The Cruel Prince || Klena

01.

Her servant girls, Lucille and Katherine gossiped while they got her ready, tightening her corset. She was to have an engagement party where she could meet the Prince for the first time. Vampyr, Werewolves, and humans were invited. Probably the first time they'd all be in the same room in a century. The "room" being the ballroom, hosted in the Vampyr castle.

Her other royal friends would be there, the Princesses Caroline and Bonnie, and their suitors, the Salvatore Princes, and the Dukes son, Enzo St. John. Elena had only attended one ball in her entire lifetime, when her brother, Prince Jeremy, was engaged to Princess Anna of the Southern Isles.

He would soon become King of the Isle, while Elena would become Queen of the Mystic Island. But that would not be now. Elena would now become Queen of the Dark Ones. Not exactly a great title for a sweet and kind princess.

She knew nothing of their customs, and wondered if they'd make her drink blood. Or wear all black. Or sleep in a coffin. Or- a sharp tug on her hair caused her thought train to derail. She whipped around and glared at Lucille, who'd been told to never run a brush through her long and natural curls. Lucille immediately dropped the brush and backed up.

But Elena did not scream at her or kick her. She simply placed the brush back in its spot and splashed some water on her hair, and then rubbed some hair cream in. The Queen had long since realized the princesses long and healthy hair needed more care than the average peasant. And of course, a princess was always given more time to her appearance than the average person.

Lucille breathed a sigh of relief, and Elena frowned. "Has someone been mistreating you, Lucille?" She quickly shook her head, but Elena didn't believe her. That kind of reaction is learned, not automatic. But she would not force the girl to talk. It might cause more trouble all the while doing so. Instead, she nodded and respected the girl's wishes not to say. But she had a sneaking suspicion it was her cruel mother, Queen Isobel.

Elena suspected she did not love her father. The same as some Queens, Isobel married her father for duty, the same way she was to marry her Vampyr prince. The thought made her shiver. The phrase Vampyr Queen echoed in her mind. Katherine and Lucille instead opted to pin her hair up in grand sweeping gestures onto her head. Small jewels were laced in between strands.

Then they decorated her with expensive and dazzling pieces of jewelry, eventually adorning her with her sparkling tiara. Elena did not need makeup. It was already widely known of her natural beauty. And her mother preferred it that way, for her natural beauty to be enhanced instead, and her figure highlighted, just as everyone else did with their corsets.

As soon as they left, she removed almost all of her jewelry. The necklace was a thin silver piece, fitted with a single diamond that sat on her bosom. No doubt to draw attention there, she assumed. And her earrings were ruby pieces, strung carefully into gold strings which dangled with every movement. Her dress was a dark ruby red. She realized with a start, the color of blood.

It was long and sweeping, but not wide, with flowing sleeves. Her waist was accentuated with a golden sash, after they'd abandoned her corset for a fitted gown. It was all together a bit much, she'd thought. Then she slipped on her red and black masquerade mask. It was a bit pretentious, she thought, a masquerade ball. Somehow, even with the masks, she sensed people would be able to tell who was what.

The Vampyrs possessed an...inhuman smoothness about them. Though she'd rarely ever seen one up close, she had observed this. They glided instead of walking, and their eyes sparkled black. And of course there was one very obvious tell, their blindly pale skin. But it was not an ivory pale like the girls in her kingdom so strived for, it was a sickly pale. Only on them, it made them beautiful.

Many village girls had been seduced by Vampyr men, and had never returned. Nothing had been done about it, of course, because the Law stated a human could choose to be turned. That did not mean safety guards could be put in place, though. Elena had heard a rumor, that some village girls had partied with the Vampyr, and returned with bite marks, but human still.

Elena did not know how that was possible. But it was, after all, a rumor. She was escorted out of her castle and into her carriage by guards. Her father, mother, and brother were already seated. Elena took her place by her brother and sighed. "Don't complain. Sit up. And do not make jokes." Her mother warned as soon as the door shut.

Elena nodded and sat up straight. Her brother sent her a sympathetic look. Soon he wouldn't have to listen to anyone but his trusted advisor. He was only nineteen, about to turn twenty, but yet he was already free. It must be nice to be a man, Elena thought. Because the no one would have standards of you, expect you to act, look, and obey a certain way. Even as a Queen, you must listen to your husband. She would change those rules, she decided.

Her heart pounded out of her chest as the carriage finally came to a stop after a long and painful silence, filled by nothing but the creaks and groans of the metal being pulled. She was nervous. No human dared to enter the Dark Wood. That was where the Dark Ones resided. Unless of course you were drunk on wine.

The doors swung open to reveal a grand castle. It towered very high, dark, and broody. It was also throughly decorated. Trees moved eerily with no leaves. It was like even the land there knew they were dead. Elena quickly placed her mask over her face and her brother helped her down from the carriage.

He'd be meeting his fiancée Anna inside, when she arrived from the Isles. Jeremy had missed her. It'd been many moons since they'd seen each other. Together, the siblings walked, arm in arm, into the grand room. His own mask reflected a bird, complete with a long beak. Elena's mask covered the entirety of her face, leaving no room for guesses. It was not on accident. She hoped her Vampyr prince would not make his way to her.