2Hello! This story might look familiar to you and you may have seen this story floating around somewhere. This is because Nine Months of Struggle has already been published before. Unfortunately for me, I can no longer access my original account mintry1295. I have always wanted to go back and finish my stories but I did not have the motivation to do so before. Years have passed and since I can no longer access my old account, I have decided on making another one and transferring the unfinished stories in here. The completed ones will stay on my old account.
This is a sequel of Make It Through.
Disclaimer: Vampire Knight is not mine. This is merely a fan-made fiction
Pairing: Kaname Kuran x Zero Kiryuu
Other Notes: MPreg
"Congratulations Zero-sama!"
Zero just sighed at the sight of the smiling Night Class students. Apparently, the birth of a new pureblood is a really big deal in the Vampire World, not to mention that it was a Kuran as well. He had been congratulated to many times to count ever since the news came out and it was starting to get on his nerves. Many has expressed their excitement about the upcoming Kuran heir, even Ruka who he was sure harbored some kind of lingering bitterness towards him due to her infatuation with Kaname. He figured Kain had something to do with that considering that he had seen them hanging out together on more than one occasion.
"Oh Zero! I can't wait!" Yuuki gushed in obvious excitement. "You're going to be a father!"
The carrier smiled a little at his sister in all but blood. 'At least she didn't say mother,'
"Yeah..." Still, in his mind, Zero was in doubt whether he can go through it.
It was a nice weekend but instead of enjoying the outside, Zero chose to lock himself inside his and Kaname's rooms. He was on his way to the stables to have a peaceful nap in the company of his horse, White Lily but the amount of well-wishers he had passed by had ruined his good mood. And so, he retreated back to their rooms, grumbling under his breath as he did so. It was just a baby. He couldn't understand why everyone was so... happy about it. Perhaps he could understand if he could also feel the same amount of happiness and excitement as everyone. But no matter how hard he thought of it, or search for his feelings, he just didn't have the same enthusiasm as the others about his pregnancy.
"Zero." Kaname's voice broke through his thoughts.
"Hm?"
"We have to hold a gathering soon to announce your pregnancy," The pureblood said carefully. He had been treading on thin-ice around the ex-hunter recently. It was obvious to him of course that Zero was becoming a little irritated on how his pregnancy was suddenly the talk of the town but there was not much he could do about it.
Zero had to stop himself from sighing. He had been doing that a lot lately. Why he fell for a pureblood knowing that they have all of their parties and gatherings, he will never know.
"Is it going to be as big as the last time?" He asked, pertaining about the party that announced him as a carrier. That party was big however, it was an amount that he could probably tolerate once more.
Kaname knew Zero hated formal gatherings and as such he will probably not like what he's going to say next.
"It needs to be a bit bigger than laste time." He answered his mzate as he sat down on their bed. "It will probably be held outside the school."
Zero turned around the bed to face Kaname, with clear irritation in his eyes. "And why is that?"
"We are not only announcing your pregnancy, but we are also announcing our mating at the same time. We had not properly announced our union yet if you can remember,"
This time, Zero let the sigh escape from his lips. Why did he mate a pureblood again?
"So... Where?"
Kaname was thankful of Zero's subdued response. "I have been ordering the renovation of the Kuran Manor for sometime now. I believe it will be finished by the time of the gathering."
"Kuran... Manor?" Zero asked, not familiar with the place.
"Our ancestral home." Kaname explained with a smile but did not delve further much to the annoyance of his mate.
When Kaname mentioned that the gathering was going to be bigger, he did not exactly say by how much. So when Zero was given a tour by a servant on the ballroom where the gathering was going to be held, he immediately cursed Kaname and his cunning tongue. The ballroom was big, really big and to think that this was just one of the two that exists in the Manor. Now he could understand why Kaname's parents opted to leave this place for a smaller home. It was just too big. Huge chandeliers were hanging from the high ballroom ceiling which was painted with delicate designs and artworks. Pale ivory columns stood along the walls with old paintings hanging between them. There were probably around 20 or so circular tables scattered around the sides glittering with golden cutlery and intricate flower pieces. The whole place was glittering from top to bottom and the polished marble floor only added to the effect.
"Zero-sama? Are you alright?" The maid beside him asked.
