The Curious Case of Benjamin
Benjamin's POV
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الانجراف على نهر
Drift on a river
الذي يتدفق عبر ذراعي
That flows through my arms
الانجراف كما أنا الغناء لك
Drift as I'm singing to you
أراك مبتسما
I see you smiling
حتى السلمية والهدوء
So peaceful and calm
وعقد لكم، وأنا مبتسمة، أيضا
And holding you, I'm smiling too
هنا في ذراعي
Here in my arms
في مأمن من كل مكروه
Safe from all harm
عقد لكم، وأنا مبتسمة، أيضا
Holding you, I'm smiling too
That's what my Ummi used to sing to me before I went to sleep. Before my life went in another direction.
Since my Ummi died, I was sent to live with my Uncle, Narmer, as I didn't know who my Abbi was. He had me busk with him since I was 7, singing and dancing for money. It was 3 years later when I met her. The one I knew I wanted to spend my life with. I was 10 and she was 7, but I knew she was the one.
Tia was a girl who had olive skin, very similar to my own. Her face was framed with long, midnight-coloured hair that reached the middle of her back. At the time, she was 7, but she longed for company as she was alone.
I was the one who got to share a room with her, as I was the only one who had their own room. At first I was quite annoyed that I had to share a room with a girl. I wasn't the one to want company, let alone a girl's company, but when I met her, I changed my mind immediately.
At first she was shy, only answering my questions, never asking any in return. After about 2 days I got quite annoyed as I was always asking questions, but I learned never to underestimate her. She was capable of asking questions, she just needed some time to warm up to me. Within a week, we were having full length conversations like we had known each other for years.
Whenever we had to perform, she was always called first before me and I never knew why until I listened to her sing. She had the voice of an angel and I couldn't help but wonder how she learned to sing like that.
By the time I was 13 and she was 10, she was well on her way to staying with Uncle Narmar, and I was well on my way out the door, as I was useless in my Uncle's eyes.
It wasn't until I discovered that I could control fire that I agreed with him. Tia was the first person I showed. I trusted her the most out of all my cousins that were with my uncle. She was the one I spent most of my time with. I showed her how I could move the fire with my hands and she was stunned. After getting over the initial shock, she informed me that I should show Uncle Narmar. She told me that this might keep us together. I smiled and I believed her.
It was in that moment, when I showed Uncle Narmar my ability, which my life changed drastically. I knew it would change, but to be honest, I didn't think it would change this much.
After I showed my Uncle what I could do, he always called on me first. Tia didn't mind, as she knew we would stay together, but no one could foresee what happened next.
It was 1807. I had turned 15 3 months ago. Tia and I had celebrated it in our room. Not a very big celebration. Just Tia and me.
Uncle called on me to perform that day. Uncle had taught me things to do with fire, and I was bringing him lots of money. I think he was just greedy and didn't really like me. No one else did, aside from Tia. That day I performed, there were two hooded people in the crowd. I wouldn't have thought anything of it, but hardly anyone in Egypt wore hoods in the middle of the day. It was way too hot. But after I started performing, I forgot all about them. By the time I had finished, they had disappeared.
After I had finished, I ran back to the room, to find Tia was sitting on her bed, waiting patiently for me. I had invited her out for a swim in the Nile.
Tia had to leave about an hour after we got there, but I stayed, dipping my feet in the cool water.
I didn't see Tia when I got back. I didn't go to our room where she was probably practicing her new song she had been learning. Instead, I went to Uncle Narmar's room to ask him if I could sing with Tia in the next show.
When I got there, though, he had company. The two hooded figures looked up as I walked into the room, as if they were talking about me. I closed the door behind me and Uncle Narmar offered me a seat on his couch next to him.
It was then that the taller figure killed him.
Bright red eyes. Staring right back at me. I shivered as they blinked with hunger. I didn't have long. In the middle of nowhere, there weren't many hiding places, especially when someone was following you. The red eyed monster took a deep breath and then pounced.
