Vamperior

By Hayley Bristol

For years vampires fought slayers and were slaughtered by their enemies, until a truce was agreed. No vampire deaths for no human deaths. Though eternity is a long time to hide away in the darkness and with the development of 'Sunease', a sun repellent drug for vampires on the rise, the vampires are becoming closer than ever to reaching their goal.

Six character narrative
Not suitable for children
Contains scenes of a violent sexual nature

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jun 21, 2014
• ISBN: 9781291925692

Book preview

Vamperior

Background

This story began many years ago in 2010. The story triggered from a dream – in a very ‘Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein’ style. I spent months developing the story and the characters. The original story was one of two narrators, Anna and Ant, who told a story of love and betrayal within a vampire versus human world. There were no slayers; instead it was simply about vampires wanting main character, Anna, to develop a drug for them to walk in the sunlight. This novel was published. In 2013 I was inspired by ‘A Prop Me Up Theatre Company’ and Chair of said company – Kay Vardy – to write this novel as a play to be performed by the group. Upon many ideas that flooded my mind, the ideas of the slayer cult grew firm and sharp within. The slayers were created and many actors working on the project asked to read the novel. Due to half the cast playing these pre non-existent slayer characters, I decided to rewrite the novel – changing unimportant characters and adding in a fantastic slayer clan. It has taken me a few months to reinvent and revise ‘Vamperior’. The story now follows the path of six narrators, two humans – Dylan and Anna, two slayers – Ada and Riley and two vampires – Ant and Willow. Through the eyes of six different personalities and styles of writing, I have established what I believe to be a far greater storyline. Although this has been challenging, hopefully it will be rewarding for those who read this novel. Thank you in advance.

Hayley Bristol

Table of contents:

Background

Vamperior Production

Many Thanks

Follow Us:

Vamperior

Vampire Ant Obsession

Anna Cox Vamperior University

Vampire Ant Night watching

Riley Turner Relations

Anna Cox The Stakehouse

Vampire Ant A closer look

Dylan Morris A tough time for Anna

Queen Willow Willow’s chambers

Ada Jenkins Strength in ability

Anna Cox A brief reprieve

Vampire Ant Friendly advice

Anna Cox Flatmates

Dylan Morris When Dylan met Ant

Ada Jenkins Know thy enemy

Riley Turner Forming allies

Anna Cox First day on the job

Vampire Ant A word with Jonathan

Anna Cox Unlikely chaperone

Vampire Ant Convincing Anna

Riley Turner Devastating events

Anna Cox Nightmares

Dylan Morris Anna’s escape

Ada Jenkins Easily defeated

Vampire Ant Breaking news

Anna Cox Realisation

Vampire Ant Anthony Hall

Anna Cox Time to leave

Queen Willow Tantrum

Dylan Morris Positive company

Queen Willow Dominique rising

Vampire Ant Too close for comfort

Anna Cox Trouble in paradise

Queen Willow A loyal subject

Ada Jenkins A present from Jonathan

Vampire Ant Temptation

Anna Cox Anthony Hall’s maker

Vampire Ant Come back Anna

Anna Cox Reunion

Vampire Ant Risky business

Anna Cox Becoming

Vampire Ant Side effects

Anna Cox Questions

Vampire Ant Reminding Anna

Riley Turner Saving Joanna

Ada Jenkins Elders and Warlocks

Anna Cox Family Ties

Riley Turner Links between enemies

Dylan Morris Changes

Queen Willow Henry’s Truce

Anna Cox Death of a loved one

Ada Jenkins Fresh faces

Anna Cox Verses the Queen

Vampire Ant Consequences to actions

Anna Cox Violent consequences

Jonathan Miller Becoming

Vampire Ant A choice to be made

Dylan Morris Human Reunion

Adrian Fuller Destination

Vampire Ant Anna for Arthur

Dylan Morris A change in the monarchy

Vampire Ant My uncles the sadists

Anna Cox  Sweet revenge

Queen Willow Invasion

Anna Cox  The harsh truth

Riley Turner The final battle

Vamperior Production

This story is to be performed by the theatre company ‘A Prop Me Up Theatre Company’, who are based in my hometown of Sutton in Ashfield. This performance will be shown at Sutton Community Academy, High Pavement, Sutton in Ashfield, NG17 1EE. It is set to be performed 30th October – 1st November 2014 with three evening performances and one Saturday matinee. We urge local readers, who have read this novel beforehand, to come and watch this show.

