Chapter Text
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
There was a gentle caress on his face. “Albedo, come on. Eat up.”
Albedo looked up and saw Scaramouche. “You should not be awake.”
Scaramouche gave a grin and his fangs hung over his bottom lip. He wanted to laugh at how silly he looked. “Why shouldn’t I be up? You’re hungry. I must take care of my hungry little ghoul. I mustn’t let him starve.”
Albedo looked beside himself and salivated. A juicy thigh was laid near his head. “You brought me this but I could have gotten it for myself, master.”
Scaramouche shook his head. “I’m a better killer than you. I had my fill already. You can have the leftovers. Here…” He helped Albedo up but he couldn’t help but wince and realize he had wings that got in the way.
“These wings are so pesky.”
Scaramouche lightly nibbled on his shoulder. “I don’t think they are.”
Albedo grabbed the theigh and tried to eat as properly as he could but still smeared gore on his face which Scaramouche only chuckled at. “So messy.” That didn’t stop him from being close. “I can clean you up once you finish.”
Albedo wasn’t entirely sure what that entailed but he felt embarrassed. Scaramouche’s light sucking around his collarbone as he tried to eat was too much and he finally huffed. “It is quite difficult to focus on eating when you give me such attention.”
Scaramouche lifted his head and smirked. “Does it make it difficult to focus when I pay attention to you?” His hand slowly lowered down his front. “I think this would cause havoc to your senses.” Which caused Albedo to escape a desperate gasp. “You should finish your meal and then I’ll finish mine.”
Albedo pouted. “I am not your meal.”
”You look like my meal.” Scaramouche couldn’t keep his hands off of him and Albedo couldn’t concentrate. Each and every lick felt pleasurable as Scaramouche descended from his shoulder down his arm and lightly bit at his wrist. Albedo dropped his food. He felt so needy but he wasn’t sure if he wanted sex or food. It all felt the same.
Scaramouche savagely bit into his wrist but it hurt! Albedo cried out and tried to stop him but he only smiled as he continued to bite. “Stop! Please, it hurts, STOP!” He screeched and kicked Scaramouche off of him.
That’s when Scaramouche appeared differently. He didn’t smile but frowned. “You’re my ghoul and prey. I can do what I want with you and I want to bite you. Now I’m going to gobble you up.” He grinned again.
Albedo held his bleeding wrist close to himself and shook his head. “No, it hurt.”
Scaramouche scoffed. “It hurt, that’s why I can’t bite you? I’m hungry and I eat little lambs like you.”
Albedo’s jaw dropped. “No, you said you already ate.” Scaramouche bared his fangs and Albedo felt his body heat up. There was a strange sensation while his wings spread out. “No, do not bite me when I say no.” His eyes watered. Why was Scaramouche acting like this!? He could feel his excitement. He liked treating him like this. Why was he so cruel?
”You’re so treacherous when you’re frightened, prey.” Scaramouche taunted as he drew nearer but then he sighed. “Why are you fighting with me? I thought you said you like it rough. Wasn’t that why we were roleplaying or whatever you called it? You said it was something new to try out. Are you being serious right now or is this a part of it? Shit, are you supposed to be crying? I don’t want to see you cry. It isn’t fun if you act like this, Albedo.”
Albedo pressed his other hand against the bleeding wrist and shut his eyes. Feeling his body floating away he knew he must be dizzy from the bloodloss.
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
When he opened his eyes he realized he wasn’t in the same place as before and the placement of his eyes were in the wrong place. his hands tried to feel around and he realized he could see through his wings. He was in a court yard of yellow flowers in front of his mother.
‘Mother…’ He thought.
He wanted to hide and cower from her but she seemed unafraid as she stood in front of him. “Will you accept the deal? I’ll give you all that and more, I promise.”
Albedo felt his arm reach out in front of himself against his will and he tried to shake his head. He tried to scream that he didn’t know what was going on but no words came out of him. He was trapped again. He shut his eyes…
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
And heard a whisper in his ear. “Albedo, you’re restless in your sleep.”
