IN PROGRESS

[instrumented]

Who: Kiryuu Zero (instrumented), Naminé (rememorize)
What: Both affected, Zero goes to find Naminé!Yuuki, who's just arrived.
Where: Eventually at the fountain, possibly elsewhere.
When: Backdated a couple days; following this.

Comments

[instrumented]

The grasp that Zero held on Naminé almost made him grimace; eyes squeezed tightly shut, his person almost shaking. Zero didn't want to let her go; he didn't want to open his eyes, only to find himself back in that jail cell with Ichiru pointing Zero's own gun at him. It'd been a month since he arrived in Nuadoria, but it'd been a month too long, despite knowing that what home really meant was facing Rido. ...but it being all for Naminé's safety, Zero wouldn't complain.

It took a moment for Zero to recall the party that Naminé spoke of. He knew that she was well aware that Zero wasn't the social type (least of all for the Night Class), so figuring out exactly what party Naminé was talking about wasn't too difficult. The memory, however, did sit heavy in Zero's thoughts. It'd been a long time since then. It'd been a long time since he nearly lost control around her.

Zero could only manage a slight smile, bittersweet and distant in a way. His hand came down to rest on the crown of Naminé's head before it slipped away to return to his pocket.

"I know you didn't," Zero finally commented. He gave a light nod of his head, indicating the fountain not too far away, and that they should walk. "I didn't expect it, either."

The few seconds of silence that passed between them was thick. Although relieved and grateful to have Naminé near by again, to be able to sense that the Naminé next to him was human, Zero fought to come up with just how he was going to explain Nuadoria, and what had just happened to her.

Zero did, however, decide to add, "And don't worry about the party. I was just-" Zero raked through his memories again. "...just, don't worry." Maybe he didn't appear as hesitant or as pressed for answers that wouldn't upset Naminé as he felt.

[rememorize]

Ah, forgiven. Or, well, forgiven as far as anybody could be when it came to him. She supposed she hadn't done anything too terrible to warrant an obvious distaste from Zero, let alone honest hatred, so she worried over nothing concerning that aspect of their relationship. Still, there was certainly something hanging in the air that she couldn't put her finger on and it bothered her to a less noticeable degree. Maybe she was getting better at hiding her emotions, or maybe she was just giving herself too much credit and she wasn't focusing on it as much as usual. Regardless, she couldn't dwell on it for too much longer or else she'd be caught.

That faintest smile was enough to tug at the corners of her own lips, head bowing slightly as his hand came to rest on it. These were the little things she treasured, the smallest touch or look that she could always go back to; proof that Zero wasn't one of those vampires. No, and in fact, he was a very important friend, vampire or not that's how it had always been and that was how it would remain. "At least we're still together, though," she chimed while taking the hint and slowly starting on their way.

She wasn't sure what to say next, and the silence made her somewhat uncomfortable. Actually, it wasn't really the silence itself but what was buried beneath it. There had been plenty of times where neither spoke and it was quiet and she'd never felt quite the same chill as she did now. Then again, that could have also been the new white dress she had woken up in.

Naminé was about to speak when it seemed Zero had beaten her to it. It was possibly the worst explanation she'd ever been given in her life, and when did anybody stop worrying just because they were told to? No, no, it didn't work like that at all. "Okay..." Well, maybe it did.

Her gaze lingered on him for a second longer before she reached out, hesitantly taking the tip of his sleeve between her fingertips as she stopped in her steps. "Zero, I'm..." She stared down at her sandals then, pretending to be side-tracked by the newly adorned shoes so as to stall. If anything, she needed the few seconds to sort through her thoughts and word them just right. "I'm wondering if..." No, this wouldn't be appropriate for their situation at all, she finally decided.

Shaking her head, Naminé let go and started forward again, picking up the pace to close the final distance toward the fountain. "Never mind, it's nothing. This place is just making me think funny."

[instrumented]

Zero paused mid-stride to look down towards Naminé. You're...? The way he sounded, her hesitation, it was just Naminé being herself, right? And Nuadoria being the frustration. Yet at the same time, something felt almost painfully off center, but he couldn't tell exactly what.

The two of them reached the fountain only moments later and Zero moved to take a seat. Once Naminé was as well, he glanced over to her, cursing himself silently and pulling his eyes away when he realized his attention had begun to drift towards Naminé's exposed throat. Although Zero would deny it if asked, he'd grown more and more hungry over the past few days. The blood pills he had with him upon arriving to Nuadora one month ago were decreasing at almost a rapid speed by this point, despite the fact that being in the strange city in some way made Zero feel weaker than usual, in a different way than when he craved & needed blood.

"It...has that affect," Zero replied slowly. Although, he just knew his answer would baffle Naminé, considering she seemed to believe that they arrived together. So he continued before she could respond. "But what were you thinking about?"

[rememorize]

She hadn't meant to bring it up at all and she hoped it would just go forgotten, but at the same time Naminé knew he wouldn't just let her get away with 'nothing'. He could read her too well, always had been able to even when she tried her hardest against it. She chewed lightly on her bottom lip, fingers playing with a loose thread at the end of the dress as she sat down beside him. She had been staring so intently at the tops of her knees when she suddenly realized that he was talking to her, and she looked up quickly with an almost startled expression.

