Prompt : Hayffie prompt: True Blood AU? Vampires?

I don't watch True Blood so I went with my own idea of vampires, I hope it's okay. And I had fun tbh so I hope everyone likes it :p

Vampires Don't Live In Crypts

Haymitch felt it as soon as he entered the dim-lighted club.

Powerful.

Young.

Untamed.

He exchanged a glance with Chaff and they both winced at the same time.

"Another one?" his friend sighed. "You know we can always turn back, right? We're not Snow's fucking cleaning crew."

They could have turned back, nothing forced them to seek the new one and take them in. But when the news would flash with a series of brutal murders in the next days, they would feel guilty about not helping. New vampires were always hard to control. New vampires without their sire to guide them were savage.

"I just wanted a bloody drink." he grumbled.

It had barely been a month since they had picked up Peeta, Snow's latest victim to date. The older vampire was out of control, turning people for his own enjoyment – or maybe he was still scheming taking over the world, he kept some of his pets after all, Haymitch and Chaff had just been lucking enough to escape him – being less and less discrete, apparently finding it fun to let new vampires loose on the world to fend for themselves. There had been talks of stopping him, of putting him out of his misery, but Snow was centuries old, like six or seven hundred years old. And the older a vampire, the more powerful he was. Mags was probably the one who came closer in age and she was too frail now, had spent too long locked in a crypt – thanks to Snow – and was still recovering. Haymitch and his one hundred and one years didn't even come close.

"Pun intended?" Chaff chuckled.

Haymitch rolled his eyes, a smirk on his lips. "We split."

That was their usual method.

Haymitch went straight to the bar, not willing to start the chasing/explaining part without having a drink first. The club was packed and he had to sneak past young people dancing close together. It made his mouth water. So much energy, so many hearts pounding… He was thirsty – and not for whiskey – but he ignored it, practiced by now at pushing it down – he never fed from humans, they had a deal with the blood bank and they also had acres of woods stocked with game. For a new one though, the place must have been pure torture.

He didn't know how long they had been there but he was impressed they hadn't started a bloodbath yet.

His eyes fell on her because she was beautiful.

They remained there because there was perspiration on her brow and because he could feel her from where he was standing. Strong. He could see what had attracted Snow.

He dropped on the stool next to her without asking and turned toward her. She ignored him, staring at the empty glass trapped in her hands, she was holding it so tight it was a miracle it hadn't shattered yet.

"Two whiskey." he asked the bartender.

She looked up, a little confused, and then pursed her lips in obvious annoyance. "I am not interested."

Her voice was high-pitched, she had a posh accent. And blue eyes. Very, very blue eyes.

Chaff had a theory that vampires were always drawn to beautiful people – that was what the legends said anyway. Haymitch always scoffed at that and answered that no one would have accused Chaff of being beautiful. Beauty was often in the eye of the beholder though and the woman who had turned Chaff had found him beautiful despite the missing hand.

In this case though, there was no debate.

Her honey blond hair fell on natural curls on her shoulders, barely hiding the bite on her neck. Her fingers were shaking.

"In whiskey?" he joked. "What's your poison then? Vodka? Tequila? Blood?" Her eyes widened, the spark of terror so clear that it was obvious what she would do and Haymitch made a face. "Please, don't."

She ran anyway.

She bolted from the stool and ran. Haymitch gave chase, a growl escaping his chest, ignoring the stares. People would forget soon enough and go back to their business. People always forgot and went back to their business.

The crowd slowed him down and she was fast. Besides, she clearly knew her way around. He caught up with her at the emergency exit door, barely managing not to get knocked out by the metal door – that, Chaff would never have let him live down.

She was wearing heels and a tight dress, on flat ground she was no match for him. He didn't bother running anymore. All the more so when she found herself faced with a dead end in the back alley. She turned around, her back to the wall, the only way out blocked by his body and she snarled, her upper lip lifting to reveal impressive fangs.

The hiss that escaped her throat seemed to startle her and she stepped back abruptly, her hand going to her mouth, her eyes growing bright with frightened tears.

Haymitch lifted his hands in front of him and stayed where he was, not wanting to frighten her any further. It was obvious she was in a state of panic.

"Okay, sweetheart. Tip number one, we're predators. If you run, I'll chase. Instinct and all that jazz." he told her. "The more you act like a prey, the stronger the feeling is."

"Please, don't hurt me." she whispered.

"I won't." he promised. "I want to help."

"You are like… them." she spat. "They… They did something to me."

"Drank your blood." he surmised. "And then made you drink theirs. Who was it? Whose blood did you drink? I need a name."

Because the oldest the vampire, the strongest the newbie. And she reeked of strength. It was hard to say if it was her natural self or if that came from someone else.

She shook her head. "There were several of them. I don't… I don't understand."

