Savor

by Duncan, Megan

  I knew I would probably never see my real mom again or Liz, but what I had chosen to do was bigger than them. I would be able to make the world a better place for them and knowing that would make it easier for me to let them go, or so I hoped.

  “I am sure you have a great many questions daughter, but for now let us revel in this joyous news. Go and explore the palace and meet with everyone. They will all be very happy to hear that you have accepted.” The King paused and grinned for a moment leaning his head toward the double doors. “I do believe you have one very excited vampire waiting for you already.”

  I knew immediately he was speaking of Robin and I wanted to rush over to her. The King nodded at me and I walked quickly for the doors. I was barely able to push them open before Robin tackled me in a hug, nearly throwing me to the floor.

  “You accepted!” Robin squealed in delight.

  “You’re crushing me,” I said and Robin quickly released her death hold on me. She stood looking much like a little child who was just told they could have a puppy and I smiled at the instant friend I had made in her.

  “This is going to be so amazing! I’ve always wanted a sister. Aren’t you so excited about the coronation ball?”

  “Whoa, slow down.” I laughed at her as we made our way back through the maze of hallways, hopefully back toward my room. “What coronation ball?” That definitely peaked my interest. If there was one thing Liz taught me besides fashion, it was dancing and I loved it.

  “They didn’t tell you? They are so much fun and it has been ages since we had one!” Robin said animatedly as we turned down a hallway that I thought was vaguely familiar but I wasn’t quite certain.

  “Give the poor human some breathing room book worm,” Ana snapped as she shouldered her way between Robin and I. “She’s not going to want to stay with us if she realizes she’ll have you following her around like a little lost puppy.”

  Ana’s evil grin made me ball up my fists and I resisted the urge to hit her square in her pretty face. I restrained myself knowing that it would probably be the last thing I ever did, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t fantasize about it.

  “Leave her alone.” I recounted in my bitchiest Liz impression.

  “Oooh, human girl has a little bite to her. I like that.” Ana smiled devilishly as she flicked her tongue against her fangs. I noticed that they were much longer than Robin’s and guessed that she had been a vampire quite a bit longer.

  “The name’s Claire and I’ve already decided to stay. I plan on making myself quite comfortable around here.” I smiled at her triumphantly when I saw how angry my comment made her.

  Robin and I held in our fits of laughter until Ana was out of earshot and we speedily made our way back into my bedroom. Shutting the door firmly, we both jumped onto the couches in the seating area and laughed until we couldn’t breathe.

  “What’s her problem?” I sighed trying to catch my breath.

  “I don’t know. She’s been like that as long as I’ve known her. Always thinking she is better than everyone else. She’s been especially worse ever since it was announced that you were coming to stay here.” Robin pulled a branch of greenery from the bouquet on the table and started plucking off leaves, one by one.

  “Sounds like she is pretty bitter.” I hated already having an enemy but it didn’t seem like it was something I could have avoided. Ana was going to hate me no matter what, but maybe in time she would get over it. I’m not going to change my mind so she doesn’t really have a choice.

  “So, tell me about his coronation ball,” I said.

  Robin perked up and sat up quickly, her infectious smile returning. “We haven’t had one since I was turned and that was tiny compared to what yours will be. Whenever a human is turned and joins a vampire family, a celebration is held. When it’s a vampire within a royal family the celebration is particularly important. Sometimes it’s just a gathering, but for you it will be… an amazing event.”

  The excitement she portrayed in her tone made me that much more anxious. “Will there be dancing?”

  “Ooh, yes!” Robin swooned as she jumped to her feet and twirled around the room dancing with an invisible partner. “There will be dancing, and beautiful gowns, sparkling jewels and most importantly…” she waggled her brows at me and licked her lips “boys!”

  It was nice to see in Robin that when I turned into a vampire I wouldn’t lose my love for the little things in life that made me happy. “What kind of boys? Vampire boys?”

  “Duh, Claire! Only the most gorgeous vampire guys in our entire region. They will all want a chance to dance with the new Princess of course, but you must promise not to hog them all. Okay?”

  “Deal. What about the guys here, will they be coming?”

  “You don’t want to mess with them. Dmitry is cool, but Luka is definitely off limits. He and Ana are together. Have been for a long time now. I think it’s kind of creepy, but don’t tell them that.”

  “Why do you let her push you around like that?” I asked without even thinking. I didn’t want it to sound like an insult and quickly tried to recover when I saw the hurt look on her face. “I just mean, you’re a vampire. You can kick butt; can’t you just tell her to go suck on some garlic?”

  Robin broke into hysterical fits of laughter and at the sound of her snorting I rolled with laughter with her. “Claire, you are so sheltered. Vampires aren’t scared of garlic. That ridiculous myth got started… well I don’t know how it got started but it’s just one of the silliest myths there are. I don’t know where those anti-vampire people come up with that stuff.”

  “I guess you’ll just have to let me know what is and isn’t true then,” I said.

  “Apparently so.”

