Chapter Text
“All right, children. It’s bedtime,” Effie said, trying to calm the two mischievous boys who were running around the large room and throwing pillows at each other. The maids were busy preparing the prince’s large bed and the smaller one next to it, though everyone knew that in the end, both boys would fall asleep in the same bed. The small one would be forgotten as always.
“Boys!” Effie used her soft yet firm motherly tone, which made both of them stop in the middle of the room at once. Soft pillows hung from their hands, and their hair and clothes were a mess.
Effie smiled at the effect she had on them and pointed toward the beds. “It’s bedtime.”
Sirius looked up at the older woman with his wide, innocent red eyes. His lower lip trembled, and his face took on an expression that could melt anyone’s heart. “I want my mum.”
Effie smiled gently, her eyes softening. She knelt down in front of the boys and brushed Sirius’s wavy hair, now longer than ever, away from his eyes. “Your mum’s gone on a little trip, Sirius. We talked about this. She won’t be back until tomorrow afternoon.”
“But she’s always on a trip!” Sirius protested. “She’s never here on weekends. And even when she is, she’s always busy.”
Effie knew exactly what he meant. Queen Walburga Black had spent every single weekend away from the castle for several years now, without exception. No one but the king, her personal maid, and the coachman who took her knew where she went, and no one dared to ask.
“That’s why I’m here, darling. Your mother is a very busy woman. Ruling such a vast kingdom takes up a great deal of her time. And though it’s rather sad, it’s a truth we can’t deny. That’s why James and I are here, so you don’t feel lonely. Isn’t that right, James?”
The boy beside Sirius nodded, flashing a wide grin that revealed the gaps where his newly lost canine teeth had been. His glasses were crooked from all the rough play, yet his crimson eyes still shone brightly behind them.
Effie turned back to Sirius. “Now, how about getting into bed so tonight goes by quickly and tomorrow comes sooner? Your mother will be back at the palace soon, and you can have afternoon tea with her.”
Sirius didn’t look convinced. It was clear he wanted his mother, and he wanted her tonight. Still, the two boys made their way to the prince’s large bed. As usual, James’s smaller bed was ignored.
“Where does the Queen go anyway?” James asked as he took off his glasses and placed them on the bedside table. “I thought all the borders were sealed with magic and no one could cross them.”
“That’s true,” Effie replied. “But Acrasia is a vast land with plenty of places to explore. She doesn’t have to leave the kingdom to travel.”
Sirius rolled his eyes. “Maybe she sails around Ellara and plays with the mermaids.” He paused, then looked up at Effie. “How do the borders even work? Can Mum go into Ellara’s waters? Or are the sea borders closed too?”
Effie looked at his curious little face. “No. All borders are sealed, even the sea ones. No one can leave Acrasia. Not even to see a little mermaid.”
“How did they even come to be? And why?” This time it was James who spoke, his crimson eyes, large without his glasses, gleaming like two marbles.
Well, wasn’t that the golden question?
“It’s late, boys, and that story is far too long to tell before bed.”
“Pleeease?” Sirius pleaded with the most innocent puppy eyes imaginable, forcing Effie to give in with a sigh.
“All right, but only if you behave, don’t bicker, and go straight to sleep once the candles are out. I don’t want to hear your whispering long after that, understood?”
At last, James spoke up. “We promise.”
And to prove it, both of them lay down politely in their places, not even trying to poke each other in the ribs.
Effie sat down on the edge of the bed and gently ran her fingers through James’ and Sirius’ hair in turn. “It all goes back to a very long time ago.”
“You mean Papa’s time?”
Effie chuckled softly. “Much earlier than that.”
“Grandpa’s time?” James suggested this time.
“Try the time of the very first vampires.”
Both boys’ eyes widened, and they gasped, waiting for Effie to continue her story.
“Before the vampires came to be, there were several kinds of beings in the world: werewolves, Sorcerers, dragons, elves, centaurs, and giants. Each had its own lands and rarely interfered with the others. But gradually, some of the Sorcerers began to believe they were superior. They possessed the magic of the earth itself and could turn almost anything into reality. The only thing they lacked was the physical strength to stand against the other races.
Word spread among the Sorcerers, and in the end, three houses stood firm on this belief, the Potters, the Blacks, and the Crouches. They spent years studying and experimenting until they turned to dark magic, one of the most terrible of all elements. Dark magic was forbidden among Sorcerers and considered a grave crime, but they accepted the risk. They sought a way to gain immense physical power and superiority over the others, and at last, through the use of dark magic, they succeeded. And that is how the vampires were born.”
