The Vampire Princess

by P. Mattern

  I sighed. I wondered if I were happy.

  I knew that my moments in the Prince’s embrace drove all doubt from my mind. He still seemed like two different entities to me. One harsh and unyielding and brutal—the other tender and attentive and overly concerned for my safety.

  I couldn’t sort them out, and never wanted to when we were having sex. Sex with the Prince disconnected my overanalyzing rational brain from my body somehow.

  I was interrupted from my thoughts by Oliver .

  “It’s time you saw more of the Silo,” he told me, “If you’ll grab a bathing suit and a robe I’ll take you to the underground pool, the private one just for royals. There is one for the staff and general population also, but that one is usually sort of crowded—and dead people have been found floating in it unfortunately. The soldiers use it too, and they are an argumentative bunch. It’s kind of swim at your own risk.”

  My mouth fell open, and not for the first time that day.

  “I don’t even know if I own a bathing suit,” I said. The truth was in my former life as a human I hadn’t owned one since grade school. I was so self-conscious and embarrassed to be seen in one I refused to put one on and frequent the community pool with my few friends, though they begged me repeatedly.

  One of my handmaidens appeared from nowhere and threw open an armoire in the corner. Rifling through the items of apparel hanging there she pulled out a stack of swimming suits, Including bathing suits, tankinis, and bikinis with thong bottoms.

  There were at least twenty different ways to expose most of my flesh, though inwardly I recoiled at the idea.

  “Well….um…” I said, my eyes traveling over the ones Pam had laid out. Finally I spied the only suitable one. It was a black, conservative suit that had straps crossed in the back and seemed to have the most material.

  “This will do…thank you!” I said and, grabbing a lush white terrycloth robe ran behind the Japanese screen to change.

  There were no mirrors back there. If there had been my courage probably would have failed me.

  Resolutely I pulled my hair back in a ponytail using a scrunchy hair tie that I had around my wrist, grabbed my robe and tied it at the waist and stepped out from behind the screen.

  Oliver looked disappointed.

  “You look like a skinny polar bear in that robe Princess,” he remarked, “It makes me wonder what is under it? A swim DRESS perhaps?”

  “Haha,” I retorted, slipping my feet into some plastic shoes Pam had set out. They had the Nike symbol on them.

  As we left my chambers, walking quickly, I felt Oliver staring at me and turned my head toward him asking, ”WHAT?”

  He smiled impishly.

  “Just admiring a royal profile,” he said, and then added, “The latest addition to the royal family.

  ‘Modigere enn ulven,hadere enn frost!” he added.

  I stopped walking.

  “No fair,” I said, ”I don’t know what you’re saying. Even though I’m told that my Norwegian is coming along quite nicely.”

  “It means ‘Braver than a wolf, harder than frost,” he told me, adding, ”You would do well to memorize that one actually, it’s the Mantra for the House of the Arctic Cliff dwelling Vampires. I’m sure the Prince would be quite pleased.”

  “Say it one more time,” I told him, and then repeated it back to him flawlessly.

  “I’m impressed Oliver said, his blond bangs hanging over one eye. How about this one?’ ‘

  ‘Jeg vil se deg naken’, “

  “Hmmm,” I said trying to analyze it from my limited knowledge of Norwegian, “I know ‘Jeg’ is myself or ‘I” and ‘vil’ is probably ‘will’ although that’s just a guess…okay I give up what is it?”

  Oliver smirked and laughed shortly,

  “Sorry,” he explained, “I shouldn’t have said it, it’s just fun playing word games with you Princess. It’s actually curse words so forget I said anything , I am sure that the Prince would have my head!”

  For some reason I didn’t believe him and so I silently repeated the phrase over in my mind until I had it memorized.

  I would ask Theda what it meant later.

  THE DEAD POOL

  The private natatorium was behind a wall of smoked rippled glass. There was one portion of the glass that had a brass handle and Oliver darted in front of me and pulled it open. Even though it was massive it only made a hushed sound as it open and then closed behind us.

