Like it says on my profile, I like yaoi but I lOVE gender benders and this started as a random thought. Random thought became an idea and the idea was put on paper and before I knew it, I'd written a chapter and a half already.

I've never read a Vampire Knight fanfic where Zero was a girl and I'm sorry to those who like the Yuuki/Kaname pair, but no. For some reason, I'm okay with Zero and Yuki being together but girl or boy Zero/Kaname seems more entertaining.

But that's my opinion.

Well anyway, ENJOY! :3

Vampire Lady Knight

Chapter 1: Zero's beginning

Numb.

That's all I felt.

Completely numb...

I could hear what Cross was telling the brown haired girl in front of me, yet I couldn't comprehend the words spoken really. It was like they were talking while I had cotton in my ears. And I could see clearly, yet I was in a fog.

Of course it was understandable with my mind still drowning in the incident hours previous.

Flashes of what had happened came through my vision but after seeing it the first time around live in action, I didn't react.

I was just numb.

The girl, Yuuki? Was that her name? What'd she just say? Oh. She was asking to touch me to take me to the bathroom and clean me up. She was very gentle with the warm wet wash cloth when cleaning the blood from my neck.

Almost two weeks.

It'd been almost two weeks since I was brought to live with Cross and Yuki. I wasn't feeling as numb, but I still hardly reacted to anything and I'd yet to say a single word.

So there I was, in the kitchen, chopping vegetables for a stew.

It was Thursday night.

Ichiru and I always made dinner on Thursday night. Sometimes with a little help from mom. But... neither of them are here anymore.

Last Thursday night when I tried to cook for the first time in Cross' house, he wouldn't let me at first. But after I threw him a specifically cold glare, he backed off. Then later he and Yuuki complimented the pasta I had made for all of us.

"Kaname-sama!" Yuuki cheered from the hallway.

I looked over to my left at the front door to see her jump up and hug some guy that actually looked a bit like her. As soon as she was put down, she ran to go tell Cross that "Kaname-sama" was there. He suddenly looked over at me. Seeing his fangs, I accidentally cut my left index finger on the last chop before I froze. I sawhis eyes turn red for a second when he smelt and saw my blood, but that second was all it took.

As soon as I saw the red eyes, I saw that... woman standing in his place.

I charged with the vegetable cutting knife clutched in my hand with a shout. This time... This time I wouldn't just hide helplessly and watch her kill my family!

She clasped a firm grip on my wrist but not before I'd cut that very same palm and just when I was about to pull my wrist free-

"Zero-chan!" I heard Yuuki shout.

Suddenly, I was back in Cross' house. My eyes locked with redish brown eyes. I dropped the vegetable cutting knife in surprise and it clattered to the floor.

It wasn't her.

She wasn't there.

She'd already killed my family.

My eyes watered just before my face felt wet and I got angry. Clenching my fists and grinding my teeth, I pound my left fist against his chest a few times, not caring that I was making the cut on my finger bleed faster. By the time I'd realized I'd stopped hitting him, I was sobbing into his shirt.

And he let me.

I paid no mind to his arms wrapping around me or picking me up and taking me to the living room couch to sit in his lap. He calmly rubbed circles on my back and felt my sobbing come to an end as my eyelids grew heavier.

I woke lying on the couch with my head in his lap as he stroked my forehead and played with my hair. I looked at the clock to see I'd been out for half an hour. I turned my head to look up at him and blinked my half-lidded eyes.

"Are you staying for dinner?" I asked tonelessly.

"If you don't mind." He said just as tonelessly.

With that, I got up without another word to make the stew, barely noticing Cross and Yuuki's surprised looks.

(Kaname's POV)

This child was interesting to say the least.

She first appears to be a boy, but that's intended for her protection just as being turned human was intended for Yuuki's protection.

Zero...

When she charged at me, her eyes filled with hate, she was a skilled hunter for someone so young. Though, I guess from a human's point of view, the same could be said for me as I am but only three years her senior. Ten years of age and she was able to cut me. Me. A pureblood vampire. When Yuuki called out to her, the hate in her eyes vanished and surprise and confusion took it's place. Surprise and confusion faded as tears of pure anguish flowed.

