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

Not my Time
A Vampire Knight Fanfiction

Chapter Four: The First Day of School

Two days later I was introduced to all my new classmates, which was probably one of the most embarrassing and humiliating moments of my measly life. Instead of allowing me to find my seat, the teacher insisted on making me stand in front of the class and introduce myself. I shook like a leaf, and when I attempted to speak, my voice was so soft that the teacher made me repeat myself. Twice. I could hear giggles from many of the girls in the room – only partially hidden behind hands and books – and the loud snorts of laughter from the boys who didn't attempt to hide their amusement. After repeating myself the final time, I glanced back toward the teacher and found her glaring at the clock. Apparently, the self-introduction had wasted ten minutes of class – why ten minutes mattered during homeroom I never understood – and soon after the teacher sat me next to one of the most hated girls in class, Yuuki Cross.

I guess I was seated beside her since she was my "sister;" however, the teacher's attitude shortly before pointing at the otherwise unwanted seat left me with serious doubts.

I still figured the seat next to Yuuki was better than the one next to Zero, though. When Mr. Cross tried to introduce us, he got angry and left, leaving me feeling awkward and frustrated. For the rest of the night, all I could think about was what I had done to make him so upset. Throughout dinner I reviewed all the interaction I'd had with Zero and found all my mistakes which had built up to his anger. Naturally, I blamed myself for Zero's abrupt departure. It was clear to me that I somehow always managed to cause problems like this, and since we would practically be living together, I knew I had to own up as soon as possible. However, there wasn't much I could do in one day – especially with Mr. Cross making final preparations for my entry into school. If I had been forced to sit next to Zero, the problem would not have been resolved and could possibly have gotten worse.

Classes were dull, and it took some effort to settle back into the routine of attending classes when all I'd done for the past few weeks was eat, sleep, and sketch. I was so muddled that I didn't realize that the lunch bell had rung until I heard everyone screaming about some Night Class or some boys complaining about how insane the girls always acted. I was further pulled out of my din by Yuuki tapping my shoulder and saying, "Do you want to eat lunch with me and Yori? It can be a little daunting with so many people you don't know." She said it happily, but when she saw my near unemotional face she added more slowly, "But if you don't want to, that's okay. I mean it's your choice, but join us if you like."

It took my head a while to process what she said ... lunch with others... not sitting by myself in the library... "Sure, I'll eat lunch with you," I said suddenly. I flashed a small smile.

So, for the first time in about eight years, I ate lunch with fellow students. And although I didn't say much, Yuuki seemed to hold down a whole conversation by herself anyway, I felt happy being able to overcome a boundary. I just hoped it would remain that way.

My reasons for skipping lunch had not been due to my father. While attending school in Sleepy Hollow, I had always felt genuinely out-of-place. Even when my mother had been alive, I had felt little connection to my peers, and I had become immersed into my artwork and studies. In fact, I preferred artwork and school-work to social interactions. However, it wasn't as if I didn't have friends. While I was incredibly quiet and reserved, I did manage to develop a few lasting relationships.

People initially found it a bit odd that the most outspoken and outgoing girl in the room managed to become my best friend. To be completely fair, I too initially found it strange that Felicity Devin seemed to be going out of her way to be with me. At first, I thought she was simply being friendly, or that she pitied me for not having anyone in class to be open with, but as time went by, I began to realize that her attempts at friendship were genuine. Soon we confided everything to each other: Felicity's hatred for her name, and her mother's refusal to permit her to cut her hair shorter than her waist, so that she always had to wear her hair in tightly braided coils pinned to her head. In return, I revealed that my father was a bit scary to live with; at the time, my siblings still lived with me, so it hadn't seemed like such a betrayal to my father to admit my fears.

"So who do you like most in the Night Class?"

I sighed. Was that all these girls would talk about? So many of them were talking about the "Night Class" I could hardly hear Yuuki's one sided complaints about getting extra classes and Yori telling her if she slept at night instead of during class, it wouldn't happen.

Exasperated at not knowing what this marvelous Night Class was, I asked, "What's the 'Night Class?'"

"It's an elite group of students who study at night," Yori told me. "Most of the girls are crazy about them, they each have a favorite."

"Oh, so who's your favorite, Yori?" I asked her. Immediately after asking, I regretted it. Yori appeared to be slightly agitated, and I suspected it was because of my senseless question and the topic it brought to our table.

