A/N: Hello everyone! Once again, I'm back! I'm sorry for the long long loooong wait, but there were many things going on the last couple of months... First and the major one is that i was having a writer's block (typical, i know...), and then there is this family thing that made me kinda... well, down, i guess :/ Then there is this thing with my keyboard and monitor, they were broken... Thankfully my big bro bought me (with my mom's money, he's not that generous) a new one, and i had to call for a tech guy to see the problem with my monitor, turned out that the VGA was loose, lol I don't know the first thing about tinkering with computers so, well yeah... I don't even know what a VGA is, or if it's supposed to be spelled that way, but oh well... At least it's all good now!

So, i gotta warn you guys, I'm not that great of a writer, and I won't be able to upload chapters frequently like other authors who can upload once every week! Writing is hard, let me tell you... So I hope you guys understand :)

ForgetfulMangoes: Thank you for the review! And sorry for the late update :( To answer your question... well, I think it's safe to say that they're gone, but Shizuka didn't kill them... It's something else and... it's complicated (I don't even understand why they're gone, I'm still processing the idea) XD Sorry, anyway, here is the next one! Enjoy!

kana234: Thank you so much! And here is the next one, enjoy!

Skylar18: LOL thanks for the review, read on and you'll find out what happened! Enjoy!

irmina: Thank you for the review! Their history together is complicated, and it would get even more so in the future, but I guess you just have to read on and find out ;) Enjoy!

Kai Hoshizuki: Thank you for the review! lol you're funny XDXD *huggles you back* Enjoy this chapter, there is a bit of something going on in the end!

For everyone else who reviewed, thanks a lot guys! You are all very flattering in your own demanding, silly way XDXD

Warning(s): yaoi (slash), AU, OOCness, grammatical errors, future lemon (I think… XD)

DISCLAIMER: Vampire Knight (still) belongs to Matsuri Hino! UUUURGH _

"Talking"

Flashbacks/dreams/Thought

Enjoy!

Chapter 3: The Bond Reawakens

"What?" Zero asked Kaien in shock.

There was no way Kaname was… that strong pure-blooded vampire was… dying? He didn't even know that a pureblood could be dying!

"Zero, he's in a weakened state now. If you don't save him…" Kaien trailed off. He feared that the pureblood might never wake up.

Zero looked bewildered. Of course, why wouldn't he? The chairman said that only he can save that pureblood! How ridiculous. Zero bit his lips.

Yet…

"…you aren't messing around with me like you usually do so that I befriend him, are you?" Zero asked quietly, searching for any lie in his eyes.

"Zero, do I look like I am kidding right now?" Kaien said. It was the first time Zero heard him speaking so seriously. It really must be an emergency.

But why wait until we finished breakfast? Why not before when I was preparing the meal? Hell, why not last night? Is it because of Yuki? Why keeping it a secret from her? Surely she should be the first to know, he's important to her after all, that was Zero's train of thought as he contemplated his options.

"Why wait until now? Why not before, if it's as urgent as you said?" Zero asked Kaien finally. He was trying to dig up as much information from Kaien as possible until he knew what he was dealing with.

Kaien sighed heavily and leaned back against the wall like Zero, seemingly trying to choose the right words to say.

"You see, Zero-kun… His condition IS critical. But…" Kaien trailed off, he didn't know what kind of words to describe the thing that happened to Kaname Kuran.

"But?" Zero pressed on.

"Ah, yes. You could say he is in a comatose like state. Or at least, that is what Seiren described; unmoving, eyes closed and breathing very slowly, his heart rate is barely audible… We don't know what happened to him, yet, but we, well, I figured you could be the one to save him, Zero." Kaien explained the best he could, because he was also at a dead end there. He tried to remember all the vampire books, but there were only so much he could remember, until it all went blurry. Besides, there weren't so many books talking about a vampire's illness, he could count all of them with his fingers. After all, vampires don't get sick. It was the first time Kaien ever encountered such a case, a severe one at that. Given his lack of preparations and knowledge, the only thing he could think of was that it had something to do with a bond.

