Years later...
I
was perched on the roof of a building watching the human race go by,
down below, like tiny ants. It was dark, though not yet midnight.
Standing up, I moved closer to one of the towers on top of the
building, wanting to protect my back, so no one or nothing could come
up behind me. It was wintertime and the building was near the ocean,
so it was cold and misty wet.
The wind whipped the bottom of my trench bringing with it the smell of the Pacific Ocean and wet concrete. My dark brown, sable colored hair was pulled back, tight, in a bun, unable to feel the wind whipping through it. I had my hair confined because I couldn't afford to to have it hinder my vision or be used against me in a fight. My outfit, that matched my austere hair, was my favorite. All black leather, though fashioned more like buckskin. It had a matte finish, so it didn't reflect light. Lightweight, soft, feathery, quiet.
All seemed quiet, I thought, so I let my mind wander tonight, thinking back to my childhood...
She had seen her parents killed as a young girl and had been taken in by an old gypsy woman. Ages ago it was, or so it seemed. Thanks to her parents, she was part vampire, part human. We were part of a sect to protect humans.
Though it was highly discouraged, she went and fell in love with a human. She followed his soul from one life to the next, protecting him, loving him. She would watch, as his soul was reborn over the centuries. As he grew up, she watched over him. Sometimes he had a family, sometimes not, but in all things she watched over him. She was allowed to help him where she could, except with natural causes.
The first time she fallen in love with him had been in the 1700's. She had been a young girl in human years, working in his household. The old gypsy woman had gotten her the job. He had been the Earl, she had been a maid. His soul traveled through the ages. From being an Earl to a merchantman. Scouting across the US, through various occupations, to what he was now. A stuntman. He would age and die. She had to live through the heartache.
It was now 2004. She was about 25 in human years, about 400 in vampire years. She was a Watcher, a protector of the human race. Her ancestry allowed her to move in the daytime or nighttime. She preferred the night though, as she felt better then, because it hid her face and it helped hide her emotions.
My quiet night was interrupted when I felt someone else. It was Colin, my best friend. Probably my only friend, having met him the first day of my training. He just didn't let my standoffish personality get in his way of imparting fun and sarcasm. He loved trying to get on my last nerve. But upon his next words, it wasn't going to be tonight.
"Colin, what brings you here? I thought you were hanging with the surf crowd," I asked, not looking at him, standing still with my arms crossed over my chest, trying to exhibit an air of disinterest.
"Am. Was. I really like the whole surf thing. Major fun," he said with a smile in his voice, a bit of Keannu Reeves coming through. Colin loved movies. But his pacing reflected his anxiousness to fight the demons and to let Caitlyn know her human was their target.
"Then what's up?" trying to sound irritated.
"Caitlyn. We think something is going down tonight. With the full moon, the demon activity is high," Colin said, looking at me, then out over the street below.
"Why me? I am not necessarily on duty tonight," I replied, looking out over the tops of the buildings.
"They think the demons are on the move, close by, and they think your human may be one of the targets," Colin said, with sympathy. He knew of my love for my human.
That got my attention. Looking at Colin, I said, "Well, let's go."
The two of us walked to the side of the building that faced the alley and leapt off. Our trenches were designed to help us glide to the ground. Landing lightly on our feet, we walked to the corner of the building, standing in the shadows. With my back to the wall, the cold wet stone against my hands, I looked out onto the street. I saw a local pub down the street, which had been my intent all along. Light from the electric sign illuminated the street. The door to the pub was like a strobe light with so many people going in and out. It was a Friday night, but dang, there were a lot of humans.
I started to feel my heart beat faster. At that moment my human came out of the bar. He was with friends. I watched as he said goodbye to his friends and cross the street. As if in slow motion I watched a set of headlights come on and the car start speeding towards him. Colin and I started running. I ran hard, not sure if I would reach him in time. As I was running, other demons went after his friends, leaving the other watchers to battle them, Colin included.
I reached my human and pushed him out of the way just as the car slammed into me. He rolled and I flew over across the hood, over the top of the car and fell to the ground, unconscious. The car sped away, no doubt filled with demons. Colin saw what happened and reached me at the same time as my human.
Colin grabbed the man's lapel and said, "Get her out of here. Now!"
The human, somewhat confused, not understanding what was going on, but sensed the urgency and fear in the young man's voice and just nodded his consent, while looking down at this woman who had just saved his life.
"Maybe I should call an ambulance?" he said as an after thought.
"NO. Don't call the police or anyone else," Colin growled, "just get her out of here. She'll be OK in awhile."
The human, with the help of Colin picked her up and carried her to his truck. The young man took off as soon as he saw Caitlyn was OK.
He drove along PCH (Pacific Coast Highway), finally reaching Santa Monica. He had a small little bungalow right on the beach. He was glad for the truck because the seats put her at the right height to slide her out and carry her. He didn't have to lift her out of some ground scraping little car. He made it into the house and over to the couch, laying her down. Staring down at the woman he realized she was very beautiful, Judging by the paleness of her skin, she was not a lover of sun tanning as was done by most L.A. females. He wondered if maybe her and her friends had been to some rock concert as she was dressed all in black.
He removed the pins that were holding her hair in place at the back of her neck, so she wasn't laying on that knot of hair. Spreading out her hair, he couldn't help touching it. It was thick and soft to the touch. A dark sable brown with some red highlights. He managed to remove her clothes, noticing the bruises she attained during his rescue. Making himself comfortable he sat next to her, nursing a drink, keeping watch over her, but ultimately fell asleep.
