To fully understand this story, you should read PeteMork's amazing piece: Eli's Curse. Go on. Do it. Do it. This is a "continuation" of sorts. Part hommage, part random musing. His piece really made me think: What would I do if I met Eli in the real world? The answer is I have no flipping idea. This story is just one (hopefully) amusing possibility.
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Shawn pulled into his driveway, silently cursing the roadwork being done on his street which had created a particularly irritating bump. He gathered his travel mug and laptop, and stepped out of the vehicle. Taking a moment to stretch out the kink in his bum knee that was made worse due to the ride in traffic, he closed the door to the car. Immediately, he heard a single loud woof from inside his house, followed by much quieter “waffing”. Sighing to himself, he walked up the three steps to his front door, unlocked it, and opened it up.
He was greeted by a pair of happy, waggling dogs. The younger of the two jumped up on his hind legs in excitement, but knew better than to tackle Daddy. The older dog gave Shawn a few dignified wags, and went back to her bed to lie down, giving a contented sigh when she plopped down. Stepping past the foyer, he walked over to the air conditioner and turned it off. He hated to leave it on for the whole day, but the dogs were of an arctic variety and extremely sensitive to heat. Considering it was almost 40 degrees with humidity, the poor dogs needed the cool air.
Opening up the back door, Shawn let the dogs outside to take care of “business”. Giving them a moment of privacy, he walked to the telephone to check the messages. Just the one, thank god. Playing it, he heard the pleasant sound of his wife reporting in and saying how great a time she was having in New York. “Well duh”, he thought with a smile. “An entire expo dedicated to books, you’re in heaven!” Walking over to the patio door, he let his dogs back into the house, somehow managing to convince his younger Lappy that the large stick in his mouth was strictly an outdoor toy. He poured two bowls of kibble, and then decided to add a small handful of cut turkey to each bowl. It was the sort of treat they didn’t often get under the watchful eye of Mummy, but if Daddy was living large this week, why shouldn’t they?
As the dogs chomped away at their dinner, naturally eating the turkey and spitting out the kibble, Shawn turned the oven up to 350 and pulled his dinner out of the fridge. “Mmmm… nothing quite like re-heated lasagna on the hottest frickin’ day of the year” he thought to himself sarcastically. He grabbed his laptop and opened it up while he waited for the oven to pre-heat. Work email, some messages from people about something or other, a few Facebook pokes, some spam about enhanced male performance (bookmarked!)… Blah, blah, blah. He surfed over to the Infected forums to see if anything new had gone down since he left work. No new fanfic, a few replies to some interesting posts, but nothing major going on. Hearing the ding of the oven, he placed his dinner in, grabbed his laptop, and ran upstairs for a quick workout before his meal.
The workout was a quick affair, only a few shoulder and chest exercises, but it was a relaxing way to even out the day. His workout playlist blared from his computer, alternating between pleasant melodies and strong power rock. It was a good time to think and relax the mind, giving him ample opportunity to plot out some new fan fiction ideas. “Maybe a story where Eli turns Oskar and he then becomes addicted to albinos… hmmm”. But before long, his 20 minutes were up and he went downstairs to pluck his dinner out of the oven.
His meal was eaten quickly and with gusto. A combination of him being hungry, and his in-laws making particularly kick-ass lasagna. He took a few minutes to clean up the dishes, even though he was sorely tempted to just leave them in the sink. Despite being several hours away, somehow his wife would know. Her wife-dar would ding and he would get a phone call naggin- er… “reminding” him to make sure he cleaned his dishes. Looking outside, Shawn could see that the sun was starting to set, meaning it would be cool enough outside to take the dogs for their evening constitutional. He turned to them and said in a slightly perky voice “So… who wants to go for a WALK?”
Immediately they both stood up and cocked their heads to the side.
“Walk?”
They cocked their heads to the other side.
“Walk walk walk?”
