Blood Mates

The Knight Family History

Jasper had been sitting at his desk on his laptop when a figure from the corner of his eye caught his attention. Seeing Eric Knight in his backyard was terrifying, and slightly ominous now knowing he could and would snap his neck in a matter of seconds.

But as Jasper looked at Eric, he could see an almost sadness to him, a c***k in the steel shield that had been his armor. Eric looked up at Jasper for a moment and then beckoned him to come.

Grabbing his hoodie Jasper walked through the house a little nervous. Going out the back door, Jasper walked to the tree covered in snow and stared at Eric carefully. “We sneaking into each other’s backyards now, Mr. Knight?” He asked unsure if he was okay with that.

Eric breathed out as he apologized lightly, “I’m sorry. But I thought if I would have called, you wouldn’t have answered. Not that I’d blame you.” Watching Eric think for a moment, Jasper was surprised when he asked, “I need to tell you some things about me Jasper, things about my family. Do you want to listen?” Jasper admitted to wanting to and Eric leaned back on the huge tree as he started the story from the beginning.

“I was born in the year 1828. I was the son of a harlot and a merchant in the streets of London. His bastard, and I wasn’t his first, but the only one of color. Which meant in his eyes he could do nothing for me.”  

Not astonished at the coldness in his voice, Jasper was still amazed at the story itself.

 Eric looked up at the sky warily, “He sent me to America when I was five to hide my identity from his wife after my mother died. And I was raised in one of his partner’s shops until I was of age. I didn't hear from or see him until later years when I heard he died. The only thing he left me was a few silver pieces and a horse already dying.”

Facing Jasper for a moment, Eric grinned, “You reminded me of myself when I was your age.” Jasper looked at Eric surprised, “Really?”

Chuckling Eric remembered his youth fondly, “I took on a lot of responsibility when I was younger as well. I worked hard, and I was proud. I met Sophia in the late 1850’s.  And I wanted her more than I wanted anything in the world. But I also knew I had to do right by her.”

Jasper grinned as Eric played through their lives, “After building us a house, proving to her daddy I could provide for us, we were married. And I promised her a life where she'd look up and I'd be there. No matter the storm or fire coming our way." 

And he had...he'd stuck out. Eric smiled a little as Jasper's heart seemed to warm for a moment in the cold weather. Eric breathed out, "Few years go by, we have two little kids running around. We were happy, so happy and then I found out about my brother living in the streets of London. I couldn’t stomach abandoning him, so I spent more money than I ever thought I would at the time. I had him brought over safely to me and worked even harder. I wanted to give them everything, to have everything.”

Both fell silent as the wind blew past them. And while it seemed like too personal a question, Jasper couldn’t afford to pussyfoot around it. So, he instead spat it out before he lost his nerve, “What happened to you Mr. Knight, how did you become like this?”

Eric grinned a little, “I was in a war in the year 1863.” Jasper jerked back, “What?”

 Eric nodded as he remembered the old days, “I was a young comrade, pushed to the front of the line. Despite what had been said the color of my skin still made me nothing. Nothing but more protection for the white boys beside me than an actual solider.”

Bitter still to this day at the ignorance of it all, Eric remembered the harsher times. The time he was close to the doors and would have left his family with nothing.

“I was to die on that field or go home with basically nothing beating and missing a limb probably. And after two bullet wounds to the leg, I was about to die.  But then a vampire posing as a medic saved me, said in my fever I had pleaded for him to get me back to my family. He pitied me and saved my life despite the risk it opposed to him.”

Looking at Jasper amused, Eric admitted bashfully, “And the moment I thought I could handle it, I came home to my family. I couldn’t wait a second later,”

Eric winced as he thought of the difficult adjustment period, he had faced, “At first they noticed no change in me, if they did, they chalked it up to the war. Only Sophia could see something was wrong.”

Confused Jasper interrupted, “How could she tell?” Eric rubbed a hand over the back of his head, “Ughhh a wife know when something is wrong with her husband Jasper.”

Cocking an eyebrow, Jasper taunted, “Meaning you two weren’t-.” Eric shot the young mortal a look, but Jasper was laughing. Rolling his eyes, Eric continued, “So basically she kept a close eye on me. Started noticing me disappearing for hours and thought I was hurting myself. Or worse.”

Seeing where this was going, Jasper was shocked as Eric nodded at his understanding expression, “She followed me and had to see me feed. Like you, she got a nasty shock and didn’t know how to feel about it. She wouldn’t let me around our kids for days.”

Jasper understood that and knew for a moment he hadn’t wanted Alaia around him either. But he could feel that was changing, just like it had for Mrs. Knight. “What softened her up?” Laughing lightly at the question as he remembered, Eric recalled, “Alaia had hurt herself. She was roughhousing with her brother and cut up her knee. She came running to me crying and wanting to be babied.”

Laughing even more, he shrugged a little,  “And in that moment I was her daddy, helping her clean it up and laugh it off. Sophia got to see I was a vampire now, but I was still the same man she loved. The man she married, the father of our kids, and that I wouldn’t hurt them.”

