Disclaimer: I do not own Negima or any of it's vibrant characters...
(Fine...Harem Route will be back on track...With a vote, of course.)
Fang Vice Addiction: "By Your Enrapture"
Chapter Seven: She Who Embodies Lust
By Traingham
Shadows were closing in on him, and any hopes of escape seemed to be out of reach. A young Kotaro walked through the endless, dark hall that stretched out before him like a pathway toward an ominous fate, his tail finding cover between his legs as though it had sensed something that even he was still unaware of, and yet his tiny feet carried him further and further. Something about this mysterious place just felt so wrong, yet so familiar. Where was he heading, and why? Why did it seem as if there was no place to go back to?
The young dog demon looked over his shoulder to find something similar to what was in front of him; nothing more than a hall stretching deep into the darkness.
Well...this was awkward...
"Wait a second..." Kotaro heard a weak voice escape his mouth, and he gasped. He looked down at his body and blinked a few times before looking out into the distance with a dumbfounded expression. "What the hell is going on here? Why am I so short?" He wrapped a hand around his throat gently, and forced himself to cough. "Why do I sound like such a wimp?"
Suddenly, it started happening again. Kotaro felt his legs wobble as the hall started to rumble violently. He whipped his head around in very direction in search of the source of the sudden tremors, but no matter where he looked, he was faced with nothing more than dark passages. The walls started to crack, and an ominous chanting escaped them like a scene out of an epic full length film. Trumpets started playing, accompanied by violins, creating an atmosphere that spoke words of panic. Kotaro took that as his cue to start pumping his short legs for all they were worth. Cold sweat started trailing down his forehead, and he grit his teeth.
"HEY!" He looked up to what he believed to be the ceiling to find the sky swirling with clouds that formed a portal to some unknown destination. The chanting got fiercer, and drums started pounding loudly, foretelling an impending doom. "THIS ISN'T COOL!" The young dog demon screamed, angered by the injustice of all that was happening. Why was this sort of thing happening to him in the first place? He didn't understand. When was this going to en-oh- wait...what happened?
"Hm?" Kotaro skidded to a halt when the chanting came to an unexpected stop, taking the violent tremors along with it. "...Wait a second..." His small eyes focused on two tall figures standing in the distance. They both opened their eyes to stare back at him with glowing red orbs, and smiled, revealing rows of razor sharp teeth. "Oh, c'mon..." Kotaro felt his legs shaking, this time from fear.
"KOTARO." Both of them said his name at the same time in deep voices that sent chills down his spine. "TIME TO DIE!"
Kotaro could only swallow hard at their words before opening his mouth to let out a-
[ Reality... ]
-
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Kotaro let out a girlish scream, eyes shut tight, flailing his arms at some invisible assailants before he opened one eye to find himself in the corner of a well lit room. From the looks of the furniture, he appeared to be in some sort of living room, and a fancy one at that. A black leather couch was set up against the wall that his left shoulder was pressed up against. The wall across from it had a family portrait of an elegant looking woman in a blue kimono. Her dark, raven hair looked rather long with tall dog-like ears protruding from the top of her head. She had gray, or silver eyes (it was hard to tell from the color used for the painting) with a button nose, and a smirk that looked strangely sinister in the young man's eyes. Posing in the portrait with her were three young children, two girls and one boy. The boy resembling Kotaro stood between the two girls with a forced grin on his face while the two girls whom both resembled younger versions of Kanako, and Caska had their arms around his shoulder with genuine smiles. In the background stood a proud tree, raining down cherry blossoms upon the four of them in a warm scene.
"Oh..." Kotaro put his arms down and sighed. "Now I remember where I am." He grumbled, lifting a finger to touch his right eye. He could feel it swelling. He must have lost consciousness at some point during the beat down from his sisters. And I'm guessing that they're the reason I just had that nightmare.
"Oh, you're awake." Kotaro turned his head to find Caska standing at the entry way to the living room with her hands on her hips. "Took you long enough."
"...Evil..." He muttered.
"What was that?" Caska approached him, towering over his crumpled form when she stopped to look down on him.
"Nothing." Kotaro lied.
"I figured as much." The intimidating young woman said with a slow nod before she reached down to grab his arm. She felt his muscles tense under her grip and she smirked mischievously before yanking him up to his feet against his will. Kotaro jerked his arm out of her grasp when he was back on his two feet, and leaned into the corner again, directing a gaze at her that would have melted the polar ice caps. "Oh, don't look at me like that." She told him with a pout.
"You just gave me a beating." He growled at her. "Why shouldn't I?"
"Because I just saved you from something much worse." Caska replied with a smug grin. "You should be grateful that I didn't let Kanako have her way. She was probably planning on killing you."
"Oh, sure." Kotaro grumbled, looking to the side. "You probably would have enjoyed it anyway." His eyes widened, however, when he suddenly felt the tip of her nails against his throat. His eyeballs directed themselves back to her pretty face to find a cold gaze staring back at him. "What? You're gonna deny it?"
"Look, runt, don't act like some victim." Caska told him in a whisper. "What did you expect, suddenly returning from what others assumed to be your death? Three years passed ever since the day you left town against mother's orders. Not only did you almost jeopardize her position as elder, but you left quite a few people devastated..." Caska looked over her shoulder to check if anyone was eavesdropping on them before turning back to her brother to continue, "...including Kanako." Her eyes narrowed at him imperceptibly. "Of course, you're so dumb that it probably never occurred to you while you went out on your wonderful adventures with, Fenrir knows, who."
"Hey-"
"Tell me, Kotaro." Caska interrupted him. "Did you gain anything from leaving?"
Kotaro matched her gaze with one just as fierce, and went on, "Yeah, I did."
"And what would that have been?" Caska challenged him, clenching her teeth.
"A family." He replied boldly before he saw her expression twist into something frightening. Her eyes widened dangerously, and nose wrinkled deeply before she backed up quickly, and delivered a slap to the side of his face that was nothing more than a blur to his eyes. The force of her smack almost made him whip around but he managed to stand his ground, only allowing his head to turn to the side.
"How dare you?" Caska fumed.
"Come on..." Kotaro wiped his mouth to find blood trickling from a cut on his lip. "Let's be realistic. The old woman never saw the three of us as anything more than a way to enter the court of the elders. After our old man died, she changed and you know it."
"Look, I don't like her anymore than you do, but this was still your family, all the same."
"Some family." Kotaro spat. "You two just let her do as she wished, especially, Kanako. That girl looks like she'll fit in just fine with what that old woman has planned for her. I'm sure that 'Whaz his name' will find her to be the perfect bride when she gives her away to him."
"That isn't any of your business-"
"And tell me, Caska." Kotaro cut her off. "How are things going between you and Kamui?"
"Don't make me hurt you, kid." Caska growled at him. "And for your information, things won't be happening between me and that stuck up bastard."
"Heh, damn hypocrite." Kotaro quipped.
"You-"
"What is going on here?" Caska and Kotaro froze in place when they heard Kanako's voice. They both turned their attention to the short young woman, and Caska let go of her brother before turning to face her, saying, "Nothing, nothing! Really, is it any of your business?"
"Look, mother is coming here so get him to the dining room." Kanako ordered her sister. Her eyes swiveled from Caska to Kotaro. "And show her some respect or you'll have to deal with me later."
"Then get yourself ready." Kotaro told the bespectacled woman.
"...Ungrateful brat!" Kanako snarled at him. "You'll do as she tells you!" With those words, she entered the room and approached the both of them quickly before pushing Caska aside roughly and grabbing him by the arm. "Come with me!"
"I don't understand you!" Kotaro snapped at her as she pulled him along with her.
"What's not to understand?" Kanako barked back at him, never relenting in her forceful escort. He attempted to break out of her hold, but no matter how hard he pulled, her fingers remained clamped around his arm in a vice grip that nearly cut off his blood circulation. She managed to get him into the dining room, which looked fit for a noble. The table was probably long enough to seat a party of fourteen. Six guests could eat on both sides of the table with one at each end. Naturally their mother would sit at the head of the table since she was in control of the family, though with her absence, Kotaro started to wonder what may have changed in his time away. Did she live with his sisters anymore?
Kanako pulled a seat for him and shot him a stern look. "Now sit!"
"...Coming here my have been a waste after all." Kotaro grumbled, doing as he was told. I'd have a better chance at improving myself without their help. These two have already fallen into that old woman's hands.
