Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The first thing Scott noticed was the ruin. His vacation home that his coven spent weeks planning, decorating, and capturing humans to build was burnt and in crumble. Chairs and windows smashed, tables flipped with axe marks in them. Come on! That was mahogany!

The second thing he noticed was the lack of his brood’s familiar pull tying them together.

There wasn’t a flood of emotions that he had gotten used to the overflow of or even the wall that some of his elder childer would try to put up to hide their feelings or anger whenever they got into a disagreement or fight. It was just missing.

They were gone. They were all gone.

When Scott catches that damned group, let alone the witch that cursed him!

600 years he’d been stuck in a slumber. Defenseless to nature and unable to protect his family.

Also 600 years without food. Scott was very hungry. That wasn’t good.

It meant he couldn’t tap into his powers and strength he mastered over the centuries, but more importantly he was starving with no food in sight. He had to find blood quickly before he became subseptable to turning feral, which would bode well for no one. His Sire hammered in that simple logic into his and his covenmates brains in their first few decades.

A hungry vampire could turn into a feral vampire and a feral vampire easily turns into a dead one.

So despite his grief, and dismay over his ruined estate, he emerged from the rubble to set out for a food source.

——————

Scott was usually a strategic man. He had plan to find food and any other worthwhile resources to gather on his way back to the castle and recuperate there.

He’d easily found a herd of cows in the forest that satiated his hunger, before running into an establishment. A quaint little village with tall spiked logs surrounding the border with several humans residing in it.

Scott had no need to run into town, and honestly didn’t want the see the mug of any human face after what they did to his coven. He was honestly about to turn around when a scent on the wind caught his attention.

Wolf. But not a Wolf? It was something more larger and powerful. Scott couldn’t really decipher the scent this far away, but it was definitely residing from town.

Scott scoffed and turned and moved from the tree line to retreat back into the woods. Whatever mangey mutt the town had to protect them had no interest to Scott. It would do little against him when he would go back to conquer the village and collect resources from them. He started to walk back, but someone guarding the gate noticed him. He’s stayed too long.

They ran up to him and asked if he was ok. He tried to wave them off, not really wanting to strike up conversation with those below him when they asked if he’d had a place to stay.

Now he had 2 options. Lie, tell them he had no where to go which would most likely lead them into inviting him to live in town. Something he wasn’t in the mood for currently. Or he had option 2, tell the truth. Say that he does have a home near by and he’s well off. Saying that though might lead to more questions.

“How long have you lived here?”

“Do you have any resources to trade?”

“Can we see your home?”

Scott wanted none of these humans near his home. He didn’t care if it’s been destroyed and left in ruin. That was his land, his home. He would not let another human get in a mile radius of it ever again!

Scott was usually a strategic man, but also an instinctual driven one. Sue him

So, he lied. They invited him in as predicted. Scott really couldn’t say no without drawing suspicion. (Who would reject free help?)

And that’s when Scott’s worst vacation began.

——————

He was moved in with the other humans who had also just arrived. They walked around for a bit, giving a brief tour of the town.

They were explained the laws, discussed when town meetings were, and other important details about the town that he couldn’t care to pay attention to. In his defense, knowing the lunch and dinner time had no impact on when whatever they served was uneatable and tastes like ash to him.

He also was more allured by the smell from earlier. Or he guesses he should say smells now. There’s probably about 3, if his tracking isn’t rusty, spread across town.

The smell is much clearer too, with their stench of territorial marks placed on almost every building. Scott rolls his eyes at the state of it all.

Werewolves. Arguably the only creature that outperforms vampires in territory obsession. And he was stuck in a a town with 3 off them. On their claim.

Just great.

At the end of the tour, they were paired up with an established town resident to roommate with. Something about the buddy system, in case something happens to the other. Scott was mildly annoyed by this, but some invisibility and pillows shaped like him under some sheets would work if he had to hunt under the cover of night.

His picked roommate hadn’t been so bad either. A small, redheaded girl. Shelby, if he remembers, who had glasses that gave her owlish eyes which matched her curiosity for knowledge. She was quick witted, had a very positive attitude towards everything which led her into some odd situations, but overall very sweet.

Her company wasn’t half bad on most days, which is a major compliment for Scott to say about a human. Her rants on Bigfoot and other creatures filled the void of silence in the drafty little shack the town assigned to them.

He almost had the mind to turn her.

No, he can’t think like that.

