Rainbow had been walking with Vinyl back from the nightclub for quite some time, when they had heard voices.
Voices from the shadows, and they were discussing quite interesting matters.
"Celestia Dammit, why won't you drink!" A pony yelled.
Curious, the two mares both backtracked to where they had heard the voices.
Eclipsed in partial darkness, both figures looked intimidating, and strong. And handsome? No, both of the mares shook that thought away. But they were. They had that jawbone, that was just so dark and ragged looking. But they both mentally batted that thought away. They wanted to find out what was happening, they couldn't get sidetracked by handsome stallions wandering around in the shadows. Vinyl and Rainbow frowned, now that was just creepy. Who does that?
Vampires. Pervs. Sexual predators. Foalnappers. And etc.
Wow, did they really have to think that?
But if they were to be honest, the first didn't sound too bad.
I mean, vampires aren't real so that option is out, or at least that's what they thought.
And then they thought that the yelling pony might have been trying to force him into drinking Trodka or something.
But then, the yelling stallion retreated into the shadows, and came back out with a young mare.
She was borderline pretty, Rainbow and Vinyl noticed.
They also noticed that the yelling stallion was holding her an interesting way.
A way that they didn't like. And they were about to go tell him that, and come to the girl's aid, when he peeled back her mane.
And he started to speak again, but he didn't yell. No, this time it was more eerily quiet, and whispered.
If Vinyl and Rainbow listened hard enough, they could hear his words.
"Come on brother it's been so long" The yelling stallion said, whispering.
Vinyl and Rainbow were peeking out from behind a wall 5 feet away, and even they were getting shivers from his words.
"After all, she has a really pretty neck." The yelling stallion said, and to Vinyl and Rainbow's horror, made his way down to it. Breathing heavily, he actually sniffed her.
"What kinda freak is this guy?" Rainbow asked in a hushed tone.
"I don't know." Vinyl said quietly back.
The young mare squirmed against his steel arms, as she refused to accept her fate.
"That's it I'm stopping this, he's hurting her." Rainbow whispered, with a determined look on her face.
"No, Dash don't go, you could get hurt." Vinyl whispered ferociously.
Rainbow looked as if she was going anyway.
"Just give it a sec." Vinyl said. "Observe. Look what he's doing."
"Fine." Rainbow whisper huffed.
"I'm not doing it." His brother, a unicorn, said politely and quietly.
"What?" the yelling stallion asked in a dangerous whisper.
"I said I'm not doing it." The quiet stallion restated.
"Oh yes you are!" Then retreating back onto the shadows again with the girl, the yelling stallion whispered a command and she complied.
When they came back out, she was no longer struggling.
"What the buck?" Rainbow asked.
Vinyl's mouth was slightly ajar.
"Mind control." Rainbow whispered dryly to Vinyl.
Vinyl would've rolled her eyes, but she wouldn't have put it past these mysterious ponies.
The more verbal stallion looked down at the young mare's neck again, then again at his brother.
"You are feeding on her!" The yelling stallion stated, getting as salty as Celestia when cake day was canceled.
Rainbow and Vinyl looked at each other. They couldn't have heard what they had just heard, right? Hadn't vampires been extinct for decades now?
Rainbow's breath caught in her throat. These guys were bad news. If they got caught- If Vinyl got them caught...
Vinyl's heart felt like it was in her windpipe. These guys were trouble. And if they got in trouble with these guys- no- If Rainbow got them in trouble with these guys...
They each gave the other a warning glare, not out of anger, but out of fear and trepidation.
Rainbow's gaze was a deal more intimidating, seeing as she didn't have glasses to cover up what one would loosely consider red eyes.
Vinyl cowered slightly, hind quarters sinking into a dank puddle behind them.
Then they went back to watching their own live personal horror movie.
The yelling stallion widened his mouth, just enough for one pointed canine to slide out, and traced a linear line of blood where the jugular of the mare was on top of her shaded skin. When he was done with that, he put out a hoof, letting a miniature trail of blood from the young mare's neck trickle down his foreleg. Then he licked it off.
