AUTHOR NOTES: Hello, and Welcome to chapter 2. I got really good feedback on this. I'm very pleased that you are pleased! Well, if you want it, who am I to keep it from you? But, you will have to bare with me for a little bit. This story will have sort of a slow beginning, but once it picks up, it's gunna be really good! Promise! Vampiric Mage Scout's Honor!!
Read, enjoy, review!
DISCLAIMER: . . . check chapter 1.
RATING: PG-13
"Selene? . . Selene, wake up."
The dark-haired vampiress opened her eyes. Michael was crouched over her, his eyes worried as he watched her. She held back a yawn, and glanced down at the still-sleeping child in her arms. "What? What is wrong?"
Michael gestured to the child in her arms. "Her fever."
Selene laid her palm over the girl's forehead. "It isn't any better."
"It feels worse." Michael said, taking the little girl and laying her out on the pallet. "She's dangerously hot. If her fever gets much higher, it will kill her. She's probably already brain-damaged."
The vampiress almost pouted, but scowled instead. "What do we do?"
"She needs antibiotics." answered the hybrid.
"We need to find a better place to stay." Selene cracked her knuckles, then reached down to check on the gun still strapped to her hip. "We can't stay in this filthy basement. We should move on."
"What about the girl?" Michael asked, watching the little girl breathe.
"We'll leave her at the hospital." Selene said matter-of-factly.
Michael snorted. "What hospital?! This is a piss-poor town! There is no proper hospital!"
"Well, what do you want me to do? I'm not the doctor!"
He became quiet again. "We need a place with a bathtub- or a tub big enough to put water in. Maybe if we put her in some luke-warm water, it will bring her fever down." he answered.
"We should move to the next town." Selene said with a sigh. "We can steal a car and drive the 30 miles. We'd be there in a half an hour- plenty of time to find a place to stay."
"Can we make a pitstop?" asked Michael. "The hospital might have some antibiotics. Anything would help."
Selene scowled again, putting her gun back in its holster. " . . . fine."
Michael smiled, lifting the little girl up. He reached down to help Selene up, but she ignored his hand to stand on her own. While Michael carried the little girl, Selene lead the way outside. Better to go now while the night was still young.
"This will do." Selene said, stopping the stolen van outside an old warehouse. The ceiling looked ready to crumble, and the windows were only half intact, but it would perhaps keep them safe for the day.
"Here, take her." Michael said, settling the little girl down into Selene's arms before he stepped out of the van. Selene stepped out behind him, following him up to the door. At the door, he stopped. "How do you think this will protect you?" he asked, looking up at the building. "Barely a roof and no windows. The sun will come through."
Selene sighed, rolling her eyes before gesturing to a set of storm doors off to the side of the structure. "Basement." she answered, walking to them and waiting for Michael to open them for her.
Michael gave her a sheepish expression before he pulled the lock off the doors, then swung them open. He stepped in before she did, walking down the metal stairs and into the darkness below. The vampiress followed, watching him try the lightswitch.
The power was out.
"No big surprise there." muttered the hybrid, scanning the room with eyes that seemed to glow. "At least there are no windows."
The room they stood in was at least twenty-five feet deep and twenty feet wide, piled high around the edges with old barrels, boxes and crates. The floor was cement, and sloped down to a little drain in the center of the room, and the ceiling was old, sagging cardboard panneling. It looked as though no one had been in the basement of this building for years- certainly not for upkeep.
"What luck we have." Selene murmered. Michael turned to her just as she lightly kicked an old metal washtub. Ignoring the ache in his temples that the noise made, the hyrbid leaned down to inspect the metal tub.
"Now we need a way to get warm water."
Selene moved to take a seat on the stair, laying the todler across her lap to rest her arms. "We need a gas heater. A lamp would be nice, too."
"Well, none of the shops will be open until morning." Michael returned.
The vampiress gave him a 'you're-an-idiot' look. "Then break in and take one. Put your hoodie up."
"Steal one?"
Selene nodded casually. "Look at it this way: if you don't, she dies."
