Neferet was bored. Not in the way she felt most of the time, the curse of being centuries old she was horrendously, unexplainably, unorthodoxly bored. She wanted to scream, to destroy, to set fire to her mansion and never look back, to do something that wasn't so plain and mundane. Instead, she sat next to the window in her bedroom, nails tapping on the surface. As she watched the pouring rain, quickly turning into a storm, she wished for a miracle.

Where were the good old days? She yearned for them. The rush, the pretence, the intrigue, the bloodshed. Life now was, to the liking of the ordinary folk, more peaceful. And she detested it. Blood and death had their magnetism. She didn't expect their simple little brains to comprehend it, of course.

But there were days where she was worshipped as a goddess. People brought her their treasures just for the price of a small smile, she seduced monarchs, then drained them of blood and left with their finest jewellery. And now she was forgotten, a mere monster in the face of mortals.

It was just her and the stupid, dilapidating mansion she spent all her time stuck in. She had to lower herself to drinking the utterly disgusting animal blood, since the hunt for prey became too dangerous. To her misfortune, people didn't just come to her gates and wait to get slaughtered.

Well, they usually didn't. But now, the universe has listened to her pleas and sent her a fun thing to play with. Before her door stood a woman, tall and muscular, curiously inspecting the Victorian architecture of the house.

Neferet expression brightened, she was delighted by the turn of events. She almost jumped to her feet in anticipation of a feast, but then stopped herself and regained her dignity and composure. “Just nice and easy darling, you can't scare her away,” she told herself as she reapplied her lipstick and fixed her hair and graciously came down the stairs. She was sure she was a sight to behold, even though she's never seen herself in mirrors. She had emerald green eyes, and long auburn hair that fell to her waist.

As she opened the front door, the woman didn't seem to be bothered even a slightest bit.

“Well hello darling, may I ask what are you doing here?” asked Neferet, trying to make her voice as pleasant as possible.

“Trying not to get hit by lightning,” said the woman sarcastically.

“A truly spectacular idea. I was thinking about why are you on my porch though.”

“Oh. Of course. I can leave if you want me to, I just assumed this house was abandoned. I wanted to hide from the storm.”

“Why don't you come inside? It's too cold for you here.”

She hesitated, but then gratefully accepted the invite, she was already soaking and shivering.

“Don't worry, darling, I don't bite,” said Neferet, then smirked at her own joke.

Neferet finally managed to get a good look on her as she took off her coat and hat. She forgot just how mesmerizing humans were. How soft her skin looked to touch, how lively and gleaming her eyes were, how she smelled like peppermint and power...

No. Not all humans were quite as charming, that was for sure. She hoped her blood would taste at least half as good as she smelled like.

She wanted to try already, but she contained herself. All the good things need time, right?

“So, what's your name, darling?”

“Zoey.”

“Pleasure to meet you. I'm Neferet. Would you like some tea?”

“Isn't it too late for tea?”

“That's where you are mistaken, it's never too late for tea.”

“Really, I don't want to cause you any trouble.”

“Oh no, don't worry, it's a pleasure to have a visitor. I'm quite lonely here.”

Zoey already wasn't paying attention to her, she was curiously inspecting Neferet's long time collection of books and paintings, most of them centuries old. She definitely was going to stay for a while.

Neferet guided her to the dining hall, also used as a ballroom before, in its long-gone glorious times, and let her seat herself as she walked into the kitchen. The shrivelled, old silhouette of her servant stood there, his face blank and eyes empty. He was the only one now, before, she had plenty of them, ready to make her tiniest frivolous wishes come true, but they were gone now, died of having too much of their blood removed or old age.

“Make us some tea, will you?”

The man nodded.

“Good.” Neferet already began walking away. Just looking at him disgusted her, she despised old people, she always did, maybe because she was eternally young and beautiful and was scared of being like them one day. But there was no way she would and it kept her satisfied.

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When she came back, Zoey was inspecting the gramophone Neferet kept at one of her shelves.

“It's a bit dusty but it still should work,” she commented, nonchalantly. The other woman turned, surprised by the lack of noise Neferet made.

“I would be surprised. It would need some serious fixing, it was maintained terribly and it shows.”

“Nonsense, it works just fine,” said Neferet and tried to turn it on, but then failed.

“See?”

And then Neferet slapped it and surprisingly, it started playing. Zoey almost choked at the sight. “You're not supposed to do that.”

“But it worked, so I see no problem.”

“You could have damaged it beyond repair, do you have any idea how much this stuff costs-”

Neferet chuckled. “Yes, I am the one who bought it.“

“Well, but you still shouldn't be so careless, it's a true rarity-”

“It sure is,” interrupted Neferet, not seeing anything important about it. But then she had an idea. She smiled and asked, “Would you spare me a dance?”

“I don't dance.”

“Truly a pity. Come on, just one quick round,” Neferet gave her the most charming and adorable smile she could manage. So Zoey reluctantly agreed.

Dancing was the room's purpose. It was made for this, even after years of waiting to fulfil its cause. The notes filled the perfectly acoustical room. The pure sound was only interrupted by their footsteps and witty banter.

Neferet couldn't wait for the next part of the evening, her personal favourite. The hunt. All of her body was aching to finally enjoy some tasty blood, but she stayed patient. Her visitor was quite a pleasant company and she hasn't danced in years and she preferred giving her victims false sense of safety.

