Death is Sweet
Ch. 1
Dreaming
Angel,
    I’m feeling really weird tonight. My stomach is turning and I’m covered from head to toe in gooseflesh and I just can’t shake the feeling of someone new being here and knowing who I am. Sis, What if it’s some weirdo? What if it’s a mass murderer that found out who or what I am? I know what you’re going to say-“It’s just the nerves of going back to school”- or you would crack a joke and say-“Maybe it’s your dead boyfriend come back to haunt you!”- The boyfriend thing is possible because we’re dead aren’t we? It would still give me the creeps to see him again, though. And I know I’m not nervous because my special vamp school “life” is perfect.
    Love,
        Your sis
P.S. Crystal sends her love.

Renee finished her letter and lay back in bed. She really was worried that someone weird knew her. But she couldn’t think about that right now, she had to sleep. To take her mind off the subject, she began to focus on things that her wealthy cousin and guardian Crystal had bought for her. Her walls were the perfect blood color that Renee loved. The walls were covered in Twilight, Vampire Diaries, and Marked posters. Yes, you could say that she was obsessed with herself. She had a purely black lamp with a red light bulb on her dark nightstand. Inside her house she was a nighttime stalker and a tad gothic. But when she stepped outside, she was completely normal except for her irregular beauty. Her pale gold hair that reflected the sunlight also made both young children and boys alike stare as she passed by. Her eyes were amazing. They kept changing, one minute they could be green and the next purple. The teeth she had were always perfect white and she never brushed them and she had never needed braces. Eventually she dropped off to sleep.
She was running. She didn’t know where and she didn’t know why, but she knew she had to leave. What else can a sixteen year old girl do when she is being suffocated by pressure such as this? Something was drawing her, too, into the forest, and that was when she saw him. He was kneeling by a large doe bent low over its neck. Renee smiled. He was like her. All of a sudden memories started flooding back to her and she remembered. This was where she met him four hundred thirty-two years ago.
Renee took a step toward him, and dead leaves and twigs snapped under her foot. She knew it would work, it worked before didn’t it? His head whipped around to see her. The perfect features of a well fed vampire shown on his face. His eyes were a silvery purple-blue color. They were full of shock and surprise. But they looked as if they had lived one thousand years of knowledge over night. His lips formed in a dangerous sneer, his hair the color of the night with silvery-black strands that shown like stars. There was bright red blood dripping down his chin.
She walked to him and knelt down by his side. She showed her fangs in a warm greeting. He smirked at her then cackled. He had a warm, seductive voice.”Who are you?” Renee asked the question but made no sound. He seemed to understand though. He smiled and his eyes made Renee melt inside. He said, “I’m Aulistian.” That was all. Renee mouthed “How do you pronounce that again?” “Au-lis-tee-an.” He answered back. Au-lis-tee-an, she thought to herself, I’m going to have to remember that. “How old are you?” she tried to hear herself but it became a feeble attempt. “No need to shout” said Aulistian, “I’m sixteen, but you know I’m older than that don’t you.” “Do I now?” Renee asked wryly leaning towards him. “How old are you really? I’m really sixteen; I was only changed this week.” This time Renee didn’t even try to hear herself, “Fine”, Aulistian said, giving in, “I’m eighteen, happy?” “That is very much so.” She paused ”So you’ve only been a vampire for two years?” she asked, truly curious “Yeah, not long but let’s talk about something else; something I need to tell you.” He whispered. Renee knew that this was not exactly how they had met because this is not something that he had said but she went along with it for they were only inches away from each other now, and so he continued and leaned in even closer and whispered in the most melodious voice that she had ever heard, ”Wake up.”
