Earth, 700 years ago.

It was a dreadfully hot day, and the midday sun was unforgiving, but the girl running along the beach completely ignored the burn on her tan skin. She continued running to her favourite hiding spot, which had so far remained undiscovered by her tutor, nanny and guards. As she neared a particular sloped section of the rocky cliff side, she began climbing, careful not to trip on her long gown.

Somewhere along the rocky surface, about fifteen feet above the ground, was a hole through which the young girl effortlessly fitted. On the other side was a large cave, dark but dry and relatively clean. The only light came from the little sunlight that entered through the cave's small opening.

After climbing down, the girl stomped about angrily from one end of the cave to the other, muttering to herself. All of a sudden, she threw her hands in the air, a look of utter frustration marring her otherwise angelic face.

Just as she began another round of pacing, a strange glow of light permeated through the cave. In shock, she looked at the circular light hovering in the middle of the air. She received an even bigger fright when a boy tumbled out from the light, lying sprawled on the floor. A moment later, the glowing circle vanished, but the boy remained.

Just as she was about to ask if he was alright, the boy tried sitting up and inadvertently placed his hand under the direct rays of sunlight coming from the cave entrance. It was only for a second, but the effect was instantaneous. He yelled, holding his hand to his mouth and blowing at it as if it were on fire.

The boy turned to stare at the sunlight on the floor with a look of confusion before it quickly changed to one of horror. He frantically crab-crawled away from the light source, but a moment later, he heard a shrill cry behind him.

"Stop! Do not come any closer!"

Turning to face the voice, he was dumbfounded to find the girl, now armed with several pebbles in each hand, glaring at him. "You are a vampire," she stated, her voice trembling from fury and fear. He stilled, realising that only a non-vampire would ask such a question. Judging from her elaborate dress and haughty demeanour, he guessed she was a young witch. Since she already knew, he saw no point in lying. "I am." Immediately she rained pebbles on him, and he yelled more from fright than pain. "Hey, what are you doing?!"

"Leave!"

He said, "I have no idea where I am or how I got here—"

The girl rudely interrupted, "You fell through a light-filled hole. Get back in it and be on your way!"

The boy was still seated on the floor, surrounded by pebbles. He absentmindedly picked a smooth black one from the mix. Now that he was paying closer attention, the boy noticed the muscles of his limbs felt drained of energy, almost as if he had run a mile. The realisation of what had happened dawned on him. His Talent must have been activated for the first time in his life. For now, his body was tired because his energy reserves had just been used.

Looking back at her, he tried to reason, "If I could just have a moment to rest—"

"No! I hate you," she shouted.

"What? Why?"

"You are a vampire. I hate vampires. You killed my mother!"

Mathias's mouth fell open. No one had ever said such untruths before to his face. Surging anger and hurt began to fill his mind. He continued stroking the smooth pebble in his hand, eyes downcast. "I never really knew my mother. She died when I was four. Father says she died honourably protecting our borderlands." He finally raised his eyes to meet the girl's hostile gaze. "You killed my mother too."

Now it was her turn to look shocked. She sputtered, "I did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!! I have never even met your mother."

"I have never met yours either," Mathias retorted, "but that has not stopped you from saying I killed her."

The little girl haughtily replied, "Well, that is because all vampires are killers. You drain us dry for your blood meal!"

"That is a lie! Vampires do not drink werewolf or witch blood. It tastes like rotting fish." He made exaggerated gagging noises. "And you hunt animals to eat meat, yes? You are killers too!"

The little girl's eyes widened, her long eyelashes curling delicately upwards, "But that is different."

"No, it is not! We, vampires, do not even need to kill humans to get our blood. We just pay those who volunteer to donate some. You are far worse than I am."

She shook her head slowly, unable to think of a comeback and ultimately resorting to denial, "I refuse to believe you. You are just a big fat liar."

"Am not!" Mathias had never met such a problematic, rude and obnoxious girl in his whole life! How horrid it must be to have her as a sister. Surging gratitude and appreciation for the sisters he did have welled up in his chest while scowling at the girl.

Just as both children were about to start another round of bickering, the sound of voices carried over the lapping of the waves, shocking them into silence. A group of men were walking not far from their little hideout, their voices and laughter full of merriment.

"Brother, look! Wildfowl! Use your Talent to shoot them down. After that, we shall have dinner sorted!"

