Blood and Light

by Rue Volley

  “What if there are no humans who would want to live there and be a „host" to a bunch of vampires.”

  I said, completely serious. Josh laughed out loud.

  “What?” I said, as I turned to him.

  “Are you kidding…? Some just go because they are freaks, they love the thought of someone drinking their blood Rue!” he said, as he grinned at me.

  “I…I'm not going to say that I didn't do it, but it's different for me, I'm a protector, just like all of you,” I said, I could feel my cheeks getting red, as memories of Johnathan and I in the field flashed in my mind.

  “Ohhh…what you did was freaky Rue,” he said.

  “Shut up Josh…you don't know anything.” I turned back to Theodore.

  “Well…I want all of you to see it,” I said calmly.

  Theodore looked at me curiously.

  “Can you make it possible for everyone here to see the Tree in my memory?” I asked.

  Josh pushed himself up, a little too excited.

  “Well…it is a marvelous thing to be so generous with your privacy Rue.”

  I shot a look at Josh and raised my eyebrows.

  “Did you hear that Josh...my privacy,” I said with sarcasm.

  He grinned. Theodore stood up and held his hand out to me. I reached up and had one second thought about letting them all see into my mind, but I was going to control this, I wasn't going to have a jungle gym of crazy going on. Well, I hoped not.

  Theodore led me to the middle of the room and turned to Sam.

  “I will need a blanket Samantha,” he said.

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  She nodded and ran out of the room, coming back in with a blanket from Kai's bed.

  “Here,” she said, as she handed it to him. He wrapped it around me and smiled.

  “I need for you to lie down on the floor Rue. I put a blanket on you, because you will become cold from the energy drain, okay?” he asked me.

  I grinned and laid down, Sam put a pillow under my head.

  “Thank you,” I said as she looked down at me. She smiled and touched my face.

  Theodore started to etch symbols all around me, when he finished the last one he stood up, and told everyone to come and stand outside the circle around me. They all took each others hands and Theodore started to chant out some Latin. I really need to learn what they are saying, makes me feel like a foreigner.

  He started to lower himself to the floor and they all lowered with him. He told them to close their eyes and focus on me, only me. He leaned in and whispered to me.

  “You need to take us there Rue, it will feel strange at first, but once you feel yourself separating from your body, just embrace it and take us with you, okay?”

  I nodded and closed my eyes. I could hear them chanting and I thought for a moment that I wouldn't be able to do this… Just when you think you can't, seems you find out you can. I started to feel my heart beat slowing down and their voices started to fade and echo in my ears… I saw flashes of Johnathan's face, then my moms...my dad…little Rue. I sucked in my breath and the air felt bitterly cold in my lungs. I started to see flashes of light, a buzzing in my ears was slowly getting louder and louder, until it reached a point that I thought I'd scream out, just to deafen the noise.

  ******

  I opened my eyes and I pushed myself up out of green grass. I breathed in the sweet smell and felt the warmth of sun on my skin. I stood up and looked around. They all laid in a circle around me. I reached down to Theodore and touched his face. He opened his eyes and grinned at me, he pushed himself up and looked around. They all woke up and one by one they stood, same look on their faces. One of wonder and slight disbelief. I held my hand up and looked across the field. There was the tree, white as ever, reaching toward the sky.

  I started to walk and felt a hand slip into mine. I looked over to see that Josh had appeared beside me. I looked down at our hands interlaced together, and squeezed his hand in reassurance. We all started to walk towards the tree.

  Well I walked, but Theodore, Sam, and Kai ran like kids heading for the toy department. I kept walking, steady...I wanted to share this with them, but truth was, I had some sadness in my heart just looking at it. It was a cemetery to me, in a way. Josh and I approached it and Theodore was reaching his hand out to touch it. I ran up and pulled his hand away. He looked at me, but did not argue.

  “I told you I saw it,” I said. My voice echoed on the wind.

  Theodore turned to me. “I believed that you did, I just cannot believe I am standing here…right now.”

