A New Beginning - 245 msgs

Vampiress Dahlia began and nurtured her fantastic creation, "Crimson Kiss," elsewhere, and there are many chapters not recorded in this archive. "A New Beginning" is the first chapter to be fully told here at Community Zero. To get a feel for the sort of writing done here, we strongly recommend that you take the time to read "CRIMSON KISS: A New Beginning" from beginning to end. It will take an hour or two, but you will surely find it an enjoyable and stimulating adventure.

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Nov-28-2001 4:25 PM Message 1 of 245

Subject: CRIMSON KISS: A New Beginning

From: cyberian_belle

The radio died first.

Belinda Christine Phillips became certain she had a problem a few moments later when the glowing gauges on the instrument panel of her red Miata started to fade, and her headlights grew dim in the overcast twilight. She recognized the symptoms. She had seen it once before, four years ago, from the backseat of her father's BMW. She learned later something called an "alternator belt" had snapped, but the details hadn't really concerned her. Whatever the problem back then, it had made her over an hour late for her Junior Prom.

"Drat! Not here!" She pounded on the steering wheel with her left fist as the engine conked out and she coasted to the gravel shoulder of the narrow State Forest road. She knew this route well, having spent every summer of her life _ twenty in all _ at her family's lake house at the northern edge of this forest. She could not think of a worse place to break down. She would have to walk literally miles to the nearest ranger station.

"Not in these shoes," she sneered at the stack-heeled black sandals on the seat beside her. She had not bothered to change after her newest cousin's baptism, happy to make the long drive with only the thin nylon of her black pantyhose between the car's pedals and the soles of her small feet. But this footwear, not to mention her short black dress, would not suffice for hiking. Fortunately, she had jeans, a sweatshirt and a good pair of boots in the trunk.

The lightning flashed and thunder roared just as she opened the door. Before she could exit the car, the rain began pouring from the sky in fat drops that pounded her windshield and the soft roof. An icy cold droplet splattered her left wrist, and she quickly slammed the door, abandoning the idea of retrieving her suitcase. Even though her thin dress offered little protection from the increasing chill, she realized the soaking she would take in trying to get any clothes from her trunk would only make matters worse.

"Don't worry , Belle," she told herself, using the nickname her father had originated, and which now everyone called her. "Someone will happen along soon."

As she curled her legs up under herself, and wrapped her slender bare arms around her chest to try to stop shivering, she only hoped whoever found her would be able and willing to help.

***

Oct-26-2001 4:24 PM Message 2 of 245

Subject: Uncertain Appreciation

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 1 ]

Belle awoke the next morning confused.

The angle of the sunlight through the windows told her it was well past noon, but she felt tired and weak. She realized she could not clearly recall the previous night's events. She remembered her car breaking down . She had fallen asleep in the front seat waiting for someone to come by. She remembered waking in the dark with a woman leaning into the car, but after that, her memories made little sense.

She followed the woman out into the storm and explained that something had happened to her car's electrical system. The woman offered to help and told her to get back in the car. She had seen the woman rest her hand on the hood, but _ and perhaps it was just the dark and the rain _ she did not see her open it. The woman told her to turn the key and the Miata started right up as if nothing was wrong.

She had jumped out of the car, thanking the woman and took her hand to shake it. Belle remembered saying, "You've been out in this storm too long. You're as cold as death!" The woman had laughed strangely, but accepted Belle's invitation to come into her car to warm up.

Belle knew they had spoken for a long while, but could not remember a single thing they discussed. Eventually, she had offered the woman a ride home, but she declined, explaining, "I reside near here."

The oddness of that statement made it stick in Belle's mind. She thought no one lived in that area of the State Forest. And now that she thought of it, that comment was the last memory she had. She could not remember the woman leaving her car, nor could she even recall driving home. Her next memory was waking up just a few minutes ago.

She climbed out of bed, went to the window that looked out to the side of the house, and saw her car parked there. She stood for a moment, squinting at the midday sun sparkling off the lake. It hurt her eyes.

As she reached up and closed the lace curtains. She noticed two small welts _ a little more than an inch apart _ on the underside of her left wrist.

"Those darned spiders!" she cursed. At least that was what she assumed had caused the marks. One thing about this lake house being used only occasionally in autumn, winter and spring was that it attracted little vermin during those cold months. Over the years, Belle had gotten her share of spider bites, which, after you scratched them, scabbed over to look like the marks now decorating her wrist.