I woke up. It was all a dream, I kept telling myself. I tried to sit up, but found my head was hurting. Concussion, I thought to myself as I lay back down on the ground, more than happy to rest. What had happened? I probably hit my head, I thought. I turned my head to the side. It was pitch black. It must have been midnight by now. What had happened? I remember yesterday, when Tia and I were walking down the bank of the Nile. I had been bored at home, so I had invited Tia for a swim. When we got down there, I had noticed something different. Something I couldn't quite put my finger on.
I tried to sit up again, this time succeeding, using my hands to push me up. I sat cross-legged in the spot for a minute before I heard a voice calling my name. I looked around to find the owner of the voice, but I couldn't see anyone. I hoped it was Tia coming to find me. This voice, though, was not familiar to me.
I tried to call out for help, but I couldn't speak. I felt like my throat was on fire.
As the voice drifted closer, I heard a more distinctive noise. It wasn't a voice, though. It was the sound of a door opening.
"Benjamin," a new voice called, much closer this time. I looked up and noticed a man walking towards me, with a woman close behind. I couldn't see them very well, but by the clothes they were wearing, they looked like the people from the show. I stared at him, not saying anything. The longer I stared at him the more I could make out his facial features. He was clearly Egyptian, as he not only spoke the language, but his face structure resembled that of an Egyptian. On top of that, I could make out a moustache that was the same colour as his hair – black.
"Benjamin," the voice said again, this time more calm. "I'll bet you're wondering where you are."
Instead of answering, my lips drew back to reveal my teeth and I growled at him. The man nodded at me with a smile on his face and stood up. He turned his head to the woman and said in Arabic, "I think he is hungry. Maybe you should hunt for him while I have a talk with this newborn." The woman nodded and left the room leaving me alone with the man. He turned back to me, with a hint of curiosity on his face.
"Benjamin," he started, cautiously. "My name is Amun and I am a vampire."
He sat me down and talked to me. Amun talked about what I had become and he told me about a group of vampires called the Volturi, who would want to steal me away. He told me that they were made up of vampires that had special abilities, like me. Amun told me that I could control fire – I remember that bit of my human life – but he had potential for me. He believed that I would be able to do much more now that I was a vampire – and he was right. After a few weeks in Amun's basement, I began to realise that the dust was beginning to move and there was a breeze in the air. When I noticed it, it always stopped, but after a few more days, I realised that it was me that was creating the breeze.
After 3 months, I was able to control not just fire and wind, but earth and water as well! When this discovery was made by Amun, he was overjoyed.
"There is more to him then I thought," I heard Amun say to Kebi – his wife – one night. "He has potential." I didn't hear Kebi's response – I haven't heard her speak since the first night I met her – but I don't think she would have disagreed with him.
After 3 years of becoming a vampire, I began to think of Tia again. I missed her and I really wanted to see her again. I didn't want to tell Amun about her, but he made me feel like I could tell him anything. I told him about who I used to be, what I did as a human, and, more importantly, who I loved. When I finished telling him about my human life, I asked for permission to look for Tia.
"Benjamin," he told me. "You have to understand something. The Volturi will find you if you leave. I am sorry, but have to stay here." I nodded, but I never gave up. No matter how many times I asked him, the answer was always 'no'.
One night when Amun was out hunting, and Kebi was watching me, I decided that it was my chance to leave. She was standing across the room from me, but never taking her eyes of me. I glanced above her head to find that the roof of the basement was made of thick rocks. I kept a straight face as I was glad that I would be able to leave. I closed both of my hands, focused on the spot just above Kebi's head and, just like it always had, the rocks started to fall. Kebi noticed, but she was too late as the wall of rocks forming around her was too fast for her. When the rocks finished forming a wall around Kebi's body, I smiled to myself and sprinted out the door.
When I opened Amun's front door, I was shocked to see that was about 2 hours till dawn. I decided that I would only move at night, as I didn't want Amun to get into trouble with the Volturi. I was nervous leaving Amun's house, but I knew that I wouldn't be gone longer than a month. I breathed in the air, and, for the first time in 5 years, I stepped outside on the golden sand.
