Bleeding Tears, Crying Blood

I sat on my small bed with my legs crossed. My back was stiff from the length of time I had now been sitting there, staring at the window. It was dark outside and the storm had died a couple of hours before. White's empty body remained by my side; silent and very still. I doubted he would be back much before dawn again. To help pass the time as my eyes remained awake, I hummed softly to myself, giving myself some entertain as White wasn't there to talk to me. Slowly I let my fingers comb through my hair and pulled out what knots I could find. I was content, something which I found odd after the few manic days I had been through. While I might've gone against being sent away, I did like staying here. It was quiet and calm, something I was fond of.

Just as tiredness began to fill me, I felt something moving outside. I tilted my head as I let my senses tense. There was someone out in the grounds although they didn’t appear to be a threat. In fact they appeared to be human. That puzzled me. This place was filled with an aura that would scare most humans away. All places of the Old World had it. It was how we kept out of sight.

I swiftly pushed myself off of my bed and glided my way to the window. After a quick glance I knew they were at the back of the house. Without putting on either boots or coat, I wandered to the to the bottom of the house. A quick nose in the study told me Wolfram was still vigorously working. Seeing him so calm soothed away any thoughts of a threat being outside. I turned and lightly walked to the front door with the sound of my feet tapping against the marble floor.

Outside was cool and the stone courtyard was black from rain. Without any thought of the fact I was bare foot, I followed the path that circled around the gothic house. My feet slapped through thick puddles of water and I pushed my way through the overgrown brambles and weeds that had flourished from the absence of a gardener. When I reached the back gardens my white nightdress was muddied and torn and thick droplets of water trailed down my legs. I didn’t care for this. Being dirty and muddy through running around in the wilderness was something I had loved since I was small.

I cast my gaze over the moonlit gardens. Old pillars and walls were crumbling and practically green from wall creepers. The patios and paths were cracked with tufts of weeds and grass growing from them in abundance. Wolfram obviously never came out here. In fact I doubted he used any other place in the grounds other than the study and his chaotic bedroom.

I made my way down the sweeping stairs and came to stand by the dried up fountain. The bowl was wet with rain water but it hadn’t been used for a long time. The stone was cracked slightly and grime clung to the brim of it like it was green skin. I just about managed to resist the urge to run back and grab a bucket and scrubbing brush to clean the horrible thing. Instead I forced myself to focus on the sense of life that emanated from beyond the thick bushes.

I silently made my way up another, far less grander set of stairs. It took me up to a higher part of the garden that was filled with tiny paths and thick shrubs. Glancing back I could see the extent of the garden. If it was cared for it would look quite impressive which made me believe this house was once owned by either a Clan or Family. They enjoyed their gardens, especially the vampires, and often made the effort to create flamboyant ones. While it was strange I understood why. While Families just enjoyed the extravagance, we vampires were the immortals bound by darkness. Our eyes and noses were sensitive to bright colours and strong scents. The flowers always made the darkness a little less gloomy and the scents soothed us. As a vampire myself, I enjoyed the gardens back home. Often I would sit outside with my father, just staring at the billions of bright flowers our gardeners had cared for with joy.

I wondered sadly through the corpse of the garden until I came to the edge of a wall. There would’ve been flowers in the bed there but they had withered long ago. I could sense something on below the wall. Whoever was in the garden was down there. I stepped into the mud, ignoring the horrible sensation of it squelching between my toes, and then crouched on the top of the wall. Leaning over, I stared down at someone’s head. The insane hair was something I recognised instantly.

I knitted my eyebrows in confusion. “Leroy?”

He stiffened from shock then leapt onto his feet and took a few rapid steps away from me. He was startled at first and stood to defend himself until he recognised it was me. As his body relaxed, I could smell his irritation. He didn’t like the fact I was here. While I had more right to be in the neglected gardens of Wolfram, he felt like I was intruding in his territory.

“You just pop up everywhere, don’t you?” He snapped and tugged the hood over his head as he settled himself down on the wet floor.

“I live here at the moment and you’re intruding.” I stated.

He glared at me. “No one lives in that house.”

“Mr Wolfram does. He has done for a long time now.”

Leroy hesitated. “I thought it was empty. I never see lights on and the garden is pretty much abandoned.”

