Aurelia Rivera- Vampiric Seer

Aurelia sat in the dungeon with a heavy heart. The task before her caused her more distress than the dark stone walls that surrounded her, though they certainly did not ease any pain. Grimacing, she took a sip of the blood and promptly turned her attention to the glowing orb. Images she did not want to see appeared before her. It happened every time without fail, and every time, the images eventually came to fruition.
It had not always been this way. Once Aurelia had been happy. She had been lucky in her arranged marriage. Lots of Aurelia's friends had been given in marriage to unsavory men. Beniamin was seventeen, only three years older than she, when they married. Her mother gave her a beautiful red skirt and a new yellow shawl to be married in. Her husband's family was kind to her when she moved in, and her mother-in-law taught her a new skill: Fortune telling. It was a new way to make money. Rather than weave a basket and send it to market with the men, she went to market and made the money. Strangers put money into her hands, that was good. What wasn't so good was the dishonesty. Aurelia, when pushed, had to admit that she did not really see the future. Trickery; a mere pretense. Looking back now, she preferred it that way. Deceiving people into believing they had happy futures felt far more fulfilling than telling them the truth of what sorrows were in store for them. And though they sometimes had a bright image mixed in, it always seemed that bad outweighed the good.
As best as she could trace it, it was a bite from a bat, that caused the change. Shortly after the disturbing incident, which she kept secret from everyone for fear of them accusing her of bad omens, she began to feel weak. The sunshine began to bother her. Her teeth grew sharp and pointed like a bat's and she craved blood. She fought the craving with all her might, but it was futile. She'd never forget the first time she gave into her desires and drank blood. Beniamin had cut himself while mending a pot and had gone to her to wrap his hand. She licked up his blood hungrily, much to her husband's disgust. Later that day, while looking at her glass ball she saw images of his future. Pictures of him marrying another girl and having children with her, of him being stabbed in the back by one of his close friends and dying shortly after. She told these things to him, though she regretted it later. Beniamin took her to the clan's elders. They proclaimed her a true witch and exiled her. She wandered alone and later heard that her husband had taken a new wife. She knew his future would unfold as she had seen it. The few times she could not resist, she had bit into people and seen their futures, which she told them before apologizing and fleeing. Word spread that a lone wandering gypsy girl had true power to see the futures of those whose blood she drank. Though she was sought out unceasingly, Aurelia refused to drink peoples' blood and tell them forthcoming events. But she soon found herself kidnapped, left in a dungeon and imposed upon to drink donated blood and describe images seen in her crystal ball. Some how she would survive this and escape. And perhaps she'd find a cure somewhere. She'd never know her own future, for drinking one's own blood brought forth no enlightenment.
She looked up from her orb to the expectant woman.
"Many great sorrows await you..." She started sadly.

For a contest at Seventhsanctum.com "Twilight of the Vampires" In an effort to create a less stereo-typical type of vampire!

Edit 7/21/10:
Well, I missed the deadline by about ten hours, so this never actually entered the contest. Which is just as well, since I didn't like this much anyway, especially the story...
But I must say that the candles and crystal ball and glass are pretty dern good. I surprised myself there. Haha.
~Ekk