Title: Visitors from the Future
Genre: General/Romance/Friendship
Rating:T
Pairings: Zero/Kaname
Disclaimer: No, I do not own Vampire Knights. It belongs to Hino Matsuri - I only borrow the characters from the series and use it in my own fic. However, I do own the three original characters featured in this story.
Author's Notes: Woah ... Chapter 6 already !!! Thanks for all your support, and special credits going out to Craze_Izumi for discussing the potential points and ideas that could be used in this fic of mine. Though, I may or may not used them in the way which she had suggested to me ... but well, at least she contributed her ideas. So, thanks!
In this chapter, Yagari would be making his entrance into my fic - finally ... Initially, I wanted him to make his entry in the last chapter ... but I guess, it just get a little too long if that happened so ...
---
Chapter 6 - In which, things just gets more complicated ...
Kaname Kuran frowned, he was currently alone in his 'study'. The twins had been taken into town by his cousin, Shiki Senri and the Vice-President of the Moon Dormitory. His original intention for sending both Shiki and Takuma out into town was for the sake of eliminating a certain 'Level E' which he had received reports of it being sighted attacking random passer-bys on the streets, but he was hardly worried about having the twins going off with the duo.
For Kaname had no doubt that the 'Level E' could be easily handled by Takuma, alone. The reason why Shiki had been asked to tag along - was to provide Takuma with a back-up. Just in case the former would required any assistance in the task of hunting the said 'Level E' and it was also to serve as a precaution measure to ensure the safety of the general public. Besides, he was certain that the twins would be more than capable of handling themselves and with Shiki keeping an eye on them, they should have no problem with the prospect of facing off a 'Level E'.
Meanwhile Akane was elsewhere on the academy grounds, probably helping the Chairman out with something since Yuuki and the silver-haired hunter had been send out by the Chairman on an errand trip in town. Thus, effectively leaving him alone and undisturbed to his thoughts.
His frown deepened as the memory of Akane allowing Kiryuu Zero to feed on her blood came into mind. For some odd reasons, he was still irked whenever images of that particular memory came flashing through his mind. Now the pureblood was feeling frustrated with himself, it had already been a week since Zero had taken in his first intake of fresh blood from Akane. Yet, Kaname was still bothered by the fact that Zero had drank Akane's blood. That - confused him a great deal, for he should be thankful that the silver-haired hunter had not resorted to drink from Yuuki.
"Damn ... it sounds as though I'm jealous about what they have done ..." Kaname curse aloud, upon realization that he had actually seemed 'jealous' by the intimacy that was shared between Zero and Akane, when Akane allowed herself to be bitten by Zero for blood.
Horror flooded through the senses of the pureblood - as the thought of not wanting Zero to drink blood from someone else other than himself, came fleeting past his mind. The sense of horror was brought up to another notch, when he realized that he had began to start thinking about the silver-haired hunter as 'Zero' instead of 'Kiryuu' - which had been how he used to address the former, before things started to get this complicated between them.
A sound of 'knock' on the door of his room caused the pureblood to draw himself out and away from his thoughts. "Come in, Seiren. " Kaname said, after taking a minute to calm himself down.
"Kaname-sama ... " The female vampire named Seiren, bowed as she greeted him with respect.
"Seiren." Kaname acknowledged the former with a nod, "Is anything the matter? "
"... " Seiren nodded, but did not attempt to speak yet. She seemed to be troubled about something, but was having doubts about bothering the pureblood about it. It seems as though part of her had wanted to tell him something, and yet another part of her merely felt like turning on her heels and leave things unsaid.
"Seiren?" Kaname prompted, when he caught on to the signs of hesitance from the fellow vampire's body language.
"Kaname-sama ... words had been received that the hunters' association had decided to conduct a routine check on the academy. " Seiren responded, somewhat uneasily.
Kaname arched his eyebrow elegantly as he continued to prompt the female vampire standing in front of him, he had known the said vampire throughout the whole of his life. The Seirens' had been a loyal supporter of his family since the ancient times, he would entrust his life to the hands of the said vampire - if the need for him to do so - occur. That was the extent of his unwavering trust towards Seiren, as he knew the former would never betrayed him even if someone else were to capture and tortured her relentlessly as an attempt to get any useful information of his plans or whatever plans he might have in store for the future.
