There were some questions (Alexa!) and I believe this chapter holds the answers. If there is still confusion out there after reading this, please feel free to ask. :)
The Story of Amara Kuran | Mariah Bryant
Book One, Chapter Fifteen
My Last Free Moments
"The blanks are easy to fill in. Shiki sent Botan to bring Amara to him, and he played with her mind. She got upset, and when Mike was in danger she snapped and killed Botan, making him paralyzed with her powers and then ripping his heart out. We came back here, and Kaien said that he would help us if she joined the Day Class. Then, in the trees, Shiki and Senri's great uncle brought their assassins and told us about Amara's trial. They are taking that approach because it will look good with the senate and get Shiki what he wants, and plus now he knows Amara is too powerful to be messed with. Shiki is using Senri's body, because his is still not ready."
"So what are we supposed to do?" Aido asked.
"Is that why I recognized that room in Ichijo's mansion? I have been there? Our parents were friends?" Yuki asked, at awe.
Kaname smiled and took her by the hands. "Yes, Yuki. I am sorry my actions have caused you angst. But I do believe you would have suffered if you could remember watching your parents die. I wanted to protect you. That is all I have ever wanted."
A few tears dripped from Yuki's eyes. Kaname pulled her into a hug. Yuki hugged back.
"Kaname, what are we going to do?" Ruka asked gently.
He sighed and loosened his embrace with Yuki, but did not let her go. He would go no further than adjusting himself so that he could see his friends.
"Now, because Amara is a pureblood of age and we have resources, she will replace our parents in the political battle for her own life. It may not be allowed, and if it is not Ichio and our adult friends will vouch for her, as well as myself and the vampyre hunter council. Shiki will fight dirty, but we must also have you all as allies. Even you, Kiryu."
Zero was stunned that Kaname was begging him. His eyes were pleading, and his voice was almost pitiful. Kaname had just realized that Zero did not have to help him in that situation, as he did with Yuki. Zero was surprised that he actually wanted to help.
Zero nodded once. Kaname smiled thankfully.
"I will do anything for you, Kaname-sama. I knew you were special from the moment I met you, and I do not intend on letting you be anything less than I think you are." Aido said.
"We are here for you." Ruka said. "And your sister."
"You two are going to turn things around." Aido said.
"You have to." Kain muttered.
"Kaname-sama? Why do you think Amara-sama is different?" Yuki asked.
Kaname was a little shocked by the soft words the woman in his arms asked, then he realized that he wondered the same. Many times he had wondered. He had no answer but what he gave Yuki: "Amara does not talk about it much, but she says that she is connected to a higher being . . . like Buddha. I think, sometimes, that an error was made when her soul was being created. What else, other than an error, can explain something as close to perfect as Amara? But then sometimes I wonder if, perhaps, she is much more flawed than I realize, and she was made by the higher being more special than the rest of us so that she could bring the purebloods and aristocrats down to Earth." Kaname had never once shared his thoughts about Amara with anyone other than Cho and Kaien. He had thought that it was wrong to discuss it with his parents, and he had not wanted to with anyone until he got to know the Night Class and started seeing Ichijo as not just a buddy but someone whom he could talk to and rely on. Then he could not tell them.
"You have really had it rough." Aido was very upset that his hero had had to undergo so much, practically without protection. That was what he wanted to be for him. "Could you . . . tell us more about your sister's powers?" Aido asked.
Kaname hugged Yuki again as he had before, relaxing. He did so love having her there, where he was able to comfort and protect her, if even for just a moment. "Not now. That is still knowledge that could get you killed."
