"So," said Scott as they left the art room for lunch that day. "Would you like to go out with me sometime? I mean, if there's anywhere we can go. And if we're even allowed to... I really should have found some of this out before I asked, shouldn't I?" Daniel smiled.

"The school grounds are huge. And all of the old castle outbuildings have been converted into rooms we can use. There's a coffee shop near the lake, a massive library away from the school where people can have a bit more quiet to revise in. There are some gyms and a pool dotted about too. I'll take you around, if you like. Show you where everything is." Scott nodded eagerly.

They entered the cafeteria and got their lunch quickly. Scott followed Daniel to a table in the corner and sat down opposite him. They were silent for a while.

"So, what lessons are you taking?" Daniel asked finally. Scott fished his timetable from his bag and handed it to Daniel. "Art, same as me, you have geography at the same time too. Biology and photography. You can do an A Level in photography?" Daniel asked. Scott nodded.

"So I like taking photos," he said, seeing Daniel's look. Daniel shrugged.

"Well, I don't know who teaches photography, but Mr Middleton, who takes biology, is nice enough. As long as you do your homework. Which Wing are you in, by the way?"

"North. You?"

"North. I'm in DN57."

"I think I'm in DN45. I'm on my own at the moment, since everyone else was already paired up."

"You're just down the hall from me. Stop by if you're feeling lonely. I don't think my roommate will mind. That's him over there." Daniel pointed out Nicky, sat with his two friends on the opposite side of the cafeteria.

"Is he nice?"

"So far." Daniel replied. "I knew him by sight, but only really was introduced to him yesterday." He opened his mouth to say more, when he felt the familiar feeling wash over him. The entire room disappeared, except for one boy, sat half way down the cafeteria. The room was silent, except the thunderous thudding of the boy's heart, which Daniel could hear as though it was his own. The boy had cut his finger on a foil yoghurt lid. Daniel couldn't help but stare at the boy, his own heart beginning to beat harder in expectation. He could feel adrenaline flooding his body, feel the anticipation of the hunt begin.

Daniel stood up quickly, startling Scott, who he barely noticed.

"I'll be back in a moment. I've forgotten something in the art room." Daniel half-ran from the room before Scott could reply. Daniel shot across the entrance hall, past the office, and out into the grounds, where he ducked behind the nearest clump of bushes he could find, breathing heavily. He sat down on the damp grass and closed his eyes, waiting for his body to calm itself. His stomach growled loudly in protest at being denied a meal.

Before his body could entirely restore itself, Daniel heard footsteps approaching. He scrambled to his feet, expecting Scott, and was surprised when a small Year Seven boy walked past the bushes, heading for the nearby coffee shop. Before he could really register what he was doing, Daniel had caved in to his body's demands. His hand shot out and grabbed the boy, his other arm clamping firmly over the kid's mouth so he couldn't scream. Daniel felt the boy's heart being to race, adrenaline flooding his system as he squirmed and kicked, trying to break free.

Daniel let his fangs, almost an inch long, very slightly curved inwards, like a snake's, and gleaming white, distend rapidly. He twisted the boy's head to the side, baring his neck; Daniel could almost see the boy's veins throbbing. He allowed his fangs to gently graze the kid's neck, numbing the site, before he plunged his fangs in deep. The boy fell limply against him, whimpering softly, but Daniel barely noticed as the blood flowed into his mouth, iron-rich and strengthening.

Daniel drank for only a few moments, before he forced himself to move away. He retracted his fangs and quickly licked the boy's neck, healing the puncture wounds. The numbing agent in his saliva would prevent any pain later on. Swinging the boy to face him, Daniel looked deep into his eyes and probed his thoughts gently, before removing the past five minutes. He gave the boy a gentle push towards the coffee shop, checking to make sure he was walking steadily by himself. Daniel quickly made sure his clothes were blood-free, and wiped his mouth, before he went back inside.

Scott was still in the cafeteria when he went back, waiting for him. He had taken their empty trays away, and was waiting with their rucksacks.

"What was that about?" He demanded as Daniel came over and shouldered his rucksack.

"What?"

"Well, you got a weird look on your face and shot off before I could say anything."

"Like I said, I forgot something. Come on. You've got geography with me, so I'll take you up now and show you the department." Scott followed, still not looking entirely satisfied, as Daniel took him to the geography block and quickly showed him all the classrooms and equipment rooms.

