• Chapter 3
    Namine woke to the sounds of birds, her eyes slowly opened to see her bedroom and Lara, her father, and her personal guard Makia stood around her. She slowly sat up to face Makia, “What happened?” She asked.

    Makia shook her head, “that’s what I wanted to know.”
    Namine thought about it, “What do you mean?”
    Crossing her arms and shrugging Makia frowned, “I want to know what you saw, and did you see anything abnormal?”
    “Abnormal?” Namine thought to herself, should she tell Makia about the cloaked man? Namine decided that she didn’t want to; she didn’t want to get involved. “No I didn’t see anything… Just the bolt coming down.”
    Makia sighed, “fine, stay in here princess, we must go investigate.” Makia turned and sighed shaking her head, she walked out of the room with Namine’s father behind her. Lara’s eyes traveled to Namine’s, and then she walked over to Namine.
    “I am so very sorry about your loss,” Lara said distressfully, “If that would have happened to me, I wouldn’t know what to do.”
    Namine nodded while her eyes dodged away from Lara’s, and took her hand and placed it on the bed frame. She looked outside, the streets were dark, and deserted; Namine realized she should get a breath of fresh air to clear her mind. Turning slowly to face Lara she smiled, “Lara, can you please leave me so I can rest?”
    Smiling gracefully Lara nodded, “yes, my lady, call me when you need me.”
    When Lara left Namine listened to hear if she was finally gone, when she was sure she went over to her closet. The doorknob turned slowly the door opened slowly; Namine looked inside the dark closet, and then went to the back of the closet feeling for the door. Finally, she felt it and she turned the knob. Slowly the door opened and Namine climbed in, making sure to close the door behind her. She felt the air hit her face as she neared the end of the tube. Namine climbed out and was in a dark alley way, she looked around slowly, if she was caught she would be in trouble since it was past curfew. Namine slowly walked, but then she heard something behind her, quickly she turned.
    “Who is there?”
    A sheer deep voice came from the darkness, “Princess’s shouldn’t be up this late, “
    Namine looked around here, “if you’re a guard I will go back inside immediately I just needed to grab my bag.”
    A laugh came from the darkness, “Please, I am no guard, I am the least of your problems.”
    “Who are you?”
    “Fine I will tell you, I have no reason to hide,” replied the voice. All the sudden a man stepped out of the darkness wearing a dark cloak.
    Namine gasped and pointed, “You’re the one from the bar and the window!”
    The man started clapping, “Wahoo, you finally got it, thanks for covering for me.” The man reached up to his hood and pulled it down revealing his face. He had black short spiky hair and some hair on his chin. His eyes were bright and hypnotized Namine as she stared into the depths of his eyes. The man looked into Namine’s eyes, “is there something wrong? You got so quiet princess, don’t worry I won’t do anything to you. You saved me, and I saved you I can’t do anything to you since we are even.”
    Namine shook her head, “I don’t trust you.”
    The Man came closer, and put his hands out, “why not? Are you scarred of me?”
    Namine nodded, “if you want me to trust you tell me your name, your real name.”
    Without any pause the man answered quickly, “Thayne.”
    Namine started to calm herself; maybe he didn’t mean any harm after all, “My name is Namine.”
    Thayne started to walk around the alley, “I know who you are, don’t worry your name is well known, and just telling you, I am not a murderer. I do things for my nature.”
    Namine didn’t understand what he meant, she couldn’t move her eyes away from him, and something was different about him. Unsure of what it was Namine started to say goodbye when suddenly someone interrupted.
    “Hey! It is past the curfew!”
    Namine turned seeing a guard come up to them wielding a sword. Thayne jumped in front of Namine, “Namine, go back inside, I will handle this, just remember we aren’t even anymore.” Thayne ran ahead and the guards followed him just then Namime started to climb back up the tunnel. She finally got back to her room.
    Namine slowly walked to her bed and removed her boots, and changed into her soft nightgown. She slowly lay onto the bed, surprisingly she was very tired. She started to lay her head down and close her eyes, within moments she was fast asleep.

    Chapter 4

    The morning was bright and glistened brightly threw Namine’s window. As she slowly rose up she yawned and stretched, slowly fixing her hair. Suddenly, Namine heard a knock on the door, and jumped to the sound, but turned to the door, “Come in.”
    The door opened and it was Lara, she came in with Namine’s breakfast and set it on a table next to the bed. “Good morning Lady Namine,” Lara said happily.
    Namine smiled and continued brushing her hair, but then stopped. Normally Namine’s father came in each morning, but he didn’t this time. “Lara, where is my father?”
    Lara stacked towels in Namine’s bathroom, “your father had to go to an important meeting,” Lara replied. “Apparently they found something, a vampire, perhaps… “
    “Really,” Namine said, “aren’t vampires supposed to be…”
    “Extinct? Yes, they are, “replied Lara.
    Namine couldn’t believe it, she wanted to get ready, and Namine wasn’t really in the mood for talking. Namine smiled at Lara, “Lara can I please get ready, by myself?”
    Lara smile, “of course you can,” then left the room.
    Namine walked around the room, for some reason the picture of Thayne’s face was glued into her mind. She couldn’t remove it, she didn’t know why but the thought came up about how he was different. She wondered how? As she focused her eyes on the mirror brushing her hair she saw something in the corner of her eyes. A flock of birds? No, too big to be birds. What were they? As they got closer Namine took a pair of goggles and looked through them, to get a closer look. Through them she saw people with wings, were they vampires? Were they coming for the other vampire? Namine had to tell her father, so quickly she ran to the council room.

