Lady Dhampir

The Secret

Needless to say, Milena was burning with curiosity while following her father and brother across the Manor. The Duke was firmly holding her hand and for the first time, no servants followed them. Around her neck, Blanche suddenly changed from a sloat to a silver snake, curling up around her shoulders as well, holding her head out to look around. But Milena didn’t recognize the corridors they were going through. They climbed several stairs down until the lack of windows made it obvious they were underground. How far below ground level were they exactly? This part of the manor seemed very quiet and empty, too. Like people didn’t come here.

The Duke opened a large door with a golden key and they entered a new corridor. This one was completely cold and empty. Only the stone walls and absolutely no light. Her father and brother didn’t need light, but Milena’s eyes had to try hard to see anything. She regretted not having any night vision ability like her vampire kin…

Staying close to her father, she could feel they had entered a different room, from the echo of their steps on the walls.

Someone cracked a match and Milena saw her brother light up little lamps on the walls, just enough to enlighten the room. She could finally see her surroundings. Only then did she see where she was. It was a cavern, made of stones, in a semi-sphere. But to her surprise, in the middle of that room was some sort of pool. A pool of blood.

“Father! What is this….”

She tightened her grip around her father’s arm, a bit frightened. For some reason, she felt terrified while looking at this. It even took Milena a second to realize there was a thin layer of ice on top of the blood, which explained why she didn’t smell the blood earlier. The Duke stayed a few steps away from the red pool under the ice, staying on the ground made of stones.

“This is the House De Crescent Sanctuary, Milena. A very old and sacred place for our family. Every child in our house knows about this place, but you can never, ever talk about it to anyone, understood? Not even your future husband.”

“I understand Father, but… What is all this… blood?”

“The Legend says this Sanctuary contains the blood of our ancestors. If one day, the House De Crescent is in great peril, it shall rise again to help its blood heirs.”

“Our ancestors…”

No wonder Milena felt scared looking at this. The House De Crescent was incredibly old, dozens of centuries old. She could feel the pressure of the many centuries just by standing in front of that pool…

“Has anyone used it before?” She asked in a whisper.

“Yes. The last time was during the Great Catastrophe, but we don't know exactly what happened. Our family records only say the blood called the blood, and the House De Crescent’s oldest power awoke at once.”

“It hasn’t been used since then?”

Milena was confused. If the House De Crescent held such a powerful weapon, how come it had never been used for the wars, or by anyone who wanted to achieve power before? The Great Catastrophe had occurred three hundred years before!

“It’s not a free power to use, Milena,” explained Raphael. “Our records say every time this power is used, it has to be restored with a blood sacrifice, a real sacrifice.”

“A sacrifice?” Repeated Milena, shocked.

“That’s right. The Blood calls the Blood. If this power is used, someone in our family has to pay the price for it, with their life. That is why this power cannot ever be used lightly, Milena.”

She was speechless. They had to sacrifice someone of their own family to use this power? It was insane! Milena couldn’t imagine losing her father, or one of her brothers.

“I won’t use it, father!” She exclaimed, looking at the red pool with disgust.

However, the Duke put one knee down, to face his daughter, very seriously. He took her hands in his and stared right at Milena, his crimson eyes on her.

“Milena, listen to me. I brought you here because one day, you or your brothers might need this power. We are living in dark times, you are a smart child, you know that. If something happens to me, I want my children to be safe. I’ve already lost your mother and I’ve lost you once too. I don’t want to go through that again.”

Milena slowly nodded. She could feel her father’s pain in his words. She had never stopped to wonder how he must have felt, all these years… Not knowing if his daughter was dead or alive… They barely talked about their mother, too, because it was still too painful for the Duke.

“Did you want to use it…?” She asked in a quiet voice.

“I did,” answered the Duke honestly. “I really considered it several times, but your great-grandmother and brothers kept me from it. The only reason I didn’t was that Valentin wasn’t old enough to take the title and take care of you all if I disappeared.”

Milena’s father sighed. He suddenly pulled his daughter in a tight hug.

It was the first time since the day he had found her. Milena was so surprised, she didn’t even know how to respond, what to do. She shyly gripped on his cloak and blushed. It was… A warm sensation, her father’s arms around her, and his comforting smell surrounding her. The Duke gave her a long kiss on her forehead before stepping back, and Milena found herself a bit shy.

