Felisei sat in the dining room, leaning her head against one of her hands and stirring a pot of soup with a spoon, staring at the table with unfocused eyes. She heard someone approach and glanced up. Ranloo was almost by the table, looking at her. She straightened, a smile spreading across her face at his undivided attention.

´You look tired,` he said as he seated himself opposite her.

She massaged her forehead and sat the spoon down without touching the soup. ´I've a terrible headache,` she mumbled.

He laughed. ´Well, not so strange. You and the others were fairly drunk last night. I guess we won't be doing any serious breaking in's tonight?`

She shook her head and groaned as the movement made her head pound. ´No, don't think so. I'll just stay 'ere an' get back on my feet.` She poked at the soup again.

Ranloo watched in silence, his amber eyes captivating. ´Are you going to eat it or just stir it?` he asked after a while.

She smirked. ´I'm eatin' it.`

´No, you're not,` he laughed.

´Why, d'you want it?` She pushed the bowl towards him.

He snorted and pushed the bowl back across the table. ´Don't think so.`

She took it back, smiling through the flashing pain in her head and tasted a spoonful. ´Can't you eat anythin'? Other than... you know.`

His smile widened. ´Not really. Everything else makes me ill.`

´You drank that wine though. Sort of.`

`Well...` he pulled a face.

She laughed. ´You did though. A little.`

´Maybe I can learn. If I can stop myself from throwing up. I'm guessing it's a bit like you right now. You're still not eating.`

She giggled and stirred it again. The smell made her nauseous. She knew she'd feel better if she ate but she really didn't want to. Silence settled between them for a while and she forced herself to sip some of the brew before it got cold. Now and then she glanced up, admiring his looks. She couldn't help it. And whenever their eyes met, her stomach fluttered. It reminded her about something and she shifted in her seat.

´Sorry 'bout yesterday,` she mumbled, uncomfortably aware of the heat that spread across her face.

´About what?` he replied, eyeing her intently.

´Uh, kissin' you.` She stared into the bowl.

He chuckled and leaned against the backrest.

She glanced up in surprise at his causal reaction with a hopeful smile. Maybe he wasn't as upset as she'd thought.

´It's okay,` he said.

Expecting him to say something more, she watched attentively in silence. After a moment he looked away and ran a hand through his black hair. She admired how shiny it was, and how his eyes contrasted against his dark skin. ´Your eyes are amazin',` she dared to say.

´So I've heard.` He flashed a smile.

She raised the spoon to her mouth again, forcing more soup into her system, her eyes fixed on him. He seemed to like compliments, she noted. ´Is it a common colour with elves? I've never really talked to any other elf than you.`

He shook his head and winked. ´No, it's just me. I'm special.`

She laughed. ´You sure are.`

´I don't know if it's more common with desert elves but I have only seen two others with this colour.` His smile faded and a wistful look came over his face.

She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table. ´Who are they?` she asked quietly.

´My family.` He looked towards a window, his eyes sad. ´My uncle had it too. And my daughter.` His chest rose and fell with a deep sigh.

Felisei tried to keep her expression flat as she processed the information, ignoring the jealous voice in the back of her mind. . A daughter. A child. She hadn't known. She had just assumed he'd be like most others around here. Alone, abandoned, nothing to lose. ´You have a child?` she asked carefully.

He nodded and turned back to her. ´I have two. A boy and a girl.` A slight smile played over his lips and a far-away look came over his face. ´Linala and Raadilinin.` He took another deep breath, his hands trembling. He folded them into his lap as he saw her looking. ´I won't ever see them again,` he whispered. Then he abruptly stood and left.

´Wait!` Felisei leapt to her feet, immediately embarrassed by the high-pitched tone in her voice.

He stopped and looked back.

´Where're you goin'?`

´I just...` he faltered and gestured vaguely with a hand in Felisei's direction. Then he walked away.