With the translucent drapes closed, Belle found she could bear looking at the bright sunlight. She was glad she had decided to spend spring break here alone at the lake house. She needed to finish her honors thesis for Anthropology 411 _ half her grade depended on it. Certainly that was more important than a week in Daytona, where Brad had gone.

She thought of the fight they had when she told him she wasn't going down there with him. Brad wanted so much from her that she just was not willing to give. He blamed it on her Catholic upbringing, but Belle knew it was more than that. There was something about Brad that just didn't feel right. Sure, she loved him, but she couldn't say she was in love with him. She just could not commit herself to him.

How odd, she thought as she suddenly realized that she felt more amorous here alone this morning than she had ever felt when spending time with Brad. "I guess I just feel freer here," she thought to herself. In fact, despite her fatigue, she realized she was feeling more libidinous than she could ever remember. Well, she knew how to fix that. She would find relaxation in a long, hot bath.

She walked to the bathroom and began filling the tub. As she stripped off her thin silk nightie, she decided that, after her bath, she would drive back into the forest and try to find the woman who had helped her. She would take one of the bottles of fine wine her parents kept in the cellar as a gift to show that mysterious lady how much she appreciated what she had done for her.

***

Oct-26-2001 4:26 PM Message 3 of 245

Subject: Approaching Darkness [

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 1 ]

By the time Belle had completed her bath, dressed, and found a dusty bottle Pinot Noir in the cellar, the sun had angled well to the west. Regardless, she found she needed sunglasses to go outside. She climbed into her red Miata and held her breath as she turned the key. Despite the previous night's problems, the engine roared to life, then purred like a sated lioness as she pulled down the long driveway.

She retraced her path down the State Forest highway. She drove for miles between two indistinguishable walls of trees. Then, with no noticeable hint to suggest it, she realized she had reached the point where her car had stalled the previous evening. She stopped at the side of the road, then exited her car and crossed to the other shoulder, finding the tracks her tires had left there yesterday. "Wow," she whispered to herself. "I guess its true what they say about the power of the subconscious."

"Now to find the home of my anonymous benefactor," Belle announced to the trees in her usual habit of thinking aloud. "She said she resided nearby." Even as she said this, Belle noticed the old logging path _ the truck-wide gap it cut through the trees now camouflaged by the saplings and tall grasses that had come to clog it since these acres had become a nature preserve _ with a well-worn footpath down the middle. Belle turned to look at the sun, just starting to sink below the treetops on the other side of the road. "If she lives down there, I should reach her home well before dark."

She crossed the highway again to retrieve the bottle of wine and lock the car. Then again crossing back, she thought about how little traffic this highway saw, and silently thanked God that someone had found her last night. She stood on the roadside, examining the wine bottle in the waning light: an expensive vintage, and just coming to ideal age. She had leaned that much from her father.

"If I can find her, I hope she likes you," Belle told the wine. "I can't think of anything else to offer to show my thanks." With that, she entered the dark forest, in search of a mysterious lady.

***

Oct-26-2001 4:30 PM Message 4 of 245

Subject: On the Threshold

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 3 ]

The footpath Belle followed veered away from the overgrown logging road and deep into forest itself. Here, the leafy canopy of the treetops allowed little sunlight to penetrate even at midday, so the forest floor was open between comfortably spaced trunks, and carpeted with soft, fallen, brown leaves, with only the occasional brave fern or struggling sapling providing a hint of green, and scattered toadstool shelves a dash of white and orange. Now, with the sun setting in the west, all color surrendered to deepening shadows of midnight gray.

Belle slipped her sunglasses into the inside pocket of her leather jacket. Whatever had made her eyes so sensitive to daylight had not affected her night vision. She found she had little trouble following the trail, despite the darkening twilight.

She shifted the bottle of Pinot Noir from her left hand into her right. She had not expected to walk this far and began to doubt if the lady who had helped her when her car broke down actually lived down here. If so, she must have a more direct route to her home _ probably even a driveway somewhere _ and had simple been strolling on this path when she discovered Belle stranded. Belle would feel awfully foolish for having walked so far through the woods if it turned out she could have simply driven to the woman's home.

