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Shigeo knows Teru.
After a couple of years of living together, he knows how he feels embarrassed by his morning breath. How he needs exactly twenty-six minutes to style his hair. How he always absentmindedly taps his foot on the floor when entering a room.
Shigeo knows Teru, which is why he knew he’d struggle with his independence ripped from him.
He didn’t have a choice.
Fledglings were weak, death able to claim them at a moment's notice if they were not well cared for. That meant being monitored at all hours of the day.
It was stifling, and Shigeo knew Teru hated to be stifled.
He was a free spirit the moment they met, Teru a fairly young human with the energy of a star burning bright within him.
But what else could he do? It was either he care for him as a vampire sire should or let Teru die. It was an easy choice, but one with consequences. Daily consequences. But Shigeo would rather have his partner frustrated at him than no longer by his side. Teru knew Shigeo too, and he knew he’d rather be frustrated than dead.
Shigeo knew Teru, and that meant Teru would snap one day.
He was thankful none of the others were in the mansion when it happened, an animalistic screech echoing through the large dining room as Teru lost himself.
He wasn't a child.
Shigeo wasn't his parent.
And Teru. Wasn't. Weak.
He had raised himself and would do it again if it would only stop his ‘sire’ from treating him as if the next gust of winter wind would blow him away.
And Shigeo made the mistake of listening.
Made the mistake of letting him go.
Teru left, saying he was going to collect firewood as he bundled himself up with his thickest coats and boots, eyes looking anywhere but where Shigeo stood. He needed a moment to himself, away from the confining walls of the mansion.
Away from Shigeo.
It took all his willpower to convince himself Teru would be fine, a bile rising in his throat as he paced throughout the foyer. After all, Teru had indeed raised himself once upon a time, a young witch able to whip up any miracle potion his clients required.
Teru indeed knew how to care for himself. All of that was true. All of that he knew.
Yet every step Teru took further away from him drove a knife through his heart. Vampiric instincts screamed at him, begging him to go after him, to close the gap between Sire and Fledgling.
Yet Shigeo remained on an empty couch, fire long gone out, shivering in a cloak that could never stave off such bitter cold.
The rustle of fabric, the crunching of snow outside the front doors, and Shigeo bolted to meet—
"Kageyama! How are… is everything alright?"
Musashi. And Emi right next to him.
Ah… right. The others were joining them today. And now…
"Is something wrong?"
There was. There was something horribly wrong about today.
"Kageyama, if I may, you look a little sick. I know you said grown vampires don't get sick, but maybe you should lie down. Here," Musashi easily pushed his way inside, ushering Shigeo to the cold couch next to a fire that had gone out hours ago.
Emi shivered. "Goodness, it's freezing in here. Musashi, I'm going to grab some firewood to warm us up. Maybe that will help him."
Help…? That wouldn't work. It never did. For decades Shigeo had tried to warm himself up by the fire after his own sire’s passing. Years of huddling next to dying warmth that only reached the surface, unable to thaw his frozen heart.
Because a fire could not replace the warmth of company, of sitting next to one another while laughing as the sun set.
It could not replace love.
He was cold, shivering even as Musashi started to share his own body heat by gathering him in a soft hug.
It only made the cold sink deeper.
Snow pelted the sides of the window with harsh thumps, Musashi craning his neck to witness Mother Nature’s wrath of snow and ice.
Shigeo didn’t hear it, ears ringing and voices laced with worry crowding him.
"Emi-san, you might want to hurry. I don't think he's well."
No, he was not. He could feel each step through the fresh snow his fledgling walked, further and further away, the warmth leaving his body every inch they were apart.
And he couldn't bring himself to tell them what he’d done.
"Shigeo?"
He couldn't. They were going to ask. He couldn't choke out the vile confession. They were going to ask.
What if he was hurt? What if he didn't make it back? He was too far. They were going to ask—
"Where's Teru?"
A heave, a gasp, and the first sob ripped through Shigeo’s chest.
Gentle, worried hands surrounded him, holding him steady as he collapsed, flitting about as every second of the last hour spilled out of him. Voices drifted in and out of his ears, words that never reached him, shame swallowing him whole as he collapsed on a couch that was one person too empty.
