Jackie sat slumped against a tree in the forest clawing at the bark with her emmense strength. "Why?" She hised through her teeth. Then a shriek. "Why me?"
She had just found out she was a vampire. Not a Siren, no, those powers were an aftermath of a spell. She was really a vampire. She hated it. She wanted to claw at herself until that part of her was ripped free.
Then Jackie stopped for a brief moment, the craving for blood burning in her throat. She groaned and started pulled at her long blonde hair. "No... NO!" She screamed, her voice like a wind chime, ripping through two octaves. If she could cry she would be crying now. But her eyes remained dry. No tears would come forth. She ripped at the trunk of the tree sending it crashing to the floor of the forest. Then she got up and ran.
She ran for what seemed hours, but was only really a minute. Then she returned to the tree on the ground and stared at it. 'I can't believe I did that.' She thought grimly. Then she sank to the ground again in disbelief. She was her worst nightmare. Her deepest fear. Then why wasn't she afraid?
Stacey slowly stepped out from behind a tree. "Jakie, are you okay?" She asked in a light voice. She could tell something was wrong. The wind blew the hood of her orange hoodie around her head.
"Do I look ok?" Jackie growled whirling around. She looked at Stacey for a moment and saw her reflection in Stacey's eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm a monster." She groaned.
"Not really. Cause if you are, so am I."
And to believe that the owner of the voice was a monster was unimaginable. Cody stood not far away, his hands shoved into the pockets of his hooded sweatshirt. His black hair was messy from the wind, his cheeks were oink from running and playing. But he looked at Jackie with steady ice blue eyes.
The prodigy five year old son of Ginny stepped around the fallen tree, glancing at it with little interest.
"I don't know what your problem is, Miss Jackie...but it surely cannot be so bad that you must take the life of a tree."
Bucky always snuck into the forest at night with his Invisibility cloak and he did so that night and when he noticed the peapole speaking he through of his invisibility cloak and said "no you're not a monster Ginny's a nice caring person same with you so stop with the whinning"
Jackie turned to Cody when he came around gaining a small bit of her composure. "Yeah, the tree probably didn't deserve that." She said a faint bit of humor in her voice, but it disappeared as Bucky spoke. "Shut up Bucky! I could kill you right now!" She hissed looking at her hands. "What am I supposed to do with that? Just think, that tree could have been a person." She said, disgusted with her powers.
Jackie didn't know what was with her. She normally had a handle on herself, but tonight... tonight, she had no idea what happened.
"Mmm." Cody agreed, then walked around to where the top of the tree had been. He bent down, rifling through the leaves and plucking an acorn. He knelt down to where the roots had once thrived and dug a small hole. Plopping the seed inside, he looked up at Jackie.
"Death happens. Making sure it didn't happen in vain is the important part." He spoke softly, then shook his head as he stood.
"Miss Jackie, whatever is wrong?"
"Huh. I just figured out I'm a.. vampire." She practically spit the last word. "What I've always feared! Now I'm one! Figures...." She said sullenly, then she looked at Cody.
"Wow, I'm spilling out my guts to a 5 year old." Jackie mumbled to herself. (apologies if theres an age mistake.)
((Perfect))
"Irony is a strange thing." Cody couldn't help it, the corners of his mouth twisted into a grin. Irony was a joke he had no problem finding funny. As well as karma. He struggled not to giggle and succeeded by nodding his head.
"Why do you fear vampires?"
"I had a past run in with one that was... less pleasent... and ate humans. Not animals. Those are who I fear. The heartless ones, "Vampires have no heart", is what I aways thought... but, now... I don't want to become an "evil" one myself! You have no idea how big the temptation is just being within a mile of people!" Jackie said exasperated.
Cody held up his smile, though it turned strange. His teeth showed, making him look demonic as he stood there.
"I don't know how the hunger part works, Miss Jackie. But I know temptation."
He narrowed his eyes as he was silent for a moment. Then he spoke again, "Have you fed at all yet?"
Stacey fell silent as Cody spoke. She didn`t care if Jackie was a vampire, she would still be her friend. Her lip quivered slightly from the wind as she listened for her answer.
