Laced in Black (chp.5)

For vampires who are living in Lunar Academy, their lives would just be alike to the real world’s school life where literally gossips, mostly about the most popular ones would be passed around quickly and fast to the whole crowd of students in just nick of a time. Rumours spread, be it a good or a bad, it would never seemed to stop until one person actually confess the truth.

“Why why, who on earth would say such thing?” Bill let out a short laugh of boast upon hearing what has been said to his ears. In the middle of afternoon, there he sat dashingly with his mates at their dining table reserved only for them while the eyes of every vampire there couldn’t help but to look. “Such sinful mouth should be stitched with a thread of pain.” Suddenly, an anger expression was shown on his face when he slowly changed his laughter to an enrage tone of voice.

“And you shall be damned by every single of them if you do that.” Sitting next to him was Strify who was trying to warn him.

“Eliminate the nonsense, then!” Bill raised his voice to his loyal crowd.

“No one can shut off a rumour that easily, welcome to the new era! May I remind you, you’re not living in the old century anymore!” Strify snapped back as he would be the only one who was dare to enough to speak whenever the prince is on a fierce mood. “Besides, it involves the girl you were long laid your eyes on, why would you be furious?”

“I may have my eyes laid on her but never in my mind would I have a thought of breaking my state of solitary. Enough with this crap, already. It fills my head with thousand strings, I need an air.” Bill got up from his seat to head himself a way out from the crowd in the dining hall.

“Need an escort, mate?” Strify asked a simple question which was a clear order to the others on getting their foot ready to tail Bill from behind.

“Don’t bother me, I need to be alone.” Bill left and set them free from his chains assuming being escorted the whole time would bring more mess in his untangled mind but before he actually leaves, his eyes caught someone in particular who was sitting far at the corner, looking beautiful but somehow tortured too was written on her face. He let out a sigh and get back on his feet to where he was heading, the doors to the outside.

“Stop thinking about it, Annika.” Amorette reminded her sister to snap back to reality.

“How can I stop, Amorette? My past is back, it will haunt me once again. This is how it all started back then.” Annika explained.

“Well, we’re here and we’re gonna look after you, okay. Right, Aurora?” Amorette gave a nudge on Aurora’s shoulder but there was no respond from her. “Aurora!”

“What? What? Yeah, right. Whatever she said.” As soon as Aurora replied, she went back to her busy mode with the google engine.

“Someone is rather quiet today.” Annika was sensing that Aurora acted differently on that day, less the talk for a person who is a chatterbox.

“Quiet and weird too. Imagine this, Aurora in the library.”

“No kidding?”

“I swear I saw her hanging around there between classes this morning. It’s like a nerdy has possessed her.”

“Wonder what Aurora would be searching for?”

Amorette shot a glance at Aurora and surprisingly, her eyes were still glued to the little tech-gadget on her hand without even listening to the surroundings. “She didn’t even hear a single thing we said right now. “Yo, what were you up to, twinnie? Let me see that.” Immediately, Amorette grabbed Aurora’s blackberry from her.

“Heyyyyy...”

“Magic in the world of vampires?” Amorette said out loud with whatever the written words on the screen shows.

“Magic? What’s the meaning of this, Aurora?” Annika began to change her voice to an angry tone.

“Do you think magic is allowed to be performed somewhere near to a vampire’s ground?”

“No. Not if you’re a vampire.” Annika answered to her sister’s out of nowhere question.

“You mean, a vampire like us could actually do magic here?”

“Yeah, but you know, it’s forbidden.”

“How about spirits of our kind? I mean can the dead do magic?”

“Not that I know of but if the powers are still within them, then yeah probably they’ll get to perform a few spells. Not in here, though. This place is sealed from magic.”

“But not at the outside gate?”

“Yeah, anything can happen if we’re out there! Wait, why are you asking me with all of these questions?”

“Err..just for a note, I’m doing..err....err...a research. Yeah, a research.” Aurora smiled just to cover her lie.

“Better be. Come on, recess is about to be over.” Annika stood up from her seat and ready to leave.

“What are you actually up to? You may fool Annika with your convincing smile but you can never fool me.” Amorette was eager to know what her twin was hiding as she whispered to Aurora.

“I’ll tell you, later.”