I found Tia in Suez two weeks after I had left Amun's house. She lived in a house and had a husband. As soon I made this discovery, I stopped in my tracks. Tia was safe. The realisation hit me like the rocks hit Kebi. I wanted her, but she was happy here. I didn't know what to do. I sat in her bushes for two nights, watching her through the window, talking to her husband, cooking on the stove. But there was something in her eyes that didn't fit in with what was showing on her face. Loss.
In the end, I decided to talk to her. Her husband was out the third night I watched her, so I called her name. At first it was soft, as I was afraid of what she might think when she saw me, but then I called her name louder, as she couldn't hear me. I could see her from the window, and I knew she heard me the third time I called her name. She looked out the window and her smile grew wide as she saw me in the bushes. Then she turned around and disappeared from the window. Within minutes, she was opening the front door and walking excitedly towards me. As soon as she saw me, she stopped in her tracks, wondering why I looked different. I could see it in her face. But that shock slowly faded as the smile returned to her face.
"Benjamin! I have missed you so much! I thought you were dead!" Tia couldn't help herself. I smiled too, but I had to tell her what I was. I couldn't lie to her. I looked down as I started talking.
"Tia, I need to tell you something," I started, looking into her eyes to see her reaction. She had sat down on the bench next to me, waiting for me to continue. I did. "I am a vampire, Tia. That day I disappeared, I was kidnapped and turned into a vampire. I came to find you because I thought you were unsafe, but I can see now that you are happy and I will leave now." I looked down at my hands and was afraid to look up at Tia. When I finally did, she was staring at me.
"A vampire?" she asked me, with a smile on her face. I smiled back and nodded. She was mocking me. I stood up to leave, but before I could take a step I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around to find Tia looking directly into my eyes.
"Wait, Benjamin. Don't leave," she told me. "I'm sorry." And for the first time since she saw me, I knew she believed me. She knew that I was a vampire. There was a look of both shock and wonder on her face.
"Tell me more." So I walked with Tia down the empty streets of Suez and told her everything. I told her about Amun and Kebi, the Volturi and why I had come to find her. It was around 5 in the morning when I realised that I would need to leave her soon. Tia was worried.
"You will die, Ben," she said to me. "The sun is coming up in an hour and a half." I smiled and told her that the sun won't kill us. Half an hour later, I decided that it was time for me to leave, and I offered to take her back. Tia shook her head.
"I don't want to go home, Benjamin," she told me. I looked at her curiously. She smiled as I began to realise what she meant. "I'm not leaving you." I shook my head with a smile on my face. Of course she wouldn't leave me.
"The pain will be unbearable," I told her, trying to coax her out of it. It didn't work. I held out my hand, which Tia took, and we left the town. When we got to the dessert, I stopped and turned to look at Tia. She looked at me curiously.
"Why did we stop?" she asked me. "I thought you were…."
"I am," I interrupted her. "But before you can meet them, I think that it would be safer to…" I stopped, meeting her eyes. She was ready. I stood up and looked at the ground, concentrating hard for it to crack. It took a few minutes, but in the end, a narrow fissure formed in the ground. Tia stood next to me, witnessing the scene, mouth open in surprise. I glanced at her and nodded.
"Are you ready?" I could tell she was nervous, but she nodded her head with confidence.
Inside the hole, Tia looked calm but her heart gave her away. It was beating faster than I have ever heard it beat. She was seated on the ground and I sat next to her. After a few minutes, she nodded. She was ready. That was when I bit her.
Three days later, Tia awoke. After I bit her, I sat with her never leaving her side. I didn't want to lose her again. Those three days were agony, both for me and for Tia. Her screaming could be heard for miles, I am sure. I sat next to her, holding her right hand, never letting go. After the second day, the screaming became less and less until, there was no more. She had stopped breathing by this time and I had wondered I she had died. Maybe I did something wrong. Amun had told me the difference between killing and changing a human. I didn't think I drank any of her blood.
I didn't have enough time to panic, though, as Tia had gripped my hand tighter, her body becoming paler and prettier, until finally, at the end of her third day of transformation, she opened her eyes.
When she first opened her eyes, I couldn't believe that it was her. She blinked a few times before focusing her attention on me. Her blank expression didn't change, but I knew she was just getting used to her heightened senses. After a few seconds, her crimson eyes darted around the room, as if she was worried. She sat up, using her hands like I had when I first sat up after my change, and she spoke for the first time.