His current state and situation that he had himself working with was barely enough to sustain himself. It wouldn’t be right of him to turn a fledgling with such little resources available to care for them. It wouldn’t be fair to them.

Besides, she might like her life as a human. He wasn’t going to turn anyone if they weren’t going to appreciate the gift he was bestowing them.

He could wait. Gather his resources slowly and regain his strength. Sneak out and rebuild the castle in the dead of night. Grieve his lost family.

Then he can start rebuilding his coven.

Chapter Text

A few weeks passed by with his unplanned stay in town and Scott would say he’s playing the charade of a noble human very well.

He could have lied and say he came from no noble background to blend in with the townspeople more. The problem, however, was with his clothes. Despite the years of neglect, the garments were too regal to pass as an everyday civilian. It also didn’t help that he acted nothing of the part.

He may be bound to a town full of peasants, but he wasn’t going to drag himself down to their level just for the sake of disguises.

So, he was under the role of a noble who was from a neighboring village who had come to ask for aid and sanctuary after a group of bandits attacked and ransacked their village.

Yes, they might ask to see the town, but he could always spin the plot that it’s too far to walk on foot, barely making it here himself. The bandits took over and there’s nothing left for him there, and doesn’t want to see the reminder of all that he’s lost!

Thankfully, they had no issues with his claim and seemed very understanding of his situation. Apparently most of the town was made of travelers wandering in for safety. That was when he learned another discovery about the town.

They were trapped by a force field

People on the outside can’t see it, leading many to wander in all the time unknowingly. However once you’re in, the barrier keeps any way of getting out. People can’t even see you once you’re on the other side of it.

Damn witches. Scott was getting tired of those wretches controlling his life.

That means he was stuck with the town more than he originally thought.

Still, he was making excellent progress on repairing the castle and recollecting his blood stash. The manual labor itself was honestly so icky to him, but seeing the castle slowly grow back into its glory made his instincts preen with pride of his accomplishments.

Shelby had taken no notice in his nightly disappearances to his relief. She was honestly quite the deep sleeper. She was usually in bed before Scott “turned in for the night”, and still asleep as the sun rose on his return, sleeping a couple more hours before awakening.

His instincts wouldn’t shut up about how perfect a fledgling she would be. Already content with taking long naps, staying in the nest where it’s safe until Scott came back, greeting him warmly each time.

Such a sweet fledgling already, even before she’s turned.

She would probably want the life too. Scott, now being a regular subject to her talks on monsters and wanting to know how they lived, knew how much a conversation with one would mean to her.

And honestly, what’s better then getting to know how a vampire lives than being one.

He also did technically have an enough resources stocked up now to raise a fledgling if he so chooses to-

With his mind made up, he went out once more to collect resources and prepare for Shelby’s arrival to the castle.

——————

“Hey Scott! Where you heading out to?”

He was just on his way out to hunt and catch more prey in the forest when a thunder of foot steps approached from behind him.

He turned around at the gate of town to see a guy running up to him out of breath with their hand stretched out signaling for Scott to slow down. The man had short brown hair, blue eyes and lightly tanned skin with a brown coat, pants, and shoes.

Peter? Pyro? One of the two if he remembers. There was honestly to many humans in the town to keep track of, but he does recognize his face.

He was a scholar, a respectful and friendly young man. Often skittish at times, but mostly when left to his own devices. Poor thing probably had a bad past to be anxious alone like that.

“I’m off to go hunting a little ways from town.”

“You mind if I tag along?”

Maybe he felt a bit bad for him in that moment or something deeper in his gut persuaded him to, but he let the boy tag along in his expedition. Sure he couldn’t collect bottled blood as he originally hoped, but raw meat would do just as fine.

They made their way to the lake where Scott found a herd off cows the night prior but didn’t have enough bottles to kill them all.

“This should be more than enough cattle to hunt between the two of us. Maybe you could lure one back-“

Scott paused as he looked back towards Pyro. His vision was locked onto something behind Scott. He had first thought it to be himself, but soon realized Pyro was looking through him. He tried to follow his view but only found the pre-mentioned view of the lake and island in its middle.

Scott sensed only himself, the cattle, and Pyro’s heart racing. So it couldn’t have been someone lurking or stalking them. Was it something in the water? Pyro gaze was stuck on it-

That’s when it clicked to Scott.

