Disclaimer: I disclaim all rights and responsibilities for most of the characters.

Author's Note: I have to give a big thanks to REDemption Love and Lies for my very first review and follow. Your actions have encouraged me greatly to continue with this budding story of mine. ^^

Another warm thanks to LianeZql for your reviews and advice as well. You've made me hopeful. :)

And another great thanks to KagomeKitten-lovely. You've been a wonderful beta. ^^

A Friend in an Unfriendly Place

Zero woke up to the blinding light of the sun's rays in his eyes. He blinked a few times to rid himself of morning grogginess as he tried to focus on his surroundings. White walls, white sheets, and the strong unpleasant odor of disinfectant—he was in the hospital ward of the Orphanage. I must get up. Zero thought to himself. A wave of alarm washed over him as he strained to push himself up from the cot. Why do my limbs feel so heavy?

A sheen of perspiration settled on his forehead as he struggled to move.

"Don't overexert yourself kid. The anesthesia hasn't worn off yet." Zero froze. He heard the sound of footsteps approaching him from the right. A shadow fell on him and a person came into view. He was an older boy with shaggy chestnut hair of which framed his pale and delicate face. His eyes of emerald shone with a sparkle of intelligence that was hard to miss but what held Zero's gaze were not the boy's eyes but the appearance of his neck.

The skin on his neck was a canvas of scars, mottled and fleshy. Zero's eyes widened at the sight of it as a sense of dread washed over him. He felt as if he was staring upon his own fate. By this time, Zero grew aware of the stiffness in his neck. He let out a whimper and tried touching his neck, fearing for the worst.

"Oii! Would you quit fidgeting? Your bandages will get loose!" The older boy placed a hand on Zero's shoulder and pressed firmly to keep him in place. Zero stopped struggling.

"Bandages?"

"Well what else do you expect? They gotta heal you first before experimenting on you again." The older boy huffed as he let Zero's shoulder go. "So this is your first time here kid?" He inquired.

Bandages. That's all. Bandages. Zero felt his body relax as his breathing slowed and his wave of panic past.

"Hey kid, did you hear me?"

"Huh? Oh yeah. Yeah, this is my first time here." Zero responded absentmindedly as he tried to recall the events of the previous night without much success. The older boy returned to his cot and sat down on it with his arms and legs crossed.

"Well, sorry to break it to ya kid but if you wind up in here, odds are you'll be coming and going from this place until you're eighteen. That's when they have to let you go due to the law." The boy stated before clearing his throat. "The name's Kenji Tanaka. Just call me Kenji. What are you called?"

Forgoing the task of recollecting his thoughts, Zero responded shortly, "Zero."

"Oh!" Kenji raised his voice, laden with amusement. "I like that! Do you know what it means?" Kenji asked eagerly with a knowing look in his striking emerald eyes.

Zero's eyes widened with astonishment. What's up with this guy? Although he found Kenji's excitement puzzling, Zero couldn't help being drawn in by his energy as he felt the beginnings of a smile tug at his lips. He shook his head in response and shifted his gaze to get a better view of his intriguing company.

"Alright I'll tell you what it means! Ahem. As a number, zero's a placeholder for nothing but as a symbol, it represents infinity. To be nothing but at the same time everything—that's awesome. Now the other numbers are just as captivating…" While Kenji continued rambling about numerology and how it was a lost avenue of study, Zero's thoughts drifted away from Kenji's lecture. His mind was put at ease by the hum of Kenji's infectious vibrancy.

He wondered how such a person brimming with knowledge can endure staying in a barren hospital ward like this. He glanced around and noticed for the first time that no one else was present except for the two of them; not even a doctor or a nurse was in sight.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?" Kenji inquired irritatingly. "Here I am passing on some of my knowledge to you and you go returning my generosity with a deaf ear." Kenji sighed heavily, shaking his head as he continued playfully, "There's no hope for this kid." He took a quick peek at Zero whose eyes were now focused intently on Kenji. He chuckled softly.

"Alright, alright. I get it. You seem like a good kid." Kenji grinned widely at Zero who hesitantly returned a shy smile. Kenji let out a loud yawn before reclining on his cot.

