Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Shattered Illusions ❯ The Rose ( Chapter 17 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

By: MellyN

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Shattered Illusions

Chapter 17: The Rose

By: Melissa Norvell

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Millie stood on the porch and leaned on one of the massive pillars that supported Copernicus' mansion home. She stared at the star stuttered skies and sighed to herself. The girl felt a little empty, especially since everyone had left the house but her. Millie couldn't find herself staying inside because she only realized how empty it truly was without her friends by her side. 'Wow…Sure is lonely here with Copernicus and Tsubomi-kun gone,' the girl took another glance at her surroundings. `Things have been so weird lately, but I'm sadly used to it. I'm used to keeping ammunition in stock and Copernicus pays me for cleaning up around the house. I sure do miss Prince Yale.'

An image of the prince's face, winking and holding his rose flashed through her mind as she remembered something Copernicus had said.

'Well, if he gave you a rose, you might end up with him after all.'

'What does he mean by that? I don't want to get my hopes up. Come on! Prince Yale would never even think of touching me like that,' the girl backed up and laughed to herself at such a fantasy.

A pair of light, slightly large hands were sat gently on her shoulders.

The very touch sent a shock through the girl's body, which caused her to scream as she knocked the stranger's hands away from her. Millie turned around to give the intruder what for. She drew back her fist and then froze where she stood.

Her wrist was caught by the man and she could only stutter his name in response.

"P-Prince Yale?"

He held up a piece of paper.

It's me.

She felt tears stinging at her eyes. Millie had honestly thought that she would never see him again. "I missed you so much!" She called out and flung herself forward, embracing the man as if he were a relative that she had not seen in years. His arms wrapped around her as he wrote another phrase down on the piece of paper.

I missed you too. I was worried about you.

"Me too. I didn't know if you needed any blood, or if you were alright. I don't want you to die," her voice was filled with concern.

I'm fine, thanks to you. Your blood really helped me. I feel like I have my vitality back.

"Do you need more blood?" Millie asked, and the prince nodded in response. She then directed him to follow her inside, but he hesitated and wrote something down.

What about Copernicus and Tsubomi?

"They won't be home until late. They're both night owls," she waved the subject off. Usually, when they went to the strip club, they were always late coming home, especially considering Tsubomi's late night shift.

I don't want them to see me.

"Why?"

Yale looked downcast for a moment and painfully wrote the words on his piece of paper.

I'm a disgrace.

Millie reached forward and held his pale face lovingly in her hands. "No you're not. Prince Yale, this isn't your fault," no matter what he wanted to think, he couldn't have possibly been able to fix or alter the unfortunate turn of events.

She's dead because of me.

"Who?"

Corsica, my fiancée.

"Your…fiancée," Millie looked a little saddened by the fact that he had a fiancée. She hadn't even asked him anything like that. Now she felt selfish for fawning over him as she did.

Yes, I had a fiancée and I loved her very much but I can't see her again. She was killed the day before my wedding. The same day that my death was rumored to be.

"How sad…You must feel like you killed her, don't you?" At this point, Millie felt like crying. Partly because all of the prince's happiness had been ripped from him, and the other part for her own selfish reasons. She was more than certain that the prince would never see her as he did Corsica.

How do you know me so well? Yale smiled a little as he showed her those words. Even if he couldn't speak with emotion, this girl seemed to sense it from him.

"You're a guilty person," Millie gently took his hand and led him inside.

They walked into the darkened living room and sat on Copernicus' large couch, where Millie gently held the prince's hand for a moment before she spaced herself evenly apart from him.

Yale began to write on his notebook once more. I always felt like I could have saved her. I didn't want to see her again, and told her so. However, she told me that she wouldn't leave me and, as she was dying, she told me that she loved me and that there was no better place to be, than there in my arms.

A pained look crossed the vampire's face as he wrote such words. Millie had to fight back the stinging sensation in her eyes.

"How romantic…and sad…" she trailed. Her voice nearly cracked with what she had said. This was getting unbearable.

Yale grabbed his coat where his heart was located and clenched it tightly in his gloved hand. It's painful. I miss her so much.

'I want to comfort him. I don't care how far it goes,' she had made up her mind. She wasn't going to regret what happened next. Millie wanted to be there for the prince and stop all of his suffering at any cost. She hugged the prince close to her. "You shouldn't hurt anymore."

But Yale didn't listen. He continued to write, even as he shook with emotion. She was human, like you. She was so beautiful and I regret ever meeting her.

Millie put a hand on the back of his head and gently moved it to her shoulder. "Drink. Maybe you'll feel better."

She wanted so much to help the prince, and the thought of comforting him in any way possible ran through her mind. Millie tried to rid herself of the mental images that ran rampant, and she damned herself for having such an overactive imagination at a time like this. She just wanted him to drink her blood and ease his pain.

