Beauty in the Dark
CHAPTER FIVE-Knowing The Monster
It has been two weeks since Mrs Eirlys and Countess Belladonna clashed, and Lark's day to day life had gone back to sort of normal. She would walk to school with Kirby and Skylar, chatting about homework and crushes, mostly Kirby's many evening buddies. Luvena, sporting a black eye, and her sheep carried on their torment of The Lunette siblings as well as Lark and her friends, to Skylar's dismay. From old tricks like "kick me" signs and trippings in the hallway, to new ones such as filling lockers with cheap fake blood and handmade posters of blood orgies and sacrificial rituals. The online campaigns of getting the "fanged freaks and Emo death lovers" out of town, were spreading all around the school. By Thursday hardly anyone would sit, look, talk or go near them, especially after a rumor of Lark plotting to drain Luvena's blood for The Lunette family made the rounds. However Lark and the rest of them didn't care apart from Skylar who was silent and hid from classes most of the time. Lila walked with her head held high and a deadly cold stare, not saying a word and looking as if she was ready to snap anyone in half. Kirby laughed it off and joked, spending most of his time caring for Skylar and clapping back with sassy insults and comebacks. As for Lark and Draven, they hung out even more, ignoring the whispers and lies by talking, giggling and hugging each other. After school, on days where she didn't need to work, Lark would go to The Lunette household and be welcomed as family. No one stopped her from going, after Mrs Lunette warned her mother to leave her be, Lark's mother went around town telling all her allies to stay away from the "house of blood" and not to stop Lark from going. It made her laugh, after years of being dragged away by her arms and locked away from the outside for days, it took one vampire talking coolly to scare her mother. On Friday of the second week, Draven walked the hollow hallways humming the merry tune of The Smiths's 'This Charming Man'. He had been thrown out of History class for daring to questioning the teacher, about the history of his own people. "I guess they didn't like a real vampire speaking on my own history" he muttered to what he thought was just himself. "You've been kicked out too Draven" spoke a sweet yet sarcastic voice Draven knew too well. Leaning against the wall was Lark, looking bored yet happy to see the young vampire. Draven none-beating heart was filled with joy at the sight of her, so much so that when he spoke he sounded more nervous than his charming self, "Oh, Lady Lark, how are you? Are we in trouble again?" Lark laughed a little and smirked at him, kicking herself off the wall and walked towards him. "Yes we are. I may of purposely pushed over Luvena, during an 'I am a tree' exercise in Drama class. She had it coming, she was muttering about jumping Skylar after school" she explained, before asking "So they didn't like your history lesson?" Draven chuckled, running his claws through his hair. "No I don't think they did. It's much easier I guess for human's to be forever the victims and us monsters of the shadows will always be cast as the villains. I'm meant to go to the Principal's office, should we go together?" he took Lark's hand and smiled. "We could, or we could skip the rest of school and hang out" Lark suggested, with wickedness in her eyes. Draven liked this idea, he'd rather spend his time with Lark than with the stuffy Principal. With a nod and already knowing where to take her, Draven pulled Lark with him and they ran out of the school as Lark sent a text to Kirby, to take Skylar out of school and meet her at the Burgundy Cafe later.
Draven took her to the park in the centre of town, using his vampiric speed to get them there as fast as possible. All Lark could do was hang on tight to his hand, as her legs flew in the air and she laughed loudly at the speed. They ended up in a quiet spot surrounded by flowers and a large fountain decorated by angels and doves. They sat down on the grass under a tall, over-shadowing willow tree. "Wow, never thought I'd go flying today" Lark laughed. "I'm sorry my Lady, guess I got a bit over excited" Draven smiled shyly with a light blush. Lark didn't say anything, just grabbed his shoulder and shook her head, as if saying 'it's okay'. They sat for a while in a calming silence, listening to the soft wind blowing all around them and to their own thoughts. Lark's eyes never left Draven's face, thinking about all the things she wants to know and ask him. She had never been so drawn to, anyone before. Taking a breath, Lark broke through the glass wall of quiet. "Wanna play 10 questions?" she muttered. Draven raised an eyebrow and smirked, "yes, but isn't 20 questions?" he asked. Lark's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Yeah, but I normally get bored at 10. Do you wanna play or what?" she tried not to sound pushy or impatient, yet a little bit of it slipped through her joyful voice. But Draven didn't pay no attention to it, he smiled at her with grace and started the questioning, "okay then, question 1) what's your favourite colour?" Lark laughed a little, she was going to enjoy this.
