At twelve years old, Hairene was nothing like the woman she would eventually become.
She smiled more.
Laughed louder.
Spoke to strangers without making them feel like they were being interrogated.
She was still sharp, still observant, and already far more serious about school than most kids her age, but there was a warmth to her that hadn't yet been worn down by experience.
Unfortunately for her…
Her best friend had absolutely no interest in making school easy.
Hairene stared at the worksheet sitting on Lulu's desk.
Then at Lulu.
Then back at the worksheet.
It was blank.
Completely blank.
Hairene: "You haven't answered a single question."
Lulu rested her cheek against one hand and continued staring out the classroom window.
Lulu: "I'm thinking."
Hairene: "About what?"
Lulu: "Important things."
Hairene narrowed her eyes.
Hairene: "You're watching a bird."
Lulu: "Exactly."
Hairene: "That's not studying."
Lulu: "How do you know?"
Hairene: "Because the bird isn't teaching mathematics."
Lulu slowly turned toward her.
Lulu: "Maybe you just can't understand him."
Hairene stared.
Lulu stared back.
Hairene: "You're going to fail again."
Lulu immediately pointed at her.
Lulu: "Then I'll fail heroically."
Hairene: "That's not a thing."
Lulu: "It is if I say it confidently enough."
Hairene sighed and reached across the desk, tapping the first problem with her pencil.
Hairene: "Just do this one."
Lulu looked down.
Lulu: "I don't know how."
Hairene: "I explained it yesterday."
Lulu: "And I respected your explanation very much."
Hairene: "Did you listen?"
Lulu: "That's a different question."
Hairene pinched the bridge of her nose.
Lulu grinned.
That grin made it impossible for Hairene to stay annoyed for long.
Hairene: "You're impossible."
Lulu: "And yet you keep hanging out with me."
Hairene: "Someone has to make sure you graduate."
Lulu leaned closer.
Lulu: "Aww. You care."
Hairene shoved her face away with one hand.
Hairene: "Do your work."
Lulu: "Cold."
Hairene: "Question one."
Lulu groaned dramatically before finally picking up her pencil.
Hairene smiled despite herself.
That was how most school days went.
Hairene trying to keep Lulu from failing.
Lulu trying to convince Hairene that grades were a social construct.
Neither ever won.
⸻
After school, the two walked home together beneath a warm afternoon sky.
Their bags hung loosely from their shoulders as they moved through the neighborhood streets.
Lulu kicked a small pebble ahead of herself.
It bounced once.
Twice.
Then rolled into the gutter.
Lulu: "I think school hates me."
Hairene: "School doesn't have feelings."
Lulu: "That's exactly what it wants you to think."
Hairene: "You could just study."
Lulu: "You say that like it's easy."
Hairene: "It is."
Lulu stopped walking.
Lulu: "You are so annoying."
Hairene smiled brightly.
Hairene: "And I'm passing."
Lulu rushed forward and lightly shoved her shoulder.
Hairene laughed and shoved back.
The two continued down the street.
A group of students from another class stood near a corner store ahead.
Hairene didn't pay much attention to them at first.
Then she heard the whispering.
One of the girls glanced toward Lulu.
Another covered her mouth.
A boy snickered.
Not loudly.
Not enough for a teacher to intervene.
Just enough.
Lulu's steps slowed.
Hairene noticed immediately.
The smile disappeared from her face.
Hairene looked toward the group.
They quickly turned away.
Lulu: "Don't."
Hairene: "They were talking about you."
Lulu: "I know."
Hairene: "I'll say something."
Lulu grabbed her sleeve.
Lulu: "Hairene."
Hairene looked at her.
Lulu smiled.
It wasn't convincing.
Lulu: "Leave it."
Hairene: "Why?"
Lulu shrugged.
Lulu: "Because it'll just make it worse."
Hairene hated that answer.
But she kept walking.
The two were quieter after that.
They eventually reached a small playground and sat on the swings.
