Alison was a rare case. Not only was she a vampire, but she was also a princess. This was because her creator, who had also since become her adoptive father, was the vampire king himself: King Dorian. Despite such an impressive genesis, however, Alison took no pride in being related to King Dorian in any way, shape, or form. If anything, their bond only confused the younger vampire. This was because she still wasn't quite sure what the vampire king had seen in her in the first place to make him want her to be his daughter. Why had he chosen her, of all people, to be his child? And why had he even wanted a daughter at all? It wasn't like he was going to need an heir, and he certainly wasn't the kind of guy to just surrender the throne for fun. He wasn't even very fatherly or kind, so it wasn't like he'd turned Alison just to have a companion! He didn't even like her! And vice versa! So to Alison, it made no sense that Dorian had made her his daughter.

But she supposed that it did not really matter in the end. What was done was done. She was a vampire princess now, her undead status irreversible and her role as Dorian's daughter just as much so. Regardless of her new father's motives, Alison was and would forever be a vampire and there was nothing that she or Dorian could do to fix or undo this. But, it wasn't like the life she was leaving behind had been all that much better or different than the one she had now. In life, she had still been a noblewoman who had lived in a castle with her parents and scores of servants and guards to answer her every demand. She hadn't been a princess in life, having only been a baroness, but the way she saw it, her time with Dorian was still not too different from the life she used to have. She liked to say that the only real difference between then and now was the type of food she ate and type of company she kept.

What she meant by the type of food she ate was obvious, but what she meant by the type of company she kept was a bit more complicated. Of course, most of her new companions were just like her, but as she would come to know, vampires weren't the only type of creature hiding out in the underbelly of the world. On the contrary, witches, werewolves, zombies, robots, fairies, harpies, deities, aliens, spider-women and all matter of other, mystical, mythological creatures existed within her world as well. And her father, being the vain and prideful king he was, never wasted a chance to show off his power, wealth, fame and grandiose by hosting a great deal of parties and events for all of these creatures to flock to in order to stand in awe at the foot of his mighty throne. That was how Alison met most of these other creatures, through her father's constant parties. Since she was his daughter, and therefore the princess, she had been expected to attend every single one of these shows, events, balls or parties, so she knew a lot of these other creatures very well. Alas, she was not very close with any of them. And that same deal also went for her fellow vampires.

For some reason, despite being a vampire herself, Alison had never developed any close friendships with any of the other vampires that lived with her in Dorian's little castle. Now, none of the vampires were mean to her, per se, but for some reason, Alison had always been a bit of an outsider to them, despite being their princess. It was clear she did not enjoy their company and, likewise, they did not enjoy hers, her being so incredibly infuriating because of how... strange she was. Neither Alison nor any of the other vampires could really explain it, but, for some reason, Alison had always been a bit of a black sheep in the vampire circle and whenever she tried to fix it and actually hang out with her fellow vampires, it only ended in disappointment, distaste and displeasure. No matter how many times or how hard Alison tried, attempts at befriending the vampires never gave her any progress and she remained just as uninterested in them today as she had when she was first turned years and years ago.

For example, three of the vampires she knew the best were Morgan, her father's head guard, Calvin, a soldier in training and Vera, a young court lady. All three of them pretty much summed up the general attitude of the vampire court as a whole and why Alison didn't get along with any of them. Morgan was too haughty and surly, constantly strutting around the halls like he owned the place and baring his fangs at anyone "causing trouble" or "being unruly" or "threatening the king". Calvin was much the same, though whereas Morgan's attitude at least came from experience, all Calvin was, was an egotistical and self-absorbed fool. Alison probably hated him most of all because of all the times he'd bragged about being a vampire soldier. Alison had bested him every time they battled and yet he still had the gall to act strong, brave and battle-ready. Then there was Vera. She was just annoying. She was rude, loud, aggressive and far too sexual for Alison. Now, Alison had no issue with sexuality or sensuality, but Vera was a cut above the rest. She was a stalker and predator. It was the unhealthy kind of sexuality, not just a genuine and general exploration of lust, which was something even Alison partook in at times. But that summed up the court. They were either a bunch of self-righteous Morgans, aggressive and arrogant Calvins who liked to act tough, or bossy, bratty, snobby Veras who had no sense of self-control, whether in terms of starting fights or starting new love affairs. Was it any wonder why Alison tried to avoid her vampire court?

