Chapter 2

Allegra continued on home, tired and dejected. She couldn't wait to curl up in bed with a nice book. She closed her eyes and started moving faster. Until her feet stopped short and she came into contact with a massive chest. Just my luck, she thought. The village idiots again.

"Oh, hello there. Fancy this." Marciano smirked. It was strange. He was the only one who ever talked. Come to think of it, since she'd been going to Columbus Hugh, she hadn't heard Marciano's friends say one word. That was very strange.

"How's your book?" She swore the guy had a permanent smirk painted on his face. It's like he was born with it. Either that, or he practices in the mirror. She wouldn't put it past him."Can I see it, Allegra? The book?" He asked sweetly.

"If this is your idea of later, Marciano, I'm not interested."She snapped, ignoring his request. He grinned.

"Oh, so you're fighting back now, eh? I like that." Sadistic bastard, she thought. "Come on, do it again, Allegra." He said, flicking his tongue over her ear, teasing. She recoiled.

"Oh, fuck off, why don't you?"

"Yes. Yes! More, Allegra! Give me more of that fire!" He yelled dramatically, sending his friends into hysterics. She, on the other hand, was far from laughter. The only thing she wanted more than her book back was to get away from this freak. Turning from him briskly, she began to walk away. Unbeknowest to her, she was hurrying in the exact opposite direction of her house. Marciano matched her pace easily, but his friends lagged slightly behind, their lungs worn out from years of smoking dope.

As she noticed Marciano's lean figure coming up beside her, Allegra broke into a swift jog, but to no avail. He caught up, yet again. But the real cherry on top was when he snuck up behind her and yelled, "Boo!" right into her ear, which sent her into a full-blown sprint. She wanted only to be free of him, and looked wildly around for a means of escape.

Thankfully, there was an alley just up ahead to the right. Just a few more seconds, and she'd be out of this street, down the alley, and into broad daylight again, where Marciano and his friends couldn't touch her. Just a few more- she heard a whoosh of air behind her. Curious, she looked back, but there was only Marciano gaining on her. But there it was again. She turned into the alley. Albeit dark and long, it was clear of things she could hurt herself on. Except her shoelaces. The long, slender string lodged itself into the sole of her shoe and she tumbled to the ground.

This gave Marciano the chance to catch up, and he was standing there, looming above her by the time she was ready to rise again. He kicked her in the side, and she cringed away from him, squeezing her eyes shut tight. She licked her lips, tasting blood. A kick wasn't supposed to hurt that much, and especially not from a so-called harmless school bully.

"Come on, then. Get up." He ordered her. His voice sounded different somehow, harder, but perhaps that was just because she was realizing that he wasn't who she thought he was at all. No longer just a tormentor, to her he was now capable of things even her vivid imagination was not willing to conjure up. She relinquished to his request, getting to her feet shakily. Marciano's friends had decided to join them too, apparently, she noted bitterly when she saw them lurking in the shadows. Just my luck. A flicker of movement caught her eye, flitting out of sight almost as soon as she noticed it. She furrowed her brow.

"What are you looking at there?" Marciano asked, turning around. There was nothing. "Don't try and distract us, girly. We know your plans. Well, we won't have that, eh?" He stepped towards her menacingly, and traced a finger along her jawline. She shivered, not daring to look up. His pants were different. Oh no. Panic swept like a wave over her soul, and her eyes crept slowly up, past an unrecognizable t-shirt, until she was staring into the dark, brooding eyes of a stranger.

"Now come on, there's a girl. Give me and my gang here a little kiss, why dont'cha? We're not going to hurt you." His friend spoke next, with a voice that could cut through steel. "Get on your knees, you filthy bitch." Although the situation was far from funny, Allegra couldn't help but scoff slightly.

"Getting right to the point then, now are we?"

The man scowled at her, faint scars littering his cheeks as he did so. "Don't talk back to me." Acting as if he were the leader, he jogged over to her and grabbed her by her collar, throwing her down roughly. She didn't land on her knees, but back on her face, where she tasted asphalt.

"Fuck you." She said, for the second time that day. It felt strange, coming out of her mouth. Normally she didn't voice her obscenities. They would only cause more trouble. But honestly, how much more trouble could she be in at the moment?

