Sin IX
I cannot sleep. No, I cannot afford to sleep.
Bulky books and evening wine, finally some light slumber.
Don't let them catch you off-guard.
Death approaches while I sleep.
With vowing that it will be only a minute, the girl rested her body against the cool wall of the hallway. She panted heavily and the lack of oxigen burned her lungs, but with the adrenalin rushing through her veins it created such a soaring ecstasy that she haven't felt in a long time. Her senses were heightened so the brunette could pick up on even the slightest things around herself.
Her target was close. The brown haired girl could tell by the footsteps she heard slowly dying away or the faint trail of cologne the soft breeze brought to her nose along with the unpleasant stench of fresh blood close by and the girl impatiently stamped on the floor with her bare feet. She long ago kicked away those damned high-heels that hindered her from moving quicker and ripped off that annoyingly long fabric that always found its way under her sole after the first time she tripped in it.
Her hazed eyes fluttered closed, but in a small while they snapped open again as a cold run through her body. She was tired and her damp clothes gripped her sides tightly. But she could not stop. Not when freedom was only a few steps away. These were her only thoughts when Alice finally pushed herself from the wall and continued on her way with renewed strenght.
As he passed another goddamn door in the dark hallway the only thing Kevin could think of was 'I should've seen it coming.' and maybe he should've, but nevertheless he didn't noticed or more accurately did not think anything about the little oddities and happenings that eventually piled up into this situation before it was already too late.
He could've blame it all on tiredness easily- normally he would've caught sight of the happenings beforehand- since he did not sleep much the last week and it was already close to midnight and the closure of the party without anything unusual going on.
He could have it on being busy, after all he had a job to watch the guests and if that was not enough, Emily- who could not resign to the last-minute decision of her not being permitted to attend- tried to sneak into the party six times already in the first two and a half hours. And she was very clever with dressing into her prettiest ballgown and styling her hair according to the latest fashion. The albino had to give it to Alice (it was clear that she was the one who helped her with this ridiculous plan), the young miss nearly succeeded into mingling in the guests– the only thing giving her out was her shortness... and her comically wobbly steps in high-heels.
Really, he could've said a million things in his own defence... but he did not wanted to.
And lastly, he was not at all surprised, as if he somehow foresaw that things will turn out like this- with Alice acting suspiciously the whole evening like she was trying to draw his attention to herself and she might as well had. Despite her occasional disappearances the white haired knight rarely took off his eyes of her, but when he finally did...
It just happened too fast... One minute the brown haired girl was steadily taking step after step with a determined look on her face, but with her intentions unreadable- towards the Master and the Lady. The knight's jaw dropped and he could hear the whispers of 'scandalous' around the room when the long haired girl reached under her skirt.
Just what in the blue hell was she thinking, acting like that in a high society event? Kevin put down his wine glass on a nearby side table and was just about to walk over to her and ask the girl to behave more properly in the remaining half an hour or so when he noticed something quick from the corner of his eye.
It seemed like Alice noticed it too, because she quickly whipped back, turning away from and at the same time shielding the Sinclairs with her own body. And not a minute later a small throwing knife bedded itself into the girl's chest.
There was a long, pregnant pause when every eye in the room was frozen on the brunette in shocked silence as Alice touched her chest in a mesmerized way. Then she slowly streched out her hands before her face...
Fingers dyed red with her own blood... her eyes rounded with surprise before she dashed out... and at the same time panic broke out in the room that was still full of guests...
Kevin came to his senses a moment too late, because when he finally managed to fight his way through the chaotic sea of fleeing people, the brown haired girl already gained too much start. He could not see her or hear the pattering of her heals on the floor anymore. Maybe it was the wrong decision to follow the girl, because this could've been another plan to avert his attention while the real assassins would remain in the room... but he could not care about that right now.
And even in spite of her recent actions, the albino knight was pretty sure the girl would not pull a stunt like that. He was pretty sure she would not... and Kevin stopped dead in his tracks.
On the floor of the dark corridor there was occasional, but constantly thickening darker spots, her blood that was forming a bizarre trail. He just needed to follow it as if he was Dorothy in a grotesque and twisted version of The Wizard of Oz; following the yellow, or in this case black path.
The albino sweared angrily (which was very unusual coming from him) when he stumbled and landed on his knees, silently cursing whoever that came up with the brilliant idea of only lighting up the way to the restrooms and another one to a quiet sideroom before he remembered that it was the Lady; then reached for the thing that made him fall to the floor. After some close inspection he could ascertain that it was half of Alice's shoes- she must've lost it while running and he picked himself up from the floor and continued following his guide, this time more mindful about his surroundings.