"What was that?" Kanako asked when he was seated.
"Nothing." Kotaro lied, looking up at her. They both remained in that position, looking to each other silently until they both heard the door knocker bang against the door a few times. She was finally here, and to Kotaro's disgust, Kanako simply broke their eye contact without a moments hesitation and rushed to go answer it. Caska stood by the arched entry way to the dining room and looked at him, leaning against it.
"What?" Kotaro asked of her.
"Nothing really. "Caska answered him. "I just think it's going to be pretty interesting to see how this unfolds."
"You want to watch me triumph where you've failed? Is that it?" Kotaro taunted his sister without so much as a grin or smirk. He intended for those words to strike hard, however, unlike her reactions to his words in the living room, she seemed to take it without protest. She accepted it.
"Yeah...maybe." Caska replied, catching him off guard. "I suppose you were always stronger than I was when it came to that woman." She offered him a small smirk that confused him. Where was this suddenly coming from. He though that she would be fuming after their argument earlier. It only transpired a few minutes ago. Could she have possibly been so accepting of his words in such little time? "Maybe that's why I was a little jealous of you."
"Wait a second-" He reached out to her but she walked away.
Jealous of me? Kotaro echoed her words in his mind before another person entered the room. Long, dark silk danced from left to right with each step she took like a cape of darkness. Her silver orbs fixed upon him without a hint of emotion. His mother had not changed much from the last time they had met face to face. She still retained her youthful appearance. Of course, that was to be expected. Their kind hardly aged. Even the other elders didn't look much older than what a human being would appear to be, in their late thirties at most.
"Yuzuki..." Kotaro said the name of his mother calmly.
"Son." The elegant woman before him addressed his title with little to no emotion. Her black kimono touched the floor, having it appear as though there was nothing more than a void under her feet that would swallow everything in her path. It was most appropriate to see it that way. This woman, after all, did nothing more than that. She married off their oldest sister, Junko Inugami, in order to mend relations between her and the high elder, Ryota Tsukino. After Junko disrespected his son in what she claimed to be self defense, Yuzuki found that her influence in the court started to waver. She cast off her own daughter as a gift to Ryota's son to regain that lost influence, if not go even further than that by becoming his sister-in-law through the marriage. Things were quite shady in the Elder's court, but then again, when weren't things that way when it came to politics? Until this very day Kotaro still could not understand how their mother was able to break Junko's spirit so easily. How else could she have been able to force the young woman to marry that tyrant's son if not through destroying her?
And now you have Kanako following your lead... Kotaro thought, looking to his sister as she glared at him from the entryway. She obviously didn't take kindly to the fact that he addressed their mother like she was some sort of stranger, but in Kotaro's eyes he wouldn't accept this devious woman in any other way. To call her mother would be like allowing her to sink her claws into him. The smallest crack was all the elder Inugami needed to have her way. She was that damn clever.
"I knew you would return eventually." Yuzuki said, waiting as Kanako rushed to pull back her seat so she could sit.
"What made you so sure?" Kotaro asked her, not sounding very convinced. "I heard that you all thought I died in the blizzard surrounding the mountains."
"After having trained you myself, I wouldn't look down upon your abilities to survive so easily." His mother responded, a ghost of a smirk playing upon her lips as she took her seat, folding her hands upon her lap. "Of course, you never finished your training. You left the town before I could meet our end of the deal."
Deal? Kanako furrowed her brows upon hearing that word leave her mother's mouth.
"Marrying me off to that man's daughter?" Kotaro scoffed. "Did you honestly think that I would let you?"
"No, of course not." She replied, unaffected by his disrespect. "But I knew that you hungered deeply to know the secret arts of our family. Seeing how hard you trained so hard under my regiment despite how much you despised me was enough proof of that. I didn't think that you were so low as to escape though." This time the smirk didn't leave her face after she spoke her final words. She knew that it would strike a chord in her son, and seeing as how he clenched his teeth tightly, it struck soundly.
"And here we are again." The elder Inugami mused. "We're back where we left off."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you're back to finish your training, aren't you?" She asked, her voice taking on a tone that threw her son off. It almost sounded as though she was disappointed in him for returning. Just what went on in this woman's head? "You've come back to claim the only thing you ever desired from me. It seems that you do need me after all." She watched Kotaro narrow his eyes at her. "Tell me, does it hurt you to turn to me for help? Do you hate me so?"
"Maybe." Kotaro answered her. "It's kind of hard to tell sometimes."
"You wound me deeply."
"Don't act like you care. Just lay down your conditions so I can get this over with."
"Planning on leaving again?"
"I never intended to stay." Kotaro replied, eliciting a soft gasp from Kanako. "I have things I'd like to take care of."
"I see." Yuzuki said, closing her eyes. "Then I will tell you...my conditions have not changed."
"...Fine." Kotaro stood up. "Then this was a waste of time after all."
"But wouldn't you like to know something interesting?" The older woman asked, holding out a hand to keep Kanako from restraining the young man.
"...What?" Kotaro asked after a moment of silence.
"She knows." Yuzuki said, simply. Kanako didn't understand the meaning of her mother's words, however, they appeared to impact Kotaro. The young man regarded his mother with a look of unadulterated disbelief. She could only be referring to one individual, and unfortunately, she was where the core of his problems lied. Her very existence was the reason he escaped in the first place.
"You've got to be joking..."
"No, I'm not." She insisted, her eyes never opening. "I've been training her long before I even began with you."
"...You...you..." Kotaro clenched both of his hands tightly. His tongue felt swollen. He wanted to say something, but his mind was so clouded with anger that he just couldn't get the words out.
"I'm sure she would gladly unveil her secrets to you since you want them so badly." Yuzuki told him, finally opening her eyes again. "All you must do is ask."
"You mean, marry her." Kotaro countered. He waved her off with a hand. "Forget about it. I'm out of here."
"Tomoko." At Yuzuki's call, Kotaro froze in place. She seriously didn't bring her along, did she?
Tomo is here? Kotaro's mind suddenly went in so many different directions that it was impossible for him to think clearly.
"Yeah, Elder Inugami?" A young woman revealed herself, stepping in the way out of the dining room. Her hair reminded Kotaro of the snow that blanketed the grounds beyond the mountain, done in a long, thin ponytail that nearly touched the floor with two thin bangs hanging in front of her lovely face like antennas. Her eyes were inky black, almost as though they would melt into the white of her eyes, and her skin complexion was a little dark, however, in an odd sense; it seemed unnatural somehow. Her lips had a tint of blue that matched the color of her odd style of dress. She had on a tight fitting top, stopping at her midriff that accentuated the curve of her upper body, and baggy pants that ended in folds on the bottom. The scarf she wore around her neck seemed to wrap around her waist like a snake. The style would appear to have its origins in the middle eastern fashion world.
"...She sure looks different." Kotaro muttered under his breath, his eyes drinking in the sight of her a little more appreciatively than he would have liked. Hormones were a curse for males his age. "She looks a lot different from the brat I knew before."
"I heard that, dear." Tomoko told him, directing a fierce gaze at him. "It looks like time hasn't done much to change that attitude of yours."
"I could say the same." Kotaro retorted before going on to say, "And don't call me 'dear'."
"Or what?" Tomoko asked, placing her hands on her shapely hips. "Going to growl at me?"
"Don't push me."
"What could you possibly do?" Tomoko taunted him. "Elder Inugami has taken me far beyond what she'd taught you. At my current knowledge, I could be your sensei." Her eyes twinkled mischievously. "Now, bow to me."
"You-" Kotaro bit back the word he wanted to say. "Grrr...Out of my way!" Kotaro walked her way to pass her, but she prevent him from going any further, getting in his way. The way her lips curled into a cocky smirk did well to set the young man off.
"Going to run out on me again, dear?" She asked, her arms crossed defiantly. "That wouldn't be very responsible of you, would it?"
"Step aside...please." Kotaro told her, but she didn't move a muscle.
"Don't force me to move you myself."
She made no response.
"FINE!" He snarled, however, as soon as his hand made contact with her shoulder, she grabbed him by the wrist, and him forward while delivering an elbow assault that had him doubling up for air. It was all so fast that he never stood a chance of defending himself. "What..." He coughed out, raising his head to look up at her from his hunched over position. What was that? What did she just do to me?