One pair of hands left while the other pressed him into a warm chest, holding him firmly as sobs wracked his body.
A flicker, a crackle, and a small flame began to grow in the fireplace, just the smallest ounce of warmth finding its way into his frozen limbs, breath no longer fogging in the manor.
"Breathe, Shigeo." The soft hands returned, rubbing his back, shushing him softly. "Breathe. You can tell us what happened when you're ready."
When would he ever be ready to tell them that Teru had left while under his care?
He blubbered as he buried his head in Musashi’s chest, telling them all what happened between him and Teru. About their fight.
About how Teru was out in the snow all by himself.
The one holding him froze at the confession.
"Kageyama..." Musashi's voice had an uncharacteristic darkness to it. "You need to get him."
What? No… no he couldn’t. He had already done enough damage. Forcing Teru home would only make things worse.
“I can't stifle him any more—"
"Kageyama." Musashi grabbed his shoulders and forced their eyes to meet, startling the vampire. "This isn't a matter of stifling him. There's supposed to be a blizzard tonight."
…tonight?
But… Teru he…
The sun had set. The darkness blanketing the world with thick dread.
…oh no.
Shock and fear gripped him as he turned his head to the window, the sound of the increasingly heavy snow finally reached his ears, clearing his head, waking him up from his spiral.
He didn’t think as he flew out the doors.
A heartbeat with stolen life, one that he would use correctly this time. For Teru’s sake.
But the snow had already fallen so much…
How long had it been since their fight? How long since Teru had gone out into the cold without him? Without anyone?
Frantic eyes scanned the area, shaking, panicking.
How could he have been so careless? He was a sire now, and sires couldn’t afford mistakes like this.
Because one misstep and Teru…
Another leap, another shaky stumble through the forest, another barren area.
How long had it been now? Any light he hoped to guide him was long gone, not even a sliver of hope able to lead him to his fledgling, to his Teru he loved so much it hurt.
And gods… It hurt…
Snow piled high, swallowing his calves with every step, slowing him to a snail's pace as he gasped and wheezed, desperate to keep going.
There… there weren’t any more footprints. Even his own had been consumed by the frozen pellets, packing heavily on the deathly white ground.
There weren’t footprints anywhere, there weren’t paths, there weren’t footprints therewerentfootprints-
A weak trill, a pained series of broken cries floated weakly in the air.
A distress signal, one meant only for a sire's ears.
A call for help.
It was only a few minutes, but every second Shigeo couldn’t find the source felt like hours of searching, heart breaking with every trill unanswered.
Until he found it.
A trail of firewood. Wet, unusable wood that was dropped haphazardly in the snow below, the merciless white almost burying it completely.
And there, at the end of the trail…
Shigeo didn’t think, arms digging into the freezing cold until a face as white as the snow he was under greeted him.
”T-Teru?” he wheezed, cupping his face with warm hands.
He wasn’t moving. He wasn’t breathing. He might as well have just dug up a corpse.
”Teru, can you hear me?”
Dimmed purples stared back at him lifelessly, pupils dull and distant.
But he had called for him, the bond between Sire and Fledgling not yet broken.
He had time.
But very little of it.
His thick fur cloak was ripped off, thrown around his fledgling in a feeble attempt to stave off the cold, to shield him as snow continued to pelt them both. He didn’t care that his own limbs were freezing. He could handle it as long as he had Teru.
He could do anything as long as he still had Teru.
He gathered him close, saying a prayer to anyone that would listen, and Shigeo leapt.
He dashed through trees, through snow and ice, eyes only on the house in the distance.
Until he burst through the front doors.
Emi and Musashi gasped, eyes on Teru’s frozen body in Shigeo’s arms as he haphazardly dumped him by the burning fire the two of them had kept for their return.
The world passed by in a blur as Shigeo moved.
Frozen, wet clothes were ripped from Teru's living corpse, water clinging to his clammy skin, the offending garments replaced with thick, dry softness. He wasn’t even shivering anymore, not a hint of lucidity in those eyes that stared into nothing.
Shigeo wanted to cry.
“I’m here. Teru, I’m here,” Shigeo whispered, voice shaking as he cupped his sickly white face with warm hands, the only time a vampire's hands would ever feel warm.
