Delilah felt someone enter her thoughts without her permission the second she saw a faint color of red mixed in Eona's own aura as if there was something suppressed inside her. He did in a way that rendered her ability useless. And the way he commanded her not to say anything made fear arise in her chest because she felt that she had no choice but to follow, as if he took control of her body like it was his own. And for him to do that so easily to a Silver Blood vampire like her, he must have been someone who is strong enough to overpower her. Who is he?
"I will not erase your memories, Lady Eberstein. Just as long as you stay silent," the male voice warned her.
"What if the crown prince will order me to have my memories read?"
"That won't be a problem. I can control what the readers can and cannot read from your mind. The girl's safety is my priority and if she ever was put in danger because of you, I will not hesitate to be the reason of your family's fall. Until then, Lady Eberstein, I bid you farewell."
Before Delilah could finally reach their table, she subtly glanced in Eona's direction, who at that moment was teasing their kingdom's crown prince. She knew how Rouen acts around people. He is cold and heartless, evil and ruthless. That was the image he had surrounded himself ever since he was born so the nobility and aristocrats steer clear from his way whenever they could everytime he is the palace. The only time they could breathe was when he was not there to monitor them all. It was actually quite shocking to see him spending his time with a girl - a human being at that, just as when he had just returned after having been gone from the court for so long.
Without using her ability, she could still faintly see her aura which still looked like it was tainted with another color, something that shouldn't have been.
"Who is she, really?" Delilah thought to herself before turning her back on Eona and Rouen.
The prince and Eona were standing in front of the cake display chiller when she subtly looked at the man beside her with joy gleaming in her purple-colored eyes. Rouen was staring at the cakes displayed in front of them like they were some kind of temptation which he knew he needed to avoid but didn't have any choice but to face them because of her. She almost laughed at the way he was seriously thinking about which one he would pick out of all the cakes displayed in the chiller for the customers to see in their glory because she never expected that a vampire like him would give so much thought to such a trivial matter when he could just pinpoint what he wanted to try or what had caught his eye the first time.
The employee who was waiting for their orders stood there awkwardly as she watched how the prince let his human companion tease him in public in a vampire territory because it is something that doesn't happen often. In fact, it never happened at all until now.
Not everyone is actually allowed to get near him. Anyone who wishes to meet Rouen even before either failed to do so or needed to be called for an audience. He is not someone whom people can freely get close to because he has put a barrier as high as the palace walls around him. And to see him letting a human girl do what she does to him in public makes them wonder what is it she did to be able to wreck the walls surrounding the heart of their kingdom's crown prince.
"Is this by any chance your first time in a cake shop?"
"I grew up in the palace where I can ask for anything I need and they will bring it to me without questions - even if it is a cake."
Eona laughed softly as her purple-eyes glistened with glee. "So I guess that is a 'yes'?"
Rouen didn't say anything.
"That is a 'yes'," Eona answered to her own question and smiled to herself before she looked at the shop's attendant behind the counter. "Can we please get slices of strawberry cake, red velvet, and marble? Kindly add manggo pudding and fruit tarts, too? Oh, and slices of chocolate mousse, then your cake for today."
"Certainly, my lady."
"Are you going to eat all that?" Rouen asked, bemused, as he looked down at her and then back at the cakes.
He frowned. Where is she going to store all those calories in that small body of hers?
"No. We are going to eat all that. There is no way I can eat all of it alone." She paused for a moment before she continued. "Well, I can if given enough time. Cohen once mentioned that born vampires can take in food and ascertain flavors from the things you eat, so you are going to help me finish all of that today. I don't want to be the only one eating while you watch without consuming anything. That would be quite… disconcerting."
"I didn't know you had a sweet tooth."
"Well, you didn't ask."
After making sure of what they really wanted to get, both of them were assisted to a table for two by the window where they could see the street view and some passers-by. While Eona chatted, Rouen listened attentively. She must be the only woman he loves listening to as she talks about the things that attract her interest. He could see in his peripheral view that most of the people inside the cake shop with them were looking in their direction every once in a while, wondering and at the same time feeling envious of Eona, who was freely doing everything she wanted in front of him without any restraints and fear that he might kill her on the spot. He knew Eona noticed them too but chose to act oblivious about it.