That still did not stopped him from accidentally kick something in the dark that- by the sound of it- proved to be the other half of the girl's shoe and a few corridors and turns later finding some dark material pooling on the floor that was no doubt a notable part of the girl's skirt in its previous life.
Maybe if they were in a different place and time he would've been concerned with the brunette's rapidly dwindling clothes, but right now the white haired man could only think of one thing and one thing only: and that was following the girl. He did not know what would he do when he finally found her- his sword was in his room on the other side of the house and several floors above to not to frighten their guests.
Since this age they lived in was a chaotic one, even fifty years after the Tragedy of Sablier civil order was not yet fully restored. Maybe it was because most of the Old Nobility died out during that time with people's trust shaking in the remaining ones and giving way to the ascension of the New Nobility, maybe because of other reasons, but treachery, intrigue, suspicion and assassinations was almost daily with people distrusting each other. Politics and opportunism played an important role in everyday life and an armed man, (even if it was a guard in a social meeting) was surely something that would ruin already fragile bonds amongst acquaintances.
That still not meant he was completely stupid or unarmed (the two was very close to each other, if not congruous in Kevin's opinion): he still got Alice's dagger on him, but with it's unique cross-like shape and thin blade it was a mostly ornamental weapon- and therefore in an actual fight a little less than useless.
But if everything would've happened according to the plans his sword would've never been needed, because everyone was checked when they came in. Then how, how in the hell did all of this happen? If everything would've...
Damn.
He turned what seemed like the umpteenth corner and a surprised cry escaped his lips. In a bigger and mostly unused hall there stood four dark figures. Three of them weared something that looked like a cape, hoods pulled deeply in their eyes to hide their faces. Two of them was built more solid and taller than the third one. They was definitely males leaving the other two to be females.
In the smaller one that stood in the middle of the circle the other three made, the knight could recognize Alice and in the other one-
"You have a lot of nerve to call me that!" shrieked angrily a female voice and the albino could recognise the strawberry pinkette from the park. "You, who are nothing more than a worthless vessel that failed to become Lacie!"
Lacie? Who was that? And what was she talking about? It looked like Alice was thinking the same thing, because not a minute later he could hear her confused voice. "What do you mean?"
"Oh, don't give me that! You surely had to realize it too. You were only born to became Lacie. Why else do you think your father had kept you in that fucking tower- and for that long too!" answered the woman mockingly.
"You are lying, shut up!" the brunette said annoyedly while rubbing her face with her fists.
"Am I? Then why don't you go and ask Glen-sama yourself?" the pink haired woman moved closer to Alice, but something that Kevin could not see in the dark made her stop after a few steps. "Or are you too afraid again to find out the truth yourself?"
"Shut up."
"Should Onee-sama tell you all about it? Why was you selected to be Lacie or why was you eventually left in that tower and made a poison princess? Or why was you even sent here? You know you were a great disappointment when-"
"Shut up!" shouted the younger girl, but Kevin could feel even before that cry, that something was horribly wrong. Because the temperature in the room suddenly dropped to unimaginably low with a cold, penetrating wind storming through it before the air became suffocatingly still as a big and dark form appeared behind the girl.
The form looked like nothing more than a shadow, but it was so large that not only the brunette was dwarfed next to it, but it also seemed to fill up a good part of the room. The albino could not see clearly what it was, but it appeared to have long ears.
"You think Onee-sama will get scared of that?" with that said another shadow- a less smaller one- appeared, but this time next to the pinkette. It growled and the knight could recognize... a lion? How did it got here? "Leon, teach some good manners to-" she could not finish her command before a metallic squeak was heard and the older woman's painful hiss followed closely behind.
"Eyesore." Alice stated with a bored tone, but with a voice that was not at all or not entirely her's before more metallic squeak and the pink haired woman was swung around the room with hitting various objects and the wall.
Kevin stood there thunderstrucked with his legs feeling like lead and rooted to the spot. Never did he see something so overwhelmingly powerful before and he finally remembered what that metallic sound was. Chains.
The bigger shadow seemed to be engaged in raming against the woman as much objects as it could before finally throwing her against the far end of the room and three smaller shadows used that opportunity to attack, but in mid-jump they stopped with howling painfully. Another chain seemed to imply their bodies, depending only on a bare moment that not their heads were pierced.
"Eyesores. How dare you go against the mighty B-Rabbit?" Alice (or maybe the dark thing?) hissed out angrily as the two small shadows broke up into little black pieces before disintegrating fully.
