Vampire Vignettes

“Ow!” I had nicked myself because the tapping sound had surprised me. It couldn’t have been the wind or some kind of animal because it was too rhythmic and deliberate. It was a short series of taps on wood, interspersed by a small pause. I rarely had visitors, and it was even rarer that someone would approach at such a late hour when most people were asleep. Pinching a bit of blood from the small cut on my finger, I went to see who was at the door.

The young lady that was using her boot to knock on the side of the shack did so in a manner that was somehow more elegant than childish. She had a travelling cloak thrown around herself, but her actual clothes were made with embroidered materials I could never afford. It looked like she had her arms tucked behind her in a cute bashful manner.

Her eyes lit up when she saw me. She smiled, and I could feel my heart skip a beat at her charm. I couldn’t help but notice her pearl white teeth as she opened her mouth.

“Ah, are you the owner of this place? Would you mind if I came in?”

Having not spoken to anyone in a while, I could feel the words tripping over themselves in my mouth. “Uh...sure.”

The girl tilted her head slightly, still keeping that mysterious smile. “You’re going to have to invite me in, I mean.”

“Um...please come in?”

She giggled. “Fufu, thank you.”


Despite the odd situation, there was something calming about the presence of the stranger in my abode.

“Here, I brewed some tea earlier, but it should still be warm.” I placed the only cup I had at the table. Her eyes seemed to follow my hand rather than the drink.

“Your finger,” she whispered, “did you hurt yourself?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. Just now, I accidentally cut myself while I was making myself something to eat.”

“That’s no good,” the girl said, “If you leave it like that, it could get infected. Here, stick it out for a moment. Let me take care of it.”

I expected her to produce a bandage or to reach out and take a closer look, but she leaned in and wrapped her cool lips around it. The chill that ran down my spine was quickly replaced with a warm feeling that made my muscles relax. I was acutely aware of the warm insides of her mouth as they caressed me. The gentle suction gave way to something more intense as I felt her pull tighten. Her eyes were closed and a few strands of her long silver hair now covered her face.

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as the two of us were locked like this. Time itself seemed to stop and I could think about nothing else besides the sensation of her sucking on my finger, tighter, and tighter, and-

“Mh!”

The cloak wrapped around her shoulders had fallen, slipping onto the floor, exposing her dress underneath. It was made of some beautiful purple silk but the more surprising detail was that there was nothing coming out of the sleeves.

I immediately felt like I saw something I shouldn’t have, and I quickly picked up the girl’s cloak and threw it over her again.

“Sorry…”

The girl coughed, and I could see a strand of saliva still trailing from my finger to her mouth. “No, I’m sorry. I might have gone a bit too far.”

Her face was almost as flushed as mine as we sat awkwardly, not looking at each other. The only thing that cut through the silence was my own heartbeat echoing in my ears.

A yawn crept itself to my mouth, ending the tension. “It’s getting pretty late for me,” I said, “even though it means it’s pretty early for everyone else. The sun’s coming up soon which means I need to sleep. Oh, by the way, I’m Henry, what’s your name?”

“Stella.”

“I only have one bed, so you can have that for now. I’ll take the floor.”

“You’re such a gentleman,” Stella remarked.


I rubbed my eyes as I awoke. Stella was nowhere to be seen. Staring at the darkness outside, I wondered if last night had all been a dream. The fact that I was getting off the floor seemed to contradict that. The atmosphere was calm as I went about finishing making the food I was preparing yesterday.

As if almost on cue, Stella popped across from me as I sat down. “Oh hey, you’re up now.”

I rubbed my eyes, if only to make sure that the girl in front of me was real. She had changed and wormed her way into one of my extra shirts. It was much too large for her and almost seemed to envelop her completely. “I hope you don’t mind if I borrow something to wear,” Stella explained, “obviously I couldn’t bring too many possessions.” I could make out the outlines of her shoulder move under the fabric as she shrugged.

“Not at all,” I responded, “although we should get you some more clothes.”

Stella smiled. “I’ll take you up on that offer then.”

Her eyes peered at me as I started to eat. “Oh, sorry, force of habit. Did you want some? I’ll get you something.”

“Oh no, that’s all right, I’m fine.” Without any arms to reach out and stop me, Stella instead had lifted her leg and gently rubbed it against mine. I shivered.


“So what do you do here? Normal people don’t live in gloomy places and spend their waking hours in moonlight.” Stella’s tone was cheerful as she walked behind me.

“Well, normal people wouldn’t really pick this job,” I quipped as I examined the cemetery fence, “sometimes things like this just get forced on you. It’s not all bad though.”

