Moonlightaholics

True to Josef’s assessment Balthazar only met with Brian for one hour and he was back at home. Mick and Beth sat around the rest of the evening playing Trivial Pursuit with Gabriel, Brian, Zoe and Amy. It was a fierce competition with the girls against the boys. Brian was leading the guys into the lead when Amy won the round and the game for the ladies.
“Hardly a fair game. How would any of us know anything about….who was it again?” Brian asked
“Coco Chanel” Gabriel said rolling his eyes “I agree. Guys don’t know that stuff” he laughed.
“There are plenty of men who design clothes! I bet they know who she is!” Zoe said “You just don’t want to lose to girls!”
“Well yeah, you’re right!” Mick said with smile. Any stood up and stretched.
“Well, I better get home before my mom get’s pissed.” She said gathering her things. She leaned over and hugged everyone and gave Brian a quick peck. “Welcome back stinky!” she said lightly pushing him.
Gabriel stood up. “Come on Zoe, I’ll walk you downstairs”
“Ok, bye everybody. She ran over and hugged Brian tightly. “Good to have you back Brian” she said.

Brian began to help Beth pick up all the cups and load them into the dishwasher. Beth watched him closely.
“Brian, if you ever want to talk about anything. I mean anything. Just let us know, Ok?’ she said touching his arm
“I will mom, I promise”
“Ok, Mick and I are turning in. You young people are tiring” she joked as she walked up stairs.

Gabriel walked in and locked the door.
“Ok. So let’s hear it” he said as they walked into Brian’s room.
It took two hours for Brian to tell the tale. He told Gabriel of his turning and how scared he had been. He told him of the intense training and the ancient ceremonies, Gabriel was in awe, but this did explain a lot about Isabelle and the strict principles that she lived by. Now they were Brian’s principles.
“So you’re still going to do the finance thing with uncle Josef?” Gabriel asked.
“You know, while I was training, I thought that I would loose the ability or that I would no longer find it exciting, but on the plane back home, I made 1.5 million dollars in trading. I guess it’s in my blood….so to speak” he said with smile. “What about you? What are going to do after you graduate?”
“I’m gong to law school” Gabriel said with sheepish grim
“Wow! Really? That’s cool. What brought that on?”
“Well, with an uncle like Josef Kostan, legal representation is vital and it’s also an industry where we’re lacking numbers”
“Man, when you said being a vampire was about sacrifice, you weren’t kidding were you? Everything is about the community.”
Yes. And you won’t be allowed to forget it.” Gabriel said sadly.

Brian awoke up with much on his mind. He quickly took a shower and dressed in his best suit. Today would be his first day officially at Kostan Industries.

The doorman hailed him a taxi and he made it to the office a half hour early.
Brian walked confidently into the building feeling all eyes on him. Every woman turned to stare and lust. He spied Nicole getting coffee at the coffee stand. She was going through her handbag looking money. Brian stole up behind her and handed the barista a five dollar bill.
“Allow me” he said looking at her.
“Brian! Uh…how are you? You look different…not that you didn’t look fine before… I mean” she stammered still staring up at the guy she hadn’t seen in over a year.
“Nice to see you again as well Nicole. Have a great day.” He said and walked off towards the elevators. Brian felt like he was king of the world!

Josef’s assistant showed him into the office. Josef was surrounded by people all talking at once. He looked up and saw Brian and grinned.
“Go away!” he yelled at everyone. “Look at you Brian! You look great!” Josef said. “You ready to get started?”
Brian opened the folder he had in his hand.
“I took the liberty sir of jotting down a few prospects for Kostan Industries.” He said showing Josef the information. “As you can see these two corporations should yield a profit margin in these two brackets before the end of the fiscal year” Josef smiled in wonder.
“Brian sit down. Let’s talk a bit” Josef said
Brian un buttoned his blazer and took a seat across from Josef.
“How are you adjusting?”
“Fine sir”
“Well I have your paperwork.” Josef reached for a file and opened it.
“You graduated from Stanford with honors, here is your broker’s license, the keys to your condo and the keys to your company car” Josef smiled as he saw the boy smile.
“I can’t believe this is happening” he said shaking his head.
“Welcome to Kostan Industries” Josef said shaking the boy’s hand.

