Chapter 39: Gaining Confidence
The intercom clicks on two minutes before 8:30 a.m. "Good morning, everyone," Principal Brimestone says unenthusiastically. "This is a short announcement. I'm holding a meeting before dinner for the teachers and staff to relay the information I've been given from Mr. Valentine yesterday to you all regarding the vampire hunter. Yes, he was not killed and don't worry, he's been detained all this time. Once again, teachers and staff report to the conference room before dinner for the meeting. Do not forget and do not be late. That is all."
Removing the bed sheets off of his body, Kyle sits up rubbing the sleep from his eyes then checks the time, frowning at the red numbers that read 8:29 a.m. He gets out of bed despite being woken up two minutes early to turn the ceiling light on. Afterwards, he turns around to see just Tweek still asleep. His frown deepens upon looking at the empty bed next to his own bed, he wonders when Kenny will come back or even talk to him again. It's been four days now...
"Kyle."
Kyle flinches a little at the call of his name, realizing that he needs to wake up Tweek so they can prepare to go to their classes. He walks over to Tweek's bed. He can worry about Kenny another time, he hates that they don't have any classes together this year.
"You feel it too, right? There's something wrong with Tweeky."
With the furrow of his eyebrows, once Kyle is standing beside Tweek's bed, he studies the teen closely. He looks tensed up, but aside from that, nothing else seems to be wrong with him. "Maybe he's annoyed at the Principal's announcement," Kyle assumes before gently nudging his roommate's shoulder.
It takes a few moments, but Tweek starts showing signs of waking up. He groans as his eyelids flutter open sluggishly. He feels so tired, his head feeling unpleasantly heavy and muddled thanks to last night's...dream? Should he even refer to his encounters with Shadow as dreams anymore? Either way, he hates that his third time meeting the man was just for him to be told to come up with some kind of punishment for the vampire hunter, and to tell it to the Principal and Mr. Valentine, who is supposedly acquainted with the vampire hunter. Tweek still doesn't know if he can think up anything, hell, he doesn't even want to! He doesn't want to be involved in this. Yet he feels oddly compelled to rack his brain to think up at least one idea that would be brutal enough for the vampire hunter.
"Tweek, are you okay?"
Tweek weakly glides his eyes over to look at the redhead that's standing next to his bed, just now noticing his presence. In that instant, he recounts Shadow's warning, causing him to make a pained face. Even though he really wants to reveal to Kyle everything he and Shadow talked about last night, he is forbidden to. He can't even tell Kyle about the man's existence unless he wants to be killed, at least that's what he thinks Shadow implied by not wanting one of his visits to be the 'last one'. He wonders why he can't tell Kyle and Luke specifically about them meeting.
"N-no..." Tweek winces at how hoarse his voice sounded.
Kyle's expression becomes a mixture of concern and confusion as he continues to observe Tweek's naturally pale features. Something-no someone has caused him to become this distressed. How he knows this exactly must be because of their bond, which is why he feels so worried for the teen. "Well, get some more rest then. I'll just let your teachers know that you aren't feeling too good."
Tweek musters up a small smile to show Kyle that he is very thankful of his consideration, though he feels bad for worrying him. Kyle copies his smile, but a bit more affectionately. He leaves Tweek be, first searching for Tweek's class schedule to know what his last two classes are. Once he knows that, he starts getting ready to head out.
Several minutes later, the light is turned off. Tweek closes his eyes, falling asleep almost instantly despite still having a lot on his mind.
He's just so tired...
/
"Aww, why don't you look happy to see me?" Shadow's deep voice filled with fake hurt are the first to greet Tweek's ears. Next, he sees that they are standing in the vast snowfield, not a single snowflake is drifting down to the ground from the grey clouds above. Appearing in this place is starting to become customary whenever it concerns Shadow, it seems. "I get that we're meeting again quicker than usual, but you don't have to glare at me."
Tweek just wanted to sleep in peace since he wasn't able to last night. "What do you want this time?" He swears if Shadow is disrupting his much-needed rest just to remind him about what they discussed last night, Tweek will be really annoyed.
Shadow chuckles while shaking his head, finding the teen's irritated mien amusing. This is the first time he's seen Tweek look anything but startled or anxious. "Don't worry, I plan to make this quick, but before that, have you thought up a punishment for the vampire hunter yet?"
Tweek hardens his scowl, he fucking knew it. "No."