A blood bond. He didn't know for sure, but a blood bond was the most logical answer. Especially since Kaname had once said something about a 'curious and inseparable bond between me and Kiryu-kun'. He needed to ask more about that when Kaname was in a better condition. After all, Zero was still his son, blood related or not, and Kaname should have told him about the bond if it was indeed true, as impossible as it was. There was no way that Kaname and Zero had a blood bond. But he didn't want to miss any chances. Everything should be taken in to consideration, no matter how strange it was, because he feared Kaname's condition could get worse. And they needed him to control the vampires.

"But why me? If even you know only so little, what makes you think I know all the answers?" Zero finally asked in desperation. Why was it always him? He'd got nothing to do with that pureblood, but whenever something happened concerning him, Zero was always caught in the middle of it.

"It's something that we can discuss at a later time, a less critical time," Kaien said reassuringly.

"And that would be…?" Zero asked, raising one brow with doubt. Kaien smiled and pat his shoulder slightly.

"After Kaname-kun is back to his normal state, of course," Kaien said cheerily.

"As normal as he can be, I guess…" Zero muttered under his breath.

"What was that, Zero-rin? Ah, never mind; just go to him, Zero-kun. The sooner we find out what happened to Kaname-kun, the sooner you'll get your explanation," Kaien said.

Zero looked skeptical, and then he sighed. He couldn't believe, of all the vampires who worshipped that Kuran royalty, it had to be him. Zero feared his life would soon turn into a drama Yuki always watched every weekend with Kaien.

"Fine. I will go and see him. I will try to see what happened to him, but nothing else. If it's something that would, say, make me have to do something really stupid for him, I'm out," Zero promised begrudgingly. Kaien smiled in relief at that.

"It's alright, Zero-kun, I assure you, you won't have to do something you don't like," Kaien beamed.

Zero rolled his eyes, feeling doubtful about Kaien's words because he said it himself that he didn't know for sure what was happening to the pureblood. He walked out of the house and slammed the door so Kaien knew he was not entirely sincere about this. He was getting really soft.

Honestly, he should stop watching those dramas with Yuki and Kaien.

"I'm telling you, the chairman asked me to see your stupid king! Now let me in!" Zero said, his tone increasing to a yell.

"I don't like your tone, and don't you dare call Kaname-sama STUPID!" a certain blonde haired, blue-eyed young man yelled back to Zero.

Zero exhaled slowly, his patience running thin. He then said slowly," Aido-senpai, please, the chairman asked me, specifically, to go see Kuran-senpai . You see, I've got no choice! I need to do this, and please, I need to see White Lily!" Zero finished with a desperate yell. He just wanted to see Lily.

"Wha—Lily? What's this gotta do with your damned horse?!" Aido asked incredulously. Zero was a bit taken aback that Aido knew of his horse, but well, who wouldn't know about the peculiar and aggressive mare who only listened to Zero?

"Everything! Now move or—"

"—What's going on here?" suddenly another voice was heard. Zero stopped in the middle of his sentence and looked behind Aido and saw who it was.

"Akatsuki! Help me out here!" Aido yelled back to his cousin, his face morphing into that of triumph. He thought that with his cousin's help, they would both finally rid themselves of the stubborn hunter. How wrong he was.

"What? No." Kain deadpanned. Aido was about to wail like the baby he was when Kain shut him up with a shove on his big mouth—which made Aido sputtered indignantly after, he then turned to Zero who was preparing himself to lash out at Kain too, in case he also didn't want to let him in. That stupid chairman better paid him back good after this. Oh, he was already thinking about the many ways he could do to torture the chairman when he got back.

"Oi, Kiryu." Kain called, snapping Zero out of his thought about how he wanted to torture Cross for dragging him in that mess in the first place.

"What?" Zero snapped viciously, he was not in the mood for dawdling; he just wanted to get in there fast, and leave even faster. He was in an even worse mood after his little 'situation' with Aido a few moments ago.