Albedo’s eyes flashed open and realized he was somewhere else. “Wait… I dreamed… I… I…”
”Shhh…” Scaramouche mused. “You’ve had so many nightmares lately, my love. Maybe we should go to the celestial plane to figure out all this weird stuff. I feel like we haven’t learned anything down here.” He scowled in the darkness and looked down at the ground.
“No, I would rather not.” Albedo mumbled. “I think… I feel dizzy.” He rubbed his temple. His wings had been carefully folded so the teeth wouldn’t stab him. “Wait, is this how I can sleep with my wings? I didn’t know they could fold like this.”
Scaramouche turned to look at him and grasped his hands. “What’s wrong with you? We’ve been doing this with your wings for years.”
Albedo tried to think but nothing came to mind. “We have? No… no…” Albedo shook his head and closed his eyes…
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
And smelled smoke. His eyes flashed open to a fire raging all around him. His mother stood near the doorway outside and safe from the flames that were slowly burning him alive.
“Moth…mother….” He was so hungry. She smiled as she spoke. He could barely hear her over the crackling of the fire while she spoke in a prayer as if it was his funeral. He couldn’t move. This was the end. He knew it was all over. His body was almost all gone until there was a roar of cries and he saw someone appear from the smoke. Scaramouche glowered at the state of him and turned away.
Albedo tried to scream but only wheezed out a soft, “Master… has come for me…?”
Scaramouche turned around and cocked his head in surprise. The fire around him whooshed and he shut his eyes.
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
Once he opened them, Albedo found he was somewhere else.
They were in a dark room and Scaramouche bit his wrist. “Is this better?” He asked. Albedo realized this was where he started. He nodded slowly. “Good, ghoul… I wasn’t trying to hurt you. Remember, you said you wanted to be kinkier and feel like prey when I fed on you. I guess I went too rough before.” Scaramouche sighed and licked the spot. “I thought you were playing around at first and you didn’t use the safe word. How was I to know you were being serious?” He sighed before he latched down again.
”I’m dizzy…” Albedo moaned and he shut his eyes.
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
Albedo woke up with his wrist pressed against his lips. His golden blood had spilled and leaked across the ground. He blinked a few times and realized what had happened. He had a long and elaborate dream. Scaramouche was near him in the torpor state and they were in the cave where he could see it was close to sunset. He shook his head realizing he bit his own wrist while sleeping and had bled during it. He was so hungry he was biting himself while he slept. His belly gurgled and he frowned. This was bad. He still pondered on his dreams. They were strange. He did feel like he rested even if his sides hurt from the teeth of his wings digging into his sides. “So bothersome…” He sighed as he grabbed Scaramouche’s lifeless body into his arms and made sure he was fine.
He caressed Scaramouche’s arm and kissed his lips before he pressed his head against Scaramouche. “I have to find food tonight. I am unsure where to look. I would grab someone from the road but I glow and have these wings. If I was smart I’d saw them off and eat them.” He chuckled. “I won’t do that. I am quite sure you would be disappointed with me if I harmed myself and who knows, maybe they're useful. So far all they have done is ache and cut into my sides. I suppose they can fly but I’ve been so sore that I’m resting unless I need them.” He spoke to the still body that lay unmoving in a deathly slumber.
“I feel like this is pointless and it’s only been two days. Who knows how long it’ll take to actually find my mother when I can’t ask around for her whereabouts. I know if I go to the Monster Hunters Guild they’d have records on her recent travels but that’s walking into a lion's den. I suppose this whole mission is suicidal.” He gave one last kiss onto Scaramouche’s forehead before he got up and left the cave. He headed into the darkness where all beasts of the night go.
His goal tonight was to find food. His arm had a gnarly bite on it from where he chomped on it in his sleep. It dribbled golden blood and he felt worried. The more he lost, the quicker he would go into a frenzy, and in this form who knew what he was capable of. He started to trek closer to the main road where mortals could be lingering. If he wanted human flesh he would need to find a graveyard and that meant he would need to be near civilization. His other worry was to keep Scaramouche safe and have a place for cover if he couldn’t dig up graves quick enough. He couldn’t let Scaramouche burn up. He really needed to eat quickly and find shelter fast. Nighttime was limited and it could take hours to dig. He supposed he could try to dig at a graveyard in the daytime but he could be caught and what would he do then?
