Realistic or Modern In The Dark Of The Night

[apolla]

"Sisters. It is time."

The eldest of the witches, Amaris, stepped into the forest, feeling the soft ground beneath her bare foot. Grounding, she thought to herself, closing her eyes and inhaling the scent of the trees and wildlife around her. Stretching out both of her hands, she leveled her head and reopened her crystalline blue orbs, looking over her shoulder at each of her sisters in turn. "Come."

Kiara was the first of the two to step forward. The youngest, and perhaps the boldest out of the three. She slipped her smaller hand into Amaris' slightly larger one, meeting her sisters gaze and flashing her a bright smile. "I'm ready."

"Me, too." Rowena, the middle sister and the most reserved, grasped Amaris' other hand and pulled herself towards her sisters.

"On tonight, the night of the full moon, we will get revenge for what has been lost to us." Amaris whispered, letting her voice carry out over the woods, silencing the creatures within. The sisters moved like spirits through the woods, until they reached the very heart. Only then did they release hands, turning instead to face each other.

On the ground beneath them a pentacle lay burned into the ground. Amaris knelt first, placing herself at the top of the star. Kiara and Rowena followed, placing their knees in alignment with the other four edges of the star. In the center of the star lay three hairs: one for each of those who had betrayed them. One by one, each sister pulled out a vial, another hair contained in each. They opened the vials and pulled out the hair, each reaching for one from within the star. With practiced fingers, they entwined the hairs, laying them back in the middle. The sisters then reached out, clasping hands yet again.

Amaris began. "O, goddess. Mother of nature, hear us tonight."

Then the other two chimed in.

"Ligare nos hostis hostem
Per diem noctemque vitam alterius;
Peribitis si tunc alterius."

As they chanted the spell over and over, a strange light illuminated the lines of the star burned onto the ground. It spread across the entire symbol, and even lit up the clearing they knelt in. They didn't stop their chanting, not until the light had dimmed, and then flickered out.

"It is done." Amaris looked at both of her sisters in turn, her expression serious. "They are bound."

Spoiler: Latin Translation:

Bind together our enemy with their enemy;
Through day and night, one life belongs to the other;
If one shall perish, then will the other.

 

[apolla]

The fire burned brightly in the middle of the circle as Seraphina and her family stood there, staring down at the vampire they'd captured earlier that night. It was going on midnight now, and soon, this vampire would be dead, his body thrown into the fire to burn to ensure he wouldn't come back. Like so many others before him, his end was near.

Yet Sera couldn't help but feel like he didn't care.

Being the only female in a family full of males, Sera had always felt like she had a point to prove. In fact, earlier this very night, she'd donned her hunting cloak, grabbed her bow and tossed a quiver of arrows over her back, and had gone out to hunt. Alone. It was then that she'd found this vampire, and he was believed to be one who had been terrorizing the nearby towns. Determined to bring him down on her own, Sera had almost had him.

Then the tables had turned.

It it wasn't for her brothers, she would be dead right now. They'd seen her sneak out and had caught up to her easily. It had taken two of them to overpower this vampire, but with his attention strictly on Sera it had been an easier task than normal. Now he stood, tied to a pole that was dug deep into the ground, his arms behind his back and ankles tied together. Henry, Sera's father, was determined to question the vampire. To give him a chance at admitting his wrongs before he burned alive.

Her father stoked the fire, and her brothers were off to the side, conversing amongst themselves. Luke had a nice scratch on his face from their earlier tussle with the vampire, and Michael had quite a few cuts as well, along with a scar that stretched from his left shoulder blade to his belly button, currently hidden by his clothing. Her third brother, Jason, was pacing along the edge of the trees. He was the middle brother, the one that worried the most. Michael had been dubbed the calm, collected one, and Luke was the hothead.

Sera lay somewhere inbetween all of her brothers when it came to her personality. Not exactly a hothead, though she had a temper, she was probably most like Luke. She was impulsive and a tad bit reckless, if her earlier actions hadn't proved that. She knew she was in for a world of hurt later on, once the vampire was dead, but for now her father had thankfully been pretty quiet about the ordeal. Truthfully, she didn't know what he was waiting on now.

Crossing her arms across her chest, Sera's eyes moved from her father to the vampire. Without realizing what she was doing, she placed one booted foot in front of the other until she stood a few feet away from him. With sharp eyes, she regarded the creature in front of her, wondering if he were indeed the monster they were looking for. Not that it mattered much; they were all monsters.

This monster had almost killed her tonight. Despite the fact she was a damn good shot, he'd been quicker than she thought. She'd been hunting all her life, had been born to do this. But when the time had come, she'd failed, and that thought killed her inside. Frowning as she let her arms fall, she felt her hands balling into fists by her side.

"I hope you enjoy the heat, vampire." She spat, her voice low. But she knew he would hear her.

