Chapter 8: True Feelings

Everyone was seated at the table and it wasn't long before the magnificent feast came out. Rachel and Sasha were a bit shocked at how massive it was and some of the food looked unusual, but they both remembered their mother telling them to always be polite when you were a guest, so they looked at each other and smiled. "Remember what Mom taught us," Rachel said in a low voice.

"Always be polite," Sasha replied, her voice also low as she grasped the necklace gently in her hand, looking sad for a moment. Rachel grasped her own necklace, feeling sad too.

Whampire noticed how quiet they were. "Rachel? Sasha? Is everything alright?" He asked.

The older girl blinked and smiled. "Yes," she said softly. "Sorry. Sasha and I were...just thinking about our mom."

Vampiro smiled. "Holly was a fine woman who raised two wonderful girls," he said. "And she loved you both very much."

Sasha nodded. "It just...sometimes it really hits hard," she admitted.

Melodica nodded. "It does sometimes, but that's a good thing," she said. "It means you'll never forget her. I felt the same way when my husband died."

"I too felt the same way when my wife passed away," said Phantasmo softly.

Vamps could see the girls were still a bit down and had an idea. "Father, is it alright if I show the girls something? We won't be long," he said.

Vampiro nodded with a smile. "You and Whampire go ahead with the girls," he said. "We'll begin the feast when you return."

Whampire went up to Sasha and held out his hand. "Come," he said gently. "There's something my brother and I want to show you girls."

"What is it?" Rachel asked, taking Vamps' hand that he held out to her.

"Come and see," the black-masked Vladat said gently.

The girls followed them to a part of the garden that was lit up with soft blue lights and in the middle of it was the statue of an angel with her arms out in the gesture of either looking for a hug or giving a blessing. Around the statue were roses that were a golden amber in color. Rachel gasped, having never seen such roses before. Sasha gasped too. "I...I've never seen roses like this," she said softly.

Whampire smiled. "The little one that gave you both a rose when we landed found a way to grow roses with this color," he said. "She felt it was the best way to help honor Holly, who the inhabitants loved as if she was one of their own."

Rachel gently touched the roses. "The inhabitants accepted Mom like they accepted us?" She asked.

"Well...at first, no," Vamps admitted. "But after she saved a little Thep Khufan boy from Transyl and even took down the tyrant singlehandedly, the inhabitants realized she was a good person and in return for her bravery, they promised that her children would be welcomed among them."

"So that's why they didn't seem surprised when they saw us?" Sasha asked.

"Yes," Whampire said with a nod. "That Thep Khufan she saved was Snare-Oh."

Rachel blinked in surprise. "Our brother?" She asked.

He nodded with a smile. "Yes," he said. "Melodica was grateful to her and they became good friends."

The girls smiled and Sasha took a deep breath before looking at the Vladat brothers. "Thank you for showing us this," she said.

Her older sister nodded. "Yes, thank you," she said before looking up and seeing the moon was starting to turn pink. "Looks like the moon is about to turn pink."

"We best get back to the feast then," said Vamps.

When they arrived, Vampiro stood up and hugged the sisters. "Are you girls alright?" He asked gently.

They nodded. "Thank you, Vampiro," Rachel said and Sasha echoed her.

He smiled. "You're both welcome," he said. "Now come. Let's enjoy our meal while the moon turns pink."

They sat down and the meal was one of the best the girls had ever eaten. While it was a bit different, they found it to be just as good. They were eating dessert when the moon became fully pink and it was mesmerizing. "Wow," Sasha breathed in awe.

Music began to play and Vampiro turned to see his wife was coming towards them. "My love," he said, standing. "May I have this dance?"

"Of course, my king," she said, bowing to him before they began dancing.

Vamps smiled. "Mother's returned from her mission," he said.

"It's good to have her back," Whampire said before looking at Sasha and biting his lip nervously. Rachel noticed and smiled, deciding to help out.

"Hey, sis. You still like to dance, right?" She asked Sasha.

The brown-haired girl nodded. "Yes," she said with a smile. "I feel free when I dance."

Rachel looked at Whampire and winked. He took that as his cue and gave her a grateful look before gently clearing his throat. "Sasha," he said, to which she looked at him. "May I have the honor of dancing with you?"

She blushed. "The honor would be mine, Your Highness," she said, accepting his hand that he held out to her and they moved away from the table.

Rachel grinned and Whampire turned his head to look at her and she gave him another wink in encouragement. He smiled and nodded. The blonde-haired girl then felt hands on her shoulders and turned to see Snare-Oh was behind her and he smiled at her. "Would you like to dance, my dear sister?" He asked.

"I'd love to, my dear brother," she said, taking his hand and he led her away from the table.

Melodica smiled and saw Phantasmo come up to her. She blushed and stood up, smiling at him and accepting the hand he held out. "I was hoping you would want to dance with me," she admitted.

"How could I not, my dear?" He asked with a smile before they started dancing.

The Celestialsapiens, Vamps, Ghostfreak, and Kuphulu watched with amusement. "How are the girls settling in, Kuphulu?" Zeus asked.

