Chapter 1: Feeding grounds
Chapter Text
After the corruption of the beasts, they were delft the wrath of the gods known as witches.
Each beast were bestowed upon with a different curse, all resulting in them becoming revolting creatures in the eyes of others.
Mystic flour had been transformed into a gorgon, a creature that can kill anyone she looks at by reducing them to nothing. Burning Spice, now an oni who wreaks havoc and destruction after gaining superhuman strength from his demonic state. Silent Salt was reduced to a golem, they are known for their silent attacks and will not stop until their enemy is defeated. Eternal Sugar was blessed with beauty in the shape of a rakshasi, a demon that appears as a beautiful woman, through shape shifting, to lure in humans to feast upon, as a rakshasi she discovered she was also capable of creating illusions.
Their followers were also given a similar sentence, although they were not as severe. Cloud HaeTae was granted the fortune of living their name as a HaeTae who attacks anyone who is guilty of defying their master, protecting Mystic Flour from harm. Nutmeg Tiger becoming a tigress, the top half of her remaining human while the bottom resembling that of a tiger, she is the fierce protector of Burning Spice. After the corruption, Eternal Sugar gained her followers in forms of sugar angels, humans who had transformed into demonic creatures disguised as angels, her most trusted being Pavlova and Sugarfly. Due to Eternal Sugar’s appearance being that of an angel herself, they believed that they too were granted the pleasure of becoming true angels living in her garden of delights.
Shadow milk and his servants of deceit were handed the worst curse of all. Vampirism. Originally Shadow Milk was the only one cursed to eternal suffering as his servants remained human for him to inevitably tear apart due to his growing hunger, however Black Sapphire and Candy Apple wished to share the pain their master was dealing with, allowing him to transform them into the bloodthirsty creatures they are now. They quickly learned of their new abilities that came with their vampirism and used them to spread lies and fear across earthbread once more.
After a month of the three travelling together to planish their hungry, Shadow Milk decided that he needed more. The suggestion of specific feeding grounds appeared before the two younger vampires, which they jumped at the opportunity for. Candy Apple was given a small village located at the edge of crispia in order to prevent detection, as the young vampire was not the greatest at avoiding detection. Shadow Milk had his eyes set on gaining back the other half of his powers which were bestowed upon one of the current ancients in the form of a soul jam. In order to do this, he needed to locate which ancient posses his power. He decided to give Black Sapphire the faerie kingdom, with the hopes he would overhear information regarding the soul jam after discovering it had been taken over by one of the ancients after the death of Elder Faerie. He had once tasted the blood of Elder Faerie, after escaping the silver tree, and described it as the most addictive of the bloods he had tried before due to its sweetness.
Not long after hearing this, Black Sapphire had stood in front of his mirror to straighten himself up before transforming into a bat and taking off out of his bedroom window. Under the moonlight, his black silky coat shimmered a purple hue as he glided through the night air. He travelled just further than the boarder of the faerie woods before landing by a lake, illuminated by the soft glow of the moon. He de transformed, his foot snapping a branch as it returned to the earth beneath it. Then it happened. Within an instant he felt a stabbing pain in his right shoulder. He turned to look, realising he had been struck with a silver arrow. His lack of sustenance was made apparent as he began to feel a burning sensation from the silver almost immediately and his head started spinning. Suddenly his body went limp and he passed out on the grass but before he had lost consciousness he had heard… a bell?
Chapter Text
A pair of wings shimmered in the moonlight as they fluttered through the thick trees of faeriewood. A trail of jingles followed the faerie as his wings occasionally hit off one another. Silverbell’s mind was everywhere but where he was, so when i heard a branch snap to the side of him, he was forced to snap back into reality and instinctively draw his bow and shoot in the direction. The fae slowly approached the area he recognises as a lake. That’s when his eyes landed on him.
A tall figure, with glossy black hair and a black suit with purple detailing laid on the edge of the water with a silver arrow lodged in his shoulder. His arrow. “Shit!” The faerie hung his bow on his quiver before rushing over to the strangely dressed man. “Mercurial knight is going to kill me for this..” Panic overcame him as he realised just how much blood had been lost.
He decided the best course of action would be to treat his wound himself, finding a healer this late at night would be close to impossible. Silverbell picked up Black Sapphire bridal style and carried him back to his cottage situated on the border of the faerie kingdom and faeriewood.
Once back at Silverbell’s cottage, he placed the unconscious man on his bed before throwing his quiver and bow in a corner and retreating to the bathroom where he kept bandages and pain medication. As silver knight, Silverbell has had delft with plenty of injuries himself so he decided to teach himself basic first aid.
