In the Midnight Hour

In the Midnight Hour

In the midnight hour, he stands in the shadowed corners of the city, waiting, listening. His sense so acute he can hear the sound a mile away. Thump thump, thump thump. Those that troll the darkness  for danger will find him welcoming them with a sharp smile. In the midnight hour, he drains life and soul. In the midnight hour, he waits for you.

Oh vampires. So scary, so fascinating. When I was a little girl, my mother and I would watch the soap opera Dark Shadows every day. Barnabas Collins scared me, yet I was strangely drawn to him and his story about loving a mortal girl named Victoria. Sometimes, I catch myself believing them to be real and will scare my self silly. I've been to Paris twice and both times, visited Père Lachaise, the incredibly sprawling Gothic cemetery. The first trip, I made the mistake of bringing Interview With a Vampire with me to read. Part of the story, with Armand, takes place in Père Lachaise and Montmarte, the very neighborhood I stay whilst in Paris. I had freaked myself out so bad that I couldn't sleep and decided I couldn't read anymore until I was out of Paris.

On the second visit to Paris with my mother, I once again visited the cemetery and stayed in a beautiful B&B that had the most amazing view of the Paris rooftops. During our visit to Père Lachaise, it was a misty, foggy, dreary day. A funeral was taking place. It was cold, gray and we both felt a combined sense of wonder and eeriness.

Later that night, in our room, as we turned off the light and laid down to rest our tired, worn out bodies, a tapping noise began. Tap, tap, tap. "What was that?" I said, my heart racing. "I don't know" replied my mother. It happened again: Tap, tap, tap. "It's coming from the window", pulling the covers higher up over me as if that would offer some sort of armor-like protection. My mom got up and turned on the light. We both sat up and listened, looking towards the curtained window. Tap, tap, tap. "It's definitely coming from the window" I said, as my mom got up and walked towards it. I shouted at her with horror "Don't open it!!!!"

She looked at me with shock and said "Why not?" My explanation was that we had been in Père Lachaise earlier in the day and the Vampires knew I believed in them and that my mind was weak. They wanted us to open the curtains and then they would glamor us and come in and suck our blood. What did my mom do? She looked at me for a second and then burst out in laughter! But, I was dead serious (no pun intended), I would not allow her to open the curtain. Needless to say, I just laid awake all night, listening to the tap, tap, tap continue until sunrise. What it actually was, we'll never know but I don't regret opening that curtain one bit. :)