Leu Chrysallia

It did not make sense to her, for him to demand her as a bride if he did not desire her. He had hurt her, somehow she’d displeased him and as a result he’d hurt her. This marriage was an arranged one, pieced together by Duke Auttenberg and her mother, Violetta. Her mother had done this because she believed it to be in Elegy’s best interests—of this she was sure. But, in the case of Louis, the reason for him to go along with the marriage, if it was unwanted, she could not understand why. If one had a choice, if they were unhappy and had a choice to slip away from it, then why would they not? The boy had offered her a choice, a chance. If she had one then why did not Louis? Certainly, he had one as well, if not happy then why . . . ?

Breathing shaky at best, shoulders and her middle hurting, Elegy remained in her seat, her hands lightly over her middle as she tried to regain her better senses while it was the people around all went about chattering among themselves concerning the subject of how she’d just regarded Louis. It was of no consequence . . . the nobles always prattled on and gossiped as this. Rumors spread like wildfire between them, as did names and insults. This was something she’d come to learn in her short lifetime. And, it was something she did not understand, as with most things. It made no sense to her.

I do not have to marry Louis, and he does not have to marry me. If he is not happy with myself as a wife, then he does not need to worry. she thought to herself, her cerulean eyes shut, We do not have to be together as husband and wife.

The sense of it, the notion of having a choice in this—it made Elegy feel almost lightheaded, it made her tremble a bit, it was a nervous feeling to think that she had a. . . . Chance, that she had freedom? Hope, and an opportunity. As her heart began to slow in her chest, and the ache within her diaphragm began to lessen, she found her hand stolen away from her middle; a firm grip was upon it, but not one that sent trepidation through her. It was not Louis’. The action caused Elegy to release a questioning sound, and for her to crane her neck upward, her eyes open. A gentle tug, and she was up to her feet again, pain went through her middle again. And, from it she cringed, a soft moan slipping from her.

Her breathing became irregular again, and though it felt as if her legs were ready to give out from under her, Elegy kept herself standing as best she could. This was not Louis, it was the boy who’d regarded her with compliments, and sweet words before and offered her his help, given her a glimpse of a choice in this life. “Oh, poor lady! You're looking very ill! Come with me and I'll take you to rest!" the boy shouted, though obvious he was speaking solely to her. Elegy looked up at him, a pained and questioning expression playing over her face. She didn’t understand why’d he had been so very . . . loud.

But he, he did not mean her harm, he meant to be of help to her. He had offered her his aid. . . .

Given the fact that he had spoken in such a very loud voice, Elegy found herself and him the victim of many stares and dirty looks from many of the surrounding nobles. As she felt a hand upon the small of her back, she heard the hushed voices beginning again, talking among themselves about the sight of Louis’ fiancé with an unknown boy, being led away from the party meant to honor her and her future-husband. As if the scene between her and him hadn’t been enough a minute before. . . . Gossiping as the only thing these so-called-nobles seemed to know how to do though, for why it was they had to speak among themselves of matters which had no true significance, Elegy did not understand. It was something she never understood. It seemed as if there were many things she didn’t comprehend . . . thinking about that.

Gently and slowly enough, she was led along toward the Duke’s manor, out of the limelight and the eyes of the many people who only thought her as fodder for their gossip. Walking along, it was a painful thing to do now. The bruise which wrapped around much of her middle sent an aching ripple through her with every little step she took, Elegy could not help but wincing the whole time she moved.

This territory she was passing the threshold into, moving on from what had been planned for her, decided, into a place new. It was frightening in a way, to know that with every bit she moved forward, she was taking herself off the path she’d treaded already for the whole of her life. By allowing herself along with this stranger, this boy who’d paid heed to her with his compliments. . . . Elegy knew that she was taking herself away from what her mother had thought best for her. She was taking things into her own hands, deciding upon matters in her own life for the first time.

Louis did not want her as a wife, yet insisted upon her marrying him. Delight would not be found for either her or him if they wedded. There was a choice. Each had an option, she’d been shown as much. Though Louis grew weary of her talk, and did not want to hear what it was she had to say, Elegy was ready to accept this opportunity. Heart aflutter within, fear brimming over in her soul, she was indeed frightened, but desperate.

As she was taken into the confines of the manor, Elegy was able to faintly hear from behind a shout, the Alchemist’s apprentice calling out, “Hey! Miss Elegy! Stop… Please!” Elegy could not help but glancing back a bit. The young lass’ duty had been to tend to her, but it seemed as if that was not to happen. The plans for how the night would go were quickly changing. . . .

Her gaze travelled back upward, to look at the boy. Upon his face was a smile, a lively sort that he held a finger to in order to offer as a gesture to remain quiet. To this, she gave him a nod, understanding. He wanted to help her . . . so it was he did not stop leading her inside. Their combined presence earned glances and stares from several noble and servants who lingered in the building, and toward them, she simply kept her own head down, eyes averted. The jade-haired boy though, he offered amicable greetings and waved, enough was his breeziness, that they were not engaged in conversation or called aside.

The pain from her ribs and her surely-bruising shoulders Elegy endured, putting her faith into this stranger who still guided her along. Traversing through the hallways, turning through the labyrinth-like corridors that comprised the first floor of the Auttenberg house, the two of them at last reach a desolate, quiet area. Pulled down in a narrow passage, the hand the boy had been holding to help her along was released, leaving her on her own two feet again. The ache remained, and gently Elegy returned her hands to her middle. Cradling the area while it was the jade-haired boy began to speak; she looked upon him with discomfort in her eyes from standing. “This seems like a good enough place. We should be able to speak freely here.” he grinned rather widely, "Listen, lady, I'm gonna kill the fancy talk and cut straight to the objective: you and me? We're getting out of here. This place is no place for a person like you. You still have life in you. Those vultures back there are just empty souls. But you...you're something different."

Elegy tipped her head to the side a bit, not entirely understanding what he meant by her being ‘something different,’ but the idea of him . . . helping her, offering to take her from this, to give her a choice. . . . I-I can, I can find happiness. . . . she thought, as she found herself biting down upon her lower lip. She could feel the prickle of tears forming behind her eyes, the cerulean orbs turned glassy as her frame began to quiver a touch.

The boy coughed before clearing his throat, “ You do get a choice.” he stood right in front of her, looking around. “I don't even have to ask what you want. You made your choice back there.” Had she already . . . ? Already made her choice without even really realizing it? Elegy swallowed back an urge to cry as an overwhelming sentiment seemed to settle in upon her. “You can trust me, lady. If you follow me and listen to me, I can take you to places you've only ever dreamed of seeing. These people? They would be jealous to hear about it. I know you don't know me, but...can you trust me?” There came from him again a charming smile, “I promise to take you out of here. All you have to do is show me the way out and I'll take you right along with me.”

This sort of treatment from him, this kindness, it was something she was not accustom with still. Kindness, being given the opportunity to expression her own volition, a prospect at some sense of bliss? Not even she herself realized how very deep the yearning for this was. With the opportunity for it before her now, Elegy found herself unable to stop from shaking. It was consuming, the idea of it, of freedom. Arms still around her diaphragm she had to shut her eyes to try to keep the tears at bay—though the attempt failed. Unable to contain it, the tears managed to slip from her eyes.

There was so much now, the fear of entering into uncharted waters, potential freedom, kindness being shown to her, the sudden feeling of desperation, the want for this. . . . Elegy nodded fervently a couple of times before drawing a hand up to cover her mouth and her nose, opening her eyes. The idea of marriage, of being bound to a man who did not want her as his wife; she did not want such a Fate. She had thought there were no choices for her, that she had to submit to it. Louis did not want her, why he did not just say so, she didn’t understand but. . . .

For the moment, the pain in her shoulders and diaphragm were forgotten as she attempted to speak, all of what she felt seeped into her voice. “Please, please, I-I cannot, knowing I do not have to. . . . Having an alternative—y-you have both my faith, and my trust.” Elegy’s voice wavered with her anxiety, yes, she was scared, but this was what she wanted. “Th-there is fear for this, but if I am allowed to decide, then I-I will decide to not marry Louis. He does not desire me as a wife, if he did then. . . .” A shake of her head. “He is insistent on wedding me however, so, please . . . take me away from here . . . !” The noble-born daughter lowered her head to him.

It was as this happened, that she felt a tugging upon the high gloves she wore, and a familiar voice spoke, “Miss, I am sorry, but as your current physician, I would strongly suggest that you take a moment to rest, please…” Elegy looked over, seeing that it was the Alchemist’s apprentice, having managed to track herself and the jade-haired boy down.

She was insistent as well it seemed. But, at least, the young miss had Elegy’s wellbeing in mind, wanting only to tend to her. Elegy felt the pain within her diaphragm return full force, having had it off her mind with the prospect of escaping this life. The agony slammed her back into reality, however, causing her to groan suddenly, clutching onto her middle as her make-upped and tear-stained face fell victim to a grimace, and she found her legs weak too much for a moment as she near came to fall to the blood red carpet below. From within, she could feel something. . . . It slipped from her bones, a sort of heat that did not bode well. Outward it escaped, seeping into her muscles until it finally managed to her surface. Pain came with this; it felt as if she were beginning to burn from the inside out.

However though, to most any observer, it would appear as if Elegy had just broken out in a sudden fever. . . .