‘A Prop Me Up Theatre Company’ are a not for profit organisation, who nurture and develop drama skills for anyone within the community, who have a passion for the Performing Arts.

Many Thanks

The photos within the novel, including the cover are the property of Hayley Bristol and Kay Vardy and cannot be reproduced anywhere else without our permission.

I would like to thank several companies and individuals for their help and support in reinventing this novel.

Photos by: Mark Walters Photography and Phink Photography (Rebecca Roberton)

Novel cover front and back design by Tom Vardy

A Prop Me Up Theatre Company for their support and dedication

Photo shoot models: Aimee Burrows, Aurelia Kojro, Aysha Perry, Beth Hinchliffe, Demi Peters, Donna Richardson, Elliott Richardson, Hayley Bristol, Iain Bonsall, Kay Vardy, Lauren Taylor, Laurie Pepper, Lynsey Anthony, Matt Brooks, Matthew Nunn, Ryan Mathura, Sophie Williams, Terrena Nunn, Tom Vardy, William Marshall

Follow Us:

Vamperior Facebook page: www.facebook.com/vamperior11

A Prop Me Up Theatre Facebook page: www.facebook.com/pages/A-Prop-Me-Up-Theatre-Company/446573348751711?sk=timeline

Also: www.apropmeup.com

Rebecca Roberton Facebook page: www.facebook.com/pages/PhinkPhotography/171659849547754?fref=ts

Rebecca Roberton Phink.Photography website: www.phinkphotography.com

Mark Walters Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MarkWaltersPhotography?fref=ts

Mark Walters Photography page: www.markwaltersphotography.co.uk

Vamperior

Dedicated to:

Zack Johnson

A Prop Me Up Theatre Company

In loving memory of:

Lois Bristol

June Cooper

Vampire Ant

Obsession

I did not love Anna Cox but my obsession with her grew stronger every time I laid eyes on her. She did not know me yet but she would. If my heart could beat it would definitely beat for her, but the bitter taste of disgust entered my mouth every time I looked upon her warm, milky skin. If only she knew how disappointed I was to know what she had become throughout the years. A student. Although she was nothing but a face in the crowd, she was everything to me. Everything I needed to fuel my hate, my pain, my torment, my utter peril of watching her breath before me. Given the chance I would kill her. Any vampire would. I would not regret it, or think twice but the promise I have made prevents my fangs from penetrating her delicate skin. Die for me Anna; release me from the pain I suffer; when you sleep, when you eat, when you cry. She is the only one that can save me from my torture, but she won't and I cannot ask her to. She will soon know I exist, soon know I lure for her blood, long for her death, hope for a taste of satisfaction. Anna please hear me, I ask you to give in to temptation, stop your heart from beating the same irritating thump, of which has led me into my bitter detest for your curious face.

Anna Cox

Vamperior University

There was something eerie about Adrian Fuller. When I first met him in Freshers’ week he was stood alone, looking awkward and slightly pathetic. He seemed to be looking over at me. I liked it. I wasn’t one for being noticed. I wasn’t your typical skinny, blonde haired blue eyed bombshell. I was more of your chubby, obstinate, plain Jane, Goth kid. I’d had an accident three years before and nearly completely forgotten everything in my life prior to that. The doctor said it was temporary but as the years went on and nothing seemed to be seeping back in, I lost all hope. All I was certain of was my parents were dead. I remember their bodies burning and lived knowing my foster parents believed I had something to do with it. I hoped I didn’t but how would I know? I didn’t even remember what my parents were like. I felt nothing when I thought of their corpses rotting away, except like a pretty awful person because of my lack of emotion. Adrian was the first person I’d taken an interest in. He was your typical tall, dark and handsome guy yet also quite gothic in appearance. His hair swept back in an awkward, auburn mess. His stance suggested that he was introvert and would have rather be sticking pins in his own eyes, than in the massive social situation he was currently presiding in - Freshers’ Fayre. After a while of what I assumed was Adrian preparing to talk to me, he finally came over and introduced himself to me. He was shy predictably, he rambled embarrassingly but I didn’t mind. It was a change to have someone who was trying to impress me and grab my attention, and not in the same way my newly found housemate saw fit to do.

