#sizeshifter!techno

Techno’s backstory

Bit of vampire lore, during their fledgeling phase; It takes about 1-4 years to mature depending on the vampire and the conditions of the fledgeling. Without a sire, a fledgeling would take a lot longer to reach maturity. With a sire, the process is usually shortened to a minimum of 1-2.

As for Techno, for some strange reason, his process was complicated compared to that of Wilburs. Wilbur was the first out of the twins to become a vampire due to contracting a deadly illness, causing Phil to turn him before Techno.

After Wilbur had turned, Phil’s focus was mainly on his other twin due to the entire sire process. It wasn’t like Phil wasn’t there but since Techno was quite the isolated individual, Phil couldn’t really leave Wilbur due to his sire instincts. 

It took Wilbur two years to mature, and one year to be able to handle himself as a fledgeling. During that time, Wilbur had visited a human village and the incident happened. 

Phil had offered to turn Techno earlier, but he refused. He wanted to live out his human life a bit longer. So, Techno is older than Wilbur by 2 human years and Wilbur is older than Techno is 2 vampire years. (Which is funny considering the twins were born 2 minutes apart).

Eventually, he was turned and the entire process was okay. Just his transformation was strange, instead of having larger upper fangs, his lower fangs are bigger. And his claws are duller compared to Phil’s and Wilbur’s yet he’s strongest out of the SBI.

Despite his process taking longer, he proved to be capable of taking care of himself as a fledgeling after about 2 years. Techno was out and conquering as many things as he could.

One of which was against an entire kingdom, which ended in victory. In the end, he took the king’s cape that had gotten torn during the battle and now wears it everywhere like a trophy. 

He came home after the battle, Phil just questioning why he’s covered in blood and he explains that he took down an entire kingdom. 

Tommy and Techno (since we don’t get enough Techno for this au)

Wilbur and Phil are vampires who have not entirely let go of their human emotions. Techno, on the other hand, has rather let go of his more human emotions and leaned more to his vampire side.

It’s not to say he doesn’t have emotions, it just means he tends to react more with instinct rather than emotion. So, he doesn’t communicate but rather sends his emotions and such through the coven bond. 

But when Tommy comes around, he has to try and be as human-ish as possible but it’s kind of hard to do when you’re centuries old and already long let go of them. So, he just depends on his instincts as a means of bonding sort of thing.

Since Tommy isn’t a vampire, his usual methods aren’t of any use. Plus, his instincts tend to act up when around Tommy since he now has a technical new member of the coven.

It’s a rough start, Tommy takes time to get used to Techno and his efforts of bonding but they both learn that the two of them have a knack for rough-housing. So, the two of them tend to rough-house a bit.

Techno will typically shift to around Tommy’s size and just playfully tackle him and such, being careful not to hurt him etc. When his instincts become overwhelming, he just gently bites Tommy or just puts him in his mouth where he knows he’s safe and such. 

Techno also trains Tommy in combat, hand to hand combat to make sure his human brother can take care of himself.

Drinking Blood

At first, the vampires don’t even dare to take a drop of blood out of Tommy just out of fear of hurting him. If they’re hungry, they stay a long way away from Tommy just to keep him safe until they’re able to feed themselves.

Luckily, the vampires don’t need large quantities of blood to survive despite their gigantic size, just size-shift and drink and they’ll be completely fed for a while. Tommy always questions when they feed or how they get their blood since he’s never seen them drink any. 

They actually have servants who gather blood for them through ethical means, they want to be as good of terms with humans as possible so they pay them in riches for some blood.

Eventually, the vampires join Tommy for meals at the dinner table. They’ll drink their blood and Tommy will eat his human food alongside them. Though Tommy always questioned why the vampires never drank from him, they never answered.

It wasn’t until an incident involving Wilbur and Tommy that had them captured before Techno and Phil could save them. Wilbur had begun to show signs of starvation. So, Tommy volunteered his blood to feed Wilbur.

Wilbur refused at first until he couldn’t push down his instincts any longer and fed. He was careful not to take too much blood, and eventually with a weakened Tommy. The vampires escaped.

Phil was pissed off at first but calmed down after Tommy defended Wilbur. Things calmed down after, easing some of the tension and stopping some of the rules the vampires had set for themselves.

The vampires actually produce a venom when feeding, one that’ll cause the human to become dazed, and affectionate sort of thing. Wilbur purposefully did it the first time so Tommy wouldn’t be hurt. 

After that, feeding Tommy became a kind of bonding thing. They’d only take small amounts and such, being as gentle as possible and eventually, Tommy grew used to the vampires taking blood from him. It would hurt a bit, but not as much as it used to. 

Covens

Covens are the equivalent of vampire families, when a vampire is turned, they become a part of the coven. And all three vampires of the SBI have a bond with each other where they’re able to feel each other’s emotions.

Depending on the strength of the bond between the vampires, more complicated things can be sent through the bond and sometimes even sentences to communicate. They’ll also be able to sense when another is nearby.

Tommy however, is unable to become a part of the bond due to being human. But, the vampires consider him a part of the bond. When a coven member is near Tommy,  the coven is able to know he’s safe and such due to the bond of the coven.

Other than that it’s just usual bonding between them all.

Mcyt g/t tag list:

His hair was always as bright as the sun, a little light that would never go out as he burned with determination. At least that’s what he used to believe, the boy’s hair had dulled ever so slightly; The burning passion, although still there, had been plagued with misdeeds.

He had been mistreated, he wasn’t sure if it was him to blame or how the people had treated him throughout the years. Whatever it was, he still played a part in it, and he put full blame on himself for it.

He wouldn’t fail, not again.

He played with the golden blonde curls of his hair, each strand covered in dirt, sweat and possibly even blood. Just as he had promised, he stuck by the boy’s side as he slept. He seemed to be having a pleasant rest judging by the number of snores that left the boy’s mouth.

It wasn’t quite as he had been expecting with the boy clinging tightly to his chest like a baby. It brought a smile to his face ever so slightly, tightening his embrace around the boy, protectively. This time, he would be protected. Nobody could touch him.

…

He knew Phil had told him to keep some distance! Or at least wait a little while but he couldn’t! He’s trying his best, but everything is telling him to check on Tommy, apologise, cradle or anything! He stormed over to his bedroom door before hesitating as his hand lay on the doorknob.

Right, he will not be impulsive. He needed to be in control of his instincts, he couldn’t let such a thing happen again. It was his neglect that had caused such an issue, it was his fault that everything had messed up.

Perhaps the anticipation of having a younger brother had been getting to him a bit too much, he was so excited the first time around and the second… Okay, he got the point. He let out a sigh of frustration as he turned away from the door, allowing himself to fall onto his bed.

Clearly, things weren’t going his way. He was growing impatient; he had waited years for the moment a little boy would come through the door and be welcomed by a loving family. He had always wanted a little brother, even when he was human.

He had gotten some sleep after he had been sent into his room, catching a couple of hours before he had awoken again. He was surprised at the fact that he had been so quick to sleep, after everything that had happened.

Then, there was a knock at his door.

“Wilbur, are you alright in there?”, his dearest brother’s muffled voice asked through the door. Techno wasn’t usually one for social interaction as he had always struggled with such a thing. it was quite the oddity for him to be knocking at his door.

“Yes, I’m fine. You have permission to enter Techno.”, just as awkward as his brother was. The first thing he did was creep his head through the doorway to look at his brother. Although his face seemed to have no expression, if you were to look close enough; There was a look of concern.

Techno entered without another word, opting to sit next to his brother that was sprawled out across the bed. Wilbur knew that he would have to be the one to start a discussion between the two but even his social energy wasn’t there.

His own brother noticed the fact that he wasn’t talking, even without words his brother could read him like a book. The two of them had a very strange yet close bond, Phil had always dubbed them the vampire twins as if it were a title.

…

Wilbur had a saddened look on his face as if he had been crying for hours on end. Just without the redness of his eyes. Something had deeply affected his brother and he could only presume it was everything that had happened with recent events.

He hadn’t been told the full story but based on what he knows, he could only guess that things had gone drastically wrong. Wrong to a point that his own brother was plagued by guilt, which wasn’t an emotion you’d often see on Wilbur.

He had seen Phil holding a sleeping Tommy close to his chest, waiting towards the bed chambers as his father held his own guilty expression on his face. And judging by Wilbur’s own guilt, he probably felt responsible for whatever events had transpired.

And judging by the tiredness of his brother’s eyes, he hadn’t slept one bit since. The man was always one to overly stress over things, he could only hope that Phil had fixed the issue at hand.

His mind went to Tommy. The boy that he had been told stories about from Phil, the promise of a younger brother. Wilbur had been ecstatic since the announcement, anticipating the day he would arrive.

The plan had been set in motion one day. Techno had been tasked with bringing Tommy to the mansion, but things hadn’t quite gone to plan on his end, he had been discovered by Tommy which inevitably ended up in a chase.

It was an exciting chase; Techno hadn’t quite had so much fun in a while. The boy was quick and agile, definitely a thing he had learnt from theft. Techno looked forward to a day that he could teach Tommy more, the boy had talent after all.

“You wanna talk about it?”, he asked after a moment of silence. Wilbur looked over to his twin, eyes narrowed with annoyance. Techno returned it with his own smile, trying to be as reassuring as he could.

Teasingly, Wilbur moved from his position on the bed and let himself fall onto his brother’s lap, a look of mischief on his face. Techno rolled his eyes before placing his hands on his brother’s face, hissing playfully.

“You gonna talk about it or not? Snotty brat.”. His brother’s playful eyes turned back into an annoyance for a moment, before letting out a sigh as his eyebrows arched; His frown returning. It took a moment before he spoke.

