Author Spotlight:

Valerie Hardin

Valerie Hardin believes that we all awkward and imperfect and that trying is a great thing.

She is goth writer/poet/artist and a children's writer. One of her online children's stories was republished on a CD-ROM about the internet.

Her published poetry books are "My Own Private Shell" "Ugly Girls Guide to the Galaxy" "Archangels and Amphibians" and "Falling Into Nowhere"

She is working on another poetry chapbook and is trying to find a publisher

for her children's book on gargoyles.

Short Stories:

VAPORS

BAIT

Poems:

NEW AGE SECTION OF THE BOOKSTORE

VAMPIRE CASTS HIS SHADOW

DARK BLOOD (River Phoenix)

GOTHIC PRINCE (Vincent Price)

VAMPIRE DOOR

STRIPS OF DARK VELVET

VAMPIRE ZEN

VAMPIRE SONG OF BABY VAMPIRES

REFLECTIONS OF ONE SELF

VAPORS

"Please get away from that window." June said softly. She tried to gently pull her sister from her delightful visions.
"I will not be moved." The thin brunette clung tighter.
"Milly, you're going to be sick."
Milly said nothing. She had been there all night. She then watched the coming of dawn. Her eyes fixed on the mist and vapors that would rise from both earth and water. It looked at least to her like ghosts rising up from former bodies.
"Get away from that window!" June gripped her sister and yanked her off.
"Let me go you beast! You foul tempered creator. Stop mocking me." She turned around. Her usually dull placid eyes were now full of fire.
"I've never seen such passion."
"I have passion when it's worth having." Milly turned back to the window.
"What's worth having? Tell me what's out there."
"You wouldn't understand. All I can tell you is that I will be at the window tonight and every night."
"You're going through a phase." June walked to the window. "I don't see anything."
Milly laughed awkwardly. "It's gone."
"What's gone? What's out there?"
"Nothing." Milly collapsed into slumber.


THE NEXT EVENING

"I will join you tonight." Milly said to no one. Yes he was there. A man in the darkness. He was tall in stature. He was dressed in a suit, but no tie. His skin was so white that it was luminous in the night.
Finally she could take no more of his taunts. "I will meet you." She ran out of the room. Soon she was in the marsh.
Her suitor was even more delicious up close. His auburn hair was short and spiky. He had three freckles under his right eye and one on the tip of his nose.
"What kept you so long my love." He whispered.
She embraced him. "I was trying to make sure you aren't a vision, a vapor."
He smiled. "I am real, my love."
Milly looked up at his lips. They were so very red. She kissed him. "Blood."
"Yes, blood." His lips went down to the curve of her neck. His lips opened. His sharp teeth went in.

DISSOLVE INTO THE FUTURE

"You are such a pretty vampire." Dark haired Rob said as seductively as he could. "I enjoyed your story. I guess you're Milly."
"No, I'm June." She tossed her head of honey colored strands of hair. "What happened to Milly? Did Tore make her a vampire, you didn't tell me."
"Tore?"
"Yes. Your description describes him perfectly. He made me. Did he make her into a vampire? Did she turn you into a member of the Dark Race."
She shook her head no. "My sister was just cattle. It's sad that she missed her immortality. I became a vampire by an ancient woman. My mother if you may call it."
Rob sat down on his black stool. "Some of us are stronger then others. The ones like Tore and I will live forever."
"Only if your careful. There are still Hunters out there."
"In this faithless age." He laughed. "I can find no little old men with bibles and wooden stakes."
"You are so medieval." She cried out. "You've read too many old books. A Hunter can take any shape. It scares me.
"You women are so silly. You scare so easily.."
She laughed. "A Hunter would use this." She pulled out the silver dagger. "This is for you."
"No!" He fell off his chair.
She plunged it deep into his heart. "Good-bye love."
"There's a Hunter among us." He whispered.
June watched as she saw his ghost rise up from his body.

She slipped the dagger back into her pocket. She had to find Tore now.

