#dwelling in the night

[oddballwriter]

Dwelling in the Night, Part Four: Just Know I'm Not the Sinister Type

Series Masterlist

Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3

Summary: Life, and un-life, goes on. Stevan and you get closer, despite your better judgment, and actually reach the level of friends. It's actually quite nice when you don't think about everything that might come when time keeps going on, leaving only one of you untouched. Meanwhile, an eventful night of hunting happens for you. One with what you thought was a close call that involved you not killing someone tonight out of sympathy. But unfortunately, for you, you don't have as keen of eyes as you think you do.  

Warnings: Reader is a vampire, so there's the usual vampire stuff like drinking blood and biting. Reader gets a little bit edgy and emo, not going to lie to you, because I gave them some backstory to their vampirism. Reader actually attacks someone, but doesn't kill them. It's revealed that reader can to mind control and memory altering as a vampire power however, it is used on someone else. So if you have issues with mind control stuff be aware of that. Cliffhanger ending. 

Author’s Snip: Vampire Y/N lover come and get your juice. *places a blood bag on the table* Wow! I'm actually doing something that advances the plot instead of whatever part 3 was. But yeah. We may be having plots merging 👀.

I’ll shut up now. Enjoy! And don’t be afraid to request.

Word Count: 1974

It had been a while since the meat incident. About a month or two. The boys, although a bit creeped out by the idea of some stranger breaking into their place and just eating the raw meat in their fridge, seemed to let it go.

You also let it slip by, opting to pretend to yourself that you never did that in the first place. Both too ashamed about it, even though you weren't actually caught, and also because of the fact that Moon Knight technically broke into your place through your open window making you think that he saw you crawl in through Steven's window and back.

To you, what Steven didn't know wouldn't hurt him. It was only one time and it was out of desperation to satisfy the hunger that exists inside you before it took its hold of you and you made an even bigger mess of things.

Over these past few months, you and Steven grew closer. You would actually spend time in each other's flats from time to time. In his, you would spend time talking about various things like some literature since he had an abundance of books, but one thing you loved was when he'd tell you everything there is to know about Egypt and all of its history and mythos. It was amusing to you, hearing him ramble on and on about... well... everything. It's not like you knew anything about the place. You may be old but you aren't ancient Egypt old so hearing all of this from one person was nice. But then again maybe it was because Steven was the only thing close to a friend you have here, other than Moon Knight when you bump into him in the alleys.

Steven liked your flat too, surprisingly. So far you had spun the story that you were a person who liked to collect vintage things and also had a small interest in the macabre, as a means to explain the coffin you had 'as a coffee table'.

In truth, your coffin coffee table that you 'got from a funeral home somewhere' was actually yours and you were meant to be sealed in it, in your original home. But you came back just before they could nail it shut back in your family mausoleum. Your collection of vintage was always yours and has never once been in a thrift or antique store. Some were things from when you were alive. Most others were things you collected through the years afterward. The bed frame and mattress, plates, cups, utensils, and other normal things that you've never actually used but bought so that in case someone comes to your flat they wouldn't find it odd and start to question things, which might lead to your discovery.

Steven didn't need to know that though. Instead, he just oggled at them all and occasionally asked about a few things. There was one item that he just had to ask about though.

"Who's this?" he questioned, pointing at a photo. It was of you back when you were alive. It was old, barely still together, and in grainy black and white with the tint of age changing the white. You went for the easy answer, "It's a great relative all the way back in the day.".

"They look an awful lot like you, don't they?" Steven comments with a little smile. "Yeah. I get that a lot." you respond, "It happens. Sometimes decedents look a lot like the older generations." you comment, to which Steven nods, taking the lie.

But you can only lie so much.

"What exactly brings you here? If you don't mind me asking." Steven questions.

I was starting to be found out and the hunters showed up trying to hunt me, so I needed to flee.

"I just wanted to move somewhere new. Get a fresh start." you simply answered.

"Do you have family here?" is what Steven asks next.

It wouldn't really matter. The family tree's grown on without you. Any family you used to have are all dead now, leaving descendants that either remember you as a dearly departed that was taken too soon or have never even heard of you.

"No." you answer simply, again.

Steven gives you a sympathetic glance at that answer. "That's a bit lonely, isn't it? Being here all by yourself." Steven comments.

"I have you." is what you say, not thinking before saying it. Steven blushes a bit at the answer with a shocked look crossing is soft eyes for a moment before smiling. "Well, I'm glad that I can be someone to keep you company." he says.

"Yeah," you mutter smiling back. But there's a little bit of pain plucking at your heartstrings deep down.

