For as long as anyone could remember, Christopher and Maria had been in love. For centuries, the two had been together. In each other's arms, they moved with a seldom seen grace, balancing each other almost perfectly. When the King fell and his widow was lost to her grief, they were the next natural choice to replace them on the throne. No king can rule without a queen, of course.
The Kiss welcomed Christopher and Maria into the throneroom. Vampires from all over the world pledged their undying allegiance to the two ethereal beings who reminded them what being a Vampire was all about.
Christopher was tall, with long black hair slicked back from his face. He had a lanky body, but held himself with a regality and rigidity of a born leader. His dark crimson eyes glared out from under long eyelashes and painted on eyebrows. He had the typical italian nose, and three titanium studs through his plump lower lip. As always, he was dressed to the nines, perfectly pressed suit accented by a top hat and the long black cane he carried more as a threat than anything else.
Maria contrasted her lover spectacularly, with almost white blonde hair that cascaded over her shoulders in soft, voluminous curls. She stood almost a head shorter than him, her ample bosom almost overflowing the top of long, fitted gowns that emphasized her wide hips and tiny waist. The last heir of Dracula, himself, her irises were pure white, setting her out from the rest of the Kiss.
Both Christopher and Maria wore the sunken eyes and pure white pallor of their kind. When they were together, their skin seemed to glisten, drawing the eyes of any being, mortal and immortal alike. Unlike most Vampires, however, they were heavily tattooed. The magic involved to create the elaborate, living art was immense. Each image inked into their alabaster skin was, itself, a moving picture. While many of their kind frowned upon the defiling of their pure white complections, no Vampire could look upon Christopher's and Maria's striking marks without a sense of awe. Magic tattoos were an incredibly painful and arduous process for the witches who traded in them, and even moreso for Vampires who's image was carved in stone for eternity.
"Must you go, my love?" Maria's soft, high voice lilted up through the atrium.
Christopher sighed and closed the space between them, pulling his beloved up into his arms. "You know I must, Dove," he responded, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead.
Maria cast her eyes to the floor. "I hate when you go."
The new King eased his hands up his queens arms, shoulders, and neck to hold her face tenderly. "I will always come back to you, Dove. You know this." He pressed a chaste kiss to her lips. "And you know if I could, I'd stay with you, or take you with me. But one of us has to hold things together here."
The woman sighed, white blonde hair tumbling from her face. "And the Greater American Council has called upon you. I know." She wound her arms around Christopher's small waist. "I still don't like the idea of you going to another country without me. It's been at least two hundred years since we were last separated by an ocean."
Christopher smiled and pulled his beloved against his chest, lightly swaying as he caressed her hair with one hand, and her shoulder with the other. "I will always be with you, Dove."
He lingered in the embrace for a long moment before pulling away and scooping Maria up into his arms. The black lace of her gown fountained over his arm and flowed along behind them as he carried her up the platform steps and settled her down in his throne. Then he climbed into the chair straddle her and caught her lips with his. He tenderly wrapped his arms around her body, hands caressing her bare back before he pulled the clasp of her halter bodice loose, causing the soft fabric to fall away from her chest.
Maria disconnected the kiss to tilt her head back, exposing her throat to her lover. Christopher immediately took advantage of her exposed throat, leaning in to kiss and bite the pale flesh around her bubbling broken hearts tattoo. Vampire skin could not be marked, but he still reveled in the soft moans that escaped his life mate as he bit into her shoulder. He reached down for the shining, onyx hilt dagger she wore at her hip, unsheathing it and teasingly dragging the tip of the blade across her chest without enough pressure to break skin.
"Always such a tease," Maria groaned, back arching. She reached out to pull at Christopher's tie until it loosened and she could remove it, tossing it aside. Then her fingers worked quickly to unbutton his shirt and expose the spiraling script across his chest. She slid her hand up his chest to grasp his throat and pull his face back to hers. "If you're going to cut me, just do it," she demanded.
Christopher pulled at his right lip piercing, eyes casting down to take in the sight of his lover's large, round breasts. "My love, you are always a beauty," he muttered, softly. He pressed his lips to hers again, adding pressure to the blade as he dragged it across her flesh. Then he leaned in to lick up the dark crimson blood that flooded to the surface. His mouth trailed from the cut down around her nipple before pulling at it with his teeth.
