Silently he hunted.
The moon was a mere sliver, shedding only enough light to make one painfully aware of the dark. On nights during the dark of the moon even the creatures of the night staid inside, playing their games beneath the carefully contained fires of the great manor. So bright was the light reflecting off the white marble and spilling out from between the great columns and large balconies and veranda’s that it seemed as though the sun itself had come to rest in the carefully crafted building.
Many had laughed at this symbolism and the manor, with all of its Corinthian columns and sprawling rooms, each made in a different style so that all vampires had at least a small place to remind them of whatever time or place was lost to them, had become known as the Ilazu Numae, the House of the Setting Sun. Breed and vampire alike came to the island in droves just to spend a few nights moving among the columns or prowling the open land, unafraid that any might see them for mortals had long ago forsaken the small island in the Dead Sea, leaving it to the snakes and their poison. They called it Snake Island while the vampires renamed it Il Eden Scuro, the Dark Eden, though more often than not many simply called it Nocturne. It had become their sanctuary and all had been sorely angered when the lord of the island had closed it to everyone without so much as an explanation nearly three centuries ago.
Many had dared Renzo’s wrath by coming anyway but soon others learned to leave Nocturne be when, upon reaching the lonely shores, they had come across the bodies of those who had come before them.
And so for over a century the halls of Ilazu Numae did not glow with the intensity it had been known for. Nocturne’s forests and beaches had been silent. Eventually the silence had been broken by the mock growls and playful shouts of the young child that had been born during the lonely years. The only voices he ever heard had been those of his parents, as it was with his entire race he would later learn.
But in those days it had just been the three of them and Nocturne had been his world.
Time had moved on and, though the sun never set inside the manor, it passed over the island as the young boy and his parents had slept, safely away from its painful rays. Time moved on and after a century of isolation Nocturne had opened its doors once again and Lord Renzo once again basked in the compliments of his guests.
Only a few of the visitors wondered at the black haired man who clung to the lord of the Nocturne’s favored mate, Este’s, shadow. He had been young then, afraid of these new people and their strange languages. His world had suddenly expanded as he realized that his island was such a small place. It had frightened and fascinated him but no matter his sire’s attempts to send him to the mainland and teach him to live on his own he always returned to Nocturne and Ilazu Numae.
He had grown accustomed to the knowledge that the world was a large place and he had learned to carry himself so that all knew him to be the young master of the manor. Lies had been spoken and the world now knew him as his sire’s childe in death rather than being his child in life. Such secrets, his father had always warned him, were to be spoken to all.
He hadn’t cared. As long as he had the trees of Nocturne to run through, baring his sharp fangs at imagined monsters, as he played the daring young hero from the books his father read to him, he did not care if the world knew Renzo as his sire or that he had been born from Este’s body.
But then the others had begun to arrive.
They looked and felt like the other vampires that came to the island to escape from the mortals but they too had been born to fathers like he. However they were different. He could never quite explain it but somehow he had always known that they were different from him or Este. They reminded him of his sire.
They came slowly at first, one every sixty or seventy years but as time passed more came. Never a great many and always alone, they came to Ilazu Numae but not for the same reason as the vampires and breed. They did not wonder at the lights or the gardens. They did not mingle joyfully with other visitors. No, these velassi had no time to study the tapestries Renzo had brought from Italy to remind him of his birthplace, for their eyes were always on him.
In the beginning his sire had pushed him out to meet these others, forcing him to stand at his side as their eyes studied him. He hated the way they looked at him, as though trying to decide if he was worthy, though worthy of what he could never quite say. Finally he had had enough of it and when another had appeared he had refused to come to his sire’s call. They had fought that night until Este had taken him away. They had spent the early hours of the morning talking and it was then he had learned what the others wanted.
They wanted to take him away.
He had been intrigued with the idea and when next his father called him to greet a fellow velassi he had gone quietly. He had even made an attempt to learn from the newcomer but what he had learned had turned his newfound curiosity about the possibility of life with another to anger. It had become all too clear to him that they would take him from his home and lock him away in the cold stone castles they spoke of. He would have no escape from the “courts” they kept and the vampires that flocked to them.
He had again refused to meet with the velassi that came to see him and when they came to him on their own he had fought them, chasing them from the island. His sire had come down upon him in anger at his rudeness and he had laughed it off demanding to know why he should leave the vast forests of Nocturne where he could be free to be locked away by someone he was stronger than.
Once they had even gone away for a time to a place far in the north where snow covered the ground year round and trees were few and far between. The place felt old and he’d rubbed his arms to chase away the psychic chill as the age of the place and its unseen residents pushed down upon his young mind. There were so many conflicting emotions in this place’s past, fear, happiness, anger, contentment, but most curious of all was the feeling of belonging.
There were a great many buildings within the stone and ice walls, though he sensed that most were empty. Even so they all stood strong and firm, waiting for someone to take up residence within them again. They had walked through the silent village and came to the greatest among the buildings. They had passed through the grey winterland to the warmth of fire and soft voices.
