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Richard walked through the halls of his family’s manor, trying hard to avoid bumping into something. He didn’t know why his family had so many vases on pedestals- there were children in the house. Admittedly, they weren’t toddlers anymore, but his younger sisters Ivy and Rose still liked to run through the hallways. Uncle Junior didn’t scold them for some reason.
“Richard,” his grandfather called, and Richard froze, his little heart racing. His grandfather only ever talked to him to scold him for something, so what did he want now?
“Yes, grandpa?” asked Richard, peering around the door of his grandfather’s office. Apparently, his grandfather had been very sick when Richard was a baby. Now, though, he held the power and dominance that inspired fear in everyone, except for Richard’s mother.
“Come on in, Richard. I just want to talk to you,” said his grandfather. Richard slowly walked into the room, trying not to recoil at his grandfather’s gnarled fingers laced on the desk in front of him. He looked like a corpse brought to life, which, being a vampire, was kind of the truth.
“What is it?” asked Richard, taking a seat at his grandfather’s request.
“Did that mother of yours tell you about your heritage?” asked his grandfather.
“Well… she told me that I’m a vampire,” said Richard. “She told me that when I lost my baby teeth.”
“No, not that part,” said his grandfather. “I mean the Buttergood part of your heritage. Where you came from.”
“No,” said Richard. “She never told me that.” His grandfather clicked his tongue, making Richard press himself back into the chair.
“Stupid bitch,” his grandfather muttered. “Didn’t even tell her son about his own heritage. I bet she never told her daughters, either.”
“D-don’t talk about my mum like that,” said Richard, his entire body trembling. His grandfather cackled, seeing his fear.
“I can talk about her however I damn well please, you little brat. You’re too damn soft. Perhaps I should teach you how a real vampire behaves,” said his grandfather, leaning towards him. Richard almost fainted out of fright, his face growing alarmingly pale. He felt coldness creep into his limbs, and he called out for his mother when his grandfather’s clawed hand closed around his chin.
“Leave my son alone, Valdemar,” said his mother, and Richard sagged in relief at the sound of her voice.
“You didn’t tell her about us,” said his grandfather. Richard was too busy crying and hiding behind his mother. She dropped a hand down to wrap an arm around him, holding him close to her.
“Oh please, Valdemar, you’re hardly nobles,” said his mother. “You were in debt until I came along.”
“Only because I fell ill,” said his grandfather. “Now, though, we’re going to reclaim our name. Our land.”
“In case you haven’t noticed, it’s the twenty-first century,” said his mother. “What are you going to do, blow up something else?”
“I have my ways,” said his grandfather. “Tell your son about his family. And your daughters, too.”
“You’d better not marry them off to the highest bidder,” said his mother. “I won’t allow it.”
“Political marriages still happen,” said his grandfather. “You married for a reason other than love. Tell your son about that.”
“Well, I guess it’s better than you telling him,” said his mother. “Don’t ever talk to my son again. You know damn well he’s scared of you.”
“Scared of me? He wet himself in fear at the sight of me last time I seen him,” said his grandfather. Richard blushed at the memory.
“Congratulations, your own grandson is scared of you,” said his mother. “That’s not something to be proud of.”
“What would you know about pride, whore?” said his grandfather. Richard whined, burying his face into his mother’s hip. He didn’t like it when his grandfather talked to her like that.
Fortunately, his mother left the room without responding, hauling him up onto her hip. Richard was smaller than most boys his age, but his mother assured him that he was just late with his growth-spurt.
“Mum, what did grandpa mean?” asked Richard.
“About what, baby?” asked his mother.
“He said you married daddy when you didn’t love him. But you love him now,” said Richard.
“Well, that part’s true,” said his mother, getting to his bedroom and sitting him down on his bed. She sat down beside him. “When I married your father, I didn’t love him.”
“So why did you?” asked Richard. “Was it like in the stories you read me? Was it because you’re a princess and he needed the money?”
“No,” said his mother, and laughed. “Your grandfather told your father and uncles that in order to be his heir, they had to have an heir of their own. But the heir had to be legitimate, which meant that they had to marry a woman and then produce an heir. Your father chose me.” She smiled, and he could see her reflecting back on years of memories. She looked happy.