Dylan Morris was a confident young fella to say the least. The first time I properly met him he was casually walking around the kitchen in his towel, asking if I wanting him to drop it. I didn’t. I lived with two housemates, Dylan and Lilith Lighthouse. Lilith and I had been living in our university accommodation during the summer before starting term. We had previously had another male housemate, but after numerous items were going missing around the house – including fuses which we found half chewed up in his room – my new best friend and I had to ask him to leave. He thought we were so insane that he was glad to go regardless. Almost a couple of days later, a young feisty girl marched into our flat, slammed six months’ rent and deposit on our kitchen counter, then shoved her hopeless brother in the empty, but messy spare room. There wasn’t much conversation between Carla Morris and I. But instantly Lilith and I decided to accept Dylan as our new housemate much to Lilith’s impending annoyance. He was a handsome lad, don’t get me wrong - although he barely appeared to wash his damn clothes and seemed to mix match everything he wore without a single pause for thought. Plus he was rather dumb, the light’s on but no one’s in type. He was harmless but his cockiness and untidiness grated on Lilith. He also spent the majority of the week barging random women through the house, my favourite being Gretchen Fox, who believed Dylan was called Lord Jefferson and was a royal descendant of the Queen. When Lilith kindly corrected her on the matter, she threw her half empty cereal bowl at Dylan’s head and left slamming the door behind her. Maybe Dylan had told her it was caviar.

The next time I met Adrian was in our Chemistry introduction. Adrian and I were both studying chemistry at Vamperior. Vamperior was a specialist university in sport and fitness; we were told it was because of the high mortality rate in the town of Vamperior. Yet every year Vamperior university exceeded with applicants. There was something about it that drew young people into it like a vacuum of intrigue. Why did it attract them so easily? Why was I even there? I suppose it was due to the thousands of emails and advertisements via my laptop or shoved through the post, like an odd but clear calling. I was only accepted due to my advanced knowledge in science – though I had no idea how I knew so much about it or why I was desperate to excel in it. But I was. I felt like I needed this degree, I needed the acceptance more than I needed my next breath.

‘Exciting isn’t it?’ Adrian smirked; I guess he’d been staring at me throughout my thought period.

‘Well yeah,’ I replied, listening in the last few words muttered in the seminar, ‘got to love those… corrosive elements,’ I hazard a guess realising how lame I sounded.

‘No,’ he laughed a little, ‘I meant the experience of university, being in a strange, mysterious town.’

‘Oh,’ I blushed, trying to hide my embarrassment with my hands, ‘yeah well it beats my hometown. It definitely beats living with my foster parents.’

‘Why’s that?’ Adrian asked putting his hand on mine; this was the first physical contact we had had since meeting. I guess he thought I needed comforting, but my emotions were numb. I felt nothing towards them, ‘were they mean to you or something?’

‘No,’ I replied honestly, ‘they were only like five minutes older than me so…’ which was basically true. Kenneth was late twenties and Lucy was older. They chose to foster due to their heavy lifestyle within their jobs. Kenneth was a doctor and Lucy was a nurse, that old cliché.

‘My parents are dead, if you can believe that,’ Adrian added, oh I could. His hand now squeezing mine in an angry manner, ‘I was adopted by my mother’s sister and her boyfriend. It’s nice to finally be free of them, independent and alone.’ Adrian spoke about his family as if he never planned to see them again, or the thought of never seeing them again didn’t bother him at least. I guess I found familiarity within him. I needed that.