Oh, the water itself. A common human fear, but it’s usually brought on by rapids or much larger bodies of it. Not a still lake. Still most human fears made no sense to him after being dead for so long, so what’s a still, unmoving lake to add to the list.

“Are you afraid of the water?”

The question made Pyro jump out of his trance. He blinked a couple of times before shaking and rubbing his head.
“Yeah… sorry about that. It’s kinda a new thing, rarely happens too often. I usually stay clear of even the smallest bit of water most days.” He answers sheepishly.

“Not used to big bodies of water I presume then?”

He chuckles, “I’m not used to much here in Oakhurst actually! I spent most of my life in the capital. This whole lifestyle is beyond me!”

Scott hums at this information. Interesting, “Me neither. Are you from a noble life as well?”

Pyro shuffles his feet as his heart races a bit quicker. This might be an awkward subjet for him, “Oh, umm… yeah. I used to be noble, went to a very esteemed institution for my education too.”

Oh? “Used to?”

“Yeah… I was recently written out of a will to a very wealthy estate. I traveled to Oakhurst to kinda get away from it all.”

Scott arches his eyebrow in confusion, “What would cause that? You’re not one to cause trouble. You’re fairly respectful to the other townsfolk and rarely stir up any conflict, so what gives?”

Pyro sighs, “I wasn’t the most popular person ever. I was teased a lot in my youth for my interest in my studies and research.  It was mostly by one person, but he followed me everywhere. The son of a family friend. It was to the point we attended the same college and lectures so…”

“You were harassed?”

“Yeah…”

Oh boy. This was deeper than Scott intended the conversation to go. He was not the most emotionally intelligent person in the world. Being a bloodthirsty creature for over hundreds of years will do that to you. That being said, he was definitely not equipped to handle this situation with the respect Pyro deserved from him in this moment.

But he needed someone, and right now (besides some cows), Scott is all he has. Scott wasn’t good with words, but he definitely had to say something though, he deserved recognition at least.

“I’m sorry you went through that Pyro.”

Maybe a story would help articulate his feelings?

“I was harassed by a man once too. Not too soon after leaving home for the first time.”

“What?”

“Yeah. My Si- My father was quite overbearing of me and my siblings, never letting us go into town while we were young. Always had a servant fetch things for us y’know. So, once I was old enough, I figured I would head out to see the town that was blocked from me all those years.”

He stopped to look at Pyro. He had stopped moping and looked at him with attention. Good it’s working, “ I had fun going from stall to stall, buying jewelry and little trinkets. That was until, someone grabbed my shoulder.

It was a taverner. Seemed pretty friendly and happy to see me despite never meeting before. So, we struck conversation. He was really interested in my father’s legacy and control over the towns land. Mostly how he got power in the first place. He really wanted to egg the secrets out of me, but I refused feeling a bit uncomfortable at that point.

I left the stand we were at and moved to the next, but he kept lurking behind me and following me to other stands, swearing it was just a coincidence. I left eventually, feeling uncomfortable with my interactions with him, but also feeling satisfied with my haul. I had fun that day despite that guy, I really liked going shopping. It was a shame my father kept it from me for this long.

I wanted to go back. I wasn’t going to let that one experience with some random townsfolk ruin my enjoyment of shopping, so I went back. 5 minutes into browsing necklaces I felt a hand on my shoulder and the same schtick followed. After I got home the second time I said the same thing to myself. Surely he couldn’t ruin my trip again for a third time.

But he did, and continued to do so for every time afterwards too. Hand on shoulder, bugging me for info on my father, following me around demanding for info, leave and repeat. It was honestly getting tiring at a certain point for me to deal with!

It got to the point where one day, I confronted him. I told him to leave me be or I would call my father to get the police to arrest him.

This time he actually left me alone and didn’t follow me around town. I thought the threat must of scared him so badly he backed off. That was until I was at the gates of my father’s mansion and turned around to find him with a dagger raised at me.”

Pyro gasps at that part, “Oh god! Were you ok?!”

He laughs at Pyros concern for him. It was sweet he cared for Scott’s safety when he was alive in well in front of him, “Yes, thank you for worrying. Thankfully my father was there at the door to hear the commotion and whipped his ass. Never had an issue with him after that!”

“What happened to him?”

“Pulled some strings with some people higher up. Got him locked up for life,” he chuckled, “ even faked the guys death so he’d wouldn’t get visitors”. Scott smiled at the memory of the man being chained up in his Sire’s dungeon slowly starving to death. Karmas a bitch that bites you when you least expect it to.

