"Can you give me your name, species and gender?" The disembodied voice behind the camera questioned the barely concealed excitement poorly hidden behind a professional tone. "For the record of course…" it added.
The screen flickered as the aged film stubbornly protested on the projector.
The figure in front of the camera looked at the floor with its dreadlocked hair cascading past the camera's range. It suddenly sat up and exhaled a deep breath of green smoke revealing a face partially covered in tattoos and scars, a well proportioned straight nose and thin lips clasped around a rolled up piece of paper which billowed smoke. If it were not for the tattoos and scarring he might have been handsome.
"Caspian Neophrastus Skuet, that's Ess, Kay, You-umlaut, Tee," he added, "I am a Vampire, male. Despite my German name, I was born in Transylvania; the Carpathian Mountains, raised in England, and," he paused for a moment "I am a warrior of the Drakulya Clan." He paused for a moment before adding, "Though…not a very good one."
He gave the camera a forced smile, and took another puff from the rolled paper in his hands. His voice was young but his face gave away nothing of his age, and thus could be anywhere between the age of 19-29.
"Any education?" the voice asked, clearly moving through a list of generic questions.
The man called Caspian smiled, genuinely it seemed "Yes, actually! I am a proud graduate of Hogwarts' school of Witchcraft and Wizardry! I was a Gryffindor…"
"Why are you here?" The faceless camera inquired with a note of discernable interest in the voice, clearly moving to the real reason they were both here. The deteriorated film jumped again on the projector once more.
The vampire warrior thought for a moment "To tell my story… I have more than a few devils to get off my chest, and a few facts that need to be put straight." He paused again. "I have done so much…" the mixture of exhaustion and sorrow in his warm blue eyes seemed to grow more acute, "The Hell I have, I've built myself you know…"
Chapter 1: Lose the Day
There is something about train rides and long trips which elicits deep thoughts, and sparks the imagination; new people, new places, new faces all mesh, and are a motivation behind philosophical revelations and epiphanies.
'Why am I not better with girls?' Caspian contemplated. He than remembered, 'Oh. Right… Vampires aren't allowed to reproduce with Humans… It was in that contract you signed when entering England and everything.' This was not so much of an epiphany, as it was a remembrance. A remembrance which left with the overall sense of 'Damn….'
He broke himself away from this particular stream of consciousness and tossed another armful of clothes into the trunk at the foot of his coffin. The Gryffindor boy's dormitory was empty, the other seventh years out celebrating the completion of their N.E.W.T's and their Hogwarts' career. He wasn't surprised when they "forgot" to invite him.
He could not help but reflect on the number of times in his seven years he had overheard them whispering about how creepy it was that he slept in a coffin. Honestly. They had never tried it, and should not pass judgment. The cushioning from the silky lining, the lack-of-need-for-sheets (the lid kept his body heat in) but most of all, the seclusion. The Darkness was also a necessity.
Human knowledge of Vampire anatomy was woefully, well… speculation and myth. For example, they believe vampires came out only at night, for they would burst into flame in the Sun. This was an over exaggeration; he challenged the Human world to live a life without things like 'blood circulation' or 'skin pigment' and than not receive a painful reminder of the Harm of UV radiation from the sun. Even the Human's spoke of sunburn, but he was yet to see any of them bursting into flames. Vampires had known of this handicap for a long time. The invention of 'Krema' several hundred years prior had been major breakthrough in Vampirik culture.
However without his sunglasses, he would be unable to see during the day. This was something for which no cure existed. The Vampire's eyes, which were tuned for hunting at night, had difficulty adapting during the daylight. Even with the strong sunglasses on, it was awkward, though far from impossible, for him to see in the daylight.
He also appreciated the Coffin's sound-proof qualities when his fellow roommates would bring girls back to their room unaware of his presence. He would remain in the coffin until they had finished whatever they were doing and emerge when it was safe. He had chastised himself for being the overly creepy. He soon realized however that there could be nothing like the shock of an unexpected guest emerging suddenly from a coffin to kill whatever 'mood' that could be salvaged from a school dormitory. After this revelation, he felt less guilty.
