Thank you for the reviews! I appreciate every single one of you. This update was written a little sooner than usual, that's just how my schedule worked out: P As always, please continues to read and review!
I find that music always motivates me to write, I even have a special writing music playlist Do you guys have any songs that get you pumped to write? I would love if you shared what song gets you in a creative mood! Please leave it in a review: D one of mine isBack in Time by Pit-bull. But only because of the chorus parts: P not a huge rap fan, I prefer classical at times (Canon in D major anyone? Habanera? Vienna Blood?). Kiss, Black Veil Brides, Musical Theater (Phantom, Avenue Q, Grease, Wicked.) HALL AND OATES! David Bowie, New Order, Four Seasons, Frankie Valli (I probably spelled that wrong), Elvis, Englebert Humperdink. That pretty much sums up my music taste *insert goofy laugh here*
Ciao,
Sammi
P.s. Darren Shan tweeted me back telling me Larten loves me too I cried lol *laughing turns to sobbing for joy*
p.p.s. Let me know if you are happy with this chapter, it was my hardest to write yet!
p.p.p.s. sorry for any errors.
Word count:3,633
When I was about 9 I went through a moronic phase; the inability to refuse any challenge of wits or strength against the boys and girls at school. I am not an exceedingly smart or physically superior girl by any stroke of the means, simply average. This resulted in many embarrassing losses on my behalf; it also proved that I really was horrible at picking my fights wisely. Ironically that's how I met Steve; by losing to him on the monkey bars. We had to hold on until one of us fell off. He won easily, and ran around hollering loudly. Nursing my ego, I decided then and there that Steve was a force to be reckoned with. I was attracted to the wildness in him almost instantaneously. I looked up to him, and wished that I wasn't so passive with people; brushing off insults and ignoring ill-mannered remarks on my appearance. But sadly, I never really did get over that mountain called insecurity.
So now as I'm staring at the boy I idolized for so long, watching him overcome the fear in his eyes as he approached the man, the vampire, I realize how truly and utterly pathetic I am compared to Steve.
I should leave right now, I thought to myself as I wiped the sweat from my brow. But I stayed frozen to the spot. It was as if I had no control over my body!
Mr. Crepsley (or Vur Horston) smiled, "So," he said, "I have been discovered. I should not be surprised. It had to happen eventually. Tell me, boy, who sent you?"
"No one," Steve replied calmly.
The vampire frowned, "Come, boy," he growled, "this is not the time to play games. Who are you working for? Who put you onto me and what do they want?"
"I'm not working for anyone," Steve insisted. "I've got loads of book and magazines about vampires and monsters. There was a picture of you in one of them."
"A picture?" Crepsley's suspicious reply echoed back to me.
"A painting," Steve corrected, "It was done in Paris, 1903. You were with a rich woman; and the story said you were gonna get married but she found out you were a vampire and left you."
The vampire grinned, "As good a reason as any. Her friends thought she made up the fantastic story to make herself look better."
"But it wasn't a story."
"No," Mr. Crepsley agreed, "it was not." he let out an aggravated sigh and focused his fierce gaze on Steve. "Though, it might have been better for you if it had been." He boomed.
My hands were gripping the railing so hard that the knuckles turned white; if I had been Steve I would currently be reduced to a sobbing, lamentable heap on the ground. But Steve didn't even blink.
"You won't hurt me," he stated simply, with a sheepish grin. But even from here I could tell his eyes were an unforgiving black, the kind that gave off no light or warmth.
"Why not?" the vampire growled.
"Because of my friend," Steve said, "I told her all about you and if anything happens to me, she'll go to police."
"They will not believe her," Mr. Crepsley snorted.
"Your right," Steve agreed. "But if I turn up dead or missing, they'll have to investigate. You wouldn't like that, lots of police poking around asking questions, coming here in the daytime."
Mr. Crepsley shook his head in disgust. "Children! I hate children!" he snarled. "What do you want? Money? Jewels? The right to publish my story?"
"I want to join you." Steve said with a smirk.
I could have fallen right then and there, fainted right over the edge. But somehow I managed not to send myself down to my death. Controlling the amount of noise I made while I began hyperventilating was another story completely.
What is he thinking!?
"What do you mean?" Mr. Crepsley asked, as stunned as I was.