"No..." Jackie said, now a whisper. "I... I'm not sure how... If there were a person in the woods while I was hunting, using just my senses. I don't think they'd have a chance. I'm trying to wait until no one's out in the forest anymore, but I still here footsteps, deep in the forest... and heartbeats." She finished, looking at the ground. Her eyes were black now, the color they were when she was hungry.
Cody smirked, "Mere children are able to control themselves whenfeeding. Why can't you?"
He shook his head, "Go for a rabbit, Miss Jackie. Easy to catch and filling enough."
Jackie narrowed her eyes at Cody a bit. "When vampires hunt... well... You aren't yourself, you give youself to your senses. Like a..." She paused searching for an analogy. "Hm... A shark, I suppose, or pirahna. When the smell of blood is in the air, you can't control yourself. I went a couple nights ago, no one was in the forest then though." She finished, perking her ears in the direction of the forest, she still heard people and grimanced. When would they leave?
"Hm... For the question about the rabbit... I could, but carnivores are much more appealing. They smell more like humans..." Jackie paused almost licking her lips.
Cody waved aside her words, snorting his sudden disgust, "Then you truly do wish to become like those you fear."
He shook his head, "Only the weak give themselves completely to their instincts. Any you, Miss Jackie, are weak."
Cody knew temptation. His mother had instilled a strong sense of morals and values, but nonetheless the temptation of blood lust was strong. Mostly when he was angry, annoyed, or simply feeling arrogant. Killing was in his parent's blood, thus in his.
Jackie growled, a fearsome sound coming from her chest. "You have no idea." She hissed, glaring at the small child now. "You have no idea what its like. You could never know." She finished, the intensity of her fury was directed at the five year old. She inwardly grimaced at herself for the way she was behaving toward Cody now.
She stopped realizing she had sank into a hunting crouch and straightened herself erect, taking deep unnecessary breaths.
Cody hadn't even flinched, vampires did not scare him. Instead his ice blue eyes narrowed, becoming harder and more intense.
"I do know, Miss Jackie." Even after calling her weak he remained polite, "I know a temptation worse than drinking the life force of someone else to substantiate yourself." His voice was calm, his features dark and demonic with his pale skin and black hair.
"I know what it's like to wish to kill someone beside you simply because you don't like the way they are so close to you. I know what it's like to have your hand twitch in anticipation of reaching out and snapping someone's neck. Miss Jackie, I am five. Temptation is a daily encounter in my life. I live for blood lust. It's in my blood."
He smirked at her, "Only the weak give in fully to temptation."
"Blood..." Jackie said, her eyes going a bitt hazy. "Could we try to not mention that in conversation anymore?" She said looking at Cody, listening to his heartbeat. Strange she wasn't tempted to kill him now... He didn't smell like normal human blood would to her. She stopped, in thought for a moment.
Cody continued to smirk, knowing her thoughts by reading the expression on her face. "My blood is mixed with that of the Fallen. Essentially, mine is better for you, it would sustain you much better because of the regenerative aspect." He explained, ignoring her request to not mention it.
"The Fallen?" Jackie repeated, lost. "You do know that I have no idea what you're talking about?" She said looking at Cody raising an eyebrow. "And what do you mean ragenerative? You sure don't smell better than other humans." She added, referring to the smell of his blood.
Cody grinned, holding his hands out, palms up.
"I'm only half human." He told her, as if to say, what can you do?
My mother is one hundred percent human. More humane than anyone I've ever met. My father is a Fallen Angel." He titled his head, "Didn't you ever see my wings?"
"No, I don't believe I have." JAckie admitted, wondering what he meant.
Cody nodded, taking a small step back and glancing from side to side to make sure their were no trees in his way. He pulled off his sweatshirt, for he hadn't fixed it to allow for his wings yet. It was new, and he didn't want to rip it.
His t-shirt, though, had barely visible slits in the back, and it became apparent why as the false vanished state fell from his wings. Appearing slowly but surely, black feathered wings spread from his shoulder blades.
They matched his hair in color, and each wing was the length of his body. The feathers looked soft and satiny, shining in the soft light that was in the forest. They looked too large for his small frame, but he looked complete with them. Before it had seemed as if something was missing, but when one looked upon him now, the wings just seemed right.
