When Dreams Almost Seem Real

A Chapter by Vivica Heart

First cahpter! Woot! Mmkay, so charcters would be annabella Maria Hughes ~ The Vampire Queen of the Box of Horrors. Dacian ~ The Queen's right-hand man. Dionysius ~ Well, you'll find out about him later... Fairies ~ Pretyty self-explanatory.... Oh,

Silence. Complete and total silence. Annabella inhaled deeply and made a disgusted face. "Dacian, leave," she growled into the dark, her nose wrinkled, "You did a horrible job at hiding your scent. And to think I trained you myself..."

A small male figure emerged from the woods, his pale skin in contrast with the dark around him. "Sorry, my liege, but I do not think it is healthy for you to be here."

"Go!" Anna barked the order baring her teeth. "Dacian, don't make me hurt you."

Fear washed over the boy, but he didn't let it show. Instead he nodded and disappeared back into the darkness, leaving Annabella alone in the woods.

The girl straightened up, rising from her previous crouching position. She sniffed the air, hope shining in her emerald eyes. The hope, however, was lost as Anna bit down on her lip, disappointment written on her features. She blinked, and her eyes turned a glossy blue. The blue could only be seen for a mere second before the girl squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head from side to side. As she did so, her wavy brown hair straightened and blackened, and her skin grew paler.

A single tear forced its way through the barrier that Annabella had worked so hard to create. The queen wiped it away angrily, disgusted by her own vulnerability. Her expression hardened and her posture stiffened as she pushed all painful thoughts to the back of her mind.

Another sniff of the air told the vampire that she was no longer alone. the scent was familiar to the girl, and brought back not so pleasant memories to mind. "By order of the queen, this land is off limits to all vampires," Anna's voice was harsh as she spoke into the the dark to the male she had waited so long for, "Show yourself or face the consequences."

A soft chuckle came from the direction in which the girl glared. Her eyes flashed a brilliant green when the figure appeared, threatening to give her away, but the teenager got them back to the glossy blue color before the boy could notice. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the intruder, waiting for him to give his pathetic attempt at redemption for breaking the law.

"If these woods are off limits, good lady, then what are you doing in them?" His voice was every bit as velvety and smooth as Annabella had remembered. A playful smile graced the male's face, the same smile that the queen had yearned to see for so long.

"I am above the law," the girl said simply, still glaring at the figure, "for I am she who makes it."

The smile on the male's face went from playful to apologetic as he bowed towards the girl, attempting to redeem himself for his not-so-respectful manner. "Forgive me, Your Highness. I did not know."

"All is well," Anna said, relaxing her posture a little. Her hands, however, formed fists by her side. "At least it will be once you state your name and business here."

"Why of course, milady. I am Dionysius Maximus Loannidis, and I was actually here in search of someone."

The queen had a bit of difficulty keeping her eyes the glossy blue color she needed them to stay, but somehow she managed. "Hm. Greek. Of course," she said with a fake hint of interest, "And who, might I inquire were you hoping to find in woods that off limits to nearly everyone, Dionysius?"

The Greek hesitated, standing perfectly still in a way that could only be described as nonhuman-like. When he did speak, though, his voice showed no change in tone or emotion. "Actually, I was kind of hoping to find you."

The girl bit down on her lip, blinking rapidly. One who didn't know better would guess confusion to be the reason for this reaction. One who did know better, however, would know that she was fighting to keep her eyes from becoming green. She couldn't let him see her green eyes or he would definitely recognize her. "Oh really? Now why would you want to run into me while breaking a law?" Her voice showed no sign of her struggle, but she kept her eyes closed for fear of what color they might be.

"..." Once more Dionysius hesitated, thinking carefully about how he might respond. "I think... I might have known you. You look and seem entirely different from the Annabella I knew, but still. Your presence somehow reminds me of her. Plus there's the matter of your names being the same and all."

"Hmm." Annabella bit on her lip even harder than before as she opened her eyes. She couldn't tell what color they were. She had no idea if her magic was still working to keep them blue or not. Or at least she couldn't tell until she saw Dionysius's reaction.

the male's face lit up, a smile gracing his features. "Anna." his voice was but a mere whisper as he stared at her eyes. He took a step towards his fellow vampire but stopped there. the girl was glaring at him viciously, as though she were about to attack him.

"I'm not your Anna," the queen said in a low growl, "Your Anna is dead and gone. I am Queen Annabella. I always was Queen Annabella and I always will be."

It was obvious that Dionysius didn't believe her. If the hope in his golden brown eyes wasn't enough to give him away, the smile on his face certainly was. He closed the gap between the two and reached out to trace her cheekbone with the back of his hand. "You can't fool me, Anna. I know who you are."

Annabella growled angrily and slapped the hand away. She moved so that her face was but inches away from his and yelled, "I. Am. Not Your. Anna."

Her attempt to make Dionysius believe her did absolutely nothing. He moved his hand to her hair, stroking it for but a second before closing the small space between their faces and kissing her softly on the lips.

The queen was taken by surprise at his reaction. Even more shocking to her was her own reaction. She thought she would be able to push him away, but boy was she wrong. Her hair returned to it's previous state of wavy and brown as her eyes closed and she melted in the boy's kiss. Annabella wrapped her arms around his neck and parted her lips, making it more passionate.

Dionysius chuckled to himself as he pulled away, his arms now locked around Annabella's waist. "I knew it," he said triumphantly as he looked down at the girl.

The teenager wrinkled her nose as she looked up at Dionysius, a small smile on her lips. "Oh hush." She rested her head against his chest, breathing in his scent. "What took you so long?" she asked, closing her eyes.

"Traffic." His reply was simple and somewhat funny, but it cause Anna to frown. Why would he joke at something she took so seriously? It had been centuries since she had last seen him, and she thought she deserved to know why he hadn't come sooner. Then the frown grew as he pulled away from her.

The female opened her eyes, looking to the male with pain in her eyes, "Where are you going?"

"Away." His velvety-smooth voice irritated the girl. Could he not tell he was breaking her heart again?

"Don't leave me here alone," her voice was soft and full of the same pain that was apparent in her emerald eyes. She looked down to the ground as a tear slid down her cheek. She knew what was going to happen next. She closed her eyes as more tears brimmed in them. He didn't say goodbye, but Annabella could hear his footsteps fading into the distance.

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A gasp was audible to most in the castle as the queen awoke from her false slumber. "Damn fairies..." Anna threw the blankets that covered her across the room and rose from the large bed. "Can't even give me a nightmare properly..."

A small male figure appeared in the doorway just as Annabella was pulling on an elegant robe. "Is everything alright my liege?" Dacian had begun to cross the room towards his fellow vampire but stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her eyes. "Erm... Your Majesty?"

"They're green, aren't they?" the girl released a heavy sigh, squeezing her eyes shut and shaking her head from side to side. "Better?" she said in an emotionless voice.

Dacian nodded in reply, opening his mouth to speak, but hesitating. "Your Majesty?"

"Yes, Dacian?"

"...Why do you let the fairies enchant you to sleep if it only brings pain?"

Annabella clenched her teeth together, turning her face away from the male. "Dacian , you wouldn't understand. You are far too naive to comprehend...."

"I could try, Anna."

"Don't call me that!" The girl's voice was surprisingly high, her expression wild. She glared at angrily, as though she were yearning to tear him limb from limb.

"I'm... Sorry, my liege."

"It's alright," Annabella said, getting a hold of herself, "I think today is a South Tower Day..."