She sobbed pounding her fist with the bleeding finger against my chest.

She was angry with herself because I wasn't the one who hurt her so.

I wasn't the one she wanted to kill.

This child may be just as understanding of my situation as my sister would be if Yuuki Kuran were conscious.

No.

Forget about the "may be".

Zero understood the feeling completely.

Seeing both Yuuki and Cross' surprised stares at Zero, this must've been the first time she'd cried in front of anybody.

Holding her close and picking her up, I took her to the living room couch letting her cry it all out as I rubbed circles into her back. Cross and Yuuki joined us in the living room, still with their surprised expressions, as Zero fell asleep. She was exhausted from crying just that much. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that was her first time crying ever.

As I laid her on the couch on her side, resting her head in my lap, Cross told me how she hadn't said a word since she got there and hardly reacted to anything for more than a second.

It made me understand why they'd been so shocked.

As I somewhat absentmindedly stroked Zero's forehead and played with her shortly-cut silver hair, Cross and Yuuki told me of the events over the past couple of weeks. This included Zero's apparently traditional, as far as Cross could tell, Thursday night cooking and how yummy the pasta Zero made was last Thursday.

Yuuki's words, not mine.

After about thirty or so minutes, I felt Zero's head shift in my lap and I looked down to see her blinking somewhat tiredly up at me.

"Are you staying for dinner?" She asked tonelessly.

"If you don't mind." I said just as tonelessly.

Without another word, she got up and went back to the kitchen.

I almost laughed at the new expressions of shock that Cross and Yuuki held after first hearing Zero speak. I fallowed Zero to the kitchen, for some reason, and found her cleaning the vegetable cutting knife she'd cut me with. When it was clean, she took out a wash cloth from one of the drawers and dried it before dabbing her still slightly bleeding finger now that water had touched it.

Her blood...

It was more than just inviting me to take a taste...

Intoxicatingly so...

I didn't even realize I'd approached her until I was gently holding her wrist high above her head from behind, her bleeding finger a couple inches from my lips. I stared at it and the crimson liquid leaking from the small cut blankly before looking down at her. She was just staring up at me, blinking blankly and confused. Not in question of why I was staring at her blood, but why I hadn't tried to taste it already. I'm a vampire after all.

"Is it alright?" I found myself asking.

Zero just blinked up at me cutely confused, most likely wondering why I'd actually asked instead of just taking a taste seeing as I could've done so without her premission as my hand clasped her wrist and she wouldn't have really been able to stop me before I'd gotten a taste already. But slowly, she nodded her head.

I gave her a small smile in thanks before looking once more back at the vampiric wine she was allowing me to sample. I brought her hand hardly a centimeter from my lips and deeply inhaled the sent her blood gave off. Looking down at her with my eyes, I licked the drop that was starting to leave a crimson trail down her finger. I was looking her straight in the eye as I took my time with her taste. The tops of her cheeks turned a light pink and she lightly pinched her lips together when my tongue stroked againt the cut. I sucked a little on the cut and she gasped, closing her eyes a moment before opening them half lidded. She began to tremble slightly as the light pink gracing her cheeks turned such a pretty rose color.

Giving the cut one last gentle lick, I decided I'd had enough fun. As soon as I'd loosened my hold on her wrist, she pulled her hand down to her chest and she'd looked down at her feet away from me. Somewhat timidly, she picked up the vegetable cutting knife and went back to the stove, chopping what was left of the vegetables on the sideboard.

"... May I watch you cook?" I asked.

I didn't know why at first, but Zero intriged me to no end though I'd only just met her.

Without turning to me, she nodded and resumed her work.

Now, since I'd stayed for dinner, I can honestly say that Zero can make a might fine stew.

After that, Zero spoke regularly and reacted to things with, stronger than, cat-like reflexes. But she kept a bit away from me some of the time.

So she can be shy.

How cute.