“The point of that whole story is, I get where you’re coming from. I may not be able to understand all of it, because it’s impossible for me to. I’m not you,  I haven’t walked in your shoes to know every interaction and difficulty you’ve gone through,” he sighs, “but I know it feels shitty. I know it takes a lot to come out of that.”

Scott had been scared shitless at first when he turned around after arriving home from his trip to the market and found that guy had followed him back home to their castle, dagger in hand. Yes his Sire absolutely clobbered the guy once his bond alerted him to the intruder, and yes his covenmates swarmed him in a cuddle pile once his Sire condemned him to the nest for several weeks before even letting him outside again, but he was scared for his life in that moment.

Pyro, however had probably gone through something similar and had none of Scotts vampiric abilities to protect him or even a support system to help him cope now. But, he made it out mostly unscathed. That in itself is commendable.

“ You should be very proud of yourself for making it through that part of your life. The fact you’ve gotten this far is nothing to sneeze at.”

“Thanks Scott”

After they let go of each other, they stood there at the lake as a silence settled between the two of them. They soaked in the serenity of the small waves crashing into each other and the hoof stomps of the cows they long since forgotten about.

It was honestly peaceful. Besides the few tranquil hours Scott gets before Shelby wakes up, this moment was one of the first times being in Oakhurst has made him physically at peace in over 600 years. Pyro was the first person he’d been fine with sharing a silent moment with in over 600 years. Not even Shelby has given him a quiet moment to share between them.

Huh?

The veil fell though as Pyro moved to sit on the gravel. Scott made no move to follow, (he was not ruining his cloak anymore than it was), and simply observed as he pick up a stone from the ground after some searching around in the dirt and threw it at the water

The stone skipped across the water making good distance before inevitably stopping and sinking into the water. They watched as the pebble sunk and sunk until it was no longer visible. That’s when Pyro spoke up.

“He blackmailed me.”

Chapter Text

“He blackmailed me. On the day before our finals. I was on course for being top of the class when he came and handed me a yellow envelope. Inside it was photos of me with another man. He threatened me Scott. He threatened to send it to every professor, friend, newspaper in the area, even …my parents.”

He turned to look Scott in the eye, eyes long since dripping tears, “They couldn’t find out Scott. They would do so much worse to me than just damaging my reputation and kicking me out! They just couldn’t-“

Scott reaches out to rub his back, forgetting about his pride and cloak as he kneels on the ground next to Pyro. He holds back a reassuring chirp, as Pyro shoulders racked and heaved with his sobbing.

He’s getting way too engrossed with this human, but can’t just leave him here. He’s not that much of a monster. His instincts are also gluing him to the distressed man, refusing to let him move until the boy is calmed.

He does eventually regain himself and continues his story, “So, I went with his demands. I dropped out, burned all of my research, and returned home to the capital.

I was miserable, but my secret wasn’t out. I knew deep down how wrong of him it was, but my mind tricked me into believing it was some form of a twisted compromise. I drop out, giving up any chance at finishing my degree so he could get top of the class. He leaves me be and I don’t get outed to my family. Everyone’s happy. ”

He breathes in heavily, nose scrunching up to suck back the leakage of snot running past his nose. He holds past his sobs to get his next few sentences out.

“That’s what I thought until he came back a few months after his graduation in August. My parents hosted a party and him being the son of a family friend got him invited. I was naive to think he would leave me during the event!”

He wipes his tears away angrily as he continued, “I was down by the lake trying to write a new thesis cause, you know, all the rest was burnt to ash. He stumbled up to me drunk past his wit, spitting insults and slurs at me.”

He lets out a sad manic laugh, “I think that’s what broke me in the end. After everything he’s taken; my rank, my research, my privacy, and pride. He came back for more, after taking everything. He was kicking me down at my lowest. I was just so tired of all of it.”

He licks his lips, “I don’t think I did it. Everything was a bit of a blur once he put his hands on me, but… I couldn’t help but smirk when the fog cleared and I saw his body floating to the bottom of the lake.”

Oh shit.

“They found Czesław dead the next morning. With me being the last person he went and saw, I got blamed. I was disinherited and disowned, given a week to pack and leave far away from the capital. In my quick scrambling of finding somewhere to live I found Oakhurst. There’s little research done on this place. I thought I could write a thesis about Oakhurst during my time here, y’know, get some sort of normalcy back in my life.”