"You don't have the privilege of touching me unless I give it to you, got that? If you want me that bad then just marry me." She told him softly as she leaned over him before she planted her foot on his head, grinding her heel painfully. "Now stay put!" She ended her command by shoving him onto his back with her foot.
"You're not leaving unless I give you permission." Tomoko blew him a kiss. "So be a good boy, and do as I say."
"Who gave you that authority?" Kotaro yelled at his fiance.
"Why, I did." Yuzuki answered in Tomoko's place.
"Oh yeah?" Kotaro asked, getting back to his feet. "Well, I ain't listenin', got that?"
"By all means..." His mother's eyes gleamed dangerously. "Defy me."
"Don't have to tell me twice." He assured her before looking back to Tomoko. The girl didn't even assume a stance. She seems pretty confident of herself, doesn't she? Damn...but that last hit nearly knocked me cold. The old woman must have taught her well...
"Are you going to try to move me again?"
"...No." His reply even got his mother curious. "I'll just try the window!" At his declaration, Kanako, and Tomoko shot death glares at him, but the young man merely smirked at them before running for the window at the other end of the dining room, and crashing through it. The sound of crashing glass made Caska run in to see what had gone on.
"What the hell?" Caska cried out in surprise. How does he keep on doing this to her? I swear, he's something else...
"That idiot!" Kanako screamed, her face turning red.
"Well, I should have expected as much." Yuzuki said with no indication of being caught off guard by her son's unexpected escape route. He could be so impulsive sometimes. "Tomoko," She looked to her future daughter-in-law, "Your husband just escaped."
Tomoko smirked before nodding. "Understood. I'll go get him." And with that, she disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Creepy... Caska felt a shiver run down her spine before she felt her mother's eyes on her.
"Ah, Caska." Yuzuki smiled.
The short haired young woman's ears twitched at the sound of being addressed by her mother. "Yeah?" Caska responded, placing a hand on her hip. She found it hard to keep cool whenever her mother focused on her. She could always tell that it wouldn't be pleasant.
"And how are things going with, Kamui?"
[F] {V} [A]
"Salutations there, newcomer." Negi was brought out of his admiration of the dark manor upon being greeted by a woman who had been sitting on the fountain ledge. He wasn't sure if she had been seated there the entire time he had been observing the town square, but he was sure that he'd seen nobody walk past him or in front of him for that matter. He would have easily sensed any sort of movement with his heightened senses, and yet, regarding this woman even now, there was something intangible about her. She was beyond his senses; there was something about her that just felt abnormal to him. How could there have been a better way to explain it? She felt as though she did not belong on this plane of existence, an anomaly, one would say; however, at the same time there was something about her that was charming...irresistible, even. It was as though there had to be an exception made for her existence, that something so inhumanely beautiful could be standing on solid ground with a form that should have been forbidden to see.
Ah...why am I thinking like this? Negi put the emergency breaks on his thought flow. I'd better greet her back before she thinks I'm rude.
"Hello." The young magi greeted her back with a hesitant wave. "Sorry...I didn't see you there before."
"I know." She said with a knowing nod. "You were much too busy admiring my mansion back there." She tossed her chin in the direction of her home in an alluring fashion, her hair slipping down the side of her shoulder as she did like satin drapes. "It seems rather out of place, doesn't it?"
"Oh, wow." Negi blinked. "You live there?"
"Is it so surprising?" The woman asked with a subtle smirk. "Does it seem unfit for someone like myself?" There was a hint of amusement in her sultry voice, but the young vampire had the feeling that he might have offended her with that question.
"N-No, I meant nothing like that." Negi assured her quickly. "It's just, I never expected to be greeted by anyone from around here." When she blinked at his words, he decided to clarify his message. "I mean, there wasn't exactly much of a welcoming to begin with, as you can see." He gestured to the deserted streets behind him. Had one ever been so bold as to insert a tumble weed-
"Did something happen?" Negi inquired curiously. "Is everyone sick, or is there a curfew?"
"It would be rather unpleasant to walk the streets out into this fog, don't you think?" She answered his question with one of her own.
"Well, sure..." He agreed with her words, yet there was a bit of suspicion in the back of his mind. So then how would you explain your presence? I'm sure a walk from that mansion wouldn't be too pleasant if that was the case... His eyes searched for a source of transportation to find nothing in sight. ...This just feels a bit unsettling.
"Out of curiosity, what bring you here?" The mysterious woman suddenly asked.
"Er, actually I just got lost in the fog." Negi answered her. "I just happened to find myself here as I walked through it." He explained to her with a nervous laugh before holding a hand over his eyes to stare far out into the distance, which was to say that he was trying to look far beyond the manor with his enhanced eyesight. From his vantage point, he could make out some tiny chips on the very bricks that made up the large structure quite easily. It was nothing more than a simple feat for him, and yet, the fog appeared to be so thick that it was simply impossible to see through. It was almost as though it was forming a dome around the town. Could something like this really be considered normal?
"Have you anyplace to rest for the night?"
"Um, excuse me?" Negi quirked a brow at her question.
"I'd assume that you wouldn't be planning anything so reckless as to venture out into that cloud."
"...Well..." I have more than a few advantages over a normal person in this situation.
"Why don't you come with me until it clears out?" She offered him.
"No...I couldn't do that." Negi politely declined her offer. "I'm sure there has to be an inn somewhere around here, right?"
"Unfortunately not." She replied. "If one were available I would have directed you to it."
"But I wouldn't want to impose."
"Don't be silly." She told him before she stood up from the fountain. She made her way around to the side of it, and beckoned him with a finger. "Follow me."
Now there was something to be said about a woman that would invite a stranger to her home at this hour, especially when there was a fog out, and god knows who or what could have been shrouded in it. Who was to say that he wasn't some manner of criminal waiting for just this sort of opportunity? How could someone be so trusting?
"What do you think, Zero-chan?" Negi asked his familiar, adding the honorific at the end out of habit. "Do you think we should take her offer?"
"I don't know...but there's something weird going on." The puppet replied. "Although at this point there really isn't much of a reason to refuse her." But why do I feel like I've seen this woman before? Is there something that I'm forgetting to take notice of?
"Are you coming?" Negi turned his head back in the woman's direction when she called his attention. She was in the same position she had been in when she beckoned him to her earlier. Had she been observing him the entire time he'd spoken to his familiar? He sure hoped not. Something like that wasn't exactly an everyday spectacle for the mundane. The most she could make of a scene like that would have been that he was some sort of psychopath and yet she took that moment to smile at him as if to ease his insecurities.
Either she didn't see him, or she just didn't mind...creepy...
"Um, yeah. I'm coming." Negi replied, hurrying along to her. When they were side by side, she lead him to a horse drawn carriage that had been parked behind the large gargoyle statue. That would have explained a lot about how she got to the town square, but there was still something off about it. Staring at the four black horses that scraped at the stone pavement with their hooves, Negi wasn't sure why he had not heard them before. The carriage was elaborately crafted, black wood, and polished to a shine. There were carvings of odd winged beings sitting upon the top corners of the carriage with harps in their hands; They resembled sirens if one studied them carefully enough, but time appeared to have worn them. Sitting at the front of the carriage with the reigns gripped in their hands were two young women dressed in elegant, dark uniforms. They both looked similar to each other with short blonde hair, and stoic expressions that spoke of a superiority over the common class. It was rather hard to make out their eyes, however. Shadows loomed over them like blindfolds.
And now I'm just a little disturbed...
"Don't keep me waiting." Negi snapped his attention away from the two young women to find that his mysterious acquaintance had already gotten into the carriage, waiting for him inside with her hands folded upon her lap.
"Sorry about that." He told apologetically before joining her inside. After settling in on the seat across from her, he reached for the door to close it only to find it shut tight. I don't remember hearing them clo- Before he could finish his train of thought, the carriage jerked backwards, almost sending him into the woman's lap, but he gripped the back rest quickly with his reflexes saving him from the embarrassment. "Whoa...that was unexpected." He muttered to himself.
"You appear to be very nervous." His host told him softly.
"I apologize." Negi told her, massaging the back of his neck. "It's just...I'm not used to this."
"To what?"
"This atmosphere." Negi replied. "I've never been to a town like this one."
"Ah, you might say that it stands out from the ordinary?"
"That's exactly what I meant." Negi replied, slapping his knee gently to emphasize how well she expressed it.
