Chapter 4: The Dhampir with a Scar
Beryl stomped her feet as she rushed down the stairs, taking it two at a time. She almost tripped as she walked but she did not care.
"Bel, please slow down," her mother cried after her.
"Bel," her sister, the crown princess, called. "You can't, father is still receiving them."
"Stop her!" her mother cried to the guards who stood in front of the throne room.
The guards moved quickly blocking her path to reach the closed doors. She stopped before she ran into them. "Out of my way," she said authoritatively.
"The Queen gave orders, princess," one of the guards spoke, he kept his head down as he spoke.
"Out of my way, Tharus!"
"Yes Princess," the second guard said and stepped out of the way, giving her enough room to access the doors.
Beryl didn't wait for the first guard to realize what was happening as she went through the space reaching the doors.
"Tharus!" her mother cried.
"I am so sorry Your Majesty," Tharus replied with a bent head.
Beryl turned the knob on the left door and pushed it open. The first thing she noticed was the silence as she barged in.
She frowned as she glanced around. The guest was less than she expected. Less was an overstatement. There was just one guest.
He was comfortably seated and by the sound of her father's dying laughter, they were having an amicable meeting.
The guest was sitting in the huge space alone. He had a jagged scar across the side of his face that was clear even from this distance but it wasn't that caught her attention.
It was the fact that the throne room was brightly lit with sunlight and the vampire sat unbothered amid all the sunlight.
It could only mean one thing, he was a dhampir. It also explained the scar on his face. Vampires healed regeneratively which meant the skin usually returned to its original state.
The fact that there was a scar this massive, meant the wound had healed normally without even magic.
"Bel," her father called with glee. "I didn't know you were back. What happened to your rounds?"
She turned her gaze away from the guest. "Is it true?" Bel asked, heading towards her father's throne.
"Is what true?" He asked, looking visibly stressed.
She stopped in front of him. "That you're marrying me off to some vampire prince?"
King Aaron's expression fell, "Yes," he whispered.
"Absolutely not!" her voice echoed in the space. "I'd rather have my limbs cut off than married to some vampire." She stomped her feet.
"I understand that you feel strongly about the matter but now is not the time. We will discuss this later."
"Discuss?" Beryl asked with a chuckle. "There is nothing to discuss. I can't believe you're considering this father. You're not going to marry me off to some vampire."
Queen Eleanor rushed through the still-opened doors clutching the hem of her dress as she ran after her daughter.
"My Love, please get her out of here," King Aaron said with a pained expression.
"Of course," Queen Eleanor said and grabbed her daughter's arm. "Bel please, you're embarrassing your father."
Bel gasped. "Well, he is making an important decision without me."
"He is the King and he has given you the order to leave."
Beryl's chest heaved at her anger. Somehow her mother's words got to her and she pulled her arm from her mother's grasp and walked to the door.
"Please, forgive me," she whispered, slightly bending her knees at her husband. "I should have waited to break the news to her. I had the wrong assumption that she would be excited about this."
"It's not your fault, My Love. We shall discuss this later."
Queen Eleanor nodded and rushed after her daughter who was making her way to the front doors.
"Bel," she cried. "Where are you going?"
"What does it look like?" She asked without turning around to acknowledge her mother's call. "I am going back out. I am not done for the day."
"You can't go, we need to talk."
"No, we don't." She stopped in front of the doors but the two guards by the doors didn't attempt to open them and let her out. "Open the doors," Bel ordered.
"Don't!" Her mother yelled out.
Beryl groaned and felt a soft touch on her right arm. "What do you want, Zel?" She asked without looking at her sister.
"Mother is talking to you, please calm down and listen."
Beryl turned to look at her sister with a look of betrayal in her eyes. "I thought you were on my side," she whispered. "How could you not tell Mother how terrible this idea is?"
"It isn't all bad, I promise. Just listen a-and you'll see."
"Ironic," Bel said and pulled her sister's hand away from her arm. "I don't want to hear that from someone who is getting married to their first love."
"Mother, tell them to open the doors or I won't be responsible for what I'd do," Bel threatened with her back to her mother.
"Bel!" Her mother cried.
"Please Mother," it was Hazel who spoke.
"Okay," Queen Eleanor immediately replied. "Open the doors and let her out."
Beryl winced, her parents never listened to her thoughts as easily as they did Hazel. She shook her head and walked out the doors, that was the least of her worries now.
Beryl glanced back briefly to see her mother hanging onto her sister who was consoling her. She looked away from them and rushed down the stairs.
She knew Hazel was telling their mother to give her time to calm down. She knew if the roles were reversed Hazel would want to do right by their parents and she would be perfectly fine being married off to some stranger.
Was it wrong that she wished this was the case? That she was the one getting married to the love of her life and her sister was getting married off.
It was cruel, wasn't it? Beryl thought as she got to the end of the stairs. She had always wanted nothing but a love marriage. To think she couldn't even get that.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone