A frigid wind griped the forest as darkness began to descend upon the woods. The sun still fought to shine as it was shoved closer to the horizon with each passing second. It was the time for the moon to dominate, but with merely a sliver showing it seemed almost impossible that it could take over the sky. Yet still the sun sank downward, its beams steadily failing to pierce the encroaching shadows. Woodland animals cuddle deep inside their burrows, or settle down in thick brush for the night. House locks snapped shut, trapping their occupants inside in supposed safety. But as the shadows continued to grow longer, a figure appeared in the trees. Dressed entirely in black, only his blonde hair showed in the shadows. He hissed softly at the dying sunlight, its warm glow still staining the land with a bright orange glow. It had been far too long since he had fed, idiocy driving him to forget that necessity as despair and depression consumed his being. Every few weeks, Andrew was struck down with such crushing feelings he forgot everything but the memory of his beloved wife, haunting him at every turn.

Days would creep by without change, the vampire holed up in his home growing weaker by the second. Then something would change, his sanity vanished and Andrew would emerge to wreck havoc on the world once again. The sun was near poison to him in this state, draining his powers until he was near human. The thought disgusted him, the lust for blood rising within his chest. Fangs bared viciously, he snarled at the lingering sun. It was taking far to long to sink into nothingness. His hard silver-gray eyes were trained on a home not far from the woods edge. Trapped inside was a pathetic little family of 5, the precious brats barely over 10 years of age. Their sweet blood would nourish him, giving him the strength he needed to return to full strength. The insane light in his eyes flashed as he gathered his remaining strength. His powers were there, though not as strong as usual, they remained impressive. A vampire of his age had extraordinary power, but now he felt like nothing more than a fledging struggling to control his abilities.

Amandah crouched behind the trees that formed a border around the forest path as she watched the man in the ever-growing darkness. Amandah was far from psychic, but she could tell an animal when she saw one. A bitter wind tossed the leaves around her and pressed the stray strands of her brown hair flat against her face. Irritably, she brushed it out of her eyes for the umpteenth time and tried to focus.

She'd been trailing her victim, as she fondly called them, since she spotted him in the forest earlier today. He'd seemed irritated and almost erratic, that was the first thing that had drawn Amandah's attention. But now, after all she'd seen of his hungry behavior she was sure that something wasn't right. And fairly certain that the fair-haired male wasn't as human as his outward appearance would suggest.

Nervously, she waited and tried to guess what his next move would be. If all went well, the creature would have no inkling that she was there and she would whip out her gun and shoot him dead with one clean shot. But after Halloween, she was beginning to question her superiority in the field. She already knew that her still healing arm would harm her form, especially because is was her usual shooting arm. She didn't have a team to back her up this time either. Sucking in a quick of fresh air, she tried to gather herself. She was going to be stubborn with this, so no-body else had to get hurt.

The sun was taking far too long to set, that was the simple truth of the matter. With each passing minute, twilight seemed reluctant to take hold of the world as evening persevered. He was growing impatient, and his hungry was transforming into a near mind boggling lust for blood. Already his mind was envisioning the sweet liquid oozing down his lips and fingers as he gorged himself on the precious substance. Normally Andrew was a rather finicky feeder, being almost meticulously tidy with his meal. And on occasion he didn't actually kill him victim and instead left them near help. After all, if he killed off his food source entirely that would leave him in a rather idiotic position of starving to death because of his own carelessness. But when the madness within took control, the same utter desperation that had lead to his turning in the first place, Andrew was reduced to nothing more than a sadistic, violent serial killer who's slaughtered victims should make headlines.

However, one of his abilities also provided Andrew with the prefect clean up method, erasing all traces of his presence and subsequent actions within whatever home he found himself terrorizing. This is not to say that Andrew regretted killing, or even abhorred his own sadistic tendencies. Merely he knew the importance of covering his tracks and keeping that particular side of him hidden as best he could. Now, as he waited in the trees for the cursed sun to give up, Andrew's mental state was the farthest thing from normal as possible. Ice cold dark silver-blue eyes shifted as a soft sound caught his attention. A twisted smirk spread across his lips, recognizing that intake of breath for what it was. He wasn't alone, a feeling that had been steadily growing for most of the day.

Stepping back, Andrew enacted one of his few hard earned skills that age had granted him. He vanished into the shadows among the trees. It was an impressive feat to achieve given his blonde hair, and yet he managed to do so. Moving on silent feet, he circled around to come up behind the other person in the woods. Slipping a gleaming knife from his belt, he toyed with the small weapon. He was careful not to crack any twigs as he approached behind the figure. Placing the blade against the other's neck, Andrew growled out a hard question. "Who are you? Why are you following me?" It was difficult not to slit the person's throat right then, but with his senses screaming danger he knew attacking to quickly would leave him truly dead.

Amandah was not a naturally patient person. Time seemed to run slower for her than everyone else. This watching and waiting scheme was becoming tedious after an afternoon of stalking. It was obvious that her victim shared a similar view. He was waiting for something and Amandah could guess what it was, the end of twilight and the beginning of night. At last the man moved, stepping back into the darkness, he disappeared completely! An alarming feeling began to grow in the pit of Amandah's stomach. Listening intently, she tried to trace the man's footsteps, but she couldn't hear a thing. She was certain now, certain that what she was dealing with was not human. Most likely not a werewolf. She was dealing with a vampire and that made her fear rise even higher.