She stared after him, loneliness settling over her like a heavy blanket. She shouldn't have asked. They'd finally got some time together alone, and she'd had to ruin it. Stupid girl. Curious stares from other thugs in the dining room reminded her where she was and, face burning hot, she sat down again.

* * * * *

Ranloo went up the stairs to check on Sern. He needed the distraction, needed something else to think about. Gesald followed as usual, but kept a greater distance than normal since Ranloo had threatened him the previous night. Ranloo smiled grimly at the thought. Scaring him witless like that had given him a certain sense of satisfaction. Maybe he should do it again, he thought and glanced back at the man. Gesald immediately stopped and stared at him. He laughed.

Ranloo knocked on Sern's door and heard a moan on the other side. He knocked again and was rewarded with a disgruntled mumble.

´Sern! Open up, it's me,` he called.

Another muffled groan was followed by footsteps. The door opened and an exhausted Sern peered out of the room, puffy-eyed and pale.

Ranloo grinned. ´Did you drink too much?` he chided gently and pushed Sern back into the room.

He mumbled something and sat back down on the bed, cradling his head in his hands.

´Don't you want something to eat?` he asked and chuckled at Sern's horrified expression.

´Don't you ever get headaches?`

´Not anymore.`

´Make me into a vampire. Please,` he groaned.

Ranloo laughed out loud. ´Never! And especially not to cure your headaches. That's all on you, my friend.` He ruffled Sern's hair.

Sern squinted and vaguely tried to defend himself with a hand, waving it in Ranloo's direction. ´Don't touch my head.`

Ranloo grinned. ´So, I assume you're gonna stay here most of the night then?`

Sern nodded slowly, lay back on the bed, and closed his eyes.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Seeing his exposed neck and remembering the offer he'd made the previous night, an urge to bite him near overcame Ranloo. He inched back, so hungry it was hard to focus. The animals weren't good enough. But he didn't want to give in, not yet. Not here. ´Alright. I'll see you later then. I'll go out for a while,` he said and grasped the door-handle.

Sern opened his eyes a crack and regarded him. ´You shouldn't go alone. You know that,` he rasped.

Ranloo shrugged. ´That's for you living people. I'll be fine.` He left Sern to sleep off his hangover. He was aware of the danger but had no intention of staying indoors the entire night. He was too restless.

As Ranloo exited the building, cool fog caressed his face, flowing lazily through the air. He smiled. He could practise his new-found power, he thought. He just had to find a good place to do it. He set off at a run.

An empty graveyard proved to be an excellent place for practising. No people around, dark, and foggy. Ranloo was aware of the irony that he'd chosen such a place to hang out in, but he didn't care as long as it was practical. He found an area where the ground lowered into a hollow and the fog hung thick.

Waving a hand through the humid air, he smiled to himself as the mist swirled around. Hunger was a constant ache by now, but he had taken two animals this night and thought he could concentrate well enough. But it was becoming a problem. He wouldn't be able to take it much longer. Pushing the thoughts aside, he focused on the fog. He stood for a long time staring at it and imagining himself as a part of it. But he remained as solid as usual. Frowning, he tried again and again.

´Why isn't it working?` he muttered and tried to recall what he'd done that first time. He'd been scared of death, really wanted to hide, to not be seen. He hadn't tried to become fog! He had just tried to hide, to be invisible.

Closing his eyes, he focused hard on hiding. Slowly, he opened his eyes again and looked down. He let out a frustrated huff as he saw himself. Had he done something else? Was there more to it than just imagining it? For a while he stood deep in thought, his head bowed, hands by his sides.

Crunching footsteps on the pathway alerted him to someone approaching. His head snapped up. An idea materialized. He might be able to use the person as a test. Instead of running away or hiding, he focused again, now with more urgency since a real person was coming. Skin prickling from tension as he concentrated, a strange feeling swept over him. A sensation of being light and thin. He cracked his eyes open and glanced down.

He almost whooped in delight as he saw his hands and arms as faint, ghostly, colourless shapes. He stepped aside and stood very still by the gravel path, close to a bush.

