The Vampire and the Goth Ch. 11

"Tell me why you don't want to sire this beautiful lady."

My best friend, David, had shown up unannounced while I was talking to my girlfriend, Elizabeth. Well, I wasn't so much talking to Elizabeth as much as I was pouring my heart out to her. Elizabeth wanted to become a vampire, but I didn't want her to regret giving up her humanity the way I had, and I was prepared to bare my soul to change her mind.

Elizabeth listened to my story with love and without judgment, but she still wanted me to make her a vampire. And David, who is also a vampire, was clearly on her side, especially since he seems to enjoy siring every guy that makes him cum.

I sighed in frustration.

"When I was newly sired, I had a very ugly, difficult time. I don't want Elizabeth to have to go through any of that."

David laughed.

"Oh, YOU had a hard time. Let me tell you what it was like being a slave in Louisiana in 1780!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, now you're going to roll your eyes at me, bitch?" He turned to Elizabeth. "Do you see the kind of attitude I have to put up with?"

The minute his eyes met Elizabeth's, they both collapsed in laughter at my expense.

"God damn it. Okay, you had a more difficult time then I did, and it stayed bad until pretty much the last fifty years or so," I said.

David looked indignant. "The last fifty years or so?" he said, deploying air quotes. "Try every fucking day until very recently, and most of the time it's only slightly less shitty."

This was not going the way I wanted it to.

David took a sip on his bag of blood and looked at me for a long time, then he dropped his shoulders.

"I'm sorry. I know you've had a lot of trauma. I always figured that's why you don't talk about your past very much."

Elizabeth looked at him.

"Stosh hasn't talked about his past with you?"

David smiled at her. "No. But we all have bad stuff in our past. Vampires, I mean. I always figured he would tell me what happened when he was ready to talk about it."

Elizabeth gave him a slight smile. "Okay."

"That's the thing with us, Elizabeth. We all go through nightmares if we live long enough, and you learn not to compare what you've been through with what somebody else has been through. One man's hell is another man's walk in the park. It's just easier to forget, or at least try to forget. And I think that's what Stosh has been doing."

"I have," I said. David acknowledged me with a nod.

"It's okay, brother. It's your story, you tell it how you need to tell it when you need to tell it. Okay?"

I smiled. There's a reason David is my best friend, and it's not just because I've known him since before the American Civil War.

We were silent for a while, watching the fire. Finally, Elizabeth spoke.

"Stosh told me what happened with your boyfriend. I guess things didn't go so smoothly when you were out of town," she said.

David chuckled. "Yeah, you could say that."

"So, what happened?" Elizabeth asked.

"Well, other than him trying to kill me?"

"Yeah."

"Well, Stosh and I had him restrained in the trunk of Stosh's car with silver chains. I had planned to kill him and drop his body in the swamps, where the alligators and other animals would eat it. I didn't want to take the chance on moving him out of Stosh's trunk, so I just took his keys and started to drive south. Everything was fine until I got near Waycross."

He took a big drink from his bag of blood and looked at me.

"I didn't know that your backseats fold down from inside the trunk," he said, chuckling.

I hit my forehead with my hand.

"Shit. The car was designed to do that for extra storage. I should have remembered that. I'm sorry."

"Does this mean I don't have to replace your car?" He asked, with a big grin.

"Yeah, I'm not letting you off the hook for that one," I responded, with a wink.

I thought back to when David and I put Marcus in the trunk. "Wait! We put silver chains on him before you left! How did he get them off?"

David was openly laughing now. "Fuck, I don't know. I didn't have time to ask! I was about 10 miles out of Waycross when he took a chain and wrapped it around my throat from the backseat. I drove right off the damn road."

"Jesus," Elizabeth said.

"Yeah, I managed to hold him off until I could get out into the woods, but I steered us right into a tree and the car blew up."

"Wow," Elizabeth and I both said at the same time.

"That crazy bastard was still trying to kill me, so I shoved him into the car fire."

Elizabeth's eyes got really big. "So, did that kill him?"

David laughed. "Fuck no! He was still trying to get out, but I managed to cut his head off and threw it in the nearest pond marked, 'No swimming -- Alligators'."

By this point, we were laughing so hard we both had tears in our eyes.

"Wow! Why didn't you call me?"

"I didn't have my wallet or my cell phone. It's not like I had time to get anything out of the car."

Elizabeth asked, "So how'd you get back here? Did you hitchhike?"

