AN: Thank you for the reviews ^^.
Warnings: Vampire Violence, self-insert OC, this is actually the first female I've written (who stayed female), there's actually no slash and I don't like that, some AU.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
"Yuuki."
Looking up from the book she was reading Yuuki spotted her sister standing in the doorway, eyes hard and posture rigid. It was a familiar one that sent a warmth through her body, unlike her Miki wasn't soft, she was sharp and in control making the people who didn't know her intimidated.
Yuuki knew her sister was soft on the inside, especially when it came to the people she cared about. She just had a hard time showing it in and allowing her barriers to fall.
"Hey Onee-sama." She greeted sitting up from her bed. "Do you need help with anything?"
Hesitation crossed her sisters eyes before it vanished and she shook her head. Miki headed into the room they shared, hair held in it's usual ponytail ever since it was long enough to do so. "I asked Cross if he would teach me self defense."
Yuuki blinked and then tried to imagine Kaien being a teacher. The image of the bouncy man serious while he talked in front of a classroom making her giggle. "It's hard to imagine him teaching anything."
A crooked smile flashed on her sisters features but vanished as soon as it came. "Would you like to join me?"
Somehow Yuuki knew that this wasn't just self-defense, though she wasn't naive enough to think they wouldn't get attacked by a human the fact that vampires roamed the streets was very obvious. She knew Kaname kindness to them was special, not all vampires would be as gentle as he was and even then she knew Kaname was just as dangerous.
That night that Kaname had found them, she had been unable to do anything while Miki protected her. She didn't want to be weak, just like her sister she wanted to be strong willed and unshakable.
She wanted to be able to fight back.
When she looked into Miki's eyes her older sister didn't need her to say anything, the burning will she saw there was enough of an answer.
Kaien blinked, then rubbed his eyes in hopes that he was only hallucinating. Unfortunately when he open them back up there were two Miki's, or better yet there was Yuuki and Miki standing in front of him.
He withheld a sigh, leave it to Juri's daughters to want to learn how to kill vampires when they were eight years old. Though he was pretty sure Miki went to her sister and talked her into it there was no doubt that they both were very willing to learn.
When Kaname heard about this, he wouldn't be too happy.
On the other hand maybe this was a good thing, Miki and Yuuki were naturally synchronized with each other which could lead to a very dangerous duo if trained properly. Especially if Juri's shields somehow broke and they turned back into Purebloods.
First thing first, he needed to figure out what Yuuki and Miki's weakness and strengths were. It was a good thing they both decided to dress in sweat pants and t-shirts since he was going to be running them to the ground.
"Run twenty laps around the house then come back to me."
The two girls exchanged glances before nodding and doing as they were told.
He wouldn't start with weapon handling first, he needed to train their bodies to be able to wield one.
Between training and going to school our days where very much occupied, if I had been in my past body then running twenty laps would have been a breeze, now though Yuuki and I could barely run ten without slowing down a few times.
It was slightly aggravating, my body was much more different then I was used to. I had been tall in my past life, and slightly athletic before, now I was smaller and more fragile. It may have been because I was a Pureblood, or my body was just destined to be daintier but I was determined to make myself more sturdy.
I could tell that Kaien was evaluating our strengths while at the same time preparing us for some of the more vigorous work outs we'd be told to do when we got more in shape. Though his drills weren't as harsh as back in boot camp, it was still tiring. If I didn't know already I would suspect by now he had some sort of experience when it came to fighting.
The running made Yuuki and I's legs ache after three days, which only got worse once we kept at it. Though we'd take breaks in-between to rest our legs muscles, the ache always came back once we started running again.
School was another thing entirely, Yuuki was doing great and earning high grades though she was having problems in math while I was bored to death. Though I made sure to keep my grades average, most of the time I ended up falling asleep.
Despite that though I was what people called an 'average' student, which was absolutely fine with me. Kaien mentioned my sleeping habits once or twice over dinner but most of the time he left it alone much to my relief.
As for making friends…well most of the time Yuuki and I just stayed together. Most of the students were far too immature for my liking, while Yuuki was rather shy when it came to strangers. Of course once she got to know them she was a ball of sunshine, the first steps to making a friend was hard for her to achieve.
She didn't seem too bothered though, at least not in front of me if she was. I knew eventually she'd make friends and even if she didn't Sayuri would be there for her when the time came. Of course by then Kaname would have chased off all the girls who tried to befriend my sister to make sure none of them were going to harm her in anyway.
Sayuri was the only one who had passed his little 'test', and while I suppose his intentions were good the fact that Yuuki had no friends because of him was obvious. I didn't like to think about the fact that since I was her sister, he'd most likely do the same thing for me. I could take care of myself and I certainly could deal with anyone who decided to try and 'trick' me into becoming their friend for other means.
