As his hands released from her throat, her feet collided with the ground and next her knees. She grabbed at her throat, gasping and gulping down the fresh air as if she had just come up from under the water. Her skin burned from the pressure he had placed upon her throat. She couldn't hear anything over the sound of her own gasping, as her breathing began to regulate she looked up through blurry. Anna quickly brought her hand up, wiping the tears out of her eyes and saw the two of them fighting. "Lucio, be careful! Something isn't right with him!" She yelled to the now fighting duo.

Anna watched from the ground as the two exchanged words, and then they ran towards each other. She brought her hands up to her mouth when Lucio flew into the tree. She was sure he was dead at the moment, thinking his back cracked. A few more tears started to escape her eyes, anxiety, and fear running through her body at highspeed. She was shaking as well, but this wasn't noticed. Her eyes and mind to preoccupied with the two men fighting. "Lucio!" She screamed out, began to stand up. Not knowing what she could do, she looked around trying to find something to grab to maybe hit Alphonse with as his back was turned to her when he had Lucio pinned againist the tree. Alas, nothing was near her.

In the midst of her looking for an object, the fight continued and when her eyes scanned back they were on the ground. At this point Lucio was holding a wooden stake into Alphonse's chest. Then just one more push, and he went limp. She brought her hands back up to her mouth, "Oh my god...you killed him.." She whispered, and began to walk over. Her mouth was open, no words coming out only tears flowing down her cheeks, her body shaking. Anna slowly approached the body - and looked from it to Lucio. She said nothing, but walked towards Lucio and wrapped her arms around him. Shaking as she shoved her face into his chest. "Thank you so much Lucio..." She stood there for a moment, her breathing began to relax. She eventually released herself from him, and then looked back at Alphonse. Bending down to see the once aspiring lover face to face. Blinking a few times, and keeping her eyes plastered to Alphonse's dead grayed corpse, one word uttered out of her mouth, "Vampire..."

She stood back up, and looked at Lucio, "They're real...aren't they...his face changed, and I saw his fangs. He smelled the napkin with my blood on it, and told me he could hear my heart beating.." She wiped the newborn tears that escaped the edges of her eyes. "I've never seen someone turn gray after they die...and you stabbed him where his heart is at..." She breathed in deeply, "I'm not a fool....it's easy to add all of this together...He wanted to kill me". She looked up towards the night sky, and placed her hands on her throat rubbing it lightly and took in a deep breath. "Thank you again, Lucio...you saved my life, even if it meant he had to lose his..."

Lucio walked over to Anna kneeling beside her. He put his arm around her. “I’m sorry this had to happen.” He said rubbing her shoulder with his hand. “It was the only way. He would’ve killed a lot of people including you. He seemed out of control.” He paused for a moment looking at the corpse. He didn’t care about taking his life at all. He could’ve cared less.

All Lucio knew was Anna was all over the place. She was erratic and he had to calm her down.

He grabbed her, urging her to stand up. “Maybe if he had truly loved you, he wouldn’t have done this.” He meant what he said, true love, digs deeper than simple hunger. Lucio felt Alphonse’s strength, and he knew he had recently fed. It wasn’t hunger. It was either lack of control, or some kind of revenge. Either way, it didn’t matter anymore.

He walked with her away from his corpse. “He was a vampire. I’ve been listening to you and your family talk about vampire’s the last couple days. I went and found a stake when I had heard screaming nearby.” He said trying to tell her what happened. He tried to cheer her up, unable to tell if it was working or not. “I’m just glad I got to you.” He said and paused for a second looking back at the corpse, then at her.

At this point he didn’t know what to do. Word would surely spread in this small town. He couldn’t just dispose of the body. Anna was traumatized. She would surely say something to her family. Relationships and friendships always complicated things. Lucio felt it was better just to have cold feelings towards everyone, especially humans. They were always much more vulnerable than Vampires and Werewolves.

“Come, take a seat.” He said gesturing to a seat that faced away from Alphonse’s corpse. He kneeled in front of her, “Gather your thoughts for a second.” He put his hand on her cheeks, wiping away some of her tears, and sat beside her. “Let me know what you want to do from here. I’ll help you and stay with you.” He paused for a moment, “If you want me to stay.”

He felt like he was being a little overbearing, but he said what he had to.

Her right hand made its way back to her throat, rubbing the back of her neck and shutting her eyes for a moment. She took in everything he said, and let out a slow even breath. Her mind reeling over the fact that vampires are real. "Yes, thank you again," she breathed and finally looked him in the face. He was very calm about the situation, he just killed someone. A vampire at that. Her mind then began to wonder how he could be so calm, so at ease with the act he just committed. Someone that she was close with, and began to fall for.

"You knew they were real," she stated, her eyes began to look around and observe her surroundings. Anna had been so consumed in her thoughts, she didn't realize he had walked her to a bench to sit down. Reaching up she grabbed his hand, and placed it back onto his lap, folding her hands in own lap. "I'm sorry. I just am kind of....in shock," she breathed. "Maybe it was him.." she trailed off, "he killed everyone". She blinked a few times, letting out a sharp breath. "I'm not sure what I want. I thought I was dying, in that moment. I knew he was going to kill me". Closing her eyes she brought her hands to her face, smoothing back her hair and gulping down another breath of air. "I want to just go home". Opening her eyes and staring straight into his, "home, that's exactly what I want" she nodded her head as if agreeing with her choice. "What about his body? People will notice he's gone missing".

“I don’t blame you.” He said letting out a deep sigh when she had put his hands in his lap. She didn’t want him touching her. He didn’t mind, she just had been in shock. Maybe if he gave her some time she’d come around. All he could do is what she wanted. He continued to listen to her as she was talking about everything. When she had looked him in the eyes telling him she wanted to go home, he was about to say something but then she had mentioned his body.

“I’m not sure.” He said looking back at the body scratching his chin thinking. Lucio looked back at her, “What do you want to do about the body? I’ll help you with whatever decision you make.” He said trying to support her and reassure her. He felt bad for her mental trauma. It had been a long time since his first time in a situation like that. After becoming a vampire it felt easier to have killed people for a good reason. Vampires had some kind of a killer instinct. He realized that 1500 years ago.

Anna stared at him, her eyes wide with confusion. She'd never had to bury a body before, never had to imagine where she would have to hide one. Especially the body of someone whom she trusted and betrayed her. She looked over her shoulder, back to the greyed over corpse of Alphonse. Biting her lower lip she stood up, and then clutched her stomach. She walked forward a few steps and then threw up a good portion of the alcohol she drank previously. Her nerves, and stress finally took a toll physically. Falling to her knees, she threw up a little more and finally stomach acid.

