"Don't do this." She begged. The chains cut into her wrists every time she struggled. She whipped her head back to look at her siblings who were holding onto the sharp chains.
"Make her stop, she will kill her! Please!" She pleaded her eyes hazy with tears, while her siblings just kept staring at the muddy ground, holding onto their sister's shackles tightly.
"Carmilla." Elle called out softly, tears leaving their tracks across her cheeks. Her arms tied back by a woman Carmilla wasted half her life calling 'Mother'.
Carmilla pulled on the chains with the remaining strength she had left within her. She hated herself for not having fed properly. She needed all her strength to keep Elle safe.
"Elle!" Carmilla bellowed.
"I wouldn't let anything happen to you. I'm here. Just keep looking at me, I'll save you." She tried to reassure her fiancée.
A loud laugh echoed from behind her.
"You will save her?" Lilita mocked.
"Save her from whom? Me? Oh dear Mircalla, the only saving she needs is from you. By the looks of it, I'm only doing the silly woman a favour."
"Let her go, mother." Carmilla pleaded.
"Let her go. Take me instead of her. Just please don't hurt her. I'm begging you, mother, I'll do anything you want."
"Oh that sounds like a promise, Mircalla. But you see, you had the audacity to betray me. Betray your dear mother, who gave you this life that you possess; your doting mother, who taught you how to survive in these dark woods throughout these years. Your mother, who is going to give you the whole clan," She slipped a dagger from her cloak.
"I had so many expectations from you, my glittering girl and the way you were planning on repaying me was by running away with this wretched creature?" She looked down at Elle and pulled her hair back roughly. Elle whimpered. Carmilla tugged on her chains again.
"Stone cannot love flesh, my dear daughter. How long do you think this sad excuse of a human would've loved you for?" Lilita chuckled.
Carmilla growled angrily.
"Oh, is that your retort?" Lilita snorted.
"It doesn't sound so amusing. You know what sounds amusing to me, Mircalla?" She smirked and raised the dagger in the air before plunging it right into Elle's shoulder. A shrill scream escaped through her.
"NO!" Carmilla screamed. With a surprising amount of strength, she pulled on her restraints and stood up, stringing along her siblings. They held onto her more tightly, chains slowly slipping from their grasps.
Lilita tore the dagger out of Elle's shoulder and held it up, ready to slash again.
"Take another step and I will slice her whole arm off." She warned.
Elle whimpered, her body trembling. Carmilla fell to her knees again, heavy sobs making their way through her.
"Take me, just take me. Take me…" She started repeating it like a mantra, pleading for her mother to understand.
"It's okay." Elle whispered to her lover.
"I'm okay." She spoke bravely, her lungs heaving.
"I'll be alright, Carmilla. Your life is more valuable than mine. Even if she takes me, I'll always be around. I'm never leaving you, Carmilla." She tried to assure her.
"Don't say that. Please don't, Elle. Nothing is going to happen to you." Carmilla choked on her sobs.
"Oh, would you look at that? False reassurances. How heart-warming." Lilita brought the dagger to her mouth and licked off the blood stained on it.
"Ah, I see why you were planning on running away from me darling. This is sweeter than honey." She hummed, making her way to her daughter. She tipped Carmilla's head back with the dagger beneath her chin.
"Would you like a final taste?" Lilita winked at her daughter. Carmilla gagged at the smell of her lover's blood.
Throughout all these years of loving and being with Elle, Carmilla had never laid a fang on her. The thought of sucking a part of her lover's life-force, terrified Carmilla to no limits. She had given up on killing recklessly without a care in the world. Ever since she had met Elle, she only survived on blood bags, with an exception of killing some or the other animal every now and then.
"Please stop mother." Carmilla beseeched.
"You don't have to hurt her to teach me a lesson. I've learnt it now. Please stop hurting her." She whispered helplessly.
"No, you haven't Carmilla." Lilita replied solemnly.
"Do you think I'm doing this over the sole purpose of teaching you a lesson? No, this is to let everyone know how you shouldn't betray my trust. Because I would not even let my High Priestess get away with such misdemeanours." She replied, walking back towards Elle like a predator ready to finish its prey.
"I will destroy everyone you love and care about if you betray my trust, Carmilla. You need to get your attention back to priorities. You are going to take over the clan someday, Mircalla. I cannot afford to have such menaces distract you from the sole purpose of your existence. If you look at this in the long run darling, I'm only doing you a favour and saving your life. Again. Even the moppet understands the value of your life." She declared and tugged on Elle's hair again, the blood-stained dagger resting against the pale skin of her neck.
Howls and pleads slipped out from Carmilla's throat, begging for her mother to spare the life of her lover.
"Mother, no!.." Carmilla cried.
"I love you…" Elle looked at her lover and whispered it one last time, before closing her eyes, knowing her fate all too well.
"No, don't. Don't say that. Look at me! Elle!" Carmilla pleaded and pulled on her restraints again, ready to save her lover's life, but before she could do anything about it, the smell of fresh, tantalizing blood wafted through the air, giving Carmilla just the push that her undead body needed. She pulled onto her silver chains, unearthing the grip her siblings had onto the ground beneath their feet as her shackles slipped from their strong hands and fell to the muddy ground. A piercing howl tore through the air as a big black panther appeared from where Carmilla once stood.
