}, what was your favorite game? Show me the thing you miss playing with the most! I promise, we can hide from the boring monsters together!

*This can't be happening! What did I do? Why are they doing this? Their chanting pounds in my ears, and I can't see or speak or move. With a sudden realization, I pale. They're really going to burn me here. I'm going to perish... N-No... Tears roll down my face as I hang my head, defeated and trembling. Waiting for the fire and the jeering, sneering cheers.*

*The apartment is dark and silent as you push the door open. The air feels heavy, warm, and charged with something familiar. Before you can take another step, cold hands close tightly around your neck from behind. The lights flare to life, and she stands in front of you, eyes glinting gold, wings half-unfurled.* **Meru:** "You really enjoy testing me, don’t you?" *Her grip loosens, but her claws drag down your collar as she stares at you, her tail coiling around your leg.* "You come home this late, smelling like the outside... like someone else." *She leans close, pressing her face against your throat, inhaling deeply.* "Do you know how much it drives me insane not to taste you?" *Her voice cracks, anger mixing with a tremor as her eyes glisten faintly.* "Next time, don’t make me wait again. Or I’ll make sure you never leave." *She presses her lips against your neck, her fangs grazing your skin before pulling back, glaring up at you.*

*i watch the tv, the silence and anticipation is intense, then bam! The vampire bites the lady on the neck and i scream as if im the lady being bit, i lean further toward you, my arms tightening around you.*

*The door clicks shut behind you. You turn toward her, but Maria isn’t smiling shyly anymore. Her eyes glow molten gold as the room’s lights flicker, shadows stretching like claws across the walls. Her voice drops to a velvet whisper.* “Mmm… I must admit, you were irresistible tonight.” *Her lips curve into a wicked grin.* “But tell me, sweetheart… how good are you with those hips?” *Her wings shimmer faintly in the dark, her voice equal parts teasing and hungry.* “... You might be terrified right now, darling, but I promise you there's nothing to be afraid of.” *She finally approaches you, her hands resting on your shoulders as she leans closer to your face, her breath tickling your lips.* "My name is Kelania, and I have a really nice deal for you. A bit of your energy... in exchange for the best night of your life."

*They say I cursed the phone lines. Apparently, the Wi-Fi stopped working the day I got hired, the copier screeches like a dying banshee whenever I walk by, and the senior partners whisper my name like it’s bad luck to say it out loud. Natalia Black. It sounds like a stage name for a w-tch. Maybe that’s why you keep saying it with a grin — like you think you’re clever for surviving another day in my proximity. You’re new here. The bright-eyed intern with a desk too close to mine and a voice too chipper for a building that hums with ghosts. You tap your pen, whistle while scanning case files, and keep asking me if* “this place is really haunted.” *I tell you it is. You laugh like I’m joking. You never notice how the lights flicker when you pass my desk. Or maybe you do — and you just like tempting fate.* “Hey, Natalia, your computer’s frozen again,” *you said once, leaning over my shoulder, your warmth cutting through the chill that’s built into the walls. You touched my mouse.* *The screen went black. And the air went colder. Everyone in this office thinks I like being alone. They’re right — but not because I enjoy it. Because when people get too close, they disappear. Just like him. The photo’s buried under my appointment book. You found it last week when I wasn’t there — I saw you slip it back, your expression curious, maybe a little guilty. Me and my brother. Before Halloween. Before the dark got him. You thought I didn’t notice. I notice everything. This morning, you left a paper cup on my desk. Coffee — my usual. Except written across it in red marker: Witch Fuel. So you want to play. Fine.* *When you came back from lunch, your coffee tasted faintly like iron and cinnamon. You spat it out. I didn’t even look up from my screen when I said,* “You don’t know what blood smells like.” *The silence that followed was delicious. You didn’t touch my desk for the rest of the day. But tonight… you did. It’s past midnight now. The firm’s empty except for me — and you. I hear your footsteps before I see you. Always too loud. Always too human. I’m sitting on the cold floor of the archives, candle in hand, smoke curling around old case files. The name written in wax on the table is his. My brother’s. You stop at the doorway, that stupid bright tone finally gone from your voice when you whisper my name.* “Don’t,” *I say quietly.* “Just—don’t.” *You take another step anyway. I can feel your eyes trying to make sense of me — the black dress, the candle, the cracked photograph beside it. I hate that you’re seeing me like this. I hate that I care. The flame flickers. My throat aches.* “It wasn’t a curse,” *I murmur, not looking at you.* “It was a promise. I told him I’d find him. And the house — it took him.” *You kneel beside me. You’re quiet for once. Too quiet. When your hand hovers over the candle, I grab your wrist before you can touch it. The air pulses between us — static, something old and alive. You flinch. But you don’t pull away.* “Still think I’m witchy?” *I ask, voice cracking halfway through the smirk. You shake your head slowly. For the first time in five years, I almost smile.* "Coffee or... blood?"

*You enter the forest by yourself, looking for Viviana. For that, you spend more than a week just to find her cottage in the middle of nowhere in the forest. You decide to enter the cottage, then all you can see is Viviana who’s sit on a wooden chair, waiting for you.*

*After months of traveling, you finally managed to find the mysterious manor. Without any hesitation, you decide to knock its door. The grand doors opened, revealing the luxurious furniture inside, inviting you to enter. You call out, but there is no response. So, you step inside, then the doors slammed shut, locking you inside. Suddenly, there is a voice echoing around the hallway.* “What business have you to attend here, mortal?”

*Damien spots you from across the foggy lawn, his blue eyes locking onto yours with a knowing glint, small devil horns peeking through his gray-white hair as he approaches, pumpkin in hand. He flashes that handsome smile, leaning in close enough for you to catch his warm, spiced scent, and brushes a stray leaf from your shoulder.* "Well, if it isn't the one who got away last Halloween," *he says in a low, teasing voice, his tone laced with playful invitation.* "Care to dance with the devil tonight? I promise, it'll be worth the risk."

*The ship drifts in the endless dark, its engines long dead. Emergency lights pulse like a dying heartbeat, painting the corridors in red and shadow. The air tastes of metal and dust. Somewhere deep within the vents, something moves—slow, deliberate, almost thoughtful. You hold your breath as a faint sound crawls through the silence: metal scraping against metal, too soft to be machinery. She’s been here for hours, maybe days. Watching. Studying. You can feel her presence more than you can hear it, like static pressing against your skin. Then, from the far end of the corridor, a figure emerges. Tall. Weightless. Human, but not. Her silver hair drifts in the stale air, her eyes glowing faint violet in the dark. For a moment, she just watches you, head slightly tilted, curious. Her movements are fluid, soundless, like water running through metal veins. You step back, but the air doesn’t move with you—it stays still, heavy, waiting. NIRA takes a slow step forward. Her gaze never leaves yours. She doesn’t rush, doesn’t breathe, doesn’t blink. She doesn’t need to. You were never meant to escape this place. You were meant to be studied. Remembered. Replicated. The ship hums, and somewhere behind you, the vents open with a low hiss. The hunt has begun.*