Wiping her mouth, she began to cough, her mouth dry and acidic tasting. She sat back, her legs tucked under her - wiping the tears that were now from the throwing up. "I don't know what to do Lucio," her hands came up to her head, rubbing her hair back that was now coming out of the bun. She began to stand and wipe her hands on her dress. Shaking she turned to Face Lucio, which she the looked past him and to the body. "Please. Just let's bury him, or get rid of his body," she wiped her nose and eyes of tears and let out a breath. Crossing her arms, she looked To the ground and then back to him. Clearly, still assessing the situation.

"Oh my..." she heard and turned her head. The mayor.

"Mayor, its- it's not what...I'm. He attacked me," she stammered out and walked towards him. He appeared from behind Lucio yards back out of the darkness. The round man slowly waltzed forward, he had a very rough stumble on his face, double chin, grey hair. He looked down at the body, and then to the two.

"Who did this? Who killed the Vampire?" He questioned, looking from the bewildered Anna to calm Lucio.

"We have to hide this before people leave the gathering...." he murmured looking to Lucio, and then pushed Alphonse with his foot. "Well, at least there will be no more killings..."

Lucio had stood there watching Anna throw up. He felt bad, but he couldn’t do anything to help the poor girl. He almost chuckled to himself at how bad of a night she probably had. It had to be one of the worst nights of her life, and he happened to be there for it. But at the end of it all, it had seemed it would’ve been for the best. If he hadn’t been there tonight, she would’ve died. It was her destiny to have lived another day at least. Or at least pure coincidence. Through all the shit that Lucio had been through, he still hadn’t made a choice to believe in destiny, or coincidence.

He watched her shake as she turned around. He had stuck out his foot, about to go pick up the dead body and run into the woods to burn the body leaving no trace of evidence, until he had heard the mayor. He had stuck out his foot until he had heard the mayor. He put his foot back in place and watched the mayor take a look around.

It was typical for someone of stature to be fat. Half of the Roman republicans were fat. All they did was make money and use their slaves to make more money, feeding their fat faces.

He listened as Anna had fumbled her words. He didn’t know if it was drunkenness or shock. When the mayor had questioned them about who had killed the vampire, Lucio stepped forward taking full responsibility. “I heard screaming. It happened to be Anna.” He looked at her motioning his hand towards her. “Her family had been jesting about vampires in the area, so I figured I would fine some kind of stake just in case.” He paused for a moment looking at the dead body, then back at the mayor. “I have been traveling for quite sometime, and never truly believed in vampires. This small town is far from any big city, and when I had heard rumors I figured it would take extra precautions and listen to the local population. I didn't know if it was superstition or something real.”

The mayor had looked at him for a second. Then at the body declaring they together had to hide the body before the people had left the royal ball for the night. “I believe your story.” The mayor nodded to Lucio, as his double chin would jiggle slightly.

Lucio gave a slight nod back, “I’ll take care of this. You just make sure that no one comes into this area, while I transport the body.” Lucio noticed that the mayor wasn’t surprised by the vampires appearance, even if it was dead. It was like he had known the existence of vampires. Lucio took a few steps before turning to Anna, “Are you going to come with me? Or are you going to stay with the mayor?” He asked. He looked down at her dress then up at her hair, “Anna. I mean no offense. You are a very gorgeous woman, but I think it best if you come with me. At least until we get close to your house so you can clean yourself up without anyone seeing you.” He figured she’d say yes, but giving her some kind of control would be better than none. He didn’t want her to feel like life had completely spun out of control.

The mayor had hobbled over between the body and the pathway to the area they were in. He looked at the couple then at the pathway making sure no one was coming. He glanced back at them, “Please make up your mind soon.” He said with a slight sense of urgency. It was obvious the mayor was trying to stop the town from panicking.

Anna raised her eyebrow, in wonderment at how the Mayor could be so calm. He looked at the dead body of his resident, as if it were nothing more than a casual scene. She clutched her dress and hit her bottom lip, then stepped towards Lucio's direction, "I'll go with you".

The mayor nodded, and then turned Alphonse's head with his foot, "Such a shame. Anna I will discuss more about this issue with you when you have had some sleep". He sounded applogetic, probably feeling bad for the poor traumatized girl. "Lucio, I will speak with you after all this if you don't mind". He stood there looking at the two, waiting for Lucio to begin the process of taking the body away. Anna just stared at the lifeless body, her eyes fluttering to the mayor again. Wondering what he could have to say about all this.

------

Anna had been silent the whole time Lucio was disposing of the body. It seemed quick. So maybe he stored the corpse somewhere else for the time being. She tried not to pay attention, her mind was currently very preoccupied with trying to accept the fact that Vampires were real. Which meant so were probably every other mythical creature she had heard of. She soon realized they, her and Lucio, were standing in front of her home. Looking to the house, she turned her head to face Lucio, her knight in shining armor of the night.

"You know, I thought it'd be nice just to catch up with him," her eyes had dropped from his face. She walks up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, having to stand on her toes to do so. She closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. It was quiet outside, a few small gusts of air accompanied them in the lonely night. It wasn't hot at all, a pretty fair temperature. As her arms dropped, her hands found their way to his right hand. She brought it up to her face and placed the side of her face into his open palm, "thank you Lucio. I'm forever grateful for your appearance in this village. If not for you, I would have surely died tonight". She took in a sharp breath, and then let go of his hand. She walked up the states looking back at him as she grabbed the handle to her home, "good night". Opening the door, she disappeared behind the door.

-----

As she entered the house, and began to head towards the family room - her father rounded the corner. "Who walked you home?"

Of course no warm greeting.

"Lucio," she stated.

"Who?" He questioned, crossing his arms.

"Why didn't you tell me vampires are real," she began and then told him the story of her night. Taking out some of her emotions on her father as anger. When really maybe he didn't know. He stared at her with no emotion as she told him the story, he leaned back against the wall - arms crossed. Staring at his crying daughter.

He pushed himself off the wall, and then nodded for his daughter to follow him. And led her back outside to the shed, she followed him. Not saying a word, and as they went into the shed. He moved a giant empty barrel, revealing a trap door. He opened it up and lit a lantern that was near them. Her nerves racing. "Follow me," he stated and then introduced her to her real self below the shed. Forever changing her life.

Lucio had let the mayor know he’d see him tomorrow sometime.

Lucio left Anna’s house walking back to the body where he had hid it. He gathered some firewood, building a fire and burned the corpse. It had seemed the mayor was more than some kind of regular mayor and this town was turning out to be something more odd than he had expected. Lucio didn’t know if this was a good thing or a bad thing.

