Forging Family

by Bob Dattolo

  Rachel waggled her hand, “Sometimes? In my case, I’m much stronger than I should be at this age.”

  Our resident elephant shrugged, “Well, it’s not like it matters to us. We don’t fuck with vampires to begin with. That’s a recipe for disaster.”

  “Well, if you ever want to get together for some fun? Let me know?”

  Desire came from my two neighbor shifters, and I knew we might be getting some interesting lovers. Or, she might. I never offered, so they may not be willing to do it with me.

  Dave came in after a small group of norms. He had Warren right behind him, leaning in and whispering, “She’s not here to save you. Pussy. You pussy. Why don’t you do something about us? We’re gonna take you and we’re gonna bust your ass wide open.”

  Dave saw me and his demeanor changed again. I still can’t place it, but he’s doing something that’s triggering me…yet it’s so faint that it doesn’t stand out. His twitching nose did catch my eye. Did he just smell…yup, he looked at Rachel. He’s definitely a supernatural, but what type? He smells so familiar, since I have the smell on me, but it’s still not something that I know. Damn Mom for not being willing to tell me! She has to know what he is.

  Dave continued walking as Warren stopped a few steps away from the doorway. He nodded to me as he walked past, and I smiled up at him before going back to Warren. Hmm, where are the others this morning?

  “What’s wrong, Warren? Thought I wouldn’t be back? I’m pretty sure my mom told you exactly what’s going to happen.”

  His shirt was soaked as he moved farther in, stopping in the middle of the classroom near the board.

  “Is something wrong, Warren?” Mr. Crosland looked up from his desk, catching where he’s staring. “Ceri? Is there a problem with Warren? Something involving you?”

  I didn’t look at our teacher, “Something wrong? No…not necessarily. I told Warren and some others that I would be challenging them if they continued to bully someone in school. They decided to continue to do it…then tried to hit me with a spell to strip me of my magic and turn me into a whore and let them sell me…I have to say, I’m not a fan of that.”

  Rachel stood, and I knew from the set of her shoulders and her growing talons that her eyes and fangs just vamped out, “I see…so you’re Warren? One of the mages that thought attacking my friend was a good idea?”

  He caught her standing and jerked back, ramming into the board as he held his hands up, magic sputtering.

  She laughed, sucking everything back in as our teacher stood, “Oh, you’re funny, Warren. As if Ceri needs any help from me. Good luck with that. You couldn’t pay me to challenge her.”

  Our teacher moved between them, holding his hands up, “Rachel? I know you’re new here, but we don’t allow threats in our school.”

  She cocked her head, “Threats? That wasn’t a threat. That was me reacting to the person that magically attacked my friend…and very purposefully backing off. He’s on his own with Ceri. I won’t touch him…and if he thinks he’ll touch me? Then he’ll find out what an angry master vampire can do.”

  Mr. Crosland swallowed hard at that. A vampire isn’t a master until they can carve off from their maker and their family…and create their own. And she can do that.

  Rhett cursed under his breath, “Motherfucker…a master?”

  “Rachel is full of surprises.”

  Destanee sniffed again, “And yet she was telling the truth when she said she wouldn’t challenge you?”

  “What can I say? We’re both full of surprises.”

  Mr. Crosland backed away from Rachel, then turned to Warren. “Do you need to see the nurse?” He got a head shake, “In that case, you should sit down…although I’ll allow you to change to the last open seat if you’d like?” He nodded to the first row that had an open seat in it.

  “Thank you, Mr. Crosland.” He sat, deliberately not looking over at me. I debated hitting him with magic, but then said no. I can wait. For a bit.

  More students came in, with Nathan making it in about five minutes before the bell. His eyes riveted on Rachel, and he stutter stepped to a stop, having someone behind him bump into him before they moved around, glaring at him. “Oh…oh wow…”

  “Nathan? Problem?” Mr. Crosland seemed to be waiting for Nathan to get here, so he was on his feet pretty quickly. Not that he got an answer.

  Rachel stood slowly, letting some of her power out. Nathan didn’t back away, but he took on a deliberate stance that screamed don’t attack me.