On the other hand, perhaps she had a secluded cabin on one of the many lakes encompassed by the State Forrest. Belle knew that sometimes, rather than paying off property owners who had homes in an area turned into a park or designated forest, the state would let them continue to live there under certain conditions. An aunt of Belle's best friend, Laura, had a cottage on a lake about 20 miles from here that was like that.

But before her anonymous rescuer declined a ride last night saying, "I reside near here," Belle had thought no one lived in this part of the forest.

With that thought, Belle stopped and peered around. Night would soon fall, and she realized that the path had disappeared beneath the blanket of dead leaves. A cold fog, rich with earthy scents, had started to form. She looked down at the bottle of wine in her hands. "Well, I guess I won't be sharing you with anyone tonight," she sighed.

She turned to head back to her car, but stopped when she heard a woman's voice in the distance. She trotted 30 or 40 yards in that direction. She peered through the darkness and mist and realized that the looming shape she first took for a house was actually just a large limestone outcropping rising above the ground, at least as high as the treetops. Still, she heard people talking _ including a voice with the full and sophisticated timbres of the lady she had met the night before _ from just beyond the huge rock, or perhaps on the other side of it.

Without stopping to think, she headed toward the voices.

***

Feb-15-2001 12:12 PM Message 5 of 245

Subject: Lonesome [Vampiress Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 1 ]

~*Sitting on her favorite red velvet sofa, Dahlia curls into herself, giving into the feelings of lonliness that envelope her. Her dearest Natasha gone, their passon fizzled out, love lost...*~

~*Sighing she shakes her head. Many loves have passed through her eternal life. This was no different. Something to be enjoyed while it lasted. But Kindred can never remain together. With mortals it is possible for their lives are short and their hearts are tender. But for an eternity, to be with the same person...that is a test that few she had known had passed.*~

~*Hearing footsteps, Dahlia straightens. Assuming it was Ravenwolf and his lady returning, she smiles. Finally, company to take her mind from her woes.*~

***

Oct-26-2001 4:33 PM Message 6 of 245

Subject: Lost Soul [Belle]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 1 ]

The voices faded before Belle found her way around the large limestone outcropping. The only sounds were her own footsteps, crushing the dead leaves carpeting the forest floor. Almost total darkness had replaced the dim gray fog and she realized that she could see nothing beyond the reach of her outstretched left hand. Her right still clutched the bottle of Pinot Noir she had hoped to give to the lady who had helped her when her car broke down the evening before. Now, instead of finding that woman's house, Belle found herself deep in the woods, with night having fallen around her.

Belle turned what she hopes were180 degrees, planning to return the way she had come. She took only a few steps when her face struck a low limb, a twig poking her forehead. She reached up to rub the bump and felt a small drop of blood smearing beneath her fingers.

"Alright, Belle, don't freak out," she whispered to herself as she realized that in following the curve of the large rock, she had completely lost her bearings. Regardless, that was now the only landmark she had, and if it did turn out she would have to spend the night out here, it would provide a little shelter. She turned around and reached out to feel for the limestone wall, and realized she now could not even see her own hands.

A light rain had started to fall, and Belle started to feel her way along the cold, wet stone in hope of finding an overhang to sit under while she considered her options. Instead, as she moved, she found the wall becoming smoother, almost as if made from cut blocks. She was about to turn around and try the other direction when her hand slipped around a ninety degree corner. She realized she had found an alcove, clearly cut into the wall.

Happy to find a dry space, she cautiously made her way into the opening, and realized it was only a foot or two deep. She slapped the palm of her had against the rear of the alcove and heard a wooden thud. It must be an old mine tunnel or something, she thought, but found to her surprise that instead it felt like an ornately carved panel door. In the center of the door, her fingers wrapped around the cool brass of a knocker. Belle decided that in the dark, she must have walked right past the limestone outcropping and fortuitously stumbled upon a house.

Being lost in the dark forest, she had little choice. Indeed, she really gave it no thought. She lifted the knocker, and brought it down, announcing her presence with three loud metallic clangs.

