HOW DARK MY LOVER'S KISS

Pt. 1

The little blond was terrified as he approached the dark, beautiful creature sitting on the low stone wall. His mind flashed back to all the tales of his childhood--demons that stalked the night, spirits from the underworld that roamed the darkness--things his mother had told him to frighten him into staying indoors after dark. Now, as he hesitantly walked down the nighttime lane, all those childhood terrors came back to him with brutal clarity. Christian froze within a few feet of the man, his eyes wide and his heart pounding in his ears. The moon was full and bright, casting an eerie silver glow on the creature who sat staring at him. A moist tongue shot out to lick his devil-red lips, his dark eyes gleaming and seductive. Black, tendril-like dreadlocks spilled over the sides of the blood-red velvet headband he wore. His hands rested on the wall behind him, his nails black and sharp as talons. His back was arched slightly, thrusting his chest out, and the way he was staring at Christian, he was certain the man wanted to devour him. Christian took note of his clothes--more fancy and quaint than what most people wore. Black lace spilled over his pale chest, the thin, gauzy shirt revealing more than it covered. Black velvet tights and leather knee-high boots completed the outfit--he looked like a whore--but no whore ever had eyes like that. Shining even in the pale moonlight, they took in Christian with sinister intentions. "What are you doing out after dark, little boy?" The voice from the creature was whispery and seductive, suggesting darker things. "Don't you know there's evil afoot?" "I..." Christian struggled to speak, his wide blue eyes catching the moonlight and magnifying it, his full, pouting lips pursed tight in his fear, his blond cascade of hair spilling over his shoulders like liquid gold. "I was--I was..." "Looking for trouble, ay?" The dark creature tilted his head to the side, smiling a sugary smile ripe with poisonous overtones. "You found me..." he said in a soft, sing-songy voice. "Are you...are you the one they call Vampiro?" The man licked his lips again, so red even in the moonlight, a brilliant contrast to his pale face and dark eyes. "Mmm.…maybe. Maybe not." Christian just stared at him, trembling visibly, watching him in fascination. He arched his back more, leaning back on the heels of his hands, adopting a darkly sinister pout. "I--I was looking for...for the one--the one they call..." Christian stumbled helplessly over his words. "Vampiro?" The man raised one dark, sculpted eyebrow. "Yes." The man just smiled, those moist red lips parting a little and revealing a flash of brilliant white teeth. "Christian..." he said, rocking playfully on his hands. "Chrissy, Chrissy...I know who you are, and I know who you're with--" He glanced around, then fixed Christian with an amused stare, saying again in his sing-songy voice. "It's not gonna wooooork...." Christian gulped, his eyes skimming the trees that flanked the lane. He hoped the others were close enough that if the creature sprung on him, they could help him.

There was a rustling sound in the trees off to the right, and in the space of an instant that it distracted Christian, the dark creature leapt from the wall and somehow made it around behind him. "What the…" Christian gasped, whirling around. The creature gave a feral snarl, and Christian shrieked as black fingernails raked his cheek in a flash, drawing blood. The man whirled around and rushed into the darkness almost faster than Christian could see. In fact, he was quite certain he flew. "Fuck!" Adam snarled, stumbling out of the trees. "We almost had him!" Christian whimpered, touching the three burning lines of pain on his cheek--bringing his hand back and finding a little blood on his fingers. There was more rustling in the trees, and Chris and John appeared as well, stepping out onto the rutted dirt lane. "I'm not gonna be your damn decoy anymore!" Christian wailed as Adam approached him. "Fuck this! He's smarter than us!" The tall, lanky blond tenderly pulled Christian's hand away from the scratches on his cheek, and examined them as best as he could in the moonlight. Christian's eyes were brimming with tears, his lower lip trembling. "Just a couple of scratches," Adam said gently. "Thank God that's all he did." "Son of a bitch!" Chris stomped his foot, his own blond hair flying as he jerked his head. "How many fucking times will he get away from us!" "I say we shoot the bastard next time," John grumbled. He was a brilliant contrast to the three luscious, curvy blonds--a tall, heavily built man with shiny black shoulder-length hair and a scruffy beard. There was distant, sinister laughter from the trees--a good ways off, but still quite audible. They all froze, staring in the direction from which it came. "Bastard," Christian snarled, touching his cheek again. "He's mocking us." "We'll get him, don't worry," Adam said soothingly, rubbing Christian's shoulder. "And you don't have to be the decoy any more. We'll come up with a new plan."

