A/N: And thus, Sophie tells a story.

Liquid Roses

Her hands slid down Luke's biceps, coming to a rest at the creases in his arms. Her chest rose and fell quickly, her eyes slightly glossy. Luke's lips touched softly at her cheek as she wrapped her arms around him.

"So, you weren't lying about me being just food." His lips pulled up into a smirk as he lovingly pecked at her face.

Sophie closed her eyes and smiled, "Told you so." Her head nuzzled against him.

He rolled off of her, tugging her along to bring her to lie across his chest. With his arm around her, his hand smoothed her hair over and over. Though she was cold as ice, he felt warm with her next to him. Her cheek rested over his heart, the thump-thump of it echoing in her ears.

"I heard that you've been remembering your past?" His hand stopped for a moment as he glanced down at her.

Sophie sighed. "Yes… would you care to hear about it?"

"I wouldn't have brought it up if I didn't."

She stayed silent for a moment, gathering her thoughts. "I'm warning you, it isn't some cutesy romance." Sophie opened her mouth and began, "I was born Sophia Radley on January 14th, 1831 to a Maria and Victor Radley. We lived a lavish life. My father was the owner of a prospering printing press. Mama was strict, but loving and Papa loved to spoil me.

"It was my fifteenth birthday and we were planning a celebration. It was snowing as I sat in the sitting room, looking over one of my books. Papa and Mama came in with someone I didn't know. Papa explained that this was his business partner who had come to celebrate my birthday with me. He had a very kind face and strange white hair. He introduced himself as Cedric Coolridge and we greeted each other with the usual 'how-do-you-do's and 'good-and-you's.

"We all went into the kitchen and sat around the dining table. The food was good and laughter filled the air. I opened a few gifts and thanked my parents graciously. Cedric pulled out a small bottle and poured a glass fullof the fragrant red liquid it contained. He offered me the glass, saying that this was a special children's drink he had picked up when he went on a trip to Italy. Supposedly this was a treat all children were given on their birthdays. 'Liquid Roses' was what he called it.

"I took it from him and toasted with my parents. As I held the cup up to my lips I could smell the floral potency of it. I took a small sip, pleased with its sweet taste, then emptied the cup within a few seconds. I smiled and laughed as I watched my mother cut a slice from a decorated cake that sat in the middle of the table. Mama held it out to me and I eagerly took the plate from her. As I moved to set the treat in front of me I stopped. Something didn't feel right anymore. My chest constricted oddly and the plate slid from my hands, crashing to the floor.

"I clutched at my chest. I couldn't feel my heart beating any longer. My vision blurred as I tipped forward. I blacked out as soon as my head hit the table. Mama and Papa continued to call my name. Seems that rat, Cedric, had slipped his own blood into my drink. I sat up slowly after a few minutes had passed and looked into my parents' worried faces. Mama cried in joy and wrapped her arms around me. I felt something warm pulsing against my cheek. When I turned to look, I saw my mother's neck, the veins underneath full of blood.

"Before I knew what I was doing I sunk my teeth into her throat. She screamed and tried to push me away, but I clung to her. Papa shouted. Cedric sat by and watched. Animosity took hold of me and I was changed into a monster…"

Sophie stopped and clenched her fists. She took a deep breath and continued, "Everything goes a bit blurry here, but I remember feeling so thirsty and my mother's blood tasting so refreshing. I remember sitting down on the floor and looking at my parents' bodies, crumpled and oozing, puncture wounds dotting their skin everywhere… While I had been mauling my parents, Cedric had excused himself and left. I never saw him again.

"I was horrified. I tried to blot out the image by covering my eyes, but nothing could erase the picture. Their blood covered my hands, stained my clothing, dripped down my face… I screamed their names till my voice went hoarse. I tried to cry, but discovered that I no longer could and never again would be able to. All I could do was double over and hold myself while I shook. I got up lazily and wandered around outside hoping to take my mind away from the massacre that I had caused. Bright red footprints trailed behind me.

"I stayed in that house a while longer, keeping the dining room locked with Mama and Papa's bodies still inside. After a while I grew hungry again and I left, looking for someone else I could drink from. I spent a long time traveling from place to place, hunting my prey. I would always return to my home and eventually I cleaned up my crime scene. Ghost stories went around town throughout the years, making it easier to lure curious people into my home.

"And so, that's how I came to be like this."