Chapter Text
"you're giving me away!?" You screamed at your father.
When your father called you into his study so early in the morning bearing 'great news' you were not expecting to hear this.
He frowns at You, but you can barely see him through the tears that threaten to spill from your eyes.
You knew it would happen at some point. Especially given your, as your father would say, 'over ripened' age. Even so, you couldn't believe the words coming out of his mouth. He sternly says your name to get your attention, and then continues talking.
"You should be happy that someone would even think about marrying women your age!" He tells you, a small grin plastered on his face.
"And for a great sum of money too."
"So you've sold me off, that's even better!" You yell at him. You can't even begin to describe the anger you're feeling right at this moment.
" Duke Sannes is a very refined man, who-" your father doesn't get to finish his sentence before you burst into hysterics.
" That creepy, boot licking, Belligerent old man!? You're marrying off to that horrible degenerate?" You slam your hands on his desk. Your father must have lost his mind, there is no way this is happening.
" WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU WOMAN" He screams before he tentatively wipes his palms on his vest. A habit he has when he's upset to calm his nerves a little. You're too in a state of shock to say anything back to him.
"Don't you understand that this family is in severe need of aid!?" He yells.
" I worked hard to get this engagement between you and Mr.Sannes together, and you are not going to ruin this!" He tells you. With that, he leaves you in the now quiet study alone.
You stand there glaring at the floor, angry, not knowing what to do. You begin to think maybe your father was right, after your mother passed away, you and your father were struggling to make ends meet. This could truly be a way for you two to get back on your feet. What could you even do, you were powerless in this situation. And With the way things are, this seems like the best solution.
Even so, you couldn't just let this happen. Duke Djel Sannes is an absolute prick, and you hated him.
You would always see him when you accompanied your mother and father to those stupid, and boring parties you were forced to attend. He would only ever talk about two things, how great the king was, or how he detested the common people. It was unbearable to be around him, to say the least.
A few moments go by when you hear a knock at your door.
"Coming!" You say as you wipe your face, hoping your visitor doesn't notice you've been crying all morning.
Opening the door you're met with your friend, Lynne. She’s a good friend you've known since you were kids, You two did everything together. When your parents would visit their estate to mingle and talk about whatever, you two would go off somewhere and get into all sorts of trouble.
She looked at you for a second then made a face.
"What?" You asked, feeling her gaze burn right through you. She was always good at reading you, it was like she could see into your soul.
"Rough mornin?" she greeted.
"Yeah, I just got the worst news I think any woman can ever receive. " You respond.
"We can talk about it on our way to the range." She states. You quickly put on your shoes and leave the house. Not bothering to tell your father. You're in no mood to speak with him.
You and Lynne make your way to the shooting range at the edge of town. You two have been going there for lord know how long. She introduced you to it when you were both 13, you both were in your rebellious stage of life and would do anything to get out of going to those silly tea ceremonies you two were forced to go to.
You both would sneak off, and head to the range Lynne's uncle owned. He was a nice fellow who taught you everything you knew about guns and shooting.
"So what's on yer mind" Lynne spoke up.
"No offense but ya look like shit, and yer makin' a face that looks like ya wanna kill somebody" she adds.
With a sigh, you tell her everything that happened earlier this morning. How your father sold you off, and how much you hated the man he sold you to.
" I don't even get it, why would that high-class dumbass even want to marry me?!" You questioned. It is quite strange, you and your father fell off that high-class status years ago due to his obsessive gambling habits. You even took up a job at a bar to help with finances. You're a working, thinking woman, everything Duke Sannes hates.
"Probably cause you’re the only virgin left in town. The man says he values only the purest of women." She Pauses and Gives you a solemn look before speaking.
" must be tough havin to get married to that sack of shit."
"No kidding"
By the time your conversation died down, You've already made it to the town square. There you see a group of people Surrounding a man Giving out papers. Curious, you take one of the papers the man was handing out. The paper speaks of some cattle and a few people who have gone missing in the past few days. It warns people not to be out late at night, And not to interact with any suspicious people while the moon is out.
"Might be them vampires my pops been talking about." Lynne says, reading the Contents of the paper.
Recently there have been rumors of red-eyed people, With sharp teeth attacking
People who are foolish enough to travel alone at night. Their bodies would be found days later wrinkled, and dry with no signs of life left in them.
" He used to tell me not to wander off at night cause vampires like ta pray on young Virgins." She says, then she turns to you.
"I don't got much ta worry about, but you should try to be a little careful from now on" she jokes with you, letting out a little laugh.
