Gores of Grimoire (Editing)

Victoria's Story

     Victoria was inside the manor when she awakened. In the library to be exact, on the dusty couch by the east wall. James was sitting on the spiraling metal staircase that went up to the higher levels of the library.

    "Hey, Victoria," James said slowly. And all at once, it hit her like a bus. Image after image, memory after memory flooded her mind and her eyes. She remembered everything. James, the early twentieth century, her uncle, her parents. Everything.

    "James!" She exclaimed. She zoomed up to him and hugged him. He hugged her back. He was her best friend for her entire life. If there was one person she had to choose in the entire world to spend all of her life with, it was him. He lifted her off the ground and spun her, just as he had for years, until one day, everything was gone. "I remember everything, but- how?" She asked.

    "Long ago, your mother knew that at some point she'd have to protect you from the dangers of being a Pure Blood, and the dangers of the Council. So she hired a warlock she knew to make a spell that would activate once they left. The catch was when you reached a certain age, and if you became angry enough, you'd become a vampire again, but you wouldn't remember. What would make you remember is if you drank my blood or your uncle's because we were the only other vampires of your past." James explained.

   "My uncle died, so that gives you the honors of feeding me..." She said with a funny face.

   "Pretty much, yeah." James nodded while laughing a little.

   "My uncle, how and why did he die?" She asked.

   "You weren't a vampire yet, you were still human. The Grimoire family was full of Pure Bloods. If anything or anyone did something in any way to put them in danger, they would die. Even though you're a Grimoire, you were still a human, and telling a human is considered dangerous. He must not have known the full extent of the Blood Pact his own family created. That, or he thought you were still yourself." He shook his head. James was never entirely fond of her uncle Cornelius.

   "It's sad. It should not have ended like that. My parents are dead, aren't they?" Victoria looked down. James looked at her with sadness. He honestly did not know.

   "I don't know. But I do know that there's still a chance of them being alive. A small chance, but a chance. I can feel it through the Sire bond." He reassured her. She put her head on his shoulder and thought of the memories of him she had. The memories she would fight to keep until the day she died, and even after that.

.....

   "Can we go to the park?" Eight-year-old Victoria asked James with big, red, innocent eyes. James would just about melt when she did that to him.

   "We can, but we have to be careful." He told her. It was the 1950s and a very cloudy day. James was looking after Victoria because her father was checking out a school in England, and her mother was in Italy discussing politics with the Law Keeping Department of the Council. James had no problem looking after her, he wasn't in love with her, but he was protective and loving towards her. She got dressed and they headed out.

He watched her as she went up, and then down, then back up again on the swing. A benefit of being a vampire, especially a Pure Blood, was being extremely energetic and extremely beautiful. The other little girls watched her as well, but with envy and bitter hearts.

    She jumped off the swing when it was up in the air, and landed with grace on the ground. Her long, dark brown hair bounced and landed perfectly. She was wearing a blood red blouse, a leather jacket, a black lace skirt with skulls and roses, black high sock with two white stripes just below the knee, and red flats. James used the Realm Shield magic to hide her real red glowing eyes. She ran over to James.

   "Why are they giving me not-very-nice looks?" She asked with a sad face looking back at the girls. They were indeed giving her nasty looks.

   "Because they're jealous. They're not as pretty or as graceful as you are." He told her.

   "But why to be mean about it?" she asked.

   "I don't know, maybe it brings them some joy." He shrugged and kneeled down to her level, "Just worry about playing here. Don't worry about them. You'll probably never see them again, so who cares what they think?" He said. He always knew just what to say. She hugged him, then ran back to the playground, being careful to keep her pace human. She got to the top of the "castle" and waved at James. He waved back with a giant smile, then he looked away for a minute. 

   Victoria giggled, then turned around and came face-to-face with an older girl. She was probably fifteen and had a Latina look to her. Her eyes were a deep green with hints of yellow around the pupil. Her hair was a chocolate brown.

   "Y-you're a werewolf..." Victoria stammered. She was afraid of her.

   "Calm down. I'm not here to hurt you. I was just wondering if the name Alexandra means anything to you?" She asked with a low voice. Victoria turned around to look at James, her breath shaking as she started to panic. He was gone. When Victoria turned to face the girl, he was standing right behind her.

   "She has not been here since before Victoria was four. Why do you need to know?" James asked sternly. His eyes were golden and angry, and his fangs were protruding from his gums. Victoria had never seen him like this. He was...scary to her. Victoria hugged herself and ran with Pure Blood speed to the other end of the park. Her speed was faster than James even though he was older. She sat down on the grass with her knees pulled up to her chest. Who was Alexandra?
James came to her. He looked like himself, not scary. She allowed him to pick up her small body, and carry her back home.

.....

   "What're you thinking about?" James asked. Victoria snapped back to reality.

   "Who is Alexandra?" She asked. This seemed to take James by surprise. Like little kids asking their parents out of the blue where babies come from.

   "She...is dead. She's not important, just something that lady was wondering if you knew about. Which I don't know why," he tried to explain. Maybe she wasn't ready to know.

   "If you don't want me to know, just tell me." She laughed.

   "O-okay." He responded, stammered slightly.

Victoria thought of more memories of James and realized something: she was fourteen the last time she'd really spent time with him. At that point, she had fallen in love with him. She was much more mature than the average fourteen-year-old, so he saw her differently as well. She had never gotten the chance to ever kiss him.

   "James?" She started.

   "Yes?" He looked at her. Into her eyes. Into her heart. Her dead, none- beating heart.

   "When I was fourteen, how did you feel about me?" She was nervous to ask. She knew it was just James, but knew she was speaking to him as someone she liked. He smiled a crooked, irresistible smile.

   "I thought you were more mature. And as I've watched you grow these last few years, I've grown to fall for you." He seemed nervous, too. He fidgeted with his hands.

   "You mean that?"

   "Would I lie to you, Victoria Elisabeth Grimoire?" The way he said her full name, it was like his voice hooked on every syllable. He was being so seductive. She felt herself become bashful in response to the flirtation.

   "So, what if I said I feel the same?" She was a little less nervous but still nervous. He leaned in. Closer and closer. They both closed their eyes, and right before it was about to happen for the first time, there was something burning Victoria's arm. She shouted in pain. The curtain was cracked a little. And through the curtain, a little stream of sunlight greeted them. James zoomed over and closed it completely.

   "That...will be continued later. When you're not expecting it." He smiled at her.