“And, hem… How do we…”

“With blood, Milena. Whoever wants to sacrifice themselves has to bleed on this surface, and it will open.”

She looked at it again and now, she knew why she had felt so afraid. This power was as scary as the terrible way to access it... Raphael, noticing her worried look, stepped forward to put a hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Millie. We most likely won’t see it open in this lifetime. We’re fine.”

“Come on, let’s leave. Raphael, the lights.”

As her father took her away, Milena couldn’t help but glance at the pool of blood once again before Raphael put out the last light. She really hoped she would never come here ever again…

The Duke actually carried her on the way back, so Milena didn’t even have to worry about walking in the dark. It was a quick and silent walk back. Her mind was still too confused about everything she had seen and heard today… She felt sleepy before they reached her bedroom. The Head Maid Sofia hurried in as soon as the Duke laid Milena on her bed.

“My Lady! It is late, you must be tired… Let’s get you in your night robe!”

“Goodnight, Millie,” said Raphael with a smile.

He left right after the Duke. While her maids helped her take off her dress and jewelry, Milena suddenly felt very tired and for some reason, a bit sad too.

“My Lady, did you lose one of your ribbons?” Asked Olivia, one of the vampire maids, who was undoing her hair.

Milena didn’t answer, letting her brush her hair. She stayed quiet until the ladies left, and she was laying in bed. Blanche chose that moment to jump next to her on the bed, turning into a cat, her favorite form for sleeping. Milena looked at her friend, her heart heavy.

“Blanche… We live in a difficult world, don’t we?”

The silver cat opened her eyes to look at her. They stayed a long while like this, looking into each other’s eyes. Then, Blanche shape-shifted into a big tiger and rubbed her nose against Milena's cheek, comforting her. The young dhampir smiled and caressed her big silver head.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

The huge feline purred a little and leaned closer to lay beside her. Milena didn’t know how she could have endured it all if Blanche wasn’t by her side the whole time. The shape-shifter was her best source of warmth and comfort and never left her side.

“We need to get stronger, Blanche… I don’t want Father to die, or Valentin, Raphael and Lucian… I’m too scared of that…”

Every time she closed her eyes, the darkness came back. Blurry, scary memories. Sleeping on the icy asphalt, begging and starving. The pain on her skin, in her bones. Her little hands, eaten up by the cold. Orders, yelled day after day. Working harder, longer, always working.

Every time Milena woke up, she had to remember where she was because it didn’t feel real. Sometimes, she wondered if she was in a strange dream, where she had suddenly become a loved daughter and sister, ate her fill and slept in a warm bed. But at other times of the day, her past felt like a faraway nightmare she couldn’t forget. It was engraved in her mind, in the scars on her back and in her used hands. She wore gloves, at the party, to hide the numerous scars and calluses on her fingers. In the manor, no one ever mentioned it. The young Lady’s past was like a monster everyone wanted to turn a blind eye on and forget. Milena couldn’t forget. It was there, waiting in the corner of her mind, for the right time to come and haunt her again.

Milena didn’t want to forget. She wanted to remember all she had been through, to make sure it would never happen again. Every day, she told herself she was a De Crescent. She had a Family. She had a house. She didn’t want to lose any of that. Milena was only nine years old, but her mind was older than that. Silently, she made a promise to herself. She would grow up, grow stronger and wiser. She would protect everything she loved. No matter what.

She fell asleep like this, breathing slowly. Long after Milena had fallen into slumber, Blanche shape-shifted again, got up and stretched. Leaving the bed, she silently walked to the large window, pushing the curtain away to watch the snowfall. A beautiful white coat was covering all of the De Crescent Land, shining under the moonlight. It was a beautiful sight.

Sitting against the cold window, Blanche observed it for a while. She sometimes turned her head to watch Milena, who would get agitated in her sleep. Sometimes, the young Duchess panicked because of her nightmares, but not tonight. Milena’s sleep was deep and peaceful, for once.

Blanche sighed and turned her gold eyes to the window again.

“...Stupid Oracle,” whispered The Wanderer.