“I don’t know Tech, things are just really messy at the moment. I just- I messed up badly, to a point that things went downhill with the plan. It’s all my fault! And because of me, Tommy might not want to stay and-“.

“Hang on! Slow down Wil, what happened exactly?”, he asked with confusion. Wilbur had always been one to go into a ramble, and sometimes Techno couldn’t keep up with his twin. Wilbur took in a deep breath as he continued.

“We both know that we were supposed to introduce ourselves slowly to Tommy and let him get used to us and stuff right?”, Techno had nodded in reply. After he had returned that night, he was beyond tired and although he was a bit excited to see his new brother.

He kept his distance like Phil had asked him to, Phil would always be the one to handle the social side of things. He could only guess what his brother had done.

“And let me guess, you got a little too excited and caused a bunch of chaos like you normally do? Causing everything to mess up and because of it, you feel guilty as hell?”. Wilbur only nodded in reply, looking away in guilt.

He sympathised with his brother, even on his end of the plan hadn’t gone right. And because of it, Tommy had ultimately gotten hurt from the fall of that hill. He had tried his best to grab him, although he had been too late.

He kept an eye after that.

He let out another sigh, his hand going towards his brother’s hand in an attempt at comforting him. His brother only let out a string of whines in response as he curled in further on himself. How to comfort him?

Maybe an arrangement between him and Tommy? An arrangement to apologise of course, under the watch of somebody so that things wouldn’t go wrong. It was probably the best thing he could think of.

“Do you wanna go apologise?”, his brother’s eyes widened at the question. Wilbur sat up in a second with a look of shock and looked at Techno as if he were the crazy person in the situation but before he could do such a thing, Techno put his hand to his brother’s head again.

He then stood up, grabbing his brother's arm and dragging him out of the room. Wilbur desperately struggled under his grip as he let out several hisses. He really needed to stop being such a baby.

…

“Are you awake, Toms?”, he groaned in response, not wanting to wake up. Things felt too comfortable with the plush pillows that gently held his head, the soft blanket that gave warmth and the chest that he clung to.

Wait… He was clinging to somebody's chest….

He let out a yelp as he had finally registered the voice, quickly reacting as he pushed himself away, scrambling off the bed. He didn’t quite get a look of the man that had laid beside him as during his scrambling, he had fallen off the bed.

Well, at least that’s what he expected. The man above him reacted quickly and grabbed his shirt tightly, preventing him from colliding with the floor. He opened his eyes to finally get a good look at the man, only to recognise him as Phil.

Right, Phil. Yesterday happened, didn’t it?

Phil’s bright red eyes looked down at him in surprise, Tommy could guess that he had caught the man off guard by his actions, after all, it was quite sudden. Tommy could only give a weak smile and wave in response; grateful he had been caught.

With a sigh of relief, Phil brought him back onto the bed before letting out a hearty laugh, finding the whole thing humorous before looking back to Tommy with a gentle smile, ruffling his hair teasingly.

Tommy although surprised by the touch, it was welcomed. It had been a while since anybody had shown him such affection and Tommy found himself melting into it like a sleeping puppy, he hoped such things would happen more often.

“You alright, mate?”, his tone was gentle and kind, softness in his eyes. Tommy nodded happily in response, he still felt relatively tired, hungry, and thirsty, but he was also happy to enjoy the moment.

Phil gave him a look of suspicion, no doubt questioning him after everything that had transpired the other day. But Tommy simply rolled his eyes in response, leaning closer into Phil’s claw that gently laid on his cheek.

The claw is then withdrawn as Phil goes to stand up, a gentle smirk on his face as he speaks, “Well, we should probably get you something to eat? Shouldn’t we?”. The mention of food made Tommy perk up with energy, standing up to join Phil.

“Yeah, bitch! I’m hungry!”, Phil laughs in response and goes to open the door. But he stops, staring with a look at confusion for whatever was at the other side of the open door. Tommy’s excitement slowly dwindles, stopping in his steps in fear.

…

“Techno, Wilbur? Why are you both here?”. Phil asked in a confused tone. It was probably a strange sight to see your son dragging his brother across the floor like a ragdoll. Wilbur could be seen on the floor, seemingly having given up on his struggles for freedom.

“Hello, Father.”, Techno greets with a smirk, his lower fangs poking through his lips. Wilbur also greets his father with a hiss of frustration, his own way of greeting the two in his annoyance. Phil could only shake his head at his son’s actions.

His father then moved to another side of the room, where Tommy stood still. His fists were clenched tightly as he glared at Techno and Wilbur, who had just entered the room. Techno then let go of his brother’s leg, moving out of sight to sit in a chair that lay in the corner of the room.

…

Wilbur angrily hissed at his brother as he sat down, the silts of his eyes narrowing as he looked ready to pounce on his brother. His father let out an expectant cough and Wilbur snapped out his anger, opting to look towards his father and Tommy.

Any look of anger immediately faded at the sight of Tommy, and the overwhelming fear of guilt returned. His flared pointy ears went downward as he quickly stood up, his head to the side in guilt and fear, scared of what was to happen.

He looked towards Tommy, although avoiding eye contact. He could see the flare of anger in Tommy’s eyes, unwavering even though he looked ready to run, his fists clenched as he breathed anxiously.

Wilbur knew that he was the blame for that look.

Phil places a gentle hand on Tommy’s shoulder, who almost flinches in response as he snaps to look at Phil. His father held a stern yet reassuring look on his face, Tommy takes in a deep breath, relaxing under the touch.

Wilbur felt vulnerable with emotion, at any moment he felt as if he’d crumple under the weight of guilt and let off a series of whines as he’d profusely apologise to Tommy. But he didn’t deserve forgiveness, after everything he had done.

He was nothing more than a monster, a monster with fangs that didn’t do anything besides biting into the necks of many and consuming blood. Claws that do nothing more than tear through flesh, blood-red eyes that only struck fear into prey.

Monster… Monster… Just like so long ago…

Stop! Not again!

The voices in his head became increasingly louder, he shook his head to try wiping away the thoughts. But it only made them worse as they became louder, he brought his hands to his ears to block them out.

…

If Tommy were to describe to look on Wilbur’s face, it would be guilty and heartbroken. He looked at Tommy as if he were the one that feared Tommy, he looked to be pleading. Tommy could’ve almost sympathised with him if it weren’t for everything…

But then, Wilbur fell to the floor suddenly, letting out several whimpers as he brought his hands towards his ears. To say the least it had caught Tommy off guard, especially since he appeared to be so vulnerable.

It was only then Tommy felt a bit of guilt.

Tommy could only assume that Wilbur was crying, judging by how he had curled in on himself during the whines. Tommy understood that Wilbur had felt guilty after the entire incident, comforting him whenever possible.

Wilbur began to sputter out apologies throughout his whines. Phil’s grip on his shoulder tightened, taking a hesitant step forward. He looked to be pondering whether to comfort Wilbur or to stick by Tommy’s side.

Tommy then made his own decision.

He nudged Phil’s hand off his shoulder, a look of reassurance and confidence as he went the walk towards Wilbur. Admittedly, he felt terrified at that moment. He was scared that Wilbur was going to yell out at him, bite him or something.

But another part of him told him that Wilbur wouldn’t even think about doing such a thing. Phil had reassured him that after all; He knew Wilbur had made mistakes, that he was guilty and was trying to apologise for something he couldn’t quite control.

Tommy was still mad at him, scared of him but Tommy said that he’d give them a second chance. And he was going to just that. He knelt beside Wilbur, hesitant to speak as he was uncertain on what to say.

He took in a deep breath, “Wilbur.”, he began. Wilbur's whines came to a sudden stop as he stopped he apologised, his eyes opened with narrowed silts as he moved his hands away from his ears, but then he remained as still as a statue, not daring to move.

“I’m still mad at you, but I know you didn’t mean to do what you did. I forgive you. Just don’t expect me too comfortable around you, okay? Also, I’m sorry I called you a monster. It’s just that-“. Wilbur’s eyes softened at his words, looking to Tommy with a saddened smile.

Tommy didn’t really know how to continue with his words, but Wilbur seemed to understand as he nodded in return. He let out a sigh of relief, feeling as if he had gotten a weight off his chest.

Tommy smiled, spreading his arms wide in an offer of a hug because Wilbur really looked as if he needed a hug in the current moment.

…

Wilbur had been shocked at the fact that Tommy forgave him, even apologising for calling him a monster.

Tommy had opened his arms for a hug and without an ounce of hesitation, he took it. He embraced the small boy into his arms, offering a comforting, tight hug. He could feel Tommy tense under him before allowing himself to relax.

He felt an ounce of guilt when he had frightened the boy, but ever so relived because Tommy had forgiven him. He had been shocked at fact, but also so happy and relieved. He had a second chance, and this time. He wouldn’t mess it up.

“Tommy, I’m sorry and I know no amount of apologies will do justice for what I did. Take all the time you need, I’ll wait. And I promise that I’ll do anything to make it up to you.”. Wilbur held on tighter to the boy in his arms.

Tommy then began to shake under his touch as he let out his own series of sobs, for a moment Wilbur had thought that he had terrified the boy again. But Tommy also tightened his grip on Wilbur, clinging to his chest.

Wilbur let out a whimper of worry as his hand moved to caress the blonde locks. In a second, they were joined by Phil, who wrapped his arms and wings around the boys to comfort them. The two of them leaned into their father’s touch.

…

Tommy had eventually stopped crying but didn’t pull away from Wilbur’s embrace. He didn’t feel the need to because he felt safe and protected. Or perhaps it was the amount of loneliness or emotions that had accumulated because he felt relieved after all that crying.

