From the time that Princess Claire Toinette was a young girl, she was always intrigued by story tales. From faries to werewolves to witches she was intent on hearing every story ever told. One race however, fascinated her beyond all others: vampires. Claire loved to clap her hands in joy when her father, King Edmund, would speak of the vampires that killed the brave soldiers, but was slain by the handsome Prince.
"The prince could kill anything! For he had the magic sword of Lyre." King Edmund would say to Claire as she lay in her big bed. "What did he look like, Daddy?" Claire giggled, she was seven.
"He had mighty arms, beautiful milky skin, curly black hair and bright blue eyes. Why, if the monsters that attacked him didn't die right away, they fell in love with his magical ways and charm!" That always made Claire giggle.
Claire loved to hear about the handsome prince that slayed the evil monsters. And when the King made up a story for her to hear, he always put in the Prince.
"What shall we name him?" He asked her one night. Claire sighed and thought deeply.
"Alexander! And he has to get married to a lovely princess with brown curly hair!" She, of course, was referring to herself. King Edmund patted the top of her head.
"And what do we name this lovely princess?" Without thinking, Claire said the name that meant the most to her.
"Samantha." King Edmund was silent.
That was the late Queen's name. She had passed recently in an ambush. She had been traveling in the royal carriage from the Smark lands back to Zarcadia, where they lived, when a group of bandits attacked the carriage, thinking the Kind would be inside; he wasn't. Telling Claire was the hardest thing Edmund ever had to do. And when it was over, Claire disappeared into her room for the next few days, only coming out to eat.
That had been over two years ago, and they still hadn't fully recovered. They never would.
Claire sighed and stared at her father, her piercing blue eyes melting him.
"I think that's enough stories for tonight." King Edmund said, walking to the door. "Get a good nights sleep and in the morning we can finish the story, hm?" Claire smiled.
"Okay."
After King Edmund left, Claire stood from her bed and walked to the window that overlooked the city and the large Zarcadia ocean. She sat on the stone window-sill and sighed, pressing her head to the glass. She wondered if she would ever feet the handsome prince she always heard about. She wondered if monsters like vampires really existed, and if this Prince would save her from them.
She didn't know that soon she would be the creature she longed to be saved from.