"None of them, they all give me the creeps," Yori responded. "I don't know why, but there's this really strong aura coming from them and it just... bothers me."

Yuuki looked at me enthusiastically as she said, "You ought to go down and look for yourself, Lily, they all parade from their dorm - the Moon Dorm - to the school every twilight. I'll be there." Her face fell a little. "I have to be there."

I noticed her look of depression and faintly remembered Mr. Cross saying she was on the Disciplinary Committee. Part of the job must include keeping all the eccentric students in line. Probably literally.

I grinned and replied, "Yeah, maybe I'll go and see if they're as handsome as everyone says. Don't worry, Yuuki, I'll stay out of your hair."

She relaxed visibly. And just as she sighed and relaxed, the bell rang. Yuuki froze up again and looked suddenly tired.

"It's PE," she groaned. "I bet we're riding horses again, too." She looked at me and mumbled, "Never ride White Lily. The horse is crazy."

"We'll be late if we wait any longer," Yori sighed. She stood, and Yuuki and I followed suit.

On our way to the stables, I thought about how prestigious a school this was. Before as I had toured the school building, I had been fascinated with the extravagance of the building itself, but now I acknowledged its prestige for a different reason: It had horses. Well, so did my old school, if you counted that we could ride on them to school and leave them in a barn during the day if we claimed and kept upkeep on a stall in time. That was what I had done since the "legal" age of nine. I would ride Kidd the Horse through the woods surrounding my house everyday about an hour before the bell rang and would spend all that extra time grooming and pampering him. He was probably one of my only friends back then. The only one who knew my secrets. But there was a problem: He was a horse, and although he was trustworthy, it was difficult to claim Kidd as a friend without looking like a nut. But I was happy to have my horse anyway. I wondered if I would be able to find another horse here that I could trust so much.

We first had to go and change into riding clothes, luckily they had a spare that fit me. Although I was nervous about riding after so many weeks, I figured there was no way to avoid it, and I preferred to be dressed in more than a mini skirt when I rode. As a rite of passage, I was immediately assigned the "Horse from Hell" Lily.

"Oh, I feel bad for you," Yori muttered sympathetically. "Good luck, you're going to need it."

"Why don't we swap horses?" I asked. Then in a begging voice I added, "Please, Yori, I don't need to look like a complete fool on the first day."

She shook her head. I would have to ride Lily. Reminding myself that this wasn't my first horseback ride, I determined that if I talked to her and kept her calmed down, she would allow me to ride her with little resistance.

"Hey, Lily," I crooned. She turned her head to look at me and I continued, "My name's Lily too. I'm going to ride you today."

When I was closer to her and about to reach for the reins, I wondered if we had been through the same thing at one point. "Were you hurt, too?" I looked her in the eye as I untangled the reins attached to the fence post. She watched me cautiously but had a curious look in her eyes. As she continued listening to my voice, she lowered her head and flicked her ears occasionally.

When I held the reins firmly in my hand, I clucked softly and guided her around so I could use the fence as a mounting block, since she was too tall for me to mount otherwise. "I'm going to get on now, Lily. Is that all right?" When she appeared to be relaxed, I shifted my weight, grabbed the left stirrup, and carefully positioned my foot in it before taking hold of the reins, pommel, and cantle and swinging myself up gracefully. I landed softly and shifted my weight before whispering, "There. Not so bad if I do say so myself." I reached down and adjusted my stirrup leathers to a shorter length, as I preferred to ride with short stirrups.

After that I became aware of a few whispers from my peers. "She tamed White Lily" ... "The Horse from Hell likes the new girl" ... "Look! She didn't have any problem at all!" As I looked around, I realized all eyes were turned toward me. Their staring made me nervous. Before riding, I had been concerned that my riding prowess would elude me when I needed it. Now I was concerned by the stares of amazement. I only hoped that my classmates wouldn't be fascinated too long.

"Wow, I'm impressed," I heard someone whisper to me. I looked over shoulder and saw Zero next to me on a different horse.

"Oh, Zero-kun," I whispered nervously, "I-uhm... Why do you say that?"

He looked surprised then told me, "Normally only I can ride White Lily. Every other person is scared stiff of her."

"Well, I'm not. At least, not now. My family used to run a horse training farm, so I guess riding head-strong horses is just second nature to me. I did train my own horse when I was four," I informed him a little haughtily. Then I whispered mostly to myself in remembrance, "My father taught me."

