The Secrets of Lore Seymour

Inksgiving Reward

Hello, hello friends! If you're unaware, Tapas has an event in November to support creators called Inksgiving. As a reward for that support, I wrote up an extra chapter for The Secrets of Lore Seymour and I'll write one for The Lonely Ones sometime this month. For this extra, I designed a What If scenario; What if I didn't put Seren and Lore through extreme trauma, live in a troublesome society, and they met as teenagers after living with their very loving families? lol Enjoy!

Winter is my favorite time of year for multiple reasons; snow, cuddling by the fire, soup somehow tastes even better, and The Winter Festival. For two days and nights, towns come alive with shimmering blue and silver lights designed by families, businesses, and mages. Sellers and entertainers gather on the streets to create a river of light, sounds, and amazing food. On the final night, everyone gets together to sing to the goddesses and cast lanterns into the sky. It has always been fun, however, this year I might have... gotten lost.

I don't see Mom, Dad, or Saul anywhere. One minute we were walking the streets together, the next I made a big blunder by listening to my stomach that led me towards a shop of tasty treats. My family could be anywhere. They will be in town square when the time comes, so no use panicking--that's what I repeat while pushing through the crowd munching on some sugar sticks that certainly do not help the anxiety building in my stomach.

That anxiety amplifies when I run into a brick wall; that wall being a tall dhampir's chest. A hand grasps my arm, guiding me towards them rather than letting me plummet to the cold ground. My heart's a moment away from bursting out of my chest when catching the beautiful deep blue gaze of this stranger. Long black hair is pulled back into a high ponytail, a few strands have slipped free to frame his features that offer a heart palpitating smile.

"Sorry, I didn't see you. I was in a rush," he says in a slightly high pitched tone that makes me believe he's around my age and unfairly gifted in height. Though I suppose all dhampir and vampires are.

"It's okay," I mumble, fairly certain that I am the one who ran into him, actually. I take a tentative step away even if this guy is super cute and I wouldn't mind him grasping my arm a little longer. That might mean talking though and I've yet to master how to talk to cute boys. While my friends have had their first kiss or first date, I'm left in the dust sputtering in front of any cute guy I see.

"Have you happened to see a tall woman with dark brown hair and a checkered red and white dress?" he asks, holding tightly to a small brown bag in his right hand. "She's my mom. We got separated in the crowd when I wandered off."

"O-Oh, me too." I laugh, holding up the treat that led to my lost self. "Sorry though, I haven't seen a woman like that, but uh..." I swallow hard. "W-we could look for our families together... so we aren't alone."

And definitely not because he's cute and I would mind spending more time with him.

"Okay," he replies around a coy smirk. "I'm Lore, by the way."

"Seren."

"Seren," he repeats, making me love my name in ways I never thought I would. "Nice to meet you."

"You too."

He gestures towards the street, following me through the sea of people. When someone pushes their way between us, almost making the lost boys get lost even more, Lore grasps the back of my jacket sleeve.

I raise a curious brow when he offers his arm, shrugging. "So we don't get separated," he explains.

Inner me screams in triumph. Exterior me releases a chuckled agreement while linking arms with Lore. We talk together among the silver and blue lights, warm from the overcrowded streets and each other. From time to time, I glance his way, sometimes catching him doing the same. We both smile then look ahead. Would it be so wrong to think that Lore likes walking with me like this too?