A/N: I am totally excited about the changes happening in the manga regarding Zero's new abilities, etc as revealed in Chapter 42. Especially since I already felt like that was a right direction to head, hence what I've been doing with it in this story. Since this story is already wildly AU, however, I'm of course going to continue on with my own ideas and my version things that have already been set up. Although at some point, maybe after this story, I may have to find a way to incorporate the vine thing into the eventual progression... -grins and drools before snapping out of it- EHM.

Also, I'm continuing to have fun playing with my ideas regarding hunter and vampire charms, hopefully this doesn't become tiresome to anyone. I also believe that hunters have natural abilities they can tap into in certain ways, but as Zero is currently trying to muddle through all this on his own, revelations come slowly. Anyway, on with the chapter...

Chapter Fourteen: "Between You and Me"

"Ah, too slow..." Kaname's voice was somewhere between amused and lightly taunting as the pureblood materialized behind Zero. The hunter dropped to the floor in a tight roll to avoid the swift jab aimed at his back, springing up a few feet away. Launching himself at the smirking brunette with vampire speed he delivered a rapid cross-punch with his right hand followed up by a jab with the left. Kaname blocked both with his forearms, but hadn't had time to evade this time.

Kaname's guard never wavered, but Zero didn't let up, pressing hard and fast as he kept swinging until he finally darted back to avoid a reciprocal attack. He shoved at Kaname with his mind, mostly without meaning to. The impact on the pureblood was small, but Kaname did feel it, and gave a mental nod of approval. It seemed like Zero was better at using his gift unconsciously than consciously.

"Better..." Kaname's grin was more of a goad than an encouragement and he surely knew as much as the two opponents circled one another on the gym's sparring mats. Kaname pushed off with his left foot, crossing the distance between them in a heartbeat. It was too fast to see, but Zero still reacted in time, throwing up his forearm to deflect the pureblood's incoming fist and twisting at the same time, taking himself out of the line of easy attack and angling for Kaname's unprotected back, attempting to put his opponent on the defensive.

Kaname shifted swiftly to cover the momentary vulnerability, catching Zero's arm as they passed one another and twisting it, throwing the other boy off-balance. Zero immediately changed course and tried to compensate, rotating quickly in the direction where Kaname's grip would be the weakest and most awkward to maintain. But the pureblood was not dislodged and a swift jerk threw the hunter from his feet. Zero rolled with it, letting the momentum free his arm as he tumbled across the mat and recovered enough to come up on one knee.

Kaname didn't give him time to recover. He was already in front of him. A swift kick to the stomach that Zero was not in a position to block threw the hunter backwards, back connecting with the mat, breath firmly knocked out of him. The pureblood followed him down, one knee pressed against Zero's chest, digging into his sternum, the other trapping his arm as Kaname applied light pressure to the ex-human's neck with his hand. The overall pressure wasn't enough to really hurt him, but it was enough to immobilize.

Zero's chest heaved from exertion, his skin plastered with perspiration. With a resigned scowl he clapped his free hand palm down against the mat, signaling that he knew he was pinned and conceded the bout to Kaname.

The pureblood rose immediately, rolling gracefully to his feet and extending a hand towards Zero. Zero didn't take it, rolling up to his knees and then his feet on his own. Kaname had expected this and let his hand drop back to his side. Both boys were in tank-tops and loose pants this time, Kaname's black as he seemed to prefer, and Zero's a lighter shade of grey.

"You're getting much better. Want to try again, or you had enough for today?" Kaname inquired. His encouragement was a bit of a double edged sword, but even so, it was sincerely meant. Zero was a very, very quick learner and had already come a long way.

Zero rubbed his throbbing chest with a closed fist as he caught his breath. His palms stung and burned and he resisted the urge to flex his aching fingers. Kaname had glanced curiously at his slightly reddened, almost blistered palms when he'd showed up today, but he hadn't offered any explanations and Kaname hadn't asked, no doubt assuming that Zero had done something stupid and whatever it was would heal rapidly. He couldn't know of course that Zero's hands had been like that since last night, nor that what the hunter had done to himself had been deliberate. Zero just hoped the pain would prove worth it.

Wincing at the stabbing ache in his ribs, Zero drew a careful breath. They were most likely only bruised but it still hurt. He knew Kaname pulled his punches when they were sparring, else the ex-human would probably end up with broken bones. Zero supposed he should be glad for that, but the pureblood's cock-sure attitude grated on him, as did his inability to even get close to Kaname. At least he could make other vampire break a sweat... the hunter's gaze was errantly captured by one of the small beads of perspiration trickling down the side of Kaname's neck, tracing across ivory skin to nestle in the hollow of his collarbones.

Zero shook his head, brushing his wet hair from his flushed face with one hand and trying to recapture his treacherous libido, which was always kicked into high gear by their fighting matches. Stop it...

Kaname was looking at him like he was perfectly aware of how Zero was feeling, and was probably feeling the same way. Zero's frown deepened into a determined scowl and without answering the earlier question, he launched at Kaname, grabbing the pureblood's arm and hooking a foot behind his leg, trying to take him down.

Kaname recovered just in time, dancing back to keep his balance and grappling with Zero, using the boy's momentum against him as he spun them around and sent Zero tumbling away from him. Kaname wiped his brow with the back of his hand, a small grin playing just at the edge of sight. He knew Zero was exhausted, but the hunter still wouldn't give up.

"Going for three pins in one day? Okay..." Kaname mocked smoothly as he tracked his opponent's movements. As infuriating as he could be, the ribbing was mostly good-natured and there was even a very faint edge of playfulness to his taunting and prodding as he egged Zero to keep on trying when any sane person would have given up, knowing they hadn't a chance.

Zero, however, never accepted that mentality. It didn't matter that Kaname was a dozen times stronger and faster than he was and had wiped the floor with him consistently for the past two weeks since they had come back from their trip to visit the Satos. To give up and no longer spar with the other vampire would be tantamount to admitting defeat, and Zero wouldn't do that. He would keep coming back, no matter how many times Kaname knocked him on his butt, until he could achieve his goal. Kaname actually admired that. Zero didn't know when to quit, and although that could be a weakness, it could also be an incredible strength.

Zero had a method to his madness today, however. His skin and muscles were burning with the heat of his exertion, his clothes and hair were soaked with perspiration and he ached from the pounding he'd already taken, but he wasn't the only one who was showing signs of wearying. Kaname was trying to hide that his breath was coming faster and harder than was normal for him, his dark hair was clinging to the moisture slicking his face and neck and Zero could hear the blood pounding rapidly through the other's veins. Kaname was tired; he just didn't let it show. Zero had learned this about Kaname. To show weakness was to be weak in the pureblood's eyes, but the hunter was slowly starting to be able to read his more subtle signs. Those signs which now told him that Kaname was just tired enough that maybe it was time to try what he'd been thinking about trying the past few days.

