Chapter 16: Memories and Unpleasant Decisions

A/N: I know it's been nearly a year since I've updated, and I've nothing but my sincerest apologies for that. A lot of you have been asking if I would be continuing this story, and yes, I will not leave it unfinished. The story has already been plotted to an ending at about 20/21 chapters, and I will definitely complete it, so please don't worry~! Again, sorry for the delay, here is a short, but hopefully satisfying chapter to quench your thirst, and there will be longer chapters to come~! =)

~Start Chapter~

Zero slammed a fist down on the table in frustration.

"You can't ask this of me! You know that!"

Seated in a leather chair on the other side, and directly in the line of Zero's ire, Kaien Cross looked contrite for once, as if he genuinely felt sorry for what he was about to do to Zero.

With a regretful tone, he replied, as calmly as possible, in fear of adding more fuel to Zero's already very visible wrath. "I know, but my hands are tied. You're the best hunter we have, Zero, and we need you to be alongside Valerian in case anything goes wrong."

Zero groaned. He ruffled his hair in annoyance, only making it even messier than usual and started pacing about. "What could possibly go wrong though? Don't you think it's a little bit excessive having me guard him in a celebration for a simple school anniversary? Besides, if it really came to that, you know that Valerian can take care of himself!"

"I know, but no matter how capable Valerian is, the fact remains that he is still a very prominent ascendant of a powerful royalty line. We can't afford to be overly lenient on security. Having you by his side will not only help to fulfill the role of protecting him, but also wouldn't be overly awkward for Valerian, since he's on such good terms with you. Both of you can still very much enjoy the night, I'm not asking you to go into full blown bodyguard mode here, just stay by his side, just in case." Kaien said, tone reasonably persuasive.

Zero stared at him for a moment, and then he heaved a deep sigh and slumped down on one of the two chairs put at the front of the table.

Both were silent for a moment, before Zero dropped his head into his hands and muttered: "I don't really have a choice here, do I?"

Kaien shook his head. "No, not really."

Zero shook his head, an almost depressed aura in the way of his movement. "Fine." He gritted out. With that said, he pushed himself up, avoiding eye contact with Kaien as he did so, and turned, obviously preparing to storm out of the room.

Kaien's voice stopped him in his tracks though. "For what it's worth, it's not really your fault, you're just following orders. Like I said, as long as you stay near Valerian, you can still have your own time and you can still enjoy the night."

Zero stiffened, and twisted his head just enough that he was looking at Kaien. An almost sardonic smile played on his lips.

"You know full well that he won't be seeing it like that. And good luck on actually trying to get him to come near me once he learns of this. He will be beyond furious. You know that."

And with that said, Zero strode out of the office, slamming the door as he did so.

Kaien could only sigh, head dropping back as he did so.

Kaname closed the file in front of him, eyes glinting dangerously as he did so. He tapped his fingers on the table, an expressionless mask on his face.

The silence grew, but Takuma simply sat calmly opposite his friend, knowing that Kaname was taking his time to consider and process what he had just read.

Kaname's fingers stilled abruptly, and he laid his palm flat out on the table before he turned his head to look at Takuma. "Are you sure that this is totally reliable?" He asked. His tone betrayed none of his emotions, nor this his face, but Takuma knew him long enough to be able to spot the worried gleam in his eyes.

He nodded, almost regretfully. "Yes, I'm afraid that this information is from one of our most reliable sources. I've asked Kain and Aidou to check out the story, just in case, and their findings were the same."

Kaname's gaze swept to the closed file. After a moment, he sighed softly, but then immediately, his shoulders tensed up as he looked back at Takuma, his gaze hard and determined.

"Very well then. Take our usual precautions. Send Rima and Shiki out as scouts to find their base, and ask Kain and Aidou to keep a look out during the dinner party. The Council's team should be fully alert, and ask them to be prepared to execute Plan Delta in the worst case scenario."

Takuma nodded, and asked: "Should we tell the Chairman and Zero about this?"