"Excuse me?" The first man said, any trace of friendliness in his demeanor vanished. He pulled her up by the scruff of her neck and slapped her. The sound echoed through the alley, and each time she heard the slap, it hurt her more. "My friend asked you to do something. When we ask you to do something, you're going to do it, you got me?" She nodded quickly, blinking back the sharp hint of tears threatening to fill her eyes. Help me. She thought, pleading. Won't somebody please help me?

"Now!" The scream of yet another stranger filled her ears, reminding her of what she would soon be doing. For, she would be doing it. Her eardrums were ringing, her lip was swollen, and her face still stung from his slap. What other choice did she have? She fell to her knees, defeated. "I thought so." The leader smirked at her, throwing his head back to laugh, greasy black hair flipping into the wind.

Help me. She pleaded one last time to herself, before a tear escaped her eye. She crept up to the man, ready to succumb to his wishes. The flicker of light was back, but perhaps that was only hope. And then the wind began to howl through the street as if someone was in pain. The shadows started to shift, swirling this way and that. Obviously this wasn't just hope, for the 3 men noticed too, turning around, their entire bodies stiffening. Nothing was there, so they looked back in unison, relaxed, only to freeze in terror a second time. Their eyes widened as they looked at Allegra. It was as if the shadows were moving, caressing her curves, and bringing her up with them into the land of nightmares.

Oh God, oh God, it's behind me. Please, please, God! I'm sorry for not worshiping you earlier, but I really, really need your help right now!" She half pleaded, half prayed. A smooth voice interrupted her train of thought, putting her fears to rest, at least for the time being.

"Well, I'm no God, but I'm here to help." Came the call from behind her.

The voice was so beautiful, she couldn't help but turning to see if the face to match it was just as magnificent.

It was. The man that stood behind her was indescribable. She had never believed in love at first sight, but here it was. And he was here to save her! Her! This...man, god or not, was a vision. And only now did she notice that he was flanked by 3 equally gorgeous people, if that were possible. The men were pale, too pale. But it suited them. It was as if they glowed. And the woman! Dios mio, I would die to be half as beautiful as her. She envied the way her hair curled into perfect ringlets around her perfect face. Looking down at her her own limp, frizzy brown hair, she felt ashamed. Like a troll, next to these people. All of them were a modeling agency's dream come true. But in a way, it was eerie how stunning they were. Too perfect. Maybe that was just her imagination. After all, they were here to help her, right?

"As I said, I'm no God." The beautiful man looked to the others briefly, before turning back to Allegra. "And neither are my friends. I'm Castiel." He said with a smile. "Here, come with me." He began to lead her back the way she had come, and she started to feel assured, until a panicked whimpering became audible from behind her. Were those vile men turning onto Castiel's acquantinces? Castiel. She marvelled at the name. It took a bit to get her back to reality.

"Are your friends going to be okay?" she asked.

He laughed heartily, but she couldn't imagine what was so funny. For some odd reason, she had the feeling she was being left out of a joke. His laugh, she noticed, was a tad frightening. Maybe it was because his teeth were sharp, sharper than most people's. Or maybe it was because when she looked up to finally look him straight in the eyes, she noticed his irises were crimson. She stumbled and fell. Castiel bent down to help her up, but he stumbled too, and his nose bumped against her hair. Falling to his knees, he gripped Allegra's shoulders. His stance was no longer protective or gentle.

She tried to move from his grip, to run away, but she found that she was stuck. And he was starting to hurt her. She yelped, and her cry mingled with screams in the distance. How could I have been so stupid? she thought. Of course these people weren't trying to help her. They were probably just as dangerous as the men who had just tried to-she shuddered, stopping her train of thought before it overwhelmed her. All of a sudden, she felt fragile, and she had to get away. Now. Of course, the gorgeous ones always make the most trouble. Should have listened to mother when I had the chance.

Castiel winced, digging his fingers deeper into the smooth skin by her collarbone. She screamed, her shoulders on fire, and he immediately let go at the sound, falling to the cool asphalt beneath them. He no longer seemed to be breathing. Oh no. What if he was dying? What if I've completely misjudged him! Oh, how disgusting of me.

