Chapter 4 – Black Rainflower

Sherwin Penwood was haunted for 3 years because of the same problem. This time, it wasn't only him but also his son, Henry who was helping him in his duties. Henry grew as a fine gentleman of courage and bravery unlike his father who was more nervous in dire situations. Paperwork rose after three years. All of them were about the reports of ghouls in different parts of London. It was the same problem; there was no vampire who created them and the number of ghouls were always a mass. Seras and as well as Alucard fought them. Alucard forced himself to hunt for he was getting bored and wanted to search for a good opponent. But his good opponent was never seen nor did it even introduced itself. He hoped it'd show up when he made his appearance but no. He was forced to hunt because the legion of ghouls were in different towns, distances away from each other.

It was chaos especially for the Penwoods to deal with the problem at hand. They only find relief when Seras and Alucard finished their job clean. But it never stopped to haunt them. If there's a month that became silent from reports, the next would fill their tables with new ones. They researched for any possible leads but only a vampire can breed ghouls. They also thought and searched of shadow organizations who would use ghouls to bring chaos to them but in their restless searches, none came up. They were left with no leads and their only solution is for their vampires to clear the threats up.

She saw her son, killing a group of people gathered in one room. She saw his own hand pierce through the chest of one family member. She saw him kill his own relatives. She saw him like he wasn't her own. He was a monster even though his innocent face betrayed a looked at her. "Mom?" He asks as he walk slowly towards her. She trembled in fear. She backed away hurriedly as she could.

Run!

Run!

Run!

Get away from here!

He's not your son!

The farther she ran, the more of hell she sees. If not her relatives, her friends. All of them bathing in their own small ocean of bloods. The stench made her want to vomit. The scene made her want to kill herself before the monster itself kills her. She turned to one of the rooms. A silhouette was standing before the glass window. She didn't need a second to know it's her husband. She called out to him. To escape. To run away. To find safety from the monster who's following her. The silhouette walked towards her only to reveal her husband's bloody face. Bloods dropping from his head to his eyes, to his cheeks, down to his jaw. Then in a glimpse, a loud splat was heard. A hand was pierced through her husband's chest then the hand took something from it… Her husband's still beating heart. She fell to her back in fear. The monster was already there. He held her husband's heart and laughed in a demonic way as he starts to take the heart to his mouth and devoured it. "This is so good…" He says in a whisper of joy. "Mother… Would you like some? Oh. I have an idea. Would you like to taste your own heart?" He says slowly and quietly. He grins evilly, blood dripping all over his body, more on his mouth. He started to walk towards her. She tried to back away, crawling backwards. She cried. She cried for help. She cried for a miracle to save her. She crawled, her knees betraying her from standing, from running. It was then her hand tripped on something soft but cold and she fell to her side. She lays beside a corpse in the middle of the hallway. She saw it. She saw them. She saw all the corpse laying on the bloody pooled floor. They were her friends. They were her family. They were the ones she cared for. Her husband… Her beloved husband… She cried tears. She sobbed. She hiccupped from her sobbing, crying for help. She's terrified. She's in hell. She tried. She fought herself to stand, get on her feet…

But she was too late.

The monster stood on top of her. He laughed. He laughed like a psychopath. "Your heart must be delicious… Mother…" He says hungrily and smirks. She screamed in the top of her lungs. She cried until her lungs ran out of air. She was gonna die. She tried to get up. She tried to get away. The monster grabbed her collar and pushed her against the wall. He wears that insane smile as he pierce her chest and shoved her own beating heart against her mouth. "EAT, MOTHER, EAT!" He laughs aloud. She didn't feel any pain. She didn't hear anything but she saw how the monster laughed.

No doubt.

It was her own son….

The family reunion was about to start that evening. He was ready. He looked at the mirror and was content of his looks. He was about to go when his mother came to him.

"Jude, dear. You look very handsome. I'm sure your aunts and uncles would admire you." She smiles. Jude smiles back and thanks her.

