Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Sunny Suzuki liked to think he lived a quite normal, peaceful life.

As peaceful as any young vampire’s should be.

He had a mother, a father, and his dear older sister, Mari, his best friend and greatest ally he’s ever had-not that he had much of a choice.

There were no fabled, manic vampire hunters out to decimate him every second of the day, he had no fear of any slapdash mobs suddenly breaking down the front door and holding his entire family captive, nor did he have to worry about naïve schoolchildren sneaking inside and force feeding-him garlic bread and swinging open curtains during high noon.

...Most of the time, but overall, he had little to worry about.

The townsfolk had never bothered them, in turn his family had no reason to interfere either. The quaint township of Faraway was known to be as peaceful as any town should be, though without the onslaughts of violent and paranoid people set on erasing the entire vampire race off the face of the earth, of course.

Everyone else seemed to think that vampires wanted to feast on the blood of everyone in town and ravage disease. It really wasn’t true at all, Sunny thought. That was in the far past, when that was all the newly-risen corpses knew. Surely his kind has gained some sentience since then, right? They could be just as human as a human ought to be, just with a few distinguishable differences.

Sunny and his family lived on a low hill wayside from Faraway Town in a small and decrepit manor, vines crawling along the walls from decades of abandoned maintenance, an overgrown garden lay in front of the house, where crumbling statues of angels decorated each corner.

The townsfolk were kind enough to leave them live cattle in front of their home every few weeks, but he knew they were just deathly afraid of them and thought leaving them generous offerings would be enough to appease them and save themselves and their families from being brutally murdered and sucked dry of all their blood.

If only Sunny could tell them they weren’t ever going to do that, they had enough tact not to go drinking human blood, to avoid unnecessary attention.

Sunny never liked the idea of drinking human blood anyways. Neither did his sister.

--

Dusk soon rolled in, the sun fading behind the distant mountains and lines of evergreen. The town’s street lamps had lit up the now darkening streets. The sky bathed in tones of purple and deep blue.

This was Sunny’s favorite time of day, not enough sunlight for him to get sunburnt to a crisp, but just enough for him to enjoy what remained of the previous daylight. He so wished he could go outside and enjoy the sun like humans could.

He sat on the edge of the window of his bedroom, having just finished his daily violin practice. He wondered if it was possible to prod his mother into getting him new strings.

Sighing to himself, he leapt off the windowsill and wrapped a brown and ruddy cloak over himself and tip-toed down the tall staircase, his foot feeling over a crease in the crimson rug that never seemed to go away. He could hear echoes of a lullaby from the all-too familiar harpsichord in his sister's room as he went down the stairs. A lullaby that never failed to put him to sleep.

Once he reached the bottom, he hurried over to the front door, careful not to step on the parts of the wooden flooring that had annoyingly loose floorboards that made loud creaks. He could hear his mother and father conversing rather loudly from the living room. He paid no attention to whatever dispute they were having.

He slipped past the front door, warily closing it behind him.

He did this often, sneaking out at twilight to get a glimpse of the town below before night fell completely, which is when he and his family would go about their nightly gallivant to hunt for sustenance in the form of wild animals.

Sunny stared at the town below from the garden hedges and sighed. He wondered briefly for a moment what it would be like to be a normal boy, with friends and-

Snapping him out of his reveries, he saw a glimpse of what looked like-a ball? Fly past him.

Startled out of his skin, Sunny tumbled behind one of the crumbling angel statues, quivering. Was someone trying to kill him? Did the ball have garlic rubbed over it?

He heard distant voices from the front of the courtyard, childlike voices. A shout, and then a pair of footsteps coming closer and closer. Sunny hugged his knees, craning his neck from behind the statue.

He watched as a young girl climbed up the path that led to the front garden. She was clumsy in her steps, and looked quite anxious. Sunny was scared out of his wits, hugging his knees tighter the closer she stepped towards him.

She peered around for a second, then leaned down and picked up the small bright red ball. She sighed, and was about to turn around and leave, until Sunny made the mistake of leaning forward too much in his attempt to get a closer look and fell on his hands, making noise.

Sunny froze in place, dreading his mistake. The girl seemed to be frightened too, jerking towards the noise and digging her nails into the material of the red ball in her hands.

The girl walked cautiously to the front of the statue, looking straight at him.

Sunny shied from the mock safety of the statue, slowly standing up. His mind was racing faster than it ever has in his life, and he wondered briefly if he should make a run for it-what if the girl ran off and told her parents? What would happen to him then?

He wondered if the girl was going to throw salt in his face or stab him with an iron rod, until she spoke.

“Uhm…hello…” she spoke timidly, almost whispering. Her quiet and surprisingly-not-at-all malicious voice calmed Sunny down a little. He gulped.

“You...” he uttered, his voice low and raspy.

The two stood there for a bit, rather awkwardly, both still recovering from their shock. Sunny felt like he was being burned alive with how intensely this girl was staring at him.

“S-So you’re...not going to...hurt me?” Sunny spoke first, clutching at the cloak he wrapped around himself.

“What? No, no, of course not!” the girl replied, more loudly this time, shaking her head.

“Oh...okay…” Sunny was not used to social interaction. At all. Talking to other people that weren't family was an entirely new thing to him, and he was itching to run away like a mouse with how anxious he felt.

"D-don't tell anyone you t-talked to me, okay?" It took a lot out of Sunny to even say much of anything. He was so anxious, his hands were shaking and he was sure the girl could see his lips quivering.

"I won't! I won't, I promise." she reassured him. Sunny still wasn't very sure she would keep that promise...

The girl must have taken a liking to him, because she seemed to have immediately perked up afterwards. She put on a wide grin, and he swore he saw her eyes sparkling.

“So…you’re a vampire, aren’t you?” she asked, a bit too excitedly, in his opinion.

Sunny meekly stared at her. It was probably painfully obvious he was, with his pale-as-the-moon complexion as compared to the girl’s, which glowed healthily and had plenty of sun.

This time, he finally had enough time to get a good look at her. She was around the same height as him, perhaps the same age as well…her hair was a dark brown and slightly tousled, and she had a cute pink bow fixed on the side of her head. Her legs were covered with messy yellowed gauze, and her eyes looked at him, not with fear or hate like in his father’s tell-tale stories, but oddly enough, she looked intrigued.

He opened his mouth to speak, but the girl cut him off. She seemed oddly fixated on his mouth…

“There it is! You have fangs! You are a vampire!” she pointed at his teeth. Sitting off the side of his two front teeth were indeed point-ish. They weren’t as big or sharp as Mari’s yet…

They stood there, the girl just smiling widely at him. It was…kind of...cute?

Wait what?

Huh??

Thankfully, the girl shook him out of his frenzied stupor by announcing,

“By the way, my name's Aubrey! Hehe, sorry for not saying so sooner…what’s yours?” Sunny thought she was the most enrapturing being on this planet. He wondered how she could remain so joyous in the face of…something like himself. He was constantly reminded day by day how much humans fear his kind, it was so, so unusual…

“My name’s…Sunny.” he told her plainly, his voice shaking. Funnily enough, he felt sort of happy. This Aubrey girl seemed to be a really nice person.

“Nice to meet you, Sunny!” she let out a chuckle. Sunny nodded gingerly in return. Aubrey offered her hand towards him, Sunny slowly taking it. Aubrey lightly shook her hand. Her palms felt soft, and warm, much unlike his own and his family's, whos were always cold.

"Sorry...if my hands are too cold..." he said rather dolefully, once she let go of his hand.

"That's alright, I understand!" Aubrey grinned at him.

Aubrey then leaned in closer to his face, seemingly inspecting him, or something…Did he smell weird? Have something on his face? He began to feel himself flush.

“Aw, you’re just so…pale…it’s kind of sad that you can’t be out in the sun…oh, and imagine how my mother and father would react if they saw me talking to you!” she held her hands to her mouth. Sunny felt a pang of sadness at that. If anyone saw them talking, both of their lives could be at a serious risk...

“HEY!! AUBREYY!! What on earth is taking you so loooong?!” a booming, childish voice sounded from below the low hill. Aubrey and Sunny jumped, turning their heads.

“Oh…sorry, Sunny! That was my friend, um, Kel. I have to go now!” she spoke quickly.

She picked up the red ball that dropped to the ground and took off. She stopped short of the garden entrance.

“It was nice meeting you, Sunny! Can I see you here again, tomorrow night?”

“U-Uh-okay-” Sunny was humiliated with how much he stumbled over his words today.

“Okay! G’night!” She gave him the warmest smile he’s ever seen aside from his sister’s, a small wave, and raced down the hill, joining her friend.

Sunny watched as her figure became smaller and smaller as they headed back home together wherever it was, the sky darker than ever, and the lights of the town shining brightly and bountifully ahead. He felt, for a moment, a strong urge to follow her into the glittery town…he shook the thought away momentarily.

He heaved a deep sigh, hands propping his chin up, thinking to himself.

He had talked with…and befriended…a human.

Sunny began panicking. What if Mari or his parents found out? He’d never hear the end of it!

But…he felt happy. Content with himself. He made a friend! That itself was something that felt deeply rewarding, at the end of the day.

He slipped back inside the house and quickly took refuge in his room, throwing himself onto his bed. He thought about Aubrey again. He’d never really seen another human his age up close, much less a girl. He’s only seen other humans in picture books, or as his father describes them, ugly, filthy, lamentable.

She wasn’t like any of those things, and Sunny was sure other humans weren’t either.

Later that night, he decided to skip out on joining his family’s nightly hunt with Mari and his parents. He wasn’t in the mood to do much of anything that night. He could only think about seeing his new, very ebullient friend again.

–-

Chapter Text

“ NO WAY! ” Aubrey’s ever-zestful friend yelled in awe. 

Aubrey anxiously looked over her shoulder for any onlookers. It was early in the night, and both Aubrey and her friend needed to be home quickly. They walked down the desolate path from Sunny’s manor leading down to the houses.

“ Kel! Be quiet!” she bemoaned. Kel scratched his head and whispered an apology.

Kel was sprightful and energetic, and seemed to love softball more than anything. However nowadays, his interests have been on a new sport that’s been gaining some publicity lately, basketball. He never seemed to be able to sit still, and often talked a little too loudly, much to the dismay of his fellow peers.

“So you really went up there and talked to that freaky vampire kid?” 

“He’s not freaky, Kel. I actually think he’s rather sweet,”  Aubrey retorted. “I feel bad for him…he looked so scared…”

“Well, with your looks, you probably scared him stiff!” Kel said.

Aubrey knitted her eyebrows and glared towards Kel’s direction. “What is that supposed to mean?!”

–-

After school had ended the following day, Aubrey and Kel went over to her friend Basil's house to visit. Aubrey avoided staying at home as much as she could manage. Her parent’s constant disputation was more than she could put up with most of the time, and it wasn’t like they bothered to pay much mind to her, anyways.

Aubrey adored staying over at Basil’s house, there was just something so soothing about coming round the block and letting the tantalizing scent of fresh mint and lemon balm fill her nose. It was always so mollifying.

Aubrey tapped the bronze knocker against Basil’s door, Kel tapping his foot rhythmically behind her, hands to his hips. He had a quaint cottage, just off the side of the main town roads surrounded by begonia bushes, woodlife and pastures, where she often sat with the goats and sheep grazing there on hot middays. She wondered for a moment if her vampire friend liked goat or sheep blood best...um, that isn’t a really pleasant thought…

The door clicked and creaked open slightly, a blond head poking out of the door. 

“Hi, Aubrey! Hi Kel!” Basil greeted them, kindly as ever. He stepped aside and held the door open for her. “Come in, I made ice tea.”

Aubrey stepped inside, Kel following suit. Basil’s home smelled of potpourri and...basil. Pleasant to the senses, as per usual. 

Basil’s caretaker, Polly, peeked in from the kitchen. “Hello kids, it’s nice to see you!” she greeted, undoing the ties from her apron, setting it on an armchair. “I need to go out and run a few errands, I trust you three are fine by yourselves for a while?” 

A simultaneous “Yes Polly” rang throughout the living room. Polly wrapped a headscarf around her head and set off, leaving the three alone.

Basil went into the kitchen and returned with a platter of glasses of ice tea, while Kel threw himself on Basil’s sofa, immediately reaching for a plate full of biscuits on the coffee table and promptly stuffed his face with them. 

Mouth full of biscuits, Kel spoke, “So,” munch munch. “You wonf behief fis Baschl, but-'' munch munch. “Aubrey got a bampiher boyfrehn!” 

Aubrey jerked her head in his direction. Basil stared at Kel, thoroughly dumbfounded. 

Kel swallowed thickly. “Surprising, isn’t it?”

“ Kel! ” she glowered at him, irked as ever. 

“Um…what?” Basil questioned softly. Aubrey rubbed her sinus while Kel laughed hysterically on the sofa. Aubrey walked over to Kel and dug her hand into his head. “Ow! Okay okay! I’m sorryyyyy-”

Aubrey huffed and dropped down to the floor beside Basil, sucking her teeth. 

“But Aubrey! you should totally tell Basil what happened yesterday.” Kel impelled her, one hand massaging his poor head.

Basil turned to Aubrey, curiosity written all over his face. “What happened?”

Aubrey sighed. “Me and Kel were playing softball by the big manor down the road. Anyways, Kel hit the ball too hard and it flew into their garden, so I ran up to get the ball back-“

Basil gave a horrific gasp, color draining from his face. “You went into that place? A-Aubrey-“ 

“I know it was stupid of me-but I couldn’t help it, okay?” Aubrey continued. “Anyway, while I was there, I saw a boy hiding behind one of the angel statues. He looked frightened to death, so I went up to him-“

Basil gave an even more horrific gasp. Aubrey held on.

“And, well, I talked to him.”

Aubrey didn’t think Basil’s jaw could drop any lower, nor could his eyes go that wide.

“He just-I was curious! He didn’t seem hostile or suspicious at all. He was actually really sweet!” Aubrey prevailed with her attempt at an assuring explanation. “He asked if I was going to hurt him, and I think that says a lot about how this town treats his family,”

Basil was practically writhing with horror.

“I even asked him if I could go and see him again tonight. Oh, I know! You two should come too!”

Basil felt like he was going to pass out on the spot.

“Aub-Aubrey- what!?” Basil stammered out.

“W-we could die-you don’t know if that vampire boy is trying to trick you, o-or something!”

Aubrey huffed in exasperation. “And why would that be?”

“ Because! He’s-He’s a vampire, for God’s sake…! What if he was only n-nice to you because he’s hungry? A-and wants-” Basil dragged his hands down his face. Basil looked as though a war had just broken out, and they had to evacuate on the spot.

“Or maybe, he’s being nice because he likes Aub-” Kel started in a sort of sing-song tone, until Aubrey smushed her hands against his mouth, muffling him.

Aubrey smiled and gave a false chuckle, her hands though apparently hell-bent on suffocating Kel to death. 

Basil took hold of Aubrey’s shoulders. “But- what if he b-bites us!? Then what?”

"Oh, Basil, I seriously doubt that. Look, how about we bring some garlic, if that makes you feel any better-“ Aubrey said.

“ We? We?! No! No! I am not risking my life at that house!” Basil continued to fret, sweat rolling down his forehead.

Kel managed to pull Aubrey’s hands off his mouth. “Aww, c’mon Basil, Don’t be a wuss! I think it’ll be so cool to see an actual vampire up close…” Kel’s eyes looked to be twinkling with delight.

“Please Basil? Please?? I think you and him would get along! I promise, I didn’t notice an ounce of any-evil-from him!” Aubrey held Basil’s hands amidst his utter panic.

“ No, no, no, no, no, nonononono-” 

--

Basil doesn’t know how it came to this.

It was half past five, the last remnants of the day's sunlight beginning to fade by the minute. Basil had, by some unruly force of nature, found himself standing (although he was on the brink of collapsing right then and there), right in front of the infamous, terrible, horrible Suzuki manor. Teeth clattering and hands sweaty, Basil was clutching onto Aubrey’s sleeve for dear life.

He felt like running away and never coming back up here ever again, back into his house and in his very warm oh-so comfortable bed. But Polly was still out, and that meant being home alone. He terribly loathed being alone, thus he was-with much difficulty-dragged here by his two “friends”. He was going to die, and he only had them to blame.

The manor towered over them like an invitation for trouble, the vines crawling along the murky brick seeming like snakes, watching and waiting. The garden lay in front, the two angel statues looked to be staring at them, rather vindictively. 

Kel was shivering, every ounce of adrenaline coursing through his veins. He was so ready to finally see a real-life vampire. 

Basil was shivering for an entirely different reason, and dearly wished there were no vampires at all.

Aubrey glanced at the setting sun. And sure enough, it was now almost entirely behind the far-off mountains. “Anytime now.”

Sure enough, the towering front doors creaked open. All three of them tensed up. Basil was frozen with fright like no other. They watched as a figure poked out from the doorway. The same short, skinny and pale figure from last night! Aubrey lit up immediately upon seeing him. She let go of Kel’s hand and waved ecstatically. Sunny took a good look at two of Aubrey’s friends. Looking awfully panicked, he turned left and right before he bolted out of the garden entrance and ran right round the side of the manor.

“O-okay he doesn’t want to talk to us let’s go now please Aubrey please-” Basil wheezed out quickly, quite out of breath from fright, shaking Aubrey’s shoulder.

Aubrey wasn’t listening, much to Basil’s great distress. She took hold of both Basil and Kel’s hands and followed Sunny round the side of the house.

Sunny was slumped against the wall, clutching his knees protectively, much like last night.

Aubrey ran up to him. “Sunny! Hi!” she beamed. Sunny nodded shyly in return. “I’m so glad you came out!” she turned to both Kel and Basil who were standing away from them, urging them over.

Kel quickly ran up to Sunny. “ Woah. So you’re like, an actual vampire? That. Is. So. COOL! So do you like, suck people’s blood out? When we’re sleeping? Can you turn into a bat? Ooh! Can you turn me into a vamp- ” Kel spoke rapidly, right in Sunny’s face, until Aubrey gave him a good pound on the head.

“Heavens, Kel?! Would you stop it? Look, you’re scaring him half to death!” Aubrey said crossly. Kel turned to look at Sunny. There he was, holding his legs even tighter and looking like a cat that just fell in water. 

“Oh…my bad!” Kel hung his head low, bowing apologetically to the boy.

“Sunny, I’m so sorry…you see, this is my friend Kel, and he has absolutely no tact.” Aubrey crossed her arms and gave Kel a dirty look at the end of her sentence.

“I’m sorry too, uh, Sunny was it?” Kel repeatedly bowed.

“I-it’s okay…I understand.” was Sunny’s timid response. Aubrey thought how gentle he was positively adorable.

“Uhm…nice to meet you, Kel.” Sunny managed to remember his manners. 

Kel was grinning ear-to-ear. “Same to you!”

“And, you won’t suck our blood when we’re not looking, right?!” Kel exclaimed, as loud as usual. Aubrey looked at him outrageously. 

Sunny shook his head anxiously. “No! Of course not, my family doesn’t drink human blood-”

“G-get away from them, y-you-!” a shaky voice emanated from their right.

Standing a few feet away from them was Basil, tightly gripping in front of him what looked like the cross that hung from the top of his parent’s bed. 

Aubrey and Kel stared at Basil, at a complete loss for words. Sunny however, looked frightened. “Wh-what’s he going to do with that? Does he want to kill me?”

“Sunny-” Aubrey started, but was cut off by Kel’s boisterous laugh. 

“Basil! That cross isn’t going to do anything!” Kel said, ending with another fit of laughter.

“J-just get away from them, fiend!” Basil was shaking more than ever. Aubrey was honestly very surprised he was able to do something like that.

“I’m not-going to hurt them-” Sunny was also shaking.

Aubrey, however, had enough. “BASIL!” she yelled.

“What-” Basil wheezed.

“Would you stop it? For God’s sake, Sunny is not going to hurt anybody. He’s had enough fright for one day, will you?” 

“B-but-”

“I promise, I don’t want to hurt anybody…” Sunny intervened. Basil stood there, huffing and puffing.

--

After a while, Basil managed to calm down a bit, after Sunny had properly introduced himself, although both boys were still fairly jittery. 

“I’m sorry for…uhm- acting out like that…” Basil was now kneeling on the grass next to Aubrey and Kel.

“It’s okay, I sort of saw it coming.” Sunny recalled his father’s admittedly overdramatized stories of human encounters with his kind.

Basil shifted around nervously, twiddling his fingers. “It’s-It’s just that I’ve always thought vampires were dangerous…everybody in town is afraid of this place, and thinks you’ll kill us all, or something…” 

“I’m not sure about other vampires, but me and my family aren’t like that at all, I promise…I wish everyone wasn’t so afraid of us, it’s so lonely being by myself sometimes. It’s just me, my parents, and my sister.” Sunny explained.

“I see…” Basil nodded, understanding.

“You’re so cool, Sunny!” Kel had those same twinkles in his eyes from before. 

Sunny thanked him shyly. He wasn’t used to all this attention, much less being told he’s cool…

Aubrey looked happier than ever. All her friends were getting along, it really was a sight to behold.

--

The four conversed all through the night. Kel had brought jacks, and taught Sunny how to play. Sunny was delighted at beating kel thrice, so much so he smiled a little. Just the faintest turn on his lips. Aubrey thought it was just about the cutest thing ever.

Basil and Sunny were no longer so jittery, and had in fact gotten along pretty well. Basil told Sunny all about his garden, Sunny being very intrigued.

Unfortunately, night had completely fallen, and all the kids had to head home. "Mom and Hero would freak if I'm not home soon!" Kel wailed.

Sunny looked downcast that they had to leave so soon. It was really the most fun he’s ever had in ages, and was sad to see the moment end.

“Will I see you all again?” Sunny implored, lightly tugging at Aubrey’s sleeve.

Aubrey glanced at both Kel and Basil.

“We can see you again, tomorrow.” she smiled. Kel and Basil both nodded in agreement. Sunny, in turn, smiled too. Aubrey wanted to cry, it was tremendously adorable.

She gave him a quick hug, and led her friends down the darkened path, into the warm glow of the town below, the moon beginning to rise to the east.

Sunny was stunned for a bit, standing dumbly by the entrance, watching his brand new friends depart. Aubrey had just hugged him! He felt abundantly summery and felt bats- no, that wasn’t right- butterflies, flapping elated in his stomach. Why did he feel like the earth suddenly had no gravity? This was...so odd...maybe he was getting sick? He felt sort of sick, but it wasn't particularly unpleasant- what on earth?

Partly panicked out of his head and partly blissfully dazed, he tumbled his way back inside. He’d have to contemplate on this utterly mystifying new feeling back in his room. Maybe he could ask his mother for some medicinal tea, or something...

--

Chapter Text

Since then, Aubrey, Kel and Basil continued to meet up with Sunny, meeting up without fail almost every night, in a little clearing in the woods behind Sunny’s manor. Thankfully, his family (hopefully) didn’t think anything unusual about Sunny passing on their nightly hunt for around three consecutive months straight, because they all knew well he wasn’t one for hunting in the first place, often dragging behind and had much difficulty trying to catch so much as a squirrel. 

Sunny thought he was safe for now, and looked forward to their meet-ups more than anything in the world.

He wasn’t so sure if Basil did, though. Despite them getting along quite well when they first met, they’ve had quite the rocky relationship so far. Basil was constantly wary of him because of his vampirism and was often jumpy and paranoid. Sunny wished he knew how to help, but Basil had a really hard time trusting him. He often passed on their nightly rendezvouses, preferring not to risk being bitten, even if Sunny was never, ever going to do that.

Sunny’s older sister, however, had sensed something was off throughout these three months.

Everyone knew Sunny was a prominent daydreamer, often finding his head stuck in those vast, far-off clouds of his. He was a bit slow, and his voice was like a hush, you wouldn’t be able to catch what he was saying unless you listened just a little bit closer.

But Mari was perceptive, as any elder sister should be. She had noticed a few things, whether they were practicing their instruments together or just having a chat over dinner. Sunny seemed to be much more absentminded than usual, and sometimes spoke a little more loudly than his usual whisper of a voice. He would jump when his name was called or he was tapped on the shoulder. Staring into space, Mari would ask if he was following along with her explanation of musical harmonics, and Sunny would be brought down to earth with a sudden crash, and stammer out something listlessly, “Huh-? Oh- yes, uh -huh…”

Earlier that week, Sunny had even come to Mari asking her to teach him to knit, of all things! Mari agreed to teach him despite her initial shock, naturally.

Sunny seemed so determined during practice, managing to make a few pot holders, the first few ingeniously rumpled and messy. Mari was pleasantly surprised with how fast he was catching on in just a few days.

He really was passionate about it. When she asked him why he was so set on learning how to knit all of a sudden, Sunny merely said he was bored. 

Mari wasn’t falling for it.

In the following days, she would see him holed up in his room, apparently working hard on something. She decided not to question him about it, it looked not only important, but personal to him. She knew that much.

Mari also often noticed him at times, just staring out of a window, with that rare, beautiful smile plastered over his face, his eyes hazy and full of stars. Mari felt like squeezing his cheeks and cooing him to death, but she relented. Why was he smiling so often all of a sudden, anyways? Mari needed to find out.

One night, after Mari had returned from hunting with her parents, she set down her nightly catch (it was a wild boar, much to her father’s delight) on the dining table and ran up the staircase to Sunny’s room.

There he was, sitting at his windowsill watching the stars twinkle, and the world pass him by. He was smiling again! Mari also noticed his ears, which she knew always glowed red when he was embarrassed or (seldom) angry. How peculiar, Mari thought, he didn’t look embarrassed or angry at all. He looked wistful, dreamy, not present, like he was stuck in a wonderful dream- or something of the sort.

Mari was baffled. “Hey, Sunny,” she said, gently, trying not to startle him this time, standing by the doorway.

Sunny gave a slight jump, jerking his head in her direction. 

“Hi Mari.” His eyes were glossy and looked so dreamlike. Mari desperately wanted to know why that was.

“Are…you feeling okay?” Mari asked, worriedly knitting her eyebrows.

“Huh? Yes, of course I’m okay! Why-why do you ask?” something was definitely up. Mari shook her head and chuckled softly. He really wasn’t one for keeping secrets, was he?

“What?” Sunny asked, looking at her puzzledly. 

“Oh, you know what? It’s nothing.” she laughed, turning around and leaving Sunny to his own devices.

Needless to say, Sunny was, without a doubt, hiding something from her. Mari was determined to find out his little secret.

–

The next evening, Mari sat in front of her old harpsichord, absentmindedly pressing down chords at random. She was too absorbed into her concerns over Sunny to really pay attention to practice. 

She heard footsteps come down the corridor, and a sweet-tempered voice from the doorway. “Come on, we’re hunting now,” said her mother.

Mari turned to face her mother. “Actually…I think I’m going to pass today. I want to practice more.” her eyes lingered over the keys on her harpsichord. 

“...Alright, we’ll be back in a few hours.” her mother left the room, her footsteps echoing down the corridor. Mari sighed, slumping deeper into her seat. 

Now all she has to do is pretend she isn’t home.

Mari slipped out of her room and tip-toed down the darkened corridor, only to bump into- Sunny.

“Oh, hi Mari,” Sunny greeted, taking a step back. 

“Hello Sunny!” Mari put on her best smile and did her best not to act suspicious.

“Are you going out with mother and father?” he asked.

“Yes. Are you just going to be staying in your room?” 

“Uh-huh.” he nodded quickly.

Mari ruffled his hair, and went downstairs. She thought about how hasty Sunny seemed, like he wanted to get somewhere quickly, or something. Maybe that was it! 

She slipped out of the front door and hid behind one of the angel statues. It was near total darkness outside, which made it easier for Mari not to be spotted. 

She sat and waited. After a while, she saw the front door budge. She was right, he really was trying to get somewhere.

She saw his head peek out and scan the vicinity. Mari sank further into her hiding place. 

She saw Sunny run out of the garden and...behind the house? What on earth is he up to?

Mari stood up and followed him quietly, sticking her head out from the corner. She saw Sunny dash into the woods behind the manor...this was getting interesting.

Once his figure was hidden amongst the towering evergreens she sprinted after him.

The forest was ever-caliginous and chilly, light barely peeking out from cracks in the tree leaves. Mari stepped through vines and brambles, careful not to step on any rocks or tree branches. 

—

Eventually, she came to a clearing, a peaceful space illuminated by the last remaining light of the day. In the clearing were three children she didn’t recognize, and Sunny himself. Mari kneeled behind a bush, watching them. Mari wasn’t sure how she felt about spying, but...she had to know what Sunny was up to all these months! She couldn’t help herself!

“Hey Sunny!” Kel greeted ecstatically. Basil flinched a little upon seeing Sunny enter the clearing, accidentally knocking down their shared lamp. Even after all these months, Basil was still dodgy around Sunny, much to Aubrey’s dismay. She just didn’t understand what was so suspicious about him. If he wanted their blood, surely he wouldn’t have done so sooner? Basil just retorted stubbornly, “You don’t know that! Or, what about his parents and sister? If Sunny doesn’t want our blood, maybe they do!” …Well, Aubrey couldn’t really argue with that.

“Hi everyone.” Sunny said, sitting down next to Aubrey, who quickly looked down at her lap, her eyes looking everywhere wildly. Mari was intrigued- just how long have these kids known each other?

Kel popped his softball up in the air, catching it before it landed. “So, are anyone else’s parents onto us by now?”

Everyone look at Kel. “Because, I think my parents are starting to get suspicious. They’re always nagging me about where I run off to every night, or something!” Kel heaved a sigh, continuously throwing and catching the red ball.

Aubrey and Sunny exchanged worried looks. “You didn’t tell them anything…did you?” Aubrey asked.

“Nope! All I said was that I've been hanging out with vampires!” 

Everyone wheezed in horror. Mari held a hand to her mouth.

“Kel-“ Basil started.

Kel laughed heartily. “But of course they didn’t believe me, they never do! It’s fineee guys…” 

Kel’s happy-go-lucky smile begun to fade. “I really don’t want these moments to end. You guys are the best, but everyone in town hates vampires, even if they’ve done nothing to us so far.” 

Basil stared down at his lap.

