The demonic prince .1

Morning dew dripped off the leaves of the herbs in the garden that stood outside the small cottage the following morning, the small village only just starting to wake back up. There was nothing stirring from the building- not a sound in the area aside from the faint rustle of leaves that stirred in the early spring breeze and the subtle crunch of footsteps that gradually started to approach the cottage.

The mailman Gus was now walking over to the fence, a notice in his hand as he hummed faintly to himself merrily. The day before he hadn't gotten much chance to talk to the local wide lady about much, since the old woman that visited carried him off. But today he had an excuse to visit once more, there being an announcement to a festival happening in a local town near the village. He wanted to use the chance to hear from Erika who the letter she reciprocated was from... and to also ask if she nay be interested in going to the festival with anyone. The young boy flustered a little at the thought as he scratched his head and cleared his throat as he got to the fence. Well... it wasn't as if his chances were totally out if the question... afterall, Erika never really left the cottage at all for any reason.

"E-Erika, I have your mail here... huh...?" He started off in his usual chipper tone... though his words started to trail off as he noticed that the front door of the cottage had been left open... and not a reply came from it...

He would not get a answer to his calls, or to his offer to the festival... nor would he get his mail stolen from the small cat that lived there again... as, as quick as the night rain had graced the small village in a valley with water and departed, so too had the young girl and cat in the distant cottage vanished without a trace...

Down a path that was much smoother than any you would find in the tiny little village, a small black carriage wobbled about, being led by a white horse and driver- guards also riding horses to either side of it... at a first glance you would think they were protecting somebody incredibly important inside there... one wouldn't guess that a potential convict in the eyes of the countries laws was being transported in there. The carriage had rode through the night without stopping, giving it's inhabitants very little chance to sleep... though even if they were comfortable enough to, sleep seemed out the question for the two. The carriage was now approaching what looked to be a large city with giant walls- one that could only mean a bad omen to them both.

Erika stared out the carriage nervously, looking up to the towering castle gates up overhead, the tower spires looking down at her almost judgementally. The scale of this giant palace in contrast to the tiny cottages in her village quite suddenly made her feel incredibly small.

"Sweetie, we are no longer in Asul..." Mira muttered from Erika's lap, staring out the window as Erika shrunk up into herself nervously... She had spent a long and tiring night with her thoughts in a whirl, scared and only with Mira at her side to keep her company. After quite literally yanking Erika from her home, the guards promptly threw her into the rather fancy looking carriage without much more to say to her other than she shouldn't try jumping out the carriage as it moved. They said nothing further about the person who had asked for her or the place they were going. Though she had a rather clear idea in her mind of the importance of the place she was now being carted away to had.

This palace was the heart of her kingdom... the place that was the heart of all the witch persecutions round the country... and now she was being taken there. Erika clenched her hands against her dress, feeling a little sickly as the carriage road on through the large golden laden gates, down into the field sized courtyard of the palace. They had not mentioned a word of her being a witch neither when she was captured or on the journey up to the palace... however she couldn't think for what other reason somebody like her would even be called to there... her mind had thoughts of escaping throughout the night, however, she realised that in doing so, she probably would be setting her fate more in concrete than she would just staying put. Right now, the worst thing she could realistically do was panic...

It wasn't too long before the carriage came to a sudden stop, Erika freezing up as it did; for moments waiting with with a trapped breath to see what it was that would happen next... when then the door beside her opened, bringing with it a almost blinding bright light in contrast to this little carriage that had all its windows covered in large curtains... Two of the guards who had picked her up greeted her at the entrance, walking back to the side of both doors to clear way for her to exit... and between them waiting for her as though he had been expecting her for a while was a rather tall, skinny, older looking man with greying hair receding from the top of his scalp like a retreating wave. He wore a rather luxurious formal black tuxedo adorned with blue and golden patterns, showing that he perhaps was of higher standing than the guards around her, and his sharp hazel eyes were hidden behind some thick spectacles. The man straightened his blue tie before he looked down to Erika curtly.

"You are Miss Erika Hartell if I am correct?" The man questioned Erika simply as at first all Erika did was stare blankly to the man, at a loss for how she should even process her being there before who appeared to be a noble right now... in those few passing seconds of nothing but silence, Erika struggled to bring herself to talk, feeling a sudden anxiety set within her chest... however it was in this moment that Erika decided to try an build some courage within her, gulping before she nodded...

"Y-yes... I am Erika Hartell..." she responded as from the density of the mans spectacles the man seemed to look her up and down without saying much as though he were analysing her worth... before he then cleared his throat.