He returned to the room, now leaning over the side of the bed. His hands hesitate for a moment before grabbing on to the shaft of the arrow and pulling it out, causing the man below him to stir slightly. His face grimaces as he looks at his bloodied hands. Waiting no time, Silverbell removed Black Sapphire’s blazer, vest and suit shirt before applying pressure to the wound with a clean cloth to control the bleeding. One the bleeding had slowed, he cleaned around the area before lifting the man slightly to apply a bandage.
After lowering Black Sapphire back down on the bed, Silverbell stood up admiring his work before dragging himself to the living room and collapsing on his sofa.
Golden light spilled into the cottage through the gaps in the blinds. The rays creeped into the bedroom, reaching for the peaceful body laying on the bed. Once the glow had a grasp on what it was aiming for, skin began to burn, blisters forming. The sensation woke sapphire, causing him to jump away and retreat into the dark corner of the room. He quickly moved over to the window, making sure to follow to curve of the walls, and close the blinds, banning the light from entering the room. Wait a minute. Who’s room is this? He doesn’t recognise it as any room he knows in the spire. Then he remembered getting hit with an arrow and passing out. Fuck. He was in some random persons house.
He looked down at the bandage wrapped around his wound then over at the blood stained sheets messily thrown across the bed.
But before he could get his thoughts together fully, he smelled it. Blood.
It was unlike any he had smelled before, this blood smelt sweet with a floral undertone and slightly herbal. He was instinctively drawn towards the smell, carrying himself to the living room. The smell was stronger in here. His eyes landed on the silver man sleeping on the sofa. Every bone in his body was screaming at him to bite, but he fought against his instinct out of respect for the man saving him.
Sapphire looked over at the window, thats when he noticed the only blinds that were drawn in this whole cottage were the ones in the bedroom he had just left, but he decided to brush past that thought as he now was thinking of ways of leaving.
His thoughts were soon interrupted by a stirring faerie, waking up and yawning. Sapphire immediately froze as the faerie sat up and stretched before looking over at him. “Oh! You’re already up.” Sapphire nodded as he watched the man stand up and stretching again, this time with more focus on stretching his wings. He turned to face Sapphire again. “So, how are you feeling? Are you in much pain?” He took this opportunity to stare at the bandage before Sapphire replied. “It kinda stings but it’s much better now thanks to you.” He forced a fake smile, which the other seemed to appreciate as he returned with a smile of his own and a small flutter of his wings.
“My names Silverbell! What’s yours?” Black Sapphire knew better than to tell a faerie his real name. What may seem like an innocent question, can be turned into falling under a spell by the fae. His face must have twisted as Silverbell began to panic. “No no, i didn’t mean it like that! Don’t worry i would never use someone’s name against them.” Sapphire wasn’t convinced so he did what he does best. Lie. “In that case, i’m grapevine. I trust that you will stick to your word.” He slightly bowed while introducing himself, a habit he got into that candy apple would constantly tease him for.
Silverbell walked towards sapphire, making him panic as the scent of his blood became more and more intense with every step. Soon enough Silverbell was stood directly infront of him. “These need to be changed” he said in a hushed voice as he reached up and placed his hand on the bloodied bandages covering the shoulder of the man infront of him. The vampire felt himself begin to salivate as he was being consumed by the sweet smell of the faes blood. His fangs tract just as Silverbell begins to move towards the bathroom in search for more bandages and cloth to clean the wound. Sapphire stood there in shock of how much he was struggling to control himself around this faerie. He forced his fangs the retract and i lead to the sofa the second Silverbell returned.
They both sat down facing each other as Silverbell slowly peels the bandage off of the wound. That’s when he noticed that the entire area surrounding the wound looks as though it had been burned. He didn’t question it, not wanting to make the interaction anymore awkward than it already is. He wiped around the wound, quietly apologising every time the vampire would wince or flinch away. Once the bandage had been replaced, Silverbell stood up and left to grab something. This gave time for sapphire to exhale a lot of air he didn’t know he was holding in, while trying to distract himself from biting Silverbell.
Silverbell returned with his bow and quiver slung lazily over his shoulder. “I have patrol but feel free to stay here as long as you need. There should be food in the cupboards and fridge!” Sapphire nodded as Silverbell walked to the door. “Bye darling, have a good day at work!” Silverbell never turned back so Sapphire never saw his reaction however the quick flutter of his wings and his grip tightening in his bow told him all he needed to know, earning a grin from Sapphire.