Even without bringing his extra abilities into play, Kaname had a massively unfair advantage and the playing field needed to be leveled a bit. The pureblood had told him he could use any power he was able to find in their matches... he hadn't specified it had to be vampire in origin.

Zero blocked and spun as Kaname came after him, his knees buckling ever so slightly as he forced his body to move swifter than it wanted to. If he was going to do this, he'd better do it fast. He wasn't going to be able to keep this up very long in his current state of exhaustion. He didn't fully block Kaname's next attack, the pureblood sliding under his defenses and landing a glancing blow to his side. Zero winced, and let the momentum spin him into Kaname. Normally this would have been a very bad idea, as Kaname's arms almost immediately wrapped around his body, seeking to pin him. But this time, Zero had let it happen. Kaname didn't realize he was being set up; thinking his opponent was just worn out and his reflexes were lagging.

The pureblood was about to offer a lightly taunting remark to that effect when he suddenly felt Zero's unusually hot, blistered palms press flat against his stomach, having pushed up under the hem of the black tank-top he was wearing. The skin on skin contact sent delicious shivers through his body, but that wasn't what made him freeze. There was no tactical advantage to what Zero was doing, which immediately put the pureblood's senses on alert, screaming that somehow this was a trap. But he didn't know how, and it was already too late.

"Aduro!" Zero gasped, breathlessly, focusing intently on his contact with Kaname's skin and invoking the hunter charm that he'd painstakingly prepared ahead of time and stored in his own hands, waiting to be invoked. He'd seen Yagari prepare charms like that before, when he was young. He'd been taught the basics of how it worked although he had not attempted it since being turned. The problem with being a vampire and a hunter had made itself apparent in the way that the charm worked against him from the instant it was taken into his body, blistering his skin and making it sore. However, the fact that it remained localized and didn't spread further than his aching palms also spoke to how strong his hunter heritage was, that he was still able to do things like this, was able to bear both vampire and hunter nature inside him equally.

Kaname started as hot, burning pain flooded into him through Zero's hands on his stomach. It felt like his insides were on fire, the charm lighting a flame underneath his skin that raced across his body. He reeled back, shoving at Zero's chest and shoulders to push him away.

Zero's hands screamed agony at him as he released the charm, but he had Kaname on the retreat and he wasn't going to let the very rare opportunity get away. He shoved backwards hard, following up with a swift blow aimed at the pureblood's jaw. Kaname twisted, but caught the blow with his shoulder, stumbling backwards as he tried to shake off the shock of the raw fire tracing through him. He didn't know what the hell Zero had just done, but he was off balance and a fine thread of alarm wrapped through him as control of the situation slipped from his grasp.

Zero swung again, but this time Kaname blocked him, forcing past the pain once he recovered from the shock. The pureblood had been put on his back foot though, and he was on the defensive this time, blocking the flurry of skilled jabs and cuts only just in time as he was driven backwards. His body was still on fire and it was hard to focus. A few blows weren't completely deflected and connected with him more than he let on.

The two vampires grappled and fell to the mat together. Kaname felt Zero's hand curl against his side where his shirt had ridden up, the hunter's touch still painful to him, and a small, irrational burst of panic welled in him unintentionally. There was something about having hunter arts used on him that set off deeply ingrained, instinctual responses. Before he could stop himself, Kaname shoved Zero away from him with his mind, sending him skidding sideways across the mat as the pureblood scrambled backwards.

Zero tumbled a few turns before he came to a stop. He lay still for a moment before slowly pushing himself up onto an elbow. His entire body hurt and he cast a steady, slightly triumphant, slightly accusing look towards Kaname. He might have won this round if Kaname hadn't started using his mental powers and he wasn't going to go any further if the pureblood was going to cheat.

Kaname had pulled up to sit, slightly hunched with one arm wrapped around his flaming middle as he regarded Zero with a slightly unreadable look that managed to mix surprise, pride, anger and guilt. He hadn't meant to use his powers on Zero. It had been their agreement, rules that he himself had set down, that he would invoke nothing but his physical strength and speed in their matches. But Kaname hadn't counted on feeling that odd panic at being burned by the hunter charm in this manner. It was a disturbing lapse on his part that Zero had gotten him so far off his center that he'd reacted before he thought. Was it really that disconcerting for him to feel like the situation hadn't been completely under his control? Zero had been facing much worse odds from the start of their training and had simply been throwing himself against them relentlessly. Geez, Kuran, you're pathetic.

Kaname looked away, not wishing to display how vulnerable he'd felt for half a moment there. "That was good," he said instead, struggling back towards calm objectivity. He was both pleased and displeased that Zero had pulled that on him. Displeased because he'd been caught off guard and almost bested... but pleased for the exact same reason. He was proud of Zero's initiative, and as he got over his initial reaction, he was intrigued by whatever it was that had been done, immediately guessing that it had to do with the reason the hunter's hands had looked almost burned when he'd shown up in the gym today.

"You cheated," Zero remarked as he struggled wearily up to sit. He was done in, but if the half-grin on his face was anything to go by, he appeared mollified by knowing that he'd caught Kaname off guard and managed to at least slightly shift the impassible dynamic of their previous matches.

Knowing it would be poor form to be a bad sport after having handed Zero his ass for the past couple weeks, Kaname grinned wryly as he pushed slowly to his feet, still holding his middle. "It was unintentional. You surprised me. You should feel complimented that I perceived you as that much of a threat."

Zero gave a breathless snort that was half chuckle. There was a prime example of Kuran logic for you. Actually though... he knew Kaname was right and he did take a certain satisfaction in that knowledge. He knew Kaname would never let him catch him that way a second time, the pureblood was far too quick and clever, but that just meant that Zero would have to start trying to get inventive.

"Although one could question how fair it is to bring hunter charms into a vampire fight..." Kaname added, but his tone was more wry than chagrined. If this was anyone but Zero, he would have taken serious issue with that breach, but Zero being both vampire and hunter made things different. Why shouldn't he use what nature gave him? Kaname was fully prepared to rise to the challenge; perhaps he was even anticipating it.

"You never said I couldn't use them," Zero pointed out, still looking satisfied even as he winced in pain as he pushed himself to his feet. He was going to be feeling this match for a while... but it felt good.

