Romance Fan Fiction / Original Stories Fan Fiction / Fables/Fairytales Fan Fiction ❯ The Blood That Ties ❯ Lessons and Decisions ( Chapter 5 )

Author's Note: Oh my goodness! A review! Thank you Paramore! I'm glad there is at least another person out there reading my story! Despite the handful of people who have placed this story in their favourites. I get the e-mail notifications. I know who you are. And you should review. Shame on you all...I'm joking of course but reviews would be wonderful! Now this chapter is fairly short...But I feel as though taking on a vampire character garnered having a point in the story where I paint you guys a little picture of what I interpret vampires as, as well as The Order. Now, on with the story!

 

The Blood That Ties

The moment Gabrielle flopped down in the nearest leather chair, her gaze semi-focused on Emeris. Gabrielle knew it was going to be a long night. It was a student's worst nightmares to have their teacher hate them, but that was only where grades were concerned, and last time Gabrielle checked, this place was far from any academy she had ever attended. Still, a building full of mystical individuals, a police force that governed over the existence of beings that shied away from the world she had come from...It was something to be intimidated by...Especially when one's own teacher was a diviner with a grudge.

 

“So, what's first on the agenda?” Gabrielle broke the silence that had fallen between the two ever since Jean made his leave. Emeris chose to busy himself with searching the extensive shelves of books, leaving Gabrielle to grow bored. Why weren't there any clocks in any of the rooms she had seen? It was beginning to be a pain in the neck being so disoriented.

 

“The basics of course, I'm sure your lavished lifestyle held no time for learning about all the myths and facts about vampires...Even if you did have the time, I doubt the information you have received would be all that accurate.” It was the most Emeris had ever said to Gabrielle at one time, and for once it wasn't accompanied by a scowl or sarcasm. Gabrielle concluded that the brunette was simply too busy searching for his book to keep up his cold facade.

 

“There it is.” Emeris nodded, pleased with his findings as he plucked a rather thick book from one of the lower shelves, turning back to Gabrielle he cracked open the book slowly, gently blowing the dust off the pages.

 

“First things first, any questions? Might as well nip them in the bud right now...” Emeris moved himself to a leather seat in front of Gabrielle, his gaze focused on the large book in his lap, his finger running quickly over the page.

 

Gabrielle had to raise an eyebrow at this. Since when did they become civil? Moments earlier, he had been snapping at her and nearly pushed her to the brink of tears... Gabrielle could only assume that he took this job of being teacher to her seriously. He must have really favoured his spot at the Order if he was willing to be civil with her to please them... And if he was willing to do that, Gabrielle saw no problem in following suit.

 

“How about the sun? Will it kill me?”

 

“You're a Fledgling; the sun will dissolve you into ash in a matter of seconds.” This cold, blunt answer made Gabrielle gulp slightly in her seat, shifting slightly before asking her next question.

 

“And...What is a fledgling? I thought I was a vampire.”

 

The question garnered an eye roll from Emeris; must have been a stupid question.

 

“You are, but you're not at the same time. Vampire is the same title as Human...Fledgling is just the vampiric word for baby. You'll be considered a fledgling until you're an year old. Then you will be considered a Youngling...That title will stay with you until you're twenty years old. Then Neophyte until you're a hundred, a Vampire until you're a thousand, and then you will be considered an Ancient until...Well...Forever, unless something kills you along the way.”

 

Hundreds, thousands of years...

 

And Gabrielle had thought it had taken forever for her to reach the age of eighteen. How was she ever going to stand existing in this world for so long? Everyone she would encounter that was not of the vampiric lineage would die in her lifetime...And she had already experienced too much of that. How could any one vampire deal with existing that long?

 

“And before you can ask, anything that impales your heart or removes your dead will kill you. Along with sunlight. Though in the world of vampires, death by sunlight is usually the vampiric equivalent of suicide.”

 

Ah, so that's how they coped.

 

“And I hope you have enough brains to know that the myths of aversions to crosses, holy symbols, silver and garlic are just that. Myths, tales that scared humans made up to made themselves seem less likely to become prey.” The boy seemed to spew forth information like a fountain, not even bothering with his angry disposition, though the scowl was still evident on his features.

