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Bloodbound (w/WillowVX)

A feeling of warm hope spread through Fred's body. Did he mean it? Would he really let her go home? Maybe all he wanted from her was the power it gave him. He said he didn't have to kill her, he just wanted to. That meant that her death wasn't necessary. Could she really betray herself to retain her freedom? She could try.

"You would let me go home?" She asked, skeptical but foolishly hopeful all the same. "You won't kill me? And I won't have to stay with you?" If all she had to do was obey him for a few hours, she thought she could do that. Put her mind far away again. She could let her desires take the wheel and in the end she would get to go home and pretend this never happened.

But of course she wouldn't. She would warn Belle immediately. How could she not? James might try to come after her again when she did, but her loyalty and gratitude for Belle far out weighed her fear of James. Fred felt the warmness again when James held her chin and tilted her head up to kiss him. It was so easy to forget that he was evil. Maybe she could pretend he wasn't, just for a little while. She could pretend that they were just a boy and girl, getting to know each other, just like James had said. She could do it if it meant saving her life. She kissed him back with more feeling than she had before and pressed herself closer against him.
 
She returned his kiss and pressed against him; James felt as though she was melting beneath him. He closed his eyes with satisfaction. Oh, my little idiot. Oh my sweet fool. Enjoy your last night to the fullest, then. I'll certainly enjoy it... He let go of her face and other breast to wrap his arms around her. One snaked around her back to pull her small bosom against his bare chest; the other settled on her bottom, where his hand kneaded her buttock as he pulled her groin more tightly against his. His manhood had nearly reached its full length and he continued to slide it back and forth across her pussy. He pulled his mouth away from hers to kiss her check and neck, nipping gently at her earlobe as well. Really, he just wanted her mouth unobstructed because he wanted to hear what sounds would come out of it. Would she gasp, or moan? Would she squeak? She was rather mousey after all. The basic act of sex was not quite as fun after doing it thousands of times, but the little details that kept it interesting.
 
The strong arms held Fred tightly against James' chest and she sighed as she felt him press tighter against her. She could feel the slick wetness as he thrust his hips slowly, grinding himself into her. She lifted herself slightly when she felt the hand grip her ass and pull her even closer. The teasing was driving her crazy. She could feel his length rubbing against her clitoris and it drove her wild. Even if she wanted to fight now, it was too late. She was overtaken by his lust. She used her good hand to feel his tight, muscular back. He was so sexy, she thought. He was beautiful. She was so lucky. Somewhere inside of Fred, she knew these thoughts were wrong, but she couldn't bring her mind to think of anything else. Her short, thin legs wrapped around James' and she moved her hips faster. The breaths came heavy and she bit her lip, trying to conceal the quiet moans that forced their way out. She suddenly wanted him badly. More than anything.

"Oh, James." She sighed as he kissed her neck and bit her earlobe.
 
"My Fred..." James murmured. You pitiful thing... With the hand on her rump, he shifted her pelvis and changed the angle of his hips. It was all the warning she had before he thrust into her moist pussy. He stopped when he met resistance, the sudden narrowing of an already tight passage where her cervix began; he could have gone much deeper, but wanted to give her a moment to get over the pain and savor the sensation. Besides, he had a lot to savor himself. Fred was warm and moist and unbelievably tight. She was so small, after all, and so unused. So he stayed still for a few seconds, listening to her breath, feeling her pulse racing under her skin.


When he was ready, James wiggled his hips slightly, teasing the inner walls of her pussy, then drew himself back. He was almost all the way out of her before he rocked his hips and slammed in again, this time a little bit harder, a little bit deeper. He continued to pound against the opening of her cervix, each thrust a little quicker and a little harder, until one particularly fierce movement lodged the tip of his manhood in her narrow inner passage. James paused again, but this time only for a moment before he burrowed deeper into her body, driving his cock inch by inch towards her womb, until he had sheathed himself in her to the hilt. "My Fred," he said again, his hot breath washing over her ear. Then he grinned, though she couldn't see it. "Say it," he growled hungrily. "You're mine."
 
James' voice urged her on. Fred let him control her with ease. It wasn't as if she had much of a choice. She wasn't fully prepared when he entered her waiting pussy and her nails dug themselves deep into the perfect flesh of his back. He paused. He didn't continue his thrusting or push deeper. Fred was grateful. The pain was a burning sensation. Sharp. He was bigger than any human could have been, she realized. And she was so tiny. Fear rippled through her that he might break her if he went any further.