Maria moaned and arched, letting her grip on her beloved slide to his shoulders as she sunk nails into his skin. She pressed her body up between his thighs, feeling his hardness through his tight black pants and the dainty lace of her gown. "Need this off of me," she whined.
Without missing a beat, Christopher sheathed the dagger and reached for the zipper at his Queen's waist, sliding to his knees on the floor as he pulled the zipper to her knee and then pulled her dress the rest of the way off. He placed soft kisses up the inside of her thigh, savoring how her muscles fluttered under his touch. Small, soft fingers tangled in his hair, drawing him in closer. But Christopher wanted to take his time.
"Give me," she gasped, impatiently.
Christopher laughed, darkly. "But I love how you twitch when you're needy," he responded, then ran the tip of his tongue along her femoral artery, all the way up to the inside pocket of her hip.
"Christopher," she whined.
"Patience, Dove," he responded, softly. He nipped, roughly, at the tendon at the inside of her hip, making her cry out in pleasure. Then he eased his hands up her thighs, squeezing lightly with calloused hands the higher he got. Maria's legs trembled at his touch, and he knew she was getting impatient. And he loved it.
"Touch me," she gasped. "Stop playing around, damnit!" But despite her impatience, Maria's thighs were already shaking.
Christopher leaned in close, letting his hot breath tease across her skin. From his vantage point, Maria was laid out before him, thighs spread wide and already so wet. The King leaned in and licked, slowly, along his lover's wetness, reveling in her taste as it danced across his tongue. She was sweet, with a slight tangy undercurrent.
It was Christopher's favorite taste in the world. He could spend hours, even days with his head buried between his beloved's thighs. He even could recall a time, centuries ago, when he and Maria had locked themselves in their quarters, and he'd pleasured her with his mouth for almost an entire week, feeling her body shake beneath his hands and her taste flooding his mouth every time he brought her to climax.
Maria's body arched into her lover's touch. "Fuck yes," she hissed. Christopher's mouth worked her just right, tongue thrashing into her and teeth catching on her swollen clit. His tongue played circles around her clit before sucking it between his teeth. He licked a flat tongue across her entrance a few times, then thrusted it into her, swirling it about inside her. He toyed with all of her buttons until her body was arched completely off the throne, legs shaking and muscles clenched as she was flung into climax.
Christopher licked Maria's release up, moaning a little at her taste. "I love that so much," he whispered, kissing up his lover's stomach to her large, tight breasts.
"You've always liked how I taste when I cum," Maria responded, catching his eyes with hers.
Christopher shook his head a bit. "I like how your body reacts; how your legs shake and your muscles clench up and your toes point." He placed soft kisses down between her breasts, hands easing up her sides as he stood. He leaned down to roughly kiss her, teeth pulling at her lower lip.
Maria reached forward and clawed, frantically, at Christopher's belt buckle until it came free, then she quickly unfastened and shoved down his pants. She sat up straighter, taking his hard cock in one hand and leaning forward to wrap plump lips around the tip. She used her tongue to lap across the slit before taking him all the way down. She sucked him down just long enough to get him nice and slicked down for her.
"I need to be in you," Christopher gasped, running his fingers through her soft, white blonde hair. He leaned down to capture her lips with his. Maria lightly hooked her legs up over Christopher's hips, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck as he lifted her up into his arms and turned around to sit in the throne, resting Maria in his lap.
The Vampiress lightly arched up, reaching behind herself for Christopher's cock, steadying it as she lined it up to her entrance. She tilted her head down, and held Christopher's throat with her free hand, kissing him hard and grinding herself down onto his cock.
"Fuck, baby," Christopher moaned. He held her hips and guided her down his cock, leaning forward to kiss across her shoulders. His eyes caught on the open door of the throne room, and he backtracked to inspect the situation. He found one of the newly turned vampires standing in the doorway with a shocked expression painting his dark features.
