Patrick gasped as he fell to the cold floor. He couldn't seem to catch his breath as his eyes shot open.
He was back in the tunnels. The tunnels he had first woken up in. He could see feet just ahead of him as they came running towards him. Arms wrapped around him as he was pulled upright.
"Patrick!?"
"Pete!" Patrick managed to gasp out between his choked breaths. He looked at Pete's face, scanning over every feature. "Pete, Pete it's you... It's me, Pete, I-I don't know what I did..."
"Beebo! Dallon!" Ryan's excited voice echoed as the youngling's rushed footsteps hurried into the room connected to the tunnel.
Pete's thumb slid across Patrick's cheek as the younger creature looked up at him.
Patrick was pacing his breathing back to normal as he looked at Pete. He had a slight sense of déjà vu, but he pushed it away. He was just happy to see Pete's face in front of him, instead of a demonic version of his own.
"Maybe not now, patrick..." A horribly familiar voice taunted from within Patrick's head, "But like I said, I'm always here..."
Patrick gasped, not from lack of air, but fear. He grabbed hold of Pete's arms and pulled himself closer to the other creature.
"It won't go away!" He cried out, hiding his face in Pete's chest. "Hehe won't leave me alone..."
Pete's arms wrapped around him with a hint of unsureness. This felt like his Patrick, but so had the other before his monster took back over...
"It never does, Patrick..." Pete soothed him, "it's something we all must face and overcome..."
"I don't want him to hide me away again..." Patrick cried, holding Pete tightly. "I want to stay home."
"You're always home..." Pete whispered as the three other creatures came into the hallway, "Your home is with us. No matter where you go, it's us..."
Patrick just shook quietly. He could hear his monster laughing in the back of his mind, just taunting at what it may do. It made Patrick afraid for everyone... Including himself.
How could he stop the monster that seemed to know him as well as he knew himself?..
---
Brendon sat on Dallon's lap in the tunnel, looking at a large book in his own lap. He bit at his fingertips as he read, while Dallon played with his hair. Pete was sitting with Patrick's head on his lap as the vampire slept from exhaustion. Ryan was coloring on the ceiling, just above Brendon and Dallon, with a green crayon.
"He's not rejecting the vemon..." Brendon muttered as his eyes scanned over the book, "He's just experiencing an enhanced monster."
"How do we stop it?" Pete asked, stroking Patrick's hair as if the creature was a sleeping puppy in his lap. He looked down at Patrick with sadness laced in his expression. He didn't deserve any of this...
Brendon shook his head. "I don't know... It's always different, but Tyler seems to have fueled his somehow..."
"How does that work?" Ryan asked, scrunching his nose. "I remember... Remember when mommy made me ramen noodles, that fuled my tummy." He giggled as his nose unscrunched and a smile formed on his face, "No more noodles for Ryro, only blood."
Brendon shrugged. "It's essentially the same thing, only take away the noodles, Ryro." He reached over and ruffled the youngling's hair, making him giggle again.
Dallon rested his head on Brendon's shoulder to peak at the book on his lap. His eyes scanned the page quickly before he sat back. "I don't understand any of that gibberish." He said, going back to messing with Brendon's hair.
"That gibberish is our culture!" Brendon said in annoyance, "At least aspects of it... I don't know how to fix Patrick with this..."
Pete looked down at Patrick. He felt so many things with the simple look. Feelings of first encounter verses up to now. The sound of his voice and heartbeat changed over time to Pete, from the sound of prey to the sound of companionship. He liked having Patrick's being around...
"How do you force someone to reject the venom?" He asked quietly, making the other vampires look at him in confusion.
"Isn't that dangerous?" Ryan asked, looking fearfully at Patrick.
"Venom rejection can only happen when another vampire's blood mixes within a certain time frame after the initial dosage..." Brendon said, as if it was simply a fun fact he had been waiting to share. He looked at Pete curiously, crawling out of Dallon's lap to sit just in front of him. "What are you suggesting?"
Pete was silent for a moment as he considered his thoughts. What was he suggesting? Possibly killing Patrick, just to rid him of the beast inside? Even if it worked, that dark creature would forever lurk in the shadows of his heart.
"I don't want him to live in fear of a monster like that..." Pete finally reasoned, out loud. "I had to battle my monster for nearly a hundred years. With what's inside of him, thanks to what Tyler has done to strengthen it, who knows how long he may have to fight if we don't..."
"We can't just put his life at stake like this." Brendon spoke as concern laced into his expression, "You believe he's strong, but even the strongest of hearts can hardly stand two venoms battling for dominance."
"I know he's strong." Pete said, looking straight at Brendon, "I've seen it."
Dallon looked around Brendon at Pete. "That weird eye thing you did?" He asked, "When... When he was remembering something."
Pete nodded. "I saw the heart he had. The strength for the ones he loves."
Brendon looked down at the sleeping creature. He just looked so... Small. How would he survive? If he had seen Patrick's reaction to first turning, he may have been able to give better advice as to how good or bad of an idea this may have been...
"There's a chance he may never come back..." Brendon said, his voice cracking just slightly as he scooted back to Dallon. He seemed to subconsciously grab the taller creature's hand before speaking again, "Venom isn't a toy... It's dangerous..."
"So is letting Patrick live with this thing he can barely fight." Pete defended, putting an arm protectively over Patrick. "We ask him when he wakes up. It's ultimately his life, so his decision."
Brendon looked unsure, but nodded. Ryan set his crayon down to crawl over and hug Brendon. Brendon held him tightly back with that arm that wasn't attached to Dallon by a squeezed hand. He shut his eyes and just held onto the two creatures, as if he was afraid to let go.
Pete looked back down at Patrick. What would he say to the proposition? Would he risk it?.. Pete stroked Patrick's hair, feeling a small worry in the back of his mind. What if things wouldn't be quite what they seemed?.. What if...
---
A/N~ this update took surprisingly long to fully figure out & I haven't had much writing time, I'm sorry I left you hanging for so long! <3
~Skittles Out~
