Immortal Queen
Chapter 2
The brown haired vampire decided to go outside into the gardens for some air. The only sources of light were lampposts, fireflies, the stars and the moon. Taliyah stood on the hall's back porch and oversaw the gardens which were so beautiful.
They were so big and spread as wide as the eye could see. In the garden there were beautiful plants of flowers which she adored; roses of vibrant colours, lavender which smelt so divine in the wind and other which were filled with so much beauty. There was also a river with wooden bridges across them. In the river were swans, fish and water lilies. It was as if a fairy tale, but reality was nothing like it. There were many trees but one caught her eye. It was a cherry blossom tree with the branches flowing calmly in the wind and swing from one of the branches.
Taliyah took off her heels and put them down at the bottom of the porch stairs. She walked down the stairs and felt the soft grass tingling her feet and toes. She began walking freely and took in the beautiful surroundings. The wind blew and she sighed; it was refreshing in the summer night and she could smell the marvellous flowers in the gardens as well as the mouth-watering food from the town; she wanted to go.
She crossed one of the bridges and walked towards the cherry blossom tree. It bore so many bright pink blossoms, some early whilst other fully grown. The Pureblood Princess sat down on the swing and began slowly swinging.
Taliyah stared at the beautiful full moon and cleared her mind and heart. The young woman concentrated so much on the moon and started getting thoughts.
She thought about how something stayed so beautiful and never weakened nor passed away. She linked this to Pureblood vampires like her family and herself. They were so beautiful and strong but had to come to an end somehow.
Taliyah then started to think about what her future had in store. She hoped to spend more time with Kaname and confess her deep love for him. She wanted to marry him and rule the Vampire race together with him in perfect harmony. They would live for all of eternity and have so many children and watch them grow up.
She knew that she was destined to rule the vampire race, as the eldest child of Haruka and Juri. She had to be able to work alongside the vampire council too. Taliyah also wanted to fulfil her and her mother and grandfather's dream; a peaceful existence between vampires, vampire hunters and humans.
'I cannot be with Kaname because he is with Yuki. He is my first love and it is not easy to move on from that. What if…I don't find true love?' She thought and gasped with tears in her eyes. Indeed many aristocrat vampires have their eyes on her, but it would not be the same without Kaname.
A cherry blossom fell into the palm of her hand and she looked down. It was so beautiful regardless of the fact it wasn't fully bloomed. She remembered something her grandfather told her. The young vampire closed her eyes.
Flashback:
A 5 year old Taliyah held hand with her grandfather. They were walking through a garden filled with cherry blossom trees. He was not old at all; in fact he was an exact replica of his son Haruka. The little girl's brown curly hair reached her shoulder-blades and her eyes sparkled like stars.
It was a windy day and there were many cherry blossom petals floating around. A cherry blossom fell onto the girl's head and her grandfather looked down. He smiled and chuckled lightly.
Young Taliyah looked up at her grandfather with the most adorable pout he'd ever seen in his long life and her eyes sparkled. He took the cherry blossom off her head and kneeled down in front of her.
"Look my dearest Taliyah." He showed the blossom which lied on his palm. She blinked and her eyes widened with amazement and fascination.
"A flower!" She explained and then she looked carefully at the cherry blossom. "But it doesn't look like the others, grandpapa!" He smiled at this.
"It is still blooming, child." He stated and she fluttered her eyelashes.
"It's still pretty." Her grandfather placed his hand on her face and stroked it lovingly.
"The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all. Taliyah, a flower that grows in difficult situations is the most beautiful and rare of all." Taliyah stared up into her grandfather's garnet eyes and he kissed her forehead. "If when you are older, you may go through hard times in life, you will get through them and you will be so amazing at the end."
"Grandpapa, will I be very strong when I grow up; strong enough to look after everyone?" She asked curiously and his gaze went so soft.
"Of course you will. Someday you will be strong enough to protect everyone." He stated and hugged her.
Taliyah opened her garnet eyes and felt a tear fall down her cheek. The young woman smiled at herself and knew that someday she would become strong to protect everyone. But then her smile fell when she thought about Kaname. She hugged herself and sniffed as tears fell down her cheeks.
"What are you doing outside?" She heard a voice and wiped her tears. She looked up and turned her head to the side on her left.