Wilbur nor Phil had stopped comforting him during his breakdown, instead, they offered comforting words and gave him the affection that he had so desperately craved for so many years. Is that what it felt like to have a family?

Still, though, he barely knew them. And still, he felt attached to the many people he feared. There was still so much to be done… And Tommy looked forward to it.

Then, there was a loud, awkward cough. It made Tommy because the room had been so silent for a good while. He had forgotten that there was another person in the room. Tommy pulled away from the man's embraces to get a good look at the one they called Techno.

He looked almost the same as when Tommy had first seen him, just even less terrifying as the man looked anxious and awkward. Tommy couldn’t but sympathise with the man, it was a rather awkward situation to be in after all.

Techno had the same bright pink hair and predatory eyes, but they had a softer look to them. The man’s hair had been tied back into a loose bun and didn’t dress up quite as fancy as he did on the first night.

One thing Tommy had noticed was his lower fangs, they were larger compared to the others and couldn’t easily be hidden as they obviously poked through his lips. Though, they were still terrifying in the slightest.

Phil let out a laugh from beside him and Wilbur let out a series of muffled snorts from under his sleeve. Techno’s face turned flush when they started laughing as he looked away in embarrassment, Tommy almost felt bad for the guy.

Phil then put a claw to his shoulder, “Tommy, this is Techno. Although you’ve encountered each other, this is the proper time that you two have properly met.”. Well, it probably wasn’t the best first impression considering that Wilbur and Tommy had cried ever since he entered the room.

“I- Yeah, sorry about your arm. Didn’t mean to let you fall off a cliff”. He apologised in a monotone voice. Okay, he thinks he understands. Techno is just very socially awkward, leading to very awkward yet funny interactions with the guy.

Tommy gave his own laugh in response.

…

He looked at the disgusting food bowl that lay on the table, Phil had told him to take it easy with the food as he had been given a bowl of soup. Now, he didn’t hate soup, he loved the stuff. But the cooking of the food looked really strange.

And Tommy didn’t really trust that, because how could you trust a vampire with cooking? The last time Phil could’ve cooked was centuries ago! How on earth was he supposed to trust that? Old doesn’t always mean great!

Phil said that the soup was an old recipe of his that he would cook for Techno and Wilbur back in the day, saying that they loved the stuff back when they were human. Tommy didn’t quite trust his words as he hesitantly picked up the bowl.

Phil's ears twitched in anticipation as he stared down at Tommy from the gigantic table. Not a very welcoming sight considering red eyes were staring at his every move with a smile on his face. Phil was really excited for him to try the dish, wasn’t he?

Wanting to get it over with, he quickly grabbed the spoon and took a bite of the soup. And surprisingly, it actually tasted really good. At least, better than any bread that Tommy had eaten before.

If anything, it was the best thing that he had ever eaten, quickly eating more of the soup and before he knew it. The bowl was completely empty. Phil smiled at him as he had finished his plate, and Tommy was happy to get some food.

Though, instead of complimenting the man’s cooking…

The vampire smiled down at Tommy with a sinister grin; The long, shiny, and sharp fangs only added more to the dreading feeling of shivers crawling down his back. It was a simple message, a very clear one.

You’re staying here.

It made him feel sick to his stomach, even with the nauseating feelings from the amount of running that he had done today. Yet, he remained in his position and didn’t dare flinch at the sight of the fangs.

He had already let his pride down for whatever those things from earlier were; he had already shown them that he was very vulnerable. He wasn’t going to their leader get under his skin, he couldn’t let them know he was scared. Not again.

The bright red beaming eyes of the vampire seemed to narrow from the lack of response from Tommy, it didn’t seem satisfied. Perhaps its grand and amazing entrance had been ruined, he hoped that was the case.

Judging by the stare of the vampire with the silts of eyes going thinner by the second, he was being observed. Observed for fear, because that’s all these beasts wanted from him; They wanted him to fear them, be treated as pets from what he could tell.

He snarled his teeth in warning, hoping it would show some warning towards the vampire as a threat. He knew he’d be helpless against the thing, but it was worth a shot. After all, he wasn’t simply doing down without a fight, especially after how far he had made it.

“Now, now. No need to get hasty.”, The vampire seemed to purr. His tone was a strange yet soft and delicate one. If he hadn’t known better, he would’ve mistaken it as reassurance due to its bittersweet nature.

Tommy wanted to growl and snarl back like an animal, he wanted to fight. But, if he were honest; It felt like his body could give out from under him at any moment, he wanted so badly to collapse and sleep. He was in so much pain that it was difficult to hold back his tears from the vampire.

It was like that sirenic thing all over again, instead this time it was just him.

Without a response, the vampire seemed to grow even more annoyed at the circumstances. The eyebrows furrowed; Eyes narrowed even further, silts of their eyes had turned thin and pointy ears twitched in an annoyed manner.

“Now I understand that I may indeed be a couple of centuries old. But I do not have a lot of patience, my boy. So, I suggest that you say your name to me or allow me to tend to your wounds. Otherwise, I wouldn’t like to force things upon you.”.

Sweat dripped down from Tommy’s forehead, his fists were gripped so tightly that they were almost fully white. This thing dared to make such threats against him. Well, tend to his wounds? A strange request but he wasn’t going to let himself be touched, not again.

He didn’t want to be treated as food again.

“Don’t you dare touch me!”, his hoarse voice snared like a vaper. It stung his throat badly to even yell at that point, but he could care less about his aching throat that desperately pleaded for water. He could care less.

“Tommy.”.

The tone became more demanding, trying to put Tommy in his place as simply the smaller thing in the room… Wait… How did that thing know his name? He never said his name, even when asked. How did he know it?

His stance faltered slightly in shock; he was almost marvelled at the fact that the creature had muttered his name. The grip on his fists let out ever so slightly, and only then did he feel the burning sensation of his right wrist.

He let out a cry of pain, even though the rest of his body ached in pain. The burning sensation was even worse than anywhere else on his body. He wanted to curl in on himself and cry. He kept his eyes open as tears flooded his eyes once again.

Surprisingly, he didn’t fall.

The vampire noticed his increased amount of pain as he heard a hiss of worry be let out from the vampire. Perhaps he had caught it off guard with his cry? Although his vision was blurry, he could see that the vampire was coming closer and reaching out towards him.

…

He took in one of the biggest inhales of air he could.

And ran.

He felt faint at the very second, he broke into a sprint, but he couldn’t stop now as for the third time within a day; he was running for his fucking life. He knew he wouldn’t be able to get out of the gigantic office, so the next best option was the gigantic furniture that lay around the room.

Tommy was small enough to fit under some of the furniture, surely it would work.

He could hear the vampire let out a sort of shriek in surprise, caught off guard that Tommy could even run at this point. He wasn’t going to let these things treat him like a toy, he wasn’t something to play with.

Although he had gained a bit of distance, the room quickly turned shaky as the vampire ran with their gigantic footsteps. But there was a bit of hope; Hope that he clung onto. Nearby there was a chair, one that Tommy could take cover under.

He ran as fast as he could, he was nearly there!

…

A giant claw slammed against him with quite a bit of force, causing him to fall under the pressure of the grip. The body collided with the floor as the air was forced out of his body, only then had he realized how much he had pushed himself as black blurry dots filled his vision.

He let out a scream of pain, his body ached so much at this point that his mind could barely focus. He knew he wasn’t safe, yet everything was begging him to rest and sleep. He shut his eyes for a moment to refocus.

He looked up.

The claw was holding down as if the vampire had caught a rodent. The eyes looked even angrier than before as they looked down at him with predatory eyes. It was almost the same as that other vampire, did they enjoy the chase? Treating him as little prey?

“Well, now.”. The vampire huffed. “I haven’t moved around like that in quite a while. I’m surprised you even had the energy in you. Mate.”. The vampire gave him a toothy smile, fangs on full display as their eyes had a look of hunger to them.

The black dots become bigger as the vampire became even more unfocused, he couldn’t even make out the voice at this point…

“Goodnight.”.

…

A curious hum left his tongue, his hand brushing over the softness that laid beside him. It was so comforting that he didn’t want to leave, where was he? He’s never left anywhere more comfortable before.

Was he finally off the streets? Did he finally find his-

He sits up in a tight sweat, only for his lungs to give out on him and let out a fit of coughs. As he attempted to slow down his pained coughs, he looked with his watery eyes to look around the room. And clearly from what he could tell of the lavish furniture.

He hadn’t been rescued; he was still in the same mansion.

Strangely though, everything to his room was to his size this time. And he doubted the fact that he would turn gigantic himself, after all, he wasn’t a- His fingers went instinctively and protectively around his neck.

He checked for any strange marks only to find none, that was the rumor, right? If you had been bitten by a vampire, there would be marks from where you were bitten. The only conclusion was that he was in a humanoid room.

And as much as he wished it was a dream with vampires, supernatural and shit. Everything he had felt was so realistic and clear that it hadn’t been a dream, Tommy wasn’t optimistically dumb.

Though, sometimes careless hope was helpful? Because if he could, he would curl in on himself, cry and pretend he was safely tugged in his mother’s embrace like he would’ve been before. He would feel protected.

But it wasn’t the time for that.

He had to escape.

He scanned around the room, looking for any means to escape. And he found his gaze laying on the door to the room. Yes, it would most likely be out in the open, but it was possibly his only escape route. One that he had to take.

With his ragged and tired movements, he limped towards the door. Even with the aching pain of his chest and how desperately he wanted a drink, he wasn’t going to stop. As he approached the door, he went to reach for the handle with his right hand.

