Sacrifice Helle

I woke up in my bed, outside it was dark. 'What? Did I just dream all of that..?' I sat up, still drowsy. I needed some water. I walked out of the bedroom and into the bathroom. The light hurt my eyes, but water felt good. I looked at myself in the mirror. I was wearing a black silk pajamas, it consisted of a shirt with long sleeves and buttons and pants with a bond in it, holding it up with a knot. 'Strange.. I cant remember putting on this pajamas... Is this even mine..?' I shook my head and just as I walked out of the bathroom I heard a noise from downstairs. 'Mom and dad? What day is it anyway?' I walked down to the living room, it was dark, I didnt see anyone, then I went to the kitchen, but it was empty. Suddenly something brushed up against my back and someone whispered, "Looking for something?"

I let out a small "Eep!" of surprise, flipped around and faced Darien’s smiling eyes. Then everything came back to me. "Dont sneak up on me like that! You scared me!" "Sorry.." I sighted. "Its still Friday night?" "Yeah. You fell asleep on the couch, but I thought I'd hang around until you woke up again, considering we still need to talk." "You put me in bed?!" He rose is shoulders, "Sleeping with jeans and tons of clothes is uncomfortable, plus I think the bed would be more comfortable than the couch..." "You.. you.. undressed me?! And put on me this pajamas?!" I blushed so much, I could feel my cheeks burning. Had he.. had he seen me... NAKED?! I walked over to the couch and sat down, hiding my face in my hands.

"You okey?" "No! This is way to embarrassing! Why did you do that?!" "Do what?" "Don’t act so innocent, you undressed me in my sleep, put on me a pajamas and put me to bed!!" He sat down beside me, "Dont worry, I didnt take advantage of you or anything." "Take advantage...?! Oh my God...." "Okey, okey, I didn't know you would be so offended by it, I'm sorry, I just thought it'd be better for you." I looked up at him, he really didnt understand why I was so upset. "Who are you really? And.. who is Vaan? And who where those other guys that were with you, and how can you teleport, assuming thats how we got home? And what was that 'thing'? A vampire!?" "Easy, Ill tell you everything, if you feel awake enough to listen." "Okey, hit me! After tonight it can't possibly get anything worse than it is already." 'Im so happy mom and dad isn't here...'

"First, yes, that was a vampire, a little piece of scum. He was probably sired by Vaan." "Sired?" "Ah, eh, Vaan bit him and made him into a vampire." "So that means that Vaan is a vampire too?" "Yes. And, we dont like vampires. So we are hunting them. We have been looking for Vaan’s hideout these last weeks, coming pretty close. We think he's in the park, thats why I was there the other night. I assumed that it was a vampire following you that night too, and since we've been noticing them hanging around in that area, we went hunting there tonight. Lucky for you. And lucky for us. You being brought there is a good proof that we're on the right track." "The vampire.. He DID say that his sire wanted me..." Darien looked at me, "Did he say what for?" "No.. And what was THAT all about? Dinner? Or something ELSE? What?!" Darien made a grimace, "Blah, looks like I need to give you the full version.. Modified though.." He took a deep breath, then looked me straight into the eyes.

"What I am about to tell you might upset you a bit. So embrace yourself. Our Lord, my father, the father of Gerha, Cora, all my other 'siblings' and many more, is coming to town. This only happens every hundred year." "The advent! Raphael said..." "Yes, the advent. It is a huge celebration for us. And the Lord will be presented with a gift from one of his favorite followers. Last time Vaan was chosen to present our Lord with a gift, it was the first time ever that a vampire..", at this his face filled up with hate and he was spitting out the word vampire, like it tasted bad, ".. first time ever that a vampire had been chosen to offer the gift. We never liked the vampires, and even though they have been a part of the Lords creatures from even before I was born, I still hate them. Whatever made our Lord embrace them is a mystery to us." "Who are 'we', and 'us'?" My voice was shivering, I didnt like where this was going, but I guess I shouldn't expect anything normal about someone who kills vampires.

"We are the Lords children, he give life to us, he is our father. We dont like the vamps, and they dont like us, so we stay away from each other, but at the time of the advent, we are all forced together in this town. We use the time to kill each other, the Lord doesnt care. Anyway, Vaan did such a good job with choosing his gift one hundred years ago that the Lord favored him and wanted him to give the gift this year as well. So me, Cora, Lathien and Gerha try to seek him out... and get rid of him." I looked at him, trying to stay calm. Then I remembered the eyes of Gerha and Cora, how they sparkled in the dark, and I looked Darien into his eyes. They were glowing slightly in the dark, ice cold. My breath suddenly came back to me, I had been holding it without noticing it. "W...wha.. what.." "What am I?" I looked down in my lap, not daring to look him into the eyes again, while I nodded slightly. He then reached his hand out for me, placed it underneath my other cheek and turned my head up towards him, forcing me to look him in his eyes as he moved closer to me. I shivered by his touch. His eyes burned themselves in mine as he whispered, "Are you afraid of me?"

I was shaking pretty much by now, all that had happened rushed through my mind, and I kept remembering how he had snarled at Kim, afraid of what he was capable of, afraid again because I was alone with him. Afraid because I had just met a vampire, afraid of what was happening.

He suddenly looked concerned, "Please dont be... Dont fear me..." Then his face moved closer to mine, I felt his breath on my lips, I couldnt move, I just sat there. One more second he held my eyes with his, then he closed them and I felt his soft lips touching mine. I closed my eyes as well. He pushed me gently down on the couch while leaning over me, his hand moving underneath my head as he kissed me, burying itself in my hair. I didn’t protest, I didn’t know what to do even, I just followed his moves as he deepened the kiss. His tongue touched mine, forcefully, made me do what he wanted me to. My body felt warmer, my lips had never been kissed before, he held me tight, and I felt some of his long hair brush against my face. His lips were so soft, his kiss was tough. My head was a mess, I couldn't control all the thoughts that were running through it, I just stopped thinking and kissed him back. After what seemed like eternity, but must only have been a minute, he pulled away from me. My lips shivered, longing for more. His eyes were searching for something in mine, his hair had fallen down over my head, leaving four eyes in between shadows, two of them glowing like moonlit water. Then he sat up again.