For once, there was hesitation on Kaname's face. But it was gone after a moment. "No. Keep this quiet, for now. We don't want to cause panic, not now that we're so close to the school's anniversary."

"Is this wise? Wouldn't it be better if we had their help? This way, they won't be unprepared." Takuma said, tone soft and imploring.

Kaname remained silent, which was enough of an answer to the blond.

Takuma sighed, and stood up, making his way to the door. With a hand on the doorknob, he turned, looked his friend right in the eyes and said: "I know you care for Zero, and that you want to protect him. But what would he think if he knew that you deliberately kept him in the dark? You, of all people know how capable he is, and that he could more than protect himself." When Kaname remained silent, Takuma gave sighed in resignation. "If you really don't want to tell him, at the very least inform Chairman Cross about it, he has the right to know, Kaname."

With that said, he turned and left. The door shut with a soft click.

Behind him, Kaname let out a frustrated groan and swept the file off to the floor.

What should he do now?

Zero leaned against the tree trunk, feeling the scratchy sensation of the rough wood bark through the thin material of his shirt. His school blazer and tie was thrown somewhat haphazardly beside him, and his sleeves were rolled until his forearms. He unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt, tugging at his collar as he did so, and dropped his head back against the tree with a heavy sigh.

Someway off, he could see Lily standing in the middle of the field grazing, the sunlight falling onto her and making her white body glow with an almost silvery tinge. He stared at her for a moment longer, not really thinking about anything in particular, and then, he averted his eyes and stared off into the distance.

It had been a hectic and odd few weeks for Zero.

Ever since Yuuki had found out about his and Kaname's relationship nearly a month ago, things have gotten somewhat complicated. He had initially been wary of Yuuki's reaction, not knowing what might happen now that Yuuki knew that he was actually dating her older brother, but his fears were laid to rest when Yuuki merely smacked his head when he saw her the day after during breakfast, and loudly proclaimed how angry and disappointed she was that Zero and Kaname had actually hid their relationship from her. But then she hugged him, and with a muffled voice, said "Welcome to the family" to him.

He had hugged her back just as tightly, even as he would deny it vehemently later, when Chairman Cross spoilt the moment by sniffling loudly into his handkerchief and proclaiming that he was glad to 'see my boy all grown up'.

With both Yuuki and the Chairman knowing about them, it seemed as though Kaname had chosen to forego all pretense of them being merely friends and decided to just drop their act in front of everybody. The brunet vampire had stopped censoring his actions and conversations, and had instead treated Zero with such affection that anyone could easily see that the two of them were lovers. While Kaname had no problem smiling at Zero, holding his hands, and even kissing his lips chastely in public, Zero found it difficult to reciprocate his actions. He was just too tense to behave like how he did with Kaname when they were in private, and even though his mind was telling him to just reach forward and hold Kaname's hands while they were walking through the school together, his body was refusing to respond.

It had frustrated him at first, and he had hesitantly apologized to Kaname for it. But his lover (and oh god, the mere word 'lover' still had him blushing) was quick to reassure him that he understood Zero's personality, and he didn't need any public displays of affection for him to know that the feeling is mutual. Then, when it was obvious that he was still feeling awkward and guilty, Kaname had just held him tight and peppered feather light kisses all over his face, lips and neck. All the while murmuring "It's alright" until Zero himself relaxed and melted into Kaname's embrace, his body trembling from feeling the intensity of both their emotions towards the other even as the kisses remained soft and loving.

Never once did their mouths open, just closed and fleeting kisses dropped onto his lips by Kaname, but the memory itself still remained as one of the most intense moments that Zero had of the two of them as lovers.

That was probably also the moment that Zero realized that he was actually madly in love with the man.