After Silverbell had left, the cottage was quiet so Sapphire decided he had earned himself a nap. He wasn’t planning on sleeping long, just until the sun had set so he could finally return to the spire. So that’s what he did, he returned to Silverbell’s bedroom and made himself comfortable in his bed before drifting back to sleep.
Notes:
I don’t think i explained this well while writing but in mythology when a human gave a faerie their name, the faerie would use it to influence the human’s behaviour and take partial control over them. The name must be said by that person and not given to the faerie by someone else for it to work.
Chapter Text
Black Sapphire cut through the sky like a wounded crow, wings faltering beneath the bruising weight of fatigue. Every few miles, he was forced to stop, perched in the branches of crooked trees, hunched over panting from exhaustion.
The animal blood he’d fed on between rests gave him barely enough to keep airborne. It wasn’t sustenance, it was survival. His shoulder screamed with every flap, the silver burn deep in the flesh still smoldering from last night’s encounter in the Faerie Borderlands.
By the time the obsidian spire of the castle came into view, Sapphire was swaying in the wind, his black hair matted with sweat and blood. He didn’t land so much as stumble through his open bedroom window, nearly collapsing.
His body hit the bed like a stone, face-first, chest heaving. The room spun.
Peace lasted two minutes.
BANG .
The door burst open like a thunderclap, and in bounded Candy Apple, voice already rising.
“WHERE WERE YOU?! YOU DIDN’T COME BACK LAST NIGHT!” she paused for a second “AND WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR SHOULDER?!”
Sapphire groaned, didn’t look at her. “Got shot.”
“That’s it?” she stormed toward him. “You disappear into fae lands for a whole day, you come back bleeding, and all I get is ‘got shot’?”
He didn’t respond.
So naturally, Candy jumped onto the bed, straight onto his wounded side.
“ARGH—” he snarled, arching in pain, fangs flashing. “Candy, get the hell off me!”
“Make me,” she said, grinning from ear to ear.
“I swear, if I wasn’t injured—”
“Well you are.” She leaned down, face inches from his. “Also, Eternal Sugar’s here. So get. Up.” She bounced off him and straightened out her skirt.
Sapphire grumbled something unintelligible, but he moved. Slowly. Agonizingly. He threw his legs over the bed’s edge and dragged himself upright, shirt sticking to dried blood on his shoulder.
“Wonderful,” he muttered. “Just what I need, company.”
Candy skipped ahead like it wasn’t two in the morning and they weren’t walking into a room filled with temptation and suppressed bloodlust.
The grand dining hall was cold, all echoes and abandoned warmth. What had once been a place of mortal rituals was now a command room for creatures long past hunger in any traditional sense.
At the end of the long table sat Eternal Sugar and Shadow Milk, side by side.
Shadow Milk, their master, barely acknowledged Sapphire’s entrance beyond a brief flick of his two toned eyes. Eternal Sugar, as ever, was serene, her pale skin aglow under the torchlight, long pink hair coiled neatly down her back.
And her scent, sweet, intoxicating, laced with something metallic and divine, engulfed the room.
Sapphire clenched his jaw. Not out of desire. Out of restraint. Sugar’s blood didn’t tempt him the way it did Shadow. But even he could admit the aroma was power incarnate.
“Welcome back,” Sugar said softly, eyes flicking to his bandages. “You look like you fell out of the sky.”
“I did,” he muttered. “Twice.”
“Sit,” Shadow commanded.
Sapphire obeyed without hesitation, though not without a muttered, “Your concern is overwhelming, Master.”
Shadow Milk narrowed his eyes, but said nothing.
Candy flopped into a chair with exaggerated flair. “So, what’s the crisis of the week? More fae drama? New rumours you need spreading?”
“We’re getting the soul jams back,” Sugar said simply.
Sapphire raised an eyebrow. “From Pure Vanilla and Hollyberry?”
Shadow nodded. “We’re going to break them until they hand over our souljam.”
“As much as i love your enthusiasm ,” Sugar cut in. “I would prefer to wait for my other half to join me in my garden.”
“Of course you would,” Sapphire muttered.
Candy leaned her chin on her hands. “And what about us?”
“You and Sapphire will lead him here,” Shadow said curtly.
“Yay! Another mission with sapphie.” she jumped in excitement. “We have such good banter.”
“You’re annoying,” Sapphire said flatly.
“See? He loves working with me.”
Shadow cut in with a sharp look. “Enough.”
The tension simmered. Sugar turned to Sapphire, eyes flicking to his shoulder again.
“I brought something for you.”