"Benjamin." That was all she said. Just my name, but after realising she was a newborn, knew why. She was thirsty.
After she first spoke, her free hand made its way to her throat in shock. I stood up, her hand still in mine and I helped her up. I didn't say anything to her, but she knew where we were going. The closest town over to where we were was Suez, and I thought that, at night, it was a perfect place for hunting. Tia followed me out of the ground and she glanced around, smelling the blood before she could see where it was coming from. I held her hand in mine and we ran towards the town in the direction of the blood.
The smell was coming from a man, who looked to be around 30 years of age. He was walking down the street, heading home from work. He never knew what he had coming. Before I knew it, Tia was running towards the man. I smiled as I watched from a distance. Tia was a natural. As she neared the human, she turned to me, realising I was watching. She smirked and turned back to the human, who still hadn't realised she was there. She caught up to the man and bit his neck. The man screamed in a combination of shock and pain, but Tia kept drinking. After a few seconds, his screams became muffled until, finally, silence came upon him. Without blood in his body, Tia looked up, meeting my eyes. She looked worried. I made my may down to the body, never taking my eyes off Tia's. She dropped the body to the path and gave me a hug.
"I'm sorry," she kept muttering to me. "I don't know what I am doing." I shook my head and smiled at her.
"You were great." Confusion spread across her face. "Tia, we need to bury the body before anyone notices him." I picked up the body and led the way to the hole I had created earlier. That is where the dead body was thrown. Tia was still hungry, and I myself needed someone to drink, too, so we went to the next town closest to home and hunted there. This time, though, was different. Tia and I didn't separate further than 2 metres, but we both hunted separately. We found a couple walking on the edge of the Sahara, so, naturally, we fed on them. My tactic was different to Tia's though, so when I attacked the older man, Tia was already feeding on the woman. I always told the victim that I was sorry before feeding, because I didn't want them to die. Unfortunately, though, in order for me to live, they had to die.
I covered the man's mouth with my hand and bit delicately into his neck. As I broke the layers of skin on his neck, blood started oozing out into my mouth. I sighed as I tasted the sweetness of it, swallowed and sucked some more in. I never took my eyes off the man, but I could tell Tia had finished and was watching me. She had never seen me hunt before.
My tongue touched the two crescent-shapes I had made in his neck, longing for more blood from the empty body. I released my mouth from the man's neck and glanced up to find Tia's eyes lingering over the body. The corners of my mouth curled upwards into a grin and together we dumped the bodies into the hole. I closed it with my ability, with Tia holding my waist, and we made our way to Cairo, where Amun's house stood.
"Benjamin!" Amun roared when he heard the door close behind Tia and me. I glanced at Tia before turning to face the voice that was Amun's. I had warned Tia that Amun would be angry with me, but she didn't mind. She knew I meant well and that's all that mattered to her. Amun was outraged at me for leaving. After he had finished his initial outburst, he glanced behind me, noticing Tia for the first time.
He turned back to me with a bitter look on his face, realising what I had done.
"You created her," he said to me. It wasn't a question. "I told you never to leave. You…"
"Amun," I interrupted him. "Let me explain." And I did. I told him about only travelling at night, finding Tia and, finally, our journey home. I told him that I loved her and she wanted to change for me.
After I had finished explaining, I looked up to meet his eyes. He had lost the bitterness to his face and it was replaced with what looked like realisation. He nodded and put his hand on my shoulder.
"Benjamin," he began. "No harm was done. I apologise for acting the way I did." I turned back to Tia. She was standing awkwardly in the doorway but she smiled when she caught my eye.
Amun sent me to the basement after that, but this time was different. This time I had Tia. But Tia didn't like Amun and Kebi as much as I did. I don't think Kebi approved of Tia either as every time she spoke, a glare was shot Tia's way from Kebi.
One day, Amun and Kebi went out hunting together and Tia and I had the temple to ourselves for a few hours. Within those few hours of privacy, I knew this is the life I had always wanted. A life with Tia. Amun may never change his ways, but it didn't matter now. If Tia was staying, so was I.
THE END!