---
Tags: Xavier ( Cosmo )

Code by apolla

 

[Cosmo]

He was going to die. It was an obvious observation, everyone died, but Xavier was going to die tonight. He didn't want to die, he wanted very much to live like some pathetic animal desperate to live just another day, but Xavier wasn't afraid. It was a weird sensation. He was oddly content with it, although, Xavier would much rather not die by being tossed into the fire that raged before him. The mere thought of those flames tearing their way through his flesh and devouring him as he screamed in pain, and he would scream Xavier was not delusional enough to think he wouldn't, as he begged for the pain to end was not the way he'd have chosen to go. It was cruel, needlessly cruel. Couldn't they just stake his heart or cut off his head or something less ritualistic and painful as this? The corner of his lips tugged upwards as he realized he was criticizing his soon to be murderers, as if his mind had not yet understood the gravity of the situation. It really was a shitty night. His meet up with his blood donor was cancelled then he was attacked by the red headed Legolas who seemed intent on staring a hole through him, perhaps he shouldn't have dodged as must as he had in their little scuffle. An arrow through the heart would have been a much kinder fate, but as they said, hindsight was a bitch.

He held her hazel eyes, Xavier was certain her eyes would be far more fetching if they weren't reflecting the light from the fire, the same fire that was going to consume him. If anything, she was like a little flame especially with that hair. Well, being burned alive by a beautiful woman and her insane family was slightly better then if it was just the insane family. The fight had been something, Xavier thought he made a fair account of himself, but the second the men started showing up, he knew it had been over. His continued fighting until they forced him down was little more then courtesy. Xavier had always known he'd be hunted down eventually, it was only a matter of time, but to think there were vampires out feeding on humans left and right in dark alleys and clubs that were being left alone while he, a vampire who didn't do that and was 'not as big a dick' as the other vampires was going to be burned alive by the Manson family, well, the world had a mean sense of humor.

It seemed the woman had her own darkness, "It is a nice little fire, but I fear you and your family of kidnappers have witches and vampires confused," he said quirking his eyebrow up. After all, one burned witches, not vampires. He could hardly believe the smell was appetizing, but with a family that spent their lives hunting monsters, it was probably not as safe an assumption as he thought.

There was a flash of something in her eyes as they narrowed, "It'll be a nicer fire once you're burning inside of it, vampire," the words came out almost as a hiss.

"Tell me, did you bring any marshmallows, human," Xavier said mocking her tone and stressing 'human' as she had done earlier. He wasn't sure why he was pushing her like this, perhaps in the hopes that she'd kill him before he burned or because he didn't know what else to do, "Add that hint of burnt vampire, season it nicely with my screams," He paused, tilted his head and eyed her.

The redhead smirked, casting a sideways glance towards the nearby burn barrel. "Wouldn't that just be the icing on the cake?" She teased, her tone humorless. Slowly, her eyes slid back towards him. "I do hope you scream, though. It makes the whole experience that much better."

Xavier laughed, it was a small laugh, almost a bark, "Gets you off, huh? Hearing people scream as they burn alive. Needless cruelty that has no point or purpose," of course he'd be killed by humans that were just as bad as the vampires he hated. They took pleasure in making others suffer, reveling in the pain they caused, the power trip they got from it. The world had a sense of humor indeed, "And yet I'm the monster here," he whispered.

Sera's eyes flashed with anger as he called her out on being like the very monster she was raised and bred to destroy. "You have no idea what gets me off." She snapped, losing her temper and stepping closer to him. Using her pointer finger, she poked him in the chest to reiterate her point. "I'm not the monster here." She told him, her voice low but shaking with barely controlled rage. "I don't feed on the living to keep myself alive, nor do I terrorize them. The only needless thing here is you."

"You don't," Xavier agreed, "You just tie them up, taunt them about how they are going to burn, probably torture them and then toss them into a fire and enjoy every moment of it. I know what I am," he said, his eyes flashing for a moment as he remembered that scene from so many years ago. All the blood, the screams, the bodies... children, he had even killed the children. He deserved to die, that was why he knew, sooner or later, hunters would find him. Perhaps that was why he was so calm... part of him knew he deserved this, "But at least I don't enjoy what I do."

"I know who I am!" Her voice rose in pitch. Swallowing the anger that threatened to pour out, she took a deep shaky breath and forced herself to lower her voice. "For years, I've protected humans from your kind. You can't tell me you've never killed an innocent person. You deserve that fire." His last words stuck in her mind, but she forced herself to move on. No vampire didn't enjoy the hunt, the feed, the kill. Not to mention, he'd almost killed her tonight. Shaking her head, she looked down at the ground for a moment before meeting his gaze once more. "I guess I'll just see you in hell, then, won't I?"

"I never said I didn't," Xavier said and leaned his head back against the post, looking up at the night sky, "I won't claim I don't deserve to die."

