A Tree That Sprouts Roses And Drips Blood.

Chapter Two.

As nights veil cloaked the outside world in darkness, my body became weary and my eyes slid closed. I couldn't sleep here, I would climb the stairs and sleep in my grandfathers bed. Grabbing my few posseions,  I left for the Royal Blue abyss that was the upstairs landing. Coming to a stop outside the bedroom door, I glanced up. The private sign was gone. Weird, I thought, but i was too tired to wonder much about it. I wrenched the door aside without a second thought.

 I stopped dead in my tracks. The bed was gone and so was everything else. Including the four walls. A large balcony stretched out, ringed with pillars of marble. Pots over flowing wth flowers, crowded the ground. And roses, rose everywhere. Their scent hung heavy in the air. The first thing that hit me was awe. The moon was so full and so close. It seemed close enough that i could reached out and touch it. The stars winked at me from their dark blanket of sky. The countryside was illuminated in the dim light and it seemed magical, unearthly somehow.

The second thing that hit me was fear. I was not alone. A man stood by the pillars, so still I hadn't noticed him at first. He seemed lost in thought, a look of unhapiness on his face. Hearing my breath catch, he turned. My fear turned to horror as I saw his eyes glowed red, like fire and they were narrowed with hostility. His nostrils flared and his grimace deepened to a scowl.

"You are standing in my roses!", he glared.

"I....what?", I asked, disorientated still by the balcony. I had spent most of my childhood here, surely i would have remembered.

I looked down at my feet and surely enough they were trampling in a bed of roses. Their stems twisted around the soles of my shoes. The red of the roses seemed odd. Surely they should be darkened somewhat by the night, but like the mans eyes, they blazed red. I lifted my feet sheepishly from the roses, a blush flooding my cheeks. Recovering from my embarassment, fear seized me again.

"How did you get in?!", I rasped and my voice cracked with panic. "Who are you?!".

The strange mans lips pulled up into a chilling smile, his eyes sparkled like rubies.

"My name is Demetrio Renaulti", he answered, dipping his head slightly.

"What are you doing here?!", my voice soared toward breaking point.

This was not the bustling city of Dublin. I was not surrounded by houses and buildings and listening ears. This was wilderness of the Dublin Moutains and I was alone here. There was no one for miles around, just forests and cliffs. I remembered how the moutains had seemed magical, otherworldly earliar. I remembered the stories i was told as a child. Leprechauns. Banshess. But neither had had glowing red eyes.

My palms began to sweat, family of vampire hunters or not, I was far out of my dept.

He turned suddenly and in that quick, lithe movement, I saw something he hadnt intended me to. The sharp edge of his pointed teeth, blood stained, just before his lips closed again and I couldn't see them anymore. His hair was a tangle of dark waves and he had Emerald green eyes. Then I noticed other things. His complexion, for one, a deathly white and the dark bruises beneath his eyes. The thin line of dried blood that encircled his mouth and splattered across his crisp, white shirt.

My mouth opened as if to scream, but no sound came out. I turned quickly for the door , but my hand was slick with sweat and the door handle wouldn't turn. I hadn't heard him, but he was there suddenly. Laying his hand on top of mine, he opened the door. I ran through, plummeting into the Royal Blue abyss. I heard the door click shut.