8 Not fully human

Dell is standing out front of room 253, her home away from home for the next seven months. She places the key in the lock and turns it slowly, fearfully anticipating of what is waiting for her inside. She inches the door open and takes a moment to look around before she enters. She walks in and the door slams loudly behind her, causing her to jump out of fright. She drops the heavy bag she is carrying to the ground, unconcerned for the contents inside. Dell had few expectations of her lodgings, especially after Miss Lings warning, so what she was seeing did not surprise her. The room could not be anymore drab, off white walls, stained brown carpet that is worn to the point of being non-existent, cheap, wooden furniture that consists of a single bed, a chest of draws, a study desk and a wardrobe, "No expense spared," she exclaimed as she rolls her eyes. Dell smelt the air in the room, it was stale and old. She leans over the bed and opens the window to let some much need fresh air in. Dell plonks herself on the bed and bounces up and down a few times. She runs her hands up and down the old, hard mattress and touches the folded sheets at the end of the bed, "Nice and comfy," she whispered sarcastically. Dell looks around the empty, lifeless room and takes in a deep breath, "First things first." She reaches in her bag and pulls out an enclosed cardboard cylinder and some cello tape. She opens the cylinder and pulls out a poster, and with the cello tape she tapes the poster to the wall at the end of the bed. She steps back and examines the poster. It is a painted portrait of a male vampire. His long hair is pitch black and vastly contrasts his pale, near translucent skin. He wears a sinister grin that is accompanied by his piercing, soulless stare. Casey stares back at the vampire, as if transfixed by his endless gaze…

20 years before…

It is a dark and stormy night. Thunder and lightning rule the sky. The noises of suburbia are masked by the pelting rain. The streets are barren except for those brave enough to face the torrential down pour. Most households are void of activity, with the late hour seeing them long retired. One house, 45 Green Street, usually a subdued residence, is full of commotion. Within the dwelling, two vampires stand holding another, James Dell, between them. James is beaten, bloody and struggling to maintain consciousness. The vampire gripping James' right arm is Rami, a large, emotionless creature who has no respect for life, human or supernatural. He is monster in both size and nature, void of any emotion or personality. Holding James' left arm is Iris, the wicked vampire who includes herself in all things evil within the supernatural world. Iris wears burn scars on her face and neck from an altercation month's before. And standing before the three of them is Raven, the cruel and egotistical ruler of the vampire underworld. Raven is bleeding from his right fist, it is not his blood however, it is James'. Raven wears a blink less stare, his eyes cold and unforgiving.

"Why do you make me come hunting for you James?" Raven asked, unconcerned by James' serious injuries that he himself inflicted. "Or do you like to be called Jim? Jim is such a common name, wouldn't you agree?" he looks at James waiting for a response, but James does not answer. "I will stick to James, it is far more sophisticated I feel. So, I ask again James, why do you make me come hunting for you?"

James rolls his eyes and shakes his head but does not speak. Raven takes a step towards James, raises his fists then brings it down upon James' face with brutal force. The connection produces a sickening sound of bones being broken and flesh being torn apart. Raven takes a step back and looks down on his black coat that has James' blood on it.

"Great, blood on my jacket. Do you know how hard it is to remove blood stains from clothing James?" Raven asked, genuinely annoyed by the blood on his coat.

"I ask you one simple thing. Bring me a fresh human once a week. That's all. As the newest member of the clan that's what you do, to show appreciation and to give me thanks for allowing you in." Raven points to Iris, "The lovely Iris here done it," he then points to Rami, "As did the lovely Rami, well he is not so lovely, but still, one hell of a vampire."

Rami looks at Raven and grunts in annoyance, Raven ignores him.

James looks at Raven and gathers some strength, "I didn't want to become one of you, you're all monsters," he said aggressively, blood spitting out of his mouth as he spoke.

Raven shook his head, as if disappointed by James' comment, "Monsters, if you want monsters go see Dr Frankenstein, I have his number, he is a very talented man. But we are not monsters."

"You should have let me die," James muttered as his head sunk.

"How ungrateful, I give immortality, and this is my reward, insolence and disrespect. Why do I even bother?" Raven looks at James sincerely displeased by him. He walks up to James and grabs him by the chin and forces him to meet his eyes. "Now James, because you have failed to fulfil your simple obligation as a member of my clan, I must bring it upon myself to punish you, something I loathe doing but must to ensure order remains steadfast."

