It was a dreadful night... Not a single spot can be found without the red stain all around with corpses lying on the ground.

Broken swords and shields are scattered all around. Arrows pierced on the corpses' heads, everything is nothing like a nightmare eighteen years ago.

But what's more terrifying is that this war was not between humans.

They go beyond that.

They have glowing red eyes, pale white skin, long sharp fangs so is their nails.

They are called... Vampires.

And all of these soldiers are heading to only one direction, and that is towards the throne of the castle.

In this throne lies the ruler of the other side, but no one would dare to believe, that the ruler of the other kingdom, is none other than a woman.

She initiated the war. She's in heat of rage, for revenge. She's strong and many were terrified by her sharp gazes.

But the so-called "woman-ruler" is now kneeling on the ground not for long. Blood was dripping on her arms towards her hands.

She held the person close to her with trembling hands. Slowly, she hugged him tight. And it seems like everything around her is silent.

Even the battle goes on, it seems like the noise is deafening soon as she witnessed how this person fell on her arms.

"The queen is defenseless!"

"Kill her!"

The vampire soldiers exclaimed and attacked all together to the one they called "queen".

"Unforgivable..." She mumbled.

And with one gaze, they all stopped.

Even if they wanted to move, as if her gaze made their bodies frozen. They can't move a muscle!

In gritted teeth, the queen exclaimed, "You'll all pay for this!!!" She wailed and at once, all those vampire soldiers died as their bodies got twisted.

As loud as their screams, the thunder roared that dreadful night.

As the loud thunder roared on the neighborhood, so is the scream of this young lass when she saw a horrible face on the T.V. screen. She's been up all night just to watch the movie which her best friend challenged her to.

And now, she's trembling after jumping on her seat with all the terrifying scenes she saw. She can't help but scream. You can't blame her for the fear she's feeling towards the movie.

And with that, a loud thumping steps can be heard outside her room.

"Rhiana Jane Valdez! You're still up to this hour!? Get some rest or I'll put you to sleep myself!" Her mother scolded her soon as she opened the door.

"Y-yes mom! I'm sorry!" She immediately turned the television off and went to bed. Good thing, the movie just ended by the time her mother barged in her room.

'I hope I won't get nightmares for this.' The lass thought as she nervously tucked herself in and slowly closed her eyes.

She eventually fell asleep. She's too tired to remember the horrifying things she watched. But most likely, she'll remember them sooner or later.

Like most students would feel, morning came so fast even they still don't want to. Same goes for this lass called Rhiana.

As much as she wants to sleep more, she can't. Aside from the fact that she'll be scolded by her mother once again, she has school today.

After accomplishing her morning routines, she wears her uniform and went downstairs to greet her mother, who just finished cooking their breakfast.

"Perfect timing. You go and eat now."

"Thanks mom." She smiled and took a sip of her hot chocolate.

"I heard we have a new neighbor. We should go and greet them when we get the chance." Her mother informed as she took a bite of her wheat bread and hotdog.

The lass just nodded and finished her food as soon as she can.

"I gotta go."

"Take care."

The lass stood up, took her bag before she opened the door.

"Love you, mom." She smiled before leaving.

After passing through the gate, she closed it and heaved a sigh along the way.

"I would never borrow horror movies from Ella again! It nearly gave me a heart attack." She mumbled.

As she walked, her feet stopped moving when a new house caught her attention. It was huge, seems like some rich people lived inside. But what made her took few steps backward is the house, painted in black and gray brick stones, looked pretty much exactly like the ones she saw on that horror movie. A Gothic themed-haunted house.

The lass gulped as she remembered the movie she watched. She flinched and started running when she heard a sound of the door being unlocked. Without looking back, she ran as fast as she could that she happened to bumped someone around.

"Sorry!" She said without looking as she decided not to look behind her or she might see something horrible.

What a relief she felt when she reached the school. It was her safe haven just like in games. The lass went towards her classroom with a sign: 11-B which is located above.

While she was fixing her things, a girl with a long black hair tied up in lower twin-tails greeted her with a big smile.

"Good morning, Yana!"

"Ella! Good morning."

"How was the movie last night?" She asked referring to the one she lend.

"It... was good..." She lied and shrugged.

"Well, as expected from a scaredy cat." Ella teased.

"I-I'm not!" Yana blushed in embarrassment.

Ella shrugged, "Yeah right. Let's talk something else, have you heard? We have a new classmate today!"

"A transferred student?"

"Yep. I heard this classmate of ours came from London. Oh, and he's a handsome guy!" Ella squealed for joy.

Yana frowned, "How did you know these things?"

Ella smirked, "I have my ways." She said confidently.

'Obviously, she eavesdropped.' Yana thought.

'London, huh? That place seems familiar to me...'

Soon, everyone settled down as the teacher came inside.

