Vlad
Windenburg Central Train Station
He was riding high when he escorted Alice off the train. Higher still when she asked him if he wanted to get something to eat, and then furtively whispered “not for you but for me,” as sims rushed past them.
And his mood continued to soar all the way into the station.
Then he saw Jimena.
Quickly, he pushed Alice towards the restroom. “You must want a moment to refresh yourself after the ride,” he insisted, ignoring her squeak of protest as he opened the door.
As soon as it shut, he turned to face Jimena who smiled like the cat who caught the canary and slid her arms around him with an equally feline grace.
“I missed you on the train,” she purred while he frantically thought about all the possible ways to extract himself from the situation.
Death, he decided, was not off the table.
“It was not a particularly long ride,” he replied, making his voice cold and detached as he pulled away.
Lie. The ride was ten glorious hours! Most of them spent with Alice tucked against his side, her pulse fluttering and calling to his fangs in a way that made him think filthy things. She spoke Ye Olde Simlish for sage’s sake! He didn’t think she’d eat someone’s heart, but she wasn’t disgusted by it. As far as organs went, Vlad preferred them. They were full of warm, delicious plasma and—
Why is Vlad being a master vampire less creepy to me than him being able to hear what’s going on in the women’s bathroom? And then the implications of “I don’t love Jimena.” Calm down, boy. And also the implications that William is an Allie Brosh fan, or otherwise meme-literate, and the amount of work it would take Miko’s family to bully her with ENTIRE PLAYS about her own death. Allie Brosh is ridiculously hot. I just learned that.
I appreciate how you were playing with transitions in this and the previous chapter, btw. Forgot to mention.
HAHAHA vampire hearing is creepy. It’s convenient and cool when they are tracking prey in the woods, but not so much when they are standing by a bathroom.
I don’t love Jimena indeed. I am really enjoying breaking Vlad down and making him a cinnamon roll wrapped in a bloodthirsty, murder-happy little package. I really wanted to subvert expectations and have him be the Hufflepuff and Alice be the Slytherin. I feel like I am at least stumbling (clumsily) towards that anyways.
Hyberbole in a Half is my jam! This is why William is my favorite character to write. Allie Brosh is a smokeshow and if I met her in real life I’d faint lol.
Miko’s family is extra, but when you are literally time itself, I think you can’t help but be dramatic.
Honestly, thank you for noticing the transitions! I feel like this is the movement where the world is expanding A LOT and there is so much worldbuilding to do that it’s hard to find a way to keep the momentum and tension of the story but also develop this bananas-town supernatural world that they are all in. I also like seeing the main characters from other people’s perspectives and I loveeeee a good secret, so I’m going to keep playing around with it!
Did not catch the Hufflepuff/Slytherin thing; will watch out for that in the future. And I dare call myself a Ravenclaw!?
Eh, there’s lots of things to catch here. That’s what makes it exciting!
Gah, why is Vlad so frustrating? Why is he so dead set on the idea that Jimena will win? Has he not seen Aloce turn her performance up by a bagillion percent at the audition? She’s clearly a dark horse. What does Vlad even lnow about reality TV? Clearly not mich – the villain gets far enough in the show to supply drama, but they don’t tend to win. The underdog the audience falls in love with does.
Interesting take on Miko – fun idea to have someone like her be some sort of a heavily scatterbrained mastermind haha! I’ve always seen her as a bit… hm, not sure what word I’m looking for that doesn’t sound too harsh. Unassuming, I guess. The way you’ve teased her character kind of goes in line with how I perceived her, but like her personality got a boost of steroids. Quite the upgrade haha! As is her makeover, but I dig the personality-lift even more!
I want to hear more about these gnomes lol
omg wait until season 3. The gnomes are back in a big way!
heheh, implying that…? ;P
Overall, I am very much enjoying this slow burn and deliciously smitten Vlad! Aaand back to reading, because I can’t stop!
Yay! So glad you are enjoying! And yes, Vlad is 100% not ready 😂😂😂
I’ll bet Prince Vlad had a similar setup when he was human. Usher one lady out and usher another one into his bedchamber. It should probably feel sleazy that he’s using both of these women (Jimena to get to the Owl, and Alice to get into a relationship), but it comes across comical. These three doofuses (Caleb, William, Vlad) never learned about playing with fire I guess. Tsk tsk tsk.
HOLY SHIT PENNY. Penny looks cute with long hair and in slinky dresses.