LIRA: Book I

CHAPTER EIGHT: Mingling and Dining

Nicholas was slumped on the chair, his legs extended in front of him. He was staring at the fire ablaze at the hearth, while Sevastian was on the other side of the room absorbed in his book and Stephan pacing back and forth, occasionally glancing at the window.

"Let's go out now and play," Stephan said, finally breaking the monotonous silence.

By play, Stephan meant to scout for any willing victim for them to feed on. Of course, Nicholas thought, they needed to look outside the academy, or they were never going to hear the end of it once Philip learned about it. Although the Blood Compact Treaty forbade them to feed on humans, there were still places unknown to most where humans gave their blood willingly straight from their neck. It's one of those loopholes some vampires found; the Treaty merely protected the humans from being attacked or hunted by the vampires. If the humans offer themselves so willingly, now who was he to turn down their offer? But they never drink the humans dry. A dead human with vampire marks on their neck was a different story. Nicholas really couldn't blame the humans why they crave the vampire's bite. It gave them that sudden rush of excitement that course through their veins as the vampire suck in their blood, a frenzied feeling that made them feel high and over the edge. And humans became so easily addicted to their bite. Foolish humans.

"It's not yet time for us to go," Nicholas said to Stephan.

Stephan's shoulder slumped forward in disappointment.

Nicholas spied Sevastian, still thoroughly absorbed with his book. He was like Philip, always got their noses buried on a book. "What's that you're reading?"

Stephan leaned in closer to Sevastian and tried to read the old and almost battered looking book cover. "Interview with... I can't make out the rest of the words, Nick."

Sevastian lifted his gaze on the two and explained. "It's a book about a human interviewing a vampire. Poor thing really, that vampire. Imagine living on rats on one of his desperate times?"

Stephan made a disgusted look on his face. "Rats, yuck. Oh hey, that's one of Philip's books. You should be careful with that. That one is older than you."

"It's okay Stephan. The papers they developed during the twenty-first century are durable enough to withstand any climate and can last for thousands of millennia," Sevastian explained.

"You are one weird vampire, Sev. If you want to learn about vampires just ask yourself," Stephan pointed out.

Sevastian closed the book and said, "I am one hundred and seventeen years old, Steph. Practically ancient; I'm allowed to be eccentric."

The door suddenly burst open and an angry Philip strode inside the room. "Explain to me, Nicholas, why you forgot to mention the incident several nights ago?" Philip demanded.

Nicholas merely raised a brow. "It took four nights before the news reached you? Those slayers must have been lazy with their reports."

"You're trying my patience, Nicholas," Philip warned.

Nicholas rose and sauntered towards the fireplace. "I already addressed the issue with the three. I had it under control."

"Ha! You can't even control three young vampires; how can you expect me to believe you can run an entire clan someday?" Philip said.

"I said I had everything under control," Nicholas said between gritted teeth. "Besides, it's that girl's fault for smelling so... delicious. Even Sev was drawn to her last night."

"I was just walking with her, Nick," Sevastian defended himself.

Philip sighed. "You're a hundred and eighteen years old, Nicholas. By now you should have learned how to ignore the smell of blood." He went to Sevastian and snatched the book on his hands. "Why don't you try to mingle with the humans? Dine with them if you must. Your upperclassman doesn't seem to have any problems associating with their human classmates." Then he left the room.