”Nice to meet you too. I am a…traveler/missionary. I have lived here till I was eighteen, taking off to help those in need. Heard that, that idiot Louis and suckered a poor girl into marrying him. Had to see it for myself.” Anna looked at Daremita, then back at the girl in her arms. She was right; Jay didn’t have the elf features to her. She smiled at her when her eyes went wide at the candy being handed to her. That seemed to brighten her day. “Say thank you.” She told Jay.

“Tank…ou.” Jay said, the candy making her cheek poke out.

“Yeah, I was walking along…uh…taking view of the mansion when Jay came up to be and tugged on my skirt. If she is not homeless then I would love nothing more than to beat the parents to a pulp. Who would let their kid go around looking like this? I mean, look how skinny she is!” Anna had to stop, she was getting angry and that was never good.

She saw the man coming, but was short in actually stopping him. He had bumped into Daremita and caused her to come closer. Anna took a step back and let the grumbling old man walk past them. He had reminded her of her father, those horrible nights when he would stumble in and cause a commotion. Idiot. Her eyes followed where she nodded and walked to the clearing. Jay clung to her and watched the people come and go. Jay was a curious little girl, but it still plagued Anna as to why she would pick her.


“I like your firmness.” She said to Daremita. Anna shifted Jay to the other hip and the girl wiggled, settling down and resting her head on her shoulder. Her green eyes stared at Daremita with cautious and curious eyes.

Flandre walked down the halls she had gotten herself caught up in. She held her weapon in one hand, and a paper in the other. She already had read it, so, all she needed was to find the woman.

Why Flandre was following the orders of such an evil man, was for a couple. As of then, there was no way Flandre stood much chance against the Freeman. Another thing was that Flandre barely recognized the woman. Flandre simply labeled criminals by name and appearance, and of course, as 'criminal' and nothing more. Also, Flandre did not want to allow any deaths as of that night.

As she walked down the halls, her appearance morphed into one of a Chevalier, having the full suit of armor and the helmet. Though it couldn't actually protect her, whoever she was up against would try and aim for weak points in the armor, making it harder for them to decide their hits. Her 'helmet' only revealed her eyes, and the skull on her eye patch changed into the insigna of a horse.

Flandre made her way into the Foyer, her weapon pointed at the ground. She silently made her way to the doors of the manor. She then simply exited, and walked down the steps.

Stopping, she looked around. If the woman was truly in the crowds, Flandre had no way of finding her. Her distance-inpaired view searched, but found nothing.

Flandre twirled her weapon around and pounded the butt of it on the pavement. Then, an owl of speckled white feathers flew toward her from the distance. Flandre held her hand out, and the owl perched on it. Flandre handed it the paper she held, which it grabbed with it's beak.

"Find her," Flandre asked of her familiar. The owl took flight again and soared through the crowds. It took a little while, but soon, Flandre heard loud hooting, among the noise, and followed it.

She found the redhead, speaking with one of the Chevalier and was accompanied by a young girl. Flandre walked up to her quietly, grabbed her weapon with both hands and pointed it at her, in a battle stance.

"Miss, you are under arrest for crimes against the Duke," Flandre told her in her most stern tone.

”Nice to meet you too. I am a…traveler/missionary. I have lived here till I was eighteen, taking off to help those in need. Heard that, that idiot Louis and suckered a poor girl into marrying him. Had to see it for myself. Yeah, I was walking along…uh…taking view of the mansion when Jay came up to be and tugged on my skirt. If she is not homeless then I would love nothing more than to beat the parents to a pulp. Who would let their kid go around looking like this? I mean, look how skinny she is!”

Daremita felt like she had found a kindred soul, something she has not felt since the passing of her father. 'Maybe this young woman and I could be friends…' She thought to herself. 'That is if I can ever rid myself of these chains put on me by those pompous Roseberys…'

“Tank…ou.” Said the small child, disrupting Daremita's thoughts. It brought a genuine smile to Daremita's face, to see such a true and beautiful innocence that one could only find in children nowadays. “You are most welcome little one.”

“I like your firmness.” She heard Anna remark after a man had bumped in to Daremita. This brought a smirk to her face.

“When on the side of justice, one must be strong and true. These are traits that…” The hooting of an howl stopped Daremita, and she looked around to take in her surroundings.

A young girl was walking up to them. Daremita noted the young girl was wearing Chevalier gear, and yet she did not look familiar to Daremita. The young girl reached Daremita and Anna, still a few feet away from them, the young girl grabbed her weapon, and with both hands pointed it towards Anna.

"Miss, you are under arrest for crimes against the Duke.” The young girl said sternly.

Daremita eyed the strange woman, then moved herself to stand protectively in front of Anna and the child she was holding. Placing her hand on the hilt of her sheathed sword that was secured to her by the leather belt around her waist, Daremita stood tall and proud, as she always did when she felt threatened.

“My name is Daremita Hawklight, I am a Chevalier as well. As it is within my rights to ask, what is your name and what proof do you have of this woman’s crimes. I also ask that you to name this Duke that has been wronged.”

Daremita knew she was quite a bit shorter than this woman, but if it came down to it, she would do all she had to, to protect Anna and the child. She did not care which Duke was wanting Anna arrested, Daremita cared for no nobles and if she could protect or even save one person from a nobles injustice and cruelty she would gladly give her life and position for it. 'I would be one step closer to freedom if the Roseberys could see me now.' Daremita laughed to herself in her mind.

"And should I feel you are speaking the truth, I will take Anna in myself."

Anna saw the smile on Daremita’s face when Jay said thank you. She could see the kindness in her, which actually she had seen in many of the elves she had come across in her travels. They were pretty loyal creatures, but something was different with Daremita.

Daremita was saying something about a justice and traits, when she heard the owl. What is an owl doing out over here? That was never a good sign. Anna looked around to see if she could find it when she heard a woman’s voice.

"Miss, you are under arrest for crimes against the Duke," Flandre told her in her most stern tone. Who the hell is that?! And not when I have a damn kid in my arms. What the fuck is this woman thinking!? I can’t fight with her in my arms or anywhere near, but I will be damn to let her get hurt. Anna glared at the woman, thinking of who she could give Jay to. Her father was on the job and wouldn’t be able to watch her. She looked at the one eyed girl and let a low growl escape her lips.

“And what crimes would that be? Please do tell, did I kill him? No...I surely did not. So please, tell me what I did so wrong?” She asked, while smirking at her new little friend. Anna had to hold back a giggle. Such a tiny girl trying to protect her. Anna could very well hold her own, and you could even tell by the way looks that Anna was a tough woman.

(Yes I know it was a short and crappy post. I am sorry!)

In situations like these, Jeremiah liked to think he was pretty confident of it going well. But if the past was anything to think back to, his luck was both the best and the worst in any given situation, so really this could go any way. This lovely, broken little lady right here was well worth the repair that she needed. She was obviously in distress and it gave him a sort of tight-twisted feeling to see the relief wash over her. He could tell she was in more pain than just mentally and emotionally, however. Maybe taking her away from that nurse back there wasn't the smartest idea, but there wasn't much they could do it about it now. If the pain in her sides became any more serious, then he supposed he could just carry her, but, well, in all honesty, that sort of sounded like it would suck. She didn't seem to be very heavy and he wasn't all that weak, but man, he didn't want to carry this girl around everywhere. It was so inconvenient.

He heard a noise behind them and took a quick glance over his shoulder, squinting down the hall, but finding nothing. He made sure to keep an ear out for it, whatever it was, but went back to focusing on the girl. What was her name again? Did he ever catch it? Didn't that fiance guy say it or something? Ugh, he couldn't remember. “Please, please, I-I cannot, knowing I do not have to. . . . Having an alternative—y-you have both my faith, and my trust.” Jeremiah grinned reassuringly in hopes that it would calm her down. He wasn't sure what to do otherwise. He was afraid to drag her around any more than he already had. The movement from outside to inside seemed to have taken its toll on her. It only made him want to go back and punch that fiance of hers right in the face, but he wasn't here to cause trouble. For once.

“Th-there is fear for this, but if I am allowed to decide, then I-I will decide to not marry Louis. He does not desire me as a wife, if he did then. . . .” She shook her head as if she was completely relieving herself of his memory. “He is insistent on wedding me however, so, please . . . take me away from here . . . !” That's what I like to hear. Jeremiah nodded and resisted reaching out to pat her head. Instead, he kept his hands at his sides, not sure what the small motion would do to her. She was already in a frail, vulnerable state and he didn't want her changing her mind just because he decided to pat her head like a child. The movement, although small, might scare her off or intimidate her in some way. It seemed ridiculous, but he didn't want to risk it.

Which brought him back to the question on what to do with her physical situation... “Miss, I am sorry, but as your current physician, I would strongly suggest that you take a moment to rest, please…” Jeremiah nearly jumped in surprise at the sudden appearance of the familiar face. Speak of the devil and she will...well, okay, no that wasn't quite right. The devil in this case was that fiance, but this lady had a much kinder face, albeit a boring one. Had she been following them this whole time? Sneaky little prick. He hadn't even noticed her! The look she shot him did not go by unnoticed and he merely gave her a look of innocence in return, smiling sheepishly.

