Shadows

Keys and locks

The flight was long and boring. The highlight was falling asleep… I’ve never liked flying; I find it worse than trains... all that hustle and bustle, people shoving and pushing in case they’re late… it’s all very drab and vulgar. What really excites me is sailing, touching the briny blue of a crisp ocean. The smell of fresh salt hitting your nose. The call of the seagulls as they swoop and swerve in the blinding light of the sun. The soft and gentle touch of the water as it splashes in your face.

  I love sailing. Whenever we go to the beach in the summer, they stay in a hotel somewhere, I hire a boat and go sailing. It was the best type of freedom for me, it was always alone obviously but I never felt saddened about it… those were one of the happiest moments of my life. One time whilst I was out sailing I came across some dolphins, they swam alongside me for a while before diving deep and out of sight. They say these animals are smart… but did they realise they were next to a child that was half monster? Did they sense that I craved for the blood pumping through their veins?  I made a mental note that I must go sailing again soon, just for old times’ sake really. I would have to take Dante with me too… I think he would enjoy it anyway.

  Shaking my head I returned to my senses, we were passing security when I glanced at the guard; he was eyeing both me and Aurora suspiciously. Noting that I was staring he soon shifted his gaze and began to talk to the guard next to him. We certainly weren’t in England anymore… that was for sure. I asked Aurora where it was that we were supposed to be actually going, she informed me that it was somewhere near Serbanesti.  She said that her family migrate a lot over the centuries but this place felt more like home to them than anywhere else… plus it was supposed to be secluded too… so that was an added bonus as well.

  Once finally on the road, conversation was kept to a minimal. I had so many questions, doubts, worries and wonders… that I just couldn’t put them into words,

“How come you don’t have an accent?” I finally managed to ask her

“We don’t have accents anymore” she replied “They died out with time. I used to have such a strong Romanian accent when I was young, but having to migrate everywhere… it just died out. Now we all tend to sound very British… maybe American… it’s very odd”

“Oh” was all I mustered to say. So it wouldn’t be hard to talk to them then, which was good.

“I can tell you’re edging for conversation child, out with it” she smirked

“Oh, I just have questions that’s all… but they can wait if you want”

“No, go ahead… I don’t mind”

“Ok, so go over who’s who?” she sighed and laughed but managed to explain all the other royals to me. She told me the oldest Ivan had brown hair with green eyes, was 5”9 and was both skinny and muscled. She also informed me that he was very kind to all but since he was the eldest; he had responsibilities to them all so he had to be stern too. He had several women after him… but in all the years that he has been around, he had never settled down… he had never found his mate.

  Adrik, she told me had black hair with mixed blue/green eyes. He was 5”7 and very skinny. He was known to be the joker of the family and a fool in the eyes of their father. Unlike Ivan, Adrik had managed to find a mate about 260 years ago in Italy. Her name was Vanessa and a very talented chef. She had ginger hair, freckles and bright green eyes, her physique was slim yet she was beautifully busty which complemented her figure greatly. Neither of them had decided to have children yet as she wanted to explore the world with him whilst she was still ‘young’ and fresh.

  Next came along the twins in the family, Nina and Nikki. Nina was born two minutes before Nikki. The pair are almost inseparable yet complete opposites. Nina was bubbly and friendly whereas Nikki was withdrawn and quiet. If you fought one, then you fought the other… that was the rule they lived by apparently. The two have sworn that until they find mates that accept them both for who they are, and their bond… then they will become inseparable, they were always happiest that way anyway according to my mother. Now Nina has light brown hair, one green left eye and one blue right eye. She is 5”6, skinny yet curvy and enjoys dancing. Nikki on the other hand has long black hair that reaches to her shoulders, one green right eye and one blue left eye. She is 5”7 and extremely skinny, she prefers to write and keep herself to herself.