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

Not my Time
A Vampire Knight Fanfiction

Chapter Twelve: The Forgotten Queen

By the time I woke up the next day, morning had already passed. I finally woke up and rolled out of bed around two in the afternoon, and only because Yuuki had knocked at my door to tell me that my brother had called.

Eager to be reassured of Kidd's presence, I hurriedly dressed in my last spare outfit, then bolted out of the room without even looking at Yuuki, and made a mad dash in the direction of the headmaster's office. Fellow students stared at me, wondering why I was running so quickly on a Sunday.

When I entered the headmaster's rooms, I could hear the headmaster in his office – probably speaking with Kaname or Ichijou (although it was the middle of the day…). Simply relieved that I didn't have to waste time speaking with the headmaster myself, I didn't pay this much mind.

I picked up the receiver. "Hello? Kit?"

"Lily! I tried to call you, but you wouldn't answer," Kit exclaimed. "I was getting worried."

"Oh… Sorry… I fell asleep," I lied, hoping he wouldn't notice. In case he did, I quickly changed the subject. "How's Kidd? Did you get him more hay? He loves hay. Also, make certain his troughs get scrubbed before you fill them with water. Make certain he was both of them filled because I don't know when … or if… someone will be able to come by to check on him again. Also, he probably needs a good hose-down, and you should make certain his mane gets brushed out. Oh, and check his hooves, he always gets little pebbles stuck in the grooves… And fly-spray! Don't forget the fly-spray!"

I said all this so quickly that poor Kit couldn't get a word in edgewise. I could hear him saying "Lily" repeatedly in the background, but a part of me was too scared to stop and listen to what he had to say. Finally, I couldn't find any more instructions rolling around in my mind, so I was forced to give Kit my attention.

"Lily, maybe it's time to… You know, Lily, with you in Japan, and with Dad… being the way he is... maybe… it's, you know… time." Now that Kit finally had a chance to speak, he seemed to be having an awful time actually speaking.

Suddenly I felt as if a bomb had exploded outside of the school-building. "No… Kit, no! Tell me what's happened!"

"Nothing! Lily, I just think… Well, maybe we ought to sell the remaining two horses… I can't stay here to take care of them, and Dad is… well… And you're…"

I interrupted Kit, "No! There's something wrong! I can feel it! You're trying not to tell me something! What is it? What happened!"

"Nothing's wrong! Everything's fine; not great, but fine…"

"Don't lie to me!" I demanded. I could feel tears streaming down my face. Even before my brother spoke, I knew what he was going to say.

"Well… Lily… They're gone. I got here, and… Kidd… and Reygina… they were gone… The chain holding the gate was forced off… It seems that…"

"Did you check the neighboring farms? Maybe Kidd thought he could get hay from one of their fields," I asked, desperately attempting to locate my horse all the way from Japan. "Maybe Kidd's trying to get to me – like all those movies!"

"I'm really sorry, Lily," my brother told me.

I could tell that he was truly sorry, but it didn't stop me from making nearly unreasonable demands of him. "You have to stay there, and find them, Kit!" I demanded. "I'm going to ask the headmaster if I can come, and then I can help."

"No, Lily," my brother replied in a tone that drew my attention immediately. "You can't come here. I'm going to stay for a while. See if I can get Dad into some sort of rehab. I'll look for the horses. You've dealt with this burden long enough. Just enjoy the freedom of attending a foreign school for a while."

"How can I do that when I'm worried sick about my horse?" I asked.

"I'll find him, Lily…" Kit insisted.

"I want to help! I can't…" My desperate attempt to convince my brother to permit me to come home was cut short by the headmaster's office door opening.

A man who I had never seen before was striding out of the office. As he passed, I felt my breath catch in my chest. Not only did this man have an incredibly dark aura – very much similar to the aura I normally associated with vampires – but he wore a metal plate over one eye, and on his back he carried what looked suspiciously like a shotgun.

"Lily? Lily? Are you there still? Did something happen?" Kit asked.

"I've got to go, Kit," I told him, too distracted by the strange man to give Kit my full attention. I briefly forgot about Kidd and Reygina being missing. "I trust you to find the horses. I'll stay here."

"Okay, Lily. I'll call you later then," Kit told me.