"Even if I have to make you do it." The stallion said, watching as his brother appeared to be slowly giving in to the rapidly increasing bloodlust.
The unicorn watched, entranced as the earth pony slowly licked his leg completely clean.
The two mares peeking out from the shadows, watched transfixed as the blood practically hypnotized the quiet stallion.
Okay, the two mares decided, they were either sickos or vampires.
But they were both leaning more toward vampire. Not that there weren't plenty of mentally deranged blood drinking ponies. But this pony had fangs.
Rainbow gulped audibly, asking herself if the other one was just as bad.
Vinyl closed her eyes, because all she could see was trouble.
The quiet stallion took a step closer. Closer to the shadows that his brother was hiding in. Preying in. Biting in. Waiting in.
The quiet stallion watched as his brother ran another hoof through the trail of blood that was seeping down the young mare's neck.
Then just like that, the quiet stallion's eyes flashed a shade similar to a raspberry, and he opened up his chasm of a mouth. There were fangs, and they were the stuff of nightmares. Then, he disappeared into the shadows, the young mare's scream announcing his sudden and abominable presence.
"You know what we do now?" Vinyl whispered, startled after hearing a bloodcurdling scream from the gloom.
"We run." Rainbow said, eyes flashing for a scary second. Vinyl didn't need to be told twice, and started at an all out gallop. She would be a vanilla blur. She was snow, whipping in the wind, she was-
Being stopped?
Because before she could get even an inch, Rainbow stopped her. Explaining that should they make any noise at all, the vampires would catch them.
Vinyl made a mental note to discuss the impossibility and hypocrisy of their friendship later.
So with that in mind, Vinyl opted to tiptoe away at a fast pace.
And Rainbow decided to fly almost completely silently. Because she's good, but she's not that good.
Yet as the two mares were trying their best to get away, the other two stallions could hear better than most ponies.
"Should we go after them?" The quiet one asked.
"No, just wait, the chase is the fun part." The earth stallion said, speaking from a grotesque hole in his face.
Rainbow had been flying soundlessly, and Vinyl had been silently trotting alongside her, when they saw a glowing fixture at the end of the alley. Or at least they thought they'd been completely quiet. But hey, plot covenience and all.
They both had a hardy mental spasm, and one of them lost their minds. Was it safe to gallop away towards the light? Or should they stay blackened out like tortured ink blots, continuing along at a speed that a turtle could beat?
A twig cracked.
Both ponies halted only to spin around, both feeling a little piece of their heart die as they imagined what could be beyond the illumination that was starting to border on sacred.
A branch fell from the roof of a neighboring business.
It startled both of the ponies quite badly. Of course it was a branch from a roof, and chances were the vampires weren't even up there, but when ponies get scared, rationality takes the back seat.
They were desperate to hold onto their pride in front of ome another, though, and only allowed a small whinny of surprise to escape. When in reality, their hearts were beating into overdrive. Maybe with one more sound their hearts would stop.
And maybe they would keep on beating.
Who knew?
If only Twilight were there to reassure them with calming fancy words like she always did.
If only Twilight were there...
"Should we let them know of our presence, or have their own imaginations run them out instead?" The quiet stallion inquired with a dying spark in his eyes.
"Let them run themselves out." The yelling stallion replied, failing to notice the breathing secret that was waiting in the blackness.
"Will we turn them?"
"Maybe her." The yelling stallion said with a rare budding interest, pointing to a familiar white unicorn. "It would be very interesting to see her reaction."
"Okay." The quiet stallion said. "And brother," he added: "One more thing."
"Hmm?" the yelling stallion said as he turned toward his brother.
"I get the unicorn." The quiet stallion said as he smiled.
"Good to have you back." The bright words juxtaposed the mouth they were coming from.
"Okay, my bits are on running. What's your play?" Vinyl was shaken, but not stirred, slurring her words. She was drunk on fear. The magical mystical hangover cure was the light at the end of the metaphorical tunnel.
"Just keep going slow and steady.", Rainbow said, edging them both toward the alleyway's exit. One wing was extended prodding on the small of Vinyl's soft back. One knew the challenges of such an encounter, yet the other was not-so-blissfully unaware.