A couple weeks later, after having to leave and spend a few days meeting with the council, mostly concerning Shizuka Hio's disappearance. I went back to Cross' home. It was nearing Christmas so when Cross let me in, I went to the living room to find Yuuki hanging some orniments on the tree and Zero on the couch stringing popcorn and cranberries together. Zero only gave me a glance before resuming her work while Yuuki put down the box of orniments and ran over to give me a hug.

It was Thursday again so Zero cooked dinner that night and had Yuuki join her in making chop suey and after dinner we all went to the living room. Yuuki watched cartoons siting in front of the TV, Zero sat to my left on the other end of the couch silently reading Tuck Everlasting, and Cross sat to my right in his own chair talking to me about a making a place, a school, where children of both humans and vampires could live together in harmony.

Two days later, I offered to stay with Zero and Yuuki while Cross had to go meet with the Hunters Society about said school.

Yuuki was dancing around in front of the TV to "Under the Sea" watching The little Mermaid.

"Where's Zero?" I asked curiously as Cross was hurriedly putting on his coat to leave.

"She's still sleeping." Cross said with a sigh. "When I tried to wake her up this morning, she just glared at me telling me to shut up and that she wasn't hungry." He said with anime tears.

"Pfft!"

I couldn't held back a laugh hearing that. Of course, when I was able to stop, both Cross and Yuuki were staring at me surprised seeing as neither of them had ever really seen me laughing before.

I cleared my throat and gave a light cough saying, "I'll go wake her up."

Finding Zero's room, I knocked but didn't but didn't get any answer. I opened the door and there's Zero all curled up like a cat half under the blanket and snuggling into her pillow.

I smile.

She really can be just so cute.

"Zero..." I said softly but loud enough for her to hear. "Wake up Zero."

Zero rubbed her faced against her pillow tiredly before her eyes fluttered open, looking up at me. She blinked up at me before pulling her blanket up over her head.

I heard a muffled "Go away" from underneath.

I raised an eyebrow before tugging the blankets away and throwing her over my shoulder and taking her downstairs.

"Hey!" She protested struggling from my hold with no avail.

"It's nearly noon." I said. "It's about time you get up."

"At least let me get dressed first!" She said angrily.

Stopping midway down the stairs, I nodded and turned and went back to her room and when i put her down, I noticed her polyester pajama pants with purple ribbon along the trimming and the matching spaghetti strap top.

"Nice pajamas." I said smiling.

Zero glared at me blushing with a cute pout and grumbled, "Cross got them for me because he somehow found out my favorite color... Most likely from Master Toga."

"And that's your favorite color? Lavender?" I asked.

Zero nodded turning to her dresser before looking over to me curiously, "What's your favorite color?"

"You'll probably think it typical of me, being a vampire, but it's red." I answer.

Zero nodded saying, "That is kind of predictable."

What I didn't tell her is that, before I'd met her I didn't have a favorite color. After I first met her, my favorite color was the light pink atop her cheeks before it turned into that pretty rose color when she let me taste her blood.

After digging out a pair of jeans and a black sweater, she looked to me expectantly with a raised eyebrow. "You gonna leave or stand there like a pervert and watch me dress?"

I felt my eyebrow twitch in irritation before I smirk, "If I'm really a pervert, maybe I should take advantage and help you undress first."

As predicted, Zero's face turned bright red before she dropped her clothes just so she could grab a pillow and toss it at me as I hurried out of her room with a chuckle.

About an hour or two later, we were all outside. Yuuki was putting on the finishing touches to her mini-snowman, Zero just watching, and I was watching the both of them.

"Zero-chan, let's build and igloo!" Yuuki said cheerfully.

Zero just shrugged and the two of them got started building up the walls of snow. When Zero tried making the ceiling, it only fell on her and Yuuki's heads. Although some snow did go down the back or Zero's coat and shirt, which caused her to start shouting and jumping around, tugging on the back of her clothes to get the snow out.

I couldn't stop laughing.

But I was forced to when a big snowball hit my face.

