The night was dark and cool. Well, I guess you couldn't call it night anymore, just really really early morning! Anyways, I was walking, alone, as usual. The moon was bright and full, casting its light down on me as I walked the streets of New York. Bums lay in the alleys; drunk, sleeping, and smelling horrible! Did I mention I was hungry? Hungry... that might not be the best adjective I could use, but it's out there now so we'll move on.
As I said, it was dark, and with me and my abnormally accurate eye sight, I could detect just about anything; including the mouse under the broken wheel barrel, the crow sitting stone still on the fence, and the two boys eyeing me in the alley ahead. But I wasn't afraid of them. On the contrary, they should be afraid of me, because the only thing on the streets to fear the most is not the muggers, not the vulgar drunks, and not the horny teenage boys, but me and me alone.
I held my head high as I closed in on the side street, my senses ready for an attack, ready for a counter-attack. As I had suspected, my arm was grabbed sharply and roughly as one boy swung me into the view. Both were dirty, clothing torn and dirt stained, and looking at me with thirst. Thirst... I think that was the adjective I was looking for earlier...
"Heyy dere, pretty lady. What' cha doin' walkin' the streets alone at nigh'?" The boy who got ahold of me sneered. His eyes were were glassy looking, so I assumed he had been drinking earlier- that made things easier.
"Do ya want us ta protect ya? We'll keep ya safe from the... dangers Brooklyn holds...!" The second boy cracked up from his own wittiness, while I just stood there, staring.
"Ya gotta name, sweetheart? Can't ya speak? Or does da cat gotcha tongue?!... Whoa!"
Boy number one went flying through the air. Boy number two watched as his friend went "smack" into the brick wall behind. He then stood guarded, glaring at me.
"Ya think ya so tough, huh? Ya think ya can just dance on in here and get away so easily? Huh, do ya?" He started towards me, ready to strike, but after a blink, I was gone from his sight. I had already started running behind him, over the wooden crates, and jumping from wall between wall, up to meet his falling friend. Boy two watched in horror as I carried boy one to the highest part of the fire escape flashing my sparkling whites at him, literally sparkling. Boy one's face was covered with fresh scratches and blood slowly flowing from them, gleaming in the moonlight at me- I was pleased with this.
Well, I guess now is a good time to tell you about me, huh?
My name is Stephanie Rush, I'm older than you'll ever know... and I'm a vampire...
I know, I know, crazy reading about a vampire in an early 1900's New York story, but, hey, it happens. I came to be this way long ago, back in Ireland, early late 1700's early 1800's, and my condition is very interesting actually. See, my mother was raped by my vampire father, and he was going to kill her right after he had finished satisfying his sick-self, but something stopped him, and from what my mother has told me, it had been because he heard something, softly at first. It grew louder and louder, and my mother waited and waited for his teeth to strike her, but then all of a sudden, my father whispered, "This can not be..."
Apparently, he heard my heart beat. Crazy, right? Just conceived and he hears a heart beat, that just doesn't add up. No, no, a vampire having a human conceive his "child!"... that just doesn't add up. My father took off, I guess hybrids like myself get the honorary privilege of living, and within days my mother found herself getting morning sickness, horrible back aches, and within weeks, I was born.
My mother was very frail and sick after the birth, so she had to stay in bed as the doctor cared for me over the next few days. I grew rapidly; from day one, I looked like I was two. From day two, I looked like I was three. From day three I looked like I was four. And as those days went by, I became quite strong, exceptionally fast, and, in the words of Doctor Manson, freakishly smart. I had the IQ of a high school sophomore and the maturity of an eighth grade student by day(age) four. Mum was very proud of my intelligence and stamina, even if it was a bit creepy. Day four she told me about what happened to her and how I came about. She also told me about her life, her family, her memories. I didn't need to hear it, for I had already seen and felt what she experienced throughout her life while in the womb, but listening to her voice talking to me made the experience ten times better.
I learned that my mother was raped once before by a drunk coming home from a pub late one night. She was thirteen years young as walking from her friends house when that incident happened. Grams and Gramps weren't very happy, but being uberly catholic, made her keep the kid. Were there any ways of having abortions back then? I don't really know, but if so, it probably wasn't too pleasant. Anyways, nine months later, she gave birth to my half brother, Christopher. It was hard work, but my mum finished school, got a job, and paid for Chris' school, along with the financial help of grandma and grandpa. When Chris finally graduated, my mom gave him her life savings and he traveled to America to become a business men for small towns. She had not heard from him in months.
On day five, my mother past away, peacefully and quietly. I service was small, right after sun down, and I had to stay concealed most of the time because the town's people would suspect something, but they noticed anyways. Vampire attacks weren't common, but they were known in the town, and seeing me almost explained everything. Other rumors flew around, yes, about just being hidden from view for years, or adoption, or sorcery, and other very justifiable and very non-justifiable ideas. No one ever asked, nor had the chance, because after I said good-bye to my mother for the last time, I took my inherited money, left the house to a single mother of five(no charge), and took off.
