The next few weeks became busy for Joana and Andrew as they were both caught up making preparations for the wedding. They had a lot of things to do, starting from planning the budget along with the other sponsors, getting a license- she needed granny Jean’s parental consent for this as she was still a minor, choosing a location, creating the guest list, sending out invitations, choosing the right wedding planner, planning the reception, the rehearsal dinner, choosing the wedding attire, amongst other things. And they only had about a month to get everything done.
There was barely enough time for the couple to hang out alone anymore, as there were plenty of things that needed their attention. At some point, Joana thought that maybe she should have given more space to get things planned, but that would mean that she wouldn’t have her wedding on her birthday anymore. She had only one birthday in a year, and she couldn’t wait till the next year before getting married to Andrew. Planning in such a short time was hard, but she knew she could pull it off.
They had chosen the venue; a large garden not too far from where Joana lived. They would place a temporary structure in the middle of the beautiful garden, serving as the wedding hall. She loved outdoor weddings, but since it was a night wedding, she figured placing a tent would be best so the guests wouldn’t freeze from the night’s cold.
Things were beginning to take shape as they were in the final week before the wedding, and they had taken care of almost everything. They had help from grandma Jen and Andrew’s parents, along with a few friends and family members.
They didn’t even know if they would have time to plan their honeymoon. But one of Andrew’s wealthy relatives would not hear of it, and decided to give them one; a free one-week getaway for the couple on one of the private resorts owned by the relative. They had already started receiving wedding gifts even before the wedding!
Joana didn’t do much for the bridal party, as all she needed was her best friend standing beside her on her day. They had both gone to get their dresses fitted, and Joana had found the perfect wedding gown. After the fitting, she would meet up with Andrew for the cake tasting, then go back to making other preparations for the wedding.
The rehearsal dinner, on the evening before the wedding, was very simple and didn’t take a lot of time. Joana didn’t have a lot of family members as her father was the only child and her mother had been very secretive about hers. She wanted to scrap the dinner off before, as it would take time and money and she felt there was no point since she didn’t have anyone except her grandmother to invite but it was too late, Andrew’s relatives had traveled from far distances for the wedding and they were looking forward to the dinner, where they would meet her before the wedding. She didn’t want to disappoint them so she decided to leave it on the table.
They would have the bachelors and bachelorettes party in their respective venues after the dinner. Andrew chose to do his at a nightclub, he didn’t want to disturb the relatives who were staying in his home. Grandma Jen allowed Joana to do hers in the house, she would sleep in a hotel nearby and come back the next evening to lead Joana to the altar.
“Drink, but don’t drink too much dear, ok? I don’t want you having hangovers in the morning, I’ll be back tomorrow evening before the wedding starts to wish you a happy birthday,” grandma Jen said to her, giving her a peck on the cheek before leaving the house.
Joana had a lot of fun at her party, forgetting her grandmother’s instructions, she took a lot of alcohol. There was plenty of time to have a hangover as the wedding wasn’t until the evening, she thought. The bachelorette party had many of her high school friends. They had brought in some male strippers and Joana rode on them like a donkey, forgetting herself. The party lasted till the morning, and everyone had fallen asleep in the living room.
Sandra was the first person to wake up. She checked the time, it was almost 3 pm. Joana’s grandmother would soon be back and she definitely would not be pleased to see her granddaughter asleep with two naked men on the couch on the day of her wedding. She began to wake everyone up, but no one agreed to budge. She then went upstairs to the attic and brought out an air horn before returning to the living room. The sound from it made them all jump to their feet and they began to pack up and leave, cursing at Sandra. The house was a mess and grandma Jean would soon be back. They didn’t have much time to clean up and they still had to get dressed before the wedding.
“What do we do now?” Sandra asked Joana, who was still feeling a bit tipsy.
Before Joana could give a response, grandma Jen walked into the house, unable to recognize her living room.
“Did you just wake up?” grandma Jen asked them.
They both nodded their heads truthfully. Much to their surprise, she gave a hearty laugh.