Because they were. Cody folded his black wings behind him, bowing slightly at the waist, "So I guess you truly didn't know? I am the Fallen Prince."
"No, I was not aware of such." Jackie apologized. She looked at the silkyness of the wings, how it would feel to touch. "Hm... May I touch them?" She asked, wondering if she was breaking some rule.
Cody hesitated, his wings were vulnerable. His dad had mentioned in passing about wings being ripped off. And they could easily be broken, the bones inside were hollow like a birds. But he nodded, wrapping one around himself as if he were a preening bird. He gave her a serious look, "Be careful." He told her.
He'd never had anything bad happen to his wings, and he didn't want this to be a first.
Jackie quickly paced over to Cody and reached out her hand. She touched the wing with the tips of her fingers and rubbed her hand down it. "Wow, soft." She murmured, feeling the wing, gently, under her feather-light touch.
Cody couldn't help it, his wing twitched with the unfamiliar sensation of being touched. He jumped back, shivering, shaking his wing out to get rid of the feeling.
His ice blue eyes met hers and he frowned, "Sorry. No one but my mom has ever touched them."
He folded his wing next to the other on his back, folding his arms to keep away to chill.
"I smell different from humans because I am not human. Only half."
"Oh, I see. I apologize." Jackie said, still marveling at the silk like texture of the wings.
She stopped, looking at Cody for a moment. He had the appearence of his father, the same icy eyes and obsidian hair. But every time she talked to him, she thought of Ginny. "You know, you're a lot like your mom," SHe then commented.
"Don't apologize. You've nothing to apologize for. I'm not sorry I'm a Fallen. I'm very proud indeed." he nodded his head gravely.
Cody smiled when she said he acted like Ginny, "I know. I'm bound to, she raised me for a long time by herself. I only met my dad about a year ago."
He paused, remembering the day he first laid eyes on Xaver.
"Who is he?" His grandfather has asked his mother.
Ginny had breathed the next name, softly, as if the word still hurt her, "Xaver."
"Xaver?" Cody had said, his eyes going straight to the dark haired man before them, "That was my daddy's name."
"Was your daddy's name?" Xaver had looked so hurt, so confused, and upset.
Cody shook his head, chasing the memory away quickly. He nodded to Jackie, "You see, You are not the only one with problems."
Jackie smiled and looked at the ground for a moment. "Sorry you had to listen to all my whining." She apologized. "I have no idea why you came out here tonight, but surely it wasn't to find a deranged vampire, bent on destroying trees." She said, an undertone of humor in her voice.
Then she looked up at Cody. "I know I'm not the only one with problems. I just think I'm the only person who tells random people who come walking along about them." She said once again smiling, her unusually white teeth glinting.
Cody looked up, past the tress and at the sky, "I ran away from my mom. We got into an argument..." He paused for a long time, "She knows where I am, I know. How could she not?"
He looked back at Jackie, breaking into a sudden grin, "See? Telling your problems to complete strangers...it's easier than telling the people closest to you."
Jackie almost started laughing. "Thanks for telling me that, now I'm scared you're mom'll pop out from behind a tree at any given moment, but I don't think I'll consider you a stranger again." She added with a smile.
Cody nodded, "No, once you meet, you are no longer strangers." He watched her closely, "My mother won't pop out of anywhere. She and I simply let each other be until I'm ready to go back. She always knows where I am...she worries herself, but she knows where to find me if she needs me."
"Oh, I see." Jackie said, sitting down on the trunk of the demolished tree. "That sounds like a nice... way of going about that sort of thing." She laughed softly, remembering. "I tried to run away when I was younger. Of course, I didn't get very far. About as far as the tree house in the back yard. My dad had to come get me down later."
She played with her fingers a bit before looking up. "I'm sorry, I'm probably boring you." She said, with a weak smile, still partly thinking of her father.
"No," Cody said, genuinely interested, "I don't know what normal childhoods are like. I was kept a secret for most of mine."
He took a seat beside her, smiling. "Me and my mom....we get along. But as you said, I take after her, and so am as stubborn as her."
Jackie laughed at his comment about being stubborn. "So what did you do? Being kept a secret, I mean? Just hide?" She asked, but quickly added. "If you don't want to answer, you really don't have to, I'm just merely curious."
