The Difference Between Molars & Fangs

Chapter 1: Rudolph's POV

And there he was, glowing in the moonlight, the pure brilliance of mortality making him shine even brighter in the silvery rays. The other boy shined so much brighter than himself, who blended into the darkness so well that even the moonlight could almost not make him visible. His dark spiky hair - which Tony liked to say was firmer than dried cement - was not blowing in the wind like the golden rays that belonged to the boy whose hand was clasped within his own. Tony had refused to believe he had used anything but an entire jar of gel to make his midnight strands stay in their unmovable position, and yet he had no undeadly idea what the strange-sounding substance even was. The mortal boy was odd in his ways and words, and he would be lying if he had said it had taken more than a little bit of time to get adjusted to it all.

Yet despite his perplexity, the boy was clever and funny, and it made Rudolph love him that much more. Even with his puzzling ways he had taught Rudolph so much, so many mortal words and modern sayings that trying to explain them to any other vampire, say his centuries-old father, would be an endeavor that would make his head spin.

Yet the peculiar words always brought a smile to his face, much like the boy who said them. Rudolph loved learning anything; the time spent in the catacombs had made him hungry for anything he hadn't seen in the last three-hundred years. Anything that wasn't coffins or stone was a treasure to him, and Tony had troves.

It was then that he felt a pressure on his hand, reeling him back into reality and to the worried face of the boy who was squeezing his hand. Tony and Rudolph had gone out flying like they did every night, and as per the last couple days, he had once again zoned out. It had surprised Tony the first couple of nights because, as the boy had repeatedly mentioned, he couldn't fathom how someone could zone out while flying. Not only that, but the weather was changing, and the wind now had a chilly bite to it. Tony was extremely, and quite obviously, annoyed that unlike himself, Rudolph could not feel the cold. In recent days Tony had to wear more than just his red hoodie to keep from freezing in the night air as they whizzed throughout the German forests surrounding the B&B, which was now becoming the permanent home of the Sackville-Bagg family.

"Rudolph? Are you ok? You're spacing out again", said the boy, his sky-blue eyes held way more concern than Rudolph thought was remotely necessary. Rudolph rolled his eyes, annoyed that Tony was looking at him like he was his ninety-year-old grandmother who couldn't even shit on her own.

"No, I'm having a heart attack. Of course, I am alright mortal; I'm bloody fantastic". Sarcasm was not something Tony had to teach Rudolph, that had been there from the start, "It's yourself you should worry about, you look like you're going to crack your teeth with all your god-forsaken shivering. I'm so glad I'm not a human." He said the last part to himself more so than to the other boy. However, Rudolph knew that his quick evasion of the boy's true question would not go unnoticed. Tony had gotten the picture - don't ask. Rudolph watched as his golden boy dropped not only his head but his eyes, and completely shut his mouth. He looked so much different, his usual smiling expression was gone and, in its place, stood a mask of hesitation and sadness.

His eyes were usually so bright with excitement Rudolph swore they would outshine the very stars they flew under, but now they only anxiously darted around the ground below, a traitor to his sad yet calm demeanor. The boy didn't look much different than a kicked puppy, and he noticed once again that Tony was overreacting. Watching him, Rudolph couldn't help but feel guilty. He reached out his arm towards Tony but not quite reaching him, hesitating on whether to grasp the boy's other arm. He even opened his mouth to say something, apologize, anything; but just before any words left his lips, the blond's head shot up - his eyes glued to the lake that was just ahead of them.

"Rudolph, can we stop somewhere? I want to look at the lake for a bit. It looks so cool in the moonlight!" the blond said, never once taking his eyes off the place in question.

Rudolph hesitated; it was the same lake Rockery had thrown Tony into only a week before. Rudolph still shuddered to think of that night, not only was his entire clan in danger, but if Anna had not heard Tony's whistle, the boy would've surely died from either hypothermia or drowning. He would've thought the boy would never want to go back to that wretched place and the wretched memories it held, and yet here Tony was looking at the lake as if it was a long-lost lover.

So, Rudolph obeyed and down they went, softly touching onto the land below – well, as softly as one can when landing on rocks. He had put the two at the edge of a cliff, perfectly overlooking the picturesque lake below. It was then that Tony let go of the other boy's hand, and Rudolph immediately wished he hadn't. His hand twitched, itching to reclaim the warmth it had previously encompassed; for while he could no longer feel cold, he could very much still feel heat.

The human had already sat down, his legs dangling over the edge of the cliff. They kicked at the air in what seemed to be more of a nervous habit than one from mindless boredom. The vampire wondered what the cause could be for such anxiety within the smaller boy but chose not to voice those concerns; confident Tony would tell him soon enough anyway. Instead, he had decided to join his golden boy on the edge of the cliff, sitting down close enough that their fingers brushed together. Or they would have if Tony's hadn't been previously occupied by clutching his now shivering legs to his small chest.

He had been so focused on the boy's hands he hadn't even noticed his legs had stopped their previous kicking and were now drawn up in order to add to the image of pure nervousness that was Tony. At that moment the vampire threw all previous notions of waiting for Tony out the window.

"What the hell is up with you? Are you crying? What's wrong?" The vampire panicked, completely clueless on what was happening and even more so on what to do about it. For a long moment the mortal didn't answer, and Rudolph almost feared he wouldn't. Then his answer came, four small words spoken barely above a whisper. Four small words that seemed to shatter not only Rudolph's heart but his entire world. I have to leave.