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- 07/17/2018
- 854 Words
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Here Kitty, Kitty - 24. Chapter 9.3
Elder Carl watched the cat shifter bristling with amusement. There was nothing he liked better than rubbing cats up the wrong way and then sitting back to watch the show. The cat really seemed to be attached to the vampling. Although, after hearing their story a bond between two adults caring for a family in danger wasn’t so inconceivable.
He was looking forward to meeting the child, Fran. For one so young to have such power was rare, and he hadn’t seen anything like it in centuries. The last had been…no he didn’t want to go down that particular memory lane, at least, not until the information was absolutely needed.
He turned his attention back to the vampling. “So, Simon, what do you know about what you now are?”
Simon sent a smile at Kitryn. “Kitryn has taught me about feeding and has kept me safe from the sun when we were traveling. I know I am stronger and faster than I was when I was human. I’ve been told I look pale, I assume from the lack of sunlight, and I think my hair has stopped growing…”
Carl nodded. “Yes, you are correct about your hair. In effect, once you were turned your body was dead. Your Sire would have had to drain you completely before he gave you some of his blood. Otherwise, the death magic contained within the blood wouldn’t work. Of course, your Sire should have-”
“Do not call him that. Calling him my Sire, makes it sound like he meant to turn me.”
Carl frowned. “What do you mean meant to turn you? How else did you become turned?”
Simon smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I bit him. When he sunk his fangs into my neck I bit down in pain and it happened his arm was near my mouth. I ripped out a chunk of his flesh and my mouth filled with his blood. The last thing I remember is pain and the sound of him cursing. The rest is as I told you when I woke up.”
Carl knew his mouth was hanging open but he didn’t care. When Simon had told his story he had started from waking up already turned. Carl thought the vampling’s sire had left him while he slept. He had never thought that the sire hadn’t even meant to turn but to kill. Vampires that went around killing had to be stopped. They increased the chances of humans finding out about the supernatural world and that would mean a return to the wars of old. He’d lived through one such war and had no intention of repeating the experience if he could help it.
“I found my cave and stayed there until Kitryn found me."
Carl frowned, he would have thought a person’s first thought after waking up and not really knowing what had happened, would be to try and get home or to get help.
“Why did you not head for somewhere familiar? Were you too far from home? Do you not have family looking for you?”
The look of pain that flickered across Simon’s face almost had Carl retracting his question, but he felt it was important.
“I don’t have any family. They’re all dead. No one will be looking for me.”
Carl met Kitryn’s stunned gaze. What had happened to this man? The pain in Simon’s eyes called to all Carl’s protective instincts. He hadn’t sired a vampling for a few centuries, so all his children had moved out on their own and only contacted him to keep him up to date on what was happening and where they were. He could take the time away from the clan to make sure this vampling got the care and instruction he needed. Although the current situation was important, so was Simon’s education and training.
“I’ll be here for the foreseeable future, so I will take on your training and education. If that is something you are amenable to? I have trained seven vamplings and they have all, to my knowledge, turned out to be well-rounded individuals.”
Simon snapped his head up. “You’d be willing to do that?”
“Yes, I would. But, you will have to trust me and I will need to know about your life before you were turned. Any little thing can have an impact on your new life.”
Simon seemed to freeze, then he let out a long low sigh. “It's not a long story. I may as well fill you and Kitryn in at the same time. He has a right to know about the person he’s been helping all this time.” Simon glanced up at Kitryn. “And I would feel better having him with us.”
Carl nodded and turned to Elder Patrick. “Can we trouble you to allow us to use this room for a while? It is better to get this out the way and we can not do anything until some of the others arrive.”
Patrick nodded and left the room after making sure that had everything the needed.
Carl relaxed back into the couch. “Begin when you're ready.”
Thank you to everyone who reads, reacts, and comments on this story and any other I have written, it means a lot
And, of course, thank you, Tim, for continuing to message with the things I miss
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
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