Assimilation

Matt began his high school career in Bon Temps greatly distracted. He was beginning to feel as if someone was watching him. He found himself looking over his shoulder his peripheral vision on overdrive. He sat in geography class thinking of the castle that had conjured up distant journeys. His mind went back to his small frame playing with a homemade boat and his language lesson while the teacher began to talk about immigration.

"Now what do many immigrants want to do? Anyone? They often want to blend with their new surroundings," she explained to a class full of students that popped their gum and stared at their sneakers.

Suddenly Matt heard his father speak. "I want him to be able to blend in with whatever surroundings he's in. We will have to keep moving, your sister is only getting more vengeful and I am beginning to fear her hate."

"Mr. Northman can you tell me another word for what we have been talking about?" Mrs. Neely asked hoping the new boy would throw her something useful.

Matt ripped from his memory looked up his blue eyes uncertain and Mrs. Neely feeling as if she was once again stranded. "Assimilate, people want conform to the customs and society they are currently in." Matt realized that was exactly the way his father had been trying to protect him, hide him in plain sight.

The teacher beamed feeling a small modicum of victory as her new student took sideways glares from his classmates.

After class Matt was heading towards his locker when a couple of giggling girls came up behind him. "Hey there Sven, how's the assimilating going?"

"My names Matt and so I got an answer right, isn't that the point of being here. Apparently I'm not assimilating too well." He said as he twisted the dial of his lock and changed out his books taking what he needed that night for homework.

"What makes you say that?"

"You've already keyed in on me, I must not be blending. Maybe I should just play the dumb hick and have you all call me Jethro."

"Ain't you the spunky one? That face is anything but local; tell me where did you come from?" The brunette asked.

"Lots of places, I'm a traveler," Matt unable stop himself smiled at her gleaming teeth and pretty face.

"You'll have to tell me one day."

"Maybe I will."

Matt grabbed his books and headed towards the front door leaving the girls looking at one another silent until another round of laughter escaped.

"That kid seems familiar," Taylor said her brows furrowed.

"You probably have seen him around, in the store or something," Bethany said twisting the dial on her own lock.

"I don't think so, it's something else believe me if I had seen him before today I would have definitely remembered."

"Well whatever let me know what you figure it out. For now I'm happy just to ogle, it is so nice having some fresh meat in here."

"He is definitely a cool breeze," Taylor agreed.

Matt sat at the table that night picking at his dinner and missing Sookie terribly. He remembered sitting here before she disappeared and opening up his heart to her which was something that he generally didn't do. He had told her he was going to go to school but Eric had decided to hold him at home until the fall fearing some unknown entity would pick him off while he sat at his sunny desk unprotected. But after a season of quiet nothing he reluctantly let him go and Matt had to admit his first stab at it hadn't gone all that well. But now he was in Bon Temps nearly a year after his conversation with Sookie and so far he had maintained his human façade. Not that it wouldn't crumble within the next year as his classmates continued to develop and he stayed the very same as he had for more years than he cared to remember. There were times when he fantasized about his death, he was sure it could be done. He highly doubted he could survive a knife to the heart or a beheading though the latter didn't appeal to him at all. He knew something had been stalking him his entire life and he was getting glimpses but nothing firm. So far his father had remained mum but was spending a lot of time with Bill Compton discussing something of great importance not to mention the werewolf that has been hanging around keeping an eye on him during the daylight hours. He had always wanted a dog but he wanted the truth more. Matt had the feeling that he was surrounded by lies and mistruths and wasn't sure if he would ever be able to piece it all together.

Just as the year before he waited for the seasons to change as October rolled in and yet again he was disappointed. "It's too hot here," he whined to Eric.

"Did you whine, my son does not whine, I didn't give you permission to whine. This is where I live so therefore this is where you live. When you grow up you can live wherever you would like."

"But I won't grow up," Matt pointed out.

"Oh well then Peter Pan then I guess you are stuck with me in Louisiana so suck it up and deal with it."

"Peter Pan, really?"

"Go do your homework. I'm going to have some guys working on the house in the next couple of weeks you need to stay out of their way."

"I can stay out of the way, that's what I've based my life on is staying out of the way," Matt snipped.

"Well keep doing it."

"Boy do I miss Sookie. I wish I knew where she was and what she was doing."

"Do you ever…feel her?" Eric asked his voice softening.

"Well I don't not feel her so I guess that's a good thing."

"I suppose it is," Eric sighed.

Matt seemed to have picked up a couple of new friends as Beth and Taylor began shadowing him at school. They seemed nice enough and he sure wouldn't mind having some private time with Bethany but he didn't see the point. Eventually she would learn the truth and the results would be disastrous. The jocks had noticed his superior athletic ability and every coach in the building was courting him with smiles and promises of a better life should he join their sport. But Matthew politely declined saying a rare heart condition prevented him from partaking in any organized sporting event. His heart was of course in great mechanical order despite being over four hundred years old. But the attention he would receive playing on a team would pull him into a spotlight he could ill afford to shine under. And when his secret was finally under that same light he would be labeled a cheater and it was hard enough shouldering the identity he was already forced to haul around.

The academic contingency of the school were terrified of his lean body and aforementioned athletic skills and gave him a wide berth. All in all Matt once again found himself alone unable to truly connect with anyone else. His desire at matriculation would go no further than being in the general student body in hopes he could ease through the following years without much fanfare and graduate as anonymously as possible.

At home Sookies absence was causing Eric to be even more cranky than usual his defiant nature. Matt just wished she would come back and help him through this maze of humankind before he gave up.

Now Halloween was fast approaching and with it the mockery of what had driven the world mad centuries ago. Cardboard cut-outs of vampires, werewolves and witches met him at nearly every turn. If people were truly aware of their surroundings then they would know they didn't need the cheesy decorations to feel the scary things out there. Plans settled in like a miasmic cloud around the school. Parties and haunted houses abounded and Matt could only shake his head at the absurdity of it all. He had received a few casual invitations but politely declined but as Eric's behavior deteriorated he was beginning to have second thoughts. Running through a haunted house or riding on a spooky hayride was becoming more appealing as Sookie's absence stretched his father to his limits.