As his day went on, Alucard managed to make good on his resolution to stay as far under the notice of his fellow students as possible. To be honest, it was rather easy when he thought back on it; most of the students avoided him already due to the aura of unease that his outward appearance caused. Combine that with exploitation of his powers as a dhampir to avoid the lunch, class, and general rush, and he was pretty much invisible to everyone and everything. The only exception was actually inclass; he couldn't exactly avoid anyone there.
Classes should've been ( at the extreme least ) an informative as the young prince sat at his lab table in "Evilnomics" ("Is this meant to be play on words", he thought, "Because otherwise…it does not make much sense."), he realized three things:
His schedule was a strange mix of classes for what appeared to be potential heroes and villains.
Said classes were ludicrous, and insultingly stereotypical.
Everyone in the villain classes (unlike the rest of the school) seemed to know who he was; and these students gave him an especially wide berth.
Except for one.
The one in question was a young woman currently trying to feed her Teraculus Thorn, a vicious plant known for mauling its victims (mostly humans) to death before using its roots to drag them underground to feed from their corpses. Alucard was in shock that the seemingly harmless school had such a brutal course curriculum for its future villain students. Luckily, he himself had dealt with this plant many times whilst going about his lengthy existence. He looked over at the girl again to check on her progress (she wasn't doing very well).
Her possibly once-shimmering blond hair was tousled and dirty, sticking out in places all over her head. Her milky smooth skin was no longer milky or smooth; she had numerous lacerations on her hands and arms, and each cut bled freely, like ruby badges of her struggle. Her outfit, which the young dhampir guessed had once been immaculate, was ripped, torn, and completely shredded in some places. The white parts of her sleeves had made contact with the blood on her arms, and now her outfit was almost completely red. All in all, she was one of the most beautiful women (young or otherwise) he had ever lain eyes upon.
None of this unparalleled beauty was helping her,however, as it was clear that the Thorn had her outmatched. Alucard watched as she frantically tried to follow the Baba Yaga's instructions and feed the unruly plant, sadly to no avail.
"One must admire her spirit, though", thought Alucard. " Many in her position would have surrendered by now."
Shadows knew his classmates had. Each had sustained minor to serious injuries in handling the Teraculus; and each had, in turn, chosen a failing grade in the assignment rather than risk losing a limb to the plant. But not this one girl. This one had chosen to keep going despite her injuries; and to be honest, it filled Alucard with a little bit of awe. He watched as she finally managed to get the plant beast to settle, and went about feeding it.
Luckily, the Teraculus didn't just feed on decaying human flesh, as Baba Yaga had taught them. The carnivorous plants also fed on Deadly Nightshade berries to supplement their diet when people were smart enough to avoid or escape their clutches. It was these selfsame berries that the girl was feeding her plant, as Alucard had already done so. He himself was covered in more than a few cuts; trivial things that would heal in little time. He rested on his stool, confident that he ( and the as-yet-unnamed girl ) had this particular project completed with flying colors. He turned back towards the beauty to check her progress.
And immediately froze.
The girl's back was turned to the Teraculus; totally oblivious to the fact the plant had its thorny tendrils out, ready to strike her in the back. It was a common hunting method of the Thorn; if the prey ever got the upper hand, it would go limp, play defeat, and the minute the prey was at ease or off guard….
It was, as young mortals say, "game over".
And the girl still had no clue that she was essentially about to die a slow, vicious death. In public, no less.
Alucard didn't think; he didn't evenbreathe. The Teraculus struck with blinding speed, a speed that could nearly rival lightning.
But to be ikru Drakona….to be Spawn of the Dragon…
Was to belightning itself.
Apple was ( expectedly ) oblivious to all that was going on around her as she tried to fix her outfit, which had been damaged in the struggle to feed the psycho-plant. If you asked her, she wouldn't have been able to tell you what happened as she herself didn't know.
One minute, she's trying to piece together her now-travesty of a skirt.
The next, some crazy-as-hex wind rushes by and nearly blows her off-balance.
Apple rounded on the source of the wind, about to deliver the most scathing round of disapproval she can muster…
But the sight that greeted her stuck her tongue to the roof of her mouth.
That plant, (y'know, the one that had just recently tried to tear her to bits) was cowering in its pot, completely docile; nothing like the flesh-craving monster from just a few minutes ago. And as she focused less on the plant and more on what- or rather whom -was in front ofher, she quickly saw why.
Alucard ( the new guy ) stood just mere inches from where her back was once pointed, glaring at the plant with an almost….inhumanintensity. The tendril from the Teraculus plant flung helplessly in his grip, unable to break free of the dhampir's hold.
Apple just stood there, dumbfounded. Not only was that crazy plant acting like a scared puppy, but this new guy was apparently so fast, he had saved her skin before she even knew she was in danger. As Alucard let go of the tendril, it shrunk back into its pot, trembling under his gaze. She was frozen to the spot in awe (and a little fear) as he turned around and looked at her with the same intensity, his his crimson irises aglow with….something she had never before seen in anyone. She was still staring at him when he said in a quiet, yet serious, tone:
"Learn to watch your own back, detenysh. I will not always be there to save it."
And just like that, fate played her hand; beginning something that would stir in them that would either change them…
Or destroy them.