“[The vampire's] horrible lust for living blood supplies the vigor of its waking existence. The vampire is prone to be fascinated with an engrossing vehemence, resembling the passion of love, by particular persons. In pursuit of these it will exercise inexhaustible patience and stratagem, for access to a particular object may be obstructed in a hundred ways.”
Carmilla - Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
"Bethoven's 9th symphony should be considered a kind of ancient torture" that's what she thought waiting for the bus, with the melody still echoing in her head. That day, the piano lesson had been especially tortuous, though if the last 7 years had taught Olívia anything, it was that this kind of cruel humor coming from Ms. Matos is quite common.
The bus is 30 minutes late and it might not even come, with all the rain falling. Not to mention the fog that seems to have taken over everywhere. And the worst part is that Olivia has no choice but to stay at the bus stop waiting for the rain to pass. That's what she hates about the winter in the mountains. So cold that it is completely unfeasible to leave home. But even so, Father Henrique compels her to do piano lessons, so she has no options.
As she pouts about her life, she realizes that a kitten just a little bigger than a mouse and completely black, walks slowly down the street and into the protection of the bus stop. The kitten leaps onto the bench and slides into Olivia's lap without asking. Olivia is delighted by the performance and begins to caress the kitten until it begins to purr.
"You're so wet." She says patting the cat's head. "And you must be cold for sure. You have no collar, you would be a good friend." She lifts the kitten in front of her and the kitten, a girl, grunts.
Olivia puts the kitten on her lap again, caressing her soft fur and the kitten falls asleep. The rain diminishes and the clouds slowly starts to go away. It's still cold but Olivia takes off her coat and wraps up the sleeping kitty and walks to the church down the wet street. When she finishes walking the four miles, her cheeks are red and trembling with cold. She presses the kitten against her chest and climbs the steps behind the altar to her attic room. Inside the room, the kitten wakes up and jumps from her arms, walking around the room.
Olivia was found outside the city's cathedral when she was a baby, wrapped in an old dress. And for the last 13 years that's were she lived, among the priests and nuns of the church helping in the maintenance and preparation of the masses. But she hates it. She only continues in the church and listening to the priests because he has no choice but to live there. If people already avoid her for being the "little girl from fthe church" imagine how she would be treated if she were a homeless? "No, thank you, I'd rather have a place to sleep every night" that's what she always says when she thinks about leaving.
"Right." Olivia says softly, to the kitten. "Do not make noise. They can't know you're here, okay?" She looks at the clock. Almost time of the 6:00pm Mass. "I'll come back later with milk and something to serve as a bed."
The kitten lets out a slight meow in response. Olivia turns on her heel and leaves the room.
"OLÍVIIIAAAAAAAAAAAA" The sound of her name echoes down the stairs and through the empty church while she helps Father Moura close the doors after the 6:00pm Mass.
"Go on, dead" The gracious priest says with a smile. "It's not good to leave Father Henrinque waiting."
Olivia runs to the laundry room and picks up the pajamas she has left folded over the machine and then runs to the priest's room.
"What a delay, girl." Father Henrique exclaims as she enters his room. "Are you deaf?"
Olivia puts the clothes on the bed. "I was helping Father Moura close the church."
"Of course. Always with Moura. Always helping him." The plump priest bends over and hold the girl by her shoulders. "Listen, Olivia. It was I who caught you in the rain and took you home like some lost puppy. I took care of and fed you, otherwise you'd be out on the street now. So show your respect to me and not to Father Moura."
Olivia dodges his hands. "God says we should help the needy, priest, so you did no more than your duty."
Father gives a sarcastic laugh. "God also said to be pure and not to become the little whore of one of the men who dedicated their lives to Him."
"Is that what you say to the women you meet across the bridge every Friday night, Father?"
The slap she gets as a response takes Olivia to the other corner of the room and causes her to bang her head against the floor and cut her forehead.
"DOES RESPECT MEAN NOTHING TO YOU, GIRL?" Father Henrique says pulling her hair to get her up and throwing her out of the room. "Your mouth will kill you, Olivia. That big mouth will kill you."
Then he closes the door. Olivia gets up and runs off. She climbs up the stairs and ends up going to the church's rooftop, almost falling down when she hits one of the images that adorn the church roof. The shock leaves her breathless and causes huge drops of tears to fall from her eyes.
Olivia always heard mean words from Padre Henrique, but she had never answered, and he had never beaten her. But this time she had to reply. He had called her a whore. She hated that word. That's how the children called her mother.
Since she started going to school, everyone said her mother was a whore. A whore who slept with one of the priests and then abandoned her in the church. Everyone knew it. But Olivia would not be like her mom. She was not a whore. And she could not allow Father Henrique to call her that.
Olivia feels the blood on her forehead run down her face to her tongue. The cold cuts her cheeks as she leans over the parapet and spits. She hopes it will hit someone. Silence. Intense mist takes over the roof now. Then she feels the liquid in her mouth again and rubs her brow, irritated.
"All I want is to leave." She says to herself, looking at the city.
"It's not that high of a jump from up here, you know?"
The voice comes from her side and causes her to scream and fall to the floor. It's not from one of the priests. It's a feminine voice, sweet, innocent. Almost childish and yet mature.
"Shh! Do not scream! It will ruin your escape, is that what you want?" A little hand presses into Olivia's mouth and stops her from speaking. She is ready to bite the hand and run away when she notices the image in front of her. The only definition that appears to be compared is that of an angel. The tiny creature with long curly brown hair and incredibly green eyes is as close as possible to an angel she has ever seen in her life. At the sight of Olivia's gaze, the little creature smiles and relaxes its face. Then jump on the parapet, hanging on one of the gargoyles and swinging back and forth.