The small smile slid across his face once more, "Why would you go to hell, little hunter? You're only killing monsters, after all. Let me have a moment of peace, now, will you? Before your Daddy over there does whatever it is he plans on doing with me."

Sera watched him, hating how he managed to get under her skin with every fucking word he said. It was like he had a comeback for everything, and here she was, losing her temper over a vampire. That had certainly never happened before. Not quite like this. "I never said I was perfect." She hissed, wanting to slap him for being so nonchalant. "You deserve peace about as much as I deserve to get married and have children."

"Looks like we will both have to live with our little disappointments, well, for the next few minutes, at least," he said as he closed his eyes. Before he did, he noticed one of the boys, not the father, but one of the others had taken a notice of them. It didn't surprise him. They weren't exactly being quiet. He could hear the ground crunching under his steps, Xavier had a feeling he wasn't going to be around much longer, but the only things he could think of were if his mother would be alright, what they would tell her... if she would spend the next couple decades believing him to be alive out there, somewhere and a less important notice that the redhead smelled extremely good.

[A collab post with apolla ]

 

[pointmango]

David stood with a friend at the bar he normally worked at. He held a beer tight in his grip and had already had four others previously and a few shots. It was safe to say his night off was being spent well. His father had wanted him to hunt tonight, but he refused, they didn’t need him tonight, and tonight was for his friend Bobby. Bobby’s chick just broke it off with him, and David could cut off a night of killing dreaded vampires to get drunk and help wing his friend a girl for the evening.

David had already introduced Bobby to a third female that night, trying to help his friend out. See the problem wasn’t that Bobby wasn’t good looking enough, in fact, Bob attracted a decent amount of women to them. But Christ the man had absolutely no game. It was embarrassing his lack of game, three women, attractive and seemed to like his looks, and he had driven them all away with his weak comments and poor timing.

“Bob, just…. Jesus man, play it mysterious this time. Don’t talk too much, and just…” He trailed off some now. It was hard to get a feel for what Bobby needed to do. David figured he would just have to be as quiet as possible without coming across as weird. “Listen, I’m gonna introduce you to Evelyn. She’s a regular, she’s harmless. You be cool, and then I’ll exit.” he told him and Bob nodded.

David moved in, flashing his quick smile, “Oi, Evie.” He said moving over and hugging her, a few of her friends eyeing David as he greeted their friend. “How's your pop?” He asked her, “Heard he’s been working real hard at the shop… you know, actually, my friend Bob here, he and his father fabricate as well. Not quite furniture, but along the alley.” He said and pulled Bobby forward. “Good work ey lot?” He said. Evie began asking Bobby some questions now, just about the work he did and such. That was Dave’s exit. “I’m gonna head over grab some more beer,” he said.


He made his way back towards the bar, calling for two beers, the place was surprisingly a bit more rowdy than usual. Maybe David could end up finding himself a dance partner, maybe let loose a little tonight himself, he was already pretty drunk. He was ready to order a few more shots at this point, find a good looking woman and forget the night until the morning.

 

[Ms. Sparrow]

Aster

She was a fox amoung the unwary chickens, though tonight, she didn’t care enough to make a hunt, or kill in fact. Too simply drink her misery away, or sleep with some random stranger was the only thing on her agenda. The bar stank entirely of sweat, lust, and old alcohol, though she was too buzzed to care at this point.

She wore her usual appearel of a leather jacket with a white T-shirt underneath, accompanied by dark blue skinny jeans and black combat boots. Everything about her apperance screamed rebellion.

Aster waved her hand, grabbing the bartenders attention as she said, “another round, bartender.” She said smugly, and the bartender paused this time, stopping long enough to look at her features.

“I’m gonna need to see some ID first.” He said, inspecting her from head to toe as if she was some rebellious underage teen.

Aster leaned forward, her pupils narrowing to pinpoints as she looked him straight in the eyes, “No you won’t.” She said, her tone deadly low, with a predatory smile as she worked her mind-compulsion.

The bartender straightened and smiled, “On the house,” he said politely, with a genuine if not flirtatious grin as he poured her another of her favorite drink, bourbon.

Aster leaned back in her stool and grinned smugly, “Mm, mu-uu-ch better.” She said as the bartender slid her full glass towards her, before turning and attending to the many other patrons at the bar.

As if on que, a figure appeared right beside her, his brows furrowed disapprovingly. Aster groaned and tipped her head back in exasperation, closing her eyes as if she could will him away. “Noo, buzzkill Bob.” She groaned, her annoyance unbidden.