"Just kill me then," James mumbled, struggling to make a coherent sentence.

"You're already dead James," Raven reminded him in a vicious tone, "And besides, I'm not done with you, not by a long shot." Raven releases his grip of James then begins to parade around the room, looking absentmindedly at photos and the décor in the room, clearly unpleased by what he sees. "James, I must scorn you on your decorations and furnishing, very…humany." He pics up a family portrait of James, his wife and daughter. "You haven't introduced me to your family, how rude. That's ok, I will go and introduce myself."

James eyes fill with rage. His body gets a surge of energy and he tries to break free from Iris and Rami's grip, but he only manages to jostle them slightly. James begs, "No, please no, take me, leave them."

Raven gives him a look of derision, "You, huh, please, wait here, I shall return."

Raven walks down the corridor and begins searching the house. He enters a small bathroom briefly but sees no one. He walks into one bedroom and looks around. It is a child's bedroom, walls colored light pink with dolls scattered all over. The wardrobe is wide open revealing dresses and girls' clothing, but no person is inside. He walks down the corridor and into another bedroom. As he enters, he takes deep breath in, as if inhaling the rooms aura. An evil smile arises on his face. The only sound that can be heard is that of curtains jostling due to a slight breeze coming through the opened window. The room is occupied by a large queen bed, two side dresser draws and a large wardrobe that is closed. He looks under the bed to find it empty apart from some boxes and old, discarded shoes. He moves slowly and quietly to the wardrobe and grabs hold of the handle, he pauses for a moment, then whips open the door with great speed, "Well hello there," he said in an unnerving tone. Cowering inside the wardrobe is Janet, James' wife and their 5-year-old daughter Casey. Janet is holding Casey tight, so tight in fact she struggles to breath.

Casey holds her hand up to Raven, "Please no, take me, leave the girl, I beg of you." Tears are streaming down her face and she is shaking uncontrollably.

The grin on Ravens face drops and turns into a sinister glare, "How about I take both of you." He grabs Janet and Casey roughly by their arms and reefs them out of the wardrobe. He marches them forcefully down the corridor and into the living room. Janet fights hard to fend off Raven but he is far too strong. Once in the living room Raven throws Janet onto the lounge with such force the lounge is pushed back several feet. Casey is in shock. She stands silent and motionless. Raven pulls her in front him and turns to James.

James pleads to Raven with the little strength he has left, "Raven please, no, I will do anything, let her go."

"TAKE ME, PLEEEEEEASE," Janet screams, but Raven ignores them both.

Iris has a devious grin on her face in anticipation of what is about to happen. Rami stands stone faced, both still holding James tightly so he can't defend Casey.

"You brought this on yourself James, I honestly hate these types of predicaments, I do, but alas, here we are," Raven stated, as if sincerely disliking the situation he had created.

Raven gives James and evil look, then, as quick as lightening, reaches down to Casey's neck and begins extracting her blood.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO," Janet and James both scream in unison.

Within a few seconds Casey crashes to the ground, motionless and not breathing. Janet leaps to her aid but is knocked back onto the lounge by Raven who turns and growls at her angrily. He turns to James, Casey's blood dripping from his mouth. With his left hand he pulls out a knife from his coat pocket. He then uses the knife to make a cut in the palm of his right hand. With blood seeping from the opened wound, he kneels to Casey and looks at James, "I wouldn't want to be known as a murderer James, so I am going to be gracious and let your daughter live, hopefully she will be more grateful then you are." With Casey's mouth slightly ajar, Raven squeezes his hand hard forcing out a gush of blood that covers her lips and enters her mouth. After a few seconds he stops. Wearing a satisfied look, he stands and addresses James and Janet, "It is a misconception that copious amounts of vampire blood is required to initiate the transformation process. The truth is, you need but the most miniscule amount, for its not the blood that is important, it is the essence of the vampire encapsulated in the blood, so a few drops is more than sufficient." Ravens grim words fall on deaf ears, as Janet and James stare heartbroken at their lifelessly daughter.

Raven takes a clean handkerchief from his coat pocket and wraps it around the wound on his hand. "Oh, don't worry about my hand, it will heal in a few minutes," he said, as if those in the room are concerned for his welfare.

Suddenly, Ravens ears prick up and he snarls. In the distance sirens can be heard, slowly getting louder and louder. "Great, the S.P.D. are on their way. It's time for us depart this wretched place," he informed Iris and Rami.