"We better get back to the village," Chris said, looking around at the surrounding darkness nervously. "God only knows where he's going next." "Don't worry," John said, checking the knife he carried on his hip. "Tonight will be the last night that bastard terrorizes any of us. I swear on my father's grave I'm gonna find where he sleeps come morning. Then I'm gonna put a stake right through his black heart." It was a strong promise--one that none of them really believed. Still, no one argued with him as they headed back down the lane toward the village, watching the darkness around them carefully for signs of their enemy. The tiny village of Moonlight Hollow was covered in a blanket of night, the forest that sheltered it circling its outskirts, cutting it off from the rest of the world except for two dirt roads that led out in opposite directions from it. When it came to isolation, you couldn't get any farther away from the world than Moonlight Hollow. The village was normally a happy place--cozy and safe for all its lack of grandeur. But tonight, a good many fires blazed in torches along the main street, and lanterns hung in every window. The villagers feared the night—and what was in it—for the first time in ages. Avoiding the light, the source of their fear slipped through the shadows, smiling darkly as his eyes focused on a small house at the outskirts of the village.   He moved toward it with cat-like grace, looking around to make sure he was alone. Then, deftly, he leapt up onto the window sill and blew out the flickering lantern light…

Jeff Hardy awoke from his sleep, opening his eyes on the dimly lit interior of the small house. The fire in the hearth had died down to embers, casting only the faintest orange glow on the walls and ceiling. He glanced around the room, his eyes a little bleary from sleep. Chris wasn't back yet--that worried him a little, but not too much. Chris knew how to take care of himself better than anyone. Jeff pulled the blanket up around his shoulders, moving closer to Matt for warmth. His brother slept soundly beside him, his dark hair obscuring his face, the covers tucked up around his chin. Jeff pushed the hair away from his face and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek before cuddling up beside him again. He had almost drifted back to sleep, when a faint sound pulled his eyes open again. He couldn't place it at first--it sounded almost like air coming in around the windowpane--a soft 'whooshing' sound. But it wasn't windy tonight... Jeff turned over, peering into the shadowy room. He didn't see anything, and started to lay his head back down. It was then that he noticed a faint mist rolling in under the door. "What the hell?" He wondered out loud, sitting up on the bed. There was no fog outside the window, so it couldn't be the fog creeping in. It was then that he noticed the lantern hanging outside the window was out. The mist continued to roll in, growing thicker and creeping toward the bed. It almost looked like smoke. Jeff watched with wide eyes, his fear increasing as he observed it. When it reached the bed, instead of just dissipating, it crept up the side of it like a living thing.   He noticed it at the bottom of the blanket, creeping up under it like it had an intelligence and purpose behind it. Jeff scrambled backwards, pressing his back to the headboard. "Matt..Matt..." he was so scared he could only whisper. He reached over to shake his brother, keeping his eyes on the thickening mist crawling up onto the bed.

The mist started to take shape, creeping up under the blanket and filling it out. Jeff was so terrified that he couldn't move or speak. But when a pale, slender hand reached from beneath the covers, he let out a strangled scream. The mist seemed to be sucked up under the blanket, pulling up off the floor and adding to the human-like shape under the covers. A man slid out from beneath them, looking up at Jeff and blinking at him innocently. "Hello," the dark, beautiful creature spoke. Jeff couldn't scream or get away, though he desperately wanted to. It felt like something was stopping him--like something had a hold on his vocal cords, and was freezing his muscles. The man wiggled out from beneath the covers, his blood-red lips curling into an evil smile. His black dreadlocks swept his shoulders, his dark, seductive eyes trained on Jeff with wanton, seething lust. "Wake up," the thing whispered softly, poking at Matt's arm. Matt instantly snapped awake, like he had been under a spell. He lifted his head, blinking up at Jeff in confusion, his brother pressed against the headboard in terror, his eyes wide and teeth clenched. Then he looked down and saw the other man there, and sat bolt upright, instantly on guard. "Who the hell are you!" He demanded. The man smiled at him darkly, fixing him with that smoldering, seductive gaze. "Relax, children," he said, his voice a deep, rumbling purr. He waved his hand at them, and they both went slack, Jeff relaxing against the headboard and Matt slumping over. "What are...what are you doing to us..." Jeff whimpered. The man sat back on his knees, lifting his hand over his head, and with a dark, tinkling laugh, snapped his fingers. Matt and Jeff instantly looked up at him, their eyes filling with lust. As the man coaxed them, they crawled toward him, then started to explore his body with their hands, fondling and caressing, their tender mouths placing kisses all over him, their warm tongues flicking over his skin, tasting him. "Mmmmm...." Vampiro smiled, licking his painted lips. "Brothers!"