"Well, new experiences tend to be pleasant."
"I suppose so. I guess it really depends on who you're with." The naive young man said, good naturedly.
"Then allow me the honor of making this one a pleasure you'll soon never forget..."
[ Moonlight Manor... ]
Meeting the woman at the town square, and talking with her in the carriage, Negi expected her mansion to be classy. He expected to find a large chandelier hanging from the ceiling in the main hall with paintings hanging from the walls, and china decks with wine glasses. He expected many of the things that he saw in movies about high class families; however, upon entering the manor with the voluptuous woman, he was met with something a little different. That was to say that there was gothic architecture, and gas lamps, marble walls, and suits of armor that appeared to range from different periods. The floors were polished to the point that the young magi could see himself walking within the reflection of the floor; It was like walking on water. Swords hung from the walls in the place of paintings that he expected to find. The only thing he was right about were the china decks. This place was seriously something out of an old painting. Hmm...was there something he was forgetting to catch onto? He didn't know why, but he could swear that there was a little voice in the back if his mind screaming bloody murder...or perhaps that was just one of Evangeline's death threats returning after a long times suppression.
"This is amazing." Negi marveled at everything he passed by. "How were you able to get your hands on all of this?" He looked to his host, walking in front of him with such fluid movements that her dress appeared to glide over the floor. At the same time there was something about the way she carried herself that spoke of more than simply elegance. The way she moved made him slightly cautious around her for some reason, but he wasn't entirely sure why.
"Time is something that has never been out of reach for me." She replied vaguely, raising an eyebrow on the young magi's face. "Of course, you'll find that I can be very persuasive when I find a need to be. Obtaining these antiques pose no obstacles when you understand how to talk to someone."
...I suppose I could understand that. Most of these look like they belong in a national museum. Negi thought, coming to a halt when she stopped at a lighted entry way. Negi looked over his shoulder to find a long hall stretching out behind him. Did they really have to walk that much to reach the first room? Just how big was this place?
"Please, after you." She told him, gesturing for him to enter.
"...Okay." Negi fought against his initial hesitation to comply, and walked in to find a grand dining hall. A long table stretched out from one side to the other, but by looking to the left end (Since from his point of view the table stretched from his left to right.) he found that the table could be separated into sections. There was a section separated away from the rest to seat two people, seeing as how there were already two setting with forks, knives, spoons, and glasses with handkerchiefs folded within them. Two young women dressed in maid uniforms, resembling the two women who commanded the horses on the carriage stood beside the table with platters held against their laps.
"Wow..." Negi couldn't keep his astonishment from leaving him. And yet, how did those two girls get here so quickly? Unless they're all related to each other...I don't really see how they all could look so alike.
"Take a seat." The woman told him, sounding more like a command than anything else if one really listened for the tone.
"Oh." Negi blinked at her words before looking to the table again. "Um, I'm not really that hungry to be honest."
"Nonsense." She teetered, sending unusual chills through his skin. "You must be famished after such a long trip."
"But-uh-"
"Now, don't hurt my feelings." Her bottom lip twitched.
"O-okay!" Negi went to the table and took a seat quickly. "I'll eat."
"Wonderful." She clasped her hands together in delight.
I don't really like this bitch. Chachazero fumed before looking down to her master. The uneasy look on his face didn't sit very well with her. The only person who should have been allowed to do this sort of thing to him was Evangeline. She's pushing master around like she owns him...
"Master Negi..." Chachazero whispered to him before she felt his hands wrap around her body.
"I think it'll be better if you sit on my lap." Negi whispered back to her, doing just that. "We don't want to arouse any suspicion."
"Listen to me!" The puppet smacked his hand.
"Is there something wrong?" Chachazero almost wanted to strangle him when the woman took his attention away from her.
"Nothing at all." Negi answered her, forcing a smile as he watched her take the seat across from him. His nostrils picked up the wonderful scent of food, and he turned to his left to find one of the blonde women holding a food dish with a cover over it to keep the contents from getting cold. His eyes practically lit up with appreciation when she took it off to reveal his delicious meal. The steak sizzled, and the smell of steamed vegetables made his mouth water. He had no idea what he did to deserve all of this, but he was going to have to pick up on in later.
"This pleases you, does it not?" His gracious host smirked at him, resting her cheek in one hand. The way she looked when she did made her look like some kind of temptress watching her meal for the evening. He did his best not to let himself think of her that way. Her intentions didn't appear to be so impure...it couldn't have been, but then why did her unwavering gaze make him worry so much? "And to think, just moments ago you claimed you weren't very hungry." Her words made the young vampire blush.
Now, if one looked at it another way, why was she doing all of this anyway? Surely she had to be expecting something in return, and as Negi looked down at the plate that was set down before him, he couldn't help but wonder if he was racking up some sort of debt.
"Thank you." Negi bowed his head slightly. He felt a little ashamed of himself as his hands went for the knife and fork on both sides of the plate.
This sure doesn't look like a place any normal person would live in. Negi thought as he observed the dining room. It seemed more as though they were eating in a room one would find in a church. The entire place was completely taken care of. The marble was practically glittering in the burning flames from the candles and the Gothic designs were flawless. It did well to unsettle Negi but Chachazero felt right at home for obvious reasons. Surely Evangeline had come across places like this when she was on her travels in the past. He straightened his wandering eyes upon the woman sitting across from him and gasped. This sure was awkward now that he really thought about it.
"I'm sorry. I must seem very rude right now." His sudden apology brought the woman's attention to him. "Here, I'm eating this delicious meal you've had prepared, and I haven't even told you my name."
The woman appeared to be genuinely stunned by his words, but she smiled at him, saying, "Please, the rudeness was all my own. I should have introduced myself to you when we first met outside." She assured him with a light teeter that sent another wave of chills down Negi's spine. Something wasn't right about this woman, and the more he spoke with her, the more apparent it started to become. What was this darkness that he sensed on her. It was quite faint, but every now and then there was a pulse. It almost felt as though she was suppressing it somehow in an attempt to conceal it.
"My name is, Negi Springfield." The young magi introduced himself, missing the unnoticeable shift in her smile.
"Springfield, you said?" The woman asked in a melodic voice that sounded soothing to his ears. It relieved the tension in his shoulders, listening to her voice. She turned her head away from him as though in after thought.
"Yes. That's my name, miss." Negi replied with a nod of his head.
"Interesting." She said softly, more to herself than anyone else. Her eyes focused on him intensely after she turned back to regard him. "My name is, Lucinda McVicar." At the sound of her name something clicked in the young man's mind, but it was still hard for him to understand why. "I am the mistress of this mansion." Her eyes wandered over to Chachazero before meeting his. "And I can see that you are something special."
"Special?" His hands tensed around his eating utensil upon hearing her choice of words.
"Yes. You are a wizard, aren't you?" She asked, the soft smile never leaving her face. That sure came unexpectedly.
"Yes...I am."
"But you're more than that." She went on, making Negi swallow hard. This woman definitely was more than she let up herself. The more he thought about it, the more the feeling he felt from her started to disturb him. It felt so familiar in an eerie way...it reminded him of his master. Her next words struck him hard. "You see, you and I aren't so different from each other." Her smile had come to resemble a smirk.
"You mean, you're a wizard as well?" Negi asked hopefully. Maybe his journey had already gotten somewhere in such short time. This had to be a blessing, but her next words would do more than shatter his hopes. They would come to make his very soul tremble.
"No, young one." Lucinda replied with a shake of her head. "I am a Dark Mistress."
Holy shit. Both master and familiar thought at the same time.
"Y-you're a...a v-vampire?" Now he understood how Anya felt.
Lucinda set down her fork and knife, her eyes taking on a change from the serene ones he was met with before. A metamorphosis was taking place before him, and he was helpless to it. "Is it so surprising?"
"Y-yes." His answer left his mouth in a quiver.
"Surely you felt our aura's resonating with each other right? I sensed you when you were approaching the town."
The realization finally struck him. "So that's why you were out to greet me."
"Exactly." Lucinda replied with a chilling smirk before she closed her eyes. "However...you are still quite special for another reason."
"I don't understand."