"Thank you, Mom." His mother closes the door and steps closer to him. She was about to fix his hair when she pulled out a knife behind her back and kill her son. In shock, Jude dodged it but got his arm wounded. He screamed to call his mother.

"M-m-mom! W-w-what are you doing?!" He trembled in fear. Unable to comprehend what was happening.

"You monster!" She charged towards him, holding the knife above her head for a deeper impact when she stabs him but the boy dodges it and tries to get her senses to her. The boy cried in fear, trying to get away. In that moment of weakness, his mother got to cut his cheek. He cried in terror. She wasn't his mother anymore. He can't bring her back. He cried for help but no one would hear them. He got cornered. His mother moved towards him…

"Taste your own heart. Kill yourself. I will not let you kill me. I will kill you." She laughs.

For the last time, he calls out for his mother.

"YOU ARE NOT MY SON! I'D RATHER DIE THAN HAVE YOU AS MY OWN! I'LL KILL YOU BEFORE YOU KILL ME!" She raised the knife. He cried. He was afraid. He didn't want to die. He didn't want to lose his mother. He… He… He can't let her kill him!

In deep traumatic shock, his eyes awakened a blazing red color. The same color of what his mother saw in her dream. The color of blood. She shrieked.

"MONSTER!"

She attacked but his left hand was quicker. He pierced her heart. Blood flowed from her body. Blood spread on the floor.

His cousins, almost the same age as him, wondered what took him so long. They knocked on the door, opened it, and saw blood. They couldn't believe what they're seeing. There was a young monster before them, licking the blood of the dead on the floor. The monster leapt at the girl when it saw her. Just then, the boy wearing glasses came to guard her. Weak, the boy wearing glasses got punched and flew to the wall by the monster they know as Jude.

"Theodore!" The girl screamed. She ran towards Theodore, crying, shaking him to wake up… When he opened his eyes, they were red just like the monster's. Theodore sat there, his eyes blank in the redness. He looked at nothing. He was trembling. He was afraid but his façade didn't show it. He just sat there, staring at the pool of blood, belonging to Jude's mother.

The girl fell aback, crawling away from them. She knew that it wasn't them. They weren't her cousins anymore. They were monsters. She got cornered as Jude was closing in. She wanted to scream. She wanted to run away… Was she going to die or was she going to be like them? Both were horrid. Her thoughts were cut off…

"Natasha…" Jude chuckled. "Why don't you join us?" He said merrily. "Or else, I have to kill you…" He smirks.

Natasha got angry. She got furious instead of being afraid. She had to fight for her life. "I WILL NOT BECOME A MONSTER LIKE YOU!" She stood and slapped Jude. Jude hit the wall next to him. The impact was strong. When he looked at Natasha, her eyes were the same as his. He chuckled. Their relatives heard the commotion and went straight to their room. Theodore was now standing there, in the same spot, his face blank until he moved with his two cousins. The three children slowly walked towards them and they knew they needed to retreat. They all ran away from danger. But they were too slow. One of the family member managed to get in a car and drove far away. His only way was going through the path leading to the woods to the town. Unfortunately, the car got busted and he ran for his life. Stopping to catch his breath, he wondered if he got away far enough… His breathing stopped and everything else as well. He was dead.

The next day, the three cousins woke up and wondered what happened. When they came to, they awoke in the middle of the woods. They were covered in dried blood but their eyes were back to the color they were born with. They were aware of what happened and started to regret what they've done. Theodore was the first to cry…

"Wh-what have we done…? Why…? H-how?!" He cries. They were still young. They slaughtered their loved ones. It was bloodlust. It drove them to kill. It drove them to become a monster. They wondered what happened to them and what awakened them.

"I'm sorry… It's my fault… I… I… I didn't know what's gotten into me… Mom… She… She tried to kill me… She hurt me. She…" He trailed off, kneeling on the ground, crying as well. "She wasn't herself anymore. She wasn't my mother whom I've known. She called me a monster even before…" He realized. Why did his mother call him a monster? Natasha was sobbing silently as she went to comfort them.

