CHAPTER 13 THE PAINFUL TRUTH

Present day in the in-between.

Bella feels the same feeling as she felt earlier, her body is heavy. But at least this time she knows what to expect. Even when she struggles to open her eyes she does not panic.

"I need you to be calm my dear, follow my voice, let it lead you to me. Clear your mind, and let the magic lead you. Trust in yourself, Belladonna. You have the power within you to overcome any obstacle that comes your way. Believe in yourself, and everything will fall into place." Princess Rose's voice resonates in Bella's mind, filling her with a sense of confidence and determination. Her mother's voice gives her the courage she needs.

Bella takes a deep breath, trying to relax as her mother's words wash over her. She feels a sense of calm wash over her, and slowly but surely, her eyes start to open. As her vision clears, she finds herself in one of the most beautiful gardens. They are different kinds of flowers, filled with vibrant colors and the sound of birds chirping. She feels a sense of peace wash over her, and for the first time in a long time, she feels truly at ease. A few seconds later her mother comes and sits beside her.

"This place is beautiful, I have never seen anything as beautiful as this. Where are we?" Bella asks in awe.

"This is a place I used to go to when I needed to be alone. It is a garden my mothers, made. They planted every flower in this garden together. We used to sit in this garden with my father, my mothers and my brother. Those are the best memories I have of my family. It used to be my haven, away from everything and everyone. This is how it used to look twenty-two years ago. I am not sure how it looks right now. Everything in here works the same as they do, in the magical realm. The magic of the flowers has the same effect too, so be careful." Princess Rose says.

"It's beautiful." Is the only thing that Bella manages to say. She doesn't know what else to say. She continues running her hand through the flowers and admiring them. Something is captivating about the flowers, maybe it's because of the way some of them shimmer when she touches them. She does not realize that she is crying until she feels something wet on her cheeks.

"Are you okay?" Her mother asks concern written all over her face.

"Yes, I am fine. These tears are of joy. I have never seen something so beautiful before. Thank you for bringing me here even if it is not the real thing."

"You are welcome sweetheart, I am glad you like it. I hope to show you the one in Oval Kingdom one day. I brought you here because I thought this might help you control your powers. If you can learn to control your powers here then it will be easy for you to control them in the real world." Princess Rose explains.

"How do I do that?" Bella asks with curiosity written all over her face.

"That's why I am here my dear, I will help you. Come and sit next to me." 

"Before you start teaching me how to control my power I need to know some things," Bella says as she sits next to her mother.

"What is it that you want to know my dear?" Princess Rose asks.

"You keep on talking about your family in the past tense. What happened to them?" Bella notices how her mother's mood changes the moment she asks about her family. 

"You don't have to answer if you are not ready," Bella says, sensing her mother's sad mood.

"No, my dear I am fine, I will tell you about my family which is also yours. Your grandmothers and your grandfather are dead. Only my brother James is alive and he is the new king of dragons." Princess Rose explains.

"How did my grandparents die?" Bella asks.

"The first one to die was my dragon mother Queen Aconitum, the one you are named after. She was poisoned and then later killed by the Brotherhood during the war. The brotherhood needed a dragon for a certain spell and so they took my mother after poisoning her. Something went wrong during the casting of a spell and my mother died. When news reached us, my mother, Queen Belladonna, and my father were heartbroken. They wanted to make the Brotherhood pay for the pain they caused. And so when my mother Queen Belladonna heard of a group of witches and warlocks in Crystal Kingdom, who were going to cast a forbidden spell to get rid of the brotherhood she joined them. My brother and I tried to convince her to stay but she was filled with too much anger to listen to anyone. Two days after she left the Oval Kingdom, news of her death reached us. All the witches and warlocks who cast the forbidden spell died." Princess Rose says tears coming out of her eyes.

"Oh my God. I am sorry Mum, that must have been hard for you." Bella says as she hugs her mother.