An elderly man ambled down the path, a lantern in one hand. Ranloo held his breath as the man came closer and watched carefully as he tottered by. An instinctual pull almost overwhelmed him as soon as the old man had passed and had his back turned. But he resisted and stayed put, a wide grin on his face. It worked! Now, he had to get back to normal on command as well.

It took less time to get back to his normal self. All he had to do was relax and think of himself hitting something, or stepping hard on the ground, feeling the solidity underneath him. After the first successful try, he practised several times more and managed to get the hang of how to turn into fog.

As Ranloo studied himself in the dark, almost invisible in the heavy fog, he heard voices some way off. He listened carefully. Two young humans. Out in the city alone, way past bedtime. Smiling to himself, he sneaked closer, drawn by the sounds. He left the graveyard and went out into the street.

Soon, he spotted two shapes ahead in the mist. He sniffed the humid air and caught a whiff of their smell. Young, human, boy and girl. He got an idea and slowly crept closer.

* * * * *

The young pair walked close together, talking quietly in the heavy fog. They couldn't see further than a few yards ahead in the dark. Sometimes their hands touched, shyly, carefully. They laughed at their own furtive glances. They weren't allowed to be out alone together, especially not this late. It was dangerous, their parents said. But nothing had happened before, so they had met again. They never went far, staying in familiar areas. They kept well away from the narrow alleys and poor parts of the district. The white fog swirled around their feet, touched their faces with humid hands.

The girl twisted her head sideways, startled. But there was nothing. Swallowing, she looked at the boy. ´Did you see anything?`

The boy shook his head and glanced around. ´There's nothing,` he laughed softly.

She blushed and smiled. Just spooked by the dark.

A shape beside the boy, taller, thicker fog, almost human. She gasped and sidestepped.

He spun around to see, but there was nothing. ´What's wrong?` he asked.

´I thought I saw something,` she whispered, her voice taut with fear. ´It looked like a ghost.`

Something touched her shoulder. She twirled around and stared straight into a face. The face of a man, faint but becoming clearer. The figure smiled evilly at her with glowing eyes. With a shriek, she stumbled backwards, away from the apparition.

The boy turned and saw it too, joining in her scream and grabbing her arm. They ran, a laugh driving them on in a wild panic.

* * * * *

Ranloo laughed as the pair ran. Their terrified expressions had been unbelievably amusing to him, and he couldn't not laugh. But their panicked flight triggered him too much and he wanted them, wanted their life.

Wild with a combination of hunger and mischief, he chased after them. A voice inside told him it was a bad idea, that he should stop, but he only managed to slow down to a calmer pace. He soon caught up to them anyway. They were so slow.

He reached out and tugged at the boy's cloak, tearing it. He shrieked with fear and Ranloo laughed again, exhilarated. It was too fun. Stop, he told himself. You'll make a mistake soon. He couldn't stop, not quite. But he let the boy go, and he took off at high speed. He was faster than the girl.

She yelled as he left her behind and Ranloo instinctively followed her instead. He grabbed at her and managed to get a hold of her wrist. She screamed at the top of her lungs, an ear-splitting sound. The boy called from ahead but didn't stop. Ranloo slowed down and the girl hit him on the arm, hard. He winced but didn't really care.

´Let me go!` she yelled and hit him again as she fought to get out of his grasp.

He was enthralled by the beating of her heart, the wonderful scent of fear and adrenaline. Pulling her close, he wrapped his arms around her as she screamed and kicked. She had no chance. He should let her go, what was he doing? He had just wanted to scare them, see how close he could get in his fog shape. He hadn't meant to hunt them. But she was so close, so warm, smelled so nice. He sniffed her neck and she smacked him in the face with the back of her head. Swift anger rose with the pain and he shoved her away from him. She fell to the ground with a yelp. She struggled to get back up when he straddled her and forced her back down.