Pt. 2

Jeff was swooning, clinging to the lovely creature that was holding him. Jeff's hands clutched the filmy silken material of the man's shirt, his head thrown back, eyes half-lidded with ecstasy. The creature was latched onto his neck, drinking deeply from the vein he had opened in the little one's throat. Matt was immobile on the bed beside them, caught in the trance that he had been put into. He stared up at the ceiling mindlessly, his mouth slack and his expression blank. If he could comprehend what was happening to his brother, he couldn't stop it. Jeff whimpered, his eyes fluttering shut, his body responding with erotic pleasure to the creature pressed against him. He pressed his swelling cock against the vampire's thigh, feeling him press back, encouraging him to rub against him. But Jeff was getting so weak that he could barely move. In a red haze, he felt himself slipping into a weak, dizzy state where he could neither think nor speak. Just before he was about to topple over the edge, the dark creature broke the suction on his throat and drew back, bringing his mouth close to Jeff's ear. "I could kill you," he whispered, his voice a dark, seductive melody. "But they'll suffer so much more if I just mark you." The vampire drew back, releasing the limp, languid body from his grasp, his dark eyes flickering over to his brother lying next to him. This one...this one he would kill. He was just about to pull the darker brother into his arms, when the door opened. Lantern light pushed away the shadows of the room, and a collective, horrified gasp rose from the men who entered. "Dear God!" Chris yelled. "Jeff!" The creature scrambled from the bed, but his way out was blocked by the men who stood in the doorway. He flung himself into the corner of the room, crouching down low, just beyond the light of their lanterns. He snarled viciously, his eyes gleaming even in the shadows. Chris ran to bed, clutching Jeff's face and turning his head to the side to see the bloody bite-mark on his throat. Jeff was shuddering in pleasure, his trembling hand at his lips, soft little moans of lust escaping him. Chris scooped him up into his arms, looking fearfully toward the corner.

Adam thrust his lantern toward the creature, making him snarl wildly. Dark blood ran from his lower lip, dripping down onto his pale, exposed chest. None of the men wanted to get too close to him in his trapped state. They knew that like any trapped creature, he was dangerous. Adam pulled the silver cross from his shirt, holding it out towards the vampire. The vampire just snarled, his dark eyes gleaming. Then a cruel smile twisted his blood-coated lips, his red-tinted teeth becoming more evident and horrifying as he bared them at the men. Long fangs protruded from below his upper lip, slick with blood. "Your God does not scare me!" He snarled. "You bastard!" Adam hissed. "You've made your last mistake!" Matt seemed to snap out of his trance suddenly, jerking up on the bed with a scream. The distraction was just enough for Vampiro to make his escape. He lunged forward into the group of men, scattering them, pushing Adam and making him fall onto the bed. But before he ran out the door, he stopped, whirling around to face Christian. "You wanted to find me," he said with a snarl. "Well you got your wish!" Christian screamed in terror as the creature swept him up, flinging him over his shoulder. He was out the door before anyone could grab him. "Christian!" Adam screamed. "Stop him! Stop him!" Then men rushed out the door after him, and Chris handed Jeff over to Matt so he could race after the others. They chased the vampire, impeded slightly by the weight of his captive, through the center of the village. Christian was screaming frantically, trying to struggle free, but he was held tight and unable to escape his captor's grasp. The vampire made it to the stables at the end of the main street of the village, still agile and swift despite his load. He grabbed the first horse he found hitched there, and flung Christian across it, then jumped on with him. Christian, face down across the horse, was held prone by the vampire as he released the horse from its tether. Christian screamed in terror, reaching out to Adam, who he could see racing toward him with the others. Vampiro spurred the horse viciously into movement, letting out a wild and triumphant shriek. His black dreadlocks flew around his face, his visage livid and wild in the torchlight, his eyes focusing on his pursuers with amusement as they scrambled to reach him before he rode off. "Adam! Adam!" Christian screamed wildly, tears streaming down his face. But all Adam caught was a silken tuft of his blond hair as the horse took off away from them. The men came to a halt, gasping and panting, watching the vampire gallop off into the night, shrieking with wild laughter that mixed in a horrible cacophony with Christian's screams.

