Alanna
Kneeling beside the tub, he picked up the pitcher and filled it with water. I closed my eyes as the warmth slid over my shoulders.
I could start planning.
There was a loosening in my shoulders as Sebastian ran the soapy cloth over those tight muscles.
Yes, I would start planning and the most thrilling idea of all was that I could finally use my weapon, my sword.
"Sebastian." I leaned forward, hugging my knees to my chest. The cloth dropped lower over the newly exposed skin. "It has begun."
"Yes, my Lady. Indeed it has."
I turned my head and watched as his hand trailed down my arm. He didn't wear his gloves when he bathed me, so as to not get them wet. His nails glistened darkly, but they were not what caught my attention. It was the seal, dark red against his surprisingly pale flesh.
I shifted, taking his hand in mine.
"Where is mine?" I asked, lightly tracing the beautiful mark that bound us.
There was a hesitation before he answered and I looked up to find him staring at the mark.
"There was a time, Mistress, that I believed the more noticeable the mark, the more tightly bound we were. I was wrong in that belief,"
"But I don't have the mark."
He eyes met mine and his smile was slightly condescending. "No, my mistress, you are mistaken. Just because you can't see something, does not mean it doesn't exist." He freed his hand and cupped my cheek, the intimacy of the gesture both comforting and confusing. "When you give me an order, you will find it."
I watched as his face once again became perfectly expressionless. The same face that I saw daily. It was then that I understood just how little I knew of him.
But, I wasn't supposed to care, was I?
"I shall leave you to the rest of your bath." He stood, movements as graceful as always. "I must lay out your attire for the day."
"Sebastian, would you prepare breakfast as well? I find I have an appetite this morning."
He looked at me for a moment and I was unable to understand the things I saw in his eyes.
"Yes, my Lady."
Sebastian
She wanted breakfast. How… odd.
A cup of tea was her morning meal. I hadn't the slightest idea as to what she would like for her breakfast. But I would figure it out. Because if a Phantom… No. I wasn't that any longer. I was the Livingston butler now.
I pulled the black dress from her wardrobe and laid it across her freshly made bed. Though she never left her manor, she never wore any other color. Perhaps, had I been human and lost what she did, maybe I would never wear another color. Though the time for mourning had passed, her heart was still grief-stricken. Which served me well.
That duty accomplished, I dashed to the kitchen. She would be ringing her bell soon, possibly. She was indeed as stubborn as my former master. I could easily see her drying herself and trying to tie her own corset. That would be humorous to bear witness to.
With no knowledge of her preferred meal, I chose a selection of different items. I would see which she took and then I would have the answer to this dilemma. Simple. I was putting the last plate on the cart to take to her room when the bell sounded.
She was quite unpredictable today. I would have to be sharp, if I were to perform my duties perfectly.
What was it about today? Could simply seeing the picture of one of her tormentors stir her blood this much?
Leaving the trolley outside her bedroom door, I made my way back to the bathing room. Pulling a towel from the stack on the shelf, I approached the tub. As per usual, she didn't stand until I had the towel spread and my face averted. She stepped from the tub and into the towel.
"We have much to discuss." She finally spoke.
"Indeed we do."
It was with quick methodical movements that I got her dry and into a dressing robe. With a nod, I followed her back to bedroom. She glanced at the trolley and then at me.
"Why do you think I would wish to dine in my room?"
"Simple logic. Since I have been in your service, you have rarely left this room. And never for a meal. Today seems to be a day of firsts, however, so my presumptions could be wrong."
Her lips curved again. Two smiles in one day. Could it be that my true home was freezing over?
"You are correct. However, I am not sure how I feel at being so predictable."
"Were, Mistress. You were predictable."
Her smile widened as she turned away from me and entered her room.
I helped her dress before bringing in the trolley. She was seated at her small table and looking out out the window when I returned to her side.
"Having never prepared breakfast for you, I was unsure as to what you would like. I brought you a selection that will help me in my duties."
I lifted the lid from various covered dishes and watched carefully as she pored over them.
"How did you choose?" She asked.
"They were some of my previous master's favorites."
