Yvaine Amarantha Zephyr Aranell was queen of the Faes, born under the waning blood eclipse moon on the night of the Samhain, she was a beacon of hope for her people.
She was nicknamed the Blood Queen.
A title that had been bestowed upon her by her father Perseus Zephyr Aranell.
For as long as it was possible she had kept the Fae secrets hidden from watchful eyes of Supernaturals and humans alike and protected her kingdom, just like her father had done for a hundred of years and her predecessors had done.
She had veered off the rails a couple of time, who wouldn't? Being a Fae Queen was not an easy task, it was a lifelong commitment which came with a lot of burden and sacrifice. So far, Yvaine had managed it.
The past few days had been worrisome for her. Finding Lacey wasn't as easy as she hoped it would have been.
It also didn't make it any easier that looking at Lacey reminded her of Lila.
The two of them were spitting images of her, she couldn't deny them even if she wanted to. And that even made the loss of Lila even more harder, seeing as her death could have been avoided. If she had not meddled.
She had been stupid enough to bring them to the world, stupid of her to leave them with their fathers. But it was the best way to protect them. It was the best motherly care she could give them because in her world they would simply be killed. It was as simple as that.
Half breeds were frowned upon, rarely tolerated, the punishment used to be death. But Yvaine managed to relax the laws, although it didn't make them any less acceptable.
She had relaxed the laws with hopes that one day her own daughters would be able to be finally accepted in her world but it was still the same.
The Faes were a secretive bunch, they had their own laws, customs and traditions that had kept them grounded for years. Anyone not part of them was an outsider and they considered them different.
She felt Azure's presence before she entered the room and she tightened her fists in anger. She needed her privacy, a few moments alone to think on her next action plan.
There was so much more for her to do.
Azure could be very intrusive sometimes, she always managed to interrupt her. But without her, she wouldn't have been able to find her way around the city.
Azure had proven invaluable to her. She was the one who helped trigger Lacey's Fae abilities in the first place. If she had not bitten Lacey that night when she was with Aidas, Lacey wouldn't have reached the Settling till she was twenty five.
And Yvaine didn't have the patience to wait that long, not when she needed such a big power source she could tap from to further her plans.
"Any luck?"
Yvaine asked as she watched Azure saunter into her open makeshift office and collapsed on a nearby chair.
Her freshly dyed blonde hair was a mess and her eyes were still teeming with bloodlust.
"I don't know. I haven't checked up on her. I was busy having dinner."
She smiled widely as she sucked off the blood off her fingers. Yvaine turned away in disgust. It never ceased to amaze her how Vampires delighted in drinking human blood. It felt unclean to Yvaine. She couldn't imagine ever taking so much pleasure in something so mundane.
The only time she rather enjoyed seeing blood was when it was the blood of her enemies.
"I'm beginning to get impatient."
Azure shrugged.
"Why? It's only been two days and you did mention that it would take a few days."
Yvaine shrugged.
"Yes. I did. But the amount of pain she has been feeling, it's abnormal..."
"Lila didn't go through that much agony."
She added ignoring the tightening in her chest as she concentrated on the chipped wooden desk.
Azure rolled her eyes.
"Well... Lila is half werewolf. Lacey's half human you know that? Humans can be weak."
There was a prolonged silence as Yvaine started thinking deeply. Perhaps she had overestimated the strength of Lacey and the limit of her powers.
"I've been meaning to ask you something..."
Azure said and Yvaine raised her eyebrows. A question? From Azure?
Well, Azure barely asked her any meaningful questions before so she wasn't expecting much.
"I suppose since we find ourselves in each other's company I would have no choice but to answer."
"You had two children, at least that's what I think. And you had them even when you knew it was forbidden."
"Why did you even do it?"
Yvaine smiled. No one had ever asked her that question. Because nobody knew. Her very own subjects didn't know about her offsprings, only a select few who warned her it would be better to leave them in the human world and forget they ever existed.
"Being a Queen... Especially when you're Fae. It's one of the hardest challenges I've ever encountered."
