It was becoming evidently clear to James that his wife and queen Maria, and his brother in law in Bobby were struggling with the idea of Paige being a vampire. After she had woken and completed the transition, she along with Seth began training with Gunner so they could control the deadly thirst that come with their new near immortal status. James and Angelina had tried to comfort those they called lover and get them to see it was the only way, yet neither was able to see what the girl they had known so well had become, although they had both understood the reasoning for Gunner to turn them in the first place. They also worried for the well being of Raya, the couple's young daughter.
At this moment in time, Seth was with his baby daughter, smiling when she woke and reacted out for him, to him it was like she knew he was the worlds most dangerous creature yet it was like she was all to aware he was her father and like her mother would do anything in the world to make sure she was safe and protected from the things that wished to take her away or hurt her. At the same time Paige was with her Uncle Bobby and her mother Maria, she knew they were yet to accept what she had become and her new status as a near immortal. She had hoped her mother of all people would understand since the man she married was once a vampire before giving up the status to be with her. Just as she was aware neither of them would know she had the memories of both lives, her past as the vampire princess and her current one.
"You both say that you understand why Gunner did as he had, yet both you are blind to what is before you. To what I have become. Why can you not accept what is and move on like everyone else has?" spoke Paige stating what she could see, she knew both of them were in denial about it, yet she couldn't understand why. Were they not happy that she had in a sense survived? And would never be a porn in someone else's game of vengeance again. When Paige looked to her mother and uncle, she could see the look that was painted on their features, she knew then what she had to do although she knew it would hurt to do it, especially James who had called her his own daughter since she was only a child. Yet it appeared to be the only way she could see that would settle the uneasiness around them.
"We understand Gunner turned the pair of you to prevent you from being killed by this Kevin Thorn, but it is just accepting you can never go out in sunlight again, or the risk both of you could lose control and go on a killing spree or hurt someone you care for" responded Maria, voicing her concerns she had been worrying for. One day either Seth or Paige would snap and attack one of her sons or nephews, or even their own daughter. When Maria looked to Paige she could see the hurt was sparkling in her eyes, she knew she had hurt her own daughter by not trusting her with what she had become.
"You of all people should know what it is like to have a vampire around. When you first met James, he was a vampire. Yet you still refuse to accept both Seth and myself are now vampires. And I can see just by looking at that you, you no longer trust either of us to be around either of uncle Bobby's children or your own" responded Paige, no longer referring to James as her father, although she was slightly confused on which was her true parent due to having the memories of both lives. A lot of things had appeared to be more familiar to her, than they did before her transition, as she had noticed Seth had remembered his previous life as Tyler Black and how James had torn them apart by killing him.
"Paige, it's not like that. I trust you around my girls, as I have faith neither of you will hurt them, your love for your cousins, as well as brother and daughter is what has kept you going through the struggle of learning to control your thirst. Your mother is just having trouble accepting her baby girl could live for hundreds if not thousands of years. She is afraid of what your siblings will think as they gradually get older and you will stay unchanged" answered Bobby seeing Paige was hurt by her mother's reaction towards her. He could also see she was struggling with something although he was unsure what it was. He watched as Paige nodded to him before turning away from them and leaving the room, leaving both of them behind. The concern both he and Maria held for Paige and Seth grew especially since she didn't say another word before she used her vampire speed to leave them.
"I'm scared Bobby" whispered Maria, to which point Bobby went over to her, carefully wrapping her in his arms as he had once done, when she was afraid of the dark when she was a child or when she found out her 10 year old daughter in Paige could be in life threatening danger when she was taken by Gunner all those years ago. "I'm scared the little girl, my little girl has gone, been replaced with the vampire princess that was once her life. I'm scared this Kevin Thorn is going to come after me and my boys just to force James to feel the pain he had endured, or to get vengeance for Brandon's death so long ago" mumbled Maria scared to speak any louder in case her fears come true. She knew the vampires had superhuman hearing, she didn't want Paige to hear what she was saying, nor did she know where her oldest child was at that particular moment.
Later on in the day, when evening had taken over and the sky had darkened, Angelina was with her two daughters in Taryn and Shannon as well as her husband in Bobby, she could see he worried for something, she could also guess it would be for his niece and nephew in law. As well as for his sister. She was aware he wanted to return to the place he had truly called home, the place he was at his happiest, Jarrett Farm. Yet he had not found the time to speak to his sister the queen about leaving her castle and her kingdom. Then again, she couldn't bring herself to tell her close friends in the king, Winter or Gunner of the plans since they were all trying their best to help both Paige and Seth with their new status as well as Maria with understanding and accepting what had become of her daughter. She knew James was trying his best to help her come to terms with the fact her little girl was no longer human.