Kevin could hear curses and swords being drawn as the two hooded men ran towards the madly chuckling girl who seemed unaware of them. It only took a second- one that the white haired knight did not think through properly- and he was already at the back of the brunette warding off the incoming attacks...
The dagger broke in half with a deefening 'cling' as it fell to the floor and the albino hissed painfully as cold blades cut through his glove, biting into his hand and letting his warm blood spill out on the white material. Surprised shouts escaped the men's throat. They did not expected to see anyone coming to the help of the girl and they exchanged perplexed glances while putting some distance between themselves and Kevin.
"Are you alright?" the albino asked with following the men's every move with his eyes and something like alarm caught hold of him when the girl failed to answer. "Alice?"
He quickly glanced at her at the same time as a blindingly white lightning flashed across the large windows. She stood there now silent and unmoving, enwreathed protectively with chains floating in the air and the white haired knight could see now that the shadow before her was actually a giant black rabbit wearing a red coat decorated with a white diamond checkered design.
Thunder bellowed and the whole room shook from its power, but Alice did not seemed to notice it, nor the worry in Kevin's voice and eyes. She just walked closer to the bundle on the floor: the lion and its master, not giving a damn about the sudden 'clink' sound that filled the room for a minute before the ear-splitting sound vanished into silence.
The albino was at a loss about what made the noise, the darkness of the night making it impossible to see whatever it was. At first he thought it was one of her gravity-defying chains, but they all vanished before she started to move and a barely missed attack reminded him to pay more attention to his own opponents.
They was not very challenging however; they did not seemed to have much experience in fencing and even with his broken dagger he could easily outmatch the men. Their rhythm was also easy to figure out: left, right, left, an attack to the head, right, right, aiming at his torso, left, repeat... They was more like an annoyance than anything else with their persistence and terribly out of sync combined attacks and they could not reverse the fight even when in his surprise Kevin's guard was lowered as another lightning lit up the room, revealing the same brown haired man's face (who begged Alice so persistently for a dance) under the cloak and in a heartbeat they was on the floor defeated and knocked out cold from carefully aimed strikes to their heads with the dagger's hilt.
Kevin took their dropped swords from them, silently measuring their weight and balance. He was no blacksmith, but he had to admit, those were some fine works- unlike Alice's dagger these were not only light, but durable, just suitable for quick and accurate attacks. Their hilt also had a peculiar design- a slim, snake-like creature closely resembling a dragon wrapped around protectively a fancy gate with the Netherworld's three-headed, fire breathing dog protector, Cerberus and the letter 'B'.
'B'? ...as in 'Baskerville'? Could it be that Alice told the truth? But the House of Baskerville was defeated and obliterated during the Tragedy... There wasn't any reports about survivors either... at least publicly. Just what the hell was going on?' thought the albino silently before turning back to Alice.
She seemed to be okay, but that could not be said about her opponent. The lion-like creature tried to fight back a couple of times unsuccesfully; its legs and body was too damaged and could hardly support the creature's own weight, let alone defend its unconscious master. So in an unexpected moment it grabbed the pinkette and with painful growls and wobbling steps escaped through the window with breaking the glass, but Alice seemed like she did not cared to chase after them at all.
"Che. Wasn't worth it anyway." the brown haired girl stated and whipped back from the window. Kevin was sure he let out a scream and was surprised that not a sound escaped through his lips: red eyes pierced through the darkness looking right at him before they turned back to the broken glass. "Go right back to where you were hiding, little rabbit. Don't worry I will find you." laughted the girl madly and started to make her way towards the door before she suddenly stopped while the shadow dissolved and the paralysing spell that was cast on him broke just in time for Kevin to catch the insensible girl before she hit the floor. Her clothes was wet and sticky with her blood gushing out of her wound and the knight pressed her soft body to his as he runned back with her.
The white haired man did not cared that he will surely soil his clothes with her blood, the only thing that his mind could comprehend that time was that he needed to be fast and she was very light, so much lighter than the last time he carried her in this fashion. Her warm blood drenched his white gloves quickly, but her body was getting colder just as much fastly...
He turned another goddamn corner and ran through the ballroom very happy that the guests was finally out of the house when he heard a woman scream 'My God, what happened?' and three more pairs of feet join him. Kevin could faintly hear his name called and questions asked through the buzzing in his head, but paid no mind to them.
He turned another corner, ran up a new flight of steps and ran, ran, ran...