Later he could never truly say if he had enjoyed his stay in his people’s only city. Their last refuge, his father had whispered to him while his sire spoke to ageless men whose eyes held all the knowledge of the world. They frightened him, these elders, and he bristled at their obvious displeasure at his continued dependence on his parents. They had been the only thing that had dampened his excitement as his parents took him here and there, teaching him of their people’s history and ways, some no longer practiced, some still held to.
Every so often an elder would come, watching him with pale eyes as he associated with those in residence of his own age. Sometimes they would corner him afterwards, asking him what he thought of this or that sire, making no attempt to hide their annoyance at his reluctance to go with their wishes. His sire seemed just as frustrated as they at his failure to find a mate and finally it was his father’s temper and threat to take him back home and leave their sire behind that brought an end to their visit to the strange place. The elders had been patronizing then, declaring before everyone that he was a good boy but too immature yet to take a mate. They had advised his sire to wean him away from his father’s shadow, an insinuation hidden beneath their words that he did not understand but that had made his father shout at them in a language he had not yet been taught. His sire had flushed but kept silent as his father continued to harangue them before turning on his heel and practically dragging him from them.
When he had asked about what had happened his father had taken his face between his hands and said, “We are not inferior to them, my son, just because we lie beneath and are content to let them protect as their nature requires. No matter what they would try to make us believe always remember that. We are not weaker than they. The only power they hold over us is what power we willingly give them. Never let them try to take more. Never let them abuse what you give. Never forget that we are all strong, regardless of the path our desires and bodies chose.”
It had become his mantra and the trees of home had become his solace. He had spent hours among them, occasionally luring away a vampire or breed to teach him how to fight so that he would be strong when the next suitor came.
Always his sire had come to him with the same words. “Adrian, when will you take your place in the world? When will you find a mate to keep you happy?”
Always he threw his head back and laughed, twirling about so that the night wind caught in his long black hair and bared his fangs at his sire to reply. “When one comes that can offer me a better freedom.”
Always he saw his father standing behind his sire, a small smile playing on his face while his sire yelled at him in mock anger for producing such a stubborn child. Adrian had never had the heart to tell his sire that it was his own relationship with Este that he longed for. He didn’t want to be weak, as the others wanted him to be. He wanted to be strong. He wanted to hunt the forest as his father did and he wanted to dance the same steps his parents danced, neither truly leading or following but both playing an intricate game of give and take.
As time went on he began to believe that such a thing could only happen on Nocturne, and so on Nocturne he staid, chasing off all who would force him to leave.
The world moved on and the lights in Ilazu Numae glowed steadily on as the timeless creatures of the world came and went, like the great tide of the sea.
Adrian learned to read the time of year by the stars and how long the night was and he learned the names of days that were turning points in the year. He also learned the days that the mortals he had rarely seen other than on a few trips to the mainland with his sire deemed important.
This night, he knew, was such a night. The mortals called it All Souls Night and it was said that on this night the dead walked the land. Adrian had read many stories about it, the faint laughter of those that gathered in the rooms below the library reminding him of the howls of the dead he read about. It amused him and, as he slipped among the shadows of the garden, he could almost feel a prickling along his skin that others said the ghosts caused. To his surprise his father hadn’t shared his distain for the day when he had brought it up in the lazy hours before sunset.
“It is special,” His father had told him, smiling secretively, “one day you will feel the effect it has on us but until then you can laugh at all the silly tales and call us all fools.”
With a laugh at the memory he flung out his arms and danced a small circle, only to have the sudden movement make him aware of a silent watcher.
With a gasp he froze, the mirth leaving him as he studied the man before him. He had the golden hair of the vampires that came from the north but, as Adrian’s senses became attuned to him, he realized that this man had not been a Norseman in life. He had the warm scent of one who had been born of a male body and whose first taste in life had been blood spilled by baby’s fangs.
“Are you so vile that the others will not stand to be in your presence?” Adrian demanded, annoyed at having been caught in a moment of childish pleasure, “Is that why you must spy upon me in the shadows?”
A patient smile broke the studious façade and Adrian grit his teeth, refusing to admire the slight curl in the thick golden hair or be swayed by the strong scent that all velassi of his orientation carried as it drifted on the night air.
“If I am repulsive to be out among the blessed silence of nature rather than the noise and false smiles of those that gather on the hill than I am at peace with such a thing.”
That drew Adrain back a bit and he cocked his head, considering the man before him. “If the visitors of the manor annoy you it would be best to return home for there is nothing for you here.”
The other shrugged, reaching up to touch the rough bark of the tree whose feeble moonlight shadow he stood in. “There was no way for me to have known that unless I came. There is so much we do not know unless we discover it for ourselves.”
