Wife of Vladimir ||Book One||

Her Transformation

"I searched endlessly through the day instead of sleeping, desperate to find anything that could possibly change her mind. I gathered all I could find at my desk, working through the night to present my argument. When she came down the stairs of my cave in the morning, I knew I only had one chance.

I wouldn't deny her if after all I had said she still wanted this life, but I would absolutely try to persuade her into a different direction. There were so many things about this life that I didn't yet understand and I was worried it would change her, that it would break her previously optimistic self. I wanted to keep her just as I had found her.

She came down the stairs with a lantern in her hands, a smile playing on her lips as she walked into the room. Without her needing to say anything, I already knew the decision she had made. Rosetta took a look around the room as she approached me by the desk. 'Have you rested yet?'

'No,' I motioned to the journals that lay open upon my desk. 'I've been searching for the journals that have more details about what you're getting into. I want you to be absolutely sure before this happens. Rosetta, this isn't something you can turn away from. Once it happens, you have to embrace it.'

She nodded, setting the lantern down beside the desk. 'I know.' As always, her voice was soft. There was no tremble in it, even as she was about to make a decision that would forever alter her future. There was no fear.

I waited for her to continue, but it never came. I motioned to the piles of journals I had gathered and began going through them. I picked up the first one, reading the area I had marked aloud. 'I have found that the food I once enjoyed is tasteless. Drinks that I used to look forward to now are bitter, even the sweetest among them. The only thing I can taste is blood. I don't know how to feel about it. I miss the pleasures of food.' I glanced up at Rosetta, watching as her face remained unchanged.

She shrugged. 'I already expected that. It will be nice to not feel hungry for food anymore, or to crave something that we don't have.' She remained unmoved.

It challenged me. I flipped ahead to another passage I had marked. 'Any amount of sunlight burns at my skin. If I want to go outside, I have to wear heavy garments that are thick and cover as much of my skin as possible. It burns at my eyes as well. I have to be careful with the amount of time I spend in the daylight.'

Rosetta held back a giggle. 'I won't miss it. I'll get to be with you during the night anyway. I think we will rarely be awake throughout the day.'

I sighed, moving onto another journal that had been one of the firsts that I had read in this life. 'By the end of the fire, I was a changed man. For the first time in months, I sat up and walked around the room. My throat was still burning and I couldn't fit my teeth in my mouth quite right. Something had changed. I was quicker than I remembered. Every movement I made surprised me and my vision had greatly improved. I could see for miles if I wished to. My hearing had changed as well. I could hear all the people moving around me, even with walls between us. When I went to examine myself in hopes of finding something different, I was surprised to find that there was no reflection staring back at me. Emptiness stood in front of me, as if I were not there at all.' I glanced at her for a reaction.

She seemed to hesitate. Rosetta took a deep breath. 'I know the transformation won't be easy, but it will give me an eternity with you. I will be able to spend the rest of my days peacefully beside you. We'll be in this together.' She vowed as she carefully took the journal out of my hands and placed it back onto the desk. Rosetta rested her head upon my chest, closing her eyes while she smiled and began to sway.

I quietly wrapped my arms around her, placing kisses along her head as I moved with her. 'I just want to make sure you're ready for this. It's a lot and it can't be reversed.' I tried not to think about if she really wanted this; if this really was a life she had imagined for herself. My mind drifted back to when I first met her and the promise I had made to Caelum. I had told him that I would keep her safe, that I would give her better. By doing this, was I really keeping my promise?