Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Living as a Vampire was never that hard for Sophia. 

She has perfectly navigated this little life ever since she opened her eyes. Her life was easy until she had to go to school. 

It was stupid, really. 

Vampires have always been banned from every academy in their realm. Apparently, that happens when there are thousands of recorded monster histories about Vampires causing wars and being the absolute villains throughout the century.

Having read almost all the books in their manor’s Library, Sophia is very well aware of this. She never had a problem with this. In fact, she loved it. She didn’t have to leave the manor. She can do whatever she wants! 

Except for when she gets lonely. However, in the books, it’s also said that vampires were meant to be alone. 

And Sophia was just following what she read. 

But then, Thornhall Academy, very well-known and well respected, suddenly lifted its “Vampire Ban.”

Sophia wondered why. Why would they lift the ban now?

Every monster species is very adamant about not lifting the ban. Why would they change the rules suddenly? 

But who was Sophia to ask and protest? Her family had immediately thrown her into this academy without prior notice. Not even a heads-up. 

The first time Sophia set foot into Thornhall Academy, her family, dressed in black and red, sent her off in a coffin as if it were her funeral. Holding the reddest, most perfect roses as they waved goodbye, shedding tears as if Sophia had evaporated under the sun right before their eyes. 

As soon as Sophia entered the gates, her family disappeared. Scattering away like dust. 

She didn’t care about what the academy looked like. It looked like a vampire’s manor but with statues of different monsters. Unlike in their manor, there were statues of her father and mother. At least this academy wasn’t narcissistic. 

Once Sophia entered the building, everything worsened, but at the same time, not really. Sophia came prepared. 

The judging eyes that stared and looked her up and down were enough to prove that those books she read were real. No one liked vampires. No one wanted to be around them, nor do they want to see one up close.

And Sophia is quite sure that it applies in this situation. She has seen different monsters before, but it still intrigued her how different they looked from vampires. 

Vampires looked like humans who were marinated in bleach for 10 days. Pale and cold. They look dead, but not these monsters. They look like death itself. 

As Sophia walked, the eyes on her remained. There were many of them. Ghosts, beasts, sea monsters, you name it. 

Sophia was the only vampire there, and she couldn’t help but feel like she didn’t belong. They didn’t say it directly, but their energy alone shouted it. Screamed and yelled it through their judging eyes. 

She wasn’t welcomed. 

Then, the worst of all, when she rounded the corner, she saw a whole pack. 

A pack of werewolves. Crowding the hall like they owned it. They probably did. 

They blocked the entire hallway, laughing and roughhousing each other. If Sophia could smell their natural werewolf scents, she’d be retching in disgust right now. 

They all turned their attention towards Sophia. With just a look and a sniff, they instantly knew what type of monster Sophia was.

Their sworn enemy. A goddamn vampire. 

In the middle of that crowd of moon-howling creatures is a woman who stands tall, clad in a jacket with fur, curly-haired, and oozing with the confidence of a creature that could get whatever it wanted in just a single glare. 

She looked at the vampire up and down. Her eyes were sharp, almost glowing, and she looked like she was seconds away from tearing Sophia apart. 

Sophia let out a sigh, almost a huff. 

As much as Sophia wanted to show these dogs how much stronger she is than they are, she didn’t want to cause trouble on her first day. So, she took a careful step backwards, politely lowering her head a bit before turning and walking away. 

It took her almost 30 minutes before she could find the dean’s office. She’s pretty sure she has caught almost 50 different types of monsters looking at her that day, either snarling, judging, or backing away from her. 

She didn’t actually think it was that bad. 

—

A year had already passed, and Sophia had pretty much settled in. She got used to the stares, and over time, they got tired of staring at her. Instead, they all just avoided her or said shit about her behind her back. She wouldn’t know, she didn’t care as much. 

There was a “vampire discrimination” going on, but Sophia thinks she’d get laughed at if she ever protested. Besides, what can these monsters even do to her? Sophia doesn’t even have a pulse, much less a heart; she doubts she’d actually feel offended anyway. 

Around this time, she was no longer the only vampire in the academy. A ton of them came out of nowhere, and suddenly, Sophia isn’t as unique anymore. 

At least she isn’t the only vampire getting the cold treatment from the others anymore.

It’s lunchtime. The halls are full of scaly tails, glistering horns, ghostly giggles, and shapeshifting arguments. Some hairy beast is growling and huffing about his subjects. Someone gets cursed out of nowhere. 

Sophia glides past lockers like she owns the place, unfazed about the events unfolding in the hallway. She’s in her usual monochrome outfit, black skirt, white ruffled blouse with her fangs out just a little too much for it to be considered accidental. 

She looked like she came from a royal vampire family. She did.

Behind her were a group of bat-winged juniors giggling. Sophia doesn’t look back. She never does. 

She learned how to avoid people, even the vampires that wanted to be friends with her. Her arrival a year ago actually became the talk of the town. Not in a good way, but in a scandalous “Oh my god, they let a vampire in!” kind of way. 

She was one of the bravest vampires to ever enter Thornhall Academy as soon as they lifted the ban. She became the “hero” for some of the vampires and also the enemy for almost half of the monster realm population. 

On the opposite end of the hallway, the sound of combat boots slamming against the floor echoes through the chaos. The sound literally made the monsters snap their heads towards it. 

Curly-haired and tail swaying, Daniela Avanzini. 

Snarling, radiating heat. Backpack was slung over one shoulder, and her eyes were very narrowed. 

They lock eyes mid-hall. Sophia, uninterested, turns away after a second. Daniela stares longer, eyes glowing with pure hatred. 

The crowd in the hallway instinctively parts, making way for Daniela only. Everyone knows not to block her way, and they also know not to stand between the two of them. But it’s mostly for Daniela. 

They couldn’t care less about Sophia. 

Lara, the rakshasa adorned in glittering gold with sharp horns, leans against one of the lockers, smirking. “Five coins say Daniela throws the first insult.” 

Beside her, Megan smiles, fox ears twitching in amusement. “Make it ten. Double it if Sophia makes that smug little smirk.” 

Yoonchae emerges from nowhere, tail flicking as she munched on a demon snack. “Is Daniela finally going to bite Sophia’s head off?” 

Manon popped out of nowhere, flicking water from her hair. Both Yoonchae and Megan grimaced as they took a step back from the sea monster, scared that their furs might get wet. 

“No way, Daniela’s too much of a puppy to even hurt anyone physically, and technically, they’ve never actually fought yet. Just verbally combusted.” Manon flicks her hair again, the water hitting Megan’s ear, causing the girl to squeak. 

“Why is she always lurking like a cheap perfume ad?” Daniela mumbles, and Sophia hears it loudly and clearly. 

Oh, and of course, Sophia has an enemy. A werewolf! How fitting. Sophia actually doesn’t even respond to Daniela most of the time. 

Just when she needed to leave immediately, she needed to shut the wolf up so she could flee. 

She smiles, fangs showing, not saying a word. 

The other werewolves laugh, making fun of Sophia. 

“Aww, got nothing to say, leech?” Daniela mockingly says, smirking. Sophia looks at her, composed and still smiling, “Don’t growl, puppy. People might think you’re untrained.” 

Daniela barks out a laugh, “Oh, I’m very trained. Want me to demonstrate?” 

Sophia smirks smugly, amused, “Sure. Sit.” 

A bunch of ‘oohs’ were heard as Daniela snarls, showing Sophia her claws in one hand. 

Megan chuckles, nudging Lara, “Pay up.” 

Lara scoffs before giving Megan 20 coins. 

“Wonder what else they’re going to argue about? Advanced Combat class?” Manon whispers. 

“Probably. Because last year, Sophia one-upped her in Potion Brewing. Daniela can’t recover from it.” Megan’s nine tails appear, swaying as she laughs.

“Wonder when they’ll address the sexual tension.” Suddenly, everyone turns to Yoonchae, who said those words a little bit loudly. 

It’s as if the crowd were silenced by her words. 

“What?” Daniela practically whips her whole head around when she hears what Yoonchae said. 

The young Jangsanbeom’s ears perk up as she makes eye contact with Daniela. “What? I didn’t say anything.” The other girls chuckle as Yoonchae feigns innocence. 

Daniela scoffs. She turns back around, and Sophia has already left, not wanting to stay there any longer.

“Come on, pup.” Lara pulls Daniela’s arm. “Let’s eat lunch.”

The werewolf doesn’t protest and lets the rakshasa pull her. The others follow, laughing and giggling at Daniela. 

“Why do you always fight her like you two got a divorce and are still fighting for your child’s custody?” Lara asks once they sit at the cafeteria. 

Yoonchae laughs, “No, because Sophia doesn’t even care. Daniela’s the only one raging about her.” 

Daniela glares at them one by one, and Megan flicks a small dead leaf at her. “She’s not even the only vampire in the academy anymore, but you’re still beefing with her.” 

The werewolf doesn’t say anything; she just rolls her eyes at them. 

Manon looks at her carefully, as if inspecting her, “I don’t even know if you’re still bullying her or just madly in love.” 

