~Bleeding Hearts~

She looked at the entrance to her room, and her mother stood in front of the open doors. "Mother," she called in surprise. "What's going on?"

"That's what I want to know," Queen Eleanor said as she marched into her daughter's room.

"What do you mean?" Bel asked, confusion written all over her face.

She didn't understand what was going on, and she was getting increasingly worried. This was completely out of character for her mother, and she didn't know how to react. She could only assume something bad had happened.

"Did something happen?" Bel asked as her mother stopped in front of her bed.

"You didn't join us for dinner. I excused your behavior during lunch, but to do the same thing again, I can't let you be disrespectful again, certainly not to our guests. Not to mention, your father is still very angry."

Bel opened her mouth to speak, but it didn't look like her mother wanted to hear what she had to say about the matter, whereas she was just confused and looking for an explanation.

"Come in," Queen Eleanor said, turning her gaze to the door, which was still open.

Two maids rushed in one after the other, and Bel could only stare with her mouth agape as she tried to make sense of the situation. By the looks of things, her mother did not care for her thoughts on whatever this might be.

The maids closed the door behind them and rushed towards Bel, stopping by the side of the bed, they bowed without saying a word.

Bel adjusted on her bed, growing concerned. She moved her gaze from the maids to her mother. "What's going on?" She asked again, hoping she would get an answer this time.

"You are getting dressed, and you are going to give our guests a proper welcome."

"Excuse me?" Bel blinked. "What do you mean by that?"

Queen Eleanor turned to the maids, "Would you get her a proper dress, and Faith, fix her hair." She spat out orders to the maids without looking at her daughter.

"Mother, wait. Listen. I don't understand what's going on," Bel said. Was her mother going to take her to the guests or were they in the main castle?

"You don't need to understand what's going on; you just need to do as I ask, Bel. Is that too much to ask?"

Her mother looked at her with an expression that said she could tell Bel would disobey, which explained why she had barged into the room without any warning.

"No, it is not, mother," Bel said, and her shoulders slumped. Her mother looked shocked for an instant but quickly wiped the look away.

Bel pushed herself off the bed; she could easily protest against this. She might not win, but she could make it unbearable for both of them. However, the incident from this afternoon still haunted her, and she didn't want a repeat of it.

She wouldn't know what she would do if her mother broke down in front of her, and Hazel wasn't here. She wondered if Hazel was aware of this.

She wasn't exactly sure what her mother's plan was, but by the looks of things, she wanted to drag her to the vampires. Bel cringed; she would rather not face them, but she knew she couldn't avoid it any longer.

She didn't flinch as the servants tied the corset; her hitched breath was her only reaction. Faith worked quickly on her hair, adjusting it under a hat. Bel was glad she had gone for a small one.

She was indoors; there was no need for a hat, but she could see her mother was going for the ceremonial appearance. Bel hated this, but she knew things would only escalate if she didn't agree to her mother's wants.

Faith tapped her cheeks gently to bring out some color before applying colored makeup to her cheeks and lips. Bel tried not to sneeze as they puffed her face with powder.

"You look beautiful," Queen Eleanor whispered as Faith took a step back.

Bel looked at her mother with a bland expression. She had a lot on her mind, but if she sealed her lips, this would end quickly, and she would be back in her room.

"If you smile, you will look even prettier," her mother said.

Bel ground her jaw and scrunched her nose. She wondered if she looked like a goblin; maybe the vampires would retract their proposal.

"Don't do that; you will ruin your makeup," her mother scolded. "Let's go."

Bel nodded and walked step by step with her mother. The maids rushed ahead and pulled open the doors, bowing to them. Bel didn't glance at them; she just walked out.

The guards were still outside, and by the looks of things, a few of them had been changed out. Their shifts were most likely over.

"Your Highness," they all dropped to their knees.

Queen Eleanor waved at them, smiling beautifully, and the guards slowly stood to their feet. Bel watched this with an unimpressed look.

Her mother led her down the stairs, walking slowly; the guards were never far off, leading them through the lit path.

Her mother led her out of the middle section. The path to the left wing was lonely, and she could barely see anything aside from what was in front of her.

The section was a bit separated from the main castle, and the only connection was the path that was made of pillars and a roof. It stretched at least thirty feet.

Bel walked through this with her heart in her stomach. Bel frowned as she noticed light coming from the opposite end. She frowned a little, but her mother looked unfazed as if she knew what or rather who that was.

Bel fought the urge to ask any questions; she would find out when they got close enough, but for some reason, she didn't think she had the patience to wait.