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Vitus wandered the house as the moon reached a high point. It felt weird to have the freedom to move about even now. Although Delphia and Vincent were both gone for a while. Delphia wanted to get something far away and asked the wolf for his help. The others were using the time to get more sun, but he couldn’t change his habits. He smiled as his thoughts drifted to his family asleep in a nice human bed.
Laughter rang in the hall around him. He dove under a table and looked for a human he missed. There was no one around, but footsteps ran past him. A part of him thought he should leave, go back to his family. A stronger part urged him to follow the steps and laughter. The laugh sounded somehow familiar.
The footsteps seemed to move just slow enough for him to follow. Every time he stopped the laughter stayed close to him. The trail of footsteps and laughter brought him to the study. He jumped as the image of a young human girl appeared. She ran through the door, the laughter echoing from the image. He didn’t get a good look at her. He slipped through the walls to follow the phantom image.
“Father! Father!” the girl called as soon as he’d entered the room. He watched her run up to a human standing by the bookshelves. Their image slowly seemed to grow solid, making Vitus gasp. It looked like him, but human. The human phantom of himself was dressed differently, more like in that painting Delphia had. “Did you mean it!?”
“My light,” his phantom smiled. The little human girl seemed to shine as he spoke. He watched the phantom grab something from the shelf. He couldn’t tell what was grabbed until the phantom of himself kneeled to meet the girl. “This is an important book so make sure to treat it well.”
“Can I read it outside father? Please? I’ll be careful, but I’m feeling better today!” Vitus climbed on a shelf and made his way closer to the two phantoms. His nerves died as he saw a young face of Delphia. She had a bright smile, she looked more alive than he’d seen her. His phantom started to laugh.
“Of course my light, go ahead. I’ll come read with you once I’m done here.”
The phantom Vitus smiled and laughed as Delphia ran out. His phantom faded away, but the little girl just made it out the door. Vitus moved to follow, but the footsteps froze and sobbing took over. He ran as fast as he could to find the child image of Delphia on her knees. He could see scrapes all over her arms and the start of bruises on her face. A torn page of paper sat on the ground in front of her.
“I’m so sorry. I was just reading. Father, I'm sorry they took the book. I told them I’d never read it again, but they didn’t listen. I’m so sorry…”
The image of a young Delphia faded away as her eyes locked on him. He made his way home, soft apologies and followed him through the hall. Once he reached his family the voice had finally faded. He had no idea how something like that could happen, but somehow he knew it was a real memory. It was something she had experienced. He took his place with Dabria on the human bed and tried to sleep. This was a bit of Delphia’s past that only he’d see.
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“Thanks for helping with this Vincent,” Delphia sighed. She would never make a trip like this without someone to help her hide during the day. The wolf huffed next to her as he started to settle into place for the day.
“It’s better than dealing with my strawberry panicking the whole time you’re gone,” he said. Delphia smiled, she was glad he’d shown up. Having all of these people around her, it was an amazing feeling after so long.
“I just hope it’s still there.” Vincent let out a low growl, he hadn’t liked her request in the first place. She just wanted to get something special for the family that found her.
“I could have just gone without you. I would move faster than this.”
“It’s better I’m not there right now. It’s around when I lost everything… I always felt like I was reliving my memories, this keeps me distracted.” She jumped when his huge hand settled on her head. She looked up, the eyes staring down at her didn’t seem angry. She could swear he almost seemed sad.
“Just turn into a bat already. The sun is rising. No reason to get burned.” She nodded, his hand left her. It almost reminded her of times with her original family. She closed her eyes and turned like he asked. He let out a bit of a growl before holding open his pocket. She slipped in, the warmth he gave off was a nice change. She didn’t worry about pulling it all away. It wasn’t long before she felt the pull of the rising sun and she gave in to her death like sleep.
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Rhys was enjoying taking apart the new thing Vincent brought him. He said it was a game console, it had more parts than any human thing he’d seen before. The werewolf promised to bring him back something again… Although he said it would be strawberries. Rhys made a face, the day he finally tried one he hated the nickname even more. The taste of the fruit was awful.
The place was quiet, he couldn’t sleep in the silence. Something just felt off. He continued pulling wires free as the night wore on. Suddenly a crash from outside pulled him from his tinkering. He climbed out, worried that someone might be breaking in. He could hear footsteps in the hall outside the room he was in. It was the room Del had set up for Vincent to use. He climbed down from the table and slipped out from under the door.
He heard footsteps further down the hall. Rhys kept close to the wall and made his way towards the noise. He heard a bit of laughter that he’d never heard before. He shivered, humans here would be hard to deal with until Delphia and Vincent got back. He heard footsteps at the end of the hallway. He ran as fast as he could to the noise.
“I’ll get you little sister,” a man called. He jumped as footsteps ran past him, but he didn’t see anyone. He heard laughter following, he went after the noise. A translucent human seemed to appear out of nowhere. Another one ran past the first, the first grabbed them and spun around. Laughter rang out.
