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The Princess and the Thief (Lord Dakol and Seraphine Light)

As if the man sensed the presence of Talia and Lucius, his gaze seemed to glide along until they were looking at each other, voice halting as all became quiet. He did not acknowledge the two for a minute, and a glint of soft gold came from underneath the hood. "Children, I apologize but I must cut our lesson short today," he said gruffly, and was greeted with disappointed groans and complaints.

Ignoring their cries of stubbornness, he got to his feet, picking up the book that laid at the legs of his chair. His posture was curved, weakened, like an old man. Walking over, he looked down at Lucius. "Hello, boy. You still look as young and brash as ever," the man grumbled, "And the girl isn't helping your case at all, either." this was said with the same rough grumble, but his tone said otherwise: friendly.

"And I'm sure you still look like a wrinkled book, Damion," the Lucius replied, grinning cheerfully. Damion glanced at Gregory and bowed slightly. "Thank you, Greg. That will be all."

Gregory bowed back and smiled, waving goodbye to the pair before leaving. "Follow me..." Damion grumbled, coughing harshly as he hobbled off the stage and down the street, and Lucius followed without a word.
 
When Damion spoke she couldn't help but laugh softly. He sounded so grumpy, in his grumbling tones. She wondered how old he was beneath the mysterious cloak. At the mention of herself she looked between Lucius and Damion with flooded red cheeks. What wasn't she helping? She wasn't sure if Damion was insulting Lucius or not. Lucius seemed to be smiling however, so she noted that she shouldn't take it seriously. Quietly the Princess moved behind Lucius as he began to follow Damion from the stage and down the street.

Her eyes wandered as she did so. It seemed the children really were a bit upset that the lesson was over, and she even noticed a few making faces at her and Lucius as they walked away. The Princess laughed softly to herself at the childish innocence and then turned her attention back to the two men she was following.

She didn't know whether or not to introduce herself to Damion now, or when they were somewhere settled in for conversation. So the Princess merely remained silent behind Lucius, keeping to herself mostly. Talia pondered over several thoughts in her head as they walked.
 
The trio walked down the street, following Damion as he held on tightly to the railing. They soon arrived at a house, where Damion opened the black door and walked inside, holding it open for them.

A single candle was lit at a large, cluttered desk, flickering gently as it illuminated most of the room. Papers were scattered on every surface except the floor, and books were stacked high above the shelves, hitting the ceiling. "Make yourself comfortable," he growled, closing the door behind Talia before limping over to the windows, closing them and shut off the other sources of light.

"All right, are you going to tell me what you're doing here, boy?" he asked, getting to his desk and crossing his arms.

Lucius laughed, "I will once you tell me why you're still acting."

"Hmph. It's been a while since I've entertained..." Damion stood up straighter, and his voice significantly smoothed out to become younger and stronger, "Guests." Tugging on the bit of the cloth, he unraveled the cloak that hid his features.

When it fell from his shoulder, and man with long, golden hair that cascaded down his shoulders stood at the table, deep golden eyes staring at Lucius. His skin was pale and young, and his body seemed to be in perfect shape. A smile then appeared on his lips.

"Talia, this is Damion. Damion, this is Talia," said Lucius, gesturing to them both as the older man walked forward - without a limp - and extended his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Talia."
 
(Sorry that I've been away for so long. First I went on vacation, then we got a bad storm which knocked out my power, then we got an earthquake and Hurricane Irene which further knocked out my power...so now I'm back. Haha.)

Talia followed in her silent but curious way as usual, sending occasional glances towards Damion as they all followed. It wasn't long before they stood before their house and Talia smiled. Finally they could talk! She headed in and noticed the single candle that illuminated the room, papers scattered everywhere. Damion voice alerted her, and she found herself glancing between Damion and Lucius with wide eyes. Entertained? She felt herself become puzzled, her brows pulling together to show her confusion. "Entertained?" she mumbled quietly.

