A Lonely Prince with Fangs (completed)

Castle of Many Rooms

We drove back to the castle in silence. I wanted to explore more of the small village but I also wanted to get more acquainted with the man that I was to live with for some time.

Alexandru helped me carry my shopping bags inside and to my room. He got rid of all the old dresses that were in my armoire so that I could put my own clothes in there. He gave me a small tour of the castle and said that I could explore more of it whenever I wanted.

"I will be retiring to my studies." He said as he left me in the grand hall.

"What exactly is it that you do?" I asked.

"I am in the death business. Funerals, burials, and coffins." He answered. I nodded my head slowly. That's a bit of an unusual job. He smiled and turned his back on me, making his way towards a hall he hadn't shown me. That part of the castle must be personal.

I couldn't help but feel like I was in the tale Beauty and the Beast. Except, I was allowed to leave whenever I wanted. And there wasn't another living soul in sight.

I walked down many halls and through many doors. I had no idea how many rooms a castle could have.

Two double doors opened up to a grand hall that had nothing in it except a large organ. Tall windows were built into the side of the walls and the light that shined through them stretched vertically across in front of me. I walked down the long stretch of the hall and once I made it to the brass instrument, I lightly tapped a key.

I regretted it once a loud horn-like sound boomed through the walls. I hoped that I didn't disturb Alexandru in his studies.

Another two sets of doors opened up to a grand ballroom. Mirrors lined the walls and a checker design coated the tile floor. A black grand piano was in the corner. Grand chandeliers hung from the ceiling with not lightbulbs but candles for light. The room was squeaky clean and looked like it was used not long ago. Paula had said that Alexandru doesn't have any visitors. I wonder why it's so kept up.

I found the library that I had been anticipating; because well, every castle has a room full of books!

I danced into the room dreaming of reading every book in it. I moved my fingers across the book bindings on the shelves and noticed not one title was familiar.

I flipped through some and realized that almost all of them were in Romanian. Some were in Spanish, Latin, Italian, German, and French. Very few were in English.

Maybe while I live here I'll try to pick up some new languages.

There was a room at first that made me confused of its purpose but then after looking around at the swords and spears and armor, I understood that it was a training room from a long time ago.

I found the kitchen, which was very large. The pantry too.

Although the pantry had nothing in it, neither did any of the cupboards except for dishes and pans.

There were a lot of rooms that just had couches and coffee tables. Many bathrooms and powder rooms. Some of the guest rooms were like mine. But very few of the rooms were lavish and intricate in their designs. I couldn't decide which room was the Count's.

The castle had a greenhouse attached to it. All the plants were lively and growing inside so I knew that that meant Alexandru went in here often. I ventured outside for a while and discovered a stable with no horses, a garden that looked to not have been tended for many years, and a Dovecote with not pigeons in it but bats. There was also a graveyard that scared the heebie-jeebies out of me.

Once I was back inside I decided to explore a little more.

I found a dance room, a music room, a billiard room, a dining hall, and a wine cellar under the castle. There were also a lot of servant quarters that were all spick-n-span of dust.

I found a chilling garage of really old vintage cars and carriages. I wandered through the halls just staring at the many portraits on the walls.

I couldn't find one painting, though, of Alexandru from this time period. All that bore his name were from the 1450s-70s. He must be named after this man because they look identical. I guess the only thing different about them is that Alexandru of today has pointy ears and slightly different colored eyes. It wasn't until I came across another one of his portraits with the year 1475 that he had pointy ears and the eye color of today. Now I was very confused. Why did this ancestor have the same features up until now that he changed ... and ... this is all too confusing.

I stared at the painting for more than one should have. I studied it and pondered the many questions racing through my head. I got a little closer, and realized two tiny white dashes on top of his lips. Like fangs or something.

How strange. Very strange.

I kept on walking after that. I stopped once I got to the part of the castle that Alexandru had walked down earlier.

I told myself not to go but convinced myself that he did say I could go anywhere I liked.

I quietly made my way down the dark hall. The only hall with nothing on the walls, and very little light. I opened a few of the doors and many turned up completely empty. I found one office but no Count inside. And then I found a dark door unlike the rest in the castle at the end of the hall.

It creaked when I opened it. The room was completely black, nothing could be seen, save it for the large, black coffin sitting in the middle of the room.