By the time Dylan and Lilith met Adrian a few weeks after Freshers’ week, we had officially become a couple. Lilith welcomed Adrian with open arms - literally and Dylan welcomed him with a grunt. Dylan wasn’t shy when it came to making Adrian feel like he was an outsider, a freak, unwanted and unwelcome. I resented Dylan for that. Especially considering Lilith and I had tried our hardest to be nice to Dylan’s fourteen temporary girlfriends.

‘I just don’t like him,’ Dylan confessed when I cornered him about it; ‘he’s weird and dark. I don’t want him hurting you or using you.’ This was odd; it was the first time Dylan had shown any kind of interest for my well-being or happiness. It was sweet so I decided to go easier on him.

‘Look Dylan, I like him, we are together and it’s not like I rushed into it,’ I explained, ‘I got to know him a bit first and there isn’t anything I don’t like at the moment, so please be happy for me. I’m not asking you to like him, just to be civil when he’s here.’

‘I’ll try,’ Dylan huffed like a spoilt child, ‘but I don’t think I will ever warm up to him. Plus now I only have one option left.’

‘What’s that?’ I asked regrettably.

‘Lilith,’ he smiled smugly. True to his word Dylan spent the next month or so trying to convince Lilith to sleep with him. Then he tried to persuade her to go on a date with him. Finally he was happy if she would agree to just be his friend. He did everything the wrong way round. Lilith never budged. Dylan never changed his opinion of Adrian. I chose to ignore it and focus on our upcoming romantic date to a place I’d never been to before.

Vampire Ant

Night watching

I'd followed Anna from her hometown to her student flat at university. Her foster parents had been more than hostile towards her since they agreed to look after her a couple of years ago. They were more than glad to be rid of her. I was comforted to know that I was not the only one she irritated. Her flat resembled somewhat of a drugs’ den and her bedroom looked as if she'd unpacked her belongings straight onto the floor and thought ‘sod it’. Most nights I often watched her through her window. Luckily her window was facing a balcony from the block of flats opposite which I often lurked upon. I was able to go unnoticed most nights and even when the students in the flat had noticed me they thought I was another student there to 'party'. They kept me stocked up in cigarettes and Foster cans at least until they ran out of their student loan, which in essence took them about two months. Now I am lucky to get a glass of water from them. Although I did not smoke, I could use the cigarettes as bribery to gain any information about Anna I could possibly get. One of the students in the flat, Michael Greene, was in Anna's chemistry seminars. Whenever he was so drunk that he probably wouldn't remember anything the next morning, I would ask him any questions I needed to about Anna.

'Oh Anna, the pale one, nice rack,' Michael spat at me one night after having far too much to drink, 'yeah I'd do her.'

'Not what I asked though was it?' I snapped back in a disapproving nature.

'Oh...' He replied, stumbling across the balcony, 'oh... what was that mate?'

'I asked who the guy was that Anna keeps walking to her lectures with,' I repeated.

'Oh, Adrian? Oh yeah, he's a prick.' Michael raised his fist, 'want me to give him one?'

'Not really,' I answered, 'I'm pretty sure I would do a better job than you at this moment anyway.' Michael laughed, completely unaware I was not in the least bit joking. Michael fell back into the kitchen and I continued to watch Anna through her window. She appeared to be getting changed into her nightwear. A gentleman would look away but I did not class myself as a gentleman, anymore.

I had seen Anna and Adrian together far too many times for my liking, not that I was jealous, more curious. Adrian spent far too much time at a local vampire bar asking the wrong questions to the wrong people. Anna had no idea of the strange things Adrian would do behind her back. I had no intention of telling her. I was avoiding talking to her at all costs, at least until I felt I had to. One night when I was climbing up towards the balcony, I noticed her walking beneath me strolling towards her flat. I was in the perfect position to pounce on her if I had wanted to, but thought it would not be the best meeting terms. I had often thought about turning Anna into a vampire, as her existence as a human sickened me. But changing humans into vampires was a huge responsibility and stalking seemed the easier option. Despite the nauseating sight of Adrian and Anna walking hand in hand together, it was overshadowed often by some strange little kid who had also taken to following Anna round. I’m not sure who he was but he did look a little bit like Anna, but all her relatives were long dead, killed gruesomely years before... unless.