The calmness of her voice irked him, but he chose to ignore it. If was was a life or death situation- and it was- he felt he was justified. "You stay here with her. I'll be back soon."
The vampiress nodded, watching him go.
Michael really hoped that the family who owned the little shop on the corner of Hoffnung and Plato weren't so poor that they couldn't replace the window he had broken to get in. He also hoped that no one else robbed the store in his wake. It was such a humble shop, most of the goods home-made.
He paused near a dumpster, and set the two boxes- one a small gas camping stove, the other a kerosene lantern- and the jug of kerosene in his arms down onto the snowy road. "Sorry, people." he murmered softly, pulling a video tape from his jacket. He'd found a very low-tech video surveilance system behind the counter- quite by accident- and this was the tape with him on it. He snapped the tape in two as easily as he could have broken a twig, and tossed it- ruined- into the dumpster.
Glancing at the sun, the hybrid could see it was almost 3:00 in the morning. Selene would need him back soon so that either he or she could hunt down something for her to drink. They'd run out of bagged blood a few days ago, and Michael knew he couldn't supply her with enough blood from himself to sustain her much longer- not without dying in the process.
The two boxes were relifted, dusted of snow, and the hybrid trekked on.
The first thing that Michael heard upon his return to the warehouse, was the sound of someone humming. He paused at the doors, setting his boxes down. With a curious look, he settled down on his knees in front of the storm doors, peaking in through a knothole, making a mental note to patch it before dawn.
At fist, he couldn't see a thing, but soon, his eyes adjusted to see the basic outlines in the room. Right where he'd left her, Selene sat, rocking the little girl in her arms, and humming some soft, old lullaby to her. Michael couldn't resist a big grin.
He watched for a few seconds more, imprinting the lullaby to memory- who knows if he'd ever hear it again from her lips? Finally, Michael stood up. He made enough noise around the entrance to cover the sound of her humming, giving her the chance to put on her 'I don't care' face again. If he walked on her doing something so loving, she'd be angry no doubt.
When he brought the boxes down in the basement, she had moved to another spot, the girl resting against her shoulder, an old book in her hands as she feined reading. She barely glanced up at him when he came down. "What took you so long?" she asked quietly.
"Had to find a store that actually had what we needed." he answered casually, setting the boxes on the bottom step before tearing into one. He pulled out the lantern first. Light was priority now.
"Did you bring matches?" Selene asked, watching him.
"Yeah." Michael answered, pulling the book of matches out of his pocket along with the little bottle of ibuprofen and the bottle of drinking water that he had swiped from the store. He set down the medicine and took of the jug of kerosene. A few moments later, he had the lantern lit, illuminating the room.
"Hang it on that hook."
Michael turned to see Selene. She gestured up to a piece of wire hanging from a beam in the ceiling. With a nod, he stood up and attatched the lantern to the wire. "That's that." He moved back to the stairs, lifting the ibuprofen and water. "This will help bring her fever down." he said, approaching the vampiress and toddler.
"And how are you going to get a sleeping child to swallow a pill?" Selene asked, laying the child back in her arms.
"I'm going to shove it down her little throat." Michael murmered sarcastically, pulling a pill from the bottle and breaking it in half. Turning serious, he crushed the half pill in his fingers. "Can you hold her mouth open?"
Selene pried the child's jaw open, watching Michael sprinkle the powder on the girl's tongue, then pour a teaspoon of water in after it. Instinctivly, the girl swallowed- medicine and all.
"See? Not so hard." Michael said, putting the other half of the pill back in the bottle and screwing shut the lid. He moved back to the stair and the gas stove still in its box. "We're going to have to melt snow for warm water." he said casually. "So, either you can stay here with her and melt snow while I go hunting for blood, or you can stay here with her and melt snow while I go hunting for blood. Your pick."
"Nice choices." Selene rolled her eyes, shifting the little girl back onto her shoulder. "No more cat blood."
"Okay." Michael said. "There's a pot in the van. I saw it when I tossed our bag in- which I will retrieve before I go hunt. You can use the pot to-"
"I'm quite familiar with boiling water, thankyou." Selene hissed, cutting him off. "Just go on!"