***
"I stayed in the orphanage until I turned six. Then I ran away and traveled through England as a homeless person. I took up a job when I was nine in France as a painter. I was not a real artist; I painted the Chi of things, which I knew better than my own mind. It just so happened that they looked realistic. Enough so that people lined up very quickly. It was a danger for people to know my name. It was too incredible for humans, and I left for America before word could get out. While there, I wandered around in the mountains of Tennessee for a while (I survived on animals) and explored the big cities, where food was much harder to come by. Again I found work at a Game Stop in Richmond, as well as a Barnes and Noble and a chef in a Japanese – booth, would I say? – all inside the very same mall. I did not spend any money except on clothes and a tent that I set up where no one could find it. In the city, it was much harder to find food. I killed a few dogs and cats, but mostly tried for deer. At that point in time, I was starting to starve. I built up an endurance to blood. When I found myself exhausted with trying so hard, I left and traveled through many counties filled with deer, bear, and even horses and cows until I found Charlottesville. I thought it was perfect; mountains so nearby, but also a city where I could make money. I was only twelve, but I looked sixteen and could pull any age off. As you know, I moved into an apartment near the school and bought an electric scooter. Again I was working at a bookstore, but this one was more out-of-the-way because the Barnes and Noble was not close enough. Something possessed me to settle down and act more normal. My very first night in the apartment, I dreamt that I should call Kaname. I did, and he and I talked for a long time. He shipped me over some blood tablets so that I would not have to starve anymore. For some reason, I began attending school. I kept telling myself that I would stop going, but I continued. I made friends, and before I knew it I could not leave. Then, I began having dreams that my past was coming back to haunt me."
Mike was silent. I was leaning against the wall on the opposite side of the hallway from which he leaned on. I felt tired, like I had just ran around the world in an hour, and also weak with relief at finally having told Mike my story. At the same time, though, Mike had not said a word. I felt anxious, because I knew that he now understood. He now had reason to want to back out. And though I knew it was best for him, I did not want him to leave.
I had reason to live because of him. Reason to fight. I wanted justice and peace amongst vampyres and humans, but I could make that stuff possible without actually living. Waking up was easy. Dreaming was harder. Dreaming required life. Life that Mike held in his hands.
Then, Mike took a deep breath. "When I first met you, I speculated over the feelings you installed in me. I knew you had to have been more than human, but I was unclear as to how much. Sometimes I pictured you as the President. Then I wondered if you wore a super suit under your clothes. I figured you had to be an alien come to fix the planet, so I thought you must have come from Krypton. So . . . hearing you say these things . . . doesn't really surprise me."
I looked up at him.
"Your shield was never really locked to me." Mike half-smiled. His lip twitched back down. "I am not a part of the big picture, so you don't have to stress over me. I am not a variable in this equation. You can do whatever you want with me and never have to worry about me breaking. I will always be a positive."
I smiled slowly. "I know."
Mike now smiled back. He came to me and wrapped his arms around me, sighing. His cheek he rested on my head. I embraced him, too, getting on my tiptoes so that I could get my arms around his neck. I felt better knowing that he had not changed his mind because of my past. Sometimes I wondered if I should be ashamed of it. Now I did not care. Mike was fine with it.
"I will be the bungee cord." Mike said. "You just focus on climbing."
I laughed, relief bubbling up in my throat. My fingers began to stroke his brown hair. "I sense you are plotting, now that you have new knowledge to add to the puzzle."
"Yes." he grinned proudly.
"Oh, I am so glad to hear that!"
"Come on," Mike pulled back. "We have to go choose something for you to wear that the senate will feel yet more strongly that they have to respect you in. We are not going to take the 'you were a child' approach."
"You are right. We go." I agreed.
Michelangelo and I walked down the hall to my room again, hand-in-hand. Once we had opened the door, Kaname seized us up. At first, he looked prepared to kill. Then he slowly relaxed and smiled. I confirmed his suspicions with a pleased smile. Things had gone well.
"Everyone is in." Kaname announced.
"Yes." I said. "I had seen Kain's face in my prophesy. I sensed that there would be a small group of younger supporters, mostly children of the supporters of our parents." I gave everyone a smile. "I cannot express my gratitude to you all and to your parents. Without you, this fight would have been over with long ago."
