"By the time morning came, I had finished two of the bookshelves. It was overwhelming how quickly I could read and it hadn't even felt like I was trying. My mind was swamped with all this new information that couldn't process right. I couldn't believe the world my father had kept away from me, nor could I understand then why. I had thought at the beginning of the night that learning all about what I had become would sway my feelings towards my new life, but my heart swayed further from it. Sitting in the darkness, as pleasing and quiet as it was, wasn't what I yearned for, neither was this newfound power. I wanted my Rosetta. I hadn't been able to love her properly in any form in months.
I had been too afraid to even kiss her, terrified that my father's fever had jumped to me and would take her before it eventually would take me. Brief touches was all that I allowed. It was hard to remember when the last time I'd been able to reach out without worrying about the strength in my arm vanishing as I tried to touch her face. I wanted to rush to her and show her how much I had improved. Each page I turned was another that was read out of force as I began to sense that the sun was rising. It was strange, to suddenly be able to feel the world around me. I felt connected to nature in a way I had never been before. While I knew Rosetta would wake soon and that I wanted to greet her the very moment she opened her eyes, I was held back by fear.
Without a mirror, I had little idea of how the jewel had changed me. I didn't know what I still carried with me from my human life, if anything. I knew my skin had become pale and that I had grown fangs, but aside from my facial features and features in general, I was lost. What if I had become a terrifying creature? It was possible, as Trevor's family had abandoned him out of fear. Would Rosetta do the same?
I contemplated the idea for what felt like to me only several minutes, but my body told me otherwise. Above me, I could hear the servants beginning to move around. Their sudden movements alerted me to remember another thing that I had read; that most of the servants weren't humans. It all made sense to me then why you all ignored my illness back then. You didn't want to expose yourselves when I wasn't ready. I appreciate it more now than I did then. I felt nervous to approach the people I had grown up around with this new knowledge. It all pushed itself to the back of my mind as I heard someone moving directly above me beginning to stir.
Without being able to control myself, I quickly ran away from the desk I had been focused on all night and returned myself to the mansion. I knew it was Rosetta. As I neared our bedroom, a sweet scent that was a mix between vanilla and roses consumed me. I didn't need to guess who it belonged to. I kept myself in the shadow of our closet, forcing myself to stay out of her sight until I could figure this out. The ability I had once had at remaining still was long gone. This new power made me more impulsive than I would have liked.
I still didn't want to frighten her before I got the chance to explain myself. I thought that merely seeing her would be enough to settle my yearning for the moment, or at least until I had gained enough courage to finally face her.
My worry of being too far away to see her vanished as Rosetta began to move upon the balcony again. When I focused upon her, my gaze centered and she became all that I saw. I held my breath as she sat up and began to stretch. I had thought that Rosetta was beautiful when I had first met her, and still thought so, but seeing her with the eyes of this creature I had become was entirely different.
The words I would need to describe her don't compare to how she looked to me and how it felt in that moment. The morning sun was reflecting off her skin, allowing her color to shimmer in the light. The scent of vanilla and roses was overwhelming from where I looked. Each movement she made was slow and graceful, all in ways I had never noticed nor appreciated before. I watched in awe as she took a deep breath, it being followed by a steady beat that I quickly recognized as her heart. Her slim arm reached out blindly beside her as her gaze looked up to the morning sky. If I hadn't known better, I would have thought her hand belonged to a porcelain doll.
When she found no one beside her, Rosetta rubbed at her eyes and looked behind her into the bedroom. The green eyes I had fallen in love with now sparkled like no other. My vision allowed me to look closer into her eyes, without ever leaving my spot beside the closet. In her eyes, I saw the reflection of the entire room. I watched her eyelashes flutter as she brought herself to her feet and was able to count each blink as she stepped back into our bedroom. 'Vladimir?' She called out, glancing back over her shoulder at the balcony as she began to yawn.
Her voice echoed in my head as if she were singing. I would have enjoyed how I was seeing her longer, had her still expression not suddenly turned to panic. Her eyes grew wide as she glanced around the room, mainly focusing upon the freshly made bed she had touched the night before. Before my very eyes, Rosetta's face paled and I could sense her heart beginning to race.
She stumbled out of the bedroom and into the hallway after throwing the bedroom door open. 'Where's Vladimir?" Rosetta called out, her breath quickening as she clutched her hands at her chest. I could hear the tremble in her voice as she disappeared out of my sight. 'Has anyone seen my Vladimir? Where is he?!'
The pain in her voice reminded me all too much of how I had felt when we had first come home to find that my father had already passed in my absence. I didn't want to imagine what she had thought happened. I remained in my hiding place while she left, ignoring my ache to follow her. I would scare her and I wasn't ready for it. Some relief filled me as she tugged Franklin into the room.
