The Young Mate

Changes -Chapter 3-

Unedited

"HEY TYLER. WANNA GO SWIMMING WITH ME?" My brother shouted from the bottom of the stairs. I shot up off my bed and ran to the banister looking down at him.

"Is that even a question?!" I yelled back quieter as to not disturb our housemaid Catherine. Our nanny Rachel set a rule that I couldn't go swimming without Ivan since I'm not the best swimmer.

I heard Ivan chuckle faintly while I ran back into my room, yanking open my drawer I pulled out my bathing suit and as I got changed I stopped as a sudden thought popped into my head: Can vampires go across the water like a speed boat? I need to find out. Ohhh IVAN. I thought before rushing to get changed and jogging down the stairs

While we walked in silence to the pool room I had a faint memory of a man tossing me across the distance of the pool. I shook my head trying to shake out the distant memories of a blob throwing me across the length of the pool.

It's happened every now and again where a conversation starts up and calls a repressed memory from the forgotten lands of my mind. Instead I push Mr. Blob back with a 30 foot pole like he's the Grinch before his heart grew 3 sizes too big or how ever the story goes.

My brother opened the pool room door after typing in the key code, we had them all over the house. Being the clan leader doesn't stop people from trying to break in. Although we don't live with our clan members we just keep everyone in check and give weekly baskets of blood to keep an entire family satisfied. That's the easy part anyways.

Although you don't start craving blood until you're 13- it's like the gateway- when you're 16 you start getting your real fangs, speed and potentially your beloved. Finally when you turn 18 immortality sets in. I'm 12 yet so in a few months I will crave my first sip.

I watched Ivan run and dive into the 8ft part of the pool. He took a couple minutes to pop up meanwhile I went over to the shallow end and walked in through the stairs.

Ivan swam towards me. "Hey Ty. Do you remember anything from when you were a kid?" He asked questionably while kicking his feet slightly to stay above the chlorinated water.

"Not really but mom said that's pretty normal." I shrugged and he smiled softly nodding.

His smiled filtered slightly "yeah I don't really remember much from mime either." He admitted his voice faltering but I shrugged it off and sat on the last step of the stairs so the water came up a little past my shoulders.

It comes up every few months, when a clan member asks if I remember hanging out with their son or daughter on play dates when I was younger or my brother just constantly asks because I guess he remembers me as a baby, on the other hand Ivan is a few years older than me.

I look at him intently, waiting for the best moment to ask him to test my theory. His head suddenly whips to me I choke on my spit and his face turns red with laughter. "Why are you staring at me?" He asked as he finally stopped choking on laughter.

I narrowed my eyes at the pool filter trying to think of the best way to ask the question before deciding on: "can vampires speedboat?" I ask concentration evident on my face. "I need to know Ivan." I state throwing my hands in the air in turn throwing water in every direction.

Ivan raised his eyebrows "like drive a boat? Well duh tyler." He looks at me like it's the stupidest question I have ever asked. Even if it was what I meant, it wasn't the stupidest thing I've asked, by far.

"No, no no no." I state looking at him like he was the stupid one. "If you do the fast leg thingy but on your stomach in a pool will you speed across the water like a speed boat?" I asked and his face suddenly mimicked mine with amazement.

"Why have I never thought of this before?!" He yelled "let's test it." He acted like a giddy 5 year old rather than a 16 year old. He laid on his stomach and did the quick feet thingy. Water splashed around him rapidly,  hitting me in the face. He was moving around the pool pretty fastly. It worked for a bit until he started to slow down, at that point he slowly went under water. He suddenly popped up throwing his. Arms in the air.

"IT WORKS!" He screamed in excitement. "But not that well." His smile dipped into a small frown.

"My dreams. Crushed. I really wanted to be the first human speedboat." I whined causing a chuckle from Ivan.

Having enough excitement after Ivan the Speedboat made an appearance we decide to get out and go to the towel closet to dry off and go upstairs to get dressed before our parents come home from their business trip.

-------A Few Months Later-------

It's my 13th birthday and I can't help but feel this sickening feeling in my heart. I would need to drink live today- luckily my mother is one of, if not the best compeller in the clan- it doesn't change the guilt clawing at my chest. I ran my tounge over the small sharp points on my teeth.

The small points will always be visible when I smile or talk but when I'm 16 I do get larger fangs that I will be able to contract like cat claws.

I quickly sit up hiding the guilt lacing my face but still pulling at my heart as a knock sounded at my door. "Com-" I cut my self off as my voice choked out into barley a whisper. "Come in!" I restated my voice much clearer and louder.

Ivan popped his head in he made his way over to the bed sitting next to me. "Are you nervous?" He asked, already 16 he already had his adult fangs, his heart only a little harder than my own.

"Honestly? Yes. I'm about to drink from an innocent person and I can't help but fear I will go to far." I mumble running the hand roughly through my blonde hair my curls would be as bouncy as my mood if I wasn't trying to fight off extreme guilt rotting my soul.

I glance at Ivan and he smiles softly. "You won't. That fear will keep you from going over. I would be scared if you weren't." He chuckled truthfully "and as a backfall we will be right there." He added happily his brown hair that matched our fathers sweeping in front of the green eyes we shared.

My head began to pound and throb as the sickly sweet smell of blood wafted up through the vents. My parents were drinking. I glance at Ivan and he sighed standing. "C'mon. It's time. You're eyes are shifting." He mumbled as he stood up from the bed. I carefully walked to the mirror and peered at my eyes closely. They were darker, almost as dark as the night sky with red shimmering around the line where my pupil is supposed to be. The outside of my eyes themselves seemed darker, like a dark purple.

My brother led me downstairs for the tradition to start. All of their fangs were drawn but they wouldn't be feeding. Although my brother was practically useless considering the only superpower he had was his speed and ability to change his eyes quicker than a good stripper gets a dollar.

As I descended the stairs I breathed out heavily theyingnto remind myself to keep control intact before I even think about biting into the flesh of the young boy sitting in front of me. He's a little older than me, he looked dazed like he was higher than an astronaut on the surface of Jupiter.

I sat by the boy and looked at my parents. It was always awkward so people tended to look away and listen closely to the person's heartbeat. I pressed my lips together before opening my mouth and clapping it around the boys wrist sinking my tiny teeth into the boys wrist. The flow was slow and steady but the guilt became heavier and heavier in my heart as the pain in my head began to lessen. I pulled away when I felt the pounding stop and whipped my mouth doing as I was instructed to keep the bite neat and smooth.

I had tasted my first batch of human blood and the dazed expression of the man imprinted on my mind as my brother had previously instructed would happen. I am officially a freshling.