Chapter Text
It would be rather unusual for a stranger to linger in Hurricane. First of all, it would be strange to the residents, what reason would anyone have to linger in this little town in the middle of nowhere? They had the occasional traveler pass through, maybe stop at a gas station or pick up some fast food before continuing on their merry way, but there was nothing particularly exciting about the small town of Hurricane, Utah, except for the part that would be odd for the stranger.
If this stranger, for some unknown reason, decided to linger in, perhaps even explore, the town, they would find a mansion. Nothing terribly exciting about a mansion, although the fact that there was such a mansion in Hurricane might raise some eyebrows to anyone who gave it a second thought. Truly, it was what happened in and around the mansion that the proverbial stranger would find themselves surprised by. Shocked, even. Stunned. Flabbergasted. Terrified. So on and so forth.
Not that the citizens of the town would bat an eye at what was happening there. They were quite used to the fact that, what a stranger would consider the greatest mysteries and oddest events of the town, revolve around that manor.
The mansion had been the first building to be built in the town, though it would be more accurate to say that the town was built around the mansion. The Afton family had resided in that mansion for nearly a thousand years now, what they saw in the location and why they stayed was likely the only question about them that truly lingered in Hurricane, though it was decided that they must enjoy the peace. Perhaps they were right, or perhaps the Afton family simply delighted in knowing this was one of the few places where humans could know of the existence of vampires and still co-exist peacefully.
Whatever it was, the latter was certainly very convenient. The vampire family was able to pick up blood from the morgue at least once a week, no one batted an eye at the five nocturnal creatures living in a mansion larger than necessary, the family could freely roam about in bat form, and they were treated like royalty.
This special treatment wasn't without basis, however. It is quite easy to imagine how having a near immortal creature with super strength and the ability to fly could be quite useful throughout the town, and the Aftons were more than happy to be helpful in return for the kind treatment they were given.
If the aforementioned stranger has not yet pulled out silver bullets or stakes, either of those actions would result in very negative attention from from the protective townsfolk, they may or may not have the chance to meet the Afton family themselves. It was a family of six, they had a cat a century or so ago, but its life was cut short when the eldest sibling ate it before his siblings were even born. Not that the cat would still be alive today, regardless.
The heads of the family were William and Clara Afton. The stranger might find it odd how William's affinity for the color purple, and how often he wore the color as a result, was considered odder than the fact that he was a supernatural creature.
They would also be puzzled at how Clara was praised for oftentimes making food for the townsfolk rather than met with hostility at how she would use blood as a key ingredient for meals for her family. Not that any of the vampires needed anything other than blood, but mealtime was far more exciting and lasted longer with what would be considered a proper meal. Perhaps the stranger would learn that Clara was one of two vampires in the household that was not born a vampire and was, instead, turned.
Next, the stranger would be introduced to the eldest child, Michael Afton who was around a hundred years old at this point. Though he still lived in the mansion because vampire families stay together until the size of the family outgrows the building, the mansion could still fit one or two more generations without much trouble, this unspoken rule remained in place even when a vampire was married.
This would bring the stranger to the second turned vampire living in the household, Jeremy Fitzgerald. Michael being a vampire made it impossible for them to legally get married and neither one minded the other keeping their last name, so Jeremy Fitzgerald he remained. A town that revered the vampire family didn't take long to adjust to the couple. Thus, vampires eradicated homophobia in the small town.
If they were still alive and willing to stay, they might meet the middle child, Evan Afton. That would be a very strong might. He was only a couple years younger than his brother and far more reclusive, preferring to educate himself in the library or his own room. It was occasionally joked that they were lucky he came out for dinner. Michael had initially bullied Evan, but eventually grew out of it and the two were now quite close.
The one that would be the most eager to greet the stranger would, without a doubt, be the youngest of the family, that being sixteen-year-old Elizabeth Afton. The Aftons were treated like royalty already, but Elizabeth most of all. She was the most sociable of the family and quite good-natured, if not bratty from time to time. She and William would be the greatest threats if this stranger turned out to be a danger to anyone in town, especially anyone in the Afton family manor.
But if the stranger was not a threat, perhaps they'd be invited inside for tea and, if they were polite enough, maybe even told some history of the family and how exactly vampires functioned because all the stories portray it very differently.