Lulu gently rocked back and forth.
Hairene watched her from the next swing.
For a while, neither spoke.
Hairene finally broke the silence.
Hairene: "You're not ugly."
Lulu froze.
Lulu: "What?"
Hairene looked away.
Hairene: "You heard me."
Lulu stared at her.
Hairene: "They're stupid."
Lulu laughed weakly.
Lulu: "You don't have to say that."
Hairene: "I'm not saying it because I have to."
Lulu looked down at the dirt beneath her shoes.
Lulu: "Maybe they're right."
Hairene: "They're not."
Lulu: "Hairene."
Hairene: "They're not."
Lulu sighed.
Lulu: "I'm probably still gonna be ugly when I'm an adult."
Hairene immediately frowned.
Hairene: "Why would you say that?"
Lulu shrugged again.
Lulu: "Because that's what everyone says."
Hairene: "Everyone is stupid."
Lulu smiled slightly.
Lulu: "Including me?"
Hairene: "Especially you."
Lulu: "Wow."
Hairene: "You failed math twice."
Lulu: "I knew you'd bring that up."
Hairene's expression softened.
Lulu continued staring at the ground.
Lulu: "That's why I'm gonna become a Hunter."
Hairene blinked.
Hairene: "A Hunter?"
Lulu nodded.
Hairene: "Since when?"
Lulu: "For a while."
Hairene turned fully toward her.
Hairene: "You hate studying."
Lulu: "Hunters fight."
Hairene: "Hunters also study."
Lulu's face dropped.
Lulu: "Seriously?"
Hairene: "A lot."
Lulu: "My dream is already falling apart."
Hairene laughed.
Lulu smiled too.
Then her expression became serious again.
Lulu: "But I mean it."
Hairene stopped swinging.
Lulu: "If I become a Hunter… none of this matters."
Hairene: "None of what?"
Lulu gestured vaguely toward herself.
Lulu: "Being dumb."
Hairene: "You're not dumb."
Lulu: "I failed math twice."
Hairene: "Because you don't study."
Lulu pointed at her.
Lulu: "See?"
Hairene sighed.
Lulu: "And if I'm ugly when I grow up… who cares?"
Her hands tightened around the chains of the swing.
Lulu: "If I become strong enough, none of them can look down on me anymore."
Hairene watched her quietly.
Lulu: "They can laugh now."
She looked toward the sky.
Lulu: "But someday I'll become a Hunter."
A small smile appeared.
Lulu: "Then they'll have to admit I'm stronger than all of them."
Hairene's chest tightened.
She understood then.
Lulu didn't dream about becoming a Hunter because she loved swords.
Or because she wanted glory.
She wanted proof.
Proof that she mattered.
Hairene stood.
Lulu looked over.
Hairene: "Then I'll become one too."
Lulu blinked.
Lulu: "What?"
Hairene: "A Hunter."
Lulu laughed.
Lulu: "You'd probably become one anyway."
Hairene: "That's not the point."
Lulu stared at her.
Hairene held out her pinky.
Hairene: "We'll do it together."
Lulu's smile slowly disappeared.
For once…
She didn't make a joke.
Lulu: "Seriously?"
Hairene nodded.
Hairene: "Seriously."
Lulu looked at the offered hand.
Then hooked her pinky around Hairene's.
Lulu: "Then we'll be the strongest pair ever."
Hairene smiled.
Hairene: "You need to pass math first."
Lulu immediately pulled her hand away.
Lulu: "Why do you always ruin good moments?"
Hairene laughed.
⸻
A few days later, the two walked through a park after school.
Lulu had spent most of the afternoon practicing what she claimed were "Hunter movements."
Most of them involved swinging a tree branch wildly.
Hairene watched from several steps behind.
Hairene: "You're going to hit someone."
Lulu: "A Hunter must be ready at all times."
Hairene: "You're holding a stick."
Lulu: "A training sword."
Hairene: "It's a stick."
Lulu spun dramatically.
