Chapter Text
Legundo remembered each life he took, remembered the screams of hundreds, the pain on those soldiers' faces, remembered having to kill young ones who'd been sent out by the enemy with no mercy. Those faces, their screams, the injured and days spent learning to heal while dying himself. But now, 600 years later he'd been able to help some and now had someone he needed to take care of. Pyro may not be a fledgling anymore, but he was still wild and violent. He was a child with no parent but Legundo to be there for him and his hatred for the humans who bullied him grew rather than shrinking. Now Pyro had gone to sleep for a bit(200 years but who keeps track anymore) but Legundo didn't believe that would cure his hatred for humans. Then he heard noise from the coffin bed he had made for Pyro years ago.
“Legs? Sire? You there?” Pyro's tired, sleepy voice called out.
“Right here my little firefly, are you feeling okay?” Legundo didn't know how sires were meant to treat their fledglings but he knew keeping Pyro happy normally reduced his aggression and unnecessary curiosity.
“Hello Sire, how long has it been? I'm okay, just a bit stiff by the way” Pyro muttered moving a bit sluggishly.
“200 years or so, well once you're back in working order we should return to Oakhurst-” Legundo had started to make his suggestion before being cut off.
“Wait, you were waiting for me to wake up before going back, for 200 years! You didn't need to do that I would have been fine” Pyro's voice rose with a guilty feeling in his gut.
Legundo shook his head, “I may not know how to treat a fledgling but it felt wrong to leave mine unprotected even if you're not really a fledgling anymore, plus it gave me time to update my medical knowledge since there is a library in the nearby village”.
Pyro's face showed he wasn't sure if that was the truth, but he knew his sire to be a kind, broken man so he didn't question it. They silently started packing their things. Pyro knew his sire liked the peace and quiet, and he wanted to repay his Sire for making him wait so long to return home. When they were ready to leave Pyro stuck to Legundo's side as they left the run down shack they hid from humans in.
They walked deep into the forest for what felt like days(which it probably was) until they found the path. It was worn down and far worse then Pyro or Legundo remembered but it was still visible so for better or for worse they walked upon it. They saw the walls, wood and rotting from the tree line. Then they heard it… noise, there were humans there…
“Hello! I'm Avid, who are you? Oh and here's some garlic” A young man with tired eyes but a loud voice came over talking to Legundo and Pyro within seconds of their arrival to town.
“I'm Legundo. Thank you for the seasoning?” Legundo introduced himself to the young one in front of him, there was an odd smell to the boy but oh well, it wasn't Legundo's business.
“I'm Pyro, Legs is my teacher and he's a doctor, he's super talented and stuff, if you ever need help, you can bet coming to him will help!” Pyro thankfully was acting calm and cordial with the humans.
“Oh really that explains the white robes and medkit, well thank you for your service” Avid added to the conversation before waving and walking to introduce himself to other people.
Legundo sighed as he saw more people approaching him and Pyro, “stay near me and no biting, fighting, or attacking, okay?”, Legundo whispered.
Pyro nodded, “yes sire, I'll behave sire”
A young woman with bright ginger hair walked to them with an elegance unexpected of someone who looked like a peasant, “hello, I'm Cleo, and you might be?”.
“Legundo, and this is my student Pyro, it's nice to meet you Miss Cleo” Legundo responded with the same politeness the woman had approached them with.
“Well it's nice to meet you two, I'm a farmer so if you ever need food just ask me and I'll probably have some or can grow some” Cleo offered her services with a polite bow before leaving and joining a brown haired woman who smiled and waved at Legundo and Pyro.
Legundo led Pyro to a less crowded area, finding a brown haired man and a black haired one.
“Hello, I'm Owen, it's nice to meet you, don't suppose you have an axe on you? I'm a lumberjack but unfortunately lost my belongings on the way here” The brown haired man bowed and asked a question of the pair of vampires.
“Unfortunately no but we can probably find or make one in time, and who might you be” Legundo answered the question before turning to the black haired man.
“Abolish, good sir, I'm the butler of the goldsmith family, I came here with my master to find a place to settle down” the black haired man answered.
“Why not stay with the family?” Pryo asked.
“The family was murdered and as next of kin ownership of me went to my master, so I stay by his side as I should, he pays well, he homes and feeds me, never gives me work I can't handle, I'd rather work for him then be without a job” Abolish declared, clearly not liking his Master’s family being questioned.
“Apologies…” Pyro shied away, surprising Legundo as normally Pyro didn't get scared by human anger.
The vampires separated from the two looking for a place to settle down, eventually finding a taller building with less rot and making axes and pickaxes. Making extra in case Owen came by, before leaving to grab resources to build the home back up. By the end of the day they had a two story with two beds, a bath, a kitchen, storage, and the downstairs renovated into a medical clinic. Each part of the home was made with care and perfection only achieved at the age of someone like Legundo. And eventually the first patient rolled in.
“Hey, doc, I'm Martyn, would you mind helping me with my foot? It's been a pain all day” a young man with blond hair and bright eyes shuffled through the door limping to a waiting seat in the corner.
