Chapter Text
December 1st, 1760
Carmilla double checked her outfit in the mirror and straightened her shirt collar. This was going to the party of the century. Everyone who was anyone in the city was here and she was going to use it to take a step forward in the kingdom.
“Mircalla,” she heard her name said timidly as Perry entered the door. “Your mother is waiting for you downstairs as well as your guests.”
“They’ve been waiting for me for the past hour and they can wait a little longer,” Carmilla retorted. “It takes more than a few minutes for the future Queen of Silas to be ready for a party such as this.”
“Of course, your highness but your mother is fuming.”
“Well, she’s the one who taught me that a queen a never late. Everyone else is simply early.”
“May I remind you that you’re not the queen yet,” she heard another cold voice say.
Carmilla turned around and stared into the cold, hard eyes of her stepmother.
“And may I remind you that you will never be,” Carmilla sneered back.
Perry shivered at the tension in the room.
“Your highness I will await you outside,” Perry turned around and found her path block by the Queen. “Your majesty.”
Perry bowed at Carmilla’s stepmother and then exited the room.
“You’ll never earn your kingdom’s respect if you keep showing up late to your own affairs,” her stepmother said calmly.
“I’m their future Queen,” Carmilla said as she approached her stepmother. “They will respect me whether they like it or not. I don’t care what I have to do, but the kingdom will be mine.”
The Queen smiled at her.
“Now that’s an attitude that I like, but that’s no way to treat your mother.”
“Step-mother,” Carmilla sneered.
“Mother none-the-less,” her mother stroked her hair. “I raised you after your father died. No one else was there except for me.”
Carmilla looked at the ground. It was true. Everyone around seemed to retreat away from her after her father died. No one wanted to talk to her. No one ever tried to comfort her. Her stepmother had raised her as her own. She had taught Carmilla everything that she needed to know about ruling a kingdom. It would all be hers soon. She smirked at the thought.
She had been waiting for so long to finally sit on the throne that was once her father’s. It had been so long since she dreamed of finally taking over the land and taking everything the land had to offer. Taking everything the people had until she had it all.
Her stepmother had taught her that in order to rule the people must fear her and learn to respect her through that. They wouldn’t bow down unless they were afraid. They wouldn’t respect her unless she had it all and the neighboring kingdoms wouldn’t respect her unless she had her fortune on display at her parties.
This is what her stepmother had taught her, and she would make her proud.
“Yes Mother,” Carmilla said towards the ground.
She felt cold hands tilt her chin upwards.
“Did I raise you to stare at the ground?”
“No Mother,” Carmilla said as she looked into her eyes. There was nothing there. Her stepmother’s eyes were cold and dark.
“No straighten up and remember that you are the future queen of Silas. Go in there and make me proud.”
“Yes Mother,” Carmilla straightened her back. “I will make you proud.”
Without another look at her stepmother, she turned towards the door ready to welcome her party guests and make some good, lasting impressions on those who came from the surrounding kingdoms.
“Mircalla, your highness,” Perry exclaimed as Carmilla swept through the door. “Are you ready?”
“Let’s get this over with,” Carmilla sighed.
The grand staircase was just as impressive as the rest of the castle. The staircase was lined with golden rails and the carpet was made of the most expensive silk that money could buy. The marble was polished and white. The pillars were lined with gold carvings of different leaves and animals that Carmilla loved.
Carmilla made sure that everything was cleaned and pristine before her guests had arrived. She was about to tell LaFontaine that she was ready for her arrival until she heard someone coming barreling down the hallway behind her.
“Mircalla!” Will shouted. “Wait for me sis!”
“William,” Carmilla said calmly. “No need to run. What is it you want?”
“Well,” Will said shyly. “I was hoping that this time I could walk down with you? Remember, you promised me that you would let me one day. I am a prince after all.”
Carmilla smiled at him. She really cared for him, but he could never understand the pressures of trying to become the ruler of kingdom. Many of her people thought that Will should be the ruler of their kingdom and not Carmilla. She wouldn’t allow that. Not only did she not want to give up the throne and keep the fame and fortune, she wouldn’t want that kind of pressure on Will’s shoulders.
“Not today William,” Carmilla shook her head. “Perhaps the next party after the coronation. Go downstairs and join the party before I head down there.”
“Mircalla,” Will whined.
“Not today Will,” she gritted through her teeth. She didn’t need to seem weak at these parties. She needed to show strength and that she didn’t need a man by her side in order to rule the kingdom.