The same went for all of the other mystical, magical creatures that came to Dorian's doors. In the vast array of beasts, humans, monsters, magical entities, or some combo of the four, none of them had struck Alison's fancy any more than her own court did. Sure, she knew all of her father's closest friends and allies by name, but that was only due to how often she saw them, not because she actually cared for any of them. And once again, this strange sense of distance and vague dislike was mutual. All of Dorian's closest allies were familiar with Alison's name and face, just because she was his daughter, but none of them really liked her. They did not exactly dislike her either, but she was just so distant and hard to reach out to that none of them were quite sure what to make of her, and Alison never made any attempt to clear the air or break the ice either. This was mostly because she was worried that if she did try to get to know them, they would be just as bad as her vampire court, so she preferred to keep an icy distance, which of course made it hard to make any friends, let alone really loyal ones.

So, despite living a very extravagant life, surrounded by all the companions and companion types that the world had to offer, Alison was still very much alone in her existence and it made her feel rather empty inside. She wasn't quite sad or angry, leaning more towards the emotion of apathy, but there were times that the boredom and loneliness made her wish for something else, something more. Even though she was already in the lap of luxury, wanting for nothing and surrounded by tons of creatures, she still felt inexplicably useless and helpless, like her whole life was meaningless and pointless, and if something were to happen to her, no one would notice or care because she had no real friends. She had allies and acquaintances, but that was it. It really was a very barren life to live and it left Alison quiet, distant and a little bit broody.

Tonight was a classic case. Like always, Dorian was having another ball to celebrate himself and, like always, Alison was in attendance. It was just another dance. Just another party. Just more creatures flocking around Dorian and indulging in all the food, drink and company he had to offer. Gorgeous dresses, fancy suits, top hats, crowns, jewelry, finery, eatery. All typical stuff. Oh, sure, the party was aesthetically amazing, but the underlying current of how it transpired was still the same as always and it was starting to bore Alison terribly and she almost wished someone would start a fight or something just to give her something new to look at that wasn't more whirling, twirling vampires, fairies, human-animal hybrids, or whoever else had decided to come to tonight's extravaganza.

And that was another problem with Dorian's parties. Since they happened so often, not every guest came to every single one, knowing full well that if they were to miss one party, Dorian would just throw another one soon enough. This created an inconsistency in who all came to these events and this meant that, some parties, Alison was left off a little more lonely than others. Although she did not have any deep friendships, there were still a few creatures around that she did enjoy spending time with. Usually, it was the lighter, gentler creatures, like fairies and other little woodland spirits or sprites. Sometimes, too, it was the nicer witches of the world. The other, more aggressive creatures like werewolves and fellow vampires were just too much for Alison to handle most nights. Sure, she had a mean and aggressive streak as well and there was nothing quite like a good fight to strengthen up the muscles, but it still annoyed her that blood and battle was all some of these more vicious creatures would talk about.

However, there was one exception to this rule. The two creatures that Alison spent the most time with, outside of her vampire court, were two half-human, half-spider women. The race of spider-humans was, like the vampires and werewolves, a rather violent race, but the reason Alison tolerated them was because, despite their bloodthirsty nature, they were not that overtly aggressive. While one might see a vampire or a werewolf getting into a scuffle every few minutes, the spider-women only got aggressive while hunting for food, but that was a rare case because their methods of hunting were to seduce their victims in. There was no chasing or screaming or fighting, just quiet seduction. For that, Alison preferred the spider-women more than all of the other, more violent creatures in her father's entourage. In particular, the two that Alison spent the most time with were named Kira and Haruko and, on the nights that they did come to Dorian's parties, Alison would spend the night playing cards with them.

Sadly, tonight would not be one of those nights, the spider-women having chosen to sit this party out. They did have to come all the way over from Japan, after all, and a commute back and forth from England to Japan wasn't that simple, even if the creatures doing the commuting had spider and magic powers both to help them. But this was why Alison was especially dour tonight. Not only had the monotony and mundanity of her life been bothering more and more of late, but now the only two people who ever really helped her take her mind off of her worries weren't even here tonight. It was just her and her alone, standing on the fringes of Dorian's ballroom and watching everyone else dance and make merry while her own head swirled with morose and bitter thoughts, no one there to help pull her back out of it.

At one point, while sulking alone in her corner, Alison looked over to her father's throne. He was reclining in it, surrounded by several creatures of various species, and although she could not hear a word he said, she could see from his wide, fanged, smile that he was having the time of his life right then. She even saw him laugh at one point, tossing his head back with his mouth opened wide. Alison rolled her eyes. Perhaps the worst thing about these parties was Dorian himself. It just annoyed her to think that the only reason any of these balls ever even happened in the first place was just because he wanted to show off and be adored and complimented. Now, Alison understood how being a royal might get to someone's head and make them want to be a bit vain and flashy, but Dorian was a cut above the rest. Even for a king, he was incredibly egotistical. And watching him up there, lounging on his throne with a small group of worshippers right at his feet made Alison want to puke. It angered her to think that she only came to these things because he had commanded her to.