"Kevin? What happened?" Emily opened a door in the hallway with her small hands rubbing her tired eyes. Her hair was half-undone and her clothes crumpled... and he ran past her without a word.
Another stairs and a long hallway then finally...
As if his previous numbness was just a dream the albino kicked in the dark wood door with so much force that it bounced back from the white wall. The knight was sure later he will find pieces of the painted plaster on the floor and quickly moved in the room before kicking the door closed.
The white haired man did not needed to see in this room as he was already familiar with it and put down Alice carefully on the bed then lighted a candle on his nightstand. Only in the flickering light did he see how pale the brunette was... she did not even seemed to breathe...
There was a light knock on his door and he half-heartedly went to answer it.
"We sent for the doctor, he should be here shortly." Lady Sinclair rushed out with sympathy. Her face was red as she tried to catch her breath.
"Thank you, Milady." his answer was monotone.
"Is she alright?"
"I don't know."
"Kevin, if there is anything we can do-"
"Thank you." he could barely force out the words politely before closing the door quite impolitely before his Lady. Why was everybody asking him questions he didn't even know the answers to? Why didn't anyhody see that she needed attendance and not him trying to find answers to those questions?
Kevin silently made his way back to his bed and sat down on its edge, only half noticing her blood slowly dyeing his bedspread redder and redder...
The knife had to go out, but he was afraid of pulling it out himself. If he moved the little blade he could end up making more damage than good or even Alice could end up bleeding to death. But he needed to do something productive, anything before he went crazy because of his helplessness. So the albino had done the first thing that came to his mind and with knowing that when her wound would be tied up it would be only in the way, he ever so carefully raised her into a sitting position, placed her head to his shoulder and untied the corset-like binding on the remnants of her dress's back. The knight pulled off the soiled fabric before loosening the corset underneath and gently layed her back down.
However, the white haired man almost regretted doing so, because the sight underneath was much worse. Her corset was nearly black from all her blood, only leaving a few small places that still remained the white it was originally. A lot of the red liquid was smeared on her skin and he did not have time to blush seeing the girl's underdressed body before he fixed the remaining part of the brunette's skirt and after finding a spare blanket in one of the wardrobes he quickly covered her lower body with it.
It seemed like an eternity of searching for or fixing various items and impatient, unproductive waiting before the doctor, a middle aged spectacled man with greying hair and a female assistant in tow finally arrived and the albino was ushered out of the room to the hallway to the Sinclairs because of his nervous fidgeting. The four was silent and pale as he was kicked out of his room with Lady Klara trying to make Emily presentable again and the girl used the moment when her mother looked up to the knight to escape from her.
"Kevin." No answer. He was not even looking at her. But she was not about to give up. "Is she alright? She won't die, right?" she asked the albino, but was scared away when she met a blank stare and he was walking up and down before the door. The albino knight was full of nervous energy and did not seemed to stop any time soon.
For twenty-eight minutes the young knight marched restlessly back and forth making everybody else more nervous just by looking at him. Once the assistant left the room in a hurry and returned just as quickly with a bowl and some fabric without saying anything.
At minute twenty-nine however, Emily's- who was not used to anyone denying her requests- patience ran out. By that time nearly all of their staff was loiering around the hallway or close by. Some was waiting for orders in a confused stupor, while others offered words of comfort or tried to calm down the albino.
The honey blond girl took a quick, calming breath prepairing herself for whatever that was to come- some of the servants managed to already tick off the so far silently fuming albino with their restless questions and prodding- but before she could say anything the door opened again and this time Kevin was much more vigilant, because by the time the tired assistant was out, the door already slammed shut behind him.
"How is she?" the albino knight rushed out silently and the tired man who was packing away some of his medical equipments looked up at him. He seemed to wordlessly measuring him up, maybe thinking about where did he seen him before he answered.
"Though the knife pierced right into her flesh as far as to its hilt, luckily it avoided any vital organs. I must commend her that she left it where it was, because otherwise she surely would have bled to death. But with the little lady moving around she unintentionally damaged the muscles considerably, so it will take time to heal fully. Still, what I'm most concerned about is that your sister-"
"Wife." corrected him Kevin as his eyes shifted from the unconscious form on his bed to the old man. If anything, Alice seemed to be in a lot worse shape and that did not helped him to calm down at the least.
"Pardon me?" the doctor seemed genuinely taken aback and a glaring contest began between the two men.
"She is my wife."
