Anna, Tamao, Pirika, and Jeanne are all vampires and live together in an abandoned castle that used to belong to Anna's parents. Yoh, Horohoro, Ren, and Lyserg are vampire hunters. A freak storm and an ancient spell, courtesy of Anna, brings the boys to their castle. Will they be fed upon by the vampires? Or will something else occur?

Cobalt Rose

I don't own Shaman King...which sucks...darn it...

A Castle's Hospitality

Enter The Lair


Kyouyama Anna, Lady Vampire of her Coven, sat on the sill of a wide-open window brushing out shoulder length blonde hair. Her perch, high up in the largest turreted tower of the castle, gave her an excellent view of the forest below. Sapphire beads chimed and clinked musically as dark clouds gathered overhead. As rain began to patter, slowly at first but rapidly becoming a deluge of warm water from the sky, Anna turned away from the forest below her and jumped down to the floor. With a wave of her hand the candles surrounding the room burst into flame and lit the chamber. She turned back to the window and gazed out. "Such a night to be out," she whispered to herself quietly.

A timid knock on her door made her glance up.

"Lady Anna?" The voice was Tamao's.

Timid, shy, still unused to being a vampire, needs to feed…like the rest of us, Anna thought to herself as the door opened on its own accord. Tamao was not alone. "Why has the whole coven chosen to come tonight?" Anna asked, her words more statement then question.

Besides Tamao, Pirika and Jeanne were also there. They were technically her ladies-in-waiting, but they acted more as though the four of them were a very twisted version of family and friends, though the other three were always loyal to Anna. The three girls stepped into the warm chamber and Pirika spoke.

"The spirits have said that there's a small group of men near our castle in the forest. We were wondering if you'd like to call them here," she said with a small, very mischievous smile.

A small, answering smile graced Anna's lips for a moment before disappearing. "With pleasure." The other three vampires drifted out of her room as Anna began to make complex gestures with her hands. Behind her, thunder roared and lightning flashed ominously. A burst of power sprang from her hands to bathe the whole castle in an eerie, blue light. "Enjoy the castle's…hospitality," Anna whispered with a private smirk.


"Asakura Yoh, we had BETTER not be lost!" Tao Ren growled irately at the easily smiling, though soaking wet, person on the horse beside him.

Yoh pushed a hand through his wet hair with a lazy grin. "We're not exactly lost…I just don't know exactly where we are."

"WE'RE LOST!" Horohoro, a blue-haired boy behind them cried out, making very little difference in the uproar made by the rain.

The only quiet person of the quartet was the green-haired one consulting a drenched map. The other three were engaging in a shouting match on whether or not they were lost. The hunched up figure murmured to himself as a gloved finger traced paths on runny ink roads while making mental notes about how long ago their last road mark had been. It seemed that after a while the figure made up his mind about something. "If this map is anything to go by, there should be an abandoned castle at the top of a nearby hill," he said, pitching his voice so that the other three would hear him over the din of the falling rain.

"Finally!" Horohoro wheeled around on his horse and brought his riding crop smartly down on the rump of the green-haired boy's mount. "Lyserg found us some shelter so let's get moving you two!" The smacked the backsides of both Yoh's and Ren's horses as his own mare trotted between the two, and the four of them rode around the bend, only to be confronted by the sight of a large and ominous looking castle. The horses slowed, snorting their uneasiness.

Yoh dismounted and pulled on the bridle of his chestnut bay mare, leading her to the sheltered stables of the castle. The others followed, the spell activated by the Lady Vampire making them feel no fear concerning the darkness that shrouded the ancient castle. "Why don't we see if there's a kitchen in this big place?" Yoh suggested after they had stabled their horses and dried themselves off moderately. "It's a castle after all. If we can get a fire going we could have a nice hot meal for once."

"Anything's better than travel bread, cheese, and water that's for sure," Horohoro agreed.

The other two just nodded and the four guys set off in search of a kitchen. Their wanderings led them to a well furnished dining hall. Much to their surprise, this part of the castle was not in disrepair like the rest of it. The end of the long table held four place settings. The four place settings were identical and made of the purest silver. Each had several silver utensils sitting on both sides of the burnished silver plates, but the place at the head of the table had a chalice with a golden rim compared to the others which had rims of bronze to offset their silver goblets. The four guys glanced at one another, uncertain.

"It seems we will disrupt the masters of this house by dining here," Lyserg remarked quietly.