At this point, the waterworks were back on full display. Shaking and sobbing, he trembles out, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to trauma dump you with all of that.”

“Pyro you don’t have to apologize!”

Oh my god. Pyro was apologizing to him after confining in him. How badly had those humans messed with him?

Scott tuts at him, “I take back nothing that I’ve said prior. You’ve been very brave to have gone through that.” Pyro heaves as a new wave a sobs wracked his body. He doesn’t hold back the churr he lets out this time.

Safe! Help Here! Sire Here!

If his instincts weren’t yelling before, they were definitely now. Poor thing was cast out and abandoned. Sure he’d killed a man, but was afraid and cornered. What else was the boy supposed to do?!

He needed to be in a nest. He needed help and time to heal from his past. If no one from Pyro’s family was going to step up, Scott certainly would.

Scott wraps his arms around the sniffling man, “I’m so sorry you had to go through that on your own Pyro,” he says calculating his next few words.

“If I could promise you… help. The space and time to heal from your scars, would you allow me to give you a hand?”

Scott knew that message had a deeper meaning to it and was heavily sugar coating it. However, he needed an answer if he was about to go through with his next course of actions.

Would you allow me to Sire you? Take you under my wing?

Pyro pulled backed and looked up at him and, oh my god, Scott will never be able to deny him anything in the future. A weak smile spread across his face, contrasting the tear tracks on his cheeks, as a broken voice spoke out, “If you’d allow me… I could really use a friend.”

Scott was certainly planning to do more than just being friends with Pyro.

Was he a little bad for not telling Pyro what he was planning. Yeah, he’ll admit it. But it was for his own good. His fledgling would understand his decisions later and forgive him eventually. They would have all of eternity to talk it out.

Scott lowered his gaze to Pyro’s neck, about to bite. That was before a certain thought raced back to his mind.

The original plan. The whole reason he was out here in the first place.

Shelby.

He didn’t have the time today to turn Pyro, run back to the castle, put him in the nest, run back to town, convince Shelby to come outside of town with him, convince her to become a vampire, and deliver her to the nest all before nightfall.

Not to mention coming up with a story explaining their disappearances and why he was the last to be seen with both of them.

He weighed his options. Shelby was safe, happy, warm, and was content with being human in the village for now. Pyro was anxious, borderline depressed, and clearly unhappy with his human life, only coming to Oakhurst to escape it all.

Pyro needed the safety more.

He grips Pyro shoulder and bites down into his neck.

Sorry Shelby.

He blocks out Pyro’s screams as he starts sucking the blood from the wound, the sweetness of it all rushing to Scott’s taste buds. With the nectar comes the memories, Pyro sitting at a dock with a leather note book in hand, a maple tree covering him with shade. He seems so at peace (the way he should always be). The visions shifts, the sky growing darker as he bears witness to all the events he was told about just a few moments ago. His blood reeked of fear in that moment, something Scott was determined to change.

Pyro’s heart levels out to a faint, out of rhythm thumping, until it calms to a halt. His eyes grow a gloss as they become heavier and heavier, and suddenly the world is to much to digest and his eyes close from exhaustion. His cries slowly die down and morph in to whining. Whining that can only be heard and understood by Scott in the clearing.

Scared! Hurts! Where Sire?!

Fledgling calls, calling out for Scott to help him. He was just a baby now. Scott’s baby.

Sire here! Safe!

Scott piled the man into his lap, rubbing a hand down his back in a rhythmic pattern in an attempt to soothe any discomfort. He would return for Shelby on a later date. For now, him and Pyro had a nest to go to.

——————

Scott went down his spiral stair case and back into his tomb room in the castle’s crypt. Carefully not to disturb Pyro in his hold, who had long since fallen asleep from his episode at the lake, he move towards the back wall and pulls on an unlighted torch mounted to the wall. The disguised mechanism triggers the stone underneath it to slide back, revealing a room filled with silk blankets and plush pillows.

To his dismay, most of it had a thick layer of dust and holes scattered across the fabrics, mostly from moths sneaking through the cracks and making a lunch out of the nest.

He sighed, wiping off most of the dust on one particular silk blanket with his cloak, he came to terms that he would need a new one, before placing down Pyro and wrapping him up in it. He would have to get more suitable blankets for his nest, but right now his childe needed rest.