Her brother didn’t share the same features as her. While they both inherited good genes from their mother and father, Jack was the spitting image of their father, while Aster looked more like her mother. Jack’s brown eyes bored into her piercing green ones. “They’re people, Aster, not puppets. They aren’t yours to control.” He said in a low voice, almost pleading with her, despite his unbidden anger. Jack had a broad face, handsome even with a square jaw, raven black hair and soft brown eyes, and had the apperance of a late teen, everything about him screamed good and gentle.

Aster smirked, a familiar deadly, mischevious smile as she stared daggers at her little brother. “Sure they are, their mine for the taking,” her voice was cold and low, “and I’m gonna do, with these people, whatever I want to do.” They're voices nearly drowned out by the loudness and chaos of their surroundings.

She leaned forward, her hate for her brother a unfurling storm underneath her gaze. “And do you know why?” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “Because it’s fun for me.” She hissed before straightening and taking a sip of her drink, Jack’s features dropped into anger and disappointment.

“Now go away, Jack.” Aster said, her voice dropping back to glib annoyance, “I have some men to exploit.” She said with a glib grin, to which Jack only frowned and sighed wearily before leaving turning and walking away from the bar. Aster took a swig from her drink and smirked devilishly, her green gaze flitting around the room to spot out any possible conquest for the night to get hammered with, and of course sleep with. Aster was so far, not impressed with her selection.



Nearby: pointmango ​

 

[ScarlettBean-]

Nicholas Mendal

Fire filled Nicholas' lungs. He felt like he couldn't run any longer. But he had no choice if he had to survive the hunt. His legs moved with the pace of his beating heart, and underneath his feet the leaves and twigs crackled. He dreamed that he was the fastest man alive. He could outrun any opponent and win any race as long as his legs kept mindlessly moving.

He wasn't fast enough, however, when a large figure fell on him from above. Nick dropped to the ground quicker than the blink of an eye. If his lungs didn't die from the overexertion, it did from his laughter. "Trey, get off!" he said, his voice hoarse but firm. The large figure followed in his laughter and then eventually crawled off.

Sitting up, Nick found one of his cousins sitting on the ground next to him. His cousin was smiling wildly at him. "If I was a hunter, you would be dead by now." Trey made a gun with his hand and pretended to shoot at Nick. He feigned a laugh just to keep his cousin at ease. He didn't like the fact that all hunters were made out to be killers, even though he had never met one. Still, he didn't want to ruin a good time. "Anyway," Trey said, standing up. He outreached his hand to Nick, which he took, and pulled him upwards. "I have to go help my father build that pen. Apparently, he wants to keep animals now," Trey added, rolling his eyes.

"I'll see you later, Nick." Trey pulled Nick into a hug, as they have both always done when parting with a loved one. When they finished, Trey started to exit the woodland they were standing in, wave his hand above his head to Nick.

Nicholas waited a moment before panting wildly. It was hard to keep up with someone who had been running ever since they could walk. Still, it was good exercise and a good game. Their game started out as an practice to run away from vampire hunters, but it had soon adapted to a game where children would divide into teams and chase each other around. It was similar to the human version of tag.

He exited the woods and looked off into the sun. It was still light out, and Nick didn't want to go home. Not just yet. It was still a couple hours until dinner, and this was his free time to explore. Out of the corner of his eye, a light was blinking in the distance. He glanced toward that way, and he saw there was a small town in the distance. To his guess, it was most likely populated by humans. He had never been there, so there was an extremely likely possibility of him getting lost or mugged. Still, he found that his body moved toward this town. He was also around rules and vampires all of the time. It would be good to be around people who expected nothing of him.

 

[Ms. Sparrow]

Nell Peterson

Nell frowned down at her recent pay check, fighting down her rising disappointment. She had rent to pay in a week, considering living in a motel wasn’t cheap, this months paycheck was just enough to pay for rent, and nothing else. She was lucky she usually had generous tips for the customers.

“Sorry Nell,” Zach said, who took note of her obviously disappointed features, and didn’t sound sorry at all, “I can’t pay you your full paycheck for being late this week.”

“I was late one day.” Nell tried to explain calmly for the seventeenth time, “By thirty-four minutes.” Nell’s desperation grew as Zach turned and walked through the kitchens, trying to shrug off her words.

Nell followed after, “Zach please,” she pleaded, “I need that one-hundred dollars.”

Zach’s steps pushed forward, weaving his way around the hustle and bustle of the “And why were you late?”

Nell sighed, pausing in her steps to think up another lie or excuse. “I got...held up.” She finished lamely, “Please Zach, you know your ripping me off.” She pleaded gently, following after him and stopping the moment he spun around on her.

“Yeah? And what are you going to do about it?” He said with an leer, leaning forward enough to make her take a step back.

Nell sighed, defeated. She needed this job. This was the normal life after all. As normal as she was trying to live.

Zach nodded and walked away, smugly muttering under his breath, “Thought so.”

Theo’s Grill wasn’t actually run by a Theo, but it was the most popular hang out place in town. Zach, on the outside, was usually a leach to his customers, and not so much to his employees.