Shadow is silent for a moment. "How strange..." He thinks. He then raises his hands. "Okay, okay, was just making sure." He lowers his hands. "Well, there's been a very slight chance of plans. It seems someone in the academy is skeptical of Vincent, and it's up to you to find out who they are." Tweek blinks the glare away at this new information, and his new task. "I'll give you a hint, he's one out of the three men, excluding Vincent of course, that were with said man at the time of you spotting him. Keep in mind that you're on a time limit, you can't afford to dawdle any longer." Tweek becomes very uneasy when he sees Shadow's eyes shine in an eerie white glow. He tries to look away, but for some reason, he can't. "Once you figure out who that teacher is, you're going to...-"
/
Tweek feels himself rousing from his sleep that evening. Unlike this morning, he feels a bit more well-rested, however the heaviness in his head doubled as a result. Groaning, he blinks his eyes open, rubbing them to clear the blear from his vision. He lays there staring at the ceiling, the light is back on and a sweet smell enters his nostrils. Knowing instantly that it's coffee, Tweek forces himself to sit up, groaning once again. He looks over towards his nightstand seeing a plastic cup on top of it. Based off the steam rising from within the cup, the mocha is still nice and hot. He grabs the cup, Kyle's act of thoughtfulness putting a smile on his face. He hopes drinking his favorite beverage will alleviate the pressure in his head. While he savors his drink, he thinks about Shadow's slightly altered plan, and his smile drops.
Not only does he still have to think up a punishment for the vampire hunter, he also has to figure out who the teacher that's suspicious of Mr. Valentine is, and team up with them. What for? Shadow did not specify, saying he will tell him after he completes his first two tasks.
Tweek takes a big sip of his coffee, then massages his forehead. He doesn't understand why he feels obligated to comply to Shadow's orders...No wait, perhaps he does know why. Lowering his hand down to his lap, Tweek recalls the times Shadow's eyes glowed. The first time they were blue, and both the second and third times they were white. The fact that Shadow's eyes glowed white more than once must mean something, but what exactly?
"Could he have been using magic?" Tweek wonders aloud. He downs the rest of his coffee and sets the empty cup back down on top of his nightstand, his face scrunching up in concentration at the possibility. That time when he first encountered Shadow, he initially thought that when he was unable to move another step after seeing him it was due to either immense fear or the dream hindering him in place, that is until he saw the man's eyes glow blue. Now he knows that it was Shadow himself who immobilized him. "So, when his eyes turn blue, he freezes you in place," Tweek muses. "But when his eyes turn white..." That's where he's stumped. He knows for sure that it tampers with the victim's head, but that's about it. He heaves a heavy sigh, actually feeling a headache coming, thinking this much is way too much pressure. But he can't stop now. He's figured out what Shadow's blue eyes does, now he has to figure out the actual infliction his white eyes causes. He massages his forehead again.
"I see you're awake."
Tweek snaps his attention towards the doorway, seeing Kyle walking into the room. He's dressed in casual clothes.
"Are you still feeling weak?" Kyle asks while approaching him.
Frowning, Tweek drops his hand from his forehead. "No, I feel better now thanks to the coffee you brought me."
Kyle looks doubtful. "Are you sure?" He stops by his bed. "You were massaging your forehead just now."
Tweek forms his lips into a line as he averts his gaze to his lap. "I just...have a lot on my mind."
"Yeah, I can tell something's been bothering you since this morning...Want to talk about it?" Kyle asks hesitantly.
Tweek tenses. "I...I can't."
"Luke hasn't been messing with you ever since you woke up, has he?"
"Oi!"
Tweek shakes his head. "No."
The light pattering of the rain fills the awkward silence, only lasting for a brief few seconds. "Well, I won't force you to tell me, just know that I'm here to listen whenever you're ready." Tweek simply nods his head, then Kyle walks away, going towards his own bed.
"Tweeky, if it's something serious, you should tell Kyle. I won't force you either, but whenever you're feeling troubled, he experiences it too. The same thing applies to you if Kyle ever feels down."
Tweek frowns, guessing the shared sentiment is due to their bond. "I want to tell him, but I can't."
Luke stifles a laugh. "You sound just like me."
"..." Tweek realizes that he indeed sounded stubbornly cryptic, just like Luke.
"Just keep in mind that the longer you remain troubled, the more it'll affect Kyle, and I know you don't want to burden him that way or at all."
Once again, Luke is right. The last thing Tweek wants to do is burden Kyle with his emotions, especially since he's been so nice to him ever since he was turned into a vampire, way before Kyle had any knowledge about their bond. Tweek balls his hands into fists on his lap, coming to a decision. A reckless decision, but he doesn't care about the consequences right now. He removes the sheets from over his legs, and gets out of bed.
