Wow thanks to those of you who are watching this fic! But reviews are strongly encouraged. I want to know what you're thinking. It helps me improve!

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Danny stared; the figure's clothing was similar to that of a ninja: all black and covering every inch of his body, including most of his face. Not that the creature's face made much of difference; a vampire's facial features were hardly consequential. However, Danny had recently discovered that he could tell how hungry a vampire was by the color of its eyes: normal human colors – not hungry; bright red – very hungry; all black – starving. Danny was confident that had he been able to see vampire's face he would have seen exactly how ravenous the creature was. When Danny had first realized he had inherited the hunter powers his dad always blathered on about he had been amazed by his ability to see remarkable detail from incredible distances. A couple years and a few gaping wounds later Danny found his remarkable abilities a lot less astounding.

Danny braced himself, his knees bent and his hands gripped tightly to the building he was perched on. He watched the quickly approaching character motionlessly, waiting for the right moment to strike. Even so, he really didn't think sitting still would be effective… Still, he liked to think that a vampire' eyesight was partial to movement. His timing had to be perfect if he wanted to quickly end this demon's life before it attempted to take another.

There was only one more roof separating him and the oncoming threat when the young hunter decided to take action. Danny leapt into the air and collided with the stone-like creature, halting its progression forward and forcing both of them to plummet to the ground. He quickly grabbed the monster's shoulders, forcing its back to slam into the pavement with a sickening crack.

Despite how durable he had become to match the bloodsuckers that he fought, it still disturbed him to hear such a revolting noise.

Danny knowingly leapt back a few feet and crouched into a defensive position, ready for any attack from the dark figure. The figure stood – almost calmly – and dusted off its flat chest. Judging by its build, Danny decided it was a male. The being was a few inches taller than Danny and definitely more toned. But he was nowhere near as huge as some of the other creatures Danny had faced and the young hunter took comfort in it.

After his short-lived observation, Danny jumped in aggravated surprise when the figure moved, as if he had disappeared, too fast for even Danny to see. Danny heard something behind him and turned belatedly in time to see a fist right before it collided with his jaw. The force of the blow sent Danny flying into the building across the street; he felt the sturdy brick wall crack when his body collided with it. He slumped to the ground on his knee, but stood up and shook the dust from his hair within moments.

Danny could take his beatings from these monsters every night and still go to school in the morning. Being thrown into a wall, though, was not something he was used to experiencing. Danny rubbed his jaw sorely.

"Ow," Danny looked at the figure standing perfectly still across the road in front of his home. "Man, this guy's strong..."

The figure chuckled. "So this is the new hunter I've heard so much about? What a pity, I expected more. After all, those stories your father always tells make the hunters sound much more…" The cloaked figure waved a hand whimsically, as if in search for an adequate term. "…accomplished."

Danny's jaw dropped and his gaze narrowed into a glare. Why in the world would someone generate the feeling of a ninja one moment and then shatter it the next? The vampire reminded him of a stuck up blueblood at this moment. Ninjas weren't supposed to talk! Maybe it was different with vampire ninjas? Regardless, that wasn't his biggest concern at this moment. How did this stuck-up leech know about his father's stories? Was this guy spying on him and his family? He was almost sure his sixth sense would have given him some warning if a vampire had been stalking him and his family.

"Look here you stalker, ninja freak, I don't need to be 'accomplished' to kick your ass!"

In a blur of movement the vampire disappeared again, reappearing this time at Danny's right side. Danny felt a foot make contact with his ribcage, forcing him, once again, to fly through the air. The next thing he felt was the stinging sensation of his body scraped across the sidewalk.

He raised a hand to his aching head, his eyes widening when he realized there was something wet and sticky spilling down his face. He pulled his hand away to look at his bloodstained fingers.

"Dammit!" Danny thought as he tried to stand up. Fighting a vampire was hard enough as it was! Fighting a vampire fueled by the scent of his blood was worse! Danny wasn't sure but he could have sworn that he saw the figure grinning through the black cloth covering his face.

