Chap 4:The Ceiling of Stars(1st revis)

I rode  home with my uncle from Jean-Paul's house. It was agreed that I would return at two thirty the following day. “Nervous?  I was too , at first. “ My uncle's firm hand reached over and patted mine. Just being in the the Volvo was reassuring . It was familiar. “ You've had a night, I am sure If you are up for it, I would like to talk just a little bit.”

We walked into the kitchen.  Andrew pulled a pan from under the sink. He measured grated chocolate into the sauce pan with some sugar and chipolte pepper spice powder. To this he poured some milk. “Will keep you warmer while you sleep. .”

"Well?" I peered at him- waiting for instructions.

He stirred the hot chocolate with his spoon. Looked at it , then at me and shook his head, " Believe it or not, I am not sure how to do this." he tapped the spoon as he had always done on the side of the pan , as he laid it down. . Folded his hands and squarely met my eyes. "Ask, " he said, as I reached for one of the cups which he had placed on the table.

“ I know  we don't sleep in coffins.”

" No."

" What is the deal with sunlight?

“ You will find  you are less comfortable with bright sunlight the older  you get. You can take more of it than Henri.

"Can we do any neat stuff like turn into a bat or mist or become invisible?"

" Lets just say, I wouldn't give up my bus pass, if I were you. “

"Drat , and I was so hoping avoid all of that traffic. " I whispered teasingly.“ I know I have a reflection and a shadow. I've seen them. Why does everything smell like a food  I know?”

“ Its a device engaging your mind especially during transition. I guess it works on transference. Its always there but strongest when you need to feed. It lets you know  you need to feed. “

“ What about silver? Holy water?”

“ The silver probably needs to polished, other than that , nothing.  Holy water will only make you
wet. “

“ I have never had a period. Is this why? “

Deep breath. I was beginning to think  this was a stalling tactic because he barely drew a breath all of the rest of the time.Then more to himself than to me “ I think  I need to ask Liz to talk to you. Though I certainly could discuss  subject with you, I think. But I have never been. No, for me its different.”

“ Never been what? “ I asked sleepily.  Liz was his friend who hunted with him. I had met her a few times since we  had first moved into town. .  She was a gorgeous tall intelligent  blonde with soft blue eyes who moved with great easy in almost any situation . She had also  been very kind to me. .  She was visiting when my school had sent home a note suggesting that if I had not shown signs of reproductive health,  a doctor visit might be advised. I had been mortified by the note. She assured me  there was nothing wrong with me, then she had taken me shopping for makeup . We had split a pint of chocolate chocolate chip ice cream with brownie pieces in it while we watched a old  black and white movie about a woman who became crippled in a car accident, missing her date on the top of the Empire State Building. Her true love found her and married her anyway. We both cried through the movie. Liz was model material with a keen eye for a bargain while maintaining her sense of style. Best of all, she was always straight with me .

' Never been a female of our species. We both have our own set of hard wiring. Tonight , when we all told you the rape would not have happened. That's part of it. Henri would have savaged them if it went any further. I like that he was jealous of your attempted attacker and protective of you. What about the human woman? How did you feel about her? “

I thought back.”Sheila made me angry. I wanted to hurt her badly. I did not like her hands on him. She was cheap and she was crude. It was like being attacked by the value menu at a fast food restaurant. “

“ And ? “ my uncle continued.

“And,” I sighed. “ She wasn't me. “

“Hold your thought. I want Liz and you to talk. There is a whole lot  I can tell you but never having been exactly there , well, Liz will do it better. “

I replied. “ I like Liz.” 

He stood up signaling  I should go to bed.  “Two thirty at Jean Paul's tomorrow”

I nodded , to show  I heard.  “I know  I need work clothes. Do I need other clothes? I mean for. Well you know.”

“ My uncle smiled “ You might not need them . But you are so new , you will probably need to feed again. Get in the practice of being prepared. You won't feed so frequently after a week or so, but you will want to keep the edge away, or someone else may need . Its safer to hunt in pairs. Don't leave someone else in the lurch. You can always feed, Its controlling the severity will keep you safe . Look at Henri. He gave up more than one feeding tonight to teach you. He kept his control because he did not allow himself to get too hungry.  “

I had not looked at the evening in this new light . He was right. I would use my rehearsal bag until I bought a proper satchel. I trudged up the stairs to bed. I set the alarm for twelve thirty. Then I fell into bed , a deep dreamless sleep amid clean sheets and warm quilts. Bunny looked up at me from her nest of  crumpled afghan at the foot.

The next day was tougher than the prior. Henri was always making me count pieces on everything  we did .Then count them again . Sometimes, he took a piece and hid it. It was my job to find it. A lost piece could cause trouble, The car did not look dirty to me. But there were places where it stank of Bud and Sheila. I bagged my dirty clothes. My uncle and I would scan them tonight. Practice then practice again . I could see  Henri was relentless in care. I scrubbed in the shower, changing into a soft peach tee shirt and faded jeans. He met me with a  white ceramic cup of spice tea in the kitchen . “It keeps us warm , we run a little cooler than the others. “ I sipped it. Cinnamon played against my tongue.