She slid a small velvet box across the table. Sapphire opened it to reveal a cold iron ring , its surface etched with delicate sigils. He felt the protective charm hum faintly, even through the metal.
“For the fae,” Sugar explained. “In case you’re reckless enough to go back to feed after that injury.”
He looked up at her, eyes unreadable. “You knew?”
“Shadow told me.”
“Of course he did.”
Sugar smiled faintly. “I’m not going to ask about your wound.”
Sapphire nodded once, slow. “Appreciated.”
He slid the ring on his middle finger. The chill sank into his bones like a reminder. “It fits.”
“Good. I’d have hated to resize it.”
“Thank you,” he said genuinely, but careful. “You didn’t have to.”
“I know.”
Sapphire had only met Sugar face to face a few times before, most of the time he was stuck babysitting her minions during her visits. He had no interest in her whatsoever but he did hold respect for her dealing with his bloodthirsty master, who was watching their interaction very closely. And brooding.
After nearly an hour of planning; maps, runes, blood networks, they finally wrapped. Shadow’s jaw was tight, his skin pale, his hunger raw from hours beside Sugar.
Sapphire noticed. Everyone did.
“Candy. Sapphire. You’re dismissed,” Shadow said, not even looking at them.
They made their leave.
In the hallway, Candy sighed. “Soooo… what now?”
Sapphire was already rolling his shoulder, eyes toward the open balcony. “I’m going back out. I need something better than animal blood before I start going insane.”
Candy groaned. “Ugh, what am I supposed to do?”
He looked over his shoulder, deadpan. “I don’t know. Go annoy a guard or something.”
“I already did. Twice.”
“Then do it again.”
And before she could whine further, his form shimmered, dark wings unfurling from his back in a sweep of magic and shadow.
“Wait! Don’t you want—”
But he was gone, shooting into the night sky, the wind of his departure tugging her hair and extinguishing the torches down the hall.
Candy stood in the silent corridor, arms crossed.
“…Rude,” she muttered, then smirked. “Guess i’ll just go break into his room.”
Notes:
Eternal Sugar becomes more important later on but for now she’s kinda just a blood bag.
Chapter 4: The first meal
Notes:
I have the next 2 chapters after this already written but i kinda got a writers block on how to continue after 😭 I have ideas for future chapters after but idk how to lead up to them so i’m saving the already written ones until i get ideas for chapter 7
Chapter Text
The Faerie Kingdom shimmered under the moonlight, its cobblestone paths glowing faintly with magic. Delicate silver threadwork had been hung along rooftops and lampposts, protection charms against the undead. Sapphire noticed them immediately as he slipped between the shadows of the outer boarders.
Silver, laced into the decor like frost, glinted at every turn.
“Smart,” he murmured to himself, pausing just before passing under a lattice of silver ivy. “A bit rude, but smart.”
His hunger gnawed at him like a wild dog. Animal blood was barely a whisper compared to the symphony of life here. He moved carefully, cloak pulled close, staying within the blind spots of the sentries. And then—
He saw it.
A lone faerie, small-framed and golden-haired, wandered down the street with no urgency. Their aura glowed softly, like fireflies around a flame.
He dropped soundlessly to the street behind them. “Evening.”
The faerie startled slightly, but turned—and locked eyes with his.
That was all it took.
Hypnosis didn’t require many words. Not when he was this hungry.
Sapphire stepped closer, his voice velvet-smooth. “Would you walk with me? The woods are beautiful tonight.”
The faerie’s lips parted slightly. “Yes… okay…”
They followed him without resistance. The edge of the woods welcomed them with whispering trees and soft moss.
Sapphire paused only once, brushing his fingers against the faerie’s wrist. “This won’t hurt long.”
His fangs slid down with a quiet click.
He sank them into the wrist, not the neck. Less invasive. More respectful. Or so he told himself.
The faerie gasped, cheeks flushing with heat. Their knees gave out moments before unconsciousness took them.
Sapphire laid them gently down among the roots of an old willow. His own senses had steadied now. Mind clearer. Chest heavier.
He straightened himself up before heading deeper into the forest.
Not far from where he just was he froze.
Silverbell.
The faerie patrol officer was standing nearby, not too far off, scanning the woods with his delicate, bow-strung eyes. His wings fluttered gently behind him, the soft sound of bells faint in the air.
Sapphire straightened. “Silverbell.”
Silverbell turned quickly, startled. “Oh. You again.”
There was a pause before Sapphire offered a half-smile. “Didn’t mean to startle you.”