Adrian frowned, for he thought the other was castigating him in some way but he could sense no malice in the other’s tone nor could he determine the insult. “I will not play word games with you!” He snapped, holding his head high, “Despite what you say we both know why you are here and I will tell you my answer now. I will not leave Nocturne so I can play your maid and warm your bed.”
The other smiled again. “As you like.”
The easy surrender caught Adrain off guard and he resisted the urge to stamp his foot in annoyance. “You are a strange one!”
“Not as strange as some.”
Adrian caught that insult and bared his fangs. “You are a fool to anger me so!”
A laugh greeted his statement. “Perhaps I am a fool for pretty things and you are very pretty in your anger.”
Adrian snarled and moved towards the other, slashing at him with sharp claws. The two of them grappled, the golden haired man being driven back across the dark grass, Adrian’s anger rising with every opportunity the other missed to strike back at him. He could feel the strength in the body he was occasionally allowed to catch and the dexterity the other showed as he dodged sharp claws and angry fangs belied the false weakness he tried to show.
Finally Adrian shoved the other away from him, shrieking in anger. “You play with me! I am not a child!”
He gasped as something swept his feet out from underneath him and he found himself on his back in the grass, strong hands holding his arms taunt above his head. His heart quickened in fear as he stared up at the velassi above him. Burgundy eyes no longer looked amused and the depth of emotion he saw there made him tremble, though if it was fear or something else he could not say.
“No,” the other murmured, studying him intently, “you are not a child. But you are not yet ready to be a man either.”
He suddenly released him and as Adrian pushing himself to his feet the other turned and began to walk away. He didn’t know what madness drove him to shout out to stop the man but he couldn’t just let him go.
“Wait!” He shouted. “What are you doing?” It confused him to see a suitor give up on him so easily, especially since he had just proven himself the stronger in a fight.
The other paused, glancing back at him for a long moment before replying. “Going away. I did not come here for the noise and laughter, those I can get aplenty in my sire’s court.”
“Then why did you come?”
Again the burgundy eyes narrowed and in them Adrian could almost swear he could lose himself in the depth of emotion that he saw. “I came to find something but, as you have said, it is not yet here.”
Adrian’s tongue cleaved to the roof of his mouth and for the first time he felt almost guilty at his refusal to submit to another.
“I’m sorry that it was not here for you.” He whispered, sadness welling up within him.
The faint smile returned, softening the strangely colored eyes. “It will be,” the other replied, “One day, it will be.”
With that he was gone.
The other’s words echoed in his mind as winter came and covered the island in snow. A great sense of guilt welled within him whenever he thought of the other man and with it came a thing wholly new to him. Dreams came to him of the feel of strong hands on his body, holding him in a way that made him feel safe without being suffocating. Hands that did things to him that caused his body to come alive.
He began to sleep in his own room rather than share a bed with his father and sire as he had done all of his life. At first it was strange and he could barely sleep for the insatiable fear that he would be unprotected when the death sleep came upon him but soon that fear ceased and he began to enjoy this new bit of solitude. But late in the day he would wake from a dream and feel an incurable loneliness well up within him.
Spring came and the loneliness faded as he prowled the island, looking for the new life that had been born. He discovered a fox cub that had caught its hind leg in a rotten log and been left by its mother for dead. He received a lesson in how the body was built from his father and together they saw the fox through the summer before one day finding it returned to the wild of its own free will.
His father had been happy for it and in the days that followed Adrian had a lesson to ponder for, though he was sad to see it go, he knew that come spring he would find it with a new family all of its own making. A family it could not have had if it staid with them. This lesson brought back the other’s words and Adrian began to wonder what pleasures the world held that he did not know even existed.
He began to travel to the mainland on his own and went about, listening to the mortals talk and puzzling over the things they spoke about. He longed to learn about the places and people they talked of and always, when he returned to Nocturne, he would lock himself in the library to read.
In that year he learned much but there was more he longed to learn. He wanted to discuss what he had read and the thoughts that tormented him but he couldn’t bring himself to do it with his parents or those that came and went. He had asked his sire about the golden haired velassi only to have his question met with a confused stare and a demand that he describe the man. He realized that his sire knew nothing of the other nor did his father.
The year passed and though he knew many things he did not know the name of the man who had caused such a change in him. It was a disturbing reminder that, though he had learned much without experiencing the tall mountains or seeing the great castles he had read so much about, he knew nothing of them.
All Souls Night came and again Ilazu Numae was inundated with visitors come to spend the night together in revelry. Again Adrian found himself among the quiet trees as he contemplated what he had learned. The visitors from other lands spoke now of this night being the final night of the year rather than the winter solstice and it left him in a reflective mood.
So deep in thought was he that he did not even hear the other’s approach until a voice startled him out of his reverie and he found himself not alone in the dark garden.
“Such a pensive face doesn’t suit you. You wear anger much better.”
He sat up stiffly, staring at the man who watched him. “What are you?” He demanded, “A ghost come only on this night when the two worlds are so close to haunt me for not playing the role our race seems to demand of me?”
