CHAPTER 12

I woke up the next morning feeling woozy. Must have been from the crucifix 
nearly smashing my skull in yesterday. I looked over to my side, seeing 
Sonia sitting in a chair next to my bed, her head resting on the small 
nightstand. Had she watched me all night? It was only a small bump...

Sonia's eyes slowly fluttered open. She looked at me, "Hey... how are you 
feeling?"

"Eh, I probably have a bruise somewhere, but I'm doing well..." I replied, 
sitting up. She smiled and yawned, stretching her arms as she got out of 
sleep-mode.

"I don't think you need to train today," I said, standing and putting on my 
boots, "You trained too hard yesterday. You deserve a break."

Sonia grinned, "Plus... didn't you forget something?"

I blinked, "Oh! Duh. Stupid me. Happy Birthday."

Sonia laughed, "Thanks. I went shopping at the market about an hour after 
you fell asleep and I picked out a dress to wear tonight."

"That's neat... I think I put my formal clothing in my tomb. Want me to wear 
it tonight?"

She shrugged, "Sure, why not?"

"Alright... I should go get it now before I forget about it..."

******

That night, I had gotten dressed and was waiting for Sonia. Mother always 
told me to be patient, since girls took FOREVER (literally) to get ready for 
something, and that's one good thing I received from my father- patience.

I didn't wear my cape, as it would look a little too ominous, but I did wear 
my tunic, overcoat, gloves, black wool pants and boots that used to belong 
to Father... I don't know why I kept them. They looked nice, I guess.

A door opened, and Sonia soon came into view. My jaw almost dropped. She was 
clad in a long blue satin dress with her long bangs tied back into a 
ponytail with a blue ribbon.

Sonia looked at me and bit her lip to hold back a giggle as I stood and 
walked to her. She looked up at me, "I guess you like it?"

"You look beautiful..." I said softly. She smiled.

"Thanks," she said, "You ready to go?"

I nodded, "Yeah..."

We walked to the town square together, talking about what would happen when 
Castlevania rose. I told her not to worry... all that would occur would be a 
huge earthquake.

I think Sonia liked me; as we walked, she walked close beside me, and the 
temptation to take her hand in mine was driving me mad. When we arrived, 
Sonia immediately ran to get something to eat; she hadn't eaten supper, but 
had made it for her grandfather and her brothers. I tried some of her stew 
that she made with some leftover pork she had... she was a really good cook.

I sat down next to Sonia as she ate a roll, "Is that all you eat? Bread?" I 
asked. I hardly saw her eat anything except for bread-like foods.

"Hey, it's my favorite food, and I'm starving!" she said, taking another 
bite, "How much longer until Castlevania comes back?"

I let out a huge exhale, "About an hour and a half. What do you want to do?"

After finishing her roll, she turned to me, "Ya know how to dance?"

I stared blankly at her, "You're kidding, right?"

Sonia laughed, and shook her head. She stood and took my right hand in both 
of hers and tugged on it, "C'mon, it'll be fun!!!"

"Suddenly I just remembered that I have a weak knee," I said, knowing it was 
a poor excuse.

"Uh-huh. Yeah. Right. Come on!!!!" she urged. Finally I stood, "Fine... but 
only because it's your birthday..."

Sonia smiled.

*

Dancing was a new experience... especially since I almost tripped about ten 
times... but I eventually got the hang of it. It was only about five more 
minutes until the world plunged into Hell, but I wanted to savor every 
moment (even if it was embarassing) I had with Sonia.

The small musical group, which consisted of two lutes, a drum, and a flute, 
started to play a slow song, and I had to be sure not to mess up here.

One of Sonia's arms was around my neck and one in my hand, while my other 
hand was around her waist. We stared into each other's eyes, as if we loved 
each other...

Wait a second!!! It then hit me! I kept a straight face as I danced with 
her, but I realized it! I was in LOVE with Sonia!!! I loved her!

Less than a minute was left when the song ended. Sonia was resting her head 
on my shoulder, but soon looked up at me. I just knew that the Succubus and 
Uriel were on that cliff with a sacrifice, preparing to bring back Father.

Sonia stared into my eyes, "Alucard--"

"Shh..." I whispered, placing a finger onto her lips, silencing her. I moved 
my hand away from her face and slowly leaned forwards towards her. She 
closed her eyes and leaned forward as well--!

The earth rumbled, pulling us back before anything happened. People started 
panicking and running back to their homes. The ground split between me and 
Sonia, and I caught her before she fell forward. I jumped back as it grew 
larger, holding onto Sonia.

I looked off in the distance, seeing a dark ray of light smash into the 
cliff in the distance. I held Sonia tightly, and Castlevania appeared. The 
Earth then sealed itself, and the rumbling subsided. I looked down at Sonia. 
She had fallen unconscious. I picked her up in a Groom-Carries-Bride manner 
and slowly walked back to her home, laying her on her bed and sitting next 
to her bed, waiting for her to wake up.