Chapter Text
“Princess!”
The shrill voice crackled through your mind, as images of broken wood and bone filled the empty space.
I’ve been here before, you thought. But when?
You felt your body lurch through space, and land on muddy earth. The fine cotton of your dress soaking and sticking to your skin, goosebumps appearing as you begin to shiver in the cold night air.
“Princess!”
You hear the voice from before calling out to you again, more desperate this time. You can't make out where it’s coming from, nor who, but it’s familiar. You pull yourself up, head ringing with the sound of frantic horses.
“Pri-!”
The cry is cut short by the sound of crunching muscle and bone. Suddenly the scene is silent. Your heart thumps, the darkness seeming to leak in on all sides, fear dominating your mind. For a moment you look to the sky, a single bright star illuminates the forest around you. You look back forward and find glowing eyes inches from your face. Your heart rate spikes and you breathe in to scream, but your breath is stopped in your throat before you can. The eyes lean in closer, and a deep voice comes from them.
“Hello, Princess.”
~~~
You wake with a start, your body tries to jerk upwards to a sitting position, but is quickly yanked back down by something tied to your wrists. You try to catch your breath, not understanding the dream you just had or where you are right now.
Focusing on your surroundings is difficult. It’s pitch black, so you can't see anything, but you feel cold air on your breasts and realize you aren't wearing anything. There’s a blanket over your legs it seems, but it’s tussled up, and you can’t reach to pull it over your chest. You must have thrown it off when you startled awake, you think. You feel more restraints on your ankles, tying them together, but otherwise free. Your wrists are tied to what you assume to be bedposts.
Aside from the cold and the restraints, you’re surprisingly comfortable. The mattress is soft, and so is the material holding you in place. It’s rope, you assume, but it isn't scratchy at all. It’s still tight, you can't wiggle out of the knots, but it’s not uncomfortable; physically anyway.
As you squirm around, trying to figure out where you are, you hear someone move somewhere else in the room and feel yourself reflexively freeze in place. They don’t approach you though. They walk to somewhere past the foot of the bed you’re on, and you hear a familiar sound of a fire being built in a brick fireplace. The flames begin to crackle and the room starts to fill with a dim light. You see the figure move around the room like a shadow, lighting several candles.
The silhouette is tall and masculine, smartly dressed, with hair neatly tied at the back of the neck. As the room fills with light, you see features more clearly. A red silk brocade vest over a clean white shirt with a high neck and billowy sleeves clothe the man. His figure is thin but muscular, his face square with a prominent nose, and.. glowing eyes. The panic, which had been calming slightly, returns full force, the memory of the ending to your dream front and center in your thoughts. He lights the final candle at your bedside, before finally looking at you.
“My, princess,” his deep voice coos, “you woke up with quite a start there.”
The resonance of his voice stuns you. You must still be dreaming, you think. Why else would you see the same strange man from your dream standing beside you now? But your thoughts are interrupted by the sensation of the sheets being pulled back over your naked body. The man’s hand glides over your body ever so slightly as he covers you and you shrink away from the unnatural cold of his skin. Suddenly, you find your voice again.
“Who are you? Where am I?” you find yourself suddenly blurting all the questions in your mind, “What happened? Why am I here? Why am I tied up? Why-?” a cold finger presses against your lips, hushing you as you feel a tear begin to fall from your eyes.
“All will be answered in due time, Princess. But for now you need rest. You hit your head quite hard, and you need time to recover before I can answer most of those questions. We wouldn’t want you to strain yourself too much now, would we?” The last words are said with a hint of sweet poison in his tone. You stay silent. The man sits on the edge of the bed next to you and cradles your face with his freezing hand.
“Even when you sleep so fitfully, you are still as gorgeous as the sun, my dear.”
He moves his hand up into your hair, delicately brushing it with his fingers. His touch is strangely comforting, and you subconsciously lean into it. After that nightmare, a gentle touch is eagerly welcomed. You close your eyes, trying to blink away a few more tears.