"... I understand that the hunters' association often made it a point to inspect the grounds of the academy, hoping to find faults in this whole pacifism ideals which Chairman Cross and myself have been working towards since the founding of the school ... So, may I know just what exactly is the problem - this time around? " Kaname started, pressing for the reason behind Seiren's uneasiness for the upcoming inspection of the hunters' association.
"Yagari Touga had been selected as the candidate to conduct the upcoming routine inspection check on the academy... " Seiren responded.
"I see ... and when will he arrived at the academy, then? " Kaname asked, knowing the reason behind Seiren's insecurities now.
Yagari Touga was one of the well-known hunters within the society of the vampires, for the said hunter was well-known not only for his immense dislike towards vampires in general but also for the former's infamous records and ability to hunt the vampires of both low and high ranks within the hierarchy of their 'kind', with the sheer exception of the 'Level A'.
No wonder Seiren had been feeling uneasy about the upcoming inspection check, even he felt a significant drop in his confidence level now that he knew Yagari would be the one conducting the inspection.
It was bad enough that Aidou often speak before considering his words and the consequences that might follow, combined it with the blond vampire's tendency to react badly with any crude remarks being directed his way. The above two points was more than sufficient to land Aidou in trouble with Yagari Touga, since the said hunter would rather be 'dead' than to be respectful towards a vampire.
One would thought that was the end of things, but unfortunately, it was not as there was still the issue of Kiryuu Zero to be considered. According to the information he had gotten Seiren to research for him, when the silver-haired hunter was first taken in by the Chairman after being turned by Shizuka Hiou. It had been brought up to his attention that Zero had been a student to Yagari Touga, prior to the tragical event of the Kiryuu's Clan being wiped out by the blooming mad princess.
While Kaname had no idea whether or not does Yagari still cared for the silver-haired guardian, especially now that the vampire side of Zero's had truly awaken. He was very much aware of the amount of respect which Zero still has for the former and the pureblood had no doubt that the silver-haired hunter would willingly 'died' by the hands of his master, should Yagari Touga desires it.
"Seiren ... tell the rest of the them that I want to see everyone in the front lounge, nobody should be absent from the meeting with the exception of Takuma and Shiki. " Kaname ordered, deciding to warn the members of the night-class before-hand - prior to the arrival of the hunter, Yagari Touga.
"Yes, Kaname-sama ... and what about Akane-san? Should I get her as well? " Seiren asked, seeking Kaname's opinions on the matter.
"... You can inform her ... However, she need not attend if she doesn't feels like turning up. By mentioning that I want to meet everyone ... I was actually referring to the members of the night-class, particularly. In fact Akane has no need to be present for the meeting, seeing as she wasn't part of the night-class. Besides, I'm certain that the Chairman would have already notified her about the issue of Yagari Touga's impending arrival, by now."
"Yes, Kaname-sama." Seiren responded, and was gone from the room before the pureblood could even blink.
---
"Uncle Shiki, can I have another chocolate candy? " Kuran Akira asked, looking up at the taller vampire with his best 'puppy' eyes look.
"... Sure, go ahead and take it. " Shiki Senri responded, as he moved the opened bag of chocolate treats towards the boy.
"Shiki ... please refrain from giving Akira any more chocolates. Akane would have your head on a silver platter, if she ever finds out about you giving out these chocolates candies to the twins. Despite her repeated warnings of not indulging the boys' with candies, especially chocolates to satisfy their sweet tooth - prior to our leaving the academy grounds. " The Vice-President of the Moon Dormitory - Takuma Ichijo, reminded his friend cum room-mate.
"... Did she? " Shiki Senri responded as he blinked at the green-eyed blond vampire, looking absolutely clueless about the former's words.
Takuma stared, as he nodded in response to Shiki's query before commenting. "Yes, she did. In fact, I think practically everyone whom had been in that room earlier heard her. What have you been doing then? I thought, you had been listening ... "
"... I was kind of 'zoning' out back there, still not fully awake ... " Shiki Senri responded, with a shrug of his shoulders.
"... " Takuma sighed, before dropping the subject altogether. "Shiki, I'll be going around and see if I could find that 'Level E' which we are supposed to be eliminating today. In the meantime, please do keep an eye on the twins. Do not let them wander off by themselves, else you will find yourself in very deep trouble. By that, I don't just mean - facing Akane's wrath but also the possibility of dealing with a furious Kaname as well. "
"I know ... " Shiki answered truthfully, this time. He may not have taken notice of Akane's warning in advance with regards to the indulgence of the twins' sweet tooth, but he certainly did noticed the way his pureblood cousin had been acting around the twins - recently.