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  Tears started to flow down his cheeks and I reached out to wipe them. His tears shimmered a light silver and gold. I held my hand out in front of me and let the sun shine on the tears in my hand. A light started to glow in my palm, I cupped my hand and lowered it...I didn't want to cause anything with everyone here with me. I turned when I heard a whisper on the wind.

  “Johnathan?” I said.

  Josh squeezed my hand. I looked at him.

  “Did you hear something?” he said.

  “I thought I heard…Johnathan,” I said ,as I looked across the field.

  Everyone turned to look, but all we saw was green grass flowing like water in the wind.

  I almost held my breath, but nothing… I could hear nothing, but the wind blowing.

  I turned back to the tree.

  “Okay…I've been here long enough,” I said.

  “Hey look...stairs!” Kai yelled out. I tried to run to him, but he had already started to climb.

  “Don't Kai…please!” I yelled up to him, but he kept climbing like he couldn't hear me.

  I looked at Josh. “Please…stop him Josh, he cannot go up there…please!”

  Josh looked at me and started to climb. I backed up from the tree, but I couldn't see Kai anymore. Sam had followed along with Theodore. I waited, my heart beat sped up. I looked down at my palms and they were glowing blue. I turned when I heard a whisper again. I looked across the field and saw Johnathan walking towards me. I started to run towards him…as I got closer I realized he had a look of sadness on his face. I stopped a few feet from him.

  “Johnathan?” I called out. He had his head lowered, his hair falling over his face.

  “Johnathan…are you okay?” I asked.

  He looked up at me and blood covered his face, he grinned.

  ******

  I gasped for air and sat straight up in the living room. Everyone still sitting around me.

  “Ahhh…Geezus Rue!” Josh cried out, as he grabbed his head.

  Theodore fell away from me, Kai and Sam grabbed at their heads too.

  “I'm sorry!” I yelled out.

  Theodore pressed his fingers to his temples. “Oh honey, you just jerked us right out of there...it was too fast.”

  “I am so sorry guys, you all started to climb and I...I saw Johnathan. He had blood all over his face…! I freaked out and woke up…I didn't mean too.” I wrestled the blanket off of myself and stood up... “Did you all see it...? The tree?”

  Josh had pulled himself onto the couch.

  “Yes...I was about to open the damn door and I started falling…when you woke up.”

  “Oh god...well you shouldn't go in there… Trust me, Elin is always in there,” I said.

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  “Oh, I'd beat her down Rue…no worries,” Josh said, as he went into the kitchen.

  He stopped over the trash can and hurled in it.

  “Ewwe,” I said.

  He cleared his throat. “Ah, that's better... Listen, I suggest that all of you throw up… You'll feel better, trust me.”

  “I don't like too,” Kai said ,as he sat on the floor.

  “Just imagine your eating maggots,” Josh said.

  Kai pulled himself up quickly. “Oh you dick!” he said, as he ran for the bathroom.

  Josh laughed. “Sam, Theodore…do it, trust me.”

  “I will not,” Sam said.

  “Babies are really
good in soup,” he said.

  “Oh my god!” Sam said as she busted out of the house, off the porch. I could hear her in the yard.

  Theodore was the only one still standing.

  Josh looked at him and grinned big.

  “I will not have you torturing me Josh,” he said, as he clutched the arm of the chair.

  “What…? Are you too good for the obvious solution,Theodore?” Josh asked, as he pushed food into his mouth. “Mmmm…this is really good, it's raw fish Theodore...sushi. I know you like it, here,” Josh flashed to him and opened his mouth as he chewed.

  “I hate you,” Theodore whispered, as he ran towards the bathroom with his hand over his mouth.

  I stood there with my hands on my hips.

  “Why?” I said to him.

  “Because…I care,” he said, with a smile and a shrug of shoulders.

  “Uh huh…you just ooze compassion Josh.”

  “I agree,” he said as he grabbed some more food.