“No, no put me down!” the girl shouted. He recognized the voice.. Del. It couldn’t be her, she wasn’t here. This human was too small too, her face looked more alive than usual. “Rhys! You’re not winning this time.”
“....Rhys?” he whispered. The taller human laughed as she squirmed, but he just sat down in the air with her. A bed appeared beneath him.
“You need to sleep, stop running around. You had a fever this morning,” the phantom of himself said. He could recognize features he had now. The same hair and eye color, the same facial structure. It was him, but a human. He froze when the pink eyes seemed to lock on him for a moment.
The Delphia held in the phantom’s arms pouted. He watched as his phantom self stood and set her on the bed. She was carefully tucked in, but an arm shot out to grab his phantom. Rhys couldn’t control his curiosity, sneaking closer to the phantom scene. The human version of himself sat down on the translucent bed and smiled.
“Why do you all use a nickname for me?” Delphia’s phantom whispered. “The others said it was weird that it’s not even the same one.”
“We have separate nicknames because you're special. You’re my only little sister after all,” his phantom said. The scene shimmered before it was Delphia alone in bed. She was older now, alone and staring at the wall. It hurt to see the tears streaming down her face.
“I’m not just your little sister Rhys…” The murmuring sounded painful. He went closer, her eyes locked on him. “I’m going to save us, I won’t let us suffer anymore. It doesn’t matter what I want if I can save all of you.”
The scene faded away. Rhys stared at the empty air for a while. He knew she gave up things to try and help her family, but this seemed worse. He slowly made his trip back, faint echoes in the hall of words between his phantom and Delphia’s. He couldn’t make out the words anymore, but the voices were clear. He just climbed up to a windowsill and stared out at the sky. He had some thinking to do.
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“I was thinking, Rhys might like strawberry candy,” she laughed. Vincent had gone full wolf and was running on the ground while she made her way through the trees. She heard a whine, he didn’t understand. “He likes sweets, but he doesn’t like fruits much. Let’s get some when we head back.”
All she got back was a growl, but it was enough. She hissed when a ray of sunlight hit her arm. She lost balance falling short of the tree she was jumping to. Vincent caught her quickly, his form shifted as his huge hands were holding her. The man’s eyes were still wolf-like, but she didn’t hesitate. It had gotten too close. She switched to a bat so he could put her in his pocket and keep moving.
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Felix had gathered up all the clothes they had for the winter. It would be cold soon and they needed to be fixed. He set up in the study, preferring to have more open space to work. Delphia left something he could use for music out, but he didn’t want to break the silence. It was weirdly calming to sit out in the open in silence. An easy way to know who approached.
“This one’s no good,” someone whispered. He snapped his head to the door, he knew it came from the hallway. He abandoned his work and laid down near the door. He could see the empty hall and nothing else. Felix heard footsteps,but didn’t see anyone. “Maybe this one…”
He jumped, the voice sounded behind him. He climbed to his feet and spun around, staring at a human that looked a lot like him. They had black hair a bit longer than he preferred. There were translucent cloths draped around the phantom of himself. He watched as one was held up, a full dress not just bits of cloth.
“This is perfect,” his phantom smiled. The dress looked like the one Delphia had found. He watched his phantom set on some mannequin type thing. It didn’t look like the ones he’d seen on the television. His phantom’s eyes looked sharp as he worked on the dress putting in finishing touches.
“Felix, mother says dinner is almost ready,” Delphia said. Felix spun around, watching a phantom of her walk in through the door. She seemed young, but somehow close to her age now. His phantom hid the gown just a bit too late. “Didn’t you send that one out the other day?”
“No, I just sent some similar fabric. This is for you, gem,” his phantom smiled. Felix watched his human sized features change the same smile he wore when the others liked something he made now.
“But… we can’t afford-” his phantom pulled the dress off the strange model and held it in front of Delphia.
“If you are going to be meeting nobles then you need to look the part. One dress won’t ruin me.” The phantom Delphia hugged his phantom. Sharp golden eyes looked his way for just a second. The scene shifted, like the strange videos he watched at times.
Delphia was on the ground, his phantom was there, but looking past her. He watched her tears falling to the empty ground. The phantom of himself stepped forward and set a hand on her shoulder. His phantom’s hand went through her. Delphia’s phantom stared at him, the real him not the phantom. His phantom stared his way too. It felt like this ghost was seeing him.
“I won’t let you die for nothing. I never should have done this, I should have made you keep the dress. I’ll save us, I promise.”
Felix shivered as wind blew through the room. The scene he watched seemed to blow away in the breeze. He frowned, the pain sounded too real. She had mentioned a night things went bad, where his past self was lost. All he could think was it was that night. The night he was hurt and she lost him. Felix returned to his work, but used the music player Delphia bought. Silence seemed cruel now.