Will visibly shrunk slightly and without another word, turned and headed down one of the other staircases to the party.
Carmilla plastered on a fake smile, patted down her pants once more and adjusted her tie once more.
This was to be the party of the century.
“LaFontaine,” Carmilla spoke strongly and nodded at them.
LaFontaine went down to the top left of the grand staircase and waved at the trumpeter on the right of the staircase.
The sound of the trumpet filled the room and everyone fell quiet.
“Please welcome, your highness, Princess Mircalla Karnstein,” LaFontaine shouted through the room.
Carmilla stepped into everyone’s view and the room was filled with polite claps and whispers.
Back straight and head high, she slowly walked down the stairs all eyes on her. She walked with the grace of royalty just as her mother had taught her. Every person in this room was a subject of hers and lower than her.
She mentally laughed at the idea of someone lower than a duke or duchess entering through these doors other than her own servants. Not only would she never allow it, Mother would lose her head. She couldn’t have such dirt entering her beautiful castle.
Carmilla almost reached the bottle of the stairs before she stopped, looking around at all of her guests.
“Welcome everyone,” Carmilla spoke loudly. “I am very happy that you all were able to make it tonight. It shows the support you all have for this kingdom and for me. With that, please enjoy the festivities tonight.”
She finished her walk down the stairs and everyone had resumed to their previous activities before her arrival.
“Your highness,” she heard someone say behind her.
Carmilla turned around and saw a man behind her. She read him like a book. This wasn’t someone of royalty. He couldn’t stand up straight, his clothes were obviously too big for him and not tailored to his size. His speech had an inflection of slightly relaxedness like he had never spoken to royalty ever before.
She shook her head disgusted at the sight of him. How did he get in here?
“Sorry to bother you-“
“Who are you?” Carmilla interrupted with venom in her voice.
“Duke Carlson of York,” he said, hands shaking and obviously lying.
Carmilla made eye contact with one of her guards and subtly waved at them to make their way over to you.
“I’ve never heard of you,” Carmilla lowered her voice so that no one around her could hear. “And I’ve heard of all my guests.”
There was fear in his eyes as Carmilla locked eyes with him and stared him down.
The guards were now closed in on the man.
“Now, I don’t want to make a scene, so I’ll make you a deal,” Carmilla whispered into his ear. “Leave with my guards quietly and I will give you a minute of my time. Make a scene… and well, I will have no choice but to make an example of what happens when someone enters my castle without permission.”
The man nodded without a sound, too scared to even say a word.
Carmilla stepped back as the guards escorted the man quietly out the door. She waited a few minutes before following them.
She felt the cold air hit her face as she stepped out and immediately saw the guards placing the man into a caged carriage.
“Your highness!” he yelled desperately. “Please! You said you would hear me out!”
Carmilla shook her head. If he thought that the future Queen was going to talk to lowly peasant in the middle of her party, he was incredibly wrong.
She waved her hand and the carriage started moving away.
“Please, your highness,” the man was yelling out the carriage. “There are starving families in your kingdom! They can barely afford to pay the taxes and buy food!”
Carmilla turned around to head back to the party. If the people of her kingdom couldn’t keep up with her taxes, then that was their own fault. High taxes were the price of having a great kingdom and being able to impress the other kingdoms.
She needed it to keep up with her lavish lifestyle and able to throw parties like this one to gain the trust of other kings.
There was no notice of her absence as she reentered the party. Maybe except one person. She looked up at the top of the grand staircase and saw Mother watching over her from the shadows.
Carmilla shook her head at herself. She would talk to Mother later.
“Late as always, your highness,” she heard a familiar voice say.
Carmilla turned around and saw a familiar beautiful girl in her view.
“Duchess Sheridan,” Carmilla nodded as Elle bowed to her. “Are you enjoying the evening?”
“Mmmm,” Elle sighed as she closed the space in between them. “It could get better.”
Carmilla took a step back.
“Not now Elle,” Carmilla spoke lowly.
Elle was from one of the neighboring kingdoms and was one of the nieces to their current king. They had been friends since childhood. They occasionally enjoyed each other’s company as more than friends, but that was behind closed doors. She knew that Elle had feelings for her, but Carmilla had been clear that even if she did reciprocate those feelings, there was no way she could even act on those feelings. Not now anyways.
Mother had warned her that she couldn’t even have a thought of trying to find love as long as she was to rule the kingdom. Feelings and love were weakness and weakness that she couldn’t afford with everyone already having mixed feelings of a woman as sole ruler. All of her focus had to be on the gaining power and ruling her kingdom.
