Friendly Foe

“ Friendly Foe “

Part 1

Linda looked down at the vampire in the alley. He was breathing raggedly. It had little to do with the steadily rising sun. He was a mess. All cuts and bruises under long tangled black hair and a ripped trench coat. He hissed once again at her as she surveyed him.
Linda sighed. He was a vampire, enemy to her werewolf kind. But even she didn’t have the heart to leave him out to be burned alive in the sun on Christmas Eve.
Knocking the vampire unconscious didn’t take long and she hauled him up in her arms and made tracks for her apartment. The vampire would have been heavy if she had been human but Linda wasn’t slowed down a bit. She had the door closed and was shutting her blinds and curtains as the sun finally peaked over the horizon. A hiss behind Linda told her that her guest was awake.

“Is that how you treat someone who just saved your life?” Linda asked the vampire as she turned.

He was watching her intently with angry steel gray eyes through the tangled fall of his hair. Linda noted that he had shrugged off the ragged coat arms to free his claws although one hand had broken fingers.

“Why did you kidnap me?” Came the vampire’s deep voice.

Linda laughed. “Kidnap you?!? I just saved your butt bud.”

The vampire peered at the curtains and back to her. “Why would you do that? You’re a werewolf. I can smell that.”

Linda bent down to pick up her new little kitten Mindy who was rubbing at her leg. The kitten was from the street too. A kind of Christmas gift to herself. Linda loved animals.

“Maybe you shouldn’t judge all werewolves on what you’ve heard.” Linda stated as she petted Mindy.

The vampire was shaking due to the sun and his weakened condition. “You mean to kill me when I sleep!” He accused.

Linda came close and sat down. She was wary of the vampire’s claws but he seemed weak enough to approach now.

“I know you need to sleep and I promise I won’t hurt you. I give you my word.” Linda said.

The vampire struggled to stay awake but he succumbed. As he slept, Linda cleaned him and dressed him in her Ex’s old clothes. He was handsome cleaned up and had a killer body under all the dirt. His wounds closed slowly as he slept until his body was once again perfect. He opened his eyes with a gasp as the sun disappeared over the horizon.
Linda backed up as he leapt off the couch and studied himself as if expecting to find himself staked instead of in new clothes. He looked up at Linda curiously then.

“You helped me….a vampire.” He muttered.

“Somehow, I thought Santa might disapprove of me leaving you out to die on Christmas.”

He smiled at her. “You’ve given me a present then. My life.”

Linda nodded and winked at him. “Merry Christmas.”


Part 2

Linda watched as her vampire guest walked to a mirror and checked his appearance. Contrary to belief, vampires did have reflections but it faded slightly over time. Only the oldest vampires cast absolutely no reflection. Her guest’s reflection was barely dimmed in any way. He was fairly new. In the 25 to 50 years mark.
He turned and looked at her. Linda thought he looked good. He had chiseled features that cast a strong yet handsome face. Now that he was relaxed his eyes changed back to his natural vivid blue green and went perfectly with his long black hair now brushed to fall straight down. It even went over one eye. Linda wished her hair didn’t have such a mind of its own, always curling and frizzing up.

After a considering look he spoke to her. “I’m Jake.”

Linda had to smile at how he said it. As if he were sharing some big secret with her.

“I’m Linda. Nice to know you Jake.” She replied.

He stalked to the window to look out. It was snowing. She wondered if he still would go out to stalk his prey.

Jake turned to meet her eyes. “Why did you save me? The real answer.”

Linda sighed. No one now-a-days ever thought you did something just to be nice. Too many people with ulterior motives had stolen the innocence of that idea.

“Truthfully, I don’t know why. Guess I am not cold hearted enough to leave someone to die……even if it wasn’t Christmas.” Linda answered.

“Or even if they are a vampire?” Jake challenged.

“Even then.”

Jake walked over to his trench coat in the corner and started to slip it on.

“Your leaving already?” Linda asked surprised.

He looked up at her and his eyes widened. “Surely you don’t want me to stay.”

Linda put her hand on one hip and frowned. “And why wouldn’t I?”

Jake slipped his coat on but didn’t move to leave. “Christmas with a werewolf? A werewolf and vampire? You have to be kidding.”

Linda’s frown deepened. “You sure forget your manners quick.”

She got the satisfaction of seeing him hesitate but then he left. Linda walked to the window and watched Jake exit the building and start walking down the sidewalk into the snow.

“Well….I tried.” Linda muttered as she prepared to spend another Christmas alone.