“Is it not?”

“I mean work wise, it’s not too demanding. I just do the rounds, make sure nothing is falling apart. Sometimes I sweep the tombstones and collect some firewood. It’s mostly maintenance.”

“Hmmmm.” Stella seemed to ponder my answer as we continued deeper. “You’re not afraid or anything? It’s all dark and lonely here. You’re not afraid of ghosts or anything like that?”

“Ghosts? Not really.”

Stella’s eyes seemed to glint under the moonlight. “Really? You’re not afraid of the supernatural?”

“Nope, if anything, it’s probably humans that are more frightening,” I laughed, “I haven’t heard of ghosts stealing, killing, or ripping you off.”

A breeze rustled by.

“Are you cold?” I asked her, “We can go back and grab you something.”

“Thanks, but I’m actually fine,” Stella did a little twirl, “I find this weather pretty relaxing actually.”

I slowed down my pace a little as I waited for her to catch up to me. “You’re right about the lonely part though. I don’t think I’ve spoken to anyone in a long time.”

“Oh!?” Stella gave a small yelp of surprise as I placed my jacket around her.

“It’s nice having someone to talk to,” I admitted, “I really enjoy your company.”

“Oh... well thank you,” she shifted a bit, “you’re really quite the gentleman aren’t you?”

Stella must have noticed me shivering a bit because a sly smile crept across her face. “Maybe I’ll stay a bit longer then. I’m not sure how much help I can be without any arms, but I can at least do something about that loneliness.”

*    *    *

The next few days seemed to pass in a blink of an eye. Having someone to talk made time pass quicker and even the chilling temperature a lot more bearable.

“So is this all you do? Work and sleep? Do you ever get tired of it all?” Stella asked, on another one of our late night patrols.

“Not really,” I responded,  “but the fact that I have someone to talk to is a refreshing change of pace. There’s not much to do otherwise when the only times I’m up are at such ungodly hours.”

“I’ve seen your sketches you know,” Stella piped, “I found them poking around when you were still asleep. The charcoal sketches that have been stashed away for a while. They’re not that bad actually. I haven’t seen you doing something like that.”

I sighed as I remembered the dust covered papers that lay untouched for months. “I’m not sure there’s a purpose to that.”

“Oh? Why’s that?”

“Well there’s photography now isn’t there? Why spend hours tracing out and drawing something when we can capture a lifelike rendition with much less effort?”

“Isn’t photography...sort of soulless though?”

I thought I detected a hint of sadness in Stella’s voice.

“When an artist pours their soul into their art, when each stroke is fueled with passion and energy...I feel like that captures a lot more emotion.” Stella puffed out her chest a bit, “Now I don’t necessarily want to brag, but as someone who’s been on the other side, as the subject of a painting, despite how eerily still you have to stay, the focus and gaze from the painter...ooooh.”

As she shook her body a bit in excitement, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy. I made a mental note to check the prices of the various colors of paint later.

“Where was this?” I blurted out.

“Oh?” Stella stopped in her tracks and grinned, “are you curious? I’ve actually been to quite a lot of places. What about you Henry?”

I shook my head. “I’ve been born into this town and I expect to die here. I guess it might be interesting to see some other places but the money I make here is just enough. I don’t think I could afford anything like that.”

“Oh,” came her crestfallen reply. “I was hoping I could help you somehow but…” she gave a noncommittal shrug, “that might be a little hard. Even if it were something like helping with cooking or cleaning, there’s not really much I can do.” She kicked at some pebbles on the ground.

“No, it’s fine. Just you being here has made my life a lot better. If I can get to hear your voice that’s fine.” An idea suddenly popped into my head. “Wait, you can read right?”

“Hm? Yes, I can.”

“Would you mind reading aloud some of the books I have around the shack? I can help you turn the pages of course…”

She smiled. “Of course.”

*    *    *

“Oh? So you can also do these kinds of handiwork too,” mused Stella as she peered at me putting the finishing touches on the coffin. Tracing the frame with her leg, she remarked, “this is pretty good actually. I wouldn’t mind something like this.”

“Mmhmm, this is part of my duties too. When there’s a death in town I need to prepare a coffin and a plot. What about you? How are your flowers growing?”

Stella gave a big sigh as she kicked off her shoes and sat on the bed. “I know you suggested we try something new together, but maybe you should have done your research a bit first. What kinds of flowers bloom at night?”

I chuckled. “You say that, but I see you still checking on them every day. I helped you plant them but I see how eagerly you water them.”

