Vampiric Interdiction

[14] Where Were You?

As Karolinna closed in, leaving the many bundled birches and the arcane yet unpleasantly delightful vampire in her wake, her home began to to take form in the gloom. Tripling to three times its size from the distance of the pond known as Molten Lake, it appeared much more grand and majestic than the tiny, blurred spec she could hardly survey before. Coming up on the haunch of the mighty building’s form, she could just see a faint hazy glow emitting from around the front, and surely within it, at the magnificent front doors, a guard stood posted at each hinge.

Careful not to make a sound, Karolinna stopped swiftly at the east wall where her quarters existed just within eighteen feet of stone and brick. Human as they were, the watchmen’s senses were considerably less heightened than her own, but they still proved potent stability and she would not take any chance of being caught. Placing her palms flat against the chalky rock to steady herself, the disobedient faelna paused a moment to listen out for footsteps. When none reached her ear, confirming the sentry were not making their rounds, Karolinna lifted her foot and wedged it in the gaps between the blocks and began to climb. There wasn’t much to ascend upon, and if not for her agility, she surely would have fallen.

Several feet above the ground, her window felt much higher going up than it was jumping down hours previous, but after some effort she managed to reach the ledge. Pulling herself up atop it, she pushed the window pane up and tumbled through the opening into a summersault on the floor feeling slightly like a secret agent moving furtively in on a target .

Standing up from the loud rug she’d come to a stop on and scanning the room, she noted it to be just as empty as when she had left. The door  was shut, locked tightly in place. Karolinna breathed in the rich smell of jasmine and cherry incense she left burning in the bathroom. She was pleased to find it untainted by her mother’s mint body spray as she had hoped, and smiled. 

Karolinna’s arms felt a little rigid at first as she pulled them from the cloak around her lithe frame, like they were filled with marble stone or cement. The thick leather fell to the ground with a thud, her bag following as it slid off her shoulder, the stakes within it causing it to topple over upon impact. The wooden pieces rolled out and under the side of the bed skirt. 

Feeling heavily waterlogged with perspiration, Karolinna scrunched up her nose at the foul oder that emitted her pits as she lifted them to find the source of repulsion. It’s no surprise it came from her as the jacket was already quite toasty to begin with not to mention the combination with her heated epidermis. It was like being locked in a furnace whilst wearing a parka with the zipper melted shut.

Beads of sweat trickled around Karolinna’s ears and there was a slight sheen of moisture glistening above her upper lip. The cool air on her body felt marvellous, and the dewey drops of wetness only amplified the chill breeze as she reached up to let down her long, blonde locks and swivelled her neck so the strands fluttered through the air.

Quick to remove the rest of her clothing, leaving it in a temporary soggy pile at her feet, she examined herself in the mirror upon her desk. With a small flick of her wrist, Karolinna brought flame to the wicks of a few small candles that littered the bedside tables and desktop so she could see herself better. It was still very dim, and any mere mortal would have to squint to see anything properly, but for Karolinna it was much better than the darkness that previously consumed her. Pleased to see her skin looked and felt just as smooth as before on the greater surface area of her body, the fare one smiled at her reflection to see her cloak had done well from what she could see to shield her.

 After a few more moments of examination, the faelna reluctantly turned from her double encased in the glass and took a few steps to her bed, dropping to her knees next to it. She reached under and felt around in the dust until she found what she was searching for and pulled it out by it’s thick strap. Immediately, as if at any moment she expected someone would walk through her bedroom door and catch her in the act of something horrible, Karolinna began to stuff her wet things into the duffle’s confines. She knew she would regret doing so later, before a thorough washing, but she could not risk putting it in the hamper. She wasn’t quite prepared to answer the questions that might arise at the state of them either, cold as ice and covered in a light frosting from the night air.