Question 1] Favourite Colour) Lark-Lilac, Draven-Red/Question 2] Favourite Band) Lark-Motionless In White, Draven-Eprica/Question 3] Favourite Food) Lark-Cheesecake, Draven-Rare fillet steak or blood type AB positive (Lark's blood type)/Question 4] Favourite Season) Lark-Fall, Draven-Spring/Question 5] Favourite Childhood Memory) Lark-Meeting Kirby and Skylar at a town's talent show and sneaking off to the graveyard during Luvena's performance, Draven-Turning into a bat for the first time/Question 6] Favourite School Subject) Lark-English and Art, Draven-English and Music/Question 7] Favourite TV show) Both said Hellsing/Question 8] Favourite Animal) Lark-Cats, Draven-Wolf (said with an ironic laugh)/Question 9] What Do You Wanna Be When You Grow Up) Lark-Unsure maybe a writer or a journalist, Draven-Unsure either a dancer or a composer (again with an ironic laugh) "Ok, last question my Lady. What's your family life like? After meeting your mother, it's been on my mind" Draven asked, with worry in his eyes. Lark let out a sad sigh, she kinda knew this would come up eventually. "It's, a little complicated. Me and my mom, well we've never really gotten along. Different view points of the world, different styles, we're just too different from each other. I've questioned myself if she's even my mom, did a blood test and yep, we're related. I don't really remember a time were we weren't arguing or not talking to each other. It's a little tragic" she said, down but as-matter-of-fact. Draven gave her an 'I'm sorry' look which Lark just replied with a sad grin, "as for my dad and I, well there's a reason I call him the mute. He says nothing and does nothing. Just does what my mom tells him to do without protest. If there's anything I want when I become an adult, it's to not become like them." The two sat quiet for a little bit, not knowing what to say. "So Draven, whats it like growing up in a vampire family? I mean, we've had vampires here before, but you're the first family. I, just wanted to, to know, what it's like" she asked after a moment, trying in vain to hide behind her hair yet the wind would not let her. "I guess it's like any other family, apart from the blood drinking and aging slowly. We fight each other, we laugh together, get on each others nerves, watch movies together. You know, 'normal' family stuff" Draven replied in a happy tone. Lark nodded, a little disappointed, "Oh. Sorry I had it in my head that vampire families did things like hunt animals in packs, and had drinking parties, and fly through the skies in bat form." Her face heated up as Draven laughed hard, throwing his head back. "What?! What's so funny?!" she asked in a shout. "No no my Lady, please don't be mad. I'm sorry for laughing, but I couldn't help it. No, my family and I don't hunt in packs for animals. Only mother drinks animal blood, the rest of us rely on the blood donations. We don't fly in bat form as much as we used to, I do miss it but I don't miss the hail of bullets. We do have the odd drinking party though, every couple of years. I'm sorry to disappoint you Lady Lark, we're simply a normal family with fangs and gifts" he explained with his charm. Lark shuffled closer to Draven until their shoulders were touching. "No, no need to apologize Draven, it was kinda funny" she giggled, when a thought, or more the question she wanted to ask him, came crashing through her mind.
Gifts, she wanted to know about gifts. "So can I ask, what's your and your families gifts? I know your mother has that, sight thing, but what about the rest of you?" she nervously asked, biting her lip. "Well as you might know, only us pure bloods, or nosferatu, have these gifts" he began, with a little hesitation. "And they are based on your personality right?" Lark nodded, she had to learn about vampires for her job at the clinic. "Correct, I'm impressed. Well my mother is highly curious, so she has the ability to see into the future, so to speak. It's never set in stone though, it's more possible out comes than the certain future. Like she said, she can see whatever she wants to see, but sometimes it can be random. My father is protective, he can conjure up force fields to protect himself, others and use it to push people back. My brother, Aldon, like my mother is highly curious but more on an emotional base than just being nosy. Please don't tell my mother that" he blushed, but Lark gave him a promising nod so he continued. "Anyway, Aldon can see into people's souls, their true nature and desires. He can tell if you're faking it or lying, he knows the type of person you are by just looking at you. As for Lila, since she's an ice Queen, she has the power of ice and frost." Lark was blown away, all their gifts sound incredible and, cool. "Wow. So what's yours Draven?" she asked with glee, her mouth drooling. Draven's purple orbs turned afraid and worried, as did his voice, "are you sure you want to know? You won't like it." Lark was confused at his question. 'Could it be that bad? He knows I'm not the judgmental type, so he shouldn't be worried. Right?' she thought. She wanted to know, she had to know. With a 'go on' from her, Draven sighed deeply and loudly, "my gift, is that those who come near me can't help but love me or be charmed by me. It's what I call unbreakable charm" he said sadly.