Although, it had only been one and a half weeks since the arrival of Akane and the twins but it was obvious that things had been changing rapidly for everyone. He might not know whether the students of the day-class were affected by the trio's arrival, but he was certain that everybody within the night-class had been somewhat affected by the trio's sudden presence in their lives.
Over the past week, life within the walls of the Moon Dormitory was definitely fulfilling. Never was there a moment of 'dead' silence, sounds of laughter could always been heard from somewhere within the dormitory. Even during the hours of the day-time, when the residents within the dormitory should be sleeping away - one could still hear the sound of someone moving about the building. That would be Akane, and occasionally the twins as well.
Despite being born vampires, the trio seemed to be able to keep up with both the lifestyles of the humans, and the nocturnal hours of their 'kind' of people. Shiki supposed that was understandable as well, seeing as he had no problem with the occasional switch in the lifestyles too. Granted, he would have looked sleepy at all times if that were to happen but aside from that little detail, there was no other problems with him keeping the hours of a normal human being.
With the trio being around, one could find that Aidou had been losing his temper far more often than usual. Especially, when one of the twins were being sarcastic to him or simply felt the need to provoke the blue-eyed blond vampire into a verbal fight over the issue of the former's attitude towards Kiryuu Zero.
Akatsuki had taken to ignore the verbal arguments between Aidou and the twins, altogether and taking on the impassive behavior which Ruka Souen had taken to adopt while in the presence of the twins. Towards Akane, neither Akatsuki nor Ruka had ever made an attempt to speak to the former unless the situation required for them to do so. Shiki had a feeling that both Akatsuki and Ruka had been wary of what Akane could be capable of doing, once provoked. Thus, the two of them had pretty much leave the girl alone.
Aidou had learnt his lesson well enough to keep his mouth shut around the girl once the first three days of the trio's arrival was over, the said blond vampire had tried to 'bait' the girl into a verbal arguement only to find himself trapped with one of the anti-vampire's charm that Akane had set upon him, once his questions gets too annoying for the girl to endure.
That charm had been an useful one, for it does not caused pain or any torturing effects on the vampires once used. It still allowed them to function as per normal, with the only exception being the absence of the ability to speak. That charm had been a variation created out from an original subduing charm that was meant for a hunter's use while trying to get a vampire under control, its' original intent was to freeze the movements of the vampire for a pro-longed period of time leaving them vulnerable for the hunters' to slay.
However, Akane had toned down the effects of the charms by modifying them to the extent that they would only worked upon the triggering 'term' or 'word' being either uttered aloud or in thoughts. Therefore, if Akane's intent was to only freeze the vampire's ability to speak then that would be all that the charm was capable of doing once being placed upon the targetted vampire.
The charm was probably still on Aidou, merely left de-activated. Akane had de-activated the charm and leave Aidou alone after Kaname had requested for her to let Aidou off the hook, but since the pureblood did not specifically requested for the charm to be lifted off the blond vampire. Akane was more than willing to leave it intact upon the said vampire, thus allowing her the convenience to invoke them whenever she felt the need for it. After that incident, Aidou had wisely opted to remain silent especially when Akane was emitting the pure aura of displeasure by the time she got back to the Moon Dormitory.
Through the observations made, Shiki gathered that Rima and himself must have been the twins favourite. Since the boys would have greeted them with enthusiasm whenever they were seen hanging around, although he had the idea that the twins had adored them both, for the sheer fact that they would definitely indulge them with the candies and chocolates which they had very much desired but was forced to relinquish - due to Akane's insistence of not giving them any.
His room-mate, Takuma was probably the only vampire around that was adored by all the members of the trio. With the exception of his cousin, Kaname Kuran - himself. Seeing as it would be impossible for the trio to even dislike the former, since Kaname had been their 'Father' in the future.
Speaking of his cousin, Shiki sighed inwardly. It was obvious that the former had grown accustomed to the idea of having the trio around, despite the pureblood's constant insistence that he was merely doing his part as a dutiful 'host' to their three 'visitors' from the future.