He was about to say something when the noble girl's condition seemed to worsen. She noticeably swayed, so he quickly placed an arm around her to keep her from falling to her knees. "She looks like she's really sick..." He knew he was pointing out the obvious here, so he moved on, looking at the apparent nurse of the situation--the snooty little bore who bothered following after them. "Since you're so keen on taking care of her, then take care of her already. Here, come here." He softened his voice for the sake of the noble woman. "I'm going to pick you up, now, okay? It might hurt, but bear with me." Without waiting for her to reply with whether or not she was ready, Jeremiah took it upon himself to quickly and swiftly sweep the girl off her feet, carrying her bridal style in the most careful way he could manage. He knew her middle must be giving her more pain than ever because of the movement, but it would be easier than trying to lead her somewhere.

"Okay, miss...whatever you are, come here." He nodded his head for the other girl to follow, stopping at a door and listening in. When he heard nothing on the other side, he took a step back. "Okay, you can take care of her in there. I think she has a fever." Poor girl. He took a quick look around the hall while he waited for the door to be opened for him. Aaaaand while the dame is being taken care of, maybe I'll take a look around.

(Sorry if it seems like I'm god modding Louis at the moment, I'm in a bit of a rush to retype this post after finally getting my internet working again. Might edit this later.)

It was time, Victor decided.

As much as he would love to waste the hours away mingling with the other patrons of the celebration, he was here on business, not pleasure. The sole reason he had been invited to the party was due to the duke commissioning him for a portrait of the newlyweds, and it was fast approaching time for him to get to work on that. And so, discarding his wine glass, Victor proceeded to track down where the young groom was. He would need both him and his father for this.

Having been pointed to the guest room and making his way there, Victor stopped to knock on the door briefly before letting himself in. "Sir Louis? Are you in here?" he asked as he opened the door. The young husband to be was indeed in the room, but Victor held a momentary look of surprise when he noticed someone else in the room with him. "Oh I'm sorry, am I interrupting something?"

"Victor is it?" Louis asked, not looking too put off at the painters arrival. "No, we were just chatting. Was there something you needed?"

"Yes I believe I do. You see I want to discuss the matter of that portrait your father commissioned, and I was hoping you would me for that discussion." Victors face seemed calm and polite at the time, but as he spoke a strange smirk played on his lips. With his eyes locked onto Louis's, Victors continued to speak. "I do hope you don't consider it impolite but I must ask that you come with me immediately for this." It was brief, very brief, but Victor's eyes flashed red when he spoke.

Louis, looked confused for a moment, appearing somewhat dazed. "Yes..." He said slowly, blinking a strange sensation away. "I guess I will then. You'll have to hold on to that drink for the moment, sir Merris. I'll have to tend to this matter for the time being." Louis Got up out of his chair, gave a brief bow to the Duke, then followed Victor out the door when he motioned for him to come.

With his back turned to the both of the rooms occupants, a dark smile crossed Victor's features as he padded something under his vest. Yes... he had much business to tend to tonight.

Blade believed that he had it planned out perfectly. Isolated and with no witnesses, he would poison dear Louis with an enchanted wine that could only be dispelled by another mage, and that was if they arrived and performed the purification ritual before three hours had passed. Given the party and how any and all mages must've been ages away, they might as well spend those three hours digging the noble's grave. After Louis was struck ill, Blade would then run out to the party and cry in fear that the future Duke had been poisoned with vine. Being a noble that was in distress at another noble's condition, he would be let off the hook right away. There might have been one or two suspicions but no one would act on them. After all, he was a Duke. No one would dare stand against him. Even those who had strong animosity for the nobles would forsake him, as Louis was a noble and no different from him.

Now, Blade was not stupid by any sense of the word. He knew something could go wrong with his plan. Louis could've figured out something was wrong by seeing that Blade would not drink his wine. A mage might've actually been around to cure Louis. Someone could've seen Blade's enchantment on the wine and he didn't notice them.

However, he in no way imagined that the "isolated and with no witnesses" part would've been foiled by this new arrival.

"Sir Louis? Are you in here?" was asked by the silver-haired man as he entered the room. Upon looking at Blade, his eyes widened just slightly in surprise. "Oh I'm sorry, am I interrupting something?" Clearly, Blade was not expected.

Louis seemed familiar with this man and, as such, was not bothered by his entrance. "Victor, is it? No, we were just chatting. Was there something you needed?"

The face of this Victor turned somewhat pleased at this question. Blade could tell quite easily that Victor was up to something. After all, he had worn that same face many times ago before he realised it could have been his downfall and attempted to stop it. ""Yes I believe I do. You see I want to discuss the matter of that portrait your father commissioned, and I was hoping you would join me for that discussion. I do hope you don't consider it impolite but I must ask that you come with me immediately for this."

Blade saw it. Even though it happened for only a moment and was as easily missed as the flirtatious wink of a skilled seductress that didn't have her sights set on you, Blade saw Victor's eyes flash red.

These eyes were looking at Louis' as they flashed. They had a peculiar effect on Louis, who suddenly seemed the slightest bit mentally shaken. "Yes..." he answered slowly, almost as if he was in a trance that he was currently trying to blink away. "I guess I will then. You'll have to hold on to that drink for the moment, sir Merris. I'll have to tend to this matter for the time being."

Out of usual respect, Louis gave Blade a slight bow before placing his wine glass on the wooden desk that was close by. He then followed Victor out the door before the two left him alone. All at once, his plan was ruined, and by a vampire, no less.

Oh yes, he had heard all of the stories of those dreaded creatures. While accounts varied, one thing that could be agreed on was that they were blood-hungry monsters that possessed abilities far beyond that of the regular human. That eye-based hypnotism could belong to no other race, especially if the colour red was involved. Furthermore, their strength, speed and durability were great enough to demolish even mighty orcs despite being commonly of lean builds. Their intelligence was not to be underestimated, either; they stayed away from the eyes of society to plan their blood hunts. Picking off victims unseen, they took their blood suddenly and unseen, taking enough to make them unconscious and allow them to slip back into the shadows without anyone seeing them, two holes in the victim's neck being the only clue that they were there.

But the stories didn't end there. Those were only the most recurring aspects between them. Less commonly, these beasts were nigh undefeatable in one-on-one combat thanks to having the strength to lift boulders with one hand, punch through even the strongest steel like it was naught but silk tissue and knock open doors with only their smallest fingers. Their durability made them immune to virtually every weapon known to man; they could be hit with cannonballs and not even stop walking as the metal sphere of terrifying power just harmlessly bounced off them. Their worst aspect, however, was their dreadful speed. In motion, vampires could not be followed as they seemingly disappeared and reappeared around their targets in rapid succession. This allowed them to kill off their targets before fleeing and no one would be any wiser.

But the stories still didn't end there. As if their physical prowess was not enough, they had special powers as well. Compared to these, hypnotism might as well have been the power to blow noses. Telekinesis. Illusions. Summoning bats. Transforming into a swarm of bats. Transforming into a giant bat. Transforming into blood and then transforming back later. Seeing further than the Mort-Vandrine's Observatory's most powerful telescope. Hearing the tapping of whatever shoe they wanted in an entire castle. Determining the number of people in their presence just by telling apart the many scents around. Being able to regenerate from a single cell. Reading minds. Manipulating fire. Manipulating ice. Manipulating water. Manipulating lightning. Touching the ground to create spires of earth. He even once heard of a vampire that could make copies of itself and even stop time.

For the most part, these stories seemed ridiculous. However, Blade was a cautious man. In regards to Victor, he would believe every single one of them. He was going to leave this guest room, follow the two and see what Victor was up to.

But first... he still had the necklace in his hand. A strange necklace, it was. And what was that voice he heard from it? Louis wasn't at all affected... could only magic users that touched it hear it? He needed to study it... and it's not like anyone needed to know he took it. After all, there were a lot of people in this mansion, including commoners. Why, a random drunk could very easily stumble in here, see the necklace and take it for themselves. There was no reason to suspect that Blade had stuffed the necklace inside his coat and just walked out of the room, was there? Of course not. He dropped his wine glass first.

"Oh dear. Clumsy me," Blade 'lamented' as he saw the liquid poor onto the carpet. "I really should be more careful."

Heading towards the door, he 'accidentally' knocked Louis' glass onto the floor and repeat the patterns of his glass. "By the dead goddess, I must be tired. I must get some sleep once I return to the manor."

With the necklace tucked safely into his clothing, away from all that would look at him, he returned back to the party. Hearing all the dreadfully loud chatter upon arriving at the top of the stairs, he sighed as he remembered why he hated these gatherings.

"Hello, sir."

Blade turned to his left and saw Joan Gesthalgion, his chevalier, approach him. Joan didn't look any different although he did have a glass of milk in his hand. As expected; Joan was not a drinker of alcohol.

"Joan," Blade acknowledged. "Enjoying yourself, are you?"

"A bit. I've met some fellow chevaliers and made some new friends. We all engaged in a rather pleasant discussion regarding the use of steam technology."

"I take it they're against it?" That was not an unreasonable question. Some people were still vastly opposed to the use of steam technology. The most common argument was that life was hard enough as it was and water was becoming harder and harder to come by, no thanks to those who took it and sent it away regularly. While Blade did believe that some of their arguments had merit, he was more than thankful for his phone that allowed him to contact other nobles and arrange meetings on the spot without days of sending messages back and forth, often requesting replies again due to the rain smudging all the ink because his messengers were too thick to hide the messages in their clothing or bags.

