Chapter 39: Distracted Past
Waiting for Clementine and Vincent to put Thatch to sleep was getting on their nerves. It took so long! The vampires had their 'dinner' which they spent a lot of the time talking, then when Clementine and Vincent were cleaning up they were talking about getting a new maid as the mini-Thatch snuck out of his parent's sights, grinning widely. The little rascal hurried down the hall, playfully lifting the ends of the cloak so they flowed behind him like some sort of superhero cape. Casper tried to ignore the child and focus on Vincent until he felt his Thatch leave his side. Casper looked, seeing Thatch follow his younger self out of curiosity. Casper frowned, crossing his arms across his chest, then looked to Ra for some support in this matter.
Ra shrugged his shoulders, letting himself grin. "It's fine. Come on." He said and started to follow Thatch, though he walked at a nice calm pace, clearly not in a rush to go anywhere. Casper felt annoyed but followed, though he started to wonder if Ra was feeling tired or ill. The mummy showed no signs of either, so Casper would just have to assume Ra was just fine, but it still drove him crazy. Were they all forgetting every second they were here Ra was using his barely understood powers! Ra seemed fine now, but the effects always took place once the spell went off, and who knew how much this would affect Ra. Besides, the way Ra's pendant was glowing was freaking him out despite Casper's attempts to just ignore it. Ra didn't even seem to mind the glowing and that made the ghost even more concerned. The glowing clearly meant something, good or bad it was unknown.
"Where are we going?" Ra loudly asked Thatch, who seemed more distracted with his tiny self than anything else. Ra tried not to laugh, letting a smirk come to his lips. "I knew this would happen… Okay look, Thatch, this is cool and all but let's not get distracted from the task at hand." Ra said and hurried up to Thatch's side. "Come on, we gotta watch your dad." He tried to redirect the vampire, mostly for Casper's sake. An agitated ghost wasn't exactly a pleasant thing to deal with. Plus, Casper always turned a bit red when he was getting mad- it was so always terribly clear when the monster was getting fed up.
"Dad is going to go into town with mom and get Crystal tonight… I forgot I meet her tonight." Thatch mumbled softly, his eyes straight ahead on the mini-him, trying not to smile as the child pretty much hopped down the hall. "I don't remember my first meeting with her… and I want to." He decided firmly. "Mom said Crystal and I hit it off, and that she read me to bed that night. Once mini-me is in bed we'll follow dad again." Thatch explained, watching his mini-me open the ballroom door, though the small child struggled to do so, heaving to put his whole weight behind moving the large wooden doors. Casper tried not to gasp, but the ballroom was beautiful.
The crystal chandelier shimmered- reflecting light all around the room, the torches were ablaze with fire. All the windows were open to the outside air, the cool breeze swept into the ballroom, blowing the curtains gently. The floor was newly polished and shined, not creaking once under the mini-Thatch's feet. The small child went to the center of the room like Thatch had explained and sat right down, wrapped up in his dad's cloak with the biggest smile he could muster with those silly fangs before he just flopped onto his back, staring up at the painted ceilings- which were actually only half painted at this time.
"Whoa dude," Ra drew out, "you got to show me when I break this spell. What does it look like nowadays?" He questioned as he walked slowly, doing a full spin as he took in the large room.
"Still beautiful, just not as polished." Thatch chuckled and sat beside his child self- this was truly an odd sight. Casper and Ra found themselves just looking between the two. They looked terribly similar, one was just smaller. Plus it was hard to wrap their heads around that the little cutie before them turned into the biggest jerk in the school, then mellowed out and was now dating Casper… Wow.
The mini-Thatch was very calm compared to his older self. In fact, the child was clinging to the cloak, yawning as he slowly started to doze off right there on the floor. Thatch smiled and just rested beside his mini-self, idly looking around the room with a content look. Casper found himself hovering around the room, exploring the place in its prime. The garden was as lively as he remembered it, though he could also see the rose bushes weren't planted, and that instead of the pretty red roses there were some small earth flowers- like tulips were planted in small batches around the castle walls. The pond had no fish in it, even from the window Casper could tell, and the tree beside it was much smaller. It was so strange to see how time changed things.
As he peered outside, studying the differences he heard the sound of hooves and the loud sounds of wooden wheels on the cobblestone after the sound of a large crash, probably the drawbridge being dropped down. Casper naturally flew right back to his Thatch, ducking behind the vampire with his arms tightly wrapped around the other's torso. Thatch smiled and stayed put, just raising one hand to rest on Casper's arm.
"I guess they're home. Don't panic, we can't be seen."