"No need to be bitter about it, let's go." Kain said simply and gestured him to follow the tall vampire. Zero looked surprised but followed the man nonetheless. The two left Aido looking shocked, confused, and betrayed by his cousin. Serves him right, Zero huffed.

"Hey, where are you taking him? We shouldn't let him in! Kaname-sama might get angry!" Aido yelled at Kain and Zero who were walking to the grand staircase.

Kain stopped and slapped his forehead. He forgot that Aido shouldn't know about it. He turned back—after telling Zero to stay put—and dragged Aido to the nearest empty room—it was an unused storage room.

Kain began, "Look, I need to talk to him about something—""I can come with—" Aido interrupted.

"—in private." Kain finished. Hanabusa looked like he was about to whine, and Kain patted him on the shoulder.

"It's important and just between him and me. Hanabusa, you have to understand. It has nothing to do with the dorm president at all, so don't worry." Kain lied smoothly, a reassuring smile on his face. He didn't even know what he was saying, the words just came to him, flowing like water. He was a great liar, really.

Aido looked a bit unconvinced," Really? Is something going on between... *sigh* Whatever, I don't want to know. Anyway, what if he was being stupid and attacked you?"

Kain sighed softly, he knew his cousin was only worried about him—and maybe because he just hated Zero with, he didn't know, he couldn't tell. But still, if Aido knew about this, he would panicked and alerted the whole dorm, and everything would be in chaos.

"You know he won't, he isn't that low. He has a big pride," Kain said reassuringly," Oh, and there is this package coming. The delivery man said it's for you. Maybe your chemistry stuff?" Kain added to ensure his escape. He knew how much of a science geek his cousin was, he would do experiments at the underground lab he had—courtesy of Kaname Kuran—for hours to even days with no sleep and blood pills. Sometimes he admired his cousin for his—unhealthy—dedication—obsession, really—to science.

"Seriously?! Where is the package now?" Aido squealed, his eyes were positively sparkling with joy. The distraction was successful.

"I think they are at our room. You should get them down the lab, though, they smell and I don't want to touch any of those things you ordered." Kain said with a winced, they were very smelly. What did his cousin ordered?

"Oh, yeah, they're just some stuff to try on the new blood pills, you won't be interested on them. Okay, I'll go then, bye!" Aido said excitedly and dashed back to his room. It was still morning, he knew he should be resting, but he couldn't wait to test his new theory for the blood pills. Hopefully they would turn out better than the last product. Any thought about Zero was gone at that moment—he was too busy thinking about his new experiment.

"Well that would keep him for the whole day." Kain said to himself, proud of his accomplishment in distracting his cousin. Sure, Aido looked like he was easily distracted; but actually, he is as sharp as a knife. It was hard to distract him for someone who didn't know his hobbies. Even Kain could count with his two hands the times he had successfully distract his genius cousin.

Remembering about the hunter on the lobby, he hurried back to him. As he returned, he could see that Zero did as he was told, he stayed there at the spot Kain left him the whole time, with an annoyed look on his face.

"Took you long enough," Zero said rudely. He wouldn't even care about his manners right now.

"It's hard to distract him," Kain said simply," Shall we?" He gestured for Zero to follow him up the stairs.

"Where are we going?" Zero asked Kain after a while, they were walking through corridors and stairs—the Moon Dorm was that big—and after a few short turns, they went through more flights of stairs and corridors.

"Why, to the dorm president's rooms, of course. You think the only one who knows his condition is Seiren?" Kain asked Zero, he looked back and smirked. Zero was taken aback and just stared back evenly as they kept on walking. Kain chuckled and turned back to face his front again.

"Well, the first one to notice Kaname-sama's condition was me actually," Kain began, "You know, right after we went back to the dorm, I noticed he was breathing heavier than usual, but he kept his expression on check so that no one would notice. I really am amazed by that particular skill of his," Kain shrugged and continued," and then he went back to his rooms earlier than usual, he always stayed a while to chat and whatnots, but yesterday he just… well, he was just off his track."