I didn't go far. I made it past Germany when a not so strange stranger crept up on me. He was hesitant at first, but when I sensed him, he had to appear or forever hold his peace. As he stepped under the light of the street lamp, and starred into my eyes, he whispered, "You have your mother's eyes." I replied, "...but I have your hair." He knelt down on one knee, his arms extended toward me, and I ran to him and gave him a bear hug. He picked me up and started to carry me aimlessly down the street, our dark hair intertwining while the wind blew from the south.
After that, I stuck with him for a few years, and for us, a few years was like a few weeks, for vampires, they don't sleep. For me though, every century, there is one day and one day only were I must sleep. That's the human side of me I can't ignore. We found that out when my dad asked me if I ever fell asleep and actually dreamed before, and I said the night I was born, I fell asleep and never slept since. Then, we did an estimation on when I might sleep again and we came up with a century.
Another part is that I do need small portions of food about once every two weeks. So my dad would take me to places like Italy or France for food and would take the food and the waiter with us for a midnight "snack".
Many people know that vampires can't go into the light in fear of burning to death and becoming dust in the wind. Well, unless you read Twilight where those lucky sons of bitches get to survive sunlight and!- sparkle like diamonds. For vampires, it usually starts when sunlight first touches your skin, and from that spot(if you don't move out of the light fast enough) your skin begins to black with ash, and it will spread across your skin as light continues to burn into you. If one part of you becomes dust and floats away in the wind, there is no stopping the rest of your skin from becoming dust and you are forever gone. If you get out fast enough, the skin will heal over quickly, but you'll always remember that pain, always.
As for me, the only way to even begin the process of burning is at my head; my face to be exact. the rest of me can be touched the the sun's rays, but if my face is touched, I start to burn, quickly. This was another experiment my dad did with me. He showed me how it works for him, even though I told him not to, but he did anyways. It was only his arm, but I still didn't like seeing him in agony. Then I held my breath, closed my eyes real tight, then stuck my hand into the gold beams outside of the window and felt... nothing. I stuck both arms, nothing. I stuck my head out, piercing pain. I screamed as my face felt like it was pealing, layer by layer, then moving down my neck to the rest of me. Dad pulled me back and cradled me as I wept into his shoulder.
After that, he didn't make me go into the sun anymore. He did cleverly buy very special, very expensive fabric guaranteed to block out sun light and also be very fashionable! He created it into a hat and asked me to, one more time, stick my head into the sun light. Reluctant, but seeing how much it would mean to my father, I sucked in my gut and stuck my head out the window. I waited, but I felt no pain. I could sense his smirk from behind, and I did as well. I lifted my head so the hat's shadow completely covered my face, and I still felt no pain. We finally beat the sunlight. The cloth, however, did not work on full fledged vampire skin, so my dad was still unable to walk out during day, so I never did either.
My dad helped me figure out all of my quirks to being vampire and human, and not much later did he tell me that we needed to go our separate ways because vampires didn't usually stick with others in fear that when danger or rogue vampires came, they would become to attached to the other and both die trying to save the other. I asked if vampires ever got married. He told me it is a risky chance, but sometimes the love a vampire can give is the strongest power in the world. S0 naturally, our race wasn't large, or humans may then start to suspect us too often and not allow us to feed on them. They don't want it anyways when we do attack them, but they would find ways to keep us out.
We said good-bye, and he told me, with a promise, we would meet again someday. As I walked out of the house, into the sunlight, I looked back at the man I once despised for being the cause of my mother's death, and now saw him as the man who was just waiting for me to find him again. To show him he isn't just a monster, but he was a father, and he raised his and my mother's child well. Then I turned back around, and started walking to my new destination, home.
I returned to the town I was born in. I finally stopped growing and looked about sixteen-going-on-seventeen, but my eyes said different. They said I was older, much older, but full of life never-the-less. I returned to the cottage I stayed at for only a week, and saw the mother of five sitting outside on the lawn, with the children running around, laughing, smiling, joyous. I walking up to the gate and she looked at me curiously, trying to put her finger on who I was.
"Who are you child? Are you here to see Steven?" She was about to call out the boy's name when I held up my hand and answered, no.
"No. My name is Stephanie Rush. This is the house I use to live in." I waited for a reaction, but all I got was her starring at me. Then she replied to me, "You look so much older." I chuckled awkwardly and she stood up, walked over to me, and hug me tightly. She was a big boned women, red haired, wore and apron, the whole nine yards. She also smelled amazing, but I restrained myself and held my breath.