Azure chuckled, she knew a bit of how harsh their laws could be.
"And of course I made a few mistakes and slipped up quite a few..."
"And much like the human world where you're allowed to go on vacations and work leaves, I was given my own sort of vacation."
"It lasted for about three years although I stayed a little longer."
Yvaine could remember the day as vivid as it was yesterday. Her sister was put in control and she had left happily for her holiday. The first city she had visited was Lorelai. The City of Stars. The only city with the highest population of humans.
She spent the first three months there before moving to Aron City, she always had ties with the City.
"And yes, I met two very different men in the space of five years. And imagine my shock when I found out I could get pregnant for non Faes."
"What do you mean?"
Yvaine chuckled.
"My dear, procreation for Faes is terribly hard. We manage with what we can but it's a difficult and excruciating process. The former Queen wasn't even my biological mother because she couldn't bear children."
"But you could?"
Yvaine nodded.
"I suppose I have my birth mother to thank for that. Fertile Faes are a high commodity in the Fae marriage market."
"I also didn't think it was possible to have half breeds. There were so many myths surrounding them that I didn't know a lot, just that they were forbidden."
"So, when you had Lila, you just let her go?"
Yvaine shrugged. It wasn't a particularly hard decision for her, the birth had been excruciating, she thought she was going to die. She had prayed to the gods to spare her life so that she might ask for forgiveness for giving birth to an halfbreed.
The minute Lila was born, she couldn't even stand the cries of the poor baby. For the first few days she glamoured a human woman into thinking it was her baby so the woman would feed her.
Till she was finally able to drop her off with her father's family.
"I had to. I am Queen of the Faes. I had a duty to my kingdoms. And I had to show a good example."
"What would become of my reputation if my subjects heard I had half breeds for daughters?"
She asked and Azure shrugged.
"Well, you clearly didn't care enough to do it again did you?"
Yvain narrowed her eyes at Azure who shrugged. She was right, but Lacey's conception had been unplanned too.
"Trust me, Lila was as much as a mistake as Lacey was."
But her birth had been much easier with the help of human medicine. But had also left too soon. A call back home sent her scrambling out of the hospital even in her blood drenched dress and back to her world.
She never looked back.
Although over the years she managed to try and keep tabs on her daughters, there really wasn't much she could do than to watch them from afar.
"You're a very interesting character Your Majesty."
"Hmmmm... What makes you say that?"
Yvaine asked and Azure shrugged.
"Everything. It's quite interesting. You abandoned your daughters for years only to come back and use their powers for your own personal gains."
"The very reason you rejected them years ago is the very reason you're back for them."
Yvaine smiled coldly.
It sounded crueler than she had imagined in her head.
Azure was right.
"A necessity I must say. If I'm to fight the battles at hand, I must be prepared."
"You still haven't told me about that. What's really going on? I thought I've earned your trust."
"My trust?"
Yvaine exclaimed as she started cackling.
"Don't be silly Vampire. I'd rather burn on a cross than trust a bloodsucking vampire."
"Do not mistake my friendliness for trust. And don't ever think you can double cross me, There's a reason I'm called the Blood Queen."
Azure shifted uncomfortably in her seat, perhaps she had been too forward in asking her questions. The Queen was still very guarded about what she was planning.
"Hmmmmm. I'm sorry if my questions offended you."
Azure bowed her head lowly, trying to conceal her disappointment with a smile.
"Oh no! I'm glad you were at least brave enough to ask."
"Now! Enough of the chit chat. Are you keeping tabs on my daughter's lovers?"
She taunted and Azure grinned.
"They're falling over their heads looking for her. And that's not even the funny part, they appear to be working together!"
"Ugh! I'd rather they expend their energy on much more fruitful ventures. Like the Candidacy for example."
"Don't they have a new candidate."
Azure raised her eyebrows.
"Yes, they do. How do you know about that?"
She asked and Yvaine smirked.
"It's simple Azure."
"Know thy enemy."