Zero looked intrigued by what Kain just said and kept on listening for more," Then what happened to him?" Zero asked like an eager child wanting to be told a story before their sleep.

Kain hid his smile at that and continued for the sake of the hunter," After he went to his rooms, they're on the highest floor and you could say that floor was served only for him, so that's why I called it 'rooms' instead of just one dorm room. More like a penthouse really. Anyways, I ignored the signs at first, thinking it was just one of his 'bad mood' days, you know," Zero huffed at that, yeah, he had experienced one of those… interesting events, in which the pureblood was even more nasty in his choice of words and sometimes to the point of leaving a stinging feeling inside Zero.

Zero paid his attention again when Kain continued on," But after that, I just wanted to give him the reports about the night class activities for the week—we always do that weekly—when I heard a thumping sound in his study room. I thought he just dropped something, but then, have you ever seen him being so clumsy? Of course not, so I immediately opened the door, to see him already lying on the ground, almost lifeless." Zero perked up at that. So it was that bad?

Didn't have anything to say, Zero just asked the first thing that came to his mind," Aren't giving reports like that the vice president's job?"

Kain raised his brow at the question but answered anyway," Ichijo was… occupied, at that moment, so he asked me to deliver the reports instead of him." Ichijo was such an otaku sometimes, so he couldn't help himself when he saw his package—filled with dozens of manga—at the sofa he usually sat at in the common room.

But Zero didn't know of Ichijo's tendencies, so he just looked confused.

"Anyway, after that it all went, well, hectic I guess." Kain finished with another shrug.

Zero was silent for a few moments, contemplating on the information he had so far. So, not only did the pureblood faint inelegantly, which was a first, he was also in a coma-like state, and no one knew what was happening to him. Not much, but he just had to make do with what he had. Even if there was nothing to make do.

"So, how many people know of this?" Zero asked Kain awkwardly, honestly, it was the first time did he ever talk to one of the vampire students without hissing or growling or even yelling.

"Only Seiren, Ichijo, the chairman, you, and me. The rest still believed that he was still sleeping and not in any real danger at all." Kain answered while stifling a yawn. He didn't sleep because taking care of Kaname was obviously number one priority.

"I see. So that's why you need to distract Aido-senpai. he would just make things worse, huh?" Zero said. Kain just hummed in agreement.

Both vampires continued on another flight of stairs and then Kain stopped when they reached the top. There were no rooms whatsoever, just one giant expensive-looking mahogany double door.

"We're here." Kain finally said, gesturing at the double door.

"This is Kuran's floor?" Zero asked. He was awed by the look of the large pair of doors. It was huge and Zero could only imagine what was inside that door.

"Yep, now hurry up, come in." Kain said and opened the door for Zero, like the gentleman he was raised to be—it only showed in certain occasions only, though. Zero blushed, he almost heard the imaginary sound of Kain saying "ladies first" just like what he saw on movies countless of time—a comic relief, really.

Inside the double door looked like he was in a luxurious mansion, and not the Moon Dorm. There are rooms, yes, but unlike the rooms below where everything is lined up neatly in a row, it was really like a luxurious penthouse. In front of where Zero stood was a huge living room with comfortable looking sofas, soft carpet and all, on the right was a door that led to who-knows-where and a luxurious staircase. On the left was a kitchen, from what it looked like, because the door was left hanging open.

"Come, his bedroom is upstairs." Kain beckoned Zero to follow him again.

"How come he gets all this?" Zero asked skeptically while following Kain.

"Well, he IS the pureblood king, for one," Kain threw an amused sideways glance to Zero. Zero frowned at this.

"And also, the Dorm President has… quite a temper, when he is in the mood so, he chose to have a space for his own—a large one—when that kind of event might occur." Kain finished, not quite sure if it meant that he was indirectly insulting the pureblood or not, especially inside his own living space.