The wind whipped the bottom of my trench bringing with it the smell of the Pacific Ocean and wet concrete. My dark brown, sable colored hair was pulled back, tight, in a bun, unable to feel the wind whipping through it. I had my hair confined because I couldn't afford to to have it hinder my vision or be used against me in a fight. My outfit, that matched my austere hair, was my favorite. All black leather, though fashioned more like buckskin. It had a matte finish, so it didn't reflect light. Lightweight, soft, feathery, quiet.
All seemed quiet, I thought, so I let my mind wander tonight, thinking back to my childhood...
She had seen her parents killed as a young girl and had been taken in by an old gypsy woman. Ages ago it was, or so it seemed. Thanks to her parents, she was part vampire, part human. We were part of a sect to protect humans.
Though it was highly discouraged, she went and fell in love with a human. She followed his soul from one life to the next, protecting him, loving him. She would watch, as his soul was reborn over the centuries. As he grew up, she watched over him. Sometimes he had a family, sometimes not, but in all things she watched over him. She was allowed to help him where she could, except with natural causes.
The first time she fallen in love with him had been in the 1700's. She had been a young girl in human years, working in his household. The old gypsy woman had gotten her the job. He had been the Earl, she had been a maid. His soul traveled through the ages. From being an Earl to a merchantman. Scouting across the US, through various occupations, to what he was now. A stuntman. He would age and die. She had to live through the heartache.
It was now 2004. She was about 25 in human years, about 400 in vampire years. She was a Watcher, a protector of the human race. Her ancestry allowed her to move in the daytime or nighttime. She preferred the night though, as she felt better then, because it hid her face and it helped hide her emotions.
My quiet night was interrupted when I felt someone else. It was Colin, my best friend. Probably my only friend, having met him the first day of my training. He just didn't let my standoffish personality get in his way of imparting fun and sarcasm. He loved trying to get on my last nerve. But upon his next words, it wasn't going to be tonight.
"Colin, what brings you here? I thought you were hanging with the surf crowd," I asked, not looking at him, standing still with my arms crossed over my chest, trying to exhibit an air of disinterest.
"Am. Was. I really like the whole surf thing. Major fun," he said with a smile in his voice, a bit of Keannu Reeves coming through. Colin loved movies. But his pacing reflected his anxiousness to fight the demons and to let Caitlyn know her human was their target.
"Then what's up?" trying to sound irritated.
"Caitlyn. We think something is going down tonight. With the full moon, the demon activity is high," Colin said, looking at me, then out over the street below.
"Why me? I am not necessarily on duty tonight," I replied, looking out over the tops of the buildings.
"They think the demons are on the move, close by, and they think your human may be one of the targets," Colin said, with sympathy. He knew of my love for my human.
That got my attention. Looking at Colin, I said, "Well, let's go."
The two of us walked to the side of the building that faced the alley and leapt off. Our trenches were designed to help us glide to the ground. Landing lightly on our feet, we walked to the corner of the building, standing in the shadows. With my back to the wall, the cold wet stone against my hands, I looked out onto the street. I saw a local pub down the street, which had been my intent all along. Light from the electric sign illuminated the street. The door to the pub was like a strobe light with so many people going in and out. It was a Friday night, but dang, there were a lot of humans.
I started to feel my heart beat faster. At that moment my human came out of the bar. He was with friends. I watched as he said goodbye to his friends and cross the street. As if in slow motion I watched a set of headlights come on and the car start speeding towards him. Colin and I started running. I ran hard, not sure if I would reach him in time. As I was running, other demons went after his friends, leaving the other watchers to battle them, Colin included.
I reached my human and pushed him out of the way just as the car slammed into me. He rolled and I flew over across the hood, over the top of the car and fell to the ground, unconscious. The car sped away, no doubt filled with demons. Colin saw what happened and reached me at the same time as my human.
Colin grabbed the man's lapel and said, "Get her out of here. Now!"
The human, somewhat confused, not understanding what was going on, but sensed the urgency and fear in the young man's voice and just nodded his consent, while looking down at this woman who had just saved his life.
"Maybe I should call an ambulance?" he said as an after thought.
"NO. Don't call the police or anyone else," Colin growled, "just get her out of here. She'll be OK in awhile."
The human, with the help of Colin picked her up and carried her to his truck. The young man took off as soon as he saw Caitlyn was OK.
He drove along PCH (Pacific Coast Highway), finally reaching Santa Monica. He had a small little bungalow right on the beach. He was glad for the truck because the seats put her at the right height to slide her out and carry her. He didn't have to lift her out of some ground scraping little car. He made it into the house and over to the couch, laying her down. Staring down at the woman he realized she was very beautiful, Judging by the paleness of her skin, she was not a lover of sun tanning as was done by most L.A. females. He wondered if maybe her and her friends had been to some rock concert as she was dressed all in black.
He removed the pins that were holding her hair in place at the back of her neck, so she wasn't laying on that knot of hair. Spreading out her hair, he couldn't help touching it. It was thick and soft to the touch. A dark sable brown with some red highlights. He managed to remove her clothes, noticing the bruises she attained during his rescue. Making himself comfortable he sat next to her, nursing a drink, keeping watch over her, but ultimately fell asleep.