The Bride and Her Bloodlust

The bracelet remained a mystery to me. For a long time before I slept, I stared at it. I felt the old wooden beads roll between my fingers, stared at the dark brown smudges of ancient blood. I hadn’t told the Master but I was concerned. I disappeared when I was ten years old from the eyes of the Witches. By that age I only had a tiny amount of marbles containing my essence. No one should be able to send owls to me, not without one of those marbles. I wanted to know who and one but sending a message out to the Crone would be possible damaging to myself and the Master. The only one I had left was Eva, the Lady. She’s the one who had given me my mother’s weapons and suit. She might have the marbles and given it to a trusted witch.

It was doubtful but, when the Master came to me, demanding and possessive, all worry of the bracelet left my mind as my brain dulled with warm and lust.

The next evening, all thoughts were gone. The bracelet was locked away and the Master said he would deal with it. It was always best that he spoke to the Lady.

I was cleaning in the main hall, working among my own, or at least those I considered my own. They viewed me as something I didn’t. They saw me as someone at the top, someone who was far above them. I didn’t view myself as such. It was why I still wore my uniform and why I still worked on tasks I had done when I was ten. The others kept their distance though.

I heard a faint whimper and glanced towards the source. I paused only for a moment in my dusting. A girl, maybe no older than twenty, was trying her best not to cry. She was sniffling hard and constantly wiped her eyes but continued to work. She was a new girl, brought in after witnessing a parasite attack. It was not so often we got new ones, mostly those who worked here were born here and raised in the Old World. The only reason they were kept here for safety. If they left, other immortals, even witches, may see them as threats and slay them.

She wasn’t the first whimpering human and nor would she be the last. I hoped she would adjust quickly. It would make her life and Mo’s far easier.

I looked up sharply when footsteps came down the hall. Al came striding in and smiled thinly at me.

“Susan, can you go with Ella to go collect James?” He asked without hesitation.

“Why?” I responded with narrowing eyes.

“I don’t want her venturing out alone and Uncle needs me.” He said.

I didn’t believe it and he knew he didn’t, he just didn’t care. With a shrug, he turned. “She’s leaving in five minutes.”

I growled sharply before I stalked off back to my room. I stripped just as I shoved the door open and quickly found the few clothes I had. Dressed in jeans and a shirt, I left, thinking that would be enough. I wondered back down to the Master, intending to see if what Alphonse had said was true.

When I opened the door, the Master’s eyes clapped onto me and instantly became amused. Seeing me dressed so casually was rare. I doggedly stuck to my uniform, the one thing I felt comfortable in. I didn’t that it looked utterly ridiculous.

I stood before him, hands on hips and trying to ignore his obvious amusement. “Alphonse said he can’t take Ella to go collect James.”

“Why’s that?”

“He claims he has some work to do with you.”

“He may be right.” The Master said vaguely as he leaned back, eyeing me. “But you intend to go out like that? I know the world outside isn’t that cold for you but you should at least pretend it is.”

I grunted, not wanting to acknowledge his point. “So Alphonse does have to do work with you?”

The Master only smiled which infuriated me a little bit. He was avoiding answering me. He often did this and it just made it worse that I felt he was helping Alphonse setting me up with something again.

“I’ll go out but only because it’s to go with Ella.” I snapped.

The Master was chuckling as he stood and reached out for a coat from the stand in the corner. He was still laughing at me, making me hiss, as he wrapped it over my shoulders. He tugged it, making sure it was covering me, then titled his head as he observed it. It was a little big for me but not too big. After deciding it was okay for me to wear, he placed his hands on my shoulders and let his thumbs gently rub me.

“Do what you want. Go out.” He said and swiftly kissed my mouth, pressing his lips hard against mine.

I was now hissing from embarrassment. “I only wanted to let you know where I was.”

The Master smiled. “I would know anyway. I can sense where you are, remember?” He replied, tapping his head. “I told you you could leave whenever you wanted to now. There hasn’t been a need for that chain of yours for a long time.”

“I know.” I grumbled, feeling a swell of relief at never feeling that immobilising ward again. I was so happy when he lifted that but, after a few months, found I didn’t really want to leave the house. It had confused me. For so long I had wanted to go but, when I could, I didn’t want to. It took me a while before I accepted that I was really quite content here.

The Master twisted me around suddenly and propelled me to the door. “Then go. Get James and come back.” He said and slapped my bum lightly.

I jumped and snarled savagely before I stalked out of the room, leaving the Master laughing softly to himself. I walked straight for the front door where Ella stood waiting. She, unlike myself, was wrapped up tight and her fading blond hair was left to do what it wanted and curl over her scarf in a wild manner.

She grinned at me and waved a little. “Al said you offered to take me to James.”

I refrained from scowling anymore but I was now convinced Alphonse was up to something. I went along with it all the same. Ella went first, wondering down the numerous steps beyond the front door and began to head up the gravel driveway. I had no idea why she wanted to walk. It was a good half hour to the city outskirts and I was guessing even longer to where James was, but she insisted.