"We gotta go back…" Natasha suggested.

"And what? Let the police get us? No! We won't do that! We'll search for a new home. We'll have to live somewhere we can't hurt innocent people! We gotta find out why we became like this!" Jude retorts.

"But… Jude… What can we do? We're still young… And we haven't finished our degrees yet. We haven't achieved anything yet." Theodore takes his glasses off and wipes his tears. Jude was the eldest of the three of them. Natasha and Theodore were 2 years younger than him. Jude stares at them as if he has a solution. He will not allow his cousins to suffer. He will do everything for them to find a new life.

"I'll find a way. I promise… For now, we gotta find some other clothes and maybe money… The closest place is yours, Theo." Jude suggests. Theo nods.

"Yes… We'll start there… I don't wanna go to jail, Jude. Tasha…" Theodore shuddered in nervousness. Natasha came to hold him, comforting him.

"We'll be alright, Theo. We'll work together. We'll find out soon. Jude, may I suggest that we search our houses? We have to find something. We have to find how and why this happened to us…" She looks at Jude. Jude nods and helps them up.

"Yes." Jude answers. "We should get as much as we need from your houses…" He looks at them. "We need to strive for the truth and live in peace to avoid what happened last night…" He looked away in guilt and sorrow.

The three went on and first looked for a change of clothes. They found an old barn where some farmers were living in and saw a line of fresh clothes, hanged dry from the laundry. They sneaked and stole from them and changed their attire. They continued to Theodore's place. His place was quite a big house for his father runs a moderately fair business. They went in, grabbed whatever they can and need when Jude got to the attic to find some old family portraits. The portraits were of their great grandparents. He searched further and found a small bookshelf. There were only three books there and he thought that he might find some answers from there so he took them. The three met up again, ready to leave.

"Where will we stay, Jude? We obviously can't stay here…" Natasha stated, carrying an over-stuffed backpack filled with clothes.

"I'm aware of that, Tasha. Theo, did you get money?" Jude says.

"Yes. But I don't know how long it'll sustain us." Theodore's nervousness is always obvious.

"That's good enough. Let's find a place to stay. And I think we should avoid being around people to hide our identities and to avoid getting that bloodlust…" Jude says, carrying his bag.

"Make sure to cover our tracks. We can't let the cops find us. It's better that they report us missing than to find us and lock us up…" Natasha says.

"It's done, Natasha. I made sure everything is cleared up. I checked everything before I went to meet you guys." Jude says. He turned to the front door. "Let's go."

They left before the cops came to investigate Theodore's place. They walked and walked into the deep forest. Jude led them to an old shack that was still quite durable enough for them to stay. They settled in, cleaning the dusty place then slightly repairing the creaky table and chairs into better ones. Jude then devised a plan for them. He thought that they needed to get to Natasha's place for more things, money, and the most important, more information. He took the books he got from Theodore's attic and upon examining them, he realized that the books were journals of their great grandparents. He wasn't certain in which generation his grandparents wrote them because the pages old and delicate, the ink was blanch but still readable.

"Tasha, Theo. Come, look!" He showed the journals. "We might find something here. Take one and read. If you find anything, do say so."

With that, the three started reading… They read for the rest of the day but there was no clue left behind. The journals only stated about the family, the making of their new home and how things were doing for them. Jude finished his reading and waited for his cousins. Not before long, Theodore paused.

"Jude, Tasha. I found something." The two looked at him. He continued.

"The chaos that our grandparents experienced is gone. The chaotic monster is now vanquished. We can live in peace. I remember my father told me that our grandparents kept a safe filled with their journals and their friends' journals as well. I think it contained the stories of what happened to them when they journeyed to kill the monster. Or at least I think they did… I will ask father about it when I visit him." Theodore read, making his cousins raise their brows.

"We gotta find those journals!" Jude stands, slamming his palms on the table.

"Jude, we need to stay calm. We don't want… You know…" She looked away. Theodore bowed his head.

"We still don't know where our great grandfather's grandparents lived. We need more clues." Theodore looks at Jude.

