After Midnight

Chapter Fourteen

Joe's Story: The Abridged Version (Frank's constant and obnoxious interruptions and/or questions deleted in order to make the story flow better and save the reader a bit of time and headaches.)

First off, I guess I should let you know that I'm not a normal vampire. Of course, I guess you've already figured out that the Cullens are all vampires. It's pretty important to know a little bit about them before I get into the really awesome stuff—basically, anything that has to do with me—and yes, I'm still as modest as ever, thanks for asking.

Carlisle's father was a priest, and he focused all his energy on destroying every vampire that existed. But one day Carlisle himself was bitten. He hid, in tremendous, unbearable pain—the transformation is the most horrible experience anyone can imagine; I went through it for the past three days—until the transformation was complete.

Yeah, I'm about to tell you how a vampire is created. Be patient. Wow. Never thought I'd be telling you to be patient. Freaky.

Anyway, I lost track of what I was saying. Um…oh, yeah, I remember. So vampires are kinda like sharks—we taste human blood, we go on a feeding frenzy. It's nearly impossible to stop. When we feed, the victims die. Only when we have bitten someone and our venom spreads through their body without the feeding frenzy beginning will someone be converted.

And I saw 'we' very loosely, by the way. I've never done anything like that; I just know this from what Carlisle told me.

Okay, back to Carlisle, before I lose my train of thought again. He detested what he was so much, he vowed to do everything to offset it. He has never tasted human blood, no matter how horrible the thirst becomes. Now he's a doctor; he deals with blood on a daily basis, and it doesn't affect him in the slightest. Of course, I suppose that has something to do with the centuries of practice he's had perfecting his resistance.

But anyway, he saves people who are very close to death. His wife, Esme, had jumped off a cliff after losing a child and was nearly dead. He bit her, and she's a vampire. Edward was dying of the Spanish Influenza in Chicago in…1901, I think. His mother pleaded Carlisle to save him. And he did. Rosalie, well, let's just say her past is extremely horrifying and she probably wouldn't want me telling you without permission—you probably wouldn't want to know anyway. And Emmett, Rose found him…he had been mauled by a bear and Carlisle saved him. Alice and Jasper just sort of found each other, then found the Cullens. The Cullens call themselves 'vegetarians'. They only feed on animal blood, and focus on places where there is overpopulation.

Several of their stronger human qualities carried over into this next life—I say life, this isn't really life, more of an existence, if you will. But anyway, Edward was very perceptive and could read people well as a human. He now has the ability to read minds. Alice has visions of the future. Jasper can control people's emotions. Bella's mind is a shield from any mental gift another vampire might have. And little Renesmee, she can communicate by sending mental images and memories to people by touching them. Kind of opposite of her mom and dad's gifts.

Yeah, I have a talent, too, but you're getting too far ahead of me. You're going to spoil the story, Frank, so sit down and shut up. Thanks. I appreciate it. No, really, I do, bro.

The Volturi, of course, are vampires, too. They have gifts. Aro can read minds, memories, the heart's deepest desire, but only if he has contact with that person's skin. Jane can cause pain, while her brother, Alec, caused people to become so numb and emotionless that they wouldn't even notice if someone cut off their finger until they bled to death. Chelsea—I'm sure you remember her, huh?—she's a shield, kinda like Bella. That's why she always sticks so close to Aro, y'know? Kind of like a body guard type thing.

Oh, and it turns out she despises human men that she cannot feed on. She knew Aro wasn't going to let her…quench her thirst with us anytime soon, and when I flirted with her—so close and yet so far—she kind of snapped. She's a freak.

But anyway…

I think that's enough background information. Now I'll tell you what happened, everything I know.

Our dad and Charlie worked on a case when they both worked in the NYPD, tracing numerous disappearances of tourists all around the world to Italy. They actually figured out that the Volturi had murdered all these people but didn't realize that they were their 'snack', for lack of a better, politically correct, term. They traced it to Aro, who, following the Volturi's strict rules of conduct, could not kill anyone who lived within the walls of Venice, including police officers. So he went through the charades of getting in a police car and being trialed as a murderer. By the time he slipped out of grasp—only twenty-four hours after his arrest, Dad and Charlie were gone and the Volturi can't leave headquarters to kill humans.

So when we showed up, Aro saw he had a chance for revenge. He toyed with us a while. Now, have I told you about Jake, Seth, Leah, Sam, Quil, Embry, and them? No? Okay, I guess now would be a good time.

They're werewolves. Yep. Our lives have turned into Underworld: Rise of the Lichens. Anyway, they cause a blind spot in vampires' special senses. So they went ahead and made a distraction.

See, the Volturi are there to make sure that vampires don't expose the existence of our kind. So when Jasper used fear to control people's emotions in the crowd and Jake and Seth and Leah began to tell people about vampires in our midst…

Yep. You got it. Someone panicked, yelled 'VAMPIRE!', and the Volturi thought it was someone trying to reveal us. They rushed out to contain the situation. Of course, all they met was chaos and confusion. That's how long it took Carlisle and Edward and Jasper and Alice to bust in, get you out, and for Carlisle to bite me so I would survive…

The Volturi were trying so hard to take over the situation they didn't notice the other vampires and didn't notice us sneaking out. But they'll piece it together eventually. I'm not worried, though. They have to abide by their rules, and if someone hasn't done something worthy of punishment like feed on someone in the middle of public.

But I was in terrible pain for three days. And then…I was changed, different. Better. Like I am now. They sat me down. Explained everything to me. But I'm different…

Now to tell you about my talent. My heart was so strong, so compassionate, and so linked to you, my brother, that it carried over. That's right—I'm a vampire, but a heart still beats inside my chest, sort of like Renesmee (long story short, she's half vampire, half human, but has a heart as well). Anyway, I have no need for human blood; I don't even thirst for it. I can eat normal foods; I'll prefer raw steaks and stuff I guess; right now all that's appealing though is maybe a hunting trip with the Cullens—I do still have a small part of me that wants blood, but not human…I know, it's gross and disturbing, but it's who I am, take it or leave it…I know, I am getting to be quite profound, aren't I?

The other part of my 'talent' is my connection to you. We're so close that my heart isn't going to let me be separated from you. Most vampires don't age. As long as you age, I age. If you someday become a vampire, too, we both stop aging. So, you're right, we can pretty much go on with our normal lives, with a few differences and one big lurking factor.

If I were to die right now, you could live on without me. But the way my heart is now as a vampire, so attached to yours, if you die today, I die the second your heart stops beating.

~Emachinescat ^..^