Only to wince slightly.

He looked down at it, only to see it had been wrapped ever so carefully in a bandage. Right, the vampire said he would tend to his wounds. But why had he done that? That was one question to be answered in this mysterious mansion.

He instead went to reach the knob of the door with his left hand, and carefully he opened the creaky wooden door with caution. Trying not to make a sound as perhaps even a pin-drop could alert them if he weren’t careful.

He leaned closer into the doorway to look around, only to stop in whatever movements he had been doing…

There it was, staring at him with a sadistic smile. Its eyes seemed to beam in excitement at the sight of Tommy as the brunette stared at Tommy with its gleaming red eyes. Instead, this time it was the same size as him. He jumped back in surprise.

“Good morning, Tommy! I wasn’t expecting you to be awake so soon! Especially with how much energy you spent yesterday! No doubt you’d be tired.”. The vampire took a few steps closer towards the door as Tommy took a few steps back. The two of them were now in the room, trapped together.

The vampire shut the door behind him, seemingly locking it with a strange mechanism on the knob. Great, he was now trapped in the room with a stupid vampire. The vampire moved around the room, placing whatever was on that tray he held onto the bedside table.

Out of fear, Tommy moved away with each step the vampire took. Which eventually caused him to collide into the end of the fancy bed. Feeling cornered, he fell to the floor out of fear. He questioned his determination from yesterday as the fear returned.

He only felt as scared as before.

“Oh, Toms! No need to be so skittish! Come on now~”. The voice cooed at him, it was so soft and gentle that he couldn’t help but relax under the reassuring tone. Though, something wasn’t quite right… That was the vampire, shouldn’t he be terrified?

He was once again under the command of the sirenic vampire, with no control in his body. As his mind screamed at him to run, the vampire came closer and gently scooped him up. They didn’t even falter with Tommy’s weight, as if he were light as a feather.

The vampire moved to tuck him back into the bedsheets, though Tommy wasn’t to be alone as the vampire held him against them. Their hold was all too gentle as a sharp claw carefully played with his blonde curls.

The vampire let out a giggle.

“You passed out last night after Father had caught you! We haven’t had much fun like that in a while, actually! We should do it again!”. The vampire hummed, excitedly. It made him sick as he wanted nothing more to get out of the grip.

“Though, it’s a shame that Techno wasn’t very careful yesterday. You got hurt very badly after you fell off that cliff, which might I say was very stupid! Where did you come up with that idea?”, it was said in a teasing and joking tone, seemingly mocking him for his choice of actions.

“Oh! I also forgot to introduce myself! I was so excited last night in the hunt yesterday that I forgot! My name is Wilbur, Wilbur Soot!”, He cheerfully introduced himself. “Anyways, you should be going to sleep now. Little human…”.

The command caused him to let out a yawn as sleep tugged at his mind. The vampire cooed at his sleepy state and continued to coddle him as he rested his eyes to sleep.

…

When he woke up again, something was being forced down his throat.

Things were fuzzy when he gained consciousness again, but strangely he could feel something being forced down his throat… it was a liquid but what was he drinking? Instinctively he pushed whatever was against his mouth with whatever strength he could muster.

As the liquid was forced away from his throat, he broke out into a coughing fit as he let out a multitude of coughs. Surprisingly, his voice wasn’t as hoarse as before. Had he been given water?

His suspicions were correct as when he opened his eyes, the brunette vampire or Wilbur as he had introduced himself was holding a cup of water. He had a worried expression on his features as Tommy finally gained his breath.

The vampire spoke no words and instead offered him a cup of water. He eyed it suspiciously before snatching it from Wilbur’s claws. It was a strange act of hospitability but not one that didn’t gain suspicion.

He kept his eyes on Wilbur as he gulped down whatever remained of the glass.

“Are you feeling better?”, Wilbur asked in a concerned tone of voice. He seemed much calmer than yesterday he looked relatively tired. Did he not sleep? Had he been watching over Tommy this entire time?

He didn’t answer, only looking away in a snarl. Wilbur seemed to get the message as well as he didn’t reply. He hadn’t noticed when he had started shaking, nor had he moved closer to the corner of the bed. All he could feel was a sense of dread of fear from the vampire looking at him.

…

Wilbur’s glance turned more worriedly as he noticed Tommy backing himself into the corner of the bed. He reached out a claw towards Tommy to comfort him, only for his efforts to scare the boy even more. He moves back to give Tommy some space.

“Are you alright?”, No answer.

“Tommy, you’re safe. I promise”. He tries to offer comforting words as he tries to approach the boy again, but this seems to send Tommy into a state of fear.

…

“STAY AWAY FROM ME!”, he yells out as loudly as he can, tears threatening to flood from his eyes. When had he felt so vulnerable and weak? He moved back against the corner he was in further, only to put pressure on his sprained wrist.

He lets out a yelp of pain.

Wilbur’s eyes turn to slits as he stands up in a second. For a moment, he thinks Wilbur is going to use his spell once again or use his strength. Though, the vampire only slowly backed away and left the room…

He clutched his hand to his chest as he sobbed for a moment. He found that act strange, the vampire had been so terrifying yesterday. Why was he behaving so differently now?

But that wasn’t the problem…

He needed to escape, no matter the cost. He had to.

He staggers to get back on his feet for a moment after getting off the bed, but it didn’t take long to regain his balance. He felt much more energized than before in fact. Though, he wouldn’t thank the vampires for their aid. After all, they were his captors.

He made it to the doorway and thankfully, it was unlocked as Wilbur had left it. He sighed in relief as he had a chance to escape. Though, the last time he had done this; He ended up being caught by Wilbur. He would have to hurry.

He opened the door, only to see the gigantic halls of the mansion. He was simply in a tiny room that laid in the walls, he had to question the size of the mansion at times. He scanned the halls and listened for any sounds. And luckily there were none.

If he were to run, it would only make a decent amount of noise. So instead, he took to sneaking carefully through the maze-like hallways.

…

After seemingly getting lost in the halls for what felt like hours, the gods finally answered his pleas as a gentle light lit up the dark and dim halls of the mansion. It was a window, one that would hopefully grant him his escape.

In a moment of excitement, he found himself approaching the giant window only to wonder. How on earth was he even going to get up into the window in the first place? As he looked, he noticed something.

It was a potted plant and at his size, it was practically like a giant beanstalk. He could probably climb the plant up towards the window and escape! A perfect plan! He walks towards the plant with some strength and patience. He managed to get onto the pot.

Things were finally looking in his favor, he could go back! He could go back to the village! And even though staying on the streets wasn’t the best, it was better than living in absolute fear of vampires. Clearly, it was the better option.

He finally had hope!

…

But it all came crashing down in a second, as he heard a phantom-like shriek come down the halls. It was loud and ear-piercing, causing Tommy to shelter his ears for a moment. He halted in his escape attempt as he stayed still in fear. He listened for movement.

There was a rapid thumping sound that became louder by the second.

“TOMMY!”, Wilbur yells out in anger that he would never suspect came from the vampire. He could hear the threatening hiss in his tone, obviously very pissed off for whatever reason. Tommy looked for a means to hide and only saw the shade of the plant as a spot to hide.

That’s where he hid.

The footsteps became louder and sounded almost like an earthquake, Wilbur must’ve been really pissed if he were stomping like that. And soon, they came to a halt.

Tommy heard no other sounds from the vampire, no footsteps, sounds of breathing, or even the movement of clothing. Tommy remained as still as a statue, using his hands to mask the sound of his own breathing, which had become heavy out of adrenaline.

Then there’s a sound, the sound of sniffing.

…

Tommy looks to his left.

And a giant red pupil was there, once again staring him down like the last time. He remained still as the eyes focused on him, the silts becoming even thinner as it noticed the eye contact from Tommy. He remained still as if he were to make a mere whimper, it would cause his capture.

He lets out a scream as in a second, he’s held in a tight grip, Tommy’s world is spinning in an instant as Wilbur moves around angrily, gripping Tommy tightly as he moves his hand around in a fit of anger.

Tommy lets out a scream.

“Tommy! Do you know how dangerous it is to be out of your room! You’re meant to be recovering! Not some stupid escape attempt! And it’s even more stupid than if you decided to escape through this window, it’s on the second floor. And if that isn’t clear enough-“.

The vampire continued to ramble angrily, though Tommy couldn’t hear one thing of his yells. His eardrums were buzzing fiercely, he couldn’t hear a thing that the vampire was saying. All he could feel in the moment was his increasing heartbeat and his anxious lungs.

The vampire brought Tommy closer to its face, continuing to angrily lecture him on his escape attempt. Though, all he could focus on were the sharp fangs that were dangerously close to him, which could easily tear off his flesh if the vampire wanted to.

Was this his end? Was he finally going to be bitten between the fangs of the vampire? Did he mess up so badly?

…

“Are you even listening to me?!”

His ears finally picked up on what the vampire was saying. His mind went blank for a moment as he registered what the vampire said. Listen? Why should he listen? After all the vampires had done to him, torment him, tease him, threaten his life and blood.

Why should he listen to a monster like that?

“I AM NEVER GOING TO LISTEN TO A FUCKING MONSTER!”.

And as he thought that things were terrifying before, it had become much worse now. The vampire was quiet, the tension of the hall had increased drastically as Tommy stared terrified at Wilbur.

If he was angry before, now he was beyond pissed. The silts had become so thin to a point you could barely see them, and if that were a sign. It only meant that Tommy had messed up badly, really badly.

Why had he done that? Call him a monster? Is that why he was pissed?

