The vamplings stood on the other side of the backyard, sweat glistening on their foreheads and temples, heat burning through their black uniforms. William insisted having black fighting gear, he said it would be more difficult for the cultists to recognise us as threat.

He wore purple.

Somehow, he still looked intimidating, even in the purple tights and a tight, shimmering, flower-patterned shirt. Sheila laughed her ass off once she saw him.

"Stop that, be serious!" William scolded Tina while she winked at the guards around the house, pissing Thomas off.

"It's too hot!" I whined. "And it's almost lunchtime, we should stop training."

"We never stop training!" William exclaimed and handed another gun to me.

Seriously, all the guns looked the same to me. It didn't matter which I learned how to handle. We've been training for the past three days non stop. William and Ian decided we needed to double our efforts.

Tonight, Ian and I would be observing the next cultist killing. If everything went right, humans should be able to take down the four vampires on their own. And if they manage that, our war wouldn't be lost. We would be able to count on their help.

"But we're tired, come on." Sheila complained. "We've been training since dawn!"

William's gaze jumped to her and his eyebrow shot up, "So, you think you've trained enough?"

"Yes!" Sheila flipped her curly hair over her shoulder. "I'm hungry!"

"Alright then." William walked over and handed her a sharp stake. "Fight me."

Sheila gaped and looked at me, "Uh, I didn't mean it like that."

"You claim you've trained enough." William said. "Go ahead, fight me. If you manage to hit me once, you can take the rest of the day off."

I grinned and sat on the bench in the backyard. Thomas and Tina joined me, the vamplings stopped their training, even the guards faced us to watch the show.

"You can do it, Sheila!" I shouted, a laugh escaping my lips.

Sheila took the stake hesitantly and glanced at us one more time. Of course she wouldn't be able to take him. Hell, I've been a vampire for three years and Ian trained me, but I still wasn't sure I'd be able to defeat William one on one.

"Wait, wait." Tina raised her hand. "Anyone wanna bet on Sheila?"

The guards and the vamplings exchanged glances.

"Come on!" Sheila's shoulders slumped. "Is no one going to put money on me?"

"I'll do it." I laughed. "Merely for moral support."

"Let's do this." William stepped away from her. "I'm not even going to have a weapon."

Sheila hesitated for a few seconds. She didn't know what to do or even where to hit.

"She's doesn't know offense tactics." Thomas mumbled. "They haven't made it that far in their training."

"She can always flash her boobs." Tina suggested.

I nodded, "Point."

Sheila raised the stake in the air and attacked William from the front. He grabbed her waist and threw her over his shoulder until she landed on her back. The guards laughed.

"Oh, come on!" Sheila winced on the ground. "Not fair!"

"Get up." William tried to keep his tone serious, but a hint of a smile emerged on his face. "If you're holding a stake, a vampire is always going to remain fixated on that."

"You're too quick." Sheila stood up. "I didn't even see you."

"You can be quick, too." William said. "If you try hard enough."

Sheila grunted and grabbed the stake. Competiveness glinted in her eyes as she flung herself at William. He evaded her in the friction of a second and she barely stopped herself before she slammed into the tree nearby.

Her eyes slightly widened, as if she realised something. I leaned forward, trying to read her expression. Sheila's hand tightened around the stake and her foot buried into the ground.

Swiftly, she turned around and ran straight at William, but instead of attacking him or trying to push him to the ground, she ran past him.

"What is she doing?" Thomas asked.

I grinned, "Playing basketball."

Sheila's dribble confused William. He couldn't make sense of her movements because they went against everything a vampire fight should include. Instead of attacking him outright, she moved past him quickly, until he couldn't see her anymore.

Then, she jumped around his neck from behind. William tried to shake her off, but she latched herself onto him and wouldn't let go.

Laughter rumbled in her throat as William grew more annoyed.

Right as she tried to position her stake over his back, however, William gained enough advantage to push her off. She landed on her back in a fit of laughter and William pinned her to the ground. In a few seconds, he started laughing. They stayed on the floor for a suspiciously long time, staring at each other and laughing.

It made all of staring at them uncomfortable.