Before she got the chance to protest, his hips started to move in a circular motion. He was teasing her insides and getting her used to the feeling. The pain was still there but it quickly turned into something pleasurable. Something she craved. She braced herself when he nearly pulled out of her completely, this time she knew what was coming next. He slammed his hips in one hard thrust, breaking the barrier and lodging himself deep inside of her. Too deep. She felt like she could almost feel it in her stomach. She screamed out in a mixture of excruciating pain and ecstasy. Her nails dragged deeply down his back and she continued to cry out. There was nothing like it. What had she been missing? Why did she ever fight him to begin with? He was a God. And she belonged to him.

"Yes..." She cried. Her body was held tightly against his and he was as deep as he could possibly go. Fred felt James' breath down her neck and his voice made her shiver. "I'm yours. I'm yours forever." She moaned as her legs tightened completely around his. "Please..." She begged. "Take it. Take it all."
 
"Oh, I intend to." James began rocking his hips again, slowly at first with small movements. But with each thrust he pulled out a little farther before slamming back in, and each thrust came a little faster than the one before it. It wasn't terribly long until he was pounding into her at inhuman speeds. With most of his victims, he had to restrain himself; he wanted to keep them around for quite a while, after all. But Fred was different--special in her inferiority. He didn't plan to keep her, so it would make no difference if her innards were raw and stretched beyond repair. If her flesh was bruised and tender, if her pelvis cracked or even split in two, it didn't matter.

As much as he enjoyed the sensation of her wet, tight opening yielding to him, James reveled more in his own savagery. His shaky breaths came through clenched teeth, until he could no longer hold back. His entire body tensed, and he pulled her tighter to him, expelling the air from her lungs in his crushing embrace as he erupted within her. His cum flowed into her womb, although nothing could come of it. He was a vampire, after all; dead, but more than that he was death. Creating life was one of the few things beyond his reach.

He held Fred tightly for a few more seconds before he released her completely, letting her fall back on the chair. "Now tell me, my Fred... are you sure you want to go home?"
 
Fred was unable to respond. The sheer velocity of his thrusts were tearing into her small frame. She was screaming. Part of it was from the pleasure and part of it was from the splitting pain in her hips. The fear started swelling inside of her again. She was terrified that he would completely destroy her but she was so lost in the lust that she couldn't resist. His movements were hard and inhumanly fast. She felt even slicker as he mercilessly pounded into her. She knew that he had tore something inside of her. She was bleeding.

Amidst the pain, another sensation was crawling its way to the surface. She felt it settling deep in her lower stomach and her pussy muscles clenched tight around his large cock. "I'm...." She gasped. "Oh, god, I'm cumming!" Fred shouted as he continued to slam dangerously hard into her hips. She felt a searing pain and she thought one of her hips had been dislocated. Parts of her body were black and blue from where his hands gripped her too tightly. Her breasts were sore and bruised. When James tensed, she could feel him hold her tighter. Her chest felt like it was being crushed underneath him. All of her breath was cut off and it felt like she was going to suffocate. She knew he had climaxed too. When he dropped her back onto the seat, her body felt sore and broken. Everything below her torso was numb. It was hard for Fred to catch her breath as it came out in short, shallow sighs.

"Please." Fred nodded her head and sighed as she looked away. It hurt her chest to speak. Her logic and senses came back to her and she felt ashamed. She didn't want to look at him. She tried to sit up but pain shot through her body and she couldn't move. It started out nice, she thought. It felt good. But then it got bad, violent. She was surprised that James hadn't broken her completely in half. She just wanted to go home. She wanted her mother. She wanted hot green tea and a warm bath. She wanted to forget that this ever happened.
 
James sighed. "I understand," he said. "I guess there's only one thing left for me to say..." He bent down over her, kissed her cheek and nuzzled his face under her chin. He sighed again, his breath caressing her skin. "You're so gullible," he murmured, before his fangs sank once again into her neck.

He drank of her again, and far more deeply. He was paying close attention to her pulse and breathing, and before she lost consciousness, he pulled away. There was one last thing she had to experience. He took the discarded stake and lifted it over his head. It was a far more dramatic gesture than he needed to make, but he wanted her to see it, to understand what was happening. He held it for just a moment-- after all he didn't know how much longer she could hold on--before plunging the stake into her chest. Her ribcage shattered, offering no resistance to his strength as he drove the stake into her heart. But, for all the power in his attack, he had restraint as well; he didn't drive it all the way through her. If the stake came out the other side she would bleed all over his seat.