"Yes you do." She told him. "You are still an fledgling, and yet even now I sense the power of a full fledged vampire within you. It's only a wonder how powerful you may become when you take the step to cleansing yourself in the pools of your bloodlines." She got out of her seat and proceeded to walk over to his side of the table. Negi tensed when she stood behind his seat and placed both of her hands upon his shoulders. The feeling from her now was as though she was drawing him into her. He felt the muscles on his arm tense at her gentle touch as her fingers trailed up and down his shoulders. Was this how it felt to be touched by death?
"I would advise that you take your hands off my master." Chachazero suddenly growled when she noticed how uncomfortable Negi had become. "You are disturbing him."
"I-It's okay Chacha-chan." Negi whispered to her.
"A puppet for a familiar?" Lucinda backed away from Negi's seat and stood beside him. This was the first time that the puppet had decided to voice her feelings. She was under the impression that Negi kept the puppet around as a charm or memento. Suddenly a feral grin crossed her lips for a moment before reverting back to her serene smile. "Such complex magic is rare and quite hard to sustain .In fact, I only know of one person who is well known for this sort of thing and for you to be endowed with such abilities makes things rather...interesting."
...I'm beginning to wonder if coming here was ever a good idea... Negi thought nervously. He knew Evangeline had many enemies and most wizards he met were able to tell immediately whom he was associated with through his intimate connection with his familiar. This woman was a "Dark mistress" and in this case...he wasn't sure if she was a safe person to be around.
"Oh, how wonderful." By the sound of her voice, she appeared to be overjoyed by this unexpected development. When her eyes returned to him an adoring quality filled them, making him feel rather uncomfortable in her presence. "To think that after so long I would be reunited with her again!"
Reunited with who? Negi's hands gripped the armrests of his seat as he looked at the mistress before him. Her mind seemed to be somewhere else for a fleeting moment.
"You're Evangeline's successor, aren't you?" She took a step closer as a hint of red burned on her cheeks. He could hear her soft breaths become a bit more audible. Was she getting aroused by this revelation? Just what did he get himself into? "There could be no other explanation for you're unusual qualities...and my fangs are tingling. This unmistakable scent, so familiar yet so different..." Her eyes glazed over when they pin pointed his neck. Negi was disturbed when she let out a long, wistful sigh. "...You must be heavenly to taste." Negi detected a lustful quality in her voice when she spoke her last words and the feeling of her breath on his head made the hairs all over his body stand.
"Um, excuse me." Negi noticed that she had eased off of him again, and tried to stand up from his seat, but she rushed over to him and pushed him back down on to his seat before he could go anywhere. She was so quick, so unwilling to allow him to leave.
"Please don't be so quick to leave! It's been a while since I've had such a guest, not to mention a fellow Nosferatu. You simply MUST keep me company for the night." She slipped her hands over his left hand and held it softly against her cheek. This did nothing short of sending Negi into a most awkward state.
What ever happened to the guests who weren't vampires? Negi was tempted to ask but his better judgment told him not to inquire about such things. Right now he was in some dangerous territory. He was residing in a Dark mistress's residence and something told him that this was going to be a long night.
"Please don't refuse me." Lucinda pleaded him. "This mansion is in need of some new life."
It was remarkable how he was able to get himself into these sort of situations. Here was a Dark Mistress pleading that he spend that night at her mansion when she clearly just exhibited an unhealthy interest in him. No one in their right mind would accept such an invitation after witnessing what he had just experienced, and yet it was a loaded question; he knew just as she did what his answer would have to be. Here was a young fledgling in the face of a mistress who could very well obliterate him if he did anything that would displease her. He would have to accept her invitation if he wanted to stay alive, but there was something about Negi that set him apart from the logical individual. He took chances, and hoped for favorable outcomes, even in the face of sure danger. So imagine Mistress McVicar's intrigue when his response was-
"Do I really have a choice?"
She blinked...did he seriously just ask her that?
"...Why do you ask that?" The vampiress was taken off guard.
"You probably wouldn't give me a choice in the matter anyway..." This is where he took a different approach. It certainly would not have been in his best interest to stir her. It would limit his chances later. "After all, there is a fog outside. I'd have no chance of getting through it safely." Although now I'm beginning to question whether you were behind it in the first place.
"You're right." Lucinda replied with a soft smile. "I'm glad that you're seeing things my way." For a moment I thought you were a fool, but it appears that I should expect much more out of you. You are, after all, Evangeline's fledgling.
"This is going to be so much fun." The mistress said happily as she returned to her seat across from him. Her calm, and gentle mask from before had dropped almost completely. "With you to keep me company the possibilities have become endless!" She was like a child on Christmas, and Negi was the gift she had been awaiting all year...perhaps even a century in her case. She picked up her utensils jovially and cut into her steak, slipping the small chunk of meat she sliced off into her mouth in a most peculiar fashion. It just didn't seem very proper.
"Um..." Negi boldly decided to make use of his current predicament.
"Yes?" She perked up, her lips still twitching upward.
"So you knew, master?" He asked, not taking note of how his hands trembled as he reached for his fork and knife.
"Mast...oh, you mean, Evangeline?" Lucinda asked, blinking before her curious expression shifted into something a little sinister. "Why yes, I knew her quite well. Hm, hm...more than you'd probably like understand."
Um, what was that supposed to mean? Negi was unsettled by her response. "Were you by any chance...friends?"
"The closest of friends." She replied without a bit of hesitation in her voice.
"...Wow." He looked away from her, finding hard to accept her words.
"What seems to be the matter?" She tilted her head to the side curiously. "Is there something wrong?"
"It was just kind of surprising to hear that." Negi replied, his eyes swiveling back to her. "...Master having friends, that is."
"She never told you about me?" Lucinda asked, sounding amused.
"Not really." Negi told her. She just kind of grouped you all together as threats. Knowing that I'm having dinner with a dark mistress would most likely make Evangeline furious.
"How rude of her."
"There's something else I'd like to ask you."
"No need to hesitate."
"Did you know, Dorothy?" When she narrowed her eyes in concentration he went on, "Dorothy Summers."
A look of understanding washed over her features. "Ah, you mean that girl. Yes, I knew her, although I can't say that I knew her very well.
"That's fine." Negi told her with a small smile. "What did you know about her?"
"Why does it concern you?" The mistress inquired, setting down her utensils.
"She...was a friend." His answer confused her. How could he have ever met that girl? She died so long ago that it would have been impossible for them to meet, especially under the circumstances between her and Evangeline. Even if there was a chance that they met, which even now the possibility was rather hard to grasp, a friendship between them would have been laughable. That girl was far too bitter to accept anyone's trust or friendship.
"I doubt that you would want to hear about it." Lucinda averted her eyes, a frown on her lips.
"Why?"
"It's not very pleasant."
"Even so, I'd want to know."
Lucinda laughed, though it didn't sound very amused. "Very well, but only because you insisted. From what I heard, when she was a child, she was living in a poor village that was looked down on by the church. At that point in time there was still a great belief that demons walked the land in different shapes and forms so you could imagine what that meant for our kind. The sighting of any vampires was something that would stir quite a bit of fear, and hatred in humans. That sort of combination usually brings about violence; however, since going up against one of us is practically suicide, they took out all of their anger upon those who could not defend themselves very well."
"Meaning?"
"Men, and women who had sexual relations with one of us, or young ones." Lucinda explained. "Dorothy was the child of a woman and a midian male. After her father ran off, he woman he left behind had a child. As the years passed she eventually died of sickness, leaving Dorothy with another family. Since it was a poor village, I hear that they worked her more as a slave than as one of their own children. So one night Dorothy can't suppress her blood lust any longer and she goes for the first thing she can get her hands on; that being the cow usually tended to since she understood how difficult it would be on her to feed on the other humans in the village."
"She gets caught..." Negi went ahead of her.
"Exactly." Lucinda chirped. "So the witnesses call over the men, and they get their hands on her. I'm sure you can guess what came next."
"They beat her?"
"And afterward they impaled her with a pitchfork." Lucinda continued, holding up a hand with her elbow resting on the table. "She was quite hard to kill so they figured that the sun would finish off what they started, however, when they came back in the morning to inspect the pitchfork there was no corpse."
"...I see." Negi bowed his head again.
"So, you say you were her friend?"
"You could say that." Negi replied.
"And where is she now?"
"...She is dead."
"How did she die?"
Negi remained silent...
Lucinda caught on to his silent response and apologized, "I'm sorry. That must have been insensitive of me."
"That's fine." Negi told her, surprised by the conversation he was having with this woman. She didn't seem so bad.
