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Tommy was bored. He was bored of staying inside all day, with the blinds closed and a constant eye on him. Sure, when he was first changing and was learning to adjust to being undead, he appreciated it. He appreciated the constant support from his coven, and appreciated knowing that he was loved.
It was getting annoying now. Don’t get him wrong, he still loves his coven. Phil, his sire, was always there for him, answering any questions he had about being a vampire. Techno was a solid rock, always there to protect him, even if it was just from nightmares. Wilbur was a constant presence as well, helping him adjust to the vampire life. He would be there when Tommy was too overwhelmed, would be a silent presence beside him until he could handle noise again. What was annoying, though, was the fact that he wasn’t allowed to leave his house. Saying that Phil was overprotective would be an understatement, and saying that Wilbur was a tad paranoid about his little brother after rescuing him from Dream would be cutting the truth short.
So, he hasn’t left the huge mansion he now lives in in about two months. He was getting tired of it. The days seemed longer, and he was more on edge, so used to constantly being on the move. Which is why he was sneaking out today to go into town. He’d been developing a plan for almost a week now, until he was sure that he would have enough time to explore for a couple hours.
Today was a big business meeting for Phil, so that took care of one problem right away. Wilbur would be home during the day, but he was working on a new song on the guitar, so he could be occupied for hours. That only left Techno, but he had an easy plan for that.
“Hey Tech, I think I need some alone time today, I’m really overwhelmed and just kind of want to be on my own” he said, forcing his voice to be sad, even going to far as to sniffle. Judging by the panicked look on Techno’s face and the way that he quickly let Tommy be, his plan worked perfectly. He could always count on Techno’s extreme avoidance of emotions.
With his immediate coven members taken care of, he finally was able to put his plan into action. His first course of action would be protection from the sun. Sure, the sun didn’t make vampires shrivel up and die like it did in the stories, but it could still give you a pretty nasty sunburn crazy quick, and that would be a dead giveaway that he left the house. A hooded coat left in his closet from Wilbur in hopes that he would develop a ‘better style’ solved that problem pretty quickly, and he made sure to grab some sunglasses before heading over to the biggest window in his room.
It was taller than him, able to let in a lot of natural light during the day. Of course, they were covered up with blackout curtains, but it was easy enough to push them to the side and open the window, slipping the screen out of the frame and hopping through. He quietly slipped the frame back into place and turned away from the window, taking a breath of fresh air. He could have picked a day with better weather, since the sun was blaring and there was no wind to be had, but he’ll take what he can get.
After a moment of marvelling over the sight of the outdoors with his new vampire vision, relishing in the sounds, sights, and smells of the backyard that his window had led to, he headed towards town. He was going to bring his phone so that he could be sure that he wouldn’t get lost, but he was sure that Phil would be able to track him, and would know when he left the property. Meaning that he spent days looking at his digital maps so that he could memorize where to go after he got out of the house. The mansion that him and his coven lived on wasn’t too far from town, only about a five minute walk thankfully.
The sights around him were almost overwhelming in a good way as he made it to town. The sound of birds chirping was louder than it had ever been before, and even the smell of the flowers that he would occasionally pass were more fragrant than ever. It was insane, but a smile stayed on his face the entire time, feeling like he was experiencing the world for the second time, just in a different way. In a sense, that’s exactly how it was.
Walking into town, his ever present smile widened when he realized what day it was. Every Saturday, the town would hold a farmers market that stretched three streets, almost every business participating. Back when he used to live in the village, it was his favorite part of the week, and would spend hours browsing all the booths, even if they were the same every week. In fact, it was the reason a lot of people visited the town, the summers always full of tourists who flock to see the fields of flowers and visit the Saturday market.
He passed by the vendors, easily slipping into the crowd with ease. This was his domain; hiding in plain sight. Being a street kid for the majority of his life, he was used to slipping into the background, never drawing any attention to himself. Of course, in the past he would use his skills to pickpocket people, but with Phils emensive funds, he had no need for that anymore. He knew that his father and brothers would give him anything he wanted, within reason.
