Author's Note: Last chapter's non-BttF MJF reference, which no one got, was "Oh man, this is too real…" when Marty gets shot. MJF's character, Nick Lang, said that in The Hard Way.
Oh, and this chapter marks the first real appearance of Katherine O'Conelly, who is based off my good friend Kat. The true plot also starts here, which sets things up for the sequels.
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Chapter Seven – Awakening
Saturday, April 6th, 1985
Unknown location, California
6:27 PM
For a long time, he drifted through an endless black void, unable to see, hear, or touch anything. Is this it? he wondered absently. Am I dead?
Slowly, almost slow enough that he didn't notice it, the gentle sound of the wind in the trees began to rise up in the darkness. Gradually, he realized that he could hear other sounds of nature around him, like the trickling of a creek nearby and the chirping of crickets.
This is nice…there isn't even any pain… What? No pain? But I thought I got shot…
His eyes flew open and he sat bolt upright. "Oh my God!" He rapidly checked himself over. No wounds were on his body, and his shirt and jacket were still missing. His jeans had faint flecks of blood on them, and one dark brownish-red stain towards the knee, along with a matching pair of holes. Marty stared at himself in bewilderment. The last time he'd checked, he had been badly wounded…why wasn't he injured?
"Ah, you're awake."
Startled, he leapt to his feet and faced the voice, but relaxed when he recognized the woman from hazy memories. She was carrying his shirt and jacket, and she handed them to him. "Here, put these back on," she said kindly. "I've repaired them for you."
Marty blushed as he realized that he was half-naked in front of a beautiful woman, and hurriedly pulled the blue T-shirt over his head. He was startled to see that it was completely intact and had only faint traces of blood on it. The boy became aware that he was gaping like an idiot, and shook himself out of it. "Thank you…I'm sorry, I didn't get your name," he apologized as he put on his denim jacket.
"Oh, don't worry about that, you were rather out of it when I found you," she replied casually, sitting down on a large boulder. "My name is Katherine O'Conelly."
For the first time, Marty noticed that colors seemed a lot more vibrant than they had before despite the darkness, and sounds were a thousand times louder in his ears. A faint breeze tickled against his skin and he felt a sudden surge of energy, making him sway slightly. "Whoa…" he whispered in surprise, closing his eyes for a moment. "What…what did you do to me?"
"The only thing I could do," Katherine said. "Marty, do you believe in vampires?"
The question seemed so irrelevant, Marty took a moment to understand. "Umm…well I always thought they'd be interesting if they existed," he said after a moment's thought, eyeing her carefully. "Though I've always thought I'd make a better werewolf. Why?"
She smiled. "Because, Marty…I am a vampire. And now, so are you."
Marty stared at her. "That's…that's not possible," he stammered. "Vampires don't exist!"
"Don't be silly," she said sternly, and her eyes actually glowed with bright emerald fire as black, bat-like wings unfolded from her back. She smiled at his startled surprise, showing a pair of sharp fangs.
Absently, Marty thought that he should be running away screaming by now, but some other part of him told him that it was perfectly normal for vampires to exist. "Uhh…you're…a vampire," he said stupidly.
"Last time I checked, yes," Katherine agreed. "And to save your life, I had to Change you into a vampire as well. How do you feel?"
Marty's brain seemed to be working slower than usual from the sheer surrealism of the idea. "Uhh…much better, thanks. So…I'm a vampire," he said, staring down at his hands. I sure don't feel any different… although there is something strange going on here. "So if I'm a vampire, how come I don't have fangs?" he challenged.
"Until you learn how to control them, your fangs will only appear when you are feeding, which you'll need to do about every three days," Katherine said idly as her wings retracted into her back again. "You can control your wings right away, however – you probably aren't aware of how to use them, so let's try this…stretch your arms out like those are your wings."
Marty thought he looked stupid doing it, but he did as she said. As his arms moved to the sides, he felt a strange twinge in his back, and looked over his shoulder to see jet-black wings melting from his back, his shirt and jacket shifting around them as if it wasn't even there. Each wing had a large claw at the base, and another claw at the thumb-joint. They tingled slightly at first, like a limb that had gone to sleep, but the feeling faded and was replaced by the mere feel of the wind blowing gently against the membrane.
In absolute amazement of his new appendages, Marty twitched one wing and then the other, getting used to the feeling of an extra set of limbs. Katherine was watching him in amusement. "You won't want to try flying yet," she advised. "While you can't die from falling, it would still hurt a hell of a lot if you don't know how to handle air currents."
"What do you mean?" Marty asked, drawing his attention away from his wings.
"There are six clans of vampires," Katherine said as if lecturing. "All the clans originally lived together in Transylvania, but our kind was hunted viciously and so the clans sought out new homes. The Răunul, or Evil Ones – who have the power to become shadows – settled in Europe. The Focstăpân, which means Fire Lords, migrated to Australia. The Peretealpinist clan – who do not have wings and thus have the ability to cling to walls – are currently mostly settled in north Asia. The Vrememanevra, or weather-manipulators, made their home in Africa. The Mintecapcană, or Mind Trappers – who hold the power of hypnosis – now live in South America. Our clan is the Vântstăpân, or Wind Masters, and we have been in North America for centuries. We have the power to create, control, and draw energy from the wind."
Katherine waved a hand lazily, and the wind instantly increased, blowing hard through the trees. She pointed towards the grass, and an invisible blade seemed to cut the foliage down, sweeping it up in a miniature tornado and depositing it in a pile between the two vampires. "Our clan is obviously the most adept at flying," she said matter-of-factly, "because if the winds do not favor us, we can fix that easily. It may be some time before you master this ability, however."
"Wow…this is heavy," Marty muttered, sitting down on another boulder and clumsily retracting his wings.
Katherine laughed. "I understand exactly what you mean," she sympathized. "I went through the exact same thing, over a hundred years ago by now. But that's a story for another time," she said abruptly, standing up. "You need to learn about your own abilities for now."
"There's more?" Marty exclaimed in surprise.
The other vampire nodded. "In addition to the wings, we also have retractable claws," she said, "which can be released by tensing up the hand muscles. You can try that later. Your senses and reflexes are greatly enhanced, and I'm sure you'll find that you're much more athletic than you were before. If you're injured, you will heal almost instantly unless you consciously slow your healing rate to avoid suspicion."
"Whoa, what about the regular vampires stuff?" Marty interrupted cautiously. "You know, not being able to stand in sunlight and all that."
Katherine laughed lightly. "Most of that is myth," she assured him, "including the silly notion that a crucifix or holy water can harm us. However, every three days, you will need to feed, or sunlight will begin to cause you to become ill. The effects can be aided with sunglasses, but you must feed no later than eighty hours apart. All vampires also have an allergy to garlic, but it cannot kill us – just make us feel very nauseous if we ingest it. The only other things that can kill us are decapitation or a stake through the heart. Vampires are immune to all poisons, and cannot be drowned or burned."
Marty thought about that, and was silent for a few minutes. "So," he said at last, "I guess this means no more Pepsi, eh?"
The woman smiled gently. "Actually, you can still handle most liquids and rare meat without a problem, they just aren't essential to survival," she replied. "The more solid something is, the less likely you'll be able to keep it down, though, so you probably won't be able to eat things like toast or vegetables anymore."
Marty couldn't help but laugh. "No more broccoli! Excellent!"
Katherine smirked and ruffled his hair. "Yeah, enjoy it. Now come on, let's teach you how to use those wings of yours, and then I'll introduce you to the rest of the clan."
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A/N: Once again, non-BttF MJF reference in here.