Beauty in the Dark
CHAPTER TWO-Whispers Of The Children Of The Night
Lark left Miss Shaw's office, feeling oddly good. The new shrink wasn't that bad, a bit nervous but at least she was the first not to give Lark a judgmental look, or another mountain of leaflets about being happy and suicide is bad. Lark smiled when she saw her friend Kirby Cook leaning against the lockers, waiting for her. He was a tall, bony guy with dark skin, a tall black mo-hawk with red tips, pale brown eyes and piercings dotting his face and ears. "So, how did it go?" he chuckled, plans of pranks already racing through his wicked mind. Lark knew this, for she knew him too well. "Get the pranks out of your head Kirby, she's OK. She laughed at our funeral music and didn't book me in for weekly chats, thank the red guy" Lark said with a tiny smile. At first Kirby looked surprised and a bit disappointed that he wouldn't be pulling off a horrible trick, but deep down he was glad that it went well for his friend. So with wrapping his long lanky arm around her head, due to her small frame, he said "that's good at least. Did she like last night's activity?" Lark bit her lip into a smirk and an mischievous look flashed in her eyes, shaking her head. Last night, a time of cackles through the darkness, running between the trees and fake blood dripping from their hands. The activity was scaring the everlasting day lights out of Luvena McClaire, a tyrant cheerleader with false popularity. She liked to bully those she deemed beneath her, especially Lark and Kirby's friend Skylar Dumas. She basically tortured her since middle school, to the point where Skylar had a breakdown and had to take time off school. Skylar return date was net week and to be sure Luvena didn't go near Skylar again, Kirby and Lark decided to follow Luvena through the woods while she was walking home and jump out wearing monster masks covered in blood, then throwing a bucket of the sticky red corn-syrup concoction on top of her head for good measure. Her screams of fright still rang in Lark's ears if a room became too silent. "Now she knows how it feels, to be afraid of the dark" she thought, proud of her actions.
The day went on slowly, draining Lark of her short live joy. The story of Luvena's monster run-in had spread around the school, most of the students avoided Lark and Kirby like the plague, especially Luvena and her group of harpies. As usual, Lark kept to herself, with her head buried in her Edgar Allan Poe book while listening to teachers droning on about whatever subjects they teach. During lunch, the whispers of, what Luvena dramatically retold as a vicious attack, were loud. Lark could feel eyes burning through her back as she and Kirby sat in their usual corner. "They're afraid of me, good" Lark told herself in the bathroom mirror. Shoving her unruly hair into a high-ponytail, she made one last check of her reflection. She had change out of her dress into her work uniform, which was a blood red polo t-shirt and black skinny jeans. She was excited to go to work, she liked her job and earning her own money. Plus it annoyed her mother. As she walked down the packed hallway to main entrance, the name calling flew over her head. She knew what people thought about her and her job. Autumn Dawn was known as a very anti-vampire town and for chasing out the "fanged monsters." There were 3 vampires living in the town, only Lark and her boss knew who they were, and they both vowed to protect their identities. Lark almost reached freedom when the bark of the Queen bitch forced her to stop dead in her tracks. "On your way to the sin house Lark? Bet you've heard about the new fanged creeps coming to join your gang of shit-stains and freaks. Don't worry, we'll make them go away after the blood orgy, you traitorous whore" Luvena said with delightful wickedness. Lark's self described black heart jumped into her throat and redness burned her cheeks. A new coven of vampires, moving into town? Without a second thought, Lark rushed off to the blood clinic, only having time to kiss a middle finger to Luvena. She wanted to meet them as soon as possible. Before the town drives them off.
