~Cruor~

Vamptember day 5 ~ Talaumar

The tropical days in Vanuatu left you sweating as you sat by the beach.

It was a more solemn part of town, considering the cemetery that stood not too far away. It didn't matter, you were given the solitude you so desired for. The waves crashed up on the rocks, preventing the silence from creeping in. Around you the other tourists began packing up their children, bringing them inside to sleep. You leaned back against the rock you laid against, closing your eyes. Though your moment of peace was interrupted by a burning feeling.

As if you were being watched.

Opening your eyes, your eyes darted across the beach. Eventually they landed on a man. He wore a simple shirt and shorts, his light eyes contrasted with his dark skin and hair. He was leaning on one of the trees, peering intently at you.  He appeared to be in his early thirties and everyone appeared to avoid him, yet he didn't seem to care all that much.

Part of you felt uneasy, but you didn't feel like moving. Acting as if you didn't notice the man, you closed your eyes again. The feeling eventually faded, and you saw the man move into the cemetery. Odd, but you paid it no mind. You figured the people here might find your actions weird, considering only tourists were out on the beach. As the sun began to set, your eyes felt unnaturally heavy. In front of your eyes, you saw a woman approach you. She clearly wasn't a tourist, but your eyes just wouldn't focus on her.  The woman seemed in her fifties, and she was approaching you. At first you assumed she just needed help.

After all, her clothes were torn and she was walking with a limp. None of the other tourists seemed to notice her, though. Opening your mouth to speak, only a strange creaking noise came out. Your body wouldn't let you home as she leaned down in front of you. As your vision blurred you could see the dead clouded over eyes meeting yours.

Your own eyes then closed, everything going black.

Truly you had no clue how long you had been asleep. But you didn't wake up against the rock with an aching back like you expected. Instead you were laying on a simple, yet comfortable bed in one of the native homes away from the resorts. Pulling yourself up, you groaned. You must have been laying against that rock a while still, as the aching nearly put you flat on your back again. Your confused struggling and squirming didn't go unnoticed, as the door opened. It was that same man with the light eyes.

"Hello," he said with a casual tone. As if it were completely normal to just bring a stranger into their home. You stared at him, completely dumbfounded and on edge. "It's dangerous to fall asleep outside," the man explained. "You wouldn't wake up, so i brought you in."

His voice never changed the entire time, that odd monotone sound. "Who are you?" Was the first question that left your lips. "Jean," he curtly replied. He sat down a cup by your nightstand. You absolutely weren't going to drink that. Many questions flooded your mind, and it seemed Jean had no particular interest in answering them. "What... happened?" Jean just looked at you, he seemingly knew you were suspicious of him, judging by the way his eyes narrowed. "Maybe you were tired. I'm not a doctor," his somewhat sarcastic remark put you further into unease.

It was dark outside, and you desperately needed to get back to your resort. Jean gestured to the cup, steam coming off the beverage of what you assumed was tea. "You're weak, you need rest." It seemed Jean wasn't letting you go that easily, sitting down on one of the chairs. The tea seemed like a horrible idea, yet you needed to find a way somehow. If drinking the tea could convince him, then you should take that risk. Your hands trembled as you weakly picked it up, placing it to your lips. Jean stood up, getting on his knee as he supported the cup with his hands, steadying your hands. His skin felt cool against your sweaty palms.

"Easy," his voice softened, as did his piercing gaze. You drank tea, swallowing the nervous lump in your throat. When you finished it, you were surprised to admit you did feel better. Part of you wondered if he had lied about having no medical knowledge at all. No matter how kind he appeared, you knew the situation wasn't normal. Slowly, a plan formed itself in your head. As Jean put away the cups, you gathered your wits and spoke up. "Can i use the bathroom?" The man raised a brow. Suspicion evident, but it would be odd if he declined. "Sure.." he trailed off, gently pulling you to his feet. Everything about his demeanor was distant as he guided you through the small bungalow he lived in. Eventually stopped in front of a door. "Just tell me if you need anything."

You didn't need to be told twice. You entered the bathroom, locking it behind you. A bath, shower and toilet stood in the room. There was a window big enough for you to fit through, but it was a bit high up. Gathering what little strength you had left, you stood on the edge of the bathtub. As quietly as you could, you opened the window. The worst part was climbing through. You barely had the energy to pull yourself up. But your fear for the situation filled you with adrenaline.

With a loud thud you landed on the grass outside. Your entire body hurt from the impact but you had gone too far now, you had to go all the way. Stumbling, you made your way into a random direction. It didn't matter, as you could vaguely see the beach. Unfortunately your escape wasn't as quiet as you had hoped for.

A groan had you on high alert as you turned. That same woman stood behind you, Jean coming up next to her. The woman looked back at him, and he motioned towards you. No matter how much you pleaded, weakness took over, and you collapsed by the feet of the approaching man. "I'm not stupid," he hissed, though his facial expressions didn't change much.

"What do you want from me!?" You cried, tears streaming down your face. Jean kneeled by your head. "I need to sustain myself, but everyone has caught onto my tricks."

"Fortunately, you weren't warned."

[The talamaur is a vampire legend of the Banks islands, Vanuatu, located in the South pacifics. A talamaur was a type of vampire who controlled the ghost of a dead person, and could use it to drain the vitality from the living and the recently deceased. Some people actually aspired to become talamaurs. The power of a talamaur could purportedly be gained by eating part of a corpse, thus gaining kinship with the soul of the deceased]