He kept his eye on the road as he tried to keep his cover in the trees of the forest. He hoped he looked like he had a really good lanturn and not that he himself was glowing. Though he knew his wings would give himself away. They were as big as him. He continued his walk until he saw from the moonlight a small village. His eyes darted to a lone building that appeared to be a church. If he went there, he could have a chance to find a grave. He walked carefully to the holy soil and searched for the graveyard nearby that seemed isolated. That’s when he finally set Scaramouche down. His arms hurt and his stomach felt like it was ripping apart.
He fell onto his hands and knees to find the first fresh mound of earth to dig up. He hoped it would be easier to turn up the soil since it was fresh. He clawed into it. His hands got filthy as the hours went by. This was far more difficult than he thought it would be. He knew when he was in a frenzy he had upturned many graves but that was in an old graveyard. The people back then might not have dug as deep as this one.
He glanced up at the sky as his way to gauge how long he had left and then looked at the church. He was starting to feel desperate after four hours and still not reaching a coffin. He knew this had gone on too long and he should be looking for cover for Scaramouche. It was getting too late into the night and if he didn’t find shelter then Scaramouche would be a ball of flames. His eyes almost bulged when he knew he was so close to food. It was right under him if only he could dig faster with his hands.
He looked at the church. They probably had a shovel but he could barely think from his hunger. If he was too close perhaps he would wake up the priest who may live there. It was safer to dig with his hands even if it was hopeless. He was getting tired and weak. The sky was turning light and he knew he was running out of time. Finally, he felt a hollow sound underneath the dirt and he felt a flutter of hope in his chest but the sun was coming. He peeped his head out from the hole to see Scaramouche’s body propped up against a gravestone and he knew even if he was this close to his meal he had to go and find shelter.
He looked at the church. That's all he had. He hugged Scaramouche to his chest and made his way to the chapel expecting to have to find somewhere to hide or worse kill someone which currently he didn’t mind when his hunger was growing. At the doors of the chapel he discovered the place was unlocked. He thought it was odd but didn’t question it as he wandered in.
There was only one window in the large room. He swallowed back his nervousness. He needed a darker place than this. A window could mean Scaramouche’s demise. He saw a door on the side and decided this would have to be the place they could hide. He tried the doorknob which was locked. He glanced at the window which only told him his time was running out.
He gave a hard kick at the door which easily swung open to a tiny dark room with no windows, a small desk, and a bed. Then as he expected a person laying on the bed. The man instantly sat up and gasped while pointing at him. He was blubbering about angels. Albedo could barely comprehend the words when he was so hungry and needed to keep Scaramouche safe from the sun. He knew he was going to go into a frenzy soon. This would have to be his meal.
He thought the man in the bed was going to attack him as he got up, but instead he fell on his knees while sobbing out a prayer.
Albedo was dizzy and tired. “I need a place to stay…” Albedo said. “I need a body…”
He fell onto the bed almost not caring whatever the man did as he stumbled to his feet. The man was clean-shaven and in a white nightgown. He wore a cross around his neck and rubbed it as if it was a lucky charm. “My… my name is Nathaniel but… you… you probably already know that.” The man stuttered. “I will… I will get you what is needed. An angel… we have received a message from God.”
Albedo relaxed in the bed. Whatever was going on he didn’t care. Scaramouche’s deadened body lay on top of him and his wings wrapped around both of them like a shield. He was weary and weak. His arms hugged Scaramouche and he gave into exhaustion.
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
“I went too far this time. I need to restrain myself.” Scaramouche mumbled into his ear. “Oh you’re awake, my precious lover.” Albedo looked back at Scaramouche. “I didn’t mean to drink so much. You taste so… good. I should have held back but when you told me to bite, I had to.” Scaramouche laughed. “How can I ignore your wants?”
