I haven't written in awhile. On this story or any others so I feel this may be a hit or miss chapter. I knew what I was trying to get across, just not sure if it will resonate with you guys as well as I hope. Well, here goes nothing. As always thanks for your time. And I appreciate it when you read and review.

Her chest sharply rose and fell, the night's chill air burning her lungs. Her wrists ached from the crushing grip that pinned them above her head, bark digging into the back of her hands.

"Please. Don't hurt me." She sobbed.

His breath formed clouds about her face as he leaned closer, eyes of garnet burning wildly in the night. The hunger seated in them was all consuming and she soon found herself trembling despite the sting it induced to her open wound. She met those eyes with her own fear widened ones.

"Please. Stop." Her voice was a mere whisper then, the words may have well been left unsaid as they did not reach her captor.

There was only the hunger for him then, roaring through him and ripping away all humanity. His gaze was hyper focused on a thin blue line underneath the fear dampened skin before him. He felt as if he had swallowed an inferno and that cool, pulsing stream was all that would save him. Dipping his head, he moved to take in its solace.

Tears trailed down her cheeks freely as thin, frozen lips ghosted the pulse near escaping her bared throat. Fear clenched tighter, breathing becoming labored, as one hand wandered from its companion. Talon tipped fingers scraping downward along her side, her body jumped as they snagged cloth here and there.

Starbursts flashed across her vision as one clawed finger began exploring her wound. First across ragged edges, then dipping deeper into the newly exposed tissue. Nerves on fire, she struggled to break free. The remaining hand and narrow hips held fast despite it all, pinning her tighter still. Her spastic movements didn't cease until the delving hand moved up between her and the near skeletal face that loomed over her. A cry for help came climbing out her slackened jaw as the blood covered digits slid against his lips to be glossed over by a greedy tongue. She watched as near euphoria chased across the sunken features, a throaty moan escaping the man gone feral.

Stilled by the unnerving sight, only her gaze followed as he slid to his knees, hand releasing hers to find purchase around her cinched waist. Long nailed fingers scrabbled at the wood behind her as shinning canines moved towards her middle. She slammed her eyes shut against what she was sure to be her end, an intake of breath suspended within. A moment passed, then another.

Morbid curiosity chased her fear prodding her to look down through her lashes. Tension seeped away as she took in the sight. He leisurely sat on the back of his heels, gaze filled with want devouring her form. It traversed up from the wound, over the soft curves, settling on her tear brimmed eyes. Loneliness. Just a flash, but it was there. She could see the man crouched and shaken behind the thing that sat still as stone before her. A hesitant hand reached forward, suspended in the heat growing between them. Heart hammering, no longer from fear, she anxiously awaited for the gap between them to become nonexistent.

Steel grip settling on her hips, he brought his agonizingly dry lips to the enticing crimson rivulets thoroughly soaking the soft cotton surrounding it. Letting just his tongue dance over the varying textures of flesh and cloth, the essence escaping its vessel was all the more exquisite. His whole being sighed as the copper tang melted on his tongue, finally extinguishing the incessant smolder within his chest. Yet, he needed more. The heady aroma emanating from the parted skin was intoxicating, and her body heat inviting. The guttural purr from within him made its way through his mouth pressed tight against her, vibrating straight into her core.

He felt her muscles tighten beneath his grasp only a moment, his fangs quick to push through the delicate skin. When he began to drink her, the sudden feel of fingers pushing through his silver strands sent tingles throughout his form, the bruising hold softening into teasing caresses. The bitterness from fear that tainted her blood diminished, lust seeping in, the taste then caramel sweet.

She had surprised herself, melting into him, hands moving to gain purchase of the soft mess of hair nuzzled into her dress. The dull ache began to fade as he continued to pull sustenance through his bite, making way for an array of sporadic firing of nerves, pleasure beginning to blossom in its place. Soon her entire body was warm and floating. Slender hands encouraged him further, cradling his face between them, bracing him against her body until her eye lids drooped shut and he lowered her to the ground. As darkness ate at her vision, in the last minutes of consciousness, she was almost certain regret and sorrow had shone in his hastily dimming eyes.

