The toll of the antique clock striking midnight echoed in the empty ballroom. Six, seven, eight. Still no movement or sound could be heard, everything perfectly still. Ten, eleven.
Twelve.
The creak of the old caskets opening languidly broke the absolute silence of the hall. Eight figures came to life in the dim light, stretching out their limbs and cracking their necks. One looked at the others placidly, then started talking.
"Goodnight, my brothers. Are you hungry, already?"
"What a fucking stupid question."
"Manners, Mingi. I thought I taught you better than this."
"Sorry, Hongjoong. I'm so hungry I can't see straight."
"Then, we're hunting tonight. We'll see each other back at the mansion at 3 am."
"Make it 4. We may drag it a little bit."
Hongjoong looked at San and scoffed. San and Wooyoung always hunted in pair. And they had a... particular inclination. They liked to play with their food before feeding. They always said they couldn't enjoy their meals otherwise. Hongjoong didn't care much about that, but others didn't share their view: while Seonghwa and Yunho were as violent and vicious as they get, Yeosang instead only fed because he had to, and only chose morally questionable people. Therefore, he didn't understand nor support Woosan's hunting lifestyle, and the less he knew about it, the more comfortably he lived.
"Jongho, remember not to leave too many traces of your passage this time. It was a slaughter last week. We don't want to be noticed. If they suspect a nest, they will hunt us down."
"I'm sorry, Hongjoong. I was carried away."
Jongho was the last one to be turned, the youngest vampire in the nest, and he still had his problems containing his rage and bloodlust from time to time. He was a fierce killer with no remorse, but too eager to be called a perfect one yet.
"Enough of the talking. 4 sharp. Leave as little trace of your passage possible."
They all turned to... cats. Eight little black cats. They were part of a peculiar vampire bloodline which didn't turn into the characteristic bat, no. They turned into cats. Seonghwa found it stupid and hated it so much, he never even meowed. Wooyoung thought it was extremely classy and walked around as if he was the only cat in the whole neighbourhood. It was particularly convenient while hunting, though: the familiar form attracted much more people than a regular bat, and it could be used to lure people to their demise.
Yunho was the first to find his victim that night: a young boy, who was tossing rocks into a small stream, and was immediately caught by the black cat desperately meowing for his attention, purring and asking for cuddles.
"Who are you, little guy? Come here, psst, I won't hurt you."
Oh, stupid boy, I will.
"C'mon, here, I just want to pet you."
But just when the boy's hand landed on the cat's head, Yunho quickly bit his fingers.
"Ouch! You little sh-"
And then, he turned. The boy's eyes widened at the sight of the little cat turning into a grown ass man. Yunho was much taller than him, towering him and staring at him with a sinister smile plastered on his face.
"W-wh-what are you?"
"It doesn't concern you. But thanks for the meal."
He was on the boy in an instant, his fangs tearing the tender skin and starting to suck the warm blood out of his neck. The boy was kicking, straining to get away from the vampire, but his brute force was too great for him to break free. And so, Yunho drank, and drank, until the boy was sucked dry, pale and already colder, dead on the ground.