" Getting killed by a vampire would be ten times better than getting married to a soul-sucking demon" You retort, You've just reached the shooting range, and are soon greeted by the owner, Lynne's uncle.
"Ladies! I haven't seen you two in a while. Here to blow off some steam I presume?" Lynne's uncle, Gregory, greets you both.
You look at him, a little suspicious as to what he meant by that statement. It's Barely been a full morning since you have received the news. There is no possible way that-
"Seeing as if you're engaged to just about the absolute worst of human-" You don't let him finish elaborating.
"How the hell do you know?! I just found out about it this morning." You question.
He looks at you then turns around to get a chair.
"You're gonna want to sit down for this," He tells you.
You look at Lynne who gives you a shrug, she doesn't know what's going on either. Gregory clears his throat, he seems nervous. You can't help but start to feel a little nervous yourself. How could your situation get any worse?
"As you may know Duke Djel Sannes, is part of the high aristocratic brotherhood, which your father used to be a part of." He starts tentatively. You give him a nod signaling him to continue.
"You may have also known that his previous wife Mysteriously
disappeared due to some unfortunate
circumstances….." he Pauses then looks at you, sweating Profusely.
"Well?" You say, starting to get annoyed.
"Well there is a roomer Going around saying that wasn't the case, just like you his previous wife was a young maiden... " At this point, you're angrier at his Continuous pauses than anything else.
"Get on with it!!!" You yell, Patience starting to run thin.
"To find a young, and beautiful woman, not yet touched by a man is quite hard to find. Especially given that, they’re the only ones That the king takes a liking too. "
"STOP!" You yell, not wanting him to continue. You already know where he was going with this. Your stomach churns, Duke Sannes loves the king as much, that he would give Away his wife to him if that means he could please him. Who knows what they did to that poor girl. Just thinking about it makes you want to die. What are they going to do with you? How could your father do this to you?
The thought makes the muscles in your Abdomen clench. You get up from your seat and run to the nearest window, where you empty everything you had for breakfast this morning. Lynne quickly runs to your side making smooth circles on your back to calm you down.
You were devastated, your life is completely ruined. You turn to Lynne looking, hoping, for something, only to find a look of pity.
"Let's go somewhere else for now." You hear her speak up. Gregory gives her a nod, knowing this isn't the best place to be right now.
She helps you stand and navigates you towards the exit. She gives a quick goodbye to her uncle before opening the door and leaving . She walks from the shooting range back into town. There's a Deafening silence between you two as you walk.
"Anywhere you wanna go?" She asked.
"Just take me home." Your father Is usually out gambling by now, so he won't be home till late in the night. Right now you just want to be left alone, you don't want to face anyone. Lynne nods and you both make your way to your home.
When you finally reach your house, you detach yourself from your friend and open the front door. You linger there for a second fiddling your figures not sure what to say to her.
"Thank you" was all you could muster.
"No problem, I'll stop by again tomorrow.." She says. There's not much she could say, especially given the news you just heard. She leans in to give you a hug, after a long, and tight squeeze Lynne's on her way home. You're now left alone in your house.
You head to your room, you feel so tired. All the energy you had this morning is gone, you wanted to cry but you didn't even have the strength to do that. After you change to your nightgown and wrap your hair, you lay on your bed, angry and frustrated.
At that moment you thought of many things. How could this happen to you, how could he let this happen to you? Does your father even love you? Has he ever loved you? Of course he doesn't, what loving father would give his only daughter away to her inevitable doom.
As you cures your father. Your eyes start to feel heavy, and your thoughts start to simmer. It doesn't take long for you to lose your train of thought, and fall asleep.
You're awake now, sitting up on your bed and stretching. You rub your eyes and yawn, still a little tired. When you've completely woken up, reality crashes down on you as you recall everything that happened to you earlier that day.
Feeling angry, and betrayed by your father, You walk out of your room and into his study.
You look through his desk Drawers and that's when you find it, The key to your father's Liquor cabinet. He keeps all his good liquor in there. You take the first bottle you see and take a big gulp of it not caring what it was. Except for the drink in your hand, you throw and smash every drink in that cabinet to the floor. You make a mess of his office, you threw his papers, ripped pages from his books, and broke whatever you could get your hands on.
Although it burns your throat you continue to drink all the Contents of the bottle in your hand. Your whole body is hot, and the world around you is spinning. You try to open a window to let someone cool air in, but that doesn't seem to be enough.
It's already way past sundown when you look through the window in your fathers study. In your drunken state you decide to step outside for a walk, The cool wind on your skin feels amazing. You wander around for who knows how long, swaying with the wind, Already forgetting what had happened earlier that day.