He pondered about it as he watched as the ash of the body blow away in the wind. After a while it had died down. Lucio buried the coals with some dirt. He left and walked to the inn. It was late and was basically finished up for the night.
“Good evening Lucio.” Verna smirked giving him a playful look. Lucio nodded his head walking towards her, “Good evening.” He leaned over on the counter where she stood behind. “Is there anything I can do for you?” She asked cleaning a glass with a rag. Lucio shook his head no. He let out a deep breath, “It was a long night.” He lowered his head, “How’d your night go after Anna and I left?” Lucio asked. Verna shrugged, “Dull. A bunch of wealthy men talking and flirting with women.” She said putting the glass down in the shelf of the open counter behind the bar. “Not my type of men.” She said picking up another glass to clean and looked at Lucio. She eyed him up and down, looking at his outfit. She rose an eyebrow, “Did you and Anna have some fun on the ground?” She joked noticing his outfit wasn’t clean like it was before. Lucio slightly chuckled, “No. It wasn’t like that.” He said standing up straight, getting off of the counter he had leaned on. “I think I’m the last thing she’s thinking about.” He said shrugging.

Verna’s face showed a little surprise, wondering why Lucio had said that. She let the conversation stay at that for a moment. Before Lucio got her attention, “Come to the backroom with me.” With her previous compulsion she had already known that he was a vampire, but her conscious self didn’t know that. The compulsion would make her forget everything about his vampirism. They walked into the back room and Lucio had locked the door behind him. Verna had been wearing a long dress, “Sit down.” He said. She had walked over to a stool by the side of the room. Lucio walked over lifting her dress to her mid thigh. He knelt down, putting his face to her thigh as his face slowly turned to one of a vampires. His fangs sank into her flesh. Droplets of blood appeared. Verna winced and groaned lightly as the pain shot through her body. Her hands grabbed onto Lucio’s shoulder, gripping it. After a moment, the pain had dulled. She began to feel slightly light headed. Lucio stopped.

He backed off, wiping away the blood from her thigh. “I feel much better.” He said taking in a deep breath. He looked at her, “Thank you.” He said to her, as if she had a choice in the matter. Verna smiled politely and nodded, getting up from her stool. She promptly walked out of the room and Lucio followed. She had been compelled to forget every encounter they had when he had fed. He walked in front of the bar, looking at her. “Well I’m going to head off to bed. Have a goodnight Verna.” He smiled to her walking towards the stairs upstairs. “Goodnight Lucio! It was nice to see you at the party tonight!” She said raising her voice as he walked to the stairs. Lucio gave her a slight wave as he disappeared upstairs.

Lucio walked through the small hallway to his room, walking into it and closing the door. He walked over to his bed and laid down looking at the ceiling. He didn’t really mind using a coffin or a bed, either one had worked fine for him. The myth that vampires used coffin’s was more or less a myth. Maybe some vampires had used it for the image, but it wasn’t necessary.

He pondered for a few moments, thinking back to Anna. ^{"Thank you Lucio. I'm forever grateful for your appearance in this village. If not for you, I would have surely died tonight.”} Those were his last thoughts before sleep had taken him for the night.

Her eyes fluttered open, and the ceiling came into view. She could smell a fire burning, and her hearing started to pick up on people talking in the distance. She rolled over onto her side, seeing her sister bed empty. Anna stayed laying down, the images from that night playing in her head over and over. Alphonse's face changing into the disgusting vampiric face, the loss of her air to her lungs, Lucio. Lucio unfortunately wasn't her last thought at the end of the night, it was that Werewolves were real. And she could be one. Her father showed her the room under the shed, built with chains to lock in every limb and prevent a transforming wolf from escaping. He told her about the folklore of Lycanthropy, the myth's that were real - the ones that were fake. Bertol wasn't changed, and neither was he. But the possibility was there. Even for Cassandra.

Anna sat up, and then walked over to a bowl of water, she assumed her sister put it in there. She washed her face, grabbing a cloth to wipe it dry. Then padded back over to her bed, and sat back down - her eyes focused on the floor. Anna had stayed inside the day before, having no urge to go visit anyone, even see Lucio. She was still taking everything in, and accepting that her world was changing. Her perspective of the world was changing at least. She walked over to her wardrobe, changing out of her white night slip into a dark green dress, then placed on a leather corset. She let her hair fall down freely, it wasn't curly - but did have a natural wave going on.

She slipped out the back door, and breathed in the crisp morning air. It sent a shiver through her, she didn't leave her room the day prior. Oh the trauma of feelings, being a human meant she had to feel all this. She took it in, and mangled every possibility of different outcomes for hours - that only seemed to make her more distraught. Unlike the supernatural beings, that now existed in her world - emotions had been dulled down over the redundant years of living. The sound of a door opening caught her attention, it was the front door. Peering around the corner, she saw it was a townsman, had a sickle in his hand leaving. She took a few steps down, and quickly walked up the road, towards the Inn. Anna had mulled over somethings in her head, upon finding out that you yourself are a super natural being, after just being attacked by one, she had a lot of questions. Especially on what Lucio knew about Werewolves.

"Good mornin' Anna," the familiar voice tinged her ears, Verna was working early this day. She smiled, and walked towards the counter that she was behind. Verna placed her hands on the counter leaning forward, "Looking for someone?" A smirk placed on her slender face.

Anna smiled thinly, and nodded, "I'm sure you can guess who...have you seen him?" She questioned, lacing her fingers in front of her.

Lucio had waken up the next day walking down the stairs. It was early and Verna wasn’t up yet. He yawned sand stretched as he walked outside. He looked around thinking about what he could do the for the day. He had remembered that the mayor wanted to speak with him sometime. He figured he’d meet up with the mayor. Even though Anna’s house was in the opposite direction Lucio wanted to check up on her. He used his vampiric speed and ran over to the outside perimeter of her house. He had listened inside. He heard her parents and sister, going about their daily business. Eventually he was able to sort out a heart beat which had sounded like Anna’s from yesterday. She was still asleep. He took a deep breath and walked back into town, heading towards the mayor’s mayor.

Lucio knocked on the door a few times. After a few seconds the door had opened up. Lucio assumed it was the mayor’s servant. “I’d like to see the mayor. He asked me to meet with him.” He said. The servant bowed his head slightly, “Let me inform the mayor, I’ll be with you momentarily.” He said closing the door. Lucio had heard his footsteps move away from the door, moving upstairs. He heard a muffled, ‘A stranger is here to see you.’ Then footsteps had come back down the stairs. The door opened, “He invites you in.” Lucio nodded stepping through the doorway.

As he took a step inside, he could see it was a nice home. The decor was fancy. A rug had laid on the ground right by the doorway, most likely to keep the dirt at the entrance. “Right this way sir.” The servant said motioning toward the stairs as he began to walk up them. Lucio followed him to the top, eventually reaching the mayor’s office. The mayor stood up from his chair, “Ah welcome!” He said moving his hands inviting Lucio to come in and sit down. “Welcome. Sit down. I'm Theo Walker.” He had said and repeated himself. He sat back down at his desk, grabbing some wine. He had poured a couple glasses. He scooted one of the glasses to Lucio. Lucio nodded taking the glass and sipped on it.