"Some of them wish for it to advance but others would prefer we just have fresh drinking water," Joan answered.

"I see. By the way, have you seen Serian anywhere?" Looking away from the person he was talking to like normal, he glanced around the crowd to look for his brown-haired elven carriage driver but couldn't see her pointy ears anywhere.

Joan shook his head. "I was about to ask you the same thing, sir. I just finished my talk with my new friends and was going to look for her."

"Perhaps she's tending to Coalesce and Primrose. You know she has that bizarre love for those horses." Blade then looked right at Joan. "Now, please leave me be until I summon you. I have business to attend to."

Joan stayed silent for a moment. Blade knew exactly why; Joan was aware of his... profession. He had no concrete proof but he was very sure that Blade was the noble slayer. "... Understood, sir. Please enjoy yourself." Taking a drink of his milk, Joan went off to do his own thing. Or maybe find Serian.

Looking into the crowd again, Blade walked amongst those he despised in order to find Victor, wherever he'd be. He said something about a portrait for Alan... perhaps he was upstairs in his bedroom? It could not hurt to check.

Flandre did have to admit to herself in her mind, her plan was quite, well, ill-conceived. Clearly, she was out-numbered, having to face another Chevalier and a child as well. Flandre took an upright stance and held her weapon at her side, as not to point it at her 'fellow Chevalier'. She would have to move out of the way first. Flandre sincerely wished not to fight a chevalier, or ever come into conflict with one. Flandre assumed she'd be easy to defeat, despite her likely athletic ability, seeming to be of elven kind, compared to her own flimsy figure, not to mention Flandre didn't even have real armor. However, she was never going to break her morals. Flandre decided, maybe she'd have to cross the line a bit, maybe a little mind control, hopefully her mind wasn't strong enough.

Flandre looked the chevalier in the eyes, or at least one of them, and spoke clearly. "I am Misty Flanders of the township of Exburna, and I implore you to move out of the way, in letting me deal with this woman personally, or assist if you feel it is necessary." With a long sentance like that, hopefully it'd have some effect. The great thing about mind control is that even if the victim can resist it, it wont seem like anything more than a persuasion that the mind had generated on it's own. Of course, there are charms designed to ward off these spells, as well as those who've trained their minds in protecting against and detecting these spells. Flandre looked toward the redhead. "One does not make the list with only one crime," she said, but who she was directing it too wasn't entirely determined.

A man came up from behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. "That's enough Misty," he said in a recently-calmed tone, and a heavy German accent. The man was taller than Flandre, but nowhere near as tall as the Freeman. He wore a white buttoned-up jacket that was similar to a lab coat or cape, in a way, it going down to his ankles. He also wore white dress pants and dressy white show, and had on reading glasses. His eyes were of emerald and his brown hair was a short turf on his head.

"I'm terribly sorry, she's mine," he apologized, grabbing the 'young Chevalier's' shoulders. "She's new to ze force in our township, und I decided to take her with me, but it seems that ze little saumensh cannot keep her weapons down and her gob shut," the foreign man explained politely, but there was a slight irritated hiss in his voice that was clearly dirrected at her. "You see, I told her about zat one thief, the magician one, Kamen Diamonte I believe it is. I made ze mistake of telling her mein thoughts, that there would be a high chance that such a talented thief wouldn't miss an event such as zis. And now she's trying to be a hero. However..." the foreigner walked up to the redhead. "I had caught sight of a little birdie on the way here, and could of sworn I'd seen a cape stuffed somewhere. Perhaps ze thief is here, possibly hiding among us. One could never tell..." He looked into the redhead's eyes, as if he had suspicion in her.

So, it was happening once more…the feeling of burning from the inside out. The fever’s return, coming hand-in-hand with the pain of the forming and formed bruises caused before by Louis, together it was almost too much. Enough to nearly fall to the floor below, her vision blurred, the edges of it lined with black as a detached sort of sense overtook her. For a moment, it felt as if she’d lost control over her own body. A soft whimper escaped from her lips as her eyes nearly shut. Before she could slip to the ground however, Elegy felt an arm around her middle, supporting her up so that she did not fall. The boy who was offering her, her freedom and a chance at maybe finding some sort of happiness in life…. He’d caught her.

Breathing shallow, her body trembling a bit as her senses were overwhelmed by the feeling of burning and agony, Elegy raised one a hand, and set it upon his shoulder, using it to further support herself. Her face had gone deathly pale while it became obvious that remaining awake was becoming harder.

This fever of hers, the pain from it, her very bones felt like they were going to melt from it. Though it would indeed seem as if she’d suddenly fallen ill to most any observer, like a fever had just taken over her body without warning, Elegy knew it was more than that, she knew well the reason that this was happening to her, why it always happened to her. Her blood, her Halfling blood—the fact that the blood of two races coursed through her veins. Within her was the blood of her late Salamander father, and the blood of her delicate human mother. The crossed bloodlines within rejected one another, it caused her problem after problem…fevers, illness, frailty…. Most thought she simply fell sick often due to bad health, they knew not the truth, the cause behind her problems.

If only the blood of my father and of my mother were compatible, then this would not occur…. There would not be a reason for me to be a worry for her…. she thought, a hand traverse its way upward toward the side of her head.

“She looks like she’s really sick…” the jade-haired boy spoke, speaking the obvious—but he may well have known that. He was helping her again, Elegy was placing upon him all of her trust and her faith, he had shown her that she had chances in life beyond what was planned for her. What was expected. “Since you’re so keen on taking care of her, then take care of her already.” he must’ve been speaking to the Young Miss, the Alchemist’s Apprentice. “Here, come here.” he spoke softer, words directed at her this time. He was trying to keep from scaring her, wasn’t he? Still, her breathing remained labored. What was he going to do with her…?

“I'm going to pick you up, now, okay? It might hurt, but bear with me.” Elegy had no time to reply before he lifted her off her feet, holding onto her bridal style. The unexpected movement caused Elegy to whimper, surges of pain ripped through her body. From her shoulders and from her bruised ribs, it was pure agony—the fact that the boy’s actions had caused her discomfort, it did nothing to deter the fact that she trusted him. H-he simply wishes to be of help….

Elegy’s hand remained upon the boy’s shoulder as her face squelched up into a grimace. “Okay, miss...whatever you are, come here.” he was moving, speaking to the Alchemist Apprentice. “Okay, you can take care of her in there. I think she has a fever.” They came to a stop, where Elegy didn’t know.

At hearing him say ‘fever’ though, the girl was reminded of the sense of burning she felt throughout her body—the pain of it and the fact that the intense heat was making her feel as if she were burning from the inside out. But…neither would know, the boy or the Young Miss, they wouldn’t know the truth about what was causing her this discomfort, making her seem so sick…. There would be little, if anything, that could be done in order to alleviate her of this sudden bout of fever. Unless one could unexpectedly make her crossed-blood accepting of each other, there was no way to make this cease. Breathing still hesitant and uncertain, Elegy came to shake her head, unable to support the weight of it very well, it lolled to the side, coming to rest against the jade-haired boy’s shoulder.

“I-I am not ill….” She spoke quietly, “This is not a case of fever, but a phenomenon to be blamed upon my heredity. I am a child between a human and a Salamander—my crossed blood does not do well with one another…. The Salamander half attempts to overtake the human, and the result appears as fever.” Elegy looked at the boy, tears rimming her eyes; one of her hands came to rest upon her chest. “Please…it would be but a waste of time to attempt to treat me for this, there is no remedy or cure to make it end. Let us leave here…. I-I do not wish to stay any longer than this.”

Daremita raised an eyebrow, with the man's accent she was having a hard time understanding just what it was exactly he was trying to say. But the name he mentioned sounded familiar to her.

“Kamen Diamonte, the jewel thief?” Daremita asked. “I believe I have heard rumors of him, one such rumor being, that the jewel's he has returned are fakes. I only remember the name due to the nobles I work for panicking that he may come after their jewels.” Which I highly doubt, since their jewels are of little worth, if not fake already. But Daremita kept that thought to herself.

With a slight wave of her hand Daremita continued. “That aside, I accept your apology, and when it comes to new recruits, I was once one myself. I understand the wish to play the hero. However, I do not believe Miss Anna here to be of any concern nor danger to anyone or thing,” Gesturing to the child on Anna's hip she added, “And as you can see, she is caring for a child at this moment.”

Pulling out another piece of wrapped candy, Daremita offered it to the child, while putting a wedge between Anna and the man. Once the child had taken the candy from Daremita's open hand, she turned to meet the man's gaze straight on with a matter-of-fact look to her face. “No thief would tend to a child and risk being caught, especially in such a place and time as this. A thief's goal would be to get in, take what they want and get out as quickly as possible. For being caught would mean losing their life, and in my experience, a thief's priority is to escape death and live another day, at any cost, even if that cost is the life of their family, or a lover.”

Daremita knew what she was talking about. The Rosebery's were prime examples of thieves, murders, monsters. The only difference is they made the Chevaliers do their dirty work for them, so if anyone was to blame it was not the Rosebery's themselves. It would be those like Daremita to blame, half-breeds, poor upbringing, or plain old 'they lost their damned minds'. Nobles always put the blame on anyone but themselves. This Daremita knew all to well.

