Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Broken Pieces
A/N: Briefly, I'd like to address Yuuki's role in this story. Some of you (and believe me, I understand) seem kind of annoyed with Zero (and Kaname) liking her so much. This IS a Kaname/Zero fic, isn't it?
It is, don't worry. But Yuuki is still very important to both of them (yeah, yeah, it's unfortunate), and her importance to them plays a big role in the relationship. So bear with her, along with me. You'll eventually get my intention (I hope). Please and thank you. And thank you so much for the reviews. They inspire me to keep writing.
Random information you might like the know: The flashback in this chapter is a continuation from the flashback near the end of Chapter 3.
(I found another great song by Apocalyptica (ft Lacey Sturm) that fits this take of Kaname/Zero. It's what this chapter's quote is from, and will probably be used for future quotes. Song title is the chapter title ;])
"Too late
This is not the answer.
I need to pack it in."
x
Chapter 7: BROKEN PIECES
Her eyes gleamed red in the darkness of the night. Several yards away, the young sleeping princess patrolled, alone. Kiryuu was foolish letting his emotions control him so, and he didn't realize how much danger he put her in by not walking with her. The girl couldn't sense Ayako like the boy could, but she certainly felt some dangerous presence, and her pace quickened as she walked by Ayako's hiding place. A bloodthirsty grin broke across Ayako's face and she leaned forward. That blood smelt delicious—
Not yet, pretty. Soon, but remember why you are there.
Ayako relaxed, reluctantly letting the girl walk by untouched.
Several minutes later, another set of footsteps sounded, but from the brush around Ayako, not the path in front of her. She turned just as he pushed his way through a clump of bushes.
"How is he?"
"Much better, but I expect he'll start feeling it again in a few days."
A slow smirk wound its way across Ayako's face. "Then soon."
A very slight pause, but Ayako picked up on it. "Three nights from now."
Ayako giggled. "That guy is so convinced he knows what my master is planning, but this will rattle him a bit."
"He must sense you here."
She scoffed, still smiling. "Maybe, but he still doesn't—"
Leave.
Ayako scowled. "We have to go. How annoying." She turned, but before she took off, she looked back. "Remember who you're loyal to."
Ichiru's eyes were cold. "I remember."
x
Zero awoke with a loud gasp, shooting up in the bed, desperately trying to shake the dream off of him and meanwhile his hunter senses were poking and prodding at him like needles, telling him something was wrong. He let out a pained groan, and then hands were immediately on his face, pushing his damp hair off his forehead, cool lips pressing against his hot cheek.
"It's okay," Ichiru murmured to Zero, holding him close. Zero resisted for a second. Something had woken him up, but the reason was fading fast, and Zero was still unsteady from the dream. He closed his eyes and allowed his brother to hold him, the sound of Ichiru's voice easing the trembling in his body. Fingers splayed against his cheeks, and Zero frowned.
"Ichiru, your fingers are freezing…"
"I'm all right. You're just hot."
Zero pushed himself into a sitting position and touched Ichiru's cheek with the back of his hand. "Is it too cold in here for you? Here, get under the covers—"
He stopped short when Ichiru placed both hands on either side of his face and smiled at him. "Zero. Please, relax."
"But maybe you're—"
"Fine. Better than you, at any rate. Please, lie down and go back to sleep."
Zero slowly lowered himself back into bed, reluctantly letting the issue drop. His eyes flickered toward the coat thrown carelessly on his twin's bed, and he wondered what had driven Ichiru to be outside so early in the morning.
"Ichiru—"
Ichiru cut him off with tender look, brushing his bangs back from his tormented eyes. "I love you, Zero."
x
The surprise on Yuuki's face was evident when she stepped out of her dormitory and found Zero waiting for her.
Yori touched Yuuki's arm and said, "I'll see you in class," leaving Yuuki standing in front of Zero.
Zero sighed. "I thought I'd walk you to class."
Yuuki's eyes widened in the slightest, but she looked like she was hiding back a smile. "How do you feel?"
"Better," Zero said shortly, turning on his heel and not looking back to see if Yuuki was walking with him or not.