Eric basked in the thought of the love his wife showed him those months. The loyalty and lengths she endured, “She helped me hide it after that, kept me in line, and when I started to sleep all day, she made up lies for me. After a while, we were a normal family again.”

Jasper shook his head, “But it doesn’t end there. It ends with them all somehow becoming vampires, and I know that wasn’t a choice for them.” Eric winced at Jasper being so damn sharp. But it was the truth.

“Times were heated, even with Lincoln doing what he did, we were still targets, even in the North." Jaw clenched, he gritted out, "Men came after my family while we were in our beds. I heard them coming, but it was too late.  They fired muskets into the house. And even like this…enough gunfire could put one of us out of remission for a while until we healed.”

Rubbing his gut as the memory burned in his brain tormented him, Eric rasped out, “I couldn’t defend us I had crawled to them in the house. When the men were reloading in case, we were still alive and trying to fight. I had given each member of my family my blood as they died.”

Fighting the anger that still festered, Eric growled, “They buried us in the muddy backwaters like we were nothing. As I healed from my injuries, my family went through their change in shallow graves.” 

Jasper felt frozen as his breath formed in the wind. Breathing out, the blonde boy thought for a moment and then asked fearfully, “All of them turned at the same time? What happened when they woke up?”

Meeting Jasper’s eyes with a horrid truth, Eric didn’t lie, “They thought we were dead, and had burned everything we owned to the ground. My family started to go home only to find drunk men celebrating what they’d done.”

Eric met Jasper’s eyes as he whispered, “Like they’d done something great. And when I finally healed, I found my family had killed them all. It was one of the most brutal massacres in its era. They said it was an animal attack, but it was them.”

Jasper breathed out, “Jesus Christ.” Those were Eric’s sentiments at the time as well, but he knew some other things as well, “It wasn’t totally their fault. It’s hard on a newly turned vampire to deal with that first feed. All the emotions heightened paired with the first blood craving. It’s hard to reign in.”

Embarrassed, Eric suddenly omitted, “And I couldn’t control them all not at once. Four newly turned vampires? All hyped up on emotion and their need to feed? It was impossible and we were gaining too much attention. Moving every three days, we barely could keep up with our lies and stacks of bodies were piling up wherever we went. And at the time, a n***o family moving every which way dressed like a bunch of wealthy white folks? We looked suspicious because we were and we were failing in hiding it." 

Eric licked his lips as he guiltily admitted, “So after a month, I found a witch and paid her to do a spell on them all.” Jasper stiffened as his mind halted all function, “A witch? Like Sabrina?” Eric slowly nodded and Jasper tossed his head back.

“Well then…okay.” As he let that part sink in, Jasper then asked, “What did it do to them? The spell?” Eric sighed, “It put them in a deep sleep, leaving one awake until they were in complete control. It started with Sophia, Desmond, Loren, and then Alaia. It was hard, they all wanted to rush through their training to wake the other up. But eventually, we got there, and then we were able to live peacefully.”

Wincing at the small lie Eric admitted, “I mean a small hiccup or two, but nothing I couldn’t deal with or hadn’t expected.”

Jasper nervously wrung his hands, “You know what I still don’t get thought?” Eric looked at Jasper closely, “What?” Jasper laughed breathlessly, “I know you don’t like me Mr. Knight! And you barely trusted me as is before I knew.”

 Eric c****d an eyebrow at the bold declaration and Jasper shrugged a shoulder casual about the fact, “I tried to pretend I didn’t notice for Alaia’s sake, but you having me followed by that Stolvic guy? That was a pretty big indicator. ”

Unnerved, Eric asked shocked, “You knew about him following you?” Jasper c****d an eyebrow, “You’re trying to be funny right?”

Both looked at each other and burst out into laughter.

“I probably should have sent someone else.” Jasper agreed to Eric’s awkward omission. “Yeah probably. Which is why I’m confused.” Jasper admitted thoughtfully, “You could have gotten rid of me then. Before me and Alaia got too close, before we were even together. Why didn’t you snuff if it out if you really didn’t approve?”

Both fell silent as Eric thought on his words before he admitted, “It’s not that I don’t like you Jasper. And it’s not that I didn’t approve of you, I think you’re a great young man. You surprised me if I’m being honest.”

 Eric coughed before he was dryly admitting, “My daughter’s curiosity and general interest in you at first I pegged as boredom.” Jasper jerked painfully at the thought of Alaia seeing him as nothing but entertainment. A cat and mouse game where she was far more superior in the sense. But Eric followed up his words quickly as he admitted, “But then she came to life.”

Thinking of her in the kitchen, dancing and singing as she cooked for Jasper that first day, Eric mused, “I haven’t seen her so happy in a long time. And I did hope, hope that maybe she had found her person.”

As another light flurry of snow began to sprinkle them, Eric softly mused, “We all need someone to hold on to like this. It’s selfish, but it’s the only way we make it. And Alaia’s never connected to someone like she’s connected to you.” 

Jasper was instantly grateful for that at least and Eric closed his eyes taking the risk, “I need you to come see her,” Nervously breathing out Jasper asked, “Does she even want to see me?”

Eric’s response was dead serious as he whispered, “She needs to see you.” And that was all Jasper needed to hear.