Now they jumped up and bounded, the younger dog whining softly in excitement, while the older one did her best to look nonchalant. Shawn walked over and grabbed their leashes as they followed him to the front door. Hooking them, he grabbed a handful of plastic bags… just in case. He made them sit patiently as he opened up the front door and took a quick look outside. Skunks were relatively common after the sun goes down, and Shawn had no desire to relive a skunking of his pups. Finding the coast clear, he stepped outside with the dogs and locked the doors behind him.
The dogs could be a bit bratty when walked by a single person, but were by no means troublesome. They went about their usual route through the residential neighbourhood, with the dogs stopping to sniff particularly interesting landmarks, while Shawn gave a few shy waves to some of the neighbours sitting outside, enjoying a cool breeze after such a hot day. It was a pretty nice evening, all things considered. The dogs sniffed and wagged their tails happily, even getting the opportunity to meet up with their small spaniel friend that they saw regularly. Shawn took the experience as a cathartic opportunity to clear his head a little more. His “Infection” was still recent, still fresh, so everything was delightfully new to him. It had been a long time since he had had such a… what on earth was the word… passion maybe, for a story. Having an opportunity to just think about it was a nice diversion from the mundane events of-
Shawn stopped in his tracks, his dogs looking at him, slightly confused at their lack of forward momentum. He blinked his eyes, once, twice, three times, and then rubbed them furiously with his free hand. Yet, despite his best efforts, she was still standing there, smack dab in the middle of the street, staring directly at him. Maybe 20 feet separated them, which was somewhat remarkable since she had appeared out of nowhere despite having absolutely no place for her to have hidden. She was even smaller than he had imagined, but he recognized her instantly. If the resemblance had been imperfect, he might have just shrugged it off. But perfect it was. He stared into her entirely too large eyes and simply didn’t doubt. Not one bit. It was Eli.
“So… it’s you.” His voice held steady despite the trepidation.
“So… it’s you.” Her voice was slightly higher than expected, and her English slightly accented but otherwise flawless.
Making sure that no cars were coming, Shawn crossed into the street and walked over to her. His dogs wagged their tails excitedly, happy to make any new friend. He stopped directly in front of her, less than a foot away, and stared down at her. Up close, she seemed even smaller, more frail. He towered over her, almost shocked at how small she was, how tiny she must look next to him. They stared intently at one another for several seconds. His look one of scrutiny, while all her eyes did was smile.
He crinkled his nose and said, “You kind of stink.”
Not missing a beat she replied, “Yeah, well so do you.”
“Hey, I just worked out. What’s your excuse?”
“I eat people.”
“… Touché”
Again they stared at one another, until he held out the leash to his older dog. Eli blinked at him, and cocked her head in confusion.
“Might as well walk while we talk, and it’s easier for me if I only have to watch the one dog. Besides, she prefers to walk with girls.”
“But Shawn, I’m not a-”
“I know, I know. Just humour me, please.”
Eli took the leash, and bent down and looked the dog in the eye. She then smiled, pet the old Lappy on the head, and wrapped her small arms around her in a hug. She got several quick kisses for her affection, which was a definite rarity from the stoic old dog. She stood up with a big smile on her face. “Thanks” she said, “I love dogs, but never have a chance to be around them.”
They walked in silence for a bit, letting the dogs stop and sniff all the interesting sniffs in the world. After a particularly long stop, Shawn felt a tiny hand grab his own and hold on.
“Do you mind? It’s a nice night and I feel like a friend.”
He looked down at the small hand nestled into his bigger one, and closed his fingers tightly around it. “Not at all. But no funny business,” he said with a smile, “I am a married man after all.”
Eli let out a quick laugh and elbowed him in the ribs. “Oh, however will I resist?” she said mockingly.
They walked in silence for a bit more, until Eli gave his hand a squeeze and said, “You don’t seem all that surprised to see me.”
Looking down at her, Shawn gave her a small, sad smile. “I read PeteMork’s ‘story’. I knew it was true, it rang true. You can’t fake that kind of passion. I’m a pretty simple guy, I guess. I tend to take things at face value. I figured it was only a matter of time before you came here. I have to admit that I didn’t expect it to be quite so fast…”
“To be fair, he did take a few liberties with it… I’m pretty sure I didn’t walk into his room naked…”
“I assume that he has a certain allergy to sunlight now? Since his story was published and all.”