"I think I know where. But for tonight, we must get what we need. There's a good chance that we can find more clues in Tasha's place. I think my mother has read one of our ancestor's journals. I say this because she recently cleaned the house before our family reunion. She must've read one of the journals and thought that I was a monster…" Jude bows his head as he thought about it. It made sense. It's horrible but they have to move on. They have to keep moving forward… for their own sakes.

"Our ancestor said that his parents set out to kill the monster and they were finally in peace… You don't think… the monster cursed our bloodline?" Natasha concludes.

"It's not impossible. And maybe the one that awakened us is Jude's mother knowing the curse…" Theodore states. Jude and Natasha look at him, finding a bit of resolve in the midst of their terror.

"Then we'll continue to search for the truth. It wouldn't be far from us now." Jude says. The two nodded in agreement.

That night, they did the same to Natasha's place. Her home wasn't as big as Theodore's but it contained what they were looking for: an old journal from their great grandfather.

"I visited my father. He's very old but he's still strong. I thought of how he got very strong ever since I was a child. And maybe I should ask him… "Father, where did you get your strength from? You're rather a tough one to bend." I chuckled. He only replied and explained. "It's from my name. Quincey. It was a story of a man who helped his friends to be safe from a monster. He got stabbed but he fought to keep his friends safe from the monster until he died. It only meant that for them, for us, and for our descendants to remain hope until the end." He smiled at me. I realized how much faith and hope his smile gave to me. In the end, I was satisfied with his story and never asked about the safe of journals. He gave me the combination of the safe and asked me to keep it from harm. I promised and so, I have put it here along with the map where my father used to live."

The map was folded enough for it to fit in the middle pages of the journal. Without a second wasted, they searched for the old house, found the safe and cracked it open. They got what they were looking for. The journals were tied together and their family name etched on a thin silver bar of the journal on top. Moreover, there was a bundle of letters compiled together in a shoe box. They collected more of what they need and left. They made sure that they covered their tracks like before and resumed their research in the old shack they now call their new home. They cut the rope, tying the journals together and separated the journals from the last names etched on the silver pieces of each journal. They opened the shoe box. It contained a bundle of letters, a bit dusty. The pages of the books and the letters were yellow over the years, musty with the smell of them unventilated.

Jude stands. "I'll go out for a while." He took a jacket and wore it, putting on the hood.

"Where are you going, Jude? It's late and we need to rest. It's dangerous for you to go out alone…" Theodore says, looking concerned.

"I have to find the journal that my mother read. If these journals tell us our history, then what mother read might contain what the curse itself is..."

"We'll come with you then." Natasha stands.

"No. Stay here. It'll be better if I go alone. If I need to escape, it'd be easier without you two. In short, the both of you will just be a hindrance. I will not risk all of us in an inescapable situation. The two of you stay. I'll be quick. If my guess is right, the journal should be either in my mother's room or in the attic." He turns to the door and pauses after opening it. "We need to find a way to get rid of this curse. And I'll do everything to do so." He goes out, shuts the door and leaves.

He went back to his house. There were detectives and cops around. He looked for a way to get inside without him being noticed. He decided to hide behind the bushes around his house and searched for an open window. When he found one, he stealthily moved into the bushes. He paused when a cop was around. When the coast was clear, he looked inside his house. He was in luck because the inside was the kitchen and the stairs was just adjacent to one of the walls of the kitchen. Again, he skulked inside, quickly and thoroughly through the kitchen then upstairs. Just when he thought that he was clear, the detective and his partner were heading his way. He looked for a place to hide. He hid into one of the rooms of the house. When he got in and hid, an awful stench filled his nostrils. He wanted to vomit at the sight and smell, covering his nose and mouth with his hands. When the detectives left, he went out and breathed. Guilt was rising in him but he didn't have the time to dwell on it so he went straight to his parents' room, quickly searching for the journal. He looked at the cabinet, his mother's drawers and bookshelves. Nothing. He didn't hesitate to search for it in the attic. He went straight to the attic, avoiding the cops and the detectives. He wondered how he managed to get past them but he continued on. Upon arriving at the attic, he instantly found the opened journal on the dusty floor, illuminated by the light of the moon through the window. He quickly grabbed it and planned to leave when the detectives found him.