Pyro stretched among the blankets, trying to find a comfortable spot, before curling up and continuing his nap. Scott cooed and ran a hand through his fledgling’s hair, to which Pyro leaned into and started to purr.

“My little fledgling,” he continued to brush his hair with his fingers, “rest up for now. You’ve had a big day and you’ll have many to come.”

Pyro chirred happily in his sleep. He probably couldn’t even understand Scott right now. Fledglings usually just take in the vibe of their surroundings and not what’s truly going on around them. Pyro’s emotions in their bond reflected the presence of the nest and blankets, warm, soft and relaxing.

And as Pyro rightfully should after all those hardships before his turning. Humans could be so cruel and judgmental, it’s honestly a shame he couldn’t raise Pyro away from this town. Far away from any reminder of his past while he grows into his new form.

Scott didn’t notice he was growling until Pyro let out a whine.

“Hush now, nothing will come to your harm while you’re under my care”

And he wouldn’t. Scott would honestly murder the entire town before he let anyone near the castle, ruin or not. He had a fledgling now, and after everything humanity had taken from him, Pyro would not be next on the chopping block to be stolen.

Chapter Text

A couple of weeks had gone by in town since Pyro had turned at the lake. He had convinced the town that Pyro and himself had been attacked by a pack of wolves, (they were due to migrate over this time of year anyway). All it took was some strategic self inflicted wounds and cows blood. Also, Scott was an excellent actor when it counts.

The town flooded him with questions and their concerns, but Scott waved them off insured them it was ok, twisting a tale of how he took out one of them in Pyros name before he fled back to town, narrowly escaping . He waved off the doctor too, albeit with a little more convincing, and insured he just needed rest for a few days and could handle the wounds himself.

Shelby was actually the hardest to thwart off. Living with him meant she always had an eye on his movements and couldn’t fake cleaning and bandaging himself. She was persistent on him getting a full week of bedrest, watching him, even sometimes spending full days accompanying him by his bedside.

It honestly surprised Scott, with how often Shelby had followed him around the house. She was scarily attentive when she put her mind to it.

She had actually caught him sneaking back into their home through a window once during his “healing”.

——————

“Where were you?!”

“Shelby!? I didn’t know you were usually up at this hour?”

“I had a bad dream, woke me up. You didn’t answer me Scott. Where were you?”

“I was just out for a run around town. Being on bedrest for a week makes your bones so stiff-“

“Scott, please don’t lie to me!”

Oh?

“Scott, I don’t care where you go at night or what you get up to that has us missing pounds of meat in the morning,” oh fuck, she noticed that, ”Just…please let me know where you’re going so I can have some peace of mind. ”

Oh.

“You don’t have to wake me, just leave a note at least! Something!

I want to know where you are in case… Scott,” her voice cracked, “ I really like your company, you’re an awesome roommate. You listen to my talks, gather our food, even help me organize my clues about Bigfoot! I was beyond scared last week when you came into town with all those injuries yelling about a pack of wolves eating Pyro alive.

 Something similar happened to my father and I can’t help but think, if you weren’t fast enough…”

Shit, he didn’t mean for the lie to go this far.

“Scott, I can’t deal with losing someone again like that!

Can you do this for me? If not me, for your own sake?”

Even after he sneaked out, lied to her face, and unintentionally unearthed some family trauma (Scott was starting to notice a pattern here), she was more concerned on his safety more than everything else he had done.

She was truly something brilliant.

Once Scott gets his claws on a few more stacks of blood he’s turning her. He means it this time. Finding this good of a genuine caring soul in a town like this is something to be treasured.

Not even most of the undead are this kind hearted. He knows he’s not!

He’d seen Pyro and Shelby talk in town a couple of times. They would probably get along swimmingly.

“I’m sorry going out made you feel that way. I promise I’ll leave a note from now on.”

He wouldn’t lie anymore, at least not to Shelby.

——————

The town was now focusing on defenses, mostly against wolves thanks to Scott. Bear traps were scattered across the forest, patrols were sent out to hunt for the wolves, and everyone in town got a lesson on using a spear.

It certainly got a mark off his back for anyone suspecting anything off about him. This also probably meant he pissed off his werewolf neighbors by throwing the scent on them.

Ehh. He’ll cross that bridge when he comes to it.

Overall, he would say he had a pretty sweet human, vampire work balance going on.

