As from work I came back home,
And stood in front of my door,
I noticed a small envelope on the floor,
It was about an event, not here in Rome.
It was an invitation to a dance,
A waltz in San Marino, in the three towers.
It said, to arrive between the nights hours, with flowers,
And not to leave your apperance to chance, make sure to bring your best glance.
The envelope had such a powerful smell,
As to read I begin, it made my head spin.
At the same time, it was slowly pulling me in,
It was as if I was under a sort of spell.
Inside, a letter with a small kiss at the end,
It was stamped with a single name, Dery.
Both in a red so dark-it's origin I couldn't comprehend…
It wasn't the juice of any berry but maybe, a black cherry?
The day of the party grew nearer,
And things started to become clearer.
It must have been some sort of elaborate trick,
This was probably how someone got their kick.
I wanted to look up the party online,
But I couldn't find anything that to the date would align.
Intrigue was taking over me and with myself, I could agree,
That I needed to go and what this was about, to see.
I decided to wear my best, navy blue with the black hue,
I was happy with my decision when I saw who,
Was going to attend and how much they were able to spend.
The richest men and women from their cars would descend.
Some of the wealthiest people of the world gathered,
For an event I didn't even know about, let alone how much it actually mattered.
It seemed like the biggest thing of the year,
But it would appear, that online no one knew what was going on here.
The music was blaring all around the yard,
Although there was no sight of any sort of guard.
We were all asked inside the ball-room,
I was wondering how Dery our night would try to illume.
Suddenly, a thunder sounded like it cracked the sky.
I had a feeling that something dark was nigh.
As if it was so close that I could hear,
Whispering in my ear, to it drawing me near.
I stopped and went away from the crowd,
In the mirror I saw something, to myself I thought,
I looked and looked but around me was naught.
I continued and to myself that by nothing I will be scared I avowed.
The room was massive, it even had a mezzanine floor,
We were all invited to drinks and the party started to roar.
The wine was exquisite, it had clearly been aged for a while,
And as the music changed, our host came down the stairs with a slight smile.
My jaw dropped when I saw who in front of us stopped,
The person who came down the stairs,
Looked like out of a movie she had been cropped.
She declared the party open, requesting us to stop from our affairs and form pairs.
As I was the only alone one,
I really stuck out as the sore thumb,
When by her eyes I was found, I wanted to run,
But she beckoned me and my legs felt numb.
The sound of her stilettos drowned out the ceaseless dance,
As she spun around the crowd, as if she was in a shroud, of mist.
But before I could understand my circumstance,
She took me by the wrist and made us twist.
She was dazzling to all who laid eyes upon her,
Wearing a long red dress but not leaving much for me to guess.
The way her olive skin, brown eyes and freckled cheeks her beauty would confer was leaving my mind in an endless blur,
Barely able to convalesce, with haste I grabbed her hand and waist, trying to impress.
She gave me her first smile of the night,
With a deep look into the eyes,
I didn't stop to think of what that implies,
Because at first sight, everything felt just right.
But suddenly, I had the strangest feeling,
My instinct told me that I had seen her before,
It was as if something from me she was concealing.
She reminded me of someone I used to adore, the way she moved, the things she wore…
She had the gentleness of a red aster,
And as the crescendo was quickly approaching,
She on my chest was intentionally encroaching.
Faster, and please hold your partners closer, said the choirmaster.
Step by step, we entered into the limelight,
The only couple who the speed could withstand,
I grabbed her hand, trying to make the last move truly grand,
She understood, held me tight and let me take her to another height.
As we released each other, everyone stood aside,
The cheers of the crowd were like those of a choir,
Now, it was clear, between us, there was a fire.
There was no emotion left to hide, her smile was just as bright as the moon outside.
I was almost exhausted to death,
But she didn't even seem affected,
And after herself she had quickly collected,
With her next breath she whispered a shibboleth.
I knew the dialect but barely remembered the word.