Eventually summer and then fall passed with Yuuki and I constantly exercising. And when winter came and the first few flakes of white fell from the sky Kaname came with them. Like he always did the Pureblood visited us in winter, but this time he wasn't quite prepared for what he'd see.
"Oh Kaname-kun, you're early!"
Yuuki and I paused, both of us panting slightly when we heard Kaien's cheerful voice from the upstairs. Earlier in the year he had set up training room for us in the basement since it exercising in the snow could make us both sick. The room wasn't huge, but it was big enough for a mat to be put down so that Yuuki and I could practicing the moves we had been shown.
"Hello Kaien," A smooth voice replied. "Where is Yuuki and Miki?"
We exchanged looks nervously. Yuuki and I both knew that Kaname probably wouldn't react well to our training. When it came to his 'precious girls' there were a lot more dangerous things in the world then there actually was.
"They're in the basement practicing some moves I taught them." Was the happy reply that made me wince at lack of tact. So much for easing him into the fact that we were learning to fight.
Yuuki straightened out, her eyes flicking to the stairs that lead up to the house and then back to me. Instead of wearing a ponytail like me her hair was tied in a braid, mostly so that Kaien didn't have to keep looking at our faces to tell us apart.
Apparently even though we were identical twins, our facial expressions were very different. I assumed it was because while Yuuki was 'happier' then me she put off a softer aura while I tended to seem stern and commanding even though I didn't mean to. It mostly came from growing up with my past father being a Navy Seal and my mother a lawyer. Not that all parents from those job positions were as stern as my parents were, mine just happened to be that way.
"…You're teaching them how to fight?"
Though Kaname didn't sound very angry, the tone of his voice became sharper and made the hair on my arms stand on end. Dangerous, Kaname is dangerous.
"I'll be right back." I spoke as I started to head to the stairs, there was no way I was going to leave Kaien to the wolves. I had been the one with the idea after all.
I faltered when a small hand grabbed my own, but didn't stop. Internally I was happy that Yuuki had decided to accompany me, though I was mentally older then her she gave me courage during times like this.
Kaien laughed awkwardly as we started walking up the stairs. "I though it would be good to teach them how to defend themselves."
"They just turned nine."
I opened the door that lead from the basement to the kitchen not caring that it creaked loudly bringing attention to us. The two males turned their gazes toward us, both quieting as Yuuki closed the door behind us.
"Ah Miki, Yuuki!" A bright smile formed on Kaien's face despite the tension in the room. "Look who's here!"
"Hello." Yuuki and I greeted at the same time making Kaname send a small smile our direction.
Internally I took a breath and then looked in Kanames direction, steeling myself as we locked gazes. "It's not Kaien's fault." I murmured. "I was the one who asked to be trained and then I dragged Yuuki into it."
The Pureblood blinked not showing any surprise. "Is that so?"
I nodded and straightened my shoulders pushing back the instinctual fear I felt when around him. He was like a docile lion, he was nice at times but when the mood hit him he'd have his teeth and claws ready to tear into flesh.
Yuuki stepped forward as well, dark eyes determined. "It wasn't all Onee-sama's fault!" She tightened her hold on my hand in reprimand. "I wanted to know how to fight!"
Kaname didn't seem to know what he wanted to say and simply stared me directly in the eye.
Instinctually I wanted to look down, show him that I wasn't threatening, but another part of me bristled at his stare. I didn't fear death but I knew when to shut my mouth, I wasn't keen to dying anytime soon.
Cross laughed awkwardly, breaking the tense atmosphere. "It's nothing too serious Kaname-kun! Just some light training here and there to make sure the girls know how to protect themselves."
The pureblood didn't stop staring at me as he spoke. "I have nothing against them learning how to defend against Vampires," He wasn't allowing any hint of what he was thinking to show in his eyes, a well practiced maneuver that I was sure he had perfected. "I just thought you would have waited longer until you started training them."
"It's our best bet if we want to survive." I replied. "Vampires don't discriminate when it comes to their prey."
If Kaname reacted negatively to what I said he didn't allow me to see past his walls of iron. The older male simply nodding in understanding before changing the subject, seemingly okay with the whole situation.
I was stuck between relief and suspicion. I had never met someone like him, a person so cut off from the world that he didn't allow anyone to see how he truly felt. It was as if he thought showing emotion was bad thing, and he needed to be as aloof as he possibly could.
I suppose in someways there was a reason for him to act that way. Being a pureblood meant many vampires yearned to drink his blood, but since he was too powerful they lingered on the sidelines observing him for any weakness. I doubted anyone could truly take Kaname down, especially since he was a ten thousand year old vampire, but one couldn't be too cautious.
…
…
…
Ba-thump
Ba-thump
Ba-thump
Kaname closed his eyes as the soothing heartbeats echoed in his ears, listening closely as the two girls slept soundly in the room behind the door.