She noted how his voice smoothed out, becoming much stronger, and seeming to belong to someone much younger then she believed Damion. Talia watched the man as he took his cloak away, long, golden hair cascading down his shoulders and deep golden eyes to match. He seemed perfectly healthy and Talia's jaw dropped ever so slightly in surprise. "D-Damion?" she stuttered as she stared wide-eyed at the youthful man before her. His limp was gone, and his hand was extended as Talia slowly raised her own.

The Princess grasped his hand lightly and blinked away the probably stupid look on her face. "Why the act?" she questioned. "Does everyone in this city believe you to be some weak, and older man?" she said softly. "I feel like a fool! Lucius why didn't you tell me?" she laughed softly.
 
((It's no problem at all. I know I took a while to post, haha. *sweatdrops*))

Damion smiled gently as he lifted her hand up, placing a light, gentlemanly kiss on her fingers. "It's a pleasure," he said before letting go of her hand and looking towards Lucius.

"Damion has to appear has to appear as if he's aged. Otherwise, people would get suspicious. Plus, he can't be in direct sunlight," Lucius explained, chuckling when Talia pouted about him keeping it a secret.

However, the expression on Damion's visage hardened, an eyebrow quirking. "Do you know how foolish it is be here, Lucius? Have you seen your bounty lately?" he inquired, his voice rising with each word.

"Um . . . last I saw, it was a million pieces of gold. Why? Has it changed?" the Thief replied casually.

A folded-up piece of paper was tossed at him, "See for yourself." Damion muttered, turning around.

Lucius caught the piece of paper and unfolded it. He read silently for the next minute, his eyes widening every second. "Holy crap..." he gasped, passing it to Talia.

The poster read:

WANTED
The Runner
Dirune-1.jpg

DEAD OR ALIVE
30,000,000,000
Wanted for the kidnapping of the royal Princess of the Empire and murder of several Empire guards.​
 
Talia smiled and blushed slightly at the gentlemanly kiss placed to her hand and laughed softly at Damion. "Well...Honestly I'm a bit revealed...you had me a bit...scared with your grumpy attitude..." she teased Damion lightly. At the next words from Damion she frowned, instantly becoming a bit fearful. His bounty?

She watched Lucius as Damion handed over a piece of paper and then when it was handed to her she bit her lip. "Lucius...this is not good...not good at all..." she whispered. The Princess handed the paper back to Damion. "Perhaps...perhaps I should go..." she shook her head,"No...that wouldn't work...We've come all this way...Maybe if I sent a letter? There has to be some way to get this fixed..." she pressed her hand to her forehead. "Its Marcus'...fault..I know it is..."

Talia sighed,"Well I guess this means we can't dilly dally..."
 
"How the hell did it go from a million to 30 billion?" Lucius asked, crossing his arms as he looked at Damion.

"I'm guessing because you kidnapped the most wanted woman in the country, besides Eve..." Damion said. Lucius shuddered at the name. That was one woman he'd love to forget. Damion froze, and stared at Talia.

"Wait . . . DID HE KIDNAP YOU?!" he asked, his eyes twitching. "By the Maker; Lucius..."

"I didn't kidnap her!" Lucius snapped, pouting as he glanced at Talia.
 
Talia's eyes widened,"Most wanted woman in the country?" she laughed,"Oh no no no..I doubt that..." she smiled a then found herself silent as Damion exclaimed his question loudly. "Oh no no! He didn't!" she laughed again, a bit louder this time.

"I went willingly with him! It's just...it didn't really appear to be that way..It was actually a joined effort in the decision for me to leave...I didn't want to be there anymore..in many ways Lucius saved me..." she nodded slowly and reached over to grab Lucius' hand. "So don't be mad at him, Damion...He didn't do anything morally wrong.." she giggled quietly.

Lucius' pout was adorable and it made her smile just seeing it. Lucius could have kidnapped her for all she cared, as long as she got to be with him in the end.
 
Lucius' eyes also widened, "No, not like that! He meant the most eligible bachelorette," he explained hurriedly.

