Bloodsong

by Not_A_Hat

Rose Colored

The first thing I realized was that everything hurt.

As I returned to myself, the shapes around me slowly shifted from meaningless blocks of color into objects, forms with meaning. I was standing in a cramped room, furniture scattered around, dust filling the air.

"Are you alright?"

Two ponies stood before me. My eyes locked on the speaker, a light unicorn with an electric blue mane, then jerked to the other, a shabby rust-red pegasus, tail streaked with gray. Both of them looked tense, wary. Something strange hovered over them. Fear?

They were afraid… for me? Of me?

My breathing accelerated as fragments of memory chimed in my brain. My eyes darted around the room, bits and pieces jumping clear. I remembered blows, red rage, and a desperate need for something unnamable.

Suddenly, the pegasus jerked forward. My aches flared and I shied. He scared me on a visceral level, and the need to leave this enclosed space squeezed in on me. I spun, the idea of escape filling my mind.

"After her!" the unicorn yelled. Hooves pounded behind me as I surged for the door, slamming it open with my body. I stumbled out, the suddenly too-bright light piercing my eyes. Searing my eyes.

I shrieked at the sudden, stabbing pain. The sunbeam slashed across my face, and I whirled, tumbling back through the door. I couldn't even see, I didn't care that I'd just run, I only needed to be away from that awful light. My head whirled for a moment as I found my hooves. I heard the door swing shut, the lock click, and remembered why I'd been trying to run. I was trapped again.

I turned in place, forcing my eyes open as I scanned frantically for another exit.

"Easy, easy there." The unicorn gave a nervous chuckle. "Just calm down a minute. Please?"

Nothing, no way out. Unable to think, unable to act, my adrenaline melted into despair, and I slowly succumbed to tears.

"There, there."

Through the veil of misery, I felt a gentle hoof on my shoulder. I shuddered and tried to control myself. Why had I been so… volatile, flighty? I was better than this. I was strong, I was confident.

I was crying hysterically.

I sniffled and tried to calm my breathing. When I was a little more coherent, the unicorn offered me a box of tissues.

"Feeling better?" I nodded shallowly and blew my nose. "Here, drink this." She offered me a mug, and I suddenly realized just how parched my throat was. I was about to refuse, but I caught a whiff of the scent and grabbed it unconsciously. I took a shallow gulp before I could stop myself.

It was wonderful.

Hot chocolate? No, spiced wine? No… liquid moonlight, molten comfort. The drink soothed like a snug blanket on a rainy day, a good book by a fireplace. The mug was dry before I even realized. I licked my lips and regretfully handed it back.

"That help?"

I nodded. My vision suddenly cleared. The pegasus was snoring, curled up on the floor. The unicorn offered me a hoof, and I slowly stood. My legs shook, but the aches and pains I was feeling eased away.

"W-Who…?" I gave her a long look. "What?"

"Sorry, sorry." The unicorn smiled gently. "Where are my manners? Name's Vinyl Scratch, nice to meetcha." She held out a hoof, and I cautiously bumped it.

"What happened?" I rubbed my eyes, trying to clear my head.

"I hoped you could tell me that." Vinyl frowned and gave me a searching look. "Do you remember anything?"

"No…" I tried my best to sound confused. In truth, I didn't remember much. Flashes of night, scraps of agony. But I wasn't going to give away anything. Not when I knew so little.

"Phooy." Vinyl gave me an uncomfortable glance, and silence fell.

"Um, what happened to me?" I opened my eyes wide, working to appear harmless. "The last thing I remember, I was digging through the basement for sheet music, and then… Here. And the sun." I shuddered, remembering. "Why did the sun hurt so much?"

"Um." Vinyl coughed. "There's… no easy…" She sighed. "Do you know anything about magic diseases?"

"Not much." I frowned, puzzled. "My brother got swooping cough once." I stopped, curious. "Why?"

"You've, um, got the symptoms of one." Vinyl gave me an earnest look. "I, uh, know the signs."

"Really?" I swallowed, shaken. What had these ponies done to me?

"Yeah, well. Sensitivity to sunlight. Strange mood swings. Memory loss at the onset, sometimes. Weird cravings. It happens to me too."

"Will I be alright?" I tried to gauge her, guess her intent. She was clearly nervous, but I didn't catch any obvious tells. She might not be lying.

