Chapter 86

I had dreaded the dinner that was to come, apparently the prince had already arrived at the palace. The evidence was that the usually busy halls of the palace were scarce. No visitors walking up and down. The princess candidates were all in their rooms. Awaiting the calling.

I decided to visit Crystal.

"It's me. Open up!" I called and followed it by an impatient knock. I would've normally just barged in, but the palace had a policy and knocking was one of them.

Her door opened to reveal her, as expected, pale face and shivering body. I could see it in her dark circled eyes that she was beyond terrified. I suppose it was my usual older cousin instinct that kicked in when I grabbed her arms and checked her temperature.

"Are you okay?" I asked while asking a maid to prepare some tea. The maid had looked downright terrified at the request.

"No- it's fine. Marina is scared too. How could they expect us to dine with people that aren't the slightest bit human and did you hear about the blood ceremony?!" She shrieked, she was trembling all over.

"It's just one man Crystal"-

"Man? That's not a man! That's a monster- The prince is only half so he's fine , but this is a real vampire Mads" she stopped to take a deep breath, hand resting on her neck in unease.

"Crystal. It's okay. It won't be so bad- don't worry. His other half is with him so she should be able to keep him in check" I told her, rubbing circles on her back to calm her. In truth, I was also nervous about meeting a full blooded vampire. I knew it was silly, but I had grown up listening to warped stories- tales of shadowed monsters that haunted children and women. It was repeatedly instilled in us.

He was still a person so I should be as polite as possible.

"Stay with me" Crystal asked , while clutching my arm and I nodded, sitting down next to her on the bed until there was a knock, followed by the ominous words.

"Dinner is to be served shortly. Please make your way to the dining room".

Crystal had a strong grip on me the entire way and we walked at a snail pace, eventually joined by the other ladies who looked just as ill as Crystal. Even Lady Willow looked worried.

The aid greeted us just outside the door, stopping all of us with a smile that tried to be as reassuring as possible.

"You all look lovely this evening. Our guests are to join us shortly so please be well seated. The prince awaits you. Goodluck".

With that we made our way in and it was only then did Crystal let go of me as there was a sudden rush of ladies all trying to get the last seat. Lady Montgomery managed to claim it and the seats beside her quickly filled up. Had I partaken I might have avoided sitting directly next to Jules, who might I add was still on awkward terms with me.

I didn't dare look at him and did everything to not even think of him, but his every subtle movement was distracting. I tried to speak to Lady Brown beside me, but she looked ghastly so I decided against it.

I decided to wonder what our guests would look like and decided to imagine a person so intimidating that they would not seem so scary when they appeared, but even then, Jules came to mind. If he was as strong as he was and yet only half vampire. How strong would a pure blood be?

But then I frowned and something finally clicked. Something that made me snap my eyes towards Jules in an instant.

There was no such thing as a half blood vampire! Because how could there be? I thought back to the elves description of the vampire mating system- all vampires had a human spouse, yet they all had vampire off-spring… which meant the only reason we even called Jules half was because that sort of knowledge is restricted and thus unknown.

Did Jules know he wasn't half?

Our eyes met for a moment and surprise flooded his expression before it was replaced by a serious mask. He nodded at me as if to tell me it was time to look away.

He must know. Then… was the reason everyone made it clear he was only half because of… I looked at the table full of terrified human girls.

Had I not came across that village I wouldn't have known either, but I still felt embarrassed at having taken so long to figure it out. But then again, maybe vampires mated with other vampires too.. and if that were the case then who would they seek blood from? My mind once again on Jules. What if he were to meet a female vampire.

He was on my mind all over again so I took a deep breath, deciding to think of something else. I thought of what was once my main focus in life- my business. The beautiful dresses that my company produced. The make up that glided on your skin like soft creams and carried the most subtle of scents.

The dress I wore was one of my own and I recalled having issued its making. That day the seamstress had presented the design to me, her face had been full of worries and doubts, but when she caught my smile it all vanished. Leaving just pride behind.

I missed it.

The doors opened and the announcement came.

"His majesty, Silvester Harmonia and his wife Francesca Harmonia".

Everyone stood, the ladies curtsying and not daring to look at their guest until we heard the sound of chairs being pulled back and the sound of seats being taken.

It was expected that they would be different, but even the scent they carried was something foreign. Maybe it was from a tea they drunk?

When we finally sat I had looked at our guests.

The one directly opposite me was a young man with choppy blonde hair, his eyes were- safe to say- a grey so light I was sure for a moment he didn't have any irises. Beside him was a red headed lady who looked quiet and demure. No doubt his human partner.

"Your majesty, crown prince of Grandor. I have high expectations of this dinner" the man smiled, his eyes gliding over all of us and I felt shiver run down my spine.

"Of course, we shall not disappoint" Jules voice made my thoughts finally turn back to him, he sounded confident. Yet not arrogant at all.

"I'm excited at your sureness. My wife has also been looking forward to Grandors cuisine" he rested a hand on his wife's and it was at that moment that I humanised him completely. His wife smiled widely.

"I've heard a lot of things about your cuisine and have always wanted to visit, but of course the restrictions do make it difficult. I suppose that's why I'm thankful for Silvester" she stared up at her husband and he looked back with a charmed face. Smiling as he lightly pinched her chin.

"Well I suppose the long chase was worth it" he laughed and she joined, some sort of inside joke nobody understood. The prince, realising he was being rude quickly looked back to Jules, "how are you finding this sort of competition for a spouse? We thought you would enjoy having the ladies fight for you" he laughed, expecting others to join, and there had been a few awkward laughs, but it was much too evident.

"It's not something Grandor has done before so it's rather…" Jules dragged his words as a flurry of adjectives went over my head. Annoying. Unnecessary. Unwanted. Cruel. "Interesting".

"I see. You seem to have a lovely selection of ladies here so I'm sure whoever wins will be adequate" his wife piped. I caught her eyes we both shared a polite smile. I glanced at her neck, noticing what was undeniably a tooth indent.

"Of course" Jules agreed and the food finally arrived. The plates upon plates had me nauseous and I was sure everyone felt the same. It was as if the chef had no idea what to feed our guests and had made everything on the menu.

I found myself taking a bit of chicken and some salad, but just as I took my first bite a sausage was placed on my plate. I saw the large hand that placed it down with the fork, recognising the long, thick fingers. I didn't look up at him, he told me not to. But I couldn't stop the-

"Thank you".

-that escaped my lips.

Why did he give me food? Was he worried about the lack of it on my plate? What happened if I couldn't eat it? Would it be insulting?

"You're too thin" he whispered back, low enough for only me to hear.

I flushed in embarrassment. The strange warmth that flooded my chest and the feeling of wings batting against my stomach made me tense.

"How many wives is it acceptable to take in Grandor?" The prince asked and everyone hushed, all utensils came to a halt at the strange question.