Posts
Kevin looked through the records. He scanned all the posts on line, plus even got a peek at La Ciencia Vampirismo. Didn't see the actual old, vellum book. Tomas just xeroxed a few pages, 'cause he told them about it and figured he had to bring something. They met at some diner in Old City. That's a Center City neighborhood north of Society Hill, sort of. A few other guys from the university came too and they had a Skype thing with some kids from PENN STATE... PENN and PENN STATE... The Big Ten and the Ivy League..... 'enemies.' But not really. One of the other guys, Liam has a cousin up there and they saw each other not too long ago, during The Holidays. Turns out the cousin, Daniel his name is, minors in vampire studies. Wants to be a vampire, but his mother won't sign the permission slip. Tomas says it's fake. He never heard a no vampire up in 'Happy Valley' (term for the straight from central casting, upstate Pennsylvania, beautiful mountain town campus) So as a consolation he wants to form a Junto Vampirido chapter instead. Actually, Tomas almost forgot about the meeting, but Edith a note magneted up on the refrigerator. Called him in Atlantic City. Well, not directly in Atlantic City, but one of the towns ten minutes 'downbeach' of Atlantic City, where Baylah's rich boyfriend has a house. He and Sarah had tickets for a show too.... some magic thing. Odd how beings possessed of a certain measure of real magic can be so into the fake sort. But he didn't want the kids to be disappointed, so he sublimated through the air (like flying) and it was cold. Let me tell you. Not long after he materialized on the street right outside the aforementioned diner. Hair a little messed up. Not a bad look. You know that wavy, long, black hair he's got? Clothes were still OK, though. Pure Tomas de Macabea all the way... The trim, black bootkins.... The black jeans... The white shirt... The fine, black, leather jacket.... More like a finger-tip-length thing. No what he does to stay warm when he sublimates (means going WHOOSH through the very atoms of creation) ? He wears this Gore-tex thing. Like a long sleeved t-shirt it is. Sarah read about it on line. Ordered it from Amazon. One of the 'familiars' was gonna get it for them, but sometimes they like to be self-reliant.
So he and the kids went into the diner. They had a room in the back, not too different than that place in University City. You know, just realized how many neighborhoods in Center City, Philadelphia have words like 'village' or 'city' or 'town' or something like that in the name. OK, Chinatown is a given. Third biggest U.S. Chinatown too, after San Francisco and New York. But then there's Franklin Town, Queen's village. Old City, University City, Museum Town. I don't know... a whole lot of 'em.
Thing is, they tore down a Beau Arts early 20th century apartment building to make way for a condo tower in one a them 'cities' and found an old graveyard under it. That always happens. You know those old fashioned coffins shaped like Halloween decorations? .... Dozens of 'em and fairly well preserved too. Sad thing is one of them had the skeleton of a child inside, an eleven year old little boy. And the bones were found in a rather agitated position. Looked like he was trying to force the lid up with his back. But six feet of damp clay weighs tons. He wern't gone no where. Funny thing is Tomas knew the kid. Went to his funeral and everything. Well, didn't actually go to the service, 'cause that happened during the day. But he did pay a condolence call later that night. Robert, the boy's name was. Children always died from fevers back then. Father was a lawyer, or an 'advocate' as they called them in those days. Trial specialists were called 'barristers.' Everybody liked Robert. Tomas once gave him a copy of Gulliver's Travels and a real nice, hand cranked, glass, ceramic and brass electrical charge generator thing. Got it from Doctor Franklin. Robert loved it. Liked chocolate from the French Confectioners on Fourth Street too. Tomas used to get it for him all the time. The father, the lawyer. was like an early 'familiar.' Look, Doctor Franklin knew the boy too. And they forgot how bad they were when he passed. Tomas wanted to use his blood. He wanted to cure him. Just a few drops. That's all. But, Margaret, the mother was afraid. She was a good soul, but that's how it was. So the boy died and they buried him. An hour later he woke up and died a second time, alone and terrified and crying in the dark.
