Survive For Me
Chapter 4: Seeing Them
I groaned, shifting in the most comfortable bed in all of bed history. The cool silk sheets felt amazing against my heated flesh. The pillows were softer than clouds but still firm at the same time. God I felt like I had died and gone to heaven. I rolled over, still being mindful of my injuries, and buried my face into one of the pillows, I didn't want to get up and face the world.
I remembered what had transpired that last time I was awake. Someone named Aro had comforted me while my body was burning in agony from all of my injuries but that was as far as I got before blacking out from the morphine 'Felix' had given to me.
I could still feel the effects of the drug flowing around in my blood. I felt unnaturally calm and little loopy, if I do say so.
I felt the bed dip next to me before I felt the familiar cold hand running up and down my back in soothing circles. I didn't know why I wasn't panicking to be honest, I was in an unfamiliar place with an unfamiliar person touching me so the only reaction a normal person would have would be to jump up and demand an explanation. And what did I do?
I leaned into his touch and didn't question it. It was probably the drug still in me. My body didn't handle drugs very well and I tended to act irrationally when given some.
"Are you ready to get up, mia cara?" I heard the same man as before ask me.
You can read my thoughts can't you? I remembered him talking to me even though I wasn't physically speaking.
"I can read every thought you've ever had, but only if I am in physical contact with you,"
You can read any and every thought I've ever had with one touch.
Okay...
Where am I?
"You're in the Volterra castle my darling,"
Images of me staggering through a crowd of red and bursting through a set of black double doors came to mind. So instead of calling the police to remove my decaying corpse from your property... you help me instead?
"We'll explain that to you later, mia cara, but for now you need your rest,"
You said we, Aro. Who is we?
"They are my brothers Marcus and Caius,"
Are they here now?
"No, they have some business to attend to but they know you're awake and will be here shortly."
"They know I'm awake?" my voice was hoarse from not using it for a few days at least. "How? I only just woke up?" I cracked an eye open and saw Aro for the first time.
He was wearing a simple black button up dress shirt and black slacks. His skin was translucently white, like onion skin, and it looked just as delicate – it stood in shocking contrast to the long black hair that framed his face. His eyes were red, but the color was clouded, milky; I wondered if his vision was affected by the haze. But his eyes looked so gentle when looking at me, like I was a precious gem needing protection from the outside world.
Without thinking about it, I reached up and tugged on a lock of his silky black hair that fell down a little ways past his shoulders. It felt better than it looked.
He chuckled before taking my hand in his and giving it a kiss on the back. His smooth, but hard, lips lingered longer than necessary. I can honestly say I didn't mind in the slightest.
"Hi," I whispered to him, a combination between being loopy from the morphine and being dazed by his perfection.
He chuckled at me again, "Hi my sweet Leonora,"
I rolled over and slowly started to sit up. Aro wrapped one of his cold arms around my back helping prop me up against the pillows, being mindful of my broken ribs. I lazily rubbed my eyes while looking around the room for the first time. The bed was fit for a king with its wonderful blood red blankets and pillows, the soft mattress and the most beautiful wood carvings in the frames holding up the bed. It was magnificent work. It was little vines intertwining with themselves, circling around the banister making their way up and down. Each stroke was set in perfection.
He brushed his hand across my cheek before chuckling. "Marcus carved it himself. It took him a few years to finally perfect it." I turned back to Aro.
"I bet it did," I mumbled absentmindedly as I stared at it. I looked around the rest of the room. It had a fireplace in the far left corner with a cream colored couch and a few matching chairs. A large bookcase was nestled comfortably at the very back of the room, with a wooden table and chairs across from it. The doors were on the right side halfway across the room, with golden vines, much like the bed, that were looped together.
The room had a red and black theme to it. I kinda liked it.
"This room is beautiful," I murmured.
"I'm glad you like it dear," he smiled reaching up to stroke my hair.
"How long have I been out?"
"Just two days. You'd lost a lot of blood sweetheart," he whispered gently stroking my hair back. I looked down at myself to see I was still a mess. I didn't have my clothes on, instead I had a nightgown that was two sizes too big for me. Not to mention I felt rather dirty.
"Can I..." I hesitated, not wanting to seem rude.
"Yes?"
"Can I use your bathroom?"
"Of course," he swept me up in his arms, shushing me when he heard my startled squeak, and carried me into the bathroom. He sat me at the edge of the tub and began to fill it up with warm water. The bath itself could fit at least twelve people. It was white marble tub with golden taps. The rest of the bathroom was just as pretty as the tub. It was all white and completely clean of any specs of dirt. Their were soft fluffy towels that were being held up by a golden rack, and it looked completely brand new and unused.
Once the bath was filled he turned to me.
"Marcus and Caius are here. They want to know if you're hungry," he informed me. I shook my head.
"No, thank you Aro," I didn't feel well enough to eat anything now, the drug was still messing with my appetite. Was it me or did he shiver when I said his name? Must be the drugs.
Aro gently stripping me of my clothes and gently unwrapping my bandages. I didn't have the energy to feel embarrassed once I was completely naked in front of him. Something about this just felt... right.
I sighed in relief as he placed me in the bath. The heat was wonderful on my tense muscles, relaxing them. Aro reached over for a washcloth and gently began washing all the dirt, sweat, grime, and blood off of me. He was so gentle when washing me.