The study hall on the ground floor of the castle located far from where the dining hall is, right at the opposite of its building as it is separated by a large courtyard. On the way to their destination, they walked passed by the prince who was enjoying his alone time near the fountain right at the middle of the courtyard. Bill noticed Annika’s presence with the air that swept his skin and it also filled his nostrils as it carries her scent of blood. He just secretly stared at her as she was walking with her sisters. It wasn’t only Bill who was eyeing on Annika, it seemed that rest did the same thing too.

“Again, with the deadly stares.” Annika felt as if she was the target that got everyone to hit a bulls’ eye shot on.

“Get used to it, already. Who knows you might be Bill’s princess in the future?” Little sexy Amorette threw her a joke.

“Aww I’d really like to see that happens one day!” Annika replied with sarcasm.

“You could, he’s there all alone. Why don’t you say hi?” Aurora moved Annika’s body to Bill’s direction and gave her a little push.

“Are you crazy? No, I won’t. Clearly he hates me being in his lair, last night and now you want me to say hi to him? No way!” Annika thought Aurora’s idea was just mental.

“Hey, he doesn’t hate you! I mean what’s with the stare this morning?”

“He just happens to stare! Everyone stares, not a big deal.”

“Well, that’s why you need to give him a little taste of the Valentines. Everyone is already spicing up the scene to see the both of you, here. Why not you just add more spice to please them?”

“She got a point, you know.” Amorette was on Aurora’s side, this time around.

“Do I have to?” Annika was putting a 50/50 on it.

“Oh come on, Annika. When was the last time you actually talk to a guy?” Amorette questioned.

“Get out from the isolation shell already! It’s time for you to connect with a guy.” The playful Aurora winked.

“Well, alright. Besides, I owe him an apology.” As Annika had agreed, she pulled her courage and gracefully walked to approach the prince. Her heart beats faster and faster as she got closer to Bill, practically not because of a scared feeling but it is more to a nervous one. Bill could sense that she was coming but he pretended like there wasn’t any presence coming near him even though people around them has already started to whisper to one another on Annika’s surprising little act to approach the lonely prince.

“Hey.” A one short and simple word was the only thing that seemed to coming out from Annika’s mouth and Bill just set his eyes to the person who dares to approach him without any intention at all. “Before you shooed me, I’d like you to know that, again I’m very sorry for entering your territory without your permission, last night. I have my own personal reason and if you want me to clear things up with this whole rumour, I would kindly do it.”

“Fine, do it then.” Bill couldn’t seem to throw that side of arrogant in his personality. He just smirked and waited for Annika’s next move.

“What? I came here nicely to you and you treat me like this?”

“Who are you to approach me like this, anyway?”

“You know, you’re such an arrogant prince who has no heart at all. I pity you. It must be dreadful to have an ugly soul that is pure selfish and knows nothing about respect.” With a sense of bravery, Annika threw her harsh words to Bill and turned away as she couldn’t stand to face him anymore.

“Wait.” Before she even took one step away, Bill managed to grab her arm, making her frozen at her spot while her eyes met with Bill’s. His gaze was mesmerizing enough to let her go deeper into his dazzling chestnut brown eyes. Little did Annika knew, Bill felt the same thing and he just couldn’t seem to pull his eyes away from Annika’s until someone came to break their eyes connection.

“Look what we have here.” A familiar guy who wears the most glowing white blonde hair in the academy joined the both of them together with the nancy boy, Nathaniel. “It’s you again.” Strify seemed to recognize Annika so well. “Why, that tripping act you pull wasn’t enough to get Bill’s attention?”

“Leave her, Strify. Let’s go.” The prince made his move to leave with an escort by Nathaniel.

As Annika was about to walked away, this time Strify has stopped her. “I’m not done with you.”

“What else do you want? Didn’t you hear what your leader just said? Leave me.”

“You do know what you did wrong here?”

“I was just saying sorry to your royal highness.”

“Well, would you at least follow the tradition?”

“Tradition?”

Strify rolled his eyes and didn’t say a thing until he pulled out something from his pocket and handed Annika the most beautiful little box that she has ever seen. “Here’s an invitation. If you think you really deserve to be forgiven, then you shall be his guest of honour for tonight.”

~*~