♔
"You are the love that came without warning; You had my heart before I could say no."
♔
"Huh?" I muttered to myself, feeling weird sparks from the awfully close figure behind me, as a muscular arm held my firmly before snaking around my waist mischievously, while his voice captivated me.
It was like history was..repeating itself for some reason.
And that voice...was...wait.
I looked behind me to see the most beautiful creation on earth, a man so beautiful and dashing, with his piercing hazel honey eyes and plump lips with a sharp jaw, visibly having a huge scar on his right high cheek bone, as he glared at the man in front of me.
He looks oddly familiar..
Almost too familiar.
Where have I seen him before?
"Do I have to repeat myself?" He growled, making everyone in the compound shiver at the authority dripping from his words.
Those words...
Again sounded way too familiar.
Woah..
Immediately, my body shuddered against his hold, as his grip tightened around me with no shame, while I literally gawked at his face with a pair of widened sockets , making it pretty evident that I was admiring his beauty.
"I have..seen you somewhere..." I trailed off quietly, as he finally looked at me with mixed emotions in his pools, making me slightly gasp at his expression, mostly his gates to the soul towards me.
Everything about him screamed danger and dominance, as the scar in his face itself was a reminder for to not mess with him, and it seemed like he had a natural snarl on his face at all times.
But then I noticed something very similar.
"Y-Your eyes..wait." I deadpanned, pushing him away from me a little bit, as his lips twitched in distaste because of my action.
"C-Change your eyes colour now! Change it to red for a second." I ordered him while poking his hard and muscular chest with my index finger, as almost everyone gasped way too loudly at my words.
"How is she talking to him like that?"
"Does she even know who he is?"
"How does she have the authority and audacity to talk to his highne-"
"EXCUSE ME! I'm trying to have a conversation over here! So can you please mind from shutting your blood sucking lips for one essential second!?" I snarled at everyone, while all of them growled at my words, before the man in front of me growled at them back much louder, making them retract in their quiet figures.
"Hush! No more growling like dogs. Act like vampires for once, geez. All of you, quiet!" I commanded with a finger on my lips, as they mimicked my action obediently, not daring to utter another word or sound from their mouths, as I looked back at the favourite child of God himself, while he looked at me with an amused expression.
"Now, as I was saying before being rudely interrupted by these people, change your eyes right now mister." I commanded him while wrenching my finger into his coat, as he chuckled at my behaviour and closed his eyes softly, before opening them with the bloodshot colour.
I instantly walked backwards in shock, seeing the same eyes I've been seeing in my dreams and and waking life for the past two years, as his lips turned into a cocky smirk, while I pointed my finger at him.
My other free hand instantly touched my mark on my neck, which always reminded me of his presence, as I finally realised why it was tingling during my walk into the forest.
"Y-You're..him? You're my guardian angel!? All this time it was you!? YOU!?" I yelled with chickened out eyes, as his smirk lingered at me while he held his head up high, showcasing his sharp jawline to me as a show off.
"Wait, something doesn't add up.." I muttered to myself, feeling the mark warm up under my palm, as he outgrew his own fangs to me for display, and instantly my head started playing images in my mind, reliving my memories after so long after seeing his true form.
♔
"What's your name?" He asked me suddenly, breaking the thick silence around us.
I was about to make my smart mouth run perfect words at his face, stabbing his soul to ask me a question like that when he himself is not telling me anything about him, but I never expected the answer that came out from me.
"Diana." I muttered, suddenly conscious of whether my name is good enough or not, as he clicked his tongue.
"Diana..." He tested my possession of a name on his lips, making me shiver in delight as he muttered it seductively.
"What's yours?" I asked innocently, looking at him curiously, as he shifted his gaze from the ceiling to my eyes.
"Call me Zar." He sighed, scanning my whole face with no shame, as I gulped and bite my lip while looking away in shyness.
♔
"Zari?!" I asked in shock, as his eyes twitched in amusement again, while he chuckled at me.
"Zari? What kind of name is that?" The redhead asked with a spit.
"Why is she addressing him like that?" Another unknown voice questioned.
"She's a mere human, how is she getting the privilege to even touch him?!" Someone whisper-yelled.
"You even outsmarted my powers, you never fail to enlighten me love." He snickered at me, as I finally put all the pieces together after the whole scene that night, and I glared at him.
