A Beautiful Sacrifice

Chapter Fourteen

The night dawned. The newcomers were here. And they looked nothing like Lily was expecting. She expected men in suits and woman in flowing gowns, what she got however was much more different. The men outnumbered the women more than three times and the guest list was so large she didn’t think she would actually remember all of their names.

                Perttu wrapped his arm around her waist as each one stepped through the doorway They greeted Perttu and herself formally and Perttu in turn proudly announced that she was his Bride. She could hear the pride in his voice and his chest was puffed out. Being introduced as his Bride made her feel special and strangely important as they nodded at her separately and respectfully. She found that she liked it and when the women walked in wearing figure hugging dresses she was glad she was to was wearing a red one that hugged her figure. Over the week she had worn a different dress everyday that was ‘vampire’ and not her village’ style and she had found herself getting use to the clingy flow the dresses had. Now she felt sexy and she wanted to make sure she looked good, so that Perttu in turn would look like he had a good Bride and be proud to show her off.

                Perttu wore a suit but he was the only man that did. The other men walked in bare chested and sculpted muscles on show. Some had leather crossing at the waist and again at the back, going over their shoulders while slotted at seemingly random place in this leather were knives. But she knew they would not be random. They would be strategically placed to ensure that they were within easy reach for sudden attacks. She thought that would intimidate her but it didn’t. She greeted them calmly and pointed them in the direction of the gathering room. When each of the vampires guests saw Adon they bowed their heads in resect and exchanged a few words of greeting that Lily herself could not hear.

“You are doing wonderful.” Perttu complimented her; he was actually shocked that she was taking it all in her stride.

                It had been a very peaceful yet edgy few days. The two of them had got on very well, talking, chatting, getting to know one another and at night they lay together in Lily’s bed. But with the companionship they were developing came the curiosity and urge to go further than that little cuddle before they went to sleep. The day was coming when Lily would have to trust in Perttu and she was starting to feel ready, wishing on some level it would come sooner, while Perttu wanted nothing more than to show her how much he truly loved her but at the same time wanted to wait for her as long as necessary. He was unaware that her attitude was changing and that she was ready; instead thinking he was a monster for pushing her. He was both looking forward to the day he would change her and also dreading it never really realising that there was nothing to dread. Lily was holding his hand, while greeting guests, for solidarity, and to show she cared. She no longer thought him a monster… just unusual.

                The painting was complete, she was going to show him that night and she couldn’t wait to see his face. Red and oranges adorned it. She had made the grass vivid green and put a yellow sun in the corner with a faint orange glow to the outer rim of the sun. Like a whirl of fire in the sky. Admittedly she had gone overboard on the colour but she knew if he was to look at the outside world in the midday light with to his sensitive eyes that was what it would look like. So she painted this, this image that he would see but the difference was – her painting would not blind him.

                In an almost blurry effect due to bright colour she had painted a very simple landscape. There was the horizon, the sun, even a few white clouds on a background of hills and mountains and a little stream. She had painted lots and lots of flowers in reds and purples and blues all against the green of the grass. She put in one single trail but had mixed her white and black together to create such a light grey colour that there was still nothing on the picture that looked dull. Nothing represented night, it was purely day.