"Maybe." She grimaced. "It's different for everypony. Mine's kinda mild. Yours seems a little more severe." She rose suddenly and moved further into the apartment, stepping around overturned furniture and absently shoving the sleeping pegasus out of the way. "Hey, you hungry? Want a sandwich or something?"

"No, I'm—" I glanced at the mug, discarded on the floor. A thick, rich smell wafted off it. "Do you have any more of that?"

"Not sure if that's a good idea." She gave me a cautious glance. "But… what the hay. Yeah, come on."

I glanced back at the door, apprehensive. I didn't want to stay here any longer than absolutely necessary. I still had no idea what was going on here, or who these ponies were. But she hadn't hurt me yet, and… I sighed, remembering that drink. Maybe I could get a little more information. Besides, the door was locked. She'd notice if I made a break for it immediately. I trotted slowly after.

She led me into a cramped kitchen. Through the opposite door, I glimpsed a tiny bedroom, piled high with black boxes and tangled with wires. I watched as she pulled sealed packages of spinach, bread, and tomatoes from the fridge, quickly assembling a pair of sandwiches. She produced a set of mugs, filling them from a dark bottle. She placed one before me and seated herself across the cramped table.

"What do you know about vampirism?"

I looked up, startled at the question. I wanted to sip that drink. I didn't normally like spinach much, but today it smelled great. The packages had been sealed. I'd already drunk whatever she'd given me last time.

"Not much." I hesitantly took a bite. "I usually ignore silly rumors and baseless gossip."

"Silly and baseless, huh?" Vinyl sighed. "If there's nothing behind them, then why do they keep coming up?"

"Ponies are fascinated by predators." I sipped the drink slowly. It was just as delicious the second time, and I tried to place the flavor. Vanilla? Rose? Cinnamon? "It's part of our mindset, our biology. We don't need to be scared of the dark anymore, but it's ingrained, so we make things up. Vampires are the ultimate pony predator. They're faster, stronger, more magical, and they might not even kill you. They're exciting, we're scratching an itch."

"You took Psych 101 huh?" Vinyl gave me a flat stare, and I couldn't help but feel slightly abashed. It hadn't been an exact quote. "Nah, well, that's not totally wrong, I guess. Let's try this, then. Did you know there are, on average, fifteen open missing pony cases in Canterlot City?"

"Huh?"

"Fer real." Vinyl took a bite of sandwich. "And that's just official investigations, what we know about. Could be lots more."

"Why are you—"

"Point is, there are definitely predators out there. And vampires? I have, heh, personal reasons to think there might be something to the rumor."

"What…what do you mean?" I was starting to feel bothered despite myself. I had no reason to trust anything this mare said. But somehow, the reassurance rang hollow.

In response, Vinyl curled her lip. It might have been a sneer, but she pointed to her teeth. Long, sharp teeth.

Fangs.

"Ulp!" I jerked away, disgusted. That looked wrong.

"Sorry." Vinyl shrugged. “Wish I had a way to let you down easy." She shuddered and seemed to twist, shrinking slightly. As I watched, her teeth flattened and faded into normal shapes. "Vampirism is a magical disease. It's transmitted by blood contact. You were attacked last night and—"

"—No, no, no…" I shook my head violently, trying to deny what she was saying. "No, that can't… this can't… You're wrong!"

"It's not easy." Vinyl shrugged. "But running from reality is a bad idea." She sighed and rubbed her eyes. "Look, I'm horrible at this. But you need to know."

"I’m not a vampire. I'm not sick," I spat. I reached for my mug and realized it was empty. Vinyl grimaced. "Look, I… I need to use the bathroom." I slid my chair back. I was done here.

"Over there." Vinyl pointed to the bedroom. "Take a right."

I hurried away, following her directions. Behind me, the table rattled like somepony had just slammed their head into it.

I stepped through the bedroom. It was dark, but a door just to the side let in a slice of light. I looked; sure enough, it was the bathroom. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the window. It was small, but I'd always been flexible. I stepped in and locked the door. Good. Things were looking up.

I unlatched the window and slid it open. Through the thin wall, I could hear Vinyl muttering recriminations to herself. I grinned wickedly. I had no idea what those two were up to, and I wasn't sticking around to find out. I poked my head out the window, and my smile faltered.

