Bambi and the Duke

The scene started to dissipate like vapor as that was all Rory had seen until the last of his death from Charlotte. It was the little residue that was left as she saw the smoke like scene start to disappear from her sight and she turned her head away not wanting to see how the switcher tore Charlotte's chest. 

Tears fell down on the dead man, Rory.

She tried to hold back her tears but unable to do it, her shoulders shook as her hands went to move away from the body to cover her face and the tears that fell. But her sobs erupted out of her lips. She had seen Charlotte's vision where the man had stood right in front of her. He had played with the others to kill her but he wasn't the one to kill Charlotte. 

Wiping her tears, she placed back her hands on the body wanting to find out about the switchers. She had picked up his memories but the next level was to pick the memories of the object, and this time the object was the man's dead body. Heaving for breath as her eyes blurred her vision with tears, she closed her eyes for the tears to fall down on her face. 

It was hard to concentrate with her emotions all over the place. She cried some more before trying to tell her that she had to do this before the guard would come with the magistrate where she was. Taking a deep breath, she stopped her crying. Letting calmness seep into her skin, she finally was greeted with the switchers who had killed Charlotte and Vivian assumed that they had killed Rory as they were the last person who was seen with them. 

"What are we going to do this one?" asked the man with a gruff voice as he looked down at Rory who laid dead inside the carriage, "I told you to kill him after I had transformed into him. You little cunt taking the man's life even after I warned," he gritted his teeth to see the woman, who was another switcher smiling at him. 

"Buck it up," the woman laughed loudly, her eyes falling on the man, "I cannot have you looking like him, who will only catch eyes as we travel. What did I say about keeping a low status, you bald man," she turned to look at her companion, sizing him up and down.

"I finally caught some decent folks-" started the man to be snapped by the woman. 

"We don't have much time! Do you think we have time to look pretty! I could have turned into that vampiress," the woman spat on the ground, "We have done well by deviating our trails on to the vampires. Let's throw him on our way to the next village after we find bodies we can use."

The memory was a long one as Vivian had to travel with them to the village where she was right now. Both her present and past coming to the same point. She saw the switchers converse and speak with the other villagers, trying to appear as friendly folks before it shifted to the time where they left the village. 

"Get the man here," said the woman to see the man drag a man from the ground during the time of dark. Looking at the man's face, the woman stared at the shorter man, "What did I say about looks, you are going to get us caught!" she gritted her teeth furiously.

"Pssh, there's nothing wrong with it. And it is only in your head. You should be worried about why we aren't able to turn into any of them," the man said in a hushed whisper, "What is this? The third body we have carried from there." 

"I told you to ask him why we aren't able to turn," the woman complained.

The short man who was holding the unconscious man's leg dropped down with a huff, "You said not to!"

"You little fool! Like you ever listen to me," she scoffed, "He has been around here for years now. If we found out why he has been able to sustain it wouldn't be a problem. At this rate, we might be as good as stuck in this body and perish."

"Whatever, I am going to start," the man said eagerly not able to contain that he would be getting a younger body who looked directly smart. It was then Vivian saw the man and the woman both transform into a mirror image of the unconscious body that laid on the ground. But as they tried to do it, the process reversed back and they went back to the way they initially looked, "It isn't working," he looked at the woman with panic.

"'Course it won't. Our bodies-ugh," the woman fell down as if she were experiencing some intense pain her stomach, "S-something is wrong," she notified the man but the same started to happen with the man as he succumbed on the ground. Gasping for air, both of them crawled on the ground. Wheezing for air their body started to shimmer under the moonlit sky which moved away from them. They continued to crawl,

"W-what's happen-nining?!" the man asked, "Is it already t-time?" he asked looking at his hand. It was as if he were a wax doll who was kept next to the fire to melt as his skin started to melt. The man and woman crawled on the ground until they both fell into the ditch with their legs and hands tangled around dead. 

It was as if time had halted for Vivian to take in what she had seen, trying to make her understand of the past truth which had been hidden from everyone. They had assumed Rory to be the one to kill Charlotte and though he had intended to kill her, it was the switchers who had killed not only Charlotte but also Rory. 

In Vivian's eyes, Rory was lower than a scum who deserved to die and rot in the open without receiving the cremation on time. If he hadn't met Charlotte, the vampiress would still be here alive in this world who had been full of laughter.

But the switchers didn't care who they killed. They didn't seem to be involved in what the black witch was working on but they had killed an innocent soul who had nothing to do with them. 

