Hi peeps! sorry it's taken me a while to publish. I just started a new job, so trying to remember everything thing new made me forget to update- sorry! *begs*
hope all is well!
As I tried to disentangle the knots in my wet hair, the raised voice of Dora shrieked behind the bathroom door. The exact moment I stopped brushing in reaction, her voice dimmed, an irritable buzz taking its place.
I leave the mirror and tip toe towards the door, pressing my ear against the wood.
"Well of course he's distraught Joe, he has finally realised how much of a bastard he was to her last night!"
"He isn't anywhere as bad as he was when...you know...it happened..." said Joseph lowly, "But it's still bad."
"Just carry on as usual and spread the word. Dom will no doubt check on him," pacified Dora, "Speaking about Dom, do you know where my darling husband is? I haven't seen him since
Erik left this room last night."
"He's in study room four answering letters; Bruno and a few of his friends are there also. Do you want to go down to see them and I'll stay here?" Joseph suggested.
"I'm hoping to take her down with me which is why I asked you to ask Erik." said Dora, her voice then dropped much quieter than before. I literally have to press all of my body to be able to hear the rest, "I still can't believe she isn't allowed near his room, it is technically hers as well! She has stuff in there that belongs to her!"
"We moved the majority of her clothes in here-"
"It's not just that Joe, things like jewellery, ornaments, photographs, even her fathers medals. If she were to look in that room it may encourage her to accept the truth!"
"There's a reason why she isn't allowed in there and to that we must respect it," said Joseph, "In time maybe he'll let her, but for now she stays away."
Dora sighed wearily, "Perhaps your right. It's probably a good idea she stays away; the objects might overwhelm her, plus it will stop him from locking her in the room."
Joseph chuckled lowly, "I doubt he would do that..."
"Wouldn't be surprised," Dora mumbled sceptically, "Anyways, I better knock and check if she's alright."
I flew myself away from the door and ran back to the mirror, brushing one section of my hair frantically.
The door knocked, "Christine!" Dora called, "You alright in there?"
"Yeah!" I squeaked, "Not dressed yet!" I hope my squeak can pass off as fake surprise.
I don't know if I pulled it off, when it comes to Dora probably not. I stopped brushing and took deep quiet breathes. I need this moment to be alone, to gather all what I've just heard and I mustn't have another breakdown!
Erik is upset about the events of last night...good, so he should be. He was in my room last night with Dora and her husband Dominic...so much for her promising me he wouldn't go near me without my consent! Though, if he was upset she probably wanted to help calm him down, and by watching me sleep might've helped...however, it seems not to have worked.
Do I feel violated by his secret visit...? No. In a way it makes me feel cherished.
I'm not allowed near Erik's room-well, technically mine and Erik's room...my face blushes; snippets of images flashes my mind of scenes that happened with me and Erik in that bedchamber...Oh God my heart is doing somersaults! Can vampires hear a quickening heartbeat without being near the persons' chest? Breathe Christine, breathe...
I dab water on my face to cool down my flush when Dora's voice echo's my head; "her fathers medals..."
In my dreams I knew I had a father that loved me, I was always aware of that. I also knew that he was once a powerful man. Not as powerful as Erik but he held a high position making me feel worthy enough to marry Erik.
Could it be true in this life? Was my father just as important or is he even the same man?
There's only one way to get those questions answered and that is to leave this bathroom and ask.
I must say as a vampire I really was obsessed with dresses. I was only inspecting maybe a handful, especially if alot of my 'suppose' stuff is held in Erik's room. But to my surprise on opening the large ivory wardrobe there must've been at least a hundred or more dresses hanging, waiting to be worn.
All hold rich material and all are extremely regal; fit for a Queen. How my fingers twitched yearningly to try every one of them on! I wanted to appear the Queen I am in my dreams, to feel it, even if for a minute.
Joseph left as I awed the dresses while Dora stayed grinning amusedly at my reaction.
"That's barely a quarter of the dresses you owe," she informed, "You don't really think I would've let Eric get rid of them all? They're far too beautiful! Not that he would've done anyway, each dress you own resembles you in some form. Getting rid of one would've gotten rid a part of you."
"There's so many!" I whisper, still in shock; gazing at each dress in turn, trying to decide what to try.
