Tanzy McNeal's Story

The music, his maid accepting the drink he had given her without protest, all was well. However, Reiji noticed that Mirabelle and Demetri were nowhere to be found. He did get a glance of Anise and Bishop slipping past the events almost completely unnoticed, Anise bloodied and her dress ruined entirely. He removed his gaze in a nonchalant manner purposely trying to keep his maid from becoming suspicious and noticing her hurt comrade. The last thing he wanted was for Anise to ruin the moment and tear Tanzy's attention away from him. He was just now distracting her from the anger she had felt towards him just minutes prior. Seeing Anise again, especially in such bad shape, Reiji felt he would be blamed. It likely did happen due to his actions with the ebony haired maid, but Reiji felt no remorse. He simply wanted a drink and Anise was, unfortunately, the maid nearest the Head of House, Reiji. It was simply a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Anise was collateral damage, and even if she wanted to forget, technically Reiji had been her first kiss. When passing the antidote to Anise, she had been too weak to drink it on her own. Reiji knew that someone had to give the antidote to her via their mouth and sure, he knew that he could have given Bishop the honor of doing so, but what would have been the fun in that? Now he would forever be able to tease both Anise and Bishop about the occurrence. He would let neither live it down and since his actions saved Anise's life, little could be said about it.

The perplexed expression on Tanzy's features along with the adorable dip of her head, it made all of the teasing well worth the effort. From the shift of her hair as she tilted her head to the fragrance of her blood taunting his nostrils, he was savoring being in her company in a formal setting immensely. Noticing that her cheeks brightened, Reiji let his fingers stroke her cheek, his gloved hand grazing her warm skin. The coolness of his fingers was concealed by the fabric, so for once, his touch felt like that of anyone else in the room. He could not risk touching anyone bare handed, it would expose his family's most well-kept secret. All of his siblings were required to wear gloves when in the presence of the guests. It's a pain having to wear these... Reiji thought to himself. He did not appreciate being unable to feel her skin or anything else aside from the vexatious fabric of the gloves.

"As you wish sire. So I'll...I'll give you a k-kiss later..."

Pale lips curved upwards to reveal a toothy smirk, Reiji's amusement evident, "I look forward to it, love." He teased in a quiet, seductive tone. Withdrawing his hand from Tanzy's personal space, he took another moment to indulge in the beautiful music, appreciating that Tanzy gave him time to properly appreciate the music that was being played, remaining quiet for a few moments to take it in before returning his attention to her, taking another drink of his wine while he awaited her answer to his question. Her cheeks were a lovely shade of red once more, Reiji noting that he was able to conjure that color to her cheeks nearly at will, something he enjoyed quite a bit, though he would never confess to such a thing. It seemed that she was struggling to answer his question, but Reiji never spoke a word, calmly taking sips of his wine at distanced intervals, as it wasn't very classy to chug the glass down, which Reiji often did when away from prying public eyes.

"Your face, sire...your eyes, your hair..."

Crimson eyes simply stared her down after she began to compliment him. He gave her words a moment of thought. Most did not enjoy his eyes. Many found them to be eerie, as they were a startling shade of red. Often red eyes were associated with demons, so as a child he was given a hard time over it. To hear a human say that she enjoyed them, it was not a first, but it definitely was not something he heard very often. His eyes even widened a bit when the word 'eyes' was uttered by Tanzy. However, his hair was definitely a favorite of the ladies. He kept it soft and well taken care of due to that fact, so he was not very surprised to hear it.

"Y-y-your face and it's features...are the best..."

As her final answer rang through his ears, Reiji's eyes glimmered in a mischevious manner, his smirk once again returning. He found that he was satisfied with her answer, letting his hand return to her cheek, this time giving it a gentle and playful tug, "How adorable.." He chuckled, releasing her cheek before it became painful. Remaining quiet and merely observing her for a moment, Reiji gently lifted her chin with his fingers, encouraging her to look him in the eyes, "What do you have to be ashamed of..?" He asked, not really curious, but he wanted to make her aware of the fact that she had said nothing wrong. While he enjoyed her embarrassment, he did want her to crawl out of her shell every now and then. He enjoyed her confident fiery side just as much as her nervous tendencies after all.