"Be right back."
Well, what did you think? Good? Bad? Do you love it? Do you hate it? Tell me in a review!
The Lady Mage
Read, enjoy, review!
DISCLAIMER: . . . check chapter 1.
RATING: PG-13
"Selene? . . Selene, wake up."
The dark-haired vampiress opened her eyes. Michael was crouched over her, his eyes worried as he watched her. She held back a yawn, and glanced down at the still-sleeping child in her arms. "What? What is wrong?"
Michael gestured to the child in her arms. "Her fever."
Selene laid her palm over the girl's forehead. "It isn't any better."
"It feels worse." Michael said, taking the little girl and laying her out on the pallet. "She's dangerously hot. If her fever gets much higher, it will kill her. She's probably already brain-damaged."
The vampiress almost pouted, but scowled instead. "What do we do?"
"She needs antibiotics." answered the hybrid.
"We need to find a better place to stay." Selene cracked her knuckles, then reached down to check on the gun still strapped to her hip. "We can't stay in this filthy basement. We should move on."
"What about the girl?" Michael asked, watching the little girl breathe.
"We'll leave her at the hospital." Selene said matter-of-factly.
Michael snorted. "What hospital?! This is a piss-poor town! There is no proper hospital!"
"Well, what do you want me to do? I'm not the doctor!"
He became quiet again. "We need a place with a bathtub- or a tub big enough to put water in. Maybe if we put her in some luke-warm water, it will bring her fever down." he answered.
"We should move to the next town." Selene said with a sigh. "We can steal a car and drive the 30 miles. We'd be there in a half an hour- plenty of time to find a place to stay."
"Can we make a pitstop?" asked Michael. "The hospital might have some antibiotics. Anything would help."
Selene scowled again, putting her gun back in its holster. " . . . fine."
Michael smiled, lifting the little girl up. He reached down to help Selene up, but she ignored his hand to stand on her own. While Michael carried the little girl, Selene lead the way outside. Better to go now while the night was still young.
"This will do." Selene said, stopping the stolen van outside an old warehouse. The ceiling looked ready to crumble, and the windows were only half intact, but it would perhaps keep them safe for the day.
"Here, take her." Michael said, settling the little girl down into Selene's arms before he stepped out of the van. Selene stepped out behind him, following him up to the door. At the door, he stopped. "How do you think this will protect you?" he asked, looking up at the building. "Barely a roof and no windows. The sun will come through."
Selene sighed, rolling her eyes before gesturing to a set of storm doors off to the side of the structure. "Basement." she answered, walking to them and waiting for Michael to open them for her.
Michael gave her a sheepish expression before he pulled the lock off the doors, then swung them open. He stepped in before she did, walking down the metal stairs and into the darkness below. The vampiress followed, watching him try the lightswitch.
The power was out.
"No big surprise there." muttered the hybrid, scanning the room with eyes that seemed to glow. "At least there are no windows."
The room they stood in was at least twenty-five feet deep and twenty feet wide, piled high around the edges with old barrels, boxes and crates. The floor was cement, and sloped down to a little drain in the center of the room, and the ceiling was old, sagging cardboard panneling. It looked as though no one had been in the basement of this building for years- certainly not for upkeep.
"What luck we have." Selene murmered. Michael turned to her just as she lightly kicked an old metal washtub. Ignoring the ache in his temples that the noise made, the hyrbid leaned down to inspect the metal tub.
"Now we need a way to get warm water."
Selene moved to take a seat on the stair, laying the todler across her lap to rest her arms. "We need a gas heater. A lamp would be nice, too."
"Well, none of the shops will be open until morning." Michael returned.
The vampiress gave him a 'you're-an-idiot' look. "Then break in and take one. Put your hoodie up."
"Steal one?"
Selene nodded casually. "Look at it this way: if you don't, she dies."
The calmness of her voice irked him, but he chose to ignore it. If was was a life or death situation- and it was- he felt he was justified. "You stay here with her. I'll be back soon."
The vampiress nodded, watching him go.