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Vincent huffed as the sun finished rising. Delphia felt like dead weight in his pocket. He didn’t get why she wanted to do this. Some old tradition that fell out of popularity was what she said. He hasn’t even convinced her to tell him what they were going to get. He let out a satisfied growl once a cave his wolf form could fit in came into sight.
“Just what are we getting…” he sighed as he turned human to make his way inside. He couldn’t forget that night, where she looked like a child in front of him. It made it hard to hate the vampire in his pocket. “You trust too much… I could just leave you here.”
He shook his head before crouching down in the back of the cave. Anything in here was hiding well enough he didn’t care. He shifted to his wolf form, filling the cave until his body blocked the entrance. He curled up using his snout to block Delphia in case something got curious. She did smell of death, it could attract others. When he was half asleep he thought he heard footsteps, but there wasn’t a scent attached to it. He let himself drift off without a reason to investigate.
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Ash jumped as they woke up. Alessia was lying on their shoulder. They smiled, it had been a nice day. The two decided to rest in the garden after tending to the plants. They gently shook her awake, smiling more as she groaned. She stretched and wrapped an arm around them. The calm moment fell away as they heard footsteps from the nearby open door.
“Alessia, wake up,” they whispered. She tightened her hold. “I heard footsteps.”
She sat up immediately. The sleep was gone from her and they started to stand. They inched closer to the door, looking for the human. Alessia slipped in front of them, inching into the hallway. They followed her, freezing as steps passed by them. They couldn’t tell how many, but definitely more than one.
“The garden is right out here,” Delphia’s voice sounded nervous. “Thank you again for your understanding. This will help us a lot.”
“Of course, I think I can do anything for the seer who saved my life,” Alessia’s voice echoed above them. Ash stared in awe as a human who looked almost exactly like their lover appeared in the hall.
“This is a better price than the inn here too,” Ash’s voice said. They watched as someone who looked like them seemed to materialize next to the phantom Alessia. Ahead of their two human phantoms a phantom Delphia appeared. She was blushing.
The Alessia and Ash above them kept glancing between each other and the phantom Delphia. Ash walked forward until they stood at the feet of their double. For a moment they felt like the double could see them. They flinched as the double stepped forward, placing a hand on the phantom Delphia.
“Are you alright?” they asked. Alessia ran forward, past their doubles and straight to Delphia. They watched her stare up at the face they both loved.
“Of course! Why wouldn’t I be?” Delphia’s phantom let out an awkward laugh. Alessia’s phantom started to move, Ash almost swore she looked at the real Alessia.
“You seem nervous… should we leave? I know our question wasn’t normal…” They couldn’t bring themself to move as Alessia’s double tilted her head up to Delphia. They smiled, even at a human size she was shorter than Delphia.
“No, no… I just didn’t expect it… You even said you’d help us…” The smile on Delphia’s phantom was blinding. “We only recently met too…”
“There’s no rush. We’ll be leaving in a few days, you can answer when we return from the city.” Their double tilted Delphia’s head, it was something they wanted to do themself. “Don’t be scared, beautiful flower.”
The phantom Alessia pulled Delphia into a hug. Ash saw her mouth move, but couldn’t hear the words. The phantoms of themself and Alessia faded away, Delphia was left alone. They walked up closer, standing next to Alessia at Delphia’s feet. The phantom had tears in her eyes before she fell to her knees before them. They both set a hand on the phantom, they went unnoticed.
“You said you’d take us all from this place… you promised months ago. That it would only be a week… I believed you…” Delphia’s phantom cried. “You’re gone… You’ll never come back and I have to know I’ve lost you. Please, don’t let the news be true. Please don’t be dead.”
The phantom’s tears continued to fall. Ash desperately wanted to climb up and wipe them away. Slowly the phantom faded, Alessia fell to her knees. Ash kneeled next to her pulling her into a hug. They stared at the faint remnants of the phantom Delphia’s tears.
“Ash… was that real?” Alessia whispered. They wiped away the tears she started to shed.
“I think it was. It seemed like Delphia’s past with us, when she,” they paused, it wasn’t just her. “When we were all human.”
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Delphia laughed as they entered the field. Vincent tried to hide a smile as she ran through the flowers. He’d never seen them before, they had a smell he couldn’t quite explain. The two walked through the field, the sun would be up soon. He stayed close to the small woman, trying his best to keep her in his own shadow. She didn’t even mind that he was looming over her.
“I’m glad they’re still here, I wasn’t sure they would be,” she sighed. He just narrowed his eyes and watched as she fell to her knees. She was looking at each flower near her.
“These are weird flowers,” he said. Vincent reached down to pick one, jumping when the petals seemed to change at his touch.
“They are… It was something special, we would get them every year. The petals were special.” He nodded, waiting for her to continue. The silence seemed to drag on as she ran her hands over the flowers. They didn’t respond to her touch like they did his own. She laughed almost bitterly.
“So we came all this way to get these? Are you going to bite them like those other ones?” He felt nervous when she smiled up at him. That look from the night she was collecting flowers alone came back. It seemed like she could disappear in an instant.