Before any of the others had a chance to reply, a door opened at the far end of the chamber and a pale girl with flowing, long silvery hair entered with a large silver platter laden with a steaming pork roast in her hands. "Oh! I must tell the Lady that we have visitors!" the girl remarked in a startled voice. Lyserg glanced at the other three. He could tell they were thinking the same thing. The Lady? All of them could hear the capitalization.

"We beg your pardon miss, we're just travelers who were seeking shelter from the rain. Please, tell the Lady that we'll be gone as soon as the rain lets up," Lyserg said politely. The others were silent, knowing he was the most tactful of the group.

The silver-haired maiden just nodded and, setting the pork roast on the table, exited the way she came. That's odd, Lyserg couldn't help thinking. He could feel an odd tremor in the air as she passed. He would have thought she was a vampire if the tremor hadn't been so weak. Or if she hadn't been carrying a large silver platter with bare hands, his mind also remarked. Putting it down as vampire descent from a long way back he looked over at the other three, but none of them seemed to have noticed anything odd.


Anna let the hot water soothe her as she lay in the hot spring pool in her bathroom. Amid the steam, she waved a hand lazily and an image appeared before her. This was interesting… It appeared as though the four travelers were quite uncertain of what to do. Evidently, they were all rather wet and hungry. Perhaps she ought to send Tamao down with towels, clothes, and a laundry basket? Anna considered this a while but she knew that Tamao wouldn't know what to do in such a situation. Better to send Pirika, she thought to herself. The four were all quite handsome in their own ways. The boy with the messy blue hair reminded her of Pirika a little, though he seemed to have twice her bounce. The quiet, green-haired one was polite but obviously uncomfortable in his surroundings. The one with the dark, black hair was more at ease, but in a brooding sort of way. The brunette on the other hand had a carefree smile on his face that caught her attention. For a moment she was drawn to him, unable to keep herself from looking as his soaked clothing showed his toned, athletic body.

She waved a hand to dispel the steam and rose from the hot water, wrapping a thick, white bathrobe around her. Unlike most vampires, Anna had no aversion to other colors of clothing. Though she preferred black to all other colors and would wear black tonight for her…guests, she had never really liked the idea of wrapping her pale, clean body in a black bathrobe to dry herself off. She exited her bathroom and glided silently through her chambers and down the hall until she reached Pirika's rooms. Knocking gently, she ordered Pirika off with towels and dark clothes for the youths waiting downstairs. Anna turned away back to her own rooms, though not without seeing the devilish grin that crossed Pirika's face.

She closed the door to her rooms behind her and shed the bathrobe. Striding over to her wardrobe, she chose an off-the-shoulder black dress that hinted of black-lace petticoats. Adorning herself with her sapphire blue beads, she glanced at the many pairs of shoes she had to choose from. In the end she decided for a pair of platform sandals that were entirely straps except for their small silver buckles that rested cool against her ankles. The dress, which split at the front only a little below her knees but trailed on the floor and billowed out like a cocktail dress, showed enough of her milky white legs for anyone who wished to see to be able to admire the straps that held the sandals to her feet.

Anna admired the revealing dress in the full size mirror beside the wardrobe. Now, she wondered, which one of the four to seduce. She knew, as a psychic vampire, that the only damage she would inflict upon her victim would be fatigue and sleepiness, perhaps a migraine, and, if she drained too far, unhappy feelings. She frowned momentarily. Unfortunately, she was also an empath, which meant that she could never drain a person too far, and she could hear the thoughts of those around her. Only trained people, like her vampire coven, could block her from reading their thoughts. Perhaps she would go for the brunette. He was very handsome, but there seemed something keen and, almost accepting, in his dark eyes.

What am I thinking! She asked herself. Try as she might, she could not muster enough disgust for herself as she had hoped. You're a vampire. No one's accepted you ever except for the coven and your parents, and they were killed by the villagers at least a century ago. It was an old argument. They didn't feed off of anyone, she thought sadly. She knew, deep down, that the coven held her own dream. Getting a mate. Having a mate would stop the Hunger that urged all of them on. It would stop the other three, more traditional blood vampires, from needing the blood over any others than their mate's, and it would stop her from hearing the voices of peoples' thoughts all the time.

A mate… Anna tried to stop herself from thinking of when the dream had begun, but it was so clear. She had just been recently orphaned, and, seeking the comfort her parents used to give her, found herself in the library. From the musty tomes she sought her favorite, a book about vampire lore. At a young age she had enjoyed reading the vampire history and the battles between the vampire lords and the renegade werewolves who were against the peace made between vampires and werewolves. But what she read that night was of mating lore.

