[a/n: Not gonna spend to long here just wanted to say another thank you to everyone who's taken the time to read this. Even if you aren't a subscriber I hope you've enjoyed what you've read. And if you are a subscriber, from the bottom of my heart thank you. This is the first time I've ever put my writings out for the public to see and so the positive feedback is so extremely heartwarming! Thank you guys! <3 -The Informed Puppy]

Mina stays propped up against the door for another day or two, the feel of the wood against her back giving her a sense of false security against what was on the other side of the door. It had been either loud or quiet the past few days with hardly any middle ground. Either the three vampires on the other side of the door were arguing, or stark silence filled the room. Occasionally there were soft knocks on her door, along with the promise of food from Hyoyeon, but she never opened up. The silence terrified Mina more than the yelling. Silence could mean they were behind her door, just waiting for her to crack it open and then tear her to pieces. She shuddered at the thought as she held tightly onto the t-shirt Tzuyu gave her a couple days ago. She didn’t know why she still held onto it, but the wintermint scent that still clung ever so faintly to the cloths makes Mina feel comfortable, or at least more comfortable than without it.

Another hour went by without so much as a peep from the other side of the door. Mina was about to finally relent and move to the bed when there is a rapp at her door and her back flattens back against the door. “Mina.” Tzuyu’s husky voice called from the other side of the door softly. “Mina, please let me in. You haven’t eaten for two days now. You’ll starve.” Tzuyu frowns as she’s met with silence, but is resolved to be let in. “Please.” She pleads, “I promise I won’t hurt you, I just want to explain.” Tzuyu presses her forehead against the door as she’s once again met with silence.

Mina is now standing in front of the door, her mind screaming at her to just leave the door shut and let Tzuyu walk away. Some part of her just can’t let her do it though and her quivering hand starts to reach for the door. She grasps the doorknob firmly, knuckles turning white from the pressure, and she hesitates. Her mind is racing, and her heart feels like it’s just run fifty marathons in the course of two minutes. Slowly she turns the knob and cracks the door open to find Tzuyu standing there, eyes wide as she finally looks on Mina for the first time in what felt like ages to the both of them. They remain like that for awhile, just staring at each other. Eventually Mina breaks the silence.

"You have food?” Mina rasps hoarsely, not having used her voice in a couple days. Tzuyu nods and indicates a box of pizza in her hand.

"I hope you like pepperoni.” Tzuyu says silently with a hesitant smirk. Mina opens the door wider for her to come in and Tzuyu takes a couple tentative steps into, turning to face Mina more fully after she feels comfortable doing so. She takes in her dull frame, lacking the life that it had just two days earlier.

"I…” Tzuyu starts, not really knowing what to say. She pries her gaze from Mina and sets the pizza down on the bed, staring at the untouched sheets for a few moments before looking back to Mina. Mina stares at the pizza for a whole half a second before throwing herself down on the bed, tearing open the box and scarfing through half a slice of pizza, only stopping because had no more room to fit the rest of the slice. Tzuyu moves to the other side of the room, leaning against the wall cautiously and watching Mina devour the pizza. She doesn’t want to push her luck today and so just stares at her in silence.

Mina is through another two slices before she remembers the other presence in the room. She looks up and finds Tzuyu gazing at her with an ultimately impassive expression. Mina just stares for a few moments as she swallows the large bite of pizza in . She sits up straighter on the bed and clears . “You said you were going to explain this.” Mina says quietly, gesturing softly towards Tzuyu, who only gives a single nod in response.

"What do you want to know?”  Tzuyu asks, her voice monotone.

"How old are you?”

"Four hundred years.” Tzuyu responds immediately, causing Mina to choke on the pizza in .

"Four hundred years!?” Mina says, her voice slightly louder than before. Tzuyu just nods in response, causing Mina to stare at her in disbelief. “How old is Hyoyeon then? And Victoria?

"Hyoyeon is somewhere in between two hundred and three hundred and Victoria is in her late seventies.” Tzuyu crosses her arms over her chest. Mina nods lightly, expecting them to be more like Victoria’s age than Tzuyu’s.

"How is it you fit so...well in society when you’re that old. You don’t seem that out of place.” Mina says as she looks Tzuyu over. She was wearing a black crop top with a black and red plaid flannel over top, and a pair of faded dark blue jeans. It’s all Tzuyu could do not to snicker at Mina’s innocent curiosity.

“We do keep up with the times, watching TV or reading newspapers or books. It’s not like I spent the past four hundred years in a coffin and just arose a month ago. I’ve walked this Earth that entire time and so I watch as trends change and society evolves and shifts. I adjust myself to fit those time.” Mina nods in understanding, her brow still furrowed in thought. “We are predators, Mina. We want to blend in with our surroundings so the prey does not notice.” Tzuyu continues, kicking a leg up to rest on the back wall.

"Would you classify Vampires as a race...or a disease.”

"We scientifically can’t be a race. We can not procreate...have children, and in order to be a thriving species we need to be able to have children and then grandchildren from our children.” Tzuyu explains, “I...would call us a virus, or perhaps a parasite. We feed from hosts and effectively drain them all their energy. We also infect some of our hosts and they eventually become part of the virus itself.” Tzuyu nods, satisfied with her explanation.

"One last question.” Mina promises with a finger held up. Tzuyu nods in agreement. “How did you…become what you are?” Mina inquires hesitantly. As Tzuyu’s impassive expression visibly darkens Mina holds up her hand, “If i-it’s a hard topic yo-you don’t need to-” Tzuyu cuts Mina off with a wave of the hand.