“No, we need to hurry. I think if you run back at full speed we should be back in time.” He sighed a bit, full speed was much faster. It also meant his pockets weren’t an option. “We just need a way for you to carry me back… There was a town nearby, maybe I can check there tomorrow night.”
He nodded and she just continued to run her hands over the flowers. His eyes widened when a tear fell from her face. Slowly he pulled her close, hugging her. He didn’t know what the memories were she was seeing, but they obviously hurt. At some point he hated this vampire a lot less, she felt like a sister more often now. He didn’t know how to feel about the fact she’d be left alone in the future.
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Luna was having trouble sleeping. He missed having Delphia around, he liked knowing she was there. Sola didn’t have trouble like him. He jumped, there was noise nearby. He couldn’t be sure, but it sort of sounded like Delphia’s footsteps when she was being fake human. He climbed over to Sola and started shaking her.
“Mmm, not yet,” she moaned. He shook her harder until her eyes finally opened. “Luna…”
“I heard something,” he whispered. Most of his family was asleep and he didn’t want to worry them. Sola always came with him when he heard something. She sat up rubbing her eyes and he climbed to his feet. This time when he heard it he knew it was footsteps.
“Steps?”
He nodded and Sola was on her feet in no time. The two of them ran over to the edge of the bed and climbed down. Sola was on the floor and running a bit before him. He jumped from a bit above the floor to try and catch up. The steps picked up, it sounded like a bunch of humans. Sola was fidgeting near the door as he caught up. The footsteps started to decrease.
“Should we go under the door?” she whispered.
“I think so,” he said.
The two laid flat on their stomachs. Together they slipped under the door, Delphia had helped make it easier to go between all the rooms. She had them help, trying to slip under each one and then she fixed it to be easier. Once in the hallway Luna froze. In front of him was Sola, but the size of a human. He stumbled back as she seemed to lock her eyes on him.
“Luna?” the Sola next to him asked. He turned to look at her, finding his own double staring at her. There wasn’t time for either to act as their doubles were pulled away by another human.
“Delphia?” he asked. It looked like her and not her all at once. Sola grabbed his arm, he wouldn’t let a human get them. Even one that looked like Delphia.
“I told you two it’s time for bed,” the fake Delphia laughed. Their doubles smiled as she pulled them away.
“Will we get to go to parties like you someday?” human Sola asked. The Delphia smiled at her, her arm left Luna and hugged just the human Sola.
“Only if you want to. I’ll make sure it’s just for fun too.”
“Can we dress like you do too? I want to be pretty like the stars,” human Luna said. The hug switched to him.
“If you want to dress like me, I’ll make sure you can. A dress, a suit, whatever you two want. I’ll make it happen.”
The Delphia, Sola, and Luna kept talking but the words were getting lost. He felt his Sola pulling on his arm. When he looked at her she was pointing down the hall. He followed her, there was another Delphia. She looked more like the one they knew. She seemed sad though.
“I’m sorry it didn’t happen. I’ll make sure no one suffers again, next time you’ll get to go to all the parties you want to. I’ll make sure it happens, even if we’ll never meet face to face.”
He started walking towards the Delphia that looked the same as the one they knew. Sola followed behind him, the doubles of themselves as humans faded away. As they got closer the one they knew started to fade too. Sola let go and ran forward, he followed behind her. They weren’t fast enough, the one they knew faded away too. He didn’t know what to do, how to feel about the human doubles they saw.
“Luna… do you think Delphia would wear that dress if we asked?” Sola whispered.
“We should ask,” he said.
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Vincent grimaced as the sun shone on his face. He couldn’t find a cave to sleep in that was close enough. His only choice was in the trees and the sun kept him up. He growled as he tried to use a paw to hide his face.
“Vincent, wait for me!” he heard Delphia call. He froze, the scent of death and a dead weight was still against his chest. Slowly he lifted his paw away to look around them. He saw a young looking Delphia running through the field of flowers. She laughed, but faded away before he could even try to understand what was happening.
He nudged his pocket, the vampire didn’t react. He knew that she was out which made this all the weirder. Vampires and werewolves were one thing, living memories seemed like something else entirely. He didn’t think magic was real, but he couldn’t deny it as easily as he wanted to. He just placed his snout over his pocket again, careful to keep her covered as much as he could.
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Ryder stared at the small screen Delphia set up for him. He’d started to enjoy all these strategy things she found for him. The wolf man had helped pick them out too. He still didn’t trust him with how he acted with Rhys, but the shorter man was enjoying the time with the massive wolf. His game started to flicker as some footsteps came from the hallway near the door.
He hit the power button and hid behind something as more footsteps came from the hall. He didn’t have time to get in the walls based on how close the steps were. He held his breath as the steps paused. Nothing happened for a long time. He started to feel foolish, until someone who looked like him walked in the room. His double walked through the closed doors without opening them. A version of Delphia followed.