"They may be out of range, but let me try." There was a moment's silence followed by several splashes and loud cheering. Mathias shivered. 'Witches. Grown-up ones!'

Mathias fearfully glanced at the small cave opening before turning petrified eyes at the girl. She, too, had turned her attention to the cave mouth before looking back at him, a wicked smile giving her angelic face the makeover of a devil's sidekick.

Don't. Mathias mouthed silently at her, and she arched an eyebrow in reply. Please, he begged her, as tears sprang uncontrollably from his eyes. He did not want to die on the day before his twelfth birthday! She stopped smiling, frowned and then nodded, looking solemn as Mathias continued to gaze at her with watery eyes.

Outside the cave, the noisy chatter continued for a few minutes as the men retrieved their catch from the water before heading home. Only when it was quiet once more could Mathias exhale loudly, the muscles in his body finally relaxing.

He looked at the girl timidly, saying in a small voice, "Thank you."

She turned up her head childishly. "Do not thank me just yet. You let your guard down so easily, vampire. I still hate you."

Mathias pouted but did not answer further, unwilling to antagonise the temperamental witch. The vampire realised somewhat belatedly that he would be in serious trouble if he could not figure out how he got here and, more importantly, how to get back home.

Wearily perched on a nearby rocky ledge, he tried to remember the sequence of events leading to him falling through the floor. The first thing that came to mind was feeling trapped. Right after that, the floor emitted light, and he had fallen through.

What were his thoughts just before the floor had turned intangible? 'I wanted to be somewhere far away, where others could not follow,' Mathias recalled with a start. He had been staring at his father's map of the enemy heartland not long before. Could it be that he subconsciously willed himself to activate the latent Talent that transported him here? 'If that is how it works, then I can do the same to return! I can will myself back to Riogven.' He abruptly stood and turned to face one of the walls.

"What are you doing?" The girl asked, curiosity and excitement suddenly replacing her arrogance. "I am trying to go home," he said distractedly while focusing hard on wanting to return to the side gate of the castle gardens.

"I see. Okay." She could not hide the trace of disappointment in her voice, but Mathias was too engrossed to notice. As he willed himself to go home, Mathias felt an odd feeling begin to grow from within, somewhat like a feathery tickle right in the centre of his body, a little below the sternum.

Like before, a ring of light appeared before the surface within the circle began to glow a whitish blue, just tall and wide enough for Mathias to pass through. 'Success!'. He grinned widely. Turning back to the witch, he said, "I guess this is goodbye then. Farewell."

"Wait!" She shouted, startling him.

"Uh, yes?"

"Will you come back again?"

He stared at her in bewilderment. "Why would I do that?"

Gone was the proud stance she had on earlier. Instead, she stood before him with her shoulders drooping, looking smaller than before. "It would be nice if you did, even if you are a vampire."

Mathias could not keep the incredulity from showing on his face. "You... you want me to come back?! But you were just yelling at me to leave!"

She suddenly seemed enthralled by the fabric of her dress, smoothening the front with both hands, intent on removing imaginary wrinkles. Softly she answered, "I was angry because you were a vampire."

"I still am one."

She rolled her eyes, "I know that, but you just told me some things that make vampires seem less awful. Maybe you could tell me more. And the thing is, well, you see... There aren't any other children here. Just me. It can get lonely sometimes. But you need not come if you are unwilling." She finished reluctantly.

Loneliness was something Mathias knew too well. To be alone in a crowd, to speak yet not be heard, routinely not having someone to share his likes, burdens, or fears. If it served no purpose in his training, no one really paid attention to such things. And although he had his sisters, the burden of the crown he would eventually inherit was his alone to bear. But somehow, the little witch before him seemed to be just as alone in the world as he was.

He could not help it. Empathy swelled in his heart. In a split second, he made up his mind. "I will return."

"Really?! When?!" She cried out in surprise.

Mathias tilted his head to the side, thinking of his packed schedule and when he could sneak away. "Same time tomorrow?"

The girl nodded enthusiastically, "I will be expecting you."

Remembering polite social etiquette, the young vampire struck a pose before bowing, "I am Mathias. May I know your name?" The little witch curtsied prettily and beamed at him, "I am Emilia, but you may call me Emi."

Mathias found her smile infectious as the corners of his lips involuntarily lifted. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Emi."