《Vale… Is Not a Vampire?》1.03 – Promises of a Crazy River-jumper
Advertisement
I took the time Shae’s emotional outbreak gave me to assess her home. I hadn’t actually been inside last time, so I was a little curious, especially when I noticed the hint of strawberries in between the homely, earthen fragrance. My nose traced the fruity whisper to a room to the right, where the aroma was joined by that of various spices, something smokey, and freshly slaughtered chicken.
The living area itself breathed a cozy mix of Shae’s breezy wildflowers and Onar’s crisp and nervous not-quite-yeast, with a large hearth, a hardwood table, and some chairs. There was another room through a door to the left, and a smaller second floor was accessible with a ladder.
Most importantly, there was no sight of Onar. That meant I might still get out of here without needing to confront her dad.
“Thank you,” Shae mumbled as she finally let go of me.
I had no idea what I needed to be thanked for so I countered with a question instead. “Where is your dad?”
“Oh Vale it’s been so... hard, harder than when mom died,” she nearly broke down crying again.
I grit my teeth, turned towards her, and hugged her once more, breaking my no initiating hugs rule for the second time in one day. I’d manage my urges somehow; she really looked like she could use a shoulder to lean on. Gently stroking her back, and pointedly not looking at her neck, I tried to think of something else, anything to distract me from the tantalizing closeness of those delicious arteries.
What happened to her father?
Is he dead?
Right. That thought definitely counted as something else. Yet despite its morbidity, it was an effective distraction. Trusting that I could now open my mouth without chomping down on her neck I mumbled “It’s okay” at her until her sobbing subsided.
Advertisement
Choking back a couple of sobs the girl loosened the grip she had on my back. Then, with frequent pauses, she began to explain. “Ever since the river there’s been so much work... rebuilding... everything. Daddy’s been helping out most days… so I’ve been doing all of the farm and stuff and... and...”
As this little girl poured out all her emotions on my shoulder I didn’t know what to think. No wonder she had seemed so much more mature at first. She’s had to grow up, basically overnight. Meanwhile, I had done what I always did. I had saved a bunch of people from a raging river as it tore apart houses all around me. And in the early morning, before the people of this little village could even begin to comprehend the scope of what had happened to them, I had left.
Left them with all of the mess.
I hadn’t even thought of these things until now. I never did. These were people. They had lives. And that meant more than not treating them as food, more than treating them as income, or assets I could use. No matter how much I traveled, it was a thing I just kept on forgetting.
I had mostly tuned out Shae’s barely-coherent rambling as I thought back to all the other villages I’d stopped at, all the other lives I had never even considered when I heard her mutter something that brought me back to reality.
“Wait…” gripping her shoulders a little tighter I got her to break off her muttering. “What attack?”
There were several seconds of only her ragged breathing and the beating of her heart. I pushed her back a little so I could look her in the eyes once more. I deliberately studied her face to get her to focus on me. Her trembling wide lips, the set of her jaw as she tried to restrain her sobbing, the way her coppery hair was braided and knotted at the top of her head, all of it only made her look more vulnerable.
Advertisement
“Un…” she sobbed. “Uncle Tare… he was dragged away by some monster… and… and… now they need to guard everything until we can get a hunter an–”
“Where? What kind of monster? When was this?” I interrupted the girl with my own string of questions.
Shae froze up. These questions of mine came too fast, too abrupt. She couldn’t keep up with this sudden shift in gears. I could see it in her eyes, see her struggling to come to grips with my line of questioning. My dad had trained me well. Perhaps too well. I was a monster hunter, I knew all the right things to ask in order to get to the heart of the matter in the least amount of time. Only, now wasn’t the time for speed, but for compassion.
Gently squeezing her shoulders I gave her my best, most reassuring smile. Mouth closed. No fangs. Never fangs. Except for that one time six months ago. She was fine with them then, but I wasn’t so sure now, not when a monster attack had clearly happened not so long ago.
Really can’t have her thinking of me as a monster right now.
“By the river. Three days ago,” Shae nodded, finally catching up with the determination in my eyes. “I dunno what it looked like… maybe dad does. It... it came from the water they said, just grabbed onto his leg and...”
Now I knew what question I had missed. The one question I should have asked first. That any sensible person would have asked first. The question that would show compassion more than any facial expression ever could.
“Uncle Tare, is he...”
