Rose looked up through the smoke, her face frozen in a position of shock and disbelief. The light silhouetted a familiar figure against the car's headlamps. The beams of light shone around the tall shape dressed in black like a perverse halo. The girl finally found her voice although her words came out somewhat choked.
"Steve?" She uttered, "Is that-?" She was cut off as a hand closed around her throat. The boy had stepped forward in one quick motion and closed his fist around Rose's neck. At such close proximity, even in the dark light, there was no mistaking his memorable features. However his usual smirk was contorted with an emotion Rose could only guess was rage and his eyes seemed almost black in the low light. Rose whimpered at the feel of his cold skin around her throat but thankfully the boy released his grip almost immediately. He gazed at her in confusion and anger but over his shoulder a moving shape drew Rose's attention away from Steve's bizarre greeting. Mr Tiny stepped out of the car, closed the door softly and leaned against it. He seemed to be waiting for something. Rose ignored the unwanted spectator and turned her attention back to Steve.
"Rose?" He spat. He uttered her name as though it was some horrible curse word and Rose recoiled to see him behave in such a way. Their time apart had clearly exacerbated, not healed, old wounds. She was about to retaliate with an equally venomous response when there was an outcry from behind her.
"Hey! Oi, you there!" An unrecognizable voice called out. Rose guessed it was one of the freaks attempting to scare off the intruders. Please run away, save yourself, she thought, helpless to interfere for she had guessed Steve's next move. He stared hard into her eyes, nothing moving except one corner of his mouth curling slightly into a cruel smile. Rose kept her eyes on his, pleading with him silently not to act. But as soon as the poor, ignorant freak was near enough, he threw Rose to the ground and lunged.
"NO!" Rose cried out, extending a hand feebly as though she could pull Steve off of the man purely by wishing it. A little way in front of her, the Vampaneze had reached the freak and slit his neck with his thumb. It was a fast and almost painless death and if Rose had had control of her senses, she might have guessed something was wrong with the way Steve hunted. The boy usually killed for two reasons. First, he liked it. He enjoyed making his victim suffer and watching their eyes widen in terror and pain as he destroyed them. Secondly, he killed for food, just like the other Vampaneze however this time he did lower his lips to gather the fresh warm blood which poured down his victim's open throat, instead he cut the man a second time and let his blood stain the wet grass.
The smell hit Rose with a sudden force. The sweet scent almost suffocated her and caused an intense burning in her throat. A hungry fire blazed in her chest and overwhelmed her instantly. In a flash she was by the victim's side. Out of pure instinct, she hit out at Steve causing him to fly backwards safely out of reach. Wasting no time, Rose began to feed heavily from the gaping wound on the man's limp neck. Thick blood passed her swollen lips and filled her mouth. It tasted sickly sweet yet she yearned for more. Long after she had drained the last few drops from the lifeless corpse, the taste still lingered on her tongue, taunting her. She wanted – no, she needed more blood yet frustratingly the body held so little. Her fingers searched the grass for a pool of blood that might have fallen but to her dismay there was none.
"I knew it," came a bitter voice from across the lawn. Rose looked up to see Steve picking himself off the ground, wincing a little at the pain in his side. Rose had winded him and bruised his hip after crashing into him with such a force.
"I knew you wouldn't be able to resist. You can't survive on that preserved mess!"
"I didn't have a choice," said Rose quietly. A mixture of emotions bubbled in the pit of her stomach. She pushed the feelings of shame down to the bottom, avoiding looking at the corpse, as old emotions crept back to the surface as she gazed at Steve's familiar features. He still had the same passionate fury behind his eyes and he directed his full attention on Rose, nearly taking her breath away. She averted her gaze so that she could regain the power of speech.
"Why are you here? To tempt me?" Tears swelled in her eyes as her mask slipped and she could not prevent her frustration from rising.
"To taunt me?" she continued, "Look what I've done! I've thrown away another home!" She stood up and kicked the dead freak beside her, instantly regretting doing so.
"Serve you right if I did," retorted Steve. Rose chose not to reply, she was preoccupied by grief. She had thrown away the chance to live at the freak by breaking the one rule Mr Tall had insisted she lived by. It seemed Steve had only returned to destroy her new opportunities at the Cirque. She glared at him, intending to shout at him again but her anger melted away as his eyes met hers. However it seemed Steve had no trouble voicing his rage.
"Living with freaks? How could you stand it? I couldn't even bring myself to taste that one's blood!" He glowered at the body resentfully and then glanced around him.
"Bunch of cowards!" He roared, "Won't even risk their necks to avenge one of their own!" His voice echoed around the camp, interrupting the silence.
"They're afraid," whispered Rose, "too many have been hurt tonight." Her sad tone surprised the boy, rendering him silent for a moment. Rose stood opposite him, her face was wrought with heartache and misery and he suddenly felt the urge to wrap his arms around her and protect her and reassure her that he would never hurt her but another part of him intervened. He was still furious with the girl and somehow her self pity only made him angrier. This was all her fault, why should he have to protect her from herself?
"They were hurt because of you Rose. You led us here," he lied. He wanted to make her suffer. If Rose thought she was to blame, the guilt would be too much to endure. Behind him, Mr Tiny raised his eyebrows at the boy's slurs but was impressed nonetheless. He knew that Steve had never expected to meet Rose at the Cirque; he had only wanted to join in the freak show's destruction. Much to Rose's despair, Steve continued.