"Oh, well, I'm sorry for the way I acted toward you before. I thought that I should let you have a second opinion since, after all, we're going to be brother and sister," he grinned at the end of this statement. And I smiled in return.

"We're already alike," I laughed implying how we could both ride the "insanely difficult" horse.

"Yeah, I guess we are," he grinned then he waved and rode off to do some jumps.

I sighed and rode to the circular arena and proved to the instructor that I could ride Lily with ease. Afterward, I went over and cantered in the fields where none of the other students were riding. I relaxed for a while as I talked to Lily, promising both of us that I'd visit her later.

I walked back to class with Yori and Yuuki after we changed out of the riding habits and back to our uniforms.

"I can't believe you could ride Lily!" Yuuki exclaimed to me on the way. "Nobody can ride her." She paused. "Well, except Zero."

I blushed. "Riding was a part of my former life," I told her, shrugging. I hated to admit it, but I was a little embarrassed over all the attention I was getting just for riding a horse. The fact that I could ride Lily was due to my experience with troubled horses – nothing more.

When Yori finally managed to change the subject, I sighed and gave her a quick expression of thanks. The rest of the day passed by in a blur. A very boring blur that was filled with whispers about mainly the Night Class who would be coming out in about two hours. I sighed and tried not to look as if I wasn't paying attention to anything our math teacher said. When the final bell rang, I sighed and almost got run over by the stampede of insane girls as I was getting up from my desk.

As I finally managed to get out, Yuuki caught my arm and practically begged, "Can't you stay with me in the extra classes? It gets so boring!"

I shook my head and told her, "Sorry, Yuuki, but I need to get some of my work finished. Besides, don't you have Zero?" I jerked my thumb toward the figure glaring holes into Yuuki's back.

"Zero is no fun at all!" Yuuki replied to me, even though she had turned around to look at Zero as she said it.

As she stuck her tongue out at Zero, I smiled slightly. I waved to them as I headed out of the classroom with every intention of going back to my dorm room and relaxing. However, I inevitably got swept up in the crowd of girls going to see their beloved "Night Class boys."

Oh well, I thought, I have my sketchbook in my bag, I'll just sit out here and draw. It's a nice day and this new chapter of my life should be remembered.

I chose to sit under a shady oak tree close to where the girls were awaiting their celebrities. I drew myself riding White Lily and talking with Zero, Yuuki's horrified face when she found out she had the supplementary classes, and finally, because I couldn't resist, the fangirls. Although these weren't all the new events in my life, they helped me to realize the permanence they promised.

For a few moments I sat staring off into the distance; to the average passerby I probably looked as if I were simply admiring the setting sun, but in reality I wasn't watching much of anything. Unless my thoughts were considered watchable, at least.

I still felt amazed that I was here in this place that – to me at least – seemed like a dream or a paradise. Each morning as I woke up in my dorm room, I found myself wondering how my luck could possibly have caused me to find such a safe, secure school with such wonderful – if eccentric – people. In fact, the eccentricity of the people may have been a contributing factor to my wonder at how this was a real place. At times, the hilarious antics of the Headmaster made me wonder if this were all a dream. Whenever I awoke I had to wonder if I would suddenly be in my attic room back in Sleepy Hollow.

Smiling a little and enjoying the feeling of peace surrounding me, I began drawing the sunset. Due to years of experience, my fingers flew to certain colored pencils with no hesitation as I captured a perfect – or near perfect – imitation of the sunset before me. However, it wasn't just the sunset that I was attempting to capture. No, I wanted to capture the feelings that went with the sunset. I wanted to set in stone my feeling of safety. Simply the fact that the sun was setting in my picture was a statement. If the sun was setting, it must be setting on something. In this particular picture I was trying to convey that the sun was setting on my old life, and would similarly be rising on my new life when morning arrived.

I sighed and admired my work, holding it out in front of me slightly. For a moment I didn't realize that the screams of the fangirls were gone or that the sunset that I had been admiring had already come and gone. Maybe because I had expected someone to come remind me to go back to my dorm before I actually broke curfew. I guess in all of the excitement of trying to get the fangirls to leave Yuuki had forgotten that I'd taken a spot by the oak tree.

