Thanatopsis
by William Cullen Bryant
To him who in the love of nature holds
Communion with her visible forms, she speaks
A various language; for his gayer hours
She has a voice of gladness, and a smile
And eloquence of beauty; and she glides
Into his darker musings, with a mild
And healing sympathy that steals away
Their sharpness ere he is aware. When thoughts
Of the last bitter hour come like a blight
Over thy spirit, and sad images
Of the stern agony, and shroud, and pall,
And breathless darkness, and the narrow house,
Make thee to shudder, and grow sick at heart;--
Go forth, under the open sky, and list
To Nature's teachings, while from all around--
Earth and her waters, and the depths of air--
Comes a still voice. Yet a few days, and thee
The all-beholding sun shall see no more
In all his course; nor yet in the cold ground,
Where thy pale form was laid, with many tears,
Nor in the embrace of ocean, shall exist
Thy image. Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim
Thy growth, to be resolved to earth again,
And, lost each human trace, surrendering up
Thine individual being, shalt thou go
To mix forever with the elements,
To be a brother to the insensible rock
And to the sluggish clod, which the rude swain
Turns with his share, and treads upon. The oak
Shall send his roots abroad, and pierce thy mold.
Yet not to thine eternal resting-place
Shalt thou retire alone, nor couldst thou wish
Couch more magnificent. Thou shalt lie down
With patriarchs of the infant world -- with kings,
The powerful of the earth -- the wise, the good,
Fair forms, and hoary seers of ages past,
All in one mighty sepulchre. The hills
Rock-ribbed and ancient as the sun, -- the vales
Stretching in pensive quietness between;
The venerable woods -- rivers that move
In majesty, and the complaining brooks
That make the meadows green; and, poured round all,
Old Ocean's gray and melancholy waste,--
Are but the solemn decorations all
Of the great tomb of man. The golden sun,
The planets, all the infinite host of heaven,
Are shining on the sad abodes of death
Through the still lapse of ages. All that tread
The globe are but a handful to the tribes
That slumber in its bosom. -- Take the wings
Of morning, pierce the Barcan wilderness,
Or lose thyself in the continuous woods
Where rolls the Oregon, and hears no sound,
Save his own dashings -- yet the dead are there:
And millions in those solitudes, since first
The flight of years began, have laid them down
In their last sleep -- the dead reign there alone.
So shalt thou rest -- and what if thou withdraw
In silence from the living, and no friend
Take note of thy departure? All that breathe
Will share thy destiny. The gay will laugh
When thou art gone, the solemn brood of care
Plod on, and each one as before will chase
His favorite phantom; yet all these shall leave
Their mirth and their employments, and shall come
And make their bed with thee. As the long train
Of ages glides away, the sons of men--
The youth in life's fresh spring, and he who goes
In the full strength of years, matron and maid,
The speechless babe, and the gray-headed man--
Shall one by one be gathered to thy side,
By those, who in their turn, shall follow them.
So live, that when thy summons comes to join
The innumerable caravan, which moves
To that mysterious realm, where each shall take
His chamber in the silent halls of death,
Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night,
Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed
By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave
Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.
====================
New characters:
Charemaine: Lucifel's new mortal girlfriend.
Annie: An eight-year-old vampire whose parents were both mortal.
Fiona: A vampria friend of Ava's
Spike: One of Fiona's vampire companions
====================
Drops of water feel from the thaweing ice and splashed into the slow moveing stream.
"Can we go now? My fingers are gonna fall off! Not to mention something I might need latter on!" Narsisus's voice broke into Ava's meditation. She stood slowly, takeing her own fingers from the water, realizeing that they were numb. Kyril, who had been standing nearby, was now walking towards the car. Ava silently cursed him for being so unafected by the icy air. Narsisus jumped up and down,holding her coat close around her and leaveing muddy footprints where her boots had been. The demon lord opened the passenger side door and got in the back seat, then the two women piled into the car. The slave mortal fastened her seatbelt and turned the heat up fill blast.