They didn't have to wait for long when the cakes placed in porcelain saucers arranged beautifully in a three-tierred porcelain stand were served to their table along with small silver cake forks. Rouen couldn't help himself but smile when Eona giggled in her seat like a child as her eyes feasted on the sweets before her. She looked like she couldn't wait to dig in and help herself with the cakes in front of her.
"The macarons and cookies are in the house, my lady," the server answered Eona's silent question as she stared at the sweets that accompanied their orders when served. "What beverage would you like to have it with?"
"Do you have butterfly pea tea?" Eona inquired after thinking for a while.
"Yes, my lady, we do. Would you like me to serve it brewed or would you prefer to brew it on your own?"
"I would like to brew it on my own, thank you."
"Please excuse me and I'll have the tea set ready for you."
"Thank you."
Just after the waitress left them on their table, Eona immediately held onto the fork and dug into the strawberry cake first. She took a piece of it and the flavor exploded in her mouth. If she had forgotten that she was with Rouen, the crown prince of this kingdom, she would have moaned in delight. Sweets are a part of her happiness and she just found the heaven of it here in Laudicea of all places.
Rouen watched her eat with gusto. She didn't mind any table manners which the noble vampire ladies he knew followed strictly by the book but she still held herself like a lady would nonetheless. She acted naturally and didn't hide anything from him, which he surprisingly accepted with open arms because he knew she was being real with him. She only stopped stuffing her mouth with the cake when she noticed him watching her.
"Do you not want to eat?"
"I do, but I like watching you eat at the moment."
She smiled before she took a piece from her cake using the fork she was holding before she held it in front of him.
"Take a bite," she said, unaware that she had just commanded him, the crown prince of the kingdom she was in, to do something, in the presence of his subjects.
Rouen unknowingly leaned forward while looking directly into her eyes before he did what she told him to do, as if he was bewitched to follow every word she just said and when a mischievous smile etched its way into her lips as she stared at him while her chin was resting on her left hand perched on the table, he pulled back immediately with the cake already in his mouth. His face tinted pink because he just remembered that they were not the only ones in the shop at the moment. A few obvious gasps and squeals echoed around them and he knew it came from the vampire ladies who heard what Eona said and saw what he had just done in return.
Eona giggled. She did not expect to see him blushing, even though only slightly, but even if that was so, he was still as handsome as when he had his guard up.
"Sweet, isn't it?"
Rouen did not answer and just gaped at her while he had his slightly fisted hand in front of his mouth to hide his embarrassment. He could not believe she could do something like that to him without any second thoughts.
"Why are you blushing?" Eona asked with a teasing smile on her lips, pretending not to know the reason to make him feel uncomfortable even more. It is a payback for what he did back in the dining hall this morning.
"It is… nothing," he answered after he cleared his throat and took back his composure.
He awkwardly avoided looking in the vampire ladies' direction because he knew they were still unabashedly watching at that moment, probably thinking about what might happen next between them, as if they were watching a live scene from a movie which had taken their interest. He is quite sure that rumors about him and a human girl spending the day alone in the city without any sentinels with them will spread around like wild fire once the vampire ladies go out of their own way later on. Gossiping is, after all, a pastime for them every time they attend tea parties and such. It is what makes them hold power in the kingdom, because they could put anyone at a high pedestal or ruin them with just a single world.
"Really now?" Eona then took another piece and took it into her mouth. "Or did you somehow realize that we just shared the same fork?"
Rouen stared at her and then looked at the fork she was currently using. His face blushed red even more when it came to his awareness that what Eona said was right.
"Charming," she whispered, knowing that he could hear what she said and she saw how Rouen's eyes playfully glared at her, which made her giggle at the sight of him getting embarrassed because of her.
Before she could tease him more, the tea set for the tea she ordered came along with dried butterfly pea flowers placed in a bowl along with sliced limes and honey syrup. Eona gave her thanks before she helped herself in preparing the tea for her and the prince. The water in the tea pot had been boiled so she just poured and seeped the dried flowers in there. The tea pot is made of glass and Rouen watched how the water turned blue after a while and when Eona stirred it, the hue turned even darker. After a while, Eona poured the tea into the glass tea cups.
