Obsidiana

Night and Blood

Beta: hurdygurdygirl

Summary: This is a love history: a mysterious alternate universe where Miranda is a creature of darkness tormented by the perspective of living forever without her great love. Will she find redemption?

Chapter 1

Immortals. Walking around the world without a definite destination. The blessing of eternal life, that would be considered appealing for most humans, becomes a curse when the perspective of living forever lost its purpose. She rambles through the streets of countless cities, night after night, seeking life – life that could feed her, life that could transform her body, even for a few hours, into a less cold form. Traveling alone allows her to keep a discrete profile, although, from time to time she found convenience in adopting brief company if the circumstances were adverse.

Finding out ways to feed and defend herself against any threats were her priorities and to keep existing, her unique ambition. She had never succumbed to sleep or inaction, like so many others of her kind. Sometimes she still wishes, even for brief moments, to stop existing and more than once she thought about ending her tormented existence. Unfortunately, her age was a huge obstacle. A young creature, with a few decades of existence, could choose an easy and fast way to die, exposing itself to the sun. That privilege was out of her reach mostly because two centuries separated her from her human life - from sunny days when existence was a blessing instead of curse. She was centuries away from her human life, from sweet and painful memories, from perfect skin, silk black hair and Brown eyes, that were once the beginning and the end of life itself.

Miranda felt the cold night air and accepted the invitation to hunt, walking around crowded streets while waiting for the perfect opportunity: the right moment to approach a victim. In a vampire life, age brings great benefits. In the beginning "The Thirst" was sharp and she had no control over her needs, eagerly eating to quench the hunger that painfully bothered her every night. Now she could control her will,avoid wasting lives and precious blood. Nowadays she rarely killed. She was content to eat slowly, involving victims in a hypnotic state that allowed her to drink quantities of blood that would not undermine the fragile humans who crossed her path. She walks the dark streets anonymously, considering that in her life, survival depended on discretion. She prized invisibility and loneliness, though had adopted from time to time the company of others of her kind. She knew that sometimes she had been desired, and even loved. It was ironic. A vampire, contrary to common belief assumptions, does not lose the ability to feel. Along the increase of strength, speed and all the senses, which accompanied the phenomenon of transformation, the young vampire was flooded with uncontrollable feelings. Hate, love, anger... All feelings amplified. It was as a vampire that Miranda knew how love could be the stronger feeling and also the deepest pain. The only creature she had really wanted in her life died in her arms almost two centuries ago, a victim of violence and human stupidity.

She identifies the sounds of leaves being swayed by the wind, the branches being broken by the movement of insects and the steps of a few humans around the campus. She decided to sit on a wall protected from light in front of one of the buildings, playing with her senses while trying to identify smells and sounds. The building has four floors and the windows were turned toward her. She concentrates, isolating the sounds offered by the humans inside from those of the city. She realizes that some rooms are still occupied by few people, probably working. It was late and she could identify distinct movements in the building. There were five humans inside and she could clearly feel their presence, smell their bodies and hear some of their thoughts. Two women of the cleaning staff were talking about trivialities while complaining about the students who did not keep the aisles clean. The security guard was moving upstairs, turning off lights in unoccupied rooms. In one corner of the building, she could see light emanating from a single room. Two human were still working and she tried to discern their thoughts. She was surprised and curious to note that she could discern two people but only hear the thoughts of one of them. She was really surprised. It was rare to find humans who possess a mental discipline strong enough to prevent mind control. In her long life she had been faced with perhaps half a dozen people with such skill. She sighed heavily. It was the second time on the same night that her thoughts had brought memories of a long lost love, someone with a strong mind and a great will. Miranda was never able to read her mind and that was one of the reasons she was hunted by guilt. Miranda, a powerful vampire who could hear the thoughts of people from miles away, had not been able to protect the love of her life, because she couldn't hear her cries, her pleas for help.

A tear rolled down her pale face. These days she rarely cries, but tonight for some reason she had opened the gates of her memories, the bitter memories that she wishes to forget.

Her thoughts are interrupted as the central door opens and a small woman leaves the building. She smells her smell and reads her mind. The teacher comes out satisfied with the result of her work, done with the help of a colleague. Her thoughts flowed to her husband and children but she also harbored concerned feelings for her friend still in the building. In a flash, Miranda captures a disconcerting image. A human face appears like a flash in her thoughts and she gasps. The short woman comes near her and enters her car without noticing Miranda's presence.

Moved by her curiosity the vampire turns her attention once more to the building, waiting for other movements. The cleaning staff says goodbye to the guard and leaves. The guard walks slowly through the halls, perhaps waiting until the last occupant leaves the building in order to lock it. Miranda looks back to the second floor window and realizes the lights went out. Deciding to wait to satisfy her own curiosity about the human, she tries once again to break the mental barriers while she approaches. The building had only one exit and the mysterious woman would have to go through the path in front of Miranda. She thinks that she could even feed upon the creature, satisfying her need for blood. The building's front door opened and all she could discern was a tall and slender silhouette walking down the catwalk that led the way out. Miranda notes the sweet odor emanating from the stranger. Her steps are firm and they bring once again some feelings she can't identify.

The human's pace looks familiar, though Miranda was absolutely sure that she's never seen the woman before. Suddenly, another movement caught her attention. The guard follows the teacher brandishing an object.

"Professor! Professor Sachs, wait!

The woman turns around and Miranda can see that the man is holding a blue folder in his hands. The woman speaks and the sound of her voice freezes Miranda's bones.

"Calm down John, is there a problem?"

The panting man responds, "You dropped this in the hallway!"

"Oh, thank you John! I'm so tired I'm missing things"

Andrea takes the folder and says goodbye to the man. She walks to the car looking around, having the strange feeling of being watched. John waits until she leaves, as he always does when she is working late at night. The old guard has known her since the time when she was still a journalism student, running through the halls and making jokes. She smiles while remembering how her life was back then; when she did not carry this grief, this loneliness.

She was just a girl and could not imagine what would be her future. She starts the car, waves to John and drives through the gates of the University.

In a dark corner, on top of a wall, Miranda could not move because she has just seen a ghost.

TBC