TO BE CONTINUED?

What do I do now that I'm a vampire? Where do I go from here?

Review the section below to determine where you should start your journey as a vampire.

Penny is flying back Monday. This means that Baz is only going to stay with Simon for two more full days before he's back off to his usual nonsense, staying at home when he can't find something else to do with his time. Tutoring at Watford is well enough, but Baz wants to do more with this life.

Being in a relationship with Simon seemed impossible a year ago, something he dreamed about each time he blinked. Now they've been dating for months. Now Simon is a vampire.

Now everything has changed.

What could have been a short reality feels more permanent. Baz glances around the room knowing that Simon went to get the mail. Lately he's been running small errands on his own and proving that nothing has changed fundamentally. That bumbling idiot somehow makes vampirism look like a detail, a personality trait added to someone to make a person more interesting.

Simon couldn't be more interesting if he had a tail… Wait…

The laugh escapes before he realizes it. Each single giggle multiples tenfold and leaves his body bent over, laptop sliding slowly from his grip. Today he plans to finish this brochure, something that was only meant to be a side project for coping with the fact that Baz had turned Simon into a vampire. It was all a joke about the fact that nobody was there for him when he was turned, that there was no brochure for these things. The scary truth is that Simon is enjoying a privileged experience. Almost nobody has a vampire to properly coach them through this whole mess.

This is the thought that makes his joy subside. Baz starts thinking about the vampires downtown. They are mean, hateful, and cold. Many of them go out of their way to single out Baz for being different – for not murdering innocent humans just for the joy of drinking their blood. None of that was ever presented to Baz as an option, and so he has gone on to live as normally as anyone else.

And he really does mean normally.

Baz enjoyed a boyish crush in school; a thorough lack of self-esteem; a petty teenage rivalry; frightening discord within himself, and an unspoken academic competition with someone he now considers a friend. Baz was even a valued member on a school sports team. There was so much about his life that was normal that he couldn't image conforming the stereotypes laid out for vampires. None of that appeals to him.

Baz can hear the first steps being taken several floors down. Simon must be on his way back already. As his boyfriend slowly returns, well, the mind wanders. It wanders and wonders and thinks…

"Vampires Anonymous Mutual Partnership."

There was no real explanation behind his blurting, except that he didn't want everyone to feel cornered into a monstrous pitfall. Being a vampire is not the end of the world. Simon makes sure to remind Baz every single morning and every single night that he's still Simon; "I'm just simple Simon Snow."

"Vampires…" That is pretty self explanatory, isn't it?

"Anonymous…" Nobody outside of the group needs to know if someone is a vampire unless that person actually shares that information, right? Baz knows that lying can lead to pretty big problems but for now it seems a justified aspect. If he really wants this work, at least, being anonymous is a very important and appealing aspect of the whole project.

"Mutual Partnership." Nobody likes a one-sided relationship. Baz is an expert in the ways of wanting something and someone that doesn't return the feeling. Those days are gone and there is little more empowering than finding happiness and acceptance. Simon can relate to that, too, having never realized his sexuality was more complicated than a straight line.

V.A.M.P.

Vampires Anonymous Mutual Partnership: A safe haven where vampires can gather and discuss the trials of being different than others. A network of friends that provide support in a world that still doesn't accept vampires as equals. A group of vampires working to find a better quality of life despite their affliction…

Simon only just opens the door when Baz shouts excitedly; "A SUPPORT GROUP FOR VAMPIRES!"

Reaching around for his sweatpants, which twitch in a fashion telling of a hidden tail, Simon merely sports a lopsided grin. He manages to shut the door before his tail wriggles out over his waistband. It doesn't happen often but it usually is a sign of interest or amusement.

"Is that a suggestion? Or did you find one?" Very little bothers Simon Snow anymore. He has the unique advantage of knowing all about this strange world from both sides of the fence, so to speak. Baz loves this most about his boyfriend. It would be more surprising to find something that doesn't freak the hell out of Simon.

Baz gathers his thoughts and pushes the laptop on the coffee table. Eagerly he jumps to his feet to follow Simon to the kitchen island; "I want to start a support group. We can make a proposal to The Mage or Penny's mom – have them send vampires to us! We can teach them to be normal!" Baz is practically jumping up and down when Simon turns to stand face-to-face with him.

