Gypsy Camp

 

The Gypsy Camp

With the morning sun breaking through the clouds, Draco headed to the kitchen where he grabbed a fresh baked biscuit and headed to the stables. All night long he tossed and turned and lacked a desire to eat. He had to learn the truth no matter how much it would hurt.

Heading to the gypsy camp, he wondered if they would even be willing to talk to him since he was a stranger to their people. Hopefully, they would not misjudge him in the event that there was bad blood between them and the house of Dracula.

Upon entering the camp, he was met with an assorted of curious and unwelcoming stares. There was little that he could do about that and yet, he welcomed it in a sort of strange way.

“Welcome to our camp young stranger,” an older man sharpening a curiously curved sword said to him somberly. “What brings one such as yourself to our home?”

“Forgive my intrusion sir,” Draco said trying to sound sincere. “However I come to hear the story of the castle on the mountain and its lord.”

“What interest could one so young have in that old castle other than add to the perpetuating rumors and unfounded fears,” an older woman he assumed to be the man’s wife said coming from the open doored wagon.

“A friend of mine lives in the castle and I wish to visit him, however, I have been bombarded with stories of curses, murders and vampires since I arrived here from London. I want to know exactly what I am getting myself into if I take my friend’s invitation and visit the castle,” Draco said seriously.

“Very well,” the old woman said “come into the wagon and I will tell you all that I know of the castle.”

Once inside, Draco was amazed at the various colors of cloth that decorated the furniture, walls and dress of the old woman. From the looks of them, everything was made of scraps of cloth sewn together in no particular pattern.

“Come and sit down at my table,” the woman said motioning to a small round table with a crystal ball in its center. “Here…drink some tea. It is from tea leaves bought in the village.”

Taking a sip of the liquid, Draco wondered if it would make him have strange visions, knock him out or kill him. Not having any ill reactions, he relaxed a little and prepared to listen to the old woman’s story.

“For many years, we searched for a place to set camp but were always driven away. Until we came here to the lands of Count Vladimir Dracula and his family. We offered our services as gardeners, masons and cooks as well as entertainers and he graciously accepted us. Instead of being treated as less than an ill gotten slave, we were treated with honesty, respect and as welcome guests. In times of illness, he would spare no expense to get us proper medical care and even allotted us this land for as long as we would stay. Friendship was forged between us and the family. However that all changed when the Baron Igor arrived in our camp,” the old woman said sitting down across from him and sighed heavily. “He wanted to know what we did to those that broke our trust or committed a crime amongst our people. So I told him that we banished them or if the crime was bad enough sent a group with them to the region’s gypsy king to be dealt with. There was one amongst us named Amira that was accused of adding poison to the medicine given to a rival. Although she swore innocence, we had to follow our laws. Before anything could be done, Baron Igor took her from the camp and swore he would make her his servant. Instead, he married her and made that wretch a baroness. In time, they were invited to the castle of our friend and non-gypsy master Count Vladimir di Dracula. Along with them was their son Zoltan.”

“I have heard of him in whispered conversations in the village tavern,” Draco said thoughtfully.

“Zoltan had no love loss for his cousin, the young Count Vladimir di Dracula II and would stop at nothing to cause problems for him. What really caused the most tension between them was the very fact that young Vladimir had a beautiful younger sister named Maria. She was every bit as beautiful as their mother. Zoltan knew that neither the Count nor his son would approve of him being the husband of Maria so he challenged the young Count to a duel. When Vladimir refused to give in to his demands, the young Count went outside to check on the servants working to clear the ice off the mote bridge. Zoltan in a huff, went out after the young Count and forced him into a fight. I saw what happened from a castle window and got the fathers outside in time to save both boys from their icy fate. Zoltan rushed at the young Count and caused Vladimir to slam into the brick barriers along the bridge sides. Recovering from the blow, Vladimir stepped aside from the barrier but Zoltan tried to charge him again despite being yelled at to stop. It was then that Zoltan slid on a patch of ice and went over the bridge into the nearly frozen waters of the mote below. Without waiting, Vladimir jumped in after Zoltan and tried to save his life. By the time he reached Zoltan, it appeared that the lad had been rendered unconscious or was dead. Putting his arm around the lad to try to get him to the side of the mote and onto a snow bank, Vladimir began to swim until Zoltan tightened his grip around the young Count and tried to drag him under. Young Vladimir had no choice but to give up trying to rescue Zoltan and try to save himself. By the time he got away and recovered his senses, it was too late, Zoltan lost his life. You see, the young man did not know how to swim.”