"There seems to be a lot of him in the way you treat me." Her head lifted and I could see the question in the warm brown. "Do you typically make comparisons of such things?"
My laugh was only slightly bitter. "There is no possible way to make that comparison between you and him. A fully-grown woman, a small boy. Would you compare night versus day?"
Her hand, which had lifted to taste my offering, paused. "You devoured the soul of a child?"
Alanna
"Devoured? No, I did no such thing."
Somehow, I dared not believe him. I could not get the image out of my thoughts. Yes, he was a demon. But a child?
"But you had a contract with him?" I asked.
"Yes. One very similar to yours." His eyes never left mine, almost as if he were daring me to pass judgment on his actions. Maybe he did not realize that I had already done so.
"Did you fail him then?"
"No, Mistress. I performed my duties perfectly. I obeyed every order. The contract was fulfilled." He turned away from me, head lowered. Could a demon feel pain? That was what I felt I was witnessing.
"Then you set him free." That seemed to be the logical explanation.
"Again, no, nothing so noble, though that would have been far more satisfying."
He faced me again and I jumped to my feet, my heart racing from the anger in his eyes. The amber glowed, as if the sun itself was shining from them. The panic surprised me, as I knew that he wouldn't, no, couldn't hurt me. Not as long as the contract held. I stumbled against the trolley in my wild attempt to escape from nothing but the fury I could feel.
"My Lady." He was instantly in front of me, barring my way. "Do not be alarmed." His hand stroked down my back, trying to calm the shivers that had taken hold of me. "My apologies. I had thought I could speak of it now. Once again, I was wrong."
He had never done this, tried to comfort me. For the second time in the day, I was confused by his actions. And again, I realized how little I actually knew of the demon that held me gently.
"Did we not have things to discuss? Things that do not involve my past?"
I straightened my spine and stepped away. "Yes, you are right. We need to start planning."
Trying to get control of my still thundering heart, I forced myself to reclaim my seat. I waved at the opposite chair. Sebastian sat and spoke. "What I don't understand, my Lady, is why you simply won't let me take care of them."
I was shaking my head before the words finished coming from him. "No, it has to be me. I have to do this. I need you to protect me, to keep me alive until I slay every last one of them, but I must do it myself."
"Can you take a life and remain unaffected by it?"
"Such concern, Sebastian."
The only reply to that was a slight tilt to the corners on his mouth.
"Yes." I said with utter conviction. "But I need you to help me in a few other ways."
"I shall obey any order you give, my Lady."
"I wish you to hire people. I would like to open up the house. I want the world to know that I live." I paused for a moment and met Sebastian's eyes. "I want them to know I still live."
There was a slight widening of his eyes and a slow exhale. "I see. You think they will come after you."
"Hope, Sebastian. I hope they come after me."
"You have a lot of faith in my being able to protect you." He said, head slightly tilted.
"I have something you want. Of course I have faith in you."
He gave me a nod. "I will keep you alive. A Livingston butler that can't do that much isn't worth his salt."
Sebastian
She was right. I would keep her alive. At all costs.
I had no choice.
The hunger ripped through me, burning, leaving me a hollow shell. Sometimes, during her long recovery, I was tempted, sorely tempted, to simply find someone, anyone, and feast on the dregs of London. As pitiful as most of the souls were, they could ease the ache, fill the emptiness.
And as always, the memory of my young master would arise. That pure, noble soul. And along with his memory, there was hers.
What she lost. No, what was stolen from her. The spirit to reclaim her life, even for revenge, was so strong, so… divine.
I wanted that to be my reward. Not some opium-addicted wastrel.
Yes, I would fulfill my contract. And this time, no one would interfere.
"There is one other thing I need from you, Sebastian."
"Anything within my considerable power, Mistress."
She smiled again, though this one was slightly bitter. "I wish for you to teach me how to take a life."
I knew this would arise. And I hated it. I wanted nothing to tarnish the gold that was her soul. But, I was hers to command, was I not? I could teach her to be brisk, methodical. Less tarnish that way. She didn't have to take the pleasure from it that I did.
Though, with this being revenge, that tea boat may already be on it's way back to China.
"Yes, my Lady."