Ryder stopped hiding, stepping out in the open while his double led the younger looking Delphia to the middle of the room. They both sat on air before a table with a chess set appeared. He watched as the phantoms just played chess together. His phantom kept tricking Delphia so she’d look away. Then he’d move the pieces to help her win. It made him think of how she’d helped when he first tried it out.
“I won!” Delphia’s phantom shouted. Ryder smiled with his phantom as she cheered. His phantom set a hand on her head, she looked like a young human. His phantom ruffled her hair earning a pout from the much more alive face.
“You did, I admit defeat, little warrior,” his phantom said.
The two kept talking about chess and other games that his phantom apparently taught her. There was a loud crash and his phantom was suddenly lying in bed, his arm in a sling. The Delphia phantom was older now, looking at him with pain.
“I’m so sorry. If only I was better. I never should have asked you to teach me those games, we’d already be safe if I was better,” her phantom cried. Ryder moved closer as a feeling he couldn’t quite explain overcame him. “I’m so sorry Ryder…”
The phantom Delphia disappeared leaving him with his human double. He expected it to fade, but the silver eyes locked on him. He tried moving, but the eyes followed. He didn’t know what this meant, but it had to mean something. The phantom of himself looked like it tried to speak, but faded before it could. He sat on the table and considered his next move.
“...I should ask her to teach me more games,” he whispered.
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Delphia stood next to the giant wolf, a bit nervous. She’d never actually seen a werewolf completely transformed, apparently Vincent hadn’t been all the times she thought he was. He still towered over her, the silver fur was soft to the touch. As she reached around his neck she felt herself growing nervous. They didn’t have to be enemies, but he had no reason to trust her. In some ways his hatred felt deserved.
“Ok, this should be good. I can hide in there while you run,” she said. Vincent just growled, he always growled. The huge head over her still nodded, the snout touching her shoulder. “I’m just collecting them now, ok?”
Vincent’s huge form moved so he was glaring down at her. It took a while to find something large enough he could wear around his neck. It was especially hard since she had to go back and forth to test things. She knew the sun would be up soon, but she wanted to be back before the month ended. His glare didn’t change.
After a few moments of silence he lifted his front paw up and pushed against her. His strength was more than she expected, knocking her off her feet. She felt her eyes go wide as his strength continued to press down on her. For a moment she wondered if this was where she’d lose, but he just kept narrowed eyes on her. He shook his head.
“I… I can’t collect the flowers?” she whispered. The wolf’s eyes stayed sharp and nodded. She squirmed, but he didn’t lift his leg. She knew she’d have a racing heart if she could. He looked up at the sky before looking back at her. It seemed to click then what he might want. “I… I should go to sleep?”
He let out a bit of a whine while he nodded. She closed her eyes, a bit terrified of what he would do like this. She made herself change, the paw over her felt heavier and heavier. Finally she was done and opened her eyes staring up at nothing but paw. She wanted to squirm, but she got herself into this. Once he moved she kept an eye on his face. He kept a glare on her, locking her in place.
It was intimidating as he moved. She didn’t spend time like this actually looking up at anyone. A glimpse into what her family sees. He slowly lowered to the ground and folded his legs so he was surrounding her. Then he rested his head on top. It was complete darkness, as safe as usual. He did say it wasn’t easy to go back to a semi human form with how rarely he does this. It started to make sense.
“Thank you Vincent,” she murmured. All the wolf did was huff, but she was starting to feel safer and safer around him.
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Dabria smiled to herself as she finished her painting. It was fun to try out all of the things Delphia would bring her. She wanted to make a version of that painting of when they were all human, but with them now. Another they could hide so she could make sure they were remembered. She struggled to make everyone look right.
“Are you almost done?” Vitus asked. She turned around, shocked he was nowhere near. His voice sounded so loud.
“Just about, we’re lucky anyone still hires me in this town,” Dabria heard her own voice answer. She heard footsteps nearby, a painting on the wall seemed to shimmer. She’d never noticed it before.
“My light, don’t run in there!” She stared with wide eyes as a young phantom of Delphia ran into the room.The girl ran up towards the painting and a human size phantom of herself appeared. The Dabria she saw bent down and picked the Delphia phantom up in a hug.
“Mother, mother can I stay with you while you paint?” she asked. The smile on the young face made the real Dabria’s heart melt. She didn’t see bright smiles like that on the real Delphia often. “I promise to be quiet and just read while you work! Please?”
“Oh my raven, of course you can. Did you bring a book?”
A phantom Vitus walked in holding a book in his hand. He handed it to the smiling young girl who hugged it tightly. The phantom of herself cast a warm look at the two before turning to her. Dabria froze as eyes like her own stared at her. This wasn’t a normal phantom, something more was going on. The woman across from her walked forward, the phantom Delphia still held in her arms. The real Dabria stumbled back as the phantom kneeled before the table.