He would keep up appearances and check on Shelby during the day, talking and helping here and there. Then, at night (after leaving a note for Shelby), he would sneak to the castle and gather food to feed himself, and by extension, Pyro.

He thought he had everything under a nice, controlled routine.

He thought

——————

Scott was doing his rounds around town to keep up appearances, as per usual, when he was stopped by a beefy man with a brown silky mustache. He had to come to recognize the guy, Ren, as one of the towns militia. (and one of the werewolves)

“Good morning Mr. Goldsmith! It’s a beautiful day for huntin’ dontcha’ know?”

Scott was honestly not in the mood to mingle with the humans today, let alone with a werewolf. The sole reason he was in town in the first place was to draw attention away from the fact that he didn’t actually live there, and that he was harboring a baby vampire under a castle several miles from the town. However his blood supply still needed stocking, and while he couldn’t suck the blood from their hunts body right there and then, he could use his share cut of the meat to hold him off until nightfall where he could snag a bigger game on his way to Pyro for his feeding.

It was a solid plan, so he agreed to tag along for the hunt. Everything was going well, up until he heard a call further in the forest.

————-

Scott was in the middle of skinning a cow carcass with… Apo? He couldn’t, for the life of him, really care to remember each humans name in town that he met. Sue him! He had more important things on his mind.

Like how he’s hearing a fledgling cry in the middle of the forest.

Pyro is in the castle, safely tucked in, and happily dreaming away, according to his quick check of the bond. And he’s positive there are no other vampires in town. ( they would have made themselves known by now trying to claim his land as their own territory. Vampires are disgustingly territorial)

So, it loops back to the question at hand. How the hell did he just hear a fledgling call?

Maybe he was just hearing things. Maybe that 600 year sleep is doing something to him, or maybe it’s having Pyro and the nest very close to a town full of armed humans. When he gets back to the castle tonight he’s gonna cottle Pyro extra-

Intruders! Danger!

Scott stops abruptly, setting his knife down and turning towards the noise. He can’t deny it this time. That was definitely a fledgling. What the hell are they doing in the middle of the woods this close to humans?!

“Scott… are you ok?” He turns back to see Apo with a concerned look on her face.

Right. Humans can’t hear the pitch of the cry, most beings couldn’t.

This is good. This means Scott can play it off.

“Dang it! I think I just remembered I left my water satchel somewhere back during the hunt!”

“Oh, that sucks! Want me to help you trace back your steps and look for it?”

Scott gets to his feet and starts walking, “No it’s fine, I don’t want you guys to slow down on my behalf. Just finish skinning the carcass and tell the others I’ll be back when I find it!”

“Oh.. ok bye!”

Good. This gives Scott a good window where people won’t be looking for him with a plausible alibi for his disappearance. Does he actually have a water satchel, no. But all the more time and reason he has to be away from the group and look for this fledgling.

———————

After a couple minutes of searching, he finds himself sliding down a small hill of rocks near a a cave where the cry’s are most prominent.

Intruders! Danger! Where Sire?

The fledgling is definitely here, but there is no person in sight. Stumped, Scott tries to call them out.

Where are you? Help here!

There’s a pause before a high pitched whine and cry comes towards the rocks piled up at the mouth of the cave.

Stranger? Danger! Help Sire! Where Sire?

Scott makes his way towards the rocks. There’s no possible way-

Help here! Where are you? Come out!

His gut twists into a knot as he places an ear to the pile. Usually rubbing his face on something like this is beneath him, but this is bigger than his standards.

No way someone would just leave a fledgling unaccompanied like this-

Danger! Not safe! Help Sire!

They’re under the rocks. There is an unprotected fledgling buried underneath the rocks.

Chapter Text

They’re under the rocks.

Safe. Help Here! Sire Here!

His instincts kick in, clawing and pushing the rocks aside, trying to find the childe among the rubble. He goes at the pile for several minutes.

As he pushes the last rock aside, all he sees is the muddy disturbed dirt from his hurdling. No fledgling in sight.

Where the hell are they?!

Childe. Where are you? Help Here! Come Out!

Scott starts to call out frantically for something, anything! The childe had to be here-

Help Sire! Not Safe!

Scott stood there for a moment, in disbelief, before he sprung into action digging. They were in the ground?!

What kind of heartless, bastard of a Sire buries a fledgling, covers them in rocks, then abandons them next to a human establishment?! Scott didn’t care about if who the fuck they came from was in town or not anymore. This fledgling was going to be his now, and he was going to pamper the hell out of them once they got out off the hole and was safely in the nest next to Pyro.