David smiled, and said, in a slightly condescending tone, "No, sweetie, nobody is going to pick up a black hitchhiker in south Georgia at night, especially when he looks like he just escaped a fire."

Elizabeth nodded, "Well, I guess that makes sense."

"I had no other option but to fly here."

Elizabeth's eyes got big again. "Really? You can fly? Can Stosh fly too?"

David managed to hold his composure for longer than I did, but after a few seconds, we both burst out laughing.

"Vampires don't fly. But we can run very fast. I think that's how David got back here. Right?"

David nodded. "Yes. It's also why my shoes look like hell."

Elizabeth looked disappointed. "Oh."

David turned to me and said, "Powinieneś zatrzymać ten!"

I nodded. "Postaram," I smiled.

Elizabeth frowned. "Hey! No fair speaking a language I don't understand in front of me."

David grinned at her. "I told him he should keep you, and he said he'd try."

Elizabeth nodded. "Okay. That was Polish, not Russian, right?"

"Yes, it was. Good ear!" David said.

Elizabeth blushed. "I was told how much it pisses Russians off to have their language confused with Polish."

"She met Dmitri," I explained.

David laughed. "Russians are weird about their language, and dogs are weird about... well, a lot of shit. So since Dmitri is a Russian AND a dog, he has a double-dose of weird."

I felt compelled to stand up for my friend. "Hey, don't call him a dog. That's not good."

David sighed. "Okay, okay. He's not a dog. But he is a jackass."

"Well, I can't disagree with that."

"Calling a werewolf a dog is an insult?" Elizabeth asked.

"Calling anyone a dog is an insult, but it's really true for werewolves. They all have a self-esteem problem," David said.

Elizabeth nodded "Oh, ok. Interesting."

David gave her a quizzical look, and she explained, "My sister's girlfriend is a werewolf."

David's eyebrows went up. "Really?"

"Yeah, and she kind of freaked out when she met Stosh."

David smiled and looked at me.

"Sounds like you had an adventure too,"

Elizabeth and I recounted our dinner with her sister, Laura, and how her girlfriend, Michelle, interrupted us later when we were in Elizabeth's bedroom.

"So then, out of nowhere, Michelle yells at him to get out of the house, and POOF! He was gone!"

"I was outside and naked. No cellphone, no wallet, nothing."

David grinned. "So, you flew home."

Elizabeth tried to glare at him but soon started to laugh. "No, you asshole! My sister had to invite him back in."

"Okay, so what happened after the sister invited you back in?"

"Well, she admitted that she knew I was a vampire and I told Elizabeth that her sister's girlfriend is a werewolf."

Elizabeth broke in, "Then, Michelle got really pissed, turned into a wolf, and ran off."

David's eyebrows arched and he whistled appreciatively.

"The first time you see someone become a wolf is disturbing. I'll bet that freaked you out, didn't it?" he said to Elizabeth.

She nodded. "Michelle apologized to Stosh and me the next day, but I'm not very happy with her right now."

"No, I should think not."

The sky was just beginning to lighten up.

"Hey, the sun's coming up, so we should get some sleep. David, the guest room is already made up. Why don't you sleep there?"

David smiled.

"Thanks, old man. I could use some rest."

I woke up late in the afternoon and reached for Elizabeth, but she wasn't there. I thought she might have decided to get some coffee, so I put on a clean pair of shorts and left the bedroom.

When I got into the hallway, I could hear Elizabeth and David talking in the living room.

"You've turned five different people into vampires?"

"We use the word 'sire' when we make someone a vampire, and when we make someone a vampire, they become our progeny. And yes, I have made vampires," David said. "But I've had to kill a couple, so you really can't trust my track record."

"Why did you have to kill them?"

"Well, when your progeny tries to kill you, you're pretty much committed to killing them first."

"That makes sense."

They both fell silent for a while, then David said, "It's okay to ask me."

"Ask you what?"

"Why I've had two of my progeny try to kill me."

"No, but that is a good question," Elizabeth said. "I was going to ask if Stosh has ever sired a vampire."

"Not that I know of. But I haven't known him for that long, it's been less than 200 years."

I knew I should feel bad about listening to them. Then I remember that David had listened to Elizabeth and me the day before, so I didn't feel that bad.

"I know you want to become a vampire, and I know you think Stosh is being unreasonable about it. But he's being careful with you,"

"Do you think so?"

