I had seen a small ad in the free weekly for the CyberBrew coffee shop and while coffee does nothing for me and I have access to much better computers then they can dream of I was still drawn to come here. It was the small note at the bottom of the ad, "Live Action Roll Playing: Tuesday at 8pm Vampire the Masquerade."
I had of course heard of these games, someone in my . . . well . . . my profession I guess, has to stay current with all the trends. So when 7:30 on Tuesday came around I was already sitting at the large counter at the coffee bar where I could see the whole shop an untouched cup of black coffee in front of me.
Slowly they trickled in and it was easy to tell the game players from the random coffee junkies looking for a late night fix. They were dressed for the parts, tall pale, oh so thin boys and girls in black and scarlet regalia filled the room and I had no doubt these were the ones playing the Kindered. Others soon followed them in a wide array of costumes.
A young girl sat down next to me and being the sweet and good natured creature I am I struck up a conversation. "Hi are you involved with this game thing?" I asked even though the long clingy black Addams Family dress and white face paint left me no doubt.
"Uhhh, well yeah I just really got started in it, I only just got well bitten I guess is the best way to explain it but I am not fully a vampire yet." She smiled really very sweetly. "I have a book you can look at if you want. My name is Tisha"
I took the thin paperback book from her and offered to buy her a coffee, while she orders a shockingly sweet concoction I perused the book. Lists of clans and types of vampires passed before me on the pages, Tremer, Toreador, Malkavian, Brujah, Nasferatu. Hummmm imagine me of all people not knowing that there are so many types of suckers out there.
"Thanks for the drink, you can look at the book for a while if you want while I go and talk to my new clan." I watched as the sweet young thing scurried over to a group of elegantly dressed gaunt souls. A nearly emaciated young man wrapped his cape covered arm around her and dropped a kiss on her lips, I had to wonder whose lipstick would smudge worse, his black or her scarlet.
Quickly reading through the descriptions of each clan I saw that it was based on popular modern ideas and not the oldest of vampire myths which as a matter of course I had made my self aware of. I began to look at the different cliques around the room and guess which group thought of themselves as which clan.
In The Masquerade most vampires were social at least within their own clans and along with these there were the Fennris, known to them as werewolves and the Voshadas whose description most closely matches that of their ghouls.
How interesting it would be if this game were the truth, I am sure it would be much less lonely then the lone vampires of myth.
I saw Tisha offer her young man a sip of the Mocha I bought for her and point me out to him. "That lady over there bought it for me, she was asking about the game so I let her look at my book, I wonder if she would want to play." She said, I was really beginning to like this child.
"Well she sure doesn't look like she is dressed to play, I don't think the average player would wear a dress like that." The smart ass little weizer laughed. "Not exactly what you think of when you think of a vampire, Certainly not a toreador, our clan has an image to protect."
Swarmy little bastard, I am sure that since they were all the way across the room that he did not intend me to hear him but people are always surprised at how well I can hear and see. Usually I would have taught him a thing or two but I could see that the nice young girl was very much enraptured in him and I didn't want to hurt her. I may have a foul temper but I never forget a kindness and I have a very long memory.
I know that I look rather unprepossessing, I mean what would anyone expect from a fat woman? Personally I like my dress, I think the low cut and the soft silken green go well with my dark golden skin tone and light red hair. But then I have never expected any better from young men, most of them deserve everything they get.
"God Bry, get a load of the tits on that fat chick at the counter. Too bad she isn't about half that size." Without turning my head much I cast a glance at the young man on the other side of the room from the group who I had been watching. Slender and short, maybe nineteen if he was a day. Not my type, on the other hand his friend was much taller and rather muscular, probably twenty one with a lot of life in him, definitely my type.
I waited to hear what his friend would say, "Oh man Kevin don't tell me you are into those fat chicks. I expect better from you man, any chick who weighs more then me and I am not interested no matter how huge her tits are. I mean damn, her hips are as big around as her chest."
Bingo. I love a challenge.
I looked over at Tisha and waited to catch her eyes, as if I had called her name she turned towards me and excusing herself from her friends came over to where I was sitting. I reached out and brushed her arm as she sat her glass down and felt a reassuring spark like static electricity from a wool carpet. "Here is your book dear, I wonder if you could introduce me around to some of your friends."
She looked slightly dazed as she took the book from me and then a huge smile broke out on her face. "Oh yeah of course, ummm I don't know your name."
"Oh how rude of me, allow me to introduce myself, I am SiDaraias Sucuba but you may call me Sida." I said, giving her one of my easy smiles.
"What a great name, where is it from?" She asked as she lead me across the room to a group of young girls standing together.
"Well it is a very old name from Europe, Sida is so much easier to remember." I smiled as she introduced me to the gaggle of young girls, all as small as Tisha who I towered over, no two of them could equal my size. As usual I was always sure to shake hands and make small talk with everyone I spoke with, it puts you so much more in... well lets say contact with people.
As if reading my mind Tisha began to lead me across the room introducing me as we went. "This is my great friend Sida, she is really interesting." Tisha would exclaim as if we had not just met a little while before. Finally we had arrived at my destination.