Regardless, she knew she couldn't just stand there watching him die. She didn't learn CPR for nothing. As soon as she had steadied her own breathing, she knelt over Castiel, trying to pump air into his chest, but it was as if he was made of rock. Mon dieu, he must live at the gym! she thought. Her hair cascaded over her arms and onto his chest as she listened for a heart rate. Nothing. Shit. She was going to have to give him mouth-to-mouth. She lowered herself further onto him and opened her mouth slightly, but paused, swearing she heard him speak. Maybe that was just her hope acting up again. Sounded a little bit like 'don't'...Dismissing the thought, she pressed her mouth to his and exhaled. What surprised her most was what happened next. He slid out from under her, hungrily returning the pressure to her soft, breakable lips. He bit down, tasting blood. Only instinct told him what to do next, and he forcefully pushed her to the wall, nipping at her neck.

This is weird...she thought to herself, her confusion showing only slightly on her face. "Stop it!" She giggled. He only bit harder. "Stop it!" She yelled, louder this time, all amusement gone from her voice. "Stop it!" She yelled for the final time, catching him off guard and pushing him over, away from her. He was breathing heavily, then stopped again abruptly. "Oh come on." Allegra said, crossing her arms. "Like I'm gonna fall for that one again, you freak." He shook his head no.

"Sorry. You deserve an explanation."

Allegra quirked her brows disbelievingly. "Yeah, I think I do." Today had really been quite the day, hadn't it? Previously, men had shown little to no interest towards her. Now, sexually harassed twice in one day? Although, interest has nothing to do with it, she thought bitterly. I just happen to have been in the right place at the right time for these oh so lovely gentleman. As if on cue, a low growl, followed by a scream, echoed behind her. It was cut short, as if being stifled. She backed away from the man opposite her. Fuck explanations. Beautiful or not, he was a freaky dude. And she did not want to wait around to see what his friends were up to.

"No." He said, looking at her with pleading eyes. The innocent puppy dog look didn't quite have the same effect when you had red eyes. "Stay." She froze in place immediately. Why, she would never know. "I will explain." He said, taking the tiniest sip of air, cringing away as the air filled his lungs, as if it pained him to breathe. "You smell...delicious." As he said this, his eyes bored into hers, and she looked away, blushing despite her best efforts. As a result, her next words didn't come out quite as bitingly as she had hoped them to.

"Well that's hardly an excuse." She refused to look at him from now on. It was just easier to think that way. He smirked, but only for a moment.

"Look. I'm trying very hard not to kill you right now, okay? You're a good girl. Kind-hearted, a good soul. I only kill horrid, disgusting, evil people like those vile men in the alley. Do you have any idea of what they were going to do to you?"

"I think I have an idea, yes."

"It's just," he paused, looking pained. "You smell better than anyone I've ever encountered in my life."

Kayyy...This is starting to sound like a French perfume ad. "Err...thanks?" How did you respond to something like that?

"I'm not exactly human, you see." Castiel spewed out quickly. "I'm a vampire." He caught the look on her face and sighed heavily. "I know, it's difficult to believe. But you wouldn't want me to prove it to you, trust me." He winced. "Although that's becoming-" His legs seemed to act for him, stepping towards Allegra. "-Increasingly difficult for me not to do." He flashed his teeth at her and growled. "Perhaps I could only make you into one of us...You already know far too much." He wondered aloud. She shook her head immediately, frantic, just as a yell practically the sound of a sonic boom was heard from the other alley. A horrible silence fell over the scene.

Her blood turned cold. A gust of wind blew again and Allegra was knocked off her feet. Winded, she coughed, struggling to open her eyes,. She felt something digging into her side. The man was biting her, and sucking the wound. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't... "Sorry." He told her, then plunged his teeth into her side again. She looked at her hand and her eyes rolled back in her head upon looking at the mangled mess, sprawled at an impossible angle, covered in bright red liquid. One thing was for sure, it was months away from La Tomatina, the annual tomato fight in Italy, and this definitely wasn't tomato juice. At least I won't have to face tomorrow.. she thought weakly, her brain already shutting itself down. Her head throbbed, feeling the blood draining out of her. The last thing she saw was the man's beautiful figure gradually losing it's beauty as it carved itself into the features of a cold-blooded killer. And then she could no longer see anything.