Monster…

Monster… Monster…

The vampire hisses and snarls, mouth opening wide as the pointy fangs look ready to bite into its prey. Saliva drips from their cavernous mouth as they hungrily stare at the prey in their hands. They have a hungry and predatory look in their eyes.

There was no humanity in this creature.

The claws became even tighter and threatened to break his ribs, he could barely breathe under the pressure. He screamed out in pain, yet the vampire didn’t even bat an eye. He was only brought higher as he hung above the wide-open maw.

He was hung in between two fingers that he desperately clung to, barely able to keep his grip with only one hand available. He screamed and begged for Wilbur to stop, but the vampire didn’t dwindle. This was his end, wasn’t it? He was going to be eaten.

All that stuff from earlier had been an act, he was going to die. He was never going to see his family ever again.

…

Wilbur dropped him into his mouth.

In an instant, a salivated tongue began to coat in saliva as the teeth closed with a clank. He screamed as he tried to fight back against the excited tongue, yet nothing would stop the strong muscle, he was helpless as he was moved carelessly around Wilbur’s mouth.

As he was moved, he would sometimes be moved towards the vampires’ fangs. It would send a wave of fear to Tommy as he thought that Wilbur would inevitably bite down on him, only for it never to come. He was terrified, this was even worse than he had been expecting.

He thought it would be a simple death but as it was the vampires, he wouldn’t be let go of so easily. He was the prey after all.

He yelled, screamed, and pleaded to be let go, he was sobbing at this point, but he would never get a response from the vampire. He would only get the loud purrs that emanated from Wilbur’s throat, he was only enjoying Tommy’s fear.

“PLEASE! PLEASE STOP! I’M SORRY!”.

The purring increased as Tommy sobbed, even more, he wanted so desperately for Wilbur to stop. At least show him some mercy…

…

“Strawberry…”, the vampire muttered in a low purr. Whatever it was it didn’t sound completely audible, even within Wilbur’s mouth. It was like Wilbur had gone full instinct mode and couldn’t control himself from tasting at Tommy.

“WILBUR! PLEASE!”. He pleaded desperately, he wanted it to stop. He wanted to go home; he wanted his mother.

The tongue began to slow down ever so slightly in its advances, and it eventually turned to the tongue pinning him against the roof of the mouth. In recoil, Tommy tried to punch repeatedly against the pallet, only for his efforts to be in vain.

“Tommy?...”, the vampire barely speaks with his mouth full. He was soundly oddly tired as if he had just awoken, he barely seemed to be aware of the situation that he had caused. He sounded rather confused.

“Let me out- Let me out- Let me out!”, were the only words he could get out of his mouth. He was so scared, he wanted nothing more than to escape the salivated prison.

Wilbur let out an audible gasp as the tongue immediately eased on its pressure. The mouth opened once again. Two fingers gently picked up the squirming Tommy and brought him away from the deadly fangs.

He was carefully placed onto the palm of Wilbur’s hand, the world feeling ever so cold as the saliva had soaked him completely. He shivered not only in fear but the feeling of the coldness threatening him.

He was crying hysterically as he couldn’t hold back his sobs at this point, the only thing he could do was curl in on himself even further. He was beyond terrified after that experience and even more to what was to happen next.

A sleeve is brought towards Tommy’s form, wiping over him gently to hopefully wipe away some of the saliva and tears. He could hear the vampire let out a strange whimper of concern, it sounded heartbroken.

The next thing he knew was that there was a warm material beside him, it felt like soft cotton and all he could see in his vision was a warm yellow. The material would occasionally move against him as Wilbur’s hands clung onto him. He could only assume he was brought towards his chest.

“It’s alright now, I promise. You’re safe. It’s okay.”, Wilbur repeated as he brought Tommy closer to his chest. He was trying to comfort him for whatever reason. His tone was sad and devastated, did he feel bad for what he had done?

Tommy couldn’t care, he only wanted to rest.

He sighed in relief at the sight of Tommy sleeping peacefully in the bed, snort snores came from the boy as his chest raised up and down. He pulled his claws away from the sheets as slowly as possible, every second was him acting like a dear in headlights.

There was a deep pain in his chest where his heart would’ve once beat every minute, instead, it felt like a suffocating hole that would do nothing more than collapse on itself more and more, the pure feeling of guilt.

He felt remorse over what he had done, hell if he even had a normal pair of lungs; He’d be having a panic attack right at that moment. But being a vampire came at the cost of leaving some of your humanity behind, even if he still felt the emotions, it would’ve been reduced.

It was times like this that he wished that stupid night hadn’t happened at all.

He had fucked up badly at this point, very badly. If he had any hopes of befriending the teenage boy in front of him, they’d be long gone now. Nobody would forgive such a person for doing so, he isn’t even a human.

Only a stupid monster, like Tommy, said he was.

It wasn’t even supposed to happen, it was a complete accident. He should’ve been more careful with himself because after all, he was still a danger to the person in front of him. Why had he lost control of his instincts? Why didn’t he stop himself earlier?

He should’ve slept but as the stubborn vampire he was, Wilbur didn’t find it suit in his routine to go to sleep, despite being a nocturnal creature. He made the mistake of staying awake all day due to his stupid pettiness and neglect, which only caused the dire situation to get worse.

Phil wasn’t going to be very happy either.

Speaking of the devil, he could recognize his father’s footsteps down the hall. He dreaded to explain this whole situation to his sire, but his father was trustworthy, he would always manage to correct the situation one way or another.

Thanks to him, Wilbur got out of many situations. But obviously, his father wasn’t some scapegoat; Wilbur was going to have to own up to his actions and take responsibility, and he was fully ready for it.

A knock came from the dark oak door. “Wilbur, Tommy? Are any of you there?”, the gentle voice asked. His father’s voice was always so cheerful, he had never lost his cheerfulness ever since he had been human. It was one of the many things that remained with them.

He’d hate to ruin the mood.

With a guilty and shameful walk, he opened the door and greeted his father. “Hey Dad, uhm- How are you?”, he frowned at the tone of his voice, it only spoke ‘I did a bad thing’. He shifted nervously as he fiddled with his claws, silts of his eyes grew thinner as he grew anxious.

“I’m doing well, but care to explain why you sound so guilty?”, Phil asked with a curious eyebrow. Wilbur caught his gaze as he spoke, and he dreaded the scolding to come as Phil was quite a scare when angered.

With a deep intake of his lungs, he straightened his back to assert himself in confidence. The frown turned into a thin line as his eyes narrowed as he stared at his father. To put it simply, he put a serious look on his face, still displaying signs of anxiousness.

“Well, I-“. He stuttered his sentence as he began, hell he didn’t even know where to go with the entire situation. How would you even go about explaining such a thing?

He huffed, “Tommy attempted to escape again.”. His father’s expression turned to one of confusion, head tilting alongside it. Ears twitching in curiosity.

“Again, you say?”. His father questioned; Wilbur nodded in reply as he looked away in shame. It was times like these where he wished he could cry, jump into his father’s arms, and desire affection. Perhaps if he were still a youngling, it would be appropriate but he’s a fully grown vampire now.

“Father, I messed up. Really badly.”, he painfully admitted. It came with some relief as some of the anxiousness had been released from his chest, but the worst was yet to come. He still had to explain everything.

His father expression turned to one of seriousness as he could see his own father’s anxiousness grow, no doubt his protective instincts were beginning to act up. His father had always been protective over his sons.

His father’s ear twitched as his wings flared slightly, it almost made Wilbur whimper.

He took in another breath.

“Well, he escaped. After I had been caring for him throughout the day, I grew worried as I went back to check on him to find he wasn’t there. I stormed the manor and looked for him until I caught his scent in one of the halls.”.

He swallowed a lump in his throat as he continued, “I grabbed him and began to lecture him on his escape attempt as he’s still recovering. I failed to take into account of his human emotions and well… He grew terrified and lashed out at me”.

His father crossed his arms as his expression seemed too angrier, he couldn’t help the whimper of guilt that escaped his throat at that point. He attempted to hold back his instincts, but he was so tired and scared.

His father’s gaze softened at his whines, easing the tension in his own body as he reached out for his youngling. Although Wilbur was taller, he was safely tucked under Phil’s chin and protected by his bat-like wings.

Wilbur attempted to speak through his whines, “Dad- I- He called me a monster, I don’t blame him after what I did! I- I couldn’t stop myself… I put him in my mouth, tasted him, and scared the living hell out of him!”.

He closed his eyes as he clung to his father’s chest, he could hear the long inhale of air that came from his father’s anger. He could feel the glare, one that if looks could kill; A thousand souls would already be lost. He clung on tighter.

His father exhaled after a moment, a hand was brought to his head and gently brushed through his strands of hair. Gentle claws twirled each strand as his father brought him closer to his chest, the two being huddled together at this point.

“Wilbur, know that I do not condone any of this and you will be punished for your actions. But as you’ve acknowledged it, I won’t punish you harshly. Rather I simply wish for you to apologize when possible and to stay away from Tommy for the meanwhile, just in case.”.

His father gently explained, it luckily wasn’t a harsh punishment. Wilbur nodded as he leaned his chest closer, he missed the gentle heartbeat that once laid in his father’s chest. But his worries grew for the boy, would Tommy hate him forever for what he had done?

He had taken the boy unwillingly, every action taken would only terrify Tommy; Even the simplest of actions like handing him a cup of water sent the boy into shaking. It was to be a process, one that he and the vampires would work through. One of trust.

Yet he ruined every chance of it.

…

When he awoke, he wasn’t in the plush and soft embrace of blankets. It was a hard surface, had a lumpy texture to it, and was cold to the touch. ‘What had the vampires done to him now?’ he thought as he gained consciousness.

