#gui monteiro

“Yeah, I’m totally over him now!” Candie confirmed, as she sat down with Bryan in one of her big poofy chairs, filing the vampire’s nails. “Like, I’ve entered a new chapter in my life, like it’s super great, you know? I’m even seeing someone new!”

“Oh really, who’s the victim this time?” Bryan teased, laughing as Candie tried to smack his arm in protest.

“Don’t say that!” she whined. “I’m not that bad!”

“Sure, sure,” Bryan nodded. “Go on, go on, who’s your new boy toy?”

Candie smiled. “I met him a while ago at 79’s, he’s super hot!”

“Okay, does he have a name?”

“His name is Guler--Giler--Ga--” Candie paused, trying to remember how her new lover’s name was pronounced, until she let out an annoyed sigh as she gave up trying. “His name is Gui!”

Bryan raised an eyebrow. “Is that the weirdo with a manbun?”

“He’s not weird!”

“Honey, have you seen the way he dresses up? Talk about tacky…”

“It’s just his style, it’s like - what was it - like, underground y’know?”

Bryan blinked. “No, I don’t.”

Candie flipped her short hair to the side. “So like, it’s like when people are, like, super into stuff that, like, not a lot of people are super into yet, it’s like a way of life y’know?”

“I still don’t know,” Bryan complained. “And from the sound of it, it seems that your new guy is full of himself...kinda starting to miss Isaac now.”

Candie scoffed, as she tore her hands away from her friend. “No fucking way, Gui is a million times better than Isaac, he’s like super smart and shit!”

“Really?”

“Uh-huh! Like, just by being with him makes me feel super interlectual!”

“I’m sorry, what?” Bryan asked, trying to hold back his laughter.

“Interlectual! You know, someone that’s, like, super smart!”

“Sweetie, it’s intellectual.”

Candie paused for a moment, taking in what Bryan had told her, before bursting into a huge smile. “Oh my god, they changed it? Am I the first to know?”

“No, Candie--”

“Oh my god!!!” she squealed. “I’m the first to know about something smart, now I’m really interlectual!”

Guilherme had lost complete track of time from lying in bed, feeling as though his life was hanging on a thread. He had returned to his home in São Paulo, Brazil after much pestering from his physician in London, due to catching a dreadful cold.

His mind wandered to the event in which all of this started, to the night at his friend Sir Nicholas Karahalios’ ball, where he stood in the rain, face-to-face with the love of his life, Miss Emma Barragan, and being completely and utterly humiliated by her as soon as he confessed his true feelings for her.

Her words pierced his heart, as if he was hit by a million poisonous needles in his chest. They wouldn’t leave his mind, and in one of his dellerious nights, he could have sworn he saw her standing right before her, telling him over and over again her cruel response, with fire in her eyes and venom in her lips.

It was because of her he was in this state, but he couldn’t blame her, because he knew that part of the reason she denied him was because of him. He had been nothing but a nuisance to her, and even though she would always have a word of remark ready to jab at him, a true gentleman would never let his emotions cloud his reason, and would therefore never utter such impolite words towards a lady.

How he wished he could have been given another chance to undo his mistakes, to make everything right this time, and perhaps...he might have won her heart. But as he coughed for the umpteenth time this morning, he knew that his fate was more likely to meet the god of death himself than to be given a second chance at love.

At that moment, a maid entered his chambers, and announced that he had a visitor. He wondered who could ever want to visit him in such a pitiful state, but allowed the maid to bring in the guest anyway. The maid left, and in her place stood a lady with a plain-looking green dress, who Guilherme instantly recognized--despite his semi-hazy vision--as none other than Miss Emma Barragan.

She stood painfully awkward by the door, looking around while fiddling with her hands. He smiled as he gazed upon her, thinking she couldn’t look any more beautiful than that (although he was certain that he looked like a madman with that smile, considering he was very feverish and sweating profusely).

“Emma.” he whispered.

“Don’t you mean ‘Miss Barragan’?” she questioned him. “Where have your manners gone?”

“Oh, somewhere along with my health, and half of my sanity.” he replied, with much strain.

“...My apologies.” she spoke in a small voice, looking down at her feet.

“That’s alright.” he waved a hand. “What brings you here?”

“I’ve heard you’ve grown very ill, so my mother--I mean--I have decided to pay a visit.”

“Well, tell your mother that I should be up and walking again, if heaven’s angels don’t get to me first--”

“Don’t say that.” Emma spoke, suddenly.

Guilherme looked at her again, and this time her face was undoubtedly full of concern. He bit his tongue.

“Sorry, it wasn’t my intention to shock you.”

Silence fell between them for a moment, until Guilherme coughed loudly as a result of a failed attempt to clear his throat, and said, “Please, take a seat. It’d be rude of me to keep a lady standing.”

Emma politely bowed and took a seat near by his bed, and silence returned to the room once more.

“Don’t say those things.” Emma finally spoke. “You will get better.”

“I apologize again, my humor tends to be distasteful when I’m ill.”

“I’ve noticed.”

Guilherme let out a small chuckle. “But I appreciate your concern, it makes me rather happy to know that...you care about my health…”

Emma frowned. “What kind of woman did you take me for?”

“One who finds pleasure in tearing the hearts of men who are in love with you.”

A small smile crept on his face as he saw Emma’s expression quickly shift. She looked very baffled, almost furious by his comment, though he could have sworn he saw a light blush slowly spread across her cheeks, but he concluded it to be a result of his feverish imagination.

“Why must you do this?” she asked, softly.

“Because I do not fear anything now.”

And with much pain and struggle, Guilherme stood up on his bed, much to Emma’s surprise, as she hurriedly made her way to him.

“All this time cooped up in my bed, with nothing but my thoughts, made me realize how much I love you, Miss Barragan….Emma….”

“You’re burning up in fever, you do not know what you’re saying--”

“I’ve never felt more sure of myself than ever before.”

He coughed once more, and cleared his throat afterwards. “Emma, look at me in my eyes, and tell me you don’t feel anything but remorse towards me, and if so, I won’t bother you anymore.”

He waited for her response, but it seemed as though she was transfixed. She stared back at his eyes, unblinking, though looking more perplexed than before. His heart began to accelerate and his head started to spin, and he began to think that maybe it wasn’t the right time to do this, but he needed to know. He was desperate to know.

But Emma stepped away from his bed, looking to the side. “You shouldn’t stress yourself, otherwise you won’t heal quickly.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

Guilherme was amazed by the fact that no one seemed to notice a horseless carriage zooming through the streets of London, and he could have sworn that it would sometimes pass straight through them. Regardless, he was just glad to know that he was far, far away from Algernon and the old manor, and that Anastacia was safe beside him.

He glanced at her for a moment, and couldn’t help but chuckle at the way she looked out the window. She was star-struck, her face beamed at any little thing she saw on the street, whether it was people, or buildings, or even stray animals passing by. She seemed to be enjoying their ride to Miss Detweiler’s house, as if they were on a casual stroll around the city.

She absentmindedly glanced over at Guilherme, and immediately shut her happiness down.

“Sorry,” she said in a small voice. “I just haven’t been outside for...quite some time.”

“There’s nothing to be sorry about.” he reassured her.

Anastacia smiled at him and faced the window once more, returning her attention to the outside world, and was soon marveled by it again.