Theo’s Grill was a large, casual but very nice looking restaurant that opened as early as 6AM and closed as late as 12AM. The restaurant contained the typical, a bar at the far end of the entrance, and a pool table in the far left corner, it made for a very popular place in town.

She’d been doing her best to live a normal life as possible, despite all her unanswered questions. She wanted to forget vampires. Forget the Headmaster, and especially forget whatever a Hunter was. Whatever Headmaster told her she was. But the memories came back still in peices, each one more disturbing or bringing more questions.

Normal life. Long hours, crappy motel, and of the course, dick of a boss. Perfectly normal.

So, naturally she put on a bright smile and started serving her customers, trying to force down her rising worry and disappointment, along with her rising anger.

“Good afternoon, Ms. Flannery,” Nell said kindly as she approached the booth of an elderly woman, who looked to appear in her early 80’s at most and was typically a usual of the Grill, her husband passing away a few years prior, Nell couldn’t help but pity the woman.

“Ah Nell, so good to see you, dear.” Ms. Flannery greeted warmly, and the tension melted from Nell’s lithe form, glad for the warm reception.

“Always a pleasure,” Nell replied with a one of her room brightening smiles, pulling out her notepad and pen, “I’m guessing you want you’re usual?” She asked, her pretty English accent evident in her voice.

Ms. Flannery nodded with a pleased smile, handing Nell her menu. With another small smile, Nell excused herself and went about tending to other customers, occasionally making the common small talk as if she knew each of them personally, which she did, in a way, even if she’d only been back for a few months, Nell never truly had trouble making friends.

As she worked, she often found herself glancing towards the door, expecting Headmaster to walk in any day and drag her back to the estate to become a puppet once more. Ever since she’d gotten here, she lived in fear. Normalcy was all she had right now. Even if normalcy was just stuggling to get by in a daily basis, at least she was in control once more. ​

 

[apolla]

Fuck.

Where, exactly, had he gone so wrong? Sure, Cade had done some pretty fucked up things in his life as a vampire, and probably in his life as a human as well. He surely didn't remember. But why was this hunter so adamant on killing him? He'd been running from her for what felt like forever, and though his body wasn't tired, he grew weary of being on this end of the chase. Doing the chasing was fun; being chased, not so much.

Ducking behind another tree, he pressed himself up against it, not breathing as he waited for a sign that she was near. As a hunter, he knew very well that she was human, but she was practiced, and that's what made her dangerous to him. She could move through the woods without making a sound, because that's how she'd been trained. She could shoot him or stab him in the heart without blinking.

Damned woman.

Scowling, he reached up to brush a strand of hair out of his eyes. He'd already tried to charm her; it hadn't worked. He'd never not been able to use his charm before, and he found that he didn't like not being able to. How she was able to resist his compulsion, he wasn't sure, but he'd never been that close to death before except for--

No.

Not here.

He refused to think of that time again. Not when it could so easily distract him and mean the end. Pushing himself off of the tree, he poked his head around the corner. He didn't see her, but that didn't mean anything. "Where are you, little hunter?" He whispered to the trees, as though they would whisper back.

---
Tags: Elizbeth ( Stardust Galaxy )

Code by apolla

 

[Stardust Galaxy]

Elizabeth was feeling tired and annoyed, having to try to hunt this vampire, August gave her the task of killing him, but it was taking longer than expected and August wasn't known for being a patient person, she has never failed on killing a vampire and he wouldn't be the first one she was going to make sure kill him even if she had to run all night to catch him.

When she arrived in the forest, she knew she needed to be quiet and precise it was easier to kill a vampire in the forest due to the lack of witnesses but trying to find them there, was a pain in the ass but there was a reason she was trained to be able to locate him without any problem.

She walked as quiet as possible with her daggers in hand ready to attack him when the right time came until she saw him it was the perfect timing for her to kill him and to finally killed him, he wasn't that smart if Elizabeth have found him so fast but at least her work would be over soon. She rushed to him without making herself notice and she stabbed in the arm just to begin, he wouldn't leave alive from this forest tonight.

Tags: Cade ( apolla )

 

[apolla]

"Seraphina!"

Her father's tone stung her ears like a bee would, causing her to wince noticeably. Michael had noticed Sera first, conversing with the enemy, and he'd hoped to snatch his sister away before Henry noticed. But, alas, he'd been too slow-- Henry caught sight of Michael's purposed movements, and it had only taken seconds for him to slide his gaze over to where Sera had been standing, finding her absent. Then, of course, a few more seconds would pass as he found his redheaded child, fury blazing in her eyes.

If anyone could handle Sera's temper, it was her family. Especially her father. He was the only man she really and truly feared; he could take away everything she held dear. If she became too much of a hazard, there were ways to stop a hunter from hunting. Isolation, rituals. Hypnosis. There were even scarier methods, too, that she knew he wouldn't hesitate to consider should she become a liability.