“Hmmph,” Stella grumbled, “more importantly though, I actually had something to discuss with you.”

“What’s that?”

“Well, the townspeople are gossiping. About you in particular. It’s been a few months since I came right? There’s been rumors going around that you’re being haunted by a ghost, or enthralled by a witch.”

“Charmed by a bloodsucking parasite?” I offered.

She pouted. “This isn’t really a joke you know. Trust me, this is a woman’s intuition speaking. The last thing I’d want is for a mob to show up at your doorstep, especially on account of me.”

“All right, all right,” I patted her knee, “I understand, but what do you suggest we do in this situation? You wouldn’t be this calm if you hadn’t already thought of something.”

“Well, I suppose I do have an idea, and it should be simple enough even for you. Why not just introduce ourselves to some townsfolk? You might want to cover that up though.” She pointed to the marks on my neck with her toe.

“Introducing...ourselves?”

“Mmhmm. We’ll introduce ourselves and make a good impression. Maybe with a few people at first, but gradually more and more until everyone comes around.”

I didn’t particularly relish the idea of suddenly interacting with someone that wasn’t Stella, but I tried not to show it on my face. “What about my work though? I’m supposed to be out every day.”

“Ugh, come on...please?” Stella stood up and buried her face into my chest like she usually did when frustrated. She batted her long lashes as she looked up at me. “I’ll help out if I have to.”

“You’ll cheer for me, you mean,” I countered, “I don’t think you can really pull off my responsibilities.”

Her response was muffled grumbling and pouting.

“All right, all right,” I pat her head as I tried to assuage her fears, “I’ll see if I can wrap up faster, and maybe put on a pot of coffee or something. There’s another issue though.”

“What issue?”

“How am I supposed to introduce you? The townsfolk know me, but you’re a complete stranger. It really doesn’t make sense for me to suddenly be living with a woman. Do we say you’re a long lost family member or something? Like a distant cousin?”

“What about fiance?”

 I wasn’t sure I heard her correctly. “Fi-?”

“No, nothing, nevermind.” Stella broke away from me and shook her head, “just leave everything to me, I’ll think of something that’s satisfactory.”

“All right, thanks. I trust you’ll come up with something to convince them that there’s no witches or ghosts here.”

“Hm? There are ghosts though.”

“Wait what? Stella? Are you joking? Stella! Seriously! If that’s true I’m going to have to-!”

*    *    *

Stella let out a deep sigh as she nudged the door open. “I look absolutely ridiculous like this.”

Indeed, even if she normally radiated an aura of elegance, I had to admit she looked a bit silly with her oversized sun hat and the large bag strapped across her body. The pouch of money around her neck jangled as she shifted anxiously.

“Here,” she leaned forward for me to relieve her of today’s purchases. “Tomatoes were cheap and I thought you wouldn’t mind some more vegetables.”

“Thanks,” I took the bag from her and also took off her giant hat. “How was the trip?”

“Stuffy,” she replied, “was all this really necessary? It’s already such an overcast day today. I look so ridiculous that I’m surprised anyone was willing to even do business with me.”

“Well, it’s better to be a bit safer than sorry, and you did say you wanted to do a bit more to help out around the house. Was there anything else?”

“Ugh. Today was exhausting. Maybe I’ll just head to bed early...” Stella mumbled as she slunk into the coffin I had made for her.

I sorted through the items that she had bought. “Hey, what’s this?” I held up a wrapped scarf.

“That one?” Stella’s head poked out, “Monica made it herself. She really enjoyed the flowers from last time and wanted to thank me.”

“You don’t seem to be the type to need this,” I remarked, “I’ve never actually seen you get cold.”

“That’s not the point!” Stella exclaimed as she sat up. “You don’t seem to understand a woman’s feelings do you? At least you can appreciate the beauty and handiwork in it right?”

“I can’t really say, to be honest.”

“Urgh!” Stella got out of bed with an exasperated sigh. “All right, come on, let’s go.”

“Where?”

“To do your rounds!”

“Right now? But it’s still-”

“Yes right now! Come on, let’s go, and put that scarf on me too!”

Stella didn’t notice my grin as I wrapped the scarf around her neck. I might not have appreciated how the scarf looked by itself, but I could definitely appreciate the woman it was on.

*    *    *

“Henry! This is important. We need to talk now!”

I looked up from my sketching to see Stella at the entrance. I was getting a bit used to having more time alone in the hours before I did rounds since Stella had been spending more of her time out.

“Stella, what’s wrong?”

She wasn’t out of breath, but I could see her whole body shaking. She had a thick book that she had managed to grab ahold of with what little of her arms she had left.