  We spent the next few hours getting to know each other better. Robin was eager to learn about my human life and I was eager to hear about what it was like to grow up in a palace full of vampires. Louie joined us for a while, taking turns laying on either of our laps while we absent-mindedly pet him during our discussion.

  Not wanting to spend the entire night stuck in my room, Robin offered to show me more of the palace. I was happy to be on my feet, hoping it would help fight the exhaustion that was taking over.

  By the time we had finished the quick tour of the palace, I was thoroughly exhausted. I had wanted to see the palace gardens, but with the golden sun cresting over the horizon we had to put it off till tomorrow night. I of course, could have gone, but the chance to finally be able to get some rest was too good to resist.

  Chapter 5

  Oddly enough I woke from one of the best day’s sleep I have ever had. From the orange glow that illuminated the room I guessed that it was just about sunset. I took advantage of the last few moments of solitude I had and decided to take another shower to help myself wake up.

  I didn’t know what the night had in store for me, but I was growing more and more certain that the vampire royal family wouldn’t want to waste any time before they decided to turn me.

  I had to admit, it was a scary thought but also pretty thrilling. I hadn’t had the chance to ask Robin what it was like to be turned. Since vampires no longer bite people, I was hoping that the transformation wouldn’t be too bad.

  I was able to get dressed and spend some quiet time with Louie before I heard a knock on my bedroom door. Expecting for it to be Robin, I was surprised when I opened the door to see the Queen standing before me.

  “May I come in?”

  “Of course,” I said in complete shock.

  I watched her as she seemed to glide across the room before settling down gracefully atop the couch. Her royal blue gown made the contrast of her jet black hair stand out. She absently smoothed out the wrinkles as she waited for me to take a seat across from her.

  "Did you sleep well?” she asked.

  “Yes, very well thank you,” I said.

  “Good. I thought we could spend some time together before the night begins.”

  I smiled at her
and at the thought that she wanted to spend time with me, even though I wasn’t sure why. It was a new feeling to have so many people wanting my attention and I was really starting to enjoy it.

  “It pleases me to see you smile. I want to know that you are happy here Claire and I would also like for us to build a strong bond, as a true mom and daughter would.”

  The Queen smiled at me almost hesitantly and I got the tiniest sensation that she feared I would not accept her as my new mom. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, so I quickly sought for something to say.

  “I’d like that.” I meant it too. Her posture seemed to relax a bit and she smirked at Louie as he sniffed at the hem of her dress.

  “I wanted to offer my ear to you, if you have any questions. The next few days will be filled with several events and the information you will learn can be very overwhelming. I want this time to be as comfortable for you as possible.”

  I had tons of questions for her, but was unsure of where to start. Not wanting to ask her silly things about the ball, that I knew Robin could answer for me, I decided that I had better ask the ones I dreaded the most.

  “Now that I have accepted, when exactly will I be turned?”

  “We would like for that to happen very soon, but the preparations do take time. I know the King would like for you to be turned tomorrow night.”

  My mouth fell open and I quickly closed it. I was expecting soon to be in a couple weeks and was in no way prepared for her to say it would happen so soon. My fear started to cloud my thoughts and I couldn’t seem to focus on anything else.

  “Don’t be afraid. We do everything possible to ensure that the transformation is as painless as it can be. I cannot tell you exactly what it is like, because I was not turned using the new method, but I can promise you that you are strong enough to complete it. If you would like to know more, I am sure Robin can tell you in greater detail what you can expect during that time. She is our most recent family member.”

  I could feel my palms beginning to sweat, so I quickly wiped them on my jeans as I tried to process what the Queen had just told me. I knew I was being ridiculous for hoping that the process would be easy and expected that it wouldn’t be, but it still rattled me to hear it confirmed out loud.

  “What will happen after I am turned?” I asked.

  The Queen’s face softened before she spoke. “After the transformation is complete we will hold a coronation ball, where we will invite all the vampires from our region to publicly introduce you and announce you as our daughter and as Princess of our region. The coronation ball is a very exciting time for vampires young and old. It has been a very long time since we have had one on such a large scale and I believe it will bring some much needed positivity toward the views of the royal family.”

  “Positive views?” I was getting confused and wondered if she was telling me that other vampires did not think highly of them.

  “Not everyone agrees with how we have done things. Although they have long accepted the new ways, it will do them good to see that we still adhere to traditional practices. Such as choosing an heir.” The Queen gestured her hand toward me. “You Claire, will be viewed as a symbol of bringing new life into the royal family as well as signifying that even without reverting to the black ages we can still follow the respected traditions of the vampire monarchy.”

  I thought to myself that that was a lot of responsibility to rest on the shoulders of one person, but I realized that becoming a vampire Princess could in no way be easy, not matter how I tried to look at it. I had chosen this and there was no going back now.

  I must have failed at hiding the worried expression on my face because the Queen quickly sat next to me, and hesitantly, yet gently placed her hand atop mine. “Do not fret, Claire. Though it may seem like a heavy burden, know that I will always be here to guide you. Nicolae and I may seem like we expect a lot from you, but know that we do not expect you to bear any of this burden alone.”