"I want you to make me a vampire," Steve replied, he was controlling his tone carefully. "Make me a vampire and teach me your ways."
"You are crazy!" the vampire roared.
"No I'm not!" Steve snarled.
"I cannot turn a child into a vampire; the vampire generals would kill me."
"What are the vampire generals?" Steve queried.
"Never you mind," Mr. Crepsley waved the question away. "All you need to know is we do not blood children. It creates too many problems."
"So don't change me yet! I know vampires take on half human, half vampire assistants. Take me on as your apprentice until I'm ready."
The vampire snapped his fingers and a chair from the audience flew over to him. He sat down and assessed the boy in front of him. He crossed his legs and addressed Steve.
"Why do you want to be a vampire?" he said. "It is not much fun. We can only come out at night. Humans despise us. We have to sleep in dirty old places like this. We can never marry, settle down, and have children. It's a horrible life."
"I don't care." Steve stubbornly replied.
"Is it because you want to live forever? If so then I must inform you that we do not live forever. We live far longer than humans but we die all the same-sooner or later." Mr. Crepsley stated.
"I don't care." Steve said again. "I want to come with you. I want to learn. I want to become a vampire."
"What about your friends?" Mr. Crepsley asked. "You would not be able to see them again. You would have to leave school and home and never return. What about your parents; would you not miss them?"
Steve shook his head miserably; he had been staring at the ground but brought his head up to look at the vampire square in the face.
"My father doesn't live with us," he said softly. "I hardly ever see him and my mother doesn't love me. She probably won't even notice I'm gone."
"Is that why you want to leave home, because your mother does not love you?"
"Partly," Steve said, drawing in a shaky breath.
"If you wait a few years, you will be able to eave on your own." The vampire said.
"I don't want to wait."
"And your friends?" Mr. Crepsley asked again. At this moment his face was softer, kinder even. But still scary. "Would you miss the girl you came with here tonight?"
"Sam?" Steve asked, then blushed and nodded. "Yeah, I guess I'll miss my friends. Sam most of all, but she doesn't care about me. Not like that, any way. "He added. "But it doesn't matter. I want to become a vampire more than I care about them. And if you don't accept me, I'll tell the police and become a vampire hunter when I grow up!"
The orange haired vampire didn't laugh at this, but simply nodded; his face still gravely serious, "And you are sure this is what you want?"
"Yes," Steve responded.
Mr. Crepsley sighed heavily, and the hostile air around him began to disperse. "Come here then. We must test your blood."
Steve stood in front of Mr. Crepsley, blocking my view of the vampire. They spoke to each other softly, and I was shaking even harder than Steve when I hear something that sounded like a cat lapping up milk. I wanted to scream at Steve to stop, I wanted to yell for him to get his ass out of there.
Please, God. Please let him be safe. I was terrified of making too much noise and having the vampire killing us both.
All of a sudden the vampire started coughing. He pushed Steve away from him and stumbled to his feet. To my revulsion, I saw his mouth was red, covered in blood, which he quickly spat out.
"What's the matter?" Steve said rubbing his arm where he had fallen.
"You have bad blood!" Mr. Crepsley screamed.
"What are you talking about?" Steve's voice was shaking from a mixture of anger and fear.
"You are evil. I can taste the menace in your blood; you are a savage." The vampire shouted.
"You are a liar! Take that back!" Steve yelled.
Steve tried punching Mr. Crepsley, but the vampire easily knocked him away. "It is no good," he growled. "Your blood is bad. You can never be a vampire!"
"Why not?" Steve said softly, sadly, from the floor.
"Because vampires are not evil creatures of lore," Mr. Crepsley said, "We respect life. We have killer's instincts, but we are not killers."
"I will not make you a vampire," Mr. Crepsley insisted. "Go home and get on with your life, forget about this."
"No!" Steve erupted like a volcano, all his rage radiating off him like light from the sun. "I won't forget!"
"I'll get you for this!" Steve said, "One day; Vur Hortston, I'll track you down and kill you!" he ran from the stage, calling back "One day!" over his shoulder. I could hear him laughing, the crazy kind of laughter that gave me goose bumps, as he ran down the hall and out of the building.