***

Feb-15-2001 12:19 PM Message 7 of 245

Subject: A Knock [Vampiress Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 6 ]

~*Dahlia straightens at the knock on her door. Surely Mina and Ravenwolf would have just come in? Shrugging she walks over to the door and holds it open. Her eyes widen at the sight of the woman she had found stranded on the side of the highway. The woman was wet and shivering, obviously half blind in the darkness and clutching a bottle of wine to her chest. Dahlia mentally reviews the woman's thoughts and smiles. Taking the woman's cold stiff hand, she leads her

inside.*~

"Hello again. I suppose that is for me? Thank you very much. How about I open it up and pour us some glasses? It'll warm you up. So will that fire..."

~*Dahlia points to the huge marble fireplace in which a large fire is blazing. Popping the cork with skilled fingers stronger than any corkscrew, she grabs two goblets and pours them to the brim. Looking over at Belladonna, she studies her. No doubt the woman is thinking that wine won't satisfy her thirst...nothing has been able to so far. Smiling she walks over to her, handing Bella a glass.*~

"Drink up and then you can tell me how you found me way out here in the wilderness."

***

Oct-26-2001 4:33 PM Message 8 of 245

Subject: Getting Warmer [Belle]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 7 ]

"Drink up and then you can tell me how you found me way out here in the wilderness."

Belle willingly accepts the full crystal goblet and gulps down nearly half of the Pinot Noir her hostess had poured into it. Knowing how much the bottle had cost her father, she feels a little guilty for not slowly sipping the wine as her parents had taught her. She takes a second sip in a manner more becoming the vintage. She finally finds her voice.

"Thank you," she smiles, again extending her still-clammy right hand. "My name is Belinda Phillips, but everyone calls me Belle." Suddenly, she feels that neither name fit her. Both seem as uncomfortable as her now sodden clothes. As the lady again takes her hand, she has the momentary impression that the woman already knows her by some other identity, but that wouldn't make sense, would it? Had she introduced herself the night before when the lady helped her after her car broke down? She can't remember.

"You may call me Dahlia," the lady replies. She shakes Belle's hand quickly and formally. That Dahlia's hand feels even colder than her own surprises Belle.

"I came here to thank you for helping me last night," Belle continues.

"And now you have; think no more of it." Dahlia's eye's narrow. "Although I remain curious on how you found my home. But first, I should think you will be more comfortable if you remove that soaked coat."

Smiling in appreciation, Belle sets her wine glass on the fireplace mantel and slips her sodden leather jacket off her shoulders and down her arms. She bends down and drapes it across a corner of the hearth. When she stands up, Dahlia is refilling Belle's drink.

"Thank you," Belle says as she accepts the full goblet. She takes another sip then continues. "When you wouldn't let me drive you home last night, I knew you must live close by. In fact I think you said so. So I just drove back to where I stalled last night and started looking around."

Dahlia's left eyebrow arches. "You were able to find a spot, among the anonymous trees, which you had only before seen in the dark?"

"Yep," Belle mumbles through another sip of Pinot. "I knew the approximate area, but then I when I got there, I instinctively stopped at the precise spot. The subconscious is more powerful than most people think."

"Indeed," Dahlia nods. Her eyes flash. "But that does not explain how you found my home so deep in the forest."

"Well, the only path into the woods I could see was that old logging road, so I followed that most of the way. Then when that ended, I thought I heard some voices, so I went in their direction, but still didn't find anything. By then it had grown dark and, I'm embarrassed to admit, I got lost. I literally stumbled onto your doorway in the dark." Belle takes another sip from the goblet, her cheeks flush from the wine and the heat from the fire. She giggles. "First I stop in the exact spot on the highway, then I walk right up to your door in the dark. What a crazy set of coincidences."

"Or something like that," Dahlia whispers mysteriously.

***

Feb-15-2001 12:22 PM Message 9 of 245

Subject: Eyes of mischief [Lady Dahlia reposted bt Belle]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 8 ]

~*Dahlia smiles at Belle, her eyes winking, her mind soaking up her essence. This one's soul was older than it's mortal body. She knew these woods well...obviously she had travelled in them once before in a past life. Sipping the excellent wine Belle had brought as a present, she wondered about Belle's soul. Perhaps a slain Kindred? Or maybe an elf? No, not elf...she didn't strike her as an elf. A magician maybe.*~

~*Looking over at Belle, Dahlia looks at her wet clothes. The girl was obviously still uncomfortable, despite the fire.*~

"I have some spare clothing in my bedroom. We look to be about the same size...you may borrow anything you like. It's down the hallway, the last doorway on the right."