The hike.
The smoke.
The cabin.
The wounded beast.
The blood.
The kitchen.
The kiss.
The bite.
His bite.
"You." I grumbled at him angrily, as he didn't take off his smirk from his face, as I stormed towards him with no hesitation,
And slapped him, really hard.
"YOU NUTTER! You had the bloody audacity to use your manipulation powers ON ME to make me forget the night of the blood moon!? And then literally had the guts to watch over me FOR TWO WHOLE YEARS!? You bloody beast!" I lectured him, profoundly frustrated while I slapped his chest, as he formed his lips into the thin, before his chest rumbled in laughter.
Everyone around me almost screamed at my action again, as I couldn't care less about their opinion or reactions, while I grabbed his coat roughly and shook him in anger, but he didn't move a muscle.
"FOR TWO WHOLE YEARS ZARI! Two. Whole. Years. No conversation, no closure, NO ANYTHING!'Oh! Let's go annoy little Diana and watch her like a bloody creep!' IN THE DARN SHADOWS! 'Let's be little knight in shining armour disguising the monster inside me!' I am gutted." I whined as he just looked at me, stifling a laugh into his system, and I groaned in frustration.
"To think something was wrong with me WHEN YOU LITERALLY TORMENTED MY LIFE FOR TOO LONG! You didn't utter a word! You left me out in the blue, you thought it was a good idea to leave me dumbfounded," I snarled at him, before he circled his arms around me waist for his own satisfaction, pulling me closer to him while I raised my hands in protest.
"You,"
Slap.
"Are,"
Stomp.
"The most,"
Kick.
"ANNOYING PERSON I'VE EVER MET!"
Punch.
"Ouch," He snickered playfully, as I flushed my cheeks in frustration at him, and he looked at me in awe.
"I guess I deserved that." He whispered to me, and I stretched my arms out to sustain a distance.
"You deserve much worse! Did you imprint me!? Did you leave this mark on my body!? Do you have any idea on how much I was called out by people because of it!? EVERYONE JUDGED ME! Even my own grandma judged me! My life was degraded." I complained non-stop, as something flashed in his eyes which was similar to anger, but like always, I ignored it.
"To be fair, you didn't really acknowledge the comments because you're not...exactly bothered..." He spoke with an innocent pout.
He's right.
I actually didn't care.
But it's fun to nag.
Super fun.
Hehe.
"Just shut up and let me complain! I deserve this chance to complain, you bugger!" I cried, face-palming so hard, that he rolled his eyes and came towards me again.
"Now now, enough with the dramatics. As much as I love to see your cute ways of getting upset, you've caused quite a scene already," He explained softly before covering my whole figure with his own coat, feeling instantly more warmer than more, resting the urge to just cuddle his clothing, and I pouted at him.
How is he going to stay warm-
Oh wait.
Never mind.
He doesn't.
"You've complained enough love. And now that your tantrum is finished, I think someone has some apologising to do." He glanced at the person named Caesar for a brief second, as the tough man gulped while looking at me, and my pout turned into a scrunched nose.
"Yes, you do." I poked him instead, as he chuckled again, before pulling me towards his figure, making me almost melt instantly, but I pulled away slightly, still annoyed with his actions.
"I have nothing to apologise for, what I did was to protect you and my kind from danger, I had my reasons." He defended himself.
"Protect me from what!? Blood sucking monsters who lurk during the blood moon!? You are one yourself! You drank from me!" I argued, making everyone gasp again.
Geez, they love to gasp, don't they?
"He drank from a human!?" A voice asked in utter horror.
"B-But we are forbidden to drink from humans.." A horrified mutter blazed the at atmospheric aroma.
"Is that's what is on her neck? Is that a mark!?" Another voice gushed.
"He claimed a freaking human!?" Almost everyone gasped.
"Give me a break." I groaned while throwing my arms in the air in frustration.
"You drank from her sire!?" Blondie asked in shock.
"I had to, and she insisted that I drink from her." Zari rolled his eyes.
"A HUMAN WILLINGLY LET A VAMPIRE BITE HER!?" Everyone yelled, making me wince as I covered my ears.
"Geez, I had no choice." I whined.