Naturally, Christopher took that as an opportunity to put on a bit more of a show. He wrapped his arms, tightly, around Maria, one diagonally from the curve of her waist to her shoulder, the other the opposite, to hold her hip. The embrace held his beloved in place so Christopher could thrust up, into her, hard and fast. The change of pace and angle caused Maria to moan, loudly, gasping out her lover's name between choice curses and pleas for more.
Even with the hold on her body, Maria managed to roll her hips in small circles as her King thrust up into her. She reached her arms around him, dragging her long nails across his back. She savored the hiss of painful pleasure that slipped through Christopher's teeth, then released one of her own as he bit down on her shoulder.
"Oh yes!" Maria cried out as her lover thrust up at just the right angle, hitting every sensitive spot along the way. She cast her head back, silky, pale hair lightly dragging past her ass and across Christopher's still denim covered thighs. The King, in response, gripped his lover's body tighter, repeating the movement and causing her to scream even more.
Maria's legs began to tremble. Christopher could feel it against his hips. He eased a hand to the small of her back, feeling it arching even more as her stomach and breasts pressed into his chest. He reached to his pocket for the jeweled knife he carried, and presented it to her, blade pointed towards himself.
"You know me so well, love," she gasped, taking the knife in one delicate hand. With her free hand, she traced her finger over the softly defined muscles of her lover's chest, trying to pick out just the right place from which to draw blood. She finally settled on the soft dip down the center of his chest. Her tongue flicked between her lips softly, and she slowed the pace of her body up and down Christopher's cock as she dragged the blade across his skin. She simply allowed the knife to clatter to the marble floor before leaning in and lapping up the thick, crimson blood that oozed from her beloved's chest.
Christopher gasped at the sensation of her tongue flicking across his broken skin. He grabbed her hips with both hands, thrusting up harder and faster into her. "I'm close," he cried out.
Maria simply grasped for his throat and brought her lips back up to his for a bloody kiss. "As am I," she muttered, softly. She added a soft rotation to her hips, pushing herself down, harder, on her lover's cock. "With me," she insisted.
The King barely had the chance to nod before Maria clenched up around him. Her nails dug into his skin and she cried out his name in pleasure. The tight heat of his Queen pushed Christopher over the edge. He clung to Maria's body, tight, as his release shot up into her in long, heavy spurts.
Maria collapsed down against her beloved's heaving chest. Her eyes remained closed for a few long moments as she gasped for breath. Christopher lightly ran his fingertips up and down her spine, his other hand firmly holding her by the small of her back.
"Was that goodbye sufficient for you, Dove?"
The Queen rolled her shoulder blades as she sat up to meet his eyes. "It was as good as any, but you know I never get enough of you."
Christopher laughed a bit and cupped her face in one hand, thumb stroking over her cheek. "I know, Dove. But responsibilites call."
Maria whined a bit, but shakily stood, nonetheless. Christopher stood with her, pulling his pants up as he did so, then bending to collect her gown from the floor. He took his time dragging it up her body, watching the soft fabric stretch and glide over her alabaster skin. Once the gown was zipped, he turned her to face him. Maria smiled and pressed a soft kiss to his lips, hands trailing up his arms to pull his shirt back over his shoulders and slowly fasten each button.
"You shouldn't forget this," Maria said, softly, bending down to retrieve the jeweled knife she'd dropped.
Christopher carefully folded the blade into its sheath and slipped it into his pocket. "Thank you, Dove." Then he turned to address their voyer. "Have you had your fill of us, youngling?" he asked.
"My apologies, your majesties."
Maria laughed. "No need for such formalities, Childe. The newer members of our Kiss should know the bond their King and Queen share." She rested a soft hand on Christopher's shoulder.
"Tell us, what is your name?" Christopher demanded, gently.
The young vampire shrugged his shoulders a bit. "Uh...Devin," he said, softly.
"Do you have a mate, Devin?" Maria pressed.
Devin's eyes seemed to light up, and he smiled a bit. "Uh...yes, actually. Her name is Kylie."
Christopher raised his eyebrows. "David's Kylie?" he inquired.
"How...how did you know David turned her?"