Hours passed by easily, Tommy spending his time blending in with the crowd, occasionally stopping by booths that he frequented before he found Phil, confident in the fact that no one would recognize him. Everything was going well, and Tommy found himself relaxing, glad that he decided to do this. Of course, there was that guilt seeping through the back of his mind, feeling bad that he lied to his coven and left the house, but more than anything he was happy. It was the same type of happiness when he saw Phil each morning, the same time of happiness when Wilbur would play a new song for Tommy or Techno would read him a story from his greek mythology book. It felt warm and bubbly, and seemed to nestle itself in his chest.
Of course, nothing ever came easy to him, and he should have been suspicious of the fact that everything was going so well. He stopped his shopping to linger next to an alleyway, content to people watch, getting more overwhelmed by being close to so many humans. He would lie if he said that his throat didn’t scratch every time he got a whiff of the smell of humans, but he had a remarkable hold over his hunger, something that worried Phil and fascinated Wilbur.
He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn’t hear footsteps approach from behind, using the alley to sneak up on him. When a harsh hand grabbed his shoulder, he whipped around with a spike of fear, his mouth open to ask who the hell was grabbing him.
“Make any noise and I’ll pierce you through the heart” a voice sneered, deep and cold. Tommy froze as he finished turning around, seeing a man in a jacket with the vampire hunter emblem on the chest. The man’s face was filled with hatred, his eyes filled with anger. In one hand, he held a wooden stake in a tight grip, the other still holding Tommy’s shoulder, stopping him from leaving. A fully fledged vampire would probably be able to break out of the grip and get out of there, but Tommy wasn’t fully done turning yet, and hasn’t had any blood since early this morning.
He held up his hands in a surrendering motion, forcing a timid smile to his face. “Hey hey I’m not here to hurt anyone, just missed the Saturday market” he said, embarrassed by the way that his voice shook with fear. If something happened to him, his coven would never know where he was. It would take them a while to find him, and by then they’d probably be too late.
The vampire hunter only scoffed, as if the idea was ridiculous. “Sure. Just come with me and you might be able to live. As much as you currently are, anyways” he said, laughing at his own joke. He was pushed harshly into the alleyway, and Tommy stumbled as he struggled to keep his footing. A bolt of panic coursed through him, and his adrenaline as he forced his feet to stay put, much to the hunter’s dismay.
“Don’t make this difficult”
Tommy smiled, baring his fangs at the man. “How about we don’t go after innocent vampires?” he asked, his voice still filled with fear, but this time he had more confidence. He twisted to the side, breaking the man’s hold on his shoulder. He turned around fully, ready to use his vampire strength to run out of here and book it to his house when a bolt of pain ran through his shoulder. It didn’t take a glance to know that he had a stake going through his shoulder thanks to the damn hunter. He bit his lower lip to keep any noise of pain from escaping, sucking in a harsh breath through his teeth as he bolted, not giving the hunter any time to grab another stake.
He made it back to his house faster than he ever had before, his breath coming in sharp gasps (something that he still did on impulse) as he bent over his knees, only to whine in pain when the stake shifted in his shoulder. Tommy turned his head to look at it, wincing when he saw his blood dripping down slowly, the stake stopping most of the bleeding. With a glance towards his window that he was just out of sight from incase anyone walked in his room, he grabbed the stake and took a preparing breath before ripping it out quick, biting down on his tongue to keep from shouting out in pain.
The stake was tossed off to the side, stained red from Tommy’s blood. His teeth were still clenched tight, his eyes scrunched together as he waited for the pain to fade. After it was manageable, he shifted his arm, wincing at the pain that lingered. He really hoped he dind’t get any splinters in his shoulder; that would be a pain to get out.
With a sigh, he climbed his way back into his room, taking a step towards his bed to collapse onto before a pointed cough caught his attention. Tommy's eyes widened turned slowly, wincing when he saw Phil standing in his doorway with his arms crossed, a scolding look to his eyes.
Tommy smiled sheepishly. “Heyy Phil. Fancy seeing you here” he said, wincing as he was caught red handed. As long as Phil didn’t find out he was hurt he may be able to leave the mansion in the next couple of years. Maybe.
“Tommy. Mind telling me what you were doing sneaking out of the house?” Phil asked with a deadpan expression, a pull through their shared bond telling him that Phil summoned Techno and Wilbur, meaning they must have known that he was gone as well. He wasn’t scared of their reaction; he knew that his coven would never hurt him. There were still the linger nerves that feared the disappointment that he might face though.
