Maya stared at Kaien, who was holding out a paper for her to look at. 

"What is it?"

"An entrance request to attend the Academy. I already asked Zero who approved. But I wanted your approval as well, seeing that you two were good friends."

Maya raised an eyebrow, curious as to who exactly this "friend" was, and took the paper from his grasp, scanning the letter over until she got to the bottom with the said person's name. 

"Ichiru?" Maya was stunned. "He's..."

"Alive, yes." Kaien's gaze was intense as he stared at Maya, gauging her reaction. "You seem less surprised than I'd expected, Maya-chan."

Maya's reaction had even surprised herself. She thought the news would have been more shocking, life-changing, even. "I did some digging before I was suspended from the Association. Ichiru wasn't found at the scene, so I assume he was alive, even though he was presumed dead because there was a lack of any trace to go off of. How is Zero taking this?"

"He signed the paper, but you took it a lot better than he did."

Maya set the paper on the desk and bent over, scratching her signature on the extra line with a pen before handing it back to Kaien. She caught Kaien's gaze, which was full of curiosity. She knew what question he was going to ask, and allowed him to ask it anyway, giving him permission with an expectant raise of an eyebrow.

"What happened the day before yesterday?" He questioned. "You looked like you were on the verge of death when Kaname-kun carried you to his place."

"I wasn't feeling well."

"You could have gone to the infirmary, we have a nurse who knows-"

"Kaien." Maya leaned over the desk, placing her hands flat against the smooth wood, her emerald eyes dead serious. "What happened that night, has nothing to do with you. Information will reveal itself in due course. Need to know basis, only."

Kaien sighed. "And I don't need to know this."

"Yes." She said, shaking her head in confirmation. "You don't, Kaien."

"Call me father!" He whined.

Maya snorted, standing up straight once more. "Fat chance, old man."

__________________________________________________________

Maya leaned back against a tall tree, eyes surveying the grounds after switch-over in the morning.  Classes for the day class wouldn't start for another thirty minutes, allowing her a little peace and quiet. The air was chillier than usual, a sign that Fall had become a permanent resident and Winter would soon follow. 

She put her cigarette up to her mouth, inhaling, and then blew out a cloud of smoke, closing her eyes. She'd taken up smoking the occasional cigarette to relieve stress, but she wasn't an addict like Yagari was. Given the circumstance, she had little to worry about. With a direwolves ability to heal from anything besides a purebloods bite, there was no risk in the act of smoking for her. Her lungs would heal up almost immediately. 

But of course, peace never lasted in her presence. She cracked open an eye when she heard footsteps approach.  For a split second, she thought it was Zero, but her wolf senses didn't detect a vampire's presence.

"Ichiru." Maya greeted nonchalantly. 

"Maya-chan." Ichiru returned with a smile. His long hair was pulled back into a short pony-tail but a red ribbon with a bell that had belonged to that woman. Ichiru was dressed in a pristine Day Class Uniform, everything looking well put together on him, unlike Zero's usual ruffled appearance. "I didn't think you were one to smoke."

"I don't. Not unless I'm about to kill someone, it takes the urge away."

She looked over at him, seeing him smile. 

"Who deserves your wrath this time, then?"

"You."

His smile washed away, but he snorted. "And why is that?"

Maya took another drag of her cigarette, blowing the smoke in his direction. "You tell me..." She pushed herself off of the tree with a foot and tapped the rolled paper against her knee, dislodging the burned section at the end. Approaching him, she stopped, keeping a three feet distance between the two of them. 

"I don't have anything to say."

She raised an eyebrow. "Really?" She stared at the calm and collected boy in front of her. "Perhaps you could start by telling me what happened five years ago. You carry that bloodsuckers bell like its some sort of precious token-"

"Don't insult Shizuka!" He growled, lilac eyes blazing with fury. "She was good to me!"

"That woman wasn't good. Did she tell you what she did to my family? She killed my parents and bit my fiancee, making him go insane and then he was put down like a rabid dog." Maya replied with equal bitterness. Ichiru's eyes widened, and she knew that Shizuka had not told him anything. She blew out another plume of smoke. "Perhaps you can tell me something I've been wanting to know for a while. Since you were so close to that woman, did she tell you why she killed your parents?"

"They killed Shizuka's lover."

"Her lover?"

"He was an ex-human that she had fallen in love with, but he was placed on the Association's execution list. My parents and your parents went on a hunt a week before. They killed him." Ichiru said. "They hurt Shizuka. That same night they killed her lover, they came home and tucked Zero and me into our bed, touching us with the hands that had killed someones beloved. I felt disgusted, wondering how they could do it without feeling the least bit of remorse."