“I will poison your water tank.” Daniela growls, and the sea monster immediately puts her hands up, as if surrendering. 

Lara barks out a laugh, “Oh, definitely in love!” 

“Sure. And I was howling for attention.” Daniela leans back away from the table, rolling her eyes. 

“You kind of were, though.” Megan flashes her a cheeky smile, her eyes twitching. 

They were enjoying this. 

—

Daniela Avanzini, the overly confident werewolf, wasn’t even one of Sophia’s problems. She’s too busy not getting burned under the sun, busy keeping herself alive with her blood bags, and surviving all their classes. 

Sophia doesn’t even know what she did to the wolf girl. They’ve never interacted before, and Sophia is certain she hasn’t done anything that can disrespect anyone aside from living as a vampire, of course. 

The first time she even saw the girl was when she and her pack were blocking the hallway, and Sophia didn’t even dare walk past them. 

Aside from the history of vampires and werewolves not getting along, Sophia can’t think of another reason. 

Sophia has kept to herself the whole time she was there. All of Daniela’s snarky comments always leave her scratching her head. She always wonders where Daniela’s anger towards her came from. 

The only time Daniela ever becomes one of Sophia’s problems is when she attends Shadow Magic class. 

It’s a class where they have to master shadow magic, and it’s Sophia’s favorite out of all. And it is probably the only time she gets payback. 

Shadow Magic class takes place at Midnight Hall. It was a huge, dimly lit gothic classroom with enchanted torches flickering along blackstone walls. 

Students are split into pairs for each session for a sparring exercise to “test compatibility and control under pressure.” 

Sophia scoffs at it. 

It’s a terrible idea to make the students spar. Especially when the professor always paired Sophia up with Daniela. Sometimes she thinks that maybe the professor wanted to stir up drama. 

Pairing a vampire and a werewolf up together to spar? That was like asking for another war between the two species. 

Their professor is a tall wraith dressed in a velvet cloak. He held a scroll and stood in the middle of the room. “Pair 7! Sophia Laforteza and Daniela Avanzini.” 

A collective and long “oooh” echoes through the room like gossiping ghosts. Everyone knows that the two monsters can’t stand each other. 

Or, more accurately, Daniela cannot stand Sophia.

The vampire was lounging at her desk with her cloak draped around her shoulders like some vampire royalty. She smiles slowly, pushing her glasses up her nose because, of course, she uses glasses. 

Unlike other days, she was wearing her trusty slim black trousers, obviously ready for a battle. She still wore her fancy flowy white button-up. As if not scared that Daniela might ruin her clothes. 

She turns her head towards Daniela, who was sitting a few seats away from her at the back. She sweetly smiles up at her, smug. “Looks like we’re paired up again. We must be destined for each other.” 

Daniela clenches her jaw, gritting her teeth, “If you try anything, I’m snapping your stupid bat wings off.” 

The vampire immediately took off her cloak in one swift motion before laying it gently on the chair. She was the first one to step in the middle. On the ground was a hand-drawn circle, big enough to be Sophia and Daniela’s battlefield. 

“Like I said earlier, this is to practice defense!” Their professor reminded them before handing Sophia a staff. Since most of them are still learning, they have yet to master the art of shadow magic to be able to control it with just their minds. They are required to use a staff to regulate the magic of shadows. 

It was simply too powerful, and they have no control over it yet. “In this round, Sophia, you’re going to defend yourself.” 

He looks at Daniela next, but doesn’t hand her anything. “Daniela, you’re on offense.” 

Daniela nods as she makes her way towards them. 

Sophia twirls the staff between her fingers like she’d done it before. The shadows around her pulse like a heartbeat, almost vibrating slightly, smooth, calm, and powerful. 

The students whisper among each other, either judging Sophia or just simply making fun of her. 

Daniela comes stomping in, her claws flexed, her golden eyes glowing. Ferocious and unruly. Like a wildfire wrapped in fur. 

The match begins, and Sophia is quick to whisper a spell against the staff. Shadows twist from the floor, dancing around her like waves. Daniela charges forward, and the shadows instantly coil up to block her way like liquid walls. 

She groans as the shadows engulf her slightly before jumping back. “Ugh, always hiding. Classic leech move.”

Sophia laughs. It echoes as if she were in a chamber. “I’m not hiding, querida. I’m defending myself.” 

Daniela glares as she hears the pet name. She lunges again, slicing through the shadows with her bare hands. Claws as sharp as ever. Sophia was forced to move, and as the shadows part, Daniela sees Sophia’s face. 

She was smiling. 

“Why are you smiling?” Daniela said through gritted teeth. 

Sophia jumps back, the shadows following her on the ground. She was panting, not really used to moving a lot. “I’ve been dying to fight you for a week now. You’re electric.” 

“You’re a fucking psycho.”

The vampire tilts her head, her smile turning into a smug smirk, “And yet here you are, dancing with me anyway.” 

The room fell silent. They were all shocked. Manon is gripping Megan’s shoulder like she’s watching a monster soap opera. Lara whispers a prayer to herself while Yoonchae has popcorn; she conjures with shadow magic. 

The other students were all stunned by how… charming Sophia can be. She’s a vampire! Everyone hated her for existing, but can they even deny the fact that Sophia is hot? 

The werewolf has had enough. She attacks again, finally pinning Sophia to the floor. Claws at Sophia’s collar, fangs bared. Her tail was literally puffed up like a cat’s. 

“One more word, leech. One more fucking word and I’ll rip your tongue out.” She growls. 

Sophia let out a breathy laugh from under her. Her eyes were red when they met Daniela’s. “And yet, you haven’t.”

The room erupts into cheers, and their professor has to tear them apart. 

“Settle down now.” He claps loudly as he pulls Sophia up and makes Daniela sit back down on her chair. “That’s a warning for you, Avanzini.” 

The wolf girl only huffs and turns away. “And Sophia, great control. Maybe work on your strength next time.” Sophia sighs, nodding. 

Before she could go back to her seat, their professor dismissed them. “That’s enough for the day. The next pairs should be prepared next time.” Everyone left the room like they were trying to escape from a cage. 

Daniela storms out of the classroom, fists clenched, practically steaming. Megan had to use her fox powers to catch up to her. “Bro. You pinned her. You won! Why do you look like you just lost a war?” 

“Because that smug little bloodsucker kept saying shit. She wasn’t even being serious! She kept flirting with me the entire time.” 

Lara appears from the shadows, laughing, “She does that. I think that’s her thing.” 

Yooncahe came up to them, startling the three of them as she came in her jangsanbeom form. “Yeah, but not like that. That was personal.” 

“Jesus, Yoonchae. No offense, but your monster form is fucking terrifying.” Yoonchae shrugs at Daniela’s words. “Girl, we are literally monsters.” 

Meanwhile, Sophia exits the classroom casually, adjusting her cloak and tucking her glasses back into place, totally unaffected. 

Except she pauses in the hallway, glancing over her shoulder in the direction Daniela went. 

“You’re obsessed.” Manon suddenly appeared beside her. Sophia looks at her with a confused look on her face. “I have never seen you like this.” 

“Maybe it’s good to fight back for once. Getting under her skin gave me ecstasy.” Sophia said with a grin. 

“Gods. You’re already dead, but this is like you asking to be killed.” 

“Okay, it’s not my fault Daniela wants to fight me every day.” 

Oh, and Sophia had friends now, too. Unfortunately for Daniela, it was her own set of friends that wanted to befriend Sophia. Fortunately for Sophia, they never really viewed vampires differently, or they knew Sophia was different from the others. 

—

What happened next in Thornhall Academy was definitely not what Sophia was expecting. Apparently, after her sparring with Daniela, she had caught the attention of many. 

There was a blog created on the site called “Monstrosi-tea” where the news around campus is posted. News as in the gossip, the drama, the tea. 

The blog was literally just about how Sophia looked hot while fighting. About how she looked charming and smug. That maybe some vampires can “lowkey get it.”

To Sophia’s surprise, the blog blows up. There were so many people reposting it and commenting on it. Someone even posted a whole video of her and Daniela’s match. 

“Did y’all see the way Avanzini lunged at her?? That was insane!” 

“Bruh, Sophia fucking smiled and smirked while getting slammed down on the floor. Why was that so hot??” 

“Y’all… I know we collectively hate vampires and all… but hear me out on Sophia…”

“Lord… Sophia looked so hot WHY IS SHE A VAMPIRE WHY WHY WHY WHY”

“The tension tho.”

“Kinda ship them, can we make an exception for Sophia, cause they kinda look cute.”

And more. 

Suddenly, she was loved but still hated for being a vampire. Sophia read through it with a frown. Genuinely concerned for the well-being of these monsters who thirst over her. 

Sophia literally passed by the cafeteria, and she saw first-years huddled around phones, all watching the battle. 

One of them, a siren girl, sighed dreamily, “I want to have a love-hate relationship like that.” 

Then one of her zombie friends goes, “Babe, they’re literally trying to kill each other.” 