Two and a half hours later and Lark was still waiting eagerly. The boss wasn't in, he was at another clinic out of town and wouldn't be back until the weekend. Lark rested her head on the counter, watching the clock tick down and listening to the calming vocals of Motionless In White. As much as she hated Luvena, and she did hate her with a passion, she knew the bitch wouldn't lie about a vampire entering the holy lands of the town. She'll be by now telling everyone and getting the stakes ready. Bored, she pulled out the old and tattered "Need To Know" vampire handbook. Everything known about vampire history and types was in the book and she always brought it out to read when she had nothing to do. Lark had read it so many times, do there was nothing else to do. She flicked through the pages, reading fast;
The vampire race, from what historians can gather, has been around from the ancient Egyptian period. Now some have claimed that vampires are former servants of Gods, cursed to walk and drink the living as punishment for some betrayal. While others believe that the first vampire was created by mutated bats. Never the less, what everyone can agree on is how vampires came to be known to the world. It happened in the early 1920s, for a year or so before there were rumors of someone, or something, biting the necks of beautiful woman and draining them of half their blood. In October of 1923, a gentleman named Ernest Van Doyle went on to a nation-wide radio station, and announced to the whole United States that he was a vampire and he went on to spill all the vampire secrets, many of which have been lost to time. He traveled through-out the country, spreading the word of his kind, the many types of vampire and showing what he could do. Other vampires around the world joined him in coming out, while others hide and spoke out against him. And then there was the humans, both those who supported Ernest and those who hunted, were all scared of the new beings. By the end of the 1920s, the tensions had grown to a boiling point and after Ernest and a number of vampires tried to kill a handful of world leaders, a war began, which lasted in secret until the mid 1970s. After the death of Ernest, the humans and vampires came to a somewhat peaceful truce; vampires must only drink the blood of animals or human donations, vampires must register themselves and their families in any city they live in, vampires must live in the designated areas provided for them and vampires must only turn willing humans from age 21 and over, in-front of a judge. This became law in 1986 and is known as The Crimson Legislation.
Lark breathed heavily and turned to the vampire types page;
There are four known types of vampire, each had there own abilities and look different to each other. This page is a quick run down of each one;
*The Nosferatu=the most common of vampires. They are pure bloods, born from a vampire mother and father
*The Sanguinarian=humans who have been bitten and drank the blood from a vampire. They are also as The Turned or The Bitten
*The Dhampirs=a very rare type. They are a result of a vampire and a human mating, most are unwanted unions
*The Ghouls=reanimated corpses, that had been bitten after death. These are also very rare, for blood of the dead can be poisonous to vampires
"Maybe they came in earlier or they're coming tomorrow" she muttered to herself sadly. Shaking the disappointment from her soul, Lark stood up straight and busied herself with alphabetizing the blood stock. Time seemed to move a bit quicker when suddenly, "pardon me, may I have some service?" spoke an elegant British voice. It made Lark jump in shock and, something else. Something warm through her cheeks, and between her legs. Lark returned to the counter and became frozen on the spot. There before her was a vampire, a handsome vampire who looked about her age. Though she couldn't be too sure, since those known as nosferatu aged slower than human, after a certain age. He was towering over her, like most, he had pale white skin and a diamond shape face. He was skinny yet also muscular, a beauty spot sat under his left eye, his pointed ears were pierced and a chocolate brown top-hat with black and gold goggles rest upon his shoulder length, flowing black hair, with dazzling sliver streaks. His eyes were the most beautiful pair Lark had ever seen and they pulled her in. They were rounded deep amethyst and were surrounded by thick eyelashes. They stared at each other, lost in their eyes, examining every inch of their faces.