Remorse. It clung to him as he stared down at her still body. Her chest's rise and fall was barely visible as she took in shallow breaths, a pool of gold beneath her head, limbs laying haphazardly on the damp soil. His features went sour as his gaze traveled down and over her disheveled skirts and bodice, the wound invoking a churning gut. His hunger had left him and the human that returned cringed while gazing at the torn flesh. Coming to a squat, he averted his eyes, gingerly arranging the bright colored cloth to preserve her modesty. Standing once more, he stumbled back into a tree, his thoughts lingering on what he had done. Raking a trembling hand through his hair, his boots left deep imprints as he strode back and forth. The short passes were made as he thought furiously as what he was to do.

Did he just leave her there for anyone or anything to find? Injured as she was, many a predator would smell the blood and come to find the easy prey. And when they did, she would be helpless. Her demise would be his fault and he couldn't handle the idea of her blood on his hands. Well, more of it anyway. Did he bring her back to town and return her to her father? How could he possibly explain what had happened? That would be an amusing story. Hi, I'm a vampire and I decided your daughter looked delicious. Sorry. I may have taken a bit too much. I recommend plenty of rest and holy water if she decides to wander about at night. If anyone knew what he truly was, the hunter's association would immediately be informed, and he, would be hunted. Yagari, his mentor, would hunt him. There would be no chance of survival. But, if he honestly thought about it, did he deserve that chance? Vicious, parasitic creature that he was? Again, he looked down at her, face screwing up in disgust as he finally made his decision.

He was glad in this rare moment for what he was, for it brought him greater strength. Incapacitated as she was, she would have been quite heavy to throw over his shoulder as he did then. The increased ability to see with the overcast skies was also a point for his preternatural side. Pupils fully dilated, he was able to pick through the downed trees and barren bushes as he maneuvered her form around it all.

He silently counted his blessings once he came to the edge of town. There was not a soul to be seen and nearly all the lamps that normally threw a soft glow across the stone walkway were extinguished. It was easy to stay to the shadows as he moved steadily back to the inn. Unable to walk through the front door, he made his way to the window of his room. Lowering the still unconscious girl to the ground, he pushed at the pane that he knew was still open from earlier on.

He found that getting there unseen had been the easy part as he was faced with how to enter said window carrying his burden. After hefting her back into his arms, the balancing of her prone form proved to be a challenge. Careful to protect her head and ever mindful of bending her limbs in the wrong direction, he lowered her feet first into the room.

He had nearly lost his footing trying to tip toe around the girl, afraid of mangling fingers or treading on long locks. Soft curses floated in the dark by the time he had finally gotten them both inside and her comfortably positioned on his bed. Flopping down into the high-backed chair, his exhausted body sprawling over it, legs outstretched before him, he attempted to catch his breath. Hands running over his tired face, he thought long and hard about what to do next.

He was tempted to make haste leaving the girl in his stead, the night's payment for the room at her side on the small oak table. It was the path of least resistance and less likely to end in a public lynching. But, his guilt, steel chains that they were, tethered him to the overstuffed chair cushion. After all her undue kindness, he needed to make sure she would be okay. Removing his coat, he settled back into the chair fixing concerned amethysts on her near motionless form. The tedious task of monitoring shallow breaths while running through what he would say to her come the time, proved to be too much. His head began to lull, eyes closing in the candlelit room, and he fell into a dark and formless sleep.

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His spectacled eyes followed her quick passes and stiff movements as she hastily packed a sizable brown suitcase.

"Yuki. What happened?" He asked calmly as she stuffed clothing into the open bag.

"He's a monster. I should have listened to Zero years ago." She mumbled more to herself than the man who sat in her desk's chair hands loose, arms braced on his knees, silently waiting for her to continue at her own pace.

Picking up the delicate glass encased rose, a gift from the pure blood, she turned it about this way and that, eyes studying the bud.

"The cruel things he said to me." The words uttered, more in disbelief than anger, were soft, near inaudible.

Quiet moments drug on before she moved purposefully to the waste basket tucked in the corner of the room, discarding it without a backwards glance. Biting her lower lip to keep it from trembling, she grabbed her well-worn rabbit and shoved it into the already over flowing confines. Flipping the lid closed, she began to struggle with the straining zipper.