“Be careful, the paints are messy. Don’t let them ruin your book. You can use the ones here to paint on your own if you want, little raven,” her phantom said. The human face stayed focused on her. “Just remember to capture the feeling, not the person as you paint, it always looks better.”
The phantoms seemed to sparkle as they faded. An older Delphia standing alone and staring at that shimmering painting across the room. The face above her looked younger than the woman she’d known, but it felt like the right one. Tears started to stream down Delphia’s face as Dabria watched. The phantom set a hand down on the table, paint brushes appearing beneath the hand. Dabria ran forward, setting her own on one of the fingers. The phantom didn’t react.
“I’m sorry mother. If I’d only been stronger… You made such beautiful paintings, I won’t let them be forgotten,” Delphia’s phantom whispered. “I’ll save all of them, I’ll make sure Sola and Luna know just how amazing you were, just like I do…”
Dabria gasped as Delphia faded away. She stared at the painting that had been shimmering, it was still there. She took the time to climb off the table and approach it from the floor. With a nod to herself she started to plan out paths to reach it, there was something important about it and she needed a closer look. She decided that could wait, she wouldn’t risk hurting it. Delphia could help her when she returned.
“Paint the feelings…” she mumbled.
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Vincent sat fidgeting with the little bag Delphia had bought. It was more than big enough for her as a bat, it could probably fit all of the others with her too. The vampire was preoccupied with picking out the best of the weird flowers she could. She called them ash blossoms, he’d never heard of them. He didn’t even know if they were called the same thing anymore.
The small vampire was digging in the ground looking for something alongside the blossoms she picked. He didn’t care much about what she was doing, but he was getting bored. He walked over to crouch next to her… She didn’t react, just kept digging in the ground. He sighed, making a point to lean on top of her head. She barely reacted to him.
“I thought you were just picking flowers,” he sighed. She reached out and grabbed a few long stems she’d gathered so far.
“I am, but I thought I could make sure to get some seeds and soil to grow them at home. That way we won’t need to travel like this again,” she smiled. He couldn’t understand why these flowers were so important, but he just nodded along. He reached forward and dug his hand into the hole she’d started digging. A nice amount of the soil was left in his palm.
Delphia pulled a small bag she had from her side and held it below his hand. He dumped all the dirt inside. She held it up as he dug his hand into the soil again. A few more handfuls and the bag was filled. He stood up and stretched while Delphia carefully closed the bag. This whole thing just seemed weird, but she looked like a young girl again. He didn’t mind letting her act young once in a while.
“Do you think they’ll grow in time for next year?” he heard her ask. He made a face, how would he know.
“What?” he asked. She looked up at him and tilted her head to the side.
“What’s wrong?” The face she made had hints of fear.
“Didn’t you ask me something?” She just shook her head. He let out a huff again. “It’s nothing, don’t worry about it. What are these for anyway?”
“They have a special use on all hallows’ eve, it’s why I want to be back by then.”
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Vitus was sitting alone reading. Everyone had seemed pensive lately, even Sola and Luna. He hoped that once Delphia and Vincent returned things would be normal again. The room felt strange as he looked through the book in front of him. It was tiring to turn the pages, but he wanted to search for information on what he’d seen.
He heard footsteps from the hall again. He opted to ignore it, his curiosity didn’t mean it was right to see memories Delphia didn’t knowingly share. He heard more of the steps, but they passed by the room he was in. He sat in the silence until the footsteps returned. They paused just outside the door. Vitus stared at the things he could never move, shivering as his own phantom walked in again.
He knew his eyes were often called piercing, but the gaze that seemed to lock on him made him shiver. If he were human he didn’t think a single borrower would risk trusting him. The gaze of his phantom didn’t deviate for even a moment. The footsteps started again as the human double approached. It was strange, to hear and see a human moving, but not feel it.
“Do you see me?” he whispered. The phantom nodded. The real Vitus narrowed his eyes. He didn’t have an explanation for that being possible. “...are you me?”
The phantom didn’t nod, but didn’t shake his head. One of the huge hands moved and settled on the book Vitus was currently looking through. It started to try and flip the pages although they wouldn’t move. Vitus started to flip the pages how the phantom wanted. It took a lot longer than if he were human, but finally the hand stopped trying to turn them.
The real Vitus settled to read the page. It talked about some time of year where souls were stronger. Memories of the past become visible when the will is strong enough. He nodded, that tracked with what he’d witnessed, but not why the phantom was actually able to see him. He looked up at the human mirror of himself.
“Are you my memories?” he asked. The phantom nodded and then shook his head. Vitus sat back taking the time to consider what that could mean. He stared up with wide eyes as an idea formed. “Are you my soul’s and Delphia’s memories?”
The phantom nodded, a smile he’d worn himself appeared on the face above him. The human hand moved and pointed at something on the page. The writing was mostly faded, he couldn’t quite read it. There was an image of flowers, some he’d never seen even while he lived in a florist’s shop. The phantom’s fingers hovered over the petals and then they started to fade. Vitus sat back as the human version of himself disappeared, he wanted to know more about these flowers.