Cody nodded, "We went a total of two places during my first three years." He spoke quietly, "My grandparents home was more common. But once, when I was small...maybe two years old, my mom took me to this one place. It was here, in the forest...to the wolf caves."
He smiled slowly, "She let me play with the wolf cubs."
Then Cody shook his head, "My mother never let me from her sight, she never let down her guard. Because she knew....she knew that if my father's family found out about me, they would kill me."
"Oh, I see." Jackie said. "I dodn't really have a typical childhood either, though nithing like what yours sounds like." She said thinking. "I was born in... 1884." She said quietly, "My father died when I was young and a friend of his took me in. He turned me into what I am now. A vampire, frozen in time at fifteen forever." She laughed a bit looking around.
"Things sure were different that they were 124 years ago." She said solomly.
Cody shrugged, "Everyone dies, Miss Jackie. Vampires are not immortal, as much as everyone wants to think they are. My father is over four thousand years old. He is not a vampire...."
Cody reached over, picking up his sweatshirt. Slowly, his wings began to vanish from sight, covering themselves up and disappearing. He pulled his sweatshirt back on and smiled at her, "You also age, you know. Slow enough that chances are you won't ever notice it until you are close to a thousand years old. By then, the virus in your blood will begin to eat you from the inside out."
"Um.. Ok?" Jackie said looking at COdy questioningly. Her father's image never changed, but then again her perspective on time had severly diminished over the last 124 years.
Cody stood, stretching his arms, "Vampires are like any other creature, Miss Jackie. They are not the undead, that is simply a muggle legend. They are alive, they can die. They simply require blood to keep this life, or they will starve to death."
He ran a hand through his hair, "You'd do better to ask my mother. She studied the different races that exist in our world. She knows a lot about each."
"I didn't say we couldn't die... My father did just die..." She said, her voice softening on the last part, true sadness touching her voice for the first time this evening. The other was just fueled by anger.
He nodded, "My condolences, Signora."
Cody put his hands in the pockets of his hoodie and nodded, "Death happens, as I said before. Was his death in vain, or did he leave behind a daughter worth giving to this world?"
((Can I join or would that ruin the moment? I totally understand if I can't))
Jackie smiled and blushed slightly. "Truthfully, I don't know yet, I guess thats something that will have to be found out. So far, it seems all I've done were complete disasters." She confessed to the ground, it seemed.
Quite suddenly she looked up, a fire in her eyes. "But, I will find the person... no, vampire or demon, who did this. They won't be taking up perfectly good air for long..." She vowed.
Cody nodded, "You can force them to live under water." He knew what she meant, but he was purposefully being dense. He smiled, "Come, Miss Jackie. If you take me back to the school, my mother won't be as angry with me."
A small smile slid onto Jackie's face. "True, I wouldn't care to see your mother very mad." She agreed, and turned to the direction school was in and realized how far they were. It would take a while to reach there at human speed... She turned to Cody. "Have you ever had a piggyback ride, from a vampire? I was just thinking, since schools far away and all... But I understand if you don't want to... Or if you want to fly...?"
"I'd rather walk." Cody nodded, "I'm not supposed to fly. Which, coincidently, was what my mother and I argued about."
Cody shrugged and began walking in the direction of the school, "She doesn't want me exposing myself to danger." He made a face.
Jackie nodded in agreement and a thoughtful look came across her face, furrowing her brow. "So... Your mom was worried about danger, when you thought that there was no need for that?" SHe asked, trying t comprehend. "And thats a no for the piggyback too?" She added, smiling.
"Right. I can take care of myself well enough." Cody frowned, but nodded at her, "Yes to the no."
He shrugged again, "My mom thinks no place is safe."
Jackie shrugged, the smile sliding off her face. "But, your mother has reasons to think that, I suppose." She guessed.
Cody rolled his eyes, "She doesn't believe in the word relax." He muttered.
"In all honestly, she forgets that I can take care of myself." He rolled his shoulders, loosening his taunt muscles.
"And, as I can tell, you two have completely different views on the subject." Jackie observed, talking partly to herself.
She laughed a bit, before looking toward the school again. "We should probably head back." She said, remembering what COdy said earlier.