I blinked in surprise at Zero who looked at me with equal surprise with her body still posed from throwing the snowball. She suddenly stood straight, throwing her hands over her mouth.

(Zero's POV)

I growled under my breath when I heard Kaname laughing at me. I barely realized what I was doing until I'd already thrown the snowball.

I couldn't believe I just did that.

Apparently, neither could Kaname and Yuuki with the looks they were giving me.

The image of the vampire with a beard of snow sent the gears in my head turning.

The snow beard made me think of Santa.

Santa made me think of Kaname and his favorite color.

Those two together made me think of Kaname in a Santa suit.

So, in conclusion...

Santa Claus + Kaname Kuran = ...

I threw my hands over my mouth, but I couldn't hold it in very long.

"Pff- Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!" I pointed to Kaname. "SANTA KURAN! HAHAHAHAHA!"

Yuuki looked at Kname and, after seeing my logic, started laughing along with me.

(NORMAL POV)

Kaname could feel his eyebrow twitching again. "Santa Kuran huh?"

The two girls only continued to laugh.

He admitted he liked hearing them laugh, especially Zero as she's usually so collect, but being the subject of said laughter made him feel a bit irritated. And so, as childish as it was, Kaname threw his own snowball at both Zero and Yuuki.

Then the snowball fight began.

Later, when it was starting to get dark, Kaname brought them inside. Yuuki wanted to hurry over to the fireplace but she slipped because her socks had been wet and crashed into the Christmas tree. The tree didn't fall over but some of the orniments fell off. When Yuuki fell down, she cut her hand on the broken glass. Kaname went over to help her as she began to cry. But Zero stood frozen.

She could smell Yuuki's blood and she didn't know why. What's more worse... she liked it. Zero bit her lip and a pinch of pain woke her from her stupor. She licked her lip to find it bleeding and she had fangs.

Kaname turned to Zero when he smelt her blood to find her looking at him scared before running off somewhere towards the kitchen.

Sighing, Kaname turned to Yuuki, "Yuuki, go upstairs and take a hot bath. It'll warm you up. I've already taken the glass from your cuts and healed them enough to stop the bleeding."

Yuuki nodded, doing just that before Kaname went after Zero. He found her under the kitchen table, hugging her knees with her head down and body trembling.

Kname sighed again and went to the fridge, taking out a family pack of hamburger meat. He then took out a glass from the cupboard and drained the blood from the hamburber into it. After putting the hamburger back in the fridge, he put the glass in the mircrowave to warm it up. When it was heated enough, kaname took it and kneeled down by the table holding it in front of Zero. Zero flinched and lifted her head up. When she saw the glass of warm blood, she jumped and scrambled back into one of the legs of the table.

"I can't say I know how you feel seeing as I was born a vampire, but I know this will help you calm down a bit." Kaname said softly. "Don't worry, it's just what I drained from the hamburger meat in the fridge."

Zero warily looked back and forth from Knaname to the glass and swallowed. Hesitantly, she lifted a shaking hand and took the glass. Even more hesitantly, she brought the glass to her lips and took a small sip... then another and another after that. A few seconds later she was guzzling it down. Licking her lips and wiping the blood dripping down her chin off with her sleeve, Zero handed the glass back over to Kaname who washed it in the sink. Leaving the glass in the sink after it was clean, he went back over to Zero, who hand come out from under the table and stood fidgeting beside it.

"Feeling a little better?" Kname asked carefully.

With her hair shadowing her eyes, Zero nodded. She bit her lip, making it bleed again seeing as her fangs were still lengthened. Kaname took hold of her chin and wiped the blood away with his thumb. Looking her in the eyes, he could see she alsmost felt like crying, but instead of crying about her situation, she simply accepted it.

It's not like she'd be able to change it.

That got Kaname thinking.

"Next time you get the urge, you can drink my blood." Kaname said.

Zero's half-lidded eyes snapped wide open in surprise.

"Because you were human once, then bitten my a pureblood, you'd have to drink the blood of the very same pureblood that bit you. Doing so would make you a full-blooded vampire... If you don't-"

"I'll turn into a Level E..." Zero said quietly.