"I see... you may refer to me as Lord Ivor, his majesty Prince Leon the second's royal advisor, and the one who sent these guards to come and pick you up at the prince's request..." the man introduced himself flatly, not seeming to want to make idle chit chat with the girl. At once Erika's concerns began to resurface... so he was the one who sent the guards for her... someone who was so important within the palaces hierarchy, it made Erika only more aware of how out of her league she was being in such a place. Lord Ivor then moved to the side, gesturing for Erika to leave the carriage and join him outside. "You are to follow me from here Miss Hartell. Your belongings will be dealt with by the guards from here..." Lord Ivor then explained stoically as Erika remaining seated for a second... she wanted to pinch herself to make sure she was awake before she did anything else, however it was as the man raised an eyebrow at her delay, Erika cautiously rose to her feet as she picked up Mira...

Slowly and shakily Erika got out from the carriage, peering all around her as she did so nervously, awaiting some trap to be awaiting her. And yet none appeared to come as instead, Erika found herself becoming rather taken aback by the scenery around her... The courtyard of the palace was beautifully maintained, even more than Erika could have ever imagined them to be, it being surrounded by amasses of gardens to either side of them, filled to the brim with flowers and shrubbery that seemed to arrange round pathways, all in the golden and blue colours of the royal flag. The pure white palace itself from within the castle walls was huge and breathtakingly designed, the intricate building stretching for what appeared to be miles around them, the mix of white and gold around it almost making it glisten like the sun that was shining above them. It was almost hard to believe that a building to such a scale could even exist to begin with- in the village she had never seen a building any larger than a a village hall. She couldn't even begin to imagine just how many of said village halls could fit into this structure... Most notably from the centre of the palace, there were glass windows adorned with golden frames; the glass within seeming to stand out almost like a blue gem as it reflected the open blue sky above them, this helping it match with the gold and blue colour scheme the rest of the palace had... and if it were not for the reasons that Erika was here, normally she would have been mystified by such a sight. She doubted ordinary person of her status could even step foot near this courtyard, let alone within the palace...

In the moments she was awed by the scenery around her, she almost forgot her own nerves despite nerves, finding herself becoming lost in the grandeur of the courtyard... though such a minor minds peace was quickly brought to pause...

"Miss Hartell, please follow..." Lord Ivor then reminded her as both she and Mira jumped a little to his voice... when she looked back with a small, timid bow.

"O-of course..." she stammered, quickening her pace to follow the royal advisor as they made they now headed out of the courtyards and to the castle steps, up to the luxuriant palace...

Inside the palace was just as magnificent and beyond the imagination as the outside, the floors being laid out with blue carpets with golden trimming, that matched that of the subtle blue the ivory walls and floor gave off... The halls were long, seeming to go on forever after trailing off from the large and finely decorated and carved entrance hall to the palace. Despite only being the paths to the many rooms in the palace, these hallways were still lavishly decorated with a magnitude of fancy furnishing that stood proudly between doors and large windows that allowed for more natural lighting than Erika thought could be possible inside a building...

It was on their travels down these halls that Erika started to notice some of the personalisation's of the royal family within the palace, more so all the many large scale portraits that had been made recording moments in the lives of the many generations of the royal family up until this point. Many of the images appeared to look rather normal, if not flashy to how such a rich family would live.

"Miss Hartell... do you have any sort of knowledge on the royal family..." Lord Ivor brought up, upon their journey down the hallway, seeming to notice Erika's attention to such a detail as Erika flinched a little, at first not knowing on whether she should respond... she lowered her head faintly.

"We... well outside what I heard from other people, I'm afraid... not too much... I've lived a pretty sheltered life..." Erika explained stiffly, realising only part way through talking that it was perhaps an even worse idea to go meet a fearsome leader without knowing anything on his home or life. "I... I know that the royalty are very powerful and highly regarded though..." Erika tried to make a small correction to what she was saying as Lord Ivor kept walking, not looking back to her.

"I see..." he responded blandly, appearing unphased in contrast to the young girls over worrying to such small details... It was with this that they came across a new hallway with a large painting within the middle of it between two windows this time that looked to be larger than any other painting they had come across so far... and much more different in tone...

"Well you are correct in that they are powerful... Since his majesties great grandfather, our country has grown magnificently... enough to even rival countries like that of Mycyridel if I might add..." Lord Ivor noted as they continued to walk past the large painting that caught Erika's eye... It was a large portrait, a rather eerie and terrifying looking man sitting upon a throne with a rather aggressive looking expression on his face. His clothes made to make him seem as large as possible as though to only enhance the presence he had in the painting. He was clearly royalty... and by appearance he was very much human... however his eyes... and the energy the man seemed to give off was not... it was almost filled with complete bloodlust that sent chills up Erika's spine. Somehow, even though the person in the painting was not in real life front of them, his being on the painting made it feel like he could leap off and attack the young girl at any more...