“What’s one dance, your highness?” Elle pleaded with her.
Carmilla sighed. She hadn’t even talked to single important person before Elle was trying to steal her away.
“Do you really want to talk to stuffy dukes instead of dancing with me?” Elle repeated her plea and reached out with her hand.
“I suppose they’ve waited already, and they can wait a little longer,” Carmilla sighed but refused to take Elle’s hand until they reached the dance floor.
Carmilla turned to the orchestra and with a wave of her hand ordered them to change the tune to a classic waltz.
With Elle’s hand in hers, Carmilla positioned her right hand in the air and then reached down to hold her waist with her left as Elle reached up and placed her left hand on Carmilla’s shoulder.
Carmilla had been taught to waltz since she was old enough to understand what a waltz was. Their bodies were flush together as she used her arms to lead Elle into the dance. Their bodies were in sync with one another. Carmilla could feel that rest of the room fall away as she listened to the sweet sound of the classic waltz.
She had done this with Elle a lot when they were kids, but only twice in public. If she closed her eyes, she could imagine that she was a child again before all the responsibility and the lessons that Mother had given her.
However, reality was different.
Suddenly, there was a shift in the air. It became colder and the room grew quiet as everyone felt it.
Carmilla stopped dancing and let go of Elle was she started towards her throne. She didn’t know why, but she had to reach it. Something was in danger of taking it all. Something was trying to come and take everything that she had worked so hard for.
The grand doors blew open and Carmilla watched as someone in old rags stumble through the door.
There was an audible gasp as the wind blew out all the candles in the castle. Then the castle fell silent.
Carmilla launched herself forward towards the door, approaching the stranger with caution. She felt Will with his sword appear at her side, but she placed her arm in front of him, telling him to back off. She couldn’t show weakness, she couldn’t show that she needed his help.
Reluctantly, he complied.
“How dare you interrupt my party without an invitation,” Carmilla sneered at the woman. “Guards!”
The stranger raised their head. It was an old woman wrapped in cloth, shivering from the cold. She smelled of dirt and sweat and shit. Carmilla had to steel herself from wanting to throw this woman out herself.
“Your highness,” the old woman spoke softly. “Please, I was on a trip back to town from the country. It is cold out there and I haven’t had anything to eat since yesterday. If I could have some food and perhaps wait out the storm, I could be on my way. I even brought you a gift in return.”
The old woman raised her hand to reveal one little rose.
Carmilla smiled cruelly.
“You think I would let a peasant like you in this castle? You think that I would accept this little pathetic rose in exchange for a night with the pleasantries and expenses of royalty?”
Carmilla started laughing and the rest of the crowd followed.
“Please, your highness,” the woman spoke again. “You should not be deceived by looks your highness because true beauty is found within.”
“Your pathetic, begging in front of royalty like this,” Carmilla snarled at her. “You could never live up to the standards to be here and I would never accept someone like you in this castle. Your stench is so off putting I thought that you belonged with the pigs.”
The crowd roared in laughter as she turned around to let her guards handle the woman.
“I come here in humbleness, your highness and I am met with hostility and cruelty?” her voice was suddenly stronger and less frail.
Carmilla quickly turned around in confusion.
“I see you for who you really are Mircalla Karnstein,” the woman spoke, her voice echoing throughout the room.
The woman raised her head, the ragged cloak falling from her body. As she stood up, she revealed herself to be a young, beautiful woman, her glow filling the entire room.
Carmilla’s eyes were wide. This woman was something beautiful and incredibly powerful. She fell to her knees.
“I see no love in your heart Mircalla Karnstein,” the enchantress spoke to her. “Turning away poor and starving people? Taking advantage of them to further your own, selfish endeavors? You may have the beauty and grace of a future queen, but in your heart, you are a beast.”
“I am so sorry,” Carmilla begged on her knees. “I am not a beast. You can stay here. You can stay here as long as you want, feast on whatever you please.”
“It is too late,” the enchantress spoke. “Your father would be disappointed.”
With a wave of her hand, Carmilla felt something in her stomach turn. All the doors and all the windows shut with a force that shook the entire castle. That’s when the fire started. Huge flames erupted on each of the columns.
Everyone started running to the doors and windows, banging on them to open.