"Attention class, today I want to introduce you to your new classmate. He came from London, England but he can speak our language fluently..."

'That's it! I remember now, London is the place where that horrible dracula went in the movie!' Yana said to herself as if she finally solved a puzzle that's bugging her earlier.

A young lad, tall and fair, stood before them. Everyone was amazed by his unusual silver white hair, same goes with his fair white skin, like he has never been out in the sun.

"Good morning, my name is Rain Anderson Elliot Renfield Van Helsing. But you can call me Rae. It's a pleasure to meet you all." He smiled brightly that made every girl in their class blushed except for one: and that is Yana.

'W-what a long name!' Is what she cared at that moment.

"Alright Mr. Rae, you can sit there at that empty seat on the fourth row." The teacher pointed and the only empty seat that time was...

'B-beside me!?' Yana became nervous at the thought.

"Thank you, teacher." Rae politely said and sat beside Yana. The lass can feel the envy stares of her classmates that she wished she would just disappear at that moment.

"Hey..." Rae whispered, "Let's get along. What's your name?" He smiled.

The lass was really planning to ignore him but his sweet and innocent voice made her glanced at him and saw how handsome he really is!

It's indeed rare to witnessed a person with silver-white hair which makes him unique yet beautiful. Upon closer look, she noticed he has blue eyes which shows that he's indeed from another country. What's more is that the small mole under his lips on the left side which is impossible not to notice because of his smile.

"What's your name?" He whispered while his sweet smile was still intact.

"Yana..." She mumbled as she stared at the true beauty in front of her.

"Nice to meet you, Yana!" He even smiled brighter than the usual that can blind her at any moment.

And good thing it didn't. She was just being overreacting by the handsome being beside her.

'Wait! Handsome?' The lass remembered something.

'In the movie, vampires are often described as beautiful beings but are actually monsters inside.' She gulped at the thought and became nervous.

'Not to mention, he came from London, where those vampires came!' And with that, she became suspicious of the lad beside her.

As these thoughts were disturbing her head, time flies fast to their next subject: the Physical Education. Soon as she finished changing her regular uniform to her P.E uniform, Ella came running to her.

"Yana quick! You've got to see this!" She pulled her outside of the field. All the girls gathered in the corner same goes with other students who are not their classmates. They cheered on Rae as if he's a celebrity.

And much to Yana's surprise, he's indeed good in playing soccer. He's fast, the other boys can't catch him. It seems like she's watching a professional player.

'Wait! If he can play soccer in the middle of the day, then, he's not a vampire. The main weakness of vampires are sunlight.' And the case has been solved at last. And with that, she can finally breathe easy.

Time flies so fast and this time, the bell rings and it was what most students are waiting for: dismissal.

"I gotta go first, Yana. Take care!" Ella waved her hand.

"Sure. Goodbye." She nodded as she finished fixing her things.

"I believe we have two assignments for today..." She mumbled as she came out of the building. She just took few steps away from school when she noticed something strange. It feels like someone is following her!

But, she can't just jump into conclusions yet. She has to make sure. And to do that, she went inside the bakery nearby to have a glance of her so-called stalker.

There's a man, wearing a dark blue hoodie which makes it impossible for her to see his face. He's just standing outside the bakery. But what if he's waiting for someone else? She could've accused the wrong person. And with that, she tried to brush off the thought that she's being stalked.

Yana went out of the bakery and continued walking on her way home when she received a text message from her mother to buy her some medicine for headaches. So she stopped by the nearest drug store.

"I'm sure this is what she needed." She went out not long after and in her peripheral vision, she saw the man in hoodie, still standing near the drug store. With that, she suddenly walked faster as chills suddenly ran down her spine.

'H-he's still here! T-that means... He's stalking me!' She panicked and started running.

When she gathered the courage to look back, the man was gone. Just as she thought that no one's following her now, she suddenly hit her head as she bumped on the electrical post.

"Ugh! This paranoia is making me look like a fool!"

The impact made her sit on the ground. She held her head and slowly opened her eyes and saw someone's legs standing in front of her. And the thought of the stalker suddenly came in mind that she began to tremble in fear.

"P-please have mercy! Don't take me! We don't have money to pay you! We're poor! I-I don't wanna be a slave!" She blurted out all of a sudden.

Then, she heard someone chuckled.

"What are you saying, Yana? It's me, Rae." The gentle voice made her looked up and saw the charming smile that washed her fears away. At the same time, all the things she said suddenly sank in her head and echoed her mind. It was indeed embarrassing.

"Oh please! Forget everything you've heard!" She covered her red face with her hands.

Rae chuckled, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. But for now..." His smile suddenly fades and quickly grabbed her in his arms, lifted her up, and carried her in bridal style.

"Wha--!?"