Being a hunter wasn't a walk in the park.

When Michael reached her, his arm shot out, his slender fingers wrapping around her upper arm. "Sera, come on." He hissed, his dark eyes locking with those of the beasts as he ripped Sera away from him, taking her to much safer, higher ground. "Father is almost ready to begin." He cast a somewhat worried glance towards the older man, who stood watching his children to ensure they got to safety.

"Why do you look worried?" Sera wrenched her arm out of Michael's grip, not liking the foreign look on her brother's face. Normally cool and collected, now he appeared anxious. "Father's done this millions of times. It's nothing new."

"A hunter was killed not far from here." Michael said flatly, his voice emotionless. Not because he didn't care, but simply because that's how he dealt with things. "And tonight, you were almost next. He's very angry with you, Sera. Grateful you're alive, but pissed off."

Sera said nothing, resorting to rubbing her arm where Michael had gripped her tighter than he realized. Her eyes fell onto the vampire again, his words ringing in her head.

"Why would you go to hell, little hunter? You're only killing monsters, after all."

If only he knew. No one knew her secret, no one except her family. She saw the look of regret when Henry looked at her sometimes. The judgement that passed on his features when he thought she wasn't paying attention. He thrived on killing vampires, and being damn good at it. Sera's dark secret could destroy them all, and she knew that.

"It's time." She heard Michael whisper beside her.

Her eyes snapped to Henry, who now stood in front of Xavier, a broken arrow in his hands. She recognized the torture method; the arrowhead would be pure silver, and laced with vervain. Harmful to vampires, helpful to humans and hunters, it was a great torture device.

"One of our kind was killed in these very trees less than a week ago." Henry began, his voice filling the little clearing easily as he spoke. "Tell me, vampire. Did you kill him?"

Sera felt her skin crawl at the tone her father used, but she kept her face impassive. Casting a glance at Michael, she started towards the vampire and her father, shrugging off Michael's hand when he placed it on her shoulder. She remained a good distance away, her eyes spotting her other two brothers not far from her father.

"I asked you a question, vampire!" Without warning, her father drove the arrow into the vampires shoulder, only it wasn't his screams that pierced the night air.

It was Sera's.

---
Tags: Xavier ( Cosmo )

Code by apolla

 

[Cosmo]

Xavier's eyes jumped to the oldest of the men who barked at the little hunter, Seraphina. That was certainly a name. He wasn't sure why it mattered, but it was nice to know the name of one of the people who were determined to murder him. Wouldn't make it any easier, now would it make being burnt alive less a fact that never failed to creep its way through his mind with every crackle of the bond fire. It was a shame he couldn't even make a marshmallow joke because in this situation he was to be the marshmallow. It was also nice to see the little hunter slink off with one of the younger men, her brother if he had to take a shot in the dark, like some kind of wounded puppy. It was petty, but he felt he deserved to be petty considering all that had happened, what would happen and the fact there were plenty of other vampires that deserved this more then he even if it didn't make him any more innocent, but it was that tiny difference that let him hold onto what dignity and sanity he felt he had left.

As a vampire, he was more then capable of hearing what the little hunter that could 'Seraphina' said as she talked to her brother, but it was her father that commanded most of his attention. He watched as the older man prepared for his 'work' making Xavier feel much like a frog about to be haphazardly cut open by some hormonal teenager with shaky hands. No, not quite like some teenager, the teenager didn't necessarily enjoy what he did, but Xavier was still an animal to be cut open, questioned and examined regardless. Something in that old man had broken a long time ago, he may think himself a hunter, but all Xavier could see was a rabid dog that was lashing out and would have to be put down someday. Hunters did what, Xavier admitted, had to be done, but this was just pointless cruelty for cruelty's sake. Little better then the things they hunted at this point.

As the old man approached, Xavier eyed the arrowhead in his head, how the light reflected off it. Silver. There was something more to it, but he couldn't tell what but he doubted it was anything good. It was ironic, he loved silver. It had a certain strength and purity that other metals lacked, purer then steel but an inner strength that gold lacked. It was his favorite color and he loved silver baubles as a kid and teenager, now, he couldn't touch the stuff... life was funny like that. He blinked a few times at the question, a hunter had been killed a week ago and they wanted to know if he did it? Well, he didn't, but it didn't matter either way. If he said he didn't, the man wouldn't believe him and torture him anyways. If he said he did, the man would torture him as punishment for killing the hunter. Damned if he did, damned if he didn't, the last thing he was going to let the old rabid dog do is get whatever sick enjoyment he got from breaking people, so he held his tongue and starred back mutely.