  Inside, located centrally, was a round pool that was nevertheless as huge and the standard Olympic sized swimming pool to the right of it made me want to jump in and start doing laps. It reminded me of high school and normalcy.

  I ran over to it, shedding my robe along the way and dove in with minimum splashing, just as I had been taught in gym class. I had started stroking through the water with a vengeance and soon after I was making for the opposite side of the pool. I had done an underwater turn and surfaced to realize that Oliver was in the pool with me. He was behind but cutting through the water with ease and catching up fast.

  I was still ahead of him through most of the next lap but by the third he was alongside me, matching me stroke for stroke. I was determined to either beat or outlast him. We swam alongside each other during the next two laps also.

  I had turned for the next lap after that when I felt myself being pulled backwards—something had grabbed my foot and pulled me under the surface.

  For a moment I panicked. Then I turned and saw Oliver below me in the blue of the water, an impish look on his face.

  I was instantly furious. Using all my strength I raised my other leg and kicked Oliver full in the face with my foot, then rose to the surface and continued swimming.

  It wasn’t until I reached the end of the pool and turned again that I realized that Oliver was nowhere to be seen. My anger surged again, thinking that he was teasing me again. I didn’t think he’d had enough time to get out of the pool—surely I would have noticed if he had I thought. Unsure of how to react I swam to the side and climbed up the ladder so that I could have a clear view of the pool and see if he were swimming, or hiding, underwater.

  Standing on the side, dripping wet, with water running in my eyes I quickly scanned the pool.

  And then I saw something dark floating just below the surface near the spot where I had kicked myself loose.

  It had to be Oliver. Floating face down.

  I wasted no time plunging in again. When I reached Oliver I turned him right side up and, hooking one arm across his chest, paddled to the side.

  For once I was glad for my vampire strength. I had no problem pulling him out of the water and onto the colorful mosaic tiling that surrounded the pool.

  After that I went into automatic CPR response, tilting his head back, swishing my fingers through his mouth to clear any debris and then, pinching his nose, breathing into his mouth and pressing on his chest rhymically.

  His mouth was soft and firm at the same time. Even as I touched my mouth to his to perform CPR I was running an internal dialogue prompted by being so close to him. He smelled tantalizing. I wanted to bite him, taste him.

  His breath was like sun warmed peaches on a summer’s day.

  I found myself thinking about what it would be like to kiss him.

  I was grateful when a stream of water splurted from his mouth and he began coughing, his eyes fluttering open at last as I leaned over him.

  My relief was immense.

  “Oh Oliver I am SO SORRY!” I exclaimed as soon as his eyes seemed to focus and most of his coughing subsided, “I am so sorry. I hope you can forgive me!”

  My heart was still pounding and I started feeling shaky as my adrenalin rush subsided. Oliver looked confused for a moment then said,

  “Oh yeah Princess…I remember now…you totally CLOCKED me! With your foot no less! Good one!”

  “It’s totally my fault,” I babbled, feeling relieved ”I keep forgetting that you are human. And I guess I don’t know my own st
rength either. I didn’t think that I kicked you that hard!”

  Oliver sat up, then abruptly lay back down.

  “Spinnies ,” he explained,” A little dizzy. For a Princess you can really pack a punch—or a kick anyway. "He finished, rubbing his nose ruefully.

  I peered down into his face, concerned. His nose was red, and he also seemed to have a nosebleed. I looked around for anything to staunch it with and remembered my robe. I ran over and pulled the sash out of the loops and handed it to Oliver for his nose.

  “You’re bleeding I’m afraid,” I told him, “You probably need to be seen by the court Physician. Where do I need to go?”

  I had been crouching at Oliver’s side but as soon as I started to rise from my position he caught my wrist, a look of fear in his eyes.

  “I would rather you didn’t fetch anyone at the moment…at least until we get our story straight. Princess you can’t go running and telling them that you kicked me in the face on purpose!”