Yuuki trotted to catch up with him. "I hope you don't feel bad about me patrolling alone, because last night was a snap. I even stopped some Day Class girls—"
Zero suddenly tuned out, the reason why he'd woken up last night rushing back at him like a runaway train. A vampire. That same vampire, Ayako! What the hell, how could he have not gone out and done something about it? And Yuuki had been—
"You were okay?" Zero said, cutting off Yuuki mid-sentence. She blinked. "What?"
"Did…anything weird happen last night?"
Yuuki opened her mouth, then shut it, and Zero knew she was about to brush off something. "Yuuki," he said dangerously. "Tell me."
Yuuki frowned at him. "It wasn't much. I just felt really…weird, just for a moment. I couldn't place it though."
She must have had some sort of trance on her, numbing her presence to anyone. She couldn't have hurt, Yuuki—
Zero stepped forward, partly blocking Yuuki, forcing her to come to an abrupt stop. "Zero, what—"
He leaned forward, brushing her hair back from her neck, his eyes sweeping the pale skin for any bitemarks.
His fangs suddenly throbbed in a painful way, and he gasped, stepping back.
Yuuki was looking at him, bewildered, a faint pink tinge on her cheeks. "Zero?"
He turned around and began walking again. "Just making sure you weren't bitten or anything."
He glanced at her over his shoulder. If a vampire had bitten her and then erased her memories, it was likely that it had healed her neck too. But Zero didn't sense anything off about her, and she looked fine. He'd have to trust his instincts and hope she was okay.
Why hadn't he gone out looking yesterday?
He internally scowled. I am pathetic. No way in hell could he continue on like this, letting stupid nightmares and dreams keep him from protecting Yuuki when she could very possibly be in danger.
She was next to him again, chattering away about who knew what, most likely sensing that whatever had just happened Zero would rather drop. He smiled fondly, unable to stop the curve of his lips, and pulled her against his side in a brusque embrace.
"Thank you."
x
The sun's setting rays bled through the curtains in the Moon Dormitory, irking the vampires who were getting ready to head off to their night classes.
"We need thicker curtains," Aido grumbled to his cousin who ignored him as usual.
Takuma looked over his shoulder at Kaname, was seated alone in the cluster of chairs in the middle of the room. He walked over to his friend and plopped down in the empty space next to him.
Kaname acknowledged his presence with a flick of the eyes. Takuma leaned forward. "What is it, Kaname?"
Kaname looked towards the shaded windows. "Has Ichiou contacted you?"
Takuma was startled. "Grandfather…? No. He hasn't." He paused, then, "Why, Kaname?"
Kaname uncrossed his legs and leaned forward slightly. He said nothing.
Takuma was unafraid to press on. "This is about yesterday. And last night. She was only here briefly. And Yuuki—"
"Was alone, and very close to her. And she was meeting someone."
His tone was short and cool. Takuma's eyes darkened. "Meeting—"
Kaname cut him off by standing up. "It's time to go."
The other vampires in the room fell silent at Kaname's actions and proceeded to open the front doors that would lead them into the twilight.
"You know, you aren't alone, Kaname," Takuma said quietly to him.
Kaname appreciated the gesture, as untrue as it was.
x
It felt like a daily goal, avoiding Kaname's eyes. But when the vampires stepped through the gates, Zero found himself seeking out Kaname. Surely he had also realized Ayako had been on the grounds last night.
The moment Zero found Kaname's face, the pureblood's gazed turned from Yuuki to meet Zero's eyes. Kaname's eyes were blank, his gaze revealing absolutely nothing. Zero resisted the urge to furrow his brow. Kaname was thinking about a lot, then.
Before he could help himself, Zero's gaze dropped to Kaname's neck, nearly completely hidden by the Night Class uniform.
Zero sharply turned back around, feeling a dull ache in his fangs. Dear God, it was already starting again.
It was never going to end, was it?
x
"Yuuki will be happy you're going with her tonight," Ichiru said, turning in his desk chair to look at Zero.
"She's happy about everything," Zero muttered.