Her lips slowly mumbled the phrase: Hazırlayın!
She could tell that not only I had heard but it's meaning I had inferred.
Not staying, she slowly went up the steps, her message clearly conveying.
Two servants quickly rushed behind her,
Before one came to tell me,
"Our mistress at the top wishes to see thee.
" Please make your way to the stairs, sir."
It hit me, as I entered the room at the top of the tower,
Everything smelled of orris, more expensive than anything aurous.
And on the bed, a tag attached to a small but gorgeous red flower,
As a chorus, we both read "Scadoxus multiflorus."
" Maybe you know what type it is? What it's called I mean. "
Her voice seemed to come out of no-where,
' I could swear there was no one there'.
" On the name your ideas have to convene, it'll make sense of everything you've seen."
I tried, I wanted to scream, to yell, to shout,
But she grabbed me before my mouth I could move,
" Shush now, you've got nothing more to prove,"
" I am ecstatic you finally figured it out."
I tried to open my mouth but no words would come out,
" I shall allow you to speak but shhhh..not too loud."
" I ask of thee not to offer me any reason your integrity to doubt. "
She snapped her fingers but I said naught aloud, maybe I was just too proud.
" Thou in sooth have nothing to say? Very well, then at least offer me a dance."
I grabbed her hand and waist once more and started slow,
" I don't suppose there's any chance but is this about a romance? "
Her eyes began to glow as we danced to the music below.
" So tell me now, are you a vampire of yore? "
" Thou ought not to name any lady that way, she says as at me she smiles."
" Although yes, from before-Europe Suleiman to conquer swore,"
" Hence I barely escaped the body piles from the Carmonica trials. "
' So tell me, dear lady what is your name? Dery must surely not be it. '
" Ah, thou hath to notice, thou is only half right."
" Derya is not my birthname, only one my situation to befit. "
" Then, Derya, if to ask I might, what is the flower in our sight? "
" 'Tis here so thou canst avoid the pain…"
' Pain? What are you even talking about? '
" Thou didn't think I brought thee here in vain…"
" Thou are here for a reason, for that there should be no doubt."
" I have examined thou for a very long time, "
" We have met before…a long time back, ten years ago, "
" I wished to help thee grow but life happened and I had to go,"
" Thou were twenty five then, in your prime. "
" You mean…Aysel? Is that really you?"
" You just left me, without any warning…"
" I woke up that day and you were gone by the morning…"
" Why? I still have no clue…that was 5 years of us that you just threw…"
" Thou were too young my motives to comprehended. "
" Thou were afraid of thine future, of us becoming more,"
'Did you ever try your mistake to amend? I thought my search will never end… '
' How is that fair to me? My heart it tore, it hurt me to my core.'
"I was frightened that eternity with me you wouldn't want to spend… "
"But I hath given this much consideration."
"Thus I am offering you a choice, how to live thy live and its duration,"
"Drink from the tea on that table and your mortal life will end."
"From the sun you will have to hide and the hunters that will constantly be a thorn in your side,"
"Thy life will be one of knowledge and power,"
"But with misery and despair the Earth you'll scour."
"Doth not worry, thou will have a bride who through this life will guide."
"Thou may take thy leave now although we shall never meet again,"
"Our love you'll have to finally forfeit and forget."
'And yet, how long has it been since someone like me you've met?'
"To my disdain, beloved, centuries have passed in vain."
So now, your decision please make
----
Drink the tea
As our bodies unclasp from each others warm embrace,
I didn't want to lose the pace as I bring the tea to my face,
She grabs my neck and whispers in my ear.
"I love you"…I said 'I love you too' with no fear…
----
Leave
As our bodies unclasp from each others warm embrace,
I saw the sadness in her face as I made to leave that place,
With a smile I weaved through the crowd, the dance…
…Knowing it wouldn't be by chance...that my life to something better would advance.
Silvia Mihalachi