by Arantes
He looked at her and smiled, “I’m not planning on changing anytime soon.”
She smiled back at him. When he was about to leave out the door his mother said, “Whenever you’re ready to talk to us, we’ll be ready.”
He nodded his head and smiled, then left out the door.
***
Axil had gone to pick up Natalia. He had come to pick her up in a blue horse-carriage. Today he wore a deluxe prince-like costume including the white tailcoat with gold epaulets; gold braids and polished gold buttons, red sash with a medal and ribbon, and the pressed royal blue pants. Dante had picked the attire for him. That morning they had woke up early and went to the market to see the tailor. The tailor could have easily come to the castle, but the old man had a bad back and traveling wasn’t part of his recovery. “Typically vampires, when they get too old their body starts to fall apart, unlike Purebloods” as Dante would put it. The old man was at least fifteen hundred years old. They walked into his store to find he had made a dozen sets of clothing for Axil to try on. They had bought them all and the old man was happy with their satisfactions.
Now Axil’s hands began to sweat as he reached Natalia’s house. The man guiding the horse got out and opened the door for him. Axil walked nervously to her front door and before knocking he started pondering. What if she doesn’t like me? What if this is too much? Wait no, I can’t allow myself to be nervous, just remember what Dante said, to relax. Before he could knock on the door he heard it being opened from the other side. Her father was standing there with a smile on his face; he had seen Axil through the curtains. Axil walked in the room and her father had not said a word. Natalia came down the stairs looking as elegant as ever. She wore a floor length purple strapless evening gown with a sweetheart neckline. Dante, he must have sent her that dress. She walked over to her father and Axil who looked surprise and happy of how beautiful she looked.
“Well are you just going to stand there and stare at me all day,” she said with a smile.
“You look magnificent,” said Axil. Her smiles were to die for.
Axil grabbed her bag and she kissed her father goodbye. She told him Mrs. Blackwell would be here to take care of him. When Natalia saw the carriage she was lost for words. Axil held the door open for her as she got inside. He showed her all the features the horse-carriage had to offer. They rode to the mountain to pick up Albedo. As they passed the cherry blossoms Natalia thought it was the most beautiful scenery she had ever seen. She always wanted to come and see it but was always too busy with her father. She did manage to see once it when she came looking for Albedo. When they arrived, Albedo was sitting in one of the cherry blossoms’ branches, next to him was Sonia.
Sonia and Albedo came down to them; their bags were located underneath the tree. Natalia introduced herself to Sonia officially.
So this is Sonia huh, I’ve never really seen her up close. “You must be Sonia. It’s nice to properly meet you, Albedo told me a lot about you,” said Natalia. ”
That’s funny, because he told me nothing about you. Sonia was a bit jealous that Albedo would talk to Natalia about her, but never once mention Natalia to her. “It’s nice meeting you too.”
“Hey Natalia, you’ve never been outside of Inferno before right?” asked Albedo.
“Of course not,” she smiled. “I’m a human remember.”
Sonia didn’t really know what to make of Natalia. They both realized they loved Albedo, loved to shop, and apparently loved sweets. Natalia’s love for Albedo was different; it was more of a sisterly love. Soon after Natalia and Sonia started talking as if they knew each other for years about the different kinds of sweets they loved to eat. After they all got on the carriage Sonia started to like Natalia, usually she hates women. Well at least Axil has good taste, unlike Dante who goes after these so-called women. There was something about Natalia that made her different. Sonia would have never imagined having a human as a friend before. It wasn’t that she had anything against humans, she just had nothing in common with them. Natalia was different somehow, she seems as though she was one of them. Other humans would be nervous around her kind, but Natalia looked happy and exited. She watched as Axil showed her the gate of Inferno, her eyes lit up just like Albedo’s did when he first stepped out of Inferno.
They met with Dante outside of the gate, he looked impatient. He got off his horse and one of the guards took it to the stable. He got on the carriage and instantly greeted Sonia and Natalia with a kiss on their hands. Axil and Albedo watched carefully and followed every move Dante made. Sonia thought it was funny and wanted to laugh. What are those two worrying about, I don’t want Dante, and I’m sure Natalia doesn’t want him either. He’s too, Dante.
Dante now looked at Albedo and Axil and said, “What took you so long, I’ve been waiting for almost an hour!”
“Where’s Angelione?”
“He’s waiting for us there,” said Dante. He looked at the two and said, “Are you guys ready to go now? I want to get there while the girls are still young.”
Axil had come to the conclusion that the reason Dante left his old girlfriend, was simply so that he was free to meet new ones; this was not the first time he’d done it.
***
“We made it at last!” said Dante with enthusiasm.
The name of the mountain speaks for itself. The mountain was bright blue, very tall and massive. There were millions of spiky blue pine trees surrounding the mountain. Up ahead you could see the lights of the villa resort. They looked up the hill to see a path for the horse-carriage to go. On each side of the long curvy path were lots of the tall blue trees. When they finally made it to the top it was as beautiful as the mountain. The villa was breathtaking! There were flowers and artistic landscaping leading up to the pool in front of the villa. It even had electricity. You could see the hundreds of lights reflecting off of the water.