Beep! Beep! Beep! Renee sat straight up in bed, “Ah crap; I’m going to be late!” She got up, got ready for school and ran downstairs in record time; Crystal was waiting for her. It was amazing the resemblance between them; they had the same shade of light golden blonde hair and, currently the exact same smoky blue eyes. Crystal also changed Renee and Angel after she herself was changed. She had invited the girls over for her birthday and changed them. Renee felt too pressured and ran off then came back with Aulistian. Eventually they all left because they couldn’t lie about their ages forever (well obviously they can). “You know, it is a bit irresponsible for you to be late on your first day of high school for the year” “ Thanks ‘mom’, I’ll keep that in mind next year; and at least I’m being fashionably late. Besides I’ve been going to the same school for four-hundred years.” She snickered as she grabbed a water bottle and left the house. When she stepped outside people turned to stare because her irregular beauty and the hair that whipped around her lightly covered body made her glow in the reflective and harsh winters in Paris France.
As she walked, her boyfriend and best friend joined her on the way to school, “Hey Tosh hey Lucas, what’s up?” “Well,” Lucas said, “Cylina and Daytona decided that this year they would go to a human school.” “Yeah,” said Tasha, “they said they wanted to be normal; not vampires like us.” “But you know,” Renee said, “that isn’t a bad idea; I mean we could feed on them after school.” “What did I tell you?” said Tosh to Lucas, annoyed, “Didn’t I say we should go too?” that’s when Lucas got mad, “No, quite frankly I believe that I said that, and you took the idea as your own!” this was just a regular argument; Tasha and Lucas never really got along. “Would you two just shut up?! I’m trying to think!” said Renee, annoyed. She was thinking how many humans they could get away with changing when she was interrupted by the memory of humanity. Eventually she began thinking about being changed herself and her mind wandered on to think of Aulistian. Just the thought of him made her heart skip a beat. “Did I ever tell you about him?” Renee asked dazedly. The other two just looked at her as if she had a leg coming out of her ear and a second nose where one eye should be, “I mean Aulistian? He was the first other vamp that I had met other than Crystal and Angel.” She relived her past and dream to Tasha and Lucas. “…and I haven’t seen him in four-hundred-thirty-two years; I wonder why I would only dream about him now though?” Renee concluded “Oh well, just forget Renee; it was probably nothing.” Tasha said to her in a soothing voice. The walk to school was uneventful so far other than that; but Renee couldn’t shake the feeling of something-someone-watching them. “What are you looking at?” Lucas asked after Renee looked back for the third time, “I’m feeling a bit superstitious, that’s all.” Replied Renee, but she still felt like she was being followed. She started walking backwards so that nobody could sneak up on them. Then she saw something so quick that if she had been human she wouldn’t even have noticed it so she knew it was a vampire that just ran by. “Who’s there, show yourself!” she hollered commandingly, but her voice quavered slightly. “Hon,” Tasha said to Renee quietly, “there’s no one the-” she was cut off by someone, “Don’t ask me stupid questions Renee; you know who I am” She froze; Renee would know that voice anywhere and she was horrified. “Do I now?” it sounded very much like her dream but instead of being lulled and lured, she was scared out of her wits and didn’t believe it; he just couldn’t still be alive.
Aulistian stepped out from behind the trees, smirking. “Is that him?” Lucas asked not trying to hide the disgust in his voice. “Yes.” Renee said looking up at Lucas and she caught a glimpse of his eyes flashing. Tasha’s eyes and mouth were perfect oh’s and she was simply speechless. Tasha had blue eyes that were tinted with a little green that were always just a little surprised but this was going to die wide and that was surprising even for Tasha; she leaned over to Renee and said, “He’s cute with a capital C” Renee gave a quiet laugh because she thought that Tasha really needed to look in a mirror; but still, compared to Renee, Tasha was like an apartment to a mansion and everyone knew it; if there’s one thing that Renee has ever felt guilty about, it’s Tasha’s envy for her beauty.
