The Hunters and The Hunted

Chapter Nineteen:

Ortho.

That word ran through my mind ten million times.

What was I going to do? Fight him? Become him? Or run away, like last time?
It was time to choose. I needed a battle plan, and if I didn't have one soon, he would take me by surprise.

Over the next few days, I came up with a plan. I never told the others, for all they knew, Ortho had killed me in my sleep if I die. I would slip out, quietly, the next night, and run to the cave. I'd say I'd come to make a deal, then stab him. Simple.
Maybe.
I knew it would go down as planned, but I know I'm getting out of there alive or not at all.

Fast forward to the next night, and I'm out the window like a shadow. I didn't make it two feet from the tree outside before I was surrounded.
"We could smell you miles away." One of them said, she had the look of a newborn.
"I just want to make a deal. Ortho knows I'm not a danger." The vampires exchanged looks and nodded, encompassing me, forcing me to walk towards the distant cave.
The snarling started soon before I entered, the scraping nails on stone, the smell of the dead, all hit me at once.

"To what do I owe this pleasure?" Ortho said, climbing down from a cave near the ceiling.

I didn't answer him, instead I offered out my hand. A quizzical look flashed across his face for a split second, before a smirk took over.

"You're a little too young for marriage aren't you?"

"I don't want to marry you."

"So you're giving in? Wait, I'm confused. You, The Krystal Shiner, invincible hunter-God combo, is giving up? Holy hell, I'd never thought I'd see this day!"

"I want you to leave my friends alone. Everyone in that house, and everyone that steps foot in that house from here, on. If you don't ensure me that, then I'll kill you."

Ortho dragged his fingers through his hair, "Well, the best place to make sure I keep my end is right by my side."

"Look, I told you I-"

"Ba-ba-ba, I don't care what you told me, you made your side of the deal, now it's my turn. If I vow to not kill anyone who will ever live in that house, then you have to pledge your loyalty to me, by being my wife."

"Give me 24 hours. I'll think about it, and meet you back here tomorrow night. After that we'll make arrangements."

"Done. Leave me now, it's hunting time and I have newborns to feed." Ortho smirked, gesturing to the cave that was now filling with young vampires."

I walked through the field, climbed the tree and jumped through the window, landing softly on the floor. I'd have to marry Ortho. I couldn't risk the lives of the only people I can call family, could I?

It was decided, sadly, and with that I started throwing things into a suitcase. My perfumes, my favorite t-shirts, and my ripped jeans. V would take everything else, and the rest would divvy up my belongings if they wanted. I checked the time, 4:30 am, the clock face blinked at me. I reach for the stash of whiskey under my bed, yeah, the one v tried to take but couldn't find because I move it to a different spot every week. I pop open the bottle, sipping on it, thinking how this will be my last time getting drunk at 5 am and pretending I'm not by the time everyone gets up at 7. My last time to feel emotions other than evil.

As I drank on, I decided it was time for a change in style. I went to the bathroom, grabbed the hair clippers, and , as carefully as my drunk self could, I shaved the right side of my head, attempting the classic punk look. I probably messed it up but who even cares right? I'm gonna be dead in a few hours anyway. I slip into my room, once more, grabbing my sunglasses.

For the next 30 minutes, I sit in the living room, waiting for someone else to wake up and trying to focus on not slurring my words when they do. Slowly, they file down the stairs, all a few minutes apart.

"Morning, Krystal." Tom says, sitting down next to me on the couch.

"Heeey" I smile at him.

"Why are you wearing sunglasses when the sun isn't even up?"

"Because it's gonna come up at some point and I'm prepared for when it does."

"Solid logic." V commented from somewhere.

"I'm gonna go take a nap so wake me up at about 3, I got places to be after that." I stood up, making my way to the stairs carefully, and then gracefully tripping up them once or twice.

"She's drunk again." V said," but that was her most convincing performance yet." everyone else mumbled in agreement.

I made a show of slamming my door so they'd know that I'd heard them.

3:30pm: Tom wakes me up, tossing a breath mint at me as he leans down to pick up my bag.

"Going somewhere?" he asked.

"Yeah, I told you that earlier. I have a trip planned." I swing out of bed and stand up throught the head rush.

"At least you didn't drink enough to give yourself a hangover."Tom says dropping my bag on the bed. I brush him off, going downstairs just to be greeted with everyone in the house staring at me.

"Nice haircut. Where are you going exactly?" V questioned me, of course she did, I'd question me too.

"On a hunt."

"Not by yourself."

"Yes, by myself. I'm not leaving until tomorrow anyway. Don't ya'll have something to hunt? I can't schedule all of your trips, you know." With that I left the house. Walking to the tree under my window and sitting under it. Sam and Dean were gone, I hadn't noticed until today, they didn't say goodbye, and neither did the Doctor, and who even knows where Sherlock and John ran away too. I climbed the tree again, into my bedroom window. I wrote on pink stationery, what was left of what we found in the house when we moved in, and began writing.

"Hey there,

It's Krystal. I don't know if you'll find this, but when you do, I won't be around anymore. Don't blame me for anything that happens when I leave you, but I had to. Don't try to find me, please, you'll just get hurt and that's the last thing I want.

V, Thank you for picking me up all those years ago when we were just orphans with nowhere to go. Thank you for being such a great friend.

Tom, Man, thank you for helping me with everything and being there when I wasn't. Take care of them, okay?

Kristen, I know you aren't around much, but keep an eye on them for me when you can.

X, I'm so sorry about Wolfgang, you have to know that. He's still here, in the house, along with Rainy, eve though I know you didn't like him much.

Thank you guys for being such great people, maybe I'll see you soon.
Goodbye,
Krystal Shiner

P.s, If you do ever find me, kill me. Don't hesitate."

I taped the note to the window, grabbed my bag, and jumped. I ran across the field, my heart beating out of my chest. I reached the cave entrance, turning back to look at this huge farmhouse that had been my home for the past 4 years. Now I faced my new life, my life as Orthos wife. The newborns were already surrounding me, pulling me inside, I looked, still, out into the field as the darkness enveloped me.

~~~~~~~~~~

A/N

Wellllllllll then. This next chapter is going to be the end of an era. I've been writing this since 2014, and I'm quite sad to let this story and character go, I'm emotionally invested in this story, but I'm glad I won't have to come up with anymore crazy subplots to go into this junction of a story. 

I'll see you guys in the next chapter, but until then,

Continuous love,

-K