The place looks amazing. I can’t wait to see the ladies, thought Dante.
They walked inside and it was beautiful to look at. Inside were statues of the King; he was standing holding up a sword. Even though he wasn’t there, his presence was intimidating. There were three pillars on each side of the lobby painted in brown with star-like designs around them. Natalia had never seen electricity before, only heard of it. The chandelier illuminated its brightness around the room and Natalia was lost in imagination. The floor had been waxed so well that you could actually see your reflection. Sonia told them the beach was located in the back. She explained to them it was a man made beach that was constructed a few decades ago. She walked to the front desk and signed their names. A girl sat behind the desk and handed Sonia the keys to their rooms and urged them to enjoy their stay. Dante was already gone when Sonia looked back at the group. The minute Sonia had mentioned there was a beach there he was gone. He had figured if there was a beach, there would be ladies.
“There he goes again. You can’t go anywhere with that guy, he’s always leaving you behind for something else,” said Axil.
Angelione showed up from upstairs and greeted them. He wasn’t too fond of the idea of Natalia coming with them, but after a long convincing from Sonia he had to give in.
Sonia and Natalia went to change in their room; when they came back Albedo and Axil were lost for words. Albedo had never seen her in a bikini before; when he saw her, he thought she was magnificent in every way! She was wearing a deep red bikini that tied on each side of her waist. Natalia was wearing a purple bikini with clasps on each side of her waist. Axil thought the same about Natalia, he was glad she agreed to come on the vacation. Each had excellent curves, slim body, long legs and beautiful eyes.
“Well guys, go over there and talk to your women, if you don’t there are other guys here who would love to,” said Angelione.
What a guy, thought Albedo, he’s on vacation and reading a book at the same time.
Axil and Albedo kept Sonia’s and Natalia’s company as they sat by the beach. Natalia and Sonia sat on a cushioned be
ach chair with an umbrella in the middle of them. Albedo and Axil sat next to them and neither knew what to say. Off in the distance in the beach, they could see Dante.
Dante had found a new lady, and was playing with her in the water. Sonia looked over and thought it would be fun.
“Do you guys want to go in the water?”
A few moments later, they joined Dante in the water. They were having as much fun as they could. Sonia smiled, thinking that this was exactly what they needed.
“Have you guys seen the rooms in this place? I saw Angelione’s room before I came here? It’s amazing how great they look,” said Dante. Dante had moved on from the girl he had met earlier, no one was surprised.
Natalia thought Dante should be more like Axil and Albedo. He does not know how to treat a lady, she thought to herself.
That evening, they all headed to bed except for Axil and Natalia. They sat alone on the beach. It was very late, but Axil wanted to let Natalia know how he truly felt about her. He told her a little about his past, not the family who threw him out, but the ones who took him in. He wanted to know more about her life.
“Well, my Mother died about five years ago and my Father became ill. So I had to take the responsibility of caring for him.” She looked sad talking about him. “He can hardly talk and walk, so I have to do everything for him.”
Axil thought it was nice of her to devote her life to taking care of her father, but thought she also needed to have a life of her own, someone there by her side. At this point, Natalia no longer cared that he was a Pureblood, or his friends. To her love was love, it doesn’t matter whom it was with.
Axil wanted to kiss her, to let her know how much he cared for her. He grabbed her hand, looked into her eyes, and she leaned in to kiss him. She had never kissed before. Axil on the other hand had, once. He’d been out with Dante, and they had met two beautiful women. With the help of Dante’s smooth talk and good looks, he had won them over.
Natalia’s lips were soft and gentle and she had the heart of an angel. She’d give up the needs of most selfish young people, just to help her father. Axil loved that about her, she made him happy, the way Sonia made Albedo happy. He had forgotten about the misery he endured in the past; the future was now much brighter. Life was good at last, someone to take the pain and loneliness away from his shoulders.
The next day Sonia and Natalia were changing their clothes in the luxurious bathroom and while they were half dressed, Dante accidently walked in. Before he could see anything, Sonia hit him in the face and closed the door on him.
“Pervert!” the two of them shouted. Sonia was fuming and wanted to kill him.
“Have you ever noticed how that guy can’t keep a woman for more than a day,” said Sonia.
“Axil told me he has commitment fear,” said Natalia. She enjoyed Sonia’s company. “I’m really glad I came with you guys. I can see why Albedo talks about you all the time. You should see the smile on his face when he mentions you!”
Sonia’s cheeks started to blush, so she changed the subject. “So who’s looking after your father?”
Natalia notice the redness around her cheeks. “Someone that I know, Mrs. Blackwell, she also insisted that I needed this, to get out and get away.” In fact they both needed a nice break, Natalia from her father and Mrs. Blackwell from her own husband.
Axil, Angelione, and Albedo were in the indoor hot pool. The room was filled with steam. The pool was huge and lined with stones around the edges dipping in hot water always relaxes the muscles. It felt as if the water was massaging every muscle in their bodies. The quietness was much needed as they close their eyes and let the water take them away. Each movement felt as if floating as the water pushes them up. The hot steam enters their bodies and removed all the unwanted tension. As they relaxed they could hear someone coming, when they looked Dante was there with a red bruise on his face.
