Work Text:
.ᐟ.⋆♱
Eren’s lungs burned, the harsh winter air biting at his skin. His lips had long since turned a dark shade of purple; his fingers were stuffed deep in his pockets, trembling from just how cold it was. The tips of his ears were red beneath the hood of his coat. But he was so close. Just at the top of these stairs was a small village, home to fewer than a hundred people. The people of this village were known not to travel out often, and as such they rarely got any visitors.
As he climbed steep ice-covered stone steps, cracked and crumbling from years of little upkeep, deep in the mountains, he considered that he should’ve maybe waited until this snowstorm had passed. But at that point it may be too late. Who knows how long it would be before this vampire fled the village, and if she did? They may never find her again. This is Eren's only chance.
Eren stumbled as a piece of rock broke out from underfoot. “Ah shit-“ his arms flailed uselessly at his sides as he tried to balance himself. “They could’ve at least tried to keep these stupid stairs from falling apart.”
The information they’d received had been from a panicked man, the sole survivor, who had burst into the small building his guild worked out of.
“This vampire she was… pale, so pale that she almost seemed to shine in the moonlight. And- and her hair was jet-black, darker than her pupils were as she slaughtered everyone around me...” he’d spoken in a shaky voice. “Physically, I’d say she looked around twenty or so? We were having our mid-winter festival, and she just appeared out of nowhere at sunset! It was… it was the most horrific thing I’ve ever witnessed.”
By the time he reached the top of the seemingly endless steps, the storm had calmed somewhat. The harsh winds turned into a soft breeze, snowflakes now gently falling to the ground beneath him, some landing softly in his hair and in the fur of his coat. Snow crunched underfoot as he stepped through the village gate. The air around him was bitter and heavy. He eyed every house that lined the street as he made his way further in, the remnants of the festival were clear. Banners hung along the streets, waving gently in the wind. He passed stalls with goodies and days-old food left sitting out with no one to clean it up.
Not a sound echoed around him. No one was around to speak even a word of greeting, not a soul walking, not even the sounds of children playing, no dogs barking or cats running by chasing a mouse. It was as if everyone had vanished without a trace. But Eren knew better. They hadn’t vanished, hadn’t even left the village. No, no, they were all dead.
Stepping into the village square, the stench of copper hit him like a wall. Eren’s hand flew up to his nose, covering it in an attempt to block out the overwhelming smell of death. Corpses were strewn all across the ground, most half buried within the blanket of powdery snow.
Eren crouched down, gently brushing away the snow from the face of a body, a small woman likely no older than nineteen. Her neck had been torn to shreds, bite marks and dried blood caking her sickly pale skin. Her eyes were wide open, staring up at the cloudy sky above, yet completely unseeing, glazed over by death itself. He gently took his fingers and closed her eyes.
“Jesus...” He muttered to himself, the sight made him nauseous. No matter how many times he’d seen similar situations.
Eren stepped back, walking over to another body half buried in the snow. This one was a man, laid out face down in the snow. His neck was in a similar state to the woman’s. Torn to shreds and drenched in blood. This wasn’t an attack with the intention of drinking blood. No, the vampire did this with the intent to kill and nothing more.
The sound of a door creaking open hit his ears.
Before he could react, the weight of a body, of someone throwing themselves right at Eren, hit him. They roughly tackled him down onto the ground. A pained grunt was torn from him as he landed chest first, air being knocked straight from his lungs. The cold snow bit at his skin as whoever this was shoved Eren face first into the ground. He couldn’t see anything from his position, but he knew it, it had to be her. Eren felt her shift above him, her body weight pressing down heavily on his back. His hand managed to snake down to his belt, reaching blindly for the silver dagger he kept on him, the one his dad gave him when he was ten. The same dagger he’d be using to kill her soon.
The air between them felt tense, neither of them moved for a long breath. With every shaky inhale Eren took, the metallic stench of blood assaulted his nose.
The shining blade quickly pressed against the woman’s skin, not stabbing, but burning right against her right arm. The soft hiss of her flesh hit his ears as she threw herself off of him. Scampering back, far away from him like a wounded animal. With heavy breaths, Eren shoved himself upright, dagger clenched tightly in his hand. His hood slipped, falling protectively over his neck. A gust of wind blew over them, his hair flying over his eyes. As his hair fell away, his eyes quickly met hers. Predator and prey staring one another down.
