=w=
mhm!!!! Aight lemme justtttt-
Dee tugged at the hood of his cloak with a gloved hand, shading his eyes as he wandered through the bustling market crowd. It was late afternoon, and the sun had dipped low on the horizon that crisp fall day, the long shadows providing him a respite from the uncomfortable, but not lethal rays. Dee chuckled to himself as he melted into the throng. The myth that vampires would be killed by sunlight, as opposed to merely irritated, had helped provide him with many delightful meals.
Such as today’s.
Dee had found him dragging a struggling young woman into a darkened cellar. Distracted by his own efforts to muffle the poor thing’s cries for help, the man hadn’t noticed Dee until he’d grabbed him from behind, fangs a breath away from his tart, sweat-covered skin. Dee raised his eyes over the man’s shoulder and glared at the young woman, frozen in front of them with her mouth hung open. “Run,” he’d ordered in a whisper before sinking his hungry teeth into her would-be assailant’s neck. Dee drained him, then let his limp body fall down the stone cellar steps.
Sated, Dee still couldn’t help the heady giddiness that threatened to overtake him as the hot, sweet scent of flesh and blood and life surrounded him on every side. The warmth of the early autumn sun discouraged most shoppers from wrapping themselves in too many layers and Dee took pleasure in the sights and smells ofthe vitality moving past him, all within hands’ reach.
The pleasure turned to a subtle, empty ache, though, as the approaching dusk called families indoors and drew lovers both young and old outside. As he glided through the marketplace, Dee fought to ignore the gnawing yearning in the center of his chest as he passed couple after couple walking hand-in-hand, fingertips grazing pulse points, nervous heartbeats racing. His skin itched as the pairs drew close to each other, trading soft glances and furtive kisses in the crowd, or exchanging more in shadowed alleyways.