Call of the nightfall (a gerasberg vampire n werewolf au)

Chapter 2: somewhere else

When Julian woke the next morning the pain had gone. He sat up and stretched, noticing as he did so that the bite marks on his arm had vanished. Twisting around he found the wounds on his back and shoulder gone as well. As he moved the blanket fell, revealing his naked body. Goosebumbs erupted on his skin as the cold air touched him. Hurridly wrapping himself up again, Julian stood up. Noticing a pile of clothes on the nearby couch, Julian dressed quickly. Soon he was dressed in a white shirt, a brown vest, a grey pair of pants, and a pair of white socks. There were shoes too, but Julian didn’t put them on. He explored the room he was in with his eyes, taking in the modest environment. 

The vampire, Charles, was not anywhere in sight. Not sure if he was allowed to explore the cabin, Julian put on the shoes and went outside. Once outside he found himself in a peaceful little village. Surrounded by trees, it looked abandoned. 

Sniffing the air, Julian became aware of the smell of cooking food. Wandering towards the smell, he approached what he could only call a small village square where a group of people stood. They all looked monstrous, but from what Julian could see, they were chatting with each other as if they were normal people out for lunch. 

As Julian studied the people he found Charles. Not quite comfortable with approaching all of these people, he stared at the back of Charles’ head. Charles turned and noticed him. He walked over, an umbrella in his hands. 

“You’re awake,” he said, smiling. “And it looks like you found the clothes I left out for you.”

“What are you doing out here?” Julian asked. “Aren’t vampires like… allergic to the sun or something?”

Charles laughed. “It’s not too bright this afternoon, and the trees are blocking most of the sun. I’m only out here for lunch. I assume you’re hungry? Let’s get you some food.”

Julian followed Charles who filled him a plate of food. They sat down as Julian ate, Charles having done so already. 

“How are you feeling?” the vampire asked. 

“Pretty good,” Julian replied, setting the plate aside. “The wounds are gone and nothing hurts. My back is a bit sore from sleeping on the floor though.”

Charles nodded, his eyes studying the other people of the village. 

“I’ve got stuff to attend to,” he said, looking at Julian. “If you need anything, I won’t be far. Feel free to talk to people. Explore the village. I wouldn’t advise leaving, though.” he looked serious. “People will try to kill you if they find you.”

“Y-Yeah,” Julian said, trying to look indifferent. “I’ll find you if I need anything.”

Charles nodded and walked away, leaving Julian to stare after him.

That evening Julian met Charles back at his cabin. They chatted about their day's adventures as Charles made more of the beef soup he’d fed Julian the night before. 

“Here,” Charles said, placing a bowl in front of him. “Eat up.”

“Thanks,” Julian said, digging in.

In the silence of them eating, voices became audible from outside. Charles set down his spoon and stood up, pulling aside a curtain to look out of a window. 

“What’s going on?” Julian asked. 

“Humans,” Charles said. “Vampire hunters.”

“Vampire-”

“Shhh.” Charles turned to Julian. “Stay here. Don’t leave. Do not leave the cabin.”

Before Julian could speak, the vampire had left. He ran to the window and peered out.

Charles had hidden beside one of the other cabins nearby, watching as a group of people came closer. They had all sorts of weapons, pitchforks, knives, burning torches… many of them even had garlic cloves tied around their throats. 

“Alright gang, I think this is it,” one vampire hunter said.

“So, where do we start?” another asked.

“We’ll split up and look around. If you see one, you know what to do.”

“Yes sir.”

“You can cut my throat and throw me to the wolves, but no vampire can get me,” another laughed.

“Let’s do this.”

Julian watched as one of the vampire hunters approached Charles’ hiding place, flashlight shining in every direction. The beam of the flashlight illuminated Charles, shining in his eyes. The vampire hissed and covered his face with his hands. 

Having not expected to find a vampire this early in his search, the hunter stood still for a moment. Finally he opened his mouth and shouted, “Vampire! Vam-”

Charles leapt at him and covered the man’s mouth with his hand. He sunk his fangs into the crook of the man’s neck, causing the man to go still. Soon the man fell to the ground, shriveled from Charles draining his blood. Kneeling down, the vampire pulled a small knife from his pocket and cut open the man, tearing his internal organs out and consuming them.

Julian only then noticed more of the vampire hunters approaching, obviously having heard the dead man’s cry. The group held their garlic cloves out, causing Charles to stumble and hiss. He began coughing, his eyes watering. Another vampire hunter approached from behind, an axe raised above his head.

Julian threw the door open and leapt outside, transforming into a werewolf. He leapt at the man with the axe and killed him with three bites to the head, then turned and began ravaging the other hunters. Two of the hunters turned and ran, but Julian didn’t chase them, being more concerned for Charles’ sake than killing them. 

“J-Julian,” Charles said, rising to his knees. “Thank god you saved me, I could’ve died… but you shouldn’t have left the cabin!” He stretched out his arms to hug the wolf.

An arrow pierced Julian’s back causing him to screech in pain. Roaring in anger he turned and ran into the woods.

“Julian, wait,” Charles yelled, standing up. He ran after him, adrenaline giving him the energy to keep running. “Julian! Julian!”

The werewolf had disappeared into the trees and was nowhere to be seen. 

“I have to find him,” Charles thought, transforming into bat form. “God knows what’s going to happen to him next.” He flew through the darkness, searching for the werewolf.