Chapter Text
Evan's first memory was of Daniel.
Evan knew why he was created. He'd known from day one. To save his brother.
But he also knew he was failing. Daniel wasnt getting better, and Evan had overheard the witch his parents were working with blame him.
"His blood is faulty, Madame Buckley, the spell isn't strong enough. Daniel wont see his preteen years."
Evan had sat with Daniel and Maddie, both heartbroken as they eavesdropped on their parents and the witch.
The Buckleys were vampires. Evan, Maddie and Daniel were all born vampires, their parents turned.
Vampires didnt age until they met their non vampire mates, since vampires and fae were the only ones who were considered immortal. If a vampire tasted their fated mate's blood though, they'd age normally next to their mate until they were turned.
Born vampires were extremely rare. They could only be born to mated vampires who'd begun the aging process but before the non vampire was turned.
They aged normally until their 25th birthday, then would stay forever 25 until they tasted their fated mates blood.
Maddie had been the one to explain all of this to Evan when he was little. It was just after Daniel had passed, Evan had been 5, and hed overheard his parents ranting tearfully about never being able to see Daniel meet his fated mate and give them grandchildren.
But Maddie also pressed that Evan was to never drink from a living person unless he knew them intimately. And more than just physical, but emotional. That he trusted them wholeheartedly, because Vampires couldnt get sick, drunk, or high unless the person they drank from was already infected.
Thats what happened to Daniel. The 6 year old had escaped during a full moon and attacked a homeless person. And unfortunately, that homeless person had had a blood disease that they had yet to find a cure for in the early 1900s.
Their parents had found a witch who could do a ritual that would heal Daniel. But it called for the blood of a pure, born male vampire, and besides Daniel, there wasn't a known one around.
So they did a fertility spell, followed every wives tale possible to conceive a boy, and less than 10 months later were blessed with a 9lb4oz baby boy.
This was all told to Evan later, when Evan was 7 and wondering why his parents couldnt look at him. He behaved! He'd never snuck off, he stuck to the animal blood Margaret kept stocked and ate the rather bland human food his dad cooked.
He didn't argue, he didn't push too hard he thought. He did act out a little recklessly, but he'd seen how his parents flocked to Daniel when he was sick or hurting and hoped they'd even just look at him if he coughed.
Maddie left before she stopped aging, getting married to a turned vampire she met named Doug. Evan didnt like him, he was turned when he was 31 and Maddie was barely 19 when they'd met! And Maddie was a born vampire, so she was only 19 years on this planet. Doug was in his 90s.
But he was rich, powerful. Considered a noble in the 1918 economy, home from his oh so brave sacrifice during the Great War. A high ranked medic in the military, someone Margaret and Phillip adored.
Evan didn't find him so brave. Of course its easy to go off to war when a bullet wouldn't kill you or toxic gasses couldn't affect you. Of course its easy to pull the trigger when you have no morals and stalk the streets once a week to hunt and drain humans.
No, Evan respected the human soldiers so much more than Doug. He could see how he was affecting Maddie.
She was starving. He watched her eat human food all the time, but it was like humans drinking water. It fills them, but gives no true sustenance. But her face was gaunt, brown eyes forever tinted red with hunger, body shaky and lethargic.
Vampires had heartbeats, their blood ran through their veins, they could digest food and expell waste. They could bleed, even if they couldn't bleed out, and broken bones would take about half the time a human would take to heal and it would heal without any lingering affects.
But keep a vampire from feeding? Their heart would slow to near catatonic levels, leaving them slow, achy, nearly sick. And a slow vampire is an easily killed vampire.
Vampires could only be killed from the inside out, or a beheading. No matter what you were, you couldn't survive without a brain. But otherwise, it was near impossible. Unless they were forcibly fed tainted blood.
Evan hated that he had to watch his sister slowly decay away with a vampire bonded who was not her mate. She'd never start aging, never have kids, never grow old with her true love, all because their parents tossed her at the richest asshole who knew she was a vampire.
Evan was 19 when he left. Maddie was forever 25, though with the forced starvation outside of whatever Buck managed to sneak her, she looked frail, older.
"Escape, brother. Find your mate, have beautiful children, have a life. Just be safe, please, I need you safe," Maddie had whispered, clinging to the bag of blood bags Evan had snuck her.
Evan dropped all of his belongings and clung to her, tears falling. "Come with me. Please, we can go far away!" He begged, Maddie shaking with muted sobs.
"I wish I could, Evan. But Doug would find me, he's started the mating process," she said softly and Evan's mouth fell open.
"It won't take. You're not willing and you two aren't fated. All hes doing is putting a collar on you! Come with me, it'll fade. He won't find you!" Evan begged again and Maddie cupped his cheek.
"I'm so sorry, baby brother. I can't. I won't risk you. Leave, escape. Be safe. Let me know youre alive, send postcards to the clinic I work at. I'll find a way to send something back if I ever move. I love you, Evan," she said softly and Evan nodded, wiping stubbornly at his tears.