She had done well in holding on to her composure until then. The loss, the hurt, the loneliness all came crashing in as she wrestled the plushie whose one long ear had gotten caught in the zipper. The tears came first, then the trembling, then finally the defeated sounds that had the only other occupant in the room up and sweeping her into his arms. He held her as she sobbed every horrible detail into his shoulder, fingers wrapped tightly into one of his god-awful sweaters that she thought only grandpas should wear. But in that moment, she couldn't think of anything better. The scratchy wool, indecipherable whispers of consolation, and the smell of fresh baked cookies. Once her eyes had dried, and his shirt could have filled an eight-ounce glass if rung out, he took her hand in his.

"Yuki. As much as I understand the cause of your pain and your need to be as far away as you can from him right now, running isn't the answer." Taking a slender finger, he lifted the delicate chin pressed deep into her chest. The look he found was one of displeasure. "I'm not saying you need to stay with him. As your father, I actually forbid it." A brown loafer clacked against the wood floor as his literally put his foot down on the matter. This earned him a ghost of a smile. He returned it with a brighter one of his own.

"Don't worry. I won't be seeing him anymore." She was tugging at her sleeves when tears began to flow again freely.

"Hey. Hey, hey, hey." The bewildered man pulled her into his chest again, not sure what had pricked the tears once again.

"We have to find Zero." She whimpered up into his concerned face.

"Of course we will." He said, petting down wild strands of hair. "Don't you worry. First thing tomorr-" His words were cut off by the startlingly strong grip that had hold of his shirt.

"You don't understand. Now that Kaname knows I don't love him, he will go looking for Zero." Her eyes were filled with terror, breath quick. "He'll kill him."

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Startled lilac eyes flew wide to the sensation of cool metal beneath his chin. Gaining his composure, his eyes slowly focused moving up the arm to find the young girl's face contorted in anger looming above him, Bloody Rose clutched tightly in her grasp. He swallowed, the barrel moving along his adam's apple with the motion.

"What are you!?" She gritted through her teeth, jaw mottled white with the tension.

"Just calm down. I can explain everything." His hands rose high above his head, open wide in submission.

"You think you can just explain away why you bit me!?" The gun pressed harder and his air lessened. He felt as though he would push through the chair's back trying to avoid contact with the deadly weapon.

"Look, I tried to get you to leave me alone. But you insisted on following me." The click of the safety was her response. Zero's mouth went dry and he damned his lack of tact.

"I never wanted to hurt you. I don't want to hurt anyone anymore. That's why I'm out here in the first place." He straightened up in the chair, careful in not making any quick movements. As he lowered his arm, he changed its trajectory ever so slightly, grasp aiming for his gun. His subtle move to disarm her halted as quick as his words with the added pressure to his throat. Hands shooting back in the air, he felt the sting and his ear went deaf as one round went into his shoulder, lighting it afire.

"What. Are. You." She spat. Tired of being nice, and tired of being held at gunpoint, with his own damned gun no less, he let all pretense melt away.

"I am a beast." His words were calm and his gaze steady. "One that looks like one of you, that wears a human disguise. I walk the night, hunting and feeding on the living."

Her brows furrowed in confusion before melting into anger.

"You must think I'm a complete idiot. Trying to scare me with some other world bullshit won't do a damn thing but make me kill you quicker. I ask you again." She dropped the barrel to square up with his knee. "What…the hell…are you?"

Despite her aggressive stance, he could smell the fear roiling off her. There were tracks down her face where Zero knew tears once traveled and if he hadn't been at gun point, and shot, he would have probably felt a great degree of remorse for. Given the current situation, that feeling was only a mere twinge

"I've already told you." He replied dryly. The chair's arms splintered under his grasp as she fired into his knee, before turning it to the hollow of his throat. A silent demand for his confessions.

"Whether you choose to believe me or not is up to you, but I told you nothing but the truth." Eyes going cold, he sat as still as the dead, pain be damned, waiting for the blonde to decide her next move.

They sat there in their stale mate, arms over head, pistol and hand extended, for a few minutes or more before he saw it. A slight tremor rippling down the tiring arm. A split second and he was moving, arm easily knocking the gun aside, the young girl scrambling for it as soon as it hit the floor.

A lightning strike had the girl trapped beneath him, his stronger body astride her. The impact of being crushed between his solid form and the cold floor stole the air from her lungs sending her into a coughing fit. Thoroughly restrained and terrified, tears slid form the corners of her eyes as she waited for the worst.