You've never really had a friend before, at least not after you came back from the dead. You had a few when living. You had a lot of things that you couldn't come back for after returning. Your way of 'life' was now just staying out of sight or under the radar. Taking what you could and fleeing when you were caught. Learning how to control any weird powers and abilities you gained all by yourself.

You made acquaintance over these years in the few places you've been, but you never really made bonds since it was a matter of time till you needed to leave again. That, and also to save the sight of watching time take its course on them while you stayed frozen and outside of its reach like always.

In all honesty, you tried to push Steven away or keep him at the same distance as you did everyone else, but somehow he just managed to squeeze right in by being your kindly, and dorky, neighbor. You tried to shake off the feeling of dread for the day you may need to leave or see time reach him too. For now, he's just Steven.

🩸🩸🩸

Another night of hunting and another night of putting on the clothes that helped you blend in with the shadows of the alleys that you stalked. Sure it was dirty to kill off criminals but it had its benefits to society if you looked at it from a certain angle, and also because bloody banks are more of a hassle than this.

You locked on a target. A mugger that's been making the rounds around this alley path that some would use as a shortcut to get places quicker. But during the night it was dangerous. It had a lot of pockets from the old infrastructure that criminals could hide in waiting to ponce on someone passing by. But that could also spin their own doom when it came to you hunting them. This guy was using the technique too. Using a spot made for dumping trash and scraps for the collectors in the morning. It was big enough for the both of you.

He didn't see you in the shadows, watching him and his movements from your spot. You both listened for the sound of anyone coming, both waiting for the moment to strike. You hear heels clacking on the stone floor, coming closer, and it seems like he hears them too as he settles himself into place. You don't feel like witnessing a poor woman be ambushed and so you go for the shot anyway. You already know what he's planning on doing so might as well do it like he still did it.

You grab the back of his shirt and pull him towards you. But he instinctively elbows you causing you to bite his arm instead of his neck. He recoils, you lunge, and you both scuffle down onto the ground. He's actually pretty strong, but you've wrestled with some criminals before and at some point they end up losing.

But in the scuffle, he grabs something from the ground close to the wall and hits you across the face with it. And it hurts. It burns. You coil back and hold your face, emit something between a scream, growl, and hiss. A noise that you don't make too often. You feel bits of wood and splinters on the stinging skin. He's hit you with a piece of spare plywood that was left to be collected.

Great. Out of all of the things he could have hit you with, it's the one thing that actually hurts.

You come back to your senses when you see him try to run. But you can't let him go. He's most likely seen your face since you don't wear a mask, if he gets away he can identify you to someone, and that spells out trouble for you. Even if it seems a bit twisted, you can't let that happen, no matter the cost. So you get up and give chase.

The mugger runs in the direction of more alleys instead of the streets in a desperate means to just get away from you and not thinking properly out of fear. This place would be a maze to him, but not to you. You can smell the blood from your bite on his arm, drawing a straightforward path right to him. You hear him calling out for help as he runs. You can tell he's scared, it makes you feel guilty for what you'd need to do when you caught him but it was the only way in your eyes.

Or was there.

Right.

You have some of his blood, you have a little influence over him. If you could just catch up with him, you could maybe keep him from identifying you to the police or someone without killing him.

You manage to find him and now tail him. You want to catch up to him but he's at a distance advantage and you're close to the end of the alleyways, he could make it out before you get to him. It's now or never.

You focus on his blood in your mouth and shout "Stop!" at him, and he does. You want to sign in relief but you could lose your already weak hold. You quickly walk towards him and face him, looking him in the eyes. He looks panicked by the fact that he can't move anything. You ignore it and focus again as you look deep into his eyes, then feel the connection be made for your influence.

You even out your voice, "You don't remember my face." you say.

"You don't remember being chased by anyone." you add.

It always feels a bit jarring when the people you do this with just calm down and enter in the trance-like state they get into when you do this. His eyes and muscles relax entirely, he even drops the plywood he's still holding that you didn't notice before.

"You were... just taking the shortcut through the alley. You don't remember getting bitten by anyone or anything either." you add on as a means to cover up any tracks that would be left in his memory.

You keep the connection as you back away into the shadows, being concealed again and unseen by him and anyone else, and then cut it loose.

The man snaps out of it, looking around confused, most likely confused how he got here and then being shocked at the injury on his arm. He holds the wound as he walks away and out of the alley.

You relax, having managed to nail the mercy even though you had so little to use. "Holy shit." you mutter as you slip down a hatch to the city sewers below to head home.

