Thou Shall Not Kill - Lost Boys

Chapter Five: Dinner with a Vampire

Lucy got up early that morning. Having been woken by the rising sun, Azrael listened carefully to their older cousin's footsteps as she wandered aimlessly through the cool atmosphere.

Azrael emerged from their room, relieved of their coat, startling Lucy as she leant against the banister.

The vampire hunter was bedraggled, to put it nicely. Their irises were soft and dull, hair jutting out in every direction, the only source of light in their face coming from the reflective grease coating their nose.

There was a floral dressing gown flowing around the woman's figure. She always carried a hint of exhaustion in her smile, but it had now been replaced by an unreserved sadness. Her short curls sat flat against her head.

"Have you ever tried so hard to protect someone that you end up making things worse?"

Azrael nodded, a groggy memory of the previous night pounding in their head like a near-fatal hangover.

Lucy looked them in the eye. "What am I supposed to do?"

Azrael managed a small smile, floating over to the banister. Lucy seemed to relax with proximity to another human being.

"I've got to try. I can't do any more than try."

Azrael nodded.

Lucy tiptoed down the stairs, headed for the front of the house.

She was ready to pass responsibility to her son. She was ready to let go of what little control she had previously held over her eldest child, and focus on keeping her youngest safe.

Azrael headed to their room.

Their fight was only just beginning.

◇◇◇◇◇

"Alan!"

The adolescent's head whipped around, his brow furrowing at the sight of a grumbling silver machine resting on the side of the road.

He checked both ways before crossing the footpath, laying his fingers over the edge of the open window.

"Shouldn't you be at work?" he teased.

"Knocked off early." Azrael replied. "Faked the flu. It's going around the store, so they sent me home. Where're you going?"

"Work."

"Where's your brother?"

"Already at the shop. Why?"

"Want a lift?"

Intrigued, Alan clambered into the vehicle, admiring the faded interior as they took off.

Azrael rested their hand on the top of the steering wheel, the other shifting gears with effortless skill.

"Has Sam spoken to you lately?"

"What's it to you?"

"He's my cousin, Alan. Answer the question."

Alan seemed to consider Azrael's motives before replying. "He called us last night, raving about a vampire."

"Michael?"

"...Yeah."

The hunters reached the comic shop, the car pulling smoothly into the gutter. They exited, Azrael calling Edgar over to hear their appeal.

"I need you to do me a favour. Next time you see Sam-"

"Found him." Edgar stated.

Azrael followed Edgar's finger down the road, growing restless at the sight of Sam travelling towards them, his head buried in a comic book.