The other looked thoughtful for a moment. “Do you believe in that?” He asked.
“That I’m not acting like a proper consort-to-be should? Of course! I take great pride in it if you must know.” Adrian snapped.
The golden haired vampire snorted. “No. That idea is so ridiculous it doesn’t even bear thinking about. I was asking about whether or not you believe that on this night the worlds of the living and the dead touch.”
Adrian hesitated, his sudden anger draining away. “I . . . I do not know.” He admitted. “I do not know much about ghosts or devils so I cannot say one way or the other.”
A smile broke over the other’s lips. “I am glad that you can admit that. Too many people in this world make judgments based on hearsay and things they know nothing about.”
“Who are you?” Adrian demanded, rising to come towards the other. “My sire knows nothing of you nor does my father. How is it that you stay in our home without them knowing you?”
The other shrugged. “I did not stay in your home.”
Adrian frowned. “Where did you stay?”
“On the mainland.”
“But . . . why stay among the mortals when you could have staid here among fellow nightwalkers?”
Burgundy eyes turned serious. “It was obvious you did not wish me here and so I left.”
“You did not stay simply because of that?”
“Of course. You did not wish me here. I had no right to stay.”
“My sire would have welcomed you. He still would. What I want has no bearing on who may stay at the manor.”
The golden haired velassi shook his head. “I did not come for you sire, Adrian.” A smile broke over his face at Adrian’s surprise, “Yes I know your name. I did not come for your father. I came to see you and this is where you live, this is your island too. You did not want me here so I left.”
Adrian looked away. “You are so strange,” he murmured, “You are not like the others.”
A soft laugh brought his attention back to the golden haired man. “What’s so funny?” He demanded.
The other smiled brightly. “That is what I told my parents when I told them of you.”
“That isn’t a compliment.” Adrian growled.
The other met his gaze firmly. “Is it not? Isn’t that what you’ve been trying to prove to the others? Have you not been trying to prove that you won’t be what they think all those of your orientation should be like? I think that it is a rather desirable compliment. Perhaps the best one you or I could be given for it warms my heart to know that you think me different than the others.”
Adrian reached up to touch his temple. “You make my head spin,” he whispered, “What is it that you want? Why do you speak to me so?”
The golden haired vampire came forward, reaching out as though to touch his cheek but he paused a mere breathe away from actual contact. “I am glad for that,” he replied, his voice deepening and sending shiver’s down Adrian’s spine.
“What do you want from me?” Adrian asked, trying to search out an answer from the burgundy eyes.
They were so close together, their bodies almost touching. Adrian felt his head tilting back and for a second he thought that the other would kiss him but the distance between them never closed. Instead the other smiled his knowing smile. “Don’t you know?” He whispered, his breath cool against Adrian’s face.
“No.” He replied honestly.
The other stepped back, breaking the intimacy between them. “You will. One day.”
He turned to go and Adrian leapt forward, catching the sleeve of his jacket. “No! Where are you going?”
The other smiled down at him, covering his hand with his own. “Home.” He replied.
Adrian felt a great sadness well up within him. “It’s still not here for you is it?”
The smile turned slightly sad. “No.”
Adrian let his hand drop and he stepped back, wrapping his arms about himself. “Will it be here next year?” He asked.
Again the other reached out to touch his cheek but this time he actually touched him and Adrian instinctively turned his face into the touch, nuzzling at the palm against his lips.
“Perhaps,” the golden haired velassi replied, “but even if it isn’t I do not mind. The first flower of spring cannot be rushed or else you may damage it. Do not rush it, Adrian. Although I am not a patient man by nature I will wait for this.”
“What if it never happens?” Adrian demanded, a panic coming over him, “What if, when it does, it doesn’t suit you?”
“Then I shall simply have to change myself to suit it.” Lips touched his forehead and Adrian watched in silence as the other backed away from him and then disappeared like a ghost in the night.
The winter passed quietly and ended on a somber note as news drifted to them of danger on the continent. Wars tore the land and castles fell. Vampires were driven from the luxury they had built around them and forced to hide as riots broke out through the cities and unknowing mortals disturbed their sleeping places. There seemed to be only safety in numbers and Adrian watched as vampire and breed alike came to Nocturne in ones and twos only to leave in packs as uneasy alliances were formed.
By summer their visitors spoke of many vampires gathering in courts. These courts claimed huge tracts of land as their territories and the members worked to keep their lands free of danger. At night the halls were full of these talks and Adrian began to recognize names spoken of for they were spoken again and again in an almost reverent tone as vampires expounded on the strengths and weaknesses of this and that court.
His days, however, became full of whispered worries as his parents debated on whether or not they approved of this new shift to larger courts. Again the same names were whispered but this time they lacked the reverent airs the vampires associated with them. He learned that most of these court leaders were of their kind, velassi, and his parents feared that by becoming so powerful they brought attention to themselves, attention that might cause their secrets to be revealed. His father in particular worried, wondering how these velassi, who had so many looking to them for leadership and protection, would be able to disappear for the time needed to have and raise their future sons.