“You’re probably wondering why I had asked you to see me after yesterday’s incident.” The mayor said, then sipped on the wine. He set it down. “So you’ve probably noticed that I wasn’t frightened by yesterday’s events.” He said putting his hands on the table and interlacing his fingers together. “Seeing as you had disposed of a vampire all by yourself, I figured we could use someone of your strength and apparent ‘expertise’.” He took of his hands and scratched his beard looking at one of the paintings in the room, then looked back at Lucio. “We have a organization here. We call it, The Council.” He took a breath, “Now I know it's not a very creative name but, we know about vampires and werewolves. We even know about witches. We have a couple working for us when the situation becomes dire.” He paused looking at Lucio for some kind of response. All Lucio did was give him a nod. He didn’t have anything to say, he just wanted the mayor to get to the point. “We’ve taken care of supernatural events in this town for the past 300 years, when my ancestors had founded this place. I care for this town greatly, and I will always protect it with my life.” He paused and pointed to a painting on the wall, “This was the first council group that had been set up in the town. My great, great, grandfather.” He said putting his hands back together. “I’d like you to join the council. After have meeting you at yesterday’s formal ball, I feel you’d be a great addition. You even saved of my good friends daughter. Erwin DeRose is a good, hardworking man. He’s supplied our town with the right metal crafting tools and equipment to maintain this town for the past 20 years.” He said taking a breath to let Lucio digest all the information. After a few seconds he asked, “So what do you think?”

Lucio scratched the scruffle on his face. “Why not.” He said shrugging his shoulders like it wasn’t a big deal to him. “Excellent.” The mayor smiled, bending over the desk giving him a handshake. “Welcome to the council young man.” He said smiling. Lucio almost laughed when he had said that. Young man? If only he had known. “Thank you sir.” He said shaking his hand back and giving him a slight nod. The mayor stood up. “The first meeting for us will take place tomorrow after sunset. Meet us at a nearby cabin, east of here, about 3 miles.” He said motioning his hand to his door. Lucio nodded his head in acknowledgment, standing up with the mayor heading for the door. “Gernot! Escort this man to the door.” He said sitting back down at his desk, pulling up some paper that he had been reading. Fast footsteps could be heard coming from the stairs. “Right this way sir.” Garnot said, escorting Lucio over to the door.



Lucio hadn’t seen Anna at all yesterday. He had went back to her house, listening for her for a few hours to make sure everything was fine. Lucio didn’t have anything better to do for the day. For some reason he had felt attached to the young woman. He cared for her, and for some reason he felt she deserved to be protected by a good man. He hadn’t really known if he considered himself a good man though. Lucio was a stern man. His personality had been hardened through the ages. Anna’s was still developing. He never had asked her age but she seemed to be anywhere from 17-20.

Lucio stretched from his bed yawning. He bent his feet downward stretching out the tendons in his foot. It was one of his favorite feelings. He uncovered himself from the bed sitting up, squinting his eyes as he looked around. The sunshine had peeked through the curtains. He got up and walked over opening them, looking outside for a second to see the town slowly waking up.

As he was about to stop looking, he saw his new favorite friend, Anna. She was walking to the inn that he had stayed at. A smile slowly spread across his face as he watched her. The sunshine bounced off her body, almost as if the world was saying, ‘Hey, look at how beautiful I am.’ He disappeared from the window. He started putting on some casual clothes as he listened with his vampiric hearing from the floor below. Luckily the floors and walls had been pretty thin from the architecture of the place. He could almost clearly hear her ask Verna if she had seen him.

Verna shrugged, still smirking at Anna. “No I haven’t seen your love bird.” She said as she had grabbed a glass of ale for a fellow patron. “I haven’t seen him leave either.” She said after a second. “He’s been waking up and leaving around this time since he had gotten here.” She dried her hands on a cloth nearby. “I’d just give him a seco-” She said before she cut off her sentence when she had heard some footsteps come from the stairs beside them, looking over there to that area.

Lucio had come out of his room. After a second he appeared to the girls. He looked over to them, and smiled. “Good morning ladies.” He said walking over to them. He leaned on the counter with his elbow. He faced Verna, “Could I have a cup of ale please?” He asked. Verna nodded, “Of course.” She said immediately bending over grabbing a glass for Lucio. Verna had treated Lucio nicely for a couple reasons. One, because he seemed to have plenty of money and was paying them generously. Second, he was attractive and well mannered. She had no reason not to be.
“Here you are.” She said moving the glass across the counter. “Thank you.” He said grabbing it and sipping on it, and then looked at Anna.

Anna frowned at her friend, though she wasn't upset by by the statement, just more so wasn't calling her and Lucio that much. She then remembered Verna and Lucio dancing - a moment of jealousy picked up. She leaned forward on the counter, her elbows pinned in place against the wood, her hands were rubbing her eyes. She wasn't exactly the best at lying, so staying quiet instead of protesting what was said, was her only chance at survival against Verna's witty self.

As she was about to speak, her eyes widened with the recognition of the voice. She bit her lower lip, and lifted herself off the bar, turning to see Lucio walking towards them. Her stomach tightened with anxiety, and suddenly it felt cramped in this giant Inn. "Good morning Lucio," she let out a toothy smile - and then looked away to Verna as she approached with his drink. Verna was just slyly smirking, she shook her head and turned away from the two after serving him. Anna opened her mouth, licking the bottom of her teeth. Her hands on the counter, she laced her fingers together and let out a breath.

She hadn't completely formed the questions she wanted to ask, there were so many. Of course, she should probably tell the person that she is developing feelings for, that she has a blood thirsty creature waiting to be awakened coursing through her veins. But, she hadn't properly found a way to tell him. The only upside was that her father told her how it was activated, and it was something she didn't have the stomach to do. Kill somebody. She never would, so she'd never change. Anna was confident in knowing that.

Turning around and placing her back against the bar, as to not catch Verna's eye again, she crossed her arms. "Well, I trust you've been well," she started and laughed a little, "I don't understand how you're so calm". At this point she turned back towards the bar, leaning forward and bending over the bar, her arms propping her up. She placed her face close to Lucio's, whispering almost "There are some things I'm interested in knowing". Anna stated, her eyes locking with his. She needed him to know how serious she was about it.

"How you were so calm, the mayor, why he attacked me..." her eyes had broken from his at this point. She was shaking her head, her gaze fixed onto the counter top. Her hair loosely hanging around her face, she brought a hand up and placed a few locks behind her ear. The dimly lit inn made the scenario more dark, ironically. Things that were just fantasies merely over 48 hours ago, were now alive and not beautiful. In any sense. As scared as she was, she was intriguied.