"Yeah, you do." he snorted. "Blood drinking, fangs in your mouth… Come on, sweetheart, do the math."

"Vampires don't exist." she immediately retorted.

"And yet here we are." he shrugged. "I'm going to come closer now. Don't run again. You make me want to hunt." He was half-prepared for her to dash but she stayed where she was. It was only when he was close enough to touch that he realized why. He brushed his fingers against the bite mark and she shivered. His grey eyes darted to hers, not surprised to see her fangs were out, ready to tear him in half if he turned out to be a threat. There were other bites, one in the crook of her elbow and another one on her other wrist. "The vampires. Describe them for me."

He kept his voice calm and soothing, almost hypnotic. It was a skill honed with time. It was supposed to relax human preys. Vampires were like some exotic snakes, they lulled their prey into a false sense of security and then they struck. Haymitch had long ago learned to use that skill to be heard and listened to by humans and vampires alike. It didn't always worked. It certainly never worked on Katniss – then again the kid was a pain.

"Two women and two men." she hummed, her body suddenly losing its tension. "Two of them were blond, I think they were related. The other woman had huge fangs. They had ridiculous names…"

"Enobaria, Brutus, Gloss and Cashmere." he surmised. Snow's minions. Of course.

"Are they friends of yours?" she asked, tensing again. "Please, don't kill me. Please. I don't want to die. I don't…"

"You're not dying anytime soon, Princess." he chuckled. "And they're not friends of mine, no."

"What did they do to me?" she breathed out.

He reached out for the bite mark again and she didn't recoil this time.

"That's the question." he muttered to himself. "They all give you some blood?"

"I don't remember very well." she admitted, hugging herself. "One of them said I would last longer if they made me drink. I… I escaped. They didn't tie me up or anything and they slept like the dead during the day so I… I just crawled out of there."

Haymitch lifted his eyebrows, impressed. Not everyone could escape the Careers. Except…

"You got out in daylight." he winced.

"Yes." she nodded, apparently relieved to share her tale. "I was so tired… It was so hot… I felt like I was burning on my way back home. I was all… sunburned. But then it disappeared. It… healed. And I am so thirsty but no matter how much water I drink I am still parched and it has been two days now and it is not going away and my head buzzes and I can feel you are not… You are… And these things keep growing and I don't understand any of it."

"Fucking great." he sighed. "You didn't completely turn yet."

That explained how she had managed to get out in sunlight and why she hadn't been lost to blood lust in that club. She was only halfway there.

"What does it mean?" she frowned.

"It means those idiots started feeding you vampire blood and didn't finish so now you're trapped halfway." he explained and before she could get her hopes up, he shrugged. "And that's not good, sweetheart. Either you turn completely or you die. There's no in-between here. Although it's your choice, I guess. Immortality isn't for everyone. You lose everyone you care for. You become… something not pretty. Wouldn't have chosen it given the choice."

But Snow hadn't left him a choice.

"I don't want to die." she said immediately.

"You're very sure about this?" he asked. He wasn't trying to be cruel. He was trying to be kind.

"I really, really don't want to die." she repeated.

He let out a deep sigh, studying her. Could she handle it? She escaped vampires, she could handle it. She was a survivor, it was obvious. And so strong. It pulsed from her. None of the Careers were as old as he was, if he turned her… She would be a strong one. It wasn't always a good thing either.

But her blue eyes were pleading and she was beautiful. Maybe vampires were attracted to beauty. Like a moth to a flame.

"Fine." he granted. "Fine." He eyed her neck, a little wary. "I need to drink from you."

She stepped back and then forward again. "Will it hurt?"

"No." he said. "Just relax."

It had been a while since he had done that: feed from a human. The self-loathing and disgust rose in his throat but he swallowed it back down. That was behind him. He wouldn't hurt her. He would help her.

Feeding from a human was painful when you weren't careful, when you didn't care not to make it painful.

He brushed his fingers against her cheek, let them trail down her throat, and stepped even closer, pressing his lips against hers.

"Trust me." he requested.

"I trust you." she breathed out.

She wasn't lying. He kissed her until she relaxed and responded to his mouth. He might have gotten a little lost in it because then it turned messy and brutal and suddenly he had her pinned to the wall and he wasn't sure what it had been about in the first place: blood or sex. Her breathing was quick, he could feel her heartbeat picking up impossibly fast, his mouth roamed along her jaw, nipping and kissing in turn, and then down her neck until he found the old bite. He licked the battered patch of skin and she moaned. It spur him on. He started by kissing and nipping and when she buried her fingers in his hair, he bit.

She gasped when he started sucking but it wasn't a gasp of pain. The act was almost erotic. She tasted sweet. So sweet. He had to fight to keep a clear head, to remind himself he didn't want to drink too much. He could taste the other vampires' tinge in her blood and if he had been able to, he would have sucked everything away, left her clean for his blood, completely claim her as his.