  Sam came back into the house, she had a hand on her stomach. She looked at me and then to Josh. “You do that again and I will stab you in your sleep Josh,”

  she said it so matter of fact, that I had to hold back a grin. She sat down on the couch and sighed.

  I walked to her and sat down, I touched her hand. “I am sorry about that Sam… I got frightened when I saw Johnathan… I had no intention of making all of you sick.”

  “Tell you the truth, I am glad… Kai was hell bent on going into the tree… I swear, you Volleys are just fearless...or stupid, or maybe a little of both,” She said.

  “It's not stupidity on my part… I'm just curious about everything…now I can't speak for Kai,” I said to her.

  Kai came back into the room. “Well, That sucked ass,” he said as he leaned in to kiss Sam.

  She put up a hand. “Don't,” she said.

  He looked like a kid who just got told he couldn't go on a field trip. “What?” Kai asked as he shrugged his shoulders.

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  Sam grunted and pushed herself up from the couch and walked to the kitchen.

  Kai followed her, still muttering something. She ignored him as she opened the fridge and pulled out some water.

  “Oh my god…go brush your teeth Kai,” she said with disgust. He headed toward the bathroom by his room.

  I leaned back on the couch and looked at the ceiling again. I yawned.

  “You should eat,” Josh said, as he tapped my leg. I looked at him and he was eating some cold chicken.

  My stomach growled and I knew what I really wanted, but food would have to do. The last thing I wanted right now was to confirm Josh's “freak” theory about me. I sat there and Johnathan flashed into my mind, blood all over his face. My stomach growled again. I missed the day when the sight of blood would of made me sick…now it made me hungry. I should of never drank his blood, or Josh's blood either.

  Theodore came walking into the room, a cell phone in his hand.

  “Thank you so much...! I will send her a card right away.”

  He hit the button on his phone and slipped it into his pocket.

  “Well…seems that I have an address for Elie,” he said, as he sat down on the chair across from Josh and I. He had a look on his face that kinda worried me.

  “Well?” I said.

  “She took them right to the gates of Valon,” he said.

  “Great,” Josh muttered.

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  Chapter 13

  Protect What Means the Most to

  You

  277

  “Johnathan?”

  Elin leaned into the doorway of Johnathan's room and stared at him sitting on his bed. Johnathan looked up from a picture he held in his hands. Elin walked to him and sat down on the bed, brushing up against his side. She reached over and took the photo out of his hands, staring at it.

  “Oh, this is a great picture of you and your parents,” she said, as she inspected it.

  Johnathan looked out into the room…he didn't even react to her. Elin laid the picture down on his bed and pulled one leg up, so she could face him. She reached out and touched his face trying to turn it, so he would look at her. He shrugged her off. Elin sighed and let her hand fall to her lap.

  “Listen...Johnathan, I know that you are grieving, but you have to understand that you are not the only one in this house who is dealing with the loss of your father.”

  Johnathan looked at her. She waited for him to agree with her wisdom. He stood up and walked to his window.

  “I am not grieving Elin. I guess you would expect for me too, but I cannot grieve for someone I did not know. That is what I was thinking about…the fact that he was never home. I have no real memory of him...nothing that would cause me pain.” He continued to look out the window, into the vast garden of flowers that covered the back yard.

  “He was your father Johnathan…of course you would feel something,” Elin said with a soft tone.

  Johnathan turned to her. “No, I feel nothing, nothing at all… It's like someone in another town died and I happened to read about...that's the extent of my interest.”

  Elin stood up and walked to him. She wrapped her arms around him and held him close to her. Johnathan returned her embrace, but continued to look out the window. Something about the flowers looked familiar to him.

  Elin pulled her head from his chest and looked up at him. “Kiss me,” She whispered.

  He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. She wrapped her arms up around his neck and started to pull him toward his bed. He reached up and pulled her arms from around his neck, pulling back from the kiss at the same time.

  “What?” She asked him.

  “I'm not, I don't really want to do this right now Elin. I'm sure my Mother needs me.”

  Elin placed a hand on his face and looked him in the eye. “Okay,” she said softly.