“Why’d you do it!?” He growled, eyebrows furrowed and rage covering his face. “An entire village slaughtered! For what?!”
Eren’s eyes scanned over her face, and he paused, a soft breath escaping his frozen lips. He understood now why the man described her the way he did.
She’s beautiful.
Her black hair cascaded down her shoulders in a way that perfectly framed her body. Her lips, despite being cracked, were such a beautiful shade of red. A slight trail of blood smeared across her right cheek from her mouth. Her eyes, though he couldn’t tell what color they quite were due to her pupils being blown so wide that they seemed like a deep black, never-ending abyss that threatened to suck him in. Her left hand was clamped over her right shoulder, where he’d burned her with his dagger just moments ago. One of her fangs was poking out from her mouth, just the one, though, it was surprisingly small compared to what he’d seen from other vampires. But even from this distance, he can see just how sharp it is.
“Me? What did I do!?”
She massacred this entire village, and yet here he finds himself stunned, frozen, admiring her beauty. As beautiful as she may be, she’s still a vampire! She’s still the reason all the people in this village will never get to see another sunrise ever again. And yet, he finds himself captured by how captivating she looks.
He took a step towards her.
The vampire's mouth tore open in a deep snarl, flashing her fangs at him. “Leave me alone!” she hissed out, eyes narrowing as she spoke. She stuck her hand into the snow, chucking a handful of the bitter cold at Eren. It hit his coat with a soft sound, most of it completely missing. “They hunted me down! They came and tore me out of my home! They were going to kill me! They ALL deserved it!”
“What...?” Eren paused, his voice sounding small. Had the townspeople kidnapped her? That’s not what he’d heard at all. Shaking his head, Eren lunged, throwing himself at her. A shout tore from his throat as he raised his blade, just moments before it could sink directly into her chest. His eyes met hers once again, and he froze.
He hesitated.
In that moment, time seemed to slow to a near stop, the sound of birds flying echoed overhead. A flurry of thoughts raced through his mind as the world shrank down to being just the two of them.
“I hesitated...? Why, why did I do that!? She’s a vampire damnit! I’ve killed countless vampires! Why am I hesitating now?!” the thought rang loudly through his head.
Eren tried to recover from his mistake, attempting to bring the dagger down into her chest once again. But he was too late. The woman pounced. For the second time today, Eren hit the ground with a thump, his back pushed deep into the pile of snow beneath them. The vampire had him pinned under her, he felt her lean down. Fangs brushed against his neck, threatening to sink in and tear him to bits just like she had done to everyone else.
“You came to kill me, didn’t you?” Her voice came out low and raspy, a soft rumble in his ear. Teeth gently pressed down on his throat, not sinking in, not yet, but the surprisingly gentle pressure remained. “Someone escaped, huh? Ran and cried wolf to you? Let me guess he told everyone I came and killed everyone for no reason, right?”
But to Eren? Her voice sounded like warm, sweet honey to him. It was heavenly. “You… your name, what’s your name?” Eren sputtered out.
The woman paused, his words catching her off guard. “I don’t see why I should tell you my name. Tell me your name and why you’re here first… little human, then I may tell you mine.”
His eyes remained trained on the leaves and branches above them. He couldn’t see the woman from his angle. He took a deep breath and spoke, “Eren, my name is Eren Jaeger… and yes, I… I was sent here to kill you…” A soft sigh escaped him, “But I… I can’t, I don’t know what it is, but I just can’t kill you…”
Eren made a face, a scowl of disappointment etched in his features. “I just… can’t do it.”
She lets out a soft hum, a small, toothy smirk gracing her lips. “Eren Jaeger...” The pressure on his neck lets up for just a moment. “I see. Well, I am a lady of my word. My name is Mikasa, Mikasa Ackerman.”
“Mikasa…” his voice was breathy, like just learning her name left him speechless. “That’s beautiful...” He turned his head to the side and, without even thinking about it, offered his neck up to her.
Mikasa stared down at him, her grey eyes burning holes into his skull. “Plenty have been sent to kill me over the years, but you, you lay here offering me your blood?” she purred. “It’s cute.” A shiver ran down his spine as her cold breath hit his neck. Then those cracked, dry lips pressed against it in what felt like almost a gentle kiss. Her fangs found his flesh and pierced into it, the soft warmth of his thick, delicious blood filling her mouth.