"I do. I can tell he likes you a lot, and I guess with his history, he's worried about losing you. In a bad way."

She scoffed. "He doesn't need to worry about that."

I heard David clear his throat.

"Freshly sired vampires are vulnerable, Elizabeth. They're physically weak, as far as vampires go, but they're also mentally weak. They can easily be pushed in a bad direction. That's part of why Stosh's sire stayed with him so long. When a sire doesn't take care of his progeny, they often turn out bad."

"So is that what happened with your progeny? You didn't take care of them?"

David sighed. "I didn't take care of them the way that I should have, or the way they deserved. They died, and I have to live with the consequences of my mistakes."

"Okay," Elizabeth said.

"That's the thing about immortality, dear Eliza. If you fuck something up, you have to remember it forever."

They were both silent for a moment, and I walked into the living room.

"Speak of the devil!" David said. He was sitting on the couch with Elizabeth, wearing only his shorts. I smiled at him as I kissed Elizabeth.

"Why don't I get you something to wear while we go shopping for some new clothes?" I said.

David smiled back at me. "I have some clothes in the trunk of my car. Would you mind bringing the garment bag up?"

I laughed. "Why didn't you say anything when you came up here after Marcus shot you?"

"Because I needed to look like a suburban soccer dad," David sipped on his blood and turned to Elizabeth. "His clothes are really boring for a vampire," he stage whispered to her. Elizabeth giggled.

"He looks better without them," she said, winking at me

.

David rolled his eyes. "ANYBODY looks better naked than wearing Dockers and a polo!"

After I came back in with David's garment bag and he put on clean clothes, he felt a lot better.

"Listen, I really appreciate the shelter and the blood, but I'd like to have something fresher. I don't want to embarrass you in front of Elizabeth, but... do you have a donor you'd be willing to share? Preferably female?"

"Why female?" Elizabeth asked.

I chuckled. "David falls in love easily, so I think maybe he'd like to take a break from guys for a while."

David smiled. "Not too long. But yeah, I should probably be single for a while. Do you know anyone?"

I shook my head. "I've been off the vein for years, brother. Elizabeth is the only person I've drank from directly since the last century."

Elizabeth gave me a strange look. "Off the vein?"

"It's vampire slang," I said.

Elizabeth nodded with a smile, then she said, "Why don't we go up to that night market by Our Mother of Sorrows?"

"What's Our Mother of Sorrows? And what's a night market?" David asked.

Elizabeth said, "Our Mother of Sorrows was a convent, but it's been closed for years." She sipped on her coffee, then continued. "It's right next to this huge graveyard in West End. Anyway, they have this street fair on the first Saturday evening of the month in their old parking lot, with food, and crafts, and music. I think the concept comes from the Middle Ages."

I laughed. "We didn't have markets at night."

Elizabeth smiled. "Okay, fair enough. But this one has a medieval theme. It's like a mini Renaissance fair in town. They turn off all of the streetlights around the convent and light everything with candles, torches, and flashlights. And let's just say it attracts a lot of girls who like to wear black."

David's eyes lit up. "You mean, I could get a drink from a goth girl? How exotic!"

We laughed, and Elizabeth said, "Seriously though, there's also a cool gay bar in the same neighborhood -- The Boneyard."

David smiled at her indulgently. "You're adorable, sweetie. But I'm just cruising for some fresh blood tonight, not a man. And anyway, goth girls are so appreciative of a real vampire." He wiggled his eyebrows at her, and she laughed.

The Night Market was exactly as Elizabeth had described it -- a small Renaissance festival on the grounds of an old convent. There were jugglers, fortune tellers, and many, many ways to come between visitors and their money, especially people selling arts and crafts that were supposedly inspired by the Middle Ages. There were a lot of food vendors, including one that sold roast turkey legs, even a couple of mobile pubs.

When we got there, David spotted some girls dressed in all black, hanging around the gates of the cemetery.

"Well, there's my dinner. I'll catch up to you guys later," he smiled.

"Wait!" Elizabeth asked, grabbing his hand.

"You aren't going to kill anyone tonight, right?" she asked, with a worried look on her face.

David smiled at her. "No, I'm just looking for a light snack. Well, maybe a few light snacks -- think of it as human dim sum. But I'm not going to kill anyone here."

Elizabeth looked relieved. "Well, okay."

David kissed her on the cheek and turned to me. "Seriously, Stosh, you've got to keep this one."

