All Who Wander...(Eureka)

[CaelNolVinci (DELETED 9092)]

Cael hugged his torso as he staggered forward. The night was below freezing, Cael was beyond freezing. He was not dressed for this weather. Not enough layers, not enough money to buy layers. He thought he could make it to Toronto, spend what he had left on a cheap motel, find some work, go from there...but something seemed to be conspiring against him. First his heater quit. Then he got a flat, then his spare got a flat. Luckily he had the foresight to keep a can of fixaflat for just such an occasion, but that was not the end of his troubles. That same night he was almost run off the road by what he can only assume was a drunk guy in a Honda, while swerving to avoid the guy his cell phone slid off his dash and out an open window, he didn't even try to look for it. He got food poisoning from gas station food, and he was beginning to develop a cold from driving bundled in blankets with no heater. At least he hoped it was just a cold and not pneumonia. The ultimate insult to injury occurred five miles outside Harper Rock, when his truck finally died after around a year and a half of slow but steady travel. He was surprised it lasted as long as it did, but the timing could have been a bit better. After a fairly long string of creative cursing and steering wheel punching, Cael decided to wait for someone to drive by, but after two hours he noticed he couldn't feel his hands anymore, and the storm was progressively getting worse. He didn't have a choice. He had to walk.

Cael was used to hardship, he was even used to the cold, but not this cold. This cold seemed alive. Every wind gust felt like some sort of malicious attack. He would lean into it and clench his shivering jaw in defiance, but after awhile he couldn't even do that anymore. He just put his head down and kept walking. He just had to keep walking.

The streets of Harper Rock were empty. No one was out in this storm. He hugged himself and looked around. He perked up at the sound of an engine in the distance. Cael mustered every ounce of strength he had to attempt to wave down the eighteen wheeler, but it roared by without missing a beat. Cael cursed under his breath and continued to walk. He had no idea where he was or where he should go, but he knew he wouldn't last much longer without finding some sort of shelter.

[Eureka]

Eureka had been convinced to dress appropriate to the weather – now that she was with Aaron, there was no more frolicking around in the snow half naked, giving any onlookers a near heart-attack. Truth was, she didn’t need to wear anything. The weather didn’t affect her now, as it once might have. She would not get hypothermia. She would not get black fingers and toes. They would not fall off, even if she slept in that snow for three whole days and nights. Though, if she ended up sleeping in the snow during the day, she’d come out with a whole different set of wounds, contradictory to the cold.

Regardless of the weather, Eureka still went for a frolic. And although she was ‘dressed’ appropriately, it was done so by filching Aaron’s clothes – things that she found in his closet, whether at the back or the front it never did concern her. Shopping wasn’t the woman’s forte. She didn’t even own any clothing of her own. It was all stolen, soiled, and then discarded.

The wild redhead liked to hunt around the edges of the city; she ran with the wild, with the wolves and the mountain lions, chasing after birds. How often did she spend her time as a big cat herself? Far too often. Tonight, however, her attention was snagged by something pretty before she could get that far.

A man, alone. He looked like he was about to turn into a living popsicle. It was his scent that caught her interest first. The scent of a weary traveller. Eureka circled the man first, out of sight, before approaching from behind. With her hands shoved into the pockets of Aaron’s jacket and her hair a knotted mess around her head, she leaned in to speak directly over the wanderer’s shoulder.

”Whatcha doin’?” she asked, curious as a kid on a school sidewalk.

WEARING

[CaelNolVinci (DELETED 9092)]

Cael was startled by the sudden sound of a woman's voice. He spun around still shivering. He was surprised to see a very attractive red head standing right in front of him, her unkempt hair blowing in the wind gusts. Where did she come from? He was pretty sure no one was anywhere in ear shot a few moments ago, but why did he care?

"Uh, h..h..hey," Cael stammered, "I don't know how I missed you, but I'm g..g..glad you're here. My truck broke down a few miles away..." Cael erupted into a coughing fit. If he didn't have pneumonia before he'd bet money he did now.

She appeared indifferent to the cold that seemed to ooze into his very bones. She just stood there staring at him. Her extremely casual and curious demeanor made him uneasy for some reason, but he quickly shoved the notion away. He needed help, and here was someone that could help. Finally something was going right for a change.

"I've been walking a long way, as you c.c.can see I'm not really dressed for the occasion." Cael rubbed the arms of his leather jacket he had zipped up to his chin. Underneath he only wore a sweater and a t-shirt. His jeans were so useless to the cold that they might as well have been made of paper. He was from California, he wore flip flops and shorts in the winters there. He really wished he stayed there at the moment. Where did he get the idea that heading for Toronto would be a good idea?