Dora chuckled, "Well, you did like fashion. These dresses however are more casual, you don't need to wear a corset for any of them; they're day dresses."
"These are far too grand to wear during the day!"
Again Dora chuckled, and came to stand beside me infront of the grand day dresses, "If you're reacting like this to ordinary dresses, I can just imagine what you would be like on viewing the ball gowns!"
I selected a brown dress with white polka-dots; the sleeves ending at the elbow in a frill, and a neat bow tied at the back. The collar wasn't low cut; just in line with my collar bone.
The shoes displayed below the dresses; none heels thank God! I picked a pair of black velvety ballet slippers.
Dora, with her arms crossed, eyed my feet and legs; she stated pensively, "You're going to need tights and stockings. Not only that but you'll need warm clothes."
"I'll be fine." I said as I put my hair up in a loose pony tail.
"It will be winter soon and you shall freeze." said Dora sternly, "I'll go to the market sometime and see what there is."
I bit my tongue, there was no point in arguing, she would've won. She lead me out of the room where Joseph stood waiting,
"Right now Christine, let's give you a tour of the place!" she said brightly.
And that's what we're doing now; walking around every part of the building. Last night I was too overcome in misery to register the décor of the castle. When I arrived here for the ball all I saw was the entrance, the ballroom and the gardens. Now I get the chance to see and feel the immense regal magnificence I have in my dreams. Even now as I walk I sense how important this castle is to me.
I recollect a dream on Erik telling me he bought the castle;
"I didn't buy it just to see you glow with happiness, I bought it because I too fell in love with the place."
He too fell in love with the place...what does that mean? Did I see the property first then went and told him? No, that doesn't seem right...I somehow feel connected to this castle, like I have done so for centuries though I'm only twenty-one. I even feel that I have known this place before I even met Erik.
Another strange point is that I don't even remember decorating the place yet the next dream I have after him purchasing the castle is us living in a fully decorated castle.
"We come now to another study room," said Joseph interrupting my thoughts, "It is easy to get lost in this place no matter how long you live in it."
In reality it is my first time stepping on these floors, observing rooms, acknowledging passers by; yet my gut tells me I wouldn't get lost. My dreams never showed me every single room, barely a handful; but as I guess what room we are about to view, before Joseph even opens the door, I find that I am right.
We are now at the fifth floor; from the second floor to the seventh is where the servants and guards live. All of the first floor belongs to Dora, Dominic and Bruno, and the last floor, the eighth, belongs to Erik. Every floor, minus Erik's, has the same hallways and the same amount of rooms, yet each in different décor.
Joseph opens the study room door and we are greeted with noise of screaming kids running and jumping in a way no human child, or proffessional athlete, can compare!
"QUIET!" Dora yells in greeting.
Silence.
Immediately every child stares at me in wonder and curiosity, like I was the one that yelled at them! I equally regard them back. I've never seen vampire children in the palace before but yet again like the rooms in the castle, I was subconsciously aware of their whereabouts.
"Hi Mummy!" Bruno greets cheekily, standing on a cream leather sofa. "Hi Joe-Joe! Hi Auntie Christine!"
A girl with blonde ringlets kicks Bruno in the shins and whispers angrily, "Shush Bruno, don't call her that!"
"Why not?" Bruno asks perplexed to the girl, rubbing his injured shin,"She's my Aunt, aren't you Christine?"
All the children's eyes seemed to emphasise more as they await my answer. I see that Dora is about to intervene, but I answered instead.
"Yes Bruno I am your Aunt."
Gasps leave some of the children's open mouths. A boy in a checked shirt spoke out in disbelief,
"But you're human! You can't be his aunt!"
"Doesn't matter what race you are or if your even related, if you've been told someone's your aunt, then that person is your aunt." I declared.
"She is his aunt stupid," a boy with long hair shoved the checked shirt one, "She is related; she's married to the King. She's the Queen."
Queen? I forgot about that! "Ah, wait!, Erm...how do I explain this...-"
"She is my sister, so therefore it's true." stepped in Dora proudly, she then narrowed her eyes at the youngsters who all immediately flinched in fear; adding in a growl, "Got a problem with that?"
"No." They all replied in unison.
"Good," Dora smiled sweetly, her tone back to being chirpy, "Now, where is your father Bruno?"
