Chapter Text
The bitter wind burns Avid’s cheek. He’s getting tired the more he runs. His body is cold and clammy, his skin is pale, a morbid part of him compares it to a corpse. He stops and wonders for only a moment if this is how she felt before he–
No, no, that doesn’t matter right now.
His fatigue is growing, which is bad considering the vampire isn’t slowing down, still quick on his tail. This is just his luck. He had come to Oakhurst for revenge, to root out its evil before it could claim another victim.
And here he was about to fall to the very evil he fought.
And he’s… afraid, he’ll admit to that. At least the garlic is still in his system; he won’t have to worry about being turned into… one of those things. But nothing is stopping them from killing him instead. He’s weak, injured, and the adrenaline is running out. It’s only a matter of time; he’s not getting away for much longer.
What if they wait? Lock him up and wait for the garlic to be gone–sink their teeth into his neck and–
Focus Avid, focus. He can do this. He needs to be strong… even if he’s afraid right now. It’s–what she would’ve wanted.
“Oh Avid~” the creature’s voice calls out, quickly snapping him out of his thoughts, “You can’t outrun me forever you know, I don’t know why you’re trying.”
He ducks into a bush, legs too tired to run. He tries to hold his breath but fails, his body in desperate need of oxygen. He trembles a bit, and he doesn’t know whether it's the cold, or the fear, or the blood loss, but his hands are shaking, and his skin is white. And he doesn’t cry. He doesn’t cry because he is a big strong vampire hunter and he–
“Found you.”
Avid doesn’t react quick enough as he’s yanked upward, and briskly pinned against a tree. He struggles in the vampire’s grip, desperately trying to squirm free, but the creature is too strong.
“No no no no no,” Avid tries to kick and bite, but the vampire presses its body further against him and holds him still and steady. It tilts its head eerily, red eyes reflecting off the moonlight, the only part of it easily visible in the darkness. “I won’t let you win! I can’t–”
“Wow this is almost pathetic,” the vampire says, tone eerily casual, “Here you go around being like ‘oh I’m a big scary vampire hunter’ and all it really took was like–getting you alone. Clawing you up a bit. Chasing you around for a while. I’m disappointed to be entirely honest, I expected this to be a lot more fun!” the creature hums. “Oh well, ‘suppose humans are full of disappointments.”
Avid continues to struggle but is still unable to move. He looks for a way out, for anything he can use.
He finds nothing.
“I–I have garlic in my system! You can’t turn me, you’d die so–”
And Scott just–laughs at that, causing him to fall silent. Cold, slow, and malicious. “Avid,” the vampire makes a point to put weight on his wound, making him wince, “Who ever said anything about turning you? You think I want to spend an eternity with you? No! That sounds miserable! I don’t even want to be in a room with you for 5 minutes, nevermind a thousand years.”
Something about the words send a chill down his spine.
Scott continues, “No Avid, I’m not going to turn you, I’m going to kill you, slowly and painfully in fact! So Avid, tell me,” clawed fingers shift to hover over his right arm, “–which limb do you want to lose first?”
Avid feels his body shake; the fear clouds his mind as his breath becomes forced.
“Hm, how about we start nice and simple with a few fingers?” Avid tries to struggle as Scott shifts positions, hovering a claw over his middle and pointer fingers. “You know, those crossbow bolts have been very annoying. Feels fitting these should go first.”
Avid desperately tries to pull away, but the vampire is stronger.
“N-No! You can’t–Scott!” Tears start to drip down his face, landing softly on Scott’s lapel, “I–”
Scott lets out a dark chuckle, it drips with malice, “You what? What are you gonna do about it? I’ll tell you what, I’ll give you ten seconds.”
Avid can’t move. This can’t be it, he can’t go out like this–
“10.”
–he has so much more to do. So many people counting on him. What’s going to happen to the town if he–
“9.”
–dies? Their numbers are already low, no one even believed in vampires until he–
“8.”
–arrived. He can’t let it end like this. They need him. Even if he’s nothing compared to her, he’s still the best they have and–
“7.”
–if he dies here, how many people go with him? How many people could he have saved if he wasn’t–
“6.”
–afraid. He’s afraid right now. Afraid of how powerless he is. Of what it will feel like when he’s slowly and painfully ripped limb from–
“5.”
–limb. He’s about to be tortured to death. That’s a good reason to be scared right? Even if he’s a big strong–
“4.”
–monster hunter. Everyone is afraid sometimes. He just has to–
“3.”
–be strong. Oh god, he’s running out of time, okay, okay Avid think. He needs something–anything he hasn’t thought of–
“2.”
–okay he’s not coming up with a lot. This is it. This is how he dies. He’s never going to see Drift or Martin again.
He won’t be able to protect them anymore.
“1.”
He doesn’t want to die. He doesn’t want to die.
He doesn’t want to die.
“Alrighty, time’s up! Ready to–”
Beneath the fear something awakens under the light of the moon. Something that has laid dormant for a generation, waiting just below the surface to be called upon.
A cold primal hunger. A desire to survive.
Avid feels his skin start to stretch and shift, long silver hairs beginning to emerge as his body begins to morph and change. His teeth sharpen. His eyes glow bright red to match Scott’s own. His nails grow into large, sharp claws.
For once Scott looks taken off guard, his scarlet eyes widening, if only a fraction. However, after only a second, his expression shifts into a cold, wide smile.
“Oh, this just got a lot more interesting.”
Avid barely hears him, his mind overcome with an ancient bestial rage, his thoughts a haze that can’t quite be brought into focus.
He lunges at the vampire, teeth digging into the flesh of its arm. It drops him and staggers back.
“Ow! That hurt!”
Avid doesn’t process the words. He no longer feels the pain, no longer feels the blood gushing out of his side.
He no longer feels the way his body starts to weaken, slowly but surely.
He faintly recalls the vampire sighing, purple blood spraying out of its crushed folded up arm, pooling on the grass. The limb hangs off of its elbow like a limp noodle, bone jutting out at unnatural angles.
The vampire grits its teeth and winces.
“Okay, I’m getting tired of this actually,” the vampire suddenly appears behind him, its claws dig into his back as he lets out a pained howl. “But I think my plans have changed for you, given this… development.”
Avid lunges at the vampire, but it's too fast. Even with his newfound transformation he’s tired from the blood loss.
His movements finally start to slow. He collapses into the wet grass, soil further dirtying his bloodied fur.
“There we go, all tired out now?”
Avid responds only with a low growl.
“Good, good… now what to do with you…”
Avid’s breath becomes labored. He tries to claw his way forward but his muscles are shaky and weak.
“Y’know, never actually seen a werewolf before, really ironic who it ended up being,” the vampire puts a hand on its chin, humming slightly, “–Hm, can’t just kill you now, that would be boring.”
In his vague perception of reality, Avid watches the vampire pause for only a moment, before a smile slowly appears that sets his instincts on edge.
“Maybe I will keep you around for a bit, make you come to terms with this little development.” The vampire takes a step closer; he’s unable to scramble back. “Besides, Shelby said she was looking for a werewolf. You could make a very nice housewarming gift!”
He lets out a whimper, weakly trying to pull himself away, only to barely move. His mind feels fuzzy. A loud high pitched static picks up in his ears. He feels… off.
He barely registers the vampire stepping closer, a dark smirk on its face, "Let’s get you back to the castle, shall we?”
He feels his body being gently lifted.
Avid doesn’t notice when he slips into darkness.