Kain nodded. "Without the Kurans, we would be lost."
"This path is the only right one." Ruka gave a small grin.
"I am glad you all feel that way." I said, though my inner voice said something different: It is the just one, not the right one. I do not know that we will be victorious.
Then I noticed Yuki in my brother's arms, and it occurred to me that things must have gone super-humanly well. I grinned to myself.
"Let us see what you have to wear." Mike said in Japanese, opening my closet doors. Kaname also assessed my clothes from where he stood with Yuki.
"You have strange taste." Ichijo noted.
I laughed. "I know."
"I hate to say that this is the only thing in the world I know nothing about. What is this stuff?" Mike turned to me.
I howled with laughter. "Ah, Mike! Some of it is formalwear and some of it is casual." I took out a dress and laid it on the bed where no one was sitting. "This is it. This is what I bought in case you decided to help me and came up with the idea of 'respectful.'"
"No offense, but what makes this particular dress respectful? It is beautiful, but I have never seen a respectful person wear one. I mean, the President and government officials wear tuxes and rich people wear designer labels."
I smiled adoringly. "This is a kimono. It is the formalwear of the pureblood women on very special occasions here. It signifies their age and immortality and stature. Even then, I have not seen anyone other than Shizuka Hio wear one . . . and that was fourteen years ago at my own soiree. I think it is the best choice, and will make the statement that I have not abandoned Japan."
Mike looked just a tad bewildered. "Uh, okay . . . Am I going to have to start calling you 'Amara-sama' now?"
I laughed again. "No. We are close, so it is acceptable for us to refer to one another without honorifics."
"You are only fourteen, yet you act like you have been living forever." Kaname said, half-sarcastically.
I shrugged. I did not want to dive into that topic, so I said nothing.
"It doesn't look like any kimono I have ever seen." Mike muttered, holding it up. "It is terribly beautiful, though."
"Thank you. My personal designer made it for me when she heard that I was back." I said.
"She is very gifted."
"She is. And she is human, you know." I added.
"Cool." Mike said, attempting to be smooth. I chuckled to myself.
"Well, I am going to go put this on." Mike handed me the kimono gently when I said this.
"Amara, are you going to pack for multiple days?" Kaname asked, unfolding one arm from around Yuki to take her hand.
I sighed. "The fight will be a long and tedious one. Still, I will not pack." I announced. "None of my friends are packing, so I will not. In the next days, we will all face things I cannot yet understand or comprehend. I am unsure of the future, and it scares me. But I am not selfish. I do not ask of this of you all for the sake of my own life, but the lives of many, and even of those who are not yet born."
"We are aware of that." Kain smiled challengingly. This whimsical attribute was un-vampyre-like, and it made me smile.
"We simply live for this life-and-death stuff." Aido said. "It follows us vampyres around like loyal dogs."
"I am hoping to change that." I concluded.
Kaname sighed. "Listen, you all look nice but not nice enough for the senate. I understand that you just woke up, but you must all go back to your dorms to dress in formalwear. Mike, you will come with me. How we did not have the foresight to buy you formal clothes is beyond me. We will meet back up in Amara's room."
"Alright. I agree." Ichijo said. "My grandfather would have a stroke if he saw me in the senate building wearing this. I really did just throw on some things." He stood.
"Mike, come here." I said, beckoning him. Mike was a little confused as he followed me to my closet. I smiled at him and took from it a hanger with a bag covering its contents. I handed it to him. "Here. Have Kaname help you put it on. I had seen you in it beforehand, but I did not know it would be so soon."
"Thanks." Mike said shyly.
"Oh! And this too." I handed him a shoebox, blushing.
"Ruka?" I turned to the girl sitting on my roommate's bed next to Kain.
She stood.
"I will need some help getting into this dress. Would you come with me to change in the bathroom?" I made the offer silently with my eyes to Yuki, but gave her a smile that said she should stay where she was with my brother. I saw acknowledgement in her eyes and knew that she had declined. I almost laughed.