Oh, my, god. I never thought I would see him again; I thought he was dead! Renee thought, terrified. “So how have you been Auleechian, err, ulistian, no I mean Aulistian, that’s it; sorry.” Renee said self consciously. “I'm doing nothing, just stalking you for the past ten minutes as we go to Only one word in that sentence really caught Renee’s attention, “What do you mean ‘we’?” Renee asked in a worried tone. “Yes, I am sixteen you know.” Aulistian put on a mischievous smirk, “Are you scared of me?” he asked mockingly. “Not now Aulistian.” Renee said without looking him in the eye. “May I please speak with Renee alone?” Aulistian asked Lucas and Tasha politely; but even so Lucas unsuccessfully tried to make himself look bigger than he was while Tasha just stood there with her arms crossed looking indignant. “Okay, I guess that’s a no.” Aulistian said a little offended that they would judge him so quickly. “Come on guys, I haven’t seen him in four-hundred-thirty-two years!” Renee whined. With a little more persuading they convinced Tasha and Lucas to take the original short route while Renee and Aulistian took the longer route. It was silent for a while and it seemed to stretch on for years as Renee began to wonder why she had wanted to convince Tasha and Lucas to take a different route. Finally Renee spoke, “Why are you here?” she asked in barely a whisper so that you couldn’t hear the shaking in it. She knew now that she didn’t want to be alone with him and regretted making that decision because she was scared, terrified even; but she wasn’t going to let it show, especially not to him.
    *    *    *    *    *
    “Ouch!” cried Aulistian-or Austin as he was now called-when he hit his head on the wall. He just had a dream, a dream of a girl he hadn’t seen in four-hundred-thirty-two years. That meant that she was close, in the city, hidden amongst the humans; the simple, mindless humans who had intruded on his beloved ruler’s perfect and peaceful world and changed it, change it into a filthy and ugly land of war and death. He had to find her; they couldn’t be separated for that long again; no, never again.
    He felt Renee nearby, at his doorstep? No, that wasn’t it because now she was leaving. Austin ran outside and there she was being joined by a boy and a girl-also vampires. He knew they were going to school so he decided to give it another chance, he was already enrolled anyway. He began following them using his stalking talents to listen to their conversation. He heard the boy and girl arguing but couldn’t quite make out what they were saying so he got closer. Just as he got within vampire earshot, Renee shouted “Shut up! I’m trying to think!” Austin wondered casually what in the world she was thinking, but he got his answer sooner than he had even hoped for. “Did I ever tell you about him?” the other two looked confused, “I mean Aulistian” it was weird, hearing his old name again, but then he remembered that he ‘died’ before he ever changed it. Then it struck him; she was talking about him-not anybody else just him; which meant that she must have had the dream too, he wondered if she knew what it meant. He waited impatiently for her to continue. Renee told the entire story of how they met and the one-hundred-sixty-three years they were together, until he was attacked. He noticed she didn’t say anything about that. On their one-hundred-sixty-third anniversary, Austin got jumped by three or four werewolves, a coven of rebel vamps, and a couple of witches. He had been bringing her flowers and a living deer to celebrate their ‘life’ together. He figured she thought he was dead. He was taken hostage by them and practically thrown into a room full of sunlight and they made Renee watch from the shadows. When a vampire is in light it isn’t quick like a spark it’s slow and painful. Killing a vampire by light was one of the worst pieces of torture anyone can do and takes at least two hours. The first five minutes were just a little warm; it always is for any vampire, but by ten minutes, he was uncomfortably hot. As time neared the half hour mark, he was badly sunburned and Renee’s face was looking so worried. Knowing that his last moments were approaching he took the time to absorb every inch of her face; her naturally highlighted wheat colored blond hair, her canine teeth always proudly indenting her lower lip, her eyes that always changed color so that now they were a deep ocean blue were welling up with tears, and her pale cheeks that are wet with tears already fallen; he noticed the flowers in her and they were crushed. He couldn’t watch anymore and almost started crying with her but knew that men get really ugly when they cry so held the tears back. As time hit one hour his skin became dry and flaky. He began wishing that the tears would come so that he could at least have a sign that he wasn’t completely dried up. At one and a half hour his hair caught fire and Renee began screaming bloody murder. She fought with the three werewolves restraining her as he ran around trying to put out the fire. Between two hours and two and a half hours, Austin found a hole in the ground and jumped in when nobody was looking. The hole led to a tunnel and as he followed the tunnel he could hear Renee whimper and then scream with anger. Austin was always ‘hunting’ when Renee got angry because he knew Renee would tear him limb from limb even though she would regret it in the morning. He couldn’t imagine what she was going to do to them.