"Shall we kill him?" Rami asked Raven, nudging James forward.

"No, we shall not," Raven answered, clearly irritated by the question. "I haven't finished with him, he is coming with us to serve his purpose."

Raven walks over to Janet and grabs her by the hand and raises it to his lips, "Well lovely to see you Mrs. Dell. It's a shame we can't stay but the S.P.D. and I do not have a good relationship, another time perhaps," he then gently kisses her hand, "Farewell, my dear." Raven releases her hand and gives her a disturbing wink.

Raven walks to the front door, as he passes Rami and Iris, he motions his head for them to follow him. They grip James tight and drag him out the door following Raven.

Frozen by what had transpired, Janet realizes they have left and snaps into action. She leaps off the lounge at moves to Casey, "No, no, no baby stay with me, stay me," she pleads, shaking Casey who offers no response. She feels her pulse and places her head on her heart but feels nothing.

The sirens in background get louder.

"We have to get you out of here and find help, I pray Wilma is home," Janet said, clearly panicked by her daughters' condition. She picks Casey up from the floor, her lifeless body flops in her arms. Janet runs to the garage, opens the car door and throws Casey in the back seat, not concerning herself with the seatbelt. Janet runs to the driver's seat and starts the car. The garage door opens slowly, "Come on, come on," she yells as she bangs her fists on the steering wheel out of frustration. Once it is fully opened, Janet slams her foot on the accelerator causing the tires to screech. She exits the garage and onto the street, almost spinning out of control from the slippery, wet road. Janet is on a mission and knows that time is of the essence, she must get to her to the destination quickly and without heistation. She winds her way through the suburban suburbs at break neck speed. She leans forward to get better visibility of the street signs, the heavy rain and her manic driving making them difficult to read. She goes through stops signs without hesitation and ignores all speed limits. She passes a street sign that reads Rue Street, then quickly looks back at Casey and says tearfully, "We're almost there baby, stay with me." Janet starts slowing down and veers the car left. She mounts a gutter and drives over a bed of flowers. She slams on the brakes and the car comes to a sudden stop, only inches away from crashing into the house. She briefly pauses to gather her composure and as she does a crow lands on the hood of her car. The crow stares directly at Janet, unwavered by the pouring rain. A discomforting feeling comes over Janet by the crow's presence, but she is unable to look away. The crow and Janet visually square off for several moments until the crow squawks loudly then flies off. Janet ponders the incident briefly then shakes off the distraction. She exits the car and races to retrieve Casey. She drags Casey out of the back seat and carries her to the house. Upon reaching the front door, Janet bangs hard and loud, "Wilma, Wilma," she yells. Janet continues to knock on the door as hard as she can.

A woman opens the door dressed in her night gown, pajamas and slippers, her hair disheveled, and still half asleep. "WHAT THE H-"

"Help me Wilma, Casey's been attack by a vampire," Janet begged with desperation in her eyes.

Wilma immediately snaps out of her half slumber, "What, when, how long ago?"

"Probably about ten minutes, maybe more."

"Ten minutes, oh boy, that's bad. Come in, come in." Wilma ushers in Janet and Casey, both dripping wet from their brief time in the pouring rain.

Wilma leads Janet into a large room that is pitch black from no lighting. She leaves Janet holding Casey and walks off. She returns momentarily brandishing a wand. She raises the wand high and weaves it in a circular motion. Almost instantly the room is lit by and array of candles. Wilma points the wand directly above her head at which time a cloudy mist run over her whole body. As the cloud disappears, Wilma is no longer dressed in night wear, she instead is covered head to toe in black clothing.

From the background footstep can be heard entering the room. "What is going on out here?" A tall, thin man, with a long white beard dressed in pajamas appears. He looks at Janet and Casey, "Janet, what are you doing here? What's the matter with Casey?" he queried.

"I needed help William and I didn't know who to turn too," Janet frantically told him.

"She has been taken by a vamp my love, no time to ask questions, get your wand and help me, it's been over ten minutes now," Wilma urgently informed William.

A look of horror comes to Williams face, 'Ten minutes, that's really ba-"

"I know, I know, I know. Please get your wand," Wilma desperately interrupted, knowing too well the dire situation they are in.

William runs off to get his wand.

In the center of the room there is a large rug that covers most of the floor, Wilma grabs the rug and throws it aside. Underneath the rug is a large circle, and inside the circle is a pentagram. Janet looks at the floor then looks at Wilma, the worry in her eyes intensifies.

