1 Hunter

Bloody red orbs leered at Vivian in the darkness. She clutched her throat unknowingly, completely defenseless against his cold, menacing eyes. It grew enormously, devouring everything that was left of her humanity as he walked steadily towards her. Running away used to be an option before her feet felt like it was chained to an anchor. Her whole body was paralyzed and she could only stare into his eyes, mouth agape.

The vampire dangled his bloody hands in front of Vivian, clasping her mother's soulless head. Blood dripped down her petrified face, making its way on the floor. The blood dripped rapidly, gushing, and filling the floor with red liquid. Icy cold sensation swarmed up to Vivian's knees. She did not know how much she would have cried if she was able to control her own body. Suddenly, the head the vampire held morphed into a slightly bigger shape with a familiar curly undercut hairstyle. The light shone brighter at the its face and Vivian gasped.

Mouth slightly open, Vivian stared at the ceiling of her room. She couldn't stop seeing the images etched in her mind. [I'm in Hunter and Helen's house. I'm a twenty-year-old herb specialist and inventor]. She wiped off the sweat on her forehead and caught a glimpse of the purple and pink yarn bracelet around her right wrist. It was carefully braided to look like a rope swirled around diagonally with the alternating pattern of purple and pink. Vivian held her bracelet tightly and whispered, "Thank you, Dragons."

A loud and repeated bang on the wooden door erased all the drowsiness she felt from sleeping. "Vivian! Wake up. Please," bang! Bang! Vivian did not even have the time to answer because Helen kept on knocking on her door. She hurriedly put her slippers on and practically jumped towards her door. "What happened, auntie?"

Helen's aged face was full of panic and tears, "Hunter's gravely injured. I don't know what to do," Vivian's eyes widened as she swiftly walked out of her room to the living room. She saw Hunter laying flat on the cemented ground with deep bruises around his wrist and shallow cuts around his arm.

'Please, Dragons.'

What alarmed Vivian was the huge pool of blood staining the whiteness of his shirt around his stomach. His wound was healing extremely slow, as if his flesh had been stabbed by a special sword. Vivian looked behind her, "Helen, can you please get me spring water and a towel? I also need a cloth to tie around his wounds and stop the bleeding."

"Okay."

After Hunter's mom gave her everything, Vivian asked, "can you also please grab the jar in my room that has the label yarrow in it," Hunter's breathing turned shallow and his pale skin turned even whiter. Vivian looked under his shirt to tend to his biggest wound, but the cut was deeper than she thought. Even after Vivian applied yarrow powder on his wounds, Hunter's condition continued to worsen.

Helen's voice shook behind Vivian as she repeatedly mumbled prayers to the Dragons. Vivian trembled. She didn't know if it was due to anxiousness or anger. Hunter was not weak. This was the first time he came back home in a critical state. His wounds typically heal faster than a minute. She speculated he must have been struck by a holy sword. It was the only way she knows how his healing speed could be slowed down.

Vampire bodies were greedy. They need the most amount of nutrients to supply for their superior physical abilities. The only way to save him was to give him those nutrients, so he could heal faster.

"Hunter. Can you hear me?" Vivian slapped Hunter's cheek lightly. No response. Then, his face distorted and he grunted in pain. His breathing turned shallower and shallower by the second. Vivian took a deep breath, quickly let go of his face and walked towards the kitchen. She grabbed a small knife and pricked her forefinger, enough so that little drops of blood would pour out. Vivian bit her lip and Hunter groaned at the scent of her blood.

Vivian walked back towards Hunter, still laying down on the floor, and she placed her trembling finger against his lips. She could hear her heartbeat grow louder and louder. Soon enough, he reacted. Hunter licked her blood clean with a complex look on his face. Vivian pressed her lips together as an attempt to calm herself.

"That's not nearly enough, right?" she did not hesitate to crawl on top of him, careful not to press against his wounds, and she parted her shoulder-length hair towards one side. Helen gasped behind them and held her trembling hands out as if she wanted to say something but held back on it.

"Drink," Vivian commanded. Anyone could be fooled by her conviction. She collapsed on him, the side away from the pool of blood on his stomach. She took another deep breath before clutching on to Hunter's arm tightly with her free hand. "Please." There was a moment of silence before Hunter's face closed in on her neck. Vivian shut her eyes and clasped her hands around his head. Hunter started sucking her neck and she pulled against his curly undercut as a response to the burst of pain and pleasure she felt as his fangs sank deeper into her.