Ruka, beautiful and shy, smiled slightly and went to the bathroom door to open it for me. "Certainly."
"Thank you."
She and I walked into the bathroom and did not come out for fifteen minutes. We moved quickly, making sure every detail was seen to. The senate had to know that I respected them enough to dress up. They had to know that I demanded respect by looking like a pureblood female of my stature should. I thought of Shizuka with admiration. I needed more than that from the senate.
"What shoes will you wear?" Ruka asked.
I smiled very slowly. "I had some traditional silver slippers made by my personal designer. Would you go to get them?"
Ruka smiled at the idea. "Where are they?"
"In my closet."
Ruka left the room, closing the door behind her, and searched my closet. Thirty seconds later she returned with a shoe box. "They are beautiful." she said.
"I think so." I took the shoes from the box and put them on my feet. Then I straightened. "Thank you, Ruka. I would not have been able to accomplish this without you. On my own, I doubt I would impress the senate in this way."
"Oh, it is not a problem. You are very welcome. I am glad to help." Ruka said.
I took her hand. "Now. I want Shiki to be surprised to see me, so I am going to make both of us invisible. We are going to scamper over to your dorm and find something beautiful for you to wear. You are not built the same way as I am, and also I have no other formalwear than this, so I am afraid I cannot offer anything from my closet."
"That is fine. Thank you for thinking of me. But, you are going to make us invisible?"
I had not wanted to linger on the subject, but Ruka caught on that it was not every day you saw even Kaname going around invisibly doing things. "Your mind is an open room to me, and so is your Chi. I can do anything to you."
Ruka almost looked like I had reminded her that I was dangerous and powerful, but she shrugged it off. I was really beginning to think I would like her, though her compassion was the only thing that made her different from other aristocrats.
I smiled. "Here we go. Do not be afraid. It is fun."
Ruka nodded. I opened the door and led her through, then out into the hall and down the steps. When we neared windows, I took the color from both of us and masked us with fog. We padded along, making a run for the Moon Dorms.
Once inside, Ruka grinned at me. I could only sense it, not see it. "Am I supposed to feel like my stomach is in my throat?"
"Yes. Is it not just bubbly!"
"Very." she replied.
We hurried to her room and closed the door behind us. Then Ruka opened her fancy closet door. "Hmm. I have not bought new formalwear since the prom."
"You could wear what you wore to the prom."
"I suppose. I do not like wearing that sort of piece more than once." Ruka frowned, holding the dress out.
"I am sure you are gorgeous in it, though. Why not wear it? You would be preventing the world from seeing you in it if you did not."
Ruka shrugged. "The senate . . . will not know that I am wearing a dress again for them?"
I laughed. "They do not look at details that closely. Besides, how would they know? None of them came to prom, I do not think."
"You are right. And it is a beautiful dress."
"It fits you well."
Ruka blushed. "Thank you."
"You are welcome. Now, let us put it on you." I said. Like teenage girls preparing for prom we maneuvered the expensive prom dress onto Ruka, being careful as not to rip it. I was often rough with my own clothes, so I took great care. Unlike my kimono, her dress was skin-tight and very delicate.
When we were done and had finished her hair and such, she looked amazing.
"You do a fantastic job with your hair." I complimented.
"Thank you. You know, most girls do not do their own hair."
"I do know. That is why I am so amazed that you get the same results, if not better, than they do. Really, I think hairspray is overrated."
Ruka nodded, giggling. "It defeats the purpose of 'hair.'"
"Exactly." I said. Then I sighed. "You look wonderful. Now it is time to face Shiki . . . and whatever mode of transportation he is going to make me ride in on the way to the senate building."
Ruka smiled sympathetically. "We will not be invisible this time?"
"I am afraid not."