“Yeah. He wrote such beautiful things. Made me feel special and… It didn’t seem right to stop all that, you know?”
“How many people have you… um… visited between him and me?”
“Oh Shawn… You know a girl never eats and tells.”
“But you’re not a-”
“Please. Humour me.”
Silence set in again, the dogs enjoying the night air, while the odd couple simply relished what felt like a quiet evening amongst old friends. They were on their way back to Shawn’s house when Eli spoke up with a quiet voice.
“Shawn… you know why I’m here, right?”
“Yup.”
“If you ask me to go away… I will.”
“Nah, it’s good.”
“Will you invite me in?”
“Yup.”
“Why?”
“Because Eli… I have to know.”
“Know what?”
Shawn turned and looked down at her. A sad smile crossed over his face, and he slowly pulled his hand away from the girl. “I have to know if I can take you. If I can beat you.”
A startled look came over her face. “You want to… fight me?”
“Yup”.
“I have to admit, I did not expect this. I kind of, well, I kind of thought you’d want to... protect me.”
“I do, I really do. More than almost anything. But… I need to know if I can. I’m not the man I was 10 years ago. I… I need to know that I still… have it.”
“You’re not… like… “slow” or something, are you?”
“Nope, just Canadian.”
“I see. Well I guess I can understand that… May the best man win.”
“Or girl.”
“But Shawn, I’m not a-”
“Oh, shut up.”
The rest of the walk was a quiet one. Even the dogs calmed down a bit, almost as though they were sensing something was amiss. Shawn and Eli stole a few glances at the other, smiling when they were caught. A few times each one almost went to grab the other’s hand. Almost. The threat of what was to come stopped them though. Before long, they reached the house. Shawn reached into his pocket, plucked out his keys and unlocked the door. He unleashed both dogs, who scurried into the house. He then stepped over the threshold, and turned to look at his guest.
“Shawn… This is your last chance. You don’t have to invite me in. I promise I won’t think any less of you. I swear it! We can be friends. You don’t have to. I don’t… I…” She trailed off.
He looked down at her as she practically pleaded with him to reject her. He whispered. “I have to know. Please come in Eli. I invite you.”
A sad look went over her face, but she walked in, closing and locking the door behind her. Shawn calmly walked over to the back door, let the dogs outside, and then closed the patio door. Both dogs didn’t go down the steps. Instead, they laid down on the deck, looking inside with sad expressions. Knowing.
Shawn pulled off his shirt and carefully wrapped it around his left forearm. He had no idea how much protection it could give him, but it was better than nothing. He then stretched out his legs and arms, while Eli simply watched.
“Are you ready yet?”
“Hold on, hold on. God, for a 200 year old, you’d think you’d have a little more patience.”
“220.”
“Whatever.”
“Technically I’m 12 though.”
Shawn lilted his voice, trying to put on a high pitch to match Eli’s. “Technically I’m 12 though. Ooo la la.”
“Don’t mock me.”
“Sorry.”
“Good boy.”
He gave his neck a final stretch, and brought his hands up, leading with the cloth covered left arm. Shawn heard a soft crackling sound, and saw that each of Eli’s hands now ended in some rather nasty looking claws. He made doubly sure that the shirt was tied tight around his arm.
“Shawn…”
“Yeah Eli?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Eli…”
“Yes?”
“One way or the other… You’re my friend.”
She smiled. He smiled. He then charged forward, swinging a right cross, and following it up quickly with slap from his left hand. The only problem was, she wasn’t there.
He blinked, completely and utterly confused. He hadn’t seen her move, and he hadn’t taken his eyes off of her. She quite simply wasn’t there. Looking left and right, there was no sign of her. He turned quickly and saw Eli standing, leaning against the far wall on the other side of the house as though nothing had happened.
“There’s two things you should probably know.”
“Really? What’s that?”
“Well, number one: I’m fast.”
“Duh. Figured that one out. What’s number two?”
“I found the light switch.”
Shawn blinked for a moment. “Oh shi-” And suddenly the house was plunged into darkness.
