BIG THANKS FOR ALL THE AWESOME REVIEWS! How about we aim for 8 this time ;) This is where things start to turn AU. I will try to keep everyone in character but please forgive me if they are slightly off. After all, Darren Shan didn't write a vampire romance saga. I claim artistic license!
I'm trying to explore darker content in this story so please be patient with me. I'm not going to give you anything less than my best! Which is why this update took so long -_-
WC: 2905
"Sam!" My mother yelled from downstairs, "Get down here!"
I quickly shoved the spider's cage back into my closet; I had habitually taken her out every day this week and practiced controlling her. I decided I would bring her to the party tomorrow and show all my friends what I had accomplished; it would give them all a taste of what they had missed out on, and afterward I would have Steve 'dispose' of her for me. I smirked as I hurried down the stairs and into the living room. My mother stood there looking like a kid on Christmas morning. At her feet a big cardboard box lay unopened, I become cold with realization.
"It's finally here," my mother said excitedly as she rubbed her hands together in anticipation. "Hurry and open it!"
"O-Ok…" I waked over hesitantly and torn open the dreaded package, shifting through an endless sea of packing peanuts until I found it. The dress was beautiful; with a puffy white skirt with shimmering overlay-similar to that of a ballerina's tutu, a shimmering sweetheart neckline and a hater style top. It was decorated with intricate, swirling crimson gold detail, and I could feel the corset ribbing through the layers of fabric.
"Wow," I choked out; it was a gorgeous dress. The mask that came with it was white and would peak at my forehead. A rose gold design swirled around the edges and two gold rhinestones were placed on the inside corners of the eye holes.
"Do you like it, darling?" My mother asked eagerly.
I nodded in response, "Where did you get this?"
"I have a friend who owns a shop and she owed me a favor." Mom replied casually, dusting off the already immaculate dress.
"What am I supposed to be?" I laughed, holding the gown to my body.
"A swan princess; I remember how much you liked that movie when you were little."
I made a noise of agreement and made to hug my mother, despite our occasional squabbles she knew me better than I did myself at times. I thanked her and brought the costume up to my room, all the while grinning like I had lost my mind. Things were finally beginning to fall into place; it had been weeks and I had seen neither hide nor hair of the spider's vampire owner, I had a beautiful outfit for tonight, and a party that I'm sure is bound to be fun time!
Getting ready wasn't as hard as I expected it to be. I was actually quite talented with hair and makeup, and I enjoyed primping myself for the evening. I arranged my hair in a pretty little bun on the top of my head, the ends of my hair had been dyed to look like it was fading into lighter shades of blonde; so I braided the golden sections of hair and wrapped them around the bun. It looked cool to have the two different colors next to each other. I used some sparkly clips to keep everything in place, and covered the hairstyle in a few layers of hairspray to ensure it would last through the night. I kept my face simple knowing I would be dancing with my friends. I painted my lips with a red lipstick, going for a classic look. Taking the black liquid liner; I followed the contours of my upper lash line and flicked the brush at the end. After connecting that line to my lower lash line; my normally round eyes transformed into a catlike shape. My face began to take on a different tone than that of a bookish little girl; I was more mature looking than I realized, I felt confident as I combed my lashes thoroughly with mascara. The girl who looked back at me in the mirror was radiant, self-assured, and even a little wild. I liked how I looked; for once I wanted to keep looking in the mirror, admiring myself. A sharp knock on the door broke me out of the spell I had woven over myself.
"Coming!" I called out. It was muggy out so I didn't put any stockings on, I also didn't want to worry about ripping them sometime during the night. I grabbed the white patent leather heels from my closet, snatched my clutch and was out the door. Thankfully, I was able to sneak out and bring the spider's cage to the venue earlier in the day. My parents rented out this fancy old house outside of town; the town council kept it open for special events, they thought it was a shame to tear it down just because people thought it was haunted. I used to not believe in stuff like that, but after going to the cirque I wasn't so sure anymore. So, planning ahead, I hid the cage in one of the upstairs rooms, it has this beautiful balcony and seemed creepy enough for the show I had planned for my friends.