The realization helped him with his phobia of public PDA somewhat, and he could now be kissed without tensing up, and there even had been rare occasions of him being the one to instigate the gestures between them. It was nothing major, just a few lingering touches to Kaname's arms and fleeting hugs. But it was a far cry from the time when he would flinch whenever Kaname touched or kissed him in front of other people. Once, he had even reached out to brush away a stray leaf clinging onto Kaname's hair, petting slightly when he did so, while they were in front of both Day and Night class students during class changeover. Kaname had then pressed a soft kiss to his forehead, murmuring his thanks, and Zero was glad that he had then been relaxed enough by then to not instinctually shy away. In fact, he had actually leaned into Kaname's space, and brushed his lips against Kaname's cheek.

This was a simple, and yet rare display from Zero, and it obviously both stunned and pleased Kaname, as evidenced by the widening of his eye and the bright grin that he directed to Zero. His eyes had darkened, even as he leant forward and murmured a deep "Later" into Zero's ear, the sultry tone and the obvious implications had left Zero blushing a magnificent shade of red.

The girls had been an absolute horror to subdue later, and Zero can't help but wonder why they were the ones who were so excited by him and Kaname's relationship.

But it was a fond memory, and it brought a soft smile to Zero's lips even as he lost himself in his memories and thoughts.

It had been that particular night that Kaname asked him to go to the anniversary dinner with him, while they had finished dinner and were just lounging about on Kaname's bed, with Zero reading a book for his test the day after and Kaname trying to distract him by placing kisses at the back of his neck.

"Zero?" Kaname asked, even as he placed his head at the nape of Zero's neck, breathing in deeply and savouring the unique and distinctive scent which was wholly Zero's own.

"Hmm?" Zero replied, too immersed in his books to fully register what his lover was doing.

"Will you go with me to the anniversary dinner?" Kaname asked, his breath tickling the edges of his ears, and Zero had just nodded along distractedly, not hearing what had been said.

Kaname had obviously noticed, because he bit down hard on Zero's earlobe, earning a yelp from the silver haired hunter. Lapping softly at the small trace of blood from the wound that he had caused, and enjoying the taste of Zero's blood, Kaname was pleased to note that his plan had worked, and that his lover was now closing the book and turning over to glare at him.

Kaname was now hovering over Zero, but even with the obvious disadvantage at their positions, Zero's glare did not falter at all in its intensity. Kaname merely chuckled, and said: "You were ignoring me. Did you even hear what I said just now?"

Zero's eyes softened at that, and he ducked his head apologetically. "Sorry."

Reaching out and playing at the silver hair spread across his dark satin pillow, Kaname decided that he really liked the image of Zero sprawled across his bed, because Zero just looked like he belonged there, and this satisfied the somewhat primal urge of possessiveness in Kaname's heart, and made his inner vampiric self just purr at content and pleasure.

Zero blinked at him, and Kaname realized that he hadn't repeated his question yet, and Zero was waiting for it.

Looking Zero straight in his eye, Kaname asked again: "Will you go to the anniversary dinner with me?"

Zero frowned, and Kaname felt his heart drop. Was it too much? He wondered, feeling quite despaired.

"We are already both going, aren't we? Why ask?" Zero replied, and Kaname realized that for all of Zero's intelligence, he was actually pretty slow when it came to such matters, and had apparently not caught on to Kaname's meaning.

The relief and joy that flooded him as he realized that Zero wasn't rejecting him had Kaname swooping down and ravaging Zero's lips, both amazed and slightly disoriented at the same time at how Zero could make him feel so much in such a short span of time.

When he leaned back, Zero's face was flushed enticingly, his lips a swollen red which left no doubts to the fact that he had just been kissed senseless. He looked utterly debauched, and Kaname loved it.

"No, you idiot." Kaname said, his tone affectionate. "I'm asking you if you want to go with me as my date."

Zero's eyes widened. "Date?" If possible, his blushed even harder.

Kaname smiled, stealing a soft kiss from Zero as his lover remained speechless.

"Yes, a date. As in, we will actually be attending as a couple, in which I think we are obliged to do all sorts of couple-y things during the event itself." Kaname intoned, his face a picture of stoic and absolute composure.