His precious girls.
They were so different then they were back then, two little girls who hadn't been aware of the dangers life held. Looking at them now was like seeing completely different people, especially Miki. The two girls had alway giggled and played with each other, they had a very close bond since they weren't allowed to step outside strong enough to filter through the barriers Juri had made.
Now though, Miki wasn't even smiling any more. If anything she reminded him of her, gentle to those she cared about but more cautious of anyone she deemed dangerous. Yuuki seemed to have taken on her sisters attributes but at the same time remaining the gentle child he had always known.
They weren't the little girls he knew back then, they didn't even remember who he was.
Ba-thump
From what Cross had told him, Miki was showing signs of being significantly more intelligent then those of her age. From handling situations in a logical way to separating herself from the other students Miki was an anomaly. Most humans longed to have companionship, form a small group of friends to talk and hang out with. But Miki showed no interest in doing anything like that, Cross said she was more focused on training then anything else.
He wondered why, in the past Miki had never been interested in that sort of thing. She was instead constantly drawing and saying that she wanted to be an artist when she grew up.
Why have you changed so much?
Ba-thump
Ba-thump
Kaname took a deep breath, inhaling the familiar scents that brought him relief and sorrow.
Much like their mother Yuuki smelled like sunlight, warm and loving with endless energy. While Miki, her scent was what had awakened him within the body he transformed himself into, it was so astoundingly similar to her…
A woman hovered over him, light brown hair falling to frame her face as she stared down at him curiously. A dark hood was wrapped around her body, but that didn't stop her scent from reaching him.
It was akin to a raging storm, copper mixed with ozone and wet earth, something he had never smelled before on another being.
She smiled softly when she realized he was awake. "You have to get up Kaname, it's time to go."
"Kaname-kun?"
He turned his head toward the voice spotting Kaien staring at him oddly a few feet away. Kaname dropped his hand from it's place on the door and nodded at the ex-hunter. "My apologies, I just got lost in thought."
Kaien smiled and looked toward the door Miki and Yuuki slept behind. "They don't hate you, it's just hard for them to become comfortable around other people, especially Miki."
"They have every right to keep their guard up." Kaname replied. "After all I'm just a stranger to them."
"I think they see you as something more then just a stranger Kaname-kun." Cross pushed the ridge of his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "You saved them after all."
Kaname allowed a smile to form on his face. "Perhaps."
He had hoped they would instinctually take to him like they had each other, perhaps a small part of themselves recognizing him as their brother, but it that didn't happen. Now he was working to try and form even a small bond with them so that when the time came they wouldn't hate him for what he had done.
With Miki begin so similar to her he wasn't sure that would be possible.
"Thank you for allowing me to visit them Kaien." Kaname murmured as he pushed those thoughts aside. "I have to go now."
"You're welcome anytime Kaname-kun."
He'd have to work harder to have Yuuki fully accept him, if she started to trust him more Miki would eventually follow after seeing her younger sister being so open with him.
But he couldn't know for certain, not when Miki was so unpredictable.
"You think you're better than us, don't you?"
I held back a sigh, how did I not see this coming?
"I bet you both look down on us, that's why you don't talk to anyone."
Wasn't this something that only happened in a Manga? A group of jealous girls corner the main character to throw some 'mean' words her direction in hopes of putting her down, she fails to defend herself and then her prince charming comes to her rescue.
Yeah that sounded familiar, except I had no prince charming and I hardly doubted these girls knew how to punch forget gaining the courage to actually attack me.
"Well you're definitely not better then us," bitchy girl continued. "I heard you lived with a hobo in the forest."
Her pig-nosed friend stuck out her tongue. "Eww, I bet she doesn't even bathe!"
…Was this supposed to mean anything to me? "I haven't bathed in months and eat worms for breakfast after digging for them with my bare hands."
They stared at me, dumbstruck.
I crossed my arms and raised a brow. "What? Worms don't taste that bad, really. If you ignore the way they wriggle in your mouth as you eat them they're pretty tasty."
None of them said a word.
I didn't expect them to, they were ten, hardly capable of realizing that I was lying to their face.
"Onee-sama?"
I looked toward the sound of Yuuki's voice around the corner from where I had been ambushed. "One moment."
I looked back toward the girls who started to whisper among each other, amusingly they instantly quieted once they realized I was looking their direction.
"I'll be going now," I pushed past the smallest girl. "nice talking to you three."
A part of me had wanted to hit them for calling Cross a hobo, but I knew that wouldn't be the smart thing to do. I would get in trouble, have to explain why I had attacked them and face Cross's disappointment.
Besides they weren't worth it in the least.
Yuuki smiled when she spotted me coming around the corner, her hair tied in it's usual braid. "What were you doing?"
I shrugged. "Just talking to a few girls, they were pretty nice."