Lark's jaw dropped to the floor, she didn't know how to feel. 'Unbreakable charm? Does that mean my feelings are fake? Is this friendship real?' Lark thought in a panic, feeling used and unsure. She wanted to scream, get angry, punch him in the face. But she knew running or yelling wouldn't help, a strong part of her wanted to here him out. To give him a chance. "Okay, so everyone who goes near you can't hate you, or resist your charm? Does that mean that our friendship is not real?" she asked, feeling a large lump in her throat and tears in the corner of her eyes forming. Draven took her face in both hands, his handsome face reading fear and seriousness. "Please don't cry my Lady, oh my Lady Lark. I didn't want to tell you, I knew this would hurt you. But I couldn't lie to you, nor hide this from you. And please believe me, your feelings, our friendship is very real" he said, his nose touching hers. She muttered an okay for him to carry on explaining, "you see my Lady Lark, not everyone can be effected. You mother, Luvena and her sheep, some of the people in town, their hate is too strong to be conquered by me. Even other vampires can't be mesmerized. It only really effects the ones who are unsure about their own feelings, or those who are infatuated with the vampire myth. I can't turn off my power like my family, I wish I could most of the time. I've been to many places in my life, and I can never be sure who is my friend for real, or just a friend due to my unbreakable charm. I've spent many years alone." Lark felt her heart slowly break for him. A power beyond his control, not able to tell who's a real friend from a fake one. "So, what about me Draven?" she asked, swallowing the lump in her throat. Draven rubbed her cheeks with his strong thumbs, "that's the thing, it's not working on you. I'm not sure why, but it's not which I'm glad about" he said, joy returning to his face. "But how do you know that? You said that you couldn't tell" Lark asked in shock. Draven chuckled deeply, kissing her forehead. "Let's just say that if you were under my spell, you would have been trying to kiss me and get into my pants from day one. Like most of the girls, and some of the boys at school" he explained, his wit and cheek coming back with full force. Lark smiled again, she was glad too that it was all real. "Yeah I heard about that. Luvena and the witch brigade didn't take too kindly to that. So do you know why I'm not under your spell, since I don't hate you" Lark asked, so close to Draven's face their breath was kissing. "Honestly, I don't. Maybe it's just our true friendship is too strong. I hope so anyways" he said. This time it was Lark's turn to act nervous and worried. "Um, I might know why. Draven, you need to know something. You see..." before she could finish spilling her heart out, her phone rang out loudly, forcing the two to pull apart from each other. She pulled out of her deep purple skirt pocket, muttering to herself 'please don't let it be mom, please don't let it mom'. Turning the phone over, see saw that it was a photo message from Skylar. "Is everything okay, Lady Lark?" asked Draven with concern in his voice. Lark turned to look at him again, "it's okay Draven, we're okay. It's just Skylar" she laughed. Draven blushed and moved back closer to Lark, "we're okay?" he asked, with a hint of shyness. Lark nodded, "yes, we're fine. We're still friends, and I'm glad that we're getting to know each other. Now lets see what this crazy girl wants" she kissed his cheek, in reassurance and checked her phone.
Skylar-Hey hey hey, song bird. You better get to The Burgundy Cafe quick. You need to explain why you had Kirby drag me out of school. Speaking of Kirby, look who he is talking to. A new barista...who happens to be a vampire XX
There was a picture underneath of a good-looking vampire with a mop of black locks, pale skin wearing a tight deep red t-shirt and thin silver glasses. "Damn Kirby, you move in quick" Lark muttered with a laugh, while Draven's mouth dropped. "Oh my god, Lark. That's Aldon, my brother!"