When her father broke the news in the shed, she almost went hysterical thinking he was playing an awful joke on her. He led her down below, to a room that sent an instant sense of fear, pain, and secrecy raging through her. Her father had never looked so defeated before, simply stating he never wanted you to know. Anna hadn't said a word as her father explained the room. He then explained the curse, then moved to the shackles. She had sobbed, and even screamed a few times - which probably was hysteria at those points - in the denial of her new identity. Her father calmed her the best he knew, which was a long embrace, and more talking. He told her how nobody in the town knew, just the family. Of course, Cassandra didn't know - but her father explained that if she had a similar situation to Anna's, he would tell her then. She had spent a long time below the shed with her father - mainly she couldn't stop crying. It wasn't until she actually made it back to her own bed after bathing, that she went to sleep - and woke up in a calmer mindset.

Her father lied for her, saying she wasn't ill and wasn't to be bothered today. Anna was surprised by this, but needed it. She spent her day mainly sleeping, and assessing everything. Questions now reeling in her head, of course she had heard myths. But Lucio probably knew the truths of the tales. But his appearance in the town also had her wondering some things.

Anna leaned a little more closer to him, "did you come here, to kill Alphonse because he was a vampire? Or was it pure coincidence you were here. And knew about vampires". The question was elaborate, but she had a lot of time to think in the day she hadn't seen him. "You were so calm, like you've done it before..." she leaned back a little bit - and then loosely brought a hand towards her chest. Acting like she stuck a dagger into her heart, "Are you a vampire-"

"Anna, dear, did you want anything?" Verna came over, cutting Anna off. She leaned back, and sucked in her lips - making a popping sound as she released them. "A wine, please," she watched as Verna nodded and walked to grab it "hunter", she quickly finished. Her smile was probably confusing, a synical smirk she bit on her bottom lip still maintaining the smirk, her fingers drummed against the counter. Verna placed the cup in front her and she took it, taking a sip and then looking back to Lucio. Awaiting his response.

Lucio looked at her in the eyes as she got close. His eyes naturally wandered down to her lips, and back up at her. He listened to her go on about how he was calm and the mayor and why the vampire attacked her. He could tell she had been thinking a lot about the past couple days. It was only natural. Lucio was about to say something but she had moved even closer to him, asking him if he had come to the village to kill Alphonse or if it was pure coincidence. Lucio wanted to laugh. He wondered what would happen if he had said he came to the village to come kill Alphonse, but he had enough of the lies. He thought if he should tell her he wasn’t a vampire hunter but a vampire. He’d figured it wasn’t the appropriate time to tell her.

The conversation was halted by Verna, giving him time to think about his decision. Anna really wanted to know about him and why he was here. He had to make a decision, and the best one seemed to go with what she somewhat thought about him already. Knowing that if he were to go with that answer, it’d sound the most believable to her. It had seemed she already deduced what the situation was. Something about her had changed, like she had learned something new to make her ask him questions with more of a… motivated? Approach.

He looked at her stepping closer to her, leaning and putting his lips a few inches away from her ear. “Should we talk about this here? Or would you like to go somewhere a little more private?” He asked. Lucio figured it was a good question. On his next inhale, he could smell her blood rushing from her neck. His eyes wandered over to her ear, then neck. He wanted to bite her and kiss her. His vampiric emotions and needs stirred. Having Verna around eavesdropping and a potential customer coming in through the door would only halt their conversation further. Having some alone time with Anna wouldn’t be so bad either, not that he’d make a move at an inappropriate time like right now. Being alone would let her get used to just her and him.

He leaned back away from her, gaining a normal distance between each other. He looked at her in the eyes as he took another sip of ale from his cup.

He was curious to see what her response would be and where their next conversation would lead. He couldn’t determine how she was feeling and what her reactions would be when he gave her some answers. Telling her that he was a vampire was always one of the first things he wanted to do, but he could never find an appropriate time to do so. Maybe after a while, when everything had digested and died down a little. All he knew was that if his lover had just been killed because he had become some monster, and someone he was interested in was a vampire also, he’d probably just get out of the situation as soon as possible. He’d feel like he was in constant danger. His priority was to make Anna feel safe and secure. Then eventually he’d tell her the truth.


John fondled his key chain eventually finding the key to his little meat store. He pulled it out and put into the lock, turning it. The lock had come undone and the door opened. He pushed the door open showing his little store he managed. He took a step in before hearing someone call out his name. “Ah Mr. Blackwood.” A man came up to him motioning to stay for a second, “A moment please.” He said finally approaching.

“Good morning Jaques.” John said fully turning around. “What do you need?” He asked.

Jaques lookd around for any kind of eavesdropper before turning back to John, “We have a council meeting this evening.” He paused a moment, “Apprently, we have a new member.”

John opened his mouth slightly with surprise, “Really? Who is it?” He asked curiously.

Jaques shrugged, “I don’t know, but rumor has it, he had killed a vampire a couple days ago. It was during the royal ball, and no one had even known.”

John asked, “Really? Who helped him?”

Jaques once again shrugged. “Apparently he killed him all by himself. I’m thinking it’s the new stranger that had come to town a few days ago.” He paused a moment looking around then back at John, “That one wandering vagabond.”

“Interesting.” John said scratching an itch on his head. “Alright, I’ll be at the normal spot. I’ll see you there.” He said turning around waving Jaques a goodbye.

“See you.” Jaques said jogging away back to his office.

The hair on the back of her neck rose, sending a shiver through her as he whispered in her ear. She sucked on her lower lip, and then slowly released it. This seemed to be a nervous habit of hers. She nodded, and sipped her wine again. Anna stared at him, and then looked around the Inn. Watching as Verna helped a customer whom just left their room, the fire place crackled with a slow burn - it needed tending too. She rose the cup again to her lips, taking a fuller sip and then setting it back down on bar, scooting it away from her. It was a bit too early for her to be drinking. Especially when she wanted to stay focused on her questions.

Anna stared at Lucio, his black mid length hair, a scar over his eyebrow, he was much taller and more fit than her. He was charming, and of course handsome - but his constant calm deamoner made her feel at ease around him. It was as if he had some ancient wisdom that led him to be this way. She found herself wanting to be around him, even after staying inside all day - hiding from the world. She actually wanted his presence around her, though she wasn't sure if her feelings were developing too quickly. They hadn't exactly had any romantic moments, but he was so willing to help her after the attack - make her feel at ease. But she pushed his hand away. She regretted that now.

"Where should we go?" She asked him, looking back to Verna to see where she was at. "We could go for a walk, or I suppose to your room," she ran her tongue along the front of her top teeth, you could see the outline of the moving tongue under her lip, "I suppose it wouldn't be too good if anyone heard us talking".

Reaching for her wine again, she quickly took another sip. Her nerves started to arise in a flurry at the thought of the conversation. She also felt her heart racing at whether she should tell him the news of her families blood line. What if he was a hunter, and he knew of her bloodline? Impossible, Father said nobody here knew... she thought to herself.

Verna approached the two again, placing her hands down on the bar looking then both square in the eyes one at a time. "So are you fancying another round?" She asked the two. Anna looked at her drink, and then Lucio's - maybe another round would help her feel more at ease. But she shook her head no subconsciously to Verna - who shrugged and sighed "well alright, this ones on the house for you two". She winked at Anna and cackled teasingly, Anna shot her a look and blew some of her hair out of her face. She was pretty transparent.