Naturally they could eat garlic, Clara would be devastated and have never agreed to become a vampire if she had to stop using it in her cooking. Of course, they could look in mirrors and have photos taken of them, though some vampires had created devices that prevented such a thing and that's probably where the tale came from. A stake to the heart or a silver bullet causing death? A bit more complicated than that, can't reveal all secrets to a stranger though. This would be accompanied by an air of amusement, as if humored by the idea of a human wanting to know how to kill a vampire. Why yes, they were nocturnal. Sleeping in coffins? Not necessarily, many have moved on from the old ways and use normal beds. Most of the residents of the Afton mansion still use coffins simply because they enjoy the comfort of the enclosed space, unless they decided to sleep in bat form that day, at which point they would hang on special ceiling fixtures as old as the building. Turning into bats indeed, it was terribly convenient when one's legs were tired, and they needed to keep going. Aging? Right, yes, vampires age like humans until they reach their early twenties, at which point the process is so slowed that any human could easily die thinking that the vampire would never age. For turned vampires? Same rule. If they had not yet reached their early twenties, they'd age until then. Any older and the aging would be slowed as usual. Super strength? Enhanced senses? Yes, and yes. Indeed, all the children were homeschooled. Well, they hadn't quite finished Elizabeth's schooling yet. No, sunlight didn't quite kill them, but due to their paler skin they got sunburns incredibly, and annoyingly, easily. Not to mention their eyes were better suited for darkness. Why yes, that was why the mansion was so dimly lit, it isn't too difficult to see, is it? William hadn't even visited England in a long time, though he would like to take the kids there one day, why? Oh right, it's easy to forget about the accent. The tea is just because tea is rather lovely.
At one point or another, they would, perhaps, become curious enough to venture to ask about other supernatural creatures. There would be a chuckle as none of them truly knew any other creatures well. The stranger would be told so with a slight wink, before being sent off with some baked good being tested in the kitchen and being sworn the secrecy, wouldn't want the news of vampires leaving town, after all.
But this is all hypothetical, there is simply no reason for any stranger to explore Hurricane or stay long enough to even hear the name Afton, unless in a passing conversation they happen to overhear, which wouldn't be enough to concern anyone.
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Elizabeth adjusted her headband as she shifted back into human form. Terribly convenient that their clothes disappeared and reappeared with their transformations. She proceeded to then knock on, though perhaps assault would be a better word, the door in front of her.
"Ev!" she shouted at the door. When there was no answer, she grumbled in frustration and knocked harder. "EVAN!"
The creaking of an opening coffin and grumbling from that other side of the door. "Wha?"
Elizabeth huffed and threw open the door. "Wake up sleepyhead," she said, before grabbing Evan's pillow out from under his head and wacking him with it repeatedly.
He hissed in irritation, snatching back the pillow as Elizabeth hissed in return. "What are you waking me up for? It's..." Evan glanced at the clock on his wall. "It's not even seven! The sun isn't even down yet!"
"Immortal and the Restless season finale. Fifteen minutes. Now get out of there."
"Make me. I don't even care about the stupid soap opera they're all idiots—" Evan was cut off mid-sentence as Elizabeth picked up his coffin and dumped him out onto the ground.
"Dad made popcorn," she said with a smirk, putting down the coffin as he glared. Although Clara did most of the cooking, there were a few William Afton specialties. Popcorn being the most common.
Evan raised an eyebrow and considered this for a moment as he stood up. "With blood and chocolate?"
"I saw him pull a bag of the AB negative out of the freezer yesterday."
"I'll be out there in ten minutes."
"Fine. If you're not, then I'm dragging you out of your room after eating your popcorn."
Evan rolled his eyes. "As if you could drag me out, are you going to wake up Michael and Jeremy?"
"I could so!" Elizabeth insisted sourly before walking off because she was, in fact, tasked with waking those two up.
She unceremoniously kicked the door a few times once she had reached it. "Hey, dummies! Season finale in less than fifteen minutes, get out here before we eat all the popcorn!" she half-shouted at the door.
"One moment!" Elizabeth only had to wait about thirty seconds before the two burst out the door, both of them far more eager to indulge in the cheesy soap opera than Evan would ever even dream of being.
The next stop was the kitchen, where William had pulled out the scale to make sure that everyone got an even amount of popcorn, knowing that it was the only possible way to prevent complaints of a family member's bowl appearing to have even slightly more of the treasured popcorn than their own bowl. After snagging a couple pieces of popcorn and receiving a stern glare, Elizabeth moved onto the living room, where Clara had already set up the TV for all of them.
The rest of the family filed into the living room, Michael and Jeremy helping William carry in popcorn bowls as the three of them theorized about what would happen in the finale, Evan looking less than pleased to be there, his face only changing from absolutely dismal and filled with dread once he was handed popcorn. As they sat there, if they hadn't had such pale skin, red eyes, and fangs, it would be quite possible for someone to mistake them for a normal, human family.