The next day the announcement was to be made straight away by Solenne to her people. "Hello, as your Queen you know I make decisions in our best interests for our species and so it has come to my attention that times are changing, we are exhausted from fighting, from losing loved ones. To stop this there have been several things that have been enforced. Firstly, we have now made a treaty with the wolves, I have been in talks with them for the past 2 weeks and have come to an agreement and ceasefire. They are to be welcomed here as you would welcome your own. You may ask why this has come about and I have one answer for you...Mates"

The crowd gasped. There was some commotion but they were listening intently to see what their Queen would say next.

"A close guard of mine is mated with the alpha but that does not stop there, it has been known that humans and vampires too can be mated, it need not be a secret anymore, any restrictions on these bonds are removed, Lord Canera knows the weight of that secret which is why I want us to unite and be able to live our lives whichever way we like and not be fearful" Solenne glanced around the crowd to see their reaction.

Some were shaking their heads unable to wrap their heads around it.

"From now, the slave auctions will be closed down, humans can move to a settlement near the castle and under our protection, no more pets or blood slaves, we only ask that the humans are willing to donate blood to keep our existence going. Anyone who does not agree with this I will ask you to pack your things and leave" Only a few walked off the rest stayed, the ones who walked most likely pledged allegiance to her uncle.

One member at the front bowed down and so the rest followed like a harmonious wave. Solenne smiled at her people, she knew they would accept it.

"Have a good afternoon everyone" Solenne walked off the podium and was welcomed by what she now considered her family "you did amazing" Luanna said.

"you killed it" Nilsa fist punched her.

The mood was dampened by Ras storming into the building. "what have you done, you stupid girl, you won't get away this this" he made a move for her but was blocked by the others.

Solenne was alarmed by his prescience but remained calm. "I did what should have been done a long time ago" she spoke.

Ras still tried to reach for her but she waved him away, the guards held him back. "your brother should be in charge not you" he never wanted a girl to rule, he had hated the fact ever since she had stepped into the role.

Prince Matheus stepped forward. "I'm not interested in ruling and I stand with my sister, she is right" he spat at his uncle.

"If you don't agree with it, you can leave my Kingdom, you'll only get one chance" Solenne smirked at him.

Tessa walked into the room at this point and stood by Ras. "She has done this all for that stupid human slut", both not believing what was to be true. How could she change their customs and ways.

"How fitting that you join him...say that again, I dare you" Solenne goaded her, ready to kill her.

"I said you have done all this for that stupid human.." before she could say the rest Solenne grabbed her by her throat and choked her.

Solenne looked at her old friend, feeling nothing for her, their relationship was ruined and tainted. "I will not hesitate to kill you, torture you and cut your tongue out. Questioning my rule, you are not welcome here, I suggest you leave now and never come back this time, if I see you or smell you here again I will kill you" her eyes flashed red and Tessa backed down. Solenne shoved her away and made the guards remove her from the castle.

"your father would be disappointed" Ras spoke, narrowing his eyes at her and clenching his fists. Solenne knew it was inevitable, he would not go down without a fight, but he had influence and so she could not do anything without cause.

"My father is the only reason you are alive" Solenne barged past him and headed back to her room. Both her father and her uncle were crazy, the power went to their head.

Aerilyn spent the next few days mostly alone, she isolated herself away from her brother, she could see how far gone he was, all he was interested in was pleasing his aunt, he didn't have much time for Solenne at all when they were at the castle and now he didn't have time for his only sister. Mostly they did not have much free time, it was not a very communal feeling at all.

Aerilyn studied Latin, that helped her feel closer to the vampires and to Solenne, it almost felt like none of it had been real, the feelings she felt, the relationships she had built.

A sad fantasy she had made in her head. She pined for Solenne to come and rid her of this place, even death started to seem like a better option.

She had lost count of how many days or weeks it had been since she had seen Solenne, how she missed her and how she wished she had gotten closer to her and opened herself up.

Why could she not get the vampire Queen off her mind?

Was she really coming for her?

Why hadn't she come sooner?

Saryn and Tri kept away, they did not want to arouse any suspicious behaviour by Yvonne or Eli and anyone of their associates.

After the Queen's speech, some humans had caught word about what had happened and began to make their way to the settlements and even donated blood straight away, they had land for the first time to grow food on, Solenne had gone down there to welcome them herself.

At first they had been worried but as word spread it became obvious that they would not be hurt but could live in harmony.