Kaname looked at her in surprise and question as to how she knew.

"One of the first things a hunter has to learn is that there isn't just one type of vampire and why that is." Zero explained.

Kaname nodded. "Drinking my blood wouldn't turn you completely seeing as I'm not the one that bit you. But because I am a pureblood, drinking my blood would prolong your urges... and make them less painful as you grow."

Zero looked at Kaname and thought about it for a moment or two. After thinking about it, she gently lushed his hand away from her chin and turned away.

"Thank you for the offer but I won't turn Level E that easily." She said firmly.

With that, she went to the living room to watch TV. Kaname stood in place blinking blankly before smiling warmly.

"I probably should've been expecting that from her." He said to himself before joining her in the living room.

There he found her watching The Nightmare Before Christmas on TV and sat next to her as the movie came to an end. Afew minutes later, Yuuki came down in a yellow turtle-neck sweater and a blue skirt just as the movie ended and the ABC Family Christmas specials continued. Zero got so bored watching series after series of Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer, she fell asleep against Kaname's shoulder. Kaname smiled at this and carefully, so not to wake her up, moved his arm around her and pulled her closer. He heard Yuuki giggle and looked to see her smiling at the two of them.

If he were not Kaname Kuran, pureblood vampire prince, he would've blushed.

An hour or so later, just when Kaname felt he himself were to fall asleep, there was a knock on the door. It sort of confused him since Cross wasn't supposed to be back until the next day.

"I'll get it." Yuuki said. "Don't want to wake Zero up."

Again, if Kaname weren't Kaname, he would've blushed.

Yuuki answers the door and a minute later in walks Yagari Toga with Yuuki closing the door behind him and fallowing into the living room. Toga stops and looks with as much surprise as he was willing to show at Kaname and Zero.

"Well this is interesting..." He said. "I've never seen Zero let her guard down in front of anyone. No one besides her brother... And here she is, sleeping right next to a vampire of all things... And the pureblood prince at that."

Kaname merely shrugged his unoccupied shoulder and said, "I can't explain it either."

"From what Cross told me, you were also the first person she said anything to since... the incident." Toga said.

Kaname nodded. "Of course, she attacked me first. She explained how after seeing my eyes turn red when she cut herself, she saw me as that woman. She snapped back to reality when Yuuki called out to her and as soon as she let the knife fall from her fingers, she broke down crying."

"... She didn't even cry at the funeral..." Toga muttered.

"I'd asked her about that when Cross told me and she said she didn't know why either, She just couldn't cry..." Kaname looked down at the silver haired girl and smiled as she snuggled into his chest. He looked back up to Toga and asked, "So what are you doing here?"

"As soon as Cross let it slip that you were the one keeping these two company, the Hunter Society council practically begged me to come here and stop you from draining their blood dry. But since two people in Hunter Society, including me, knew you'd at least never do that to Yuuki and why, I came to see if you'd drain Zero, giving me permission to kill you anyway. But seeing how she's like a kitten around you, I'd say you haven't done that yet."

"Quite the opposite actually." Kaname said looking back down at Zero. "I offered her my blood."

"What?" Toga all but gasped. "You... Why?" He asked suspisciously.

"Honestly? I don't know." Kaname answered without looking away from Zero and lifted a hand to play with the sliver hair that hid her forehead. "She started showing signs of her turning and she was scared. I drained the blood from the hamburger meat in the fridge to calm her down and said she could drink mine next time. Heh... She'd thought about it a little but in the end she replied, 'I won't turn Level E that easily'. I surprised me that I hadn't expected that."

A couple days later it was Christmas morning. Cross gave Yuuki a frilly yellow and white dress while he gave Zero an equally frilly lavender and blue dress. Yuuki had to take it away and put it in Zero's room to stop the silverette from throwing the dress into the fireplace. Yuuki gave Zero new earrings. Zero had gotten the tattoo on her neck the day before and a third ear piercing, the second in her left ear at the top. Zero gave Yuuki a charm bracelet with her first three charms, a rhinestone daisy, a heart, and a cross.