A shiver ran down his spine; the sting from the granular cement left him feeling gritty as well as sore. He decided the vampire had to be at least a hundred years old to move at such a rapid speed. That strength and agility wasn't usually common in the younger vampires. He tried to evaluate the situation, to figure out the best possible strategy to assault his adversary. The pain in his side was distracting him; he felt a wave of fear when he thought about whether or not he could defend himself while in such agony much longer. He decided his next attack would have to be done without delay.

Danny reached for a wooden stake on his belt and ran towards he creature with a loud roar. He jumped in the air and shifted the weapon above his head, prepared to bring it down on his shady opponent.

The creature moved swiftly, grabbing the hand Danny carried the weapon with, twisting it painfully as he moved behind the youth. The hunter fell to his knees with an exasperated gasp.

"Was that a battle cry?" Danny could hear a velvety voice crawl down his neck. To Danny's fleeting horror, he realized that he was completely exposed to the demon. The vampire then let go and moved to kick Danny in the stomach before the young hunter could retaliate. Danny felt the air forced out of him as he gasped in pain. He fell to the ground once again, his face pressed heavily against the cool cement.

"Honestly boy…I'm beginning to wonder even you even want to win this fight," the vampire mused idly.

Danny felt horrible, he couldn't see because of the blood in his eyes nor could he breathe because that damn vampire had knocked the wind out of him. His frustration mounted when his strength couldn't even prevent his weapon from being pulled from his hand.

"I would like to meet you again, young Fenton…Perhaps next time on better terms, yes?"

Danny felt the pain only for a moment: a heavy blow to the back of his head. He assumed it was the blunt end of his stake before consciousness left him. He felt his mind become hazy – he tried to fight it – but the sinking feeling was too strong, and he soon gave in to the lull of a discomforting coma.

As soon as he was sure the Fenton boy was asleep the vampire removed the mask from his head, his silver hair spilling around his shoulders. He knelt down next to the barely breathing boy, a pale hand moved towards him to move the raven hair, revealing the young man's face. The vampire sighed, scooping the unconscious hunter into his arms. It was hard to believe this bleeding youth was the protector of the human race.

Nor could he believe this adolescent was truly as pathetic as he appeared.

--

For the first time in years Danny was awoken by the sun peeking through the blinds of his window. He sat up quickly but soon regretted it: his head was throbbing in pain. Carefully, Danny lifted his shirt to look at his bruised ribs. He was pretty sure he had heard them crack last night and might have even felt them shift. However, in view of the fact that he was able to sit up without writhing in pain he was pretty sure they had healed at least somewhat.

He noticed the feeling of a knot on the back of his head – his fingers ran through his hair, matted with blood, to touch a sore bump hidden under his dirty hair. Danny's hands continued gingerly exploring his injuries. His fingers traced tiny cuts that covered his face; he could tell they had been much larger the night before. He rubbed his eyes; he found it hard to blink because the dried blood was making his eyelashes stick together.

Suddenly, Danny stopped thinking about his wounds and started wondering how on earth he was still alive at all. Danny looked around himself hastily. He was in his room, model rocket ships and all. He looked down perplexedly, noting that he was also comfortably tucked under the blankets of his bed. Did he somehow manage to climb back into his window last night? He didn't remember much, but he did remember losing.

He had never lost…not like that. The enemy had gotten away on a few occasions, but never had he been beaten. He had been knocked around before – heaven knows he had suffered from many injuries – but he had never been knocked out. Why hadn't the ninja vampire killed him when he had the chance?

Danny decided not to meditate on it. Right now he was just grateful for his life and disgusted by his gruesome appearance. He swung his legs out of bed and onto the floor so he could stand and walk to the bathroom. When he reached the bathroom sink he stared at his reflection. He looked ghastly. His face was covered in dried blood and his shirt was torn in several places. Gloomily, Danny hoped Sam would be able to supply him with a new hunting outfit.

