Vampire Knight does not belong to me in anyway. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. There's more unexplained plotting and even a little betrayal.
xxxtheQueen'sSacrificexxx
She gave no indication that she was not engrossed in her party planning for the Coronation Ball, and how dearly did Yuuki wish she could give this burden to someone else, perhaps Ruka, the task was right up her alley, but Yuuki was subtly peering at her best friend from beneath her dark lashes.
It had been a month since her first visit. When Kaname had extended an opened ended invitation for her to give her friend, Yuuki had wasted no time and practically begged Yori to come and visit with her.
The young vampire couldn't put her finger on it, but other woman was hiding something. Something big. The normally very composed girl was twitchy. She would cross and uncross her legs, tapping her foot against the floor. Her brown eyes never stayed on the papers, menus, designs, seating arrangements, responses to invitations, order forms, and a thousand other things Yuuki had no idea went into planning extravagant parties, littering the table that she was supposed to be helping Yuuki sort through.
And whatever this secret was, Yuuki knew with certainty that it dealt with her brother, because the human's eyes would flicker in his direction every so often.
She had come a long way from her days as a girl almost obnoxiously oblivious to the emotions of those around her. So Yuuki was sure that her friend was trying to guard a sense of nervous and a need to talk to Kaname behind her typical concern for the Pureblood's wellbeing.
At least, Yuuki prayed that was the explanation for Yori's odd behavior. The other possibility was whatever secret Yori had was of a large enough magnitude to frighten her, to the point where she needed Kaname's help.
And, given that she hadn't shared, Yuuki felt safe in assuming this great secret also had something to do with her.
Watching as Yori's brown eyes slid to Kaname, seated at his desk, for the fourth time in one minute, the female vampire made her excuses. More than once Yuuki had randomly announced a desperate need for the toilet and hurriedly made her way out of a room.
She most often employed this tactic when annoyed with her brother, mostly whenever the topic of her assisting him in establishing the monarchy and making appearances with him and showing a united front. Kaname was adamant that her presence wasn't needed and such stressful environments could not be healthy for their child. An excursion to the restroom gave Yuuki enough time to get a handle on her feelings so she didn't let her raging hormones fly off the handle.
It may be hypocritical of her to be angry at his use of their baby as a weapon against her, but she was currently using him or her to her own advantage, to escape his stifling and overbearing opinion on her involvement.
When the brunette returned from her restroom break, Yori was visibly more comfortable. Kaname appeared unaffected by whatever she had shared with him, so Yuuki didn't press for answers.
She trusted her lover inexplicably. She knew nothing untoward was going on behind her back. Kaname would never cheat on her. After everything he had done for her, hiding her away at Cross Academy and watching over her while she was there, Yuuki knew he would never do anything to hurt her.
She would let it go. Kaname had promised to refrain from hiding things from her. When Yori was gone he would fill her in.
So Yuuki turned to her friend, shoving a small piece of lined notebook paper across the table. Written in her more elegant script, Yuuki had a list of flowers for the tables' centerpiece.
"What do you think of gladiolus, snapdragons, and magnolias with some acorn and ivy?"
Yori studied a comprehensive list of flowers and their meanings. "I don't think you want magnolia. Too many unrelated meanings. How about bird of paradise instead?"
The two females dove into preparation for the gala and would not resurface until it was time to send the human home.
xxxtheQueen'sSacrificexxx
Yori's visits became more frequent after that day.
Yuuki paid no mind to it. She was actually quite happy to have the girl around. She loved Aidou dearly, but the blonde vampire was so prone to dramatics and Akatsuki was her orange haired shadow.
Not to mention the Aristocrats made a habit of predicting what she needed before she even knew she wanted it and had it in front of her before she could ask for it. Yuuki could act normal around Yori, like she was any other woman having a baby.
Yuuki cursed when her fangs extended mid-sentence. She didn't even have to look down to know Aidou was kneeling beside her chair (and it would be Aidou because it was Akatsuki four hours earlier). She carded her hand through his soft blonde locks, gently tugging his head to the side and pressed down on the juncture of his neck until her fangs broke skin.
She drank deeply, savoring the slightly sweet taste of Aidou's blood. She unlatched her jaws, her tongue running over the tender and still weeping wound, eliciting a shiver from the male. The skin knitted itself back together.
The whole event took less than a minute. In precisely forty-two seconds, Yuuki had gotten her fill of blood, healed all signs that she had drank from Aidou, and the blonde was back in his position three feet behind her chair.
Yuuki swept her tongue across her bottom lip, sucking up the last drops of ruby red blood.
She flushed when she turned back to Yori only to find her friend staring at her avidly.