Ichiru touch a finger to his lips, failing to hide his smile. "Don't pretend you don't like her." There was a pause. "What a scary face, Zero!"
Zero rolled his eyes and checked the chain on his Bloody Rose, making sure it was still intact, and pointedly ignoring Ichiu's searching gaze.
"Ah, someone has a crush; I knew it from the beginning, you know," Ichiru taunted, his smile full-blown now.
Zero turned towards the door. "You're being an idiot."
x
"I'll go get you some water," Ichiru said, placing a soft hand on Zero shaking shoulder.
He opened the door and closed it carefully behind him, proceeding to walk to the kitchen. As he was pouring water into a glass, someone stepped into the room with him.
"Zero is quite distressed."
"Did you go in and bother him?" Ichiru asked angrily.
"I don't need to. I can feel it clearly."
Ichiru turned back around to face the glass of water. "Well stay away from him."
Kaname said dangerously, "I'm warning you to watch yourself."
Ichiru stepped away from the counter, the glass in his hands. "I need to bring this to Zero."
He brushed by Kaname and returned to his and Zero's room—the door was ajar. He frowned and pushed it open, and blinked in surprise.
The new girl—Yuuki—was there. She was sitting next to Zero, offering him a cup of water. When the hell had she gotten that?
Zero was looking at her. His eyes were back to their normal color, but he still looked shaken and weak. He took the cup from her hands and sipped. Yuuki smiled brightly, and Ichiru was taken aback when Zero actually smiled in return. "I told you it would make you feel better," she said gently. She stood, then noticed Ichiru in the doorway. "Excuse me," she said, bowing a little to him. She looked behind him and beamed, "Kaname-sama! I was just worried about Zero, when you left to go to the bathroom I came in here and gave him my glass of water."
Zero looked up. Ichiru, Yuuki, and Kaname all stood in his doorway. Ichiru walked in, putting the glass he'd brought on the nightstand. Zero ignored Kaname completely, and looked at Yuuki. He felt oddly calm. "Thank you," he said quietly.
Yuuki smiled. "Goodbye for now, Zero!"
She and Kaname left, closing the door behind them.
x
"I think you could do better," Ichiru said quietly. The sudden serious tone of his voice made Zero jerk his head up and around to look at his brother.
His twin's eyes were frightening in their sudden seriousness. "Ichiru, I don't—"
Ichiru turned back towards his desk, his back facing Zero. "For your own good Zero—stay away from that woman."
Their door opened at that moment and Yuuki stood in the doorway. She didn't appear to have heard their conversation, for which Zero was grateful.
"Are you ready, Zero? Sorry, I forgot to knock…"
The tension in the room was palpable. Zero rolled his shoulders once and stepped forward. "Let's go."
He glanced over his shoulder to find his twin mirroring the same exact action.
He closed the door.
x
Two days later, Zero was walking down the hall of his dormitory, getting ready to meet Yuuki outside so they could keep back the Day Class girls before the Night Class walked to their classes. "Hey, Zero, the Chairman wants ya."
Zero looked back at the boy who was already walking away. "Now?"
"Yep."
Zero inwardly groaned. That guy—ugh.
He stepped outside, taking a moment to glare at the clear blue sky before walking over to Yuuki who was waiting a few paces away.
"Cross wants me to go to his office," he said to her.
Yuuki blinked. "Oh—is he—are you—"
"It's probably a hunt I have to do," Zero guessed, thinking it wasn't going to be fun with hunger attacks assaulting him every other hour.
Yuuki's eyebrows creased. "Okay, Zero…I'll go ahead without you. Just be careful."
"You don't need to worry about me," Zero said, turning to walk towards Cross' living quarters.
He could feel her gaze on him until he rounded a corner. He grit his teeth, his throat burning. The thirst was coming back in waves.
It was so much worse. Before—before he'd only been able to imagine the blood—the blood—how good it must have tasted…
But now he knew. He knew how much better it tasted, how thick, how smooth, how powerful, how it quenched his thirst, soothed his burning, how wonderful it was—
Zero turned to smash his fist into a brick wall, his breath coming hard and fast. Blood stained both the cement and his knuckles now. His eyes swam but he refused to lift his hand to his lips, refused to salvage the precious sustenance that was now dripping onto the ground as he continued forward.