"Okay," I answered, hanging up the phone while still trying to view the man who was some distance away by this time.

Just as I was about to go after the man, Headmaster Cross caught hold of my arm. "Lily-chan, Kaname came to me late last night, and asked if he could see you. He says he has something he wants to ask about."

"Kaname?" I asked, confused. I wondered if I had done something to offend him – besides joining the Disciplinary Committee against his wishes. Certainly he'd realized by now that I wasn't helpless.

"Yes, he requested that you come about fifteen minutes to midnight. Ichijou Takuma is having a party, so there shouldn't be many students in the dorm," the headmaster told me.

"I have to meet him in the Moon Dorm?" I asked. "Why can't he come here?"

"It'll be fine, Lily-chan!" the headmaster insisted, acting as if I had nothing at all to fear in the Moon Dorm.

I nodded slightly; although, I still wasn't entirely certain the headmaster was thinking rationally. The headmaster seemed to be dismissing me, but I decided that I should ask about the man I had seen leaving the headmaster's office earlier.

"Headmaster, that man who was here…" I started, hoping Headmaster Cross would automatically inform me of the man's identity.

"A new teacher. Ethics," Headmaster Cross answered.

"Ethics? He was carrying a shotgun," I responded dryly. "What is he? A vampire hunter? Is he here about Zero?"

The headmaster looked taken aback for a moment, but then smiled a bit proudly. "You catch on quickly, Lily-chan," he told me. "Yagari Toga is a vampire hunter, as well as an old friend of mine. He's just here to teach a couple of classes."

"Okay…" I replied in a tone indicative of my disbelief. However, I decided that the headmaster wasn't likely to tell me the entire truth, and I was satisfied with knowing the true identity of the man, even if I didn't know his true intentions. "If you need me, I'll be in the stables," I told the headmaster before exiting his office.

Wondering why Kaname wanted to see me distracted me temporarily from Kidd's and Reygina's disappearance, but when I reached the stables I immediately went back to worrying about them, as well as blaming myself for their disappearance.

If I had only put them into the pasture with the pond… Maybe then they wouldn't have felt the need to escape! Why didn't I put them into that pasture? I knew long ago that one day I might not be able to make it in time to fill those troughs…

Inevitably, I began to place blame on Kaname again; although, that didn't seem to help matters.

I just felt so useless. Even if I had to leave the relative peace of Cross Academy, I wanted nothing more than to go back home. I couldn't hide the fact that I wanted to go home so badly was partially due to how I had forgotten first Kidd, and then Reygina.

Until my brother had mentioned that she was missing, I hadn't spared a thought for my father's mare. It wasn't because I associated her with my father's cruelty toward me, but due to the mare's wildness. She had never been overly fond of me, so she tended to avoid me (unless I had food to give her) whenever I appeared near the pasture.

My father had found Reygina in basically the same manner he'd found Kidd. My mother sent him to a horse auction to find a gentle riding horse for her personal usage, and instead my father purchased a head-shy, trailer fearing, formerly abused mare who my father claimed would one day be the perfect riding horse. Before he'd even purchased her, my father had christened her Reygina, but he often referred to her as "the forgotten queen."

At first, Reygina seemed terrified by everything. The slightest movement or the smallest sound would cause her to bolt away in terror. Not even offered food could bribe her to come to a person. And she had a sixth sense about anything that could be a potential weapon – not simply whips, but also scoops, ropes, or tack boxes.

The patience of my father eventually began to cause Reygina to settle down slightly, at least around him. For hours on end, my father would sit out by a tree in the pasture with her. He would bring a book and an apple, and he would wait for her to finally become curious enough to come to him. When she would approach, he wouldn't speak to her, try to pet her, or – in fact – pay her any attention at all.

He would just sit there, and eventually Reygina would take the apple resting beside him, then walk away calmly.

Over time, Reygina become accustomed to seeing my father sitting in her pasture, and she began to notice him when he arrived. Some days were better than others, but most of the time her ears would flip forward the moment she saw my father walking toward her pasture.

Nobody who saw them together could deny that my father and Reygina had a bond.

Just before my mother's death, my father was capable of leading Reygina around her pasture without a halter, lead, or bribe. She followed because she wanted to follow.