He tried to will his eyes to adjust to the darkness, forcing them to give a hint as to what was going on. He tried to force himself to listen, to smell, stretching out his senses to their maximum limit. Nothing. Just quiet and calm. He held his hand out in front of him and closed his eyes. A small shift in the air to his left, he turned quickly whipping his arm in front of him as he did so. He felt razor sharp claws slice clean through the cloth on this arm, and just tickle the skin underneath. He stepped back, trying to gain a bearing on Eli’s location, feeling the air shift as another clawed hand came out, and gently caressed his face, leaving the smallest nick on his cheek.
Shawn opened his eyes slowly, and found that they had adjusted somewhat to the lack of light. He could make out vague shapes, though little in the way of detail. He scanned the room around him.
Lamp. Chair. Chest. Shelf. Plant. Eli. Coat rack. Picture Frame. Wall un- Wait.. What had been the 6th one?
Eli lunged forward, bringing her clawed hand up and leading with the tips of her fingers. Shawn quickly stepped to the side, pushed out his leg, and pulled off a textbook snatch and grab. He held onto her wrist and quickly turned his body, pushing her off balance and wrapped his arm around the base of her throat. She had walked right into his game plan. In a few seconds she would be out cold. Using his size and strength to gain the advantage, like he used to in his fighting days, Shawn felt…
Then he realized the fatal mistake he had made. He hadn’t caught her. She had let him grab her. She knew exactly what he had planned on doing, knew exactly what a guy his size would try. Shawn then came to the rather startling conclusion that he was an idiot. When fighting a vampire, it might, just might be a somewhat dumb idea to get reeeeeal close. He tried to push her away, to let go, but she had turned her body in an almost unnatural way, quickly spinning in his grasp. In one fluid motion, she wrapped her arms around his neck, and then her legs around his waist.
Shawn felt her hot breath on his neck, and then heard a soft whisper. “I’m sorry.”
There was a sharp pain as her tiny fangs pierced his skin. Wasn’t really all that bad all things considered. He’d had tattoos that stung worse than that. It was an odd feeling though, having one’s life sucked out. Not exactly pleasant, really. He refused to fight back though. Honour dictated that much. She had accepted his challenge, and she had beat him, fair and square. Slowly, he went down to his knees, and crooked his neck, so it would be easier for her. She relaxed her grip a little, and held his head, almost lovingly.
“Eli…” He said. His voice fading, as the world grew dim.
She stopped drinking. “Yes?”
“Do… Do you think you could do me a favour?”
She gently stroked his bald head and looked him in the eyes. “Anything my friend. Anything.”
“Could you let my dogs back in? Remember to check for skunks...”
And then the world grew dark.
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He awoke, confused and feeling not altogether that well. He looked around the room. There was no trace of the girl, although he did note that every blind in the room was firmly shut. Slowly, he stood up and looked at himself. He was covered in dried blood, a pool of it stuck to ground where he had been laying. Both dogs were in the kitchen, staring at him, tails wagging.
Shawn brought his hand to his neck and felt. There was a layer of dried and sticky blood, but he couldn’t feel any wound.
“Well… this is interesting.”
Walking into the kitchen, he bent down and absentmindedly pet his dogs. Then he saw the note on the table.
Hi Shawn,
The doggies have been fed. Don’t worry. I’m sorry. You know. So sorry. I couldn’t… I couldn’t hurt you any more. Please don’t hate me. I don’t suppose you want to hang out sometime? I’m heading to B.C right now, there’s somebody I have to meat*, but I’ll be heading back real soon.
Yours, Eli.
p.s. I left you something in the basement.
Shawn felt his stomach grumble and let out a sigh. “Just great.” He pulled out his iPhone and checked the date and time. “Well, at least I still have a day before I have to pick up the wife. At 9:30... In the morning… Great…”
He opened up the door to the basement and looked downstairs. Strung up on the wall was one of his neighbours, unconscious. He grabbed his laptop, already formulating in his mind how precisely he was going to tell this doozy of a story. Still… He *was* pretty darn hungry…
-End-
*Totally intentional.