  “Nathan?” Our teacher moved up to him, not touching him, then stopped. “Umm, Rachel? Can you explain this?”

  “When two vampires meet, we can feel each other’s powers. Usually. Nathan has a good amount of strength for his age.”

  “Buuuut?”

  “But he’s feeling a much stronger vampire now, and he’s not sure what I’m going to do.” The other kids heard her and sort of leaned away from her.

  “And what are you going to do?” You could easily see that he’s waiting for something bad to happen. Something that he can’t even remotely handle.

  “I was going to shake his hand. Greet him. Nothing more than that.”

  Nathan spoke for the first time, “You’re not…not going to take me? Hurt me?” Other kids in the class were shocked by the questions, obviously thinking that there’s no way Rachel could hurt him.

  “Not in the slightest. I’m Ceri’s friend, and she already told me about you.”

  He looked over at me and I waved, “I met Rachel at the academy. She’s living with me now. She’s the one I went to Philly with and visited your former friends.”

  Some life flowed back into him, “Uhh, okay.”

  Mr. Crosland took a step back, “There aren’t going to be any problems here?”

  Nathan laughed, sounding slightly off, “Not from me, that’s for sure!”

  “Okay. Then…I don’t know, greet her or whatever?” He returned to his desk, rubbing his face, “Man, I need more classes in this or something. I’m so lost.”

  Rachel approached Nathan slowly. I’ve seen some vampire greetings before, and it’s always interesting to me. It seems to depend on the vampires involved, but usually it’s the weaker approaching the stronger, which allows the stronger to show dominance. In this case, Nathan’s barely holding on, and Rachel knows it. She puts her hand out and he stares at it as she moves close enough to touch.

  His handshake is crazy weak, even I can tell that from here. “Hi, Nathan. I’m Rachel.”

  “Uhh…Nathan…”

  She leaned into him slowly, putting her arm around him and pulling him into a hug as her voice dipped lower. I doubt kids more than five feet from her heard it. Well, other than me and the shifters, “You have nothing to fear from me, Nathan. Nothing.”

  His arm slowly went around her, and his body relaxed. They held the hug for a minute before she pulled back, “Nice meeting you.”

  He looked like he was back on an even keel as he smiled, “Nice meeting you as well.” He watched her return to her seat before continuing on to his spot in front of me. Not that he stopped watching her.

  Mr. Crosland let the bell ring a few seconds later and took charge of the class. Just like he did with me, he called on Rachel to stand and introduce herself.

  She smiled and waved to everyone, “Hey there. I’m Rachel Vickers. I’m 17 and recently moved from Pennsylvania to live with Ceri.” She gestured to me. “We met at Lledrith Academy when she joined the group I was in just over a month and a half ago. Like some of you heard, I’m a vampire, although I also have magic.”

  Warren’s soft, “You fucking freak…” had her smiling his way.

  “You’re funny, Warren. Next time you want to curse at someone and call them a freak, maybe you should say it loud enough that more than four or five other people can hear it?”

  Mr. Crosland stood up and his face fumed a little, “Warren? Did you say something?”

  “No, Mr. Crosland. I didn�
�t say anything. I don’t know what she’s talking about.” His little mage buddies shifted but didn’t add anything to the discussion.

  Rachel’s face went a little cold. She does not like being called a liar. “Mr. Crosland? If you’d like, Ceri, Rhett, Destanee, and Nathan can write down what he said. It’ll be exactly the same, even if they don’t talk to each other.”

  Our teacher didn’t ask us to do that, although it’s a good idea. “One more, Warren…” Threat made, he sat down again.