James retrieved his pants from the floor of the car and dug his cell phone out of his pocket. He sent a quick message to all his followers--telling them to be ready to move on his command. Now that he was done with Fred, he could turn his attention to the real prize. He could feel Belle, sense her movements. It wasn't terribly precise, but it would be enough to keep his minions out of her path. She would fail tonight, both as a hunter and as a protector. He smiled down at Fred, then knelt down to suck at the blood slowly oozing from her broken chest.
 
Fred's body was sore and weak, all she wanted to do was go home. Something about James' movements put a sick pit in her stomach. He began to kiss and nuzzle her, moving down toward her neck again. Something inside of her knew it was going to happen before she felt the sting of his words, matched by the sting of his fangs. James wasn't going to take her home. A part of Fred knew that all long but didn't want to admit it to herself. She was going to die.

It hurt so much more when he drank from her this time. He bit down harder and drank deeper. He had her by the throat and she knew there was no way she was getting out of this. Her body was stiff and immobile as he continued to drain the life from her. The only movement came from her hand that grasped the end of his shirt and her chest that rose and fell slowly. She was getting weaker. He took a lot of blood. Dots were dancing across her vision and she thought it was over. But then she didn't feel James on her anymore. She hadn't realized that her eyes fluttered closed. She opened them and looked up at him pathetically.

"You were never going to let me go, were you?" Fred asked as James sat over her with the wooden stake in the air, aimed at her heart. She looked at him blankly. There was nothing left that she could say. In that last fatal moment, Fred accepted her fate. James responded by plunging her own weapon through her chest cavity and into her heart. Fred let out a sick gasp. Her eyes went wide and she tried to desperately breathe for a few seconds. As the few seconds ticked by, the grasp on his shirt got weaker and weaker. Fred looked into James' face as the light began to leave her eyes. 'I wish I never would have gotten into his car....' That was her final thought as the last of the breath left her lips and her small body shook. Her head fell to the side and it left her sightless eyes staring at the car window.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________-

Belle was getting dressed. It was warmer than usual tonight. The air had a suffocating, salty aroma to it. Her hair was already sticking to the back of her neck. She threw her long blonde hair up into a pony tail. After she'd dried her body, she slipped on a pair of blue laced panties. She continued to dress herself in black shorts and a simple black tube top. She meant business tonight. She needed to move around easily. She knew that with her slayer strength and speed giving her an extra leg up against the vampires, she was in better shape than most. Still, she was prone to make mistakes. Mistakes couldn't be made tonight. She had lost Missy. She wouldn't lose another innocent. Tonight, Belle had an agenda. She would find the vampire that got away with Missy. She would question him and then kill him. After that, she was coming for the leader - the one who has been behind all of the disappearances. The one who was rumored to be running a slave ring. The one who was supposedly powerful beyond comprehension. Belle didn't care how powerful he was supposed to be. What he was doing was wrong. And she was going to stop him.

She slung her bag over her shoulder and stepped into her converse shoes. She climbed silently out of her bedroom window and made her way towards the cemetery.
 
James left the corpse in his car and headed upstairs, carrying only his cell phone. He went to the bathroom and began to fill the tub. He was covered in blood and juices, and besides, after such a vigorous tryst, even he felt like relaxing. But he would need the phone to coordinate his minions, as well as the disposal of the body... what would he do with it? He needed Belle to find it, of course, but leaving it on her doorstep was too obvious. Fortunately, he knew where she was, and where she was going--combining his knowledge of her past exploits with their current connection, it was pretty easy to figure out where she was going at any given time. He would just have to leave Fred in her path...

Speaking of her path, he could pretty easily guess at her first stop. It would have been successful, too, since two of his minions were there. He pondered whether he should even warn them of the hunter's approach; they were painfully young and stupid, and it might be suspicious if everywhere she went had just been vacated. Still, as foolish as they were, those two were more or less obedient so they weren't completely worthless. More importantly, he didn't want Belle to taste even a hint of success tonight. He quickly sent a text message to one of the two; if they had followed his previous instructions, they were already ready to escape. If not, their defiance would cost them their lives, and not even at James' hands. That would be a good message for the rest of the idiots. With some satisfaction, James settled into the warm bath, humming to himself. He held the phone above the water, humming cheerfully as he searched through his contacts and dialed a number. Of all his followers, there was one he respected enough to warrant an actual phone call. That was also the only follower he trusted enough to drive his car.