It was not his parents’ worry over the revelation of their race that struck a cord within him but rather the talk of children. Never before had he considered children but as he thought it over during the day he came to realize that, sometime in the future, he would have them too. As with the fox cub it seemed to open his mind and he began to see with new eyes.
His study was turned towards his own parents and the relationship between them. He watched the way they interacted, surprised to realize just how often they slipped away for hours when they thought no one would notice. He followed them once, though he left them alone as soon as he realized that the hunt he was witnessing was not the play he often engaged in with his sire or father but rather a hunt that had a very different ending than the one where his hunter had scooped him up and carried him back to the manor full of laughter and mirth. This hunt ended with acts that mimicked the things he dreamed about.
Afterwards he had gone to the mainland, going so far as to visit one of the courts he had heard about. There he witnessed the same acts, though these seemed less intense, less important than when his parents had gone about it. He had even found a partner in a vampire that was still young enough in years to find pleasure in small things but fear kept him from allowing the exploratory touches from developing into more. He realized how little he knew about what made him different from his partner and how little he knew about his own body. He feared that completing the act would leave him with child but they did enough that he had discovered the desire to have things done to him rather than performing those acts himself on another.
When he returned he claimed his father for the night and asked for answers. At first he had feared that his father would be angry at his experiments but the tales of his exploration only brought a smile to his father’s face. Together they had gone to the rocky shore and they sat among the rocks, only the black-eyed snakes party to their words. His father spoke to him of the ways among their kind, of how a child would grow from the union of two velassi, and only velassi. Adrian was grateful to hear of this and his father, Este, laughed allowed, patting his knee and admitting his own indiscretions before Renzo’s courtship.
Adrian blushed at his father’s urging that he take lovers among the vampires. “You have stopped aging and no vampire will be able to look beyond your charm to sense that you are different. You have passed for a vampire for years now, little brother.” Este teased, using the title that vampires used among their own families and thus the title he and his father were forced to assume to maintain their secret by pretending to be children of Renzo.
“I wish he would stop bringing them here,” Adrian said, glancing down at his folded hands, “the others. I do not like them and I do not like being paraded before them.”
“Ah, love, I know,” his father replied, drawing him into his arms, “but there is nothing that can be done for it. These are your people and aside from the occasional gatherings we are all scattered, lost even to each other. We must meet with them so that others know of you.”
Adrian pushed away from his father. “Why? Why must they know of me? I would rather spend my years here in peace than suffer another dozen of those fools!”
Este sighed. “They must know so that they will tell others. You do not believe it now but one day you will take a mate from among them. Somewhere there is another, like Renzo, who you will be drawn to. I know that now it seems an awful thought to you but you must realize that it is necessary.”
“Oh yes, so I can be some breeding mare to keep our race from disappearing!” Adrian spat angrily.
“No,” his father said firmly, “to keep from spending eternity alone. To keep from betraying us all when the fires of All Souls Night burns within you. You’ve felt something on that night but you are young yet and the fires do not drive you as it does the rest of us. One year the desire will wake within you, perhaps even this year since you have begun to discover the pleasures of the body. Trust me on this, Adrian. When the fires of All Souls Night burn in your veins you will do anything to soothe it and without a mate it will be torture. I know this. I spent many years trying to sate it with whatever lover I happened to have at the time. None of them could soothe it. In the years before I met your sire I was forced to return to my own parents and they would lock me away before the fires took them as well for I was a danger to our secret. Vampires are not driven as we are and it would have drawn attention. I do not wish to do that to you Adrian for I know what a torture it is. I pray with all my heart you find a mate despite your own attempts at chasing away all of your potential suitors.”
Adrian sighed. “I know you both only want my happiness but . . . I’m not ready to leave yet. Maybe I am still just a child.”
Este smiled, reaching out to stroke his hair. “In the end we are all just children looking for home. Ilazu Numae will be your home whenever you need it. Well until your sire sees fit to stop playing with the riff raff and make a cute new bundle of fangs and claws to keep me entertained, that is. Then you’ll be off to your grandfather’s for a century.”
Adrian blinked. “You would send me away?” He asked, fear welling within him.
His father’s golden eyes were serious. “Yes. It is the way of things. Neither of us wish for you to leave but, should a child come, we would have to.”
“Why?”
Este held out his hands in a helpless gesture. “Children are always raised in solitude. It is one of our oldest rules. Mostly it is because of the child’s weakness. A baby’s cry is enough to set both father and sire on edge. Rage wells up within us so quickly if anything indicates that the child may be in danger. It is best to raise the child with only his parents near for then there is no fear that another might harm them or, when they are old enough to feed on their own, take the child to raise themselves.”
“Does that happen often?” Adrian asked.