“ Why do the marks not move after they are bitten? “ I asked

He looked at me then replied “ Chemical in our saliva when the fangs extend. So far the others have either not thought to test for it or it isn't able to be detected. Not sure which. But I am often glad  it is there.” He took my cup, washed both. He dried them and put them away. I grabbed my purse with the money that he had given me last night as well as some of my own. He handed me a small package, a pair of sunglasses.

“ Thank you.” I adjusted the glasses.

He brushed my hair behind my ears. “ You are welcome. “ He turned away quickly, shooing me out of the kitchen. He locked the  back door. This time I did not ask about leaving a note for Jean Paul. We would be back when the night's business was done. He opened the trunk, I threw my rehearsal bag  next to his satchel.  I walked to the passenger door, sniffed and got in. “Good girl!” he chuckled as the engine roared.

I looked at him. He was wearing a plaid sport shirt , pale blue slacks . He had let his shoulder length hair hang free. I wondered what he would feel like to hold. I shook my head. This was a training exercise not a date. I saw him smile softly as we pulled from the driveway.

He drove up to the Quincy Market . We wandered the vendor's booths as the Minutemen from Concord marched outside. I looked at some of the handmade pottery from Vermont. He bought several kinds of cheeses as well as some fruit. He carefully chose pieces o f chocolate truffles from a chocolatier.  He looked at the labels, then added a bottle of dark red wine to his purchases. He had me watch how people grouped and regrouped in a social setting. We talked about different kinds of hunting techniques.

“ Baiting works better for women than men.”

“ How do you mean? “ I asked.  For example, car breakdown. Do you want some orange juice? “ I nodded. Ordering two , he handed me a bottle as he sat down outside the building near the water. “ Woman lifts the hood of her car. , low neckline , short skirt or pants. High heels help too. Something to build the idea the you are such a helpless female person and , oh deary me. What ever am I going to do? “ He looked around as a child shrieked from the  edge of the dock. Her red balloon had escaped her , taking flight towards Charleston. He watched her father redirect her to get another. The girl kissed her dad who secured the balloon around her wrist.

He pointed the child out to me.“Proves my point .  Cry if you can. Make lots of fluttering motions as if its all just over your pretty little head. Some big strong human male usually happens along although we do get the occasional dyke. If you are working with a male partner , it controls a multiple person situation.”

His face became grave .” Never get in to a car where you are outnumbered . Preferably never get into a stranger's car at all. Its their advantage if you do. If you work with a female partner try to redirect their energy . If you don't know how, there are books on lesbian sex. You need to look like you know what you are doing. Otherwise, they will spot it for a stall. “

“ Is it used much? “

“Again, mostly with women.When we did the scene with Bud and Sheila? I promised him girl on girl Most human men like that.” Henri stopped, as the cry of a nearby seagull alerted the flock of available prey.  The flock descended  to the water just out of sight of dock on which we sat. He followed the birds in flight with his eyes.

He smiled his apology, rubbed his eyes , returning his attention to me. “ Of course he thought it meant something that I wasn't promising. Make sure  its a female that you don't mind handling you to tempt the mark into getting sloppy. Show what needs to be shown to accomplish your objective. Showing isn't allowing sex or touching. , You want to get them to drop their guard. Get in , get out , get gone.  “

“ And  vampire men? “ I looked at him intensely. He looked at the half bottle of orange juice in his hand,fidgeting slightly.

“ Not quite as universal , I don't think. It does not trigger any hardwiring that I know. ” 

“ I don't drive. So how do I play it off?” I leaned in closer.

Henri stretched as he replied“Plastic grocery bags are great. Take an extra in case it does not work the first time. for some canned goods. You will eat the fruit later anyway. Punch a hole with your finger in one of the bags holding cans.” He picked up a bag which had blown by him in the slight breeze.He checked the inside, then poked his finger about an inch from the seam , turning the hole towards his body.

“May I see? “ He surrendered the damaged bag which I examined. The hole was not large but was in a place where  the weight from cans would further tear it.

“Make sure that the package spills down hill and that some of the cans run in front of him. Again use fluttering motions like wounded bird. The tears thing ,oh dear me . Stop stop . Then be so grateful that you flirt with the great big rescuer . Tease but don't deliver . Get under his radar. Sooth his shoulders like you are going to give him a thank you kiss. Feed , Clean up the bite and go. “

“ Any other suggestions ?”

“ Just be careful. These are not nice people that we are dealing with for the most part. They have good jobs, they love their kids if any .If you  think we double speak , you should take a solid look at their patterns of speech. They will tell you that they are nice people. They lie to themselves more than they lie to us and others. “

I looked at him,  “ That is certainly cynical. “ I decided he had a nice mouth and wondered what it would be like to be kissed over my body with those lips. I wondered if the opportunity would be offered to find out. A girl can dream. Behind us, the fifer began “Yankee Doodle” as the Minutemen marched onto the deck, entertaining the gathering tourists.

“ I am here after two hundred years. “ He took the empty bottles lobbing them into the wastebasket at the end of our row.