Oh well... It's probably not a problem. I'll just go back to my dorm now. It really isn't that late, and I'm certainly not making things better by just sitting here, I thought to myself when I eventually did realize that I was breaking curfew. This is absurd... My first day and I'm already breaking rules...

Slowly I collected my drawing materials and replaced them in my bag. Since I didn't think I was going to be noticed missing anyway, I wasn't very concerned with being out a little late. What could be the worst thing that could happen? It wasn't as if I would be attacked on school grounds. We were completely surrounded by trees, not to mention a brick wall with a locked gate. And the pretty boys that all the girls crazed over? What harm could they do me?

I heaved myself up off the ground and straightened out my uniform before heading back toward the dormitory. However, that was when I realized I didn't know exactly where that was, and in the dark I couldn't make out the paths as well as I could have in daylight. After a while of wandering about, I finally admitted that I was lost.

"Great..." I mumbled aloud. "Perfect ending to my day..."

Finding that a fountain was nearby, I went and sat down on its edge. Maybe if Zero or Yuuki found me they could direct me in the right direction. They were certain to be understanding since it was only my first day. After all, it was an honest mistake. How was I supposed to know when curfew was? Although, I guess if I'd actually read the school's rules I might not have made the same mistake. Or if I hadn't been so distracted.

While I waited to see if they found me, I took out my sketchbook again. I might as well do something productive, and the only thing I felt awake enough to finish were my drawings. So I began drawing the fountain I sat on.

After a bit of time had passed, I became more anxious. It was taking longer to be found than I had originally thought, and despite my previous beliefs that nothing could possibly happen to me on school grounds, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was actually in danger. The thought almost made me laugh. Surely it was just the shadows of the trees making me feel nervous. They just had a way of appearing monster-like before I stared at them a moment and recognized the terrifying 'culprit' as a swinging tree limb and a tree trunk. Nothing to really be scared of.

When I first heard the two voices conversing in the nearby distance, I nearly screamed and dropped my sketchbook into the fountain's water, but luckily I managed to control myself. It was just two girls from the Night Class – probably bored with their lessons. Even though I had been hoping to ask for directions back to my dorm, I was not willing to embarrass myself in front of two elite students, so I quickly sidled into the brush beside the path they walked on.

From the brush, I couldn't help but hear their conversation. Or at least, parts of it.

"Why doesn't Kaname-sama notice me, yet he always notices the little prefect girl? It's so frustrating! Especially since the prefect is only a human and Kaname-sama is a Pureblood vampire. There is no possibility that they could even have a normal relationship, yet he only seems to care for her!"

I hadn't even managed to get a glimpse of the girl speaking, and even if I had I wouldn't have been able to put a name with the face. However, her words were so startling that I had to cover my mouth to suppress a gasp of pure shock. This had to be a joke. It simply wasn't possible that Kaname was a vampire – there were no such things.

But she was taking it so seriously! And I couldn't ignore that there was a strange sensation to the air. It was a sort of heaviness that had fallen with the night – possibly with the arrival of the students. This thought, combined with the girl's rant, was enough to make me leave my shelter and take off running down a path in the opposite direction – hopefully toward the Headmaster's office. If there were vampires on the campus, surely he'd like to know.

As I ran, I became more and more frantic. Around every turn I became convinced that a vampire was waiting to jump out and attack me. It was a relief to see the familiar school building as I rounded a bend and exited the woods. As I entered the building and found no students roaming the halls, I began to relax – convinced that the worst was over. At a certain point, I even managed to convince myself to slow down and think about what I could possibly say to the Headmaster – if I needed to say anything at all.

Although the matter had seemed urgent when I had been lost in the woods, in the school's intellectual halls, the information wreaked of stupidity. My stupidity. Surely it had only been the forests' ability to create a feeling of unease and superstition. Afterall I was tired, and maybe I had only heard what my mind wanted to hear.

Even so, I had arrived at the Headmaster's office, and after running through the forest for what felt like hours, I was determined to not leave until I had confronted him.

In my haste to get this confrontation over with quickly, I forgot to knock at the door before turning the knob. As I stepped through the doorway, I realized I was not alone with the Headmaster. Kaname Kuran was standing in front of the Headmaster's desk.

And he was staring at me with eyes that were more red than maroon.

Finally able to upload this chapter! I think it is much better than the previous chapter four. Let me know if it contains any grammatical mistakes, and I will correct them and re-upload this chapter.

Thanks!
Mango