Snow White Queen [NaNoWriMo 2018]

Chapter Four

"Someone come quick! The queen!"

Neva looked up. It was daylight. Someone was standing in the doorway, shouting frantically.

Within minutes, the queen's bedroom was swarming with people. Neva was shoved to the side.

She tried to make sense of the chaos, but she could only pick out a few phrases.

"She's dead-"

"How?"

"Vampire bites. One could have gotten in-"

"The princess-"

Everyone in the room turned to Neva. She wanted so desperately to run and hide, but she knew that would just make her look more guilty than she already did.

"She's covered in blood, looks like she's been drinking it."

"Look at her, she's been crying. I bet it's just for show, she probably doesn't even feel guilty."

"Of course she doesn't, she's a vampire."

Vampire.

Neva thought she could run from it. She thought that she could pass for a human, live a normal, human life.

But she wasn't human, and she never would be, no matter how badly she wished she could pretend to be. She was different, and people would always be there to remind her of it.

This time, she did run.

~~~

Due to the death of the queen, Aldaren was called home early.

He'd always been wary around Neva, but now he completely avoided her whenever he could.

Everyone she knew had turned against her. They thought she'd meant to kill her mother, and that she was a monster. She'd hoped that at the very least, her father would stand by her.

No. She was on her own.

Neva had never felt more alone.

~~~

They still wanted to maintain the secret. When word of the queen's death was reported, it was said that a vampire had gotten in from outside the castle. In response, castle security was increased. At first, Neva thought it was mostly for show, but then she noticed that she was being followed more closely.

Cassandra's funeral was a few days later. Dorian and his family visited for a few days for the funeral. Dorian tried to talk to her, but Neva wasn't responding.

Neva wasn't speaking to anyone. She didn't think she'd said a single thing since the night her mother had died.

She didn't remember the funeral very well. She kept reliving her mother's final moments. Kept feeling her fangs break her skin. Kept feeling her mother's blood drip onto her face.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. What if...

~~~

It had been a few days since the funeral had happened, almost a week since her mother's death.

Neva gently knocked on the door to her father's study.

Aldaren opened the door. "Neva. Is there something you need?"

"I have a question."

The king seemed a little taken aback. "Okay, what is it?"

"Would it be possible to turn Mama into a vampire? Like what you did to me?"

Aldaren seemed to think for a moment, then shook his head. "No. It's been too long."

"There has to be a way-"

"No, there isn't. Your mother's dead, and it's your fault." Aldaren shut the door in Neva's face.

There has to be a way.

~~~

Neva was very good at sneaking around. As such, she had been able to listen in on many conversations that her parents might not have wanted her to hear.

One conversation that she had held onto was the one that had revealed to her the name and location of the witch that had turned her into a vampire.

That night, when she was sure that no one was watching her, she snuck out of the castle and down to where she believed the witch to live.

The witch seemed surprised to see the little girl, but invited her inside anyway.

"What can I do for you princess?"

Neva took a deep breath. "I- I was wondering if it would be possible to turn my mom into a vampire?"

"Was she bitten by a vampire?"

Her breath caught in her chest. "Y- yes."

"How long ago?"

Neva thought for a moment. "Five days."

The witch shook her head sadly. "No, I'm afraid not. To turn someone into a vampire, the ritual needs to be performed within a few hours of their death. I'm sorry, child, but there's no way."

"Nothing else that can bring her back?"

"No, I'm afraid not. I'm sorry."

Neva stood up and left for the door.

"Be safe, child. People are afraid of vampires, and fear makes people do crazy things."

Neva hardly registered the words as she ran out of the hut.

She's dead. She's not coming back.

She's gone. Forever.

And it's my fault.

On a brighter note, I wrote two chapters in one day and I'm feeling good.
Hope you're enjoying this. I want to hear your thoughts.
Until next time,
~Patchesmimi

Day three
Words written: 1712
Total: 5805