"We have to go after him!" Adam cried, rushing toward the stables. John and Chris grabbed him, bringing him to a halt. "We can't go out into the darkness after him! For God sakes, he'll kill us all!" Chris yelled. "He'll kill Christian!" Adam screamed. "We have to get some people rounded up!" John said. "We can't go out there alone!" "Do it!" Chris said. "I have to go back and see if Jeff's all right!" He raced back toward the small house on the outskirts of the village, while John and Adam began banging on doors, waking the villagers and begging for their help. Back at the house, Jeff was lying limply in Matt's arms. Matt had removed his shirt and had it pressed against Jeff's throat, trying to stem the bleeding. When Chris rushed in through the door, Matt started a little, still confused as to what the hell was going on. "Jeff--Jeff…" Chris pulled the limp boy into his arms. "Oh God...tell me he's not dead!" "He's still breathing," Matt quickly got off the bed, hurrying to get a rag and some water. "And he was moaning just a minute ago." Chris looked down at Jeff's ashen face. Even his lips were nearly void of color. His eyes were slightly open, but only the whites were showing. He was breathing raggedly, his skin as cold as ice, and Chris began rubbing his exposed flesh, trying to warm it. Matt came back with the rag and started wiping Jeff's face, trying to revive him. "Run and get the doctor," Chris told him anxiously. "He may need a blood transfusion!" Matt hastened to obey, rushing out into the night while Chris held Jeff's limp body. Chris closed his eyes and said a silent prayer--for Jeff and Christian both.

Christian continued to scream as they rode headlong through the nighttime forest, hurting in his position draped over the horse and unable to move. He couldn't see anything except for the ground rushing beneath them, and mostly his hair was in his face. His broken sobs and hysterical screaming did no good. The vampire just continued spurring the horse on, snarling at the beast and Christian in guttural tones, laughing manically at Christian's suffering. Christian had no concept of how long they rode. He was in agony and nearly unconscious from pain and fear. By the time the vampire started to slow the horse, his mind was hazy and his vision had gone black. Vampiro halted the panting horse at the edge of a small encampment nestled in a clearing. Looking back to make sure he wasn't pursued, his eyes flashed in the moonlight. There were no sounds except for the usual night sounds of the forest. He slid off the horse and then drug Christian down, depositing him harshly on the ground.

Christian groaned, curling into a ball and clutching his battered ribs, struggling to breathe. The vampire stepped over him and grabbed the horse's tethers, tying it to a nearby tree. It would come in handy for later excursions, he mused. Christian remained on the ground, lost in a haze of pain and fear, as Vampiro went about lighting a small fire in the center of the encampment and tending to the horse. When he finally came over and scooped Christian up in his arms, Christian moaned and whimpered, but was too exhausted and hurt to scream or struggle. He was laid on a blanket spread near the fire, and given some water. He took a tentative sip, but it almost made him vomit. He was quite certain at least several of his ribs were broken. He moaned in pain, convulsively curling into a ball again. "Ohhhh…pretty Christian," Vampiro hovered over him, a dark thing made lovely by the firelight. "Sometimes I'm so thoughtless. I didn't mean to injure you." Vampiro placed his hands on Christian's ribs, and Christian shrieked as a bolt of pain shot through him. But a second later, the pain began to subside, and he found he could breathe more easily. Vampiro drew his hands away, and Christian unclenched his muscles, surprised to find that he felt much better. He rolled carefully onto his back, gingerly touching his sides. "There…all better?" Christian looked up at his captor, and although his pain was gone, his fear was not. He whimpered, staring at the pale and beguiling visage of the creature the people of Moonlight Hollow called Vampiro. "Take me back," Christian demanded, though his voice lacked power. "You have no right to do this!" Vampiro just laughed, displaying his fangs again, which made Christian flinch. There was still blood on the vampire's chin, and splattered down his chest. Jeff's blood, Christian knew. He had seen them on the bed when they came into the house. He didn't even know if Jeff was still alive. Christian struggled to his knees, and then leapt to his feet. Maybe if he ran fast enough, the thing wouldn't catch him. It was dark and there were lots of places to hide in the woods… "Go ahead and run," Vampiro's eyes blazed in the firelight, his face bright and sinister in the glow. "You don't know where you are, and I can smell you, wherever you hide."