The branch slipped from her hand and flew into a bush.
Silence.
Hairene folded her arms.
Lulu: "That was intentional."
Hairene: "Of course."
They continued walking.
The park was unusually quiet.
A light breeze moved through the trees.
Birds chirped somewhere above them.
Then Hairene stopped.
Someone was lying beneath a large tree ahead.
A boy.
Their age.
He rested against the trunk with his eyes closed, apparently enjoying the afternoon.
At first, nothing seemed unusual.
Then he yawned.
Two sharp fangs became visible.
Hairene froze.
Her hand immediately grabbed Lulu's arm.
Hairene: "Lulu."
Lulu: "Ow."
Hairene: "Don't move."
The boy's eyes opened.
Red.
Not human.
For a moment…
Nobody moved.
Then the boy realized what they had seen.
His face went pale.
He scrambled backward.
Boy: "Wait!"
Hairene pulled Lulu behind her.
Hairene: "Stay there."
Boy: "I'm not gonna hurt you!"
Hairene: "Lulu, we need to find a Hunter."
The boy's expression turned desperate.
Boy: "No!"
Hairene tightened her grip on Lulu.
Boy: "Please!"
Hairene: "You're a vampire."
Boy: "I know!"
Hairene: "Then why would we listen to you?"
He pressed himself against the tree.
He didn't look threatening.
That didn't matter to Hairene.
Everything she'd learned about vampires told her the same thing.
Danger.
Hairene: "Stay away from us."
Boy: "I haven't done anything."
Hairene: "That's exactly what a vampire would say."
Lulu stepped slightly to the side.
Hairene immediately blocked her.
Hairene: "What are you doing?"
Lulu didn't answer.
She stared at the boy.
He was shaking.
Not growling.
Not preparing to attack.
Shaking.
Boy: "Please don't tell anyone."
Hairene: "Why shouldn't we?"
Boy: "Because they'll kill me."
The words hung in the air.
Hairene's expression didn't soften.
Lulu's did.
Hairene noticed.
Hairene: "Lulu."
Lulu: "Wait."
Hairene stared at her.
Hairene: "What?"
Lulu stepped forward again.
Hairene grabbed her sleeve.
Hairene: "Are you crazy?"
Lulu: "Look at him."
Hairene: "I am looking at him."
Her voice sharpened.
Hairene: "He's a vampire."
Lulu looked back at her.
Lulu: "He's scared."
Hairene: "That doesn't mean anything."
Lulu: "He's our age."
Hairene: "Lulu—"
Lulu gently pulled her sleeve free.
Then looked toward the frightened boy beneath the tree.
Lulu: "He's a kid just like us."
Hairene hated the idea from the moment Lulu suggested it.
Absolutely hated it.
Hairene: "We are not keeping a vampire secret."
Lulu: "We are."
Hairene: "Lulu."
Lulu: "Hairene."
Hairene folded her arms.
Zander sat beneath the tree where they'd found him, still looking nervous enough to bolt at any second.
Lulu pointed toward him.
Lulu: "Look at him."
Hairene: "I have looked at him enough."
Lulu: "Does he look dangerous?"
Hairene: "Yes."
Zander blinked.
Zander: "I do?"
Hairene: "You're a vampire."
Zander: "Oh."
Lulu crouched in front of him.
Lulu: "What's your name?"
The boy hesitated.
Zander: "Zander."
Lulu: "I'm Lulu."
She pointed behind herself.
Lulu: "And that's Hairene."
Hairene: "Don't introduce me like we're becoming friends."
Lulu: "Too late."
Zander looked between them.
He still hadn't relaxed.
Hairene noticed that.
His shoulders were tight.
His hands were curled against his knees.
Every time someone passed on the distant walking path, his attention snapped toward them.
Hairene didn't like vampires.
Or at least…
She had been taught not to.
Every lesson about them sounded the same.
Dangerous.
Predatory.
Enemies of humanity.