He had seen how Kaname would often read to the twins, before sending them off to bed in his room. The guest-room which the pureblood had Takuma prepared for their use initially, was now practically Akane's private room. Since, the pureblood had literally moved the twins belongings to his room after the former's first attempt at 'baby-sitting' them. Then, there was also the instance of Kaname approaching the head chef and made the special adjustments on the food menu on behalf of Akane and later on, had practically demanded for the residents of the Moon Dormitory to be treating the trio with respect, if not the idea of obedience.
A sudden scent of blood hits the air, and Shiki to pause slightly in his steps. He was about to turn and get the twins away from the site, when he caught sight of the elder twin - Subaru heading towards the direction where the scent of blood had originated from.
"Subaru?! " Shiki tried to call the boy's attention back to him, but his efforts was in vain. Feeling a tug on the lower parts of his sleeves, Shiki glances down only to be meet up by the sight of Akira's calming gaze.
"Don't worry, Subaru can handle himself - just fine. Besides, that was the blood of Ms. Cross ... Therefore, I'm sure 'Daddy' is somewhere around the area too. Subaru will be fine ... " Akira told him calmly, before tugging him towards the same direction where the other twin had took off earlier on.
They arrived at the scene to find the 'Level E' being slashed into half by Takuma's sword, and the two guardians standing by the side of the alley looking absolutely stunned to see them outside of the academy grounds. Rather, Yuuki Cross was the one eyeing them with wide stunning eyes. Kiryuu, on the other hand, was frowning about the twins' presence.
"Ichijo and Shiki Senpai ... what are the two of you doing out here? " Yuuki blurted out in shock, the sight of the 'Level E' going around in town attacking people had already caught her by surprise. Now, the members of the night-class were roaming the streets without her being notified in advance was the last straw.
She was already feeling annoyed by Zero's reluctance to tell her anything about his 'condition', and Akane had refused to tell her if there was another solution that would solve the problem of Zero's inevitable fall to the status of a 'Level E' vampire - which from what she had understood from Kaname, was the ultimate fate for the ex-human vampire.
---
"Why are they here?! " The silver-haired guardian demanded, as he glances over to the two vampires for an explanation with regards to the boys' presence.
Unlike Yuuki, he was not that concern about what the members of the night-class had been doing, outside of the academy grounds. Besides, he was very much aware of the instances whereby the pureblood would send out the nobles under his charge to 'take care' of those ex-humans whom had fallen. Instead, he was more concerned about the boys' being allowed to tag along on such 'mission' trips.
Zero felt himself fearing for what might have happened to the boy, if the 'Level E' had not been pre-occupied with the task of fighting him to notice the approaching boy. Granted he knew subconsciously that Subaru would never lose against a 'Level E' that easily, still the knowledge of that sheer fact had did nothing to calm his erratic heart that was gripped by the sense of fear.
After all, Subaru's flaring aura of being a pureblood would be enough to ward the 'Level E' off. If not, the boy could have just allowed his power to lash out at the potential enemy, Zero was certain that the 'Level E' would be killed on the spot.
"We've been ordered by Kaname to eliminate that 'Level E' which had been reported about attacking random people in town. " Takuma Ichijo responded to the female guardian's question, with a half-hearted smile.
However, when it comes down to addressing the grouchy hunter - the former had actually sounded apologetic. "Kaname agreed to have them tagging along on the trip, figuring that Shiki would be able to keep an eye out on them while I attend to the situation at hand. If I had known that they would wandered off by themselves, I would never gave in to their request of wanting to join us for the trip to town. Besides, I had thought Shiki would be able to prevent them from wandering off ... but obviously, I thought wrong ..."
Shiki Senri gulped nervously, feeling both his room-mate and the guardian's glare being directed his way. Thankfully, the younger twin had managed to cause a distraction by tackling down the silver-haired guardian and his room-mate's attention had been diverted away from him as the female guardian of the Cross Academy asked them yet another question with regards to their sudden appearance in town.
"Daddy!" The familiar voice of Kuran Akira rang out, causing the silver-haired guardian to wince at the shrill loudness of the boy's tone.
"Akira ... I can hear you just fine. There's no need for you to yell ... " Zero said, as he bend down unknowingly to pick the younger twin up in his arms.