He finally dug down to some sort of muddied cloth. Excavating around it led to a frail man with long matted brown hair and glossy eyes that glared at where Scotts hands were touching him to pull him out of the hole. The fledgling growled, baring his small teeth not making much of a threat to the elder.

Danger! Intruders! Not Safe!

The poor thing hissed at him and tried to claw at his arm. Emphasis on try, mind you, being a new turn, his vision must have been severely blurred and completely missed Scott in his attempt. He also had not formed his claws yet, so any swipe he could have landed would have been futile.

Silly Fledgling. Safe! Sire Here!

The baby’s attempt of wriggling out of his grasp was cute. What wasn’t cute was the fact that he had several bandages and scratches that still showed open, gaping wounds. And given the fact the chide was down there long enough for moss to grow on the rocks, there has probably been some time since he’d been fed last.

Childe. Hungry? Food Here! Safe!

Scott bit into his wrist and presented it to his childe. They perked up, most likely intrigued by the scent, but made no move to bite the blood.

That’s… odd. Scott estimated them to be at least a few weeks old, if the dried up blood on their face and clothing is telling of them probably having some sort of blood intake by their Sire. But a closer look at his eyes showed him that they still had their full human hue to them, so definitely less than 2 months. A couple month old fledgling should have the trained reaction to bite down by now. Most get it down by a couple of weeks too.

Unless-

He gently cupped the fledglings cheek, guiding the fledgling’s head towards his wound, and pried his mouth open and closed it onto his premade bite. It took him a hot second to start drinking from Scott, even more to suck the blood with his fangs.

Not knowing how to bite already set off alarm bells in Scott’s head. That’s the first thing a fledgling learns to do from their Sire. Scott had taught Pyro such just a few weeks prior!

What drove the hammer in, in Scott’s opinion though, was the tears dripping down his cheek in the relief of being fed.

Water. The fledgling was crying water.

Yes, he immediately cooed and wiped the tears, but the substance of the tears left no doubt in Scott’s mind. Most vampires flush all the water out of their system at the end of their third feeding. This was still a very fresh turning. Basically a newborn!

The revelation had Scott’s mind spinning. He had just found a baby! Maybe a tad older than Pyro, by how long he’s physically been a vampire, but oh my god, he just found an abandoned baby!!

Scott’s imagination can only start to think of the things he’s going to do to this guy’s Sire once he tracks them down. He’s fought other vampires for less. Abandoning a new turn is essentially a crime against their kind, with them being so defenseless in their first stages. In normal circumstances, they were coveted and cherished in a brood, so, he thinks he has plausible reasons to go on a rampage against this fledglings old coven.

For now though, he’ll have to make sure this fledgling lives to see the lengths Scott’s about to go to in his name.

Oh shit his name! That was going to be tricky to find out.

He chirped to get the childe’s attention

Fledgling. Sire Here! Look Here!

The fledgling released his fangs, stopping his meal, and looking at Scott with a glare, as if he condemned him and everyone he knew to a lifetime of misery by interrupting his feeding. It was honestly too cute, “Little one, do you mind telling me your name?”

It was an honest to god shot in the dark. Most fledglings can’t really speak up until right after they regain their eyesight, let alone comprehend their surroundings. However, this fledgling had broken many common rules on what and where a fledgling should be during their development. Surely this isn’t a barbaric wish of Scott to make.

“Hmmm?”

It wasn’t a lot, but more than he expected. Scott could work with it, “Silly fledgling, your name. Mine is Scott. S-c-o-t-t. How about your name? What would yours be?”

“….Hame?”

Scott couldn’t hold back a small laugh, “Yes, your name?”

“ O…wen”

Scott cooed and chittered at the slurred response. The poor thing was probably exhausted.

Thank You! Proud. Safe!

“Such a smart little fledgling! Thank you, Owen”. He spoke the name with a tinge of fondness in his voice. So what if he was attached already?

“Louis?”

Where did that come from?

“Is Louis your name? Or is it Owen? I won’t know what to call you if you keep spitting names out-“

His fledgling grew a face of distress, “Where… Louis”

Oh? Was that his Sire? His Covemate? He doesn’t remember anyone in town going by that name. Who ever he was, he had a bone to pick with them for leaving-

“Scott? Where are you?!”

Fuck.