Of course, just as they were twenty feet from their sweet escape, a streetlight on another road went out.
They made a mutual decison instigated by extreme fear, and decided to gallop.
Two more streetlights went out, bathing the hope of their salvation in a sinister light. Or lack of light thereof.
They pushed themselves even harder. Hoofs smacked on the ground rapidly like a merciless slap on the flank. White and cyan ponies both battles for breath, yet for different reasons.
Another weary few feet was gained, as eyes strained to see in the gathering darkness.
Another streetlight blinked out, with its light dearly departed and dearly missed by at least one pony.
Still an admirable distance loomed before them, silently becoming a physical threat towards them without malevolent intent.
Five more streetlights, the roads were half paved in darkness, and still they were five feet away.
They decided it was now or never. Hoofs weren't going to be enough, at least as far as Dash could tell. But the breathing secret had more important things to worry about at the present moment.
"Fly!", Rainbow whispered, sundial terrifying in her desperation as she pulled Vinyl with her, too terrified to hesitate, too scared to think.
And as soon as that word was spoken, all the streetlights went out.
"Well buck my life."
And only one word was spoken after that crude exclamation.
Actually it wasn't a word, it was more of a sound.
And in hindsight, it wasn't really spoken, it was screamed.
Vinyl yelled.
It left everypony present wondering how vanilla could be so freaking loud.
In it's aftermath, two ponies were pleased, and one was irrevocably pissed.
Rainbow slapped her hoof over Vinyl's mouth, fighting the urge to slap the mare out of sheer frustration.
"Shut up." She whispered, glaring. Her eyes flashed a lovely shade of red.
Well it would have been lovely, had it been somewhere else than in Dash's pupils. Of course such a beautiful color was heralded with a wonderful shock from Vinyl.
"Rainbow?" Vinyl asked, the mouth Rainbow had a hoof over shaking with her entire body. She really did hope the pegasus couldn't see in the dark. Tears were a dedicated giveaway no pun intended.
This made no sense. This couldn't be happening.
But it was. It really was. A nasty shock was sweeping over Vinyl's body and she didn't like it. Not one bit.
"What?" Rainbow asked, looking at Vinyl unimpressed and suspicious, yet blissfully unassuming. "Is there something on my face?" Her orbs flashed again in annoyance, and then the other pony was off.
Vinyl just ran.
The quiet stallion and the yelling stallion just stood stock still. They had not seen this coming, and one could tell as they stood scared in the darkness they once had welcomed. They had seen the blood colored spasm in the pegasi's orbs. They had saw it. And yet, they were rooted to their separate spots. It was just an eyeflash. All vampires had them. But see, the problem was that they hadn't known that she was a vampire.
They should have recognized one of their kind. No vampire could possibly cover up their blood sight without being-
Well, she had caught them by surprise. This never happened. Well, it never happened to the yelling stallion. He didn't know about his brother. His weak, just recently awakened brother.
Vinyl ran and ran. She ran harder than she ever had. And all the while she could hear a voice behind her. The voice of the pony she'd thought she'd knew.
Just at bay, there was another voice in her mind. A voice that was screaming, 'you're going to die! You're going to die!' This was the same voice that was encouraging, no, forcing her legs to run harder than she ever had before.
But would Rainbow really hurt her?, she wondered.
Would Rainbow actually go so far as to sink her teeth into her neck, and kill her? Just because she knew the truth?
She didn't know. She'd thought she had. But that was also when as far as she knew, Rainbow was a normal pony. And didn't have glowing red eyes. Or fangs. She probably had fangs.
Vampires had fangs, right?
She couldn't think straight. All she could do was try to keep herself from the maybe monster that was chasing her.
Did Dash mean her any harm? She wasn't sure. Was Dash really a monster like those two others were? She had no idea. She could've been a regular pony just as she always was with just a trick of the light aiding in an accidental deception.
That could've been it. But Rainbow might be a monster, still. Rainbow was a Maybe Monster. And that was that. Sadly.
