Chapter 8: Homecoming

Tim pushed the door open, and stepped into the house. Silently he closed the door and opened his senses. He heard four distinct heartbeats, and smelled some familiar scents. That there was a fourth heart barely made it into Tim's head. He headed directly into the living room, and rounded the corner to the hallway, heading down it to his foster mother's room. He could hear her heart beating, a steady, slow pace. "The bitch is still sleeping he thought to himself."

Tim pushed the door open and stepped in. he stalked up to the bed, each step becoming harder to make. Images began to flash before his eyes. He watched as an observer as a foster father entered his room with a crop. The sadistic bastard pulled the sheets from the bed and started whipping the young Tim. Tim raised his arms to cover his face, and he curled into a ball. Standing before Susanne's bed, Tim's arms also covered his face. He took another step forward, and this time saw himself seeking sanctuary on his bed from the latest torture inflicted by Susanne's kin. Tim was conflicted and quickly became uncertain. With every step he lost part of his hunger, and he became less interested in her blood. He felt empowered, capable, he felt strong. He opened his mouth, fangs extending to their full length, and he lowered his mouth to her neck. Stooping over her sleeping body Tim was struck by an idea. He was now a predator. It hadn't set in he realized, but he was a vampire. He hunted people now. He was the highest rung on the food chain.

"NO..." his conscious screamed out, "I am not one of them. I will not do this."

"I hunger." A voice inside his head declared. "I must feed."

"Not like this, never like this." the part of Tim horrified of his actions during the bloodlust surfaced. "I am not a monster."

"Yes we are. We must feed. We must kill. It is our right. It is our privilege. We are a monster."

"You are not me. You don't control me. Get out of my head."

"I am you. We are. We will be."

"I will not kill her. She does not deserve it."

"Yes we will. Yes she does. What has she done to us? Has she done it to others?"

"I cannot punish her for what she has done to me, it isn't right."

"Might makes right. Power to kill means power to decide."

Tim felt a dark presence within him, drawing him to the neck of the helpless woman before him. He felt all powerful, the only person with deciding power as to if she would live or die. He felt intoxicated, and began to lose sight of his humanity. A symbol appeared on his right hand. It was the size of his palm, a simple symbol, ancient beyond record, though used today as if common. The mark rose from his skin, filling with blood causing it to burn a deep red. It glowed with energy and had a life of its own, swirling within its confines. Though the mark was unnoticed by either of the people in the room, Tim felt himself beginning to gain back his balance. He eased off of his foster mother's neck, forcing his animalistic persona aside.

"I will not take her life." he said with conviction. There was no response.

"MOM... are you up yet? You need to take us to class. Mom, I'm coming in..." Violet's voice startled Tim out of his inner conversation, and her scream made him jump. "Who the hell are you? Get away from my mom."

Tim turned to look at the seventeen year old who had just entered the room. She looked nothing like her twin sister. Where Sarah was pale and shaped perfectly for cheerleading, Violet was more ridged and firm. She was the school student body president and took her job serious. She tried to do things for the student body, such as obliterating meatloaf Mondays and leftover Tuesdays from the cafeteria. She was very smart and never had to work hard to get good grades. Physically she was five feet ten inches, with long black hair. Her eyes were a beautiful blue shade. Her breasts were on the small side, twenty six B. her legs were long and she was very thin. She had a very serious appearance, a no nonsense attitude. Her face was kind, though she didn't often smile; there was just a way about her that was light hearted. She certainly wasn't jovial, just easy to be with. At home she was quiet, letting her mother and sister make all the conversation. She had never been overtly terrifying toward Tim. To a casual observer she would have seemed to almost like him, or at least sympathize. To Tim however, she never did anything to stop Susanne or Sarah, and that made her just as guilty.

Tim looked her directly into her eyes prepared to show her he had no fear. He wanted her to know that he was not the same tortured child. Tim found himself becoming lost in her eyes. He was drawn inside. He felt her core as if it were his own. He could feel her spirit. Tim forced from within her. He saw who she truly was. Ghosted over her external appearance Tim saw the image of her core. Before his eyes she grew wings, beautiful white feathered wings. She was clothed in a full length white dress that covered her entire body except her head and hands. She had on strategically placed armor that appeared as silver silk and merged with her dress as if it were the same article of clothing. White and silver gloves and a helmet finished her outfit. The helmet was that of a stylized winged helm, embossed with a delicate tiara. She was an angel of justice, a pure soul at heart. Tim could just barely see a black shape weighing heavily on her shoulders, and he noticed shackles made of the same black metal pulling down her wrists. His hatred toward her quickly drained as he saw her true form.

"I'm calling the cops."

Violet had never been afraid of men before, but something about this silent guy felt wrong. It was as though he was capable of killing everyone in the house without a moment of remorse. He was dangerous. She turned from the open door way and ran toward the phone in the kitchen.

"Wait." Tim called after her. He ran out the hall, and somehow ran past her, as if she had stopped moving.

Violet stopped suddenly as the stranger appeared in front of her.

"How the... MOM!"

Awakening at the sound of her daughter screaming, Susanne came out of her bedroom in a dash, pulling up short when she saw the two. Susanne grabbed Violet and got in between her and Tim.

"What do you want?" Susanne said with apparent nervousness. She tried to be assertive and strong. "Get out of my house."

Tim didn't move. His heightened senses could taste her weakness.

"Well say something already."

Tim was amazed that he had been cowed by such a woman. He could see her quiver under his stare. He licked his lips, and shook his head disapprovingly, remembering cowering before her.

"Get out of here you freak."

Tim felt incredibly powerful. His presence was now enough to make this weak women afraid. She was like a small animal hiding her child behind her, hoping that the predator would be full after feasting on her and would spare the child. He couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of hours spent in fear of the prey before him.