"You just had to lure him back here, didn't you?"

"Oh please, I was just hungry! I didn't mean to be followed!"

"You know we shouldn't go near the city, it's too dangerous. We need to take him back before he wakes up, he could expose us. If the king finds out about us—"

"Come on, he won't find out if one villager goes missing! Plus, now I have a stable source of food! We'll be fine!"

"We are not keeping him as a blood source for you! You're going to get everyone here killed, Xavier!"

"Boys! Stop it! He's waking up!"

The three voices went silent for a few moments, their bickering coming to a sudden halt. Grian was barely conscious, though he could hear the voices arguing faintly. Someone, or rather, something, poked his face. It felt like a claw with some sort of fuzz or fur that tickled his cheek, though it pulled away quickly. "He seems fine." One voice said gruffly.

"Do you think he's going to hurt us?" A feminine voice asked in a rather scared tone.

"Please. He couldn't hurt us even if he tried."

"Stop it, Xavier. Arrogance will be the downfall of us. We can't take risks like this, interacting with humans. It'll expose us."

"Come on. I can make him forget even meeting us with a snap of my fingers. Here, I'll drag him back now if you really want me to."

"Please do. And hurry, you don't have much time before the sun comes up. And please, just stick to ANIMAL blood."

Someone grabbed the collar of his shirt, lifting Grian off of the ground like a limp doll. He tried to remain perfectly still, whatever had kidnapped him was clearly bloodthirsty, some kind of beast most likely. But then again, why would it speak with such fluency, as if they were human. As if they weren't truly beasts. Though, Grian had been kidnapped to be drained of his blood. So, he wasn't exactly sure who, or what, to believe.

"I'll drop him off at the edge of the forest." Said the main voice in a rather annoyed tone. "Guards won't even know I'm there. I'll be in and out."

"And if he wakes up?" The gruff voice asked.

"I'll just lull him back to sleep with hypnosis, easy. He won't remember a thing. You gotta love vampire powers, huh?"

So he was a vampire. One of the more human-like beasts from what Grian had heard, and yet one of the most deadly creatures to ever roam the earth. Beasts with unmatched power, monsters with the urge to drink the blood of humans. If he hadn't been convinced otherwise, this vampire could have drained Grian of every last drop of blood. Once he was returned back to the village, the architect could head to Scar and tell him all about the monsters hiding out in the forest. The king would have them captured in no time at all.

"It might be best to wake him up." The feminine voice suggested.

"What? Gem, are you crazy? Humans are dangerous!"

"I know, but something about him feels...off." Grian felt something poke his stomach as the female monster spoke, as if they were testing to see if he was really asleep. "Just in case, Xavier can wipe his memories of all of this happening and have him walk back to the village, without any recollection of being attacked..."

"Hm...It might be the smartest move. After all, you did talk to this human before dragging him back here. He could alert someone. We could get found out."

"Fine." The vampire groaned, before dropping Grian from his grasp. He fell to the ground with a thud, back hitting the wooden flooring. He grunted in pain, eyes blinking open slowly. Three figures stood around him, crowding his fallen body.

The first looked the most human, with the main distinctions being his pale skin, deep crimson eyes, and the pointed ears of a demon. His white hair was long, with scars littering his face and body. The second was a girl, very small, with bright orange hair. What made her stand out was her deer-like antlers and ears, wearing dirtied brown overalls and a dark green shirt underneath. The third figure was far from anything resembling a human. He was...Well, he was green and fuzzy. With curled horns almost resembling that of a goat. He was a creature the architect had never heard rumors or whispers of, let alone seen.

The vampire grabbed the collar of Grian's clothes, lifting him off of the ground with ease. He pulled the human close, a ruby glow emanating from his red eyes. Grian felt his body involuntarily jerk up, his limbs turning stiff as his gaze was lost in the swirling red of Xavier's eyes. Something about the strange crimson glow filled his head with fog the edges of his vision turning blurry as he focused solely on the vampire's deep eyes.

Xavier smirked, setting Grian onto his feet. "There we go. Mindlessly under my command."

The words didn't register in the human's mind. He couldn't think. He simply stared into the eyes of his captor. Hypnotized. His senses were cloudy, nothing mattered except for those deep, red eyes. He couldn't look away—he couldn't tear his gaze from those eyes. He couldn't stop staring. It was like his entire world had vanished within seconds. Nothing existed. No sound. Nothing at all. Only the glowing eyes that swirled with red.

"Jeez, he looks almost like a zombie." The furry green creature said, his voice unable to reach Grian. Xavier laughed at that.

"It's because he practically is a zombie, Doc. Us vampires can break a human's mind with just a glance, turning them into an eternal servant." He said, running his fingers along Grian's pale neck. The vampire's touch was warm, his words the only thing that penetrated Grian's clouded mind, which seemed to grow thicker the longer the vampire spoke to him. "I mean, I bet this human wouldn't be too missed. What if we kept him?"

"Didn't we just talk about how this was a bad idea?" Gem sighed, shaking her head.

The vampire's forked tongue licked his lips, his eyes darkening. "I know....But I'm so hungry. I can't keep drinking animal blood. I need HUMAN blood..."