"Hello, I have a job for you. I need you to dump a body, but not in any of the usual places. Actually this needs to be a little more public. Exciting, isn't it? Now, I want her..." He closed his eyes, remembering the various locations that he had lost his minions. Where was Belle likely to go tonight? Which seemed to be her favorites? Also, it would be no good if someone else stumbled on the body first. And it could be awkward to explain if they got caught... James wouldn't be there himself, and the car couldn't be traced back to him, but still it would be troublesome.

"Leave her at that old factory. ...the one on sixth street. ...yes, I know what I said--look. I told everyone never to set foot in there again because people kept getting dusted there. It seemed pretty obvious to me, but then, I'm intelligent. ...and that's why you're going to do exactly what I say. Come to the manor, get my car, dump the girl at the factory." He paused, then grinned. "And, ah... make it pretty."

After hanging up on his subordinate, James closed his eyes and pictured the factory. He imagined how it looked from the street, which letters on the sign had worn out or been vandalized, the scattered mess on the floor inside. It wasn't much, but hopefully some hint would trickle through his connection to Belle. It may well have been on her to-do list, since it had been such a successful hunting ground before James had smacked some sense into his crew, but just in case, maybe there was something he could do to nudge her thoughts ever so slightly.
 
It was a still night. There wasn't much wind whipping through the humid air. Belle felt as determined as ever. She had a list of places in her mind. She wasn't leaving any stone unturned tonight. She went over the places in her mind. The cemetery. The pier. The old boss factory. Typically, she had stuck to the graveyard. It seems this new leader is pretty good at making sure his minions don't get killed. Some were still stupid enough to get caught, thankfully for Belle. They must have had another place that they've been going but she hadn't found it yet. That was also on the agenda for tonight. Despite the gnawing feeling in her chest, she felt a little giddy inside, she hoped that tonight would be eventful. Truth be told, though, she just wanted it over with. She was sick of this. She didn't ask for it. She didn't ask for her parents to be killed. She didn't ask to become the slayer. After she beat the leader, she would be eighteen soon, and she was going to leave. Out of California completely. Maybe Seattle? She always thought it looked nice there. Someone else can walk around in graveyards all night because she'd had it.

She scaled the wrought iron cemetery gates and froze mid climb. She listened intently. She heard somebody on the phone. It was a brief conversation and then they were moving. Two of them. Belle smiled to herself and jumped over the top of the gates, landing gracefully on her feet. They probably heard her hit the ground but it didn't matter. She stood still and listened to where the voices were coming from. She hung back beside a tree and watched two vampires walking through the trees on the other side. She instantly recognized the one from the night before. The one who took Missy. Silently, she circled around so that she was walking among the trees just in front of them. She climbed the one easily. She crouched in the tree and waited for them to approach. As soon as she saw they were just underneath, she let herself drop so that she was hanging from one of the branches. She swung her body and landed a swift kick in their faces. First, the vampire who had gotten away last night. Second, his new partner.

"We had a date last night." Belle said as she let herself drop to her feet. "You know, it's not really nice to stand a girl up like that."
 
The two vampires got to their feet quickly. "Shit," said the one she had faced before. "I told you we should go."
"Big deal," said the other with a grin. "She's just a girl. And if you got away from her she can't be that dangerous."
"Yeah. Right." Without much warning, the vampire grabbed his new partner by the shoulders and shoved him at Belle, then immediately turned to run. He pulled a phone out of his pocket and speed-dialed his boss.
 
This time Belle was prepared. Instead of using a stake, she pulled out a small handheld cross bow. The movements were quick. In no time, she sprang forward. She shot one of the slender wooden arrows into the first vampire's throat. She jumped on his back as he fell and used him to spring her forward further. She shot the second wooden arrow and it hit the other vampire in the chest, just beside his heart. She wanted them alive. When the vampire fell, he dropped the phone. Before putting her attention on the vampire, she grabbed the phone quickly.

"Who is this?" She asked. The only response she got was dead air and a fast click. It was him. She knew it was him. She glanced at the phone for a number. Restricted. She smashed the phone and sat on top of the vampire. She took a glance behind her and the other one was writhing in pain from the wood that was lodged in his throat. Vampires have rapid healing, with everything except wood. Chances are, he would bleed out before she got the chance to stake him in the heart.

