Blood Lust II: Fragments of a Flame

Chapter VI

When I got up the next day. Altair was still laying in the bed with me. He didn't move a muscle nor twitch. I held my head up with my hand as I leaned on my elbow. Vampires did sleep soundlessly. His face was peaceful and smooth. I wanted to touch it but I remember what happened the last time I did this. 

"Are you enjoying yourself." He asked me opening his eyes. How did he know I was staring at him? Did he feel my gaze?

" That is for me to know and you to never find out," I told him as I got up and walked away to the bathroom to fix myself up. I splash cold water on my face so I didn't look so tired. Sleeping with Altair next to me allowed me to have the deepest sleep I had in what felt like years. I played with my hair trying to find the right way to set it. I just left it the original way I woke up with it, all to one side. I pinched my cheeks to add some color and wet my finger with water to curl my lashes, gurgled some water, and couldn't help but feel pretty. I knew I was pretty but today I felt it more than usual. I was about to walk right out of the bathroom when I spotted Cornilious talking to him. 

"We have an invitation from one of the eldest vampires. He wants to meet her after hearing about all the rumors." I watched Cornilious hand him a black envelope with a red stamp on it. The wax from the stamp was cracked already as Altair pulled out the invitation and read it to himself. 

" How did they  find out?" Altair asked Cornilious but he had no answer.

"You can always reject the invitation but you know what will happen if you do." Altair nodded his head yes and sat on the edge of the bed in disappointment as Cornelious walked over to the bedroom door. "You can come out now," Cornelious yelled at me as he slammed the bedroom door shut. I ran my naked body over to the bed finding extra clothes I could wear instead of wearing the same thing I wore yesterday except it was a dress they gave me again. A long-sleeved inferno red gown that showed off my shoulders. I spun around feeling like a princess. Altair helped me zipper it from behind. The dress was flowy with the organza - like embellishments, and showed off my whole back, stopping right at my lower spine. 

"What does he mean when he says, you know what that means if you reject it?" I tiled my head to the side and looked on at Altair with concerned eyes. Altair just turned his lowered head to the left of himself. 

"It means if I don't go they will find it as a form of disrespect since I am the guest of honor."

"So what?" I watched Altair stand up and pace back and forth. 

"It means Lia if I don't go a war will start." I rose an eyebrow.

"What over us not going?! I find that hard to be true." Altair rolled his eyes once again at me. 

"Vampires don't ever die. If they invite you to something you cancel whatever you have and go. Nothing is as important as when one of the oldest vampires invites you to something. You make time since that is all we really have." Altair explained to me. I started to smell something and my nose wouldn't stop sniffing whatever the smell was. "Cornilious brought you up some breakfast." Altair pointed out as I ran over to it. I ate and ate and ate as Altair dressed up. 

"When is it?" I asked.

"Today at nine pm." He handed me the invitation, to look at. It was nicely written with script penmanship and the wording was very elegant but demanding. We request your presents and also the words to impetuously want to meet Lia weren't very inviting words for an invitation.

"How did he know I was here?"  I asked Altair who just put two and two together. He grabbed my hand knocking on Zaheda's bedroom door. She opened it with a nightie still on. Altair followed her in with me right behind him. 

"What the hell is this?" He threw the invitation on her vanity. She glanced over at it and continued to do her make up. 

"It looks to me we have a party to go to," Zaheda told him plainly. "Do you think I'm the one who told one of the elders of little Lia here?" She turned around to face me as she leaned on her vanity with her legs crossed. "I wouldn't dare tell them about her. Those folks are too old for their own good." I couldn't tell if she was lying or being for real?

"So who else?" Altair then stared down at Zaheda. "Your little friend must have told them all thanks to you." Altair pointed out.

"Hey, it was an accident. It wasn't on purpose. Besides, you didn't care about humans before you met her. She changed up everything. Cause of her we have to live underground again. Your little friend Maddox is to blame more for his...his ignorance!" Zaheda yelled out in anger. Altair didn't seem phased by this but I did.

"I'm sorry I was apart of this. I was thrown into this whole mess okay. I shouldn't have judged you. You shouldn't be yelling at him. It's all my fault." I told her immediately. Zaheda sat back down in her seat and glared at me with her golden eyes. She turned around to face the mirror and continued on with her makeup in silence. I knew she couldn't see her reflection but knowing that vampires still used mirrors made me feel pity for them. They desperately wanted to be human again. 

Altair walked me out with his hand on my back and as we did Maddox was walking the hall by himself. He snapped his head to me and when I looked into his red eyes I knew it wasn't Maddox but he was fighting the urges of a new vampire. Altair pulled me back away from him as Desponia came running up to him with a bag of blood. Despoina had a worried look on her face as she stood there watching Maddox drink the blood.

"Did you heard?! We are going to meet one of the eldest vampires." Despoina screeched in surprise.

"And your happy about this why?" Altair asked her.

"Because I never met someone so old before!" Altair tiled his head to the side looking at her as if she didn't insult him. Us humans would have taken this as an insult but being called the oldest of vampires was like being famous I guess and Altair was up there. "Aww, Altair don't take it to heart. But the eldest has literally seen the world change right before his eyes."

"And I haven't?"

"Oh, you know what I mean," Despoina said cheerfully as she dictated Maddox where to go. Despoina turned right around whipping her head all the way around.

"The elders hate newborns,"  Altair told her.

"Wait why is that?" I asked him. Altair turned to face me while Desponia stood there with her arms crossed. 

"I want to go through," Despoina complained. "It's a masquerade ball. They always do their parties with such elegance. Maybe he can stay with someone else."

"Don't you dare Despoina. Maddox has taken a liking to you and so you must stay with him. Anyone else, he will cause havoc." Despoina rolled her eyes and walked away with Maddox right next to her.

"So?" I turned my head up at Altair.

"They hate newborns because I assume they wish they were their age again or maybe they feel like newborns are selfish for wanting to live a long life. It is hard to know for sure." Altair explained as I walked with him into the lounge area. But before that, I passed a big room where a bunch of wide-eyed newborns were paying attention to Madame Bovery. She was explaining to them the different types of blood they were. When they all turned their red eyes towards me Altair pulled me along. 

"I have a feeling I will be looked at like that at the Masquerade," I told him. Altair didn't say anything but held my hand. The feeling of his hand in mine made me know I was safe with him.