[Transplant] Just Won't Leave You Be (Grim/Bloodsucker)

[Moonstone Dazzle]

What a joyous night! A chance to show the little ones what their father did. Grabbing all of his offspring that he could, Grim Grinning Ghosts lead their little tour group away from the safety of the bonfire. It was hard to keep the spring out of his step as he walked into the dark woods, tail swishing behind him in delight.

"Have you heard the tales, my children? Of how this swamp came to have ghosts?" When he was met with silence, certain they were shaking their heads. "Then listen well, so that in death, you don't repeat their foolish mistakes! It is said the first spirits were born of spite and hatred. So jilted from life, they felt, that the Motherfather had robbed them of their dues. So rather than join them in the next life, they swore vengeance- their bodies rotted to nothing, but their spirits remained. And they hungered for living flesh. Living souls to suck the life from their veins."

"D-dad," Deathly Still whined, his ears pinned back. "W-why do you deal with ghosts? T-that sounds awful!"

"Oh, awful indeed!" Grim nodded, in whole agreement. "At least it's just a story!" He stopped dead in his tracks, and turned back to his children with an abnormally delighted grin. The jaw markings along his face made them that much more hideous.

--

Look Alive shivered in the darkness but still found the courage to roll her eyes at her brother. "Chill, Still. It's- it's just a story. Isn't it? There's no way that spirits stick around to... what was it? Suck the life from our veins? If they did stick around to do that, then they'd do it, like, back at the bonfire or something. There's way more life over there. Right?" The white-eyed zikwa nervously pawed at the ground. This was a little spookier than she'd bargained for.

User Image"You know," purred a voice in the darkness, "there are some who say that those who deal with ghosts are the lucky ones. That they know what comes next; what to expect. They get to see the reality of life and death for what it is- and they're prepared when they do see a restless spirit searching for vengeance or life, whichever comes easier. They know what's going to happen." Her teeth flashed pearly white in a sharp, deadly smile. "Those who run from ghosts are doomed to fall prey to them; those who face them head-on at least see what's coming." She took a step closer, then another step, each one calculated to be threatening but alluring. She knew this role and relished it. "So what do you think? Feeling... lucky?"

--


"Oh, wrong wrong wrong, my dear," Grim tutted, shaking his head at his daughter. "You see, ghosts hunt for the weak. The alone. Other kin could save you. It's so much easier... when you're all alone~ He chuckled, dark and deep. "And when the others come to look for you... what's to stop them from suffering the same fate?"

At the emergence of the stranger, Deathly Still practically leapt out of his skin. He backed away with each approaching step, pressing close to Look Alive. Ghosts were very much not his thing. Fear was very much not his thing. His teeth chattered as he looked to his sister for help, his expression pitiful and sad.

"O-oh gosh. L-look a-alive, th- there's... there's not really ghosts, are there?"

His terrified children filled Grim with a delight he could not explain. He had been dying, so long, for his little ones to see what he did. His Lady had been so right! They were absolutely thrilled by it! And perhaps they'd tell stories to their friends of how cool he was...

"They don't seem a lucky lot to me," He replied to Bloodsucker, tilting his head still as he grinned. 

--



Bloodsucker snapped her teeth and giggled in Deathly Still's direction. "On a night like tonight, the spirits are particularly restless; now, if you'll just step lightly and follow us... we'll all go find them. Perhaps we'll be lucky and all make it back alive!" Her laugh was wicked; she tossed her head with fire in her eyes. "Or not- after all, you don't look lucky. Step lightly; the spirits aren't fond of noise. Remember that if you feel the need to scream."

The party meandered into a clearing near where Bloodsucker and Grim had scouted earlier. Dead leaves rattled in the trees, creating a low, creepy rattle. An owlcat yowled in the distance, adding to the atmosphere. Bloodsucker turned a careful ear to the sky. "Listen! Do you hear them?" 

--

The sound of the yowling owlcat had Deathly Still shrinking back with a whine, glancing every-which-way in an attempt to find the sound. What he didn't understand was that dad was practically blind. How in the name of the Motherfather did he see the unseen?! He at least had the blessing of sight from his mother- or curse, as the current case may have been. How did none of this affect him?!

Grim, on the other hand, simply beamed when the owlcat screeched in the distance. There was his baby! Right on cue. They would be a lovely surprise for Bloodsucker, when his Lady finally got to meet them. They were a newer development, but oh how we loved his new little ones. And if Thirteen remembered her part...

There was the terrible cry of a bat- a high, great shriek, and Grim turned to his mistress.

"What do you say... we go find them?" 

--


Bloodsucker couldn't have been happier with the spooky ambience of the night. Something in the undergrowth rattled; the sound of heavy breathing came from somewhere in the near distance. The directionality of the sound was difficult to pin down. The bat screech was a perfect touch; a quick look at Grim showed a satisfaction that belied his involvement in the noises. Where'd he get a bat? That showed gumption. A bat, a nice, big, fangy bat was a perfect addition to their little operation. She'd have to congratulate him later, once his kids were good and scared. "I'd say if we don't find them, they might find us. And we wouldn't want that to happen, not at all." She nudged Grim's daughter. "Let us proceed, everyone

Look Alive didn't want to admit she was scared. To admit that would be a failing on her part; a sign of weakness; a signal that what her dad was doing actually worked. She couldn't give him the satisfaction. She simply couldn't!

But that noise. Ugh! It sent shivers down her spine. Why had she agreed to this?