Lost in the Castle

~19~

"Will he... change her?" I asked, remembering all the things Clara's father had said, how he wanted her to stay human. At least for the moment.

"Clara is very impatient and stubborn. She is not making it easy for him, you know? If it was for her, she would be one of us already. But knowing Ioan, he will try to keep her human as long as he can resist her," Junior said, grinning.

"Well, that would please her father; he wants her to stay human. But isn't it kind of inconvenient for a vampire, to marry a human? To have one of us so close, I mean," I asked with growing curiosity.

"Inconvenient?" He laughed at my choice of words. "Tempting, you mean? No, not for those like us-- me, Ioan, my father... Not all the vampires are the same, Samara."

"I know that! Of course, I can see how different you are from the others," I said. You don't even have fangs!

We rode in silence for a while; I needed some time to consider how to word my next question. Should I ask? Will he make fun of me? Oh, whatever. I wanted to know.

"If Clara stays human, then she will grow older and Ioan... he will stay so young forever... right?"

"You've been thinking about it already, I knew it," Junior said, lips curling into a smile.

He could be so annoying sometimes. I shouldn't have asked. My hurt feelings must have shown on my face because after a short while, he added, "I'm sorry, Samara. I'll behave, I promise. It just seems that most of you, human girls, are more scared of growing old than being changed and risking your lives in the process. Humans are so very delicate, they usually die during the transition," he added gently. "You have no idea how dangerous it is."

If he wanted to scare me, he was doing well. I swallowed hard before asking, "How does it work, then? Explain."

"Have you asked Father about it? Has he told you it's probably how you died that time?" he asked, his voice rising slightly as if he was talking to a small, frustrating child.

"Is that what he thinks?" I asked, surprised.

"Yes. He wasn't here when it happened, but from what those who found you told him, yes."

"I had no idea. And I asked him to change me," I murmured, feeling suddenly guilty and vain.

I was so absorbed in our conversation that I didn't realise we were nearly at our destination. The calm surface of the lake shone and glittered through the trees in front of us, a veil of fog lifting slowly off the deep blue water, revealing its perfect beauty. I jumped off my horse and continued walking towards the bank, leaving Junior to deal with the animals.

Why ever did I ask Vlad to change me? Did I unintentionally make him relive all the pain again? I couldn't know, of course...
Wrapping my arms tightly around my body, I started pacing along the shore, quite oblivious to the ethereal beauty of the place. I was mad at myself and cold and scared... I missed him.

"Did I say something wrong?" Junior's voice reached me from somewhere behind.

I stopped and sat down on a fallen tree trunk. It was huge and ancient, completely covered with thick green moss. Junior sat down next to me, and I noticed that his eyes were the same colour of the lush moss. And with a sudden sharp pang in my heart, I noticed how similar they were to his father's.

I mustn't look in his eyes, I thought, looking over the lake. I had no idea what time it was, but it was getting dark quite fast. Vlad will be back soon. I closed my eyes, craving his proximity, his words, his touch...

"You are so... unexpected, Samara," Junior said after a while. "You come back after centuries remembering next to nothing about your life here. You find the man you used to love, but greatly changed-- he is a vampire. And instead of running for the hills, you immediately ask him to change you, make you a monster like himself!"