Azier was dizzy, and his head definitely had to have a dent in it -- or was it a lump? It was impossible to tell at this moment. The rough seas had tilted the vessel violently, which had sent his head into all sorts of things -- panties, bras, a dumbbell, the edge of the bed post that was attached to the floor, and finally some large square object that slammed into the whole of his face, and caused everything to go dark.
The next thing he experienced was a nice warm sensation that buzzed in his brain, and the soft, cold skin of the most perfect flesh he had ever witnessed. Not a ding, scratch, not even a small mar was upon the thin arms that cradled him like a baby.
"Uhg... I feel like I just drank too much aged blood..." he groaned as light returned to his eyes, and he tilted his head up to see two ruby eyes hidden underneath long, straight black hair that covered half her face as though she were ugly (which she absolutely was not).
She didn't say anything, but her lips seemed to be in a constant frown of sorrow.
"Did you happen to save me, beautiful demon temptress?" He asked with eyes that sparkled with desire and gratitude that he hadn't woken up in another box.
"Mmhm.." she barely managed to utter out.
'Oooh, a shy one' he thought deviously. 'I love them the most...'
"Thank you, miss..uhm...what is your name so I can thank you properly?" Azier asked with a warm smile.
"...Azrianna..." she practically whispered.
"I'm sorry, what was that?"
"Az...Azrianna..." she muttered and seemed to avoid his red hues.
"One more time, darling - I am afraid I cannot hear your lovely name," he tried once more in hopes she would speak louder.
"..." she just looked pathetic as her eyes strayed from his.
"Hey, it's fine. I heard 'Anna', is that right?" He spoke far more tenderly to her than he had any of the other sisters.
The lovely, shy woman nodded meekly.
"Well, it's nice to meet you Anna. I'm not sure if I was out for a long time, but I'm surprised that I'm not in immense pain...." he spoke his thoughts out loud. He had his suspicions about this young lady, and he was going to find out if she was a magic user. He could feel something between them - something they shared.
You see, while their kind was strong, practically immortal, powerful, and had their own special gifts like use of the eyes to bewitch others - they could not tap into magic, for they were not truly alive.
At least -- 99% of them, anyway. No male Vampire could use it, but once in a while, a few special women would be born with the ability to tap into the veins of the world, but as if to balance it all out -they could not fly or float.
Most women with magic did not live good lives. They were often sought after with great desire, but not for the point of marriage. Most magic women were locked up and used as limitless power, or made to be slaves. It was no wonder that if she did have magic, she'd have hidden it with her sisters for protection.
Honestly, he felt sorry for her if his guess was right. To be used so unfairly was on a level of evil Azier didn't want to tread on. If he could collect her, though.....
"You must have magical hands," he followed up and tilted his eyes upwards to see if she reacted.
React she did - and even if it was subtle, he still noticed that she winced a little. He didn't blame her.
"Ah....Let me guess..." he started, but stopped his playfulness when he saw her eyes widen with fear and tears began to glisten in her red orbs.
"Oh dear, maybe I shouldn't," Azier offered with softness. "It's a tender subject. I understand. My aunt was a ...well...you know..."
Anna's lip quivered as she finally gave him her full attention. Her face was slender and she seemed to have a smaller stature than the rest of her sisters, even though she wasn't the youngest. Heck, Sera looked a hell of a lot older than this young lady did, and it was a little stark in contrast.
"Your secret is safe with me. Do your sisters know?" He asked casually as though he tried to lull her into a nice calm state.
Anna shook her head softly.
"Holy shit - that's a damn big secret to keep for so long," Azier breathed out with alarm.
She shushed him as he put her small, cold fingers against his mouth as she entered a cabin with a red door on it, and didn't let them off of his mouth until she shut it and turned on a light.
Her cabin was exactly his style -- macabre, but elegant. It was draped in black, mauve, red, and white silks and had a vase of fresh, black roses on her antique dressing table. She had an entire black cabinet that was still a little opened, and he could see through the small crack that it was filled with skulls, feathers, and some other items probably used for spell craft.
"So how did you manage to keep this secret for so long?" Azier asked as she sat him down on the table that had a bunch of different creams, make-ups, and powders that were arranged neatly across the marble top.
Anna gestured to her dress - a definite different outfit than her sisters who wore outfits that pretty much matched - pants and a top.
"...and that works?" he inquired.
Anna shrugged and sighed.
"I don't think it works as well as you think....I have a feeling at least Ilsandra knows...." he hinted at. "You shouldn't be afraid to share that secret with at least one of them, right?"
Anna shook her head swiftly in denial as her eyes widened further with fear. When she finally did speak an entire sentence to him, her voice was soft and light like a feather, but was soaked in a sadness he couldn't discern by ear.
"My mother told me to never reveal it to anyone. Not even my sisters..."
"That seems wrong to burden you with such a thing," he offered tenderly.
As if she had been waiting a very long time for someone to talk to, Anna suddenly began to sob silently as gobs of tears raced down her cheeks.
Great. Now he felt guilty....and he felt really bad for her. Being a 'Cinder' was horrible - and not at all the gift it should have been. Maybe he'd just add her to the collection that he was amassing in his head.
Then he had a realization: maybe he did want to try having a real harem..../maybe/. It was a lot of work to keep what you caught in this world, and he wanted to make sure it was worth the effort.
Nothing had been worth the effort so far, and it hadn't changed as of now. However, the plight of this smaller woman definitely tugged on what heartstrings he had left - wherever they were...