"Would you like to have it as it is or would you prefer to have a little lime or honey mixed with it?"
"I'll have it as it is first, thank you," he said as he received the tea cup she was giving him along with a glass saucer plate where it was placed.
Rouen inhaled the tea, which came with a unique scent. With his enhanced sense of smell, he smelled that the dried flowers were woody and earthy and had a similar scent to that of tempeh, which is a traditional Indonesian food made from fermented soybeans. After it was steeped, the scent changed to a lightly citric and sour, similar to hibiscus tea. Regarding the taste, the flavor is highly delicate. It is slightly sweet and woody, with a light floral taste. It is deeply refreshing and not that intense as one would expect from the smell. He watched her silently as she mixed in a little bit of lime juice in her tea and after a while the blue water slowly turned purple.
"It's the color of your eyes. Is that why you particularly requested for it?"
"No. I just haven't had it for a while now," Eona answered as she added honey syrup which made the purple hue turn into an almost pink shade.
After taking a small sip, Eona focused her attention on him before she asked, "What usually happens in a soiree?"
"Here in Aceldama, it is usually a social gathering of vampires who belong in high society with few Blooded here and there from each Houses. They held it every year, hosted mostly by the court members either in their Duchy or in a manor they owned away from their territory. There is also a time when the host of the event is from the Gentry who use their own home as a reception for the gathering. Most of the time, our race use such occasions as a time to get acquainted with each other, learn any news from one another or introduce the New Bloods, the newly turned vampires from their Houses in society."
"That sounded normal."
Rouen chuckled. "Of course it does. I haven't told you about the gruesome part yet."
That caught Eona's interest. "What do you mean?"
"A soiree hosted by vampires can never be normal for a natural gem, no matter how beautiful it is. It is called the 'night of the vampires' after all. There may have been a law that protects a natural from a vampire, but soirees are used to show the power a vampire has over human beings. You have just recently learned about our existence, so I am telling you now for you to not be completely horrified tomorrow night when you get to see it for yourself at the soiree you are going to attend for the first time. Vampires bring their blood donors with them on such occasions and drink directly from their veins at the same time when the moon is at its peak."
"Midnight?"
"Yes. It is a part of the contract a human has with his or her vampire employers - a tradition which has never been broken."
Eona stared at him, speechless. It only means her mother is going to participate in that too.
"I was actually wondering why my godfather, the Duke of Lohengrin Duchy, included you as one of his guests. That will only mean you will get to witness such a thing happening to your own mother. Besides, if an uncontracted human being attends such occasions, there is a high possibility that he or she will be targeted as an unwilling blood donor, not unless you yourself want to experience how it goes. Do they want you to die out of a heart attack or something? Someone as small as you might not be able to take it."
"I'm not small."
"Hmm, tell me about it. Is that why you hardly reach my shoulder?"
She playfully threw a dried butterfly pea flower at him. "Wait until I'm wearing heels," she told him confidently because right now she's only wearing doll shoes for comfort.
He laughed. "I look forward to it."
She was about to retort but then she remembered something. "Is it safe for me to be there at that moment?"
"I will make it safe for you, precious."
Eona guessed that she was not going to be safe if something went amiss.
Rouen knew that without him, Sin or Cohen around her, the soiree would surely not be safe for her because if a vampire, whether male or female, ever found and had taken an interest in her, a human being who is alone and uncontracted during the night of the vampires, they would surely make a meal out of her. Her blood is different and any vampire can tell it is once they get a whiff of it. It is because every natural's blood all smells the same and only their other half can differentiate them from the rest, but hers is a whole new different level. When her blood was spilled on the forest floor, it smelt of spring - of roses and other fragrant flowers there were. It gave off the note that it is the kind of blood which should not be spilled in any form, but once it is, it will entice all blood-sucking beings to have a taste of it. It's as if she was a being so precious no one should cause her any harm if that even makes sense.
He had told her the gruesome part of a vampire's life, but it didn't mean he was going to make her experience it. He would rather have her stay ignorant of all the horrifying things that their world has to readily offer than make her go through just one of them.
"Are you going to be drinking from someone's vein tomorrow night?"
"Why, don't you want me to?"
Eona glared at him. Here she was being serious about the situation and he just had to kid about it.
