chapter 7 : Hope and Naivety

The next day Harper was back in Valentine with the three fugitives on foot behind him and their hands were tied, they had had some trouble along the way with some opportunists wanting to snatch the three fugitives from him for the bounty but he had killed them because he was really in a bad mood.

He had put them under hypnosis and had them walk there, they looked exhausted and slightly dehydrated when they reached the Sheriff's office under the intrigued gaze of the people.

 The Sheriff was absent so it was his assistant who handed him his bonus although with a disapproving and reluctant face but Harper didn't care, he still had in mind what Sage had done to him and how he had dealt with it. He felt, like a common object.

He was angry and frustrated but with vampires emotions were heightened so it was even worse than a human having experienced rape.

 His meeting with Sage allowed him to realize to what extent they were monsters, he hated himself more and more and especially hated his nature. He wanted to kill himself but couldn't for one simple reason, he was afraid of dying.

The only solution was magic, he was a beginner but he had hope that there was a spell that could reverse the vampirization process to make him human again and never have to do what he did again.

 When he arrived at camp, Tilly immediately went up to him to hug him but felt something was wrong.

Harper put $200 in the contribution box before going to isolate himself in his tent with Tilly where he chose to tell her a half truth.

 " Harper, what's wrong? It's been two days since we last saw each other and you seem strange..." She said worriedly. 

 Harper:…

 Tilly: Talk to me...

 Harper: Are you aware that there are other supernatural creatures? Answer honestly...

 Tilly: (sighs) Yes. (sits on the bed) My mother, peace to her soul, was killed by a supernatural being. A vampire killed my mother here in America after following her from Haiti. She was a very skilled and powerful witch but this vampire was quite old and strong. Why do you ask me this ?

 Harper: I...I met a vampire.

 Tilly: By my ancestors!!! Are you doing well ?!

 Harper: This vampire, this woman made me do things and she made me a vampire too...against my will...

 Tilly's face went blank and filled with disbelief as she took three steps back.

 " I haven't fed yet, for now I'm in control. Tilly, I know you're scared but I'm terrified and we need to act before I want to feed myself. If you know a spell or anyone who knows a reversal spell to make me human again, we need to try it as soon as possible. I don't want to lose you but I especially don't want to lose who I am." He said as he stood up. 

" I...Harper, you..." Tilly tried to speak but couldn't say anything as her voice trembled. 

 Harper: Tilly, it's still me but we don't have time to waste. Don't abandon me, I don't want to become a monster like the one who killed your mother.

 Tilly: New...New Orleans...my mother knew powerful witches in New Orleans. She mentioned it in...in her Diarie. It's a clothing store run by a witch, a white woman who took care of my mother.

 Harper: Louisiana is quite far away but we have no choice. We have to leave today.

 "I won't go with you..." She said looking him in the eye. 

 Harper:…

 Tilly: You're one of them now. I just can't...no I can't...

 Harper: I didn't choose that...

 Tilly: Leave and don't come back if it doesn't work, do this for the people at the camp. They are family to me, don't put them in danger.

 Harper: Tilly...

 Tilly: I'll tell them you're back to work. Here (write on paper) this is the address of the clothing store. I'm sorry... 

 "I understand, what happened between us was fine for as long as it lasted…" He said before taking the paper and leaving.

Even with a lie he had lost Tilly but he couldn't blame this girl because he was the one who had held on to human emotions.

He could stop feeling emotions, it would be as easy as pressing a button but it would give total and permanent control of the thing inside him permanently and there would be no going back.

 Without saying anything to the others, he mounted his horse and rode towards Louisiana. He could go on foot and at vampire speed but he needed time to think on the way and he was too attached to his mare.

Harper could have just said nothing to Tilly and continued to live peacefully within the gang but what Sage had done to him, he never wanted to go through that again or kill like he did.

Between his life in the camp and the possibility of becoming human again, the choice was quickly made.

 He didn't know if he could be helped in New Orleans but he had to try, he had hope of becoming who he was again because even with all these gifts, he had never accepted his new nature.

He had hope that magic could help him solve this problem and become human again but he didn't knew that the place he was heading would also change him drastically like Zack did decades earlier.

 He crossed the Mississippi to finally enter Louisiana, he wasted no time and headed for New Orleans, he was in a hurry and with a heart full of hope.

The prospect of becoming human again, growing old again, the hope of being able to start a family and no longer be a slave to bloodlust warmed his heart. He knew witches could be dangerous but he had no choice.

 Once at his destination, Harper was extremely impressed by the size of the city and the buildings but especially by the terrifying number of humans present.

There were tens or even hundreds of thousands of humans living there.

He went to a nearby hotel where he wanted to get a room but they directed him to a hotel where, as a black man, he would have a place. He could have forced the receptionist but he wanted to be careful and discreet so he did nothing.

He was used to this treatment, with his gentle and docile nature, he just walked away without making a fuss with his hopes in mind.

 He was directed to a small hotel in the French Quarter where he was able to get accommodation and it was fortunate because the clothing store Tilly had told him about was also in the same neighborhood.

Without delay, he looked for the place whose name was mentioned on Tilly's paper and people of good faith told him where to go.

 The store door being open Harper didn't have permission to enter so he played the trick by taking his hat in his hands with the fearful expression of a young black man of the time beckoning politely and fear in this kind of place.

Black vampires were practically non-existent and too rare to attract suspicion and blacks had to make themselves small, his attitude was completely natural.

 Saleswoman: This is a very handsome young man. Please come in and tell me what would please you, don't be afraid. We have something to make you elegant and distinguished here.

 Harper: Good evening, ma'am. Please forgive me but I am not here for a purchase but to look for someone in this store.

 "Any information about us? It's my duty to help you then. Who is the person you are looking for?" The woman asked with a smile, she didn't seem to be prejudiced about her skin color. 

 Harper: I'm looking for Mrs Rosalie Larue.

 Saleswoman: (laughs) Well young man, you are lucky. I am the woman you are looking for, tell me how can I help you now...

 Harper: Does the name Laure Jackson mean anything to you? You helped this woman and her daughter many years ago. I-(interrupted)

 Rosalie gestured for him to wait and looked seriously at her colleague who nodded and led Harper to the back of the store where they would have more privacy for the discussion.

 Rosalie: Now we can talk seriously. Laure died in this town so the person who sent you to us must be her daughter, Tilda. So you probably know that we are witches. How is young Tilly?

 Harper: She's fine, she's a good friend.

 Rosalie: What is your name and why did she bring you to us?

 Harper: My name is Harper, ma'am. I was a wizard just like Tilly and we opened up to each other, she taught me how to use magic correctly even though I was just a beginner. Everything was going well until I crossed paths with a vampire who transformed me.

 "Are you a vampire ?!" She asked with some shock as she stepped back. 

 Harper: Unfortunately. I beg you, I don't want to hurt anyone and I need the help of the witches. I don't know much about magic but I was hoping there was a way to become human again and Tilly sent me here.

 Rosalie looked at him blinking several times in disbelief, Harper was a complete ignoramus. Even if he had lied, his ignorance was real because for decades, Zack brooded and hid him from members of their own species while teaching Harper how to control himself and live among humans.

He knew very little about witches but was especially unaware that those in New Orleans were completely hostile to vampires, especially since the arrival of the originals.

 Rosalie: (smiles) You really don't know anything, do you?

 Harper: You are my only hope of becoming who I was again. Please, i beg you…

 She looked at him with a relieved and satisfied smile, Harper was a real blessing who had just fallen from the sky in the right place and at the right time for her plans.

He didn't know what war and what territory he had set foot in and gave himself up to her like that, it was a real chance that made her smile widen.

 Rosalie: We'll help you Harper, among magic users we must help each other. Two blocks from here there is an item and decoration store, come there after midnight, we'll use the reversal spell on you and return you to normal.

 Harper: You...you're going to help me?! I don't know what to say, I so…I so hoped I could be normal again. I don't know how to thank you...

 "No, my dear, it's me who thanks you…" She caressed Harper's face with a smile and let him go.