"Here I am."
Out walked Dominic through open double doors at the bottom of the study.
This is the first time I properly see Dominic. You would know he and Erik are brothers, yet both are completely different. Dominic has shoulder length brown hair, whereas Erik's is short, spiky and black. Dominic has a goatee, Erik just has stubble. Dominic's eyes are chocolate brown and Erik's of course are their mesmerising blue. They both are the same height, same stature, even have the same nose; but to me Erik, in comparison to Dominic, is more powerful. Like Erik though, Dominic too is very handsome.
"Thought I heard your dulcet tones earlier my love," smiled Dominic, "I was next door, writing letters and mingling with some of the staff. Wouldn't be able to think straight if I were to stay in this room,"
He was looking at Dora as he spoke but stopped to stand beside me, purposely putting some distance between us. It was then, when he finished speaking, that he turned to face me.
"Hello Christine," he bowed in a friendly smile, "I hope your well?"
"Yes thank you." I nod, a smile forming.
It all felt very formal, like we are meeting for the very first time. In a way we are, but I know that Dominic isn't naturally like this. Maybe he thinks I am frightened of him along with his brother, so therefore he is being polite as possible.
Seen much of the castle?" Dominic enquires graciously.
"Yes."
Silence fills the room but is soon ended by a giggling Dora.
"Dom," Dora laughs, "She knows you aren't going to lunge at her, so quit with the stiffness and formalities."
Dominic looks to me worriedly, and I too can't help but smile broadly. This appears to relax him and he takes a closer step towards me.
"Sorry," he smiles, "just wasn't sure how you'd react at meeting me."
"It's ok, suppose I should've considered the same thing for you."
"Why's that?" Dominic asks curiously.
"As I had an emotional breakdown last night," I state matter of factly resulting everyone in the room to laugh including the children who are being very nosey at listening to this conversation.
"That's nothing to be ashamed of, anyone would be upset being in your situation." said Dominic.
"Way to reassure her love," said Dora, rolling her eyes.
"Dad?" called Bruno tugging Dominic's arm, "Is Uncle Erik allowed to still be married to Aunt Christine even though she's human?"
The air in the room tightened, or was it just my lungs? Everyone's once relaxed, regal, beautiful faces all immensely turned to anxiety. Bruno was the only one out of the children who seemed quite naive to the whole thing...Or was it just a facade?
"Bruno, now is not the time to ask questions like that!" quipped Dora snappishly.
"I'm just curious, we all are!" Bruno defended.
"Master Bruno," said Joseph gently, "Sometimes it's best to keep curiosity to yourself. You could hurt people's feelings by asking personal questions."
"Yes," nodded Dora in fierce agreement, "And the same goes to the lot of you!" she pointed accusingly towards all the children who all took a step back.
"I don't mind really," I insisted, looking submissively to Joseph, Dora and Dominic, "They're only curious."
"Due too curious parents," Dora muttered in spite. "Thanks to them their kids are now interested!"
"After the scene I made it's no wonder," I said understandably, "Staying here I have to face these kinds of questions, but to be honest I'm not sure I'll be able to answer them."
"Of course not, you barely understand it yourself," sighed Dora, "Come with me," she took my hand, "And you Bruno," she snapped to her son with those deadly narrow eyes, "Enjoy your last hours of playtime cause it will be a long time before you obtain that pleasure again."
We returned to my bedroom; myself and Dora. Dominic dealt with a grumpy Bruno and Joseph returned to his daily tasks.
Me and Dora sat on the bed; she, legs folded at the end, me leaning against the headboard.
"What is it that you want to know?" Dora asks gently.
"I suppose, I'm I still married to Erik?" At first I thought the idea was impossible, but so far staying here, the impossible is infact the complete opposite.
"I knew you believed me from this morning." Dora beamed.
"In a way..." I admit in a small voice, my eyes and fingers tracing the pattern of a crochet blanket.
"I know." Dora says tenderly, causing me to reconnect eye contact, "I won't say a thing."
I nod in thanks.
"Anyway," Dora continues as if my most awaited acceptance of my past life never occurred, "No, you are not still married to Erik. Though you have returned, death still parted you both, therefore the marriage ended."