"I was living in Northern China at the time. My family worked on a rice farm, planting seeds and harvesting the fully grown rice. We didn’t make much money off it and the work was tough, but I got to stay with my family. That was enough for me.” Tzuyu recalls fondly, staring just past Mina as if she could see the memories taking form. “But it seems happiness is not what destiny had in store for me.” Tzuyu says as her expression grows sullen, her words almost faltering. “It was monsoon season, and my family was helping prepare the fields for the storm. But we worked too slowly, or the storm came too quickly, no one could really tell back then. We tried to make it back to the little shack that we called home, fighting against the wind and rain.” Tzuyu pauses, open to speak but only choked whimpers coming out. Mina watched with concern as the woman whom she often found cold and uncaring now looked like she was on the verge of a breakdown.

"Y-you don’t have to c-c-continue.” Mina squeaks timidly. Tzuyu shakes her head, her eyes focusing on Mina again.

"No...every story needs an end right?” Tzuyu manages a sad smile that fades instantly as she continues her recounting of the tale. “My mother got swept away in a mudslide. She was just gone. My father rushed in after to save her, and he was lost too. I was alone.” Tzuyu spits out bitterly. “Without my family to watch over me, the foreman of the rice farm started treating me more harshly. I was often whipped, beaten and….abused.” Tzuyu says the last word with loathing clear in her voice, her eyes changing to a bright silver in response to the strong emotion. Mina watches, stuck between being horrified and awe inspired by the color of Tzuyu’s eyes.  

"I didn’t care though, not anymore. I had nothing to live for. No honor, no family and no friends. No one bothered to talk with the beaten girl who lost everything.” She said venomously, the hatred for those people dripping with every word spoken. “I carried on like that for months, just trudging through life without any aim or goal. Walking forward to die.” Tzuyu says as her eyes start to turn back to their typical hue. “Until someone decided to speak to me.” Tzuyu smiles sadly as she moves into the end of her sad story. “He was a scholar from a land in the north, at least that’s what I had overheard, and the only person who ever dared to speak with me. Oh, the stories he shared. Tales of heroism, battle, honor, and conquest. I was enamoured with this man and all he could share with me.” Tzuyu pauses, pursing her lips and taking a ragged breath fighting back the tears that started stinging her eyes.

“Eventually he told me the tales of the Nightwalkers, a proud group of warriors who fought with the grace of a dancer and the ferocity of the most vicious tiger. He told me he had met these warriors and learned their ways.” Tzuyu looks down at the floor, biting back a growl, “He said he could teach me, and me, being the naive and desperate spirit I was agreed all to willinging. He…. turned into an apparition before me. A monster with glowing silver eyes and long canines that put the most powerful of predators to shame. I tried to run, the most effort I had put into living since my parents had passed, but it was a useless gesture. Vampires have enhanced speed and strength...he caught up to me within seconds of my trying to run. He sunk those evil teeth into my neck. I was at the brink of death when he pulled away from the vile embrace. I awaited death with a ready mind, finally able to see my parents again. But fed me his own blood, his wrist pressed tightly against my mouth. It tasted like blood at first, metallic, but then it took on the flavor of rotten apples and I nearly gagged on it. He pulls his wrist away, and at first nothing happened. I just layed in the mud, wanting to sink into it’s cold clutch. Instead I suddenly found myself drowning a fire that burned through my veins, and an unbearable pressure in the gums of my upper jaw. I screamed and begged for mercy from this pain I was in, pleaded for sanctuary. When the flames finally ceased I felt...different. The mud wasn’t cold, and it looked...clearer, like someone had taken a cloth and wiped my vision clean. I also felt the horrifying presence of large objects in my mouth, teeth. The monster told me he had shared his gift with me and that I was now strong enough to exact revenge on everyone who had wronged me. Then he left without a second word or glance.” Tzuyu finished pointedly, eyes returning to the silver color once again.

"T-then what happened?” Mina asks cautiously. Tzuyu looks at her and gives an obvious expression.

"I killed everyone on that rice farm.” She states simply, causing Mina to pull back a little in fear. “I was hungry and they gave me no reason not too. In the weeks...the months after my parents had died, no one bothered to lift a finger to help me. No one gave me a word of hope or even a polite smile. My hatred for them burned inside me, so I let it all out. I started with the foreman, tearing his throat out and feasting on his vile blood. I moved onto the workers, draining them one by one of the one thing that kept them working. Eventually I marched into the stead of the owners and tore them all to pieces, letting their blood stain the walls and floorboards before lapping it up. I reveled in the feeling. I moved on, in search of another farm, or perhaps even a town to dig my new fangs into.” Tzuyu says with a shrug, as if it were normal. Mina swallows, dry as she thinks about Tzuyu tearing through innocent people as if she were a dog with a stuffed toy.

“I...I see.” Is all Mina manages to say as she stares at the floorboard below her bed. Tzuyu feels a pang in her chest and subconsciously takes a step forward, causing Mina to shift back apprehensively. Tzuyu sighs deeply, her face full of regret.

"I did not mean to frighten you, Mina. I...I'll just go...give you...time.” Tzuyu starts to head out the door when she feels a warm hand on her upper arm. She looks back to see Mina’s sad, sympathetic eyes staring back at her.

"Wait…” Mina takes a deep breath as she forms the words in her head, “C-could you...stay, maybe? Y-you….It must’ve taken a lot to t-tell me that. And honestly, you still scare me less than Victoria and I’d feel...safer knowing you were here...just in c-case.” Mina vocalizes silently. Tzuyu’s expression had become apathetic once more on her way to the door, but found it softening at the girl's confession. Tzuyu eventually nods, “Yeah...I’ll stay.” Mina then drags her back to the bed, setting the pizza box aside. She lies down in bed with Tzuyu sliding in next to her. For the first hour or so, she isn’t able to sleep, all too aware of Tzuyu’s presence next to her. After what felt like an eternity her eyes drift shut and the dark abyss of sleep claims her.

---