    * * * * *

    Namine ran through the door and looked around seeing lots of men and council leaders. At once they all looked at her, with sour old man looks. Namine didn’t explain herself at all, she just ran in, “papa! There are vampires coming here!” she yelled. “Please believe me! I think they are coming for the one you guys captured! Please everyone needs to get to safety quick or grab weapons!”
    The council just stared mouth opened wide, then one stood and spoke, “if this is true then we should listen to the girl’s words. Now everyone get out of here and find weapons we must protect our town.”
    Just then all the leaders got up, including her father. “Namine, please stay inside here we will lock the doors, you will be safe.”
    All the leaders left to go outside and they locked the giant locks on the doors, just like they said. Namine was scarred and shaken up; she looked around the room seeing a giant cage with something in it. Namine walked over to it touched the bars of the cage. She stood right in front of the figure realizing that it was Thayne that was in the cage.
    Namine couldn’t believe her eyes, Thayne was the vampire? How? She trusted him, but he didn’t say he was the vampire… Namine was confused, her mind was lost in thought as she tried to think, she knew there was something different about him, maybe that’s what it was. Namine didn’t want to appear scarred so she walked calmly to the cage, she looked Thayne in the eyes and saw what her father did, his eyes were filled with pain, and anguish. She bent her head down, “You’re the vampire?”
    Thayne lifted his head up slowly to look Namine in the eyes, “you disappointed right? You want me dead now, just like other humans.”
    Thinking for a moment Namine didn’t know what to say, so seconds of silence took her place, finally she looked at the ground, “I do not want you dead, Thayne.”
    Thayne’s eyes dropped to the floor, “the vampires on their way here, Namine, are trying to get me.”
    Namine grabbed hold of the bars, “why!” she screamed.
    “I am their prince, they are coming to get me, and won’t stop till they find me,” replied Thayne. “Your town won’t be here much longer, you guys have no chance.”
    “What if they find you before that?”
    Lifting his head up slowly he shrugged, “how would they do that?”
    Namine backed up and started to walk around the cage, “what if I let you out of this cage? They would find you, and my town would be saved.”
    “You wouldn’t do that, you do not trust me any longer,” Thayne replied while slowly getting up.
    Namine clenched her fist, “do not assume! I am not like my father,” Namine replied. “I think the world should learn about trust. I still trust you.
    Thayne’s eyes widened he was still, like a statue, “you do?”
    Namine smiled, “Thayne I trust you because of the times you didn’t kill me when you could have, now that I know that you are a vampire I know that your trust does not change; besides I owe you.”
    Thayne tried to smile, “I wish it always worked that way…”
    Namine put her hands on the bar doors barricade, “So do you want out?”
    “Yes.”
    “Yes what?” Namine asked.
    “Please.”
    The barricade creaked as Namine opened it up slowly, she hoped and hoped that Thayne would keep his promise and not, well, eat her.
    Finally the door was open and Thayne started to try and walk out slowly, Namine looked at the scratches on his arms and back, is this what her father did. While lost in thought she noticed Thayne start to fall. She reached out and grabbed him before he fell; she draped his arm around her shoulder. And walked over to a window, “Can you get out that way?”
    Thayne looked at the window, “I am not sure, I might be able to jump but I don’t think I will make it.”
    Namine starred at him, “Can’t you fly?”
    Thayne stood and turned his back toward Namine, on his back were stubs of where wings used to be. Namine gasped, “My father didn’t do that to you right?”
    Thayne shook his head solemnly, “no, this is from years ago,” he replied. “This is when humans took the town back over.”
    “What?” Namine asked.
    “I will explain later,” Thayne replied, “we don’t have much time, get me to the door, maybe I can break the lock.”
    Namine nodded and started to bring Thayne over to the door. She slowly backed away as Thayne grabbed the old lock and tried to bend it. Namine could hear the snaps of it; she heard it screech as the pieces scrapped against each other. But Thayne wasn’t able to break it, he stopped to rest. Namine went to go find something to open it; she looked around the dark room, and realized that her father had to have tools around the room somewhere. So she searched under the desks, until she found something peculiar, it was a box a really big box. So she blew the dust off of the box and slowly opened the top. Once it was opened it revealed a hammer, quickly she grabbed it and brought it over to Thayne.
    “Here!” Namine said as she handed the hammer to Thayne, “this will break the lock.”
    Thayne took the hammer slowly and got up off the cold solid ground, he started to lift the hammer above his head and bring it down fast on the lock. The sound clattered throughout his head, but he brought the hammer down again for the second time. This time the clatter was louder, and the lock broke in half. Thayne then dropped the hammer and reached to open the door, the door slowly opened revealing a hall way. Thayne slowly started to walk, carrying the hammer with him, Namine slowly went behind him.
    After traveling a little ways into the tunnel Thayne stopped and Namine heard a growl. Thayne grabbed his stomach, “I am a little hungry,” he said.”
    Namine jumped back, “oh please don’t eat me!”
    Thayne looked at her with a doubtful look, “I won’t, do you know if there are any knights down here?”
    Namine shook her head, “I don’t know,” she replied then gasped, “you're going to eat them huh!?”
    Thayne smiled and licked his lips, “yep,” he replied, “if we find any.”
    Namine gulped and kept quiet as Thayne kept walking forward, the tunnel was still quiet. But Thayne turned quickly to a clattering sound. Namine froze and backed away slowly, then it came again, but it was closer. It was behind her.