Vampire twin vs. Human twin

Chapter 2: Richard's Resolve

“We will have to do something about that young man, Raven. He can't be left to become a totally ruined young person. He should learn to respect those around him and to abide by the rules, or else, what on earth will happen to us if he takes over as ruler? They better find his brother," Claire said to herself as she sat there in a quiet corner of the servants' tea room.

“There he goes again," she said when she heard Sir George cough again. “I can't carry on pretending that I didn't hear him," she told herself. She sighed and got up from the armchair in which she had been sitting comfortably during her break time.

She then picked up and closed the book which she was reading earlier and returned it to the library before heading to the dining room where Sir George was having his afternoon tea by himself. He felt that it was too cold to have his tea out on the balcony as usual.

He also did not want to sit in the library on cold days like the other adults in the palace did.

“He's a different one alright," Claire said to herself softly as she approached him patiently.

***

“Sh*t" Raven cursed as he walked down the hill.

“Now I will have to phone again!" he exclaimed angrily as he took his cell phone out of his pocket. He had taken a walk to the small tavern at the top of the hill, not far from the palace. It was tucked away discretely behind a few boulders. Raven and his friends often met there, especially on Fridays.

It was going to be his biggest birthday yet soon. He was turning twenty one and the party celebrations were going to be very lavish. He was very excited about it. Friends from other countries were also coming. His college friends would be there as well.

“When will the delivery arrive then?" he shouted now. He had asked his uncle George to sign for him to purchase a new sports car. A blue, Italian-made one.

“You could have had it sooner, sir, if you or your uncle could have picked it up. Sending it takes time because there are many security procedures to be observed," the sales manager replied on the phone.

Raven had wanted his new sports car to arrive at the palace in style so that he could show off to his friends. That was why he did not collect it at the motor dealership in person.

So, his friends had arrived for lunch and waited for the car to be delivered in style, but there was no sign of it and so they had left one by one.

So, Raven went to the tavern and had a few drinks there with the two remaining friends who were still patient and loyal enough to wait.

After a few drinks, he phoned the palace office.

“Did the car show up already?" he asked immediately when Theresa, his uncle's personal assistant answered.

“Not yet. We're also just looking out for it expectantly," Theresa had answered.

Now it was late afternoon already and Raven felt as if he had wasted everyone's time. It was really embarrassing to him.

“So, I am going to receive this beautiful new sports car all by himself it seems," he thought. “Am I smart enough to do all the admin on my own, though?" he asked himself, scratching his head pensively.

“Alright then, I'll wait," he responded to the vehicle sales manager before cutting the call.

“Oh, no. Don't say that your car is still not here yet?" Richard, his younger brother commented when he saw Raven walking down the hallway towards his own suite.

“Leave it, Rick, just leave it. I'm upset enough," Raven responded with an irritated wave of his hand.

“Oh, well, whatever," Richard mumbled to himself and turned around to walk back to the study where he was experimenting on robotics. He had come out when he had heard Raven on the phone and so he had gathered that his elder brother was still waiting for his stylish luxury vehicle.

“I'm so glad that I'm not like him," Richard mumbled to himself contentedly. “I'm not that hard to please and I'm creative. I build up my own machines," he added with a sense of pride and achievement.

He stepped into the study with a contented smile on his face and closed the door behind him. His uncle allowed him to use the study because he himself preferred the library, which was more spacious. Sir George needed lots of space around himself otherwise he felt as if he was suffocating.

Raven, on the other hand, suddenly did not feel so good about himself as he walked into his suite. It consisted of a lounge, a small round table and two chairs, his spacious bedroom and his bathroom.

“A shower will make me feel like less of a flop," he said to himself and began to undress as he walked to his full bathroom.

As he allowed the water to flow over him, Raven wondered how his friends would have reacted if the car had arrived in time; the jealous ones and his few real friends.

“I have to make time to find out who is which," he said to himself with a determined set of his jaw. “From now on I have to find out who's a real friend and who's only along for the show. I will show them who I really am from now on," he said with firm determination.