A young Adrian Tepes, no more than 6 years old, excitedly runs into the library of the large castle early one summers day. His mother, Lisa sits in a chair near an open window, her long blonde hair draped softly over her shoulder as she reads a large book.
"Mother look what I've learned to do!" the child happily exclaims. His mother puts down her book to watch as her child shifts himself into the form of a small white wolf pup.
Lisa's mouth forms a wide grin, "You've learned to shape shift! How wonderful my darling!" She picks up the small white wolf and spins him around in her arms. "Your father will be so proud when you show him." Adrian shifts back into human form and giggles as his mother holds him close.
"Mother, can we go for a walk today?" The small boy pleads to his mother. She looks at him and frowns for a moment. Upon seeing his golden eyes shining, pleading with her, Lisa sighs. "How can I say no to you?"
The pair walk through the forest hand in hand. They don't often take leisurely strolls during the day, fearing what the nearby village may do if they learned of what Adrian and his father are. However, Lisa loves her son and wants the best for him. The two enjoy the sunlight and the warm summer breeze when suddenly Adrian comes to a halt.
"Is something the matter?" His mother asks with concern in her voice.
"Someone is crying." He looks at his mother with a furrowed brow. Adrian let's go of his mothers hand and begins to sprint before quickly taking his newly acquired wolf form.
"Adrian!" His mother yells after him. She is not as fast but does her best to run after her son.
Adrian runs through the forest, his acute sense of hearing leading him to the source of the crying. The distressed noise grows louder and louder until the small wolf comes to a complete halt in front of a young girl sitting on the forest floor.
You let out a startled screech and cower in fear when you see a white wolf coming towards you. Your whole body trembles until you hear a voice say to you "Don't be afraid. I didn't mean to scare you." Looking in the direction of the voice you see a young boy, about the same age as you, where the wolf had previously been.
"W-what happened to the wolf?" You meekly ask.
Adrian looks ashamed of himself and glances away from you. "I was the wolf. My names Adrian."
Your wipe the tears from your eyes, but they still continue to fall. "Adrian. What do you mean?" You ask, followed by a short sniffle.
Adrian looks back towards you. When he changes into a wolf you stiffen in fright. He takes a small step away from you and you relax your body. You lean forward curiously, taking note of the sharp golden eyes that stand out against his Snow White fur.
"Adrian!" A female voice rings through the forest and a woman emerges from behind the trees. "Don't run off like that!" She scolds the wolf pup in between heavy breaths.
He bows his head and changes back to his humanoid form. "Sorry mother." He glances over his shoulder in your direction.
Lisa looks behind her son and sees you on the ground. Your eyes are puffy and your face is red and wet from your tears. "Oh my." She says to herself. She moves to kneel down beside you and Adrian watches from just behind his mother. "What's wrong dear? Are you lost?" The compassion in Lisa's voice is soft and sweet. You can't help but tear up again.
"I wandered away from my family and now I can't find my way back." You rub the tears from your eyes and Lisa places a hand on your shoulder.
"Don't worry. We will help you find your family." The beautiful woman consoles you. "Do you remember anything that may help us find them?"
You sniffle and rub the last of your tears from your eyes. "We were having a picnic near a river."
"That's very helpful. We can head towards the river and walk along it until we find your family. Now, what is your name?"
"Y/N." You say quietly.
"Y/N. You are safe with us." She helps you to your feet and turns towards her son, kneeling down to his level. "Adrian let us know if you hear anybody else in the woods" The little blonde boy nods to his mother. Lisa takes your hand in one of her own hands and holds Adriana hand in the other.
Having lived in these woods for so long, Lisa knew just which direction to go in. So the three of you walk together towards the nearest river, Adrian keeps his ears perked in case he hears anybody else.
Suddenly Adrian stops. You and Lisa stop and look at him. "I hear shouting." He mutters.
"Which way?" His mother asks.
Adrian points upriver. "That way. They're saying your name." He looks at you briefly before running towards the shouting.
"Adrian!" Lisa shouts. Wasting no time, she scoops you up in her arms and begins to run after her son. "That boy..." she mutters to herself.
