Strangely, Ashley never asked me what happened.

Although I was sure she was dying to know. 

But she probably knew, as much as I did, that it was far safer for her to know nothing than the truth.

She trusted me, and that's what mattered.

We didn't venture to the town for about a week after our encounter with the two men. Still, eventually the Yule Celebrations began, and we all visited the town market once more, planning to spend the night there for the festivities.

The small mountain town's market was full of Yule decor, and the old stone houses that lined the streets were covered in fresh wreaths of pine, fir, and holly. The smell of fire and crisp, fresh-cut greenery wafted through the streets, with the cold winter breeze occasionally bringing the intoxicating aroma and warmth of a seasonal baked treat or a hot beverage.

The streets were lined with freshly fallen snow, and people crunched through the snowy drifts as they strolled while celebrating the Yule time.

I spent the day wandering the market with Ashley and Jeremy, enjoying their company as we tried several delicious yule treats and watched performers play lively music and dancers dance in the streets.

However, as the day came to a close, the couple had been invited to dinner at a friend's house, and we had to go our separate ways for a bit.

"You are free to join us, Poppy. I am sure it will be no trouble at all!" Jeremy said, his jolly cheeks bright red from the cold.

"Oh no, I couldn't impose—"

"I would feel much better if you stayed with us, Poppy dear," Ashley said nervously, her mouth pulled into a worried line as she furrowed her brows.

"No, it's fine, I can look after myself for a few hours," I said with a laugh. "I'll stay in the inn, I hear they have their own live performances happening there. I'll stay put there until you guys finish up, alright?"

I felt bad for constantly interrupting their lives and being a deadweight for them to drag along. Their generosity was already more than I could ever repay. 

 Besides, having a bit of time to myself would feel nice, like a bit of normalcy, a small sense of independent control over my life.

Of course, I was scared of the Society finding me again, but part of me wondered if Adam had lived up to his word. I hadn't run into the Society all day, and they hadn't come to Ashley's house after the encounter in the market.

Maybe he had made my wish come true after all. 

Asheley just nodded at my idea, still seeming unsure, before giving my arm a reassuring pat as the two departed to their dinner plans, leaving me alone in front of the inn.

The crunch of the snow under my boot felt louder without them. I slowly turned to the inn's door, swinging it open and being greeted by a sudden burst of warmth, the dull tune I'd heard from outside now ringing loudly in my ears, as people laughed and shouted in the inn's tavern.

I smiled at the jubilation and went over to the bartender, ordering a pint of beer as I watched the couples dance to the lively music.

Something tickled my mind's eye, and I turned to scan the crowd, my heart leaping to my throat as I spotted a familiar face.

Adam.

He stood against the side, his arms crossed, seemingly spotting me before I had him.

His eyes locked with mine, and a smile turned up his face as he pulled himself from the wall, as if to come over to talk to me.

My heart pounded in my chest; whether from fear, excitement, nervousness, or hope, I had no idea.

I couldn't tell what my feelings were toward this man.

I wanted to believe the connection I had with this man was tied to my past, that I only felt anything towards him because he was the last reminder of my home...

And yet nothing else that I thought of back home made my heart pound and my face flush like he did.

Maybe I was the one going crazy.

As he made his way over to me, he was stopped by a woman with long blond hair and a wreath adorning her head. She muttered something as she reached for his hand, as if asking him to dance.

Adam glanced at me for a moment before smiling at her with his dimpled smile and nodding.

A strange feeling churned in my stomach.

Taking his hand, she led him to the dance floor, where they jumped and swung in circles with the other partners.

I felt sick for some reason.

What was wrong with me?

He could do that, dancing with a woman if he wanted to.

What, like I owned him? Was I expecting him to want to dance with me only?

Plus, I needed to feel nothing for him. 

Wasn't I only supposed to fear him? Distrust him? Wasn't that my goal?

Why didn't I?

I finished off my beer, angry at myself, using my drink as an excuse not to watch, and quickly ordered another, downing half of that one as well.

Fortunately, the angry, conflicted thoughts started to loosen as the alcohol relaxed my senses. Not yet drunk, but just tipsy enough not to be bothered with my tumbling emotions.

"Daisy."

His low voice was near my ear, and I quickly turned to face him, his smile lighting his eyes as his joyful gaze searched mine.

"Do you want to dance?"

I just narrowed my eyes at him, thankful that the alcohol had turned my heart numb to his handsome smile and his intoxicating eyes, leaving me only with the reality of the situation.