I put my arm around her shoulders and said, "I intend to."

Elizabeth and I strolled around the market, admiring all of the vendors. She seemed to be particularly fascinated by anything with yarn. There were a couple of women who were spinning, and another who was weaving.

"I've always wanted to learn how to knit," Elizabeth said.

I smiled. "I can teach you. It isn't hard."

"You know how to knit?"

"Sure. That used to be the only way to get things like socks and gloves."

Her eyes lit up. "Wow! That is so cool!"

I pulled her to me and kissed her. I loved how the little things I took for granted seemed to impress her.

We walked along, stopping at different craft stalls, looking at things like hand-tooled leather, jewelry, and candles.

"Was this how they really made candles back then?"

I laughed. "No, our candles were made of tallow and they stank."

"Didn't they have beeswax candles?" she asked

"Sure, but those were expensive, and mostly used in church."

She shook her head and blushed. "I must sound like an idiot to you."

I smiled at her. "No, you don't. You sound very cute."

We were holding hands and walking toward the food stalls when we came across a group of musicians playing period instruments. Elizabeth and I both noticed Dmitri playing his vielle at the same time.

"Hey, there's your friend. Why don't we sit down and listen to him?"

We bought a couple of snow cones and sat down at a long picnic table to listen to Dmitri play. When he noticed us, he gave us a big smile and his eyes flashed amber.

I put my arm around Elizabeth, and she snuggled into my side.

"I guess this really isn't like the real middle ages at all."

I chuckled. "No, this is a lot more fun."

I leaned over and kissed her lightly, enjoying the way she felt against me.

We were enjoying the music when David found us and sat down. I looked over at him and there was a busty woman dressed in black standing next to him. She had a blank expression on her face and her eyes were unfocused.

"Hey guys," he said. "Hold on a minute while I send Elvira here home."

He turned toward the woman. "Thank you for being so generous. You won't remember many details about tonight, but you will remember that you had a very good time."

The woman's eyes were half-open like she was asleep, smiled at him. "I had a very good time tonight."

"Oh! Yeah, one more thing. You will want to start taking iron supplements tomorrow morning."

"That sounds like a good idea," she said, in a sleepy voice.

"Now go find your friends."

The woman shook her head suddenly, and her eyes focused again.

"What am I doing all the way over here?" she asked, to no one in particular.

"I think the beer and wine tents are over there," I said, helpfully.

"Oh, thanks," she said, as she walked away.

After she left, Elizabeth laughed uncomfortably. "Wow."

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows at David, and he grinned at her.

"I got what I needed, and she survived. That's what you wanted, right?"

Elizabeth laughed. "Okay, as long as you're happy."

I listened to the music while David talked to Elizabeth about his life. I was glad they were getting along, but I was a little annoyed that they were talking over the music, and I wasn't the only one -- a man sitting with his back to us turned toward David and Elizabeth and growled.

David bared his fangs at the man, and his eyes flashed amber. Of course, it was another wolf. Elizabeth's hand tightened on mine, and David sat up straighter.

"If you want to talk you should go someplace quieter," the man said, with a thick Scottish accent.

"Fuck off, puppy. We'll talk wherever we want."

The music stopped and there was scattered applause. No one else was really listening, but I clapped anyway. What I could hear of the music was actually quite good. The man also clapped, then turned around to glare at us.

"You don't have to be rude, you fucking bloodsucker," the man snarled.

David grinned at him. "Yeah? It's a god damned free outdoor concert, you stupid bogtrotter."

Suddenly, Dmitri stood behind the man and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Angus! It's good to see you still make friends easy!"

The man stood up. He was very tall, with broad shoulders, and looked to be more than twice Dmitri's size.

"Dima! You old bastard! Good to see you!"

Dmitri and Angus hugged each other tightly, with Dmitri kissing him on the cheek.

"I see you've already met David. Have you been introduced to Stosh and the lovely Elizabeth?"

Angus turned toward us and made a slight bow. "We haven't been introduced yet. I'm Angus McFaull. It's nice to meet you."

Elizabeth's eyes were wide, and she looked a little rattled, so I tightened my arm around her waist to make her feel more comfortable as I leaned over and shook Angus's hand.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Stanislav Szymanski, but you can call me Stosh. Any friend of Dima's is a friend of mine," I said.

Angus held his hand out to Elizabeth and she looked at it without moving. I nudged her slightly.