It almost seems ironic that the story begins on Halloween. This Halloween, which was on a Sunday, was anything but holy. That, at least, seemed fitting. Small children ran through the streets dressed up as ghosts and other beings, people sat in their churches and prayed for the spirits of the dead to not visit them, and teenagers all over got ready for a night of drinking, partying, and possible sex. It was a harsh truth that no one in the world wanted to believe. A certain group was no different, save for one. It was a group of four girls. Three were dressed as slutty Disney Princesses. The fourth was just a simple witch. She wore a tight black dress, fishnet stockings, black knee-high boots, and the signature pointed hat. They walked along down the street, giggling and laughing at random things. As far as anyone knew, they were going to an innocent party at school. Three had other plans, and one was just along for the ride. Three had the plan to sneak into a seedy, exclusive bar downtown, a goal which they would inevitably accomplish, whether they had to do some unmentionable things or not. They were not aware of why exactly that bar in particular had been labeled "exclusive", but they would soon learn.
In this bar was another group, only this one was much closer, and much more active. Four girls surrounded one man, two to each side. They vied for his attention, and he seemed to ignore all of them. His perfect catch hadn't walked in just yet. Only on Halloween did they open up their little hotspot to humans, and tonight was the perfect night for a hunt. No one would ever realize that a few innocent little girls or boys had gone missing. The man that the girls called Derrick was not interested in boys tonight, though. He wanted something sweeter, but something that these girls couldn't give to him. Believe it or not, but vampire blood is not all that satisfying to vampires themselves. No, it's only human blood that calls out to them in such a way that can drive one mad. Derrick wasn't going to be happy with just any person to walk in. Only someone who really managed to spark his interest was going to get him motivated tonight, possibly in more ways than one.
"Mercedes, hurry up! God, you're so damn slow."
Her friends weren't the best. They were always incredibly impatient with her. Mercedes wasn't even sure where they were going. No one really told her anything, especially when it came to them doing borderline-illegal things. So when she caught up with her friends and they were standing in front of a brick building called "The Masquerade", she was hardly surprised. With the bat of an eyelash and a little kiss on the cheek to the bouncer standing at the door, the four of them were swept into the main room. It was lit up with a few red lights and some candles, and the smoke flowing about the room was definitely not from cigarettes or cigars. It held the faintest touch of lavender and vanilla, with something else hidden deep underneath. Mercedes was uneasy already. The way that some people were looking at them made her feel like their choice was terribly wrong, even more so than before. She reluctantly followed along behind her friends, ignoring the prying stares. They reached the bar and the three of her friends ordered themselves drinks without so much as being carded. Mercedes stayed quiet. She had caught eyes with Derrick.
His purple eyes held hers in a vice. He lifted a hand away from one of the women at his side and motioned with two fingers for her to come. She turned her head away immediately. The noise of music and chatter made it impossible for her to hear his low chuckle.
"Feisty, isn't she?" He murmured to himself, before he turned back to entertain the adoring ladies at his sides.
A low shudder ran through Mercedes. She hated the feeling this place gave her. She turned her head to her side to ask her friends if they could go, but they were gone, off talking to a group in a corner. She rolled her eyes and began an attempt to make her way over to them. She just wanted to go. A hand grabbed her shoulder, and she turned abruptly. It was a man who looked much, much older than she was. He was smiling at her.
"Hey, why don't you come hang out with me and my friends, cutie?" He yelled above the music.
Mercedes shook her head automatically. When she tried to walk away, he persisted. Finally, she had had enough of this crap. She turned to him and shoved him as hard as she could back away from her.
"Leave me alone, alright?" Mercedes snapped at him.
The rage of rejection took over his features and he grabbed her roughly by one arm. She twisted to get away from him, and he reached out and grabbed her other arm. He thought he had her trapped, but he was dead wrong. Mercedes responded by slamming the sharp heel of her boot straight into one of his feet. His sharp nails dug into her skin and he shoved her back forcefully.
"Stupid bitch!" He hissed at her.
She staggered backwards and bumped into a table, tipping it over as she fell to the floor. Glass mugs hit the ground and shattered, wine laced with blood and beer spilled all over, and blood began to seep down from the deep cuts in her arm.
