đșDominic's POV:
Fuck. Finally. A shower. A real damn shower. Hot water beating down on me like it was trying to wash off the disaster of the day. And God, did I need it. Today had been pure mayhem. Like-college isn't enough of a headache already, then add a life-sized bat crash-landing on my back out of nowhere, flapping like a maniac, knocking over half the damn house like some blind chicken on crack. Yeah. That happened.
I towel off, drag myself into the kitchen, and guess what? Bloodsucker's there-standing by the window, doing... hell if I know what. Brooding? Plotting? Trying to be poetic at the moon? Whatever. I yank out the food and drinks and call,
"Vamps! Dinner's ready, so quit lurking in the shadows and come dig in!"
Then I wait. One second. Two. Three. Nothing.
Yup. He's mad. Of course. Why? Because I yelled at him earlier. Like, five minutes ago. Probably sulking now, curled up somewhere, sobbing like a baby bat. Great. "Ok... here we go again," I mutter, tightening the towel around my waist as I head toward the dining room.
He probably sitting there all Soggy-eyed, snotty-nosed, hiccup-crying like a lost puppy in bat form. ...Cute. Way too cute. Not that I'm admitting that out loud. Adorable? Sure. But no one-and I mean no one-needs to know that.
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"Vamps! Vampy-what the fuck are you doing?"
He's still by the window. Didn't even twitch. Weird. The Lean I know? He can't sit still even if you staked him. Dude's like a caffeinated squirrel.
But now? Pitch-dark room. Only the moon spilling in, painting him in silver. And the floor beneath him... wait.
He-he doesn't have a shadow.
Cool. Add that to the Vampire Characteristics Diary I've been mentally keeping. But still-something's off. Too off. It's so quiet I can hear my own heartbeat. Only the wind sneaking in through the window, stirring his golden curls. And those damn curls-they're glowing in the moonlight like spun gold. Creepy-ass shampoo commercial.
But he doesn't move. Doesn't even blink. Just... stares out. And don't even face me properly.
"Hey, dude!" I snap, my voice bouncing way sharper than I intend. "I'm the one who plays 'mysterious asshole' around here. Look at me-or I'll kick you out."
Silence!
Then-
A murmur. A whisper.
"Shlum leshtan melech shli... tenu lei et shpikat dmi..."
The hell? My blood goes cold. That's not his voice. Not sugar-high, not chirpy, not "heehee I'm annoying you, Puppers." No. It's deeper. Darker. Like something crawling out of a church basement in a horror movie.
"...shlum leshtan imat hashmim, asher goram lanpila hagdula bioter man hashmim el hithom kah amuka!..."
What the actual fuck.
"V-Vamp-drop the act now!" My voice cracks, betrays me. "Y-you know you can't scare me! I'll-I'll dip you in garlic sauce if you don't turn around!"
Yeah, real convincing, Dom. Garlic sauce. Smooth.
But God-why does it suddenly feel like he's not Lean anymore?
My throat's dry. My fists itch-not from wanting to punch him (for once), but from something I don't even wanna name.
Because that's not my Vampy. That's not my walking glitter-bomb.
"Lean..." I whisper this time, softer. Like maybe-maybe if I say it gently, he'll snap out of whatever freak-show trance this is.
And then-slow. Like a puppet's head yanked by invisible strings-he tilts his head back, still facing the window. Arms rise, reaching into the silver spill of moonlight like he's offering himself to it. Not a turn, not a flinch. Just a tilt. His curls slide back, glowing.
Finally, he moves.
And God, I almost wish he didn't.
He mumbles in a voice deeper than the damn Mariana Trench-like something dredged up from under the world.
Not his dumb, goofy, "I love boba!" grin. No.
This one's thin. Crooked. A crack in porcelain where something mean leaks out.
My lungs forget how to work.
"You shouldn't interrupt prayers, Puppers. Get out of here. Leave me alone. You don't have much time to escape... go away before we both regret..."
The voice isn't his. It's layered-two tones bleeding together. His, and something older. Hungrier.
I step back without meaning to. My heel knocks the cabinet.
Shit.
"Lean... you're scaring the fuck outta me right now," I mutter, and it tastes bitter, admitting it. Because Dom Quinn doesn't do real fear. Not out loud.
But tonight? Tonight, it's dripping down my spine.
"Nope! Nope! Not happening!!" I bark, but my voice cracks halfway like a teenage choir boy on his first solo. "You're not gonna play dumb horror-movie tricks in my damn house. Whatever this is? Drop it. Dinner's ready!"
