Bambi and the Duke

Leonard had already eaten enough food and he had hoped for Vivian to have her lunch in the council but she had missed it. It being already past the lunch hour, they walked down the outer corridors of the council building where only a few insight walked with most of them being visitors. 

Reaching a nearby inn which served food in the local town, Vivian sat down with Leonard in front of her while her back faced the wall. To have him sitting in a local inn, it was the first time for her. The local inn wasn't a fancily and wouldn't guess that a man like Leonard would even enter this small place. She had missed him since the time he had left the building to go look at the matter he and the others were called for. 

"What happened?" he asked her seeing her stare at him and she shook her head with a smile, "I missed you too," he said bringing a wider smile on her face.

"Were you able to resolve the matter?" she asked him when a man came and placed the large mugs on the table with a thud splashing the water inside it on the table, "How often do you come here?" she asked him with another question. 

"Just two or three times a month. Heuren likes to come here to treat us when he loses a certain bet with either me or Dutan," he answered, taking the kerchief and giving it to her.

"Hmm?" she hadn't spilt anything as the food was yet to come.

"Put this on your lap. Take it," taking it from him, she spread it wide. Looking around the shabbing looking in, she saw that apart from her and Leo, there were two other men who were seated who were from the council as she remembered seeing one of the men in the courtroom who had been sitting directly in front of her line of sight. The only people looking after the inn were two men and a woman who was walking in and out of a backdoor where the food was being prepared. 

The rest of the folks were from the village who were loud and unpoised, brash with their talk and chatter. Some of them showing how manly they were. As her eyes roamed around the room she caught a man staring at her to which she immediately avoided eye contact. Leonard wasn't sitting right in front of her but closer to her in the round table. 

When he was done looking at the papers which Vivian had brought along with her, he lifted his face to find the man whom Vivian had tried avoiding gaze with staring at her. As if feeling Leo's brooding eyes, the man's eyes met Leo's and suddenly dropped to realize who had come to the inn. 

Vivian who had been looking at the glass of water near to her heard Leo speak to her, "Lift your chin up," he said and when she did he continued, "Don't be scared about what is in front of you, Bambi."

Vivian gave him a quizzical look.

"You don't have to hide because someone is staring at you. You have come here with the right to eat just like the others, the food which you will pay. If someone is staring at you stare back to the point where their eyes cower to look down."

"I don't think I have the ability to do that," she answered him with a slight whisper.

"True. But it can always be developed with practice. From this point onwards, you will see and meet a lot of people who will try to stub you if you don't hold your ground," she pondered at his words to ask. 

Leonard was a jealous man but he wasn't an irrational one. He was proud to have Vivian as his wife and since they had got married he had taken the advice which the Lord had imparted on him. It was when Nicholas had come to congratulate them,

"Women are like flowers, Leo," said Nicholas to him, "You need to let them breathe and grow with a lot of space. That doesn't mean you don't look out for the pests that might come to harm them but if you don't allow them space they need you will never come to see the flower blooming completely for yourself."

After what Nicholas said, Leonard had given some serious thought over it. With her now out in the open he couldn't forever keeper her from the bad eyes. To have her safe, she would have to learn to fly and know what to do. That had been one of the many reasons why he hadn't hovered over her during the Winter's Ball which was held at the Delcrov's mansion. 

"I will be right here having your back, Bambi. So you have nothing to worry but look straight without a single ounce of fear. I love you and will continue to do so so fear nothing as I will be there with every step you take into this world you have entered while protecting you with everything I have," he took her hand in his, not caring about the place and time, he lifted her hand and kissed on the back of her fingers. Gently pressing them and Vivian had given her his entire attention but the stares both of them now received due to Leo's clear and loud voice made her shy and embarrassed in the room. 

The men around them hooted and cheered, the two women who had come with their husbands gushed looking at the couple. Even the man who had been staring at her previously seemed to be smiling at them after hearing what Leo spoke.