Isabelle came into the office.
“Are you ready for your security training?” Brian stood quickly up.
“Yes.”
“Very well, come with me” she said turning to kiss Josef before she left.
Brian spent 4 very long hours going over all the security procedures that were in place. There were electronic key cards for almost every area. Some he would have access to, some he would not.
“I know to you it seems like a lot of security, but it is needed. After what happened with Richard Whitley, Josef will take no more chances.”
“Who is Richard Whitley?” Brian asked.
“He is dead and of little matter” Isabelle said.
“Isabelle, can I ask you something?”
“Of course”
“When I came into the office this morning…..well,…I noticed…”
“Sexual attraction.”
“Well, yes”
“Brian a vampire exudes power. A preternatural power that quite frankly acts as a pheromone of sorts. Women will be attracted to you but not know why they are. I imagine you will have many lovers. That is the vampire way” she said.
“Its not way for Mick and Beth. Or Gabriel and Zoe” Brian said. Isabelle waved her hand.
“They are of a bloodline that mates for life.”
“And us?” Brian asked but Isabelle did not answer. Brian wondered about her relationship with Josef.
Brian ran into Nicole on the elevator.
“So, Brian how have you been?” she asked
“Great.” He said
“How was your first day?” she said trying to keep the conversation going before they parted.
“Busy, but things went well.” He said. Nicole decided to give up. She provided what was necessary for Josef and Isabelle and it was over. The elevator stopped on the lobby floor and Brian walked out leaving her wondering what the hell had happened. Brian suddenly turned around and smiled at Nicole. The affect it had on her was dazzling. She felt like she couldn’t breathe.
“Nicole, I just got a new apartment. Would you like come over and see it?”
“Yes.” She gasped breathlessly.

Seems to me that Brian found someone who was attracted to him even before the pheromones started. Might be good to remember that.

They took a taxi to his new condo.
“Wait! You live in the same building as Josef Kostan?” Nicole asked in amazement.
“Yes, I do.” He said as they took the elevator to the 10th floor. Brian opened the door and looked around in wonder. The unit was open and very airy. The furnishings were not to his liking but he could always change that later.
There were two bedrooms, the smaller bedroom which was locked he was sure contained a large freezer.” So what do you think?” Brian asked.
“Truthfully?” Nicole asked with a smile. “The furniture is hideous” she said.
“I agree. The bed however is quite nice.” He said seductively
Nicole couldn’t believe that this was the same shy boy she had met just a year ago. In his place was a cool, suave almost European man. She found it impossible to break his gaze away from hers and when he placed his arms around her, there was nothing she could do but surrender to him.

Lucius waited patiently while Tomas gave his report. The boy apparently was under the protection of Josef Kostan. He both worked and lived in the same building as Kostan. Tomas also reported that Kostan was married to a cleaner. That provided a problem. The Nosferatu bloodline of the cleaner would detect their coming before they even reached the building.

“I think we will have a better chance when he is in transit between the two.
Tomorrow before work, I will bring the boy to you” Tomas said.

Isabelle woke with a start. She looked all around the room. Something was not right. Throwing on the first thing she grabbed her hands on she flew out of the apartment. She opened the stairwell door and making sure no one was around, she lightly leaped over the railing and landing on the ground level with a hard thud. She quickly went out the door. She saw a figure fleeing and took chase. It was a vampire. Tomas moved quickly through the night. He knew he had lost the vampire female who was chasing him when he turned back and could no longer see her. He smiled and turned to call his boss again when he saw the woman standing in front of him. Her long fingers tightly wound around his neck as she lifted him off the ground.
“Tell me why you are here?” she said in steely voice. Tomas struggled against her but the older vampire was simply too strong.
“Do you want to keep your head?” she said to him. That scared him.
“Lucius” he choked out.
“Lucius Abbas?” Isabelle asked “What does he want?”
Isabelle loosened her grip just a bit to allow the vampire to explain.
“He wants the boy Brian. He knows that the boy is able to make billions of dollars. He wants to take over the city.”