He shoved the money she'd put in his hands into the glove box of the car she'd given him. It was a symbol of Doug's wealth, being one to actually have a car. They didn't even need it, able to run for extended distances and quicker than mundane humans. Only shifters and demons were faster than a vampire, though werewolves were a 50/50.
But it would give him someplace safe, help him blend in. People would assume hes rich, has power, and hopefully would leave him alone.
Maddie had given him nearly $5k, which was nearly an entire fortune, especially with the stock market crashing as hard as it did. People were struggling, and Evan mildly hated that Doug had so much money hidden away while the kind wolf down the road was struggling to feed her child.
Evan squeezed Maddie quickly, gesturing at the blood bags. "Drink two now, just in case asshole takes them when you get home. Hide the rest, it should last you at least a month until you can find a way to find more. Be safe, Maddie, please. And if you can, escape. You're always welcome with me, no matter where I am or how long its been," Evan promised, Maddie smiling shakily at him.
She quickly opened and downed two pints of the blood, a beautiful flush appearing in her cheeks and a shine appearing to her hair and eyes. Buck sighed relieved as Maddie looked alive, strong, for the first time in months.
Maddie took a deep breath and smiled, cupping Evan's cheek. "Goodbye, baby brother. I'll see you someday, okay?" She said and Evan held a pinky up, his sister smiling fondly as she wrapped hers around his.
Nothing else was said as Evan stepped away and got into the car. He stared at the dials, levers and pedals a moment, having a sudden flash of i was never taught how to do this shit before taking a deep breath.
Maddie had driven him around before, gesturing to each button and dial and explaining what was what. He assumed she'd been planning this for ages, as she'd been sneakily teaching him how to drive for a long time.
He pressed the buttons he remembered, the car starting smoothly. It took some wiggling and a jolting start, but eventually he got moving. He could see Maddie in the rearview mirror with a hand over her mouth, obviously trying not to laugh.
Seeing his sister looking healthy, eyes crinkled with amusement and the familiar expression of fond exasperation had everything relaxing. If this was the last memory he had of his sister, he would cherish it.
That had been several decades before. Evan had been everywhere, all 50 states, Canada, Mexico, even Europe when they invented commercial planes. He spent almost 5 years in Peru in the early 2010s, the longest he'd ever stayed since the humans hated the supernatural and Evan didn't age past 25.
He met a witch there in Peru, a man named Connor. He knew Evan was supernatural, but didn't know he was a vampire. He'd been invited to LA in 2017, and he took it. He needed to move on anyway.
He joined the fire academy, yet another job to add to his extensive list. He'd been a bartender for nearly 30 years in several bars, did ranching, even joined the military as a Navy SEAL. That had been his last job before Peru, and had been there for 11 years.
His CO knew what he was. Steve was a vampire too, one who'd met his fated and had aged normally. He helped Evan blend in as someone who didn't age, having told his team he was 20 when he joined so he could stay longer.
He discharged when his entire team except Steve and Matt, a witch, were killed in action, Evan unable to save any of them. That guilt lived permanently in his heart, hating that it was only his immortality that kept him alive in that blast.
He graduated the academy top of his class, his strength and superior vision helping him immensely. He was assigned to the 118, and he fell in love.
He loved the commadarie, the station, all of it. The captain, Bobby Nash, was an exceptional cook of human food, and even though it did nothing for Evan, Buck now as he preferred after the academy, he loved every single meal. He didn't know human food could taste good.
Hen was amazing. She was a shifter, a rare one that had 4 different animals. Her wife Karen was human, but loved Hen no matter what form she was in.
Chimney was human, but his adoptive parents were witches. Buck could tell he wasn't quite showing his true self, but what Buck could see he was a genuine guy.
Bobby was the only one who knew Buck was a vampire. It was in his file, as required. Buck was thankful that in the last 50 years they'd passed laws saying no job could discriminate against species as long as the individual didn't use their abilities for harm.
Bobby had sat Buck down at the end of his first shift and asked everything. Dietary restrictions, what could harm him, what were his abilities, how old was he truly, would there be any issues with any of the team.
Bobby was a wolf, and Buck knew that meant he'd be able to smell any lies. So Buck was fully truthful.
"I'm not allergic to anything. Garlic is a myth. I can't get sick unless I drink tainted blood, and I drink exclusively from vampire run blood banks that do screenings. I can eat human food, it just won't give me any, like, true sustenance.
"I can't die. I'm sure you saw in my file I was in the military? I've been shot probably, damn, I don't know, 12 times? I think the only thing that can kill a vampire is beheading or tainted blood, unless we find our mate then we age normally which means we can die normally.
"Uhm, I can get hurt though. Bleeding, broken bones, whatever. But recovery time is way faster, which- um, I'm sure you know as a wolf. Which also-! Doesn't bother me? I dont have an aversion to wolves, uh, does- does it bother you?" Buck asked nervously and Bobby just smiled, shaking his head.