The second 'question' was more of an angry bark, but even if he wanted to, Xavier was given no time to answer as the arrowhead was driven into his shoulder. The silver metal tearing through his flesh... silver was an interesting thing. The feeling of his muscles and skin tearing was one thing, the smoke that rose from the round another, but the smell... the smell of his burning flesh hitting his nostrils was the worst. The silver burned away, searing his flesh as something else... whatever was on the blade got into his bloodstream and burned its way through his bloodveins. It burned as it traveled through, the muscles on his neck tensed as he fought against the pain as a scream tore through the night, a very feminine scream that wasn't his even if, for a moment, he had thought it might have been.

apolla

 

[ScarlettBean-]

Nicholas Mendal

The town was larger than Nicholas had first thought, but it still wasn't worthwhile by any means. Shops lined the streets, and people walked on the sidewalks. There were a few cars roaming the streets, but one couldn't expect much at this time of day. Even though there weren't many people, he still felt comfortable walking in this small town. No one knew him or expected anything out of him. They all had their own lives to lead and, in turn, ignored everyone else.

He looked down and carefully touched his own skin. No burn. That was a relief. It would be strange to walk around with a sunburn, especially with his skin tone. His grandmother treated everyone's skin with a special balm. He didn't know what was in it, though he knew that some of the ingredients had to be grown or imported from around the world. His grandmother would keep it a secret from the rest of the family, only to pass it down to her apprentice. He didn't believe it was something special. Most vampires had adapted to withstand some light from the sun. It probably had something to do with deep-rooted superstition.

A bright red light caught his eye as he was walking. Even though it was still daytime, it was unusual against the brown and gray color scheme of the town. It was a sign for a restaurant called 'Theo's Grill'. Just looking toward the building he could see people talking and eating inside. He turned his head slightly to see the sun hovering over the land. He still had time before he had to make it back home, might as well explore.

Nicholas opened the door, the bell above him jingling. Some people who were closest to the door turned to look, but they soon returned to their own business. The people in the room didn't seem to have any manners to have indoor voices, but he didn't mind. Life at home was pretty similar with his relatives constantly talking. Standing tall, he took in a few glances of the establishment. Plenty of tables, most of which were occupied, a bar, and a pool table. To him, it seemed quite luxurious. Hopefully the prices wouldn't be to expensive.

He didn't see any sign telling him to wait to be seated, so he gave himself the pleasure of finding a booth located near the door. He glanced out the window and saw the view was boring compared to inside the restaurant. Looking around, he tapped his fingertips on the table waiting for a menu or a waiter.

Ms. Sparrow

 

[Ms. Sparrow]

Nell Peterson

She wasn’t surprised by the amount of customers, it was their busy hour after all. She could feel Zach’s gaze from the bar, no doubt waiting for her to mess up so he could take some more numbers off her paycheck. Anything for a couple extra bucks on his end.

There was a mournful table in the close right corner, a red, blotchy faced little girl, perhaps around seven or eight, wiped her watery eyes with her pink sleeve as she sniffled, her other tiny hand clutched a dog blue color.

Dawning on her, Nell realized the girl had lost her pet. She watched as her parents tried to console the girl, but to no avail.

Approaching the table, Nell gave the girl a warm smile as she took the family’s plates and stacked them.

She smiled at the parents, “Your slice of pie will be out in about fifteen minutes.” She said kindly, glancing at the little girl who seemed to perk up a little at the news.

The mother’s eyes were lit with her daughters own reflected sadness and frowned slightly, “Oh, thank you, but we really can’t afford—“

“On the house,” Nell injected with a smile, which seemed to widen at as both parents glanced at their slightly less sad daughter and smile.

‘Thank you,’ the father mouthed with a polite smile, and the mother gave her a light squeeze on the arm with a soft smile herself. Nell nodded, glad to be of some small help before she took the dirty dishes to the kitchens, and put in an order for a slice of apple pie.

She remembered vaguely losing a pet cat when she lived in England as a little girl, and the hard feeling of loss that accompanied it. The least Nell could do was give the girl a sweet.

She’d just come out of the kitchens, adjusting her blue hat, when she’s nearly run smack into Zach, who gave her an angry glare.

“You can’t give them that pie for free Nell,” He said angrily, “that’s food waste—“

“Then I’ll pay,” Nell said with no small amount of defiance, nearly shoving past him as she went to leave to bar.

Zach grabbed her wrist, causing her to whip sharply around, “There are rules to follo—“

Nell shut out his voice as a stranger walked into the Grill, Zach’s back to the man. He was handsome in the least, and she didn’t recall ever seeing him around before. She suddenly felt compelled to get closer.

Zach shook her by the arm, “Nell!” He hissed, “are you even listening to me—“

Nell yanked her arm away with surprising strength, lifting her chin up, she grabbed a notepad off the counter and turned away, “I have a job to do, Zach.” She said firmly, shooting him a pointed look before walking away and approaching the table the handsome stranger’s booth.