“Well, I’m glad you had fun before your big day. I wish I was able to do a party at my time. The night before my wedding, I and your grandfather, along with the remaining family members, all went to church!”
The two girls started laughing upon hearing what grandma Jen said.
“You both should go upstairs and get ready, while I figure out how to clean this up. The guests will soon start arriving, and they might want to see the bride in her house before heading to the venue.”
“Thank you, grandma!” Joana said before going upstairs with Sandra. She knew she could always count on grandma Jen anytime.
They both went into Joana’s room. Sandra heading to the closet to bring out their dresses which had been nicely packaged by the designer and placed them on the bed.
They went to take their baths and then Sandra started doing her make-up first before she would help Joana with hers. After they had both done their hair and make-up, Sandra put on her dress. She was now fully ready and it only remained for Joana to put on hers.
Just then, someone knocked on the door. It was grandma Jen.
“You both look beautiful,” she said as she stepped in.
“Thank you,” they both responded.
“The guests have started arriving, some of them are bringing their gifts here. I have been the one receiving them as I was preparing the living room but now that it’s done, I need to go and change, I’ll need someone to be receiving the gifts while I’m upstairs.
“Sandra, I can see that you’re all done, can you be a dear and assist us?”
“No problem, grandma J!” Sandra said, before turning to Joana.
“You won’t need any more help with your dress, will you?”
“No, I won’t, thank you,” Joana said, “I will manage on my own.”
“Ok then,” Sandra said as she wore her shoes and left Joana’s room.
“Happy birthday my love,” grandma Jen said, walking towards Joana to hug her, before leaving her room.
“Thank you, grandma,” Joana said behind her.
Now that she was alone, she had a few minutes to think about how her day, or her night rather, would be. She walked to the door and locked it. A few more hours and she would be a married woman, she thought as she threw herself excitedly on her bed.
And then, the headaches started.
Dana had just arrived at the wedding venue, gorgeously dressed. She hoped she had come here on time as the transformation on Joana would begin anytime soon. She checked the gold watch on her wrist. The wedding was supposed to start at 6 pm and it was already 5:50. No sign of a vampire bride anywhere, she thought as she walked towards the tent. She spotted the groom at the entrance, along with some relatives welcoming the guests that were walking in. She began walking towards them. “Welcome Mrs.…... um,” Andrew greeted her at the entrance, trying to identify who she was. “It’s Miss Dana Smith,” she said, shaking his hand. “I’m a friend of the bride’s family.” “You are most welcome Miss Smith,” he said, indicating for her to enter. She went in and looked around the hall. Joana wasn’t here either. Where could she be? She wondered as she took her seat right next to the other guests. She couldn’t send her messenger bat here, as people would see her. And sh
Joana woke up with a slight headache as she clutched the side of her stomach, the wound was no longer there. Was it a dream? She noticed that she didn’t wake up in her room. This place looked different, it looked historical as there were a lot of ancient art and drawings on the wall and the roof. She got down from the bed and tried to look if she would see anyone who would explain what had happened to her. She also noticed that the room was very dark, the large windows covered by thick black curtains. Even though the room was dark, she could somehow still see. She walked to the window and was about to open the curtains when she heard a voice behind her. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. The sun will roast you like marshmallows.” She turned to see another strange face standing at the door. She recognized him; it was the man who had stabbed her at the wedding. “Who are you, and why am I here?” She asked. “My name is Derick, I’m sorry about the stabbing
Dana was waiting for them at the castle when they arrived. They landed at the gates and walked to the entrance where she was standing. “Where have you two been?” She asked them. “I was just showing Joana how to use her wings,” Derick answered the question for them. “Excited to be a vampire huh?” she said as she turned to Joana. “Not at all,” Joana replied. “I want to go back home. Grandma Jen would be worried sick by now!” “Don’t worry, I’ve talked to Grandma Jen, I told her you’re with me and that you’re safe. Although it did take a bit of brainwashing.” “You brainwashed my grandma?” Joana said loudly. “Don’t worry, she’s fine, only that she has no memory of the wedding and the plans you had made the past month. I did the same to all your guests, including your groom. And also, to anyone who could provide information about what happened at the wedding, for a little token of course.” “Why would you do that?” Joana asked
