The footsteps echoed throughout the castle halls as the servants hurried back and forth, the moon illuminating her as she gazed upon the gardens— seeing the commotion of last-minute preparations. She enjoyed the soft lull of the wind blowing through her undone hair, feeling the strands softly caress her face in an almost elegiacal way as a goodbye to her human life. Although she wasn't ecstatic about her union with the vampire, it was her duty as a princess to withhold the peace accord made by her father. The rumors encircled the kingdom as he was said to be sadistic, uncaring, and rough. Plenty of villagers would go missing within a full moon's cycle, causing whispers of the vampire being to blame.

As word of suspicions returned to the king, he decided to try to create a peace agreement with the vampire king. It was simple: a betrothal to the king's beautiful daughter and the end to the vampire's slaughter. She wasn't sure how the king had managed to convince the vampire to accept his offer, yet here she was, being pulled every which way by her ladies-in-waiting as they fixed her hair and laced the corset on tightly. It was like a blur as they fussed over the smallest details of her person—the corset wasn't tight enough, the jewels were too big, she didn't have enough rogue on her cheeks— the list was endless.

The moment they were satisfied with her appearance, they rushed her towards the grand ballroom. There weren't many attendees as the ceremony was meant to be private per the request of the infamous vampire. As the priest began the ceremony, Leon leaned towards her. "I don't believe in marriages bound by catholicism."