Aurora took their complaints in silence. Being a vampire, it was hard for her to bite her tongue while being challanged. Especially as a coven leader. But Aurora had two hundred years of practicing patience on her side so she listened to them all, letting them each speak their minds. Her face, as she listened, was passive and one could easily say that she cared as much aboutthe conversation as what color the sky was. That was just Aurora. Always cool and hard. Like an icicle, she was delicatly beautiful, and yet hard, cold, and needle sharp as well. Untouchable she made herself seem. Men were either frightened of her or excited by the challange of being the "first" to crack the ice queen. Sometimes she let them. Other times she remained impenatrable.
So she sat with a winter cold demeanor. Not cruel, just calm and collected. Perfectly put together even in the dead of night after having seen the death of her oldest friend.
"Aurora why do you smell like--" The question on Julien's voice froze her. Her body stiffened as he paused. Of course he would smell her. She'd just spent an hour inspecting her wounds. She'd been foolish to think that a bath would hide that scent.
"Did you find her?" Of course he would be the one to ask that question. She turned to look at him and her facade slipped ever so slightly. Something caught in her blue gaze, her eyes always her tell, and she lifted her hand to fiddle with her necklace as she often did when upset.
Silently she willed herself to answer him, but thankfully, Alphonse began his onslaught of objections to her plan of action. Not soon after, Cassie stood up to defend Aurora, always on her side faithfully, but again that tedious question came up.
"Did you find her?" She glanced around the room as silence fell over them. Beside her, Pup spoke up, asking tentativly when they were going to move in with the werewolves. Again, the room was silent as Aurora struggled to find the right thing to say. She squeezed the letter in her hand and averted her gaze from them to look down at it's yellowed surface and scrawled lettering.
She'd made many mistakes as their leader, but always did her best to do right by them. She glanced at their faces, awaiting her reply. She wasn't even related to any of them, except Alphonse through some distant cousin-ship, and they trusted her with their leadership. Was it because she'd been around so long or they honestly believed in her? It didn't matter. She had no doubt that the threat in the letter was real. She'd seen it with her own eyes, and as much as it pained her, if they needed her to recount it in order to see that she was doing the right thing, then she would give it to them.
She lifted her eyes and looked at Julien, finally finding the words to speak. "Yes." She said a little softly. Her face was calm, but her eyes shined with the threat of tears. "I found--" Just as Julien had, Aurora caught on the name. Charlise had been more than just a close friend. She herself had changed the girl a hundred and fity years ago and had helped her rise to power as the leader of a nearby coven. When her home was destroyed mysteriously in a fire, the Coven of Rose City had given her refuge until a month ago, she'd gone missing. "I found Charlise." Even though she said it, her voice wavered on the name. "By the time I reached her, she was already dead, but there was a man. Retreating into the trees." Her hands shook and she tucked them under her legs to hide it. "I killed him in blind rage. He'd dropped a little figurine. Of a huntress. I'm not sure what it means, but I know it's a symbol for something." She paused and ran her fingers through golden blond hair. "When I'd reached Charlise's body, I took extra care in-" she winced "inspecting the wounds. Gold burns and holy water. Nothing a werewolf would have done. We've been blaming the werewolves falsley all this time. I'm not saying they're not disgusting creatures, but I am saying that whatever's out there is dangerous and we need their protection as much as they need ours."
Aurora stopped to breath and propped her elbows on her knees, dropping her head into her hands with a deep sigh. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd been so shaken up. When she lifted her head again, she met Alphonse's eyes. "I'm not asking you to like it. But I am asking you to trust that I'm doing the right thing by you." She let out a sigh and leaned back in her chair, ice cold facade slipping over her again as she crossed her bare legs calmly and twined her fingers. "If you don't want this, have it your way. Find yourself a new coven." The threat hung in the air and her eyes challenged them. Even if it was wrong to throw them from their family, she would do it, they knew she would. There was no other way to convince them. Sometimes being leader was glorious, other times it was nothing but stress and pain. All Aurora wanted to do right now was head into the city and distract herself with the humans. Maybe find a man to bring home, let him think he'd cracked her ice-cold shield. Or maybe she would just go on a frustrated slaughter. A good, old-fashioned hunt like she used to in the old days. Before the coven. When she was on the path to self-destruction.
A knock at the door yanked her from her thoughts and Aurora raised her head. She could smell them before she'd even stood. Humans. Unless this was one of the coven's persistent human visitors, most likely hers, Julien's, or Belle's, no human would dare disturb their household in the dead of the night. So she decided to ignore it and leaned back into her seat.