A tear slipped out of her right eye as she looked at the corpse in front of her. The emotion of anger weighed around her head for what he had done to her dear friend who had been full of life and joy. Charlotte had nothing to do with what might have happened to his lover. Not only had he deceived her but he had also got her killed. If the vampiress didn't know him, she would have still been alive.

She still remembered the time when she had caught Charlotte with a love letter with a wide smile on her lips. She had been excited to read and share that she had found the man she wanted to live with. If only she could reverse time, go back there and somehow change the course which would evade death of the unfortunate souls but there was nothing anyone could do. 

She wiped her teary eyes with the back of her hand. 

By the time the guard had arrived back with a bucket of water in his hand as requested by the councilwoman, the graveyard had been closed and Vivian was trying to place the headstone. The guardsman went to her aid, "Let me do it, milady," he looked at the grave which was closed and then heard the lady speak,

"There was nothing I could find in there. Seems like a normal human who was made to rot in this weather," Vivian said when she found the guardsman looking around the grave as she had neatly filled it back in without his help, "Did you have to cement it?" she asked a little worry forming on her face. 

"That won't be needed. The rain the snow together will push it back. Here, let me cover it," he took the shovel she held in one of her hand and started to push the snow from the other side which laid around it until the surface looked even and neat as the others, "The man was found like this. He didn't change a little," the guardsman gave his two cents of thoughts as he pushed the shovel on the ground to make it look more compact. 

"I heard that he was found in the carriage," Vivian responded back with what she had learned from the village magistrate. 

"Aye, that's true. Unfortunate soul to be hit by the plague first," the man shook his head. Vivian went to the bucket of water e had got, cleaning her hands by pouring the water on to her hands. Once she was done, she wiped her hands against her skirt.

"Thank you for your assistance," she said seeing the man carry back the shovel as well as the bucket of water with him. Vivian who started to follow him, turned back to look at the graveyard which was written as Adam on the headstone shabbily. 

When the time of night prevailed, Vivian roamed in the village. Avoiding the darker alleys and sticking to the ones where the light fell. The last thing they needed for another person to be turned. Heuren though forgetful about a few things, he knew the spells the black witches used to as it was something he was expertise in. Spells weren't often fruitful when it wasn't done by the witches but pentagrams and other such designs when drawn could pull in the necessary energy to do the job done. They needed the light of the moon, therefore when the moon had come to settle up and high in the sky, Vivian rubbed her hands together due to the cold weather and the snow they were covered in. 

Her hands hurt along with the shoulders which made her think if it was because of the time she had spent in the local cemetery. Stretching her back, she carried the lantern as she walked through the alley to see the doors shut off the houses as it was getting close to midnight. 

On the other side, she saw Dutan who was carrying a lantern similar to hers as he made rounds. The circles and lines had been marked. The moon was out. All now that was required was the incantation to draw the black witches who had been turned out of the house and then burning them so that they wouldn't have to go to every house to see who had been turned and who hadn't. Doing that would only alert the other turned witches which weren't what they were aiming for. 

Vivian was walking at the end of the alley when she heard gurgled voices from the home as if someone was calling for help. Worried, she went back to the place where she had walked by to have her neck suddenly being clutched by someone, she tried to move. Taking the lantern to raise it, it hit on the person making the person release the hold on her. Stepping away she saw it was a man whose face had been set aflame due to the kerosene oil and fire. 

She moved back when she heard whispers in the air. Her head snapped to find more than five people who stood blocking her way on one corner end. Turning to walk to the other exit she found a few more who had come out. 

Unsure if the incantation had started she called out, "Heuren?"

"Yes! I am doing it!" he screamed from the other side which fell faintly on he ears. 

But it wasn't just her but everyone who had been out to be surrounded by the black witches who had been turned. Leonard, Dutan had been accompanied by the witches while the guards stood protecting the magistrate who looked with livid eyes. 

"How much longer, Heuren?" Leonard asked before hitting one of the black witches who had come straight at him. The black witch fell down which triggered the others. One followed another until both Dutan and Leonard started to throw the black witches.

"I am having a hard time deciphering this little line. Can you wait," said Hueren searching his little book of notes which he had personalized it by himself. 

Did Heuren think that they had enough time with the black witches that were coming out one after another? Vivian didn't know why but it felt that almost the entire village had been turned like an infectious disease that had spread until the existence of the black witch. With no lantern in her hand, her hands were empty. She turned around and round to see the back witches coming closer.

But before they could get much closer the black witches stopped getting closer and stopped as if something was holding them back. Their scaly appearance looking at her. Wondering if Heuren's spell was working from his spellbook. She had something to do before it and she escaped from the little gaps to meet Leo on her way who stopped her.

"Where are you going?" asked Leo with his furrowed brows.