A part of my heart sinks in disappointment. Wait, what about Raoul? I love him! I should be happy I could still marry him - if I ever get to him that is.
"Does Erik know this?" I ask awkwardly.
"I believe so," Dora confesses sadly, "He may be desperate but he isn't stupid. He knows he would have to remarry you in order to make your marriage valid."
"And can he marry a human?"
"No. It is against our laws. It's even unlawful keeping you here." said Dora rather uncomfortably. She stiffly rose from the bed, and with grace and pose she walked towards the window ledge and faced the dim light outside.
"We can interact with humans, even become friends with some of them, but we cannot form love binding relationships. Being boyfriend and girlfriend is not illegal to us but frowned upon. However, those kinds of relationships don't last as vampires crave the ultimate commitment of marriage. Or someone gets killed in the end. If a vampire were to marry a human it would be invalid."
"But two vampires can marry?" I ask frowning.
"Yes as that is binding. Two living, breathing humans have a legal marriage; two un-dead, yet still hearted vampires can have a legal marriage; one vampire and one human cannot as one is the living dead and the other just living, equalling the marriage to be unbinding; it's the same in both worlds: The Mortal and The Immortal."
"Why is it unlawful to keep me here?" not sure if I want to know the answer yet ask anyway as my own inquisitiveness takes over.
"Because we have no intention on killing you or turning you into one of us," confesses Dora quietly, her face still set towards the window. "Like I said earlier, with boyfriend/girlfriend relationships between vampire and human, could end up in bloodshed. That is because the cravings of human flesh and blood can become too consuming for a vampire to ignore, especially when it comes to how intimately involved the couple have become. Love sometimes can't be strong enough to fight the urge. Its ok for a few days, maybe even a couple of weeks, but eventually it will become difficult for us not to cause harm. But don't go thinking Erik hasn't thought this through cause he has, your safety is vitally important to him and to us all." Dora insists, now staring at me adamantly, "We go hunting regularly for animals and humans, more so now that you're with us, each and every one of us determined not to harm you, and with regular intake of blood we won't."
They continue to hunt fellow humans like me when I am in this castle. I've only been here a night, how much hunting must they do to keep from wanting to have me?
"D-Do," I swallow then continue to stutter, "Do I s-smell g-good?"
Dora lightly snorted, though no humour lightened her features, "I can only smell you when your close to me, like when we hug- don't worry, I haven't had the urge to eat you, though you do smell delectable." I note there's shame in her tone.
"Maybe I should not leave this room," I state, "I don't want to make things difficult for anyone."
Dora returned to the bed and sat opposite me, her hands grabbing mine, "Don't you go worrying about us, we're more than capable in doing this. Besides, its good practise for us all when we interact with humans."
"But it isn't fair-"
"What isn't fair is that I have been parted from my sister for 400 years," Dora whispers thickly, "I'm not letting some mortal blood barrier spoil our relationship; end of discussion Christine."
Her eyes are shining due to her unshed-able tears. I clasp her hands tighter in mine, and try and change the subject.
"What about this no intention in turning me into one of you?" I ask vaguely.
"Erik gave us strict instructions not to turn you into one of us." response Dora agreeably.
"Why's that?" I am now suddenly intrigued as to why Erik set those instructions, surely it would be the easy way to get what he wants?
"He didn't say, he just said to us all that we are not to touch you."
"But wouldn't be easier? Including the fact you all won't have to suffer, or break the law, but Erik would get what he wants, me his Immortal Queen again."
"Christine, think back to your dreams, in any of them did Erik ever force anything upon you?"
No, Erik never did, besides the dream he left me to go see his father in which I asked him not to...the dream in which I died...
"Have you ever told anyone your dreams?" Dora asks curiously.
I shook my head, looking at our clasped hands. No one knows, not Raoul, not even Meg.
My body stiffens at the memory of my death. The last image I had was Erik's destroyed face, begging me desperately not to leave him...
I realise then that my sight is now placed at the vanity desk. I study the ivory mirror, not really registering the perfect detail when a chill shivers through me as a pair of dark eyes flashes in the mirror...Eyes of a killer; my killer...
"Christine," Dora calls gently. I jolt towards Dora, whose expression was one of concern and interest. "I think you should tell me what dreams it is that you have."