Taliyah saw a man with silver hair which sparkled in the moonlight and pale snowy skin. He was tall and looked strong. He was dressed in a smart grey and purple suit and looked charming. The man wore five silver earrings; three on his left ear cartilage (top) and two on his right (bottom). She thought he was extremely handsome.
She could sense what he was; a vampire hunter and a vampire. She didn't matter about that. She never treated someone who was a different species from her. But she had to eliminate Level E's. She hated Purebloods and Aristocrats who treated Level D's and Level C's like dirt.
He turned to her and she fluttered her eyelashes. Blood rushed to her cheeks which turned into a faint red when she saw his eyes. They were a beautiful pair of lavender eyes which twinkled in the moonlight like the stars above them. Within a click, she knew who this vampire hunter was.
"I wanted to get some fresh air…" She said.
When he saw her face, he never thought he would meet a woman more beautiful than his first love Yuki. There were similarities, but this Pureblood was different according to Zero. Her voice made him get goose bumps. He felt his heart beat increase and beat rapidly.
"You look like Kuran." He stated in a mumble.
"It is because I am a Kuran. Kaname is my adoptive brother and Yuki is my younger sister. I am Taliyah Kuran." She said gracefully and Zero looked shocked.
"You're the Taliyah Kuran?" He asked and she smiled gracefully with a nod. She was a Pureblood who opened building to aid and house Level D vampires. She gave them her blood and taught them to control their first. She also did a lot of charity work around the world as well as opening a number of orphan and charity houses in England.
"Yes, I am the Taliyah Kuran." She replied. "I also know who you are. You are Zero Kiryu. I have heard a lot about you…" He looked at the ground and sighed ashamed.
"Yeah…" He murmured.
"You should be very proud of yourself, I know I am." He blinked and gulped whilst blushing as he started at her. "You've been through so much and you've stayed strong. I've told many of the vampires at my homes about you. They were inspired by you and so am I."
She stood up and walked up to him. She smiled at him whilst staring into his eyes.
"It is an honour to meet you, Zero." She stated.
"N-no, the honour is mine, Princess Taliyah!" He exclaimed and bowed down as she curtsied.
"Just Taliyah is fine." She noted and noticed something. His tie was not done properly. "Your tie…"
"Oh, um, my, uh, master did it." He slurred and she knew he was lying. Taliyah started giggling which sounded very cute. He gazed at her as if dreaming and smiled. Her being happy was like a bright ray of sunshine.
"You are indeed a terrible liar, Zero." She took his tie off and started doing it properly. She explained how to do it but he kept gazing at her face.
When she was done, she looked up to see him staring at her. She realised how close their faces were and she blushed. The tips of their noses touched and she gulped. Zero noticed some hair in Taliyah's face and pulled it behind her ear as they started leaning closer. Both were oblivious of their actions.
They suddenly pulled away from each other with Zero looking away whilst scratching his head and Taliyah fiddled with her fingers as she looked down at the grass.
"You wanna go back?" He asked and she hesitated.
"Not really." She answered but shook her head. "But I have to, my guests are waiting."
"What do you want to do?" He asked.
"It is nothing, really." She said and he glared at her.
"What do you want to do, Taliyah?" He asked again and she sighed.
"I want to go to the town." She answered and he started thinking.
"How 'bout this; we go back in there and I'll give you a signal when we should go, okay? I'll meet you out here, near the swing." He suggested and she smiled brightly with excitement.
"Sounds adventurous!" She exclaimed.
"Look at you, all excited." He smirked and she giggled. Then she realised.
"Oh excuse me…" She mumbled.
"Be yourself. You don't have to be someone else to impress others." She smiled at him and nodded.
"Thank you." He smiled with a nod.
They started walking together and for some reason Taliyah felt free with Zero. They were both two different people yet she felt more comfortable with him than aristocrats. Zero took a liking to her and wanted to get to know her more as well as spending more time with her.
Taliyah put her shoes on and walked up the steps. Suddenly her shoe fell on the step and she turned around. Zero picked up the golden shoe and kneeled down on one knee. It was like Cinderella. He held up the shoe and put the shoe in her foot. He stood up with red cheeks and she smiled whilst she curtsied.
"Thank you, Prince Charming." She said and he smirked as he bowed.
"You're welcome, Cinderella." She giggled and started laughing at this. Her laugh was goofy and for and Zero loved it. He chuckled at her laugh and she blushed whilst fiddling with her fingers.
"Your laugh is cute." She smiled whilst fluttering her eyelashes. "Let's go inside."