Grave Requests [Alaric]

[Aurelia]

Backdated to 4/29/18

A U R E L I A |
Death had never been something Aurelia was unaware of. As a medium, she was surrounded by what came after from a young age. The young, the old, the frail. It was never a force that would pick and choose, no one could escape from it - that was something she had always believed until she’d met an actual vampire. Rumors were one thing, but to meet the actual patriarch of her family... it had been unreal. She had always known about death and respected it. She helped the spirits where she can. Despite this, however, Aurelia had never seen death first hand, not in a violent fashion.

That is, until now. Harper Rock had never been her favorite place in the world, but it was home. And now, her home was swarming with zombies. It had been happening for almost two months now, going on three, and Aurelia still wasn’t used to it. It shouldn’t have surprised her when someone turned in front of her. It shouldn’t have caused her to fall when the shambling creature overpowered her, but when she found herself on the ground, she didn’t know quite what to think. The knife she had been carrying did the initial trick, but it hadn’t stopped some gun toting moron from shooting at the creature.

Even after she’d wiped off her face, Aurelia still could feel as if there were still blood and bits clinging to her form. She had never been one to fear death, but as she made her way to her jeep, she began to think otherwise. There was a discussion about it in the past with Alaric. That he would turn her if the time came, if she wanted it. Aurelia had accepted the offer, but asked for time. Now, Aurelia made her way through the family compound. Her mind was made up, a bit of blood still on her shirt.


A L A R I C |
Alaric had noticed the zombies. Of course he had. How could he not? With his fingers now in the respective von der Marck pies, and von der Marck Industries now in his control (mostly, with a board of men and women to help him to make decisions) he could see where the money was going. And could suggest where it should go instead. He'd helped to form a charity for those displaced by the zombie plague; it hadn't spread too far out, and there were still habitable parts of the city. Not everyone could afford to evacuate.

Where the library had once been his refuge, it remained so. Alaric did not take his work there. Instead, he'd set up an office elsewhere in the Estate. The room was sparse, the elder reluctant to furnish it further, to make it permanent. Honestly, the elder was considering downsizing, moving somewhere smaller where the halls weren't so vast nor so constantly empty. It was difficult to find somewhere just right, somewhere that fit his preferences. And he had time.

He'd spread papers across the desk in the makeshift office. There was a laptop nearby but it wasn't on; he only ever used it when strictly required, though he slowly practiced his telepathic ability to connect to the 'web' without electronic assistance. There he sat in silence; he'd dressed in suit slacks, a pinstripe shirt and a vest. If he had to go out, he'd pull on the jacket. Alaric von der Marck could rarely be found dressed in anything less than semi-formal.


A U R E L I A |
She knew she had a room within the halls, a room where she could go change. Instead, she chose not to go to it - she could have gone home, to Evangeline or even to her parents home, but she felt she’d change her mind. For the first time in her thirty years of life, Aurelia felt her mortality. She felt the significant amount of fear that came with the blood soaking through her shirt, the saliva dripping that she could very well have her last day on earth. She didn’t want to change her mind. She knew what she wanted - she knew where to find solace with it. And with a long steady stride, dodging a few spirits here and there, including the little girl named Maddie whom she was fond of, she made her way to the library.

It was as she walked, however, Aurelia took notice that there were more spirits than the last time she’d walked. People she didn’t remember, some faces that she did. Faces of ancestors and their descendants. Some were faces of others who couldn’t be von der Marcks causing her to pause mid step. Her ice blue eyes studied what she knew to be Asian features - maybe someone from before it was von der Marck land? Her lips parted to ask a question before she reminded herself why she was there. Her hand lifted to the side of her neck, brushing the skin. It was sticky there, causing her to recoil as she didn’t know what substance she was touching. Was it saliva? Was it blood? Was it the zombies blood, or was it her own? She couldn’t feel any sting - but that didn’t mean anything.