Kaname raised his eyebrows, forcing himself to let go of his middle and go for the water bottles they'd left at the edge of the mats. His skin was still on fire, the burning sensation not yet relenting, but he chose not to let on, expecting it to start dissipating soon.

"No, I didn't," he agreed, tossing Zero his water bottle and uncapping his own, taking a long sip. Actually, it would make things a little more even and interesting between them. Kaname couldn't work hunter charms and had little knowledge of them beyond the basics. Purebloods usually didn't have to worry about being targeted by the Association after all. It would be an interesting challenge for him to keep ahead of the game if Zero started using hunter arts in their matches and he wasn't allowed to use his powers in return. Given the sometimes uncertain situation posed by the politics of the Hunter's Association, however, this was probably a very useful thing for him to practice and there was no reason their sparring sessions shouldn't be beneficial for both of them.

"I can't help you with your hunter skills, Zero," Kaname admitted as he regarded the other boy thoughtfully. "Only your vampire ones. But feel free to use both, it should make things interesting." The pureblood smirked. "Maybe you'll finally start presenting me with an actual challenge soon, huh? That would be nice..."

Zero caught his water bottle and shot Kaname a withering look as he twisted the cap off and drained the bottle in several thirsty gulps. He wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. He was beyond exhausted, but at least his hands didn't hurt anymore. The burning seemed to have gone away after the charm was released. "You stop cheating and you'll see how challenging I can be," he returned wryly.

Kaname grinned enigmatically. "I look forward to it."

Calling it a day, the two vampires headed for the showers. Zero was used to seeing the black and blue bruises on his skin as the warm water sluiced his aching body. They would fade in a couple hours. Today at least he felt pretty damn good. His body was aching like mad, but the sense of accomplishment he felt helped dull the pain. It wasn't just that he'd taken Kaname by surprise and managed to wipe that smug smirk off his face, although, yeah, that was a big part of it. But it felt good to tap back into his hunter heritage as well, to hold onto that part of who he still was. To know that despite what had happened to him, he still could tap into it. He'd been almost afraid to try for so long, afraid to find that becoming a vampire had taken that away from him.

And... was it so wrong of him, to feel good about the surprise and pride he'd seen flicker through Kaname's eyes too? The pureblood had been pleased deep down, he could tell. Zero closed his eyes, having long ago refused to try to over-analyze why Kaname's approval meant anything to him. He let the water run down his body. He was so tired; maybe he'd go take a nap. He heard the water still running in one of the stalls when he shuffled out of his and toweled off.

Resisting the embarrassing, unbidden urge to slide into Kaname's shower with him, Zero sighed and dressed before quietly exiting the locker room alone.

Kaname winced under the pressure of the water, staring down in puzzlement at the raw, angry blisters spread across his abdomen. The blisters stopped there, but his skin was reddened and painful almost all the way up his chest. It should have gone away already, shouldn't it? His body didn't hold onto injury this long. It must have something to do with it being hunter related. He should have asked Zero, he supposed... but he didn't want to display his ignorance on the subject and he honestly thought it would simply go away.

Wincing as he toweled off, Kaname figured he would just have to wait it out. He shrugged carefully into his clothes. He was pleased at the direction Zero's training was going; he really was going to end up very useful in many ways. But at the same time, Kaname couldn't help feeling a note of habitual caution mingled with his enthusiasm.

The closer he and Zero became, the more dangerous of a weakness he was for the pureblood. Today was a reminder of that. Sometimes, Kaname felt like he was giving himself away to Zero piece by piece and it was kind of disconcerting. Not only was his life and sanity tied to Zero's mood swings and whether or not the hunter felt like living today, but now... Kaname was helping Zero become very strong and very dangerous. He was teaching him how to fight a pureblood, was letting him practice hunter charms and learn the effects they could have even on one of undiluted blood. No hunter had ever had such an opportunity before. No hunter could ever hope to have faced down a pureblood, tried a charm on them and lived to tell about it, much less be welcome to come back for a repeat match. There were things about vampires that hunters didn't know... and Kaname was teaching Zero all about them.

Kaname had no guarantees that the young hunter wouldn't use all that against him some day, or tell it to others who would. His small moment of alarm back there during sparring forced him to consider these things again, things he preferred not to spend too much time pondering. He was leaving himself very open here and that wasn't entirely wise. Still... he'd weighed the risks and continued to decide to take this chance. He found it oddly hard to believe that Zero would betray him. If he judged Zero's character at all rightly, the boy's sometimes overly strict moral code probably wouldn't allow it. Despite all the fiction between them, Zero had never betrayed a confidence.

Setting these troubling thoughts aside for the moment, Kaname left the gym, heading back towards the main dormitory. By the time he reached the stairs leading to the upper level rooms, he knew something was wrong. He had to stop at the top of the stairs. It had been much more difficult mounting them than he liked. He was out of breath and in agony now. There was no one around, so Kaname allowed himself a moment of weakness, leaning against the wall, arm curling around his stomach as he breathed through his teeth. Damn it! The burning wasn't getting better, it was growing worse. It felt like it was spreading, working its way through his body and setting more of his flesh on fire. It was bad. Very bad.

What had Zero done to him? He needed to find out, but he wasn't about to go ask the hunter.

Kaname heard footsteps approaching from a distance and quickly pulled himself together, pushing away from the wall and forcing a calm placidity across his pained features. He already knew who the approaching person was, and it gave him an idea.

The pureblood remained where he was until the blonde vampire turned a corner, coming into view of the stairs. Aido slowed and pulled up when he saw Kaname standing at the top, looking very much like he was waiting for him.

Kaname smelled like a fresh shower. A nice scent on him. Everything was a nice scent on him. Not smelling Kiriyu on him was nice too, although Aido thought he might know why he never did anymore... but he wasn't certain and he wasn't about to ask either of them, especially not Kaname. Kaname hadn't been upset with him when he and Kiriyu came back from out of town, and that had been enough.

"Kaname-sama," he greeted with a smile. "Can I do something for you?" Kaname had that look like when he wanted something, but was waiting for someone else to offer first. Aido always tried to oblige promptly.

"Maybe you can," Kaname replied, beginning to walk slowly down the hall, the open invitation for Aido to join him obvious. The younger vampire did.

"But first, I wanted to thank you," Kaname said quietly, his gaze resting on the blonde with a faint mixture of warmth and amusement that quickly grew upon seeing the other's reaction to the simple words.

Aido looked shocked, flustered and pleased all at the same time. "What for?" he inquired before he could stop himself, then looked like he wondered if he'd spoken out of turn. His eager un-sureness was endearing.