“Wasn’t startled,” Silverbell said quickly, then cleared his throat. His wings betrayed him, fluttering with a high chime.
“Should I be concerned you’re lurking out here again?”
The faes silver hair, like spun moonlight, glimmered in the dark. His blue eyes were narrowed, but not hostile.
Sapphire’s lips curved. “If I say I was just admiring the trees, would you believe me?”
Silverbell smirked faintly. “No.”
“Didn’t think so.”
They stood a moment in silence, then Sapphire took a step forward. “Actually… I came to thank you. For what you did. My shoulder—it’s healing now.”
“Oh.” Silverbell flushed, brushing his fingers through his pale hair. “It’s my job. Helping people.”
“Still. You were gentle.” Sapphire’s gaze lingered. “Not everyone is.”
Silverbell’s wings gave another soft jingle, betraying the pink growing in his cheeks. He shifted, clearly trying not to look flustered.
“You didn’t need to come all the way out here just to say that,” he muttered, stepping forward to resume his patrol.
“No,” Sapphire said, falling into step beside him. “But I wanted to.”
They walked in silence for a few moments, the occasional chime of Silverbell’s wings filling the gaps. The woods were quiet, no signs of other fae nearby. Thankfully, the unconscious faerie Sapphire had just fed from was well behind them.
Sapphire noticed Silverbell’s constant glances before the question came.
“You wear iron?” the faerie asked, nodding to the ring on Sapphire’s hand.
Sapphire looked down. The cold iron ring, a gift from Sugar, meant to protect him here, glinted against the moonlight.
“A friend gave it to me,” he said easily. “Why?”
Silverbell stopped walking. “Do you… do you know what cold iron does to us?”
“Should I?” Sapphire tilted his head, feigning innocence perfectly.
“It weakens our magic,” Silverbell said quietly. “It burns if it touches our skin. That kind of metal’s not meant to be worn around here.”
Sapphire looked down at the ring again, then slowly removed it and tucked it into his pocket. “Didn’t mean to alarm you. Guess it’s not a very thoughtful gift after all.”
Silverbell glanced away, lips twitching.
“You know,” Sapphire added, a sly smirk spreading across his face, “if you wanted to hold my hand, you could’ve just asked instead of staring at it like that.”
Silverbell’s wings exploded into motion, the chimes sharp and unmistakable. “I wasn’t—I didn’t—! I wasn’t staring!”
Sapphire grinned. “No? I felt your gaze burning through me.”
“You’re insufferable,” Silverbell mumbled, wings still fluttering.
“Just honest,” Sapphire teased. “Though if I’m being really honest… you blush quite prettily.”
“You’re unbelievable.”
“I’ve been called worse.”
They continued in silence, though Silverbell’s posture had softened. His wings no longer buzzed with frustration, and his steps slowed slightly, as if he didn’t mind the company anymore.
After a while, Silverbell spoke again. “Why do you even come here? You don’t seem like youre from the faerie kingdom.”
After Elder Faerie’s passing and White Lily stepping up to be the next guardian, she had become more lenient with travellers visiting the Faerie Kingdom, however it was still rare anyone visited the kingdom as many of the fae did not take kindly to outsiders.
Sapphire shrugged. “I’m not. But there are things here worth coming for.”
Silverbell shot him a look. “Like what?”
Sapphire smiled slyly. “You’ll have to keep walking with me to find out.”
This time, Silverbell didn’t reply. But his wings fluttered with a quiet, almost musical ring.
The patrol ended with the faintest beginnings of dawn threatening to spill across the sky.
“Thank you,” Silverbell said, stopping at the edge of the woods. “For staying.”
Sapphire gave a short nod. “I had nothing better to do.”
A pause lingered. They looked at each other just a moment longer than necessary.
“Goodnight, Silverbell.”
“Goodnight Grapevine.”
Once he was sure Silverbell was gone, Sapphire turned away and stepped deeper into the shadows. His body shimmered, morphed, wings stretching from his back, dark as the sky. With a single beat, he soared upward and vanished into the clouds.
Back to the spire.
With the sound of silver bells still ringing in his ears.
Chapter Text
A low hum echoed off the walls of White Lily’s chamber, the flickering faerie fire casting soft glows against the high arched ceiling. Silverbell had been summoned urgently, to the heart of the palace. He stood now before Queen White Lily herself, her ethereal beauty radiant even in worry,as well as Mercurial Knight and several other silver-armored figures whose names he didn’t care to remember.
“The body was discovered at dawn,” one knight began, his voice grim. “Drained entirely. No sign of a struggle, just… pale and discarded like yesterday’s petals.”