It was with that thought that Aurelia hurried. She made no attempt not to half run down the hall. As a child, her grandmother would have scolded her for it in German. Her grandfather would have laughed, teasing her about running from the dead. But as Aurelia knocked once and stepped inside, she was a bit paper than she normally was. Her freckles stood out more, her concern evident on her features. “Alaric.” She greeted.



A L A R I C |
Alaric knew as soon as Aurelia entered the estate. He was always aware of who was there and who was not, and lately it was more the latter than the former. His mind, though closed to electronics, was always open to family; it was like being in control of numerous mental rivers and he was master of the switches that opened certain dams and kept others closed. Though there were those in his family who would not have the power of telepathy, all they needed to do was think about him. All they needed to do was mentally reach for their elder and he would open that door and allow them in, and the two-way conversation thereafter.

Aurelia didn't open that connection, she didn't request it. Instead, Alaric could feel as she got closer, then closer still. And then he could hear her, her footsteps hasty. Alaric was already looking at the door, waiting for the knock and for the entrance. Aurelia stepped inside and immediately, the elder could tell something was wrong. Her features were pale. She was tense. And her scent was... well, not her own. Not entirely. There was blood. Alaric put down the contract he'd been reading and stood, the chair easily rolling out from beneath him. He did rather enjoy some new modern inventions, one of which being the rolling chair.

"Aurelia. What is wrong? What have you been doing?" he asked in English, accent thick. He was still in the practice of speaking English wherever possible; it was better for business, if he spoke it fluently.


A U R E L I A |
She didn’t know if she was nervous or if she was ill from what had transpired, but she was shaken. Aurelia would be lying if she said she was alright. She made no attempt to fix her straw colored hair, or to straighten it as she normally would. Her expression wasn’t haunted, nor was it wild, but her unease was clear. She wiped her palms on the front of her jeans, ignoring the redness on her skin. “I was attacked, by a zombie.” Never in her life had Aurelia ever expected to say those words.

She’d always been one to roll her eyes at horror films. She’d never believed the ideas that zombies could walk the earth even if she was capable of seeing spirits all her life. She didn’t think they were simply ill. Soulless creatures, really, was what she considered. Those who were ripped from their bodies without knowing. “I was out - I’m usually out. Just trying to get some air.” She knew it was a weird statement given the fact Aurelia lived opposite of the infection zone. She liked to get out - she didn’t like being indoors. “There’s been more spirits appearing.” She explained.

“And one just...” She made a clawing motion with her hands. “I went down. I stabbed it and then someone shot it and I...” Before she knew it, Aurelia felt the tears that threatened to fall. She didn’t like to cry. She stopped talking long enough that she was trying to calm herself. To process it. When she was calmer, she squeaked out, “I was this close from becoming dinner.” She didn’t think herself weak. Not growing up with as many cousins as she did, not growing up having to deal with Arielle. She could throw a punch with the best of them, use a sword from her time when fencing. But this was different.


A L A R I C |
At first Alaric stared. He waited for the rest of the story. He'd moved from behind the desk to the front of it, leaning against it, gesturing for Aurelia to come in further, should she want to. To sit, if she needed to. There was an armchair, too, which Alaric had been told was quite comfortable. Zombies, to Alaric, were like flies. They were irritants that he could drop with the clap of a hand. They didn't present a challenge; but he had to remember that Aurelia was not a centuries-old vampire. She was not even a year-old vampire. She was a human who had, before not too long ago, had no idea about the scope of the supernatural world. Sure, she'd dealt with spirits. But they weren't physical. They could hurt her, but not the same way a zombie could.

Alaric also had to remember that not everyone would be used to seeing such gore, such death and violence. When Alaric looked at a zombie he saw only himself. He saw what he thought he ought to look like; he saw what he sometimes felt, living inside. It was unnatural to live beyond one's human lifespan, but here he was. What, exactly, did his insides look like? They couldn't be pink and fleshy and healthy like that of a human being with a beating heart. He imagined death, rot, and ash. It wasn't as confronting as it used to be.