***

Oct-26-2001 4:42 PM Message 10 of 245

Subject: Getting Dressed [Belle]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 9 ]

"I have some spare clothing in my bedroom." Dahlia says, gesturing to Belle's rain-soaked blouse, pasted to her ribs. "We look to be about the same size.... You may borrow anything you like. It's down the hallway, the last doorway on the right."

"Thank you," Belle replies. "I really should change; I'm dripping on your rug. Please excuse me." Belle smiles, sets her nearly empty wine glass on the mantel and walks across the large parlor to the hallway. She passes a huge dinning room. The long table is immaculately set with at least a dozen chairs on each side. Belle had not appreciated the size of Dahlia's house _ mansion, actually _ until then. That Dahlia could entertain a virtual multitude is confirmed by the number of guestrooms Belle passed as she walks down the hall.

"Okay," she whispers to herself, "last door on the right." After what she has already seen, the size and opulence of the master bedroom does not surprise Belle. Dark woods and fine marbles grace the decor of the spacious room. A huge, four-post bed _ ornately carved and under a rich black lace canopy _ dominates the far wall.

To the right, Belle sees a door to the bathroom. She enters and sees that the fixtures are either all antiques, or exquisitely crafted replicas. The freestanding bathtub reminds her of the one in her grandmother's house, set on four feet cast to look like lion paws. This one, however, is much larger than any such tub she has seen before.

Belle faces the mirror and gasps. Belle rarely wears bras _ finding them uncomfortable and unnecessary given her modest size _ and did not wear one tonight. The rain has turned her white blouse clingy, translucent, and thereby overly revealing. Was this why Dahlia suggested she change? She hopes she has not offended her hostess.

Belle squints at her image in the mirror. She finds it hard to focus on it. I'll have to slow down on the wine, she reminds herself.

Belle removes her shoes, socks, jeans and blouse, hanging the wet clothes across the sides of the tub. She leaves the bathroom and pads across the bedroom to a wide, mahogany armoire, next to a matching dressing table. She opens the cabinet and starts examining the clothes hung there. It surprises Belle that for all her obvious taste and wealth, Dahlia's wardrobe is not at all stylish. Rather, it seems almost Victorian, sort of like the clothes some of the better dressed "Goth" Punkers wear on campus, except that Dahlia's are of superior quality. Belle pulls open a drawer and finds that even the underwear is old-fashioned. While Belle concedes wistfully that such lingerie has a certain femininity lacking in its modern counterpart, it certainly cannot be as comfortable or practical.

Belle opts for a simple silk and lace nightshirt that she finds neatly folded in one drawer. As she puts it on, she notes a silver brush set on the dressing table. She picks up the mirror and sees the rat's nest the rain has made of her hair. Feeling a little wicked, she uses Dahlia's brush to remedy that, making sure that she removes any strands of her own hair when she finishes. As she sets down the mirror, she notices it is oddly dusty, as if she is the first to use it for a long while.

She laces up the front of the nightshirt and retrieves a black velvet and satin robe she had noticed hanging in the armoire. She then slips on black satin slipper that are a little too big, but the best she can find.

She feels very regal in the long black robe with the white lace of the nightshirt peeking up and around its lapel. She looks around but sees no full-length mirror, which surprises her in such a well appointed room. She decides her hostess is not expecting her to look good, just warm, and Belle realizes she should stop dallying in a stranger's bedroom, but instead return to the parlor.

Belle glances at the bathroom. Dahlia did not tell her where she would find a dryer for her clothes. Belle does not want to carry the soggy items around the house, so she decides to go ask Dahlia and then come back for them.

Shrugging her shoulders to ensure the robe hangs smoothly down her slender frame, Belle goes out into the hall and returns to the parlor to again express her appreciation for Dahlia's generous hospitality.

