𝑩𝑳𝑶𝑶𝑫 𝑳𝑼𝑺𝑻 | YANDERE VAMPIRES

𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒏 | the south woods

"THE SOUTH WOODS"

read the hanging wooden sign, weathered and worn with faded letters. 

Y/N squinted, trying to decipher its message before stepping beneath the arch of cold iron that framed the mouth of the eerie, dark forest.

 A gust of wind whispered through the trees, carrying the scent of damp earth and something indefinably unsettling. Aisha and Julia leaned closer together, both girls gripping tightly onto one another as they trailed behind warily glancing around; the silence broken only by the distant caw of a crow.

"Ugh.." Julia shuddered. "..I miss my bed"

The torch cast a dim glow, barely illuminating more than a few feet in front of them. The crunch of leaves and twigs underfoot was the only sound, aside from the occasional hushed whisper between the five.

Y/N walked near the back of the group, keeping her arms crossed tightly. She wasn't scared—not entirely—but something about this place felt... wrong.

"Oi"

She glanced to her right, only to realise Calixto had slowed his pace to walk beside her.

Y/N narrowed her eyes. "What?"

Calixto gave her an unimpressed look. "I can hear your heartbeat from here. You're nervous."

Y/N scoffed. "And I can hear your obnoxious breathing. Doesn't mean I care."

He smirked. "Right. Sure."

★

Cressida, leading the small group, set a brisk pace, her shoulders squared and her gaze fixed on the path ahead. They walked in silence for a bit, until Cressida hissed in annoyance "Calix! Piss off."

Aisha, Julia, and Y/N all snapped their heads toward her, then followed her line of sight to Calixto, bringing up the rear. He seemed to be deliberately averting his gaze, a barely suppressed snicker playing on his lips. 

Whatever he'd done, it was clearly intentional.

Before another moment of silence could settle, Cressida yelped, whipping her head back around to fix Calixto with a glare. The icy blue of her eyes sharpened with fury. "Stop it ilíthie." she spat, the foreign word adding venom to her tone.

Aisha, Julia, and Y/N exchanged knowing glances. The unspoken question hung in the air between them;

Lover's quarrel? 

The tension was thick enough to cut with a knife, hinting at a history between the two that went beyond simple acquaintance.

Cressida's voice rose slightly, losing some of its forced calm. "Don't be such an ass and stop stepping on my feet. Last warning, Calixto Voss!" 

The smirk on his face faltered for a second at the deliberate use of his full name, which was a clear sign she was at the end of her patience.

Damn. Wait—Voss?!

"Wait a second," Aisha interrupted, her voice sharp, cutting through the tense silence that had begun to settle. "Calixto Voss?" Her eyebrows were furrowed, a mixture of confusion and dawning realisation etched on her face.

Julia gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. "So you two are—?!" The question hung in the air, unspoken yet loaded with implication. The implication being a familial connection, one that seemed to take her by complete surprise.

Cressida, who had been impatiently tapping her foot, just huffed in response. "Step." she mumbled; and without another glance, she turned back and continued leading the way, her shoulders stiff with what seemed like suppressed annoyance.

★

Y/N's gaze finally drifted towards Calixto, the male in question. He seemed a shade more detached, his usual sharp wit perhaps a little dulled as he continued to walk beside her. 

Her voice, in contrast, softened, laced with a gentle curiosity as she spoke. "I thought it was Antoniou?" The question hung in the air, tentative.

His expression remained a carefully crafted mask of nonchalance, betraying nothing. Yet, there was a subtle shift in his tone, a lowering of the volume that hinted at something hidden beneath the surface. 

"I go by Antoniou." he stated simply.

Y/N tilted her head slightly, a gesture of genuine puzzlement, "Can I ask why?" she pressed, the single word imbued with a desire to understand the reason behind the change.

For a long, drawn-out moment, silence stretched between them, thick with unspoken thoughts. Calixto seemed to weigh his words, as if choosing them with deliberate care. 

Then, with an almost dismissive shrug that belied the weight of the sentiment behind it, he muttered, "Because it was my father's name." 

Something about the way he said it made Y/N hesitate. His voice lacked the usual sharp edge, and she caught the way Cressida gave him a quick glance, as if silently acknowledging something.

"Your father's?" Y/N trailed off.

"Killed decades ago." Calixto said bluntly. "By humans."

Silence.

Is that why he was such an asshole in history? Fair enough..

"His mother married my father." Cressida spoke simply from upfront "We've been step-sibling since we were 8."

 Y/N hummed, the male beside just silently dragging his feet against the path—she opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, a loud CRACK echoed from the trees ahead.

The group froze.

Aisha whispered, "What was that?"

A rustling followed. Something—someone—was moving through the trees.

Y/N instinctively stepped closer to Calixto, their shoulders brushing. He didn't comment, but she felt the way he stiffened beside her.

Then, suddenly, something moved.

Y/N felt her pulse spike.

Calixto, to her horror, turned to her with a smirk. "Not scared, huh?"

She glared at him. "..Shut up and start walking, Antoniou."

For once, he didn't argue.