Sophia choked out a laugh before leaving immediately, not wanting to be seen. 

Even the girls were talking about it. They were out in the quad, eating together. Daniela wasn’t there; she was with her pack. 

Lara suddenly summoned her cellphone out of nowhere. “Did you guys see the new edit of Dani and Sophia’s sparring match?” 

Yoonchae perks up, her tail wagging, “YOU MEAN THIS ONE?” She flips her phone towards the girls, and the 15-second slow-mo video with dramatic music starts. The girls lose it, laughing like absolute buffoons. 

Manon wheezes, “The fucking caption is taking me out! What do they mean by enemies to lovers? Girl, that’s one-sided beef!” 

The girls laugh even more. They sounded like demons growling. Well, they were monsters after all. 

“No, but in all seriousness, why did Sophia lick her fang after getting tackled? That’s kinda diabolical. Like I get Dani’s reaction now.” Manon says after recovering from too much laughter. 

Megan clears her throat. “Well, because she’s a menace?? She literally whispered something to Dani while she was pinned down on the floor.” 

“Okay, but what the fuck did she say. I need to know!” Lara says, looking through her phone. Maybe someone had captured their conversation somewhere. 

“It was probably something like ‘If I die by your hands, I’ll be happy,” Yoonchae said dramatically, even trying to impersonate Sophia’s voice. 

Megan bursts out laughing, slamming her hands on the table over and over, “NO ‘CAUSE THAT IS SO HER. THAT IS SO SOPHIA.”

It was a good thing that neither Sophia nor Daniela was there, or this table out in the quad could have exploded by then. 

Now that the whole academy had their eyes on Sophia, they all noticed more things about her how she struts around looking like royalty. She carries herself and is very much unbothered by the hate she gets every day. 

Like she knew this would happen, and she came prepared. The monsters even start to wonder which family she came from. Sure, they know her last name as “Laforteza,” but they all wonder if her whole clan is ever rooted with a known vampire family. 

They also start to wonder how Sophia could look so good every day, as if she had come out of a gothic fairytale. 

“I’d let her ruin my life.” Daniela once heard a monster as she passed by the hallway. She knows they were talking about Sophia. She scoffs, “She’s not even that hot,” she whispers to herself. 

—

A few weeks go by, and all the monsters that are taking up Shadow magic are preparing for the second duel. The second spar is where they no longer practice to defend themselves. This time, it’s a real battle. 

The duel doesn’t take place inside a classroom anymore. Instead, it’s at the amphitheater dueling grounds behind the school. 

Stone platforms, mist curling around the base, lit by floating red crystal lanterns. There, other students gather to witness the second spar. 

Or they just wanted to watch Sophia and Daniela spar again. 

The crowd is going insane as the first few pairs fight in the middle. They were hyped up and fully anticipating Sophia and Daniela. Megan was taking up bets. Yoonchae, as usual, has popcorn.

Manon emerged from the water nearby and gently landed beside Lara, who was as giddy as a little kid with candy. “This is going to get hot real fast.” 

Manon smirks, “That’s why I’m on standby if they both catch on fire.” 

The crowd goes wild when Sophia and Daniela’s names get called. It was time for their spar. 

The air is tense. Sophia is the first one to step in again, elegant as always. Her cloak billows dramatically even though there’s no wind. Of course, she’d control her cloak for dramatic effect. 

She wasn’t wearing her glasses this time because what would she need them for? 

Her eyes are red and sharp, and she is eyeing Daniela across the platform. 

Daniela hops in, cracking her neck and rolling her shoulders. She takes her leather jacket off; her claws are out in just seconds.  

She growls lowly, still mad about the first spar she had with Sophia. Still mad that Sophia had the nerve to smirk at her even when she’s pinned down as if she had won. That look from Sophia still haunts her. Fueling her anger. 

“No smug grins this time, vampire. You’re not getting off easy.” She said the word ‘vampire’ as if it were an insult. 

Sophia stood there, unfazed. Calm, smooth, and irritatingly hot. “I never do with you, wolf.” 

Their professor blows the whistle; they both lunge forward, clashing in the middle, startling the monsters in the crowd. 

They were more aggressive than the first one. 

Sophia dodges like she’s dancing. Spells weaving through her fingers, eyes never leaving Daniela, while Daniela goes full beast mode. Claws out, movement wild but practiced. 

They were evenly matched, but it was clear Sophia was not holding back, unlike before. 

Every time Daniela thinks she’s got her, Sophia’s already behind her, flicking a strand of hair over her shoulder, unbothered as if she were saying, “Try again.”

Daniela snarls mid-duel, “You weren’t fighting like this last time!” 

Sophia laughs, slipping past her, voice close to her ear, “Maybe I wanted to stay on the floor.” 

Daniela’s movements halt. She stops dead in her tracks like her brain had restarted. Sophia stands behind her, smiling widely. 

The crowd goes insane at Sophia’s words. 

When Daniela turns towards her, Sophia steps back, smiling politely like she didn’t just flirt mid-fight. 

Daniela, cheeks flaming, lunges at her again. 

They continue with the back and forth. With Daniela attacking and Sophia dodging, letting the wolf chase her. 

But Sophia finally gets serious. Her shadows whip out in a swirl, her cloak wraps around her as she vanishes and reappears right behind Daniela. 

She whispers, “Are you mad because I let you win… or because you wanted me under you again?” 

Daniela blinks, jumping forward.  

She was stunned. Sophia summons the shadows from beneath her. It crawls up her legs to her right arm. It forms around her hand. 

Daniela snaps out of it and uses this time to lunge at Sophia using all her strength. In a split second, Sophia smirks at her. 

Daniela flips her shit, and her eyes glow brighter. 

But as she jumped and was seconds away from capturing Sophia, the vampire swung her right arm where the shadows formed. She was going to hit Daniela on the shoulder. 

The lycan’s eyes widened. She knew she wouldn’t be able to dodge that. Shadow magic is powerful and painful. Even if she were insanely fast, it would still hit her. 

So instead of pulling back, she closes her eyes, preparing for what’s to come. 

Sophia, in one swift move, makes the shadows on her arm vanish, leaving only her bare hand. She hits Daniela with just her normal strength, hoping it won’t cause too much damage. 

The wolf groans loudly, wincing as she falls forward. She was still able to pin Sophia down. 

That’s what it looked like to the crowd. But Daniela felt it. It was different. 

It didn’t feel like she pinned Sophia. It felt like Sophia had caught her in her arms and cushioned her fall as they landed.

The crowd is screaming, thinking that Sophia let Daniela win again. 

The wolf huffs, breathless, furious, and flustered beyond measure. “You… fucking asshole. You weakened that blow on purpose!” she says through pain and gritted teeth. ”And stop doing that.”

Sophia let out a breath, her back aching at the impact of her fall. “Doing what?”

“Letting me win.”

Sophia stares her directly in her eyes. Her eyes were no longer red, but they glowed. “Then beat me properly.”

And for a second, they just stare at each other - stillness in the chaos. Magic crackles around them, but the crowd is silent, waiting. 

Then the instructor blows the whistle, “Match over. Werewolf wins again.” 

Daniela steps back quickly, too quickly. She refuses to look at Sophia. Storms off the field. 

But everyone saw the flush on her cheeks. Everyone saw how Sophia smiled like she had won anyway. 

Daniela marches away from the dueling grounds, claws still partially out, tail lashing behind her, absolutely fuming. Not just at Sophia but at herself. 

Because how dare that smug little vampire whisper in her ear like that??? How dare she soften her attack as if Daniela were some weak creature??? How dare she act as if she’s scared of hurting Daniela??? She’s a vampire for fuck’s sake! 

She’s halfway across campus when Lara teleports in front of her, blocking her way. “Explain. Now.” 

Suddenly, she hears Yoonchae from the trees, “Was it flirty banter or sexual tension? Because I’m confused.” 

Manon swam up from the school’s underground moat like it was nothing. “I felt the heat from underwater. That was not normal combat.”

“Y’all were about to kiss mid-duel, don’t lie!” Megan floats down in her fox form and then shifts back to her semi-human form. 

The werewolf stood there, flustered. Trying her best to bite back a snarl. 

She held onto her shoulder, the one that Sophia hit. It hurt like a burn. Like she was held down, melted silver poured down her shoulder. 

“She’s just so infuriating! SHE SMIRKS LIKE-LIKE-LIKE A LEECH WITH A GOD COMPLEX!” She was stuttering and having a hard time thinking or talking. 

It also didn’t help that her shoulder was hurting like crazy. She held onto it tighter. 

“But did you like it?” Lara leaned against the tree that Yoonchae was on. 

Daniela snapped her head towards Lara, “NO?? SHUT UP??” She was stuttering again. 

The girls all share a look. That knowing look. 

Megan smiles and looks like a fox even in her semi-human form. “You want her to bite your neck, or you want to break hers. Either way, I’m rooting for you.”

Back at the amphitheater, Sophia is surrounded by students. Apparently, dueling while looking like a medieval vampire princess with perfect hair and casually dropping flirtatious one-liners while evading attacks is hot as hell.