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Vincent hadn’t stopped running once Delphia climbed in the bag around his neck. He was starting to miss his strawberry, she’d even bought the candy she thought Rhys would like. It was easier to focus on that than the voice he’d been hearing as he ran. It sounded like Delphia, but if she was awake she denied it. When she was out it couldn’t possibly be her.
“I have to go, Rhys,” he heard his own voice say. He slowed down once he heard that. He looked around, no one. “It’s better this way.”
“Why? None of us care. You should stay,” he heard his strawberry, but the voice sounded hurt. He padded forward looking for who was speaking. It had to be something mimicking them.
“I’m not human and if anyone here learns it you’ll all be in danger.” Vincent heard laughter, he ran towards it. He found a translucent version of himself with Rhys leaning against a tree. Delphia was in a field laughing as she ran her hands over nothing. “Besides, didn’t you all stop to keep her from being found?”
“Still, I don’t want you to leave. She loves you too, she asked the other night if you were technically her brother too.” The translucent Rhys laughed as he watched the Delphia in the field. His double wasn’t too much taller than Rhys, funny to see his strawberry the size of a human. The double of him stared out at Delphia before turning to face his real self.
“I’ll draw attention. I age too slowly, you know that. You can’t have that if you’re hiding from a vampire until she’s grown up. If we’re lucky I’ll be able to come back in a few years.”
“Vincent! Rhys!” Delphia’s phantom shouted as she ran up to them. In her hands were flowers like she had just finished collecting in reality. She didn’t seem too young, but there was an innocence in her actions. “These ones should be perfect for Sola and Luna!”
“You’re right, let’s head back.”
The phantoms of Rhys and Delphia started to walk away. His stayed back, the Rhys phantom looked back before those two faded away. His phantom flickered, then was left lying on the ground glaring up. A shadow fell over his phantom before they both flickered out and Delphia was left standing alone. She stared at a spot that slowly shifted to have just a pair of scissors.
“It’s all my fault. You and Rhys would have been happy if I didn’t exist… I’ll help you two next time. I’ll help you two to be happy together. How you deserve…” she whispered. She looked more like that teenage girl he’d seen when she stayed out until sunrise. “I’m sorry Vincent…”
He narrowed his eyes before running off again. He didn’t know what any of that meant, if it was even real. That would make him a part of that past she’s talked about. A part that met Rhys before too. He didn’t like the way his double stared at him. How seen it made him feel. He’d worry about it later once he got them back home to the others.
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Delphia smiled as she set the bag of soil down. It should be good enough to grow her own ash blossoms after this. She walked back to the main doors and opened them, Vincent waited just behind her. She slipped into the house as he ducked under the door frame. They made it back just in time.
Delphia moved through the house following the sound of heartbeats. She half expected them to be gone by the time she returned. It was hard to believe small humans wanted to be around her, even after knowing her past… their past. She smiled as she found them all sleeping together, she had no idea how long they’d been using her bed.
Carefully, Delphia walked up and set her hands next to them. At first she thought it might be a mistake, but Alessia moved first. She rolled over and grabbed one of her fingers, opening her eyes just a bit. She couldn’t hold back her smile.
“You’re real this time,” Alessia whispered. Delphia tilted her head, but the way her little partner squeezed her finger won over her curiosity. Ash sat up right after, looking up at her with half awake eyes. They rubbed their eyes a bit before climbing to their feet and leaning against her palm.
“I’m back,” she whispered. They nodded as they pressed against her more. It was strange to feel their small warmth after so long. The others started to stir after she spoke. Vincent’s heavy steps seemed to snap them out of sleep. He reached over her, pinching Rhys between two claws and lifting him from the pile of the others.
“You could just offer your hand like Del did,” Rhys grumbled. Vincent’s laugh felt a bit off as he took Rhys and walked off. She already made him promise to meet in her reading room. They had to do this tonight.
“Welcome back,” Dabria smiled as she sat up. Delphia couldn’t explain how much that made her feel more alive.
“Could you all come with me? There’s something I wanted to do.”
She set her other hand down to offer help. Sola and Luna ran over and onto her hand immediately. They were so comfortable with her and it made her smile. She’d never risk letting anything hurt them. Alessia hadn’t moved, but she tilted her hand so her little partner flipped onto her palm. Ash fell down with her movement too. They just smiled up at her.
Vitus, Dabria, Ryder, and Felix all climbed onto her hands. She sometimes worried holding them all, she had to keep them close to her chest. She always worried that would be when they realized she wasn’t worth it, that she was a monster. Ash and Alessia just curled up closer to her, so did Sola and Luna.
Delphia just took in the warm feeling as she moved. Vincent’s warmth was different, all encompassing. Holding her small family reminded her that she had people again. She wasn’t alone, a bright feeling. She was a bit thankful Vincent went ahead, the doors already open for her was a great help.
