You're sitting in the passenger seat of Eric's red Corvette, looking out the window and crossing your arms childishly. You would be stuck in a car with him for 5 hours. Even though the vampires could probably just whoosh you over to New Orleans in 5 minutes. Margot is driving in front of Eric. Sarah, Pam, Henry, and Bill are inside of her car. There's just enough room to fit all 5 of them. You feel bad for her, but you wish you were in that car instead. Bill is the one who found out that Sarah's necklace was in New Orleans. That must be what he was busy with for the past few days. It's why you haven't seen him in a while. So you would blame him for all this. You're still not happy with Eric, and now you have to be alone with him. Eric told you that Bill said a witch has Sarah's necklace. You don't know what a witch would want with some ashes, from a human, but it must be important if she was willing to pull off a heist. Willing to destroy the house and cover up her tracks. You glance over at Eric out of the corner of your eye, he looks bored. Because you don't want him to look back at you, you look away and just stare straight ahead at the white lines on the road.
When you get to New Orleans, it will be 3 in the morning, so there wouldn't be any searching for the witch until the next night. You guys will be stopping at Eric's friend's house, a vampire, so all of you can sleep and eat and stuff. He didn't tell you anything about his friend, and you don't care. You're not sure if they'll involve you in searching, you'd be happy to stay behind. Every time you do something like this you end up killing someone. You don't think Eric or Margot will stop to let you and Sarah pee, but you don't mind. You could hold it all day if you wanted to, and if you did stop it would prolong the ride. 5 hours of Eric time is more than enough for you, especially now. You wish you had something to do, a book to read, a magazine to flip through, anything. All you have to entertain yourself is your thoughts and the trees beside you. For no particular reason, you uncross your arms and let your hands rest in your lap. You've only been in the car with Eric for about 30 minutes, and it feels like 3 hours. You can't be angry the whole time, it would make the experience torturous.
This is your first time in his car, it's as nice as you expected, and the seats heat up. The interior is red and black, it feels wrong for you to be inside. You're not wealthy enough to experience this. But you suppose money doesn't matter to vampires, they've lived long enough to see that it can't make them happy. The only thing that matters to vampires is blood and sex. There are probably greedy vampires, ones that want money and blood above everything else, but you've never met one. You hope Eric's friend isn't an asshole, but knowing him, they will be an asshole or just a weird person in general. Margot is normal but Longshadow is weird. It could go either way.
You glance at Eric again, it feels too awkward right now. You want to say something to break the ice, you won't get many opportunities to be alone with him for so long. There are two things you want to do right now, go home and sleep. But you can't, so you might as well make the best of it. There's no getting out of it, if you jump out of the car he'll heal you and put you back in. You didn't think twice about doing that, that would be painful and it's not worth it. Eric's attractive, you could be in his presence for a few hours. You have to sit next to him during work, it's not any different from what you're doing right now.
You clear your throat and you see him glance at you for a moment out of the corner of your eye, you lean forward and turn the volume to the music down slightly. Eric turned the radio on once he started the car, it's the only thing that makes the ride less awkward, "I've wanted to ask this for a while," You begin, looking over at him, "Have you watched any of those vampire movies?" The corner of his mouth twitches and he tilts his head thoughtfully. You were curious, you wanted to know what he thought about Hollywood's depiction of vampires. They got some things wrong, and you've never seen a vampire child. Shown in Interview With a Vampire. That's your least favorite of the vampire movies you've seen so far.
"I don't have time to watch movies anymore," He starts, taking a breath even though he doesn't need to, "But yes, I've seen a few of them. Pam liked to make fun of them when we still had the video store." He goes on, glancing over at you for a moment. Some part of you misses the Blockbuster, it was what started your "friendship" with Eric and Pam. You don't know if they'd call it a friendship but you would like them to. Work friends, business partners, allies, whatever works.
"Are there any vampire children?" You ask your next question, relaxing further against your seat. You're kind of tired, but you don't want to fall asleep or anything. Not when you could be asking him a bunch of questions. It doesn't matter what those questions are, you just want to talk to him. It would make the ride bearable, and possibly make it go by faster. Sleeping would do that too, but you'd rather be awake right now. It's not that you don't feel safe with Eric either, you've slept near him before.
He doesn't bother hiding the amused smirk on his face, "Yes, I've met a few." He says simply as the car rolls to a stop in front of a red light. You're sort of surprised, you didn't think anyone would turn a child into a vampire. That seems horrible to think about, so you won't, or you'll try not to. It would be hard not to but you could manage it.