He folded his arms behind his head and said softly, "It's great to finally have someone awake to talk to around here. Most of the kids that come and go don't get the chance to wake up before they get whisked back onto that table." A hard edge formed in Kenji's voice as he continued,"You're lucky kid, that they haven't come back to get you yet." Kenji's lips pulled into a wistful smile. He lifted his hand towards his neck, hovering just above it as if he was scared that one touch would snap his delicate neck. The glimmer that was present in his eyes moments before suddenly dimmed with incomprehensible sadness.

Hopelessness was creeping its way back into Zero's heart. Most, if not all of the children at the Orphanage have had a taste of what went on beyond the White Room. The horrendous acts that were performed on their vulnerable bodies left some mute with terror and others incapable of empathy. These children had merely adapted to the harsh environment they were forced into where survival was of the utmost importance. Zero had learned quickly to avoid children whose eyes held no spark of warmth but were often filled with wariness and hostility.

He had kept to his survival method of making as little contact as possible with other children until now. Something about Kenji made him different from all the rest. He possessed an inviting aura that was refreshing to Zero but Zero felt more than understood that underneath his brilliance, Kenji was harboring a reservoir of pain. I need to get out of here. The sudden onslaught of desperation quickened Zero's heartbeat as it raced with fear and yearning. I don't want a fate like Kenji's.

"You can you know. Escape I mean." Kenji said quietly, putting Zero's thoughts to a halt.

"How did you know what I was thinking?" Zero asked in bewilderment. Kenji smiled wistfully once more and when he turned to hold Zero's gaze in his, Zero caught the knowing look in his eyes.

"They did it. They turned me into something even I can't understand."

oOo

The sharp cluttering of vials was followed by a feverish scratching of pencil on paper as the woman worked with precision and deftness. Her soft white hair fell in columns as she reached over for a stack of notes to her right. Shuffling through the papers, her golden eyes flitted lightly across them, searching for a particular experiment that needed further explanation.

The only sound that could be heard then came from the drumming of her slender fingers on the smooth surface of the mahogany table she was nestled behind. A sharp knock at the door soon followed and the woman halted what she was doing for she was expecting him. Shutting the door behind him, a tall, broad-shouldered man sauntered past the shadows in the room and hooked his arm around the woman's waist, lifting her up from her seat.

"Shizuka, darling. How are the children looking?" He gestured with a nod to the papers strewn across her desk. "I take it the experiments have yielded exemplary results?" His rich voice inquired as he held her gaze with buttery golden eyes of his own, hinting to his pure lineage. Shizuka smiled warily. When Rido came to visit, it was always strictly for business. No one would have been able to guess from a glance that the pair were actually husband and wife.

"Rido. It's nice to finally hear from you. I was starting to think that you forgot about your dear wife." Shizuka playfully accused as she freed herself from his embrace and returned to her paperwork. "Well if you must know, some of the children are showing…promise." She observed his reaction of which remained calm, effectively concealing any rippling of emotions underneath.

Stoic as ever. She sighed to herself as she rearranged the papers into neat little piles. Sinking into the velvety red cushion of the chair on the other side of her desk, Rido crossed his legs together and thoughtfully drummed his fingers along the table—a habit that both had in common.

"Kaname's going to turn twelve soon. Should I send him a little present or should I grace him with my presence?" He chuckled satisfactorily. "I would enjoy seeing him squirm as he recalls his parents swift end at my hands." Rido let out what sounded more like a cackle this time as he abruptly stood up from his chair, smoothing out his clothing as he wrapped his wife in another embrace.

"Thank you darling for managing the Orphanages for me. What would I do without you?" He crooned in her ears as he felt her body go rigid to his delight. "You were always the loving type."

He relinquished his wife from his hold, heading towards the door without so much as a glance before disappearing behind it. Shizuka's gaze lingered on the door as she tried to wrap her mind around her husband's random visits and thoughts. A sigh slipped from her lips as she resigned to her seat behind the mahogany desk, shuffling past papers and taking notes well into the night.