Interview with a Vampire

J.D. sips a mug of coffee at the dining table. Jesu enters and sits across form her. "You wanted to speak with me?"

J.D. glances up. "Oh, Jesu, hi."

"Hello."

"Um, yeah, I decided we've been slacking off with our character posts and I'd like you to do today's topic."

Jesu smiles. "Of course. What is the topic?"

"Childhood memories."

Jesu furrows his brow and licks his lips. "Oh."

J.D. quirks a brow. "Oh?"

Jesu folds his hands in his lap and concentrates on the crystal candle holders on the table. "It is just that ... my childhood wasn't a very happy one."

J.D. snickers. "It's better than the alternative."

Jesu raises his brows. "Which is...?"

J.D. wrinkles her nose. "Jalmari's."

Jesu chuckles. "Yes, my childhood is much brighter than his." Jesu shakes his head. "My poor brother."

"Exactly. So, will you?"

Jesu sighs. "I suppose there is no harm in it. The real challenge is deciding which memory to talk about."

J.D. grins slyly.

Jesu cringes. "I do not like that look."

"Tell them how you became a vampire."

Jesu rolls his eyes. "Some how I knew you would say that."

J.D. giggles. "Please?" She gestures to her bedroom door, where the computer is waiting on the other side. "And don't leave out the all the good details! It took me ages to come up with that part of your life."

Jesu chuckles as he stands. "That is a lie, it took you five minutes."

J.D. sticks her tongue out. "So?" She points to her bedroom door. "Go. Scoot!"

Smiling, Jesu salutes J.D. before heading to the computer. He steps over her mess of clothes and bits of paper, then sit at her desk and logs onto Blogger.

How I Became a Vampire
By Jesu ta Korento

The year was 391 B.C. and it was the night before my 15th birthday. I was asleep on a bed of hay (something that, to this day, makes me grateful for modern mattresses) in the slaves keep when my Master woke me. I remember the look of urgency on his face. He rushed me to to his bed chamber. I thought for sure I was in trouble for something even though my master was much kinder to me than he was to the other slaves.

When we arrived, he shut and locked the door. Obviously something was wrong, but he did not speak a word of it to me, so I could not ask. Slaves did not speak unless spoken to. He grabbed my arm and yanked me toward his bed.

The Lady of the house, my Master's sister, sat at the edge of the bed. She was a beautiful woman, all milky skin and long, orange hair. But that night, her emerald colored eyes hung in distraught. "Oh, Connor, you do not have to harm the boy," she said. He was not hurting me, but I was frightened.

She gestured for me to sit next to her, so I obeyed. She took my hands in hers, which was not unusual. She was always a warm soul. She treated me as fairly as she treated her own son. "My dearest Anwell," she called me by the pet name she'd given me, loosly translated as beloved one. "How you have grown into a man. I have been blessed to watch you grow up, I never thought ... but now I must tell you ...." She squeezed my hands as her breath caught.

"For gods' sakes, Jord," said my Master. "We do not have time for sentiment. Tell the boy now or send him away."

My heart raced. Away? I did not want to be sent away, I liked it there. I knew it was foolish, but I had come to think of the Lord and Lady's castle as my home.

The Lady swiped at her eyes and nodded. She placed a hand on my cheek. "Dearest Jesu, I am your mother."

I jumped to my feet, but held my tongue. A thousand questions raced through my mind, but I focused on the floor, not sure if asking would be too bold.

My reaction seemed to upset her. She threw her arms around me and pulled me against her. "Oh, my son, I wanted to tell you, truly I did, but it would have endangered your life."

"I ... I do not understand."

"I am your mother, Jesu. Conner, is your uncle."

I glanced at my Master. He nodded. "It is the truth, my boy."

I blinked back tears. "Than, why...?"

"Oh Anwell, you know what we are. Surly you must have noticed, after all this time, how we are different."

At first I thought my mother meant how she and my uncle were surrounded by riches I could only dream of. Of how her husband, my father, thought he was above the law.

"You must have noticed, Jesu, how your uncle and I do not eat food. How we are awake at all hours of the night. Do you not notice our dislike of the sun?"