"I suppose so." Cody said, walking in the direction of the school. He pushed his hands into his pocket, a small scowl on his adorable little face. He kicked some dirt as they walked, suddenly lost in his own dark thoughts.
Jackie, looked down at Cody as they walked. She almost laughed at the angry expression on his face, but didn't. It just wasn't what you'd expect from a five year old.
Her head snapped up suddenly. "Do you speak Italian?" SHe said remembering when he called her Signora. Her father had spoken Italian.
"Sì, faccio. Molto bene in effetti." Cody said, still staring straight ahead, his scowl on his face. He rolled his shoulders, trying to loosen them and the rest of the muscles in his back.
"Italiano, Francese, Spagnolo ed alcuni altri." He explained, before switching to English, "I love languages, they are simple and easy. Italian is the best though."
Jackie nodded, languages, weren't easy to her, but she knew a few because of her Father. Growing up with them for a century and a couple of decades helped, but she was most fluent in Italian. "I agree that Italian is the best, but mio padre never allowed my to speak it to anyone but him. It drove the rest of my family insano when I would go ranting about something in a foreign language. I would mostly recite poems. Mio padre said my favorite was:
Ecco mormorar l'onde,
E tremolar le fronde
A l'aura mattutina, e gli arboscelli,
E sovra i verdi rami i vaghi augelli
Cantar soavemente,
E rider l'Oriente;
Ecco già l'alba appare,
E si specchia nel mare,
E rasserena il cielo,
E le campagne imperla il dolce gelo,
E gli alti monti indora:
O bella e vaga Aurora,
L'aura è tua messaggera, e tu de l'aura
Ch'ogni arso cor ristaura.
After she was done repeating it she smiled, just like her father taught her.
Cody nodded, "Una poesia graziosa recited da una ragazza graziosa." He smiled back, "Honestly, I liked it. What's the name of it?"
He glanced now and then in front of them, almost as if he hardly had to watch where he was going. He didn't, actually. he was surer on his feet than most, and doubted he'd trip.
"Perché, la ringrazia il signore." Jackie replied, flicking hair out of her face, surprised by how easily her tounge rolled over the long forgotten words. "And honestly, I can't remember the name something like... Bell'Amore." She said, digging back to find the name of the song in her thoughts, but stopped, not wanting to dredge up the painful memories of her father.
Cody smiled, "Bell'Amore..." He repeated, committing the name and the poem to his memory instantly. He nodded at her, "An appropriate name for it, wouldn't you agree?"
Jackie smiled. "Yes, actually I would." She said repeating a few of the lines in English. "Itself a mirror in the sea, and it brightens ths sky." She repeated, lilting the words a bit, but only giving them a loose translation.
Cody listened to her recite in English, nodding his head slowly. The poem was interesting, but his mind had drifted from it. He thought of his mother waiting on the edge of the forest, where he had left her and felt guilty.
Nevertheless, he attempted to try and pay attention to Jackie.
Jackie looked at him and raised her eyebrows. "Other things on your mind?" She guessed, assuming the source. "We should hurry back."
"Yes." The small boy answered both her question and her statement with the single word. He remained silent as they reached the edge of the forest, a blank look appearing on his face. He made himself expressionless as they came through the last row of trees and burst onto the school lawn.
Not far off, they saw a figure standing, back to them. Ginny's red hair gleamed in the moonlight, and she seemed to be looking at the school itself. She could hear them as they approached, but did not turn to see them.
She knew who it was.
Jackie walked next to Cody, almost as silent as he was, though she wasn't able to make her face blank. Her father always called her his open book because her face showed her expressions so easily. She wasn't a reserved kind of person at all.
As she approached Ginny, she was aware she was human and the temptation of who she was grew stronger than before. She deeply regretted not hunting now.
Ginny turned as they came closer, tilting her head to the side. She recognized the look in Jackie's eyes but did nothing about it. She did not fear vampires. They were of little concern to her, even with their advanced speed. She was still capable of being faster when she wanted to be.
She nodded, "Thank you, Jackie. For returning my son to me."
Cody frowned, "I came back of my own accord, mom."
Ginny simply looked at him for a beat before looking again to Jackie, "Nonetheless, I thank you."
