"Oh a pretty woman!" one of them teased when Bella squirmed in his arms but he did not let her go. If any, he held her tightly as he climbed the stairs.
"Luhan.."
"Ssshhh! It will be over soon." he whispered slowly when she fidgeted way too much. His words did not give her any confidence but she knew he would cast a spell and disappear with her if she did not support what he said.
She was going to teach him a lesson later.
As the crowd started to increase around them, Bella heard the voice she had never thought she would.
"Ana, I am glad that you made it this time. I thought that you were going to stick around your sister again."
"Ah, no. I needed to give company to my mother here." Bella's hold on Luhan's shoulders tightened.
"No matter what the reason is, we are happy to see you here. You should make friends with people like us. Why did you always stick to that vile creature? We do not even know when the devil will ensnare her.
Your parents should have killed her already." Bella fidgeted, she wanted to go free and hold her sister before Ana would slap anyone.
Though everyone thought Bella had a foul temper, it was Ana who used fists more than her words. She did not want her sister to fight with other witches over her.
But..
"Haha, aren't I here? We are going to be good friends now." Bella paused, shocked, confused and in disbelief as she listened to her sister laughing over their insults. She even accepted their friendship already.
"Yes, you are here away from that cursed girl. The place where you belong." said the first with a smile when Bella felt all the blood had lost her body.
Her sister felt that she was cursed too. But Ana had always been kind to her. She was the only one who supported and believed that Bella was not a curse.
Her eyes were just… a void started to form in her heart.
"Since I belong here…" she heard Ana say again, "why don't you show me the benefits of this place?" her voice was teasing, a hint of joy and mystery.
Ana always flirts like that. Did she like the witcher she was talking to? Was that the reason she accepted all the crap and nodded her head on it.
"Do not listen to them." Luhan whispered though she could feel his own voice cracking.
"Then do not watch them and walk!" she chuckled, feeling strange that he was concerned about her. He often bullied her too. And though she knew she could depend on him, she had thought she could depend on her sister too.
The voices fade. She did not know if Luhan moved forward or if Ana had walked away with that man.
But this time, the distinct voices of her father and her mother fell in her ears and she stiffened. There were many other elders too. They were discussing vampires but she was not sure what they were talking about.
"I am going to put you down, okay?" She nodded when Luhan spoke in her ears again.
They must have noticed their presence too since the voices disappeared in a second and she could hear footsteps coming closer.
"What is the meaning of this?" Julia yelled at Luhan as she saw her daughter in his arms. Her hands on her hips and her eyes went dark and cold.
"I can explain, aunt Julia. Bella wanted to inform you about something." Bella finally opened her eyes, adjusting to the bright light in the room.
But when her eyes met theirs, they gasped and took a step back except Julia who was still glaring at Bella.
"She wanted to come? Ha! She always wanted to come but did it matter what she wanted or not?" Julia's voice was chilly as she tilted her head and looked at Bella.
"You vile creature. Do you not feel ashamed to spellbound a warlock and manipulate him to do your bidding? I know that simple binding jewels would not work on you. You are the devil incarnate. If only I had killed you the moment I saw your eyes." she raised her hand and landed it sharply on Bella's face.
Bella's eyes widened. Her mother had always cursed her but she had made sure that it was done privately. In public, she would only show indifference or cold behavior but she never beat her or called her with filthy names.
"Aunt Julia.. It is not like that." Even Luhan was stunned. Julia was a kind and sweet woman. How could she speak so crudely?
"You let it be! You are controlled by her." she held Bella's hands coldly as if she wanted to cut her limbs and threw around, "all i wanted was you stay at home. I even cooked for you before leaving. How hard was it to stay there? Why are you dying to come here, huh? Do you want to curse all the witches at once or do you want to fit in?
A devil like you can never fit in." she repeated as she jerked her away. The pressure was enough for Bella to stagger and fall on the ground.
"I.. mother. I am here to help." Bella whispered, feeling worse. "I had seen a vampire and I came to inform you that they took witches. They can.." before she could speak again, a sting of pain hurt her and she could feel the metallic liquid filling her mouth.
Another tight slap landed on her cheeks and this time force was enough to stagger her.
"So you are here to mock us. The vampires are taking witches every day because they think we are vile. They must have seen you here."