Verna was a barkeep, she could see through anyone, knew how to retort back to any comment, and most of all was a caring woman. Anna had known Verna for quiet sometime, they weren't the closest - but had spent many occasions together. Verna tapped the bar, "you two enjoy your day," she said and walked away. Anna smiled, and then looked back to Lucio. Taking one last sip of her drinks she placed it down, and backed away from the bar.

"Where to?"

Lucio was about to respond to her until she thought about it for a second. It was true, going to his room wouldn’t be the best option. When Verna had asked if he wanted a refill he was going to say yes, but Anna had declined it. He shrugged it off. He would just get one later. “Thanks.” He said when she said their drinks were on the house. He took another sip knowing it’d be his last at the same time Anna had taken hers.

“Alright, follow me.” He said putting the mug down, walking to the door of the inn, opening it. He motioned his hand for Anna to walk through the door. As she had left the inn he looked back at Verna, “Have a good day, I’ll see you later.” He said giving her a brief wave. Verna gave a smile, looking at Anna through the door, then back at Lucio, “Goodbye!” She waved and winked at him as they left. She figured it’d make Anna jealous and wanted to have some fun with her. It wasn’t everyday Anna had been up and about. She seemed to have become more active since Lucio had arrived. She felt he would hopefully be a good change for her.

Lucio closed the door when she had winked at him, turning to Anna. He motioned towards the road that led out of the small town. “Let’s go this way, there’s a trail that leads to the woods.” He said while they walked along the road. He looked around to see if anyone was listening. He didn’t see anyone and he looked back at Anna, “So, I didn’t come here to kill Alphonse.” He explained slightly moving his hands as he talked. “It was coincidence. I’m afraid that-” He stopped talking for a moment as the trail he had talked to appeared. “This way.” He motioned his hands toward the trail. The split off the road, “I’m afraid that it was just pure luck that I happened to be in this town when your old friend had come back to visit.” He was quiet for a few steps looking around at the scenery and the green lush foliage that Swiftburgh had. “I’m sorry that all of that had happened. I wish I could’ve done something different for you.” He apologized trying to think of some way to try comforting Anna. He scratched his scruff thinking of something more to say. “I hope you’ve been okay these past couple days.”

As they continued on the path through the woods they came upon a little river, with a small waterfall. The water at the bottom of the waterfall had split off into several different ways, turning the river into several creeks.

When they approached the spot Lucio walked over to a tree and leaned on it with a hand on his hip. He scratched his beard again, “I am actually a vampire hunter, but I don’t really actively hunt them out.” He took a deep breath looking at the waterfall for a moment. He hated lying to someone he didn’t want too. He looked back at Anna, “As for your old friend, I have no idea why he attacked you. I’ve seen vampires change drastically compared to their human selves. Some don’t change at all.” He said and shrugged once looking down at the ground playing with the grass for a second. “The mayor seems to run some kind of council though.” He said looking back up at her eyes, “And don’t say that to anyone, I don’t really know what this ‘council’ is about.”

Anna followed him happily, he had been igniting a new side of her. But also finding out more about the world as well had her enthralled to learn more. Fear still sat in her belly, almost being killed was something she didn't want to happen again. It was kind of odd how quickly she seemed to rebound from the trauma. But her father had most definitely talked a lot of the fear out of her. At that time, Anna didn't have too many questions - she was just a crying mess. Her thoughts hadn't all been compiled yet, until now.

As they walked through the town and quickly out of it, Anna looked behind her to see if anyone was watching them. But not many people were out and about it seemed. The walk turned into more lush and vibrant greens around them as they continued; the forest was Anna's sanctuary almost. She felt at home amongst the greenery, and chirping of nature around her. Continue to follow him she listened to everything he had to say - carefully. He hoped she had been well, and she smiled softly at this sentiment.

When he brought her to this spot, she smiled. Of course Anna had found this place a long time ago, and used to bring Cassandra so they could play in the water and relax. She hadn't been here in a long time since the attacks, she stopped and stared at the water. Another smile appeared, she quickly took off her shoes and walked towards the water. Placing her feet in it, she took a deep breath in and raised her head up towards the sky. Letting it out and opening her eyes she stared up into the emerald trees, the wind blew slightly. the bottom of her dress was absorbing water she could feel some extra weight by didn't mind.

"I've been well, I had a lot of emotions to sort through," Anna said and took another step forward into the water. The cool rushing feeling of the water against her feet felt relaxing. "Lucio," Anna looked over her shoulder at him, "you did more than enough for me. You saved my life, because of you - I am able to still do this". She gestured towards the water, and forest. Her voice was thick with sincerity as she talked to him. "The forest has always been my favorite place, and I almost never saw it again" the tone in her voice resonated a genuine sadness.

She turned around and took a step out of the water, lifting up the bottom of her dress and beginning to wring out some of the excess water that had collected in the fabric. "You saved me, and had no obligation to - just some girl from a Village whose sister ran into them," she partially laughed and continued wringing out her dress. After a few moments of silence and continually fiddling with the bottom of her dress. She moved forward to Lucio, standing closer than one would probably expect. Anna's eyes seemed shifty, she slowly lifted her hands to his face - each hand on each side, her thumbs stroked his cheekbones. "I have no anger, or resentment to you," she said quietly, her face serious, "I would assume someone whom once said he was falling for me - would have better restraint". She lowered her hands to her chest, lacing her fingers together. "I do want to know more, about the Vampires, and Werewolves". Pausing for a moment, she realized they had never talked about Werewolves to each other, she quickly tried to recover.

When he said he was indeed a hunter, Anna chuckled "it makes sense why you aren't bothered by killing him, and how you know what to do". She looked around the forest, nature was lively around them - birds watching from above as the two conversed. "I'm not angry about anything, I am sad though - to be honest," she looked away from his face and towards the stream, "thinking of you helped me get through the past few days. You're so sure of yourself, and caring," she looked back at him and placed one hand on the back of his neck. Raising herself up on her toes, and lightly placing her lips to his right cheek - she pulled away close to his ear "Thank you, Lucio". She rocked back onto the flats of her feet, her hand slowly made its way from the back of his neck sliding down his chest before it retracted back to her quickly. Anna realized she was probably being more intimate than she needed to be, but she was drawn to the stranger. And wanted to get to know him more. Saving her life was a plus, but he was catching her attention in many other ways. Smiling again at him, genuinely and a hint of nervousness shined in it - especially after she kissed his cheek. "I want to know everything you know..." she whispered to him, her hands shook with nerves.

Lucio watched as she had walked over putting her feet in the water. He stayed leaning on the tree, listening to her. His heart fluttered when she had got up and walked close to him and stroked him on the cheek. He felt relief when she said she held no resentment or anger towards him. Werewolves? He didn’t know she knew about those, just vampires.