Aubrey sighed sadly. “I know, Kel. It really isn’t fair…”  

Everyone sat in a depressive silence for a moment. Sunny contemplated. He really didn’t want to lose his friends so soon, though the time would have to come eventually. It was inevitable. 

“It’s scary.” Kel started. “What if our parents do find out? They hate vampires! What’ll happen to Sunny and his family then?” Kel bemoaned. Perhaps deep down he knew as well as everyone else that It was wishful thinking, believing their friendship wouldn’t be disturbed.

“Not if I have anything to say about it.” Aubrey spoke up. Everyone’s attention was on her now.

“I won’t let them do anything to him. He’s my best friend! I’m staying by his side no matter what, I swear!” Aubrey announced, full of sudden effervescence, her eyebrows scrunched and fists clenched. Deep down, Aubrey knew realistically, she couldn’t do much. Who is she to try and stop full-grown adults from doing whatever they please? Still, she could try, she would. 

“Sorry if that was a little too sappy.” Aubrey’s cheeks flushed abashedly. 

Sunny stared at her in an awestruck sort of way. There were the stars in his eyes again, Mari noted. So full of life, they didn’t seem to ever stop twinkling. She smiled genuinely at the sight before her. She had to give it to him, it seemed like he found himself a nice friend group.

“Thank you, Aubrey, that...really means a lot to me.” Sunny averted his eyes from Aubrey, suddenly more keen at staring down at his lap. Mari pressed her palm to her mouth to stifle a gasp. His ears began to glow red again, the great contrast from pale, waxen-looking skin to a striking red surprising Mari yet again. This had to mean something, she concluded.

Aubrey sat back down next to Sunny, looking satisfied with herself.

“Oh, I also, uhm, made you a gift…” Sunny said, bashful as ever, digging something out of his satchel. He proceeded to pull out a bundle of white linens, tied together with a black string. Mari’s eyes widened. He’d been rummaging through her sewing material.

Aubrey accepted the wrapped bundle. “Huh? Oh, Sunny- you really didn’t have to-“ 

“But I wanted to.” said Sunny plainly. Aubrey decided not to implore any further, undoing the messy knot of string. Mari observed his handiwork from her spot behind the bushes, finding the effort adorable. She should really teach him how to tie better knots someday.

Aubrey opened up the linens and pulled out an eggplant-colored knitted scarf, complete with tassels at the ends. It seemed all of Sunny’s love and care put into it, which downright melted Aubrey’s heart. A cat seemed to have gotten her tongue, busying herself by feeling the scarf’s fabric. 

Meanwhile, Sunny was sitting besides Aubrey, intently staring down at his hands looking like he was on the brink of combusting. 

Aubrey looked like she wanted to cry. “ Sunnyyy… ”

“You made this? Yourself?”

Sunny nodded shyly. Aubrey looked back at the scarf, her heart full.

“This- this is so lovely! I just-“ Aubrey spluttered hopelessly. 

She wrapped the scarf around her neck and held out her arms, wrapping them around Sunny, much to his delight shock. “Thank you.” Aubrey squeezed him tighter.

Sunny felt himself melting under her embrace, his stomach jumping and twisting with those same butterflies from all those nights ago.

As they were hugging, Mari had her eyes on the pallid blond boy hugging his knees. He was feverishly eyeing Sunny and Aubrey as if one of them was going to suddenly...bite the other. Mari knew Sunny would never go that far, but she wasn’t quite sure about the blond boy’s opinions. He was surely just uncomfortable with the sudden act of obscenity, that made more sense. She still had a hard time telling exactly.

“Ewwww…” Kel dragged, sticking his tongue out in disgust. 

Aubrey and Sunny seeme to have just noticed Kel and Basil were still present, awkwardly shuffling away from each other, cheeks (and ears) rosy. 

“Shut up, Kel,” Aubrey huffed. He knew exactly how to ruin a moment.

“I would if you guys stop being so... lovey-dovey. Eugh. It’s so gross!” Kel argued. He stuck out his tongue again, shaking his head.

Basil was curled up in his corner the entire time, looking awfully jittery. Aubrey frowned. Did they really make him that uncomfortable? She’d have to apologize later.

Mari watched the entire scene unfold from her bush, her hands cupping around her mouth the entire time. She felt like bursting out in laughter. So that was it! Her dear little brother had a crush! Her once so-innocent baby brother was growing up. She wiped a single tear from her eye, time flew so fast.

Kel fell down on his back, feeling the cool grass tickle his skin. “I’ve had enough of everyone being such a sap lately, even Hero is acting all weird, he’ll be smiling like an idiot for no reason and talk nonsense-“

Mari’s eyes widened. Hero? They knew Hero? 

“ What?!” a new voice boomed from nearby. Everyone jumped at the sound.

Mari had stood up abruptly from her bush, huffing and puffing. Well. She completely blew her cover, but she needed answers.

Her eyes darted to Kel, who was propping himself up from the grass with his elbows, looking at her wildly. 

“You know Hero?” she questioned, brushing off her dress skirt of grime and dirt with her hands, and brushing the knots from her long black hair with her fingertips.

“Mari? ” Sunny stared at her, shell-shocked. 

Mari heaved a deep breath. “Um, Hi Sunny!” she put on her signature smile and greeted him once again.

“Why are you- how did you find us?” Sunny asked, the rosiness from his cheeks and ears fading quickly.

Aubrey looked terrified. “Sunny? Do you know her?”

“Y-yeah. That’s my sister. I don’t know why she’s here, though…” Sunny began to panic.

“Mari, you’re not...gonna tell mother and father, are you?” 

“I won’t, if you explain what’s going on here to me. You can do that, right?” 

—

So he did. Sunny told her everything, from Aubrey spotting him behind the statue to all of them agreeing to meet up in this clearing right here in the woods. He also had his friends introduce themselves to Mari. 

Mari rubbed her sinus. “I hope everyone was being careful. Very bad things could happen if anyone was to find out you’re in contact with my brother.” 

“We have been, I promise!” Aubrey said.

“I’m not sure about Kel, though. He’s never careful, and that’s why I’m also worried.” Aubrey crossed her arms and looked at Kel dismissively.

“Hey! It’s not my fault my parents have to be the nosiest people on earth.” Kel whined. Mari chuckled lightly.

“Okay, I’m just making sure,”

"So how did you find us?" Sunny asked.

"Okay, to be honest, I followed you here,"

Sunny looked at her disapprovingly.

"I was just curious! You've been acting so weird lately, I couldn't help myself!" she laughed. Sunny curled back up into his little ball.

“Also, Kel, you said “Hero” earlier. Do you know him?” Mari asked.

“Huh? Oh yeah, he’s my brother. He’s really cool most of the time, but he’s usually so busy with his studies and doing whatever, I don’t know, I don’t really pay attention these days.” Kel threw himself back onto the grass again and sighed. That made him think. His parents were probably busy coddling over Hero again…That’s what made it so easy for him to slip out and hang out with everyone else, they hardly paid any attention. At least they were finally starting to take notice, he supposed.

“Wait, Mari, you know Hero?” Aubrey asked.

“Yes. I trust you all are good with keeping secrets?” Mari giggled sweetly. “Well, we’ve actually been seeing each other quite frequently. Like all of you with my brother.” 

Everyone gaped at her. Basil felt like he was going to pass out again. Not only was he surrounded by not one, but two vampires, but now Kel’s older brother was going to become a victim of this- seductress!

“Mari-?” Sunny was stumped. His own sister was in touch with a human, too? Not only that, but his friend’s brother . He wouldn’t be surprised if he found out Basil was a mermaid.

Kel gawked at Mari. “So you’re the reason Hero’s acting so weird?”

“Excuse me?” Mari tilted her head. 

“Well, sometimes I just find him smiling stupidly at nothing. I’ll walk into the kitchen in the morning and there he is, frying bacon and smiling so wide you’d think his jaw was about to break. Or he’d be just muttering some nonsense about this girl, who was you this whole time!” cried Kel.

Mari burst into laughter.

“Oh my, I really didn’t think I’d have that much of an effect on him, hehe!” Mari started laughing again. 

Basil found himself feeling increasingly overwhelmed. He just couldn’t stand whenever they opened their mouths, revealing two pointy, murderous fangs, their cold, dead hands, their sickly pale complexion- he couldn’t bear it.

“I-I need to go now. P-Polly is probably expecting me home now.” Basil sat up quickly and began to make his way out of the clearing, his friend’s voices echoing behind him. He tripped on a log on the way out, his knee becoming roughed up. Even so, he didn’t stop. He just didn’t feel safe with Mari and Sunny there.

“Basil, wait-“ Aubrey said, but Basil was too quick, and his figure was soon lost in the darkness.

“Man, what is his deal these days? It’s been months now, and he still can’t stand to even be with Sunny alone.” Kel said.

Sunny hugged his knees. “Well, I hope he’ll be okay walking home by himself. It’s pitch black outside now.” 

—

Once Basil was out of the woods and could finally see the moon’s luminescence, he began sprinting. The town lights were just ahead, He just needed to run as fast as he could back home to Polly, and be back in his safe, cozy, warm bed-

He would’ve been doing exactly that, if he hadn’t heard a low, agonizing groan resound from just around the corner.

Basil was struck frozen with fear as the groans became louder. Why won’t his legs move? He needs to move! He needed to just get the heck out of here- go home- just forget he ever heard anything at all-

Basil could feel his heart pound against his ribs. Sweat began to accumulate on his forehead. His head turned ever so slightly behind him.

There, by the long, skinny cypress trees that grew around Sunny’s house- the silhouettes of two men stood there, one on the brink of falling backwards and moaning miserably, and the other- gnawing at his neck?

Basil felt a haunting fear welling up inside him, sweat now rolling down his forehead despite the evening chill. He stood there like a statue, too afraid to even move a muscle, watching as the man’s wails slowly dwindle into tortuous wheezes. Eventually, the man dropped limp face-first onto the ground. 

The other “man” wiped his face with his sleeve. Basil was positive he heard whatever this- creature was, snarl for a moment. Basil squinted his eyes to get a better look. That man couldn’t be Sunny, he was too tall.

For the first time in his life, Basil was grateful for the night’s darkness. If it was just a little bit lighter out, God knows what would’ve happened if the man was able to spot him.

The man hauled the limp body onto his shoulder, made a sharp turn and went swiftly into Sunny’s house, locking the door shut quite loudly. Basil dropped to the ground, fiercely gasping for air as if he had just run five miles. 

Basil heard the banter between Kel and Aubrey sound from just up ahead. He whimpered, standing back up, racing back into the town. 

He knew it. Sunny’s family meant trouble. They were never “good” people like Sunny tricked Kel and Aubrey into believing they were. He needed to do something, anything! Get Kel and Aubrey away from those monsters, by any means necessary. 

Mind racing and heart panging, Basil hurried as fast as he could home. He needed to tell Polly everything.

–

The next afternoon, once school ended, Aubrey found herself seated at the dinner table to two very, very displeased parents.

“Aubergine.” her mother started, sounding terribly troubled. Aubrey looked up from her lap.

“Do you know what your friend Basil’s caretaker told me this morning?”

Aubrey felt worry start to swell unpleasantly in her stomach. “No…” 

“She told me,” her mother stopped to take a deep, irritated breath.

“That you have been talking to the Suzuki children.”

Aubrey felt as if a grand piano had been dropped in her stomach. How in the world did they know? Aubrey’s mind was starting to swarm with questions.

“W-what? Why would I ever do that?” Aubrey stammered apprehensively. Her vision was starting to shake, this couldn’t be real.

“ Aubergine. Don’t lie to me.” her mother frowned at her. “ Why have you been talking with those people? They’re monsters, Aubrey. You know that.”

“But-”

“They were trying to deceive you, couldn’t you see?” Aubrey’s father interrupted, taking occasional peeks out of the windows he had just put thicker, darker curtains over. 

“If they were nice to you, it was because they’re hungry. Aubrey, I really expected better from you!” her mother began to yell.

No. It wasn’t true. It couldn’t possibly be, she wouldn’t believe it! Not while she still lives and breathes!

But Aubrey knew when to stop defying her parents. She couldn’t do anything to convince them otherwise.

“I don’t want you ever, ever, and I mean it when I say this, Aubergine. Never, ever, go to that house again . Do you hear me?” her mother demanded.

“Y-yes.” Aubrey felt tears prick her eyes. Was this it? She wasn’t going to see Sunny again?

No. Aubrey promised Sunny she’d stay by his side, she wasn’t about to break that promise. Not now, not ever. Aubrey blinked back her tears.

Aubrey shuffled around to rise from her seat, until her father said, “Aubrey, you’re grounded.'' He took another paranoid peek out the window. “No going anywhere but to school for the rest of the month, you hear me?” 

Aubrey felt like she wanted to cry again. “What?”

“This is for your own good.” and that was it. 

Aubrey hung her head low and retreated to her room.

Each step she took down the cluttered hallway, the more tears fell down her cheek. Furious tears. How could she let this happen? She was so set on keeping their meetings a secret. How did Polly even find out? 

It must have been Kel. Oh, it was definitely Kel. He- probably let something slip or something, he was just careless like that.

Aubrey felt her temper rise considerably. The next time she saw him, she swore she was going to kill him.

She fell onto her bed and screamed into her pillow. 

Just then, Aubrey heard knocks on her window. Aubrey jerked her head up, was it Sunny-?

It was Kel.

How stupid of her, of course it wouldn’t have been Sunny- it’s too- sunny out! Plus, he didn’t even know where she lived, she was so stupid-

Shaking those thoughts away, she finally had the chance to press Kel’s eyeballs in right in front of her face, and she wasn’t going to miss it.

Aubrey furiously unfastened the latch on her window, Kel’s absolutely irksome face right in front of hers.

“Kel. I am going to kill you! How could you let this happen, you dimwit?” she scowled in the most vexed, hushed voice she could manage.

“Wha-what do you mean?!” Kel cried, taken aback by his friend’s sudden violence.

“You know what you did you- you-“ Aubrey grumbled, at a loss for words. How thick could his skull get!?

“Okay, I don’t know why you’re mad at me, but I need you to listen!” Kel cried.

“Apology unaccepted.” she crossed her arms defiantly and turned her head away from him.

“What? No! I’m here to tell you that Basil ratted us out- oof !” Kel leaned forward too much and ended up face-planting right into Aubrey’s room.

Aubrey’s eyes widened. She turned back to Kel. “What did you say?”

“I said, Basil ratted us out! Polly told my parents, and- oh boy were they mad. You should’ve seen them yelling at me- or maybe it’s best you don’t.” Kel lamented. “I even got grounded. For three months, Aubrey. Three!” 

“You’re telling me, Basil was the one who told on us? Basil?” Aubrey felt her blood begin to boil. After everything, how could he? Why would he? She knew that he was always a bit paranoid over the fact Sunny was a vampire, but she never predicted it would go this far. 

Kel nodded sadly.

“How could he?!” Aubrey's lip quivered.

Kel groaned. “Did Polly tell your parents too?”

“Oh yes. I’m grounded for a month now…this sucks.” 

Aubrey dropped onto her bed. “Do you think Sunny’s okay? I really hope not too many people in town know about this, God knows what they would do to him-” Aubrey gloomily remarked. 

Kel huffed. “Y’know what, Aubrey? Let’s get out of here,”

Aubrey looked at him like he had grown an extra head.

“And go where?” 

“You and I both want to know if Sunny’s okay, right? Let’s go and take a walk, see if his house’s been broken into or something!” declared Kel, motioning towards the window.

Aubrey knitted her eyebrows. “Kel, what if we get caught? We’re both grounded!”

“I think we’ll be fine, if we’re quick! Now let’s go, before it gets too late.” 

Aubrey took her dolls and arranged them all on her bed, covering them up with a blanket. Hopefully that looked believable enough. Her parents probably wouldn’t call her to dinner for another hour.

Kel jumped back out the window, Aubrey grabbed her purple scarf from the chair at her desk and followed suit.

—

Hand in hand, Kel and Aubrey strode out of the neighborhood, the setting sun bright and stung their eyes. The streets were deserted, the wind was getting colder each day. Aubrey pulled her scarf over her mouth.

They came to the wayside, Sunny’s manor just up ahead. 

They kept their distance, observing the house. Everything looked exactly as it always did, except for the eerie sense of loneliness that emanated from the manor, as if it had been abandoned. Aubrey and Kel shared one question: What happened last night?

“Kel, let’s check the clearing.” Aubrey said, tugging at his hand. Kel nodded. They both made their way into the woods.

“Hey Aubrey, check this out!” Kel said, holding up a torn piece of paper.

“What is that?” Aubrey peered over Kel’s shoulder as he smoothed out the wrinkles on the paper.

“I just found it lying here.”

Kel read the letter out loud. The handwriting was small and delicate, Aubrey found it almost familiar.

“Please don’t come to see me anymore. People came banging on our doors in the morning threatening to kill us if they saw us talking to humans again.

I’m so sorry. I can’t go outside anymore either.

I don’t think we should ever see each other again for our own safety. 

“Goodbye Aubrey and Kel. Tell Basil I’m sorry for scaring him so much.

P.S Tell Hero that Mari says she’s sorry.”

- Sunny

Kel and Aubrey stared at one another after Kel was done reading. 

Tears began to well up in Kel’s eyes.

“This is really it, isn’t it?”

—

Chapter Text

Sunny awoke with a fright to the horrible sound of someone violently banging against the front door, then a muffled shout, “Open this door right this instant!”

He turned over to his side, the clock at his bedside reading eight o’ clock. 

Amidst his daze, he briefly wondered if it was his father, crawling back to their home after being forced out of the house by his disgruntled mother after one particularly bad fight they had after she had found out he had drunk from and killed a human in his impulsivity. The whole manor shook with their booming voices that night. His reasoning was, “I was sick of all the damned cattle. I needed a taste of something real- isn’t that what us vampires were meant to do? You’re all delusional-” Sunny shook his head. He’d rather not recount last night’s events right now. 

He crept out into the hallway and edged by the stairs, listening.

His mother answered the door, a thick shawl wrapped tightly over her face to shield herself from the morning’s cruel sunlight. A handful of dour men stood at the door, holding pitchforks and sickles. His mother took a startled step back. 

“Ma’am. Let us get straight to the point.” the first man grunted. “Word’s been going ‘round that someone was murdered right in front of your house. It was one of yours, wasn’t it?” He gave her a dirty look. The other men standing behind him gripping their tools tighter.

“T-that was one of ours, yes. My husband. But he’s gone now. I threw him out. What he did was unforgivable- We would never drink from your kind, I promise you!” her words were stammered and laced with fear. The men looked at each other in thought.

“How do we know we can trust you?” One of them spoke. “Yes, your family has been a threat to us ever since you came here. Why should we trust you?” another spat harshly.

Sunny’s mother’s shawl began to slip, revealing her tear-filled eyes. “We are peaceful people, we would never harm anyone in Faraway. Please don’t hurt my family, what my husband did was unlike anything h-he’s ever done-“ she went on, her grip on the door’s handle shaking as well as her voice. “Please, please don’t hurt my family.” 

The men looked at one another once again. The two men loosened their grip on their weapons.

The man in the front looked at her grimly. “Ma’am, I’m giving you one last chance. If we see you associating with any of the townsfolk, consider your time here in this town over.” The man gave her one last dirty look, and led his group out of the garden, leaving Sunny’s poor mother trembling as she shut the door.

—

Sunny watched as Mari ran up to her mother shortly after the men had left.

“Mother, what’s going to happen to us now?” she sounded terrified, rightfully so. Though not as afraid of Sunny, who stayed in his spot by the stairs, curled up in his protective little ball, unable to move an inch. Tears began to stream down his pasty cheeks. Everyone in town surely not only feared his family, but hated them as well. That meant his friends included. He tucked his head in between his legs and continued to weep. He had never felt so vulnerable or alone.

--

Years passed in the blink of an eye. How long has it been since the last time Aubrey had seen any of the Suzukis? Has it been three years since then? Four? Aubrey never bothered to keep track.

She didn’t want to keep track.

She was never going to ever see Sunny or Mari again, she accepted that much. She did her best to forget and move on with her life. It worked for a while, yes. But sometimes, she’d find herself staring out at the lucent moon from her window and wonder about the promises she made all those years ago, and if Sunny was staring at that very same moon right now. She remembered when they would all lie together in that clearing and stargaze, pointing out shapes in the stars while he told her stories. Stories his mother told him to put him to sleep, and of his family. Aubrey found herself missing the way his eyes twinkled when he was passionate about something.

They were never meant to be friends in the first place. It was wrong- because humans and vampires aren’t meant to mix, right? That’s what she’s had drilled into her head ever since she was a child. It was just how things worked. 

She still misses it sometimes. When they were all friends everyone was closer than ever. Aubrey had something to look forward to everyday, and her mind was off her troubles at home. Things used to be so much simpler then.

Nowadays, she spends her time brooding, avoiding home as much as possible, and brooding some more. Her parents were never inherently religious, but she began attending the sermons at church whenever she could. It was one of the few times she felt at peace, where she could feel all her worries drift. Nobody ever judged her here- well, at least not as bad as people did anywhere else. The occasional contemptuous jive, yes, but she could handle it. The church offered her some temporary peace of mind, which Aubrey continuously yearned for.

Her father has long since left Faraway. He eventually got fed up with her mother and just- left, in the middle of the night, without a word. Ever since then, her home life extensively deteriorated- little food, old amenities, she even found herself reluctantly perched on Kim’s doorstep in the evenings, ready to beg her to let her use their bath. As for her mother, she spent all her time idly lying on the sofa indulging in wine and whiskey. She never seemed to do much of anything else, leaving what little money they had left for Aubrey to find to pay for food and necessities. Pathetic, Aubrey begrudgingly thought. Her mother didn’t seem to care at all, prefering to be intoxicated day in and day out, ignoring her responsibilities, favoring to skive in her own filth, seeing the world enveloped in a hazy mist.

Aubrey cradled her beloved pet rabbit Bunbun, staring down at her feet in thought. She really has grown into an angrier person since her father left, hasn’t she? She’s always had a lot of bottled-up feelings from her parents quarreling, but then it all just- came bursting out once her mother started abandoning her own duties. The townsfolk weren’t helping either. She could hear them all gossiping amongst one another about her sorry state, their false pity, the disappointing stares from her teachers. Gone was the naive, bubbly girl she used to be, retiring her signature pink bow for a teal headband. She’s grown to be a more somber and resentful person, more easily irritated than ever. It beat being sullen and gloomy, at the very least. 

There was that, and Kel. She and him haven’t been in touch all that often, Kel having found his own friend group to play softball with, keeping himself busy. She didn’t pay much attention to him. He seemed just fine by himself, just fine…he forgot everything, didn’t he? She wished she could move on as easily as he seemed to do. 

Then there was Basil.

Basil, Basil, Basil.

Aubrey didn’t know what exactly to think about him. He was always so shy and reserved. She saw him even less than she saw Kel. That was fine by her. Somedays, she couldn’t stand him. He- he annoyed her sometimes. His paranoid attitude reminded her endlessly of the day he ran off and ratted them out to her parents- 

Okay. That wasn’t fair, a little voice inside her head resounded. He was just trying to protect his friends, wasn’t he? It wasn’t his fault he was so frightened of vampires, the entire town was. But still, she couldn’t help but feel displeased with him at times. He would jump at any chance he could to antagonize Sunny and his family whenever they were brought up in a conversation at home. It galled her to no end. She so wished he would try to be just a little more open-minded.

In all, Aubrey scarcely saw or talked with any of her old friends anymore. Over the years, she’s managed to form her own friend group shortly after her father left, consisting of her best friend Kim, Vance, Angel, Mikhael and Charlene. Their bunch being feared by elementary schoolchildren and regarded as “big bad bullies”, though they have never caused all that much trouble at all. Aubrey chuckled to herself thinking about the time a couple of little kids pointed at them fearfully shouting, “They’re going to beat us up!” and promptly dashed away like scared rabbits. Well, she did chuckle, until she remembered the scornful look a teacher that one of the kids had run to gave her. A look that plainly said, she’s hopeless. A pitiful soul that had no manners.

Aubrey’s eyes drifted to her window, gazing at the dark, empty streets, trying to rid herself of the thought. Past the fence, she could barely catch a glimpse of the path she used to take to get to Sunny’s manor. She remembered how she used to be scared of the house. It was large, dingy, overgrown and stood so alone as if it was pushed away from the rest of the town for a diabolical reason. But now, she could only feel something tugging at her heart to go back there, risk it all- no matter how hard she’s tried to forget. Seeing the house gives her a rush of memories. Sunny was always such a good listener, she was sure Sunny would gladly listen to her ramble about all her little nothings like this. His ice-cold hands would subconsciously thread through her long hair and listlessly twirl a lock around his finger while she hopelessly blithered. He was gentle like that. 

She still misses him.

–-

Aubrey awoke one Saturday morning to the sound of knocking at the door. The clock at her bedside read eleven o’ clock. Oh. She’s slept in more than she expected.

Aubrey hauled herself up and took a peek out of her window. Standing there and kicking her feet impatiently was Kim. Aubrey quickly got up, brushing through her hair with her fingertips.

Aubrey walked out of her room and into the living room, where she caught sight of her unmoving mother, fast asleep on the sofa. Aubrey paid no mind to her and answered the door, opening it up just a little and peeking her head out to obscure Kim’s view of the entire living room. She never talked about her home life, and didn’t care to.

“Morning, Kim.” Aubrey answered, blinking her eyes at the morning sun in her face.

“Aubrey! You said you’d hang out with us today!- Woah, were you still sleeping?” Kim said, eyeing her mangly hair and disorderly appearance.

Aubrey rubbed the sleepiness off her eyes. “Uhm, yeah. Sorry about that.” Aubrey sheepishly grinned. 

Kim shook her head. “Hurry and get changed, I’ll be waiting at the park!” 

Aubrey nodded and shut the door. 

--

Before Aubrey left the house, she quickly ran back into her room to retrieve her treasured purple scarf. The second the weather started to cool even the slightest bit, she never failed to leave the house without it. Having it with her made her feel a sort of unmatched safety. 

Aubrey had spent the whole day meandering around town with her friends. It was great fun, they played some softball in the park, bargained with the candy shop owner for half-off chocolate truffles, and gossiped about the local happenings. By the end of the day and the sun had begun to set and Vance unfortunately had to be somewhere, Mikhael pitched in the idea for a “test of courage”. 

Aubrey and her friends looked to Mikhael as they were walking along the pastures. “What do you mean?” inquired Aubrey.

“It’ll be awesome! A noble test of courage to see who can brave the unknown, and return in one piece! Or are you…a scaredy-cat?” Mikhael pumped his fist in the air as he gave his ever-showy explanation.

“Sure, Mikhael. But how?” Kim rolled her eyes. 

Mikhael looked at her outrageously. “ I told you to call me The Maverick!” he cried. “ Anyways!” he ran ahead of his friends and pointed past the rows of cypress trees. “There! We’ll go to the dreadful, abominable, absolutely vile Suzuki manor!” he announced in his usual theatrical manner.

Aubrey’s gaze fell upon the manor, nostalgia hitting her at once. She wondered how Sunny would react if she saw her now, after all these years, if he forgot her, if he was even still there…

“Aubrey! Aubrey!” a voice called.

Oh. She got too caught up in her daydreams again.

“Hm? Yeah?” Aubrey answered quickly, averting her eyes off the manor. 

Kim looked at her with scrunched eyebrows. “Hey, you okay?” 

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Aubrey nodded her head. “So…What are we supposed to do at the manor?”

Mikhael laughed. “We sneak inside somehow! Everyone’s saying the place has been abandoned after the vampires that lived there got thrown out of town!” his blond wig began to slip in his extravagant motions. 

“What? They got thrown out? Why?” Angel questioned Mikhael, eyes brimming with fascination. 

“Because some kid saw one of the family drinking from a human! It was real bloody, I tell you. Kshhhh! Kshhhh! Blood! Blood everywhere, his fangs sinking into the pour soul’s skin!” Mikhael narrated his tall tale with unending melodrama, Angel staring up at him with deep interest.

Kim rubbed her sinus. “Mikhael-“ 

“ So I, The Maverick, are going to go in there and do what everybody in this little town has been too afraid to do! Go inside the mansion!” he announced with vigor. Aubrey huffed. She didn’t know how to feel about this. 

“Okay, let’s hurry up and get this over with!” Kim looked around frantically.

“Hmm? Kim, are you scared?” Mikhael joshed, grinning wide. 

“What!? Why would I be scared of some- little mansion?” the slight quiver in her voice said otherwise, Aubrey noted. 

They came up to the foot of the path leading up to the Suzuki manor. Aubrey stared longingly towards the back of the house, where the woods stood. Mikhael took her hand and threw it up into the air. “Let’s do this!”

Aubrey and her friends tread cautiously up the beaten path. Aubrey felt like her stomach was jumping up and down. She remembered this all too well, going up the path at sundown with Kel and Basil. Now here she was, four years later, going up this very same path. It felt so surreal to be back here after years of shoving back her memories of this place. 

Kim unknowingly clung to her sleeve as they crept closer to the entrance. A gust of wind blew by, rattling the dingy windows, still covered completely with those dark curtains. 

All five of them stood in front of the house. Aubrey glanced at Mikhael, whose legs were trembling and his smile was threatening to falter with how his teeth chattered. Aubrey suppressed a giggle. He had to learn not to be so overconfident every second of the day. 

Suddenly, unexpectedly, a figure showed itself from the far left window on the second floor. Mikhael let out a wild shriek.

“Did- did you see that!?” Kim, Angel and Charlene looked around wildly, Kim jumping with fright. “See what?” Kim yawped, the five of them beginning to edge away from the manor. 

And just like that, the figure was gone, like a gust of wind. Aubrey was unmoving the whole time, staring with astonishment at the window. Was that who she thought it was? Did he really see her? Her mind was racing and her heart was pounding. 

“L-let’s get out of here! That could’ve b-been a vampire!” Mikhael cried, gripping Aubrey’s hand once again while he stumbled down the path. While Aubrey was running with the others, she turned her head around expectantly at the window, hoping the figure would emerge again so she could get a closer look. 