'He's gone, Franklin!' Rosetta motioned to the room. 'We fell asleep on the balcony last night, and I woke to find him missing!' Even though she had already looked through the room once, she began to look again.
'He's too weak to walk on his own. He couldn't have gone far,' Franklin assured her, though made no movement to help her look. I watched his eyes glance towards the closet while her back was turned. Briefly, Franklin's eyes met mine. He was quick to look away when Rosetta turned back.
'I don't understand how this could have happened. He was with me the entire night!' She cupped her hands over her mouth as her watery eyes began to release tears.
I felt myself twitch as I watched the first tear fall to the floor. I felt helpless as she cried, feeling worse knowing I was the one who had caused it.
Franklin turned his back towards me, offering her his arm. 'Madam Rosetta, please calm down. I'm sure he is just fine. He must have recovered at some point during the night. We'll find him.' He assured.
To both of our surprise, Rosetta refused his arm. 'I want all plans for today cancelled. I refuse to continue anything until we find him.' She decided, wrapping her arms around herself as she allowed herself to sit upon the bed. More tears made their way down her face.
'But ma'am-'
'All plans cancelled,' she repeated without lifting her gaze.
Franklin sighed quietly, glancing my way once he realized she wouldn't look. I couldn't tell if his gaze was disappointed or concerned, maybe even both. 'I will let them know, then. Rest assured, milady, that Vladimir is safe wherever he is. We will find him, I promise you.' He bowed his head to my wife and quietly left the room. I could hear him begin to whisper to the other servants. Without a shadow of a doubt, he knew what had happened.
Rosetta stayed quietly at our bed with her gaze stuck upon her hands. She silently began to turn the ring upon her hand and started to weep. My heart began aching once more.
Yet still, I dared not move as she was left alone. I couldn't find the courage just yet. I assured myself that when the moment revealed itself, I would come out and talk to her. I was afraid of when it would come, knowing completely well that Rosetta could leave out of fright.
I decided the best possible way to wait for the right moment would be to follow her around for the day. If I stayed close enough, I'd be able to detect when the moment would come. It quickly became clear that all the servants knew what had happened, however.
As Rosetta helped with their searching, after she had recovered from the initial shock, I noticed their eyes lingering upon me. None were searching as hard as she was, but all had the same expression upon their faces. They were confused.
Why hasn't he told her? It was the question I could clearly read on everyone's face.
When I realized that all the servants knew, I stopped trying to hide as hard. I only hid from Rosetta's eyes, which was easier to do anyway. I focused on her back, my own guilt building each time her panic increased.
Over the hours, Rosetta became numb.
Her sadness destroyed me. I wasn't sure if the anticipation of telling her was worse than watching her fall apart before my eyes. I hadn't meant to do this to her.
Rosetta was sitting on the edge of our bed with her back to me, weeping, when the moment came to me. I would rather be the one suffering than her. I refused to let this charade continue for much longer. My chest ached for her.
The longer I watched her, the weaker I grew. I became irrational as I recognized that the moment had arrived. There was no hiding it from her any longer. Silently, I stepped away from the shadows and closer to the bed. I kept my eyes upon her, afraid of her seeing me before I was ready even though it was minutes away.
'Don't turn around,' I said aloud, wondering if my voice had betrayed my emotion. I was trying to think things through before I acted on them, but it had become increasingly difficult. I briefly thought it was a bad idea to expose her to something like this, to make her choose when I could have ignored my heart and walked away. It was quickly overpowered, as love is something that is hard to push away. Love can be selfish sometimes, and reckless. Hardly do we ever think of the consequences that are bound to come in the future. We only think of the present.
And that's exactly what I did.
'My dearest Rosetta, it's me; Vladimir. Don't be alarmed. I am still with you, but not in the sense that you first imagined,' I paused, trying to think over my next words carefully. However, Rosetta didn't listen.
She turned with wide eyes, her heart racing faster than I had ever noticed before. 'Vladimir!' Her voice held excitement, joy even. It quickly changed as she gasped, her expression switching quickly to fear as she saw what I had become.
I swallowed, unsure of what changes had been made to me. I stiffened my body, quick to avoid her eyes. The pain came washing over me as I wondered if that was it, if she was done with me. 'I told you not to turn around. You didn't listen.' I frowned.
'Get away from me! You aren't my Vladimir!' Rosetta stood, keeping herself facing me. I watched as her fear hardened into a side of her that I had yet to see before. She hesitantly took several steps back, reaching blindly behind her to one of the nightstands. Despite the brave look she held in her eyes, her lips were paling and her fingers were trembling. 'You're a monster!'
