North American Vampire Council & Past Calling (Hypernaturals 12 & 13)

Want To Help Me?

I chewed Vera out pretty hard, to the point where I think she understood that move was not brilliant.

"If you really did not want to have a baby, you could have just told me! I was OK with just having sex. We could have just had the one baby with Angel!"

And:

"The first male Vampire/Vampire baby in centuries. What could go wrong? Oh. Yes. His mother could go flying through the air on a zipline!"

And:

"Vampire Babies are babies!. Not Vampires. Not strong. They are every bit as vulnerable as human babies!"

And:

"You are only in baby prison for nine total months! Nine months. You can not be crazy for nine months, right? You need some crazy, take Helen to bed! After that, you can go off and do all the stupid shit you want! After you fucking kill yourself jumping out of airplanes or whatever, you'll at least know when you die that Ben will be with family!"

Vera flinched at each of my angry declarations. She has never seen me get angry before. I don't do it often, and when someone you think is never going to get angry blows up? It gets another underline.

I am not happy with her.

That was made worse for her when her wife did not defend Vera in any way. Angel stood there holding the Catori baby bump and looking solemn. Nodding in agreement to my points to punctuate them.

Jessica, in her dual role as Momma Jessica and Doctor Jessica, laid into Vera too. "Do I really have to put up a sign that says "No Pregnant Ladies? On a fucking zipline 15 meters up in the air with no safety harness? I mean... Really? Every amusement park on the goddamn planet has a sign on the rides that says 'No Pregnant Ladies'. There is a reason for that. You are so dumb!!!"

Morgan, via her attitude, communicated that she thought I am being an ass about the whole thing, but Jessica backed me up by asking Morgan, "And you, young lady? I thought you were the smart one. You let her do that? You need me to put up the signs before you get it? Do I have to make it a law before the ex-Cop understands? No pregnant ladies on ziplines! Obvious! Jesus, Morgan!"

Vera, hearing Morgan get chewed out over her own playtime, surrendered the 'fuck you' attitude. Not only was it three to two, the three are right, and the two are defending stupidity.

"Sorry Angel. Adrian." Vera said, very meekly.

"Fine. Whatever." Morgan said.

Vera stewed as we walked back. If she said 'I never get to have any fun' she knew that there was going to be a guided missile up her butt, and not in the way she likes it.

I slowed my pace and took calming, centering breaths. I know I can get really emotional where my kids are concerned. I did not come to Boot Camp to end up angry at Vera for being Vera.

It is not as if I did not know what I was signing up for with her. The faults in our earlier relationship had roots in communication, or more accurately the lack of it, and I just efficiently communicated my thoughts about endangering our child. My life would be very different if I had communicated my thoughts about some other things much earlier on with her. I like how my life turned out, but I am not going down that hole with her again.

I am not asking her to change. I am asking her to put her wilder side on hold for the duration of the pregnancy. Not even all of that: Only the parts with physical danger to them.

I paused my walking altogether to look over the Boot Camp campus from a distance. I allowed myself to feel some pride for my part in it. For the lives we are saving and re-directing. Change is never easy, as Vera just demonstrated, but this Camp is a good change for us as Vampires.