"It's just weird to be here," Casper mumbled softly, his eyes drifting over to the windows. They were monsters, suppose to be hidden and in the dark. But everything in this castle was bright and screamed 'looked at me'. Even in its 'ruined' state back in their time, it was flashier than the school, or Casper's old homes… Monsters were supposed to hide but this crazy vampire family liked to show off while staying hidden. Vampires were completely weird.
Vincent walked in, Clementine was behind him but she stayed by the door, looking rather happy with herself. Vincent walked over to the mini-Thatch, which the real Thatch, Casper, and Ra quickly scrambled away from, despite not being able to be seen or touched. It was better to be safe than sorry, plus it wasn't like Casper completely understood Ra's spell. Who knew if they could affect the past.
"Thatch," Vincent softly cooed as he lifted the child right off the floor and into his arms. The child whined and opened his eyes, at first looking annoyed that he was woken up, but then happy to see it was just his beloved father. "You'll get sick sleeping here… Besides, we got a surprise." He softly chuckled, brushing back Thatch's multi-colored hair from his face. "I want you to meet Crystal, your mother's new thrall. She'll be your nanny from now on." Vincent decided simply, shifting the child so Thatch could see his mother. Clementine smiled and stepped aside, lightly pulling Crystal into the ballroom. Crystal was young, early teens at best. She wore rags and was covered in dirt, she was awfully thin too. Her eyes had no life, a mindless thrall currently. The speechless child looked at Crystal in fright and clung tighter to his father.
"Oh no, no Thatch it's okay. She just needs some love and care. She'll look better tomorrow." He comforted the child, pressing a kiss to his temple. "She's just like the rest of our thralls. Once she's healed back up to health she'll be fine." He promised, carrying Thach over to Clementine. Thatch clung to his father tightly, his eyes carefully watching Crystal, studying her like she was some sort of monster.
"Lets put you to bed, the sun is rising." Clementine smiled, taking Thatch happily into her arms. "Crystal, follow," Clementine ordered in a bit of a colder tone, but she meant no harm by it. One had to be firm with thralls. "We best get you and Crystal cleaned up. Vincent, are you staying up?" the mother tiredly sighed, her gaze turning sad as she looked at her dear husband.
"Of course my dear, I have work to do tonight." Vincent softly sighed, brushing his hair back with his hands to get it out of his face. It was frustrating but he was married to his work as much as he was married to his dear Clementine. "I got to get this finished up or the farmers will have a terrible haul this year. They barely made it last year. These winters have been hard on the humans." Vincent reasoned, and Clementine found herself smiling as she gently bounced Thatch in her arms, just a playful gesture.
"Well then, fine. Just remember sometimes it best to let the humans work things out on their own. You're far too attached to them. You'll work yourself to death- oh?" She stopped and looked at Thatch curiously as the child shifted in her arms. Thatch was reaching out for Clementine, his hands outstretched as he determinedly tried to grab onto his mother's new thrall. Clementine willingly moved and passed Thatch into Crystal's arms after a moment's hesitation. Crystal carefully took Thatch, holding him close in the exact manner Clementine did, after all, thralls were often just extensions of the vampires who controlled them. Thatch smiled, his head tilted to the side as he studied the new thrall.
Thatch leaned up, using Crystal's arms as a brace for his legs. His small hands moved, pulling down the collar of her shirt to stare at the fresh bite mark. It was still bleeding, not having time to heal over yet. The child pouted and looked towards his mother, letting out a soft whimpering sound as he clung to Crystal.
"So cute, I see you got a good taste in humans as well my little prince. Come now, we need to get you both cleaned up," she softly spoke and placed a hand on Crystal's back, guiding the female out. Thatch just pouted, but either way, he clung to Crystal fondly. Vincent waved, fondly watching his darling wife, child and their new thrall leave.
Casper tilted his head to the side, a frown pressed to his lips. The ghost carefully floated off the ground in his new habit. He felt safer in the air, maybe because very few creatures could fly. "Thatch? Wasn't that... Your favorite maid?"
"Yeah," Thatch recalled fondly, a faint smile on his lips before a heavy sigh escaped him. "What of it?" He asked defensively, turning to face the ghost with his arms stubbornly crossed over his chest.
"In the story, you told me she was older. She's so young… Just a few years older than us, isn't she?" He questioned lightly, trying to keep the vampire nice and calm. No need to start a fight over a simple question.
"This is 10 years before the attack on the castle, so of course she's younger." Thatch explained offhandedly.
"A whole 10 years?" Casper muttered softly, then looked at the vampire with a faint smile. "Funny to see how humans age and you don't, huh? You're so small."