"Um, i.i.if you could tell me where I could find a motel or something, hell an open restaurant, you would be my f.f.freaking hero." He blew into his hands and rubbed them together, but he still couldn't feel anything. He lost feeling in his feet and his lower legs around the time he reached the outskirts of Harper Rock. This made walking a bit of a problem. He was starting to think maybe he should ask her to call an ambulance.

[Eureka]

Eureka’s laugh was slow and warm, but ultimately amused. The man was mistaking her for a good Samaritan, an upstanding citizen who wanted nothing more than to find this wayward traveller a place to stay, to get warm. The laughter petered out to be replaced with a concerned frown – or what Eureka assumed looked concerned.

”That’s such an awful story. I’m sorry you’re having such bad luck,” she said, reaching out to brush snow from the man’s shoulder as if he were a piece of meat accidentally dropped in the dirt, and she was executing the ten-second rule, brushing the dirt from the meat so that she could eat it. Though Eureka had never minded a bit of dirt.

”I know a way I can warm you up. Get your blood pumping. Adrenaline, yeah? It’s …holistic,” she said, taking another step closer. Even if he did try to struggle, even if he did run, Eureka knew he wouldn’t get very far. Not in his current state. When she curled her fingers around his neck, his skin felt colder than hers. He was almost cold-blooded. How long had he been walking? She didn’t care. She wasn’t concerned in the slightest.

It took less than a second and she had pounced. Like an animal, like an octopus, she attempted to wrap her legs around his waist. She clung to him while her teeth sought the vein beneath the rough skin of his neck – or any other piece of barely-hot flesh she could find. She would get at the blood underneath. The blood would be hot. This wouldn’t help to warm the poor guy up at all, but it’d help give a healthy flush to the vampire’s skin.

Eureka had a feeling she wouldn’t just leave this one to die, though. No. She was bored. She was in the mood to play. She wanted to play.

[CaelNolVinci (DELETED 9092)]

Cael heard about vampires in Harper Rock. Everyone had. He just didn't believe it. One day all the sudden the media proclaims vampires are real and living in Harper Rock, some sort of washed up actor publishes a book claiming to be a vampire, and he's just supposed to eat it up? Just like that? Oh yeah werewolves exist too, and the tooth fairy, and Santa as a matter of fact, you had it right when you were eight. All the monsters that lurk in the dark, just waiting to bite or claw or whatever monsters like to do to hapless fools that wander in their path, they're all real now. So, you know, finish that bowl of cereal and have a great day! How could Cael believe it? Easier to suspend disbelief. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. Sometimes it's fatal.

It was on the radio as he crossed the Canadian border. Some talk show guy, some random caller, "Vampires are just people you know. They aren't all blood thirsty killers, you can't stereotype every vampire you encounter, that's just ignorance if you ask me..."
"Can you believe this s***," Cael remarked to the customs officer, "Is everyone losing their f******* minds?" The customs officer, named Paul if you looked at his name tag, gave Cael a somber look and a slight nod, "I've been doing this job for 20 years. I thought I've seen it all. I truly did, but I'm telling you, and I can't believe I am, there are indeed vampires in Harper Rock, and it is safe to assume they could be encountered anywhere during your stay in Canada. Everyone says they are nice, or just like people, or whatever, like that fellow on the radio... just watch your back out there. I know I'm watching mine. These are strange times, indeed sir, strange times." He gripped the sterling silver cross on his neck tightly as he spoke those words. Maybe that's why Cael decided to drive through Harper Rock. Maybe he had to see for himself. Of course he wouldn't admit it. It was just on the way, just a stop.

It all happened so fast. She was just a pretty perky red head. A little quirky maybe, but such a sight for sore on the verge of icing over eyes. He didn't think much as she brushed his shoulder off. Then she stepped a little closer, ”I know a way I can warm you up. Get your blood pumping. Adrenaline, yeah? It’s …holistic,” Something in her voice raised the alarm bells again. Before he could react her hand was on his neck, painfully squeezing with amazing strength. Then she was on him. She leaped onto him savagely, faster than he could blink. Cael could do nothing to prevent her legs from wrapping around him, completing her predatory lunge. He cried out in pain and complete terror as he felt a sharp pain in his neck. Was she biting him? He struggled to unlatch the red head, push her off, knock her off, something, anything, but her grip was absolute. As the vampire fed, by now Cael knew exactly what she was, Cael's legs gave out and he flopped down onto the snowy pavement. He had no fight in him or a chance if he did. He was slipping away. It was just a matter of moments.

