“I know,” she yelled. “I’m not pretty, I’m too tough, nothing about me resembles a true Nymph, I shame all the Dryads, my contractor should never have agreed to pair with me. I’ve heard it all before! And I’ve fought my own kind like only a traitor would. But I had to fight, I had to protect my sister and the guards would never stand up for her and I would be just as much picked on if I hadn’t made a habit of fighting and showing that I wasn’t worth messing with,” she said. “And now my sister is gone and taken by who knows whom, to who knows where, and I wasn’t around to help her this time at all,” she wept. “It’s too much.”
She sniffed again. “And I’m not dreamy and gorgeous like every other nymph and dryad that has ever existed. I know that! I know I’m less than nothing among my people, and I should count myself blessed for looking enough like them they are willing to tolerate my existence and allow me to work at all. That`s why I do all the dirty work in the village. None of them give a fig about me and I have to protect myself because the actually trained warriors who are paid the tax are meant to be caring for all of our people but they wouldn`t care if some raging Taurus meant to kill us both. And I`ve taken care of her all this time, and I took her place, but I left her behind, and then she got lost, and kidnapped, and scared, and she might be dead,” she wailed.
The words came in a rapid succession, and at the end she was sobbing and holding onto the vampire in a bear hug, having dissolved the part of the hedge that was separating the two from each other. As she grew more emotional, her other charms lost their strength as well, and he was able to shake off the vine holding him in place. Sometime during her tirade she had started blubbering into his shirt, so the vampire felt compelled to put his arms to good use and hold her in a tight bear hug. He awkwardly patted her back until she started to quiet. He didn`t mention it, but his wounds had already clearly healed, and his arm was a touch stronger and warmer than the average for his kind. He gave her two quick pats on the back, blushing, and let his arms fall to his side.
“Ahem,” cleared his throat. “Um,” he said, “Well, that is, about that.” He paused. “Well, this is pretty awkward,” he muttered. “Well, let’s say my name. I’m Cillean. I’m a vampire, like you guessed.” He paused. “And you’re Jacqueline.” He waited, like he was expecting her to confirm her name or respond to him.
“About what I said earlier,” he continued, rubbing his neck in agitation. “Sorry,” he blushed. “It`s not that you aren`t pretty or anything, it`s just that some nymphs are kind of scary with that whole ethereal thing going on.” In a flash of inspiration he continued, “It`s actually a good thing, because it makes you seem more real, and, umm, and approachable.”
When she stayed silent he awkwardly continued. “Well, I was kind of sent to talk to you, that’s why I didn’t actually fight you.” He paused again.
“Oh, and your sister! I forgot to say. That’s why I was sent to find you in the first place, actually. I know where she’s been. For now she’s been staying at-”
Whamp! She socked him right in the nose. “You knew! This whole time! And you just wanted to stop and play fight and introduce yourself and waste time when I was worried sick! What a jerk,” she said. “Standing there blabbering on while my sister is lost! She must be scared without her sister to take care of her!” He was still smiling weakly at her increasingly hysterical insults and accusations. “My sister could have been killed, or attacked, or used, and you`ve been introducing yourself and playing guess Jackie`s race! She screamed, punctuating each word with a punch to his now thoroughly bruised shoulder.
He grinned weakly. “ I must have held out so I could experience the fun of being maimed and mutilated by you, of course,” he murmured.
She stared at him for a heartbeat. She screamed in fury and raised a whole collection of vines to cover his entire body in a choking web. Then, in a frenzy, her punches fell thick and fast upon his previous injuries. Wincing, he shielded his face, leaving the rest of his torso completely vulnerable. His blood was dripping steadily down his sides. With a gasp of shock, Jackie pulled her fist back, staring at the congealing blood.
Suddenly he was gasping for breath crouched on the ground. Another pale warrior suddenly jumped on her, pinning her arms back. Jackie rounded on him, biting and kicking in a desperate bid for escape. He hoisted her into the air and she began clawing at his arms. Cillean was also frantically gesturing an ‘x’ sign with his forearms and a finger horizontally dragged along the neck to signal the pale warrior to stop, but he didn`t notice.
“We only wished to retrieve you, not hurt you,” the new warrior protested. She continued thrashing. He sighed and blew into her face. Her body became limp and her eyes fluttered closed. “Her actions were unusual for one of her kind. It seemed like she had slipped into a daemon frenzy and lost all connection to her reasoning mind once you had assured her of her relation’s continued well being.” He looked over at the other vampire in puzzlement. “Why did you not ensure her passivity? I know you are capable of the power of sleep as well as I.”
“Butt out Daerick,” Cillean growled. “Do your job and keep