Millie could feel the bandage being pulled from her neck, as a pair of fangs sank into her skin, in the exact same places they had punctured her before. She let out a small hiss of pain, still not used to the act of being fed off of by a vampire. The girl placed a hand on the back of the prince's head and gently stroked his hair.

"Prince Yale, I'll do anything for you. Please know that," her soft voice reached his ears as he continued to gently suck the fluids from her body.

'Do I love him? When we're like this, I lose all concept of time,' she thought to herself as her eyes slowly closed. Oddly enough, she enjoyed the sensation of the fluids leaving her body and the closeness that the two of them shared.

Yale pulled out of her neck, lapping up the blood that ran from her wound. The feelings of his tongue on her shoulder nearly made her shutter, and a faint blush rose to her cheeks. He stared at her, with hues full of sorrow as she slowly brought a hand up to her wound. 'What's wrong with me? I can't control myself. Do I? Do I lust after Prince Yale?'

She was so confused at what she had been feeling. Why did she feel as if she could give herself to him and not even care? Why did she feel as if any sacrifice she made right now would be one that she didn't regret?

The vampire nuzzled her neck affectionately, minding the wound on her shoulder.

"Prince Yale…"

Then, he wrote words that she wasn't sure of how to take.

Please, comfort me…

What in the hell did that mean? Her mind ran at 100 miles per hour. Was this for real?

"Me?" She pointed to herself and blushed even more than before. Surely she didn't hear him right. This all seemed too good to be true. Maybe she was still stuck in her dream world.

Right.

That had to be it.

You're so understanding. I really need someone. I'll go insane if I'm lonely any longer. You're so beautiful and kind. I hope you don't have a partner.

He had been alone for years, with the only company being whomever Estella Nu decided to execute and their company never lasted long. No verbal communication, no physical touch, in all of that time. It depressed him terribly, and now that he had someone who was physically there for him and accepted him for who he was. Yale wasn't about to restrict himself any longer. The only reason that he would hesitate or do nothing was if the girl already had someone to love. Her opinion meant everything to him, and he wished for her friendship more than anything else.

"No…" Millie was in shock. She could hardly believe what was about to happen to her. 'Oh my God! A prince wants me to comfort him. You know, I'm usually upset when I find out what I did with a guy was just a one night stand, but I'm actually happy that he wants to do this with me. I wonder how far he'll go. We are both lonely and sad. I need him and he needs me in the same way. Maybe we can both get rid of the pain.'

She closed her eyes as blood-stained lips kissed hers. She returned the kiss as his hands ran themselves along her athletic frame. The school girl arched into his touch as she followed his lead and shyly ran her hands along his skinny frame. He seemed healthier than he was when they had first met, and it made Millie happy to know that he had been getting some nourishment. She smiled lightly before Yale began to French kiss her. Millie returned the action as her shyness dissipated. She could feel every muscle beneath the many layers of Victorian dress that the prince wore.

His kisses left burns on his lips, jaws and neck as the vampire ravished her body with them. The slight scrape of his fangs ran across her skin, but they never drew blood. Yale was very gentle with her.

Millie could feel her breath accelerating, and her heart felt as if it would leap out of her chest. 'My heart is racing, and I feel so out of it,' she thought as her clothes hit the floor, along with his undershirt and coat. 'Oh my God, he's so incredibly sexy. Any girl would totally scream if they knew that I was about to do some serious stuff with a prince, but I don't see it that way. I mean, yeah, Prince Yale is totally gorgeous, romantic, skilled and sweet but he's just like everyone else. He's lonely and he wants someone to comfort him. He's probably so scared and sad. I bet that he doesn't even know what to do now that he's free, since he's so used to living in captivity. I feel the same way. I'm confused, worried, sad…I don't know if I'll ever get to see my parents again, or how long I'll live. I don't care if anyone thinks I'm a whore for this. Besides, this is the first man I'd give myself to. It's strange to me, but I like it.'

She folded her fingers in his hand as his free hand slid up to her chest, tracing her breasts. He still had his pants on, but all of her clothes had already been stripped. Millie could feel his searing kisses trail between her breasts and down her stomach as she blushed to herself. All of these feelings were just too much.

The stinging sensation tugged at her eyes as she uttered the man's name. A few crystalline tears rolled down her face and she closed her eyes to blink back the remaining tears that clung stubbornly to her eyelids. However, when she opened her eyes, she was met by a pair of blue eyes.

Yale bent down and kissed the tear streams on her cheeks.

'Don't cry, Millie,' she could have sworn that she heard his voice comforting her for a second.

Her eyes popped open. "Prince Yale…Did you just talk to me?"

