Love Kills Slowly

The Queen had ordered the Slayer to be kept in a bedroom close to her own. Yes, a bedroom. Not a cell, not a concealed space. Nope, it was an expensive, luxurious bedroom with a connected bathroom. The room was painted a rich gold color with a fantastically soft bed. The covers were a gorgeous red and a gold curtain hung from the top. The floor had been carpeted with a plush cream carpet and there was a dresser next to a bay window. Across the room from the bed was a black wooden door to the bathroom. The entire thing was a silver tile covered with random mirrors. It gave the bathroom a sense of being watched and the Slayer most likely was.

Slowly, the Slayer did a 360 turn, her eyes scanning every inch of both rooms, examining, searching, memorizing her escape routes. Only one registered in her mind; the locked door. In agitation, the Slayer kicked the tub, causing a tiny crack to appear on the fragile tile. She sighed in defeat, twisted some knobs and warm water sprayed out. A shower, She thought. A shower will calm me down.

And so it did. The hot steam relaxed her muscles and cleaned her cuts and scrapes, caused bruises to appear that had been hidden by dirt. But she didn’t care about the bruises, she’s had worse. She cared about the Queen and her death, she cared about watching the look on the Queen’s face as she killed her, she yearned to feel the blood on her hands.

The Slayer let out a shaky breath and climbed out of the tub. Water pooled at her feet as she stood shivering on the tile, searching for a towel. Once she found it and had securely wrapped it around her body, the Slayer reentered her new bedroom and walked towards the freakishly soft bed. Her brows furrowed when she saw the beautiful, cream colored gown sprawled across the bed, waiting to be put on. She looked around, but nobody was there.

What the hell? Why not?

The Slayer picked up the silky gown, grimaced at the femininity and slipped it over her wet head. It fit her perfectly, but revealed her breasts a little too much.

“You look beautiful.”

The voice was tragically gorgeous and smooth, but it still startled the Slayer. She whipped around, meeting the silver eyes of the Queen from across the room. The vampiress hid amongst the shadows in a corner, yet the Slayer could still see the smile on her lips.

“Yeah?” For some reason the Slayer was breathless and could not find her voice. “Am I a vampire now?”

The Queen laughed softly and the sound pierced the Slayer’s ears. “No... no ,you’re not. Not yet.”
The Slayer sneered. “I will never become such a monster.”

“We’re not all monsters. Bloodthirsty, yes, but not monsters.”

“That statement could never be true. Nothing good could survive on the flesh of mortals and not be damned. Everything about vampires is sin. You are the Devil’s children.”

“And what are you, Rosalyn Black? You are a creature of night, stalking your pray. You kill without regret. Is that any different from a vampire?”

The Slayer opened her mouth, closed it, then said. “How do you know my name?”

“I know much about you, Rosalyn. I’ve watched you for a long time.”

The Slayer stared at the Queen, stunned, trying to take this all in. “How much?” Her voice was only a whisper.

The Queen just smiled, “You are invited to dinner, if you’d like to join me and some friends.” And then she was gone.

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The Slayer didn’t want to go to dinner. She was afraid of what could happen, of what would happen. And she didn’t want the Queen to know she was scared, that she had any type of fear at all. Slayers are meant to be made of stone, perfect in a sense. Slayers are vampire hunters, they weren’t allowed to have fear.

But, even though her reluctance stayed great, she knew she couldn’t avoid it. The Queen “invited” her, the invitation wasn’t meant to be declined or to even have a choice, it was out of common courtesy, she supposed. That or a challenge of the Queen’s to see if the Slayer would deny her request.

“What will I wear?” She asked herself quietly.

As if that was a cue, an eccentric looking man jumped out of the shadows and landed in a fancy pose on her bed.

“Having a little trouble, darling?”

“Who are you?”

The man gasped and leaped off the bed. “Who am I? Who am I? Why, I am Zeus, the Queen’s personal stylist.”

“The Queen has a stylist?”

The man laughed. “Of course, darling. Why wouldn’t she? Such a gorgeous woman needs her grooming.”

The Slayer’s nose scrunched up. Ugh......

“Come, come,” he grasped her arm and pulled her to the gigantic closet on the other side of the room. Releasing her, he swung open the doors and clothes upon clothes, shoes upon shoes, make up upon make up shined in the light. “We. Are. Dining tonight!” He sang in a wonderful voice. “We. Are. Dining tonight! Oh, what shall we wear?!”He picked up a strapless, light blue dress made of satiny fabric. “Blue satin? Purple silk? Oh, how bout this one?” He held up a black halter dress that slanted on the bottom and was tight on the waist. It would show off her legs and flat stomach. “You will look beautiful in this, my dear. Here, try it on!”
The Slayer, feeling a bit overwhelmed, took off the gown and slipped the dress on over her head. The man, who’s name still remained a secret, gasped in delight. “How wonderful, a perfect fit! Now, time for shoes!”

The Slayer grimaced.

Forcing her to sit, the man went about searching for the right shoes and finally came up with red, strapped heels. Again, a perfect fit.

“Ah, make up and hair... what look shall we go for? Stunning? Smoky? Or possibly Sparkling?” He narrowed his eyes as he looked her over. “With you, darling, we can do all three.” And he went to work.

Half an hour later, the man was holding up a mirror to the Slayer’s face. Her mouth dropped open a little and her eyes went completely wide. She looked... well stunning. The make up was dark and mysterious, giving it a smoky look, her black and red died hair sparkled somehow... and the dress made her beautiful. How... shocking.

The man squealed. “You like it! Oh, yes you like it!”

“Like it?” The Slayer said in disbelief. “I love it.”

“Aha! Yes, my favorite part! Accessories!”

He disappeared for a moment, reappearing with a red choker that had a small black rose on it. He equipped that to her throat, then added a red headband that had a red rose on it to her hair. Lastly, a bunch of red and black rings.

“Oh, darling, you have a tattoo?” The man said, looking at her back.

The Slayer bent, but didn’t see anything. “Yes, I do, but how can you see it?”

“Honey, I’m a vampire. My gift is to see through things,” he winked.

The Slayer blushed.

“FYI, I love it.”

“Oh, um, thanks.”

Suddenly, the vampire gave her a huge, bone crushing hug. The Slayer’s eyes widened in surprise and she didn’t know what to do. He pulled away. His eccentricity had been replaced with a depressing seriousness.

“My name is Daryl and I know you’re a slayer and all, but honestly, Rose, I don’t think you truly understand what it is you do. I think you’re better than that. I’m hoping I’m right.”

The Slayer didn’t know what to say, her mouth felt like it had been glued shut. Luckily, Daryl broke that awkward silence.

“Come on, my lady is waiting for you.”

He led her outside of the room, down a long hall and stopped at the staircase. At the bottom was the Queen and several vampires all chatting. Well, they were until the Slayer arrived. Silence filled the room, but once the Slayer met the silver eyes of the Queen, she felt like nothing could ever go wrong. Everything was just... perfect.