I met my family downstairs and we all made our way out to the car peacefully, everyone seemed to be in good spirits tonight. Even Annie wasn't acting like a brat! No, she was content to be dressed up as a cute little court jester, her face painted expertly by my mom. My parents were dressed up as medieval king and queen, my dad wasn't keen on his fanciful costume but went along with my mother's request regardless. It was an easy car ride there; dad was making jokes, and the sun was casting a beautiful orange glow over everything as it set on the horizon.
It wasn't long before we arrived that everyone else began to show up. Soon enough, the place was packed with my father's business associates' and their families. I saw a wide variety of Venetian style costumes. Most of the kids were around Annie's age, so she spent most of her time with them instead of bugging me. It was much to my surprise that Steve was the first of my friends to walk through the door; he smiled at me fondly before making his way through the packed dance floor. Steve was dressed in a pair of breeches, a waist coat, and a puffy white shirt. His mask had a curved long nose, like a bird's beak.
"Wow, nice costume Shan." He said appraisingly, Steve was looking at me with that studying again. It made me feel like an animal at the zoo, his eyes were always on me; no matter what I was doing.
"Same to you, Leonard." I said stiffly, I hadn't forgotten his confession the other night. I wanted to establish a clear boundary between the two of us, I was afraid to be on the receiving end of his temper.
"Oh, come on now Sammi; don't be such a grouch, relax." The way he drawled out my name made me queasy, almost as if he was savoring the sound of it on his lips. He reached a hand out to me and I took a step back.
"If you're going to act like this you can leave." I fought to keep my tone controlled, no need to make a scene.
"You say that, and along with the fact you have been avoiding me for two weeks, can't help but make me feel like you're playing hard to get." Steve leered at me with a wicked gleam in his eyes.
"Oh get over yourself! You're just pissed that not everything I do revolves around you." The words came tumbling out of me, "Now, get your shit together or fuck off!" I growled.
"Fine, I'm done." Steve agreed unconvincingly.
Tommy and Jen, bless them, came to my rescue by walking through the door, dressed as the Phantom of the Opera and Christine Daae. They were followed by a very sour looking Alan; he was dressed entirely in gold and white, a fluffy feather sticking out of his wide brimmed hat.
"Jen, you're late!" I called out to her, pushing passed Steve.
"Honestly Samantha, you should know how long it takes to look this good." Jen fanned herself, and I could see her wink from beneath her plain white mask. I gave a brief laugh in response before linking my arm in hers and pulling her off to the side.
"So, how are things with you and Tommy?" I practically purred. According to the numerous text messages she had sent over the last few weeks he had been taking her out almost every day; trips to the beach and horseback riding, the whole she-bang. It was no secret that Tommy's family had money, and he spared no expense when taking her out to fine country clubs and party's on his friend's boat.
"Well, if hadn't been MIA the last few weeks you would have known that Tommy has officially asked me to be his girlfriend. He even introduced me to his parents. And he bought me this really beautiful white gold necklace!" She flashed the simple heart shape pendent; it was hanging by a delicate chain around her neck.
"Wow, looks like things are getting pretty serious between the two of you." I spared a glance over at the three boys, all of them were laughing at something Steve had said; he winked at me, it was so subtle if I hadn't been looking at him directly I wouldn't have even noticed. My face darkened, I focused back on Jen; steam was practically flowing my ears.
"What was that about? Is he still bothering you?" Jen sent a glare his way, so sharp it could have cut right through him.
"I'm not going to let him ruin my night!" I said firmly. "Oh, that reminds me; I have something I want to show you all. Let's go grab the others."
Larten stood on the window ledge, gazing into the brightly lit room of party goer's below him. It was a Venetian masquerade; he had not attended such a party in a very long time. He was about to rectify this.
He recalled how not too long ago he was gazing into a different room entirely; the bedroom of the young lady, Samantha Shan. She was a pretty little thing; wavy locks of warm brown hair, and clear blue eyes. She was soft looking, but defined; a quality he appreciated in a woman, he knew she was strong. There were many times he wished to run his fingers along the length of her muscular legs, feeling power beneath velvety skin. But, he resisted, the time for all that would could soon enough; even if he did not know it.
"Where are we going?" Alan asked anxiously as I lead them down another dark corridor. When I reached the correct room I stopped moving abruptly; causing Alan, who was shadowing me the entire time, to run into me.
"Watch it!" I opened the door slowly; relishing the way Jen, Tommy, and Alan tensed at the sound of its creaking.