"No aversion here Buck, just making sure you're comfortable. I'm not sure what Hen or Chim's opinions of vampires are though, but I do know Kinard and Sanchez are from lines of vampire hunters. So we'll keep your species away from them, yeah? They're planning on transferring here soon, so it shouldn't be long," he said and Buck nodded relieved.
"As for age, technically I'm 25. I know the paperwork says 21, but uh, born vampires quit aging after 25 and stay that way until we meet our fated. Or uh, feed from our fated. And I've never drank from a human being in my life, so um. But I was born in 1907," he admitted and Bobby raised an eyebrow.
"So you've been 25 for 110 years?" He asked curiously and Buck nodded, grimacing. "Yeah, I've seen a lot. Been all over the states, Canada, Mexico, even been to Europe when commercial planes were invented! That was fun.
"But yeah, physically I'm 25," he said awkwardly and Bobby nodded interested. "And the Full Moon, I know it affects all us supernatural differently but how is it for vampires?" He asked and Buck grimaced.
"I- get extra hungry. Harder to control. All my strength, night vision, speed, all that increases like insanely, but at the cost of me wanting to eat more. I've never lost control though, I swear! I just- stock up extra on bags each full moon, or go into the woods to hunt animals. But I know there's a lot of wolves around here, so I'll stay away from the woods around here," he said earnestly and Bobby nodded with a chuckle.
"Alright, that should be all. If you need any accommodations, Buck. Let me know. I have a mini fridge in my office that is personal use, I'll store you a few extra bags of blood for if you ever need to work a full moon," he said and Buck blinked amazed.
"You'd do that for me?" He asked awed and Bobby smiled. "I take care of my team, Buck. And you're a part of this team now," he said genuinely and Buck smiled, a warmth in his chest.
"Alright, I've kept you long enough. Just remember, you can come to me if you need anything. See you tomorrow for your shift kid," he said, Buck grinning brightly.
"See you tomorrow Cap! And thank you, so much," he said gratefully and Bobby waved him off. "No need to thank me," he said and Buck beamed, waving goodbye and leaving quickly.
Settling in at the station was so easy. Mostly. Buck had some bad habits he'd developed over the centuries, having never gone looking for genuine relationships since hed never seen the point in it so he had a habit of sleeping around whenever and wherever he wanted.
He'd gotten caught a few times, lectured hard. He even got fired after stealing the truck once, but he ended up saving Athena's, a police Sergeant who was close to the 118, life and got rehired back.
He met Abby, or rather she called him after that call. He was a little put off on how she'd gotten his number, but she was sweet and perfectly okay with Buck telling her he wasn't looking for anything serious.
They met in person when Abby called frantically, saying her mother had vanished. Buck used his connections and sense of smell, managing to find her and get her home.
Abby was a turned vampire, having been turned at 42. Buck had never been with another vampire, having avoided them widely, so everything was new.
She told him her ex had broken up with her when he found out she got turned into a vampire, told her that she'd better never show up near him again. He had been born to a line of vampire hunters, and it was only their history that had him letting her go.
"Heard he was gay now, though he's still single. I don't even know what I saw in him, I can't believe we were engaged," she said with a sigh and Buck nodded in sympathy, unsure of what to say.
Buck's probationary year passed and he graduated. Bobby told him he could invite anyone he wanted, but there was no way he was going to reach out to his parents and Maddie hadn't answered a postcard in so long. He sent one to her anyway, just hoping, but he had his graduation ceremony with just his team. Abby didn't even show up, though Buck knew her mom had taken a turn for the worse.
Patricia ended up passing away not long after, Buck being there for Abby at the funeral. She told him she was leaving, going to explore the world now that she knew she had time and learn what it was like to be a vampire.
Buck didn't mention he could teach her everything, having been one for over a century. He just kissed her goodbye and felt in his bones that he'd never see her again.
A couple months later, Chim told him about the firefighter calender. He was actually interested, having spent decades on his build. He bounded into the station, grinning widely as he showed off his newest DXA scan.
"Now thats a beautiful man," Chim said, staring behind Buck. "I agree, and I like girls," Hen hummed, Buck frowning as he turned around.
"Who's that?" He asked as he watched the man in the locker room put his shirt on, eyes locked on the man's abs. Holy fuck he'd never seen a more gorgeous man, and he'd met a lot of people over the years.
"Eddie Diaz, new probie. Just graduated, top of his class. Snatched him from Station 6, ex military, has a silver star. Thought he'd be a good fit here," Bobby said happily, Chim and Hen moving off to greet him.
Buck's jaw clenched, shoulders tense. Diaz was human, Buck could smell it. Did Bobby not trust having a vampire on the team anymore? He hadn't lost control, he tried his best to listen. Was Bobby done with him?
Buck went and joined the team, forcibly ignoring the way Diaz's smile had his eyes shining or the way his hair fell perfectly over his eyes. Or the extra long canines could almost be fangs, longer than even Buck's when they were retracted.
Buck didn't know how, but he knew Eddie Diaz was going to throw his entire life out of wack. And Buck was finally happy with his life, he didn't want any more change.