"You will be alright," Alaric said, a frown settled upon his features. "A hot bath, some time..." he added. And when she fell asleep, Alaric would watch over her dreams. He'd do what he could to keep the nightmares at bay; at least while he was able. "We can spar, tomorrow night. Once you have rested. We will practice, so when you are confronted you will defend yourself..." he said. There was nothing like confidence to banish one's fears.


A U R E L I A |
In some ways, Aurelia wasn't sure if she wanted to run or scream. She didn't know if she wanted to cry. Her emotions were wound tight, her fears echoing around her. Death was one thing, even vampires were one thing, but zombies? To walk around mindlessly until someone put a bullet or knife through your skull? It was... To Aurelia, it was a fate worse than death, really. It took her several moments before she was able to walk further into the library and made her way to the armchair. She sank into it as if she had been standing all day, as if she were a rubber band that had finally reached its snapping point. It was not Aurelia's typical way of sitting and it was evident in her movements that she had been rattled more than she cared to admit.

When Alaric offered to spar, to teach her to defend herself, Aurelia didn't quite know what to say. Mentally, she was embarrassed because that was something - she knew how to defend herself. She'd grown up with a handful of male cousins and had Arielle for sister. Lavender, a friend from school, had often been in trouble. Aurelia had been called odd in school until she'd landed a well aimed fist once. She'd studied martial arts, but it'd been a while. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt, perhaps she'd be able to learn more from Alaric. 'But what if he sees you were not as incapable of self defense as you come across now? Will he be disappointed?' She wondered to herself and scolded afterwards.

She remained quiet as if she were considering it before eventually, Aurelia sat up. She gave a soft shake of her head, although it wasn't entirely to him. It was to everything. "Alaric, do you remember your previous offer in regards to turning us, the one you made to my cousins and I?" She asked, hesitantly. Aurelia had considered vampirism. She hadn't thought the time was right, she thought she could do more to help vampires as a human and she had. "I do not ask this on a whim, either. The incident this evening... it's shown me why it could be an option."

[Alaric von der Marck]

A L A R I C |
The suggestion had been made months ago. More than that. A year, longer? The family had been issued a proposition and it was up to them whether they wished to take it or leave it. Alaric himself, when offering, felt as if he were standing on the edge of a knife, still uncertain about his feelings toward the offer. Eternity came with sacrifices. Human sacrifices like a family, a true family. Alaric had created a family before his death and thus that was not a sacrifice he'd made, but his position in said family had been irrevocably changed. So new to the life of vampirism, he'd not been able to be the father he ought to have been for his sons. Anja had done the best that she could in the time that she was given, and their sons were raised into good men, regardless. But Alaric still mourned for all the moments that he had missed.

None, at the time, had taken him up on his offer which both provided the elder relief and grief. What if none ever would wish for eternal life? What if none ever wished to make those sacrifices? Would he doomed to always watch those he loved and cared for, die? To continue on like a pillar, stolid and unmoving as time rushed past him, in hurry to get to nowhere? And they must be ready, regardless. Simply wanting what Alaric offered was not enough. For example, should Leonie come forward now, in her current state, to say that she wanted to become a vampire, Alaric would say no. There were things she would need to do, first.

Aurelia, on the other hand, was a voice of reason. She acted on common sense and was mature beyond her years. Perhaps it was her gift that had made it so. To hear those words pass her lips ensnared Alaric's full attention, until he was sitting down in front of her, holding her hand in his, waiting until he could look her in the eye. "It is something you have wanted before this evening?" he asked. Although she had said she was not asking on a whim, it sounded as if this incident spurred her actions. "You must be absolutely certain, Aurelia. It cannot be undone..."