“Tell me,” The man’s voice once again snaps into your mind, “What did you dream of that made you wake so suddenly?”
You hesitate and look at his face. His eyes glow less now that the room is lit, and you see the light make their color shift from gold to red as the candlelight flickers.
“I-” you pause, wanting to answer, wanting comfort for the horrible dream, but not content to have all your previous questions unanswered. “Can I get one answer first?”
He thinks for a moment. “That depends on what exactly it is you want to know.”
“Your name.”
He smiles.
“That, you may know, my Princess.” he leans in, “My name is Verin Cecil Saxon.”
Verin leans back to his previous sitting position and gently cups your chin.
“Now, tell me about your dream.”
“I- I think I was in a carriage, but it crashed. It was dark, someone was calling for me, but I couldn't see them. And then,” you pause, looking in his eyes once again, “I saw you. Why did I see you? I- I don’t even know who you are!”
“Shh, it's alright. Was that all that happened?”
“Y- yes. That's when I woke up..”
“Well, you may recover faster than I had predicted.” Verin’s hand releases itself from your face and rests lightly on the covers over your abdomen instead. “Then I will tell you a few more of the answers I know you crave.”
Your attention is grabbed by this, but instead of speaking, he stands and walks to the foot of the bed, unbuttoning his vest, and laying it by your feet.
“You, princess, are in my castle.”
He unbuttons his shirt, save but a few on the very bottom by the waistband of his pants. His chest is now exposed to you, and you can see the shadows defining his muscles flicker in time with the firelight behind him.
“I brought you here.”
You hear him kick off his shoes.
“And you,”
He climbs onto the bed and straddles your waist, once again taking hold of your face, a bit more forcefully this time.
“You will be my bride.”
Before you can truly process what you’ve just been told, he pushes your head up and to the side before kissing your neck. This takes you by surprise and you once again try to wriggle out of your restraints.
“W-wait!!” you stammer. “I don’t.. I don’t understand, I-” your breath hitches as you feel Verin open his mouth close to your collarbone, and two sharp points tease the surface of your skin as he gently drags upwards to your ear.
“Your family made a deal with me long ago.” he whispers into your ear. “I helped them to gain power and influence, and in return, I was to be given the next born daughter’s hand in marriage when she reached maturity.”
He plants a small kiss behind your ear, brushing the hair away from your face as he does. “But generations passed, and no daughters born ever survived that long. Illness, accidents, and unfortunate circumstances of birth took many of the girls born to your line. But you, Princess, you made it. I was ecstatic. Finally the debt would be paid! But then I heard that you had been betrothed to a prince of a neighboring country.”
He pulls away from your neck and looks you in the eye.
“I was furious. I had waited patiently for generations, but your family forgot the debt they owed me.”
He grabs you by the jaw. “But I am a patient man, princess. I waited over a hundred years for you, I could wait a few months more. I knew you would pass near my kingdom on your way to your betrothed, so I bided my time.” Verin lets go of your face, and plants a gentle kiss on your cheek. “And when you came near, I took my chance, and collected my debt.” Verin smiles at you, and you see the two sharp teeth that had teased your neck, and a sudden realization hits you.
“You-” you stammer “you’re a vampire!”
“How observant~ I am indeed, and one day soon you will be as well. But not yet.” he sits up, his weight gently pressing into your hips. “The rest is a subject for another night. Tonight, you need rest and care.” He moves to stand up once more.
“You haven’t eaten in some time, and I'm sure you’re feeling hungry by now.”
He pulls back one of the many tapestries on the wall to reveal a door, which he opens just a crack before whispering something to someone on the other side, you crane your neck, trying to see who it is, but you can't tell. Verin then returns to your bedside with a tray of food that makes your mouth water. You are quite hungry, and eager to have your wrists freed, even if only temporarily to eat. Verin sets the tray down on the table next to the candle by your bedside and then moves to do something with the ropes on the bedposts. Your heart quickens, anticipating freedom, but you find the length of the rope has just been let out slightly.