I was two stories up.

"Okay, okay." I took a deep breath. "You can do this, Octavia. You've got to get going." Thinking quickly, I twisted my head to look up. My grin returned when I saw the gutter, a heavy antique thing bolted firmly to the edge of the roof. I shouldered my way out, working carefully to maintain my balance.

By planting my hooves on the windowsill, steadying myself on the flashing above the window, and stretching to my limit, I just managed to hook a hoof on the gutter. I wobbled for a moment, and fear of falling flashed through me, but I forced myself to relax and managed to hold on. The fall probably wouldn't kill an earth pony, anyways.

Focusing intently on my hooves, I carefully shifted my weight and adjusted my grip. In a few moments, I had two hooves on the windowsill, and two on the gutter. My grip felt strange; I had a little trouble really grabbing the edge of the gutter, but I was too far to just draw back now. I gave one last breath and heaved myself slowly onto the roof.

It was tough, but I wouldn’t let that stop me. I inched my way upwards, scrambling and swinging, until I managed to hook a foreleg over the edge. After that, it was fairly simple to lever myself to safety.

Now, for a way back down…

I turned quickly, surveying the roof. There had to be one… Ahah! A fire escape! I trotted over, awkwardly climbing down the rickety ladder. The bottom didn't reach the street, probably to keep ponies from climbing up, but the drop was manageable. I tumbled in the mud but shook myself off and climbed to my hooves. As I slunk off into the shadows of the alley, I heard a voice above me.

"Hey, you alright in there? Hey. Hey!"

I grinned, turned the corner, and broke into a slow, deliberate trot.

---

By the time I reached my apartment at the university, I knew something was wrong.

The sun was too bright. Noises were too loud. More than that, though, once I'd escaped, I no longer had a concrete goal to focus on, and my rigid control was starting to break down.

I'd managed to keep myself moving, working steadily towards an attainable end for as long as I had one. Now that was gone, my thoughts wandered freely, little melodies of worry playing across my brain. I pondered what Vinyl Scratch had said, rewinding it again and again. Each time I denied it, but each denial was a little more feeble.

My door was in full sunlight.

I'd managed to stay in the shadows for most of my trip. Once or twice I'd stumbled into a sunbeam, but they'd never burned me like the first one. Now, however, I needed to subject myself to it fully.

I hesitantly extended a hoof. The sun was warm, much warmer than I expected, but it didn't hurt. I sighed in relief and slowly stepped out. I snagged the key from under the mat, unlocked my door, and stumbled into the dark, cool entryway. A small amount of tension melted from me, the simple ideas of 'home' and 'safe' giving me leave to relax.

Still, the feeling wrongness wouldn't leave.

I slipped into my bedroom, wary of disturbing my suitemate. Shimerelle wouldn't be awake yet, but she was a light sleeper.

First things first. I needed understanding.

I pulled out a notebook and pen, sat down at my desk, and started searching my memory.

Sheet music. I wrote that down. The beginning was quite clear; last… I stopped, and checked my clock and calendar. Last night, I'd been at my mother's estate. I'd been in the basement of the dilapidated mansion, searching for sheaves of music. Mom hadn't composed anything in recent years, but some of her old work was still around. We didn't have the money to maintain the grand old place, but the basement stayed dry.

I scribbled an outline. I'd arrived early in the afternoon. Everything had been normal. I'd set up a cot, unpacked my lamp, and gone spelunking. Times and actions suggested themselves easily, and my list grew. I'd been absorbed in the relics of the past, sorting through long-forgotten family keepsakes and documents, but I'd taken a break for supper. Dry granola and cold water. I'd been searching through a box of files when a noise upstairs disturbed me.

I remembered being bothered but decided to check. Old houses made noise, but my mind wouldn't rest easy. I'd taken my lamp, gone upstairs, and…

I frowned, drawing a blank. Things got hazy after that. I skipped ahead.

My next clear memory was standing in that awful little room, with 'Vinyl Scratch' and that red pegasus staring at me. I did a quick outline of my escape, ending with a few notes on what Vinyl had said.

Vampirism
Magical disease
Pointy teeth

I shuddered at the last one, and swallowed dryly. Screwing up my courage, I returned to searching the gap in my memories. When I woke up, I'd had an impression of conflict, violence. I remembered being thirsty, needing something badly.