Rushing footsteps revealed a haggard looking Wilbur, his shoulders slumping in reliefwhen he saw Tommy.
“Where were you?” Phil asked before Wilbur could ask any questions.
Tommy fidgeted a little, before mumbling “Visited town”.
Phil sighed, turning from the doorway slightly as Techno walked up, giving Tommy a once over, something that made Tommy freeze up. If anyone was going to find out that he most likely had wood splinters in his shoulder, it would be his pink haired brother. Techno’s eyes lingered on him before sliding away, leaving Tommy to take an unneeded breath of relief.
“Do you realize how dangerous that could be? If you wanted to leave that badly you could’ve asked me, and we could go together so that we can make sure that you were safe. Walking in to go check on you and finding your room empty and curtains drawn is not the way you should ask for more freedom” Phil said, sounding unhappy but not necessarily mad.
Tommy nodded, trying to ignore the growing pain in his shoulder. “Sorry. I won’t do it again. I just- I wanted to go outside and see the town for a bit, and it was the Saturday market today” he said.
“We would love to take you in the future, where we can plan it out and keep you safe. You just have to tell us” Phil said gently, moving forwards to hug Tommy.
Tommy grit his teeth as he gave a one armed hug to Phil, the pain from having pressure on his shoulder nearing unbearable. Phil pulled away from their hug and gave him a concerned look.
“You sure nothing else happened?” he asked, as if wanting Tommy to give the answer that he wanted to fear.
Ever the stubborn one, Tommy shook his head. “Nope. Just visited all of my loving fans and friends and then snuck out of there” he said, a snort of laughter coming from Wilbur.
Phil nodded, seeming satisfied. Tommy almost thought he was in the free when-
“Raise your arms, Tommy”
Tommy froze, turning his attention towards Techno, who was staring at him with a serious look, a look that told him he wasn’t getting out of this.
“Uh- why?” he asked, his voice cracking. He felt as Wilbur and Phil studied him more intensely.
Techno only raised a brow. “Tommy.” he said, his tone not open to arguing. Tommy sighed, raising one arm above his head easily, only able to raise his left arm a couple inces before hissing in pain, a knowing look passing over Techno’s face.
“Mind telling us what really happened?” he asked, his voice stern. Past Tommy might have been nervous from the rough tone, but knowing the man for as long as he had now, he could hear the underlying concern coating his voice.
Tommy sighed. “Everything was going fine until a dumb hunter cornerned me in an alleyway and staked my shoulder. I ripped it out but it still hurts a lot” he admitted, years and years of instinct yelling at him for admitting his weakness.
He heard Wilbur take a sharp inhale, while Phil rushed to his side, leading Tommy back to the bed that he was standing a couple feet in front of with concern basically flooding their bond.
“Can you take your arm out of the sleeve for me?” Phil asked gently, helping Tommy as he slipped his left arm out of the shirt, his teeth clenched together in pain. Phil whispered apologies, turning to Techno who was suddenly beside Phil with their extensive first aid kit in hand. Tommy didn’t even notice him leave to get it.
With an inspection from Phil, he was told that he definitely has a splinter or two stuck in his shoulder, so it wouldn’t be able to heal until they got it out. After telling him what they were going to do, Tommy grabbed Wilbur’s hand roughly, knowing that Wilbur could handle his vampire strength, before the splinters were being pulled out of his shoulder with tweezers.
He groaned in pain, but it was over quick, and he could already feel his rapid healing take over, easing the pain.
“You should have some blood as well, it’ll help you feel better and I don’t think you’ve eaten almost all day” Phil said, gesturing to the three of them to give Tommy the choice of who to drink from. Younger fledglings could only drink from other vampires; mostly members of their coven if they had one.
Already being shoulder to shoulder with Phil, he gestured for him, his head falling onto his sire’s shoulder as his adrenaline faded and a wrist was put in front of him. He easily pierced the skin and got his fill of blood, letting his exhaustion weigh him down as Phil maneuvered him so that he could still lean on Phil’s shoulder while also laying down in bed.
When he was full of blood, Phil’s hand was moved away from his face and threaded through his hair.
“Go to sleep, fledgling. We’re going to have to talk about sneaking off and hiding injuries when you wake up though. Don’t think you can get out of it” he said with a smug tone, causing Tommy to groan before letting sleep take over.