“I enjoy the fresh air. Besides, I always spend longer with my family if I am awake during the dark hours.” She said with a smile.

She wasn’t wrong. All her family members were vampires now. I was always unconscious when dawn ended and Alphonse and the Master could only stay awake until maybe midday at the very most. She had unintentionally became nocturnal herself just so she could spend more time with us.

I coughed lightly, trying to surpress my small amount of joy at hearing she wanted to spend more time with me. “Where is James?”

“He is at a friend’s house. He went there after school and, now that the suns set, I thought it was time to start heading over there. It will be about six by the time we get there.” She said as she marched onwards.

“Who is this friend?”

“A boy named Harry. Seems a kind boy. He often helps James with his homework and, quite frankly, is extraordinarily patient. You know how James is.”

I did.

“He’s a hyperactive child and often scares off others or annoys them.” Ella said with a slight frown then smiled. “I’m glad he has a friend.”

I was too but I was still pondering about why Al wanted me with Ella. I wish he told me what he was up to before setting me out to do something. I can’t help him if he keeps me in the dark.

Ella and I continued onwards. While she complained about the cold, I told her I couldn’t see why. She had scowled at me and told me she was jealous of my love for the cold. That was the one thing she saw in being an advantage with vampirism. She did make me smile sometimes.

As predicted, come six o’clock, we were standing outside a narrow three story house in the outer layer of the city. She had knocked twice and there was a shout from behind the door. Couple of seconds later, a homely looking woman was there.

She smiled, causing her nose to wrinkle, and she pushed back her brunette hair. “Ella, hello.” She said warmly. “James is upstairs.” She said then shuffled aside. “Do you want to come in?”

“No, thank you, Lucy.” Ella said with a smile as I hung back, watching the woman curiously. “We are walking so we must get going.”

Lucy nodded and shuffled back inside. She yelled up the stairs for James and, low and behold, there was a loud banding noise and James came bounding down the stairs with Harry close behind.

“Hi, mother.” He said, grinning, which grew wider when he saw me in the shadows. “Hi, Aunt Susan.”

It was only then that Lucy noticed me. Her milky blue eyes shot to my face and, for a moment, a very interested expression flittered over her features. It died however before I could look into it.

Ella hurried James out of the house, who was a little reluctant to leave his new portly friend, but we were soon off down the streets with James bounding about us. He chattered constantly, telling us about his day at school and his new friend. He was ecstatic and rambled about everything, from his failure at maths to his managed restraint of strength in P.E.

Often I had pondered whether or not sending James to school was a good idea. He wasn’t human after all, but Ella had insisted. She wanted him to know humans, to know what sort of life she had as a child. I didn’t need too much convincing though. I would agree with anything that might stop James from becoming like the young ones of the house. So, when James turned eight, he went to school, and found it difficult. He was sworn to not saying anything about the house and the Old World. James may be a chatterbox but he would never disobey his Uncle when he stated it would put his family at risk. But that wasn’t what James struggled with the most. It was keeping his shows of strength and speed intact and often struggled with making friends. Seeing him so excited today did cheer me up a bit. It was good to see him finally with some kind of friendship.

I followed in tow quietly, smiling a little at James’ happiness. Ella simply nodded and muttered ‘yes’ or ‘really’ now and then, not that he paid much attention. He just needed someone to rant at; it didn’t matter as to whether or not they were listening.

By the time we got home, James was now whining about his grumbling stomach and how much his legs ached. I had told him a vampire child shouldn’t have achy legs after such a walk which shut up him quickly but I couldn’t say anything about his hunger. Once we reached the great iron gates and swung them open, he was charging down the driveway.

Ella followed James as he ran off to the kitchen, thanking me with a smile. I took of my coat, finding myself too warm now with it on, and wandered off back to the Master to give him back his coat. Along the way, Alphonse found me.

“Susan.” He called.

I looked over my shoulder and found him jogging towards me, looking anxious. “Yes?”

“How was James?”

“Fine. Really quite happy, in fact. He has a new friend he’s quite fond of.” Al nodded but he looked worried. “What is it?” I probed.

“Did you sense anything odd about the house?”

My eyes narrowed. So he did use me. Again. “No? Why? Have you?” I asked in an irritated tone.

He shook his head. “You sure?”

I paused, remembering briefly the odd expression of that woman, Lucy. “I am.” I said.

He sighed and smiled thinly. “Thank you for getting James with Ella.”

“Anytime.” I said guardedly then called to him when he turned and took a few steps from me. “If you need my help, you just need to ask me.”

Alphonse smiled wider. “I know.” He said. “But I don’t need help.”

I hummed in annoyed disbelief as he turned and walked off back down the hall. I clicked my tongue, annoyed that he had used me once again, but decided to keep an eye on him. Something was bothering him and, as he was so like the Master, I knew he wasn’t going to say what it was until either he had no choice or I had solid proof.

I began my walk again, swinging the large coat over my shoulder, and hummed absentmindedly to myself, wondering what on earth Alphonse was hoping I would sense in that mundane house.