"So, how about we pick up where we left off." Belle said as she straddled the vampire that got away. She held the crossbow to his heart. "I want to know where I can find him. And don't play games with me, you know who I'm talking about. It's been a long couple of days and I'm really, really cranky." She knew that the vampire would talk. He was a weak fledgling at best. Those kind always did what ever it took to keep themselves alive. Vampires didn't know loyalty.
 
The vampire coughed and sputtered a little. "I don't know! I don't know. I mean. I know who you're talking about. Yeah. Sure I know. But... I dunno where he is, where he'll be. We just get phone calls, you know? Go here, do this. I-it'll be a relief to be rid of him. We're all rooting for you, you know that right?"

-------

James sighed after he hung up the phone. Apparently the morons had not listened and not fled the graveyard, as he had instructed. That was no great loss, but it meant Belle was having a little bit of success tonight. Idiots or not, two kills was more than he wanted to permit her. Still, it had been nice to hear her voice.

He sent out another text message to his followers. "Two of us thought they knew better than me, until the hunter got them. Obey me if you want to live." As he hit send, he heard the car pulling out of his garage. His aide was going to go deliver the present. He closed his eyes and focused again on the factory.
 
"How gullible do you think I am?" Belle asked as she pressed the tip of the arrow harder against him. She thought for a moment. If he was really as clever and powerful as he is supposed to be, of course he wouldn't leave a trail that would lead back to him. This stupid leech has probably never even actually met him, she thought. She believed that he didn't know where he was but there was so much more she could get out of him.

"Where did you take that girl last night?" This time, when she asked the question, her other hand grabbed the arrow that was already lodged in his chest and twisted it painfully. "Let's say that I believe you..." Belle started. She suddenly got the strangest feeling. It was almost like a chill of intuition. In her mind she saw the old boss factory on sixth street, she was planning to make that her last stop of the night looking for this vampire. When she thought of the place, it gave her that feeling of dread that she'd been feeling all night. She shook her head and shook it away. She had to stay focused.

"Let's say I believe you." Belle said again. "And you don't know exactly where he is. I'm sure you know a good place to start looking." She thought of something. It was devious and unfair but this was war. She didn't have a choice. "If you give me a lead on where I'd be able to find him. I know, you 'don't know.' But I'm sure all you minion type gossip. Tell me what you THINK you know and I won't turn you into dust. Not tonight, anyways." She straightened herself out and looked at him seriously. Her eyes flicked behind her briefly and she noticed that the other vampire had gone. She sighed. It didn't matter, she had the one she wanted anyways. And of course she wouldn't let him go. He killed Missy. She was going to enjoy every second of killing him.
 
"Oh, yeah, of course, everyone's got theories, you know, I just didn't want to waste your time with that. Um. Lemme see. I got a couple ideas. The first is... well he's always talking about how he owns the city. And I guess maybe he's right about that... he owns a hell of a lot of property, that's for sure. Plus businesses, utilities... getting off track, anyway, this guy, he probably goes somewhere with a nice view so he can look at his town. There's a great big office building near the court, do you know it? Tallest thing in the city by like ten stories. I'm pretty sure he owns it and sometimes I think he hangs around the top floor and strokes his ego. Or the roof, whatever. Oh, but, that's not the only idea... um... see aside from owning the town, he also says a lot that he built this town. Like he was here when this town was just getting started. So I got to thinking, maybe he has like... a house or something, out in the uh... you know that part of town with all the great big shitty houses? It's mostly squatters and crackheads and what-not, but that used to be where all the rich people lived. So maybe that's where he is, you know? And then I think, he's a showoff, there's no one to show off to down there but the stoners and whores, so then I think maybe he's living the high life in a fancy fucking apartment downtown." He began trying to pull away from Belle. "Okay? Does that help? Can I go now?"
 
Belle couldn't resist to roll her eyes at the vampire. It was such a childish gesture, she realized, but she couldn't help it. It was clear that this vampire had no clue about his leader. It was obvious that he was just trying to talk as much as he could, to make it sound like he was giving her a reason to leave him alive. His skull must really be that thick, she thought. If nothing else, he did give her information that she didn't know before. Did he have that much influence over the town? That made her start to think. If that were the case, to everyone else, he would just be an average person. Somebody who walked among them during the day. No. Could he? Belle heard rumors about powerful vampires, old vampires, retaining the ability to walk in the sunlight. Some of the very few original vampires. Could this guy be one of them? What Belle could gather so far is that this guy was rich, cunning, conceited, and maybe more powerful than she would have thought him to be. At least this vampire wasn't completely useless. Now she knew not to underestimate him. She could ask around the town. Find out more information about the founding family. She had all kinds of leads now. And places.