At this moment Maria was in her shared chambers, looking out one of the many windows, she was looking north in the direction of where the Jarrett farm was located. Remembering all the memories there and in the near by village. She smiled sadly when her memories turned to Paige. Her parents reaction when she informed them she was with child, and her child's father wouldn't be a problem, although she never shared the information of his death with anyone not even her brother or close friends at the time, she kept the secret of Paige's father death even when her daughter was taken by Gunner. A tears come to her eyes as she remembered her mother's death from the illness she had contracted and how her father had chosen death rather to help his children through the already difficult time. It was then she realised something.
"What's bothering you Maria?" suddenly came the deep voice of James from behind her. She had been so deep in thought and in her own memories, she hadn't even heard her husband enter the room. When she turned away from the north facing window to look at him, he could see the tears in her eyes and the tracks they left down cheeks. To which he carefully made his way over to her and held her in her arms, only wishing she would tell him what was causing her the sadness she was feeling, or if there was anything he could do to help her through the cause of it. "Is it our beautiful princess that's once again bothering you?" questioned James, watching as his wife nodded in reply to his question. "Tell me" breathed James, wanting to know what it was that had caused the tears.
"The memories of being at Jarrett farm come to mind. How I felt when I found I was expecting Paige, the heartbreak I suffered when her true father died in my arms before he even got to meet her, even how much I loved her and how proud I have been over the things she has accomplished and the woman she become. But remembering all reminds me of how much I truly miss that little girl, and what she now is" responded Maria, fighting to hold back her tears and trying to be strong before her husband, although he had seen her in tears many times before. "The Paige that was my daughter is gone, she is never coming back. She's dead and I have to accept that, I have to accept she is what she is, and she along with Seth will never physically age. I have to accept my daughter had to die so the one you lost a century ago could once again live" continued Maria, revealing how she was really feeling and what she had been thinking, or at least why she was having so much trouble accepting what Paige and Seth had become. James was unsure what to say but he knew there was a possibility all the vampires whom called the castle home could hear her words.
"Your daughter is not dead Maria. She is here in the castle, with her husband and daughter. It is my child who was killed, I admit I have tried seen my own Paige in yours, but I know my daughter was stole away from me and will never be truly returned to me. Your Paige may look like her and be like her in so many ways but she will never truly call me father. Nor will she ever forget you are her mother" replied James, not understanding how Maria could think her daughter was dead and his own had taken her place, he knew this would be hard for her to adjust to but never had he thought she would think of Paige as dead and virtually disown the girl she had raised simple because she had become a vampire.
"But she isn't my little girl any more. I don't even recognise what she has become. The girl I bore, raised and loved isn't the woman here in the castle. She just looks and shares the same name as that little girl. The woman in the castle is a monster of the night, she killed my daughter and replaced her when she woke up" whispered Maria, saying what she truly thought of her daughter who was now one of the few vampires to call the castle home. James looked down to the paved floor that ran through the entire castle unsure how how to comfort his wife now, he didn't even know what to say to the words she had spoken to him. How was it he was able to love Paige as a human and now as a vampire? And Maria was telling him she could not loved her own daughter now she had become a vampire. It wasn't long before the queen had fallen asleep, James was lying next to her, the conversation they had shared and the words she had spoke echoing around his head like they were stuck on repeat. He didn't know what he was going to do, he knew his words wouldn't comfort her and she would never truly accept Paige as a vampire, even if the poor girl did prove herself to still be the same as she was before her transition from human to vampire. He also knew there was a high possibility that both Paige and Seth had heard the words Maria had spoke, since a vampire's senses are heightened. He knew Seth would now be trying to comfort his own wife through her likely broken heart.
Morning came around quickly, when Maria awoke she thought about the things she had confided in her husband. It wasn't long before she realised she hadn't been greeted with the morning cries of her grand-daughter Raya as she had done everyday since Winter had returned with her. She also noticed James had already left the bed chambers and was likely in the throne room. She knew her words had worried him. When she left the chambers she had the unsettling feeling something was wrong, as she didn't see the pups of Ghost strolling the corridor as they had always done. The more she walked through the castle halls the more she got the feeling that something was wrong, it was unusually quiet, like someone had put mute on all those who made a noise. It wasn't long before she reached the doors to the throne room, the guards there stood a little straighter, before opening the doors to allow her through, they could see that something was unsettling her in some way or another. When she did enter the room however she was met with the normal family breakfast, JJ sitting next to his father, Bobby and Angelina one side of the table where as Taryn and Shannon were opposite them. Gunner and Winter sat opposite J.J and James, yet the high chair where little Raya would normally be sat was empty as were the seats that belonged to the little princess's parents.
