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Yuki Alistair-von Nacht

"Even I am not perfect, and perfection was the reason I was created."

0 · 689 views · located in Cross Academy

a character in “Vampire Knight: Bonds of Fate”, originally authored by Naga's Shadow, as played by RolePlayGateway

Description




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Blessed | Protector | Night | Literally meaning "Blessed Protector of the Night"
āŒˆIn three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.āŒ‹




āŒˆThemesāŒ‹

[JubyPhonic] Vocaloid || Remote Control
[JubyPhonic] Vocaloid || ā†‘The Game of Lifeā†“
[JubyPhonic] Vocaloid || Lost One's Weeping
[JubyPhonic] Vocaloid || Cruel Clocks
[JubyPhonic] Vocaloid || Lost Time Memory
Carrie Underwood || Ever Ever After




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āŒˆA life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.āŒ‹




āŒˆNicknameāŒ‹
Kiki is the nickname her mother had as a child, and one that Yuki also came to accept as her own. Occasionally, her brothers will call her Yoo-hoo, as a play on Yu-yu, the first two letters of her name. The general public knows her as the White Queen, a spin off from the name she used to share with her mother, the Chess Queens.

āŒˆAgeāŒ‹
124

āŒˆGenderāŒ‹
Female

āŒˆRaceāŒ‹
Vampire Noble | Failed Artificial Pure Blood

āŒˆRoleāŒ‹
Half-Sister to Balthasar & Aryan von Nacht | Daughter of Nikki von Nacht | Step-Daughter of Jasper von Nacht | Cousin to Keir & Alarica Alistair; Zero & Leora Kuragari

āŒˆFace ClaimāŒ‹
Haku Yowane | Vocaloid




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āŒˆLife is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.āŒ‹




āŒˆHair ColorāŒ‹
Snow White

āŒˆEye ColorāŒ‹
Ruby Red | Crimson

āŒˆSkin ToneāŒ‹
Pale | Flawless

āŒˆHeightāŒ‹
5'6"

āŒˆWeightāŒ‹
120 lbs

āŒˆPhysical DescriptionāŒ‹
With one hundred years more under her belt, Yuki is no longer the scrawny little girl she was when she first met her mother. She has become long of limb and lithe of muscle, with snow white hair that almost goes down to her calves. Her waist is slender and sports broad hips, with a bust line to match. Her face is sharp and angled, and it became rather clear as she grew up that she inherited much of her looks from her father, including his eyes. Sharp and focused, when Yuki looks at someone, it often seems as if she is looking through them.




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āŒˆOpen your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you're living?āŒ‹




āŒˆPotential InterestāŒ‹
Zero Kuragari: Despite still being somewhat wary of his father, Yuki has found herself enamored with her cousin Zero. She's not sure if it is because of his nature or his eyes. She's found herself drowning in them before, finding it hard to breathe when he looks at her. Still, she understands the current situation they are all in, perhaps the best out of all of them, as she has been there from the very beginning. None of them truly have time for such frivolous pursuits. At least, that's what she's telling herself.

āŒˆSkills
āŒ‹
    ā˜… Harp || While Yuki can play a few different instruments, her specialty is the harp. She's composed a few of her own pieces, and she spends countless hours playing.
    ā˜… Meditation || Yuki will often meditate, if only to help block out the fact that she can sense people's power levels. She seems to be particularly sensitive to her step-father and Balthasar. She explained it once, like there is a massive ocean just lying there, still, but ready to explode with the force of a hurricane. While she has long since gotten over the fear of this, that doesn't mean she's always comfortable in their presence.
    ā˜… Keeping Silent || Even after more than a century, Yuki still has a habit of keeping silent, even while surrounded by others who are talking. She's gotten much better and will answer someone who speaks to her, but she won't ramble, and is very straightforward and to the point.

āŒˆAbilitiesāŒ‹
    āœ  Umbrakenisis || While she is nowhere near as efficient with this as Aryan or Vincent, she does have some minor control over shadows and the like. However, she was not born with this ability, her father brought it forth within her using genetic experimentation. Because of this, her body and mind cannot take the strain of using this power, and it has caused brain hemorrhaging. If used for extended periods of time, she will begin to bleed from her eyes, nose, and ears. This was discovered back when she was a young child, and had been training with Vincent when Jasper had been Theodor's hostage. She has used it only sparsely since then, and very cautiously.
    āœ  Pyrokinesis || The power born from her mother, Yuki's control over flames has always been greater than her mothers', and has only grown over the last century. She is a master at creating the flames, and was the one to help Bal learn control over his.
    āœ  Telepathy/Telekinesis || Abilities of her own, Yuki's control over her force fields have expanded tremendously, and she can throw up multiple shields in quick succession with little concentration, even in the heat of battle.
    āœ  Sensitivity || Another ability born of gruesome experimentation, Yuki can quickly read and assess one's level of power. While she now has the power to turn it on and off at will, she cannot help but feel the power that her step-father and brother exude. She knows that they cannot help it, as their power is not an easy thing to contain, but it does cause her to be uncomfortable in their presence, especially if one of them is angry. They have been known to knock her unconscious before.




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āŒˆOnly a life lived for others is a life worthwhile.āŒ‹




āŒˆOtherāŒ‹
  • Genetically Unstable || Due to the extensive experimentation Yuki underwent as a child at the hands of Kisuke Sou, Yuki's body is breaking down. While she is by birth a Noble, her body is deteriorating more and more each year. At this rate, she expects that she has about fifty years left to live. Freya is the only other person who knows of this condition.

āŒˆHabits
āŒ‹
    ā˜ Rocking on Her Heels || A habit from when she was younger, Yuki will still rock back and forth on her heels when she finds herself under stress or in uncomfortable situations.
    ā˜ Chess || Perhaps not as good as her male family members, Yuki is an avid chess player and a formidable opponent in her own right. She enjoys playing, and is still known to play by herself from time to time.
    ā˜ Teaching || Yuki is an excellent teacher, as seen in the fact that she taught Bal both piano and helped him learn about their shared Pyrokinesis, and that she taught Ary chess and helps him in research matters. She enjoys teaching, and loves her brothers dearly.




āŒˆLikesāŒ‹
    įƒ¦ Games || Perhaps due to her raising the first twenty-one years of her life, Yuki has a great love for games of all kind, be them board games, word games, brain teasers or puzzles. She enjoys receiving puzzle books as gifts, and Aryan has made it a point to get her a book of crosswords every year for her birthday. It is one present that she looks forward to.
    įƒ¦ Family || Being the oldest out of all the children, Yuki loves all of her family dearly, being somewhere around fifty when her brother Balthasar was born. She has been able to watch them all grow up, and there is nothing that she wouldn't do for them. She enjoys spending time with all of them, and still enjoys Ava's company, and playing the piano with Jasper. She spends countless hours playing chess with her Uncle Morgan and has also formed a rather close bond to Alarica as well. While they are only cousins, the girls consider themselves sisters.
    įƒ¦ Chocolate || Yuki loves sweets of all kinds, but nothing more than chocolate. She adores her Aunt Ava's chocolate chip cookies, and will bend over backwards for someone who bribes her with chocolate. This is how Aryan talks her into things she normally would have no part of.

āŒˆDislikesāŒ‹
    āœ˜ Crowds || Despite now being over a century old, Yuki still hates being around large groups of people, especially those outside of her family. She can barely handle her own family at times, let alone anyone else.
    āœ˜ Talking || She would still prefer to remain silent rather than talk, and often will communicate using her body language. If in a particularly foul mood, she has been known to write out her answer to a question that requires more than a 'yes' or 'no' answer. This has been known to drive her mother up the wall, but there is little she can do about it.
    āœ˜ Spicy Foods || Yuki is rather distasteful about anything hotter than black pepper. She has no taste for spicy things and refuses to eat most of it. She will, however, make an effort to at least try it if Alarica cooks it. This has not been known to end well.




āŒˆStrengthsāŒ‹
    ā™¦ Artificial Pure Blood || Due to the many experiments that Kisuke performed on both Nikki and Yuki, he at least partially succeeded in turning his daughter into an artificial Pure Blood. She has the strength and the speed to match a Pure Blood, but her body cannot always handle the pressure of that. Because of this, her healing abilities tend to suffer for the extra strain, and she needs more blood than most vampires. It doesnā€™t help that the experiments she underwent made her body immune to the Blood Tablets, either.
    ā™¦ Swordplay || Yuki is excellent with any and all types of blades, learning from her mother years ago. Her favorite blade tends to be a Katana, though she has shown excellent skill with daggers and dual short swords as well.
    ā™¦ Knowledge || Yuki is, in a word, smart. Tactically speaking, she generally doesnā€™t bother much, but in other aspects, especially in human/vampiric anatomy and medicine, she excels far beyond that of her peers and elders. Since the day they found her, Yuki took it upon herself to take care of them, as it were, whenever they were injured. She still does this, and she is basically the family doctor. Sheā€™s even helped deliver both of her brothers and most of her cousins.

āŒˆWeaknessesāŒ‹
    ā˜Æ Aquakinesis || Due to her abilities with fire, it is logical that she has a weakness to water and aquatic attacks. It is also difficult for her to use her abilities in the rain or somewhere damp.
    ā˜Æ Socially Awkward || Despite her upbringing by Nikki and Jazz, Yuki is still rather awkward in social settings. She is still extremely straightforward and blunt, asking things straight to the point and answering that way as well. She never really grew out of it, much to her step-fatherā€™s amusement.
    ā˜Æ Fear || Certain things will absolutely paralyze Yuki, and the fear of losing a family member is one of those fears. Another is Epistaxiophobia, the fear of bleeding to death. This manifested itself within her the day it was discovered that she couldnā€™t handle her Umbrakenisis, and she began bleeding uncontrollably. When one of these fears presents itself, she tends to freeze up and is unable to respond other than shaking uncontrollably and hyperventilating.




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āŒˆSometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eye.āŒ‹




āŒˆPersonalityāŒ‹
Caring | Strong | Gentle | Sneaky

Yuki is a very quiet girl, not talking much to anyone, and keeping her distance from most people. She loves her family, and cares for all of them deeply. This is usually shown when she takes care of them if they are wounded. Her medicinal abilities are far beyond anyone elseā€™s in the family, and sheā€™s proved it time and again. Her ability to care for others is astounding, as well as her gentle nature. The first twenty-one years of her life were anything but happy, but she came out the better for it.

Yuki also has an uncanny ability to be extremely quiet and sneaky. Sheā€™s able to slip from a room without anyone noticing. Sheā€™s even been known to sneak up on people from time to time. When asked how she does it, she generally winks and holds a finger to her lips, telling them that itā€™s a secret and she canā€™t tell them.




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āŒˆWe're born alone, we live alone, we die alone. Only through our love and friendship can we create the illusion for the moment that we are not, in fact, alone.āŒ‹




āŒˆHistoryāŒ‹
Yuki is the eldest child out of all her relatives, being almost fifty years older than her half-brother Balthasar. She is Nikkiā€™s biological daughter, but only Jasperā€™s step-daughter. This has never really bothered her, as she loves Jasper, and called him ā€˜Dadā€™ from an early age. The first twenty-one years with her true father, Kisuke Sou, was anything less than happy, and she had come out of it a socially awkward and closed-off girl, at first responding to no one but her mother and uncle. She was slowly brought out of her shell, and found a place among the others, even if she is still, to this day, wary of the Pure Bloods.

When her brother was born, Yuki couldnā€™t have been happier, and quickly adjusted to being a big sister. This was only further shown when Aryan and her cousins came along, and Yuki loves each and every one of them. Her relationship with her brothers is a bit of an interesting one. Even though she is older than both of them, they often tend to take on the role of her big brothers, and she even has taken to calling Balthasar ā€œBig Brotherā€ on occasion. Growing up, she spent quite a bit of time her cousin Zero, and found herself developing feelings for him beyond that of familial ties. Sheā€™s not entirely sure what to make of this, and has since tried to ignore her feelings.

Of late, Yuki spends most of her time fighting. She goes by the moniker of ā€œWhite Queenā€, and has been known to take on multiple Level Eā€™s at a time, saving civilians, human and vampire alike, from them. Sheā€™s made a name for herself as such, and takes pride in her mercenary role. Both of her parents have protested this at first, but they came to accept it when they realized that it was something the girl wanted to do.




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āŒˆIf you're going through hell, keep going.āŒ‹



So begins...

Yuki Alistair-von Nacht's Story

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Keir Alistair Character Portrait: Leora Kuragari Character Portrait: Aryan von Nacht Character Portrait: Balthasar von Nacht Character Portrait: Alarica Alistair Character Portrait: Helen Trist
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A hundred years.

A whole century has passed since the incident. An incident that had forever changed the lives of everyone involved, directly or indirectly. A new day arose, the sun peeking gently over the horizon, glancing through the leaves of the trees. The breeze blew by softly, carrying cherry blossoms as it went by. The day in question was Monday, the beginning of the week, and the echoes of Cross Academy's bell resonated through the area. Slowly, it came to life, students passing each other, greeting each other, and conversing with one another as if they hadn't seen each other in years. This day was no different for one Alarica Alistair. She opened the door to her room, blinking owlishly at the basket of apples laid in front of her door. She frowned, Mihkail landing softly on her shoulder as she glanced towards the white owl.

"Every Monday there is a new batch. I wonder, do you have a secret admirer?" Mihkail stated, mischief laced in his tone. Alarica merely rolled her eyes at her familiar, picking the basket up and setting it on the table to her room before leaving. She had to find Keir. He said there was something that he had discovered and he wanted to show her what it was. She glanced back at the apples on the table, a vague scent of something familiar lingering about, before shrugging her shoulders and continuing on her way. Zero, on the other hand, the son of one Vincent and Ava Kuragari, lounged lazily in a tree, his arm dangling as he glanced up.

It was his place, where he spent most of his time during the school hours. There wasn't much for him to learn anyways, and the only reason he was attending was at the behest of his mother and father. The things they were learning were already covered in the books and information Vincent had drilled into him as a child, and more so as he grew. Sighing softly through his nose, he pushed himself away from the tree, landing gracefully and elegantly as a cat, upon the ground. He turned his attention towards the school, shoving one of his hands into his pocket and bringing out the book that had occupied his attention moments ago.

As he neared the school building, a smile formed on his lips as something ruptured through the air. "And it seems Keir and Alarica have started their fun without me," he stated, the rumbling of the earth signaling a strong explosion just took place. Zero glanced about, stepping to the side to avoid a javelin that fell from the sky. He spotted a few basketballs, volleyballs, and even the shinai the kendo club used flew from the sky. "Of all the things...it had to be the storage building."


A cackle of mad laughter split the air, Keir practically doubling over as supplies rained down from the sky over half the campus. He grinned at his twin, ice-blue orbs meeting pale-pink. "I told you this was an awesome idea!" A white wolf stood not far off, shaking his head. Keir stuck his tongue out at his familiar. "Oh, buzz off, Lulu."

On the other side of campus, one of the only other students with hair as white as snow sighed, exasperated. The Twins just never knew when to quit, did they? But, then again, considering who their father was...

Yuki Alistair-von Nacht stood up from her chair, intending to go assess the damage. She could only imagine what Keir and Alarica had done this time. She loved them, of course, and sometimes even joined them, but...sometimes she just wanted a peaceful day. She glanced over at her younger brother, Aryan, who was asleep at the desk he'd been sitting at all night. She smiled fondly. Not even an explosion could wake him up when he was tired enough. She wasn't surprised, he hadn't slept in three days.

She shook her head, pulling one of the blankets over him, and let him be. He needed the rest. She left the library, heading towards the source of the explosion. Kiba met her at the door. She pet him lightly, and then continued on her way. A few more thigs were still raining from the sky, mainly sporting equipment, and without even thinking about it, Yuki threw up a wall of telekinetic energy above her head. She rounded the corner, running almost smack into Zero. She blinked once, and then smiled slightly. She pulled the javelin from the ground that he'd side-stepped. "Really? They blew up the storage shed? Honestly..." She shook her head, a small smile on her face nonetheless.


The explosion was enough to rattle the windows of the school building proper, and Leora glanced out of the nearest one in the music room, shaking her head with a secretive grin when she noted a deflated basketball falling through the air. She was actually a bit disappointed she hadnā€™t been let in on the fun this time. Ah wellā€”there was always tomorrow, after all. Smoothing her face out, she regained the cool impassivity she was known for displaying and turned back to what she was doing, drawing the bow back over the strings of her violin and releasing the first note once again. She needed to stop by the library later, to pick up a few booksā€”mostly to write Zeroā€™s next English assignment. She did it for the experience, really; unlike him, she wasnā€™t almost a century old, and having been home-schooled all her life, actual homework was something of a novelty for her. Plus her brotherā€™s grades were now immaculate, despite the fact that he never went to class.

In that selfsame library, Helen Trist did not even glance up from the book she was reading, at least not until Yuki moved. She was always very aware of what her friend was doing, but she was not overprotective to the point that she felt the need to follow. Instead, she glanced back down at the novel she was reading and turned the page. She wanted to see how it would endā€¦ A slight stirring made her look up again, and she noted that Aryan had a piece of paper stuck to his face. She debated removing it, but decided that was probably something he should do himself. It wasnā€™t like she was going to laugh at him for it. In fact, she dismissed the thought from her mind and went back to reading thereafter.

Balthasar, on the other hand, was perhaps not ten meters from the storage shed when it blew up, and he yelped with surprise as various pieces of debris flew around the area. His reaction was instantaneous even soā€”in the area of his immediate proximity, the grass flattened, and any chunks of wood or sports equipment that entered the field smashed immediately to the ground as though magnetized. The double-tailed fox-kit on his head giggled, resettling herself in his dark locks and blinking over at the ruins from which his cousins emerged. Sighing through his nose, he picked his way through the remaining splintered two-by-fours and ducked under the partially-collapsed roof, placing the orange cones in the usual spot. It looked a little absurd, given that they were the only things currently in the right spot, and the building was basically gone.

This was no easy repair, either, though he did use his fields to move a few things back into order, and bolstered the missing half of the ceiling for a moment while he recycled another piece of wood to support it in the meantime. At least what was left wouldnā€™t injure anyone coming to survey the damage now. ā€œThose twoā€¦ā€ he murmured, more to himself than anything, though Ilyana, being her helpful self, did not hesitate to reply.

ā€œBut you love them!ā€ she sing-songed in a lilting soprano. Balthasar only sighed again.

ā€œOf course I do. That doesnā€™t mean I approve of wanton destruction of school property.ā€ Even if it was a bit funny, and even if he was smiling, just slightly.


"Better the shed than the actual Academy. I don't think they'll go that far...yet," Zero replied, a smirk pulling at his face as he turned his attention towards Yuki. "Besides, they were planning on remodeling the building anyway. They just did the construction workers a favor, really," he added with a light shrug of his shoulders. His eyes traveled to the javelin in Yuki's hands and took the weapon from her, spinning it in his hand in the process. "And it's been awhile since they last blew something up. The gardening shed was the last victim if I do remember correctly. Luckily, Hel had Sven and he was able to help restore some things," he added as an after thought.

His smirk turned into a smile at that thought before shaking his head. School was about to start for them, and they should be returning to the classroom. The smirk returned to his face as he stared at Yuki, tapping his chin thoughtfully before slipping behind Yuki. "I think this will be easier and more convenient," he stated, slipping his arms around her waist and hoisting her over his shoulder, laughing all the same in the process.

Alarica stood, smudges of dirt covering her face as a large grin was painted across her face. "Have I ever doubted you before, dear brother?" she stated as she turned to grin at him. Her face, however, pulled into that of a frown as Mihkail followed her line of sight. If he could smirk, he would have. Immediately, the air went a little chiller than usual and Alarica abruptly turned to walk away, Mihkail letting a light laughter in the process. He turned to his brother, glaring lightly with a strange tint to his blue eyes before following after his master. "Not a word Mihk" she stated towards the white owl.

"My, you wound me so, Lala," he spoke, the last word coming out with a bit more emphasis that he barely dodged an icicle headed his way. Laughter rang out merrily as he perched himself upon Balthasar's shoulder, glancing up towards Ilyana. "Master seems upset with me, shall we share yours?" he stated as he turned his blue eyes towards Balthasar, a strange glint of mirth shining behind his eyes.


Yuki laughed, the sound like bell chimes. "Yes, it was the garden shed. Oh my. I'd forgotten about that." She shook her head, but stiffened when Zero stepped up behind her. And when he threw her over his shoulder, she blushed redder than the apples on the trees. "Z-Zero! Put me down!" Kiba, on the other hand, simply chuckled, slipping off to find a quiet spot. Yuki would be fine, he felt no need to be glued to her side when she was with any of the family, especially Zero.

Aryan had woken when Yuki left, picking his head up and looking blearily around, as if he was lost. Indeed, it took him a few seconds to realize he was still in the library. He yawned, feeling something stretch his skin, and looked sideways to find a piece of paper stuck to the side of his face. He frowned, pulling it of slowly. With the paper gone, he could see Helen in his peripheral vision. He looked at her, his voice soft. "How long was I asleep?"

Keir had finally seemed to recover from his laughing spell, looking over at his cousin, a manic grin on his face. "Bally! Aww, Lala, don't run away." He pouted slightly, shaking his head. His sister was so thick-headed sometimes. He shrugged it off. If she didn't want to face her feelings, whatever, it was her loss.


Helen looked back up, tilting her head faintly to the side and running a mental calculation. ā€œTwo hours and thirty-seven minutes,ā€ she replied promptly, though her voice was flat, and slightly husky, as though she did not often use it. This was, in fact, the case. ā€œYuki left sixteen minutes ago.ā€ She blinked, nodding slightly, then returned her eyes to her reading. It wasnā€™t that it captured her overmuchā€”it would be nice to know the ending, but it wasnā€™t particularly arresting. She just didnā€™t know what else to say or do. Hel was not skilled in the arts of small talk and socialization, and even if she were, she might feel uncomfortable exercising them here.

She just didnā€™t see why anyone like him, like any of them, would want to talk to someone like her. She was a discarded tool belonging to an evil man, and part of her still belonged to him. The part she could do nothing about. They allowed her to remain, and for that she was grateful, but she could not and did not respond to the overtures of friendliness from them. Yuki was an exception, but even that wasā€¦ strange, for Helen. It was easier to see herself as a vassal, for they should always love the ones they served, and that made things less complicated.

Balthasar, meanwhile, smiled over at Keir as he emerged from the wreckage, squinting slightly against the light of day, though it faltered slightly upon noting that Alarica was already walking away. He just didnā€™t understand why she despised him so. He was trying to give her the space she seemed to want, butā€¦ they were part of the same very close-knit family, and it was difficult to do.

He was a bit surprised, then when her familiar landed on his shoulder, but he reached up to stroke the owlā€™s feathers all the same, the smile returned to his face, if only a slight one. It was a fairly commonplace expression for him, actually. ā€œHello Mikhail,ā€ he greeted warmly, then turned a raised eyebrow on Keir. ā€œYou just couldnā€™t help yourselves, could you?ā€

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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The smirk that had been plastered upon Zero's face, only broadened when Yuki began to protest. She told him to put her down, however; he did not oblige his cousin, instead, choosing to keep her over his shoulder. "And tell me why, dear cousin, I would wish to do that?" he stated, glancing over his shoulder to stare at Yuki. He will admit, he loved teasing her to no end. Her reactions to his actions were simply something he couldn't resist, and it didn't help matters much that he found his half-cousin distracting.

"Besides, class is boring. You can only learn the same thing so many times before it gets boring. And I hear that the roof of the school is exquisite this time of day," he stated, his smirk still brightening upon his lips. Though he wouldn't truly take her away from her studies. He knew, without a doubt, that Yuki enjoyed taking the classes. Whether it was because it was something normal, or if there was another reasoning behind it, he didn't know. And pretty much didn't care. If she liked it, then she had every right to be there. It was just something he did not favor, hence why Leora was the one who did most of his school work. She wasn't as aged as he was, and really, it was more-so for her benefit than his.


Oh, why did he have to be so difficult? She could practically feel her heart thumping against her rib cage. She had no idea why it would chose to do so, but there it was all the same. When he turned back to look at her, she hid her face in her hands. The roof? They were going to the roof? It wasn't so much that she minded, she loved being outside, even more if it was somewhere high.

It was more or less the fact that she was going to be alone with Zero. Though why that should bother her so much, she did not understand. She didn't understand anything about her reactions to him. They made no sense, and she was too terrified to ask anyone about them, or she probably would have gone to her mother by now. She let out a shaky sigh as her cousin continued to carry her. She couldn't form coherent thoughts at the moment, and she found herself tongue-tied.

Though, in all honesty, she didn't mind missing this particular class. It was English, which was something she had no aptitude for, at all. She was better with history and science, and math. Give her grammar, and she was absolutely lost. Maybe she should ask Leora for help. Oh, and now her mind was wandering, as she was startled suddenly when Zero set her back on her feet. She looked around, and then promptly turned away from her cousin, trying to get her face to cool down. "Oh, why do you have to be so stubborn?" She muttered, though it was more to herself than to Zero.


"Stubborn? Oh you must give me more credit than that my dear cousin," Zero replied, a hint of feigned hurt lacing in his tone. "Stubborn would be me actually taking you to the roof. I am not so heartless that I would make you miss your classes," he continued as he tilted his head to the side. He sighed softly though and placed Yuki down, though his hand laced with hers and he held her hand. He could never truly describe the sensation he felt, the passing of chills through his skin at the mere contact.

It was something akin to what he felt when he was with his mother, though this was something completely different. He would not lie and say he didn't know what it was, because he certainly did, he just wasn't sure if he was exactly ready to say something like that. Especially to Yuki. His mother and father had told them of their history, of the war that had transpired, of what had happened to his Aunt Nikki and his cousin Yuki. Of what his Uncle Jasper did to Theodor, and what had happened to his mother.

He sighed through his nose a little harshly before running a hand through his ginger locks. "You know, if you need help, you could always ask Bal or myself. Rica and Leo both said that you are having trouble in English," he stated, stopping momentarily from his walk to glance over his shoulder at Yuki.


A small tremor ran through Yuki at the contact of their hands. If only she understood why he made her feel like this. Still, when he looked at her like that...

She found herself glancing between him and the door, which was still closed. She glanced back at Zero, and then, without giving herself time to think, she walked toward him, looping her arm through his and dragging him with her.

"Well, I guess I'm the one being stubborn." She said softly, and dragged her cousin exactly where he had originally said, the roof. Still, the time would not be entirely wasted. She had her English books with her.


Zero chuckled at Yuki's response, and allowed her to drag him towards their previous destination. He couldn't lie, the view from up here had its pros, and he certainly didn't mind viewing it up here with her. He didn't mind that their arms were still looped together, and it was he who initiated the releasing of said arms, though with a bit of reluctance. He sighed, taking a seat down upon the concrete roof and patted at a seat next to him, pulling out one of her English books in the process.

"Although you didn't officially ask, I am taking this as a sign that you do need help," he stated, flipping through her books in the process. "Hm, okay I see your problem," he stated as he began shuffling through the problems with her, writing a few words out and sentences so she could practice on her own. He barely missed the bell signaling it was time for lunch.


For once in her life, some of it began to make sense. She also could not remember the last time she'd actually enjoyed English, in any sense of the word. Still, the time passed all too quickly, the bell ringing, signaling that it was time for lunch. She glanced up, a little surprised. Was it that late already?

With a small shake of her head, she packed up her things, and stood up. She stretched languidly, and then glanced back down at her cousin, a coy smile on her face. She didn't even really think about it, it was more natural to her than breathing as she reached out, touching his mind with her own. She didn't dig, she never did, it was the connection that she was after.

Thank you, Zero.

You're welcome, Yuki.

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Character Portrait: Helen Trist Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Hel had not been in school as long as the rest of themā€”this was only the start of her very first year at Cross Academy. Regardless, however, if it could be said that anyone knew far too much about what was being taught, it was probably her. Half the time, she couldnā€™t remember learning the information, she just knew things. She didnā€™t even realize what she knew until the situation came up that she needed to either. It was, on some level, disturbing, and probably would have shaken someone else greatly, but it was so far from the worst of her problems that she didnā€™t even spare it much thought. Someone else might worry that another had been ā€œmessing with their headā€ as the expression went. Hel knew that was what had happened, and there werenā€™t many people less merciful about it than Theodor had been, if any at all.

Sheā€™d had another episode, in class, but sheā€™d been quiet about, folding her arms on the desk and leaning her forehead down into them, as though tired, It had hidden her face from view, and sheā€™d clamped her mouth shut to keep from saying anything, the tense line of her shoulders and the way her back muscles went rigid the only sign that anything was wrong. It was mild, as far as such things wentā€”sometimes, she could not help the screaming, but that was usually only in the ones that came to her in sleep, when she was less able to regulate her own thoughts and her unconscious ran wild.