The factory flashed through her mind again. It was high. It was near the run down part of town. All of the vampires seemed to have ditched the place. There was also something she couldn't explain, like a dangerous clawing in her core. Belle had been the slayer long enough to know to trust her instincts.

"You know something?" Belle put her hand on the vampires chest and leaned closer in to him as he tried to pull away. "That's the thing with vampires." She shook her head. "They have no sense of loyalty." Without another word she pulled the trigger of her crossbow and she found herself laying on top of a pile of dust.

"I hope you're ready for me." Belle said as she got up to her feet ad brushed the dust off of her legs. "Because I'm coming for you." She stuck her crossbow in her bag and made her way towards the factory.
 
James could feel that she was on the move. He smiled a little and made another call. "Have you finished moving her? ...wonderful. I think the hunter on her way now, so get out immediately. Oh, and ah... did you have a chance to do anything artistic? ... ... ...oh that's beautiful. If it's not too much trouble would you take a picture before you leave?" He hung up and closed his eyes. This was going to be fun. He focused all his attention on his connection with Belle. When she found Fred, he wanted to feel it.

-------

As Belle neared the factory, she surely noticed the black car with the tinted windows parked in front of it. However, it pulled away with a screech almost as soon as she laid eyes on it, roaring around the corner. As fast as she was, there was little hope of catching up to it.

Inside the factory, there were no vampires, just a ghastly display in the middle of the room. Somebody had taken an enormous steel beam and driven it into the concrete floor, then lashed another, shorter beam across it with chains to form a cross. Additional chains bound a lifeless body to that cross--a crucifixion of sorts, although thankfully the girl's hands were not nailed to anything. But there was no shortage of other, quite visible abuses to her flesh. A broken wrist... bite marks... her entire pelvic area was a bruised mess... and finally there was the wooden stake embedded in her heart.
 
The wind chilled Belle's bare shoulders as she rounded the corner that held the abandoned factory. She didn't know much about the history of the town, but she knew that it had been experiencing economic difficulties a good twenty years ago and everyone got laid off. Since then it had become one of the many vampire playgrounds. She walked with careful footsteps to peer around the side of the building. The only thing that could be seen on the deserted street was a small black car. She tried to peer inside but it was all blacked out. Tinted windows usually meant one of two things. Drug dealers... or vampires. She was going to guess the latter. She stalked along the wall of the building but to her dismay, the car gave a loud screech as it peeled away. Belle clenched her fists at her sides. I hope that wasn't him... she thought. How has he managed to always stay one step ahead of her? Maybe he was telepathic, she thought. She knew the original vampires had all sorts of tricks. Immunity to sunlight. Telepathy. And what's worse, they couldn't be killed as easily as other vampires. The more she found out about this guy, the more she wish she didn't.

Belle knew better than to enter the building from any of the open entrances. Most of the windows and the doors were boarded up, but there were a few holes from vandals and vampires, forcing their way in. She went in the way she always did. She went around to the rear of the building and found the fire escape. She tossed her bag up first and it fell on the landing. She backed up to get a running start and jumped up to grab the ends of the stairs. She pulled herself up and climbed to the top. She then tossed her bag through the hole and climbed through herself.

The building smelled like mildew and dust. She had to resist the urge to cough. Just as the wind blew through the tiny hole she smelled a hint of something else. She couldn't place exactly what the smell belonged to but it smelled... wrong. Suddenly that dread overcame her again and she realized that she didn't want to be here. This is stupid, she thought. Why did she even come here in the first place? A hunch? That vampire could have lead her straight into a trap. She slung her bag over her shoulder and continued to search the place. The room was huge. There was nothing left in here anymore. Some rusted ceiling beams, trash and clothes from people who have made this there temporary home. She tried to adjust her eyes to the pitch darkness. Belle didn't carry flashlights, she felt like they were too conspicuous. She was normally pretty good at adjusting her eyes, although nowhere near as good as a vampire. She saw a form in the center of the room and she cautiously approached it.

When she was close enough for her eyes to fully adjust to the darkness, she stopped. She stood deathly still and stared with wide eyes at the form in front of her, hanging from beams that twisted into a cross. Her arms went slack and her bag slid from her shoulders and hit the floor with a thud. Her mind shut down. Her body shut down. Belle fell to her knees as she saw Fred's naked, broken body hanging from chains. She was bruised everywhere. Her throat held several bite marks. Parts of her body looked like the bones were broken. And a wooden stake was pushed through her heart. He did this for her, Belle thought.