The guards turned around, pretending something serious just happened and it caught their attention. The vamplings returned to their training awkwardly and the three of us on the bench glanced at each other.

"I'm gonna go get something to drink." I stood up, still grinning like an idiot.

"No, no!" William moved away from Sheila and looked at me, a huge smile circling his face. "How about you try, Chloe?"

"What?" I stopped. "Against you?"

"Sure." William spread out his hands. "If you aren't scared."

I snickered, "Alright, let's do it."

On the inside, though, I really didn't want to fight him. I'd probably fall on my butt and embarrass in front of the guards and the vamplings. None of them would take me seriously then.

But William grinned and invited me closer, so my own competitiveness emerged.

"I'll even give you the stake." He grinned.

"No, no." I shook my head and stood on the grass, on the opposite side of him.

"What's going on?" Ian's voice reached me. He stood on the porch, his hands crossed on his hands. "What are we doing?"

"Chloe is fighting William." Tina took out some change from her back pocket. "Who's up for some betting?"

This time, the guards and the vamplings walked over to Tina and placed their bets. I smirked, slightly flattered. Some of them actually thought I could beat William.

The purple-covered vampire grinned at me, "Ready?"

In the corner of my eye, I saw Ian joining the betting board. Chatter and murmur rang through my ears, everyone shouted over each other, but I had to focus on William in front of me, stretching his fingers.

The murmur quieted down.

"Let's do this."

I opened up my senses to the world around me; the light breeze moving the branches, my friends' breathing, the air cooling my skin and the feel of ground through the soles of my shoes. Once my environment market itself in my head, I zoomed in on William.

His posture seemed relaxed, but I noticed the muscles in his lower leg tensing. He was ready to move.

I jumped up, the ground disappearing underneath my feet, and pushed myself away from William right as he leaped towards me.

My feet hit the soft grass. My head snapped in Wiliam's direction. He followed me. I ran. I pushed all the strength to my legs and kept myself out of his reach. The sights exchanged in front of my eyes almost too quickly to follow. The ground. The trees. William's purple tights. My friends shouting on the bench. The ground. The stake.

I collected the stake and stopped for a moment.

William's eyes landed on me. He was breathing heavily, sweat coated his forehead.

"You're quick, but you're not strong enough to pin me to the ground."

"We'll see."

I pushed myself off the ground and flung myself towards William. He tried to grab me, I used his body to push myself away. William stumbled ahead.

I stopped and turned around. He was strong, but I was quicker.

I jumped on his back, pushed between his shoulder blades and pushed him on the ground. Once he was pinned, I pointed the stake at his back.

"I win." I grinned, just now realising how short my breath was and how quickly blood pumped through my veins.

Cheers and claps reached my ears.

"You're quick." William grunted and I moved away from him.

I laughed, "You're slow."

"Shit, I bet on William." Thomas said.

"Ha! Pay up." Ian grinned in my direction.

I was suddenly glad I was sweaty and flustered. At least it hid the blush on my face.

"Who's next?" Tina asked. "Come on, I'm getting rich over here!"

"I'm done." I shook my head. "I need lunch."

"Let's go." William stood up from the ground. "Now I'm hungry."

The group chatted on their way inside, while I gathered my stuff and collected the stakes scattered over the grass. The sun shone brightly above me, heating the concrete and burning the strands of grass that dared to grow too high.

"Hey." William said suddenly. "You're good."

I smiled awkwardly, "I had good teachers."

"Still, I think there might be some untapped potential there." William came closer. "I want you to train with me alone for the next two weeks."

"Seriously?" A frown took over the smile. "Why?"

William shrugged, "Because I think you're quicker than all of us. And I think we need to find a way to make use of that."

"Alright." I mumbled, unsure how to react. "Thanks?"

William laughed, "Don't forget to use it tonight if something goes wrong. Grab the humans and run, let Ian fight."

I nodded, "Let's hope there's no need for any of that."

Now he's reminded me that I had to go scout the killings with Ian. Nervousness washed over me. There were things I needed to do tonight that were far scarier than facing vampires. Things I needed to admit.