It had been mostly jumbled fragments of things, and as usual, she was having difficulty making any of it out in a sensible way. Shaking her head faintly, she pulled at the cuff of her uniform shirtā€”she wore the boys' one rather than the girlsā€™, and nobody bothered to protest. At least she wore one, even if the green argyle sweater-vest over the shirt and under the jacket was not standard. It was an odd piece of personality for a girl who seemed as rigid as Hel did, but it had been a presentā€”her very first Christmas present, from Ava Kuragari, of course. Sheā€™d only ever been given one other object before, and that was the black velvet ribbon that only left her hair when she slept. It could be said, perhaps, that when she accepted something, it became dear to her in a very rare way.

A noise from the copse of trees near where she was walking drew her attention, but it was only Sven. The great silver-white stag didnā€™t say anything, just fell into step beside her, and she reached up to rest a hand on his shoulder. Even her familiar was a bit too tall for her, honestly. The whole world was always a bit tooā€¦ something. Large, bright, vibrant, cruel, tall, openā€¦ it varied depending on the situation, but left her with the lingering impression that she simply wasnā€™t enough, and never would be.

The scent carried to her on the breeze was familiar, and without bothering to ask herself why, Hel changed directions a bit, a few more minutes of walking taking her to Yuki, who was sitting under a tree. The leaves were falling this time of year, but they were a bright explosion of flamelike colors in the meantime. Her familiar was also there, which meant that Helen herself was not strictly necessary, butā€¦ she moved to sit down all the same, crossing her legs underneath her and draping her arms over her knees to hang loosely in front of her. There were slightly-darkened circles under her eyes that had not been there that morning, but thenā€¦ Helen usually looked like that by the end of the day. Being around so many people wore on her after a while. Not that there was anything wrong with most of them. But stillā€¦

You were not in English class, the girl remarked, as flat-toned mentally as she was when she actually spoke. From the way Yuki smelled, Hel knew she had been in close physical proximity with Zero Kuragari recentlyā€”touching, most likely. That was not so unusual, really, and she said nothing about it.


Yuki absentmindedly stroked Kiba's fur, smiling as the only person in the world that she considered to be her best friend sat down next to her. The telepathic link between them was open, and really, in some sense, it was never really closed between them. Helen's statement, however, sent a jolt of surprise through Yuki. She couldn't help the heat that rose to her cheeks, and she forced herself to focus on breathing before she answered Helen.

No, I was not. Zero was helping me with the work.

She looked at Helen out of the corner of her eye. She remembered a time when she had been about the same height as her, but in the last one hundred years, Yuki had grown. Then again, when they had first met, Yuki had only been twenty-two, and Helen had already spent almost two centuries alive. Yuki would never call what Helen's life had been living, any more so she would call her own first twenty one years living.

She could also almost always tell when Helen had had an episode. They were utterly at random, though there were certain things that triggered them. Are you okay?


Hel sent Yuki the mental equivalent of a raised eyebrow, but she did not comment further. There were many things in life that she did not understand, that Theodor had removed her ability to ever truly comprehend, but she could still observe, and it was rather obvious to her where that relationship was going. One had only to see the two together to know. Actually, knowing Zero alone could provide a pretty decent guess. Yuki, however, was oblivious to the fact that her feelings were what most people would call love, and that they were shared. Helen might have almost found it funny, if she understood humor. That was something else heā€™d taken away.

But it was not her place to push, and it probably wouldnā€™t help anything anyway. Better to leave things be, so she did, not pursuing the topic any further. Not that the one they ended up with was any betterā€”in fact, it was considerably worse. Helenā€™s mind was a dangerous place, and for this reason, she kept the majority of it shielded, even from Yuki. There was a chance someone could go in and never make it back outā€”as Helen often found herself tempted to do. But she shared more of what she saw with Yuki than anyone else. I am fine. It was nothing new. The eyes again, mostly. Many of Helenā€™s visions centered around a very specific image- a pair of eyes opening. That in itself was nothing so bad, butā€¦ the eyes were entirely white, but even without discernible iris or pupil, she knew she was seen, and the look they gave was full of such revulsion it actually frightened her.

There was also the persistent desire to submit to whatever owned them, and she usually felt herself on the cusp of helpless capitulation before the vision moved on or she woke up. It was a feeling of being rendered utterly useless, nothing more than a puppet on a string for the personā€™s useā€¦ and that was a feeling she knew well. Every time she saw them, it was for a moment like sheā€™d never broken free of Theodor at allā€”onlyā€¦ the owner of the eyes was much, much more horrifying than Theodor could ever have been. There wasnā€™t even any effort on the personā€™s part, just a dominance so complete that submission was the only option. She was afraid of what that might mean for the people she had come to protect.

Needing to talk about something else instead, she switched topics. One of Aryanā€™s contacts is dead. He wants you and I to attend the next Council meeting with him.


Yuki let out the mental equivalent of a sigh, banishing Zero from her mind, at least for now. She'd told no one, but her cousin had been occupying her dreams of late, that in and of itself unusual, as Yuki rarely dreamed, unless it was nightmares of when her father was still alive.

Helen's news was...unsettling, at best. She hated it that her brother refused to not go, so, she did the next best thing. I was planning on going whether he wanted me to or not. Someone has to keep an eye on him, and it's always better to have two pairs than only one. Yuki hated going to the Council, but she'd rather have people stare at her than let her brother go alone.

For all they could do, her mother and step-father had not been able to keep certain things about Yuki silent, and there had been...offers. This usually did not end well. There were plenty of sadistic vampires that would love to pick her apart, and see just what had been done to her, even if she was a failed experiment. Like her cousin Leora, she, too, had a list of kidnapping contracts that was just as long. Sometimes it only made her wish she had not killed Kisuke all those years ago, if only so she could kill him now.


Helen blinked, having expected something along the lines of that answer. There was a lot the both of them didnā€™t say, but unlike with other people, it never damaged their relationship, because they didnā€™t need to say things, sometimes. They simply understood one another. Much about what they had endured was different, not least among these things duration, butā€¦ the most important things were shared. Without saying anything else, Hel picked up Yukiā€™s free hand in one of her own, lacing their fingers together, and leaned sideways until her head contacted her friendā€™s shoulder. Inhaling deeply, she released the breath quietly and slowly.

As a rule, she didnā€™t touch people. But rules didnā€™t apply with friends. She could sense the discomfort behind the mental communication, and so she did what little could be done to ease it. Sometimes, it was enough that someone else was there. And, whatever else may come, Helen would always be there for her friend, until the day she died.


Yuki smiled slightly. She, like Helen, was for the most part against physical contact, at least with those outside of her immediate family. Even then, it was rarely outside of the casual touch. Indeed, being slung over Zero's shoulder this morning had been the most physical she'd been in a week.

As it were, between the two of them, little more need be said, at least until Medusa came slithering up to them, the golden python looking annoyed. Probably because Aryan had managed to get the familiar to actually do something other than sleep.

"Aryan requessssts your prescensssssse. He needs to sssssspeak to the two of you and your brother. I suggessst you call him, Yuki."

Yuki shook her head lightly, a smile forming as she picked up the snake, draping her around her shoulders. Without any effort, she formed a mental link with Balthasar, telling him that Aryan was looking for them. With that, she, Helen, and Kiba made their way back to the school. Yuki wasn't sure if she wanted to know what Alden had found.

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Character Portrait: Aryan von Nacht Character Portrait: Balthasar von Nacht Character Portrait: Helen Trist Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Aryan did not glance up when he smelled the approach of his siblings and Hel. He was still looking down at the map in front of him. The town that Alden had mentioned was indeed, the one right outside of Cross Academy's borders. His brows furrowed slightly. It was a bold attack, so near neutral territory. He glanced over at the two profiles, the people in them well-known for being hitmen. Indeed, Yuki had come across them a time or two.

His brother sat down across from him, along with Hel, while Yuki leaned against the table next to Aryan. The three of them waited patiently, they'd all learned a long time ago that Aryan was not to be rushed.

Finally, he looked up. "Alden has uncovered what appears to be a very large attack plan against this town." He pointed to the map as Medusa slithered off of Yuki and onto his shoulders, resting her head on top of his. "There will also be two rather well known hitmen present, I'm sure you'll recognize them, Yuki."

The snow-haired girl glanced down at the sheets. Indeed, she did recognize them. She didn't know their names, but she'd run across them before. "So, is it just an attack, or an assassination attempt?"

Aryan leaned his head against his hand. "We're not sure, it could be either, or it could be both. We also have another problem. The date of the attack is the same day that myself, Yuki, and Helen will be at the Council."

Yuki raised an eyebrow. "Divide and conquer. Smart, efficient. So, what exactly is the plan?"


It was hard to focus past her discomfort. Helen had nothing against Balthasar, but she was especially sensitive to his presence. It was hard not to be, given all that power she could feel under there. But it wasnā€™t thatā€”she had known plenty of powerful people before and now. It was the fact that this man, before heā€™d even been conceived, had been the focus of so much of Theodorā€™s attention that traces of him were all over her mind. Aryan actually caused something similar, but not as badly. Mostly because sheā€™d been able (or forced, it was hard to tell) to get to know him more, since he spent so much time with Yuki. Balthasar, on the other hand, knew he made her uncomfortable, and let her have her space because of that. Even now, he sat several chairs down from her, which gave her just enough room to feel like she wasnā€™t suffocating.

She glanced at the map and then the files with deadened eyesā€”she knew the faces as well. Her brows furrowed together slightly, and she blinked. ā€œThey havenā€™t been hired against any of you beforeā€”I could not provide you with any information as to who the target or targets is or are.ā€

Balthasar sighed through his nose. ā€œDoes it matter?ā€ he asked quietly. ā€œEvery time they target one of us, they target us all, and itā€™s us all they have to deal with.ā€ Stillā€¦ he knew that he was not infrequently the person in question, and it made him feel guilty that he put his family in danger that way. Heā€™d been fending off assassins since he was a boy. Once, when it had been only himself and his mother, traveling ahead of his father and sister to the familyā€™s home in Ireland, a team of them had almost killed her. His powers had manifested on that day. Balthasar had been seven years old, and he'd killed them all. He still couldnā€™t let go of that one.

ā€œBe careful at that meeting, you three. Just because the rest of us are the ones dealing with the known assassins doesn't mean weā€™re the real targetsā€¦ā€ They all knew that, of course, butā€¦ he felt he should say it anyway. It rankled him that they were always at so much risk. They were family, even Hel, and he couldnā€™t bear to lose them. But he could not be in two places at once, and much as he might try, he could not protect everyone himself at all times.


Aryan nodded, a placid look on his face. "Frankly, I think that's what they're banking on. With the rest of you occupied here, it puts the three of us at a disadvantage, if one or all of us are the intended targets."

His eyes swiveled to his sister, who scowled at him. "If you even think it, I'm going to beat you bloody. Let them try, they'll be hard pressed getting through Hel and I, even if I'm a target. I've been a target all my life, for varying reasons. One more day isn't going to change anything."

Aryan smiled wanly at his sister. As headstrong and brash as ever, it would seem. "Dear sister of mine, I would never dream of it." He leveled his gaze with his brother. As often as the assassination attempts were on Balthasar, they all had their own hit lists, as Helen kept ample record of. As guilty as he was, it was not entirely his fault, and Aryan hated to see his brother like this. "The same goes for five of you here. Don't be a hero, Bal. And if you do, make sure you let me know first so that I can steer clear of mother."

There was a glimmer of a smile on his face. Nikki von Nacht was well known for her temper, especially when it came to the welfare of her children. She may have been only a Noble, but she was not to be tested. The woman would do anything to protect her children, and she had proven so more than once. Aryan could still remember the time when he had been about ten years old. He himself had been attacked, and he'd stood there and watched as Nikki tore the Pure Blood assassin limb from limb. It wasn't as if he'd ever disrespected either of his parents, but after that, he'd certainly seen his mother in a new light.


Theyā€™d all been targets all their lives. Hel would know; sheā€™d been there for most of that. All of them had been watched like specimens in a petri dish, vultures circling always outside the protected safety of their family homes. She doubted it would ever change. Balthasar and Aryan were Jasper von Nachtā€™s sonsā€”that would never go unremarked upon. That family was the closest thing vampires had to royalty, anymore, even if there wasnā€™t one of them who wanted anything to do with it. The twins were, well, twins, which was unusual in and of itself, the genetic manipulation their father had undergone and their motherā€™s unique nature notwithstanding. And the Kuragaris were what happened when you mixed an experimental pureblood with a trueborn one. That the youngest had inherited the Aegis was only the icing on the proverbial cake.

She hated that idiomā€”cake was nice. This was not.

Bathasar returned his brotherā€™s subtle smile, and Helen thought for a moment that they werenā€™t as different as everyone took them to be. She wasnā€™t sure how that made her feel, but her feelings were irrelevant here. ā€œAnd leave no one to stand between she and I, with her temper in full swing? I think not, Ary.ā€ His father had told him once that people most often attacked either of the children when they were with their mother because they perceived her as weaker somehow. Then heā€™d chuckled and shaken his head. Al had asked if this didnā€™t concern him, how he could bring himself to ever leave her side, and his sire had regarded him for a moment with uncanny eyes and raised a brow.

Of course I donā€™t like leaving her, heā€™d said simply, but anyone who thinks she is weaker than I am has the wrong understanding of strength. Balthasar had learned a very important lesson that day about the difference between power and strength, and between power and danger. It was one he carried with him alwaysā€¦ especially when his mother was upset with him.


Aryan's subtle smile widened slightly. If anything, their mother was scarier than their father ever could be. Though, considering what she'd been through, it was not overly surprising that she would be so protective. Aryan raised an eyebrow.

"So, instead of facing her wrath, you would hide behind your younger brother?"

Yuki rolled her eyes, but was smiling all the same. "You're both knuckleheads and I love you, but up against mother, I'd throw you both to the wolves."

Aryan feigned being hurt. "Ouch, Yuki."

Yuki smirked. "Come on. You should let the others know about the attack, and I have a blade that needs whetting. Coming, Hel?"

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Character Portrait: Leora Kuragari Character Portrait: Alarica Alistair Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Leo stretched her free arm over her head, relishing the way her back popped into place and letting out a satisfied sigh. She wasnā€™t much of a clothes shopping girl, but everyone needed to go sometimes, and it was infinitely more fun with her female relatives. There was something about being totally anonymousā€”nobody in town knew their family names or about her blood or Yukiā€™s dad or Ricaā€™s status as a twinā€¦ actually, Leo was trying pretty hard to forget that Rica had a twin, too. The challenge had begun last night, but sheā€™d been a complete chicken and tried not to see Keir at all today. Maybe he was trying to avoid her as well, because sheā€™d succeeded.

ā€œWell, ladies?ā€ she said with the subtle lift of an eyebrow. ā€œWhere to next?ā€ This little excursion had proceeded under the term reconnaissance, as it was in the town slated to be attacked in a few days, but actually they were just enjoying themselves. It was tradition for the three of them to try and get away from the boys and the school at least once a month, and they always found different ways to do it. Theyā€™d been to the arcade, a beach a few hours away, the nearest large cityā€¦ once, Rica had even dragged them along to try something humans called ā€œcow-tipping.ā€ It was a very strange thing, and Leo almost felt sorry for the poor cows, but it had been new to her.

Some humans walked by them on the sidewalk, and Leo could feel the eyes on them from behind her. Okay, so maybe they werenā€™t totally anonymousā€”vampires were still a bitā€¦ noticeable for their looks, and three of them clustered in one spot was not going to go without notice. Leo rolled her eyes and turned around, catching the eyes of one such ogler and smiledā€”maliciously. That seemed to render the person confused, but he was at least aware of what he was doing now, and cast his eyes away. She sighed through her nose. She was aware that they had evolved this way because it made feeding easier, but it really got annoying when you didnā€™t want to feed on humans anyway.


Yuki shot a slight glare at one of the younger men who she felt staring at her, the ice in her gaze enough to make him blush and quickly move on. She knew she often didn't help matters by wearing what she wore, her stomach exposed, but she wore what she did because she liked it. She glanced at her cousins. "Well, we could always get something to eat."

Like her twin cousins, Yuki had a more human-like digestive system, though the reasons for this were largely speculated. Yuki didn't want to know, either. There was a lot about herself she was more comfortable not knowing about, and she knew exatly how Helen felt in that regard. She still had nightmares sometimes, memories she thought she'd buried cropping up every now and again. She'd learned some more darker things about herself that she didn't like, but tried her best to ignore.


Alarica sighed softly through her nose, her eyes roaming about as she tilted her head to the side, popping and stretching her neck in the process. Somehow, she managed to be dragged into town with her cousins, Leora and Yuki, to go shopping, something the three of them were not particularly fond of, but necessary nonetheless. She glanced towards Leora through the corner of her eyes as she asked for their next destination. She thought about it for a minute before Yuki suggested a place. Something to eat? Now that she thought about it, it was getting roughly close to lunch time and she hadn't really eaten anything (besides an apple) that morning.

"Sounds acceptable. We can go to the restaurant that just opened up a few blocks from here," she stated, choosing to ignore the looks they were being sent. She was aware of their genetic make-up, and that alone made them appealing to humans, however; it was something that irritated her to no end. She wanted to maim the nearest human that was still glancing at them, something dark flashing behind their eyes. She sent them a glare, void of everything, but that did not seem to deter the group. She rolled her eyes in the process.

"Humans are lucky enough we are not allowed to harm them, otherwise a few of them might be missing eyes," she stated in a low enough voice so that only Leora and Yuki could hear. She wasn't in a particularly good mood at the moment and she wasn't feeling very reserved, however; she knew her place and it wouldn't be good to draw unnecessary attention to her family...no matter how much she wanted to punch someone.


Leo shruggedā€”eating sounded fine. It wasnā€™t necessary for her to do so, but her mom had never been able to give up cooking, and especially not baking, so her system was a little more used to food than that of most vampires. She even enjoyed it, in small quantities. Spotting something new across the street, she gestured to it. ā€œItalian?ā€ There seemed to be a consensus that it was at least worth a try, and so the three made their way over to it, and they were just sitting down when something fluttered to the groundā€”a folded piece of paper, it looked like.

ā€œOh hey Rica, I think something fell out of yourā€¦ā€ Leo bent to retrieve the object, but had trailed off upon recognizing the handwriting. ā€œPocket,ā€ she finished, her tone rather more gleeful than before as she scanned the words. Her smile, which had been slight, morphed into a foxlike thing, the mischievous twinkle in her eye making her cousin quite aware that sheā€™d read the whole note. As soon as they sat down and the waiter had taken their order for drinks, she read it again, and couldnā€™t stop the laughter that bubbled up from her diaphragm.

ā€œOh my god, heā€™s so hopeless. And you, Rica, youā€™re worse!ā€ she exclaimed, trailing off in another fit of giggles.


Yuki had sat down, Leora between her and Alarica, and had been sipping her water when Leora suddenly dissolved into giggles. Yuki raised a slight eyebrow, leaning over to read the note in her cousin's hand. Her brows furrowed as she recognized Balthasar's handwriting.

She then looked at Leora. "I don't get it, what's so funny? And why are they...hopeless?" She knew very well that her brother sometimes had difficulty with others, but then, it was the same way she herself was, and their father, too.


Alarica shrugged her shoulders at Leora's suggestion, and the three of them made their way towards the restaurant. She had failed to notice the note that Balthasar had given her, peeking out of her coat pocket before it fell out completely. Alarica stopped in her spot as Leora stated something, and as she turned with a raised brow, her face immediately drained from its color. Leora held the note in her hands, her lips quirking up into a mischievous grin. Immediately, Alarica's face was a light pink color. When they sat down, their orders taken, she immediately snatched the note from Yuki's grasp as it found its way to Yuki.

"That is none of your business Leo! And I am not worse," she stated, unable to stare her cousin in the eye as her bottom lip puckered out a bit,the equivalent of a pout forming on her face. She could hear the whispers around her and immediately she sent the nearby customers a glare. It wasn't their fault really, but Leora was touching a subject that was extremely sensitive to Alarica. "Besides, it's just a letter about the damn apples that were outside my room that morning. There's nothing wrong with that," she added, folding her arms against her chest.

Her eyes traveled to Yuki when the snow-haired girl popped the question about what was funny. "It's nothing Yuki, Leo's just having a bit of fun," she stated, shooting Leora a look in the process. So help her, she loved her cousin, she really did, but if she told Yuki about Balthasar...the restaurant might have a bit of an accident, so to speak. Leora was the only person who knew of Alarica's feelings for Balthasar, and it would only make things more awkward if his sister knew as well. She would have told Yuki herself, but there was a light fear that she would tell Balthasar, though she knew Yuki would never do that.


Oh, she was a horrible person, but she was having just as much fun as Rica was accusing her of. And at least she was going to spread it around. ā€œWell, Yukiā€¦ you know how you kinda feel funny flutters in here when my brotherā€™s around, or get embarrassed when heā€™s just a little too close to you?ā€ The smile was still there, and she raised a hand to place over her heart, to indicate the here she was talking about. Nodding with false seriousness, she found she couldnā€™t keep it up for long and smiled again anyway. ā€œItā€™s a little bit like that.ā€ Seriously, though, she was doing them a favor by pushing like this. Sure, Zero might take care of the pushing on his own, but he was kind of stupid, and if Yuki didnā€™t know how she felt by then, things could go poorly.

Ricaā€™s problem was the opposite: Balthasar would never guess how she felt about him, and even if he did, he wouldn't do anything about it as long as she continued to act like she hated his guts. For someone who was so direct about everything else, Alarica was so obtuse about Al, and Leo knew exactly why that was. The reason was even dumber than Balthasar himself. Somehow, Rica had developed a single-target inferiority complex. Leo didnā€™t get itā€”her cousin was amazing, but sometimes amazing people needed to be reminded. Far be it from Leo to do this in the normal wayā€”oh no, sheā€™d prod and tease until they got it themselves. That was much more her style.


Yuki looked absent-mindedly at Rica when she snatched the note back; Yuki had barely read the first line. Her face remained quite placid as Leora began to speak, however; the longer her cousin spoke, the more horrified her face became. Soon, Yuki was almost as red as the cherry, gloss-finished wood of the table they sat at.

"I-i...I don't...it's n-not like....oh..." She wasn't able to do much more than stutter a bit before burying her face in her hands, trying to hide. Why did Leora have to bring up Zero? It had been bad enough when Aryan had actually left the room earlier when she'd entered after her English session with the aforementioned male. Her brother's behavior was also something she did not understand. She really was not good with emotions, she'd never been. Even now, after one hundred years, she sometimes had difficulty expressing just how much she loved her step-father. That, at least, was easily delt with, she knew that Jasper understood, so it was unnecessary for her to say so.

Still rather unable to speak, Yuki did the next best thing as she blushed furiously behind her hands. Please stop, Leora...


If it were possible, Alarica would have found away to dissolve into a puddle of water and just disappeared. Her face, once a light pink in color, had turned a darker shade. Though her face was one of embarrassment, her lips were tilted down in a frown. "Leo, don't," she started to protest, but it was far too late. Her cousin began explaining it to Yuki, and for once, Alarica tilted her head with a raised brow. Yuki liked Zero? She covered her mouth with her hand slightly, stifling the laugh that was threatening to escape her. It seems she wasn't the only one who was having difficulty with that.

"Well, at least you don't have anything to worry about then Leo," she retorted to her cousin. She didn't know if Leora had anyone in mind, and if she did, Leora hid it well. She sighed softly, her face cooling down in the process as she played with the straw to her drink. "Maybe it'd be best if I just...," she started but shook her head. How could she pretend that she didn't like (was that even the right word?) Balthasar? At least with Yuki, though the girl might not realize it, Zero's feelings were reciprocated. That much she knew. Her cousin had confided in her once about it, and she had returned the gesture.


Leora sighed. It wasnā€™t fun anymore when Yuki said it like that. Honestly, was her entire family emotionally stunted? It seemed like she was the only one who saw clearly the threads connecting them allā€¦ the red strings, if one wanted to use such a metaphor. It was a good thing, tooā€”with how completely incompetent all of them were with their own emotions, they were going to need the help. Still, she shook her head and smiled.

ā€œFine, fine, Iā€™ll stop. Just donā€™t blame me when your silliness doesnā€™t work out for you. Both of them are rather popular with women, you know.ā€ She doubted it was a legitimate concernā€”Zero wasnā€™t interested in anyone but Yuki, though his mouth might occasionally make someone think otherwise, the way he teased. And Balthasarā€¦ it would take a very forward woman for him to even register that someone was interested in the first place. Though she did worry about that a little. As far as she could tellā€¦ he was not actually in love with Rica, and she couldnā€™t blame him for not falling when the girl avoided him like it was her religion.

Stillā€¦ red string, right? It would all work out in the end. She glanced over at her cousins, blinking speculatively. ā€¦Maybe.

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Character Portrait: Aryan von Nacht Character Portrait: Helen Trist Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Aryan von Nacht sighed through his nose. He stood with his arms crossed, Helen on his right, Yuki on his left, both slightly behind him. Currently the three of them stood in front of a large, heavily solid oak door, intricate symbols and various patterns carved into the ancient wood. They were waiting to be let in, and finally, a young woman, a high-ranking Noble, from what Aryan could tell, came over, opening the door for them after saying, "The Council will see you now, my Lord."

Aryan had to fight not to flinch. He hated that title, given to him simply because he'd been born. Still, as the door opened slowly, his face became a solid mask, his mouth nothing more than a line, his eyes dark, unreadable. He walked forward, the room inside dark and circular. There was a single chair in the center of the room, in which Aryan sat. Directly in front of him was the Head of the Council, Balron Baelor, one of the eldest Pure Bloods alive at the moment. There had been rumors that he was an Ancient, but Aryan knew better. He was not, and was actually an off-shoot of the von Nacht line, if distantly at best. Flanking him were the Minamoto sons, brothers born about a year apart, also Pure Bloods. Trevor and Tyler, if Aryan had his information right. The remaining six were mostly pawns of the others, some Nobles, one or two also Pure Bloods. Two of them were members from back when his own father was on the Council.

Balron looked down his nose at the von Nacht. "Aryan von Nacht. Thank you for coming, however; we did not expect you to come with others."

Aryan kept his face the same stoic mask. He inclined his head slightly. "One can never be too careful in such times. I can ask them to step out, if you would so prefer, though...I would feel so inclined to ask that you do the same." The Pure Blood reffered to the men who were lurking in the shadows. They were well hidden, but Aryan himself was the shadows; they would brook no hiding place from him. Balron's eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second, but then returned to a stoic mask similiar to Aryan's.

He waved his hand, resuming his seat. "No, no, of course not. They may stay. Now, let us begin, shall we?"


Helen kept one of her hands on the hilt of her wakizashi, which she wore at her waist. Her odachi was so long (and she so small) that there was no other way to wear it save at her back. She was dressed, as usual, in the fashion of a male, in this case in a suit, as were most of the Council members. The women, of course, wore gowns for the most part, but she unlike Yuki found no preference for articles in any way feminine or skin-baring. Even this was not ideal, but at least it was easier to move in than the alternative. Had it not been for the very delicate structure of her face, she might have even been mistaken for a boy, if a child.

Her eyes were the only part of her that was not perfectly still. She watched the shadows occasionally shift, and located the people inside them, but most of her time was spent observing the Council proper. The soldiers would not move without some kind of signal from one of them, after all. Of all those present, only two were not outright hostile to the von Nachts and the rest of their extended familyā€”Deirdre Florina was an old friend and ally of Jasperā€™s, and she was showing some signs of strain under her neutral expression. With Edytaā€™s death, she knew her own life was in danger as well, but she would not leave the Council. The other was Edmund Snowe, a noble of high rank, who curiously had yet to express any opinion at all on war-related matters, as though he were still making up his mind. He was a wild card, but unlike most of these people, he had a child at Cross, a very young one named Elizabeth.

He probably disapproved of the fact that there was to be an attack so close to the place, if indeed he even knew. Mostly, she watched Baelor and the Minamotos, as they were by far the most dangerous of the lot, and the most likely to hire mercenaries to do something like this. Her face betrayed nothing, blank as an empty canvas. Few of these people knew who she wasā€”the Pantheon did not advertise its failures, not even to its allies.

Baelorā€™s glance did flicker to her, though, and then to Yuki, though he seemed fundamentally disinterested in both of them. Why should he be? They were weapons, really, and he had plenty of those already. Instead, his wine-red eyes settled on Aryan, and he tilted his head faintly to one side, smiling just faintly, though it was hard to say what was behind the gesture, save that it was nothing kind. ā€œIā€™ll not mince words, Lord von Nacht. What we want is simple, and what we have always wanted: the cessation of your extended familyā€™s involvement in the war effort with the Hunters. The Council was elected for a reason, and that reason was to handle the affairs of our species as a whole. Our will represents the will of our kind, and though we do not wish further hostility with such as your family, we cannot and will not abide their efforts to thwart us.ā€

He raised one shoulder in a lofty shrug. ā€œI realize, of course, that this decision is not wholly yours to make, but I do understand that you can be convincing when the occasion calls for it, and I donā€™t think I need to waste the breath expressing upon you just how beneficial to your family it will be if you turn that talent to this purpose.ā€ Helen tensed, easing her sword just a little out of its sheath with her thumb, too subtly for anyone who wasnā€™t directly watching her to notice. That was a threatā€”if Aryan refused (and she had no doubt that he would refuse), this was not going to end well.