He really was still here, wasn’t he?

--

Sunny could hardly stand the isolation.

After his father was deemed a murderer and thrown out, it became unsafe for him to even step foot outside. He’s spent these four years in solitude, often holed up in his room drawing or sleeping. He was always a solemn and melancholic soul, though even more so after being forced to spend his days in isolation. His sister was no better, locking herself at her piano, determined to perfect pieces from Liszt and Rachmaninoff, of all musicians. Sunny wished she would set aside just a little more time off her day to talk to him.

Sunny thought about his father more often than he ever did. Growing up, he saw him as someone stronger than him, more hardy and down-to-earth. Someone he could never be. 

As he grew older he noticed more things about him. His fiercely conflicting opinions of his compared to his mother’s, and how sometimes his anger would rise quick like the tides and his vampiric behaviors more out of control than the rest of his family. He always consumed an excessive amount of blood during dinner, which must have been three or four times as much as his mother. When his parents fought he would catch the words “human” and “blood” quite often. He never paid much mind to this, but now he came to understand things more. His father had always been more of a “vampire” than the rest of them, His vampirism just spiraling that one tumultuous night.

He asked his mother why they couldn’t move away and leave all the painful memories behind. His mother explained that it would be too dangerous to move someplace else, because they couldn’t trust other towns. Faraway was by far the safest and most peaceful place they could manage, despite it all.

At night Mari and his mother would go hunting for food. This time, Sunny always joined them, desperately wanting fresh air and something to busy his turbulent mind with. Some days it served as an outlet to take out his hidden frustrations on. He was upset with his father for causing this all, rendering them unable to do much of anything at the plight of the townsfolk. He was upset that it was so immensely difficult for humans to understand that some of his kind truly meant no harm, though he knew it wasn’t really their fault. 

Aside from feeling exceedingly gloomy and frustrated, he also felt so, so painfully alone. He longed to see his friends again, Aubrey, Kel, Basil. He hasn’t forgotten them, he never will. They’re the ones that occupy his mind the most, they’re the first friends he’s ever had. He misses them so much to the point he thinks he’ll be sick.

He missed Basil. He enjoyed their small talk, no matter how short-lived they were. Basil was constantly afraid of him, afraid that he’ll suddenly snap and start masticating at their necks, so everytime Basil talked to him he felt immensely relieved. Sunny often wished he wasn’t what he was- a monster. Maybe then Basil and him could actually be good friends. He was so sorry.

He missed Kel and his spirited personality. He not only taught him how to play a sport called softball, but he also taught him that no matter how hard it gets, he should always keep his chin up and a smile on his face. He couldn’t stress how difficult that was right now, but thanks to him, there was the tiniest bit of hope Sunny so desperately held onto.

He missed Aubrey, and her loosely curly, wildly unkempt hair that smelled so sweetly like the dewy grass. He had spent so much time just lacing his hands through them, brushing out knots for her with his undesirably forever-cold fingertips. He wondered if that had ever hurt her, but apparently he was gentle enough as he had never recalled her jolting in a trice or ever complaining. That reminded him of music sessions with Mari, when she would frequently note that sometimes he would be too gentle, too careful with his bow, when he never needed to be. He noted as well that the scent of her hair frequently changed from grass to cinnamon, cinnamon to oranges. He didn’t know why he bothered to notice such things, the reason was unknown to him. He wondered how hair could look so pretty even being scarcely combed and neatly kept-

He must have missed her an awful lot to be thinking of something as trivial as her hair for so long, besides the lofty amount of other things he liked about her, things that he would find himself reminiscing about even into the early hours of the morning, when everyone was sound asleep, as he should be right now. Sunny turned over in his bed and let himself dream the day away.

–-

Sunny set down his violin in the corner of his room, shortly after picking it up. He decided he wasn’t in the mood for any practice right now. Sunny tossed himself onto his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He didn’t feel like doing much of…anything, really. He’s felt like that for a while, not feeling like doing anything, idling around his room while his mother and sister were dreadfully preoccupied most of the day. He listened to his clock tick, tock, tick, tock.

Tick…

Tock…

The same routine, over and over again…so painfully mundane…

Tick…

Tock…

That commotion from outside wasn’t part of his mundane routine…

Tick…

Tock…

Sunny sprang up from his bed, fearfully. Why were people being so noisy out there? Sunny heedfully crept up to his curtain, peeking out of it. He saw a group of five people standing outside, they looked around his age…what were they doing here? 

He observed the group, his eyes eventually lingered on one of the girls out of the five people with her. Why did she look so familiar? Sunny furrowed his eyebrows, and in his fit of puzzlement, he pushed away the curtains more than he intended in order to get a better look. The girl caught sight of him, staring at him wondrously. Realizing his mistake, he quickly shut the curtains and fell onto the floor, gasping for breath. He heard the sound of a shrill scream once he retreated from the window. He was seen! That girl…no, it couldn’t be, right? A lot of people have long, dark brown, endearingly messy hair…and have a purple…scarf. 

That purple scarf. A flood of memories suddenly rushed through his mind like a broken dam. That’s right, years ago, he knitted a purple scarf for Aubrey as a gift.

No, no…it couldn’t be, right? 

All of a sudden, Sunny felt an overwhelming urge to run outside to that girl again. The feeling went as soon as it came however, Sunny falling face-first back onto his bed. He remembered that he wasn’t allowed to see anybody. It would put his whole family in danger, he remembered the townsfolk’s warnings. But, it’s been four years since then, maybe, just maybe…?

No. He couldn’t. Not even if he wanted to. 

That girl probably wasn’t even Aubrey, right? He thought, desperately trying to reassure himself. Yes, he missed his friends too much. It was just his imagination playing tricks on him, of course.

Of course…

–-

Aubrey laid restless in her bed that night. Now, that tugging feeling at her heart was stronger than ever. She needed to see him again, she concluded. Excitement coursed through her veins, and her stomach leaped. She was finally going to do it.

Tomorrow night she decided. She’ll find a way. How was she going to do this…? She couldn’t just knock on their front door. There’s no way his family would let her in. Perhaps she could find a way to climb up to his window? That could work. She just had to make sure nobody saw what she was going to do. Her heart panged with ardor, adrenaline driving her motives. She wasn’t going to back out now.

It was outrageous, she knew that. But she needed to see him, she knew he wasn’t going to come out of that house at all if she didn't do something. She wanted everyone to know he wasn’t some kind of monster, even if that was borderline impossible for her alone to do.

She just wanted to talk to him again. The universe could give her that, couldn’t it?

–-

Kel noticed something was off about Aubrey.

He knew very well her usual attitude. Hanging out with her friends with a prideful grin on her face. Walking down the street alone whilst grumbling to herself. Kicking a stray rock down the sidewalk. The usual brooding and appearing tetchy.

Today, however, she walked brightly past the park where he was hanging out with his own friends with an unusual pep in her step, and a thoughtful look on her face. Kel was intrigued. Yesterday she seemed so touchy. Today she looked as if she had won the lottery. 

He saw her quite a few times that day. Walking out of a general store with a large paper bag that looked like it had a-rope? Hanging out of it. Sitting with Charlene by the river bank, giggling amongst each other. Kel wanted to find out what they were talking about, but his friends were dragging him away before he could make out a sentence. And then finally, passing by her on the way home, her hands shaking as she opened the door to her house. 

Kel was utterly baffled. He needed to find out why she was acting so weirdly all of a sudden! He and Aubrey had fallen off these past years, so he had no idea what was going on in her life. He’s always wanted to reconnect with his old friend but just, well, he didn’t know. He was always swept away with the changing world that he had left his old friends behind. He couldn’t help it, he and Aubrey both had new friends, and Basil became quieter than ever. 

Not to mention his brother, Hero. He was away studying in the big city, to be a doctor. He was caught up in his studies more than ever. Ever since the Suzukis were inherently imprisoned in their own home, Hero became distant, toiling away in heaps of thick, heavy books Kel had a headache just looking at. Mari must have really meant a lot to him, to have him hide away from his burdens like this. 

That night, as Kel was dimming the lights for bed, he saw Aubrey leave her house and run out into the street, anxiously taking peeks behind her. Kel squinted his eyes to see better. What on earth was she doing?

Aubrey ran further down the road. Kel needed to know what she was up to. He hastily tip-toed down the steps and grabbed his coat from the coat hanger, nearly knocking it down as he did so. He shuffled himself into it and carefully unlocked the door, slipping outside in no time at all. 

He took a gander down the inky street Aubrey had run down, barely catching a glimpse of her figure retreating into the darkness. He followed quickly and quietly behind her, sticking close to whatever walls or street lamps that were nearby. Kel jumped at the sound of rustling from the bushes behind him, taking a fleeting peek behind him. Kel shrugged his shoulders and continued down the road. It was probably a raccoon. He’s been seeing a lot more of them as of late. 

Kel followed Aubrey way down the road, coming to the wayside. She stopped short of the path that led up to the Suzuki manor, digging for something in her bag, which appeared bulky and heavy. From it she pulled a long rope out of it. Kel suppressed the urge to ask her what in the world was she trying to do, hiding himself behind a small cypress. Aubrey dug something else out of her bag, a sickle, Kel figured. He watched as she tied the sickle to the end of the rope. Uh oh. Was Aubrey doing what he thought she was?

Aubrey ran up to the manor, Kel watching with deep interest. She swung and threw the rope into the air, aiming for the roof. It didn’t make it and slid down the wall, knocking off a windowsill and dropping flat on the ground. Aubrey looked panicked as she went to pick it up. She swung again. And again. And again. Kel was getting stressed out just watching her fail continuously. Someone in the house must have heard that by now.

Once again, Aubrey swung. It dropped to the ground, to Kel’s disappointment and to Aubrey’s quickly rising frustration. She picked it back up and took a deep breath. She thought of the roof, and only the roof. She swung and- no sound of knocking against window sills or dropping to the grass! She’s done it! The sickle firmly gripped against the roof tiles. That should do it.

Kel let out a heavy sigh. Aubrey finally did it. He watched closely as she grabbed a hold of the rope and attempted to climb it. She gripped it tight, and hauled herself up. She slipped a few times, but she was a strong girl, and managed it quite easily, climbing up to a window on the far left. 

She’s really going to do this, huh? Aubrey thought to herself, her heart threatening to jump straight out of her ribcage. She felt dizzy for a second, everything felt so unreal. Well, it was too late to turn back now. She peeked through a crack in the curtains of what she hoped was Sunny’s room. It required her to strain her back quite a bit, but sure enough, a head of black hair caught her eyes. Short and fluffy, just as she remembered it. This was it! Her breathing hitched up and she felt her stomach leap. She knocked on the window. She really hoped this wouldn’t scare him and cause him to run out of the room before he could even see who his visitor was. Would he even recognize her again? Did he even remember her? She’s never thought of this until now. Sweaty-palmed and chest hammering, her anxiety was finally catching up with her in her fits of adrenaline.

–-

Sunny was lying on his bed, lost in thought. Staring up at the ceiling as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. He was imagining himself being able to walk among humans under the warm sun without his skin being so excruciatingly singed through, when he heard a series of rapid knocks at his window. Sunny jerked upwards with fright. His eyes glued to his window, adorned with thick curtains. Was someone coming in to murder him? No, they’d have no reason to knock…

Sunny slowly sat up as the knocks seemed to grow more desperate. Still managing to be airy knocks, mere quick, gentle raps at the window. But Sunny was overly-cautious. Paranoia was no stranger to him. Sunny came closer to the window, the knocks echoing in his ear. He was thinking of bolting out of the room and alerting his mother or sister, until a muffled voice sounded from behind the glass.

“Sunny-? Are you in there?” it was a benevolent voice, feminine, which was akin to someone who was vehement doing her best to sound gentle. Half of Sunny’s worries seemed to melt away at the sound of this voice. He should have been wondering why this voice knew his name, though his brain thought otherwise. It rang in his head, like an alarm clock trying to rouse him awake. It was so familiar, that he felt compelled to see who it was.

He did so. Gently prying away the curtain, he came face-to-face with a disheveled-looking girl, with endearingly-messy, loosely curled dark brown hair, bright eyes, and a purple scarf wrapped around her neck.

Sunny no longer had any doubt in his mind as he marveled at his visitor, looking like a cat that fell into water. Aubrey knew this look very well, a smile creeping onto her face.

“Hi, Sunny. It’s been a while.” she said, her voice muffled by the glass separating the two of them.

Sunny stared at her, plainly awestruck. 

“So, uh, can I come in?” she asked. Aubrey felt afraid for a moment that maybe Sunny didn’t want to see her. Thankfully, those thoughts soon dispersed as Sunny, still looking like a frightened cat, unfastened the latch on his window. Aubrey promptly climbed through it.

Sunny felt as if he could barely breathe. There was his beloved old friend, right in his room. Aubrey. He could hardly believe his own eyes, watching as Aubrey brushed the soot off her dress skirt. She looked around his room for a moment with fascination, and then turned to look at him.

“So…hi.” she said sort of shly, very unalike her usual brash self. But what was she supposed to do about it?

Sunny opened his mouth, seeming to have some trouble trying to speak amidst his shock. 

“...Hi.” 

This was surely not part of Sunny’s incredibly mundane routine at all. Frankly, he didn’t really mind.

--

Chapter Text

Kel panted as he came to the front of the Suzuki manor after stressfully watching Aubrey climb into the window, obscuring her from sight. He rubbed his chilled arms with his hands. He really should have remembered to take a coat, or at least have worn something other than his plain and thin linen blouse. It went completely over his head. He got hot playing softball all day no matter how cold it was anyways.

The weather has dropped considerably over these past few days. The grass had begun to gray and wither, and the cool north winds have begun to pick up, signaling the coming of early winter. Kel’s least favorite season. He could perhaps run a lap or two and play a few games of softball despite the biting chill, yet he knew his friends wouldn’t particularly enjoy the idea. 

Kel puffed into his chilly hands to warm them up as he gazed up the window, which he saw open and close before he could see who was inside. Kel groaned. If Aubrey had truly found Sunny, he really wanted to see him as well. Kicking at the dull grass, he paced back and forth in front of the manor, thinking of some way he could get in.

In the middle of his pondering, he heard rustling from behind him again. Kel whipped his head to the sound, yet again there was nothing. Huh, that raccoon sure is persistent, he thought. Kel shook his head and stared back up at the manor.

His eyes landed on the bulbous vines slithering along the brick walls of the manor. No, that wouldn’t work…would it? Maybe it would…

–-

Sunny stared down at his lap and twiddled his fingers anxiously. 

“So, uhm…” Aubrey tried to start a conversation, which only ended up with her stammering. Could this get any more awkward? Aubrey didn’t think so. She stared down at her threadbaring moccasins. She whipped at her long, deep-cyan dress skirt again. She probably really stood out against all the glum navy blues and grays in Sunny’s room, didn’t she? She wore a faded cerise blouse and a deep purple scarf. Despite her brooding self, she sure wore a lot of popping colors. She hoped Sunny didn’t mind.

“You…kept the scarf,” Sunny said meekly, taking the initiative, peering up at Aubrey with his head still hung low. When he looked at her, his heart beat as if he was afraid, even if he knew she meant him no harm. 

“Oh, yes…” Aubrey looked taken aback for a moment, bashfully loosening the grip the scarf had around her neck. “That’s fine, isn’t it?” she asked.

Sunny nodded diffidently. He now only noticed how well the deep purple complimented her dark hair. Sunny wondered what was with him and thinking about Aubrey’s hair these days. The solitude really must have been getting to him…and he had been an isolated person all his life. He never thought it could get much worse than that, but it did. He began to feel his face warm, averting his gaze from Aubrey back towards the rug below his feet, stitched ornately with dark purple floral. Purple. Purple was everywhere. He stared back at his fingers, slightly red at the tips with cold.

Sunny was often fuddled on this subject. How could he, an essentially undead being, bear all these “petty human feelings” as his father had once described them? He could feel his neck and palms sweat with nervousness, his dead blood would rush to his face and his stomach felt odd. Maybe it was because his kind were reminiscent of humans? Although, he didn’t feel like mulling these thoughts over at the moment. He could save a headache for another day.

“Are…you okay, Sunny?” Aubrey asked, looking at him, a concerned look on her face.

“Huh? Y-yeah,” Sunny replied a little too quickly, a little too loudly for his liking. “Why do you ask?” 

Aubrey thought he looked quite like her pet rabbit when he got startled. Wide-eyed and fervent, on his face and his action. 

“Because you look a bit red. Are you sick? Flu season is right around the corner.” Aubrey walked closer to him, to get a better look at his face. “Did I catch you at a bad time? Should I leave?” Now, Aubrey was kneeling at Sunny’s legs, tilting her head to get a better view of his increasingly florid complexion.

“No!” Sunny said, positively red-faced and hopeless. His words began to sink in, stupefied at his own outburst. What was with him today? “I’m…not sick…” Sunny finished quietly, feeling humiliated.

Aubrey grinned ebulliently at him before she stood back up. Sunny didn’t realize how much he missed that smile, it made his insides feel like a stormy sea. Rocking and pushing his little boat around without rest. What an odd feeling it was, he wasn’t physically sick, but it was tremendously easy for him to think as such. He remembered asking Mari one day after being put under house arrest about the somersaults in his stomach and his sweaty palms whenever he was around Aubrey, the feeling like he was about to be sick and throw up. Mari looked at him sadly with her tired eyes and said, “I’m so sorry little brother.” To this day, Sunny still wonders what there was to be sorry about. 

“Sunny? Sunny?” Aubrey’s voice snapped him out of his reverie. Ah, there he was, getting lost in his thoughts again. He should really work on that. 

“Hm?” he finally answered. 

“Let’s talk. We haven’t spoken in ages, and I’d like to catch up- if that's alright with you, of course.” Aubrey said, taking a seat besides Sunny on his bed, causing him to stiffen up. 

Sunny liked that idea. “S-sure.” He had no idea what he could talk about that Aubrey might find interesting, his life was so incredibly mundane. But he liked listening to Aubrey herself talk, he was looking forward to that.

Unbeknownst to Sunny and Aubrey, the wind outside had ceased its howl, letting the two bask in their conversation undisturbed. Aubrey had found herself maundering the troubles of her life at home on him. She didn’t mean for her plain ramblings of her new friends and her pet rabbit to spiral into this, but it did, the words just flowed out of her mouth like a finally unclogged drain. Sunny listened intently, surprised at the revelation of life now. He had always assumed that she was from a well-off, loving family. If only he knew how to ease her troubles, If only he knew how to talk without making a fool out of himself. 

Afterwards, her throat felt a little more dry, and her heart felt a little less heavy.

Aubrey soon realized all the prattling she had been doing just now. “O-oh. I talk too much. I’m sorry- you didn’t have to listen to all that-” Aubrey panickedly played with the hem of her skirt. She felt internally mortified. She really was a bad friend, unknowingly unloading all her troubles on him like that- right after just seeing him after four years, too. This couldn’t get any more worse-

“It’s okay. Really, Aubrey,” Sunny wasn’t entirely used to saying her name after so long, a slight shake in his voice when he said her name. Aubrey frowned at him. “I don’t even know why I just started saying all of that- the words just flew out of my mouth, I suppose. That must have been horrible to listen to on your end, I’m sorry.” She apologized again, feeling her face grow warm with shame. 

“No, it’s fine, seriously,” Sunny said quietly, placing a hand on her shoulder so lightly that she could hardly feel it, a feather touch. “I…I like listening to you talk.” he added, further shrinking into his seat on the bed, holding his knees tighter. Aubrey blinked at him. Nobody had ever said they liked listening to her talk before. She was so sure that her voice was a nuisance when she rambled to Sunny all those years ago. Well, now that she thought about it, she never recalled Sunny ever looking miffed or uncomfortable when she would talk and talk. It was surely just his boundless patience. There couldn’t be anything else to it.

“Really?” Aubrey inquired of him. Sunny nodded. They sat there in silence for a while, enjoying one another’s presence.

“I wish I could help you somehow.” Sunny said, disturbing the quiet. He was growing used to being around Aubrey, his words seemed to flow more smoothly than before. Aubrey looked at him, a soft smile on her face. “You already are helping, you know that?” 

“How?” Sunny tilted his head. All he’d done so far was milksop away in his house, being deathly afraid of the vindictiveness of the outside world. What could he have possibly done to help?

“Just by listening to me. Talking to someone else really helps, you know.” she turned her gaze to Sunny’s dark velvety curtains. Sunny pondered her words. At least he had that, his affinity for being a good listener. 

They kept their conversation for a good while, reminiscing about their past and their old friends, Sunny even opting to talk about his own family. Aubrey listened to Sunny talk about his absent sister and mother. His mother was keeping busy nearly the whole night out hunting or meandering, returning near the brink of daylight, sleeping, and repeating her nightly routine. Sunny thought she might just be looking for an excuse to be out of the house. Mari locked herself in front of her piano, hanging onto the only form of engrossment she had in her similarly mundane life. Aubrey felt sadness rise in her chest. A life like that sounded absolutely miserable to Aubrey, being confined in your house your whole life and not being able to ever see the sun. She observed Sunny’s ever so pale-as-the-moon skin and frowned. Not only that, but being at the risk of an entire town burning your house down if you so much was seen outside. Aubrey felt a familiar anger begin to bubble and boil. If only she hadn’t brought Basil along-

She stopped herself from those thoughts. Basil really meant no harm. He had, in the pure goodness of his heart, tried to do the right thing. She had no right to be mad, but- it was difficult. So difficult given how depressed Sunny seemed, possibly even more so after the incident. Basil was just scared. He was only scared…Aubrey took a deep breath. In, out. In, out. She remembered Sunny was sitting right next to her. The anger began to disperse. That’s when Aubrey realized how much it takes out of you to be benign and kind. It wasn’t in her nature, being her all-too forward and brazen self. This was her chance to redeem herself, show that she could be able to care for someone as well as Sunny was able to make her feel better all the time.

Aubrey felt that same feather touch on her shoulder. So airy was the touch that one might mistake him for a ghost. He was quite like a ghost in some ways, now that she thought about it. He was quiet, light, graceful in his words and action; if you weren’t paying attention it was easy to forget he was even there until he tapped your shoulder or opened his mouth to speak.

“Hm?” Aubrey voiced.

“What's wrong?” A plain, simple question. It would’ve been plain if not for how solemn and sincere his words were. "You went quiet."

“I’m fine. Just spaced out a little, that’s all.” Aubrey gave a small chuckle, feeling a little more chipper all of a sudden.

They sat awkwardly again, silent and fingers twitching.

“So…I’m sorry if this isn’t a good question, but…” Aubrey started, her voice low. “How’s it like being, you know, immortal and stuff?” she turned her head away from Sunny’s gaze. Why did she ask that question, anyways? 

“Oh. Well…” Sunny replied, his voice barely above a whisper. “It’s…I don’t know. It’s sort of…tragic. Immortality. I’m lucky enough to have a family to live with, but it’s sad. You’ll grow older, and I’ll stop aging at twenty. Kel, Basil, everyone will eventually grow o-older,” his voice was shaky, tears began to prick at his eyes. Oh no. “But I’ll still be here, and I can’t do anything about it.”

“Sunny, Sunny, don’t say that…I…” Aubrey’s voice died away, not knowing how exactly to reassure him. Yes, she and everyone else in the town will eventually grow older, and die, while Sunny has to bear the burden of seeing it all. Aubrey felt a pit in her stomach form.

“That’s going to be a long, long time from now, Sunny. Let’s just enjoy it while we can, okay?” she said. She didn’t want to sugarcoat it. She didn’t know how to sugarcoat it. She put a firm, reassuring hand on his shoulder. She didn’t want to end their meeting on a depressing note. 

Sunny curled back up, hugging his knees, hiding his face from Aubrey. Aubrey rubbed circles along his back, desperate to cheer him up. She really did feel awful for the boy, but she felt as though she couldn’t help him. She was always so rough and so brash. How could she?

Harpsichord music began to fill Aubrey’s ears in the silence, muffled and soft from the walls of Sunny’s room. If she closed her eyes, she could imagine herself in some vivacious ballroom. It was almost enchanting. Elegant and almost haunting, fitting for the inhabitants of the house. Was it a waltz? Aubrey was pretty sure it was a waltz. Suddenly, she had an idea. She felt her stomach leap. 

“...Sunny?” Aubrey said gently. Sunny looked up at her with his still sad, misty-eyes. 

“I know what will cheer you up. Your mother isn’t home, right?”

Sunny nodded at her, a confused look on his face.

“Does this house have some sort of, erm, dance-hall? Event room?” she asked, turning her gaze to her lap. She was actually going through with this.

Sunny stared at her for a moment, before replying. “Yes, but it’s-” 

“Great!” Aubrey immediately stood up, taking Sunny’s hand in her own. It felt familiarly frosty. She wondered if Sunny enjoyed the warmth from her own hands.

“Come with me, I know what will cheer you up.” Sunny stumbled as Aubrey led him off his bed, and out of the door, Aubrey creeping slowly out of the doorway.

“Wh-what-” Sunny started, but was soon silenced by Aubrey holding a finger to his mouth. Sunny gulped as Aubrey turned around and tip-toed out of his room, holding his hand. The source of the music seemed to be coming from right across the hallway, Aubrey noticed. She hoped they could still be able to hear the music from the event hall. She led him down the stairs, promptly stopping at the last step.

“Uhm, Sunny?” she whispered. “Where is the event hall, anyways?” she grinned awkwardly. That’s what she got for always rushing into things, she supposed. 

“At the end of the hallway near the kitchen, but-” 

“Okay, thanks.” She pulled him forward. 

--

Aubrey spotted the kitchen, then the archway that supposedly led out to the hallway Sunny had told her about. She went forward, her shoes echoing against the dark wood floors, careful not to knock down a gold-adorned decorative vase she passed by. She now only realized how- extravagant Sunny’s home was. She knew it would be pretty just from the outside, but still she was impressed. She was almost jealous. They had intricate frames of people and paintings she couldn’t recognize hung on every wall, tasseled dark, navy curtains on every window, and decorative china plates and porcelain ornamented end tables and mantles. Aubrey tried not to stop and stare. She had to get to this event hall before the music stopped. Luckily, she could still hear faint echoes of the harpsichord through the ceiling. 

The hallway had tall, frosty windows, faint moonlight bleeding through the thick curtains that adorned them. The gentle tune from the harpsichord slowed as Sunny pointed to the end of the hall, Aubrey tugging at Sunny’s hand to follow her into the hall. 

The event hall was barren and dusty, but was charming to Aubrey. There were white sheets covering the discarded tables and seating, tall, slender windows on the eastern wall let pale moonlight stream into the dark room. It was mostly empty, but perfect for moving around in. The harpsichord resounded, more loudly this time as the song began to reach its median. Aubrey let go of Sunny’s hand and spun around to face him. 

The pale moonlight shined onto Aubrey’s face as she offered her his hand. Sunny looked like he had stars in his eyes. It was so pretty, so familiar. Sunny looked down at her hand, then up at her, confused. 

“What?”

“Come on, Sunny, let’s dance!” Aubrey laughed airily and took hold of his hand, leasing him towards the middle of the hall. She led him in small circles, swaying a little, unsure of what exactly she wanted to do. She didn’t know how to dance, and was unsure if Sunny knew how to either. It was hard to make out the features of his face in the dark, but the moonlight illuminated his face for a split second, and he looked like the most bewildered person on earth. Aubrey chuckled. 

“A-Aubrey, I can’t dance.” Sunny said, being led in circles by Aubrey’s hand. “It’s okay, just go with me.” Aubrey did a little spin. This was her ballroom now.

His sister’s music grew louder and more fierce. She’s really been practicing hard, hasn’t she? He was impressed. Unfortunately, he had no time to think of how impressed he was as Aubrey held his left hand upwards and laid her other arm over his shoulder and swept him away in her makeshift attempt at a waltz. Two steps to the left, two to the right, and she repeated. Sunny’s heart threatened to jump right out of his chest. He wasn’t used to dancing, and especially not with Aubrey. He had danced waltzes a long time ago, with his sister in this very room while his mother played the piano. Clumsy movements and stepping on shoes. That was years and years ago. He never expected to ever dance in this hall again. 

Sunny slowly and shyly enclosed his right arm around Aubrey’s waist. She jumped a little, but she seemed to be happy with it, taking more energetic steps. So dance they did, unbeknownst to Mari as she devotedly recited her music. They moved in broken circles around the event hall. For a moment, nothing seemed to matter. At all. Sunny even forgot his own vampirism in the small joy he felt forming in his chest, fueling his moves. 

The song moved towards its finish. They moved slower and more tenderly, Attempting box steps back and forth. Aubrey ended up stepping on his shoes, Sunny moved the wrong way. It was awkward and a very poor performance, but they found themselves laughing as Sunny tripped over Aubrey’s skirt. Aubrey helped him back up with bouts of giggles. All their worries seemed to melt away, and Sunny felt as though he had forgotten all his shyness. He was happy, happier than he had ever been in those four years of solitude. 

As the music was reaching its final notes, Aubrey edged away and Sunny raised his arm, Aubrey attempting a spin. She spun, slightly lambering, but she spun. 

“ Aubrey?” 

Aubrey’s train of thought was rudely interrupted, stumbling and falling over, her shoe getting caught by the hem of her dress skirt, dragging Sunny down with her. 

Aubrey groaned, rubbing her backside. She propped herself up with her arm and looked up in the direction of the voice that had called her name. 

“ Kel? ” she yelled. “ What the hell are you doing here?” 

There Kel stood, holding a candle, illuminating his unruly hair and slight grime dusting his face.

Kel rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Oh, y’know, just climbed some vines and climbed through that window. By the way, you guys left it unlocked.” Aubrey was fuming.

“So, how are ya, Aubrey?” Kel said. His eyes landed on the short figure brushing off his vest behind Aubrey. “Oh, hey Sunny! Long time no see!” Kel went over to him, grabbed his hand and shook it. “Hope you don’t mind me borrowing your candle, heh.” Sunny solely looked up at him like a frightened cat. He looked at him up and down. Either he had shrunk these past years, or Kel had really grown that tall.