After what felt like minutes, they reached Miss Detweiler’s house. Upon arriving there, Guilherme noticed that it wasn’t exactly a house, but rather an apartment located above a rather peculiar-looking shop. He glanced at the sign above the shop and realized that it was in fact an apothecary. At least he was at the right place to treat his wounds.

“Does anyone live here?” asked Anastacia as they stepped out of the carriage.

“I suppose so.” he answered, observing his surroundings. “It did lead us here.”

They walked around the building for a while, as Guilherme was looking for a door knocker, while Anastacia marveled at the trinkets on display in the apothecary. Finally, Guilherme spotted a door far from the apothecary’s entrance, along with a tiny door knocker which was at his eye-level. The door knocker was unlike any other he had ever seen, the knocker was in a circular shape made of bone, and it was held by a small statue of a hand made of brass, though the detail on the hand looked like it belonged to a corpse. He shivered at the sight of it, but reluctantly took hold of it, and knocked on the door three times.

 On the third knock, the door opened on its own, and Guilherme took a step back, both in awe and fear. Anastacia noticed his behavior and walked over him, more so curious than scared, and peeked inside though in a cautious manner. Guilherme grabbed her arm to pull her back, afraid that she would get sucked inside, and the clash of her icy skin against his warm palm shocked him for a moment, but he still held on.

“Wait.” he said, and Anastacia looked back at him. “It could be dangerous.”

“But you’re wounded.” she mentioned.

“Well, yes, but--” Guilherme started, remembering his own consequences of wandering off into an unknown house, but then he was interrupted by the sound of feet walking down a flight of stairs, as well as voices talking over one another.

Guilherme and Anastacia stepped back even further, surprised by the sudden commotion, but as the voices drew nearer, Guilherme started to recognize one of them.

Miss Fiona Detweiler stepped outside, along with a taller and bulkier man by her side. The man looked crossed, as though he had been arguing with Fiona, while she looked just as crossed as he was, as her face was a soft shade of crimson. Both of them stopped in their tracks when they saw Guilherme and Anastacia standing by the doorway.

“Who are you two?” the crossed man asked angrily.

As Guilherme and Anastacia were fumbling with their words, Fiona squinted her eyes as she studied Guilherme, then they grew wide as though she reached a sudden realization.

“I think I know you from somewhere!” she said, and the crossed man looked down at her, furrowing his eyebrows even more.

“Yes we have,” Guilherme answered, paying no attention to the man now glaring daggers at him. “At one of Baron River’s parties.”

“Of course!” she exclaimed. “You’re his friend, Sir...um…”

“Guilherme Monteiro.” he completed, and slightly bowed before her, though wincing in pain.

“Are you alright?” she asked, looking concerned.

“That’s why we’re here.” Anastacia explained. “He’s very hurt, and needs urgent care!”

Fiona studied Anastacia for a moment, but not in the same way she did towards Guilherme, this time she looked at her coldly, and Anastacia could tell by the look of her eyes that she was very skeptical of her. 

Fiona then looked away, and walked over to Guilherme.

“Rene, help me carry him back inside.” she asked the crossed man. “We’re going to have to miss the party, sadly.”

Rene sighed in relief at the mention of not going to the party anymore, as he propped Guilherme to his side, but nervously pressed his lips together as he met Fiona’s glare. The four of them made their way inside the apartment, and after much bickering between Rene and Fiona while walking up the flight of stairs, they made it to the apartment, and Fiona locked the door behind her after everyone had entered.

The apartment was rather small and humble, as the door led straight into the kitchen, and just a few steps away was a small living room, and in between the two was a very narrow corridor leading to where Guilherme could only guess was their chambers.

As he took a seat at a chair nearby, a girl came out of the corridor and stopped near the kitchen, looking at the newly arrived guests, then back at Fiona and Rene. She was a rather tall young woman with light blonde hair, but what caught Guilherme’s attention was the dark marks scattered across the girl’s body.

“I thought you two were going to some rich lad’s party?” she asked.

“No Aoife,” Fiona answered. “There’s been a minor setback.”

“We’re here to heal my friend’s wounds!” Anastacia piped up.

Aoife also looked at the little vampire very skeptically, then glanced over at Guilherme, looking from head to toe.

“What’s wrong with him?” she asked.

And Guilherme began to retell his traumatic experience with the vampires at the old manor, as well as how Anastacia risked her own life to save him. Both Fiona and Aoife listened closely to his story, while Rene stood there with the most horrified expression on his face, as though he had also lived through Guilherme’s experience.

“Wait a minute,” said Rene, holding up a hand in disbelief, then pointed at Anastacia. “You’re saying that she is a vampire?!”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed until now.” Fiona sighed.

“And you actually thought I would?!” Rene asked.

As Fiona and Rene argued again, Aoife approached Guilherme to observe his wounds.

“Looks like you put up quite a fight.” she said, bringing his leg up close to examine the scratches. “But you didn’t do so well.”

“Well, I’m not quite experienced with the sort.” Guilherme replied sarcastically.

“I know.” Aoife said. “It’s a miracle you survived.”

“It’s all thanks to her.” Guilherme said, gesturing towards Anastacia, who still stood by his side, and kindly waved at Aoife.

She looked at her up and down. “Very unusual…”

Anastacia merely shifted her weight from one leg to the other, while awkwardly looking to the side. Meanwhile, Rene and Fiona still bickered at each other, until he held up his arms in an exasperated manner.

“I need a moment!” he announced, leaving the apartment. 

Fiona huffed and marched on over to the rest. “So, what’s wrong with him?”

“Just a broken ankle, deep scratches, and a badly bruised neck.” said Aoife.

Fiona nodded while thinking of possible treatments, when Guilherme leaned in from his seat.

“I assume I’ll be taking some kind of tonic?” he said.

“Oh no, you’ll definitely be going under a healing spell.” Fiona corrected him.

“A..spell?”

Fiona blinked. “Why of course, how else will we treat you?”

Guilherme let out a long sigh. “What have I gotten myself into?”

“Don’t worry, it won’t hurt that much!” Fiona smiled happily, and turned to ask Aoife to fetch some ingredients down at the apothecary.

“Now what about your little vampire friend?” Fiona faced Guilherme again. “Is she going to stay with you, or carry on her merry little way?”

Anastacia looked down at her hands on her lap. “I...don’t have anywhere to go, exactly…”

“She’s staying with me.” Guilherme decided.

Anastacia quickly looked up at him, with a mixture of surprise and sincere gratitude on her face, while Fiona squinted her eyes a little.

“It’s not safe to linger with a vampire.” she said. “Thought you might have learned that from what you went through.”

“I trust her.” he said.

Fiona looked over at Anastacia, then leaned closer to Guilherme, whispering in his ear.

“I wouldn’t if I were you.”

“People also say to never trust witches, and yet here I am.” he retaliated.

Fiona looked at him, and just by the mere look in her eyes, Guilherme could tell that she had given up on trying to persuade him otherwise.

“You should be fully healed by morning.” Fiona said, changing the subject. “So I suggest you sleep here for the night.”

Guilherme nodded in agreement, and Fiona left the kitchen to gather supplies for the healing spell.

After waiting for a few hours, Guilherme underwent the healing spell, and it was, in fact, very painful. His skin stretched itself as it closed his open scratch wounds, as if someone grabbed a hold of his skin and was physically pulling it over his leg, and he also felt a burning sensation on his neck as it magically healed its bruises, but the worst pain he felt was down in his ankle, as he could feel his bones rearrange themselves underneath his muscles and skin, grinding against each other like rocks.