Zenon was roaming the woods waiting to catch Saryn, she thought about her mate and how far they had come, how there was a change in the wind. She wagged her tail with excitement and raced forward.

Soon she caught a smell and knew it had to be him... the mole. The wind was in her face and the sun was peering through the trees. The dirt surrounded her paws and the calls of the song thrush could be heard.

Things were happening fast, like a train you couldn't get off of.

Running on all fours she glimpsed him in the distance and shifted. "Saryn" she spoke. He turned around swiftly... terrified, looking to see who had called him.

He approached Zenon cautiously. "I am with Queen Solenne, you need to get Aerilyn out in the middle of the night, it's happening" he wasn't prepared for it but he knew they would have to make an escape. He then lowered his hood so that they could see each other better.

He nodded his head in agreement, thinking deeply, "where should we meet you?" he asked.

"We will meet here, this tree" she pointed to a distinguished tree that could not be missed. It was a crooked tree that was just past a clearing, but covered enough to be surrounded by the forest.

They both parted their ways and Zenon headed back to tell Solenne it was happening.

Solenne was sat in the gardens outside when Zenon smelt a vampire she did not know in the gardens. She lay low in the grass until she saw the vampire stalking Solenne from behind.

Solenne hadn't noticed the vampire because she was in deep thought as she was on her knees by a fountain, it was her mothers favorite fountain. The vampire pounced at the same time Zenon reached him in her wolf form and tackled him to the ground biting his arm in the process.

Solenne turned around to see the large black wolf had defended her. The others ran out to see what happened.

Solenne used her vampire speed to grab and detain him until the guards appeared by her side. "do you know him?" Zenon asked as she shifted.

"This is my cousin Prince Louis, the one who projected the thought onto Aerilyn's mind, I always knew his gift would come back to bite at some point" she silently called the guards over.

Solenne punched him hard knocking the wind out of him. "You've got some nerve cousin" she gritted her teeth, she wanted to torture him, having him begging for mercy.

He looked at her with pure venom. "I believe your time is coming to an end your majesty" he spoke sarcastically.

He wanted revenge for her killing his best friend and for what she had announced. "Wait until my father hears of this" he was seething.

"take him to the dungeon" she ordered her guards, completely ignoring him.

Turning around she looked Zenon "I believe I owe you my life, how can I repay you?" Queen Solenne paused in front of Zenon.

Zenon thought for a moment, whilst she didn't want to ask of anything, she knew Solenne would not back down until the debt was repayed. "A pack house, I wish only to be near my mate" that was understandable.

"that's a given, we have a building in the woods, it's not far or used, you can have it, but it will require some maintenance" the once ruthless Queen was indeed very kind to those she was fond of. If she had something they needed she would give it in a heart beat.

Zenon grabbed Solenne and hugged her, the Queen was not use to this kind of affection, it was like they no longer feared her but more so respected her. Indeed times had changed.

Aerilyn played with her necklace around her neck nervously before placing it back under her top, so no one could see it. All she could think about was leaving, it was still a shock that Saryn was the mole, she couldn't understand why or what he had to gain from it. Laying on her bed she was apprehensive so she decided to head for dinner.

She sat down at her usual table where she would sit with Eli. She was looking around but trying to be discrete and find Saryn.

Her eyes landed on him sat at a table in the back out of the way from everyone. His eyes caught Aerilyn before he looked away and held a thump up, Aerilyn knew that tonight was the night they would flee, she was scared and excited.

"hey Lyn" Eli greeted her as he sat across from her, placing his food down on the table. She had lost a bit of weight since arriving due to the food being the same everyday, she didn't have much of an appetite.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asked him. She felt bad that she was going to leave him, but he was not the same brother.

He smiled at her, but it wasn't the smile that reached his eyes "never better, we have been planning an attack on one of the leech's villages" he said proudly.

Aerilyn hated the idea of them killing innocent vampires especially children "Eli, don't you get tired of this, don't you just want to go back to a normal life and escape this. We don't need to attack villages thats not you" she tried to reason with him.

"They'll get whats coming to them" Yvonne walked in and sat down next to him.

"What are you both talking about?" Yvonne then asked.

Eli turned to her. "Aerilyn is too soft, she doesn't understand the need to attack villages" with a glazed over look he began to eat his food.

"well she wouldn't shes just a child" Yvonne spoke as if she was not there, literally treating her like an infant.