“ Kel! Would you stop it? Look, you’re scaring him!” Aubrey furiously mumbled into his ear. “Aw, come on Aubrey, he’s not a baby.” Aubrey opened her mouth to argue, but all that came out was a few splutters.

“It’s okay, Aubrey…I’m fine.” Sunny reassured her, after taking a deep breath. He gave her a small smile. Aubrey felt her breath catch in her throat. 

“There was music playing when I came in. Real pretty, wasn’t it?” Kel remarked, stretching his arms. “Of course you guys know. I saw you dancing to it.” He said reposefully, as if the girl standing beside him didn’t have smoke threaten to blow out of her ears.

“You were watching us?” Aubrey cried.

“I saw you guys do a few circles, and then you do that horrible spin.” Kel laughed. Aubrey inched forward and dug her fist into his head, red-faced and puffing. Not quite out of embarrassment for her clumsy spin, but because he wasn’t supposed to see them dancing! Nobody was!

Kel groaned and rubbed his head in pain.“Come on, we haven’t seen each other in so long and this is how you treat me?” Kel moaned. Aubrey huffed and crossed her arms.

In the middle of it all, Sunny let out a light laugh. Silent. It was there for a second, and then it was gone. Not loud enough for Aubrey or Kel to hear.

They had a long, pleasant conversation afterwards, right there, in the middle of the event hall. Kel talked of his friends, how the town was doing, and even about Basil, where Sunny learned that he had become distant than ever, confiding in his garden and tending to his sick grandmother day and night. Kel even noted how much he would see Aubrey staring at his house, which earned an ear pull from Aubrey. Sunny grinned. 

Some things really don’t change, do they?

–-

Movement disturbed the withering bushes that lay outside of the Suzuki manor. Scuttling hands, the sound of fabric brushing against the leaves, murmuring voices. A handful of figures hid behind the bushes, all stretching their necks to get a view behind the cracks of the curtains.

These people had come here after a neighbor had spotted two teenagers run out of their houses in the middle of the night towards the Suzuki manor. He grabbed his pitchfork and told the boy’s parents, who went with him. They stayed close behind him. They moved silently in the dark, hiding among foliage for fear of being spotted by the Suzukis. They watched with overwhelming anxiety as they came up to the Suzuki manor and watched the girl climb a rope straight into one of their windows. The man ran ahead, but the other man with the pitchfork had urged him not to, to avoid drawing any attention to themselves. They hadn’t heard any screams or saw any disturbed silhouettes through the curtains yet, at least. 

They moved forward and watched as the boy paced in front of the mansion. The boy’s parents were practically writhing with fear and nervousness as the boy gripped onto the thick ivy and began to haul himself up the walls. The mother was on the brink of passing out.

They subsisted, and rambled all along the house, peeking through windows. They settled behind some bushes behind the house, tired and cold. The clouds that had gathered above the sky had begun to shower with quiet, gentle snowfall.

“Why don’t we just break in the house?” the boy’s father cried, distress in his rough voice. “God knows what they are doing to our children. Let’s just go in there and get them back, why don’t we?” 

‘But why have the children gone eagerly into this house? I’ve heard no screaming yet, or seen any broken windows. Aren’t you curious to know?” the neighbor told him, holding him back with his arm. 

“I-It must be witchcraft! Sorcery! They lured our children in there with black magic!” The anguished woman despaired, her bun had loosened and was untidy, her feet stung with the early winter chill, and her face was wrinkled and weary. 

Her husband held her shaking figure. She began to sob. 

“Please don’t fret ma’am-” the neighbor said, lolling his head over the windows. “ Good heavens, look! ” he gasped. The boy’s mother and father looked in the direction their neighbor was pointing towards, peeking through a crack in the drapery.

There the parents saw their son, shaking hands with an unfamiliar boy with stark, black hair. The mother put a hand to her mouth to stifle a gasp. The father knitted his eyebrows. “What on earth is he doing?”

They watched for a while, never seeing the dark-haired boy’s face, his back facing towards the window. The three children all sat on the floors and appeared to be enjoying a conversation. Still they watched, with great confusion, until the black-haired boy stood up, and they saw his face. He opened his mouth. There they saw two, gleaming fangs, shiny and standing out against the candle that had been lit from inside of the manor. The mother shrieked, then quickly covered her mouth, falling backwards and crawled away from the bush. “ V-Vampire! Vampire!” she shouted, wide-eyed and trembling. The father clenched his fist. The pitchfork-armed man shuddered. He had never seen a vampire up close before. Then he said, “Shush! We can’t let them hear us.” The distraught woman still continued to whimper.

Soon, they heard commotion from the front of the house. Clamoring voices, one of them being recognized as the mother’s son. She stumbled away, to the front of the house, Her husband and neighbor, trailing after her. They spotted their son and his old friend Aubrey with him. 

Kel and Aubrey heard the sound of rushing footsteps behind them. They turned around, shocked to see Kel’s mother and father, and the neighbor, armed with a pitchfork with them. 

Aubrey felt a drum of unease in her chest. Kel felt himself begin to sweat, even through the cold chill and the gentle onset of falling snow. The two felt again the same fears from all those nights ago rise as a disquiet lump in their throats.

Neither wanted to accept it, but all good times always come to an end.

–

Chapter Text

Aubrey couldn’t sleep at all that night. Well into the early morning sun, she tossed and turned, her head feeling too full and burdened to get a good night’s sleep. The dogs outside howled. Aubrey whined, her eyes springing open. She felt as though she were about to have a headache, her stomach tossing and turning along with her throughout the night. 

Last night, they were seated in the dark event hall, indulging in conversation. Their conversation was light and humorous, merely talking about life back in town and what everyone had been up to these last four years, until it took an unfortunately fortuitous turn. It must have been really late, close to midnight. As they were talking, Aubrey noticed Sunny’s breath became increasingly labored, and he seemed to start having trouble keeping up with their conversation. He rocked himself back and forth as if he was deeply worried. Aubrey asked him what was wrong.

“Y-You and Kel need to leave.” Was all he said.

Aubrey puckered her eyebrows. “Sunny, what?” 

“J-Just go. Please.” His words were raspy and desperate. Aubrey inched closer to him, setting a hand on his shoulder. “Sunny-“ The second she did, however, he flinched and retreated further away, as if her touch was like hot coals. He cowered, pulling his knees to his chest.

“Sunny, you okay?” Kel frowned.

Aubrey felt her heart drop when Sunny flinched at her touch. “Did we do anything wrong? Sunny, talk to me.” 

“I’m-I’m sorry, Aubrey- you have to go. Now,” Sunny hid his face in his knees, visibly trembling. Aubrey’s heart ached oh so painfully. He looked to be in pain- like he was holding himself from suddenly lashing out, or something. 

Aubrey moved closer to him. “Please tell me what’s wrong.” her eyes were hazy and full of concern. Sunny peeked his head up from his protective shell of a position, gazing into her eyes fearfully. 

“Mother. She-“ Sunny paused abruptly, sucking in air. “I need to drink something. It’s late and mother isn’t home yet.” he choked, tucking his head back between his knees. He breathed heavily, mouth wide and showing his fangs. Aubrey saw them, and her memory jogged. She had forgotten Sunny was ever a vampire at all. Aubrey retracted her hand from the shaking boy. 

Aubrey and Kel exchanged troubled looks.

“I don’t want to h-hurt you,” tears were beginning to pool in his eyes. “Leave, please- before I-” he clasped his eyes tight shut. “I’m not human. I don’t- want to do something I’ll regret.” he shuffled himself further from his two friends, everything was becoming blurry. His stomach ached, and something in the back of his mind was constantly prodding him. You’re hungry. You’re hungry. 

Vampires can’t control their hunger as well as humans. When hungry, their minds slowly revert back to their primal state, akin to their freshly-risen corpse ancestors, the only thing on their minds then being solely to survive through any means possible. They fed off blood, because their bodies were cold and lifeless. Subpar human food just couldn’t cut it. 

Kel lowered his gaze. “Aubrey, let’s listen to him. We should go now.” he grabbed Aubrey’s hand, attempting to pull her away. Aubrey stubbornly held her ground.

“Aubrey!” 

“But-“

Sunny grinded his teeth. “Go.”

Aubrey finally let Kel pull her away.

—

The way to the door was silent, the only noise being the clicking of their shoe’s heels against wood and linoleum. They heard a door click and shut near the kitchen, which Aubrey recognized as a side door that led outside. That must’ve been Sunny’s mother. Aubrey urged Kel on further. He tip-toed upstairs, Aubrey following close behind him, hands on his back. 

Once they reached the top, they sprinted silently down the hall and into Sunny’s room. The door was left slightly ajar and light from his bedside lamp streamed out onto the hallway. 

They entered, and Kel threw himself onto Sunny’s bed, sinking into it. “Woah, that was close.” he wiped the accumulating sweat on his forehead off, then promptly re-tying his tousled half-up ponytail. 

“So...how are we going to get out of here?” Kel said, out of breath.

Aubrey picked up the rope and hook she had brought here earlier that night, which lay forgotten near the window. “We can use this.”

She pushed aside the curtains and unfastened the window latch. The cold, early winter air chilled her face. She tied the rope around the hook, gripping it tight, staring at her handiwork. She threw the rope down and stuck the hook to a jut in the windowsill. It stayed put, and Aubrey was satisfied. 

Kel looked at the hook. “Are you sure this is going to stay?” 

Aubrey exhaled. “It’ll have to do.” 

Aubrey forthwith heard a clamor of voices and footsteps going past the corridor. “Hurry up Kel, we gotta go!” she heaved herself up onto the windowsill, taking a gulp as she stared down at the dark grass below, blanching at the cold wind that swept past the manor. She held her breath, hands gripping the windowsill, and swung herself out of the window, gasping as she fell downwards, her hands red and aching as she gripped the jut. Kel ran over and peered his head downwards, making sure she was still in one piece. 

Aubrey grabbed onto the rope and began her descent downwards, doing her best not to imagine what it would hurt like if she fell from this height. Her face was cold and red. Her scarf was barely wrapped around her neck, nearly slipping off. Once she was halfway down, She saw Kel follow after her. She felt the rope swing, and her stomach swung with it. She prayed the hook would stay with Kel’s extra weight. 

Finally, they were out of the house. The rope was close to giving up right then and there. Soon it did, and Kel yelped as he fell into the bushes, tumbling backwards before he could scarcely scratch his leg. Aubrey hastily gathered the rope and hook and helped Kel up. He groaned, hunched over and clutching his leg.

“Are you alright?” Aubrey asked, breathlessly. She huffed and puffed as they both staggered onwards. “I’m fine.” Kel answered. “Yikes, that hurt.”

They had regained some of their energy, and were close to the main road. Until they heard quickly approaching footsteps behind them. Aubrey turned around, eyes widening as she saw Kel’s parents and a neighbor catching up behind them. She could hear Kel groan under his breath. 

The unruly-looking woman, although weary, immediately ran up to Kel and took him in her arms, squeezing the lights out of him. “Oh my god, my baby, my baby…” she cried. “A-Are you alright? You’re not hurt?” 

“N-No, I’m okay, ma!” Kel tried to squirm his way out of his mother’s unyielding grasp. His mother set her hands on his shoulders and gasped. “My god! Your leg!” She kneels down. “It’s bleeding!” she fussed, one hand on her mouth and the other brushing a handkerchief she had pulled from her dress pocket lightly over the bleeding cut on his left leg. “Mom, it’s fine…” 

The man behind Kel and his mother, his father, looked disgruntled and peevish. “Kel, what on earth were you thinking? Why would you ever think about going in that godforsaken house?” he grunted, fuming. 

His mother had finally let Kel go. Kel stumbled forward. “I- well-“ He sucked in a deep breath. “T-Those people don’t want to hurt us! I swear- they’re r-really nice, and-“

“Enough.” his father silenced him, voice harsh and vexed. “We’ll talk at home. And you, young lady,” 

Aubrey flinched. “Tomorrow, I want you to come over. We need to talk.” 

She swallowed thickly. “Why?”

“I want to know what sort of ideas you’re putting into my son’s head.” He demanded.

Aubrey opened her mouth to argue, but quickly knew it was no use, as his father urged Kel forward and started walking down the main road with the others. Aubrey had remembered how cold she felt. The wind chilled her through her clothes, so she quickly caught up with the others. Aubrey briefly turned her head back at the manor, now well-lit. She felt a pit in her stomach. Would they be safe, now that some people have found out that she and Kel had been seeing Sunny? She didn’t feel like mulling it over. She buried her face in her scarf and dredged behind Kel and the others. 

—

In the morning, Aubrey had done what she was told, and went over to Kel’s house, just down the street. She was greeted warmly by Kel’s mother, who seemed to be back to her cheery self. Gone was the mussed hair and tired eyes, all was well for the time. She was fussed over with, as usual, given slippers and sat down at the sofa, where she was offered a mug of tea and leftover chicken. She turned down the chicken, but accepted the tea. She took in the tea’s lemony scent. It was a little nostalgic, Aubrey thought. Ever since she was a kid, she liked the attention Kel’s parents gave her, treating her as if she were a daughter of their own. Though she supposed that’s how they treated all their guests, she still thought fondly of it. 

Aubrey sunk into the sofa, the tea warming her cold hands. The house smelled like rosewater and freshly baked bread. Distracted by the sweetly-tasting tea and mollifying atmosphere of the house, she would have entirely forgotten what she had come here for if Kel and his father hadn’t announced their presence with the sound of their footsteps trotting downstairs. She immediately sat upright, gulping down the last of her tea. 

“Hey, Aubrey!” Kel greeted, splaying down next to her. Aubrey set down the empty mug on the coffee table. “Hi Kel. How’s your leg?” 

“Hm? Oh, better than ever! It doesn’t hurt at all!” he swung his leg up, which was bandaged, up and down to prove his ferocity. Aubrey chuckled airily. 

Aubrey watched Kel’s father sit down on the armchair to the right of the sofa. “Hello, Aubrey, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Y-Yeah. It’s good to be back.” Aubrey said, already feeling nervous. Kel’s father scratched the back of his neck. “I’m sorry to have called you on such short notice, you must be busy. But I wanted to talk.”

“Oh, no, it’s fine…” She listened to Kel’s father clear his throat. 

“You remember what happened at that house, don’t you?” 

Aubrey tensed. She knew what he was talking about. She merely nodded. 

“The man of that house murdered one of our own. God knows what else they’ve done. You know that well.” he said, looking at her sharply. “So I’d like to know why on earth you would ever want to go there? Do you know one of those Suzuki’s?” he questioned, stern and piercing. Aubrey stiffened. How was she going to answer that?

“I- um-“ oh, no, this wasn’t good at all. She was at a complete loss for words. She didn’t know how she felt about lying, she didn’t even know what lies she could tell. She wasn’t good at this kind of thing. She felt herself grow hot and sweaty.

“I-I wish everyone would stop trying to frame that family as bad. I know their father did something bad, but the rest of them did nothing!” Aubrey didn’t know where the courage came from. It all came out in the heat of the moment, she supposed. “They’re really nice. Genuine nice people.” Well, she never met Sunny’s mother, but she figured it was safe to assume she was just as nice as Sunny and Mari. 

Kel’s father looked at her, addled and unsmiling. Aubrey saw the figure of Kel’s mother in her peripheral vision, standing by the doorway with a tray of biscuits. “Aubrey, have you learnt nothing?” Aubrey looked in her direction. She looked back at Aubrey, disproving and concerned. 

“I’m telling you! They’re good people! I’ve known them since I was younger, and if they were truly such awful people as you all think, then surely I would know sooner?” Aubrey had forgotten her nervousness. All she felt now was desperate. Why couldn't anyone understand?

“The cat likes to toy with its prey, Aubrey.” Kel’s father told her, his voice glum and cold. Aubrey had just about enough. “They’re not human, how would you know-“

“Then they’ve toyed with me enough! If they were so vile, they would have killed me already- but they haven’t!” Aubrey bawled. Now, she was standing up, red with frustration and tears threatening to spill out of her eyes. “Aubrey-“ Kel’s mother started, until they were interrupted by the sound of the doorbell. Kel’s mother looked at the door, then back at Aubrey perturbingly, before setting down the tray of biscuits in the kitchen and rushing to the door. 

Aubrey slumped back down into the sofa, out of breath. She glanced at Kel, who looked awfully uncomfortable. She heaved, crossing her arms. She didn’t bother to see what his father’s expression looked like, she was fed up with him. With everyone. No matter how hard she tried, nothing would work. 

She heard voices echo from the corridor. Then a head peeked through the archway, with blond hair and soft, doe-like eyes. 

Basil. 

What a perfect time for him of all people to show up, Aubrey thought begrudgingly. She grunted under her breath, reluctantly relaxing her tense and furious position on the sofa. She didn’t need to make things any more awkward than it was. 

Basil shyly walked into the living room. Aubrey caught his eye, and he seemed to jump a little. “O-Oh. Hi, Aubrey.” he greeted, albeit quite uncomfortably. A lank smile plastered his face. 

“...Hi.” Aubrey greeted, sparing him a mere quick glance. 

“Hey, Basil!” Kel greeted, enthusiastically as ever. Basil nodded at him, and took a seat on an empty armchair. Kel’s mother walked in shortly with that same tray of biscuits and a fresh hot mug of tea. Basil thanked her, blowing at his tea. 

“So what are you doing here?” Aubrey raised an eyebrow. Basil looked up at her from behind his mug. “I usually come here to visit on weekends...you know, it’s nice.” Basil said. His voice was low and hushed as ever, sort of like Sunny, but at the same time unlike him at all. Aubrey hummed him an affirmation. 

The silence, though thankfully brief, was horribly suffocating, Aubrey thought. It was as if they each harbored a terrible secret. A small amount of her tensions have lifted upon noticing that Kel’s father had left the room, but she still didn’t appreciate being interrupted. 

Aubrey felt even more outcast when Kel had broken the ice by striking up a conversation with Basil, and they were soon swept up in their mingling. Then, Aubrey felt she had no reason at all to stay, so she gathered her things and made for the front door, not bothering to say goodbye to Kel or Basil. She bid goodbye to Kel’s mother, at least. She was just about to leave when she heard Basil’s timid voice from behind her.

“Aubrey...” 

Aubrey turned around to look at him.

“K-Kel told me you two went to the Suzuki manor again,” his eyes were darting everywhere, twiddling his fingers anxiously. Aubrey gave him a look that urged him to go on. “I don’t know why you’re doing this, but Aubrey, you d-don’t know what you’re doing. Don’t go there anymore.” he looked up at her, desperation swimming in his wide eyes. 

“I don’t know what I’m doing? Basil, are you serious?” she huffed outrageously, crossing her arms. “What do you know? Mind your own business.”

Basil stammered. He scrunched his face. “I-I really don’t know why you like that vampire boy so much. For all we know, he might be trying to-“

Aubrey’s face contorted drastically into a scowl. Now she was furious. “Do not start this again, you-“ Aubrey shouted at him, before stopping herself before she could cause a scene. “Stay out of this, Basil. You don’t know anything. These are my problems to deal with, not yours.” 

Basil averted his gaze from her glowering. He found himself shrinking down, like he was a mere ant compared to Aubrey. “J-Just know you’re putting us all in danger, if you keep doing what you’re d-doing.” and that was all. Aubrey turned around and closed the door, not wanting to hear anymore of it.

She paused once she was outside, just in front of the doorstep. She kicked the snow that had accumulated overnight from the steps. She sighed deeply, trying to calm her frustration. Now what was she going to do? She thought about what Basil had said. It was true that what she was doing was putting herself and the Suzukis in danger. But she so desperately just wanted to see her friends again. She’s taken too many risks lately. How many more could she take until her luck ran out? Not to mention her ever-rising temper. Now that she’s calmed down quite a bit, the realization of how she was acting dawned on her. She didn’t know how she became like this. She didn’t like it at all. 

She pressed a hand to her forehead, feeling an oncoming headache. Why did everything have to be so complicated?

—

Kim walked anxiously around the block, kicking away snow and biting her nails. She passed the intersection, Aubrey’s figure catching her eyes.

“Aubrey!” she called out, running towards her. Aubrey looked at her, and Kim got a good look at her face. There were dark circles under her eyes, and her face was flushed. “Woah, what happened to you?” Kim asked. “Who did you fight this time?”

“...I didn’t fight anyone,” Aubrey answered. Her voice was brooding and tired. “Just didn’t get good sleep. That’s all.” she waved her hands back and forth. 

Kim raised an eyebrow. “I’ve been looking for you everywhere!” she sighed. “Hey, where were you last night anyways? I heard my parents talking about how they saw you and Kel run off somewhere in the middle of the night.” 

Aubrey subtly groaned. Living in a small town in the middle of nowhere meant that word spread furiously quick. “Are you sure that was me? It could’ve been...anyone.” Unfortunately, her feeble attempt at lying was no good. She knew by the all-knowing look Kim gave her. 

“Come on, Aubrey, you can tell me,” Kim pleaded. “Faraway is so boring. I need to know what sort of super secret stuff you’ve been up to!” 

Aubrey was silent for a moment. “Oh, fine,” she threw her head back. “Let’s talk somewhere else though.” Aubrey shot a dirty look towards Kel’s house, and pushed a bewildered Kim down the street.

Kim had bought Aubrey and herself pork sandwiches from the deli, and decided to sit by some rocks at the bank of the river that flowed nearby Aubrey’s house.

“You’re really bad at lying, you know?” Kim noted, out loud. 

“Yeah, yeah. No need to rub it in.” Aubrey monotonously waved her off. “Just listen.” 

Aubrey proceeded to tell Kim everything, from meeting Sunny when she went to go retrieve Kel’s ball, to Basil seeing Sunny’s father murder somebody and Sunny’s family being forced into further isolation. Kim listened to her with such interest that she had forgotten all about her sandwich. 

“...And, well, last night I went to go see him again. I just had to, you know?” Aubrey said, hands resting on her chin. Her eyes were dreamy and far-off, staring off into the running waters of the bank. Kim looked at her curiously. “That was really risky, Aubrey. Do you really like him that much?” 

Aubrey looked at her outrageously, and said, a little too loud, “What? Isn’t that what a good friend would do?” 

Kim clutched her stomach and burst into a fit of laughter. Aubrey stared at her like she had grown two heads. “What? What’s so funny?” Kim only laughed louder. “ Wow, Aubrey, just, wow. ” 

Aubrey scrunched her face, before shaking her head. “You’re so confusing.”

“So what did you do when you went to see Sunny last night anyways?” Kim questioned. 

Aubrey stared down at her shoes. She was starting to feel a little hot. “Nothing. Just talked a little. Kel came by later and joined us too.” memories of that amateurish dancing started to flood her brain.

Kim looked at her curiously again. “Just talked? Lame. That couldn’t have been all. In those sappy romance books my mom reads, there’s usually a really dramatic reunion, with, like, making out and stuff.” 

Aubrey stared at her blankly. “Kim, what? ” she rubbed her sinus. “Also, you read romance? I never took you for the type to enjoy that kind of stuff.” 

Kim flushed, and shook her head wildly. “Um, what? N-No I don’t. Definitely not. That stuff is so lame!” 

“Uh huh. And I’m a bad liar?” 

“Whatever, we’re even now!” Kim cried. “Now tell me what you actually did at the Suzuki manor!”

“I said we talked,”

“No you didn’t.” 

“Why don’t you believe me?”

“ Because. It’s been four years since you last saw each other. That can’t be the only thing you two did.”

Aubrey remained silent for some time. “Maybe I'll tell you one day.” she muttered. A few moments later, she clasped her hands against her mouth and recoiled from the realization of her mistake. 

Kim’s eyes lit up. “ Aha! So you did do something else!” she began to laugh again. Aubrey groaned into her hands. 

Kim managed to calm down and ease her laughter. “Aubrey, you really are like the protagonist of some crazy romance novel. It’s so unreal that you, of all people, are getting tangled up with the infamous, vampire Suzuki family. Talk about a wild story,”

Aubrey chuckled. “You think so? Well, it’s really not all that exciting...I’m more stressed out than I’d ever been in my whole life.”

Kim smiled and patted her shoulder. “I know you can do it. Maybe one day, you can introduce me to your little vampire boyfriend!”

Aubrey scoffed disbelievingly. “Oh, as if. And he’s not my boyfriend.” 

“Yet.”

“Shut up, Kim.”

The two indulged in a friendly banter for a while. It was nice to talk like this, Aubrey enjoyed it wholly, even despite Kim’s usual joshing.

“Oh, shoot, what time is it? I better get home soon. Thanks for talking with me, I was really anxious all day because I heard you and Kel got into trouble.” Kim stood up and brushed off her shirt, and stretched her arms. “Also- I hope you and Sunny stay safe. Everyone is so skeptical and afraid of the Suzuki’s, I’d hate for there to be any more trouble.” 

Aubrey smiled at her, telling her she didn’t need to worry about anything. 

Kim was gone. Aubrey sighed, her former frustrations and loneliness finally catching up with her. Nothing good ever lasts forever, does it? 

Aubrey heaved herself off the rocks and took a short stroll before going home. Surely that would clear her head.  

—

Aubrey turned the corner and walked back into the busy streets of Faraway, where vendors and shops lined the streets. She could smell roasted mushrooms and rosemary. This wouldn’t do her burdened mind any good. She left the markets, straying off the road and onto a dirt path covered in a thin sheet of snow, where the air was fresh and quiet. Tall oak trees were scattered across the fields, as well as now-barren farmlands and pastures. There were houses here and there, and just ahead, was where the Suzuki manor stood. 

Aubrey walked slowly, leisurely. When was the last time she had just stopped for a moment and dwelled in her presence like this? She was so used to rushing into things. Being as quick as she could, and always impatient. That, or she was brooding miserably by herself and feeling disdainful towards the world. She thought back on her life thus far, and felt her head throb. Maybe the gossipers were right. She really was just a lost cause. 

She was brooding then, she noticed. She raised her head towards the sky, drenched in pink and orange, watching the sparrows fly overhead together to the south, presumably beginning their migration. Aubrey somewhat envied them. She wished she could just grow wings, and hide away from her problems until spring came around.

She came up to the low hillside where the Suzuki Manor stood, and lingered around. She didn’t know why she was lingering around, but the house’s very presence brought her some much-needed peace of mind. She stared at the icy ground and mulled over her problems. She spotted a tall piece of grass poking out of the snow, and thought of Basil, and felt her blood simmer. Her fist clenched, and she pressed a hand to her chest and took deep breaths. If she soiled her peaceful mood, then all of this walking would have been for nothing. She heaved, and stared up at the manor. She felt the incessant urge in her chest to go and try to see him again. That would, without a doubt, ease all her troubles as if it was mere paperweight. The scarf she always wore began to feel tight around her neck.

—

“...What’s wrong?” a tired voice sounded in Sunny's ears, from the doorway. 

Sunny sat upright from his lazed position on his bed. “Nothing.”

“Not going to stare out the window all day?” she crossed her arms and rested herself against the doorframe. 

“What?”

“You’re usually sitting in front of the window half the time. Actually, you’ve always been staring out of a window ever since...Father left.” Mari said all-knowingly, her voice trailing off towards the end. 

“...It’s nothing.” 

“No it’s not.”

Sunny didn’t have the energy to reply, promptly falling back down on his bed. His sister sighed, placing a brass cup down on his desk. 

“Well, if you’re not going to come down for breakfast, you can drink that.” she pointed to the cup, and shut the door gently. Sunny sighed, stretching his neck to look at the cup, then back at the ceiling. 

He pondered on his sister’s words for some time. Even in her melancholic, almost motor-like state, she still managed to be as perceptive as ever. How she knew the things she did, was far beyond Sunny’s understanding. The reason he was so taken with staring out of windows during half of his waking hours, was simply because he liked to. 

That, and he missed his friends way too much. He stared out of a window every few moments, so much so it’s become a habit, hoping someone he knew would be staring back. Wishful thinking, he knew that. But ever since he saw Aubrey out of the window, his hopes have risen just a little higher. 

Thinking about that, he sat up from his bed, and decided to actually make something of his morning. He grabbed the brass cup, which was filled with a dark red substance- blood. Boar blood, or at least squirrel, he hoped. He was getting sick of raccoon blood for a week straight. But he guessed most of them were burrowed away someplace since it’s gotten significantly colder these past few days. His guesses were proved true once he had sat down by his windowsill and stared down, revealing freshly-fallen snow caking the hillside. 

He gulped down the blood in his cup. Raccoon. He was disappointed, but it wasn’t the end of the world. He set down the cup and rested his head against the glass, hiding his face behind the dark curtains. 

The coldness of the glass against his face reminded him of last night. Aubrey, swooping in like a knight in shining armour, then being forced to leave because of his own self. He was ashamed, humiliated, wondering how he could have let their goodbye be so short-lived and blunt. The rest of the night he had spent laying in bed and feeling hopelessly remorseful after almost tackling his mother to the ground when she had come back with a sackful of raccoons. He really needed to work on his own self control. He couldn’t let something like that happen again. 

Just as he felt he was about to shrivel up in his own shame, something outside of the window caught his eye and nearly knocked the winds out of his lungs. Startled, he jolted up and scurried away from the window, all out of pure instinct. He huffed and inched back towards the window, taking a peek at whatever was outside.

There, he saw Aubrey, kicking the snow off the dirt path and pacing back and forth. Why was she back here? Had she come to see him again? Sunny’s stomach leaped, and he knew he needed to apologize for last night. The shy and afraid part of his brain told him to just give up. But another part of him knew he needed to tell her now, who knows when they’ll get to see each other again. It was a bit earlier than usual for him to be outside, but it was dark enough for him. He crept out of his room and sauntered downstairs, like a mouse in the dark. He didn’t bother bringing a coat. The weather was cold, but so was his blood. It couldn’t affect him that much. 

Aubrey jumped, hearing the sound of the front door click open and shut. She was even more surprised that the person standing outside of the door was Sunny. Her heart fell at ease and her eyes lit up for a short moment, until she regained her rationalism, and raised an eyebrow at him. What was he doing out here?! If anyone saw, they would both be in for a lot of trouble. 

“...Sunny?” Aubrey said, her voice loud with surprise. She cleared her throat and looked all around her anxiously. Then she continued, quieter, “What are you doing out here?” 