"Oh? I thought you already had a partner? What happened to her?" I snapped, returning to my drink, ignoring him.

Adam scoffed and leaned on the bar so that he was in my view again.

"What? Are you jealous, Daisy?" He teased, "Felicity is one of the performers at this inn; she taught me these dances for the yule festivals. I asked for her help, since I told her I have someone special I am hoping to impress tonight."

"Oh? Who's that? Her?"

Adam laughed, leaning closer as he watched me finish off my second drink.

"That possessive of me, are we, Daisy? So you didn't even watch? You weren't impressed? "

I slammed my drink onto the wooden bar, turning to him with a frustrated glare.

"Why should I care at all what you do?"

Adam just shrugged, pushing my finished glass to the barkeeper before turning back to me.

He delicately took my hand, and I had half a mind to pull it from him, but he took my fingers and delicately pushed them under the tall neck of his sweater, running them over the bumps of his scars on his neck.

"Well, you left quite the lasting impression on me, Daisy. I was hoping that I might have managed to leave one on you too, but it seems to have... faded."

He pulled my fingers from the warm fabric of his sweater, kissing the tips of them as a broad smile grew on his face once more.

"Would you give me the chance to try and leave another?" He murmured, his words tickling the tips of my fingers.

I might have been too cold outside, but in an instant, the room felt way too hot.

I felt the alcohol whisper in my ear:

Come on, Daisy, dance with him. Why not?

"Okay, pretty boy." I hummed, tilting my head, "You wanted to impress me? Let's see you leave your best impression."

If his dimples could have gotten deeper, in that moment, they did, as a victorious grin spread to his face. 

Pulling me to my feet as he brought me to the floor of the lively song, twirling me as I began to spin and hop to the music.

I couldn't help it, I let out a happy laugh.

I loved dancing; at most festivities back in my village, I danced all night. It was always the thing I enjoyed most about celebrations. As the lively steps returned to my feet and the music swam through my veins, for a moment, I almost felt like I was back home, dancing among my village once more. 

I let myself slip into that delusion as I danced with Adam to the music, refusing to let the pain and sorrow plague me, at least for one song.

He also had a broad smile and laughed along with me as his amateur steps stumbled a few times, but his eyes shone with joy as he danced with me.

I felt my fear slip away and allowed myself to trust him once more,

Or at least, for one song.

All too soon, the jubilant song ended, giving way to a slower one that required couples to hold each other closer. I turned to return to my seat when his grip tightened on mine. His eyes pleaded for me to dance once more.

"Don't tell me," I murmured, giving in easier than I would have liked, but the joy of the last song still lingered in my bones, as I decided to give him another chance, "You practiced this song with that woman, too."

Adam just chuckled as he pulled it to his chest, its familiar warmth making my heart flutter.

"I spent the two years watching you dance all night from the sidelines," he confessed. " I wanted to be prepared to dance with you in my arms as much as possible, now that I have the chance."

I furrowed my brows and blinked up at him, not aware he had known of me for so long.

"You— I didn't know you—"

"I had to stand watch at all festivities until the last person went home for the night. I didn't know you at the time, but for some reason, you always caught my eye. Watching you laugh and dance in the firelight made it worth standing in silence all night. Made it feel like I was doing more than knowingly protecting vampires from myself."

"Watching me all night...That's kind of ..creepy," I mumbled, even though his words also made my heart flutter wildly in my chest.

"Is it?" Adam chuckled, his breath tickling my ear, "I'm sorry, I just meant to say, I knew I would have to practice quite a bit to be worthy of dancing with you. There was always a part of me that had hoped too. I got a bit too excited about finally getting the opportunity. Besides, shouldn't we celebrate that the Society finally turned its attention from this village in its search for you?"

I sighed, tightening my hand around his.

 "I don't know what to think of you, Adam."

"Oh?" He said, his tone amused, "What do you mean by that?"

"You are part of the Society, you are a Beserker, you helped kill my village, you tell me you protect me, then you bring a society man straight up to me. What is your plan with me? Why are you helping me?"

"I want to make your wish come true."

"Why?"

Adam hesitated, and I could hear him swallow against my ear.

"Well, it's a long story--"

"Well, this is a long song," I countered, as I pulled back, my eyes darting between his, with a stubborn scowl on my face as I narrowed my eyes.