He shifted slightly as he attempted to straighten his back, he half expected for a vampire to be greeting him at this point, a simple startle that would most probably put him on edge. In such a short time frame, Tommy had been expecting a variety of different things to happen.

Especially after yesterday or however long ago he had been sleeping.

He still couldn’t comprehend it, how the vampire had no guilt in dangling Tommy over his dangerously, sharp fangs; Dropping him in, and attempting to eat him, tasting him as if he were nothing more than a mere treat. He was the prey.

The mere thought of yesterday was enough to send Tommy into a flight response, his body shook with fear as adrenaline would begin to pump in his veins.

As he opened his eyes, he caught the sight of what he assumed to be Phil’s office. Why was he here of all places? Had Wilbur brought him here instead of back to that weird bedroom from yesterday? Thinking of Wilbur…

Where was he? And why was he so comforting after what had happened? It was too confusing. Firstly, Wilbur traumatized the fuck out of him yesterday yet earlier that day he had been quite calm and later comforting. He hoped there was some sort of explanation if there was one.

He looked around for a moment and caught the sight of Phil, who paid no mind to Tommy sleeping on the gigantic desk. He seemed to be scrolling through a book though Tommy couldn’t see what the cover said as it was covered by Phil’s claws.

He could be squeezed in between the pages of that book.

Phil’s ear twitched as he finally seemed to acknowledge Tommy’s presence. It caught Tommy off guard as he hadn’t been expecting the red eyes to look at him so suddenly, he left out a yelp because of it.

Phil made no sudden movements though; He instead went to look back ignorantly at his book. His posture remained calm; It was relaxed, even. He looked entirely focused on each word of the book as the two of them remained in silence.

Why hadn’t he said anything?

Tommy was too scared to move after everything, he couldn’t move. If he did, the vampire would only pounce and capture him once again. This was really the only sort of freedom he got now.

It was like a moment of peace, the two were simply just in each other’s presence. The two made no advances towards each other, both staying in silence and didn’t dare speak a word. Yet for some reason, Tommy found himself wanting to break the silence.

Phil was the vampire’s name, but it would appear as ‘rude’ if he were to call him so. Phil had introduced himself as Lord Philza, therefore as a privileged asshole. He should be called by his official title.

Tommy held his right bandaged hand, anxiously fiddling with the bandage wrap that was so delicately done. He was worried that if he even spoke a word, it would only come out as a muttered whimper.

But he needed answers.

He took a deep breath, “Lord Philza, why am I here?”. It came out quieter than he had been expected, yet again his throat did feel rather sore. He wouldn’t be surprised, but would the vampire even hear it?

Surprisingly, Phil did in fact hear the question as his ear twitched in response. Phil looked towards Tommy with a gentle expression on his face, a small smile on his face that was an attempt to shelter the fangs.

Tommy could almost consider the look to be a crude one, but the usual silts of the eyes remained quite wide as his posture never changed. If anything, he looked as if he were just comfortable. It was a strange difference.

Phil let out a soft laugh, “Mate, there’s no need to call me “Lord Philza”, you can just call me Phil. Also, you may want to stop fiddling with your bandages. Wouldn’t want it to come undone!”. His tone was the same as they had first met, yet it held no cockiness to it.

He was like a relaxed dad.

Tommy nodded in response, turning his head away as he moved his hands behind his back. His anxiousness grew, as Phil spoke. For some reason, he found himself tensing up at the response, had he been that scared of Wilbur?

“But to answer your question. I owe you an explanation, we all do. But for now, I want you to get used to my presence first. I wouldn’t want to accidentally frighten you, especially after yesterday.”. His tone held a semblance of guilt, was he guilty?

“I-“, Tommy attempted to respond; Only to be caught off as his throat almost gave out on him, causing him to cough like an old man. It hurt whenever he did, he really wanted a drink. Phil seemed to have noticed this though, as he moved slowly to reach something.

Phil moved slowly as he reached towards another end of the desk and grabbed something. Gently held in his claws as a tiny glass of water, brought towards Tommy as he grabbed it from the giant fingers.

An odd transaction.

Tommy desperately gulped down the water and left out of a breath of relief. The soreness subsided somewhat, Phil held a content yet concerned glance on his face. Was he worried about him?

“Thank you… As I was trying to say, why don’t you want to frighten me? Why the change? You guys are out here, scaring the living shit out of me. And now here you are, telling me you don’t want me to be scared. What the actual living fuck?!”.

He spoke with some confidence, although his voice didn’t quite break volumes as it once would. Usually, his voice was loud and booming, he had definitely lost his voice during the past two days.

Phil’s expression to sadden slightly with guilt as he spoke.

“There appears to be a complete misunderstanding of the situation at hand, we were too sudden at our approach to welcoming you and made many mistakes along the way. I wish to fix that. Ask whatever questions you please, I swear that I will answer honestly.”.

Tommy's eyes narrowed in suspicion, scanning Phil’s eyes for any sort of deception but he had found none. None for whatever reason. Perhaps he was indeed telling the truth?

“Then tell me, what the fuck happened yesterday? Why is everyone’s behavior so confusing to me? Why is it different now?”. He was so confused at this point, confused it might give him a headache. He had so many questions, yet he didn’t know which ones to ask.

“Allow me to explain, I’m not certain if you figured it out yet but we are in fact a species of Vampire. A size-shifting kind, we don’t necessarily have the same emotions as you do. The same goes with behavior.”, Phil explained with a sigh, a solemn look on his face.

As if the topic at hand was an uncomfortable one.

“The best way I can explain it is that… Sometimes we can’t control what we do, at times we’re more animalistic or instinctual if you will. We don’t have the intention of harming you, but our actions speak louder than our words. We…”.

Phil didn’t continue.

Tommy's thoughts began to pace in circles like a toy train, uncertain about some things yet others made sense. It made sense that the vampires weren’t entirely human, that they behaved differently, and it confirmed some of Tommy’s lower suspicions.

It answered one thing, what Wilbur had done yesterday. Why he had sounded so tired and confused afterward, why he was so comforting. He really didn’t want to hurt Tommy as he said, it just so happened he couldn’t control himself.

Though, Wilbur never really did hurt Tommy under his ‘watch’. Wilbur had been taking care of him, concerned, and lecturing him on his whereabouts and such. It really did make sense, at least a bit more. Yet there were still more questions to be answered.

After a moment of silence, Tommy asked another question. “You said my name, the first time we met. I never said my name. How did you know?”. Phil’s eyes seemed to widen at the question, he seemed rather nervous at it.

He then answered, “Well, that is also owed an explanation. I understand if you are uncomfortable with what I’m about to mention but, I have an ability. A strange one if you will, strange even for vampires.”.

Why would he bring up an ability of all things to answer the question? Hell, it didn’t even answer the question. Tommy's head titled in curiosity as he asked, “What do you mean ability?”.

“I have the ability to speak and see through the eyes of crows. I’ve been watching you for a while now, I knew your name. The village and even how you were homeless. I saw how terribly the villagers of that village would treat you as nothing more than a street rat.”.

…

He knew? He knew everything? That even his “home” was gone? That his family had abandoned him and promised to return one day? Well perhaps not that, but they knew about his current predicament. That even his escape attempts to the safety of the streets were nothing more than false hope.

“You knew? But… Then why am I here? Was I pitied?! Did you take me here just to torment me?!”, he spoke angrily without a second thought. That wasn’t his intention though, the vampires had told him that he was safe, they didn’t have bad intentions… Right?

“Please! Calm down! It’s alright.” Phil offered comforting words; Tommy hadn’t noticed when his breathing had peaked but he did indeed need to calm down. And for a second, he took a deep breath.

“Please, answer the question.”.

Phil looked at Tommy for a moment, worried. He opened his mouth to speak.

“I- To be honest when I first saw you. You reminded me of when I was human, I sympathized with your predicament. I wanted to help, I wanted you to have a better life, so I thought that if I brought you here…. You could have a family… Yet how stupid I was…”.

Phil looked away; a claw brought towards his face to shelter his eyes. When Tommy had caught them, they had nothing more than a look of guilt on his face. He looked like a stressed-out dad laid across an office desk, and it honestly made Tommy feel guilty himself.

But he sat there with a shocked expression on his face. At the one word he had mentioned, it stood out to him the most out of all of them. Family. Phil had wanted to take him in, wanted to father him. And yet, everything turned out so differently than it meant to.

All because of a different species.

…

Suddenly though, Phil broke the silence as a whine almost escaped the man’s throat.

“I promised you so long ago that I would take you in, I’ve watched over you for all these years yet I only failed…”, he sounded heartbroken now, beyond guilt. But that explanation confused him, “long ago” But he and Tommy had only met officially 3 days ago.

He was beyond confused now, when had Phil made a promise to him? Maybe a promise to himself but years ago? Phil had been watching him for years.

“What do you mean by you promised me all these years? You’ve been watching me for all that time?”. He asked desperately as he wanted answers. Phil seemed to stumble on his breathing as he went to look at Tommy with widened eyes. But he answered, nonetheless.

“We met a long time ago when you were only a child. I don’t know if you remember me or not, but I was always a hooded figure that would stop by your village during the late evenings. We met then…”.

And Tommy certainly remembered that hooded figure…

…

The kid had always been deemed a rat by the townspeople, but Tommy never did pay any mind to it. After all, he was very happy! His parents wouldn’t take too long to come back for him! But it had been a couple of months now…

And Tommy really didn’t like stealing food or being homeless. One time it had even rained, and Tommy was terrified as the watery drops took away his body heat by the second. He would cry for his parents at that moment, wanting nothing more than to be sheltered in an embrace.

