Soul Eater - Harbinger

Investigate

Vlad -

Vlad scrawled through the various books he had compiled, looking for all of the covens nearby. He had been distracted the entire day, every footstep he heard, he wanted it to be her. Even if she just came to yell at him again.

A faint knock on the door made him leap out of his seat, basically running for the door. His Mother.

Vlad sighed, feeling ridiculous and disappointed. “Oh it’s nice to see you too, Vladamere” his Mother mocked, stepping inside and closing the door behind her as he walked back to his desk.

“You seem to like this girl” she teased, “I haven’t seen you this jumpy since..-“

Vlad raised his hand to interrupt her, he didn’t want the reminder or the memories of the past.

“I assume you never found Alice?” She asked, bringing them up anyway. “Does Seren know of Alice? Your wife?” His Mother bombarded, but he remained silent, putting his hand to his brow.

“Does she know of Amelia?” She probed, leaning over his desk. He lost his patience and threw a book down.

“Enough! No, I never found Alice or my daughter!” He stood from his chair, “and no, Seren doesn’t know.. we haven’t exactly been on good terms” he continued, frustratedly rubbing his face.

“You remind me of your Father, you know?” His Mother chuckled, placing a hand on his arm. He looked at her with disbelief, “not when he left, Vladamere. He wasn’t very good at expressing himself either, always got himself into bother with your grandmother” she laughed again, bringing a small smile to his face.

As they reminisced, he caught the scent of vanilla and honey. He filled his lungs, inhaling it and feeling its high. He left without a word and marched over the house to Seren’s room, swinging the door open as she sat on the bed in a towel.

Seren’s eyes widened as she gasped, clutching the towel to her body. Vlad didn’t care in that moment and rushed to kneel before her. She stared at him in horror as he inspected her face.

“V-Vlad!” She squeaked, her mouth hanging open. “You’re okay” he whispered, moving her hair once again. She gave him a small smile with a nod, very conscious of the towel being the only thing protecting her.

“Goddess I thought you were gone, I thought-“ he began, clearing his throat and realising how much of his feelings he was spilling.

“I’m still here” she interrupted, placing a hand on his shirt collar. His heart raced as her warmth smothered him.

They both stared at each other for several minutes without speaking, like they had both lost the ability.

“Oh! Hello dear” Vlad’s Mother interrupted, making Seren flinch. All he could do was watch her.

“Vlad I think we should let Seren dress before we talk about a plan” his Mother gestured, tugging on his sleeve. Vlad snapped back to reality and nodded, standing back to his feet and exiting swiftly without another word.

Seren -

She sat in disbelief at what had just happened, it was as if she could feel his emotions, feel how thankful and relieved Vlad was to see her.

His Mother had thankfully interrupted, allowing Seren to dress instead of clinging to fabric. Though she was left feeling intrigued as to what Vlad was going to confess.

She quickly dressed into a set of pyjamas that Helga had left at her bedside and made her way downstairs. She saw Vlad, his mother and Helga sat around the living area with a fire lit.

The urge to be close to Vlad swarmed her mind, sending her into autopilot and sitting beside him on the sofa. He was compliant, allowing her to lean against him.

“So.. Seren, I’m Thalia. I never formally introduced myself” she smiled warmly, whilst also trying to decipher what was going on between the two of them.

Helga excused herself as a loud banging came from the main hallway door. All of their ears pricked up at the sound of a panicked woman’s voice.

Helga led the woman into them all, revealing one of Seren’s close friends. Sarai.

Seren immediately got up to hug her friend tightly, Sarai returning the hug and sniffling into her shoulder. “You’re alive” she gasped, pulling away to look at her friend.

“Oh Seren.. it was horrible! Your mother and father!” She burst into tears, causing Seren to cry with her.

“How did you know where to find me?” Seren sniffled, curious how Sarai made it out alive.

“This isn’t the first place I looked, this was my last hope.. I thought you were gone too” her friend continued, embracing her again.

Vlad -

Vlad watched the interaction intently, observing their embrace and feeling overwhelmingly protective of Seren. Helga encouraged them both to take a seat, in order to hear what Sarai had to say. Vlad pulled Seren back into his side as his Mother watched suspiciously.

“How did you survive the attack?” Vlad asked bluntly, “from what Seren explained, it sounded brutal”

Sarai shook her head, wiping tears from her cheeks, “I don’t know.. Seren’s father stopped them from getting to me, he saved me and sacrificed himself”

He felt Seren tense up beside him, feeling her anger and sadness taking over her mind.

“Do you know who the attackers were?” He probed, leaning forward to actively listen.

Sarai shook her head, “I do know they have a hideout, not far from the house. The Brood I believe it’s called” she continued as Helga brought hot beverages for comfort. “I stumbled upon them as I escaped”

Hours later -

Vlad laid in bed, replaying the story Sarai told. He felt something was off about the whole situation, mostly how she survived such a large attack. He stared at the ceiling, his arms supporting under his head. His tattooed chest and arms on display and lower half covered by the duvet.

Deep in thought he made plans for the investigation and finding out who was behind the attacks, he almost missed the tapping on his door. He leant up onto his elbows and frowned, “come in” he beckoned, feeling puzzled and looking towards his alarm clock, almost 1am.

The door opened slowly and Seren peered around it, looking sheepish. Vlad soon noticed she was only wearing the oversized pyjama top now and found himself staring at her bare legs as she entered.

“I’m sorry to disturb you Vlad” she began, clearly very nervous. This was out of character for her, usually she stayed far away from him.

“Is everything okay Seren?” He asked, sitting up against the headboard.

“I- I can’t sleep.. I can’t stop thinking about the attack and Sarai’s story” she rambled, tripping over her words with anxiety. “It’s silly really, I shouldn’t have woken you”

Vlad gestured to the space beside him, pulling back the duvet like this was normal for them. “Talk to me”

She shyly made her way over, trembling as she walked. Placing herself beside him, he flung the duvet over her legs and turned to face her, inspecting the mixture of expression.

Seren remained facing the room, “Something just doesn’t feel right” she explained, twiddling her fingers, “Sarai wasn’t home that day, I’m sure of it!” She whispered with a certainty, a hidden authority behind her voice. Vlad tilted his head to show he was listening, and frowned as she spoke.

“My Father would have done anything to protect my Mother, anything!” She continued, scooting to face him properly to prove how serious she was. “To say he saved her.. when she wasn’t even there?” She questioned, looking him dead in the eyes