*

After dinner that evening, Daniel hurried up to his room to change. Nicky was there, spread out on his bed, his notepad open in front of him. Daniel smiled at him, and quickly began pulling clothes from his wardrobe, wondering what to wear.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm changing."

"Oh... Into all of your clothes at once?" Nicky asked.

"I don't know what to wear."

"Okay. What's the occasion? Back to school celebration?"

"I have a date. With a guy I met five hours ago."

"You're gay?"

"Yeah." Daniel glanced over at Nicky. "Is that going to be a problem for you?" Nicky shook his head.

"Just a... surprise." Daniel looked at him for a moment, before he smiled.

"Good. As long as it's not a problem. Otherwise I would've had to hurt you." Nicky burst out laughing. "What?" Daniel asked indignantly.

"You couldn't take me," Nicky said. "Trust me."

"I'm a lot tougher than I look. Trust me." Nicky rolled his eyes.

"Whatever you say, Daniel." He yawned and put away his notepad. "So who's your date with? And where are you going?"

"It's a new kid. I don't think you'll know him, since he was in my lessons all day. Not sure where we're going."

"Well, there's a nice cake shop in town. Sally's. They do great muffins."

"Who have you ever taken into town?" Daniel asked curiously, smirking. "Someone from St Ellen's Girls Grammar?"

"I sometimes go with Kieran and Oliver. Is that alright with you?" Nicky asked moodily.

"Just asking," said Daniel defensively. He surveyed his clothes a moment longer, before he selected a deep blue button-up shirt and his smartest pair of jeans. "Does this look oaky?" he asked Nicky once he'd changed. "Kind of... smart-casual."

"You look like you've tried too hard," said Nicky, his eyes wandering over Daniel's slim body.

"Really?" Daniel looked down, worried. Nicky chuckled.

"No. You look fine." He gave Daniel a shove towards the door with his foot. "Shove off. I'd like some peace." Daniel stuck his tongue out at Nicky and darted from the room before his roommate could throw a large book at him.

*

"So, where are we going?" Daniel asked Scott as they made their way off the school grounds and towards the town.

"Actually, I have no idea," said Scott. "I figured you'd pick someplace, since you know this place better than me." Daniel thought for a moment.

"My roommate mentioned a nice cake shop that does muffins." He supplied after a moment. "But I don't know where it is."

"That's helpful," said Scott dryly. "Don't you know the town?"

"Not particularly. I've never really had anyone to come in with, so..." He shrugged. "Let's... wander around until we find it."

"Or, we could ask someone." Scott grinned. "What's it called?"

"Sally's. And they do muffins!" Daniel called after Scott, as he went inside a small shoe shop.

"So, you like muffins?" Scott asked when he came back out. "It's on Church Street, the next left."

"I guess I like muffins. Nicky said they were good, so I want to try one." They found Sally's, a tiny little shop set a little way back from the street, and went inside. There were only three small tables inside, and five bar stools tucked neatly underneath a marble worktop that ran in front of the window. A long, brightly lit counter ran along the back wall, holding a large selection of homemade cakes and pastries. Daniel immediately felt his mouth begin to water.

"What would you like?" Scott asked him as they approached the counter.

"Erm..." Daniel stared at the muffins for a moment. "A hot chocolate please." He told the girl behind the counter. "With whipped cream. And... one of every flavour muffin, please."

"That's twelve muffins." The girl clarified, frowning.

"Yeah. Thanks. Oh, and whatever Scott wants." Daniel pulled out his wallet as Scott ordered, and paid before Scott could protest. They sat down at one of the little tables. "Now... which one do I want first?" Daniel stared thoughtfully at the muffins, before he picked out the blueberry one.

"Good?" Scott asked, sipping his coffee. Daniel nodded. "So, we don't have to return eleven muffins?" Daniel shook his head.

"I didn't know which one to get. So I got them all." He shrugged. "They'll get eaten. I do that a lot. If I can't decide which to get, I'll get all of something. Last year, I bought five pairs of trainers in a day, because I could decide if I wanted the ones with blue stripes, or yellow stripes. So I got ones with all the stripe colours the shop had." He shrugged again, and took another bite. Scott stared at him for a moment, before he burst out laughing.

"Alright." He eyed the muffins thoughtfully. "Are you going to kill me if I eat one of these?"