AN- I can't believe I wrote this. I've had a big soft spot for vampire AUs for a while but I've only written a handful that saw the light of day and always wrote them with a partner. This is the first time I'm tackling it entirely on my own in a big fandom so, enjoy? My vampires aren't based entirely off any real established canon source or legend, but are an aggregate of different inspirational sources and my own personal ideas. Lots of bullshit pseudoscience because biologically feasible vampires are my favorite vampires. Stereotypical blood/gore and violence warning! This is not a totally different AU; it fits within the canon of the MCU and will follow the movie storylines.
The Depression had hit hard, sparing no one from hardship. After Sarah had died and he'd convinced Steve to live with him he'd hoped things would start to look up, God knew Steve deserved it, but that couldn't have been farther from the truth. Jobs dried up and with it so did the money, and soon they were scraping by on what little they could scrounge up from tough, demanding labor. The last few months of winter had been especially tough and it showed on their bodies. Steve's breathing was wobbly and wheezy while Bucky's ribs stood out from his skin; he never let Steve see, wearing shirts a few sizes too big to hide how gaunt he'd become from skipping meals so Steve could keep his strength up.
Winter had been bitter and unrelenting, but last night the radiator had gone out and Bucky was sure that Steve's asthma was getting worse. They didn't have enough money for a good meal, how the hell was he going to get him medicine and in to see a doctor? If it came down to it he wasn't above stealing; it wasn't like he hadn't done it before, and if it would save Steve's life he'd gladly risk the jail time and shoulder the guilt. Guilt was nothing compared to losing Steve; nothing was comparable to losing Steve.
Bucky let out a long, weary exhale, a wispy puff of warmth in the bitter Brooklyn morning. Steve had had a restless night of fever-induced fits, sweating through his clothes even in the chill of the apartment. It was why he was out this early in the morning, with the sun barely touching the crystal snow that powdered the rooftops, shimmering like so many gemstones in the thin air. He had needed to get another bottle of aspirin to try and get Steve better, at least until Friday when he'd be paid and he could get him in to see a doctor.
What little money he'd managed to scrounge up for the singular bottle of aspirin and pack of asthma cigarettes had been the remainder of his food money for the week, so he'd just have to try and get Steve by with what little they had in the apartment. He clutched the paper bag that held the bottle and cigarettes tightly, not willing to let anything or anyone try and take it from him, knowing it just might be the only thing to tide Steve over until he called the doctor. He and Steve's reputation as "troublemakers" tended to keep most of the petty thieves away but the tough times had given even the meekest criminals teeth enough to try and strike at any potential mark, and as such Buck didn't dare let his guard down.
Even with the sun licking the snow on the rooftops it felt oddly dark, with shadows darting and deep and refusing to let the day take hold. It was unusual for this late in the season and it didn't bolster Bucky's confidence much at all. His jacket was worn thin and wasn't much protection against the bite of the cold winds but he'd left his heavy one at home for Steve; he needed it so much more than him even if he was too sick to go to classes today. He had the day off from the docks, thank God, so he hoped that if he tried his best to nurse Steve well he'd last through the night. If only Sarah was still alive, she'd know what to do.
The sound of snow crunching loudly behind him rattled Bucky out of his thoughts, cold fingers tight on the paper bag and his free hand pulled free of his coat pocket. Most people weren't out this early and with his nerves already on edge from Steve's condition it did little to settle him. He just kept walking, not wanting to look too suspicious although he was well aware he looked rather out of place out and about this early in the morning.
There'd been rumors of strange muggings and attacks on people floating around but Bucky had paid it little mind. That sort of thing happened all the time, even more so with the tough times, but the fact that people were being bitten and even killed was what made it odd. He tried not to think too much about it, chalking it up to frustrated desperation and some bad hooch. Stories tended to get twisted up and details misheard or added in as they passed from street to street and mouth to ear so he took them all with a grain of salt.
