//------------------------------// // Midnight Snack // Story: Blood in the Night // by RemnantRose //------------------------------// The warmth of blood is a thing few delicacies could ever hope to match, Rarity mused as her fangs retracted, letting the last few drops of life-fluid fall deliciously on to her tongue. But, she considered, dropping her spasming victim onto the floor of the small café, its window shattered as a result of two bodies, namely herself and the man currently dying, colliding with it, it is extremely messy. One would be surprised at how immaculate the fashionista managed to stay while 1.Transforming into a hostile bat-person, 2.Tackling people while in said bat-person form, which, unsurprisingly, many people resisted, and 3.Biting into people's necks whilst in the middle of tackling them in said bat-person form, a feat few could achieve without a significant amount of blood spraying like a fountain. However, Rarity somehow managed to pull it off, sucking life force and looking simply divine while she did it. Many-a-Vampire conglomerated from far and wide to compliment her on techniques. Well, they would if she knew any. As it was, Rarity didn't know any other bloodsuckers, but if she did, she could almost guarantee they would compliment her. Probably. Eh, an analysis for another time. Currently, while not covered with blood and having no (visible) murder weapon, she was stooped over a man who was currently lacking a heartbeat, as there was nothing else for the heart to beat, and most people would consider that a mite suspicious. Abdomen swelled with sweet, delicious crimson, Rarity fled the scene, strutting out the window in midair with a flourish and taking off into the night towards her destination. --------- Rarity awoke on top of the covers, which surprisingly hadn't been thrown across the room in her sleep, as they usually were. She gave a decidedly un-ladylike yawn, and lightly smacked her lips, tasting the faint copper tang that had been on her tongue when she woke up for about a week now. At first, she had been slightly concerned, but now that it had continued with no detrimental side effects, she disregarded it as a strange new biological quirk. Yawning once again, Rarity walked to the kitchenette of her small apartment, turning on a hot plate to begin making scrambled eggs, her personal breakfast of choice. However, as she began to open the fridge, Rarity realized her stomach seemed already full, despite her relatively small dinner the night prior. Plus, as she thought about it more, she didn't really feel like eggs. Or anything, for that matter. My, how did her stomach get this full? She felt like she could go for days on the amount of food stuffed into her belly. "Well," Rarity stated to herself out loud, shutting the fridge door while twirling on a heel, "I suppose I can skip a breakfast. Not like I'm going to pass out from a few missed eggs." Decision made, she walked towards the bathroom to take care of her morning routine before heading off to Canterlot High in... "FIFTEEN MINUTES?!" Rarity screamed before rushing to the bathroom, flying through her morning routine, and racing out the door. Had she been a bit slower, she may have noticed the slight burn from her fluorescent lighting, or the fact that she didn't have a reflection... -------- Once at CHS, Rarity gave her hair one last fluff before entering her homeroom, headed by psychology teacher Cranky Doodle. She had always thought that was an unfortunate name for the poor man, he was actually quite nice and mature, so long as you responded in kind. Rarity used to hate her homeroom, but now found it quite pleasant. The only reason she had ever dreaded homeroom was walking in the door now, as a matter of fact. "Good morning Sunset," Rarity greeted warmly, glad she no longer had a reason to be afraid of the girl. "Bad morning," Sunset groaned, flopping quite heavily into the seat next to Rarity's. Rarity let out a slight gasp at Sunset's haggard appearance, but quickly covered it up with a cough. "While I hate to insult you, you look simply awful, darling! Whatever happened?" Sunset sighed, looking sullenly down at her hands and rubbing the pads of her fingers. "My foster dad died last night." Rarity did not attempt to cover her gasp this time, and immediately bear-hugged her friend, reputation be damned. "Sunset... I... I don't know what to say! I'm so, so, so sorry for your loss!" Rarity felt tears soaking her shoulder, and even though it was designer, she couldn't care less at this point. Sunset sniffed, sobs diminishing into hiccups, and the two just hugged each other