🩸

"Holy shit..." an unseen man mutters to himself processing the scene he just saw right before him.

And here he thought that his jokes about you were just jokes to mess with the others.

[ryllen]

sebek passing down old water bottle to his child

[pinkificationn]

It's been at least a year n I'm done hibernating so I'm dusting my tumblr off to post these works I made weeks ago b4 ruin decides to drop itself onto this world (teehee giggles)

[takenbtwind]

“You mean, like, a sudden rainstorm forces them together beneath a canopy, they look into each other’s eyes, and realize they were made for each other.”

[gerblinbones]

yo what happened to your arm

[lunarharp]

I wish things were easy

[cellarkitty]

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ʀᴏᴛᴛɪɴɢ ᴀɴɢᴇʟ ᴋɪᴛᴛᴇɴ

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ᵗʰʳᵒʷ ᵐᵉ ⁱⁿ ᵗʰᵉ ʳⁱᵛᵉʳ

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ʰᵒˡᵈ ᵐʸ ʰᵉᵃᵈ ᵘⁿᵈᵉʳ ᵗʰᵉ ʷᵃᵗᵉʳ

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ˢᵗʳⁱᵖ ᵐᵉ ᵒᶠ ᵃˡˡ ᵐʸ ˢⁱⁿˢ

[kindahoping4forever]

Ashton with fans @ The Hotel Cafe - 25 June 2024

[specialagentartemis]

Sarah Sisko’s whole deal is so horrifying and messed up and DS9 just kinda. Glosses over it

[oddballwriter]

Dwelling in the Night, Part Seven: Special Delivery

Series Masterlist

Summary: Steven is caught up about the night that The Silhouette talked to him, thinking he was Marc, MoonKnight, but they sounded so much like his friend and neighbor YN. Steven spends nights and days thinking about it denying clear signs till Jake comes up and decides to let Steven in on a little secret.  

Warnings: Mentions of vampire-themed things such as (implied) consumption of blood and blood bags. The reader is the vampire. Steven had a bit of a moment where he was in denial. Steven and Jake argue and bicker throughout a mass majority of this chapter but what's new? There's talk about reader being in danger of being hunted down by vampire/monster hunters.

Author’s Snip: Here we go! Part seven baby! And I got notes for eight done and working on nine. I hope you guys are liking this because the end is NOT in sight. Lol

I’ll shut up now. Enjoy! And don’t be afraid to request.

Word Count: 2244

It's been eating at Steven for days now and he couldn't get it out of his mind.

He saw you enter the alleyways, he knows he did. He could recognize you easily. But next thing he knows he comes across the Silhouette and they actually talk to him, and they sounded like you. But it couldn't have been you. It just couldn't. Steven refused to believe such a thing.

He and the rest of the system know what the Silhouette is and they don't really hide it either with how they talked about what they do and why even if they themself never actually confirmed it, and you just couldn't be that. You couldn't possibly be a vampire.

Vampires were bloody-thirsty beings that went out looking for someone or something to get their meals from. And that just wasn't you. You could be such a thing. You never loomed over him. Never looked like you had some plan in your eyes.

But then again you never go out in the day, apparently sleeping due to... something regarding your lifestyle or work. Did you ever actually say what you did that would cause that? Your strict liquid diet. Your collection of antiques. The closed curtains in the day. Your interesting decor. The photo of who you say is your relative that you look exactly like through some weird genetic lottery.

No. No. That's ridiculous. This is ridiculous. You aren't a blood-sucking vampire. You were too ni-

"Jeez, what's got you in a twist, huh Steven?" Jake intrudes in the middle of Steven's train if thought. "Nothing. It's nothing." Steven claims to his co-alter. "It doesn't seem like nothing I can feel you thinking yourself into knots in here." Jake says, "Mind telling me what that is, amigo?" Jake asks again.

Steven sighs with a bit of a groan at the tail end of it, "Something strange happened a few nights back when I was doing the rounds around the block." Steven admitted, but Jake's silence was a tell that Jake wanted him to be more specific. "I saw Y/N leaving into the alleys. I thought that was odd so I followed them a bit because that's the alleyway and I wanted to make sure nothing happened to them. But I lost them at some point and when I did, that Silhouette person showed up and talked to me, I think they thought I was Marc." Steven explained further. "And?" Jake questioned. "It's stupid. I'm just getting in my own mind." Steven claimed again. "What was so weird about it, Steven?" Jake prods. "They sounded like them." Steven finally confesses.

"You think they're the same person?" Jake asks.

"I didn't say that." Steven idly corrects.