“I…” Sunny said, all his previous courage suddenly dispersing. He stammered, “Well, I wanted to- to-“ Sunny made his way out of the garden, and closer to Aubrey.  

“I just- I wanted to say-“ 

Aubrey quivered, and she bit her lip. Before Sunny could even finish his sentence, she skipped and hugged him, as tight as she could. This whole time, she had held back from crying and breaking down. But now that Sunny was right in front of her, she felt her pride crumble, and the need for reassurance rose with the tides. She ended up hugging him too hard, as they both fell over, snow now lacing their hair, and Aubrey shivered. “I-I’m sorry.” 

“It’s o-okay.” Sunny said, trying to recover from Aubrey’s bear hug. He tried to stand up, but ended up tripping over himself and falling limp over Aubrey. 

“A-Aubrey?” another voice sounded from down the path. Aubrey’s breath hitched, and she quickly scrambled to her feet, Sunny standing up right after her, both of them disheveled and snow smothering their clothes.

Standing just a few feet down the trodden dirt path was Basil.

He looked absolutely struck with horror as he glanced at both her and her inhuman companion. “Aubrey, w-why are-“

“B-Basil?” Sunny said, his voice ever so quiet and shaking. He looked almost as frightened as Basil did. 

Basil shot his eyes in his direction. “You! W-What are you-“ Basil gulped thickly. “Planning on doing w-with her?” he pointed a trembling finger towards Sunny.

“I’m- I’m not-“ Sunny started.

“ Basil! ” Aubrey shouted, her face red with a mix of anger and embarrassment. “Why don’t you ever leave me alone!? Why are you even here? Go home!” she huffed and puffed, glowering at the trembling boy in front of her. Sunny was startled by her sudden outburst, which earned him a swift, sorry look from Aubrey.

“N-No. Aubrey, y-you can’t-“ Basil stuttered. “He was t-trying to hurt you, wasn’t he?” he said. Sunny scrunched his eyebrows. “What?”

“You were trying to hurt her, w-weren’t you? Why...why did you tackle her to t-the ground like that…?” his voice was frenzied and his knees were close to completely giving up. 

Sunny looked at him, frightened. “I-I wasn’t-“ 

“Yes you were-“

“ Shut. Up.” Aubrey said, narrowing her eyes into slits, stepping in front of Sunny.

Basil stood there, ears full of cotton, his legs feeling like they no longer had any bones to support them. He shook and trembled, until he mustered up the will to suddenly dart away, yelling, “ There’s a v-vampire!” Aubrey felt her blood run cold at his words. “Someone help! Help! Vampire-“

At that, Aubrey grabbed Sunny’s hand and ran up the hill, into the garden, and shoved Sunny and herself through the front door. Thankfully, nobody seemed to be downstairs. 

Aubrey whispered to Sunny. “Let’s just- stay here for a while, okay? It’s not safe out there-“

“I know,” Sunny replied, taking hold of her hand again. “This way, my mother might see you.”

Sunny led her up the stairs, down the corridor, and into his room. He shut the door behind him, and he slid down the door, feeling his heart pound like a drum against his chest. 

Aubrey sat curled up beside him. She didn’t say a word, until maybe a minute had gone by. 

“...I’m sorry.” she said.

“What for?”

“You know what for! I hugged you too hard, and Basil got the wrong idea. Now-“ she groaned into her palms. Her voice was strained. “Now God knows what’s going to happen now. I’m so, so sorry-“ 

“Stop apologizing, Aubrey…” Sunny reassured her. Truthfully, he didn’t feel anything against her at all. If anything, he was the one at fault, just rushing out before the sun had even fully set like that. “We’ll...be safe here, I hope.” 

Aubrey murmured sadly. “Yes”. She hid her face in her knees and hoped for a miracle. Perhaps they’d think Basil was insane, and not think of it at all. On the other hand, somebody might come breaking down the door and searching for her. Then God knows what will happen to Sunny and his family then. This was all her fault. It's her fault. She felt her lip quiver, and tears stung her eyes. She hid her face with her arms and knees, and silently sobbed. Sunny was right beside her, yes, but she just had to hope he wouldn’t think anything of it.

“Aubrey?” Sunny said, quiet and gentle. 

His words fell upon deaf ears.

“Are you okay?” mellow he was, so much so that Aubrey slightly lifted her head, and positioned her head so that her eyes would brush against her sleeves in an attempt to indistinctly wipe her tears.

“I’m fine,” she sniffed. “Don’t worry about me.”

“…You’re bad at lying.” Sunny said, which was an usual thing to come out of Sunny’s mouth. 

“That’s the second time someone said that to me today.” wiping at her eyes, she laughed softly. Not the fake, empty sort of laugh she was accustomed to. It sounded genuine, despite her disheveled state. Like seeing the sun peeking out of a cloudy, storm-ridden sky. Sunny stared at her, worried for a moment, before he laughed along with her, muffled and tender.

“No, really- are you okay?” Sunny asked, one final time.

“Not really. I feel awful.” Aubrey wiped the last of the tears from her eyes. “I feel awful. For everything. For today, and for putting you through all that these past years. If only I hadn’t strung Basil along with us every time, then you wouldn’t be going through what you are right now. I’m sorry.” 

Sunny really had no clue what she kept apologizing for. In his mind, none of this was her fault. Or perhaps it was his own unusual fondness for her speaking for itself. But he knew for certain that Basil ratting his father out was not Aubrey’s fault in the slightest, and perhaps even the best decision at the moment. They might have gotten into more trouble if it wasn’t for that night, at the expense of being isolated tenfold.

“Stop blaming yourself Aubrey, I really don’t mind anything.” Sunny rubbed her back in soft motions. Aubrey shivered, and she felt an immense relief wash over her. She lifted her head from her curled knees and felt she had no reason to cry anymore.

“Okay. Thank you…” Aubrey said, on the brink of melting right then and there. Sunny’s gentle motions on her back seemed to ease all her worry in the blink of an eye. But, sooner than she’d like, he retracted his hand, seeing as she looked better now. 

“So, what now?” Aubrey stretched out her arms and legs, her face flushed (in such a beguiling way, Sunny contemplated), and eyes glossy. Sunny looked down at his lap thoughtfully. “I don’t know.”

Typically, their time in silence would be stiffened with a sort of awkward tension, each other’s throats wanting to say something, anything to elevate the awkwardness, but that awkwardness- manifesting itself like a silent cat in the room- would claw at their tongues, their words being stuck in their throats. This time, however, the silence was eagerly basked in, feeling as if their silence spoke more words than any written language ever could. It was comfortable, and peaceful. Aubrey wondered if they had reached the stage in friendship in which you both feel at ease merely doing nothing together. Or perhaps it was how giddy Aubrey alone had felt in that moment, after Sunny had calmed her down, and she couldn’t help but smile wider. Was that a normal feeling? Why was she even wondering about that? Of course it was.

“Hey...do you know if it’s possible if I could…” Aubrey’s voice faded off as her embarrassment grew, along with the blatant red on her face, which added to her already disheveled appearance. Her bangs stuck to her forehead, her eyes were puffy, laden with tired circles beneath them. “...Stay? Just- Just for the night?” 

Sunny looked almost frightened. Obviously, Aubrey mentally reassured herself, surely nobody had ever asked him if they could sleep over on such a whim before. Especially not in this town. Aubrey felt her embarrassment swell even more. “It’s-It’s okay. I’m sorry, that was uncalled for, I can-“ 

“No, it’s okay! I’m just- surprised.” Sunny told her. “I don’t mind you...staying over...but- why?” 

Aubrey pulled her knees to her chest. “I don’t feel like going home right now,”

“Why?”

“I might run into Kel or Basil, and I don’t feel like seeing either of them, in all honesty. It’s a stupid reason, I know.”

Sunny thought about it. If he lived alone, he would’ve allowed her to stay for as long as she wanted. But he had his mother and sister to consider. What would happen if one of them saw her here? Sunny had no clue how they would react, it was chancy. But this was Aubrey, and Sunny felt he hadn’t any gall to turn her down. 

“Okay, you can stay, but- what if my mother or sister see you?”

“Oh. I completely forgot about that.” Aubrey laughed sheepishly, scrambling to stand up. “Maybe I should just go home after all. I’m sorry for being a bother-“

“No, you don’t have to do that. I think we’ll be okay, they only ever come in here to drag me out for breakfast and dinner, it should be fine. I think.” Sunny said. Aubrey sat back down and nodded.

As the night settled in, Aubrey found herself wrapped in a dark, fluffy blanket Sunny had offered her, she and him talking about pointless little things. Questions about one another’s lives, whether or not winter was better than summer. Seemingly mundane and pointless things, but to Aubrey, they meant the world to her. Deep in the back of her mind, she knew these moments weren’t going to last forever. She knew she couldn’t keep pushing her luck like this, no matter how unfair everything was, and always would be.

"You know, Sunny," Aubrey said, a small smile on her face. Sunny turned to look at her.

"If you...uhm, ever want to visit me, I live in a pathetic little house on the pathetic side of town. I’m the only house in the neighborhood that has a cracked window, I think. I threw my shoe across the room because I forgot to buy bread, and it hit the window. I'm sad, I know." she chuckled airily. Sunny smiled, just a little bit.

Just the slightest bit.

Sunny thought to himself for a moment. "Okay, I'll keep that in mind."

“It’s pretty late now.” Sunny noted, gazing out of the window, where the bright moon could be seen rising over the hilltops. “I should go to breakfast now. I’ll try and bring you back something to eat, if I can find any. You know, we don’t really eat anything you might like,” 

“Yeah, I understand. Don’t worry if you can’t find anything, I can go one night without eating. Trust me.” Aubrey said, waving her hands. Aubrey was no stranger to going to bed on an empty stomach. She could handle something as measly as that, surely. 

Sunny looked at her sadly, before standing up. He went out the door, slightly nodding at her before closing it behind him. Aubrey gave him a smile, and once the door clicked shut, Aubrey sighed and fell backwards onto Sunny’s awfully comfortable, fluffy sheets. She wished she had a bed like this. Hers was old, duffly creaky, and her sheets were thin and pathetic. She had never bothered to get brand new sheets. If she did, she didn’t know if she would even have enough money to feed herself for a few days. She felt her frustrations boil. She hated being pitied. She hated pitying herself. She took a deep intake of breath and tried to relax, staring at the piece of the fluffy blanket Sunny had given her which her right hand gripped. She had no reason to think of such useless things. Sunny had been so kind to her, and the only way Aubrey knew to ever repay him- was to try and be kinder herself. It was awfully difficult. Sunny himself made that easier. But it was still difficult- she was awkward, and prone to bursting at any time with her quickly rising temper. She glanced at the purple scarf, which lay on Sunny’s dresser, and felt her heart swell and her frustrations turn into vapour, and wondered when on earth she had gotten this mushy. Sometimes she hated it, sometimes it felt like the most natural thing in the world. 

Yes, she decided. She was going to be just fine.

—

“Do you want some milk before you sleep? I mixed honey in it,”

“...No thanks.”

“Alright then. Goodnight Basil.” The voice was gentle and soft, which was unfortunately not enough to secrete the worry plaited. 

Basil heard his dear caretakers’ Polly’s footsteps fade away from behind the closed door as he sat rigid at his desk, the dim light from his oil lamp illuminating his hands, which were busy stringing together a sort of linear garlic garland. On his door there hung an old garland, the garlic dark and yellowed with age. His hands were shaky and clumsy. The final product wasn’t as compact and nicely strung as he would like, but it would have to do. Holding it under the light, he was satisfied. He hung it next to the one on his door. 

Basil slumped on his bed. On his nightstand, a framed photograph of himself and his parents caught his eye. Basil was much younger, standing in the middle of the photograph while both of his parents' hands rested on his shoulder. The broad and oblivious smile on his own face unnerved him. Basil turned his head away from the photograph and knocked the frame face-down. Being reminded of his parents still being absent and remissive only frustrated him more. He pressed his palms to his face. He felt that he needed to sleep, but his mind was wide awake, desperately trying to suppress his uneasiness.

Earlier that day, when he had gone running and yelling for help in the face of his friend’s old vampiric acquaintance, a couple of townsfolk had come to his aid. Three adults, who had prodded him to tell them what was wrong in his frightful state. Basil, as frightened as he was, had managed to convey a sloppy explanation of what he had seen. Then, he led them to the front of the Suzuki manor, where Sunny and Aubrey were standing. However, when he’d arrived, there was nobody in sight. Two of the adults frowned upon him and shook their heads. “Do you think it’s funny to go and waste our time like that?” and they had departed, malcontent. However, one of the adults did stay with him at the hillside. Basil recognized him as a good friend of Kel’s parents, their neighbour. 

He had seized Basil by his shoulders, and spoke very grimly. “You’re not pulling our legs, are you?”

Basil, trembling, frantically shook his head back and forth. “N-No! I’m telling the truth!”

The man had let him free and crossed his arms. “Last night, we saw your friend and a girl in this house. So if what you really saw was true, then our suspicions were right. These...people, they have frightened the town for far too long. This needs to end.” he spoke in a manner that was half talking to Basil, and half muttering to himself. Basil nodded in agreement. “Y-Yes. Actually…” Basil muttered, feeling jittery. “...can I tell you something?” 

Basil stood there and told the man of his past encounters with the Suzuki family, four years ago. Detailing how he thought Sunny was trying to cozy up to Aubrey to trick her or something of the sort, and how shockingly sharp and frightening he thought Sunny and his sister Mari’s fangs were. The pallidness of their skin. Their sunken eyes. Everything. The majority of his story was detailing how afraid he felt around them, and how Aubrey and Kel had been pushing him to join their meetups in the forest, in the hopes he would learn that Sunny wasn’t harmful at all.

“But- I don’t think so. My parents...they used to tell me about how they got tricked and hurt by these v-vampires. I don’t...I don’t want my friends being hurt again…” he whimpered, his eyes were nearly bloodshot and he shook, out of fright, not of the cold. 

The man listened to every word raptly, dipping his head and murmuring to himself as Basil had gone on. By the end, the man put a hand to his shoulder, a small, pained smile on his face. “Thank you for telling me this, my boy. Listen to me, don’t come near this house again.” Basil nodded shakily. “In the morning, I’ll talk with the neighbours, and we’ll see that your friends are safe.”

“Thank you...I’m afraid everyday, everyone is always talking about how awful vampires are…” Basil murmured. The man sighed and patted his shoulder. “Well, you don’t need to worry. We can handle this. Now run home, and you should be safe. Again, don’t come up here again, you hear?”

“I won't."

With that, Basil walked on, slowly, home, shivering and his heart pounding as he came to his door. He was unsure how exactly the adults were going to handle this, but whatever it was, he wanted to stay far from it.

—

Chapter Text

An airy breeze tipped the wildflowers and brushed through dark hair, tickling her follicles and breathing joy into her very being. The air smelled like spring, laden with fresh dew and earthy cattail pollen. She sighed as though it had been eons since she last could. Her mind was clear. Her body was languid. Her head rested on rough fabric, a lap, who’s hand held hers loosely, blithe, comfortably. Though her eyes were shut, she knew she was laying in a grassy field in the midst of spring, some pastures, she supposed, where wildflowers pricked the grass and distant hay barrels dotted the landscape. 

Secondly, she knew she was happy.

The feeling of giddiness in her stomach and the delightfully fresh clarity of her lungs proved it, and for once, all the doleful and unfortunate things in her life hadn’t even crossed her mind once. It all felt like a beautiful daydream.

She lay for a while, neither she or her companion stirring, letting time go with the wind. A bee buzzed close to her face- a honeybee, she hoped, and not a wasp. She paid no mind to it. Which was unusual, given how, on any other day she would have jumped and grisly waved her hands around irritably to get rid of the nuisance. Today was not one of those days. 

She lay still, feeling the air change. The breeze had dropped somewhat, and she felt a little hot. She relaxed again, however. It was nothing.

More time had passed, and the stuffy feeling in the air rose like bread dough. A whiff of a dreadfully pungent and sour smell filled her nostrils, and she winced uncomfortably. The scent reminded her of something burning in the oven.

Burning…

Her eyes snapped open, pushing herself off her companion’s lap. 

“Do you smell that, Aubrey?”

Aubrey turned to face her companion, whose face was tilted downwards, obscured by fluffy tufts of sooty black hair. His voice was low and musing, as if the sudden pervasive smell in the air meant nothing more than music in the distance. 

“We need to go.” Aubrey plainly said, feeling a creeping anxiety form in her stomach, like walking down the stairs in the dark.

The boy said nothing.

Aubrey listened to the wind and could faintly hear the unfettered shouts and cries they carried along with it. 

“Please, we need to go.” she said once again. 

Her friend didn’t move from his spot on the grass. “...I can’t.”

“What? Why?” Aubrey said, looking at him, distraught. “Please, Sunny, let’s go.” she begged. It was all she knew to do. She didn’t know why her legs felt so stiff, and why her arms felt like wrinkled paper. If she had her way with him, she would have dragged him with her, whether he liked it or not. But now, as the shrill shouts grew louder and the sky had gone bleak, she felt oddly weak. She didn’t know why this was happening. Things were perfect just a few moments ago, so why now? Why?

Aubrey felt herself tear up as she watched Sunny slowly rise from his spot on the grass and turn away from her. “Sunny?”

He stood there, unmoving, gazing at something far off that Aubrey could not see. But what she could see was the thin, faint and swaying wisps of what looked like smoke rising from beneath the tall grass. Aubrey felt her stomach stir. She stood up and grabbed onto Sunny’s sleeve, saying, “Sunny, Sunny, please…” she felt out of breath and her hands trembled, clumsily clawing her friend’s sleeve. 

“I’m sorry.” was all Sunny told her. Aubrey tried to get a look at his face, but for some strange reason, she found she could not, as if his features were enveloped by a strange mist that pushed her away. Her head swirled, and she felt weighed down to the ground, using what quickly dwindling strength she had keeping her desperate hold on Sunny’s shirt. 

“W-What are you sorry for?” Aubrey pleaded, her voice quivering, tears beginning to fall down her cheek. “Please talk to me.” She hated how she sounded like a helpless little girl again. She hated feeling helpless. But what else could she do? 

Sunny said nothing. He solely stood there. The smoke grew larger and more abrasive by the second. The air was completely enveloped in a fog of horribly acrid smog, and Aubrey began to feel herself grow sick. 

Despite the horrible fog, she could see strikingly red stalks sway in the distance, the one source of the smoke.

Fire. 

Everything was going to burn. Aubrey’s nose was full of smoke and she felt lightheaded. She clamped her eyes shut with fear, still clawing on Sunny’s shirt. The only sound that filled her ears were the mortifying screams of vicious-sounding people all around her, ringing inside her head. She felt antsy, like the voices formed hands, scratching the insides of her stomach. She choked out a sob and fell to the ground. Once she finally opened her eyes, Sunny was gone.

He was gone.

“Sunny…?” Aubrey gasped, looking around wildly. “ Sunny!?” Where was he? Where did he go? The smoke was thick, completely obscuring the landscape, and Sunny was nowhere to be seen. Nothing, absolutely nothing. All that lay in the horizon were tall, relentless flames, burning every last sprig of grass to dust. Aubrey choked on her tears. She needed to find him. She couldn’t leave him alone. She needed to know if he was safe.

She needed to wake up.

—

Aubrey awoke, shot upwards, breathing hard and face slicked with sweat. Desperately, she looked around, and felt her fervent anxiety immediately begin to dissolve, like sugar in water, once she caught sight of her friend curled up under the thick blankets beside her, blissfully peaceful, sound asleep, and safe. Safe here with her. She exhaled and put her hand to her chest, feeling her heart pound erratically. She shut her eyes and felt tears drip onto her lap. She was mildly surprised she didn’t wake Sunny, she assumed she must have been at least tossing and turning quite a bit. Well, she supposed vampires would be deep sleepers.

Slowly resting her head back onto her pillow and sinking into the velvety sheets. Pulling the sheets to her face, she inhaled, Sunny’s sheets smelled strongly of something like old, cheap lavender perfume. She liked it. She began to feel drowsy again. Shifting to her left, she came face-to-face with Sunny’s waxen face, motionless and as still as a statue, like he was carved out of porcelain. If they didn’t know he was a vampire, anybody else would have thought him to be dead. Aubrey reached a hesitant hand out to him, feeling his cheek with as much as a feather touch as she could muster. She couldn’t peel her eyes from his face, it seemed. Was he always this pretty? Her breath caught in her throat.

He was cold as ice. Why did he make her feel so warm inside? 

Whenever he held her hands, she felt a flurry of butterflies in her stomach and that familiar thump, thump, thump in her chest. It was so mystifying, this strange feeling she got. She did her best to repress them, but they always managed to escape and bubble over like a pot of boiling water, leaving her to mull over it late into far too many restless nights. She shoved the feelings down so much that it ached feverishly. She hated feeling like this, frail and resistless so- that Basil may as well have been right this entire time. He had some kind of bewitching power, causing her to fall in way too deep in the conduits of her own emotions. Too deep for her own good. If she didn’t feel so strongly about him, it would have been much easier to move on with her life, and they could both live with some form of peace. But her heart continued to argue with her- she never got along with it.

She shouldn’t be feeling like this- she really shouldn’t. It was- it was wrong. He wasn’t human. It was taboo, even- But still a deceitful flush creeped up her face as she finally pulled her hand away from Sunny’s frosty cheek, telling her that there was no running from her own self. Stupid feelings, stupid longing, stupid everything- Aubrey silently cursed, feeling her chest squeeze. It was all because of these senseless feelings that things were the way they were now. She put Sunny’s family in danger, all because of her feelings.

With a heavy, burdened sigh she heaved herself off the bed, quiet as a mouse. She ran her fingers through her long, mangled hair, wringing out the night’s frizz as best as she could, and smoothed out the blankets. She looked back at Sunny, and thought it would be nice to leave him a letter, so he won’t be too startled when he wakes. Leaning at the bottom of Sunny’s nightstand, Aubrey spotted what looked like a mauve notebook. She leaned down, straining her back, and grabbed it. When she opened it up, a pencil slid out onto Aubrey’s lap. She could use this to write her note with, she thought, hoping he wouldn’t mind her using his things.

It was early in the morning. Aubrey didn’t know anyone who wasn’t at least slightly out of their minds half-awake, thus, without thinking, Aubrey flipped through the notebook pages, scratchy pencil lines that filled the pages catching her eye. If it were later in the day, she would have closed her eyes to avoid prying into anyone’s privacy, but she never thought to do that at the moment. She stopped on one of the pages, revealing listless sketches of still-life, such as what Aubrey recognized as Sunny’s bedroom window, a potted plant, and scribbles of things she couldn’t quite make out. These sketches looked hasty and almost otiose, like these drawings were produced through a very bored mind on a dreary day. Aubrey decided she liked them. Smiling, she continued to flip the pages, looking for a blank page to write her note in, passing through various blurs of pencil scratches she only caught glimpses of, until she flipped through a page littered with what she recognized as feminine faces. Pausing, she slowly flipped back the page, curiosity overwhelming her.

The page was entirely occluded with faces- all of the same girl, Aubrey noted. They were artfully done, and very pretty- for a brief moment, Aubrey was jealous of Sunny’s newfound artistic prowess. The girl in the top left corner was smiling widely, her cheeks were flushed, and she looked so, so happy. Aubrey found herself absentmindedly smiling along with her, her brain still foggy from her awakening. The one in the middle had the girl with her head thrown to the side, like she was a sort of silent-film movie star, posing for a magazine cover. She thought she looked very elegant. Then at the bottom of the page, two sketches of the girl with her cheeks puffed and expressing discontent in the most endearing manner Aubrey had ever seen, again quite like a silent-film movie star, who poured poise into all her work. The other with her face turned away, only her shiny hair filling in the page. 

Aubrey skimmed the page again, squinting her eyes. This girl that filled the page had long, curly hair, and a bow-adorned headband. Just like… 

Aubrey blinked rapidly and rubbed her eyes. Was she seeing things correctly? She stared at it again, leaning over the notebook. 

The realization seemed to have cleared away her morning mind fog. Her eyes widened, eyes glued to the notebook page, full of eye-popping sketches of no other than…herself.

She remembered again. This was Sunny’s notebook, and she was invading his privacy. Her breath hitched as she immediately clasped the notebook shut, her face flushing deeply with shame and embarrassment. She regretted everything at once. This was a horrible idea, she should have never-

Aubrey looked back at the notebook that lay in her lank hand. 

Did Sunny really see her in such a way? The drawings were very beautiful- it was like he saw her through the dreamy lenses of a Hollywood film camera. All the details, down to the winsome portrayal of her expressions to the eye-catching way Sunny penciled her hair. It was evident that Sunny cared deeply about all her little details. But why? It was too good to believe. Maybe she was dreaming again. Aubrey pinched her cheek with her long fingernails, which only produced a dull sting. No, she wasn’t dreaming. She took a small peek at the same notebook page again, her face glowing hotter before she immediately closed it again. No, she wouldn’t pry any further. She’s done enough damage. She was going to just write the note, and leave, forget she ever saw anything. Yes. Sunny would appreciate that.

She had never been more glad that Sunny was asleep. Her face was hot to the touch, she probably looked sickly. She opened up the notebook and landed on the last page, which was empty. Her hands trembled as she held the pencil, scrawling a messy note in the middle of the page, saying that she had left and that she hoped to see him sometime soon, thanking him for everything, the usual. Once she was satisfied, she left the notebook open on his nightstand, and stood up from the bed, feeling herself stumble, still heavily embarrassed, sort of excited, sort of a lot of things- she’d rather not dwell on it.

Aubrey spared herself one last coveting look at Sunny’s sleeping figure, before turning away to leave his room. Her heart pounded as she opened his door and clicked it shut as quietly and nimbly as she could. 

She clung onto the stair railing, bent forwards and hitched herself closer to her feet and tip-toed down the steps. She winced uncomfortably as she took a step down onto the wood and it creaked, a low rumble that sounded like thunder in her ears.

Once she reached the bottom, her hands shook as she slowly turned the lock on the front door, slipping out as soundlessly as she could, closing it with a low click behind her. 

Her dream lay long forgotten once the chilly winter air filled her nostrils.

—

Kel was sprawled on the couch, lazily caressing his dog, Hector’s matted fur. Golden sunlight streamed into the room, making Kel feel a bit drowsy. Late afternoon always made him sleepy, just something about the sun shining on your face. “ Hero…” he drawled. 

Kel’s older brother looked up from his steaming mug of hot cocoa his mother had so kindly prepared for him, the steam tickling his face. “What is it?” 

Hero had just come back from his college on break from the large cities quite a while away from quaint little Faraway. He was studying to be a chef, having always had a certain fondness for cooking growing up, it seemed only natural. His parents wanted him to be a doctor, or something of the sort, because they were “real jobs”, they paid the bills. Despite their unfathomable nagging, Hero didn’t listen. Which was highly unusual for Hero, of all people, who was as goody-two-shoes as a goody-two-shoes gets, Kel would snicker, but that didn’t matter. Hero had never felt more certain about something. Though, as much as he loved his school, it was exhausting. Staying up long hours cramming his brain with endless textbook pages and ink. The city’s galvanizing and constantly stifling atmosphere made Hero feel small and cramped. He was more than glad to be able to take a break, as short as it may be, back to his home, where it felt as if time moved slower and the air was something to be savored. 

“Can we do something?” Kel asked, turning upside-down on the sofa, letting his head fall over the seat and his feet dangle in the air. 

“Like what?”

“Uh, Hmm…” Kel looked away in thought, shrugging his shoulders. “I dunno.” Kel flipped over onto his stomach and wrought his brain for ideas. Why did it feel like he was forgetting something? He mumbled something that Hero couldn’t catch as he jumped off the sofa.

“Oh yeah!” Kel yelled. Hero looked up at him once again. “I completely forgot! Mom wanted me to pick up groceries for dinner tonight!” Kel darted around the living room, retrieving his coat which he had blowsily left draped over an extra dining chair, and the money his mother had left for him on a console table. Hero watched him with friendly amusement, airily shaking his head as he watched Kel stumble over a crease in the rug. Kel slipped on his tattered loafers, hand on the front door knob. “Bye, Hero! I’ll see you later!” 

“Bye, K-“ Hero said, though Kel was already out the door before he could even finish his sentence. Hero laughed to himself, returning to his mug of cocoa. 

—

Basil felt like his stomach was eating itself from the inside, like a doll without its stuffing. He was taking a walk around the neighborhood, hoping to run into Aubrey sooner or later to let her know to stay away from the Suzuki manor for a while, paranoid and not knowing what the adults were planning to do there. He would really rather be avoiding her, he really did, remembering how mad she was at him the other day. But he felt he needed to let her know. Just in case.

Eyes staring at the ground beneath him, he walked around town aimlessly. Polly wasn’t going to be home for another hour, and she had insisted he go out and get fresh air today. He sighed as he came around the market, where it smelled of fish and bread. He blended in seamlessly with the crowd of market-goers. Basil began to get lost in his thoughts, realizing too late that he had bumped face-first into a stranger, nearly knocking himself over. 

“Oh, shoot- I’m sorry, are you okay-?” the panicked voice of the stranger clambered, bending down to help Basil up. “No, it’s okay, I wasn’t paying attention-“ Basil wheezed, taking the stranger’s hand. 

Once Basil was back on his two feet, he got a good look at the stranger. It was- 

“Kel!” Basil exclaimed, letting go off Kel’s gruff hand. 

“Basil?” Kel asked. “Oh, hi! So, what are you doing here?” 

Basil stared at him for a moment, his paper bags stuffed to the brim with foodstuff catching his eye, “S-Same as you, I guess?”

“Yeah, right.” Kel laughed sheepishly, trying to diffuse the awkwardness. “Hey, why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?” Kel asked, bending down to get a better look at Basil’s shell-shocked expression. Lately, it was like this same paranoia-stricken face was the only expression he bore, like a melodramatic carnival mask was glued to his face. “Are you okay?”

Basil looked at Kel like he was a venomous serpent, stammering and sweating. “I-It’s nothing-“ his eyes shot this way and that, seemingly wanting to be anywhere but on Kel’s face.