"Of course, the late king Astar was also the king that brought in the regulations and laws against magic... famous for his witch hunts..." Lord Ivor went on as Erika's eyes widened as she realised who it was exactly that she was looking at in this painting, her body at once shuddering to this as she found herself instinctively looking away from it... it made her chest feel icy and heavy... That was the late king...? She began to dawdle behind the lord, her feet becoming weighted in anxiety. If that was the father of the prince she was soon to confront, then what of his son...? The prince who through rather morbid tales she had heard from the mouths of villagers was another fabled if not more fearsome witch hunter...

Was she going to be killed if she went any further...?

Her raising fears were put on the back burner as Lord Ivor turned to face her once again, having walked quite a distance ahead of her...

"Miss Hartell, if you don't keep up I will ask guards to escort you instead..." Lord Ivor stated firmly as Erika realised that in this situation, she had no other option than to face what she was going to be confronted with head on... just as many others of her kind had done so in the past, against such a horrifying kind of presence she needed to see this all out with a little bit of courage. With a slight shake, she clenched her hand a little... when she then caught back up with the lord.

"I apologise..." she told him as Lord Ivor once more, didn't react to her timid replies, turning back around to lead her to where she needed to be... Erika following, trying to qwell her fears deep within her...

And it was soon that they reached that place in question.

Lord Ivor took Erika to a large ivory doorway that took up the space of the entire wall. To either side of it was a guard who stood up straight whilst saluting upon seeing Lord Ivor, not even taking a passing glance to Erika; who kept her distance from behind Lord Ivor, staring nervously to the doorway she stood before. Lord Ivor raised his hand to the door dully.

"Is his majesty ready?" Lord Ivor inquired as one of the guards replied to him promptly.

"Unfortunately he seems to have had some troublesome guests this morning sire..."

Lord Ivor's eye brow lowered a little, for once changing the expression upon his face as he went on to open the door despite the guards report.

"I see, that most likely won't last long..." he responded impassively, opening up the large door, when he looked back to Erika who had seemed to move back even more steps in the time it took for the door to open.

"Miss Hartell you are to follow me in here..." he told her as Erika gave an uncertain expression to the door which seemed to match the scale of the worries within her chest... In the room behind this door was the prince and soon to be king of this kingdom... son of the fabled witch hunter who slaughtered hundreds of her kind. A rumoured witch hunter himself... every sense in her was telling her to try and run back now as she gripped on tighter to the small cat that was in her arms, Mira looking up to her as though to see what Erika's resolve would be... however it was after some thought that the young witch took a deep breath, allowing for her racing mind to calm down... It was a hesitant yet clear nod that Erika gave in response, agreeing to follow the lord into the large room, having to numb her mind to such thoughts... she was terrified.. that was a given and she dreaded just what sort of fate awaited her if she allowed herself to walk into that room, however... amidst her worry came a certain curiosity... just who was the prince... the person she hadn't yet seen any such painting of around the palace, despite seeing his family decorated everywhere...

It seemed her answers were soon to come into her, as when thru entered the room, the walked in to a frantic conversation.

"B-B-But your highness, we can offer so much to the royals... won't you please reconsider..."

A wealthy and well rounded looking man in fine clothes beseeched as they entered, sitting, much rather cowering within the middle of the surprisingly much smaller room to what Erika expected. And yet somehow, it perhaps being even more finely decorated than the rest of the palace, the smaller scale really allowing the many luxuries of the room to stand out in their quantity and scale... and to whom the man was cowering from... well it was obvious from the moment that both Erika and the lord had entered the room, it seeping from the far end of the room as though it was a cryptid and engulfing shadow. A presence that made Erika's every hair stand on end, causing her to back up as she was instantly impacted by a heavy and intense pressure around them. Mira herself appeared to react, the cats body raising up in a defence as she bore her fangs within Erika's arms.

"That's no normal human..." Mira whispered amidst a hiss...

Sitting on a large marble throne, amidst royal blue tapestries; in which's opulence was all but drowned out by a seething demonic aura that was even stronger than the one Erika felt from the painting of the late king, was the current prince and heir to the throne of Veria. Somebody who gave off an atmosphere and bloodlust even more fearsome than rumours had spoken of...one that would have any ordinary person trying to escape its grasp the moment they had been struck with it. The feeling of power and malice that came off one person almost seemed to try and consume you, as though it were feasting off the terror it caused and using it to amplify its strength

...and yet...