After my mother's death, Reygina lost her person. I tried to continue the reconditioning my father had started, but Reygina did not like me at all. Each time I walked into her pasture, she would gallop away, occasionally bucking in my direction, as if she would like nothing better than knocking me down with her hooves. Not even my father's technique of reading underneath a tree with an apple worked. Reygina just plain did not like me.

She wanted my father. She yearned for his presence, and a few times I took items with my father's scent on them down to her pasture and set them inside with her.

The most difficult tasks with Reygina always took place during the winter. She hated when I blanketed her, and she hated me bringing her up to the stable. These two tasks could take me almost an entire day, and most of the time, I would resort to extreme tactics – i.e. trust: open gate, no halter, no lead, just me bareback on Kidd with a bucket full of feed (luckily my father had gotten her to associate buckets with good things by the time he became more interested in alcohol than horses).

Sometimes I don't even understand how I'd managed to take care of her, as well as keep our training farm operational. Of course, I had been forced to finally shutdown the training farm when I was thirteen. By that point, it was just too dangerous to keep it open. People were beginning to ask too many questions, and I was afraid one of our employees might begin to notice that my injuries weren't always horse-related.

Shutting down our training farm broke my heart, but I knew it must be done. Many of our repeat customers appeared to be incredibly put-out. They asked me repeatedly why we were shutting the farm down, and some even offered to pay higher rates if we would stay open. Each time this scenario occurred, I would politely turn down their offers of money, and say that my father wanted to spend more time with his family.

An awful lie. Sometimes I hated myself for shutting the farm down. I no longer had anything to distract myself from fearing my father's wrath.

A former employee named Scott McDaniels began to come over occasionally. He had seen me stay on a bucking horse once, and ever since then had been convinced that I would be good at rodeo events. Now that I no longer had a horse farm to manage, he thought it was a brilliant time for me to begin competing. Desperate for something to distract myself with, I began team roping, reining, and cutting under his guidance.

As it turned out, Kidd's lack of "proper training" was not such an accurate term. Previously he had been used as a cutting horse, and he was very eager to pick up the hobby again.

Around the same time, a boy named Shawn Moore began to take an unnatural amount of interest in me. He would show up at the farm unpredictably, and stay longer than I liked. Sometimes I would find him nearby after asking him to leave. Whenever I asked him what he wanted, he would tell me that he liked me, and that we should go out on a date.

It didn't matter how many times I attempted to get rid of Shawn, he refused to listen to me. Often I considered laying out security devices to give me a forewarning of his presence, so I could avoid him.

To this day I can't understand why he was so persistent. When I think about the entire situation, I'm still bothered.

Trying to relieve myself of the annoyance of Shawn's memory, I stand up. It's probably close enough to the time Kaname is expecting me.

The walk to the Moon Dorm is quite a distance from the stables, and since I'm terrified of being late to my meeting with Kaname – it'll be bad enough that I smell like horses – I run part of the way. When I near the Moon Dorm, I slow to a walk while straightening out my clothes as much as possible.

I really should have considered the time. As I glanced down at my outfit, I suddenly realize that my blouse and skirt don't even match.

As I walked through the front gates, I was relieved to see that none of the Night Class students are loitering in front of the dorm. I can tell by the atmosphere that a large group is gathered in the back of the dorm, but the atmosphere is dark, and I cannot tell if they are celebrating or mourning.

When I walked into the Moon Dorm's entry-area, I'm taken aback by the elegance of the dorm. It looked more like an aristocrat's mansion than a dorm. Now extremely fearful that I am predestined to be late, I panic until I realize that Kaname is seated on the elegant couch in the foyer.

"Lily," he greeted me stoically; although, I noticed him eyeing my outfit a bit oddly. "I thought it may be too confusing for you to find my office, so I decided to meet you down here. We can go up to my office together."

I nodded, and followed him up the stairs and to his office on the second floor. Once inside, Kaname indicated a chair placed before his desk. I sat down, and was relieved when Kaname sat down as well.

"I heard about the level E you killed while in town the other day," Kaname told me. "I cannot deny that I'm very impressed. I underestimated your abilities when the headmaster wanted to place you on the Disciplinary Committee, but you've turned out to be very useful."