He pealed the bloodstained clothing off his body before turning his attention to the shower. He twisted the knob, holding his hand out to make sure the temperature of the water was perfect, and then he climbed into the shower and let the warm water run down his back. He rested his forehead against the cool, tiled wall of the shower and sighed. His eyes closed and he began listening to the rhythmic sound of water hitting his skin.

It wasn't every day that Danny was at the mercy of a vampire. He should've been dead at that moment, not slumped in a shower to wash away the evidence of his first and totally whipped defeat. Letting a hunter live was not a common practice among vampires. He didn't understand why he wasn't in pieces at that moment. All vampires he had seen would have been desperate to sink their teeth into his flesh. But this one had let him live…

Even under the warm beads of water rolling down his back Danny felt a chilled shudder at the thought of being bitten. Along with that pathetic encounter last night, which should have technically resulted in his death, he'd had his close shaves against other bloodthirsty demons. Most of them loved to taunt Danny about how curious they were about what a hunter would taste like.

Fortunately none of them have ever gotten that chance. And Danny promised himself they never would.

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"I swear, I've never faced a vampire like that," Danny stated firmly as he looked at the concerned expression on his friends' faces. Their meals before them in the cafeteria were untouched. "And I think I heard him say 'I would like to meet you again'." Danny stared across the cafeteria and lowered his voice to a whisper. "I never want to fight that guy again."

"Dude, do you really think he could be stalking your family?" Tucker pulled out his PDA and quickly connected to the internet. "Can you put a restraining order on a vampire?"

"I don't know…he knows about my dad's stories." Danny propped his head on his elbow and sighed, "but so does most of Amity."

His friends chuckled; Jack had a habit of telling the stories of his ancestors at every possible moment. Danny remembered standing in line at the store covering his face in mortification while his dad told the poor cashier all about his great-great-something-or-other defeating some odd number of vampires in some amazing fashion. Waitresses just trying to get an order had to stand by their table for at least twenty minutes whenever his family went out to eat. Eventually his mother resolved to handle all errands on her own and have as few family outings as possible.

"True, but at night he spends a majority of his time in the lab, or asleep," Sam said as she finally began to poke at some green object on her tray. "The only time he leaves the house at night is during his and your mom's weekly raids."

"Yeah," Tucker said without looking up from the small glowing screen, "and it's not like that vamp could have heard your dad during the day. It would have exploded or whatever."

"I don't really want to think about it anymore." Danny rubbed his face in frustration. "All I know is that he knows who my dad is and the last thing I need is vampires going after my family. Especially that one. I swear it's incredible that vampire didn't rip out my insides last night."

Sam didn't hide her concern. She had dreaded this ever since Danny had told her about the first time he fought a vampire. "Danny, maybe you should take it easy…Just for the week!" she added quickly when she noticed Danny beginning to protest. "Tomorrow is the first day of fall break. Maybe during your vacation from school you could take a little vacation from hunting too?"

Danny stared at the tray of food in front of him; he wasn't really thinking about turkey casserole or the strange mystery food twitching on the corner of his plate. He was thinking about the words his friend had just spoken. Danny knew he could never really take a break. Vampire attacks weren't really common, but when they did happen Danny was, in actuality, the only one who could stop them. Danny knew Sam was right, though; he needed a break. Nothing was more exhausting than fighting demons. Particularly the ones he couldn't overpower.

Tucker squirmed uncomfortably, finally breaking the silence. "Maybe we can go see a movie tomorrow? I heard Brain Mauler 3is out."

Danny felt a smile stretch across his face. Tucker always knew how to ease a tense situation, usually with the suggestion of seeing a mindlessly entertaining horror flick.

Sam still looked a little uneasy, but she was soon in a heated debate with Tucker about whether Brain Mauler 2's great graphics could compete with the classic gore of the first installment of the horror trilogy.