He almost felt bad when she had said that he didn’t feel bad for killing the young man. Hopefully she didn’t feel as though he was heartless or cold. Yes, killing was easy, but it wasn’t always a heartless act. He looked around at the scenery, until she spoke again.

When she had come closer to him, kissing him on the cheek it made him feel warm. His heart was beating fast, he honestly wasn’t expecting her to do anything of the sort. Sure, he saved her life, but she didn’t really owe him anything. She had said earlier that he had seemed he knew what he was doing. He did, for 1600 years now. It didn’t matter. It was a big deal for her, he wasn’t going to take that away from her.

He chuckled softly, when she had said she wanted to know everything he knew. It was impossible. He could show her some memories telepathically but she wasn’t ready for that kind of thing yet. Once she learned his true nature, he’d let her in on some of his life. Lucio actually liked to keep his personal life private. He never felt comfortable sharing his experiences with anyone. Staying detached from everyone was much simpler.

In fact, he had no idea what to say back to the young woman. What should he say to someone that wants to know everything they know. What did she have in mind? All he knew was that she had looked at him with determination, focus, and motivation. What kind of things had she expected from him.

Thoughts flowed through his head quickly as he had looked at her.

He got it. Going for vagueness seemed like the best choice.

After he had chuckled he leaned beside her ear, copying what she had done to him. “What do you want to know, Anna?” He whispered, pulling away from her and looking into her eyes, naturally looking down at the lips that had just pressed on his cheeks. He had noticed her hands were shaking slightly but he didn’t really know where this conversation was going to or how long they were going to be there, but he didn’t mind either way.

After asking her his question he sat down, placing his back against the tree and propping up a leg, laying his arm on it. He was going to absorb some nature like she had. He looked up at her while smiling, waiting for her next move as the wind has whisked away the small sweat he had on his skin.

She gave a toothy smile as he pulled the same move she did. Her stomach tightened with knots and her heart beat faster. Anna put a finger to her chin, as if deeply thinking. Then stroked her chin, pretending she had a beard. She watched him get comfortable on the ground, against the tree. She decided that it was a wise decision. So she plopped right down in front of him, tucking her legs under her, her dress sprawled out almost in a perfect circle around her. "I'm not sure where to start," she smiled - Anna did feel at ease around him. She couldn't explain the feeling of calm that overcame her when he was near recently. It could all be chalked up to him saving her life though.

Anna rested her hands in her lap, biting her bottom lip. She stared at him for a moment, her heart hadn't stopped fluttering. She took in his demeanor, his smile, their eyes holding an unspoken gaze for a moment. Anna felt at peace with this. He was far different from Alphonse. Though she was falling for Alphonse before, he wasn't a gentleman like Lucio. Alphonse constantly tried to swoon Anna into sexual acts, but she always declined. Never ready. And she wasn't sure if he was going to be the "one". She almost had a fairy tail ideal set for her love life. Someone she'd give herself too, and they'd be together - forever. It was very far-fetched and she knew it, but one could hope.

They were polar opposites, in looks and personality. Of course, Alphonse had caught her attention by being a gentleman, but that wasn't long lived. Occasionally after a few drinks he would treat her differently. He was more abrasive, and unromantic. She didn't need the constant romanticized moments, but she wasn't feeling the butterflies with him that she was now feeling with Lucio.

For a moment, she reflected on Alphonse and hers blossoming relationship. He had met her father - he seemed to approve. But she also believed that he was just happy she finally landed on someone. She had met him at one of the royal gatherings, introduced through a random meeting via her friends talking to some men. Alphonse happened to be apart of the group of men, and the two seemed to hit it off. Though, never enough to let her be alone with him too long. They had hung out outside of the balls, numerous times. Anna enjoyed her time with Alphonse, he was sweet, and kind - but even then, it seemed like everything was said for just one goal. With Lucio, she felt a more sincere tone in his voice, than she ever had with Alphonse. His death left her with an unnamed feeling, someone you had gotten close with tried to kill you, and then is killed. It's very hard to decipher how one could feel about it.

"When did you find out about vampires? How did you become a hunter?" She asked finally, and looked away from his face. Anna stared back to the babbling water, she watched as a bird came down and began to peck around at the ground for food. She listened to Lucio's response, and became more serious but Anna frowned, her eyes focused in the distant - "Lucio, I worry for Cassandra..." her voice trailed off, she looked to the ground. A tear escaped her eyes and hit her dress, "I want to know how to successfully kill a Vampire. For her. And a Werewolf." Anna wiped her eyes and laughed embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I think if anything happened to Cassandra," she paused, "I-I don't want to imagine that. I'm not sure how I would handle myself."

Wiping her eyes, she inhaled deeply, and then let it out slowly. "I really thought I was going to die in that moment," Anna's voice shook, she closed her eyes and seemed to be replaying the incident, "Now that I know this.....side of the world is real. I want to know more". She opened her eyes and moved them to meet his. Her fave was stern, clearly the time for jokes had passed.

Lucio laughed when she had stroked her invisible beard. He had watched her sit down, as he smiled from her joke. When their eyes had locked for a moment he had wondered what she was thinking about. He even had considered making a move to kiss her. Was it too early? Did she want one? Possibly, but Lucio didn’t mind letting things play out. Shit, he had eternity. When she had asked about vampires their gaze broke away. He looked over at the soothing creek and waterfall as they sat there, continuing to listen to her.

Lucio felt sorry for her. When she had tears coming out of her eyes he wanted to go over and embrace her, but she had collected herself quickly. She seemed to be a strong willed woman, even though she said she wouldn’t know what to do if her sister had died. He figured she’d manage, but it’d leave hole in her for a while. Once she had calmed down and looked into her eyes, he leaned back against the tree, looking upwards at the sky and tree leaves. He reflected on what she had said for a few seconds. She did have a few questions.

After a moment he looked back at her, “I’ll try my best to make sure your sister is safe.” He meant it. He didn’t really understand why she had seemed so worried about her death, but if he could stop it from happening he would. She had asked again about wanting to know more about his side of the world that she hadn’t known about. He looked at the ground beside him, pulling out some grass blades. He’d bring them up to his face, peeling it apart and then throw them away as he thought. “Well…” He said looking up at Anna for a second, “It was a few years ago when I had learned about it.” He said. He begun to realize that this story would be hard to lie about. A few years ago? A few thousand years ago maybe. He took another grass blade repeating what he had done, thinking some more. He was an Original. He didn’t turn, the magic had turned him into one. It took him a year to learn that he could sire his own brethren. He took a minute to collect his thoughts to think of something believable. He finally thought of a story he could tell her that would fit her questions.

