Chapter 1

It was a quiet evening in Surrey Hills, the rising moon could be seen through the trees and a gentle warm breeze could be heard rustling through the leaves.

A faint feminine laugh suddenly broke the silence and then quiet indistinguishable voices could be heard, and in the distance the silhouettes of two people could be seen walking through the trees.

As they approached nearer their features started to become distinguishable in the dim moon light. Both were young and attractive and at first glance you could see they were both very much in love, a blossoming young love with warm smiles shared, a glisten in their eyes when they looked upon each other, and the melodic excitement to their voices when they spoke to one other.

They had been walking through the woods for some time when he started getting an uneasy feeling that perhaps this wasn't such a good idea being out here at night. He was giving the dark woods quick furtive glances then rested his eyes upon her. She still had a light step to her feet, the faintest hint of a smile to her lips, and seemed very much at ease.

After a few more quick glances into the woods he suddenly stopped. She also then stopped walking, they both turned facing each other and he voiced his concern.
"Elizabeth, I'm not so sure that it's such a good idea us being out here this late, shouldn't we start heading back?"
She gazed back at him with a warm smile and a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"My dear Trevor, you're not afraid are you?"

Not wishing to admit his fears he responded,
"Of course not! I was just thinking you might be starting to feel a bit cold, we weren't exactly dressed for a hike in the woods when we left the concert tonight."

The hugest smile beamed onto her face.
"I couldn't feel better, that band was amazing, and being here with you now I feel like I'm floating on air!"

Seeing how happy she was his concern eased a little and a smile came to his face.
"That band WAS good today, I'm still buzzing from their music!"
Then the thought occurred to him and he queried,
"Where are we going any way?"

A mischievous expression lit her face and she suddenly spun on her heels and ran into the dark trees, saying over her shoulder with a laugh,
"If you can catch me I'll tell you!"
"Elizabeth, ELIZABETH!" he called out, then yelled, "WAIT!"
He muttered under his breath in frustration, "Damn it!"
Not wishing to waste another second and risk losing her he raced off in the direction that she had disappeared into the dark woods.

She was by now completely gone from his sight in the darkness, and it felt like an eternity since he had last seen her. Far ahead in the direction he was running he could get a glimpse of a faint light every now and then. As he got closer to the light he soon realized that he had come upon a small cottage nestled in amongst the trees with dim lights glowing through the windows. He stopped and stared at the cottage, unsure whether he should proceed or not, then deciding he didn't have much choice for as yet Elizabeth was still nowhere to be seen.

Muttering under his breath again he tentatively stepped up to the front door, gathered his composure, knocked and inquired with a hint of uncertainty in his voice,
"Hello? Elizabeth? Are you in there?"
There was no response. He raised his hand again, paused for a couple of seconds, then knocked again.
"Elizabeth? Is anybody here?"
Still no sound came from within the cottage.

He opened the door and looked within.
"Elizabeth?" His voice almost croaked.
"Get a hold of yourself!" He thought.
He drew on his strong feelings of love for her which boosted his courage, and he stepped into the cottage, closing the door behind him.

He stood in the room for a moment, examining the interior. Apart from the fact that the lights were on, it didn't seem like anyone had been here for a long time. There was dust everywhere, a few old cob webs hung here and there, and a dank musty smell assailed the nose. Looking all around he couldn't see no sign of anyone at all.
"Ok Elizabeth, you must be hiding around here somewhere." He muttered to himself and headed over to the spiral staircase that lead to the second floor.

The second floor he discovered consisted of one room which was the bedroom. A quick survey of the room showed it was unoccupied. Not seeing too many places to hide he looked under the bed first, but all he found was more dust. He stood up again and brushed the dust off his knees and hands. Suddenly he felt a faint cool draft on the back of his neck which made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

Just as he spun around to see what had caused the draft Elizabeth sprung out of a little room that he hadn't noticed concealed in the dark corner of the bedroom. She had her arms raised and she screamed loudly, "Ahhhh!"

Trevor stumbled backwards with such a start that he fell sprawling across the bed. Laughing with glee Elizabeth hurled herself on top of him, pressed her lips to his and started kissing him passionately. His shocked struggles quickly stopped as he realized what was happening and he kissed her just as passionately in return.

After a while she ended the kiss and rolled over onto her back, laying next to him. She looked across at him and he met her gaze. A huge smile illuminated her face and she says, acting all innocent, "Well, I guess you caught me."
"That I did," he replied smiling back, then added, "and if I recall correctly you were going to tell me where we were going, obviously we are here, but what is this place?"
In all seriousness now, she explains, "This cabin belonged to my father, he died a long time ago and this  was left to me. I don't use this place much, but sometimes I like to come here to get away from everything to unwind and relax."
"I can see it has it's charms." he said, looking around at the dust covered furniture.
"I know it's not looking at it's best at the moment, as I haven't been here for a while, but believe it or not I find it very relaxing cleaning up this place during the day, and then sitting outside at night to relax, just staring up at the stars. It's incredible how bright the stars are here at night with no street lights or houses around. You almost feel like you could reach up and pluck them from the sky."

A hint of a smile came to his lips as his mind started racing. As their relationship was still quite young and his feelings for her have been growing stronger, he has been waiting for the right moment to tell her that he loves her. It had been an incredible day, starting with the two of them watching an amazing concert, then this little exhilarating outing through the woods to this cabin. What better time to tell her he loves her than under a dazzling display of stars.
Noticing his slight smile and far away look she asks him, "Would you like to come sit under the stars with me for a while? I'll promise you it'll take your breath away."
"I can't think of anything else that I would rather do more." He replied with a smile.
That being said they both got up and headed outside.

They found a cozy little spot out on the grass and sat themselves down. She was right about how bright the stars were out here, they were putting on a brilliant display.
"This is amazing!" He exclaimed in wonder, staring up at the stars. "There's only one thing left to turn this amazing day into a perfect one, and that is by me telling you that I love you."

As soon as Elizabeth heard those words she jumped to her feet and exclaimed, "Oh Trevor!"
He quickly rose to his feet too with a sudden stab of panic in his heart, until he heard the words erupt from her lips, "Those are the words I've so desperately been waiting to hear from you!"
She then threw her arms around him and embraced him in a tight hug.

Suddenly, while still in their embrace Elizabeth shimmered back to her true form...

She pulled her head back and her eyes met his for a brief instant. Just as the shock started to register in his eyes she sunk her long fangs deep into his neck.

End of chapter 1

Credits;

The cottage I used in this chapter was created by yaseminagca. You can click this picture to download it from her at the exchange.