'I seem to have gotten my telepathy back, though I'm not sure what all I'm allowed to say to you.' Yale responded. He knew that he had limitations because of his curse, but he was happy that the girl could hear him, even if it was only within the confines of her mind.

"You sound so young. I'm glad that I can know what you sound like." It was something that she had always wondered about. The school girl was actually surprised to know that Yale's voice did sound as it did. Then again, Copernicus' had a youthful voice as well, even if it was deep.

'Millie…I…thank you…'

She reached up and placed a hand on his face for a moment. The two gazed into each other's eyes, before she found herself running a hand through his long, tawny bangs. "It's alright. You mean a lot to me. Trust me, I don't just do this for anyone."

'You have more class than I thought,' Yale smiled slightly.

"Are we…What are we?" It was a dangerous question to ask, but she wanted to ask nonetheless.

'Does it matter?'

"I don't know," she said a little unsurely, confused by the question. "Is this lust?"

'Not to me. It's just a moment of comfort,' the prince leaned down to kiss her once more before something caught his eyes. He turned his head to the table top, where his rose sat. 'You kept my rose?'

"I sleep with it every night. I've always kept it," that single bud meant a lot to her and she had made a promise to herself to preserve it as much as she could.

'No one's ever done that before.' Usually, when the flowers wilted or lose their luster, their keeper would throw them away and he would give them another rose, but this girl was different. She kept the tattered flower and held it close to her heart.

"I'm sentimental like that. I've been thinking about you…constantly," Millie replied.

'I have too.'

The girl smiled. "You're sweet."

Yale gave her a peck on the lips and told her that she was beautiful. Millie tried to resist the urge to blush again, but failed as the red color adorned her cheeks.

"Not really," she waved in dismissal. "I'm actually pretty plain."

Then, he spoke a phrase that threw her off.

"Let's go to the floor."

"What? Excuse me?" Did she hear him right? He wanted to go to the floor? Her heart began to flutter as a hoard of butterflies flew around in the pit of her stomach, bouncing off of the precious lining. The intense emotion nearly made her feel ill.

Before she got an answer, she was pulled from the couch on to the ground, followed by the vampire, who laid on top of her nude form.

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A tequila was sat down in front of the tomboy, who looked up to see her master at the other end of the glass. He smiled slightly and spoke in a formal manner.

"Your drink, sir."

"I thought you were sir?" Tsubomi questioned casually.

"You're sir, I'm master."

She frowned in annoyance and took the drink in her hand. "Whatever," she scoffed and turned her head to the side.

"Bad day at work?" Copernicus asked, noting her mood.

"Some idiot tried to take advantage of me."

"Who is this gentleman?" The question seemed harmless, but she knew better than that. There was no doubt in her mind that the vampire was planning some sort of little form of payback.

"Is that what you call him?" She pointed out a dark-clad, older man in the crowd.

"I see…" Copernicus replied in a void voice. His eyes were locked on the man as they followed him through the crowd.

Tsubomi watched for a moment and asked him what he was doing. The man headed into the bathroom, and her master excused himself. The vampire could hear his donor unsurely agree as he left her side. He walked casually, so he wouldn't give himself away. The vampire casually walked into the bathroom a couple of people behind his victim.

The brunette made his way beside of the man, who was a urinal unzipping his pants. Dark blue eyes stared at the man intently, and after a few moments, the jerk turned to confront him about the matter.

"Something you looking for, buddy?" He asked in an agitated voice. Copernicus knew what he was thinking, and before he had an opportunity to question him any further, the vampire grabbed his shoulder and covered his mouth tightly.

The vampire bit the man violently on the neck as he struggled against him; the blood ran profusely down his wound. Copernicus would make sure that the blood was drained to the point of death with this man. No one touched what was rightfully his without paying a heavy price.

Tsubomi waited patiently, sipping her tequila and wondering about the vampire's strange actions. She had a feeling that he was probably on a mission to go out and prove something to the one who sexually assaulted her. Whatever he did, she just hoped that it didn't get her fired.

A few moments later, Copernicus exited the bathroom, wiping his mouth with a bloodied rag. Blood stains also adorned his jabot and frilly sleeves of his under shirt. He walked towards her and took his usual seat, as if nothing were wrong.

"You killed him, didn't you?"

"His blood couldn't compare to yours," he commented as he wiped his mouth free of the residue that plagued it.

Tsubomi yanked the piece of fabric away from him and wiped down his neck and cheek as well. "You are a messy one. You have it all down your shirt. Oh, and if I get fired, I'm going to kick your ass."

"Thank you for taking care of me," Copernicus smiled, ignoring her threat.