Belle still stared in silence on her knees. She looked up to Fred and the tears began to well up in her eyes. She shook her head and raised her hands to cover her mouth. Her hands were quivering and she was breathing fast. "Oh, Fred..." Belle whispered. Belle had not felt anything like this in a very long time. Not since her last boyfriend, Trevor, was killed by vampires. That had happened in her hometown, right when she discovered she was the slayer. When she discovered what really happened to her parents. They had killed Trevor on purpose, to warn her. Now they had done the same thing to Fred. "It's all my fault..." Her arms were weak and lifeless but she managed to push herself to her feet. Her footsteps were numb. She couldn't feel the ground beneath her. She walked up to the small girl and touched her hand. She felt so cold. Belle was angry. She grabbed the chains that held her in place, and with the help of her slayer strength, pulled them apart. She held the small girl in her arms and collapsed to the ground. She held her tight and sobbed. She clutched Fred's head against her chest and tucked her hair behind her ear.

"No..." She began to cry as she rocked back and forth. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." This wasn't fair. Fred didn't do anything. She didn't do anything to anyone. She was innocent. "I can't do this anymore." Belle said to herself. This life was tearing her apart. Everybody that she loved had died. This is why she couldn't get close to people. The voices in her head were incessant. I saved her once why couldn't I have been there to save her again? She was punishing herself. She felt like she deserved it. Her fingers reached into the phone in her pocket and dialed 911. She told them where to find her. An anonymous tip. She had to leave before the cops showed up.

She held Fred tighter and kissed her on the forehead. "Please forgive me..." She laid the girl down on her back and ran back out through the fire escape. It hadn't even occurred to her that she left her bag. She needed to kill her mind. As soon as she jumped to the ground, she ran. Belle ran the entire five miles back to her house. She pushed her legs as hard and as fast as they would take her. She couldn't stop. She couldn't think. All she concentrated on was the wind whipping past her and the burning in her lungs. When she finally reached her house, she collapsed. She didn't even bother climbing back up through her window. Belle laid in the dewy grass and curled up on her side. She let it out. She started sobbing hard. They shook her whole body. She wouldn't be surprised if she woke up her foster parents. She didn't care. She got onto her hands and knees and heaved. Bile rose from her throat and she threw up in the grass. She was sick from running so long, from crying so hard, and from seeing the closest thing she had to a friend completely mutilated.

Belle didn't even remember climbing into her bedroom. Her mind was blacking out. Next thing she knew, she was laying on her bed and staring wide eyed at the ceiling. She was giving up. She didn't give a crap about her destiny anymore. She was done. That would be the last night she would ever slay a vampire. She was going to move. She would tell her foster parents tomorrow that she wasn't happy here. She was going to run. This vampire leader was very, very bad. Pure evil. Who could do that to somebody? The way Fred's body was twisted and broken. Thinking about it almost made Belle throw up again. For the first time in a long time, Belle felt like a helpless child. What good was being the slayer if she couldn't protect the people that she loved? She wasn't going to school tomorrow. Or ever again. She thought of James for a brief second and an apology shot through her mind. Looks like you'll have to do the project yourself.
 
Occasionally her foster parents came to her room and tried (futilely) to talk to her, to comfort her. At some point she was told that they had called in sick for her. Then, a little after noon, a police officer came to ask her about Fred--when had she last seen her, what were her habits, did she have a boyfriend. There were so many questions, which must have seemed pointless to someone who already knew what had happened. Of course, sharing the truth wouldn't have done any good. Finally the officer left, promising to "catch this guy."

The next time her foster mother came up to her room, it wasn't with the usual vague words of comfort. "Sweetie?" she said cautiously. "There's someone here to see you. He says he's your history partner... James? Or, was it Jake... he's downstairs with your dad now, but if you don't want to see him I'll tell him you're not feeling well."
 
The morning drug on for Belle. She had gotten absolutely no sleep. It was expected that the police came to her door. Everybody knew that Belle was close to Fred. She looked after her like a little sister. The entire time she spoke to the overweight, middle aged officer she wanted to scream. When they left, she retreated back into her room to continue digging the hole inside of herself. She just wanted to stay there. She felt angry but her anger was masked by her sadness. She felt defeated.