  “Sure I can!” I told him, ”Because I DID!”

  Oliver winced. He pulled the sash away from his nose and it was bloodstained, but the bleeding seemed to have slowed down.

  “But Princess—Tristina—that’s exactly my point!” he said, sounding frustrated, “Don’t you remember what my appointed position is? I am your Whipping Boy! So this is like double jeopardy for me…I could be punished for your HURTING me…do you understand?”

  I could feel my jaw dropping as I realized that he was right. Though it seemed ludicrous Oliver could possibly be punished for my having kicked him.

  It also occurred to me that the Prince would not find it amusing that Oliver had pulled me down into the water by my foot either. That might constitute a separate and equally punishable infraction according to the arcane rules of the Realm.

  “Quite a conundrum,” I admitted, as soon as I found my voice. “Okay—we need a plausible explanation because I INSIST that you be seen by someone medical…Hmmmmm…okay how about we say that you were diving and caught your nose on the edge of the diving board doing a flip. Do you think that that would pass muster?”

  “I think it will have to do,” Oliver replied., “And I’m afraid that I ruined your sash Princess. And I would also like to request that if you get annoyed with me again that you will kindly aim for something lower than my face—only not TOO much lower!” he joked.

  I was smiling in spite of myself. There was something refreshingly endearing about Oliver, and he was easy to relate to in spite of the fact that he was human and I was vampire royalty.

  “I really AM terribly sorry,” I said ruefully.

  “How sorry?” Oliver said, a teasing note in his voice, “Sorry enough to grant me a favor?”

  I felt confused by his unexpected question.

  “Depends on the favor,” I answered cautiously ,”I know that I screwed up—but I ALSO saved your life! That should count for something I think!”

  “Hmmmmm, you may be right,” Oliver answered, “Maybe I am the one that owes YOU a favor. Fine. Go ahead—you can have anything you require of me, Princess Tristina!”

  My heartbeats, which had subsided after I’d seen that Oliver was all right began to pick up speed for no apparent reason. I looked into his eyes. They were drawing me in. Even though we weren’t touching there was electricity in the air between us.

  My must heart was crying out to me to ask something of him. Again his tantalizing aroma wafted toward me. I knew that if I didn’t snap out of it and break the spell something momentous would happen between us and a line would be crossed.

  “I’m good,” I forced myself to say. Quickly I jumped up from where I’d been sitting and said, ”We need to get you looked at. Just to make sure.”

  “Whatever you say Princess,” Oliver said quietly, though he was still watching me as he stood up next to me, staring at me from under his curly thick eyelashes that made him seem not only handsome but beautiful. As a human he was as beautiful as any vampire.

  Oliver stooped to gather up the towels and other paraphernalia and we moved toward the doorway. Just as we reached it he moved quickly, swinging me around by the waist into a darkened corner of the natatorium behind a palm tree in a huge round container.

  I could feel his fingers on my back moving up my spine against my bare skin. I had stopped breathing.

  “Just once,” he whispered, “Just once, for both our sakes, so that we never have to wonder.”

  My heart pounded in my ears, I felt frozen to the spot, unable to speak or react in any way. For a few seconds we stared at each other. My own shock and wonder reflected in his eyes.

  Then my body betrayed me and rose upward to meet his lips with my own. My entire being was caught up in that kiss, the kiss I had wanted but denied myself when I was doing CPR on him, the kiss that I had fantasized about whenever I found myself in his company.

  The fever between us radiated outward to encompass other parts of our bodies. I could feel his chest heaving against mine, teasing my nipples to points, causing me to feel an urgency in my lower extremities . t I wanted to collapse onto the floor, pulling him over me, feeling his weight on my body.

  A few torrid seconds later he pushed me away, roughly, desperation showing in his eyes.

  “We will not do this!” he hissed, ”I can’t betray my best friend. Without his trust I am nothing!”