Wilma can sense Janet's concern and tries to reassure her, "The pentagram represents spirit, fire, water, earth and air. The circle represents a continuous circle of energy. I don't really have time to explain, if we don't act now it will be too late, put Casey in the middle of the pentagram."

Janet stands motionless, bewildered by all that is happening.

"NOW," Wilma yells in desperation.

Janet snaps out of her stupor and gently places Casey in the middle of the pentagram then steps back.

William returns to the room, this time he, much like Wilma, is dressed fully in black, wearing a serious look and holding his wand. "Step aside Janet, and do not interrupt," he sternly instructed her.

Wilma and William start to slowly pace around the circle. They raise their wands high and begin to chant quietly, the chant is not of the human world, but the supernatural. As they continue to walk around the circle, a shower of glitter appears from nowhere and begins to fall onto Casey. As the glitter hits the floor it immediately begins to rise and form a sphere that encloses Casey. Wilma and William begin to chant louder and as they do electric sparks appear in the sphere. The sparks run through Casey but do her no apparent harm. The tempo of the chant hastens and the volume increases. The electric sparks intensify as does the light emanating from the sphere, so much so that it causes Janet to shield he eyes. William and Wilma continue to pace and chant unrelentingly, as if themselves caught in mystical trance. After a few minutes they stop pacing and with one final chant, lower their wands. The sparks and sphere dissipate. Casey is still in the middle of the pentagram and has not moved. The energy required to keep the spell alive weakens William and Wilma's physical and emotional strength, drained from the experience, their shoulders slump and they puff and pant from exhaustion. Wilma looks at Janet and motions for her to go to Casey. Janet runs to her and lifts her slightly. Casey is lifeless, her eyes shut and still not breathing, Janet begins to sob. William and Wilma look at each other momentarily then drop their heads, disillusioned their incantation had failed. Janet cradles Casey who flops limply in her arms. For a few moments, the room is silent, bar from Janet's sobbing. Janet, William and Wilma, distracted by their heavy thoughts, fail to notice Casey's fingers and toes twitching. Then suddenly, Casey comes to life and takes in a large, deep breath, as if it was her first. Her eyes become wide open and she sits up. Janet cries tears of joy while Wilma and William appear stunned by Casey's resurrection. Janet pulls Casey tight and squeezes her hard, tears pouring down her face.

Casey looks around the room, confused and unaware of the serious predicament she was in. "Where am I? What happened?" she asked.

Janet, Wilma and William are all too stunned to reply, they simply look at her in amazement.

"Your safe now baby," Janet tenderly replied as she continues to hold her.

William walks over to Casey and kneels to examine her. He grabs her wrist and feels her pulse, he then places his hand over her chest and closes his eyes. He sits quietly, feeling her energy and aura. After a short time, he opens his eyes and looks into her eyes. William turns to Janet, smiles then stands. "She is a strong little thing, no doubt about that," he pronounced.

"Will she be ok?" Janet desperately asked.

William looks at Wilma for a moment. He then turns to Janet, "I will be honest, very few people survive a vampire attack unscathed, but I think we have managed to extricate the vampiric essence that she absorbed."

Janet turns to Wilma, clearly confused by Williams answer.

"She will be fine, love," Wilma reassured her.

Janet breathes a sigh of relief and continues to lovingly embrace Casey. "That stupid bird distracting me from getting you inside, what an idiot," Janet told Casey.

William overheard what Janet said, "What bird?" he quizzed.

"Some crow landed on my car when I got here. It just stood there, staring at me, and for some reason I was staring back, like I was in a trance. It was a bizarre feeling."

William and Wilma give each other a concerned look, a look that Janet notices. "Is something the matter?" Janet asked in a worried tone.

They both pause and think, neither want to answer her, "No, I'm sure its just a coincidence, nothing to worry my dear," Wilma told her in an unconvincing manner.

Janet shakes off her concerns about the crow and focuses on her daughter.

Casey lay in her mother's arms, still in a daze and blissfully unaware to the events of the night. She stares into nothing as her mother rocks her gently back and forth. She may have survived Ravens attack, but his vampiric essence is not easily vanquished. She is not a vampire, nor is she fully human, and never will be, for in her lay dormant the unwanted lifeforce of a most evil creature, forever attaching her to the supernatural world.

The only memories Casey will have of this night are her mother's less then descriptive stories that wash over the gruesome truth, and flashback that offer more questions than answers.