“And you fell in love with him?” asked Richard.
“Yes,” said his mother. “Not long after I found out I was having you, he told me that he was a vampire. After he turned me into one too, I started falling for him. By the time you were born, we were very much in love.”
“Why did he choose you?” asked Richard. His mother laughed gently.
“I’ll tell you when you’re older,” said his mother. “Now, I’d better tell you what I know about your family. Your grandfather would probably be able to tell you more, but I think I’ll have your father tell you. He’s more honest.”
“Grandpa scares me,” said Richard.
“I know,” said his mother, hugging him. “He scares everyone.”
“Not you,” said Richard. “You’re so brave, mum.” His mother chuckled.
“Someone has to stand up to him,” said his mother. “Now, centuries ago, the Buttergoods moved to Epona. They saw an opportunity to claim land that had magical properties, and they took it. They’ve lived at Butter Hill since then. And it hasn’t always been peaceful. It all started when a man named Bernard Winterwell washed ashore after his ship crashed onto the rocky cliffs. Valdemar, the current Buttergood patriarch, found him and chained him up. That was when he discovered that the Winterwells were werewolves. As you’d expect, Bernard didn’t take too kindly to being chained up. Thus began the great Winterwell-Buttergood rivalry. It all came to a head when the gunpowder factory was blown up.”
“The Great Thunder,” said Richard, remembering the stories about that. “I thought it was created by magic.”
“It was the man-made Great Thunder,” said his mother. “After that, things turned into a more subtle kind of warfare. Poisons, assassinations, spies.”
“Like in your fantasy novels,” said Richard.
“Yes, bub,” said his mother, smiling. “I think it was one of those things that killed your grandmother. That’s the rumour, anyway. That a Winterwell poisoned her and tried to take out your grandfather as well.”
“Too bad they failed,” said Richard.
“Damn straight,” said his mother. “But where they failed, GED succeeded. Your idiot grandfather and the stupid uncle invested all their money into GED. That company sucked them dry.” She realised what she’d said when Richard started laughing. “Oh. Sucking a vampire dry.” She laughed with him.
“What’s so funny?” asked Richard’s father, walking in on the scene.
“Dad!” said Richard, jumping up and hugging him.
“I’m telling him about your family’s fall from grace,” said his mother.
“It’s your family too now,” said his father, sitting down on the bed beside her. “What part did you get up to?”
“GED sucked you dry,” said Richard. His father laughed too, but his cheeks were flushed for some reason.
“We were in a bad place when I met your mother,” said his father. “I couldn’t even pay her.”
“Why would you need to pay her?” asked Richard.
“No reason, forget I said anything,” said his father at a glare from his mother.
“But after a new heir came along, your grandfather started to get better,” said his mother.
“And he made me the heir instead of Junior, so I got to make the big financial decisions,” said his father. “A few months later, I had the electricity back on. Though I couldn’t leave the bedroom, so I had plenty of time to figure it out.”
“Why couldn’t you leave the bedroom?” asked Richard.
“Because your grandfather had some idiotic rules,” said his mother. “We were locked in the bedroom for a few months until I started to look pregnant.”
“That was probably good for us,” said his father. “Without that, we wouldn’t have gotten so close.” His mother smiled and kissed his father, making Richard grin in delight. Most children would be disgusted at their parents being romantic, but he liked seeing them so happy. Especially when the rest of his family were so mean to each other.
“Hopefully that explanation is enough for your grandfather,” said his mother. You should be okay now, bub. Next time your grandfather tries to talk to you, just scream. I’ll hear you.”
“Okay, mum,” said Richard. He hugged his mother, then his father. “Thanks for saving me from grandpa.”
“Nobody hurts my little baby,” said his mother, kissing him on the forehead. “Go read. I’ll have to look into getting you some vampiric sunscreen until you’re old enough to be used to the sun.”
“Okay,” said Richard. He left the room, feeling braver now. And he felt happier, as he always did after seeing his parents together.