Yet it would never come.

Though, the same night. He did meet a man, although he looked like a shady fucker. He was humble unlike many of the rotten villagers, he was strange, but he offered Tommy food. He got along quite well with Mr Hood as he called him.

Mr Hood would visit from time to time, making sure he was okay, and always gave Tommy some food and even a gift at times. One time he had gotten a very soft and thick blanket to fight against the cold, Tommy was happy that he had made a friend!

“Mr Hood!”, the child ran towards the hooded figure. Mr Hoods reached his gloved arms towards Tommy and raised him into the air before bringing him close to his chest as he greeted Tommy.

“Hello, Tommy! Or should I say big man?”, it was asked in a cheerful tone that would always come from the stranger. He was always so cheery and gentle, not only that but he was one of the few who would play with Tommy. It was a shame they couldn’t play all the time…

…

The hooded figure knelt in front of the shivering Tommy, huddled, and wrapped in his blanket. Holding a plush that he had been given, Mr Henry, he had named it. Yelling could be heard throughout the entire village and Mr Hood seemed to be in a rush.

Mr Hood seemed desperate and it scared Tommy as the roaring villagers only came closer and louder. Why were they yelling and chanting? What was going on?

“Tommy, I promise it’s okay. You’ll be okay, I promise I’ll come back for you when I can. We can play all the time then, okay?”. The figure ruffled his hair reassuringly, Tommy sobbed under the touch. He was so scared.

“B-But why do you have to go Mr Hood?”, Tommy asked in between his sobs. Why did Mr Hood have to go? Couldn’t he stay with Tommy?

“I’m sorry, but I can’t stay-“, yelling was growing louder from the townsfolk. Tommy couldn’t make out what they were saying but it only alerted and seemed to scare Mr Hood even further. “I’m so sorry…”.

The figure stood up suddenly, turning around from the alley and running down the street. That was the last time he had ever seen Mr Hood again.

…

“Mr Hood…”.

“I wanted to come back... They ended up discovering that I was a vampire and chased me away. I couldn’t take you as it would’ve put you in danger. I didn’t want to take that risk, I’m sorry”. Now that he thought about it, there was indeed familiarity in the voices.

But all Tommy could think about was the night, the night that he had disappeared. Mr Hood had been almost a parental figure, the only one that ever shown Tommy kindness throughout the years of loneliness…

And Phil was Mr Hood…

Phil had a guilty expression on his face, and any fear that Tommy held had slightly disappeared. He was still fearful of the vampire in front of him, yet with the reality settling. He had the urge to reach out towards Phil, reunite with him and cry.

Because after all these years, Mr Hood had indeed kept his promise. Yet, fate always had different plans. The vampire in front of him didn’t appear as terrifying as before, perhaps a fresh new window of fresh air had been opened.

An opportunity had presented itself.

…

Phil stared down at the boy that he had promised to protect all that time ago, a little boy who had somehow won his undead heart was now all grown up. And he had made so many mistakes, he and the others only managed to make Tommy fear them then feel welcomed.

He had failed on his promise… He had failed Tommy…

“You kept your promise though, even if it did take some time. We’re here now, aren’t we? You actually managed to get me to come here. And I get that you may feel guilty and shit, after everything that’s happened. I- I’m sorry.”.

Phil’s eyes widened, why did Tommy apologize? He hoped the boy didn’t feel guilty or anything because if he did, even after everything they had done. Phil should be the one feeling any remorse, Tommy didn’t deserve any of it.

“Tommy, I-“, though he didn’t even get to finish as Tommy cut him off.

“Shut it- Lemme finish, dumbass”, he interrupted but what Phil had realized was almost relieving. Although Tommy still feared him, Tommy’s spark had returned, which only brightens Phil’s hopes.

The kid was always loud and bothersome, yet that was his charm. Always an annoying boy that held such determination and life, it was what had caught Phil’s eyes in the first place. When he had seen a determined boy running down the street with a stolen loaf of bread.

“As I was saying, I’m sorry for the misunderstanding. And don’t shut me down about it, because if I don’t apologize; I’ll only feel guilty about it later. You promised me all that time ago that you’d take me in, and now you gotta keep that promise. Got that?”.

Phil could almost laugh at his words, but all that came was a sigh of relief. Tommy was surprisingly willing to give them a second chance, it made Phil fill up with joy at the idea. But of course, things won’t be easy for them as they’d have to work through everything.

They’d have to make sure to be in more control of their instincts and scare Tommy less because they couldn’t really go around recklessly. It would be a fairly long process of bonding and trust. And if Tommy was willing, then he was showing trust. They have just yet to have properly received it.

“You’re really willing to give us a second chance?”, he asked with disbelief. He could hear his instincts telling him to pick up the boy and nuzzle him, but Phil had to hold himself back from doing so.

“Yeah, I mean- Where else do I have to go? The village doesn’t even want me.”. Tommy spoke with sarcasm, but it was clear with the intentions, he was going to stay whether Phil disagreed or not. But Phil wasn’t complaining.

Phil gave a smile; he couldn’t help it as sharp fangs were shown parting from his lips. He could see Tommy’s eyes widen for a moment before relaxing and offering his own smile in return. The sight filled Phil with joy.

And one thing caught him off by surprise, Tommy stood up and started reaching out towards him. At this point, he couldn’t even stop himself from gently scooping up Tommy, which yelped return, but he didn’t cry out which was a good sign.

Phil brought Tommy up towards his nose as he nuzzled him, just like he would’ve to his other sons. He felt Tommy tense for a moment before relaxing, hugging the nose in return as he laid lazily against it. Phil couldn’t help but purr.

“I’m tired…”, he heard the boy mutter with sudden tiredness. It appeared that he had entirely drained the boy of his energy, but he couldn’t blame him for that. He only smiled and gently tugged the boy away from his nose, switching to cradling him against his chest.

Run…

Run!

RUN!

It was all that was on his mind, his main objective and nothing was going to stop him. Not even his own body that so desperately pleading for air. His body ached like hell, and he thought he had gone through worse, but he had never pushed his body this far.

Tears flooded his eyes, causing his vision to become blurry with no clear aim in sight. His soaked hair from the rain and sweat, and his stuffy nose that refused to help his pleading lungs. No doubt would be catching a cold from this.

A loud thundering and ear-piercing crackle threatened to break his eardrums from a distance, it was as if the world were against him in the current moment. Of course, Tommy had to have the worst luck, didn’t he?

He was just some kid on the streets, and someone just had to chase him down into the forest at this time of night? He wanted so badly to cry, he wanted the comfort of his family, only if they were still alive…

Another bolt of lightning simmered in the distance and with the flash of night, Tommy took the opportunity to turn behind him, only to feel ever so more terrified than he did before. He could see the figure, not too far from behind him.

The figure was a brute and showed no signs of exhaustion nor slowing down. It was nothing like he had ever seen in a person as if they weren’t even human. But one thing was clear with those glaring red eyes that glowed in the night, like a predator hunting its prey.

Tommy knew that if he wanted to escape, he would need some sort of distraction, or some sort of plan but everything didn’t even seem like an opportunity. That was until he saw it, a hill… It did look steep but surely that thing wouldn’t follow him if was tumbling down the hill?

Yes, it was surely stupid with the beating that would come with falling down a hill and possibly knocking himself out, but it would most probably work. And maybe even get a breath of air? It was his only hope.

With trembling feet, he turned as suddenly as he could to the looming slope of the hill, he hesitated for a moment. But then, the figure that had chased him, struggled to stop himself. And turned as quickly as he came to face Tommy and reached out towards him.

And as he did that, the figure was too late to reach him as the hand that had swiped, missed. And Tommy felt victorious for a moment before he was sent tumbling down the hill…

As he descended, he could feel brambles of thorns and rough skin colliding with the rocks as he let out a harsh scream, and in a moment, it was all over. His breathing was faster than he had ever felt, it was like he was on fire.

Droplets of rain gently caressed his face as he laid on the muddy dirt, he couldn’t feel more relieved. He wanted nothing more than to fall asleep into natures arms, but that thing could still be after him. And the middle of the woods was not a good place to sleep.

Above him, he could see the looming figure, staring him down and looking deep into his soul. It’s soaked yet bright pink hair, swayed in the wind as it was bleakly revealed in the moonlight. It looked frustrated with the outcome.

And Tommy wanted nothing more than to snicker in victory, but that wouldn’t be smart. The thing didn’t look like it was ready to give up… yet… And as it stared down at Tommy, he could see it barring its teeth, growling furiously.

Then it disappeared.

…

Tears flooded from his eyes as he sobbed, he was alive yet so exhausted. He felt very vulnerable as his limp arms and legs laid beside him, unmoving, adorned in scratches and bruises. Maybe even a couple of bones were broken? He couldn’t be sure as adrenaline continued to pump through his veins.

He could only taste the bitter metal of blood on his tongue, maybe he had bitten it during his fall? He only heard his breathing and heart, nothing else. He only hoped that thing decided to finally leave him alone.

But now he was alone, lost and with no sense of direction. Where would he go after all of this? He wanted to go back to the safety of the streets…

And as much as he’d love to lay on the ground for much longer, that thing was definitely still after him. So, he was either going to have to stay on guard or try and find shelter somewhere within this forest.

As if he’d be that lucky…

…

He tried to move his arm, only to let out a hoarse scream. His body was in so much agony, he wanted it to stop but he knew that he had no other choice. His body complained and pleaded for him to stop moving, anything.

But he didn’t listen, he sat up and bit his lip in order to submerge another scream. If he kept screaming, no doubt would that thing find him and catch up. He needed to be sneaky. He stood up on trembling legs and step by step began to wander through the forest.