"My name is Kat. Katerina." She says, softly. "And I was once you. You believe in yourself but people do not. You've never been complimented or encouragement from the people you admire. And you always think you're the rubbish they say you are."
"Where did you come from?" Olivia asks, watching curiously.
"You drew me here- And you gave me the chance to enter." Is the answer.
"What do you mean?"
"Have you ever heard that thinking too much about something, attracts this thing to you?" "Kat rocks in the gargoyle with a delicate movement. "I am your freedom, Olivia. Your midnight angel. Your salvation from this cold and inhospitable place." She stops and puts her face right in front of Olivia's. "Even though I think you'll start to prefer cold, inhospitable places as soon as the night is over."
This last phrase makes Olivia have a bad feeling. Her fingers automatically grasps the crucifix the priests had forced her to use. Kat face haderns and she lets go of the gargoyle and jumps off the parapet, to stand in front of Olívia.
"What was the legend you heard?" She whispers staring into the girl's brown eyes "Vampyr? Strigoii? Lupi? Werewolf? Or did you just read Twilight? What makes you think I'm a vampire, Olivia?"
Olivia swallows. Then her hand loosens the crucifix. "What are you?"
Kat ignores the question. "Crucifixes do not work, anyway. It's a myth. It is related to the ancient hunters of vampires, who carried this type of trinket. So vampires created an automatic repulsion of religious artifacts. Of any religion. Vampires have no religion. Or politics. Or feelings. Do you know what that means? No pain, hurt, fear or insecurity..."
"... Or love, or peace, compassion..."
"... But there is loyalty, concept of community, union of people united by the same goal..."
"... But nothing of that intense feeling, that makes us feel the legs wobbles or it smiles even without reason for that."
"And you've felt that way, Olivia?" Kat growls, so close that Olivia can finally see her glowing canines in the moonlight.
"You are a vampire."
Kat smiles. "You're smart."
Then she lies down on the icy ground next to Olivia, who hugs her legs against her body.
"What do you want from me?" Olívia asks.
Kat slides her tongue over her lips, but Olivia does not see it. "Have you ever had a friend?" Kat asks with her eyes closed.
The mist has taken over the terrace."Not."
"Then you understand this need to seek someone like me."
"Vampires have no feelings. You do not feel alone."
"Try spending 200 years alone. You will see that it is meaningless at some point. It's empty. What is the point of having the world at your feet, if the world does not know it?"
Giant rain drops fall on Olivia's head. "And where do I get into this?"
"I want you to have your freedom. And your revenge. I want to know that I made a difference to someone other than me." Kat sits and pulls Olivia's face towards her. "I've been watching you for days. You are beautiful, smart, brave and have a sweet heart. None of this is going to get you anywhere. And tonight proved it so. I was just waiting for the right moment. The moment it got too complicated. That's it. It's time to go, Olivia. To unleash your full potential."
"What makes you think I'm leaving with someone I barely know?"
"I'm everything you've ever wanted. I am freedom, independence, loyalty and friendship. If you didn't want any of this, then you shouldn't be here tonight." Then Kat jumps back to the parapet.
Olivia tries to consider what she has just heard. But she feels her mind foggy, and the raindrops falling on her head do not help much. Though a part of her wants to leave, all of her thoughts turn to Kat's green eyes. Then Olivia gets up. "Do what you have to do."
The rain increases. Kat smiles, showing her pointy, shiny teeth. Then she slides her arm through the gargoyle's teeth, making a big cut, that she points to Olivia. "You first."
Olivia takes a step back, watching all the blood that mixes with the rain and drips to the ground. Kat jumps off the parapet and heads over to her.
"Are you afraid? Now you're scared? You seemed to like me from the start, why are you scared now?"
"I like you, but..."
"If there's anything in me that makes you say 'but' you do not like me."
"It's scary Kat."
"I'm here and I'm not going to do anything to hurt you..." She takes a long look at the girl's eyes. "Unless it's necessary for your freedom."
"What will you do?" Olívia asks, scared again.
Kat's expression becomes painful.
"I am bleeding." Then shows the arm "Can you please?"
Olivia leans in and approaches the cut, gently. The blood has the same pungent smell and the same taste of metal as her own blood, that she tasted earlier, but it's cold. Colder than rain, colder than mist. The next thing Olivia realizes is Kat pushing her gently.
"That's more than enough." Kat says, breathing uneasily.
"You're still bleeding." Olivia says, surprised. She does not wipe the blood from her mouth.
"It's all right. It'll close as soon as I'm done."
Then she smiles, showing her canines and approaches Olivia, pulling the curls out of the girl's jugular path. Olivia steps away again.
"I'm not ready yet."
"You've gone through the worst part." Kat says "Please, Olivia, let me finish. Or I'll keep bleeding."
"Kat..."
Then someone shouts from the stairs, up to the terrace, looking for Olivia.
"It's Father Moura." She says getting up.
"We need to finish before he comes." Kat demands.
Olivia changes her gaze between Kat and the door, indecisive. The priest is what she's always known. Kat is freedom.
"It will not hurt. I promise." Kat says anxiously.
Then Olivia nods. Closes the eyes. Wait. She can not see Kat's smile. She focus on the sound of the rain. Then she feels two needles piercing her skin. She prays that it will end soon.
Kat finally gets what she wanted all night. She played around it and now she feels disappointed. At this point her hunger is so great that Olivia's blood has a quite common flavor. She was very difficult to convince. Catholic girls always are.
They both hear the scream again on the stairs. It's time to end. Kat is feeling strong. Olivia feels exhausted.
And then it is over.
Kat jumps out of the church's just as the man arrives on the rooftop, leaving behind her only a lifeless body.
"Olivia?"
A lifeless body that comes back ready to take whoever is on her wake.
No comments:
Post a Comment