The Fall - Part 2/20 - Vampire

I wandered the foreign landscape, in desperate hope of a clue to the world I had found myself in; yet the more I investigated my surroundings, the more perplexing it all became. Nature obeyed laws far different to those of our world, with animals most bizzare yet beautiful in their strangeness. My watch had proven to be a usless artifact, frozen on the same time of 20:03. Despite this, I reasoned that I had wandered for at least two days and yet for all the foot steps and the miles travelled, I was as far from anywhere as I had always been. The undeniable beauty of this wonderous world was slowly losing its charm as my thoughts turned to matters of food, survival - home. Funny how in those two days, this moment was the first that I would ponder my chances of finding home. I started to ask myself if I would ever see my friends again, my family, my neighbours; the reality was beginning to settle into a pool of panic as I wandered alien forests blindly. I wandered and I wondered; I wondered and I wandered. Was I in a maze or on the circle's edge? Either way, I felt I could walk beyond eternity and still be chasing my own back. I took pause and rested my weary body against a bending tree of yellow and orange leves, bearing silver fruits, almost like apples wrapped in foil. I gave heavy sigh.

"I'm never getting out of here." I exclaimed in frustration, closing my eyes and resting my tired head against the bark.

"You lost, friend?"

I jumped up, startled by the introduction of a new sound - the voice of another. It was a gentle voice, feminine and timid. Scanning my surroundings, I felt my skin tingle with trepidation as I prepared to face the unseen.

"Who's there?" I called back, clearing my throat before I called out. I was hardly the visage of intimidation as I stood alone, unarmed and shaking. From the corner of my eye, I spied movement in the bushes. The movesments were not concealed or slow, rather deliberate and obvious; whoever it was wanted me to know they were there and from whence they were coming. From the bushes stepped a sight for sore eyes, another soul.

"Are you okay, friend?"

Before me stood a young girl, no older than eighteen in form. Her amethyst eyes shone in the starlight, and her pale skin sparkled like silver glitter. She wore a long black cape and hid her body save her feet, which were bare. She cautiously stood by the trees, whilst giving a friendly smile that revealed two tiny fangs. I raised an eyebrow, my curiosity poked by unexpected events.

"I'm lost," I finally answered, my uncertainty obvious in the stammering of my reply, "I'm sorry, I'm Charles. Who are you?"

She giggled, clearly feeling more comfortable talking to me.

"I'm Becky. I'm a vampire, though not one of the scary ones. I don't hurt people - people don't taste nice and I want to be their friend."

I was confused by the response. Becky's tone seemed almost infantile, childlike. She seemed harmless and though one would presume caution was key, I somehow felt like I could trust her, at least in as much that she was no threat. I tried to relax and take a gentle step forward.

"Well I'm glad you don't want to hurt me," I replied with a big smile, "you see I woke up here and I'm trying to find my way home."

"You don't live around here?" Becky asked as she tilted her head to one side. I shook my head.

"No, you see I live in this big city filled with streetlamps and big houses. Have you heard of anything like that?" I asked, hoping Becky would have some ideas; part of me was hoping that I was just drunk and wandering around a local woods. Becky shook her head with a sad frown.

"No, sorry. I've never seen a city before; I bet it's beautiful." She apologised sweetly. I gave a sigh, hidden behind a smile.

"No worries, Becky. I'm sure I'll find my way. What about you? Where do you live?"

"In the forest; gets lonely. People are scared of the forests."

"Why, what are they scared of?" I asked, looking around for any other creatures. I looked back at her to see her head hung low, silent. "Oh..."

"People think I'm gonna bite them, but I don't like biting people. I just want friends." Becky explained, her voice shaken with pain. I bent over to meet her eyes, whilst giving a friendly smile.

"Well, I'd be happy to be your friend if you'd help me find my way home; would that be okay?"

Becky's eyes immediately lit up and she began to dance on the spot like an exicted puppy. Despite my predicament, I couldn't help but chuckle at how adorable this mysterious girl was; it reminded me of someone, but I felt disconnected from my memories. It was a nagging pain bouncing around my head, like an echo of memories. I was so lost in thought I hadn't noticed Becky had stopped dancing, so I was taken aback when she grabbed both my hands.

"I know where to go!" She proudly and excitedly exclaimed, "We need to visit the mermaids! They've swam all of the oceans; they'll know where your home is!"

At first I was falling, with the heavy finality of oblivion waiting to catch me.
I then lay lost and hopeless in the forest of wandering.
Now, I was in the charge of a youthful spirit, dragging me to creatures more fantastical.

My name is Charles Robere and I made friends with a vampire.