 

“Let me run by you what has happened to your body, and I will try to use as small words as I can manage.” Ah, there's the sarcasm, good to see he wasn't suddenly turning soft on her. “When you were turned, your heart stopped beating, and you died. However, in order for you to be turned, and for you to not die, you would have had to ingest enough vampiric blood to replace your own. So, hypothetically speaking, a vampire could drain a mortal and return them from the brink of death with their own blood. This method doesn't need the mortal's permission...But turning a mortal without their permission is against the rules set by the Order and the Seele...And the UnSeele at that. A crime punishable by death.”

 

So...The fiend who had done this to her would be facing a certain death? It was a rather comforting notion, and at that Gabrielle straightened her composure, showing genuine interest in the subject at hand. Emeris seemed to notice this, but did not comment as he scanned along the page.

 

“So...How does The Order fit in?” Finally, she grasped his attention with her questioning.

 

“As I'm sure the Abbot has told you. The Order is a form of police force that enforces the rules that the Seele and the UnSeele bring into motion. Consider the Seele and UnSeele to be the government...Liberals and Conservatives if you will. We're just merely the brains and brawn that keep the mortals and other supernatural's safe. We consist of any type of being you can imagine. We have diviners, shape shifters, mortals with grudges against renegade supernatural's, and the occasional demon here and there. You'll be the first vampire admitted into the Order if you chose to take the offer.”

 

“But, this place is like any boot camp you may have heard of, you'll be on a strict schedule. You will be selling your soul and free time to the Abbot and the mission of the Order, and nothing less will be expected of you. You stay within the walls of the order until you are permitted outside, you don't go anywhere without running it by the Abbot. In return, you achieve...Well whatever you wanted that compelled you to join in the first place.” Emeris finally concluded, his gaze moving from the heavy book in his lap to gaze at Gabrielle, mostly inspecting that she was still listening to him.

 

And Gabrielle was listening, intently at that. The crimson haired girl had moved to the edge of her seat, almost eager to hear more of what this place had to offer, but not exactly knowing how to convey her curiosity without sounding like a giddy school girl.

 

“Sounds fair...Sun sounds like it's my enemy now anyway...” She decided to reply calmly and composed

 

"Oh good, you're not blubbering on about how they'd," he assumed a high-pitched voice, "'Restrict my freedom!' or 'Make me a prisoner!'"
He snorted with a slight scowl, "I was plenty prepared to throw this book at you if you did, thank you for not doing it, the book's pretty expensive."

"'Sides, even if you remained as weak as you are right now, without conditioning, you'd be a field agent, out there actually doing stuff, instead of here all day. They couldn't keep you in without making you useless."

 

Gabrielle glared slightly at the boy for the book comment, wishing that she was less interested in the topic so that she could retort at the cruel boy, but she was too clueless to her new existence...She couldn't risk remaining like that.

 

“Conditioning...?”

 

“Of course. With your body being thrown into an...Undead hyperactivity as it is... Certain things become possible for you, as long as you have the discipline to go through the training...Such as inhuman speed, strength... The rare case of telepathy...There's a world of possibility open for you. If you don't mind being a prisoner in exchange.”

 

“"At this point, Even being kept a prisoner sounds attractive..."
She didn't know why she was even discussing this with him, it was his fault she was here in the first place. If he knew what this place stood for why would he drag her here?

"I no longer have a home, no associates, no friends, my family is dead..." She struggled to say the words, the tears welling up in her eyes already. She was not even aware she had anymore tears to shed over the matter. "And on top on this, I'm a monster, just like the fiend who... I don't have many options if I walk away from this one..."

It was true, what would she do if she left? She could go back home, take on the fiend who slaughtered her family. But it would be certain death for her; she would only succeed in reuniting with her family...Which was an attractive option as well. But not an option her family would of liked for her...She had to remain alive, even in a monster's body, and try to carry on the existence that was cut short for them.

 

There was a moment of sullen silence; Gabrielle kept her gaze anyway from Emeris, choosing to gaze at the fireplace instead. Why did she bother sharing that tidbit of information with him? It didn't matter whether or not he knew of situation with her family, he already hated her. Maybe she wanted to hint at why she was so silent when he had remarked about her family earlier, maybe she just wanted to tell someone... It didn't matter now, the words were said, couldn't take them back now.