That triggered a memory. Unbidden, a pair of eyes sprang to mind. In the mansion. They'd reflected my lamp, catlike, as I climbed the stairs. I'd seen them, and… Nothing.

Frustrated, I tried to grasp the feeling again. Need, hunger, desire. The feeling seemed familiar, somehow. Moonlight.

Ahah! I jotted that down and focused on the new thought.

Moonlight, trees, wind, night… the garden?

I frowned, picturing the overgrown, once-grand landscape behind the mansion. I'd loved it as a filly, a place of mystery and wildness. Picturing it in the moonlight, I remembered…

Pain. Helplessness.

I shuddered as a scene finally snapped clear. I'd been laying on the grass, and a deep shadow had swooped from the trees. There had been fighting, and I remembered something of that. There had been an indescribable weight around my neck, and a pain. I reached up to loosen my bowtie—

Clink.

I jumped in my seat, nearly spilling my inkwell, when my hoof touched something cold and hard.

That was not my bowtie.

I looked down. I was wearing a choker, on a thin silver chain. I was so used to wearing a collar that I hadn't even felt it before. It held an ornate setting with a shimmering opal, deep and dark, but brilliant with shattered rainbow sparks.

I remembered that.

A sudden welter of impressions slammed into me. Moonlight, yes. Pain, yes. Weight, pressure, force. I turned back to my paper, scribbling the fragments as fast as I could. At the end, I didn't have much more, but one thing was sure. I had been attacked. There had been a fight. Something strange had been done, to me. I swallowed again, and got up.

I paced back and forth, trying to sort out the impressions, seize comprehension. Eventually giving up, I took a deep breath and turned to my mirror. Alright; I wouldn't be getting anything more from my memory. Moving forward, there was more to confirm.

First, I raised my lip. Vinyl had claimed I had a magical disease. She called it vampirism and told me I had similar symptoms to herself. I sighed when I saw my teeth were normal. Unconsciously, I straightened the choker. It had slipped to the side, so I centered it. I paused.

Moving it had revealed… something.

I leaned in closer, brushing my coat. There were two white spots, hardly more than freckles, in my fur. I parted the hair slowly, unsure. My worries returned full force when I discovered two tiny scars, a few inches apart, directly over my jugular.

Vampire. I stood, breathing heavily, unsure. Just stories, right? But I'd seen Vinyl. Those teeth…

Magical disease. I pushed the murky folklore away and focused on that. Magical diseases were real. I had no idea how much I could trust Vinyl, but magical diseases were concrete, defined, understood.. somewhat. Spells with parasitic replicating factors, either natural or created, had been recorded since antiquity. Could there be truth behind the legends?

Unsure, I carefully reached around to unhook the choker. My hoof searched for the clasp, but found nothing. I frowned and spun the necklace, bringing the chain into view. It took me a full minute of spinning it around my neck before reality sunk in. There was no clasp.

I sighed and wrapped a scarf around my neck before continuing my inspection.

My teeth were normal. My face, where I'd been burned by the sunlight, seemed fine. I couldn't find any other marks or symptoms.

I was… okay?

Cautiously optimistic, I wrote a few more notes.

Sensitive to sunlight, noises?
Necklace

After, I chewed the end of my quill and stared at the paper before I shrugged and packed up. I'd need to be careful, watch myself more carefully. Maybe I could visit the university doctor, see if they could find anything unusual. Other than that, I should check out the mansion, look for clues as soon as possible. If I could find something concrete, evidence of a struggle, I could take it to somepony official, but for now, I didn't have much to go on. I knew Vinyl's address, but what would I say? She had confused me, but that was hardly a punishable offense. She had seemed pleasant enough.

Finally calm, I headed for the bathroom. For this morning, I could put it behind me. I had compiled, assessed, planned. I'd look into things later. For now, I'd return to my normal life. If something came up, I'd deal with it then.

My worries slowly faded as I took a quick shower and fell into my morning routine. Washed, brushed, and ready to re-start my day, I wandered into the kitchen and absentmindedly started making breakfast. The sandwich from earlier seemed distant, fading in the face of routine. I absently wondered what the delicious drink had been.

"Octavia?"