Draven took her to the park in the centre of town, using his vampiric speed to get them there as fast as possible. All Lark could do was hang on tight to his hand, as her legs flew in the air and she laughed loudly at the speed. They ended up in a quiet spot surrounded by flowers and a large fountain decorated by angels and doves. They sat down on the grass under a tall, over-shadowing willow tree. "Wow, never thought I'd go flying today" Lark laughed. "I'm sorry my Lady, guess I got a bit over excited" Draven smiled shyly with a light blush. Lark didn't say anything, just grabbed his shoulder and shook her head, as if saying 'it's okay'. They sat for a while in a calming silence, listening to the soft wind blowing all around them and to their own thoughts. Lark's eyes never left Draven's face, thinking about all the things she wants to know and ask him. She had never been so drawn to, anyone before. Taking a breath, Lark broke through the glass wall of quiet. "Wanna play 10 questions?" she muttered. Draven raised an eyebrow and smirked, "yes, but isn't 20 questions?" he asked. Lark's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Yeah, but I normally get bored at 10. Do you wanna play or what?" she tried not to sound pushy or impatient, yet a little bit of it slipped through her joyful voice. But Draven didn't pay no attention to it, he smiled at her with grace and started the questioning, "okay then, question 1) what's your favourite colour?" Lark laughed a little, she was going to enjoy this.
Question 1] Favourite Colour) Lark-Lilac, Draven-Red/Question 2] Favourite Band) Lark-Motionless In White, Draven-Eprica/Question 3] Favourite Food) Lark-Cheesecake, Draven-Rare fillet steak or blood type AB positive (Lark's blood type)/Question 4] Favourite Season) Lark-Fall, Draven-Spring/Question 5] Favourite Childhood Memory) Lark-Meeting Kirby and Skylar at a town's talent show and sneaking off to the graveyard during Luvena's performance, Draven-Turning into a bat for the first time/Question 6] Favourite School Subject) Lark-English and Art, Draven-English and Music/Question 7] Favourite TV show) Both said Hellsing/Question 8] Favourite Animal) Lark-Cats, Draven-Wolf (said with an ironic laugh)/Question 9] What Do You Wanna Be When You Grow Up) Lark-Unsure maybe a writer or a journalist, Draven-Unsure either a dancer or a composer (again with an ironic laugh) "Ok, last question my Lady. What's your family life like? After meeting your mother, it's been on my mind" Draven asked, with worry in his eyes. Lark let out a sad sigh, she kinda knew this would come up eventually. "It's, a little complicated. Me and my mom, well we've never really gotten along. Different view points of the world, different styles, we're just too different from each other. I've questioned myself if she's even my mom, did a blood test and yep, we're related. I don't really remember a time were we weren't arguing or not talking to each other. It's a little tragic" she said, down but as-matter-of-fact. Draven gave her an 'I'm sorry' look which Lark just replied with a sad grin, "as for my dad and I, well there's a reason I call him the mute. He says nothing and does nothing. Just does what my mom tells him to do without protest. If there's anything I want when I become an adult, it's to not become like them." The two sat quiet for a little bit, not knowing what to say. "So Draven, whats it like growing up in a vampire family? I mean, we've had vampires here before, but you're the first family. I, just wanted to, to know, what it's like" she asked after a moment, trying in vain to hide behind her hair yet the wind would not let her. "I guess it's like any other family, apart from the blood drinking and aging slowly. We fight each other, we laugh together, get on each others nerves, watch movies together. You know, 'normal' family stuff" Draven replied in a happy tone. Lark nodded, a little disappointed, "Oh. Sorry I had it in my head that vampire families did things like hunt animals in packs, and had drinking parties, and fly through the skies in bat form." Her face heated up as Draven laughed hard, throwing his head back. "What?! What's so funny?!" she asked in a shout. "No no my Lady, please don't be mad. I'm sorry for laughing, but I couldn't help it. No, my family and I don't hunt in packs for animals. Only mother drinks animal blood, the rest of us rely on the blood donations. We don't fly in bat form as much as we used to, I do miss it but I don't miss the hail of bullets. We do have the odd drinking party though, every couple of years. I'm sorry to disappoint you Lady Lark, we're simply a normal family with fangs and gifts" he explained with his charm. Lark shuffled closer to Draven until their shoulders were touching. "No, no need to apologize Draven, it was kinda funny" she giggled, when a thought, or more the question she wanted to ask him, came crashing through her mind.