Yuki tensed just as Helen did. Aryan had hit the nail on the head with this one. She kept her eyes on Baelor as her brother spoke. His posture was relaxed, his head resting on his hand, propped up by his elbow on the arm of the chair. He listened placidly, his eyes just barely narrowing.

This was not the first time that they had made this request, however; the was the first time with such an open threat. He allowed a small smile to grace his face before he banished it. "Councilman Baelor, I believe my father made it more than clear that we, as a whole, would not remove ourselves the first time you asked him of this, nigh on a century ago." He was acutely aware of the spark in Balron's crimson eyes, however; Aryan continued. "One might wonder just what exactly is the reasoning we have to acknowledge your request? Surely there must be something else you would be willing to offer other than cooperation."

It had not been said, of course, but by saying it himself, he'd put Baelor in the position that he would look rather foolish -if not outright making a declaration of war against the von Nacht family- if he denied any form of cooperation. Yuki's eyes flickered to her brother, wondering exactly what he was getting at. She then glanced to her direct left, at the vacant seat. Edyta's seat. He couldn't possibly...


Helen imagined that if the devil smiled, it would look something like Baelorā€™s did in that moment. It was actually reminiscent of Theodorā€™s, and she did not like it at all. Her jaw tightened, the only evidence of her discomfort with this. She could tell what was going onā€”Balon and Aryan had just simultaneously sprung their traps, each believing that the arrangement would end up being more beneficial for himself than the other. It was hard to tell which of them was a mastermind and which a foolā€”perhaps both were each. She didnā€™t like where it was going, but it was not her decision to make, nor was it hers to question.

ā€œAs a matter of fact, there is. Councilwoman Florina proposed something quite interesting at our last emergency session, though I admit I did not think it would appeal. Your father did insist that the von Nachts do not seek power, after all, but perhaps if his son is more reasonable, then the Councilwoman will have been correct after all. Deirdre?ā€ The slight on the family was not unnoticed, but then there wasnā€™t really anything they could do about it.

Lady Florina looked slightly uncomfortable, and certainly not pleased to be addressed by her first name, but she knew the steps in this dance as well as anyone. Indeed, better than most. ā€œAs you may be aware, Lord von Nacht, one of the seats of the esteemed Council was recently most tragically vacated. I have suggested that, if indeed the von Nacths and their family wish to have a greater amount of influence over the way that the governance of their people is run, then one of them should assume the empty chair. I do believe it would be most to your talents than those of your relatives, and to this end, I formally nominated you for the position yesterday. The Council is in agreement for the posting, should you want it.ā€ She honestly wasnā€™t sure if sheā€™d done the young man a favor or condemned him, but it was all she could do for them.


Aryan's eyes flickered over to the councilwoman. So, she had put his name forward. She'd been a family friend since his father was a boy, though she'd been hard-pressed to help them of late. That was nothing Aryan held against her, she had her own family to look after. Silently, Aryan considered his options. To refuse was almost tantamount to a declaration of war, but to accept was almost tantamount to suicide. Silently, he counted no less than thirty men lurking about the shadows. His eyes narrowed, a bare flicker of movement.

Neither of them had the upper hand, and Aryan was not fool enough to think that he did, but also, neither did Baelor, though he did have a slight advantage. Still, much could be gained if this was handled carefully, and Aryan von Nacht was nothing if not cautious.

Aryan leaned forward, placing the tips of his fingers together as he brought his hands in front of his face. "Perhaps then I should reiterate what my father said before. The von Nacht line, as it stands now, does not desire such power. I cannot, however, speak for those before my father." He paused, knowing that he danced a dangerous waltz, but he was not yet finished. "As for you suggestion and offer, I believe that much can be gained by such an arrangement, and as such, I accept your offer, if it stands true that no one holds any objections."

He chose his words carefully. Let Baelor believe he had the advantage, that he was walking in blindly. It would make his task all the easier when the time came, and also make him less likely to be watched. Still, it was not overly concerning if he was watched. Aryan had plenty of methods at his disposal. "As for our withdrawal, if you truly wish, I can try to speak to my father on behalf of the Council. Was there anything else, Councilman?"

Yuki's mouth tightened. She didn't like this, not at all, but she had to trust that Aryan knew what he was doing. She had to, and besides, he would never be alone. If she was not with him, the Helen would be. Of that, she was positive.


ā€œNothing, Councilman von Nacht,ā€ Baelor replied simply, still smiling, though the glint in his eyes was hard. ā€œWelcome to the Council of Ten.ā€

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Character Portrait: Aryan von Nacht Character Portrait: Balthasar von Nacht Character Portrait: Helen Trist Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Aryan had a finger to his temple, his elbow resting on the arm of the car door. Yuki sat in the middle, with Hel on the far right. There was a frown marring his features, but his eyes were out of focus. He'd already sent word ahead, informing his brother of what had transpired, along with his inclusion into the Council of Ten. He was certain that one of the others, if not Baelor himself, would inform his parents. He would be expecting to hear from his mother, he was quite certain that Nikki von Nacht would not be pleased finding out that her youngest child was now on the council. He wasn't entirely sure how his father would react, but he would deal with that later.

He was more worried about what Yuki had told him. Over the last century, she's perfected her telepathic abilities to the point where she could always detect even the smallest flicker of all of the others in the family, no matter how far apart they were.

She'd lost contact with the Twins. That bothered him to no end, and to that extent, they had left immediately, with no stops. With that, they arrived back at Cross Academy eight hours ahead of schedule, and Yuki wasted no time in getting to the infirmary. It was worse than she expected. Even with everything that her family had done, there were still quite a few wounded. Yuki quickly pulled her hair back and set to work.

She'd been working for nigh on an hour and a half before she finally made it to her cousins, and she busied herself in checking them over. Their vitals were good, healing had checked, and for the most part, it seemed that it was only a matter of time before they woke up. Unfortunately, there was no way to tell when that would be. Yuki sighed, sitting in a chair at the foot of Alarica's bed. Before she even realized it, the girl had fallen asleep sitting up.

Aryan, on the other hand, had joined his brother in the hall. "You got the message?"


Inside the infirmary, Helen worked as Yukiā€™s assistant, more or less. She knew quite a bit about injury and medicine, being Freyaā€™s sister, however, she had not learned in the same way Yuki had, and her primary methods of accomplishing things like helping the injured were not available to her. She would not use that power, the one he had savored about her. She would not be the thing he wanted her to be. Not ever. Even if she sometimes felt she already was.

Yuki had fallen asleep, and Leora was curled into an armchair between her cousinsā€™ beds, but Hel continued to work quietly around them both. It was obvious that the other girls needed the rest, and Yuki had already done what little work Helen could not complete. Most of the injuries required nothing more than standard triage and emergency care, and that at least, she was fully capable of. She found a few minutes to peel out of her suit and into mint-green scrubs, but other than that, she kept up a constant working pace.

Outside, Balthasar glanced up at his brotherā€™s approach, nodding wearily when Aryan sat in another of the chairs. ā€œYes,ā€ he replied simply, but then he sighed though his nose and shook his head a bit. ā€œMother isnā€™t going to like it, butā€¦ for what itā€™s worth, I think it was a smart thing to do, and if anyone can manage it, itā€™s you.ā€ His smile was wan, but genuine. Reaching up with a hand, he rubbed at the back of his neck for a moment.

ā€œRica and Keir should be fine. Mikhailā€¦ fell, on the field. My guess is it rebounded through their connection. Physically, theyā€™re both fine. Justā€¦ be careful with her for a bit when she wakes up, I guess.ā€ Not that heā€™d really need to take his own advice, since he doubted sheā€™d even talk to himā€¦ but he let the thought go. It was an unhappy one, and right now all he wanted was for them to wake up.


Aryan sighed through his nose, wondering how his brother could be so blind. Still, it was not his place to interfere on that one, he was already playing matchmaker for his cousins. He returned his brother's wan smile all the same. "I have the underlying feeling that I'm going to be regretting this decision when it comes to mother. But, as it were, Baelor thinks he has me in his pocket, and I intend to keep it that way."

The news of Mikhail was not good. As much as he and Medusa bickered, Aryan wasn't sure just how he would handle losing her, if he could at all. he nodded in response to his brother. "Well, they do still have each other. Though, I'm not sure if that's a compliment in Keir's case."


Balthasar managed a chuckle in reply to that, shaking his head. ā€œCome now, brother. Keirā€™s not such a bad person to have at oneā€™s side. Certainly better than having him against you.ā€ He was already apparently ā€˜in the doghouse,ā€™ as the expression went, with one of the Alistairs; heā€™d fear for his sanity if they both disliked him. Well, he feared for his sanity already, but that was for different reasons. Al pushed the lingering pressure to the back of his mind, as his father had taught him to do, and sighed through his nose.

ā€œWellā€¦ I guess just make sure he continues to think so, then. Weā€™re playing with fire here, Ary, and while I trust you not to get burned, there are a lot of other people he could try to hurt if he gets suspicious.ā€ Baelor was a dangerous man, and while the Council may not be as straightforwardly powerful as the Pantheon, there were still a few people on it that even he would hesitate before confronting directly. And their rumored alliance with the Pantheon was just dangerous, from any angle.


Aryan scoffed softly. "Why is it everyone seems to be losing their faith in me? You wound me, dear brother, and deeply so." Aryan had tried keeping a straight face, and had failed rather miserably. However, his face became placid again. He stood up, a sigh escaping him. "As much as I would prefer being here when they awoke, I'm afraid that I find myself with much more paperwork than I am used to. Keep me posted on their condition. I already have to contact Father, I'm sure Uncle Morgan will want to be told as well." While Aryan was not particularly for telling his uncle that his son and daughter were currently comatose, he was more or less terrified that Morgan would disembowel him if he did not at least mention it.

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Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Yuki sighed, dropping the pencil back on top of the stack of medical charts. If there was one thing that Freya had always gotten right about her, it was that she really didn't know when to stop. It was one of her biggest problems. She saw work that needed to be done, and she just dove into it head-first. She ran a hand over her face, checking her watch, and flinched. She'd been sitting there for over thirty-six hours.

She stretched, rather satisfied when muscle and bone snapped back into place. The back of her throat burned slightly. She'd gone too long without feeding again. She smiled slightly. Her mother was always hounding her about that. Yet another side effect, she could not take blood tablets, and she had to feed more often than other vampires. It was a hassle, really, but she put up with it.

At the moment, the thirst was not overly unbearable, and she didn't feel like feeding at the moment anyhow. So instead, she went to her favorite place at night: the roof.


Zero lay with his arms behind his head, his eyes focused up at the thick sky that had once been colored a bright blue. It was now a dark, midnight blue, for the night time had descended upon the Academy. He had felt no need to go back to his dormitory, and instead stayed upon the rooftop, a place he enjoyed being because no one ever seemed to like it up here. Perhaps they were afraid of heights, or perhaps it was something else. Not that he minded either way, it just meant more privacy for him. He released a content sigh, closing his eyes momentarily until he heard the shifting of the door and tilted his head to glance at who would be disturbing his peace. A smirk fluttered across his face when he saw who it was.

"Late night studying I take it?" he stated, chuckling a bit before sitting up right and turning so that he faced Yuki. "Or is it that you enjoy my company so much you had to seek me out for it? Personally either is fine for me," he stated, the smirk never leaving his face as he shrugged his shoulder in a nonchalant manner.


Yuki frowned slightly. In retrospect, she probably should have known he would be up here. He liked it just as much as she did. She sighed, pointedly breathing through her mouth. In this state, being around someone so alluring was not the best of situations, at least not for her. Control was something she sorely lacked at times, no matter how much she tried to exercise.

"You flatter yourself, cousin." She walked over to the edge of the roof, leaning against the railing. "Do you just stay up here all day?" She'd wondered at times. She knew he was not one for going to class, and that Leora did his homework. His scent assaulted her, and she gripped her arms slightly. She shouldn't be here.


"Oh, but it is you who does all the flattering, cousin," Zero countered, standing from his spot and walking over so that he too was leaning over the railing of the roof. He glanced out a head of him, his eyes piercing through the darkness in the process. Perhaps it was a good thing they were vampires, their sight was that much better than a humans, and he could see a nest of a family of crows, something he found rather ironic. "Do you know what they call a flock of crows?" he stated, tilting his head to the side as he noticed her clench her arms slightly. A frown pulled at his face as he moved closer to her, moving the back of his hand against her forehead.

"Are you feeling well Yuki?" he questioned, absolute concern lacing his tone. She didn't feel warm, and he highly doubted vampires of their nature could become ill, so perhaps it was something else. He took a deep breath before releasing it. "If you are not feeling well, you shouldn't be out here," he spoke, slumping his shoulders in the process. He allowed the wind to blow behind him, pushing his hair slightly forward in the process. His eyes still shone with concern. He may have been who he was, but he always knew when to be serious and when to take precaution. And right now, he was being serious for the welfare of his cousin.


Yuki found herself staring at Zero, his hand on her forehead, wide-eyed. At first, her mind couldn't discern why he was touching her, and for some reason, all she could hear in her head was his first question. "A murder." she whispered softly.

And then, his scent hit her again. That dark, twisted, ugly thing she kept buried deep inside of her, the part of her that wanted only to destroy, burned fiercely in the back of her mind, her throat. It was the part of her that would take what it wanted, without fear of the consequences, without care for who it harmed. Her eyes shimmered a deep red, and she hadn't even realized she'd moved until her fangs had slid down, her hands at Zero's shoulders. He was backed up against the railing, her body pressed into his. She was so close, she could hear the blood running through his veins, just beneath the pale skin. She opened her mouth...

...and shoved away from him, gripping her arms tightly across her chest. If it wasn't for the agonizing effort she was exuding to keep herself from attacking him, she would have run away. She lowered her gaze to the ground, fear laced into her features. What had she done? What had she almost done? She gripped her arms tighter, whispering, "I'm sorry...I'm sorry."


Had the situation been a bit different, Zero would have smirked at his cousin, however; it was fairly obvious now to him that she was not quite alright. He did nothing as he found himself pushed back into the railing, her lips so close to his neck that he had to contain the small shudder that wracked through his body. "Yuki," he spoke, his seafoam colored eyes flashing a hint of vermilion in the process. They returned to their normal coloring when Yuki pulled away, the heat still lingering where she once was. He sighed softly, grabbing her wrist in the process and leaned a little further towards her, exposing his neck to her.

"Aunt Nikki is not around, and it is apparent you need to feed. I will tell no one of this incident if that is what you wish, but I am not letting you leave until you feed," he spoke, his hands tightening a little around her wrists to emphasize his point. "But do not apologize for something that is in your nature, something that makes you, you," he continued, releasing her wrists somewhat so that he wasn't hurting her. That was the last thing on his mind, and he would never intentionally hurt his cousin.


Yuki couldn't think straight, but she knew she didn't want to do this. At least, not like this. But she knew, if anything, that Zero meant what he said, she was going nowhere. Hating herself all the more for wanting this, she found herself leaning into him again. Fang pierced skin, warm sweet liquid rolling over her tongue. It made her think of summer and oranges. Her fingers curled reflexively into his shirt.

When she released him, she did not step away, but instead rested her forehead on his shoulder. "You really are your father's son, Zero. That's one of the things I love most about you." She said softly.


Zero allowed a small smile cross his lips as she succumbed to her desire to feed. He relaxed his muscles a bit, shifting so that the intake would be easier for her and their height differences not hindering anything either. When she finished, his eyes softened a bit, however; a smirk crossed his face at her words when she stated them. That could be taken in many different ways, but he would allow his silly notion that his cousin did not love him that way, and instead feigned a mock hurt look.

"Are you saying you'd prefer my father? Oh how you wound me so dear cousin," he spoke, chuckling darkly before he slid his lips across her forehead in a friendly manner. There was nothing sensual about it, just from one friend to another. "Though I am afraid you'd have a very angry Aunt Ava after you if you ever tried taking him from her," he joked lightly, shuddering slightly at the thought of his mother being angry. He had only seen her upset once, and it was enough to cause him to fear her just a bit.

"But then again, you did say I am my father's son," he stated, tilting his brows up at her in a playful gesture before laughing at the redness of her cheeks. He truly enjoyed teasing his cousin...even if it was just that.

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Yuki sighed through her nose. For once, the roof was her own. She found herself in a position much like the one Zero usually occupied when he was here. She was lying on her back with her fingers laced behind her head. Her feet were propped up on the bench, and her hair, for once free of the black and purple ribbon she kept it pulled back with, was fanned out around her. The breeze ruffled the ends of her hair every so often, sending a lock or two shimmering over the flat expanse of her exposed stomach.

It had been about a week now, since she'd fed off of Zero on this roof. It wasn't that it had been bothering her, because it wasn't. What was bothering her was the fact that, ever since she had, she'd become increasingly aware of his presence. She knew when he entered a room, when he left, and was always able to tell how far or close he was. It....unnerved her, and she didn't know what to do about it. She was quite sure she understood what it meant, as you didn't spend a hundred years around two people like Nikki and Jasper and not understand at least something about love.

She was also well aware of her cousins' tendencies, but familial love and unrequited love were two very different things, and she was fairly certain that Zero Kuragari felt nothing other than familial love for her. Besides, she couldn't be that way with anyone, especially a Pure Blood. She closed her yellow eyes. She shouldn't be thinking about this. What was the point? There was no way to stop it, she'd known that for years.


Zero had laughed, the look upon Alarica's face had been priceless and it was well worth the bruise he currently sported on his left bicep. He sighed softly, mussing his hair as he tried to get the sticks and leaves from it. He'd fallen out of the tree laughing so hard and had hit a few branches along the way down. He chuckled still as he wandered the halls of the Academy, adamant about skipping his classes and not attending them as per usual. It wasn't at all odd, and it wasn't like his grades were dropping anyway. It was an understanding between him, Leora, and the Headmaster. The Headmaster was aware of Zero's absence from the classes, but as long as his grades didn't slip, he was usually left alone.

A familiar scent on the wind caused Zero to stop momentarily in his tracks, and glanced up at towards the roof of the Academy. She was up there. A smirk crossed his face as he thought for a moment. It was night time anyways, and no one would have a problem with what he was about to do. So, without further hesitance, Zero jumped, landing with a soft thud upon the roof. His eyes zoned in on her and he made his way quietly towards her, though she would be able to sense him or smell him at least.

"So, care to tell me why you've been avoiding me as of late?" he stated, plopping down beside her, assuming the same position she was in with his hands resting behind his head as he stared at the sky. The stars were shining brightly above them, and he was inclined to turn his head to face her. "Was it because of something you saw?" he spoke, a hint of concern lacing his voice before disappearing.


She'd been well aware when he was walking across the courtyard, and even more so when he jumped. She didn't move as he positioned himself next to her, and at first, she didn't answer, she simply stared upwards. When she finally did speak, it was in that flat tone she'd used back when she'd first met her mother. It was one she didn't use very often anymore, but it did crop up every now and again, especially in situations that she really didn't want to deal with.

"No, Zero. Frankly your memories are not that different from Balthasar's or Aryan's, save for a few instances. Though I will be having a few choice words with my little brother at some point."

She sighed through her nose. No, it was not his memories that bothered her. It was the fact that she could not ignore the feeling in the pit of her stomach, no matter how hard she tried. She wanted to believe with every fiber of her being that by not addressing her feelings, she was protecting him. But what if she wasn't? But telling him, and being rejected, or worse, having those feelings reciprocated, was not something she was willing to risk. She wouldn't do that to him.

"I wouldn't say I've been avoiding you. Our paths simply have not crossed." That was a blatent lie. She had been avoiding him. She knew it, and he knew it. She sat up, her hair curtaining around her head. Her eyes were almost golden in the moonlight. "Why do you ask, anyway? Does it bother you, what I did?"


Zero quirked an eyebrow at her first response. A few choice words with her brother? About what? He didn't say anything that would have offended her, did he? Zero searched through his own memories, the most recent one of Aryan's and his conversation. "If it is anything to do with what I said, I meant every word of it Yuki," he spoke, watching as she sat up and continued speaking. At that, he merely smirked. She was lying; they both knew she was lying. She had been avoiding him, though he did not know the reason why. He too sat up from his spot, turning to look at Yuki in the process.

"And if I said yes? If I said that it did bother me that my cousin was avoiding me?" he spoke, the smirk merely remaining as he stared, golden eyes captivating him as they usually did. There was something about them, the molten color mixing with the light of the moon. He sighed softly through his nose before reaching a hand out towards her, grabbing her arm gently as he pulled her towards him, placing her so that his arms were wrapped around her torso and his head resting in the crook of her neck.

"Yes Yuki, it does bother me because you are family. If I did something to upset you, I want you to tell me so that I can make it up to you. I do not need my family avoiding me, especially you," he spoke, his tone low, his breath warm against her neck. He truly didn't like it, her avoiding him. There was an ache in his heart when she did, and he would rather her not avoid him for something that couldn't be helped. He wasn't his cousin, Balthasar. He would not sit back and let his family avoid him, not if he could do something about it. Though Alarica seemed to have returned to speaking with him, he'd rather not have Yuki avoid him like Alarica had avoided Balthasar.


Yuki blinked at Zero slightly, not entirely sure what to do when he wrapped his arms around her. The teasing, the jesting, she could all take, but...this, she didn't know what to do with this. Still, she did what she always did. She sorted through the statements, and she answered them. If her pulse was racing slightly at their close proximity, well...she would just have to ignore that.

"It has naught to do with what you said, it has to do with Aryan sticking his nose in where it doesn't belong." That, was true, at least. Her brother needed to mind his own business, and not try and shove them together when--

She forced herself to stop thinking about it. She had been dwelling on it far too much lately. At this rate, she was liable to tell someone. So, she switched topics, instead addressing his last statements. "I was not referring to my avoidance of you. I was referring to my feeding from you." She admitted it then, though she didn't want to think of the reason behind his not liking it when she avoided him. He'd said it was because they were family, but there was a subtle undertone, one that she was not at all comfortable with. Or rather, she was too comfortable with. There could be nothing between them, not of that nature. She couldn't do that to him. She wouldn't do that to him.


"It's a brother's job to stick their nose where it doesn't belong, especially in regards to their sister, older or not," he responded, though the frown that marred his face twisted into a light smile. At least she wouldn't avoid him, that was all that mattered, however, she had avoided him because she fed from him? Why did that seem...wrong? It was as if that was what she was trying to convince herself of, that the reason she wouldn't speak to him this week was because she fed from him. He shook his head softly, releasing a held breath as he closed his eyes.

"There is nothing wrong with you feeding from me. You were in need of blood and I was the only one who could provide it. It did not bother me at all that I could do that for you Yuki. I would do anything for you," he stopped himself there at that sentence. He was about to say something he wasn't quite ready to, not yet. He smiled once more, however; it faltered shortly there after. "Is something bothering you, Yuki? You do know that you can come to me for something, I've told you this once before," he spoke, his tone reverting to something a little more serious.


Yuki looked at him, something flashing through her eyes, something caught between hesitance and sorrow. She shouldn't tell him. She shouldn't tell anyone. But she wanted to tell him. Even if he never found out how she felt about him, this, at least, was something he should know about. They all should know about it.

But she didn't want them all treating her differently, knowing that she was going to die. She didn't want them wasting their time trying to figure out how to save her when they couldn't. She'd been searching for a way for almost a century now, there was no way. Yuki was going to die, and that was the end of it.

She let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "It's one thing to bring a problem, it's quite another to..." She sighed. Perhaps she should explain a little. "Kisuke tried to turn me into a Pure Blood, and in the end, he did the exact opposite. I'm more or less human, and because of that, my body can't stand up to the strain of being a vampire. As such, the experimentation severely shortened my life span. Most Nobles live for at least five hundred years, if not longer." She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

"I've got fifty years left to live, at best."


Zero blinked, confusion evident upon his features. He knew Kisuke experimented on Yuki, but he did not think it was to that extent. He was trying to create a pure-blood, by the means of experimenting on his own daughter. He felt his jaw clench, tightening, constricting before it locked in place. He had not known what rage felt like, to feel the pulsing anger that burned through his blood at just the mere thought of Kisuke. If he wasn't already dead, Zero would have tortured him, denied him death for as long as he possibly could until Zero was finished with him. Then, a bout of fear crept upon him. Fifty years? She only had fifty years to live?

That...didn't seem fair. Why had she never told him? Any of them? If she had...his eyes glazed over as he stared at her. His cousin, this woman, who he grew so fond of over the years, was going to die. Fifty years time, that was a blink of an eye for a pure-blood. But for humans, it was relatively normal. Fifty years of life was plenty for most humans, while some of them were able to reach the delicate age of one hundred. But Yuki wasn't a human. She had been correct, Nobles only live for so long, the oldest ones living to be a little over a thousand. He knew one such Noble, but he hadn't spoken to him in years. His arms shot out to Yuki, grasping her so that she was turned to face him.

"Why?" were the only words that seemed to leave his lips. Nothing seemed to make sense to him and he was confused. "Why didn't you tell me?" he spoke, his voice laced with anger, sorrow, regret? He didn't bother to hide the fact that he left out the whole family, that he had addressed himself, and none of the others. The others didn't matter. He wanted to know why she didn't tell him. With one fluid movement, he pulled her to him, his lips descending upon hers.


Yuki wasn't really sure what she'd been expecting. Anger, perhaps, or sorrow, but not...not this. This shouldn't be happening. He couldn't love her. There was no future with her, and Zero deserved so much better than that. He deserved better than her.

Even so, she made no effort to fight him as he kissed her, her arms entwining themselves around his shoulders. When they parted, she answered him, but she couldn't meet his eyes. She was afraid of what she would see, of what he would see. "What would be the point? Nothing can be done about it, and if you didn't know then...I could have gone off and died in some attack, no one had to know. You could move on, forget about me. You deserve better than me."

She hadn't realized she was crying until she stopped speaking. "I have no life to offer you, what right do I have to tell you how I feel?" She whispered.


Zero unintentionally coiled his fingers tightly around Yuki's shoulder, the anger still shining behind his eyes. She...thought that of him? That he could possibly forget about her? That he could move on without her? He couldn't do either of those. He loved her. He had loved her for as long as he could remember. He couldn't deny that fact. To simply forget the first woman he's ever loved, was not something he could do. He couldn't do.

"Because we can still make a life out of it. That is why. How could you possibly ever think that I could forget about you? What I deserve is for me to decide, no one else, not even you. And what I deserve is to know that the woman I love, loves me as well. If she does not, that will mean nothing to me, because I cannot love another. I will not. Dying in an attack is not the same as dying regardless. If you died in an attack, I could avenge you, but this...I cannot avenge you for this."

Each word he spoke, felt like he was ripping himself apart. How could she think so lowly of him? Perhaps it was partially, if not all, of his fault. But he had never known. She had never told anyone. What...what were her parents going to say when they found out? He sighed softly, running a hand through her snow-white locks. "I love you, Yuki. I really do, more than I can even understand myself. My life would have no meaning without you in it," he spoke, releasing himself from her and standing behind her. He glanced at her, giving her one final look before he fell from the top of the Academy, landing with all the grace granted to his kind, and made his way to his dormitory.


Yuki shut her eyes. He loved her. He loved her. It didn't seem to matter whether she loved him or not, she'd already stolen that from him. And for that, she hated herself. The tears streamed silently down her face as he left, leaving her unable to speak. She clutched at her chest as she fell to her knees, her shoulders shaking in an effort to keep the sobs from tearing themselves from her throat. She wanted desperately to run after him, to tell him, but she didn't. She stayed where she was.

He would forget her. He would forget because he had to.

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Character Portrait: Balthasar von Nacht Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Balthasar exhaled in some degree of wry frustration, the general upward motion of the air current he produced propelling his stubborn forelock almost horizontal for a moment, before it flopped back down in front of his nose like always. Shaking his head, he stood smoothly from his lotus position, rolling his shoulders and pressing the tips of his fingers into his left deltoid. It wasnā€™t soreā€”he had to undergo a lot more physical exertion than was usually possible to start experiencing muscle ache, but it was a bit stiff, probably because heā€™d been sitting like this for four hours.

Meditation was a practice his parents had encouraged in him, to help him with his control, which could often beā€¦ dubious, at best. There was something always there, in the back of his mind, that whispered to him in a voice that was not his, attempting to lure him with the promises of his own blood. For all that anyone knew, Balthasar was a somewhat-dense, but well-meaning fellow, who was perhaps a little too beholden to the whims of other people. But somewhere, deep down underneath that, was something else, something dark and quite possibly wicked. He didnā€™t understand it, but it was like all his desires and his temptations were bound up with his power, and he kept it contained in the smallest ball of untouchable things possible and tried to lock it in the furthest possible corner of his mind.

