Disclaimer: I do not own Hellboy or the characters of Hellboy, but Aurora, the spy, and General Zykeburg are mine.
Author's note: Here is chapter two! I hope you enjoy! Be sure to REVIEW!
Chapter 2: Home, Sweet Home
Back home at the mansion, I was eating an apple and reading the paper when Ilsa walked in.
"Get dressed."
"I am dressed." I didn't bother looking up.
"We're not going out looking like that." She spat the word. I shouldn't have questioned her, she was in a good mood when she walked in. I should have kept it that way. Too late now.
"I wasn't aware we were going anywhere." It was a lie and she knew it. I just didn't think she'd make me change my clothes, but then again I didn't want to leave my spot in the dinning room.
"Come on, Aurora." Wow, in a good mood and patient. I wasn't going to push my luck.
"Okay, fine. Just give me a minute." I ran up to my room and threw on a dress that wasn't too over the top that would still be within Ilsa's acceptance range. When I came back down the stairs into the foyer, Ilsa was talking to Kroenen. He was joining us apparently. Ilsa looked up, her ice-blue eyes meeting mine.
"Finally, come on." We all walked out the double doors into the sunny afternoon. A car was waiting to take us into the city. We were going into town to go shopping. People in our social class were invited to many occasions, all of which we were obligated to attend. This party was to celebrate our success at the previous week's battle, hosted by the Furor and the lovely Eva Braun. It was truly an honor, but I was in no mood to shop. All I wanted was to just stay home and relax.
Ilsa lead the way once we reached the city. There were many shops she favored, all of which the employees greeted us formally. To have us in their store was fabulous and they wanted to keep us there as long as they could- it was great for revenue.
"Hello, Ms. Hauspuien, Ms. Fuchs, Herr Kroenen." the first shop's manager greeted us with a curtsy. "Is there anything I may help you with?" Her smile was so large it looked painful. Oh my God, Oh my God, Oh my God! This is amazing! I laughed to myself at her enthusiasm.
"Were are your dresses? We have a very important event to attend and don't have much time to search." Ilsa barked at her. The lady lead us to the back of the store.
"What sort of event are you speaking of? There are cocktail dresses, tea party dresses, ballroom dresses…"
"Ballroom or cocktail would be best. Blue for her, red for me." It was great to know I had a choice in the matter.
"Periwinkle blue." I corrected. Yes, I had to be difficult.
She showed us so many dresses it made me dizzy. They were all so beautiful! The one I finally decided to get was a breath-taking (periwinkle) floor-length dress with glitter and embroidered vines and roses. Ilsa's was a simple silk dress- simple yet flattering.
Once we had our dresses and stopped for lunch, we headed back home to carry on with our plans. There was so much work to do but I didn't really mind. I was just glad to be back home.
I had lived with Karl Kroenen and Ilsa Von Hauspuien since the beginning of the war. We had all met at a party for members of the Thule Occult Society and potential members. I was still just a Potential at that time and didn't really have much of a interest in the Occult. Actually, I hadn't even know about it until an invitation arrived at my doorstep several days prior. The only reason I had made the time to attend was curiosity. It was Grigory that had introduced me to first Kroenen and told him of my abilities which horrorified me that he knew my secret. But then again maybe I shouldn't have been so surprised, after all I was at a party for a bunch of occultist.
Kroenen had bowed and kissed my hand; well, pressed it against his ever-present mask. He truly was quite a gentleman.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Aurora." I smiled at him. What a kiss-ass.
"And as it is with you, Dr. Kroenen." I knew how all these political games went. Smile and play nice for the people, then get down to business. Why am I here? I entered his mind, which admittedly was challenging. His body went ridged. Clearly he was surprised I was in his head. Not only his, but Grigory's too.
Because you were invited and decided to come, of course. He thought back. It didn't matter though, I already knew the answer to my question. I just needed his honesty before I agreed to do anything for these people.
Would you like to try again? My boldness surprised him.
How about we see how the night goes first.
Fair enough.
