Atticula

I woke up groggy, my eyes sticky with sleep. My muscles were stiff and aching like I had been bedridden.  well, that was new. 

I woke up, and stood up from where, the floor? I spun around scanning the room for my coffin. Trunks and chests in red, gold, and blue all varying in sizes and shapes sit around the room.

A red one to my left lay there with its lid wide open, a quick peek revealed strands of garland and layers of small figurines, Saint Nicholas, small reindeer, and shiny round balls in all varieties of color. A box full of Christmas trinkets. 

Had I been napping? 

Dust motes danced across the sunshine, the room was brighter than it should be, a dull grey, and streaks of the sun streamed through two uncovered dusty windows. Outside the windows, a thick layer of blinding white reflected. The surrounding walls were an off-white hue. 

It was daytime, which meant something was off for sure. This caused many dangerous problems that I could not even begin to know how to solve. I was awake, it was daytime, and I was in a strange room. This could not be my room, my house, none of this was right. I backed up, not wanting to be burnt, I headed for the protection of the shadowy corner of the room. 

Something in the Christmas trinkets caught my eye, I bent over, quickly snatching it, a little rope, tied intricately into a loop at the end, my blood chilling with realization, it was a tiny noose. I almost wondered why, but the memory took over before I could do anything else... 

A few hundred years ago...

It was a dark and freezing cold Christmas Eve night. A glacial wind whistled through a picket of pine trees surrounding the small town, which was covered in thick blankets of fluffy, white snow. The tiny courtroom was under pine tree garland and strung popcorn, it was stuffed full of eager people. The room was electric; the fear and excitement were palpable. It was so far past its occupancy that there was standing room only, people pressed against the walls and windows in an attempt to be a witness.

 Everyone wanted to witness everything that was about to unfold with their own eyes. The crowd murmured in anticipation, as Abigail, a tall woman dressed in a high waisted, red gown climbed the stairs to the stage. Long flowing auburn hair framed her youthful face. Her freckled face was grim. Her mouth was unsightly pursed. 

"Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen. I'm glad you are all here on this eve of Christmas to be witness to the sentencing of this heartless leech!" She yelled boisterously. "If agreed upon, we will witness the hanging, of this monster tonight, so that we may leave here and go to our homes to celebrate Christmas and know that we are all safe once more." She smirked, watching the crowd. 

The crowd cheered in agreement. 

 "As you all may know Elijah Woolstencroft is guilty in the deaths of at least ten people in our community." She paused as she scanned the crowd. "We welcomed him into our lives, and he made fools out of us all!"

The townsfolk erupted in clapping and cheering. 

The black-haired man in question sat rigidly in a dark-colored doublet with long sleeves, his chest covered in a brown jerkin where a chain ran directly across his chest and around the chair. Both of his muscle-lined arms were tied separately on either side of the chair. He started straight ahead at nothing, in particular, his face gave way to no emotion while he waited with the five burly men surrounding him, while others gawked, and grimaced his way.

"Here, here" Shouted a tall, lanky man in the crowd. 

"I trusted him. I let him in my home." Growled an older man with a long silver beard. 

"Let's see this demon burn!" Screeched another.

"Aye, I second that" A short, homely woman chimed.

"That scum deserves death and damnation!" 

"He drank my sister's blood." said a young, blond-haired woman. 

"He murders our children" An old man stated. 

"Let Abigail speak." The man closest to the accused stood. 

"As we all know this man is--"

"That isn't no man." Replied William, a strong but portly man. 

"Yes, William. We know this thing, this devil disguised as a man is an abomination to our community and humankind. He's a blood-sucking killer is what he is, is not natural and it is our responsibility to destroy him." 

Abigail approached Elijah, staring into his large violet eyes. 

"Do you see this, Elijah?" Abigail held a pathetic, soft-clothed doll in her hands. 

Elijiah's icy violet stare met hers. "What are you doing? I thought we were courting, Abigail." 