The special abilities of Isabelle's bloodline come in quite handy. Brian sure has come a long way.

Brian is now both perpetuallt cool and apparently a hot commodity, as well!

Suffice it to say, if he is able to keep the females who succumb to his 'vamp allure' at bay for a few minutes to catch his breath (well, sorta) and the friendlies and not-so-friendlies from forcing him to work for them, he is going to have an interesting time! He is no longer one of the nerds who got the treatment from the 'cool' kids in high school. The lucky ones may wind up working for him!

Interested in seeing what his new Cleaner-like skills he has acquired in the Turning!

Isabelle was sitting in Brian’s living room when he came out of the bathroom.
“We must talk” she said.
Clutching the towel around his waist Brian pointed towards the bedroom and quickly went in and got dressed.
Brian came back out and sat on the sofa next to Isabelle.
“Lucius Abbas is his name.”
“The vampire who wants to abduct me? How do you know?”
“I caught a vampire in front of this building last night who was working for him. You must be even more careful. Lucius Abbas comes from the Veselie bloodline. Romanian gypsies. They are collectors and very dangerous. Lucius is trying to take over the city from Balthazar, he thinks that you can help him accumulate enough money do that.”
“He can’t make me do anything!” Brian said defiantly. “I don’t understand. If I’m supposed to be this super warrior vampire, why would he try to come after me anyway?”
“Perhaps he does not know who made you…..Perhaps it is time that you showed him what you can do” Isabelle said.

Perhaps showing Lucius Abbas what Brian is capable of will be just the ticket. I'd like to hear more about the bloodline Lucius comes from, the one that originates with Romanian gypsies. Do they have the ability to influence minds the way Gabe can? I don't see any way Brian would help them any other way.

Brian walked out his building. He knew that Isabelle was close by.
“Would you like me to hail you a taxi Mr. Petzer?” the doorman asked.
“No thanks Dennis. I think I’ll walk today” Brian said as he started to walk down the street. Lucius saw the boy leave his building. Where was Tomas? He thought to himself. That meant two instead of three. He was sure that he and Cezar, whose combined ages totaled 400 years could overpower a new vampire of only one year but three would have been better. Lucius really expected better of Balthazar’s people. The boy had no chaperone! No companion!

He and Cezar kept a safe distance, waiting until the boy was in a secluded area. Brian knew they were following him. His senses were open and alert. He could almost taste their desperation in his mouth. He stopped suddenly and looked up at the street signs, then shaking his head, turned in the direction where he knew no one would be around.

“I think the boy is lost!: Cezar said to Lucius.
“Perfect” Lucius said getting ready to walk toward the boy.

“Excuse me, excuse me!” Brian heard a voice call out to him. He turned and saw a frail old woman holding a map in her hands.
“Do you need help?” Brian asked with concern as he walked towards her.
“Oh! Young man, I think I’m lost” she said in exasperation. “I think I took a wrong turn somewhere”
“Well tell me where you want to go, and maybe I can help you”
“I’m trying to find the Chinese Theatre” she said.
“Wow! You’re not even close.” Brian said looking at the map. He was just about to tell her she would have to catch a taxi when he saw the woman was no longer next to him. In her place was an old man with a shiny bald head and razor sharp fangs.

Oh, action!

Lucius had the boy in his grasp and in a flash the boy was gone. Lucius and Cezar looked around.
“Where did he go?!” Lucius demanded “Where is that brat!?”
Cezar stood perfectly still.
“This is the work of Nosferatu….the boy was made by Dragos! I will help you no more.” He said starting to back away.
“Shut up you fool! There is no Dragos! That is a myth nothing more!”
Cezar continued to back away.
No I tell you! It is Dragos!”
There is no Dragos!” Lucius screamed at the vampire. Brian suddenly appeared behind Lucius.
“Actually there is” he said and grabbed the man’s neck crushing with such force that his head fell to the ground. Cezar immediately fell to the ground.
“Forgive me! I will not rise against you! Forgive me!” he wailed. Brian walked slowly towards the vampire.
“Rise” Brian demanded. Cezar slowly stood.
“Explain” Brain demanded again
“Lucius said that you must be found and captured. That you had a gift for making lots of money. He said he would force you to work for him, then he would take over the city.” He said quickly
“What are your numbers?”
“We are but five….well..now four. Our bloodline has been slowly dying off”

Isabelle watched. She wanted to see what Brian would decide.