***

Feb-15-2001 5:24 PM Message 11 of 245

Subject: Humorous thoughts [Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 10 ]

~*Dahlia waits patiently, quietly attuned to Belle's thoughts as she wanders through her rooms and corridoors. Smiling at Belle's reaction to her clothing, she sighs. Actually if the younger girl had opened the closet, she'd have found a very modern variety of stylish clothing...and underwear. Vampires who do not keep up with the changing times, in both attitude and appearance, soon perish. And Dahlia had no wish to do that...*~

~*Hearing Belle's footsteps approaching, Dahlia rids herself of her mischeivious grin and looks up with caramel brown cat-like eyes.*~

***

Jan-19-2002 3:27 PM Message 12 of 245

Subject: Stormy Weather [Belle]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 11 ]

Belle hopes she presents herself in a manner worthy of her opulent surroundings as she enters the parlor, with the long black velvet and satin robe cinched tightly around her thin waist, then billowing behind her legs as she crosses to the fireplace to join her hostess.

"Thank you for letting me get dry," Belle says with a warm smile. "Your clothes a quite... luxurious."

"I see you found my nostalgia cabinet," Dahlia chuckles as she hands Belle her goblet, filled with the last of the Pinot Noir. "If you had looked in the walk-in closet, you would have found items more in keeping with the times. No matter, that shirt and robe are most becoming on you."

Belle blushes and takes a sip of wine. "If you can tell me where I'll find the laundry room, I'll get my clothes into the dryer." Just then, thunder booms outside, echoing through the forest. Belle sighs. "Then again, if this storm doesn't let up, I'll just get soaked on my way back to the car anyway."

***

Feb-15-2001 5:28 PM Message 13 of 245

Subject: Signalling a servent [Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 12 ]

~*Smiling Dahlia claps her hands together loudly once and a servent quickly comes to her, stopping a few feet away, standing in respectful silence with his hands folded neatly behind his back.*~

"Briant, would you please take Ms. Belle's things and have them washed. She will tell you where to find her discarded clothing."

~*Briant nods and turns towards Belle, bowing his head slightly for she is a friend of his mistress and waits for his orders.*~

***

Jan-20-2002 10:38 AM Message 14 of 245

Subject: Getting Comfortable [

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 13 ]

Belle informs Dahlia's butler where he can find her wet clothes.

"Very well, Miss," the pale man replies. "I shall have them dried for you presently." He bows and leaves, heading up the hall to Dahlia's suite.

"Please have a seat, Belle," Dahlia offers, sweeping her left hand toward one of two large, plush chairs facing the fireplace.

"Thank you," Belle replies and settles into its thick cushions. She has another sip of Pinot Noir, then sets her goblet on the small cherrywood table separating her chair from that into which her hostess gracefully settles.

"I really do appreciate all the kind hospitality you have shown me," Belle continues. "I would have never expected to find such a beautiful home way out here. Did it belong to some lumber baron? Are you descended from him? Or how did you come to live out here?"

Belle suddenly realizes that all the wine has made her too talkative _ as wine always does _ and she hopes she has not offended her hostess with the barrage of questions. She is relieved to see a enigmatic smile curl the corners of Dahlia's ruby lips, and Belle leans forward expectantly to hear her response.

***

Feb-15-2001 5:33 PM Message 15 of 245

Subject: Fairytales [Vampiress Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 14 ]

~*Smiling at Belle, Dahlia takes another sip of her wine. Leaning back in her plush velvet chair, the goblet in her hand, she starts to tell her story.*~

"Well, actually I had this place designed. I hired only the best architects, interior decorators, etc. I wanted privacy above all else...so of course, I had to kill them all after my home was completed."

~*Dahlia laughs at the expression on Belle's face. Of course it wasn't true. She's merely erased their memory of the project and how they had come across such a large amount of money. If there was one this she was it wasn't cheap. She'd paid the men as they had agreed. She'd only killed one of them...a particularly nasty man who'd fought her for more money and tried to take other "benefits" as payment. Chuckling huskily at the memory of his death, Dahlia smiles, her fangs easily hidden by her full lips. His blood had tasted like that of a rat...not at all like the vision in front of her. No...Belle's blood had been sweet, innocent, and full of wonder for the woman who bent over her wrist....*~

***

Feb-15-2001 5:35 PM Message 16 of 245

Subject: Graveyard Humor [Belle]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 15 ]

"Well, actually I had this place designed. I hired only the best architects, interior decorators, et cetera," Dahlia explains. "I wanted privacy above all else.... So, of course, I had to kill them all after my home was completed."

Belle tries to smile at the joke, but something in her hostess' smile and husky laugh makes her pulse quicken. Trying to play along, Belle stammers, "I... I hope my stumbling upon you here won't result in me suffering the same fate."