"Hey I grew! 10 years from 'now' I was talking and learning how to fly. That's pretty good for a vampire." He said defensively. "I was always smart!" Casper tried not to roll his eyes. He didn't feel like making a snarky remark to the vampire, not right now. He'll let Thatch claim he's smart, but honestly, the vampire could be a dunce at times.
Ra decided this was a good time to speak up. "Thralls are creepy." He said bluntly as he inserted himself into their conversation.
Thatch hissed, but tried not to snap, having to remind himself it looked like from the outside. "They're not 'creepy', they're just mindless slaves… At first. That's how things operate here. Mom and dad find an abandoned fleshie, turn them into a thrall, fix them up and then they break the spell after a few weeks. Most of them stay as servants afterward." He explained stiffly to Ra. Casper rolled his eyes and floated away as Thatch went onto his spew, trying to explain the life of a thrall to the mummy. Casper had little interest in this as Thatch had explained this to him before. Casper instead watched Vincent stand by the door, and once the vampire started to leave Casper made a quick call back to his friends before he followed.
Finally, down to business.
The three children followed Vincent eagerly down to the cellar like Thatch had told Casper before. The stairs into the cellar were creepy. They were dark and slowly curved. It wasn't until they reached the bottom Casper saw it was because the cellar was, in fact, circular and not square like he had assumed. There were rows and rows of shelves. Old tools, crates, things to repair and some weird looking… things Casper couldn't describe. The cellar was large and dark, none of the torches were lit. Vincent carried the only lit torch to light his way, so the children stuck close lest they are left in the dark with only Ra's creepy glowing pendant to give them light. Casper honestly thought that was worse than being left in the dark.
Vincent approached the back wall, softly humming to himself. He raised a careful hand, letting the tips of his fingers run along the cold bricks. He settled on a cracked brick at his eye height, and the trio could see the vampire's red eyes glow faintly as he lightly tapped the brick in tune with his humming before he pulled his hand back. The stones started to move, coiling back and folding in on themselves to make a large door, revealing a staircase that seemed to go down forever.
Vincent held his torch up and started to head down the stairs, and Thatch started to follow until Casper grabbed his shoulder, halting the vampire. "We got our answer. Let Ra break this spell." Casper softly pleaded, his gaze drifting back to the mummy. Ra said nothing, just looking away quickly and fiddling with his creepy glowing pendant. The vampire looked hesitant, his eyes drifting back to his father as he descended down into the dark stairs, slowly disappearing from their sight. "Thatch, this is the past… Let's go back to our time." Casper moved, holding both of Thatch's hands as he started to guide the vampire away from the stairs, just as the bricks started to shut again. Casper gave a classic smile as he watched the vampire, but he got no smile in return.
"Come on man, we can find this now," Ra said confidently. "We'll just come back to it in our own time, it'll be fine." He agreed with Casper as he walked over, patting the vampire on his back. Thatch sighed heavily, still looking regretful. Casper tried to understand, Thatch just wanted to see more of his father, but Casper wanted this spell to break for Ra's sake. And luckily the vampire submitted and nodded, giving the mummy and ghost a half-hearted smile.
"Okay, now that this is done… someone hold me cause this is going to suck more than a vamp- er… Nevermind." Ra muttered and glanced off at Thatch's cold glare. It was best not to make any vampire jokes for now. "Let's get this over with." He said simply and clasped his hands together. Ra broke the spell and for a moment it looked like the world was shattering around them like they were stuck inside of some endless mirror world. Then they were back in the tower like nothing had happened, and all of them were just standing there like they were in a trance. After a few moments Casper felt the ability to move again, and the second he did Ra started to fall forward like a sack of potatoes.
The ghost quickly dived forward, catching Ra by his upper torso- his arms just tightly wound around the mummy, his head mere inches from the ground. That would have been a really nasty injury. Thatch hurried over, helping Casper gently lower the unconscious mummy so he was laying on his back. Ra was stiff, his eyes closed gently as he slept. The pendant was softly flashing green, not as intense as it had been before. Ra seemed to be fine, the mummy was breathing and just seemed to be asleep. It was a bit of a relief to be back and know Ra was going to be okay now. Casper could now put his focus on Thatch's concerns now that Ra's health wasn't in question.
"We need to get him to bed," Casper sighed softly, his gaze moving from his dear friend to the window, noting that the room was lighter. "The sky is lighter… We'll have to get up soon. It's best we all go to our rooms." The ghost muttered, his shoulders slouching down. They were up all night, tomorrow was going to be long and exhausting. Sure Thatch would be fine, but Caper needed sleep!