“Well, let’s go see Balthazar shall we?” Brian said slowly turning around.

Cezar slowly pulled the stake from his jacket ready to plunge the instrument into Brian’s back. Brian turned quickly and placed his hands around Cezar’s and pushed the stake into his gut. Cezar fell to the ground paralyzed.

“Well done Brian” Isabelle said. “How did you know?” she asked pointing to the vamp.
“I’m not sure. I just had a feeling that he was lying”
“The Veselie are a deceitful bunch. They never give up and will fight to the death. They can change their appearances which make them very hard to catch.”
“He said that there were more in this clan! They could be anywhere”
“That’s a fight for another day” Isabelle said taking him by the arm.


Brian sat in his office staring out the window. Today would have been his 18th birthday, but that held no meaning for him anymore. He lived in a world that was filled with vampires. He was a vampire. Nicole knocked on his door.
“Brian, Mr. Kostan wanted me to give you these documents” she said with a bright smile. Brian looked at the beautiful girl standing in front of him.
“Nicole, I want to ask you a question” Brian began.
“Sure Brian” she replied
“The first night we met, did you really like me or were you just following orders?” Nicole held her head down feeling ashamed, but she swore to herself that she would never lie to Brian.
“When Isabelle propositioned me yes, I was following orders. Then when I met you, I followed my heart” she said. Brian walked towards her and wrapped his arms around her.
“Thank you” he said. “You have no idea how good that makes me feel”
Holding Nicole in his arms, Brian knew that he could break the Dragos tradition and mate for life.





The End

Great storyline, great ending. Brian has some skills, and that other bloodline is almost extinct now. Love that Nicole and Brian are together now.

Btian may have been turned by a bloodline that doesn't mate for life, but he has had a lot of influence from the St. John clan, and to borrow shamelessly from the Stargate lore that says, 'something of the host survives' in an individual that is turned, 'something of the human they were before they were turned into a vampire survives as well'

What they valued, respected and wanted lingers--if they want it to, and as it did with Mick, I think it will with Brian. He gets to choose, with his eyes wide open.

Josef will always be around to tell him, 'forever is a long time' but it isn't really forever--just a really long time if you are careful and lucky.

So far, Brian has been really lucky. In his own way, I still think he will grieve his biological parents' deaths, as he came to see them for the destructive influence they ultimately were, somewhere inside him is the little boy whose mommy dried his tears and fixed him peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, even if she never did that again after he started school. He is a sensitive person and knows the hard side of life only too well.

Well done!

jen wrote:Btian may have been turned by a bloodline that doesn't mate for life, but he has had a lot of influence from the St. John clan, and to borrow shamelessly from the Stargate lore that says, 'something of the host survives' in an individual that is turned, 'something of the human they were before they were turned into a vampire survives as well'

What they valued, respected and wanted lingers--if they want it to, and as it did with Mick, I think it will with Brian. He gets to choose, with his eyes wide open.

Josef will always be around to tell him, 'forever is a long time' but it isn't really forever--just a really long time if you are careful and lucky.

So far, Brian has been really lucky. In his own way, I still think he will grieve his biological parents' deaths, as he came to see them for the destructive influence they ultimately were, somewhere inside him is the little boy whose mommy dried his tears and fixed him peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, even if she never did that again after he started school. He is a sensitive person and knows the hard side of life only too well.

Well done!

You know Jen, I really loved writing the character Brian and wanted to make him as likable as possible. I think he will hang onto the qualitites his learned from Mick, Beth and Gabriel.