Adrian rushes through thick bushes into a mostly secluded area along the bank of the river. There he finds three other children and a woman all screaming out your name. They all stop and look towards Adrian in surprise. Not long after Lisa pushes through the same underbrush with you in her arms. "What did I tell you about running off." She scolds her son as she puts you down.
"Y/N!" The woman in the clearing shouts as she runs to you and embraces you in her arms.
"Mama!" You cry and hug her back.
Your mother pulls away and runs her hands from the top of your head and down your arms, wiping any dirt off of you as she goes. "We were so worried about you! Don't ever wander off like that again!"
You nod with a quivering lip and eyes full of tears. Your mother stands and beckons your older brother towards her. "Go fetch your father.
Your brother runs to the other edge of the forest lining and shouts, "Dad she's back! Y/N is back!"
"Thank you so much for bringing our daughter back to us." Your mother says to Lisa.
"Of course. Though if it weren't for Adrian we wouldn't have found her in the first place." Lisa gestures to her son who stiffens up when your mother looks at him.
"Well thank you for helping Y/N, Adrian." Your mother smiles at him. He relaxes and smiles, careful not to show his fangs. Your mother looks to you and nudges your shoulder. "You should thank them too."
"Thank you for helping me!" You don't mean to shout but accidentally do.
Lisa chuckles a bit at your outburst. "You're very welcome." She looks down at Adrian.
"You're welcome" he also replies.
You tug on your mother's skirt and she crouches next to you. "Can they stay for our picnic?" You whisper into her ear.
She looks back towards the strangers who and stands up. "Would you and your son care to join us for our picnic?"
Adrian perks up, he hadn't been around other children before. His heart races with excitement at the thought of staying.
"Oh we wouldn't want to intrude..." Lisa glances towards her son.
"Nonsense, we have plenty of food." Your mother leans closer to Lisa. "And Y/N would love for you both to stay" she half whispers to her.
Lisa gives a small smile alongside a sigh. "In that case we shall stay awhile."
Your face lights up when you hear that. You grab Adrians hand and lead him towards your siblings. Before reaching them you're stopped by your father.
"Y/N you're safe!" He kneels down to hug you. After releasing you from his embrace your father glances to the boy next to you. "Who is this?"
"I'm Adrian. Adrian Tepes sir." He introduces himself with much regality.
"He helped me find my way back" you blurt out.
"How kind of him." Your father stands up, "Go on and play with your siblings." He says and you once again take off running. Your father scowls, thinking that the name Tepes was familiar... and not in a good way.
Your parents sit alongside Lisa as you, Adrian, and your siblings run around. This is the first time Adrian had ever truly felt like a real kid. Seeing him smiling and having fun made Lisa so happy.
"How ever did you help Y/N find her way back?" Your mother asks.
"Well she did mention a river. I only know of one in the area so we found it and followed it until we made it here." Lisa stretches the truth a bit, not wishing to reveal her sons inhuman nature.
"Why were you in the woods to begin with? Not many people come out this way." Your father was a bit harsher with his questioning.
"We live nearby. Adrian desperately wanted to stroll through the woods today. I suppose it was just luck that we happened upon your daughter."
"I don't know if any homes in these woods, and you're not from our town." Your father sounds accusatory, though he's still trying to figure out what of.
"There is that large castle that appeared recently. You don't live there do you?" Your mother's voice is full of concern.
Lisa doesn't get the chance to answer before your father chimes in again. "That's a vampire castle honey, she couldn't live there." Lisa's face pales and she drifts her attention to her son, afraid for him if your parents figure out that he is a dhampir. "Although..." The blonde woman turns her attention back to the conversation. "I heard a rumor of a human woman who fell in love with a powerful vampire." Your fathers eyes are like daggers shooting in Lisa's direction. In turn Lisa balls her dress in her hands.
Your mother just laughs. "Oh don't be ridiculous." She turns towards Lisa, "Don't mind my husband, he hears the strangest stories on his travels."
Lisa let's out a forced laugh.
"No, no, it's true. In fact I believe I even heard a name mentioned." Your father is dead serious as he continues to stare Lisa down. "Does the name Tepes mean anything to you?"
The blonde woman shoots to her feet and your fathers suspicions are confirmed. "Adrian, we must be going!" She shouts, trying not to sound too nervous.