But the knocking grew louder, more rapid and she honed her sense of hearing in on the door. Heartbeats. Pounding away as if the owners had just run a marathon. Well that was interesting. Unless they'd sprinted all the way here from the city, she doubted they could have gotten their heart rate that fast. A little too persistent perhaps? Maybe she should tie off a loose end? As the pounding grew more rapid, Aurora rolled her eyes. "All right all right. Shut the hell up!" She shouted as she stood and simply disappeared, reappearing before the door. "You humans never do st-" Her fangs had already slid out and she'd been ready to attack, but she was stopped up short in shock as she looked down at the two faces behind the door. "Well you're not an obessed lover." She smirked and stepped out into the night, closing the door behind her.
"What the hell are you doing here Gabe? I told you not to come here. Not even Julien knows about you and after the bomb I just dropped on them, dragging the two of you into the mix would practically put me on their hit list." She jerked her hand towards his sister, Sam. "Speaking of which, why are you bringing her? She doesn't know about us. Our little agreement was based on secrecy." She advanced on him slowly, white lace billowing about her knees as a breeze shifted by, making her shiver. "Don't make me end that." She glanced at the house. Her coven would be asking questions by now. No doubt they'd already smelled the humans. "God dammit Gabe, you really couldn't have picked a worse time."
Caprice felt the pain in his voice like a knife, feeling temporarily sorry for him.
"Of course, I'll gladly take his place, Caprice. Should I-.." At that moment, he paused and Caprice smiled. Albert also seemed to think it would be a good time to come rushing in, panting and out of breath. She held the phone slightly away from her ear.
"Was the vase not a good enough indication that I would like you to stop bothering me Albert or would you like a stapler too? I won't miss this time." She quirked one eyebrow and tucked the phone between her ear and shoulder, lifting the stapler in one hand and popping it open. "This better be good."
Albert shifted nervously and contemplated telling her. Caprice rolled her eyes and raised the stapler. It had the desired effect and got him to get on with it.
"Bryce's partner just returned. We know who killed him."Caprice smiled. "Good boy. Bring him here." Alber scampered off and she turned her attention back to Chandler on the other end. "Hang on Chandler. Dealing with something." She placed the phone on the wood of her desk, not handing up, but not talking to him either, as Bryce's partner entered the room, looking shaken. "You said you know who killed Bryce. Well?"
He shifted uncomfortably.
"It was a bloodsucker for sure. We were out hunting and found this one... She was familiar. You remember that old coven we'd burned a while back, a few cities off? She had been their leader. Apparently she got away." He paused, whether for dramatic affect or to irritate her, she didn't know. "So that's who killed him?" She rolled her eyes.
"No ma'am. He killed that bitch, but as he was retreating another one showed up. I was well gone by then, but I turned back to see what was taking so long. When I'd arrived she was crouched over his body, holding his Artemis lucky figurine. Then she just took off. I'm lucky to be alive." Caprice groaned. "That's great, but you do realize if it had been you and not Bryce I would still have a second-in-command? Now who killed him? I might forgive you if you give me a name."
He looked shocked, but stepped forward to the files on her desk. He shifted through the vampire ones before he came to two blond girls. Here he hesitated and Caprice leaned on the edge of her seat. One was the vampire coven leader herself and the other was Isabelle, one of the coven members. After close consideration, he selected the picture of Aurora.
"This one." He stated plainly before turning and leaving.
Caprice held the photo in her hand with a smirk, them went back to the phone. "Alright I'm back."
"Should I come by and pick up anything I might be needing?" Caprice thought a moment. "Yeah. I've got the file of your brother's killer here. Why don't you come down to my office and we'll talk." And withou another word, she disconnected with a sigh, thunking her head on her file-littered desk.
Not a second later, the phone rang again and she groaned loudly. "UGH!" She hissed and picked up. "WHAT?!" She barked impatiently.
"Mama Eagle, this is Renaissance Man. The Men's blood Bank is closed for business, repeat, the Men's blood bank is closed for business. Got the trash in the bag and the house is shiny." It was Priestly. Great. Just what she needed. And was he talking in code? Where was he? She rolled her eyes.
"Awaiting orders, Ma'am.""Priestly, your code talk is a little obvious don't you think? No one refers to their mother as 'mam eagle'." She gave a sharp laugh and sighed. "Anyways, good job. Hmm, why don't you come down to my office and I'll give you an assignment. Don't keep me waiting." She hung up the phone and sat up to clean off her desk, putting away all but two files. The file of Aurora Mortenson and the file of Emmanuel Cross.