Kaname smiled and held up his arm, letting his long sleeved shirt pull back enough from his wrist to show the thin silver chain he was wearing - Aido's gift, which he hardly ever took off. "For this," he said simply, his smile widening slightly as Aido's ears flushed pink.

"Oh, um... I hope you didn't think I was overstepping. I just wanted..." Aido didn't know what to say, he was more than a little surprised at having the subject brought up.

Kaname shook his head, cutting off Aido's embarrassed explanations. He understood the blonde's motives and he was genuinely grateful for the freedom the bracelets gave him. "No, quite the opposite. I appreciate your thoughtfulness. And I wanted to let you know that they seem to work quite well."

Kaname couldn't help the bit of a teasing light that came into his eyes, despite the pain that he was suppressing. "You did a remarkable job with them."

Predictably, Aido flushed a little more, but he seemed very pleased at the compliment, fairly radiating happiness. "Thank you, Kaname-sama, I'm glad you find it... useful."

"I do. Actually, your knowledge in that area is what I was interested in talking to you about," Kaname admitted as they turned down one hallway and into another, heading for Kaname's rooms, Aido now suspected. "What do you know about hunter charms?"

Aido seemed a little surprised at the question, but quickly gave it some thought. Truth was, his interest centered on vampire arts, since vampires couldn't work strictly hunter charms, and visa-versa, but he didn't want to appear unknowledgeable in front of Kaname. "There are some charms common to both hunters and vampires, and some that are uniquely suited to one or the other... was there something specific you wanted to know?" Aido wasn't sure why Kaname was asking such an odd question, but he was glad to provide any information he could.

Kaname shrugged as if it wasn't very important, letting on that he was merely being inquisitive. "I was curious about one with an invoking word of aduro. Ever heard of it?"

Aido's brow crinkled in thought. "Well, aduro means to kindle, or to burn, so I'm going to assume it has something to do with fire..." he speculated aloud. Kaname had already surmised that much, but he remained quiet, letting Aido think.

The young noble actually knew a bit about fire and ice related charms as he and Kain had always been interested in seeing how close the non-gifted might be able to come to their powers. The answer was that no charm could ever hold a candle to the natural abilities of high-blood vampires, but Aido tried to pull on some of that old knowledge now. He didn't know what Kaname was after, so he simply told him everything he could think of on the topic.

"I don't know about hunters, but most of the vampire charms that deal with fire are two part-processes - first to kindle the fire and then to put it out. Would you like me to research that particular one that you mentioned?" he offered quickly, brightening slightly at the prospect of making up for not knowing off the top of his head.

Kaname nodded, doing an admirable job of staying casual despite the fire that was eating through him. "Yes, do that. Let me know as soon as possible, all right?" Especially the putting it out part...

Aido nodded, all thoughts of whatever else he'd been about to do easily shelved at the prospect of doing something for Kaname. "Of course, I'll go check it out right now."

"Thank you, Aido. Oh, I did have one more question for you, since I'm picking your brain for charm lore..." Kaname's tone was amused, but there was a sudden seriousness to his eyes that gave Aido a bit of pause. "I'm certain you are familiar with the pureblood / ex-human binding process?"

Aido fixed Kaname with a quiet, questioning look. "I'm familiar with the idea of it, yes. But that's not a charm; it's a power unique to purebloods. If there's a process to it beyond an act of the will, I'm afraid it's not something that would ever have been put down on paper or shared with anyone outside of pureblood circles," he said quietly. Purebloods could do it in a matter of mere moments, it seemed to be innate and instinctual, part of their biology; he'd never stopped to consider the actual science behind how it worked and he found he didn't want to either. There were no studies made on pureblood powers or strengths, only legends and rumors. No one questioned things like that or tried to dissect them, even in this day and age; it would seem irreverent and disrespectful.

"I know," Kaname replied simply. He didn't seem entirely at ease with his question himself, but he felt he needed to ask it. He needed to know his options. "But what I'm wondering is if you've ever heard of it being possible to bind someone and yet leave their will intact?" he inquired, looking intently at Aido. He'd looked into the matter in the past, but without much success and he had set it aside. Aido seemed to have a gift for these things, however, and that was a valuable resource Kaname wasn't going to ignore. People sometimes thought that purebloods knew everything. They didn't of course, they were simply well practiced at making use of the resources available to them to find out that which they wanted to know. Like Kaname was doing now. There was a reason to surround yourself with people of diverse talents after all.

Aido wasn't really sure he liked this whole line of questioning, but considering that Kaname was actually coming to him looking for information about something, he was wracking his brains for the best answers possible.

"I... I don't know," he admitted slowly, hating to have to do so. "I've heard you can leave the mind intact and bind the body, but that still requires the binding of the will." He once again wasn't quite sure what Kaname was after. It sounded like the pureblood was asking about binding someone so that they could be controlled some of the times, but didn't have to be all of the time. But that didn't make sense because purebloods already had that power over other vampires innately, so Kaname must be asking about something that went a little deeper than that.

"I can research that too if you wish it," Aido offered earnestly, feeling bad that both the things Kaname asked of him he was not in a position to be able to immediately answer. Although on this one, he still wasn't sure why Kaname was asking him in the first place. This was pureblood stuff... didn't he already know? But then again, Kaname hadn't entirely been raised by purebloods, had he?

Kaname nodded slowly. He felt perspiration drip down the back of his collar again. He was keeping the pain he was in out of his expression, but his body was going to start betraying him soon. He needed to get to his rooms where he could be alone. "I would appreciate that. Let me know what you find. No rush though, I would prefer you to direct your attention to the other matter first. Send whatever information you find up to my room." Kaname turned and started to walk away, then paused, shooting Aido a look that the younger vampire almost would have categorized as troubled... maybe even... guilty. "And Aido... don't say anything about the binding matter to anyone."

Aido shook his head. "No, of course not, Kaname-sama," he agreed. Part of him was elated at being entrusted with a task, a secret confidence from Kaname, thrilled by the trust that imparted. But... another small, reluctant part of the noble was a trifle unsettled about what that task entailed. Aido was a little too smart to not figure out why Kaname might be asking about such things. What he didn't understand was why that knowledge should at all bother him.

He watched Kaname disappear into his rooms, then turned and headed back for the stairs, intending to go straight to the library. The charm question at least should be a fairly simple one, and he wanted to get it answered as soon as possible.