From the corner of his eyes, Zero visibly noted the crestfallen look on the elder twin's features and sighed inwardly with resignation. Subaru was probably feeling neglected that most if not all of his attention had been directed towards Akira whom was currently being held in his arms, right now.
Being a twin himself, he supposed he could relate to how Subaru was feeling at the point of time. Only it had been the opposite with him and Ichiru, since it was him whom received all the adults' attention whereas Ichiru had been the one being neglected by their parents.
"... Subaru ... I wasn't mad at you ... and I know you can take care of yourself ... but I was worried. You do know that, don't you? " Zero started, addressing the silver-haired boy gently. Trying his hardest to actually sound concern for the boy's welfare, instead of the annoyance that he felt about the boy's reckless acts.
When he sensed no reactions from the crestfallen boy, Zero promptly set Akira down on the ground and started to reach for Subaru instead.
Akira shrugged, not really caring about the sudden loss of warmth and comfort of having the support of his 'Daddy' arms around him anymore. Since, his original intention when he tackled his 'Daddy' down was to distract the former from directing any form of irritation towards his favorite uncle - Shiki Senri. Now that, his 'Daddy' was otherwise pre-occupied with the issue of his twin brother's feelings - his task of causing a distraction had been accomplished.
On the other hand, Subaru whom had not been expecting Zero to reach for him almost let out a yelp in surprise when he felt himself being lifted off the ground.
"Daddy?"
"Yes? What is it?!" Zero prompted, his tone soft and gentle as he encourage the silver-haired child to speak his mind.
"... Why are you holding me? " Subaru asked, staring up at his 'Daddy' in confusion. Unlike Akira, whom was always going around putting on the utmost innocent and adorable look that often ended up with the adults having the sudden urge to carry him around, showering the said boy with all their affections.
Subaru had been the exact opposite, ever since he had been able to walk without stumbling along the way - neither of the adults had it in mind to carry him in their arms anymore. Except on the occasional events whereby he was absolutely having trouble staying awake; or when he had been too sick to move around by himself.
Therefore, he was genuinely feeling surprise when he felt himself being lifted up in the air and being carried firmly in the arms of his younger 'Daddy'.
"Don't you want me to? " His 'Daddy' had responded, looking him in the eye causing him to freeze for a minute before shaking his head towards the former as he tightened his hold around the ex-human's neck.
Allowing himself to relax in the warm embrace of his 'Daddy', Subaru felt his eyelids' getting heavier with each passing minute. Somehow, the comforting presence of his 'Daddy' had managed to lull him to bed, without his knowledge. By the time, the group had arrived back at the academy - Subaru had been sleeping too soundly and peacefully that neither Shiki nor Takuma had it in them to wake him.
Thus, it eventually ended up with Akira heading back to the Moon Dormitory with the two vampires' escort while Subaru was left in the capable hands of Zero.
---
It was a little past seven o'clock in the evening, when Subaru finally awaken from his light slumber. Zero had been taking a short break from the tedious work of memorizing facts for the impending history quiz that would take place in another week's time, and had taken to the idea of observing the sleeping form of Subaru in detail.
The boy had the habit of sleeping in a curled up fetal position, which just seemed to point out how insecure the boy had been at most, if not all of the time. Before Zero could even have the time to analyse and fathomed out the reason behind the boy's possible feelings of insecurities, Subaru had stirred and awaken.
Zero watched as Subaru blinked twice looking slightly disoriented upon awakening, before recognition sets in causing the boy to sit up straight before glancing towards his direction.
"Daddy? Did I fall asleep just now? " Subaru asked, frowning as he did so.
"... Yes, you did. " Zero responded, matter-of-factly as he nodded his head to the boy's question.
"...Oh ...Where's Akira and the rest of them? "
"Akira's back at the Moon Dormitory, Yuuki was over at the Chairman's - probably doing the dishes since we'd just had our dinner. Akane's probably somewhere around, patrolling on Yuuki's behalf or she may have gone back to the Moon Dormitory doing who knows what ... "
"I see ... " Subaru responded, as he hide his feelings behind his mask of indifference again.
"Don't do that! " The sudden sound of admonishing words that came tumbling out from the lips of Zero, stunned both the boy and himself.
"Daddy?" The silver-haired boy looked up at him quizzically, not really understanding his words.