Fire and smoke started filling the room. Carmilla couldn’t move. The fire spread quickly, people were screaming. Carmilla couldn’t believe her eyes. Instead of the people burning up, they were shrinking, changing into something that Carmilla couldn’t see. Soon, there was nothing but fire surrounding her.
She felt her lungs filling with smoke, her throat burning like a furnace. Except, the fire wouldn’t touch her. The fire surrounded her, but there was circle surrounding her that the fire wouldn’t pass.
Carmilla roared in anger and frustration, but it sounded more animal like. She couldn’t believe what had just come out of her mouth.
She started feeling cold and it felt like she was losing oxygen. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t see anything, but fire.
When Carmilla looked up from the ground, the enchantress was suddenly right in front of her, fire in her eyes.
“Until you learn that true beauty comes from within and learn to become as beautiful on the inside as you were on the outside you will stay a beast to remain in these castle walls forever. If you do not learn to love another- and be loved in return- by the time the last petal falls, you, your castle, and all within, will be cursed and forgotten forever.”
“How long?” Carmilla croaked.
“As long as the rose deems necessary,” the enchantress answered.
Then everything went black.
---------
Carmilla woke up on the floor of her grand ballroom, recalling the events of last night. She couldn’t find the energy to get up. She felt cold and alone. Her throat was still burning like a furnace. She was thirsty, hungry… for something.
“I think she’s finally waking,” she heard a voice in a hushed whisper.
“Shhhh…” she heard another voice say. “We don’t want to startle her.”
“Startle her? I think she’ll be startled by herself and how do you think I felt when I woke up and all of a sudden everything was much larger than I remember and now… I’m this!”
Carmilla recognized the second voice as her handmaiden Perry. They were absolutely awful at whispering.
“Would you shut your imbecilic mouth?” Carmilla growled. Her throat felt like sandpaper.
“Can she hear us?” Perry panicked.
“Yes,” Carmilla growled again.
Finally, she felt the urge to get up from the floor. If Mother caught her like this, she would surely be getting a lecture on it.
As she picked herself up, her arms and hands came into her eyesight. She jumped and fell back on her ass in fright and surprise. What had she just seen?
Carmilla closed her eyes for a moment, this was just a dream. This couldn’t be real, she thought as she slowly raised her arms and hands in front of her with her eyes closed.
She slowly opened them and gasped at the sight in front of her.
Her arms and hands were covered with black veins, her hands were grossly boney and instead of fingernails, there were short, black, sharp claws.
Carmilla quickly got up and found the nearest mirror in the ballroom.
Half of her face looked like it had been burnt in the fire. Her pupils were the only normal thing on her face- her dark brown eyes, but they were surrounded by black veins coming from her eyes.
She felt something poking in her mouth and opened it to reveal sharp fangs coming down from her teeth.
It seemed that what was ever going on with her face was the same as what was going on with her body. Half of her body had looked like it had been burned in the fire with black veins unnaturally popping out all over.
Carmilla roared with anger. It wasn’t any natural sound that a human could make. It was animalistic and loud. It burned her throat and it made her even angrier. When she looked back upon the mirror, her eyes had turned an unnatural shade of bright red.
With all of her anger, she threw her fist into the mirror, effectively breaking it and even punching a large hole in the wall behind her.
She turned away from the mirror to be faced with a portrait of her family- her, her father, her mother and her brother. The only thing Carmilla could see was herself and how everything she had changed in a day. She was the most beautiful girl in the kingdom yesterday and now… Now she was a monster.
Carmilla reached up and scratched away herself on the portrait. Then observed the rest of the family. Her father had died when she was young and was the most loving person she had ever known. Her brother was a carefree, young child that was youthful and loving towards Carmilla. Her mother… Her mother had been cruel and mean to her. Her mother had turned Carmilla into her.
She roared once again and scratched her mother’s face on the portrait.
The enchantress had turned her into a beast.
Carmilla crumpled to the floor, trying the best she could to ignore the sandpaper and furnace in her throat. That’s when she saw the rose on the floor across from her.
It had been untouched in the fire. It was glowing blue and levitating from the ground.
Carmilla remember that the enchantress had mentioned something about the rose last night during the fire.
If you do not learn to love another- and be loved in return- by the time the last petal falls, you, your castle, and all within, will be cursed and forgotten forever.
She had to find someone to fall in love with and fall in love with her before all the petals fell on the rose.
Carmilla had just noticed the mirror on the floor next to her. She looked at her appearance again the mirror. How could someone fall in love with her when she looked like this?