Zero snorted at what Kain said," so he tends to destroy things when he's mad? I can imagine that. He IS quite the spoiled king, from what I see."

Kain chuckled slightly," he does, and yes, I think so too," he whispered the last part and continued," but don't tell that to Hanabusa or Ruka, it won't be pretty," he then smirked at Zero's "I've experience that first hand."

Kain led Zero to a room in the second floor, next to it was another mahogany door, which Zero assumed was Kaname's study room, since the one they were about to enter was Kaname's bed room.

"Why is it left open?" Zero asked Kain curiously, and the kitchen downstairs was left open too.

"So we could hear if something happened to him from downstairs, since his room was sound proof," Kain answered with a shrug, he seemed to like doing that.

Convenient if you wanna kill or torture someone, Zero thought.

"But now that I think of it, it could alert the whole dorm if the dorm president was groaning in pain or whatsoever... Oh well, at least he hasn't make any sound yet..." Kain thought out loud. Zero shook his head in disbelief, how laid back this guy could be?

Then he was abruptly brought back to reality by what he saw on the bed.

"He really is in a coma," Zero mumbled almost incoherently and stepped closer to the bed, but not that close.

"He looked better than when I first found him," Kain said, almost shocked by the change. Before, Kaname's face looked as if he hadn't slept in months, with dark circles, limp and dull hair, and his skin was as pale as paper.

"He still looked terrible, though," Zero said. He was shocked by the amount of concern he put in to those sentence.

Kuran Kaname was there lying on his huge comfortable bed, unconscious. It was kind of funny to Zero, how the pureblood looked very vulnerable like that, and no defense whatsoever. Then he was also a bit concerned, what if some vengeful bastard knew of his condition and decided to take his revenge on him? He seemed like the kind of guy that would be targeted to that kind of action all the time, after all, he was quite a jerk. That was a huge understatement.

"Speaking of, this is quite a huge and dull looking room. I peg him to be the extravagant type." Zero commented nonchalantly, hiding his concern behind the blandness of his voice. Well, it was a dull room, Zero wasn't wrong about that. He thought Kaname's room would be much more luxurious; full of super expensive ornaments, imported carpets that would cost Zero his lifetime, a huge family painting, and a huge painting or photograph of himself—because Zero thought that Kaname was a bit of a narcissistsometimes, and a big luxurious fireplace with a moose head on top, just like in movies.

But that room was… boring. It almost had no furniture at all, just Kaname's huge king size bed, a wooden table on its side, a full length mirror—I knew it, he was a narcissist, Zero thought—and two wooden chairs with a coffee table near the balcony. The color of the room was also very dull, Zero thought Kaname would prefer golden color, but it was grey, all around. The floor wasn't expensive marble or nice mahogany wood; it was normal, everyday people's tiled floor, albeit looking slightly more expensive.

"Well," Kain finally said," you might think it's strange when his other rooms look so luxurious and all, but he actually—Kaname-sama!" Kain sputtered in disbelief.

Zero blinked and looked at the bed, he too, was surprised.

The damned pureblood moved in his bed. He was awake.

"What are you doing here, Kain? It's still so early in the morning, you should be…" Kaname trailed off, looking quite shocked when he finally noticed Zero.

"…sleeping." He finished with a surprised whisper. Never, in his wildest dream, had he ever hoped to see his precious Zero in his room. He thought the hunter hated him. At least, that was what he originally thought, when he first saw Zero glared at him days after they saw each other for the first time since Rido turned him. But now, looking at the Zero who looked equally surprised as him, he wasn't so sure. Suddenly, a glimmer of hope returned to his heart.

"Kiryu-kun," he started coldly—he hated keeping on his cold mask in front of Zero, but he had to,"tell me, what are you doing inside my private chamber?" Kaname finished with a freezing stare. He knew he must have hurt Zero some way by doing this, and he hated the fact that he had to keep the play going. And he also hate the fact that Zero thought he hated him for real, and in turn, hated him back.