"No need." Jackie said, smiling corteously. "I should be thanking your son. He helped me to get my head straight, involving a few... things." She said somewhat softly, gratitude clear in her voice.
Ginny cut a look at Cody, nodding very slightly. She reached down and ruffled his hair, causing him to scowl.
"He's smart." She said blatantly, "Too smart for his own good."
Cody narrowed his eyes at her, stuffing his hands into his pockets angrily. But he gave no retort, simply glared off into the distance.
"Jackie, would you like to join us? We were going up to the astronomy tower when Cody stormed off in his little tiff." Ginny smiled thinly. She was annoyed, but not at Jackie.
Jackie smiled and nodded, "I'd love to come with thank you." She said, looking down at Cody. A normal five year old would look ridiculous with that expression of anger on his or her face, but she knew Cody was no normal five year old. So she made no comment whatsoever.
Cody rolled his shoulders, trying to work out the kinks that were associated with keeping his wings hidden. But he rarely showed them, knowing that he scared people. He knew full well out demonic he could look. He clenched his fists inside of his pockets and began walking towards the school.
Ginny let out a soft sigh after him, shaking her head. "Let's go." She said lowly to Jackie.
Jackie nodded and began to walk after COdy and alongside Ginny. She tried to think of something to say, but for a first nothing came to mind. So she just said "Ok." and quietly followed.
She softly sighed as the breeze hit her face. And looked up at the stars, having no fear of tripping or misplacing her feet. She loved stars, but never could find pictures in them as so many people say are wonderful.
They went into the school, passing through the now dark hallways and going to the topmost tower, the astronomy tower. Once there, Cody went off to use the microscopes pointed into the sky. Ginny simply stood there, looking up at the never ending night sky.
"I love to come up here on nights like this." She murmured softly.
*Ginny? Is that you?* Leah said stepping out of the shadows. Her eyes danced when she realized who it was. *Oh I'm so glad it's you! I was afraid a teacher had heard me.* Leah said, though she knew that was really not possible. If she didn't want to be found, she wouldn't be.
"Yeah, it sure is." Jackie murmered in agreement. She stared at the open sky smiling at the stars, but jumped Leah stepped into the room. "Leah!" She gasped, in somewhat shock. "Oh, you sacred me a bit." She said.
((Use quotes please. ;)))
Ginny looked away from the pinpricks of light and smiled at both girls, "I used to come up here all the time." She said quietly.
"After Xaver left all those years ago..." Her voice drifted off as she looked past Jackie and Leah and across the tower. At Cody. Who was so methodically looking through the telescope.
((Sorry Ginny! ;D))
Leah giggled when Jackie jumped, and then she said, "You know, it's a lot more relaxing up here when you can't get caught by a teacher."
Ginny nodded at them, "You technically did get caught by a teacher."
She pointed out the obvious because she was a teacher. Technically.
But she wouldn't punish anyone. Not for sitting and looking at the stars.
"Technically" Leah agreed. Leah looked out at the stars, not needing a microscope to see the stars. She had great vision, and the sky was so clear already.
But Cody wasn't just looking at the stars. He was inspecting them, looking past them and towards the planets. He pulled paper from his pocket, then looked up at the three women.
"Anyone got a pen or something?"
Ginny shook her head. "Nope. Sorry, angel."
Leah pulled one out of her bookbag that was still slung over her shoulder and tossed it to him. "You can keep it, I've got plenty."
Jackie was about to volunteer a pen from her own pocket when Leah tossed one to Cody. "What do you need it for?" SHe asked.
Leah listened, interested. Though Cody was still young, his mind was andvance way beyond his years. Therefore he must do interesting things with his free time.
"Calculating the positions of the planets." Cody muttered, scratching his head thoughtfully as he wrote down the calculations. He looked again into the telescope, then wrote a few more numbers down.
He didn't even look up as he continued, "Sometimes it explains astronomical happenings."
Ginny wrapped her arms around herself, "My son the prodigy."
Jackie laughed softly. "I don't like to do math or calculations unless I have to. I like to be outdoors, to run." She said as images of running flashed through her head.
She could almost feel the wind on her face and branches whipping at her, but they felt like caressing fingers. And the grounf felt like velvet beneath her bare feet. It couldn't be described easily in words.