Adrian looks to his mother with sadness in his golden eyes. Your eyes sadden as well and you run towards the blond boy. "Thanks for playing with us" you embrace him in a tight hug, he awkwardly lifts his arms and returns it. Adrian feels his heart begin to race and a light blush graces his pale face.
"Children get away from that monster!" Your father yells. Your siblings back away from Adrian, unsure of what's going on. However, you continue to stay by his side.
"Monster?" you mumble as you look towards Adrian. The only thought that runs through your mind is that he doesn't look like a monster to you. Your arm is suddenly yanked aside as you're pulled behind your father along with the rest of your family.
"Keep your damned child away from my family." Your father commands Lisa.
She pulls Adrian closer to her, his body shaking. His mothers eyebrows knit together in fury. Lisa doesn't raise her voice, but it is bone chilling, "Don't speak of my child like that. He is no monster."
Your father stands his ground, his arms outstretched to either side to guard your entire family. You duck below his arm to try and run towards Adrian. "Y/N, stay away from them!" your father once again pulls you back, but you still fight to move forward.
"Adrian's not a monster, he's my friend!" Your eyes are filled with tears as you look at the scared boy in front of you.
"Vampires are not friends to humans Y/N. They're demons" Your father pulls you closer as he continues to glare at Adrian and his mother.
"Adrians a vampire?" You mostly ask yourself while you stare at your new friend.
"Enough of this!" Lisa shouts. She quickly regains her composure before speaking again. "We will leave you., but you must leave my family alone as well" You notice a tear roll down Adrians' face as he and his mother turn to leave. You watch the spot between the trees until they disappear and even long after that, never fully understanding why your father hated Adrian so much.
That night, the castle that was not to far from your town mysteriously disappeared in a flash of light. You knew if your heart that it meant you wouldn't see Adrian again.
Fifteen years pass and you are no longer that lost six year old girl anymore. When the night creatures begin their attacks on humankind you are able to get away and find safety, but your parents aren't so lucky. Your siblings scattered to multiple towns trying to find refuge, leaving you to wander from town to town alone.
Your most recent settlement was a quiet town not to far from the old Belmont estate. It was a small town but that's what you liked about it. Recently a familiar castle had appeared nearby, just before news spread of Dracula's demise. You recall something similar occurring when you were a child, but think nothing of it now. Many were afraid that there may be vampires remaining in the castle nearby so much of the town chose to avoid venturing into the nearby forest. You showed no such fear, especially during the day. After all you had laundry to do and the river in the forest was the perfect place to do it. You weren't going to let rumors stop you.
You squat by the riverside and begin to clean your dirty dresses. After a short while you hear a rustling in the bushes behind you. Your entire body tenses up.
Adrian passes through the underbrush near the river, intent on catching something to eat for lunch. What he didn't expect was to see a young woman perched on the edge of the water. Not wishing to be seen he immediately shifts into his wolf form.
You slowly rise to your feet and turn around, hoping deep down that there is another human behind you and not a night creature. You sigh in relief when you only see a large white wolf, but then your instincts kick in and realize that you should still be afraid of a wild animal. You are paralyzed with fear, unable to move your feet. The wolf only stares back at you.
Something about this moment feels familiar. The longer you look at the strange animal the more you notice how golden its eyes are. Golden eyes on a wolf... where have you seen that before you wonder.
The wolf turns and walks back into the underbrush and into the forest. A childhood memory suddenly hits you and your feet carry you after the wolf animal. "Wait!" you shout. The white wolf continues nonetheless. You desperately search your mind for the name of your old friend from some 15 years ago. How could you have forgotten his name?!
"Adrian?" Your say as you continue to run. The large animal looks back at you and you know that you have the right name. "Adrian!" You shout louder this time. The wolf swiftly turns around and in an instant is directly in front of your face in his human form. You almost fall over when you stop running.
"How do you know that name?" the blond man asks. His voice is commanding and vaguely threatening. You take in his features, almost a spitting image of his mother that you met all of those years ago. His long blond hair cascades in front of his face and his golden eyes peer into your own eyes.
"It is you." A smile graces your face and your eyes fill with joy. This takes Adrian off guard and he backs away from you. You take a step forward to fill the space between you. "You told me that name yourself back when we were children." When you don't get any reaction from him you back off. You anxiously tuck your hair behind your ear, "But it was so long ago you probably don't remember."
