Luminary [Interview with the Vampire]

Another one like you

Louis kept to himself.

He hadn't been much help to anyone. Not since Lestat's arrival. He was still keyed up from the feeding, too much energy welling up in him, even after so long. It had laid dormant for years and now, it was struggling to burst right out of him.

It wasn't energy he could use. It wasn't meant for him. It was created and meant for Lestat but Lestat had abandoned it years ago, leaving it to dry up. At the time, Louis hadn't known what to do with himself, living with blood that was begging to be spilled. It itched against his nerves to the point that Louis started blood-letting, cutting his arm to bleed just so he wouldn't go crazy. Stabbing, over and over, because the cuts wouldn't stop healing.

Three... four months into it, his body began to learn that Lestat was gone. Lestat wasn't coming back. And with that realization, the energy slowly dried up till Louis could survive without wanting to climb up a wall in crazy frustration.

But Lestat was back. In a way, he was.

He was in New Orleans. Louis knew he'd stuck around but he wasn't in Lumiere Noire. He was staying out of Louis' way as much as Louis was staying out of his, but Lestat was a social animal. Two days in town and suddenly, everyone was buzzing with news of his arrival. He was visiting, sharing pleasantries, re-establishing old connections, and making his presence known.

But he wasn't really back. Not like before.

Lestat would never let Louis exist this long without being by his side. Maybe things were different. Maybe Lestat planned to live his life on the other side of town. Away from Louis. Out of Louis's life.

Surely, he would return for his feeding in a few weeks. When he did, Louis would willingly submit his neck. What were a few pints of blood in exchange for the life that Louis had now? As long as Lestat was willing to keep this distance, as long as he stayed away, Louis was going to do just fine.

If only his body would understand this.

His body knew Lestat was back. It seemed to like everything Lestat did to it. Regardless of the torment that Lestat brought to Louis' mind.

So, there he was, hiding in a remote swamp. In a forest. On a weekday. Listening to the diurnal activities of the Lumiere Noire little critters, pretending he wasn't desperate for Lestat's unwanted touch, pretending his blood wasn't pumping like fire in his veins.

He didn't want to be around people. Especially since everyone would be asking about Lestat. Everyone would want to talk about Lestat. Four years of speculation would ease itself on perpetual conversation like there was nothing else going on in the world.

Rather than going through all that, Louis isolated himself. If he could help it, he planned to remain out of sight for as long as it would take for the novelty of Lestat's return to die down.

At least, that was the plan.

Until nighttime came and he felt a presence. Calm, quiet presence, threading softly on the yielding moss. Louis walked toward more sturdy ground, wading through the heavy waters till he could move freely as his eyes roved the area, blinking, adjusting for the darkness. A star-filled sky was blocked by the trees under which Louis had chosen to hide.

The trees had high branches, with the lowest sitting a few feet above Louis's head. Beneath the trees, the bushes were as high as his thigh. Not nearly high enough to hide an adult. Not if their aim was stealth.

"Who's there?" he called.

"I was lied to."

Louis's head snapped up, in the direction of the voice. He hadn't thought anyone would be able or foolish enough to climb up any of the trees in the dark, but surely, sitting on a branch, a few trees away, was the shadow of a young woman. He turned on the torch on his phone, revealing the wide-eyed, pale-skinned woman who was swinging her legs around, nonchalant about the dangerous position she was in.