Eventually, he tore his fangs away from her skin and pressed his forehead against her shoulder, panting a little. She was languid in his arms, dizzy probably. He kissed the four punctured marks on her neck, licked until blood wasn't dripping anymore and then he cupped her head.

"Your turn." he whispered, pressing her wrist against her lips.

Classic way would have been to cut his vein open and let blood drop in her mouth but she was already halfway there and she already have fangs so… She didn't need to be guided, the thirst told her was to do, instinct took over. She bit – harder than he had and he groaned in pain – and sucked. After a couple of minutes, she was stronger and she gripped his forearm to keep him in place. He petted her hair.

They would have to do it a few more times, he figured, but not many. She was already craving blood. All she would need was a few feeding from him.

He felt his friend's presence but she was too busy feeding to notice.

"That's new." Chaff commented.

She startled badly and snarled again, fangs out, chin covered in blood… Not a pretty sight.

"Tips number two." Haymitch snorted, brushing his thumb against her face to wipe the surplus of blood. "Don't pick fights with vampires you have no chances to beat." She didn't relax, she huddled against his side, instinctively seeking protection from him. She would learn to control the bestial part of her with time. They all did. "He's friendly, sweetheart."

"Not a threat." Chaff confirmed, playfully wriggling his eyebrows. "Wouldn't mind being very friendly if you catch my drift. Buy you a drink maybe…"

"Mine." Haymitch growled at once, the snarl in his voice hard and dangerous.

Maybe he needed to control the bestial part of him.

"Okay." Chaff humored him. "She looks like she could use a shower, some real food and a nap. And you are high on blood. Why don't we all go home? I'm Chaff, by the way."

"Effie." she offered, wincing when one of her fangs caught her bottom lip. She looked up at him with a questioning look.

"They'll retract once you don't feel threatened anymore." he promised. "You'll get the hang of it. Learn to control it." He paused for a moment and realized they had never exchanged names. "Haymitch."

She flashed him a small tentative smile. "Nice to meet you, Haymitch."

Chaff's laugh boomed out. "That's rich. You feed on the girl, you get her to feed from you and you didn't even know her name? Smooth, buddy. Very smooth."

"You're not funny." he grumbled, nudging the woman in the direction of their car.

He caught Chaff up on the way there and his amusement died down. If the Careers were messing up that bad, something was brewing. There were rumors of another powerful vampire working in the shadows. Coin, they called her. Maybe Snow felt threatened, maybe things would change… Mostly, Haymitch didn't like the idea of a war on his territory.

"Where are we going?" Effie asked once they had reached the car. She looked uncertain and slightly frightened again but she also looked unwilling to part from his side.

"I've got a place." he explain. "A safe place for people like us. A gated community. There are empty houses, we can get one for you while you adjust. Then you can decide if you want to stay or go."

"A gated community?" she frowned.

"What did you think?" Chaff teased. "That vampires lived in crypts? Too middle-age for us. We've got kids out there. They'd die without TV."

She looked embarrassed and it made him smirk. She climbed on the back seat and, after a second of hesitation he got in with her. Chaff lifted an eyebrow but sat behind the wheel without protest. He needed to be close. It was probably a side-effect of the siring. He wouldn't know, he had never done it before. He felt responsible for her, he felt like he needed to protect her, keep her safe. And she was nervous, he could see it, which in turn made him feel aggressive. She relaxed after a few minutes of driving and crept closer to him though. She seemed to crave the closeness as much as he did.

He searched his friend's eyes in the rear-view mirror, not sure he hadn't made a huge mistake.

"It's normal." Chaff answered without him having to ask. "Remember how it was when you turned."

It had happened too long ago for him to have clear memories. And he hated Snow so much now it was difficult to imagine he had craved his proximity as much.

"I hate to be rude…" Effie said after clearing her throat, searching his eyes. "But I am thirsty."

His wrist was already healing but it was still tender, he bare his throat to her instead. She didn't need to be told twice, she latched at it, her fangs sinking deep. He cradled the back of her head in his hand, surprised to find the whole thing aroused him. She was purring in contentment against his neck.

He let her drink her full.

She fell asleep once she was done, curled up on the seat, her head in his lap.

"You're sure it was the right choice?" Chaff asked. "This life's not made for everyone. Think she can handle it?"

He looked down at her relaxed face, trusting in her sleep, and he smirked.

Was it the right choice? He didn't know.

Was this life made for her? He didn't know.

Could she handle it? He had no doubt she could.

More than that, he had no doubt she would find a way to put his life upside down.

He wasn't as upset by that as he should have been.

It was good to shake a century old routine now and then.

She would make things interesting.