"You know...I suppose this is a bit awkward, but I suspected something different from you..." Negi admitted.
"Excuse me?" Lucinda blinked.
"You're a nice person." Negi told her. "From how you behaved in Camilla's battal-"
"How did you know about that?" Lucinda suddenly cut him off in a raised voice, startling him. The dark mistress had risen up from her seat, slamming her hands against the table with narrowed eyes. For a moment, she looked frightening. Her hair appeared to react to her mood, rising slightly as though it had a life of its own.
"...Um, wha-"
"You just said something about me being in Camilla's battalion, did you not?"
"...Yeah." Negi felt a bit of fear rising in his stomach.
"I clearly remember you telling me that Evangeline never told you about me." She shot at him. "How would you know about my involvement in the Nexus war then?"
"It's c-complicated." Negi's voice wavered as he replied.
Lucinda realized that she had frightened him, and sighed, her expression softening again. "Did I scare you?" She held out a hand and gestured for him to calm down. "I'm sorry...calm down. I didn't mean to react that way. Just tell me how you knew about me."
"I...uh...read about you in one of Camilla's diary entries." He answered her.
Lucinda almost lost her balance, but she held herself up by using the table as support. There are so many things about this young man that intrigues me. "How were you able to obtain one of those?"
"I just found it."
"More importantly, how were you able to read it?"
"What do you mean?" Negi didn't understand what she was getting at, but the perturbed look on her face was bothering him.
"Camilla wrote her entries in a writing style that only soldiers could understand. It allowed us to pass messages to each other without allowing the wolves to decipher them if they managed to obtain it. My question is, how would you be able to understand it?"
"...I don't know. It looked pretty easy to understand to me." Negi replied uneasily. Should I tell her about the dream I had afterward? No, it might not be a good idea at all...
What scheme is this? Could there be something of interest in this young man that even I can't fully understand. Lucinda looked to the ceiling for a moment. Is this possibly your doing, Camilla? That would be impossible...but what other explanation could there be for this happening? She looked to the young magi, observing his clueless expression. He had no idea what he had gotten himself into did he? It would appear that this young man was a victim to causality.
"...Lucinda?" Negi called to her when she bowed her head, laughing in an ominous manner. "Lucinda?"
"Oh my, Negi Springfield, there is something truly amiss about you." Lucinda startled him when she suddenly broke off from her laugh to speak to him. "I can already tell that there will be many things in store for you, and it simply excites me." She raised her head to regard him with a devilish smirk. "You are destined for greatness!"
"W-what are you talking about."
"Mark my words, you have a path ahead of you that will be filled with numerous obstacles, however, should you overcome them...you may find that the consequences will be beyond your control." Lucinda took a slight bow, eliciting a gasp from him. "It is an honor to have met you, Lord Springfield."
"L-lord?"
"My, what a night!" Lucinda completely dismissed his confusion. "I haven't felt this exhilarated in years." She licked her lips.
And the real fun has yet to begin... [F] {V} [A]
The room that the dark mistress allowed Negi to take for the night wasn't all that different from the rest of the mansion. It was dark and dreary. If it weren't for the candles in the room Negi would not have dared to step in at all. A black carpet with elegant patterns and designs decorating the tapestry covered the floor. There was a rather large bed against the wall with black drapes hanging from the bed posts on it's four corners and the covers were sown from a rich silk. A large dresser resided in the corner near the window and a massive shelf filled with books stretched from one side of the room to the other against the west wall.
"She's a reader. That's for certain." Negi humored to keep himself calm. He remembered Evangeline's personal library and it's immeasurable scale. Surely this woman had one of her own. Lucinda, despite her young appearance held a power and aura well beyond the years.
"How nice of her to let us stay." Chachazero remarked with a hint of suspicion in her voice. "I don't quite trust her though."
"I don't either Chacha-chan...I don't either." Negi walked over to the bed and plopped over near the edge with a sigh. Oddly enough the bed didn't make a sound despite how old it seemed to be. He was sure that they didn't make this style of beds anymore. It looked way too old fashioned to be from this century. The same could have been said for the rest of the furniture in the mansion. "I really should inform Eva-chan about this."
Boy, would she be thrilled to hear about this. He thought sarcastically.
"Do you want me to connect you to her, master Negi?" Chachazero asked, stroking the gem that was pinned against her black bow tie.
"Would you please?" Negi didn't like to bother his familiar with the operation. Connecting to his master through her would likely put some strain on the puppet. In most cases he would simply call the vampiress through the phone, but that was something this mansion didn't offer. That, and leaving the manor in search of a phone outside probably wouldn't have done him any good. "I'm really sorry Chacha-chan."
"Don't be, master. It's always my pleasure to be of service to you." She said mischievously. "Give me a sec." She clutched the gem with her doll like hands, and a green light emanated from the jewel. Her eyes went dull for a moment before the color of Evangeline's brilliant eyes took their place. From the way they looked, he was sure that she wasn't very pleased.
"Um...Eva?" Negi asked hesitantly.
"It's about time you contacted me Negi." Evangeline said bitterly. "What's been keeping you all this time? Is it really that much of a pain to say hi?"
"No, no! I can explain!" Negi pleaded her to calm down. The details wouldn't be something of her interest though. If she heard about the situation with Anya then she would have most likely bitten his head off...the next time she'd been within reach, of course. "I-I need you to lower your voice though."
"Why's that?" Evangeline asked, doing what Negi asked of her.
"I don't think my association with you is safe at the moment." Negi replied, keeping a good watch on the door just in case Lucinda decided to come in. There wasn't a lock on the door to keep the dark mistress from coming in as she pleased. Not that a door would be able to keep someone like her out anyway. Negi thought cynically before returning his attention to Evangeline.
"Where are you?" She asked.
"I'm not quite sure where but I'm currently in a mansion." Negi replied.
"A mansion?" Evangeline sounded like she wasn't taking this information too well. "Why would you stop at some mansion? I could have sworn that I told you not to get yourself too involved with people! You can't trust anyone Negi!"
"I'm sorry, master, but the odds were seriously against me." Negi looked to the doorway for a moment.
"Who is the owner of the mansion you're staying in at the moment?"
"...Promise not to get mad." Negi said nervously.
The silence that followed said it all...
"...From what I'm hearing I can't really promise you anything." Evangeline said darkly.
"Um..."
"Spit it out, boya!" Evangeline demanded, her patience wearing thin. Negi cringed when she called him that; She hadn't addressed him that way in a while.
"A Dark mistress." Negi replied, preparing for what was to come.
"Ahem...please repeat yourself." Evangeline requested calmly, Chachazero's body crossing its arms to express her feelings.
"A Dark mistress is my host."
"...You must be kidding me." Chachazero's mouth hung open in shock for a few seconds before Evangeline spoke again. "Tell me that you're lying, boya."
"Eva-"
"Tell me that you're lying." Evangeline repeated.
"I'm not."
"This is the honest truth?"
"Yes." Negi flinched when Evangeline willed Chachazero's body to throw itself on to the bed covers, and buried her face before letting out an endless chain of muffled curses. She kicked her tiny legs back and forth while she pounded the bed with her tiny fist. It was a display that Negi kind of figured was cute, yet terrifying at that same time.
"Eva-" Negi reached for her, but she was already out of control.
"GWERD DURRMMIT! URKIN URCH! WHR OO URSTARD!" Evangeline cursed incoherently. Negi was relieved that she buried her face in the covers as she let out all her frustration. Negi finally picked the puppet up off the bed when she stopped moving completely and he cowered under Evangeline's intense glare. Hardened men would turn tail and run, screaming like women in the face of such a look.
"She told you this?" Evangeline growled. "That she was a dark mistress?"
"Yes."
"Negi...this has got to be the worst news I've ever heard. You have no idea how much danger you're in just by meeting her. Please..." Evangeline took in a deep breath. "...Did she tell you her name?"
"Lucinda McVicar." Negi answered. At the very sound of that name, Evangeline almost broke the connection with Chachazero's spirit. That was the last name she ever expected to hear from him. That was a name that came from the deepest depths of her dark past. That was the name of a woman who tried to defile her. It was the name of her most vicious rival, and twisted adversary. One could only wonder what she might have had in store for the young magi.
"NEGI...does she know that you're my underling?"
"She does." Negi answered much to her horror.
"Negi, listen to me! You need to get out of there now!"
