I don't own Vampire Knight or any of the characters in the series.
A/N: Hello! I'm here with chapter 2 ^^
Firstly: special thanks to Kai Hoshizuki and dudumanb for being the first reviewers of the story! (both of you are amazing!) :D
Kai Hoshizuki: I used the term 'hunters' to describe the rebel forces led by Yagari because it is a familiar term and most of the hunters in this are 'hunters' in the original series. In this they do not hunt vampires (because they are all human) but they hunt the Kurans and their supporters because they wish to take power from them. :)The hunters do not have a specific place of work. There is no Hunter's Association in this. I typed 'hunter's association' once by accident in the last chapter and didn't even realise it till you mentioned it in your review... I feel kind of embarrassed that i made such an obvious mistake and didn't notice... (。-_- 。)
Please forgive me for my mistake and thank you for pointing it out! (It has now been fixed ^^) Thank you, thank you, thank you! :D
Dudumanb: Another one of my regular reviewers! You are fantastic! I feel very honoured that I can be one of your favourite writers ^^. I really enjoy reading your reviews and Thank you, thank you, thank you! :D
To all: None of my stories have been beta-read. The only person who reads the documents at any stage before they are uploaded is me, their creator, and I'm not perfect so I occasionally miss things and make a few little mistakes. So, if you see anything that looks odd please feel free to let me know so that I can fix it and/or explain it to you. ^^
Extra note: In this fic I spell Kaien's surname as Kurosu rather than Cross because it is set in Japan and Kurosu is the Japanese pronunciation/spelling.
This is the only update tonight due to homework and sleep deprivation. The next chapter for A Helping Hand should be up tomorrow! Thank you for your patience :)
Please read, review, fave and follow. But, most of all, please enjoy! :D
Chapter 2: Takeover
It had come to Kaname's attention through the words of his most trusted spy, Seiren, that one of the hunters' most fearsome generals was residing in a camp set up by the hunters nearby and planning an attack on more Kuran settlements someday soon.
This fearsome general is known as Kaien Kurosu. Everyone amongst the Kuran clan had heard the frightening tales of Kaien's techniques. Kaien rarely killed the people he captured, but when they were next seen by their friends and families they returned preaching about how everyone should get along and live in harmony. They would then attempt to open the gates, which protected the villages, to let the hunters that they believed were friendly in. Many villages had been lost to the hunters in this way. Yet, it was still unknown how this effect was achieved… Brainwashing? Mental torture? Infectious stupid personality? Either way it clearly wasn't good at all and the man had to be dealt with.
As a result Kaname had spent the afternoon with Rido, planning an attack on the camp where he was currently positioned. They made sure to plan thoroughly so that there was no chance of failure.
…
Zero flicked through the briefing for his next mission. It seemed that the spies had gotten wind of a plan to attack the hunter camp where Kaien Kurosu was currently stationed. Kaname was set to attack the camp tonight and Zero would intercept him there.
He mounted his trusty steed, White Lily and headed towards his destination. On the way he leafed through the extra information on his target.
Name: Kaname Kuran
Occupation: General and heir to the Kuran clan.
Immediate relatives: Haruka Kuran, Juri Kuran, Yuki Kuran.
Star sign: Leo
Likes: Pretty things, shiny things, sweet things, roses, the colour red, the colour black, high quality sake and sex.
Dislikes: Hunters, Ruka Souen, Rido Kuran, Shizuka Hio, Sara Shirabuki as well as many of the other Kuran loyals, spicy things, peas and boredom.
Strategies: …
And so the document continued as Zero lost interest, deciding to give Lily a rest for a minute while they passed a pleasant lake surrounded by soft grass.
It's so peaceful here… no hunters, no Kurans…
Zero considered just staying there for eternity. But, if he did not reach his destination by evening then he could not be sure what would become of his brother. Thinking this he continued on to his destination.
…
Before being in sight of the camp Zero had changed his outfit to match his brother's trademark silken attire and wore a wig to equal the length of his brother's hair. He did this because he was going to meet with Kurosu later…poor Kurosu.
Both Yagari and Zero knew that Kaien was a bumbling idiot. Somehow he had fluked his way into a few of the Kuran villages but they both knew that there was no real strategy involved. The people he came across were treated and looked after by him and then, quite simply, they became infected with his stupid before returning home and spreading the stupid till the gates opened. He was also stupid enough to have gotten on Yagari's nerves several times.