That night was one of the most exciting I had experienced. I was 19 at the time, ready to embrace my life and see where things would take me. I had no true plans just yet and with the war starting I was even more unsure. Wars were always good times for women, they opened up new opportunities for us and I wanted to explore every option I had. Things would be especially easy for me since I was society's ideal- a pure German Aryan. Blonde hair, sapphire-blue eyes. Of course my mother and father always told me that it has time to settle down with a nice young man and start a family instead of going gallivanting around. In the 1930s it was very uncommon for a woman my age not to be engaged, but that's not what I wanted. I wanted to experience things and explore, which the Thule Society seemed to promise.
At the party I danced and laughed and flirted with the flawlessly handsome men, most of them Aryans, though some were more exotic. Half way through the party, Kroenen came up to me at the beginning of a new song.
"May I have this dance, my lady?" He asked, holding out a leather-gloved hand. I smiled at him, accepting his offer.
We swirled around the room, becoming one with the music which the orchestra played quite fabulously, eventually finding the center of the ball room. Though I didn't feel very comfortable in the arms of a so dangerous, I couldn't deny the fact that Kroenen was a wonderful dancer, graceful with fluid movement.
"You are quite an exquisite dancer, Miss Aurora." He whispered in my ear. The deep sound of his voice sent a shiver down my spine.
"Why, thank you, Dr. Kroenen. You dance quite wonderfully as well."
"You truly have a very useful talent. You may wish to help us with it." We weren't talking about dancing anymore.
"And tell me, Dr. Kroenen, what is it that I would receive in return?" This is the way things worked in those days. Nobody ever did anything out of the goodness and purity if their hearts, not many at least. I wasn't about to be taken advantage and I had to be especially on guard since I was only a woman.
"Protection. Glory. Power."
"Power? Do you truly expect me to believe that? I am not naïve, Dr. Kroenen. A woman has no right to power." I spoke calmly, no edge to my voice.
"Most woman don't have power, but with the Thule Occult Society things are not the same. In the occult, you can have the power over darkness, and with your natural gift your strength can increase tenfold!" I searched his mind for any hint of a lie, unable to find any.
I mulled this over in my mind, carefully considering his words. Dark power held no interest for me, but just the idea of having any sort of power was thrilling. That's what I wanted after all, wasn't it?
"Tell me more about this 'occult'."
And that's how my life with Kroenen and Ilsa came to be.
The party we bought the dresses for was three days later. We arrived at the party fashionably late, just as we had always done. Our life consisted of many parties, all of which were required. Being members of both the Occult and Nazis demanded our social appearances, especially since we were all high ranking members of each. This is how things were in those days, all very superficial, everything being all about show. Most people at the gatherings had no true substance to them, resulting in my lack of friends and trust. The only people I really trusted to have my back in those days were Kroenen, Ilsa, and Grigory. Anyone else could have been plotting my death, allowing them to take my position.
It frightened me a little, the idea that I was in a room full of people that possibly wish for my blood to be in their hands. The concept, and most of all it being very likely, made it difficult to not become paranoid. Kroenen had seen to it that I was more than capable of defending myself plus my gift of telepathy made it impossible for anyone to catch me off guard. Regardless of all that, it was still unnerving to think that I spent my time with these people.
This was a Nazi party, including all the generals and high-ranking officials. Music played over the shrill laughter of the men's companions, all of whom were young, ditzy blonds. Very few of them had dark hair. Once dinner was served and everyone had completed their meals, it was time to discuss business. My mind tingled at the edges. Something was wrong. I tuned out the thoughts that were no threat, searching for the one that had sparked my attention.
Damn, this was a friggin' suicide mission! There's so many of them! I can't believe I allowed myself to get talked into this! The thought was in English, accented like a Bit's. I heard thoughts just like if someone was talking to me, even when I wasn't trying to. I looked down the line of generals seated at the long table, my eyes locking onto the source of the thought. I young man with sandy brown hair and green eyes. What was his name? Bruno, or so he claimed.