His long brown hair swept over his eyes as he read through a page in the open textbook,
Care of Magical Creatures:
"…vampires are also known for their belligerence and resistance to performing any sort of true magic. They do perform their own indigenous magic's, some of which may be of interest to a student of indigenous or tribal shamanism, but little of practical use. Like most Humanoid creatures, they are capable of imitating wizarding magic, but insist on creating a mixture blend of indigenous and proper magic, which…"
He slammed the book closed and tossed it into his trunk. In the 200 some-odd pages in which the 'vampire' was discussed, there was not one mention of the Tribes or language or… anything in short that had to do with his world.
He was alerted by a knock on the door and a girl's voice calling, "Caspian?" He knew immediately who it was, the only person who ever called upon him with any frequency.
Esmeralda Eve Prewett insisted that people call her Izzy. She was the Head Girl of Gryffindor, first in her year, stunningly beautiful and his best friend. Or rather, she was his friend as 'best friend' suggests that he returned her friendliness equally. Caspian was extraordinarily paranoid of Humans, naturally inclined to silence and frequently gave her a cold shoulder. Despite his apparent lack of interest in her, she had persisted with their friendship since first year. He wasn't sure why. Caspian was aware that he was a jackass and that she deserved better.
Yet she had stood up for him when the other students took his sunglasses and laughed at him as he blindly stumbled around trying to get them back. She had chastised them as hypocrites when they had called him a 'No-Blood' or 'Murderer' or, worst of all 'Vimp'.
They say that if you lock your door, you lock out love. Needless to say that he kept his door locked. On the other side of the door he could hear a muffled voice say "Alohamora." The possibility of someone doing that had never occurred to him, but Izzy was a notoriously clever girl.
The lock clicked open, and she stepped into the room and at a glance, he could see her red hair tied into a long pony tail. Although she was pale, when standing next to the chalk white Caspian, she seemed to radiate light. He kept his back to her as he said, "You know, when people lock their doors, it usually means that they want to be left alone."
In the mirror leaning against his bedpost he could see her smile. He looked away from the mirror. He could hear the springs on the bed squeak as she sat on it. Caspian remained silent. What was it with this school and the overflow of Red haired girls? He remembered her relation to the Weasleys and, again, he answered his own question. He found himself answering his own questions a lot…
"It's a lovely day," she said, used to his coldness.
"I hadn't noticed," he said briefly. This was a lie. The windows were wide open; the sunlight streaming through, and in his heart, there was nothing he wanted to do more than ask her to go for a walk with him. He remained silent.
She seemed devoted to conversation, although she knew that pulling out his fangs would be easier than eliciting conversation from Caspian, "You heard what happened at the tournament? Cedric Diggory…"
Caspian halted packing for a moment, "Yes. Quite sad…" he said simply.
She lowered her voice, "So… do you believe Harry Potter? Do you think that… he-who-must-not-be-named is back?"
Caspian shrugged, "It is eminently feasible. After the first war, after the Dark Lord had been vanquished, the English Ministry of Magic acted upon rumors of his form hiding in Albania, and requested that the Albanian Ministry undergo a search. The Albanian ministry asked for help in the search from the Hungarian-Romanian ministries, who finally, delegated the task to my tribe. My father was one of the hunters. He says that the search ended inconclusively without sufficient evidence to disprove that he was dead or alive…"Caspian trailed off characteristically, returning to his familiar silence.
The silence from Caspian expanded until it seemed to fill the entire room
"Caspian… this is the last day of school. Ever. I… I wanted to tell you that I…" her musical voice breaking the silence, though her tone was timid.
He interrupted her quickly, "Would you braid my hair for me?"
Her face was a mixture of disappointment and amusement. "From any other man that request would sound strange," she remarked, smirking and shaking her head in disbelief. "So… You're really going to do this… Warrior thing?"
Without looking up from his packing, he nodded, "Of course. It is my duty to my tribe. And it is a great honor!" She had never understood his tribal loyalty, and it had been the source of many arguments between them. "Now, will you do my hair?" he demanded.