Despite losing, she had everyone’s attention. 

A random ghost girl came up to her, shy and small. “Uhm, Sophia, can you teach me shadow magic sometime?” 

Sophia blinked. She wasn’t even a master of it yet. 

“Of course,” she replied politely.

A guy with long white hair then stood beside her. “You’re really graceful… like a dancer.” 

The vampire didn’t know what to say to that. She stood and chuckled, “Thanks? I used to take dancing lessons–?” 

Even the poltergeists are swooning. 

But Sophia barely paid any of them any mind. Her eyes keep flicking toward the tree line where Daniela had stormed off. 

She was a bit worried. She doesn’t know if Daniela was strong enough to recover from that blow. She tried her best to hold her strength back last minute, and she isn’t sure if she could soften the impact at all…

Megan suddenly pops in behind her, whispering to her with a smirk. “You should’ve seen Daniela’s face. Girl’s gonna maul a pillow tonight.” 

Sophia’s concern immediately fades once she faces Megan, “She started it.” 

“Uh-huh. And you finished it by whispering ‘maybe I wanted to stay on the floor’ like a romcom movie protagonist.”

Sophia shrugs, smirking once more.

The next time they see each other in class, Daniela’s shoulder no longer hurts as much. Manon had given her some siren potion that she definitely did not steal from the sirens. 

It was supposed to heal Daniela’s shoulder completely, but it didn’t do its job well. They came to the conclusion that Sophia was just too strong, which is why the potion didn’t work properly. 

At least it lessened Daniela’s pain. Her shoulder only felt slightly sore. 

When she makes eye contact with Sophia, she glares, growling under her breath. Sophia acts as if she did nothing wrong. 

Their professor shows up and taps the board, “Partner exercises again, pair up.”

All the students pair up except Daniela and Sophia, who only stared at each other. 

“Don't. Say. A. Word.” 

Sophia stands up, smiling sweetly, “Wouldn’t dream of it, m’lady.” 

She’s pretty sure someone in the class fainted from that line alone. 

—

A few weeks have passed since the second spar. Sophia’s popularity did not decrease; if anything, she became more popular. 

She was still getting nasty looks, but not like before. There were even vampires thanking her. She single-handedly cleared the image of vampires by being hot in a duel. 

But the past few days, Sophia has been noticing something. 

Sophia had been noticing a presence around the academy. An unwelcome one. It wasn’t as dark as the presence of the monsters. 

This one was … suspiciously a presence of a human. 

Sure, it didn’t sound as dangerous and harmful, but Sophia doesn’t trust it. 

It all started when she studied the many kinds of magic in her dorm. 

She was hanging from the ceiling as she read through a book about spell casters and protection spells. 

She saw a page about the barrier spell that many academies use in the monster realm to protect the area. Sophia may or may not have toyed with the barrier spell in their academy… and she may or may not have sensed the presence from there. 

Ever since she felt it, she had always been alert. She could feel something was wrong, but didn’t know exactly what it was. 

Sophia could have just gone and reported it to the dean, but if she did, they’d find out she was messing with the barrier spell. 

She can’t have that. So, she kept quiet and silently guarded the academy. 

“Argh, I wonder what insane project they will make us do this year,” Megan mumbles as she walks with Sophia to attend Monster history class.

In this class, the professors would make them create the most insane projects. Last year, they made the students create another Frankenstein using animal parts. 

It was emotionally taxing and also traumatizing for many. 

As they entered the room, they saw the words “Monster History & Dark Arts Integration” written on the board. 

All the students sat down. 

Professor Grimware, a banshee with a passion for cursed PowerPoint, slams a clawed hand on the crystal projector.

“Congratulations, creatures! You’ll be working in pairs for a week-long integration project. Due end of the week. Full marks go to those who live to tell the tale.” He laughs manically as everyone groans. 

Everyone knows this means: 

• 7 nights
• Shared dorm quarters 
• Shared spell tomes
• Possibly shared trauma

This was by pairs, and each pair had to live together in a dorm in the spell chamber. The spell chamber is where the spell casters cast their spell and experiment with potions and spells. 

The chamber is protected by a really powerful spell. It was meant to protect the spell casters if the experiment with the spells and potions doesn’t go as planned.

It was the only place they could do these projects safely. 

Their professor starts calling all the pairs, and then he goes, “Avanzini and Laforteza.” 

The werewolves howl from the back of the room, the ghosts giggle, and others whistle. 

Daniela hissed under her breath, “Fucking. Perfect.” 

The students were immediately told to pack all the things they needed. They were going to be sent to the spell chambers effectively. 

Sophia and Daniela’s temporary dorm room was in a gothic tower, on the third floor. There were two canopy beds, one moonlit window, and an enchanted closet that hisses at Daniela when she opens it. 

Sophia was calmly unpacking her neatly folded spell scrolls, fangs glinting under the candlelight. 

“Would you prefer the bed close to the moonlight or the shadows?” 

Daniela dropped her bag on the floor with a loud thud. “I’d prefer to sleep in the hallway.” 

The vampire laughs at her as if she were ridiculous. Daniela was. “That’s obviously not an option, Daniela.”

“Well, I can make it an option.” 

Sophia sighs, “So dramatic. You know I don’t bite without consent.”

“DO NOT FLIRT WITH ME, DEMON LEECH.”

Sophia smirks at her, “Too late.”

—

It’s been three days since they started sharing a dorm in the spell chamber. Three days since they started their project. 

Their project was to build a magical diorama of the very first interspecies war and present both species’ perspectives. And of course, the war was about werewolves and vampires. 

Very fitting. 

While Sophia was drawing elegant vampire battle plans, Daniela kept on growling over everything. 

She was holding the history of the interspecies war between vampires and werewolves, reading through it as if she didn’t know how it went. 

“Your kind always exaggerates everything. We didn’t ambush you… We just reclaimed our forest.”

“Oh yes, with claws and chaos. Very subtle.” 

Daniela slams the book shut. “Say that again.”

The vampire, amused, leans forward. “With. Claws. And. Chaos.” She said each word annoyingly slow, and Daniela’s tail puffs up as if ready to fight. 

But she doesn’t do anything. Instead, she scoffs and backs away, “Y’all were the real villains anyway.” 

Sophia stops doing what she was doing briefly before letting out a quiet sigh. Sure, they were. It wasn’t a lie. 

The vampires were the ones who started the war. They were always the ones stealing from other creatures. They stole everything: lives, blood, fortune. Everything. 

Who was Sophia to blame Daniela if she still views vampires like that? She knows how history went. 

And she’s not defending herself for it. 

They both go quiet after that. Sophia refused to say a word, and Daniela kept her mouth shut for the most part. 

Later that night, Sophia wakes up at dawn. Daniela isn’t on her bed, and the balcony door was left open. 

She could hear her pacing around the balcony. Sophia walks out in a slick nightshirt. 

The vampire yawns as she approaches the lycan on the balcony, “Can’t sleep?”

“No,” Daniela responded dryly. Her tail was stiff as she paced back and forth. Sophia observed her. 

“Are you okay?” 

“Yes, I’m fine. Now, go away.” Daniela immediately snapped; she didn’t even look back at Sophia at all. She was gripping her sleeves; her claws had already punctured holes in her clothes. 

“You don’t seem okay.” 

“Just leave me alone, Sophia.” Daniela snarls, not stopping to even look at her. 

Sophia stays there, though. She refused to leave. 

“You know… I’m not like the vampires you hate.” 

Daniela finally stops pacing and glances over at her. The moonlight catches Sophia’s eyes. Soft and a little sad. 

Daniela scoffs but not unkindly, “You’re annoying.” 

“Admit it. You know I’m not like them. You’re a lycan, you’d be able to smell me.” 

“You reek.”

Sophia grins, “In a good way or the bad way?” 

“In a ‘it’s almost full moon and I might kill you if you don’t stop talking’ kind of way.” Daniela continues pacing, and Sophia sighs, finally giving up and walking back inside. 

The moon shifts. Daniela was close to howling at it, but she powered through. She can’t just turn while making a project? That would be very dangerous for everyone… and maybe even for Sophia. 

The next day, their magical war diorama is a disaster. It keeps setting itself on fire because Daniela enchanted a werewolf soldier to “look fiercer,” and now it literally bites and growls. 

Sophia’s in her classic vampire-calm mode, levitating broken shards of crystal while reading a floating book. Daniela is pacing as if she’s about to start a turf war in the dorm. 

She’s becoming more frustrated by the second. 

“This is so stupid. Why do we even have to make a model of a war that got half of us cursed?” 

“Because our grades are cursed if we don’t make one,” Sophia replies dryly. 

Daniela glares at her, “Don’t get snarky, leech.” 

The vampire sighs before closing the book. “Okay, we clearly need to start over. Hold this for me for a sec?” 

She passes Daniela a floating paint jar. Daniela grabs it, but trips over a cursed twig soldier. 