Zero took in a deep breath. "Yeah... Yeah I am," And he motioned for the girl to continue.
"Of course," The maid nodded with a smile. "As you can see Zero-sama, the ballroom had been decorated with..."
Zero tuned out the explanation of the maid and cursed his mate in his mind once more.
"Zero-sama be still!" Rima scolded lightly as she ran a brush through Zero's silver locks. The gathering will start in a few hours and Zero, being one of the reason for the said gathering, must look his best.
The petite girl had decided on putting Zero's hair up on a high ponytail for today's event, with small amounts of his hair framing the sides of his face. Zero initially wanted it to be left down in order to compensate for his stuffy clothing but Rima informed him that doing so would give an impression that seeing their 'guests' was not something worth fixing up for. The event was strictly White Tie and as much as Zero loved being lax with his clothing, he had to wear the whole formal regalia down (he had never worn a tailcoat jacket before) to the exact dot.
As Rima finished, a soft knock was heard throughout the room.
"Enter," Zero called.
The door opened and revealed Shiki in his own White Tie attire.
"Zero-sama, it's time,"
The carrier sighed and nodded.
Unlike the last time where he had to appear by himself, Zero and Kaname were expected to appear together. Rima and Shiki had already went on ahead to wait on their arrival.
"Zero," Kaname said. "Let's go."
"Yeah, yeah,"
Kaname placed his hand on Zero's lower back which startled the carrier.
"Wha- What are you doing?!" Zero hissed.
"What?" Kaname smirked. "I don't see anything wrong with it."
"I-Idiot!" Zero's face turned red as he sputtered.
Kaname unexpectedly pulled Zero towards him into a small hug. "Relax Zero," He murmured in the other's hair.
Zero blinked at the sudden intimacy and took deep breaths. He would probably never say it to Kaname's face but his mate's scent never failed to soothe him.
As Zero expected, there were a lot of guests. The ballroom was filled with different vampires wearing gorgeous dresses and fine suits and the usual chatter that came along with it. All conversations halted as soon as the the pair walked into the room.
Unlike Kaname who can keep his face blank of emotions, Zero had trouble from keeping a frown from marring his face. He never liked being the center of attention, especially when the said attention came from vampires. Most of them usually had hidden agendas behind polite smiles. Kaname, as if sensing the beginning of his mate's distress, rubbed his thumb lightly from it's place on Zero's back.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming tonight." Kaname's voice echoed throughout the ballroom.
"Today, is a wondrous occasion. I would like to formally announce my mating with the carrier Zero Kiryuu."
Zero kept his face blank as Kaname spoke. There was no applause, not that he was expecting any but there was a small wave of hushed murmurs that registered in his ears.
"Another news we would like to share is that we are expecting a new Kuran to be born in this world." Kaname couldn't stop the smirk from showing in his face. "Zero, my mate, is pregnant."
The room fell silent for a brief second before a reserved chorus of congratulation came from the crowd. As the congratulations arose, so does the mutterings and whispers. Zero scanned the crowd discreetly to take note of possible... problems. You never know.
"Zero what the hell are you frowning about?"
The carrier looked to his right and was greeted by the sight of his twin brother Ichiru who was looking at him as if he had grown a second head.
"Ichiru," He replied monotonously.
Said brother raised an eyebrown at his tone, "What's eating you? It's supposed to be a happy day." He whispered lowly.
His brother was right of course. It was supposed to be a happy occasion and here he was brooding and ruining the moment. At least Kaname looks rather pleased with himself. He could practically feel the smugness rolling off of him in waves.
"Besides," Ichiru added, "You don't want then to think that you're not happy with the baby right? That would just be adding more fuel to the fire."
Zero winced a little at his brother's words. That would bring a lot of headache and trouble indeed, not only to himself but to Kaname as well.
"I doubt they could really do anything in here, but still, cheer up yeah?"
The carrier smiled lightly at his twin, "Thanks Ichiru,"
Zero watched his twin walk away with a tiny smile on his face. Ichiru always seems to know what to say to him in times like this. He was right and it was bout time that someone gave him that speech. It was about time for him to fully accept what being mated to a pureblood (and being a pureblood himself) entails. Vampire society was all about power play- show weakness and others will have no qualms about exploiting it to their own advantage. Adjustment will take time however, he will certainly try harder, or at least, wouldn't reject the idea altogether.