Zero's grip on her wrists loosened as she ceased to struggle, his ire leaking away to leave frustration and indecision in its place. He didn't want to hurt her anymore. Never had wanted to in the first place. But she had been persistent. And he had hurt her. Then he did bring her back and watched over her while she slept. But she had shot him. With his own gun. Twice. The scale was not tipping in her favor.

Weight anchoring her to the ground, he released her hands in favor of running his hands through his already brawl disheveled tresses, dispersing some the tension building the more held her captive. Each thud of her heart, felt through every part of him touching her body. The loss of blood wasn't helping matters either. He was near starved and his body was trying to heal at super human speeds. He needed to feed. He wouldn't give in. Even as the scent of her freshly reopened wound found his nose, he held tight to his civil mind.

A quick growl and he glanced down at the unnervingly still girl. She reminded him of a small rabbit, hunkered down in the tall grass, praying the fox would pass her by. He could only imagine how scary he looked in that moment, eyes of scarlet, lips thinning to make way for exceptionally long and pointed canines. Not to mention the night's earlier occurrence. Heaving a deep sigh, eyes closed to center his thoughts, he spoke to her.

"Are you okay?" His voice was placid as possible given the enormous amount of adrenaline pulsing through him.

A wary glance was all he received.

"Are you going to attack me if I let you up?"

Sapphire darted in the direction of the lost weapon.

"I swear to you, you won't need that. But, if you can't promise me you can stay calm, I'm not letting you go." He stared down into her pretty face, colored dark with disdain.

"I don't like keeping you like this."

She merely looks at him in a disbelieving manner.

"This wasn't in my plans. I wasn't looking to hurt you, or anyone else for that matter."

Blonde brows rose in defiance of the remark.

"I am truly a monster. An animal unable to control his true nature. One that should be put down." Sinking off to the side of her, he let his arms go limp. "I am a coward. I cannot do it myself. Perhaps I shouldn't have fought you. Perhaps you can do what I cannot." His eyes linger on her a moment before drifting to ever present, cold comfort then back to her.

Sliding out from his injured leg, she scoots across the floor never taking her eyes off him. He doesn't move, he hardly breathes, just waits. Holding it in two hands, she comes to her knees, lining her sight with the middle of his forehead. Breathing steady, Zero closed his eyes in anticipation.

"Ichijo. Have you found him yet?" Kaname questioned his right hand, long thin body lounging on his office couch. His eyes were hidden by a protective arm slung over his face.

"No, my lord. But, we are still looking." The blonde vamp lingered near the door, afraid to be within arms' reach. It was never a good idea to be that close when their master was in a foul mood. The steady gaze he held with the hidden face swiftly dropped to the floor as vibrant eyes were unveiled.

"It has been weeks since he has gone. A stray returning to the streets, and we, of noble blood and power cannot find him?" Kaname had brought himself up to this full height as he spoke.

"I'm terribly sorry, Lord Kaname for our feeble attempts." A crisp bow accentuated the sincerity. "I shall go myself, right now, and continue to search for him if that would please you."

Ichijo could feel his skin give beneath the slim claw that ran beneath his chin, turning his face upward into that of his master's. Obediently, he gave the undivided attention that was sought.

"What would please me is if that creature had never been able to live." A deep gouge was left in the blonde's cheek after a flick of the pureblood's finger. Wiling himself still, he focused on the glowing eyes of his master.

"Headmaster Cross knew exactly what kind of disaster could become of harboring Zero. Yet his pacifist ideals won out over sensibility. I have tried to live in peace amongst the human kind. I try to lead you in the same manner." Ichijo shivered as Kaname trailed the back of his hand across his cheek, creeping upward.

"But, you will always have those who do not follow." The same hand wrapped itself tightly in the blonde mop.

"Those who will not bow." Ichijo felt as if his head had been torn clean off with the way Kaname had ripped his head downward, forcing submission, before tilting the blonde's head up with a gentle hand.

"And it is these few that bring the chaos to this world. I am done trying to cohabitate with them without dissonance. The rules will be enforced. The guilty shall be punished. And Cross will be taken down with them if he chooses to stand in my way."