As such Zero and Yagari had agreed it would be beneficial if he were not to know about Zero's presence in case he let something slip. Instead, Yagari mentioned something about sending Ichiru to dance and serve drinks for him in return for his good work. Naturally, the gullible hunter absorbed this lie like a sponge and truly believed Yagari's words. What Kaien didn't know was that they were going to allow Kaname to invade so as to allow Zero get close to the infamous Kuran general. Kaien's role in this plot was to be the unsuspecting sacrificial lamb.
*trot* *trot* *trot*
So, here Zero was dressed as his brother and riding into the camp on a lovely white horse. He quickly noticed the many stares of the deprived soldiers eyeing him like a piece of meat.
*shudder*
How does Ichiru stand this!?
"Yo-ho~ Ichiru-chan~"
Oh great, the stupid guy's here.
Kaien bounced out of the largest tent in the camp. You could practically see the sparkles he was expressing from his over-enthusiastic attitude.
Coming to a halt, Zero dismounted Lily and approached Kaien.
"How do you do, Kurosu-sama? I trust you have been well?" Zero did his best impersonation of that weird graceful talk he wasn't accustomed to.
"I have been just perfect my dear Ichiru. And of course I have been well! But now I feel even better after seeing you after such a long time! You've grown so much since I last saw you, come here and give daddy a hug~" Kaien pleaded with tears in his eyes.
*shudder*
This man had been one of their foster fathers (babysitters) as they grew up at the orphanage. Being special, Kaien somewhere along the line decided to start addressing the twins as his own children…Zero found this creepy.
"I can't wait to see you dance! And of course we have so much to talk about and…"
Zero's brain stopped bothering to listen as Kaien kept babbling on about the past and various other trivial matters.
…
That night Kaien had called all of the soldiers into the large tent to share alcohol and watch 'Ichiru' dance. However it did not last for long… All too soon the Kuran army came prepared for a fight with a fearsome general.
*Bang!* *Crash!* *Smash!* *Shatter* *Screaming*
However, the fighting ended quickly because all of the hunters present, including the 'fearsome general', were intoxicated after a night of heavy drinking and unarmed in the large tent .
Are you serious? This is a cake-walk!
Kaname couldn't believe how easy that was.
"Please, Kaname! See reason! We should all just live together and *hic* be happy~" Kaien grovelled drunkenly.
"Quarantine this man. He has the stupid and I don't want to catch it." Kaname ordered.
His soldiers, loyal to the Kuran clan, laughed at Kaname's observation as they tied Kaien up, ready to take him back for interrogation. Soon, the hunter camp had been cleared. All the casualties had been disposed of and those alive were taken for questioning in case they knew anything useful.
…
Kaname was checking out the remains of the alcohol in the large tent to see if any of it was worth saving for himself when he noticed a quivering form beneath one of the make-shift tables. Moving closer he looked underneath to find an extremely unique woman. Beautiful long silver hair like he had never seen before and an expensive kimono made of the finest lilac silk. The silver-hair then looked up at him as he got closer.
Those eyes…
Kaname had never seen eyes that fantastic shade of purple before.
Pretty…
Though, as the silver-hair looked up he also noticed that it was not a woman. It was a man with long hair. Kaname remembered hearing stories about an exotic silver-haired dancer raised by the hunters. He didn't know they were true. But, upon seeing this man, Kaname felt a strong urge to take this man for himself. The beauty didn't look to be carrying any weapons and a dancer surely wasn't trained in combat.
"What is your name?"
"Zero Kiryuu, my lord." Zero responded, now giving his proper name because no one among the Kuran would be able to identify him since his existence was kept unknown.
"You are not a hunter, are you?" Kaname asked.
"N-no. The hunters took me from my home and made me dance for them. Please don't hurt me, my lord!" Zero begged, putting on the innocent act.
The Kuran general took the silver-haired beauty into his arms. He stroked Zero's hair gently.
"!"
Kaname stopped for a second.
"Your hair is fake…"
Crap, I hadn't thought he would stroke my hair! Think quick, think quick, think quick!
"T-they said I looked prettier if I made my hair seem longer. They made me wear it under penalty of death!" Zero crossed his fingers, hoping that Kaname would believe such a lie.
Kaname gave him a sad look before removing the wig, seeming pleased to see that he still had beautiful silver hair under the wig.
"I think you look just fine without the wig, Zero." Kaname assured him, stroking the silverette's cheek.
"You must return to Kyoto with me. You may stay at my residence and I will protect you from those evil hunters. I shall also not make you wear a wig." Kaname announced.
"T-thank you so much, my lord!" Zero cried, happy that his lie was believable and that he wouldn't have to wear that impractical wig any longer.
I'm in!