Emiel Regis x Reader

Four

It was strange. Regis had not been at this place for the first time, but this time it seemed different, darker and so quiet that it made him nervous. It was and had always been quiet, but this time it was ghostly and deserted, like a ghost town trying to devour him.

"Be careful.", Regis looked over his shoulder to get another look at Dettlaff. "Don't speak without thinking about your words. Be inconspicuous and respectful. If he wants to, he can kill you."

With a shake of his head, Dettlaff closed his eyes and sighed heavily.

"Regis, I'm not a child anymore. I've been here before. I've met him. And I'm not stupid either.", confidently he put a hand on Regis' shoulder to squeeze it gently. "It's going to be all right. I'm sure we worry too much."

A mild smile appeared on Regis' lips, hopeful but not confident. He always smiled like that when he didn't believe in something.

"Let's hope you're right, old friend."

It was weird. Regis knew this place and even though he had kept away from it as much as he could, he knew something had changed about it. The coldness of the cave he went into together with Dettlaff had always been penetrating, but now he believed it was unnatural.

The tingling and stinging on his skin was like ice wanting to bite him. He had felt something like this before.

An unpleasant shiver crept down his back as Regis passed a wall bearing the mark of his and Dettlaff's clan. He hadn't seen it for a long time, but the memories of it still hurt. Sometimes he missed the world he was born in. He missed the monsters, he had chased as a child. He missed the other vampires that had taught him old lessons and knowledge that had been long forgotten.

But his home was now Toussaint. He loved the colourful flowers and the animals, that seemed so much more peaceful than the creatures he had seen before. And the best thing was, he did not have to worry about getting killed by everything. This world was a lot less dangerous. And a lot more beautiful.

While walking through the darkness, he had been so absorbed in his thoughts that Regis did not notice when Dettlaff suddenly stopped in front of him. He clumsyly stumbled into his friend, stopped abruptly and raised his head in surprised.

"Is something?", curious, he tried to stretch himself to be able to see better.

But Dettlaff was tall and his shoulders were wider than Regis and so he could hardly see anything but a movement in the shadows. It lasted a moment and his rigidity did not dissolve until Regis put a hand on his shoulder.

Surprised, he twitched, turned and looked at his friend with a worried look.

"They're all here.", he whispered anxious.

"Who?", for a moment Regis didn't know what he was talking about, but remembered quickly.

Surprised, he raised his eyebrows.

Dettlaff nodded.

"Every single one. Even those who don't live in Toussaint. I've never seen so many at once.", nervously he glanched over his shoulder. "Are these all higher vampires?"

Regis hesitantly looked for himself, was surprised by the sight and then retired back into the shadows.

"Well, this is... unusual.", he muttered. "Indeed, they are our brothers and sisters."

"I never knew that there would be so many of us..."

"I am a little surprised myself. A lot of those vampires were rumoured to be dead. Some were hiding from deadly danger. I did expected them to attend."

His words seemed to make Dettlaff even more nervous than he already had been. He hated crowds, especially crowds of strangers. A crowd full of higher vampires, potential enemies, was his absolute nightmare.

Regis was worried he might try and make a run for it. In that case the punishment of the eldest Vampire would have been anything but mild.

Nervously, Dettlaff looked around, his shoulders hung low and he tried to avoid any kind of eye contact.

"So you are telling me all higher vampires of this fucking world are present?", he mumbled towards his older friend.

Regis hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"I fear so.", he answered. "Honestly, I'm just as surprised as you are. But if it is his will, they all have to obey. But be careful, Dettlaff. Not every higher vampire is as cultured as we are. Some don't want to be your friend. And some don't think before they take action."

"I know, Regis, I know. You need to stop treating me like a newborn vampire. I might be anti social but I do have some kind of knowledge about our kind.", Dettlaff's eyes wandered through the cave, from one face to another and back to Regis. "I just hope this will be worth the trouble."

"Haha, oh I am very certain that it will be.", surprised by the female voice, the two vampires turned around, only to face a familiar woman.

"Orianna. What a relieve to see you here.", Regis greeted her with a polite nod of the head.

She greeted him likewise, smiled at Dettlaff and took a look around the cave.

"Well, just like you I had no choice but to obey. However, I am a little more pleased than you two seem to be. You look terrible. The eldest would be offended if he had to see your faces."

"Very funny, Orianna.", Dettlaff hissed. "You can't tell us that you're thrilled to be in a room full of equals. One wrong word and you might be dead."

"True words. However, I am a lot more lucky than Regis is.", with a thin smile she glanced at the grey-haired man.

"Excuse my confusion but why should I be unlucky?", Regis asked, frowning.

"Because your ex wife is here. And she seems to be very close to the eldest vampire."