"I see." the gray haired man answered after a long, pregnant pause when he was silently pondering something with his eyes shifting uncomfortably from one place to another. "Anyway, what I'm most concerned about is that she appears to be suffering from poisoning and it's clear it's not from that knife. Any idea how is that possible?" the doctor looked at him sharply. The young knight could not ignore the glare the older man was sending in his way, like he was accusing him of something. He did not seemed like he believed him in the least and Kevin could not blame him. The room hold very little of Alice's belongings and most of them wasn't even in plain sight and by the look of it, he himself would not belived they stood at a married couple's room (and they did not). But suspecting him of harming the girl, just because their marriage was less than working... Then his eyes caught up on something.
"My wife..." he said carefully retrieving the undecorated wooden box from his dresser. "Lately she had been suffering from sleeplessness and her doctor prescribed her this." The white haired knight strained his face that treatened with blowing up at least three different shades of red from embarassment. The memory of it's contents did not go away yet. "Do you think this have anything to do with it?"
The doctor took the open box from him and examined it curiously. There was little cells formed inside of it with each containing a dark green bag with names written on them and tied with one of the three different strings. The ones with the brown tie contained normal, if not a little exotic teas, like green tea, apple with cinnamon, apricot, cherry or even rosebud with hibiscus. The ones with a gold string seemed to be filled with blends with medical purposes and was only listed on them what they cured like headache, tiredness or cold while the ones with the pink strings- the ones he wished very, very strongly he could unsee someday- only had short notes like menstrual cramps and contraceptive.
"This one?" the doctor asked with an unreadable expression pointing at a nearly empty bag and after Kevin nodded he put the box down and took the green bag out. He opened and examined it carefully occasionally murmuring to himself. "Dogbane? It can cure insomnia, but still it's too strong for such a..."
So Alice was indeed telling the truth that night. But before he could relax the doctor's head snapped back up. "Young man, how often and much did she drank from this?" he asked suddenly alarmed.
"Four or five cups a day I think." Well that was not an entirely made-up number, since the brown haired girl was forced to drink normal tea at least that much a day, so...
"Do not let her drink it anymore." instructed the old man as he put back the bag into the box and handed it to the knight. "One would think someone with a licence would be more careful and not prescribe something so strong and addicting to such a young lady."
"Alice..." Kevin cutted in when he realized he still did not got an answer to his earler question. "Will she be alright?"
"At this point I honestly don't know." the doctor rubbed his eyes tiredly before looking at the albino knight again. He looked so much older now as his face radiated sympathy and genuine worry. "To get rid of the poison I cut her wound a bit deeper and let it out as long as it was safe. She lost a lot of blood, but I don't know as to what extent it succeeded to remove the poison." he explained before he added remorsefully. "I'm not sure if she will live to morning. I'm sorry."
Kevin stood there in the same spot for a long time even after the doctor picked up his bag and after a quick goodbye left the room. Small drops of rain was dashing more and more persistently on the window, while the suffocating smell of blood seemed like it already filled up the room. The buzz in his head was replaced with pervading, unbearable silence and as if under a spell he slowly made his way to the bed after throwing his dress jacket to the chair. The knight barely noticed that the soiled sheets and covers was replaced with fresh ones or that they was assembled in a bunch with his gloves he carelessly dropped to the floor earlier, because his eyes never left Alice's small form.
At first glance the albino thought she was already dead: her chest's soft dropping and rising was nearly invisible under the blanket, giving her a doll-like look in its immobility. That in itself shouldn't have been anything out of the ordinary, however it was morbidly funny how something like that could now scare him so much- movelessness accompanied by a thoughtful sadness was something he saw her doing often when she was observing something or was really deep in thought. At times like that the girl did not seemed to be breathing either, like a predator getting ready to jump on its prey. Still, right now it was all the more frightening. He could not stop himself and brushed her dark brown bangs from her forehead-
She was so very pale and cold to touch. That was the first thing the white haired man comprehended and his thoughts started to race anew while his heart sinked further in his chest.
A thirteen year old girl, no, Alice, he corrected himself, was hurt tonight while she used herself as a shield to protect the masters. It was all his fault. If only he had done is work better...
"Kevin, I know you would want to stay with her, but could you be on guard, just for tonight?" it was Lady Klara's softly persuading voice that startled him out next from his stinging remorse. His hand that was previously occupied with caressing the young girl's cheek and removing stuck hair from her face retreated quicker then he could tear away his gaze to look at his Lady. "Ronald sent for any available men, but it will take some time until they arrive."
She did not needed to finish. Ever so slowly and unwillingly the albino got up from his spot on the edge of the bed, grabbed his sword and was out of the door. Maybe he would've been surprised to see that nobody remained in the hallway if he could've concentrate on anything else than his own voice screaming his mistakes at him in the deafening silence that was inside his head as he forced his heavy feet to take a step and then another one...