As soon as the spell had concluded, Fiona offered both Guilherme and Anastacia the living room for them to sleep, since the apartment didn’t have a guest room, and proceeded to give the two several woolen blankets and old pillows. After that, she wished Guilherme a good night, while awkwardly giving a short nod at Anastacia, and went to her chambers.

“Do you want the sofa?” Guilherme asked Anastacia.

“No.” she said, shaking her head. “Vampires don’t sleep.”

“Oh, so the story about vampires sleeping in coffins is a myth, then?”

“They think we sleep in coffins?”

“I see.” he said, accepting that as his answer, and went on to make his makeshift bed on the sofa, which was rather small for his height, but soon enough he managed to settle himself in.

He glanced over at Anastacia, who was sitting at a window sill nearby, watching the empty streets down below, and marveling herself again at anything she set her eyes on, from a street lamp close by, to a drunken man wobbling down the block, to a dirty old street dog relieving himself on a feeble-looking tree.

“You really enjoy the human world, don’t you?” Guilherme asked.

Anastacia turned, looking surprised, but smiled.

“I love it.” she said, her eyes filled with pure joy. “I find it so fascinating! It has changed so much since the last time I saw it, and that’s what I like about humans, their ability to create new things out of thin air, and they’re always so beautiful. It’s almost like magic in a way.”

“Not everything we make is beautiful.”

Anastacia paused for a moment, looking out at the window with a slightly saddened look on her face. 

“I know…” she finally spoke. “Every being has its own faults, humans are no different. But, when they do make something beautiful, it’s...astounding.”

Guilherme chuckled to himself, amazed to find an occult creature so enamored by his species’ own creations, which was something that he has despised for the longest of time. He loathed the modern inventions and ideas that were surging up these days, which were all contributing to the erasure of tasks that, although tedious, were still very effective in society, and what made humans humans.

And yet, here was this little vampire, fascinated by all of it. Perhaps it was her own naivety blinding her to the reality of it, but at the same time...there might have been some truth to what she said…

For the past few months Guilherme felt a fervent passion blossom underneath his chest every moment he laid eyes upon Miss Emma Barragan, and for months he could not comprehend why. Why would he suddenly feel giddy like a child when she would so much as look his way? Why would his hands sweat, his heart race, and his throat run dry, all when he would so much as speak to her, and even then his words would fail him, as if he hadn’t spent all his life in a boarding school learning the basic necessities to function in a society?

For months he wondered, and thought, and analyzed, and theorized, until he came to one valid conclusion: he was in love. But instead of feeling enlightened, Guilherme felt even more puzzled, for how could he develop such feelings for a lady as insufferable as Miss Emma, whose retaliations were like sharp daggers stabbing through his body, and whose glare bore deep into his soul, like a steady ray of light slowly burning a piece of paper through a magnifying glass?

But no matter how much he denied, no matter how hard he tried to bury these feelings, the second he glanced at Emma’s face, he was instantly doomed, wanting to do nothing more than to sit and admire her like a painting at a gallery, or like a marble statue sculpted from the hands of Michelangelo himself.

And even in this very ballroom filled with guests, Guilherme could only see Emma, standing by the entrance with the same bored expression she had in previous balls, and suddenly all of his attention remained focused upon her. She was wearing the same dress that she had worn in a previous ball, which at the time he thought she looked very tacky and unfashionable in it, but now his eyes see a different Emma, an Emma that is far more elegant and beautiful in that same dress, as if it had come out of the latest fashion almanac of the decade.

Suddenly, he felt a nudge on his arm, and he turned to see his friend Lord Nicholas Karahalios grinning at him, and Guilherme immediately hated it.

“What’s wrong?” he spat at his friend.

“I think I should be asking you that!” Nicholas laughed. “What is wrong, my good friend? You can’t keep your eyes off of Miss Barragan!”

And as he said that, Nicholas grinned even wider and he wiggled his eyebrows. Guilherme let out an exasperated sigh.

“Will you stop that?! You’re acting like a child.”

Nicholas chuckled. “Oh come now, lighten up a little! It’s perfectly normal to fall in love.”

“Not to a woman like Miss Barragan.” Guilherme mumbled.

“And yet here you are, Sir Monteiro.” Nikos laughed.

Guilherme looked back at Emma again, and she still stood by the exit, this time fiddling with her fan, which used to irritate him, but now he could not help but it was rather cute.

“Did you confess to her yet?” Nicholas suddenly asked.

Guilherme quickly turned around. “Confess to what?”

“My dear friend, you can fool yourself but not me.” he grinned. “I say you should go to her, and confess your undying love!”

“You’re being ridiculous.”

Nicholas paused for a moment. “I may be ridiculous, but at least if I love someone, I tell them, instead of moping around in the shadows, longing for them in a distance.”

Guilherme was taken aback by Nicholas’ response, but a part of him agreed with his friend. In the past, he would always confess his love to ladies he would admire, of course not in a ridiculously exaggerated manner as Nicholas,  but nonetheless in a manner which demonstrated his true feelings, so why couldn’t he do the same to Emma? Was it really his pride settling in, refusing to admit his true feelings for the lady whom he despised since the moment he met her, or was it that hint of fear which harbored deep down in his heart, worried about her reaction and whether she would even feel the same?

“You’ll never know unless you do something about it.” Nicholas whispered in his ear, as though he could hear his friend’s dilema taunting his mind.

Guilherme looked back at Nicholas, and his friend gave him a reassuring smile along with a pat on the shoulder. He turned to Emma once more, but this time she was nowhere to be seen. He looked around, desperately trying to find so much as a trace of her--even Nicholas was helping him find her--when out of the corner of his eye, he saw the rims of Emma’s green dress trail off into a hallway.

“Go after her!” urged Nicholas.

And Guilherme set off, occasionally bumping into other guests, making him receive various nasty looks and irritated “hmphs”. It was very unlike him to do that, since he spent all of his life learning how to be a proper gentleman, but at that moment he did not care, all he wanted was to find Emma, and as he turned to a corner, he saw her.

Emma was walking down the steps to the entrance of the manor as if to leave, and Guilherme’s heart sank. But then he remembered Nicholas’ words, urging him to go after her, and so he did. He followed her down the steps, his foot loudly stomping onto the marble stairs, and luckily it brought to Emma’s attention. She turned around, looking very surprised.

“What is the matter with you?!” she asked, irritably. “Have you no manners?”

His blood boiled at the comment for a moment, but as he looked at her, his rage immediately faded away, and all that was left was the same burning feeling that made him chase after her.

“T-There’s something I must tell you.” he stammered.

“Well it’s going to have to wait because my carriage is outside and I’m very tired.” Emma said, turning back around to face the stairs again. But Guilherme ran down the stairs and took hold of her arm, Emma looked back at him again.

“What are you doing?!”

“I’m sorry, but you have to listen to me.”

“Why?”

“It’s--I...um…”

Guilherme paused for a moment, but then took a deep breath. “I love you, Miss Barragan.”

There was a long silence between the two, neither of them moving an inch from the stairs, nor away from each other. His heart was beating faster by the minute, as Emma's eyes stared into his, unblinking.