This broke Zero out of his reverie. He chuckled helplessly, clinging slightly onto Kaname's arms on both side of him. "You just said 'couple-y'!"

Kaname smiled. "Yes, I did. I think Yuuki is getting to be a bad influence." Yuuki had been pestering them to spend more time together and go out on more dates since she found out about them, claiming that they need to do something 'couple-y'.

Zero half snorted. "Yeah, I guess she is."

So far, under Yuuki's insistence, both Kaname had Zero had actually gone on four more dates. Once to the zoo, once to the funfair, once to a romantic candle-lit dinner by the lake sponsored by the Chairman, and once to the cinema.

Except for the dinner, the rest were utter catastrophes.

They escaped the zoo when the animals started going ballistics when Kaname accidentally slipped and released his murderous vampire aura when a guy attempted to hit on Zero. The funfair had Kaname reluctant to board the Ferris wheel, and Zero was chased away when he managed to hit the target every single time during the games. Both were nauseated at the sheer amount of sickeningly sweet couples feeding each other bright pink candy floss while fawning like idiots, and they decided to just leave and spent the remainder of their afternoon lazing around and trading kisses in Kaname's quarters. The cinema was too loud than was comfortable for both of their sensitive hearing, and after a particular loud explosion that had both of them wincing uncomfortably, they had left the theatre and went to a small bookstore café instead. The remainder of their time was spent in comfortable silence as they sat opposite the other around a small table, with cups of coffee in front of them as they read the books they had picked out.

From then on, they had stopped taking Yuuki's suggestions altogether, both content and satisfied with what they usually do together.

Kaname was still looking down at him expectantly, waiting for his answer, and slowly, Zero nodded.

"Really?" Kaname asked, his voice actually sounding breathless.

"Of course, you bastard. I would love to be your date to the school anniversary." Zero replied.

Kaname's smile practically lit up the whole room, and Zero could see that he was about to thank him so he just pulled Kaname down by the neck and swallowed his gratitude with a fierce kiss.

Zero just loved that he and Kaname could be so unreserved around the other. And he loved how Kaname was so unguarded when he was with him. It almost seemed as though the pure blood was a different person, because without his calm and composed façade, Kaname actually smiled and laughed more, and Zero was glad that he could be a person that could bring up such a side in the usually serious vampire.

And Zero also loved the him that was with Kaname. Kaname could make him smile with just the simplest things, and Zero couldn't even begin to remember the angst and loathe-filled person he was before the war. He was more relaxed now, and actually more prone to enjoy himself.

Sometimes, he thinks that both he and Kaname have finally allowed themselves to enjoy the happiness and freedom of youth that they haven't been able to have, and this was all because they have each other.

And all the time, he knows that they make each other deliriously happy.

He couldn't really explain it, but he just feels as if he fits with Kaname somehow. The sense of completeness and peace that he feels when the other is by his side was a feeling that Zero had came to be rather acquainted with, and it's also a feeling that he won't ever get tired of experiencing.

And god, if that wasn't a sign of how infatuated he is, then Zero could think of nothing more to describe it.

Dropping his head back to the tree with a resounding thunk, Zero groaned in frustration. He had hoped that by taking the time to think things through and calm himself down that he would be more prepared to face Kaname, but it had just made him feel even more guilty and depressed.

The memory of Kaname's face—the pure and raw expression of elation and slight disbelief—when Zero had agreed to go to the dinner with him kept surfacing, and Zero would willingly do anything to make Kaname smile like that every day.

And the thought that he would soon be wiping away that smile with just a simple sentence just made Zero's stomach drop, even as an unpleasant feeling twisted around like a poisonous snake in his gut.

How am I supposed to tell Kaname?

~End Chapter~

A/N: I'm going to be evil and end this chapter in a cliffhanger filled with angst! XD

I know this is a short chapter, and there seems to be a lot of unanswered questions, but rest assured, everything will be explained in the next chapter, and we will be having more of Kaname's POV then. Meanwhile, I hope that you guys liked it, please read and review~! 333!