He looked over at her, “Alright.” He said looking at her seriously. This story had truth to it, but it wasn’t completely true. “A vampire had killed one of my best friends right in front of me.” He said, breaking eye contact with her, picking up more grass. “I was too drunk to do anything.” He said staring off into the grass as he explained his story, clearly reliving the memories of that night. After a moment, he came back to his normal self and he chuckled lightly, “I was totally hammered, so was he. We were having a good time.” He paused a moment fidgeting around. “He had just lost his virginity and wanted to celebrate.” Lucio laughed. “It was a big deal for him. He loved women but couldn’t ever get a date. He wasn’t the most attractive but he wasn’t half bad. He just tried too hard.” He paused a moment letting go of the grass blades, losing interest in his little fidgeting toy. “He wanted to marry her. He talked about it all night.” He smirked looking down at the ground and back up at her, “We were young and silly I guess.” He said shrugging, “He was more definitely more lively than me.” He thought back to those memories once more, smirking. He was young and full of energy, so was Lucio back then. They both fully hadn’t matured yet, still growing to learn new things. His life was cut short. Lucio’s smile faded after a moment.

Lucio had felt the mood in the atmosphere around them had changed, and he didn’t particularly like it. If he were to hang around Anna, he wouldn’t want her to be sulking.

“But that was the past.” He said trying to brush off the negative mood.

“So how do you kill one? You asked.” He said moving onto another subject, “Basically they die the same way, decapitation, fire, taking out the heart, sunlight kills a vampire, and you can break a werewolves neck, or hurt him enough.” He shrugged, “I learned from a few hunters on my travels around the world.”

He paused a moment taking a look at Anna to see where she was at. Analyzing her didn’t seem to help him, so he figured he’d wait for a response.

Anna's head snapped towards him, her eyes seemed confused and then she smiled warmly at Lucio - not expecting him to say he'd keep her little sister safe. She mouthed 'thank you,' to him and couldn't seem to lose the smile on her face. He really had no rhyme or reason too, he and Anna barely knew each other and he felt a need to want to help her. She pondered this for a moment, and wondered if he had feelings for her, or maybe he was just a very genuine vagabond that couldn't leave someone in trouble. She tossed the ideas around in her head, hoping that it was because he was possibly developing feelings for her. Her mind stopped wandering when he began to speak, her eyes staring at the man before her, whom was becoming less of a stranger of the past few days.

Biting her lower lip, in her typical fashion, Anna slightly frowned. "I'm sorry," she stated, and looked out into the forest. Listening to what he had to say about killing vampires. She stared down at the ground, processing everything and then ran her fingers through her hair - "I guess I'd have a lot of training to do..seeing as I was nowhere near being skilled enough to kill one the other night," She smirked and it faded quickly. Realizing again, that it was Alphonse who had lost his life - but to her, he lost his life the moment he became a vampire. "Are people born Vampires? Or must you be turned?" She questioned, and then licked her lips, "Does that apply for werewolves too?"

Her father had answered the question slightly the night, saying her whole family from his side carried the gene. It could be triggered via any death that was caused by the holder whether it be accidental or on purpose. She wondered if it ever activated in her, if she were to bite someone would they change? She clutched her dress in her hands as her mind began to race at all of the possibilities. She imagined herself turning into a wolf, a creature of the night - one she hadn't even seen in person before. She closed her eyes, and then released her dress bringing her hands up to her eyes she rubbed them and looked back to Lucio. "Sorry, I guess I was just thinking about the other night..." Anna broke her gaze, and looked over to the creek again.

She stood up, and then bent down in front of Lucio extending her hands. She waited for a moment as he looked to her, and she laughed "Come on," she closed and opened her hands waiting for him to grab them. As he did, she helped pull him up - and while still holding one of his hands led him towards the creek and began to follow it. She eventually dropped his hand, and started to fidget with her dress trying not to look at him. Anna felt the blood race to her face upon the realization she was still holding his hand. She continued walking along side of the creek with him, and finally spoke again "I asked about Werewolves earlier because well...I guess if vampires are real that must mean werewolves are too". Anna scratched behind her ear, and sighed.

As they continued walking it opened up more around them into a giant clearing, the sun beamed into it reflecting off the crystal blue water of the small pond she led him too. It was lively here, birds flying around, a few rabbits on the other side now aware of their presence seemed to be on edge. The water ebbed and flowed with the breeze, and as it was being fed more water by the end of the creeks stream. She again, walked into the water and looked around "This, is Cassandra's favorite place. We usually come here for a swim, and to hide away from responsibilities". Everything in this clearing was like it had been designed perfectly for one to relax. Small bouts of high grass to lay in, the water to swim in, and the sun shone perfectly in allowing the temperature to stay comfortable.

Lucio bowed his head slightly when she had mouthed thank you to him.

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” He said when she had apologized to him when he had told his story. He chuckled when she said she had a lot training to do. “You’ll get there eventually. Training takes time.” He said. Lucio could train her down the road, if she truly had wanted it to happen. He turned his head towards her when she had asked if people are born vampires. He chuckled again. “No, they have to be turned. And werewolves are born with the gene that makes them so.” He said shrugging. “Werewolves have more or less normal human lives.” He paused for a second, “They can be out in the sun, and they are family oriented. They have strong bonds to their family.”

He glanced over at her when she wad been telling her what everything was. She was in thought. Maybe she had listened to what he said, maybe she didn’t. After a moment, she had stood up making him follow her. They followed along a creek, “That’s good logic.” He admitted when she had said that if vampires are real, so are werewolves.

They arrived at a cleaning and it was quite beautiful. He had realized that they had held hands all the way to the new location. He begun to wonder if that was on purpose or just mindless. He glanced over at Anna, taking a look at her. He wouldn’t mind being with her, but what did she really want? What did he want? They had been spending a lot of time together lately. Would they just become good friends? Even in the long run, she’d end up getting old and dying. Relationships were complicated to Lucio.

He shrugged off some thought and looked around the area. There was a small pond and creatures around. He continued to look around as she had introduced the area to being Cassandra’s favorite spot. “I see why she likes it here.” He said looking around at everything. He let go of her hand and walked over to a patch of grass and sat down, taking in the scenery around him. He sprawled out his legs looking at Anna for her next move.

“Do you have any more questions?” He asked and stretched out slightly. “I’d be more than happy to share anything with you.” He said giving her a small smile.

In all honesty Lucio had figured he was going to have to stay in this town for a little while. It wasn’t his original plan, but he figured he’d learn more about this town’s secrets and people before he left to wander around like he always had. Sometimes knowing people made life difficult and it was just simpler to be on his own.

Meeting Anna was unexpected though. She seemed a little different from the average girl, and just person for that matter. He wasn’t sure. Maybe she was just average, and Lucio had been alone too long. Either way he couldn’t figure it out. He wondered what his best move was. To stay with his new friend, or move along again in the world.

If he had stopped talking to her, would she feel hurt by it? Or would she just move on? He had some questions for Anna, but just personal questions he really didn’t want to ask. Time would give him some answers.