It was only short lived, but I awoke hours later. My mother had always been the one to calm me and reassure me that they were only night terrors, but it was beoming a reoccuring thing. The most indecipherable part being that it was beginning to happen in my waking hours too. I'd have moments where I felt as if the darkness was overcoming me, and it frightened me with every second I endured it. The last thing I wanted though, was to end up in a mental aslym, or worse, in a federation with Adrian, so I kept quiet about the extensive part of it.
I wrapped my own blanket around me, for my mother wasn't anywhere in sight. I rubbed my heavy eyes and rolled over to glance at the ticking clock.
"Ah, Vladimir." I shot up, throwing the duvet off and dragged my somnolent self into the bathroom. I was late, again.
I ran a brush hastily through the knots of my dark reddy-brown curls, shining auburn colours underneath the bathroom light, but it otherwise appeared brown and that's how I preferred it. I was out the door no later than a minute after, and since I was running the risk of tardiness, I cut through the backway of royal housing.
Only to hear a rustling of leaves, branches bristling. I paused, and there was no sign of wind or any light breeze, something my Dhampir side taught me was that any noise could be detrimental to your hearing if you weren't precautious.
"Why are you always following me?"
Evan Frederick Dragomir, was hanging from a tree. "You know, it's not always about you," he smirked.
"Then what are you doing!" I asked impatiently, wherever I seemed to be, he followed shortly after. In a lot of ways it pained me not to understand how he knew exactly where I was at any time of the day he wanted to start flipping from tree's just to follow me. "And why are you hanging from a tree?"
"I'm hiding." he replied, completed dry and seemingly composed. "What are you hiding from?" My eyes grew wide and I looked up, his eyes as azure as the deepest part of the ocean. He smirked again, a trademark of his and passed over the question. "Care to join me?" I thought he was kidding until he extended an arm and kicked his legs to swing forward and take hold of my hand.
"Uh, no. Monkey sees… but monkey does not do."
"I always saw you as some kind of primate," a grin flashed mockingly. My eyes turned to slits and I pulled my hand back gripping his in the process and then he came tumbling down the tree to land with a thud on the ground. "Said Tarzan over here, swinging from the trees."
"You never fail to amuse me, Eva." He got up and dusted himself off.
"Sarcasm doesn't become you, you know."
He grinned. "I do know, however, that we are both missing the beginning of the royal banquet ceremony."
"Your mother must be grieving with your absence."
"I'm sure yours will be beside herself when my mother is informed of your non-attendance, as a distraction from my own."
"Coward." I glared, giving him a playful push.
"Indeed." A new voice proclaimed. It caught me a little off guard and I jumped back. Serena. Evan's older sister, named after Queen Vasilisa's ex-guardian, blonde hair and crystal blue eyes alike her fathers. She was only two years older than I was, but she was incessantly bossy and very into the political and social life of the royals.
The only vivid memory I had whenever I thought of her was the time I had babysat the youngest Ozera-Dragomir; Emelie Rosalisa. She was only three at the time, now four of age, and possibly the most intrigued little toddler, venturing into anything and everything you could imagine. And I had lost her. Just that one time, because there were no more times after that one.
"Oh. My. Goodness. How is it even possible to lose a toddler barely capable of crawling?" Serena demanded to know. "Emelie, come out come out wherever you are," she paused to spare one more scathing look at me. "This is all your fault, I'm telling mother on you."
"Princess," I scoffed. But the insult was invalid considering she literally was one.
Seconds later, a meek, raven haired girl crawled over from the back of the room and I looked frantically to see where she had emerged from. Big green eyes looked into the black depths of my own, and I held her, almost robotically but the young girl hadn't any cares. She was just playing, after all. Serena, however, was just as snarky, maybe even more so then the stories told of her and whispered behind her back. Nobody could understand how she was her mother's daughter at all.
"Evie, was it? Ava?" Her tall, looming figure hovered over mine, a smug look hat should have appeared ill-suited on the face of a mousy, unassertive girl, but Serena was nothing alike her siblings. "Eva." I automatically responded out of proclivity to correct. "You know that."
She smirked, and I cringed and gritted my teeth. "So I do, how unfortunate for you."