Then, in a matter of seconds, Emma yanked her arm away from his grip, and fled down the stairs, leaving the manor. Guilherme blinked in surprise, but followed her soon after.

The weather outside, which was bright and sunny earlier in the day, was now dark and pouring rain. Guilherme could barely see what was in front of him, as the rain streamed down across his spectacles, blocking his vision. But despite that, he could still see Emma’s silhouette running across the manor’s grounds.

“Miss Barragan!” Guilherme called after her, following her outside of the Karahalios manor.

The rain pelted against them, immediately soaking them from head to toe. Emma helplessly held a fan over her head, but it was no use as the rain simply fell right through it, soaking her already damp hair even more.

Guilherme finally caught up to her, and Emma groaned, moving an inch away from him.

“What do you want?!” she cried.

“I want to know your answer!”

“Why? I already gave you an answer!”

“That wasn’t an answer.”

“Yes, it was!”

“How could that possibly be an answer when you didn’t say a single word?!”

“Well clearly, you did not get the message!”

Emma began to walk away, but Guilherme took a hold of her arm again, and pulled her back.

“Unhand me this instant!” Emma demanded. “Or I shall scream!”

“Not until you listen to me.” he said, but released her arm anyway.

“I already gave you my answer, you’re the one who is having a hard time understanding it!”

Guilherme paused, pressing onto the space between the bridge of his nose, trying to regain his patience, as well as his common sense, then let out a long sigh.

“Miss Barragan…I cannot ignore my feelings any longer.” he began. “There hasn’t been a day in which you don’t cross my mind, and I don’t know what to do about it!”

“The very thought of you fills my heart with joy,” he continues. “Something which I never thought would have been possible, but it happens!”

“Oh, how flattering.” Emma remarked, sarcastically.

“N-No, that’s not what I meant, I--” Guilherme stammered, trying to fix the misunderstanding, but sighs heavily. “What I’m trying to say is that I love you Miss Barragan. You’ve completely stolen my heart, and now there’s nothing, nothing in the whole world I’d want to do more than to be with you…”

He paused for a moment. The rain still poured down heavily upon them, drenching them by the minute, but they both still stood firmly in place, not even daring to move an inch from each other.

 “And...I need to know...if you feel the same way.” Guilherme spoke softly.

Emma narrowed her eyes, and Guilherme’s heart raced, fearing for the worst. She glared at him directly in the eyes, without even blinking once, despite the heavy rain.

“No.” she said in a cold tone. “I don’t feel the same way.”

Guilherme looked down for a moment, then glanced back up at her. “You are breaking my heart.”

“Well, I’m sorry.” she replied rather hastily. “But I shall never feel anything but remorse towards you, and that will never change, unlike your feelings towards me.”

Emma then gathered up the skirt of her dress, until the tips of her shoes were revealed, making it easier for her to walk in the now muddy grass.

“Now if you’ll excuse me,” she said. “My carriage awaits me.”

And she turned her back towards him, rapidly making her way to her carriage, and Guilherme watched as she entered her carriage, and drove away until it was nothing but a small dot in the horizon.

He stood there for quite some time, until he heard some faint shouting coming from behind him. He turned and saw Nicholas running down after him, occasionally slipping on mud.

“By heavens, Gui!” he cried. “What on earth are you doing in the rain? You’ll catch a cold like this!”

“I told her.” Guilherme said, his voice barely leaving his throat.

Nicholas’ eyes grew wide by his friend’s response, and a wide smile spread across his face.

“Well, that’s good!” he said, patting Guilherme on the shoulder. “I suppose you’re courting her now, eh?”

“She refused.”

Nicholas’ smile instantly dropped. “Huh?”

“She refused.” he repeated, as his eyes glanced down at the muddy grass.

Nicholas remained quiet for a short time, until he convinced Guilherme to return to the manor, to which he did but refused to join the party.

Guilherme remained by the entrance of the manor for the remainder of the party, and when Nicholas insisted on lending him a fresh set of warm clothes for him to change into, he refused. After much arguing between the two friends, Guilherme left the manor with the soggy wet clothes on his back.

As promised, Guilherme went back to the fabric store first thing in the morning, and purchased the one Anastacia had chosen the previous night. Then, he went straight to a tailor shop to order the most fashionable dress of the season, and gave the tailor Anastacia’s exact measurements.

The two of them bonded more and more over time, each one of them learning more about the other and their world. Soon enough Anastacia’s ballroom dress, along with her matching accessories, arrived just in time for Baron Ashley Rivers’ ball.

It was a hassle for Anastacia to get ready, since all of the etiquettes for dressing like a proper lady were all new to her--as well as several garments, such as the stays (which she ended up despising it very much)--but luckily Guilherme had purchased a fashion magazine while he was in town, so that she would be easily guided through the dressing process. And after much headache, Anastacia picked up the etiquette and dressed herself up, while Guilherme waited for her outside of his dormitory.

“I’m ready!” she announced from behind the door, and Guilherme entered the dorm once more.

As he glanced at her, he saw her dressed from head to toe as a fine lady in the century’s appropriate attire.

Her golden silk dress fitted perfectly on her--as he had expected--but what really impressed Guilherme was the way she looked so natural in it. If he had seen her walking past him on the streets of London, he would have never guessed that she was a vampire, much less one from the thirteenth century. She looked very much like the fashionable ladies he had seen in countless balls, he could almost see her among them, giggling and laughing about whatever was relevant to them, as though she belonged in this time period.

“What do you think?” she asked, as she twirled around in place while holding on to her skirt.

“It suits you.” he said with a smile.

Anastacia smiled, and curtsied towards him. “I learned that in the magazine.”

Guilherme chuckled and bowed in return. “Now all we have to do is wait for the carriage.”

~~

They arrived at Baron Rivers’ mansion just in time for the party, as they could faintly hear the orchestra play from the inside.

Guilherme was the first to leave the carriage, and assisted Anastacia afterwards. He smiled as he saw her eyes shine in delight by the beautiful scenery of the Rivers’ estate.

“I’ve never seen anything like it!” she breathed.

“Wait until you get inside.” he said.

And as he expected, Anastacia gasped as they entered the mansion. She began to look around her, like a child at a fair, as everything caught her attention, from the paintings on the walls, to the decorative knight armors lined up across the hall, to even the tiles on the floor. 

As they turned a corner, they reached the entrance of the ballroom and met with Baron Ashley Rivers and his wife, Lady Roman Rivers.

“Sir Monteiro!” Baron Rivers bellowed with an enormous grin on his face, and gave him a huge bear hug, making Guilherme choke for a moment before regaining his composure.

Lady Rivers politely curtsied towards Guilherme and Anastacia, but as she turned towards the little vampire, her expression became grim, and for a while her eyes did not stray from Anastacia’s. Baron Rivers paid no attention to this, as he was too busy enjoying the company of his friend.

“It’s good to see you in one piece!” he laughed, patting Guilherme on the back with a heavy hand. “You almost gave everyone a fright back then, thought you might have actually kicked the bucket!”

“Well, I’m here aren’t I?” Guilherme said, readjusting his spectacles as they had slightly fallen out of place from Baron Rivers’ more than warm reception.

“Of course you are, since this time I made sure you’d accept my offer in sending you a carriage!”

“Frankly, it felt more like an order than an offer, but I appreciate it nonetheless.”

Baron Rivers laughed. “A job well done in my book, right my love?”