I forced myself into his mind to search what his thought meant, already knowing what I was going to find. He was a spy. I looked to Kroenen, channeling Bruno's thoughts and their meanings to him. Kroenen's head snapped to face me and I subtly indicated to my left where "Bruno" was sitting. I flashed an image of his face to Kroenen so he'd know exactly who it was. Kroenen looked back to me; I could tell his cobalt eyes were latched onto me as we exchanged a knowing look. I smirked.
Disconnecting from Kroenen's mind I glanced down the table to were the spy sat, trembling in his seat. I removed myself from the table, gracefully making my way towards him. When he looked up at me I flashed him a bright smile. He glanced around to see if it was meant for anyone else then looked back to me and smiled.
She is quite lovely He thought.
After our meeting it was time for one last dance. Bruno found me on the edge of the dance floor. Unknown to him, I was waiting for him to come up to me. I knew he would, men were too easy.
"Hello, Miss Aurora. Would you care to dance?" "Well, I don't like to dance much, but I think I can make an exception." I smirked.
Gently, he took my hands in his and lead me out to the dance floor. His dancing was odd, definitely not the best I have ever encountered. Dirty spy probably spent too much time sneaking around than learning how to dance properly.
"It is a lovely party, isn't it?" I asked.
"Yes, it is very… interesting, to say the least." I giggled softly.
"Yes, there are some very unique characters here."
"That's one way to put it." He laughed, a rough sound. I shouldn't be doing this! Flirting with the enemy! I'm dancing with the damn devil! …But she is quite intoxicating….Stop it! Don't think like that! She was in that meeting! You have no idea what she could be! But she does have beautiful eyes and soft skin…
His thoughts were all over the place, his inner turmoil giving me a headache.
"I must say, you are quite handsome." I said, then looked down, pretending to be shy.
"Thank you, you are very beautiful as well."
At the end of the dance he offered to take me home, which I accepted. On our way to his car, I stopped.
"Wait, I want to show you something." I said, squeezing his hand.
"What is it?"
"Just come with me, you'll love it! It's so wonderful!" I said, voice full of childish enthusiasm. He laughed.
"Okay, but very quick. It is getting late." I smiled. It wouldn't take long at all.
I lead him to the back of the large mansion, to a lit fountain. The sound of the water splashing softly was peaceful, accompanied by a chorus of crickets.
"Isn't it lovely? Look up." I stared up at the bright stars, tiny white specks in the dark blanket of nightfall. He did as I said.
"Wow, it is lovely." He looked back down at me, his jade eyes finding mind in the murky darkness. As he leaned down to kiss me, I raised on my tip-toes to meet him. Our lips were barely centimeters away when he gasped in pain. I twisted the dagger I had lodged into his gut, causing him to whimper.
"Did you really think that you could get away with spying on the Reich?" I hissed in his ear. His pain-filled eyes looked at me in astonishment and fear before they slowly glazed over.
Done with my task, I returned to the mansion where Kroenen, Ilsa, and General Zykesburg, the man hosting the party, where waiting for me. The general locked shocked by my appearance.
"What on Earth happened to you?" I looked down at my bloody dress. Kroenen laughed behind his mask. He always got a strange pleasure out of seeing me after taking care of someone.
"She had an errand she needed to complete." Kroenen answered for me.
We followed General Zykesburg to a small sitting room.
"The Allies have regrouped along the eastern front. They have increase their numbers and now pose as a threat to us. The Furor needs you to go there to lead our troops. They need you," he looked me in the eyes, "to find out their plans and if they change we must know immediately, that is if you would mind going with the soldiers? You will not have to serve in any combat, the soldiers will protect you if it costs their own lives-"
"General, I would be honored to serve my country. I will go help your troops." I interrupted him. I was only asked to be present at a battle if it was absolutely necessary. Women had no place on battle fields in those days. The general smiled at me, relieved.
"You truly are an extraordinary woman, Miss Aurora. You bring pride to the Fatherland with your bravery."
I'm brave too! Ilsa thought angrily, Though she does deserve his praise. I understood that she wanted praise and attention, it did not bother me that she wanted recognition too.
"Why thank you, sir. I owe it to my friends really. They helped me through a lot." I said blushing as I indicated to Kroenen and Ilsa. Ilsa looked at me and smiled, a wordless thanks.