"I care nothing for her," Kaname's even voice replied. "But I refuse to see one of my important pieces disposed of."

"You released me for a reason." What was Kaname doing here? What was - I can't think any more. I'm so tired. Too tired.

You don't have much blood. Just go to sleep.

Sleep. That was the last thing I thought of as I drifted away.

"You have drunk the blood of another pureblood." Shizuka's voice drifted through my mind, as I wavered between consciousness and unconsciousness. It was followed by the quick realisation that I could smell blood. Rich pure blood.

"It's to protect the one I love," Kaname's voice floated in reply. "I will avenge you." Avenge her? But he was the one who killed Shizuka. I didn't get it.

"Silly boy." I heard her chuckle softly, before her presence disappeared, implying that she was dead.

"Saki." A hand touched my cheek. It woke me up slightly, but my eyes still couldn't open. Only my mind was awake, and even that felt ready to drop off any minute now.

"Saki." His finger touched my eyelids, making them flutter slightly. "Wake up."

"What happened?!" Ichiru. He was panting, either form running too much, or just hyperventilating. I think he was running. He might have just charged straight over. "Is she okay?" Was I?

Well, you have that little problem of being drained of blood by Shizuka, but aside from that, yeah, I think you're okay. Better than that in fact.

"Is she breathing? Is she even alive? Who did this to her?" He's not thinking straight is he? I almost wanted to reach out and hug him, just to tell him, 'I'm fine, don't worry. Stay calm.' I was too tired though. Way too tired.

"Saki!" Hands shook me, breaking me out of my dazedness slightly. It hurt. "Just wake up already!"

It was upsetting, hearing him sound so tortured and broken. Did I really mean that much to him?

"Saki!"

Maybe I did. I wanted to hug him so bad, just to say to him, 'It's going to be alright.' I wanted to comfort him, but I was just too tired to. I'm sorry, Ichiru. This is all because of me.

"Get a grip on yourself." Kaname's voice was cool. "I'll give her some of my blood. It'll let her survive."

"Please do," Ichiru's voice was a whisper. "Don't let her die."

Kaname said nothing in reply, but I smelled the scent of blood wafting through the air. He must have cut himself with something.

"Here." Something warm touched my lips, and blood trickled into my mouth. Was it...Kaname's wrist? He must have been placing his wrist over my mouth, so blood would trickle in. Very slowly.

As much as I hated to admit it, I was thirsty for more of his blood. It was rich, and it satisfied my cravings for blood. But that was not a good thing. It meant he had more control over me.

"Can't you speed things up a bit?" Ichiru sounded pretty impatient but terrified as blood dripped through my lips. "She could die as we speak."

"You can always transfer the blood to her more directly if you wish," Kaname replied coldly.

"More dire - Fine." There was the rustle of clothing and movement as I heard Ichiru reach over to take some blood from Kaname.

Then something pressed itself against my mouth, and blood spilt in on my tongue. Not again.

In a flash of pictures, I saw a replay of the night of the ball. Light engulfed me, too bright for anyone to look at. I couldn't stop. Nothing could stop me. Until -

Ichiru.

"No," I mumbled, breaking away from Ichiru's touch. "I'm fine." I felt far from fine. Every time I turned my head, a rush of dizziness threatened to make me topple over. My eyes stayed shut, partly from exhaustion, and partly so I couldn't see his face.

"Saki?" No more terror or horror, just disappointment and sadness. Now guilt twisted in my stomach. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying not to let tears come. Anything but that.

"I'll take her to her room." Hands slipped under my head and knees.

"No," Kaname's grip loosened as Ichiru stopped him. "I'll take her myself." I could feel Kaname hesitate, through his actions and also through the bond that still connected us.

"Very well," Kaname finally replied, lifting me up and handing me over to Ichiru. I felt myself dangle, my head lolling back as I was passed from Kaname to Ichiru.

