Beast of the Night

Like a Dog - THREE

Their impetus was only to gain riches beyond what they ever had possessed. The three relatives watching Vee were from the lowly changelings of the vampires, treated like the dust they came from. If they could be rich upper town inhabitants, their lives would finally change for the better. The smirking attacker by Vee's cage stepped away from the trembling man and hopped into the coach box. Soon, Vee fell under a spell of sleep from the coldness and the exhaustion he had endured.

...

Continued

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The horse-drawn caged wagon rattled over the stones stuck together with a cement-like substance, passing by the vampires of the upper town. Even with the high name, the people of the area wore cheap clothing, washed to the best it could be. The rags of the wealthy were much better than the lower town's clothing, but still not as beautiful as the rare aristocrats, hidden deep in the upper area. Of course, no one could top Sir Ennard Ambrogio's clothing, and no one tried to. They knew it would be an insult to even attempt to live up to the greatness, the wealth, and the position of a pure blood.

When the three vampires saddled comfortably in the coach box pulled to a stop, one man, as old as the moon, it seemed, greeted them at the entrance of a dimly lit fortress. The entrance was draped into a purple velvet curtain, one burly beast guarding the door as people in cleaned suits entered. Some held the arm of their groom, some came alone, but as the crowd piled in, it was clear they all had one group goal. It would be a miracle to find a selling human, and every single being prayed for that miracle.

The people were starving, only drinking animals' blood, since the population of mankind was less than 20% of the world. To have one of your own would make you powerful. Very powerful. But it would also make you a target. However, in the minds of those who had no mind, the threat of running out of food was much more pressing than a home destroyed.

...

Vee was forced from the cage into the backdoor of an extravagant building, only to be thrown into another cage. This time, the cage was like an exotic bird's, curved at the top, and covered in a shining gold layer.
As he woke, he found himself doused with tepid water, his damp curled hair falling to his face. The boy had no idea where he was or how he got there, hyperventilating as he saw the back of what seemed to be a stage, covered by darkened curtains. Vampires swarmed around him, some in costumes, some with long powder brushes and stacks of signing paper. He shook the impervious bars of the container knowing it was impossible to escape. Vee teared up once more with whines and fearful shouts. Of course! He finally knew what this was. And it terrified hi even more.

He was brought to the vampire auction.

Vee Elrod coughed hard from the dust of his previous struggle as he bent his head down, banging pathetically on the bars with falling tears, "I-I will not be auctioned off like a dog!"

"Quiet, they'll hurt you if you become too loud," the stern yet soft voice approached Vee's cage; a woman holding a rusted comb and short scissors appeared. The tips of the cutters snipped together, as sharp as her teeth. The dresser walked close to the staring boy, her hazel hair drifting to her shoulders in a straight cut.

"They call me Lorelei. Boy, come closer I can barely reach you," the woman reached her short and skinny hands into the slits of the cage, one finger motioning him closer.

Vee Elrod watched the woman with askance, hesitating to lean against the cage, his sore back pressing against the bars. He sniffled once more, wiping the staining tears off of his pale cheeks. "Yes mam..." he mumbled quietly, scooting to the bars and pressing his back against them.

"Let us pray you're not sold to one of the hungry old men," Lorelei teased, trying to lighten the spirit of Vee before he went onstage, but only seemed to make the dread worse. "I hear we have a quite important guest; one we cannot disappoint."

As the woman took strands of the boy's dusty tan hair, she snipped the ends even, humming softly as she grinned. The tention and fear in Vee was obvious, his hands shaking as the scissors cut soundly. He knew he wouldn't like this new haircut, as he had only enjoyed his wife's style: letting his waves take control, and only cutting the ends when it reached his shoulders. The woman who had finished his cut, almost the exact same as his wife used to cut, took the comb hesitantly through the scowling boy's hair. She finally sighed and handed the comb to Vee's hand, smiling with gentle eyes.

"You may do as you wish with your hair, I just need you to be clean," she bent down and took the damp rag from the ground, leaning her hand back to his little cheek and rubbing the dirt patches off.

The woman sighed, needing to be honest with the boy before he became too insufferable on stage. "Listen to me," Vee tilted his head towards Lorelei with a pout like a child, "if you are not sold today, they will kill you." 

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