If I thought nothing was more frightening than the angry vampire, I was mistaken. Steve was a broken man. Wounded in so many ways. Despite this he brought a lot of happiness into my life with his smile, and his laughter. He wasn't perfect by any means, but always managed to make anything we did with our friends an adventure. He could have been so much more than what he was; a delinquent, failing school, with no real hope for the future. I would have missed him terribly if he had become a vampire; but maybe he it was in his best interests. It was the one hope he had left for himself.
And now it had been ripped from him.
I found myself resenting Mr. Crepsley, a loathing that burned deep within me. How could he reject Steve? The boy obviously was dedicated. And he is not evil! He's no saint, but Steve is not a killer!
Are you sure you're not angry at him for leaving you with a broken friend? Leaving behind a mess for you to clean up, to take care of. Don't you ever get sick of taking care of everyone else? A very small voice spoke in the back of my mind. Kind of like the one that had helped me win the ticket in the first place.
Maybe… I thought, still clutching the railing. I watched the vampire wipe the blood from his mouth, snort "Children!" and examine the audience. Drops of blood still falling from his mouth; he made his way off the stage.
Here is one tiny suggestion. The voice purred. He took something valuable to you; now take something valuable of his. And eye for and eye, correct?
"I-"my voice caught in my throat. "I'm too much of a coward," I admitted weakly.
Do it.
"No," I said, collecting my strength I banished the voice from my mind. Thoroughly freaked out; I checked to make sure the coast was clear before creeping back down the stairs and out the building. It was when I was able to breathe the fresh air outside that a foggy veil that had settled over me was ripped away. I could think clearly now; I was almost as frightened of Steve as I was of Mr. Crepsley.
Wow, I thought, a real vampire! Cool, but, terrifying. And with that I hopped on my bike and pedaled like a madwoman back home!
I didn't even bother going back to Jen's; I went straight home. I walked in around 3 a.m. My parents questioned me when I got home; I told them that Jen and I got in a disagreement; they left me alone after saying I was grounded for two weeks. But Annie knew something was up; the following day she threatened to tell mom and dad about Steve giving me a kiss the other day, and rather than get into another argument with my mom I decided to just tell Annie the truth.
"You're joking!" she said. "That can't be true."
"It is!" I promised.
"Cross your heart?"
"I cross my heart."
"Swear on your eyes"
"I swear on my eyes," I said. "May rats gnaw them out if I'm telling a lie."
"Wow!" she squeaked. "If they ever come into town again will you take me with you?"
"Sure," I said. "But I'm pretty sure they don't make a habit of stopping in the same place twice."
I shared some of the things I bought with her (she promised to keep them well hidden). I didn't bring up Mr. Crepsley or Steve's conversation with her; I was scared enough for my sake as it is, no need to bring my baby sister into this. She may be a cry baby, and a brat; and she does on occasion play around in my makeup without my permission, but I love the little runt.
Before I got too sentimental, I grabbed her doll from her arms and held it high above her head grinning wildly. But Annie was a lot older now, and could easily give me a run for my money. And that's exactly what she did. She jumped on me, sending us both crashing to the floor. I quickly got up and ran outside; she followed and was chasing me around the front yard trying to get her doll back. And despite it all; we were both laughing.
Too soon it was Monday, I was a bundle of nerves as I walked in; I didn't know what I was going to say to Steve, or what he was going to say to me. It also didn't help that I didn't get much sleep; I was petrified that the vampire was going to find me, sneak in my room and rip out my jugular. The time I didn't use sleeping I used studying my brains out for my exams.
I walked through the school yard, stifling a yawn by downing some iced coffee (it was far too hot outside for regular). Steve was there when I arrived, which was strange because I'm usually here earlier than him. He stood apart from everyone else, leaning against the wall; waiting for me. I took a deep breath, gathered my courage, and walked over beside him.
"Morning!" I said; mustering up the brightest smile I could.
"Morning," he replied emptily. His eyes were heavily lidding, with dark circles underneath them. He probably had slept even less than I did; only he couldn't cover them up from the world with makeup.
"Where'd you go after the show?" he asked.
I gulped, "Oh," I said breezily. "Back home."
"How come?" he queried suspiciously.
"It was so dark that," I paused from a small laugh at my 'stupidity'. "I got lost and by the time I recognized where I was; I was closer to my house than Jen's."
"You must have gotten into a lot of trouble," he smirked at me, his fingers brushing my arm lightly.