Zero was startled when Kaname started speaking, and at the end of his hurtful question, it made Zero's stomach churned in and unpleasant way, and he mistook it for anger and frustration.

"Well, I thought you were going to die, Kuran, so I decided to spare a little bit of my precious time to see how your death coming. Oh, and of course, to laugh at you at your last moment. But sadly, that isn't going to happen anytime soon." Zero finished with a sneer.

Kaname flinched inwardly at Zero's tone, and at his words. See? He knew he would be angry and hate him even more. But that time, what confused him worse was the fact that Zero said he was going to die. Now, what was that all about?

"Kain, what did he mean when he said that I was going to die? Did something happen when I was asleep?" Kaname decided to ask Kain who was too shocked when he heard Zero said those hurtful things at his king. Thankfully he didn't seem to be all that mad at Zero.

"Dorm President, you weren't sleeping," Kain said slowly. He continued when he saw Zero snort," I found you fainting when I was about to give you the weekly report of the night class. Well, more like I heard rather than saw you fainting. I heard the sound of something dropped inside your study room, and then when I went inside… well, it was you."

Kaname was silent for a moment and then," Who else knows about my... recent accident?" he asked.

Kain, already anticipating the question, answered with certainty," Only the Chairman, the vice president and Seiren. Kiryu here just found out today after his breakfast. Chairman Cross informed him of the situation."

"…I see." Kaname said, not knowing what else he could say at that moment.

"Actually, it was quite peculiar. Your condition, I mean." Kain finally said.

Kaname raised an eyebrow and asked," How so?"

Kain coughed and explained, "I mean, Seiren and I tried waking you up the moment we put you down to your bed. We tried shaking you, yet you didn't wake up. We tried, well… hitting you," Kain looked sheepish at Kaname's unimpressed expression and Zero's concealed amusement," But it healed moments after, don't worry, your healing power still works and it didn't even make you flinch. But it was a miracle that no one heard the loud hitting sound, though… Oh, probably because we closed your sound-proof door. Anyway, what I found strange is, the fact that you clearly was in a coma and wouldn't wake up after all the things we tried to wake you, yet you woke up moments after Kiryu was here. Was that only a coincidence, or…?" Kain trailed off at the end, leaving the obvious question hanging in the air, as if waiting for it to sink in Kaname's and Zero's mind.

"What do you mean? He's got nothing to do with me. There's no way that, by some magical bond between us, which I found very impossible to happen in the first place, he woke up when I was near him!" Zero exclaimed, sounding like he was trying to assure himself more than the two others at the room. After all, what he just said was very ridiculous and very impossible to happen. He was sure of that.

Or maybe not at all…

Hearing Zero's outburst, Kain and Kaname when quiet.

For one, Kain was actually thinking about that possibility. Honestly, the way Kiryu said it was very illogical, but dead on the spot too. Maybe there was a chance that Kiryu and Kaname-sama had some kind of bond between them, but what? From as far as Kain could tell, the only bond which was that strong, strong enough to wake a person out of their death bed was the blood bond. And as Kain could recall, Kaname-sama had given his blood to Kiryu to maintain his level D status, so he wouldn't fall into a level E any sooner. But what he didn't know was, if Zero, in return, had given his blood to the pureblood. After all, if he didn't, it would only be an incomplete bond. And an incomplete bond couldn't do what had just happened.

But, Kain thought, would Kaname-sama really want a bond with Kiryu? After all, He gave his blood to Kiryu because he had no other choice back then. Because Kaname-sama wanted Kiryu to keep protecting that Cross girl. And then another thought struck into Kain's mind.

Or did Kaname-sama hid something from him? From all of them? Something that concerned the hunter, even though he looked quite oblivious about it. Something very big that, Kain dared to think, would change their lives in the future.

How true he was.