White Lily’s expression hardened. “We’ve gone nearly a decade without a vampire setting foot in our forests. This is a violation. I will not have our borders defiled.”
Mercurial Knight leaned forward, arms crossed. “Do we know if this was an isolated incident or the beginning of a campaign?”
“We’re investigating.” the knight replied.
Silverbell stiffened.
“Why would they attack now?,” White Lily murmured. “We haven’t seen a vampire since- ” She cut herself off, not wanting to reopen a healing wound.
She turned to Silverbell, her voice suddenly cutting. “We’ll increase the guard patrols along the western woods at night. You’ll report directly to Mercurial. There will be a curfew enforced on all faerie citizens until further notice and any travellers must be accompanied by a silver knight at all times.”
“Understood, Your Grace,” Silverbell said with a bow, heart thudding.
“I won’t have panic, but I won’t have silence either. Let the people know there’s been an incident. Let them know we are watching.” She stood. “That is all. Dismissed.”
The knights saluted. Mercurial gave Silverbell a nod before vanishing like mist. Silverbell turned and walked alone out of the chamber, his footsteps quiet on the polished floor.
His thoughts twisted like storm winds on the walk back to his small forest cottage. He kept replaying the symptoms: the complete drainage of blood, the way the wound hadn’t fully closed, the strange blistering around the edges.
And Sapphire.
The beautiful, strange man who only ever appeared after sunset. The way his skin avoided moonlight. The time Silverbell had fired a silver arrow and it struck Sapphire’s shoulder. The mysterious burns around the wound.
Silverbell shook his head. No. He can’t be. I’m being paranoid. Right?
Rain drizzled through the overcast sky as Sapphire stirred awake. The soft pattering on the window let him know: the sun was hidden. His moment.
He dressed quickly, not in his usual attire since he would be seen by more than the one fae he had his eyes on, he wore a plain black shirt over a dress shirt allowing the collar to stick out , purple pants and a muted purple apron over top. He decided to add a grape clip to his hair to make the outfit look less bland. A smile curled over his lips. A perfect day for a visit.
The faerie kingdom bustled even in the rain. Sapphire strolled through the market, pulling his hood low, until he spotted a familiar figure beneath an ivy-wrapped arch.
Silverbell stood still, eyes unfocused, lips slightly parted as though lost in some worry.
Sapphire grinned.
With ghost-quiet steps, he approached and leaned close, whispering, “You’ll ruin your pretty face with that expression.”
Silverbell jumped with a startled gasp, spinning to face him. His cheeks flushed a lovely rose. “Did you just say my face is pretty?”
“Maybe I did,” Sapphire smirked, brushing a raindrop from Silverbell’s hair. “Now, what does my dear Silvie have to worry about so deeply he doesn’t even notice a handsome stranger sneaking up on him?”
Silverbell bit his lip, flustered, before sighing. “There was a meeting. About a vampire attack. Someone was killed in the forest. They’re setting a curfew and assigning guards to visitors. I…”
Sapphire’s face fell into an unreadable mask.
“I see,” he said softly. “That’s… concerning.”
Silverbell gave him a half-hearted smile. “Come eat with me. I’ll pay.”
Sapphire hesitated—then nodded. “Only because I’d hate for you to dine alone in this weather.”
They walked quietly, the rain softening everything around them. A retro dessert shop offered warmth and nostalgia, and the two took a booth in the dimly lit corner. Silverbell ordered a strawberry cake, the pink cream making his eyes brighten. Sapphire chose a muffin—simple, nondescript.
Silverbell took his first delicate bite of cake.
Sapphire watched him with fascination, lips twitching.
“Are you going to eat, or just stare?” Silverbell teased.
Sapphire actually laughed. A real, honest sound. “You’re too distracting.”
Still smiling, he forced himself to take a bite of the muffin. It tasted like ash and earth in his mouth, his body screaming in protest but eating food during today’s visit during day should set Silverbell’s mind at ease. He swallowed thickly, ignoring the churning in his stomach. It’s worth it. He’s worth it.
They chatted for twenty minutes. Sapphire held onto every word, but the pain became unbearable.
“Excuse me,” he said, slipping from the booth.
He made his way to the restroom, stomach lurching violently. As soon as he entered a stall, he vomited. The muffin came up with the crimson remnants of last night’s feeding. He wiped his mouth, breathing hard, but the worst was yet to come. He walked out of the stall, standing infront of a mirror while leaning on the sink, ensuring his appearance was still up to his standard.
The door creaked open.