  Rachel took a deep breath and smiled at the rest of us, “Sorry. As I was saying…I’m 17. I was attached just over nine months ago while I was out with friends. My friends died, but our attacker changed me. I have no idea who he is. I woke up in the morgue at a local hospital. Thankfully, they had a vampire on staff just in case someone wakes. At that point, my parents didn’t even know that I was possibly dead, so the entire thing came as a surprise to them. It took a bit to get things under control…only to have every one of my friends kick me to the curb.” She shrugged, “I blame them, but I can’t blame them. We used to talk about it all the time. What it’d be like. I’ve been here about 45 minutes and I’ve already talked to three seniors that were thinking about asking Nathan to change them. Or one of the shifters. I gave them a bit of free advice. Personally? Being changed was terrifying. Waking up not being what I was? Not having the thoughts I used to have? I’m me, at least on the outside, but inside? Inside isn’t the me that I was when I grew up. That I was when we went out that day. Nathan is the same way. You see us and you think that we’re just like you. Arguably, we are. We still have the same dreams and things…but they’re also different. Last year I didn’t have to plan out hundreds of years. Last year I didn’t have to worry about being dragged and locked in a cage and raped for days on end. Or, it’s a worry, I guess, but it’s not likely to happen. It’s happened to me twice so far.” People gasped in the class.

  “So, any of you that are thinking about asking someone? You had better be very, very sure that you’re ready to have horrific things done to you. Things that, right now, would blow your mind and destroy your lives. Now? I don’t even think about my times in the cages. I don’t think about the animals I’ve been forced to let take me.” She smiled, letting her fangs come in, “And don’t even think to try and tease me about any of that. You’ll quickly come to find out that there are worse things in life than anything I’ve gone through. I’ve seen some of it. At the academy we had a challenge between five entire families and one student. A 16-year-old girl. Rhinos, wolves, and three powerful mage families.”

  She looked across everyone. “I never thought that I’d see some of the things that happened in that challenge circle. More than 100 angry family members died, while the student walked out.” She winked at Warren, “That’s what you’ve invited to meet with you and your friends. Have fun with that…or, better yet, have fun while you can.” She looked back on the rest of us, “Any questions?”

  A guy I haven’t talked to raised his hand, “Umm…what’s it like being a vampire? Your eyes go all black? Your teeth grow? What does that feel like?”

  She grunted, “Okay, that’s different. The eyes? They don’t really feel like much to me when they change.” She brought on the change, letting everyone see it, “I can see better like this at night, but otherwise? I’m not even sure why it happens. I can’t see that there’s any advantage otherwise. My fangs? They feel sort of itchy.” Nathan nodded at that. “Others have said the same thing. It’s a weird tingly itchy feeling.” She held up her hands, “My talons? That’s an odd one. Does anyone know how sharp they are? Other than the supernaturals?”

  Someone laughed, “Nathan hit one of the bleachers in the gym, and now there’s huge gouges out of it.” Most of the class laughed. I guess they’ve all seen it?

  “Yeah. They’re sharp. We have to watch it, because we can slice through jeans like it’s nothing. Or leather. I killed a cow once with one hand. I wasn’t even trying to. It startled me in a field, and I swiped,” she slashed her hand through the air, “and cut through its hide and all of its ribs on one side.” She let everything slide back. “I’m sure you guys are told, but if you see Nathan or me like that? Try not to act like prey? Definitely don’t get in our face. Don’t threaten us. Nothing like that. If you continue to act normally, it will help us pull back. It usually only happens if we’re hungry or angry, and any of those things when we’re like that? It’s like a red flag to a bull.”

  “But…you just did it? Does that mean you were angry?”

  “No.” She smiled at the girl, “We can do it on demand, we just don’t normally do it. There’s no reason to unless we’re opening a package.” She held up her blunt fingers, “We’re strong, but we can’t cut without them.” That got shifting in the class. “Okay, you guys have heard about our senses, right?” Nods from everyone. “Do you really get how strong they are?”

  Shrugs from some, nods from others. “I told them a bit during my little speech.”

  She looked across them, “Like with the Warren thing? If you whisper anywhere in this room, I’ll be able to hear you. Don’t think to squeak out a fart and have us not know it.” She cocked her head, “I can hear a conversation going on four classrooms from here. If you want to know about drug deals or who’s hooking up? Check with one of us. If you want to know who has drugs in their lockers? Check with us. Who’s been having sex with someone else? Maybe a friend with benefits thing or a bromance? We can tell. We can tell sickness by smell. Injury, in some cases. Don’t think to hide it, because we can always tell. And, for you girls? If you want to know if you’re going to have your period? Ask one of us. And, seriously, don’t think it’s a big deal to us. It’s just not. Think about it this way, if you live in Miami, how frequently do you see someone in a bikini?”

