Edward was sprawled across his bed in the middle of the day, the heavy brocade curtains keeping out every ounce of sunlight. He'd been alone for weeks now, hadn't heard from his cousin at all. He recalled the last time he'd seen him vividly.
Richard had been slouched in a chair at the breakfast table. "I can't wait for winter, when it's dark and the sun is rarely out," he'd stated, reaching across the table and snatching the newspaper out of Edward's hand. "How can you stand it, being cooped up all the time? I'm going to die of boredom."
Edward had only arched an eyebrow and sipped from a sherry glass full of blood. "That's a bit dramatic, don't you think?"
"No," he'd replied sullenly. His eyes were bright red. "I can't die anyway, you made sure of that." He'd left that evening, as soon as it was dark, and had fucked off to London. Another body had been found the following morning.
Animal attack, or so they said. Just like Edith.
Being alone made Edward want to rip his ears from his head; without Richard's incessant chatter, nothing drowned out the noise of the town. He buried his head under his pillow and screamed in frustration.
He heard the lock turn on the back door, heard footsteps and a quickly beating heart. Kier. He hadn't seen the werewolf in at least a week. And now he was coming up the stairs, smelling like grass and cedar and soap, and underneath that, a hint of canine. Richard always complained he smelled like a wet dog. Edward had never noticed.
The bedroom door swung open and kier threw a newspaper onto the bed. "Someone is killing prostitutes in Whitechapel."
"Go away." He was suddenly acutely aware of the fact he was naked under his blankets and he kept his head under his pillow.
Kier threw himself into the chair in the corner. He'd left the bedroom door cracked slightly and the little bit of light from the hall illuminated a pair of pale arms and shoulders in the bed. Edward's body shifted, the blanket sliding farther down his back; the expanse of skin was so white it seemed to glow and it looked like marble under moonlight. He wanted to run his hands over him. "Are you okay? I'm sorry it's been a while since I've come to see you; the twins are going through their first transformation cycle and it's been difficult to keep them under control."
Edward thought of little Wynonna transforming into a tiny werewolf, her little body going through that ghastly change, and suddenly his heart hurt. "It's okay," he said, voice muffled. "I've only thought about going outside to watch the sunrise a few times."
A sigh. "You know that's not going to kill you, just make you more miserable."
"Ha," Edward scoffed. "As though that's possible." The vampire could hear the wolf's heart beating, pushing all that glorious blood through his glorious body. Hunger gnawed at his belly.
Kier got up and kicked his boots off before flopping onto the bed next to him. He folded his hands over his chest and closed his eyes. "If you're going to stay in bed, I might as well take a nap. I haven't slept in days."
Edward shifted slightly closer, drawn to his sun-warmed skin. He was so tired of being cold all the time. He pulled his head out from under his pillow. "Is Nonna doing okay?"
Kier nodded once. "She's okay. She cries a lot though. The transformation process feels like teething when it's new."
Edward's eyes were glued to his neck. He could see his pulse pounding away there. If he could only just– no.
Kier snuck a look at the other. "You alright?" The vampire was staring at him like he was a piece of meat and as he watched, his tongue darted out over his bottom lip. He was actually licking his lips. It made him feel strange.