Slowly and as noiselessly as possible, Amandah sank even lower and tried to curl herself into a tight ball, completely out of sight. But it was too late for her to take cover. She didn't know that the vampire was behind her until he pressed the cold metal of his knife against her neck. Gasping in shock, her heart began to race wildly, fueled by the adrenalin released by her fear. Normally she would've found the rush pleasurable, but there are exceptions to every rule. Taking a deep breath in, she gathered her thoughts and fought the instinct to run. "Knives don't scare me, buddy." she whispered hoarsely. "Why don't you try a little harder?"

Her soft gasp of shock thundered in his ears, nearly drowning out the fast paced thud of her heart as it beat in her chest. Each thud was like a musical note of terror, the surprise she kept from her voice clear in frantic way her heart pumped rich blood through her veins. His fingers suddenly wrapped themselves in her hair, brutally snapping her neck back as his blade sank into her neck slightly. His voice purred in her ear, each syllable dripping with venom so strong it seemed to poison the very airwaves that carried each word. His deep voice rumbled from his chest, tones that could have been enticingly charming if they weren't filled with such madness. "A slender blade of metal is the least of your worries, my dear. And I was hardly trying to scare you, though it seems that is exactly what I did. I can hear that succulent blood flowing through your veins with ever pulse of you heart. Had quite the start didn't you?"

He chuckled, the twisted noise oozing into the air like lava curling around a hapless town. His head dropped to her neck where his blade rested; lapping up the trickle of blood he had created. Pulling back, he scoffed at his new prey. She would have to do until the sun finally gave up and he could attack the home that was his intended target. His foot lashed out intending on knocking her down, the power behind it still greater than that of a common human despite his lack of blood. "Now what would a little foolish mortal be doing wandering about the woods?" His mocking voice was hushed, cold silver eyes glaring at her. If he had to guess, he would have her pegged as a hunter, someone who killed others just as he did. Though Andrew had a feeling he enjoyed the slaughter more.

The hunter had no idea that her goading would be answer with such quick and terrible ferocity than what happened in those few fleeting seconds. The first flickering edges of real fear began to trickle as he wound his hands through her hair. She winced as he pulled her hair painfully, unable to resist such a sharp action or the sharp blade that pierced her skin. Inside, her whole body was attempting to revolt. Her heart was bashing against her ribcage and her arms begged to turn and rip the vampire's head off! Her eyes strained to the side to glimpse her oppressor, catching only the tip of his nose and face.

"A slender blade of metal is the least of your worries, my dear. And I was hardly trying to scare you, though it seems that is exactly what I did. I can hear that succulent blood flowing through your veins with ever pulse of you heart. Had quite the start didn't you?"

Suddenly she felt like retching and it was all she could do not to spew up all over herself, there was no chance of her stopping him from playing his next move. As his tongue connected with her neck she knew that something was snapping. Something was beginning to tear through her body- terror and disgust, they were two emotions she had learned to recognize. She couldn't stay silent anymore, no matter how much she wanted to. She screamed, crying out so loudly that she couldn't understand whatever the man said next. But she could hear his laugh, it sent lightning bolts of hate through her whole body. She felt herself fall, not that there was much more between her and the ground already anyway. Trying to catch herself, she winced as she landed on her injured arm in a bad way. Turning her head, she finally got a good look at the demon who'd been finding such happiness in her pain. Glaring at him, she spat at his face. "Why should I answer you, vampire? I'd talk to a worm before giving you the time of day. At least a worm would be nobler than you."

Andrew smirked at the pitiful little human before him, his senses tingling with the fresh blood that only caused every fiber of his being to plead for more. He felt more wound up than a bowstring pulled to taut to the point of snapping the wood upon which it was strung. His eyes were so dark they seemed near a night storm, thick gray oozing across his irises in a bizarrely fascinatingly swirling manner. The hypnotizing look did little to conceal the pure demented madness that compelled him to hunt and slaughter. Tipped his head seemingly casually to one side, he dodged the spittle that was tossed toward his face. A grimace of pure disgust flashed over what could only be classified as terrifyingly handsome features, a strange combination even in one such as him. A low growl rumbled in his chest as his temper flared, completely unleashed by the madness he had allowed to cultivate in a twisted routine of self-destruction until he gave into the instincts that would forever dominate his character.

A spine chilling laugh escaped his lips, revealing the sharp points of his fangs as he nearly cackled with madness. "I don't remember asking you for the time of day; clearly it is nearly at an end anyway." Deep, demented laughter over his own pathetic twist of her words had him nearly gasping for breath. If ever there was clear madness, this was perhaps the most frightening display of it. "And yet here you are, speaking to me." He continued after regaining control, or at least the control he had before, of himself. "I was under the impression that worms writhed upon the ground." He gave her a pointed look, not bothering to comment upon that fact that it was she who currently resided upon the forest floor. A cheeky grin split his face, the almost handsome expression contrasted by the fire lurking in his demented gaze. Strange how different he seemed from the man he once had been.

Thirst drove him to impossible violence, and madness blocked him from the very actions he took. In a strange way, Andrew himself was untainted by the crimes he committed. So many other nights like this one had passed, and he retained no memory of the events. But this was the first time things had gone different than what was planned. He knelt down in front of her, fingers extended as if he was going to caress her cheek before withdrawing them. His eyes stared at her, daring her to make a move against him, taunting her with the fact that at the moment he was the one with the advantage. It was a position Andrew both loved and loathed. Constantly searching for one who could destroy him, while at the same time unable to give up hope that holding on a few more years might result in the achievement of his goals and aspirations.