I didn't like the way Kaname called me 'useful.' The term sounded similar to how one would refer to a pawn about to be sacrificed.

I waited for Kaname to continue, "Recently it has come to my attention that you have an interesting past. I was wondering if you could tell me what happened during those ten days you went missing."

I shook my head. A little voice in my head seemed to be whispering "lie," as if I could have told Kaname something important. "I don't remember anything from that time," I told him. "It's just darkness whenever I think about it."

"Darkness? Like an aura?"

I shook my head again. "No… Just… As if there isn't anything to see or feel," I attempted to explain. "That's really everything I know about that time."

I knew it was a mistake to mention to Ichijou that time in my life. There was no doubt in my mind that it was Ichijou who informed Kaname about my mysterious past. Why else would he have run off so suddenly last night?

"May I ask you a question?" I asked suddenly.

"Besides the one you just asked?" Kaname replied; what looked like an amused smile appeared briefly.

"Yes," I replied sheepishly. When Kaname nodded, I asked, "For what reason did you come to take me away from my father?"

"I just happened to see you," Kaname lied. "I couldn't leave you. It would have been wrong."

"I know you're not being honest with me," I replied, evenly. "If that were the truth, you would have left me at a hospital somewhere closer to Sleepy Hollow – where you found me."

Kaname gave me a thoughtful glance before answering, "I wanted to remove you from your situation. If I had left you anywhere near your father, you would have gone back eventually. You're much safer here. That option's been removed."

Anger flared within me. How dare he treat me as if I were an ignorant fool? If I wanted to put myself in that situation with my father, I could! It might not be the most intelligent move, but I had my reasons for doing it.

"You have no right to make decisions for me," I told him, fearlessly. As if suddenly snapping out of a trance, I quickly added, "I am appreciative that you helped me, but… I just want to understand why you felt the need to take me with you to this place."

"To keep you safe," Kaname insisted.

I eyed the chessboard placed on his desk. The pieces were placed as if a game were in progress, but not all the pieces were set up.

"May I leave?" I asked, wondering if Kaname had only called me here for the simple reason of asking about my missing memories.

"Yes, I want to get to Ichijou's party by midnight," Kaname told me. "We'll go down together, and I'll have Aidou or Kain take you back to your dorm."

"I don't need an escort," I replied. I did not need the entire Night Class to see me wearing a mis-matched outfit. "I'll just go through the front way."

"It can be dangerous. I'd feel better if someone were with you," Kaname insisted, stubbornly.

"I came here on my own, and I didn't have any problems," I told him.

Kaname's expression turned a bit darker, and I began to feel pressured to simply let him have his way – even if I was forced to be seen in my horribly matched outfit.

"Could I wait in the foyer?" I attempted to compromise.

I was both surprised and relieved when Kaname nodded. "I'll send Kain and Aidou to escort you back to your dorm in about five minutes," he told me.

I followed him out of his office and back into the foyer. Once there, I sat on the couch and waited for someone to show up.

Only a few moments later, the front door opened, and Nasrin entered the dorm. Her hair looked windblown, and her skin appeared a bit pinker than usual, as if she had just been locked in a freezer for a few hours.

"Hey, Nasrin," I greeted. "Did you go somewhere?"

Nasrin jumped, and looked around wildly for a moment before spotting me on the couch. She visibly relaxed, and came over. After collapsing onto the couch, she told me, "I seized the opportunity to stretch my wings. You wouldn't believe how cramped they get! Even when I'm in my room, I try not to let them show because I'm terrified we'll have a surprise room inspection."

"How are your classes going?" I asked. Honestly, I felt as if I had been neglecting Nasrin. I'd been so focused on trying to communicate my horse's needs to Kit, and trying to prevent my secret from becoming exposed, that I hadn't even considered Nasrin wasn't actually a vampire.

"Fine, I guess… Why do vampires feel as if they need to become experts on such boring topics?" Nasrin replied. "A class on aerodynamics would be much more interesting than biochemistry. And aerodynamics is just as difficult."

I had a feeling that biochemistry in general would never be a subject Nasrin would enjoy. "Are you okay, Nasrin?" I asked. This question really should have been asked first, but I was so sleep deprived that I hadn't thought to ask.

