It didn't turn out quite as well as I'd hoped, but it was nice being able to add a bit more to the story!

-v-v-

They'd moved into the new estate. Holmswood's old home was enormous, and they rattled around in it, even with the addition of the new hunters. Alucard adored the vast dry chill basements, Abraham settled into a routine for his work, as did the servants. The butler and maid and cook had their established schedules, deliveries arrived predictably and all was going smoothly only a few months in.

Of course, this presented a problem.

A very wealthy estate, with only a few people, following predictable patterns? The higher class of thieves and burglars took note of this. One of the more skilled ones had spent her time creating careful timetables of who was expected to be where at what times. She'd plotted out ways to approach the house at night without being seen after a few evenings looking at how the light from the windows fell across the lawn and the trees. It was inevitable that one of the larcenists would try to pick this plum before circumstances changed and the household expanded. She was simply the first.

A cool and cloudy day signaled the night for her to work. It would be dark from the clouds, but too dry to leave muddy footsteps. Talented enough to have acquired a small support team over the years, she had one adolescent with the ladder, and an older man waiting with a cheap horse and a cheaper cart. It didn't take her long to be over the fence, moving quietly through the woods towards the house.

The outbuildings provided scattered shade that she moved through carefully. The doors were locked, but the masonry above the kitchen's delivery door provided amply footholds and grips for a small and slender person. A thin metal hook released the catch on the narrow window, and her padded foot reached into the dark room.

Only to have something, SOMETHING hard and cold like iron, grab her ankle and haul her through the window. There was not enough light to see more than the dimmest shape as a hard grip on her neck hauled her from the floor to dangle helplessly in the air. Not so helpless...she kicked, she squirmed, she tried to scream but the hand squeezed warningly. Worst of all was the two glowing red eyes, gleaming maliciously and enjoying her terror.

She clawed at the hand, kicked vainly in the air about her trying to land a foot on the body of whatever had her, failing and panicking and knowing her death was right there and desperate to escape it. A whispering chill laugh turned louder and became a rolling malicious chuckle, then a cold and slimy...thing...was pressed against her neck to run from her clavicle all the way up to her cheek. A pleased hum from whatever had her, and she threw herself into a full-body jerk, trying to pull herself free despite the pain racing up her neck. The chuckle was replaced by a booming laugh of absolute evil...and then there was quiet.

She wasn't facing the door, but from the corner of her eye, she could see some sort of flickering light and the faint rectangular glow of a door. Footsteps, and they got louder, not racing but steady and firm. A sigh, and a click and faint hiss, and a gas light illuminated the room. Footsteps again, she couldn't see what had her, only dangle helplessly and stare at the wall as her hands gripped at the cold bars...fingers? was this a hand?...around her neck. A man walked around them to stand in front of her. He gave her a look over, put the unneeded candle down on a crate against the wall, and straightened to give her a more solid examination.

"A thief?" More of a statement than a question, with her dark clothing and padded feet.

"Yes, Master." Chill, sibilant and hissing, rich and rolling, the creature that held her answered.

"Is she injured?"

"Not yet." The cruel glee was unmistakable. A pause. "It would be a waste to let such a good and filling meal leave."

She choked, eyes wide. She'd known she was dead, had known that from the moment she was pulled through the window...but eaten? She wanted to beg but could barely breathe and the cold finger pressing on her voicebox kept her silent, although she looked at the man desperately. Middle-aged, solid, no-nonsense, dressed in a plain but good robe, and looking at her like a...thing. Not a person. Tears began to form in the corner of her eyes from the stress and the terror and the pain that was turning into agony as she hung in the air by her neck.

"You did say that terror and pain would fill you. Put her down, but keep her here." With that, the man abruptly turned and left, leaving her alone with the monster. Shuddering, she expected to feel teeth shredding her at any time...and instead she was dropped unceremoniously to the floor. She hit it and rolled, trying to get to her feet, and looking up at whatever had captured her. The glowing red eyes and surging rolls of ink-black hair were set off by a colorless face, and it, he? grinned at her, a row of shark teeth shining out between his lips. The thief dared not break eye contact, even if she could, scooting backwards towards the door.

The monster took a single, long step and grabbed her hair. Tightly braided against her head made it a good style for thieving; no fear of it falling in her eyes or catching on things. And it provided a wonderful grip for the clawed hand that wrapped around her head. Closing her eyes and shaking, all she could do was wait for the monster to devour her.l

Footsteps and the sound of a clinking bottle pulled them back open. The same man was standing in front of her, a black kit in his hands.

"You have two options. I can send for the police and send you to jail. You'll be convicted and spend a very long time behind bars. I will most certainly make you tell me every crime you have committed first, and you will pay for them." She gulped. Her list of crimes was certainly long, but how could he know?

At that thought a cold breath wafted past her ears as the monster whispered, "I will know EVERYTHING." It wasn't death, at least, and she was trying very hard to wrap her mind around that. The second option, though...that was going to be death. It was clear and obvious with the monster looming behind her.

"Your second option? You didn't hurt anyone here, you aren't carrying any weapons other than a small knife. The monster wishes to eat you but will be satisfied," and a stern look up at the creature, "with some of your blood. I'll draw some blood, and you will leave, alive. Be aware that should you speak of this or sbe caught thieving again, anywhere, I won't stop him again."

At her wild, frantic glance, he added a third. "Of course, you can opt to let him kill you and eat you instead, but I thought you'd prefer to live."

It didn't hurt as bad as she thought, although the red eyes absolutely riveted on the blood as it drained into the cup were horrifying. Almost as horrifying as the sticky, wet feeding sounds behind her as the man bound up her elbow with a snug bandage. She was led down the stairs, stumbling and shaking from adrenaline, needing to lean on the man just to prevent herself from falling down them, through a few halls and doors and the kitchen, and unceremoniously shoved out the same door she'd entered above.

The rocks she'd spotted previously lifted her to the fence, although she was dizzy and light-headed and still shaking from the terror she'd experienced. A thump as the ladder hit the fence, and she stretched carefully over the pointed spires to the solid ladder. A moment later, and she was in the back of the cart, shaking and numb and silent as the other two asked her questions and demanded answers that she simply couldn't give.