That's what they talked about in the diner. They were supposed to talk about good deeds and things they did to help people. But the kids wanted to hear about the premature burial. Tomas said as far as he was concerned they're all premature burials, mortal life span being what it is. Kids wanted to know if he ever saw ghosts. Tomas said - Yes, a lot of times..... To make up for ignoring the good deeds and all, the vampire called some charity on his cell phone and used his debit card number to donate Twenty five hundred dollars. Then they just sat there eating their eggs. Tomas drank plain, unsweetened iced tea. Everybody got real quiet.
If they buried people at night, Tomas might have felt something. He might have gone down to the graveyard. He might have saved him.
When the kids left (the ones on Skype too), he could have sublimated back down the shore, but he didn't.... Tomas silently walked over to the spot where they took down the Beau Arts building and sat on a bench looking at the pit where the little boy died alone in the dark... And he remembered all the other people he'd lost over the years as well...
That's a side to longevity most of us never think about...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LINKS ---->
browse.feedreader.com/c/.Billy_Kravitz_ vampire _wonderland.
So he and the kids went into the diner. They had a room in the back, not too different than that place in University City. You know, just realized how many neighborhoods in Center City, Philadelphia have words like 'village' or 'city' or 'town' or something like that in the name. OK, Chinatown is a given. Third biggest U.S. Chinatown too, after San Francisco and New York. But then there's Franklin Town, Queen's village. Old City, University City, Museum Town. I don't know... a whole lot of 'em.
Thing is, they tore down a Beau Arts early 20th century apartment building to make way for a condo tower in one a them 'cities' and found an old graveyard under it. That always happens. You know those old fashioned coffins shaped like Halloween decorations? .... Dozens of 'em and fairly well preserved too. Sad thing is one of them had the skeleton of a child inside, an eleven year old little boy. And the bones were found in a rather agitated position. Looked like he was trying to force the lid up with his back. But six feet of damp clay weighs tons. He wern't gone no where. Funny thing is Tomas knew the kid. Went to his funeral and everything. Well, didn't actually go to the service, 'cause that happened during the day. But he did pay a condolence call later that night. Robert, the boy's name was. Children always died from fevers back then. Father was a lawyer, or an 'advocate' as they called them in those days. Trial specialists were called 'barristers.' Everybody liked Robert. Tomas once gave him a copy of Gulliver's Travels and a real nice, hand cranked, glass, ceramic and brass electrical charge generator thing. Got it from Doctor Franklin. Robert loved it. Liked chocolate from the French Confectioners on Fourth Street too. Tomas used to get it for him all the time. The father, the lawyer. was like an early 'familiar.' Look, Doctor Franklin knew the boy too. And they forgot how bad they were when he passed. Tomas wanted to use his blood. He wanted to cure him. Just a few drops. That's all. But, Margaret, the mother was afraid. She was a good soul, but that's how it was. So the boy died and they buried him. An hour later he woke up and died a second time, alone and terrified and crying in the dark.
That's what they talked about in the diner. They were supposed to talk about good deeds and things they did to help people. But the kids wanted to hear about the premature burial. Tomas said as far as he was concerned they're all premature burials, mortal life span being what it is. Kids wanted to know if he ever saw ghosts. Tomas said - Yes, a lot of times..... To make up for ignoring the good deeds and all, the vampire called some charity on his cell phone and used his debit card number to donate Twenty five hundred dollars. Then they just sat there eating their eggs. Tomas drank plain, unsweetened iced tea. Everybody got real quiet.
If they buried people at night, Tomas might have felt something. He might have gone down to the graveyard. He might have saved him.
When the kids left (the ones on Skype too), he could have sublimated back down the shore, but he didn't.... Tomas silently walked over to the spot where they took down the Beau Arts building and sat on a bench looking at the pit where the little boy died alone in the dark... And he remembered all the other people he'd lost over the years as well...
That's a side to longevity most of us never think about...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LINKS ---->
browse.feedreader.com/c/.Billy_Kravitz_ vampire _wonderland.
No comments:
Post a Comment