Leah laughed, "Wow, I can't believe you could figure that out... I mean, I wouldn't be able to do it that well and I've been around for over a century!" She thought of how many times she had gone through school. It gets really boring by the 10th time around.
"Oh, I love to run." He looked up, his ice eyes zeroing in on Jackie's face. "I am an animal at heart, Miss Jackie. I need to be outside. I need the fresh air. I especially need the skies." He looked back at his paper, his brow furrowing as he scratched out something.
"Learning such things isn't hard. Especially when everyone is willing to teach you..."
Ginny went to the wall, pulling herself up and sitting on the edge to watch her son. She knew he loved to figure things out. The pleasure of solving a puzzle was something he enjoyed.
"I prefer the ground." Jackie comented smiling. Her warm crystal eyes were a contrast to his icy ones.
"I've just never taken to learning. I only like learning about languages, discovering their meaning. Also shakespere and drama. 'To be or not to be' and all that." SHe said, various stages of Romeo and Juliet playing through her head.
"I like dancing." Leah said, feel like she was cutting in. "It feels like you're flying, but you're still on the ground. Especially masquerades. That brings in mystery as well." She remembered one night, years ago at a masquerade. Her disguised lover, who fled before the final unmasking. Talk about heartbreak.
Cody scowled, "Not too fond of dancing." He looked over at his mother with a dark glare. Ginny rolled her eyes.
"Cody dislikes the fact that his training involves learning to dance." She explained shaking her head slowly.
Jackie nodded about to voice her love of dancing when she caught a certain word. "Training? Training for what?" She asked curiously.
Ginny laughed, "Training of everything!" She said.
Cody smirked, "Magic, math, dancing, fighting, love, hate, nooks...you name it I'm learning it." He shook his head, "If not from my skilled parents than from an expert on the subject."
"Woah." Leah said. She had heard of teens going into intense learning, but Cody was still so young! "Well dancing is a great skill. It teaches you how the human body works and how it can move. It also impresses girls."
Cody snorted, a sound caught between laughter and disgust.
"Fighting does the same thing. It even impresses girls more. Not that I care."
He was still five, and while he didn't believe in cooties, he didn't understand the complex chemicals associated with attraction.
Ginny bit back a smile, "He's learning dancing so he knows how. Not because of what else it teaches him."
Leah giggled. She loved watching Ginny and Cody this way. They both had such different opinions on things, but both were too stubborn to give in.
Cody rolled his eyes, "My mother is under the impression that I need to be a well-rounded person."
He looked back at his papers, then mumbled lowly, "Except when she places the most stupid rules upon me."
Ginny shook her head slowly, ignoring his mumbles. She smiled at the girls again, "Cody is a prodigy. He's going to live longer than any of us..." She shrugged, "Tens of thousands of years after we die..."
Cody scowled, inspecting through the telescope again. He didn't want to talk about this.
Jackie turned and looked at Ginny. "What?" She asked furrowing her brow. "He will?" She asked, but bit back another question knowing she must look idiotic right now.
"But... Why!?" Leah asked, wondering. She was planning on living for a very long time, but why was Cody going to live so long? She was a vampire, but as far as she knew he was just a... boy.
Cody frowned, ignoring the conversation now.
"Because he's a Fallen." Ginny smiled, almost sadly, "Even if he's only half of one. How old do you think Xaver is, girls? Twenty? Twenty-one?"
She shook her head slowly, "Fallen live longer than even vampires...because the Fallen are not from this world."
"Longer than vampires? But vampires can live forever, if they are not killed..." Leah said. It was almost impossible to take in the information. She didn't know what a Fallen was, but she could find that out later. She just wanted to know how someone could live longer than forever.
Ginny laughed, "Wrong. Vampires die of old age, just like anything. Nothing lives forever." She rolled her eyes, "It's a misconception of the truth...vampires only live for hundreds of years. No longer than a few thousand."
Cody shifted in his seat, turning his telescope so his back was to the little group.
"Really? Wow you would've thought a vampire would know that!" Leah said, shrugging. She bit her inner lip, her mind wandering to subjects that she had been neglecting lately. Her eyes went out of focus and she stared into space. She was pretty much unconscious, but still completely awake.