“C’mon, Basil, you gotta tell me what’s wrong! Ever since you came over yesterday, you look like the most frightening person on the planet.” Kel said. Well, he wasn’t wrong about that, Basil thought. He was very, very afraid. 

Maybe he would feel better if he did what Kel said- and just talked to him about it. Basil exhaled strongly. “Okay, I’ll tell you…” his voice felt weak and low.

Kel smiled brightly at him, like a dear friend who wanted nothing more than to help his friends. Basil felt a little more at ease at this. “B-But not here. Let’s go somewhere else.”

Kel nodded and followed Basil through the stream of people crowded in the market. 

As Kel followed his friend out of the market square, the contents of the heavy paper bags he carried jostled in his arms. “Er, does this, by any chance, have anything to do with Aubrey?” Kel asked, an entirely innocent question it was, though Basil felt himself shiver hearing her name. He never answered, continuing to prow down the road, stopping at an isolated bench far from the marketplace, under a large oak tree by a dead silent shopping district, which seemed to always house closed-up, boarded-up shops. 

Kel ran ahead of Basil and slumped down onto the bench, sighing and setting aside his grocery bags. Basil sat down next to him, tapping his feet anxiously. Kel reached into one of the grocery bags, fussing for a while, until he pulled out a chocolate brownie wrapped in a checkered cloth. He took a big bite out of it. “Go on, Basil!” he urged, speaking with a mouth rudely full. Basil didn’t seem to mind, keeping himself busy by worrying himself sick. “Well…” Basil started, looking uncomfortable. But then Basil thought about it more. This was Kel, of all people, the least judgmental person on the planet, and there was a chance he would forget about all of this once he woke up the next morning. What was he so afraid for? Basil sighed and looked significantly more comfortable now, feeling his shoulders lax. 

“Yesterday…I asked Aubrey to stop going to the Suzuki manor... and she got really mad at me,” Basil cringed, recalling the memory. “I just- I don’t know. I can’t bring myself to trust him, Kel.” Basil’s shoulders dropped, along with his head. Kel frowned at him, not entirely understanding why Basil wouldn’t trust such a nice boy like Sunny. “I don’t know why they’re so attached to each other. Sunny- he just-“ Basil paused. “I don’t know! He doesn’t- doesn't feel right.” Basil concluded, not knowing how to put his thoughts into words. Kel nodded slowly at him, beckoning him to go on. “He’s scary. I don’t like the look in his eyes. His long fingernails. H-His teeth. The way he’s so stuck on Aubrey feels wrong, I-“ Basil was so caught up in finally letting out his feelings towards Sunny out that he had nearly forgotten what he was so supposed to be doing.

“Okay, okay Basil, I know, Sunny scares you to death, but- what else happened?” Kel interrupted. Basil looked at him regretfully. “R-Right. I’m sorry.” Basil turned away in humiliation. But still he continued. 

“I was going home. I usually don’t take the road where the Suzuki manor is, but Polly wanted me to pick something up for her at the fishmonger near over there…” Basil took a sharp bout of breath, growing more and more skittish by the second. “Then I…I saw…” Basil’s voice grew quieter. “I s-saw…Sunny…” 

Kel observed Basil curiously. He looked and sounded almost embarrassed. “And then?”

Basil darted his eyes back and forth between Kel and his lap. “Um…I saw Sunny…”

Kel was growing impatient. Was he ever patient in the first place? “... And?”

“Sunny was…on…” Basil swallowed audibly. “On…t-top of Aubrey…?” 

Kel didn’t say a word, blinking uniformly at Basil, who looked like he was on the brink of running away. “It’s- It’s not what you think, Kel…” Basil muttered, red in the face enough as it is. Kel watched as Basil was slowly morphing into the sun itself. “A-At least I think so…”

While Basil was drowning in his own embarrassment, Kel suddenly burst out in a raucous laughter.

“Kel! I’m not finished yet!” Basil cried. But Kel wouldn’t register his words, suddenly finding everything very funny. “Oh…Hahaha…oh my god…!” Kel wheezed out between snickers and giggles. “I didn’t…” Kel doubled over as if in pain. He probably was with how hard he was laughing. Basil anxiously looked left and right for any potentially disturbed onlookers. “I didn’t know they were that…bold!” Kel knocked his chest, trying to smother his laughter. 

“Kel! Please listen!” Basil pleaded, not wanting Kel to delve any further into the very incorrect idea he had of the situation. Kel was bent over, clutching his stomach. “Okay…okay…” he gasped. 

Basil sunk back into the bench. “I got scared. I didn’t know what to think- I thought for sure he was trying to hurt her. I mean, it sure looked like he was.” Kel was looking at Basil very keenly now. “I…I ran away and called for help.” Basil explained. Kel’s eyes were widened, and he no longer thought anything was so funny anymore.

“You… what?!” Kel shouted, the direness of the situation quickly beginning to sink in. Kel grabbed hold of a half-frightened to death Basil. “Basil! You went and asked others for help? ” 

“Y-Yes? What else was I supposed to-'' Basil didn’t understand why Kel was so surprised. That vampire… was about to hurt his friend, what else was he supposed to do? Just…stand there? “At first, nobody believed me…but one person did. He told me that incident with the Suzuki’s have been coming up lately, and that they were planning on doing something about it-“

Kel looked absolutely terror-stricken. He let go of Basil and leapt off the bench. “You, you don’t understand how bad this is. I-“ Kel was clutching clumps of his hair. Basil had never seen Kel look so stressed before. Kel worryingly glanced at Basil. “I- I need to go. Sorry!” 

“Kel, wait-“ Basil wanted to ask him to elaborate, ask him why he favored the Suzukis so much, but he was already out of sight, having raced down the road so hastily and carelessly, that he had forgotten to take his grocery bags with him. Basil dropped his hand into his lap and exhaled, feeling uneasy.

Basil would return Kel’s grocery bags later. 

—

Kel was fresh out of all the air in his lungs as he dropped at his front door. He had practically crawled in through the foyer. Kel made his way to the living room, where he dropped right at Hero’s feet. 

“Kel! What on earth happened to you?” Hero asked, setting aside the book he was reading, eyeing his sweaty face and awry hair.

“There’s…There’s trouble,”

“What trouble?”

“I heard that- that the Suzuki’s are in danger! I don’t know, I just heard that they’re planning on doing something about them. I don’t feel good about this at all,”

“Wait, wait,” Hero stopped Kel, both hands on his shoulders. “Slow down, what’s happening?” 

“The Suzukis. I think they’re in danger, there’s been so many misunderstandings that everyone in town thinks they’re a threat now. And I’m scared,” Kel cried. “Hero, you gotta help me.”

“Suzuki…” Hero muttered softly, who all of a sudden looked like he had the weight of the world to bear on his shoulders. 

“Hero?” Kel looked up curiously at Hero. “Is something wrong?” 

“Huh? O-Oh, no, I’m fine. Just…thinking about stuff,” Hero smiled and patted Kel on the shoulder. “Well, I think, the best thing we can do right now is to warn them ourselves.” Kel looked up at Hero, anticipating. “What do you think?” 

“Really, Hero? You’ll actually help me?” Kel gasped. He thought it was unusual for Hero to agree to something so out of the blue, and so bizarre. It wouldn’t have surprised Kel if he had disagreed and antagonized the Suzuki’s as much as the rest of the town did. 

Hero ruffled Kel’s hair, absentmindedly. “Yeah.” he said, his voice dreamy and distant, as if his mind was preoccupied with something completely different. 

“Let’s do that right now, then. I’ll wait for you outside!” Kel pushed himself off of the carpet, and rushed into the foyer. Hero stretched his legs and lifted himself off the sofa, not exactly aware of the present as he retrieved his coat and scarf, thinking deeply about…something. Something that the likes of somebody like his scrappy younger brother wouldn’t exactly understand. 

Hero never expected to stand in front of the Suzuki manor today. Or any day, really. He came to Faraway for a peaceful getaway, but that seemed to have gone out the window seeing as the town seemed to be now thrown into restless turmoil over some allegations against the Suzuki family. Just passing through the markets and neighborhoods, Hero could hear the gossip spreading quickly. Left and right, people were talking. “I heard they’re finally doing something about those Suzuki’s.” Kel and Hero turned the corner. “But they’ve never done anything to us before, why now?” one whispered. “See? I always knew they were up to no good!” 

Kel shivered. “Ugh. Let's hurry, I can’t stand these people.” Hero nodded in agreement, and they hurried out of the busy street corners, further away from the neighborhood, until finally they could see the Suzuki manor just a few ways away. 

Kel raced up onto the Suzuki’s doorsteps, Hero walking close behind him. Kel, nonchalantly as ever, knocked on their door. Hero swallowed nervously. Kel clicked his shoes as they stood waiting. Kel tugged at the collar of his thick winter coat. It was definitely too early to be wearing these, but they couldn’t risk being recognized from far away.

It felt like hours had passed until someone had finally answered the door, at least in Kel’s mind. Inside the door, Kel could make out the figure of a woman, her head wrapped thickly in a shawl, its shadow obscuring her eyes. She was shockingly pale, as vampires were. the lines on her face indicated her weathered age. Kel could only guess how long she had been alive. “...Hello?” meekly, almost afraid, she answered. 

“Uh- Uhm-“ Kel was fresh out of words. “Uh, Hero, you do the talking!” Kel pushed Hero in front of the door, hiding behind him. Hero scratched the back of his neck, smiling painfully awkwardly. “Er, h-hello, ma’am.” 

“What do you want?” the woman replied, which would have come off as very rude, if she hadn't sounded so powerless and afraid, as if the two hid wooden stakes behind their backs. Hero took a deep breath and collected his wits together. “Ma’am, please don’t worry, we’re not here to hurt you, or anything like that. We just-“ Hero briefly glanced at his brother, who nodded, reassuringly. Hero continued. “We just wanted to tell you that, uhm, unpleasant news is going around town.” Hero watched as the woman shriveled further into the darkness of her house at his words. “I’m so sorry, ma’am, but we…we don’t think it’s safe for you to stay here for much longer. I don’t know why the people in town…think you’re so terrible…but they do, and it’s not safe.” Hero said, somberly. “Don’t worry, miss! You’ll be alright if you leave as soon as possible!” Kel chipped in, peeking from behind Hero’s back. Despite the woman’s hidden figure, they could tell she was surprised, muttering quietly and staring at the two of them. 

“Is this true?” the woman asked, hands digging into the doorframe. 

“Yes. It is. I’m sorry…” Hero said, tilting his head downwards. 

“...I see.” her soft tone indicated that she had finally begun to trust the boys.

“Please, leave before nightfall, and you should be fine. I don’t want to see anybody h-“ Hero was interrupted by another figure behind the door, who said, “Mother?” The voice was weary and gentle, like an old saloon piano. Hero’s eyes widened as the person who bore the voice came closer to the door. “Who are you talking to?

A young lady came into view, standing a few feet away from her mother. Her eyes were drawn, and her hair was swathed in sleek, shiny black, and she was very pretty. Hero, breathily, finished the rest of his sentence. “...Hurt.” 

“Thank you, young man…” the woman thanked Hero, who had barely heard her, his attention elsewhere. Kel stepped out from behind Hero. “Will you be alright?”

The woman lifted her head, just the slightest bit, enough to show her nose. “Yes, we’ll be fine.” tiredly, sadly, she smiled. “We’ll leave tomorrow night.”

“Huh?” the young lady behind her mother gasped before turning to blink at the familiar strangers at the door. “Leave? What’s…” First her eyes landed on Kel, who she raised her eyebrows in confusion at, and then on the taller latter. Her eyes widened enough to match his. She tilted her head. “...Hero?”

Kel had concluded his conversation with Miss Suzuki, and Hero could only mumble a faint and thunder-struck “Mari?” before she closed the door, shutting out the young lady’s voice and leaving the two brothers in silence. 

Kel breathed out a sigh of relief, having some of the worry lifted off his chest. 

“Hey, Hero, let’s go home now! I’m starving!” 

Hero grinned at Kel. “Yeah.”

The walk home was quiet, and a little bit awkward, to say the least. Kel tried to talk to him on the way home, receiving only grunts and murmurs of affirmation from him, his eyes blurry and focused on some far-off distance beyond the road. Kel was beginning to feel a little frustrated. What has been distracting Hero so much? 

“Hero?” Kel said.

…

“ Herooo.”

“Hmm?” Hero looked as though he had just been broken out of a stupor.

“What’s wrong with you lately? You’ve looked so out of it ever since we left the house.”

“I have?” Hero raised his eyebrows, lifting an arm to scratch the back of his neck. “Oh, it’s nothing,”

Kel raised an eyebrow. “Is it really?” 

“Yes, Kel. Don’t worry.” 

Kel turned his head towards the endless plain of deep purple sky above him, and wondered how he would go about telling Kel what’s been on his mind. How was he going to tell him that he wasn’t the only one who had personal relations with one of the Suzuki’s? 

Well, that was a simple question. All he had to do was suck in his chest and tell him honestly.

“You know what?” Hero started, his voice a little course. “I’ll tell you what's been on my mind lately.” The face of intrigue enveloped Kel’s face.

“You… know that Suzuki girl?” 

Kel nodded his head, a rather rogue grin spreading on his face. Hero ignored it.

“You’re not the only one who sneaked out to hang out with a Suzuki.” 

Silence. Hero continued to gaze musingly at the darkening sky. He heard Kel snort and laugh.

“I know that, Hero!” Kel lightly chuckled, leaning onto Hero’s shoulder amusingly. Hero could only stare at him shockingly.

“What? you do?” Hero asked, dully.

“Yeah! I met her myself! Mari, I think. She was nice.” Kel mused, thrown into a brief trip down memory lane. He recalled her, scaring the wits out of all of them by popping up from the bushes so instantaneously, and presenting herself as the bright and almost frighteningly-inquisitive elder sister of Sunny. Back then, everything seemed to be sunshine and rainbows. He thought absolutely nothing could go wrong, with how well and proudly they hid their rendezvouses. He felt a tinge of sadness, knowing aversley that things could never go back to the way they were before. Throwing his head up, chin pointed towards the sky, he knew there was no point in dwelling in the past so much, he had seen how that affected Aubrey. Oh, Aubrey… he would have to tell her everything that’s been going on sooner or later.

--

Chapter Text

Sunny didn’t feel like getting out of bed.

When he had woken up, brain befogged and drooling, the first thing on his mind was where his nightly companion had gone. He turned left and right, she was nowhere to be found. Sucking in cold air, a lazy arm lolled over his face, he just remembered that humans and vampires had very disparate sleep schedules. Of course she wouldn’t stay cooped up in his house all day. He felt his stomach tighten, and started to feel the familiar loneliness set in. It reminded him of how, as a young boy, always needed his sister to hug and keep him safe during stormy nights, and after nightmares. He had gotten so used to her tender and effortless comfort that he needed her to remain calm every time he awoke. He had grown out of that, of course. Now, what was once a childish fear was now a sentimental memory tucked away in the back of his brain. 

Memories of last night soon returned to him, reminding him of how peaceful Aubrey looked while she slept. He remembered having to rush to his bed, pile his blankets over Aubrey and pretend he had been reading in bed all day when his mother had come into his room to deliver him lunch, how his sister would constantly waltz into his room, increasingly curious and suspicious about his unusual behavior. He remembered how all the more impelled he felt to actually make proper use of his night with a girl in his room. For once, he actually felt like doing something. Really, he didn’t and couldn’t do anything much, but he had felt like it. He remembered the way the moonlight streamed through his curtains and illuminated Aubrey’s face. He sat close to his bedside and studied her features, his head curled in his arms. She looked so peaceful. The Aubrey he knew was always a whirlwind of emotions, at first, she was overwhelming, a stark contrast to his monotonous and plaintive self. She was spry, had a short temper, and she was loud and brash. And those qualities only seemed to deepen as the years had gone by.

Phenomenally, those qualities were what Sunny liked best about her, to his own astonishment. This was something he thought about a lot. It gave him a headache. Why was she so confusing? He’s never felt this confused and conflicted in all his years on this earth.

The sun was starting to not be the only reason he wished he wasn’t a vampire. Who knew humans could be so… exalting? Was that the right word? He didn’t know- and so captivating that he wished he could walk with her every time of the day? Maybe hold her hand too? Were humans descendants of the fae?

No. He rolled over, face-first into his pillow, digging his face into the fabric. It couldn’t be humans themselves. It was just Aubrey. Maybe she herself is a fae. That would explain everything. Frankly, he hadn’t any concise clues about worldly human things, like these complex emotions of his. He felt rather stupid now. All of this had to mean something, right? He had read some of Mari’s sappy, over-flowery romance novels in spite of his boredom. He had heard stories before. The thought that it could may as well be that made him shudder, in a bizarre, otherworldly mix of excitement and anxious horror. All these long days and years he rejected the possibility, though he felt everything start to become a little more clearer, as intolerably slowly as it did. But…it felt so terribly, undeniably wrong. Everything was wrong. He was wrong. She… she didn’t deserve someone of the likes of himself. It was wrong.

…There was no point in giving himself a headache so early. He stood up from his bed and tousled his morning bed hair. As he was doing so, he noticed his…sketchbook. Open-faced and lying on his nightstand.

Sunny feared the worst. Breaking into a cold sweat, he immediately grabbed the notebook. The pages were empty save for something scrawled slovenly on the bottom of the right page. If you wake up in the middle of the day and see I’m not here, I’ve gone home. Please don’t worry, I’ll keep a lookout and make sure nobody busts down your front door. Not on my watch! Thank you for everything, I really do appreciate you Sunny. I hope I can see you again soon. - Aubrey

Sunny felt his chest warm at the letter Aubrey had left him. Unfortunately, the warmth was brief, the anxiety remained strong. 

She couldn’t have…could she? Sunny felt his heart pound and his brain was racing in both directions. He prayed to the gods above that Aubrey hadn’t seen… that.

He wondered for a moment why he was so irked by the thought. They were just simple, innocent drawings of the girl, wasn’t it? But they were, admittingly more, exuberant- than all of the other drawings inside the book. The mindset he held while he drew those weren’t as boredom-fuelled as all the rest, however, which was probably…obvious. He panicked as he grazed through the pages, all at once regretting many things.

Sunny felt himself turn an ailing-looking shade of scarlet. All he wanted to do was curl back up in his bed and never wake up again-

Sounds. There were a lot of sounds coming from downstairs, loud chatter, that, perhaps for the best, snapped Sunny out of his raving plight. He made his way out of his room, slightly afraid, slightly curious.

As he was making his way downstairs, Mari passed by him, dredging up the stairs slowly and lethargic. Her hair was awry, falling over her face, and Sunny had scarcely seen her look so bereaved. Worry overwhelming him, he stopped her on the way up the stairs.

“Mari? Mari, what’s wrong? What happened?” Sunny considered for a moment that just maybe, she had gotten into a fight with their mother. But that never happens, they’ve always gotten along just fine. That would’ve been absurd. She didn’t budge as Sunny lightly shook her. “Mari, talk to me?”

Mari did nothing but pull Sunny in and hug him. She hugged him in a way that lacked a significant amount of the usual energy she would put into her hugs, but he could still feel her. She hugged him joylessly and remorsefully. Sunny began to feel his heart sink, even though he knew nothing about why she was being this way. All he knew was that it wasn’t good, and the sooner he continued down the stairs, the sooner he’d find out. 

Mari let go of him and continued up the stairs, dragging herself to her room and shutting the door quietly behind her. Fearing the worst, Sunny crept downstairs, where he saw his mother pass the living room.

Sunny caught up to her. Her head was downturned, scouring through her purse. He asked her, “Mother?” He looked away. “What’s wrong with Mari?”

She didn’t look at him until she was finished going through her purse. She sighed and set it aside, and looked at him, despondency swimming in her eyes. “Sunny…” She put a hand on his shoulder. “Can I talk to you?”

Sunny nodded slowly. “What’s happening?” his mother walked him out of the hallway, and sat him down in the living room. 

She drew out a sour, sad exhale as she sat down beside him. Sunny felt his chest tighten and his stomach sink further. Awful, everything felt awful.

Sunny’s mother looked to be searching for the right words, digging her hands into her dress and indecisively moving her mouth. “I…”

“I’m sorry, sunshine,” 

Sunny stared at his mother, like he was a small child all over again. Small and cowering under the cruel world he was taught to fear and hide from. His family would’ve forever been his only solace.

She turned to Sunny, her voice was thick and heavy, stressed and strained, like hardened molasses. “We can’t stay here for long. We need to leave. It’s… not safe...” She took his hand in her own and drew soft circles over his palm. Sunny could barely register her words, or her touch. “Leave?” He said. “Huh? What do you mean?”

She didn’t stop drawing circles on his palm. Likely, an effort to comfort him the best she could. She knew how unfair the world was, how many times she felt like yelling from the top of her lungs that she had been forced into living pathetic, dangerous and lonely lives like this. 

“I mean, we need to leave here. Tomorrow night, we must. I got a visit earlier…they told us it’s not safe for us here anymore.” it never has been, she thought, miserably to herself. 

Sunny could hardly believe what he was hearing. They needed to leave? Move someplace else? Away from the safety of his warm home, he had no clue how they would be safe roaming around in the dead of night, where they would go, if they would even survive? His heartbeat quickened and so did his breath. Everything felt utterly hopeless.

Not only that. He had to leave everything behind. Everything, his books, his music, the comfort of his room, and…

His friends.

He could feel his vision fog and darken. The pit in his stomach grew still. He really, honest to the Lord, didn’t want to leave his friends. Though he seldom saw them, at all, they were the only things he had to keep him in line. The only source of warmth and comfort he had in his solitary life. It was with them, he truly felt happy.

He didn’t want to lose that.

Everything was a blur. It all felt like a dream- a cruel, twisted fever dream. His vision became blurred by the tears that started to stream down his unmoving face. Only now he noticed that his mother had reached out to hug him. He could hardly feel her, his mind too far off, too distant to care for his surroundings.

“I- I don’t- I don’t want to leave.” teary-eyed, he barely managed to form his words. Truly, the one reason he didn’t want to leave was his friends. He knew it was unlikely he would see them ever again. Under any other circumstances, he wouldn’t be this upset. His mother only hugged him tighter. “I know.”

So he cried. He cried because it was all he could do. Tucked under his mother’s arms he cried. Certainly, he felt like a child all over again. He was ashamed of crying like this, but the tears just wouldn’t stop. 

After a few bleary moments of crying helplessly in his mother’s arms, he finally felt himself calm down. Now all that remained was the fear of leaving the safety of his home and the empty feeling of leaving it all behind that sat like still water in his stomach. “Where do we go from here?” he asked his mother, rubbing away the last of the tears from his eyes.

“I don’t know.” she said, continuing the rub circles over his back. A frail attempt at comforting him, she knew. 

“You know...” his mother started. “We haven’t talked to each other in a long while, haven’t we?”

Sunny thought for a moment. He presumed it was true, he hadn’t really talked with his own family too much, even before his father left. They were all quiet, and they all kept to themselves half the time. “Yes, I suppose so.” 

“Is there...anything you want to tell me?” She said so in a genuinely curious manner, not at all accusatory. Sunny wondered if it was finally time to tell her everything. About him sneaking out to go see his friends, and the fact that one of them had even stayed the night, without anyone knowing. They were going to be leaving everything behind soon, anyways. 

The more he thought about it, the more he realized how everything could be his fault. He started to feel a little sick. Basil thought he was trying to hurt Aubrey back then, didn’t he? This was all his fault, he should have never tried and snuck out in the first place. Now, his entire family was in danger. It wasn’t Basil’s fault he immediately thought the worst, that’s what everyone seems to assume in the face of a vampire. Only the worst.

“You don’t want to talk, do you?” his mother said, her voice a little lighter, and her hug a little less heavy. 

“N-No. I do.” Sunny said. “I have something…I need to tell you, mom.” He stopped for a moment. He hadn’t called his mother “mom”, or something so casual in a long time. It was like coming home to a warm fire and a meal ready on the table after a downpour. He took a deep breath and swallowed the paranoia that rose in his throat. He was finally going to come clean, and whatever her reactions may be, at least he would walk away guilt-free. No more keeping secrets, he promised himself.

“Four. Four years ago. I, uhm, met someone. A girl. Her name’s Aubrey. She was outside, her ball flew into the garden, and she ran here to retrieve it.” Sunny kept his eyes on his lap, where his fists were clenched in front of him. He heard his mother leave a light huff. “I happened to be outside, when she was here. I-I thought she was going to hurt me. But instead, she greeted me, and she was curious about me, not in a…denunciatory way, she was kind. Different from all of the stories I’ve heard- it was strange.” while he spoke, he felt a thickness in his throat, and he felt the beating of his heart. Warily, he turned to his mother, and a look of utter shock was all over her face. She looked as though he was a ghost. He looked at her in a sorry sort of way, and said, quietly, “Please don’t be mad.”  

She tilted her head at him. “I could never be mad at you. I’m just- I’m shocked, I didn’t know that you, my sweet Sunny, would be talking to…humans. That’s something I’d expect more from Mari, but you?” she said. Sunny had some trouble telling whether or not she was more shocked or disappointed. Maybe a bit of both. He pulled his knees to his chest and exhaled, as long as she wouldn’t resent him.

“I’m sorry mom. But I- I don’t know. I just couldn’t help it, I suppose. It’s lonely.” his voice was soft again, like a mouse. An all-familiar tone, lonely and yearning, ever since he was a baby. Always quiet and cooped up in those far-off clouds of his. His mother’s features softened as she listened to him talk, still not sure what to make of everything.

“She asked if we could meet again, the next night. I always thought that humans hated us, feared us, jeopardized us, it was weird. She wasn’t afraid of me,” Sunny felt a strange nostalgia overwhelm him as he talked. Those candy-coated, bygone days used to seem so distant and unobtainable. Now, he remembered them like it was just yesterday. “The next time, she brought her friends with her. Two boys, Basil and Kel. Kel was sort of odd at first, I guess. He had so much energy. He wouldn’t stop talking. But he wasn’t afraid of me, either. He liked me as well as Aubrey did, and I liked him too. He was fun to be around, even if I never talked much…I think we became good friends. The three of us.” It felt weird to say all of this out loud, Sunny thought. To call them friends. He felt a warm feeling settle in his chest. He had friends, didn’t he? It was shocking. A being such as himself, to have human friends. His mother was even more surprised than he was, her eyes wide and her mouth ajar in a way that indicated she wanted to say something, but couldn’t. The words were caught in her throat.

“The other boy, Basil…he was different. He was scared to death of me, always anxious of me, and never stuck around for long. We talked sometimes, but I could still feel how scared he was. When we first met, he had brought a cross, and told me to stay away. But…I can’t blame him. All those stories of us, they’re awful. It’s no wonder he’s always so scared…” Now, he was mostly wondering out loud, to himself, half-aware of his mother’s presence. She looked deeply worried again. She was beyond sorry her son had to endure such a thing, and at so young, too. 

“It was fine though. No, amazing, even. I’ve never felt so happy in my life. I actually had friends. And things were great for a while. We met up frequently, in a clearing in the forest behind the house.”

His mother softly gazed at Sunny, thinking to herself. He seemed to have been happy, and he seemed to have stayed safe. She decided, maybe, she should let her worries go. What kind of mother would she be if she didn’t even have faith in her own son, after all? Still, she couldn’t help but worry. About Basil, and if they’ve ever been spotted before. You could never know, and that’s what she feared the most. The more she heard, the more thankful she was becoming of the boys that had visited her earlier.

“But, I knew it would all have to end…someday… one night, it was getting late, and Basil left first.” he let out a labored sigh. “And that’s… it. After all of the commotion that stirred after Father left, I figured…it would be safer if we didn’t see each other anymore.” 

His mother sat still, contemplating his story. Sunny didn’t know whether or not he wanted to tell her that…he had been in touch with those same friends recently. Just last night. The thought made his stomach lurch, he never knew he had it in him to be so…contrary. It felt like he had done something vile, but it felt a little exciting, too. But he had to leave it all behind. His head dropped morosely onto his mother’s stilt shoulder. She rubbed circles on the back of his head in return.

“Thank you for telling me this. I’m not exactly pleased that you went and disobeyed everything you were taught growing up, but at least you haven’t grown up a liar. I feel more relieved that you told me.” Sincerely, she spoke. It calmed Sunny’s nerves somewhat. He was glad to finally have at least some of the weight off his chest. 

“Your friends…” she drew out, pensively, “They seemed like nice kids. I’m sorry it had to come to this, sunshine.” She reached out and held his shoulder, pulling him into a slumped side hug, pressing his shoulder with her thumb in an allaying manner, hoping he would cheer up.

“Mom?” Sunny asked, spontaneously amidst the silence, lifting his head up.

“Hmm?” she hummed. 

“Uhm- I- actually, n-nevermind.” pathetically, he sputtered, changing his mind too late. His mother’s gaze left him, and they were left to bask in the quiet placidness of the moment. It was safe for now. Sunny could forget about his worries, even for a little bit.

Everything was going to be okay.

–

Mari sat in her lonesome in front of her beloved harpsichord. This instrument has granted her a fair share of pain and joy, and now, she’d have to leave it all behind. She wondered what would become of it, if a mob would break in and burn everything to a crisp, or if everything would be left to decay and rot back into the earth. She didn’t know which she preferred. Sighing heavily and one hand dejectedly plinking at the keys, she did her scales, ever so morosely. 

Her mind drifted to other things. Like Hero. She saw him earlier, he had come on his own accord to warn them. It was so surprising, although her heart swelled at the thought. She pondered tenderly, really quite like a hero, wasn’t he? She felt depressed again. She’d never see him again. Oh, Hero, she didn’t know what he’d do without her. She just had to have faith that everything was going to be alright in the end. Although, it was so painfully hard to do so. Her heart clenched and her hands moved slower and slower over the keys, until the melody sounded less and less like scales.

She heard the door click open behind her. She didn’t turn to greet her visitor, banausic finishing her scales. Gentle footsteps sounded behind her. She knew who it was.