A faerie man entered, unaware. Sapphire watched him through the mirror, pupils blown wide with hunger and instinct. The man entered the nearest stall and Sapphire moved.
Silent as a shadow, he caught the door before it closed and stepped inside.
“Hey! What do you think you’re—” the faerie began.
Sapphire’s hand covered his mouth. His eyes glowed. His fangs unsheathed.
He lunged.
The man’s struggles died quickly beneath Sapphire’s grip as he drained him, fangs deep, the blood burning down his throat. He didn’t stop until it was too late.
The man slumped, pale and still. Sapphire stepped back.
Too much.
He locked the stall door, transformed into a small black bat, and slipped out through the crack above the stall door.
Back in his human form, he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and returned to the table. Silverbell looked up, face lighting like dawn.
“Aw, did you miss me that much?” Sapphire teased.
Silverbell flushed, rising to his feet. “I’ve already paid. Let’s go.”
Sapphire offered no protest, following the fae outside into the soft mist.
Silverbell walked without speaking, instinct carrying him toward the quiet grove where his cottage lay nestled in moss and ivy. Sapphire’s smirk returned as he realized where they were headed.
“Taking me home after the first date? How bold.”
Silverbell’s wings fluttered anxiously. “Well, do you have somewhere else in mind?”
Sapphire tilted his head. “No.”
They stepped inside. Silverbell sank into his sofa with a sigh, raindrops still clinging to his lashes.
“I have the night shift again. You know.. Vampire watching.”
Sapphire nodded. “Then I won’t stay long.”
He sat next to Silverbell, watching. He studied the scatter of freckles on his cheeks, the fluff of his silver hair, the way his veins shone (shun?) faintly beneath the fair skin of his wrist. He looked away before hunger replaced warmth in his gaze.
Silverbell yawned, and Sapphire looked back.
“You should rest before your shift,” the vampire said, standing. “I’ll take my leave.”
Silverbell nodded sleepily. “Thanks for staying with me again.”
Sapphire opened the door, turning back just once.
“It’s nothing, my dear. Good luck… vampire hunting.”
And he was gone before Silverbell could answer.
But his presence lingered like a dream.
Notes:
My friend recently got me addicted to the gachapon bot on discord and i’ve just been playing with that instead of writing characters
Chapter 6: The Reading
Notes:
This may seem like i random chapter but i promise it’ll make more sense later why i wrote it 😓
Chapter Text
The rain had eased into a steady drizzle, soft against the stone spires of the ancient tower that pierced the grey sky. Sapphire moved through the winding halls of the spire with his usual quiet grace, boots making barely a sound on the dark stone floor slick with damp. The cold didn’t bother him, hadn’t in centuries. He had hoped the stillness would help clear his thoughts, but fate, it seemed, had other plans.
“Saaaappphire~!”
He stopped in his tracks, eyes slowly sliding shut as he exhaled through his nose. That voice was unmistakable.
He turned just in time to see Candy skipping toward him, her dark cloak trailing like spilled ink behind her. As always, mischief danced in her red eyes. Floating a few paces behind her was a shimmering winged figure cloaked in silk: Pavlova, smiling wide as if he lived in a world of constant spring.
Candy clapped her hands together. “Guess what? Did you know Pavlova is Cupid?” Her tone was mocking, but it was clear even she didn’t know what to do with the bizarre truth.
Sapphire gave her a blank stare. “Yeah, I’m sure he is.”
Pavlova was a sugar angel, a demonic creature disgised as an angelic being, however pavlova is unaware of this and truly believes he is an angel as do all the other sugar angels trapped in Eternal Sugar’s garden. His powers do relate to those of cupid however, he is able to look into someone’s heart and find their deepest desires which Sugar uses to her advantage gaining more sugar angels.
Sapphire made to walk past, hoping to preserve what little peace remained in his evening, but Pavlova hovered suddenly into his path, pink eyes glowing with anticipation. He had been watching Sapphire the entire time, like a sugar coated hawk waiting for the perfect moment to pounce.
“I know this is weird,” Pavlova started, voice light as spun sugar, “since your heart isn’t technically beating…”
Sapphire’s jaw tightened. “Get to the point.”
Pavlova paused, wings flapping a touch faster as if the truth itself stirred them. “Your heart… it sounds different than the last time I was here. It’s filled with curiosity.” He leaned forward slightly, smiling in that dreamy, innocent way that made Sapphire’s skin crawl. “And desire.”
Sapphire’s eyes narrowed, his voice dry. “Excuse me?”