A U R E L I A |
Although her decision to return to Harper Rock had been a spur of the moment one, Aurelia did not typically do anything in haste. She liked to plan things, to do research. She liked to make sure nothing could fall to pieces and that her decisions were one that she could live through. Leaving Toronto without hesitation, without really planning, had come because she was hurt. It had happened because she was betrayed and the walls were closing in quickly. She'd felt boxed in. The offer that Alaric had made, however, had been one that lingered in Aurelia's mind. It resurfaced not when she felt boxed in, but when she'd been alone with her thoughts in the evening. It had happened while she'd be at work, standing at the printer as she waited for the files for her girlfriend's business to come through. It happened when she was standing in line with the grocery store, waiting to pay and consider. She had time, she'd considered it enough.

Her only drawback, really, was the fact she hadn't spoken to Evangeline about it. She hadn't talked to Arielle about it, nor Judah. They were people who loved her dearly, those she held closest to her heart other than Alaric, but she knew they would understand. That they would accept her. After all, she'd been seeing ghosts for the majority of her life and none of them had run the opposite way. Not her cousin, her sister, nor her girlfriend. In some ways, she felt the prickle of excitement with the uncertainty. In other ways, it was a comfort. Alaric was there to teach her. She would know who turned her, rather than being attacked in the streets. Every step she made outside of the family home, out of the walls of her own home, was a game of chance.
When she felt the elder's cold hands grasp hers, Aurelia lifted her gaze to his and held it. Her ice blue eyes held only certainty as she said, "I've been thinking on this for months now. Yes, my run in with the zombie made me realize my mortality... but if not now, when? There will always be danger in this city. I am not weak."

The narrowing of her eyes held no trace of anger before she glanced behind him at the sight of movement. A young woman, ghostly in death. Aurelia couldn't make out her features other than that they were similar to her own - a von der Marck. The spirit looked towards Aurelia and their gaze met briefly before the spirit glanced to the man. A glimmer of recognition appeared and then the spirit disappeared. Her eyebrows furrowed, "Haven't seen that happen before. Odd. I think you scared off a spirit, Alaric." Aurelia's ice blue eyes returned back to the man, "But yes. I'm absolutely certain on my decision. I would like for you to turn me."


A L A R I C |
Alaric’s nod was grim, but Aurelia had never struck him as a woman who decided things on a whim. She was level-headed. If this was what she wanted, if it was something she’d been thinking about for months, then he would not deny her. Though he had not performed this ritual on anyone else, Alaric had often thought about it. Centuries of research had given him the knowledge that he required, and though other vampires might have different approaches – or no approach at all – Alaric was different.

Men and women these days were so dismissive of the things that ought to have been important. To hold a woman’s hand, when he’d been human, had been a privilege. To dance with her was one of the only ways a man could know a woman. These days a man and a woman could kiss within hours of knowing each other. They could have sex without knowing each other’s names; they called it freedom, but Alaric called it recklessness. It led only to hollowness, shallowness, to broken hearts and diseases. Some vampires turned people they did not know. Some did so on dirty street corners, with no preamble, no warning. Alaric would never be one of those vampires.


“It will not be here,” he said. “It will be down in the tunnels. And it will not be tonight. Tomorrow night. There are some vampires who cannot change their appearance once they have been turned. Their hair will always return to the state it was when turned even after being cut, for example. It would grow no longer. Bitte, I ask that you go. Bathe yourself, make sure that you are as you would be for eternity,” Alaric said. “Think, another day. And we will do it downstairs, where I was resurrected,” Alaric said. Aurelia had not been there, but she would know the place. “Is there anyone you wish to have with you? The process is not pretty. There will be pain. When it is done, you will be hungry…”


A U R E L I A |
There were things that Aurelia wasn't sure about when it came to vampirism. Drinking blood, for example, that was a significant change. It would be something she would have to do daily. But, it was a price that she knew wouldn't be too awful to pay for what she would gain in the future. She lifted her hand and brushed it through her hair, a tremor present until she balled her fist afterwards. Nerves, frustrations. She didn't know which caused it as she let out a quiet sigh and nodded.