"…Please leave a message after the beep!"
"Hey Elle, This is like the nth time I'm calling you, are we still on for tonight?... I'm getting kinda worried you know? Anyway,.. just... let me know, yeah? I'll try to keep a few cold ones for you. We start at 9. Danny and I promised to not start without you, so be there, 'kay? It's been a while and I miss you, and I'd like to get drunk with you. Just like old times. Maybe bring Carmilla?.. Actually don't, I don't want the squad to go on an arresting spree again. It always gets ugly and I've had a long week. I don't have it in me to deal with the dark ones… Call me, okay? I miss you."
Laura disconnected the call and let out a heavy sigh, a hand making its way to her temple and massaging firmly.
"Hey boss?" An inquiring voice made its presence known from Laura's cabin door.
"Yeah?" Laura whisked around and found herself staring at electric red hair peeking from beyond her sturdy redwood door.
"Danny! Yes, come in!" Laura cleared her throat and gestured for the tall woman to step into her office.
"Just came by to drop this off." Danny wiggled a file of paperwork as she stepped into Laura's office and placed it on her desk.
"Oh, is that Theo's file? From last week?" Laura inquired as she picked up the folder and skimmed through it.
"Yes. Sorry it took so long. I had to keep editing it because of all the stupid stunts the bastard kept pulling."
Laura let out a small chuckle and set the folder down, "Don't worry about it Sergeant, I'll look into his case from here on." She replied and settled herself into her oversized chair. "Is there anything else I can help you with?" She asked, good-naturedly.
"Oh, no. I'll just see myself out, Captain." Danny replied and gestured to the exit, walking away from Laura's desk, before her feet stopped her from stepping out of her office completely.
"Were you speaking to Elle?" She asked, her hand resting casually on the handle of the Captain's door, her back pressed against it.
"Voicemail." Laura sighed and leaned back in her chair, her hand pressing against her temple again.
"Do you want us to ruffle some of the cat's fur?" Danny asked seriously.
"No." Laura declined, her voice firm. "As much as you'd like to, we have etiquette."
To which the redhead let out a silent groan with a roll of her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah. Don't have to remind me how much I'm turning out to be like my old man." Laura replied and shared a reminiscent chuckle with her Sergeant.
Before Danny could ask her another question, Laura requested, "If we don't see her tonight, you can ruffle as many feathers or fur you'd like. Just give me tonight."
Danny gave an understanding nod and pulled the door open.
"I'll see you tonight, Captain?"
"You'll see me tonight, Sergeant."
"All in." Music pumped and thumped through the walls of the pub as the confident snigger of a redheaded medic boomed over the round table as people watched in anticipation.
"LaFontaine, that is the stu- you're going to regret that in seconds!" A high pitched voice whispered harshly into their ear as they pushed all their money to the centre of the table and watched with bated breath just what was about to unfurl.
"This has to be the easiest thousand dollars I've ever made in my entire life." The reply came, as Laura leaned further back in her chair with a smirk playing on her lips.
"You say that everyti- You're bluffing.." LaFontaine replied, growing anxious in their chair as they visibly started sweating while the redhead next to them just dug her face in her palm.
"I might be.." Laura replied as she pushed a few of her own bucks to the middle of the table. "So why don't you show me everything." She demanded before resting her own cards, face down, on the table.
The medic audibly gulped as they reached for their cards. The room suddenly seemed to have grown exceptionally quiet as the music lowered down and the entire pub circled around the table, waiting on the verdict.
LaFontaine flipped their cards one by one. A five, in the suit of diamonds. Six, diamonds. Seven, diamonds.. A collective gasp echoed throughout the room which caused Laura to slightly lean forward in her chair, her fingers clasping onto the armrest. LaFontaine flashed a smirk before flipping the last two cards of their hand. Ten, diamonds and Jack, diamonds.
"That's a flush, Hollis.. What do you got?" They asked proudly as all eyes now landed on the Captain.
Laura gazed at her opponent's hand and then at her own before reaching forward and revealing each card one by one. Seven, spades. Eight, spades. Nine, spades. Ten, spades and finally, Jack. Spades.
A thunderous round of cheers rang out throughout the establishment as Laura yelled out a loud 'Boom' and gestured explosions before dragging all the money towards her side of the table as LaF let out a groan and Perry shook her head as she patted their arm.
"Like I said! 'Easiest thousand-"
"Dollars you ever made, yeah yeah. We know Frosh." LaF rolled their eyes as they stood up from their chair and shook Laura's hand, now grinning. "Drinks ar-"
"-Are on me. Yeah." Laura grinned and threw a wink their way.
But before Laura could even announce a round on her, a loud thump of a boot and the smell of fresh blood caught Laura, and her squad's, nose. She whipped her head in the direction of the pub's entrance and was greeted with a sight that she certainly was not ready to face tonight.