Candy’s mouth popped open, eyebrows rising high. “Desire?” She gasped, grinning like a child unwrapping a secret. “Ohhh, this is gonna be good.”
“You’re mistaken,” Sapphire snapped, glaring at the angel. “My heart hasn’t beat in centuries. Whatever you think you heard, it wasn’t my heart. Probably some newly turned guards.”
Pavlova only smiled brighter. “Hearts don’t need to beat to speak,” he said, voice airy. “They still whisper. And yours is whispering about someone. Someone special.” His wings gave an excited flutter. “I can tell.”
Sapphire scoffed and stepped past him. “You’re delirious.”
But Pavlova called after him, floating backward with his arms outstretched: “Believe what you want… but your heart will always speak the truth~!”
He didn’t turn around. He didn’t have to. Candy’s voice shrieked behind him a second later.
“OH MY GOD! TELL ME MORE ABOUT HIS TRAGIC LOVE LIFE!”
“Drop dead,” he grumbled.
“Ugh, rude,” she replied.
He kept walking.
Sapphire’s chambers were silent and cold, as always. Heavy velvet curtains blocked the stormy daylight, casting the room in an ashen blue. He shrugged off his coat and dropped onto the edge of his bed, running a hand through his dark hair in frustration.
“Stupid angel,” he muttered. “Thinking he knows what he’s talking about.”
He fell backward into the pillows, one arm across his eyes. “It’s impossible. My heart no longer functions. How could he possibly hear it?”
He sat up abruptly. “It had to be someone else’s. Maybe a guard. Maybe a fae wandering too close to the border… maybe…” But even as he listed possibilities, they all felt like reaching.
Because he had felt something recently. A stir in his chest. A warmth that pooled when he looked into Silverbell’s eyes. He remembered the soft laughter from the dessert shop, the way Silverbell’s eyes creased when he smiled, how he looked with crumbs of strawberry cake on his lips…
Sapphire groaned and fell back into the mattress, dragging a pillow over his face.
You’re losing it, he told himself. You don’t feel things. You don’t have a heart anymore.
And yet…
“Your heart will always speak the truth.”
Sapphire clenched his jaw.
No. It couldn’t be.
He sat in silence for several minutes before grabbing the nearest pillow and launching it across the room.
Meanwhile, down in one of the Spire’s sugar gardens—a dangerous realm of sickly sweet mist and illusions spun by the goddess Sugar herself—Candy was lounging beneath a candied willow, one leg swinging over the other.
She licked a crimson lollipop absently and watched Pavlova twirl midair.
“You seriously heard his heart?”
Pavlova twirled midair. “Mmhm!”
Candy raised an eyebrow. “Even though it’s not beating?”
“I told you,” he said, glowing with sugary satisfaction, “hearts don’t need to beat to be heard. Especially when they’ve been quiet so long… the first whisper is so loud.”
“So, who is it?” she asked, grinning. “You got all that gooey stuff from Sapphire? I thought he didn’t have feelings.”
“He does,” Pavlova chirped. “They’re just buried deep. Under centuries of pain and denial and… brooding. Lots of brooding.”
Candy rolled her eyes. “No kidding. I live with him. I know.”
“He feels something. And it’s sweet. Bitter, too, but the kind of bitter that makes sweet things taste better.”
Candy tilted her head. “A vampire, in love… that’s tragic already.” Her grin widened. “Wait. Wait. I bet it’s a faerie.”
Pavlova gasped. “Oh my sugar, yes! A vampire and a fae? Think of the tension! The secrets! The moral dilemma!” He practically glittered with joy. “It’s so doomed! I love it.”
Candy narrowed her eyes. “You’re not helping my concern levels, but I am so invested now.”
“You have to find out who it is,” Pavlova pleaded, hovering close. “True love needs help! Especially tragic, slow-burn, forbidden, enemies-to-lovers love!”
“Okay, calm down,” Candy laughed. “You’re literally vibrating.”
“I can’t help it. It’s the drama!”
She smirked, eyes narrowing. “If it is a faerie, and I find out he’s hurting my idiot brother, I’ll drain him dry myself.”
Pavlova smiled serenely. “That’s what siblings are for.”
Back in his bed, Sapphire finally gave in and let himself close his eyes. Just for a moment.
And again, Silverbell crept into the darkness behind his eyelids.
Not with blood. Not with fire.
Just a laugh. A smile. A glance.
And suddenly, silence didn’t feel so comforting anymore.
Sapphire sighed into the pillow.
“…Stupid angel.”
I_wanted_more! (Guest) on Chapter 1 Sat 31 May 2025 07:56AM UTC
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