“Here, take this, flip to the page I marked.” She basically thrust it at me. It was heavy enough that I was surprised she managed to carry this by herself.

The page opened to a flurry of letters and numbers, and I could feel my head spin.

“Stella, what’s the meaning of this?”

“It means,” Stella spoke angrily, “you haven’t been getting the pay that you should have!”

“What?”

“I’ve been doing my research you know. I talked to everyone in town and then went through the legal and monetary records for the past few years. You’ve been severely short charged!”

I was speechless. Money had never been plentiful, but I always assumed that I was at least getting a fair deal when I placed my thumb on the job contract.

“Let’s see...since you’ve been doing this for...hmm…” Since she didn’t have any fingers to count on, Stella seemed to bob her head back and forth as she crunched the numbers.

“Stella, this is good news, but what am I supposed to do with this information?”

Stella turned to look at me quizzically. “Write a letter to the governor. You have all the info you need here.”

I rubbed my eyes in frustration. “Stella, come on, you know full well that I’m not that great with writing. Can’t you do it instead? I know you’re much better at these kinds of things.”

“Hmm. Nope. This is something you’re going to have to do.” She motioned to my incomplete drawing with a tilt of her head. “It’s just like drawing. You’re going to have to be the one to do it. There’s no way my words could capture what you’re feeling right now. Come on, you can do it. Just like I’ve taught you. Remember?”

I bit my lip nervously. “All right. I’ll do it.”

Stella pressed her body close to me. “I believe in you.”


“Stella, wake up. I’m done.” I gently woke the sleeping girl. It had taken almost the entire day but I had finally finished the letter just as the sun was setting.

“I see,” she yawned, “congratulations.”

“Aren’t you going to read it?” I asked.

She gave a serene smile. “I believe in you. Whatever you wrote should be more than enough for your case. You have the entire town’s support too. More importantly, you should be thinking what you’re going to do with your newfound wealth. The land around here isn’t too expensive and I wouldn’t mind a bigger garden.”

“Stella…”

“Yes?”

I don’t know what possessed me, but I couldn’t help but throw my arms around her in a hug. She gave a surprised yelp but didn’t make any attempts at resisting, resting her head against mine.

I tried to say something but nothing would come out. We stayed in a silent embrace. Then the words came tumbling out, as if a dam had burst.

“Stella, how can I thank you enough? Ever since you came you’ve made my life so much more worth living. Everything you’ve done has been so good to me. You made my days no longer lonely, you’ve taught me to read and write, you’ve introduced me to the townsfolk, and now you’re bringing this windfall…” I took a moment to take a deep breath before continuing. “Are you an angel? I sometimes feel you’re the woman that’s made me the happiest man alive. Is there anything I can do for you?”

If Stella was shocked by this outburst, she didn’t show it. She replied slowly, but there was a tremble in it as she whispered into my ear. “What about a ring?”

*    *    *

Stella was much lighter than I expected, which was a good thing because the wedding was pretty exhausting. “Hup.” I set her down as I entered our house. We had the option of building a new house in a better location, but we decided to renovate the small shack because of the memories it had held.

“Henry, can you lean down a bit? I’m really hungry.” Her heels meant I didn’t have to lean down as much as I usually did. She opened her mouth, revealing a pair of sharp fangs…

Like usual, there was a quick stabbing sensation, and then the cold press of her lips giving way to warmth. This time however, there was something more. As if she was a ravenous beast, I felt her fangs dig deeper and her hold tighten. Her tongue writhed, swirling my blood in an energetic frenzy. The searing pain was intermixed with such a lustful passion that I almost wished to be connected with Stella forever...

“Haaah…” I pressed one of my hands on my neck as Stella finished feeding. I used my other hand to wipe some of the blood that trickled from her lips.

“Ow...that was really intense…” I groaned, patting around for a bandage.

“You’ve been drinking a lot,” Stella’s eyes narrowed, “I can taste it.”

“Well I sort of have to if we’re going to advertise right?” This year’s harvest had indeed been astonishingly good.
A soft rosy tint was starting to appear on her cheeks, and her normally piercing eyes seemed to soften their gaze. Her body swayed a bit.

“Henry...I feel warm.” She seemed to reach out to me. “Could you help me out of this dress?”

Stella trembled as she felt my rough fingers trace the nape of her neck, brushing the gold ring on the necklace around her neck. Her black dress, as dark as night, only enhanced the contrast against her snow white skin. Gently, I undid the clasps, untied the laces, and let the fabric fall to the floor.

