Tiny footsteps blended into the rhythm of raindrops on the ground. A large black rat scampered in the shadows of the alleyway, occasionally stopping to lift its fanged snout for a sniff. A handcrafted harness held its cargo. Some rats carried fleas. Others carried rabies. But this one? It carried a plastic coated card with an advertisement for a certain vampire run cafe printed on one side. On the other side were careful instructions on finding a location that only shows itself to those who seek it.

There used to be more cards in that harness but now there was only a single card left. That just meant that the rat had indeed been doing its job. Spreading the word for a cafe was difficult when the majority of the city's inhabitants were not invited. Indeed, it was less of an advertisement and more of an invitation.

Cautiously and quietly, the rodent trotted after the scent of a fellow undead just passing by. Two feet encased in shoes and an upright stature - it was a human. Or, well, former human.

Sensing the presence of the undead rodent, the man stopped in his tracks. He turned around.

"Man, you're the third one today."

The rat merely twitched it's nose at him.

"But I guess I can't blame ya, huh? Gotta pass out all these cards, right ?" The man was now crouched before the rat. Talking with a rat. He looked up for a moment to ensure that nobody else was around, especially not anyone who might recognise him. "Y'know what ? I actually know someone who could use one of those. C'mon little buddy."

The man scooped the rat up in sunscarred hands. Seems like someone's been out in the day without proper protection. The rat struggled for a moment but eventually, sensing no ill intent from the stranger, complied.

"Don't worry, lil' buddy." The man slipped the rat into a coat pocket, and started walking along with a firm hand over the rat. "Just taking you to this neighbour of mine. She got turned, like, a couple of days ago, I think. Cooped up at home all the time. I don't know her that well, actually."

The rat does not reply. Because rats , even ones that have transcended common rathood, do not talk. It merely stayed quiet, clinging to the edges of the pocket it nestled in. Despite the tight fit, it was cozy. The man didn't seem to mind

Eventually, a couple of blocks later, the man stopped at a fairly new looking apartment building. He pointed at a window on the fifth floor. As he had expected, it was open.

"There!"

Immediately, the rodent leaped out of the pocket and scampered towards the building.

The man watched as the undead critter made its way up, scaling the vertical wall of the building with the ease only a vampire rodent could achieve.

And there it went.

Into the wrong window.

Even where he stood outside the building, the man could hear at least three dogs barking their lungs out, something huge crashing onto the floor, and the local dog lady yelling obscenities.

Five minutes of chaos later, the rat re-emerged from the same window it had entered from and skittered to another one. Fortunately, this was the right one. The man let out a breathe he didn't even realise he had been holding and went on his way.

Meanwhile, the rat had safely made it to its destination. A sniff of the air and the rodent knew this was the right place. The scent of a vampire hung heavy in the air - a scent like no other. But where was it coming from ?

Definitely not from the middle aged women fast asleep on the couch, remote control still in hand. Soft muffled sobs (or were they whimpers?) brought the rat's attention to the bathroom.

The door was ajar. Whoever was in there seemed to have rushed there in a hurry. The rat cautiously poked its furry little head in.

A girl, barely an adult, was pulling teeth. She had too many fangs. It was hurting her jaws. She couldn't close her mouth. She couldn't go to school like this. With a soft clink, another tooth joined the three already in the sink.

The rat froze in its tracks. Not because of the sight but because of the smell. This wasn't natural. This wasn't normal. Not even by undead standards.

The rodent wanted nothing more than to leave.

Suddenly, the girl froze. Then slowly she turned towards the rat.

And then, scrambling onto the toilet seat, she shrieked.

The rat turned tail to flee only to catch the eye of the woman on the couch, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

Oh.

That was one hell of a rat.

"Mom!" A muffled voice called out. The girl emerged from the bathroom, a blood-soaked towel over her mouth. "Mom! Sta-stay away!"

The mother leapt to her feet. "Yuna? Yuna, what happened! Are you alr-"

"It's not...not normal.." the girl stammered, a shaking finger pointed at the intruding creature now retreating under the couch. "That...that's not a rat..."

"What? What are you talking about?" Her mother was now by her side. "Are you alright? What happened?"

"I-I'm alright. It's fine...it's fine...it's fine...."

"But..but you're bleeding! What did that thing do to you?"

"Mom...I'm fine...it..it didn't do any-anything...just scared me is..is all.."

"I'll go get the broom," the mother headed to the kitchen.

"N-no, it's fine!" Somehow, she got the feeling that it was going to take more than some whacks of a broom to kill the little beast.

The rat darted out from it's hiding place. And out the window it went. Forget the job. Forget the little card on its back. This rat was out.