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A new day.

A day in which some things would change. At least that is how it felt as I got up. I had no idea what to expect from my meeting with Seriph. I didn't even know if she was even a woman or anything. Of course I knew now, as I write this, but it feels better to write things down in the same emotions as I experienced them.

While I write, I remember and I feel. In fact it surprises me sometimes how strong those memories get. I feel the teers, just on the horizon, hear the laughter or the cries. I feel every caress or punch again as I recall them.

But back to Seriph. Her mystery probably had to do with security. To keep herself (if it was a girl) safe. Layers upon layers of complexity and safety measures. It was reasonable to assume that everything that had happened was exactly as she wanted it. It was almost scary to know that someone kept that much control over a given situation.

The night was different from all the other nights of the past few weeks. I'd never taken a night off in a month time and, knowing it was arranged for me, it felt all the sweeter with the supposed adventure that lied ahead.

Again I took a shower, mostly to get rid of my nerves and relax, but also because I felt I wanted to look good. It felt really, really good. I kept it the water at a fairly cool temperature, but just the noise and the feeling of drops alone was enough to paint a smile on my face.

And thus, wrapped up in a gentle smile, I headed outside. I managed to sneak past the bar unnoticed and quietly There was only one thing to do before I was ready to meet Seriph. Blood.

Maybe it was because I was still in the spirit of the moment, but I wanted to taste a girl, a woman perhaps. To feel gentle and seductive, rather than lustful and crude. It was a rather sharp distinction, but men still had something instinctively animal about them. They felt more like hunters than caretakers most of the time.

The town was still fairly crowded. A Sunday night with plenty of people around to taste. For a change, I went almost directly into the square with all those bars and cafe's. It was quite dangerous to do so every night, but I hadn't done this in at least two weeks. I didn't have the time usualy. Tonight, however, I had more time and patience finding someone I would desire. And seduce.

Now, a really interesting side-effect from being a vampire is the ease with wich other people would like to come with you. Even in the store it was noticable. It was probably a combination of looking near flawless, as my skin for example looked better than it had ever done when I was alive, and the aura of strength around us. There are, however, always people able to resist it.

The first girl I saw and really liked, was a thin, tallish girl with hair so blond as to be almost white. She had large blue eyes that looked intelligently at the world around her. She was looking at girls more than boys, as far as I could see, and even found me a moment worthy to lay her eyes on. But, for some reason...

"I saw you looking at me."

"And that's all I will do, look."

I smiled. "Aren't I allowed to have a little taste of such a lovely pretty girl?"

She smiled back. "No. Not tonight."

I was a little surprised. "Even if I ask nicely?"

She just smiled, shook her head and walked away.

It was the first time it had happened since I'd become a vampire. Normally things went so smooth and almost automatically that I had completely forgot how it felt to be denied. In fact, I wasn't even sure if I had ever really tried before. Of course, with the experience I had, it was only a momentary defeat. There were plenty of other girls near the ocean. And, to my surprise, an Indonesian girl was showed interest in me not long after.

We hardly exchanged words before we sat down somewhere more intimate. I did startle her a lot when I leaned in to kiss her neck. Something, it seemed, she only allowed out of pure surprise. I didn't want to take all night getting blood for my meeting with Seriph, but all my attention was present to do her sweet taste justice.

It wasn't different, as such, from what I'd tasted before. Her blood had the same unique intricacies that other people had as well. Perhaps just a little bit sweeter. She was no older than eighteen and, as far as I could taste, actually very inexperienced. But her body took over after a second, while the blood flowed between my lips, her hands caressed the back of my head, holding me in place and not pushing me away. It was nice to feel her enjoying it.

Behind us, there was a catcall from a guy, I think. I didn't look around to check, but I felt the blush on her cheeks glow. I didn't take that much, I didn't want her to fall prey to anyone else tonight and, which was surprisingly important for me now, I wanter her to remember me with a smile.

When I let go, I kissed her lips once, smiling at her and waiting for her to open her eyes again.

"I have to go, please don't be angry."

She blinked, waiting for the words to sink in. "Will I see you again?"

I nodded. "I'm sure we will."

She appeared to take me at face value, even though I had no idea why I even said it. It was just the right piece for the moment, a perfect fit. There were no other words that could have existed there without force.

She reached for me as I stood up, an outstretched hand that I was happy to kiss. She let me go, not happy but not exactly sad either. I turned away after another smile and headed for the exit. I was all ready to meet Seriph now. Hopefully it would mean that she had more work for me and I was allowed to do even more.

The docks greeted me silently on my return. They didn't mind who walked on them, as long as our weight wouldn't cause us to fall through. Not that that would be a problem for me. A funny thought occurred to me though, they should hang up posters saying 'You have to be this healthy to continue beyond this point'. But that probably wasn't politically correct enough. With no tourist shaped holes in the docks tonight, I instead looked around as I waited for a sign from Seriph.

Patiently excited.

Ah yes, the most terrible of virtues.