“Hi, Mari,” Sunny greeted her, staring at his sister’s arched figure in front of her harpsichord. His voice shook, just the slightest bit. He wanted to sort his head out before they had to leave. It was now or never, he concluded.

“Hi little brother,” was his sister’s quiet response. “I’m sorry for always being so gloomy. There’s just…a lot of things on my mind.” she turned around to face him, a sad smile was present on her wearied face. Sunny looked down at his shoes.

“Is this a bad time to come and talk to you? I need to tell you something…maybe…you can help me too?” Sunny queried, nervous as he was. He watched the smile on Mari’s face grow wider. “Sunny, of course! It’s been a long time since I had a talk with my baby brother!” Sunny was relieved she seemed glad at the thought. She was happier too. Though he didn’t know how to feel about being called her ‘baby’ brother. He watched as Mari stood up from her bench and sat onto her bed, patting the empty area beside her.

Sunny took his seat. “What’s on your mind?” Mari asked.

“I just, well-” Sunny started, his heart ready to surge through his ribcage. “You know that girl? Aubrey?”

Mari thought for a moment. “Hmm, yes, I remember her. A nice girl, wasn’t she?” Sunny nodded quickly.

“I’m…I’m sorry you can’t see your friends anymore.” her voice grew hushed. “It’s fine.” Sunny told her. A harmless lie.

“A-Anyways, I just, I wanted you to help me with something.” 

“And that is?” Mari shuffled herself a bit closer.

“It’s about Aubrey. Um, don’t say anything yet.” he didn’t know if he could take it if he heard so much as a snark giggle from her. Embarrassment was about to be the death of him, and he didn’t want to make it any more painful.

“To be completely honest with you, Mari, Aubrey has been, well, coming to see me lately. P-Please don’t blame her for us having to move, it’s really not her fault, I swear.” From the corner of his eye he could see Mari’s mouth hung agape, and her eyes were wide with interest. 

“She’s been climbing through my window. I even got to see Kel. I don’t think he’s changed a bit, except his hair grew longer. And Aubrey…she changed quite a bit. She’s still very…” Sunny’s voice trailed off. 

“Very what?” Mari nudged his arm.

Sunny shook his head. “Nothing. Nevermind. But since then, I’ve been thinking of a lot of things. It’s so confusing. It’s starting to give me a headache.”

Mari’s formerly cheekily complacent expression softened. She threw an arm around his shoulder, and said, “Aw, you can tell me anything little brother. Don’t worry, I won’t say a word!” 

Sunny’s shoulders eased in her hold. He felt slightly less afraid now. “She’s always stood out, but in the oddest way possible. She’s different from Kel or Basil. I feel comfortable around her, but at the same time…nervous? It’s so strange, Mari. I don’t think it’s just because she’s…” Sunny swallowed the demeaning thickness in his throat. “...Pretty, either.” shamefully, he hung his head low, doing whatever he could to avoid his sister’s gaze. “She makes me feel weird. But in a…good way, I suppose… She's really warm, too. I just want to hold her hand…” Sunny’s shook his head, disagreeing with his own words. “You don’t think it could be…? I don’t know…” Sunny huffed, shifting his knees to his chest and hiding his face in between his legs, muffling his increasingly frustrated voice. “What do I do, Mari? This feels so wrong. It feels disgusting- not her, me. It’s wrong, it’s all wrong!” Sunny choked on his words. Mari listened to him keenly, all at once understanding exactly how he felt. She sighed and caressed his shoulder, searching her throat for the right words.

“Oh, Sunny.” she kept rubbing his shoulder as he cried silently. “Sunny, look at me,” 

Sunny only seemed to burrow his face further into his legs. “Please? I want you to know something.”

Sunny slowly raised his face from his knees. Looking at Mari, she looked at him cordially, the most understanding smile plastered on her face. His own was flushed a berry-red, streaks of tears running down his red-white face. 

Mari leaned in closer. Mustering the softest tone she could, he told her, “Sunny, you’re not disgusting, and you’re not wrong. Please trust me when I say I know exactly how you feel, alright?” 

Sunny nodded solemnly. He had faith in his sister more than anyone in the world, naturally, he trusted her.

“You’re not wrong,” she repeated. “Just because everyone says it’s wrong, doesn’t mean it is.” 

Sunny stared at her spiritless. Mari puffed.

“Sunny, who are you?”

“Huh?” Sunny blinked at her.

“Are you a monster like all those silly people say? Or are you Sunny?” she clasped both of his shoulders, knocking her forehead against his.

“I- I feel like a monster now. No human deserves someone like me. Everyone is afraid of me. I’ve never seen the sun, and I can’t even hold her hand without worrying I’ll freeze her to death. I’m not even alive. ” Sunny strung-out, panting. All his frustrations just seemed to pour out in one hoist. 

Mari looked at him dejectedly. Eyes closed, the determined smile slowly returned to her face.

“You know there’s a reason Aubrey came to see you after all these years, right?” Mari remarked. She received her answer in the form of blundering blinks. “It seems as though she’s been sticking around, too. I don’t think that same purple scarf you gave to Aubrey just happened to manifest on your nightstand last night, has it?” snarkily, her lips shot upwards in a small smirk. Sunny’s face reddened. The scarf. He was so sure that nobody knew that she had stayed the night, but it seemed it really was impossible to hide anything from his perspicacious sister.

“Has Aubrey ever looked scared of you? Disgusted? Anything like that?” Mari’s grin grew. Sunny paused for a second, looking away from her. No matter how hard he tried, he didn’t seem to recall Aubrey ever being antsy around him. It was him who was the antsy one. Haltingly, he shook his head.

“See? See? There’s nothing for you to worry about. The fact that you’re a vampire doesn’t matter in the slightest. Aubrey really is persistent, isn’t she?” Mari moved away from him and patted his shoulder. Softly, she said, 

“That has to mean something, doesn’t it?”

--

Chapter Text

Sleep came sparsely. 

Sunny felt as though he would never sleep soundly ever again. Perhaps it was insomnia. Or the dull anxious ache in his stomach that kept waking him up. Tossing and turning all night, he felt like his head was about to cave in on itself.

After awaking for maybe the fifth time through the morning, he had given up. Sitting upright, he felt his head throb. Likely because of the incessant stress. Vampires aren’t usually affected too much by a lack of sleep, but he liked sleeping nonetheless. It helped him feel refreshed. 

Making his way towards his window, he pushed the curtains aside ever-so slightly. There was no sunlight to be found, only a bleak sky and swirling snow could be seen. The now snow-topped evergreens that lined the hills could scarcely be seen behind the snowy onslaught. He liked the winter for numerous reasons. One, the sun was the least of his problems at this time of year. And the town looked so pretty during Christmas.

He glanced at his clock. It was early into the night, he still had a little bit of time.

He knew this would be the last time he’d ever see a Faraway winter.

His view drifted to the quaint town of Faraway just below the garden. The streetlamps had just been lit. 

Maybe, it was time to pay someone a visit. Just a small goodbye.

Yes, it would be, by far, the riskiest thing he’d ever do in his time in Faraway.

But if Faraway had taught him anything, it was now or never. 

He grabbed his dusty brown and ruddy cloak from the depths of his now-half empty closet, and draped it over himself. He could feel the strange sensation of adrenaline in his chest.

Before he left, he glanced around his room. It was like his friend at this point- if he could even call it that. A cold, but hospitable acquaintance that let him sleep all day. It felt emptier now, his clothes and trinkets like his sketchbooks, violin, music sheets, card games, wooden figures of people and animals and the like, were all packed tightly in neat boxes. One way or another, he was going to find a way to haul these boxes around. He couldn’t leave these things behind. They meant too much. He glanced at the tall, black-framed mirror that stood in the corner of his room. He could never pinpoint exactly why he had this, he couldn’t see his reflection anyways.

His eyes landed on an half-empty chalice, subsisting of badger blood, this time. He wondered what his fierce, maniacal ancestors would think. They drank from animals, just like how humans ate their meat. He supposed that’s what he had in common with them. Although that also meant they weren’t true vampires…nobody under the Suzuki roof truly embracing their roots, their vampirism.

That was alright, in Sunny’s mind. They were weaker than the others- and that was fine too.

Slipping, noiselessly down the stairs, like a mouse, he made his way to the front door, hearing Mari and his mother talk sternly from the living room. They must’ve been in the middle of packing up. 

They were too preoccupied to notice Sunny creep through the front door.

Once he was outside, at once winter’s pitiless, frosty breeze blew his cloak’s hoodie off his head, fraying his hair. The cold wasn’t the problem, he was already cold to begin with, it was being recognized. Hurriedly he pulled the hoodie back over his head as the snow continued to pile on him. He regretted not having also grabbed a scarf as he continued away from the garden.

He spared a look for the angel statues that always stood solemnly and sadly in the front garden. Now they were topped with snow, and one angel had her head broken off. It laid lifelessly beneath her feet, cracked just below her right eye, which seemed to portray tears streaming down her face. Sunny didn’t like the feeling of misdoubt the sight gave him. He hurried off, hoping the snow would hide him from view.

He would always watch his friends leave from their rendezvouses with longing stares as they parted ways and ran home. He had always been told he had an exceptional memory, he hoped it wouldn’t fail on him now. Venturing into Faraway without anyone else was beyond frightening. Especially in the middle of a never-ending rain of snow. He never would’ve even thought to do such a thing if it had been just a few days ago, although now was different. He was tired of being afraid every day of his life, letting it eat him inside out. He always had been as he grew older, and more pathetic. Guilt was all he knew. So long as he finished what he came here to do, he wouldn’t have to leave Faraway with as much of a heavy heart as he thought he’d be.

Faraway was mostly deserted. As expected, Sunny thought, the snow seemed to fall harder here than up on the hills. Vision clouded with snow, he pressed on down the streets. He missed the sound of the snow crunching beneath his feet. His feet wafted to the roadside. Muddy and icy. He didn’t miss that.

The momentary bliss soon faded. He panicked, was he going in the right direction? The streets seemed to stretch on and on. The buildings appeared to tower over him. He looked ridiculous standing in the middle of Faraway’s plaza, dressed in only a measly old cloak. Where was he again? 

He looked left and right. Impulsively, he ran right, into what looked like a street densely packed with small houses. He felt his chest relax, he was on the right path after all. He recalled once more what Aubrey had told him two nights ago. "If you...uhm, ever want to visit me, I live in a pathetic little house on the pathetic side of town. I’m the only house in the neighborhood that has a cracked window, I think. I threw my shoe across the room because I forgot to buy bread, and it hit the window. I'm sad, I know."

Sunny walked past the small houses, gazing at their windows, looking for a crack. Sunny was intrigued by how small and cramped these houses were, just a few inches apart from one another. 

Finally, he found the cracked window. Up in the corner, the glass split in a jagged line towards the centre. It was harder to spot under the frost, but Sunny had always been told he had keen eyes. Looking behind him once or twice, he squinted his eyes and tried to peer through the frosted window. He saw nothing but a curtain. 

The house itself appeared worse for wear, one would almost think it had been abandoned entirely. It had unquestionably seen much better days. A few roof shingles here and there were cracked, some were gone entirely. The house’s plaster was grotty, and by the doorsteps lay empty bottles amongst other rubbish. At least the snow that continued to cake everything in its wake managed to conceal some of the worse aspects of the house. It then dawned on him just how cold the inhabitants of the house must’ve been, having not really been affected by the winter and hadn’t given it much thought.

Sunny had always been worried for Aubrey, ever since he’d first heard her sardonic-soaked maunderings of her life, but now he felt he had every reason to feel worried, given the member state of her house, and everything else. Gathering his wits, he quickly slipped to the left side of the house, where it was clear, and he was sure he’d be able to get a glimpse of his own home from here if there was no snow to cloud the horizons.  

Here goes nothing, he thought to himself, looking into the window. He squinted his eyes, and sure enough, he caught sight of an unruly mass of curly hair and immediately, he ducked and slumped down the wall, heaving. He shivered, even though he wasn’t cold. He felt the palpitations of his heart pick up a fiery pace as he raised himself once again and rapped the window. Inconcise and shaky his knocking was that he felt a little frustrated with himself.

Sunny held his head low as loud footsteps approached and the window continuously rattled.

“Who the hell is it?” a fiery and booming voice resounded in Sunny’s ears shortly after a very miffed-looking Aubrey had thrown open the windows, shooting left and right for signs of a prankster or hoodlum stupid enough to pick on Aubrey, of all people.

“What the- Sunny?” Aubrey, in her frenzied fit, had failed to notice the frail boy crouching beneath her window. She blinked, not believing her eyes. “Is that you?” 

Sunny charily nodded. Aubrey’s expression changed into one of concern, cradling her forehead in the palm of her right hand. “God, Sunny, what are you doing here? You’re lucky there’s a snow storm. Come inside, you’re going to freeze to death! Is that pitiful cloak really all you have?” Aubrey prated. She really could be a worrywart when she wanted to.

Right, he’d never told Aubrey that he wasn’t really affected by cold weather. Sunny stared down at his pitiful cloak, before peering into Aubrey’s window, unsure of himself. “Uh…”

“Just climb in. Come on, I’m freezing.” Aubrey felt rather petulant, and even more so watching Sunny stand stiff, staring dumbly inside of the window.

“Well?“

“Uhm, I can’t come inside unless I’m invited in.” 

Aubrey felt rather stupid. Of course, obvious vampire knowledge. 

“You, Sunny Suzuki, are hereby invited into my- humble abode. That should do it, hurry inside.” She said, sarcastically and drowsily, lolling her head to the side. She clasped Sunny’s hands and pulled him inside, Sunny heaved himself onto her windowsill and jumped down, watching Aubrey close the window latch shut. He was tousling his hair free of snow with his cloak when all of a sudden, all of the embarrassment caught up with him. Did he really just climb in through Aubrey’s window? On such short notice, too. Well, that didn’t matter right now, he decided adamantly, for once in his life. 

“...Sorry, it’s probably not much warmer inside. You can, uh, probably tell I don’t have much. It’s embarrassing, really.” Aubrey sat on her senescent-looking bed, the look on her face indicated her humiliation at the state of her home. Her room was cramped- but homey, at best, if one ignored the thin drapes that weakly concealed a hole in the ceiling and the old, chipped furniture. A plain desk sat in the corner of the room full of books, papers and crumpled magazines, as well as a battered chair with a sort of gauze wrapped around one of its legs. A dresser with a heap of clothes on top of it, and a water-filled tin bucket that stood solemnly under the old drapes. Not to mention the sheer lack of warmth. Sunny felt something like an invisible sword stab his chest. Aubrey had to endure this every winter.

Aubrey started to look increasingly uncomfortable, shifting her knees and stealing occasional glances at Sunny. Such a far-cry from the luxuries that Sunny’s home was, Aubrey couldn’t help but feel ashamed. Eventually jaded enough, Aubrey stood up and gathered the linens from her bed- her only good linens, and stuffed them into Sunny’s arms. 

“Here. Hopefully these can keep you a little bit warm.” There was a somber look in her eyes when she gave the linens to him. Averting her gaze, she slumped back onto her bed and hugged her shoulders, tugging at her sweater sleeves. She was cold. Sunny could feel her hands when she gave her the blankets, they were ice-cold. It didn’t feel right at all.

Sunny spread out the mess of linens into a long sheet, and walked over to Aubrey and wrapped it over her shoulders, with as much of his familiar feather-touch that Aubrey always liked. Surprised, Aubrey turned to face him. “Sunny? Why are you giving it to me?” 

“You don’t deserve to be cold,” Sunny said, softly and airily as ever. Aubrey beheld the increased boldness in his voice over the last few days. It was weirdly enamoring.

Aubrey blinked, gawking at Sunny’s seemingly never-ending benevolence. “Says who?” 

“Me.” 

Rare are the times Aubrey was rendered at a loss for words. This was one of them. If she wasn’t so prideful, she’d maybe start crying right then and there. But she was, and she swore that nobody would see her ever cry.

“The cold isn’t painful for me. My whole body is like ice in the first place…” Sunny explained, almost dejectedly. Having to stay warm was something so human that someone of the likes of Sunny could never experience. 

“Oh…” Aubrey felt a duff combination of shame and idiocy. Clutching the blanket around her, she avoided looking at him, until she felt the mattress shift in weight.

“I like your room.” Sunny said, seated right next to Aubrey.

Aubrey looked at him like he was insane. He probably was. Disbelieving, she adjured, “ You? Like my room?” 

“Yeah. It’s nice.” He couldn’t exactly tell why he liked it either, he just knew he did. It was Aubrey’s, after all. He glanced at the bucket and the drapes. This room was a reflection of how strong Aubrey was. He really looked up to her.

“Kel was right. You are a weirdo.” Aubrey snickered, elbowing his shoulder. She continued chuckling to herself as her head dropped onto Sunny’s shoulder. Sunny didn’t dare to breathe or move a muscle. Surely if Aubrey knew how much his heart was pounding and how sweaty he felt at that moment, she’d kick him right out for sure.

His attention was all over the place, soon deciding to draw to the rattling window. All of a sudden, the reason he came here in the first place all came rushing back to him. As happy as he was, he couldn’t stay out for long. 

“Aubrey?” His voice was hoarse, every mutter felt like sandpaper.

“I…need to tell you something…” 

Aubrey didn’t like the sound of that. Raising her head off Sunny’s shoulder, she instead looked at him anxiously. “What’s wrong?” 

Sunny heaved laboriously. He really didn’t want to tell her. Maybe, just maybe, if he wished hard enough, everything would be okay. He could keep seeing Aubrey and his friends. 

But things like that don’t exist. The world was cruel like that.

“Please, listen,” Sunny choked, pulling his knees to his chest, burying his face with his arms. “I can’t stay here anymore.”

Aubrey leaned in closer, appalled and a little afraid. “What? What do you mean?” she pleaded.

“Sunny? Sunny…” Aubrey tugged at Sunny’s sleeve. She hated acting so desperately. But she wanted answers.

“I’m leaving, Aubrey. Tonight.” Sunny squeezed his eyes shut, they felt like they were on fire. He can’t cry, not now. 

Aubrey felt her heart sink. “What do you mean? Leaving where?”

“I’m leaving Faraway. I’m sorry…I’m so sorry…” Sunny kept his eyes fitfully clasped, tears threatening to spill. He didn’t want to face Aubrey, if her tone meant anything, she doubtlessly looked devastated. 

Sunny listened to Aubrey’s grieved gasps and then the feeling of her arms around his own. He slightly lifted his head from the empty comfort of his cold arms. “You can’t leave,” she said. “You can’t,”

“I have to.” 

“No.” at this point, Aubrey was going to smother him to death. Sunny felt his chest tighten at how insistent, desperate, she was. He felt as though he didn’t deserve any of the emotion being thrown at him.

“You know I wouldn’t let anyone hurt you, you know.” Aubrey respired, determination running through her veins. Still, there was the slightest note of hopelessness there.

Sunny dropped his head onto Aubrey’s shoulder. “I know you could.” 

Each caught up in their own heartache and the wretched ways of the world, all they could do was hold on to one another, and hope everything would be okay. Aubrey had made a promise to herself, all those years ago, that she wouldn’t leave her friend’s side. Not now, not ever. She could feel that promise slowly and dreadfully slipping away from her helpless fingers. Still, she was stubborn. So, so stubborn. She kept her hold around Sunny strong. She dared not let go.

“I’m not letting you go.” Aubrey huffed yet again, obstinacy prevalent in her voice.

“Why, Aubrey? You… you have to let me go. You shouldn’t be worrying so much about me,” Sunny stumbled on his words, hiding his face in his knees.

“ Why? Because I care about you, dumbass. You know that!” Aubrey’s ferocity was something to be admired. Sunny couldn’t help but be enraptured by her words. He couldn’t breathe properly. No matter how vexed, she always looked so pretty in his eyes. 

“Don’t say that crap about yourself, you know it’s not true. You’re my…best friend. I don’t like hearing you put yourself down.” She squeezed him tighter. wholeheartedly, “best friend” didn’t sit right in her stomach. But she couldn’t admit it. She wouldn’t. Her stubbornness wouldn’t let her. 

For Sunny, however, just being considered one of her friends was more than okay. Closing his eyes, he felt like he could be the luckiest person in the world. He wouldn’t trade this for anything the world could offer, not even being human. This was enough, just having Aubrey here in his presence. 

…His eyes stung. No, he wouldn’t cry. No matter how much it hurts.

Oh, no. Aubrey must have heard him sniff. She let go of her unrelenting hold and pressed on his shoulders, he felt his back hit the wall. “Sunny, look.” Aubrey said. Sunny looked at her. Her large, pretty brown eyes seem to bore into his soul. Her hair was awry, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were glossy. She was completely disheveled. Somehow, she was still the prettiest person on earth. At least Sunny thought so. Just how does she do it? She reminded him of those eternally lovely fae-folk from those storybook illustrations- damn, he was doing it again. Try as he might, he couldn’t stop the way blood would overtake his sallow cheeks, like an ink stain on white paper. How much he was staring was probably creeping her out. She was so close. Why was she close? He couldn’t think straight, everything was a blur, a mass of hair started to cloud his vision. What was happening? Everything was- 

He swore his cold, cadaverous heart was threatening to lurch back to life. His breath went rigid, all the words he had diminished in his mouth. 

(Sunny was never good at recognizing his own emotions. You don’t get much experience being secluded your entire life.)

With one last cumbersome huff, he mustered all of his restraint to push Aubrey away. Weakly he did so, he didn’t want to.

“I- I’m sorry. I’m sorry- I can’t-” Sunny breathlessly gasped, both hands hanging onto Aubrey’s shoulders. His heart hurt more than ever, and the dread in his stomach was stuck like glue. “This- this is wrong. Aubrey, you- you don’t deserve someone like me.” 

Aubrey sat still in shock, staring at an overwhelmed-looking Sunny with an open mouth and unblinking eyes. What was she thinking? Prudence was only slowly returning to her, leaving her throat full of needles and eyes burning, holding back tears from registering his words. She could feel something inside her stir and overboil. 

Suddenly, Sunny felt a sharp sting in his left cheek, which knocked his gaze to the ground. Cradling the pain with his hand, he looked up to see a riling, fuming Aubrey, gasping thickly, her right arm deferred in midair. 

Sunny’s stupor paled, making way for the low, poignant chuckle that spilled from his lips, a small and bittersweet smile on his face. “I guess I deserved that.”

Aubrey’s lip quivered, before she tackled Sunny in a ferocious embrace. To Aubrey, no matter how much she hugged him, it never felt like enough. And that seemed to be the breaking point, tears were streaming steadily down her red-hot cheeks. She jumped a little when Sunny amatorily returned the hug, his cold hands wrapped around her waist.

He whispered that he was sorry over and over again.

“Aubrey.”

…

“You and I… can’t. It’s wrong, you see?” Sunny ceaselessly tried to make it clear. The aching pit in his stomach tumescened at this… evil wanton, which was something kindred to the way moths are drawn to the light, magpies to silver and gold, Eve to the apples hung on the tree of knowledge.

I’m a monster. 

“Shut up, Sunny. Just… shut up…” The spot on his vest where Aubrey dug her face into was soaked. 

“Who gives a damn if it’s ‘taboo’ or whatever?” Aubrey cried, her voice thick with tears and frustration. 

“I like you, and that’s it. I don’t care if you’re a monster, because you’re not. For the love of god, stop calling yourself that!”

I like you.

There really wasn’t any convincing Aubrey, was there?

Sunny found it charismatic. He almost smiled.

Almost.

“…What is all that noise?” Aubrey reluctantly pulled back from Sunny’s vest, her face hot and wet with tears, strands of mussed hair slicked on her face. She looked out her window, pulling back the moth-eaten curtains. She saw a crowd of people passing by. Aubrey’s eyebrows knitted together. Where was everyone going? In this storm?

“What’s going on out there?” she contemplated to herself, after desperately wiping away any trace of emotional squalor from her face. She shivered as she did so, her fingers were numb and ice-cold against her hot cheeks. 

While Aubrey was looking outside, Sunny felt all of the dread, the apprehension, the terror all come back to him in one quiver. He shouldn’t have lingered such a long time, the logical part of him allured, the other begged to differ.

“...Aubrey, I-” 

Aubrey turned around, much too quickly for Sunny’s comfort.

“I really need to go. I’m sorry,” Sunny slowly pulled Aubrey in for another hug. This time, he was the one using all of his strength to squeeze her. “Goodbye. I’ll really miss you.”

Aubrey didn’t move while Sunny hugged her. She didn’t move when he let go. She felt she couldn’t move a limb again.

“Sunny, you dumbass!” she sobbed, clutching onto his dress sleeve. She watched him clumsily step off her bed, and unlock the window.

I love you.

She didn’t catch that. Her ears were too full of cotton, like the officious humming of radio static.

–

Chapter Text

The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees. Amongst the dismal, wan-looking sky, a ghostly moon watched over the turbulent town of Faraway. In that town, stood a tall, lanky boy with bedraggled hair that fell a little past his shoulders at the bottom of the hill that led to the Suzuki manor, whose legs felt as if they would give up in any second.

He stood in the back of a bustling crowd carrying torches and farm tools- spades, pitchforks, hoes, which surrounded the front of the manor. The falling snow had lessened to some extent, one could finally see clearly. There were a handful of people up in the Suzuki garden, lingering by the doorstep. Kel felt something invasive stir in his stomach as he watched one of them kick the angel statue’s stray head out of the way. Was that really necessary?

He pondered that question. None of this was necessary at all! Instead of taking the time to understand them, like the so-called gentle and good-natured people of Faraway they claimed to be, they decided to be afraid instead. Fear, it spread like a ceaseless wildfire in their little town. It seemed to hold dictation over every inch of their arguably- ostensibly picturesque lives. Now here they are, a mob gathered with fire in their eyes and weapons in their hands.

He was tired of it.

The crowd’s shrewd voices rang from all directions like a ticking clock. 

“Do you think they’re going to kill them?” 

“All their kind know is to kill. We should have done this long, long ago!”  

“Who are those people? Where are proper vampire hunters when you need them?”

Blood seemed to curdle in their scorched throats.

“Murderers! All of them! Murderers! ”

Kel clicked his tongue, absolutely fuming. These people didn’t know what they were talking about! They had no right to speak the way they did!

He opened his mouth to say something, until a smear of purple flashed in his peripheral vision.

Craning his neck over the flock of people, he spotted her. Sinewy brown hair and her beloved scarf wrapped loosely around her neck. His first thought was to run over to her, thankful there was finally someone to share his plight and bitter resentment with. He was stopped, just a few feet away from her by the realization that he never did tell her what happened with Basil. If her puffy face and ravaged expression meant anything, he wasn’t so sure if he wanted to further feed the fire by telling her right now.

Aubrey was soon drowned by the crowd. One blink, and Kel couldn’t see her at all. Sighing deeply, he turned around, wondering what on earth he could possibly do now. That’s when he saw a scrawny figure seemingly hiding within the dense pack of people, eyes wide like a frightened mouse and blond hair tousled. Kel felt something stir in his stomach. Something sordid. 

Without really thinking, he walked over to the boy. The closer he got, the more he began to notice things he’d never spared a single thought to before. How pink and peaky his skin was. How wide his eyes went, it was almost unnatural. Alien. Just how obnoxiously his blond hair stood on both sides of his head. At that moment, Kel saw nothing but a traitor in front of him.

Basil didn’t even realize Kel was here until he found him near-hovering off the ground, and his green sweater vest in a livid grip. 

Basil squeakily gasped. He felt like he was about to vomit his lungs out, as though he had just been thrown on a rollercoaster. His eyesight was blurry, right in the face of his always cheery friend. Except, the look on his face was anything but cheery. Frenetic, Vehement.

“ This. This is all your fault, isn’t it?” Kel spat venom, something Basil would have never considered in his life that his dear friend was capable of. This wasn’t right at all.

“Kel?” Basil choked, very close to breaking down and sobbing, out of the copious amount of so many emotions attacking him all at once. “W-What are you talking a-”

Kel trembled, gripping Basil’s vest tighter in his frightening caprice. “You absolute snake! How- How could you?” 

Lone tears escaped Basil’s anxious eyes. He knew what he had done- honest to God, he hadn’t meant for things to go so- haywire. He really didn’t. He swore by his heart. He was only trying to protect his friends. He only wanted them to be safe, just-

Maybe, he could have done things differently. 

A truly ugly guilt pierced his chest. He underestimated just how much his friends still cared for the Suzukis, reasons far beyond him. He never liked them. Even now he was unsure if he still did. However, someone was going to be hurt.

Because of him.

Because he was scared.

Because he’s just a kid. A scared, helpless little kid.

“I’m- I’m sorry, Kel.” Basil piped in between hiccups, not at all resisting how ghastly Kel tugged his vest. 

“Sorry isn’t gonna-“

It was like a fire being put out and lit again. Trembling, Kel let go of his friend, letting him drop quivery back on the ground. Did he really just do all of that? Say all of that? Kel felt a disgusting, bitter taste in his mouth. His stomach twisted out of guilt. That was his own friend .

Friends don’t do that to each other.

“Basil, Basil, I’m so sorry I- I don’t know-“ Kel gasped, falling backwards, as if he had been underwater.  “I don’t know what got into me.” 

Kel realized, at that moment, that he wasn’t so different from anyone else in Faraway either. He let his anger do whatever it wanted to, just like how fear ruled over Faraway. He felt awful, like his heart had dropped right out of his chest. If Basil left him, he only had himself to blame. 

“Kel, it’s okay.” Basil huffed. “This is…all my fault…” 

Harsh yelling and the furious rapping on wood echoed throughout the endless chatter. Kel felt like he was going to vomit out of sheer anxiety, though not as much as Basil. Kel drew in shaky breaths and turned sideways. Hero was out with his parents for the evening, a little investigating wouldn’t hurt. “That’s it. I’m going over there to check things out,”

Kel turned back to Basil. “You should just go home. I don’t think this is going to look exactly pretty. ”

Basil stood there for a moment. Scrunching his nose, he thought he had smelled something off. He shook his head.

“...Can I go with you? I- I just want to see. Then I’ll go home.” Kel frowned, his lips forming an indecisive line. “You, Basil? You sure?” Basil nodded.