Riley Turner

Relations

I didn’t like going near the university. The students often made fun of me for being so small. ‘Students look younger every day don’t they?’ random people would often jest, ‘soon we will see toddlers at The Stakehouse ordering a Bloody Fang, don’t even know why we need I.D clearly anyone can get served.’ A Bloody Fang was apparently a cocktail made by the barman and owner of The Stakehouse, Jonathan Miller, it was his own special. I was told to stay away from Jonathan and The Stakehouse, though I was also told to stay away from Anna but I couldn’t help it. Something about her intrigued me, I had to know her, I had so many questions! I had seen another person following Anna, he was quite short and small framed for a fully grown man, but he looked strong and I didn’t want to approach him at any cost. He saw me a couple of times when it was night time, he often frowned upon me and tried to usher me away but I ignored him. I suspected he was a vampire and that would make him a natural enemy of mine, I wasn’t following Anna to get myself into trouble, but I knew it would. The slayers didn’t want any contact with Anna and that was a well-grounded rule - however I hadn’t even attended my first slayer meeting so I ignored it. But it was due soon.

My dad was going to make me attend slayer meetings as he thought I was in danger. My dad came from a long line of slayers – mostly male dating back to the 1800s. He had married my mother who was also a slayer – hoping they would produce strong slayer offspring. However in a cruel twist of fate, my father had become the only generation of the Turner bloodline not to develop the ability. My father was not a slayer. I knew I would be though as I’d felt the development my mother used to warn me about; a strange, uprising strength that would often cause me to feel nauseous or weak, followed by an overpowering surge of unwarranted strength. I was fifteen and knew by my sixteenth birthday I would have the full embodied slayer strength. I would be expected to hunt alongside Seth and the band. My dad had even been given a stake carved by his own father to welcome him to the group - my father had never used or needed it. My name was even chipped into the woodwork. My dad worried too much about me, it was hard for him being a single parent. I had been caught a week or so prior following Anna around a few clothes shops for women, my dad was livid, he said I was either obsessed with a girl or I was questioning my own gender – and it better be the former. Sure enough he recognised Anna straight away, holding up a black dress with a white collar against her chest and checking herself out in the nearest mirror. She was accompanied by some red headed girl who was far too perky for my liking, giving Anna thumbs up and clapping giddily at what I thought was a rather plain dress.

‘How many times Riley Oliver Turner?’ My dad rhetorically asked as he glared maliciously at Anna, ‘do not follow that devil child! She is evil, pure evil and she will hurt you if she catches you!’ I looked at Anna in a slight daze and confusion. She looked pretty harmless to me and pretty clumsy as she accidently dropped the dress on the floor, allowing her friend to pick it up and replace it in the clothes rack for another one. They then swiftly moved on after that in case someone saw. Someone did, but I was also in trouble so who was I to judge?

My dad marched me home instantly, grabbed the house phone and started dialling painfully. I gazed on him with innocent plea, but he quickly turned his back in ignorance.

‘Hello,’ he said hastily down the line, ‘is that Seth... Have you got room for one more in your tribe? Okay not tribe but you know what I mean... he’s fifteen... I know he’s not quite old enough.... I know I said over my dead body... he’s been following Anna... brilliant I’ll bring him to the next meeting. Thanks a lot Seth.’ He then hung up the phone and gave me a disapproving stare before running upstairs, leaving me alone downstairs. What an arse. It had just been my father and I since my mother was killed a few years ago. No one ever tells me about the details but I know it divided the slayer group and dad vowed to never let me join. I guess desperate times called for stupid measures. I picked up my mobile phone and started texting Joanna. She was also due to become a slayer but her mother had been kicked out of the group. In retaliation she told Joanna she would never be joining. Joanna and I met in secret. We never told our parents as they couldn’t be trusted. My father and Joanna’s father were not slayers, they did not have the gene and they did not respect it. No man enjoys having a stronger woman as their wife, my dad would say. Joanna knew I often followed Anna and she didn’t approve, she said I was asking for trouble. I was just hoping for answers. Joanna was easily influenced by her parents though, it is possible they dripped poison into her ear like my father tried to do to me. I wasn’t about to let anyone make up my mind for me. I wasn’t going to stop following Anna.