...and yet the person who sat on the throne before her, was merely but a teen, a similar age to herself. A young boy with short hair as golden as the decorations around the room, strands of his hair curling off into different directions. He was wearing a fine white tunic with gold and blue embroidery sown within it; the inside of his cape being a deep sky blue that he wore to match that tunic. His trousers followed the theme of golden embroidery, with lay neatly decorated upon the bottom cuffs of his black jeans and dangling from his ear was a single gem from an earring, almost glowing in the colour if the tapestry around him. Yet what stood out to Erika most was the coldness of his pretty looking emerald green eyes... they looked almost as though they themselves were a luxury of this palace, filled with a obvious glimmer of life and yet... so stoic and harsh...

He looked like the image people often idealised a prince to be, the first thought Erika would think when she thought of an ordinary prince.. . Handsome and well brought up, almost as though he had stepped out of a fairytale hook himself... Yet somehow the presence he gave off spoke of a completely different story... This visage of a young and pretty looking boy completely over swept by the ambiance of a monster. It had Erika completely baffled as much as terrified about the person before her...

"I thought I made myself clear..." the prince finally spoke up, his voice making Erika flinch and freeze the spot. His voice was extremely icy and fierce... The prince coldly looked down on the noble. "My answer is no... Now tell me, do you dare push further than you already have...?" The prince seethed as the noble bit his tongue, shuddering within himself... before he gulped meekly looking down with a stutter.

"N-N-No... forgive my impertinence your highness..." the noble begged as the prince tilted his head with a empty smile.

"Good... then we have nothing more to speak about from here..." he stated before he glanced over in Erika's direction, Erika feeling the colour drain from her face the instant she felt his eyes catch a passing glance of her... "I have more important matters to attend to..." the prince went on as the tongue tied noble remained frozen a little longer, being very contemplative on whether he should take his leave... when he the began to stutter more, a protest now bubbling up on his mouth... however without a single glance his way, the prince interrupted him.

"Lord Heiri, I would hate to make an example of you in front of others..." the prince simply stated as at once, this attempt at protesting stopped, the noble biting down on his tongue, almost loosing the ability to kneel up right at the prince's threats... before he then got off his knee's... keeping his head held low...

"Of course... your highness..." the noble muttered, using the tone of what sounded to be a broken man...

Lord Heiri slowly walked out the room with a slump, not arguing more in the matter as Erika watched the man wander out with a look of concern... just what conversation did she walk into...

Lord Ivor suddenly moved, the action panicking Erika in the moment as the cover she had from the prince's gaze had now moved away from her.

"Lord Ivor... I see you brought me a guest..." The prince pointed out as Erika fixed herself in place unable to move over more to the lords direction and hide; automatically lowering her head to the floor. His stare was so powerful, she couldn't bring herself to move at all, their eyes meeting would fill her with nothing but dread... A sudden fear had grasped her that had been instilled in her after a lifetime of horror stories told of the royals treatment of witches that now chained her in place, as though she had already been shackled for her existence upon being acknowledged by the prince. Lord Ivor then looked over to her; his eyebrow furrowing being the only dramatic change in expression on his face.

"You are to introduce yourself to his highness..." Lord Ivor stated firmly as Erika kept her head held down, unable to even move her eyes up to look at the prince, let alone speak to him. "Immediately..." Lord Ivor added in a more ushered tone as Mira whispered to her firmly.

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to Erika..." she stated quietly as for a moment Erika grimaced as she felt the prince's stare burn into her... she really didn't want to, rather more than anything right now, her very being was shouting, screaming at her to get as far away from him as possible... there was something about this prince that made her entire body feel as though she were in danger just being in front of him... however it was after a brief wavering of her resolve that she took a deep breath, picking up either side of her dress before she slowly walked to the centre of the room... It was then whilst keeping her head held low that she curtsied.

Erika opened her move as for a split second a small voice came out with an

"Ah..."

However for that moment that was all she could muster up. Fear had made her throat hoarse as she struggled to get her introduction out to him.

"Ah- I'm... I'm- uhm... Eri-Erika-"

Lord Ivor gave a sharp sigh from behind her, gesturing in her direction to the prince.

"This is Miss Erika Hartell... The one you wished to meet your majesty" Lord Ivor finished up for her, Erika's face steaming a bright red in frightened embarrassment, her eyes glued to the floor... when it was the that she realised something...