"Let's get out of here." He continued and looked ahead.

Yana followed where he's looking and saw the stalker who's following her earlier. Chills ran in her body once again when she saw the man's glowing red eyes.

What happened next terrified her. The man's neck suddenly grew longer, so is his arms and legs. Sharp claws suddenly appear from his nails as his ears grew sharp and pointed. Fangs grew from his mouth as he drooled in front of them like a hungry beast. Bat wings suddenly came out from his back and made a deafening screech.

As it attacked, Yana closed her eyes in fright. But she didn't feel anything. Is she dead? Is this the end? But, it doesn't hurt at all. Rather, she felt the cool breeze of wind on her face.

When she opened her eyes, they are on mid air as Rae kept on jumping from one roof to another. And then, he made another high jump to land his feet at the top of tall electric post.

"W-what... was that? H-how... did we end up here?" She asked with a confused expression.

"How?" Rae repeated and it was followed with a smirk, "Because I'm a vampire."

In her seventeen years of existence, she believed that fairies, mermaids, werewolves, and vampires are nothing but tales.

Stories made by human imagination, something that won't ever come true. Something that only exists in movies. And yet, there's someone, right in front of her, claiming that he's one of those mythical creatures.

"Vam... pire?" She mumbled, almost like a whisper.

There's no doubt that this lass is so confused. She has a lot of questions based on what she witnessed earlier but doesn't know where to start.

'Is he joking? But how come he managed to jump as high as this? Is he a monster too just like that scary stalker?!' Things like these roamed inside her head.

Rae blinked, "But I'm not joking. I'm--"

He was cut off when they heard someone yawned.

"What time is it? Is it nighttime already?"

A small black creature suddenly came out of Rae's bag. It has wings that's why it can fly. And it has glowing big yellow eyes, big pointed ears, big mouth with sharp little fangs. It's shape is similar to...

"A talking bat?!" She blurted in surprise.

"A human?" The small talking bat glanced at her and then to Rae, "Young master, what's the meaning of this?"

"I'll explain later, Primo. But for now..." Rae looked behind and saw that the monster bat earlier is still chasing them.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Yana gulped nervously.

"Hang on." Rae said and before she could do so, he jumped high once again. Too bad this lass isn't fond of aerial rides.

And when they landed on the playground, she immediately went on the corner to get some fresh air. She felt so dizzy that she could throw up anytime.

"Now it's time to take care of this Level E." She heard him say.

'Level E? What's he talking about?' When she glanced at his direction, she saw the monster bat flying towards them.

"Here it goes, young master!"

The monster used its speed and attacked Rae using its sharp claws. But he just dodged all of its attacks effortlessly.

'How can he fight that monster head on? Is he nuts!?' Yana said to herself as she anxiously watched them.

"You're done? Now it's my turn!" He grinned and kicked the monster bat, as it hits the tree, it collapsed in such collision.

'And how the heck did he manage to kick him that strong!? D-don't tell me... He's really a... Vampire?' All suspicions came to her once again as she witnessed these things.

"Nice kick, young master!" The small talking bat praised.

Rae walked towards the monster bat, "It's too early to celebrate, we--!" He didn't get to finish what he's going to say when the monster bat suddenly got up and rushed as fast as it could. And if he's not mistaken, the direction where it's heading is...

He turned around, "Yana, watch out!" He shouted and was about to rush towards her when she suddenly panicked and screamed.

"Don't you dare... TOUCH ME!!!"

Her defense mechanism made her swing her bag as hard as she could and hit its face. With such impact, one of its fangs popped off as it fell on the ground.

The thought of seeing that monster bat rushing towards her with it's slimy saliva and hideous face made this lass protect herself for the sake of not getting wet with that disgusting drool. And that leaves the monster unconscious for a moment.

And as for the two, they were dumbfounded at what they witnessed. Especially Rae. Who would've thought she can take it down all by herself.

"Girls are... really scary.." Primo whispered and gulped nervously.

Rae glanced at the small talking bat and placed his index finger near his lips.

"Shh... She might hear you." He whispered. And then, he walked towards the unconscious monster bat.

"Now, for the final move..." He took a pen from his pocket and suddenly stabbed the monster bat on its chest using the pointed part. Then, the monster slowly turned into ashes and faded away.

"I-is it dead?" Yana, who's still trembling after witnessing such a hideous sight, finally dared to ask.

"Yep. It's gone for good." Rae nodded and smiled as he wiped his pen filled with blood.

"B-but how? I thought vampires die when they got stabbed by a wooden stake in their chest?"

Rae just chuckled at the lass' confused look.

"What's so funny?"

The lad shook his head, "Nothing. But to answer your question, any sharp objects can kill that level; it's the 21st century anyway."

The lass didn't seem to get the gist of what he said.