Bishop's eyes lingered on the ebony-haired maid as she contemplated his words, her anxiety all too easy to detect. Though why she was so nervous was beyond him, and it made any teasing far less enjoyable. He didn't want her to be so damn timid all the time. He had seen her resolve, seen her strength, so why did she insist on hiding it from him? He cared little for the current topic of conversation, resisting a frown at the thought of Elizabeth and Edward. Why did his little maid care one way or the other how a vampire was made? Despite not particularly enjoying the current path of conversation, he nodded in response to her question, shrugging indifferently. "Correct. We are one of the few pure blooded families."

He was more than glad to have changed the topic, her sudden surprise and renewed blush reviving his mood considerably. She reacted adorably as he complained, beginning to explain herself. Despite his words however, she once more didn't specify him as she admitted to being shy about giving compliments to someone in his station. Her nervous giggle, cute though it was- still hid some underlying worry. Bishop arched a brow, scrutinizing her even as he began to lead her towards the ballroom.

Her stunned expression did not escape his notice, the redhead noting how she all but sputtered in astonishment at his assurance he was serious. Silly human thought he was joking. Or was her station still making her fret unnecessarily? He would most assuredly have to remedy such thinking soon.

Even as he led her by the hand and bemoaned her current skittishness, Bishop was swiftly caught off guard by the sudden change in Anise's demeanor. The nervous drumming of her heart was still present, but she was asserting herself with what courage she could muster. Bishop stared in bewilderment as she insisted upon going and getting herself fixed up first. Pride as a woman?

She gave him no chance to argue or even respond before scurrying off to her quarters to change and freshen up. Shoving his hands into his coat pockets, Bishop followed her with a roll of his eyes. Women. So flustered by their own appearances. She didn't look that bad! He kept his complaints to himself, hovering outside her door and shaking his head. Since when did being disheveled and slightly bloody mean a lady was a royal whore? Her logic was eluding him, and it earned another roll of his eyes as he thought about it.

Bishop folded his arms across his chest, drumming his fingers along his upper arm as he waited, trying to keep from getting too impatient. He supposed her refreshing herself wasn't so bad an idea. After all, he didn't want the idiot butler being nosy (where was that idiot anyway?), nor did he want to receive some bullshit from the prick or admonishment from Ashlyn.

About ready to rap on the door and ask her how long she was going to keep him waiting, Bishop was met with the soft voice of his human, her stammering more adorable sounding than usual. The request was more than enough to shake any disapproval or impatience from his mind, an amused smirk forming upon his lips. This was turning out to be much better than he originally thought.

Glancing up at the creak of the door, the redhead stepped inside without hesitation, eyes scanning Anise from head to toe in silent approval. He liked color on her, but the white suited her just as well. Leading her to stand in front of her vanity, Bishop took the laces in his hands with a mock innocent tilt of his head. "Why, having some trouble with these?" Bishop began to lace them up, tugging them so they were snug, but being careful not to make them tight or constricting. Leaning closer, he rested his chin on her shoulder, letting his breath caress her ear as he worked.

"There, how's the fit?" he all but purred, flicking his tongue out to gently tease the back of her ear, nipping it lightly with a smile, making sure she could see it from the mirror. Hands going to her waist, Bishop tugged Anise so her back was pressed against him, simply holding her still for a few moments. "You're no whore, so erase such absurdity from your mind." he admonished with a frown, only to smile once more and raise a hand to her cheek, stroking it gently before playing with a lock of her hair. "Now, shall we go and enjoy a dance or two? Then...well, we'll see how the evening goes after that..." he invited in a silken and sultry tone, allowing her imagination to fill in the blanks with whatever thoughts (lascivious or otherwise,) might run through her mind.



