Vampire Wares pt 67

After her unsuccessful attempt at an excursion, Lina returned to her room and tried to sleep, but she had difficulty.  Sleep wasn’t the same since she’d become a vampire.  She didn’t feel the effects of sleeplessness like she used to, though she did feel compelled to sleep from time to time, if for no other reason than to individuate her days and let her brain sort through and bring to a close all that had happened that day.  But she no longer looked forward to sleep anymore.

Her dreams had become darker.  In the world of her dreams were pervasive shadows, and the feeling of foreboding seemed to lurk around every corner.  Even the most ordinary scenarios such as fetching a loaf of bread from the kitchen in the convent, took on a different color than they had before.  She would feel, when she dreamt of that kitchen that there was something waiting for her, hiding behind the potato sack, something that might leap out at her, but didn’t.  Or if she dreamt of inspecting the forest from atop the wall, she would feel that there was something not quite visible in the forest that was heading her way, something over the horizon or in the shadows.  Every time she tried to sleep, the foreboding was always in the background, like the chirping of crickets at night.  And when she would wake up, she would only be greeted with the loneliness of an empty room.

Other things had also begun to change since she’d become a vampire.  Her strength was on the increase, along with her speed and agility.  Her teeth were growing; now they looked more like the fangs of a cat than a human. With her teeth so much bigger, the feeling of them in her mouth was a disagreeable new experience; she was not used to always feeling her teeth on the inside of her lips.  Her voice was also changing, growing more hoarse, more screeching; speaking had become more labored, more uncomfortable.  Economy of speech became desirable.

But most notable were the changes in her beauty.  Her skin looked better, though far whiter, her hair was richer and more vibrant. And her face looked almost unfamiliar.  She looked at herself in the mirror, and she still recognized herself, recognized her contours, but yet it wasn’t quite her.  Her face had, subtly, grown more pleasant.  She had always been an awkward looking girl, plain and unworthy of notice.  But now, as she looked at herself, she felt she had a face that would make boys go out of their way to catch a glimpse of, especially as she was starting to look older as well as more beautiful.

Lina left her room and went to the infirmary to find Sim.  She passed Asha on the way out and politely stepped aside for Asha to pass before she went in to see Sim.  Sim was about to leave, his wounds mostly recovered and his strength having returned.  A surgeon was inspecting his wounds once last time before letting Sim leave.

Sim saw Lina and told her, “Good to see you.”

“You almost look like you’ve never been injured at all,” Lina said, observing the now only small and faint remnants of his previously almost fatal wounds.

“We vampires heal quickly,” he said, “You’ll appreciate that.”

Then Sim’s expression turned darker and he said, “Asha spoke to me.  She thinks I’ve given you too much liberty.  There is business in this coven a young vampire is not supposed to be involved in.  You were seen in the barred room talking with humans and you were seen at the entrance.  These are places where a young vampire is not supposed to be unattended.”

Lina cut in to make an excuse, but Sim raised his hand to stop her, and spoke over her saying, “I don’t need an excuse.  I’m not here to punish.  You’re new, and you have yet to learn.  The one thing you should know, though, is that you are my responsibility.  As the one who infected you, I must take care of you, until you are ready to be independent.  And being responsible means making sacrifices.  It means I have to work more and eat less, so that there is food enough for you.  I accepted these things willingly.  I was the one who talked Asha into letting you join, and that means you’re even more my responsibility than if you were someone I’d infected accidentally.

“Making sacrifices also means that if you do something wrong, I bear the weight of the punishment.  Asha has looked the other way, since these are small and first time transgressions.  But she will not do that for you again.  Or, I should say, she will not do that for me again.”

<-- Go to Part 66         Go to Part 68 -->

You can see what's been written so far collected here.

After her unsuccessful attempt at an excursion, Lina returned to her room and tried to sleep, but she had difficulty.  Sleep wasn’t the same since she’d become a vampire.  She didn’t feel the effects of sleeplessness like she used to, though she did feel compelled to sleep from time to time, if for no other reason than to individuate her days and let her brain sort through and bring to a close all that had happened that day.  But she no longer looked forward to sleep anymore.

Her dreams had become darker.  In the world of her dreams were pervasive shadows, and the feeling of foreboding seemed to lurk around every corner.  Even the most ordinary scenarios such as fetching a loaf of bread from the kitchen in the convent, took on a different color than they had before.  She would feel, when she dreamt of that kitchen that there was something waiting for her, hiding behind the potato sack, something that might leap out at her, but didn’t.  Or if she dreamt of inspecting the forest from atop the wall, she would feel that there was something not quite visible in the forest that was heading her way, something over the horizon or in the shadows.  Every time she tried to sleep, the foreboding was always in the background, like the chirping of crickets at night.  And when she would wake up, she would only be greeted with the loneliness of an empty room.

Other things had also begun to change since she’d become a vampire.  Her strength was on the increase, along with her speed and agility.  Her teeth were growing; now they looked more like the fangs of a cat than a human. With her teeth so much bigger, the feeling of them in her mouth was a disagreeable new experience; she was not used to always feeling her teeth on the inside of her lips.  Her voice was also changing, growing more hoarse, more screeching; speaking had become more labored, more uncomfortable.  Economy of speech became desirable.

But most notable were the changes in her beauty.  Her skin looked better, though far whiter, her hair was richer and more vibrant. And her face looked almost unfamiliar.  She looked at herself in the mirror, and she still recognized herself, recognized her contours, but yet it wasn’t quite her.  Her face had, subtly, grown more pleasant.  She had always been an awkward looking girl, plain and unworthy of notice.  But now, as she looked at herself, she felt she had a face that would make boys go out of their way to catch a glimpse of, especially as she was starting to look older as well as more beautiful.

Lina left her room and went to the infirmary to find Sim.  She passed Asha on the way out and politely stepped aside for Asha to pass before she went in to see Sim.  Sim was about to leave, his wounds mostly recovered and his strength having returned.  A surgeon was inspecting his wounds once last time before letting Sim leave.

Sim saw Lina and told her, “Good to see you.”

“You almost look like you’ve never been injured at all,” Lina said, observing the now only small and faint remnants of his previously almost fatal wounds.

“We vampires heal quickly,” he said, “You’ll appreciate that.”

Then Sim’s expression turned darker and he said, “Asha spoke to me.  She thinks I’ve given you too much liberty.  There is business in this coven a young vampire is not supposed to be involved in.  You were seen in the barred room talking with humans and you were seen at the entrance.  These are places where a young vampire is not supposed to be unattended.”

Lina cut in to make an excuse, but Sim raised his hand to stop her, and spoke over her saying, “I don’t need an excuse.  I’m not here to punish.  You’re new, and you have yet to learn.  The one thing you should know, though, is that you are my responsibility.  As the one who infected you, I must take care of you, until you are ready to be independent.  And being responsible means making sacrifices.  It means I have to work more and eat less, so that there is food enough for you.  I accepted these things willingly.  I was the one who talked Asha into letting you join, and that means you’re even more my responsibility than if you were someone I’d infected accidentally.

“Making sacrifices also means that if you do something wrong, I bear the weight of the punishment.  Asha has looked the other way, since these are small and first time transgressions.  But she will not do that for you again.  Or, I should say, she will not do that for me again.”

<-- Go to Part 66         Go to Part 68 -->

You can see what's been written so far collected here.

Vampire Wares pt 67