The City of Arque; capital of the Ashen kingdom

Snap. The book is snapped shut.  An Ashen woman sets the book onto the table before leveling a critical look at the object of her current frustration.  This look, to be fair, is quite effective if it were to be used on anyone else as the woman was a fully decorated Aegis.  Long purple hair fell in several braids to decorate her face with pieces of fetish and bone as a clip pinning a set of long bangs to the corner of her profile.  Her revealed face had eleven piercings three above her right brow, two long, but thin barbels just to the left of her left eye, one on the right side of her nose,  two along the peak of either of her cheek, one nestled below her bottom lip centered in the careful crook before her chin begins.  Despite this woman being significantly older, almost ninety-eight years old in fact, she retained every trace of her youthful beauty.

"I'm sorry, am I boring you Velvet?" The woman questioned rhetorically.  Noticing the child struggling not to fall asleep.

"Moom.." Velvet groaned "The Origin story is so boring.  I spoke to Teresa and she said when she was told the story everyone was human.  Doesn't that mean it's fake?" Giving up all pretense she plants her forehead squarely into the desktop before letting it tip over to the side.  Not even waiting for a response she continues "Can't we talk about something more interesting?" Complaining "I heard some of the guards talk about vampires.. Can't I learn about them?" Eyes widening with childish exuberance.

"Manners, Velvet.  One question at a time." Her mother Sylk D'Arque continued with a shake of her head. "Humans are ignorant dear, they think they deserve to be part of everything so they change the real story about themselves.  It helps them cope with their shortcomings."  Pausing as she gazed at her daughters pleading face before sagging her shoulders and letting out a little sigh "Velvet you're so smart.. Why do you entertain these pointless stories?" Helplessly lifting her hands up. "Vampires don't exist."

"But Teresa said that that's not true.. She saw one of the nobles chewing on the neck of one of the Vy-"

Slap.

"Velvet D'Arque!" Sylk chastised "We do not speak ill of the nobles, and you will never bring up those.. Creatures.. In good company again, am I understood?"

Her mother had seemingly blurred forward and delivered a firm slap to her daughter causing her to immediately clutch her face and drop her gaze sullenly.  Tempted to spite her and say nothing for a moment before the flash of defiance washed away.

"Yes mother.."

"Good.." Smoothing out the tight fitting outfit she gestured toward the door "Then go out and play.. We will continue your studies tomorrow."

Quickly climbing to her feet she shoots her mother an angry look while holding her face before darting out of the room and out into the hallway.  Velvet ran through the halls with a practiced air brushing past people because she was embarrassed about the large mark on her cheek.  Escaping outside she gave a hateful look at the keep she lived in.

Next in line for the throne the D'Arque family was supposedly direct descendants of the original six although there is no other evidence than an ongoing ruling line back to the beginning, or at least to the point where people learned to record things.  Beyond that there is little way to verify.  That made her a princess and with that title her life was full of classes on history, etiquette and strategy.  Rarely did she have time to do anything she wanted to do, like find secrets.  Ever since she could remember she had been asking questions non-stop which frightened many people because someone her age had an overwhelming intelligence.

However asking questions was a very dangerous thing, it was a privilege to be able to do such a thing because if you asked the wrong question you might upset a Noble.  Even a king bent his knee to a Noble, they were a mysterious group but in this world where the strong make the laws there was no one stronger than the Nobles.  They say around five hundred years ago there was a riot in the human kingdom and a single Noble was dispatched and he settled it by killing a lot of people.

Wandering towards the servants quarters to find Teresa, one of the few children old enough to play with her she spotted a figure she had never seen before.  A human, but what stood out was her skin which was as pale as marble and utterly flawless it looked almost milky and soft.  Hair that was so blond it borders being called silvery or white she wasn't the prettiest girl but she had an edge of youthfulness that placed her around the age 18 from appearance sake.  However what beauty she did hold was utterly ruined by the fierce expression on her face, if looks could kill this woman would have been murdering everyone in sight.

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It was a noble.

The only ones she had seen were brief glimpses and while they generally just looked very pale the tell tale sign was the armor they wore.  As if attempting to contrast their pearly white skin the armor was utterly black and it seemed to glow with energy, along with a sanguine cloak that fell all the way down to their heels.  It felt wrong and it made people feel uncomfortable.. Like children caught where they shouldn't be. 

Only this woman was different she held no such majesty and her armor was common, dyed simply black and she had no cloak and her hand kept clutching at the hilt of her sword.  There was no refined Noble air although in its place was an unsettling sensation, a unconscious understanding as your primitive mind understood it was in the presence of something dangerous.  The woman's brow furrowed suddenly and she began looking around while doing so it looked like she was trying to force herself not to appear as aggressive as she does, which was failing miserably.

"Faraday, control yourself." A deep voice filled the air as a true Noble stepped into view, the calm expression, the armor darker than night, the red cloak.  On his back was slung a large staff with a horizontal blade that arched down parallel to the staff it was meticulously kept and showed signs of constant wear. "Do not make me regret my decision for bringing one so young."

There are young nobles too? Velvet thought to herself as she eavesdropped.  Not much was known about them but anyone who had ever seen one they only referred to each other by name and weighed all suggestions equally this seemingly offhand comment keyed in on a deeper social structure that the majority were simply not aware about.

"Yes, Lord Kenshin" Faraday spoke before dipping her head before calming and the aggression melted away almost instantly although her hand was still glued to her blade.

Did she call the other noble a lord? Velvet's eyes widened, as far as anyone knew the Nobles were all the same status this was exactly what she wanted to hear and she bit her lip in excitement.  This only helps prove her theory correct.

"It's just Kenshin here." He corrected her before looking her up and down and shaking his head. "Never before have I seen someone struggle so much after their baptism, perhaps -" He would stop suddenly before glancing sharply behind Faraday toward the emergency shelter. "Remain here.. They have begun the ceremony.  I can feel it." With that Kenshin simply disappeared, from one moment of standing there to simply gone without even a blink.

What is a baptism? She wondered to herself before jumping a little as she saw Kenshin vanish suddenly and couldn't help voice her surprise by letting out a gasp "Huuh!" Wincing as she potentially exposed herself she quickly turned to flee not a moment too soon.  A silver blur appeared before her eyes as she fell backwards in her haste to leave her vision narrowed on the point of a blade a mere inch from her face before she felt a small prickling on her cheek, a small vertical line was cut just below her eye giving her the appearance of weeping blood as the face wound began to bleed.  Starring numbly at the blade she had yet to register what had happened.

Starring down at her was an equally surprised Noble. "How did..?" The lingering question drifts off as a pair of dark eyes glue themselves to the tiny cut on her face.  Velvet couldn't move, she had never known fear like this before something primal, it was raw and it ate at her it was the type of fear that etches itself into your bones.  Like a lingering question in the air that simply asks are you predator or prey?

"Ah.." Faraday would lower her sword, her lips parted before she swallows like a drinking man after gazing at his favorite poison. "This.. Isn't.. The place for you.." Her jaw moved to talk but it looked strained and she reached out a hand to the fear paralyzed Velvet thumbing away the crimson tear.  "My apologies." The hand that wiped the blood off would tremble as she lowered it to her side. "Run. Now, little girl, and you might live to see another day."

She ran.

She didn't remember getting up, she felt the sensation of air on her face as she sprinted like being chased by a bear.  Of looking back for the smallest of moments as she watched the noble lick her thumb clean with an expression of utter bliss.