Boredom, that was what I felt like at the moment.

It's been a few weeks now since my arrival at the pristine palace and my conversation with the Emperor regarding his daughter.

Like a good soldier, I followed what was asked of me, to observe the princess and watch over her. And you know what I observed? The same thing.

She still bossed me around like I was servant, she still had the air of superiority where ever she went even during little get together with other palace girls or aristocrats. A glare from her made people shut up very quickly and turned the room silent so much so like her father.

I did find interesting things about her during my observations though. I found she had a soft spot for cute little animals such as the palace cats. She obsessed over exotic tropical fruits like mangoes and she had a define stand on fashion and the latest royal trend.

Those facts were endearing traits that contrasted greatly to her brazen attitude.

It was early daybreak and I couldbe found in the courtyard practicing my swordplay. Hey, even though I am a vampire and by all means unstoppable, I must keep up the facade of a soldier and that meant constant training on and off the battlefield. Besides, it is hard to break old habits. Wielding a sword like this reminded me of a simpler time when I practiced with my brother in secrecy.

I was the youngest in my family of 4 and the only girl. My family wasn't that high up the totem pole but we were neither below it, but my parents were greedy and wanted more. They wanted a life of luxury that we could not afford and the way they saw their ticket to such fantasies was me. If they married me off to some old guy twice my age that was wealthy, well, the dowry could support their greediness for years. They started their search by the time I was 8.

I hated it. So did my brother.

My older brother seemed to be the only one that cared enough for me to shield me from the harshness of my parents. I distinctly remember my brother taking a lashing from our father once because he tried to protect me from our parents' scheming ways and punched one of the potential suitors.

He meant everything to me. I asked him once why he would go to great lengths to protect me from our parents. That by disobeying them we weren't being filial.

His response, a soft smile graced his lips and he gently patted my head. "Because, little llama, I'm the big llama, I'm suppose to protect you. What our parent's want from you isn't right. It's your life. Those old men are just lecherous." He scrunched his nose is disgust. "You are still a child."

He pulled me close for an embrace. "Besides, it's my job as your older brother to protect you. I swore to it when you were born."

I cried that day full of happiness to have such a doting older brother to protect me like a stead-firm terra cotta warrior but also out of anguish for my brother's unselfish sacrifice for me.

Not too long after a rather bad scuffle between my brother and father that left my brother pretty damn battered and father with a horrible fractured arm, my brother decided on the plan to secretly teach me how to fight in the sanctuary of the dense bamboo forest not too far from our house. He reasoned, I would feel safer if you could hold your own once I'm gone.

At the time I didn't know what he meant and thought nothing of it. I focused intently on what he taught me instead, wanting to make him proud.

It was the same routine for months which turned into years. My brother taught me martial arts he learned from a Master nearby and swordplay from his sessions with the other boys his age, training to one day join the army. It was grueling at first and I must say, even though he was my brother he did not relent in giving me the harsh treatment during our secret practices. I became frustrated to his method of teaching and reasoning but he always just shook his head and repeated the same mantra of, I would feel safer if you could hold your own once I'm gone. Some explanation that was. But it did motivate me to make him eat his damn words and cloaked mockery.

By the time I was 15, I could hold my own against my brother in successive matches and grew into a doppelganger of brother. If it wasn't for my longer hair and women's clothing I would look exactly like my brother or my brother dressed in women's clothing, as I often tease.

I grew fond of my time training with my brother and the bond that we had but it was becoming scarce because I was growing older and had more responsibilities to deal with and the same went for my brother. He had enlisted in the army to make a name for himself and save what little money