Albedo could taste iron in his mouth. “Did you…”
“Yes, I gave you some of my blood to sustain you. Do you want more? It’s only fair that you get what you want. We had such an intense lovemaking session. You wanted to be bitten all over. I may have went too far.” Albedo grabbed his arm and latched on hungrily lapping up the blood. “Seems I may have drank too much from you. At this rate, I’ll go into a torpor state from your hunger.” Albedo groaned as he drank. “Good angel, drink as much as you want. I know right now you’re basically taking care of me but, I want to make sure you’re pampered. I worship you as much as them.” Albedo blinked.
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
He was somewhere else. He watched Nahida play with toys and he wondered why she was. She was a mature adult in a child's body, she shouldn’t be playing like this in a sunlit room. He tried to speak but he was mute. He felt a heavy envy and sadness that didn’t make sense.
He reached out to the little girl in the chapel that was lit up in colorful sunlit stained glass. “Look at this, Angel!” Nahida squealed as she threw her doll into the air and caught it with a smile that glimmered in the light.
Albedo shut his eyes…
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
Only to see he was somewhere else. “Finally you’re awake. You’ve been out cold for a week. Your people are worried. Did you get your answers?” Scaramouche sternly asked him.
Albedo looked around himself but realized he was in a forest. He shook his head. “I do not understand. What answers? Where am I?!”
“Shit, it’s those dreams. I know it’s been bad but calm down. Did you complete your fated line? You went there so now you have the answer. You can see what the hell is going on with you. We don’t have to play this guessing game for years because we did this, right?”
Albedo held his hands out. “What answer? What is a fated line?” He grabbed his head and closed his eyes. “I don’t understand.”
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
He opened his eyes and stared at a book. Birds chirped and a soft breeze blew through his hair. He lay on his belly. He looked behind himself and didn’t see wings. No, he was smaller. He was a child. He stared at the book again and read the text he recognized. ‘How to exercise creatures of the night.’
He felt like he had read this book so many times in his life and now he was reading it again. He rolled onto his back and stared at the sky. Then he closed his eyes.
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
Once he opened them he heard a soft growl. “It’s so difficult to hide you.”
“Scaramouche?” Albedo gasped. He was in a dim room of silks and pillows. His legs were spread open and his arms chained to the metal bed posts.
“Yes, surprised? I did what was asked.” He licked his cheek. “I’ll make sure to feed on you until you pass out in a frenzy.”
Albedo looked around and didn’t feel his wings. The air was heavy with strange smells and whirling sounds. “Wait, where are my wings? Where are we? What are you doing to me, Master…?”
Scaramouche shut his eyes and head fell into his hands. “Fuck… I thought the dreams trips were gone.” Then he smirked. “Don’t worry, little lamb. Don’t be frightened. Do you want to be out of your restraints? Are you hungry? I can’t scare you like this. I can’t ruin what we have. You were so insecure with my last victim. I promise, that man meant nothing to me. That’s why I killed him, my love.. Remember that, carry that knowledge with you before you get mad at me in the future.” He chuckled.
Albedo shut his eyes…
*✧･ﾟ: ** ﾟ
* ☆∴｡
･ ｡
And awoke to the dark room he was in before he fell asleep. Scaramouche was still on top of him. His white wings slowly unwrapped from around him and the man from before smiled with his hands pressed together. “You’re back with us.”
Albedo could smell food. Whatever had happened while he slept didn’t matter. He smelled food and his gut told him to go to it. He carefully rolled Scaramouche onto the bed and left the room pushing the man out of the way. He drooled as he saw a coffin on the floor. Albedo scrambled to it without any hesitation. Scratching and clawing to get the lid open. The man who appeared to be the priest of the church stared in bewilderment as Albedo flipped the lid off and his wings curled around himself. Hidden in his misdoing he stared at the freshly deceased and lowered down to taste the flesh. As soon as his tongue tasted the foul bloated corpse he lost it and ate.
His vision started to fade even as he fought to keep his consciousness. He was starving. He had gone too long without a proper meal and losing blood hadn’t helped him. His wings hid his devious deed but he knew he made horrific sloppy sounds and the human in the room would flee soon. He couldn’t fade away now. It wasn’t safe. Going into a frenzy while Scaramouche was in a torpor state in the daytime was the most dangerous thing that could happen, but how could he focus on such worries when he was feeding on something so fresh. He fell into the blissful feeding.