Belle's foster parents had insisted on staying home from work to be with her. After the officer left, however, she talked them into going in for the rest of the day. She thought they had already left when there was a faint knock and the door inched open. Belle felt surprised when her foster mother told her James was at the door. Something inside of her jumped a little but then she became suspicious. Why would he be here? How did he know where I live? The realization came to her that she was being paranoid. She had given James her address. And the whole school probably heard about Fred. Belle didn't want to see anybody. She just wanted to be alone. Even as she thought this she heard her own voice speaking.

"Let him in. I don't care." Belle said despite herself. It didn't matter. He probably just had a question about the project and if it was something else, she would make it clear that she could not be friends with him. She sat cross legged on her bed in the black tank top red plaid pajama bottoms she didn't remember changing into.
 
It wasn't long before James walked into her room. His head was slightly hung, and his long, dark hair hid his expression. He wouldn't turn to face Belle, but that was mostly because he didn't think he could keep a straight face. "Hey," he said quietly. "I heard about... you know... and you weren't at school today. So I came to... honestly I don't what I came to do. See how you were doing? Obviously you're not doing well. Cheer you up? Like I could do that, I barely know you and... honestly it probably wouldn't matter if I'd known you all your life. I couldn't help you. I can't help you. But if somehow I can, then... I wanted to be here for you. Just in case. ...also I brought you some food, if you're hungry."
 
Belle didn't look up when she heard James walk through the bedroom door. She heard the car starting outside and she knew that meant her foster parents left. Every word that came out of James' mouth made her want to cry harder. She kept her eyes fixated on the floor. When he was finished speaking, she looked up at him. Her face was red and her normally bright green eyes were dark and filled with tears. She buried her face in her hands and couldn't control the sobs that forced their way out. She was crying because of Fred and she was also crying because of how much James cared. She didn't know how to handle that. Nobody ever cared about being there for her. And suddenly, in that moment, she didn't want to be in the room with anyone else.

"It's just... not... fair." Belle spoke through sobs. She cried hard. She couldn't control it. She felt embarrassed crying like this in front of James but she couldn't stop. "It's my fault. It's all my fault. I'm so sorry." She was rambling on about things that she knew James wouldn't understand. She sat alone on her bed and cried into her hands. She looked up at James and tried to catch her breath, which came out in deep gasps. "It means.. so much... that you came." Belle cried. She thought of Fred. "She was so childlike and smart. She was just so friendly, you know? She smiled at everyone, even the people who made fun of her." She shook her head. "She didn't deserve it, James." Belle wrapped her arms around herself to keep from falling apart. "She didn't deserve it. It's all my fault. I'm so sorry."
 
"Woah, hey, no no no. It's not your fault." Not entirely anyway. James paused a moment before he sat down on the bed next t her; it was important that he appear to hesitate. Couldn't be too bold, not yet. With a slow, cautious movement, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him. "But you're right, she didn't deserve it." Even being the weapon with which I hurt you was too good for her.
 
Belle broke down. She buried her face into James' chest and cried. He smelled so good. Being so close to James made her relax only slightly, just enough where she knew she wouldn't break apart. There was something about him that she couldn't put her finger on. For some reason, although she didn't know him at all, she felt recognition. She felt like a part of her knew a part of him and being this close to him made her feel whole. Her chest was tight and her heart was shattered into a million pieces. James held her so tight against him, it felt like he was protecting her from the world.

"I just don't know what to do." Belle spoke into him and shook her head. She lifted her face slightly to look at him and gave a small sniffle. "Have you ever hated who you were?" She asked. She knew it would be a strange question to him and he may not fully understand but she had no filter. It was time to finally vent. She rested her head back on his chest and closed her eyes tightly. "Have you ever thought you were so important and powerful? Unstoppable. But you just got tired? The same game just gets so old. And you're shouting inside but if you ever let anybody else hear, it would make you weak." She was rambling now but she couldn't stop. "So much fear, and pain, and darkness. Alone. No matter what I do, I'm alone. I have to hide myself from everyone." She took a deep breath and it sputtered, as if she were trying to hold back a sob. "It's like being the king of everything and never actually getting what it is you need. Never being able to reach the one thing that you yearn for so badly that it makes your bones ache." She moved so that her forehead rested against his chest. She looked down and whispered, "It's almost as if my only friends are the shadows."

"I'm drowning, James. It's just like the water keeps coming in from every side and there's nobody there to save me. I can feel it burning my lungs and I would give anything to take one real breath. To know what it's like to actually feel alive." Belle looked up at him again, the tears made her eyes sparkle. "Have you ever felt that way?"
 
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