"However, Eve is both the second-most wanted criminal in Xenion, as well as most sought-after for most men," Damion pointed out, much to Lucius' chagrin.

As Damion listened to Talia, his countenance softened once more before he smiled. "Okay, then. Well, then what can I do for you?" he asked.
 
"....ah...Well I'm sure everyone would love to marry me..but Marcus would likely kill them before they got the chance," she mumbled, remembering her fiance was not something she liked to do, and she was very thankful to be so far away from him. With a sigh she listened about the woman named Eve. Second-most wanted criminal? She frowned, curious as to what the woman looked like. Shaking her thoughts of it away she looked to Damion with a warm smile.

"We came here to ask you questions..You see we're on a mission! A mission that I believe will be very good for Lucius!" she smiled, looking to her companion fondly. "I want to track down any lasting information or people from his homeland..." her words were quiet and she frowned sadly.

"Do you know anything?" she asked softly, her eyes pleading as she looked up at Damion. The Princess reached forward and grasped Damion's hand,"Please if you have anything to offer...please do.."
 
Damion's eyes lit up in surprise when Talia answered, and shot a look at Lucius. "She knows?" he asked.

The Thief nodded, "Yeah. I couldn't hide it, and she needed to know," he replied.

"Huh. Well, I'm sure I have a few bits of information lying around..." Damion muttered, turning away to shuffle through the papers upon his desk. "I assume that, since you know of the Delusians, you know of their city, Delusia?"

Lucius turned away, allowing Talia to chat with Damion before he began to pick up books, leafing through them casually.
 
Talia listened quietly to Damion as he spoke to her. "Yes, anything you have is much appreciated..." she responded. "I know a good bit about the Delusians and their history...as well as several things..I'm not very proud to know.." she said a bit softer, of course she was speaking of her father and his role in the Delusians downfall. "Can you tell me some more about Delusia?" asked Talia eagerly, her eyes wide with interest.

The Princess stayed close to Damion as he shuffled through his papers, only mildly aware of Lucius going off on his own to look through some of Damion's books. "I've never been so inspired to do anything in my life...but helping Lucius is something I feel I have to do, and I want to do it..." she glanced over at him and then looked back to Damion. "You helping us...it's very appreciated...I don't know...what can I do to repay you?" she said in a very soft voice. "Even if you cannot offer much...the mere fact that you were willing to help is something I must repay..."

Talia's eyes were wide, filled with respect and warmth. She truly was more then thankful for all of the people that had aided them along their journey, Damion was no different.
 
"Mm, yes, the Delusians have a very bloody history. Only a few people know of their past greatness before the downfall at the hands of your father," Damion replied, his tone not of malice, but of knowing. Reaching towards the top of one of the bookcases, he took down a very old, fragile folded paper before revealing it upon the desk. It was an very ancient map, drawn carefully with ink that showed places and cities that modern maps won't show. It looked to be easily 200 years old.

"This is a pre-Empire map. On it, it shows the locations of various temples, tombs, and cities that the King doesn't want anyone to know about. All of them were constructed by the Delusians. Now here," Damion placed a finger at the northern-most edge of the map, past the Empire, "Is where Delusia is located. Most likely, the King has an army there, just to kill anyone that tries to enter. In the center of the city is where the ancient artifact that made the Delusians demigods was found - or constructed, I'll never know. And here," he then pointed to a small dot to the west of Loiov, "Rumors are that a very small colony of Delusians live, hiding away from the Empire."
 
"So there are some still alive!" Talia exclaimed. "Amazing! We have a chance to do something great Lucius!" she said happily. "We can free them and your people can once again thrive!" she nodded quickly and looked to him with a smile. "Of course...I mean I'm not a fool..I know it will be dangerous, but we will do it! I know we can!" she looked to Damion. "Even if its only a few people...we can still help them...a handful is better then one..." she examined the map carefully, looking over where Damion said the rumored colony is, as well as where the said artifact was. An army. That would be the difficult part. They probably wouldn't harm her right off the bat, unless of course Marcus and her father had decided against her importance in their future plans. She had a chance to at least catch them off guard, prove as a distraction while Lucius snuck in and found the last remaining Delusians.

