The She Wolf and the Lamb

Chapter 3.1

"Welcome to your new abode," the teenage vampire enounced, gritting with pure excitement as she opened the door to the room.

April Rose stood frozen for a moment, quietly letting Marceline's words sink inside her head. This will become her new home for God knows how long, and although she's secretly feeling homesick, she knew it was the right decision to leave.

"What are you waiting for, sister? Go ahead," urged Marceline.

As April Rose brought herself inside, she had already made the painful decision to never think of home again, to never speak of home, and to never miss home.

"Why is it so dark in here?" April Rose wondered.

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Marceline stepped inside quickly, turning the lights on. "I hope you don't mind if we keep the curtains shut most of the time. Direct sunlight really does make my eyes burn."

"Oh?! So, is it true then?" April Rose gazed upon Marceline.

"True, what?" Marceline looked initially confused, but she quickly realized what April Rose was referring to. "Oh, that's a complete myth. We don't really die or burn or disintegrate into ashes from sunlight. Yes, it's itchy for our skin, but for the most part, it just burns our eyes."

"Oh, I've always known vampires burn from sunlight, but I guess not everything you hear is true," April replied.

"Poor you," Marceline cooed. "Something tells me that you haven't been out to the real world yet."

"Yeah, I guess so."

April Rose brought herself towards the empty bed. She laid her stuff down and gently sat on the soft mattress before eventually letting her eyes roam around the entirety of the room. From this moment on, she will be calling this room her space, and it's where she will begin to create new memories, hopefully better ones. The room was spacious enough—most definitely more spacious than her previous. There are two sets of everything: the beds, the closet space, the set of tables and chairs, everything.

"Make yourself comfortable. Tomorrow's going to be the biggest day for you, and I know that for sure. From the looks of things, this is your first time away from home."

"Yeah, I bet it's going to be a big day." April Rose mustered the deepest breath she could. A vivid memory of her unpleasant experience from her old high school flashed at the back of her head, and the trauma of that first day never left. She tried shaking the memory off of her head, but not right before Marceline noticed it.

"You don't have to be worried, April Rose. The Sun and Moon Academy is not just a school for people like us; it's also a refuge for runaways," said Marceline.

"H-how did you know I was a runaway?"

"Oh, I kind of noticed you don't have anything with you other than what you've brought with you. And besides, who would run away from their home with five or six suitcases, right?"

"Oh... Yeah, I did run away from home."

"Like I said, you don't have to worry about anything else. It's true that every high school is its own kind of monster, but I'll be here for you. We are roommates now, and that means we are also friends," Marceline continued, and with the bright and beautiful smile beaming through her face, April Rose felt secured.

"T-thank you, Marcy."

Friends? April Rose thought. The word felt like it's vibrating inside her head. The idea of having a friend—an actual friend—is making her feel giddy and, at the same time, nervous. She never had a friend before, and there are plenty of reasons for that, one of which is that she always smelled like a wet dog, and nobody, no humans, can't stand hanging out with her. Growing up, April Rose was really shy and awkward, and while it's difficult for her to socialize, she did try her chances at making good friends; however, her awkward demeanor always ended up standing in her way. One night after her fourteenth birthday, April Rose had a horrible nightmare and woke up in the middle of the woods all sweaty, as if she'd been running away from something. Ever since then, she's been haunted by a horrible series of nightmares, waking up in the middle of the woods and smelling like a wet dog.

When dusk eventually came, the loud tintinnabulation of the bell reverberated throughout the academy. It was dinner time. Marceline led the way, going towards the dining hall where everyone's gathered, and while April Rose doesn't really want to follow Marceline to the dining hall, she doesn't have much of a choice. One, she wants to be in the good grace of her newly found friend, and two, she's way too famished to skip a free meal.

The dining hall was so much bigger than what April Rose initially had in mind. It looked like the entire room had its very own night sky, except that instead of being bedazzled with blinking stars, the high ceiling was well decorated and dripping with beautiful crystal chandeliers. It was probably one of the most beautiful things she has ever laid her eyes on. With her head bowed down, April Rose quietly followed Marceline's footsteps until they eventually found a spot of their own.

"Alright, this is the dining hall," Marceline began once they both settled down.

April Rose quickly noticed they were the only ones sitting at the table, and as she let her eyes roam around the place, she immediately realized this was just another version of the cafeteria at her old high school, only this time she had a friend. Somehow, glancing over at Marceline, April Rose felt better knowing that someone was there with her.

Observing the dining hall out of curiosity, April Rose let her eyes continue to roam throughout the vast space, only to end up catching a piercing stare coming from the one Conall Augustus. In the middle of the busy disturbance, several feet apart from each other, both of their eyes met. It's as if fate was making ways for them to stare at each other. As their eyes locked, April Rose quickly felt a painful throbbing sensation at the back of her neck, as if someone had pierced it with a thick needle.

"Hey, are you alright?" Marceline asked just as April Rose grabbed the back of her neck, letting out a faint groan from the agony. "Are you stressed?"

"No, I'm good. I'm not stressed; it's just," April Rose paused for a while until eventually, the painful throbbing faded. "I'm fine."

"Okay. Come on now, let's grab ourselves something to eat," Marceline grabbed April Rose by the arm, and the next thing she knew, she was already filling out her plate with stuff she had never ever seen or tasted before.

"Woah, look at that!" Marceline gawked at April Rose's plate once they got back to their table. "You look like you are eating for two."

"I'm sorry, I haven't eaten in a long while," she replied, and then embarrassment struck her once again. She placed the plate on the table, afraid to touch it, even though she's been salivating over the scent of freshly cooked meal.

"Aren't you going to eat?" April Rose asked, observing that Marceline only had a tall glass of red liquid, which she presumes to be blood.

"Oh, this is already my meal."

"Is that blood?"

"Yeah, I'm on a diet. Vampires also have their preferred diet, and me, I'm on a blood therapy." Marceline took a long and delightful sip of the fresh blood. "I'm trying to keep my figure," she added, licking her lips with such pleasure.

April Rose wanted to laugh so hard at Marceline, but all she could think of was the food right in front of her, still warm and waiting to be devoured. The inviting scent of freshly cooked meat invaded her nostrils, but as famished as she was, April Rose was rather embarrassed to touch the food with nonchalance. It's been a while since her tongue last tasted real meat, and all she could think of was to let the meat melt inside her mouth.

"Aren't you famished? Go ahead, have your meal; I won't judge you for being hungry," Marceline said, and that was more than enough for April Rose to start touching her dinner.

April Rose shamelessly shoved a huge portion of lamb meat inside her already salivating mouth, and instantly, it was the best thing she had tasted. The juicy meat melting like butter inside her mouth was so heavenly that it made her forget about the cabbage and radish soup her mother kept on serving all her life.