"But the lab!" Thatch quickly countered, holding his arms out in a helpless manner.
"It can wait. Your mom will ban us from the tower, not the cellar. Tomorrow night we can get to your father's lab, I promise." Casper said earnestly. "Look at Ra, Thatch, he's exhausted. Help me take him back." It wasn't hard to get the vampire to listen. What Casper said made sense, so the vampire caved and nodded, helping the ghost hoist up their friend and start to carry him down the towers spiraling steps and back to the West Wing. Casper, of course, had it easy, just having to hover off the ground and hold Ra's legs up. Thatch had it harder as he had to lift the upper half of the mummy and walk back down the stairs. Casper tried not to laugh, listening to Thatch grumble and insult the mummy's weight the whole time.
Casper took a quick note that Thatch was always one to quip about one's weight whenever he had to carry them. First Slither, and now Ra. Casper was just glad he was a ghost and therefore didn't weigh much. He was sure that would please the weaker vampire a good bit. Poor Thatch, only as strong as a human. Well, at least the vampire could turn into a bat, that was something. Until Thatch learned some new powers the vampire was very human-like. It had to suck being a living vampire.
At the bottom of the terribly long and ridiculous stairs, Thatch set Ra down and just laid on the floor, heavily panting as he caught his breath. Casper idly watched, feeling perfectly fine himself. "We need to go before we get caught."
"NAH, shush… one more minute." Thatch groaned, covering his eyes with his hands. "Ra needs to lose some weight, damn if Slither was here this would be so much easier," the vampire realized, mentally beating himself up for not dragging Slither's scaley butt out of bed.
"Well, he's not so we gotta keep working." Caper rolled his eyes. The ghost placed his hands on his hips, just hovering over the vampire. "Come on, up. Let's get Ra to bed then you can rest. Come on Thatch, these halls are creepy."
"They're not creepy." Thatch grumbled but sat up anyways. Thatch slowly got up, groaning as he stretched out. Casper flew back to Ra's feet, grabbing them as Thatch grumbled and lifted Ra from under his arms. The two monsters carefully carried their passed out friend down the dark halls. Casper couldn't hear anything. No Kibosh, no Clementine, no sounds at all. It was like the entire castle was muted. For a building filled with a bunch of monsters, it was too quiet. But the monsters were asleep, so maybe Casper was just nervous. First night in their new school, it would bring anyone nerves!
Casper decided to do the nice thing and open the door for Thatch, but he tried something a bit different. Casper tried to use his own ghost powers to open the door. After all, ghosts could move things or possess them. He hadn't used them in… forever now, not since he used them to scary Jimmy. He had been too ashamed to use them- but watching the other students grow into their powers was almost comforting. Yeah they had powers and they could be used for evil, but Thatch and Ra showed they can just as easily be used for good.
The door slowly creaked up and Casper flinched back. Yeesh, why was everything so creepy. He wasn't even trying to make it creepy! Once the door was fully opened they carried Ra in, but Casper couldn't help but to notice Thatch was just staring at him. He only looked away once or twice, and that was because they had to open the lid to Ra's sarcophagus to put him in. Once Ra was laid down Casper closed the lid, sighing heavily. When he turned to Thatch the vampire was still just staring at him.
"W-what?" Casper stuttered and started to head for the door.
"I didn't know you had magic."
"I'm a ghost. I can move things," Casper murmured. "It's not that big of a deal."
"Why don't you do it more often?" Thatch frowned and followed quickly, taking ahold of his hand.
"I just don't. It doesn't… Thatch, I'm tired." He mumbled and turned up to the vampire, looking at him with pleading eyes. "Tomorrow. Let's talk tomorrow."
"Well... Okay." Thatch sighed. "Come on, let's get to my room." He said simply and started to lead the ghost along. Casper briefly glanced down the hall towards his own room but didn't say anything. He just followed Thatch into the vampire's bedroom, a smile making its way to his face despite his utter exhaustion. He was fine with this, it wasn't the first time he would sleep with the vampire. If anything he preferred it. So the ghost just yawned and climbed onto the soft mattress as Thatch went around doing… stuff, Casper really didn't pay attention. He just climbed under the covers and pulled them up. As he laid his head down Thatch joined him finally and pulled the ghost closer, instead having Casper's headrest upon his chest. Much better.
The ghost smiled and nuzzled close, gently holding onto the living vampire. He knew Thatch probably had dozens of questions running around in his head, but Casper didn't see the rush. they were young and they had plenty of time to figure things out. So, the ghost fell asleep easily, forgetting the stress of the day or the dreaded feeling of the amount of work they had to do tomorrow.