His vision came back to him and he stared at white wings. He realized he must have curled up into his wings like a cocoon while he frenzied. He could see dark brown spots from blood and goop splattered onto them. The eyes still closed but he had to wonder what happened during his frenzy. He cautiously opened his wing and peeped out. The coffin was there but empty and only the gore on the wood remained. He saw the man from before in priest's robes and reading a book near him. Albedo tried to recall his name. He knew he had told him but after the strange dreams and the hunger it was so difficult to remember. He watched the man while trying to think of his name and wondered why he wasn’t running away. How could he calmly sit and read? He knew the man must have seen him feed. He turned to look at the door where he knew he had left Scaramouche. It had been shut. Then he glanced back at the man who was now staring back at him.
“I understand why you did that.” The man spoke softly. Albedo swallowed and tried to follow along. “That was the town drunkard. His wife always visited me for aid but what could I do? Divorce is not our way even if the husband is worthless and an abuser, but then you know that. I had prayed with her. I assume his death is because of God?” He pointed at the ceiling.
Albedo wasn’t sure what to say. Was Scaramouche and he safe or was this priest testing him? He did need a safe place to stay but this wasn’t what he had in mind. A church was the last place he imagined they would be staying for safety. “I assume his soul was so rotten it didn’t deserve to go to heaven. Was that the only reason you visited our world?” He asked quietly. “Don’t worry, I haven’t told any of the villagers that a miracle has come. You are God’s messenger and I would rather hear what you have to say before causing an uproar. Can you imagine the line of people begging for a blessing if they knew you were here? I would rather not stir up the wrath of God or his messenger.”
”You are not afraid after what I did?” Albedo finally asked.
“God works in mysterious ways. I didn’t know that angels ate the bodies of sinners but I suppose their souls may be trapped in their bodies unless you take them for yourself.”
Albedo pressed his lips together. He wasn’t sure what to say. This priest thought he was sent down from heaven to help this village. He felt kind of bad if he did lie but then it was better than scavenging for dead bodies or killing people to get the flesh he needed. Perhaps persuading this priest to assist him with finding food would aid his search for his mother. Albedo slowly nodded to the lie about his arrival.
The priest’s blue eyes softened. “What is the dead body in the other room, pray tell? Is it a saint? A relic perhaps?”
Albedo was trapped into another strange line of questions. He knew some religions kept saints' body parts or bodies as holy relics but to think of making Scaramouche a temporary relic while he figured out where his mother was located felt a bit silly. Scaramouche was far from being a saint and if any supernatural saw him the gig would be up. He nodded again.
”Ah,” the man smiled and shut his eyes peacefully. “We have been blessed. So you have come to condemn our sinners and give us a relic for our dedication.” Albedo didn’t realize that making a cult was this easy. All he had to do was look like an angel and nod a few times. It was horrifying. “Are there any messages from our God?”
Albedo averted his gaze. This felt hazardous. If he messed up, this man could scream and call a whole village into this building. The worst part is that Scaramouche would be in danger of the sunlight. He needed to be careful. “Continue your prayers. God hears them. Umm… and I will be staying with you for a while.”
The priest’s brow raised. “Pardon, you will be staying with us? How wonderful.” He clapped his book shut and stood up. “Should I have mass as soon as possible so everyone can get a blessing from you and the relic.”
Albedo's wings closed tightly around himself in a hug. He didn’t mean to. It was like they were protecting him. They hid his face and body from view. He realized his hands were trembling. As easy as it seemed in his head to lie, he felt so powerless like this. He knew he was making the situation worse. Angels were supposed to be mighty creatures from another world but so far he had eaten a corpse and now was cowering. It wasn’t a great look to a holy man like this.
“Oh, too soon. I understand.” He heard through his wings. “I can wait. You must have had a rough journey.” Albedo’s wings relaxed and he looked from between the teeth of them. “I saw you had an injury on your wrist. It seems the mortal realm wasn’t kind to you. Was it a wild animal that got to you?” Albedo opened his wings just enough to nod. “I see it has healed since you consumed the sinner. I’m glad I could help one of God’s messengers.” He slowly strolled over. “Now I suppose I should put our saint on display.” He stated confidently, but Albedo saw all the sun rays pouring in from the lone window.