Beside Kain, Kaname was thinking something different entirely. A wistful thinking, perhaps, we could say. How he wished Zero would understand how true his statement was. They shared a bond which he knew could transcend space and time. Literally, it could, considering the hundreds of years he spent waiting for his love to reawakened. Yes, Kaname would wait such long time for Zero, anything for his one true love. Yet, because of Rido, that blasted vampire, everything that he had been building for, everything that he hoped to happen in their future together, vanished. Ruined. Broken to pieces. And he could not dare to hope that they would return to him. All because of one small mistake.

Kaname snapped out of his depressing train of thought when he heard Kain's awkward cough.

"Ah, I'm sorry. I was just… thinking about something." Kaname finally said apologetically. Kain raised one fine eye brow, while Zero was looking at him with an unreadable expression on his face.

"You didn't seriously think about what I just said, did you?" Zero asked, crossing his arms in a disbelieving manner.

Kain looked sheepish because that was what he was thinking, but Zero couldn't see it because he was in front of him, closer to Kaname's bed—Zero didn't want to step any closer to the pureblood than he already was, hell, he was already in his bedroom.

Kaname looked at Zero with his—pretend—blank stare," Of course not, Kiryu-kun, that would be ridiculous. Besides, who in the right mind would want to have any kind of bond with you?" Kaname said coldly—even though he didn't mean it.

Zero looked slightly hurt at that, but Kaname knew he was suppressing a lot more than that. He knew how his words hurt his beloved Zero, but he didn't have a choice. He had to keep pretending to hate him until Zero was ready to know the truth. And he feared it would be long long in the future. He couldn't bear the loneliness and hurt much longer. He wanted, no, he needed his Zero NOW.

"No need to be insulting about it, damned purebloods always show the utmost respect to those lower than them," Zero grumbled sarcastically, trying to hide his hurt—even though his voice was shaking.

Zero wouldn't want to admit it, but that had hurt. That had hurt a lot more than he expected it would. Lately, everything Kaname said to him—insults, really—hurt a lot more than it should. As if he didn't want him to do that anymore, as if he wanted the pureblood to say nice things to him, as he always did to Yuki. And as if… as if he wanted Kaname to do sweet things to him, instead to Yuki.

But he couldn't say that. He wouldn't even want to believe he thought such things. That pureblood? Nice? To him? Those words didn't even belong in the same sentence.

But if Zero must admit, he had been feeling strange lately, especially when he was around the pureblood. He felt like he was familiar—in a good manner of speaking—and close to him. As if there was a part of Kaname that belonged to his past. Zero knew how he didn't remember much of his childhood, he knew his first memory that he remembered was when he was first rescued by Kaien in the middle of nowhere in winter. And he knew the first memory of the pureblood he had was when he came to Kaien's house to meet Yuki. But he felt as though he knew him from even before. From the long lost memory.

Kain looked back at Zero, he winced when Kaname said those words, he knew that it wasn't meant for him, but he still felt it. He knew that must have hurt Kiryu in some way. What he saw was almost heartbreaking. To a normal human, or any ignorant vampires—which was a lot—the hunter looked perfectly normal, even slightly pissed. But to Kain, he looked absolutely broken. He could see the slight tremble of his lips, the glassy eyes almost filled with tears. He knew how strong the hunter was, how brave and prideful he was, and he knew, by the tight fists Zero kept on his sides, that he was fighting the urge to let out his emotions.

Suddenly he felt sorry for Zero.

"Um, so… You are awake and well. Maybe we should go and leave you to rest." Kain said to Kaname, he was about to usher Zero out of the room to avoid any more conflict, when Kaname stopped them.

"Wait." He said commandingly.

Zero looked at him with a pissed, questioning look.

"What now? I thought that my presence is unwanted here," Zero sneered. What could the pureblood possibly want now? He knew that damned Kuran didn't want him there, and that's good. He just wanted to go to his beautiful white mare and sleep on the soft pile of hay with her. Or maybe he just wanted to insult me one last time, that stupid jerk, Zero thought.

Kaname ignored Zero's sarcastic question and looked at his trusted subordinate in the eye. Kain looked back unwaveringly.