Zero sighed, he was just thinking about how Subaru had reminded him of the pureblood when the boy had attempted to mask his feelings behind the look of indifference. The sheer idea of voicing his thoughts aloud had not been on his mind at all, still words of admonishment came tumbling out of his lips without his knowing until it had been too late.
Taking a moment to choose his words carefully, Zero answered. "Don't hide yourself behind that mask of indifference again. I don't care if you do it back in your own time, but now that you are here ... Don't do that anymore, you are six years old. You have every right to behave like a child, instead of pretending to be an adult. "
That was eventually what Zero had ended up telling the boy, despite his initial reaction had been something along the line of the boy's expression would reminded him too much of a certain pureblood whom he had been trying to push away from his mind, over the past few days. It seems like ever since the day Yuuki and Kaname had chanced upon the sight of him sucking the blood of Akane, all the pureblood ever did during the class change-over timing was to observe him. The feeling of the pureblood's eyes constantly being upon himself, caused unwanted paranoia to rise within him.
It took all his will-power to keep himself away from directing his 'Bloody Rose' gun towards the pureblood and demanded for the former to stop looking at him in that manner, for it crept him out - too much. Besides, he had been too accustomed to the sight of Kaname Kuran looking at Yuuki while shooting glares towards his direction throughout the few minutes of the class Change-over time frame, that he found it hard to adjust to the idea of having the pureblood 'look' at him instead of glaring.
"...Basically, I reminded you too much of Father when I kept my emotions hidden ... " The silver-haired child, commented dryly.
"How did you know?!" Zero blurted out, before he could stop himself.
"Uncle Takuma used to say that too ... " There was a moment of significant pause, before the boy continued his statement. "Daddy ... you are still 'disturbed' by the idea of being together with 'Father' ... aren't you? "
"... " Zero stared, speechless by the words that came out from Subaru's lips. "You are too perceptive for your own good ... Yes, you are right. I had yet to come to terms with the /possibility/ of having a relationship with your ... /Father/, but ... that does not means that I detest the idea of having both Akira and yourself as my 'sons' towards the later point of my life. That is, if I managed to somehow wriggled past the stage of the inevitable fall to 'Level End' and with my sanity still intact. And if the only way for me to have both of you in my life, was to somehow entangle myself with /Kuran/ in one way or another ... then I might as well face up to the reality and allow the nature run its' course when the time comes for it to happen. "
"Okay ... and I'll try not to do anything that might remind you of 'Father' until you get used to the idea of this whole issue with us being the ultimate 'result' from that 'love' which the two of you will be having for one another, in time ..." Subaru said, as he allowed a wry smile to tug at the corner of his lips following the end of his response to the silver-haired hunter's words of confession.
Deciding to change the topic of discussion for the time-being, the six year old vampire child glances about his surrounding with curiosity and asked.
"So, is this how the Sun Dormitory looks like on the inside? "
"... Yes, it is ... Why do you ask? "
"Nothing, just that I never had a chance to witness it before. Even when the time comes for me to enrol myself in the Cross Academy, I'll most likely to be place in the night-class ... being a pureblood and all ... " Subaru responded with a shrug of his shoulders, in a nonchalant manner.
Zero frowned as the memory of Akane's words from that 'fateful' night came flooding back to him, as he found himself questioning the boy on the subject of the family's name.
"So why the name Kiryuu, instead of Kuran - like Akira was using? After all, the two of you are twins and not to forget the fact of being purebloods ..."
"... Akira looked like a typical Kuran, inheriting majority of the traits from the Kuran lineage. Whereas, I only got the eyes of a 'Kuran'. Every other parts of me practically screamed 'Kiryuu', and it would absolutely seemed weird to be called the name 'Kuran' when I looked nothing like 'Father'. Especially, for those whom knew both Father and you on a personal basis. Can you imagine your own reactions if you were to call Akira - 'Kiryuu' instead? " Subaru asked back in return, with anticipation.
Zero imagined the possibility of calling Akira by his family's name without taking the boy's lilac eyes into consideration, and had to suppress a grimace from forming on his features. That would be weird, he supposed. No wonder Subaru had been given his family name, despite being the first-born and most likely, the potential first-in-line heir to the future Kuran's family fortunes. Since he gathered that the few properties which he had came into inheritance following his family's demise will go to Akane, seeing that most of those assets had been in his mother's name rather than his father.