  “Umm, a ton?” Someone offered.

  “Exactly, a ton. You don’t even care any longer. Yet in Minot, North Dakota it’s probably a huge deal to have someone go into a McDonald’s in one. For us? Supernaturals that have stronger senses? We smell it all all the time.” She brought me into it, “Ceri? You gained stronger senses when you turned 17. It’s different than you thought, right?”

  “Wow…so different. I was horrified to think that the kids in my last school could smell things.” I glanced down, “Smell me. Now that I can? I don’t even notice it. Like noticing someone wearing jeans in a society that wears jeans all the time. So, seriously, if you have questions like that? Most of us will tell you. We just don’t because people get all bent out of shape over it.”

  The bell rang, catching us all by surprise, and Mr. Crosland stood up again, “All right. First bell, time to get to your classes! I hope everyone has a great day!” Not very surprisingly, Warren and the others were out the door first.

  Chapter 19

  Rachel stuck with me, obviously, to Calculus. Without Marisela there, it’s not quite the same, but since I know she’s having a blast with her family again? Yeah, I can’t quite complain about that. I’m so excited for her I could just scream.

  Ty caught us entering the class and joined us, nearly coming to a stop when he smelled a new vampire. “Uhh…”

  I moved him along, hand on his back, “Don’t worry. Ty, this is Rachel. A friend of mine. She’s living with me.”

  He came along, mouth moving for a second before he smiled, “Hey…What’s Nathan going to do?”

  We both smiled, “He knows where he stands in this. He won’t do anything.”

  “Jesus, you’re stronger than he is?”

  “I am.” She didn’t pull any punches.

  He rubbed his face, “Damn, man. Some of the bigger groups are gonna have a field day with this trying to figure out who’s top dog.”

  We both laughed and Rachel hit my shoulder, “They come after you yet?”

  “No. I figured it was because no one really has a clue. Or, some do, but since I was still recovering, I didn’t really let much happen.”

  He wat
ched our interplay, jumping in at that point, “You’re supposed to be strong. Are you saying you’re…”

  “I doubt there’s anyone in the school stronger than Ceri is. At a guess, barring some folks that may know magic better than I do, I should be second. I guess we’ll see if anything happens.”

  His smile grew slowly, “Any chance you’re interested in getting together?”

  She sniffed, smelling his growing erection, “The three of us? You know it. I haven’t gotten vigorously laid in days.”

  “Seriously, I told you I’d be climbing the walls? I’m pretty close to that. We can’t do it tonight or tomorrow, though. Maybe Sunday?”

  She cocked her head, “Yeah, Melissa’s birthday, right?”

  “Yeah.”

  Ty gave us a fist bump, “It’s a date!”

  English went by pretty quickly. Dave didn’t talk to me, but since I didn’t try to push him, that’s okay. Eric glared at me every chance he could and kept his magic flowing around him, but I didn’t do anything to him.

  Well, I wrote DO YOU HAVE YOUR WILL WRITTEN YET on a piece of paper and made sure he saw it. Then again, I didn’t hit him with a spell to turn his bones to dust bit by bit, so I figured it’s a win.

  In gym, coach was beside herself that we had another vampire in the mix and decided that another game of team keep away was in order.

  Then, in a fit of cackling glee, she made three teams. Me and Rachel against two teams made up of everyone else.

  I’ll admit, it was the most fun I’ve had in a long time. It was absolutely brutal. I didn’t even break out any magic to help things along, although I was tempted to. We won the first round, much to everyone’s shock, then they upped their game, hitting harder and faster. That’s all right, we upped ours, too. Just not with the hits. I did have to heal a broken spine again when Rhett clobbered me from behind. The group was horrified when I dragged myself along with my arms and managed to get three people out of the circle while doing it. The norms around us screamed in terror most of the time, although they seemed to enjoy it. Especially when clothes started getting destroyed.