"One does not make the list with only one crime," The new girl, Misty, had said. Anna smirked, she would love to see the list that she had gotten herself on. She stole of course and only killed those who threatened her life and the life of the people she was caring for. She found that the list, which she absolutely knew about, was nothing but a piece of flimsy paper that the Duke liked to write names of his victims; they were the one who fought with her to protect the poor from him and his disgusting noblemen.

Anna stared down at Misty, the look in her eye warning her that if she wanted to fight it would be a deadly one. She was about to speak when a man walked out and behind the girl. He wore a white buttoned-up jacket that was similar to a lab coat. Under that he wore white dress pants and dressy white shirt, with reading glasses that slightly enlarged his emerald eyes and he had brown hair that was a short turf on his head.

"I'm terribly sorry, she's mine," he said apologetically, grabbing the 'young Chevalier's' shoulders. "She's new to ze force in our township, und I decided to take her with me, but it seems that ze little saumensh cannot keep her weapons d it is. I made ze mistake of telling her mein thoughts, that thereown and her gob shut," the man behind Misty explained politely, Anna could hear an annoyance in his voice and smiled. "You see, I told her about zat one thief, the magician one, Kamen Diamonte I believe would be a high chance that such a talented thief wouldn't miss an event such as zis. And now she's trying to be a hero. However..." He walked up to Anna. "I had caught sight of a little birdie on the way here, and could of sworn I'd seen a cape stuffed somewhere. Perhaps ze thief is here, possibly hiding among us. One could never tell..."

Jay whimpered at the man, candy in her mouth, and hid her face. Anna slid Jay to Daremita and got closer to the man. "One, I have no idea what you just said about a bird and a cape. Two, if I have a small kid in my hand you do NOT step anywhere near me...it wouldn't end well for you. And three, Kamen is a disgrace and if I could I would put him out of business if you catch my drift. He is a selfish bastard who cares only for himself. But I do hope you find him. Now...about Misty...you should watch her carefully, if she did something this careless and stupid with me...well just think of those who would kill her in a heartbeat for just looking at them." With that Anna smirked at the man and walked over to Jay, ruffling her hair a little. Jay laughed and let out one of the cutest giggles Anna has ever heard. "Well...aren't you just the cuties little girl ever!" She whispered, laughing softly.

The taller man simply smirked and nodded at the redhead, "Good," he responded, "If I were to catch ze theif myself, I'd simply ridicule him for what he is, a fool, a simple pierrot who cannot live in society himself. Ah, now zat's much better." He stood up strait and turned, brought his fingers to his chin and relished the thought. Flandre stared up at the man. She knew exactly who he was, and knew he was simply too into his act. Though, he did seem rather humble, but of course that changed quickly.

The man faced toward the two girls with his chin up and started speaking, "Though, you must realize Diamonte's no ordinary thief. He is a magician. He may be selfish, but has not one person done something for zee fun of vit? I have never once heard of a time he's harmed a person. Diamonte is simply an entertainer, especially for ze higher minds like myself, who have fun trying to figure his tricks out, only to bring us back to the start, and zen he has ze nerve to get away. Ze greedy thief, as many refer to him, doesn't he provide a show? It's simply us aristocrats who are greedy fools."

The foreign man looked rather fond of himself, but then realization dawned upon him. He looked back down at the Chevalier, then at the redhead and the child. He cleared his throat. "Come Misty," he ordered, "Ze night does not move on forever, and zere are many things I wish to do, raus!" Flandre hesitated a little, but then nodded and followed him away.

Flandre followed the man into an alleyway. Nobody seemed to be present in it. "Dumkopf," Flandre insulted, imitating the man's accent. The man took his glasses, shook them a bit, and turned them into a monocle. "Like my new disguise?" he asked, "I call it, Herr Docter." He ruffled his hands through his hair as it magically grew to medium-length. "You had to let your ego go wild, stupid thief," Flandre scolded. "Ah, but some people can't seem to understand, why is it only ze smart ones zat do?" he unbuttoned his jacket as it morphed into a cape, "You can dispose of your disguise now," he added. Flandre's armor depleted. "Sorry for the insults as well," The man said, but not in a German dialect.

"Well, your redhead criminal," the man, who was starting to look much younger as his face and clothing morphed, explained, "Yes, she's quite the naughty girl, a theif mostly. However, turns out she shares and even gives away her 'bounty' to the lesser fortunant. I could see why I'd be looked as lower than her, but really, what do the poor want with jewels when they need food? Actually, once we take down them, I may start to do that, but hopefully it wont be as boring." The man reached into his jacket, which was now a white suit with a blue shirt and red tie underneath, and pulled out a white circle. With a simple blow, the circle popped to life as a white top hat with a blue stripe. "Not sure what you'd want with her, but I suppose you wish not to talk of it." Flandre's face darkened. "A criminal's a criminal," she said. "And where's fhe Freeman?" the white magician asked. Flandre looked at him, but didn't respond. She simply paused before asking, "Why are you dressed up?" "I don't feel like stealing anything, but I just thought I'd do some clean entertainment before the guards recognize me," Kamen Diamonte answered with a grin. "Little girl," he explained, "Not all law breakers do without purpose. Laws are made, not to protect us, but to restrict us. Sometimes, to do a good deed, to be fair, or to survive, we have to break these restrictions. Have you a sense of pity? The aristocrats that make these laws are darker than Black Horizon itself, and yet they are among us tonight." His white gloved hand grabbed the rim of his hat, "I wish you'd understand that, little Chevalier. When an illusionist is decieved by an illusion, well, she's lost her perseption." Flandre simply nodded.

The magician Kamen Diamonte dashed out of the alleyway and out of site, but most probably to gain more attention, leaving Flandre to think. Was that really what the Freeman wanted to understand? Not all criminals are greedy? How was that going to change Flandre's look on scum like the Freeman? Flandre was a woman of little pity, but of high concern for others. So what would have the Freeman gained? "It's simply us aristocrats who are greedy fools," Flandre didn't want to think badly of them, but even she had unonsiously grown a jealousy of those in power, especially as to how many times her efforts have gone unnoticed. But to go against them made her scum herself. She'd be an outlaw and not know how to live in real society. She'd have to fight men, most of which may had been innocent men ordered to apprehend her. But why was she having thoughts as if she was actually considering it? She wasn't going to believe it untill she saw the corruption happening right in front of her eye. As for what she needed to do as of now...

... Lovel, Elegy Lovel. Flandre saw her in the hall with a man earlier, and they were discussing something. Getting away? Like hell Flandre was going to let some man run off with the future Duke's fiance.

Jeremiah felt the slight shift of the lady in his arms and wondered if she would be able to retain the pain or if she might pass out altogether. He'd really rather have her remain conscious throughout the night. It would be much harder to transport a sack of a woman than a lively one, even if she was in pain throughout the whole ordeal. He knew her pain had to stem from some other issue that he wasn't currently aware of, one that he couldn't see with his eyes. It might be something under her clothing--and no, by no means was he going to check there, even if she wasn't too bad of a looker if he was being perfectly honest--or something under her skin, inside her body. She may have a virus of some sort or an illness much worse than that. The idea that she might have some contagious or deadly occurred to him and it made him a little nervous. He didn't want to catch whatever it was she obviously had and he didn't want to be responsible for a dying woman.

“I-I am not ill….” Jeremiah only barely suppressed his sigh of relief. She must have read his mind. He resisted shifting her even though she was beginning to become a bit of a strain. She wasn't all that heavy in the least and he wasn't weak by any means, but, well, he wasn't a man made of muscles and holding a fully grown woman of any weight for an extended period of time was just not delightful. However, he told himself to suck it up and suffer through it to hear what she had to say. Once they got out of this, she totally owed him. “This is not a case of fever, but a phenomenon to be blamed upon my heredity. I am a child between a human and a Salamander—my crossed blood does not do well with one another…. The Salamander half attempts to overtake the human, and the result appears as fever.” Oh. Oh. Oh. Well, that was a different story entirely. “Please…it would be but a waste of time to attempt to treat me for this, there is no remedy or cure to make it end. Let us leave here…. I-I do not wish to stay any longer than this.”

He would take her word for it. She had no reason to lie to him and it made enough sense. He looked between her, the nurse, and the door, before sighing. He really felt a strong urge to fix his hair since it was beginning to feel messy with this whole situation, but since his hands were full, he resisted the trivial movement. He knew it was going to bother him for the whole rest of the night. "Alright, ma'am, where do we need to go to slip our ways out of this party?" He took a step down the hall, back the way he came, and hesitated. Hadn't he heard noises coming from this direction earlier? He was sure he recalled a few voices, but he wasn't a hundred percent. This was a party after all, an event, of course there would people anywhere they looked. Running into someone was inevitable, and yet it was a risk that they really didn't need to take. On the way here, it might have been okay, but they couldn't be seen a second time without raising suspicions.

"We need a way out without catching anyone's attention. This is sort of your place, isn't it? Don't you know where to go?" Jeremiah was beginning to feel a little antsy. Someone had to want to look for her, the duke's wife. She was an important person at this party and she'd fallen ill, so of course some people would be wanting to check up on her, if just to make themselves look good or to see her in a miserable state. He took a glance over his shoulder and saw that it was a dead end, so they really had no choice but to wade at least a short ways back in the way they came. As he was checking behind him, his gaze happened to hover over a beautiful crystal vase and oh man did he want that. It was just small enough to fit in his bag. Maybe if he just... Nono, he had the missus here with him, that wouldn't be a very acceptable thing to do.

