PART FOUR - EMOTIONS OF THE DAMNED

								8

	I dropped the young woman's body after I had my fill. I subconsciously 
licked the line of blood away from my mouth, and walked away, leaving the 
girl to the rats and tiny scavengers.

	The night was cool, and a breeze passed me. I let it push my hair from my 
face, hearing it whisper, "Dhampire... Dhampire..."

	Another sound suddenly broke through the wind; the sound of a voice 
singing. I looked towards the entrance of town, seeing Sonia. What was she 
doing out at this hour? Everyone was afraid of the dark now that I was 
around, yet she was there.

	It was then when I saw the whip attached to Sonia's belt. So, Jonathan had 
been training her, eh? I watched her as I sat down on a bench. She didn't 
see me until she picked some flowers from a nearby small garden that 
everyone took from, and she yelped.

	"Oh! Sorry," she said unconsciously, picking up the flowers as she dropped 
them. I walked over and picked up one when she didn't see it. She smiled, 
"Thanks..."

	I returned the smile, "No problem, Miss uh..."

	"Belmont. Sonia Belmont," she replied, taking the flower slowly from my 
hand.

	"Adrian," I said simply. I used the name Alucard nowadays out of respect 
for Mother, but since it was my father's name spelled backwards, I didn't 
want to cause suspicion, so I used Adrian. I cocked my head to one side, 
"What are you doing out at this hour? Aren't you afraid of the Dhampire?"

	Sonia scoffed, "No, of course not. My Grandfather has taught me to deal 
with demons ever since I was threatened by the Dhampire 10 years ago."

	Ouch. I've heard Creature and Monstrosity, but never Demon. I would have 
commented her on her word choice if she knew who I was, but I kept quiet.

	She creaked a smirk, "What about you? Aren't you afraid?"

	"That's not fair, asking the same question back at me. No, I'm not. I'm a 
demon hunter, myself, actually."

	That was true. I killed demons whenever I found them, out of sheer hatred 
for my Father. Sonia let out a giggle, "Well, I'm not the one to play fair."

	"I've noticed," I joked.

	Sonia then blinked, studying my face, "Do I know you from somewhere? I 
could swear I've seen your face before."

	"Maybe in a crowd during the day, but I don't think we've ever met," I 
said, quickly thinking up a lie to cover myself. But good God, her beauty 
made me want to spill out the entire truth.

	"Maybe..." Sonia said, nodding, "well, I have to get back home. It was nice 
meeting you, Adrian."

	"As it was for me to meet you, my dear," I said, kissing her hand, trying 
to act as gentleman-like as I possibly could.

	Sonia blushed slightly before walking off, her blonde hair trailing behind 
her. As she walked off, I heard her whisper to herself, "Good Lord, that man 
is handsome..."

	I almost laughed, but kept to a low chuckle. I licked my lips, tasting her 
skin. She was pure, I could tell that. I thought about tearing my skin to 
shreds. What had driven me into acting like that! Normally I would have 
shrugged a girl off with a polite, "Miss, I'm sorry, but I'm busy at the 
moment," or something like that, but I actually carried on a CONVERSATION 
with Sonia!!!

	"What's happening to me?" I groaned to myself, rubbing my forehead and 
gripping my hair. She was so beautiful, smart, and was the first girl I had 
ever met that didn't flirt with me!

	I walked back to the graveyard, muttering, "My soul is damned, Lord, why am 
I feeling regret and several other emotions not associated with hate, but 
with happiness and a little bit of sorrow!"

	Nothing seemed to answer me. Not even wind, or a cricket chirp. I let out a 
long, exasperated sigh and stepped into my coffin after smacking spiderwebs, 
spiders, and any moss or insects off of Mother's grave.

	I wondered if Sonia saw the locket. I had been stupid not to put it under 
my shirt when I approached her, but I didn't see her eyes trail down to it. 
She had looked me over at least once, but she never paused to look at it.

	I barely knew this girl; why was I thinking about her constantly and 
keeping a vision of her face and body in my mind? I shook my head, trying to 
chase it away, and pulled the coffin lid over me, sealing me in darkness.

	"Sonia..." I repeated her name over and over again without thinking, loving 
the sound rolling on my tongue. If Mother were here, she'd know what I was 
feeling, but she wasn't, and I had no one to turn to find out what was 
happening to me.

