A Single Bite (Seer + Syl)

She wasn't taking the envelope. He could understand. She was wary of him. He hadn't exactly proved that he wouldn't do anything to her. She was being somewhat smart. She wasn't screaming so he wouldn't have to quite her, which he was sure he wouldn't do anyway, and she wasn't stepping closer either or getting distracted. He wandered what he would have done if he was still 'alive' and found out someone had entered his daughter's room. Would he yell at her for letting someone get this close? He didn't need to think about that.

"Yes. I gave you the gifts. It is explained in the letter..." he answered and stopped moving towards her. He didn't want to scare her more. He was beginning to wish he hadn't though up this idea. He was putting them both at risk. At least he wasn't worried about his thirst. He had enough blood to drink thanks to Lorena. He needed to hurry up though. The sun wasn't too far behind him and this cloak wouldn't offer him the best of protections.

"If... If you don't want it, I don't have to give you the letter or anything else," he forced himself to say. If she didn't want him around, who was he to press? His hand lowered to his side with the letter. He turned his face away from her. He just wanted to hug her. He shouldn't have come. He took a step back away from her.

"No, no, it's not . . . I'm just . . ." Devon sighed and reached up a hand under her glasses to rub her eyes. She didn't know what to do or say. She'd finally found the random stranger who had been leaving her gifts and she didn't know whether to say thank you or to be scared out of her mind. She had a feeling it was an odd mixture of both.

Finally, she sighed shortly and looked back at him. "Okay, I don't know what's going on, but I guess I might as well take the letter if it's going to explain anything," she said lightly. She wondered if this was going to land her in more trouble, but she was desperate for answers and she wasn't going to keep him around to ask questions when he presented an alternative. She held out her hand to take the envelope, her teeth grit as she watched him still.

Something about the stranger was bothering her. She couldn't think of what it was. Something about his voice and the way he spoke felt familiar, but she couldn't place why and eventually dismissed it entirely. Maybe the letter would help her find out more about him.

Jason smiled but of course, it was wasted. She wouldn't have been able to see it. He turned back towards her and gave her the letter. He took her hand in his gloved ones and squeezed her hand in a reassuring manner. He wouldn't dare hug her so this was his alternative. He hoped she took it in a good way. He let go of her not wanting to linger too much more. He walked over to the window and glanced back at her weary. He was leaving her alone again.

"I'll always be there for you if you need me. Just say the words," he echoed to her. He turned back towards the dimly lit street and jumped free of her window. He landed without a sound on pavement and started running back home as fast as his legs and speed could carry him. He managed to get inside the mansion just before the sun began to rise. He gave a sigh of relief and pushed away his cape. The shutters and blinds were always closed so he didn't worry about that threat.

He started walking up the steps when he felt an uneasy feeling. Someone was watching him. He turned around to find Lorena standing in the hall. Her arms were crossed and she didn't look happy in the least. He took a step away from her. It was never good when her face was as cold as stone. He was in for some punishment for whatever reason.

"You are late, and you spell like a human. You smell like her. Didn't I tell you not to contact her? I know you've been sending gifts and I let that slide. Don't contact her physically. Eventually you'll have a slip of the tongue and you won't be able to go back!" she hissed and pushed him up against the wall. "If you bring us into any danger, Devon will be the first throat I will rip open and have you watch. Then I'll kill all your friends before I burn. You won't have it easy. Do I make myself clear?" She asked and pushed him harder against the wall.

He winced and gave a nod. She dropped him and walked back to her room, leaving Jason alone in the hall.

Devon waited for a little while after the man had left to open the letter. She sat down on the bed and carefully slit open the envelope, then hesitated. This entire thing was crazy, she told herself. She was insane as it was for accepting the gifts this whole time, and now she was talking to this person. But despite her better judgment, she felt a small thrill. This was one of the few positive things happening to her since Jason's death, and she just wanted to let it happen rather than shut herself away from it again.

She inhaled a deep breath and slid the letter out of the envelope. She read through it twice; the first time quickly, then the second time more slowly, trying to get as much as she could out of the words. When she finished, she found herself with even more questions than when she had started. For a moment she wondered how she could contact him again. Talking to him seemed out of the question; it looked like he made a conscious effort to avoid being in actual contact with her. This left only the option of writing a letter back. Having no other paper, she tore a piece out of her sketchbook, picked up a pen, and began to write immediately.

Alright, so . . . I understand that you were a friend of Jason's. However, what I don't really get is why you would go through all this trouble. The rest of Jason's company never seemed particularly interested in me, as far as I could tell at least, so why are you bothering? And why are you making such an effort to keep it all a secret from me? It's difficult for me to be particularly trusting when I'm not even allowed to see your face.