Anna Cox

The Stakehouse

The date was awesome; he took me to a local bar/restaurant called The Stakehouse. It was a vintage looking restaurant that has used the town's name 'Vamperior' as the perfect theme for the interior design. The whole town of Vamperior naturally thrived upon a strong vampire theme throughout. A lot of the locals embraced it as it was beautifully gothic. We were shown inside by the doorman, whose nametag said ‘Seth’, he was tall and quite aggressive looking. He was quite broad and dark haired. He didn’t look happy to see me, though I had never met him before he seemed to have already formed reservations about me. I thanked him as he held the door open, only to receive a bitter grunt. Adrian told me Seth had issues, and only worked there as he had made a deal with the owner. What this deal was, I had no idea as Adrian was extremely vague and evasive. But if you believed Adrian then Seth was hostile to everyone, I wasn’t convinced. The restaurant was split into an eating area and a drinking area with a dance floor. It was extremely big and terribly popular amongst the students. Upon entering the restaurant I quickly noticed the numerous pictures of vampires spread across the walls, from old fashioned pictures of Dracula, old legends and myths about vampires to more recent newspaper clippings of 'local vampire sightings'.

My favourite picture was a mysterious picture just above the bar of a dominant female vampire. The picture was more than likely staged by a local vampire enthusiast, but either way she was stunning. Her pale face complimented her long black hair which seemed to cascade beautifully around her oval shaped face. Her ruby red lips were pouting slightly and it looked like she had blood dripping off of her chin. The picture only showed her from the chest upwards, but her clothes looked old and out-dated. If I had not known any better I would have said the picture was hundreds of years old. Underneath it displayed the name 'Willow'. It was written in what I'm guessing was red paint made to look like blood, in order to make the picture look authentic. Strangely enough the bar even opened at sundown and closed at dawn as if avoiding the sunlight. Our waiter - who I was later told was the bar owner, Jonathan Miller - dressed in gothic clothes himself and covered his face in white make up in an attempt to impress his customers. He was quite toned and muscly as you could see via his tight silk cream trousers that clung to his legs, signifying his impressive, profuse thighs. His white, silk shirt along with decorative frills was open to display his rugged distinct chest. His messy, chocolate, slightly curly hair complimented his defined cheek and jaw bones. His appearance screamed flawlessly vampire. Even his expression was pretty accurate in my opinion; with his tired, agitated mannerisms adding to his whole living dead ‘I’ve been around for hundreds of years’ persona. I could see how any woman would be drawn into his immaculate, stunning, manly appearance but I was just merely not that impressed. There was something about Jonathan Miller I simply did not like.

The food they served was great; Adrian ordered a bloody steak, which looked so fresh I would not have been surprised if the chef had cut the meat straight off of the cow just before serving it. I ordered a chicken baguette, which had an odd but lovely taste to it. Jonathan had a lot of female waitresses working for him. They looked just as dedicated as him to the vampire theme; they were gorgeous, very similar to Lilith but paler and all with darker hair. I could not see a blonde haired girl in sight. There were a few dark haired men working behind the bar, but mainly the males were hidden in the kitchen. None of the staff that worked at The Stakehouse, including the owner, looked older than thirty years of age. All the customers seemed to mirror the gothic attire and make up. I was luckily dressed in black; I had put on a black halter neck dress with a black identity necklace around my neck. I knew the reputation of the restaurant and I didn’t want to stand out as too bright. The dress came down to my knees and I had put some black open toed heels on to make me look more of a similar height to Adrian who was six foot four, a foot taller than myself. During the meal I felt slightly uneasy; I had noticed the staff looking at me very strangely as if they recognised me. However it was my first time in the restaurant and my home town was an hour away; this was my first time in Vamperior period. One of the more clumsy looking waitresses, ‘Laurie’ according to her name tag, managed to spill my orangeade down my dress. She was too focussed on keeping eye contact with me that she missed the table completely when placing the drink down. After apologising fifty times and not listening to my assurance that it was fine, she helped me clean my dress up in the ladies room.

