#jomb

Despite being told you have a choice it didn't feel like it. The creature was right; no one would believe you. You have no idea what they'll do to you or where they'll take you. You figured you should let -someone- know you won't be back for a while. Pulling yourself to your feet proved quite painful, but nothing was broken as far as you could tell. After getting turned around once or twice and nearly tripping, you return to camp. You'd left your phone behind. Once you find it, you hold your breath as you press the power button hoping it'll turn on.

"Fifteen percent, thank god… just one call" The ringtone barely has time to buzz the other side of the line when he answers.

"Y/N! Are you okay!?" Hearing a friendly put you at ease. Much to Jason's dismay, you just sat there soaking in his sound. He rambles off a bunch of apologies for not being able to prevent you from ending up where you were. "Y/n? Please answer… anything. So I know it's you actually there."

"Hi," you sniffle, "I'm here, Jason."

"Thank you. Jerk, I thought you were dead." You could hear a faint chuckle. You smile and wipe a tear from your eye.

"Yeah," you return the half-hearted laugh, "I thought so too." You clear your throat, "Hey, um.. They already gave me a new place to go. Don't need a medic if the bodies almost never come back… but it's top secret, so I can't tell you where-"

"Do you know for how long?"

"Ummm.. n-no. I don't. I promise I'll try to send at least a letter, okay?" It took everything not to give in to the tears. Your throat hurt from straining to sound calm, "Jason?"

"Yes, Y/n?"

"Tell my family I love them."

"I will. I love you, Y/n."

"You're the bestest friend I could have ever asked for… I love you," you end the call. Shortly after, your phone dies. You spent the next hour or two crying yourself to sleep.

"Figured you didn't have that many places to run to, but here" the creature shrugs.

As promised, a gentle hand grabs your shoulder at midnight to wake you.

"How'd you find me?" Mumbles slip from your lips as you sit up.

"Mmm…" you hum, unamused

"So, made your decision?"

"Yeah… I guess I'll go with you. No point in causing more trouble than necessary," you sigh. To your surprise, the man approaches and scoops you up. "Wait, Wait, I can-" You feel yourself lifted higher but not further from the man. "I don't understand wha-" beneath you the man and beneath him… the creature? She seemed so small, yet here she was, lifting two people like they were paperweights.

"It's like you said, 'no point in causing more trouble than necessary.' I'm gonna carry y'all to the truck."

"How?!"

"Well, by putting one foot in front of the other, duh. Is there any other way?"

"But you're so sm-"

"I'd choose your next words very carefully, angel." She threatens as she starts to make her way through the woods. You cross your arms and protest,

"Fairly sure that's a reasonable question. You're like 5-foot? How the fuck are you carrying us both?" The entire time the man shook his head aggressively, a pleading look painting his face. A sly smile creeps onto the creature's face.

"You haven't figured it out yet?" She chuckles. The man sighs. You feel his arms wrap tight around you, so tight it almost hurts.

"Now, why'd you have to go do a thing like that?" He finally speaks. Although irritated, his voice seemed refined and soft, strangely soothing.

Before you can retort, the three of you zoom through the forest. A gasp escapes your lips, silenced by the wind blowing past your face. What would have been a 15 min walk for her turned into a 6-minute sprint.

"I think you're getting slower," the man teases once the two of you are on the ground again.

"I was carrying two people!!!" The creature hisses. The man rolls his eyes and shrugs. "Ugh, whatever. You could at least show some manners and thank me. I did you a favor."

"Im not saying anything. I didn't ask you to do that. Nor did y- they" He started to say your name but backed out.

"Hah! All these lives, and you're still so shy when you meet them." A smug smile plasters itself on her face. "So what's your answer? I mean, I just showed off. I think that deserves at least a guess," you assume she asked you, but her eyes never left the man's. His face was scrunched up into a scowl.

"Strength like something I've ever seen before, impossibly fast, pale as fuck.. and a seeming fondness for chaos, carnage, and blood. I know what you are.." As terrifying as everything has been, you couldn't help but make a joke; maybe if you make fun of this and treat it like a dream, it'll go away. "You're.. you're a vampire." You pause between most of your words not just because you want to put mocking, dramatic spaces of silence but also because that run put your body through higher speeds, and you're use to outside of a vehicle.

"Im gonna puke. You sound like that fucking book series" She covers her mouth and looks away. You can hear her fake gag, "Please never describe me like that again. Next thing we know, you'll be having to choose between me and some fucking w- huhp.." she pauses to try to avoid actually throwing up. Being dramatic had its drawback in this case. "Wolf boy."

"Am I right, though?" You tilt your head.