Her lips parted to ask, but there was no time allowed to give the question. In all fairness, he could have only meant the affects of this place moved quicker on those with heightened senses - a vampire - than they would on a normal human like herself. It was safer to let it go and focus more on how to answer the question at hand.

"I was just thinking..." Her voice softened as she twisted around to stare down at the water in the fountain, legs crossing at the ankles as she leaned further in to inspect. A distraction, more likely than not, and it gave her time to consider her response. The issues back home didn't seem to matter in a place like this, as if there would be no point of return regardless, but in the same instance she wondered if it really negated everything that had existed before. Maybe, she had considered before, this was some sort of afterlife where Zero didn't need blood anymore, where they could be normal again. She frowned at the thought and let out a soft sigh as she lifted her eyes to his.

She had been quiet for far too long. "About you." That summed it up fairly well, but she would have to explain. "And being here. I know I heard people over that thing but I haven't seen anyone, so it could just be like radio signals from another town, right? So... if there weren't any people around but us, then it would be okay for you and me..." She trailed off for a second. It didn't sound right, she was saying it wrong and she hated to offend him. "If you're thirsty ever..." She realized even as she said it that it was embarrassing, and selfish, and so many other things she didn't want to think about.

"I'm sorry," she finally murmured, turning back to stare ahead of herself with a small smile. "See? I told you it was a weird thought."

(ooc OMG SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG, I was having trouble with my laptop. ;o; ♥ )

[instrumented]

"There is no other town," Zero didn't even wait a beat to reply to Naminé's observations. The truth was eventually going to surface, wasn't it? It always seemed to, even when initially pushed aside. To Zero, the truth regarding Nuadoria would be far easier to tell Naminé, opposed to the facts he'd learned about her and Kuran Kaname, even if the aforementioned might harm her more, in the end. At least for this moment.

"It's..." he went on, figuring out just how to word the explanation as he went. At first Zero spoke with his head lowered, looking to his feet. Facing Naminé could come later. "No one here knows exactly where here is. Only that its name is Nuadoria, and that the supposed natives, or the city itself, has pulled in a variety of others from all over." Zero paused. He still didn't want to believe the facts, himself, regardless of what he'd seen and experienced in just a single month. "There's no defined escape route. People have looked, but there's a barrier, in addition to areas where you lose your mind..."

The more Zero explained, the more distressed he seemed to feel. Naminé shouldn't have to live in such a place. Why her? Why had she, of all those Zero knew, have to be taken? Her life was difficult enough at Cross Academy. She didn't deserve it here.

Any and all thoughts of Nuadoria paused suddenly when Naminé mentioned him. When she spoke of herself and Zero... This was the first time, wasn't it? If Zero remembered correctly, the point in time where this Naminé was from. It was just before she'd given her consent; after the run-in with Yagari, Naminé allowed herself into Zero's room and...

She must think ... Level E... Zero's eyes widened a bit, a sudden look of pain, worry, and guilt as he looked to Naminé. No matter how many times he'd listened to Naminé give her consent, Zero felt disgusting, amongst other things. No matter how many times he eventually came to feed upon her, eventually beginning to lust after and lose control over the need to bite her. It didn't matter how many times it happened- Zero still hated himself for it; he hated the way he struggled to deny her.

In Nuadoria, however. This situation...

Zero clenched his fists at his sides. "Naminé..."

[ooc: No worries! It happens. ♥ And augh. dgjkhfg y-you should continue reading, and come play my Yuuki some time. ;;; ]

[rememorize]

Her lips formed a small 'o' followed by a quiet hum in thought. Well, that shot down her initial idea immediately. It hardly made sense at all, though; no matter how far in the middle of nowhere they could be there was still always a town somewhere in the distance, you just had to go far enough to find it. This place only got more and more confusing as each second passed and, in all truth, it was starting to give her a headache.

"Lose your mind?" She echoed his words aloud, perking at the mere absurdity of it. Barriers, lack of an exit, and what seemed to be danger zones - how did this place exist? Naminé shook her head finally, hands balling into fists over her knees. "It's... scary."

When she looked up again to face him, she caught the expression he gave and she suddenly regretted mentioning any of it. Carefully she placed both her hands over one of his fists, leaning forward as she settled her worried eyes on his. "I'm sorry," she apologized again, "I just... thought it would help." One hand slipped away and lifted to gently brush against his cheek, smiling as reassuringly as she knew how. Anything to make that look go away.

"I wouldn't mind, I'd rather... it were with me," instead of anyone else, she finished to herself. That made her sound bad, so she couldn't tell him so.

(ooc lmao I've actually been reading it, I'm on chapter 39 now. 83 I've been thinking about picking her up after that~ SO MAYBE.)