Doc placed a hand on Xavier's shoulder. "Snap out of it before you go into a frenzy. You're one of the most wanted beasts in all of the land. The king will want your head for sure if you end up drinking the blood of his subjects."

Xavier growled, biting his tongue. "I'll snap that king in half if he tries to come close to me. Come on, just a little blood and I'll be happy. I haven't had human blood in years. Please?"

"If you are insisting on putting everyone's life in danger, then you'll need to leave the village. Our numbers are shrinking faster than before. Just yesterday Tango was captured! We can't keep risking our lives!" Doc sternly replied.

"The king won't know a thing, neither will this human..." Xavier said, tugging Grian's sweater slightly to reveal his pale neck. Grian stood in place, his eyes glassy and unfocused. He wasn't able to comprehend anything while under the vampire's spell. All he felt was strangely calm and pleasant, while falling deeper and deeper into the eyes of Xavier.

"Fine." Doc growled, turning away to walk off. "Just make it quick, then get him out of here."

His face shifted into a grin, showing off his sharp fangs. "Now, you're going to let me drink as much blood as I like." The vampire whispered to Grian, who gave a nod while stuck in a mindless trance. Xavier dragged his cool fingers against his flushed skin, his nails very lightly scraping along his pale skin. Grian felt a smile form across his face, something about giving Xavier his blood filled him with an unknown feeling of pleasure.

Suddenly Xavier grabbed a hold of Grian's chin, raising it upwards so he could stare into Grian's eyes. The human gasped at the red glow, sending him spiraling deeper and deeper under the vampire's control. He felt like his legs could give out on him, like he could just float away and let all his worries go.

The vampire stared down at Grian's neck, hunger in his eyes. "This won't hurt a bit..."

~•~

"He's not here."

"Could he be meeting with the king today?"

"I'm not sure," Iskall frowned, crossing their arms with a sigh. "I guess it's possible. But still, Grian usually stops by in the mornings to say hello."

"Maybe he was just in a rush this morning. He'll show up, dear. No need to worry." Stress comforted the Swede, placing a hand on her partner's shoulder.

They nodded slowly, turning to head down the cobble path. "Yeah, you're— Grian?"

Stress turned her head to see the architect walking down the street, his eyes glazed over while a hand rubbed his neck. He looked pale and tired, with a lack of color in his cheeks. His clothes were somewhat dirtied, stains of mud and grass on his trousers and cloak. Iskall immediately rushed up to him, pulling the architect's arm and trying to gain the attention of his friend.

"Grian? Are you okay?" They asked, concern etched onto their face.

The architect was somewhat dazed, zoning out as if he didn't hear the question. Iskall snapped their fingers in front of his face, which seemed to bring Grian back to the moment. His eyes lit up, as if he had awoken from some kind of trance. "Huh—, oh, hi Iskall." He said, his tone laced with exhaustion.

Iskall's brow furrowed, Stress equally as concerned as her partner. "Dear, are you alright? It looks like you barely slept last night. And your clothes—"

"Huh?" Grian looked down, studying the mud and grime all over him. "Ugh, what the—? Where did this come from?"

"You don't know?"

"I...uh..." The architect blinked, rubbing his neck mindlessly. "Huh. I can't remember what happened. Last thing I remember was getting in bed for the night."

"Maybe you were sleepwalking." The brunette suggested with a concerned gaze. "Or you could have fallen. You look rather sick, maybe that could be the cause of your memory problems?"

Iskall kept a frown across their face. "Go and get some rest, Grian." Said the man with the eyepatch, turning away to head back to the bakery.

They walked off, Stress frowning as she turned back to the architect. "I'll check up on you later. Try to sleep, and I'll bring you something to eat later."

Grian nodded, Stress running after her partner. "Hey, Iskall!" She called after them, causing the Swede to pause.

"Oh, sorry dear." They apologized, taking the brunette's hand before the two continued to walk down the path.

"Is everything okay? You seem upset." Stress asked with a saddened frown, causing the Swede to shake their head.

"Nono! I'm fine, I promise. It's just..."

"...just?"

"Grian. I know I might sound crazy but...Maybe a siren lured him somewhere? Or another type of beast with the ability to control people. It seems odd that he doesn't remember anything."

Stress stopped in place, staring at her partner for a few moments before she broke out into laughter. "Oh Iskall," She giggled. "That's ridiculous!"

Iskall blushed with embarrassment. "I-I'm serious! I've seen it happen before!"

"I know dear, but we don't exactly live anywhere near an ocean."

"Then it could have been a banshee! Or maybe—"

They were pulled into a kiss by Stress, causing the Swede's cheeks to turn bright red. She pulled her lips away after a moment, giggling slightly. "Sorry love, but you're just going to worry yourself to death. Grian is home and okay. Besides his clothes, he seems completely fine. It could have just been sleepwalking."

Slowly, Iskall nodded. "Y-yeah. You're right. Sorry." They sighed in defeat, before giving a smile to their partner.

"Let's just head home. I'm sure everything is perfectly fine." Stress assured the Swede, holding their hand as they walked back to the bakery.

Still, Iskall couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.