“I’m just sitting you up, princess.” Verin says, his hand moving under your back and lifting you up. “You’re not quite ready to be freed just yet.”
He places his other hand under your knees and swiftly moves you to a sitting position against the head of the bed. Your chest is exposed again, and while the air has warmed significantly from the fire, you still feel embarrassed at the sensation of air on your bare breasts. You try to move your hands to cover yourself but can only go so far.
“My tailors should have some clothes fitted to your measurements by tomorrow,” Verin says, noticing your movement, “but for now you will have to do without. I’m afraid your previous dress, while beautiful, was completely ruined and had to be scrapped.”
You feel a blush creep into your face as Verin moves the tray of food to your lap and sits next to you once again. It looks like a warm, hearty stew, some fresh bread, a glass of water, and a glass of red wine. Verin holds a spoonful up for you.
“Eat please, Princess. I can hear your stomach, I know you’re hungry. I will not let you go unfed while you are in my care.”
You’re hesitant to accept it. There's still so much you don't understand, and you don't trust Verin completely, but he is correct that you are very hungry. You open your mouth and accept the spoonful of stew.
“Good girl,” Verin whispers in your ear. The phrase makes your back straighten involuntarily. Verin chuckles as he gently pulls the spoon from your mouth, which only makes you blush harder.
He continues to feed you until the tray is clean, save a portion of the wine, which you weren’t very keen on drinking, and a few bites of bread that you simply couldn't fit in your stomach by the end.
“Thank you, princess. It’s good to know you will eat willingly. I was worried you wouldn’t.” He moves the tray off your lap and back to the table.
“However,” He looks at you, and you see hunger in his eyes. “You are not the only one who needs to eat.”
Your heart rate rises. You know what he means, but you don't want to believe it.
“I-” you begin to speak.
“Princess,” his hand cups your face and turns it to look at you directly, “I have watched you sleep for hours, and I will let you go back to rest in a moment, but I need to feed, and you are my preferred choice for tonight.”
You hear your voice crack as you say to him, “I don’t want to die.”
Verin laughs. “Dear, a single feeding will not kill you, nor would I let it. It won't hurt, providing you stay still for me, and it would also allow me to use a special magic to help you rest more peacefully this time.” He looks you in the eye.
“Just stay still and let me hold you, and I will ensure you are comfortable.”
He kisses your cheek, and you try to relax your body a bit. You aren't sure if this is even really a choice, but he promised to be gentle if you cooperate, and you don't even want to know what the alternative is. Verin moves himself to sit slightly behind you, tilts your head to the side while using his forearm to support your shoulder and back, and holds onto your waist to fully support you. He leans into your neck, and starts running gentle kisses along your pulse. You feel your heart beat in anticipation as his kisses become more passionate and focus on one spot. It’s embarrassing, but you enjoy the attention.
“Count from three for me please, Princess.” he whispers the words against your skin, sending a shiver down your spine, but you oblige.
“One,” you breathe in.
“Two,” he kisses your neck, fangs grazing the surface of your skin.
“Three.”
You feel a small, sharp, pain that makes you gasp and grab at the fabric of Verin’s pants and the sheet below you, but the pain is quickly replaced with a gentle pressure instead. You hear Verin taking sips in time with your heartbeat, and the sound is strangely soothing. Then, you feel a slight tingling sensation begin to spread through your veins from the bite site. It’s not painful or distressing, but oddly.. relaxing. You feel yourself unconsciously letting go of your muscles more and more until Verin is completely supporting your weight in his arms. But just before you close your eyes, you feel him take a final drink, pull his fangs from your neck, and lick the bite gently before laying you down on the bed again.
“Very good, princess,” Verin says softly as he pulls the warm sheets back over your naked body.
“Very good.”
Your eyes trail lazily across the room, watching as he begins to put his vest back on and clean the empty tray of food. The final thing you see before succumbing to the strange, magical sleep is Verin looking at you from across the room and smiling. It’s unnerving, but you can't even find the energy to be afraid of what tomorrow holds for you. A soft fatigue rolls over you, and in moments you are asleep.