"Yeah. Just never do that again."

"What reference tw-"

"Finish its name, and I'll give you a complimentary nap with the power of knocking you the fuck out." She finally composes herself. Then looks around, "where did-"

"He got in the truck while I was guessing," You shrug. "Was that complimentary nap just a threat or a promise?" Despite hoping being knocked out would wake you from this, the vampire just chuckles and hops into the passenger seat of their truck. You sigh and get in the back. A thought occurs to you, "y'know, I don't know either of your names.. but you know mine."

"Oh! Right, I'm Mediya! And this big boy-" the creature pats the man's shoulder, "is Adrisil." He huffs at the remark. Mediya smiles at him and giggles her words, "You love me."

"Doesn't mean I can't be mad at you," he glares

"OhKhAy," she rolls her eyes.

It was a long drive, but it wasn't like you'd notice since you were asleep for most of it. You sit up as the ~notorious~feeling of pulling into a driveway hits you.

"Oh, you're up." Mediya looks back. "I wonder if it's like thing where we just -know- when we're home, ya know?" You shrug, not being awake enough to really think about it, let alone know what 'we' she was talking about. "Are you... ya know, okay? You've been taking all of this like- really well. Well.. good for your circumstances this time."

"Mm now you ask.. mm'just gonna treat it like a dream till tomorrow. If I wake up 'nd m'still here I'll deal with it then. Future me problem."

"Oh- um alright I guess." She wasn't sure how to react to that. The three of you scramble out of the truck and into the house. You follow their directions to your room and proceed to pass out again.

The morning nearly passes you by as you dream about your family and Jason. Eventually, your eyes blink awake to stare at a brown wall painted with ivy and little Venus fly traps. You rub your eyes and pinch yourself to ensure it's all real. Yep.. it's real.

"Great.. so I guess that means vampires do exist. Wonder what else exists, hope they don't use the internet or fiction sites…" You say aloud to yourself, 'If there's a unicorn, I'm finding it and keeping it.' It's dark in the room, so you pull the sheets off and shuffle your way over to the window. "FUCK!" You yell after getting a face full of sun. You rub your eyes until you feel like you're ready to brave the light again. Through squinted eyes, you can see a green field with a few trees around it. Just beyond the side of the window, part of an animal pen can be seen.

A gentle knock came at the door, pulling your attention away from the window.

"You okay?" You recognized it as the man's voice.

'What was it.. adin, adele, adr- ADRISIL. Adrisil? What the fuck.. what kind of name is- you know what doesn't matter.' You give up and open the door. "Yeah.. sorry, I opened the curtains and didn't expect it to be so bright." You answer and then ask, "What time is it?"

"About twenty till noon. I have lunch made if you're ready for it." You certainly weren't going to deny food. Your eyes wander as the two of you make your way to the table. Most of the house had a rustic look, moss green walls, the occasional accent stone walls and staircases, wooden beams decorating the ceiling, and furniture you were sure had been around since your grandparents.

"Wasn't sure what you'd be allergic to, so I just went with bacon and egg burritos." He pulls you from your space out.

"Oh.. thank you." At the table were only two plates, "Where's umm."

"Mediya? Sleeping. You'll get a chance to talk to her again tonight."

"…mm"

It was an awkwardly quiet breakfast. Adrisil breaks the silence after leaving the table to grab something,

"We have something you can change into. We didn't know what size you were, so we just guessed. Mediya spent a while picking the outfit out. Let me know if anything doesn't fit right." He slides over a small stack of clothing. "There's a bathroom two doors down from your room. After you shower and change, we can head into town and get you something you actually want to wear." With that, he starts cleaning up the dishes he used to cook breakfast with. You pick up the clothing and head to the bathroom.

You stood with your head leaning against the wall and the water running down your back, letting everything sink in. Tears roll down your cheeks as you clench your fists against the wall. Years of war, not a life caught in the crossfire spared until you. Why? Why you? Will it all stop if you stay with them? Gods.. the friends you've lost, and all the people before your time serving. You're sure you'll never get to see your family again. This will probably be the last and only time they let you walk "freely."

Before you knew it, you were dried and changed. You catch your reflection in the mirror. It was creepy how to actuate the outfit to your preferred style. You'd think Mediya stole it from your closet if you didn't know any better. Your fingertips graze over the clothing; some of it was a tad big, but that was better than it squeezing the life out of you. Pretty damn good for just 'guessing' sizes. You shudder. After shaking your head and thoughts away, you leave the bathroom. Time to go out shopping with a man you've known your whole life as a nation-slaughtering monster. What else we're you going to do? Run?