AU. Vlad and Henry are 15. D'ablo still wants to kill him. lots of big changes for Vlad. !SPOILER If you haven't read them all! The Pravus can be killed with the ritual or by suicide. ~~WARNING~~ suicide attempt and angst stuff. Bullying and self harm within first few chapters.

Disclaimer: I do not own nor claim The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod. All rights belong to Heather Brewer.

Chapter One: Bizarre

Henry still couldn't figure out what the hell was up with Vlad. Their bond made him even more aware of the fact that something was terribly, terribly wrong with his best friend. It had started in the last few weeks of school. He let Bill and Tom shove him around more than usual. Sometimes it seemed like Vlad was egging them on and instigating the fights. His grades had dropped. He barely spoke. It was almost July and Vlad was still mopey. He usually got so much better in the summer.

Henry kicked a rock as he walked home from Vlad's, yet again by Nelly saying he didn't want to see anyone. She was hardly ever home, more so than usual and didn't seem to notice Vlad's downward behaviour.

He watched the rock bounce and click across the pavement. It fell into a storm gutter and he listened as it splashed in the unseen water below. It reminded him of Vlad. It made him think how in the gutter everything with him seemed to be. Of course, he couldn't be completely sure because Vlad wouldn't talk to him. He wanted desperately to find out what was weighing down his best friend's mind.

He walked up the stairs to his house and went in.

"Hey Henry. Still no Vlad huh?"

He shook his head while staring at his shoes. He didn't know what to say to his mother. He didn't think she would understand. He wasn't listening to what she was saying. He was just nodding. When she realized that he wasn't there anymore, she stopped talking.

He walked up to his room, deep in thought. He shut his door and leaned against it with a sigh. He knew part of what was wrong with Vlad was that he was moving. His room was filled with boxes. The only things that remained unpacked were his computer, bed, bedside table and lamp. He didn't want to move. Especially when Vlad was this way. And they both knew that they would still be able to hang out. He was only going to Stokerton.

He kicked a box on his way to his bed. He sat down and took his cell out of his pocket. He pulled up his text menu. The last time Vlad had talked to him was three weeks earlier. The day after school let out. He hit reply and typed a simple message. He hoped Vlad would respond.

He laid his phone on his bed and got up to get things into a more organized fashion within the boxes. He had been at that for about ten minutes when his cell phone chirped.

He rushed over to his bed, hoping it was Vlad but expecting it to be someone else like every other time he texted him. His hopes were, for once, the winner. All Vlad had said was "Hey", but that was enough. He immediately hit reply and asked him what the hell had been going on. Not even a minute after it had sent, his phone began to ring. He answered before the second ring could even start.

"Hey!"

"..hi.."

"What's been going on?"

"..uh… Nothing I guess. Just alone…"

"You're not alone though. We still have all summer."

"But I will be. Otis is leaving too. And I think Nelly might try to go with him."

"She wouldn't leave you alone. She'd take you if she left. You should come over. I wanna talk face to face."

"Uh.. I don't really have much energy today. Sorry…"

With that Vlad ended the call. Henry had a horrible knot in his stomach. He didn't like how Vlad had sounded. He texted him and told him to meet him at the park the next day. Vlad agreed, but barely.

.

.

.

The next morning, after a practically sleepless night, Henry set out to meet up with Vlad. He was walking up to the swingset when he heard low voices. He quietly moved behind a bush to see what was going on. Bill and Tom had cornered Vlad at the fence and were shoving him. He had blood on his lip so he knew that they'd already been beating on him. He walked out of his hiding spot and cleared his throat. Bill and Tom turned around with bored, Neanderthal looks on their unfortunate faces. Bill rolled his eyes and gestured for Tom to follow him.

They left and Vlad just sank to the ground. He buried his face in an oversized sweater, one Henry had given him. It was his weights hoodie. Henry sat next to him.

"Hey. How's your lip?"

Vlad shrugged. He looked up at Henry. He looked awful. His cheeks were hollow and his eyes looked sunken in. His skin was pasty and ashen.

"When was the last time you fed?"

"...I ...I don't remember…"

Henry looked at him incredulously. Vlad stood up and walked through the bushes. Henry promptly followed. When he got through the bushes he saw Vlad sitting on a swing. He sat on the one next to him.

They stayed like that for a long time, neither saying anything, just sitting. After two hours had passed, Henry cleared his throat.

"What's been going on man? You don't talk to anyone anymore."

"I have no one left. You're leaving, Nelly's leaving. Everyone's gone."

Vlad got up and told Henry he was going home before he could respond to the last statement. Vlad vamped out to speed off. Henry was sure he was headed home. He started running to get there. He had a horrible feeling.

.

.
When he ran up to Vlad's front door, his uneasy feeling got worse; so much worse that he wanted to puke. The door wasn't locked, so he went straight for the stairs.

When he reached Vlad's door, he found that it wouldn't budge. Vlad had either braced it with a chair or vamp locked it. He was pounding on the door. He began shouting.

Chapter one! Cliffhanger. I know. I suck XD Review the start?