"You are right my dear, it was hard but not as hard as it was for my father. He lost his two mates almost at the same time. A year after my mothers died my father died. He could not handle the loss of both of them. The Bwalya bloodline of Royal dragons is mostly blessed with two mates. When one mate dies they have another to comfort them and stop them from going crazy. But in cases where both mates die the dragons fail to live and they either go crazy and go on a killing spree or they kill themselves. My father had his general kill him before he went crazy." Bella can see tears in her mother's eyes as she tries to hold them in.

"I am sorry Mom," Bella says.

"It's okay, my dear death is part of us all." 

"Do you also have two mates?" Bella asks her mother.

"To be honest with you I don't know, I have only met one of my mates, Lord Davon Lungu, your father. So I am not sure if I have a second mate or not. Not all royal dragons get to have two. But you, my dear, could have two." Princess Rose explains.

"Am I also a royal dragon?" Bella asks.

"Yes, you have the blood of the Bwalya bloodline in your veins. The chances of you getting two mates are high."

"Wow," is all that Bella can say.

"Is there anything else you want to know before we start the lesson?" Princess Rose asks.

"There is the question in my head that I have had from the moment you told me you are in-between," Bella says not knowing how to ask her mother the question that's on the tip of her tongue.

"You can go ahead and ask the question dear." Princess Rose encourages her.

"Are you alive?" 

"I am neither alive nor dead. My body is in the Oval Kingdom with my brother. I have been put in a transient sleep so that they can find a way to reverse my transition into a vampire."

"You don't want to be a vampire?" Bella asks.

"Making vampires is forbidden in the magical realm because vampires that are made are unpredictable and untrustworthy. Their loyalty always lies with their maker. There were no made vampires in the past until the Brotherhood emerged. When the brotherhood arose many species were against them. So they found the magic to turn other species into vampires to control them. And that's the reason why I don't want to go through the change. A dragon is not a species that can be controlled and if someone manages to do so, then they will not be stopped from causing damage. Dragons have certain magic in them that no other supernatural species has and for Royal dragons, the magic is even more powerful. This is why the Brotherhood kidnapped me in the first place to have access to my magic. I have told my brother to let me die if he doesn't find a cure by the time the spell he has put on me ceases to work." Princess Rose explains.

"My mom told me that I am part vampire, does that mean I can also be controlled?"

"No, my dear you are a natural vampire, you were a vampire before you were born. You absorbed some of the vampire magic they used to turn me into a vampire. That's one of the reasons why my transition wasn't complete. You are not a turned vampire, you are a born vampire, my dear. No one can control you, the dragon blood in you won't allow it." Bella relaxes after her mother's reassurance.

"Will your brother let you die?" Bella asks, hoping that she will not get to lose her mother. She doesn't know how to feel about losing her mother when she just found her. It might seem weird but knowing that her mother is out there is better than not knowing anything. 

"No, my brother would never let me die, It's a difficult decision for him. That's why I put a spell on myself. The moment that the magic stops working and transitioning continues, the spell I have put in place will start working and I will be dead before fully turning into a vampire. It would be better for me to be at peace rather than become a vampire that could potentially wreak havoc on the world." Princess Rose explains with a smile on her face like she is not just talking about her death.

"Why are you not sad about it?" Bella asks not understanding how someone can be smiling when they know they might die any day.

"Being sad won't change anything, my dear. My death can come any day, and I don't want to spend my last days wallowing in sorrow. I have lived my life according to the way the gods wanted me to and I don't regret a single thing." Bella looks at her mother and tears start to fall out of her eyes.

"Come on darling don't cry, I am still here," Princess Rose says, wiping Bella's eyes and hugging her.

"How can I not cry when you talk about death like it Is nothing?" Bella says, still crying.

"Okay, I promise you that I will not talk about death anymore. But I need you to understand and prepare yourself. I know it is hard for you. You just found me and now you have learned that I might die. But the earlier you accept this reality the easier it will be for you when I am gone." Bella hugs her mother tightly as she continues crying.