The metaphor was a little too spatial, but it was close enough. There was a part of him that needed constant restraint, and he didnā€™t like it. But he couldnā€™t indulge his own whims like other people could, because there was always a chance that something would go horribly wrong. He had no idea what heā€™d become, if he allowed that power to overtake him, but he was pretty sure he wouldnā€™t like it. Pursing his lips, he sighed softly and decided to go do something productive. That usually helped when meditation did not.

He found himself walking towards the infirmary, and he could smell that Yuki was there, probably working as always. There hadnā€™t been nearly as many patients lately, but there was always something to do. He found her sorting through paperwork, perhaps test results or patient files, and took a seat across from her, smiling kindly. With a look, it was easy enough to figure out how she was sorting things, and he took to doing the same. Many hands made light work after all. ā€œHey sis. How are you?ā€


It had been three days since her encounter with Zero on the roof, and she'd not spoken to him since. She wasn't sure of what to say, anyhow. What right did she have to tell him she loved him when she'd caused him such obvious pain? As far as she could tell, he hadn't said a word to anyone, either, and for that, she was grateful.

As it were, she was so absorbed in what she was doing, for once in her life, she had no idea that Balthasar was even there until he spoke. It actually made her jump, and for a second, all she could do was stare at him. She blinked, her eyes falling back down to the papers and charts strewn across the table, and she sighed. There were dark circles under her eyes.

"Hey, Bal...sorry. I'm...not my best, at the moment." It wasn't an outright lie, but it wasn't the whole truth either. She quickly scooped up the charts that had been in front of her, specifically, her charts. For some unknown reason, she had the sudden desire to go over them again, and see if she'd missed anything. Whether it had anything to do with Zero or not, she didn't care. At least, that was what she told herself.


He glanced down in time to see what she was holding, and wondered what she was doing with her own medical files. But this, like everything else, was something she would tell him if she felt so inclined, and he wasnā€™t going to bring it up. Instead, he helped her sort them, mostly by what kind of data they contained, and he noted sheā€™d been doing a lot of bloodwork on herself over the years. Curious, but he stilled his tongue even so, stacking the papers neatly and straightening the corners with his thumb until they were precisely in alignment. He had a few weird tics like this, but he just couldnā€™t help himself.

In the end, though, he did feel the need to make a more general inquiry. It was not like Yuki to be soā€¦ skittish, especially not around him. Theyā€™d known each other for a long time, after all, and their relationship had always been deep in its simplicity. He was her brother, and she his sister. It was purely that, and that lack of complication allowed for much to be spoken freely between them. ā€œDo you need to talk about it?ā€ he asked softly, folding his hands onto the table in front of him and tilting his head slightly to one side, meeting her eyes with his own. He didnā€™t ask if she wanted to, because he was pretty sure that she didnā€™t. But there was a difference between wanting to discuss what was bothering her and needing someone to hear it.


Yuki sighed softly, looking at her brother with a half-hearted smile. "Is it that obvious?" She looked down at the files in front of her, the most recent on top. It showed various data, but the most important was the fact that it showed that her body was breaking down, and rapidly at that, to anyone who could read them. At first, she wasn't sure she should tell him.

And then the words tumbled out of her without her consent. "You're aware of what Kisuke did to me. He wanted to make me a Pure Blood by accessing our Grandmother's blood line through me. But, he failed. The problem is, he made me..." She paused, unsure of exactly how to explain it.

She set her mouth in a grim line. "You remember the story of what happened to Uncle Morgan? How he basically fell to Level E status and then came back? Essentially, the same thing is happening to me. But, it's a lot slower. And...there's no coming back from it. Not for me, at least." She looked down at her hands. "Give or take, I've got about fifty years left."


For a long moment, Balthasar did not say anything. He simply processed. And then, he took one of the medical charts off the top of the stack and read it over properly, still in silence. He was no expert, but he knew enough to understand what the data meant, and he realize with a heavy hit of dread that she was right. A deep breath expanded his chest, and when he let it out again, he seemed to deflate a little. Fifty yearsā€¦ that was almost nothing at all, and yetā€¦ any of them could die, on any day. The difference was that this was a hard deadline, not merely indeterminacy.

Some small thing, a fragment of the light inside his heart, flickered out, and his eyes seemed to dull in their color, just a little. When he looked at her, it was with open sadness, as one who has just endured something unspeakable. He swallowed, setting down the little piece of the chart, and for a moment, he considered making her an offerā€”humanity was not the same as being a vampire, butā€¦ He shook his head then, mostly to himself. That would give her, at most, ten more years than she had. And even if it did, they would be ten years in which she was no longer the same person she had been. He knew he would never want that, and he knew enough of her to understand that she would not, either. Besides, it would demand another life in exchange, and while he knew that the list of people who would willingly give theirs for that if she wanted it was quite long, it was also full of people she would not allow to die for her.

Bracing his hands on the desk, Balthasar pushed himself into a stand, moving around the table to be beside her, then he took her hand and tugged her up as well, mostly so he could wrap his arms around his sisterā€™s back and hug her tightly. She had difficulty expressing her feelings, he knew this very well, but that did not mean that she was without them. ā€œI love you, sister,ā€ he said quietly, ā€œand when you are gone, I will miss you every day. But I have had eighty-five years by your side, and every one of them has been a gift. In this, the next fifty will be no different. It is like Aunt Ava has always told us: it is not the years in your life, but the life in your years. And you have lived well, Yuki. Soā€¦ all I can ask is that you keep doing that. Live until you canā€™t live anymoreā€”and put as much into those years as you can handle. If you can do thatā€¦ā€ he trailed off, his voice cracking faintly with the emotion he was holding behind his words.

ā€œThen youā€™ll have defeated him, once and for all.ā€ It would seem that killing Kisuke Sou had not quite managed to erase him from their lives, but this, if Yuki could do thisā€¦ then she would have won, in the end, and all he wanted was for her to be as happy as she possibly could.


For the first time in three days, Yuki actually smiled. Granted, her face was currently buried in her brother's chest, but still. His words had been exactly what she'd needed to hear. He was right, of course, she needed to make the most of what she had left. And she intended to do just that, starting off with an apology to a certain Kuragari.

"Thank you, Big Brother." She whispered, wrapping her arms around him.

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Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Yuki sighed, once again questioning if she really wanted to do this. She shook her head. This wasn't a question of want. It was a need. She needed to tell Zero how she felt, and apologize for hurting him. It didn't matter if he rejected her or not. He at least deserved to know. And Balthasar had been right. She deserved to live whatever life she could in the years remaining.

The breeze carried his scent to her, along with Rica's, though the latter had since left him. Kiba trailed along at her heels as she approached him, finding him sitting under a tree. For a second, she watched him, standing off a ways, a hand held up to her chest. When she spoke, it was almost hesitant.

"Zero?" She almost flinched, her voice sounded terribly small. Why was she so afraid?


Alarica had left about half an hour ago, leaving Zero by himself underneath the cherry blossom tree they had both occupied. He had kept his eyes closed, his mind working overtime as he tried to sort everything out. There had to be a way to save her, to undo the mess that Kisuke did, however; if she couldn't find something...he banished that thought from his mind. He couldn't think like that. He just couldn't. Even if it took them the rest of the fifty years to find a cure for her, he would find it. He was startled out of his thoughts by the whisper of his name, and he tilted his head to spot Yuki standing a few feet away from him, clutching at her chest.

"Yuki," he greeted, sitting up and allowing the cherry blossom petals to fall from his person. He dusted the remaining petals off as he stood from his spot. For a second, he contemplated leaving her, however; the look in her eyes compelled him to stay. So, instead of walking away, he walked so that he was standing a few feet away from her, hands kept to his side. "I'm sorry...about the other day," he began, trying to apologize for his actions, his words. Part of him felt as if he'd just made things worse by telling her that he loved her, and part of him didn't care. He wanted to know if she loved him or if she didn't. And that if she didn't love him, it wasn't because of the reason of her dying. He would take any reason other than that for her not loving him.


Suddenly, everything that her mother ever did when she was around her father made sense. For once, Yuki understood. The gestures, the glances, the words, the touches. It made sense because, she wanted that. What her mother had with Jasper, Yuki wanted with Zero. And she had been a fool to think otherwise. So when he apologized, she shook her head.

"No...I'm the one who's sorry, Zero. I shouldn't have said that, about forgetting me. I...I know that hurt you, and a part of me wanted to, because if maybe...if maybe you didn't love me, if you hated me, then I could pretend like I didn't love you. But..."

She met his eyes then, yellow meeting seafoam. "It was wrong and I'm sorry and I do love you. I've loved you for so long, even though I never really understood it...I still don't, really..."


She loved him. She loved him. He was tempted to believe that he was dreaming, that she had not said those words, and that his feelings were not being reciprocated by her. But they were, and he wasn't dreaming. She spoke to him, the words a little hesitant, but understandable. She loved him, and that was all he needed to hear. He closed the distance between them with a speed only possessed by his kind, his right arm hooking behind her neck and his left hand pressing against the small of her back. His lips descended upon hers, tipping her slightly back in the process.

"I could never hate you, Yuki. To hate you would be like hating the life that was granted to me, to hate the air I breathe. It is a necessity that I need, because I wouldn't be alive without it," he spoke when he pulled away from her. "Nothing you do or say could ever cause me to hate you, or forget about you. I would rather cease to exist than to ever hate the woman I love," he continued, the smirk returning to his features as a hint of playfulness flashed behind his eyes.


Yuki was not hesitant in returning the kiss, and when he pulled away and looked at her like that, it sent shivers down her spine. She loved him, this ridiculous, insufferable man, God help her, she loved him. She wondered how she couldn't have seen it before.

"I'm sorry it took so long for me to realize it." She said softly, her arms looping around his neck. A part of her just wanted to stay like this forever. "Believe it or not, it took Balthasar to talk sense into me."


Zero blinked owlishly a few times. "The dope? He talked sense into you?"" he stated, almost tempted to believe he truly was dreaming. "The world is coming to an end if that is true," he added with a light chuckle. How was it that the dope could talk to someone...he paused in that train of thought. This was Balthasar he was thinking about. The man, granted had a gift for listening and offering advice, but was just as dense and stupid about his own feelings. Though Zero really couldn't say where the von Nacht heir stood with those feelings. But those thoughts were for another time. Placing one last kiss upon her, Zero let her up and released her, however; his fingers were still laced with hers.

"Well, I suppose Bal's always had a way with words," he added.


His years as a ghost had given him a certain flair for recognizing just where to enter and what to say to cause maximal pain. And the entire point of this particular exercise was pain. Heā€™d caused quite a lot to his dear sister already, but that was merely the beginning, a little reminder. This was designed to shatter them a little more. Slowly, exquisitely. And heā€™d start by crushing the fledgling blooms of happiness here. That was always especially interesting, in the end.

For just a moment, Freyr wondered when heā€™d begun to derive pleasure from the pain of others. But of course, like everything else, it had begun with Theodor, and would survive well past the manā€™s demise. This was just a part of his conditioning, as Helā€™s subservience was part of hers. He was actually standing no more than three feet from the happy couple, having just arrived, but he was utterly undetectable even at that distance, unless he chose to make himself otherwise.

In this case, it was a capacity he exercised only on the girl, speaking directly into her mind, as he knew she would hear. Yuki Alistair-von Nacht, he said, his mental voice laced with something equal parts malice and amusement. You cannot see me, hear me, smell me or even touch me, but I am closer than you think. I think it goes without saying that I could wipe the smile from that boyā€™s face right now if I chose, perhaps by slitting his throat. You will leave him, and you will head west for seventeen miles. You will allow neither he nor anyone else to follow you. Am I understood?


If Yuki truly did hear the voice inside her head, there was no outward sign. She didn't recognize the voice, but she did recognize the malice -and truth- behind it. Whoever this was, whatever they wanted, they would kill for it, and then were threatening Zero.

And there was nothing she could do to stop it. You could not engage an enemy you could not sense, to attempt so would be suicide, and both she and Zero would be dead. She would not allow Zero to die. Getting off campus undetected would be easy. Getting Zero not to follow her would be the harder part. She quickly ran through her options. None of them were very good, most of them were dangerous, but she had little choice. She went for the least risky plan.

She centered herself with a breath, sending a telekinetic wave through Zero's mind, pressing down on his frontal and orbital lobes. It would hurt, but the pressure would cause him to black out; he wouldn't be able to follow her. She saw the confusion flash through his eyes, and there was a sadness in hers. Before he blacked out completely, she did say one last thing.

I'm so sorry, Zero...I love you.


She did the same thing to Kiba, the wolf whimpering slightly before collapsing onto his side. After that, Yuki shielded herself with her telekinetic energy, and just began walking. Whether or not she would get out of this alive, she still didn't know. She also did not try to contact whoever had touched her mind. There were very few people who could break through her barriers so easily, and she was not looking forward to meeting this person.

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There was a great deal of pain, and darkness. That was normal. It was what she lived with, every day of her life, after all. When she opened her eyes, it was dark. It was always dark. Her head ached, and her muscles were sore, but she didn't even notice it. She did not react to pain. There was no crying out, or any sign of discomfort on her face. Pain was easy to deal with, easy to ignore. It was what her father had taught her to do since day one, after all.

You are my weapon, nothing more, nothing less.


His voice came to her out of the darkness, but he did not appear. This also did not surprise her. More often than not, his voice was only in her head. Why should it not be? She was, as he said, a weapon, and weapons did not feel surprise or pain. They did not feel cold or hatred, or love. They were simply tools to be used.

The pain and the darkness were easy to deal with.

It was when she slept, and dreamed, that she did not know what to do. She could not fight phantoms inside her head. She could not kill them, as a weapon was meant to do. So many faces flashed before her eyes, faces of people she did not know and yet...they were all somehow familiar.

A woman with dark hair and eyes the color of steel, and a man, taller than the woman, but with much the same coloration. There were two dark-haired boys with them, and they smiled at her. She felt an urge to go to them.

But why?

A boy and girl with white hair and eyes the color of ice and amaranthine, a man, blonde with blood-red eyes, a dark-haired male with the same eyes, and a woman with hair the color pink sunsets. They were there, and they smiled, and they vanished.

A girl who looked like a child yet was much older, her hair as white as the snow, with a black ribbon. She did not smile, but there was something there in her eyes. Another woman, with fawn-colored hair stood beside her. She was smiling.

A man with dark hair and red eyes, a small woman with light hair, and six children all around them. The woman smiled, the man did not. All of these faces flashed before her eyes, and she felt a sense of familiarity with each one, but she did not know them, she did not know them.

And then she saw him. Eyes the color of sea foam and hair dark, yet with light streaked through it. He always appeared last, and he would smile, and reach for her. The sense to go to him was overwhelming, but she did not reach back for him. He spoke a name. But she had no name. She was a weapon, and weapons had no names. She would wake up then.

She would always wake up with a hollow feeling inside of her chest that she did not understand. She was a weapon, and weapons felt nothing. They could not love or feel pain, or become cold or sad. They could only kill.

You are my weapon, nothing more, nothing less.


Yes, she was a weapon. She was his weapon. She felt nothing, was nothing. She was no one, nameless, faceless. There was no one to become, and no one to be. She had only one task, and that was to kill.

The pain and the darkness were easy to deal with.

The faces were not.

She did not sleep.

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Character Portrait: Aryan von Nacht Character Portrait: Helen Trist Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Alden Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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It still had that certain je ne sais quoi about it, didnā€™t it? Or so he thought, at least, sweeping red-violet eyes over the grounds, as viewable from the entrance arch. He could feel them all on the grounds (well, save the ones who had left two days prior to deal with a skirmish near the border), exerting next to no effort to pinpoint the few students he was concerned with, even the ones who fancied themselves good at hiding. Well, they were, he was just better at finding what was hidden. It was, after all, his job. Alden sighed, shaking his head faintly and sending a few stray locks of wisteria-colored hair in front of his eyes, something he did not bother to correct. It wasnā€™t like he was in danger of running into something because he could not see.

He might have allowed the nostalgia to subsume him for a while, but unfortunately, there were more urgent matters to attend to. As it happened, his siblings were together at present, and though perhaps his first instinct might have been to seek out the von Nachts, he knew exactly how involved Zero was in this series of events, and so it was with he that starting made sense. There was very little Alden did not know about any of themā€”Leora had to have learned her ways from someone, after all, and it certainly had not been their parents.

With a slight sigh, Alden popped a piece of pocky into his mouth, letting half of it stick out haphazardly from between his lips and teeth. It was always a bit hard, hanging around Leo for any length of time, but that didnā€™t stop him from doing it. Sliding his hands into his pockets, Alden shuffled his way to where they were, which at present happened to be under a tree. They both leaned against it, Leoā€™s arms both wrapped around one of Zeroā€™s, and she leaning into his side. It was a bit cute, actually, and if he hadnā€™t known the reason for it, he might have teased them both. He bit off the pocky as a way of announcing his presence, because his scent was still the same one heā€™d been using for his last assignment, and thus not familiar to either of them.

The noise made Leora glance up, but before she could say anything, Alden spoke. ā€œYou have twenty-four hours before Freyr deploys Yuki. Here.ā€ He reached up with one hand, straightening his black-framed glasses on his face. Completely unnecessary, of course, but he liked them.


Kiba's ears pricked forward at the newcomer, a low growl leaving his throat as Yuki was mentioned. As usual for the familiar, he'd not left Zero's side since he'd woken up, even with the birth of Xenos. While his own master was missing, he would stay with the one she had chosen as her own.

Aryan was well aware when Alden arrived, and it was to him he currently found himself headed. While he did not recognize the scent, it was easy enough to sense the presence of someone new on campus. His pace was brisk, and Helen was right behind him, as silent as ever. As it were, they arrived just in time to catch the end of Alden's scentence.

"So we were right, they are sending her after us. But does she have a particular target in mind?"


Zero sighed softly, leaning his head against his sister's as they sat, arms laced together. His breathing was stilled, shallow almost, however; he was completely content at the moment. Though, he wasn't entirely, he was still nonetheless happy. Their efforts in finding Yuki were intensified and they had spent no expense at finding her. He popped an eye open, glanced down at his sister, and ran his free hand through her hair. Her scent filled his senses, and he sighed. He was used to it by now. Being one of the first born, growing up around Ava, it instilled a sense of control in him. Though perhaps he wasn't as controlled as his father was.

His attention, however, was taken by the subtle growl of Kiba. Xenos lifted his large head, glancing at the newcomer, however; his tail wagged happily. "Then we have to prepare," he spoke, moving so that he unhooked himself from Leora's arm and stood. He straightened himself out so that he stood on par with his brother, staring at Alden as he shook some of the dirt from his clothes. "The twins are gone with Emrys, it'll be just a handful of us here," he spoke. If she was going to be here, then he had to prepare himself. He would finally be able to see her, though part of him was terrified.

His eyes drifted to the arrival of Aryan, his eyes narrowing slightly though they held no malice towards the younger von Nacht heir. "The target matters not. The only thing that does is that she will be here after someone. We cannot afford for any of us to stray too far from each other. Though, their intentions will probably be to separate us while she goes after her intended target," he spoke, his voice unusually calm.


Alden returned his brotherā€™s scrutiny with a flat stare. He was a rather straightforward person, when he wasnā€™t busy being deceptive, and so his eyes flickered for a moment towards Aryan and Helā€”he was careful not to do more than break the surface of that oneā€™s mind. Some things could fuck you up just in the seeing, and heā€™d made the mistake of trying to read a bit deeper into hers once. It had given him a profound respect for the fact that the girl was even still capable of basic function, though she looked a bit worse for the wear now.

ā€œThink about it, Ary. Helenā€™s informed you all that Freyrā€™s only intention is to hurt us, so heā€™ll aim her at whatā€™s going to hurt the most.ā€ His eyes slid back to Zero. ā€œNamely, Rocchan here.ā€ Like many little brothers, Alden exercised the right they all shared to give the older ones rather annoying nicknames. ā€˜Rocchanā€™ was derived from ā€˜Ro-chan,ā€™ something heā€™d been calling his brother since he was old enough to speak. ā€œThereā€™s also less chance of her being incapacitated against someone who wonā€™t fight back. She wonā€™t be alone, but whomever they send with her will be just a distraction. I wouldnā€™t be surprised if the schemer himself decided to put in an appearance. Some people like pain.ā€ He shrugged lazily, a gesture that made it seem almost as if he didnā€™t care much either way, though nothing could be further from the truth.

Over Aldenā€™s shoulder, an enormous pair of eyes set into a fuzzy rodentā€™s face peered at them, and his familiar scrabbled up onto his shoulder. Alia was presently a bush-baby, though she was just as capable of being anything she wanted as he was. ā€œAnd donā€™t forget the diversion,ā€ she squeaked, and he sighed.

ā€œI would have thought it was obvious, but yeah. That Level E attack was intended to draw away the moreā€¦ahā€¦ combatively-inclined half of the family.ā€






The pain was still there, in her head. And the voices. But there were no faces, not while she was waking. Her yellow eyes skimmed over the campus. There was a certain person she was looking for. The male with the sea foam eyes. He was her target. If anyone got in her way, she was to kill them. That was what weapons did. They killed. The wind tousled her hair, which was free of any restraints. That alone was enough to cause one to do a double-take.

She never wore her hair down. Oddly, she was also barefoot. Coupled with the light flames that were rising from her body, it gave her a wild, feral look. Suddenly, she picked up on his scent. He was with the younger von Nacht boy. How odd, she'd been told he didn't like fighting. No matter, it would make killing him all the more easier. Her eyes slid to the others with her for just a second, but she otherwise ignored them.

She had a job to do. The Katana at her back slid from its sheath with a metallic sound, and she began walking. At first, one could only see her eyes glowing in the darkness as she stepped out of the shadows, but Aryan had been able to feel her. Nothing hid in the shadows from him, save for perhaps Freyr and Emrys. But not her. Not his sister.

His purple eyes narrowed as she came into view. He'd never quite seen her like this, and his hands clenched at his sides, the shadows responding. He was only further angered by the grin that spread over her face as his shadows flared. It was her voice, but it wasn't her. Her voice was flat, monotone; the blade in her hand gleamed in the moonlight.

"You are not my target, Lord von Nacht. But I will kill you if you get in my way."


It was from the same shadows that Hel darted, her own odachi ringing free with a soft chime. She would not let her friend do this. She would not let her hurt the people she loved. The girl came in fast on Yukiā€™s left, but she was intercepted in turn, her blade clanging off a three-pointed spear. Freyr. He smiled at her, nothing in it resembling the one heā€™d used to wear, and his greater strength tossed her backwards. She landed lightly in a three-point crouch, her blade held out to the side, and in a rare display of emotion, her lip curled upward slightly, into the faintest of snarls.

ā€œYou will move, brother, or I will not hesitate.ā€ He chuckled, low and dark, and stabbed for her again with the spear, driving her backwards another few steps and clear of the engagement between Yuki and the others.

ā€œAll you are is hesitation, Hel,ā€ he said, only to be cut off by a pair of flying daggers. One actually managed to nick him in the cheek. Oddā€”he should have been gradually becoming imperceptible to anyone but herā€¦ ah. ā€œThe Spider,ā€ he murmured, running a thumb along his cheekbone and examining the red liquid there as though heā€™d never seen it before. ā€œAnd here I thought you never left the center of your web.ā€

ā€œI donā€™t,ā€ Alden replied bluntly. ā€œItā€™s you whoā€™s in the wrong place, pest.ā€ He moved to stand beside Helen, who nodded to him slightly. Freyr was not a run-of-the-mill opponent, and it would take subtlety and power in equal measure to even have a hope against him.

Leora, meanwhile found herself as usual in the middle of a horde of hungry Level Eā€™s. ā€œIt never fails,ā€ she muttered dryly, though this time, sheā€™d let her blood intentionally, to distract them from her family. This meant she got to deal with them all herself, but there were only about twentyā€”she could handle it. Settling back into a pugilistā€™s stance, she drew her fist back and slammed it into the nearest one, tearing its head from its shoulders with the force of the impact. ā€œNot a snack, assholes,ā€ she growled, launching herself at the next.


The day passed swiftly, and Zero found himself along with his family standing outside. His eyes sweeped the field, noting the Level E's assembling around, their eyes glowing like ravenous starved dogs. His lips pulled into a viscious snarl, revealing white fangs that glistened like the moon does in the middle of a winters night. He watched as the scent of Leora's blood beckoned the lower vampires towards her, and a flash of worry crossed his features. Leora could handle herself, but it was still dangerous to use such a notion to call attention towards herself. He merely kept his eyes glued to the battle field, trusting his sister knew what she was doing and allowed himself to charge into the fray.

He was, however, brought from it when he spotted someone. It was her. She stood a few feet away from Aryan, and he could hear her speaking. He couldn't make out the words over the loud snarls of the others, and his eyes momentarily fled towards Hel and Alden. It appeared that there was another on the field, however; the aura this one produced was different than the level E's, and Zero couldn't help the hairs along the back of his neck from standing. He couldn't understand why, but part of him pulled to attack this man, to harm and maim him for some crime he did not know he committed. Instead, Zero refocused back on her.

"Yuki," he murmured softly, as if her name was a delicate piece of glass already on the cusp of breaking that if he said it any louder, it would shatter completely. He ran towards Aryan, his speed a little slower than what he was trying to exert. It was as if a part of him was afraid to be near her, to go to her, to help her. But that is what he desired most. He wanted to help her, though he knew he wouldn't be able to. He was by Aryan's side in seconds, staring down at the woman he loved. "Yuki."


Aryan's lis pulled back in a silent snarl. He hated that title, even more so that she was the one who said it, however; Zero was at his side, speaking before he could. He said her name, and her yellow eyes swiveled to him. She raised the blade slightly. There was no recognition in her eyes.

"Yuki." He needed a reaction from her, anything. Something so that he knew his sister was still in there. The answer he got was one that gave him chills.

She raised the blade, leveling it with her face. "Do the Lords Kuragari and von Nacht deem fit to name me? I am not yours to name. I am a weapon, and therefore, I have no name. I have only one purpose, and that is to kill."

With the last word she spoke, she moved, nearly as fast as a Pure Blood, her katana leveling with Zero's throat. She had spoken truly, Aryan was not her target. Her target was the man in front of her.

Aryan's eyes widened, realizing that Zero wasn't moving. The idiot was just going to let her kill him. He didn't think, he just moved.

Self-sacrifice was not something Aryan would have ever guessed was in his nature. He had no love of battle, he wasn't good at it like his parents, his brother, his sister. His fight was on paper, in dark rooms. Not this, not out here. So when the blade connected with his forearm as he stood facing Zero, at first, he was confused. Blood ran down his arm, dripping onto the flagstones beneath his feet. Then it made sense, what he'd done. He'd saved his cousin.

While it was not a particularly alluring scent to her, there was something about his blood, something that drew her to it. That, and the fact that she hadn't fed in almost a month. She twined her fingers in his hair, wrenching it so that his neck was exposed to her, and with no ceremony, she sank her fangs into the skin. The von Nacht's eyes went wide, and the fight-or-flight response his body induced only made his blood run faster. If she could have, she would have smiled. The more he struggled, the faster he would be drained.

What little color that was in Aryan's face drained as soon as he felt his sister's mouth on his neck. That had been entirely unexpected, and his fingers were instantly at hers, trying to pry her off of him, however; he couldn't. What little struggle he'd been putting up was ceased when she brought the blade up to his throat, the cold steel bitting into his neck. His vision was already fading, the light leaving his eyes as she drained him.

She wasn't just feeding, she was devouring him. He didn't even realize when she'd released him. His body felt numb, an odd sense of warmth spreading through him, starting at his neck. He felt her lips move against his ear, but he couldn't make out the words, not yet. The blade was drawn across his throat, slicing it open. He didn't feel that either.

"Goodbye, Lord von Nacht." She told him, her tongue removing some of the excess blood on her lips. She watched silently as the man his the flagstones, what little blood he had left in his system leaking from the cut she'd made. Nothing flashed across her face, nor in her eyes, which were now glowing a deep crimson as she set her gaze on Zero once more.

A strange gasping noise came from Aryan. The only thing he could think was, I hate that title.


Even between the two of them, Freyr was not at much of a disadvantage. Really, they were saved by dent of Helenā€™s superior reflexes and Aldenā€™s foreknowledge within his zone, neither of which got them past the Pantheon member in enough time to do anything to save Aryan from having himself nearly drained. Sometimes, being able to sense intent really fucking sucked. Though apparently not as much as Yuki did in this particular state. ā€¦His dark sense of humor was really getting away from him these daysā€”he should probably work on that.

Ducking away from Freyr, he used himself to conceal a lunge by the much smaller Helen, and she succeeded in scoring a gash along her brotherā€™s side, one that would have been a lot deeper had the lack of sleep and recent malnutrition sheā€™d been undergoing not weakened and slowed her considerably. Nevertheless, he seemed to be inclined to leave now, and Alden felt the shift in his intentions and thoughts in time to stop Helen with an index finger to her shoulder. To her credit, it took no more than that. She was ruthless, but consummately rational, and she understood as well as he did that the real priority right now was saving his cousin.