He clenched his jaw for a moment, his gaze searching mine before he took a slow breath, his voice low as he drew himself down to my ear.

"When I was a child, my parents dies of a blood related illness, before long, I succommed to it too, and on my death bed I was given a strange medicine by one of the doctors as a last resort. He told me I could take the medicine and live, but I would have to live in seclusion with vampires." Adam paused to chuckle. "I think he said that as a warning, but I was fascinated with vampires as a child, so I agreed. Somehow, the vampire blood medicine healed me, but I became a Berserker. As a result, the Society took me in to train me to be a soldier. One of the tests is guarding the Vampires, since they are the primary targets of Bererkers."

I leaned into him as he told me his story, listening to his low voice mingle with the slow music around us. 

"Although I was never part of your village, the two years I spent there were the best years of my life... and, I know I might not have left the best impression—"

I snorted, remembering all the hot and judgmental words villagers would bring into my parents' shop towards the Reaper, who only ever seemed to get on people's nerves. They always quoted him as saying something strange. 

Now, I wondered if it was because he had never really been part of a community like ours, and he was doing his best to join in, in his own awkward way.

My heart clenched at the thought.

"—But I still loved the people of your village. Your cousin and his family were the closest thing I ever had to a family... and... after I met you, it was the closest I had ever gotten to finding myself falling in love."

My heart leaped to my throat, choking back any response I could think of to his confession.

"That night," he contunied, his voice heavy, "I followed orders and removed my silver jaw I wore to keep myself in control, I don't know what exactly happened, but the next thing I remember was your cousin John throwing the glass jar of silver charms his family had collected over the years at me, when it broke, it woke me from my trance, and I saw what was happening—" 

His voice broke. I could tell he was reliving the night's events, as I often did, his voice beginning to shake. 

"I put my silver jaw on, and tried to save John, but a berserker had already ripped off his leg, and stabbed him through the chest—"

I felt his hand tremble in mine, and I held it tighter, pulling myself closer to him, my own tears falling from my cheeks as I tried to blink away the image of my cousin in that state.

"So I set out to find you, but you were almost gone too... " He shook his head. "But, fortunately, I was able to save you. Then, while you were still unconscious, I found out about the reason the Society asked me to remove my mask in the first place—that they had hoped that Beserkers would help them create an ultimate soldier, one with no conscience that killed relentlessly until their own death. However, Beserkers only ever targeted Vampires. So eventually the Society gave up on them, sent all their Berserkers on to the Vampire Village to wipe their slate clean of the entire experiment."

I choked on my own voice. "Th-That's horrible."

"I don't deserve your trust, Daisy, I know that." Adam continued, his tone remorseful. "Or that I should hold out hope that you might be able to forgive me. But you are the only remaining piece of the happy life I had for myself outside of the Society. Proof that I can be more than the Society's monster. I feel like if I keep you safe, then I won't lose the only sense of home I ever had. "

I pulled away, seeing the concerned look in his eyes as they locked onto mine, as if his confession weighed on him as much as my distrust weighed on me.

"That's why, Daisy. That's why I want nothing more to make sure you are safe, that you are guarded, in any way I can provide."

I sucked in a quick breath, my heart racing the only sensation I could feel as I looked into his sincere gaze, his hand tightening around my waist.

 Would have liked to blame the alcohol, but I was firmly still in my own mind, my drinks only helping me past any restrictions I would have otherwise put up, as I reached my hands around his neck. 

Pulling his head down, I pressed his lips to mine. 

I felt him freeze, a quick smile pulling against my lips for a quick moment before his arms tightened around me.

Pulling me closer to him, he kissed me as if I were the oxygen he needed to breathe, one of his hands running up my back to tangle into my hair, his lips dancing against mine as I felt our hearts beating against each other's chests, as if in a frantic race, following the other's lead on the pace.

Suddenly, clapping surrounded us as the song faded, startling me, and reminding me of where I was, as I swiftly pulled back, certain my face was redder than when I had been out in the cold all day. 

Adam just chuckled, smiling at my flustered face, his own going a few shades pinker, as he straightened up, smiling with a happy twinkle in his eye, and reached for my hand once more, pulling me into a spin as the next song played, filling the tavern with lively music again. 

As I laughed and skipped around Adam, clapping to the music, I had the passing hope that maybe Ashley and Jeremy wouldn't return anytime soon, 

And I might be able to dance with Adam all night. 

That I could make his wish come true.