Maria smiled a bit. "We've known David Bowie for centuries. This is probably the third time he's 'died' in the public eye. Kylie is one of his newer turns. She came back to Italy with him when America announced his death."
"I'm glad she was able to find a mate, and so soon after relocating," Christopher added.
Devin nodded a bit. "I don't think I was expecting her to happen to me. But I...well I wasn't expecting to become a vampire, either."
"Who turned you?" Maria asked.
"Uhm...Kat, I think? I don't really remember much. I got in a fight with a couple of douche bags who were trying to hurt some girl. There were knives, and there was a lot of blood. Then I woke up in the back of a tattoo shop with a hairless cat sitting on my chest."
"You're Katherine's latest turn. I'm sorry we are just now meeting. She sent you to be in the care of the Kiss. She hates having to turn anyone, and only does so if it's her only option. She's one of the few vampires who thrive solitarily. For her own reasons, she sent you here. I'm glad for it, though. It brought you to Kylie, and to us."
"Dude...I think you just got adopted," a voice called from behind Devin. A vampire with a shaved, tattooed head and blazing white eyes eased into the throne room. He crossed the atrium and skipped up the steps of the platform to place a soft kiss to Maria's cheek.
Christopher chuckled and shook his head a bit. "For that, I would need to lay a line claim, but only if the Childe wants it." The three all turned to look at Devin in curiosity.
"I...uh...what?" Devin spluttered.
"Aw, love, I think you're overwhelming the poor thing." She squeezed the other vampire's arm before descending the steps. "Come, Childe. Why don't you have a seat." She reached out to take Devin's hand and carefully led him to the steps, helping him settle down on the top one. "Joshua, darling, go get the boy something to drink, please," she asked, not looking up from Devin.
The King eased down to sit beside the Childe, taking Devin's other hand in both of his. "I did not intend to alarm you, Devin. Katherine specifically wrote to us, asking us to take you in. The line claim was a genuine offer, if you wish to receive it."
The young vampire grew very pale, then translucent, until he completely disappeared.
"Uhm...where'd he go?" Joshua called from the doorway.
Christopher turned to see the vampire approach with a crystal decanter of blood. "I think our new Childe is a gifted one," he said, simply.
Joshua laughed. "He's a ghost!"
The Childe slowly faded back into vision, his cheeks flushed very pink. "S-sorry."
"You've nothing to be sorry for, love," Maria insisted, lightly tucking one of Devin's flyaway hairs behind his ear.
The other vampire slowly approached, crouching down to be on the same level as the others. "That's a pretty cool trick you got there, kiddo," he said, softly. He produced a few wine glasses from behind himself, somehow, and filled one, holding it out to Devin.
"Th-thank you," he said, taking the glass in both hands and taking a slow sip. There was a gentle silence as the Childe collected himself. "What, exactly, does a line claim entail?" he asked.
Christopher smiled. "It means that you will, officially, be considered my Childe. Katherine may be the one who changed you, but I will be considered your official sire; just as Maria is considered to be Josh's."
Devin's eyebrows crinkled. "Is that why your eyes are white like the Queen's?" he asked, glancing up at Josh.
"Yes, Maria is the one who turned me," he stated softly. "She's the last heir of Dracula, which is what gives her the white eyes, instead of crimson. Because she changed me, I carry the Dracula gene, as do my brothers and sisters."
"There are more of you...with the white eyes?"
Christopher smiled. "Yes, and you will meet them in time."
Devin chewed on his lower lip. "How does it work? The claim?" He took another long, slow sip of blood.
"You drink my blood, same as how you were turned. That, with the intention of a claim, will make you one of my heirs." Christopher placed an encouraging hand on Devin's shoulder. "But you must be willing to receive the claim, or it will not stick."
The Childe nodded a bit. "Could, uh...Could my Kylie be here?"
Josh laughed. "I'll fetch her for you."
"Drink, Childe," Maria insisted. She refilled his glass and gently pushed more of his wild hair from his face. "You'll need your strength for this."
"Is this real?" Devin asked.
Christopher laughed. "Yes, Devin, this is real."
The young vampire shook his head. "It's just...six months ago I was a 17 year old boy running away from my group home. Now, I'm being adopted by the King of Vampires."