-Devon

Devon sighed. She had more questions, but now that she had the chance to ask them, she couldn't remember any of them. Oh well, she decided. Better to limit herself in communication for the moment, until she could decide he was worth more trust. She folded the letter up into thirds and moved to the window, where it dawned on her that she had no way to get it to him. Hoping that he would just come back again when she wasn't there, she decided to tape it underneath her window, where he could get it but nobody else would likely notice. Afterward she went straight to bed, nearly collapsing after staying up nearly the entire night.

The day went by agonizingly slow. Jason had tried going to sleep but Loren's warning was buzzing in his skull. He didn't want Devon or anyone of his friends to die the brutal death Lorena had thought up on his account. Why didn't anything ever go as planned? He fell onto his bed and starred up at the ceiling for hours. He could still write letters to her. He may not get a response, but he could still write to her. He couldn't slip up that way. He could wait and think about what to say so he wouldn't blurt anything out. With that settled, he slowly drifted into sleep for only a few hours.

When he woke, it was night once more. Albeit it was early night, but night none the less. He pulled on his cloak and gloves and headed out. He went back to Devon's home and glanced around. He saw a few lights on but not a single one on in her room. He jumped onto the small roof of the house with nothing more but a tap of noise. He looked down at the window and saw the note. Was it his letter she had folded up, or was it a response to his letter?

He picked it up and unfolded the letter. He read it over quickly and pulled a pen out of his pocket. He placed the paper on the wall and started to answer the questions. That may be true, but Jason was a dear friend of mine. He spoke highly of you and you may or may not realize that you were his world. Sometimes it may not have seemed like it but it is true. I know that fact so I will do whatever there is in my power to help you. Jason was like a brother to be so you are like a daughter to me. I am sorry that I must keep myself secret. I have certain limitations that I cannot present to you. I understand that it is harder to trust me this way, but I don't mind going the extra mile to prove myself to you. For now, I will give you a name to call me: Alex.

He slipped the letter back under her window without glancing to see if she was there or not. She would see the note eventually. He knew she would check. If she was in her room and spotted him, he would say nothing. He would acknowledge her, but without voice. He wouldn't risk her life.

Devon was awake by that time, although having gotten twelve solid hours of sleep after her last night. She intended to go to bed at a legitimate time that night, but she found herself anxious. She wanted to receive a response to her own letter. However, she didn't wait by the window, as one might expect. She instead involved herself with a book, while keeping her senses still tuned to the rest of the world to listen for him.

Apparently, though, he came while she was in the kitchen fixing a cup of cider. When she returned to her bedroom and flicked on the light, there was nothing out of the ordinary. Just in case, though, she went to check to see if he had come during her ten-minute absence. She pulled the note up and was happy to see a reply, although she had missed him. Immediately she read through and began to write a new response on a clean sheet of paper.

Alright then, Alex-

I guess I don't have too much of a choice here if you can't tell me much due to circumstance. In any case, I suppose I must say thank you. I wouldn't have expected anyone to really put in the kind of effort that you apparently have, and I do appreciate it. However, I have to ask, is there any chance we'd be able to actually talk sometime in the future? Letters will do for awhile, but it's not a perfect method of communication. If not, I suppose I understand--sort of.

Devon signed her name at the bottom as usual and placed the folded page in the same place as the others. Then she sat at her desk with her cider, which by now had gone cold, ignored during her writing. This entire exchange with Alex could prove to be very interesting.

Jason debated on answering her question truthfully and decided against it. She would probably ask who he was and he could not afford to give out too much. He had barely tip toed the line with his last comment about his restrictions. He hadn't said any names of course or what these limitations were, but Lorena had a way of jumping to conclusions quite fast and he didn't want her to get any bright ideas if she was watching him responding to these letters.

'My name is Alex. I can not say much more than that. As for the restrictions, I cannot dispel that information either. I am sorry that there are so many questions I cannot answer you. I hope that one day I will be able to. Do not think ill of me till then.'

Devon was beginning to get slightly frustrated with these letters. What could it possibly be that was keeping him from responding truthfully to all her questions? She couldn't begin to think of any circumstances that would force it. In the end she just sighed and went with it, knowing that having constricted contact was better than none at all.

That's a shame, too, considering most of the questions I have revolve around wondering who the person whose been sneaking into my house for months is. But if there's nothing to be done . . .

Unable to think of anything else that could be written, all her questions being deflected under the excuse that he couldn't answer, this was the only response Devon could leave this time.