7Around 3 in the morning an odd and rather sweet scent caught the attention of Pam. It was quite rare for people to be showing up at Fangtasia that late in the night, but she went to greet their potential client anyway. It was a Wednesday morning and there was a chance that their Tru Blood delivery was a little early. This wasn't Jackson, though. Did they hire somebody else?
Opening the door, she saw a very frail little girl with ridiculously long hair reaching below her butt and bright blue eyes. Pam could see her bones through her skin without any trouble and a few pretty wide bruises creeping up on her arms. She was in all black, boots, jeans, and a loose top with the phases of the moon printed on it. There were a few silver rings on her bonny fingers and she was pretty tall, maybe as tall as Pam - including her high heels. The vampire raised an eyebrow.
"We're closing in two hours. You know that, right?"
The skinny blonde nodded. "Yeah, I thought so. I'm looking for a job, I want to sing here."
That took Pam by surprise. A small smile of amusement was tugging at her lips. "You're a singer...?" With that body? She barely looked alive.
"I am. I can sing most anything, as long as I know the song."
"Any gender?" Pam continued to question her. She seemed dead serious.
The girl nodded. "I won't be in town long, just a few weeks, maybe a month. I've played in vampire bars before. I know the risks are higher, but usually, the pay is better. I have a brother who plays the drums and I play the guitar if I have to."
"Do you belong to anyone?" Pam continued questioning her. She had to be someone's - why else would she look so drained?
"...Is that a problem?"
"We have to know if you're gonna work here, sweetie."
The girl slowly shook her head. "I... don't."
"Do you have an ID?"
The stranger pulled out a small wallet from the back pocket of her jeans and handed over her ID.
"You're young." Pam wasn't supposed to let minors inside.
"I'll be 21 next week. I'm sure it doesn't matter much, right? It's not like I'd be coming here to drink."
"Do you take anything?"
"I don't do drugs."
"Do you take V?"
"No. I've had a... bad experience. Actually, someone I knew."
"What do you do for fun?"
"What's that?" the girl tried to joke.
Eventually, Pam opened the door for her. "Come take a look inside, Amelia. I'm Pam."
Amelia nodded and walked in. She took her ID carefully as Pam was watching her hand covered in silver. A few people were looking at her, both human and vampire, as she made her way over to the bar. The girl saw the strippers and the costumers blending together into some sort of ecstatic chaos, a single body of dark water swirling together. On the throne was a blond vampire watching everything. Pam went to talk to him through the blasting music.
"New here?" a voice caught her attention. The vampire behind the bar had long black hair and looked like he had enjoyed life a little too much before being turned.
"Obviously." Amelia would have rather skipped the small talk.
"Are you looking for death? 'Cause that's what we are, and you smell really sweet."
"I bathe in vanilla and honey. If I had a dollar for every time I heard this..."
The barman put down the shaker, ornated a glass, and served it to another customer. "You have some nerve," he mocked her. "Those silver rings won't do you any good if you lose your fingers."
"Then I better keep watch of them. Aren't you going to ask me what I want?"
"...What can I get you?"
"A cherry coke, no ice, please."
The barman took out a can from the fridge, opened it, and poured half into a glass for the girl. She watched, then took the can of coke and drank straight from it.
"Is this a joke?"
"I don't trust a glass from you, no offense."
"Having fun?" Pam asked from behind her. "Stay until closing hours. Eric wants to hear you sing before making up his mind."
"This kid is gonna work here?" the barman asked in disbelief.
Pam turned her back on him. "Your guess is as good as mine."
Amelia left the money for her coke on the bar and kept watching those around her. A few were waiting to make eye contact to approach, but she avoided them. However, there was one sight she couldn't ignore. As soon as she met his eyes, he signed her to come over. By then, it was obvious who ran Fangtasia and she knew from previous experience that she had no right to decline such an invitation. There was no way to tell if it was a good or a bad 'come here', but she had to honor it, either way, so she stood up with her can of coke in her hand and made her way through the crowd.
As she did, a man caught her arm and sniffed her shoulder and neck.
"Come, dance with me."
"I wouldn't stop me if I were you," the girl drew his attention towards Eric who had his eyes on them.
