Left with the cryptic message that Beatrice was trying to send her, Charlotte was taken back to the colorful room she started in. Her pace slowed while she went over everything that she talked to Beatrice about. In the meantime, she hardly noticed Beatrice calling the group of vampires over to them. Nor was she paying much attention to what they were saying, that is until her name was brought into the conversation. Then suddenly, Charlotte's mind was yanked out of her thoughts and she was back to focusing on them. "...kind to Charlotte. I want you to think of her as one of you for now. Understand? Just as His Majesty has requested," Beatrice was saying when Charlotte tuned back into the conversation. After which, the Lady of the castle turned to her and gave her a smile. Charlotte acknowledged her with her own, but it wasn't a confident one. She was aware that she missed a majority of the conversation. However, she felt that it might be a bad idea to mention that to Beatrice. So, i

By sunset the next night, Rodrick was already out of his bed and carefully pulling a shirt over his shoulders. His stab wounds were still present and they had his body sore with too much movement. The hit he took to the head when he went through the wall had left a visible gash just at the top of his hairline. These were minor things, he told himself. He could not afford to wait around to heal at this point. There was no telling what Rimidal might subject Charlotte to if she was left in that castle for too long. Just as he was finishing readying himself for the night, the doors to his bedroom suddenly flew open. At no surprise, the culprit behind the jarring interruption was Vincent. Of course he looked like he was already prepared. Unlike Rodrick, all signs of their fight the last time he was there had healed. Another fact that came to no surprise for Rodrick, he hadn't been the one that pulled a knife. "For someone so determined to get his lover back, you're moving awfully slow,"

Rodrick's eyes moved from where Charlotte was standing with Beatrice, over to Rimidal. "What do you want me to do?" he asked. "No, don't! He'll kill you!" Charlotte choked out, tears streaming down her face. "Quiet now, I don't want to hurt you," Beatrice said to her. Despite her words, she didn't move the blade away from her throat at all. Rimidal smiled at him, his eyes only seemed to take on a glow. The lights in the chandelier above flickered then, as though a breeze had somehow touched the flames inside the lamps. Then, without explanation, they started to go out one by one until the room was completely black. There was a collective reaction from everyone else in the room. A clamor of confusion at the sudden darkness, unsure of what had caused it. Just as quickly as the lights snuffed out, they all lit up at once again, this time their flames were a low, flickering blue. It gave the entire room an eerie glow. To make matters worse, once the flames relit, Rimidal had vanish

When they arrived back in Willow Creek, dawn was just on the horizon. There was no life in Charlotte's body anymore. It was just shortly after they started their long drive, that Rodrick felt the last of her faint breath. If she didn't come back from this as a vampire, then he would have lost her. For the time being, Rodrick was remaining composed while he clung to the glimmer of hope that he had done enough to complete the change. While he was certain he gave her enough of his blood and venom to start the change, he wasn't at all sure if he was too late in giving it to her. All there was left to do now was wait to see if she would rise again in twenty four hours. A painful wait to know if he had lost someone he only just accepted his love for. Rodrick wasn't sure if he could go through another loss like that again. Vincent trailed into his castle behind him while Rodrick moved as swiftly as he could to carry Charlotte up to his room. The castle staff that caught sight of him ascen

Those spoken words were all she needed to pick right back up where she left off. After flashing him a quick smile in return, Charlotte found herself locked back into his embrace. Their lips meeting more passionately and tenderly than they had ever done before. She imagined that if it were still possible, it might have been enough to take her breath away. It wasn't a feeling she was missing out on though because she had become so aware of everything else around her. The touch of his skin under her palms while she smoothed her hands up his chest no longer seemed chilling to her. It felt just like her own and now she was able to fully enjoy every curve of the muscles he hid beneath his clothes. His alabaster skin was so perfectly flawless and carefully chiseled. It didn't stop with the touch of her fingertips. Charlotte eventually moved her eager kisses down to explore his body. Every touch sent her senses wild. It went beyond the tingling she used to feel from his touch. She was so a