"I would, but she's got me trapped." Negi remembered what happened the last time he tried to escape through one of the windows in the guest room. Playing it off by convincing the mistress that he was only attempting killing a roach proved to be a hard feat indeed. One that he would be unwilling to try again. "I think she charmed the windows with some sort of repelling spell."
"How about the door you came in through?"
"I haven't checked." Negi replied.
"What the heck are you waiting for?"
"She'll catch me before I reach it!" He told her. "She's hard to get by, you know?"
"Right now it doesn't matter! You have to take that chance or we'll never see each other again!" Evangeline's voice wavered. "I mean it, Negi. This time you've really managed to screw up big time. That woman is very dangerous. She's a vampire from my generation!"
"...Wow..." Negi was at a loss for words. "I don't stand a chance against her do I?"
"You're a microbe in her eyes."
"B-but what does she want with me?"
"I don't kno-"
"Lord Springfield? Are you alright in there?" Lucinda's melodic voice invaded from outside.
"Oh no." Negi squeaked.
"What is it?"
"She's coming!" Negi whispered. "We'll continue this conversation later!"
"Negi!"
"I'm sorry, master..." Negi snatched the gem away from Chachazero and she regained control over her own body. He saw the doorknob to the room turn and he pocketed the jewel before Lucinda could see it.
"What is the matter, Lord Springfield?" She asked, the serene smile never leaving her enticing lips.
"Nothing..." Negi replied hoping that she wasn't able to read his thoughts like Evangeline could.
"How do you like the room?"
"It's like nothing I've ever seen before." Negi replied with a hint of wonder in his voice. Chachazero shuffled against him when Lucinda approached them. Negi went on alert as well. "I'm really grateful for your hospitality."
"The pleasure is all mine." Lucinda said with a nod. She took a seat beside Negi on the bed and faced him. "It has been a while since I've seen another. Just having you here with me fills me with a sense of completeness."
"Completeness?" Negi asked.
"Yes..." She cast her eyes downward. "After you've lived as long as I have in a world where we're forced to hide...you get lonely, empty in fact. After a while that loneliness turns in to something horrible. It starts to consume you, and before long you become hateful of the things around you." Negi didn't realize her hand as she placed it over his own. Chachazero saw this gesture of intimacy and started to feel her hands twitching for her blades. "When I sensed your presence I was overjoyed." She studied his face intensely, making Negi feel a little scared. "You're gorgeous."
"I-I am?" Negi stammered. "Why, thank you." This isn't cool. I think she's trying to move in on me!
"Do you think I'm beautiful?" She suddenly asked.
"Yes...I think you're very beautiful." Negi answered, a voice in the back of his mind crying out for him to find a way out of this awkward situation. There was a fire burning in the mistress's eyes and it was threatening to pull him in. Negi wasn't sure if she was intentionally trying to entrance him with her eyes or if it was just his imagination.
"Beautiful enough to love?" Lucinda urged him on gently.
"W-well, o-of course." Negi replied uncomfortably.
"Will you love me?"
Oh...my...god. Eva-chan...lend me your strength! Please! I am so scared right now!
"Um...well..." Negi shifted away from her. "First we have to ask ourselves..." He looked over his shoulder to find that the other side of the bed was beginning to come rather close. If he shuffled away from her any longer, she would eventually corner him. "...w-what is love, really?"
"Don't play coy with me." Lucinda leaned forward, her back arching as she did. "Questions will only hinder us." Her hand reached out for him, and gripped his arm before she pulled him to her. All resistance he posed against her was futile. With every pull, and jerk, her smile only appeared to widen as though she found his attempts to be rather precious.
"Lucinda-" Negi lost his voice when she pushed him onto his back before she slinked over him, her breasts moving up against his chest as she did. His body as you would have it, went completely stiff. Her hair formed a curtain over his head, leaving them both in shadows. All he could see was her eyes twinkling back at him.
"Lay off of him, you damn-!" Chachazero was quick to come to her master's aid, however, the dark mistress flicked her with one finger. That was to say that the puppet just got bashed by a four ton brick. She was sent flying into the wall, sliding down against it until she fell to the floor motionless.
"Chachazero!" Negi tried to move, but the mistress pinned his wrist down with one hand while she placed her other at his side, gripping his shirt. "Let go of me!"
"Odd...you're the first man to resist me like this." Lucinda seemed genuinely disturbed by his resistance. "Are you so loyal to your mistress? How interesting. To find such a fledgling in the face of such temptation is quite hard to come across indeed. I want you even more now."
"P-please! Just let me go!" Negi struggled against her, but she overpowered him effortlessly. So this was the power of a dark mistress. Compared to her unfathomable strength, he was no different from a helpless child, and her tender gaze, even as she forced herself on him only served to emphasize this fact. Would he journey end here, or was this merely the beginning of something even bigger? She claimed that he had greatness awaiting him, but then what was her scheme? Did she want to steal him away from Evangeline, or did she simply wish to have his body?
"Sh, sh, sh." Lucinda positioned herself so that she was straddling his hips with a finger against her lips to quiet him. "Is this your first time?"
Negi blinked a few times before a furious blush burned his entire face...
"Oh, how ADORABLE!" Lucinda cried out, sounding like a little girl who just found a defenseless kitten in her sights. "So Eva left you pure, did she? My, she really knows how to please an old friend, doesn't she? How could she honestly pass on someone as delicious as yourself?"
"G-Get off of me!"
"Come now, lord Springfield." She placed her hands on his chest and gripped his jacket with intents of ripping it off of him with one swift motion. "Give yourself to me. Forget about your mistress, and be mine. I can make it so you'll never live another moment without pleasure-"
"NO!"
"Refusing just like her, hmm?" Lucinda pulled her hands away from him with a look of disappointment. "Well, that sure changes things, doesn't it?"
"W-what are you talking a-about?" Negi asked, his voice quivering with a mixture of fear and arousal. He couldn't help himself. "Are y-you going to l-let me go?"
"No..." Lucinda looked up, her bangs overshadowing her eyes. "It just means," She looked back at him, only this time there was a change in her that almost made the poor young man relieve himself right then and there. She looked almost psychotic as she smiled at him, her eyes swirling with a maniacal gleam that spoke of a ruthless hunger. She wasn't going to let go of him, that much had finally become apparent to him. "-that this will be more fun for me than it will be for you!"
EVANGELINE! He had no idea why, but his thoughts cried out for his master. Even as he realized that all hope was gone, he still held on to the vision of his precious mistress. It was at that point that he realized what a fool he was. No! What would Evangeline think if she saw me now? She warned me about this... she spoke to me of the dangers, and the first thing I do is get myself caught. I can't allow this woman to have her way. I have to prove myself. I have to!
Negi composed himself as best he could, and stopped struggling against her. The expression on his face relaxed along with his breathing. The unexpected change within him made Lucinda McVicar blink. From the looks of things, it would have seemed as though the young vampire had finally submitted to her.
"What is this?" The Dark mistress questioned curiously with a smirk. "Are you trying to spoil it for me?"
"Just take me." Negi told her, his eyes gaining an intensity that sent pleasant shivers down the woman's spine. "Have me any way you wish."
And now...I have to take control. Negi used his free hand and placed it against her waist, snaking it around her back. To his surprise, she pressed down against him easily when he pulled her down. He closed his eyes tightly for a moment when he felt tears sting them for reasons only his subconscious understood before burying his face into the side of her neck and exhaling slowly. The feeling of his warm breath against her skin made Lucinda relax her hold on his other wrist. For the first time in her entire life, she felt herself go hot with embarrassment. Here, she was about to force herself on this nice young man, and now he just unexpectedly turned the tables on her. His touches against her skin as he moved his hand to lift her dress felt warm, and smooth. He traced a finger down the small of her back, and a lusty sigh escaped her.
"...What are you doing?" She asked him, looking down at him with one eye close while the other was barely open. A red haze seemed to surround her face as her blush burned her cheeks.
"Doing as my mistress wishes." Negi answered her softly. He saw the edge in her eyes gradually disappear, and he was faced with the same serene orbs that met him at the table earlier. He was doing it. Before long he would have her relaxed enough to cath her off guard. He just had to make sure that she wouldn't take this too far before he could. Now, if only he could have it so that she was on her back, this situation would look a bit more hopeful. Sure, there still were quite a few odds against him even if he did manage to break away from her. For one thing, she obviously had to be much faster than he was. Another thing was in regard to her strength. If Evangeline was holding back last time he faced her, almost killing him in the process, then how much could he possibly expect from Lucinda? She was a vampire from his master's generation, after all, and the display she showed him when he saw her in his dreams was frightening as well.
