Gatsby’s energy was waning, but Barnabas needed a few more minutes to finish sketching him. Seeking to distract his attention from the rapidly approaching dawn, Barnabas said, “You once said Dracula was fiction. What’s different?” “We don’t need blood for sustenance—it’s more like a supplement. And we don’t need to drain a body of blood—that’s just gluttony. We can drink the blood of animals but that’s like eating a McDonald’s Big Mac. Or we can drink blood from a blood bank but that’s like eating frozen pizza—it’s OK until you taste a freshly made one—heaven!” “One can drink blood from a woman but most of us find that distasteful. Though there are those who do, for a variety of reasons, including money.” “But you do need to drink human blood?” “No, not really. Many Vampires opt to only drink the blood of other Vampires.” Barnabas looked up from his sketchpad in surprise. “That has the added advantage of increasing the number of copies of the virus in one’s system which makes one stronger and increases longevity, while also limiting contact with humans and the risk of infecting one—to say nothing of the violence inherent in most human-Vampire interactions.”