"You shouldn't have come here. You put them all in danger. And now one of them is missing... isn't she?" Rose gathered enough strength to answer him.
"Where is she? You've taken her?" She struggled forward and clasped at the boy's jacket pleadingly. Her begs faltered as she noticed a slight smirk form around Steve's lips and her fist began to clench around his collar.
"Where. Is. She?" Growled Rose through gritted teeth. A stifled, arrogant laugh from Steve triggered an outcry of antagonism from within Rose and she let go of his jacket and stepped back. She could feel rage and frustration bubbling up inside of her which eventually boiled down and reached her fists. Her hand connected with his nose and made a satisfying crack. Steve staggered back and wiped the small trickle of blood away with the back of his hand. He was practically swaying with pent up anger and a snarl escaped his curled lips. Rose ducked to avoid a blow but was caught by her hair by the boy's free hand. He wove his fingers through her strands of hair and gripped her head hard. Rose screamed in pain and fear and struggled to break free but each pull separated strands of her hair from her head. Steve bent low, his face inches from hers and was about to utter a menacing threat when Rose had an idea.
She smacked her forehead against his face, successfully damaging his nose and at last she was released from his merciless grip. Rose staggered backwards blind; the impact had caused stars to obscure her vision. She could Steve crying out in pain and she extended an arm in order to balance herself. Instead her hand brushed against someone. She felt the wetness on her fingers as Steve's tears made contact with her skin. Surprised, Rose allowed her fingers to trace the tear's route to his chin where they had mixed with the blood that leaked from his nose and she wiped them away with a soft caress. Steve closed his eyes and gritted his teeth against the pain. The girl's soothing touch expelled any rage he had left and he guided her hand with his to his cheek. Rose blinked several times until her vision was restored. In front of her, standing very close was a fragile boy, his eyes closed, with blood and tears smeared across his face.
"Steve," said Rose silently. Steve opened his eyes as though he could read her thoughts and tried to smile. He failed and instead only managed a half-hearted snarl. Rose smiled for him although somewhat sadly and removed her hand from his face. He let it go reluctantly and watched it as it fell by the girl's side.
"Steve, come." Called the previously silent spectator. Both Steve and Rose turned to face him but the figure of Mr Tiny was barely visible in the darkness. Steve turned back to face Rose almost apologetically but she was still peering through the darkness to look at the fat, bald man. She was certain he had just tipped his head in welcome to her but chose to ignore him, still certain he was the culprit for Steve's wayward attitude.
"See you," said the boy as he turned away but Rose grabbed hold of his wrist.
"Don't," she begged, "don't leave me, please?" She knew she sounded desperate but she didn't care. After all this time, the separation had only taught her that she didn't want to live without him. To her dismay, Steve shook his head.
"I can't Rose. They said I have a destiny... or whatever." Steve struggled to find the words to describe the awesome feeling he had felt when Mr Tiny had first told him about his destiny. He had been handed back a dream he thought he had lost forever the night his best friend had betrayed him. He knew it was his fate to lead the Vampaneze to victory and to destroy those pathetic Vampires and their associates. He looked at Rose unhappily. Mr Tiny had made it clear she was not part of his destiny; in fact, it was possible she could destroy it. The girl had the power to ruin everything, all of his hopes and dreams and ambitions just by being close to him. The Vampaneze had already chosen Steve as their elected leader and therefore Rose had to be left behind.
"A destiny?" said Rose in bemusement.
"Yeah," replied Steve. He turned and walked back to where Mr Tiny was holding the door open for him. "And you're not part of it."
A horrible feeling gathered in the pit of Rose's stomach. It felt as though her heart got stuck in her throat and the bridge of her nose felt tender as her eyes started to water. His stinging words echoed around her head, blocking any other thought that attempted to comfort her. Her breath left her in a rush as she realised he didn't want her. It felt as though time had slowed down and the world around her hushed. Behind her, trees bent and swayed together in the night time breeze, leaning over to tell each other what had happened. She let the sound of their rustling leaves fill her head, their strange Chinese whispers was soft and low. As another gust of wind shook them, they recoiled in horror away from each other, gasping at the secrets they had learned. A small, broken sob rang out and it took Rose a moment to realise it came from her. He was gone, or going at least, and there was nothing she could do to stop him. She looked up to see him climbing into Mr Tiny's hearse and behind him the man himself was watching her with interest. A small, almost unnoticeable moment shook Rose from her grief. It was the slightest touch, something anyone else would have disregarded, but seeing Mr Tiny reach over to pat Steve's shoulder in what looked like a simply comforting gesture provoked anger and understanding from Rose. The moment burned in her memory as Mr Tiny followed Steve into the car. He had touched his shoulder, only briefly, as a warning as if to say he's mine, he belongs to us, he's under our control. Rose suddenly grasped the fact that this destiny, or whatever Mr Tiny had told him about, was a way to control him. Promises of authority and power kept Steve within their grip.
Quickly and quietly she made up her mind to rescue Steve from their control so that he could make up his own mind on whether he truly wanted to stay with the Vampaneze after he had been given all his options. She stood tall and stubborn as the car pulled out of the Cirque's grounds. As the headlights swung around the corner and faded from sight, a small figure was illuminated across the field. Rose watched as the limping creature headed towards her with a note in its tiny, grubby fists. Harkat managed what Rose thought was a grin as he handed her a crumpled note. She unfolded it, read the address and placed it in her pocket.
"Thank you," she whispered before running after the retreating car.