Both boys, eyes wide as saucers, stared at Effie in silence, trembling with excitement to hear more.
“When they first came into being, they were overwhelmed by an unbearable thirst for blood, and their bodies were unprepared for such a sudden transformation. Blinded by their new feral instincts, they attacked countless sorcerers and drained them completely dry. By the time their thirst subsided, it was far too late. The sorcerers, having lost nearly half their kind, realised what had happened and sought to capture and punish the vampires.
But the vampires were far stronger than anyone had expected. Before they could be stopped, they turned on Asena, the land of the werewolves, and unleashed a massacre there as well. Still, the werewolves were powerful and numerous, so they fled and, in turn, attacked Ilaria, the land of the elves.
Of all the races, the elves were the most vulnerable. Though they possessed magic, their power was not equal to that of the sorcerers, and their physical strength was as slight as any ordinary sorcerer. They could not escape the slaughter that descended upon their homeland.
The elves were wiped out by that handful of vampires, and only a few managed to flee across the sea borders and find refuge in a deserted corner of Deathia.
For a while, the vampires terrorised everyone. They needed to feed, and with their lands bordering those of the werewolves, they found their easiest prey there. Werewolf blood became their main source of nourishment, and whenever the wolves tried to fight back, the vampires would vanish into the vast forests of Ilaria with their inhuman speed.
The sorcerers had dwindled to their smallest numbers, and the werewolves were being hunted day by day. This dark age lasted a long time, until finally, the sorcerers and werewolves decided to join forces, to stand together and put an end, once and for all, to nature’s new predators.”
Effie paused. Perhaps telling such a dark and bloody tale to two eight year old boys hadn’t been the best idea. But just as she thought it might be time to stop, Sirius’s eager voice broke the silence.
“What happened next?”
Effie chuckled and shook her head. Since she’d come this far, she might as well finish the story.
“The vampires, though few in number, were powerful, there was no doubt about that. At first, the werewolves tried sending a small army made up of their strongest warriors and the most skilled sorcerers to destroy them, but the plan failed. It seemed the vampires were immortal. How could anyone kill a creature when even an iron spear through its body had no effect?
“So they made another decision. Once they were certain all the vampires were gathered in Ilaria, they began creating the most complex border spell ever conceived. It took days to complete, and the sorcerers poured every ounce of their power into it, but in the end, it worked. The borders of Ilaria, now known as Acrasia, were sealed completely, so that the vampires could no longer harm anyone.
“When this proved successful, the sorcerers decided to use the same spell on the other lands as well. The dragons had been a grave problem for the werewolves, and the centaurs caused much destruction to the sorcerer's clans, so their borders were sealed too. After countless pleas and letters from the remaining elves, a magical barrier was raised around the small land where they had settled, protecting them from the ruthless giants. The few surviving elves named their new home Durand and tried to live on.”
Effie finally finished the story and looked at the boys’ curious faces. It seemed all that information was a bit much for their young minds.
“What happens if someone tries to cross the borders?”
“If we’re descended from sorcerers, then why don’t we have magic?”
They both asked at once, making Effie laugh as she ran a hand over their heads.
“No one can cross the borders. They act like an invisible wall,” she replied first to Sirius. “If someone tries too hard, the magic burns through their body and destroys them.”
Then she turned to James. “Magic comes from nature. All sorcerers draw their power from the Great Tree of Silas, the oldest and most powerful living being in the world. Though sorcerers are born with magic in their veins, they believe it’s nature itself that allows them to use it.
“Vampires, on the other hand, are the exact opposite of nature’s power. They brought death and destruction, while nature gives life. So, gradually, the vampires lost their magic, and the generations that followed never regained it.”
A brief silence fell. It seemed the boys had finally absorbed the tale. But, inevitably, James spoke again.
“But that was ages ago. We’re good creatures now, aren’t we? We only drink animal blood, and even then, we don’t kill them. We just take a little. So why should the borders still exist?”
Effie smiled at her son’s innocence and helped both boys settle under the covers. “Years of death and bloodshed can’t be forgotten so easily, Jamie. And no one can be certain that if the borders were ever lifted, the vampires wouldn’t repeat their past mistakes.”
“But—”
Effie cut him off gently. “It’s time to sleep now, boys. Save your questions for tomorrow. It’s late.”
As the candle was extinguished, both boys murmured their goodnights, and Effie kissed each of them on the head before quietly leaving the room.