She smiled weakly and out of the corner of his eye he saw her nod as well, "Ok."
She leaned across the bed and ran her fingers through his hair once, "I still hate you for your hair. Pity you're going to dreadlock it…"
Caspian ignored the goose bumps which ran up his spine whenever she touched him, and threw his defences up immediately, "You mean it's a pity that I, a vampire, should obey the honorable calling of my tribe and people, to serve it as my father and ancestors have before me?" His snapped brusquely, although this was not uncommon from him. Caspian had tried to demonstrate to Izzy how his tribal affiliations really determined his path for him. Esmeralda maintained that Caspian was allowed to make his own decisions in life.
Of the approximate 200 Vampire Tribes which existed on the Planet Earth, every single one of them had a distinctive hair style; the Vampires of the British Isles, Northern France and the majority for example would Mohawk their hair, and die it bright colors. Many of the Balkan tribes would spike their long hair into spikes; his Tribe dreadlocked it. This was all left out in "Care of Magical Creature".
For the first time in a long time, Caspian felt suddenly and deeply ashamed of himself, "I'm sorry Izzy…"
She had been using her wand, to tease his hair into the locks. She shrugged, "It's alright." She said simply. The moments dragged by, silent.
"Would you get me that comb on your dresser Cas?" she asked politely.
Staring straight ahead of himself, careful to not gaze in her direction, Caspian rose from the bed and walked the five paces to his dresser.
"Caspian," she asked, her voice suddenly sincere, "Why have you not kissed me yet?"
Caspian dropped the brush onto the table and sank down, using his arms to prop him up on the table: it was the question he had been dreading, and praying, she would ask for years. He remained silent.
She had known him for long enough to read his silences, as he spoke very little and was always particularly quiet with her. She was his greatest temptation away from the warrior's path he had been preparing himself for since he was a boy. At least that's what he told himself. To be honest, he was terrified of her, of what could happen between them, and he was ashamed of himself for it.
A warrior should be without fear.
She spoke again, "I know you feel the same way Caspian. she said, he voice filling with emotion, "Stop lying about it to yourself…"
Caspian was silent again, his eyes firmly shut, shaking his head slightly and praying that it would all go away.
She spoke again, her voice raised "Caspian look into my eyes and tell me you do not love me!"
He took a deep breath and exhaled, "Why do you think I've never looked you in the eyes…"
She stood up, the joy in her voice burning his cowardly skin, "Then come with me Caspian!"
He pushed himself onto his feet, "I cannot Izzy… I am a warrior…"
Before he could finish his thought she interrupted, "No you're not Caspian! You are a poet, and you write the most beautiful music I have ever heard…" She was exasperated. This was not a new debate between them...
His father had said the same thing to him. Caspian remained silent, unable to turn and look at her, though he knew they were both right.
He sighed, and found the appropriate excuse, "It would never work… my species and yours… the ministry would never allow…"
Izzy looked unconvinced and retorted, "Caspian. My family has connections. Powerful connections…"
Caspian could not make himself turn around. Instead of answering her, he took up his wand and began to run it along his hair.
There was silence between them as he finished his hair. He turned to her and smiled, unable to meet her eyes, "How do I look?"
It was now his turn to bear the brunt of her silence. Although he was unable to look into her eyes, he could feel their daggers.
When she finally spoke, it was with a fury he had never heard in her voice, "I think," her voice began to choke with tears, "I am looking at a coward. A coward who is so in love with the idea of death, that he has ignored life. I think I have been stupid to believe you could love me, when you're more in love with lies." tears began to roll down her cheek.
She stood up from the bed and walked from the room with great elegance, despite her tears. What struck Caspian the most is that when she left, he could hear her whisper "Colloportus." The lock in his door clicked.
In that moment he realized how completely and totally she understood him. Through the closed doors, in the room and within himself, the gravity of his loss was born upon him.
Caspian gazed at the closed door and implored softly, "No… don't go…please…" The room however, remained empty and silent.