There was something about the tunnel; there was an eerie red radiating from one wall. Austin found an opening in the side of it and walked through. About one-hundred feet, away the opening became a clearing surrounded by trees. Sticking out of the ground in the clearing were red potion gems-blood gems (replenish your blood)-blue potion gems-sleep gems (make you sleep)-green potion gems-land gems (you learn the landscape within a twenty mile radius)-yellow potion gems- one of the most important gems and one of the most rare is light (you can see anything you want to such as: through things, past/future, through another person’s eyes)-and purple potion gems-is called the ‘nonexistent gem’ for its rarity (can do anything). All five potion gems were in the small room in five different areas. The biggest area was full of the purple potion gems. Austin collected as many purple potion gems as his small purple gem bag would allow. He then proceeded to fill his other bags with the corresponding colors.
After collecting enough potion gems, Austin continued to brew every single potion that he knew how to make and then refill the bags. His very distant witch cousin Albafene Shae Meyer had taught him to make them when she was visiting from Topeka, Kansas; where she was now living with her vampire mom, werewolf brother, witch friend, and vampire boyfriend. As he brewed them he added Renee’s blood so that she could use them if he ever found her again. He kept the blood with him at all times for when he was brewing potions or having one of times where he starves himself while he’s on a diet.
Austin woke from his stupor. Renee kept looking over her shoulder. He wanted to be seen and darted behind a nearby tree. She saw him. As he stepped into the light, she gasped. The boy whispered something in her ear, to quiet for even Austin’s skilled hearing; apparently this school was teaching them well. The girl seemed unable to do anything. Her eyes and mouth were wide and round. Renee seemed oddly beautiful; like the night that he ‘died’. After that night he didn’t think that he would ever find her.
After a while the boy and girl (whose names he found out were Lucas and Tasha) left and he was free to speak to Renee alone. It took forever but finally she asked, “Why are you here?” but that was it. It took a few seconds for him to answer because he was assessing the emotions playing across her face. “If you search for something for four-hundred-thirty-years, you tend to get results.” He smiled what he hoped looked reassuring. She stopped in her tracks and so did he. “We were apart for four-hundred-thirty-two years, seven months, twelve days, six hours, and fourteen seconds.” Renee corrected in a small voice and Austin was shocked into silence. “What have you been looking for?” Renee asked. “You of course.” Austin said rather dramatically. It felt like hours before Renee spoke again, and when she did she sounded angry so Austin backed away infinitesimally. “You aren’t here. I know it because you’re dead. I saw you die. I saw you crumple in a corner!” Renee said, predictably. He waited a second for her to cool down. “Number one, I’m already dead; number two, you looked away; and number three, I didn’t crumple in that corner; I escaped.” Once again it was quiet as if she was thinking. “WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING!? YOU SHOULD HAVE GONE HOME AND WAITED FOR ME! YOU KNEW THAT I COULD KILL THEM IN A SPLIT SECOND!” she screamed, “YOU KNOW I CRIED MYSELF TO SLEEP THAT NIGHT?” this was a huge shock because Renee rarely cried. “Well I did.” Renee said, a little calmer now, “and then Lucas-Lucas came and said he had been passing through and he heard me c-crying. He was human, I was hungry, and he smelled nice.” Auslistian looked at her in horror, “I changed him, so what? I’ve been ecstatic ever since!” She began dissolving into hysterics, but she was finished. “No you haven’t. Somebody has really made you happier than I did? I don’t think so babe, sorry; would you even cry when he died like you did me?” he asked slyly luring her into the trap he was about to set. “No, well not as much at least.” She admitted much easier than he had expected, was she luring him into a trap, no way, it couldn’t be. “So, do you think I should tell him?” Yes, definitely a trap of her own, so he restrategized. “Well, I guess that’s not up to me, is it? I think you should tell him if you can, but if you can’t…” he took a quick look at Renee “you should dump his ass.” Then another voice interrupted their petty argument “Oh, my god, you guys are sooo cheesy” as she spoke, the voices owner stepped out into the light. She was only twelve or thirteen and seemed to be pretty pissed. After the she could fully see the girl, Renee said only two words “Oh, shit!”




remember to comment