Chapter 11: The Vampire's Muse, Part 1

Once Lily and Leo settle in together, Leo makes an announcement.

"I want to run a small daycare out of the house," he says casually over breakfast one morning.

Lily chokes on her bite. "You want to spend your days wiping snotty noses and changing stinky diapers?" she asks incredulously when she can breathe again.

"I love kids," Leo replies, unfazed. "Early childhood development fascinates me."

Honestly, the idea of having bratty little children running all around her home does not thrill her, but Leo has seemed so depressed lately and if it will make him happy then she'll play along. She reluctantly gives him her blessing.

They convert Phillip's old bedroom into a playroom, and on Monday the first kids arrive. One of Leo's very first customers is August Grapevine, Phil and Gina's son.

While little Julius plays in the toy box, Leo sits down to teach August to talk.

"And she says she's not ready for marriage!" he complains to the small child.

August just giggles and chews on his fingers.

Meanwhile, Lily's career as a stylist is off to a strong start. The folks of Riverblossom Hills are extremely grateful for her design sense, and she finds herself quickly gaining notoriety in the fashion world.

But her career is not really her focus these days. Truly a party animal, she spends all of her spare time at the various nightclubs and lounges around town. She has become quite popular around Riverblossom, and she thoroughly enjoys the late night social scene.

"Do you want to go clubbing with me tonight?" she asks Leo one morning before work.

"Again?! Lily, we've been out three nights this week!" Leo sounds exasperated. "Why don't we stay in and have a nice, quiet evening at home?" he suggests.

"How boring!" she laughs. "Well, if you won't go out with me, then I'll just go by myself," she tells him stubbornly.

So that evening, she gets dressed up and heads for Howl, one of her favorite hangouts. She enjoys the eerie atmosphere and dark ambiance of the vampire hotspot. Tonight, the lounge seems especially spooky, and as she sits at the bar waiting for her drink a cold shiver runs through her spine.

Slowly, she turns around and sees a pale man with glowing eyes entering the room. She tries to ignore him, but his gaze is unnerving.

She slides off her bar stool and walks over to the other end of the lounge, away from the man. She doesn't know why, but it's all she can do to get him and his iridescent eyes out of her mind. He seems fixated on her now, and as he slowly approaches her, a faint smile crosses his lips.

He steps in front of her and holds out a hand in introduction. Nervously, Lily shakes it, noticing his skin feels deathly cold.

"Hi, I'm Lily West," she tells him, trying to sound more confident than she feels.

"Hello Lily," he says with practiced eloquence. "My name is Kristopher von Hagen."

Their eyes meet, and Lily freezes. Suddenly, agonizing pain erupts from her head, and she feels like her mind is on fire. She cringes and looks away, and within a few second the pain subsides.

"I'm sorry," she begins. "I got a terrible headache all of a sudden. I don't know what came over me-"

He starts to chuckle, a low, harmonious laugh that sounds almost musical.

"Excuse me?" Lily asks, confused.

"Your mind is much stronger than I initially assumed," he declares. "I wasn't prepared for such a fight." He gazes at her, trying to read her expression. "I sincerely apologize for any discomfort I caused."

"You tried to read my mind?!" she whispers furiously, looking around to see if anyone is listening. "You're a vampire," she accuses, glaring at him suspiciously.

"You sound surprised," he observes matter-of-factly. "I assumed you knew."

Lily can only stare, bewildered.

Taking advantage of her silence, he says, "After an arduous journey, my companion and I arrived in your quaint town last night. We came here seeking refuge and a new beginning, and we hope to find peace among your people. I believe your help will be invaluable in this endeavor."

"Riverblossom has a large vampire population," Lily explains quickly. "Perhaps one of them can offer you some assistance? I am merely a local stylist. I know nothing about the supernatural..." she trails off nervously, trying to avoid eye contact.

He pauses, watching her closely. "Lily West, our fates are unavoidably intertwined. I sensed your presence as soon as I entered town, and I knew I had to find you. Only a fool spits in the face of destiny."

Lily's eyes widen. "Sir," she begins, choosing her words carefully. "I honestly don't know what you are talking about. How can I possibly help you?"