”No!” He wheezed out. “Not in the sunlight.” Albedo tried to calm himself. “The body will disintegrate quicker in the sunlight.” Albedo took a deep breath. “I would rather not have your relic waste away because of something so simple.”
The man scratched his chin. “Hmm… I guess it makes sense. This saint doesn’t even look that far gone. What is his name? What miracles has he done?”
Albedo wanted to pull his hair out. He couldn’t make Scaramouche sound too amazing or else this priest would question why he had not heard of him before, but he couldn’t make it so small that it didn't matter. As for a name… he had no idea. He looked at one of his eyes on his wings as he spoke. “His name doesn’t matter in heaven so it doesn’t matter in the mortal realm either. We are all God’s children in his eyes.” He started. He wanted to sound like he knew what he was talking about. “His body was sent back to Earth to help those in need.” The priest seemed impressed.
”He ascended to heaven!” He placed a hand over his mouth.
Albedo realized he was already making Scaramouche sound saintly by being ‘ascended’… whatever that meant. “This is a saint of fertility. Whenever a couple had fertility issues in their marriage within three months… uh, with one of his prayers they would be seeded and have young within four seasons!”
The priest seemed impressed. “Wow, such piety. God must have found favor with him.”
”Yes.” Albedo tried to smile but he was sure it looked like he was going to be sick. “He was an extremely holy man. He made sure to keep chaste, which made his prayers about others' fertility stronger.” Albedo realized maybe this was going a bit too far when the priest nodded as if he understood.
“Yes, the pure of body and mind are so difficult to find these days.”
“Yes, pure of body and mind. His thoughts never strayed.” He knew every word he said was one-hundred percent a lie and the vampire in the other room was a horny heathen who would be trying to ravage his body if he was awake. What would he say if he woke up to people worshiping him for being sexually pure? He tried not to laugh at the thought.
“Well, if the body must be kept out of the sunlight I suppose I should build something to keep it safe. I want visitors' prayers to be heard but the relic to be safe.”
”Wait,” Albedo reached his hand out. “Could you only show off the body when I am around. I would prefer to keep it safe. I… um… This is an extremely important relic!” Albedo exclaimed. “You can see it isn’t decaying and looks almost alive, it is because I am protecting it.”
The holy man stared at him like he was speaking nonsense and Albedo started to feel nervous. He needed to be more confident. He needed to convince this priest that this was God’s message. He stood up and let his wings flare out. He closed his eyes and when he opened them he realized the placement was wrong. The man cowered in fear. That’s when it dawned on him. Somehow he had opened his eyes on his wings and was looking through them. He wasn’t sure how but here he was staring the man down with all the eyes on his wings. He spoke loud and clear. “I can not say why God has asked me to do this because I am his messenger and I do not question his words. I am to protect this body with my life. This relic is here to aid your prayers and I am to protect it. Consider this a blessing!” He curled his wings around himself and shut his eyes. When he opened them again he could see his wings and the closed eyelids on them. At least he was back to looking through his normal eyes. He opened his wings and tried to smile at the man who had fallen to the floor. “Ahem, I apologize for that. As you can see, this mission is extremely important and I must do it. I did not mean to frighten you.”
The man was on his knees and muttered out a prayer which only made Albedo feel worse. “It is quite okay to question me. I fell onto your doorstep unannounced with a body in hand and I acted strange. Please, do not be afraid.”
The man raised his head with tears in his eyes. “I didn’t mean to question God's mission. Please… tell me how I can help. I want to save this village from sin."
Albedo cleared his throat. “I suppose I have a small request.” He averted his gaze. “I may consume some bodies during my stay here. Please don’t let this alarm you. I only do this to souls that are trapped in their bodies.” Albedo lied again. “I would rather this be kept a secret between us. If the common folk knew that angels did this they wouldn’t worship our God.”
The priest nodded. “Of course, I'll give you whatever you need and keep this a secret."