Vinyl wished she weren't running through a dingy, rainy, and stinky alleyway away from her best friend and potential predator. In fact Vinyl just wanted Rainbow to be her friend.
Then again there wasn't any red light in the alleyway to help what Vinyl saw happen to Rainbow's eyes be a misinterpretation. In fact, Vinyl should just face the facts, Rainbow's eyes really did flash red.
'Then again', Vinyl thought, maybe she isn't like the other vampires. She's probably more decent and less bloody and violent.
Rainbow looked into a puddle in the dingy alleyway. What could've happened to make Vinyl run off like that? She had gotten pretty protective, and maybe a little angry and defensive. She thought about it, bringing that surge of anger back up.
Red eyes stared back at her in the puddle.
Damn it, Vinyl knew.
The yelling stallion and quiet stallion stared at the lone mare staring at herself. Watching her eyes glow red.
This was a coin moment in life.
Heads meant she stayed.
Tails meant she went after her normal companion.
If she went after the other normal pony, they wouldn't go for her companion. They would leave her and her friend alone. But if she left her companion alone...
The quiet stallion and the yelling stallion both grinned. They would have a late night snack.
Rainbow had yelled behind her, called out to her before she had knew that Vinyl had seen her eyes. Dam it. She had to be more careful. She had to be. But something had to be done. Vinyl knew. There was no turning back now. Vinyl knew. Rainbow bared her fangs. Her eyes flashed red and stayed that way. There was only one way to resolve this.
The two stallions waited in the shadows anxiously. Would Rainbow choose tails? Would they get to hunt the other mare?
After a while, Vinyl had stopped running. Tired from dodging rusty crap, and old tires, and just working her hooves and legs to a pulp, she slunk down. And silently cried. She didn't know who to trust. She was lost in a dark, dank, cold alley, and the worst part was that it couldn't get any worse. But that was what she thought...
The other two stallions watched as Rainbow turned tail, let out a low growl, and sped off into the night with unnatural speed in the way her potential victim had run off to escape.
Rainbow, true to her name, dashed through the alleyway, using her heightened hearing to try to detect the blood rushing through Vinyl's veins, or maybe her heartbeat.
Path after path, Rainbow took. Turn after turn she searched.
But finally, after about one minute of searching, straining to hear her living breathing problems heartbeat, she found it. And she smirked triumphantly.
Meanwhile, Vinyl sat in an alley, both hoping and not hoping all at the same time that Rainbow wouldn't find her. She had thought that the two stallions were trouble. Imagine the havoc Rainbow could wreak if she chose. She shivered at the thought. Rainbow Danger Dash was the trouble. Bigger trouble if she was a vampire all this time! What if every time Vinyl hung out with the prismatic pegasus she was knocking on death's door?
Rainbow had been lead to a little alleyway, about 100 feet from the main, bigger one. The heartbeat was here, stronger. The blood was pumping louder. She inhaled and exhaled. It was about time damned time. She really didn't wanna have to do this. But she had to. Otherwise her secret would no doubt be terminated. Permanently. She bared her fangs, checking to see if they were sharp enough. Yes, they were like knives. Not dull at all. Good.
She channeled all of her rage and her predatory urges away. Her eyes ceased to glow. At least, they were duller than before. Good enough. She couldn't have anything give her away. This needed to be done quick and easy. Even if there was an urge to draw it out. Enjoy it. She squashed those urges like Parasprites.
They weren't good for her. If anything it would make her eyes glow brighter than before. It would also encourage her predatory side to take over, and she didn't need that.
'It would feel so good', a voice in her head nagged. 'Cmon you've liked her for a long time. Draining her would feel so good.'
She banished those thoughts as well.
'She would taste so good.' The thoughts persisted.
She tried to ignore it, but her eyes glowed, giving her away.
Vinyl was wrong, it could definitely get worse, and it did once she heard a crunch of broken glass.
Coupled with a flash of red.
Rainbow had gotten distracted by her urges once again. And she had made a sound. Now Vinyl was aware of her presence.
Vinyl threw a piece of trash at the spot where she had heard the crunch. Luckily, with Rainbow's unnatural speed, she could easily dodge it.