"How are people turned?" All you know is the person has to die to become a vampire, you don't know any of the details. The amused look disappears from Eric's face. He doesn't seem to be feeling anything at all right now. Maybe he doesn't like to think about the time he was turned. You don't know. Maybe he thinks you'll ask him to turn you. You wouldn't, not ever probably. If you were dying, you'd want him to save you, but you wouldn't willingly turn. If you did, you probably wouldn't be able to see your family again. You might eat them or something. That wouldn't be good. You'd just be sad if that happened.
The light turns green, "You'd have to die, all of your blood would need to be drained from your body. The vampire would feed you their blood and dig a hole and bury both of you inside for 24 hours." The answer is longer than you expected, and it seems sort of complicated. But you guess it makes sense. Not really but you'll pretend like it makes sense. You don't think you ever want to go through that, dying. It sounds horrifying. You're not ready for it just yet, but you know it's coming. As long as you associate with vampires, one of them will like you enough to want to keep you around. You don't think that's normal, but you think they might keep you around.
"The blood-draining part sounds painful..." You say, shaking your head. You take a moment to glance out the window, you're on the highway looking down at the street. Because it's nighttime, a few homeless people are sleeping on the sidewalk and walking around. Not as many as there are in New Orleans, but still quite a few. Enough that they're noticeable from the highway. For some reason, while you stare down at them, you think of your mother. Probably because she lives in New Orleans. Maybe you'll be able to visit her while you're in town. You suppose you'd have to get permission or something. Soon, you're off the highway and on a dark isolated road surrounded by trees. You liked this better than being on the highway. But it feels sort of creepy in a way. You don't know what's in the forest, well maybe you do. Werewolves, Shapeshifters, whateverthefuck.
"That part doesn't matter, as long as you die, you drink vampire blood, and you're buried, you'll turn into one." He shrugs, resting his arm on the console between the two of you casually. You don't like the idea of being buried in the dirt. You look over at him for a second, he looks good. As he always does.
"Ohh..." You say quietly, looking at his large hand holding onto the steering wheel. You swallow and look back at the road, is he speeding? You couldn't tell before but Margot's car is no longer in front of his car. She must have done it on purpose, you don't know why. Eric doing something illegal is the least of your worries until you hear a siren and see flashing lights in the rearview mirror. You purse your lips and look over your shoulder out the back window. Eric has started to slow down now, he pulls over on the side of the dark road. When you look back at Eric he looks tense, no longer resting his back against the driver's seat. He shuts the car off and sets the keys in his lap before turning on the light above you.
As the police officer approaches Eric's window, he rolls it down and pretends to relax. He taps his fingers against the steering while for a moment before he seems to remember something. In the cup holder between you, there's a water bottle full of blood. You couldn't see it before because it was dark outside and all the lights in the car were off. He glances at you for a moment and you realize what he wants you to do. Before the cop can waddle over to his window, you grab the bottle and stuff it inside the car door. When you're situated, Eric leans over to grab the car's registration from the glove box in front of you. When he does this your nose practically touches his ear, but you don't react outwardly. He smells sweet, like vanilla or something.
You barely register him slamming the glove box shut, "What's the problem officer?" He asks, putting on a Southern accent you've never heard from him. You try not to react to this new change, but the laugh is hard to stifle. You hide your smile behind a fake yawn. Of course, Eric would get pulled over, in this fucking car anyone would get pulled over. And it's not like he didn't deserve it, he was going too fast.
"Sir, you were going 60 in a 40, can I see your license and registration please?" The man is shining a flashlight into the window. You raise your hand to cover your eyes, shielding them from his blinding light. You've never experienced being pulled over at night, and you don't like it. But you don't speed down dark roads in the middle of the night. So you probably won't run into that problem again. Unless you're in a car with Eric.
Eric smiles a fake smile and holds both of the documents with two fingers, hand outstretched toward the donut-eating Government official. The heavy-set bearded man takes the documents and walks back to his car with them. The blonde vampire looks over at you for a moment and doesn't say anything. You pretend not to notice him do this. You don't know if Eric's name is in any database but it should be. As long as he has a social security number or something. You don't know how that works.
"You can't just glamour him?" You ask, furrowing your brows in confusion. If you ever got pulled over as a vampire, you would get out of it immediately. Before the cop could even utter the words "license and registration please", you would stare into their eyes and make them go away. Eric looks over at you again, unimpressed this time. You roll your eyes at him. He has a problem with this of all things?