I closed my eyes for a moment, calling my prophesy back. Like watching a movie, I replayed it in my head. I was attentive and paid special attention to the details. Still, I was not revealed anything more. I sighed. Oh how I wished Mike and I could talk for just a moment before we gave ourselves up to the vampiric law.
Ruka put a hand on my shoulder. "You have Mike beside you. That seemed to cheer you up."
I smiled at her, opening my eyes. "It still does. Thanks."
"No problem. Now we will go face the senate."
"You do realize that if things go badly for me, you will suffer, too? You will be persecuted for helping a fugitive."
Ruka slowly frowned. "I know, Amara-sama, but I feel in my heart that this is the only way for me to go."
I smiled. "Alright then. You are the one from my prophesy." I hugged her quite suddenly. "Thank you."
Ruka laughed, confused. "You are welcome. I hope I will do well."
"You will."
As we made our way down the steps, we caught Kaien running up them. "Ah! Oh, Amara-chan! I had a dream that it was happening – yes, I was napping! – and I had a dream . . . I want you to call me as soon as you can."
"Alright. Why do you not simply join us?"
"Because I have to be here. I really just have to be here. If it was not a matter of life and death, I would be with you, but it is and I must stay. So call. Do not forget. Now leave."
"I do not understand, Kaien. What on Earth is happening here?"
"Just go! Shiki is getting angry!"
"How might you know?"
"I know vampyres! Now go!" He ushered me out of the door. "Bye! Good luck!"
"Goodbye . . ." I said.
Ruka and I proceeded to walk to the road where the Night Class could leave school grounds and enter the city. There, a large limo was waiting. I suppose they expected me to act like a lady and not try to escape. I was happy about this development. Normally, Shiki was a brutal man and was actually very sexist.
I am a feminist.
Kaname, Mike, Aido, Kain, and Ichijo were waiting inside the long black car. The assassins guided Ruka in, then me. They took special care with me. It was unnecessary. If I had wanted to escape I would have.
I smiled at Mike. "I knew that would look stunning on you."
He blushed. Though I did not show it, I was just as aware of how close our legs were sitting side-by-side in the limo as he was. Also, other than us, no one spoke in the limo.
"Amara, you are beautiful. You look like a China doll. I feel like I need to wrap you in bubble wrap and stick you in a box with foam peanuts."
I giggled. "A Japanese doll."
"Is there a difference?" he joked.
Just then, an assassin slid into the car next to me. "That car formation you were transported in to the train station; this formation is better. It is error proof. You may be in a limousine, but you are a criminal and if you even breathe maliciously I will sound the alarm. I am equipped to kill you myself, if I must." he growled.
He was terrified.
I smiled kindly at him. "Do not worry. I intend to make it to the senate without incident. I plan to act like the pureblood I am: with honor."
"Humph." he grunted skeptically. He was so nervous that he tried to roll his eyes – and failed.
I sighed. That was when I noticed Kaname smiling at me. I grinned shyly.
"Well here we go." Ichijo said and for the first time in his life he was not cheery about it. He let out a stressed sigh. Then he looked at my brother. Kaname's smile fell, regarding what Ichijo was feeling.
I wonder if Kaname notices that my dress is the same as what I wore to prom. I know Kain has. He knows everything. I really hope that he will not point it out, Ruka thought to herself.
Oh, oh. I am not looking forward to seeing Grandfather. Will he help because I am on Amara's side? Oh! Of course he will! He loves her! Maybe this means that he will be nice this visit . . . Ichijo practically smiled as he thought this.
Ruka looks really stressed. She keeps looking at me from the corner of her eye. Kain sighed. She probably thinks she looks bad, even though she looks even better than she did for prom. Or maybe that is it: she self-conscious about wearing something like that twice. Poor girl. Kaname-sama strikes a fear into her heart that she thinks she is comfortable with. I wish I could get some sense into her.
She looks sad. Why? She is so deep in thought. I . . . I think I feel the same way about her that I do about Kaname-sama. And look at this Mike. Is he really human? His eyes are so knowing. Jeesh. He might have lived a fraction of my lifetime but he looks like he has been living longer than Ichio. Aido blabbed inside his head.