Alden was not capable of that. Nor was Zero. Leora might have been, if sheā€™d allowed him to take her blood, and he could hear the thought cross her mind. But that was far too riskyā€”they didnā€™t need an addict on their hands. That left one option. He knew the girl did not like this ability of hers, as she had been conditioned to enjoy the taking of life at one point, and this fashion was the way in which she had most often done so. He hoped, or rather knew, that she would be willing to set that aside for the moment, however. If her general willingness to sacrifice anything for this family were not enough, her guilt at not being able to stop Yuki would drive her to it. Not the ideal motivations, but Alden didnā€™t have the luxury of being choosy. Aryā€™s life was on the line.

And help him Helen did, kneeling beside him and placing one hand over the slit in his throatā€”she was doing much better than he would be at exposure to so much bloodā€”the von Nachts were pretty potent, if not in the same way as Leo or his mom, and he would not have had such an easy time of it, which explained why he was standing well back, his arms crossed, and watched Leo dispense with the last of the Level Eā€™s as Freyr and Yuki disappeared. Not from his perception, at least not until they left his zone of influence, but from everyone else, anyway. The girl whispered something, and though he was not close enough to hear it, it did escape into the mental space between them.

ā€œI wonā€™t let you dieā€¦ā€


All around her, the grass and trees began to drain of life, losing their autumn colors and fading until they were crinkled and brown, the trunks withering as she absorbed all the life that was to be taken from them. It was like watching time-lapse footage of the natural process of decay, until eventually the molecular bonds holding everything together just broke, and they were standing on a wide circle of barren soil. The energy seemed to light her skin from beneath, making her glow like some kind of fantastical spirit, or, thin and small as she was, perhaps a faerie. The wound she held to stem its bleeding closed, the flesh becoming smooth and whole once more, and the color returned in large part to his cousinā€™s skin, but the primary difficulty was blood loss, and she knew it as well as he did.

From his pocket, Alden removed a cherry-flavored hard candy, laying it against his tongue. It almost wasnā€™t enough to distract him from the smell that entered the area as she drew her own wakizashi up to her throat, laying it across the paper-thin flesh of her neck and collarbone and drawing it without hesitation, flaying open a portion of her marble-white skin and causing blood to well from the wound. Smartā€”heā€™d be far too weak to bite on his own, if he could even think straight enough to do it. She slid an arm underneath his back to help him reach the wound, and cradled his head with the other, so that all Aryan had to do was figure out how to drink.


Zero couldn't concentrate. His mind was drawing a blank at he stared at Yuki. She didn't recognize them, him, and it tore something in his chest. He wanted to go to her, to remind her somehow of who she was. That she was Yuki Alistair-von Nacht, that she wasn't a weapon. He wanted to remind her somehow, but he didn't know how. It wasn't long before he was able to command his body to move, however; by then it was far too late. She was behind him, cold steel pressed against his throat as his body tensed once more. His eyes faltered, the light dimming from them, and his body surrendered.

He couldn't. He told his aunt that he couldn't, wouldn't be able to harm Yuki. He wanted to save her, but he couldn't. Her words, they pierced him in ways that even the blades that could physically do him harm, were but the fleeting illusion, and the illusion itself was the reality. Then, he was there, the scent of his blood piercing the air as Yuki took Aryan. Zero's eyes widened at the display, watching as Yuki drained his cousin, and willing his body to move to help his cousin. But his body refused. It refused to work with him, refused to move, and so he stood, watching with eyes wide at the scene playing before him.

It was like a twisted play, and the scent of blood growing stronger as Aryan bled. His eyes met the vermilion stained irises of Yuki's, and he felt his breath hitch in his throat. This wasn't Yuki, this wasn't his cousin. This wasn't the woman he loved standing before them, and as he watched her disappear, he felt a little part of his heart breaking further. He glanced towards his brother, watching as Alden and Helen appeared. Immediately, she set to work on healing Aryan, and Zero could only ball his fists in anger. He was pathetic. So very pathetic that he couldn't even protect his own cousins. What use was he to the battlefield if he couldn't fight?

He was useless, and he knew it. He was so utterly pathetic and useless. And those were the only thoughts that rang through his mind. He failed to help Yuki, to help Aryan. He failed. He turned on his heel, leaving the area as he walked away. Aryan was close to deaths' door because of him, and Yuki was gone. All because he wasn't strong enough to protect his family. How could he ever face her again? How could he be the older brother, and fail to protect those who meant the most to him? He was pathetic, and everyone would know it.

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Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Four times she had appeared on the campus of Cross Academy. No one yet was dead, but that was of little consequence. She was doing her job. She could function on the battlefield. But in the darkness...it was getting harder to deal with it.

The pain and the darkness had been easy for her to deal with, but it was getting harder. The faces were beginning to appear to her while she was awake. They began talking, saying a name, reaching for her. It was the younger ones that became the most prominent, but most of all it was him.

"Zero Kuragari."


The name felt familiar rolling off of her tongue, but she still did not understand why he knew her, why they all knew her. She knew them only through the information that Freyr gave her. So how did they know her? It made little sense. The back of her throat burned.

You are my weapon, nothing more, nothing less.


She started, looking up into the dark. She hadn't expected to hear his voice this time. What was more, she saw him approach out of the darkness. There was a scowl on his face, his eyes a dim blood-red color. Her own eyes, normally so vibrant a yellow, were dull, lifeless.

"Have you forgotten what I taught you?"

"No."

"Then why have you begun to hesitate?"

She didn't know how to answer that. The truth of the matter was, she had hesitated the last time. She'd had a clear shot at taking out the male twin, and yet...she'd hesitated, allowing the female Alistair time to head her off. She didn't understand it, this sense of knowing.

"Yuki." Kisuke said sharply, and she looked at him, a confused look on her face. Yuki? That had been what the others had called her. They all called her that. But she was a weapon. She didn't have a name. A painful white-hot spike lanced through her head, and she grasped at her temples. Images, faces, memories flashed before her eyes, strings of things she neither understood nor wanted to see.

The man before her, his eyes gleaming red as he injected her with something. There was a lot of this, and a lot of pain. Eventually, she became almost immune to the pain. He bled her, starved her, fed her, and starved her again. Patches of memories were missing. The man was in front of her again, in the snow, the woman with the black hair behind her. She killed him. There was a lot of confusion after that, faces of people that seemed to know her yet she could not place them, years and years of faces, and they all said one thing: Yuki.

"Go away." She whispered. She didn't want to be here, she didn't want to see this. Nothing made sense and her head hurt. The faces kept coming, his at the foremost. Always his, and those eyes, the color of sea foam, and he would call her by that name.

"You know what you must do, Yuki. You are my weapon. You must kill." Kisuke spoke again, looming over her in the darkness.

"No...I don't want to be here. Go away."

Kisuke's face twisted in a demented smirk. "I am as much apart of you as you are of me. You cannot banish me, I am always with you. I am your anger, your fear. I am what you hate, your thirst, your need to kill. I am not going anywhere."

"No!" She yelled, lunging at him, but hitting empty air. The apparition laughed as he dissovled into nothing, the sound like nails on a chalkboard to her, and she covered her ears as she crouched in the corner. Her eyes were wide, frightened, like a rabbit as she sat there, her hands placed on either side of her head.

"I want to go home." She whispered to the darkness.

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Character Portrait: Aryan von Nacht Character Portrait: Helen Trist Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Her yellow eyes scanned the grounds again. They lacked the luster and shine they once had, underscored by heavy dark circles. Her hair was dull, with a straw-like quality to it. The faces and the voices nudged at the back of her head. She ignored them. There was only one thing that she wanted. And that was answers.

Why did they know her? Why did they feel so familiar? And why could she not forget them? Him?

Her fangs slid down as she found the one she was looking for. Her lips pulled back in a silent snarl as she approached. A horde of level E's followed her, and her eyes, wide, wild, took in the three people in front of her. The Lords Kuragari and von Nacht, and the Trist girl. She flinched as Kisuke's voice filled her head again.

You know what you're supposed to do.


Aryan was...a bit surprised, at his sister's condition. Whatever the serum had done to her, it was having a very adverse effect on her. She looked like she hadn't slept in weeks, and the look in her eyes was something dark, something feral. He used his shadows to take out one of the level E's that lunged forward, this insinuating mass chaos. Yuki, however, went straight for Zero again. What she said caught her brother off guard.

"Why do you not leave me be?"


Zero stared out into the battle field. There was a mass of Level E vampires, each one different than the next not simply by physicality, but also by scent. It appeared that they were experimenting now, and Zero's lips pulled back into a snarl as one came for the group. Aryan took care of some with his shadows as did Zero, commanding them with the ease his father had shown him. It was then he turned, coming to a stand-still with the one he wanted to protect. She attacked him again; it was like this every time they met on the battle field. Her statement, however, caught him a bit off guard.

"Because Yuki," he spoke, blocking her attack rather than allowing her harm. He had promised. He had promised Balthasar, Nikki, and Aryan (in his own way) that he would save Yuki. Though he would not resort to killing her, he would use his force now to restrain her if he had to. He needed to save her. If not anyone else but her. "You don't leave the one you love," he spoke, shoving her away from him as he pulled out Ragnarok. The weapon could be utilized much like Ulrik, Erys' previous weapon now belonging to Alarica. He switched it, causing it to become a short sword-like weapon.


Yuki looked startled at his response. It made no sense. She did not know him, how could he love her? She skidded backwards when he shoved her, one hand clasped to the side of her head. Pain lanced through her.

You are my weapon, and weapons do not love.


The faces swam before her eyes. "No." She said softly. Her eyes widened, seeing, but not what was in front of her. "No!" Him, he was all she could see. She shut her eyes. Kisuke's voice taunted her, scolded her, tore her apart bit by bit until there was nothing left.

"Get the Hell out of my head!"

Aryan took out another few of the level E's, his attention never far from his sister, and he took advantage of the situation. He grabbed hold of his sister by her wrists and ankles, and around the waist using his shadows. "Helen, now!"


She did not need to be told twice. In a move uncharacteristic of her, Helen sheathed both of her blades, applying her speed to come stand in front of the bound Yuki in an eyeblink. Reaching up, she placed a hand on either side of the other girlā€™s face, forcing golden eyes to make contact with mossy lilac. Something uncommonly fierce burned in Helā€™s, and though she was still paper-thin and weaker than sheā€™d ever been in her life, she was strong enough for this. She must be strong enough for this. ā€œYuki,ā€ she said, the flatness of her tone somehow managing to convey a kind of sternness and a kind of softness all at once. ā€œRemember me. Remember him. Remember this.ā€

It was, after all, eerily reminiscent of a time a hundred years ago, when their positions had been reversed, and it was Helen who was bound in shadows, Yuki attempting to reach her through the haze of her conditioning and her control. Theodor had let her go, she knew this, but the serumā€™s hold on Yuki was weakening as well, and all her friend needed was to remember, to throw off the last of the shackles holding her in place. Taking a deep breath, Helen spoke directly into her friendā€™s mind.

You are not a weapon. You are not a tool. You are a person, and you are loved. Remember that. Remember them. Distantly she felt a disturbance in the air, as Balthasarā€™s aura flared dark and terrible, but she pushed it aside. Now was not the time for an episode. This was more important than anything else. This was the one place, the one act, in which she could not fail. If she never succeeded at anything else again for the rest of her life, she would succeed at this. Even if she had to die for it. Opening the mental connection wider, Helen showed Yuki things she would know, things she would recognize, and she explained them to her, slowly and clearly.

First were the faces of Jasper and Nikki. These are your parents. They love you. They took you in and raised you into the person you are. They taught you music and love and kindness and light. The image switched, until it was a memory of Balthasar and Aryan playing one another at chess, with matching subtle smiles on their faces. These are your brothers. They love you, too. They taught you devotion and humor and affection.

The rest of the family appeared this time, and she included Freya and herself as well. These are your family, and your friends. They all love you. They have taught you many things, about yourself, and about them. About what it is to have a home, and a real life. How to be something other than a tool, other than a weapon. Taking a deep breath, Hel ignored the fact that fighting off an episode was starting to cause her physical painā€”she was bleeding from the nose, and felt ill enough to collapse. She wasnā€™t done yet, though, and willed her shaking hands to still, refusing to give up until she was done. One final image passed between them.

This is Zero. He loves you, in a way that nobody else can. You love him, too, because you are not a weapon. He has taught you what it is to feel like the most important person in someoneā€™s world. He has taught you complete acceptance. He has taught you that there is nothing he will not do for you. Come back to him. Come back to them. Come back to us.


Yuki was shaking, the images and memories flooding her system. She couldn't make sense of what the girl was trying to tell her, the faces, the words. Her eyes widened, a look of pain and fear crossing her features. She wrested free, the sword in her hand making an arc for Helen. Aryan, however, go there first. There were things he could let slide, he understood that his sister was not herself.

But he would not allow Helen to be harmed. This was made evident when he placed himself between her and Yuki, and caught her with his shadows again, and he snarled. "Don't, Yuki!"

Then she remembered. What she had done, the fact that she had hurt her family. She'd hurt them, and worse, she'd hurt him. The surge in Balthasar's aura made her flinch, and she managed to expel Helen from her mind, as well as slip free from Aryan. She stood there for a second, staring at them, terrified, and she turned and fled.

She couldn't face them, not after what she'd done. She couldn't face him. She ran, and ran. She didn't pay much attention to where she was going. She just wanted to go home.


Helen was conscious exactly as long as it took to confirm that Yuki was at least herself again, but she could not hold onto her waking world any longer than that, and she coughed, the harsh motion pulling yet more blood from her lungs. This was the price for resisting what he wanted to show her, and she was paying it now. She wondered, distantly, if she was going to die. But it didnā€™t matter. She was backā€”Yuki was back, and though it would take her time to recover, Helen knew that her friend would. Because she was loved, and surrounded by people who would remind her of this fact. Sometimes, that was all it took. Even ifā€¦ even if she hadnā€™t understood it at all at the time.

For the first time in almost a month, Helen lost consciousness, falling still and cold. She was out before she hit the ground.

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Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Yuki Alistair von Nacht. That was her name, who she was. Faces, names, memories flashed before her eyes, and she swayed on her feet once more, having to stop and lean against a tree to keep from collapsing to her knees. The wind blew, the November air cold against her bare skin. Normally, she wouldn't even feel it, but as malnourished and starving as she was, everything was beginning to affect her. Her hair hung limp at the sides of her face.

Kisuke stood in front of her, yelling at her, barking orders. She simply walked forward, and through him, ignoring him this time. He dissolved. Her foot caught something, and she fell, catching herself on her hands and knees. She looked around her, her vision blurring with fatigue. Her hand came away, blackened, and confusion marred her features. It would seem that she had stumbled upon some sort of wreckage. She sat slowly, looking around her, noticing what looked like a door off to her right. Except, the door led underground.

Something pulled at the back of her mind. She knew this place. She crawled over to it, tugging at the heavy door. Whatever this place was, the fire had not destroyed it. She found herself staring down a staircase into utter darkness. Darkness...her eyes widened slightly. She knew this place. She was home. The faces of her family flashed before her eyes again, ending with Zero. She shook her head.

She couldn't go back to them. She didn't deserve to go back. She'd hurt them, and almost killed her brother. She didn't deserve them. She didn't deserve him. She was nothing more than a monster, an abomination that shouldn't have existed in the first place. He deserved better than her.

She slowly made it down the steps, her eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness. The memories of this place came flooding back, memories of pain and darkness, of cold, and solitude. Of silence. This was where she belonged. She never should have left in the first place.

You belong here, with me...


Yes, father... Her mind answered.




Kiba paced restlessly as the family moved. Cross Academy was in ruins, they could not stay there, so it had been decided that they would all go to the Kuragari household, if only because they were the closest, and Emrys wouldn't make it anywhere else. In truth, he'd barely made it there. Even now, his condition was far from stable.

Kiba felt for him, for all of them, really, but...he could also feel Yuki, and he was restless. He couldn't form a complete link with her, as every time he tried, she shoved him out, but he could pinpoint her location. He knew where she was, and he wasn't letting her get away this time.

Unable to stand it any longer, and knowing that he couldn't get through to her on his own, the familiar sought out the only person who could. His yellow eyes looked up at the eldest Kuragari. "I know where she is."

They wasted no time, the familiar leading the pure blood. It didn't take them very long, and Kiba, while he'd never seen it, recognized the location as what had once been the Alistair Estate. The wolf's ears flattened slightly, sniffing at the air. He tracked her to the solid pair of doors in the ground, and he snarled slightly. The scent of blood hung heavy in the air, the underlying scent of crushed pine along with it. That only ment one thing, and in answer, a shadow shot up in the wolf's face.

Kiba yellped, skittering backwards before racing down the stairs. Wanted or not, he was not simply going to let his master continue this. Because this would kill her. He couldn't get close to her, she prevented that. His ears flattened against his head, his tail between his legs. Yuki sat in a corner, blood slowly dripping from her nose, and her hands. Her eyes were wide, staring at nothing. It was as if she didn't even realize that they were there. She probably didn't. The fingernails of her right hand had been all but torn off as she scratched at the wall. She was muttering something under her breath, and Kiba caught it, but only barely.

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I'm sorry..."

Kiba let out a whine. "Master..."


Zero had taken to looking after the injured, namely Emrys. They had all retreated to his family's home not too far from the Academy. That was one thing about the von Nacht's and Kuragari's, they always had a home somewhere. It wasn't for flashy occurances, but more for strategic placements. There had to be a place for them to conduct councils and have an advantage on the battlefield. He sighed, running his hand through his burnt locks as he closed his eyes. Cross Academy had been destroyed, there was no going back to it now. It was the last neutral zone, but with the attack, it was sure to cause some hands to be forced in the war. His attention was taken when when Kiba spoke to him.

"Take me to her," were the only words out of Zero's mouth when Kiba spoke to him. He knew where she was. His heart nearly fell to the pit of his stomach that day when Hel was able to get through to her, however; the look in her eyes nearly devastated him. It was one of pure and utter horror, of regret, and it had slowly killed him. He followed closely behind Kiba, his eyes taking in the surrounding area, and something flashed behind his eyes. He knew this place...or he thought he did. This was that place, the one from his father's memories. Zero had fed from Vincent once due to an injury he had sustained that would not have healed either way. He had seen a lot from his father, but this place seemed to be prominent in Zero's mind.

It was the place he held her. It was his Uncle and Aunt's birthplace: the Alistair estate. He felt his breath hitch, his anger rising before subsiding. He ran after Kiba, only stopping behind him when they came to a room, dark as night. He need not worry about his adjusting his vision, his eyes did that on their own, and what he saw almost caused his heart to stop. Yuki, she was facing the wall, her fingers scratching along the wall. He could smell the faint traces of blood, and could only assume that she had harmed herself in one way or another. He willed his limbs to move, and as he did, he grasped her from the wall, turning her around and embracing her.

"Yuki stop. This...this isn't your fault," he spoke, his voice coming out a mere whisper as his hold tightened around her.


Yuki flinched when a pair of hands grabbed her, the shadows writhing in response, but they stilled quickly. She didn't have the energy or the control to use them any longer, if the blood now leaking from her eyes was any indication. Her fingers still scratched, even though there wasn't anything there for her scratch at. Her body began to shake as Zero held her. Finally, she seemed to focus, and realize who was there.

"I almost killed my brother, I attacked you...I hurt you...I'm sorry...I'm so sorry..." She whispered hoarsely, tears mixing with the blood in her eyes. She flinched again, Kisuke's voice echoing in her head once more.

You don't deserve him.


"I shouldn't have left...I don't belong out there."

Bloody words had been scratched into the wall, ranging from words to sentences, saying different things, in multiple languages. Most of them, however, read 'sorry', 'abomination', and 'home'.


Zero tightened his arms around Yuki as she spoke. "That wasn't you, Yuki. You cannot blame yourself for that. What you did wasn't because you did it. Aryan is fine, Hel saw to him, I'm fine. You didn't hurt any of us," he spoke softly against her hair. It hurt him to see her this way, and he couldn't do anything about it. Her words, they were like knives cutting into his skin, tearing him apart slowly, and he hated this feeling of being useless to the woman he loved. He took a deep breath, smoothing out her hair as he ran his hand down her back, combing through the silver locks.

"You shouldn't say that, Yuki. You do belong out there. You belong with us, with me," he spoke, his hold loosening just a bit. "You are not an animal Yuki. You are not something that needs to be caged. You live, you breathe, you love. None of that would have been possible if you had never left. This isn't a life, Yuki. Whatever this is, was not meant for you. You deserve so much better, and if I could give it to you, the world," he continued, unsure of if he was getting through to her or not. He wanted her to see that she was special, that she was a person who deserved as much out of life as anyone else.


Yuki buried her head in his shoulder. Why? Why didn't he just leave her? She didn't belong with them, she didn't, and she never would. He had said that she wasn't an animal. He was wrong. She was, she was wild and feral and she couldn't be trusted. She trembled again, her fingers curling into his shirt.

But then his scent hit her, and she shoved away from him, the fear in her eyes evident. It was oddly reminiscent of their encounter on the roof, but she wouldn't, she couldn't. She was worse off now than she had been when she almost drained her brother, she couldn't take that risk. Not with Zero.


"Don't," he spoke, reaching back for her arm and pulling her back to him. "Don't push me away, Yuki," he spoke, holding her at arms length as his eyes bore into hers. He didn't want her to push him away, not because of this. Let her push him away for any other reason but this. She looked so fragile, and it pained him to see her so. He could see the desire to feed, and he was the only one around. A smile played at his lips, bringing himself lower to her level, exposing his neck in the process. She had to feed, and he trusted her. He trusted her that she wouldn't let her hunger get the best of her.

"Take it, Yuki. Take what belongs to you, and only you. I trust you, because I love you," he spoke, bringing her head closer to his neck in the process. He kept one hand firmly against her wrist, reminiscent of when she first took his blood up on the roof. He wasn't going to let her go, not this time.


She couldn't do anything, not pull away, not run, she was trapped. But it was his voice that she noticed. He trusted her? It was more than she could fathom. How could he? Why did he? Even in her state, she still felt the thrum of electricity that still passed between them. She took a shaky breath.

And sank her teeth into his throat. He had said that he was hers, but he was wrong. She was his. There was no other way to put it. He grounded her, steadied her, when all else threatened to destroy her. She felt her body healing, and she was able to stop shaking as she pulled away slowly. She found herself swimming in sea foam as she leaned forward, her mouth covering his.

I love you, Zero.


Zero smiled, his lips twitching softly as she sank her fangs into his neck and took what she needed. When she was finished, he felt her pull away and stared at her, wiping off the excess blood that pooled near the corner of her mouth. "And I, you," he spoke, leaning into her kiss, wrapping his hand behind her neck before pulling away. "There are a lot of people worried about you. I think it is time we go back to them," he stated, lifting her up so that he was carrying her bridal style. Without another word, they began a slow pace back to his family's home. Yuki was back, and that was all that mattered.

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In the end, it didn't matter how much he loved her, or how happy they all seemed to have her back. It didn't matter that they told her it wasn't her fault. It didn't matter how often she told herself. He still plagued her, haunted her, hounded her. She couldn't sleep, and both nights she'd woken up from some sort of daze, finding herself in the corner. His words whispered to her, she saw his face when nothing was there.

She did everything she could think of to keep her mind off of it, off of him. She busied herself by trying to recover things that she lost in the destruction of Cross Academy, but that was not an easy process. The only thing she'd ever backed up were her own medical files, which was what she found herself looking at now. The prognosis was no better than it had been two months ago.

But then, she'd been in a completely different state of mind two months ago as well. Now, she was more skittish than a rabbit, and she couldn't interact with anyone save for Zero. She couldn't even look her brother in the eye, and she'd actually flinched when her mother had hugged her. She just couldn't understand why they were so quick to forgive her.

Because they don't forgive you...you belong to me.


"No." She grit her teeth, not realizing she'd spoken aloud. The dark circles under her eyes had returned, a clear indication that she hadn't slept since she'd returned with Zero two days before.


Jasper hovered for the barest second outside the door before he raised his hand to knock, though it was already cracked open, and he didnā€™t exactly intend to go away without seeing her. Heā€™d tried his best to give Yuki her space in the wake of the recent events, understanding that there would be things she needed to sort through, but it didnā€™t seem to have helped any, and he knew that Nikki and his sons were incredibly distressed by her recent reticence to interact with them. He wasnā€™t sure if he could help, but he wanted to. As much as heā€™d ever wanted anything. She may not be the daughter of his flesh and blood, but she was the daughter of his heart, and that was what counted most.

Allowing a few seconds between his knock and his entrance, he pushed the door open gently and entered the guest room sheā€™d been given, observing that she seemed to be reading her own medical charts. Jasper was not Freya, but he had more expertise in the field than either of his sons. It was something that came with as many years as he had and an interest heā€™d developed a few centuries ago. But he did not pry into why she was reading them, at least not for the moment, instead seating himself gingerly at the foot of her bed, which clearly had not been used for sleeping at all, if the dark circles beneath her eyes were any indication.

He did not say anything, rather allowing her to choose how and if this conversation occurred, and by what method, for he also lowered the barriers around his mind, in case she wished to initiate telepathic contact. He knew that his mind tended to shut out everything else from hers when she communicated with him this way, so if that was something she desired at the moment, he was happy to grant it to her. But he did not pressā€”such was not in his nature.


She didn't have to glance up to know that Jasper was at the door, and she didn't move as he came in, or when he sat down. Her eyes remained locked onto the paper she held in front of her. A part of her wished he'd say something, anything, yell at her even, but...

He was not that sort of man. He'd never been that sort of man. In every instance, he was the exact opposite of the man that she could not banish, no matter what she tried. She'd killed him, forgotten him, yet still he lingered. Instinctively, she sought out the solitude of his mind, the noise dying away instantly.

It startled her somewhat, but she also realized with a jolt that he was no longer present, either. That made little sense to her, as he was all in her head, and she knew this, but even so...

She shut off that part of her mind, forcing herself to not think of it. Instead, she posed the topic that had been nagging at her as much as Kisuke's voice.

"I do not understand why you do not hate me." The term was generalized, speaking of the whole family, and not simply Jasper, though, with what she'd done to his son, he had more cause to hate her than the others.


Jazz felt the brush of her mind against his, but he made no attempt to initiate further contact than that. If what she needed was silence there, then she would have it. His eyes softened to a dove-grey, he tilted his head to the side, regarding her with a characteristic gentleness that most knew was simply him. More than any other face heā€™d had to wear, this one was Jasperā€™s. She was clearly distraught and guilty, and he could understand why. In some ways, Yuki was like himself, and like Balthasar. All three of them tended to shoulder burdens alone that were better shared, and all of them seemed to feel disproportionate amounts of guilt for things they could not control.

These were habits he was slowly, painstakingly unlearning, with the help of his wife and his children and his friends, but he would be lying if he said he did not feel them keenly even so. He let out a breath softly, the corners of his mouth turning up into a smile. ā€œNo father could ever hate his daughter, and no brother his sister. Thatā€™s part of what it means to be a family,ā€ he said simply. He knew, of course, that what happened had occurred as a result of the serum, and was not her fault at all, but he also knew that others had attempted this line of reasoning, and been met with her refusal or inability to believe it. So instead, he told her something else, something that was also the truth.

ā€œEven if you had done every one of those things and worse, on your own, of your own free will, there is not one among us who would hate you. And what happened, while regrettable for its own reasons, was far short of such a thing. The only choice you made was the choice to leave us. I daresay I cannot fault you for that any more than you faulted me a century ago. And, unless I am mistaken, you did not.ā€


That was true, she'd never blamed him for leaving when he had. He'd done it to protect them, just as she had. She hadn't been able to fight the serum, even though she'd tried. Some small part of her knew that he was right, it wasn't her fault, even if she wanted to believe it was. She looked back at the chart she held, and realized that she didn't believe it.

She wanted them to believe it. Because if they did, if they hated her, she wouldn't have to say goodbye. She didn't want to say goodbye, she didn't want to die. But in that, she didn't have a choice. She wasn't expecting the sharp pain in her head, or Kisuke's voice.

The little Queen is a hypocrite, it seems. What was it that your brother told you? It is not the years in your life, but the life in your years? It seems even you don't believe that. You are mine, Yuki, and you always have been. You were born alone, and you will die alone.


It had happened suddenly enough that his voice was not only in her mind, but in Jasper's too, because of the link they shared. Her eyes were unfocused as her breath hitched at his intrusion, and before she realized she'd moved, she'd buried her head into her step-father's chest. She shut her eyes as she trembled.

"No...you're wrong." She whispered.