Hunters existed because vampires existed.
So why was this one terrified of being found?
Hairene: "Why are you here?"
Zander looked toward her.
Hairene: "And don't lie."
Zander: "I live here."
Hairene frowned.
Hairene: "In the park?"
Zander: "No!"
Lulu laughed.
Zander's face reddened.
Zander: "I mean… I live in Shioto."
Hairene stared.
Zander: "I was born here."
That made her pause.
Lulu: "Really?"
He nodded.
Zander: "My dad's human."
Hairene's eyes widened slightly.
Zander: "My mom's a vampire."
Lulu sat down in the grass.
Lulu: "So you're half?"
Zander: "Sort of."
He looked uncomfortable.
Zander: "I don't really know what people call it."
Hairene remained standing.
Hairene: "Your father knows?"
Zander: "Of course."
Hairene: "And he's okay with it?"
Zander's expression shifted.
Not angry.
Almost offended.
Zander: "She's my mom."
Hairene went quiet.
Lulu glanced at her.
Zander continued.
Zander: "They met years ago. My dad knew what she was before they got married."
Hairene: "How?"
Zander shrugged.
Zander: "Never asked."
Lulu: "You never asked how your human dad married a vampire?"
Zander: "It felt personal."
Lulu: "I would've asked immediately."
Hairene: "Of course you would."
Lulu: "That's why people like me."
Hairene: "People tolerate you."
Lulu gasped.
Zander laughed.
It was the first time Hairene had seen him do it.
The sound surprised her.
It was normal.
Completely normal.
Not monstrous.
Not frightening.
Just a kid laughing at something stupid.
Hairene didn't like how much that complicated things.
Hairene: "What happens if Hunters find out?"
The laughter stopped.
Zander looked down.
Zander: "Depends who finds out."
Lulu: "What does that mean?"
Zander: "Some might listen."
He picked at the grass beside him.
Zander: "Some won't."
Hairene understood without needing more.
Zander: "My mom doesn't go out much."
Lulu's face fell.
Zander: "And I have to be careful."
Hairene: "Then why were you sitting here like that?"
Zander grimaced.
Zander: "Because I thought nobody was around."
Lulu: "Great survival instincts."
Zander: "Thanks."
Lulu: "That wasn't a compliment."
Zander: "Oh."
Hairene nearly smiled.
She stopped herself.
Hairene: "Fine."
Both of them looked toward her.
Hairene sighed.
Hairene: "I won't tell anyone."
Zander's eyes widened.
Hairene raised a finger.
Hairene: "But."
His hope immediately weakened.
Hairene: "If you hurt anyone—"
Zander: "I won't."
Hairene: "If you even try—"
Zander: "I won't."
Hairene: "Let me finish."
Zander: "Sorry."
Hairene: "If you hurt Lulu, I'll personally find a Hunter."
Lulu: "Why am I the specific example?"
Hairene: "Because you're the one trying to adopt him."
Lulu: "He's not a stray dog."
Zander: "Thank you."
Lulu looked at him.
Lulu: "You do have stray dog energy, though."
Zander: "I take it back."
Hairene sighed again.
Somehow…
That was the beginning.
⸻
Zander didn't attend their school.
That made keeping his secret easier.
After classes ended, Hairene and Lulu would sometimes meet him at the park.
At first…
Hairene mostly watched.
Lulu carried the conversation.
She asked Zander everything.
What vampires ate.
Whether sunlight bothered him.
Whether he slept differently.
Whether he could turn into a bat.
Zander: "No."
Lulu: "Are you sure?"
Zander: "Pretty sure."
Lulu: "Have you tried?"
Zander: "How do you try turning into a bat?"
Lulu: "Believe in yourself."
Hairene: "Please stop."
Zander was patient with her.
Far more patient than Hairene expected.
They learned quickly that his life wasn't particularly dramatic.
His father worked.
His mother stayed home most of the time.
Zander liked sweets.
He hated tomatoes.
He was bad at sports.