“I can understand.” I said as I looked about the dead trees and overgrown shrubs. “Wolfram appears to only work and lock himself away in his study.” I turned my stoic gaze back onto Leroy has I felt his mood darken. “You are welcome here.”

While this made him happy, it also grated on him. “I have been coming here for years. I don’t need your permission.”

“You do as you’re on someone else’s property.” I stated calmly. “What makes you come here? It is beyond midnight and it is wet out.”

The silence that followed was very heavy, so heavy it made me frown. It was filled with anger and entrapment. Something had happened to him.

I waited quietly for his answer.

“I come here for some peace and quiet.” He finally grumbled.

I blinked slowly. He didn’t want to speak about it. With a light sigh, I stood and let myself drop down the ten foot wall. I smoothed down my dress after landing lightly and looked down to meet his shocked stare. I just about managed to keep the understanding from my face when I realised that I had just dropped from a height that would normally cause a mortal discomfort at landing. I didn’t even bend my legs at the impact.

“If it is peace and quiet you want, then you can have it.” I said. “But I would like to sit with you.”

He nodded numbly. “Are you okay?” He managed to force out.

“Why would I not be?” I saw his eyes flicker to the wall but quickly retreated back to his clasped hands. “Something like that would never hurt me, Leroy.”

“How can’t it? You look so fragile.” He said, letting his gaze land on my face.

I stared for a moment the shrugged. “In time, you’ll know.” I replied.

He gave me a puzzled look which turned to annoyance. Before he could demand a less cryptic answer, I stood up and tugged at his sleeve for him to follow.

“You know the gardens I take it.”

He scowled at me grudgingly. “Yes.”

“Show me around. I have not been here long and not ventured outside much. I would like to see the grounds before I am called home.”

He couldn’t stop the small joyful smile that broke through his glare. Obviously Leroy loved the gardens, even if they were currently nothing but corpses. He took my small hand and showed me around the spacious grounds. There were scores of statues littered here and there along with benches, ponds and fountains. All were neglected and almost completely devoured by creepers or crumbled from time. I wondered how long this place had been left before Wolfram claimed it. I also wondered why it had been. Most likely the Clan had just died out or moved away. It saddened me a little. My mood perked up however when we stopped by one of the gazebos. There, in the flowerbeds circling the old stone structure, were some young roses.

Not being able to keep the glow of pleasure from my face, I crouched down and observed the young flowers. They had bloomed but were not as large as the ones back home.

“Did you plant these?” I asked softly as I touched the velvet petals.

“It seemed a waste. This place would’ve been wonderful it was actually shown a little love.”

“So you began to care for it?”

“Yes.” He said without shame.

I found that odd. For such a short tempered young man, I would’ve thought that his obvious love for gardening would be something he would prefer to deny or hide. I found myself liking that quality about this faint vampire and it only made me more determined to help open his eyes to the Old World.

“Wolfram wouldn’t mind if you continued. I will tell him you’re working in here. Just as long as you leave the house be, I don’t think he’d care.”

A glint of enthusiasm burned in his eyes. “You would let me work here?”

“It is not my place to say so but yes.” I said touched his cheek. “It will give you peace and quiet. It is apparent you need it.”

While the anger flittered about his face as the memories of why he wanted to be here surfaced, I noticed something else shimmer in his eyes. Embarrassment I think it was.

Clearing his throat violently, he stood and helped me onto my feet. “I will show you the other areas.” He said stiffly and wandered off, leaving me trail after him like a white shadow.

I was content as he showed me the rest of the grounds. I found him an interesting man, kind but stiff when it came to anything but gardening, and I thought White would like him. If only he had been awake. He could be here now with us. He could’ve seen the roses Leroy had planted. That small thought created a hole of emptiness in my chest as I realised how much I missed White and because of it I was even more sad to see Leroy leave. He at least gave me someone to talk to, someone to help keep the loneliness at bay. I watched him go silently from the front of the house, not moving an inch as I stood eerily still, feeling alone and filled with a horrible ache to hear White’s real voice and touch his real hands. I sighed heavily and retreated back into the house and sought out my bed quietly.

If only White was a little more affectionate, a tiny bit more open, and less stubborn and prideful then the mess that was to happen would never have occurred.