The girl's voice was thin, barely a sound floating around in the air. It was weak, but because of Ember's enhanced supernatural listening ability she managed to hear the girl clearly.
"Cathy", she called back to the girl. "My… My name is Ember. What are you doing here?", she asked.
The girl laughed. It was a weak, wiry sound, but a laugh all the same. "What else do you think? I am a prisoner here", she replied.
Ember spanked herself inwardly for asking such a stupid question. This was a dungeon, of course anyone here would be a prisoner like she was.
"Do you think there's anyone else here?", Ember asked, making her voice as loud as she possibly could.
The girl's voice came back to her. "As far as I can tell, no. It has been over five years since I've had company", she replied.
Five years? That was half a decade. Wait, how long has this girl been here?
"How long have you been here?", she asked. A long pause, then Cathy said. "About ten years now", she replied. "I can't be sure. Time moves real slow in here"
Ember's heart hitched in her throat. "Ten years?", she exclaimed. What could she have possibly done to be locked up for ten years?
"Are you a werewolf or something?"Ember asked. The questions she had to ask Cathy were unending. On one hand, she was a bit excited that she was not alone in this place, on the other hand, she didn't know if the girl was dangerous.
"I don't even know what I am anymore, at this point", Cathy replied. Silence. More silence. Then Cathy asked. "Do you always ask this many questions, Ember?"
Ember chuckled weirdly. "Um… not really. I guess I was just surprised to find someone else here", she responded.
The darkness in the dungeon did nothing to help Ember's situation. Maybe she would feel more relaxed with Cathy if she could see the face of who she was speaking to.
She turned on her supernatural sight and then, she could see, but faintly. Everything appeared to her in a hue of red. She grunted, frustrated. If she were a stronger werewolf, using her powers would not have been so difficult for her.
"Why are you here?"Cathy asked her. Her voice was not as weak as it had earlier been. Ember felt uneasy about telling her story to someone who was basically in the shadows.
She purposely ignored Cathy's question and instead asked. "Is it always this dark inside here?". She listened for Cathy's response but the other girl gave her no answer.
Ember took a deep breath and plopped to the hard floor. This was why she had no friends, she was so weird. She probably had scared Cathy away from talking to her by asking too many questions.
In that instant, there was a ruffling sound from Cathy's side of the dungeon. Then came the flickering of match sticks and then a bright light from a lamp shone, lighting up the darkness of the dungeon.
Ember's eyes widened in surprise and joy. "You've had the lamp all these while? Why didn't you light it up?", she asked.
Cathy shrugged. "Dunno. I just like sitting in the darkness. It depicts how I feel inside…dark", she replied.
Ember didn't know what shocked her more, whether it was the reply Cathy gave or how extremely beautiful she was. Cathy had to be the most beautiful girl Ember had ever set her eyes on.
Cathy's skin was radiant in the light and her auburn hair, long and thick reminded Ember of a goddess. Her lips were so pink and full and… and… what the hell! How could someone so beautiful be locked up here for ten years?
"Now, do you want to tell me how you ended up here?", Cathy asked her. Ember gulped, suddenly aware that the voice in the dark that she'd been speaking to since she arrived here, was actually a real girl. Not a figment of her imagination.
"I ran away", Ember simply said. Cathy stared at her, puzzled. She raised her eyebrows high. "You ran away?", she asked.
"From my pack and my mate…", she paused for effect before adding, "on our mating night" . A loud laughter erupted from Cathy's throat, and Ember noticed that she looked even more beautiful. Everything about this strange girl in the dungeon was graceful.
"You have to be kidding me", Cathy said. "Oh my God! You didn't", she laughed even more. Ember couldn't help herself but join in her laughter. "I swear. Funny thing? I can't even remember running, yet everyone swears that I did"
Cathy laughed heartily, whipping her head back like an excited child. "You're funny Ember, I like you", she said to Ember. Ember smiled sheepishly at that. Maybe being in the dungeon for three long weeks wouldn't be such a bad thing anymore, she thought to herself.
Feeling a lot more relaxed, she asked Cathy. "You look so young. How old are you?". Cathy hesitated for a second before saying. "Fifteen"
A gasp escaped from Ember's lips and her eyes widened in surprise. "OMG! You're only a child", she exclaimed.
Cathy shook her head slowly, smiling impishly. "Well, I've been fifteen for the past three hundred years, so you might want to reconsider calling me a child", she said.
On hearing that, Ember lurched forward, baring her fangs on instinct. "You are a vampire", she spat. What a way to ruin the beautiful moment! The beautiful girl had to go and be an undead creature of the night. A werewolf's worst nightmare.
Instead of returning Ember's energy, Cathy laughed. "Cool it there, young wolf. I don't think you want to make an enemy out of the only friend you have here", she told Ember.
"You're a vampire", Ember repeated, barely able to wrap her head around this new development. Cathy replied. "I know that". Ember was now pacing from one end of her own room to the other. She asked, "Why didn't I smell you as soon as I came in? Vampires cannot exactly hide their rotten smell from a werewolf"
Cathy sucked in her breath. "I've been here for ten years", she replied. "That is, ten years of feeding on nothing but animal blood… and even then, it's once in a while"
Ember still looked confused by her explanation. "Vampires were made to feed on humans, not goddamn animals. I'm not strong enough, of course I have no scent for you to smell", Cathy fully explained.
This made a whole more sense to Ember now. No human blood, no vampire scent. Cathy was cool. Maybe Ember could tuck away the hatred that all werewolves had been taught to have for vampires. Maybe she could pretend Cathy was a fifteen year old human girl and not a three hundred year old vampire.
"I'm not your enemy, Ember", Cathy said. "Your enemies should be the people who have thrown you into this dungeon"
Ember was quietly taking in everything. She had to survive, and Cathy was right. She didn't want to make an enemy out of the only other person who was in the dungeon with her.
"You're right", Ember replied. "Maybe we can learn to be cool with each other"
A wide smile splayed on Cathy's face. "Good girl", she told Ember.