He struggled to keep his mind blank for the rest of the walk. His knuckled stung and he focused on the pain to keep his brain a clean slate.
"What is it?" he said shortly on entering Cross's office.
Cross glanced at the wound on Zero's fist before sliding a letter across the desk. "An order from the Association. They want you to hunt down a Level E that's in the town."
Zero picked up the letter. "Why me?"
Cross tilted his head forward, the candlelight hitting his glasses so they were opaque and impossible to see through. "It's probably just them continuing to test you."
Zero scanned the letter quickly before shoving into his pocket. Cross tilted his head at him.
"They don't even know the identity of the thing," Zero said, turning towards the door. He hesitated a split second before opening the door.
"You should bandage that, Zero-kun," Cross called.
Zero ignored him, a pained smirk touching his features. And why would I do that?
They love the scent of blood, don't they?
So let it come to me.
He'd blow its fucking brains out.
x
Zero glanced up at the darkening sky, wondering how long it would take him to find the vampire.
A group of teenagers walked by on the opposite side of the street, talking and laughing loudly. Two girls from the group turned to look at him over their shoulder, giggling when he made brief eye contact.
He looked away, his jaw clenching. Was he really that similar to…them? Did he appear…so attractive to women, as the Night Class did?
And also attractive to men, apparently.
Zero's eyes widened at the unbidden thought and he was grateful for not being near a reflective surface, because if he saw himself blushing he might have to kill himself.
He refused to think further on the thoughts of men finding him attractive because that would lead to Kaname, and his hot, heavy gaze on him, his lips on his, his blood in his mouth—
Zero gasped for air. Yes, it would be best to not think along those lines at all.
The sun was almost set—twilight settled over the small town, a brief, dull shroud that blurred shadows and set Zero's senses on high alert.
Vulnerability had settled.
Then again… Zero smiled twistedly. Since I am also a vampire, we have even playing grounds, don't we?
Zero slipped his gun into his pocket, ready to use it at a moment's notice.
But the night was completely silent, save for the few people who were either going home to dinner or going out to drink. Zero's footsteps thudded almost inaudibly against the pavement as he walked on. He passed dark nooks and alleys but no inhuman movement was caught in his vision.
He decided to sit in a small park instead of passing it up. He'd be able to sense a vampire threat in the town from here just fine. Settling down on a bench situated under a large oak, Zero hunched forward and waited.
Not a minute later, a dark shadow appeared at the park's entrance. Zero's eyes were sharp and alert, but he didn't move. It was not a vampire. In fact, the form was very familiar.
Zero narrowed his eyes in the slightest but before he could make out the person clearly, the figure stepped into the lamplight several feet in front of Zero.
"Zero?"
"Yuuki!" Zero jumped up, his eyes widening in horror even as they blazed red in bloodlust.
He was torn between running to her side and running as far away as his legs could carry him.
Blood dripped down Yuuki's arm, staining the left sleeve of her sky blue shirt a dark red. Her eyes were shimmering, fear clear in their brown depths.
Zero took a step backwards, his movements jerky. Yuuki stepped forward. "Zero—I got a note—to meet you in town—"
"Yuuki—" Zero's mind was whirling. Why would Yuuki have gotten a note to meet him in town? He was here on a job, Cross knew that—who had—What the hell?
"A vampire attacked me," Yuuki said, hurrying forward several more steps. The smell of her blood slammed into Zero like a brick wall, leaving him breathless. "But it ran away before I could—do anything."
Zero turned his back on her. Her bloody hand grabbed at his. "Zero—what is it?"
"Get away from me."
He felt her flinch, but her grip on his hand tightened. She knew something was wrong, she'd known for years. "Zero—please—tell me what is going on."
Zero whirled around, his hands flying towards Yuuki's face. Her gasp was as soft as the skin underneath his hands. He leaned forward, robotically taking in the fear that flashed through her eyes at the sight of his red irises.