"Morning my queen" spoke Gunner as if nothing was out of place, he knew she would have noticed Raya wasn't crying this morning, just as he could see three rather important people were missing from the family breakfast. Yet he and Winter had been told along with the rest not to tell her where they were. Maria smiled towards Gunner before taking her place the opposite side of her eleven year old son J.J. Not being able to shake the feeling something was out of place. It wasn't long before the family were in full conversation about different things, yet neither of them brought up the three that were missing. The room soon fell silent again when Bobby mentioned he and his family would be leaving the kingdom to go back to Jarrett Farm, the one place where he was truly happy. He could see his younger sister didn't want him to go, yet he could also see she wasn't going to stop him from returning to place where he was at his true happiest. He knew as Maria did eventually they would have to go their separate ways. He revealed when it was when the small family of four would be leaving, a smile on his features as he did so. It wasn't long before Bobby, Angelina, Taryn and Shannon left to pack the remainder of their things ready for their journey to their new home. Yet Maria still had an unsettling feeling something wasn't quite right. It wasn't long before Maria left to do her business as Queen of the realm.
"She knows something isn't right" spoke Winter not even bothering to look at the king in which she was talking to, instead she continued to look at the pictures of those who meant something to the king. "All through breakfast she kept looking to the doors expecting them to come through, the castle was too quiet. She would have noticed baby Raya not crying when she woke or the pups not playfully running after each other when she entered the halls" continued Winter, noticing the tapestry of the royal family had been torn. "The tapestry of the royal family it's been destroyed" added Winter. James and Gunner quickly making their way over to her and seeing that it had been torn, but only the portrait of one had been removed from it. James looked to Gunner knowing what it meant, and who had torn it apart.
"I told you they heard the conversation you two had last night. If me and Winter could hear it, then they would have as well. You know how much Paige loves her mother, it would have shattered her heart to hear her love is no longer returned. The tapestry is proof of how she feels. You, Maria and JJ are still there yet the part Paige was in has been torn away" spoke Gunner knowing the poor girl no longer felt as if she belonged in the castle or even part of the family she loved so much. She was heartbroken to hear her own mother would preferred that she truly be dead rather than the creature or monster she had become. It was then Winter spotted the missing piece of tapestry torn to pieces in the corner of the throne room, near one of the many candles there. When she picked it up she noticed writing on the back. She recognised the writing straight away as the princess's.
Dear Residents of Storm Castle,
After recent events, and a lot of thinking. I have come to the decision with my husband Seth Rollins to leave the castle permanently. I realised I am no longer welcome as either a resident of the castle or as member of the family. I do not wish to be the one to cause pain to the queen, so to prevent her suffering. Seth, Raya and Myself will permanently leave the castle and the kingdom.
I hereby forfeit my titles as Kings Daughter and Princess of the Realm, and will no longer be a burden to either of you who call the castle home. Please tell the Queen, I am sorry I couldn't be the daughter she longed for or the one she loved. As I am sorry to the King for failing to live up to his expectations of being his daughter of the same name. I can see now I no longer have a place at Storm Castle and thrust no longer hold a place within the Realm or the hearts of those I called family.
I promise I will no longer be a threat and will stay well away from the Warden's Bobby, Angelina, Taryn and Shannon Jarrett, as I will stay away from the crowned Prince JJ. I give you my word neither of us will return to Storm's Landing, as long as the Queen seeing us as threats to her true family and as the Monsters she perceives us to be.
It is time we go out on our own and find who we are as the monsters of the night, Queen Maria has condemned us as. It brings me great pain to learn that my mother the Queen no longer sees me as her daughter, or as part of her family. So I do this in respects of her wishes that I am not around and may hope she live with the memory of the daughter she sees as Dead the moment that I woke up as the vampire I am today.
We wish you all a long and prosperous life, as well as one with happiness and fortune. For I wish the King and Queen luck with their future family and the kingdom, as I wish the Storm Family, a long and healthy reign as the royal family of the realm. Goodbye my King, Queen, Prince, Jarrett Family (warden's of the Queen) and to my close friends Gunner and Winter.
Paige Rollins
When Winter read the letter Paige had left on a piece of the shredded tapestry, she had tears come to eyes at reading how heartbroken the young princess was to learn her own mother would rather she was dead rather than the creature of the night in which she and her husband have become. It was then Winter left the room, tears in her eyes and the torn piece of tapestry in her hands. She knew the queen was aware something was wrong yet she probably had no idea it was something like this. With each step Winter took her tears turned to anger, especially as it darned on her Paige and Seth left the castle with their daughter because the woman in which she was looking for couldn't bring herself to accept her daughter's status. It wasn't long before she found the woman in question, talking happily with her brother and sister in law, blissfully unaware of what she had done.
