One of the Family

'Pyre?'

Loch spoke quietly, as if she almost didn't want to be answered. But while the inquiry might have been too quiet for a human ear to pick up, the vampire lying on the floor heard it without any problem at all.

'Mm?' he replied drowsily. 'Wha'ssup?'

Loch had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from grinning.

She propped herself up on her elbow, looking down at him. They were staying over at Gray's house in preparation for last-minute rehearsals tomorrow. The gig was at 9PM. She could already feel her blood stirring with eagerness at the thought. Since they all had to be together at short notice, Stal had decreed that everyone should stay here for the night. Unfortunately, a lack of bedrooms coupled with Stal and Gray's refusal to share their space with anyone except each other meant that Arc was sleeping in the kitchen, Loch on the couch, and Pyre on the living room floor.

She felt a bit sorry for him - even though he had insisted he didn't mind, because Pyre was about the sweetest person in the world and Loch doubted he would complain no matter how uncomfortable he was.

'I was just wondering… What's it like, y'know, being turned into a vampire?'

He gazed up at her with wide, curious eyes. '...It's kind of hard to say. Because no-one really remembers. You just black out, and when you wake up, you're a vampire.'

'Oh yeah,' Loch said automatically, her mind already running down a different track.

'Are you OK? You know it can't happen to you, right? Only humans can get Turned.'

'Of course I know that. Give me some credit.'

She shot him a wry smirk, remembering how ignorant she'd been when they first met. How many times had she asked him questions so ridiculous that his face showed genuine surprise before he scrambled to respond? Despite growing up in a city where vampires were everywhere, she hadn't had any close vampire friends - Pyre was a first. She’d been confident in her knowledge before, but meeting him had shown her just how much had passed her by,

'Well, why are you asking then?' he said. There was nothing accusatory or suspicious in his tone. Just open curiosity and a sincere interest in whatever nonsense might come out of her mouth next.

She gazed at the big living room window. The muffled glow of a streetlamp, combined with the distant hoarse barking of city foxes, made the night atmosphere so much stronger. Strange things could happen at night. It was a time when all the hidden magic of the world seemed to fall together. When she had been a child, staying up late was one of the scariest but most thrilling things she could do. Being awake after her parents went to bed… knowingly doing something she wasn't meant to be doing... feeling like a rebel for this one childish delight.

'I dunno. I was just curious, probably because I can't become like you. Dragons can't be Turned, so it's not something I even need to worry about. It's just… weird to imagine that being bitten by something - someone - can make you so different, y’know?’ She was rambling, but she knew it wouldn’t bother him.

Sure enough, Pyre listened patiently, his arms behind his head and his ginger locks messily framing his face.

'Yeah, I get it,' was all he said.

'Really?'

'Yeah. It was weird to me, too, at first. When I was a normal human -' (Loch almost laughed at the mere suggestion of Pyre ever being normal) '- it was weird to think that it could happen to me. And when my brother got Turned… it was scary, but then I saw that he was still himself, and I felt better. He hadn't changed in any way that really mattered.'

'You became a vampire to support him, right?' said Loch. She had only met Griffin once. He was a friendly guy, a little more reserved than Pyre, who worked in a casino. The two of them had always been close.

'Yep. He was scared of outliving us all, and being so different - I wanted to be able to understand what he was going through.' Pyre was gazing thoughtfully at the ceiling.

'You're a good brother. I can understand why your family are so close-knit, if all of them are like you.'

He shifted slightly, almost embarrassed by the praise. 'They're really great people. We try to look out for each other.' An idea seemed to strike him, and he looked up at her. The drowsiness had faded from his expression, leaving only a whispered hint of excitement. 'Hey, do you want to come with me next time I visit them?’

It took Loch a few seconds to put together what he meant, but as soon as she did, her face split into a surprised grin. 'You want me to come and meet your family?'

‘Sure! If you're up for it.'

She didn't know why this simple offer meant so much to her. Maybe because Pyre had never asked any of the other band members to visit his family - at least, to her knowledge - and she'd always got the impression that he preferred spending time with them alone. With all the music work he did, it wasn't often that he got a chance to visit home, and those rare moments were obviously special to him. Personal.

The fact that he wanted to bring an outsider like Loch into his private world blew her mind. So much that she struggled to think of a cool response and ended up sounding as stunned as she felt.

'Wow - well, I mean, if you want me to, yeah. But I don't want to intrude or anything - you don't get to visit them often--'

'I want you to come,' he said simply. 'You're my best friend.'

Loch's insides melted like butter. Cut it out; it's not like you've never had friends before, she grumbled. But there IS something different about him. With a jolt, she realised that Pyre was not only her first vampire friend, but also her first best friend. She thought she'd had best friends before, but in retrospect, none of them had ever made her feel as happy and comfortable as he did.

'In that case, I'd love to come,’ she said, and they exchanged a fist-bump, grinning like idiots.

'Awesome! I'll let you know when I'm going home. It'll probably be next weekend, when we don't have any gigs scheduled.'

'Yeah, we wouldn't want to mess up Stal's schedules, would we?'

Loch lay back down, feeling a tingle of unexpected nerves. It was strange, because people, no matter how weird they might be, never scared her. She quickly realised that she wasn’t afraid of Pyre’s family; she was afraid of making a bad impression or causing him embarrassment. He wouldn’t want his parents to think he had an airhead for a best friend, right?

'Do you think your parents will like me?'

She wasn't looking at Pyre, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw his head turn towards her, and the surprise radiating from him was obvious. 'Are you nervous? You don't normally mind meeting new people.'

'I'm not nervous,' she protested, but something in Pyre’s expression told her he wasn’t fooled. 'I just don't want them to think you have a weirdo for a friend. I mean, that wouldn't look good for you, right?'

Pyre couldn't help himself. He broke out in laughter, which started out loud before being hastily pushed down into a fit of undignified giggles as he tried not to wake everyone in the house up. Despite herself, Loch very nearly joined him.

'Loch, they're the parents of me,' he said. She furrowed her brow to indicate confusion, and he elaborated: 'How can you be worried about them thinking you're weird when they raised someone like me?'

She looked away to hide the flush she felt rising into her face.

'Well, it's a valid concern!' she protested when he continued laughing behind her.

'It really isn't, Loch.'

'C'mon, don't make fun of me. I'm making an effort to get your family to like me; you could at least try to appreciate it!'

'I do, but you really don't need to worry about that. My whole family are pretty eccentric. They won't think you're weird in a bad way, I promise. They’ll like you, I’m sure.’

Though the irrational nerves didn't entirely disappear, Pyre's attitude made her feel a lot better. He’s right. There’s honestly nothing to worry about. 'Well, thanks for the vote of confidence. I'm looking forward to meeting them.'

‘It’ll be great. Trust me.’