"Time will tell, darling," he smirks, his eyes lightly passing over her breasts.

Lily's mouth falls open at his insinuation. Sensing her disgust, he changes tactics. Kristopher doesn't want to scare her away, not this early in the game. Besides, human females always play hard to get, he assures himself.

"My companion is horribly ill," he tells her. "She is very weak from our travels and desperately needs medical attention. Perhaps you can point me to the closest hospital?"

Glad to be on familiar ground once again, Lily willingly gives him directions to the local clinic. She finds this Kristopher character extremely unsettling and is relieved that he is leaving.

Before he goes, Kristopher takes her hand and whispers softly in her ear, "Until we meet again, darling." And before she can blink, he's gone.

Lily gazes breathlessly at the spot where he stood, trying to soak in what just happened. "If anything happened," she muses, wondering if the whole night was just a figment of her imagination.

She immediately heads home to Leo's waiting arms, grateful for his soothing presence.

"You seem rattled," he comments between kisses.

"I'm much better now," she tells him with a smile.

The next few days drag by so normally that Lily begins to wonder if Kristopher really was imagined. Leo's daycare has become quite popular, and another family has decided to unload their child on him. Lily's stylist work is steady as ever, and she continues to get frequent calls requesting her services.

Still a bit shaken by her encounter with the vampire, Lily has yet to go out clubbing again. Leo is quite enjoying their time at home alone together. This evening, he decides to surprise Lily in the shower.

After their little rendezvous, Lily announces that she's going back to Howl tonight.

"You wanna come?" she asks.

Leo sighs. "No. I wish I could, but I've gotta clean up the playroom before daycare starts tomorrow."

Lily kisses Leo goodbye and heads on her way. She is nervous about running into Kristopher, but for some reason she desperately needs to see him again.

She walks into the damp, dark bar, and before she even has a chance to look around Kristopher appears by her side.

"You came back, darling," he whispers over her shoulder.

She jerks around, coming face to face with the vampire. "Quit calling me that," she begs, worried that someone might hear.

"Why do you fight it?" he asks. "We are fate..."

She rolls her eyes. "I have boyfriend," she explains. "We are in love. In fact," she pauses, considering her next statement carefully. "In fact, we are going to get married," she tells him confidently.

"Marriage?" he spits the word at her like venom. "Marriage is only for people who are too weak to make it on their own," he exclaims.

She looks at him angrily. "What do you know? Can vampires even feel love?" she demands.

"Vampires have no need for love. Sex and blood is all it takes to satiate our thirst."

She gazes at him with sad eyes. "Too bad," she tells him bitterly. "Love is the greatest gift a human has."

She glances over to the door. "Speaking of," she grins as Leo walks into the bar. Kristopher immediately notices Leo as well, and he leaves in a hurry.

That night, as Lily and Leo make out in their underwear, she asks him to marry her. Just like her proposal, she wants the wedding to be casual and easy.

But before they can even set a date, Lily gets the surprise of her lifetime.

She's pregnant!


Challenge Notes:

First and foremost, I want to say Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! to CDreams for sharing Kristopher (AKA Alucard) with everyone. He is brilliant, and he fit so perfectly into my story. I really did not plan on giving him such a large role in my legacy, but he's just so handsome that I couldn't resist! I promise he won't be a frequent character. As far as I can tell, he makes one more appearance in  the next chapter, and then maybe another cameo down the road. But, that's it, unless he surprises me and pops up more than I expect.

I decided to add him and another Sim named Meadow to my town in order to diversify neighborhood genetics. Meadow is a spare from Melissa's (yangthecat/calisims') legacy who I have always adored. She will most likely appear in the next chapter under the name Tessa Lockharte. I honestly wasn't even thinking about having them in my story, but then I decided they added some much needed spice. Also, I thought Kristopher was the perfect character to introduce some supernatural elements (vampires!).

And, I apologize if this chapter seems unfinished. This update and the next one, chapter 12, are closely tied together, but it would be horrendously long if I attempted to make it into one single chapter. So, even though it's corny, I will say it:

TO BE CONTINUED...