	I chewed on my bottom lip. What was I going to do? I felt like how I felt 
when I found that table in the pamphlet with Mother's name at the top of the 
list, only the opposite of the exact feelings. Instead of enraged, I was 
calm and confused, and thinking a little straighter than I had back then.

	I fell asleep thinking, and I found myself in a  dream I recognized easily.

	"You DO know she's going to be the next Vampire Hunter that is SUPPOSED to 
kill Master, but will fail, right?" the voice of the Succubus rang through 
my head. I spun around, but didn't see her at all.

	"Where are you!!!" I demanded, narrowing my eyes. I heard her laugh, 
followed by a scream. No, no just any scream, it was Sonia's. A scream of 
pain as death wrapped its blanket around her and smothered her.

	"WHERE ARE YOU!!!!!" I shouted again, hearing the demon's laugh once more.

	"You have feelings for her, don't you?" she asked, still invisible to my 
eye, "Don't you realize, young master, that all you love, all you hold dear 
will die in a matter of time? Just like your Mother."

	By now, I was enraged, "My soul is damned! I cannot love or feel for 
anything outside of my blood!!!" I shouted, although partly lying. I was not 
sure if that was entirely true... after all, I had never loved anything more 
than my Mother.

	"Your voice is filled with doubt, Dhampire. Are you sure you can support 
your statement?"

	I shouted at nothing, covering my ears and falling to my knees, but the 
Succubus's voice rang through my head, and I could not ignore her. She had 
given me nightmares before, but none as bad as this.

								*

	In a cold sweat, I woke up, sitting bolt up, then falling back as my head 
connected with the lid of my coffin. I lay there, gasping for breath before 
pushing the lid off, sitting up slowly and running my fingers through my 
damp hair.

	The sun was slowly rising in the distance, and I walked out of the tomb, 
squinting my eyes as the light shown into my eyes.

	I walked over to Mother's grave, sighing and looking up at the stone statue 
of an angel with its arms outstretched that stood as a marker that this 
grave held someone dear to a loving family. I sighed, "Mother, what is 
happening to me? Why am I so mixed up with these things? Why am I filled 
with these emotions that I felt when I was around you, only they are more... 
intimate..."

	I tried to think of what Mother would say, and forced my mind to hear it, 
although I knew it wasn't her, and it was just my mind. She said I would 
have to continue to experience these events more, and I would eventually 
figure out what it was. I sighed, and kissed the tips of my fingers, then 
pressed them against the stone angel's lips.

	Have you ever contemplated suicide? To where you're so fed up with 
something, so confused, enraged, or upset that you can't stand it and just 
want to take that dagger in your drawer and thrust it through your own heart 
or slit your throat? I have. More than once. I've even taken off my shirt 
and sat there, with the dagger point pressed against my breast, once even 
hard enough to where I bled, and almost passed my ribcage. But I just 
couldn't do it. I felt I had so much to live for. I had to protect mortals 
from my father, although that was hypocritical; I was killing people as 
well.

	However, Father killed them more ruthlessly, in much colder blood, and was 
not ashamed of what he did. However, that was before he met Mother and when 
he was known as Vlad The Impaler. Then Mother won his heart, and he almost 
completely halted his hobbies. Almost. I feared for Sonia. Would she be his 
first victim when he was brought back this Saturday?

	My eyes widened. Saturday! I had almost forgot! All those people in town 
having fun, unaware of the fate that shadowed over them. Why was I suddenly 
feeling regret, sorrow, and fear? I regretted killing all those people, I 
felt sorry for those still alive that would soon die within the month, and I 
feared my Father and I feared for Sonia's safety. With her attitude that she 
had talked to me with, it was as if she would gladly accept the challenge of 
being a Vampire Hunter.

	I knew I had to see her again. To warn her, but Jonathan would recognize me 
instantly and try to kill me. It then came to me. I didn't know if she knew 
how to read, but I could write her a letter and slip it in the garden she 
came to each night right before she came, but then there was the chance of 
someone finding it before her. Gah! Why was this so frustrating.

	"Calm down, Alucard, you're going crazy," I scolded myself. I scrapped the 
idea of the letter, and figured I'd just have to wait for her.