´Please, please,` she panted and held her hands up to keep him away. ´Please, let me go.`

He wanted to bite her so much it hurt, but the voice inside screamed at him, terrified. She was just a teenager, pretty, blond, and blue eyed. She reminded him of his wife. Despair drowned him and his hands trembled. The inner voice yelled louder. Don't kill her! Leave! What was he doing?

Suddenly fearing himself, he staggered back up and away from her. It took every ounce of his willpower but somehow he managed.

She stared at him, for a moment too shocked to move. Then she bounced to her feet and bolted.

Ranloo tensed, almost followed her again, almost hunted her again. He let out an angry shriek and punched a low stonewall beside him. The shooting pain brought him back to himself. Stop, what are you doing?

´Go home, you idiot,` he growled. You are becoming a monster. Stop. He took several deep breaths and turned away, deeply ashamed. He had only meant to scare them, not hunt them. Clearly not a good idea, he reprimanded himself. What had he been thinking? He knew he couldn't control himself, especially when he was hungry.

Retracting his sharp canines with some difficulty, he moaned in frustration. He raised his right hand, studied the damage. His knuckles bled and throbbed. But it was already healing, it wasn't deep. He shook his hand in the air as he walked back home.

Stupid, he thought. Bad idea. Don't do it again. He wanted to show Sern that he could become fog, but he didn't want to do it at the cost of some innocent's life. No more games, he told himself sternly. Except maybe on Sern, he added with a slight smile. He knew Sern could stop him. It could be fun, he mused.

* * * * *

Passing by an empty park, Ranloo entered a wide street. Lanterns glowed in the mist at intervals. He slowed down, enjoying the relative silence of the sleeping city. He walked by the pools of golden light, stepping on the edge between light and dark, feeling like a prowling shadow, afraid of the light but drawn to it. Some shadow, he thought. Chasing and scaring teenagers. He smirked at himself. Stupid. What was wrong with him?

His stomach cramped as if in answer. Ranloo grimaced and set off at a run again. He wanted to go home. When had the guild become home, he wondered briefly. When he had found friends there perhaps? Lengthening his steps, he sped past houses, streets, and alleys. They still had things to do this night, if Diquarl had acquired the things they needed. He didn't know. It probably depended on how much of a hangover he had.

He turned a corner and collided with someone. They crashed to the ground and someone shouted. Gasping, Ranloo scampered back on all fours, horrified by a terrible presence before him.

´By Serron's Wings! Are you alright?` A woman in white robes reached out for the man on the ground, a silver necklace gleaming unpleasantly on her chest.

Ranloo's eyes widened as he realized what he had collided with. He staggered up at about the same time as the man got back to his feet, brushing dirt off his gold-glittering robes. An Eldon priest of all things. He cursed in elven and both of them looked up at him. He froze, too terrified to move.

´Are you all... right? Sir?` The woman asked. Then her brows snapped together over sharp grey eyes. She raised a hand and called out a strange word. Bright light flooded the street from a small orb above her raised hand.

Ranloo squinted and raised an arm to shield himself from the brightness.

´Who are you? Tell me your name!` The Eldon priest demanded, grasping his medallion.

Ranloo panicked. Two priests. How unlucky could you get?

´No,` he breathed.

The Eldon priest lifted the medallion as he glanced at the Im priestess. ´Contact the others. It's him!` He turned back to Ranloo. ´By the Grace of Eldon, the Sunlord, grant me th–`

Ranloo bolted. In his panic he dove straight at them. They threw themselves out of his way, the Eldon priest's prayer interrupted.

As he flew forward, the woman shouted some unintelligible syllables behind him. Too scared to look back, he darted forward and threw himself towards a corner. A brilliant light painted the street in sharp contrasts, accompanied by an ear deafening thunderclap. Darkness followed and Ranloo stumbled. He rolled as he hit the cobbles. Panting, he bounced back up and fled into the dark, his ears ringing. Still, he heard the annoyed shout of the woman.

´How did that miss? It shouldn't have missed!`