for a while. There were rumors going around that Rarity was a lesbian, and this would do nothing to get rid of them, but Rarity didn't care. If the raging maelstrom of sympathy hadn't been whirling around in Rarity's head, she might have been concerned with the small voice in the back of her head that noted Sunset's dad had been delicious, and that wondered how good his daughter tasted. ---------- The entire school day, Rarity had been getting hungrier and hungrier. Her stomach let out a loud gurgle in the middle of precalc, causing a blush to spread across her pale face. Perhaps she shouldn't have skipped breakfast, after all. It didn't help that the lunch smelled absolutely divine today. Rarity couldn't identify the scent, but it seemed to be all around her, and it was heavenly. Finally, blissfully, the bell for lunch rang, and she practically bolted out of the room, desperate for sustenance. Stopping only briefly outside the door to make sure her sprint hadn't messed up her hair, she sashayed into the cafeteria, before pausing. It was... Odd. There was hardly anybody in there yet, the bell had not rang long ago, but... Rarity frowned. The wondrous scent she had so craved seemed depleted here. She gave an experimental sniff. Nothing. Nothing besides a hint of the scent, a ghost of what it once was, and the regular lemon polish smell that permeated the entire school. Rarity almost stamped her foot in frustration. What the hay?! Where was her delicious meal?! She... Needed... Food! Unbeknownst to herself, but easily noticed by anyone who cared to look, a whopping zero people, Rarity's eyes flashed red and her teeth lengthened for a brief moment before settling, leaving a very pissed-off fashionista in their wake. "Why...the nerve of...Humph!" Rarity grumbled, reluctantly walking into the line to acquire some (not as glorious) food. She sat down heavily while sighing, a well-manicured hand coming to a light rest on her forehead. And here the day had been looking up... Suddenly, something permeated her senses and she shot up, instantly at attention. Rainbow Dash started a bit before staring at Rarity, confusion spreading across her features. "Uh, Rare?" Dash asked, waving a hand in Rarity's face after setting down her tray. "What's up? Work gotcha stressed again?" Rarity quickly shook herself out of her stupor, setting herself back down and fanning herself with a hand, a smile plastered on the whole time. "Why Rainbow, you should know I'm just fabulous! I always am, aren't I? Heh heh..." Rarity gave a small gulp at the end of her convincing, hoping Rainbow wouldn't comment on her strange behavior. The athlete stared a bit before shrugging and spinning her own chair with a finger, sitting down with flair. Rarity sighed internally, feeling the gorgeous scent enter her nostrils. She then nearly gagged when she realized what exactly it was coming from. Rainbow Dash smelled heavenly. That was the only way to describe it. Rarity whimpered the tiniest bit, resisting the temptation of the euphoric scent. But she smelled...so...good.... Rarity licked her lips and began unconsciously leaning forward, her mouth widening and teeth sharpening and lengthening... An explosion of confetti accompanied by the sound of a squeaking balloon suddenly burst out from behind her, accidentally causing her face to slam into the table, breaking the trance and causing her to release a cry of pain. None in the cafeteria turned to look, the fight or flight response dulled by almost four years of Pinkie Pie's "random encounters". Rarity groaned, peeling her head off of the wood and glaring maliciously at Pinkie Pie, before giving in and giggling, the pain in her nose quickly disappearing. "Why hello, Pinkie Pie," Rarity managed to get out between laughs. "How's your day been going?" "Well," the bubbly girl began, somehow appearing in her own chair almost instantly. "First I woke up, then I gave Gummy his bath, then I went downstairs, which was weird because..." Rarity began to slightly tune out her friend. Honestly, she loved her to death, but she could be a bit... Endearing. To say the least. More primarily on her mind, she remembered, was the troubling little conundrum of how delectable her friends smelled today... Gah! Rarity slapped herself when she realized what she was thinking, wishing to be rid of her subconscious forever and causing Rainbow and Pinkie to stare at her weirdly. "Heh heh," Rarity laughed stiffly, waving them off. "Just remembered a project I need to get started on but haven't yet. Silly old me. Fluttershy!" Fluttershy, who had just come to the table, was woefully unprepared