Dropping off, the footsteps behind him faded away as the other turned down another street, leaving him alone on the sidewalk. A barely audible exhale, a fragile wisp of breath, left Bucky before he straightened his back and continued on as if nothing had happened. Gettin' worked up over nothin', Buck. If he kept getting all strung up with worry he'd end up sick as Steve and that couldn't happen. If he got sick then he couldn't work, and more importantly couldn't look after Steve, and the thought of that alone sent a shiver down his spine that had nothing to do with the cold.
He turned a corner after checking the street, not wanting to walk past the police officer a few blocks down. He and Steve had had more than their fair share of run-ins with the law and had spent more than a few overnights in the clink, so even just walking near the cops was enough to sometimes get them stopped. They knew their faces well enough that they always thought he and Steve were up to "no good". Didn't help that Steve's voice lapsed into an Irish accent when he got really heated; no one took kindly to any semblance of foreignness these days, especially the cops.
Going the roundabout way would take him a few minutes longer to get home but it'd keep him out of the cop's view; well worth the risk of cutting through a few of the sketchier alleyways. At least he didn't have Steve running out ahead of him like a dog on a leash looking for anyone starting trouble. He didn't think he had the energy to deal with that right then, although he would have given anything to be dealing with that instead of worrying over the younger boy currently bedridden and wheezy.
A shadow darted across the edge of his vision when he turned a corner, a steely grip clamping onto his shoulder as he was thrown up against a brick wall. Bucky barely had any time to comprehend what all had happened before he felt icy fingers tugging desperately at his coat collar, his body taking a long second to react to the realization that he was being mugged. He swung without thinking, his free hand forming a fist and hitting his attacker solidly on the jaw. They let out a shriek—a high, pitchy sort of noise no human had any business making—and the pressure at his shoulder dropped away, Bucky ducking out and away from his attacker before he could be pinned again.
Ancient, primal fear gripped him when his attacker spun to face him, eyes flashing silver with reflected light and teeth bared in a feral snarl. There was something disturbingly inhuman about the way the now-identified male moved, lithe and silent and weightless, or in his appearance, which was sharp and sleek and predatory. He looked human but at the same time didn't; it was like human skin had been stretched over the wrong body, producing a gaunt and awkward creature that looked neither man nor beast. Whatever it was Bucky knew he wanted not a fucking thing to do with it. The thing lunged at him, sharp-nailed fingers and razored teeth bared, moving far faster than any human should. He managed to duck, lethal teeth finding the crook of his neck instead of his unprotected throat, tearing straight through his shirt collar and into soft skin.
Bucky's scream died in his lungs, only a strangled gasp leaving him as he was violently shoved up against the wall again. The pain was sharp and bright, flashing through his mind with an electric intensity, body freezing on some sort of buried instinct. He could hear a sickening wet noise next to his ear, the sound akin to someone gulping down water on a hot day, his stomach turning in disgust. His grip on the bag of medicine remained steel, unwilling to risk breaking the bottle of aspirin when Steve needed it so. A million thoughts raced in his mind—what the hell is he biting me? Is he sick?—but his focus snapped back to the present when he felt pointed nails hook into his coat collar, pulling it down roughly as the sharp pain as his neck suddenly ceased. Pulling back, Bucky caught sight of his face, smeared sticky crimson with his own blood and mouth twisted up in a toothy grin, and his heart stumbled over itself in fear.
The man made a rumbling sort of noise, something that sounded distinctly feline, licking the blood off his lips. Despite his gaunt frame his grip was strong, holding Bucky up off the ground and forcefully against the brick wall with only one hand. The bite, strangely enough, didn't hurt anymore; it felt tingly and numb, a fuzzy warmth spreading from it through his veins. He was vaguely reminded of when he was eight and was bitten by a spider. It was a softly buzzing heat, not normal but not altogether uncomfortable; the strangely velvety warmth swirled around in his body with each beat of his heart, and with every second that passed he felt himself growing more and more drowsy. His mind hazed over, thoughts muffled and confused and nowhere near coherent, vision losing focus and hearing bleeding into background noise.