"Sorry about that." She apologized, "I can't help it when a blood craving strikes. All I can think about is how I need blood now and I can't function again until I drink."
"That's fine, Yuuki-chan. I've never seen you, or any of the Night Class, feed before. I was . . ."
Yuuki grabbed Yori's forearm. "You'll tell me if I ever scare you? You don't need to keep me company every day if you're afraid I might go after your blood."
"It's fine, Yuuki," she repeated. "I was going to say interesting. And more than a little intimate. I felt like I should have looked away."
Yuuki's face darkened. She coughed to clear her throat. "Yes, well, sharing blood is special among vampires. They are discriminate about who they drink from and who they allow to drink from them. Essentially, it's a symbol of trust and love, so we're very picky. We don't let just anyone drink. Kaname and I especially. The blood of a Pureblood is powerful. Kaname and I drink from one another, but no other vampire will ever feed from us."
Yori was fascinated by the little insight to vampire life and bombarded Yuuki with more questions.
The Pureblood spent several hours correcting the misconception humans had of the vampire race. They did not burn in the sun, but its rays were irritating and capable of making them ill. Purebloods could handle sunlight the best of all the classes, but any vampire that lived long enough could build up tolerance.
She had been surprised to learn about the synthetic blood tablets the Night Class had been consuming at the Academy. It relieved her to know that they weren't snacking on the students and somehow wiping the memory of them being bitten from their minds.
Yori had asked why Yuuki wasn't taking the blood tablets and sparing her friends from having to be on hand twenty-four seven to sustain her. The Pureblood Princess had stuttered as she replied she couldn't keep it down. She had not been appreciative of Yori's likening it to a human's morning sickness.
When she looked at the situation objectively, Yuuki could admit her body rejecting the fake blood was the vampire equivalent of a human's morning sickness. But Yuuki ignored the similarities. The lack of morning sickness was one of the perks of vampiric pregnancy, the other being the shorter gestation period, and the expecting mother was in no hurry to think of the one side effect she would have hated had she still been human.
"All vampires have a unique ability," she explained to Yori, who was now leaning across the table and listening attentively. "Aidou can manipulate ice and Akatsuki fire. Purebloods have more. Kaname is capable of anything he puts his mind to. Sometimes, when his mind wanders, he accidentally burns holes in the walls."
Yuuki couldn't help but giggle, recalling all the occasions in which her brother had done so.
"What about you?" Yori asked.
"Me?" Yuuki's giggles end abruptly.
"Yes," her friend pressed. "What can you do?"
Yuuki hesitated, unsure if she should answer that question. Kaname had warned her to be careful with her powers, how she utilized them and who she informed about them. She glanced over her shoulder at Aidou. The blonde was calm and collected.
She turned to face the honey haired girl again. If Aidou wasn't freaking out, Yuuki figured the knowledge was safe to share. If Kaname didn't want the knowledge out, Aidou would have been frantically making excuses as he pushed Yori out of the room.
"Well," she began slowly, "I'm good at breaking memory spells. Kaname-nii-sama is really good at them, but the one time he cast it on me I had shattered it in a couple of hours. There's the telekinesis. Watch."
Yori's brown eyes were riveted on the papers scattered across the table that shuffled together to form neat, organized piles. Not once did Yuuki touch them physically. They moved of their own accord.
"Amazing," she whispered.
"And I can still use Artemis."
Yori reeled back at that revelation. "How? I thought that was an anti-vampire weapon? You said those types of weapons hurt a vampire when they touch one."
Yuuki shrugged, unable to explain the phenomenon. "I don't know why it doesn't hurt. I had fully intended to never touch Artemis again. It was pure accident that I did. It was on the ground and I unthinkingly picked it up. I think it's because of my mother. I know she could wield it too."
Her hand was drifting to the hip the silver rod was holstered on. Yuuki snapped out of her daze when Yori spoke, snatching her hand back as casually as she could.
"That was careless of you, though, Yuuki," her friend scolded. "I think I need a drink."
Yori stood on unsteady legs and crossed the room to the wine counter. She returned with two wine glasses half full of a dark red wine.
Yuuki tried to protest that she didn't need the 'liquid courage' but Yori shoved the glass in her hands. "I know you don't but I do. A toast," she stated. "This is your year. You're getting married, becoming a queen, and having a baby. Cheers, Yuuki."
The Pureblood smiled, tapping her wine glass to Yori's. "Cheers." Bringing it to her mouth, she drained it quickly.
Yuuki knew instantly that something was wrong.
Her vision swam, quickly fading to black. She could vaguely hear Aidou shouting, but she couldn't make out any words. It was like she was underwater.
The last thing she saw before she fell unconscious was Yori's face, alight with pain and eyes swimming with tears that fell freely down her cheeks.