Part 3

Jake huddled into his coat. Linda’s apartment had been warmer and he had been tempted to stay but his conscience got to him. She had not asked how he had gotten hurt. The fact was that he had been hurt in a fight with other werewolves. He was part of a group of vampires looking to expand hunting territories and were trying to push the werewolves out. It was just bad luck that he had gotten separated from his friends and been left for dead.
His hair blew in his eyes and Jake brushed it away irritated. Why did it have to be a werewolf to save him? Of all species he could have happened upon. And she was pretty too. Jake found himself thinking of her wild hair and the colors that had danced in its strands by the Christmas tree lights. Her beautiful smile and willowy figure. Linda was a beauty with her rich brown eyes and pixie face but he could easily feel that the real treasure of Linda was her heart. Wasn’t he touched with the gift of life she had given him?
Jake snapped out of his thoughts snarling as a shadowy figure suddenly emerged from an alley. The snow and wind made it hard to see or smell but as the figure approached, he recognized his friend Thomas.

“ Jake! Your alive man. You always were like a bad penny.” Thomas said sarcastically.

“You know it.” Jake said with a grin. “So who else made it through last night with the wolves?”

“Everyone got out except you.” Thomas replied.

Jake’s suspicion rose. If they had gotten away, why had no one come looking for him? He was new to the group but had taken on every task put to him, eager to be accepted. Sarcasm was the way of the group…or so he had thought. Could they really have abandoned him when he needed them most?

“So who came looking for me?” Jake asked casually as he could.

Thomas shrugged and tried to avoid the question. “Doesn’t matter. You’re here and that’s all that counts.”

Jake bristled and moved away from Thomas’s touch in a blur of vampiric speed.

“Doesn’t matter?!!?” Jake repeated angrily. “Well hell, it matters to me. It happens to be my life. It also happens to dawn on me that I would have looked for any of you if you had been missing.”

Thomas folded his arms and frowned at Jake. “Really man, I think your taking this too seriously.”

Jake’s memories nagged at him and he felt like an idiot. So many incidents, big and small, had all pointed to the fact that this group he belonged to cared nothing for him. All his struggles to be accepted had been for nothing. The nicest thing anyone had ever done for him had come from one of the enemy and his own group of so-called friends had not even bothered to lift a finger in his direction.
Jake stared at Thomas a minute in silence before turning and walking away. He didn’t look back and he never would.

Part 4

Linda hummed to the Christmas carol playing on her stereo as she finished stirring the gravy and went to get a bowl. She might be spending another Christmas alone but that didn’t mean she had to eat a TV dinner instead of a nice home cooked meal. Her Turkey had come out nicely and the stuffing was steaming and begging her to sit down and eat.
Mindy rubbed against Linda’s leg as she set the gravy on the table.

“Don’t worry Mindy.” She told her little kitten. “I haven’t forgotten you.”

Linda took an extra plate and put a few turkey slices on it before setting it down for her furry friend. She was just sitting down to eat herself when the doorbell rang. It was a surprise to see Jake standing in the hallway.

“Jake? Well I..”

“No wait.” Jake interrupted her. “I have something I have to tell you.”

Linda nodded and waited.

“You found me hurt yesterday and I have come to believe that my being hurt might have been one of the best things to happen to me. I believed in all the wrong things and wouldn’t let anyone change me. Well, I finally got my eyes opened tonight. I was part of the group of vampires trying to take over this territory. But the key word in that is ‘was’. After meeting you, after almost dying…I see I was in the wrong. I’m sorry Linda. I thank you for saving me…I just hope it’s not too late to save myself.”

Linda caught his arm when he turned to go. “You tell me all that and then your just going to go?”

Jake turned sad eyes to her. “Would you really want someone like me here?”

Linda smiled softly. “Yes Jake. I would.”

“Even after my kind tried to bully you?” He asked amazed.

Linda sighed. “Everyone makes mistakes. But knowing you made the mistake is half the battle. Besides, you’re a hunk and my friend Jenny would kick me if she knew I had the chance to have you over for dinner and messed it up.”

Jake looked stunned for a moment then laughed softly and turned to look into her apartment. “Something sure smells good.” He said as he walked in.

Linda closed the door and turned to lean her back against it. “Men! They all think with their stomachs!”

Jake turned with a smile and brushed his fingers over Linda’s cheek making her shiver unexpectedly in delight.

“I said smells good, doesn’t mean I will eat any. I’m a vampire remember?” He trailed his fingers into her hair. “Besides, my hunger is for something or someone else.”

Linda swallowed hard. “Really?”

Jake let his fingers fall from her hair and smiled at her. “Yes, really. Besides, that turkey won’t go to waste.”

“It won’t?” She asked curiously. “Your going to eat some then?”

“No, not me. Besides, I think Mindy is enjoying herself.”

“Mindy?!?” Linda turned and sure enough, her little kitten was on the table with her front claws in the turkey and helping herself to big mouthfuls. “Mindy! No!! Bad Mindy!!”

Linda ran to stop Mindy as Jake chuckled and drew the bolt lock on the door.

The End ………For Now