Jasperā€™s arms closed around his daughter, and he was more than a little perturbed to hear a voice from a long time ago issuing from her mind. His mouth pulled down into a frown, and he splayed his hand over her upper back, moving it in soothing circles for a while, and then stroking her hair gently. ā€œHe is,ā€ Jazz agreed softly. ā€œHe has always been wrong.ā€ Clearly, he had underestimated the hold the man still had on his daughter, even after his death. He wondered if this was an effect of the serum, or if it had always been so.

ā€œYuki? How long have you been hearing him?ā€ he asked gently, still making soothing gestures with his hand, his other wound around her back to keep her steady. He wonderedā€¦ Jasperā€™s mind worked quickly, trying to bring to bear all the tools he had at his disposal, and all the people who would be willing to help. Perhapsā€¦ Freya had told him a great deal about the conditioning implemented on many of the members of the Pantheon by his grandfather, and what had been forced upon Yuki was not that different. Thankfully, it was also not as systematicā€”if his guess was correct, what she had was one influence, a single source of the intrusion, and if soā€¦ he might have a solution.

It could work. It would work, because it would have to. ā€œListen to me carefully,ā€ he urged quietly, speaking nevertheless in a soft murmur. ā€œI thinkā€¦ there may be a way that I can stop you from hearing him. It will need Aldenā€™s helpā€¦ and you will have to let us both in. If you are willing to allow thatā€¦ I will rid you of him, Yuki. Once and for all.ā€ He knew even so that what he was asking of her was a lot. It was never easy to allow someone totally into oneā€™s mind, especially not when the only person who had been there had done so much damage, butā€¦ if she could trust him enough for this, he could free her.

And that, he wanted so dearly it was hurting him.


Yuki wasn't entirely sure, there had been instances when she was still a child that she'd had nightmares, but it hadn't been like now. This really had only happened after she'd been injected. "I can only guess that it is a side-effect of the serum. I've only heard him in the last two months."

It was what Jasper said after that caught her off guard. Her eyes snapped open. She...wouldn't have to hear him again? She wanted that more than anything, to not hear him, to be able to forget. Jasper was her father, she knew that, she believed that. Not Kisuke.

It was that belief that gave her her answer. If there was even the slightest chance that this could work, she would take it. She couldn't live like this, and she didn't want to. Balthasar was right, she had to make the most of what little time she had left, and in order to do that...she had to let go of the past. Even if it meant that Jasper and Alden discovered things about her that she'd rather them not know.

There was no hesitation in her voice when she answered, pulling away from him in order to looki up at him. "Then we try."

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Yuki believed that Jasper could do this. She knew that he could, and she trusted him. That did not mean she was not terrified. Whether it was because he was a figment of her consciousness, or he was gaining a will of his own, Kisuke seemed to be attacking her with a vengeance, as if he could tell that he was going to lose his hold on her, and he was trying to drive her mad before they could drive him out.

She was at her best whenever she was around Zero, so she'd taken to spending as much time with him as she could, though she would have done so anyway. She'd even managed to sleep that night, if only because she'd fallen asleep in his arms. She certainly looked better than she had the day before, as she sat in the chair across from Jasper and Alden in one of the smaller studies, the door locked. They'd asked the others not to come in, but for this, privacy needed to be enforced.

Her hands were clasped in front of her, and she found her hear fluttering. Balthasar and Zero were the only two who knew, and she'd rather keep it that way, however; there was no way to be certain whether Alden and Jasper would come across it or pass over it, having every access to her mind. And knowing Kisuke, he'd lead them straight to it. But she had to be rid of him, regardless of what it cost her.

"I cannot say for sure what you're going to come across...even I don't venture into some places in my mind, for fear of what I might find. But..." She took a deep breath, exhaling slowly, "I'm ready."


Jasper, sitting across the table from his daughter, nodded once, in confirmation and reassurance both. Reaching across the interveining space between them, he took her hands into his and gave a gentle squeeze. ā€œI will disturb as little as possible, Yuki.ā€ It was not something anyone should desire, to have someone rooting around in their mind for an extended period of time, however good their intentions.

Alden, on the other hand, wasnā€™t terribly excited about this. He was willing to do itā€”in truth, there was very little, if anything, he wasnā€™t willing to do for his family, butā€¦ the last time heā€™d come in contact with power like the kind that was about to be used, his mental sensitivity had ensured that heā€™d nearly lost his fucking mind. That had been Balthasar. Jasper was at least a century ahead of his son in the development of that same power, but thankfully, it also gave him more control. Alden had explained the phenomenon as well as he could to his uncle, but so little was known about their powers that they had not discovered through experimentation that it was impossible to know what would happen here.

The way Uncle Jazz explained it, he was going to go inside Yukiā€™s mind and do what he was capable of doing outside of itā€”force another vampire to submit to his will, and then force it to eradicate itself, utterly and completely. The he was going to even be within range of that made the telepath nervous, but he knew he was needed. He had to set up, and maintain, the mental link between the two, and allow Jasper to in a sense borrow his powers, and give him a manifestation in Yukiā€™s mind that could obliterate Kisukeā€™s. It wasnā€™t something Violet had ever done before, but if anyone was capable of it, it was him, and everyone knew it. No arrogance, just fact. He was what he was, and it happened to be helpful sometimes. That was enough.

Heā€™d situated himself comfortably, in case his body happened to take damage while he was messing around with minds here. ā€œAll right. No use wasting daylight here,ā€ he said, diffusing the tension in his own way by being as blunt as ever. ā€œUncle Jazz, Yuki, this might be easier if you close your eyes, so the physical doesnā€™t make it harder to focus on the mental, and all that.ā€ Theyā€™d need all the help they could get, if this was going to work. Cracking off the last stick of pocky he had, he finished it before he set to his task, taking a deep breath and reaching first for his uncleā€™s mind.

Huh. It really was a little like turning off the rest of the world. Not totally, because Aldenā€™s awareness by nature extended beyond minds, butā€¦ things sure got quieter. Not in the youā€™re stupid so your brain is quiet way, either. More like the kind of quiet that you got when you stood at the shore of the ocean and just looked out at it. Because it was so absolutely massive that nothing else really mattered. It was actually a little unnerving, but he managed to latch into enough of it to sort of mentally ā€˜tugā€™ his uncle along as he sought Yukiā€™s mind. Mercifully, hers was more like an actual mind, if simultaneously keen and fractured. Heā€™d touched Helenā€™s onceā€”the effect was similar if not exactly the same.

ā€œInsert tab A into slot B,ā€ he mumbled wryly, recalling the directions for assembly of certain pieces of furniture. He much preferred to make it the old-fashioned way, of course, but there you had itā€”the analogy worked, and he fused the minds together with the mental equivalent of a temporary solder. Uncle Jazz was in Yukiā€™s mind; now he just had to keep him there.


Her mind wanted to recoil, at first. It barely had room for itself for certain areas, how could it allow something bigger to come in? Nonetheless, Jasper von Nacht was allowed into his daughter's mind, a place that was not overly bright. It was a long black and white hallway, with doors along either side.

Nothing was on any of the doors, and all of them, save for one, seemed to be closed. Inside seemed to be a memory, and it was very old. In it, Yuki was perhaps ten years old, back before she'd met her mother and Jasper. She was back in that old room, underneath the estate, in much the same position that her uncle had been in when they'd found him. The look on her face was one of pain.

The door closed, and another one opened, a barrage of memories of growing up with Jasper and Nikki, and Balthasar and Aryan, always there, but never quite belonging flickering by. There was also...quite a lot of Zero in her head too. Many more of her childhood with Kisuke were there, all dark, full of pain, and acceptance. Acceptance that this was her life, and there was nothing she could do about it.

You cannot banish what only exists in one's mind, von Nacht.


She shuddered involuntarily at his voice.


Jasper stood, not quite physical but oriented as if he had a body all the same, in the hallway, his hands loose at his sides, and his eyes sliding over the contours of the chamber he was shown. He caught the flickers of memory, some of which made him smile, some of which made it appear as though the most natural expression on his face was in fact a darkening rage. This much, he had expected, including, perhaps, her fascination with his best friendā€™s oldest son.

He had not, perhaps, expected to be addressed so soon, and his eyes narrowed dangerously. ā€œI can banish you from anywhere I choose,ā€ he said, his tone calm, but with an undertone of something unfamiliar to anyone but him, a strange reverberant echo of command. ā€œManifest yourself, Sou, and leave nothing behind. I can promise you Iā€™ll be able to tell the difference.ā€ He could, too, especially with the little mental tags Alden was placing on everything he saw through his uncleā€™s eyes. He was not directly appearing himself, having decided that it was best for Yuki to have to deal with as few presences as possible, but he was studiously finding the places where Kisukeā€™s influence still hid, and marking them down for reference.


A chuckle answered him, doors all around him opening and closing, memories flooding by, both happy and painful, joyous and sorrowful, but perhaps the worst were the ones of two months past, of doing what she had done with no control over her actions, yet being fully aware of it all the same.

I can tell you this much. You may call her your daughter, but even you cannot save her.


Parts of him were slowly coming together, even the apparition falling prey to the command given. With a wicked smile, two memories freeze-framed. It was the conversations she'd had with Balthasar and Zero.

Outside of her head, she whispered, "No..."

Kisuke was being pulled from the very depths of her mind, and he was bringing with him all the ugly things she wanted to keep hidden, and she was powerles to stop him. The medical charts, the blood tests, the results, all leading up to the inevitable conclusion: She was going to die, and soon.

Nothing can save her from the fate she must endure, and that fate is death. Not even you can change that, with all your power. You and Nikki and her precious little Zero have to watch her die, and it won't be very pretty, either.


This was not what he had been expecting, but to say heā€™d never considered the possibility would be to lie. It had always been an unknown, what Yukiā€™s history and creation would do to her, and here before him, the stark truth was being laid out: his daughter, his child, was going to die, and he could not stop that. Not even the ability to command reality itself could undo what had been done to her, for it would unmake her in her entirety, and he knew that. Yet there were still things he could do.

ā€œYou think this is it? That this is your master stroke? That with it you will defeat me, defeat her?ā€ There was a hard thread of contempt laced underneath his voice, and Jasper drew himself up to his full and considerable height, which allowed him the option of looking down his nose at Kisuke, an opportunity he took. He was not, as a rule, a prideful man, but for his children, there was no one prouder. ā€œThen you underestimate her, and misunderstand the nature of what it is to live.ā€

The air around Jasper began to crackle with some kind of contained energy, and he let his eyes fall shut. When he opened them again, they were stark white from sclera to pupil, but the faintest hint of silver remaining where the iris had been. His will, he pressed down upon the apparition of the man like a lead weight, like gravity itself. ā€œBegone, never to return.ā€

Outside the connection, Alden was bleeding from his nose and mouth, but he maintained the connection, breathing slowly. It was quite nearly killing him, to keep so much power in one place when it yearned to be everywhere, but he needed to do it. Uncle Jazzā€™s power had to stay inside Yukiā€™s mind, or the command given would affect the both of them, and probably a few of their closer-by relatives as well. ā€œAnytime now would be great, Uncle Jazz,ā€ he said, hacking up a globule of blood and coughing it into a square linen napkin. A second was held in front of his nose. ā€œI really wish mom didnā€™t like these carpets so muchā€¦ I swear a man should be allowed to bleed where he wants toā€¦ā€


Even with the pressure, with the weight, the apparition was smirking. With Jasper's command, he began to dissolve.

My target never was you, von Nacht. But think of what the news will do to your pretty little wife.


That was the last thing he ever spoke, and he vanished, completely, every trace of him and his influence in her mind gone. Any memory that contained him was like his image had been burned out. Something had once existed, but no longer. It was as if something heavy was lifted from her.

Had certain events not come to light, she probably would have smiled. As it were, she couldn't quite bring herself to. Jasper knew now. She hadn't wanted to burden him with that knowledge, yet he knew anyway. But even that was pushed aside for now. Right now, she needed to take care of Alden.

Thank you.

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Character Portrait: Helen Trist Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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It was as if someone had reached in Yuki's head and turned on a switch. All of a sudden, she could sleep again, she wasn't having nightmares, and she was able to let go of the guilt that she felt about what she'd done. She was smiling again. There was still the matter of talking with her parents about what Jasper had uncovered, but for now, she was just content with being able to go about her day without worrying about breaking down or hearing voices.

As far as she could tell, Alden was recovering well, if albeit slowly, but all tests ran normal, so she wasn't worried. She was also a little...surprised to find that Emrys spent most of his waking hours by their cousin's bedside, but she left it alone. It was none of her business, really. She'd been able to have a conversation with her youngest brother, which he seemed to be very pleased about, and she was currently on her way to check in on her best friend.

She owed Helen a lot, honestly. If she hadn't broken through to her when she did, Yuki probably wouldn't be here now. She smiled slightly before knocking on Helen's door.


Freya had arrived at the Kuragari mansion no more than twelve hours after sheā€™d been informed of Helenā€™s recovery, and as a result, the younger of the sisters was looking a little healthier. Granted, she was still too thin, and there were still dark circles beneath her eyes, but sheā€™d managed to sleep sporadically, waking only when the nightmares got too bad to handle. It was far from an ideal situation, but then, Hel had never really experienced the ideal situation, so this was good enough. What was more, Yuki was apparently doing much better, though Helen had elected to give her space to recover. There were plenty of people who needed to be beside her right now, and much as Hel would have liked to be there, it was not a physical need, as it would be for her parents or the one she loved.

She still didnā€™t really understand that, the need for someone else that stretched beyond desire, even. She had enough trouble understanding the desire, both for someoneā€™s company in particular, and then the further step than that which was romantic instead of platonic. Sheā€™d known a few simple instances of liking being around peopleā€”she was not, after all, completely incapable of feeling. She liked being around Yuki. She liked being around Freya and Alden and to some extent any of the rest. There were few sheā€™d seek out, though. There was a name suspiciously missing from her mental tally, but that was because she could not divine her own thoughts on Aryan at the moment. She did seek his company, occasionally actively. But that was about all that really made sense. It was enough.

She felt her friend long before the knock at the door, but waited for it to come before she stood from the chair sheā€™d been curled up in, padding in stocking-feet over to the door and opening it wide enough to accommodate either of them. She still could not and did not smile, but somethingā€”a spark sheā€™d lost over the intervening weeks maybe, lit in her eyes. It was a small thing, and hardly noticeable, but it was present. ā€œYuki,ā€ she said softly. ā€œPlease come in.ā€ She stepped aside to allow her friend to do so, then poured each of them a cup of tea from the warm ceramic pot resting on the low table between them.

ā€œHow do you feel?ā€


Yuki smiled, brighter than what was usually considered normal for her. She'd been doing that a lot lately, and with Kisuke utterly gone from her head, it was easy to see why. She was a bit concerned to see her friend so thin, but at least she no longer looked like the walking dead, that was something at least.

"I'm doing much better, Helen. What about yourself? I heard Aryan has been teaching you how to play chess?" She raised a slight eyebrow as she sat down, wondering what it was that was happening between her brother and cousin. Whatever it was, she certainly approved, Helen needed to come out of her shell more, and the more people she interacted with, the more chance there was of that happening.


Helen nodded slightly, taking one of the cups of tea and setting it in front of Yuki, cradling the other in her hands. The warmth seeped into her fingers, and she rather liked the feeling, in all honesty. ā€œYes,ā€ she replied simply. It had, of course, started as a distraction, a way to take her mind away from things when there was no more work to be done. In that sense, she supposed it was not necessary anymore, butā€¦ she wouldnā€™t mind continuing. There were still things left to learn, after all, and Helen did not like leaving a skill unmastered. It was also, perhaps, true that she felt comfortable in that setting, strange as she found the revelation to be.

ā€œOtherwise, I am recovering. Freya believes that there will be a need for some of my ability and relative anonymity quite soon, so I am attempting to regain my health as quickly as possible.ā€ There was a chance she would have to be separated from the majority of them for a long period of time in the near future, and she found herself surprisinglyā€¦ disappointed by that. She had grown strangely used to having them around. But she also suspected that it would not be long before the war effort fractured them in more directions than just thatā€”Cross Academy was gone, and the conflict was dearly close to their front doorsteps once more.

As someone who had seen the previous war, she knew it would not leave them untouched, and the realization produced a curious pang in her chest. They would lose people, this family, and she did not want it to be so. It hurt her to realize it would be so, and that was something that caught her off-guard.


Yuki sipped at the tea, smiling slightly. It was good to be back in Helen's presence, though her statement gave her pause. It was true, with Cross Academy destroyed, there was no real neutral zone any longer, and that would force a lot of hands to act in the war now. She pursed her lips slightly.

"I'm sure my brother will miss his assistant dearly. As far as I can tell, Emrys will be staying with him for Council meetings. The rest of us..." She trailed off slightly. She didn't want to think about it overmuch, since it led to the possibility that she would be separated from Zero, and she didn't want to think about that.

Instead, she smiled again. [color=#21072]"I'm glad you're doing better, Helen. I'm sorry if I made you worry."[/color]


As ever, Helen seemed to instinctively sense her friendā€™s worry. ā€œI am sure they will not separate you from him, if at all possible. And you are fortunate in that both of you are talented in similar ways.ā€ If she had to guess, sheā€™d say that they would probably end up on the battlefield together somewhere. Though she would miss her friend quite dearly, she knew enough to understand that the connection between Yuki and Zero was simply of the sort that took first priority in someoneā€™s life. She had said it, after allā€”Zero had shown Yuki what it was like to be at the very center of someone elseā€™s world, in the good way. The bad wayā€¦ was one she hoped her friend never had to experience.

ā€œDo not apologize for that,ā€ she said slowly, taking a sip of her tea and trying to think about how to explain it. ā€œThat I can worry at all is still very strange to me, butā€¦ I consider it a gift. It makes me less like him. Thoughā€¦ please do not feel the need to defend us all again in a similar manner.ā€ It was an experience that did not bear repeating, after all.

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Jasper sighed softly, dimming the computer screen and raising a hand to his temple for a moment. Aldenā€™s informational network was working overdrive, and Morgan as well seemed to believe that things were going to get much worse very soon. The Council and the Pantheon had all but cut ties, due in no small part to the subtle work of Aryan, Emrys, and Helen from within the former organization, as well as a seeming inability to agree on a strategy. While it was still unclear what either group wanted to accomplish, he knew it had to have something to do with his grandfather. It always came back to Theodor, even after his death. Jasper had never described in detail the encounter between them on the day heā€™d killed the manā€”it was enough to know that heā€™d wanted to restore vampiric society to its former order, where the caste distinctions were even more pronounced and the entire thing was run by a single figure.

But if this was perhaps what both the Council and the Pantheon wanted, as it seemed safe to assume it was, why could they not agree? The most obvious answer was that they had different ideas about who that monarch should be. His grandfather had wanted to raise his own kin to the position, Balthasar or Aryan specifically, if heā€™d been telling the truth about his goals on that day a century ago. He could understand why the Council would prefer someone else, but should the Pantheon not by now also want to switch strategies? Heā€™d exercised all of the power and resources at his disposal and the disposal of his extended family to protect his children from Pantheon influence, and though he had not entirely succeeded, as the incident with Sigyn had proven, his sons were both praiseworthy, morally-sound individuals who did not seek power for its own sakeā€”the exact sort of people his grandfather had once accused him of being and disparaged him for.

Closing the lid of the laptop computer, he straightened it on his desk and stood, moving instead to the suite of rooms that he and Nikki currently shared next door. Sparing a soft smile for his wife, he took her hand as he walked by and placed a chaste kiss on her fingers. One hundred years was not enough time to spend with so extraordinary a person, but fortunately, they had as long as time would give them, though it was given an edge of danger by the war. Their daughterā€¦ was not so lucky, and as he gently released Nikkiā€™s digits, he sighed softly through his nose. Heā€™d thought Yuki would want the privacy of walls and a locked door (and his support) when she broke the news to her mother, but he was no fool. Even that was not going to soften the blow much, for either of them. She would tell Aryan in time as well, and the others also, but this would be the hardest of the confessions, and it was best taken care of first, so that they might have time to adjust to it as a unit before it was brought to the attention of everyone else.

To this end, he had asked her to come in no more than a few minutes, and bid Nikki stay for long enough to hear it, though he did not say why. When Yuki did at last make her entrance, he closed the door behind her and sat beside his wife on the sofa in the sitting area, letting Yuki take the chair across from them. He laced his hand with Nikkiā€™s, but he would, as he always did, allow his daughter to speak for herself, in her own time, and her own way.


Nikki's stomach dropped out from under her, leaving her with a chilling sense of dread. For a long while, she didn't move. She could barely think straight, her brain desprately trying to reject what her ears had heard. She stared at her daughter, who was looking down at her lap, as if she expected to be yelled at.

Parents should never outlive their children. For a long time, Nikki had been sad over her mother's death, but she also now knew that it was better she had died, instead of living with the knowledge that her daughter was not. It was something no parent should ever have shoulder, and now Nikki found herself with that burden.

Yuki was dying. Dying. As hard as she might try, her brain simply did not want to process that information. She didn't want to believe it, she couldn't believe it, and yet...she realized with a small shudder that Jasper had already known. For how long, she did not know, nor did she care. She wasn't angry with him, he would have wanted Yuki to tell her on her own, which she did. No, she was angry with the man who had done this, and with herself...because she had let him. A piece of her heart broke, and her chest felt like it was going to collapse.

Yuki was going to die. One tear slid down her cheek, a prelude of those to come. "Yuki, come here." Her voice was even despite this, and calm. Yuki silently did as she was told, she always did. Once she reached her mother, Nikki pulled her down onto her lap, cradling her head on her shoulder. She didn't bother to hide her tears or the emotion in her voice as she held her daughter.

"I'm so sorry, Yuki."


Beside his wife and daughter on the sofa, Jasper adjusted himself, turning so that one of his arms was placed comfortingly over his wifeā€™s shoulders, and with a small movement, inclined the embrace just slightly so that both were leaning into him, circling his other arm around Yukiā€™s back and propping his chin on Nikkiā€™s crown. His fingers traced idle patterns on her arm, and he let his eyes fall shut. From a very early age, Jasper had been taught not to weepā€”that it was a sign of weakness his enemies would use against him. But his mother had taught him something different. She had told him that sometimes, things were important enough that oneā€™s weakness to them was to be embraced. It was improper to cry over everything, because oneā€™s tears should be saved for the significant things.

Until this point in his life, he had wept only twice: once, when he was a child and his mother had given her life to protect humanity, and again, when he was a man and his father had told him that his aunt, uncle, and cousins were dead. Because these were the important thingsā€”the people who held the most valuable places in his heart. His family, and his friends. And now that he was a father, it would seem that he wept a third time: for the knowledge that he would most likely live beyond the years allotted to his daughter, his Yuki. Not because it was such a strange thing to expect; as a pureblood, he expected to live forever, unless something happened to him, but her time was tragically short. It may be the case that Ava had once taught him that the number on his years was not the important thing, but that did not shake the simple grief that came of knowing that there would be a time in his life when he was without his child.

From beneath his eyes, then, slid a pair of tears, though his breathing remained steady, and perhaps it would be hard to tell they were there at all.

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Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Yuki sighed slightly, looking down at herself. Somehow, her mother had managed to talk her into the dress she now wore. It was a pale sky blue, setting off the silver of her hair and the yellow of her eyes. It was tight at the bodice, with minimal flare at the waist, accentuating her height, the hem reaching her feet. She wore a pair of silver heels, and the dress bared her shoulders, the sleeves belling out from the elbows down.

She looked at herself in the mirror, her mother braiding her hair. She fought not to shake her head, her mother was enjoying this too much. She smiled however, as she was enjoying it, too. Still, she was a bit unsure about the bare shouldersā€¦which was amusing, considering what she normally wore exposed her midriff considerably.


Zero found himself wandering around the estate again, having just come back from talking with his father. It was odd. He'd never really sought advice from the man, seeing as he had loathed him for a better part of his years. He hadn't exactly told his father what was going on, but knowing Vincent, the man already just knew. It was perhaps one of the things that terrified him about his father. You didn't have to say much, or anything at all, and he would still know. He sighed, running a hand through his hair as he pushed their conversation to the back of his mind.

He didn't want to push things, but if it was what she wanted, he would give it to her. It was far too soon to be thinking about things like that anyway, even though their time was limited. Sighing, he shoved his hands into his pockets and continued to roam. He had left Yuki to her own space as of late, again, as he didn't want to smother her. He would never want to do that, and cause her distress. Instead, he found himself standing outside the door frame of the room Yuki and her mother were currently occupying.

"Good evening, Aunt Nikki, Yuki. The two of you look lovely, as always, but I must say," he stated, leaning on the door frame and crossing his arms over his chest, a light smirk crossing his face. "Yuki, you look rather ravishing in that attire," he spoke, a hint of teasing in his voice. He wouldn't say too much for fear of Nikki, but he could still tease the woman he loved.


Nikki smiled, just having finished her daughter's hair, when Zero entered. She courtsied to Zero, a rather knowing smile on her face, the midnight-black dress she wore accented with crimson billowing out as she did so. She paused on her way out, laying a hand on Zero's arm.

"Do be careful, Mr. Kuragari. The Alistair women are not known for their gentleness."

Yuki let out a sigh as her mother left, shaking her head. "I don't get her sometimes." Once they were alone, however, she wasted no time in crossing over to him. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, murmuring into his chest, "I've missed you, Zero."


He chuckled at his aunt's words. That he was well aware of. If his Aunt Erys and his cousin Alarica were anything to go by, he didn't want to know about his Aunt Nikki. Shaking that thought from his mind, he smiled softly when Yuki crossed the room and wrapped her arms around him. He returned the embrace, wrapping his arms around her shoulders in the process as he laid his head down upon the top of her head, placing a kiss upon it before doing so.

"You do not have to miss me. I am always here. If anything, I miss you more," he replied, smiling against the top of her head. Which was true, he did miss her, even when he had her wrapped in his arms he still missed her. He wasn't sure...he paused in that thought and banished it. He still had a lot of time with her. He really did need to stop thinking like that. It was becoming annoying more-so than anything.


Yuki frowned slightly, as if reading his thoughts. She hadn't of course, but even so, his train of thought was not hard to follow just by watching his body language. She sighed softly. pulling her head back to look at him. "I think we both should just call a truce and stop missing each other, it won't do us any good. And we have each other now. So, let's make the most of it, shall we?"

There was an almost uncharacteristic smirk on her face as she laced her fingers into the hair at the nape of his neck, lowering his head to her. Kissing was not something she'd done very often; indeed, the only time it had ever happened were the two times prior with Zero, but it was something she had decidedly taken a liking to.


Zero had to keep from smiling so widely, unless he wanted to tear his face in half. "True, but then again, I can't promise that I won't miss you, even still," he spoke, smiling against her lips as she pulled him down to her. "But you are correct, we should make the most of it," he spoke against her lips, brushing against them once more before taking her hands into his. "Let's dance shall we?" he spoke, twirling her around before adjusting his hands upon her waist, keeping one of her hands into his.

Yuki smiled, spinning as he twirled her. Her hand met his shoulder, and she looked at him with half-lidded eyes. "You silly man." She murmured. "You would dance to no music." Silly or not, she loved him, and that was a fact.

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Character Portrait: Keir Alistair Character Portrait: Leora Kuragari Character Portrait: Aryan von Nacht Character Portrait: Balthasar von Nacht Character Portrait: Alarica Alistair Character Portrait: Helen Trist
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After all the present opening in the morning, the family was more or less left to their own devices for a while, which meant that most of them were occupying the large living room, spread out over the various pieces of furniture, occupying themselves with games or conversation or food, of which there was plenty. Most of their parents were around, but the central living room was basically the haven of the younger generation at present, including the other four Kuragari brothers. Leora, as it turned out, was just entering the room with another plate of cookies, unaware that she had passed under a certain conspicuous object at the same time as Alarica was there, who did not seem to know that she was standing beneath it.

ā€œNe, Leo,ā€ said Carlisle, her youngest brother and the familyā€™s primary contact with the Dissident huntersā€™ group. ā€œYou and Rica.ā€ Heā€™d been entertaining himself with backgammon against his immediately older brother Lysander, but since he was facing one of the two pieces of mistletoe in the room, heā€™d also taken it upon himself to notify the entire set of relatives when someone and someone else happened to be under it at the same time. His telekinesis may also have been responsible for moving it, but if so, he wasnā€™t fessing up.

Leora looked over her head as if to confirm it, then at Alarica, and shrugged. Balthasar was in the room, which just amused her further. Setting the baked goods down on the table and rolling her eyes when Alden immediately descended upon them like a ravenous shark, she returned to her previous spot. ā€œHow ā€˜bout it, Rica?ā€ She didnā€™t mind if her cousin rather wouldnā€™t, but knowing the other womanā€™s instinct for doing the unexpected and the mischievous, she doubted there would be a real protest to the notion.


Alarica had been standing off to the side, leaning against the door frame as she stared at her cousins. She had a delicate brow raised as she watched most of the Kuragari males devour Ava's cookies, something she had grown quite used to over the years. It must run in the family or something, because no matter where they were, they would always find a way back to Ava's cookies. Not that she could blame them really, her aunt had always been great at baking things. Alarica could cook, that much she knew, but when it came to baking...she leaves all the baking to Ava and Leora.

