AN: I told myself I wouldn't give in to the vampire AU... But alas... This will be the first fanfic I've written since 2012, actually! The idea for this story came to me during a five-hour bike ride and after noting all my ideas down later... Well, I decided it might be a good opportunity to try writing it! I'm really excited for this story to unravel- I've got big plans for it. This will be a pretty dark fic: gore, angst, death and interpersonal conflict, but among the darkness there's a bond forming between the couple-to-be... A dark romance I guess, lol. Since this is the first fic I've written in four years I might be a bit shaky, but I hope you all enjoy it anyway!
The smell of blood was unmistakable, fresh, wafting through the early morning air like an omen of death.
A ghastly pale man of tall and slender stature trailed in and out of the dangerous back alleys, the rhythmic tapping of each step on cobblestone serving as his only company. His fierce gaze was set forward, unshaken by the ominous stench as he hastily sought out its source— a scent this strong meant more than just a single victim. It was uncharacteristic of the man to concern himself with others, thus, something else drove him forward: the threatening aura that seeped through the fog, unnerving— hauntingly familiar.
By the time he'd tracked the smell to its source, the man found himself standing opposite one of the quaint little stone houses that littered the town. Aside from the stench, the only sign of disturbance was the door, left the slightest bit ajar, to reveal a slit of darkness creeping out from the inside.
Inwardly, he scolded himself for hesitating. He was not fearful, and yet there was no denying the cautious steps taken, nor the slight shaking of each breath that slipped from dry lips. Had the perpetrator decided to linger...? The thick smell of blood had become so overwhelming, he could no longer tell, and as much as he wished he could deny his uneasiness, the reality of what he thought might be waiting inside was not something to ever be taken lightly.
The floorboards creaked with nerve-wracking volume beneath the man's feet, sending a shudder up his spine as he trailed through the darkness of the house. Upon entering the dining room, it didn't take more than a few seconds for his eyes to adjust with the aid of a single small window against the back wall. What the daylight illuminated, however, would have been most definitely better left in darkness.
Before him were three fresh human corpses, the bodies of what seemed to be two young adults, a girl and a boy, as well as an older man, though it was difficult to get a sense of their ages considering how horribly they'd been mutilated. By nature, he, too, was a killer- he was not above brutal acts, but even knowing his own hands were also stained in blood, the man still felt his stomach turn at the cruel sight of shredded flesh and torn-up visages, like the feral remains of a hunt of wild beasts, innards scattered all across the floor.
Turning disgustedly away from the brutal murder scene, he took in the rest of his surroundings, slightly less tense at the realization that the murderer was likely long gone. But the aura he'd felt earlier... There was no mistaking it. Could this really be his work? He grimaced. The thought was incredibly unsettling.
Something else had soon caught the man's eye, a blood trail from this room to the next. Well, more than a trail, really, it looked as though someone had army-crawled across the floor with their chest ripped open- or else, a body had been dragged through here. Cautiously, he followed the trail into a bedroom, and there at his feet was a fourth body, face-down in its own blood. Could there be even more corpses strewn throughout the house?
As he turned to carry on his search, however, the sound of a quiet grunt caught the man's ear, and he hastily swung around, locks of white cascading down behind him. The fourth victim had begun to stir- or rather, the sole survivor.
Kneeling down beside him, a hand was shifted underneath his bloodied torso in order to carefully turn the human boy over.
"You're still alive," he muttered, stating the obvious, though it was unclear if those words would prove false at any given moment. The boy's eyes opened into slits, weakly meeting the stranger's, but within seconds his half-conscious expression had shifted drastically into one of fierce, unquestionable loathing. The man was taken aback, eyes widening at the sight. Seeing someone just barely clinging to life make a face like that- the anger in his glare was real, unwavering, deadly even. It was familiar, an expression that he knew to be one he, himself had certainly made before with just as much ferocity.
"...I'll... I'll... He..." The boy struggled to communicate, blood trailing from his lips, down his chin, and then a choked cough came, spewing scarlet all over himself.
"...Don't speak." The albino snapped back as he debated his next move. He ought to keep himself out of this, not become involved, but the look he'd just been given... He recognized the sense of his judgement having been affected. Something told him it wasn't time for this boy to die just yet.
The boy sputtered angrily as he was hoisted over the shoulder of his company, but no response was given to his poorly-vocalized objections. There was no real guarantee that the boy would even make it back with him- his injuries had the potential to be lethal, but the man supposed he had been lucky, considering the state of the rest of the victims.
Carefully stepping over the bodies, he headed for the door, a soft, strangled cry from the boy meeting his ear as they passed through the murder scene. It was probably his family lying there... How incredibly cruel the world could be.
Being out of that house was an incredible relief, but even so, he didn't give himself a chance to relax. Hastily, the man made his way home, grasping the boy with a tight grip, yet also careful as he could manage to avoid worsening his wounds.
"Don't let them take you," he hissed, picking up the pace. "Bear it... just a bit longer."