Chapter Text
Valentina clenched and unclenched her hand, her eyes staring off into space, her thoughts running mindlessly through her mind as she soaked in her sorrow. The link in her mind stayed quiet for there was no one there anymore. The plush sofa she laid on was cold, so stupidly cold, lacking the warmth that would always be there with its owner. She laid there for hours now, just trying to find that warmth again. Valentina let out a sigh and closed her eyes, hoping for the nightmare to disappear and she would be back with her beloved.
Time was a cruel mistress to her. It stood still for everyone else, but her. Immortality was an unwilling friend of hers. It was the only constant she had in her very long life. Immortals would tell you that time flashed by in the blink of an eye, that memory and feelings would fade so fast for them that they wouldn’t even bat an eyelash. Valentina was no different, her immortal life quickly became dull, boring her out of her mind.
The first few years passed by quickly then she met her. A pretty lady by the name of Semmelweis, a shrewd woman who stole Valentina’s heart on their first meeting with her pretty smile and cynical laughter. Her little threats that were nothing more than a tingle against Valentina’s skin, but it was her unwavering conviction that drew Valentina in.
Scenes after scenes relive itself into Valentina’s restless mind, a warmth conjured itself in her heart. Vampires were always cold, like corpses walking around, but Valentina started to know what warmth was like because of Semmelweis. She eventually fell asleep, one without dreams or the warmth of her beloved around her.
—x—
It was a warm sunny day, Valentina was enjoying herself under the sun. Vampires did not like sunlight, most even hated it. It was not lethal to them, but the stinging sensation was not one most of them like. Luckily, Valentina was a pure blood vampire, sunlight did not affect them like the ones that got turned or a product of inter-species procreation.
The forest was quiet, Valentina knew why. The air was filled with the smell of arcanum, almost enough to make her choke on it. She could smell it, the scent of blood the further she went toward the ritual site. She was more sensitive to the smell of blood after all. There was the sound of footsteps, rustling in the bush, rushing and hurried. She knew someone would be here, the Manus warned her, but she didn't think they would be here at the same time as her.
She smiled, knowing that they hadn't noticed her yet.
A mischievous idea formed in her mind. Some called it arrogant, but Valentina never gave any care to it. Life would be so utterly boring if she didn't know how to have some fun with her prey beforehand. She could cloak herself right now, go up to her target and hit them with an arcane skill to kill them before they would even notice she was there. Unfortunately for the vampire, that idea bore her to death, not like anything in this world would kill her, she preferred to take her time.
She slowed down her pace, until the other person caught up and overtook her. Hiding herself with the cloak ability, Valentina followed closely behind in their shadow. The intelligence was right, the foundation dog was really here. She personally never had bad blood with any of them, rarely running into them in the first place, a sentiment not many in the Manus shared. Valentina could barely feel a hint of arcanum coursing through her blood, this one barely had any arcanum, she doubted they could even cast an arcane skill, let alone hurt her.
Once the ritual site was in sight, Valentina walked ahead as the investigator stayed still, stunned by the gruesome sight in front of her. The ritual was a mess, bodies spread everywhere, all in a state of decay and disfigurement. Valentina crinkled her nose in disgust, the scent of blood was overwhelming. Even as she felt disgust, her fangs couldn’t help, but to elongate, her instinct overtook just from the sheer size of blood alone.
Now that she was in front, Valentina could finally make out the face of the investigator. A woman, a very pretty woman. Face full of life, and oh so pretty even when she was appalled by the sight in front of her. Valentina leaned forward, her face was inches away from the other woman, but she was none the wiser. Her lack of arcanum blood was hindering her ability to sense Valentina even if she was right in front of her.
Valentina chuckled, a sound that immediately put the investigator on full alert, her brown pupil dilated. Valentina moved back behind her, and uncloaked herself, a smirk on her face. She bent down, her mouth right next to the investigator’s ear.
“You should learn to look behind yourself more,” Valentina said. Immediately, the investigator swung her body around, her fist flying to Valentina’s head. Unfortunately for the investigator, she was too slow for the vampire and her fist got caught with ease. Valentina pulled even closer, a mocking smile on her face as she stared straight at the investigator.
She waited for it, the panic, the fright, but none of it came. The woman’s face was calm, unfazed by this turn of events. She said, slowly and steadily, “Let go.”
Valentina couldn’t help, but to comply, she stepped back and let go. She was intrigued. The investigator rubbed at the spot Valentina gripped, her face was one of annoyance, seemingly more annoyed than scared.
She looked up at the vampire, her face calm and calculating. Her eyes found Valentina’s, no trace of fear, Valentina couldn’t even read the emotions swirling in those brown orbs.
“What is your business here?” She asked. Valentina only noticed it now, but her accent was very different from the people here, a foreign investigator. Her voice was soothing, steady, clear, Valentina liked it very much. There was no trace of any emotion in her voice, her intention unclear for the vampire.
“Isn’t it considered impolite to not introduce yourself first before asking questions?” Valentina snided, her tone mocking. Clearly, this was all just a game to her.