Este shrugged. “I do not know but my own sire told stories of the old days, when children were raised in packs surrounded by others. Sometimes another velassi would steal the child and take it as its own. Such a thing is a traumatic for both child and parents and always it led to fighting. Velassi were killed and there are so few of us that it could not be tolerated. That is part of why we returned to solitary life. When there are no other velassi to be tempted to take a child there are no fights, no death.”
Adrian frowned but nodded. “Still,” he mused, “I would think that it would be safer to raise a child among others. I would never harm or take a child! Surely it would be easier for you both to have another set of eyes watching.”
His father smiled. “We do well enough on our own and I think you would like life with my own father and sire. They would dote upon you until you would think you were some treasured god. Ah, but I would not fear. Your sire is enjoying his return to public life and, as I have told you, it is very hard to create life within our bodies. It will be at least another century, probably more if ever you were to be granted a brother.”
Adrian mirrored his father’s smile. “I am glad of it,” he said unashamedly, “for I think I enjoy having all of your attention.”
Again summer came to a close and the moon rose over a new All Souls Night but, though Adrian hurried to the small garden where twice before he had met the other and staid until the dawn painted the sky orange, the young sire did not come. He was hurt at the other’s failure to appear, though he tried hard to deny it, even to himself. It seemed as though a promise had been broken and it made him curt and angry.
The next night he left Nocturne and in a rage he moved from town to town, taking lovers as he willed and leaving them without another thought. His father found him after a few weeks, asking him to come home but he refused. His father was disappointed but did not try to coerce him. Instead he left with a warning to stay out of the courts. He learned that many of the courts had grown too large and if humans were not in the process of destroying them they were destroying themselves from the inside as rival vampires fought for the right to be master of the court.
Adrian sent his father away with the promise that he would obey. He had truly meant his words until a dream reminded him of the other, calling him a child and not ready for the world. Anger set in then and it made him foolish. He went to one of the great courts, telling himself it was only for the night just to see what they were.
A night turned into a week and that week turned into a month. He was honestly charmed with the family like air, though he knew that, should one show weakness, they were quickly dispatched. He fell in with a moderately ranked vampire and together they danced through the steps of vampire life. A whole season he staid at the court, loving where he willed with an empty heart until the night he returned to find his sire waiting for him.
His sire rarely had cause to be angry with him and as such he was unused to seeing the normally jovial man’s face hard with rage. It made him feel like a child to cower before him and it stroked his own anger, making him shout harsh words at the man that had helped give him life. His sire struck him, and as he lay dazed upon the floor, he was forced to see what a child he was being.
He returned to Nocturne in tears and refused the company of all but his father, who spoke to him in kind words, calming his confused mind. His father told him of the danger he was in, of how the court was now gone because they had over hunted their own territory and trespassed on another’s. As he lay awake at night he heard the whispers from those who had recently come from the mainland, proving his father’s words true. He cried for the loss of that unique world and he cried at the loneliness in his own heart.
His sire said no more of the incident but Adrian felt that something had changed between them. He no longer saw the strong man who had once held him in his arms. He now saw the strong velassi who had driven away his lover and who had forced him to see his own faults. Adrian began to see less and less of his sire though he could see how much that new distance bothered his father.
The flowers had just begun to spread their petals when a new suitor arrived. As before Adrian was forced to come to his father’s call and smile with false friendliness at the man. He could see a shrewdness in this other that set him on edge. It was evident that his sire approved of this new velassi for they spoke like old friends after only an evening’s time and, though Adrian refused to meet with him again, his sire would not send him away.
Summer came and still the other shadowed his steps. Everywhere Adrian turned he was there and it made him angry. When he threatened to leave Nocturne until the other was gone his sire refused, telling him that he would stop being a spoiled brat and start learning to be an adult. His sire’s words hurt him, though his father tried to soothe the feeling by confiding in him that Renzo was only worried for him.
In his foolishness Adrian did not care.
That year something was different as All Souls Night approached. He couldn’t say exactly when it started but as the moon began to swell he felt his anger lessen but something else rose within him, taking its place. Often he would stop in the middle of whatever he was doing, finding himself so tense his body shook. Many times he tried to figure out what was putting him on edge but he could never quite put his finger on it. The other still dogged his steps but he only stroked his anger, which, he discovered later when his sire had sent the other away a few days before All Souls Night, wasn’t the cause of this strange new sensation.
The days passed and it built until the sun set, signaling the beginning of All Souls Night and, as the darkness deepened, he felt as though he were drowning. He fled from the manor, feeling as though the walls were suffocating him. His whole body shook and the feel of the cool autumn wind on his arms sent through all sorts of strange sensations through him. When he could run no longer he collapsed, pressing his forehead against the tree he hunched beneath. Rough bark dug into his skin and he frowned, peering up at the tree. He laughed humorlessly when he realized where he had fled.