"Ze—"
He bit her roughly, groaning as the liquid splashed across his lips and slid down his throat. Yuuki locked up against him, her blood pumping faster into his mouth to the beat of her heart.
"STOP!" She screamed, pushing him away roughly. Zero hissed instinctively, and the look that passed across Yuuki's face snapped him back to himself.
"Yuuki," he whispered, horrified. He hesitated, then, before he could hurt her again, turned around and ran away into the darkness. I'm so sorry.
The night was crisp and clear around him, his senses hyper aware of everything due to the fresh blood in his system. Zero could not believe what he had just done.
She knew now—and—for her to know because he had bitten her—God. God, he was a monster.
How could I?
He was a blur as he ran, his feet slamming against the sidewalk hard with each, rapid footfall. Yuuki—and he'd left her—she was hurt, and bleeding, and completely terrified.
A growl ripped out of his throat as, suddenly, someone grabbed hold of his arm, jerking him to a painful stop. His body whirled around on momentum alone and Zero's body crashed into Kaname's.
Kaname gripped his other arm, forcing him to stay put.
"I bit Yuuki!"
The words fell from his lips in a jumbled gasp before he could even think about it. He didn't know why—he didn't understand—but deep down, a part of him clung to the fact that Kaname must understand, in a way. Kaname was a vampire who seemed to want Yuuki—and Kaname was the vampire who had thrust this curse upon him.
"I know," Kaname said quietly. Zero winced, as though he'd been slapped, trying to pull himself out of Kaname's grasp, but the pureblood's hold was firm.
"You don't know!" Zero shouted, all other previous thoughts suddenly gone. His emotions were out of control—what was he thinking, of course Kaname didn't understand. Cold, biting anger flared inside him—anger at himself, and, at the creature standing in front of him.
His fangs were extended, but not in hunger. Murderous bloodlust raged through him now, and his teeth ripped across the skin over Kaname's neck before Kaname could slam him back against a tree that grew next to an obscure road that led out of town.
Zero was about to push forward and snap at the vampire again, but Kaname's gentle, soft hand on his face stopped him abruptly.
"You hurt her," Kaname said. The accusing words didn't match the gentle tone of his voice.
"I bit her," Zero repeated, the words much more broken and choked now. "It's—"
His voice died at the look Kaname was giving him. His dark eyes were intense, burning—and looking right at him. Zero shivered. "Kaname—" but he didn't have anything to say.
"We're monsters," Kaname proffered quietly.
"You—"
Kaname's fingers played with the silver strands of Zero's hair that were brushing his temple. "Why didn't you come to me? Why do you refuse to come to me?"
Zero felt anger bubble lowly in his chest, a childish answer slipping past his lips. "I don't want to."
"So you bite Yuuki instead." This sentence held the snap that Zero had been expecting since the pureblood grabbed him out of the street.
But before he could reply, Kaname kissed him. His lips were very soft and very gentle—this shocked Zero more than anything, even more than the fact that he in turn kissed back.
Kaname pulled back a little. "You are a paradox, you know," he whispered against Zero's cheek. "So strong, yet so weak. So broken, but so perfect."
Zero suppressed a shiver, his eyes widening marginally.
Kaname tilted Zero's head up and kissed him again, slowly. And then, he was gone.
Zero slid down against the tree, the bark rough against his back. He didn't care. He welcomed the pain. Covering his face with his hands, Zero held back a pained moan. Ugh. God.
Yuuki—
Suddenly, Kaname was in front of him again. His demeanor couldn't be more different. A rage was burning in his eyes, and Zero, for the first time since Shizuka had slaughtered his parents, felt smothered by the pure aura of a pureblood's power. It was terrifying, the way it swirled around the air around Zero, suffocating him to a point where he was struggling to breathe. It scared him, how similar Kaname suddenly felt, in comparison to her. His back pressed harder against the tree as he involuntarily jerked back.
"Yuuki is gone," Kaname said, and Zero understood.
A/N: NU NOW THEY'RE GOING TO BE GOING AFTER THAT ANNOYING LITTLE...