A shower would be nice. Aurelia couldn't deny it. Even where she'd gotten most of the blood off her, she could feel the way it had remained on her skin - it was as if a film lingered there. "What is the process?" The blonde asked as she scratched at her wrist with her nails. "To know, not to back out." It was better to know what she would need, what she would be going through. It was better to know than to not know. "And I understand, I will." Aurelia didn't understand how many vampires were there in the world, the different types of them, but she was a fast learner.

Aurelia thought of her family. Of Arielle and Evangeline, of Judah. Of the other von der Marcks she’d grown up with, laughed with. After a few moments, however, she shook her head. “If I’m going to want blood afterwards, I don’t want anyone to be put in danger. You and I will be enough.”



A L A R I C |
Alaric nodded. He recalled how hungry he had been when he'd been turned. The difference, however, was that he had not had a guiding hand. It was a hunger he had denied until he couldn't anymore, and then he became a monster. How many had died in the nights following his change because he hadn't know what he was nor how to control himself? It would be different for Aurelia, but her reasoning was sound. Just in case, it would be better to keep the family at bay.

The process of how he had been turned was not one that he remembered, but it was one he had researched since. It was not the same as all the mythology would have told him. "I must first drain you of your blood," he said, a part of the process he had thought about at great length. It would be too messy to let the one being turned to bleed out. It would be more meaningful if he, Alaric, were to do it. It worried him, only because it had been centuries since he had tasted the blood of a human. "When you are at the point of death, you will drink my blood. You will take as much as you can, until you feel the change. It will not be hard to miss. Your human body will die. Your organs, one by one, they will die. Your heart will stop. Your body will become immortal, almost indestructible. It will last an hour, perhaps two. Everything that your body does not need, it will purge," he said. He himself could remember terrible illness.

Alaric would need the night, too, to think. To prepare himself for what he must do -- the thing that he had never done before. There was trepidation and anxiety, but he could not deny the relief, too. The relief was quietly profound.


A U R E L I A |
For a time, Aurelia was silent. It was a bit overwhelming, although she wouldn’t admit it. Her eyebrows furrowed, her bottom lip being bitten in sign of thought. What was she getting herself into? There would be no returning to the way she was now. She knew this. The decision was to be final and she knew that she was sure. But to hear it… Her mind drifted towards the spirits that she’d met through her life, how many had chosen their fate? How many had it taken away from them? Aurelia knew that this was the best way for her to go, to be reborn as a vampire and have an infinite amount of control over that aspect of her person.

Children born of her own body was something that Aurelia had never given much thought to. She had never entertained the idea, but as she sat there, there was no concern over it. She and her girlfriend, that was if Evangeline still chose to date her after her decision, could adopt if they ever got to that point. Her family line was still going on through her cousins, so the need to carry the name wasn’t significant. As Aurelia listened to Alaric, she was only gaining more and more certainty, although the process itself was almost daunting.

“Have you done this before?” She found herself asking before she could stop. Aurelia trusted Alaric, regardless of the answer. After all, he hadn’t harmed any one of the von der Marck name. He knew what he was doing, as well. The need to clear her schedule wasn’t something that she would need to do, either. She would go to work and close the office as she always did, perhaps early to go and spend time with her parents - she didn’t know when she would be able to bring herself to see them next. Although, she knew that she would only see them once she had control.

“And are you alright with this? To grant me the desire to become a vampire?” She knew the offer had been there, but her blue eyes showed her concern of the elder as she studied him.



A L A R I C |
There were times that Alaric had considered it, turning others. It had never come to fruition. No one had ever asked, and after the struggled he himself had been through he'd not wanted to subject anyone to it, either. Not if they didn't want it. Not if there wasn't a reason. It was only in the last few years before his death that he had truly considered it, that he had made plans for it. Discussions were had with those who would take their places at his side. But then the world had turned on its head. He’d been betrayed and killed. His legacy would not have lived on in those he might have turned, anyway, he later found out. They’d have been slaughtered too, eventually, and they’d have been stuck in the realm with no way out. At least he could assume they lived long and fruitful lives, and did not die before their time.