Maya almost dropped her cigarette. The reason that their parents had died, was because they had killed someone important to that woman. She pulled back the shocked expression that threatened to adorn her face and covered it with a knowing snort. "That's why love is so dangerous, it gets people killed."

"I told her to spare, Zero. He was the only one who cared about me because my parents didn't."

"What are you talking about?"

"I overheard them one night, mom and dad, talking to one another. They wanted to hold me back and further Zero's training because I was always getting sick. I was never going to be as strong as he was."

Her eyes flashed gold. Ichiru saw and took a step back. "You allowed her to kill your parents just because of what they did? They loved the both of you equally, they cared about you!"

"How would you know! You're not in the same situation as I am!" He cried out, completely defensive. Maya dropped her cigarette and grabbed his upper arms in her hands before he could react and got in his face.  

"You and I are both in the same situation. Our parents are dead. They were both murdered by the same pureblood. We both still have brothers that love and care about us, so don't you dare turn a blind eye to that. A family is all we have in the end. Don't ever give that up!" Maya's anger had slowly melted away into desperation and sadness. Ichiru tried to hide it, but she could see the anguish in his eyes and the frustration.

She pulled him to her, hugging him tightly. She'd missed him, terribly, and the circumstances that had brought them together had been less than pleasant. "Please, Ichiru." The boy that she had known; the one with the carefree smile, contagious laugh, and silly antics was nowhere in sight. 

Ichiru remained silent, but had hugged her back with not as much vigor as she had. 

______________________________________________

The night air blew cold air through the campus. She stood outside the Sun Dorms to wait for Seiren who was supposed to come and get her for the dinner that Kaname had promised the night before. 

She had no idea what type of restaurant they were to attend, but guessing by his status, and wealth, somewhere fancy. She'd had no idea what to wear, but managed to find a long-sleeved burgundy dress that went down to her knees. She wore her grey pea-coat, her hair in a side ponytail. 

Looking up at the large clock tower across campus, she sat that it was around 3 a.m., dinner time for vampires. Thankfully, she had found time to take a small nap to boost her energy. A presence brushed her senses and she turned, seeing Seiren standing there, who bowed, short grey hair blowing about her face.

"Lord Kaname is waiting for you at the main gate, Maya-sama."

"Thank you, Seiren." Maya walked towards the gates, Seiren was her silent shadow, not making a sound. Meeting Kaname at the gate, she turned to thank Seiren once again, but she was nowhere in sight. It creeped her out how stealthy and mysterious that girl was. 

She turned back to Kaname, who was wearing a buttoned-up, expensive looking suit coat. 

"Are you ready?" He asked. 

She nodded, and they descended the stairs to a limo. It took about fifteen to twenty minutes to enter town and continued down the main street on foot once their driver had parked the car. 

"Where are you taking us?" Maya asked as they walked down the lamp-lit sidewalk.

"The Gallery." He replied. 

"Wow." The Gallery was an insanely popular restaurant. And to book a specific night would have to be done months in advance. She had never been but had heard that the food was delicious and the service was fantastic. "How long did you have to book in advance for?"

"I'm a regular at the restaurant. They always have a table for me." He replied. 

"Figures..." Maya mumbled under her breath. They entered the Gallery and were immediately greeted by the manager.

"Kuran-sama! What a surprise. The usual table?"

"Yes, Maru-san. Thank you." Kaname replied and walked past the man without a second glance. He headed towards a small square table near the corner of the room, a little further ways away from the rest of the tables which were all occupied. The hairs on the back of Maya's neck stood on end. This was a vampire restaurant.  Heads turned and stared at the two of them as they walked past, curiosity filling the air. Maya let her pure dire-wolf aura turn about her, and several vampires flinched at the exposed power that trailed behind her. A telltale sign that there would be no question as to what she was doing in a place like this. She belonged because of her status. Pure and simple fact.

The two of them sat down and ordered food sipping on their drinks as they waited and had some small talk before Maya brought up Ichiru.

"The other twin?" Kaname asked.

Maya kept her voice low as to not attract attention or peak interest from the nearby tables. "Zero's younger brother, yes. He told me what happened to my parents. It was because they were assigned to hunt down that woman's lover who was an ex-human." She sighed, taking a sip from her wine glass. "That leaves just a small question as to how she escaped the confines of the cage she was so carefully watched in."

Kaname had become silent, eyes well guarded. Maya stared at him, slight butterflies starting to flutter around in her chest. "Kaname?"

"Maya..."

"Yes?"

"I was the one who let her out..."

"What?!"

Author Note:

I am on fire with these chapters. Hope you enjoy, and please leave a comment down in the comment section below!

Disclaimer: All rights go to the wonderful Matsuri Hino!