"Intruder!" The detective shouts. He made no haste and looked for a way out as the cops hurriedly rushed behind the detectives, aiming their guns to him. He charged at the window, breaking it to set him free as the cops opened fire to him. A bullet scraped his shoulder and the side of his hood. He fell but gained balance. He landed on his feet, holding the journal in one arm. Some cops were there and didn't think twice about shooting him. In frustration, he rushed towards a cop and punched him. The cop received a great impact as he flew to the direction where Jude had punched him. The other cops tried to shoot Jude but Jude caught them first. With inhuman speed, he punched a cop then another, punching them on their stomachs or heads, sending them unconscious. Jude ran away as fast as he can into the woods far away from the shack. He rested against a trunk of a tree… He noticed his arms and hands were dripping with fresh blood. A blood lust rushed over his head. He tried to control himself. He tried to push it away but seeing the blood, something made him want it… He sticks his tongue out then licks the blood off his hands. The taste of it gave him a frenzy as he licked his hands and arms clean of the blood. When he finished, he realized what he has done. He became afraid. What has become of him? He needed to go back and tell his cousins what happened. He took his jacket and shirt off and sprinted to where they are. He rushed the door open…

"Tasha! Theo!" He panted, holding the journal.

"Jude!" Both screamed, in shock to find him half-naked. They rushed to help him.

"What happened?!" Natasha asked in panic.

"I… I found something out… The monster... Within us… The bloodlust… We gotta find out the truth!"" Jude looks at the both of them. Natasha looks at him worriedly. She gently tugs him to sit on a chair.

"We need to stay calm, Jude. Listen," She holds his face and forces him to look at her. "I know what you're talking about. I can feel it. The monster inside of us… Our other selves… It's there. If you're saying that you've experienced using it…" Jude looks at her, now calmed.

"I did… I sent some cops who were after me unconscious… Maybe even in a critical state… I was strong and fast. They fired at me and I was able to dodge every single bullet!" He trembled, slow fear creeping on him…

"Jude." Natasha strokes his cheeks to comfort him. "It's alright. We can't avoid it. We're all the same. The only thing we can do is accept it and learn how to use it well…" Natasha looks at Theodore whose nervousness and fear were evident in his features.

"We'll soon understand. For now, we need to rest. We don't need to worry. We still have each other." She pulls away from Jude and takes his and Theodore's hands.

"We'll soon find out. We'll soon grasp the truth. So please… I need the both of you to remain calm and focused. We don't want our other selves take over us, right?" She looks at them with determination and bravery in her eyes.

Her two cousins nod. Their time of revelations was at hand. For now, they settled and rested for their need of strength in facing their ordeal.

A/N: Ok. I didn't break my promise. I updated because it turns out that most of my exams were done this week. Dear Lord, I'm so tired and sleepy for not sleeping and resting well. I literally stuDIED for my exams. Get it? LOL. I'm drunk because of the lack of sleep. Still, I updated! Hurrah!

Thank you for all your lovely reviews! I really do read them and get thrilled. Haha.

So this chapter is the beginning of something... I got the chills when I typed that creepy/scary part, to tell the truth. LOL

I humbly ask all of you to be patient with me as the story continue on. In all honesty, I know these parts of a story could be boring because the main characters aren't present and it's quite long. So I ask for everyone's patience. I promise I have reasons why (besides of me being drunk of tiredness right now. LOL.) I have something in store for Alucard so stay tuned for the next chapter!

Oh, I almost forgot... I'll have more free-time since my exams are almost done! I might be updating faster, depending on my progress on my current typing chapter. Spoiler: I'm currently typing and thinking about my chapter 6 to 7. So yes, people! There are more of Alucard, Seras, Pip and the Penwoods!

Stay tuned for more and MORE!