Chapter Twelve
Problems Stirring

Yuuki had found Zero at the stables with Kagome, and as she pulled him away to talk with her. They both discovered, that for some reason, he did not feel the need to drink her blood. Even after she pricked her finger and the scent of blood reached his nose, he did not feel the overbearing sensation of needing blood. There was a small ache in his chest, but nothing he could not deal with. And the thought of not needing to drink the blood tablets or real blood, at least for a while, made him strangely... happy. He didn't show it outwardly, but on the inside, he was almost jumping for joy. Almost. He didn't have to worry about hurting Yuuki or Kagome. For the moment at least. He knew it would be back, but for now, he was fine. And he would use this time carefully. Toga Yagari had told him that she was somehow still alive, and with her was his chance for revenge for killing his parents, taking his brother, and turning him into a monster.

He would find her eventually, and when he did; he would rid this world of her existence.

The weeks went by smoothly after that incident. And Sango and Miroku had gotten used to the classes and even killed a couple of Level E's they had heard about in town. Zero had received an assignment to kill a recently turned Level E, and Sango and Miroku had accompanied him. Yuuki wasn't too happy to hear that Zero had to kill anyone. Even if they were a Level E, but she understood that it was his job to do so. Kagome didn't like it either, but only because Zero was not meant to kill for a living. He was too kind, and too gentle. At least to her he was, toward others he acted rough, but it was a mask he had placed on long ago to protect himself from getting hurt like he did when his brother left willingly with the murderer of their parents. No, he did not hate his brother, he could never hate him. But, he was not as special as he once was.

It was one weekend when Zero and Kagome were staying in the Chairman's house, and Kagome was sharing a bed with Zero, that Kagome got the feeling something was about to begin. And it would change her future and Zero's forever.

Kagome had been sleeping next to Zero, when he woke up with a start, which caused Kagome to wake up as well. Kagome looked at him with tired, concerned eyes as he gripped the bed sheet tightly. Asking him if he was all right, Kagome didn't get an answer. She didn't mind too much. From what she could see, he had a nightmare, but she didn't know what it was about. Moving so she could put his head in her small lap, Kagome gently moved her fingers through his silver locks, calming him down and letting him fall into a peaceful sleep.

He would tell her in the morning. He would tell her about his past, and the woman who haunted his dreams and his life. The woman who turned him into a vampire and cursed him to a life of servitude. Shizuka Hiou.

Zero had intended to tell Kagome about his past, but the Chairman had come and taken her away for a father-daughter day out. They didn't return for a few hours, and by that time he was already doing his chores and didn't have time to talk to her about his past.

Monday rolled around, and he still had yet to tell her about his past. They were back to routine again and Yuuki and himself were patrolling as usual while Kagome was with the Chairman in his office. It was when the Chairman called Yuuki into his office to discuss something, that would set the stage for the coming week.

Yuuki walked into the Chairman's office, after greeting her father and Kagome, she turned her attention back to the Chairman.

"Ah, Yuuki. I am glad my daughter has come. I have a favor to ask of you."

"What?" Yuuki asked curiously. She couldn't think of anything that the Chairman would need her help with, unless it was something for the upcoming ball. But she was already helping with that, so what could he need her for?

"It's about showing around a new transfer student," he said as he placed his hand on the folder that contained the information concerning the new transfer.

Kagome looked up from the book she was ready from where she sat on one of the couches, and Yuuki's curious look grew in intensity.

"A transfer student? At this late in the year?"

"Yeah, she was supposed to be admitted earlier. But because of her poor health, she was living in a villa deep in the mountains."

There was a pause, as the Chairman spoke and not even a minute later did a knock come to the door. Kagome moved her gaze from the Chairman and Yuuki to the door. The feeling in the pit of her stomach began to stir. She stiffened as the door opened, and when she saw the silver haired vampire walk in, Kagome stood up and moved quickly to hide behind her father's desk. The Chairman looked puzzled when Kagome hid next to him behind his desk. He didn't understand her reaction. Sure, she was afraid of vampires, but even when she saw Kaname she did not try as hard to get away from him. She hid behind Zero, but did not run. Maybe that was it? Maybe because Zero wasn't with them, Kagome didn't feel safe?

Shaking his head of his thoughts, the Chairman turned his attention to the perplexed Yuuki and the concerned looking transfer.

Remembering his manners, the Chairman welcomed the new Night Class transfer student. Once Yuuki was introduced to Maria Kurenai, they both left to begin the tour. As soon as they were gone, he looked to his left to see Kagome standing and staring at the door with a blank look in her eyes. He was worried for her, and when he tried to get her attention, she jumped and turned curious eyes on him.

Kagome looked curiously at her father. Why was he looking at her strangely? And why did he looked so worried? Shaking his behavior off as the-strange-way-her-father-acts, Kagome moved back over to read her book. But her mind was not focused on the book. She could not get her mind off of the strange feeling she got as soon as she saw Maria. It wasn't like when she saw Kaname or the other noble vampires, she didn't only feel fear toward her, but something else she could not remember feeling for another being. Hate, distaste, loathing, anger, and more, but there was also fear. The rush of emotions she felt had been too much and she had hid behind the Chairman's desk to try and escape it. It worked long enough for Yuuki to leave with Maria, and offer Kagome a reprieve.

Kagome continued to think on it until her father said it was time for bed. She closed her book and followed her father to the house so she could get ready, at which point he would escort her to her room. She really didn't need him to follow her, but he felt better and she didn't mind so much. She liked the company fine, but she would rather it be with someone else. Unfortunately, he had to patrol the grounds for awhile before he could go to bed.

The Chairman dropped her off with a goodnight hug and kiss, before returning to his office to work on papers, most were in preparation for the ball in a few days. It was for both the Day and Night Class students, so they had to be careful that their secret was not let loose. Which meant, they had to have plenty blood tablets available before the ball and after. Nodding absently to himself as he made a mental list of what he needed to order and all the chores that needed to be done before the ball, Kaien set to work.