"Kain, I need you to go and wait outside. When I need you, I will call for you," Kaname told Kain. Kain looked unsure; he honestly didn't want to leave the hunter alone with his dorm president right now.

"Alright, I'll go, then," Kain obeyed reluctantly, he didn't want to feel the wrath of Kaname right now. He looked at Zero apologetically and went outside.

"Wha—I don't wanna be left here with him!" Zero started and moved to follow Kain when he felt that he couldn't.

"What the-! You bastard! Don't you use your stupid power on me! Let me go!" Zero yelled at Kaname. That Kuran jerk used his stupid pureblood power to control his body!

"I apologize, Kiryu-kun. But you need to stay and listen to me," Kaname said coldly.

Maybe it's time… I could feel it, he is starting to remember. The bond is getting stronger too, could this mean…? Kaname dared to think. Maybe Zero was starting to feel it too. The longing…

Kain, who hadn't closed the door completely, looked puzzled. Maybe there was something after all. He sighed softly and closed the door, effectively shutting out all the voices inside the room. They're both completely alone now.

"What do you want, Kuran?" Zero sighed tiredly. He was sick of being played around like some toy by Kaname. He had used Zero to protect Yuki, getting the hunter heart broken in the process—because his beloved sister was in love with the thing he hated the most, and he also insulted Zero whenever he had the chance, and always constantly reminding Zero of his status. His kind had taken everything away from him, what could he possibly want? Zero had nothing left!

Kaname, seeing the frustrated look in Zero's face, stood up from his bed with a little effort—he was still recovering. Zero took a step back when Kaname got close to him. He didn't want to take any chances with the pureblood. Oh, it seemed that he could move again. Was Kaname's control slipping because of his exhausted state? Zero felt relieved, but slightly concerned at the same time. And he hated that feeling.

"I need to see your hunter's seal," Kaname said simply and stepped even closer. He released his binding because he felt disgusted with himself, how could he control his beloved's body against his wish?

"I don't think so," Zero countered, stepping back even further until his back was against the wall. Damn it, Zero thought. He was trapped between the wall and the pureblood. Kaname pressed both of his hands on both sides of Zero's head and stepped closer, until their chest was only an inch apart.

Too close! Zero screamed in his head, but he kept his glare on his face so that he didn't show his weakness. No, not in front of him.

Kaname breathed in Zero's scent. It'd been such a long time since he was this close to his love. He almost succumbed to his desire to kiss Zero, but remembered his objective.

"I just need to make sure of something," Kaname whispered on Zero's ear. Zero shuddered as his soft breath tickled Zero's sensitive ear. What had gotten into the pureblood? He was never this… intimate. Zero's cheeks flushed red at the word; they were never close, what's the change of attitude? It made Zero suspicious. And what the hell did he want to make sure from his seal?

Before he knew it, Kaname was already tilting his head gently to the side with his index finger, exposing his creamy pale neck. Kaname's eyes shone bright red at that, but he struggled to regain his control. Now was not the time to scare Zero even further. He looked at the tattoo on the side of Zero's neck and his eyes widened.

"What? Why do you look so shocked?" Zero asked desperately, he pushed Kaname's intruding finger away from his chin and rubbed at the side of his neck which bear the hunter's seal.

Kaname let out a relieved breath, and Zero could see a hint of happiness on his face. What made him so happy? Zero turned and saw the full length mirror he noted before when he entered the room for the first time, and walked there. Kaname didn't even stop him.

Zero tilted his head so he could see his neck clearly. He gasped at what he saw.

Instead of the seal, Zero found himself looking at a beautifully intricate white rose.

DUN DUN DUNNN! So how was that? I made it extra long for you guys, to make up for lost time! Once again, I'm sorry for the lateness, YOU'VE GOTTA UNDERSTAND!

...sorry for that XD

Anyway, I apologize if nothing is going on yet-besides the short intimate moment at the end of course! Squeeeee~~

I promise there would be more in the next chapter (even though i don't know when i would be able to upload it...) Sorryyy :(

Alright then, please review!