Vinyl had tried to attack her. 'Two can play at that game.', a voice in her head said darkly.
She shook her head.
She wasn't going to attack her. She was just going to, what? Peacefully drain almost all of the life force out of her friend, and then hope she forgets?
Yeah, that was basically attacking her.
'No', she told herself. Whether she fully realized or not, she had an admiration for the D.J.
So she decided to do it the merciful way...
Vinyl retreated back into the shadows with every little sound she heard. She wasn't thinking straight. And this lead to her walking where she shouldn't be.
One step backwards. Two steps backwards. Almost completely basked in shadows. Three steps backward, only or more inch of moonlight that she could see. One last step back.
Then she felt a cold breeze on her neck, and something lock around her body. Darkness encased her. And she shivered. At first she though she was caught in something. Then she felt something something sharp travel down her neck, drawing blood. Then a sigh. And she realized that it wasn't a cool breeze, but rather an ice cold breath. And a voice that said in a raspy tone, "Boo."
The arms tightened. She screamed. Or rather tried to, but a hoof was slapped over her mouth before she could call for help.
It was hopeless.
But Rainbow knew what had to be done.
Vinyl knew what she would do.
But their two thoughts were conflicting.
Only one would get their way...
"Shhhh," Rainbow said. "You know what?", she asked. "Might as well scream. It's not like anypony will be able to help." And with that taunting word Rainbow took her hoof off Vinyl's mouth. "But it's worth a chance," she whispered. In the same tone that the yelling stallion had used earlier.
Her breath so close to her neck, and the confined space made Vinyl think things she shouldn't have thought. Especially not about the pony that was trying to attack her. Possibly kill her.
So Vinyl screamed. She screamed once. Because the blood was starting to run down her neck. And because she had no wish to upset Rainbow.
Once the blood got to a certain point, Rainbow would drink it. Maybe casually lick it off.
It was silent for one second. One minute. It seemed that Vinyl was deciding what to say, if she was going to say anything at all, and Rainbow was trying to decide what to do. There was also an air of tension that none of them adressed.
Despite the position, Rainbow was quite comfortable. Vinyl only wished she was half as comfortable as her captor.
"What are you going to do?", Vinyl asked suddenly.
She had to ask. She just had to. It didn't matter if she got killed. She just wanted to know the truth.
"Well I'm not going to kill you if that's what you're worried about.", Rainbow answered.
Vinyl breathed a sigh of relief.
"I mean, I'm kind've considering it.", Rainbow said.
Vinyl tensed up.
"Just kidding. Relax.", Rainbow said.
"Kind've hard to.", Vinyl said.
"Oh right," Rainbow said. "If I let you go, can you promise not to run?"
Vinyl shook her head.
"Okay then, guess we're stuck like this.", Rainbow said, tickling her a little bit.
"Rainbow!", she said, her voice cracking.
"Right, right.", she said.
But then she tickled Vinyl again.
"Okay that's it. If you let me go, I'll promise not to run.", Vinyl said.
"Dang it.", Rainbow said, tickling her and burrowing her muzzle into Vinyl's neck.
Vinyl yelped playfully.
"Stop," she whined. Trying to look tough but ultimately looking whiny.
"Are you sure you want me to stop?", Rainbow asked, looking Vinyl in the eyes. The red had gone down with all the playfulness. Now she had regular magenta eyes. They were pretty, really cool actually.
"No.", Vinyl said, lost in them.
"What?", Rainbow asked.
"Yes.", Vinyl said, shaking herself out of her stupor.
Rainbow smirked a second longer than needed and shook her head.
Then she let go of Vinyl.
Dropping back onto all her legs and walking like a quadruped again, Rainbow said to Vinyl, "I guess you have a few questions."
Vinyl nodded.
"Well fire away.", Rainbow said. "But," she added, "please don't make them stupid or obvious. Like asking if I'm a vampire."
"Fine," Vinyl said. "Why are you a vampire?"
"Because some stallion turned me."
"Yeah, but how?", Vinyl asked.