"I am no friend or lover of an evil leach like you." She shrieked in dismay. 

"You know I did not do this!"

"I know you will meet your maker tonight bloodsucker," she replied, not listening to Elijah. Abigail held a needle dangerously close to the sad-looking doll. 

He waited quietly. As she bent over, her red-painted mouth a breath away from the shell of Elijiah's ear. "It's a shame you are so good looking and so smart, we could have been so much more to each other. It's a pity you wouldn't turn a blind eye to my adventures." She purred. "I guess you do have a conscience." She clucked her tongue at him in distaste.  

She moved to his other ear. "I will miss that mouth on mine." She whined, exhaling hot air all along his jawline, staring down at his thick, soft lips. 

"I thought you cared Abigail; I thought you valued me, valued us I thought we were in love?!" Elijah felt the panic rising, the sting of his beloved Abigail betraying him, he was far from being innocent, but he was not the monster Abigail made him out to be. "How could you?" He didn't know which was worse, getting his heart shattered or being accused of terrible crimes, knowing he would face a cruel death. All because Abigail betrayed him. He felt sickly.

"You were extremely satisfying, so you weren't without your value." She turned moving closer again. "Besides someone has to take the blame, we need one to pin this on or we cannot live in peace." She smiled.  

Elijah was enraged, but he sat there tied in silver shackles in chains, not because he was admitting guilt but because he knew it was pointless, he would not get free. 

She stood in front of him now. "Too bad you have to die now," she stated nonchalantly. She was poking the needle continuously into the soft doll's stomach. 

Elijah cried out, trying unsuccessfully to reach for his stomach. The crowd cheered as he screamed, doubling over in agony. 

"In the name of our Lord and Queen, you will never hurt anyone ever again. Your existence will disintegrate before our eyes, you will crumple lifelessly to the floor through the power of our lord queen. Because it is their will. Be gone devil! with our Queen's blessing, leave this earth." Abigail waved her hand toward the group of five men that stood off to the side of Elijah, they stepped closer to the noose waiting to force him into it.  

Abigail muttered something unintelligible to the doll, while she stared at Elijah, and with a poof, not a sizzle he was gone clothes and all just like that. A small soft doll lay in his place on the floor. 

The room was full of confusion and murmuring.

"What happened? Where did he go?" William asked. 

The town was now in an uproar, and she wasn't paying any attention to them. 

Abigail picked up the doll on the chair, this wasn't ideal, he was supposed to be dead. She noted and now he wouldn't be going anywhere as a small doll, a child's toy. So, she would take him in his doll form home, and she would hide this mishap in her attic, away from curious eyes, and even more curious hands.

She would quiet the crowd and poor, handsome little Elijah would never see the light of day, even in toy form, and he would end up being hers forever after all, and that made her smile.

Something, somewhere smelled like sugar, ginger, eggs, flour, and not only shook me from my trance--but it made me feel queasy. Although the smell was vile, I knew that smell, I remembered it to be food. Food, my stomach growled in hunger, and I felt weak, as the craving came on strong, blood. I needed blood. I craved that sweet, warm tang. That thick, red life force. 

I was shaken, and now trembling a bit as I rubbed at my wrists, ankles my chest. I was all fine, and intact, somehow. As much as I could be.

Abigail. Her name is like acid on my tongue. She tried to kill me, so how was I still here?

Where was I? Nothing looked familiar. The room was too big, and the floor under my bare feet was soft. The floor was covered in thick, beige grass, or moss?

Why were my feet bare?

I seemed fine, except I was so hungry.

I began frantically looking around the room, where was my coffin? How could I have been in this foreign room sleeping without a coffin?

I was startled from my thoughts by the sound of a man cheerily crooning "It's the most wonderful time of the year. With the kids' jingle belling. And everyone telling you be of good cheer It's the most wonderful time of the year…" But then my attention was drawn to the door across the way. I heard loud, thudding footsteps like someone was running up a staircase. 

from where the man was still singing, from where the smell came from. 