As soon as he was safe inside his rooms, Kaname stripped out of his shirt and tossed it on the bed. Outwardly, the flushed rash on his skin hadn't changed, but inwardly, the pain was intensifying. In the bathroom, he pressed a cold washcloth to his stomach, leaning on the sink edge and gritting his teeth. This wasn't fun. He wondered if Zero had known he was going to leave him in this much pain, or if he hadn't been fully familiar with the charm he'd used. Kaname knew the boy's hunter training was far from complete or comprehensive.

Damn... maybe he ought to encourage Zero to attend some of the hunter classes here on campus. Except unfortunately for the most part, the hunter class was all junior high level. The program was fairly newly established and they didn't have upperclassmen yet. He knew Zero would only feel out of place. If being the only vampire in the group wouldn't have been enough to already make him feel out of place.

Zero thought Kaname didn't know, but the pureblood had seen them through the window yesterday. He'd seen the group of young hunters out for a walk giving Zero wary looks as they skirted by him when he passed. They knew what he was and they only saw a vampire, one of the walking dead who were just marking time until they fell and needed to be eliminated by someone like them. They didn't see him as one of their own. Not all of them were like that, Kaname knew. There were some who really tried to give Zero a chance, but Zero's antisocial behavior didn't make it easy to reach out to him. Still, in the past, several of the more wary hunter students had gone so far as to complain to the headmistress about Zero living in the Sun Dorm, instead of in the Moon Dorms with the others of his kind. Coexistence wasn't easy for anyone. For some, it was crueler than others.

Kaname had seen Zero pull into himself when the group passed, and some silent part of his heart bled. He would have gone to Zero... but the boy would only have been angry at his interference and pushed him away. After all... Kaname symbolized the entire source of the hunter's problems and pain.

Balling his fist and breathing through his teeth, the pureblood focused on moving beyond the pain, controlling it. He wondered if he'd done the right thing, asking Aido about the binding issue. Zero had already had so much taken away from him; it wasn't that he wanted to bind him. Yet every now and again a little voice nagged at him, asking why not? Why not make it so that Zero no longer battled with himself over what he was? Why not make it so that he could just be happy and content with his life? Why not if it would give Zero confidence to not care about the other half of the world that wouldn't accept him? And why not remove the threat that the ex-human posed to the pureblood's very soul? He would never be like Seiji, he'd never suffer that Zero be treated as anything less than royalty by anyone. He'd be so good to Zero if only the boy would let him...

Kaname sighed and reached into the bathroom cabinet for a burn gel that was formulated to help vampires after suffering too much sun exposure. Not his problem at the moment, but the soothing ointment was cooling at least as he spread it on his blistered skin. Maybe he was lying to himself. Maybe the real reason he toyed with the idea of binding Zero was because his troubled thoughts from earlier hadn't completely left him, and he was afraid of them. Afraid of how much of himself he was slowly but surely surrendering to the hunter. Ever since the night of the party, when he'd let Zero have his way with him, Kaname had been becoming increasingly aware of how much control over him the hunter really had. A look, a touch, a word... and Zero could make Kaname's whole world stop and revolve around him without even trying. Zero's moods and his perceived acceptance or rejections were beginning to have a noticeable effect on Kaname's disposition and emotions. In a way, it was no different than he used to feel about Yuki, but with her it had never seemed a dangerous thing and Kaname didn't make that connection. Deep down, the pureblood was frightened. What was happening to him? How far would it go if he didn't put a stop to it?

If he bound Zero, it would solve so many problems... but it could also destroy everything. So Kaname wanted options. Not that he was going to use them, he told himself. He just wanted to know what they were. For someone who was used to complete control, and used to needing that control in order to assure survival for him and everyone who depended on him, it was unsettling to be confronted with a situation that left him at so many loose ends. Normal vampires weren't as much trouble as Zero was, normal vampires he could control if he really wanted to. He couldn't seem to do that with Zero, not like he could with the others anyway. He didn't know why, maybe it was the hunter factor in play. Shizuka certainly had been able to command him, but then, she was the one who had turned him, and Kaname didn't have that.

Kaname closed his eyes against the flood of unwelcome thoughts. In his heart, they felt disturbingly close to betraying Zero and it was all too troubling, so he shoved them to the back of his mind yet again. Zero was really starting to blossom in their training, seeming to grab back onto life again, even if somewhat hesitantly. There might be no need for him to be worrying about any of this.

Heading over to his bed, Kaname lay down on his back, breathing shallowly and staring up at the ceiling.

Dark rain pattered steadily against the tall, vaulted windows adorning one wall of the library, almost invisible in the darkness of the night outside save for where the lights inside illuminated their path as they sheeted down the window panes. No one inside the library took much notice. It had been raining pretty consistently for the past few weeks now. Not entirely unusual for this time of the year, although the excessive accumulation this season was already proving worrisome to the lower lying surrounding areas. News reports about swollen rivers and broken levies were becoming the norm the past few days, but Cross Academy, safe on some of the highest ground in the vicinity, rode out the soggy conditions with little serious impact. Although the lake had grown significantly, now encompassing much of what had formerly been picnic fields for the students. Not that there was much picnicking going on anyway with all the rain.

Zero stopped to watch the darkened water sluice down the glass panes for a minute before making his way over to the long rows of bookshelves that filled the massive library. No major tests were eminent at this point in the term, so the library wasn't overly full. There were a few vampire students working on papers or seeking a little quite time with a favorite author, but they didn't pay the hunter much mind. They were used to seeing Zero hanging around the Moon Dorms and by now, almost all of them knew that he was Kaname's protégé, so they at least treated him with respect, no matter how chilly and dismissive it may be.

Zero would have preferred to use the more crowded and hectic school library housed in the class buildings, but they would not have the kind of texts he was looking for, so he had no choice but to come here. At least it looked like it would be pretty quiet.

He resisted a yawn as he found the sections he was looking for and started scanning the titles on book spines. He'd intended to take a nap, but found he hurt too much to sleep. He thought he might actually have a cracked rib since it was taking longer than usual to stop hurting. Besides... the school guardians weren't pleased when he wandered in and out of the Sun Dorms at all hours of the night. They didn't appreciate the nocturnal shift in his schedule and said it was disruptive to the other students. It was bitter-sweetly ironic, really, being lectured by the prefects like that, but Zero actually tried not to give them a hard time... for the sake of things he couldn't bear to think about. So he had opted to come here instead and either nap in the back – libraries were always good for that – or get in a little reading up on hunter arts. He knew they had such books here. The hunters and vampires were supposed to share this library, although the hunters never came near it since it was located in the Moon Dorm. There was talk of getting them separate accommodations, but it was still just talk.