As he passed another goddamn door in the dark hallway with slow, uncertain steps the only thing Kevin could think of was how long it will be until the help arrives and he can stop this meaningless walks around the house. The last hours of the night was uneventful and as far as he could tell from his occasional patroling strolls out in the garden, there was not a soul in the lamp-lit streets either. And god forbid the unfortunate soul if he would happen to meet one, the knight was sure he will beat and torn from limb to limb and shot and maim and slash him with his own hands...
The albino could not make good of his promise as not a single living or undead creature crossed his way, not even that black furred bane of his existence Alice so fondly called her pet and his anger did not calmed down. Instead it steadily built up to a point at when finally the bell of the gate sounded, the nicest thing he could force out from his mouth while tearing open the gate was "WHAT?"
That did not seemed to unsettle the man stepping in from the street under a large black umbrella. "Wow. I heard there was quite a party here, but wow." he whistled in awe as his eyes landed on the maids picking up the pieces of the broken window from under the carefully pruned rose bushes and the ones who clumsily held umbrellas over them with trembling fingers.
"You have to be kidding me. That's all?" Kevin rubbed his wet temples with incredulity. He only noticed now how cold it really was- the early-morning breeze blew through his clothes, leaving an uncomfortable, numbing icy feeling and goosebumps throuth his bangs stuck to his forehead, all because of that at the first streak of dawn he left the house to guard out at the grounds without an umbrella or raincoat.
"You know, most of us was actually on a holiday for a change and no one will simply leave that for your two pretty eyes so until we can gather everyone you have to settle for little ol' me." said Adrian with a wide grin, but his tone clearly said 'You ungrateful bastard, I ran here as fast as I could instead of spending my own vacation with some beautiful lady, so be more thankful!'
"That's no excuse. You would think a little more people will get up their lazy asses and come here. There was an attack yesterday."
"So I've heard." answered the brown haired man and his grin was instantly replaced with seriousness. "Be a little more patient, they are all around the country so it's only natural to take some time for them to arrive. What's the situation?" he asked, but when Adrian got a 'What? You did not read the message?' kind of look he could not help, but go to defensive. "Hey, the message was pretty vague. But nobody got hurt and that's what matters, right?"
"Alice was injured."
"Is it serious?" but when the brown haired man was met with a cynical and somewhat dangerous 'What do you think?' stare, he gulped and changed the topic. "Have the attackers been questioned about their hirer yet?"
Kevin's answer was a low and disgruntled growl that the other man could not understand. "Huh?"
"The bastards got away." the albino repeated a little more loudly as his hand tightened on his sword. Now that was something Adrian was previously pretty sure he will never hear from his friend's mouth. The guy was a perfectionist in anything he was doing and required the same circumspection from everyone else. Hearing the man fuck up in something other than 'the two things you will never ever catch Kevin doing alive' was like hearing that from starting that moment the world will perish in a random fire. It was frightening. And pretty awesome. But pretty scary none the less.
"So we have no idea who's behind it. That way things will be a little more difficult." he said deeply in thought then suddenly looked back at the white haired knight."What are you still standing here for? Go back to your wife, I'll handle this." and he gently showed his albino friend in the direction of the house for good measure.
Even though Kevin was more than a little annoyed at his friend's antics, it was also true that at the same time he was never more thankful for anyone in his life. With hurrying his steps and often taking two stairs at a time, he moved much more quicker than the previous hours as if he wanted to shake down and leave behind his anxiety on some unused corridor never to be found again. His dark thoughts however, caught up with him again and again. What if something happened to Alice while he was away? What if it was already too late? The albino shook his head to clear away his apprehension and opened the door.
He was not prepared however, to see his chair moved next to the bed and see his Lady occupying it. Like a worrying mother she must have kept vigil next to the girl or at least that was what the burned down candle on the nightstand with a half-full bowl and the already dry, but no doubt previously wet cloth on Alice's forehead suggested. She still wore her evening dress and her head was rested on the bed as she slept.
"Milady." the woman was already up to the softest sound and looking around confused as if trying to guess where she was. "Maybe you should continue your rest in your room." Kevin suggested gently while the noblewoman quickly righted herself and fixed her clothes, all the while the knight was looking away.
"I'm sorry, I did not wanted to cause any inconvinience." she said before catching his tired gaze resting on the cold pack. "She was burning up with a fever and I just could not left her here."