Stop thinking about that...be optimistic...come on...you can get through this! He looked to the mistress's lips, and he knew what he had to do. Those late nights of watching romance flicks with Asuna, and Konoka were finally about to start paying off for him. He removed one hand from her back and placed it against the side of her neck, eliciting a small gasp from her before slipping it against her cheek, and caressing it with a look of determination. Lucinda understood his silent message to her and lowered her face to meet his lips.
Negi would later have to admit that this had to be one of the finer points of being in the clutches of a mistress. None of his students back at Mahora, or Evangeline McDowell herself, had anything on the woman he had his lips pressed against now when it came to kissing. It almost felt as though sparks were crackling between them when their lips met. Her hands moved upwards to intertwine her fingers with his hair, shooting sensations down his neck that were mind blowing. Negi's mind barely processed the opportunity he was waiting for when the vampiress's body started tilting to the side. She now wanted him to take over, and he did so without hesitation, rolling her onto her back to pin her down while they still continued kissing. She titled her head to the side, and opened her mouth to await his entry.
K-Keep c-c-calm! The hapless young man willed himself to follow her lead, opening his mouth slightly to trace the insides of her lips before dwelling even deeper to meet her tongue. Their personal dance went on for longer than Negi could keep track of before she started moaning in curious fashion.
"Hm?" Negi moaned back in a questioning tone.
She broke away for a few seconds to say, "My room-" She closed the distance between their oral chambers again.
Negi broke away, "Wha-" He breathed out lustfully before closing the distance again.
She broke off again, "My room-" She closed again, and broke off, "-more appropriate-" She went back to kissing him again.
"MM-Hmph?" Negi moaned to her. (You sure?)
"Mmph." (Yes.)
"Mm-nph?" (Really?)
"MMPH!" (YES!)
"Mmnmph-mnmph-mm-mmph-mnmph!" (Then let me just pick you up so that we can get somewhere.)
Negi ran his hands down her hips, and gripped her by the thighs to lift her off the bed with him as he stood up, still kissing her, amazingly enough. She wrapped her legs around his waist to get a better hold on him as he carefully made his way to the door of the room before releasing his grip on her right thigh to turn the door knob. Zero-chan... The young magi's heart nearly broke when he saw his familiar slumped against the wall. This was all his fault. ...I'll come back for you.
"Mmph?" When Lucinda moaned in protest at his sudden pause, he pulled open the door and walked outside, regaining his grip on her right thigh with a reflexive squeeze that pleased his captor. Turning back to the job at hand, Negi moved forward, hitting the guard rail that kept the two of them from falling to the floor below. Lucinda tightened her legs' hold around his waist when he leaned forward from mistakenly hitting the rail, however, she never broke away from their kiss, teaching her fierce partner just what she was capable of with her tongue.
Negi broke away, "Which way?"
"Left." Lucinda answered him before capturing his lips again.
He did as she directed, going left until his shoulder hit a wall without him realizing it was there. "Mmph-mnph?" (Where now?)
"Mmphrwrd!" (Forward!) At her direction, he leaned forward and kept on going, and going until-
SLAM!
They both crashed into the door of her room, and kept speeding forward until they hit another wall. Of course, all of this felt like love taps to the dark mistress, but the rougher their journey got, the more aroused she began to feel, pressing her hips against Negi. The young vampire let his eyes swivel to the left to find a large, King sized bed with black, silk covers and drapes hanging from the four posts at its corners. It was the perfect place to progress with what they started, and quite frankly Negi was on the verge of losing his self control the longer this went on. He shifted his weight to the left to get moving in the direction of the bed, and laid Lucinda down against it before breaking away a final time to get some air into his lungs.
"Wow..." Was all the mistress could say, doing her best to get her eyes back into focus.
Alright...alright... Negi's chest rose and fell as he looked down upon her, unsure of what to do next. How do I find myself a chance to get out of here?
"Lord Springfield-" Lucinda spread her arms out to him with an expression of hunger, and need. "-Take me..."
"Now?" He must have sounded pretty stupid for asking that.
She nodded quickly, "Now."
"Now?"
"NOW!" She cried out passionately.
"Errra!" Negi followed his instincts and reached into between the cleavage of her dress, feeling warm flesh pressing softly against the tip of his fingers. Lucinda started breathing faster as she looked up at him with a nod, and he tore at it roughly to expose-
[F] {V} [A]
[ Evangeline's Residence... ]
"Mistress!" Chachamaru gripped her little mistress by the shoulders as Evangeline proceeded to punch the wall repeatedly. "Calm down!"
"DAMN YOU, LUCINDA!" Evangeline punched the wall again, and again. "DAMMIT NEGI!"
"I'LL KILL THEM BOTH!"
To Be Continued...
And so Lucinda is about to show her true colors. Well, things have been going pretty smoothly, and the the looks of how much faster it was for me to update than before, not that much has been coming my way lately. It's much like the calm before the storm, but let me leave those issues alone before they bite me later. So getting back to what just happened above, expect the next chapter to be all about survival. Negi is pinned down against his will, and as all cornered animals do, he's going to lash out and push himself to the limit. Of course, things like that could get you in trouble with the wrong crowd.
...I should have more to say, but I kind of can't because it would reveal to much, and...you ever get that feeling of guilt whenever you put your characters through such a tense situation? Well, I'm kind of feeling it right now for some reason. It feels a little weird to just leave Negi hanging like that...
...oh, wait, I feel better now...
Thanks to AznPuffyHair for the contribution...
Alabastor "Frankenstein" Kinsley
Kimberly "Kim-Berry" Berlando
Question Time: For the curious reader
Q. How fast can you type?
A. ...That is a good question...not extremely fast. (I've met people that sound like woodpeckers.)
Q. Quick question tho, will the setting of this series encompass all of Europe or just England?
A. Europe and more...
Q. Out of curiosity, will there be a third series after "By Your Enrapture" or is this the last saga?
A. Unfortunately, I've got this bad feeling that I won't be able to wrap this all up in this saga, but I hope I can.
Q. Is Anya going to become a Vampire?
A. This might have been rhetorical...therefore there will be no answer.
Q. Oh, and is town a vampire town, Traingham?
A. Wouldn't that be awesome?
Q. Why are modern churches always rendered as near-helpless in most fanfics involving werewolves/vampires? Just thought I'd bring it up since you basically implied the vatican would basically be useless against the vampires.
A. I suppose that its due to a shock factor that everyone wants to introduce in their stories even though its been used so many times. Maybe others don't believe in the power of the scriptures or other personal things like that. In my case, I just don't want my vamps blowing up when holy water gets sprinkled on them...that would be kind of like...how can I put this? Have you ever played a game where a total badass boss get in your way, and all you really have to do is hand them a phoenix down, and POOF, they just kind of die? Have an experience like that, and you'll see what I mean.
Q. Is Evangeline the only person other than Xao of course (Chao`s mother) that he`s going to get friendly with? You mentioned Chachazero in a flashback scene (By the way when are you going to bring those back) and so who else? Promise me you won`t go down the harem route!
A. OK THEN! We'll have a vote...
Q. Evangeline`s motivations... Does she ever let her guard down and give Negi a total scene where she speaks in no riddles or engimas?
A. Of course. If I relied on Negi to do that, we'd have ten extra seasons.
Q. When does Konoka go homicidal on Eva`s **? (Sorry but I so see it happening.)
A. That would be rewarding...
Q. Have any of the students considered the possibility that Negi returned to Wales? I would imagine that out of a class of 31 students at least one of them would have at least guessed that's where he might have gone. Out of all of them I would think those who know of his magical background would also be among those most likely to guess this too.
A. I'm guessing that its more of a question of, will Takamichi let them leave, or money issues, and et cetera, and et cetera.
Q. Will Kotaro catch up with Negi? I guess there be a fight between them.
A. ...This is not the scenario that you are looking for.
Q. Negi . . . Chachazero . . . sweet creepy puppet surprise sex . . . when?
A. Crap, its back again!
Well, take care.
Traingham...
P.S: Hope that wasn't too dark for ya'.