Blood reeked as she looked at him one last time, their hearts stopping as their lips met for the first and last time. A strange silhouette appeared in the glint of her eye before it disappeared as suddenly as it appeared. Wandering across the palace, the numerous painted portraits scrutinized her sick form, a nauseous feeling setting in her stomach as she smelt the metallic smell of blood. Tripping over her long nightgown, she ran to her parents' room, the cold air hitting the empty room, everything seeming so normal if it wasn't for the gruesome corpses laying there. A scream threatened to leave her lips until uncharacteristically cold hands muffled the sound. Turning to decipher his identity, a shiver ran down her spine as he whispered in her ear.
"Calm down, princess, you'll be alright, just be quiet for me, please?" A cruel smile plastered across his face, teleporting her in the blink of an eye to what seemed to be a manor.
"W-Who are you?! M-My parents… W-What?" Tears streamed Aaliyah's eyes as she pleaded for answers, her mind trying to puzzle everything together, her lungs begging for air.
"Don't ask questions now, princess, I'll answer in due time." A sad smile painted the man's face as he gently pulled his raven locks back, her eyes widening as she didn't perceive his reflection by the mirror.
"W-Wait! A-At least tell me your name! Y-You kidnapped me after all, it's the least you can do!" He stopped in his tracks, his eyes widening at the foolish request, a deep chuckle leaving his lips as his azure eyes met her cinnamon ones.
"Arien, nice to meet you, your majesty, welcome to my manor." He mimicked a bow, a mocking grin painting his lips.
"Stop playing around Arien! B-Bring me back my parents!" As she raised her voice, she approached him, pointing her finger at him, trying to stifle back a sob, a gasp leaving her lips as his thumb tenderly wiped her tears, mouthing an apology and giving her spare clothes. After a few hours, she reluctantly ended up falling asleep, her frail silhouette sprawled across the bed, Arien's instincts urging him to feed himself, seeing the vulnerable human laid defenceless, his hand quickly covering his fangs as he left, a muffled scream going unnoticed. A few hours later, groggily waking up despite her tiredness, turning around and seeing her dishevelled state, sighing.
"Where did Arien go?" Her ears pick up the sound of steps, her deep brown eyes scanning over Arien's silhouette, strolling over to her, a smirk on his face.
"The princess or shall I say… Queen has awakened." His azure eyes taking in her brown curls, the emerald jewel embed in the golden necklace shining.
"Q-Queen? I'm not one! Stop calling me that!" Shooting glares at him, he slowly raises his hands as a sign of peace, chuckling.
"But darling, your parents are…" Before he could say anything more, a slap to his cheek was delivered, barely feeling it as a grin formed in his face.
"Y-You finally… Touched me." Inexistent butterflies flew all across his stomach, her warm touch a striking contrast to his own glacial skin. She gave him a weirded out look, carefully retreating as she felt the breeze, her eyes examining the open window. Taking it as an opportunity, Aaliyah ran towards it, her face paleing as she saw the immense heights (check spelling and phrase).
"Why the heck are we so high?!" Her eyes widened as she took a step back, about to curse him until she remembered her duties as a princess, biting her lower lip. A gasp left her lips as he took her hand, her honey eyes taking notice of the blue schemes scattered across his body, be it clothes or even the sapphire ring on his left hand. Before she could mutter her thoughts, he distracted her, a cheery smile appeared on his face, his dark gloved hand tightening around her own.
"It's a… sort of protection, you know, people want to hurt you because of your status and I'd hate for you to be hurt." Giving her a smile, she sighed, not wanting him to know that because of it, she missed most of her childhood and teenage years. Giving him a defeated look, she angled her shoulders, her eyes widening as his form bent towards her, her cheeks heating up as his gaze flickered to her chest.
"W-What are you doing?!" Her heart raced as her emerald jewel shone, the soft green light blinding Arien as he withdrew, beads of sweat forming as a snarl painted his face, his chest falling and rising.