"To catch the right fish you need right bait." Uncle Saul cried out. I had to agree with him My sister Tina was the perfect bait for the Vampire. She was thin, dark eyed and loved by men.

I was not even considered by my Uncle. "Too ugly." Which is true. My body is mousy, my red hair is matted. I care too ranch about knowledge and philosophy than my appearance.

Tina was to sleep in the main bedroom and I was suppose to be banished to Borne obscure room in the west wing. I was angry that the men were going to have all the fun.

"Can I help please?" I pleaded. Uncle Saul laughed and Tina's boy friend patted me on the shoulder and said "Sam, You'll get in way." I humored him and walked away.

I could have said 'Uncle Saul would be a complete idiot if he'd let a man as stupid as you help him'. But that would be a lie for uncle Saul is not an idiot.

I did plead to him that I was scared that the Vampire would try to turn me into a creature of the night but even I was amused at the comment. I wanted in on the hunt and that is just what it was. To capture him and prove that the vampire does exist. I was skeptical at first then I saw my uncle's experiment. A hybrid vampire dog that slept as if dead in the day time but at night it drank the blood of other dogs. sadly to say that it only worked on dogs for you need your own kind to infect you. I also learned much about vampires mating habits. A vampire can make as many minions at a time but generally only one mate.

We made all the necessary calculations possible. This village is the last place a vampire has been spotted. Tina I had been going to all the night clubs to get noticed.

I tried to sleep but it is very hard when all the adventure is taking place far from you. Finally two hours later I was asleep. Only to be awaken by scratching noises. I leaped out of bed and was about to turn on the light but I froze. There staring in the window was the Vampire, the moonlight shone behind him. The lock to the window opened from the inside without the help of human hands. In stepped the glories creature, blond hair framed his perfect pale face. His lean body dressed in black called to me.

"Come my love, drink of me!" purred his red lips.

"Me your love? Why didn't you pick Tina? It's because you knew she was guarded." He grinned, his razor or sharp teeth exposed.

"If I wanted her I would have had her!" He snapped. "Samantha, I always get what I want."

He pulled me close to him I could feel his hot breath against my neck. "Your sister is attractive but rather dim witted would you want to spend eternity with some one like that." He picked up my hand and put it to his lips and kissed it.

"That would be horrible." I whispered.

"Terrifying." He replied his hand touched my own hand. His lips touched my neck and started to feed on me and I on him.

Uncle Saul burst into the room realizing he chose the wrong bait. It was too late to save me I felt the death working on my body. The Vampire and I were one now. He guided me out of the window and into the darkness.

"My name is Valdemar." He said with a grin. "And I always get what I want."

Gothic prince of the night.

Villain of the twilight.

Gothic prince wakes from his tomb,

his golden throne.

He makes us laugh with comic under tones.

He will make us shiver he makes us shake.

We then shout and awake.

As I cut paper stars and moons

I pate them in my scrapbook

The voices call

I close the velvet dream book

And look at the stone around me

The voices call

They whisper and whisper

Nothing, but prisoner's

Entombed in the wall

It happened hundreds of years before

And it may be a hundred or two more

They whisper and whisper

"Free us,"

"Feed us,"

"We can be the one,"

I drop my book and close my eyes

A peace fills my mind

They are here

And when I am gone

They still will be

Calling, and calling.

Rock-a-bye baby don't say a word.

Not even a little chirp like a little bird.

Rock-a-bye think of blood so red.

Someday you will be a man a prince of the dead.

Midnight will howl with the ghosts and the owls.

If you do what any night creature should

and watch out for slivers of wood.

Then and only then you will truly be evil

and night will be good.

Wound Maker

The few who live with hand in fist

Scraping knees and hands

Cherubs bleed through the forgotten wounds

Of the souls who do nothing

Not talking

Not escaping

Not being anything

But holes in someone else's flesh

Vampire Junction can be reached at:

vampires@afn.org