Nora

I sat in our room that had been newly remodeled, thinking about the revelation of my name. Could it mean anything? Or was it merely a coincidence? I didn’t know why I was pondering it anyway. I knew the truth. It was my fate, destiny, or whatever they called it. I was supposed to find a cure to the darkness, to be their light. “No pressure, Nora,” I muttered to myself.

“There is no pressure.” Falcon said as he walked into the room. “We’re not going to tell anyone.”

“I’ve debated that in my head, too. If we tell them, then vampires might be hunting me down. On the other hand, telling them may raise hope for our cause.”

“I’ve considered that as well, but I must consider your health and the needs of our baby first. They have waited centuries. A few more months isn’t going to destroy them.”

“I know, but I cannot help myself, Falcon. I feel for them.”

“Yes, as your name suggests. I love you, Nora. You’re everything to me and I can’t lose you, so promise you’ll wait until I have everything secure before you ask for your lab.”

“I will,” I promised, kissing him and getting ready for another day roaming the castle. I think it was time I got Mary alone for some pregnancy questions. She has been hiding away, mourning her love. It hurt me every time I saw that look in her eyes. The thought of losing Falcon would turn me into an empty soul as well.

“Can I go out to the garden area today?”

“Yes, but please take Charlotte with you. I will be busy with the soldiers preparing for battle.”

“Please be safe, Falcon.”

“Always, my love.” He walked me down to Charlotte’s room and Draco exited at the same time.

“She’s getting ready. Go on in,” Draco said, holding the door open for me. I walked in while waving goodbye to the two.

“How are you feeling?” Charlotte asked as soon as the door was closed. “I mean with learning the meaning of your name.”

“I don’t know. I mean, I will do all I can to find a cure, but the thing is, what if my parents named me that just because they liked it?”

“There are tons of names they could have given you, but they gave you the name that represents hope to these people.”

“Do you think we should tell them? Falcon wants me to wait until after the baby is born before working on it, but should the people be told?”

“That’s a hard choice to make. Either way, it’s going to put you at risk. Skeptics will treat it as just a coincidence and others will beg you to work harder and faster.”

“I see your point. It’s probably best to wait. We already have enough worrying about Stavros attacking every day. I came in here to see if you wanted to talk to Mary.” I gave her a large smile that showed all of my teeth. It was devious, but I wanted her to come with me. Charlotte and Mary didn’t seem to get along well. Mary often looked at Charlotte like an interloper.

“We still have to wait until the sun sets, remember?”

“Oh, shit. I can’t believe I forgot. That’s so stupid of me.”

“No. Your mind is elsewhere right now. But since we have some time to kill, how about a walk outside. I could really use some fresh air.”

“I second that. Let’s go for a walk.” We interlocked arms and marched out of her room and down to the private garden. The flowers were in bloom and so beautiful. The smell didn’t mess with my nausea. I had to pick some for our bedroom.

“It smells so amazing down here.”

“It does, Charlotte. I love the roses. Before they didn’t smell that strong. I don’t know if it’s the pregnancy or the vampire abilities, but it’s so much more potent.”

“Maybe it’s both. I have to walk some more; the scents are starting to seem too strong.” We walked down the path to where a large bench to sit.

“This is a beautiful place.”

“It really is. You know, Charlotte, I feel like we don’t talk like we used to. I don’t want our friendship to disappear because of all this. I’m sorry that Falcon has been going off the handle on you, but I’d love for us to remain close.”

“We will. I think of it like when a normal girl gets a boyfriend. All of the sudden she stops hanging out with her besties because she wants to be with him. Soon, we’ll have babies that will play together and grow up by each other’s sides. No matter what happens, you’ll always be my best friend.”

“Same here,” I said, pulling her in for a tight hug. I sat back and enjoyed the silence for a moment.

“You know we haven’t picked any names yet.”

“Oh goodness, we should go get on that before we forget and the next two months fly by.” We got up in a rush and hurried back into the castle and grabbed our laptops. “Meet me in the library.”

“Okay. I’ll be there in five minutes.”