She stumbles straight into Sophia. They crash into the center of the diorama, the vines on it coming to life and tangling around them like magic gone wild. Dust, sparkles, and cursed paint fly everywhere. 

Below them, a puff of black smoke comes out. It was shadow magic formed into a miniature wolf. It howls before it disintegrates within seconds. 

That must be the powerful magic surrounding the spell chamber. It doesn’t even let the evil shadow magic live for a minute. 

Daniela realizes that she’s fully on top of Sophia, hands braced on either side of her head, eyes wide. 

“Didn’t think you’d be the kind to enjoy being on top of a vampire.” 

“I will end you.” Daniela groans. She sees Sophia’s fangs, and she realizes how close their faces are. She jolts upright, growling under her breath. 

“This project is literally killing me.” 

As she stood, the diorama caught on fire. 

“Okay, but seriously, we need to start over.” 

—

Daniela’s in the bathroom. Alone. Hands shaking. Her claws are out, eyes glowing gold in the mirror. 

The moon was starting to form a perfect circle. Daniela could feel it within her; she’s about to shift in a few days. The strong urge to claw and bite at anything she sees is becoming increasingly hard to ignore. 

It also didn’t help that she would slightly panic each time this happened. 

She’s trying to breathe, but it’s not working. 

Enter Sophia - having sensed Daniela’s energy spike from down the hall. 

“Daniela?”

Daniela whips around. Her fangs are halfway out. Ears pointed. Her voice is low and animalistic. 

“Get out.”

Sophia doesn’t move. She only stared at her before stepping closer. 

“I said get out,” Daniela repeats, but Sophia doesn’t even flinch. She steps closer, closer than before.

“I’m not scared of you.” 

“I could tear you apart,” Daniela mumbled, shaking. 

Sophia wasn’t dumb. She knows what was happening. She may not be as knowledgeable about werewolves, but she knows that the full moon is coming, and Daniela’s simply reacting to it. 

“You were given different opportunities to do so, but not once have you actually done it.”

Daniela’s claws twitch. She’s trembling. And Sophia, impossibly gentle, goes and pats her head. Her other hand holds Daniela’s, thumb brushing over her knuckles. 

“Breathe with me.”

Sophia gently caresses her head. Daniela’s ears twitch ever so slightly at the feeling. As they stood still, Daniela could only hear her own heartbeat, and Sophia whispered and counted each inhale. 

Until finally, Daniela’s claws retract. 

“I’ve got you.” The vampire whispers. Voice low and soft. 

And Daniela felt weird. The good kind of weird. She feels calm, like she wasn’t seconds away from turning into a bloodthirsty beast.

She doesn’t utter a word, scared that her voice might shake or sound weak and vulnerable. She didn’t want that. 

Instead, she stays there in silence, comfort engulfing her. Sophia’s cold hands were still on her, but she didn’t push her away. 

Sophia was cold. She felt cold to the touch like ice. Well, she was a vampire after all, but the warmth of her presence was felt. Daniela isn’t even sure if Sophia can bring such warmth, but that’s what she feels. 

And a thought popped into her head—something she had never even considered before. 

Maybe… Maybe Sophia isn’t as evil as she thought. 

Maybe she wasn’t so bad after all. 

—

Sophia wakes up in the middle of the night as if she had just had a nightmare. Something felt wrong. Everything was still in place inside their dorm, but there was a shift in the air. Not particularly inside the building… 

She sat up immediately. She turned and saw Daniela sleeping on her bed on the other side of the room. She starts inspecting every corner as if checking if something was there. 

There wasn’t. She snaps her head towards the balcony. She was sensing something again. The same one she has been sensing ever since she toyed with the barrier spell. 

It wasn’t inside the building nor in their room. 

It was outside. 

Sophia wasted no time and left with just her hooded cloak, wrapping it around her as she floated just above the balcony railing. 

There was no doubt there was something there. She could feel it in the air, moving, travelling as if mocking her. 

It wasn’t immortal, but she could feel how dangerous it was. 

She follows it. The presence. The scent. The energy. Everything. She just had this strong urge to follow it, no matter how dangerous it felt. 

And then she spots it as she flies by the trees. A figure in the forest. Tall but not like the monsters. 

Sophia hadn’t even realized that she was just inches away from the border that separates the humans from their realm. 

Then she realized when she stared. 

It was a man, maybe late 30s. Military boots. Camo jacket. A shotgun in hand. Definitely not a tourist. 

He hadn’t seen Sophia yet, muttering under his breath as he trekked deeper into the woods. “It’s almost the full moon,” he growled. “You creatures are about to start hunting us again, aren’t you?”

Sophia narrowed her eyes from the treetops. Now she understands what was happening. The dangerous presence she was feeling—a preemptive strike. 

He suddenly whirled and fired a shot in her direction as if he had finally caught her. 

A loud boom was heard, and the bark exploded beside Sophia’s face. She didn’t even flinch. 

“You’re a monster, aren’t ya?” he shouted into the dark, a manic grin on his face. “Come out and fight! What, scared of a little firepower?” 

She didn’t answer, but she was growing mad by the second because of how cocky he sounded. 

“We’re gonna start before any of you kill us. We will wipe your kind out, one by one. I don’t care what you are! Werewolf, banshee, maybe you’re one of those bloodsucking freaks. Doesn’t matter!” 

Another shot rang out. Missed again. 

Sophia frowns. He’s cocky and stupid. 

And he has no idea what he just walked into. 

Sophia moved like a shadow. Silent, quick, efficient. One second, she was above; the next, she was behind him. Before he could even turn, she lunged from the trees, slammed into him with vampiric force, and pinned him to the ground in seconds. 

His gun flew from his hands. 

She gripped him by the throat and lifted him off the ground like he weighed nothing. Her nails sank ever so slightly into his skin, enough to make him panic. 

“Cocky, are we?” she said coldly, her voice almost amused. 

His eyes widened. He struggled, scratching at her face in a last-ditch effort. The skin he clawed tore for half a second, then healed instantly. 

“You’re a vampire!” he gasped. 

Sophia smiled, but there was no warmth in it. Only fangs. 

“What gave it away?” she said softly, almost sweetly, and slammed him into the dirt. He let out a grunt as the air was knocked from his lungs. Blood trickled from his mouth. 

She crouched beside him, tilting her head like a curious predator. “What makes you think you can hunt us all down before the full moon?” Her fingers brushed his pulse point. 

“Do you even know how many of us live here? What kinds?” 

He whimpered. She leaned in, fangs brushing his ear. 

“Don’t worry,” she whispered. “I won’t kill you.” 

Sophia pulled back just enough for him to see her eyes. Burning crimson. Hungry. Old. 

“Yet.”

She then stood over him, chest rising and falling steadily. She wasn’t really going to kill him. She just wanted to scare him. Maybe manipulate him. Rewrite his memories with a whisper, make him believe a bear mauled him and barely lived to tell the tale. 

She’d done it before. Humans were easy. 

But as she watched him, something glinted in the moonlight, catching her eye. 

She heard a soft clatter, and she froze. 

Silver bullets spilled from his jacket pocket. 

Her eyes followed the gleam. More silver is hidden in the other pocket. Coated blades. Shackles. A syringe laced with poison. Not just a hunter. 

Sophia was certain he was a specialist. Not of vampires. 

Of werewolves. 

Sophia’s expression shifted. Her jaw clenched, lips curled back in disgust. 

“You out to get werewolves, huh?” she said coldly, crouching again in front of him. Her tone was dark, mockingly curious. 

He trembled beneath her gaze, his mouth opening, but no sound came out. 

Sophia huffs. 

“You know…” she murmured, tilting her head. “I wasn’t going to kill you.” 

She dragged her finger down his chest slowly, a calculated act of intimidation. His breath hitched. 

“You said it yourself. You don’t care what kind of monster shows up. You’ll kill them all.” She looked back down at the bullets, picking them up slowly. “So why bring only silver?” 

Her voice turned sharper. “Do you specialize in werewolves, perhaps?” 

The man didn’t answer. Couldn’t. He was too scared. 

Too late. 

Sophia’s patience snapped like a thread pulled too tight. Her fangs extended as she gripped him again, this time rough, possessive, monstrous. Then she bit. Hard. Deep. Vicious. 

She didn’t stop. Didn’t hold back. The blood hit her tongue, and everything else faded. Her bite, hunger, grief, and protection showed rage.

Not for her kind. For someone. 

For her.

The man thrashed, gurgled, and went limp. 

Sophia kept drinking. Deliberately slow.

His blood coated her lips, spilled over her chin, splashed down her arms, soaked into her clothes. It was warm and she loved every second of it. She didn’t even realize she was growling until it echoed off the trees. She hadn’t fed on a human in years. And now the taste of a hunter, of a threat, pushed her past her limit. 

When it was over, she let the corpse drop with a thud. 

She stood still, blood dripping from her jaw, panting quietly. 

Then, she heard footsteps and the crunching of leaves. 

She turned slowly, the moonlight casting her in eerie silver-blue. Her eyes, still glowing bright red, locked with someone standing at the edge of the trees. 