He chuckled before he finally decided to be serious about it. "I never drink from a human's vein, not unless I lose control of my own self, which happened a few times in the span of two centuries. I am far from perfect, gem. My instinct as a vampire sometimes surfaces and no one, not even Sin, can stop me from killing. And every time I get my rationality back, it is only after I have killed my victims by sucking their blood dry from their veins. Remember what Sin said this morning? That is him telling you in the most subtle way about my killing spree."
"I…" Eona started to say but decided to close her lips and swallow her words before she frowned.
Rouen reached out and held her hand. It was then when she noticed her hands were shaking. Did fear finally settle in her heart and cloud the curiosity she had?
"Should I not have said anything about what's going to happen tomorrow night?"
"No, I appreciate you telling me about it actually. If I attended the soiree without knowing anything, I couldn't tell what would happen to me."
He tightened his hold on her hand to let her know he was there by her side. "Are you alright?"
She nodded but chose to remain silent. Rouen knew she was far from being alright at the moment because he could clearly hear her heart beating erratically.
"I will keep you safe, gem. I promise."
Rouen knew Eona's mood had changed. She is probably imagining how the naturals' bloodletting to the vampires who employed them as blood donors will turn out or how it will affect her literally once she witness it happening especially to her own mother, tomorrow night right in front of her eyes. When they finished all the cakes she ordered, they went on their way, leaving the squealing and giggling ladies who seemed to have no plans of leaving the shop yet. Delilah, who just watched them leave with a smile only slightly nodded her head down when he looked at her.
Rouen looked at Eona who still had not said a word upon their exit at Dulciuri. "I have to drop you off at Cohen's manor when we are done exploring the city because, as the daughter of his blood donor whom he included as his guest, you have to be there with him when the soiree starts. My family will be there a little later, so you will be sleeping in the Crystal Manor tonight. It is where the soiree he is hosting will be held away from the Lohengrin Duchy."
"Am I going to take part in it?"
"Yes, but just a simple introduction to the vampire society with you being one of the members of the Lorentz family who had served Cohen from the very beginning."
They continued roaming around Laudicea without any particular destination until he noticed Eona had become noticeably happy, forgetting about what he said to her a while ago. They explored the famous buildings and gardens around the city and Rouen could see how Eona seemed to embrace all of the beautiful things his world is offering her at that certain time. It was past sundown when they found themselves standing in front of Cohen's manor. The butler, a vampire who looks like he is in his late twenties, might have received earlier instructions from Cohen himself with regards to the time of their arrival because he was there waiting to welcome them upon their arrival.
"I welcome you to the Crystal Manor, future ruler of the kingdom of Aceldama, crown prince Rouen and Lady Lorentz! His Grace is out of the moment and will be back later this evening but we have been informed of Lady Lorentz' arrival so we have the beige room ready for her to rest in. Would you like to take a breather while we serve you some refreshments in the drawing room?"
"I have to decline because I need to get back to the palace due to some things I need to tend to."
Eona whipped her head on her side, her eyes wide with fear. She held onto his arm tightly, not wanting to be left in a place where the people she knew were not presently there at the moment and the only ones left were all vampire servants who were serving the house of Cohen Lohengrin.
"You're going to leave me here?"
He nodded. "You are at Cohen's manor, gem, and his servants know you are his guest, so they are not going to touch you as long as they don't want to be killed on the spot by the Duke who has given them a house to call their own after being turned into the vampires that they are right now. You are safe here just as long as you don't go outside the gates of the Crystal Manor, because no vampire from outside Lohengrin Duchy will dare to try and enter the premises without his permission."
Rouen could still see the fear and doubt in her eyes, so he looked at the butler. His eyes glistened in warning, making him know that if ever Eona would be put to danger in Cohen's absence, him, the crown prince of Laudicea would make sure their whole coven paid for it with their own lives.
"Keep her safe."
The butler bowed his head. "I will, your highness. You have my word."
"Wait for me, precious. I will be here tomorrow night," he said to her before he held her hand and gently kissed the back of it. "Be safe."
With one last glance in her direction after Rouen said his goodbye, he disappeared right in front of her.