Lust was replaced by an apology in his eyes as soon as he saw what was going on. The vampire let her go and bowed, backing away slowly.
Amelia climbed the steps that brought her face to face with Eric. Although they didn't officially meet, Pam was very clear that Eric was the one on the throne. By now, she was certain that he knew everything she had told Pam before entering the bar. He gestured towards a chair beside him and Amelia sat.
"Where are you from?"
Ordinary enough... She was a bit surprised that he didn't ask for her blood right away. "Denmark."
"What are you doing here?"
"My father ruined his academic career in Denmark, so we've been traveling around the world since. My brother and I play in bars or on the street to make money for him, mostly, and he will occasionally buy us what we need."
Eric turned to look at her again. He seemed slightly interested. "Why aren't they here?"
"They don't know I'm here. My father decided to stop in Bon Temp, we're playing at Merlotte's by day. I haven't been very well lately and I want to make some extra cash, save it, and get checked up by a doctor."
"Why don't you just tell your father?"
"He'll call me whiny."
"There's easier ways to make money around here..."
"I'm not a whore."
"You seem to be one for that father of yours."
"I depend on him. I have nowhere to go and barely any dollar to my name. I can't leave him."
Eric looked at the clock on the wall across the bar from them. It was already four.
"Some would feel threatened by that silver on your hands."
Amelia looked towards the barman. "I know. It saved me a few times, though."
"I don't like you wearing it here."
After a brief moment, she realized it was a demand and took off her rings.
"What was your experience with vampire blood?"
The girl swallowed her saliva hard. "...I had a friend diagnosed with Leukemia back in Denmark. She was terminal, her last chance was a transplant, but she could barely afford the blood tests. However, she could afford vampire blood and her dealer said it had healing properties. For a few weeks, she took it every day, increasing the dose until she ran out of that initial vial. We needed money for a second and the dealer wouldn't accept a delayed payment, so she stayed off the blood for three days. Her disease was not only back, but much more aggressive than before."
Eric eyed her suspiciously. "She didn't heal?"
She shook her head. "When we managed to pay for another vial, the dealer had her drink about half of it. Her body rejected it. She was bleeding through her nose and ears, throwing up blood and agonizing. We called an ambulance, but by the time they got there, she had lost most of the blood in her body. They tried to give her a transfusion, but it went straight out of her. She didn't respond to anything they tried."
He had never heard of anything like this. As far as he knew, vampire blood could heal anything in humans. Could her friend have been something other than human?
"Who was this dealer of V?"
"I don't know. I could recognize him if I saw him, but I never knew anything about him. I saw him once when my friend got that second vial. I don't know his name, address, or anything like that."
This was useless... Eric couldn't track down someone with this profile. The dealer may very well not be in Denmark anymore.
"Who else knows about this?"
"My father and my brother."
The vampire took a moment to evaluate the situation. The girl seemed oddly familiar to him, like a shadow from a faraway dream, clouded by the passing of time. She could have been rather attractive if she wasn't melting off her feet, with that pale blonde hair of hers and the very interesting braids she had going. He could recognize the genetic background of his people in her white skin and blue eyes, in her stature and bone structure. He would have liked her around if only to satisfy his curiosity. Her scent was different, too... Could Amelia and her friend from the past be something other than human? Would her body reject vampire blood if someone were to offer it to her?
"Would you leave your father for me?"
Her eyes widened in surprise.
Author's note:
This is my first attempt at a TV show. I hope you will find the canon characters accurate enough and the OCs fitting the universe. In terms of setting, this is happening somewhere at the beginning of the series, although it's AU so some events may be off. I'm currently not working with a beta reader, I just use a proofing tool.
Please favorite, follow, and leave me a review. I'd really love to know what you think.
If you enjoy this story and know the fandoms, I have two others receiving some love: Gospel for the Wicked (Death Note) and Research (YuYu Hakusho).
Disclaimers:
I do not own the True Blood franchise, characters, or plot. I only own the plot of this story, my interpretation of the canon characters and of the universe, and my original characters. I also do not own the cover photo, it's from Google Images. If anyone knows the model and/or photographer, please let me know and I will credit them.