And that was another thing. There was more to Alison obeying Dorian's orders than a simple desire to humor him or a lack of an excuse to defy him. It went deeper than superficial emotions like that. It was an invisible, but very real and very strong bond between the two of them. Maybe she had no love for him, and maybe he had no love for her, but vampires were fiercely loyal creatures, especially to whomever they bonded with. In the case of Alison and Dorian, this bond was the one between creator and creation, notoriously strong. Alison always felt unable to disobey Dorian simply because he was her creator, having marked her not just with his fangs, but with his very soul, tying them together with that metaphorical bond. That wasn't to say she was physically incapable of defiance, it just meant that even though her head might be telling her to disobey Dorian, her heart would always persuade and compel her to do otherwise.

No one was quite sure why this strange bonding existed, but many theorized that it was so the vampires, as a species, could survive. After all, what good would it be if all the vampires ever did was kill each other? Answer: it wouldn't be. So that's what the most accepted idea was. A vampire's deep sense of loyalty to whomever they bonded with, especially if it was their creator/creation, existed solely to keep the vampire species alive and well, forcing them to feel compelled to coexist just so that their species could propagate and not kill each other off at the first sign of competition. And propagate it did, as Alison could see firsthand as she continued to look around the ballroom, teeming with vampires. Although other creatures were here, as this was a vampire's castle, those were the most numerous of them all.

So, for that, no matter whether or not she wanted to attend, Alison always felt compelled to go to every ball, party, meeting and event that her father put on, not just by his own admonishments and commandments, but her own deep-seeded sense of loyalty that, like the sweet and powerful taste of fresh blood on the tongue, refused to ever leave her. She could not defy her father even if she wanted to because that vampire loyalty within her always convinced her to heed his words and obey the ties that bound them...

And speak of the Devil! Alison hadn't realized that she had been staring at Dorian until he finally caught her eye, raised an eyebrow, then waved her over. Unable to disobey, partly due to her natural compulsion as his creation and partly because she had no excuse to not go, Alison walked forward, away from her corner of solitude and right to her father's side. Seeing her come, the others at Dorian's feet got respectfully out of the way and returned to the main part of the party. Once again, although none of them knew or cared for Alison on a personal level, they were still going to give the vampire princess their utmost respect.

So while they went back out to the main part of the ballroom, Alison drew ever closer to her arrogant and moody father. But that was the strangest thing. The party must've been going better for him than usual, which was the total reverse of Alison who hadn't been quite this sick of partying in a long time, because instead of demanding to know why she had been staring at him so, he only invited her to come sit by him and chat. He even smiled at her! A true sign that he was in an especially good mood tonight. That man never smiled at Alison. So Alison bit out a pathetic little grin of her own, leaning against his throne to talk.

"Ah! Alison, my darling, my child!" he began languidly, reclining even further back into his throne. "Does it get any better than this?" he waved one hand over the glittering assembly, the other clutching at a golden goblet filled to the brim with warm, fresh blood.

"No, it does not, father," Alison replied, robotically. Dorian heard this hollow tone and narrowed his eyes.

"What? Are you not enjoying this magnificent event?" he sounded disappointed, but still not angry. Not yet at least.

"Not very much so tonight, father," the younger vampire replied, still sounding hollow as she answered with the truth instead of a flattering lie. She glared at Dorian's goblet while he finally began to frown, Alison's curt tone finally getting to him. He sat up a bit to glare at her.

"Bah! You take this all for granted, do you not?" he demanded crossly.

Although he didn't want it to, his mood was beginning to slip from its previous good humor, and it was all because of Alison! Seriously! Why did that girl have to be so stubborn? He'd chosen her to be his daughter, after all. Was that not a good deal? He'd given her a place in his castle and his royal family and treated her like one of his own, ensuring that she would want for nothing, yet still she complained! Never satisfied with anything he did for her! He had blessed her with this grand and glorious eternal life, ensuring she received only the finest of everything as the princess of his court, and yet she still disdained it all and never smiled at him even once! And thanking him? Yeah, right!

