Just one picture ~ Prinxiety

Chapter One

Pictures stood along the mantelpiece in an orderly fashion. All of them demonstrated a young boy growing up. A boy with obnoxiously fluffy, blond hair; Big, baby blue eyes behind large, circular glasses and an over-the-top grin. Each photo five centimetres apart, taken a year apart in the exact same spot. Some had views beyond belief, where you could see for miles and miles; others looked dreary and grim, making the young boy seem out of place; some of the older ones had a thin layer of snow beneath the boy's feet. The photos were taken atop a mountain that stood less than a mile from the house belonging to the boy and his adoptive father. They lived in a small but homely house in the centre of northern wales. The only other form of civilisation was a farm just over a mile away and the nearest convenience store was around two miles away on the edge of the next village.

The boy looked nothing like his father. His father had dark hair that had been bleached then dyed purple, the left side shaved and the right long and straightened hanging down to his shoulders; His eyes a dark brown that was closer to black than anything; He was tall and slim but well built with broad shoulders. He looked almost as young as his seventeen year old son, which brought up many questions when they revealed that they were father and son. A thick layer of dark eyeshadow was a constant guest below his eyes and it was sometimes hard to tell if it was the result of a lot sleep deprivation or just eyeshadow. He had several tattoos but they were mostly covered by his t-shirt and hoodie except for the top of one that could be seen poking out from the top of his t-shirt.

"Patton!" He called up the stairs to his son as he fiddled with a black ring in his cartilage, "Are you nearly ready?"

"Yeah, I'll be down in a sec, Virge," Patton replied followed by a few thuds a quiet 'ow' and lighter footsteps on the stairs.

"Are you okay?" Virgil asked panicked looking down at his son, his eyes quickly scanned over the boy to make sure he was okay.

"I'm fine, Virgil." Patton shrugged pulling on his walking boots.

"Will you be warm enough like that?" Virgil checked seeing Patton was only wearing ablue polo shirt over a grey thermal, "It'll be really cold when you get to the top."

"I'll take my coat and put it on when we get there," Patton smiled at his panicky father when he finished tying his laces, "I'll be fine. Better than. Once we get walking I'll soon warm up."

"Okay..." Virgil trailed off grabbing Patton's coat from a peg by the door. The shorter traded the house keys for his coat and then they set off walking to the mountain.

The walk to the mountain was an easy walk along the side of a road and nothing compared to the mountain. Although the mountain wasn't a long walk, maybe an hour or so without stopping, it was a tough one. Just quite steep, rocky and uneven, but if you pick out the right path then it can be significantly easier.

The two knew the best way like the back of their hands. It was the safest way but not shown on maps as it hadn't been trodden down into a legitimate path. But the two didn't mind. It just meant there was no one else around.

"Do you have any water?" Patton asked pushing hair out of his eyes.

"Here," Virgil replied passing a bottle over to Patton. The latter thanked Virgil and took a few gulps before passing it back and setting off up the mountain again. It was a beautiful day. Birds flew around singing loudly with each other; Sheep were casually grazing in the grass, minding their own business, but there weren't any other animals in sight as it was late October, so others were happily hibernating in their homes. Virgil's camera hit his chest with every step up the mountain like a silent drum beat to the birds' song, also accompanied by the rushing wind.

After an hour, they were sat on the summit staring into the distance. They could see all the way to the beaches in Barmouth in one direction and in the other, as far as the next mountain would let them. It was silent and calm. No other people there to spoil the scenery. No other people to spoil the quiet.

"Ready to do the picture?" Virgil asked and, with his usually enthusiastic grin, Patton hopped up.

"Of course." He stood in the normal spot and Virgil held his camera up and stepped another foot or so back so that he didn't accidentally cut off Patton's feet or the top of his hair. A few clicks later and Virgil smiled at his son, stepping forward to show him the photos, but as he did so, Virgil's ears pricked up. A pair of hikers had come along, talking loudly and ruining the silence. Patton rubbed Virgil's back, smiling sympathetically up at him.

"See! I told you we weren't lost," One of the hikers shouted triumphantly as their heads appeared over the edge.

"You said that two hours ago, when we were definitely lost. This is not a three hour walk, Roman!" The other groaned.

"Well, we got here, so who cares," Roman shrugged.

"Yeah, I'm in charge of the map tomorrow," The taller sighed.

Roman shook his head at his companion and looked at the view from the top. He grinned before saying, "Lovely view today, isn't it?"

The question wasn't directed at anyone, more just thrown carelessly into the air, but it was Patton who answered.

"It is! The forecast wasn't supposed to be this good!" He grinned and Roman turned to face the new people. Virgil could hear a very faint Spanish accent in his voice, it wouldn't be noticeable to a normal person, but he could hear it perfectly clearly. He looked no older than 30, with tan skin and bright green eyes; Brown hair sat in a quiff on top of his head and he had a single gold stud in his left ear.

"We almost didn't come today because it was supposed to be really foggy and raining all day," The other bloke added adjusting his glasses.

"Nice camera. What brand is it?" Roman asked.

"Canon," Virgil replied holding his camera closer to his chest.

"Do you want me to take a picture of you and your boyfriend?" He asked with a smile. Patton chocked on the water he was drinking.

"He's my son," Virgil scowled and Roman looked taken back.

"I'm so sorry, for assuming," Roman quickly apologised.

"It's fine, kiddo," Patton smiled when he had managed to swallow the water and wiped his chin. He was somewhat used to people assuming that he and Virgil where cousins or friends, sometimes even brothers, but boyfriends was new.

"And no," Virgil said.

"Are you sure? Just one picture?" Roman asked again.

"I'm sure." Virgil nodded.

"C'mon, stand over there with your son so we have the right lighting and-"

"Thanks- um, Roman? Was it? But it's okay, Dad isn't huge on getting in photos, or giving other people his camera," Patton smiled jumping in to help Virgil because Roman seemed quite persistent and there was no way in hell Virgil was going to give up his camera.

"Can I get a selfie though? I've been taking selfies with everyone we see on mountains, which is more people than you'd think. Logan, come over here." Roman pulled out his phone and unlocked it. Virgil and Patton exchanged a panicked look as Roman held up his phone. Roman took a photo and then frowned as he looked into the screen and then turned around to see Virgil, "Hmm. How come-"

"I ducked," The taller cut him off, "I don't like getting in photos."

"Really? You hate them that much? Why?"

"None of your fucking business."

Virgil scowled as Roman looked at him with a confused look. But Virgil would reveal no more information. How could he tell a human that he's a vampire?