The daily routine was yet again, the same. Get up, do patrol, control the switch-over, go to class, get some sleep, and then stay up late to make sure no one got hurt. The only saving grace was Kaito who occasionally called or sent a letter to see how she was doing.
Her, Yuuki and Zero were out on patrol again tonight, a few days after the incident. Zero walked in front of them down one of the stone paths.
"Are you feeling alright after what happened?" Maya asked Yuuki quietly, turning her head to look down at Yuuki who was half a head shorter than her.
"I'm fine actually! I was shocked at first but, now that I know what Zero is I'm going to try an help in any way I can!" She said happily.
A small smile graced Maya's lips as she turned to stare at the path ahead of them. You and me both, she thought.
A snap of a twig caused everyone to freeze, followed by a click of a gun and a flash of silver and dark grey. She turned her head from side to side, seeing Aidou and Akutsuki, two members of the night class and both were faithful friends to Kuran. Maya had her gun pointed at Akutsuki's face.
"Aidou, Akutsuki! What are you doing here?" Yuuki asked, having her silver rod, Artemis inches away from Aidou's face. Both of the vampires stood with their hands in their uniform pockets.
"We came to guide you to the Moon Dorms. Takuma invited you three to be there, so I wouldn't say no if I were you." Akutsuki's voice dripped with boredom, facial expression showing it even more. Maya lowered her gun, causing the flame-haired man to look at her. "Especially you, Maya-sama."
Again with the suffix, irritation poked at her shoulder but she ignored it. "Please don't call me that." All three of them followed to the Moon Dorms, heading around them to a back patio that was flush with a few tables with edible treats and a few gifts. There were a lot of vampires in the area, making the hairs on the back of Maya's neck from the close proximity. She spotted Kuran sitting on a large sofa that was perched on a low veranda with stairs leading up to it. A fountain on the other end of the patio was spouting water, not so loud that it drowned out any surrounding noise, it was pleasant.
Takuma popped up next to them, causing Maya to flinch. "You came!"
"We were forced..." She muttered under her breathe only loud enough for Zero to hear. Glancing in his direction, she saw the smallest hint of a smile grace his lips before vanishing. Most of the Night Class students took notice of their arrival but soon turned their attention away.
Maya disliked standing on the patio, feeling like the center of attention, so she wandered over and leaned against the railing that led up the stairs towards Kuran, crossing her arms.
She could hear Yuuki begin to ask Ichijou about a Level E that he had killed. From what she had told Maya, Zero and her had gone on errands, and Yuuki had almost been attacked by a Level E, and Zero had been there to save her, as had Takuma and Senri.
"Because I ordered them to." Came Kuran's voice. Maya looked up at him with a raised eyebrow, the turned her head and watched Zero stiffly march up the steps to face the pureblood.
"It's the Association's job to get rid of Level E's. Not yours," He growled.
"I did it as a precaution," Kuran answered. A precaution, for what reason? "Yuuki, please come up and join me."
Yuuki silently did as she was told, blushing as she sat down next to him. He seemed to like her a lot, and that reason was one Maya still had to find the answer to.
"Does, your wound still hurt?" He asked Yuuki, gesturing to her arm.
"Not really...anymore," Yuuki replied.
"To be honest, vampires that were formerly human shouldn't exist in the first place."
At that Zero and Maya stared at him in disbelief.
"How could you say such a thing!" Snarled Zero, watching as the pureblood healed Yuuki's wound after pulling up her sleeve to reveal a bad looking cut.
"Perhaps," Kuran said. "When you hesitated in killing that Level E, you sympathized with him."
There was a sound of a chain and a gun appeared, aimed point-blank at Kuran's face, who looked down the barrel, expressionless. Maya was there too, having moved before the gun could have proper aim, her hand clasped over the opening of the gun.
"Zero!" She exclaimed, surprised by his sudden offensive action. A few agonizing seconds passed before Zero relented, making a tsk sound before retreating. Maya moved a little ways away, staying near the couch but leaning against a pillar to the left of it. Zero moved back to his usual spot, more pissed than ever.
The smell of foreign blood hit her senses, making her look over at the dessert table. Takuma had accidentally cut his finger with a serving knife. A strangled gasp came from Zero and he ran off to around the front of the Dorms, hand over his mouth.She guessed it was because of the smell of blood, triggering his bloodlust. Pity once again filled her and she was about to go after him, but Yuuki yelled his name and ran off, leaving Maya to stay behind by herself.
"Aren't you going to follow them?" Kuran asked, sienna-colored eyes swimming with interest.
"I'm sure Yuuki can handle it." She paused for a moment. "I don't understand what would make you say such things to Zero. I'm sure that you're well aware of his situation. He hates what he is, and there's no reason to make him feel any worse."
Kuran gestured to the now empty space next to him, offering her a place to sit. She took it, reluctantly, making sure to keep two feet between them. "Kiryuu needs to accept what he is."