...Well, she owed him anyway, didn't she? Ugh, no, no, Jeremiah, be a good boy and save the princess before you reap the jewels. Don't you know how to play the game by now? Sigh. A little less enthusiastic than he'd been before, Jeremiah turned them back around and made a silent plea for the voices he'd heard to be ones they wouldn't have to worry about. "If anyone talks to us, just follow along whatever lead I give you. Okay, doll? I don't want this to be any more difficult than it needs to be." Of course, that was about as bad as saying 'it couldn't possibly get any worse.' Just as he turned the corner, just a short ways down, he had to stop at a vaguely familiar sight of some small group of people. He didn't allow it to catch him off guard as he smiled and continued on his way.

(I'll proof read this later. Thanks to Lenyx for helping out with this post, you unlocked my inner horror writer.)

Victor hummed to himself as he led Louis toward the meeting room, where the duke and some of his company were not doubt waiting. "So, my young sire, tell me how does it feel to be a groom to be?" He asked as they neared the other end of the hall.

Louis frowned, annoyed and unimpressed that his marriage and fiance is all anyone wished to speak about, he was tired of this act of the joyous and loving groom. “In all honesty, tiring. All this,” He gestured with a wave of his hand. “For my marriage to some wh-- Woman, whom my father found in some forsaken place. But it does not matter, aside from giving me an heir I do not require her for anything that I can and would prefer to get elsewhere.”

Victor hummed. His face held little expression beyond mild curiosity. "I can understand your situation somewhat. Getting locked into something with some stranger can be a bit awkward to deal with."

Yes, Victor could understand alright. And that just made him feel a little more distaste for the man. Louis and Victor had both been called womanizers in the past, but the parallels were different between them. Victor, at least, had the sense to make it clear with the woman he was spending the night with that he was only interested in a one night stand, and never had the audacity to call someone a whore behind their back as the young groom had caught himself from doing.

Louis laughed at Victor's response. “Awkward? Not in the least! Ridiculous or atrocious is more accurate!” Taking a few quick steps he now walked beside Victor and gave him a pat on the back. “And just between you and me, should I find no more need of my soon to be wife, I can always have an unfortunate accident happen to her. Therefore freeing me from the marriage, so I do not see myself locked in to anything with Elegy.”

"Oh dear, I should hope for her sake that she manages to remain useful then, shouldn't I?" He chuckled as the reached the meeting room. "At any rate though, we best get this business done and through soon. You'll just have to endure putting on the goofy grin a while longer till I can get the easel and paint out." He opened the door and allowed Louis in first, to where his father and two visitors were waiting.

Louis chuckled and entered the room where is father and Lord and Lady Rosebery were seated, waiting for his and Victor's arrival. “Ah, my dear cousins, what a surprise.”

Duke Auttenberg smiled at his confused son as he stood from his seat. “Victor offered the Rosebery's to accompany me. As we were discussing some, important business you could say.”

“Yes, we were telling the Duke all about Miss Daremita Hawklight and the marvelous job she is doing for us. He has also offered help in finding a suitable wife for our son.” Lady Rosebery chimed. “A woman like Elegy Lovell would be a perfect addition, granted our son is only sixteen and-”

“Now dear, we should be taking up their time.” Lord Rosebery said resting a hand on his wife's shoulder. “There is a portrait to be painted.”

“Yes.” She frowned, knowing this meant they would be leaving shortly. “Yes darling you are right.” Standing from her seat she curtsied to Louis and his father, and then to Victor. “Louis, congratulations again, and thank you again Duke Auttenberg for sending word of this celebration to us.”

Lord Rosebery bowed to the three men and added his congratulations and thanks as well, before linking arms with his wife and walking towards the door to leave.

Victor smiled politely too the as he entered Rosebery's greeting. He patiently listened to the lady Rosebery's yammering as he closed the door behind.

And locked it when the other occupants weren't paying attention.

As the two Rosebery's headed for the door Victor spoke up. "Actually, before you go, there is something I wanted to ask you two about, if you don't mind." He said plainly. "A few friends of my, the Erison couple, said they we're having a bit of a financial dispute with you. I was hoping to ask you a bit more about that situation."

The Rosebery's stopped and stared at him, even Louis and the Duke stopped to stare at Victor. But Lord Rosebery quickly recovered and cleared his throat before speaking.

“I apologize sir but I do not feel this concerns you, and I am sure the Duke would agree.”

Duke Auttenberg nodded as he stepped forward and placed a hand on Lord Rosebery's shoulder. “I do agree, this is of no concern to a mere commoner such as yourself.”

The laughter coming from Lady Rosebery had everyone turn to look at her. “Oh what does it matter should he know? What can he possibly do, save the poor Erison's bastard daughter and grand-daughter from our prison?” She grinned wickedly at Victor before she opened her mouth to continue. “The bitch's shoddy husband decided we were taxing him and his family to much and told a chevalier he refused to pay. And our darling Daremita knows we do not allow refusal of paying taxes, so she did as she was ordered and killed the man publicly.” Putting a finger along the side of her face her grin widened, she was getting to the point of the story. “When we found out Erison's daughter had no money to give us, we had Daremita put her and the grand-daughter in our prison and sent a letter to her parents informing them if we were not payed our due their daughter and grand-daughter would pay with their lives instead.”

“Though the rumors of Daremita tending to the prisoners needs and treating them with kindness and concern will need to be investigated.” Lord Rosebery added.

But Lady Rosebery waved a hand at her husband. “So what if she is, as long as we are payed or the bitch and her runt die, I don't care what Daremita does for the prisoners. As clearly she is paying from her own pocket and not ours.”

Louis chuckled. “I must agree with Lady Rosebery, my dear cousin I'd very much like to meet this obedient Chevalier of yours.”

Victor said nothing to the Rosebery's words toward his friends family. The poilte smile remain on his face. No, actually. If anything the smile grew wider. Almost feral. If a viper could grin, then Victor's face would be a close resemblance of that.

"My lord duke..." He said with pleasantry in his voice that sounded all to eerie to the ears. "This may sound off topic but.... this meeting hall of yours was made sound proof, was it not?"

The four in the room felt a chill run down their spines as Victor spoke, Lady Rosebery gasped as Victor's face seem to contort in to, what appeared to them, a demon's face.
“Y-yes.” The Duke said shakily before coughing, attempting to shake off his sudden urge to push past the man and run out the door. “I did design it to be sound-proof.”

Louis scowled, clearly impatient. “What does it matter if the room is sound-proof or not? And for that matter, why do you even care about worthless and useless people like the Erisons? Can we get this damned portrait over with and go back to the celebrations? I am bored and tired of all this moving around.”

"Oh don't worry Louis," Victor said the sickly pleasant smile stile etched onto his face. "I'll get to you in a minute."

Calmly he started to walk in a circle around the Roseberys. "Now, my dear lady, yo asked what does it matter should I know about your dealings with my friends relatives..." He paused an hummed as if thinking. "Well I could rescue Erison's family from your prison... but that wouldn't stop you from simply tracking them down and taking them back, would it?" He shook his head, massaged his chin, and hummed some more. He continued to speak again, still circling them. "No the only way to truely get them out of their predicament would be to either pay of their debt for them... or prevent you from being able to track them down after their daughter escaped."

The room felt like the temperature had dropped significantly, or risen, depending on whom one asked. No one moved or said a word as Victor circled them until Lady Rosebery decided once again to open her mouth.

“You dare threaten us, you.. You mongrel!” She shouted jabbing a finger at Victor as he passed in front of her. “Duke Auttenberg, do something!” She shrieked as she turned towards the Duke.

Louis though was the first to act, placing a hand on Victor's chest and quite prepared to shove the man back and make a break for the door, but Lord Rosebery beat him to it. Shoving Louis in to Victor and running to the door, pushing and pulling on it, not once noticing it was locked.

Lord Rosebery was sweating, the beads of sweat dripping down his chubby face. “Somebody! Help! There is a man in here threatening us! Help!” He shouted while pounding on the door.

“Oh shut up Harold! Yelling isn't going to help! Just unlock the damn door!” Duke Auttenberg yelled.

Louis recovered and pushed himself away from Victor and towards the door, reaching for the lock that would let them out of this room.

Victor was barely even jostled by the shoving. If anything this expression became even more of some sort of dark, jovial amusement. "Yes, the lock. That'd be easier with the key would it not?" He calmly reached into his pocket, and pulled out a brass key. "I'm sure the Erisons would like to be free of their cells as well." He stared hard into Lord Rosebery's eyes. "Tell me, Harold, how much do you want out?"

Lord Rosebery began to perspire even more, if it was possible, as Victor stared at him. Lord Rosebery's eyes darted to the other three in the room with him before rushing over and dropping down in front of Victor his hands clapped together as he pleaded with the man. “I-I want out! Please! I'll do anything! I.. I-I'll even let the Erison's bitch out of our cells!”

“Harold!” Lady Rosebery screamed.

