Horace

Aurik did as the man suggested and sat down across from him. Neither of the two spoke at first, as they were both studying the other intently.

The man appeared to be in his mid 30's but the few strands of grey hair mixed into the blonde majority made him look slightly older. He had a goatee that was the same colour as his hair if you exclude the occasional grey and he wore a black suit with a red tie and golden buttons to finish off the ensemble.

The man noticed Aurik's nervous attitude and anxious looks and couldn't help but smile. It was a kind smile, the kind that can't be faked no matter what, and upon seeing it Aurik felt himself calming down even though he wanted to keep his guard up.

"I already know that your name is Aurik but I have yet to introduce myself. My name is Horace Meld and it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm sure you have a lot of questions about all this but would you allow me to clarify something first?" Horace spoke with a friendly tone and his words managed to cause Aurik to relax even more. Everything about this man seemed to make you want to trust him.

"It's good to meet you as well. Please ask your question." Aurik replied respectfully.

Horace nodded in satisfaction. "A few nights ago a man that committed a crime amongst our people managed to escape us and we had to search around the city for him. I eventually found his body in an alleyway and it was clear that he died because his throat was ripped out by human teeth."

Aurik felt a lump forming in his throat and already knew where this was going.

"So, are you the one who bit that man and killed him?"

Aurik felt a sense of dread spread over his body and he subconsciously leaned back in his chair like he was trying to sink away from Horace's question. This didn't go unnoticed by Horace and he quickly spoke again to calm the young man's nerves.

"My apologies, I should have said this from the start but you aren't in any kind of trouble. As a matter of fact, he would have been killed for his crimes after we caught him anyway so you actually did us a favour."

Aurik didn't find it as easy to believe Horace this time and his nerves barely calmed down at all. Admitting to murder to a stranger wasn't a smart thing to do no matter what, even if it was self defence, but for some reason he felt that Horace wasn't trying to trap him with his question.

Aurik took a deep breath to calm himself, he knew that Horace was probably the only way he would be able to figure out what was happening to him so he decided it was worth the risk.

"Yes, it was me." Aurik finally said before he went on to explain everything that happened that night right up until he passed out on the floor of his apartment.

Horace nodded slightly as he listened to the story and a smile spread across his face when Aurik got to the part about biting his attacker because his arms were pinned down.

'That's exactly the kind of attitude you need if you want to live a good life as one of us.' Horace thought for a brief moment before continuing to listen.

When Aurik finished his retelling, Horace looked extremely pleased and spoke with a tone that conveyed the same emotion. "You did well, really well actually. The fact that you managed to survive is something akin to a small miracle so you should be proud of yourself."

"Thanks...I guess." Aurik felt a bit confused by the sudden praise but quickly moved on to another matter. "So, Mr Meld, is there-"

"Just call me Horace, please." Horace interrupted before gesturing to Aurik to continue.

"Alright Horace... I've answered your question so could you answer one of mine? I obviously want to know more about everything that's happening but I'd like to know how you found me first."

 "Oh that's simple. You bit into some young man's arm so I just asked him who it was that bit him and where I could find that person." Horace replied instantly while waving his hand like it wasn't important.

"I see... I'm a bit surprised he helped you based on his personality though."

"He was very happy to help, I only had to ask once and he told me everything without hesitation." The smile on Horace's face was still just as friendly as before but there seemed to be something else to it, like another emotion was hiding behind the kindness, something sinister, but it disappeared as quickly as it emerged so Aurik didn't even have a chance to consider it properly.

"Can we talk about what's been happening to me now? I felt like I was losing my mind with how thirsty I was and then all of a sudden Tristan cuts his hand and I-"

"Woah, let me stop you there." Horace cut Aurik off while raised his hand with the palm facing forward. "I know you're confused, curious and probably even a little scared but we can't talk about this here. I can't let a bunch of random people hear what I'm going to say to you or there will be some major problems in the future."

"I-I see... I didn't realize it was going to be that important." Aurik replied, feeling disappointed.

"Don't worry about it too much. I'll come by again when the restaurant closes and we can talk about all this in more detail."

Aurik felt better after hearing Horace's words and nodded as he spoke. "Alright, I'll see you then..."

Horace got up from his seat and walked out of the restaurant, disappearing into the fog and rain outside after a few steps. He looked over his shoulder at the restaurant for a moment before a smile formed on his face.

'Not only does he have the capacity for violence and the drive to live no matter what but he didn't seem to care that he killed someone. He was worried about the consequences but after we cleared that up he didn't seem to give it a second thought. He seems promising...'