'Good, good', a voice as sharp and clear as broken glass shot through his mind, 'Just stay still, soon enough you won't even have enough blood to feel it' the words twisted pointedly, bristly in his skull like metal shards, and Bucky pulled himself out of the daze. The man leaned in as if he was going to bite again, teeth bared and reflective pupils narrowed to predatory slits, but Bucky was not going to just sit passively and let that happen. He inhaled deeply to shout, lungs sluggish with the warmth in his veins, but the man covered his mouth with his free hand, nails digging into his cheek in warning. Bucky ignored it. He choked out an aborted shout and bit into the hand, breaking the skin. Thick, bitter blood filled his mouth, swallowed in disgusted desperation, and the man hissed like a snake and jerked his hand back. Distracted with his own wound his eyes were off Bucky, who took the chance to kick with all his strength, hitting him in the ribs and sending him staggering backwards.
Steve might have been too stubborn to run from fights but Bucky knew when to cut his losses. Trying to fight was going to end with him dead so he bolted out of the alleyway, out into the street as fast as his legs could carry him. The blare of a horn and he ducked out of the way of an oncoming car, stumbling onto the opposite sidewalk and towards the apartment building. He knew it was dangerous running straight home, knowing the man could follow him to Steve, but he wasn't sure how long he could stay on his feet. With his heart pounding from fear and running the warmth was practically all through his body now. His lungs were moving too slow to keep up, breathing too deep and too even for running, and he found himself clutching onto the railing of the stairs when he got to the building.
He couldn't hear anything else, no loud footfalls of someone chasing him or the inhuman growling and hissing of his attacker, so he let himself exhale weakly in relief. His clumsy fingers still had a death grip on the brown paper bag clutched close to his chest, pills rattling faintly in their glass bottle from how much he was shaking. At least the damn trip wasn't a waste. The warmth seemed to seep straight through his muscles, making it hard to move, but he forced himself up the stairs knowing that if he collapsed out here he'd either freeze or the man would track him down. Neither option was pleasant.
Before he attempted the walk down the hallway Bucky pulled a clean handkerchief from his coat pocket, wrapping and tying it around his neck to stem the lazy flow of blood. He'd expected to bleed more from a neck wound but the trickle was sluggish and constant, nothing life threatening at least. His mouth still held the revolting taste of the man's blood, bitterness like dirty pennies and acid on his tongue. It didn't taste like normal blood, God knew he'd had enough of his own in his mouth from all the fights he and Steve had found themselves in. He spit furiously onto the ratty decking, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand as he tried not to retch right then and there from the sickening taste.
The whole situation had been as strange as it had been terrifying. Where the hell had the man even come from? It was like he'd just appeared next to him in that alleyway and attacked. Normally he could hear people trying to sneak up on him but the man moved like a ghost; he still hadn't even realized there was anyone there until he saw the man's face in front of his own. Now that he thought on it, the man hadn't been familiar at all. He'd met most of the neighborhood through fights and through Steve, so to see someone he had no prior knowledge of was strange in and of itself. The man must have come from somewhere, but he'd lacked the Brooklyn accent everyone here wore thick. Nothing added up in his mind.
He didn't even realize he'd been walking until he absentmindedly bumped into the door to their shared apartment, leaning on it heavily once he came back to awareness. Bucky rested his forehead against the rough, weathered wood, trying to suck in more oxygen to settle the budding lightheadedness. His fingers felt like rubber as he dug through his pocket to produce his key, nearly dropping the small metal fixture due to how shaky he was. It took several attempts to get it into the lock, doorknob jerkily turned and the door swinging open under his weight. He silently thanked God when he didn't fall flat on his face, catching himself on the doorframe, knowing that such an ungraceful entrance would draw Steve from the bed when he was the one who needed all the rest he could get.
"M-M'back, Stevie." His voice slurred a bit, shucking the bloodstained jacket off onto the floor after he pushed the door shut with his foot. He didn't have the energy to put it away proper; he'd do it later after he slept off whatever the hell was wrong with him. The spider bite had passed on its own overnight, so he could only hope whatever this was would do the same. He didn't hear an answer from Steve, but then again he hadn't really expected one, seeing as he'd been deeply asleep for the first time in days when he left.