"The sun will be comming up soon. Mabey we should stay here and let you rest, Nar."
"I'm alright." she assured the hunter "We're only a couple hours out of town anyway."
"Day time is the only time to drive through 'The Homeland'." Kyril pointed out from the back seat between takeing his coat off and streching.
"True."
They both looked at Ava, who showed no sign of emotional discomfort. She continued to play with the radio, trying to pick up a good station.
Whose bed have your boots been under?
"It burns!" the demon coered his ears and she turned the dial.
I'm a bitch, I'm a lover
I'm a child, I'm a mother
I'm a sinner, I'm a saint
I do not feel ashamed
"Yeah!" Narsisus and Ava both cheered. Kyril turned his nose up with distaste.
"Chick music." he grumbled "Where's my stereo?"
his slave tossed him a walk-man.
"ACK! HANSON!" the headphones flew into the front seat.
"Make me iron your boxers, fucker." she snickered.
Ava gave her an aproveing half-smile.
***
"Damn." Ava looked up at the sign above the familiar building.
"Maby they're sleeping. Sunset isn't for another hour." Narsisus suggested.
The dhampire shrugged and walked through the door.
"It ain't happy hour yet, sweetheart." a well-known, dark-haied vampire behind the counter.
"Awwww. You didn't miss me? After all those times we-"
"Excuse me?! I-AVIE!" Jag jumped.
"You look like you've seen a ghost." she smiled.
"Just as likely. Where you been, Lady?"
"Around. Germany. India. Russia for a time."
"How long it been?"
She shrugged and signaled for the rest of her crew to come in. They looked to each other and took a seat at the far end of the room.
"Where are the guys?"
"Mat's...hum...probably drunk off his ass and sleeping it off with a female companion...or two if I know him. Lucifel is..."
"Are you talking or working?"
"Speak of the devil. Sorry. Bad pun."
"Hallo." Ava waved her fingers at him in a greating.
Lucie blinked before answering.
"Hi."
"Honey, I-. Hello. Who is this?" a blonde woman came out of the back room and adressed Lucifel.
Kyril and Narsisus groaned. Ava shot them a dirty look.
"I'm Ava. Lucifel's freind. " she offered her hand. "And you?"
"Charmaine. I'm Lucie's girlfreind."
"How nice. Come. Walk with me. Talk with me." she put her arm around the newcommer's shoulders. "You're a mortal right?"
"Yes."
"I'm part mortal, myself."
"AVA!" Lucifel ordered in his stern voice.
"I wasn't gonna hurt her...really."
"I'll just go upstairs." the blonde excused herself.
"You mad?" Lucifel asked once she was out of earshot.
"In what sense of the word? Crazy, yes..."
"Be serious."
"Not really. I half expected it."
"She's reall sweet, and beautiful, and-"
"I said I wasn't angry, not to tell me how great she is."
"Sorry. Well, I better go see what she needs me for..." he turned tail and sauntered upstairs.
"My how time changes us all." Jag shoock his head, drying a glass. "Charmaine. What a broad. Perfect. You know the type. Want to hate her but don't have the heart too."
"I'm not upset. Really." Ava smiled.
"I didn't say you were. I just think she's a twit."
"Yeah, yeah." she put on an apron and walked over to Narsisus and Kyril's table. "So, what can I get ya?"
***
"You don't need to do that." Charmaine took the tray from Ava. "It's enough for Lucie that you're here. Matthew has just come in. Why don't you two visit?"
"Uh...sure..." she scanned the room for the blonde, spotted him, and wisked him away to the back room before he knew what had hit him.
"Is this some kind of sick joke?"
"Why Avie, how nice to see you. Have you done something diffrent with your hair? It looks nice."
"Lay off it. You wrote me, tracked me down in China, of all places and tell me to come. You wanted me to come back so blondie could strut around being June Clever? What am I doing here? You needed someone to play the Beve??"