"Come on, I'll bring you back to the Moon Dormitory. It will be curfew for the day-class students soon, and I can't let you stay here any longer ... Unlike the Moon Dormitory, the keeper of the Sun Dormitory does conduct routine check on the students when curfew comes around. " Zero started, as he reached over and picked the boy up in his arms again.
---
Meanwhile, outside of the Moon Dormitory - a certain female guardian was feeling jittery upon the idea of stepping through the gates of the said building. She had been invited to the said place, by the Vice-President of the Dormitory claiming that she might be able to find the answers to what she had been seeking if she were to pay them a visit - that night.
"Well ... screw the fact of whether or not Zero would be pissed off for my coming here without his company! He was the one whom refused to tell me anything about his condition, isn't it? So he cannot fault me on the idea of approaching the Moon Dormitory without his companionship - right? Besides, he was currently pre-occupied with his future son. " Yuuki Cross reasoned with herself, as she took a deep breath before stepping through the gate of the Moon Dormitory.
A sudden rustling sounded from the woods, before two familiar figures stepped out from the dark greeting her with their presence. It was none other than Aidou Hanabusa and Akatsuki Kain, whom had both nodded curtly towards her direction before explaining that they had been requested by their Vice-President to come out front, so as to escort the said female around as a potential bodyguard from the rest of the night-class members.
"Is that really necessary? " Yuuki asked, frowning at the two night-class members' words.
"Don't you dare to assume that it would be safe for you to walk around the vicinity of the Moon Dormitory unaccompanied. I'll have you know, not all of us in this academy was really into the whole pacifism ideal. Some of us only followed the orders and rules that had been laid down by Kaname-sama, and did them only because our pureblood leader had wanted us to. If being respectful to human-beings happens to be what Kaname-sama would wanted to see from us, then we'll jolly well do it for him. " Aidou Hanabusa responded, his expression tight and masked up with indifference making it hard for Yuuki to read the fellow vampire's mood.
"Yes, moreover ... you are usually not alone. Always, Kiryuu will be hanging around you ... and that serves as a constant warning to the rest of the common class vampires around that you are off-limits. Not only due to Kaname-sama's order, but also the potential danger of needing to face up to a vampire hunter if they were to cross the line. Kiryuu may not have completed his full training as a hunter, but his family had been one of the better-known hunters' clan. Therefore, nobody would dare to do anything that might put them in a precarious situation with Kiryuu." Akatsuki Kain added, as an after-thought.
With that said, both vampires made a move to start leading the way inside heading towards the Dormitory. Usually, there would be no need for an escort, but tonight had been one of the night that a party would be held for the members of the night-class to unwind themselves from the stress accumulated over the month, dropping all their pretense for peace between the humans and the vampires, society. Real blood will be allowed for consumption, only on such nights - and of course, blood will only be shared between themselves and only within the walls of the Moon Dormitory. There will be no hunting of the humans involved, that was the ground rule laid in place by their pureblood leader.
Despite the rule being laid in place, it would still be unsafe for the female guardian to be walking about the area surrounding the Moon Dormitory alone and without escort. For, there could be a number of common class vampires waiting to pounce on some innocents whom attempted to sneak past the security wanting to catch a glimpse of the attractive night-class members.
"Ah! Yuuki-chan, finally here I see ... Welcome to my birthday party! " Ichijo Takuma greeted out, cheerfully causing every heads to start swinging towards the female guardian's direction.
"Ichijo-senpai ... today's your birthday? " Yuuki asked, sounding a little baffled by the large numbers of vampires loitering around the outside of the Dormitory building.
Yuuki had to admit, she was nervous. Never had she found herself in the midst of so many vampires before, usually it was just the few noble class vampires whom will followed the lead of Kaname Kuran, wherever the former may choose to proceed.
"Yuuki, come over here. " The sudden sound of the pureblood's voice, caught the attention of most if not all the members of the night-class vampires.
"Kaname-senpai ... " Yuuki started, sounding stunned but remained where she stood for she did not dared to venture any closer to the pureblood with everyone staring at her with disdain.
"Yuuki, please do come over and have a seat next to me ... " Kaname Kuran said, this time his tone firm and offered no room for objections from the lower-ranking vampires.
Slowly, a path was cleared out by the vampires crowding around the front that was separating the pureblood from the female guardian.