"What do you mean you had no choice you mutt!? Did you just do that so that you can trap our-"
"Be careful of how you speak to her David, she is the reason why I am alive today." Zari growled at blondie, as everyone was speechless after that.
"She...w-what?" The redhead questioned.
"Oh yeah, apparently some wolves attacked him, and I came to his cabin in the woods to get help because I was lost, then I saw almost on the verge of death, so I had to aid him." I stated the obvious.
"You did not turn around and run away after seeing him in his true form?" Caesar gawked.
"No? And I couldn't just let someone die, monster or not, I'm not leaving an injured man on his own." I huffed.
"You're telling us that you willingly let the most dangerous creature in this kingdom to have a bite from you?" David, the blond guy asked.
"Are you going to keep repeating what we said over and over again? Yes, I made him drink from me, yes, I did it willingly, and no, he's not a monster or the most dangerous creature. If he was one, I would've been dead by now." I shrugged.
"You didn't kill her!?" The redhead gasped.
Immediately Zari shook his head and looked at me with pure intentions of...I don't know. Reading him was almost impossible, and it frustrated me even more because I couldn't understand what was going on in his mind.
"No. I didn't want to, she helped me without any hesitation and put her life on the line, and yet is the reason why I'm standing here in front of you. Good decision if I must say. So in the end, it's better if you all treat her the same way as me from now on." Zari ordered in a dominating voice, as everyone stared at him like some chickens at his serious tone.
"B-But...why did you mark her? In fact, how did you mark her!? She's human! She can't be marked! Let alone from a vampire like you!" Caesar exclaimed.
"Bloody hell, what is this mark business? And why are you implying him as a vampire who's so special? He's just like you all right?" I snorted.
"Don't you know? He's the-"
"Stop." Zari commanded in a different voice, as everyone's eyes around me changed into a colour of pure silver, and they froze in their spots.
"Okay, is this some kind of vampire bit which I'm not familiar with? If so, THIS IS NOT FAIR!" I whined, while shaking Zari beside me, as he snapped out of his trance and looked at me.
"Now, he's the what?" I asked Caesar to finish his sentence, as he gulped while looking at him with nervous eyes.
"H-He's special because...he's the commander of the vampire army. Yeah, h-he's that." Caesar laughed nervously, as I eyed Zari with suspicion, and he gave me a loving grin.
"That's adequate I guess, at least he's not as cruel as the Prince." I huffed, as everyone took a short intake of breath together, making me frown.
"You think the Prince is cruel?" Zari questioned me with confusion laced in his eyes.
"I just overhead the redhead talk about how..the Prince killed many men with just a single bite. That's brutal." I muttered softy, as he looked away from me and turned to the redhead with a cold expression, making her sweat.
"The Prince has his reasons for the actions he has committed." He defended.
"But why does it have to result in the death of other vampires? Shouldn't he be protecting his species?"
"That's what he exactly did. Trust me love, those imbecile biters would've destroyed the whole kingdom if they overtook the throne, including my people, and yours." He chuckled casually, as I nodded in understanding, letting guilt flood me for judging the royal family way too quickly.
"I'll be the judge of how cruel he is once I meet him." I scoffed while dusting myself, as some people coughed in the background.
"Sure." Zari confirmed, holding me even tighter than before.
"But still...how is she imprinted? You know that's impossible, r-right Zar?" David laughed while rubbing his neck.
"I know, it was quite fascinating for myself as well, I guess we will have to take her to Lucien." Zari muttered.
"Who's Lucien? Is he an even crueler vampire!?" I deadpanned.
"No, he's not a vampire." Zari replied.
"Then what is he?"
"A wizard."
"A what?! Even wizards exist!? Now what are you going to tell me, mermaids? Witches? Dragons? DEMONS!?"
"What now then your highne-I mean, Zar? She knows too much about us already, we just can't let her go back to the village again." The redhead crossed her arms.
"Wait, I remember you telling me Zar is not your real name, yet everyone is calling you that. What is your real name?" I asked Zari skeptically while crossing my own arms too.
I could clearly hear everyone shift uncomfortably around me as soon as I asked that, and some of theme even gulped loudly.
What are they hiding?
"Hmm, good question," He muttered, not even answering me, and I glared at him again.
"She's not going back, she's coming with me."
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