Danny decided to try and relax, at least a little bit. He could allow himself to have a little fun. No school left his schedule pretty open. He was sure he'd be able to find plenty of chill time for him and his best friends. After all, it wasn't like he was leaving Amity defenseless for a week.

--

"Danny we're leaving Amity for the week!" For a moment there, Danny was almost sure that Jack had also said 'defenseless' in that sentence. Danny stared at his orange jumpsuit-clad father in disbelief. In one gloved hand he held a letter and in the other was a large suitcase filled with multiple vampire fighting instruments.

"Wha... wait... I mean... why?" Danny struggled to find a way to hide his aggravation; he hated to upset his overly-emotional parent.

"Do you remember the story I told you about my college roomie?" Jack Fenton asked as he tried to fit a bazooka-like weapon in his suitcase.

Danny nodded. How could he forget? It had been his dad's first and only encounter with a vampire and possibly his favorite story to tell. Danny always wondered about the truth behind it: his dad had described it as a vicious struggle in which he and the vampire were evenly matched until he barely lost because he had dropped his clove of garlic. Danny knew for a fact that this part of his father's tale was a lie because he had learned, personally, that the only thing garlic will do against a vampire is make it laugh at the hunter's stupidity.

"Well, it turns out his nephew has heard about his uncle's old best pal! He sent us a letter and asked us to pay him a visit!" Jack grinned. Danny hadn't seen his dad this excited since last Christmas when they got pictures with Santa at the mall.

"I didn't even know Vlad had any siblings, let alone a nephew." Danny's mother handed him an empty duffle bag. "Here, sweetie; you'd better start packing."

Danny took the bag and looked between his two parents; had they no idea what they were doing? "When are we leaving?"

"Tomorrow! We're taking the VR!" Jack held up the shiny keys to the Vampire Roller for emphasis. "If we leave early enough we'll get there before nightfall, then we can set up the VR's vampire radar."

His parents shuffled off in different directions, getting ready for the upcoming journey. Danny was left standing awkwardly in front of the stairs. He finally gave in and let out a long, heavy sigh. He turned silently and trudged slowly up the staircase.

Danny walked slowly towards his room. In less than 5 minutes his plans for the week were shattered. Instead of spending a week with his friends he would be in Wisconsin, visiting with his father's dead roommate's relative. He couldn't believe his parents had managed to make travel plans in such a short amount of time. Danny dreaded telling his friends the miserable news.

Although bumming out his friends was something he was definitely not looking forward to, Danny was worried most about Amity. An entire week without anyone to prevent any vampire attacks. Danny had no idea what kind of havoc the ninja vampire would wreak on the town while he was gone. Danny cursed himself for being so easily beaten the night before.

He opened his dresser and shoved a few shirts and a couple pairs of pants in his bag then fell backwards onto his bed. He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead, the smooth skin beneath his fingers indicated that all his cuts had healed throughout the day. Most of them were gone by the time he got to school, but he had still managed to get a questioning look from Mr. Lancer. Luckily he was the only teacher in the entire school who had any concern for Danny's well being. His lack of alertness had earned him a nearly invisible position in all his other classes.

Danny yawned and started thinking about the inevitable. A long car ride with his family – he would be sure to charge his mp3 player that night – and a week with a stranger. Seriously, who was this guy and why did he suddenly become interested in his uncle's old college roommate? Danny decided not to over think it; surely he just wanted to learn more about his deceased relative? Danny could only imagine this guy's displeasure when he learned that the only relatives Jack would be talking about were the fantastic Fentons.

Danny turned onto his stomach and buried his face into his sheets. He was in for a long, boring week.

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Who is this mysterious Dalv Masters and what does he really want? Find out next time! DUN DUN DUN

Kudos to Din Kelion (who rocks my socks) and AkizukiSakura (best beta ever.)

It takes awhile to post a chapter when it has to go through me and two other people. But believe me, if I posted it without these girls' help it wouldn't be anywhere near as good.

I think the next chapter will be longer. This one is kinda short ;