"What's this all about, Sam?" Steve asked, his arms folded across his chest, his mask was pulled up on to his head. He narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously, but I simply smiled at him and continued forward. Flipping on the light, we found ourselves in a bedroom; a canopy bed by the wall, an oak dresser next to it, and the balcony doors across from us.
"What I'm about to show you cannot leave this room, okay?" I warned.
"Why not? You're acting really strange Sam." Jen said shakily, clutching Tommy's arm even tighter.
"I brought something back with me from the Cirque Du Freak. If you don't remain still and quiet while I bring her out, then I can't promise that you'll be safe."
"Her?" Steve queried, when I refused to explain myself he let out an aggravated sigh. "Fine, I promise."
"Me too," Jen added reluctantly.
"Count me in!" Tommy chirped. That just left...
"Alan, what about you?" I asked softly, I knew he was in a bad pace right now because of Jen. I didn't want to make him feel even more isolated from the four of us. He was staring at the ground, fists clenched.
"I'll stay, only because I trust you." Alan said defeated.
"It's settled then, you must remain still and silent through the entire thing okay?" they all nodded as I went under the bed to retrieve the cage. Steve peered over at me, eyes lighting up instantly.
"No way!" He exclaimed as I reached for the flute.
"Quiet!" I snarled, he clamped his mouth shut.
Checking once more that everyone understood to follow my rules, I unlatched the cage door and began to play. Madame Octa stretched her eight limbs before climbing up the duvet and weaving a web between the two bed posts. Her colorful body swinging back and forth was still enough to make me queasy, but I refused to lose my focus for even a split second. Once finished with her master piece I lead her back into her cage with a slow melody, giving my friends time to look at her while still being in control. I closed the door on Madame Octa once again and gave my friends a wicked smile.
"How did you, of all people, manage to capture a spider bigger than my dog?" Jen looked almost sick with disbelief.
"I don't know, it kinda just happened." I grumbled. What was I supposed to say? Oh it was great, a little sassy voice in my head to me to steak this spider from a vampire because he didn't make Steve one of his brood! Yeah, I don't think I want to be shipped off to an asylum anytime soon. Best to keep that little tidbit to myself.
"Well, that was really exciting Sam," Tommy said, I detected a hint of shakiness in his voice. "I wish I could have gone to the cirque if only to see what other amazing things they had there."
"Maybe we should head back down stairs?" Alan suggested, looking pale as a ghost.
"Fine by me," I said casually. "Except you'll have to excuse me and Steve for a moment."
At the mention of his name Steve looked away from the cage and back at me. It seemed we both had questions to ask of each other.
"Aright," Jen said, giving me a confused look. The trio left the room and continued back down the hall way.
"Shut the door," I said firmly. Steve did as a I asked, taking a breath before attempting to assault me with questions.
"Look before you start asking me anything," I interjected. " Let me tell you everything first."
"Fine." He bristled.
"I heard everything between you and Mr. Crepsley. And though I don't understand why you would want to become like him, I was appalled by him calling you evil. I saw how defeated you looked, it was awful. Before I knew it I had stolen the spider from him, I wanted to get him back for hurting you." My voice broke, betraying the emotion I felt in my chest. It was bad enough I had hurt my friend, but for some stranger to do it was unacceptable.
"You heard everything?" he seethed, taking a few steps toward the spiders cage. He looked livid.
"Is that all you picked up from what I just said? Yes! I said behind and listened in." how ungrateful, after all I had done for him!
"I really hate it when you don't listen to me." He chuckled darkly, an unpleasant shiver ran up my spine. Before I could register what he was doing he had picked up the cage and thrown it at the glass balcony door. the cage didn't go far, as it bounced the flute detached and landed by the bed away from Steve. And the door to the spiders cage had been knocked open.
"No," I whispered, the spider crawled out its eyes on the brute who had disturbed her rest. Without missing a beat she launched herself at him, sinking her fangs into his face. I dove for the flute blowing out a sour note.
STOP! I screamed in my mind. Madame Octa recoiled, dislodging her fangs from Steve's flesh.
Back into the cage, I commanded. Being mindful of the glass I secured the spider before I turned my attention to Steve. A hot breeze swept through the room; I found him spread eagle and panting on the ground. His face had swollen up on the right side like a red balloon.
"Did your parents not teach you that stealing is wrong?"