He turned towards Lady Rivers, who was still staring down at Anastacia, but quickly shifted her attention towards the gentlemen, and smiled.

“It at least assured your safety.” she said, and returned her gaze towards Anastacia, and at that moment Baron Rivers finally noticed her presence, and politely greeted her, unaware of her being a vampire.

“Why Sir Monteiro, I wasn’t aware that you were courting!” Baron Rivers exclaimed.

“I’m not.” Guilherme answered, slightly annoyed. “This is a very good friend of mine, her name is Anastacia.”

She curtsied towards the heads of the house with a kind smile on her face, as Guilherme introduced her to them. Baron Rivers bowed in return, also bearing a warm smile, while Lady Rivers curtsied once more, but her eyes were cold towards the vampire.

“It is a pleasure to meet you.” Anastacia smiled, although feeling slightly uncomfortable by Lady Rivers’ glare.

“Likewise.” Baron Rivers nodded his head, so did his wife, but she did not reply.

As another round of small talk sparked between the four of them, Baron Rivers welcomed Guilherme and Anastacia to the party once more, and allowed them to enter the ballroom.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, we need to greet a few more guests that have arrived.” said Baron Rivers, and offered a hand to his wife.

“Actually, my love, I’m afraid I have some urgent matters at hand at the moment.” said Lady Rivers. “You can go on without me.”

Baron Rivers scoffed, looking very confused at his wife. “What matters might be so urgent that you cannot greet our own guests?”

Lady Rivers shot her husband a dreadful glare that even sent chills down Guilherme’s spine, which indicated that now was not the right time to have such debate.

Baron Rivers looked to the side and let out a heavy sigh in frustration, but managed to regain his posture by smiling a little too sweetly at his wife.

“Alright, my love.” he said through gritted teeth.

Lady Rivers smiled up at her husband, looking very pleased. “I shall meet with you in half an hour.”

“Yes, my love.” Baron Rivers spoke again through his forced smile, and as his wife left them, he turned towards Guilherme and Anastacia and excused himself.

“I don’t think she liked me.” Anastacia said softly to Guilherme as they walked down the ballroom.

“Her behavior towards you was a little odd.” he agreed.

Guilherme looked around the ball for a moment, his eyes wandering from face to face until it landed on Lady Rivers approaching another lady he immediately recognized as Miss Fiona Detweiler. He was surprised to see her in the ball, especially with her partner, Mr. Rene Cousineau, still looking crossed like the last time he saw him, though a bit more stressful.

Rene was a little distant from the two ladies, while they were a little too close to be having just a small banter. Lady Rivers’ eyes darted across the ballroom once in a while, as though she was making sure no one suspected them together, while Fiona listened closely to what she had to say, and her expression only worsened by the minute.

As Lady Rivers looked around the room once more, her eyes met with Guilherme and for a moment they both froze. They held their gaze for no longer than a minute before Lady Rivers excused herself from Fiona and walked away, while Fiona returned to meet with Rene.

“What are you looking at?” asked Anastacia, trying to follow Guilherme’s line of sight.

“Nothing.” he lied. “Let’s enjoy the ball, shall we?”

And with a big smile from Anastacia, they proceeded to walk further into the ballroom, and took their seats at one of the many tables lined across the walls, as to make sufficient room for the guests to dance.

They had struck up a conversation when from the corner of his eye, Guilherme saw two gentlemen heading their way, he turned and saw that it was none other than Lord Nicholas Karahalios and Lord Anthony Woods.

“Why, if it isn’t Sir Guilherme Monteiro!” cheered Lord Karahalios, before pausing and squinting his eyes in an exaggerated manner. “Or is it his ghost?”

Lord Woods laughed. “He has returned from his grave to haunt us for not knowing the difference between your and you’re!”

“Looks like you two are having fun.” muttered Guilherme.

The two gentlemen continued to laugh while patting him on the shoulder, and sat across from them, and during their short euphoric moment, Lord Woods noticed Anastacia sitting beside him.

“Oh my, pardon me!” he exclaimed, giving her a short, but over the top bow. “I must be a fool for not taking notice of such a beautiful lady.”

“Believe me, this isn’t the only instance in which you’ve been a fool.” teased Lord Karahalios, only to be stomped on the foot by Lord Woods, and he let out a muffled grunt.

“And who do I give the pleasure of making an acquaintance with?” asked Lord Woods.

Anastacia stared at him blankly, and turned to Guilherme mouthing what seemed to be her asking what he had said.

“He’s asking for your name.” whispered Guilherme to her.

Anastacia nodded and returned to Lord Woods, with a bright smile on her face.

“My name is Anastacia.” she said.

Lord Woods smiled. “My, I’ve never met a lady who felt comfortable enough in only sharing her first name! In that case, you can call me Anthony.”

And with a wink, he took her hand and gently laid a kiss upon it.

“Goodness, your hands are awfully cold!” he exclaimed. “Perhaps a dance could warm you up?”

Anastacia was about to respond, before Lord Karahalios interrupted her. “Come now, can’t you see that Sir Monteiro is courting her?”

Guilherme rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I’m not--why is everyone assuming that I’m courting?!”

“Because we’ve never seen you near a woman for more than ten minutes!” exclaimed Lord Karahalios.

“Unless you count Miss Salcedo,” added Lord Woods. “Those two are always together!”

“Always bickering, you mean.” Lord Karahalios corrected him.

Lord Woods laughed, and at that moment the orchestra began to play a piece, and everyone in the ballroom made their way to the dance floor along with their respective dance partners. Lord Woods turned towards Anastacia once more and offered his hand.

“My offer still stands!” he said with a smile.

But before Anastacia could respond, Guilherme took her hand instead. “I believe her first dance will be with me.”

Lord Woods sucked his teeth, but simply shrugged it off and left the table to find another lady to dance with. Lord Karahalios bid both Guilherme and Anastacia farewell, before following Lord Woods to do the same as he.

“Anthony seems awfully kind.” Anastacia remarked as they walked down to the center of the ballroom.

“Don’t be too trusting of him.” warned Guilherme. “He’s a professional rake.”

Anastacia paused for a moment before carefully saying, “Like...like a servant?”

Guilherme looked at her very puzzled. “Pardon?”

“Like a servant, who...rakes the leaves from the ground?”

He snorted. “No, that’s not what I meant.”

And he proceeded to explain to her what the term “rake” meant nowadays.

“Oh, so like a seducer?” Anastacia concluded.

“Precisely.” Guilherme confirmed.

Soon they reached the dancefloor, and it was lined with people, with men being on one side, and women on the other. Guilherme and Anastacia faced each other in their respective rows.

“Do you remember what we’ve practiced?” whispered Guilherme.

Anastacia nodded. Prior to the day of the ball, he thought it would be best to teach her how people danced nowadays, so all throughout the week leading up to the ball, they had practiced modern dances in Guilherme’s dormitory.

And as the dance began, he could see that Anastacia had learned very well. Out of all of the ladies in the ballroom, she was the one that danced beautifully. Perhaps it was because of her supernatural nature that has made her easily learn and adapt to new things to such perfection, but nonetheless it impressed him, and what made him even more satisfied was to see the look of pure joy on her face. She was genuinely having the time of her life, and he was glad that he had invited her to come along with him.