"I understand. Thank you for your concern." answered the white haired knight as he was checking for any changes in Alice's condition. For a few minutes neither said anything then Lady Klara broke the silence.
"Did the men arrive?"
"Yes, he already took up his position in the garden." Kevin replyed while fixing the covers on the girl.
"He?" the Lady's surprise couldn't be bigger even if she would open the Ark of Covenant itself.
"Yes. Adrian could give you further explanation if needed."
"I see." Lady Klara appeared to be lost in tought for a minute, but she was quickly back in 'Mother mode' again. "Oh, Kevin, you look horrible! Quickly change out of those clothes and take a hot bath! And eat something warm!"
"Thank you for your concern, Milady. I'll do it right away." Even though he said that, it was still a long while after the Lady left when the young knight finally proceeded to do so and he was very quick to be over with it before –now freshened- he took the empty seat next to the bed.
For hours without and end he watched Alice and her cheeks which was a rosy red color because of her fever while changing the cold application every now and then. He would observe the faint movements of her chest, straining his ears when to his horror she was a little too motionless for a little too much time and only relaxing when he could hear the irregualar breaths she took. All the while he was maybe a little selfishly waiting for her to awaken- and his heart sunk a little more each time when she did not awake for the delicious smell of breakfast or lunch that the worrying Mathilda kindly brought up, and failing to open her eyes when dinner was served and hoped along with the maid that next time she will rise for sure.
Emily was also there. In every few hours she will sneak to his room and enquire about Alice and after a particularly painful kick to his ankle he received from her in the morning, she will trying to coax Alice into waking up with every promise her eight year old brain could came up with and pouting when each and every bribe of her remained unanswered.
Kevin strongly suspected that it was the honey blond who discouraged the others from coming into his room one by one to make inquiries about any progress in Alice's condition and also she was the one who provided everyone with information. Whatever was the method the young girl used, it was effectful, so much that aside from she and Mathilda, the only other visitor was the doctor, who arrived in the early afternoon to check in Alice. By that time the brunette's breathing became regular, even if it still remained faint and he could not find any changes aside from her fever going down and her pale complexion slowly becoming a little more healthier.
It only felt like a minute later when there was a crash then a semi-loud curse and the albino was startled out of his sleep. He had an uneasy dream, one he did not remember what it was about and it did not seemed more than five minutes ago when he closed his eyes. Yet, the sky was already pitch-dark and the house was silent again.
"What are you doing here?" grumbled the knight after letting down his sword.
"Relief." Adrian's pained voice answered after a colorful string of curses from somewhere the floor where he was nursing his hurting shin. He could not rub it three times before his arm was grabbed and the brown haired man found himself out in the dark hallway and he could faintly hear the door being closed before he got any explanation.
"Psst, do you want to wake her up?" his white haired friend hissed out impatiently. "So what do you want?"
"I'm tired. I have been on guard non-stop for the last thirty-two hours." When that did not seemed to have any affect or evoke any simpathy whatsoever from Kevin, Adrian changed tactics. " I mistook a bench for a horse five times already the last two hours. So now it's your turn to work." he whined indignantly.
The albino knight was puzzled. Was it really that long? Sure, the Sun already went down, then rose up again since the doctor's visit and now it was pitch black another time without bringing the slightest change in Alice's condition...
He stared passively at his frend, but when instead of being intimidated the only reply he got was a big yawn he gave up. "Fine." he said before turning around and grabbing his sword, but quickly whipped back and caught the brown haired man as he was about to enter the room after him. "Just where do you think you are going? Go to your own room!"
"I don't have a room here, asshole." Adrian replied as he got out of his death grip and resumed his way to the chair with a pillow and a blanket. "Don't worry, in the meantime I'll see after her and tell you if anything happens."
Now that was quite an alluring option- or not. "Don't even think about that!"
"Why? I promise I will keep an eye on her. Or don't you want anybody to watch over her while you're away?"
"I... fine. But don't even think about doing anything unproper and if your attention slips even the slightest and you could not notice if something is wrong I'll cut off your head." Kevin signalled with his finger before his neck to give emphasis to his words before dashing away silently fuming. Two whole days already passed and the Sinclair knights still needed to arrive. Really, one would think they would already be here...
So the next few days they took turns: for six hours one of them guarded the house while the other rested and looked out for Alice then they changed. This continued as long as a larger troop marched out from the city and they got word that something happened at the countryside. No one knew what it was or where it all happened, but the sheer number of dispatched soldiers gave enough reason to some people to fear war.