And now, in this modern age, humanity knew about vampires and the reaction, thus far, had not been completely negative. Some time had passed and though the rift had widened and there were issues within the city, they had not been wiped out. There was no gathering of torches and pitchforks to put all the vampires to death. If and when he turned others, he would do all that he could to keep them save them from the fate that he had endured. He shook his head.
“I have not sired anyone before. You will be the first,” he said, though he uttered the words with an unfettered confidence. It didn’t matter to him that he had not done it before. He knew how it was to be done, and though there was a small fear that something might go wrong, it wasn’t large enough to cause him to doubt the process, or what was required for it to be successful.

“If it is what you want, I will grant it,” he said. “It is not an offer I will have made if it is not something that I was willing to do,” he said. In Aurelia’s case, at least, this was true. For the others, things had changed and further discussions would be required—though none had asked, and it was not something he needed to worry about just yet.



A U R E L I A |
Growing up, Aurelia had heard the stories of how Alaric von der Marck had died. Not only were they whispers from her grandfather, but from the lips of the deceased members of the family who still wandered the halls. There were family members of all generations that still wandered the halls, talking to her and asking for messages to be passed along. She knew the violence between humans and vampires were not anything like the ease and comfort of acceptance that her generation had taken. Then again, Aurelia supposed they were a generation of diversity and didn't feel anyone needed to be left out.

Even vampires.

Still, the news that Aurelia would be his first childe had her intrigued. There were questions sitting on her tongue, but she didn't think it would be needed. The confidence in the elder eased her mind. He knew what he would be doing and Aurelia knew that she wanted to be turned. She might of been jittery, but her icy blue eyes showed every ounce of her desire. "I appreciate this, Alaric, and that you are willing to discuss it." She said. There was an itchiness to her skin from where the blood had sank into her clothes; the idea of changing into something more comfortable before it would all be done was a bit of a godsend.

"And, I do want it."



A L A R I C |
Alaric nodded. It was decided, then. He stood and straightened, and gestured to the door. "You should bathe," he said. "And you will think. When the sun rises you will enjoy your last opportunity to experience the sunlight, and all that the hours offer. Make the most of your last day, and at sundown meet me in the ritual room," he said. There were things that Alaric would prepare, too. In the past, when he'd thought about how he might go about turning another, he'd thought that he would capture a wolf, or some such other animal. Something alive, something full of vibrant blood upon which the newly turned would feed. In this day and age there was no need for anything so crude. All he had to do was visit one of those shops and purchase a few blood bags. Hunting would come later.

After Aurelia had left the room, Alaric sat back down. He stared into space for a good while; he might have looked dead, had anyone happened upon him. He might have looked like a statue, but he was alive in all the ways that mattered. His mind was at work, considering, musing, thinking. Eventually he would turn to his journal and he would write, and would read a little more before heading out to purchase the blood packs he had determined he would get.

The next night when he woke he dressed simply but smartly; the process was one that he knew, but that didn't mean he didn't have his own anxieties. They were anxieties he would not share with Aurelia, as this was a big change for her. There was enough for her to worry about already without thinking her elder was not up to the task. Mostly, however, Alaric was optimistic and, deep down, relieved. He had hoped that one of the von der Marck would take him up on his offer, eventually. It was a greater responsibility, yes -- he would need to teach Aurelia the ways of being immortal, would have to help her through the losses. But, neither of them would be alone.

It was only fifteen minutes after sundown that he found himself walking into the ritual room. He chose this place for its significance -- it was a place of death and rebirth. It was a place for rituals, of which a siring was one, in Alaric's opinion. A siring should never happen the way it had happened to him, and he would do all that he could do avoid such occurrences -- and would impress upon those he sired to do the same.