A/n: Oh and also, I write these in wordpad, and so dont have spell check, and never bother checking it manually, so sorry if I spell junk wrong x.x

...

Chaper Seven: Time

Both in thought and in feeling, even though time be real, to realise the unimportance of time is the gate of wisdom. - Bertrand Russell

Left just inside the study door, Yuuki hugged herself against the cool air that emenated from the stone walls. Kaname turned and surveyed her, eyes narrowing at the dress in that colour he despised, he wondered briefly if she held the same connotations with that silver/blue as he did. Taking in her blank expression that still managed to clearly scream "Brrrrr I'm cold" he guessed that her thoughts didnt range beyond that and smiled. Beckoning her over to the aysemetrical antique sofa he was lounging on, he sat up further to accomodate her. Hands together on her knees, she perched awkwardly on the edge of the couch, still unsure of whether employing her new honesty theory would be recieved well.

God this room is cold... Im sure my room isn't this cold... my room doesnt really have any heating besides the slight heat from the lamps...

She fidgeted as she settled in beside him, he normally came to her room to talk to her rather then requesting she come to him... something was up. The edge of her gown not quite reaching the floor sent chills from her exposed ankles all the way up her legs. Lifting her feet up to rest underneath her, she fussed with her skirts so that her legs were covered, and surpressed a sigh of relief as warmth spread through them again. Kaname interpretted this as her moving to be closer to him, and with a smug sense that he'd made the right decision about her, he put his arm around her. Far from helping her warm up, his icy grasp seemed to suck all the heat right out of her, she was shocked by her own feeling of disgust at his touch. Surely he noticed... how she flinched away from his touch... the stiffening of her shoulders when he was near... the avoidance of his gaze... It screamed wrongness. Not only did she not love him as more then just family, she was begginning to think she didnt love him at all...

He didnt notice. Her didnt notice her silent, subtle rebukes of his affection. He was far too concerned with self pride in his ability to shape her to his needs. People had told him that she had learned bad habits in her years as a human, that she would never stay in her place, behave as expected... bow to him. But they were wrong. In time, he had acheived just that, the shaping of his princess, his ideal bride, into what she will be the rest of her life. With an internal sigh the slight sense of a challenge she had posed becoming obsolete, he still felt inflated with the satisfaction of getting exactly what he wanted. Again.

... her internal monologue was interupted as she realised Kaname was saying something.

"...which as you know, would be advantagous in terms of Our interests and Our survival."

Blinking bleakly until she realised where he was coming from she made a wild guess.

"Yes it would, Kaname-Sama... So exactly what would I need to do?" her stab in the dark seemingly fit in with the conversation because without missing a beat Kaname continued...

"Very little my dear, your attendance should suffice to retain our standing in the court, your beauty and your example behaviour coupled with my assurances and intelligent contributions are the perfect examples of what we stand for."

The compliments were lost on her as the "example behaviour" and implications that she would have nothing worthwhile to say in an intellectual gathering stuck like barbs under her chilled skin. I mean sure political nonsense makes my head spin, but anything worth discussing Im good at debating about. Zero always says... said... that I could talk a man's ear off...

But it didnt matter what He thought anymore did it. It was Kaname that mattered... She fought to shrug off her indignant thoughts.

"I have noticed that you have been a little stir-crazy lately, and I thought that perhaps this little outing would help, You havent left your room for a long time."

A little! she almost laughed. Yes...havent left my room... she looked everywhere but at Kaname

"It does seem like a long time" she admitted, since he needed me... since that kiss...

"Well it seems you have got over your childish state of mind and have realised your place is here. I have always told everyone that I would make you come to your senses in the end"

Childish... Your place... make you... why did his words seem to echo in her head? Please... I hope... not good enough... those sentiments were never even thought by men like Kaname-Sama... let alone admitted out loud... only by...Him.

"I shall be honoured to take you with me, I'll have the example of perfection by my side."

I shall, I'll have, my side. Take you. Possesive possesive possesive. Nothing but pretty words... but the meaning and feelings behind them are anything but. Clinging... but without passion... without desperation... no need just wanting... greedy...

Was he always this controlling? this underhanded? manipulating with every word... telling you what you want to hear yet seething betrayal. The vile, bitter taste that had lingered as she bowed and scraped, as she "behaved", as she was an "example"... this reeked of it. The calculating features of her consort seemed suddenly transparent. She didnt like it. It made her feel...dirty... Zero knew. He always knew, always saw this side of him. No wonder he despised me spending time with him, with this nonsense. With a chill of his lank arm over her shoulder, brushing slightly on her neck... she gained insight. Is this all he knows... all he's ever known...? deciet... lies... backstabbing... power games. All this time... She had feelings for Kaname-Sama. New and frightening. Not love, as she once believed, not familial affection, as she rationalised. Pity.