"Oh yeah." I said sarcastically. "You should have seen my parents face! Two weeks no allowance, not that I mind much anyway. "I grinned. "It was a lot of fun! I don't think I'll sneak out again though; too much stress!" I laughed it off. "But wasn't the Cirque Du Freak awesome?"
"Yeah," he said, his eyes gazing at me in a strange way. Was he this close before? I noticed how his lips were pulled up to one side in a small smirk.
Was it really this hot outside? I felt flushed. The school bell rang and I quickly said goodbye and rushed off to my first period class.
I should be focusing on this review! I thought sharply during geometry. I could help but wonder about the vampire; did he sleep in a coffin? Would sunlight kill him? Could he turn into a bat? I sighed, carefully rubbing my temples to stop the headache I felt coming on. I don't know, nor do I think I'll ever find out.
You could.
Ugh! Not you again, can't you find someone else to bother?!
No one is as much fun as you. The voice said smarmily.
Screw off! I thought hotly.
Temper, temper! Wouldn't want to push away someone who wants to help you, would you?
Yes, if they are auditory hallucinations created by; anxiety, sleep deprivation. And paranoia!
Did you think about what I last told you about?
I shifted in my seat; Mr. Dalton was peering at me curiously over his own work. I began doodling; feigning concentration.
No, I have'nt
Well? How 'bouts it?
I can't, I thought dejectedly. Stealing is wrong!
Poor little girl! The male voice said sarcastically. Don't you ever tire of being the good girl? Don't you ever crave revenge, destruction, chaos? It would be a lie to say otherwise. You know it and I know it; the vampire has it coming to him.
In spite of my blatant refusal to commit a crime; this notably parlous offer was as fetching as the 100 dollar pair of pumps I saw at the mall. Revenge?
I liked the sound of that.
That's my girl, came the sleepy purr of victory. How about the spider? Yes, yes. Take that disgusting beast from him, kill it with fire. Kill it like he killed Steve's hope.
"Steve's hope," I said in a quiet, guttural growl. My mind was swirling and spinning with the heaviness of the voices words. How could I argue with him?
That was my first mistake; trusting that voice. I could have been so happy if I had learned to deal with my own problems, and stay out of Steve's. I didn't owe him a damn thing. But, like most things in life- wisdom comes with experience.
At break Tommy, Alan, Jen, Steve and I gathered around a picnic table to discuss the Cirque in private. I knew what I had to do, the only problem was how.
We told them everything-well almost everything. Of course Tommy and Alan had questions; Jen sat back coolly and processed the entire story in her mind.
"How do you think he controlled the spider?" Jen asked finally.
"Maybe it was a fake spider?" Alan added.
"The spider was real," I shivered at the memory. "All the freaks were real. That's why the show was so great!"
"So how did he control it?" Tommy said.
"Maybe it's a magic flute," I suggested. "Or else Mr. Crepsley knows home to charm spiders, like Indians can charm snakes."
"Well, if he can charm spiders, how did Mr. Tall control Madam Octa?" Alan asked.
"Oh yeah! Maybe the flutes were magic." I laughed.
"They weren't magic," Steve said suddenly. "They used telepathy."
"What's that?" all three of us asked in unison.
"Isn't that something to with telephones?" Alan asked sheepishly.
We all laughed, "Moron!" Tommy chuckled and playfully hit his arm.
"Go on Steve," I said. "Tell him what it means."
"It's when you can read somebody's mind," he explained. "Or send thoughts to them without speaking. That's how they controlled the spider; with their minds."
"So, why use flutes?" I asked, confused.
"Probably just for show, or they need them to get her attention." Steve shrugged.
"You mean anyone could control her?" Tommy blurted out.
"Anyone with a brain, yes," Steve said. "Which counts you out Alan." He added, but smiled wickedly at him.
"You wouldn't need magic flutes or special training?" Jen asked curiously.
"I don't think so," Steve said truthfully.
My head began pounding, the dull ache inside transcended into a sharp pain now. The words were swimming around my mind; blurring like faces standing around the teacup ride at the fair.
You have your how...
The thought of going toe to toe against Mr. Crepsley scared the living daylights out of me! But… I glanced forlornly at Steve. Maybe just this one time I could do the wrong thing, for the right reasons.
Besides, an eye for an eye, correct?
I should get extra reviews for making fetch happen! Please R/R!