The last presents they opened were from Kaname. He couldn't be there for attending a Christmas gathering of vampires and more meetings for a week. Yuuki got a big white chocolate Christmas rose and cheered happily about it. Zero opened hers and couldn't force down the streak of pink that flitted across her cheeks and over the bridge of her nose. In a long blue case was a open lavender rose made of porceline on a silver chain.

Nearly a week later, Kaname came back but when Cross let him in, the hunter held a wide grin and silently told the pureblood to keep quiet before leading him upstairs towards Zero's room. Standing outside the door, the two could hear Yuuki and Zero arguing... sort of.

I n the room, Zero was grumbling as she pushed the frilly dress from Cross that Yuuki had forced on her off her shoulders for the twelfth time since she woke up this morning.

"Yuuki, quit it!" Zero almost whined as she tossed the dress onto the floor. "I'm not one of your dress-up dolls and there's no way in hell I'm wearing that fancy frilly wonder!"

"But Zeroooo," Yuuki whined picking up the dress again, "Kaname-sama's coming back today."

"So?" Zero questioned crossing her arms while standing there in her underwear and a white slip.

"So you need to look pretty for him." Yuuki said simply.

"Why can't I wear what I always wear? You are."

"Because it's only natural for Kaname-sama's bride to look pretty for Kaname-sama."

Zero and Kaname both blushed. But while Kaname's cheeks were a light pink, Zero's turned dark red. Outside the room, Kaname let out a fake cough in an attempt to hide his flushed cheeks while Cross was almost failing to hold in his giggles. Inside the room, Zero uncrossed her arms and held them down at her sides, looking at Yuuki heavily embarrassed and trying to cover it with anger.

"I-I'm not his bride! What the hell gave you that idea?" Zero asked.

"Eh?" Yuuki question with a tilt of her head. "But I heard Papa-Cross say is was like watching Kaname-sama asking you to be his bride when you opened your Christmas present from him."

Zero could feel her eyebrow twitch while outside the room Cross sweatdropped as Kaname sent him a half-hearted glare, blush gone.

"That doesn't make me his bride." Zero said calmly, although she was still blushing.

"But you're wearing the necklace so that must mean you want to be his bride right?" Yuuki question innocently.

With that question asked, Kaname's blush was back and Zero's darkened.

"And you haven't taken it off since Christmas morning." Yuuki said making Zero's blush spread throughout her face and Kaname smirk.

"S-So?" Zero stuttered. "That doesn't anything. Lavender's my favorite color and the rose is lavender so I wear it."

"But so is the dress so why not wear that too?" Yuuki asked.

Zero's face started steaming with embarrassement. "Well that... uh- it... It's too girly for one thing and I'm supposed to be a boy in front of others."

"But the necklace is what a girl would wear too." Yuuki pointed out innocently.

"Well yeah but... um..."

"So wear the dress and look pretty for Kaname-sama as his bride." Yuuki said holding up the dress in front of her.

"I'm not his bride!"

"Is my bride dressed for our wedding yet?"

Yuuki and Zero looked over to the door in surprise to see Kaname in the now open doorway leaning against the doorframe with Cross peeking inside from behind the pureblood.

Zero's flushed face darkened even more than before and she ran to her closet yelling, "Stupid pervert vampire!"

Cross couldn't hold in his laughter anymore.

It was around March now.

Cross decided to keep Yuuki busy at the house while Kaname and Zero went out shopping for her ninth birthday the next day. Zero was carrying the presents and streamers while Kaname was carrying the cake and ice cream. For presents, Cross had asked them to pick up the new yellow spring dress he'd picked out for Yuuki, Zero had gotten her a teddy baer charm for her bracelet, and Kaname had gotten her two things. One was a pair of white hair ribbons and the second was what he and Zero were on their way to picking up.

Kaname led Zero to an old chocolate shop of sorts. When they walked in Zero looked around seeing tables and chairs set up and people all around enjoying themselves and their treats. Shelves of chocolates and pasteries under glass by the register.