"So you're all caught up on the fact that they sound alike but you also don't think that they're the same person?" Jake inquires with a tone that holds skepticism towards Steven's reasonings. "I don't know..." Steven mutters before switching back to being more confident in his idea, "No. No. They aren't the same person. They just can't be." Steven proclaims. "Why not?" Jake counters.

"Because they just can't be, Jake! I have a hard time believing that they could ever be such a thing." Steven exclaims. "Vampires are unsettling and just want to drink blood and use trickery and other things to get it. I've never felt that way with them. I've never felt in danger around them, if anything I worry about them being in danger or getting hurt." Steven explains. "So your reasoning is that they're too pretty and polite to be a vampire?" Jake remarks.

"What the bloody hell are you trying to get at here, Jake?" Steven snaps back.

Jake's silent for a moment, but only a short moment before speaking again. "Give me the body." he requests, "I have something to show you.".

🩸🩸🩸

It was a short track, about ten minutes, down to a rentable garage that the system knew was where Jake kept all his things for his work like his cars and equipment. Marc and Steven never went or looked through to see it because it didn't have much for them. But Jake has asked Steven to stay co-fronting as Jake made the walk.

"What exactly do you want to show me?" Steven asks from the reflection in a building window as Jake waits d for the crossing light the change, "You'll see." Jake says casually. "I don't like the ambiance of this, mate." Steven comments as he stands in the glass, "I'm not a fan of surprises, especially when it's something from you." he adds.

"It's not a surprise, Steven. I just don't have good words to explain it, so the best action is to just show you." Jake explains. "Once this is all done you'll understand and know." Jake claims before continuing to walk. "I don't like how you're beating around the bush, you know that?" Steven calls out to him before moving along with him.

Soon enough, the two make it to the garage. Everything was still in place. The same cars and sets of various things say for a mini fridge on a table and a cooler set below the table Steven doesn't remember being there before. He takes a moment to think about it but settles on the idea that maybe he and Marc have just never noticed them before. But he realizes that whatever there is to see involves these things when Jake saunters towards the table. Casually opening the freezer part, taking out two ice packs, and placing one in the bottom of the cooler.

"Jake," Steven asserts, "What could you possibly have in store for you to need a cooler and bloody mini-fridge in your gara-" Steven was stunned out of finishing his sentence when Jake opened the actual fridge part to reveal blood bags, and a lot of them packed inside.

"What the hell!" Steven exclaims in horror at the display, having such a strong reaction that the body staggers slightly even though he isn't entirely fronting. Jake finds their footing and starts reaching into the fridge to grab one but Steven takes control of the body and yanks their hand back. "Jake, what in the bloo- what in the fuck is wrong with you?" Steven yells looking towards the window of one of the cars, seeing Jake looking back at him.

"It's a long story. I'll explain when everything is done." Jake says. "No! No! Absolutely not." Steven interjects, "You are explaining everything to me right now. Do you understand me?" Steven demands. Jake shrugs "Alright.", "But close the fridge door, the blood needs to stay cool or else it goes bad." he adds.

Steven shuts his eyes to avoid seeing the bags when he closes the door before looking back to Jake, "Spill." he demands again.

"Those are for Y/N. I found out that they were not only a vampire, but that they were that Silhouette person. Both because they sound the fucking same and because I accidentally saw them chase someone down. They didn't kill them but they did do some weird power thing so that they don't remember what happened and let the person go. I didn't mean to spy on them that time. I was just scouting around and happened to witness that without them seeing me." Jake started explaining. "But, I was worried about our safety so I... might have paid them a visit while they were sleeping." he then details, hesitating to admit that he broke into your flat. Steven was about the tear him a new one but Jake stopped him with a "Let me finish.". "I just looked around. I found them in the coffin in their living room because of course I did. They were... sleep? Or something. Whatever happens to vampires when it's daylight, I don't know." Jake shrugged. "Again. I did nothing to anything or to them, I just saw what I needed to see and left." he clarifies.

"After that I caught them walking the alleyways again and, while disguised, told them that I knew who they were and that all I wanted was for them to keep their fangs off you and technically Marc. And they did, they said they weren't planning on it anyways-" Jake picks back up but Steven comes into the talk. "You told them about us?" Steven questions. "I didn't say that." Jake corrects, "I told them to not hurt you and 'Moonknight', so technically Marc. They know nothing about this." Jake clears up as he points between his place in the reflection and where Steven is.