In the room Vincent had given Rhys the candy, the small man had a bright smile. She was sure he’d prefer the sweet taste of that. A strawberry flavor was better for him than a real fruit. She walked over to the two and set the others down. Alessia and Ash both seemed reluctant to leave, but Sola and Luna ran over to see the candy Rhys was given. She smiled at her family gathered together like this.
She accepted Ash and Alessia wouldn’t leave her hand yet. She walked away, grabbing the bouquet of ash blossoms she had left to the side. Bringing them over she set her hand down and tilted it to make them finally slide off. She set a flower down for each of them.
“I wanted to do something that I did when I was human,” she started. The others looked up at her, something in their faces seemed different. Even Vincent seemed different. She tried to ignore the feeling bubbling inside her. That it felt more like she was seeing the people she lost. “All hallows’ eve is special. The soul is at its strongest. We would have ash blossoms each year and gently run our hands over the petals. They lit up brightly, they were said to show the color of your soul.”
“They show your soul…,” Vitus murmured. She nodded, it hurt knowing hers wouldn’t be there, but that was the curse. Vitus stepped up to one and it started to glow a soft white mixed with green. She’d never seen one react so strongly.
“R-right.” She didn’t want to dwell on it. “When I was human, we’d have them each year. On hallows’ eve we’d hold them close until the color was strongest. Then we’d keep them until the color faded, a bouquet of our souls.”
Each member of her family approached a flower, the colors changed quickly. She’d never seen them react so quickly. Vincent carefully ran his fingers over the one she placed near him. The mixture of silver, pink, violet, and green was nearly blinding. They just had to be stronger blooms this year. She picked up her own flower, a pang in her heart. She knew it wouldn’t respond.
“Why doesn’t yours light up?” Sola asked. She reached down and rubbed a finger on the young borrower’s head.
“Vampire souls are different. They’re not… whole. I can’t make them light up anymore…,” she whispered. She set her flower down, the only one without the color of a soul. It counted for her. It was enough.
The glow of the other flowers seemed to get brighter. Bright enough she had to close her eyes. When she opened them again, her’s was a faint blue. The blue that she hadn’t seen in centuries. The other flowers were dimmer, but their colors dyed onto the petals. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she ran her fingers over the petals.
“I… don’t understand how that happened,” she whispered. The others were just looking at the flowers, seeing their colors for the first time.
“Maybe…” Vitus started, he was pacing a hand resting on his chin, “maybe it’s not that your soul isn’t complete, but it’s shared? The way it makes us all come back is there’s a part with us. So that when we come back your soul would make sure we’re the same?”
“I think I want to believe that…” She smiled as she took in each flower. Golds, reds, blues, greens, every color she could think of. She walked away to grab a vase she’d filled with water. Carefully she set each flower in the vase. The colors flashed as each met the water. “The color gets kind of locked once they’re wet. Then we’d keep them until they wilt… I brought back seeds and soil so we can raise them here. That way next year I won’t have to travel to do this.”
Her family smiled at her. For a moment, she didn’t see the borrowers and a werewolf. She saw the humans she’d known. Their smiles were kind and warm. She started shaking as she took in their forms. It had been centuries since she saw them, even Vincent who she only faintly remembered. She couldn’t believe this… She felt small hands on her own, Vitus grabbing her attention.
She took in each member of her family their strange looks when meeting her eyes. As if they knew something she didn’t. Thoughts flashed through her mind of what could be happening. Memories she never shared, that she pushed away. The soul was strong now, it could be that her soul wants the others to remember. She closed her eyes, steadying the racing thoughts in her mind.
“Would you mind…” she started, casting a gaze at each person, “if I told you stories of my family? Of the life we had before we lost everything?”
A part of her dreaded the idea. Offering to tell them seemed cruel. Stories they didn’t know and couldn’t remember if they tried. She wondered how her heart would be beating if it could. Each of the borrowers sat down and nodded up at her. Vincent let out a huff before sitting down with his head near Rhys. She didn’t know what to tell, but she would for once. Just tonight, when souls were strongest she’d let them all know the things she kept hidden.
She started with a story begging her father for books. Next she mentioned watching her mother paint, the lessons she would teach her. She mentioned how she met Ash and Alessia, the offer they gave her immediately. Sola and Luna begging to attend parties like she did, hiding the truth of her presence at them. Felix having her model dresses for him. Ryder teaching her games that didn’t match a young woman of the time. Rhys encouraging her and helping to care for her while their parents worked. Then Vincent, how she only recently remembered the man who sometimes showed up while she and Rhys went out if she was feeling better.
As she spoke each human image faded. It almost seemed like each member of her family knew the memory she mentioned. Almost like they lived it. She had a feeling something went on while they were gone, but for once she wanted to stay ignorant. She talked until the sun started coming up, answering questions. At some point she felt the pull and knew it was too late to make it to her room. Vincent caught her as she fell, she’d be safe like this… She could even be happy for now.