“Well,” she heard a voice in a hushed whisper. “I think she just figured out what happened.”
“LaFontaine, she’s going to need some time. We shouldn’t show her ourselves just yet.”
Carmilla growled at the sound of the voices and was about to address them when the smell of something sweet hit her nose.
Her throat burned even more. She was… thirsty? Hungry? Whatever it was, she was craving the smell that had hit her nose.
The mirror fell to the floor as she dropped it, trying to follow the scent of the sweet, sweet smell.
It was coming from outside. Carmilla opened the door and saw that it was still snowing like last night. The sun blared in her eyes, it was so bright that she hissed at it and then retreated back into the shadow of the castle.
While the sun was bothering her, the burning in her throat was starting to bother her more.
Bracing for the sun, she opened the doors again using her hand to shield her eyes from the sun. It seemed to make things a little bit better. It still felt like the sun was burning her eyes, but the sweet smell was calling to her. The wind whipped in her hair and she expected to feel cold, but she didn’t feel anything at all.
There was something new to castle that Carmilla had noticed as she followed the smell. Large rose bushes were surrounding the castle. That must’ve been something that the enchantress had put there as another way to remind Carmilla of the curse. Like she would need reminding. Her appearance was reminder enough.
The smell had led her to a small garden that was surrounded by more rose bushes. A bench sat on the east side of the garden with a large fountain in the middle.
Carmilla recognized the smell coming from the fountain. It was a sweet, sweet smell that was calling to her with the promise of quenching her thirst- hunger- whatever it was.
She believed that it was just some kind of special water that she was craving, but as she approached the fountain it was something much, much different.
Red, thick liquid was pouring from the fountain. Carmilla reached the edge of the fountain as her throat started burning immensely. No. There was no way that she was going to drink that. If it was, was she thought it was then there was no way that she was going to touch that stuff.
However, she wouldn’t know what it was until she tried it. No, no, no. She couldn’t do it. Disgusted with herself, she turned her head away from the fountain.
The sweet smell filled her nose, her throat and her lungs. Her hunger was growing more intense the more she tried to ignore it.
Carmilla wanted to run away and ignore it forever, but she couldn’t move. Her mind was telling her not to look at, not to touch the stuff, but her body was telling her the opposite.
She clenched her teeth together and roared, losing control of herself. Her body turned towards the fountain, dipping her mouth into it and quickly lapping it into her mouth.
It was so sweet, so good and it was seriously quenching her hunger.
Carmilla kept drinking until she felt full. She finally realized what she had done and her suspicions about the substance were confirmed. While it tasted sweet to her, there was a metallic hint to it. Blood. It was blood.
She wanted to throw up, she was degusted with herself, but she couldn’t bring herself to do that. While it was disgusting in her mind, her body had responded very nicely to it. Perhaps this was a part of the curse.
Then she noticed something on the fountain that she hadn’t seen before. There was an inscription on the side of the fountain.
Here pours the blood of those dying for the love of others
Carmilla had no idea what it meant, but it made her feel awfully guilty.
The sun was now hidden behind heavy clouds, making it easier for Carmilla to be outside. She sat down on the bench in the garden, burying her head in her hands.
“Mircalla,” she heard a familiar voice say. “I’m glad you’re finally awake now.”
Carmilla buried her head further into her hands.
“Go away Will,” she said on the verge of crying. “Don’t look at me. I don’t want you to see me like this.”
“I’ve already seen what you look like while you were passed out Mircalla,” Will responded. “Besides, you haven’t seen me yet.”
She swore that there was a bit of a chuckle in Will’s voice and decided to release her hands from her face and looked up, but didn’t see a person in sight.
“I’m down here dear sister,” Will sighed.
Carmilla looked down at the ground and saw a walking and talking mantel clock.
“Oh my god!” Carmilla shouted.
“Hey there sister,” Will smiled. At least it looked like there was a smile on the clock.
“You-y-you’re a-a clock,” Carmilla stuttered.
“It seems that I am,” Will replied. “And it seems that you are… something else dear sister. I didn’t mean to spy on you, but I wanted to check on you when you woke up. A little shocking for everyone when we woke up.”
“Everyone?” Carmilla asked.
“Everyone who lived in the castle.”
Carmilla buried her hands back in her head. She was a beast and everyone else in the castle turned into something else.
… you, your castle, and all within, will be cursed and forgotten forever…
If she thought she could never be loved when she first woke up, there was no doubt in her mind that no one could love her now.