This caused all Hell to break loose. Vampires throughout the room turned to the scent of fresh blood. The man who she had just injured was rushing towards her. One minute, he was coming straight at her, and then he was suddenly flying into a wall. In a matter of seconds, Derrick had broken free from his corner and had rushed over to protect the now-interesting girl. He helped her up off of the floor and put and arm around her shoulders, towing her out of the bar in a hurry. He pulled her into an alleyway. She heard angry voices following them. One was saying something about her blood being all his for doing what she did. Mercedes was confused and slightly terrified at both the fact that she could have died and that there was a guy pulling her along to...somewhere. He shoved her, somehow lightly, behind a dumpster and stepped out.
Derrick had no problems with fighting his own kind. It was actually pretty exciting. So when they came at him, only two, he was eager to throw the first punch in order to protect what he now considered was his. He very easily chased the two back out of the alley and into the bar. He knew that they would be back. He walked to where he had pushed his catch and helped her up. Mercedes stared at her "savior" warily as she kept a firm hand over her bleeding arm. He grinned.
"What? Got something on my face?" He asked, his tone teasing.
"N-No. That's not it. Just..." She trailed off, unsure of what she wanted to say.
"Well then, at least a thank you would be nice, y'know? Or how about a kiss for saving you."
"I think I'll pass. Thanks anyways."
Mercedes tried to walk around him so that she could get back to the bar and go to her friends. Derrick chuckled and reached out, catching her face gently in his hands. He leaned down before she could protest and pushed his mouth over hers. The girls' eyes widened. It was only for a few seconds, and then he pulled away. He licked his lips and smirked at her.
"Now, was that so hard?" Derrick asked.
Mercedes stood there, sputtering and gasping. She was at a total loss for words. Then, she just shouted at him.
"Who the hell do you think you are?"
He laughed at her again. His arrogance annoyed her. She lifted her hand away from her arm and went to slap him. Derrick easily caught her wrist, smiling at her. Something else slapped him straight in the face, and it wasn't physical. The blood on her hand, and the blood that slowly began to work its way down her arm. The smell of it filled his nose and went straight to his head. There was no control as he pushed her against the brick wall behind them. He didn't even hear her telling him to get away from her and let her go. Derrick licked her palm, enjoying the brief shock it gave him before he went to her arm. It wasn't enough. Mercedes was freaked out. She struggled, and he held her arms firmly against the wall in an iron grip. He was licking the blood from her arm. The sound of it was disgusting. Then he moved away, his eyes open, but he wasn't staring at her face. He stared at her neck. He needed more, and he didn't even know why. The rush this girls' blood gave him was an indescribable feeling, and he loved it. He wanted it more and more with each drop.
Mercedes noticed a change. His eyes, once purple, had changed color. They were slate gray, but had an incredibly unnatural look to them. That's all she saw before he let out a low growl and went for her neck, biting into it. Pain stabbed through her, and she was powerless to stop him. The combination of fear and pain forced her into blackness, and she passed out. Derrick fed from her without thinking about the fact that her life was sliding away, into his own veins. It wasn't until someone threw him off that he realized what he was doing. He saw her body slump to the ground, and sanity sank back into his brain.
"Oh shit." Was all he could say.
"You're damn right, 'oh shit'. What were you thinking? You've never killed a person before!" The voice of reason snapped at him.
The "voice of reason" was actually another vampire named Kayd, who Derrick had the great displeasure of living with. Kayd was at least ten years younger than he was, in vampire years, and he had the nagging habit of always being right. Derrick sighed and knelt down next to the unconscious girl. No blood came out of her neck, his saliva had taken care of that, but it was clear that he had taken quite a lot out of her. The two heard the sound of footsteps coming down the alley. Jackass and his friends coming for round two. Derrick gave Kayd a pleading look. Kayd rolled his eyes and scooped Mercedes up, disappearing into the darkness.
Something was different inside of Derrick. He'd felt rushes from blood before, but never like this. He felt stronger and more aware. The adrenaline rushed through every nerve in his body. Without a second thought, he grabbed one of the vampires by the face and slammed him straight into the ground. Oh yeah, he really liked this new feeling. He cracked his knuckles and set into the others.
That little girl was going to stay with them for a while. A long while.