Hazel

"I am afraid that's not how this works. He has made his interest known and frankly, you have no reason to refuse."

"I do. Don't you find it strange that I am getting a proposal out of nowhere?"

"Not at all. You're of marriageable age, it is expected that you'll get marriage proposals. I will be more concerned if you don't and this isn't the first time."

"Wait what? That's not true," Bel replied, wiping her face.

Her mother gave her an unimpressed look. "I asked you what you thought about marrying the Duke of Verrse."

"He is an old man and I didn't think you were serious."

"He is hardly an old man, Bel. He should be in his early thirties at most. He is unmarried and his contribution to the kingdom is indispensable."

"That's a decade older than I am," she said in horror.

Her mother sighed, exasperated. "That's beside the point. Also, I didn't think you'd marry him, that's why I never stressed the matter."

"Why are you stressing this then? I don't want to marry a strange vampire."

Her mother grimaced, "I thought you would be excited by the news. To be considered by vampires is an honor. Thanks to them we have experienced some level of peace several times over."

"It is pretty clear we have different views on what honor is," Bel said. "This feels like you're sending me to my death."

Her mother gasped. "The decision is final. We can try to give you time to come to terms with it but your father has already given his approval and they will be here in two nights. That should give you enough time to think about this."

Bel glanced at her sister who was quiet during the whole exchange. Hazel just stood behind their mother.

"It's not fair," she whispered.

"Only because you think it isn't. This is the best marriage proposal you could ever dream of. I honestly believe you couldn't find a better husband and be married into a better family. Most importantly, they will keep you safe."

Her mother looked at her with pleading eyes. She closed the gap between them and lightly touched Bel's hair.

Bel leaned into her mother. Her mother's familiar perfume filled her nostrils. Queen Eleanor wrapped her arms around Bel's head as Bel clung to her chest.

"Please think about it, don't just toss the idea out without any consideration. You must understand that we all love you very much and would never do anything detrimental to your well-being."

Bel nodded, she was afraid that if she spoke she would burst into tears.

"I trust you to make the right decision. I shall let you get some sleep."

Queen Eleanor pulled away and Bel felt her heart squeeze. She could tell there was absolutely nothing she could do to change this. Her mother gave her a soft smile and started for the door.

"Hazel," Bel called. "Wait, I want to talk to you."

Bel watched her sister and mother exchange glances before Hazel responded, "Of course."

Her mother looked hesitant but the guard had already opened the door. She turned away from them and walked out the door. The sound of the door closing was excruciating to Bel.

Hazel walked back to the bed without any hesitation. "You wanted to speak to me," she said as she dropped beside Bel.

"Yes," Bel said and slowly turned to her side to look at her sister. She looked away without adding another word.

Hazel didn't push, she just grabbed one of Bel's palms and held it between her two palms.

"You know," Bel started to say after a few seconds passed. "I wished this was happening to you."

Hazel gave a soft laugh, "I am not surprised and I truly wish it was. I hate seeing you go through this."

Bel has never been able to get Hazel angry. In all her twenty-two years, not once has Hazel done anything to her out of anger.

The age difference between them was only a year but Hazel was far more mature than Bel would ever be.

Bel scoffed, "You are just saying that."

"I owe you my life, Bel. Marrying the vampire in your place wouldn't be enough to repay you."

"I hate you," Bel said.

Bel had no hate toward her sister. She was jealous of her. Hazel was the perfect daughter and their parents never stopped with the comparison. Not only that but Hazel was a great sister and she spoiled Bel.

"And I love you."

"No, you love Chance. Even I know it would be cruel to ask you not to marry him."

Hazel smiled, her impeccable dentition was bright enough to blind Bel. "I am glad. Do you really detest the idea of getting married to Davien?"

Bel winced at his name. Why were they all doing that? She found it very disturbing. "Yes! I'd rather marry the Duke of Verrse. At least I know him."

"Don't be ridiculous. We both know you'd rather lose a limb."

"That's how I feel about this marriage!" She rested her head on her sister's shoulder. "I can't believe you are not on my side."

"I am always on your side," Hazel responded.

"That's a lie. You're mostly on our mother's side."

Hazel chuckled, "Is that how it seems?"

Hazel had a pretty laugh, it was a soft sound that never irritated Bel's ears no matter how many times she heard it.

"You know," Hazel continued before Bel replied. "They offered to fix our goblin problem and not only that but they would have us retake Asrel."

Bel jerked her head up at Hazel. "Asrel is overrun with monsters. Our forces didn't stand a chance."

"I know but Stelian assured us they would take care of it and that's only a few of the benefits of agreeing to this marriage. He also brought enough gold and precious gems to fill up a chest."

"I won't be swayed by trinkets," Bel spat out.

Hazel chuckled, "Only you would call a chest full of gold, trinkets. I don't think someone willing to make this much effort would treat you badly."

"You are too trusting Hazel. He doesn't even know me, he has absolutely no reason to want to marry me. They probably just want my magic," Bel replied.

"Don't sell yourself short, anyone would want to marry you. Also, I doubt this has anything to do with your magic. Vampires can heal without magic."

"The villagers need me!"

"No, they don't. Isaiah can handle them without you and once they deal with the goblins, the current illness should completely stop. Wouldn't that be better than having to heal the same people every other day?"

"You don't think this is a bad idea?" Bel asked.

"I can't say for certain but I would say don't completely shut your heart to it. This is tough for our parents, father is taking it especially hard. Losing Asrel was a blow to us and it put a dent in our forces."

"What do you reckon I do?" Bel asked.

"Whatever you want," Hazel said softly. "I am sure if you refuse long enough, our parents will listen to you. They have never been able to say no to your wants."

Bel wanted to say that wasn't true. This time around, she could tell she was fighting a losing battle.

"No," she said instead. "I want you to tell me exactly what I should do."

"I can't do that. It is your decision to make."

"Still, I'd prefer you told me."

"So you can blame me if things go south?" Hazel asked. There was no anger in her voice, just amusement.

"Partly yes," Bel said, squeezing Bel's hand. "But I just want to know what you'll do in my situation."

"You already know what I'd do," Hazel said.

"Yeah," Bel said, absentmindedly. "I suppose I do."