Zero had come here before, looking for how to prepare the charm he'd used today. Given the success he'd had, he wanted to know more. He stared blankly at the large gap in the row of books directly where the volumes he as interested in should have been. Someone had taken them all off the shelf.

The ex-human frowned. From the amount of dust the books had been gathering before he found them, he'd not thought they were getting much use. Had Kaname had them removed? Maybe, but that didn't really make sense so he wandered out of the shelves and walked down the rows, scanning the book return carts to see if any of them were waiting to be re-shelved. He didn't feel like going up to the vampire librarian and asking about hunter volumes. He'd rather not broadcast what he was looking for in present surroundings.

Near the very back of the room, he caught sight of a familiar figure seated at one of the long mahogany tables, surrounded by books. Aido was leaning on one elbow as he poured studiously over the large, ancient tome he had open in front of him. One graceful index finger traced down lines of text that looked hand-written in some Slavic language Zero didn't recognize. Zero's attention was caught, however, when he noticed the other books stacked up on the table near Aido's elbow.

There were his missing hunter texts. Zero's eyebrows rose slightly as he wondered what Aido was doing with them. He made his way over and plucked the book he was particularly interested in from the stack.

Aido, who had apparently been completely absorbed in what he was reading, started slightly and looked up.

Zero held up the book. "You done with this?" he inquired.

Aido looked surprised to see him. Maybe even a little flustered for half a moment and Zero's eyes narrowed.

"Hm? Oh..." Aido recovered himself and nodded as he realized that it was very unlikely that Kiriyu could read a word of the text in the book currently open before him. "For the moment. But don't check it out; I may want to refer to it again."

Zero gave him a dry look at being told what to do and set the book back down, gesturing to the others piled nearby. "What about these?"

Aido nodded distractedly, his finger keeping his place in the text open before him. "Those too. You know, usually one has a pile of books because they are using them, Kiriyu," he commented a trifle tartly. Zero's presence was obviously annoying him.

Zero regarded the blond with an irritated, stony expression and deliberately pulled out the nearest chair, letting it scrape loudly on the floor before dropping into it, across from the noble.

"Really? And here I thought it was just to make you look smart." Zero pulled the book he'd selected before across the table to him and opened the heavy volume on the table with a soft thump, making no effort to be quiet or unobtrusive.

Aido gave him a peeved look. "I don't look smart," he retorted, then scowled as Zero's silent, half smirk told him he'd just fallen into a word trap on that one. The noble bristled in irritation. "What are you doing?" he demanded as Zero blissfully ignored him, head bent over the pages of the book he had opened.

"What does it look like? I'm reading. You said you're using these books still, so fine. I'll just read them here." Zero said simply, but Aido could hear the challenge in his voice. Kiriyu was egging him to say forget it and tell him to just take the bloody books. Aido could have. He was actually done with his research on the hunter charm and had already written down a brief, comprehensive report of his findings – preparation, application, invocation and revocation – and delivered them to Kaname's rooms. The pureblood had sounded like he was napping and had asked Aido to just slide it under the door. So he had and then he'd returned to his pile of books here and the other research he was doing for the pureblood, which was why he hadn't wanted Zero to see what he was reading.

But to tell Zero to take the books would be to give in, and Aido wasn't about to give the irritating ex-human anything he wanted at the moment. "Fine," Aido said coolly. "You do that. Try not to disturb my bookmarks."

Zero ignored him, focusing on the book. He didn't really want to sit here and study with Aido, but once the challenge had been issued, they were both bound into it, neither one about to walk away first. He turned a page as loudly as was physically possible.

The two vampires studiously ignored each other for a while as they focused on their respective books, but Aido was finding it hard to keep his thread of concentration. It wasn't just that Zero was annoying him, although he was, but it also felt incredibly awkward reading what he was reading with Zero sitting across from him.

The ancient volume was a pureblood's memoirs from around 1075 AD. Aido was trying to track down any information he could find on the pureblood binding process, but just at the moment all he was finding in this chapter was a rather detailed and untoward account of kinky ex-human bondage that might have felt at home in an adult bookstore. Aido was glad there weren't too many people who could have read over his shoulder. Thank God Kain and Ruka weren't around.

Zero eventually gave up trying to irritate Aido and found himself lost in what he was reading. So much of it was mere theory, but he tried to make mental note of the useful bits, wishing for a moment that he still had someone like Yagari to help him make sense of the practical application of what he was reading. It wasn't like these were textbooks or cookbooks with step-by-step instructions on how to prepare or perform charms. Information like that was passed down from master to pupil, not entrusted to paper where anyone, especially vampires, could read the secrets. But the books were a jumping off place at least, something to add context to his remembered lessons. They were better than nothing.

The question drifted through Zero's mind if it was the same with vampire arts... something learned instinctually or passed down through families or private study? He supposed it was actually. Wasn't that in a way what Kaname was trying to do for him? Teach him the things you could only learn from another person, those contained in no book or tutorial? Zero frowned thoughtfully. He didn't know why Kaname took so much time with him, but maybe he ought not to resent it so much.

Zero found something he wanted to make note of and fished in his pocket for a pen. He had nothing to write on, however, not having come to the Moon Dorm initially with the intention of going to the library. Undaunted by that small fact, Zero distractedly scribbled some quick notes on the side of his palm, short handing enough to hopefully jog his memory later.

Zero looked up at the sound of tearing paper. Aido had torn several blank sheets out of his notebook and now pushed them silently across the table to Zero, apparently having seen what he was doing.

Zero accepted the paper and turned it around, quickly scribbling his notes much more easily on that instead. "Thanks."

Aido stared at the blackened window near the end of the table and the rain. "No problem. You'll leave ink on the furniture if you write on your hands."

Zero let it pass. "What are you working on? Something for school?" he inquired instead, making a cautious attempt at conversation as if signaling his willingness to call a truce to their silent battle of wills.

Aido seemed to not know how to answer the question for a moment. "No, just some personal research," he hedged, not about to tell Zero what he was actually doing at the moment, nor bring Kaname's name into anything.

"Personal, huh?" Zero eyed the stacks of books. "I didn't know you harbored aspirations of becoming a hunter..." he said innocently, still wondering what Aido was doing with all these particular texts.

Aido shot him a baleful glare. "Hardly. I'm simply interested in all permutations of charm lore, even the perverted ones," he returned shortly.

Zero ignored the jibe because he knew that ignoring Aido irritated him more than responding to him did. Actually, he didn't doubt what the blonde said. Unconsciously, Zero shifted his wrist, feeling the bracelet there. He'd forgotten that this was obviously an area of interest for the other vampire. He hadn't cared much for Aido's explanations at the time he'd presented the bracelets, but now, Zero was suddenly struck by the vague memory of him mentioning something about finding a new way to adhere the charm to the metal alloy.