No one wanted a destroyed home, and Alarica was content at letting it be. There were some things she just couldn't do, and she was perfectly fine with letting baking be one of them. She sighed softly, her attention being drawn towards the second youngest Kuragari when she heard her name. She glanced up, spotting the mistletoe hovering above her, and her brow ascended further up her forehead. Leora just passed by, and judging by the look on Carlisle's face, that meant that Leora and herself had momentarily been standing underneath it. She mirrored Leora's shrug with one of her own.

She watched as Alden attacked the baked goods, scoffing slightly in the process. "You are an idiot to think I wouldn't do it otherwise, Carlisle," she stated, a light smirk covering her features in the process. She had, momentarily, forgotten that Balthasar was in the same room. There was a challenge hidden beneath that tone of Carlisle's, and she was never one to back down from one. "Shall we show them how it's done, dear cousin?" she stated, the smirk pulling wider across her face.


Alden watched with some interest as the smirk across his sisterā€™s face grew to match the one on their cousinā€™s, and he smiled inwardly, quite anticipatory regarding all of the various thoughts he was going to hear in reaction to this. Some of them were already a bit funny, but he hid his amusement well, reclining back against the couch and chewing over his cookie with enthusiasm. His interest was purely professionalā€”he had taken it upon himself to teach his little sister how to do these sorts of things, and he was going to be sadly disappointed if she didnā€™t remember the lessons for lack of practice.

As it happened, Leo raised a hand to Alaricaā€™s cheek, laying her palm against it and leaning slightly forward and down the couple of inches they had in height difference. It was assuredly a showmanā€™s kiss, not entirely chaste but nothing too risquĆ©. He was duly impressed when she remembered to nip a little at her cousinā€™s lower lip on the way back, though. This, of course, produced a catcall from Lysander, who thought the whole thing was hilarious. Carlisle, who in fact had not believed they would actually go through with it, looked faintly gobsmacked, and Leo tapped the underside of his chin on her way past. ā€œPick up your jaw, Carey, you look like a fish.ā€

He had to try very hard not to laugh at the fact that Balthasarā€™s train of thought just stopped for a moment, screeching to a halt before picking back up again with a bewildered shake of the manā€™s head. Helen was mildly confused as to the point of mistletoe in the first place, but otherwise oblivious to the appeal. Zero, of course, had fallen out of his chair laughing, mostly because heā€™d been leaning back too far to begin with.

ā€œNot bad, Leo,ā€ he pronounced, pushing his glasses up his nose a bit. ā€œThatā€™s a solid seven out of ten, but it was pretty obvious you donā€™t usually kiss girlsā€”if youā€™re going to do it again, get used to being taller.ā€ She was at least a pair of inches over the next tallest female in their family, and more than that over the average woman.

Leora frowned. ā€œPut up or shut up, Vi. Go stand under that thing, and kiss the next person that walks through that door. I donā€™t care if itā€™s dadā€”since you have to be flexible and all.ā€ It was pretty much the first rule of seduction, after all.

Aldenā€™s response was to shrug. He knew exactly who the next person through the door was going to be, and it wasnā€™t going to be their dad. He certainly didnā€™t mindā€”but would his unwitting partner? He was rather interested to find out.


Yuki had watched the entire thing with a slight amusement at the whole situation with Leora and Rica, and even more so when Zero ended up in the floor. She raised a slight eyebrow as she stared down at him. She shook her head slightly, her amusement only growing as Alden stood under the mistletoe just as Emrys entered the room. Heā€™d been about to just go through when Yuki stopped him with a wall of telekinetic force. She wasnā€™t about to miss this. She smirked at her cousin, who looked confused at smacking into something invisible.

Emrys rubbed at his nose slightly, blinking. Yuki was smirking at him, Zero was on the floor, and Alden was in the doorway. He glanced at each of them until Yuki glanced above him, and he did the same.

ā€Oh, you have got to be kidding me.ā€ He looked down at Alden, who was grinning at him. He sighed. ā€Well, are we bending over backwards for them, or shall we just go our own way?ā€


Emrys really did have to learn how to consider his verbiage a little more carefully before he spoke. ā€œYouā€™re welcome to bend over backwards if you want to, dear cousin, but I at least certainly intend to do this my way.ā€ He arched an eyebrow, then turned towards his only sister, giving Leo a wink. ā€œWatch and learn how to handle being the taller one, dear sister mine.ā€

Of course, the purpose of such things was not best served by simply throwing oneself at oneā€™s intended target with no ceremony whatsoever, so Alden was deliberately slow, partially to give his cousin a chance to escape (which he was far too stubborn to ever do), but also for the effect it would naturally have. Anticipation was one of the best weapons in the arsenal of teasing, and he played it to its full advantage here, placing a hand at the side of Emā€™s neck before sliding it back and up slightly so as to tangle his long fingers in the sun-blonde locks his cousin sported. This of course was also an excellent way to assure that he didnā€™t worm his way out of anything. Hovering bare inches from Emrysā€™s face, Alden let their breathing co-mingle for just a moment before he closed the gap, brushing his lips with a light, teasing motion over the otherā€™s, once, twice.

On the third pass, he actually committed to the kiss, and unlike in Leoraā€™s case, there was nothing even remotely chaste about it. It was heated, open-mouthed, and a bit lingering, and at the end of it, he pulled away with a smile on his face and absolutely no shame whatsoever. He heard his sister sigh. ā€œYeah, okay. Thatā€™s your win, Alden.ā€


If he were being completely honest with himself, and he usually was, he didn't want to worm out of anything. That did not stop his mind to come to a screeching halt the first time their lips connected, nor from actually participating in the kiss.

Leora's sigh and subsequent comment did, however, force him to remember that there were others in the room, at which point the eldest Alistair blushed almost as crimson as his eyes and cleared his throat awkwardly. It was Yuki's turn to laugh, because in that moment, Emrys reminded her so much of his father back when she'd first met him that it was uncanny. She was doubled over in her chair laughing, causing Emrys to glare at her.

Keir, on the other hand, arrived late enough that he wasn't sure what was happening, he just knew, at the moment, he couldn't pass because his brother and his cousin were standing in the doorway. He glanced at both of them, and then looked up, and laughed. "Aw, you're kidding me, I missed it? At least tell me you did a good job, Em."

Emrys scowled at his little brother, but then glanced up at the mistletoe again. "You know, you're under it, too." He grinned a little wickedly, and Keir shook his head. "Oh no, I don't think--" He was cut off, however, when both Emrys and Alden leaned in, each kissing Keir's cheek at the same time, effectively sandwiching him between them. Em loved it, he didn't even have to say anything. Such was the perks when your partner in crime was a telepath. Keir scowled.

"You guys suck."

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Leora Kuragari Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Alden Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Yuki paced. She paused. She paced again. She sat down. She stood up. It seemed as though no matter what she did, she simply could not sit still. Of all things, of all times, this had to happen now. It had been something she'd given up on a long time ago. She was happy, of course, but this hadn't been how she wanted it.

She leaned against the wall, blushing slightly when she remembered that night. She'd fed from Zero, and then one thing had simply led to another. She sighed, and paced again. She needed to tell him. She wanted to tell him. She just had no idea how to go about telling him.

It was not every day you found out that you were pregnant, after all.


Zero twisted his neck, listening to the pop it made. A faint smile tugged at his lips before morphing into a frown. He was going to be leaving soon with Yuki, his aunt, and his sister. He had been against Leora going out onto the battle field, but there wasn't much he could do about it. Most of the family was battle prone, and his family was no exception. Perhaps his mom, but she was always such a gentle creature, though she could still be fierce to the point it scared him. He shook the thought from his head as he wandered down the hall. He was meeting his family for a meeting, and he was currently on his way there.

"Yuki?" he spoke, blinking a bit confusedly when he spotted her pacing. "Is there something wrong?" he spoke, wrapping his arms around her shoulders in a light hug.


Yuki sighed, relaxing into Zero's hug. It was amazing, really, how he made her feel better just by being there. She wondered if this was how her parents felt. She could only imagine that it was something similar. She shook her head. "No, nothing's wrong, in that sense. Do you remember the night a few months ago, where we...um." She paused, blushing slightly. Her fingers curled into his shirt, inhaling his scent before finally saying the words. They sounded strange to her, saying them aloud.

"I'm pregnant, Zero."


Zero stared down at Yuki as she spoke, a smirk forming on his lips as he recalled that night. She had fed from him, and before he had known what happened, it was a night of ecstasy on their parts. He hummed a thoughtful noise at the back of his throat, trying to keep himself from laughing at the memory before placing his chin on top of her head. "Of course I do," he spoke, placing a kiss ontop of her head as he pulled back. The smile disappeared from his face as he continued to stare at her.

And then she spoke those words. He blinked a few times, the information registering into his mind. Again he blinked, still trying to properly register the words she had spoken. He knew pregnant was one of the two words, however; he couldn't register the fact that she was pregnant. That she would be having his child, out on the battle field. Immediately, his arms tightened around her, a large grin plastered on his face as he burried his nose in her hair.

"We're going to be parents," he spoke softly. The thought finally struck him, however, and he pulled away from her, holding her at an arms distance. "You...do...do you want to stay? I can't force you to stay, and I know you'll not want to, but still," he spoke. If he could, he would have forced her to stay, but he couldn't do that to her. It was her decision if she still wanted to go out to the battlefield in her condition. For a brief moment, he wondered what his mother would think when she found out she was going to be a grandmother. He could only imagine the look on his father's face.


Yuki had to fight not to roll her eyes. Instead, she smiled. "No, Zero, I'm not staying anywhere that isn't with you or my mother. Now, come on...we, ah...should probably tell the others." That was something she was decidedly not looking forward to, but it was necessary nonetheless.

Avaā€™s hand was twined in her husbandā€™s as she and her family, minus Zero, headed towards the front door, the majority of them packed and ready to go off wherever. Leora looked absolutely miserable, and she was feeling the strong urge to pull her daughter aside and ask what troubled her, but she was hiding it under the same face her father wore, which meant that likely only herself, Alden, and Vincent would be able to read her actual mood. It was a sure sign that she didnā€™t want to discuss it, and now was unfortunately not the time.

The Kuragari brood, as it were, passed their eldest and his beloved in the hallway, and Ava stopped the procession, smiling over at the both of them. She hadnā€™t spent so many years as Jasperā€™s assistant and not learned to read people, and the look Yuki was wearing on her face, that subtle glow that had nothing to do with her actual expression, was immediately clear to Ava, having possessed it herself no less than seven times. The way Alden was grinning, licorice wand dangling from between his teeth, was a sure indication that she was right, and she struggled to contain her excitement, squeezing Vincentā€™s hand gently and fidgeting, attempting not to jump up and down with glee. They should be able to present the news properly, after all.

What she did do was open the opportunity, before Alden could be much more blunt about doing the same. ā€œHello, you two. Itā€™s almost time to leaveā€”we were looking for you, Zero.ā€


Vincent had decided against his better judgement to leave his daughter be. He had not missed the sudden drop in her mood, nor the fact that she had taken to hiding behind it with the facade that he knew all too well. If she needed to speak about it, she would, on her own terms. He trusted her enough that in time she would, whether it was with him, one of her brothers, or even Jasper's son. He cared not who she talked to as long as she eventually did. His hand clasped a bit tighter against Ava's, giving a gentle squeeze before loosening the hold.

Zero's eyes swiveled to meet the gaze of his mother before glancing at his family. They had to be told regardless, and perhaps it wasn't the best of times to say such things, it needed to be done. The look on Alden's face already gave it away that his brother knew, however; he still needed to voice it. "I was on my way to catch up, but it appears that you have all come to me," he spoke, his usual teasing missing from his tone.

"There is something you should all know," he spoke, pausing only momentarily to let the information sink in. Before he could speak another word, Vincent cut the silence, saying what Zero wanted to say, however; he merely shook his head. Leave it to his father to be ever observant. Then again, the man did have seven children. Part of Zero feared that there would soon be more on the way, however; those thoughts were for another time.

"She is with child," was the curt reply from Vincent, glancing towards Yuki as he sighed softly through his nose. There were times he wondered if his son actually ever thought about anything he did. Now was not the time to be bringing in new life, however; it would only make him a hypocrite if he were to ever state that. He and Ava had seven children in the war, raised them all the best that they could. He thought about it for a moment before a light glittered behind his eyes. "Congratulations Yuki," were the only words he spoke.


Ava sighed when her husband delivered the news in his usual blunt manner, elbowing him in the side. ā€œYouā€™re not one of the parents this time, dearest, so donā€™t steal the thunder.ā€ Nevertheless, she was smiling brightly, as were all six of her other children. Even Leora had managed to shake off her melancholy for a moment, punching her brother in the arm.

ā€œYou dog,ā€ she told him, but the words were laced with affection. ā€œCongratulations, both of you,ā€ she said, shooting her father a look. Sure, Z wasnā€™t having the kid, but it took two to tango, vertically or horizontally. Her mother, apparently unable to contain herself a moment longer, at last departed her fatherā€™s side, coming to stand in front of Yuki.

ā€œThis is probably going to make you slightly uncomfortable,ā€ Ava confessed with a rueful smile, ā€œbut itā€™s a good skill for when one has a family. Weā€™re all going to hug you now.ā€ She started, throwing her arms around Yukiā€™s shoulders warmly. ā€œIā€™d say welcome to the family, but you were already a part of it,ā€ she admitted with a smile, and it was at this point that Leo, Tugging Zero in one hand and Alden in another, joined the hug, wrapping around the two smaller women with a giggle. The rest of her brothers piled on afterwards, swaying back and forth in some amorphous Kuragari blob that was nevertheless missing a component.

ā€œVincent Kuragari, you are not in this group hug and I know it!ā€ came Avaā€™s considerably muffled voice from somewhere in the middle. ā€œYou suck it up and come hug your children and future grandchild, or so help me, I wonā€™t hug you for a year!ā€ The threat was impotent, and they both knew it, but the point was clear.

ā€œMom,ā€ Alden said from somewhere behind her, ā€œWeā€™ve really got to work on your leveraging skills. You could have dad in your back pocket by now if you knew what to actually threaten him with.ā€ He was pretty much there already, but she should be telling him sheā€™d be withholding something much more desirable than simple hugs if she really wanted to make a point.

ā€œHush, Violet. This is a group hug, not an opportunity to show us all how smart you are.ā€

ā€œā€¦yes, mother.ā€

Setting

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Character Portrait: Aryan von Nacht Character Portrait: Balthasar von Nacht Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht
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Balthasar stood beside his father, lances crossed over his back and his bag of belongings slung between them. He was doing an excellent job of not showing it, but there was a fair amount of nervous energy bouncing around like electricity under his skin, and he was having a hard time standing still, though he managed it. It was marginally easier, with his very calm, very composed father right there next to him. For those who knew, it was obvious that Jasper loved his family, but there would be people who looked upon him hundreds of times and only ever saw the cool, rational leader of the smallest, but arguably most formidable, army in the war. Sometimes, his son wondered if he would ever master that kind of stoicismā€”or if he even wanted to.

Presently, they awaited the rest of their family, because the time drew near for them to depart one anotherā€™s company, by and large, and theyā€™d agreed to see each other off, so to speak. He was certain that the Kuragaris and the Alistairs were doing something similar elsewhere in the house. Despite his well-practiced solemn face, his father must have sensed his underlying tension, because he glanced sideways at his son through silvery eyes and smiled, just slightly. It was, as it had always been, enough to set Balthasar a little more at ease, and he returned it with one of the same. Jasper was armed as well, with a two-handed blade made from the metal his mother had sacrificed herself to make. All the von Nachts were quite resistant to it, or rather all the ones directly related to Elsa, and for this reason, they could handle it for their own use, which was just another edge against their foes that they could not afford to forgo.


Aryan was the only one out of the five of them who was not, in fact, armed in any obvious way with any weaponry. His mother had Benehime, and Yuki, of course, had Benehime's twin, Hineko. They both wore the blades strapped to their backs, though Yuki had long outgrew the need to do so, but it was comfortable there for her. It was not something that made Aryan feel inferior, as it was his choice. He wore no weaponry because he felt he did not need to do so. His mind and his shadows were weapon enough for him. His hands were in his pockets, the bag slung over his shoulder. Helen's ribbon, however, was still tied to his wrist, as he had not bothered to take it off. Even standing the way he was, next to his brother, the black velvet was clearly visible against his pale skin.

Yuki, on the other hand, was dressed much the same as always when she walked up with her mother, though for once, her hair was down. Not being tied back, the white tresses almost reached her ankles. She looked...oddly distracted, though Nikki had not said anything to her yet. She would have plenty of time to talk with her daughter later, after all. The older woman silently regarded her husband and two sons. It was uncanny, really, just how much Balthasar looked like his father. She smiled slightly. Even Aryan clearly resembled him, in the way he mirrored his father's gestures, even if he did hate to admit it.

"You look lost, Mother."

Nikki chuckled, running a hand through her youngest child's hair. "No, just trying to figure out when my sons went and grew up on me."


Jasperā€™s mouth ticked upwards into a smile; he occasionally had the same thought. Balthasar, on the other hand, grinned outright. ā€œDonā€™t count us too grown up yet,ā€ he pointed out. ā€œAt least, not me. Iā€™m still honestly confused half the time.ā€ It was meant more as a jest than anything, though there was a kernel of truth to it. To both his credit and his detriment, some things had always eluded him and always will, like the seeking of power for powerā€™s sake or the motives behind going to war with someone. He just couldnā€™t see them, though he could name them well enough if asked, perhaps.

ā€œWeā€™ve done a very good job fooling you if you think adults are never confused, Balthasar,ā€ his father put in with some amusement, and the son shook his head a little, clearly amused. His sire certainly had a point, though he was quite sure that the previous generation of his family did and always would just get certain things better than their progeny did. Who knew though? Maybe with another few hundred years, they would be in a similar place.

His attention was taken for a moment, though, because there was something a little different about Ary. He might not be the emotionally-intelligent member of the family, but Balthasar was damn observant, and so it did not take long to locate the source of the difference. He proved his rather stunning lack of emotional comprehension, however, by asking the question rather than knowing the answer. ā€œHey Ary, isnā€™t that Helenā€™s hair ribbon? Why do you have it? Did she forget it or something?ā€ Jasper made a truncated noise that sounded suspiciously like a snort, but he said nothing, merely raising an eyebrow in Balthasarā€™s general direction, then flicking his glance to Aryan. He was not oblivious to Yukiā€™s present state of distraction, but as he always had, he would allow her to speak in her own time.


Yuki's eyebrows raised up in slight amusement at her brothers, and the barest tick of a smile appeared. "Helen is not the sort of person to simply forget something, even simply a hair ribbon." More truthfully, especially that particular ribbon, as it had been a gift to her from Freya. So the fact that Aryan now had it...well, it pleased the girl's friend, no doubt.

Aryan sighed softly. "You never cease to amaze me with your utter lack of skill at reading emotional situations, dear brother."

Nikki had to fight not to laugh, and barely managed to contain her chuckle. "Now, now, Aryan. We don't all have your skill at reading people."

Yuki watched them all for a few seconds. She really had no idea how to tell them the news. How did you tell your parents and brothers that you were pregnant? She furrowed her brows, thinking. In the end, she did what she always did, she just came out and said it.

"I think we all know that I'm no good at putting things delicately or saying things at the right time, and now may not even be the right time, but it's something you should probably know before it gets obvious..." She took a breath.

"I'm pregnant."


Well, if there was a way to slam the brakes on any conversation whatsoever, that was probably it. Jasper and Balthasar both snapped their eyes to Yuki, all four going considerably wider than usual as each struggled to find the words with which one was supposed to respond to something like that. Balthasarā€™s ā€œCongratulations!ā€ escaped him at about the same time as the first part of Jasperā€™s ā€œThereā€™s no way youā€™re fighting any battles past your first trimester. Weā€™ll set yourself and Zero up at the house in Irelandā€¦ no, France. Iā€™ll have Ava and Freya there, tooā€¦ just in case.ā€

Balthasar blinked. ā€œUhā€¦ dad?ā€ Jasper had a very intent look on his face, probably due to the fact that he was now planning about a thousand possible contingencies and ways to make this go as smoothly as possible, but also to compensate for the loss of both Yuki and Zero from the field, at least for the first few months of the childā€™s life. Alsoā€¦ he was going to be a grandfather. His daughter was having a child. It wasnā€™t that he hadnā€™t expected it to happen eventually, but he wasnā€™t expecting it yet.


As per usual, her daughter's way of putting things had the effect of what one might consider a deer in the headlights, as Nikki watched her husband and sons glue their eyes to their daughter and sister, the look on each of their faces almost identical to the point that Nikki was struggling not to laugh. It did not take overly long for the three of them to recover, as Balthasar then congratulated his sister, and Jasper started going off about where they would put her. That made her smile, he'd done the same thing with her when they'd found out she was pregnant with Balthasar.

Aryan himself found his mind a little...fogged. He honestly wasn't sure what to think, and that perplexed him. He sounded almost exactly like his older brother when he suddenly spouted, "Wait, you mean I'm going to be an uncle?", at which point both Yuki and Nikki burst out laughing.

Nikki pulled her daughter into a hug. "I'm happy for you, dear. Just...don't be reckless." Yuki smiled. "I won't, Mother."


Having satisfied himself that this could be properly accounted for with a little more work on his teamā€™s part, Jasper shook himself out of his thoughtful reverie and returned to the manner with which his children were more accustomed to seeing him behave, smiling gently and laying a hand on Yukiā€™s snow-white head. ā€œCongratulations, Yuki. I am certain you will be among the very best of mothers.ā€

Balthasar was not nearly so reserved, and after actually rolling his eyes at Ary (was this how people always felt when he was slow on the uptake?) he waited with little patience for his mother to release Yuki, at which point he swooped in, lifted her from the ground, and spun her in a circle. ā€œThatā€™s amazing news, Yuyu, and weā€™ll be here for you all the way.ā€ Mindful of her condition, he set her down gently on her feet and grinned broadly. He was going to be an uncle, and though heā€™d never given that much thought to it before, he was genuinely excited at the prospect. He bet Zero had nearly fallen over when she told him.


Yuki blushed slightly at her father's comment, and outright laughed when Bal picked her up. Nikki returned to her husband's side, lacing her fingers with his. At least she would be with her daughter, for the most part, and Leora would be there as well. She smiled slightly, and gave a little sigh. "I don't feel old enough to be a grandmother yet."

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Leora Kuragari Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Diya Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht Character Portrait: Bryer Kuragari
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The family was separated for a total of seven years, and in that time, only infrequently did any two members of it cross paths with one another. Some never once caught sight of one another in that time, but all were connected through the impressive organizational and informational networks of Morgan, Alden and Ava, and so it could be said that each of them took a small moment to smile and celebrate when the news reached them of the birth of Yuki and Zeroā€™s first child, their daughter Diya, and a year later, her younger brother Bryer. Over the next six turns of the earth around the sun, each of them would meet their newest relatives, and not one of them was less than charmed.

But war waits for nothing, and certainly not for children, and time moves ever apace. Each of the groups found themselves almost too busy to handle over the intervening years, and not one person was unchanged by the events they encountered and participated in. Some changed less than others, but few changed more than the fledgling family born of Yuki and Zero Kuragariā€¦





Two hundred and fifty years was perhaps a very long time to go between seeing family members. At least, she would assume so. She really neither knew nor cared, and as such, she held a lack of certain things like notions of family and love. She could fake them well enough, she'd done so for the first sixty years of her life before her parents had died, after all. For a long time, she'd thought her brother had died, too. But she had been proven wrong in that.

The night air was chill on her bare feet, her waist-length midnight black hair hovering around her, as if suspended. It made her look like some wild, magnificent spectre, her red eyes only furthering the design. A strange little song escaped her, the melody carried away on the wind. She laughed at nothing in particular, leaning her head sideways as if listening to something. In the darkness, one could make out two other figures with her, though they gave off no scent, no heartbeat was detected, and they made no sound. But they moved when she did, and the three slowly picked their way through the trees, towards the mansion where she knew her prize was.

She had a grandson to meet, after all.




Nikki von Nacht was, without a doubt, a very patient woman. She would have to be, with her granddaughter and grandson running along after her most days she was in the house. She loved them both dearly, but some days, there was work to be done that she'd rather they not be around for. Well, Diya at least. Bryer had proven more than once that he was capable of handling such gruesome matters, to the point where Nikki often forgot he was only six years old. She shook her head slightly, trying to banish the prickling feeling that was underneath her skin, as if something was wrong. She tried to occupy herself with other things, like organizing her brother's desk. Sometimes she wondered how he got anything done.

Yuki, on the other hand, was currently curled up next to the man she loved and the father of her children. She was feeling particularly lazy and did not feeling like waking up, her son curled up between his parents. Their daughter, of course, had other ideas. Quietly, the little girl crawled up into the bed, peeking over her father's shoulder. She reached out a finger and began to repeatedly poke him in the cheek.

"Daddy. Daddy. Daddy. Wake up!"


Seven years was perhaps a blink of an eye to one such as a pure-blood, however; for Zero Kuragari, they were the best years of his life. He could not fathom the happiness he received from the two pairs of feet that had run along the house, echoing their laughter, their voices in general, throughout the home. There were times he wondered if he was truly ready to be a parent, however; the thought eventually subsided. No one could ever prepare for things such as parenthood, but he and Yuki managed to make the most of it. He was happy, she was happy. That was all that mattered.

Currently, he was laying in bed, his arms wrapped around Yuki and encasing their son. A slight sensation was poking his cheek, and he heard a vague sound. Groaning slightly, he turned, cracking one eye open and allowing a tired smile to greet his features. He moved his arms so that he managed to trap Diya in them, bringing the girl over as he rolled with her. "I think not little one," he spoke, nuzzling his face into her hair in the process. "Daddy likes his sleep," he spoke, kissing the top of her head in the process.


Diya laughed in delight as her father all but smothered her. By this point, both Yuki and Bryer were also awake, the latter giving a tired little smile over at her daughter. She had to shake her head slightly. Seven years and they were lucky if they got five hours of sleep at a time. Diya was an endless ball of energy, and she did so enjoy proving it.

Bryer, on the other hand, seemed to be wide awake, and for the most part he was. His big pink eyes looked up at his father and sister, he blinked and then gave a funny little smile. Diya had been his alarm clock for as long as he could remember, at least on the days that he could actually sleep, so this was no surprise to him.

jaciv ui confnir. jaciv ui confnir. jaciv ui confnir. jaciv ui confnir.


Bryer's eyes widened fractionally. It was the voices again. He sat up slowly, conscious of his mother watching him, but looked out the window nonetheless.

jaciv ui confnir. jaciv ui confnir. jaciv ui confnir. jaciv ui confnir.


The voices were getting louder, but it was odd, like he was hearing them through a layer of cotton. He just wished they would go away.

Nikki jumped slightly when a knock rapped across the door. She frowned. They hadn't been expecting anyone, and what was more strange, she couldn't smell anything either. Her eyes narrowed, her hand reaching for Benehime as she approached the door. Every fiber of her being screamed danger. The face that she saw when she opened the door was one she would never forget, in all her years.

She found herself staring into the eyes of Michaline Alistair, her mother. But her mother was dead. An eerie little laugh sounded from behind Michaline, and Nikki jumped again, preoccupied by her thoughts to notice the scent enter her vicinity.

"Aw, is poor big sister too shocked to say anything? I'm hurt Kiki..." There was something...very familiar about that voice, something that Nikki couldn't place. She wasn't sure she wanted to. "And where is our dear big brother? I was hoping to see him again..." Nikki couldn't see her, but if she had to guess by the tone, whoever was speaking was pouting. Someone was messing with her. They had to be. She finally managed to get over her shock and form her face into a fierce glare. "Show yourself. I'll have none of these games."

The voice giggled again. "Oh, that's so mean, Kiki!" Naya Alistair stuck her head down over the edge of the porch's awning, her hair cascading down in waves and then floating, suspended. "Is that how you're going to treat your own little sister? Have you forgotten me, Nikki?" She made a frown, everything distorted because she was up-side down. "It was Jasper, wasn't it? He made you forget! That's so rude...but I haven't forgotten you, Sister..."

Nikki couldn't breathe. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening. The name escaped her lips before she even realized she was speaking. "Naya..."


Zero chuckled as Diya laughed, reaching over towards his son and placing a hand on top of his head. "Everything alright, kido?" he asked, watching as his son slowly rose and glanced out the window. He followed Bryer's gaze, glancing out the same window, but saw nothing. He pursed his lips together momentarily before glancing down at Yuki. She had a tired smile upon her face which only caused the grin on his to widen. As he opened his mouth to say something, the sound of the door knocking caught his attention.