  “Lets go and find Elie, Johnathan.” She reached down and grabbed his hand.

  He looked down to her. “Thank you for being here for us Elin. I appreciate it, I do.”

  She smiled at him and they headed for the door.

  They found Elie and Sophia downstairs talking, Elie had papers in her hand. As Johnathan and Elin came down the stairs, Elie looked up and smiled at them

  “Ah, it is so good to see you two together,” she said.

  Elin let Johnathan's hand go and ran up to her, kissing her on the cheek. Elie grinned and touched her shoulder.

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  “What are we doing here?” Elin asked, as she looked at the paper in Elie's hand.

  “Oh, this…? Well Sophie and I were just going over the layout of this house and where we would like to place a few things,” she said.

  “Oh, decorating! I love to decorate! Please let me help,” Elin said with enthusiasm.

  She looked back to Johnathan, who could care less.

  “Come here Johnathan, we can all decide where to place the mirrors,” Elin said to him.

  Johnathan put his hands in his pockets. “Not really my thing,” he said.

  Elin turned back to Elie and smiled. “Well, I guess it will be just the three of us then.”

  Elie grinned. “Well, Sophie and I have pretty much decided already, but perhaps you can go with us this afternoon and pick out rugs for these cold floors.”

  “Oh, I would just love too,” Elin said, as she clapped her hands together. “Seems that you two may be better company right now anyway.”

  Elie looked at Johnathan and back to Elin. “He's not a very social boy.”

  “I am standing right here Mother,” Johnathan said. “I hate it when you talk about me like I can't hear you.”

  Elie grinned. “You need to register for school today anyway. Sophie already did, now you need too.”

  “That's fine,” he said, as he headed for the door.

  “Do you want company?” Elin called out to him.

  Johnathan didn't turn to her, he simply grabbed the doorknob and started to turn it. �
�No, you go decorate or whatever,” he said with little interest.

  Elin ran up behind him and hugged him from behind.

  “I'll miss you while you are gone,” she whispered.

  He didn't respond to her, he opened the door and walked out.

  Elin stood there for a moment, with a look of hate in her eyes, then she turned to Elie and Sophie with a big smile on her face.

  “He said he loved me,” She crooned.

  Elie smiled and Sophie grabbed the paper and started to study it.

  “Sophie...we need to catch up…! How about we go shopping?” Elin asked, as she bounded towards her.

  Sophie looked up from the paper in her hand. “Shopping?” she said.

  “Yes...! Let's give Elie some time to decide where she wants the things that are coming this afternoon.”

  Sophie looked to her mother. Elie grinned and said, “Go...have fun, you go to school on Monday, you have two days to play.”

  Sophie kinda grinned. Truth was, this was the first time that Elin had ever shown any interest in her at all…it had always been all about Johnathan.

  “Okay,” Sophie said, as she shrugged her shoulders.

  “Oh...wonderful!” Elin said, as she grabbed her coat. “Lets go have fun!”

  Sophie handed the paper to her mother and looked at her, then to the floor.

  “Be nice,” Elie said in a whisper.

  “Okay,” Sophie said as she pulled her coat on.

  They headed for the door, side by side.

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  “We will be back later on for supper!” Elin called out to Elie.

  “Have some fun,” Elie said, as she looked around the room.

  ******

  They stepped out into the chilled air. Elin wrapped her arm into Sophie's and Sophie looked a little uncomfortable. The sky was a bright blue with the sun shining, but the air had a sharp pain of winter in it.

  “So...lets walk Sophie,” Elin said.

  Sophie crinkled her eyebrows. “It's cold out here, we could drive.”

  “Oh...I just love to walk, it'll give us time to talk.”

  “Okay, I guess,” Sophie said, as she watched her breath puff out white in front of her.

  They walked down the path leading away from the house. Trees lined it on both sides. The leaves had already begun to change to the dead brown of winter and laid in scattered patterns under the trees, and in the pathway. They walked for about five minutes, without a word between them and Elin broke the silence.