Aerilyn decided enough was enough maybe she needed to have some of Ev's balls for a change "Excuse me, are you just going to let her talk to me like that?" Aerilyn confronted Eli and Yvonne.

Eli said nothing and carried on eating.

"you'll do well to remember your place girl" Yvonne tightened her hands into fists.

Aerilyn's mouth gaped, how dare she talk to her like that. "you know you're not immortal right, trying to act like one. If no one else will say it I will, I wasn't talking to you, I was talking to my brother" she emphasised the ''my' part.

Yvonne didn't care what she was saying, she was barely even listening "What concerns Eli, concerns me, he knows that don't you" Yvonne was mentally goading Aerilyn to bite but she wouldn't, she placed her hand on Eli's forearm to wind his sister up even more.

"Yes i do" he smiled at Yvonne and refused to look at Aerilyn now.

This caused Aerilyn to bubble over the edge and burst as she shouted in front of everyone pointing her finger at them both "she's got you wrapped around her finger, I thought you were smarter than this Eli. You barely even know her and you let her speak to me like a child, she's nothing but a warped bitch" a loud smack was heard followed by Aerilyn grabbing her cheek in pain. Her aunt had smacked her extremely hard.

"Get out of my sight, you disrespectful little vermin of a girl" Aerilyn tried to stop the tears as she stood up and left, not believing that her brother did nothing, its like he did not even care. He didn't look at her or show any guilt at all. Aerilyn ran out of the room and back to her bedroom.

She stayed up until 1 oclock which was the time they were to meet at the fence, they had to watch out for the guards and time it just right. She opened her door very slowly and as quietly as possible, slinging a small bag over her back, she made her way outside.

Saryn was there waiting in the dark, both dressed in dark clothing so no one could see them. "Quick" he ushered her as he held the fencing up. They checked no body was about and then slipped under the fence. Once they were across they ran for their lives.

Solenne, her guards, the wolves, Luanna, Nilsa and Prince Matheus stood waiting for them across the plain next to the tree.

"They are late" Solenne was worried, she could feel Aerilyn's anxiety, which meant she had to be close.

Had something gone wrong?

She tapped her foot impatiently.

"it's quite far for a human remember" Luanna reminded her. In the distant Solenne picked up that insatiable scent she longed for. They were running as fast as they could and as soon as Solenne saw them she began to run.

But they were not alone, behind them was Eli, the woman she presumed to be Yvonne and their guards. Solenne stopped a few yards in front of Aerilyn, she wanted to see what she would do first, she couldn't presume that the girl wanted her.

That quickly changed when Aerilyn threw her arms around the Vampire Queen, Aerilyn kissed Solenne and butterflies erupted all around for the both of them. They didn't care who saw.

"there is going to be a fight, your brother is here with your aunt" Aerilyn turned to the side and that was when Solenne noticed her red cheek.

"who did that to you little one?" the thought of anyone touching her made her blood boil, you could almost see the steam leaving her ears.

"she did" she nodded at her aunt.

They stopped a hundred meters from each other. "Where do you think you are going little girl?" Yvonne called, speaking down to her.

Aerilyn stepped away from Solenne "I'm leaving, I know what you both did, my own brother betrayed me" she was hurt badly.

Eli stepped next to his aunt. "It was for you, Lyn, no good will come of those leeches, I had to protect you" he admitted.

Aerilyn wasn't having it. "I heard what happened, you both are sick"

Solenne put Aerilyn behind her back protectively. "how about I tell them what you did?" Solenne called over.

She stepped forward again, her eyes red. "How you sold their parents to make money off their blood just because they did not agree with your ethics and then you left their children to fend for themselves" Solenne carried on.

"How their parents were drained of every last drop and you profited off of it, your own flesh and blood" Solenne was seething.

Eli looked round at Yvonne but she quickly grabbed him and held a knife to his throat.

"Nooo" Aerilyn cried.

She tightened her grip on Eli. "And so what, they were weak and pathetic just like their children are. I wouldn't even call her my sister, she was not blood to me" Yvonne's eyes were wild.

"Let him go" Aerilyn screamed.

Solenne held her back. "Let him go and we might just let you live, you are out numbered" she used her hands to gesture to everyone behind her.

Yvonne sadistically smiled, Solenne knew what was going to happen because she had forseen it, there was nothing she could do, she had planned every outcome in her head and they all ended in the same way.