"Kyle?" Said redhead looks up from the book he's reading. "I'm ready to tell you."
Kyle blinks, a bit taken aback. He didn't expect Tweek to change his mind so soon. "Oh, okay." He puts a bookmark on the page he stopped at in his book then closes it, setting it aside then scooting to sit on the side of his bed. He beckons Tweek to come over and sit down next to him. Tweek does so, and once he's seated, he takes a deep breath, and starts by telling Kyle about Shadow, who he'll refer to as creepy guy since he doesn't know his actual name, and he is actually very creepy looking. Starting with his first encounter, Tweek leaves no details out about how his dream first started then ended after the creepy guy told him that he was turned into a vampire for a reason, then tried to assure him that being one wasn't all that bad. He then tells Kyle about how the creepy guy foresaw the vampire hunter attacking the academy, which didn't surprise Kyle since the vampire hunter wasn't that big of a threat. However, Tweek's next encounter, which was his third, greatly shocks and puzzles Kyle. It's the creepy guy admitting to Tweek that he was partially responsible for him being turned into a vampire.
"W-wait a minute." Tweek looks over at Kyle to see his eyes wide in utter disbelief. "Sorry to interrupt you, but...what you just said..."
Tweek totally understands his confusion. "I know. When he first told me that, I honestly didn't know how to feel either."
Kyle blinks his eyes back to normal size. "Something's very fishy about that." He knits his eyebrows in thought. "The only way he would be partially responsible for that incident is..." The shock returns tenfold once he figures it out. "By being acquainted with Luke..."
Tweek appears equally astonished by his revelation. "Are you saying that they planned to turn me into a vampire?"
Kyle frowns, apprehensive. "I'm not sure, but I really hope that's not the case." "Is it, Luke?" He gets no response, just as he anticipated.
Tweek frowns also. "Luke won't tell you, will he?"
"Yeah, but I expected it," Kyle says. "I also get the feeling that this guy you've been telling me about is the reason why Luke hasn't been able to come clean about his actions." He frowns sadly at Tweek. "Was he also the reason why you couldn't tell me what was bothering you earlier?"
Tweek nods his head. "He threatened me saying he didn't want his next visit to be the last one."
"You shouldn't have risked telling me all of that. What if he actually kills you?"
Although deep down Tweek dreads the likelihood of that happening, he already made his decision, and he doesn't regret it. However, there's something else Kyle needs to know. "Then I'd better tell you this too. Last night, he told me that Mr. Valentine knows the vampire hunter."
Kyle suddenly embraces Tweek into a hug, startling him. "You don't have to tell me any more, and you also don't have to hide how you really feel. I know you're scared."
Whether he knows because of their bond or because of a vampires sharp intuition, Tweek should've known better than to mask his true emotion. "I was more scared of having to think up a punishment for the vampire hunter." That reminds him, his head no longer feels heavy. He wonders when the feeling went away.
Kyle separates, an angry frown on his face. "That guy is fucking insane, but don't worry, I'll make sure he doesn't lay a hand on you."
Tweek really appreciates Kyle's protectiveness, he's terrified to face Shadow alone. "But he's only been appearing in my dreams."
Kyle gives him a small smile of reassurance, that will actually make confronting the bastard much easier. "It's okay. Vampires are able to enter anyone's dreams or their subconsciousness."
Tweek raises an eyebrow, confused but also intrigued. "So, you don't need magic to do any of that?"
"No, it's kinda similar to using telepathy where you project your voice into someone's head to talk to them."
"Oh, so I project my whole body instead into a persons dream?" Tweek asks getting the gist of the ability.
"Yes, that's right. It's easy however it can be taxing after some time."
Suddenly, Tweek acquires a hopeful feeling in his heart. Since he'll never see his parents again in person, he can see and talk to them within their dreams! Well, after they deal with Shadow first, and afterwards he learns how to go about entering someone's dream, of course. Kyle also senses his sudden burst of optimism, but he doesn't mention it. He's glad that his mood has been uplifted.
"Did you manage to talk to Kenny today?" Tweek asks, now cognizant of the disappointment Kyle has been feeling for awhile now.
Kyle frowns again. "No, he's still avoiding me. He told me through telepathy that he'll come back sooner or later." He places his hand over Tweek's hand. "But it's fine. We have something far more important to focus on right now."
Tweek nods, both nervous and eager to confront Shadow.