I had told myself throughout the day that if she denied me in such a way, I would respect it and leave, that I would send a letter to Caelum. Thinking it and acting upon it were entirely different. All my control went out the window and I felt like a frightened child. 'Rosetta, please! It's me, I promise you!' I remained still, but she only shook her head and cried out for help.
I could have left then. I could have walked away from it all. It would have saved us both the pain of reality and cruelty. We would have been happy in our ways, safe even. Yet, my family would have been incomplete.
It's hard to decide whether I made the right decision back then. But looking upon you three now, I know that it was right. If I had walked away, I would have never been blessed with you three.
I've come to terms with that now, but back then I thought I was being selfish. I thought it was all my fault.
I began stepping away from my beloved wife, finding it hurt more that she failed to recognize whatever had become of me rather than seeing her weep. My mind couldn't fathom any image of myself that would make her think it wasn't me. 'Rosetta, please. It's me.' I slowly ran my hands across my body absentmindedly as I searched for what was the cause of her fear. I searched for all things I could think of that screamed monster. I looked for wings, horns, scales' anything that said I wasn't human. I didn't feel any.
She said nothing, merely looking upon me with uncertainty and confusion. Rosetta didn't move from her spot, hands slowly wrapping around one of the books she had left upon the nightstand. In her eyes, I couldn't find the love that had once filled them. I only saw fear. Not just any fear, but the same fear that had flickered through her eyes whenever her father was near or was brought up.
Rosetta had ever right to be afraid. I was some strange creature coming to her and claiming to be her terminally ill husband. She was in a state of panic, judging by how fast her heart was racing, and was searching for a piece of reality to cling to. This was anything but realistic. Things like this were only meant to happen in fairy tales and legends, and her and I were in neither. We had once held every element of a normal couple only hours before.
Part of me wanted to leave, just to spare her and let her believe I had perished and my body had already been disposed of by the servants. While I wasn't sure how long I could handle staring at her frightened eyes, I felt selfish enough to at least try to get through to her.
In one last attempt at getting her to believe me, I decided to give it my all. If I could give away all my secrets, perhaps she would understand. 'Don't be so quick to judge me, my dearest. Allow me to explain and to show you what I've discovered in these last hours of this strange transformation. Then, when I am finished, decide your verdict then. At the very least, give me a change.' It seemed like I was begging by then, but if it worked then I would have begged for days.
Tense seconds passed before her shoulders visibly began to relax. 'What if this is when you kill me?' Rosetta asked quietly, biting the insides of her cheeks as she fought to remain still.
I offered the only smile I could manage. 'Caelum would come for my head if I ever laid my hands upon you like that.' I thought that using context from our past would help convince her that I was who I said I was. I didn't know if she believed me, but she nodded. It was a good enough answer for me.
I didn't try to press my luck by attempting to grab her hand. Instead, I opened up the closet and revealed the hidden entrance. She had gasped, but quickly shut her mouth when she saw my eyes upon her. I didn't want to get my hopes up, but I felt that it was grand luck she was following me. If I could just show her everything, I could convince her of my innocence.
In silence, we walked down the stairs while the tiny creatures above us squeaked. I winced as her heart began speeding up once more. I didn't think I'd ever get used to being able to sense it. I led her directly into the large room I had discovered the night before, the one that was surrounded by bookshelves.
'I-I can't see anything,' Rosetta hesitated by the doorway, as if she was considering running away from it all.
It took me a moment to process that my eyes had changed. Rosetta's eyes were still human. I mumbled an apology as I hurried to the desk that still sat untouched in the middle of the room upon the little platform. I found a match in one of the drawers and lit the candle. I carried the candle all throughout the room, lighting the other candlesticks that hung around the room. It allowed light to pour through the room, revealing it all to Rosetta's eyes. I watched from the corner as she carefully stepped into the center, wide eyes looking all around her.
'What is this place?' She asked, the fear slowly disappearing from her voice. Instead, it was replaced by fascination.
This was it. This was the moment that would decide everything. I carefully blew out the candle I held, stepping more into the light where she would be able to see me better. Out of everything that I had faced before, this frightened me the most. Previous events flickered past my mind as I stared upon my wife's face. I saw myself facing off against her father, before that imaging my father dying, being abandoned by friends I had once known, and even the events of my mother's passing. All of them dulled in comparison to how important this felt.
