My Vampire King

Ch. 2

Her mother helps her pin her raven black hair up into a high bun, with tiny wisps hanging down to frame her face. She pins it in place with the comb Toralie's great-grandmother had given her when she was a child. It was a family heirloom, and she cherished it with her life. Toralie slips the dress on over her shoulders, making sure the dress fit properly. It matches the two different colors of her eyes, blue and green. One eye is blue and the other is green, so most of the dress is a deep forest green with dark blue accents all over. Toralie places her heart locket around her neck and put some small studs in her ears. She takes her heels in her hands and kisses her mother goodbye, rushing out the house.

Luckily, Toralie didn't put on pantyhose and she can run barefoot to the banquet hall. She opens the door to find girls running about, frantically trying to primp and preen. Toralie lets out a breath and finds her spot in line, as they're sorted by alphabetical order by last name. There aren't very many eligible girls in the small town and the banquet hall is large enough for them to fit in two lines along either wall. She cleans her feet off and straps her heels on, wobbling slightly. She doesn't wear heels often, but they make her feel pretty when she does. She only ever does for special occasions, and she thinks this counts. Toralie's heels are actually silver, matching her locket and the comb in her hair. She settles into her place and looks around at the other girls. Their dresses seem more expensive, trailing behind them in long trains. One girl even has a dress made of velvet. Toralie's is chiffon, but not the nice expensive kind. She only expected to wear this dress once and her parents didn't have too much to spare.

Some girls had on heavy faces of makeup, others even wore tiaras. Victoria, the town slut, is wearing the largest tiara, as it reaches up as high as the top of her bun. Toralie shakes her head, knowing Victoria thinks she's going to be the obvious choice. Toralie doesn't think Victoria's gonna be chosen, but she could be wrong. The hall goes quiet as the back doors open. The last girls scramble into place as royal guards walk in. They march in a militaristic fashion, and Toralie knows it's just for show. They disperse to either entrance of the banquet hall as the prince is revealed.

She hear a few gasps and murmurs, one of those gasps being her own. It was the man from the forest! His fiery orange eyes glanced over the crowd of girls, meeting hers for fleeting second before moving on. His hair is a deep ebony black, swept up in a messy hairstyle. He looks as though he just rolled out of bed and put on his royal uniform. His face was deadpan, as though he would rather be anywhere else but here. Toralie feels the exact same way, sighing internally as he started down the line of girls.

She figured she was going to be standing for what would feel like hours. She shifted uncomfortably on her heels, drawing attention to herself. The prince had just finished walking down the first line of girls, inspecting each girl carefully. His head swung towards Toralie at her shifting and he strode over to her confidently. She had seen every other girl freeze up under his gaze, except for Victoria, who pushed her cleavage up and bowed towards him as if to seduce him. The prince didn't react, moving on quickly.

When the prince reached Toralie, she cast her eyes downwards, feigning respect for the prince. Instead he reached out, pulling her chin up gently. She jumped slightly, feeling shock at the contact. She complied, not wanting to disobey the prince. Her eyes were wide, curious but not scared. His eyes were mesmerizing to her, entrapping her in their gaze. Toralie struggled not to get lost in them, feeling as though the rest of the world was fading away until his fiery eyes were burned into her mind. She wondered what the prince saw in her. The prince let go of her chin gently, swiftly walking to the center of the room. All eyes were on him as he drew himself up to his full height.

"I have found a suitable mate for my reign as Crown Prince and King. You all are dismissed."

There was a rustle of surprise, especially from the girls the prince hadn't even looked over. People were murmuring, wondering who it was. The prince looked around, raising his eyebrow. The girls settled down, still staring at him. Finally, Victoria spoke up, stepping forward.

"Well, who is it? Your Majesty, you can't keep us waiting like this."

Victoria's voice was smug, as though she knew it was her. The prince turned to her sharply, watching as she flinched.

"That one. The one with the emerald and sapphire eyes."

The prince pointed towards Toralie, looking directly at her. All eyes turned to her, some furious, some shocked. Toralie was surprised herself. Her gut had told her something was going to happen, and as always, it was right. The Prince came over to her and gently took her arm, looking deeply into her eyes.

"What's your name, dear?"

"Uh, Toralie. Toralie Fanza."

Toralie stumbled over her words, not trusting she could say her own name correctly. She didn't know what to think. The prince was always rumored to be cruel, cold and calculating. But this man was gentle with her, almost... caring? Even after she had caught him feeding on a human in the forest! The prince gently took her arm and led her through the banquet hall, almost parading her to the entrance. Victoria gave a shriek, picking up her skirts and storming towards the pair of them, looking as though she was about to tear Toralie away from the prince.

She made it to grabbing the arm being held by the prince before Toralie's defensive drive kicked in. She spun out of both of their grasps, but managed to catch Victoria's hands before they reached her. Victoria looked enraged, like she was ready to spout fire and fury.

"You probably made a deal with him you little slut, sleeping your way up to the top huh? Disgraceful!"

Victoria's voice was full of venom, dripping from each word. Toralie wasn't fazed, instead pulling Victoria closer to her, narrowing her eyes.

"Oh? Like you sucked off the mayor's son in the janitor's closet for a week during lunch just so you could be homecoming queen and stand beside him like you were his mate? Don't accuse others of things you've done, Victoria. It's not cute."

Toralie's voice was just above a mere hiss, low enough so only Victoria and the prince could hear. Victoria's eyes widened before Toralie shoved her away, turning back to the prince. She's never liked how venomous Victoria could be. The prince took her arm gently before leading her out of the banquet hall and onto the grass in front of the building. Toralie felt her heels sinking into the wet soil and squeezed the princes arm, signaling for him to stop. She bent down and took off her heels, relieving her feet. Toralie sighed once more and allowed the prince to lead her off, wherever he was going.