The pain was intense, but only for just a moment, a sharp stabbing ache deep in his flesh. Pain coursed through his entire body for just a few seconds before the feeling of pure bliss spread throughout him. She drank and drank, sucking at his neck greedily as if it was the most mouthwatering thing she’d ever tasted. It was a messy sight, blood dripped down his neck from where it slipped past her lips as she greedily drank from him. Mikasa pulled him close, her arms wrapping tightly around Eren. This wasn’t just some one-off meal. Something felt different to her about this man. Normally she’d drink whoever it was dry without a single thought, but imagining draining Eren completely left a pit in her stomach she couldn’t ignore.
Abruptly.
She stopped.
Soft emerald eyes cracked open, glancing over in her general direction. He wondered what she would do now, would she leave him here in the snow to slowly freeze to death? Maybe dying to a vampire wouldn’t be so bad as long as it was one as beautiful as Mikasa. He just doesn’t understand where all this is coming from; he doesn’t like vampires no, no, he never will. But there’s just something about Mikasa, something he can’t get off his mind about her. But oh well, all he does know is he couldn’t do it.. he couldn’t kill her. The world around him was spinning now, with a soft sigh he let his eyes slip shut once again.
Mikasa pulled back, panting softly. “You taste divine...” she whispered. Leaning back in, she licked at the wound on his neck, small breaths hitting his neck with each lick. Sitting back, Mikasa smiled softly down at him, gently brushing his hair out of his face. He looked dazed, completely out of it. With her venom busy coursing through his veins, he’d be like this for quite a while.
Slowly Mikasa crawled off of him and rose to her full height. She looked back at one of the houses and then up towards the sky. The clouds were dark, it was likely the storm might start up again any time now. She gently lifted Eren into her arms and carried him inside. The heavy wooden door slipped shut behind her, closing with a click. Warmth from the fireplace still wavered through the home, she knew she couldn’t linger here much longer. If they sent one person after her, they could very well send more soon after. Gently opening the bedroom room she stepped inside.
“I can’t bear the thought of leaving you…” she whispered lightly, looking down at Eren’s sleeping face in her arms. “Even if you were going to kill me.” Mikasa giggles. “You were right though, I can’t bring myself to kill you either.”
Pulling the blankets back, she set Eren down, removing his coat and shoes before tucking him in. She stared at him for just a moment longer, her gaze lingering on his chest as it rose and fell gently. Her fingers trailed up his face, brushing soft brown hair away from his eyes.
“Goodbye, my cute little human.” Pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead, she stood up. “May we meet again one day, my Eren.”
.ᐟ.⋆♱
“Mgh..”
Emerald eyes crack open, his head turning to the side as the world slowly came back into focus. The room was dark, only the faint light of dawn creeping in through the small window above the bed.
“Huh…?” Slowly he sat up, his entire body felt heavy, like he was made from a bag full of rocks. “Mikasa…?” He eyed around the small bedroom. The little nightstand that sat next to the bed with a half-empty cup of water on it, the small rocking chair in the corner next to the intricate wooden dresser.
But the room was empty, and Mikasa was nowhere to be seen.
Panic coursed through his veins, he tossed the blanket off of him. He swung his legs over the side as the blanket hit the floor with a heavy thump.
“Mikasa!?” he called out, stumbling to the door. Stepping out into the hallway, his eyes scanned the rest of the small house. The kitchen was empty, and the living room was as well. The entire house was devoid of life aside from him.
She’s gone.
She left without saying a word.
Eren fumbled with the handle of the front door for just a moment. His whole body still felt heavy and just wrong, likely from the blood loss. The moment he got his grip on the knob, he threw the door open. The light of dawn was settled gently across the sky, shining down onto the snow in a beautiful orange glow. The storm had finally stopped, it seemed.
But Mikasa Ackerman was still nowhere to be seen.
“Right…” He sighed, running his hand down his face. “Of course, I should’ve known she’d leave.” Eren’s eyes landed on footprints in the snow, they led off into the forest. A shaky breath slipped from his mouth as he turned back inside.
“Mikasa…” he whispered, “As soon as I get back home, I swear I’m gonna figure out where you are.”
But first, he needs rest.