Teru didn’t respond, eyes distant and lifeless, the cracks of red in his irises taking over beautiful purple.
He needed blood. Fast.
There was no way his fangs would be able to unsheathe with how weak he was right now. He needed to…
“Kageyama,” Musashi was at his side, hand rubbing calming circles on his back, grounding him, coaxing him back to the world he lived in. “You’ve done well. We can take it from here.”
“Musashi, he needs blood but he can’t… his fangs won’t…”
“Then let’s make it easier for him.”
It wasn't hard for the others to gently take over, Shigeo's own frozen limbs screaming in protest, begging him to rest. But Teru still needed him. Teru still needed warmth. Needed blood.
A plethora of softness surrounded him, Musashi placing a thick blanket over him before moving to his fledgling, swaddling him in as Emi placed a warm washcloth on his head, cursing as a pained sound left Teru. His lips parted as the tiniest whine left him, another weak cry of distress.
But there was something else that they had gathered while Shigeo spiraled.
Emi had returned with a glass from the dining room, placing it on the floor beside Musashi.
Musashi, who had a knife he brought to his palm-
“Musashi-!”
Before slicing cleanly through his hand, blood dripping freely from the wound into the glass below.
“Musashi, the farm-“
“Will be just fine. I won’t be needed to go back there for a long while, Kageyama. Not in this weather.” A warm smile was on his face, comforting him. “He’ll be able to drink it easier this way.”
A twitch, Teru responding to the iron that hit his senses, mouth parting more, eyes wider as red threatened to take them over. Another whine, a final effort to beg for the blood that was so close to him.
Musashi wrapped his hand in a bandage and gave Shigeo the glass before he maneuvered Teru into his lap, head resting back against his chest. Musashi was always one to run hot even during the coldest of winters, his body heat no doubt easing Teru's pain.
“Go ahead, Kageyama. He should be fine to drink it.”
His own cold hand must have felt warm against Teru’s skin as he cupped his face with it, staring into pleading eyes until he brought the glass up to frozen lips.
It was a slow process, Teru barely able to swallow as his body continued to succumb to the cold, blood dribbling from his chin as Shigeo whispered encouraging words to him, praising him for each gulp managed.
“There you go," he whispered with a broken voice. "Just... just a few more."
Teru drank, and Shigeo let the first of his tears escape.
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Teru."
Until the last drop was taken, the bloody glass empty and discarded to the side, Shigeo’s attention solely on Teru once again.
His fledgling was weak, but his face was warming. Skin that was once snow white was now tinted with translucent pink, veins weakly carrying the blood through his system.
But he was shivering. He was shivering and whimpering and alive.
He was out of danger.
He was going to be okay.
Exhaustion slammed into him in an instant, a wheeze leaving him as Musashi steadied his weakening body with a free hand.
“Kageyama, you should rest. We can-“
And Shigeo hissed.
A harsh quietness fell over the group, Shigeo freezing at the sound that just left him. Why did... they were just...
“I… I’m sorry. I wasn’t- you’re helping. I-”
And Musashi’s boisterous laugh rang throughout the manor.
“There you are! I wondered if sires got protective and I was right!” There wasn’t a hint of malice as he guffawed, Musashi relishing this discovery. “Here, Fukami? Could you move some pillows to the floor? I think some rest by the fire should do them some good.”
Shigeo didn’t even have the energy to protest that suggestion. Not that he'd want to, not with Teru safely in his arms. He succumbed to the mercy of Musashi and Emi’s kindness, sire and fledgling moved to a mountain of pillows by the fire, pounds of blankets covering them in dry warmth.
“There," Musashi announced, proud of his work. "You rest now, and we’ll keep everything else running until you’re ready.”
Emi loomed over them. “And don’t you dare try and run while we’re busy.“
Shigeo didn’t dream of it, not when his fledgling was his once again, warmth returning to him by the second as Musashi’s human blood carried life back into his body.
Sleep soon stole him away as he heard the humans of the house begin their chores while they rested, Shigeo clutching Teru just a bit closer. A bit tighter.
Guilt still weighed on him. Teru never would have gotten to this state if he had been a little kinder, a little clearer with his words.
But he was safe now, and all that mattered was that he was going to be okay.