I choked on my own words. Spoken aloud what I had intended to ask sounded a lot less sensible. How was I even supposed to finish that sentence?
Dead?
Alright?
No possible ending seemed right. Were these even the kinds of questions one was supposed to ask? It pained me to be confronted like this with how little experience in interacting with people I really had.
“They pulled him out of the water,” Shae rescued me from needing to finish my question. “He... his leg...” she petered out. Then her face lit up. “You... you healed Miss Meg, right? Could you... you can right?”
Now here was a question I could answer without hesitation. This didn’t involve wondering about whether or not returning here was a good idea, didn’t require fretting about the suspicions Shae’s dad held about me. I wasn’t magically free of those worries, but I’d deal with them later, because above all I was a hunter, and this was the right thing to do.
I hugged Shae close again. “I can, and I will,” I reassured her while stroking her back. “And I can do more than that too. I am not just a crazy lady that jumps into rivers Shae. I am a hunter, and I will take care of this monster for you.”
Advertisement
- In Serial9 Chapters
Hades' Evolution
A young college woman and the human race get transported to a new world by a program with new challenges like monsters, programs, wars, and magic. this novel is something I do for fun, and for now, does not have a regular schedule on when it will be updated. it is inspired by other novels such as Randidly Ghosthound by puddles4263 and A New World by Monsoon117
8 128 - In Serial40 Chapters
The Nocturne Society
For the first time on Royal Road The Nocturne Society is a series of urban horror stories centered around the remains of a dissolved secret society called … you guessed it … The Nocturne Society. Thirty years ago all monsters vanished and nobody knows why. The secret society dedicated to research and containment of these supernatural threats slowly fell apart and the dark age where dangerous things unknown to men slowly became legend. Finally nobody believed in the existence of such otherworldly threats anymore. But when thirty years later a young woman is killed in Hamburg and a tentacled monster seems to be the prime suspect an aging operative is forced out of retirement and together with the tech-savvy boyfriend of the victim he must return to the shadows to hunt the monster the world does no longer believe in. The Nocturne Society contains six novels available on Amazon, with another one in pre-sale. The Nocturne Society Series There are No Monsters Wormking Leviathan Let them burn Worst Case Scenarios The Secret Friend Mother (pre-sale)
8 79 - In Serial30 Chapters
Baseball Princess
Lindsey Adams does not want to do a spring sport in her Freshman year. However, she needs something to do with her free time. Then it hits her: manage a team. But which team? Baseball.She finally works up the nerve to talk to the coach, and he lets her manage the varsity team. She has to come to every practice and game, and even join the boys if they go out for a celebratory meal. Sounds great, right? Spending all that time with all the upperclassmen six packs. That's exactly what Lindsey thought.What she didn't expect was sixteen new brothers that watch her every move and beat up every boy who lays an eye on her. Now how is she supposed to get asked to Prom?
8 292 - In Serial33 Chapters
More Than What He Seems - A Fortnite Story No.1
*THIS STORY, ALONG WITH ITS SEQUELS AND ONESHOTS, IS AN ALTERNATE UNIVERSE SO ANYTHING HERE IS NOT CANNON TO THE MAIN FORTNITE STORY. THESE ARE MY OWN PERSONAL HEADCANNONS.*- This story takes place after the events of Season 2, and before Season 4, except this time, Midas isn't "killed off" by a shark.-With his device broken, his plans in shambles and agents turned against him or captured, the ex-leader of the now destroyed Agency, Midas, seems lost... quite literally as he's left to float away on a raft alone......or so he thinks.A young child with a close bond with one of Midas' top agents rescues him from certain death, and is determined to become an agent, just like him and Skye.Along the way, parts of Midas' softer side begin to come out through the girl's kindness and compassion. But will it become an issue or distraction in the future?Forming an unlikely bond, it'll be up to them, the other remaining Ghost members and a certain someone from Midas' past to reunite and take back the Agency from Chaos Agent's Shadow.*I don't own any of the art or renders shown in here unless said. All credit goes to the original creators.*
8 104 - In Serial28 Chapters
Deku X reader
~Highest ranking~#1- Bokunoheroacademia- Tuesday 9th of June 2020 till Friday 17th of July 2020
8 74 - In Serial9 Chapters
It's Not The Cost Of The Money, But It's The Cost Of Your Body~ (Discontinued)
hey I'm new. My grammar is a bit off sometimes or all the time,
8 180