Once a vampire found a mate, he or she would no longer need to feed upon other human beings. This mate could be a human-turned-vampire, a vampire, or a human with exceptional powers. Blood vampires and Psychic vampires would gain more control over their powers and the Hunger which caused them to feed would abate. Instead, the shared bond between the vampires would cause them to be able to survive without partaking in blood or energy of humans except for the once-a-year ritualistic feed performed on All Hallows' Eve. If the mate chosen by a vampire was human, he or she could change the human to a vampire, and usually did so that the two could live their lives together for eternity.

Anna sighed. It was no use getting nostalgic like that. She knew that no matter how much she denied it, she had taken a fancy to the laidback brunette. Her eyes glinted in the candlelight as she made for the door. She supposed she could coax the kitchen servants into exerting themselves tonight.


Pirika flipped long blue hair over her shoulder. Jeanne had given her a pile of evergreen towels and some nice, dark clothing. After a moment's hesitation, she decided on entering the dining hall via the same door as Jeanne. A look from her was all it took for the door to open on its own accord and she stepped out into the chamber. "The Lady has sent towels and dry clothes. She wishes that you feel more comfortable than in soaking wet garments. She has arranged for you to dine with us tonight. Please follow me and I will accompany you to your rooms," Pirika said with an innocent smile.

The four travelers glanced at one another and followed. Pirika could hear the wet slaps of leather boots, or sandals in the case of the brunette, as they walked behind her. She led them up a set of stairs to the second level, walked down another hallway, led them up a spiral staircase, through a set of portrait halls, all of lordly figures, some of whom greatly resembled the two girls the four had already seen, and up a narrower set of stairs to a set of rooms. "Someone will come and bring you to the dining hall when dinner is ready." With that, Pirika disappeared swiftly into the shadows, a passing rustle of air all that marked her way.

Ren looked after her, straining to see her sky-blue hair in the gloom. For a moment he imagined he could still faintly see her ivory skin and blue hair stark against the black of her dress. Looking down at the clothes piled on top of the towel. Most of it was black. So far the only people they had seen were female, pale, and had a penchant for black clothing. Vampires? And yet, no one else had seemed to notice the suspicious things. Was he just being paranoid after five years of vampire hunting with the others? At 18, he still couldn't quite believe that he had been able to stand the company of Yoh and Horohoro for five years. Both 18-year-olds could be excruciatingly annoying when they wanted to be, and Lyserg, still 17, was too timid.

Shrugging off the thoughts he entered his own room. It was well furnished, in a rather dark, rich sort of way. Constant wandering for five years made him somewhat unused to such extravagance. Stripping himself of his wet clothes, he toweled himself dry and put on the black pants. They felt as though they were specially tailored for him. Pulled the shirt, long-sleeved, white, and fancy, on and began buttoning up the shirt when someone knocked on the door. Thinking it Yoh or one of the others, he carelessly opened the door, only to find Pirika on the other side.

"Oh!" was all she said for a moment, and he felt almost as if she were trying to devour him with her eyes. He fiercely fought down a blush and hurriedly finished buttoning up the shirt. The blue-haired girl seemed to recover and remarked, "I'll take your wet things sir. The Lady's people will wash and dry them for you so that you may take them with you tomorrow."

Ren nodded to her and placed his sopping wet clothing in the laundry basket the girl held out to him. She disappeared down the hall to collect the clothes of his friends, and he returned to his room to put on a black, silk vest, finely embroidered with a dragon created of shimmering black thread. He found leather sandals near the bed, and forewent the dark dinner jacket. After a slight hesitation, he also donned the black tie that came with the rest of his clothing.

He paced his room in a bored manner until he decided to hunt up the others. The first door he knocked on was Lyserg's, who was fully dressed, dinner jacket and all. Yoh's room was the one across from that, and Yoh himself was wearing only the black pants, white button up shirt, and the tie loosely knotted and hanging round his neck. They set up camp in Horohoro's room. Horohoro himself used them to decide against wearing the dinner jacket. He left the front of his vest open, but wore no tie. In the back of his mind Ren entertained the idea of telling the others of his suspicions. Still, he didn't wish to be labeled paranoid, and he had not felt any such nightly aura within the castle. He opted instead for wondering about dinner with the others.


The coven ladies were dressed in some of their finest and were gathered in Anna's rooms. Anna herself was sitting on a Romanesque banqueting couch, resting her chin on the palm of her hand as she leaned against the window ledge. Rain continued to sheet down before her, even though not a drop touched her.

"How long has she been like that?" Jeanne asked curiously.

"Since after she asked me to bring the guys to their rooms, I think," said Pirika.

"No, since she got back from the kitchens," Tamao answered.