"I'm doing all right… Just wish I could preen more often… Feathers start tearing if they're left too long…" Nasrin complained. "If there were a way to get away from here for an hour, then I would be perfectly content."

I knew that the headmaster would not have been happy if he'd known that I seriously considered abusing my job as prefect in order to help Nasrin skip class. However, I could not leave Nasrin to suffer alone. I was the only person at this school who knew she was neither human nor vampire.

I would have suggested something, but just as I was beginning to consider how to help Nasrin, Aidou and Kain walked in through a door off the side of the foyer.

Knowing they were here to escort me back to my dorm, I stood. I would have said "good night" to Nasrin, but she was fast asleep on the couch.

"Interesting outfit, Lily-chan," Aidou teased.

I chose not to respond. In all honesty, I should have paid more attention to which clothes I'd been grabbing this morning (or afternoon…).

"The dorm president sent us to escort you back to your dorm," Kain told me.

A quick glance at Aidou caused me to remember his suspicions about me. Aidou appeared to be holding himself back from addressing his concerns to me in front of Nasrin, but I was certain he would demand answers from me once we were away from witnesses.

Sure enough, as soon as we were outside the Moon Dorm's gates, Aidou asked, "Why did you come to Cross Academy?"

His question took me aback slightly; I had believed he would ask after my disappearance, or the drawing of the God of the Underworld, but not the reason I'd come to Cross Academy.

It took me a moment to answer, "Kaname rescued me from… a car accident." For a moment I had considered telling Aidou the truth, but I imagined Kaname would not be happy with me if I had. I might not like Kaname much, personally, but I was not willing to make him my enemy.

"Kaname-sama!" Aidou exclaimed. "He rescued you, and then you dare refer to him casually?"

I really should have thought better of referring to Kaname in that manner in front of Aidou. Even without Yuuki telling me, I knew that Aidou was one of Kaname's "right-hand men."

"Did I just do that? I'm still trying to catch onto all these little things…" I attempted to use the "ignorant American" excuse to prevent Aidou from believing I was Kaname's enemy.

Aidou didn't seem to be falling for my ruse, but Kain sighed and told his cousin, "Just let it go, Hanabusa. She doesn't mean anything by it."

Aidou seemed to move on from my blunder suddenly. "Why would Kaname-sama want you at this school? Didn't you have any family?"

"I don't know why he brought me here. I was supposed to be taken-in by my brother in Germany, but Kaname… senpai… insisted that the headmaster of this school be permitted to take me in," I answered, tersely.

After my answer, Aidou remained silent for a moment. "Lily-chan… do you know the origin of the staff you hold?" Aidou asked, slowly.

"Yes," I answered without emotion. "It has something to do with my disappearance ten years ago. I've been trying to figure out what happened those ten days, and why I can't remember anything."

Aidou seemed shocked that I'd told him so willingly. I wouldn't have told him anything, except that he would probably never stop bothering until he knew precisely what I knew.

"I don't know what else I can tell you," I told Aidou. "So, if you would just take me back to my…"

I was cut off by the sound of a gun firing.

Although I was startled by the noise, my knee-jerk reaction was to consider the noise rationally. "That sounded like a shotgun. It must be that hunter Yagari who I saw earlier today. Zero…"

"Back to your dorm, Lily-chan," Aidou said quickly, taking my arm and tugging me along the path.

"Shouldn't we do something?" I asked, looking in the direction the gunshot had come from.

Kain shook his head. "No, we'll let the headmaster deal with it," he told me.

The rest of the way back to my dorm, I did not speak. I was thinking about the gunshot, and trying to determine whether or not the shot had killed Zero or not. Although I was bothered, I chose not to attempt to find out right away what was happening. Kain and Aidou were right; I should let the headmaster deal with the vampire hunter.

"Thank you," I told Kain and Aidou once we'd reached my dorm.

Once in my room, I changed into a nightgown, then pulled out my sketchbook. I wanted to draw that vampire hunter. It seemed important to keep some sort of record on him. Somehow, I knew, he would become an important part of the events at Cross Academy.

Chapter twelve has been re-written! I think it's much better than the previous chapter twelve; please, let me know if it contains any errors.

Thanks,
Mango