Vampires Realm Prophecy 01 - Child of Light

twinkling lights in varying hues of yellow with different intensities. Valentine looked away from her and at their surroundings. There were buildings that stood out from the rest, landmarks that were lit by bright spotlights. He could see the church of Sacré Coeur in the distance to his right and the Arc De Triomph directly in front of him. Between the arch and where they were standing, there was a long row of fountains. Their water carried the light as they danced in the darkness.
    When his eyes fell to rest on Prophecy again, she was still staring at the city, drinking in the sight of it. She looked much better. Her eyes were bright and her lips were curved into a permanent smile. Even her skin had more colour.
    He couldn’t get over how fascinated she was by what she could see. They had already seen the Arc De Triomph close up. She’d watched the cars whizzing around it, their taillights streaking through the night as they hurried to unknown destinations. They’d walked down from the arch to the Eiffel Tower, and she’d insisted that they go up it. He had paid the entrance fee and let her choose her floor. She’d mumbled something about heights and had chosen the first.
    And here they stood.
    “How long has it been since you’ve been to Paris? I mean, apart from passing through,” she asked, keeping her eyes fixed on the scenery.
    He leaned against the railings and looked at the fountains dancing before bringing his eyes back to her. She was far more interesting than Paris. He’d seen this city so many times that he’d become immune to its beauty. Paris was just another city. Prophecy was enthralling.
    “Five years, possibly more.” He kept his eyes locked on her face, taking in the changes in expression as she thought about his answer and looked at another sector of the city.
    “That long? If I had your job, I’d always be travelling. I’d see every city I could, as many times as I could. Tell me about the things you’ve seen. Tell me about the cities. Have you been to many of the balls that are held in the palaces and the mansions? Arkalus and Iona often attended them, but I was never allowed to go.”
    He shook his head in amusement. She was talking so fast that if she had needed to breathe she would have been blue in the face from lack of oxygen.
    “I have attended a few. My position does not afford me such privileges. I can only go where I am ordered to go.”
    She frowned. “But you’ve seen cities? I bet you’ve spent years living in some of them. I’d live a year in each city and when I ran out of cities to see, I’d start all over again.”
    “You would grow bored. They lose their sparkle over time. When you spend too long in a city, you begin to see it as just another gathering of buildings. It becomes nothing special.”
    “Oh. But it’s so fascinating. Look at it.”
    He did. It wasn’t remotely fascinating any more. It was dull, tarnished by years of fighting for his life in its dirty back streets and searching for hunters. To him, it was just another battleground. He didn’t see the buildings any more, didn’t stop to look. All he focused on when he entered any city was completing his mission. He looked at her again.
    She was fascinating, not the rest of the world. He could watch her for hours, especially when she was like this.
    “What is it?” She caught him looking at her.
    “You are so young.” He straightened up and reached a hand out, brushing his fingers against her cheek. “You are so very young and everything is so fresh and new. I have seen the whole world change. I have witnessed man’s progress... seen it all.”
    Her eyes were large and round. He withdrew his hand and hers touched the spot on her cheek where his fingers had been.
    She really was young, maybe too young to be facing something like saving the world. She’d spent her whole life trapped inside her family’s mansion. As far as he knew, she’d learnt everything from books and television, and her physical training had always been against the same opponent. She had a lot to learn and she was going to have to learn fast. He would protect her to the best of his abilities, but there was a chance that she may have to fight without him at some point and he had to know that she could handle herself. He needed to test her.
    “When I met you, was that the first time you had been out of your family’s house?”
    She nodded. “I told you, they don’t let me hunt. I guess I know why now. I don’t