"Lucius..what do you think...aren't you thrilled?" Talia said softly, stepped over to him and grabbing his wrist.
 
"Rumored," Damion repeated, raising his eyebrows as Talia became excited. "I don't know if they've been found or not. No one's been in that area for ten years."

When the Princess took Lucius' wrist, the young man looked up from the book he was reading to looked at her. "Of course. I would just rather not get my hopes up; I know how troublesome the Empire can be when I'm close to something," he replied truthfully, but managed a smile.

A sharp gasp of "oh!" was heard from Damion, and when Lucius turned, Damion smiled sheepishly. "I am going to need payment, though..." he said, chuckling slightly.

Lucius' expression hardened, "No."

"Just a vial. I won't take it directly!" Damion countered, biting his lip.
 
Talia frowned a bit, but didn't let her hopes get killed, she was still going to try her hardest to make sure they got to their goal. When she heard Damion's gasp she turned and looked at him with a smile. "Payment?" she said with a laugh. "But Lucius...I did tell him we owed him...Well I said I would pay him anything...What is it you want from Lucius...?" she questioned curiously. As Lucius continued looking hard against the whatever it was Damion wanted she tilted her head slightly to the side.

"Vial?" she laughed quietly. "What on earth would you put in a...." she thought about it for a second and raised a brow. "...Okay..Explain...Now please?"
 
Damion was dumbfounded, "You haven't told her?! Lucius, you bring a young woman to my house and you didn't warn her?!" he exclaimed, face-palming in exasperation.

"Hey, I did . . . sort of," Lucius said defensively, glancing away as he coughed before looked at Talia. "Um, the reason Damion is so young and why he can't be in sunlight is because-"

"I'm a vampire," Damion said, looking narrowly at Lucius, shaking his head and clicking his tongue.

"He, uh . . . wants a vial of your blood," Lucius explained.

"Just a tiny bit; not for feeding. I like collecting different blood types, and I don't have one from the Empire's royal family..." the vampire said, smiling slightly.
 
Talia felt a light bulb ding in her head and she gawked at Damion for a second. "Ah...that's what you meant about the blood comment..." she bit her thumb nervously. "WAIT!" she glared at Damion. "MY BLOOD?!" The Princess' shoulders slumped and she closed her eyes. "Well..I did say I'd give you anything..." she bit her lip as she clasped her hands together. Vampires existed? Seriously?! She opened her eyes and looked at the two men. "I...You're a vampire...that really is something I cannot believe.." she glared at Damion. "You collect blood?" she pursed her lips. "You know..that's really odd..."

With a nervous sigh she stepped towards Damion. "Fine...but..I want proof! Do you have fangs? Or do you I don't know...have any weird abilities?" she asked. "Only after you prove it can you have a vial of my blood..." she smiled and nodded slowly.
 
Damion shrugged slightly, chuckling sheepish as she voiced her disbelief. "I know, it's hard to believe, but it's true..." he replied.

Proof? Aw, crap, Lucius thought, rolling his eyes as he turned away, crossing his arms.

The vampire quirked an eyebrow, "Evidence? As you wish, milady," he said. However, as soon as he said this, Damion vanished from sight, only to reappear behind Talia, his mouth extremely close to her neck. "Ah..." he inhaled, taking in the sweet scent of her blood. "Let's see . . . your father is the King, no doubt about that. But . . . you lost your virginity to Lucius last night. Your scent means that . . . you love him."

As he said this, two long, sharp fangs extended from his mouth, elongating until they touched Talia's smooth skin, and stayed there, waiting for her response.
 
Talia was about to mention something about how it was indeed hard to believe when Damion was gone. She inhaled sharply and glanced around without moving. Where had he gone!?!? The Princess suddenly felt a bit fearful, was he indeed a vampire like the two men said? Then she felt someone behind her, the sound of Damion made her tense, as well as the fact that he was insanely close to her neck. "H-How do you know that!" she stammered, her eyes wide as she listened to what Damion knew just by...smelling her? He could tell she loved him just by that?!