Adrian can feel that you are familiar to him and tries to think of where he met you, but it just isn't coming to him. "I'm sorry but I don't remember you" he says coldly. Your gaze falls to the forest floor in defeat. Your happy visage now saddened and heartbroken. Seeing your sad face jogs a memory in Adrians mind."Wait..." he says mostly to himself. You slowly lift your gaze towards him. He smirks and let's put a small laugh. "That's right, you were crying back then"
"I was!" You excitedly exclaim. Upon realizing how strange it sounds to be excited about your past emotions, your face cringes in embarrassment.
Adrian laughs a bit more at your strange expression. "If I remember correctly you were lost then. Funny that we should meet each other again under similar circumstances."
"Yes I was lost back then but I'm not-" you stop speaking and look around, realizing that the dhampir was right and you were in fact in an unfamiliar part of the forest. "Oh..."
"Shall I lead you back to the river than?" Adrian offers.
You shyly smile, "If you would be so kind."
Adrian walks past you and beckons for you to follow him. "This way"
After a short while of silence you find that you can't stand the dead silence between the two of you. "It's quite the coincidence that we should meet each other again."
"I believe I already mentioned that fact." He can tell that you're trying to spark some sort of conversation but you're not very good at it.
"Right." You mumble to yourself in disappointment. You lightly jog to catch up with Adrian so that you are walking beside him instead of behind. He glances at you briefly, expecting another attempt at conversation. You think long and hard about what to say next and finally come up with a question to break the silence. "So if you're a vampire how come to can walk in the daylight?"
"Technically I am a dhampir. I'm only half vampire so the sun doesn't bother me." He continues to stare straight ahead as he answers you. After a moment of thought he turns his head towards you. "I don't recall ever saying I was a vampire."
"I suppose you never did, but you never denied it when my father called you a vampire, so I suppose I just took it as fact." Adrian scowls at the mention of your father, the bad memories of the end of that day pouring back into his mind.
"Clearly you didn't heed his warnings about me." His comment comes out harshly and it stings your heart. You open your mouth the respond but stop when Adrian comes to a halt. He pushes back some shrubs and branches. "We're here."
You pass through the underbrush and are glad to see that the clothes you abandoned remain where you left them. Adrian turns to leave but you grab his hand. A light blush spreads on the dhampirs cheeks when he looks down at you. "I never believed what my father said about you, Adrian. You and your mother were so kind to me, so I never once imagined that you'd harm me."
Adrian pulls away from your grip. "You may have known that then, but now-"
"No! I still know that! You just showed me that you are still kind, and I trust you." You can't help but interrupt him. Adrians eyes widen when he realizes that you have seen right through him. "It may not mean much after 15 years, but I'd still like to be your friend."
Adrian averts his eyes and stays silent. He hadn't thought of making friends with anybody, especially since Sypha and Trevor left.
"Please say something. I'll understand if you don't want to see me again." Your voice is hoarse and your are afraid he may actually turn you away.
The dhampir thinks about his recent months on his own. It has been a lonely existence, but he felt that he deserved it. Perhaps he was being too hard on himself. His long mental struggle finally ends in a decision. "I... wouldn't mind having someone to talk to"
You were a bit surprised but elated to hear him say that. The smile on your face can't be any wider. It must be contagious because Adrian finds himself smirking as well. Once again you grab Adrians hands, "Lets have a picnic!"
"Right now?" Adrian is surprised by how eager you are.
You giggle, "No, not right now! How about tomorrow? Right here...unless you know someplace better?"
"Tomorrow would be wonderful."
You give Adrian a quick hug, so short that he doesn't know what to make of it. You quickly collect your scattered clothing and place them into the large basket you brought them in. "I can't wait!" You say as you pass him and begin your journey back to town.
The two of you spend your picnic catching up with each other. Adrian is hesitant with you at first, but as you share your story he begins to open up. He shares his own memories and some of his traumas. You both have many more picnics, eventually leading to Adrian inviting you to spend time with him at his castle.
You can't help but to stare at Adrian any time you are with him, taking in his features, not wanting to forget a single thing about him. The more time you spend around Adrian the more you want to be with him. Maybe someday you will work up the courage to confess to him, but for now you are happy just being by his side.
