Disclaimer: Vampire Knight does not, has not, and will not ever belong to me. I only ask that nobody take my characters or ideas.

Not my Time
A Vampire Knight Fanfiction

Chapter Three: The Final Bridge

Sure enough, the next week a man with long blond hair pulled back into a ponytail and a few bangs scattered across his forehead came to my room. Although Kaname had alerted me to the headmaster's visit, when the headmaster first appeared in my hospital room, I was certain a mistake had occurred.

Headmaster Cross did not have the presence I had thought a headmaster should have. To me, a headmaster was rational, even-tempered, and stern. Headmaster Cross exhibited none of these traits. Instead, Headmaster Cross walked into my hospital room, and immediately began greeting me enthusiastically (maybe he thought he was being conciliatory).

A second man entered behind Headmaster Cross. This man carried a clipboard containing quite a few papers, and I realized that the headmaster must be interested in formally adopting me.

"Hello, Lily," the man greeted, plastering a professionally false smile on his face. "This man is Kaien Cross. We're here because Mr. Cross has expressed an interest in adopting you. We'd like to be made aware of any problems you have with this so that we will be able to address them. Now, I want you to be aware that this adoption is strictly temporary. As soon as a suitable home is found in the United States, you will have to leave Mr. Cross' household."

I determined that now would be the proper time to ask after the reason my brother hadn't come to take me, so I asked, "Why didn't my brother take me in?"

The man with the clipboard glanced over his notes, then replied, "Christopher Waters... It says here that he was contacted, but that he was unable to care for his sister at this time. He left a phone number that he could be contacted at." I was handed a scrap of paper, as if it were a consolation prize.

"That's it?" I asked. "He didn't say why he was unable to care for me?"

The man looked over the notes, then repeated, "Unable to care for sister at this time. That's all it says."

I looked at the scrap of paper in my hand, and wondered why my brother would have decided he was unable to take me in. He had been attempting to convince me to come live with him since I had been nine years old. After a moment of consideration, I determined that he couldn't take care of me while he lived in Germany, and I re-focused my attention upon Headmaster Cross.

Of course, I didn't have many questions about the adoption process, but I did want to ask for more information on the headmaster, so I told the social worker, "I would like to know a little about Mr. Cross."

The social worker's eyebrows rose a little, not because he thought it was a strange question, but because he was surprised he hadn't already informed me of Headmaster Cross' career and family.

"Of course," he whispered understandingly. "Mr. Cross is the headmaster of a very prestigious boarding school called Cross Academy. It has been decided that you will be enrolled in Cross Academy until a home is found in the United States. Mr. Cross has two other adopted children. One is a boy named Zero Kiryuu, and the other is a girl named Yuuki. You are younger than both of them since Zero is seventeen and Yuuki is sixteen. Despite this age difference, you will be enrolled in the same class as they are. Mr. Cross is very respected in society. Is there anything else you would like to know?"

I shook my head. The decision for me to be adopted by the headmaster of Cross Academy, as well as enrolled into the Academy only solidified the theory that Kaname was attempting to keep me close.

As the forms were filled out, I considered why Kaname would believe he needed to keep me close. What was I to Kaname? I had never met him before; he had simply shown up in a graveyard, seen me, and brought me to another continent. What human would do that? What human could by-pass the usual channels in order to keep me close?

Briefly I considered that Kaname wasn't human, but I quickly forced that idea from my mind. If I was going to consider possibilities, I had to be rational. I couldn't simply permit myself to believe that Kaname had unnatural abilities that enabled him to out-wit those around him.

I was drawn out of my thoughts rather abruptly by the headmaster hugging me.

"You will be so happy! I have another daughter!"

Releasing me, Headmaster Cross gave me an affectionate smile, his eyes sparkling happily. I tried to smile back, even though I knew I wouldn't feel completely satisfied until I knew Kaname's secret.

"The hospital says you should be well enough to leave in a few days," Headmaster Cross told me. "We'll have a family dinner, so you can meet Yuuki and Zero."

"I'd like that," I replied, still trying to smile.

When the headmaster left, I pulled out my sketchbook. I still had much to think about, but at least one thing was certain: I would finally be able to leave this hospital.

Sketching always helped me to think clearly. When I drew out different scenes, I could notice the little details that I sometimes overlooked while turning over events inside my head. With this intention, I began to draw Kaname finding me in the graveyard.

After so many weeks, it was difficult to recall the precise details of that day. However, I managed to portray Kaname's essence, and I even managed to demonstrate that he was out of place in our graveyard by drawing our graveyard as the beautiful garden it was under my mother's care. As I was adding more detail to Kaname's expression that's when I remembered.

I had seen Kaname's eyes change color. For that brief moment, I had watched his eyes go from being maroon to red in color.

I shook my head. Think rationally... You were about to pass out; of course you would see red! Your mind was under too much stress to function!

Despite my own attempts to convince myself otherwise, I wasn't so certain Kaname was human. But... if he wasn't human, what was he? Monsters only existed in fairy tales, and they only existed in fairy tales to persuade gullible young children to obey their parents.

Yet, as I finally rolled over to go to sleep, I wondered if Kaname was indeed a monster.

Chapter three revised! I didn't add as much to this chapter as I did to the others; it's really just supposed to be the last segment of putting Lily into Cross Academy.

Please alert me to any grammatical errors! I appreciate it!

Cheers,
Mango