‘I’m really, very, very, tremendously sorry,’ she continued to apologised as she dabbed my dress with a damp towel.

‘It’s fine honestly,’ I put my hand on her shoulder, cold, freezing cold shoulder. It was almost unsettling. She noticed my reaction and tried to brush it off with nonsensical talking,

‘you have nightmares don’t you?’ She blurted very forwardly, then shook her head and ushered me out of the door and back to my seat. She placed her hand to her mouth as if to say ‘shhh’ and went back behind the bar. I’d been so shocked that I hadn’t had time to respond. I couldn’t even just assume that she was slightly crazy and clutching at straws, because I did have nightmares.

Jonathan made it blatantly obvious he was staring at me while I ate, I wondered if he'd spat in my sandwich and was enjoying watching me eat it. Then I thought how petty that sounded and told myself mentally to stop being so paranoid. Maybe he just plain didn't like the look of me; after all I wasn't vampire material. Adrian noticed how uncomfortable I felt and asked

'are you sure you are having a nice time? I can take you home if you aren't.'

'No,' I reassured him, 'I'm having a great time, I just feel a bit uneasy that's all. It's got nothing to do with you. It's just that the staff seem to be looking at me strangely.' Adrian looked around at the bar to notice Jonathan eyeballing me cautiously from the cash register. 'I'm probably just being paranoid.' I admitted.

'Would you like me to have a word with him?' Adrian asked, still looking over at Jonathan with slight fear it seemed.

'God no,' I replied, 'I don't want to bring any more attention to myself. Besides it's probably because I don't really fit into the theme here.'

'What theme would that be?' Adrian laughed as if he was completely unaware of the blatant vampire theme running through the restaurant.

'Vampires,' I said bluntly, then looked down at my plate and chuckled slightly.

'Vampires?' He said as I looked up to notice a smile creeping across his face, 'where did you get that idea from?'

'From the pictures of course,' I justified myself, 'the pictures of vampires, the whole gothic element of the restaurant, how everyone is dressed.'

'I'm not sure what you mean.' Adrian sounded worried as he spoke.

I quickly spun around in my chair to point at the pictures. They were gone. Even my favourite picture was no longer hanging over the bar. Instead there was a job advertisement for new waitresses wanted. Light purple walls replaced the once dark walls, and Jonathan and the waitresses who appeared pale beforehand were all perfectly flesh coloured. It felt as if the room had been completely redecorated within a matter of seconds, and the staff had completely changed appearance. Even the opening times were different as it now appeared to shut every night at one AM rather than dawn. It was almost impossible. Moments later Jonathan approached the table to collect our plates.

'Was everything was okay with your meals?' He asked in a grim sort of manner.

'Yes, fine thank you,' I replied, looking at him from head to toe. As he tilted his head I noticed an orange line across his cheek. At a closer view he looked as if he was wearing foundation, but after my previous mistake I did not want to suggest anything else.

'Excuse me,' I said to him, 'was there once a picture above the bar of a woman named Willow?' I sounded absolutely bizarre, his face looked intrigued, but at the same time he appeared as if he had no idea what I was talking about.

'Not that I recollect,' he answered, 'and I should know I've owned the place for years now.'

'Oh,' I said disappointed, turning slightly red from the embarrassment of the situation, 'thanks anyway, it was a lovely meal.'

'No problem Anna,' He said as he carried the plates away. My stomach sank, was I completely going insane?

'How did he know my name?' I asked, my heart thumping so hard against my chest I thought I was going to faint.

'Your necklace,' Adrian replied. I looked down at my chest and saw my name staring back up at me. I felt a slight relief, though I still had no idea how to explain what I had seen earlier in the night.

Seth reopened the door for us as we left; he seemed more pleasant upon our departure and bid us a good night. Adrian walked me home,