She drew back, and looked into his eyes. She wasnt angry with him for being this way. To be angry with someone you have to have strong feelings for them one way or another. She had neither. She smiled.

His thoughts of her adoration of him in a public forum bolstered his ego. Made him bold. Almost happy... no... never happy. He pictured the other purebloods, and nobles, even commoners jealousy of what he had, and the importance that lent him. His inspiring thoughts were interupted as she pulled away and looked at him. Something in her eyes... those evocative, powerful eyes that had always gleamed to his vision, winked out of existance. And she smiled.

He suddenly felt like something had been taken from him. Something rightfully HIS. What was that emotion... that reaction he had harboured from her untill now was gone. She didnt react to him at all. Positively or negatively. He craved reaction, how dare she not react to him. She still needed him. She got hungry like everyone else right?

"Yuuki, how inconsiderate of me, you must be starving." he bared his neck slightly by lowering his shirt collar. She didnt notice, in fact she looked a little confused for a second, then registered the movement and its implications.

"Oh that, no thank you, I'm not thirsty" she smiled reassuringly.

"Not...thirsty..." his face clouded over like a sudden storm. Not thirsty... there was no way she could not be thirsty... he was starving... promised to each other, they would only partake of each others blood... blood tablets helped over the long stretches that they were sometimes apart... he personally had drank from a few people when they took his fancy... none of them were quite as satisfying as Yuuki's blood though... but she had access to no one... and besides she hated taking blood for herself. He often had to bite himself before she would feed...

She avoided the expected response. Equivelent to "How are you?", "Fine thanks, How are you?". No one said they were not fine, or in this case, not hungry. It threw a spanner into the works of the entire conversation. She suddenly found it vitally important to not feed Kaname, refusing his blood made it easier. But regardless of her "Fine thanks" response, returning the "How are you?" question was perhaps even more expected. She didnt want to give him her blood... it was private... her thoughts, her life, was private. Just like the other thing she had been avoiding giving him. Asking him if he was thirsty in return was more or less offering herself to him, and despite her vow to be good, to be perfect for him, her actions were far to habitualised. To be good, she had to stop, think, double check response, respond. It seemed she had used up all of her patience yesterday, because it suddenly seemed impossible to say anything but what was on her mind. She had to get out of here... before he tries to take it...

She gracefully rose to her feet, wincing slightly as bloodflow returned to her legs, and bowed to him...

"I'll need to pack, is there anything else, Kaname?" she was so lost in thought, she simply forgot to give him an honourable title, but it was far from lost on Kaname. No one, no one addressed him like that, no one ever had. It wasn't because she was so familiar with him that she felt she didnt need to use it, there was no affection in her words. That was lack of respect. He'd never been so insulted by his own kind in his whole, sheltered life.

"Aren't you going to ask me if I am thirsty?"

Oh god he brought it up... She bowed again and stayed bowed.

"Well are you?" His voice rose, demanding.

"N...n...no, Kaname..." she had never said no to him before. It was a night of firsts.

"Sama!" he hissed at her, closing the gap between them. She stumbled back at the unexpected movement, hands clenched to her chest, eyes wide.

"W...w...what?"

"Kaname SAMA, Kaname SAMA! How dare you afford me no honour. I am your host! Your fiancee! the only family you have left and you do not respect me?"

There! a twinkle of fear, a reaction, it placated him slightly. The emotion dulled... twisted... back into pity. Stronger and more obvious now. How dare she. How dare she?

He took a deep breath and immediately regretted letting his emotions show. Suddenly calm, scarily calm for someone that angry, he stepped back once more. He had been wrong.

"It seems I am mistaken. You are not fit for society yet," He turned his back on her and continued as he paced, "I will attend alone, and you shall attend to your studies alone. I feel you have outgrown Aido as a tutor, and will advance quicker by reading."

It was a punishment in a way, he knew she craved interaction. Depriving her of something she hated, was in this case, a worse fate.

"You may leave." he stared at documents on his desk, feining inattention. She hadnt moved. "I said get out!" His dissapointment was plain, his ideal world, ideal wife, seemed further away then ever.

Get out! Get out! Get out! these words echoed in her head, in two different voices as she was escorted back to her rooms by a stonyfaced guard. One mid range and emotional. One deep and foreboding.