Gifts, she wanted to know about gifts. "So can I ask, what's your and your families gifts? I know your mother has that, sight thing, but what about the rest of you?" she nervously asked, biting her lip. "Well as you might know, only us pure bloods, or nosferatu, have these gifts" he began, with a little hesitation. "And they are based on your personality right?" Lark nodded, she had to learn about vampires for her job at the clinic. "Correct, I'm impressed. Well my mother is highly curious, so she has the ability to see into the future, so to speak. It's never set in stone though, it's more possible out comes than the certain future. Like she said, she can see whatever she wants to see, but sometimes it can be random. My father is protective, he can conjure up force fields to protect himself, others and use it to push people back. My brother, Aldon, like my mother is highly curious but more on an emotional base than just being nosy. Please don't tell my mother that" he blushed, but Lark gave him a promising nod so he continued. "Anyway, Aldon can see into people's souls, their true nature and desires. He can tell if you're faking it or lying, he knows the type of person you are by just looking at you. As for Lila, since she's an ice Queen, she has the power of ice and frost." Lark was blown away, all their gifts sound incredible and, cool. "Wow. So what's yours Draven?" she asked with glee, her mouth drooling. Draven's purple orbs turned afraid and worried, as did his voice, "are you sure you want to know? You won't like it." Lark was confused at his question. 'Could it be that bad? He knows I'm not the judgmental type, so he shouldn't be worried. Right?' she thought. She wanted to know, she had to know. With a 'go on' from her, Draven sighed deeply and loudly, "my gift, is that those who come near me can't help but love me or be charmed by me. It's what I call unbreakable charm" he said sadly.
Lark's jaw dropped to the floor, she didn't know how to feel. 'Unbreakable charm? Does that mean my feelings are fake? Is this friendship real?' Lark thought in a panic, feeling used and unsure. She wanted to scream, get angry, punch him in the face. But she knew running or yelling wouldn't help, a strong part of her wanted to here him out. To give him a chance. "Okay, so everyone who goes near you can't hate you, or resist your charm? Does that mean that our friendship is not real?" she asked, feeling a large lump in her throat and tears in the corner of her eyes forming. Draven took her face in both hands, his handsome face reading fear and seriousness. "Please don't cry my Lady, oh my Lady Lark. I didn't want to tell you, I knew this would hurt you. But I couldn't lie to you, nor hide this from you. And please believe me, your feelings, our friendship is very real" he said, his nose touching hers. She muttered an okay for him to carry on explaining, "you see my Lady Lark, not everyone can be effected. You mother, Luvena and her sheep, some of the people in town, their hate is too strong to be conquered by me. Even other vampires can't be mesmerized. It only really effects the ones who are unsure about their own feelings, or those who are infatuated with the vampire myth. I can't turn off my power like my family, I wish I could most of the time. I've been to many places in my life, and I can never be sure who is my friend for real, or just a friend due to my unbreakable charm. I've spent many years alone." Lark felt her heart slowly break for him. A power beyond his control, not able to tell who's a real friend from a fake one. "So, what about me Draven?" she asked, swallowing the lump in her throat. Draven rubbed her cheeks with his strong thumbs, "that's the thing, it's not working on you. I'm not sure why, but it's not which I'm glad about" he said, joy returning to his face. "But how do you know that? You said that you couldn't tell" Lark asked in shock. Draven chuckled deeply, kissing her forehead. "Let's just say that if you were under my spell, you would have been trying to kiss me and get into my pants from day one. Like most of the girls, and some of the boys at school" he explained, his wit and cheek coming back with full force. Lark smiled again, she was glad too that it was all real. "Yeah I heard about that. Luvena and the witch brigade didn't take too kindly to that. So do you know why I'm not under your spell, since I don't hate you" Lark asked, so close to Draven's face their breath was kissing. "Honestly, I don't. Maybe it's just our true friendship is too strong. I hope so anyways" he said. This time it was Lark's turn to act nervous and worried. "Um, I might know why. Draven, you need to know something. You see..." before she could finish spilling her heart out, her phone rang out loudly, forcing the two to pull apart from each other. She pulled out of her deep purple skirt pocket, muttering to herself 'please don't let it be mom, please don't let it mom'. Turning the phone over, see saw that it was a photo message from Skylar. "Is everything okay, Lady Lark?" asked Draven with concern in his voice. Lark turned to look at him again, "it's okay Draven, we're okay. It's just Skylar" she laughed. Draven blushed and moved back closer to Lark, "we're okay?" he asked, with a hint of shyness. Lark nodded, "yes, we're fine. We're still friends, and I'm glad that we're getting to know each other. Now lets see what this crazy girl wants" she kissed his cheek, in reassurance and checked her phone.
Skylar-Hey hey hey, song bird. You better get to The Burgundy Cafe quick. You need to explain why you had Kirby drag me out of school. Speaking of Kirby, look who he is talking to. A new barista...who happens to be a vampire XX
There was a picture underneath of a good-looking vampire with a mop of black locks, pale skin wearing a tight deep red t-shirt and thin silver glasses. "Damn Kirby, you move in quick" Lark muttered with a laugh, while Draven's mouth dropped. "Oh my god, Lark. That's Aldon, my brother!"