The Princess bit her lip when she felt something sharp touch her skin, causing nervousness spread through her. "Well..Heh..I..I believe you now..." she laughed quietly, closing her eyes as if to hide herself. "So...let's just get to that vial deal...and we can just go back to acting like...not vampires..." she smiled slightly, but it faltered. Vampires were honestly a bit scary. More then a bit. She hadn't even seen Damion move!

"Do you really bite people?" asked Talia softly, hoping he'd step away from her soon, he was making her more nervous by the second.
 
"Easy. There's a distinct difference between the smell of blood, at least to people like me. There's virgin, recently taken, and non-virgin. You're recently taken; you still smell sweet and pure," Damion explained, "As for how I know that you love him... easy. Your heart beats much faster when you're around him."

He then casually left her side, walking around to come by his desk. "So, do we have a deal?" he asked, tossing her a small vial.
 
Talia let out a small sigh when he stepped away and she ran a hand through her hair. "Oh.." was her only response to the explanation. "Heh...yes...We have a deal Damion..." she answered as she caught the small vial in her hands.

She looked at the small bottle and wondered how exactly he would get the blood, he told Lucius it wouldn't be directly. Would it hurt nonetheless? It wasn't a lot of blood, but still...Talia wasn't one for pain. She laughed. "Alright...life is getting more interesting by the minute when I'm with you, Lucius.." she teased.

"Well come on! How are we going to do this!" she said with a smile. Damion was a vampire, that still made her head spin. Vampires existed. Lucius' people existed. Her father was a horrible horrible person wrapped up in things she didn't understand! Oh what was the world coming to.
 
"Good," Damion nodded, "And, I do bit people. Well, sometimes; but only voluntarily. Most of the time, I'm given blood packets." he explained casually.

"There's a lot you don't know about, muja..." Lucius said. Then as she wondered how they were going to get the blood, Lucius unsheathed the silver dagger, gently taking Talia's hand. However, before he moved forward, he glanced Damion.

Said vampire nodded and sat down, placing his hand on the armrests. Lucius glanced at the Princess. "Don't panic," he instructed her. Opening the vial, he made a very small slit on her index finger; then sheathing his weapon, he lightly squeezed the cut, and began to steadily drip blood into the clear container. A cracking noise was heard from across the room; Damion's hands were tightly gripping the armrest, his fingers beginning to splinter the wood as he restrained himself with every ounce of his being.
 
Talia frowned. Lucius was right, there was a lot she didn't know of. Not only of her own world, which her father was to blame, but of other people's worlds as well, and of the dark unknown. Her eyes widened slightly as Lucius unsheathed the dagger, gently taking her hand. It would be fine, Lucius wouldn't hurt her, and it would only be a small bit of blood. She smiled slightly and looked over at Damion who had sat down.

"Panic?" she questioned quietly. "Why would I panic?" she murmured as Lucius cut a small slit on her index finger. It was the pain of a paper cut, simple and clean, but obviously deeper in order to get the blood out. As she watched her blood drop into the container she heard a cracking noise and turned her head to see Damion's hands gripping on the armrest. Oh dear. She now understood what Lucius meant about not panicking. The Princess bit her lip, eyes wider then usual as she watched Damion trying to restrain himself.

A trickle of fear rushed through her and she worked hard to keep her breathing steady, but there was no hiding that she was afraid.
 
The vial filled up slowly, and the splintering continued until the glass way three-quarters of the way full. The Thief suddenly stopped, wiping the blade on his pants before sheathing, then capping off the vial. "There," Lucius said shortly, tossing it to Damion. The vampire easily caught it, holding it gently in his hands. "Thank you, Princess."

Lucius leaned down, kissing her finger gingerly before cleaning the remainder of the blood from the wound. "You okay?" he asked quietly.
 
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