The butler introduced himself as Yule and he told her that he would be attending to her needs personally, along with one of the maids working in the manor. When Eona started to feel at ease at the Crystal Manor, even with the presence of vampires who work in it, she finally followed Yule to where her room is on the second floor of the manor to take a rest.
As per Cohen's instructions, the servants have prepared the beige room for her to stay in, which has a veranda where she can see the whole landscaped garden from there. Her mother must have told the Duke that she particularly liked garden views from her room, so they prepared a room where she could see one. It wasn't as extravagant as the room she occupied in the palace because it was more simple, but it was beautiful nonetheless. It has its own sophistication that completely belongs to the manor's interior design. The queen-sized bed with plush pillows, silk comforter and blankets was pushed towards one corner with two console tables on each of its sides where two lampshades were placed and a receiving area where couches were placed was in the corner opposite the bed from the door near the built-in fireplace. There is a crystal chandelier hanging on the ceiling which has intricate linings painted in gold. The floor where a white fur carpet was spread is entirely made of cut marble and the velvet draperies used to block out the sunlight from outside during the day is hanging from the ceiling down to the marbled floor.
One thing came to her mind while looking around the room they prepared for her: the Duke of Lohengrin is filthy rich, probably next to the royal family when it comes to wealth. No wonder her family lives in luxury in the world of the living. Her family's employer is capable of providing them with enough and much more, even if her family lets go of their couturier business.
Yule then guided her towards a built-in closet which to her seemed like another room inside her bedroom. It was there that she saw an expensive-looking champagne gold ball gown with a sweetheart neckline on a headless female mannequin. It is made of lace and shiny organza and the back design is a lace-up with a chapel train. It is a floor-length gown with decorations and designs made of pearl beading, sequins, small diamonds and flowers and its sleeves are literally strands of crystals as if it was custom-made for someone. The gown was accompanied with a golden masquerade mask to be tied using a ribbon at the back of one's head. It is designed and decorated with white feathers and intricate filigree lines around the right eye along with small diamond stones like the gown itself. Looking at it, the theme of the soiree tomorrow night must be masquerade.
"Are the stones real?"
"Yes, my lady. It came in this morning from the palace along with the jewelry. According to the servants who have been tasked to deliver it here, the queen said it is a gift for you."
"For me?" She asked, surprised.
How did they even get her size and how did they even finish it so soon when she just arrived here yesterday?
"Yes. Didn't they tell you anything about it?"
"No, they did not."
Or maybe the queen wasn't able to because she didn't see her this morning and Rouen looked like he didn't have any idea about it also, because if he did, he would have mentioned a thing or two.
She walked towards the jewelry set placed on the glass table beside the gown. It is a diamond choker necklace paired with drop earrings. With the way the stone shined with the light, she knew the stones were also real. How could they just gift her such expensive things when they just met her not too long ago? For the queen to be sending her such things, she must be expecting her to wear them at the soiree tomorrow night.
She had her own gown, but since she chose to bring the simplest one, it didn't compare to the luxurious one right in front of her, and after learning how extravagant vampires are - that they wear gowns on a daily basis like it was in the olden times in the world of the living, she knew that the best decision is to accept this gift and wear it on the soiree where vampires will gather. But won't it make her stand out so much from the rest? She could tell it was very well made and the materials used had been given with so much thought.
"Does my mother know about these gifts?"
"Yes, my lady."
"Did she say anything?"
Yule looked at her as if to check what she would feel with the words that he was about to say. "She said it was thanks to these that you are not going to attend the soiree and embarrass yourself with your own... unmindfulness."
"And?"
Yule gave out a sigh. "And that she will burn the gown you brought with you to make sure you won't have a choice but to wear this one."
She almost laughed at that. She already expected to hear her own mother say those words. She had always been a person who minded the way one presented themselves in society anyway. But she was thankful, because the gown she brought with her appeared to be something like a vampire lady's daily attire.
"Would you like to have your dinner in the dining area or would you prefer to have it served here in your room, my lady? The Duke and your mother will be arriving later tonight and His Grace told us this morning to make sure you eat your dinner before you go to sleep."
"I'll have it here, thank you."
"Then I will have to excuse myself first, Lady Lorentz. I will be back with your dinner later. Please have a good rest."
ns 15.158.61.8da2