***

Feb-15-2001 5:39 PM Message 17 of 245

Subject: Foot in mouth [Lady Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 16 ]

~*Dahlia's smile disappears at Belle's question.*~

"It was merely a joke, dear. I'd never harm you."

~*Pushing darker thoughts back, Dahlia makes a resolution to herself to keep that promise. Unless of course, Belle wishes her to break it.*~

***

Feb-15-2001 6:35 PM Message 18 of 245

Subject: Looking for Trouble ["Belle"]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 12 ]

"It was merely a joke, dear," Dahlia whispers hoarsely, confirming Belle's impression. "I'd never harm you."

"Oh, I knew you were joking, of course," Belle mumbles, finding herself a bit let down. For a moment, she had thought she sensed an air of danger around her hostess, as if she actually were capable of murder. Belle silently reproaches herself for even considering that possibility, reminding herself that Dahlia is a lady of obvious wealth and refinement who has shown her nothing but generosity, hospitality and kindness. Belle feels her face flush as she realizes that her disappointment stems from her own personal dissatisfaction.

Here she was, barely twenty years old, and already so bored with life that she had actually found hope in the momentary suspicion that she had fallen into the clutches of a homicidal fugitive. Knowing that her life held little promise of any such adventure, Belle sighs, envisioning instead the future to which she was surely destined: Finishing college; Working her way up a predetermined path to a vice-presidency in one of her father's companies; Meeting the "right" guy along the way and marrying; Chauffeuring her 2-point-3 children to piano lessons and soccer games; Finally spending her old age sipping bland white wine at the same country club to which her family had belonged for four generations..... No risk. No danger. And all the challenges neatly predefined.

Is it any wonder, she asks herself, that I would hope this odd night might lead to some perilous escapade? Again she chides herself for childlike foolishness. Such things only happen in summer movies and paperback novels.

Still, there must be some interesting story behind Dahlia going to the expense to build such a mansion in the middle of nowhere. Belle takes another sip of wine and decides to risk offending her hostess by pressing on with her questions. Her mind still on books and movies, Belle asks: "Are you a writer? Is that why you come here, to get away from your fans?"

***

Feb-15-2001 6:38 PM Message 19 of 245

Subject: Sad memories [Lady Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 18 ]

~*Dahlia sets her wine down on the table beside her, her eyelids fluttering closed to hide her eyes and her lips compressing. Refuge is needed once a vampire reaches the age she is. She has in the past and could still skip from country to country, leaving once her face becomes all too familiar. But she liked the idea that old friends could always depend on her to be in one place, should they need her. And the quiet...the glorious quiet! How she loved to hear the birds sing at twilight when the sun is dissapearing into the horizon. But secrecy is needed when humans and other beings hunt your kind. So called Vampire Hunters. And Dahlia...ahh, she herself was among the most hunted Kindred. Old, timeless...priceless. A bounty on her head had been placed by numerous kings, queens, dukes, earls, noblemen, etc. Dahlia had attented the finest parties, had been affiliated with the royal societies of almost every country and region. Her face was immortalized in hundreds of portraits by enemies and lovers long gone. If the wrong person glimpsed her out in public...the battle would be bloody, and she could not be one hundred percent sure it would outcome in her favor.*~

~*Looking up at Belle, she senses her thoughts. She craves the darkness, as Dahlia had. The need to get away from a tedious lifestyle. Sighing, she takes Belle's hand in her own...feeling the desire to know another side of life...a darker, more sinister side. Oh the things she could do, that she could show her! To have another partner...after the departure of her beloved Natasha. But no, this one was young. Far too young to make the change without regret and longing for human life again. For a heartbeat...*~

"I live out here to get away from everything. People, noise...all of it. It's my haven."

***

Feb-15-2001 6:40 PM Message 20 of 245

Subject: Sharing Solitude

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 19 ]

Dahlia does not immediately respond to Belle's question. Instead, her gaze locks upon Belle's face. She reaches out, takes Belle's hand and sighs. Belle blushes. She thought she had detected a trace of accent in Dahlia's rich voice, and she knows Continentals are much more tolerant about touching and personal space. Belle leaves her hand in Dahlia's, finding her hostess' soft, cool, touch quite refreshing after all the wine.