With a soft sigh, Christopher shifted around to sit beside Devin rather than facing him. He wrapped an arm across the Childe's shoulders, pulling him in against his side. "You know, kid...this is a permanent thing. Changing someone into a Vampire is one thing, and even the rare times I do that, I have full intentions of taking care of the new Childe. But claiming someone else's Childe as my own? It's a rare event, even if you weren't being adopted by the King."
"But why?"
Maria smiled. "Because we have every intention of taking care of you, little one." She pressed a soft kiss to the back of Devin's hand. "My mate may be the one adopting you, officially, but we are a family."
"We take care of each other," Christopher added.
"Dev?" A lovely girl with a slight build, blue hair, and brighter red orange eyes eased into the throne room.
"Ky!" Devin exclaimed. He leaped up and hurried to pull her into a close embrace. He wrapped one arm around her waist and used the other to cradle her face in his hand as he kissed her, slow and deep. "I'm so glad you're here. You're not going to believe this."
Kylie giggled. "Believe what, love?" She wrapped her arm around Devin's ribcage, nestling into his side.
Christopher cleared his throat, immediately demanding the attention of the room. "I'm laying a line claim to him."
The young woman stood shocked. "I, well-" but she had no words. "Dev, this is…"
"Amazing!" he practically squeaked. "Ky, I'll have a family, again."
"And we always stand by our family," Maria added, standing to her full height.
Christopher stood beside her, reaching to unbutton and roll up the sleeve of his shirt. "Come, youngling. You should sit for this. Go on, up to my chair."
"Y-your chair?" Devin stuttered. His eyes widened as Christopher lead him over to the throne and insisted he sit down. "Is this...allowed?"
The King laughed. "Officially? No. But rules be damned, you're going to sit down for this." He gently pressed Devin down into the high backed throne. "Considering my age and status, this is likely to be a very strong line claim. There is a chance you may lose consciousness."
"L-lose…?" The young vampire's already pale skin turned white, and he began to slowly disappear again.
"Hey, hey easy. Don't ghost out on me, again." Christopher reached forward to grasp Devin's shoulder, holding him steady. "I just wanted to ensure you are prepared for what is about to transpire."
Devin swallowed, but faded back into view. "I'm sorry. I don't really have a good grip on that, yet."
"There is no need to fret, Childe," Maria said, softly. She climbed the platform and stood beside Devin, then motioned for Josh and Kylie to join her. "You are surrounded by family."
Kylie approached and knelt at her mate's feet, taking one of his hands in both of hers. "I'm here for you, babe. Forever. You know that."
"Thanks, baby," Devin responded, lifting Kylie's hands up to kiss the back of each one.
Josh stepped up beside Maria, hand pressing the small of her back before folding his arms over his chest. "I'm here for you, too, kid," he stated with a single nod.
"Are you ready?" Christopher pulled his knife from his pocket, carefully unsheathing the blade. He trailed his thumb across the veins in his wrist.
Devin looked from Kylie to Maria and Josh, and then to Chris. "Yeah," he breathed. "I'm ready." He rolled his shoulders a bit and took a slow, deep breath.
Christopher lifted the blade to his wrist, and then dragged it across the skin. A canyon of red appeared dark against his alabaster skin. He sheathed the knife in a single fluid motion, and then reached forward with his now free hand to tilt Devin's head upwards with two fingers. The Childe's mouth dropped open slightly, tongue darting out to wet plush lips as his eyes dialed in on the blood dripping from his King's wrist. Christopher brought his bleeding wrist over Devin's mouth, watching as the blood gushed from the wound to stain the young vampire's lips and tongue.
Devin audibly moaned and reached up to tightly grasp Christopher's arm. He pulled the bleeding wrist fully to his mouth and lapped, hungrily, at the wound. His eyelids fluttered shut as the heavy taste of blood danced across his tongue. He began to feel a pull at the base of his spine that slowly crawled its way up his body until it reached the top of his head and the young vampire suddenly felt as if he were drowning. Stars danced behind his eyes, then Devin's body fell back, limply, into his new sire's throne.