It felt like hours of pain…

…

Eventually, he stumbled across a mansion. It wasn’t any ordinary mansion though, it was gigantic! Like nothing that he had ever seen before! Even the main entrance was giant compared to him! But he couldn’t help but get this ominous feeling about the place.

Something was definitely off with the atmosphere, the dead trees in the garden, the lanterns that laid by the door were dormant. It almost looked abandoned in the dead of night. But why would there be a mansion in the middle of nowhere? Much less not in use.

And he knew that he was supposed to use manners, but he couldn’t but barge inside at the idea of shelter and warmth, anything was honestly better than being outside in a thunderstorm.

Inside though, it was nothing but luxurious. The plants looked freshly watered and vibrant, the antiques with like no décor that Tommy had ever seen, different patterns and beautiful colours, they looked very expensive and strangely they weren’t even dirty.

If Tommy grabbed one or two of them, he’d be able to live off them for a lifetime. He’d no longer be on the streets… But then again, they were fragile and in the middle of nowhere. They’d get dirtied and definitely shatter within Tommy’s clumsy hands.

But that wasn’t the only thing that caught his attention, there was a stunning chandelier hanging from the main hall’s ceiling; it was in between two grand staircases with a wall in between it. On that wall was a painting, a painting of three figures.

They looked as if they could’ve been royalty with their fancy suits. One of them had curly, short brown hair and honestly, he looked like a snobby rich guy that if you were to get even one grain of dirt. You’d be ruined for a lifetime, despite him being a teenager.

Probably a spoiled brat in Tommy’s books. Another one of them looked vaguely familiar, but in the portrait looked stern and murderous; he was covered head to toe in jewellery in the portrait, he definitely enjoyed flaunting his wealth.

But he was also covered in scars, so clearly, he had earned such riches compared to the other snob. And then the third figure, striking blonde hair that shined like gold. He wore a strange hat, yet Tommy didn’t dare judge him.

His face had a friendly smile, but Tommy couldn’t help but feel terrified at the thought of that smile being directed at him. This was certainly a strange mansion, but no doubt would it be a terrifying one…

Tommy wouldn’t be welcomed here…

He took a step back…

And what was definitely weirder… was that this place was strangely titanic… The furniture was gigantic… The world felt way too big as if he were just a rodent in this place…

A door opened behind him.

He turned at the sound of the creaks, he shook with fear as he stared at the door, waiting for something to show itself, maybe a person?

But nothing… Nobody showed, it was only Tommy.

…

He entered the room, where there was velvet red furniture with the rims shining gold, a striking yet intricate design on its carpet with a vase adorned with a beautiful array of flowers. In the centre of the room was a fireplace, blazing with fire.

He could feel the heat radiating from the fireplace…

He cautiously walked towards it, each step was blazing with anxiety as he grew ever more anxious as he expected something bad to come, yet it didn’t. Maybe he was finally safe? He allowed himself to relax slightly as he sat beside the fire, it was much bigger than he expected it to be.

Then again, this place was gigantic. He wouldn’t be surprised at this point, he allowed himself to relax against the fireplace. He didn’t care for food, thirst, or his aching wounds at that moment, only rest. It was all that he wanted…

He allowed himself to be at ease…

A soft humming could be heard throughout the room, something felt off about it, but Tommy couldn’t help but find himself more at ease with the gentle tunes. He wondered who was the voice being those amazing tunes?

He swore he could hear footsteps. But it didn’t alert him. In fact, it felt like he wasn’t even in control of himself. His mind was screaming at him to open his eyes, but he wanted nothing more to relax, he was scared… It was like he was under some sort of spell?

Like a siren, the humming and footsteps became louder as they approached Tommy and eventually stopped as they were right next to him, they continued to hum. He felt something engulf him as if it were a giant, tight grip.

He could finally open his eyes…

And they widened, it was a sight he never thought he’d see. It was a face, a giant one that looked down at him with a devious smirk. Its eyes glowed a piercing red that scanned every part of him for every ounce of fear he displayed.

He still found himself limp against its hand, although his instincts wanted nothing more than to run harder than he ever did before. The giant creature looked much like a snobby brat in the portrait but much more mature and… less human-looking.

One thing that he couldn’t help but notice were its large fangs that showed through its lips. They were shiny and sharp looking, easily able to tear through skin and flesh… Why was he still relaxed against his giant thing?

It let out a burst of harsh laughter…

“Oh my! You must’ve been the one he was chasing!”, he hummed. His voice was strangely soothing, and Tommy found him relaxing more with its words as if he were under a sirenic spell that refused to let him go.

The thing brought him closer to its chest, gently humming as it brought its other claw towards him. It poked at his ribcage gently, yet Tommy couldn’t help but feel endangered by it. What was it talking about? That thing he saw earlier. Was it one of them?

“Well… Well… Aren’t we going to have fun with this one?”.

It brought him closer to its face…

“What’s your name? Little human…”

He couldn’t stop himself from speaking, he couldn’t stop himself from answering this monster’s question. He begged for it to stop but it wouldn’t, he was only under this thing’s mercy. “M-my name is Tommy…”, he stumbled to say with his hoarse voice.

He could see the things smile widen and brought him closer to its face only for it to nuzzle against his aching bones and skin, he could feel it take in his scent along with it. He attempted to try and escape its hold only for it to be futile.

“Oh! Aren’t you adorable!”, its sickening voice was lulled with joy and venom as it began to purr against him…? The thing could purr. What even was this thing? It took another inhale of his scent… And Tommy couldn’t help but shiver in fear…

“Oh, and your blood smells absolutely delicious! I can’t wait to see what kind of mischief you come up with… Especially if you managed to get away from him…”. The thing then placed him back on the floor as he struggled to keep balance…

“Run.”.

It spoke with a completely different tone, it was harsh with venom as it commanded him one last time as Tommy was finally granted his freedom, Tommy was in control of his body again and the thing had told him to run.

And so, he ran as fast as he could, with the energy he didn’t even know he had… And gradually he gained distance as the thing stared down at in bewilderment, yet its smirk showed it was nothing but cocky…

…

He hid behind a gigantic vase; it was his only hiding place in the open hall. The thing finally decided to chase after him as it were just a mere game of ‘hide and seek’… And footsteps could be heard from all around him, it knew where he was… It was only teasing his misery.

“Oh, Tommy! Where are you?”, it sang…

It sounded distant…

Tommy leaned against the vase as he dared peek from behind the safety of it, hoping to find the monster’s location.

It felt like someone had grabbed him from behind, a clawed like hand covered his mouth and forced him to lean back against with inhuman strength. He looked up to see the creature that had been chasing him… Just this time it was his size, just slightly taller.

Its face was buried into his neck, taking another inhale of his scent before he felt sharp fangs threatening to pierce his skin as it threatened to taste his blood much like how a vampire would in the fantasy…

Was this thing a vampire?

“My… my… You aren’t very good at hiding, are you Tommy? It’s okay though, I don’t mind… But your smell… It smells ever so sweet… It reminds me of strawberries... It’s unique and I can’t help but wonder…”.

The fangs against his neck threatened to break his skin as he struggled more against its grip…

“What do you taste like?...”.

He looked from the corner of his eye, and it was staring at him as it laid against his neck, unmoving… as if it were only holding itself back by a mere chance… And the piercing red eye that stared at him with an ever do desiring hunger…

He sobbed…

The thing moved away from his neck as it began to drag him back into the open space, he struggled to escape… Only to be held tossed into the air and landing back on the hand that had once held him, this time being held in between two fingers above a height, that Tommy didn’t find comfortable…

He let out a hoarse scream as his body begged for it to be enough, just to pass out at this point, he wanted to wake up from this nightmare already. He wanted to go home already, he wanted to leave, he wanted to get away from this thing.

It still looked at him with its piercing eyes with an evil smirk…

“We’ll have to see what he thinks… Unfortunately... But I think you’ll be perfect! Wouldn’t you agree, Tommy?”, it spoke as if it were nothing important, just casually and it sickened Tommy to find this thing found torment so normal…

It began to walk through the endless number of halls of the mansion, each turn of the corner made Tommy dizzy and confused, with no way of memorising an escape route at this point… And eventually, it came to a stop by a door and knocked…

No answer came from the door…

“Oh… He must be sleeping!”

The giant opened the door for him slightly and pushed him inside.

“Go introduce yourself, Tommy! Don’t be rude!”.

The thing then closed the door behind him…

The room was like an office, filled with shelves of books, luxurious sofas, paintings and carpet and in the centre of lavish closed curtains was a desk accompanied by a chair with seemingly a lot of paperwork.

But that wasn’t what his attention was on…

There was a figure in the middle of the room, hanging upside down from the ceiling like a bat… But the thing had wings, straight black like a bat… And not only that but it was giant like the previous…

It wasn’t human…

And weirdly, he could see the same hat from the portrait as it lay dormant on the desk…  Were those figures seen in the portrait the monsters?...

…

The thing let out a weird shriek as it moved, stretching… And within a blink of an eye, it was dusting itself off like a businessman as it yawned…  He looked sophisticated and tidy, but his narrowed eyes had a stern look to them.

He hadn’t noticed them staring right through him…

“Oh… I wasn’t told we had a guest… “.

It had a soft smile on its face, its fangs clear as day…

“Welcome to the manor of the crafts! My name is Philza, the lord of the house! I hope you’ve already met my boys… They tend to be… Chaotic at times…”.

His smile widened, it sent shivers down his spine… He wanted to run yet there was no escape insight as it came closer to him…