The moon was high in the sky when Valen finally crumpled to the ground. His stomach, a relentless, gnawing abyss, had finally taken its toll. He had spent the past few days wandering in search of something anything to satiate his hunger, but nothing had come. His fight with Fel had only worsened his state. His vision blurred, his mind fogged with hunger.
The vampire prince had spent centuries walking among his kin, feasting upon the finest blood, draining his enemies without a second thought. Now, in this strange, wild forest, that once-proud hunger had become a beast too great for him to control. It clawed at him, threatening to consume his very sanity.
He collapsed face-first into the dirt, his body limp, unable to move. The weight of his own hunger felt like a prison. His fangs were bared, his body trembling. He was on the verge of madness, and yet, he couldn't bring himself to care.
"How did I let it get this bad?" Valen whispered weakly, the last of his strength ebbing away.
He had been cast out, abandoned by his own people, shunned for one simple reason: laziness. Not because he was weak he was far from it. No, he had been too idle, too content to let his family run everything. They had given him power, riches, everything a prince could ever want. But Valen had never wanted that life. He wanted peace. He wanted quiet. But his apathy had finally led to his exile. His own bloodline had cast him out, leaving him to fend for himself.
*But this is ridiculous. How could I have been this stupid?*
His vision swam, and the world around him began to blur. He could feel the pull of unconsciousness tugging at him, the edges of his mind slowly fraying.
He could barely hear the rustle of leaves above him. But then something shifted. A faint, delicate presence reached out to him.
"Hey!" A voice broke through the fog of his thoughts. He felt a slight tap on his shoulder, soft but insistent.
Valen opened his eyes, blinking at the blurry figure before him. It was her. Fel.
He groaned and tried to sit up, but his body refused to cooperate. The hunger in him was unbearable, like a burning fire that couldn't be doused.
"You're in no condition to move," Fel said, her voice sharp yet somehow filled with concern. Her wings fluttered behind her as she knelt beside him, her eyes scanning his still form. "What happened? Did you think you could fight me and go without food for days? You're lucky I found you before you went berserk."
Valen wanted to say something sarcastic, maybe tell her to go away and leave him alone, but his throat was dry, and all he could focus on was the unrelenting hunger in his gut. He growled under his breath, his fangs barely contained.
Fel clicked her tongue and stood up, as if she'd decided something. "Hold on. I'll get you something to eat. You've clearly been starving yourself."
Valen didn't care. He didn't care about anything except for satisfying that gnawing emptiness inside of him. He had no strength left to argue. He closed his eyes again, not even bothering to lift his head.
Then, suddenly, there was a sound a rustle of leaves. When he opened his eyes again, he was met with the sight of Fel holding something in her hands.
"Here." She offered him a basket, her expression unreadable. "Eat."
Valen didn't care what it was. He just needed food. With trembling hands, he reached for the basket, but his eyes widened in horror as he saw what was inside.
"Fruits and... vegetables?" he said, disbelief filling his voice.
Fel nodded seriously. "Yep. You need food, and this is what I have."
Valen's face twisted in disgust. He had never been a fan of fruits or vegetables those things were fit for rabbits, not a creature like him. His eyes darted from the basket to Fel, hoping she was joking.
But Fel wasn't joking. She held out a green apple. "Eat. You'll be fine."
"I-" Valen began, but he couldn't finish his sentence. The hunger was overwhelming, pulling him toward the food, but his pride screamed in defiance. He had never in his long existence been so humiliated. Forced to eat plants. Ridiculous.
Fel's eyes narrowed. "If you refuse, I'll make you."
"What?" Valen asked, his voice rising slightly. "You can't just-"
She raised her hand, and before he could blink, she snapped her fingers.
"Eat."
The command came like a shockwave, and Valen froze. His body immediately obeyed her will, as if the command had been embedded deep within his bones. The apple was lifted to his lips against his will, and despite every part of him screaming in protest, he bit into it. The sharp sweetness hit his tongue, and for a brief moment, it was almost tolerable.
But then, the aftertaste... the sourness, the texture it was like chewing on straw.
Valen gagged and spat the bite out, but Fel wasn't having it.
"Eat." Her voice was firm, no room for argument.
Valen's eyes flashed with frustration. His pride, his very being, was rejecting the food, but his body refused to stop. *This is madness!*
He gritted his teeth. "You can't be serious."
"I'm very serious," Fel said, crossing her arms as she looked down at him. "You're in no condition to argue. You're lucky I'm offering you something at all."
Valen's gaze flicked to the basket, then back to Fel, who was watching him expectantly. *No way out.*
Valen grumbled under his breath, then forced himself to eat another bite. His stomach churned in protest, but he swallowed. Another bite, and another. Each mouthful felt like torture, and yet, the hunger was so great that he couldn't stop.
"Good," Fel said, her expression unreadable as she observed him. "Now you can't go berserk, right?"
Valen couldn't respond. He could barely process the fact that he was eating plant-based food. His thoughts were clouded with disbelief. Was this really happening? Was this what his life had come to? Cast out from his kingdom, reduced to eating fruits and vegetables in a forest at the mercy of a fairy princess?
"Why are you doing this?" Valen finally asked, his voice hoarse with frustration. He could barely get the words out.
Fel raised an eyebrow. "Because if you're going to stay at my abode, I'd rather you not go insane from hunger. Now, keep eating."
Valen glared at her. "I don't need your charity, fairy."
"You might not, but you definitely need the food," she retorted, eyes glinting with an odd mix of amusement and authority.
Valen wanted to argue, wanted to push back, but at that moment, his body finally relented, and the hunger faded into a dull thrum. He swallowed the last of the fruit, his face twisted with a blend of annoyance and reluctant satisfaction.
He leaned back against the tree, his body still weak, but no longer on the brink of madness.
For a brief moment, they both just sat there in silence.
"You know," Valen muttered, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, "you really should have told me you were into... this."
Fel shrugged, not meeting his gaze. "You never asked."