"That's my job, master," Tsubomi replied as she finished cleaning the vampire up. "They can still see it but it's mostly gone."

"Do you know where Millie is?" The vampire questioned.

"No, why? I thought she was at your house."

"I tried to call her but she hasn't answered."

"Maybe she's asleep," after all, it was late.

"I hope so," Copernicus replied as the two got up and made their way through the bar.

When they arrived at his house, they stepped out of the car and walked up to the door. Copernicus unlocked the door and the both of them stepped in, leaving their shoes at the front door. The duo made it into the living room and turned on the light to find a shocking sight.

Millie was lying on the floor, butt naked and barely covered with her clothes strewn around the floor. The school girl was asleep and the white blanket that was at her side barely covered her hips. If she would have rolled over, then her body would have been completely exposed.

"Millie?" Tsubomi asked, unsure of what to really feel in this situation. It was the weirdest thing that had happened to her so far, and that was counting her encounter with Hizaki.

"Well, I didn't expect to see that side of her," Copernicus was slightly amused. His eyes were quickly covered as Tsubomi screamed the girl's name.

Millie sat up, startled by Tsubomi's voice. She glanced around the room to see the two men standing before her. "Huh? What? Huh? Uh…" She paused before she blushed and glanced down at her own naked body.

In a panic, she quickly scrambled to cover herself. 'Oh my God! It wasn't a dream! I really did have sex with Prince Yale!' She glanced down at her clothes and found a new red rose with a letter attached to it. She picked up the letter and read its contents.

Thank you, Millie. I was able to leave for the first time in a long time with a smile on my face. You are a very caring and passionate person. You truly make me feel glorious and worshipped. Do not worry, this is no simple one night stand. I wish to see you again. I'll be watching you.

Yale Axis Greenchapel

"Is there a reason that you're laying on the floor naked?" Tsubomi's voice deadpanned.

"I'm confused," Millie replied absent-mindedly after reading the letter.

"You're confused?" Copernicus asked. That was hardly a thing to say. If she was confused as to why she had no clothes on, then there was something wrong with this picture entirely.

"Why are you bringing people in here? Don't you know that you're supposed to keep this a secret from society? Keep your hormones in check!" Tsubomi scolded. It was imperative that she kept Copernicus' mansion a secret from everyone. She couldn't just have anyone over that she wanted to and screw them on the couch nonetheless.

"I…I slept with…"

"Stupid girl," The tomboy huffed.

"I slept with…Prince Yale…"

"Prince Yale was here?" Copernicus asked.

"Yeah."

"You try to insinuate things between us and you go and have sex with someone you were held prisoner with for a week," Tsubomi made it sound so bad.

"I didn't plan it like that. I was just worried that I wouldn't see him again," Millie replied in a voice that sounded more desperate than she would have liked it to.

"You must love him."

"I don't know," the girl sobbed. That was the last thing that she wanted to think about at a moment like this. It was bad enough that two men just saw her naked, much less that the prince never answered how he truly felt about her. Everything was just painful to her right now.

"Are you alright?" Copernicus moved the younger male's hand from his eyes.

"Yeah…I'm just really emotional," Millie calmed down as she wiped her tears. 'I'm so confused. I don't even know what I just did. I missed him so much. I lost control of myself. I don't know what's wrong with me.'

"Did you enjoy it?" Copernicus inquired.

"Yeah," she blushed. "I didn't want it to stop. He seemed so happy."

"Then don't regret it. A lot has happened. I'm sure you were both a little out of it," things like that happened. Millie and Yale just had a moment of comfort, and the brunette didn't see anything wrong with it. He imagined that things must have been just as emotional for Yale as they were for Millie.

"Sorry for having sex in your house. It was just on the floor and-" Millie started to say, but she was cut off.

"You live here too now," the vampire replied. If it was just the floor than he didn't care too much about that minor detail. At least she had not invited a human inside, and it was only the prince. That detail made him feel a lot more comfortable with the situation.

"As long as it's not on the couch. I sit there," Tsubomi stated simply. She wasn't about to sit in someone's love nest. The very idea disgusted her.

"He's an Inheritor, right? So I don't have to worry about being pregnant-"

"He's sterile," Copernicus chided. The last thing she needed to worry about was being impregnated.

"I think I'm falling in love with him. I don't know what to do. If he gets close to me then he'll be afraid that I'll die on him, like everyone else he knew and held dear to him. Maybe keeping it this way is for the best," even if such an idea felt wrong to her, she didn't want to complicate things. She was sure that Prince Yale had enough on his plate, and they both needed time to decipher what they both wanted and needed in a relationship. If they were just friends with benefits, then he could come to her any time he wanted.

Maybe, if she got used to it, a routine like that would become normal and eventually she would get used to it.

…To Be Continued