Kaname. Please look at me.
My brother sensed his name and looked down at Yuki, who was sitting next to him. Yuki looked into his eyes, and her thoughts were engulfed. She just stared at him. He stared back, a smile easing onto his face.
It was then that I noticed that Yuki was also wearing her prom dress, given to her by my brother. It occurred to me that it must have been made by my designer, also. It was so unique and beautiful. It fit her character perfectly. Someone had even done her hair, though it was different. I knew this because I knew that Zero had helped her this time. He was still wearing his uniform as a result. I admired him.
Silent in the corner, all he could think about was what this little trip would mean for Yuki and for himself, but mostly Yuki. He was slightly concerned about what the senate would think of him. Would they think, 'Level D' or 'vampyre hunter'?
I am so terrified. I can't help it. I want to be brave. It's taking everything for me to stay in my seat. Amara's past was so violent and filled with horrible vampyres, like the monsters from the movies. Now those vampyres are angry and want to take revenge. Her future is going to be horrible. Amara is so kind-hearted . . . how will she win against a bunch of blood-thirsty demons? Shiki's eyes . . . are different colors . . . he is so awful. He's the same thing Kaname is, and he thinks he can treat Amara like this! I want to kill him myself! Mike glared at the floor, fuming.
I felt a pain in my heart for him. My human. Instincts smashed aside, I took Mike's trembling hand and squeezed it gently. His energy, strong and pure, danced under my palm. I had never felt someone do that before. I had never felt a person's energy with the nerve endings of my body.
Mike's mouth twitched, almost into a smile. He looked at me with darting eyes. I reassured him.
Ah, Mike. Relax. I can handle anything they wish to challenge me with. And you will be safe every second of the time. There is no need to worry.
Mike's eyes got big. Amara? Are you talking to me through my mind?
I smiled and nodded. Yes. I am. I am giving my thoughts to you.
Oh my god. You can hear my every thought. You are in my head. She's in my freaking head! If I think something bad . . . oh, no! No, do not think! I must not think! Wait, she is expecting an answer! How do I answer that? 'Thank you?' Mike rambled frantically.
Shh, Mike. We do not have to speak with our minds. It is just that I do not feel comfortable talking in front of the assassin. We can ride silently, like everyone else.
No! Wait! Don't hang up! I want to talk to you. Really. I love talking to you. I do. Really I love talking with you . . .
Please calm down. You are going to give me a headache. I chuckled. Everyone in the limo stared. Oh. I do love hearing you think. Your thoughts are so beautiful.
Mike got very quiet and very still. His eyes fell to rest on the floor. Hmm. She is rambling as much as I did. Does she get nervous like me?
Of course I do. I am nervous all of the time. Can you imagine walking around with my kind of power, trying not to kill the ones I love? Oh. That reminds me of the friends we left back home. I miss them. I really wish they could be here, too. But they were . . . too disoriented. Plus, the fewer I put in danger, the better.
I don't mind being in danger as long as I am with you. Mike thought to me.
I smiled.
Mike's eyes went very large. How are you not thinking? I am thinking all of the time. I can't stop thinking. Especially when I'm nervous. Oh my gosh, does she read my mind when I don't know it . . . often?!
I giggled. I give you my thoughts, but only the ones I want you to have. I can ignore your room and not hear your thoughts. I can, however, root around in your brain if the higher being allows and find your past thoughts.
That is wicked scary.
I know. I teased. And I can control your mind. See? I can handle myself. If I wanted to, I could kill everyone in the senate with just a thought.
Then . . . why not? Mike thought slowly, his heart hammering weakly in his chest. He tried to breathe normally, but was terrified.
I frowned. You are scared of me?
No. Never. Mike said. Just what I will see . . . and what they will do to try to execute you so that you cannot get away.
I hope it will not get to that.