"Oh. You met Charmaine."
"We had a nice little Randevue', yes."
"She has nothing to do with anything. I need your help with this little matter."
"Do tell."
"Can you come by my appartment at sunrise?
"I suppose so."
"Thanks a lot, Avie."
"Why is it, that ever since I got back, everyone feels it's safe to call me 'Avie'?"
***
"No way! I'm no babysitter!"
"Annie sn't just any child!" Matthew pleaded.
"I just can't!"
"Why not?"
"I don't know anything about kids!"
"Regardless, Annie and I need you. Would you like to see Dracula get ahold of her? If they figure out how she came to be, what makes her tick, it'd be the end of the world, armagedon, D day, all that bloody mess."
"Alright, alright. I'll try." Ava gave in "A vampira, born from mortal parents.. They'd have a feild day."
"Come on out, Annie! Get your coat!"
"She's comming with me now?!"
"Of course, you bloody idiot."
A small fragile child came sround the corner..She had white skin, golden hair and golden eyes.
"You be good for Ava, alright?" Mat got on one knee to talk to her.
She nodded and took Ava's hand.
"Good-bye." Annie spoke in a soft, almost inaudible voice.
***
Putting me, of all people, in charge of a child. Is he nuts? I'll probably forget to water it or take it for a walk."
Ava shook the thought away. They had come to the front door of Kyril's house. It was really a large storage building that he had renevated, but suited his pourposes.
"You still alive down there?" she smiled at Annie.
She mumbled something Ava took to be "I'm tired."
"I'll put you right to bed then." she let herself in. Narsisus was doing something in the kitchen. Kyril was upstairs listening to loud, death-metal music and doing god-knows what else.
"You got knocked up damn fast." the slave commented. "She'll be ready to go to work by tommorow afternoon."
"Very funny."
"Very intresting marks." Annie wispered, takeing hold of Narsisus' arm and examining it.
"Thye're tatoos." Haven't ya ever seen on before?"
"No."
"Oh. Well. I'm no good with kids, but um, you want something to eat?"
"She'a a vampire." Ava informed.
"Really? Cool...she isn't going to turn into a bat or anything is she?"
"Of course I won't, you silly mortal." Annie looked insulted.
"Let's get you in bed." her keeper took her up the stairs, past various sadistic artifacts and to a small room. It hels no furnishings except a bed and a small dresser.
"Sun'll be up in about 20 minutes. You be okay if I leave you here? I'm going back downstairs."
Annie nodded and pointed to a window.
"The sun cannot come through?"
"I doubt it. If it does, let me know and I'll fix it."
"You may leave now."
The hunter was a little suprised at being dismissed like a servant, but she did leave, stoping by Kyril's door to shout for him to turn down his music. His respose was to only turn it up and drown her out.
"Jerk." she rolled her eyes and joined Narsisus in the kitchen.
"This should be a very intresting story."
"I guess."
"I take it, that this little girl has something to do with us busting our asses toi get back here?"
Ava nodded in response.
"Do explain."
"Latter. Much latter."
"Alright."
"I feel a bit sluggish. I'm going to sleep."
"She nodded goodnoght and went iinto the living room, flopped down on the black leather couch, and passed out.
***
"DON'T STAKE ME! DON'T STAKE ME!" Jag pleaded.
Ava let go of him and put the silver spike back in her hair.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, just wakeing me up like that! GOD! You were almost ashes, Danny Boy!" she sat back down on the couch."What are you doing here any way? Isn't it daytime?"
"Sun set an hour ago. It's my night off. Thought you might want to hang out. Crazy Bitch. How was I supposed to know you were armed to the teeth?"
"Not hardly."
"Well, how 'bout it?"
"Shit!" she shouted as an after thought and ran up the stairs to Annie's room. The child looked up at her innocently as she swung the door open and then closed it again in releif.
"Thank God."