You are following a trail just past the edge of your town. The farther you walk, the darker it gets. You wouldn't be able to see if it wasn't for the light of the moon that shines bright on the Rigid walkway, Illuminating each step you took.
As you walk you begin to see a lump on the ground. Despite your better, albeit drunken, judgment, you continue on your path to get a better look. And soon you realize that you have stumbled Upon a human body.
You quickly run towards them, almost tripping and falling. Upon closer inspection you notice he is a rather pale man, you are much darker than him by comparison. You wonder if he is even alive, he looks like he hasn't eaten in days. You look over his body and see His chest is rising and falling in a rhythmic motion, you let out a sigh of relief. That means he's alive, for now anyway.
"It's ok,, there's a town just up ahead I'll take you to a doctor-" You try to say to him as you get on your knees to pick him up. You begin to do so until he speaks in a quiet voice. You don't understand what he's saying, so you bring your ear closer to him, listening to what he has to say.
"That won't….help," He whispers, too weak to speak. You're confused at his response, he must be Delirious from whatever is wrong with him.
"I'm taking you there, I'm sure the doctor can help."
"NO" He yells "that's not what I need"
"Then what do you need?" You ask, getting annoyed with the stranger.
"Blood."
As soon as the words left his mouth you could feel all the heat in your body leave. Your shivering, the once comforting wind now cold, and uncomfortable. All at once, fear comes over you, and you are not sure what to do. You can't scream, you can't move, and thanks to the alcohol In your system, you can Barely think.
What a pitiful end this is, never found love, and was destined to live a disquieting life. Now you have come face to face with a blood-sucking vampire. You can't help the tears that start to flow down your face. Your cry is quiet and filled with sorrow.
You hear a sigh, then you feel a hand on your cheek. Your tears are being brushed away by the man you sure is going to kill you.
"Do not cry, I won't do this if you are not willing to." He tells you with a quiet voice. You've stopped crying, now looking at him in confusion. Taking that as a sign to continue he starts to talk again.
"I won't force you, but I can promise a reward for letting me drink your blood." He is looking at you, his red eyes focused on you, waiting for an answer.
You don't even know what to say, you don't even think what's happening is real. You want to go home, but what is waiting there for you? A life of utter torment, and torture, which you can't escape? If you go back now there would be nothing left for you, and you hate that. Of course, you have Lynne, but what could she do? You would rather die than have to go back and marry that man.
"Your... answer?" He Patiently asks
"Alright" You begin " I give you permission to suck my blood."
In one swift movement, the stranger is Sitting up in front of you. There is barely any distance between you, and your bodies are almost touching. He gazes at you, red eyes scanning your features, looking for any last signs of protest.
"I must apologize in advance, I'll try to make this as sweet as possible." His hand is back to your cheek, Caressing you. Subconsciously you lean into it, showing him your neck. His eyes now focusing on your lips, he looks you in the eyes one last time before leaning in, closing the distance between you two.
His kiss was gentle, leaving your lips as quickly as it came. You can feel your face become hot, this was the first kiss you've had in a while. Although it was short you find yourself missing the contact, maybe it's the alcohol Messing with your brain.
His other arm finds its way around you, hands resting on your lower back pulling you closer together. A shiver runs through your body when you feel another kiss on your cheek, and then another on your jaw. He gives small trailing kisses that travel from your face to your neck. He starts to kiss and suck at the skin on your neck, occasionally you can feel his tongue on you as well. You let out a small sigh, this was starting to feel nice. Your body becomes hot again, loving the attention you're getting. He sucks on a spot right under your throat, and you can help the soft moan that escapes past your lips.
Satisfied with his work, he gives you one long sultry lick, before you feel his teeth gently graze your skin. You shut your eyes tight waiting for the inevitable, you're scared it was going to Hurt. As if he could somehow sense your, he brushes his thumb over your cheek as reassurance.
"Thank you." He whispers into your neck and gives it one last kiss. He bears his fangs, then sinks his teeth in your neck.
The pain is unbearable, his fangs in your neck burn. It runs deep, you can almost feel the blood leaving from your body. Everything aches, you can't help the small cry that leaves your mouth as he continues to suck your blood. You start to feel light-headed, the world is spinning, and you feel like you're going to die. You realize that you are going to die as the world around you slowly starts to fade into nothingness. By the time the stranger finishes attacking your neck, you're Barely Conscious.
"As promised I will grant you a request, what is it that you wish for," He asks. You can hardly hear him, but you answer anyway.
"Please….take me away from here." That was all you could say before the world goes black.