The Dragon King's Heart

"What was that?" Laina looked all around. 

Was it just her imagination? She thought she had heard a scream, a cry for help. But she had no idea where it was coming from. It sounded far off in the distance. Kol came out onto the balcony the moment he heard it.

"Did you hear that too, Kol?" She asked her bodyguard. 

"Yes… it sounded like-"

Before he could finish his words, they both heard it again. Seeing both of them on the balcony, Margaret, who was preparing Laina\'s bed for the night came out to see what the commotion was about. 

She too heard the faint screams. 

The second scream they heard was accompanied by the ominous howling of several creatures. 

"It sounds like it\'s coming from the forest," Kol explained. 

Laina had a gut feeling. Someone was running for their lives in the forest. 

"I think someone needs help. Let\'s go!" Laina declared. She was just about ready to leap off the balcony when Margaret stopped her. 

"Your Highness! Just where do you think you\'re going? It\'s almost-" 

"There\'s no time to waste, Margaret! Someone could be in grave danger as we speak! Wait, you can shapeshift, right? Bring us to the source of the screams," Laina said in haste. 

"What... but-"

"No more \'buts\' Margaret! A life or lives could be at stake here!"

With Laina\'s insistence, Margaret gave in. In a flash of light, she took to her Luxaven form. Laina and Kol rode on her back as they flew down to the forest immediately. Following the screams they heard, they were able to locate the source pretty swiftly. 

"Over there!" Laina exclaimed as she pointed to a forest clearing. 

They were near the castle walls by this point. It was too dark to see much of anything. But with Margaret in her Luxaven form, her form was surrounded by a soft glow of light. 

This provided enough visibility for them to spot the three dark hounds that seemed to have cornered their prey against the castle wall. 

"Is that… a young child?" Laina asked as she looked down. 

She could see a small child, cowering in fear, covered in bruises and scars. Without any hesitation, Laina materialized a sword in her hands and jumped off Margaret\'s back. 

"Wait, Laina-" Margaret felt her heart skip a bit as she watched Laina plunge down. 

Kol followed suit, landing lightly and safely next to Laina, ready to protect her. It was a grand entrance for the Crown Princess as she landed right between the dark hounds and the child. 

She had never seen such creatures before, but Laina was not afraid of them. Kol was not afraid either. But something seemed a little off to him, although he could not quite put his finger on it. 

Margaret flew down to the forest clearing. As she got closer, the dark hounds took a few steps back, cowering in the presence of her light. Seeing how it was affecting the hounds, Laina stepped forward. 

"Margaret! Don\'t turn back into a human yet!" Laina ordered. 

"What?" Not about to question Laina, she simply replied, "What are your orders, your Highness?"

"Can you summon a burst of light? I think those dark hounds are afraid of it," Laina asked. 

"Of course, your Highness, stand back."

Cordelia, who was pretending to be cowering in fear of the hounds she had summoned, peeked through her hands to see how the situation unfolded. She was surprised to see Margaret in her Luxaven form. 

This was not within her calculations. She bit her lip. This meant Laina knew of Margaret\'s shapeshifting abilities. But what more does the Crown Princess know?

As per Laina\'s instructions, the surrounding area was flooded with a burst of light from Margaret. Kol shielded his eyes with his arm and so did Laina. When it dispersed, the hounds were nowhere to be found. Having seemingly disappeared into the shadows never to be seen again. 

"Crisis averted. Good work, Margaret," Laina commended her handmaiden with a smile. 

Margaret took to her human form once more before replying, "You\'re too kind, your Highness."

"Margaret, we\'ve gone over this, call me Laina."

"My apologies, old habits die hard."

Laina turned her attention over to the child. As Laina approached her, she noticed that the young child was still shivering in fear. 

"Oh you poor thing," she pitied, "Are you alright, little one? Don\'t worry, the scary hounds are gone now."

The young child lifted her head slowly, looking straight up at Laina. Cordelia held her breath internally. This moment could make it or break it. Margaret looked over to the poor child who had been terrorized by the dark hounds. 

She furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at the sweet innocent child. The lilac purple hair reminded her of someone, though she could not quite recall who. 

-Cordelia?- Margaret said to herself internally. -No, this is just a child. It can\'t possibly be her.-

Seeing that the Crown Princess\'s handmaiden was not confronting her in any way, Cordelia heaved a sigh of relief. She did not even worry about the hybrid vampire. Kol would not have the ability to see through her disguise. 

"Who… who are you?" Cordelia asked with a quiver in her voice as tears welled up in her eyes. 

Laina pitied the child. 

She comforted her, "Hey, don\'t cry! We\'re here to rescue you. We heard your cries from the castle so we came to see what was going on. Do not be afraid! We\'ve already taken care of the hounds."

As she examined the child, Laina gasped in shock. She noticed the child\'s knees were scraped and they seemed to have sprained their ankle. The child was wincing in pain despite having barely moved their foot. 

"She needs medical attention. We need to bring her back to the castle," Laina declared. 

She turned over to Kol and ordered, "Kol, can you carry her please?"

The half-vampire did as Laina asked without questions. Together they returned to the palace. To help the child keep her mind off the pain, Laina asked her, "What\'s your name, little one?"

Cordelia looked over to Laina. 

She still had tears in her eyes. 

"My…my name is Colette."