Chapter 5

Where the hell is Luna? I growled to myself, not for the first time this week. I stare at the calendar. Yes, Luna has been missing for one week today. The others are getting restless, I've yet to tell them what she is. They all know she isn't a vampire, nor is she human. The questions are starting to arise on her third day missing. I had just told them she wasn't one of my people. The worst mistake I have ever made.

"If she isn't one of yours, then how do you know she did not dessert you for the enemy?" Mary questioned, the fire that her people control burning in her eyes.

"Luna may not be a golden one, but there is no way she would leave me. She is either trying to tell me something I do not yet know or she has been taken by the enemy."

"And what if she has been taken, and spoken of our plans? My people's power will not work if they are aware of what is happening," Starla spoke up.

"She is too strong to speak, she is too wise for me to understand," This, coming from me, shocked everyone. If the queen of the most powerful vampire race on earth was not wise enough to understand something, then surely, no one was. 

"How can you not be wise enough? How can you not be powerful enough? How is there anything on this world you do not understand?" Ashley spoke, this worried me. Normally the black-eyed queen would not speak, unless of course, the cause worried her enough.

I turned from the wall to look at all of those who had allied themselves with me, they were all patiently awaiting the answer, "I may be the most powerful vampire on earth, or even in this dimension, but do not ask of me the meaning of life; for I am not the creator of the world. I am simply one more creature that walks the land," With that I walked off, leaving them all to mutter and ponder over the meaning of what I had said.

That was four days ago. I knew that to keep them on my side, I was going to have to tell them who Luna was. Or rather, what Luna was. Forgive me, it is the only way to keep them where I need them. Then I spoke the hardest words of my life, "Call a meeting, I'm going to tell my allies something I swore I'd never say."

~~~~~~

I walked into the great hall and my eyes roved over the room. No one was here yet. I walked towards the crystalline piano I kept in the hall for no apparent reason. Well, to anyone else. No one knew I could play. But now, at this exact moment in time, there was a song stuck in my soul and I had to get it out. I sat down on the clear bench and checked the keys, re-familiarizing myself with the keys I had not touched in years. Then, I started to play. It was an eerie melody, not unpleasant, but not joyful either. I slowly started to sing along to the music. The words permanently etched into my brain; 

 'Got a secret 

 Can you keep it?

 Swear this one you'll save

 Better lock it in your pocket,

 Taking this one to the grave. '

Slowly, I began to sing louder until my voice echoed off of the walls in the great hall. It was an unfamiliar sound. You could tell that I hadn't sung in a long time. Why sing when there is no music in your life? I thought.

'If I show you then I know you

 won't tell what I've said,

 'Cause two can keep a secret

 if one of them is dead.'

Ironic, really. I am dead, but then again, have I ever been truly alive? Even when I was human, emotion was not something I showed often. Perhaps that is why I am the strongest? Because emotion truly is weakness, and I've never had any weaknesses.... save my sisters...

Why do you smile like you have told a secret? 

Now, you're telling lies 'Cause you have sworn to keep it. 

But no one keeps a secret

 No one keeps a secret. 

Why when we do our darkest deeds do we tell?

 they burn in our brains becomes a living hell.

 Everybody tells, 

Everybody tells.

Yes, it's true. Our darkest deeds do become living hells. Look what mine unleashed, War. Simply because I could no hold my appetite at dinner... What an Idiot I am. This thought opened the flood gates, tears started streaming down my face. So, this is what it feels like to cry? I had all but forgotten, always being the strong one hurts. 

"There is no one here to see you be weak, let it out," A voice spoke in my mind, It sounded strangely like my favorite school teacher, she was one of the few people I showed my true self to. I followed her advice faithfully then, and I would do so again. I let the tears flow. I stopped playing the piano and buried my face in my hands. I wept. Not the girly, sniffling kind of weeping in those horrid films, no. I cried out my entire soul, letting out heart-wrenching wails and moans as my tears slid down my face and hit the crystal-like floor. No one was here to see my weakness, and for that I was grateful.

At least, that is what I thought. Suddenly I felt a comforting presence wrap around me. Like a warm blanket after a harsh winter storm. I turned to find that Starla was hugging me and that Zandra was only a few steps away with Tina next to her. 

"How... How long have you been here?," I whispered through gulps of air, trying to calm myself down. Damn, it felt good to cry. At least until someone saw.

"Since you started playing, Tess," Tina answered using the nickname I had when I was human, "I haven't heard you play in so long I was certain you had forgotten," I was hiccuping and the end of my tears were still silently streaming down my face. Starla was sitting on the piano bench on my left and Zandra now sat on my right. Tina sat on her knees in front of me. I hung my head, ashamed of what they had seen. 

"I apologize. That's not something that I had planned on doing, nor was it something anyone should have seen. Please, forget what you saw. I swear to you it won't happen again."

"Tess...," Starla warned as she moved a stray piece of hair from my face, "You need to stop hiding these things from us. We're your friends. We have been since childhood," she smirked, God how I hated it when she was right. She would always get that annoying little look of superiority on her face. as if to say "I'm right, and you know it."

"You know, I think this is the first time I have EVER seen you cry," Zandra cocked her head to her right, trying to get me to look at her. I wouldn't.

"I think It's the first time I've cried since being turned. Yes, It most definitely is. Don't worry, It won't happen again," I choked out, still not being clam enough to speak like a rational being.

"Yes, It will," a new voice rang out, we spun our heads around rapidly, to rapidly apparently. As mine and Zandra's heads collided.

"Damn it all to hell and back."

"Aw, crap that hurt." Our voices rang out simultaneously, momentarily distracted by the minute pain.

"Luna! Welcome back!," Tina screeched as she ran forward to hug Luna. Luna hugged back carefully, as though she hurt a bit.

"What do you mean by that? If I say I won't cry again, then I won't cry," I growled.

"Yes you will, My Puffy-faced queen. I know you will. Especially with this trio supporting you now. Only the truly strong fear being weak, and you fear it more than any other being on this planet. In accordance then, this means that you might be the strongest on earth. But even the strong cry. In fact, the strongest are those who show weakness to others. Since you have done this, even though not meaning to, perhaps you truly are the strongest woman I will ever meet." 

"I don't know whether to take that as a compliment or an insult, Luna," I growled slightly, remembering a conversation I had had with Luna before she became my ally.

~~~

"Be careful, queen. For the strongest tend to lie their lives down for the weakest in battle. Let your emotions rule over you, and you will die."

"I have no emotions," I replied stoically.

"Perhaps not yet, but one day you shall reveal them to your closest friends, and you will feel weak. I will be there then, and I will laugh as you growl at me."

"I will never have emotions. They are weakness. Weakness leads to death. Permanent, final, everlasting, death."

"Then, perhaps you are already dead. No being can live without emotions forever. If you remain emotionless for all of your life I will give you everything I have in my power. If not, well then. You owe me a thousand bucks."

"I'll take that deal, If you'll be my ally."

"Then, you've got yourself one powerful ally."

~~~

Snapping back to reality, "Looks like I owe you some money, huh Luna?," i growled out sarcastically

"I'm glad you remembered, I'll take it in small bills please," she replied, laughing lightly.

I'm glad she's home.

Author's Note

Sorry if this seems a little uh..... emo? I decided to put my real self into the character, instead of the stoic piece of nothingness that I tend to be on the outside.