for this verbal exclamation, and her reflexes jerked her into motion, pulling her tray up to her chest, where it would be easier to protect herself. She then promptly lost tension when she saw it was just Rarity. "Um... Yes?" The pale girl asked hesitantly, dropping down her tray as she fell on to the chair. "How are you, dear? You missed our spa day yesterday! Whatever caused it?" This was true. Rarity was just thankful such a convenient conduit came to get her out of a tight situation. If she had time, she would invent a name for it. "Oh!" Fluttershy exclaimed, in itself sounding like a soft peep rather than an exclamation of surprise. "I'm sorry, Rarity! I suppose I forgot about it! We had a cleaning rush the other day, an I completely forgot! Komendesai!" Rarity lightly rolled her eyes and smiled when Fluttershy's franticness caused a bit of Japanese to slip into her speech. While she hid it quite well, Fluttershy had initially come from a region in Akihabara, Japan, and had learned English to act as a translator for her family, though it occasionally slipped back in as a force of habit. "It's fine," Rarity responded, waving a hand absentmindedly and spearing a piece of lettuce, bringing it to her mouth. "Oh no," Fluttershy continued, twirling a strand of hair in her fingers. "I'd hate to be—" "BLECH!" Everyone winced as Rarity let out a sound of disgust, the lettuce that touched her tongue for but a brief moment had left her tasting bile. All of them stared at her for a bit as she washed the vile taste out of her mouth by trying to rinse it with apple juice, which was not much better, but at least was palatable. Rarity only realized her friends were staring after she swirled the juice around her mouth, thoroughly cleaning every bit. She coughed politely. "Ahem. Yes, well, rotten piece of lettuce, I suppose. I should file a complaint..." She trailed off, hiding her mouth behind a hand and blushing, looking away from the table. Fortunately, the conversation turned away from her yet again as another of her friends sat down, Fluttershy and Twilight beginning to talk about some complicated biology thing. After Applejack arrived, everything went swimmingly, the rest of the period going surprisingly uneventfully, save for those who had been there during Rarity's freak out noticing she didn't touch anything else on her plate. -------- The rest of the day passed quickly and uneventfully, save the same constant discomfort Rarity got from her aching stomach. Well, that and the constant burning/itching she got when standing near a window or fluorescent light. After the school day was done, Rarity collapsed on her small bed, pondering the events of the day. To be honest, it didn't make much sense. It didn't sound like any illness she knew of (other than insanity, but she didn't really want to consider that an option), and there was really no other way she could explain her strange behavior. If only there was some way she could access a wealth of information and browse through it at an extremely quick pace. Oh Rarity, you are a treat, she thought to herself as she sat at her computer, hands already gliding across the keyboard. ---------- She frowned at the screen, scrolling through pages and pages of results. Vampires. That's the only amount of information the entirety of the Internet had on her condition. Apparently, she was a mythical bloodsucker. Rarity rolled her eyes and huffed, glaring down the newest result as if willing it to delete itself. ***ARE vAMPIRES REAL?!*** This question has plauged the human mind for centuires, ppearences of the blodsuckers dating back to at least 5000 B.D. (Before Dinosuars)— She couldn't take it anymore. She scowled and closed her browser, groaning before rubbing her temples with her fingertips, colliding her cranium with her office desk. She sat up, the pain in her nose reawakened. "Well now you're just being rude," she commented to herself, angrily rubbing her upsetting nose. She sighed and resolved to figure it out in the morning. It was highly unlikely that whatever unknown disease she had caught could kill her in seven hours. Probably. Rarity sighed happily as she slid into bed, humming a little tune whilst she did. With determination, she pulled her sleeping mask over her eyes and let consciousness slip away from her. ------------ Rarity opened her eyes and smirked, tearing off the mask and flipping out of bed, simply because she could. She moaned happily and stretched, pulling her nightdress up dangerously close to revealing her modesty. Noticing it, Rarity clicked her tongue. "Well, that won't do at all," she stated, before