“What happened to your face?” asked Axil.
Dante explained what had happened to him. Axil and Albedo wanted to get upset; but were laughing instead.
“Be lucky they didn’t kill you… pervert,” said Angelione. Even he was getting in the action.
“I’m not a pervert, it was an accident,” replied Dante. She had left her five fingers on his face.
Natalia and Sonia were on the other side of the spring, for ladies only. The water was warm; they followed it with a massage, facial, and pedicure.
“I don’t know about you, but I could get used to this,” said Sonia.
She had made reservations for them to eat that night. The food was delicious and it smelled good too. Dante was not sure if the ladies were still mad at him after what happened. Sonia told him not to worry about it, but if it happens again, that she would break his ribs. He knew she would if it ever happened again. “And that’s a promise!” She had told him with a smile. Sonia wore a red dress that made her sparkle. Her beauty was indescribable, as for Natalia who wore a blue dress. They both had similar types of dresses on. Sonia’s dress was cut in the back leaving her skin exposed. Albedo couldn’t wait to dig in; the food was calling his name as he stared at it. They had a feast, which included a big lobster for the main dish, rice, potatoes, shrimps, and other types of cuisines he had never seen before.
***
It’s not every day Joshua wakes up and sees a High King outside of his house. Today he had taken the day off after Albedo had left on his vacation. Working everyday you miss a lot from your family. He misses his wife and today he wanted to spend the day with her. They had been married long before Albedo came into their lives. Having Albedo was more than the icing on the cake; it was the son that he always wanted. He had left the Black Reapers’ organization so that he could raise his son, not to work every day. Being head of the Humans’ Special Division was just that, no time for your family. Even though Joshua wasn’t a member of the Black Reapers anymore, he still had the desire to protect people, and that’s why he became head of the Humans’ Division. Inferno was the perfect place for him to retire, after being a Black Reaper since King Victor’s father had been ruling this land; he needed some peace and quiet. He sometimes missed being a Black Reaper. Now he looked outside of his window and saw that royal guards surrounded his house. The horse-carriage stopped a few steps from his front door and the king got out.
The king looked almost like a god with his crown. A personal visit from the king, this is unorthodox of him.
He had not seen King Victor in a long time now, the man still looked strong and powerful as ever. Another man stepped out of the carriage, Jarvis. Even master Jarvis is with him. The trumpet played loudly to announce the unexpected arrival of the king. Joshua could now hear his wife’s footsteps coming down the stairs. She too was baffled when he told her what was going on. It was early in the morning and Joshua had gone down stairs to make coffee for her and this happens, the king showing up to your doorstep unexpectedly. They heard a knock on their door and Cecelia and Joshua went and opened it. The royal guard that knocked on the door said, “Presenting you, lord Jarvis and your holiness King Victor!” Did he have to scream so loud? Joshua and Cecelia were standing right there in front of him.
“My lord, Master Jarvis!” said Joshua in bewilderment. Joshua always had that serious face, hardly talked and rarely expressed his emotion, almost like Angelione.
Jarvis laughed, “I knew that boy reminded me of you, always calling me master.” He looked at the two, “Cecelia, I see you haven’t age a bit, your beauty knows no limit. And you Dragan, looking strong and powerful as always.”
Cecilia invited them in, in which the King told his men to stay outside, all of them. One of the men told the king that a couple of them should go in with him, for safety reasons. The king started to laugh and said he could take Dragan if something goes wrong, jokingly. He had been friends with Dragan since he could remember. They had trained together and grew up together, and had formed a bond of brotherhood.
“How long has it been since we were all toge
ther like this?” said Cecelia, she was glad her house was cleaned. The thought of a King walking into a dirty house was unacceptable. But of course she always cleaned her house from top to bottom, after leaving the Black Reapers cleaning house was her daily life. She made them coffee and offered them some of the cake she had baked for Dragan last night. She thought about Albedo while she was baking it, if he was here then this cake would have been gone by now.
“Too long old friends, too long,” said King Victor happily. He took a few sips from his coffee and said, “So tell me old friends, how’s retirement treating you?”
Dragan and Cecelia did not hesitate looking at each other and said, “It’s wonderful, you should try it.”
“I would actually, but you see apparently I’m the only one fit for this job really. It’s something about being the son of the late king that keeps me bound to this job,” said the King jokingly. King Victor has never been to their house before; in fact he hasn’t been to Inferno for a long time now. “I see the two of you started the life you always wanted. So tell me, do you miss it?”
“I would not trade this for the world!” they both agreed this was the right decision.
“You two gave up being a Black Reaper to raise a family that you always wanted. But Albedo as you can see is following in your footsteps. So how about it, want to come back to the division?” asked the King.
As tempting as that sounded, Dragan was content with his life. “Sorry king, but our days of being a Black Reaper are over.”
“I figured you would say that,” said the King, who was disappointed but not shocked. He knew they weren’t going to leave this quiet life behind. “Let’s move on to more serious matters, is he starting to remember his past?”
