Vampire Knight: Innocence

Night 22. Battle

Night 22

Battle

The snow fell from the sky, slowly submerging the earth below in a beautiful blanket of white. In anyone's eyes the snow might have been a breath-taking sight but to Zero it was a bad omen. Yuuki had been hunted in the snow – twice. And the Kiryuu Family was murdered in snow. The once joyful and playful cold weather was now a sign of bad luck. But in honesty, Zero didn't know what else could go wrong...

He'd already abandoned Kira. Already separated himself from his now resurrected twin and decided to leave Cross Academy behind him. There was just one thing that he had to do. Well, three things. The first would be to cut ties with Yuuki. The second would be to sign over everything to the Hunters Association and the third would be to hunt down dear old Grandpa...

The first was now laid before him. Behind a wooden door. Alone in a room with another. Zero knocked loudly and waited for Yuuki to open the door. She opened it quickly and greeted him with a smile.

"Zero," she grinned. "I'm glad you're here! The Chairman just called and told me that Kira's heart got started again and that she's alive––"

"Kira is dead," he snapped quickly. His violet gaze drifted to Yuuki, "Kira isn't Kira and I want you to stay away from her."

"Zero? Why would the Chairman lie to me––," Yuuki stopped and her eyes fell down to the old duffle bag Zero had on his shoulder, "Zero, where are you going?"

"I'm going to the Association," Zero replied coolly, "And I don't know when I'm coming back. So I need to ask you something before I leave."

"Zero, you're scaring me," Yuuki replied but Zero grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look at him, "Zero, please."

"It won't be like last time, Yuuki. You won't be able to stop me this time," he said quickly. "So before I go, I need to know," he took a deep breath. It was good. It was finally going to happen, but not the way he wanted. "Was there ever a chance between you and me?"

Yuuki's kind brown eyes widened. Zero couldn't believe that she was surprised but that was how Yuuki's brain worked. Obvious things had to be made blatantly obvious to her. Yuuki's eyes fell down to her hands and she began trembling beneath his fingers.

"Will my answer make Zero stay?" Yuuki whispered in a broken voice. Zero shook his head and Yuuki sighed, "In the future there may be, Zero. In the future we can be together."

Zero squeezed his eyes shut, "Not in the near future. Yuuki," he took a deep breath. "I'm going home," her eyes snapped to his and he offered her a very small smile. "I've been away long enough but I have to go home. So there will be no future for us now. So I will go."

"What about Ichiru-kun? What about Kaito-kun? What about Kira-chan?" Yuuki cried, she clung to Zero's jacket but he slowly took her hands off of him and shook his head, "They don't matter to you anymore?"

"They matter to me but where I am going, there is no place for them," Zero hugged Yuuki tight to his chest, "And there is no place for you. So I have to go."

"But––"

"Kiryuu," Zero turned to see Kaname standing in the doorway with that hooded figure behind him from the park.

"It's you," Zero faced the man. He remembered how he'd helped them at the park while Kira was dying in their arms, and he also remembered him vanishing into thin air, "Kira didn't make it. So we don't need you."

"You don't need to lie to me kid," he held out his hand. "And the plans have changed. You are not going anywhere, but you are coming with me," the hooded figure stepped forward and pulled out a gun. "Even if I have to take you by force."