Yuuki took a tentative step forward, before continuing the rest of her journey towards where Kaname Kuran had been seated with confidence. As usual, the pureblood was seated on a sofa couch with his most trusted subordinate - Seiren standing by his side. Only this time, there was someone else being perched on the lap of the pureblood. That someone whom had been allowed to do something this bold, and yet had not been murdered brutally by the many lower-ranking vampires present at the site - was none other than the wavy-haired boy of six, going by the name of Akira Kuran.
"Good evening, Aunt ... Yuuki ... " Akira greeted her, with slight hesitancy as he looked up at the older pureblood for further instruction.
A quick nod from Kaname Kuran caused the boy to heave a sigh of relief, before settling down more comfortably with his little head resting against the chest of the older pureblood. Kaname allowed a small smile to tug at his lips as he looked down at the boy with fondness apparent in the depths of his eyes, before turning towards the awaiting girl standing in front of him.
"Yuuki, you shouldn't be here alone ... it can be dangerous ..."
"I know, but I want to know ..." Yuuki had the rest of her statement being cut off by the sudden change in atmosphere, surrounding them.
Turning around, she was met up by the sight of a peeved looking Zero glancing towards her direction with the other twin boy firmly settled in his arms.
"Yuuki ... what are you doing here?! " Zero asked, his tone not unkind but laced with an underlying tone of displeasure.
"I ... I was going to ask Kaname-senpai, something ... " Yuuki started, only to find herself being cut off by Zero again.
"Just because I refused to tell you, and Akane does not think it wise to let you in on the fact ... You had to find another way to know what the hell was going on in my life, is that it?! The reason that you venture over at this late of time, not giving any consideration to the fact that you might possibly be harmed?! " Zero stated as he eyed Yuuki disapprovingly.
"I believed that's quite enough, Kiryuu. I'm sure that Yuuki had only did it, out of her pure concern for your well-being. Granted, she had not been thinking clearly on this matter. Still, what's done cannot be undone. So why don't you just leave things be, and since both of you are already here ... perhaps the two of you could stayed around for a while longer before leaving again?" Kaname Kuran interrupted, breaking the possibility of a rising argument between Yuuki and the silver-haired hunter before it could occurred.
Zero huffed for a second, before growling out a 'Fine'. The fellow hunter settled for the idea of ignoring Yuuki for the moment, and decided to direct his full attention towards the silver-haired child instead. Using his fingers as he combed a few tangled hair strands from the boy's head, as he set Subaru down on the ground gently.
Every actions that was made by Zero failed to escape from Kaname's eyes, and the silver-haired guardian was very much aware of the fact too. After all, it was kind of hard for him to ignore the constant feeling of someone eyeing him from behind while he attempted to concentrate on his task of re-adjusting Subaru's attire.
---
In the meantime, over at the Chairman's office - a man was seated in front of the Chairman with a lighted cigar held between the lips.
"So ... how's the kid. " The man asked, trying to sound indifference upon the mentioning of the term 'kid' but was apparently failing miserably at the task.
"... I thought, you said you don't care about him anymore? " Kaien Cross eyed his fellow friend, and ex-colleague from the hunter's association as he responded to the man's words.
"I don't. I'm only checking to see if he had fallen yet ... " The man replied, gruffly.
"He's fine, haven't fallen to the end yet ... if that's what you want to know. " Kaien Cross responded, sounding weary.
"Good, then I guess I wouldn't have to kill him ... this time around." With that said, the man attempted to turn on his heels and depart from the Chairman's office.
"Yagari ... please do not treat him any differently from before. I know, he still respect you as his mentor ... " Chairman Cross finally said, before the man could stepped out of his office.
Silence met him, save for the sound of his office's door being closed. Another sigh of weariness slipped out from him, as he wondered about the chaotic situation that would soon occurred. He had no doubt, his friend would freaked out on him upon discovering the existence of the twins and Akane. Still, there would be no way to avoid the inevitable meeting and confrontation between Yagari and the trio.
"What a messed-up situation we have on hand ... " Kaien Cross commented to no one in particular, as he turned away from the window and switched off the lights - ready to retire for the day. He shall think about the consequences that may arises, later on in time. For now, he just wanted to sleep and pushed aside all the worrying thoughts that seemed to be crowding about in his mind.
~to be continued~
Date started: 03/05/09
Date completed: 05/05/09
Date edited: 05/05/09