God. My throat's so dry it's like sandpaper. I want to laugh it off, act big, but truth? I'm one second away from shitting my pants.
And then it hits me.
The smell. Metallic, raw-like something dead left in the sun. My wolf bristles before I can even think. My skin prickles with goosebumps, hair standing up. Spine buzzing. Instincts screaming one word: Danger.
My ears pop out, tail flicks, claws slide free with a click I didn't mean to make. My chest rumbles with a snarl, low and sharp. A warning. But... who the hell am I warning? Him? Or... whatever's crawling under his skin?
The air thickens. Like breathing syrup.
And then-the whispers.
At first, soft, like radio static. Then louder. Louder. Crawling through the walls, gnawing into my ears, into my bones:
"hu adon hanupalim, ha'achalti lech nishmot, hu adon hachoshech marva et tzmauni hadam... hu adon sheshet hachat'im, ani matzia lech et gufi, harva et ra'aboni bepachad, mimenu anu nizonim..."
The words grind against the room, against my soul.
I slam my hands over my ears, but it's useless-the voice is inside, chewing at my thoughts. My chest tightens, my vision tunnels. My wolf is practically howling Get out, run, RUN! Or ATTACK!
But I can't. It's Lean.
"Vamps..." My voice is a growl, torn between anger and terror. "For the last damn time, drop it-or I swear to God you'll regret it."
Still no movement. No flicker. Just the chanting. And the moonlight painting his skin like he's carved out of frost.
Something in me snaps. My claws scrape the wood floor as I lunge forward.
If he won't stop, I'll make him.
I grab his shoulders, ready to shake him-ready to do something-but the second my claws touch him, it's like I've grabbed a live wire.
My whole body jolts. My wolf yelps inside my head.
Lean's eyes snap open as he finally turns to face me.
Not soft, goofy, starry-eyed Lean. Not even the dramatic "I'm Dracula's grandson" Lean. These eyes... they're bottomless. Glossed over with something ancient, burning faint red-orange, like cold fire. His face is swallowed in shadow, hidden from the moonlight, only his golden curls spilling down to veil him-yet behind that curtain of gold, something hungry lurks. Amber eyes burning straight into my soul.
And the whispers? They stop. Just-gone. Cut like a switch.
Silence.
I don't even realize I'm panting until the sound rattles through the kitchen. My grip trembles. He blinks, slow, like waking from a centuries-long sleep. His lashes flutter, his mouth parts-curling into a cruel smile.
And for one fractured second, all I see is a figure of pure nightmare: six feet of darkness, two half-hidden burning eyes, and ivory fangs gleaming sharp as daggers.
Then he speaks.
"I told you to run. Too late." His voice is cracked, confused... and hungry.
My heart slams against my ribs, a wrecking ball trying to escape.
I yank back like he scorched me. "What the fuck was that? Who the fuck are you?" The words scrape out of me, rough as gravel. I stumble back a few steps. "What the hell just happened, Vamps?!"
He sways on his feet, one hand clutching the counter, blinking at me like I've accused him of murder. His lips part again.
"Toda shtan elohim al haruha..."
"Stop that fucking language-" My claws won't retract. My wolf won't settle. Adrenaline roars in my veins. "You're chanting some-some demon shit in Hebrew or whatever the fuck that is, your eyes went full Poltergeist, and I'm standing here about to piss myself. Don't act like it's nothing! Just-fucking stop!"
He stares. And then-to my horror-he laughs.
Quiet. Nervous. Shaky.
But it echoes, deep, crawling down my spine.
Not goofy Lean's laugh.
The laugh of a predator.
An apex thing, stalking its prey.
And the thing is-he sounds like he means it.
Which is maybe the most terrifying part of all.
My own fangs snap out, wolf rising, snarling inside me-telling me to lunge. To tear into that thing before it finishes waking. But my chest seizes. My claws flex uselessly.
Because it's him. It's my Lean. My stupid, glittery, dramatic vampire. My...my life.
Still, I can't help the warning growl that rips out of me.
"Get your glittery ass back-I...I'll bite you if you don't stop."
But he doesn't move. Doesn't even blink. The wind shifts behind him, tossing his curls, but all I see is the tall shadow before me. Two burning bloody red eyes-half-hidden behind gold. A flash of fangs sharp enough to split bone. And then-
He's there. Inches from me. I don't even see him move. Time just-skips. His head tilts down, but his gaze is locked straight into me, into my heartbeat, into my soul.