"Is that so Lady Asako?" Zero distantly heard his mate's voice which put a halt in his musings.
The carrier turned to the pureblood's direction unconsciously and narrowed his eyes at the girl who was clearly trying to flirt with his mate.
'Sorry but I can play this game too.'
Zero walked towards Kaname in unhurried and graceful strides.
"Hey."
Kaname turned around and the carrier could see the relief in his eyes. "Zero."
Zero gave Kaname a quick peck on the side of his lips who blinked in shock at the uncharacteristic display of affection.
'Take that, you bitch,'
"And who's this?" Zero faced the girl.
"Oh, I apologize Zero-sama," The girl said with an overly sweet tone. "My name is Okuda Asako. I was having a rather enjoyable conversation with Kaname-sama."
"I'm sure you are," Zero said. "Do you have any accompaniment this evening?"
"I came with my brother Zero-sama,"
Kaname looked at Zero, wondering what he was up to.
"I see. I was only wondering since you haven't left my mate's side for a while and I was afraid that you may have been alone and not know anyone or if you find the party uninteresting." Zero said lightly with a sharp glint in his eyes.
The girl's eyebrow twitched a little at Zero's question. Picking one would be insulting to herself and picking the other would be insulting to the hosts, which in this case, were the two purebloods in front of her.
"Oh no, not all. Ah, there goes Aya-chan. I have been waiting for here for a while you see." She said with a strained smile. "If you'll excuse me Zero-sama, Kaname-sama."
"Good riddance." Zero murmured lowly as he watched the girl scurry out into the crowd.
Kaname, on the other hand kept his eyes on Zero with an unreadable expression in his eyes.
"What?"
The pureblood stared for a few more seconds before snaking his right hand around Zero's waist.
"O-oi!" The carrier whispered with a hiss, his cheeks turning red.
Kaname just smirked at his mate. "I'll tell you later."
"What the hell-" Zero found himself unceremoniously thrown at their bed.
The gathering went through without a hitch, with Zero surprising everyone by having civil conversations with some of the guests. Kaname kept Zero at his hide the whole night, the hand on his waist never left for the duration of the gathering. Zero unexpectedly charmed his way through their guests not with smiles but with intelligent conversations which had, even the stuffiest of vampires, nodding in approval. Of course, in true Zero fashion, he would also throw thinly-veiled insults here and there to those whom he particularly cannot stand. And if Zero noticed Kaname's grip on his waist getting tighter and tighter as the night went on, he never commented on it.
"Wait a sec- Ah!" Zero moaned as Kaname attacked his neck with open-mouthed kisses.
Panting slightly, he managed to push the other enough to give him a break. "What the hell's gotten into you?!"
The carrier's breath caught in his throat as he saw pure desire in his mate's eyes. They were normally dark brown in color but right now, they glowed in a mixture of red and brown. He looked wonderful like that, like his tight control on his instincts were on the verge of snapping.
"K-kaname?" He wondered what he did that made this switch in the pureblood. He was all but prim and proper just five minutes ago then he flipped a full 180 degrees upon entering their bedroom.
"You know," Kaname said in a deep voice, "Seeing you talk your way around our guests was quite... different,"
Zero's eyes widened a little. 'Oh, so that's what it is.
"I was raised to be a vampire hunter." He replied. "I know a lot about vampires, even the social aspect."
"Oh?" Kaname raised an eyebrow at that statement. "So you mean to tell me that insulting them while still sounding polite was not just for your own amusement?" Kaname murmured hotly against his ear.
Zero closed his eyes upon feeling his mate's breath touch the shell of his ear. "I ahh.. admit... I did get a small amount of satisfaction from it."
The carrier unconsciously tilted his head to the side, giving Kaname access to his neck. "You'd probably kill me... if I pointed a- ahh! A gun at those assholes."
"Kill you? No." Kaname sucked on his mating mark on Zero's neck giving the carrier a sudden rush of pleasure. "Just punish you."
"F-fuck!" Zero's hands flew to Kaname's hair and all but grabbed tightly.
"That too."
