When I woke up on Monday morning, Akane was making tea in the kitchen. The smell of chai had reached my nose, and I smiled into my pillow. She knew me so well.

I went to the bathroom and eyed my waist-length brown hair carefully. What did I want to do with it for the soirée? Quickly dismissing this question for a later day, I put on my Day Class uniform and met Akane in the kitchen for tea.

"So what are you and Rei wearing on Saturday?" I asked casually. Knowing Akane, she would make sure she and Rei were matching.

"Rei wants to wear black. So I'm getting us white accessories." Akane smiled.

"I knew it!" I crowed, giggling. "I knew you'd take the chessboard theme so seriously. Are they going to be square accessories too?"

"Please." Akane scoffed, which faded into a grin. "... okay, they probably are." Akane's eyes flashed, and I knew instantly I was going to regret this conversation. "What are you and Aido wearing?"

I remembered what Aido had told me when I asked him what he wanted me to wear.

"Something white. Match me. And wear a white hat too. Be my Queen."

"Uh... something white, knee length. With a white hat. He also said something about sleeves, I think..." Akane raised an eyebrow at me, causing me to turn red.

"He wants you to dress conservatively; he doesn't want other people looking at you!" Akane exclaimed. "He must be the jealous type."

I raised both my eyebrows and took a deep breath in. "Oh, he's jealous alright..." Jealous of anyone who gets near his prey, not of me.

"Tons of the Day Class girls are going to be jealous of you! I might have to avoid you all soirée to avoid the crowd... kidding!" Akane added when I threw her a pleading look.

I remembered Aika and how she'd warned me to stay away from Aido. It was clear that we were "together" now, yet Aika had been quiet... It made me uneasy. What if she came for me after the soirée?

"Speaking of jealousy..." I paused, unsure if I wanted to broach this subject with Akane. "There's a girl in Aido's class who told me to... stay away from him."

"Ugh, I hate those kinds of girls." Akane sighed heavily, leaning her head on one hand. "Did she tell you that you had to share? Ask permission? Threaten to bully you? Break your hands?"

I didn't answer, and she took that as answer enough. "Oh Kisa... you're a strong girl, and you don't have to do what jealous girls tell you. Aido chose you and that should be good enough for them."

"I might regret not listening to Aika. She's... stronger than me." I remembered my ears ringing the last time I'd seen her, and the earsplitting pain I'd felt when I met her and she demonstrated her powers to me. "And she's perfect for Aido, Akane. She's got this beautiful blonde hair that always seems to be her perfect ringlets and she has green eyes which you know how genetically unlikely that is, and she's all poised and perfect and confident and I... don't know what I'm even doing." I stopped rambling and took a breath. Most of my rant was true. I don't know why Aido even wanted to pretend to date me when people like Aika were obviously interested. Maybe he and Aika have a plan to get together once Headmaster Cross finds a memory spell, or gives up and lets Kaname kill me. I could feel the anxiety bubbling under my skin like boiling syrup. The hair on the back of my neck rose and I suddenly felt much warmer.

"Wherever you're going, come back." Akane patted my cheek gently. "I can see your mind leaving."

"Thanks." I sighed.

"Don't worry about the Night Class girl, Kisa. I doubt she would dare to harm you when Aido is dating you. Love works in mysterious ways; sometimes you end up with someone you never would have expected."

I raised an eyebrow at Akane and she blushed. "Didn't expect to end up with Rei, did you?"

"That's not what I said."

I laughed, standing. "Let's go to school, and pick up your unexpected boyfriend on the way."

Akane rolled her eyes and shoved me out the door, and caused my hair to fly wildly. She grasped some of it and twisted it. "You should put this up in a low bun for the soirée. Or braid it."

"Ah, yes. I was wondering what to do with it for the soirée. Thanks!" I patted her on the shoulder.

We only got a few steps down the hallway when I roughly collided with someone's shoulder. They pushed past me roughly and I turned to follow to see who it was.

It was Zero. And his eyes were ruby. As soon as he met my gaze he quickly turned and continued stalking down the hall.

"Akane, just give me a second, I have to go get something. You go ahead with Rei." She eyed me with concern and then resignation. She shrugged and walked toward Rei who I could see at the end of the hall.

Not having time to think about it, I practically ran down the hall after Zero to an open room that was dark. His dorm room.

"... Kiryu?" I asked cautiously.

"Leave, Matari."

I decided to forego the useless "are you alright" question and go straight to something decidedly more helpful. "Do you have blood tablets with you?"

"I take them by the handful - they barely work." His voice cracked, and my heart went out to him.

"Do you want me to get Yuki-san...?"

Zero emphatically shook his head. "I can't take more of her blood. I just need to fight this until I can get some more." I watched him clench his hands over and over, and his fangs had cut his own lip.

I shut the door behind me and unbuttoned my Day Class coat.