 

A small, sad sigh escaped from Emeris, causing Gabrielle to snap her head up in his direction.

 

"Look, yeah it sucks that your family is dead, yeah, it's horrible. Would've been better if it'd never happened. But it did happen, and even though you have every right to mourn your family and should, it doesn't mean you should mope around or just lay down and die."

 

Gabrielle could practically feel the blood boil in her veins again. The irony was abundant, but none of that mattered at the moment. His nonchalant and cold way of dealing with sensitive subjects was beginning to grate on her, and she could no longer find the patience to deal with it.

Then he looked at her, his face and voice level, "And you are not a monster, you're a predator and your prey is man. I hate it when people think that crap. You're no more a monster than a cat; people call you a monster because vampires feed on them. Mice probably call cats monsters too."

 

"Thanks, but I don't need a Pep talk from someone who can't stop scowling at me because I somehow interrupted your perfect day by telling you to bugger off and leave me alone."

Gabrielle's tone was bitter and dark. Of course it would be; she did not like anyone mentioning her family, especially him. The way he spoke of her heartbreak was as if she was mourning a family pet dying, not the death of her only parents and siblings, and the only world she had ever known. He probably didn't understand what something like that would do to a person, it seemed as though the worst thing to happen in his life was her walking into it.

 

As a result of her own harsh words, it seemed as though something was triggered within Emeris. Suddenly his own composure stiffened, and the scowl was back on his face. There was a visible build up of anger, although it garnered no response from the brunette.

"I don't see why you did bring me here, if you were only going to tell me negative things about this place. You obviously don't want me here..."

 

That did it. As soon as the words left her lips, Emeris seemed to explode, the book slamming noisily onto the marble flooring, causing Gabrielle to recoil into her seat.

 

"I don't want you here because I don't want to have to watch as yet another person becomes a weapon! Damnit! I had to bring you here though! If I hadn't brought you here you would never learn the rules that govern your new existence and you would've been killed even for breaking them on accident!"

 

Letting out a small scream of frustration he stood, "I'm not happy about bringing you here 'cause if you stay, it'll be yet another person becoming a weapon for the Order, a weapon of justice and good, but a weapon. So if you'll excuse me for giving a shit about whether you live or die I did my best to help!"

 

"And if you don't want it, you can teach yourself!" He threw up his hands and headed for the door, gesturing at the book as he did, "That holds all the abridged laws for supernatural creatures, read it yourself and have fun figuring out which ones apply to you."

He jerked the door open, fully ready to head out, but paused, growling out in a lower voice, "And for the record, I'm pissed because that was the one day off I get to myself a year, the one day I'm allowed any time outside of this place, the one day I don't have to divine from dawn till dusk... and I'm not going to get another."

With that, he slammed the door shut and stomped angrily down the hallway.

 

Gabrielle never felt more humiliated.

 

Gabrielle's jaw was left gaping open at his sudden explosion, her mind blank from the shock of it all. For moments, all she could do was stare at the door, hoping that he was going to return, apologize, allow her to apologize for her rashness, anything. But nothing, and soon the silence allowed her mind to muddle through what just went on.

So she had ruined his one day of freedom, free from being used for his powers, she had wrecked that by stumbling into his life. Even though such a thing was unavoidable, Gabrielle felt immense guilt from it. She should have pushed him away harder, ignored the scent of blood that rolled off him. Anything to of kept him from bringing her here. The tears that had formed in her eyes earlier now spilled from her cerulean orbs, and for the first time she actually felt sorry for the bastard.

 

It was typical of her, to be mad for a wrong done to her, and become blind to any of her own.

"He saved my life, and this is how I repay him...Heh...You haven't changed a bit Gabrielle..." She whispered to herself, the tears silently dripping down her face. She couldn't take back anything now, nor did she know how she would go about trying to fix things. Shaking her head, she disregarded the rest that he said, picking up the book and beginning to read.

 

~*~

 

“All Children of nightwalkers...Shall not wear red...When in the presence of Council Royalty...On every second equinox? What the hell does that even mean?!”