“What spell did you put on this place that always draws me here?” He asked of the absent velassi who had triggered these changes within him and had shattered his world.
He sighed and pushed himself to his feet, shivering. His muscles tensed and he hissed as another strange sensation rolled through him, threatening to turn his knees to jelly. Was this what his father had spoken of? Was this the fires he had been warned of? It was strange, he thought, he didn’t feel warm at all.
He felt painfully cold.
Something snapped behind him and he whirled. Before he could see what had come upon him he found himself on his back, the air he had taken in for his question driven from him as a heavy weight slammed into him, pinning him down on the cold stone that made up the garden’s path. He tried to push the weight off but hands caught his wrists and held them above his head.
His attacker pulled back, staring down at him with eyes that were all pupil and he hissed.
“Release me!” He snarled, twisting to get free.
His sire’s friend groaned and rubbed against him, making him stiffen as something ignited within him. The motion was repeated and sharp fangs brushed over his neck. This, he realized suddenly as a groan was torn from him, was the fire his father had warned about. It brought back memories of sure touches in the darkness of a court now gone and for a moment he almost gave in.
Opening his eyes he saw the tree above them and it was as though a spear of ice had shot through him, bringing with it a bit of sanity. With a scream he arched, tearing his hands free and going for his attacker’s face. The other shrieked, pushing away from him and clutching his bleeding face. He tried to get free but the other refused to relent and all he managed to do was to roll onto his stomach before he realized his mistake.
An arm wrapped about his waist as claws tore at his clothing. He shrieked and struggled but had lost all leverage and could not get free. A hand groped between his legs and it nearly undid him. He stopped fighting for a crucial moment, groaning at the sensations that coursed through him. The other shifted, rubbing against him and he shivered, struggling feebly against the firm hold on his hips.
“S . . . stop!” He hissed twisting as he was shoved face first into the ground. He heard clothes tearing and he arched, screaming in primal rage at his helplessness.
A snarl answered his scream and he grunted in pain as something slammed into them, the other’s body striking his so hard he felt a rib crack. He wheezed in pain as the other thrashed above him. There were snarls of rage and pain and then suddenly he was free. He crawled to the tree’s shadow, drawing his knees to his chest as he wailed in pain, fear, and desire.
The combatants before him broke apart and he nearly wept as he recognized the moonlight shining off golden waves that had haunted his dreams since he had first seen them. The two velassi circled each other, snarling and striking out at each other before coming together in a clash of claws and fangs. He clung to the tree as though it were the only thing keeping him sane as he watched the sires fight, tears mingling with the dirt and blood on his cheeks as he tried to stay afloat in the chaos of emotions and sensations warring within him.
There was a scream from the grappling velassi as his savior slipped under hooked fingers and bit deeply into the other’s neck. He shook his head viciously like a wolf with prey, tearing the pale skin and leaving the other with little more than half a neck left. He leapt back, watching with wide eyes and bared fangs as the other turned and fled, leaving him with the field.
Silence came then and Adrian sobbed, drawing the golden haired velassi’s attention to him. Hesitantly he crept closer, reaching out blood stained hands and Adrian leaned towards them, needing to feel the strong arms about him.
A primal scream of challenge froze him place. He stared wide eyed as his sire melted out of the shadows, snarling at the unknown male in his territory and threatening his child. The golden haired velassi met the scream with a deep growl, turning to face this challenge though he was wounded and his shoulders were stopped with weariness. His sire caught sight of him huddling beneath the tree and took a threatening step forward, his attention focusing on the younger sire before him.
Adrian knew the look that crossed his sire’s face, knew the killing instinct that made his hands hook into claws and his eyes narrow. He cried out in fear as his sire’s muscles tensed and then launched himself forward. Later he would never know how he had managed to get around the velassi trying to protect him, never know how he ended up between to them or how he survived being between two sires caught in the fires of All Souls Night but that was where he found himself, tearing at his sire’s chest, though his body screamed in pain, and driving him back.
For a second the killing rage was focused on him and he shrank back knowing that it would be turned on him but then his father was there, forcing Renzo back and giving him something else to focus on other than his child and the unknown velassi. Adrian met his sire’s piercing gaze, shrinking back instinctively. A hand was placed at his side, slightly beyond where he crouched so that he was effectively trapped beneath the young sire’s chest. He heard the barely contained growl and leaned back, pressing against his protector’s chest.
His father watched him from under dark lashes, stroking his sire’s black hair and murmuring to him softly. Renzo growled softly, obviously trying to keep from being influenced by his mate. Este seemed all sex and moonlight and Adrian frowned, wondering at the creature his father had become when the fires of All Souls Night had stripped away his civility. His father looked like he felt. He was practically draped over Renzo’s broad back, long fingers clutching at the powerful male at his side in weakly concealed need.
Renzo shuddered, trying to pull away slightly from the hands that caressed him. Este growled in annoyance but Renzo caught his gaze and he shuddered, pulling back reluctantly. He wrapped his arms about himself and Adrian could see him fighting to regain himself. His sire shook himself before looking up, catching his gaze with steady green eyes.
