Royalty with fangs

Chapter 4

I sit in my room for a long while, wondering what exactly I'm going to do. I can't let myself be married to someone my mom picks out; When a "respectable" king is chosen for a queen to be, they're often very old and almost always have extremely traditional values.

Don't get me wrong, it's not like I'm in love with Dimitri. In fact, I haven't shown any interest in him since the day we kissed. I just know that if he was the king, he wouldn't get in the way like a pureblood vampire would, and I'd be free to do whatever I please.

My phone buzzes.

Its a text from my brother.

"Have you even asked Dimitri?"

I should probably do that. I got pretty carried away with my ideas of having complete control as the queen.

I get up and walk to the room Dimitri stays in. He gives me a cautious smile and asks if I need him for anything.

I take a seat next to him, knowing this is gonna be a lot to process.

"I've got a favor to ask of you" I say, "Actually more of a proposition"

He looks very confused.

"I thought you didn't want to use me for slave work?"

Theres a long pause. I take a deep breath and think of the best way to phrase what I need to say.

"It's actually quite the opposite, you'd actually be legally free"

He looks excited, but I can tell he knows theres a catch, "The thing is, you'd have to marry me"

I continue speaking before he has a chance to respond, "I have no plans of marrying anyone my mother has picked out, and this seemed like a convenient option. You wouldn't be obligated to do anything with me like we were in a relationship, just remain in the palace and take the title of king consort"

I pause to gauge his reaction. Shocked would be an understatement. I decide to get into the benefits.

"You'd be legally free to do whatever you want, and you'd be changed into a vampire if that was your wish. You could also keep your role in my life similar to now, just with a new title"

He looks contemplative, "Why marry me if it could be anyone else. Why not marry a pureblood vampire?"

I decide I'll give him the honest truth.

"Honestly, Dimitri, because I don't want some power hungry crumbly vampire trying to steal my throne. There would also be the added benefit of being allowed to take lovers without a husband being jealous. This would be entirely a marriage of convenience"

He casts his gaze down at the ground, "but what about how the people would react? They hate slaves" He looks down even further, "What about love?"

"You'd be free to be with whoever you want, as long as you didn't make it noticable to the public, and in my rule I plan to free humans from slavery and outlaw prejudice against humans. This would be a big step towards that."

"Your majesty, forgive me if this is too bold, but I liked it better when you talked to me like a friend, not lawyer"

I drop my gaze, I'd been so focused on selling the idea to him that I'd been completely impersonal and emotionally detatched in the conversation .

I soften my demeanor, "Hey, we can be friends. Just friends who are married and destroy social constructs"

He smiles a little.

He meets my gaze.

"Your majesty, you've given me a better life than I ever imagined before, I'd be happy to marry you"

I make the calculated decision not to tell him about my mother.

He comes forward and holds me in an awkward embrace.

What have I gotten myself into?