“Marylin returned to the castle to keep the peace, but for days she couldn’t sleep. She came here to the library, searching if she would find a way or a place for her and her lover to be together without causing any disruption. John had offered to run away and come and live here as a vampire, but Marylin knew that his family would never stop until they found him or even his dead body, as he was the only child. And if they ever came here, this coven will be finished. She didn’t want to endanger our lives by transforming John, so she kept on searching for another alternative and never gave up until she found one. “Luck shone one her one day when she found a book about where she could find the supreme council. Everyone knew about their existence and how they keep the law but no one had ever seen them, except of course for those who had incurred their wrath, and were never seen or heard from again after being summoned to their presence. “In her desperation to be with her
He looked at her eyes again and gave up. He would never say no to the one he loved, even if it meant she would leave him again. “Fine,” he said. “But I am only helping you for personal reasons.” She raised her brow at what he said. He then realized how weird that just sounded. “No,” he said, correcting himself. “I mean that I can’t tell you the reason why I am helping you, but just know that it has something to do with Marylin Lou.” Ok, she said with a small breath of relief. “We will go hunting now as we need to feed and store some blood for later. I will show you how to do it, Dana didn’t come back with the remaining members of the coven, Hillary and Edmund. They should be on their way if they are not already back. I’ll go and check for them and see if they are around, then we will all go together.” And with that, he flew out of the room quickly. He came back about two minutes later with a bowl and a cover. “They are no
Joana never believed that she would have this much fun going hunting with Derick and drinking from the dead body of a wild animal. At first, she refused to let her mouth touch its raw skin, telling him to pour the blood into the bowl for her before she would agree to drink. But as she saw the blood was rushing out from the deer, she felt it call to her. She didn’t know what came over her as she dragged it away from his claws and began to drink from it. She couldn’t believe it, but it felt better than drinking from the bowl as this was coming right from the source, still flowing, still fresh, it felt like heaven to her mouth. She didn’t stop until she finished it, she didn’t mind Derick who was looking at her, shaking his head. After she finished, she dropped the bloodless animal to the floor, licking the few drops of blood that stained her lips, she was still hungry, or still thirsty rather. Derick noticing how she felt, spoke to her. “You’ve got quite an appetite th
“The first thing that you will be learning from me today is how to control your affinity for blood. As a vampire, blood is the same as life for you, you will always desire it and you will always feel as if you cannot live without it. The truth of the matter is that you can, but for an inexperienced vampire like you, it’s impossible as it takes years to control one’s hunger.”Joana sat down in the study, listening to everything that Derick was saying. Tonight, was the first night of her training with him, she didn’t know how long it would take before she would be able to master her vampire powers but she hoped it would be soon enough, as it hadn’t been three days yet and she already missed the sunlight. She turned her focus back on Derick who went to the table to bring the bowl of blood they had gone to hunt for last night.“I will place this bowl directly in front of you, and I will cuff you in handcuffs containing bits of silver; not enough to harm you but to weaken you
“Are you crazy?” Dana said to Derick. “So, in your bid to make her see the importance of patience, you try to kill her?”“Relax Dana, she’s an immortal, she can’t die.”“I expected better from you Derick, you know how important blood is to us as vampires. No vampire can survive without it. But instead of telling her that, you choose to lie to her. What if she had surprised you and tore down that roof? What would you have said?”“I’m sorry, Dana, but you can’t blame this all on me. While you and the others decided to leave her alone because she said she wasn’t joining us, I was the only one who still decided to help her. You know I would never try to kill her. I wanted the best for her, the same way I did with Marylin, and I would never make her go through anything I haven’t been through myself.”Dana tried to shield her thoughts. She didn’t want him to read them, but she hated it when he was right. Derick continued speaking.“No one loved Marylin more than me in this