Chapter 1

Prompt: What if Heather didn't kill Astrid's old fiance?
Suggested by RibbonTheWolfDemon

Warnings! Possible character deaths.

Pairings: Astrid/OC

AN: This chapter contains excerpts from chapter 15 of How deep is your love.

1863 - Somewhere in Essex

"Why did we have to come out to this drab place again?" Heather asked Astrid as the ladies, dressed in their petticoats and shawls walked through the Highstreet. It was Fall now in England and bare trees displayed their branches waiting for new leaves to sprout. The brown and orange leaves blew past them on the sidewalk as a cold gust of air had the ladies pull their shawls tighter.

"Because it was you who wanted to send a letter to your brother." Astrid argued. "And you know how far the post office is. Leaving a lady to travel such a distance unaccompanied is just not done." She added in a posh voice that caused Heather's brow to twitch.

"Why is this era so repressed?" Heather muttered. "An unaccompanied woman eliciting such a scandal." She laughed but kept her voice down as there were still people on the street. They would surely think her mad and dump her in an asylum if they heard her. Sure she could escape by flying through the bars but still, she was a lazy vampire during this time of year and it would be too much trouble. "But what I meant was why did we come back to this island?"

"I always found the rural countryside to be beautiful." Astrid told her as she hailed a horse-drawn cab. "Besides didn't we live in Ireland for a while as well?"

"And that's where I found out how much I hated the cold." Heather grumbled as they stepped into the carriage. "At least the manor is far from town that the people here don't ask too many questions. They are just happy about the extra labor we provided when renovating it."

"It was quite a steal for a manor that big." Astrid laughed.

"That's because it's situated right next to a graveyard!" Heather bluntly stated. No matter where they went, people would always be superstitious.

The doorbell rang a few days later and when Astrid answered the door she was greeted with the sight of neatly combed and slicked back red hair that was attached to a handsome man. "Morning miss. I hope I'm not disturbing you on this fine day." The man said as he introduced himself as Hendrik Murray, an investigator from London. "Pardon me Miss Astrid but are you the owner of this estate?" The man asked after Astrid had introduced herself.

"Astrid, who is at the door?" Heather's voice could be heard as she came down the stairs and then laid eyes on Hendrik.

"Miss" Hendrik greeted her equally.

"Heather, this is Inspector Murray." Astrid introduced. "He seems to be in search of something."

"Well invite the man in then." Heather stated. "We always have time for the local constabulary. I will go put on some tea."

"My friend is slightly forceful." Astrid mumbled as she stepped aside and bid Hendrik to enter. "But please do join us for some tea."

The man nodded as Astrid led the way to the living room where a fire burned warmly in the hearth. Heather appeared within a few minutes with a tea set on a tray.

"Forgive me if this might sound rude but are you ladies the only occupants of this house?" Hendrik asked. Astrid and Heather looked at each other before saying "We are."

"And have you ladies seen anything suspicious around these parts at night?"

"I can't say that we have." Heather answered as they all sipped their tea.

"What is this about Inspector?" Astrid then asked as she was getting slightly suspicious.

"Well there have been several cases of body snatching in the cemetery not far from here." Hendrik told them. "Your estate is closest to the scene of the crimes."

Hendrik became a staple in Astrid's house during his investigation. Always checking up on the ladies to see if they were alright. While Astrid and Heather did tell them that they could look after themselves he insisted on making sure they were alright. "What sort of man would I be if I let two lovely ladies such as yourselves be alone when there is a criminal about." Astrid had blushed as Hendrik was looking more at her than at Heather.

Even after the Inspector had caught his man he still came for visits. During one season Heather had overheard him asking Astrid if he could court her formally. She was honestly happy for her friend as Astrid seemed to get a bit lonely at times. It made Heather wonder if the little bat wished she were human again.

To keep to propriety in that day and age Heather happily agreed to chaperone their dates. One day, nearly a year further down the road, caught Heather by surprise though.

"Heather I am going to tell him." Astrid said one day.

"Astrid are you mad? That is a bad idea." Heather argued. "He could expose us!"

"I won't tell him about you Heather. Just me." Astrid stated. "I am marrying the man. He deserves to know."

"Are you also going to tell him that you can't give him children?" Heather asked a little put off guard. She didn't mean to sound snippy and regretted her question when she saw Astrid's crestfallen face. That was a sore subject since Astrid did want children at some point.

Heather noticed Astrid take a deep breath, now more as a reflex than a necessity. "I will tell him," Astrid said with resolution. "He does deserve to know."

Heather bit her lip as Astrid retreated to her room. 'She shouldn't have said that.' she thought with some regret. Hendrik did deserve to know. Maybe she was just being paranoid and nothing would happen. Heather resolved to not meddle when Astrid told Hendrik. At first, she was tempted to use her empathy on him as she had before. She knew he loved Astrid, surely nothing would change.

Heather later believed that that had been the deciding factor for the events that followed. One night there was a heavy storm brewing and Heather, thinking Astrid had been safe in the manor, delayed her trip from the city. She arrived the following morning only to find villagers swarming the manor grounds with pitchforks and axes.

"What is going on here?!" She shrieked loudly, getting the attention of everyone present. She was immediately on guard as they turned to her. It was the town priest who approached her with a solemn expression. "I am very saddened to report that your friend has passed madam." He told her.

"WHAT!" Heather shouted.

"Father do not get to close. She might also be a creature." One of the townspeople warned.

"WHAT?!?!" Heather now shrieked more out of fear.

"Do not be so naive." The Father stated loudly. "This lady is no creature of the night. She walks among us in the daylight."

"Where is Astrid?! What did you lot do to her?!" Heather asked as she tried to run into the manor. Several townsfolk tried to stop her but she either dodged them or pushed them out of her way.

"Madam, you shouldn't. The scene is quite........ Gruesome." The father yelled after her but Heather didn't hear him as she was rushing up the stairs. When she threw the doors of the parlor open she hadn't expected that scene. She had seen a lot of horrors throughout her travels but none made her retch as the scene before her.

The parlor was clearly in disarray. Vases were shattered on the floor, a table was but splinters now, and there pinned against the grand piano was Astrid's body with a stake through her heart.

"NOOOOO!!!" Heather shouted as she fell to her knees on the carpeted floor. A set of polished shoes appeared before her vision and she looked up to see Hendrik standing before her and offering her a hand to help her up.

"Fear not lady Heather." Hendrik told her. "The evil that plagued this place has been cleansed."

"YOU BASTARD! YOU KILLED ASTRID!" Heather screamed as she noticed the blood covering Hendrik. "You loved her!! WHY!! WHYYYY!!" heather wailed as she mourned for her little bat.

"I could never love a monster." Hendrik told her plainly. "The evil that permutated this house is gone. You're free from her wretched hold lady Heather."

"And you are dead because of it." Heather whispered as her eyes turned red and she thrust her hand into Hendrik's chest. The man gasped and looked astonished before falling backwards as Heather gripped his still beating heart into her hand. Blood was dripping down as she crushed the heart and looked at all those assembled. "All of you shall meet the grimreaper tonight." Heather promised as she began her slaughter. When Heather killed the last one, the Father who had shown no remorse for her little bat and condemned her to hell, she heard the grandfather clock in the foyer strike twelve. Heather let out a mirthless laugh as she and the walls were drenched in blood. It was now all Hallows Eve.