“This is your choice then?” He demanded, his voice deep with weakly suppressed desire.
Adrian felt the young sire tighten his hold on him, though he was aware that he could easily break free if he wished it. He remembered his father’s words from their last night in the snow-covered city so long ago about power given and felt a smile curve his lips.
“Yes.” He whispered.
His sire nodded. “Go then. Now is not a night for talk or plans for the future. Go and revel in your decision, my son.”
Adrian felt the arms about him urging him away and he nodded. He caught his father’s approving smile before Renzo caught him up in his arms and they were gone. Strong hands tried to urge him past the tree and into the forest but he pulled back, shaking his head.
“No. Here.” He said firmly, looking up to catch the other’s gaze. “I would have it done here.”
The other hesitated but finally nodded. “It always begins here, doesn’t it?” He replied, his words more a growl than anything else but Adrian understood.
He turned, reaching up to catch the golden hair as he lay back, surrendering himself to his savior who slowly bent his head and licked at his neck. He shuddered, his body demanding that he give up thought and let it run free but he refused it for a moment longer.
A frown pulled at his lips. “You didn’t come last year.” He winced at how childish the words sounded.
The other laughed, kissing him apologetically. “I’m sorry. I meant to but . . . my father is with child and I needed to take over the court. I could not leave. It pained me but I had no choice.”
Adrian blinked. “Isn’t that too soon?” He asked, his confusion lending him a bit more sanity amid the swirling maelstrom of sensations, “Surely you are just beyond your own fledging, as I am!”
The other laughed. “I am older than you think, young one. I have waited a long time for you, Adrian. I have searched the world for the other half of my heart.”
He snorted. “And our people sneered at me for waiting so long!”
The other smiled, baring his fangs. “No one would dare sneer at you now. They pushed me too but I would not give in. The night doesn’t lie. It whispered to me, promising me more than what they pushed me to take so I waited.”
Adrian nodded his understanding, stroking the golden hair. “I don’t even know your name.” He stated, forcing his stubborn lips to form the words.
The other pulled back, staring down at him with burgundy eyes gone dark with desire. “Alexandru.” He replied, “My name is Alexandru.”
Adrian smiled, releasing a handful of hair to trace the perfect bow of the sire’s upper lip. “Alexandru.” He whispered.
Alexandru shuddered, catching his thin wrist in his hand and nipping at the tips of his fingers. Adrian moaned in pleasure but struggled to remain sane for a little while longer.
“Is it here?” he gasped, “What you were waiting for?”
Alexandru smiled, leaning down to capture his lips with his. “Yes,” the sire whispered, his tongue darting between his lips and making him shiver deliciously. “It is here now.”
Adrian stared at him, naked desire in his golden eyes. “And does it please you?” He asked, his voice gone husky.
The golden haired velassi bared his fangs as the fires rose within both of them, threatening to turn them both into creatures of the night. “Oh yes,” he hissed, bringing his mouth down to touch his new mate’s neck. “It has always pleased me.”
Adrian let his head fall back staring up at the night sky. He saw the future before him as hands and lips worshiped his body. He saw nights of laughter and pleasure. He saw a thousand dreams laid out before him in the stars of above. He saw a new home where he would never be alone and where children would cling to his knees and remind him of his love of the trees and the night.
He saw a new life and the fulfillment of desires he hadn’t even known he had.
Reaching out he pulled his mate’s face to his, feeling the wild rhythm that pulsed through the sire’s body. He followed that rhythm, letting it pound into them until there was nothing but each other and the need to be together.
When the time came he closed his eyes and screamed, his voice creating a natural harmony with Alexandru’s. Together they gave themselves to each other and the night. Burning together they stripped away what they had been, letting the child within them go as they formed into the creatures they had always been meant to be. Tears fell from Adrian’s eyes as the reason for his sire and his father’s worries came clear to him. Finally he understood the lessons of his childhood.
Alone they were nothing. Together they were velassi.
He knew that the night would end, their future would come and go, and, one day, they too would pass on but always they would burn.
Together.
What you never know won’t hurt you
What you never know won’t lie
What you never know won’t desert you
What you never know won’t make you cry
What you never know won’t hurt you
What you never know won’t lie
What you never know won’t desert you
What you never know unless . . .
You try.
The lyrics at the end are from “What You Never Know” by Sarah Brightman. I felt they portray the confusion of a child becoming an adult. You want to go out and explore, learn to take your life in your own hands but at the same time you lose the innocence you used to have. You lose the ability to return to that time when you were blind to the darkness in the world. But on the other hand there is so much that you lose if you never go out and learn the things you never know.
Don’t own Nightwalker but I do own these cuties *snuggles ‘em*. Not really Nightwalker oriented until you read RkoW and figure out how Adrian and Alexandru fit in ;)
