They had both just shared an indirect kiss.
The hunter's eyes widened at the revelation, Kaname peeked up through his damp bangs, grinning, knowing he had been found out. His heart gave a delightful little flutter.
Blood rushed once again to the hunter's cheeks, bringing with it a steady anger, and embarrassment for being fooled so easily. He freed the chopsticks from the pureblood, placing them on a nearby counter. Zero brought his fingers up to caress Kaname's face before digging their tips into his cheeks, hallowing them out, squelching his lips apart. He picked up an entire boiled egg from the dish.
"You must be very hungry if you're gnawing on the chopsticks." he shoved the egg into his mouth, covering lips with his palm. "Have an egg, it's good for your eyesight, and skin. In fact, have some more noodles, and sauce." Zero picked up the bowl, nearly upending it into Kaname's face. "and vegetables, after all, you did say that you were lying about not liking my cooking, am I right?"
"Zer-mnngh!"
The landslide of noodles and sides nearly suffocated him, there, sitting with his wrists bonded together. It was a great turn on. Kaname reached up, grabbing the bowl, snapping apart the leather bonds. He was feeling rather refreshed after his short nap, and most of his strength had returned since the soothing hot shower.
"Be careful, don't dish out what you can't take back." he set the bowl on the counter, seizing Zero's wrists. "Do you like making messes?"
Kaname had sauce running down the sides of his face, trickling down his chin, sending Zero's thoughts into the gutter.
"Not really." he said, silver brows furrowing. "Let go of me." he added for good measure.
The pureblood studied Zero's face, eyes drifting over every curve of skin and angle of bones. His tongue darted out to lick his own lips, tasting the ramen that was specially made for him. He let go with a sigh, turning to the sink to wash his hands and face. He picked up a small hand towel and wet it before sprinkling table salt over it so he could clean his teeth. There weren't any toothbrushes in the bathroom, and vampires had to take very good care of their fangs. He rinsed his mouth out a few times until the only flavor in his mouth was his own, and the lingering memory of Zero's.
The sun was in the midst of setting, and though now was the time he should have been freshly woken and dressed for class, Kaname was ready to go to back to sleep.
Since he had been poisoned, he had no intention of returning to Cross Academy at less than one hundred percent. It was an image problem he had, not wanting to appear weak in front of the others, in which he wanted to cover up with a mask. Again, for the umpteenth time, he wished he could be more honest, to wear his heart on his sleeve like Zero did. The hunter may have attributed that to his own weaknesses, but Kaname saw it as a great strength to be who you were.
Now if only his position allowed him the breathing room to accomplish that courageous feat.
Zero watched the pureblood tidy himself up, expecting an attack, or at the very least a snide remark, but Kaname seemed lost within his own thoughts as he cleaned his teeth and splashed the cool water over his face, resurfacing with a tired expression, seemingly aging in that moment. Kaname inclined his head towards the hunter, giving him a sidelong glance as he stay leaned over the sink. A few moments passed by, before he finally broke the silence.
"I'm going to bed. Do what you like, go to bed as well, head back to the Academy, just let me know before you decide to leave."
"Un." Zero relaxed, feeling slightly crestfallen.
It was odd that he would feel disappointed. Yes he had been expecting something, but not anything quite as tame as what had just transpired. Had he really grown that fond, that expectant of their usual aggressive, argumentative banter? Was Kaname putting on a show again? Was he really sick, and just didn't let him know? Could purebloods even get sick?
Kaname shuffled into the dim bedroom, nearly collapsing on the sheets before he got a whiff of the lingering scent of stale blood. It was from the same source as all of the other stale bloods, and smelled extremely familiar. The rotting stench put a stint on his ability to place where it may have originated from.
With a sigh, the pureblood gathered the sheets in a bundle, grabbing them by the corners so he wouldn't get the muss on his fingers. He opened the window to toss them out, Kaname's eyes lighting up, the blankets' ashes blew away in the wind.
Kaname closed the window after a minute, the scent already ceasing with its source gone. Drawing the curtains to a close, he flopped onto the soft mattress, burying his face into the pillow before drifting off with the door ajar, lest Zero needed to speak with him.
The hunter watched, concerned and a bit worried, as Kaname trudged through the room, burning his sheets, lacking in his usual pureblood grace...
Whatever. It wasn't any of his business. He would just... check on the soaking garments in the bathroom.
The stains had come out completely by now, as far as Zero could see. For a moment he pondered the irony of a vampire wanting to get bloodstains out of their clothes, shaking his head at how ridiculous the situation sounded.
He drained the tub, carefully rinsing both garments before wringing them out and placing them near the air vent. A linen closet sat next to the vent, a perfect excuse to check on Kaname.
"ღ*~+~*ღ"
"Young lady, could you kindly tell the Association President what had happened with Kiryuu in the abandoned district?" the scarred man asked Chii as he cleaned her wound with antiseptic and placed a bandage over it.