"I hope you are happy my Queen. You have finally gotten what you wanted" spoke Winter once she was standing behind Maria, Angelina knew something was wrong when Winter referred to Maria as Queen rather than by her actual name. When Maria turned around to face Winter, she could see the tears mixing with anger, a sight she hadn't seen before in anyone. It was clear to the woman before her she didn't know what she was on about. "Because of you, James as lost his daughter again, as well as his grand-daughter and someone he considered a son. Paige was still your daughter, even when she woke up as a vampire and with her past memories, yet she still seen you as her mother. You however didn't see her as your daughter, instead you wished she had been killed rather than become what was it a Monster of the Night" continued Winter, giving torn piece of tapestry to the queen. "She heard what you said My Queen, as did Seth, Gunner and myself. You broke her heart to the point she no longer sees the castle or even Storm's Realm as her home. She removed herself from history and gave up her title of princess because of you. So congratulations my Queen you win" finished Winter before leaving the room, she didn't wish to be around a person who could say things as Maria had without thinking how it could effect the people around her. Maria stood in near shock at how she was spoken to, where as Angelina felt for her friend and Bobby stood awkwardly unsure what to do with himself or the situation at hand.
It wasn't long before Gunner caught up with Winter, having heard her words to Maria. He knew she loved Paige as if she was her sister, and was heartbroken and distraught something she could see as preventable had forced another she loved to leave. He too was saddened it had come to this, as he though of Paige and Seth not only as close friends but also has his family. He never felt guilty for turning either of them. He like Winter knew Paige was likely to be confused due to having the memories of both lives, as it was likely Seth too was confused but more for the reason why he was reincarnated when his previous life was a mere human who had fallen for the vampire princess.
"We will find them, Winter. We will find them and bring them home, where they belong. I told James what you said to Maria, he knows why his daughter left, why her husband left. He has given us permission to go and find them and bring them home. As the king he is refusing to take the beloved Prince and Princess away from the realm, regardless of their status. He was one of us, he still remembers what its like" whispered Gunner, revealing the king indeed knew of the course of the one he called his daughter to leave the way she had. Winter soon looked at her husband and smiled before disappearing in a blink of an eye.
Maria meanwhile had taken the words Winter had spoken harshly, seeing them as an offence against her and believing as the Queen she should be treated with more respect rather than the common girl she had once been. It wasn't long before she arrived back at the throne room, James looking at a portrait of Paige, the one he had hidden and was going to put up in the throne room the day of her twenty third birthday. Maria walked over to him, spotting a few tears had fallen down his cheeks, as he stared at the painting.
"When I lost my daughter a century ago. I thought the world was going to end. I had lost Kate, to a witch who sacrificed her for some ritual, Paige was all I had left. After Kevin Thorn betrayed us, Sir Christopher Daniel come with his men, they caught the both of us. I was forced to watch as she was exposed to the sunlight, as she was burnt to death. After she died all I had left was vengeance against the people who took her away from me" whispered James, remembering how his first beloved wife had be ripped away from him and how he had lost his princess after eight centuries. He took a long deep breath before continuing on. "When Colby Rollins, Seth's biological father said he found Paige, I didn't know what to think or even how to feel. After the death of my little girl a century before I shut off all my emotions so I wouldn't be hurt again. Yet when I saw her, I knew she wasn't just a reincarnation of my princess, she was my princess sent back to me. I couldn't help but love her" continued James, he knew Maria was listening just staying silent. No doubt wondering why he was telling her the story of his first wife and of the original Paige.
"I told you last night James, my daughter is gone. Nothing is going to bring her back" replied Maria, giving the tapestry to James, without reading what was written on it. James opened the neatly folded tapestry, and read over the words that held so much pain to the person who had written it. His own eyes once again filled with tears as he read what she had written, how she had given up her title as the princess and his daughter. He looked back at the portrait of Paige before him, wondering how long it would take Gunner and Winter to find Paige, Seth and Raya as well as the pups. He was all to aware they wouldn't return to Black Rock Castle as it would be to obvious thrust making it easy for them to be found.
"I sent Winter and Gunner to find them and bring them home. You may not think or love her like your daughter or even accept they are now vampires. But I love her as my child, whether she is human or vampire. I will not abandon her just because of her near immortal status Maria. So I ask you this, how is it you loved me as a vampire but you can't love your own daughter as one?" responded James, he didn't really know how to feel about Paige, Seth and Raya leaving with the pups due to his wife not being able to accept what was before her. "I have lost one daughter, I will not lose another or my grand-daughter because of this" continued James making it clear he wasn't going to let his family be torn apart because one couldn't accept the other. It wasn't long before Eric came to the chamber off the throne room, knowing the king wanted to go over plans in case Kevin Thorn attacked and went after the people he loved. At which point Maria left the room and looked at the tapestry portraits of the family, noticing how the one of the royal family had the part of Paige torn away, leaving only the three members there.