"Who knew that the Duke would be this romantic, is she his lover?" asked one of the men in the local inn and another man replied back with, "They must be, look at the way they are sitting so close. He also kissed the lady's hand," a lot of murmurs began to fill the room about them and it was as if for the first time they had come out to be a couple even though it had been quite a few days since they had been married now. 

"I will do my best!" Vivian went to reply back for him to give her a nod of approval. 

"I know."

After finishing the meal, they went back to the carriage. Vivian was readying to get inside when Leonard asked her, "Did someone ask you to bring the blood tea? Or was it for yourself?" his words were casual as he inquired about it. 

Leo noticed, thought Vivian to herself, "It was for me," seeing him not comment on it and give his hand for her to take, she placed her hand in his and her foot on the pedestal before getting inside the carriage. 

When they were in, he asked her, "Were you planning to turn to a vampire by drinking blood?" 

"One can turn like that?" she asked him to see him roll his eyes at her. Her gaze then turned serious "Leo."

"Hmm?"

"Did you notice something strange about me? I know I am a package full of an oddity but is there something you have seen which I am not aware of," her brows drew together waiting for him to answer.

Raising his hand, he pointed out his eyes, "Your eyes have been flickering for a while now. Did you see it today?" she nodded her head.

"I didn't see it before. My left eye completely turned red and then in second it was gone," this got Leonard's attention who had been thinking about her flickering eyes. 

"Just left eye?" he asked her.

"Ungh, just left eyes," she turned her body to face him completely, "Just like my black eyes now. Fully red," this might be the first time, thought Leo in his mind. The number of times her eyes had flickered, it was the first time he heard that her eyes had completely turned red, "Do you think I am changing back?" 

"I don't think it is so," he said in a grave tone, "If you were to be changed, the transformation should have been enough to trigger and flip the switch of the pureblooded vampire traits in you but your body rejected it. You drank my blood last time when you were half unconscious, do you think you can drink it this time?"

Being around vampires, the smell of blood didn't feel repulsive but she had never thought to drink it. Blood wasn't something that the humans consumed but it was a source to live for the vampires and the pureblooded vampires.

Her lips pursed together in thought as to what to do. This was much better than sneaking around and drinking blood from somewhere unknown. 

"Okay," she gave a nod to his question. While vampires could consume blood only from the humans, the pureblooded vampire could take it from the humans, vampires and considerably by their own kind which was often told that the pureblooded vampire's blood was sweeter compared to the rest of the race. 

Taking his hand up in the air, Vivian saw him run his finger across his wrist such that a thin red line formed before blood started to ooze out, "All yours," he said, bringing it towards her. 

Taking a deep breath, she caught hold of his hand and leaned forward to touch her lips on his skin before enclosing the little wound with her mouth. When the iron taste of blood touched her tongue Vivian flinched and then pulled back.

She shook her head. 

"No..."

"It's okay if you aren't going to be a vampire or a pureblooded vampire," he assured her, "I fell for the human girl so it doesn't matter if you live to stay as a human forever," he took his hand up to his mouth and ran his tongue across the would, licking it clean and putting it back to his side. 

"But I won't stay...." he words drained into an unheard murmur which Leo couldn't catch.

"Won't stay? Are you planning to escape from me?" he stared at her in question. 

"In this state, I won't stay alive forever," he finally heard her say, his eyes softened. It was a concern which even Leo had looming above his head. It wasn't that he was unhappy about her being human but the thought of her limited time in this life of hers worried him, "Shall we ask the white witch if she can help you with some potion that will help to extend your life?" 

She shook her head, "The witches potion doesn't work all the time."

"Why do you say that?"

"A lot of books says that. No matter how old the witch is, there is always a possibility of making things worse. There was also this saying-"

"If it isn't broken don't fix it," Leo completed her sentence. He held Vivian's hand on their way back to the mansion, letting her borrow his shoulder so that she could rest as the carriage rode on the muddy path.

It didn't seem like she was turning to a vampire but her eyes were behaving strangely. Both of them knew that her eyes fluctuating colour wasn't good news. 