"Who could that be?" he stated more to himself than any of the people present. He removed himself from the bed, rolling off and letting his feet hit the ground, sending a light shiver down his spine. There was an odd feeling rolling down his back, one that he couldn't place, and it bothered him. Shaking his head, he sighed softly, shooting his family a soft smile before opening the door to the room. Though the knock was plenty soft, he could still hear it as he heard every other small noise. One of the perks of being a vampire was heightened senses, hearing being no exception.

"Aunt Nikki?" he spoke, glancing at her shocked expression when he came into view. He still couldn't see who was outside of the door, however; he did not miss the name that left his aunt's lips. Naya? Who was Naya? He couldn't recall anyone by that name, or at least no one in particular that wasn't a part of the family. But then it clicked. Naya, Naya Alistair, Nikki and Morgan's sister. His eyes widened slightly as he rushed towards his aunt's side.


Leora had been up early that morning, taking a run around the house they were all in for the moment. She and the others still frequently found their way onto battlefields, but for the moment at least, theyā€™d been granted a short reprieve. She knew her brother and Yuki were glad for the chance to spend some time with the kids, and honestly, she was too. Diya was the cutest little thing, and Bryer was probably the most interesting kid sheā€™d ever met. She never forgot he was a kid, exactly, but she was still pretty consistently amazed by how quickly he learned things. It was fun watching him interact with the other members of the family, actually.

She allowed these thoughts to occupy her mind, because she would rather not think about all the things seven years had managed to change for the worse. She understood now the darkened look Alden got to his eyes when someone asked him a question about his work, and what he and Emrys were talking about when they talked about the toll. Leora had been still just a girl when the time came for her to start paying itā€”nineteen and still untried. Seven years later, she was twenty-six and an old hand with killing and battle, and she knew how much it could hurt to pay the toll.

She would like to be able to say that the first few years had been the worst, that she no longer cried herself to sleep at night, that she no longer saw the faces of the people sheā€™d killed in her dreams, butā€¦ it would be a lie to assert that. It was just as bad now as it always had been, and she understood why her mother had never taken to this kind of thing. Her soul was far too gentle. Leoraā€™s soulā€¦ might have been that way, once, but sheā€™d bathed it in blood so many times now that it was mangled and twisted and blackened, and there was nobody left to protect her from it. Growing up, her parents had sheltered her from the worst of the world, and then when sheā€™d tasted it the first time, Alden had taught her to build a shield so that she could keep it at armsā€™ length again. Nowā€¦ there was no shield for this. Not even the Aegis in her blood.

The worst part was that there was really nobody to talk to about it. Zero and Yuki were so happy with their family that she didnā€™t want to interrupt that warmth and light, now that she knew how limited that happiness would be. Aunt Nikki was a wonderful person and a good mentor, and seven years had made her Leoā€™s mentor, after a fashion, but she was so accustomed to fighting, had that Alistair flair for it, and Leora felt like admitting her weakness to someone like that would just make it worse. So she hid it all behind her fatherā€™s face, or rather the version of it that she wore, and she pretended that everything was fine.

Of course, even thinking the word Alistair made her think of him, and she increased her speed until she was almost flying around the grounds, her feet barely touching the ground. How she wished she could fly, could just soar so high above everything that it seemed not at all to matter anymore. She missed flying with Balthasar. Hell, she just missed Balthasar. She missed them all, and some days, she just wanted her parents, or Alden, or anyone who wasnā€™t so terrifyingly happy that she couldnā€™t help but envy them.

More than anything or anyone, though, she just wanted to see him.

Leora wasnā€™t a fool. She knew what that meant. Seven years should have dimmed the keenness of that pain, but for her, it had simply sharpened to a razor point, on which she cut herself far too often. She hadnā€™t seen his face in seven years. Sheā€™d seen Rica a few times, and Ary and Vi and Em and Helen, but she hadnā€™t seen Balthasar or her parents or him, and she was feeling the loneliness of that with a fervency that she hated. Any of them would have been a balm to the wound in her soul, but it was they sheā€™d always seemed to miss, in the between-time of battles and the endless red haze that fell over her eyes when she was forced once again to end life to preserve other lives. If this was the toll, she wasnā€™t sure she had anything left to pay.

She hoped, prayed even, though she knew not to whom, that he didnā€™t care for her anymore. That seven years had done for him what it could not do for her, and that he was happy as he could be, given the circumstances. Sometimes, she even hoped that heā€™d found someone else, but her heart wouldn't let her hold onto that hope for too long. She was a horrid, selfish person, but she was slowly coming to terms with that. Because at least sheā€™d been strong enough, and good enough, not to subject him to this, to her. Leora counted it strongly in her favor that that much was true, at least.

Something moving in the corner of her vision caught her attention, and Leo was brought from her thoughts by the sight of three figures moving towards the house. Her brows drew together, her mouth compressing into a suspicious line. Thinking quickly, she stepped into the nearest shadow, her form dissolving into it so that she lost visibility, sound, and even her distinctive smell, had become one with the dark. Jumping several times, she ended up in the shadow of a woman with black hair, walking behind another woman, who was flanked also by a man. She watched and waited when the one she followed climbed up the awning, and the shadow Leo belonged to stopped. It was strangeā€”though the leader had a scent and an aura, neither of the other two did.

Her Aunt Nikki answering the door produced more confusion than anything, and then her brother appeared. The leader was obviously psychotic, butā€¦ just what was going on here?

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: [NPC] Bartender Character Portrait: Leora Kuragari Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Diya Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht Character Portrait: Bryer Kuragari
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Yuki sat up, sliding her arms around Bryer. Something was troubling him, and it bothered her that she did not know what it was. A shiver ran down her spine, her brows furrowing as she frowned. She looked at her daughter. "Diya, I want you to stay here, with your brother, okay? I'm going to see what Daddy's doing." Diya's big blue eyes looked up at her mother, and she nodded. "Okay, Mommy." Diya scooted over, wrapping her arms around Bryer's shoulders. Though neither of them would say it, both children could also feel that something was wrong.

letoclo udoka. seilor udoka duulo.


Bryer shivered.

"Ooh, goody! The little Kuragari lord is here. But where is the little Aegis girl? I was looking forward to playing with her. Oh well. She's not what I'm here for, anyhow." Naya giggled madly as she swung down, landing silently behind the Michaline puppet. Naya's eyebrows rose slightly, her grin only widening with Nikki's increased confusion. She touched the Michaline puppet on the arm, and it immediately sank down onto one knee. "She looks almost exactly like mom did, huh? She should, I made her myself. Daddy is here, too, see? It's amazing, what one can do with a bound soul...and it would seem that my grandson has inherited my ability, yes? That's good...I've always wanted a student. It's a shame, though, that the girl does not have it. I have no use for her."

Naya spun around on the ball of her bare foot, her grin shining as she did so. "Oh Sebastian!" She trilled, her voice sing-song. "Do be a good puppet and take care of the Kuragari lord for me? I have a feeling he'll just get in the way. Mother Dearest, go find the boy. I'm feeling a bit nostalgic...I think I want to play with my big sister for a while."

Both puppets did as they were bid, the female heading off in the direction where she could sense the other animator, the one called Bryer, while the male, Sebastian, headed straight for Zero. Nikki had gone through it all, her eyes glued to her sister, not wanting to believe what she was seeing. But when the puppets moved, Naya too, flickered out of view, reappearing right in front of her sister with a gleam in her eye that screamed insanity. Nikki's eyes widened, but she was too shocked to react in time, Naya had latched on to her wrist, pulling her forward before slamming her chest with an open palm. The force of the blow sent Nikki straight into and through the far wall.

"Oh dear. Please tell me you aren't going to disappoint me, Kiki...I've been looking forward to this for oh so long."

Sebastian was a tall man, who other than the height, looked very much like his son Morgan. His face, however, held no expression, and his eyes were a dull, lifeless red. He did as he was bid, of course, attacking the Kuragari without hesitation, the polarity in the area around Zero reversing and sending the Pureblood to his knees. It was then that Sebastian spoke, his voice flat, lifeless.

"He can help us."

Yuki, on the other hand, found herself face-to-face with a woman she had only seen in memories. While she was rather unsure of what was going on, the intent was clear enough: this woman wanted past her, and the only thing past her was her children.

Like hell that was happening.

With seconds of coming across from her, Yuki had forced Michaline to retreat back into the entryway, the scowl on her face only deepening as she took in the damage already done. At this point, Yuki didn't care what was going on, she just wanted these people away from her family.

letoclo udoka. letoclo udoka. letoclo udoka. letoclo udoka.


In the room where their parents had left them, Bryer was shaking violently, his hands covering his ears in an attempt to shut out the voices that only he could hear and could not understand. Diya held her little brother, trying to comfort him, but to no avail. "Bry..."


Leora chose this moment to appear, torn between assisting Yuki and helping her aunt, but it was clear that Nikki needed it moreā€”clearly in too much of a state of shock to do anything. So she appeared from the shadow of the doorway, having jumped into it when the Michaline-puppet passed it. ā€œBack off my family, bitch,ā€ she snarled, not in any mood for this sort of thing. Sheā€™d heard enough to guess who all these people were supposed to be, and Naya or not, this woman had no good intentions for them. Leo wasnā€™t about to let that stand, and with the speed borne of her blood, her training, and her years of practice, she launched a heavy kick for Nayaā€™s midsection.

For a brief moment, Zero's eyes flashed a dangerous crimson. This woman, this Naya, she was deranged. The look in her eyes was feral, and laced with dangerous intent, however; the moment she spoke about his family, a low growl emitted through his throat. His family was not something one threatened so lightly, and could get away with it. His eyes, however, darkened considerably when Naya ordered the female puppet to go after the boy. The only other boy around was his son, Bryer. Immediately, Zero made to move, but found himself unable to.

"What the," he gritted between his teeth as he found himself on his knees. Something was forcing him to his knees, and he didn't like it one bit. Sebastian was doing something, something that Zero couldn't put his finger on, however; he began to summon his ability, the energy around him, and forcing it within himself, sending it through the electrical current of his body. It was enough to give him his mobility back, however; it was still hard to keep on his knees.

"He can help you? Who?" Zero spoke, his gaze furious and angered. If Zero had paid any attention, he would have noticed the resemblance the man shared with his uncle, Morgan, however; Zero wasn't interested in who or what the man in front of him looked like. He was only interested in destroying him. If he wanted to do that, he'd have to make it quick. His ergokinesis would only last for so long before he was drained of his energy, rendering him to fall to his knees again. Gritting his teeth, he attacked Sebastian.

What felt like hours was merely a few minutes at most as Zero let out uneven breaths. Every time he would get close to destroying this thing, it always seemed to regenerate itself. He was growing weary, tired, and it did not help that he was concentrating every thing he had into keeping his body from being subjected to Sebastian's polarity control. His ability was the only thing canceling it out. He manifested a ball of light into his hand, attacking Sebastian with it, but the puppet merely dodged. He growled, his frustration becoming apparent.

He needed to end this quickly. Something sparkled, catching his attention as Zero dodged an oncoming attack from Sebastian. Though he appeared physically fine, Zero would have sported a few scars already from the attacks that had landed upon him. His regeneration, however, was slowing down with the passing moments. He managed to grab the back of Sebastian's head, forcing the puppet to look at him, and he noticed it. Sebastian managed to twist out of Zero's grasp as the two men stared off. Zero lunged first, his fist aiming straight for Sebastian who countered.

The scent of blood filled the air a bit thicker than normal as a sharp pain went through Zero's shoulder. The point where his shoulder met the socket had been pierced by Sebastian's hand, the whole fist being exposed through his back. Zero winced slightly, however, with a fluid movement, his forefinger and thumb plunged deeply into Sebastian's right eye, pulling it from the socket as quickly as he could. He had to get close enough to do this, and the only way for that to have been possible was for Zero to become injured one way or another. Once the eye was free from the socket, Zero crushed it.

He then pulled Sebastian's arm from his shoulder, watching as his blood coated the ground. He fell to his knees, the fatigue finally settling in as he banished his ability from his body. "Leo," he spoke softly as his eyes went towards his sister and his aunt. He couldn't focus with the loss of blood, nor did he know what happened to Sebastian. He didn't care. He needed to go to his family. To Yuki, to Bryer, to Diya. With that thought in mind, he forced himself up, holding his shoulder in the process to keep it from bleeding further.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: [NPC] Bartender Character Portrait: Leora Kuragari Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Diya Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht Character Portrait: Bryer Kuragari
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Character Portrait: Leora Kuragari Character Portrait: Zero Kuragari Character Portrait: Diya Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht Character Portrait: Bryer Kuragari
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Naya had been in the process of walking slowly towards her sister, a deliberateness in her step that spoke of intent to harm, when something collided with her side. Even with the amount of force used, she only stumbled a few steps, and she looked over at the newcomer. Her grin only widened, her eyes a light. "Oh, where did you come from, lovely? You smell like the Aegis girl...oh how delightful!" She giggled again, the sound light and airy. She spun, her foot amed for Leora's head, Nikki almost utterly forgotten. Indeed, she herself could barely move.

Fire and water do not mix, and as it were, Yuki was beginning to seriously consider using that in order to finish this, even if it did have the chance to kill her. She didn't care, she was not going to allow harm to come to her children. In the end, it didn't matter one way or another. Yuki and Michaline had backed towards the door, and Diya opened the door. Bryer was curled up into a little ball, shaking, and she didn't know what to do. Of course, with the scene before her, there was little any of them could do.

Naya's eyes narrowed at the open door, just barely able to see Bryer on the bed. But Yuki and Diya were in the way. She had little use for either of them, really. "Oh Michaline..." She purred, and with a speed that most would have thought impossible, the puppet moved, sending Yuki into the far wall, and headed straight for the little girl.

The stench of blood mixed with pine and something sweeter hit the air. Yuki hit her knees, positioned between Diya and the puppet, a hole in her chest where her heart had been. Her eyes, once a vibrant yellow, had gone flat and dull, utterly devoid of life. Diya simply stood there, her big blue eyes wide, blood splattered across her face and hair.

"Mom...my?"

It was as if everything simply stopped then, and the silence was broken by Naya, who threw her head back and laughed. It was not the light, airy giggle that it had been before. It was heavy, and dark. "Oh how precious...she died to save her daughter. Now tell me, Kiki, that sounds awfully familiar, doesn't it? Isn't that what our dear mother did years ago? Hm...I wonder if this one would make any use as a puppet...I can always toss her back if she's not..."

Lost in her musings, Naya did not realize that Bryer had moved. The little boy was now standing next to his sister, his face a blank, expressionless mask, except for his eyes. A deep crimson, something akin to pure rage shined behind them, as he stared at the body of his mother. Naya only noticed him when waves of energy began to roll off of him. That, and she suddenly found herself with a sword through her right forearm.

It was Yuki. Her eyes lifeless, her wound not healing, and no expression on her face, Yuki stood before Naya, blade in hand. Bryer had not moved, but one look told Naya all that she needed to know. "My my...to think you brought her back already. Good...you'll be a better puppet master than I am, boy. Now let's see what you can do!" She tore her arm free, and with a flick of her wrist, brought Michaline back to her side.

Bryer stared with a deep hatred at the woman who reminded him of his grandmother. There was a deep silence around him, he couldn't even hear the voices any longer. All he was aware of was her, and the fact that his mother was dead, and she was the cause. He wasn't even aware of the fact that he was crying.

"Die." He whispered softly.

Nikki, from her position behind Naya, shivered at the scene before her. There were too many things for her to understand, but she did understand two things: the first was that Yuki, her daughter, was dead. The second was that the woman in front of her, Naya, was the one who killed her.

Something snapped. She lunged at Naya, the rage, the regret, the confusion all evident in her eyes and voice as she screamed something incoherent. She had aimed for the back of Naya's head, intent on kiling her, but Naya was faster. She spun, catching Nikki's wrist and twisting it behind her back, pulling Benehime out of it's sheath and holding the blade up to her throat as she forced her sister to her knees.

Her long hair fell in front of her eyes as she grinned, Nikki utterly helpless. "Think, Bryer. You've lost your mother this night, would you like to add your grandmother to this list? Although...I have half a mind to kill her anyway, that would cause Jazzie to break...what do you think Sister? Do you think your husband would weep for you?"

Nikki struggled, the blade biting into her throat. No. No. She would not die here, she could not die here. Her eyes were a steel-cold glare as she looked up at the woman who had once been her little sister. "Fuck you." Naya laughed. "Oh my, what a mouth!"

Bryer hesitated when Naya took control of Nikki, his body tense as he watched. Naya was getting distracted, and that was an opening he could use. Using more subtle movements than those Naya deployed, Bryer moved Yuki around Michaline, and right after Naya said the word mouth, Hineko slid upwards through her chest, piercing straight through her heart. A look of surprise laced Naya's features, and she looked down at the blood-coated blade. She grinned again then, looking over at Bryer, who still glared at her.

"Oh dear...you've gone and killed me. That's too bad, you would have made such...a good..." She never finished her sentence, as she desintegrated before she could. The effect on Michaline was instantaneous. Without a master, the puppets could no longer function. The soul trapped inside screamed, though Bryer was the only one who could hear her. The puppet itself merely stood there. But Bryer could hear it howling. He crouched, covering his ears.


Leo ducked swiftly under the blow aimed for her head, flipping backwards in just enough time to hear her won name spoken aloud. Turning, she caught sight of her brother over her shoulder. Uncertain what the right choice was in terms of action, she acted on instinct alone, and she was at Zeroā€™s instantaneously, taking the majority of his weight on her as he half-collapsed into her side. Winding an arm around his waist, she threw his good arm around her shoulders and tried to walk the both of them inside. They needed to stop these people, and then surely, Yuki would be able toā€”

Both of them stopped dead in their tracks as they passed inside, in just enough time to watch the scentless woman rip out Yukiā€™s heart. Leoā€™s eyes went wide, their color a near-perfect match for the smears of her brotherā€™s blood on her face, her arms, her clothing, and she felt him sag against her, losing consciousness. Oh gods, heā€™d seenā€¦ Yuki!

Burdened down by her brotherā€™s weight and in shock, Leo could do little more than watch events unfold, words like puppet and grandson swimming around in her head until she finally got some kind of tenuous hold on the whole situation. Nayaā€¦ this was Nikkiā€™s twin, and she was implying that she, not Aunt Nikki, was Bryerā€™s grandmother, and therefor Yukiā€™s mother. There were the actual bodies of her dead parents, and she was using some kind of ability to animate them, the same power that little Bry was using on his own mother right now.

Leo regained her ability to move only when she saw her little nephew covering his ears, as though he could hear something that pained him. Setting Zero down on the ground as carefully as she could, Leo straightened, her face as devoid of expression as her fatherā€™s ever was, and straightened to a stand. She didnā€™t know how to kill these things, exactly, but she had a guess. Worst case scenario, sheā€™d just have to try again, butā€¦ sheā€™d just had to watch all that happen, and there had been nothing she could do for her family. She had more than enough anger to dismantle this puppet as many times as was necessary. Taking a deep breath, Leo extended her nails until they were vampiric claws, then formed her hand into a spade or dart shape, plunging it into the remaining puppetā€™s back until she felt its heart. Closing her hands over the organ, she felt somehow that she had the right spot, and squeezed until it was crushed ash in her hand. The rest of the body followed, dissolving into a cloud of nothing, and Leo fell to her knees, feeling suddenly weaker than she properly should.

Her eyes swung to where the puppet-Yuki still stood, and her only thought was that she was glad Zero didnā€™t have to see this part.


Bryer was only aware of the silence that followed, the Michaline-puppet having been destroyed. For long moments, he didn't move.

Yuki felt her soul slipping from her body. It was an odd feeling, dying. Everything was cold, and where ever she was, it was dark. But there was an overwhelming sense of belonging, as well. But something was tugging at the back of her mind as she floated in the void. Something didn't want to let her go. There was a flash of crimson light, and she became suddenly very aware of her surroundings, scents, sights, and touch. Her body felt...wrong.

Her body. She was back in her body. But she was not in control of it. She could hear something whispering to her, and she was compelled to comply, doing whatever it told her to do. Then, everything was over, and she fond herself standing over her mother, who was mutely staring up at her. Yuki understood then, what had happened. She felt a longing desire to return to where she had been, to go back. Her dull yellow eyes traveled over to her son, and her heart broke. She didn't want to leave him, to leave them, but she had little choice. She did not belong on this plane of existence any longer. Without a sound, she made her way over to her son, and placed her hands on his shoulders.

"Bryer...you need to let me go, little one." Bryer looked up, as if surprised to hear his mother talking. Stubbornly, he shook his head, tears still streaming silently down his cheeks. Yuki smiled. "Please, Bry...I don't belong here any longer. You saw how Michaline and Sebastian were. Surely you don't want that for me as well?" She gently wiped away her son's tears as he shook his head again.

"I love you, Bryer."

Hineko's hilt shattered, and Yuki closed her eyes as she slowly dissolved. Bryer's shoulders shook as she disappeared, his silent tears turning into sobs.

Goodbye.

Setting

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Character Portrait: Alden Kuragari Character Portrait: Yuki Alistair-von Nacht Character Portrait: Bryer Kuragari
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Bryer. shilta wux nymuer ve?


Either the voices had begun to learn, or Bryer was beginning to really go insane. They had started using his name about a week ago. There was nothing else that he could understand, but his name was definitely in there. It wasn't always there, but every once in a while, he would hear it, and that particular voice would pry for a bit, and then move on. It was hard to explain, since every voice sounded the same, but yet, there was a subtle difference to each one.

His grandfather and uncle thought they might be able to help him with this. Bryer wasn't so sure, but he was willing to try. While he did want the voices to go away, there was a certain nagging curiosity to find out what they were as well. Why was he the only one who could hear them? Why did they suddenly go away when a telepathic link with his uncle Balthasar or his grandfather was formed? He had as more questions than he had answers, and it was time that situation was rectified. So, he found himself sitting in one of them many studies, across from Jasper and Alden. Perhaps if he'd been so inclined, he'd have thought it looked much like the memory he'd seen from his mother, but he rarely thought about his mother lately, and even if he did, he tended to shy away from memories that were not his.


Jasper had spent the last few days finding everything he could on what his grandson was apparently able to do. Alden had spent a bit of time in the childā€™s company, and had transliterated some of the voices into readable words. Though the exact nature of the puppetry was not something he could find any record of, he was able to track down a primitive lexicon of the language, actually through some previous recollections of human shamans, and others who claimed to be able to communicate with the Otherword, or the realm of souls. Being who he was, the primitive lexicon and the data he received from Alden soon expanded and filled the blank pages of an entire book, and Jasper had deciphered the grammatical structure as well as the meanings of all the words he had information about into a stable, coherent linguistics of the dead.

He wasnā€™t sure if it would do any good, but it would at least help to be able to know what the voices were telling the child. Heā€™d memorized what heā€™d written, but he brought the book for Bryer, hoping that if they accomplished nothing else useful today, he would be able to at least make the whispers in his mind make sense. Mayhap they would be able to say more, as the initial statements they had made to Bryer upon Nayaā€™s appearance had been a warning: she is coming. That implied a certain level of benevolence for the child, at least comparatively. If he could learn to ask questions of them, he might come to an accord with his abilities faster.

So when he entered and sat, he turned the book over so that it was facing Bryer, smiling softly and pushing it towards him with the fingers of his left hand. ā€œIt is not much,ā€ he said, ā€œbut it is a start. If possible, Bryer, I would like to have a conversation with your voices. Alden is going to establish a link between my mind and yours, but it wonā€™t be quiet like it usually is. If possible, I would like all of us to talk to them together, so that we can understand what it is that you do. So if there is anything you wish to say to them, you can tell me, and I will translate for you.ā€ He did not know if the spirits could understand languages not their own, but they seemed to be incapable of speaking anything else, so at the very least, he would have to translate in that direction.


Bryer cocked his head to the side, wondering if that could even be done, but he nodded all the same. Maybe if he could understand what the voices wanted, he could help them, instead of fearing them.

Bryer. Jasper, Alden, letoclo jacion. petranas.


He cocked his head to the side, confusion laced through his features. That was...odd. That voice knew their names, all of their names. And seemed to be speaking...directly to his grandfather and uncle, at least insofar as it could. He hadn't been aware that the voices were perhaps aware of what went on around him, but it would appear that they were.

"At least one of them knows that you are here...and I think it wants to talk to you, too."

And so the link between his mind and his grandfather's was established. It was a bit of an odd feeling for Bryer, having this connection without the resounding silence he'd grown accustomed to, but that one particular voice, the one who had named them...seemed almost happy. It was odd, really, as here had always been a sense of sadness to the voices, Bryer had paid it little heed. He hadn't realized that there were other things that they could portray.

There were many voices floating around in his head, each one saying something different, but one in particular stood out. Bryer was used to its pushing by now, but he was surprised when it didn't reach out for him. It reached out for Jasper.

"Si tepoha missed wux, opsola. Si mi saeuth wux re tenpiswo."


Bryer cocked his head again, but waited silently.


Alden wasnā€™t caught up in this language, but his connection to his uncleā€™s mind allowed him to hear the translations as soon as Jasper completed them, and he blinked his surprise at the beingā€™s words. Jasper for a moment, too, was shocked, but then a slow smile spread across his face, and as he had once done in his daughterā€™s mind, he manifested in his grandsonā€™s. This time, he did not believe it would be necessary to use his powers, and so the mental strain on the host mind was negligibleā€”nonexistent with Aldenā€™s interference. His nephew manifested as well, and pulled his grandson inwards with him, so that in some sense all three of them were standing together in the same place, though in the physical world, they still sat.

sia hianag. yth geou letoclo jacion, shar yth rigluin ekess kampiun svanoa. svabol ui coi batobot yth ought ekess vucot? Prototypically himself, Jazz spoke without a hint of accent of any kind, as though he were but one of the voices, only his mental tone was as gentle and warm as it always was.

Alden rested a hand briefly on his nephewā€™s crown. Heā€™s talking to your mother, Bry. Heā€™s asking her how we can help you, what it is that you need to know to control your abilities.


Something akin to shock passed over Bryer's face. His mother was here? He...supposed that made sense, but even so...from what little information he had on the Otherworld, there were literally a countless number of souls there, and for one in particular to find its way to him...well, he was amazed, to say the least, and undeniably happy that it was her.

If a transient manifestation of a soul could smile, Yuki would have in that moment. As it were, she could not, she could only speak. So that was what she did. "Wux ornla yor hesi xanalre zyak quickly. Bryer zklaen yor svanoa ekess trelk stoda jacida ricin, vur nif coi sva geou. Nomeno jahus creolnali Naya nurti yora, vur lae mishun, coi drove jacioniv pazien. Coi geou tawura kiarf wer diieson lae tikil tsirar." There was a pause, and Bryer felt something on his cheek, like a finger. "lyrik loupon batobot, jaci banprivi rigluinic ekess yor hesi xanalre. throdenilti di udoka re woari, vur confused. throden tir ti realize astahii re loex. astahii re instinctively drawn ekess jacion tagoa di jacida connection ekess wer treskri astahii huena vucata, tangis sjek astahii astaha tir ti kampiun nomeno. creol jatil jacion levnim, shar throdenilti re levnim nuri. shar jaci zklaen yor ekess trelk jacida ricin stoda. si mi ti wer ergriff sepa svaust confna tenpiswo batobot thurkear, vur Naya tepohaic ti taken marfedelom algbo."


Jasperā€™s smile was small, but still present, at least until the last part, and then he nodded solemnly, glancing over at the manifestation of Alden. Do you think you can help him with that?

Violetā€™s brow quirked, and his own smile had a fair bit more mischief to it. Of course. Telepathic blocks are not particularly difficult, even if I donā€™t use them. It was a matter of personal preference. While Alden did not employ them, believing instead that it was better to leave them open and thus hear everything going on around them, he did know how to put one up, and could easily teach Bryer to do so as well. Heā€™d been born a telepath, and this was a skill heā€™d mastered by well before the boyā€™s age, before heā€™d decided to eschew the block in favor of an open web of thought.

si kampiun, Yuki. yth geou tir svabol rigluinic ekess qe authot. yth geou troth jacion. si mourn wux, danthe hianag, vur si huven yth tiliw zexenuma drongilt, vur renthisj. shar coi ui desta sjek yth tir ti frinkl jacida ricin tikil drongilt loupon yth zklaen. ui mobi creolnali wux ornla tepoha ve visp jacion? usv tikilvi else? It was hard not to reach for her, even now, but he knew that his hand would only pass right through.


While she really expected no less, it eased her to hear the words themselves. There was so much she wished she could say, but she had not the time nor the words to do so. But this was not a final parting, either. She had an eternity here, and if her son sought her out, she would go to him. With a power like Bryer's, not even death could sever that.

"Filki visp fronah batobot si llewarin astahi, vur batobot si itov astahi. Visp Diya ekess quo'quegl. Visp Bryer..." She paused. No, this one she could do on her own.

"Si itov wux, Bryer."


The little boy smiled a little sadly. "Si itov wux, kiri, dask." Sometimes love didn't need a translation.