He liked arcade games.
He was afraid of large dogs.
The more Hairene learned…
The less he fit into the shape she'd been taught vampires should have.
That bothered her.
But not in the way she expected.
After a few weeks, the meetings stopped feeling secret.
They simply became normal.
Lulu brought snacks.
Zander brought cards.
Hairene brought homework.
Lulu: "Why do you bring suffering everywhere?"
Hairene: "Because you're still failing."
Zander looked toward Lulu.
Zander: "You failed again?"
Lulu: "Traitor."
Hairene: "He's known you three weeks."
Lulu: "And he's already turned against me."
Zander: "I didn't even say anything."
Hairene found herself laughing more around him.
Still…
She kept a little distance.
Not enough for Lulu to notice.
Enough for Hairene to notice herself.
Whenever Zander moved too quickly…
Her body tensed.
Whenever his fangs showed while he laughed…
She remembered what he was.
She hated herself a little for it.
But trust didn't appear just because she wanted it to.
It had to be earned.
⸻
One evening, the three visited an arcade several blocks away from the park.
Lulu lasted barely an hour.
She froze in the middle of a rhythm game.
Lulu: "Oh."
Hairene: "What?"
Lulu slowly turned.
Lulu: "I have homework."
Hairene stared at her.
Hairene: "You just remembered?"
Lulu: "I knew there was a reason I felt uneasy."
Zander: "How much?"
Lulu: "A lot."
Hairene: "When is it due?"
Lulu: "Tomorrow."
Hairene closed her eyes.
Lulu: "Don't make that face."
Hairene: "Go home."
Lulu: "But—"
Hairene: "Now."
Lulu saluted.
Lulu: "Yes, ma'am."
Zander laughed.
Lulu grabbed her bag.
Before leaving, she pointed between them.
Lulu: "Don't become best friends without me."
Hairene: "Go."
Lulu: "I'm going!"
She hurried out.
That left Hairene and Zander alone.
For a moment, both stood awkwardly.
Zander: "So…"
Hairene: "Don't say it."
Zander: "I wasn't going to."
Hairene: "You were."
Zander: "Probably."
They ended up staying another half hour.
Zander was terrible at fighting games.
Hairene discovered this quickly.
Hairene: "Again?"
Zander: "That was lag."
Hairene: "It's an arcade cabinet."
Zander: "Internal lag."
Hairene: "That's not a thing."
Zander: "Sounds like something a winner would say."
Hairene: "I am the winner."
Zander stared at the screen.
Zander: "I walked into that one."
By the time they left, the streets had grown quieter.
The sun was nearly gone.
Hairene adjusted her bag.
Hairene: "My house is this way."
Zander: "I'll walk with you."
Hairene looked at him.
Zander: "What?"
Hairene: "Nothing."
He frowned.
Zander: "You don't trust me?"
Hairene hesitated.
Zander immediately looked away.
Zander: "Never mind."
Hairene felt guilty.
Hairene: "That's not what I meant."
Zander: "It's okay."
Hairene: "No, I just—"
A voice interrupted them.
Man: "Hey, kids."
Both stopped.
A man stood near the mouth of an alley.
Hairene immediately disliked him.
He smiled too much.
Man: "You two lost?"
Hairene: "No."
Man: "You sure?"
Zander stepped slightly closer to her.
Zander: "We're fine."
The man walked toward them.
Hairene took one step backward.
Man: "I can give you a ride."
Hairene: "No."
Man: "Come on."
His tone changed.
Barely.
But enough.
Zander noticed too.
Man: "It's getting late."
Hairene: "We're leaving."
She grabbed Zander's sleeve.
The man moved faster.
His hand shot toward Hairene.
Zander stepped between them.
The man grabbed him instead.
Zander: "Let go!"
The man shoved him hard.
Zander hit the pavement.
Hairene: "Zander!"
She tried moving toward him.
The man grabbed her wrist.
Hairene's heart jumped.