The owner was an elderly man with kind eyes and a bright smile to match, looking over to them when he saw Kaname, "Ah, Kaname-sama, here to pick up your order?" The old man asked.

"Yes and a couple of other things." Kaname said.

"Sure, just let me get your order from the fridge."

"Thank you."

Kaname looked to Zero to see her staring at some of the chocolates and pateries, licking her lips.

"What's your favorite chocolate Zero?" He asked.

Zero looked up in surprised and then down, embarrassed that she'd been caught staring. "Caramel chocolates... What about you?"

"I like chocolate covered coffee beans." He answered with a smile.

Zero nodded when the owner walked out from the back and handed Kaname a five inch wide circular box. Before leaving, Kaname bought a bag of chocolate covered coffee beans for himself and a small box of caramel chocolates for Zero.

"What did you get for Yuuki?" Zero asked.

"A crispy white chocolate snowflake." Said Kaname.

A couple days after Yuuki's birthday, Kaname left and hadn't come back for nearly four months. When he did come back, he had a quick talk with Cross before taking Zero alone with him saying he was giving her an early birthday present.

Much to Cross, Yuuki, and Zero's surprise, unlike the usual slacks and dress shirt Kaname usually wore, he came over wearing tan cargo pants, a dark green sleeveless shirt, black sneakers, black wristbands, and a gray hoodie tied around his waist. He told Zero to wear her more girlish clothes so Zero left with him wearing a light blue and dark blue striped T-shirt, a pair of jean shorts, and a purple hoodie with her regular white sneakers.

Kaname took Zero to the arcade where most of the time they were competing in the games and Zero was winning most of the time which made Kaname almost pout.

After the arcade, he took Zero to the movies and Kaname got Zero blushing bad when she asked why they were there and Kaname replied, "You're birthday present is an all-day date with me" with a smile.

After the movie they spent the rest of the day together at the amusement park. They went on several different rides before sharing chilly fries and then a sundae. They went a photo booth where in the first of the four pictures Zero had a blank face but stuck her tongue out and Kaname was looking off to the side smiling, giving Zero bunny ears. The second picture was of Kaname smiling warmly while he had his arms wrapped around Zero's waist from behind with Zero looking at the camera with a faint blush. The third photo was of Zero clutching the front of Kaname's shirt, pulling him down to her height, and kissing him on the cheek opposite to the camera and Kaname looked relitively stunned. In the last picture Zero was turned back facing Kaname so the camera got a picture of her facing sideways with most of her red face turned away from view but a clear view of her red ears and of Kaname facing the camera with his hands in his pockets, barely noticable flush on his face, looking over in Zero's direction with his eyes and a smile.

The sun was setting and people walked by unntoiced by the brunette and silverette who stood on the bridge that went over the stream somewhere still in the amusement park. Kaname was leaning back with his elbows on the railing while Zero stood beside him resting her chin on her folded arms atop the railing. Kaname was looking up at the orange sky and Zero was looking down into the darkening stream.

"You're leaving again aren't you?" Zero asked somewhat tonelessly. "For maybe loger this time seeing as you thought it best to give me my birthday present nearly three months in advance..."

Kaname sighed. "Yes... This time though, we won't be sing each other for... for a few years."

"... When...?"

"... Tomorrow."

"... I see."

"I'll be traveling alot and I won't see you again until we're both in high school. But I will see you again..."

Kaname looked over to find that she was hiding her face behind her arms and the stone of the bridge in front of her feet had a few wet spots.

It obviously wasn't rain an unexpected rain.

Kaname brought himself behind her, putting his arms over hers and closing his eyes as he kissed the back of her head before nuzzling her hair and kissing it again as a couple muffled sniffles were heard.

After Zero had calmed down, he held her hand and walked her home.

Neither said a word the whole way nor did they look at each other.

But with theirs hands clasped together, from time to time there was a light squeeze from either one or both.

Kaname kissed the top of Zero's head before leaving Cross' home.

The next day, Kaname left.