"They've settled in well and it's like they've been in the family forever," the purple-eyed alien mummy said. "I couldn't ask for two better sisters."

They watched as Whampire twirled Sasha and Snare-Oh did the same with Rachel and the girls gracefully moved around each other and Rachel moved to Whampire while Sasha moved to Snare-Oh and they continued dancing.

The blonde-haired girl looked at the green-masked Vladat. "Have you told her yet?" She asked softly.

He blushed and shook his head. "I don't want to scare your sister, Rachel," he said.

"You won't, Whampire," she said. "I trust you."

He gave her another grateful look at that.

Sasha smiled at Snare-Oh, who smiled back. "Are you enjoying dancing with Whampire, little sister?" He asked.

"I am, big brother," she replied before blushing. "He's amazing and...so romantic."

The Thep Khufan chuckled. "Ah, you're head over heels for him, hmm?"

She nodded and he chuckled again. "I believe he feels the same way about you," he said. "You should tell him how you feel."

She blinked. "Isn't that a bit forward?" She asked. "I mean...he is a prince."

"One who can't stop staring at you," he said, smiling. "And that wasn't just a random question Rachel asked earlier about you liking to dance. She was helping Whampire ask you to dance."

Sasha was surprised, but then chuckled. "Sneaky," she said. "But Rachel only does that with the best of intentions."

"She is a good sister, as you are," Snare-Oh said. "Ready to trade off?"

She nodded and he twirled her away from him just as Whampire twirled Rachel away from him and the girls again danced around each other gracefully before the brown-haired girl went to Whampire and the blonde-haired girl went to Snare-Oh. "So, what did you find out?" She asked the alien mummy.

He chuckled. "I believe Sasha and Whampire will confess to each other," he said. "Something tells me she'll be a future princess."

"Good," Rachel said. "Then she'll be safe from our birth father."

He nodded, knowing that was worrying her. "If you find your mate, you'll be safe too," he said.

She smiled and gently shook her head. "Boys really don't care for a girl like me, brother," she said. "They take one look at me and run."

Snare-Oh shook his head. "Then they're blind," he said before smiling at her. "You'll find someone, just as your sister has."

Rachel chuckled. "Perhaps," she said. "But for now, I'm content and happy for our sister."

He nodded as they continued dancing.

Sasha looked at Whampire and blushed before taking a deep breath. "Whampire?" She asked.

"Yes?" He replied.

"Do you...like me? Like...more than just a friend?"

He paused in the dance before looking at her and then looking around. "Let's go somewhere a little more private," he said, taking her hand. "Do you trust me?"

She nodded and let him guide her to a part of the garden that was mostly hidden so that they had some privacy. The Vladat took a deep breath. "Sasha, what I'm about to tell you might change things a bit," he said.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

He took another deep breath. "When a Vladat meets the person that will be their future mate, our eyes glow and our heartbeat quickens," he said. "And it only happens when we are next to or gazing at the person we are meant to be with." He gently took her hands. "When I first laid eyes on you, my eyes glowed and my heartbeat sped up. Vamps gently snapped me out of it and I kept quiet because I didn't want to scare you. You were just starting to wrap your mind around aliens existing and I felt that if you knew that I had a crush on you, it would have been too much for you all at once."

She smiled at him. "Then it wasn't a trick of the light?" She asked. "I did see your eyes glow when you looked at me?"

He blushed. "I guess I couldn't exactly keep it under wraps," he admitted. "But yes, you did."

Sasha smiled at him. "Whampire, I've...had a crush on you for a while now," she admitted. "It started when you had checked on me after my flashback and you were intent on making sure I was alright and proving you meant me no harm." She now blushed. "I...I do really like you. Do you think...your father would allow us to date?"

"I would," Vampiro said, making them both jump and Sasha clung to Whampire, who wrapped his arms around her protectively before they breathed a sigh of relief at seeing it was just the king.

"Father, you startled us," Whampire admitted.

"I can see that," the king chuckled. "I noticed you two sneaking away, but I only just got over here in time to hear Sasha asking if I would let you two date."

Sasha breathed a sigh of relief at that, though her face was still a bit red. Vampiro chuckled. "Son, I expect you to treat her like a lady, royalty or otherwise," he said, his voice taking a serious tone.

"Yes, Father," Whampire said with a nod.

The king then looked at Sasha and smiled. "My dear, while I know you are a lady and your mother raised you well, I do have a request," he said.

"Yes, Your Majesty?" She asked.

"Do treat my son well and never betray him," he said seriously. "I know you are both destined to be mates, but both of you must always be honest with each other." He looked at her. "Can you promise me that?"

Sasha nodded. "Yes," she said. "You have my word that I will not betray Whampire or any of you."

He nodded, smiling. "Come," he said. "Before Rachel or Vamps begin to wonder where you both are."

Blushing, Whampire and Sasha came out and Rachel looked over at them, a knowing smile on her face as she winked at them.

Little did they know, they would all have a couple of visitors soon.

Looks like the ship of love is sailing for Whampire and Sasha. :)

Please leave a review, but no flames!

GoldGuardian2418