He made sure the door was locked tight as a bank safe before he stumbled into the bathroom, digging through the cabinet for the half-empty bottle of hydrogen peroxide he kept towards the back for when Steve got banged up bad. Fumbling fingers got the cap off after several frustrating moments, the bottle brought to his lips in urgency. The liquid stung and burned and made his eyes water but he swished it through his mouth anyway, spitting it out into the sink. It was brown and struck through with bolts of sludge black from the remnants of the man's blood. He felt like vomiting.
Soaking a gauze pad with the peroxide he tugged at the makeshift bandage around his neck, exposing the wound. Now that he could see it in the mirror he couldn't help but grimace, seeing the raggedly torn flesh and deep twin punctures. It looked like he'd been chewed on by a dog. His mind still felt slow from the bite but he struggled regardless to try and rationalize what had just happened. This had to be the attacker that the neighbors had been talking about. They were both elderly women, immigrants from Europe that arrived before the Great War, and they used a term to describe the man, but what was it? Bucky's eyebrows knit together and he bit his lip, staring down into the blood-smeared sink as he racked his brain trying to remember the word.
Strigoi. She called it a Strigoi. Vampire.
"Fuck." He wasn't one to believe readily in fairy tales but then again he didn't have a better explanation for what the hell had just happened. He suddenly felt cold and he grabbed on to the edge of the chipped porcelain sink as hard as he could, trying not to let his wobbly legs give out under him. God, what if that really was a Strigoi? He'd heard both women talk about the myths before when they sat on the shared decking, about how they tracked down and ate their loved ones before going on to hunt anyone they could find. His mouth went dry and he swallowed thickly, gaze cutting out the open bathroom door and into the bedroom where he could just make out the lump that was Steve curled up on the thin mattress.
Bucky shook his head and pressed the gauze pad to the wound, gritting his teeth at the expected sting. There wasn't any pain, however, although he could see the peroxide bubbling and hear it hissing. Even though he hadn't felt any pain from the injury before applying the medicine he'd expected to still feel the sting of it through whatever was numbing it. He rinsed the wound out the best he could, wiping and cleaning it until the bleeding picked up just to be sure. He folded up a fresh square of gauze and pressed it against the wound, sticking some tape over it to hold it in place.
Exhaustion clawed at his awareness, eyes drooping a bit as he shuffled into the bedroom. The air was cold from the broken radiator, Steve burrowed under every blanket they owned on his corner of the mattress. Bucky leaned over the bed and brushed some of his sweat-sticky blond hair from his forehead, pressing his palm there to try and see if he could feel well enough to tell how bad Steve's fever was. He felt warmth from him but he didn't feel like he was burning up anymore, but he fished the bottle of aspirin out and set it on the nightstand anyway for when Steve woke up.
It probably wasn't a good idea to try and sleep while in his state but he was so tired. He wasn't any use to Steve with him barely able to walk or even so much as hold the damn bottle of aspirin so he hoped that after a few hours of rest he'd be back to normal. He kicked off his boots before flopping heavily on his side of the bed, face down into the soft pillows, exhaling loudly with relief. Even just lying down felt better. He heard Steve hum at him sleepily, moving the slightest bit, and he responded by reaching over and blindly feeling for the top blanket.
"S'just me, Stevie. Go back ta sleep." He murmured tiredly, muffled through the pillow as he pulled a corner of the blanket over and covered himself up the best he could without tugging too hard and disrupting Steve's cocoon. He could have gone and slept in his room but with the heat out he figured it'd be better to stay with Steve, share his body heat. He was still dressed in his bloody shirt and snow-wet pants but he didn't care; he was beyond tired and wanted to sleep this damn feeling off so he could be bright and alert to keep an eye on Steve later. With a sleepy exhale he burrowed into his pillow and got comfortable, falling asleep faster than he had in weeks. It wasn't going to be a peaceful sleep.