As the music continued, the dancers began to shift places, and Guilherme saw her dance with Lord Woods next. He was little worried about her, knowing the nature of his friend, but the more he observed the two the more certain he was that Anastacia knew very well how to defend herself, as she managed to remain reserved despite Lord Woods occasionally whispering things to her with a smile that had won the hearts of many ladies in the past.

“What a gentleman you are, being concerned for your lady.” he heard a voice say to him.

He turned and in front of him was Miss Emma Salcedo, with the same green dress she had worn in countless other balls, and a devious smile on her face he knew was meant to get on his nerves.

“It is expected when you have friends who are known for debauchery.” he said.

Emma shook her head. “A real gentleman would never allow himself to mingle with such men.”

“So why is such a respectable lady as yourself dancing with me?”

She paused for a moment as they continued to dance, before speaking again. “It would have been impolite of me to refuse a dance.”

“You? Being concerned about coming off as ‘impolite’?” he scoffed. “Oh come now, I’m surprised you’re even here to begin with.”

“And do you really think I wanted to be here? If it weren’t for my mother, I’d be at home enjoying the company of a good book.”

“The only thing that would tolerate your company.”

Emma glared at him. “As though anyone would tolerate your company! I’m honestly surprised to see you courting at all. I pity your lady for having to put up with you…”

Guilherme let out an irritated sigh. “I. Am. Not. Courting!”

“Then who is she?!”

“A friend.”

Emma scoffed. “And then you complain about your friends for their debauchery.”

“It appears as though this is bothering you quite terribly.”

Emma shot another glare at him, but didn’t say a word, and continued to dance with him for the remainder of the piece. As the music finally came to an end, everyone turned towards the orchestra and applauded.

“Honestly, I was not expecting to be insulted this much from a single person in this ball,” Guilherme muttered to Emma as he applauded. “Especially since it’s being held in my honor.”

She turned towards him with a look of surprise, then awkwardly glanced the other way.

“I didn’t know…”

“Of course you didn’t, since apparently the only thing that concerns you is the matter of my morality and where it stands.”

“Well, you do hold it with such high regards, that it surprised me to see you bring a lady that you’re not even courting to a ball.”

“Once again, she is a friend, and it is perfectly fine to bring a friend to a ball, as long as it is respectable.”

“Well you two seem awfully too close for that.”

Guilherme paused, and looked at her rather quizzically. “Do my ears deceive me, or was that a hint of jealousy in your tone of voice?”

Emma spun around, looking very crossed. “Your ears have not only deceived you, but completely ceased to work properly, how dare you insinuate such a thing!”

But before Guilherme could even respond, Emma stormed away, joining with a group of ladies sitting at a table far across from him.

“That was so much fun!” said Anastacia from behind, which frightened him a little bit.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it.” he smiled.

“How about you?”

He sighed. “Unfortunately, I don’t think I can say the same.”

Guilherme looked back to where Emma was sitting, and watched her laugh and talk to the other ladies at the table. For the first time he saw her smile at a ball, which was something he never thought was possible of her, and for just a split second he thought it was rather charming, before squashing that thought immediately.

Anastacia had followed his line of sight, and smiled in a cheeky manner.

“She looks very pretty.” she smiled.

“You say that because this is the first time you’re seeing her in that dress.” he remarked, curtly.

“But it’s not just the dress,” she denied. “She’s also very prim and poised, like in that fashion magazine you gave me!”

“Again, this is the first time you are seeing her,” he repeated. “You’ll change your mind once you get to know her.”

“You say that, but you’ve danced with her this entire time, while everyone else frequently changed their partners.”

“Are you trying to insinuate something?” he asked, slightly irritated.

But Anastacia only giggled, and Guilherme began to wonder if she had already picked up on Lord Karahalios and Lord Woods’ teasing ways.

Soon after that, Guilherme had offered her to follow him to a balcony close by, as a means to get some fresh air, to which Anastacia happily accepted. As they both reached the balcony, Anastacia gasped as she looked up to the starry night sky.

It was a beautiful sight to see, as though precious diamonds were sown carefully onto a fine velvety fabric of the darkest shade of blue. The full moon also shined beautifully from the sky, like a delicately placed intricate ornament.

Anastacia leaned against the railing of the balcony, placing her hand upon her cheek, and closed her eyes as her usual bright smile spread happily across her face.

“It’s been so long since I’ve seen such a beautiful night sky like this!” she sighed.

“So have I.” he said as he joined her at the railing. “Though granted that you have gone without seeing it much longer than me.”

“That is true.” she chuckled. “But it’s thanks to you that I can see it again.”

“It’s the least I can do for you, since you saved my life back then.”

Her smile slightly became painful for a moment, then she looked down at her hands. “Sometimes I still think about that day…”

“Me too.”

“I don’t regret what I have done, but…” she faltered. “...sometimes I can’t help but think about the repercussion I might have brought…”

Guilherme took her hand, immediately feeling the contrast of her ice cold skin against his warm touch.

“Don’t worry, you’re safe.” he assured her.

Anastacia smiled, and placed her free hand upon his, squeezing it gently.

Guilherme was determined to protect her from the Caligos, even though he was just a mere mortal who was almost killed by them, but his mind was set in defending her. From the time he had spent with her since that day, Guilherme had come to know the sweetest and kindest being he had ever met in his life, she didn’t deserve to continue to live with a family that constantly undermined her, and cared less about her own life. He had to do something, and if it meant that he had to risk his life to do so, then so be it. Anastacia risked her’s to save him, a complete stranger at the time, so he was determined to do the same for her, a now very dear friend to him.

“Shall we return?” asked Guilherme, offering a hand to her. “I think they’re about to play another piece.”

“Of course!” she smiled, taking his hand, and they both returned to the ball.

But as soon as they set foot inside, a horrible shriek spread throughout the room. Everyone looked towards the noise, and soon more screams flooded the entire ballroom as shadows suddenly began to encircle them, faster than the human eye could see.

The shadows then met in the middle of the ballroom, and as soon as Guilherme got a better look at them, his entire body froze solid.

Algernon stood with his piercing cold eyes glaring at everyone across the room, and behind him, Lorenza and Jocosa both lowered the hoods of their cloaks, smiling and cackling wickedly at the guests, licking their fangs in delight. Surrounding the three of them were a small group of vampires that Guilherme hadn’t seen before, but were all very familiar to Anastacia, as he looked down to see a look of pure terror in her eyes.

“Oooh, a party!!!” sang Lorenza. “I hope we’re not too late!”

Jocosa elbowed her. “We’re not here for the party, we’re here to get your sister!”

Lorenza whined, and the two vampires began to bicker when Algernon shot them a dreadful look at them. They both ceased immediately.

Algernon looked across the room, and his eyes fell upon Guilherme and Anastacia, who were still standing by the entrance to the balcony.

He sneered. “You befriended him...disgusting…”

“Mother always said to never play with your food, sister dear.” Lorenza teased.

Anastacia took a step forward, much to Guilherme’s protests. Everyone had her eyes on her, looking both confused and horrified. For a moment she looked timid, as though afraid of everyone’s stares, as well as her relatives glaring down at her, but she lifted her chin up and looked at them straight in the eye.

“How did you find me?” asked Anastacia.

Jocosa chuckled. “You clearly don’t know very well how the carriage works, it’s never a good place to keep secrets.” “And that old lady tasted divine!” sang Lorenza, as she elegantly spun in a circle. “Her scent kind of reminded me of flowers.”