Michael really hoped that the family who owned the little shop on the corner of Hoffnung and Plato weren't so poor that they couldn't replace the window he had broken to get in. He also hoped that no one else robbed the store in his wake. It was such a humble shop, most of the goods home-made.
He paused near a dumpster, and set the two boxes- one a small gas camping stove, the other a kerosene lantern- and the jug of kerosene in his arms down onto the snowy road. "Sorry, people." he murmered softly, pulling a video tape from his jacket. He'd found a very low-tech video surveilance system behind the counter- quite by accident- and this was the tape with him on it. He snapped the tape in two as easily as he could have broken a twig, and tossed it- ruined- into the dumpster.
Glancing at the sun, the hybrid could see it was almost 3:00 in the morning. Selene would need him back soon so that either he or she could hunt down something for her to drink. They'd run out of bagged blood a few days ago, and Michael knew he couldn't supply her with enough blood from himself to sustain her much longer- not without dying in the process.
The two boxes were relifted, dusted of snow, and the hybrid trekked on.
The first thing that Michael heard upon his return to the warehouse, was the sound of someone humming. He paused at the doors, setting his boxes down. With a curious look, he settled down on his knees in front of the storm doors, peaking in through a knothole, making a mental note to patch it before dawn.
At fist, he couldn't see a thing, but soon, his eyes adjusted to see the basic outlines in the room. Right where he'd left her, Selene sat, rocking the little girl in her arms, and humming some soft, old lullaby to her. Michael couldn't resist a big grin.
He watched for a few seconds more, imprinting the lullaby to memory- who knows if he'd ever hear it again from her lips? Finally, Michael stood up. He made enough noise around the entrance to cover the sound of her humming, giving her the chance to put on her 'I don't care' face again. If he walked on her doing something so loving, she'd be angry no doubt.
When he brought the boxes down in the basement, she had moved to another spot, the girl resting against her shoulder, an old book in her hands as she feined reading. She barely glanced up at him when he came down. "What took you so long?" she asked quietly.
"Had to find a store that actually had what we needed." he answered casually, setting the boxes on the bottom step before tearing into one. He pulled out the lantern first. Light was priority now.
"Did you bring matches?" Selene asked, watching him.
"Yeah." Michael answered, pulling the book of matches out of his pocket along with the little bottle of ibuprofen and the bottle of drinking water that he had swiped from the store. He set down the medicine and took of the jug of kerosene. A few moments later, he had the lantern lit, illuminating the room.
"Hang it on that hook."
Michael turned to see Selene. She gestured up to a piece of wire hanging from a beam in the ceiling. With a nod, he stood up and attatched the lantern to the wire. "That's that." He moved back to the stairs, lifting the ibuprofen and water. "This will help bring her fever down." he said, approaching the vampiress and toddler.
"And how are you going to get a sleeping child to swallow a pill?" Selene asked, laying the child back in her arms.
"I'm going to shove it down her little throat." Michael murmered sarcastically, pulling a pill from the bottle and breaking it in half. Turning serious, he crushed the half pill in his fingers. "Can you hold her mouth open?"
Selene pried the child's jaw open, watching Michael sprinkle the powder on the girl's tongue, then pour a teaspoon of water in after it. Instinctivly, the girl swallowed- medicine and all.
"See? Not so hard." Michael said, putting the other half of the pill back in the bottle and screwing shut the lid. He moved back to the stair and the gas stove still in its box. "We're going to have to melt snow for warm water." he said casually. "So, either you can stay here with her and melt snow while I go hunting for blood, or you can stay here with her and melt snow while I go hunting for blood. Your pick."
"Nice choices." Selene rolled her eyes, shifting the little girl back onto her shoulder. "No more cat blood."
"Okay." Michael said. "There's a pot in the van. I saw it when I tossed our bag in- which I will retrieve before I go hunt. You can use the pot to-"
"I'm quite familiar with boiling water, thankyou." Selene hissed, cutting him off. "Just go on!"
"Be right back."
Well, what did you think? Good? Bad? Do you love it? Do you hate it? Tell me in a review!
The Lady Mage