Stella’s silhouette in the moonlight was breathtaking. Without arms, her form seemed small and delicate, like a doll. She still had shoulders, but her arms ended in two tiny little stumps. Next to them were her beautiful breasts, milky white and adorned with perky nipples.

“Don’t stare that hard” she muttered, “it’s embarrassing.”

I reached out, feeling the softness in my hand, holding her flesh until it was warm to the touch.

“That’s unfair…”

In a flash, Stella had wrapped her legs around me, pulling me into her. It was in this twisted embrace that our lips met. Our tongues explored each others’ mouths and my hands felt the contours of her back as her legs felt mine.

The taste of iron was strong, and it seemed to bring about some carnal instinct I didn’t know I had. I acutely understood that feeling of thirst and desire that Stella had displayed. My thoughts melted away as the only thing I could focus on was my armless wife in my arms. Together, I wanted to be together with her. I wanted the two of us to be connected, together, entwined like this forever. Together.

*    *    *

My walks with Stella had become a thing of leisure rather than necessity, yet there was a hint of intimacy that we didn’t have before as she walked beside me. The times of our walk had also shifted. Stella had mostly gotten used to going out during the day as I accompanied her with a parasol in hand.

“Shall we take a rest?” My wife asked.

“Yes, that would be good.”

We took refuge under one of the many shady trees that we planted in our land. I laid down the umbrella and my cane as we sat down.
I pointed at the landscape. “It’s beautiful isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is.”

“I still sort of can’t believe it,” I admitted, “seeing everything here and realizing that it’s all ours. All those years ago, I thought I would be doing the same thing every day for the rest of my life, until I joined the bodies in the cemetery. Now all this...this was all because of you!”

“You also worked very hard for it,” Stella closed her eyes and leaned into me, “still, a lot has changed since then, hasn’t it?”

I felt the gentle breeze wash over our bodies.

“A lot has changed,” I agreed, “yet you’re still as beautiful as the first time I laid eyes on you.” I brushed a lock of hair from her face. The wrinkles in my hand looked out of place near her perfectly smooth skin.

Stella must have noticed as well, because her eyes welled up with a deep sadness. “Wait,” she placed her lips to my hand, “let me stay like this for a bit longer.” I could only obliged her request, stroking her cheek.

“It’s times like this that I really wish I had arms. I want to hug you and hold your hand…” She placed one of her arm stumps in my other hand. “I’m sorry…”

“What are you sorry for?” I felt my eyes sting but I tried to force a smile.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t make a real family with you, I would have loved to raise your children but…”

I wiped away a tear streaking down my wife’s face while blinking back my own. “What are you talking about? We are a real family.”

“I couldn’t do anything for you either,” Stella sobbed, “I don’t want to be alone…”

It was that last phrase that stabbed me in the heart, reminding me of the despair and hopelessness that was my life before meeting Stella. This time I couldn’t stop myself from crying.


“So where will we go from here? Of course I’ll be with you no matter what. Are you going to stay here?” Stella asked after we had both worn ourselves out.

“You know, I was actually thinking. Do you remember asking me about traveling? I think now is as good of a time as ever. I think I’d like to see the places you’ve been. I’ve always been curious from the stories you’ve told, but I want to see things with my own eyes.”

Stella turned to look at me. “What about the land here? Or the vineyards?”

“We can sell them,” I remarked, “I’m thinking of selling maybe everything except our house and maybe my plot in the cemetery.”

“Are you serious about this?” Stella asked.

“Absolutely. I think it’s about time too, since I’m sure there’s some people around wondering how my wife manages to stay so youthful and pretty even after decades.”

Stella giggled at my joke. “All right then,” she laughed, “let’s go see the place I was born and the places I grew up. They’ll probably be super different since they were lifetimes ago though.”

“I don’t mind,” I said, “as long as I’m with you.”

*    *    *

The old cemetery in town always seems to have bats, but that’s perhaps they’ve taken residence in the nearby house. That house was built by a wealthy groundskeeper with his wife, but in his old age he had sold his property and decided to travel the world.

The house was not sold, and despite the fact that it should have fallen into disarray, it never did. Visitors would find blooming flowers in the gardens and the interior was seemingly spotless, free from dust built up over the years.

The inner studio featured many portraits of a lady, a striking beautiful figure with fair skin and piercing eyes, but whose most defining trait was the fact that she was missing her arms.

This woman was also depicted in various other portraits found in neighboring countries, but the large incomplete portrait of her hanging in the studio center was different. This was the only one where she was with someone else and she was smiling.