I jumped at the sudden noise, nearly dropping my toast. A creamy unicorn, baby-blue mane mussed from sleep, ambled out of the room next to mine.

"Shimerelle, good morning." I recovered my breakfast and took a bite. It crunched satisfyingly.

"You're back early." My suitemate yawned hugely. "Is that coffee I smell?"

"Help yourself." I waved at the pot.

"Thanks." Her dim aura snagged the pot. "You okay?" She peered at me owlishly in the dim light. "You look a little peaked."

"Um." I paused, thinking, before taking the easy route. "I think I am feeling a little under the weather."

"Aw, sorry." She poured a mug and slurped greedily. "Ahhh, much better. So, what's wrong? Not enough sleep? Drink too much?"

"Hah, no." I shrugged, carefully nonchalant. Acting was second-nature to me. "Maybe I got a cold. The basement is a little musty."

"Sure. Nice scarf." Suddenly, she twitched the curtains open. I flinched away from the sudden light, bumping her. She squeaked and fell. I watched, horrified, as she landed on her mug with a crunch.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't—"

"Ow, ow, ow!" she whimpered, climbing to her hooves. "Oh, that hurt. My coat, my coffee… Octavia, are you okay?"

She'd cut her leg. It wasn't much, just a scratch. I looked at the broken mug, handle snapped clean off, and the puddle of coffee, but my eyes were dragged back to a thin streak of red on her cream coat.

"Oh, I think I cut myself. Octavia?"

It smelled like roses. Cinnamon? Vanilla? I swallowed and tried to look away.

"Sorry." My voice was carefully level. "Like I said, I'm not feeling so good."

Comments

[Handyman]

Tavi's got moves, you don't expect a band nerd to pull off that kind of gymnastics.

[Asheram]

The plot is coagulating.
Another lovely chapter, eagerly looking forward to more.

[paul]

Thank you for the story!
It is nicely done and it is very interesting, I cannot wait for the next chapters
And do not be discouraged by downvoters, please.
I believe in this case those are simply jerks who downvote because they see Octavia and straight shipping in story description. Judging from comments I do not think those even read the story itself.

[Brony Tom]

I've noticed that stories tend to accumulate more positive thumbs as they grow in length, so don't feel discouraged if it starts out mediocre.

As for the story itself, I like how you've got things structured so far. The POV switching isn't a problem as long as you make it apparent in the first line or two who is telling this or that portion of the story.

Octavia's demeanor is rather endearing in this portrayal of her, she's got some wit and a bit of a charming attitude.

[Not_A_Hat]

5641985 Yes, I like 'urban fantasy' a lot. Hopefully I can pull off a decent one. Hopefully I can decide which direction the plot should run, before it starts scabbing over...

5642717 Will do; I don't abandon projects lightly.

5643778 As my antithesis demands, so shall it be!

5645479 One of the things I'm aiming for with this story is to write both strong male and female leads. Octavia is not intended to be at all inferior to Silver, although her strengths lie in different areas. I just hope I don't go overboard in either direction.

5645901 Yeah, I figured I'd get drive-by's on this story. Hopefully now it's out of the 'new stories' list, that will slow down.

5646054 Thanks! The viewpoint should be predictably on/off, and won't switch without the chapter ending, although this might mean some short chapters in the future. Hopefully I can keep it consistent enough, I'm glad you're enjoying Octavia's character. This is the first time I've written a first-person female character - ever. Her watchword here is 'sly', so I hope she stays entertaining and likeable. And although the downvotes are discouraging, I expected some drive-by's on this story; hopefully they'll slow down. At least the comments have all been positive, which is great.

[Asheram]

5645479 Well, 'Tavi is a preformer, it wouldn't surprise me if she does some form of yoga or exercise to keep herself fit when she's going to be seen on stage.

[Jonny5300394]

This is good! I like it for a few reasons. This take on Vampires is new to me, and I like it. Octavia is my favorite pony and I always need more of her, and seeing her not shipped with Vinyl for the trillionth time is awesome! Even more bonus points for it being a straight ship with Octavia! Because that is super-rare.

I'm looking forward to this. Keep it up.

[Dj7291993]

The blood plot thickens! Sorry, couldn't help myself.

until I managed to hook an foreleg over the edge.

"a"