"Is that warehouse where you live?" Shade points to the door that the filly exit from.

The filly nods.

Shade gets off of her. The filly gets up hesitantly. "You have paper there so we can communicate?"

Nod.

"Let's go."

A hoof stops her. She looks back and sees the filly shake her head.

"If you're worried about the blood, don't be, I just ate a fucking buffalo."

The filly's jaw drops open and she takes a step back. Shade smirks and walks to the solitary warehouse door. She opens the door and the filly steps in.

A light flashes on and casts a dim light in the small, cold warehouse. A stallion rests on a mattress at the far side of the warehouse with puncture wounds on his neck. The filly shuffles over to him and covers him with a blanket. She moves to a small desk and pulls out a stack of paper and a pencil.

"He your thrall or cattle or both?" Shade inquires as she sits across from the filly.

I don't like the word cattle. The filly writes and presents the paper to Shade with a frown.

Shade shrugs. "It is what it is. So. Name."

Vinyl Scratch.

"Call me Shade. How long have you been a vampony?"

My whole life.

"Ooo. A pureblood. What can you tell me about yourself? Can you age? Do you have a weakness to the sun and silver?"

I don't want to talk about it.

Shade smiles. "I understand. How about, since I know your secret, I tell you my secret?"

Sounds fair. Vinyl nods and leans closer.

"You ponies believe in angels and demons, right?"

Yes.

Shade slides her goggles to her forehead. She opens her glowing yellow eyes slowly, locking onto the filly, "I am a demon."

Vinyl gulps. Is that why you have three horns?

"Yes."

Do you wear goggles for the same reason I wear sunglasses?

"I wear goggles because I am completely color blind and bright light hurts my eyes."

Me too! Vinyl smiles.

"Do you have infrared vision?"

No. Do you?

"Yes."

Lucky. Shade awes at the speed of Vinyl's writing. Do you have special demonic powers? I heard that demons can posses other. Can you do that? I also read that demons have bat wings, dragon tails, and forked tongues. How come you don't? Are you possessing a pony right now?!

"Yes. Yes, I do have special demonic powers. I can not possess others because I am not dead. I can manipulate others to my will. I am only half demon. Some demons do look like that. I look normal because I am still living." Shade explains.

Do you get more powerful when you drink blood, like me? I read that demons love drinking blood and blood sacrifices. I also read that vamponies are descendents of demons.

"I honestly have not tasted blood, but I do get stronger from just smelling it. Powerful demons drink blood and demand blood sacrifices while keeping power away from lesser demons. I would not be surprised if vamponies are related to demons. Do you turn to ash in the sun?"

No but the sun weakness me. I can negate it with sunscreen and a spell.

"Can you transform?"

No but I heard batvamponies can transform into small bats..

Vinyl writes three simple words that banishes Shade's minute enthusiasm.

Are you evil?

Shade furrows her brows and glowers at the sign.

Vinyl feels the cool warehouse dip in temperature. She crumples up the paper and incinerates the ball with her magic. She smiles sheepishly at Shade. I didn't mean anything by it...

Shade's glowing eyes switches from the ash on the floor and locks onto Vinyl. "Back home, I am considered a weapon of mass destruction, have been tried a hundred times over for genocide, committed fratricide and sororicide, with the occasional assassination and espionage; all for one reason: to kill the man that impregnated and killed my mother.

"Now that I am here, in Equestria, I have been given a second chance. Will I kill again? Will I do good? Will I make friends? Will I discover the truth about my parents? Will I discover the truth about myself? I don't know." Shade sighs and shakes her head, "I don't know if I'm evil or not. I sure as Hell know I'm no angel."

Vinyl lifts up her purple sunglasses to gaze at Shade in awe.

"What happened to your parents?"

Vinyl frowns. They're dead. And so is my brother. I'm all alone. Have been for the past three years.

"Want help killing the ponies who killed them?" Shade offers sincerely.

Vinyl grins darkly. The last one is over there. Thanks anyways, Shade.

"How did you buy this warehouse?"

Vinyl's grin widens. My parents were nobles in Canterlot. After the other nobles killed them and took our money, I enthralled them and returned what was rightfully mine. . . with interest.

"Nice!"

Yeah. I'm pretty much set for life.

"Do you have plans for world domination because I might be willing to split the world fifty-fifty with you."

Or we could rule it together. Vinyl leans closer to Shade and winks.

Shade cocks her brow and stares at Vinyl quizzically. "I suppose that would be better for the ponies. That way no animosity grows between the two groups."

Exactly. Vinyl smiles.

"Complete genocide of those who are not ponies?"

That goes without saying!

Shade stays with Vinyl until the early hours of morning, learning new spells, history, and telling Vinyl about her homeland. It surprises Vinyl how fast Shade can learn new spells. Vinyl also quickly learns to not ask Shade about her father or too many personal questions. For the first time in years, Vinyl smiles and feels happy. She is slightly sad when Shade leaves.

Shade is laying in her bed with a book levitating above her and her horn casting a dim light where she is able to read.

"Tirek, what a swell guy," Shade comments sardonically. She levitates the book to the desk on the right of her bed with the other read books while simultaneously picking up the tome Death wants her to read from the left desk.

Shade frowns at the book with no title. When she opens the book, however, she sits up in bed and stares at the text on the page.

"Vāstùch," Shade gasps. She runs her hoof over the characters of her language from back home.