“Shut up you damn woman! This ma-” Lord Rosebery was cut off when Louis slammed a small, yet heavy granite statue into the side of his head, and watched as the man dropped to the ground, not caring if he was only unconscious or dead.

“Oh my God! Harold!” Lady Rosebery shrieked running to her husband's side, her hands over her mouth.

“Louis what in the-” Duke Auttenberg started.

“If anyone is getting out of this room, it's me!” Louis stated as a matter-of-fact. “Give me the damn key you disgusting bastard.” Walking up till he was right in front of Victor he held out his hand for the key. “You are in love with that half-breed whore fiance of mine, arn't you? Or are you simply some fool she convinced to save her? Well let me tell you,” Louis said stabbing a finger against Victor's chest. “It doesn't matter what your answer is, if something happens to me, that bitch Elegy is dead. You hear me you bastard?”

"Oh course, Louis, of course." That smile, that insufferably, sinisterly calm smile remained unchanged on Victor's face. "There's just something you'll have to do for it." Victor stared straight into Louis's eyes, and the young brat of a noble man was treated to the sight of a blood red glow from the white haired man. "Forget I was here, forget you ever saw me, or spoke with me tonight." As he spoke, Victor gently slipped his hand into his vest, pulled out a knife, and handed it to Louis.

"Then go kill the others and cover yourself with their blood."

---

Victor briskly walked out of the meeting hall. All and all he felt the night turned out well. No mess, no struggle, no bother. Now all he had to do was find someone to send up to the room as a 'witness'.

So Alan was not in his bedroom. Great. Where else could he be? Even though he had no reason to suspect such, Blade moved as if time was of the essence. He'd say "direst essence" but he didn't really know what the phrase meant piece by piece and he'd rather not make a fool of himself. Nobles did have standards to keep, after all.

... Actually, Blade did remember a meeting hall where he was taken once upon a time to discuss trades between Cellé and Mort-Vandrine (it went down surprisingly well. He only turned one guard into a rage-filled spluttering fool and Joan wasn't even hit when he tried to stop the guard's hostilities towards Blade). Perhaps Alan was there? He walked through the mansion to his destination as normal. No need to start a fuss for something that should be discreet. Unfortunately, he might need to make a bit more noise than necessary. A bit on an inevitability; he could never be bothered to remember which room was where in a noble's mansion. Why, in his mansion, he had signs and guards to indicate what was where when the need arose and other dukes should very well learn from his example. Still, he couldn't help but feel that he should work on his habits some more... No, actually, he didn't. It was their fault, not his, for having such unintuitive homes.

He went down another hall but it looked just like the others. Frustrated, he went to turn around and exited. He was just about ready to just ask a guard but, from a hall entrance not too far away, a silver-haired man made his exit. The same silver-haired man that dragged Louis away. Victor.

As Blade ventured in his direction, Victor looked at him out of the corners of his eyes and his smile only grew more when he saw him. It was as if he was pleasantly surprised to see Blade once more but chances are that he knew that Blade would end up here at this exact time through some sort of future seeing. Or maybe he was always reading his mind with power that far surpassed what his mind charm was capable of stopping. Blasted vampires. He'd confront Victor now but he had to find Alan first. Using his intuition, he went down the corridor that Victor had came from. He could feel Victor's eyes on his back for a moment but he didn't care.

He would have investigated each of the doors one by one but... it was the door at the end of the room that felt wrong. Not unnerving, as Blade was hardened against this sort of thing, but it was off. Unnatural. Blade's first instinct was to inspect that room first.

He was damn near horrified at what he saw when he opened the door. Three slain bodies. Three slain nobles. One of them was Alan. One not slain body but covered in blood nonetheless. One living, blood-covered noble. Louis Auttenberg stood in the middle of the room with a knife in his hand and an absolutely unnoble posture. When he looked at Blade, the Duke could see the frenzy and fear in his eyes.

"Louis...?" Blade said softly, barely recognising the boy before him.

"I... I..." the young noble gasped out. "I-I-I... I..."

"Louis, what is going on?" Blade asked firmly.

Even then, Louis was still horrifically shaken. "I... I didn't do it..."

"What...?"

Blade's apprehension seemed to trigger something in Louis. Along with his panic and fright, anger and desperation made its way through Louis' disposition. "I didn't do it... You believe me, right? I didn't do it! I didn't kill my father!"

"Louis, I don't understand."

"It wasn't me!" screamed Louis as he dashed towards Duke Merris with his knife still in his hand. Not that it would do him any good, seeing as Blade actually had combat experience. Effortlessly, Blade sidestepped the clumsy slash, kneed the boy in his stomach and then tripped him over. Once immobilised, Blade took the dagger from his hand and pocketed it.

"Louis, I feel that I would be a lot more willing to believe you if you didn't try to run me through," Blade chided.

Maybe he shouldn't have. The anger and frenzy had left the collapsed boy and despair filled him completely as he sobbed to his heart's content and more. "I swear... I didn't do it... It wasn't my fault... I didn't kill Dad..."

Blade, for the first time in quite a while, was torn and confused. He'd never been in a position to comfort someone before. Well, his younger brother Lorris did seek his counsel from time to time but those were minor occasions. He had most certainly never needed to ease the heart of someone who claimed to have not killed their own beloved father when all the evidence pointed to the contrary. "Then... who did?" Blade asked.

Trying to get his sobs under control, Louis tried to stand up and began to speak. "O... Okay... I... It wasn't my fault... Some... thing made me..." Louis grew more anxious as he thought. "Why...? Something made me... Something forced me... Why...? Why can't I remember? It wasn't my-!"

"For the goddess' sake, boy, pull yourself together!" roared Blade, shocking Louis out of his confusion. "I believe you! You did not kill your father. But, if I am to do anything about it, I need to know what happened!"

"I know!" Louis shouted back. "But I don't remember! I'm trying, okay?! I was... Damn it all!" Out of frustration, Louis punched the wall. "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" he repeated as he continued slamming his fists on to the wall. Blade let him relieve himself until he eventually sunk to the floor. "Damn it... Damn it..." he whimpered.

Sighing, both out of exasperation and torn emotions, Blade knelt down next to the troubled boy. "Listen, Louis... some say that the night sky is good for easing the mind. Maybe you should go to the window."

Louis looked at him, sniffed and wiped his dry, red eyes. "O-Okay..." Standing up, Louis walked over to the glass on one end of the meeting hall. Blade walked to his side and watched the night sky with him. Out in the distance was a number of fields or farms. Not many houses at all. The ones that were there had no lights on, most likely because the residents in each one were fast asleep.

"I just..." Louis began talking again, causing Blade to turn to him. It saddened him to see what was once a strong figure be turned into a walking pile of misery and loss. "I... I want to go back... Just... make this over... I want this to be over..."

Blade put a hand on his shoulder. "When you take in the night sky, close your eyes. It will preserve the image in your mind." Blade saw that Louis followed the instruction. "Louis... I promise you, as Duke Blade Merris of Mort-Vandrine... this will be over. Your pain will be gone."

It almost warmed his heart to see the faintest trace of a genuine smile appear on Louis' face. "I'd... I'd like that..." he said, still facing the night sky.

Blade didn't smile, though. There was nothing for him to smile at when he pulled out his gun and pointed it at the side of Louis' head.

BANG!

The smile temporarily faltered and Louis' eyes shot open. Even so, he didn't see or know what happened. The hole in the side of his head was sure proof that the life of Louis Auttenberg was no more. Blade, despite all the horror in this room, had no regrets. He allowed Louis to die with happiness and hope. It was... a strangely warm feeling. Even though Blade had his sights set on Louis ages ago, he still felt this way.

Blade left his pistol at Louis' side and walked out the room. First things first, he had to find a guard and tell them what happened. Well, that last bit wasn't particularly in his plan. At least, not entirely.

Blade traversed back into the party rooms to see the rest of the vain nobles partying to their hearts' content. At that instant, he was reminded of why he needed to kill Louis; to prevent his corruption from harming others... so why did he feel so awful regardless? Blade shook the thoughts from his mind. He needed to find a guard. Thankfully, there was one essentially right next to him. Also thankfully, Blade recognised him and he recognised Blade.

Despite the mutual knowledge of the other party, guards were generally trained to not engage in conversation so Blade took the initiative. "Jeremiah, may I have a word with you?"

The guard smiled. "Absolutely, my duke. What is the matter?"

Blade's face was grim. "I'm afraid it's a rather dark matter. I will need to speak with you in private."

Jeremiah was confused but he followed Blade anyway to the empty area near the meeting room.

Once they arrived at their desolate destination, Blade turned around. "Jeremiah, what I am about to tell you is a tragedy. Above all else, remain calm."

Jeremiah inhaled and exhaled to calm himself. A basic exercise in regulating one's emotions but it worked. "I understand, my duke. What is wrong?"

Blade let out a small breath of air. Even he was having a bit of trouble still comprehending it. "In this mansion's meeting room, Duke Alan Auttenberg has been murdered, in addition to two other nobles I have not been able to identify."

Jeremiah's eyes opened in shock but, like a good guard, he did not let it get out of his control. "I see... What else?"

Blade was silent for a moment. "The killer was Louis Auttenberg. He used a knife to slay-"

"Louis?!" Jeremiah shouted, unable to contain himself. "What devilry is this?!"

