24th story in my series of short stories with various VK characters.
Independent from the previous 23.
#: 24
Title: "A child on the chessboard."
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He remembered with perfect clarity the day he was introduced to the boy.
And as they walked to the meeting room – vampire side and hunter side walking in clearly distinct groups and eyeing each other warily, distrust obvious in their every gesture—, the man recalled to his mind that introduction and those first moments of interaction, passed in what had been several years ago, but to him seemed but a breath in time.
You stand proud now, leading the way and walking ahead of our group, but what is your entire lifetime so far, is nothing but a few instants for me.
Even though you will ultimately live far longer than I could ever hope to, as of now you are to me as much of a child as you were that summer afternoon years ago, when your parents brought you to my household, their royal bearing and appearances of power nothing but a mere disguise to cover up the anguish lying hidden close under the surface. You had no one then, and they had hoped to find suitable playmates to quench your loneliness. Playmates that would make powerful allies when the day came and you all grew up. Many of the aristocrat families were wary of letting their children fill that position, afraid of attracting the wrath of the council over their offspring if it looked like they were standing against the elders by favoring the royalist faction… The vampire aristocracy left you bitterly alone, surrounded by adults and people who would use you for your power and throw you away like a rag if they had the chance.
With the political stance my household had traditionally taken over the centuries, your parents thought rightfully that we were the best choice for providing you with a playmate that would grow up by your side without cowering at the face of the council or betraying you.
But my own son rejected you brutally when you offered him your friendship, and even after so many years, you are still alone, are you not?
Oh, you have many people surrounding you –my son being paradoxically one of your most avid followers, even if you torture him so to punish him for his past indiscretion.
But no one is truly touching your heart, are they? You are infatuated with a woman who has not the wit or the maturity to see her place as our future queen, and you are yourself even more horribly alone as you were the day you first came to my house, that day when it took only one moment of distraction of us adults for you to run off in a manner most unbefitting to your rank, wandering through the house in complete breach of protocol just because of your childish hope of meeting my son, unable that you were to hold back your eagerness and wait until the adults allowed you to meet him.
Well, Kaname-'sama', you are now playing in the grown-ups' playground. But if you think you have a better chance at it than you did in your failures those years ago, you are wrong. To me, you are still but a child. You may be rid of Ichiou, but you will find in me an even more formidable opponent. You may yet regret to have put an end to the council, as they at least had the deeply ingrained dread of purebloods driving them into a certain fear-born respect.
I have walked alongside the Kuran clan for tens of centuries. My clan has backed yours with the necessary power and logistics for so long that you couldn't even exist without us.
We may not be born of pure blood, but we can assure you, you have yet to comprehend the danger the aristocracy can be for you, and to understand what you have truly put yourself into.
For centuries, Ichiou and I have played that mental chess battle from afar, and the only reason the council, rather than the Kuran allies, had you under their control for those ten long years, was because your very own parents had left in their will that they wished for Ichiou to be your guardian if it came to be…
Unlike you, they did know that I would have made an even more frightening watchdog than Ichiou could ever be.
You have no idea what chains you have wrapped around your own neck by eliminating the council and putting yourself in the position of needing our support and protection. You will be forever our slave under your royal crown, if you even get to ever be crowned…
A cold shiver ran up the dark-haired pureblood's spine, but he didn't let anything show on his face. He could feel lord Aidou's cold stare boring into his back with each step that brought them closer to the meeting room where he'd seal his fate by signing the treaty between the vampire race and the hunters as the representative of the vampire race.
Stealing a glance to the side, Kaname searched the hunter group with the corner of his eyes, trying to get an idea of what Zero or Cross were thinking, but all he got was a dark murderous glare from the first and an evasive worried look from the second, and neither of the three had the luxury to speak openly of what was haunting their respective minds.
The future will be whatever we can make of it, there's no backing out of it now.
Alea jacta est.
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- The End -
This ficlet may turn out to be 100% AU or right on the mark, depending on how Aidou's father chooses to behave in the manga, hahaha~ XD
It was inspired by the fact I have a vague distrust for Lord Aidou. XD
He always has that cold look on his face that makes me wonder if his intentions for Kaname are all that nice.
I first got that feeling when, after Kaname struck against the council, Aidou's father seemed to hesitate for a moment if he should go with the people accusing Kaname of having lost his mind. XD; (When the vampire society decides that a purebloods has 'lost their mind', it does not bodes well for them, as seen by Shizuka's case where they were hunting her down to lock her away…)
And more recently (chapter 50), while they were negotiating with the hunters to try and arrange for the meeting, Aidou's dad was going with Kaname to places etc., and, well, you know how Kaname hates having to do all the political stuff etc., so he took a break to run home and see Yuuki to replenish in forces/courage to continue putting himself through it all… he made a stop by the Kuran mansion solely to get a kiss in the cheek from Yuuki. XD
And Aidou's dad, popping in making a face like he found that stupid, interrupted them and called Kaname away telling him they had to leave right now and all. O_o
Not only that, but he didn't even salute Yuuki, initially, despite her being a pureblood.
Aidou himself was quite shocked at his dad's behavior.
Me, being the angst-fic loving person I am, I latched for the plot bunnies. XD;; *lol*
Even without considering the more visible stuff in the most recent chapters, if you look back into volume 6, at the vampire ball held by the Aidou family… Aidou's father invited Kaname to the ball, and then used that and the fact Kaname needed his alliance, to go and impose on him an introduction to his daughter, something Kaname had clearly made known to the vampire aristocracy as a whole that it was a subject he absolutely refused.
Aidou himself was all shocked and displeased… not surprisingly, considering how blatantly his dad was invading Kaname's boundaries.
(Btw, it's not openly said but the undercurrent in that exchange is that it was not for a marriage possibility, but in hopes Kaname would "take a fancy" in the daughter, possibly because purebloods can strengthen a family's bloodline… the way Rido did for his allies in the Shiki clan… And the Aidou family being the more prominent clan in the royalist faction (royalist = pro-Kuran), Aidou's father seemed to assume he could demand such things of Kaname… ^^;
Yet more delightful fic possibilities. *lol*
Rido might not have had any qualms about sleeping around or spreading his seed left and right, but Kaname spent years refusing to even talk of the subject of such introductions etc., reason why the rest of the aristocrats didn't dare try and pull that on him again… until Aidou's father did, that is. (Kaname was most likely saving his virginity for Yuuki. XD *lol*)
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And onto something else, the amount of half-written fics I have sitting in my folders is SCARY. XD
I tend to quickly write stuff down when I have an idea, and go back to it later… but usually I end up not having time and forgetting about them, so I have a bazillion ficlets sitting around waiting to be finished. XD;
I like some of the stories, so I'll probably try to finish them (or some at least XD) and post them. :D Don't be surprised if you see an invasion of ficlets. XD *lol*
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