Chapter Two

Rosario bit his lips harshly as he stood hidden in the shadows of the dark tower, watching as the mansion The Mad Men lived in went up in flames. Screams sounded from the mansion's garden, sending trills of vindictive pleasure down his spine.

For too long, those humans had held his mother captive, had experimented on her and isolated her. They deserved to burn for their crimes against her. His heterochromial eyes narrowed and he glared down at the building, giggling when his mother's high laugh rang throughout the air, a sharp contrast to the humans' terrified screams.

The villa burned and burned, the fire casting an orange glow against the twilight sky to create an almost poetic image. He shook his head and turned away from the window to venture further into his tower and wait out the massacre, knowing that once the last ember faded, he'd be heading out into the Outside on his own.

With a soft sigh, he curled into his corner and drifted off into a restless sleep, trying to ignore the almost paralyzing fear niggling at the back of his mind.

The next day, he finally garnered the courage to leave his tower, his home. He stood before the open door at the base of the tower, clad in one of his mother's old gowns, the only clothing he'd known in his short life. He stared out the door apprehensively, then took a deep breath and took a trembling step out into the unknown world...


The humans were strange creatures, he decided.

In the three years since he'd left the safety of his tower he traveled to many different places, soaking up knowledge of cultures and languages like a sponge as he searched for his beloved mother. In that time, his hatred for humans had mellowed a bit and he found himself with a fondness for their intellect and inventions. He still hated them, especially The Mad Men, but he found that he could tolerate them if he needed too.

A sigh left Rosario's lips and he curled up in a tight ball as thoughts of his mother entered his thoughts. He missed her horribly and he often wondered if she missed him just as much. He even found himself humming her song, just to fall asleep at night, so used to her singing lulling him to sleep. A yawn left the young prince's lips and he shivered and allowed his wings to come out, glad he's chosen an abandoned building to sleep in rather than his usual alcove. With another soft sigh, he drifted off to sleep, unaware that it would be thirty long years until he awakened.


1917, Italy (Post Rosario's sleep)

Rosario pursed his lips slightly,as he walked through the busy night time streets of a small Italian village, pulling on a pair black satin gloves to protect his sensitive hands. His long black hair swayed behind him, tied back in a single plait with the ribbon his mother had gifted him with upon her departure so long ago.

Something was wrong.

Terribly, terribly wrong and he could feel it. It was like a thick invisible cloak of dread had been pulled around his slight frame and a ball of lead had made a home in his stomach. The feeling had been plaguing him all day but he couldn't figure out what was causing it.

Maybe it was due to the fact that it was nearing the time for his next Sleep. It would make sense, although he didn't remember feeling this way the first time. The first time, he'd only been plagued by a bone deep weariness and thoughts of his absent mother. Then again, he hadn't been as aware the last time either.

A cry of pain drew him from his thoughts and he scowled when none of the humans so much as moved toward the sound to help the unfortunate soul.

"Disgusting bugs." He sneered before rushing in the direction of the sound. It led him to an alley only a few yards from his previous position and the sight that met his eyes just made his disgust and hatred for humans all the more prevalent.

A large pale man had a human woman pinned to the wall, trying to rip away her clothing as she fought him tooth and nail, a dark red mark marring her fair cheeks under the tears streaming from her eyes. Behind the beast lay another male, weakly struggling to get to the woman.

"Pep...pep..." He rasped, coughing in pain from the man injuries and lacerations marring his slender frame.

Rage, stronger than anything Rosario had ever felt flooded his veins and his vision bled red. The last thing he remembered before surrendering to the blood lust was ripping the human beast away from the woman, and shocked green eyes staring at him gratefully.


"Let 'em breathe, Pep."

"Sh, he's waking up."

Rosario frowned as he awakened to the sound of voices whispering above him, vivid heterochromial eyes fluttering open to meet worried mint green one. The human woman from before stood beside him and was leaning over him with concern written on her features. Beside her was the human male that he remembered had been lying beaten on the alley floor, struggling to reach the girl.

"Are you okay? You've been asleep for a week now." The woman said and Rosario frowned at her.

She was beautiful for a human female, with her long strawberry blond hair and warm smile and she seemed to be only a few years older than his physical age of twenty-one. Her companion, her nest-mate most likely, had the same strawberry blond hair, although his was more scarlet than blond, and mischievous blue eyes that were full of gratitude and loyalty as they gazed into the young prince's bi-colored ones.

"I'm fine." He responded eventually. "What happened? Who are you?"

"You saved us from Ian then you gave us your blood to heal our wounds and passed out." The male responded and 'Pepper' nodded in agreement. The prince's eyes widened in alarm. He'd broken his mother's most sacred rule.

She had told him that one of the Mad Men's experiments had been injecting humans with their blood. She said that the humans that survived were their servants for life and that they would need their blood to survive. She hadn't wanted him to be dependent on anyone and had told him he was never to give a human his blood.

...And he'd broken that rule.

He bolted into a sitting position, his breathing picking up speed. Now his mother would never come back. He'd never hear her sweet voice sing to him, never feel her warm embrace, all because he'd broken the one rule she held almost as sacred as the one about staying out of the human's sight.

A tear slid down his cheek, followed by another, until he was sobbing silently into his hands. His... Chevaliers, his mind whispered, watched him bewildered and Pepper pulled him into her arms.

"Sh," She cooed. "It'll be alright."

He shook his head, but forced himself not to tell her that no, it really wouldn't be.

The male seemed to sense this because he smiled at him warmly and kissed him hand.

"It will be. Just you watch."

TBC...