Demetrius Ch. 28

Chapter 28

This world -- this life -- is stranger than a dream in the night.

When they got home, he decided he wanted to see what she was like after having a few glasses of champagne; instead of the few mouthfuls she had the last time.

He went to the refrigerator taking the almost full jumbo-sized bottle, pouring two glasses, encouraging her to drink thirstily. She told him she shouldn't -- hearing from other vampires, fermented grapes can cause nightmares. In spite of this, she liked the bubbles along with the intoxicating effect. Eventually the effects began to show. In spite of this, he made sure her glass was kept full -- silently chuckling to himself as she became tipsy.

There was a pile of movies to watch on the coffee table. Though she liked the action films with lots of violence; her ongoing fascination with the more romantic ones continued. Try as she may to understand love and its nuances, the concept always seemed to elude her -- much to her dismay.

They were watching a romantic-comedy when something touching happened. He looked at her seeing her mouth was open, staring dumb-faced, trying to understand. He took hold of her jaw, gently turning her head to look at him, her eyes still on the screen -- her mouth open. Her eyes moved back and forth from him to the movie as she had no awareness as to how silly, or how cute she looked in her open-mouth state of confusion. It was the cutest and funniest thing he ever saw her do, no doubt brought on by the intoxication.

He tried explaining what was happening in the movie; why it was emotional but he wasn't sure she got it. He filled her glass again and before long her head was resting on his shoulder. She was snoring -- gently. It was the first time he heard her doing it. After awhile he helped her walk down the hallway, sitting her on the bed and undressing her. She behaved like a Raggedy-Ann doll. After getting her under the covers, he kissed her on the forehead smiling, in seeing what she was like drunk out of her mind.

At one point during the night, while they lay sleeping, there was a flurry of activity, followed by howls and growling sounds -- like those he heard in the alley. There was so much commotion, he found himself standing beside the bed, half awake when he saw she wasn't in bed.

He walked down the hall, looking in the bathroom, the kitchen and the living room. She was nowhere to be found. When he returned to the hallway, he called her name -- feeling her presence.

He walked back into the bedroom when suddenly he felt someone -- something -- behind him. Quickly he turned, not seeing anything when for some reason his eyes went to the ceiling.

The ceilings are about twelve feet high and in one corner she was kept in place with her outstrectched arms and legs. Her eyes were wide open in terror, peering into the darkness of night.

She no longer had her usual human form, surprising him since he didn't know they could change their physicality the way she'd done. Her arms and legs were twice their normal size, filled with muscle. Her fingernails and toenails were twice their normal size as were her fangs -- protruding menacingly below her lower lip.

He was scared in the knowledge he could never compete with such a creature, if she were to turn on him for some reason. He knew it was best if he proceeded with caution, making certain she knew he was not a threat to her.

She was indeed the creature in the alley. Her mouth open, snarling and growling at what she perceived to be threatening her. It scared him terribly -- occurring to him she may have lost her mind, devastating him he knew.

He proceeded as though she was having a nightmare, as warned. He looked about the room, making certain they were alone when with a calm voice:

"Alexis -- it's okay -- you're having a bad dream. There's nothing to harm you. Please come down. I promise its okay."

In time he saw her regaining her senses when she dropped to the floor with a resounding thud suggesting her weight also increased along with her bulk.

She went into his arms, folding hers at her chest -- like she was praying. He felt her body changing back to what he considered to be normal. He held her close, feeling her trembling. He began to flatten out her hair. It was standing on end, like the hackles on an animal's back when they become enraged or threatened. They stood in embrace until calm prevailed in their contact.

"I'm scared," she began. "I want to marry you but I don't want to lose your love. Though I might not understand it, I feel it."

They got back in bed. She lay on her side facing the windows, away from him. Though it had gone unsaid; he thought she took that side of the bed to protect him against an unsuspected intrusion from that part of the room. He cuddled up to her when after awhile she asked,

"Do you love her?"

"Who," he asked fearing she knew Kitty's scent.

"Kitty," she said.

"No -- I love you."

"You had sex with her," she said not needing confirmation, only acknowledgment.

"Yes but it was only sex -- fun sex. I thought it was the kind you said we should have. I've come to understand it would never threaten what you and I have -- nothing could," he said in understanding the difference.

"You really mean it. You understand now how it can be different with others," she asked in surprise.

"Yes, but it's only because I know now what we have is beyond love. That was the part I didn't understand before."