As a matter of speaking, I hadn't noticed. Being a slave was tiresome work. I slept from dusk to dawn in the slave keep, which was across the way from the castle. How was I to notice anyone was awake after hours? Back then, only the working stock had tans from tilling the garden. A woman of good breeding always stayed indoors and shielded her sensitive skin from the sun. As for their feeding habits, I did not work in the kitchen.

I shook my head.

My mother looked distraught. "Jesu, I don't know how else to tell you ... your father and I ... your uncle ... we are all vampires."

I had herd the term before. The other slaves sometimes whispered it in regards to the Lord and Lady of the house. They always spoke it in a nasty tone, but I never bothered to ask what a vampire was.

"Son," said my uncle. "We are demon folk."

"Oh Conner, do not give the boy the wrong idea!" She faced me. "We are not human, son. We are of a different kin."

I glanced at my uncle and then my mother. They both wore the same expression of hope, but I did not understand. "So... I am vampire too?"

"Unfortunately, no. You are human."

My mother frowned. "We do not understand why, but sometimes our children are not always born the same."

I thought of my mother's first son, my brother, my father's favorite. Understanding began to shine. "Jalmari is a vampire," I whispered.

My mother's eyes gleamed in the moon light. "Yes. You must be terribly upset, but now is not time for explanations and apologies. You are a man, and your father has long noticed how your uncle and I favor you. He does not like it. He feels threatened and your father does not like threats."

"My father does not like me?"

"He does not know you are his," my uncle clarified. "Your birth was hidden from him. He would have killed you and possibly even blamed your mother. That is why we led you to believe you were an orphan."

Feeling light-headed, I leaned against my mother. I would have sagged to the floor if she wasn't still holding me. "Why are you telling me this now?"

My mother glanced at my uncle then took a deep breath. "I wanted you to know the truth before... before we..."

"Before you send me away," I finished. "My presents threatens the Lord, so now I must go. I understand."

My mother hesitated. "There is an other way. You can become a vampire and stay with us, should you choose."

I perked up. "How?"

My mother bit her lip. She furrowed her orange eyebrows and glanced away as though having second thoughts.

"A bite," said my uncle.

"A ... a bite?"

He nodded. "A simple bite of the flesh from one of us is all it takes."

"Then ... then why did you not bite me when I was a baby?"

"It is not that simple," my mother snapped. "Becoming our kin through bite curses the vampire! You would lose your will. You would be forever damned to obey the vampire that bit you. How could I make that choice for my infant?"

"Aye," said my uncle. "Your miserable existence falls to your mother's inability to turn you with out your permission."

"Oh Conner!"

I glanced at them. "Is it really true? All you have to do is bite me and I can stay?"

Mother blinked at me. "Well, yes, son. But you have a choice. You can leave and continue life as a human --"

"Forgive me, madam, but why would I choose that?"

She bit her lip. "You will live a very different, very long life. You will never sleep again. You will never see the light of day."

"Quit trying to talk him out of it, Jord, you know this is what you want too."

My mother turned a sidelong glance to my uncle. "Of course I want my son to stay with me, but he is a man, Conner, and deserves to choose his own fate."

"Mmm. So what will it be, boy?"

The answer seemed obvious to me. "I want to stay. I want to be a vampire ... please, I do not want to leave."

My uncle chuckled. "No need to beg, boy, we are happy to keep you. All you have to decide now is who you want to be your sire, your mother or I, and do not not think either one of us will take offense if the other is chosen."

"I do not mean to rush you, dearest, but it is nearly dawn. Your father will be back soon."

I sucked in a deep breath. The decision was already etched on my heart. My poor mother thought I loathed her for keeping me in the dark, but I couldn't have been happier. I had a family. All this time, I had people who loved and watched over me, right here. "I want you to do it ... Mother."

She touched her fingers to her lips. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Than, you best give me your wrist."

I raise the underside of my arm to her beautiful lips. She grabbed it but paused to give me one last glance.

"Please," I whispered.

She leaned over my arm. I squeezed my eyes shut and clenched my jaw as her teeth pierced my skin.

I have been a creature of the night from that day forth. My father was terribly angry when my mother told him, but he eventually came to tolerate me. My brother and I have been inseparable even since.... well, at least until Jenna came into our lives. But that is a story only J.D. can tell.