“I can’t say I’ve see you around before,” Nell greeted kindly, taking out a pen of her skirt pocket, the pen hovered over the notepad as she added, “It’s not all bad here, as long as you don’t mind being bored to death,” giving gave a lovely, small laugh, she glanced down at the notepad, “So, would you like something to drink?” Her brown eyes glanced back up at him, waiting for an answer.

She couldn’t help but notice the man had lovely eyes. She couldn’t quite describe it, but something felt odd about him, deep in her gut she knew something was almost...different about him. Familiar but...not at the same time. She pushed the feeling away. Now she was just being paranoid. Nothing abnormal whatsoever.

ScarlettBean- ​

 

[pointmango]

As he sipped on the next beer David knew he was intoxicated, he knew he would wake up tomorrow and likely hate himself for being this drunk in the moment, and only planning to get more drunk. His sense which were usually heightened felt out of reach. He felt far too comfortable in his own skin. Skin that tomorrow would likely feel like shit, and be accompanied by a pulsing headache. The only way to conquer all of that was to wake up in the bed of stranger he didn’t know.

He had been stopped by another local laborer, the man asking how his father was. David made up some bullshit answer per usual, his father was complex. He was always upset with someone. He was pissed David’s cover for his ‘real’ night work was bartending. Which his father said was some stupid scam to get him laid by drunk women and occasionally catch a vampire on the side. David didn’t see the point in explaining to all to him, but it was much better than him and his brother. One of whom was a banker by day. What vampire was caught in a bank?

As the man droned on about his wife and kids David caught a small flash of green, maybe it was the lights… sometimes he saw things when he was drunk. But as he looked further across the bar a rather beautiful woman was taking swigs of her drink and looking more annoyed by the second. A sexy woman who was displeased? He could work with that for certain. “Thanks Mr. uh, sorry, I just, see you later.” David spoke clearly distracted.

David moved over to her sliding up beside the bar, “I couldn’t help but notice your glass is almost empty.” He said and waved his hand at the bartender, also his friend, and pointed at her drink. His friend gave David a small shake of his head but nodded, and David pointed to his beer as well. When he came over with the drinks, the bartender spoke, “I should cut you off.” He said, David felt like there was some teasing in his voice, but there wasn’t. “If he is bothering you let me know, I’ve never seen him this plastered.” David’s friend spoke to the girl before moving to make more drinks.

David only seemed a little slurry, but for him, that was pretty bad. For others it really only said tipsy, but he wasn’t like the average man. David flashed a smile to this girl some, “I haven’t seen you around here before.” He said to her, “I tend bar most weeknights.” He said to her. “What brings you ‘round here.” He said, he let one of his arms lean on the bar some as he spoke to her, his eyes moving over her figure slightly. She was damned near perfect, hell, he’d argue her body was perfect.

Ms. Sparrow

 

[apolla]

As expected, the trees did not whisper back, and he was left standing by the tree alone, wondering where his little huntress could be. He knew she wasn't far-- he could smell her. The fear, the soft excitement that rushed through her veins as she hunted him. He couldn't deny that he felt the same way.

No vampire wanted to die at the hands of a hunter. It was a shameful death, more shameful than even stepping into the sun to rot. Grimacing at the thought, he turned his head in the other direction. He should have been paying more attention, instead of getting lost in his thoughts, for just as he turned his head he felt the blade sink into his arm.

Gasping in pain, he reacted on instinct. Balling his hands into a fist, he swung, aiming for the head of the huntress. "You bitch!" He sneered, jerking away from her, causing the cut to grow in size. Blood spurted from the wound, and he growled, showing his fangs to the girl. "I hope you're ready to die, huntress."

---
Tags: Elizbeth ( Stardust Galaxy )

Code by apolla

 

[ScarlettBean-]

Nicholas Mendal

A new voice directed Nicholas' attention away from the outside. A young woman stood in front of him, smiling. He noticed that she had an English accent which was quite soft and gentle. He slightly had a Walsh accent, but it was overpowered by his prominent American accent. Quickly, he took in everything about her. Her blonde hair, which glowed in the dying sunlight, complemented her soft pale features on her face. Her dark eyes were humane. He didn't know why he was examining a complete stranger. But, for some reason, he felt drawn to her. It was as though there was a string between them and they were at opposite ends.

He smiled at her and turned toward her. "Just water would be great, thanks." She didn't seem like a vampire. His family told him that sometimes vampires can have certain connections which help identify each other. But to him, she seemed like a normal human.

As she walked away, he kept thinking about her. He knew he probably seemed like a creep disturbing some poor waitress doing her job, but he couldn't take his eyes off her. He finally did, opting to instead stare at the oak table. The one question that kept on pestering him was who she was.

Ms. Sparrow