"Well," Rainbow started. "They bit me, let me bleed out halfway, then had me bite them. That's how it works."
"Is that what you were going to do to me?", Vinyl asked.
"Maybe...", Rainbow said smirking.
Vinyl glared.
"What, you would make an awesome vampire!"
Vinyl blushed. Then she got angry and walked up to Dash, about ready to sock her. So she punched Dash in the muzzle as hard as she could. It didn't even leave a mark.
Dash just cracked her neck, and in a tone cool as ice, told Vinyl to "please sit down."
"Also," Rainbow said, taking off Vinyl's glasses and staring into her eyes, "don't pick a fight with a vampire."
Vinyl's purple eyes blinked and clasped shut under the pressure of the vampire's stare.
Then Dash simply slipped Vinyl's glasses back on her face.
"Vampires have superstrength, as you ponies would say. Which means if a regular pony, even a body builder punches us, we won't flinch. We'll only feel a pinch."
Rainbow smirked.
"Which means your slap", she said continuing, "felt like a little mosquito."
Vinyl scowled.
"Why didn't you tell me?", Vinyl asked.
"Well if you got so freaked out in an alleyway, what do you think you would have done of I had told you earlier in your apartment? You would've thrown like a lamp at me, a mixtape. One of your best demos. Heck, I'll bet you would throw anything at me."
Vinyl bit her tongue.
"What's with the eyes flashing red thing?", Vinyl asked.
"That happens usually in very intense situations. Like when I'm angry, or trying to protect someone. Or in bed."
Vinyl gawked.
"Yeah, but why are they so bright?", Vinyl asked, moving on and getting over her blush.
"Cause they just are.", Rainbow replied.
"Does being a vampire give you super speed?"
"That sounds really cheesy and stupid," Rainbow said. "And no," she continued. "It strengthens all your other abilities by a lot. My best abilities are my strength and my speed, so naturally, being a vampire strengthens that. Now if Twilight became a vampire, she would be like a huge mega mind. It would improve upon her ability to be smarter, and an egghead."
Vinyl nodded, then asked another question.
"How long can you go without drinking blood?"
"Two weeks."
"How long have you been a vampire?"
"Since a couple of years ago."
"How many years?"
"About one thousand, give or take."
Vinyl just gawked.
"Did you want to feed on me?"
Rainbow hesitated slightly. For five seconds. For ten seconds. She thought. But then answered honestly.
"Yeah, pretty much.", she said after a few more seconds of inner debate.
"Are you still the pegasus I've always known?", Vinyl asked, staring into Rainbow's magenta eyes, trying to gauge if she was lying.
"Well duh.", Rainbow said. "Other than a psychotic urge for blood and wanting to rip off everybody's head that messes with my friends. Because I actually can. I'm still basically the same Rainbow you've always known. Except faster, stronger, and slightly more dangerous."
"Slightly?", Vinyl said sarcastically, raising an eyebrow.
"Okay fine Ms. Critical, I'm very dangerous. And here I am over here trying to cushion the blow cause you just found out that your friend you've known for years is a vampire. Excuse me for trying not to freak you out."
Vinyl sighed.
"What?", Rainbow asked.
"Well, you just majorly freaked me out, held me captive for like five minutes, with threats. And you freaked me out majorly, and now you're seriously telling me that now you're not trying to freak me out. Because that's kind of what I've been doing the entire time!", Vinyl said, huffing. She had gotten closer with every word, and was now nose to nose with Dash.
"You're so cute when you're mad.", Dash said, pushing Vinyl's face away. There was an urge to kiss the D.J on the nose, but Rainbow ignored it.
Vinyl just grumbled.
"What?", Rainbow asked again, "at least I didn't drain the life out of you." Then she smirked again. And it drove Vinyl crazy.
"Wait!", Vinyl said, "I just have one question."
"Yes?", Rainbow said.
"How did you get me to do what you told me back there."
"When I told you not to mess with vampires?"
"Yeah."
"Compulsion."
"What?"
"I'll explain later.", and explain later she did. In fact, Rainbow spent the whole night explaining...