"Contain yourself," Blade ordered while raising the palm of his hand to the guard. "I am not done. Now... after the killing, Louis killed himself with a pistol in order to escape despair. You see, he did not commit this atrocity of his own free will."

"I... don't quite understand, my duke."

"Nor did I expect you to." Blade looked into Jeremiah's eyes with ferocity. "Jeremiah, listen carefully: a vampire is in this building. It has hypnotised Louis to kill his own father and two other nobles for reasons I cannot explain or fathom and I haven't the slightest inkling of what he intends to do next. What I want you to do is organise the other guards and make sure no one can leave the mansion without passing one of you. If you find this vampire, apprehend him by any means necessary. He is roughly six feet in height, has very pale skin, light blond hair that could be seen as white and his eyes are light grey in colour. He is polite but do not let that fool you. Will you do this task?"

Jeremiah the guard took a moment to absorb all this information. Blade couldn't blame him; he just heard the duke he was sworn to protect was killed by his own son but his son was hypnotised by a vampire that was potentially still in the building. Very preposterous. Regardless, Jeremiah proved to be an emotionally diligent guard by nodding. "Yes, my duke. Well will carry out your instructions."

"Excellent. Now, I shall return to the party."

"Of course, my duke. Leave the work to us. Please enjoy yourself for the duration of the evening," Jeremiah responded as the two headed back to the more lively areas.

"... I will attempt to," Blade responded before they parted ways. Now, what else was Blade to do...? Perhaps there was some wine he could drink. He made his way to the wine table to refresh himself.

Daremita clumsily took Jay; Anna sliding the small child off her hip with ease and in to Daremita's unprepared arms. She did not catch what it was Anna had said to the man, as she was busy readjusting the child in her arms but Jay's legs were wrapped tightly around Daremita's waist, her arms stretched up around Daremita's shoulders and her head resting upon Daremita's chest. So Daremita was left with the job of supporting Jay with her arms, one arm across the child's back and the other arm bearing what little weight the child had by supporting Jay's legs and behind.

Daremita watched as Anna came walking back to them and ruffled the child's hair, who in return laughed and giggled. Daremita tried to focus on what the man was saying, but she was distracted by the child in her arms, and only took note of the two left the area. Daremita returned her attention to the child who was smiling and cuddled in her arms. 'Maybe I could do this... One day maybe I could--' Daremita's thought was cut off by someone shouting her name.

Looking around Daremita found Al, who had also spotted her, and was weaving through people to get to her. He was out of breath by the time he got over to them. “Some... Something's happened. You... You need to come with me... Now--” His voice trailed off as he stared at Daremita.

Daremita stared at Al, her face clearly depicted her confusion as to why he was looking at her oddly. “What?”

Lifting a finger he pointed at Jay, and his eyes glanced over to Anna. Daremita rolled her eyes. “For the love of--” She stopped and gently shook her head. “The child is not mine and this is Anna, she is the one who found the child. We believe the child may be lost or an orphan. But until morning, when things have calmed down from the festivities there is not much we can do aside from caring for the child.”

“Well that's good.” Al sighed then laughed. “For a moment there I thought I had fathered a child and you didn't tell me!” Daremita was about to tell him off but he held up a hand to silence her. “Something dire has happened Mita. There has been a--”

He cut himself off and looked around, deciding to move around so he was standing beside Daremita and leaned to whisper in her ear. “There has been a murder, well murders, it has been asked that the chevalier's are to gather and--”

Daremita's head whipped to face Al, their noses touching. “Where?”

Al stood up straight and cleared his throat. “The meeting room, Mita listen..”

But it was too late, Daremita had slid Jay around to rest on her hip as she had seen Anna do and pulling the child close she ran back in to the mansion, leaving Al and Anna to chase after her. Weaving and darting through people and crowds she rushed towards the meeting room. If there indeed a murderer around, it was Daremita's duty to guard the Rosebery's, whether she liked it or not. She slowed her speed to a fast walk when she saw a group of chevalier's standing outside a room, which she assumed to be where the bodies were.

“Child close your eyes, this is not something one with such young eyes should see.” Daremita whispered to Jay, who immediately closed her eyes and buried her face against Daremita's chest. Daremita walked up to the chevalier's and spoke loudly. “Daremita Hawklight reporting, what has happened here? I need to know how dire the situation is, as my employer's are nobles and I need to know if I should move them to safety.”

Many of the chevalier's turned to stare at her, not only because she still had a child in her arms, but Daremita knew that look in their eyes... She had seen it in the eyes of the people when her father died.

“Mita...” She heard Al's voice say behind her, but it was white noise. Pulling Jay tighter against her, the chevalier's made a path for her that led her to the doorway of the meeting room. There they were... The Rosebery's...

Daremita couldn't help herself, a small yet fiendish-like smile crept on to her face. They finally got what was coming to them... She thought to herself as a sadistic sounding laugh escaped from her, just before the tears spilled from her eyes. No... There is no living thing that deserves to suffer something as horrendous as this... There was blood splattered all over the room, Lady Rosebery with a look of complete terror on her face, Lord Rosebery with part of his head slightly bashed in... The Duke, Louis.. They were all--

Suddenly there were arms around her, pulling her back in to the hallway. They belonged to Al. “Mita... Look, no listen. I know you, I know you better than anyone. I know what you're thinking, what you're feeling. We are gonna find the one responsible.” He reassured her before pushing her back at arms length while holding on to her shoulders with his hands. “Remember that guy that riled us up when Lady Elegy and Louis were being introduced? Well he's a Vampire, we don't know the details but--”

“Jay... Jay you can open your eyes now.” Daremita whispered kissing the top of the child's head, who then looked up at her. “I need you to listen to me... This man's name is Al. He will protect you, take care of you, until I return. Do not leave his side. Do you understand?” When the child smiled and nodded, Daremita handed Jay to Al, who took her just as clumsily as Daremita had at first. This made Daremita chuckle and led to more tears falling from her eyes.

Pulling the last of the candies from her pocket, Daremita handed it to Jay while she wiped the tears from her face and looked up at Al, as Jay popped the candy in to her mouth. “I will find him.”

With that Daremita dashed down the hallway, she would tear this mansion apart to find this vampire. First she will thank him for setting her free, then she will arrest him. Should he choose to resist her authority, she would do what she has been taught to do with those kinds of evil creatures... Remove their head.

Anna wondered what was up with this man, she had a hunched but decided if it was best to let it be. She knew when to chase something and a little thief was nothing worth making a commotion about. Having to learn the hard way had brought consequences and worse, her father. The thoughts flooded back and Anna almost got lost to them. The two walked of f and she brought her attention back to Daremita and Jay.

Daremita’s face had Anna smiling; she knew that face and what she was thinking. She had the same thought plenty of times while helping the poor. Many children had come to her, knowing that she was on their side, they had flocked to her. She would have been glad to stay and be a mother, but then who would risk their life to feed them? After much thought she came to a conclusion that in a way she was being a mother to them, that she was doing everything she could to feed them, clothed them, and show that they would have a future in the wretched world they sadly had to grow up in.

Anna was pulled away from her thoughts by Daremita’s name being yelled, she followed Daremita’s eyes and spotted a man rushing towards them. “Some... Something's happened. You... You need to come with me... Now--” The man was out of breath, she kind of felt bad for the boy, but if you were going to be in this kind of business you would need endurance.

The man’s faced went to an odd one and she looked at where he was pointing. Daremita rolled her eyes and said, “For the love of--” She stopped and gently shook her head. “The child is not mine and this is Anna, she is the one who found the child. We believe the child may be lost or an orphan. But until morning, when things have calmed down from the festivities there is not much we can do aside from caring for the child.” Anna looked him over and gave a weak, but caring smile. She wasn’t as mean as she looked. She had to look a part in order to let those she stole from know she meant business.

“Well that's good.” He sighed then laughed. “For a moment there I thought I had fathered a child and you didn't tell me!”[/b] Anna raised a brow and looked both of them over. Eh, could work. After what she was thinking, maybe. He even has jokes. The man held up a hand and Anna looked around, apparently Daremita was about to say something. “Something dire has happened Mita. There has been a--” Anna was locked into the conversation now.

He had stopped himself and looked around, went stand beside Daremita, and leaned to whisper in her ear. Anna rolled her eyes and took a few steps closer only hearing “murders, it has been asked that the chevalier's are to gather and--” Daremitas’ turned quickly and was nose to nose with the man. She held back a giggle and watched. She asked where and once told ran over there. She wouldn’t of ran, maybe walked, but she had Jay so she ran after her, gliding through the people like water. It hit her nose before she got there. That irony smell had filled her nostrils more than once. Anna took a couple of breaths before looking up and seeing the bodies. Her stomach turned and walked out. Not long after, the man and Daremita walked out. She listened to them and watched as Daremita handed Jay to the man and stiffened. She heard there was a vampire around and she knew what to do if the time came when she would meet one, but she didn’t feel like everyone was safe enough from him.

Anna sighed and starred at the man, “I will be back, take good care of her. If she is hurt in any kind of way I will do even worse things to you then what happened to these people, I promise.” With that she kissed Jay’s cheek and whispered something sweet and ran after Daremita. The girl was tiny and Anna knew that she could probably handle herself, but it wouldn’t be wise to take on a vampire alone no matter who you were.