Dahlia finally speaks. "I live out here to get away from everything: people, noise... all of it. It's my haven."

Belle smiles and gently squeezes Dahlia's hand. "I know exactly what you mean. My family has a house over on Wolf Lake, and when my father got it, he had all of the phones taken out. He's a busy businessman and when he needs to really think about some big project _ or just get away for a few days to relax and fish _ he come up here where no one can reach him."

With her free hand, Belle lifts her goblet and has another sip of wine, then continues. "That's why I'm up here now, to work on an essay away from the other demands of school, family, friends and whatnot. For the next seven days, no one will disturb me, and no one expects to hear from me."

***

Feb-15-2001 6:44 PM Message 21 of 245

Subject: Nodding [Vampiress Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 20 ]

~*Smiling at Belle, Dahlia nods.*~

"I've heard this senario from many people. Pressue building up in their lives, a need to escape the 'real world'...it's quite common. I myself have no stress. Perhaps a little lonliness once in awhile, but you are here now to cure that."

~*Dahlia smiles once again, careful to hide her fangs. After a vampire grows as old as she, their fangs stop to recede after the bloodlust dies down. Dahlia's own fangs were such that they were not overtly hideous or lengthy. Small, slightly elongated, sharp and deadly described them...which was lucky for her since they would not be a sepectacle in public. Right now it was fortunate that Belle could not see them. Out here in the middle of nowhere, they just might scare the poor girl.*~

***

Jan-20-2002 10:26 AM Message 22 of 245

Subject: Nodding Off [Belle]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 12 ]

"I myself have no stress," Dahlia imparts. "Perhaps a little loneliness once in awhile, but you are here now to cure that."

Belle grins warmly in response. "Well, like I said, I have no demands on my time for the next week, so I would be happy to come visit again... Or perhaps you'd like to come and see our lake house. It's a beautiful Victorian home, with seven bedrooms. We have our own beach and a boathouse with a deck, but of course it's too cold for that now. But there's a big porch facing the lake, and it gets lots of sun, so it should be warm enough to sit outside and enjoy the spring weather."

Dahlia does not speak, but nods absently at Belle's invitation, as if distracted. Dahlia's smile wanes, and takes on a sad, enigmatic quality, reminding Belle of the "Mona Lisa." Belle wonders if the suggestion of sitting by a lake in the spring sunshine has triggered some painful memory for her hostess. Had someone she loved drowned in a lake? Or did some lover spurn her in such a setting? Belle decides it must be something like that. Why else would Dahlia have ignored all the lakefront property available in the area and instead built her retreat in this deep, dark forest?

Belle cannot bring herself to pry further into Dahlia's personal business, so they sit quietly, staring into the fire. Belle suppresses a yawn. Perhaps the wine, or the long walk through the cold, wet woods, or the cozy nightclothes, or the warm fire, or the comfort she finds holding Dahlia's cool hand, or the combination of all of these, but whatever the reason, Belle feels herself becoming increasingly sleepy. I'll just close my eyes for a moment, she tells herself, then I'll feel more alert. Her heavy eyelids fall shut.

Moments later, Dahlia senses the change in her guest's breathing. She looks over to see the young woman curled up in her chair, fast asleep. Belle's head tilts in slumber, exposing the ivory skin on the left side of her neck.

***

Mar-2-2001 4:52 PM Message 23 of 245

Subject: Sleeping Beauty [Lady Dahlia {reposted by Belle}]

From: cyberian_belle

Reply to: cyberian_belle [ Message 22 ]

~*Dahlia glances over to see Belle curled up in her chair, sleeping soundly. Brushing a hand over the slumbering human's cheek, she sweeps a stray strand of hair out of her face. She really is quite beautiful. Delicate and fragile with an inner strength as well. And so warm...Dahlia can feel the heat radiating off of her mortal skin. Ah how easy it is to remember a time when her own skin had been flushed with blood.*~

~*Standing, Dahlia gently lifts Belle from her chair and carries her into the guest room closest to her own room. Should the girl need anything, she would be nearby. Settling Belle down on top of a firm, plump bed, she pulls a royal blue satin comforter over her.*~

"Sleep sweet, little one," she whispers.

~*Turning from the bed, Dahlia walks to her own room to read and perhaps catch a small nap.*~

***