swiftly pulling off the gown and strutting over to her rather sizable closet. "Let's find something more...appropriate for a night out." Grinning sharply, the vampire flung open her closet and began searching. Before long, she had changed into something more fitting. She straightened the leather jacket, and smoothed out the torn black leggings, smoothing the simple ripped white shirt she had put on. Letting out a silent yawn, she flung open her window, smelling all the fresh blood there was, ripe and for the taking. She grinned wickedly, fangs lengthening and sharpening, before jumping out the window, laughing and cheering all the way down, before she pulled up at the last second, spinning in the air. She loved flying. It was perhaps one of the greatest things that she had ever experienced. Gliding around without a care in the world, the cool wind rushing about her face, she felt truly liberated. She whooped excitedly, climbing in altitude before pausing, circling a bit to rid herself of extra momentum. Scanning about the city, she deeply inhaled and sighed happily, letting go of her control of the winds and dropping like a stone, laughing giddily as the ground rushed up towards her. She soared over the roofs, relishing the moment for as long as she could before getting serious. She glided over to her favorite hunting grounds, the small ghetto everyone referred to as Appleoosa. Yet another name not befitting of the character. Not an apple was in sight, not that she minded. She was after a much different food. Licking her lips hungrily, Rarity took off along the rooftops, hopping easily across gaps, in search of a good meal. Suddenly, she halted so hard, she almost tumbled off the edge. Her nose twitched a bit, catching something faint on the wind. Something glorious. Mouth watering with anticipation, Rarity dived toward the scent, going as fast as possible while still remaining stealthy. She dipped, ducked, and dived, searching for the heavenly scent of O- blood. She finally traced the scent back to its source, the swankiest apartment building in the entirety of Appleoosa. That said, it was a squat, four-story, gray building. Rarity, however, wasn't focused on the sensory input from her eyes. She was focused on the gloriousness oozing from the farthest window on the third floor. She floated up to it carefully, wary of streetlights and the like revealing her before she could surprise the blood bag. Ever so slowly, she peeked over the windowsill, and licked her lips. A fair, lean man sat on his bed reading some trashy romance novel. He had golden hair and skin, green eyes, and a brown leather vest and hat. Just a vest and hat. Had Rarity still had some of her old personality, she most likely would have shrieked and averted her eyes to avoid looking at any...uncouth places. As it was, however, Rarity stared at the man without shame. However, her gaze was not on the man's pelvis, but on his neck. Even as far away as she was, she could still see the man's blood flow and move under the thin layer of skin and flesh. She licked her lips hungrily and backed up from the window, cracking her neck and knuckles. After psyching herself up for a bit, Rarity smirked, aimed, and shot forward, slamming through the closed window like it was tissue paper. She grabbed the man before he could even react, and pinned him against his own bed, one hand on his face and the other on his bicep. He thrashed and fought, but she had done this many times before, and she was getting good. Before he could tear himself out of her grip, Rarity hissed and pierced his Carotid Artery, sucking the blood quickly so she wouldn't choke on the sheer amount. It was orgasmic. O- was by far the sweetest, most filling kind of life-fluid she had ever had. It tasted like all of her favorite foods wrapped up together, and multiplied by fifty. It tasted so good she actually moaned, letting out in involuntary noise of pleasure as she sucked the man dry. Soon, his struggles stopped. He was unconscious. That was her sign to stop, lest she sucked all of his blood. Reluctantly, she pulled her mouth off of the man's neck, catching the last few drops of blood. Standing, she stretched and sighed happily, before walking into the man's kitchen. There, she grabbed the biggest knife she could find, and walked back out, stabbing the knife through his neck at the precise place where she had bit, destroying the evidence and letting more blood spray out, covering the bed. She smiled, dusted off her hands, and let out a contented noise, climbing out of the window she broke, taking off again. One down, a lot more to go. ----------