Kaien Cross

Kaien Cross (黒主灰閻, Kurosu Kaien) is both the Headmaster of Cross Academy, and current head of the Vampire Hunters Association. He is the guardian of Zero Kiryu and adoptive father of Yuki Kuran.

Kurosu means "black master", and Kaien is a combination of Kai "ashes" and en " village gate".

Appearance
Kaien is a tall man with blond colored hair and usually pulls it back into a ponytail. Though he is over 200 years old, he looks to be a man in his mid-twenties. Kaien enjoys wearing very odd clothing and can be spotted with over-sized lion feet slippers, large colorful hats and pink aprons, occasionally. As one of the few characters that wears spectacles, he sometimes removes them in times of action. He can also have a generally light-hearted and comical appearance, but occasionally puts on a serious face during such situations. As a vampire hunter, Kaien had a generally more serious and mature design. He appeared to wear simpler, yet dark clothes and often discarded his glasses, especially before a big battle. His hair was often left loose.

Personality
Kaien sports a cheerful personality, yet can be serious at the same time. It can be said that he has a few odd personality quirks, such as his propensity to launch into tearful dramatics over the idea of being a poor parent to Yuki. Additionally, he enjoys ribbing his adopted children, particularly Zero, often mocking him about being a vampire as he refuses to consider Kaien and Yuki family, a fact which Kaien jokingly claims breaks his heart. He also enjoys cooking very strange food and making Yuki and Zero eat it.

Kaien can also appear thoughtless, frequently overriding and ignoring Zero's distaste for vampires. He often tells only half truths to protect Zero and Yuki, and kept his knowledge of Yuki's past secret from both her and Zero. He is, however, quite proud, and very protective, of both his adopted children.

History
At his prime as a vampire hunter, Kaien was known as the "Vampire without Fangs" due to his strength and skill, and for being born with an abnormally high amount of vampire genetic material as compared to other vampire hunters, which he obtained by eating his twin (as hinted by former president hints when he mentions that he was cursed since birth just like the Kiryu twins). Due to his vampire DNA, Kaien was able to live for over 200 years and why he no longer seems to age.

One night in winter, Kaien had foolishly agreed to hunt down Juri Kuran, who was vulnerable due to her pregnancy with her daughter, Yuki. Juri spared Kaien's life and soon forgave Kaien for being so irrational. At some point, they somehow became friends, though Kaien still feels in debt to her.

Kaien is also friends with the Pureblood vampire, Isaya Shoto, and used to intentionally pick fights with him. After befriending Juri Kuran (though it is not yet revealed if he befriended Haruka Kuran too) Kaien took on Juri's dream of establishing a school for vampires and humans to coexist peacefully, and retired as a Vampire Hunter in order to establish Cross Academy 16 years prior to the story. Following the deaths of Haruka and Juri, Kaien took in their hidden daughter, Yuki, after Kaname Kuran brought her to him for safekeeping. Thus Kaien became Yuki's very doting and slightly odd father, much to Yuki's annoyance. Kaien also took in Zero Kiryu several years later, after the deaths of Zero's parents. As he did with Yuki, Kaien also wished to adopt Zero, though the latter refused. Kaien still referred to Zero as his son, which always got quick-tempered Zero worked up.

Shortly after Zero's arrival, Kaien, with Kaname's assistance, was finally able to establish the Night Class to promote understanding between humans and vampires. Due to the vampire presence at the school, Zero initially refuses to attend and is left behind a year, but Kaien is later able to convince him to attend the following year in order to prevent Yuki from being alone in the duties of being a guardian.

Powers & Abilities
Kaien is a very strong hunter, known as the best until he retired. Kaien is unusual amongst the vampire hunters as he appears to have stopped aging physically, appearing to be a man in his mid-twenties despite being over two hundred years old. They have been studying his DNA, which he is said to have possess abnormally high amounts of vampire DNA that halted his aging and caused Zero to confuse him with that of a vampire's aura. Like all vampire hunters, Kaien was able to wield anti-vampire weapons and carries a sword hidden in a cane and he has an acute smell that senses vampires. Kaien is considered the legend of vampire hunters.

Equipment
Kaien Cross wields a jagged sword.

Juri Kuran
Kaien and Juri first met as enemies when Kaien tried to kill her and they eventually became good friends. It has been implied during certain points in the series that Kaien may have harbored romantic feelings for Juri, though this is unconfirmed. However, in the Vampire Knight Official Fanbook, the author states that Kaien respects Juri and his taste in women: ''"She's already married, so..." ''which might possibly imply Juri since she was already married to Haruka at the time. What is clear, however, is that Kaien held both Juri and Haruka Kuran in high regard during their years of friendship, even taking in Yuki as his adoptive daughter following their deaths.

Quotes

 * "You can drink my blood if you want to, Zero." (To Zero)


 * "I wish to erase the past but I have killed too many vampires to let that happen."


 * "I want to put an end to the war between humans and vampires; a war that has been continuing in the darkness of history since ancient times! I want the young vampires, with their natural intelligence and unfettered hearts, to become a bridge between the two species!! I'm educating them for that purpose! That is why I created the night class." (To Zero & Yuki)

Trivia

 * The shawl Kaien is normally seen wearing is not just part of his outfit. He started getting cold at age 150, which worsens at 250, due to his body finally reaching its limits.
 * His goofy demeanor is front for his true, more serious nature.
 * Due to the large amount of vampire DNA in his blood, Kaien eventually turned to dust after he died. Alternately, it could be because since he no longer had said DNA active, his human body simply succumbed to all the centuries of age that had piled up.