"What are you doing?" Aido turned the question around on Zero, peeved when it looked like Kiriyu had totally spaced out on him as if he wasn't even there. "Looking up ways to make yourself more irritating? I don't think they have charms that powerful..."

Zero dragged himself back to the moment in time to scowl at the other vampire. "Just some personal research," he replied, intentionally turning Aido's earlier answer around on him. It was his turn to hedge. He wasn't about to tell Aido that he was trying to find ways to better attack Kaname when they were sparring. He'd rather avoid creating a scene that would doubtless get them both thrown out of the library.

"Aido, how exactly did you bind the charm to, um... these?" the hunter asked unexpectedly, flashing his bracelet ever so briefly.

Aido's mouth was open in a witty and sarcastic rejoinder to the ex-human's previous statement, but the words ended up not coming as he processed the sudden switch in topics. He eyed Zero suspiciously, as if wondering if he was about to be made fun of again. Zero certainly hadn't wanted to hear about it last time they'd talked. It was odd... almost disconcerting that both Kaname and Zero had mentioned such similar topics to him in one day, both suddenly showing such an interest in charms, particularly hunter charms. He was too smart not to grasp that there must be a connection... he just wasn't sure what it was. Given that Kaname was involved, he wasn't sure he should pry either.

Zero seemed to read the other's skepticism and sighed. It wasn't as if asking for help was easy for him, even if he was avoiding doing so directly. "No, I'm serious, I want to know. The more I research this... stuff..." he gestured at the books. "The more I realize how complicated it is."

Although Zero hadn't entirely intended it so, it was the right thing to say to get Aido to open up. Talking about how smart he was had always come easily. Aido explained in detail about the method he'd used with the bracelets and Zero followed along as best he could, absorbing maybe a fourth of it. The hunter was above average intelligence. There was no way he could have slept through most of his classes in high school, missed so many days being 'sick' and still been pretty much top of his class if he wasn't. Still, Aido was conversing at a very high level on a topic not terribly familiar to him. It was impressive that he could follow him at all and even Aido knew that, although he wouldn't have admitted it.

"Okay, but suppose you were trying to bind a charm that had a corrosive effect on the metal or something... is there a way you could isolate it so that it wouldn't harm the carrier until it was ready to be used?" Zero inquired, attempting to word his question carefully.

Aido gave Zero a long look. "You want to store anti-vampire spells in your body for later retrieval, but you can't because you're a vampire," he said quietly, a faint light of understanding dawning in the blue eyes as he put together what Zero was trying to do. "That's what you're really asking about, isn't it?"

His recent look into hunter charms told Aido that this was common practice for hunters in the old days. In modern times they had come to rely much more heavily on special weaponry as it was easier to make and obtain, the old arts fading with time much as they had in vampire culture. But there were probably still some top level hunters who premade and stored charms in their own bodies, using themselves as catalysts so that all they needed to do was use the invoking word to initiate the charm's power. Some charms didn't even need to be invoked vocally. If the hunter was skilled enough, they could store quiet a number and use them years later. Aido had actually seen Chairman Cross pull one such repelling charm on one of Rido's minions when they were attempting to rescue Kaname, Zero and Yuki from his clutches last year. Cross hadn't been a practicing hunter in years, apparently, so perhaps some charms once stored never actually dissipated.

Zero was uncomfortable with Aido's level of insight into what he was trying to do and looked down at the book in front of him. This was a mistake. He didn't even know why he was talking to the blonde about this. He was tired, he hurt, and he was not in the mood for any more of the noble's disdain or derision. The topic was a little too raw to him. It was frustrating to be limited by what he was... to be reminded of what he was.

"Never mind," he said with a touch of weariness as he studied the page before him. There was a flicker of something quiet, almost lost in his expression for just a moment. Something that made the silver-haired boy suddenly seem very alone.

Aido watched him in silence for a minute, weighing whether or not he should say anything further. It was one thing to do something because Kaname had requested it of him. It was another to actually volunteer information to help Zero do something relating to hunter charms of all things. But actually... the whole idea of the problem intrigued him on an academic level. It was an interesting quandary and challenge. Aido wondered if Kaname was fostering Zero's interest in the hunter arts, given that the pureblood had requested he do research on the topic. If that was the case, then he ought to help Zero. Perhaps that was a rationalization though. A rationalization for the fact that Zero's dejection actually kind of tugged at him. A rationalization because he felt uncomfortable about the book that was under his hand, about the fact that he was researching something that Kaname might very well intend to do to the boy who was sitting across from him.

And so what if he does? Aido bit his lip. So what indeed? For being brilliant, he could be so stupid sometimes. Like now...

"You'd have to find a way to isolate the charm. To store it without incorporating so it wouldn't react to your vampire blood," Aido said slowly. "That would probably be hard, I'm not sure it has been done before, but in theory it's not impossible."

Zero looked up, at first guarded, then visibly surprised as he realized that Aido was being earnest and actually giving the matter consideration. The intense interest in the startled gaze he fixed on Aido made the noble feel very odd, but not in a bad way.

"But how would you do that?" Zero queried slowly. "As I understand it, it has to incorporate in order to have any kind of energy." He flipped through the pages of the book he had open to the part where he'd read something to that effect the previous day.

Aido leaned forward, reading the passage upside down. "True, but I think the operative word there is 'energy' or maybe 'life force' in an earlier translation. They often mix those two up. Perhaps there's a way to achieve that while safeguarding the physical body..." he said thoughtfully, his mind already dancing a dozen different paths of possibilities as he considered the problem. "All hunters have a little vampire in them in a way, we know this, right? So obviously, it's a matter of degree more than anything else that we have to figure out how to adjust for here..."

Aido turned the book around and pulled it back towards him, flipping a few pages ahead to check on something. If Kain could have seen him, he would have rolled his eyes, knowing that his cousin was fully digressing into problem solving mode.

Zero realized that what Aido said made a lot of sense, although he usually didn't like to consider the intertwined history of vampires and hunters, especially considering what it had done to him and his brother. Very interested now, he grabbed another book of the stack and thumbed through it quickly. "What about if you did a containment charm first? Kind of like this one...?" he inquired, turning the book and showing Aido what he was talking about. The blond leaned forward, dragging his binder over and starting to jot rapid notes in an elegant, flowing hand.