"This… Necklace, why do you have it?!" Snapping, he tried to calm himself, taking in her confused and scared state as she clutched her pendant. Her eyes draped over his form, taking in his unwell appearance, his porcelain skin shining ever so brightly under the moonlight. A memory resurfaced in which her father, the King of Estryae, gifted her the jewellery both as a guise of gift as the heiress of the Kingdom and to protect her, knowing ruthless enemies would target his empire and subsequently, the heiress.
"Why do you want to know?! I don't trust you, you're… Still a stranger to me!" Her words reverberated through his mind, a blank state washing over him as he blinked slowly.
"A stranger? Is that all I am to you? I… I told you my name and I… I gave you a home!" A crack formed in his voice, his eyes showing a glint of desperation as he slowly made his way to her, still keeping his distance from the emerald jewel.
"That's not how it works, I don't know much about you, have you never had any friends?!" Looking at him, the princess frowned, taking a step back until she was met with the wall, her eyes widening his ocean eyes glowed in the dimly lit room, a smile stretching his lips as his hand slowly formed a pastel thread. Slowly making its way to Aaliyah, the thread slowly formed a hand, caressing Aaliyah's cheek as he carefully tried to steal the jewel. Sensing this, she grasped it, the light dimming as she haltingly covered it with her fingers.
"W-What was that just now?" Her eyes searched his for answers, a perplexed look on his face as a laugh erupted within his chest, the notion of her not knowing about magic never crossing his mind.
"You… Don't know about the Ezeria? Humans… I mean, you have never heard of it?" A smug smile painted his face as he effortlessly manipulated the thread, carefully controlling the force of the impact as he dug a hole in the wall, her wide eyes making him pride himself in his ability to manipulate the energy of the moon.
"I won't tell you much, you wouldn't get it." Shrugging his shoulders, he brushed it off as if nothing had happened, guiding her to his dining hall, a shiver running down Aaliyah's spine as she noticed the lack of warmth in that piece. As he lazily strolled through the kitchen, he cursed, realizing she probably was used to huge feasts, a proud smile painting his face as he presented to her plenty of delicacies. Her gaze roams over the chocolate covered lobster, the sparkling drink completing the vibrant meal, quickly putting up a polite smile as she pushed the meal aside.
"I… I'm not hungry yet, but I… Appreciate it." Sensing the light in his gaze falter, she was quick to reassure him that when the moment came, she'd eat earnestly. Her cheeks heated up as her stomach rambled, the light in Arien's eyes returning. As she ate, she wondered how he'd eaten like this his whole life, it was not unpleasant per say, just rather peculiar as a meal choice.
"May I wander around your manor, Arien? I feel in need of some movement after what happened." Her eyes wandered across the numerous rooms, each more enigmatic than the other. Guiding Aaliyah through the stairs, the crinkling noise from being stepped in enhanced the perception of ancientness. Her eyes roamed over a family photo in which were depicted a woman in her thirties, a gentle smile on her face, a man in his forties, a stern but caring look on his face and a newborn baby. Turning around, she smiled gently albeit sadly at him.
"Is that your family? They look like gentle people." About to inquire further, he smiled, turning her around and leading her into another corner, gently pushing her forward, changing the subject. Inside the room, plenty of elegant dresses of every colour and shape were presented to her, as well as a king sized bed, a frown painting her face as she noticed everything was to her liking.
"This looks beautiful, sir Arien, but I can't accept this, it's too much, I'll be fine with an average room." Turning to him, a pout paints his face as he took her hand, immediately leading her to the bed.
"Don't you like it? I prepared it… I mean, it was an old guest's room." A smile painted his face, praying she doesn't pry any further as he reached for a brand new comb, his hand hesitantly reaching towards her.
Accepting it, Aaliyah's cheeks heated up, as he gently ran it across her brown locks, her hands sweating a bit, remembering how her father forbid her from any contact with other men. Gently putting her hair in a half ponytail aided by a bow, he observed the way her curly hair fell into her face, perfectly framing it as her honeyed eyes made contact with his blue and green eyes. Now donning a fair blue dress, a lump formed in her throat as Arien was nowhere to be seen, the manor seeming even colder in his absence. A noise coming from downstairs alarmed her, quickly making her way to the source, her pulse quickening as masked men came into view.