"Thank you." Ichiru began striding down the pathway, in the direction of the Moon Dorm I assumed.

As he pushed through the Moon Dorm entrance, I tensed slightly. What if the other Night Class saw us? What would happen to us then?

It was dark in the front room. I knew it, because through my eyelids, I didn't sense any change in light. The inside was as dark as the outside. We were truly monsters in the dark.

"No-one's here," Ichiru muttered. "That's good. Can you hear me, Saki?" Should I reply? I don't know.

Pretend you're unconscious again.

Would it work? It couldn't hurt to try could it? Keeping my eyes shut, I stayed motionless, hoping that he would think I was back in no-man's land.

Ichiru's chest rose and fell as he heaved a silent sigh. Maybe he did think I was unconscious again. He began to walk again, while I rocked slightly in his arms as he moved. The jolting got a bit jerkier as he climbed the stairs, before smoothing out as he walked along the corridor.

In the meantime, the jolting had been giving me a headache, and I was beginning to wonder if I would develop motion sickness from this. The jolting paused as Ichiru pushed open the door, probably to my room. Wait - was Maria in there?

Come to think of it, what would happen to her, now that Shizuka was dead?

Does it really matter?

No, not exactly. Well, maybe a little bit. In the times when she wasn't possessed, she was actually rather nice to me.

There was only silence as we entered the room, and I relaxed slightly. She wasn't here. That was good, but where was she? The whole journey here had been completely undisturbed, and yet, most of the Night Class were back, so where was everyone?

The soft and springy mattress creaked slightly as Ichiru placed me on my bed gently.

"I don't know if you actually are sleeping or not," Ichiru spoke to the thin air. I could picture him staring down at me, his beautiful, lavender-hued eyes clouded with sadness. That image only made my inwards churn with guilt. "But, I hope you don't hate me. If you actually are awake, but trying to ignore me, there has to be a reason for it. Is it because Shizuka tried to kill you because of me? Or is it something else?"

Both of us were probably thinking of how I pulled away from Ichiru. What he didn't realise was that I was also remembering that night of the ball.

Will you just forget about being philosophical for once and tell him how you really feel?!

"I guess I should go." A fingertip brushed my forehead, and I heard Ichiu shifting, moving towards the door. "I have something I need to do."

"Wait." The word escaped me before I could stop it. Blinking my eyes open, I stared up at the face of the silver-haired twin. Even though I had whispered it, Ichiru still turned, a flash of relief in his eyes as he looked at me.

Now that I had said it, I didn't know what else to do. I sat up, ignoring the throbbing of my head and stared at my hands uncertainly.

Idiot.

"Saki?" Sheets rustles as Ichiru sat down on the side of the bed. "What is it?"

"Don't go," I whispered, reaching for his fingers, clutching them. "I don't want to be alone."

A moment of silence passed between the two of us, while I mentally berated myself. What in earth was that? Why would he stay with me when I just pushed him away?

"I know how that feels," Ichiru cut through the silence separating us. He shifted, lying down next to me, his right arm encircling me and pulling me close. "I'll stay with you for a bit."

Despite the tears that protested to fall, I had to smile. Maybe it was stupid to keep pulling away.

"Thanks."

~~~

Woohoo! So how did you like that chapter? Was it good? Anyway, thank you to all you wonderful readers! We've reached 2k votes and it is all thanks to you guys! This story would be nothing without you awesome peeps ^.^. How much do you guys like Ichiru and Saki? I think some of you were hoping for Kaname and you never know, something just might happen *retarded attempt to wink*.
Just a heads up, in the next few days, I'll be on holiday for...I think 11 days? So I won't be updating during that period I'm sorry XC It can't be helped though, after all, it is a family Christamas trip. I'll update as much as I can throughout the next few days though, so that's a good thing ^.^ That's all for now, keep reading, voting, and commenting!
THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN!!!!

Merry Christmas!
Love from your favourite (evil) incubator ^.^