"That I do not, father," Alison replied at last to Dorian's previous question, but her overly-formal vocabulary and her rather flat tone made her true feelings all too clear. Before he could call her out on this, however, she continued to speak. "I just simply do not feel in good spirits for a ball tonight, and, as exquisite and clever as this party is, it brings no joy or happiness to me."

"Nor any other night, for that matter, it seems," the vampire king growled a little. He could hear the true unhappiness behind her formal wording and it made him mad. Why did she have to be so hard to please? So ungrateful and stubborn! And after all he'd done for her! She was impolite, arrogant, rude, argumentative, sulky, and pretty much everything Dorian hated and she seemed adamant in remaining in such a self-pitying state. It drove him mad and made him wonder what the heck went wrong with her.

Not for the first time did King Dorian curse his luck that the one girl he should find as a suitable daughter would, ultimately, turn out to be the worst of them all! Though perhaps, that was what happened when one chose a child not for the sake of the child but for the sake of the alliances and publicity that such a child could bring. After all, Dorian had not chosen a daughter simply for fun. He'd chosen one to raise the numbers in his court and he had intentionally chosen a very beautiful girl with the hopes that some good creature from another kingdom would ask for her hand in marriage, expanding Dorian's power without him ever needing to lift a finger! But no, although he had chosen the prettiest girl in the area, she was just so stubborn and withdrawn that, so far, she had offered nothing to Dorian's court except a lot of headaches and arguments. His plan to create the perfect little royal family had backfired and he wasn't too eager to try again, so Alison had no siblings.

And while Dorian continued to turn these rueful, bitter, regretful and angry thoughts over in his head, Alison turned her eyes outward, away from her father and back towards the rest of the ball. Her eyes swept sadly, pensively, around the room. Grand and glorious as her life and this party both were, they all rung hollow to her, meant nothing to her, and an inexplicable sadness would wash over her whenever she thought of it. Although she knew, inherently, that she ought to be far more grateful than she was, she was unable to force out even the slightest bit of happiness with this life she was currently living. It did not matter how beautiful it was, nor how spoiled she, herself, was, it was all just so meaningless, pointless and empty! How could she ever be content with a life like that? Answer: she wasn't, and that was the problem.

At last, the young woman left her father's side, not even bothering to ask his permission because she knew already that it would please him for her to leave his sight. So, without a single sound, she turned away from the king and began to walk off. But sure enough, as soon as she was gone, Dorian sighed, already feeling himself relax a little with her out of his sight. He took a sip of blood from his golden goblet and felt his spirits return to him at once. Alison was not going to ruin this party for him, not tonight! Let her skulk and sulk all she wanted, this was his party, not hers! So while Alison moved further and further away from the party, Dorian got back into the swing of things in no time flat, a small crowd gathering at his feet once again once they saw Alison depart from his side. Ahhhh, this was the life!

But while Dorian went further into the party, Alison went further out of it, passing through several old, cold, dark, stone hallways until she reached the castle's front door. She walked straight through it, leaving the big, old pile of rock that she called a home behind her, nothing but the dark forest in front of her. She walked right out of the castle grounds and deeper and deeper into the forest, unafraid. She walked on until she was totally alone, even the uproarious sounds of the ball lost to her ears. Finally, Alison smiled. For the first time that whole day, she relaxed, taking in a breath of the moonlit air. She may not have needed air anymore, but sometimes a lungful of the cool, crisp wind made her feel alive again...

But Alison's little moment of privacy was ruined when she heard something step on a branch right behind her. Without a single second of hesitation, the vampire princess whipped around and entered a battle stance, hissing violently into the night as she bared her fangs.

"Who goes there?!" she demanded boldly, and even though she couldn't see anyone, she was suddenly aware that she could smell them. It smelled one part human, one part something else, and all parts threatening. Looks like Alison was going to get that fight after all...

AN: So, as you can see, I'm writing an Alison-centric, Escape the Night S2 Prequel. For that, no YouTubers will appear. If that disappoints, I'm sorry, but I honestly am more interested about the side-character's stories than the YouTubers (no offense to the YouTubers). Additionally, I apologize for any canon I ruin with this fic, please don't hate me! LOL.

Also, just a quick sidenote, this castle that Dorian and Alison are in right now is NOT the Victorian mansion in S2. That'll come later. This is a totally different castle. Just wanted to clarify!

Also also, shout out to canufeelthemagictonight and Leah Merone (AO3 author and fan YouTuber of EtN) for inspiring this fic and really kick-starting my intrigue with EtN, (S2 in particular because, in case you can't already tell, I adore Alison).

Now read on to see who Alison's mysterious attacker is. It's another familiar face, a character I think you'll all know and like.