Hairene: "Let go of me!"
She kicked at his shin.
He cursed.
Zander pushed himself up.
Zander: "Leave her alone!"
He rushed forward.
The man struck him across the face.
Zander stumbled.
Hairene: "Stop!"
The man pulled her closer.
Hairene fought harder.
Zander grabbed his arm.
The man elbowed him in the ribs.
Zander hit the ground again.
Hairene's chest tightened.
He could fight back.
She knew that.
He was a vampire.
Probably stronger than this man.
But Zander wasn't attacking.
Not really.
He kept trying to pull Hairene free without hurting him.
The man finally reached into his jacket.
A knife flashed beneath the streetlight.
Everything changed.
Zander froze.
The blade pointed toward him.
For the first time…
Hairene saw genuine terror cross his face.
Not vampire terror.
Child terror.
Zander: "Hairene."
The man stepped forward.
Zander moved first.
Not toward him.
Toward her.
He grabbed Hairene around the waist.
Hairene: "What—"
Then lifted her completely off the ground.
Hairene: "Zander?!"
He ran.
Hairene: "PUT ME DOWN!"
Zander: "NO!"
The man shouted behind them.
Zander didn't look back.
He ran harder.
Hairene bounced awkwardly in his arms.
Hairene: "I CAN RUN!"
Zander: "HE HAS A KNIFE!"
Hairene: "I KNOW!"
Zander: "THEN STOP COMPLAINING!"
She stopped complaining.
Mostly.
They turned down another street.
Then another.
The man's voice faded.
Still, Zander kept running.
Only when they reached a busier road with several adults nearby did he finally slow down.
He stumbled toward a bench.
Set Hairene down.
Then dropped onto the seat beside her.
Both breathed heavily.
Hairene stared at him.
Zander had a cut on his cheek.
His lip was bleeding.
One sleeve was torn where he'd hit the pavement.
Hairene: "You're hurt."
Zander touched his face.
Zander: "I'm okay."
Hairene: "No you're not."
Zander: "It's just a little—ow."
Hairene: "See?"
She pulled a small handkerchief from her bag.
Zander blinked.
Hairene: "Hold still."
Zander: "You don't have to—"
Hairene: "Hold still."
He obeyed.
Hairene carefully wiped the blood from his cheek.
For once…
Neither joked.
Hairene: "Why didn't you fight him?"
Zander looked confused.
Hairene: "You're stronger than him."
Zander's eyes lowered.
Zander: "I didn't want to hurt anyone."
Hairene paused.
Zander: "If I attacked him and somebody saw…"
He gave a weak shrug.
Zander: "They'd just see a vampire attacking a human."
Hairene's hand stopped.
Zander: "And he had a knife."
He laughed nervously.
Zander: "I really hate knives now."
Hairene stared at him.
This boy…
This vampire…
Had gotten hit repeatedly because he refused to hurt someone.
He had placed himself between her and danger.
Then, when things became truly dangerous…
He didn't abandon her.
He picked her up and ran.
Hairene lowered the handkerchief.
Hairene: "Thank you."
Zander blinked.
Zander: "For what?"
Hairene: "You know what."
Zander looked away.
Zander: "I wasn't gonna leave you there."
Hairene smiled.
A real smile.
No hesitation.
No caution hiding behind it.
Hairene: "I know."
Zander slowly looked back toward her.
Something in her expression must have changed.
He noticed.
Zander: "You trust me now?"
Hairene's cheeks warmed.
Hairene: "Don't make it weird."
His face lit up.
A huge smile stretched from ear to ear.
Zander: "You trust me!"
Hairene: "I didn't say that!"
Zander: "You basically did!"
Hairene: "Keep yelling and I'll take it back!"
He laughed.
Hairene tried looking annoyed.
She failed.
And sitting there beneath the streetlights, with Zander bruised beside her and Lulu probably suffering through forgotten homework at home…
Hairene finally stopped seeing a vampire.
She saw her friend.