"Chii, sir."
"Jinmu, Chii-san."
"Please take care of me." she smiled tonguing her lip ring, making Jinmu feel pleasant in an awkward manner as his hands worked against her skin.
"Of course."
"Thank you for waiting, Chii-san. I am the President of the Hunter's Association." a smooth voice carried into the room, followed by an effeminate man in a heavy kimono, holding up a fan to hide half of his face, silver hair was twisted up and arranged delicately with pins to hold it in place. "Recount for me what went on in that abandoned district, would you? I need to know two things, who bit you, and are they still alive?"
"A vampire with silver hair, I was told his name is Zero, that he is also a hunter, and I'm pretty sure he's still around."
"Kiryuu hmm? Is this true Jinmu-san?" he arched a brow expectantly, as if unsurprised by the information. "It was only a matter of time..."
"Yes, my thoughts exactly."
"Are you questioning my judgment?" his already thin eyes narrowed dangerously into slits, staring him down.
"N-no. Forgive me, I didn't stop to think how it sounded before I said it."
"Although, it was something we should have seen coming. He's finally losing his senses, dropping into that loathsome level E."
"What's our course of action, sir?"
"No need to add him to the execution lists. We will be able to handle this personally."
Chii shrank back in her chair at the acid in the President's voice.
"Young lady, wait in this safe room until someone comes for you."
She nodded, not quite trusting her voice enough to respond. The President seemed satisfied and left, beckoning Jinmu to follow.
"I think it's time we paid our dear friend Cross-san a visit." he said in a melodious tone, snapping his fan shut. "His dangerous gamble has been going on for far too long."
"ღ*~+~*ღ"
It wasn't often that Kaname dreamed -- he hadn't done so earlier, after all. Then again, it wasn't often that Kaname lowered his defenses around another person. Yuuki, occasionally his mother and father, those were the only people he had even remotely been able to relax around. Why would he be so trusting now, of all times, when he could be... murdered... just as violently as his sister had? Given how much he knew about the death, there wasn't much to worry about, but still...
Zero was holding up a pink flamingo by it's feet, brandishing it like a weapon. The bird's whole body was stiff, and, despite how Kaname would have thought otherwise, the bird was very much alive, opting out rigor mortis as the cause to the strange behavior.
"Are you ready to taste the blade of my sword, cowardly demon?!"
"... What?" Kaname was beginning to draw a blank.
They were surrounded by trees, in a forest, possibly, until the scene shifted, and they were inside of a glass dome, standing on soft sand as a steady trickle of it came from the ceiling. A girl in a Victorian style dress stood near the glass wall, her long, dark hair flowing behind her without wind. She turned slowly, gracefully, until her chocolate irises met with his rusty sienna, melting and morphing the dream once again into something different. Kaname closed his eyes to the dark and dreary mansion that was forming before him, trying to block out all thought.
"Stop the world, I want to get off." he muttered with a sigh.
Opening his eyes, he stared into the dim room, seeing a pair of legs come closer. The hunter's scent hit Kaname instantaneously, sending a calming effect through him, relaxing his body.
"If you can get sick, then you're going to catch a cold like this. Though I suppose it's all my fault."
Kaname heard a fluttering of cloth before feeling a soft weight settle over him, a blanket. He saw Zero bend down to peer at him, the stiff pink flamingo gone from his grasp. Maybe he had realized what a stupid weapon it was, and discarded it? Then again, dreams didn't have to make sense.
They didn't have to make sense.
Kaname reached out to catch Zero's wrist as he turned to leave.
"Kuran?"
The pureblood jerked him down on top of himself. Zero fought to steady himself against the uneven mass, confused.
"The hell are you doing?"
"This."
Kaname stroked his face gently, fingertips memorizing the planes of Zero's face, by touch like he had done so earlier with sight. He delighted in the flawless texture of the hunter's skin, how he didn't have any bumps of acne or any rough hair around his mouth or chin. Slowly, he guided Zero to himself, craving sin as he wrapped an arm around the dazed hunter's waist.
Kaname was dreaming, so this wouldn't have any consequences.
Right?
Their breath collided, as Zero's mind raced, desire stirring beneath his belt, heart hammering in his ears.
Entranced in the dark, they closed their eyes, feeling the magnetic pull between them closing the gap. The hunter clutched Kaname's shoulders. Was this wrong? Too fast? Why was this happening? Was it merely a game? Was he going to get his heart broken in the end?
At the last question, he realized that he was already lost to the deeper feelings beneath the flurry of teenage hormones.
And sweetly, softly, like a fallen angel's song, singing wordlessly with deep notes of beauty and splendor -
"Zero..."
"Kaname..."
With an exchanged whisper of names, their warm lips met.
"ღ*~+~*ღ"
A/N: If anyone can understand what's happening by the contents of this chapter, then I will write a oneshot for you. ;)
Reviews: Please and thank you, I will love you forever.