Chapter 2

*Chapter 2 - Stranger*

*- Ten years ago -*

In the mansion where Ivan grew up, there was a reception room with stone walls, rich handcrafted furniture and candelabras of gold. On the walls hung the most beautiful paintings of exquisite motives, such as the one with a naked angel playing her harp and the one with a roe deer jumping across a field. On this particular morning, it was summer and the room was filled with warm light and dancing specks of dust. Ivan, a child of seven years, sat in a corner of the room observing the strange waltzes of the dust, trying to make sense of the patterns of movement. At the same time he was listening lazily to two men who were sat at a table in the middle of the room. They were talking with each other, but they never adressed Ivan so he didn't bother to listen too carefully. One of the men was his father, Ignas, and the other man was a foreign guest, a complete stranger that Ivan hadn't seen before. Ivan's father Ignas was tall, proud and carried himself with confidence, whereas the other man had a quiet demeanor and talked in a hushed voice.

After a while he started to suspect that they were talking about him. He started to feel uneasy, but he knew that he ought not to speak and he feared what would happen if he broke that rule. He continued watching the dancing dust, but started to listen more attentively to the conversation. He didn't manage to overhear much however, he just heard the stranger muttering and his father Ignas curtly answering "No", "Yes" and "I think not." Perhaps they had used magic to muffle the sound of their voices. Only Ignas's deep voice carried through to Ivan's ears.

It bothered Ivan that he didn't know the stranger's name. Thus he simply started to think of his name as "S*tranger".* He wondered where Stranger was from, and whether he had met Ignas before. He wondered what Stranger wanted. He wondered how soon Stranger would go. He wondered...

He saw the dust forming letters in front of his eyes

H I

S T R A N G E R ?

He blinked. But the letters where still there. Hi Stranger, it said, but what did it mean and how did it happen? Why did the dust dance for him?

Then the dust started swirling around again, forming new letters

H I

I V A N

He gasped. The dust knew his name, he thought. But then when he turned around he saw that the quiet man with the hushed voice was staring straight at him. They locked eyes and he felt his stomach sink with fear. Could the strange man read his mind? Did he hear what Ivan was thinking?

Then he realised that Stranger was here for him. He was here to get him.

\*\*\*

A cold droplet hit his nose and trickled down. He didn't move. More and more drops fell on him. His black hair got stuck to his forehead. He didn't move. He was crouching between elderberry bushes. The wind struck a twig on his cheek and howled through the branches. He didn't move. The last time he moved, the teacher had been disappointed. More disappointed in him than usual. "And you want to be a predator?" he had said. "You're making more noise than a horde zombies on fire."

Suddenly, the snap of a twig caught his attention. He looked to his side. A mouse escaped his gaze. "This time, I will not fail!" he thought. He knew the teacher was watching him. He focused again on the wooden cottage in front of him. The roof looked as if a large fist had smashed it down. Ivy creeped from the walls in the holes. Plumes of smoke tried to escape from the crooked chimney into the night breeze. With every gust of wind, the door and windows rattled and he wondered how the cottage was not falling apart. This cottage. The den of his first prey.

In front of the cottage stood a girl. Her eyes were closed and her arms were raised as if to embrace the rain. She stood motionless. Only her dark brown matted hair and the hem of her soil stained dress (it could have been white before) danced the wind. She was the most beautiful person he had ever seen. And he did not know her name. But every time he saw her, a warm feeling rose as if he was becoming a bonfire. Fortunately, the teacher selected this cottage every moon. Once the teacher had asked him, if he thought the girl was pretty. He had hesitated and mumbled yes. The teacher had laughed. "If you always do as I say, she will be your treat," he had said. Ivan had been confused. "Do girls taste sweet like a candy?" he had wondered.

The wind turned in his direction and he could smell the faint scent of hot chocolate as the girl opened her fiery red eyes, took her arms down and entered the cottage. This was the moment he had been waiting for. He sneaked forwards. Every time on of his feet broke a twig, he twitched and waited a moment, but no one came out of the house. When he reached the outer wall of the cottage he looked behind him. No sign of the teacher. Then he took a deep breath.  closed his eyes and put his hand on the ivy that covered the wood. He imagined the words the teacher had told him. *Garlic devourers shall bleed!* The stems and leaves began to move under his hand. "What will the girl think about this letters forced on the ivy?" he wondered but the fear for the teacher prevailed. He felt the last tendrils moving into place. Then he opened his eyes. Red eyes stared at him like a falling comet.

*Oh shit,* Ivan thought. *This was not part of the plan.* That was all he had time to think before a strong blow hit him in his lunar plexus and the air was knocked out of him. He fell to the ground. A foot planted itself firmly on his chest and Ivan found himself trapped, unable to stand up. Clenching his fists he started to struggle and grabbed hold of the girl's ankle, trying to offset her balance...

Ivan succeeded and the girl fell to the ground next to him. He could breathe again. Quickly he came to his feet, and so did the girl and then they were next to each other. She had fear in her eyes. What should he do now? He put his hands on the ivy and focused and it came to life again, creating a new sentence.

The girl frowned at the wall. He looked at it too, and blushed immediately. *I do not want to court you,* it said in green letters*.* His hands trembled. His fingers touched the ivy again. *I do not want to hurt you*. The girl's frown deepened. "Then why are you threatening us, pale face?" she asked. Ivan took a step back, before remembering the teacher's words. "You put holy water in our drinks. You replace our coffins with solariums. You crucify us and wear our fangs as necklace. You steal our children and feed them garlicky lies. You force us to breed with you to dilute our blood. You want to wipe us out. So we have no choice." he recited.