[Eureka]

The redhead wanted to tell the man all about his blood, how it tasted. How, in all that time he was freezing, needing shelter, his blood had remained hot. In fact, it was probably why he felt so cold. Warm-blooded creatures had that issue. The blood surged into Eureka’s hungry mouth and was eagerly swallowed. The blood of a foreigner, of a stranger. It was almost exotic, and yet Eureka drank too fast to really appreciate it.

She did feel the way the blood boosted her own system, the way the warmth of it spread through her own limbs. It was always a high, feeding. It was the best thing in the world, if you asked her. Some vampires wouldn’t agree. Some would. Some had no thoughts on it at all. Eureka was a special case, however. She wasn’t one of the good ones. She was probably one of the ones who helped let the cat out of the bag. Regardless of any trouble she might have got in, she never was very good at keeping anything a secret. Skulking and cleaning up after herself just were not her strengths.

Her body went down with her prey’s, but that didn’t mean she loosened her hold none. With one hand pressed up against his chest, she waited for his heart to slow to an excruciatingly slow pace. Only then did she crawl off of his inert body to crouch beside him, tearing a hole in her own wrist to let the blood bubble to the surface. As red as his, it dripped from the wound that she purposefully widened with her own finger; she held it up over his slightly parted mouth, watching as the blood dripped, dripped onto his tongue.

She waited for the magic to take hold; she waited for his tastebuds to recognise the power that touched them. She waited, and watched – much like someone watched ants carrying a dead friend home, or moths breaking free of cocoons. She watched with a quiet glee, an avid fascination, waiting for the wings to spread and the moth to fly.

[CaelNolVinci (DELETED 9092)]

At first he couldn't feel anything. There was cold, and fear, and pain, then it all slipped away. Like a dream the moment you open your eyes. Her red hair, the snow, the night sky...fade to black. No sound, no fury. Was this death? Shouldn't there be a light? No, he was still breathing. This was a cliff. Then he did feel something. Something warm, something wet, when he licked his lips it was like an electric jolt. His eyes opened. While his vision was blurred, all he could see clearly was the blood. His whole being was its taste, its energy, its life. Without thinking he reached for the source. He grasped her wrist eagerly and brought it to his mouth. He would have more of her blood. He never wanted anything more.

[Eureka]

The man reacted like dead flesh reacting to the jolt of a defibrillator. One second he was out cold and the next he was grabbing for her wrist and slurping at her blood like it was the life-giving fountain of youth. It may as well have been. Eureka's laughter cut through the stillness of the snow-stifled air, red-tinged teeth gleaming in the low light.

"Yes," she said, jovial shout. "Yes, yes yes..." she purred, rocking once as she felt the blood being pulled from her body. It was filling the body of the man in her grasp, and he would be hers. Whether or not he claimed it, it would never matter. He would always be hers. Her blood would always have been the source that brought him back to life. His immortality would be owed to her -- if he made it that far.

A wave of dizziness threatened the edges of Eureka's mind, but she pushed it back. She let him take what he needed, let him swallow and consume until the blood started to do its job.

[CaelNolVinci (DELETED 9092)]

Slowly as Cael drank he began to come back to himself. He was reacting on an instinctual level. His eyes widened as he realized what he was doing, and then what had recently occurred flooded back to him instantly. He took his mouth away from the woman's bloody wrist and released it like he was holding onto something scolding hot. He sat up and scooted away from the woman a couple of feet and stopped. He stared at her for a second. She looked absolutely elated. She was smiling, strangely beautiful and somewhat vicious all at the same time, joy and fascination swam in her stare. Cael licked his lips and tasted her blood. It tasted better than anything he had ever had. It was her blood he was drinking. He was dead, or dying, and it quickened him. He felt warm, strong, more lucid than he ever had before, although a little confused at the moment. A wave of panic washed over him. He looked at the woman, the vampire, and asked a question that he sort of already knew the answer to, "What the f*** did you just do to me?"

[Eureka]

Yes, the incredulity and the fear. Eureka remembered it. She remembered the way she'd kicked and screamed, the way she'd questioned Chad and spat at him, hissing like a stray cat in the grip of the pound. Now, she could not thank Chad enough. There was no resentment that, after showing her the ropes he'd left her to her own devices. He'd given to her the kind of freedom no human could ever hope for. Yes, there were boundaries. The sun, the curses, but there was power, too. And she was not beholden to 'the man', nor would she ever again agree to be.

"I have given to you a life you could never dream of, darling," she said, still grinning like a banshee.

"I have saved you from the grips of an ordinary dull life. I have given you eternity. And power... oh, power like you've never known," she said, crawling forward on all fours, wanting only to be closer to her newest creation.

"... it is a gift."