"And you didn't tell me when you learned all this why?" Steven asks, upset at being left out of the loop, "I mean- I feel like I'm experiencing all the same rubbish with Marc all over again." Steven rambles in disappointment. "I had to make sure we were safe or in danger before doing anything. I was doing my job being part of this system." Jake defends. "I get that you're mad but I was doing this to keep us safe. I would have let you figure it out but you were driving yourself nuts and I didn't know how to explain it to you without you actually losing it." Jake apologizes. "You telling me would have been nice." Steven remarks.

"You didn't even want to believe vampires existed at first. How was I meant to break the news to you that your little crush was a vampire? Plus I didn't know if they were aiming to eat from you because you're so trusting of them or not until recently." Jake rants.

Steven rubs his temples to ease his head as he digests all this information. "Does Marc know?" Steven questions in a groan. "Jake shakes his head, "As far as I know, no. I don't even think he knows that they quit their work in the alleyways since you were out then." Jake answers.

"Why did they stop?" Steven asks himself. "Listen, I just started doing this to see if maybe they would take it, and they have been. We have a thing set up where I deliver the blood bags to them and they tell me when they need more. I don't really know why they're quitting." Jake claims. "They said something about 'unwanted attention' back when they thought I was Marc that night. Plus he hardly knows YN so we might as well wait till he does and then we explain it to him." Steven mentions.

Jake does a well-that-explains-it gesture but Steven stays in the thought. "Maybe they really are in trouble. Lots of trouble." Steven worries.

"Listen, hermano. We can worry about all that later. But right now I think we should finish the delivery. Yeah?" Jake gestures to the mini-fridge. "I can finish it for you if you want. You seemed kinda disturbed by the-" Jake offers but Steven buds in, "No, I can do it." he says.

Jake tells Steven how to pack the blood bags into the cooler properly and make the walk back to the flats.

🩸🩸🩸

Steven spends a moment staring at your flat's front door. He's made the ten-minute walk back from the garage, past the front desk, and up the elevator, all he had to do was knock. But he felt oddly nervous and hesitant. Like, some part of him still didn't want to believe that he was actually delivering blood bags for you to feed off of because you're really a vampire.

"Are you sure they're awake?" Steven whispers. "It's about five-forty or so and it's getting dark out now. I'm sure they're up. They might actually be waiting." Jake answers, "Have your keys ready to head into our flat so they don't see us." Jake mentions, Steven following the instruction and unlocking the door to his flat so he could pull it off.

With a deep breath, he places the cooler at the door, does the knocking rhythm that Jake taught him, and slips into his flat without making too much sound.

Steven stands with his ear pressed to the door, hearing what sounds like your door open, then promptly close. He waits a moment before opening the door again and peaking out into the hall and looking at your flat. The cooler is gone.

Upon this sight, Steven pulls back into his flat and turns towards the rest of it but just stays standing there, looking towards the ground as he tries to process this now.

You are a vampire... that's... okay. That's perfectly fine. That's just how you are. That's great to have in mind. Now everything odd about you has an explanation and he can make everything vampire-friendly for you when you come over and he knows to overlook everything at your place. He now knows your secret. Without your knowing.

"Should I tell them that I know?" Steven ponders to Jake. "Well, you'll have to explain how and that would snowball into you having to explain everything about us." Jake remarks, "And I think we should at least have Marc in on it." Jake sarcastically suggests.

"Tell me what?" Marc's voice comes in as if it were on cue. Steven and Jake let out stressed groans before Jake chimes in "Steven, go sit down and get the mirrors.".

Turning his attention to Marc he tiredly says "Marc, bare with us here, but it's a long and wild story.".

[pidgefudge]

anything is possible if you block out the real world and retreat into the expansive catalog of elaborate fantasies you've developed over the years as a coping mechanism

[strechanadi]

Teaching about all the artists dying of pneumonia while having pneumonia yourself, what a way to go!

Live while it lasts.

[turnonyrlovelight]

hear me out. horrible fucked up twisted fnaf au where it's the movie but it's just starring the blues brothers

the jake behind the slaughter does not know anything about the murders, he just got springlocked and he's been stuck Like That since the 80s.

[purble-sarah]

apparently all my instagram mutuals think im cool, a lot of irl colleagues from uni think im cool, and my highschool sibling's friends think im cool. i however do not feel cool

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

Girls Night

YA contemporary

four unlikely girls are thrown together and decide start a fight club at their girls school, and quickly become friends

but things start to get out of control, putting their friendships and safety at risk, and they must decide whether to keep hold of the club or each other

4 POVs, all sapphic, a deaf MC

[queerstudiesnatural]

i think my brain should be studied i'm being fr