"I know him well enough that he won't," said Maya. There was a faint splash from somewhere nearby, causing both of their heads to turn towards the sound, then a few seconds later, a gunshot. Maya turned in her seat, brow furrowing as she picked up the faint scent of Zero's blood, along with the smell of cigarette smoke. The foreign scent was familiar, but there was no way to place it. What the hell was going on over there?
"And how much is well enough?" Kuran asked. She turned back to him, seeing his chin resting on a closed fist, gaze almost lazy. "You don't understand what it is like to be us..."
"You're quite right, I don't. But I've seen and experienced things that allow me that understanding." Maya told him. "I'm not naive to the ways of this world."
As he replied, her attention was diverted elsewhere, feeling the unmistakable feeling of being watched. Glancing around the patio, no one was looking at them. A rustle of leaves came from the trees to the left of the pureblood, but it had been too loud to have been a squirrel which was her first thought. The noise sounded again, triggering her guard to go up significantly. Slowly, she stood, eyeing the dark forest, catching a glint in the darkness, it disappeared, then reappeared.
In that split second, she grabbed Kuran by the shoulder and shoved him forward as three gunshots went off. Two harmlessly landed in a pillar, the other hit her square in the chest, the bullet being where the pureblood's head should have been.
On an adrenaline high, Maya pulled her gun and fired with one hand into the darkness, the other keeping Kuran's head down. She could hear the sound of retreating footsteps in the woods, but that wasn't part of her concern anymore. A deep hot pain was blooming in her chest, and she bent over, hand on her chest, dropping her gun. The bullet had been blessed, a special kind to kill vampires, but it could kill direwolves as well.
"Takamiya! What-" Kuran stopped mid-statement, hearing Maya's breath become labored. Maya's hand was becoming red, blood steadily flowing from the wound.
"You...owe me." She stated before falling unconscious.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Maya woke to brightness. She squinted, blinking rapidly to clear her vision. Blurry images became focused. The white ceiling, fluorescent lights and the smell of the sick patients, chemicals, and medical equipment were a bit overpowering to her sensitive senses, confusing her. Reaching up a hand, she rubbed the corners of her eyes, feeling sluggish and weak.
" Maya! You're awake! How are you feeling?"
The voice sounded right next to her head, making her lurch up in surprise, eyes burning gold as she prepared to strike out, a low growl erupting from her chest.
It was Yuuki, who stared up at her with terrified eyes, hands in front of her as if to surrender. Maya immediately lowered her hand, eyes fading back to their normal emerald hue.
"Yuuki!" She exclaimed. "Don't scare me like that!" She placed a hand on her chest, which was wrapped in a thin bandage. It had begun to ache in terrible protest as soon as she had moved. Closing her eyes, she bent forward a little, breathing and out through her nose. "What happened...?" She could taste something odd and metallic mixing with the saliva in her mouth and swallowed to get rid of it.
"You saved Kaname-sama! Headmaster said it was someone from the Association who tried to hurt him. You saved his life!" She said, walking a bit closer. "He came by before we did to see you, I know that because he was leaving just as we came in."
"We?" Maya asked. Just then, Kaien came into the room, blubbering like an idiot and proceeded to collapse over her legs, crying crocodile tears. Maya could do nothing except give him an awkward pat on the back to try and console him.
"I'd never thought I'd see one of my students end up in a hospital, least of all you." That gruff, nonchalant tone made her turn her head to see Toga Yagari. "All because you saved the life of a pureblood."
"Master..."Maya greeted, finally pushing Kaien off her legs.
"Why'd you do it?"
"Don't bother her with these questions, Yagari!" Stated Kaien. "My poor daughter's been shot!"
"I'm not your..." Maya sighed, knowing that telling him that would not stop it. It was a waste of words anyway. She looked at the three friends in the room, realizing that the one person she'd expected to see wasn't there. "Where's Zero?"
"I told him to stay in his room, the last thing I'd want is for that kid to bite another student."
"So you shot him?" Maya asked, silently clicking the pieces into place. Yuuki ushered their adoptive father out of the room before he could make any more of a fuss, leaving Yagari alone with Maya.
"Yes, I just assumed he'd degraded into a Level E..."
"Without bothering to check? You're always one to assume things before actually seeing the truth, you know that?"
"You're probably right, kid."
The door to the room opened once again, revealing a middle-aged female doctor. "Maya Takayima? I see you're up and about, how are you feeling?"
"Okay." She replied.
"We were able to remove that blessed bullet with no problem. You should be able to go home later today, seeing as you've healed faster than expected. People like you with a bullet wound are usually grounded in here for a week or so." Said the doctor, shuffling through some papers. "You're definitely a lucky one. I'll have your release forms signed so that you can go home today, okay?"
She left, leaving Yagari to stand there for a few moments more.
"I'm going to go back to the Association and report to the President on your condition. He was asking about you."
"Since when did the President ever care about me?" Maya wondered, raising an eyebrow. Yagari shrugged and headed out the door. She lay back down with a groan, trying to relax her tense muscles.
Yuuki had said that Kuran had been here...why had he wanted to see her? She could still taste something in her mouth, and it took her a moment to realize what it was.
Kuran....what did you do?
Disclaimer: All rights go to the wonderful Matsuri Hino!