Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
`Sir,' said I, `or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you' - here I opened wide the door;
Darkness there, and nothing more.
"The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe
Alfred Ashford twisted the silver faucet of the shower allowing a strong current of hot water to flow. A thick steam began to engulf the room. In the shower stall, he grabbed the soapy sponge and softly scrubbed the remains of blush, lipstick, and eye shadow from his face. Pale foundation from the sponge dropped to the floor in soundless drops. It was in this particular moment that Alfred would begin to experience a mental blackout of sorts; temporarily leaving the feminine persona of his long lost sister, Alexia.
Upon drying off and slipping into a maroon robe, Alfred picked up a wide-tooth comb and brushed his blond hair back, making sure it was absolutely proper upon inspecting every angle within the mirror. Not that he was expecting anyone of importance to make an appearance on this isolated section of the island, but because of his pride in the Ashford family name that he must look presentable at all times of the day. He opened the small window in the bathroom to release the steam, peering out to take a look at the sky. It was reaching the hour of twilight, and night was slowly going to engulf the entirety of Rockfort Island in an eerie darkness. Alfred walked out into the corridor and opened the emerald colored door to his room at the end.
Alfred began to feel a minor headache coming on and thought perhaps a glass of Scotch might do the trick to ease oncoming pain. He thought he had a spare bottle lying around, but it turned out it was left downstairs in one of the rooms with the rest of the collection. Before leaving, Alfred opened his closet to reveal his red jacket adorned with gold epaulettes, along with his white trousers and cravat. Upon touching his jacket, he heard something, and jerked his head towards the door.
A fantastic melody began to erupt within the residence. "That music..." Alfred muttered curiously to himself. Without hesitating, Alfred shook his head and grabbed the rifle that was hung on a rack against the wall, then made his way through the corridor and slowly descended the flight of stairs. No one dares enter the Ashford residence without permission, he thought angrily. Once in the main hall down below, the sound of the piano was much louder, therefore making it harder to identify which room it was coming from exactly. Alfred stopped for a moment, lowering the rifle. Fantaisie Impromptu, he thought to himself, I remember hearing it played once as a child. Alfred turned around and noticed the door to the living room was opened just a crack.
"I've got you now," he said sneakily, a small smirk taking form on his face. He would get the occasional adrenaline rush taking part in his Training Facility, but very rarely did he have the opportunity of facing a challenge with a real human in opposition to him. Although, whoever was playing music in the room didn't seem to be particularly interested in killing, or even worried about being killed themselves by the resident. Alfred slowly pushed the door open, scope to his eye and aiming his laser from the rifle wildly about the room.
"Reveal yourself, you dirty rat," Alfred said loudly. At the far end of the room was a grand piano of polished rosewood. The room was exceptionally dark with only a single lamp glowing to illuminate the keys for the person to play. Alfred located a light switch near the door and flicked it upwards. The light revealed a lavishly decorated room with exquisite furniture, priceless paintings, and Persian rugs. With the rifle mounted, Alfred was nearly close to pulling the trigger when he got caught in a daze of observing this intruder. Lowering the weapon, Alfred's heart began to race. All at once he lost the will to stand and dropped to his knees, staring straight ahead at what appeared to be a woman.
Long, silk gloves covered the delicate fingers of the pianist, playing every key perfectly with precision. She sat with great poise in a layered, plum colored gown. The woman bobbed her head rhythmically to the music, her blonde hair swaying in a gentle manner. She was the paradigm of elegance.
"Alexia..." Alfred called out in a gasp, "is it really you? Am I dreaming once again?"
The song ended abruptly. Looking over her shoulder, the woman revealed an intoxicating smile. Lifting the fabric of her dress, she began to arise from her seat, making her way towards Alfred. Directly in front of him, she bent over and put each of her hands on his cheeks, lifting him up from the floor slowly. A red blush began to consume Alfred's face when she touched him. Using any possible energy he had, he managed to rise himself up. The woman's pale blue eyes stared directly into his, completely penetrating. She gracefully swiped a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Indeed it is, brother. Your dearest Alexia has finally arrived home to where she was meant to be," she said calmly.
"Oh, how long I have waited for the day of your arrival..." Alfred confessed, "I must apologize to you, Alexia, if I caused you any harm upon my entrance. You see, I thought you were an intruder, but of course I am mistaken, I would never -" Alexia put a finger to Alfred's lips to stop the rambling.
"Why are you not properly dressed?" Alexia commented with genuine concern. It was obvious this wasn't his usual attire; after all, no person spends the entire day in just a robe.
"I was about to ... when I heard your music," Alfred answered.
"A beautiful composition, wouldn't you agree?" Alexia replied, coming a little closer.
"Without a doubt," he answered, "Chopin certainly entrances those with his music, but ... not as much as you entrance me with your beauty."
Alexia smiled, noticing her brother suddenly looking downwards, blushing at his own words. Alexia slipped off each of her gloves and stroked the fabric of his robe tenderly at his shoulders and then to his chest.
"It really has been too long, Alexia," Alfred managed to say as he was starting to choke up.
"Do not worry yourself, Alfred," she replied in a warm tone, "I am here with you now."
Alexia slowly began to untie the robe at his waist. She put a cold hand to his chest and immediately felt heat radiating from within. Alfred's gaze met with hers, revealing a timid reaction. In an instant, she pressed her lips to his with a passionate force. Alfred put his hands around her waist and continued with the kissing. She was the missing piece to his heart; the other half that would finally make himself whole again.
With clothing delicately peeled off and clad bodies situated at the sofa, Alfred lay there as Alexia moved up and down with vigor. He put his hands to her hips as they both breathed heavily. His gaze was set on her gyrating breasts, and for a split second, could scarcely believe this hour of Heaven could possibly be real. Alexia noticed this absence of mind and bent forward to kiss his neck, her breasts lightly atop his chest. In that moment he seized her, positioning her underneath him. Alexia showed an expression of satisfaction at the assertive action. She gasped as he thrust inwards and slid her fingers towards anything to clutch. Together they rocked back and forth, crying out to the pleasure and completion they longed for.
Soon all was quiet as Alfred and Alexia sat alongside each other comfortably on the sofa, her head resting against his shoulder, with both their eyes shut displaying the most beautiful inner serenity. The maroon robe was spread open length-wise to cover them both. A single word had not dared been uttered during this time of bliss and sleep.
Seconds turned to minutes, and minutes turned to hours. The lack of a window made the identification of time impossible. But did it matter? Their world was right here. With each other they could conquer anything: happiness, sadness, even the rest of the world. With Alexia as Queen and Alfred as her most loyal soldier, the world would surely be a better place. So there Alfred slept, dreaming of a future with his reigning sister … and it would all be okay, because he would be with her, and that's all that mattered.
Alfred began to stir. Without looking, the first thing that became apparent was he was dressed back into his robe. Images blurred through his mind as he tried to recall last night. Instead, his focus switched to remembering emotions. First it was temper, then disbelief, and finally a fiery passion. A smile began to form on his face but vanished instantly upon observing his surroundings.
His sister was gone.
And the epiphany that hurt Alfred the most was, as he sank his head into his hands and began to cry …
She was never there.
Author's Note: This is my first piece of fan-fiction ever, so to those who decide to read, I hope you enjoy it. The plot device/twist is likely a common one, but it works, so I role with that. The Ashford twins are my favorite pairing in the RE-verse, so I hope I conveyed that through this piece that, to be honest, was sitting unfinished in a word document for months. Long live the Queen.