  I was still panting from my arousal, but I was sure that my shocked expression must mirror his own.

  “Fine,” I managed to get out, ”You’re right Oliver—this can never happen again!. I don’t intend to go back to the dungeon and I know that as much as the Prince loves you he would maim you for touching me. I don’t understand this—this THING between us-- but it cannot be!”

  Oliver’s face was flushed. He bent down to where he’d dropped the things he had been carrying.

  When he looked at me again he looked as though he were in extreme pain.

  “I am so sorry Tristina…I can’t explain myself. Please forgive me. Please!”

  I couldn’t bear to look him in the face again, but as I turned into the doorway I said over my shoulder,” Of course, Oliver. Not a word…and never again. I think we both understand what is at stake here.”

  To our relief no one was outside of the Natatorium as we exited, though I was sure that our guilty faces would have given us away if we had run into the Prince. I questioned my ability to keep my desires under control. There were many factors involved in my unfortunate attraction to Oliver, not the least of which was his being human---a quality that piqued my bloodlust and made me desire him on another level.

  I also questioned my own morality—how could I be attracted to two males at once? How had I gone from being an awkward human virgin that had never gone past second base to a vampire nymphomaniac? Well not really a nympho , but the idea of being able to be turned on by more than one male didn’t fit into my ideal of romantic love at all.

  Nevertheless I had to be honest, at least with myself. When I was with the Prince and fell into his sultry embrace he was all I wanted. When I was with Oliver he reminded me of my lost humanness and I wanted to become the girl that I had been before. The kiss we had shared had given me that for a brief moment and let me experience what love might have been like for me if I had never been Turned.

  Though I knew that no possible good could come of my wanton desires, I wanted them both.

  VAMPIRE PRINCESS #4

  THE ICE MONSTERS

  THE EYE

  I had been awake for about twenty minutes and was waiting for my breakfast tray. After running across the flooring to the adjoining bathroom to pee I ran quickly back and jumped back under the giant duvet, shivering. I hadn’t been able to find my slippers and the stone flooring , as usual, was icy cold.

  I half expected Theda to join me. Lately we had been spending more and more time together, and I was grateful for her friendship. She always gave me sage advice, and she seemed to know all the gossip circulating around the Silo.


  I kept waiting for her to tell me she was pregnant. I knew that that was what she wanted more than anything in the world, and that it would mean that she would get some time off so that we could spend even more time together, which I was really looking forward to. Though she seemed suited for the military, being as tall and naturally strong as she was, I knew she needed a break.

  I was fortunate that the Prince not only allowed but encouraged our friendship. Although I knew that he had had my best friend Theda in his bed the night before her wedding to the Royal Guardsman, I had also come to understand that it meant nothing to either of them other than the fulfillment of the time honored ritual of Prima Nocte. To the Prince it was a show of power that he was entitled to fuck the betrothed females of the kingdom, and failing to fulfill his duty would be considered a show of weakness.

  To Theda it was a show of submission and fealty to the Prince as the Ruler of the Cliff dwelling Arctic Vampires, something to get through until she could marry her own ’prince’, the man she adored.

  We had only spoken of it once, and she told me that the Prince was very kind and matter of fact, not even insisting that she undress completely.

  I had to ask, so I had ,”Did you like it at all?”

  She had started laughing, holding her hand up to her mouth.

  “Well he is rather …large, isn’t he? It was like being plowed by a can of hairspray, and it hurt! But it was over soon. And he went looking for you as you well know, and was completely distraught when he discovered you’d run away!”

  “I’m sorry I did,” I told her, ”But at the time I thought he didn’t want me anymore, and I also thought that I had something to return to …

  “But that turned out not to be true of course.”

  Theda had pressed her face closely to mine.

  “The Prince suffered you know. He truly loves you Tristina. He wept when you left and told Seth that if he returned without finding you he would kill not only him but his entire family! I am not sure which was greater, his rage or his hurt…