Sipping at her wine in an attempt to seem calm and not completely out of place, Tanzy was brought to reality as the touch of her employer's gloved hand prompted her to look up at him. His touch elicited a slight blush and a questioning gaze, wondering what it was he was thinking. His smirk only deepened her blush, the sultry, teasing tone resounding in her mind as he spoke, once more using a term of endearment to further confuse her. He looked forward to the kiss, though she was nervous just contemplating it. If he didn't like it, he wouldn't amend the agreement!

A momentary silence met her reply, the maid now wondering if he was somehow unsatisfied with the answer. But it was the truth. His features truly were striking, and while his eyes were unusual, they commanded her attention all the same. His face was undoubtedly well shaped, the family's good looks not lost on him. And his dark hair looked silken and soft to the touch (not that she'd dare think to touch it and find out for herself). All in all, he was the epitome of a handsome Spanish gentleman. But surely he didn't need to hear it from her.

Before she could try and change the subject or look for an opportunity to politely let him go and mingle with his guests, Tanzy was greeted by his mischievous eyes and all too familiar smirk. Her pulse began to quicken ever so slightly as her cheeks flushed with color, this time more or less prepared for his teasing. Even so, she squeaked slightly in protest as he tugged her rosy cheeks, all but pouting at him as he did so. She wasn't a child! Though being called adorable certainly flustered her enough to silence any further objections. Why did he like messing with her so much?

Her cheeks burned brighter as he coaxed her chin, and consequently- her head, up so her eyes would meet his. Heart drumming just a bit faster, Tanzy was caught in that ruby gaze of his, and powerless to ignore the noble before her. His question earned a brief reprieve from her flustered state, her gaze uncertain for just a moment. Ashamed? Did she seem so? She didn't have a reason to be ashamed, did she?

"I'm not 'ashamed' sire..." she said softly, trying to think on her words before speaking them in haste. She had let her mouth run far too much this evening already. Being flustered did not help in her being calm and collected!
"I'm...embarrassed, I suppose. And, I cannot see why you are so intent on knowing my thoughts. I am not used to such attentions." Feeling her cheeks grow hotter, she managed to gently pull her chin away from his hold, staring down at her feet as if they would provide some miraculous insight. She only hoped she hadn't offended her master.

A young noblewoman finally approached the Santiago lord once he was no longer holding the chin of what was apparently his maid. Adjusting herself once more, she inched through the clusters of guests to stand before Reiji, smiling in a coquettish manner.

"Signore, it is an honor to be invited to your party. And may I say, you are far more remarkable in person." Tucking an errant strand of copper hair from her face, the more than just slightly buxom woman made an effort to appear demure and charming. "Forgive me signore, I- I don't mean to be so brash! I just had to meet you for myself. And..." Looking up at him with doe eyes, the noble lady cocked her head to ever so slightly avert her gaze in a show of shy innocence.
"I was wondering, if perhaps you might grant me a dance? Just a single dance with you would be an honor enough, signore."

Tanzy marveled at the lavish dress the noble woman was wearing, thinking the woman a rather fetching young thing. Probably had plenty of suitors of her own. Taking a step back from Reiji, the maid wondered if he would accept the offer. Not really much reason not to, and she was sure many a guest would jump at the chance to socialize with any of the Santiagos. No sense in interrupting him. She had almost felt like a noble herself for a brief time, but now reality was back. Tanzy felt a little dismayed, but shook it off; she had danced more than she ever had already. It was admittedly nice while it lasted. How many other common girls could say they ever got to experience dressing up and dancing at a ball? Even so, she found herself more than just a tad out of place and lonely. Tanzy glanced around, anxious and wondering where Anise was. Surely seeing her friend would soothe her and brighten her spirits. Besides, she had yet to make sure the ebony haired girl was alright (a fact she was once again internally berating herself for.)