She was beautiful. No, beautiful wasn't the right word. Gorgeous? No. Exquisite? Yes, that does quite nicely. She was exquisite.

I first saw her walking out of the campus library. I was standing in the shade of a nearby building, hitting on a possible dinner date when I notice here. Beautiful violet eyes, and hair that shade of color that can be described only as red. Not orange, mind you, but that gorgeously deep, honest-to-god red. She was tall, with a model's build. She couldn't have weighed more than a hundred and twenty pounds, and at her 5'9", that's more than slightly underweight. Her skin was a lovely ivory of smooth perfection. She obviously wore no makeup, but I couldn't help imagining what blood would look like on those lips, contrasting with that wondrously flawless skin. I longed to smudge those eyes with kohl. She was exquisite.

I watched her walk down the street, away from the dorms. I started after her, ignoring the questions, and then curses, of my would-be meal. I had new game insight, only this time I wasn't in solely for the blood. I had more interesting things in mind.

I followed her past the pre-med building all the way to the East Bridge Apartments, studying the way she walked and moved, the way her body shifted under the fabric of her black jeans and red sleeveless shirt. I couldn't help but envision what that awesome body would look like unclothed and vulnerable to my eyes. Would her skin be that perfect, smooth ivory all over? I intended to find out.

I stood outside and watched her go into the apartment building. At this school, living in the East Bridge Apartments meant one of two things: She was either big into partying, or she was a medical student. All medical students were placed in the East Bridge Apartments to allow them easier access to the pre-med building next door. She didn't strike me as someone who spent their time partying, and I have a knack for these things; drug-laced blood always tastes that much sweeter. Regardless of what she spent her time doing, I was sure her blood would taste sweetest of all.

I spent the next day tailing the girl and asking around about her. I discovered her name was Elisa Corven, and that she was indeed a medical student. Apparently, this exquisite creature had not dated in awhile, much to the disappointment of over half the male collegiate population. Her fiance and she had broken it off two years earlier, and she had seen no one since then. She was a bit of a loner and spent much of ehr time studying or in the lab. In the little bit of free time she had she read, usually books concerning the more morbid aspects of life. Sounds like my kind of girl.

After a week of following her around, I knew her daily routine by heart. I knew when and what she ate, when she slept and studied, and I was always aware of when she left her room. One day, momentarily breaking free of my Elisa-induced daze, I evaluated my current life and came to a mind-shattering conclusion:

I needed to get a life.

I am being quite serious. You would think I would have something better to do than follow this girl around for a week. I had been acting on an obsessive compulsion, and it needed to be put to a stop. I decided to quite acting the part of a leech and to find a hobby - besides drinking, that is. I considered taking up acting again. I had been told I was quite talented, and it had always been a personal favorite. Maybe it would take my mind off of this goddess I was lusting after.

Being as how I only appear in my early twenties, I had no problem registering. I auditioned for the theatre department and passed with flying colors. I started school the following week as a freshman under the name Eric Roe. My schedule consisted of Acting I, Modern Drama, Art History, Calculus, Composition 101, and - I couldn't help myself - a low-level biology course focusing on genetics. It was Elisa's specialty.

I commenced my classes, and for a few months my plan worked. I survived the first semester by concentrating on nothing but my courses, especially my drama and writing classes. I worked hard, learned quickly, and soon became the top student in each of my classes. My only problem was genetics. I soon discovered Elisa was something of a local legend and a favorite of all the science professors and students. She was supposedly doing some incredible work with genetics, and was considered a genius in the field. Most people said she understood the course better than the professor, and was expected to make the next big discovery in genetic engineering. She was only a freshman, yet she had access to parts of the buildings most graduate students had never heard of. The only way I survived the constant talk about her without having a nervous breakdown was avoiding my peers altogether. I worked and studied alone, and therefore was not forced to listen to my fellow classmates rave about Elisa's mental abilities or medical prowess. To listen to this would have literally driven me insane. So I avoided it at all costs. Of course, my good luck could only last for so long.

My sire received word of my actions, and sent for me. I cared for my sire deeply, and therefore did not hasten to obey her wishes and go to her.

I arrived at my sire's have within a week. I stood outside of Thaera's Parisian "home" and marveled. I could not recall the last time I had stepped within this house.

I walked through the front door, not bothering to knock. I had always been welcome in Thaera's haven.

I slowly walked throuigh the house, pausing to look at what she had accumalated since I had left... how many years had it been? Two, three hundred?

"Three hundred and forty seven, to be exact," said a voice I could have recognized anywhere.

"Thaera," I said, not bothering to turn around. "You always have had such an excellent memory." I felt a hand on my shoulder, pulling me back, turning me around to face that goddess who gave me eternal life in exchange for my virginity. I did not blame her; to the contrary, I loved her for it. Because of her, I had "died", leaving me free to live my life the way I had truly wished. Of course, my family, thinking me dead at age twenty, suffered greatly, making it harder on me. Thankfully, though, it was much easier after they held my "funeral".

I looked at Thaera, admiring her red hair, her violet-colored eyes. Her hand lay lightly on my shoulder, not moving. I could sense an idea formulation behind those eyes, and wondered if ti was the same idea going through my mind. Feeling my hand being guided towards her body, I knew it was.

I attempted to control myself as I felt fabric, then flesh, beneath my fingers, flesh I had not touched in three and a half centuries. Closing my eyes, I felt hands on me, removing my clothing, exposing me to the warm air circulating the room. I relaxed, still trying to control my urge to grab Thaera and take her there on the floor. A sharp, sudden pain in my chest distracted me for a moment, until I realized that Thaera had opened up an old wound with her fingernail. The coppery smell aroused the bloodlust in me, causing me to do what I had wanted to do for so long: I paused long enough to gaze at the perfect body standing in front of me, and when I could not stand it any longer, ravished it.

I woke up the next day to find myself laying alone between white silk sheets. Bouquets of black and white roses filled the room, making me wonder exactly where I was. I could recall nothing of the past twenty-four hours. The last thing I remembered was receiving word that Thaera wished me to report to her.

Thaera! Bits and pieces came flooding back. I went to sit up, felt my head swarm, and immediately laid back down. I realized my entire body was shaking, and wondered what it was that Thaera had done to me the night before. That I still could not remember.

The door to the room squeaked open on rusty hinges, announcing my visitor. It was Thaera, dressed in a billowing white gown, not unlike a wedding dress. She stopped at a vase by the window that was bathed in sunshine and pulled from it a single black rose. The thorns, which had not been cut off, punctured the white flesh of her hands, causing small rivets of blood to stream down her hands, dripping at her wrists. The tiny droplets of blood aroused an immense thirst in me, and for a moment she looked like a true goddess, surrounded by sunlight and holding the sacrificial rose that was so honored in the stories of our past. I wanted her right there, despite the fact my body would barely move.

"I heard you have been acting strangely, Christian. Is this so?" She had a seductive smile on her face, beckoning, inviting; if you give the right answer, you can have it all, that smile seemed to say.

I looked at her, puzzled. "What do you mean by strangely?"

She stared at me, hard, and suddenly all traces of seductiveness were gone. Her voice took on a cold edge. "I've been informed that you have enrolled at that college you haunt as a mortal." She said college and mortal as if the very words were poison her just by speaking them. "This is not common practice, not even for you. Tell me, what's caused this change in your behavior?"

"I have made my Choice," I told her, not realizing what I was saying. I had never decided to change Elisa - to the contrary, the thought had not even crossed my mind. What had caused me to say that?