Before I can so much as twitch, his hand is around my throat.
The grip is iron, python-tight. My spine arches, my lungs scream, and my toes claw at the ground that's slipping from under me as he lifts me like I weight nothing. My claws dig into his wrist, but the bastard doesn't even flinch. My vision pulses black at the edges.
And then, through that cruel smile, he whispers it again.
"Shlum adon hagehanom, ani metzia lech et hanishma hazu..."
His voice is not Lean's. It's hollow. Ancient. Hungry.
I choke, gasping, and then he throws me. My back slams into the cabinet. Glass shatters-splintering into me. Wood groans. Plates explode across the floor.
Fuck. Mom's gonna kill me.
No. This vampire's gonna kill me first. Way better.
"AGH-Lean, stop-"
But he's already there. Again. Time ripped apart. Looming over me, crouched with that cruel smile splitting his lips, his fangs? Terrifying sharp like needle and white like ivory. He grabs my throat again, pinning me to the ground.
I throw a punch-straight to his jaw. Nothing. Not even a twitch. It's like hitting a steel wall. His fingers only tighten around my throat.
And then his face dips. Slow. Terrifying. Sniffing along my skin-hovering over the fresh cuts where blood runs warm.
I freeze. My heart stutters.
This is it.
Maybe this is how I die.
His cold tongue runs over my wounds, licking up my blood, it felt like a thousand glass shreds, peirceing my wounds. I groan and grasp in agony.
Then he looks at me. Bloody lips.
I won't lie-I'm scared down to my damn toes. My wolf screams at me to fight, to tear his throat out before he tears mine. But still... if I have to die, at least by his hands, it'd be better. He gave me my life back. If he wants to take it, I-I won't fight. But I need to know why.
His face hovers inches above mine, eyes burning red, primal, merciless. My chest rattles, air clawing through my crushed throat, but I force the word out anyway:
"Why..."
It tore past my busted lips, a broken gasp-wet with spit, blood, and tears.
And then... something shifts.
The glow dies. The red drains away. What stares back isn't a monster but those same wide, brown Bambi eyes-the ones that begged me for boba, the ones that made my chest ache with something I never asked for.
He freezes. Terrified. Like he's just woken from a nightmare. His grip slackens and suddenly I can breathe again.
He stumbles back, palms flying to his face. His whole body trembles, shudders, hiccuping through sobs. His claws dig into his wrists like he wants to rip himself apart.
"No... no, what have I done? I-I can't-" His voice cracks. That same stupid, annoying, beautiful voice I'd kill to hear a thousand more times.
"Vamps? Is... is it you?" I rasp, dragging myself upright even as pain shrieks through every bone.
But he just shakes his head, wild-eyed. "No. Don't-don't come near me! I'll kill you. I...I'm...I'm a monster!"
And then-he's gone. His body snaps in on itself, bones folding, wings unfurling. In one frantic beat he's a bat again, crashing through the window into the night.
"Lean!" My shout tears my throat raw. Pain flares white-hot through my ribs. "Fuck-wait! Stop-"
But it's too late.
The room is wrecked. My body broken. And he's gone.
I don't know what the hell just happened. But I know one thing-
I have to find him.
Because if I don't...
he'll destroy someone else.
Or worse-
he'll destroy himself.
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Translation to the Chants lean did.
1. "Shlum leshtan melech shli... tenu lei et shpikat dmi....shlum leshtan imat hashmim, asher goram lanpila hagdula bioter man hashmim el hithom kah amuka!..."
-hail the satan the king of me! quinch the thrist of blood of me, hail the satan the terror of sky, who makes the greatest fall from heaven to the abyss so deep!
2. "hu adon hanupalim, ha'achalti lech nishmot, hu adon hachoshech marva et tzmauni hadam... hu adon sheshet hachat'im, ani matzia lech et gufi, harva et ra'aboni bepachad, mimenu anu nizonim..."
-"He is the lord of the fallen,
who has eaten souls.
He is the lord of darkness,
quenching my thirst with blood...
He is the lord of the six sins,
I offer him my body.
He multiplies my hunger with fear,
from him we are nourished..."
3. "Toda shtan elohim al haruha..."
- Thank you Satan for this food
4. "Shlum adon hagehanom, ani metzia lech et hanishma hazu..."
- Hail the lord of Hell, I offer thee this soul.