"I can just pay for the ticket," He says it like it's obvious. You guess it doesn't matter if you're rich. Another reason for you to dislike rich people. Maybe if Eric gave his money to charity you wouldn't want to eat the rich so bad. You can't help but feel envious, if you had half the money he did you wouldn't be speeding.
Soon, the police officer returns with Eric's documents, "Sir I'm gonna let you off with a warning, but please be more careful next time." He says sternly.
"Thank you, officer. I appreciate your generosity," The police officer nods at him and turns away. You let out a breath you didn't know you were holding. That could've been bad, Eric was being reckless and dangerous. And if he continued to do so, the cop probably would've ended up dead. You're wondering if you should distance yourself from him. But there's a reason you're here in the first place, this is all for Sarah.
Eric starts the car and pulls back out onto the road, you settle in your seat and try your hardest to relax. This night will be long and eventful, might as well stay focused. As you continue along the road, a dark feeling passes over you and a shiver runs through you. You know it will be hard to find the witch who took Sarah's necklace, it might even be dangerous for you. You're in too deep already, you won't ever leave this world. You wouldn't want to. Some part of you loves the adrenaline that comes with being friends with vampires.
The rest of the ride is uneventful, with Margot's car back in front of his, he doesn't speed anymore so cops aren't able to pull him over. When you arrive at his friend's house, you're relieved to get out of the car and stretch your legs. The house is very large, a modern mansion with a blood-red exterior and grand hedges lining the driveway. You know there are lots of vampires inside, but you don't know how many. Pam is out of the car first, along with Bill. Pam looks irritated, more irritated than you've ever seen her actually. You step out of the car, it's a little chilly, and it makes you shiver. Before you can blink Eric is holding your upper arm, leading you toward the entrance. Pam follows behind you, and you see everyone else behind her when you look over your shoulder.
Eric enters the house with you, without knocking on the door. The inside is more expensive-looking than the outside, you don't think you belong here at all. Your black hoodie is proof. Sarah closes the door behind your little group of vigilantes, quietly. Not quietly enough evidently. An older vampire is in front of you, looking down at you with what you think is disgust. He's wearing a dark purple suit with intricate black lace lining the inside and black suede shoes.
"Did you ever tell the Authority about this human? She's not supposed to know about our kind." The man sounds like he's teasing Eric. You know he's talking about you and it makes you feel uneasy, you didn't know vampires weren't allowed to tell humans about their existence. It makes sense when you think about it for more than a second, you can't believe this hasn't been addressed before. But you're glad it's coming up now.
Eric lets go of your arm and you glance at him, his jaw is set firmly and his eyes are narrowed, "Russel, she is under my protection, she's assisting us with a situation. If you have a problem with it, take it up with Roman." The vampire looks skeptical but he doesn't say anything, he just looks angry. Without saying another word, Eric grabs your arm again and leads you further into the house. As you go, you pass a few different groups of vampires. There are a lot, more than you expected. Some of them look at you curiously and others ignore you completely, as expected. You can sense the tension in the air, you know you're in the middle of something you can't begin to understand.
As you follow Eric through the house, you realize you've gotten yourself into some troubling stuff. You could've prevented this, you could've stayed at Earl's restaurant. But you like being around Eric, you feel content with him around. Like you don't need anything else. But you have to stay alert and aware of your surroundings if you want to prolong your mortal life.
Eventually, Eric leads you to a room where some vampires are seated at a round table, discussing something. They all look up as your group enters the room, you can feel their eyes on you. You can hear Bill gasp from behind you. Eric introduces you to them, Salome, Nan, and Lorena, he introduces Lorena as Bill's old girlfriend and she rolls her eyes.
"Not anymore." She says with a scoff. You take a seat at the table, uncomfortable with all the tension in the room.
Salome, a beautiful woman with curly brown hair speaks up, "What's your plan Eric? We haven't encountered a witch in centuries. They're quite dangerous if I remember correctly." You had no idea they were dangerous, they must be scary.
Eric nods, "They're quite dangerous, that's why we need someone to go undercover. A human." You can feel Eric's stare on you and you glance back at him, of course you would have to do this part. You already have ideas about your new fake life. You just got diagnosed with cancer and you need magic to cure you because you're young and you have a long life ahead of you. An unconvincing backstory if someone asks you to produce medical records.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" You ask Eric as he walks over to you and sits in the chair next to you. You nervously bounce your foot against the floor and he places a hand on your arm, an attempt at comforting you.
"It's the best plan we have."
