LIRA: Book I

CHAPTER FOUR: The Imperial Princes

Lira knew that it was very impolite to stare. But everybody was doing it now. So she decided to take just a tiny peek at the arresting Imperials as she adjusted her glasses. Stephan Imperial (pronounced as Ste-fawn as per Mari) was the youngest among the three brothers. He had a cute boyish look, with messy dark brown hair and although his mouth was in a tight straight line, his gray eyes where smiling, glinting of impending mischief he was probably planning to do. On his right sat Sevastian Imperial, looking bored but still strikingly handsome. He has the same dark brown hair as Stephan only it was cut shorter and cleaner. His gray eyes were devoid of any emotions. Next to him was Nicholas Imperial, the eldest among the three brothers. He too has dark brown hair, slightly longer than Stephan, almost touching his nape. His piercing gray eyes was aimed at the front, and his arms crossed over his chest making him look every bit imposing and yet devastatingly handsome as well.

Mari pointed out that Nicholas is the most handsome among the brothers. Lira begged to disagree. Nicholas looked rather scary for her. Though he was attractive in a frightening sort of way, Lira admitted, but he seemed a bit arrogant. And scary, yes, way scary. His eyes looked as if it was ready to throw daggers. And his commanding presence? Yep, definitely petrifying. He looked as if he would rather be elsewhere to smash something or anything than to sit here for class.

She decided Sevastian was more handsome with his cool and calm demeanor. Or maybe it was Stephan with his boyish good looks?

Lira then noticed Nicholas clenching his jaw as if in annoyance, his brows forming a scowl. Stephan looked as if he was trying not to laugh but his quivering shoulders gave him away. And Sevastian's mouth was slightly tilted to one side. It was as if someone cracked a joke and it annoyed Nicholas. But she could have sworn she saw no one even move an inch to talk. Maybe they could talk with their minds, sharing a joke? She saw a fair haired vampire girl, classically beautiful, rolled her eyes.

Or what if they could read minds? And they heard her thoughts! Oh, but that was unlikely to happen, right? If they ever did, Lira would probably be dead on this very spot right now. She swept a glance around her. All her classmates, Mari and Yumi included, were still gazing at their vampire classmates. Would they stop that already? She hoped the class would start now. She so wanted to be on bed by nine.

***

Oh yes, Nicholas wished he could be elsewhere right now. It annoyed him too much that he was required to be here with these humans for this pathetic and absurd experiment his loser of a brother wanted to do. Mingling with humans? Live harmoniously together? That's ludicrous. When do predators become friendly with their meal? His brother Philip had this crazy idea where humans and vampires can live together without any fear and animosity between the two factions. Like that would ever happen. Vampires were born superior to mankind. They were born to be served by humans.

Now why would he want to sit here and listen to this chit nag and assassinate his character for all the vampires to hear? Of all the minds murmuring in the room, hers was the loudest; most annoying, really.

"That was an entertaining but highly accurate description of you, brother," Steph's thoughts came through.

"Shut it, Steph," Nicholas said through his mind, his jaw clenched. "Yes I would like to smash you like a bug, insolent chit."

"Stop it both of you," Elisabeth's mind said, rolling her eyes. "Nick, restrain yourself."

How could he restrain himself when aside from the nagging girl, which he really tried to ignore, he could smell a very delicious aroma that filled his nostrils, tempting him to break the treaty in front of Philip? Ah, that sweet scent of blood, making his claws curls with delight. He should have been immune to the smell of blood, and yet the moment he entered the room, he could smell it immediately, enticing him to sink his fangs at something, at someone. This scent overpowers the others. The others, too, could smell it. With the way they were sitting so rigidly and others gripping their desks so tightly he was surprised it did not turn into splinters showed how they all exerted enough to restrain themselves from swarming all over the room and feast on these human brats. You throw twenty young vampires inside a roomful of humans, what would you expect? Philip should have guessed this; should have anticipated this. Now, how did the previous senior vampires who attended this hell able to get through all of this? Two years of this was just too much.