"Mm," he nodded in approval at the suggestion. "But you'd have to modify it to work on another charm instead of an object... hang on, let me look something up..." Aido went for another book.

Zero watched him as the blonde quickly scanned through it to find what he was looking for. "Hey, Aido?"

"Hm?" Aido replied distractedly without looking up.

"Thanks," Zero said simply.

Aido looked up.

"For... you know..." Zero gestured vaguely in a direction that could possibly have encompassed both his wrist and the books strewn around them before he looked away. It was difficult for him to say, but he was aware that there was no reason Aido had to be doing this and no matter how much he didn't want to admit it, he was grateful.

Aido quirked a small smile. There it was again, such an odd feeling it gave him, seeing that glimmer of something other than bitter coldness in Kiriyu's eyes. It made him want to help the ex-human.

"Here, look up 'substantiation' in this one, will you?" he said, handing the book to Zero and picking up a different one to browse through.

Sometime later, Kain came looking for his cousin, who hadn't shown up for lunch, and found him in the least likely situation possible – bent over a stack of old books, deep in animated conversation with Zero Kiriyu. Silver and blonde heads were almost touching as they leaned close to both try and read the same tiny lines of ancient script in one of the libraries more aged tomes. They seemed to be having a heated debate about some particular point but there was none of the usual caustic edge to their verbal sparring.

"Find something interesting?" Kain inquired, unable to help being amused. Aido... one minute he hated Kiriyu's guts, the next he was holding some kind of academic council with him. So typical of his cousin.

Zero and Aido looked up at the same time with matching "huh?" expressions on their face that only added to Kain's amusement.

The auburn haired vampire's gaze fixed on Aido. "You missed lunch. I saved you some." He hoisted a small round box wrapped in a striped cloth that had a vaguely delicious scent wafting from it. "I saw you go up to Kaname's room earlier with papers and thought you were in trouble again. What are you doing?"

Aido had acted furtive when he'd seen him earlier, and when he didn't show for lunch he'd thought maybe Kaname was making Aido write an essay or something because he'd ticked the pureblood off again.

Aido apparently was immediately aware of what Kain had thought and shot his cousin a dirty look. "I am not in trouble. I was doing some research for Kaname I'll have you know," he defended hotly, not realizing he'd just said more than he'd intended to on that subject, although Kaname hadn't asked him not to tell about the hunter research.

Zero didn't miss it though. "Wait... you were doing research with these books for Kaname?" he inquired, gesturing to the hunter volumes they'd been pouring over the past half hour or so.

Aido realized his slip, but knew he couldn't deny it now without arousing even more suspicion. "Um... yes. He was curious about something," he said lamely, wanting to drop the subject and shooting Kain a double dirty look.

Kain shrugged innocently with a long suffering expression that said that if Aido hadn't been in trouble before, he suspected they were quickly heading down that path now.

Zero looked puzzled and disturbed at the same time. He bet it had to do with their sparring match earlier. He should have suspected as much when he found Aido surrounded by a pile of hunter manuscripts. "You mean like how to ward them off?" Zero guessed dryly. Not a surprise. He'd expect Kaname to want to prepare.

Aido gave him a funny look. "No, he wanted to know about a charm. I thought maybe it had something to do with you actually."

"What charm?" Zero pressed, confused.

"So Aido... do you want this or what?" Kain interjected, waving the bundle he was carrying and trying to remind them that he was there and they were ignoring him, but they simply continued ignoring him. He was used to it.

"Just a charm," Aido hedged, really uncomfortable that he'd been backed into talking about this. "He was curious, that's all. Mm, that smells really good," he diverted his attention to his cousin, the change in topic anything but subtle.

Aido stepped over to Kain, taking the food from him by way of enforcing the shift. Actually... he found he was rather hungry, he hadn't realized just how hungry while lost in the surprisingly enjoyable study session with Zero. Certainly, he had a lot to share with Kiriyu, but Kiriyu was an unexpected fount of practical knowlege reguarding hunter arts and history as well, so it had been a more or less equally engrossing exchange.

He unwrapped the cloth and opened the box, delighted when he saw one of his favorite meals. "Hey, Kiriyu, do you want som- hey!" he protested when he turned around and found that Zero had picked up his notebook and was flipping backwards past the pages that they'd filled together, to what Aido had been working on previous to that.

Aido shoved the food box back into Kain's hands and snatched the book away, lest Zero see some of what was written in there, but as he glanced down, he saw that the hunter had stopped on the page with the rough draft of the final write-up he'd done for Kaname on the aduro charm.

Aido closed the notebook and tucked it under his arm. He had a mind to lecture the ex-human about respecting other people's property, but Zero looked curiously pale all of a sudden. He'd dived back into the pile of books, pulling out one of the hunter tomes they'd been using earlier. He hurriedly flipped to a certain page that had been dog-eared as a marker.

"Aido... on that paper, what did you mean about charm revocation? I don't see anything in here about that..." Zero's strange urgency as he proffered the book towards the other vampire cooled Aido's irritation.

"I know, it's not in that book. It's in the blue one," Aido gestured to the one he meant. "Took me a little while to find it." They'd been going back and forth with questions like this for a while now, so he didn't think much of it, except that Zero was acting really weird all of a sudden, almost desperate. "Well, actually, it doesn't specifically mention that charm either, but almost all fire based charms are a two part process, so it turns out there's a generic revocation formula to put out what's been started that can be applied to all of them with a little modification..."

But Zero wasn't listening to Aido anymore. His mind had frozen in alarm. Two part? He hadn't realized that was a two part charm. He'd assumed it was a there and then gone kind of thing, like the ones he'd seen Master Toga use. Oh God... what had he done to Kaname?

Turning without another word, Zero hurried out of the library.

Aido and Kain stared after him. "Oh. Yes. Goodbye then. You're welcome..." Aido said dryly, blinking as he pretended to watch Zero's dust settle.

"What was that all about?" Kain inquired as Aido relieved him of the food box again.

Aido looked a bit troubled, but was distracted from thinking about it too much by the smell of food. "I don't know," he admitted.

"Just Kiriyu being odd again?" Kain ventured, hands sliding into his pockets.

Aido shrugged, plucking a bite up with his fingers and glancing around to see if anyone had noticed. "He's not so bad."

Kain stared at Aido like he'd grown a second head. He pressed his hand to the other's forehead, which Aido promptly batted away in annoyance.

"You must be sick, Hanabusa..." but he was teasing.

Aido scowled and defiantly scooped up another bite of food, finding the utensil that was alongside the lunch box this time and making use of it. "Oh shut up."

Kain chuckled.