Christian hesitated, wanting very badly to run, but scared by those words. He looked around at the darkness, the fire creating only a small circle of light. Despair washed over him. There really wasn't anywhere to run—he didn't know this part of the forest and it was very, very dark. Christian sat back down, terror washing over him, wrenching more tears from him. He dropped his head into his hands and began to sob, wanting Adam. "Now now Christian," the vampire reached out and stroked his hair, and Christian jerked away. "Come now—don't take on like this." Vampiro tried to grab him, and he wrenched away, letting out a desperate scream. But the vampire easily caught him and tackled him onto the blanket, pinning his body to the ground and holding his wrists so he couldn't lash out. Christian wept hysterically, looking up into the beautiful but terrifying visage of his captor. His pale face and dark eyes made a startling contrast, his blood red lips slightly parted and twisted into a smile. His black dreadlocks brushed against Christian's face, making him shudder. "Be good for me, Christian," the soft, seductive voice purred. "And I'll teach you things you never knew." Christian tried to struggle away, shrieking. Vampiro grabbed his chin, forcing him to look up at him. Christian stared into his captor's dark eyes with terror, then suddenly, his expression went slack, his eyes draining of all their intelligence. "There now," Vampiro relaxed his grip on him. "That's better, isn't it?"

Christian nodded dumbly, his eyes glazed, his expression blank. His body was limp and useless, and inside, his mind had completely shut down to all independent will. Vampiro's eyes traveled the length of the youth's splendid body, taking in the golden hair, the silver-blue eyes, the pouting mouth. The rest of him was just as gorgeous—lithe and lean, with just the right amount of baby fat still left on him. He was a sweet, pure thing, and the scent of the blood rushing through his veins was heady and enticing. If not for his earlier feast, the vampire would have found it difficult not to devour the little golden thing right then and there. He leaned over and clutched the thin white shirt the boy wore, and ripped it apart, popping the buttons on it to reveal a smooth, silken chest and soft, flat stomach. He was a treat for the senses, and the vampire was going to take great delight in not only tasting his lovely flesh, but also claiming that gorgeous body and making it tremble and sing beneath his ministrations.

Chris had stayed behind while the others went into the forest, brandishing their weapons and torches, on the hunt for the vampire that had snatched away one of their own. He was deeply terrified for Christian and wanted to follow, but he couldn't leave Jeff in the state he was in. The grim-faced doctor had left a short while ago, saying gravely that the next twenty-four hours would be critical. If Jeff could survive until the next night, he might be all right. Chris sat near the bed, watching Jeff worriedly. He lay on his back, the covers up around his shoulders, his face still terribly pale. Matt lay beside him, weak from the blood transfusion. He was only half-awake, his eyes heavy, but he too was staring at Jeff.

Chris felt like he had failed somehow. Two years ago, when these boys came to the village, starving and void of all possession but the ragged clothes they wore, he had taken them in and vowed to protect them from the world almost from the outset. They were still so young and innocent, and he had grown quite fond of both of them--though his love for Jeff had a slightly different edge to it. A fact that sometimes sparked the fire of jealousy in Matt. Chris' mind was filled with terror—poor sweet Christian somewhere out there in the darkness with that monster, Jeff clinging to life tremulously in the bed before him. He didn't know which way to turn or who to help. Chris went and got the rag, wetting it in the basin, and brought it back to place on Jeff's forehead. He stared down at the pale and lovely face as he dabbed his brow and cheeks, aching inside with fear and pain. The bandage on Jeff's throat was splotched with blood where it had seeped through the cotton. Chris thought of changing it, but figured it would be all right until morning. The doctor had said to leave Jeff rest as much as he could. Chris went back to his chair after a few minutes, realizing there was nothing else he could do but wait.

The night slipped by with agonizing slowness, Chris listening for the villagers to return, until he fell into drowsing in the chair. Matt also fell asleep, his hand curled into his brother's. Night approached dawn, and Chris only stirred slightly when the noise of the returning mob came from the other end of the village, back from an unsuccessful hunt. Jeff stirred slightly as the first rays of light broke the sky. His glazed emerald eyes slid open, staring up at the ceiling. In his mind, he heard the call from deep in the forest, the primal pull that tugged at his veins, awakening the blood within him. Matt stirred as well, whimpering, for his blood also ran through his brother's veins now. Matt settled back into a restless sleep a moment later, and Jeff's eyes fell closed, the weakness of his body dragging him down again. But the soft voice in his head remained, whispering words of seduction.

TO BE CONTINUED