	I walked to town, my legs shaky and I felt like I was going to pass out. I 
collapsed onto a bench, leaning heavily against it. A few people drew their 
attention towards me, but didn't let on, and continued their daily routines.

	Then I caught the sight of that blonde hair, the patented blue eyes and 
pink cheeks. My head jolted up as Sonia walked almost past me when I reached 
out and grabbed her arm, "Sonia!"

	"Adrian!" Sonia yelped, then smiled, "Hi!"

	"Hey," I said, "could I talk to you in private somewhere? I've been meaning 
to since last night."

	She thought for a moment, then shrugged, "Alright."

	I took her to the graveyard. No one visited it anymore, so we were in 
privacy.

	"What did you want to talk about?" Sonia asked, pushing a strand of her 
hair from her face.

	I drew in a shuddering breath, trying to think. Sonia had sat down on a 
tree stump, calmly waiting for me to speak. The words finally formed, and I 
asked, "Have you ever thought you'd have to do something, then end up doing 
it?"

	Sonia blinked, "Yes, a couple of times. Why?"

	I sighed, "I've been getting a weird feeling. I ran into a demon group last 
night shortly after you left, and they're saying that Dracula is going to 
come back soon, and that you'd probably be the Vampire Hunter to face him."

	Sonia jerked back slightly, "I might?"

	I nodded, "Yes. Well, I know it wasn't really my business, but I just 
wanted to ask you if you would accept that fate?"

	We stayed silent for a long time. Sonia's face turned from perky and 
cheerful to dull and blank. She bit her bottom lip before nodding, "Yes. I 
would."

	"I see," I murmured. I chewed the inside of my cheek until I tasted blood, 
and winced, "If I told you something, would you promise not to tell anyone? 
I know we've barely met, but I feel like I can tell you anything."

	Sonia gave me a comforting smile, "Sure, Adrian. Couldn't be anything TOO 
absurd..."

	"You'd be surprised..." I said inaudibly, but she didn't let on when she 
saw my mouth move. I grimaced slightly before slowly running a hand through 
my hair, "Sonia... I'm the Dhampire. Dracula is my Father."

	Her face paled, and she winced, before laughing, "Yeah, right. I knew the 
Dhampire. At his Mother's execution, I gave him my lo--"

	As I took the locket off and held it in the air, Sonia's jaw dropped, "Oh 
my God..."

	"Please don't be afraid... I have no intention at all of harming you. I 
want your help. To destroy my Father."

	Sonia was staring wide eyed at me, "I... cannot... believe this."

	We stayed silent for a second before she asked me, "What are you talking 
about? Don't you love your father? Even if he's Count Dracula?"

	I thought a moment before shrugging, "I used to... then he completely 
ignored Mother's execution. He killed himself, but a few of his minions are 
going to bring him back this Saturday, during the Full Moon. I don't want 
him to harm humans..."

	My gaze then dropped, and I muttered, "Especially you."

	I didn't know if she heard me, but she sat there looking blankly at me.

	"Sure. I'll help you," she said suddenly. My head jerked up.

	"You will?"

	"Of course! Dracula needs to be stopped, doesn't he?"

	I smiled, "Yeah... only, how good are you with a whip?"

	Sonia leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest, "Pretty good, 
actually. I want to learn how to use a sword, but Grandpa has very little 
experience with those, so I don't have any experience myself."

	"I can help you there," I offered, pulling out my sword, "I'm a pretty good 
swordsman. If you let me train you to face the demons in my Father's castle, 
I can teach you how to use a sword."

	Sonia blinked, "Really? Wow! Sure, I'd love to have a tutor!" she 
exclaimed.

	I let out a chuckle, "Don't worry, I go easy..."

	Sonia stood, "You can come over tonight if you want. There is an extra 
guest room in our house. You can stay there."

	"Um..." I thought for a second, "You sure your Grandfather wouldn't mind? I 
don't think I'm on his favorite people list right now..."

	Sonia laughed, "I'll talk to him. Don't worry. Oh, and I have two younger 
brothers. Jakob and Gabriel. They like to be called Jake and Gabe, though. 
Annoying as Hell. Major rule is don't kill them."

	I laughed as well, "Alright, I'll try to remember that."

	She walked off after we said our goodbyes, and I watched her leave until 
she walked out of sight.