Crave Me, Taste Me [FighterTutor 18+]

-16- 💋 Not To Worry

[A/N - WARNING: graphic violence. You may skip this chapter, but know you'll miss part of Fighter's backstory. At the end, I'll include a brief summary of what happened if you want to skip the details]

"No one's gonna hurt you. No one's gonna dare. Others can desert you. Not to worry, whistle, I'll be there."
~Sweeney Todd, 'Not While I'm Around'

~~~

*Fighter's POV*

My bare feet pad against the floor as I make my way from my bedroom to my parents' room. My body is still trembling from the nightmare, and I push the door open. Tiptoeing to the bed, I lightly nudge the sleeping body.

"Mommy?" I whisper. Mom instantly wakes up, as she always does whenever she senses I need her.

"Fighter? What is it, baby?" Mom asks sleepily, sitting up on the bed.

"I had a nightmare," I tell her, my bottom lip wobbling.

"Oh, sweetie," my mom coos, standing up and picking me up in her arms. "How about a story? Hm?"

I nod my head with a bright grin, hugging her neck as she carries me back to my room.

"Do you want to talk about your nightmare?" Mom asks as she tucks me into bed. I bite my lower lip, accidentally cutting the flesh with my small fang. Mom smiles warmly, brushing her thumb over my lip to wipe the drop of blood away.

"I dreamt that the bad men came and took you and daddy away," I whisper sadly, and my mom's eyes soften.

"My sweet Fighter," my mom brushes my hair back. "Our clan is well protected. Vampire hunters cannot get in here. We are perfectly safe."

"What about when you and daddy leave the castle?" I ask, eyes growing watery. "Who will protect you then? You're a human, you can get hurt."

"Fighter, listen to me," my mom says as she takes my hands. "Your father and I are strong enough to protect ourselves against anyone. As long as you're waiting at home for us, we'll always return to you. No matter what."

"What about me, mommy? Am I strong?"

She smiles at me, ruffling my hair and kissing my nose. "The strongest five-year-old I've ever seen. You're a warrior. Our little Fighter."

I grin, scrambling from the bed to hug my mom tightly. She holds me close, petting my hair soothingly as she begins to sing.

"Nothing's gonna harm you. Not while I'm around. Nothing's gonna harm you, darling. Not while I'm around..."

My eyes grow heavy as she sings, pulling me into a deep slumber in the arms of my mom.

The next time I wake, it's from the sound of a piercing scream.

Nearly falling out of bed, I run out of my room towards the living room. What I see makes me scream as terror fills me.

"Mommy!!" I scream, tears already falling down my cheeks.

A vampire holds my mom by the throat, baring his blood covered fangs as he glares at my dad.

"Fighter! Stay back!" My dad shouts, pulling me behind him.

"You made me like this!" The vampire shrieks at my dad. "You said if I completed the ritual, I would feel fulfilled! Complete! But I don't! I feel nothing but cold and empty without her!"