It was dark and cold out and for once in a blue moon, the fangirls had absconded from their beloved Night Class for the warmth of their heated dorms.
There was a bitter wind crashing and biting and snapping at his reddened face and Zero found himself struggling for breath. He was thirsty, so thirsty that he had trouble maintaining safe thought. But for some reason he found himself in complete and utter control of himself. The thirst gnawed desperately at him, but it rang hollow, as if it was not quite his own.
Yuki walked on the opposite side of the path, paying close attention to the back of her dear Kaname-senpai's head, her eyes doey with not-quite-requited love for her crush. Zero was sickened by the thought, but he paid her little mind, focusing his energy on trying to breathe in and out and hopefully not pass out in front of the bratty Nobles, and by each and every second he felt himself failing.
He had been sick for days, and the only thing that had kept him from snapping at every poor soul that wandered his way was the fact that he simply did not have the energy required. He felt so fucking weak, and he was disgusted by it.
They were within sights of the main building when he fell slightly against a neighboring tree, weak in the knees as he struggled to keep his balance.
It wasn't as if Kuran hadn't been feeding him blood- no, the Pureblood always made sure he had enough to retain control. No, this was not by any means similar to his normal physical torment. This was dangerous and he just knew was going to get him in trouble. And soon at that.
He was not wrong as his legs gave out and he fell to his knees with a small groan.
The Night Class had been steadily ignoring him however and continued on until Yuki noticed and gave a concerned yelp as she ran over to his side, drawing the attention of the Nobles and their beloved Prince.
"Zero! Zero, what's wrong?!"
Zero looked up at her briefly as it took a second for her words to sink in fully.
Something wet dripped from his nose and he wiped it away with his hand, staring down at it for a moment, only mildly surprised when it turned out to be blood.
"I have a headache," He muttered distantly and Yuki tried to help hoist him back to his feet but her short stature failed her and they both fell back to the ground.
"Come on, Zero. Let's get to the Nurse's Office." She urged and he nodded pliantly (which he would later deny, when and if he recalled it).
He struggled to his feet and briefly stood tall before collapsing back onto the ground, knocked unconscious from the power of the fall, leaving Yuki to deal with the Night Class alone.
He doubted he would ever hear the end of it, from her or them.
The first thing he is aware of when he comes to is the agony of being ripped apart from the inside out and the outside in as a doctor stood over him, ripping his pale distended flesh into strips with a bright shining scalpel that had probably been used on hundreds before him, doing the same thing to hundreds of women before the man was set loose on him.
Where was he?
Where was Kaname when he needed him? Surely, he should have gotten here by now!
He let loose a scream of bitter pain, where were the drugs? He needed them, and he needed them minutes ago!
He was strapped down and as his blood began to seep onto the cold metal table he began to feel the chill sink into his skin, his flesh, into his very bones. He couldn't escape it and flashes of that night that was so very long ago flooded his mind and he could hold back the tears as biting slices continued into his abdomen.
Ichiru, Okaa-san, Otou-san. They were all gone and all he could feel was the biting cold and then the harsh bite that had ended his humanity and made him into a beast just as bad as the ones he wanted, no, needed to hunt.
Doors to the operating room slam open and Kaname is at his side.
"Zero!"
He blinked hazily at his former enemy, his now mate. He swallowed thickly as he felt Kaname grip his restrained hand in a show of comfort.
"Zero, you have to hold on! He's almost done now, just a bit longer and then-"
A cry resounded throughout the room and he was brought back to his pained present.
His babies. Of course, it was for them that he had to bear it, now he could remember!
It would be worth it. Hopefully.
Hopefully he would survive it, no, he had to. He couldn't leave Kaname alone with them-no. He could never leave Kaname alone- it was the one thing Zero had sworn never to do when they underwent the ceremony that Kaname wanted to do (nevermind the fact that they had already been technically mated for some time by then, silly pureblood).
No, he could never leave Kaname alone.
But as he felt his blood drift away from his form and off the metal table and onto the dingy cracked tiles of the makeshift clinic he began to go silent in terms of willpower.
"It's a boy! Wait, there's another!"
The doctor handed the first baby, their son, away to a neighboring nurse who immediately took care of the crying infant as Zero's breath became harsh and broken.
Kaname's handsome features contorted into urgent fear and Zero swallowed again and gave a soft smile as another babe's cry pierced the air.
"A girl! It's a girl!"
Zero found it difficult to keep his eyes open and focused on his mate and Kaname squeezed his hand tight as if holding on for dear life.
"I love you, you know that, Zero. You can't do this, you have to survive, you have to endure! Come on, you can't leave us alone now!"
"I'm tired..." Zero murmured and gave a cough and blood spattered his cheeks and chin, sliding down his jaw to his neck, then to the cool table which began to seem warmer by the second.
"No, Zero! You can't sleep, you have to stay awake. Remember! Remember what-"
"Kaname," He bit out, "I think this is what he meant. I think this is our payment... and we... have to pay what's...due."
His words were slurred and distant and his eyelids slid shut and he lost all sense of time, slowly losing the feeling of his mate's hand interlocked with his own.
And eventually, he drifted off.
He had to go home.
He came to in a clinic not like the one he was just in- no, he hadn't been here in quite some time- but it was just as he remembered it.
Smooth, clean, linoleum tile. Short, claustrophobic ceilings and off white painted walls with awful nature paintings hanging over each of the sick beds.
He sat up and glanced down at himself and he saw for the first time in almost a year, his haphazard school uniform and no bump marking where his twins had just been pulled from.
He was back. Back before any of it happened.
He knew what he had to do.
Kaname had told him what had happened months too late, but still, he knew what he needed to do.
"Kiryu? You awake, now? Can I finally go? Kaname-sama would let me go now, what do you think?" Aido's petulant voice perked up from across the room where he was lounging on another sick bed out of boredom.
Zero narrowed his eyes briefly on the ice-wielder.
His chest ached and he knew he didn't have long now.
He turned urgent and flitted over to the blond's side, hovering over him, surprising the Noble when he removed his lazy arm from his fair face.
"I need you to do something." Zero explained and Aido snorted.
"No." Aido replied and Zero shook his head.
"It's easy. All you have to do is tell Kaname-"
"How dare you use his name so familiarly!" Aido admonished and Zero ground his teeth.
"Look, asshole. I don't have much time but you need to tell him something for me."
"Why can't you do it your-"
"Because the current me won't remember! Just do it!"
His chest screamed with pain and he choked on his breath briefly before speaking up and delivering his missive.
"Tell him that the Moon demands payment in the form of sacrifice, and it won't be picky about it! Tell him that this is one thing he cannot bear alone!"
He fell back onto the bed to the side and crashed onto the floor, his skin breaking out into an angry sweat. Aido looked well and truly freaked out and Zero coughed, blood spitting from his mouth in an angry burst.
"Go!"
"Bu-"
"Go! Go! Go! G-"
His one cough turned into several and he contorted himself into a ball upon the floor as the Noble ran out to deliver his message.
And then...
And then, he died.