The three exchanged glances behind the blonde's back. This was most unlike Lady Anna to be staring out into the rain because of visitors.

"Tamao?" The girl in question almost squeaked in surprise. The three had thought Anna too preoccupied to say much at the moment. "Go fetch the travelers from their rooms. Jeanne, Pirika, you and I shall go down to the dining room. I'm sure they won't be long in coming." Anna left one lingering glance out into the rain, which looked suspiciously like the image of a certain brunette traveler for a moment, and swept out of her rooms without another word, faithfully followed by the other two.

Pirika's long, black dress clung to her body in exactly the right way. Though several decades old, her body appeared to be that of a 17-year-old girl. The collar was high and the sleeves short, but the dress flowed down straight from her waist with slits up to mid-thigh on either side. Black, high heels added to her height. Jeanne's dress resembled a ballgown, but in black lace and silk. Her puffed sleeves were elegant, and where the puffs ended, the material clung to her like a second skin until it billowed out again at her elbows. Her black, dancing shoes made almost no noise on the stones of the hallway.

When they reached the dining room, Pirika found took her seat to Anna's left. Jeanne sat on Pirika's left. The seat to Anna's right would remain empty until Tamao returned with the youths. Anna paused by her seat a moment, surveying the food on the table. Apart from the pork roast that Jeanne had carried into the room, there was a tray laden with wedges of cheese; platters piled with slices of rye bread, white bread, cornbread, scones, rolls, and brown bread; dishes of chicken breasts, grilled beef, fried fish, pork ribs, and goose marinated in white wine; tossed vegetable salad and Caesar salad; and wine as well as juice, water, iced sherbets, and non-alcoholic cocktails. There was something missing.

Anna managed to order several kinds of dessert from the kitchens before she sensed unfamiliar aura gathering near. She seated herself regally, though in shadow, on her chair and waited.


Tamao fingered the edge of her skirt nervously. Being only in her fourth decade, she had yet to gain the calm or self-assuredness of any of the others. Jeanne, who looked like her age, was actually nearly a century old. Finding the hallway, she knocked on first one door, then the next, only to find that none of the doors opened. Bewildered, she knocked on the final door. A shuffling from inside indicated that someone was coming, and then the door was forcefully wrenched open by a blue-haired boy who looked to be about 18.

"The Lady wishes you to come down to the dining hall. Dinner has been served," she said with feigned calm. She desperately tried to remind herself that she was nearly forty.

"Food!" The one who had opened the door called to the others behind him and the four followed her as they made a slow procession to the dining hall. At one point, the brunette complained of how the food would be cold by the time they arrived. He was playfully cuffed by the blue-haired one, and the placement changed so that Tamao found herself matching step with the cheerful, blue-haired boy. She had to find a way to stop herself from blushing.

"These pictures are very nice," the boy remarked. "Those two," he pointed to a man with brown hair and Tamao's eyes and a woman with long, wavy hair of the same color as Tamao's, "look very much like you."

Tamao just nodded. She loved the pictures Anna put in this particular gallery, and not only because it featured the families that all the girls had lost. Glancing sidelong at the boy beside her she volunteered information. "This," she said, motioning to an oil painting of a dignified man of sandy brown hair and crimson-y brown eyes and a sweet-faced woman with long blonde hair and eyes that went from a dark amethyst to crimson, "is a painting of the previous owners of the castle. The castle was given to the Lady when they passed away."

She was surprised at the uncharacteristically grave nod from the blue-haired boy. "The man looks as though he would keep the castle organized, but the woman has laughter in her eyes," was all he said.

She glanced back at the portrait of Anna's parents. She hadn't known them very well, they had been killed right at the start of her second decade, a few years before her own parents, but for someone who had never seen them before, the boy was very insightful. Lord Kyouyama was indeed a dignified man who kindly treated his servants and kept the castle well organized. Lady Kyouyama had been the laughter and smiles of the mansion, keeping everyone in good humor. Since their deaths, Tamao had yet to see Lady Anna laugh genuinely without pain or bitterness.

A heavenly aroma drifted past her and it broke through the blue-haired one's brooding. "Food!" he cried for the second time since she had met him. Their pace quickened and soon they were in front of a large door. Tamao tapped the hard wood gently and the door swung out from before her. Presenting the four travelers, who had flanked her, two to each side, she waved her hands in a half-confident flourish. "Lady, the travelers have arrived."

From the depths of the head chair, shrouded in darkness, came a musical, soft voice that everyone heard nonetheless. "Pleased to be acquainted. Dinner has been served."


Please review! Will update chapter 2 ASAP!

Cobalt Rose