As the song was getting to its climax, they were getting nearer each other, their bodies intertwined. Neferet could feel her heath, the warmth and the softness of her skin, her strong, gentle arms around her waist, her breath so close to her face.

And Neferet realised how striking she was. What a waste is it going to be when she is going to be drained to a bloodless shell, left to die, long before fulfilling all her dreams and goals. Maybe if she lived longer, she could have been captured into a painting or a sculpture, just like the ones that Neferet loved so much to collect. Maybe she would make a good servant... Neferet quickly dismissed the thought.

She enjoyed her being so close and Zoey seemed to feel the same way. Suddenly, she was painfully aware of every place their bodies touched. What was the last time she felt like this? Was it even this century?

As the last notes were played, their lips collided, both leaning in at the same time with the same intention. As their lips touched, Zoey just closed her eyes and enjoyed the moment for a while. And everything seemed fine for a while, just like things were meant to be this way.

But then she remembered the odd, otherworldly cold and the sharpness of her teeth and against her brain's wishes, she pulled away.

“You're a vampire,” she remarked.

“Of course I am, darling. You aren't surprised? That's unfortunate, I didn't want to spoil the fun so soon. So, I suppose you aren't in for another dance? Ah, a shame, really. Now, would you mind if we skipped the formalities and went straight to the part where I make you my dinner? No? Ah, you don't want to die, do you?” Neferet scoffed. “Well, of course, you can try to run away. I'll give you a headstart, how kind of me, don't you think? Go on darling, I don't have all day. One...”

She let go of her and Zoey trailed off, disappearing behind the numerous corridors. Neferet counted to ten loudly, enjoying the way each word rolled from her tongue. She wasn't in a hurry. If she ran after her, it would be no fun, no mortal could ever equal to a vampire. And of course, running in high heels would be too bothersome.

So instead, she strolled slowly, enjoying her inevitable victory. Oh, how she missed this. The joy running through her veins, keeping her wide awake...

She walked behind the first corridor, not expecting Zoey to be there. The thrown knife caught her by surprise. It missed only by millimetres. Zoey lurked in the shadows, waiting for her. Her eyes lacked any trace of warmth or mercy.

“What? You thought I would go down without a fight?”

Another knife flew at Neferet. The shot was deadly and precise. She certainly knew what she was doing.

“You're going to have to try a little harder than that.”

Another knife Neferet barely had time to dodge. Her irritation grew with every second. She didn't play games she wasn't sure she could win. And this was one of them.

“I've come prepared for you. I mean, I came here specifically for you. Do you honestly think I just came to your door by chance? I don't want to spoil the surprise for you, but people actually notice if you don't wear anything other than Victorian gowns and avoid going outside at day.”

A vampire hunter then. Words can't describe the way Neferet despised their kind.

“What? You are not so brave now the tables have turned? Or are you just not used to people at your level?”

Neferet scoffed and recomposed herself after barely dodging another knife, puzzled by where she hid them all. “The fact that you consider yourself my equal amuses me. Well, about the time I actually put in a bit of effort, don't you think?”

She ran at Zoey. With one slash, she was going to rip her throat. It would have worked on almost everyone. But Zoey dodged and caught her hand and spinned. Neferet unwillingly ended up pushed against the wall. Instantly, her arm shot up to Zoey's neck. The only thing stopping her from ending it was another knife, pushed against her chest, one stab away from her heart.

“This is quite unfortunate. What now? Do we kill each other?” stated Neferet calmly, fully aware of the checkmate situation they were in.

“That's pretty pointless, don't you think?”

“I'm not too keen on dying either.”

“Great, so let me go,” said Zoey, with gritted teeth.

“And what will stop you from killing me?” Neferet asked, her eyebrow raised in question.

“If I wanted to, I'd have a full right to do so. You've murdered innocent people,” Zoey pointed out, slightly poking Neferet with the knife.

“And what makes you think the vampires you've murdered weren't innocent?”

“You drink people's blood,” Zoey said, but her voice was less sure than it had been before.

Neferet cocked her head slightly to the side. “You eat animals. There's no difference.”

“I'm a vegetarian.”

“That's your personal choice. Other humans eat animals. I can't survive without blood.”

“Can't you survive on animal blood?”

“Listen, this is quite a tough moral debate to have and I'd rather not have it while being pressed to a wall with a knife this close.”

“I can't let you go.”

“Oh, am I that irresistible?” Neferet’s voice was slightly amused now.

“That's not what I m-”

Neferet leaned in closer, her lips almost touching Zoey's ear. “Really?”

“Yes. I don't want you shredding me to pieces the second you let go of me.”

“You don't trust me? I mean, you're very right not to do so, but my feelings are still hurt.”

Zoey sighed. “So, are we going to stay like this forever?”

“Just until you give up.”

“Just say forever then.”

“Why don't we spice things up a little then?”

“What-” The rest of the sentence was cut off after Neferet kissed her.

After a long time of trying to figure out who takes the lead, they had to stop to breathe. Well, Zoey had to breathe. “Maybe I'm staying for a cup of tea. Or two,” whispered Zoey between gasps for breath.

Neferet smirked and nodded, pulling her closer yet again. She was going to keep this one for a while.