Penny is going to be overwhelmed or underwhelmed when she returns to discover that her roommate is a vampire. Though, she might write it off as pure madness. Had she not questioned Simon in the early days of his accusations of Baz's being a vampire? Maybe she only questioned from an academic standpoint, and who knows for sure except Penny, but Baz is pretty certain that Simon doesn't feel it would be a good idea to bombard her too quickly with too much.

And he doesn't wait long for him to confirm that; "Maybe we should start by letting her know you turned me into a vampire during sex. Let her swallow that truth pill first?"

Baz throws his arms in the air, "Maybe it would be a little more exciting if that were the true story, but we were barely undressed. What we did wasn't even close to sex."

This is a stupid argument, but Baz suspects it may be on purpose the moment that Simon slams his hand onto his hip and slides it slowly up. As the fabric of his shirt bunches up the actual conversation begins feels distant. Simon uses his free hand to yank Baz close, and the proximity alone is arousing. Though Baz would not quickly admit aloud that he finds it difficult to catch his breath in those moments, he does struggle.

Simon makes it even harder, in more than one way, to remain completely composed; "Then maybe we need to make sure we can really sell that story."

What gives him strength to speak, Baz is not sure, but he does say something in a voice filled with primitive lust, "How do you propose that, Snow? I'd love to know."

"Wouldn't you?" It doesn't take long, and the pair does not go far. There are some details that Penny won't need to know, they eventually decide. Some secrets are best kept exactly that way: secret.

Quite some time later, Simon opens the laptop while Baz lounges with ease next to him. Rereading the lines over and over eventually it becomes a game to see who can sound more professional in various accents. The whole scene somehow reminds Baz of the message he wanted to send, of course, with perfect clarity.

You Decide Your Future

Not Your Vampirism

Write down where you want to go, and remember:

NEVER LOSE HOPE.

Simon jokes a little that the whole "write your destiny" bit is a cop out, that it is cheesy, and really so very unlike Baz that he can't believe it was an original thought. In all fairness, Baz is alarmed by his own artistic output on the brochure. Even though it ends up being more informative than creative, Baz gawks at the brochure (kind of) in front of him with sincere pride and wonder.

"We did this together." Baz declares.

Simon places a hand over his shin, not able to really reach all the way to his boyfriend's knee, "We sure did," he agrees while winking sweetly. Sometimes Baz can't believe he never thought that Simon would be interested. There are times that he is so goofy and sentimental that Baz swears it fits the image for a stereotypical gay man. Of course, he fights himself on those learned images. He defies not only one but two social statuses as a homosexual and a vampire. Stereotypes are hindrances to an individual's full potential – and Baz refuses to let it rule his actual perception of others. That included Simon Snow – it aggressively included Simon Snow in particular for many years.

Just then Simon turns a bit more to look Baz directly, "Are you serious about the vamp support group?"

Baz doesn't miss a beat. There's only one thing he's been surer of in his life, "Absolutely. Dead serious."

It is exactly the kind of joke that Simon makes every day to rouse a laugh from Baz's lips. Such a childish remark would irritate him, even when his boyfriend says it, but today he embraces something so distinctly belonging to someone he loves. Jokes, those belong to Simon, but Baz partakes to send a clear message.

"Then let's do it." His fingers move faster than Baz has ever seen and it has his heart fluttering anew all over again.

You are never alone in this world, even when you think that nobody could understand you. If you are struggling with your identity as a vampire please reach out to the SnowBaz Partnership for more information about the V.A.M.P.

V ampires

A nonymous

M utual

P artnership,

A group of people that you know will keep your secret, keep you safe, and remind you that you're just as normal as anyone else.

E-mail: snowbaz

Phone: 766-9229

Baz sets up the e-mail while Simon makes calls to get this unique phone number attached to a cell phone. Although there are more selfish ways to spend a Friday afternoon, neither of them really would rather do anything else. This is something that they can share, work that they can do together, and a way for them to make sure their life together after Watford has purpose.

A/N: I really enjoyed writing this fanfiction - and it is my first one for the CARRY ON fandom! I hope you've accepted me as a member of this beautiful group. The last chapter is all of the text for the brochure together so that you can read it front to back. If you go to my tumblr page you will also be able to see the full text of the brochure in a brochure format! I am ficsforfangirls on tumblr - so you should probably check it out!

Thanks for your support and the reviews that I do have, and all of the favorites and follows! I appreciate you all so very much. You're all the very best ever!