Daniela. 

She stood there, frozen. The wind played with her curls. Her breathing was shallow, eyes wide, trying to process what she had seen. 

Sophia was in front of her, covered in blood. The human corpse beside her. 

She saw the whole thing. From the moment Sophia bit him until he went limp. 

They stared at each other. 

Sophia opened her mouth, but no words came out. 

Daniela didn’t move. 

The silence between them was deafening. 

Sophia stood so calmly as if she hadn’t just killed someone. 

Daniela looked at her as if she didn’t recognize her. Like she was finally seeing her for what she really was. 

A vampire. 

“You didn’t have to kill him,” Daniela said coldly, voice sharp with disappointment. 

Sophia’s breath hitched, but she didn’t let it show. “I didn’t want to, Daniela,” she said, quiet but firm. “I had to.” 

The werewolf scoffed, stepping forward, her tone rising. “What? Because you were hungry? Because you haven’t had a taste of fresh blood in a while?” Her eyes were filled with something almost like disgust. “You couldn’t hold back for one night?” 

Sophia’s jaw clenched. That wasn’t why. 

That wasn’t the reason why she killed him, but she didn’t speak. She didn’t defend herself. 

Because what would be the point? Daniela had already made up her mind. 

“You’re a monster,” Daniela hissed. 

Sophia finally stepped forward, slow and measured. 

“We all are, Daniela.” Her boot landed on something on the ground with a soft crunch. She glanced down. A silver bullet. She didn’t flinch. 

Sophia tilted her head ever so slightly, nodding toward the corpse behind her. “And so was he.” 

Daniela’s fists balled. “I don’t kill like you.” 

Sophia’s eyes narrowed, just a touch. Her voice was low, calm, almost too calm. 

“The moment you realize who your real enemies are…” She looked Daniela dead in the eyes. “...is the moment you’ll understand I didn’t do this for myself.” 

A gust of wind passed. 

And just like that, Sophia vanished. Disappearing into the woods. 

Leaving Daniela alone in the moonlight. Conflicted. Angry. 

And deeply shaken. 

Daniela didn’t know where Sophia went. She left trails of blood here and there, but Daniela wouldn’t really go looking for her at a time like this. 

After what she saw, she knows Sophia is more than capable of protecting herself. 

She didn’t even know how long she’d been walking. All she knows is that she’d made it back inside. 

She was trying to breathe normally. Still trying to get the image of Sophia out of her head: red eyes, blood-stained face, the lifeless human at her feet.

It was the most horrific thing she had ever witnessed during her stay at Thornhall Academy. 

As she stepped into the common area, she froze. 

Everyone was there. 

Manon was on the beanbag with a face mask that was designed to look like a fish. Lara and Megan with popcorn, looking smug. Yoonchae was perched by the window, half-asleep, her tail wagging slowly like a little cat.

They all turned at once. 

“Ooooohhh, look who finally came back,” Megan sing-songed. 

“She’s glowing,” Lara added, squinting. “Did you and the vampire sneak off for a little-”

Daniela immediately snapped, “She killed someone.”

The room fell dead silent.

Her voice cracked halfway through, but no one called attention to it. Her fists were clenched. Her breathing was uneven.

“She killed a human,” Daniela repeated, softer this time as if she didn’t want to believe it either. “She killed someone by the border. I saw her. Blood everywhere. Her eyes were glowing. She looked feral! I-” She swallowed hard. “She looked real. Like a real vampire. Like the ones we were warned about.”

No one said anything for a moment.

Lara put the popcorn down, and Manon peeled off her face mask slowly. “...Are you okay?” 

Daniela blinked. “Am I okay? She—she murdered someone! In front of me!” 

“She’s not just anyone to you, though,” Megan said gently.

Daniela turned sharply. “She’s a killer.” 

“And you’re shaking,” Yoonchae pointed out softly. “Not because you’re scared of her. Because you don’t want it to be true.”

Daniela fell silent, letting out a breath she didn’t know she was holding in.

Her arms dropped to her sides. Her heart was beating too loudly in her ears. 

“Look,” Manon finally said, sitting up, “If she did kill someone… that’s serious. But I don’t think she’s the kind of person who’d do that unless she thought she had no choice.” 

“You weren’t there.” Daniela muttered, her eyes shaking. “You didn’t see her. She…”

“No, we weren’t,” Megan said, stepping closer, her voice calm. “But we’ve all seen her, Dani. You think she’d hurt someone just to feed? She’s too proud for that.” 

Daniela looked down, jaw clenched. She knew that, but the image of Sophia covered in blood was what was stopping her from reasoning.

“She didn’t explain,” she whispered. “I didn’t let her.” 

Yoonchae walked over and placed a hand on Daniela’s shoulder. “Then maybe you should ask her why.”

And somehow, that was the worst part. 

Because deep down… Daniela wanted there to be a reason.

—

Sophia didn’t show herself for the whole day. She’d been brooding somewhere where the sun won’t hurt her in the morning and the darkness won’t engulf her at night. She cleaned herself up by a lake in the woods and hid for as long as she needed to calm down. 

Her thoughts were rising. She knows Daniela would never forgive her, but she knows that she didn’t owe Daniela an apology either. 

Was it so bad that she did that? In front of her? 

Was it that bad that she let her inner monster control her out of sheer protectiveness? She was scared, too. Not for herself. But for Daniela. 

Was it that bad that Daniela had more empathy towards a dead werewolf hunter? Then again, she didn’t know what he was. 

And Sophia refused to tell her directly. 

She doesn’t stay outside for long. Her mind had drifted off to their project, and she couldn’t just avoid Daniela forever. 

So once the sun started rising, she returned to the dorms. 

The atmosphere in the dorm is thick and uncomfortable, but Sophia tries her best to find comfort in it. Like she usually does. 

At noon, they started doing their project. No words were spoken, and they both worked on their respective sides of the diorama. 

They worked on it all throughout the day until the sky slowly turned dark.

The moonlight was bright, almost cruel, pouring through their dorm windows. The shattered remnants of the diorama lay scattered on the floor as Sophia picks up some of the broken pieces. 

And suddenly, black smoke came out of the diorama just like before, but this time, it was bigger. Daniela must have done something wrong for it to come out looking bigger and more evil. 

Sophia stood in stunned silence, watching as the massive shadow-beast levitated in the middle of the room, screech, and lunge at Daniela. It engulfed her. 

Then in less than a second, it melted into Daniela’s skin—her classmate, her rival, the girl she couldn’t stop caring about. Sophia’s breath caught when she saw how Daniela transforms into something…

The werewolf was gone. 

In her place was something else that Sophia couldn’t quite name. It was something ancient. Something feral and huge. 

With a growl, the beast lunged for the balcony and disappeared into the night, crashing through the trees like a storm. 

“Shit.” Sophia hissed, immediately running after her, “Daniela!!” 

The forest outside was quiet. Too quiet when she went after Daniela. 

Until she hears an ear-piercing scream from a distance. 

Sophia dashed toward it. Her movements were a blur, eyes sharp, heart hammering. 

Then she saw her. 

Daniela, massive and terrifying, jaws red and dripping, hunched over a torn, lifeless body. 

Ripping. Tearing. Devouring.

A howl ripped from her throat, loud enough to shake the leaves. 

Sophia noticed, she had crossed the border. She had to get Daniela as fast as she could. 

She stepped into the clearing, cautious. “Daniela,” she says softly. 

The beast froze and then turned. Those glowing eyes met hers—and something flickered. Not rage, not hunger, but recognition. 

Her shoulders drooped, and she whimpers. She takes a step back, suddenly afraid, as if just now realizing what she’d done. 

The magic in her eyes dimmed. The shadows are slowly coming out of her skin. Sophia walked over without hesitation, reaching out almost immediately the second Daniela was arm's reach. 

Daniela flinched, scared that she might tear Sophia apart next, but Sophia just cupped her face gently, pressing her forehead to Daniela’s snout. 

“It’s okay,” she whispered. “You’re okay.” 

Daniela shook against her hold, eyes wide, breathing shallow. 

Then, slowly but surely, she shrank until what was left was Daniela—her semi-human form. Bloody and trembling. Sophia shrugged off her cloak and wrapped it around her tightly. 

She lifted Daniela like she weighed nothing. Carried her bridal style all the way back to the dorms. Didn’t flinch. Didn’t speak. She didn’t even show any kind of negative emotion. She just held her. 

They didn’t speak for a while. 

Sophia helped her clean up in silence, wiping the dried blood from her arms, her cheeks, her claws. 

Daniela sat still, eyes glassy, fingers twitching. 

Then, finally, she whispered. “...You’re not mad?” 

Sophia, gently rinsing a cloth, didn’t look up. “About?” 

Daniela swallowed. “About how much of a hypocrite I am.” 

Sophia looked at her now. Her eyes were soft and kind. 

“No.”

Daniela’s voice cracked. “...Why?”

“What is there to be mad about?” Sophia said softly. “Like I said, we’re monsters, Daniela. But that doesn’t make us evil.” 