"Since the pen is the sharp item I have, I used its other purpose: for Self-Defense!" He raised his pen like a weapon with a victorious smile on his face.

"Do you really have to promote it that way?" Yana said as if she finally get what he meant.

With that, she heaved a sigh. All the things that she saw and happened today are enough to make her feel exhausted.

"I'm going home. Thanks for saving me." She said and turned her back.

"Not so fast, miss..." The small talking bat called Primo said out of the blue.

Yana glanced at them, "What do you want?"

Primo smirked, "Do you really think that the young master will let you get away that easily after everything you saw?"

The lass suddenly became nervous at what she heard, "What do you mean?"

The small bat laughed in an evil way.

"We're vampires, remember? We won't stop until we get what we want!"

Fear suddenly crept inside her once again, 'B-blood? D-don't tell me he's...' She gulped and glanced at Rae.

"H-hey Rae... he's just joking, right?" She nervously asked but the lad just gave her a serious expression that she have never seen before. And that made her scared even more.

She took few steps backwards as he walked towards her.

"R-Rae... Please don't do this... I-I promise I won't tell a soul about what I saw!" She stopped moving when her back hit the tree. Rae cornered her by placing his arms on both of her sides to prevent her from escaping.

She gulped and exclaimed in fear, "I beg you... Please don't suck my bloooood!"

And there's a moment of silence, until the lad suddenly bursts out laughing.

"Pfftt... You're so amusing, Yana!"

And that she realized, everything was just a joke.

"Y-you! You tricked me!" She blushed in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean like that. And, I have no intention of drinking your blood."

"What do you mean? Aren't you a vampire, the bloodsuckers?" She asked suspiciously.

"Yes, for most vampires. You see... I don't like drinking blood for some reason..." He gently rubbed his cheek in embarrassment.

"And what could be the reason?" The lass pressed on, still not letting her guard down.

The lad inhaled, "You see, blood... has an awful smell... It tastes disgusting!" He frowned.

"And what if... I suck blood on someone with a virus? I'll get infected too! I don't want that!" He turned his face in disgust.

And Yana, raised an eye brow as she can't believe of what she have heard. Why does she feel disappointed in such excuse? She should be glad that the vampire in front of her, ironically, doesn't like to drink blood.

Then, she glanced at Primo, "Are all vampires like this?" She asked.

And the small bat sighed, "No, young master is the only exception. We tried several times since he was a kid, but... He really refused to drink since the first time he tasted it."

"Are you okay with that? I mean, as far as I know, vampires get weak if they didn't drink blood." Curiosity continues to roam inside her.

Why does she want to know more of these creatures that nearly got her killed? And she doesn't know the answer either.

"I'm perfectly fine." Rae smiled, "As long as human food can sustain me, I won't be thirsty of any blood."

He made it sounds so easy.

He always smiles. Does he even know how to become sad? He didn't even get scared while facing the monster bat. How come he can smile so easily?

These are what's inside her head. The way how this lad smiles makes her forget for a moment that he's not ordinary. And that, Yana realized something... His gentle smile makes him more human than others out there.

Maybe he doesn't have ill intentions. Maybe... just maybe... That the vampire in front of her just wants to blend in and be normal like them.

These are her realizations as she walked on her way home. But there's something that keeps bothering her.

"Why are you still following me?" She asked and turned to face Rae behind her.

"I'm not following you. It just happens that this is the same direction on my way home."

"Save your jokes on me. Where could you possibly live? I know every person here in our neighborhood." Yana suspiciously looked at him once again.

"Oh, here we are. I live there." He pointed the huge Gothic house she saw earlier this morning.

"Yana?" A familiar voice called her. It was her mother, who went outside to take their garbage out.

"Mom?"

The woman glanced at the young lad beside her daughter.

"Good evening, ma'am." Rae politely bowed his head with a smile.

"Oh, you must be our new neighbor! It's a pleasure to meet you. What's your name?"

"The pleasure is mine, just call me Rae, ma'am." He said and kissed the woman's hand. *

"Oh my, such a nice kid!" She chuckled and then glanced at her daughter who's been dumbfounded the whole time.

"Yana, did you already get along with our new neighbor?"

'Wait what? New neighbor? Him? Since when?!' And all the things she's been through earlier suddenly flashed back inside her mind.

"We're classmates, ma'am."

"Is that so?" Then she glanced at her daughter, "Yana, starting tomorrow, both of you should go to school together. You should welcome Rae in this neighborhood. Okay?"

And like any other loving children, this lass cannot say no to her only parent. But this is what her heart and mind is screaming:

'NO WAAAAAAAAAY!!!'

***

Author's Note:

*The kissing of the hand in this part is what we call "pagmamano". An honorable act that shows respect for elderly people that could also mean asking for a blessing. This is famous among the Filipino people.