Guilherme felt sick to his stomach. They were at his university’s campus, at his dormitory, which means they had seen Mrs. Flowers, probably tending to his room as usual, and got to her...

“What do you want?” Anastacia asked, her voice cracking slightly.

Algernon moved closer to her, until they were both inches away from each other. He observed her from head to toe, grimacing at her new dress and accessories, as well as her hair which was done neatly in a fashionable style, as she had seen in the fashion magazine.

“You look pathetic,” he growled. “Trying to imitate these humans.”

“What do you want?” she repeated, almost in a whisper. 

“What does it look like?! We’re here to take you home, despite bringing enough shame to us…”

“She’s not going anywhere!” cried Guilherme, taking a step forward.

Both Algernon and Anastacia looked back at him, but each with a different expression. Anastacia had a look of concern in her eyes, while Algernon looked astonished for a second, before glaring intensely at him.

“And what are you going to do?” he growled.

Guilherme took off his tailcoat, tossing it to the ground, and held up his fists. 

“Why don’t you come and find out?”

Algernon scoffed. “Please, don’t humor yourself.” 

But as he grabbed Anastacia’s arm, Guilherme ran forward and tackled him, only to be swiftly tossed aside by him and crash against the wall, slumping to the marble floor.

Anastacia cried out to him, and was about to run after him but was caught by Jocosa and Lorenza, as they held onto her.

Guilherme painfully stood back up, clutching onto his side.

“Do not test me!” Algernon warned.

“And what are you going to do?” Guilherme winced.

“Please, don’t do this!” Anastacia cried.

Algernon glared at him, but a smile slowly crept on his lips. “You brought this upon yourself.”

Isaac pressed the doorbell to Candie’s apartment multiple times before the door finally opened, but instead of meeting with her, a man he’s never met stood before him. He was rather tall, and was wearing nothing but a pair of khaki pants that was barely zipped up all the way through, and across his upper body was an array of tattoos from various classic horror films, to a few quotes and minimalistic designs. His hair was tied up in a small messy bun, and his beard--although cut fairly short--was a bit disheveled.

The man looked at him with a puzzled expression through his thick-rimmed glasses, as though he wasn’t expecting him to show up at the door.

“Who are you?” asked Isaac.

“Um, Gui.” the man answered.

At that moment Candie appeared at the door, wearing nothing but an oversized tee shirt. She also looked like she wasn’t expecting Isaac to visit, but unlike Gui, she looked rather displeased about it.

“What do you want?” she snapped.

“I came to get my stuff.” he answered.

“O-Oh, you live here?” asked Gui.

“No, he doesn’t.” Candie snapped again.

Isaac narrowed his eyes at her, but she didn’t seem to care, so he let out an irritated sigh and asked if he could come in, to which Gui politely moved out of the way. As he walked in, he immediately noticed a few new items littered across the room that he knew didn’t belong to Candie, such as a small pile of books lying on top of her coffee table (because he knew that she hated literature) as well as several empty coffee cups scattered over it, a pair of men’s leather shoes that were far too hipster-looking to belong to anyone else that he knew, a button-down shirt, and a long ugly-looking scarf that was sprawled across the couch (which he definitely knew that Candie would’ve never been caught wearing one, even if someone paid her a million dollars).

He turned to face Gui, with a forced smile on his face. “You really made yourself comfortable here, huh?”

“That’s none of your business!” Candie snapped, crossing her arms.

“Were you guys...dating?” asked Gui carefully, as he looked from Candie to Isaac which at that point were glaring at each other.

“No!” they responded in unison.

“He was just a fling.” Candie said, nonchalantly, but still glaring at Isaac. “Nothing more, nothing less.”

Isaac pressed his lips together, then forced another smile.

“Yeah. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“I...think I should leave…” Gui decided, and he walked over to the couch to grab his things.

“No, you can stay as long as you like!” said Candie as sweetly as possible, and walked over to him.

“No, no, I have to go.” Gui insisted as he was buttoning up his shirt. “I got so much stuff to do anyway, I gotta go to work, and I gotta finish editing my paper, and--”

“--And you found time to hoe around here, huh?” muttered Isaac.

Candie glared at him, but Gui simply ignored his remmark and continued to gather his belongings. As he was done, Candie led him to the front door and told him to call her back, before kissing him.

Isaac stood there with his arms crossed, glaring at her before meeting her face to face, just as soon as Gui left.

“Didn’t you come here to get your stuff?!” she spat.

“I was, but you two were in the way!” he retaliated.

Candie groaned, rolling her eyes, then made her way to her room.

“I’m gonna go get your stuff ‘cause clearly, you’re not gonna get it!” she yelled.

“What’s so special about him anyway?!” he asked all of a sudden.

She didn’t respond, and as she entered her bedroom, she went directly to her closet and began pulling out a bunch of Isaac’s clothes, jackets, and shoes, and throwing them onto the floor. Isaac followed her inside, and began to collect his things from the ground.

“No, really, what’s so great about him?!” he insisted. “Is it his hair, or his muscles, or his tatts--”

“He’s a journalist!” Candie said, cutting him off. “And he’s smart!”

“I’m smart too, I went to law school!” he whined.

“Yeah, but you’re no lawyer now, aren’t ya?”

Isaac paused, feeling that low blow he knew Candie meant for it to hurt. But he just scoffed, and pretended he didn’t care.

“Then why were you with me this whole time?” he asked.

Candie stopped what she was doing, and turned to face him. Her bright turquoise eyes glared at him intensely. She was angry at him, but that didn’t scare him, he’d seen her angry multiple times already, he’s even seen her in worse moods than this. But the longer he looked at her, the more he began to question whether she was truly mad at him, as he could have sworn he saw a twinge of pain in her gaze.

“You were the one that ended things between us.” she said quietly. “Why are you being so pressed about this?”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“I don’t have to answer you anything!” she yelled.

And for the first time since Isaac arrived, silence fell between them. Candie crossed her arms, looking the other way, and he knew that she was about to cry.

“Take your shit and go.” she said, her voice almost cracking.

He stared at her for a moment before bending down to get more of his stuff that Candie had scattered on the floor, then looked at her once more.

“Is this what you really want?” he asked.

“Wasn’t this what you wanted?” she asked in return.

Guilherme hated winter in London. The harsh cold wind violently piercing through his skin and hitting his bones, the slippery ice that makes a man look like a drunken fool whenever he attempts to walk on it, and the snow...oh, the snow...what at first glance looks like a pure glistening white landscape, turns into a cold, mushy, abomination that fools the eye’s perception of the ground, resulting in soaked feet and trousers with just one wrong move.

He missed the eternally warm days back home in Brazil, and desperately wanted to go back, but his father had insisted on him having the best education by attending one of the most prestigious universities in London, so he could become a true gentlemen: knowledgeable, well-mannered, and eloquent. All traits fit to one day inherit his family’s coffee plantation.

He hated it. He could care less about his father’s plantation, or his family’s wealth, or even the family name his father so desperately wants him to uphold. No, Guilherme wanted to break free from the materialistic world he felt he was forcibly thrown into, and longed to live a life like his past ancestors, a life in nature, where he could make his own goods, and where he could marry whomever his heart desired, and not because it would be his family’s best interest.

He sighed in aggravation as he looked out at the snowy landscape from the inside of a carriage. As much as he loathed his current state, there was nothing he could do. The only means of escape was through parties his friends would invite him, where he could for once forget about his duties as the future heir of his father’s plantation, and just live his own life with pleasure.

