She can see in the dark

Unease

He had become aware of the presence a few nights before. Then he had convinced himself that it had been nothing, only an illusion brought on by heartache and fear. It had been his first night in his refuge, away from the crypt, away from his family, away from the memories of her. Since his final, bitter goodbye with Olga, Rudolph had cut himself off from his family and hidden himself in Tony's attic. He slept in a trunk filled halfway with old clothes that had belonged to Tony's grandmother. Among them was a silken dress which served as a blanket of sorts for the young vampire. Although now the silk was stained with the drops of blood that served as tears for his kind. By day he slept with the lid tightly shut, by night he wandered around the dusty, forgotten boxes that lined the walls. An antique mirror reflected the moonlight through the open window and Rudolph liked to torture himself by standing in front of it and imagining his reflection in the glass.

He pictured a sickly, pale boy of fourteen with a scrawny build, sunken bloodshot eyed and a face that only a mother could love. He hadn't seen his own reflection in 300 years and the portraits that his family kept as mementos of their time as humans weren't much help. Artists always tried to curry favor with the aristocrats by painting them far more attractive than they actually were and he had long convinced himself that the puckish boy with the raven curls and bright aquamarine eyes was not him and never had been. Anna was the closest thing he had to an idea of what he truly looked like. They were fraternal twins and family members liked to tell them that they both took after their mother. But Anna was beautiful, with a proud face and eyes that brimmed with wisdom beyond her years, there was no way any of that had carried over to him. If it had, why would Olga simply use him and cast him aside as soon as Tony came along. He refused to believe that it was only Tony's blood she was after, after all Tony was a handsome lad with sun kissed skin, fair hair and cornflower blue eyes. This coupled with his sweet and endearing personality was enough to win him any girl he wished. Even Anna had succumbed to his charms. No, Rudolph simply wasn't enough for any woman. They all looked past him, either at Tony or at Gregory. He scowled when he thought of Gregory now. Count Dracula had arrived to pay them a visit, bringing his son and daughters along. Gregory and the eldest girl had been drawn to each other from the moment they met. She was strangely alluring to him with her cascading raven curls which faded to flowery pink and her unusually perky personality. Rudolph envied their happiness and wished he could be as handsome as his mysterious brother and sweet-faced friend.

He When he caught Olga with her fangs almost to Tony's neck, only then did Rudolph realize that he'd been had. He should have seen it coming from the way she treated him. Olga never had a good word for her so-called lover. She belittled and abused him at every chance she got. She humiliated him in front of his family on a regular basis and made him look like a fool in front of Tony. Anna had warned him about Olga but he wouldn't listen, he was completely blinded by love. That had almost cost his best friend his life and had left him with the deepest scar he had ever received. Rudolph had been too distraught to return home to his family. They all (aside from Anna) had adored Olga for her raw vampire spirit, although he suspected Gregory had never cared for her. He always rolled his eyes whenever Rudolph brought up how wonderful she was.

Rudolph ran his fingers along the cool glass. The stars reflected in its surface, twinkled sympathetically. The only light came from the moonlight streaming in through the single round window, leaving much of the room in shadow. Suddenly, Rudolph's melancholy thoughts were interrupted by the most peculiar feeling. It felt as though he were being watched. He didn't dare turn around, lest he give the intruder the indication that he knew they were there. Instead he peered deeper into the mirror, his lack of reflection leaving the attic behind him un-obscured. The room looked completely empty, nothing but cobweb covered boxes and dusty trunks lining the peeling walls. Rudolph's midnight eyes scanned every inch he could see but saw nothing, not even a bat clinging to the cobwebbed corner of the ceiling. Dismissing the feeling as his imagination,  he slowly turned back towards the mirror, and that's when he saw them...

The eyes. the green eyes staring at him from the shadowed far corner of the room. Supressing a yelp, Rudolph spun around, his eyes scanning every nook and cranny of the attic, but they were gone. The feeling of unease remained and Rudolph scrambled back into his trunk and shut the lid on himself. H e couldn't sleep, he didn't stir. He stayed still for what felt like an eternity, not daring to move for fear of what was lurking in the shadows.