“That is completeoly different from the stories I have heard,” Draco said knowing in his gut that the old woman was telling the truth.”

“The story does not end there,” the old woman said pointing her finger at him. “Three nights before this even took place, a messenger from the Baron arrived in our camp that his master required the aid of a gypsy magician at a hotel a day’s journey from the village. I arrived with the messenger and was asked to do a task I refused to do. The Baron wanted me to place a curse upon his son that should he quarrel and meet his death at the hands of Count Vladimir di Dracula II or through falling into the icy waters of the mote and drowning that he would come back to life as a vampire bent on seeking revenge against Count Vladimir and his family. Unable and mostly unwilling to do such a thing, I told him that my magic was limited to reading tarot cards, tea leaves and scrying through the use of crystal balls. He asked if Amira might be aware of casting curses and I told him I was unaware of such a thing. I went back to the castle to speak to Count Vladimir but he did not believe that the Baron would be so cruel. However, he did not dismiss me as being a deceiver. The night before the death of Zoltan, one of my young sons who had a wild imagingation overheard Amira in the abandoned ballroom mumbling over a small cauldron with candles lit around her. The few words he understood were used to call upon the demons to come forth and curse the souls of two people. First, she cursed her son to walk the earth as a nosferatu should he die from violence or by drowning. Second, she cursed the one responsible for his death to suffer the same fate unless one whom he loves drives a stake through his heart and cuts off his head at the alter of a church or chapel. Once finished, she blew out the candles and hid her magical items in the debris to be removed after the holidays. When he followed her, he watched as the Baron cornered her and shoved her against the wall and held a knife to her throat demanding to know if the curses were set. She said they were and he warned her that if they failed she would pay with her life. Once they were gone, he ran back to the camp and told me all that he had heard and observed. The next morning, my son was found dead and I was left a warning that if I spoke to the count of what my son had revealed my only remaining child meet a similar fate.”

“Mary Mother of God,” Draco said in sickened shock “what was the Baron thinking to force his wife into cursing their son?”

“The Baron believed and may still believe that if the young Count was so cursed he could force the marriage between Maria and Zoltan making him in turn the new Count.”

“Thank you for telling the story of the castle and the Count,” Draco said fighting his feeling of anger and disgust at having been so nieve as to believe Zoltan. “Though there is one more set of rumors surrounding the family of the priest and the curse of his sister Lucy.”

“Ah…yes,” the woman said nostalgically. “During the last days of the life of Don Anselmo di Cappadochia, his life was blessed by his adoped half gypsy son Antonio, his own son Rosario and his daughter Lucy. While in boarding school, young Rosario who was studying to become a priest to take his father’s place upon his passing befriended the young Count while at school. Through their friendship and constant visits of Don Anselmo to the castle to visit his friend the Count, young Vladimir grew to fall in love with Lucy. She in turn also fell in love with the young Vladimir. However, after the death of Zoltan and the curse coming into play on both him and young Vladimir, Don Anselmo forbid Lucy to be with her beloved. Unable to abandon the friendship he shared with young Vladimir, Rosario worked hard to save his friend’s soul and it led to Vladimir being pardoned by Don Anselmo and given his blessing to marry Lucy in the church. Vladimir vowed that for her love, he would never curse Lucy to be as he was even though it meant that he would only have one short lifetime with her. Jealous of the fact that his father was willing to forgive the very monster that cursed Zoltan to the life of a vampire, Antonio challenged his father and was excommunicated. Going to Zoltan, he told him everything that had transpired and begged Zoltan to make him a vampire that he could help him get revenge on the house of Dracula. Their hatred spilled over into the castle and when a midwife aided Lucy in the birth of their daughter Alice, she put poison in the water that Lucy was cleaned with as well as the water she drank. By nightfall of Alice’s birthday…Lucy was dead.”

“So everything that happened to the Count, his sister Maria, Zoltan and Antonio were all because of the greedy and arrogant ways of the Baron, Zoltan and Antonio,” Draco said thoughtfully.

“Yes young one,” the woman said. “That is all I can tell you. However, if you do go to the castle do not fear the Count. He does not do harm to any unless they give him no other choice.”

Getting up, Draco thanked her for her time and mounted his horse. Heading into the village, he picked up a box of candles, four jars of lamp oil, and other items he would need upon his return to the academy. As he rode back to the castle, his mind swam with all the woman had told him. All the while, he kicked himself mentally for not being as crafty as he had thought but instead was stupidly led into trusting and believing the lies of Zoltan and Antonio.”