She took me inside and asked me to stay for dinner, which I did. she cooked a turkey with gravy and mashed potatoes in honor of my visit, and she asked me where I have been, where I'm going, and other stuff like that. I confided in her that I was with my dad for all these years and that my next stop was to visit my brother, who has never known of my existence. She was very interested in my life, and was very motherly. Her children were all over me, begging me to play with them, to give them piggie back rides, chance them around. They had cuts on their bodies, and it was becoming harder for me to resist the temptation to bite into their fragile skin...
I kept strong, I played with them, I ate the food, and talked to a women who I wish was my mother. Not that I'd rather have her over my actual mom, but that I wanted my mom to be here, loving, with kids of her own to care for. Steven was her oldest, my age, and very fun to talk to. We talked for most of the evening as Ms. O'Barry put the young-yens to bed. We were starting to get real close, and his neck was only a heartbeat way from having me sucking all the blood from it, but I couldn't. Not to this kind women. Not to this young boy. But he wanted to get closer, he seemed to form a crush on me. I didn't want to hurt him, and I needed to get out. So I gave him a swift kiss on the cheek, said I needed to catch a boat, and bolted out of there. I ran by Ms. O'Barry, thanked her again for her hospitality, and hopped on a boat going for America.
I didn't bother going to Ellis Island, so I swam underwater to shore and started searching for my half brother. I was becoming aware of new abilities, such as fantastic eye sight, excellent hearing, sharper senses, how to leash and unleash claws and fangs, and, my newest one, sniffing out different people. So with that, I traveled from town to town, trying to catch even the faintest whiff of my mother's scent, when I finally came across a small business lodge for a lawyer names Christopher Rush.
I walked in a there sat my brother, looking sharp in a formal outfit, reading papers near the fire.
"Can I held you, young lady?" He looked up at me with mom's eyes. I took of my hat and looked at him, and he thought the same thing.
"Do I... know you?" His voice quivered slightly as he began to stand and walk around his oak desk.
"No, you haven't never met me before, but we do have one thing in common..." He raised his eye brow. "Besides our eyes?" He asked jokingly. I laughed and became solemn again. "That, and where our eyes came from." His face was emotionless for a moment, then surprised, next curious, then calm. "You are my sister." It wasn't a question, but more of a statement, and I nodded "yes". "I haven't talked to mom in years, I had no idea she got married."
"Well, actually... she never got married, she was raped again, and she had me, but..." Chris' face was angered and surprised and mom was raped again and had to go through something like that like before. "But what? Is she here?!" His face brightened as he looked around as if she'd pop out and yell, "Surprise!", but as he continued to look the sadder I became. "No, Chris, she isn't here... she's dead." His face began to fall as he realized she wasn't going to appear. He sat down in his chair as I pulled one up to his desk and told him how mom died(not about me though) and how she talked about him constantly before she past, which made him cry more.
He took me home to his cottage to meet his wife, Sarah, and his son, Jacob. He took me in after he had finished grieving and I stayed with them and went to school. They found it odd that I looked so young, but so old at the same time, but Sarah loved me like a daughter, Jake loved me like an older sister, and Chris loved me like younger sister. I loved them back with every fiber in me, I loved them. And I almost even killed myself when a fire began to spread around the town and took my family away from me, all three of them. Chris and Sarah died trapped in their room from a fallen beam, and Chris told me to try and save Jake first when I went to break the door down, and I cried to let me help, but he said to go, that they would be okay. So I ran to jakes room, where he was sleeping in his bed while fire was bursting up from every corner of his room. With my huge adrenaline rush, I picked him up, busted through a wall, and ran him over to health station on the outskirts of the town.
I may be sun proof for the most part, but fire still does hurt! I healed by the time I got to a doctor, but I'm not saying it didn't hurt before then. I was also lucky to have had my hat on, because I always sleep with it over my head, just in case the sun managed to get through a crack in the wood while I slept. But as I ran, I realized it was silent. I blocked out every sound around me, all the screaming, crying, flames eating wood, everything except for Jake and me, and it was silent. His heart beat... was gone. the Doctor declared him dead when I finally got his attention, said that he probably died from inhaling too much smoke in his sleep. Chris and Sarah were found later and placed in the pile of dead bodies, the three of them laying together as a family, that I should be there with them, lying there, but I was not.
I felt like I had my own personal sun inside me, burning all of my insides, yet not ever ceasing, never giving me peace. The last bit of human died with Chris in that fire, and never saw it again. I had been taking out my rage on humans and their carelessness for years and years, decade after decade, being merciless and never, ever, being close to anyone.
So on that night, on the fire escape, as I was about to make both of those boys suffer, the boy in my arms looked up at me with Chris' eyes, with my eyes, with my mother's eyes. And I gasped loudly, just as he did, and I then realized what I had become. I knocked the boy on the head, making him go un-conscious, laid him down gently, then made myself invisible, and flew away, the boy on the ground waving his cane at me.
