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I wake to sunshine streaming through the tower window. Baz is still asleep across from me as usual. He came in very late last night after whatever bloodsucking he does in the evenings. I noticed he was louder than usual getting ready for bed. Maybe he was careless and left behind some kind of hint!
I slip out of bed and walk quietly over to his laundry hamper. I’ve checked for blood on his clothes many times to no avail, but I still think it’s one of my best chances of proving his vampirism. His shirt from yesterday is on top of the small pile. Baz does his laundry very regularly. I hold it up in front of me, and it appears perfectly clean, as usual. I’m about to drop it back when my eyes catch on a small stain on the cuff of one sleeve. Upon closer inspection, I see that it’s a dark brown red colour.
I’ve got him! I ball up the shirt, throw on my clothes as quietly as I can, and rush down to the Dining Hall to find Penny. She’s sitting at one of the far tables reviewing her notes when I drop down across from her.
“Good morning,” she says, eyes still on her notebook.
“Penny! Baz’s shirt has blood on it!” I whisper at her.
“Okay…” She looks up. “And why should I care?”
“Because it will prove he’s a vampire!”
“How? Have you even thought this through?”
“If the blood on his cuff isn’t his, it’s pretty damning evidence that he’s hurting people.”
“And you want me to prove that this isn’t his blood? With magic?”
“Yes, exactly. Please, Penny.”
“Alright, fine. I’ll do some research after class on what spells to use and get back to you.”
“Okay, Thanks, Pen.” Now I just have to hope that Baz doesn’t realise his shirt is missing.
. . .
By the end of classes, I’m buzzing with excitement and struggling to hide my thoughts from Baz’s scrutinizing gaze. I trail Penny to the library as soon as she’s done talking to Miss Possibelf.
“Alright, let me see the stain.”
I pull the shirt from the bottom of my bag and hand it over. She hums as she inspects the cuff.
“Okay. Now, is there any way for you to get Baz’s blood?”
“Uhhh, I could give him a nosebleed.”
“Something less violent would be preferable. Does he shave?”
“Yeah, I think he does. Why?”
“Guys often nick themselves while shaving and dab the blood with tissues.”
“Brilliant! I’ll go check our trash.”
“Alright. Take your time. I still need to find a spell.”
I head back to Mummers, and when I get to our room, Baz is at his desk.
“Snow,” he sneers. “What’s gotten into you today? You seemed to have even more than your usual disregard for your education.”
“Piss off.”
I make a beeline for the ensuite and close the door behind me. Time to go through the tissues in the trash. Lovely. Oh well, I’ve done worse.
A quick search does indeed reveal a tissue with a bit of blood on it. Strange, I’ve never actually seen a cut on Baz’s face. Oh, he probably just heals them magically.
In order to make it seem like I’m actually using the bathroom, I flush the toilet and wash my hands, the tissue tucked carefully in my pocket. I leave quickly, and Baz ignores me, although he must think it’s weird that I came all the way up here just to use the bathroom.
I hurry back to Penny, despite her telling me not to, and when I arrive, she gives me a thumbs up.
“I found a spell,” she says.
“Great! Let’s do this.” I show her the tissue.
“Alright. Just put the tissue here and keep watch for me.”
I take a seat across from her and survey the rest of the library. We’re in a pretty quiet corner, so we should be good.
She pours some water on the table and dabs the tissue and cuff in it.
“Blood is thicker than water,” she casts.
The small pool of water thins and dribbles off the edge of the table.
“It’s not a match, like at all. I don’t think this is even human blood on his shirt.”
“Really?” Was he fighting or draining a creature then?
“Yeah. Give me the evening. I’ve got some schoolwork to do first, but I’ll try to find out what kind of blood it is.”
“Okay. Thanks, Penny.” Well, that was disappointing, but I do love a good mystery. I hope she figures it out.
. . .
I come down to breakfast the next morning to find a plate of scones already warmed for me.
“Hey, Pen. Did you figure it out?”
“Yep. It’s rat blood.”
“What?” What the hell is Baz doing with rats?
“Well, I still don’t buy into your idea that Baz is a vampire, but I was thinking about it, and if he is, maybe he’s drinking from rats.”
“That… makes a shocking amount of sense, actually. He’s always in the Catacombs.”
“Yep. Did you study for our quiz today?”
“There’s a quiz?”
“Simon… It’s in second period.”
I stuff a scone in my mouth. It’s delicious. I can’t believe Baz is drinking rats, though. That sounds awful, and it can’t be very healthy for a vampire. Maybe he doesn’t want to drink from humans, and that’s why he’s so pale all the time. But I was sure he was evil, but that idea hinged on his drinking people. If he’s drinking rats, then he’s not evil; he’s just a prick. Maybe I should stop accusing him of vampirism. He’s probably helping Watford out by controlling the rat population. I still hate him, though.