[instrumented]

He'd missed this. Naminé's gentle touch, her warm heart and kind smile. The last thing Zero remembered of her, before he'd been thrown behind bars, was unfortunate; Naminé had already been turned (turned back?), and the only thing Zero could do was pull his gun on her. He didn't want to think about it; the facts were laid out and there was nothing Zero could do about it. Loathing vampires as a whole was one thing, finding Kuran's existence frustrating and irritating, yet putting up with him for Naminé's sake was another; the fact that Naminé herself was a vampire wasn't something Zero knew if he could handle. He hated the fact, yet deep down he knew he could never let her down.

To see Naminé as she currently sat before him was difficult as well. A reminder to Zero of how things used to be, and what they could've remained as. But Zero had never been the lucky type.

The expression upon Zero's face lingered, even as he leaned in against Naminé's hand. The temptation of Naminé's offer was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. "It would help..." Zero's response came out as a quiet murmur, instead of a thought he'd meant just for himself. Whether or not Naminé heard him, however, Zero wasn't sure.

Pained and nearly desperate at this point, Zero didn't quite give Naminé any room to reply before he grasped the arm of her hand that currently covered one of his, and brought her wrist to his lips. He managed another glance up towards blue eyes, his own already a deep red glow, and bit down before he'd change his mind again.

[ooc: 8D I WOULD LOVE YOU EVEN MORE THAN I ALREADY DO. kfdgjhfg ♥ ...about the log, though. Since the event is over, what do you think we should do? I was thinking something along the lines of them remembering, but more like it was a dream or something. So basically what they'd remember would be bits and pieces, and not necessarily anything too vivid. ...although, Naminé will have a bite mark on her inner wrist, so. idk what you wanna do about that. :x And speaking of, hopefully I didn't go over the line too much with him biting her? I figured the wrist would be better than her throat, anyway, so...]

[rememorize]

It was somewhat difficult to make out the quiet words but Naminé found herself comforted by the response. She would do whatever she could for him, anything to help. Zero deserved it, as far as she was concerned. Besides that, Naminé had always been there to take care of him since the first day he came to her. That wasn't to say he always accepted her help, but she'd offered it constantly anyway.

The smile never faltered even as he lifted her wrist to his lips, and especially when those crimson eyes met with hers. As soon as his teeth sank in, she winced at the first shock of pain and held her breath. The absence of a pounding heart crossed her mind, but the thought passed for the second time. There was little she could do and after a second she shut her eyes, her free hand falling against her thigh and tightly clutching the end of the dress.

"Zero," she murmured, eyes re-opening to take a peek with a slight tug of the arm that he held. "I'm sorry... for making you do this." It wasn't his fault, it could never be his fault...

(ooc LOL~ okay, UHM I think it'll make sense that they'll remember bits and pieces like it was just a weird dream but she won't know where the bite marks came from? IDK, I fail at being imaginative. ;o; - the biting thing was fine, though, just to say. XD I loved it anyway~ )

[instrumented]

As much as he tried, Zero couldn't quite remember the last time he fed on fresh blood; the pills only did so much. Naminé would never realize how indebted Zero felt towards her at that very moment, nor did he feel he'd ever be able to express his gratitude. What they were doing, after all, wasn't an act to be taken lightly.

Zero continued to take in Naminé's blood even after she had tugged on her arm. A relatively decent amount of time had passed since Kuran allowed Zero to feed from him, thus prolonging Zero's descent to a Level E, but even with the blood of two purebloods in him (though Naminé made three), control still proved difficult, once Zero was hungry enough. Thankfully Naminé's voice made it through to Zero before much else could happen. He finally managed to break himself away from Naminé's wrist, but kept his hand wrapped around it to help stall the blood flow. Zero's head went to rest on Naminé's shoulder for a moment, almost breathless.

He nearly laughed; sad, forced. "...I owe you...so much," Zero murmured.

[ooc: HMM. Well. I was thinking that Zero will remember Naminé's face, but it'll confuse him since no ones affected anymore. I'll think of something. --- also. Have you seen the page with the reserves? OSHI- 8D;; ...we can end this here, too, if you want. Unless you wanna do, like, two more tags/me closing. Either way. It was fun!]

[rememorize]

Naminé flinched as the pressure of his teeth lessened and was finally gone. She let out a soft sigh as her arm slipped around him to hold him against her. "It's okay, Zero. You don't owe me anything." And it was the truth. She wasn't a special person in any way, as far as she knew. She had no super abilities, no healing, and no physical specialties that could be of any use to Zero. All she had was her blood, and that was what he needed. The pills wouldn't last him forever, and they certainly weren't as good as the real thing.

Slowly she began to run her fingers through his hair, an effort to comfort him in their silent moment. It was hard to keep focus at first, so she leaned her forehead against the top of his head, eyes closing for a second to rid herself of the floating feeling. "Do you feel better?" Still, she worried about his well-being before her own. Besides, she was fairly good at recovery, she would just need a little rest later.

"Don't be afraid to ask next time. This... can be a secret, just between you and me."

(ooc :O Okay, anything goes with me~ laskdjlkadf ANDYESOMG I saw the Kaname reserve. XB I just about died since I didn't notice it until after I made the Yuuki reserve. - We can keep going for a little longer, even if I am a bit slow. ;o; This is my favorite thread.)