It took a while for Lark to find her voice again. "Hello, how can I help you?" she asked, still not moving. The vampire smiled, slightly bowing to her, causing her whole face to turn scarlet. "Good evening young beauty, my family and I have just arrived and need to order some blood" he said. His voice moved Lark in a way no man had ever done in her short life. It warmed her insides and twisted her stomach. But she fought against it, or tried to, and tried to look and act normal. "Of course, you need some paperwork. I'll go and get it." She broke free from his gaze for only a short time, crashing about in the back room until she found the form sheets and returned to him. She handed them to him, her skin shivering in odd delight as his slender fingers stroked her own. "Please fill this in as soon as you can. We need to know what blood types you and your family like, so we can order them in" she, for the first time in a long time, struggled to speak. She was nervous, and didn't know why. She felt more like Miss Shaw than herself. "Yes, I'll be sure to return them tomorrow evening. May I ask for your name? You're the first polite human I've come across and it would be nice to know at least one of our new neighbors" he said, with charm and grace and a small drop of annoyance. "I'm sorry about that, Autumn Dawn isn't well known for being too friendly to vamps. We're unfortunately kinda famous for running your kind out, well apart from a small handful of dark-sided lovers like myself. Don't let them get to you" Lark awkwardly explained, then lifted her hand to shake, "I'm Lark Eirlys." The vampire took her hand in his, sparks going off like fireworks up her arm. "Ah, a songbird and a snowdrop, what a gorgeous name. I am Draven Lunette, it's an honor to meet you, my lady" he kissed her hand lightly, yet the kiss still set her body aflame. Once he released her, he walked out of the clinic. He bowed to her once more, bidding her goodnight before plunging into the darkness.
The day went on slowly, draining Lark of her short live joy. The story of Luvena's monster run-in had spread around the school, most of the students avoided Lark and Kirby like the plague, especially Luvena and her group of harpies. As usual, Lark kept to herself, with her head buried in her Edgar Allan Poe book while listening to teachers droning on about whatever subjects they teach. During lunch, the whispers of, what Luvena dramatically retold as a vicious attack, were loud. Lark could feel eyes burning through her back as she and Kirby sat in their usual corner. "They're afraid of me, good" Lark told herself in the bathroom mirror. Shoving her unruly hair into a high-ponytail, she made one last check of her reflection. She had change out of her dress into her work uniform, which was a blood red polo t-shirt and black skinny jeans. She was excited to go to work, she liked her job and earning her own money. Plus it annoyed her mother. As she walked down the packed hallway to main entrance, the name calling flew over her head. She knew what people thought about her and her job. Autumn Dawn was known as a very anti-vampire town and for chasing out the "fanged monsters." There were 3 vampires living in the town, only Lark and her boss knew who they were, and they both vowed to protect their identities. Lark almost reached freedom when the bark of the Queen bitch forced her to stop dead in her tracks. "On your way to the sin house Lark? Bet you've heard about the new fanged creeps coming to join your gang of shit-stains and freaks. Don't worry, we'll make them go away after the blood orgy, you traitorous whore" Luvena said with delightful wickedness. Lark's self described black heart jumped into her throat and redness burned her cheeks. A new coven of vampires, moving into town? Without a second thought, Lark rushed off to the blood clinic, only having time to kiss a middle finger to Luvena. She wanted to meet them as soon as possible. Before the town drives them off.
Two and a half hours later and Lark was still waiting eagerly. The boss wasn't in, he was at another clinic out of town and wouldn't be back until the weekend. Lark rested her head on the counter, watching the clock tick down and listening to the calming vocals of Motionless In White. As much as she hated Luvena, and she did hate her with a passion, she knew the bitch wouldn't lie about a vampire entering the holy lands of the town. She'll be by now telling everyone and getting the stakes ready. Bored, she pulled out the old and tattered "Need To Know" vampire handbook. Everything known about vampire history and types was in the book and she always brought it out to read when she had nothing to do. Lark had read it so many times, do there was nothing else to do. She flicked through the pages, reading fast;
The vampire race, from what historians can gather, has been around from the ancient Egyptian period. Now some have claimed that vampires are former servants of Gods, cursed to walk and drink the living as punishment for some betrayal. While others believe that the first vampire was created by mutated bats. Never the less, what everyone can agree on is how vampires came to be known to the world. It happened in the early 1920s, for a year or so before there were rumors of someone, or something, biting the necks of beautiful woman and draining them of half their blood. In October of 1923, a gentleman named Ernest Van Doyle went on to a nation-wide radio station, and announced to the whole United States that he was a vampire and he went on to spill all the vampire secrets, many of which have been lost to time. He traveled through-out the country, spreading the word of his kind, the many types of vampire and showing what he could do. Other vampires around the world joined him in coming out, while others hide and spoke out against him. And then there was the humans, both those who supported Ernest and those who hunted, were all scared of the new beings. By the end of the 1920s, the tensions had grown to a boiling point and after Ernest and a number of vampires tried to kill a handful of world leaders, a war began, which lasted in secret until the mid 1970s. After the death of Ernest, the humans and vampires came to a somewhat peaceful truce; vampires must only drink the blood of animals or human donations, vampires must register themselves and their families in any city they live in, vampires must live in the designated areas provided for them and vampires must only turn willing humans from age 21 and over, in-front of a judge. This became law in 1986 and is known as The Crimson Legislation.