"What do you want, Serena?" Evan's voice was not only serious, but seriously pissed off.
"I want you both to be at the Royal banquet in five, no later." And with that, she spun on her heels and left.
"Winning."
"Shut up," I growled at Evan and stalked off after his sister, I was sure he followed close behind.
What awaited me, was probably equal to or worse. "It's rude to make a lady wait, Aves."
"Don't pretend you didn't miss me, Maya." I retorted, resisting a smirk. Only kidding, Maya was my best friend. My father was good friends with her family. She was half Russian, like me, only her accent was a lot thicker because that's where she grew up. I grew up at the Royal Court, and I sounded more American like my mother.
Observing her slacking posture, my lips curled, forming a sly grin. "It's also rude to nap during an opening ceremony."
Her lips drew into a coy smile and she simpered. "Where have you been, anyway?"
I thought about it before arriving, the only reasonable excuse was to tell her about Iolanthe. So long as Maya didn't query or fault my explanation.
"After one exceedingly long hour at eliminating the undersized, sugar-coated Moroi, I - "
" - Майя!" We both spun around at the sound of her Russian Pronunciation. "Oh Dearest, there you are." It was her mother, accent thick with Russian.
"My sweet, sweet girl, don't you look grand! Eva, darling, care to join us at the upper east end? It is, after all, where you shall rightfully be seated." Even if Maya's mother was kind in heart, she was terribly in the dark at noticing how I felt about my eminent reputation, continuously drawing me out into the public eye against my wishes. She insisted that the phenomenon of a Dhampoi will stand out nonetheless, and so I was to be encouraged to do so by my own will. But I didn't think that would ever happen.
"No thank you, Miss Vakhrov." I shot Maya a look so apologetic that it did not ought to have been returned with the hardened glare she gave me. "I must find my parents, but thank you for the offer."
I realised, approximately two minutes later that I made the wrong decision. In fact, I should have avoided the whole banquet entirely.
"You're late." The whisper of a stern father made me inch back and I slightly inclined my head towards him apologetically. "I specifically told you - "
"Yeah I know, and I'm sorry." I ducked my head meekly at having interrupted him and avoided the most part of his scowl.
"We will talk about this at home. For now, stand up straight and show a little respect. The Queen has noted your absence, it's the least you could do now to look the part."
I knew Lissa well, my mother and her used to be bond-mates and so I spent a lot of time around her. Personally, and politically, I supposed. Serena then took that moment to strut in from the left side of the podium, head held high and sleek blonde hair tied back into a tight bun, wrapped in a pretty braid. It was her eyes, piercing crystal blue, that sent daggers at me as she paraded right into her rightful spot before her audience. Queen Vasilisa's people, but no doubt in my mind said that Serena thought it was all hers.
"Precious Eva Rozalina Olei Belikov, how very nice of you to join us."
My heart struck and then missed a beat.
"Just the person I had awaited the presence of. Welcome everyone, and thank you for giving me a moment of your time to express in a grave matter, just how important it is to me that your safety is ensured. However," another spared glance at me and I began to feel cold chills run up the lengths of my arms, wondering what my part in this would be.
"It has become clear to me that our enemies are well aware of such healing, shall we say. Lest they believe them, and since our Spirit users are few, and the healing must therefore be of great reduction until we find more suitable ways... I believe we do have one person, yet to experiment."
For someone who had a way of words, I stood there dumbfounded and never more at a loss then I was then. She gestured towards me, her chin held high.
I took a step forward.
"That's quite enough!" Queen Vasilisa's shrill voice erupted from her throne seat and she held up a hand to berate her daughter. "It has been made very clear that Eva's safety is crucial, just where exactly are you going with this?"
Serena didn't so much as take a step back, but passed off her mother's presence. Puerile games. Nothing was beneath her, it seemed. And apparently this was not a part of the script. And sadly, it looked as though I was about to be a part of the first chapter of her wicked games.
"Oh but mother, how greater of a way to see for ourselves how she'd fair against the Strigoi."
My dark eyes bored into her light ones, and barely another second passed before I lunged at her.
[Reviews are welcomed! I am just starting to get back into writing so I am trying to give my chapters a bit more length, and I value everyone's opinions!]