"You actually think that someone was nice?" She stared at me as if I was an alien.
I snorted. "I think lots of people are nice."
"Right."
"I do, really."
"I believe you Onee-sama."
After that the group of girls stayed away from me, though the rumors that we were wild children who ate worms was now seen as a fact, people kept to themselves. Yuuki didn't seem to mind too much, though there were moments I could see her staring at a random group of giggling girls longingly when she thought I wasn't paying attention.
Those were the times that I wondered if I was negatively affecting her because I was naturally a loner. Would she have an easier time making friends if I wasn't around? Was I being too clingy and holding her back from branching out?
She was her own person, but there were times that I wondered if she was following me because that was the only thing she knew. Was my presence holding her back from being who she was meant to be?
How would I go about trying to detach from her without being too obvious?
Maybe Zero could help me with it, his presence in the household would stir things up quite a bit. If I played things right maybe I could make it so Yuuki found out about his condition earlier and maybe even help him out before he could continue his whole hate fest he had going on.
Zero as a character had always hit a soft spot inside of me, he was like a wounded solider blaming himself for his comrades death. Reading the Manga I had wanted Yuuki to comfort him, become strong enough to help him through his pain and face his fears with him.
Maybe I could nudge her in his direction?
Somehow I didn't think forcing them together was going to end as smoothly as I wished it would. Yuuki and Zero were people, they made their own decisions and if they ended up hating each other then that was their own choice.
I just really hoped that wouldn't happen.
Zero made his appearance during a particularly violent snow storm a few months after Yuuki and I turned eleven.
Yuuki and I were dressed in our usual exercise clothing, sweat pants along with a tank-top, and were cooling off after an intense training session when we heard the door open.
I looked toward the sound. "Cross took a long time to get home."
"Yeah." Yuuki nodded brows furrowed. "I wonder why he took so long."
Curiosity drove us to walk out of the kitchen and head toward the entry way, but we were both halted in our tracks when we saw the small figure standing beside Cross.
"Miki, Yuuki." Kaien's face was unusually somber as he stared at our frozen figures. "This is Kiriyuu Zero. His family was killed by bad vampires."
Seeing what vampires were capable of made my blood run cold, standing beside Cross was a twelve year old boy covered in blood with a look of utter defeat in his eyes. I had seen that look on some soldiers who had lost everything, the dead, soulless gaze that made you wonder what that person was truly seeing.
Never did I want to see such a look on a child's face.
I was the first one to react, and without a second thought I was down the stairs heading toward the taller boy. Thoughts raced through my head, as I stopped a few feet away from where the two men stood.
How could I help? What did I need to do?
Zero stiffened when I came closer, lilac eyes snapping to stare into my own intently. I could see the way his shoulders tightened and eyes hardened, as if my movements had been too fast and abrupt for him to relax.
I didn't feel hurt when he reacted so adversely to me, it was a given for him to. I knew he and I were enough alike that there would be times we'd butt heads because we were both so stubborn.
No it wasn't me who should take care of him.
I looked up at Cross who sent me an understanding smile before turning his gaze to look at Yuuki who was still staring down at Zero.
"Yuuki could you help Zero clean up?"
His voice seemed to break her out of the shock and she nodded, eyes alert and concerned. "Of course." She slowly made her way down the stairs, brown eyes focused on Zero's form.
Eventually she made to where we were, though slower and calmer then I had been. She was much more graceful then I'd ever be, like a dancer almost while I was firm and steady but never flowing like she was.
Zero's eyes flicked between Yuuki and I when she settled next to me as if trying to comprehend what he was seeing. His face didn't move from it's blank state, but his eyes spoke of pain as he realized that we were identical twins.
I was sure we were bringing back memories that were far to fresh for him to want to go through again, especially since his twin had betrayed him so violently.
"Do you mind if I take your hand?" Yuuki asked softly as if speaking to a frightened animal. "We have some towels in the bathroom to wash you off with."
Zero observed her for a moment before nodding and allowing my sister to gently grab his hand. She smiled at him hesitantly and began to walk toward the direction of our bathroom.
Kaien and I watched as Yuuki continued to speak to him as if he would break at any second until she finally turned a corner and vanished from our view. The air was lighter, but I didn't allow myself to relax.
We just allowed a vampire to come into our house, a Level E who could potentially snap at any second and drain Yuuki until there was nothing left.
It wasn't that I didn't understand and sympathize with Zero, but Yuuki's health was my priority. I knew he had gone through something horrible, but I wasn't going to let my guard down around him.
He was dangerous.
AN: Sorry for the long wait, I hope you liked the chapter. ^^ Sorry for any mistakes.
Also I put up a poll on my profile, Who do you think Miki is most compatible with? Zero or Kaname? Feel free to vote on your review or on the poll.