Lark breathed heavily and turned to the vampire types page;
There are four known types of vampire, each had there own abilities and look different to each other. This page is a quick run down of each one;
*The Nosferatu=the most common of vampires. They are pure bloods, born from a vampire mother and father
*The Sanguinarian=humans who have been bitten and drank the blood from a vampire. They are also as The Turned or The Bitten
*The Dhampirs=a very rare type. They are a result of a vampire and a human mating, most are unwanted unions
*The Ghouls=reanimated corpses, that had been bitten after death. These are also very rare, for blood of the dead can be poisonous to vampires
"Maybe they came in earlier or they're coming tomorrow" she muttered to herself sadly. Shaking the disappointment from her soul, Lark stood up straight and busied herself with alphabetizing the blood stock. Time seemed to move a bit quicker when suddenly, "pardon me, may I have some service?" spoke an elegant British voice. It made Lark jump in shock and, something else. Something warm through her cheeks, and between her legs. Lark returned to the counter and became frozen on the spot. There before her was a vampire, a handsome vampire who looked about her age. Though she couldn't be too sure, since those known as nosferatu aged slower than human, after a certain age. He was towering over her, like most, he had pale white skin and a diamond shape face. He was skinny yet also muscular, a beauty spot sat under his left eye, his pointed ears were pierced and a chocolate brown top-hat with black and gold goggles rest upon his shoulder length, flowing black hair, with dazzling sliver streaks. His eyes were the most beautiful pair Lark had ever seen and they pulled her in. They were rounded deep amethyst and were surrounded by thick eyelashes. They stared at each other, lost in their eyes, examining every inch of their faces.
It took a while for Lark to find her voice again. "Hello, how can I help you?" she asked, still not moving. The vampire smiled, slightly bowing to her, causing her whole face to turn scarlet. "Good evening young beauty, my family and I have just arrived and need to order some blood" he said. His voice moved Lark in a way no man had ever done in her short life. It warmed her insides and twisted her stomach. But she fought against it, or tried to, and tried to look and act normal. "Of course, you need some paperwork. I'll go and get it." She broke free from his gaze for only a short time, crashing about in the back room until she found the form sheets and returned to him. She handed them to him, her skin shivering in odd delight as his slender fingers stroked her own. "Please fill this in as soon as you can. We need to know what blood types you and your family like, so we can order them in" she, for the first time in a long time, struggled to speak. She was nervous, and didn't know why. She felt more like Miss Shaw than herself. "Yes, I'll be sure to return them tomorrow evening. May I ask for your name? You're the first polite human I've come across and it would be nice to know at least one of our new neighbors" he said, with charm and grace and a small drop of annoyance. "I'm sorry about that, Autumn Dawn isn't well known for being too friendly to vamps. We're unfortunately kinda famous for running your kind out, well apart from a small handful of dark-sided lovers like myself. Don't let them get to you" Lark awkwardly explained, then lifted her hand to shake, "I'm Lark Eirlys." The vampire took her hand in his, sparks going off like fireworks up her arm. "Ah, a songbird and a snowdrop, what a gorgeous name. I am Draven Lunette, it's an honor to meet you, my lady" he kissed her hand lightly, yet the kiss still set her body aflame. Once he released her, he walked out of the clinic. He bowed to her once more, bidding her goodnight before plunging into the darkness.