“Yes, give me a second, it's nice to meet you Martyn, I'm Doctor Legundo, but you may call me Legs” Legundo called from upstairs as he finished the flooring in the bathroom.
“Okay! Thank you doctor!” Martyn called out.
Legundo came down the stairs and greeted the blond with a bow, before coming closer and bending down to inspect, “ what happened? And where does it hurt?”.
“I fell down a crypt and had to swim up the water shoot before I got here, it's the lower right ankle I think, I mean I know it's the right leg, but the exact position is a bit hard to tell, it really hurts” Martyn answered being clear about what happened.
“I see let me see… ah I see what happened, seems to be sprained if not a little twisted, a simple cast and a few days off it should be enough to help, perhaps a bit of pain medicine but other then that you'll be fine sir” Legundo answered as he examined the leg in front of him eventually standing to grab a cast and medicine.
Martyn left once healed, smiling and thanking the doctor again on his way out, and that called the first day of Legundo and Pyro's back in the walls of Oakhurst. The next day would be full of finishing introductions and annoying strangers…
—---
Legundo started moving first, even though vampires didn't really need sleep, resting always brought anyone a sense of peace. He started cleaning and preparing the clinic downstairs. Each item was cleaned a number of times before he went to the next, humans were a bit behind on the understanding of what ‘dirty’ and ‘infectious’ meant but Legundo had figured it out for them. Though it would be a bit hard to show his reasoning when he has over 600 years of it, so using it on smaller groups of people would hopefully be enough for the word to eventually spread. Then Legundo wrote a small note for Pyro before leaving to look around the slowly rebuilding town.
“Hello! Hi! hey, oh, sorry am I being too loud…, I'm Shelby it's nice to meet you…” a bright girl with flowy reddish hair bounced over to Legundo, a loudness to her voice that she clearly noticed once she got closer and quieted down.
“It's okay Miss Shelby, I'm Doctor Legundo, I'm living with my student Pyro in the repaired two story” Legundo introduced himself at a similar pitch to Shelby so she would be more comfortable.
“Oh really, well I'm rooming with Scott and Abolish, mostly because Scott invited me to join him and Abolish when he noticed I hadn't found a place to stay, but it's okay, they have been nice to me” Shelby pointed to the location she lived at, a slight embarrassment in her voice as she explained why she lived there.
“So that's who Abolish's boss is, interesting… well I haven't met the man himself, mind introducing me to this noble” Legundo asked Shelby something he thought would be easy for her to achieve.
“Oh, yeah, sure, follow me!” Shelby smiled and led the way back to her home.
The home, like Legundo and Pyro's, was already repaired. A stone brick roof, and dark colored walls, the door unlike some of the others in town was not made of silver or wood but rather a copper looking metal that shined an orangish-teal. Shelby knocked on the door before announcing she was coming in. Abolish made a noise Legundo didn't catch in return. The two entered the home and Legundo made note of the size and rooms; a triple bunk bed to the right side and kitchen with a dining table to the left and in the back what looked like a bathroom with a privacy curtain, chairs we also strew about with multiple desks being made from the same stone the roof was.
“Nice to see you Doctor, I'm assuming you're here to meet Scott and just met Shelby, right?” Abolish asked.
Legundo nodded, “yes your home is quite lovely, a thought, why are there so many desks?”
Abolish looked around like he forgot the desks were there, “oh, Shelby is surprisingly is very favoring of proper organization and has different desks depending on what she is doing, she also managed to sew herself slippers within hours of us being here, she also brought more stuff then most other people did, then again you aren't really looking to go back home, are you?”The conversation was then redirected to Shelby.
Shelby bounced around, “yep, I still want to visit of course, I grew up there but I want a new home with new people, and Abolish and Scott are the best, no slight to you Legs, I can call you that right? I heard Martyn say it the other day.”
“Yes, of course, well I suppose that explains the desks, but I think chests might have been easier if you're looking for organization, well you all have quite the nice home here, it's actually quite big despite it being one floor, but you lot do seem to the best at aesthetic and organization in town, besides maybe Pyro, he can be a neat freak sometimes, so I suppose saving space wouldn't be hard for you” Legundo looked around the home a bit more noticing how clean everything was and how everything thing seemed very deliberate in its placing.
Shelby giggled out a thanks, she then suggested playing two truths and a lie till Scott got home once she realized he wasn't home. The other two agreed and sat down on the floor with the bubbly girl. They played for a while and Legundo learned a few new things about these new human friends; Shelby was very bad at lying but cared a lot about her friends(regardless of the fact they probably didn't see her as a friend) and her father had died when she was little and she assumed it was werewolves that did it, Abolish had lost both his parents and rather then having always been a servant had been Scott’s childhood friend. Legundo didn't give out as much information that actually mattered, not wanting the humans to catch on. Then a knock at the door, then a squeak from the door and footsteps.
“Hello? Who's this” a new voice said.
“This Scott is the town’s Doctor Legundo, he's super nice and had been playing two truths and a lie with me and Abolish” Shelby bounced to greet her roommate.