"You poor thing," I could've sworn I heard him mutter under his breath.
I leaned my head back and let him do his thing. His hands were so soothing as he caressed me. My eyes started to droop. I'll just rest my eyes for a few seconds. Yeah, just a few seconds.
I didn't realize I had fallen asleep until he picked me up from the now cold bath and wrapped me in a big fluffy towel. He set me on the counter next to the sink and disappeared into another door on the left. He came back out with a bundle of clothes and a new set of bindings in his arms. He dressed me in one of his, I'm assuming it's his, black button up silk dress shirts and a pair of black silk boxers after applying the gauze to the wounds.
"Thank you for the bath and clothes," I whispered, still tired despite the fact that I had been asleep for two days.
"Your welcome mia cara," he gently tapped my nose. I gave him a halfhearted glare in return, which he just laughed at.
After I was dressed he carefully picked me back up placing me on his hip and wrapped my arms around his neck like I was a small child and walked back out to the room where there were two figures next to the fireplace. They appeared to be in a deep conversation about something important, but they immediately turned towards us when they heard the door open and close.
The one on the left had skin very white just like Aro's. His eyes are dark red, though milky. His silky blonde hair is shoulder-length, and very close in color to his skin tone, while having an average build. His eyes were red and yet he looked at me like Aro was looking at me earlier today... with love.
The one on the right has black hair to shoulder length, standing 6'4" tall, with an average build but seemed to be the tallest one of them all. His white skin is translucent with a papery texture, and his red vampire eyes have an overlying milk film like Aro's. He eyes, despite their color, looked so gentle when he looked at me.
They were both wearing simple dress shirts and slacks, like Aro. But their was a crest hanging around their necks in the shape of a 'v'. I wondered what that meant.
I could feel something in my chest click into place almost, as I looked at them. I felt like I had been missing something my whole life and yet here it was standing in front of me. I had never felt this type of feeling since my father had murdered my mother in front of my eyes... happiness.
I was happy?
Why am I happy? Why am I not freaking out that Aro can read my mind and they all had read eyes and pale skin, I could assume they all were just as cold as one another. I wasn't freaking out because it felt right.
Sigh. Must be the drugs, I concluded.
Aro chuckled at my thoughts. "Leonora this is Marcus and Caius, my brothers," he gestured to them as he spoke. I blinked and they were right in front of me. Okay...
"Hello il mio tesoro," Caius whispered before taking my hand and laying a kiss on my palm, I tugged on a lock of his golden hair in greeting, too tired to say anything.
"Come here my sweet," Marcus crooned before taking me out of Aro's arms into his own and brought me back to the bed. "Time for bed." He tucked me under the covers pressing a kiss to my forehead. I felt two more lips on either side of my face before drifting off to dreamland, but not before feeling the bed dip as someone wrapped their arms around my waist. It felt rather pleasant. Gotta the love the morphine, man.
~SFM~
Their red eyes gleamed proudly in the darkened room as they sprung towards the unsuspecting humans. Their razor sharp teeth cut into their flesh like butter. Not a drop of blood was spilled from their wounds for they were drinking their blood. The humans started to drop dead like flies. All of them were feasting on the screaming mortals. Then a dead human's corpse dropped dead in front of me.
His ugly scarred face stared back at me and it only took a second to realize that is was my father. His lifeless eyes were even more dead than before and I didn't even think that was possible. I felt a certain happiness blossom in my chest as I realized my mother's death had been avenged.
I looked up at his killer only to see Aro smiling at me. He raised a hand towards me, beckoning me to come to him. My father's blood was dripping down his mouth onto his chin making him look like a demon. A sudden struck of realization hit me out of nowhere.
He was a vampire.
They all were.
They were cold blooded, blood sucking, demons from hell itself.
But they wouldn't hurt me would they?
No.
Or I still wouldn't be alive.
I took his cold hand without hesitation. He pulled me out of room and down the hall until we reached a garden of sorts. It was covered in beautiful flowers of all colors and sizes.
"Come here my dear," Aro tugged me closer to him, our chest were practically one with how tight, but gently, he was holding me. He leaned down and kissed me. My knees shook and my heart started to pound while the blood started to rush through my thin skin. He smirked against me obviously pleased with himself.
I broke away for air only to see Marcus and Caius beside him. Caius walked up behind me and started trailing open mouthed kisses from my cheek down to my neck, again and again. I reached up behind me and tangled one of my hands in his golden hair tugging on it.
Marcus walked in front of me and gently kissed both of my cheeks, showing his love in just one simple action. He picked up a flower and gently placed it in my hair, stroking my cheek with the pads of his fingers.
Why am I not scared of them?
They could kill me in seconds if they choose to.
But they can't.
I don't know why... but they can't hurt me.
"I've waited over thousands of years for you, my darling." Aro cooed, before leaning in and kissing my swollen lips again and again.
A/N: Leonora has officially met the kings of the vampire world! By the way Leonora is kinda drugged up right now so she wasn't acting like herself in this chapter, and that also explains the weird dream she was having at the end. Don't worry, you'll see the real Leonora soon enough.
On another note, I have changed the summary back to the original one as you guys requested with a few tweaks here and there, just to make it flow more naturally.
Anyway, thank you so much for all the reviews and alerts and favorites! I can't believe how successful this story is! Thank you so much guys!
