Fang and Feather
Chapter 3
by Slyphs
The kiss was like nothing I had ever experienced. I had never kissed anyone so intimately before, not even Roy. His arms wrapped around my body and pulled me up and in closer to him. Despite his cold touch, his body blocked the wind making me at least feel warmer in my nude state. I guess he felt me shiver and wrapped the opening of the long coat he wore around me, binding me to him. My voice was lost in all of this and he saw this too.
"Do not be frightened," he said in his quiet voice, "I cannot harm you." He than nuzzled into my neck much like he had before in the alley but did not bite me. "You look just like him." He mumbled against my skin. I wanted to push away but I dared not to move.
"Like who?" I said instead, not knowing what else to do.
"My friend whom I loved dearly before he died and I became this monster that you now fear." I could feel that his body was shaking. "I didn't mean to scare you in the alley, or in your room, and I don't mean to now."
"What do you want with me?" I asked again.
"At first I wanted to turn you into what I am," he said still nuzzled into my neck, "but I now know that's impossible so I now only seek your company."
"What are you?"
"A vampire," He whispered as he gently raked his teeth across my neck, but again he didn't bite me. The sensation sent a new shiver through my body.
"Why don't you finish it?" Maybe my mind was too scared to think rationally or maybe it was what I had seen him do, but what ever it was I instantly excepted what he told me. He was a vampire. What I couldn't understand is why he didn't finish what he had started in the alley. Why didn't he bite me? Why didn't he drink my blood or whatever vampires do? Why did he just hold me close as he did? 'Maybe it had to do with what he had called me,' I thought to myself, 'nephelim.'
"Your nature protects you from my kind," he answered, "I cannot harm you even if I wanted to."
"What about the alley?" Anger suddenly over came me. He had attacked me then kidnapped me, seemingly in an attempt to seduce me. Armed with his own words that he couldn't hurt me I push away from him and backed up against the cliff wall. "Get away from me!" I yelled.
"But..."
"GET AWAY FROM ME!" I cut him off. He looked at me in defeat and turned to leave. At the edge of the ledge he took off his long coat and threw it to my feet. Taking a last look at me, his eyes were filled with tears, he jumped from the ledge. He did not fall however, it seemed more like he glided down into the trees below.
Once I lost sight of him I realized my mistake and why he had left his coat. I was trapped and the wind was cold. I snatched up the jacket and put it on. It was made of leather and had a large hood. Though it kept me warm I could smell him in it and thought several times of risking freezing to death by throwing the coat off the ledge.
Eventually I fell asleep, but even than I couldn't get away from him. He invaded my dreams, bringing me back to the alley.
"Please," he begged, "I didn't mean to scare you."
"Get away from me," I pleaded, "Leave me alone." No matter how hard I tried I couldn't leave. I couldn't get off the ground. I couldn't look away from him and the longer I sat watching him the more I began to feel his pain.
It was immense. Part of it was caused by me rejecting him but there was something else. There was a sense of loss and of fear. Than there was the longing. He wanted me. He wanted to touch me, to hold, to be with me.
I woke up. The sun was just below the horizon and he was there. He put something down and turned to leave.
"I think I understand," I said before he got far.
"You can leave whenever you want." He said seemingly ignoring what I said then jumped from the ledge as he had done before.
"How?" I called after him, but he was already gone.
The box contained food and two bottles of water. The food was mostly junk food probably taken from a corner store, but I guess it was the thought that counted. I hadn't eaten anything since lunch the day before so I ate a little before starting to look for an escape in the growing light.
As the sun rose it grew hotter on the ledge. It faced mostly northeast and would offer no shade till well into the afternoon. There was no safe way up or down unless I some how grew wings. There were several sticks and rocks on the ledge, probably thrown off from the top. I used them to prop up the coat to make some shade.
With nothing to do but wait I lost myself in thought. What was going to happen to me? What made him so sad? What was he afraid of? Could I really blame him for doing what he had done? I knew almost nothing about him and as the sun reached its highest point in the sky I began to pity him. I wanted to help him if I could.
I think I fell asleep soon after that or perhaps I was becoming delusional from the heat. I found myself in the alley again. It was as if the place where our paths first crossed now forever entwined us. He was there of course but things were different. Now I stood over him and he crouched down next to the dumpster.
"You came," he said evenly.
"I think I'm starting to understand," I told him, "I want to know more though." He nodded.
"My given name is Hark," He told me, "I don't remember my real name, it is part of the vampire's nature. Aspects of the human life become unimportant so we shed them like skin so that we may grow. However no matter what I forget of my life I cannot forget my friend and our love. One of my coven mates told me that a vampire can never forget how he was created.
"It seems I was sired only to suffer as part of my master's sick sense of humour. He promised both my friend and I the vampire power. We lived on the streets and were desperate. Our families had tossed us aside when they discovered our love for each other.
"He turned me first, the experience was painful beyond measure. It was only than that he told us the catch. I had to sire me friend or he would be killed. My friend trusted me and I thought I could do it, but I failed. He died in my arms, by my fangs.
"I tried to kill myself but it seemed impossible. Fire only blisters the skin, stakes to the heart serve only as a minor nuisance and decapitation only fuels my master's twisted humour. At last I faced the sun. The pain was unbearable. I ran.
"And now I suffer in loneliness," he said. I opened my eyes. I was on the ledge again, the sun had set not long ago, and he sat next to me. The coat had been taken off the sticks and placed on my shoulders. "It is a pain only slightly more bearable, but there is also hope."
I opened my mouth to respond but I was interrupted by a chilling cackle. We turned to see a tall dark man standing on the ledge. His eyes seemed to glow a horrible red and the wicked smile he wore screamed evil intent.
"So my pet," his voice was piercing like knives, "this is your new infatuation."
"Master!" Hark was obviously alarmed.
"You know my pet that we cannot allow mortals to know of us."
"I know master. I..."
"Drain him, sire him, I don't really care. Just do it soon or I will get rid of him myself."
Hark's lip trembled as he looked from his master to me. He suddenly jumped on me, wrapping his arms around me and nuzzled in my neck. He didn't bite me.
"You must fly," he whispered.
"I can't, there's no place to run," I whispered back.
"I said fly. If you can't than this will hurt." He suddenly lifted me up and carried me to the edge.
"What are you doing!?" I was panicking and clung to him.
"I'm sorry," he whispered before throwing me from the ledge.
As I fell I heard Hark's master's maniacal laughter and Hark screaming. He had told me to fly and a part of me tried. I didn't know how, even if I could. Just metres from the ground something came over me. I was covered in a golden gossamer. Then I hit the ground and everything was black.
"I'm sorry," I heard in the darkness.
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