Once Upon a Vampire's Dream

Chapter Two - New Arrival

The girl woke up to cold air on her face. She'd never felt something so refreshing before. She opened her eyes and the first thing she saw were the stars winking down at her from the inky blackness. The stars were all she'd dreamed them to be. Yes, when she was young she had seen them from the window in the room she had been kept in, but that had been many years ago and was nothing like seeing them now.

She looked up at the vampire who was carrying her. She could get a better look at him now that Claude wasn't shoving her face in the carpet. He looked sad, she could see it in his eyes. It was a deep sadness, soul deep and aching. He blamed himself for something he couldn't have changed.

The vampire must have felt her looking at him for he looked down and smiled when he saw she was awake. "Hello. My name is Kaname Kuran," he said in a velvety voice. "Do you have a name?"

The girl shrugged and shook her head. If she'd had a name, she had never known it. Most people called her "Girl" or "Hey, you."

Kaname smiled sadly. "I was afraid so. Do you mind if I call you Claudia?" he asked.

The girl shrugged. Claudia was as good a name as any, she guessed. Claudia reached up and gently tugged on the collar of Kaname's white jacket.

He looked down at her. "What is it?"

She pointed down at the ground.

Kaname frowned. "Are you sure? You're pretty badly injured."

Claudia nodded vigorously. Sure her injuries hurt, but it was nothing she hadn't dealt with before. It was normally much worse.

As Kaname set Claudia on her feet, she saw an enormous building loom through the darkness. It looked like a mansion, but also like a castle at the same time. It was magnificent.

Claudia caught Kaname's attention and pointed to the building.

"That's the Moon Dormitory," Kaname explained. He elaborated as he saw her confused expression. "You're at Cross Academy. There are two classes: the Night Class and the Day Class. The Night Class is made up of vampires and the Day Class is all humans and doesn't know that the Night Class are vampires."

Claudia nodded. Then she pointed to herself, then to the Moon Dormitory and looked at Kaname, tilting her head in confusion.

"I asked the Headmaster to enroll you in the Night Class. I hope that's all right. If you want, you can transfer to the Day Class if it makes you more comfortable," Kaname told her.

Claudia shook her head. She had more experience with vampires than humans. The only contact she'd had with humans was the occasional servant. At least she knew where she stood with the vampires.

Claudia followed Kaname up the steps of the dormitory. The doors were huge, towering above her head. Kaname grasped the handle and opened the door. The hinges gave a hollow squeak that Claudia heard echo through the building.

"Welcome home, Lord Kaname," a golden- haired vampire said. He had bright green eyes and seemed like a very easy-going person.

Claudia peered around Kaname's arm. Her eyes widened. Sitting on the low, red velvet couches were vampires. Lots of vampires.

Takuma noticed Claudia. He smiled. "Who's this?"

Claudia clutched Kaname's sleeve and ducked behind him. She knew Kaname said the class was full of vampires, but she didn't think there'd be so many!

Kaname looked down at her. "This is Claudia. She's joining the Night Class."

"Wonderful," Takuma said. "My name is Takuma Ichijo."