Daniela looked down at her trembling hands. Her claws. Her stained skin. “I killed someone.”

Sophia nodded as she gently took her hand and wiped the blood from her fingertips. “So did I.”

“But I-I didn’t mean to-” Daniela stammered, eyes welling.

“I know,” Sophia said, cutting her off. 

She continued to clean Daniela’s hands like it was the most natural thing in the world. Like she wasn’t disgusted. Like she didn’t see a killer. 

She just saw her. 

Daniela bit her lip, the tears finally falling. Quietly. Helplessly.

And when she started to cry harder, shaking and sobbing, Sophia didn’t speak. She took Daniela’s hands in hers, held them protectively. Letting her feel the warmth if there was any in Sophia’s body. 

As if trying to remind her that, despite being a monster, she can still be human enough to feel this. To feel the warmth. 

—

The morning sunlight streamed through the curtains–soft, golden, and entirely undeserved. 

Daniela woke up with a jolt, drenched in sweat, heart pounding. Her eyes darted around, but she wasn’t in the forest. She was back in the dorm. In her bed. Clean. Warm. 

The cloak around her shoulders from last night had been replaced by a blanket. Her favorite one. 

And in the small kitchenette, she saw Sophia. Quiet and calm. Sitting the furthest away from the window, avoiding the sun. 

She was cradling a mug of blood-red tea in her hands, reading a book as the steam curled upward. 

She was dressed in a fresh set of clothes. Hair damp from a recent shower. The diorama was halfway done on the table in front of her, freshly sculpted terrain and all. 

As if nothing had happened to it at all. 

Like she hadn’t carried Daniela out of the woods, wrapped in blood and shame. 

Daniela sat up slowly. The movement caught Sophia’s attention, and she turned around, offering a small nod. 

“Hey,” Sophia said, voice soft. 

“…Hi,” Daniela said barely above a whisper. 

Sophia motioned toward a mug on the table. It was tea, but not the same kind as the one Sophia was holding. “Still warm.” 

Daniela blinked. “You…” 

The vampire looked at her with such a calm expression as she hummed. 

“You’re not mad?” 

Sophia adjusted her glasses and tilted her head slightly, “You already asked me that.” 

“Yeah… right.” Daniela looked away, and then there was a long pause. 

Then Daniela spoke up again, “You worked on the project?” 

Sophia nodded, “I figured I’d let you rest. The moonlight’s still strong. Better not mess with shadow magic again until it fades. It makes monsters go feral, not just wolves on a full moon.”

Daniela let out a breath, “Right.” 

They hear a knock on the door and then another shortly after. 

“Daniii!” They hear Manon call out. “You alive? You didn’t come back last night! Megan said Sophia wasn’t in the dorm either. Did you two finally—“ 

Yoonchae completes the sentence, “—Kiss or kill each other?” 

Daniela groaned as Sophia looked at the door with an amused expression. “Shit. Yeah. Come in.” 

The door creaked open, and the rest of the girls stepped in. Their eyes went wide when they saw Daniela sitting on the bed, looking drained. 

Lara frowned immediately. “Wait, what happened? You look like hell.” 

“Are you guys okay? We were just joking, but you look like you actually fought someone.” Manon asks, concerned. 

Sophia stayed quiet at the kitchenette, still sipping her tea. 

Daniela hesitated, but she eventually spoke. 

“We were working on our project last night,” she began. “And the shadow magic went out of control. It…possessed me.” 

Everyone froze. Lara narrowed her eyes, “Possessed?” 

Daniela nodded, her voice quieter now. “I turned into something else. Something big. Lost control. I ran to the forest and—I don’t even remember most of it. Just the blood. The body. My teeth—”

She stopped. Her breath hitched.

Everyone went quiet.

Megan, for once, didn’t crack a joke. She looked between Daniela and Sophia and bit her lip.

Daniela glanced down at her hands. Then back at them.

“…Sophia found me,” she said softly but she didn't continue. Her eyes wander around. She hesitates to say something else.

Sophia takes a long sip of her tea before speaking up, “…should I step out?” 

Daniela bit her lip and nodded. The vampire immediately left, leaving her tea on the counter but she took her book with her. 

The door softly shuts and then the girls look at her. 

“Did you two kiss?” Megan asks, all her tails wagging uncontrollably. 

“No!? I-I was just embarrassed to say my thoughts with her around!” Daniela immediately said, “Also, can you be careful with your tails? You look like you could hit and break something.” 

The girls laugh as Megan grinned sheepishly, “My bad.” 

They all take a seat somewhere on the floor and beside Daniela on the bed, waiting for her to finally continue the story. 

She clears her throat, “When Sophia found me, she didn’t run. She didn’t yell. She just came up to me like I wasn’t dangerous. Like I wasn’t—like I didn’t just kill someone.” She swallowed. 

The girls listened to her intently. All their eyes sparkled with curiosity. 

“She… she pressed her forehead to mine and said it was okay. She carried me home, cleaned me up, and didn’t even say a word.” 

The girls stared as they all let the information sink in. Daniela looked down, her fingers fidgeting. “She didn’t care about what I did. She only cared about…me.”

Her voice cracked, feeling vulnerable under the girls’ gaze. “Maybe I judged her too quickly.”

The silence was a bit heavy then Lara exhaled. “Wow.”

“That was literally the opposite of what you always said about her.” Yoonchae comments. 

Manon nods, “You called her a bloodsucking bitch.” 

“I’m aware.” Daniela snapped, flustered. 

“You like her.” Megan said, her voice weirdly gentle. 

Daniela choked, “NO? NO I DON’T.” 

But the girls were looking at her with a teasing look in their eyes and Daniela groaned. 

“Okay, everyone OUT!” 

—

The week has ended and they all survived. They were all able to complete their projects on time. 

The classroom was buzzing. Every pair had finally set up their elaborate, enchanted dioramas. Professors are floating between tables, grading. Some students are showing off illusions and battlefield reenactments with magic. 

Daniela and Sophia’s diorama? Actually stunning. Werewolf and vampire factions working together against an ancient dark force. Floating terrain. Animated soldiers. The works.

Daniela’s ears are twitching. She’s nervous.

Sophia is quiet, composed. But her cloak is rippling with her heartbeat.

It’s almost their turn.

“Are you ready to present?” Sophia asks. Daniela was still nervous but she nodded, “Yeah. We’ll be fine.” 

But before the professors could even look at everyone’s projects, one of the diorama’s exploded. 

A magical surge erupts from the center of the pair’s diorama. 

Cracks form in the floating terrain. Screaming echoes from the enchanted war figurines. The cursed magic—left over from that original war—was too unstable.

A puff of smoke erupts from the diorama and Daniela shivered as she recognized what it was. It was shadow magic that had gone haywire. 

She takes a step back as Sophia steps forward as if protecting her. 

The students scream as the puff of black smoke takes form. The same beast that had appeared in Sophia and Daniela’s room. This time, bigger and more terrifying. 

The professors shout, “Everyone, leave! Now!” 

The beast starts to lunge at every student it sets its eyes on and the professors try their best to capture it. 

Sophia pushed Daniela out the door, “Leave, Daniela.” 

“What— what about you!?” Daniela held her arm tightly, eyes wide.

“I know how to beat it.” Sophia said, confident and sure. 

Sophie whispers a spell under her breath and a barrier appears around her body, engulfing her, covering her in light. 

The glow of the light had captured the shadow-beast’s attention, turning its head towards Sophia and Daniela. 

“Daniela, go!” But Daniela didn’t want to let her go. 

“Are you stupid!? You’ve seen what that thing can do!” 

“Which is why I know how to fight it!” Sophia shouts back and in a split second, the beast lunges towards Daniela. 

And Sophia loses it. 

She jumps and blocks it.

The smoke engulfed her and she was nowhere in sight when it did. 

The professors gasped. “Call a medic now!!” 

Then slowly, the smoke seeps through Sophia’s skin, the same way it did to Daniela’s. 

Daniela watched in horror as Sophia curled up against her knees on the ground groaning and trembling. 

She immediately drops to her knees beside Sophia and grabs her face. 

Her skin was… becoming paler. Her fangs were becoming more and more visible. She kept her eyes closed as she kept groaning and hissing. 

“Hey. Hey, are you—why the hell would you do that!?” Daniela was panicking, her tail was curled on her side. 

Sophia smiles weakly, eyes still closed, “Did I impress you?” 

Daniela wanted to smack her in the face. She still had the audacity to joke around at a time like this. “You’re fucking dying!” 

Sophia chuckles, breathing heavily now as she feels every vein in her body twitch. “Worth it!” 

But Daniela was confused. Sophia isn’t turning… or she was changing, just slowly. 

Daniela stares at her, jaw clenched. She pulled Sophia closer, hands trembling. 

Everyone’s watching. The room is silent. The shadow is gone but it was within Sophia. The werewolf doesn’t know what will happen to her. 

But the medics arrive. The plague doctors come running in. They take Sophia away but Daniela follows. 

