Sun & Moon

Chapter 27 - Bianca

I don't know why I decide to rush into the underground hall, but I do and it completely does not occur to me that the elders would be down here in the middle of their circle of meditation. Whether they notice me or not is another thing as they don't seem to be breaking out of their trance when I place Valentina's cold body on the floor.

I check her backpack to see if she has any packed blood bags and, fortunately, she does. I unscrew the opening and shove it into her mouth, massaging her throat to drink it. The more she does, the warmer her body gets as she clenches onto the bag.

"Hey," Ganzorig whisper-shouts as he descends the steps, "you shouldn't have brought her here." He looks cautiously at the elders, still mid-meditation.

Soon, Astrid and the Lycans appear, their footsteps startling the elders. They notice the vampire on the floor with me and the smell of blood. They hiss at Valentina, who is now recovered enough from drinking the blood. Despite all the commotion, I caress her face gently.

"Princess," she says softly with a weak smile on her face, her first words to me since I saw her in the forest.

I kiss her hand and ask, "What the hell are you doing here, Valentina?"

She strokes my short hair and smiles, but soon after snarls viciously at the elders behind me. I stand her up from the floor.

Ganzorig is now taking the brunt of the elder's scolding as he tries to explain the situation and the presence of a vampire in their Sanctuary. I try to explain myself, but most of the elders end up silencing me with their deadly glowers.

"What's going on?" Guru's voice booms from the stairs as he first notices the Lycans, then his brows raise a little at Valentina.

He looks at me and his nostrils flare a little. And I don't know why I feel so apprehensive to speak up now, as if I want to please this new older male figure in my life, as if he didn't just order three fighters to try to beat me up and call that training.

I stand protectively in front of Valentina.

"I promise she will do no harm," I state plainly.

Just as I ready myself to protest, he nods firmly. I hear tuts and sighs behind me from the elders, while Ganzorig keeps very quiet despite trying to stop us just a few minutes ago.

"All of you, come," Guru orders. "Including you, Ganzorig."

The Lycans follow first with Astrid trailing Rio closely. She looks back at me and at Valentina. I smile at her but she looks away dismissively. Ganzorig goes out next, then Valentina and I, arm-in-arm.

As Guru and Rio exchange words in the front, I ask Valentina how she's even walking in daylight. She twists the reddish gold ring on her finger in response and looks cautiously at Ganzorig. I catch onto her look and the danger of anyone else knowing that she could easily be burnt to a crisp by removing the daylight ring, the first I've ever seen of one.

"Princess, I'm sorry I didn't come with you in the first place," she says. "I'm such a coward."

I smile thinking, yeah you are.

"There's so much more I want to say to you, but, uh," she sighs as she looks ahead, "I'll wait till nightfall."

We enter a three-storied house built with wood and stones with a roof that curves out, on top of which rests a thick layer of snow. Inside, the house is barren and dim. Guru employs Ganzorig's help to light up some lanterns and even orders him to make tea, which he grumpily obeys. Guru tells the others to set their bags down and to sit in the living space by the fire he starts up. With more light now, I see a picture frame hung on top of the mantel of a younger looking Guru, a woman on his arm and four rowdy children surrounding them. This is Guru's home. Yet why does it feel so empty?