The investigator stared at her for a minute before nodding her head, “I’m Semmelweis, an investigator from the foundation.” She pulled out her ID card from the bag, its shine and pristine steel casing made it clear it was authentic even if her outfit wasn’t a dead giveaway already.
Valentina whistled as Semmelweis put away her ID in her bag again, only to be surprised by the nuzzle of a gun staring straight at her. Semmelweis pulled a gun on Valentina without her noticing.
“I’ll ask again, what is your business here?”
Valentina’s smile widened, “No need for the violence, little investigator. I’m here for the same reason as you are.” To show her sincerity, Valentina put up her hands, an act of surrender.
“Don’t try anything funny, there is a silver bullet in here.” Valentina laughed at Semmelweis’ threat. Semmelweis was still a human more than an arcanist, her actions were all too slow to actually threaten Valentina, but she played along anyway.
“Alright, alright. You are the boss. Care to put down this little thing?” Valentina asked, her finger tapping the gun. Semmelweis put it down and turned back, going toward the ritual.
Valentina trailed behind her happily, the threats doing little to frighten her. She was intrigued and she wanted to see more of Semmelweis.
“Oh, and don’t call me a little investigator. I have a name, Semmelweis and this name will be the one to put a bullet in your skull if you forget it again.”
—x—
Valentina woke up with a jolt, her body sprung up from the couch. She was breathing heavily, it felt like she had a nightmare even if there wasn’t one. She calmed her breathing and got up from the couch, her body rigid from the hours of unmoving sleep.
The dark night sky turned to day as the sun peeked out from the horizon. There was no use staying still, she might as well just go do what she needed to do. She went down, the sun was shining brightly. The sky seemed peaceful, no one would even notice that the country was at war.
She walked to the train station, the Danude Dawn, to meet with an informant. The walk was quick, the forest was a familiar home to her. She arrived at the platform crowded with people, everyone eager to get on.
“Did you hear? There is a rumor of a vampire on that damn train,” A passerby whispered, tone agitated and annoyed.
“That is just some hearsay. The ticket is so freaking hard to get, some idiot must have thought that spreading rumors would make people stop fighting for it,” The other one replied, boredom laced his tone.
Valentina heard it all. What the other guy said made sense, the informant didn’t say anything about it as well, but she couldn’t help hoping. Her heart jumped in spikes when she heard that. There might be a chance it would be her Semmelweis. She suddenly started paying more attention, ears focused on every conversation, hoping to hear if anyone mentioned anything related to her beloved. Investigator, vampire, foundation, whatever it was that could be linked to her made her heart thump loudly in her ears.
She got to the train platform, the place packed with people, each one eager to get on the train. Her sleeve got pulled and a letter was passed to her. She put it in her sleeve, whatever it was, she had more important things to do. She walked through the crowd, eyes scanning each passing face as she looked for the one that made her heart beat in tandem with hers.
“No… not her… no,” Valentina whispered, her voice getting lower and lower as she scanned each face in the crowd. Then she smelled it, her scent, Semmelweis’ scent. She had engraved that soothing scent into her mind, she could always recognize it. The vampire pushed past everyone, following that scent like a dog chasing its owner. Her hands started sweating from the possibility of seeing her again, her heart longing for her beloved.
A flash of white hair went past her, her pupil dilated as it registered in her brain. Valentina rushed to follow after it, nothing else mattered to her. She bumped into passerbys without a word of apology, her only focus was on the head of white that was making its way further and further away from her. She didn’t want to use her power, the foundation might be here. It was more of a nuisance than anything else. She gritted her teeth and activated her bloodline, her body instantly appearing behind her target.
It was not Semmelweis, the scent was different, her body was different. This was not her Semmelweis. The kid sensed her presence and looked back, her red eyes and fangs made her look like a vampire, but Valentina could not feel the kindred blood flowing through her. She pretended to not notice and walked past the kid.
Her heart deflated in disappointment, her hand clenching until there was blood dripping down. Her mood immediately sour and her longing got worse. Vampires desire blood, Valentina only desired her lover, she only wanted her lover back. She instantly disappeared from her spot, appearing again in the woods. She put her hand on a tree and in an instance, it broke and collapsed to the ground.
She wasn’t a hothead, the exact opposite, she liked to lie in wait and she was always proud of her patience, but losing Semmelweis made her lose her sense of rationality. The longer she couldn’t find Semmelweis, the more likely it would be for her to lose Semmelweis forever. Semmelweis was not dead, she was reborn in the storm, but that was all Valentina knew.
Valentina thought she had it, that she found Semmelweis, she smelled her scent, she saw that white hair. She thought she found her lover. Her clenched hands start to drip blood on the ground, painting the white snow in red. Valentina looked at the direction of the train again and vanished from her spot.
-x-
“Now, now Rubuska, I know it is tempting, but you shouldn’t be too loud on the train.” The train was packed as the investigator and the little kid she picked up settled down on the train.
“Ms. Semmelweis, you are the best boss ever. Thanks for the train ticket,” The little kid with the white hair said, cozying up to the investigator. The train roared to life as it set off to its destination and they were off.