The Dhampire and the Rogue
CH. 2 – Campfire Revelations
Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Hunter D; if I did I would not be writing fanfics. I would be living in a mansion somewhere counting my money.
Night had settled across the desert when the riders had settled down for the night by the campfire. The one in the black cloak had pulled out a well-thumbed book and was reading it. His companion in the grey cloak and hood roasted some rabbits on a spit over a fire. Neither said anything for awhile so all that could be heard was the rustling of the wind and the occasional howl of a wolf or coyote off in the distance. It wasn't that they were unfriendly; they just preferred the silence of the wilderness to small talk.
"Okay, supper's ready," said Leon after awhile, offering D one of the rabbits he had brought down earlier. "Thank you, but I believe I'll pass," the dhampire said without even looking up from his book. Dhampires didn't need to eat food as regular humans do. Leon shrugged, not at all bothered by his companion's lack of social skills. In his opinion, it made D the perfect audience. "Suit yourself, more for me." The sounds of a chainsaw going through meat could be heard from Leon as he devoured his food. D looked up from his book in time to see Leon finish one rabbit and begin on the other.
"What book you reading there, stranger? I don't recognize the language on the front." asked Leon as he wiped his mouth with the edge of his cloak. D closed the book and lifted the front for Leon to see. "The Gutenberg Bible, a holy book of a long dead religion. It is written in a dead language called Latin." D then put the book back in his saddlebag and held out his hand to his companion. "May I see your crossbow? I'm curious as to how it could pierce solid stone." Leon tossed his weapon to D as if it was the most natural thing in the world to do. D made a mental note of this. Why would a complete stranger trust him, a dhampire? Maybe it had something to do with the fact they had fought the Rocklings together. D dismissed this train of thought and examined Leon's weapon of choice.
Leon's crossbow was not the average weapon. It was made of solid steel with silver bolts for ammo and double strings to allow rapid firing. A weapon of this quality was not easy to come by, even for someone like D. Along the side of shaft was an engraving of the same symbol that was on Leon's necklace and on the back of his cloak. D wondered if this was the symbol of some organization or just his personal symbol. D knew better than to ask.
"Well, it uses gas pressure to force the bolt to almost supersonic speed so it can pierce up to six feet of solid stone." "And the strings are spring-loaded so I can fire a bolt every half-second," Leon stated with some pride. "Such a weapon must be for more than just protection from Rocklings, am I right?" asked D while handing back the crossbow. Leon ran a finger down the side of his face, tracing the scar there, "Man's gotta make a living, so I'll do odd jobs here and there. Mostly kill some monster that's been bothering the locals and such."
You know he's lying, said Lefty in D's head. No regular wanderer walks around with weapons made specifically for killing vampires. The dhampire mentally agreed. He had also noticed that his companion's broadsword was inlaid with silver as well. During the Rockling ambush, Leon has proven he was more than capable of holding his own in a fight.
D had learned long ago to tell when people were lying; it helped him believe that Charlotte was sincere in her love for Meier Link, and that Doris truly loved him. He knew immediately that Leon was holding back something, but didn't press him. D had enough secrets of his own.
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Author's Notes: I know it's short, I just wrote this so you would get a better impression of Leon Silverberg.