The Curse

Chapter Nine- The Deal

I foggily open my eyes...I'm lying on a dirt road. I look around. I'm still in the Hidden Valley. I try to sit up--It hurts too much. I'm apparently too weak. When I feel my fangs sticking out, I know I'm always going to be a vampire. I see that I still have the white-and-brown hair instead of my old brown. I am disgusted that I even have the same hair color as that low-life, the HeadMaster. There's a puddle of water and I see in the reflection that my eyes are now golden. I think that's the same eye-color as the HeadMaster, too. Except for when his eyes flash red. 

I lay there on the street for a while, feeling hopeless, not remembering exactly what happened before I passed-out. One thing's for sure, I cannot live on this dirt road forever. I eventually try to get up. I am actually surprised that I can stand up normally after all this. And I'm still clueless as to where Kuroji or Mom is. I think I heard him before I blacked-out...but I can't just waltz around in the HeadMaster's huge castle and look for him. The streets are empty. By the looks of it, it's maybe around 5 or 6 in the afternoon, an hour or two until breakfast time for vampires, and it's dim and raining. I step along the wet, dirt-road, asking people if they've seen Kuroji or Hebi. Then it hits me. If Kuroji got a punishment too, then the best punishment would be...

Immediately I dash to the blood stand nearest to the castle. I run to a guy with red hair flipping a knife near the stand. "Have you heard of someone named Kuroji...?" I ask. "What are you talking abou--" "Have you, or not!?" I ask louder, getting worried. "Okay! Okay! No, I haven't! Besides, we don't usually ask the names of the people we're about to kill!" he says, rolling his eyes. "Hey...you're the one that keeps rebelling. The Cursed, right?" I leave before he says anything else. As I walk back down the dirt road I came, I feel hopeless. But then I notice something near the castle--a human--being held by two vampire guards. It must be the HeadMaster's "fresh breakfast". A sudden, hot rage fills my soul. I am so enraged at the HeadMaster right now, I will do whatever it takes to keep him from getting this human. Besides, that little girl...being so hopeless against these strong vampires...I can't let that happen. They must've woken her up from her sleep to bring her here. The image of the blonde girl my age that I so ruthlessly killed pops into my mind. I shake that image away when tears begin to form and I steadily walk towards the guards. "Help! Mommy, help!" I hear the little girl scream. She looks like she's around 8 years old. "Let her go," I say, stopping in front of them. There is a blonde-haired vampire with a smug look on his face, and a black-haired vampire, with a scowl. "Step aside, ma'am. You can't drain this one. It's for the HeadMaster." the blonde haired one says. Seriously? They think I want to steal this girl and drain her for my self? The 8 year old looks at me with wide eyes, sweating and crying, with bruises on her wrists from trying to escape their grasp. The guards look impatient and bear their fangs at me. "Let. Her. Go." I say, louder, bearing my fangs as well. They look surprised, like they've never seen a girl this demanding to such a higher class of vampire. The black-haired one says, "Alright..." And when I blink, he's gone. I hear his voice from behind me. "...You asked for it, Cursed." He kicks me so hard and fast in the back, I think he damaged a part of my spine. I quickly swing around and do a high-kick into his neck. I jump on the blonde one, who looks bored, and bite his arm. Probably surprised that a girl would do this, he jumps back and let's go of the little one. I scoop up the 8 year old, and as I begin running, I feel stinging on my shoulder. I think the black haired one sliced my shoulder before I took off. When I get to a random part of a familiar forest, I stop and look down at the girl. "Let go!" she says, screaming. I gently put her on the lush, green, ground.
"Are you alright? Did they bite you?" I ask. "Don't bite me!" she screams again. "I'm not gonna hurt you!" I say. There's a pause of silence. "Why...? Aren't you a vampire too?" she asks. I pause. "Yes...but I won't hurt you." I say. "I'm different." But then I remember what mom said a while back. "You're not going to get better. You're going to get worse." "The nearest human city should be that way. Call your mother." I say, pointing that direction. "O-Okay, I know my mommy's number..." she stutters, sniffing. And just before the urge to bite her comes, I run away. As I'm running, I hear a voice in my mind. Running away with my snack? The HeadMaster says. "Yes. Take it as a bit of revenge." I say, aloud. Yes, but where you took the girl isn't safe. Just like you aren't.

Where...? Huh? I wake up tied to a chair. What!? They got me again? I don't even remember getting captured or anything... The HeadMaster comes in with a syringe. He stabs it into my arm and connects a tube to it. Then he presses a button. As soon as he presses that button, I try to weasel my way out of the chair. But a blue liquid goes inside of me and my whole body can't move. I can't even close my eyes. "You're becoming a pest." he says. "But, you are enjoyable, just like your mother!" Then he leaves and the room goes dark. A TV lowers down right in front of me...and I see the most horrible images and videos I have ever seen in my entire life. They are videos of Kuroji getting whipped, cut, and even of him calling out my name. Nobara. And then there are images of him when he was a child in the orphanage. Images of me and him at the park together, some pictures that I took on my little camera. How did he get them...? And the last video is the worst. A video of a beast almost killing him. Then he stabs the beast. And the beast puts herbs on his wounds. This video is the video of when I almost killed him. I...am the beast.
After the video shuts off, I try to scream, but no sound comes out. Just a tear. "Can I let you go now without you getting in the way of my snacks?" the HeadMaster says, winking in front of me. "I'll give you a deal. If you listen to me, I won't hurt Kuroji. I will torture him more if you don't, though." I shakily nod my head in agreement. 

Next thing I know, I'm lying somewhere, feeling grass beneath me. I shake my head and open my eyes. I gasp and jump back when I see some dead person in front of me. I can't tell who it is though...there's a lot of blood. I roll it over and my voice gets caught in my throat. Tears instantly begin streaming down from my face, as I cup my hands over my mouth yet again. I don't care about the stares I'm getting. I don't even care about the vampires who look sorry for me. All I can do is...nothing. I grasp her body and hug her as rain drops begin to fall.

My mother, Hebi, is...dead.