  Her icy fingers clasped mine and although their chill seeped quickly to my bones, I felt comfort in it. It made me feel better to know that I wasn’t going to be thrown into the role of being a Princess as well as a newly changed vampire by myself. I could truly feel the genuine caring and concern she had for me and it soothed my worries greatly. I was still nervous, but much less afraid. For now at least.

  “Ah, it appears you will be having a guest shortly.” The Queen turned her head toward the door and smiled at me. With one last comforting grasp she squeezed my hand before rising from her seat and exiting my room in her floating fashion. Robin stood at the doorway as Evilyn exited, politely bowing her head before rushing to me in her very unvampire-like way.

  “Good evening,” Robin said in a ridiculous accent that made me almost snort from laughing so hard. “I thought you might like that. That was my best Dracula accent. Did you know Dracula wasn’t even his name? He was really Prince Vlad III. Many believed that he was the first vampire, but what my parents have discovered is that he was turned during his last battle. Legend says that while he lay dying on the battlefield a vampire found him and decided to turn him. Of course back then vampires were much more savage, which explains why they would agree to turn someone whose name was Vlad the Impaler.”

  I knew if I didn’t stop her there, she would continue on with her history lesson. He eyes were filled with excitement as she began to recount the history of the blood-thirsty ancients, but I had too many others things I wanted to talk about.

  “You can tell me all the gory details later, Robin. I want to see more of the palace and I’ve got some questions for you.”

  “What kind of questions?” she asked.

  “Well, I spoke to the Queen and she told me some… interesting details about what is going to be happening. I asked her about what it would be like to be turned and she suggested I ask you because she wasn’t turned using the new method.”

  I thought for a moment what it must have been like to be turned into a vampire the same way the Queen had. Being viciously bitten and drained of all your blood, only then to have to drink from the vampire who had caused you such great pain. Imagining how much more awful things could have been I was grateful I wouldn’t have to experience it like that.

  “I can’t tell you,” Robin said as she looked away from me.

  “Why not?”

  “Because I wished that when I had turned that no one had told me what to expect. Knowing what is going to happen makes it all the more worse to have to experience it. I’ll tell you this, I have read in great detail what it was like to be turned the old way and what I had to go through, although difficult, was no comparison.”

  Robin turned toward me then and placed her hands on my shoulders, her dark eyes, seemingly limitless, felt like they could see everything. “You will be fine, Claire. You are strong.”

  I looked at her blankly wondering why everyone seemed to think I was so capable of doing everything they wanted me to do. Everyone except me.

  “We will find out how strong I am soon enough. Evilyn said they want to turn me tomorrow night.”

  Robin looked surprised for a moment, but quickly hid the expression before responding. “The sooner you get it over with, the sooner you won’t have to worry about it anymore right? You’ll be fine. If I can do it, you can too. Now, let’s talk about more exciting things, like what I came here to tell you.”

  I appreciated her attempt to change the subject and eagerly accepted it. “Yes do tell,” I said as I pushed open the curtains to let in the cool night air.

  “They’ve already begun planning your coronation ball! Isn’t that exciting? I saw the event planners in the ballroom on my way to the library. When I asked my parents they said that they had been working all day to make sure it is ready in time.”

  Robin nearly giggled in delight as she rushed toward my closet. “We’ve got to hurry up and find out what we are going to wear. Do you know what color you want?”

  She held up a burgundy dress that she pulle
d down from the gown section of my large closet. “Actually, I think that color would look better on you,” I said.

  Robin smiled and held the dress in front of herself as she twirled around in front of the mirror. I browsed through the remaining dresses, seeing a few that I liked, but I wasn’t much in the mood to try them on. What I really wanted to do was see more of the palace, more of my new home and the vampires I would be spending eternity with.

  When Robin saw the unamused look on my face she quickly laid the dress atop the chaise. “Want to see what Luka and Dmitry are up to? I heard Luka and Ana got in a fight because she thought he seemed too interested in you.”

  “Really?” I was quite surprised with this revelation. Luka seemed almost disgusted by my presence during my introduction. “Where did you hear this?”

  “Duh, Claire, I’m a vampire!” She pointed to her ears. “Very good hearing.” Robin laughed at my lack of knowledge again and we both walked out of my room.

  We quickly made our way through the palace, although I’d had a tour the night before, I was no more familiar with where everything was. We found Luka and Dmitry inside the palace’s large garage. The vampire royal family had an extensive collection of impressive cars, all of them with tinted windows that were practically black. Luka was eyeing a sporty blue car when we entered the garage.

  “You know you’re going to get in serious trouble if you get caught don’t you?” Dmitry asked Luka who tossed a set of keys up in the air, obviously contemplating something.

  “What are you guys up to?” Robin asked as she walked toward them.

  “None of your business,” Luka snapped. When he saw me approach he glared with such blatant hatred that it made me stop in my tracks. Shoving Dmitry out of the way, Luka jumped into the driver’s seat and sped out of the garage before anyone had the chance to say anything else.