"I was hoping that you would find my blood enticing," she heard Leonard speak next to her which brought a smile on her face, "It would be nice if you could find only my blood to be special."

"Your wished are strange Mr Carmichael," she murmured.

"Why so?"

"Who hoped for things like that? And I am a human, you can have my blood to be enticing than yours," wrapping her arms around his left arm, she hugged it.

"That I already do," but he didn't stop there, "I find your eyes enticing, the way you look at me with that unbridled smile when you're very happy and contain it but share it with me and the rest of the world. It's worth dying for," turning his head he kissed the top of her head. 

A goofy smile came to settle on her lips at his comment on her. Leonard had been her companion from early days and there was nothing more she could expect of him or from her life right now. She hoped things would stay like this, hoping nothing would ruin what they had. 

Her mind went back to the council court, "If a person has gone through the transformation with the vampire venom to turn to a half-vampire, and it doesn't go well," she paused, "But his eyes fluctuates. Does it hold any difference?" she asked him.

"Difference in how he was turned or his probability of being sane?" 

"Both," lifting her head she turned to look at him, "Is there no way to bring back what's lost?" she couldn't help herself at the way the man had asked her with helpless eyes which made her feel guilty though she had nothing do with it. 

"There's no cure, Vivi. Once you start corrupting you turn to a threat because your mind starts playing tricks. First, comes the hallucinations then you lose reasons the inner rage starts to surface to be consumed and burn everything around you until you are not yourself," Leo explained it to her, "The councilmen have researched and put them under a series of experiments but I heard nothing good came out of it. It is a lost cause," his voice fell quiet at the end of the sentence. 

"Do you think I can try helping?" this received her a scowl from him, "Maybe not," she adjusted herself on the carriage seat.

"You don't need to help people. Most of them already know what they are getting into when they go for the transformation."

"What if they are forced and aren't aware of it?" 

"Then call it to be their fate," the words were spoken sharply, "You helping them equals you shortening your already short days with me. Is that what you aim for?"

"No," she muttered.

"It would have been fine if your ability was limitless but it isn't. You cannot save a drowning man when you can't save yourself in the water."

"Yes," Vivian could tell that Leonard was upset with her thoughts of wanting and needing to help another person at the cost of her life. It wasn't that she wanted to lose her years.

Leonard let out a sigh as he looked out of the window, "There are a few things in this world you cannot do anything but watch as it passes by. Even if it is me dying, you are not to use them," he spoke sternly. 

"But what will I do without you?" her words were enough to dissipate his scowl and melt his heart.

"Fool. If I die, you will follow me closely," he said still looking outside the window. Lifting his face up where he had been supporting with his hand, he met her confused eyes, "Let me fix it," with that he pulled her close and kissed her on her lips. 

Unbuttoning the top of her collared dress, his fangs came out and he didn't wait but bite into her neck. Not prepared Vivian flinched in his arms, her eyes closing to feel his mouth on her neck where his fangs had pierced into her tender skin. Unlike before he didn't suck her blood, but her body started to feel warm before he retracted back his fangs. Giving it a few licks to close the two small puncture he pulled back to look at the design that had come to form around her neck. 

Leonard being the possessive man he was, there were a few things he wouldn't hold back in showing off that Vivian was his wife and mate for life. 

Vivian blinked at him a couple of times, surprise clear on her face to ask, "Soulbond?" 

"You are mine and I am yours in every form, we don't have to live apart from each other in worry," he said placing his hand on the side of her cheek. Leaning forward he kissed her forehead. Vivian who had read and heard about soul bond looked at him in awe before her hands flung around his neck to hug him. 

Soul bonds were precious and not every or anyone could leave it on a person. It was a symbol that showed how they would part from the world together, one following after another. It was one of the practices of the pureblooded world when they found the 'one' to spend and share their life with. 

"Nothing to worry at all now," she heard him murmur in his warm embrace.

Things had fallen well for them. It made her wonder, how things would have been if she had still been a pureblooded vampire living in Valeria...