The moon was shining on that dark and cold night, where the creatures of darkness, crawled from their hiding places, ready to dominate the night.

A woman was walking hurriedly down a deserted street, whose lights were flashing intermittently, creating a mood that was standard in many horror movies.

On top of a building, a predator was lurking. His face struggled, giving way to the creature's more primitive instincts, which would not take its gaze off the human, who hastened her steps once more, fearing a robbery or something worse, which she did not even want to imagine.

"I shouldn't have taken that extra shift... but God knows I really need that money," the woman mentally lamented.

The creature crouched down, resting its hands on the edge of the building to take balance, then threw itself into the void.

oOo

He thought he would never drink such delicious nectar again.

The blood filled his mouth, generating an explosion of flavors in his taste buds, finally sliding down his throat like a soft silken touch.

He bit down hard, reveling in the myriad of flavors, not realizing that he had been totally overwhelmed by his vampiric nature.

The "victim" grabbed the vampire by the head, pulling him away from his poor little neck, which was still pouring precious life liquid through two trades, and threw him against the floor.

— Did you want to drain me? You almost took a chunk out of me! — roared the "victim" — If I hadn't noticed you were behaving like an animal looking for prey and followed you here, you would have ended your rehabilitation.

— Angel? — murmured the vampire, his expression filled with pure confusion.

— Yes, or did you expect someone else? Maybe more alive, with a heart pumping blood... Ah, no way. Do you want to waste all the time and effort spent on that soul? — He pointed at the vampire's chest.

— Angel? — He blinked twice, still a little confused. — This blood... is it yours? But... I have the feeling I've tasted it before.

— You mean the first time you fed?

The poor confused puppy, whose illusory ears remained fallen, causing Angel to rub his eyes without the mysterious appendages disappearing, nodded vehemently.

— It was indeed my blood, — Angel sentenced without pity or mercy. — You needed the blood of your maker.

— But... Drusilla...

— Drusilla wanted a doll to play with, but she was too unstable to convert anyone. You were simply a gift Angelus wanted to give to his precious daughter.

The wounded gaze of his Childe, left him momentarily breathless, even when it was not necessary for him to survive, after all he was already dead, why would he need to breathe...

Hurt by the unseen revelation, the vampire with british accent stood up and walked in the opposite direction of his Sire, merging with the shadows.

oOo

Angel had lost count of the number of days, what he had once considered an unwanted guest, had left the loft never to set foot there again.

Days passed without any news being heard...

oOo

Angel had put all his effort into uncovering the mastermind, behind a series of kidnappings of several supernatural beings, who when they were discovered, had long since lost their lives due to the extreme torture, to which their bodies had been subjected.

It was during this investigation that the unthinkable happened.

Upon entering the assassin's lodge, he found an underground dungeon with five cells, each one with a prisoner hanging from the ceiling by his wrists, without his feet reaching the ground, one of them being the vampire who kept appearing incessantly in his thoughts.

— Wake up! — He slapped the imprisoned vampire in the face, getting no reaction. — Wake up, Spike! — He shook the blond man hard, eliciting a groan of pain from him, while the smell of blood invaded the air, leading him to finally notice the younger vampire's wounds.

Angel broke the chains with brute force, encouraging the remaining demons to flee and picking the british on his lap, finally managing to get him out of the underground cell.

oOo

The recovery had been slow and painful, but Spike could finally move freely without bleeding to death, although he was still slightly sore.

The sound of the door opening made him cringe momentarily before he could relax again. Angel entered with a mug in his hand.

— Pig's blood, it may not be a delicacy, but it will help.

Spike wrinkled his nose in disgust at the disgusting pork aroma.

— Yesterday's blood didn't smell so bad," spoke the blond for the first time in days.

— Hmm...

Angel picked up a razor and proceeded to cut the palm of his own hand, letting the blood spill into the mug and setting it down on the bedside table to leave.

Spike grabbed the mug, smelling the contents suspiciously.

"By any chance... has the blood I've been drinking for the past few days all been baptized with Angel's blood?" pondered the vampire, whose british accent remained even in his own thoughts.

oOo

Months passed, but the taste of the nectar that was Angel's blood still remained fresh in his memory.

Spike had run away as soon as he felt strong enough to walk on his own.

The obsession that was slowly taking root had led him to search for a solution to his thirst, but no matter how many vampires he drained, the blood of those leeches seemed disgusting and did not satisfy him, and he was forced to return to the inedible menu of pig's blood.

It was on one of those trips to the butcher's that he smelled the seductive aroma that Angel's blood emitted. Letting himself be guided by the smell, it didn't take long to find his goal lying on the ground, in the middle of a pool of his own blood.

Spike hadn't even realized the moment his face had mutated as he leaned over the older vampire's body, ready to experience once again the explosion of flavors that only that delicacy could give him.

However, things didn't go as planned.

The blond suddenly found himself on his back on the ground, which was slowly being moistened by the precious scarlet liquid that flooded the ground, and with a pair of sharp spikes deeply buried in his previously immaculate neck.

oOo

Days became weeks, which turned into months, and the next thing he knew, three centuries had passed.

Angelus watched his prey with a twisted smile.

— No matter how far you run, William... I will always find you. And there's nothing you can do to resist... After all, you're as addicted to my blood as I am to yours. We form an endless vicious cycle. Your blood has set me free. You have belonged to me since the day I converted you.