'Do you remember that letter we found when we went through my father's office? The one with the jewel? It meant more than we thought it did.,' I started with trembling hands. I was slow to approach the desk, careful to briefly stop if she flinched as she watched me. Once I was able to place the candle back into place, I took a respectful step away from her. I didn't want to frighten her away before I had won her back over. 'It laid a curse upon me, one that I now know has haunted my family for generations upon generations. That's why I became ill. You must forgive me, but one of the days I was ill, I read through your diary. I didn't mean to and I regret the action, but it allowed me to learn about what you discovered about my ancestor, Trevor Dracula.' I peeked at her eyes as I spoke.
Rosetta's eyes slightly widened at the mention of the man's name and I knew how badly it had frightened her. She carefully wrapped her arms around herself. 'It was true?' She whispered.
I swallowed. 'Yes, my dear. What you read was true. I've been reading his journals all night, learning whatever I can about this. While I don't understand everything yet, I plan on studying until I have all the knowledge within all these journals. I promised when we wed to never harm you, and I don't intend on breaking that promise, but Rosetta, I am no longer human.' I tapped my hands nervously against my pants, knowing that it was stupid of me to tell her aloud. I wanted to be honest with her, but the price of honesty often came with healthy doses of fear. 'My grandfather called this species, as you know, vampires. It... It's what I am now.'
It was the first time I had admitted it out loud. I was a vampire. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined this possibility for myself. I waited for her reaction, finding myself examining every part of her. I watched for any flinch, movement, or twitch. I wanted to be able to read her like my grandfather's journals, but she gave no sign.
Instead, Rosetta repeated me. 'Vampires.' Cautious emerald eyes pierced through me. 'Creatures of darkness and of blood.'
I could feel my chest already beginning to split open as she spoke. I stumbled back, breaking my eyes away from her as I believed I had lost her. '...Yes.' I turned away, glancing towards the way we had entered. Would she know how to get back? I couldn't fathom that she'd want my help.
Silence fell over us. I could hear the creatures squeaking from the other room and the servants quietly moving above us, going about their day. I wondered if any of them understood what was happening beneath their feet.
To my own surprise, Rosetta approached me. She walked until she stood directly in front of me, eyes immediately locking upon mine. While she said nothing, I knew she had a purpose behind each moment. 'I am frightened, Vladimir,' Rosetta whispered as her gaze suddenly dropped to my trembling hand. 'But I made a promise that I'd care for you, no matter the situation or circumstance. I would be breaking my vow if I left you like this.' Her hand reached out and filled the spaces between my fingers.
I wanted to cry. I had been so prepared for Rosetta leaving me behind that the possibility of her wanting to stay hadn't lingered long. My knees felt weak as relief flooded through my body. I gingerly squeezed her hand, aware that it was possible I was stronger than before. I took a deep breath out of habit. 'I am frightened too, my dear.' I admitted, raising our hands up so I could kiss the back of her hand. I hesitated again as her hand neared my face. I felt her pulse strong against my hand and could sense it clearly. I hadn't thought it over before, but then realized my grave mistake. I held my breath as I placed my lips against her gentle skin. I had promised myself I would never hurt Rosetta. 'But this, I'm afraid, is my life now. It's my reality and I am sorry for that.'
She looked over me again, her free hand beginning to move through my hand as she examined it carefully. Rosetta was strangely curious about it, causing my own curiosity to grow.
'I don't have a reflection anymore,' I admitted, watching each of her tender movements. 'Please, tell me. What do I look like? Have I really changed so much that you thought I was a monster?' I asked in a whisper.
Once more, her eyes briefly widened. 'You can't see yourself?' Rosetta met my question with another question. When I didn't reply, her eyes quietly moved over me again. Then, her eyes locked on mine again. 'Your eyes have changed the most. I miss the blue.' Rosetta sighed, but tried to smile. 'Your eyes are red. Your skin is paler than anyone I've ever met before, and you're cold to the touch. I think you're taller, too.' She squeezed my hand again. 'There's a strand of white in your hair now. It makes you look older.' She removed her hand from mine and instead placed it upon my cheek, running her thumb across my cheekbone. 'The air around you is different. You're more intimidating than before.'
I wasn't sure how I felt about the changes, but I found it nice to know what had happened. At least I hadn't gotten anything crazy or extremely out of the ordinary. I relaxed into her touch, tilting my head into her hand. 'I hope you of all people aren't intimidated by me.'
Rosetta's smile began to widen. Her heart finally began to relax. 'We've overcome obstacles before. This one won't be any different than those times, just a bit harder than the last. We can, and will, do this and we'll do it together.' She dropped her hand and curled against my chest, her arms remaining close to her.
I held her, placing a gentle kiss to her head. 'Thank you.'
And in that moment, time stood completely still for the two of us."