"I see..." Prince Leon muttered, taking off his glove and standing up, both Erika's realisation and the sound of the prince getting off his throne, garnering enough of her attention that she looked up.

Did he say wished to meet...?

Erika's eyes were greeted with the prince now off his throne a sincere look on his face as he at first seemed a little sceptical as he appeared to take a somewhat closer look at her... however it was after seeing her look up at him, that these brief doubts were cast aside, his expression becoming even more determined as he started taking large strides towards Erika very quickly, much to her alarm.

Erika backed up instinctively, the aura of the person quickly walking over to her roaring at her to run away with its bloodlust as she felt Mira become rather hostile in reaction to it.

"Erika, I'll claw at him, be ready to run!!" Mira began in a hushed whisper as Erika took more steps back in a panic... however Mira had barely finished saying this before he raised his hands over Erika much to her horror, Erika bracing herself to be hit...

However instead she found both of his hands landing on her shoulders...

...

Erika's tightly shut eyes opened slowly as she noticed the whole room, even Mira had turned to complete silence...

This near deafening silence dragged on even more as Erika in the eerie peace had found herself able to glance her one eye up in the direction of the prince... and it was as she did so that she found the prince staring intensely into her face, his emerald green eyes piercing into her as she felt a lump clog her throat... Huh...? What-

Very suddenly after a few seconds, the Prince's eyes then lit up, loosing all the coly abrasiveness they had before, becoming a lot more friendly and warm; a large smile donning the princes face as maybe in a shocked reaction, Erika finally found herself able to raise her head to look the prince properly in his face, being greeted by who she could have argued looked like a completely different person in that moment...

"Aha! You really are the right person afterall!" He exclaimed joyfully, his entire voice tone and mannerisms from before completely changing, Erika unmoving as she stared at him dumbfounded... Mira revealed herself from Erika's arms.

"Excuse me...?" She whispered, when it was then that prince Leon raised his one hand off her, waving over to Lord Ivor excitedly before Erika could even truly flinch at the notion of what he was doing.

"Lord Ivor, this girl really is the girl, look, see, I can actually touch her!!" He gushed jovially to the old man in the corner of the room who stoically fixed his glasses.

"Indeed she is..." he responded flatly, Erika looking over to Lord Ivor in bafflement when it was then that she felt the prince's hand poke her once again, her attention being brought back to him... and it was her in her complete confusion to his actions that she found herself able ignore her fear to ask

"What... what do you mean I really am the girl..." Erika inquired slowly as the prince stopped grinning cheerfully to himself... when he then looked at to her in slight surprise.

"Hmm? You don't know...? Did nobody tell you on your way up here?" He questioned passively as Erika silently shook her head, her brain starting to short circuit. Lord Ivor tuned in to explain for her.

"I thought it'd be best for the details for her coming here to be kept secret up until we confirmed things with the guards. We can't have your majesty's secret getting out, can we?" He noted in a clean manner as Prince Leon seemed to realise what was going on as looked back to Erika, who flinched somewhat upon him noticing her... when he then nodded, a cheery smile returning to his face.

"I see... Well I guess we have some explaining to do..." he noted, as he placed his hand lightly on her face looking at it intently, much to Erika's shock at his actions. "You really haven't changed much, have you...?" He questioned, Erika's face flushing in puzzled embarrassment as she stumbled backwards, much to the prince's surprise.

"Ah, is there a problem?" He asked as Erika grabbed her cheek, looking down to the floor as her confusion intensified with her silence. Everything had happened so fast, she had no idea to process it. Her entire life she had been told how fearsome the royal family was, so this...?!

"I-I'm sorry... I'm just a little confused right now..." Erika responded with a disorientated and distant expression, as Leon blinked twice at her... before he then seemed to give a sympathetic smile to her, as he placed a glove back onto his hand.

"Yes, well it must be alot to take in right now. I suppose we better explain ourselves, right Lord Ivor?" He then looked over to the advisor who simply bowed his head in response.

"If that is what you wish your majesty..." he replied, Leon remaining chipper as he turned to walk to a set of doors.

"Let's go into a more private space then!" He announced, leaving Erika to just stand there watching him with a daze, her hand on her cheek, Mira peering over her shoulder with quite the look of confusion in her eyes as well.

"Are... are we in the right palace...?" She whispered, as Erika could only find herself asking the same thing. This was meant to be the prince feared across the country, descendant to the biggest witch slayer across the lands. This entire time he had had an over powering aura come pouring out of him that even now still remained, however it was almost like the moment he had put his hand on her shoulders, he had completely changed in the blink of an eye...