I dove into the corner of the room behind multiple trunks, trying to stay hidden from whoever was almost there. I hoped between the shadows, the trunks, and the coat rack I was hidden enough. The thudding across the stairs grew further away and came back closer. I heard multiple different people's voices.

 The person's heart was beating rapidly. I was salivating, who knows how long I've been without any nourishment? It did not matter; it was not as though I would attack them. I was better than that. I hoped I was better than that. 

"Look what I found Mom!" My young daughter exclaimed. "Grandma! come here" she said impatiently. Careening down the hallway and through the living room. Full of Christmas energy and excitement.

We spent the afternoon bringing all of the Christmas decorations out of my mom's attic and setting them up. This holiday season would be hard. I felt the tears beginning to gather and pool, but I refused to let them fall. I didn't want the looks of pity. the promises of everything being okay, and most of all I didn't want to upset Cassie. She was young. she was only seven and even she had understood that she would never see her father again.

Her small hand was held up, but nothing was there. She frowned as she realized the thing she was so excited about was gone.

"I found a cute little dolly mom, with the Christmas ornaments. He was silly though. " She was looking all over.

"Oh, yeah? Why was he silly?"

Her face crumpled and then turned into a huge smile. "He looked like he belonged in those old movies Grandma watches." She giggled "And he has black hair and purple eyes."

"Oh, wow that does sound silly, can I see him?"

"Yeah!" She screeched, excitedly. "I need to go back and find him. I dropped him I guess."

She took off running in the opposite direction. Before she skidded to a halt and looked back at me.

"Oh, Mom? He has tiny fangs too."

What? A vampire or a werewolf doll, I mean Cassie did have a good imagination.

"Don't worry, honey." My mom said patting me on the shoulder. "That silly old doll has been in our family for a long time. It was your great grandfathers. He was never willing to part with it" She laughed. "We used to hang it on the Christmas tree." She shrugged.

"Can we put it up with the Christmas decorations?" Her small voice questioned. 

"It's probably more of a Halloween decoration Honey but I don't see why we couldn't," Grandma answered.

Cassie grabbed the door handle and turned and then let out a sharp screech....

She saw a real, live, black-haired man standing inside the attic, a man who looked like the doll she had been holding. 

He was wearing the silly old clothes that they wore grandmas tv shows. 

"Are you a vampire?" she asked. "Do you want a candy cane?" She stepped closer looking at him closer. 

She noted his smile, and his long skinny fangs that protruded over his lips. 

"Do you really drink blood? I don't know if I could do that. That sounds pretty gross. I'd rather stick with my candy cane. It's peppermint." 

"You might if you were hungry enough."

Elijah heard another set of steps and a heartbeat heading towards the room. 

"Cassie honey who are you talking to in there? Are you okay?" 

"I'm just talking to the doll mom. Do you know he drinks blood? He's a vampire I think, he didn't say that, but he has to be. Right? He has fangs, mommy." 

"Cassie! Come out here now, leave the doll." She yelled; she was almost to the door. 

I couldn't lose my chance Elijah thought; I am so hungry after all. He sped to the door in a flash, he almost forgot that he could fly. He slammed the door shut and grabbed the girl ready to take a bite, when the door started shaking knocks and loud thuds. 

"Open the door!" The mother screamed, "Leave my baby alone!" 

He stared down at the girl, both his fangs and his teeth aching. 

She smiled at him, face covered in shiny red slobber, holding a little stub of a the 'candy cane out to him.' 

"For your hungry tummy." she offered, and well he could not eat the child now. 

"Thank you, Cass." He murmured, grabbing the candy and turning into mist. Oh, yeah, he forgot he could do that. "Maybe it'll see you around."

Cassie giggled towards him. "Bye dolly." She whispered, just as the door broke loose from its hinges and her mom and grandma fell into the room. 

"Hi mommy, hi grandma why did you break the door?" She laughed "Come on sillies it's just me, let's go decorate the Christmas tree."