 

Gabrielle flipped another page of the god-forsaken book, now beginning to regret having angered the only man who would be able to make sense of all the fragments of words and laws. She thought it would have been simple, the books she studied from in her former home having been equally as cryptic as this, but her mind was a jumble. Trying to figure out what rules applied to her, repressing the mourning feeling over her parents, the guilt over angering Emeris, she could not make sense of the simplest sentence, and soon realized her attempts were futile.

"This is useless...I'll...Have to apologize..."

The word felt awkward on her tongue, she never had to apologize to anyone before, she was a daughter of aristocrats, whatever she did wrong... People just dealt with...Not that she had much real interaction with anyone.

Placing the book back down on the floor, Gabrielle placed her head in her hands, her emotions weighing heavy on her. Tears spilled from her eyes once again, and Gabrielle cursed the fact that she was reduced to a sobbing idiot whenever she managed to be alone. She thought she had cried all those emotions out, but they just came back full force.

 

“Any luck ploughing through that shit?”

 

She hadn't even heard the door open, but when Gabrielle heard the familiar voice of Emeris; she jumped up from her position on the floor back to her seat. She hurried to wipe away the tears on her cheeks, forcing her to stop in mid-sob. Out of all the people present in the Order, she would refuse to let him see her cry, it would be begging for him to ridicule her more for being weak and a pain.

But Gabrielle was unsure what she would do about earlier, would it be best if she kept silent? Or should she brush off the whole ordeal and make some remark. She chose to stay silent; at least she wouldn't have the humility of having to stutter through her sobs.

 

But it was too late, he had noticed, the way he sighed and gripped the bridge of his nose suggested as much. But he remained silent, turning his attention back to the plethora of books on the shelves that covered most of the room. Several moments of silence passed between the two before he spoke;

 

"As long as you don't bring it up again there won't be a problem. They won't goad me into doing divinations all day as long as I'm teaching you, so it'll even out." He scowled, picking up another book from a higher shelf, though he seemed displeased at its location.

 

“So, how many of the rules do you have memorized yet?”

 

"Little to none..."

It seemed as though a small weight was lifted off her. At least with all her problems she had to deal with, having to deal with a bitter teacher wouldn't make the list...Well...At least it wouldn't be as problematic as it could be.

"Why so many rules and restrictions...It's not like many of them can be enforced...The fiend who tore my life apart didn't seem to have much difficulty..." Her tone was cold and bitter once again.

 

"You'd be surprised, most of them are rules we share with others, like the Seele and UnSeele. The Fay are very self-policing and keep tabs on anyone dealing with them, a number of those rules are meant to keep us from getting killed by them when we deal with them."

He sat down across from her again, though he was fully engrossed in the newest book he had plucked from the shelves. "Whoever attacked you will come to justice, a whole lot of it. The Abbot has already given permission to send a message to the Seele court about your creation."

He nodded at the book in her hands, " As I said before, Not forcing an unwilling mortal into immortality is a rule that all the upper echelons of all the major supernatural groups as well as The Order agree on. This guy is going to have everyone after him. And if you want, we can have him captured, beaten, and held for your retribution."

A sick, mischievous smile appeared on her lips, and for once the red-haired girl actually looked evil. She would like that, maybe a little too much. This fiend had ruined her life, killed everyone who had cared about her. Now she had no one, and frankly, she was only holding on because she wanted to be the one to take away the bastard's life, to see the life drain out of him.

 

If she actually joined this Order... She could prevent such a thing from happening to anyone else.

 

Gods know she loved to fight; she did it enough with this Emeris guy anyway... Gabrielle could only imagine what she could be capable of when placed before despicable fiends like the one who had turned her. Surely this place would give her the tools she needed to do so. She would take the monster down eventually, gain retribution for it, heck she might be able to go after more fiends like him if she played to their favours.

It was a good damn offer that was for sure...Sure there was the downside of being someone's toy, a weapon at their disposal...But as long as they allowed her to at least leave beyond the walls of the Order, she could learn to deal with it. At least she was on the side of good.

 

Smiling softly to herself, she realized she had her decision.