“Well it's nice to meet you doctor, I'm Scott Goldsmith, I do hope I didn't greatly interrupt the game” Scott introduced himself being far more humble than Legundo expected, then again it made sense since he was Abolish's childhood friend.
“Nice to meet you as well Mister Goldsmith, I'm mostly trying to meet everyone I didn't meet yesterday as well as check in on everyone here and offer my service” Legundo did his best to humble as well, it's not often you find humble nobles, it's best to stay on Goldsmith’s good side.
With that Legundo soon left the home leaving a few pain medicines and bandages for the trio in case they ever got hurt and Legundo wasn't in town. Legundo wandered looking for new people before running into a familiar face, well… more like he was run into.
“Owwwe, I'm so sorry Legundo, I didn't mean to run into you” A hand was extended to the vampiric doctor who was now on the ground.
“It's fine Avid, why were you running?” Legundo accepted the hand offered to him.
“I don't really know, I kinda just do this in the morning, it normally helps me wake up, but it also means I'm too tired to pay attention to where I'm going, so I'm sorry again” Avid was apologetic about the incident clearly feeling like he didn't explain himself good enough.
“I see, it's not like you have work in the morning anymore I'm sure sleeping in won't hurt anyone if it means your more aware of the things around you, you could get snuck up on like that” Legundo patted Avid’s shoulder switching the topic of conversation so Avid wouldn't feel bad anymore.
“I guess it's just that… well I suppose you're right I'll let Drift know she might be the first one awake in the mornings now” Avid agreed reluctantly to the idea.
“Drift?” Legundo titled his head.
Avid was quick to respond, “yeah she's my roomie, she's a detective and really really smart, She's my other friend besides Shelby, you've met Shelby right?”
“Yes I have met Shelby, why don't you introduce me to Drift,” Legundo wanted to meet everyone here as quickly as possible, it was good to have an accurate head count.
Avid nodded, pointing in the direction of what Legundo quickly understood was too Avid and Drift's home. Avid fidgeted with his hands as the two walked he seemed to be spaced out and his body swayed like it would fall. Legundo grabbed Avid’s shoulder and kept him steady as they walked, but Avid didn't seem to notice or at least didn't acknowledge it. Then Legundo saw the house, two stories like his and Pyro’s but it was made of a pale colored wood with a deep slate roof and a silver door. Avid opened the door, mumbling that Legundo was welcome before calling out to Drift and falling over on the couch near the entrance. Legundo sighed and looked around the house as he closed the door behind him and heard shuffles upstairs. This house, too, was clean but not very neat papers strewn about and the kitchen still had food on the counter rather than in chests or shelves, but it was cozy and big at the same time easily housing the two people who lived there and the vampire guest.
“Hello? Avid, oh you're new who are you?” A girl with brown hair and a golden monocle came down the stairs.
“Hello I'm Legundo, it's nice to meet you” Legundo bowed slightly.
“Oh it's nice to meet you. I'm Drift, I see Avid crashed on to the couch, I'm assuming he's tired isn't he” Drift introduced herself before returning to focus on Avid.
“Yes he informed me that he was going to inform you that you might be the first to wake up now but it seems he completely just fell asleep, he was quite wobbly on the way here” Legundo explained.
“That makes sense, sorry for the trouble” Drift responded.
Legundo nodded, “it's fine he's not any trouble to me, just a bit weird, but most of the people here are odd, also if you were to need medical help I'm a doctor so you can come to me if you need it.”
“Really, well that's good, thanks for the offer” Drift spoke as she grabbed a blanket to throw over Avid before removing his shoes.
The conversation diverted to facts about themselves, about their careers, and their hobbies. After that Legundo eventually made his exit looking for more strangers to meet. He walked about before seeing a man talk to Martyn as the younger of the two leaned against him for support, clearly trying to follow Legundo's orders to stay off it. Legundo waved to the pair, and he approached the two.
“Hello Martyn, who would this be?” He asked.
“ehem, I'm Ren-haryt Dogmore, it be nice to me-t ye, you might be the Doc, right” the person themself answered with a hard accent that made them a bit hard to understand but Legundo managed.
“Yep this is Ren, Ren this is the Doc, Legundo, he's super nice, helped me with my leg yesterday” Martyn explained.
The three talked for a while before Legundo wandered off again. In the distance Legundo saw a girl with dark red hair at the gates messing with her hands. He walked up to her, trying to make as much noise as a vampire could without scaring the human. The girl thankfully noticed turning and waving at Legundo.
“Hello I'm Apo” the girl said.
The two talked and Legundo found she too had been in a war, of course far more recently then Legundo but all the same he treated the fellow veteran with respect. He wandered off after that passing by a farm that had been built up, he took that chance to try and find Cleo remembering she said she was a farmer. He found instead the girl he saw with Cleo yesterday, she wore a rose in her hair and a sunflower in her pocket.
“Why hello there, I'm Pearl Lunarstone you must be Legundo, Cleo met you yesterday right?”
And that concluded the headcount of everyone in town, Legundo was so tired he would help rebuild the rest of town tomorrow, but for now it was time to rest.