They rush Sophia to the infirmary.

She’s barely conscious. Her cloak is stained dark from the shadow magic. Her breathing is shallow. Her skin—once moonlight-pale—is now ashen. Her hands shake violently. 

The medics are panicking. They know what she did. 

“She used a barrier spell! She enchanted herself, she used her body as a spell chamber! She trapped the shadow magic inside her and now it’s—it’s eating her alive!” The plague doctor shouts as the other medics run around the infirmary, trying to grab equipment they could use. 

Daniela stands in the corner. Watching. 

Sophia coughs out blood. A lot of it and Daniela winced at the sight. 

“We need to give her blood, now! She’s losing so much. It’s possible that she might turn! If we wait too long, she’ll lose herself. She won’t recognize anyone! She’ll just attack!” 

Sophia let out a choked, inhumane sound. Her fangs are out. When she opens her eyes, it’s glowing red. Her whole body’s trembling now. 

Like she’s at war with herself. 

Daniela hears the plague doctor again, “We need blood! We need fresh blood!” 

No one moves and Daniela makes a decision before she could even think. 

She steps forward and flips her hair. She tilts her head and reveals her neck. 

“Bite.” Daniela says. More like a command. 

The room freezes as Sophia’s eyes lock onto her like a predator. 

“Don’t be stupid.” Sophia says, voice guttural. 

Daniela moves closer. “I said…bite.” she repeats, her voice low. 

Then she moves closer. Closer. Sophia growls, turning her head away. Backing into the infirmary bed, trying to keep herself restrained. 

“I can’t! I will lose control—I could-“ 

“You won’t. I know you won’t.” Daniela cut her off. Her voice breaks slightly. She’s scared. She’s afraid. But she offers herself anyway. 

And that’s what gets to Sophia. The trust. The faith. Something she has yet to receive from Daniela. 

But now, Daniela is offering it to her. 

The werewolf grabs her hand, “You saved me. Let me save you back.” 

There’s a moment of silence. Then, with an aching slowness, Sophia leans forward. Her fangs barely graze Daniela’s skin. 

Daniela felt her breath against her neck. 

And even when the image of Sophia killing a person and draining them of their blood flashes in her mind, she doesn’t move away. 

Daniela hears her heart pounding against her ears again. 

Sophia’s fangs pierce. Daniela gasps, but doesn’t flinch.

Sophia drinks. 

As she did, in her mind, she chants, “Mine.” Over and over. 

But she drinks only enough. 

Enough to calm the burning. Enough to keep her herself. Enough to counter whatever was within her. 

She pulls back almost instantly. Shaking, horrified.

“Daniela… I’m sorry- I’m-“ 

Daniela touches her face gently. 

“You didn’t hurt me.” She whispered. “You’ve never hurt me.” 

Sophia looks at her. Eyes now warm again, back to their dark brown glow.

And Daniela realizes something that shatters her.

She was wrong. She was so wrong.

The girl she hated… isn’t a monster.

And her heartbeat is going insane.

—

The infirmary is quiet now.

The medics have left.

The nurses have stopped hovering.

And the plague doctors have disappeared. 

It’s just Sophia, still pale but stable, and Daniela, sitting on the edge of the bed, her neck bandaged, her arms crossed, visibly avoiding eye contact.

Silence. Heavy, thick silence. 

Sophia clears her throat, voice hoarse. “Thanks. For, uh. Not letting me turn into an unhinged, bloodthirsty monster.”

“Yeah. No problem. You were already halfway there anyway.” 

Sophia smiles up at her weakly. Daniela regrets it immediately. 

“Um. What about your neck? How is it?” 

Daniela tenses up, “Fine. It’s fine. Barely even stings.” 

But it hurt. It burned, even. She doesn’t understand why it burned like that. It almost even felt like it was a cold burn, almost like mint. It didn’t sting. 

It just… burned for some reason. 

“I didn’t think you’d… y’know… offer your blood.” Sophia mumbles, looking down at her hands. “It’s kind of a big deal…” 

Daniela’s ears twitch. She glares at the opposite wall like it had personally offended her. 

“Well… I didn’t want you to lose control and kill someone. I’d already had enough seeing you do it once.” 

Sophia chuckles but then she raises an eyebrow at Daniela, “But you didn’t care if it was you?” 

“I know you’d stop.” She grumbles. “…I trusted you.”

That stuns Sophia. Truly. 

There was silence for a moment before Sophia spoke up again. “Thank you.” 

Her voice was soft and gentle. Genuine. 

Daniela shifts. Their knees are almost touching on the bed now. And it’s suddenly very hot in this very cold infirmary.

—

Daniela tries to walk into the common room unnoticed.

But she walks in and instantly regrets it.

Because Lara, Megan, Yoonchae, and Manon are all seated like she’s about to be interviewed by a crime podcast panel.

Lara smirks, “So, Dani…”

Yoonchae stares at her with a smug look on her face, arms crossed, and eyes glinting. “You let a vampire bite you.”

“Correction, she offered to let a vampire bite her. She offered her neck!” Megan excitedly said with a huge grin on her lips. 

“Let’s not act like that wasn’t the most romantic thing that’s ever happened on campus.” Manon says, swooning.

Daniela freezes like a deer in headlights.

“That was not romantic! She was dying!” Daniela glares at them one by one.

Manon laughs. Those high pitched laughs that she always does that pissed Daniela off. “And you just happened to present your neck like a medieval offering?”

Lara scoffs, “I said, bite? Seriously, Dani?”

Megan turns into her fox form, circling around Daniela’s legs, “Do you like her?”

“NO! SHUT UP.” Daniela immediately shouts.

“YOU LIKE HER!!” The four girls said in unison, laughing loudly right after.

Daniela’s tail puffed. Ears pointed and fuming. She was about to defend herself again when Yoonchae spoke up. 

“Oh, and Daniela,” she points at Daniela’s neck. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t neck biting a thing for werewolves?” 

Yoonchae had that cocky smile stretched across her lips and Daniela froze. “Uh… well… yeah but like…” 

Manon claps her hands together once, “No no. I read about this! Neck biting is literally intimate for werewolves. Like primal instinct. It’s called marking, right?” 

Suddenly, Daniela felt as if her world stopped. She hears her heartbeat pounding and feels the burn on her neck even more. 

Holy fucking shit. 

She runs and goes to the bathroom to check her neck in the mirror. Sure enough, there’s a huge bite mark on her. It was red and it burned. 

The girls run after her and they see the bite. 

“OH MY GOD—IT IS?? WE WERE RIGHT! SHE MARKED YOU.” Megan screamed.

“That’s like a proposal in werewolf culture!!” Lara screamed alongside Megan.

They were making all of these inhumane noises and all Daniela could think about is “WHAT THE FUCK”

“I don’t—I don’t understand!? How could she have marked me!? She’s not even a werewolf!” She touched the bitemark gently and she winced. 

“Only mates mark each other, Daniela. Did you just make Sophia call dibs on you?” Yoonchae teased, her eyebrows wiggling. 

“NO!? THIS IS A MISTAKE. THIS HAS TO BE A FLUKE!” Daniela was going crazy. She didn’t know how that happened. 

All she thought she was doing was saving Sophia! Not letting her mark her! 

Lara crosses her arms and leans against the bathroom door, “Oh, and you know what’s interesting? Offering blood in vampire culture is as intimate as werewolves marking each other on the neck.” 

Then suddenly, everything clicks in Daniela’s head. That’s what Sophia meant when she said it was a big deal…

Daniela’s tail puffs up again, “STOP TALKING!! STOP LOOKING AT ME!! I’M GOING TO TRANSFORM OUT OF HUMILIATION.”

She stomps away, covering her red face, tail puffed like a cat, ears fully twitching.

Manon calls after her, smirking. “Getting marked by your enemy is crazy behavior, bestie!” 

“FUCK OFF, MANON.”

—

A day had passed and Sophia had finally recovered from being attacked, and literally turning herself into a spell chamber. 

Sophia is sitting alone under a tree, trying to finish her shadow magic notes while not thinking about the taste of Daniela’s blood that was weirdly still on her tongue. 

That fails instantly.

Megan suddenly drops down beside her with zero warning. Yoonchae appears just a few seconds beside her. 

Both their tails were wagging.

Megan grins at her, “Sooo, I heard you marked Dani.”

Sophia looks up at her, confused, “Marked? What’s that?” 

Both Megan and Yoonchae stood there, frozen on their spots. They didn’t know if Sophia was being serious or she simply just didn’t know. 

But as Sophia looked at them with confusion the more it dawned on the both of them. 

Omg, Sophia doesn’t know.

Yoonchae clutches Megan’s hand, her tail is wagging more now. “Megan. She doesn’t know!” 

“Why? What is it?” Sophia asks again. 

Megan looked at her straight in the eyes. “You marked her, Sophia. You claimed her.” 

Sophia stares at them for a few seconds before saying, “Oh.” 

Silence. 

Then Sophia’s eyes widened. 

“Wait- WHAT!?”