Basil stayed low behind Kel, who pushed himself to the front of the crowd. There he found the front door forcefully pushed open. Broken into. He squinted his eyes on the door, something didn’t look quite right. It was falling over. The other door, still fixed habitually in its place, had the wood scraped and chipped. Epinephrine rushed through Kel’s body, fear rising like a high tide, both in him and Basil. 

“God.” Kel faltered, under his breath. 

Basil crept to Kel’s side, mouth agape, waiting for words to spill, until Kel suddenly jolted forward, “Damn it, Basil. I’m going in there, you hurry and go home!”

“Huh? No, Kel, you can’t-!”

Feeding even more into Basil’s near crippling paranoia, his friend was already gone. Clambering up the steps, almost being hesitant as he stepped through the broken door, before he had bolted again. Basil was left alone once again in the tumultuous crowd. If Kel hadn’t shown up, he would have been safe and at home long ago. But he couldn’t back out now- he had to stay and make sure Kel, being the impulse-driven being he was- wasn’t staggering and limping home with a near-severed arm, or something worse. Like being bitten-

Basil sucked his teeth and shook his head.

–

It was too quiet.

Too quiet.

He could hear every brush of fabric. Every creak in the old wood. Every gust of air that escaped his nostrils. Each and every incessant drum against his heart.

He remembered a conversation that Aubrey and Kel had.

“It’s not fair how this place treats Sunny and his family, y’know? Everyone looks to be so set on jumping to conclusions.” Kel exhaled.

“It’s just because they’re different from us. That’s why nobody’s batting an eye,” Aubrey groaned. “It’s like, if the police- or the head honchos or whoever- were set on executing a lion, nobody would really care because what do you think about when a lion approaches you? How sharp their teeth are. Not their feelings, or what their actual intentions might be. It’s fear that drives this place, that drives anyone, really. That’s the case with the Suzuki’s. No one gives a damn because they’re not like us.” 

Sunny knew that very well. So there he sat, knees right up against his mouth, sorely huddled with his distraught mother and sister in a barely-fitting broom closet, that was large enough for him and his sister to sit in. His mother half-kneeling, left hand resting above a dusty shelf, right hand pressing a handkerchief to her mouth, which her sharp fangs nearly tore through. Sunny could hear his mother’s hand slip off the shelf, and his sister’s shuddery gasp. 

They would have tried to escape through a window ages ago, but there were people crowded behind the house too, much to Miss Suzuki’s galling annoyance.

This all had to be some sort of nightmare, couldn’t it?

It was awful, so awful. He felt like he could definitely hear a pin drop. Every little noise set him up and over the edge. Faintly, he could hear the townsfolk’s bodily voices from outside, despite being hidden in a broom closet in the far hallway. Maybe, if he plugged his ears and squeezed his eyes shut as hard as he could, he would wake up back in his bed, in his room, and he would go about his day just as normally.

He felt like he needed to say goodbye to that sort of comfort, feeling so far and unreachable, even though it was only just yesterday he could feel the safety of his room and the lulling tune of his sister’s harpsichord.

He heard a loud crash, seemingly from the front door, and vicious words that he had managed to drain out in his stupor. The shock felt like his soul had been tugged and pulled in all directions. He heard his mother grunt hoarsely, her handkerchief had fallen out of her hands. Clutching onto his sister’s sleeve, he looked up at her. He noticed a familiar glint in her eyes, and in what seemed like a mere turning of a page, like that delirious moment when awakening from a long, harrowing dream, his mother had grabbed his hand and rushed them out of the closet. Sparing not even a glance behind them, nor paying any attention to the intense warmth that radiated from behind them. His mother aimed for the far window on the other side of the house, where they could hopefully run into the forest behind their house, hoping the snow and the gloom of the forest could conceal their presence.

They could have made it- they really could, if only they had been a little faster. If only fear hadn’t paralyzed their steps.

A loud and bizarre creaking echoed from above them. Just like that, a beam had fallen from the ceiling, and came with a thunderous crash just little ways in front of them. Mari jolted and screamed, her long fingernails digging into her pallid skin. Their mother backed them both away, looking up and down at the wreckage. Her voice was thin and torn with relevant fear. “Oh my god.” 

Not only had the beam come crashing down, but that beam was on fire. Sunny watched the flames dance greedily right in front of him. Everything would engulf in flames- they needed to get out of here, whatever it took. They heard the loud clouting of heavy boots, and a yell, “Where the hell are you?!” and their mother had immediately seized her children’s hands and turned sharply around, narrowly turning a corner, trying to reach the kitchen. Maybe, just maybe then she could-

Thud. 

“I- I’ve got her , the witch.”

Thud.

She snarled, and she hissed, “ Let go of me! ”

Thud. 

A large man, keen-looking and with fires burning in his eyes, he held his heavy, rugged boot harshly against Miss Suzuki’s head, hands holding her arms behind her. She writhed, she kicked, and she gasped, fervently trying to squirm herself out of his aching grasp. If only she could position her head right, she could try and bite her way out of his hold-

Thud.

Mari was clasping a heavy purple vase- arms outstretched above her head, she tip-toed behind the man, strands of hair falling sloppily over her face. Sunny had been knocked over, propping himself up with one elbow as he lay on the carpet, watching with horrified anticipation as his sister creeped closer and closer.

“GAH!” 

The vase smashed into pieces, rather brutally, leaving a ruddy wreck of glass strewn over the man’s now-lolled head. He fell off Miss Suzuki and fell over a few times, moaning and looking as if he was about to vomit. Mari must have given him some sort of concussion.

“You sick freak!” Mari shrieked, a newfound kindle in her eyes. involuntarily swinging her foot and kicking the man in the gut, who spluttered and gasped, fingers clawing the crimson carpet. Sunny recoiled at the sight, but felt an odd sense of awe towards it, too. This gave Sunny the newfound energy to pull himself off the floor, and went over to his mother, asking if she was alright.

She coughed a little, and tucked a messy stray lock of hair behind her ear, before she heaved herself up. “Sunny-”

Sunny glanced nervously at the unconscious man that laid motionless on their own carpet. But he couldn’t worry about the mess right now- the foul and heavy scent of cinder and ash filled his lungs and sweat rolled down his forehead. The fire was spreading unbelievably quick- nearly everything in their vicinity engulfed in flames, and the beam blocked the only way to the far hallway. Sunny swallowed the bile in his throat, a hopeless depression melting like candle wax in his empty stomach. Vampires were easily susceptible to fire, just as humans are, only just a smidgen worse. As almighty and powerful everyone thought they were, that was just not the case for the Suzukis.

“What…do we do now?” Sunny muttered, muffled from his face being pressed into his shirt sleeve to suppress the stink of the smoke. Inhaling smoke wouldn’t do him any harm, but it was still an unpleasant experience, and it stung his eyes. Loud shouting filled his ears from the outside world, he could scarcely make out anything, save for a vicious “Go for their heads first, you idiots!” 

Fast and bulky footsteps quickly approached closer and closer amid the sound of the fire blazing. A grunt and a few heavy coughs, and then a large splash of water- for the moment, unlighting the beam, leaving a heavy trail of loud sizzling, smoke and soot in its wake. 

“Hurry! Come on, I- I promise I’ll get you out of here somehow!” a familiar, spirited voice called out, only just a bit gravelly from the smoke.

It was Kel’s voice.

“Hurry up! The other guys will be here any minute!” he cried, stretching out an arm to help them across. Mari and Sunny gazed, dumbstruck to their mother. She knitted her eyebrows towards them. “Well, go ahead. Go! Hurry!” She pushed them towards Kel, who helped them over the beam. The shouting from outside started to get louder and louder by the second. Sunny could see the flames burning brightly not only inside of their home, but from outside too. Everyone was holding a torch. He was so afraid, stiff in his movements and his vision blurry. But he kept going on anyway. His family was his top priority.

Sunny huffed and let go of Kel’s hands. “Thank you, Kel. I was so sure we were done for if you hadn’t-“

“Hey, you there, kid!” a gruff voice boomed from right behind them. It came from a blond-headed man dressed in a red flannel. He then grabbed Kel’s wrist and tugged him away, sparing short and venom-filled (they were a little fearful too) glares towards the Suzuki's. Mari stepped in front of her brother and glared back at the man. It took every ounce of strength she had not to bare her teeth. She’s gotten older, and her teeth have gotten sharper along with her. 

“What the heck are you doing in this-” the man coughed into his sleeve, the fires were getting worse . “-place?! Get out of here! Go home!”

Kel fussed and growled. “No! I’m not letting you hurt them!” 

“What? Do you have a death wish, boy? Look at them!” the man tugged his wrist to the right, beckoning him to face these deemed “freaks of nature”. Kel’s blood was boiling. “You don’t understand anything. ”

The man was hesitant in doing anything to the Suzuki's. Was he afraid? 

Sunny was sure he was.

The bedraggled man shook Kel’s wrist. “Aren’t you friends with that Basil kid? He’s waiting for you outside, now scram!”

Sunny’s mouth hung agape. Basil?

Basil was here?

The last straw seemed to have been plucked from Kel’s temperance. “This is all happening just because you decided to believe a little kid who got the situation all wrong, you really don’t understand . ”

“You just, you jump at any chance at all to convict them for everything!”

The sound of Kel having to be wrestled gratingly out of the flaming, crumbling Suzuki manor was drowned out by the thoughts in Sunny’s head swarming like a hive around the queen. This was all happening because of…Basil?

Sunny felt his already-draining hope dwindle like the cinder sparks in the ashy air of their home. Even if he had never really gotten along with Basil, never had the chance to know or understand him, he still felt a twinge of betrayal, it stung like a wasp’s bite. His face seemed so distant, so unfamiliar now. Why did he have to do it?

The mayhem that underwent with his father happened so long ago. Why only now?

A figure was standing by the door, skinny and frail. It was hard to distinguish just who it was due to the smoke that fogged the premises, but Sunny had keen eyes. He made good use of them. Squinting, he could make out the frightened eyes, a green sweater-vest, and a head of angular blond hair. It was him. Basil was here.

Sunny wasn’t thinking straight when he risked catching his cloak on fire when he stepped over a fallen, aflamed console table. He wasn’t thinking when he walked straight to Basil, ignoring the gasping and screaming crowd that surrounded the bottom of the hill, all backing away, and refusing to do anything other than observing, as though this was some sort of melodrama. He ran and his mother and sister never noticed, until it was too late. Though the world around him was all but blacked out. The only thing that existed was the distance between him and the boy who had initiated everything that was happening.

Sunny’s blank, rigid stare frightened every drop of rationality out of Basil’s body, as he stood there, frozen like one of the angel statues that lay eternally dormant in the Suzuki’s garden. He stepped away, just a little, his arm trembling like he was freezing, grabbing at something in his drooping knapsack. His gaze fixated on Sunny’s face out of horror, he watched as his expression flickered between unmitigated sadness and almost, almost a hint of anger. It scared Basil- no, it terrified him. The ringing in his ears multiplied each step Sunny took, getting closer and closer. 

“Basil?” Sunny spoke, backing the cowering Basil into a corner.

“Sunny?!” a voice thundered from the crowd below. It was Aubrey, who was distracted from her brawl with a stocky farm boy, who had played a part in beginning the Suzuki’s informal expulsion. “Sunny, what are you doing? Get away from Basil, he’s not worth your time-” Aubrey took a brush to the face, shoddily dodging a disgruntled punch in her distraction.

Sunny failed to notice her, or it seemed that way. He didn’t know what he was supposed to feel at that moment, standing before his informer. “Y-You…” he heaved. Basil was at this point, hyperventilating, his bony legs shaking, which reminded Sunny of rattling bones.

Sunny’s mouth ajar and his eyebrows purled in an anxious way, he grabbed Basil’s sleeve, he felt like he had forgotten how to think clearly. “Why did you do this? Why, …Basil?” his name rolled off his tongue ruggedly and uncleanly. 

“W-What are you doing?! Get- Get away!” Basil wailed, blinded by his fear and alarm, unable to peel his eyes from those barred, ghastly set of fangs, acting only on his impulse now. He caned his arms and then plunged them down- holding something that Sunny couldn’t register.

He found himself knocked to the floor, in an utter, unimaginable amount of pain. He cried out miserably, tears streaming from his eye and blood out the other, his hands enveloping his face. Basil gasped as he stared down at a writhing Sunny, edged closer to the wall in terror, replaying what he had done about fifty times deliriously in his head. He facilely held in his hands, a wooden stake, carved to resemble a dagger’s likeliness. It was quite like when he had held that cross in front of Sunny when they’d first met, all those years ago. 

Sunny drew in shuddery breaths, sucking in air through his ground teeth. The crowd watched in awe, while Mari and her mother had come running and sobbing frightfully. But the fires have worsened, more beams and supports have crashed down, leaving a ferocious wall of fire that separated Sunny from Kel and the rest of his family, who had managed to clear a way to the hallway, where they could climb through the windows. 

All they needed was to retrieve Sunny- and they could leave. Leave Faraway forever, and never look back.

But Sunny…

Kel held Mari’s cardigan against his mouth, to prevent himself from inhaling too much smoke. His eyes stung and he felt dizzy from the heat and ailing air he was in. “With all this fire, I doubt anyone will bother bothering us. Hey, where did Sunny run off to?”

Miss Suzuki started to dart her head around the vicinity. Indeed, her son was nowhere to be seen. Mari scrunched her eyebrows. “I’m going back for him,” Mari proclaimed, pinching her nose with her fingers, turning sharply around. “This place isn’t lasting much longer, and by god, this smoke is unbearable.”

Mari took a rose vase from the hallway that hadn’t tipped over, and threw it over the fire that had now enveloped the living room entrance. Spending only a twinkling to watch as the bright-red rose blooms wrinkled and withered to dust in the flames. Her heart pounded against her chest and her eyes were watering from the ash and cinder in the atmosphere. She teared up as her dress almost caught fire, hastily stomping the flames out before it spread. The frustration she felt in this situation was astronomical, she had no idea how long she could keep up, her stress only being further nurtured by her house falling apart right before her eyes.

She shrieked.

She knew Heaven could hear her.

She found out that she would rather be as stressed as she was just a few moments ago, rather than the hell that played out in front of her. No, this was much too awful for a reality, even hers. She wanted to wake up. Oh, she wanted to wake up, but she never did. No matter how loud she screamed, or how she thrashed and kicked when her mother had come running into her arms, and held her close before she could throw herself into that foyer as well.

The bloodied foyer. It stood there in front of Mari, flames enveloping every corner of her bleary, water-dipped vision. The rest of the world was at that point, a mess of colors and shapes, watching her brother struggle and convulse sharply, breathing gruesomely, each breath he drew seeming more painful than the last. From what she could discern, it sounded awfully like he was choking on liquid as he sputtered and weakly pushed his assailant off of him. Mari, with quivering hands, brought them up to her mouth. Her baby brother. Her only brother. He didn’t deserve to suffer like this. Sunny’s hand weakly hovered over the stake that was stymied irregularly in his stomach. At once, his hand sagged onto the floor and his head slumped to the side. He gasped and huffed, he was in so much pain. So much pain at once that he had morbidly gotten somewhat used to the pain. His vision flickered in and out of blackness, his ears were full of cotton. 

Basil had attacked Sunny- not once, but twice, in a heedless hysteria of crushing fear. After he had jabbed Sunny’s eye with that stake, he had immediately regretted what he had done. But once Sunny had gathered enough of his cognizance to stand on his two feet, and claw at Basil’s sweater vest, confused and in an agonizing flux, he ended up scratching his arm, a deep, painful slit that oozed and oozed- though not as much as Sunny’s eye had bled, and never nearly as much pain. Basil had lost all judiciousness at that point. Like an animal in the wild, he ran completely on instinct, and of fear. Negligently, he fell on top of Sunny, and with it, the already-stained stake. 

Basil heard nothing but radio static.

His eyes traitorously drifted below him. 

He… did that?

He did this. By his own hands. The pain-ridden screams of the boy that lay, evidently laying on death’s door, was all due to him.

At least his parents would be proud of him, for once in his pathetic life.

Basil pushed those thoughts away. He looked like a mess. Blood that was not his own stained his shirt. On the burning floor. On his hands. Oh, god, his hands. The rest of the world was a cesspool of staring faces. Shapeless forms, disembodied voices, only eyes, looking at him here and from the sky, looking down on him, condemning, judging, condemning. Judging. His heart was pounding excruciatingly painful against his brittle, porcelain ribcage. Were the tears that were streaming incredulously down his face even real? Or were they fake? This had to be a dream. A… hallucination. It just had to be. He didn’t like vampires, but he didn’t want to end his fears like…  this . He was too much like glass, too much, he couldn’t handle the burdens of having killed someone who he wasn’t sure was even a criminal, or innocent anymore, by his own hand.

His fears only got worse. It coiled around him, squeezing him, choking him, draining him, like a snake in the vines.

The townspeople would praise him, oh, they’d praise him. He would be their savior. Everyone would adore him.

But there were other people. Not like the townspeople. Not like anyone else. People who were…odd, but they cared for the vampires. 

They’d hate him, more than they already do. They would kick him, berate him, not even look at him. Spit on his grave, and he’d be lonely. All over again.

All over again.

He felt a foul sickness rise from his stomach to his esophagus, purging onto the wooden floors beneath him. He sucked in breath after breath, yet his lungs were never full.

“You’re so cool! You can somehow care for so many pretty flowers, I bet it’s hard. I tried that with roses once, but for some reason, they didn’t even last a week. Can you teach me your secrets?” Aubrey pleaded, playfully dragging out the last sentence in a sing-song manner. 

He would never hear the end of it. God wouldn’t let him. 

“Hey, new kid, do you like to play any sports? …No? Aw, well, that’s fine too! We can, uhh, we can play by the river and pretend we’re pirates. Here’s a stick, you have to protect the treasure from the sea witch, Aubrey. Come on!” Kel took his hand and dragged him to the river bank. Aubrey wasn’t so chipper though, but Kel just laughed it off. 

The fire was steadily closing in on the small foyer, more bits and pieces crumbling with every passing second. Each and every painful second. One last fleeting look to his alarmingly bright-red hands, and that was it.

“I… I… No! No! No! No! NoNoNo NO!”  

Like a child fleeing a haunted house. He was gone. Out of sight. 

Nobody went after him.

–

As much as Sunny wanted to stay there in his torment and let death take him, there was still his family. More than anything on earth, he needed to make sure they were safe. If he lost them, he didn’t know what he would do with himself.

He couldn’t let that happen. 

Sunny rasped gruffly and sweat as he tried to prop himself up, whimpering and grousing as the stake lodged in his stomach twisted and turned, the pain it caused threatening to pull him away from his consciousness, like waking up and falling back asleep, only each time more painful than the last.

If he wasn’t so injured, he would have heard the crowd gasp loudly as he shakily stood up. If he wasn’t in this grave amount of pain, he would have heard a few onlookers point and yell, “He took a stake to the eye and chest? How?” and another, “He must be a demon. A devil, that’s what he is.” and another. “What a brave boy that was, the one who had the guts to challenge the vampire. Where’s he gone?”

Sunny groaned and fell against a wall, which was hot against his skin. He coughed- it was so painful. It hurt to even move. The cough forced his stomach in, which he recoiled in pain. He hunched over, the ache never lessened. Gasping, he stood back on his feet and slowly limped, blinking at the sight of the walls of fire surrounding him. He needed to be quick, even as his blood left a murky trail behind him and he could feel death whisper soundly in his ears. 

He walked a little further. He looked up. There was his sister- crying and shrieking, she was bent over an ashy fallen beam. Any sound he could hear felt as if he was listening from under deep waters. His sister screamed and reached out for him, “Sunny! Sunny, oh god, Sunny! Don’t move- I- I’ll help you, I swear!” tears streaming down her face, she yelled as loud as she could. Sunny felt his heart clench at the sight of his despaired sister.

Clarity slowly returned to Sunny, and he understood what was happening. 

“Did you… find a way… out?” Sunny said softly between heavy breaths. His sister reached out and held his hand, cold and bloodied. “Y-Yes, Sunny. We found a way out. Mother and your friend Kel are waiting outside for us, just-“

“No.” Sunny croaked.

“Sunny?” 

“I… can’t. Not in my condition. I need… to stay…” Sunny, by some miracle (or perhaps by his arrant strength), managed a minuscule smile. 

“Stay!? Sunny, you can’t stay here. You- you’ll“ Mari clamped her eyes shut, tears overflowing. She compelled herself to look properly at Sunny, his injuries. Sunny shut one eye tightly, where blood trickled down his cheeks like spilled ink. Then to his stomach, where a noxious stake was lodged in. He covered his injury with his ashen and blood-stained cloak. His injuries were horrific, it was a complete miracle he was still standing… Mari still held onto this desperation. There was still hope. There was still a way, she swore by her cold, stale heart.

“I’ll… I think I won’t be here long either way…” Sunny squeezed her palm. “I just need to… tell someone goodbye.”

“What are you talking about?! Please, Sunny, you won’t be going anywhere. You can do this. You can do it… for me? Please?” Mari was at her wits end. She could feel herself sink, down to the bottom of the deepest ocean. She held both of Sunny’s hands together with her own, as her home fell apart even more before her, and the flames threatened to ravage them along with it.

“You know I’ll… always be there for you, Mari. But right now… this place isn’t safe. I want you to be safe… first. Please Mari, you need to go,”  Sunny fell into another fit of coughs. Each more painful, and bloody than the last, Mari feeling more sorrow every time Sunny was in pain. She never wanted him to experience something like this, ever.

Erstwhile memories flashed before Mari’s eyes. She remembered when Sunny was a young child, and would ask her, every night, to tell him a story. Even if it was the same fables and poems of the same gallant knights and silk-stocking faeries, he always told her that it was the way she told those stories that put him to sleep.

What she would give to read him just one more story.

“I’ll see you someday.” was Sunny’s soft and comforting voice. Why was it only now that she noticed how much more profound his voice had become, he really was growing up, wasn’t he?

Mari hung her head low and wiped away her tears, stealing another glance towards her dear little brother and his injuries. She understood now, she understood plainly. Even if she did bring him along, he wouldn’t last. Not like this.

She wished and prayed with all her weary soul that things could have been just a little different. Sunny wouldn’t be in pain, and they’d at least have some form of semblance when they did flee home, together.

They were a family. No family leaves each other behind. 

“I love you, Mari. I’ll see you again, I promise.”

Maybe not on this earth, but somewhere. Someday. She had to put her faith in him, didn’t she? She knew Sunny never failed to keep a promise.

She really, really didn’t want to leave him behind. But this house of theirs was soon to be nothing more than rubble and stone in the soil, she needed to let Sunny give his goodbyes. He would have wanted her to let him go.

“I’ll see you again, won’t I?” Mari mourned, holding his hands close to her once more. Sunny smiled at her. 

“Yeah.”

–

Nobody said anything while Sunny trudged out of the burning manor. Nobody did anything when he walked past the lingering crowd at the bottom of the hill. No hands reached out to grab him, no voices to decry him a devil. The crowd silently let him pass, almost as if Faraway itself realized that he wouldn’t be here for long.

The snow crunched beneath his feet. The snow fell softly and slowly, reminding him of somber Christmas nights. The sky was darkening, still it was blanched and cast with stretching clouds. The air was still and deathlike, no breeze to tousle his hair and chill his nose.

Nobody followed him into the empty, dismal clearing past the roadside where he fell on his knees, surrounded by thin, gaunt and barren spruce trees. 

Except for somebody. 

A pang of dizziness overwhelmed him, and he felt himself falling over, his limpidity seemed to phase this way and that, like streetlights at the first sign of sun. He expected his face to be met with cold, damp snow, instead, his fall had broken completely when he landed in the arms of someone warm.

Someone exactly who Sunny wanted to see.

They both fell to the snowy ground. He felt something wet pepper his hands. He looked up at the source of those tears, and was met with a comely face, only changed by her sanguine cheeks, her red, doused, puffy eyes, and the way her long brown hair was a mayhem of slovenly curls, slightly damp from the snowfall, and the side of her jaw bruised, likely from her fracas with the village boy. 

She sobbed miserably and threw herself down onto his chest. “Sunny, Sunny, you idiot.”  she weeped, and never stopped. She felt like the world was ending right before her, seeing Sunny walk out of that burning, godforsaken manor with a bloody eye and a stake wedged callously in his stomach. She felt an unabridged, flaming rage towards the blond boy whom she was disgusted that she had ever called a friend in those days- how could he? How could he? She would never forgive him. Not now and not ever. But more importantly, she felt so much regret and hate, towards Basil, the world, everyone, herself. She promised Sunny that she wouldn’t let him get hurt. So what was this then? She won’t let herself live it down. Forgiveness was such a foreign word to her. 

“I’m sorry, Sunny! I’m so sorry!” Aubrey shrilled gravely, shaking her head out of her own qualms. Her hands were soaked with his blood now, but she didn’t care. Sunny breathed slowly and morosely, reaching a weakened, skinny hand to her wet and balmy face.

“What… are you apologizing for?” Sunny chuckled waveringly, like ripples in the ocean. “I got…myself…into this mess.” It was becoming harder and harder to speak, still, Sunny was determined to make the most out of his seldom luck. 

Aubrey sobbed bitterly. “I was supposed to protect you. But I can’t even do that! Don’t leave me alone…not now. You’re all I have.” her voice was sunken and glutted with salty tears. “Please, just- just a little longer. I’ll get you help, somehow! I just- I need to stop this bleeding!” she glimpsed at his wounds, which refused to stop seeping with what reminded Sunny of the bright red candle wax he saw his mother use to seal envelopes.

Sunny lambed Aubrey’s cheek. “Please don’t cry… It’s really, really not your fault. And…I won’t leave you. I can’t, anyway.” Sunny used his other hand to dig a handkerchief out of his vest pocket, and lay it over his imbrued eye. He could feel what unbearable pain he had felt dwindle slowly. 

Perhaps, it was almost time. His vision flickered like a light bulb, everything appeared fuzzy and watery, like he was experiencing a daydream. A really beautiful one, too. He should be sad, he should, yet he knew his family was safe, and Aubrey was right here. With him. He wouldn’t miss this for the world. He gazed at Aubrey beguilingly. “Did I ever tell you…how pretty you look in purple?”

Aubrey only sobbed even more. She leaned in closer to his face, just to get a better look at him. He looked at her in such a dreamy way, like one would look at statues of hellenistic angels. She thought of those pretty drawings of her in his sketchbook, and felt her heart crushed a little more. She’d never see those drawings again. 

“...Did I ever tell you, you’re the prettiest boy I’ve seen?” Aubrey breathed, just wanting as much time with him as possible. To her, he gave her more warmth and shine in her days than any mighty sun in the sky. She watched Sunny’s mouth upturn at the corners, giving her a tender smile. She wanted to hold that smile in her hands, and cherish it until the day life caught up with her.

Sunny…he didn’t deserve to leave so soon. Aubrey clasped his hand and grazed his face with her fingers, brushing aside strands of black hair from his forehead. She left a kiss there, letting her lips linger on that cold forehead for longer than she’d intended. Maybe, just maybe, by some miracle, her kiss, or her tears, would heal his wounds. Cure his hurt, sickness, any ailment he had.

Wishful, beautiful thoughts.

After all, it made Aubrey's stomach turn at the thought of outliving a vampire, an alleged immortal being. This shouldn't be happening, fairy tales wouldn't end this way.

Even for a vampire, life eventually catches up to everything. Sunny exhaled a drawn-out breath of cool air, and uttered, “Can you smile for me?” 

He was sweet, and he was gentle, in whatever he did and said. Light as a feather. Aubrey adored that about him. “Okay.” and she smiled. It was difficult, it was very difficult, but because he asked, it was easier. Sunny smiled back at her. 

His voice was like a winter breeze. “Thank you for everything, Aubrey.” 

And I love you.

Aubrey sobbed, and sobbed, and sobbed. She apologized, she wept, and wouldn’t stop apologizing. She regretted not telling him that she loved him, truly, genuinely, infinitely, sooner. She told him she did. She prayed to any deity- god- any higher being out there, to help her. Bring him back. But he didn’t. He lay there, peacefully in the cold snow, letting it seep into his clothes and wash away his pain and blood. She wept ceaselessly, until her chest hurt and her head pounded. Her legs were stiff, sore, and damp, but she could hardly care. She wept until it was late, into the crepuscule of the night, when finally, the clouds had cleared and made way for the round moon to shine. 

Aubrey had always hated goodbyes.

–

Death is a solemn, gentle being. Pain, yes, is one thing, but death is another. 

Sunny rested soundly in the old clearing in the woods behind the Suzuki manor. Kel had made him his very own headstone, out of begging his father for materials. It was left unmarked and clean. The sun shined brightly in the clearing during the mornings. With that, Sunny had his wish of seeing the sun fulfilled. Kel hoped he liked it. 

Aubrey liked to leave Sunny a handful of ambrosia blossoms. Along with them, she tucked in a wax-sealed envelope. What was in that letter, forever remained a secret between Aubrey and Sunny.

At first, Aubrey and Kel made a point to visit every day, without fail. Although, as the days have gone by, the sun seemed brighter and the sight of the grisly, charred remains of the Suzuki manor no longer deterred them (they had once ventured into the rubble and salvaged whatever they could), they visited only sporadically, and on days like Christmas, and his birthday. Aubrey didn’t know if she’d ever find someone like Sunny ever again, and frankly, she didn’t need to. Neither did Kel know if he’d ever have as much fun as opposed to when he would sneak off to visit Sunny with the others. And that was fine too.

–

Time has passed.

A lone car lingers in the misty dead of night. The faint sputtering of the engine is the only sound to be heard for miles. The headlights shine on the inky, lurid remains of a large mansion. A shutter snaps, and the car drives off, leaving only the pale blue of the moon to accompany the manor’s former inhabitants. 

When the dusk rolls in, so they say, when the sun has faded behind the distant mountains and dark lines of evergreen, when the street lamps had been lit and have illuminated the streets, when the sky is bathed in tones of purple and blue, 

You can still hear- up on the hilltop- in the blackened and mossy remains of the old manor, the evanescent plinking of harpsichord keys, leading what once was a jubilant dance under the moonlight.

–