Chapter 3
"To answer your question, my name really is Michael. I was born a very long time ago in a village in Europe. I don't want to say how long ago… I don't like to talk about my age." He paused for a moment and then added, "Let's just say… my 100th birthday past long ago."
I suppose I looked at him rather incredulously, but he went on before I could say anything.
"I was something of an important person in my village. I was tasked with teaching other young men how to hunt… I was somewhat of a prodigy, having become a hunter at a young age. I was returning to my home from a hunt one night when I was transformed. I was left out there in the woods, writhing in the agony of transformation. I managed to avoid detection for days, feeding off of the local wildlife as well as some travelling merchant. Soon, I began to gain a firmer grasp of my situation. I was a vampire. I was alone. I obviously could not return to my family; I could never risk hurting them, no matter what. So, I became a nomad. I traveled across Europe, Asia, and Africa, seeing the world, meeting others of my kind."
He looked straight at me. "During my travels, I met several vampires like you; newborns with little to no understanding of the ways of our kind. I felt sad letting these poor 'children' to fend for themselves, so I became a mentor of sorts to fledgling vampires. I'm actually quite legendary among some circles, highly sought after for the training of newborns, especially for those who want powerful covens. I remember my glory days in Italy, such good times…"
He seemed to be somewhere else, lost for a moment in his memories. I hissed, and, without missing a beat, was back into his story.
"Well, eventually I came over to America. It's quite a lovely place, despite some darker qualities I've seen it's people display… other than that, it's been quite enjoyable, my time here." He flung open his arms. "And that, I suppose, is where you come in. I saw you, alone and confused as I was so long ago, and decided to take it upon myself to mentor you. And so here we are now. I hope that you are satisfied Alice, I really think we sho… You're not even listening to me are you?"
I actually was listening, but it was happening again. The weird visions I have, I mean. I saw Michael and I, emerging from the forest, walking towards a… a small town, maybe… entering what looked like some sort of inn… going up stairs…
"Alice? Alice, snap out of it!" I awoke from my trance, shook my head, and looked into Michael's burning red eyes. "Are you alright? What happened?"
"I… it's nothing." I turned away. I didn't want him knowing that I suffered from insane visions. He probably would think I'm crazy… or maybe…
I turned back to him. "Michael," I said. "Can vampires… see the future?"
"Did you see the future just now? Is that what that was all about?" His voice didn't sound the least bit surprised. In fact, he sounded amused. "Can you please just answer me?" I cried out.
"Well… it depends, really. Not all vampires get to see the future. It depends on traits carried over and intensified from your human life. Did you have visions of the future when you were human?"
"I… I don't know… maybe…" I was so confused, I had no idea what was going on. Could I really see the future? Was that what I had just seen? It must have been, it seemed so real, plausible even…
"Michael," I said, "I think you should teach me everything you can about being a vampire. I need to understand… I don't want to lose my temper like I did before, and I want to know what these visions I have are. Can you please teach me?"
Michael smiled that smile of his. "Of course I'll teach you, Alice. It's what I do best."