"Intresting." Jag came up behind her.
"I almost forgot about Annie."
"Mat gave her to you?!"
"You know her?"
"I know about her. Never saw her before. I-"
The little girl had wrapped herself around his leg.
"So she likes men. That explains it." Nar joined in "She threw things at me every time I came in to check on her."
"I don't like her. She keeps calling me a 'little bloodsucking bat'."
"Brat. I called you a 'Brat'. And that's only because you were refering to me as 'Lunch'."
***
It was refreshing to get away from the others. Ava has simply left them to their squabling. Sh estood serinely on one of the many small roads leading into the countryside from the busteling city of London. No vehicle had passed her in hours and the electric rhythum of complete isolation beat strongly through her. The rain had completely drenched her. Fat drops plopped on the ground around her. Sh esmiled absent-mindedly and began to walk again. There was much for her to think about.
~Lucifel~
Her smile faded into the emotionless expression she more comonly wore in recent days. Several feelings rose and ebbed like the tides, none of them very distinct. Ava was not heartbroken, so she guessed that she had never truely loved him. But if that were so, then was her very existance futile? He had created her, and in her infinate respect fr him, had never questioned his motives. She assumed he had loved her, he had always treated her as a lover, after all. Perhaps he had, perhaps he hadn't. There was no way of knowing. She spotted a rock a few yards off and plodded through the muddy moors to sit there. Who had she been before Lucie created her? She couldn't clearly tell. Had she a family? A husband? A child?
~Annie~
The funny little girl. Avie could confess to no deep likeing for the girl, only a sense of duty to protect what had been placed in her charge. Even in the far reaches of the Russian countryside, she had heard rumors about Annie amongst the vampires. Now she knew that the rumors were true. She wasn't sure what she should do, or what she might face. Nor did sh elook forward toth epossibilities. The pang of affection she had felt, entering the bar earlier was now gone. Nothing existed inside of her but the desire to leave. To go back to the strange, far away places she had come from. Sh ewanted to rest, burrie din the cold, hard, gloriously neutral earth. Her deep stream of thought was broken then, as it was all too often, by the presence of a hand on her arm.
"You're all wet." Jag wispered.
He crouched down beside her and simply stared at her. She found the gaze of his serpetine and unsettleing. He was thining something about her but she could not read his mind. The water covered him too, plastering his black hair to his forehead, and his green tunic and legging to his body.
"Common', Lady, Come inside." he wispered to her again, putting hi sarm around her and lifting her to her feet.
"Why are you being so nice to me?" she uttered the question presently on her mind.
He didn't answer her. Instead he dropped his arm and began walking back toward London. Ava followed with quiet obedience, suddenly unsure of how to act towards her old aquantience. The rain began to dwindle away and they fell into unconfortable silence. "Why did you come out here to get me, then?" Ava attempted conversation.
"It seemed that I was the only one who noticed you were gone-Which is hard to beleive. Considereing the way you booked it out of there."
"Oh. Well that doesn't make me feel very good."
"I'm sorry I told you, then."
"Do you know anything about kids?"
"Who me? Not really. Why?"
"Just wondering."
"Is Annie giving you that much trouble?"
"Not me, Narsisus."
"Ahhhh." he smirked characteristically "Since you do have that little bundle of joy to contend with now, will you be prolonging your stay?"
"Nope."
"What are you going to do with Annie?"
"Take her with me, I guess."
"Are you sure that's good for her?"
"I dunno. What else am I supposed to do? Get married, adopt her and have a happy little house and a bloddy little white picket fence?" her voice too on an undertone of bitterness.
"Why not?" Jag stopped and looked at her, his eyebrow raised questioningly, his smile amused.
"I was being sarcastic." she found herself becomeing annoyed with him.
"I know. But why not? Even vampires have found some level of 'normalicy' in their so-called lives. Why not a Dhampire?"
"Whatever." she murmured, mentaly rejecting the idea.
*to be continued*
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