“Are we nearly there yet?” he asked the coachman.

“We should be close!” yelled the coachman from his post. “Baron Ashley Rivers’ house shouldn’t be too far from where we are!”

Guilherme’s eyes wandered back to the window, and he began to observe his surroundings. He had been to his friend Ashley’s manor so many times before, that the path was already familiar to him. However, as the carriage kept on moving, he noticed that the path they were on was completely different from the one he knew.

Instead of a trotted down path between a meadow, the path they were on now was surrounded by thick pine trees, closely knitted against each other, absorbing the very few rays of moonlight from shining through.

It was snowing rather heavily tonight, and Guilherme could only conclude that the coachman made a wrong turn along the way, and led them to an unknown part of the woods. He cursed in portuguese under his breath, regretting on renting a carriage, instead of allowing Baron Ashley to send one of his own carriages to him.

“We are completely lost!” shouted Guilherme to the coachman.

“Oi, watch that tone-a yours!” the coachman yelled back.

Guilherme rolled his eyes in frustration, and demanded the coachman to stop the carriage. It came to an abrupt stop, shaking him inside. He cursed again, and got out of the carriage.

His shoes sunk slightly into the snow, and Guilherme already felt his feet freeze. He moved a bit farther away from the carriage, squinting his eyes to find at least a cottage to help him find his way back to the main road.

“I wouldn’t head out too far if I were ya.” warned the coachman. “There are devils hiding behind these woods...”

Guilherme scoffed and continued his way deep towards the forest, moving farther and farther away from the carriage, until it was completely lost behind the woods.

He trotted through the snow for what he felt like hours, until he arrived at a clearing, and just up ahead he saw a manor. It was very old, probably built a few centuries ago, its paint was nearly faded away, and its bricks were already rotting. There was no light coming from the windows, so either its owners must have been asleep, or the place was abandoned...

Guilherme hoped it wasn’t the latter as he made his way to the front door. He reached about half way towards the manor grounds, when he heard rustling coming from the trees. He looked around but couldn’t see anything, for the snow--which seemed to be falling much harder than before--interfered his line of sight.

He stood for a moment, squinting his eyes as he looked all around him, and when he made sure that everything was fine, he continued towards the entrance.

Then, the rustling continued, and Guilherme quickly spun around, looking frantically at the open space around him.

“Who’s there?!” he shouted, with a tinge of fear, and suddenly he saw a shadow move from the corner of his eye.

He turned and another shadow quickly passed by him in a different direction. He manically turned left to right, trying to catch the shadows that taunted him, until he lost his step and fell head first into the freezing snow.

He looked up, his breathing accelerated as his heart pounded against his chest. He fumbled in the snow as he tried to sit up right, and in front of him stood a tall man, dressed in a dark crimson cloak.

The man was sickly pale, so white that his veins could be seen almost pulsing out of his skin. He looked down upon Guilherme with cold, piercing white eyes, they looked extremely focused upon him, waiting anxiously for an attack.

Guilherme tried to speak, but his voice was nowhere to be found, and at that moment, the ghastly man smiled, and a pair of long, slim fangs revealed themselves, glistening under the moonlight.

At last his voice finally returned to him.

“V-Vampire...” Guilherme choked.

The vampire chuckled, and cocked his head to the side. “Why aren’t you a clever one?”

And he lunged at Guilherme, but only to miss him by an inch, as he threw himself backwards away from the vampire. He turned to run, but the vampire clawed him by the leg. Guilherme cried in pain as he was dragged towards the creature.

“Why are you humans always so squirmish?” the vampire hissed, pinning down Guilherme by his shoulders.

He eyed his neck, and as he was about to bite it, a second cloaked vampire suddenly appeared from his left and tackled him away. Guilherme sat up, and saw the two vampires wrestling against each other.

“Why are you hogging that human to yourself?!” The second vampire gritted through her teeth.

“Because I saw him first!” the first vampire hissed.

“LIAR!” she roared, and clawed her long nails at the vampire’s face. “We BOTH saw him, I deserve a share!”

As the two vampires continued to wrestle with each other, Guilherme slowly crept away from them, looking over his shoulder to make sure they haven’t noticed him flee, but when he finally turned to run, he bumped into a third vampire, and once again he fell to the snowy ground.

The third vampire didn’t look much older than the others, but his eyes--which were also cold and piercing as the first’s--showed that he had lived longer than anyone else there. He clutched Guilherme by his throat, and lifted him up high, his feet dangling a foot away from the ground.

“Lorenza! Jocosa!” the third vampire called out to the wrestling duo.

They both stopped, turning their heads towards him, and in an instant, they pulled away from each other and got up, rubbing the snow off of their cloaks.

“B-Brother!” the first vampire, Jocosa, called out. He stared at his brother for a moment, slightly scared, but his expression immediately changed to a look of respect, and knelt before him, looking down at the snow with much concentration.

Lorenza, the second vampire, still stood in place and stared at the third vampire, with a look of awe mixed with obvious infatuation. She groomed her hair and cloak, and ran up to him.

“Algernon!” she cried. “Your going to make your greedy little brother share the human with me, right?”

Algernon sneered at Lorenza, throwing Guilherme to the ground, making a loud thud. Guilherme choked as he gasped for air.

“We were all hunting,” Algernon growled. “If you two had stopped bickering at each other like small children, you two would have been full by now.”

Lorenza swallowed, taken aback by Algernon’s rude remark. Jocosa, who had stood up, walked over to them, feeling very important.

“I told you we shouldn’t have brought her,” Jocosa remarked. “Women slow down the hunting!”

Lorenza hissed and clawed Jocosa’s face again. “I am the greatest hunter in the family! How dare you utter such atrocity!”

“ENOUGH!” bellowed Algernon, his voice echoed throughout the forest, scaring a flock of birds from a distance. “I should have brought neither of you here!”

As the three vampires were arguing among each other, Guilherme was trying to crawl himself away from them, but he felt weak with each move he made, his throat throbbing in pain from almost being choked to death, and the wounds on his leg stung as he dragged himself through the snow.

But Algernon took notice of Guilherme, and stepped on his ankle, crushing his bones. Guilherme screamed in pain, and was once again dangling in the air by his throat, feeling Algernon’s crushing grip concealing his entire neck.

“And now you two almost made me lose him.” he growled.

For the first time in his life, Guilherme prayed. As he began to see black dots envelope his vision, he prayed for help. He prayed for somebody, anybody, to come save him from being killed at the hands of these vampires.

But as if on cue, a loud shatter of broken glass echoed from behind the manor. The vampires turned to the noise.

“What was that?” Jocosa asked, irritably.

Algernon frowned at the manor, his eyes paying close attention to a singular window high up towards the roof.

“Lorenza,” he called. “Where is your sister?”

“Anastacia?” she asked. “In the manor, she’s forbidden to go outside.”

Algernon breathed heavily through his nose, a look of impatience took over his face, as his eyes locked onto the window. Without breaking his glare, he dropped Guilherme to the ground once more, then faced Lorenza and Jocosa.

“Watch the human.” he demanded, and went around the manor.

Guilherme stared at the falling snow, slipping in and out of unconsciousness, and occasionally he would hear bits and pieces of Lorenza and Jocosa bickering at each other.