Immortal Memory (Iris' Atlantis 1)

5: Nocturnal visitors

Timothy

Plume was good to his word. I was almost asleep when I heard a tap on the window.

I lifted a pillow over my head and turned my back to the glass and the knocking raven.

It, of course, kept knocking on the glass until I gave up and pushed myself to a sitting position.

"I have a lecture at ten." I told the bird.

It tilted its head and gave one final knock with its beak.

"Fine. I'll come to the balcony."

I left behind the cozy, lovely bed and went to my parents' room. Behind the balcony door stood a small, lean man with black hair and crimson eyes. I opened the door but stayed inside.

We looked at each other over the threshold. Plume looked exactly the vampire I remembered him with his short jet black hair always worn in a casual tussled style, his collared shirt light blue tonight. Plume had a disliking to shoes but right then he wore a pair of surprisingly feminine wooden high heels that reminded me of something I couldn't quite put my finger on. They gave him just enough extra height that we came even.

After a while, Plume spoke: "If you want your internet connection and mobile data back, you could invite me in." He smiled. I could feel the change in the air as he applied a bit of supernatural pressure to his tone, meant to persuade a human.

I looked past the vampire, breaking the eye contact and lessening the weight of his intended mind manipulation. In a corner of the balcony rested a backpack and a guitar.

"I am fine. Thank you. But in my magnanimity, I am willing to take in the guitar, out of the rain."

I extended a hand, but not over the thershold.

Plume heaved out an exasperated snort. "Don't be difficult. I know we never came along that well, but I would say the circumstances are quite changed."

"Yes? Really? And how does my being a human make the circumstances different, exactly?" A smile was playing on my lips this time. "Excepting the fact that you can't just walk into my home, that is."

The vampire's brow furrowed. 

"For starters, it means you have made a mess. Blizzard asked me to come and keep you company until he can reach Mo, who is right now in Hong Kong for an international conference, of all the weeks. There are things you don't know. And we aren't sure if you should be enlightened or not. You are Mo's Chosen, my idiotic uncle. But also a human. What the hell are we supposed to do with that exactly? How did this even happen?"

He crossed his arms angrily.

"And if you can't get it through that amazingly thick head of yours," he continued, "Blizzard is absolutely out of his mind for worry for your sorry, selfish ass. He was promised a full eternity of nights with you. And now you, the human you, have gone and poked your nose into a very vampiric business. So. I can well sleep on the balcony tonight and the next week, no biggie. But it would be polite to let me in and maybe even offer morning tea or something for my more than generous trouble."

Not the speech I had expected. I wasn't sure what I had expected. Maybe for Plume to make fun of my fragile mortality or lack of taste. But not this kind of very human telling off.

It humbled me momentarily.

"Please. Come in, Plume. You are, of course, welcomed in my home."

"Thank you." There was no warmth to his voice as he picked up the guitar and the backpack and came to stand with me in the now crowded bedroom. I noted the backpack had an air of having cost more than my laptop.