Even though the last war was fifty years ago- after the Tragedy of Sablier, but the bloody power-struggles to fill up the place of the Old Nobility that followed still pressed heavily on the people's mind. Several families died out in the civil war or disappeared myseriously that time. It was no wonder everyone was apprehensive.
All the while the Sinclairs along with everyone else waited more and more impatiently for news about the recent procession and its reason along with the missing guards. A few hours later, it was Wednesday however, the most unexpected news arrived: the knights was found in the forest in two days distance from Reveille- dead. No one knew what or who could finish them off, but it was enough to nearly cause panic in the already upsetted morale. But before anything could get out of hand, another troop marched back to the city and an explanation was released about some flood that the army was sent to help take care of.
This is how Thursday found the Sinclair townhouse: still shaken over the recent happenings and not comforted by the official explanation. Masters and servants was all gloom and laughter, that at other times was so abundant between these walls was now rare and died out soon. There wasn't anything to be happy about: with five knights dead, a duenna seriously injured, a police investigation closed without results and a ruined party on top of an assassination attempt was a little more than enough bad news in five days.
It was no wonder Kevin was in a particularly sour mood on that particular morning when he needed to give Alice's watch over to Adrian. There was still some time until the change and he quietly searched for a spare shirt to change into. It was all a habit of course; no matter the noise the brown haired girl did not even fluttered her eyelashes. That was proven when late at night Adrian managed to knock over the bedside table.
So when at first he heard the girl grumble he thought it was his imagination until the bed creaked and a painful hiss was heard. The albino knight dropped his shirt.
"What day is it?" Alice asked disoriented while massaging her bondaged chest. In a minute the surprised girl was snatched up in a tight and warm hug, then just as quickly she head a cough and she was pushed away. The knight did not looked at her, instead he was avoiding her eyes.
"It's Thursday." the white haired man answered embarrassed and after fixing the pillows he gently pushed the girl back down.
"What happened?" the brunette continued with a coarse voice and slowly sat up on the bed again.
"The party was ruined and the assassins got away. You got a pretty big hole in your chest, but other than a fright everybody is alright." Kevin deadpaned. Upon hearing this there was a botheringly big smile on the girl's face so he could not stop his question. "What?"
"You own me. Big time." said Alice, but her smile quickly gave its place on her face to a frown when she made a move to sit up straight. "Are you still angry with me?" she asked with embarrassedly turning her face away when Kevin did not returned the smile.
"A little." Kevin answered before sitting down on the bed. "What you've done was stupid, dangerous and reckless. But it was also courageous none the less. That's why I'll let you escape."
"Huh?" Alice could not help, but look back at him and his serious eyes.
"You said you wanted to search for your memories, right? So I'll help you get away from here."
Upon hearing that the girl looked strange, something that the young knight could not put his finger on. 'Shouldn't she be excited? This was what she had wanted.' and thoughts like this filled his mind. But if the knight was waiting for a thank you or any other form of reply, he was disappointed. A loud grumbling was heard and Alice did not utter a world, but a minute later she carelessly threw down the blanket.
"What are you... Where are you-"
"None of your business." the brunette crossly replied and cling helplessly to the nightstand. The five day long laying in bed was no good for her legs. They fell asleep and sting in a million places at the same time and all her small steps was wobbly and uncertain.
"You musn't be out of bed. You-" as he was about to gently pick her up and bring her back to bed, Kevin's hands was slapped away and he was silenced with a punch to his ribs.
"Don't you dare touch me so lightly, you lowly servant." Alice said haughtly and the albino knight released a deep breath that he did not even know he was holding. The brown haired girl was well and back to her old, arrogant self again. "I must go."
"Whatever it is, I'm sure it can wait." he replied as he picked up the girl, now with a little more ease. "Hmm?" the albino hummed when the brown haired girl buried her face to his shoulder and whispered something he could not hear.
"Bring me my nightgown." Alice repeated while making faces at the dirty corset she was still wearing. "I don't need to concern myself with such trivial matters, so I will make you my temporary manservant for the time being."
"Sure, sure." Kevin acknowledged with a smile in his voice as he was carrying the girl to her room. Really, when will she ever learn to ask for help nicely? But even though, he missed these moments and Alice's voice in the last five days...
"And I need to go to the bathroom." the brunette continued with burning cheeks.
A little bit later she was sure he was still somewhere close by to take her back to the room. But Alice's eyes fell upon the bathtube and a warm bath became irresistable to her. "Well, he could wait a little longer." the girl declared and with a smile she started to make herself a much needed warm bath.
Authoress' Ramblings: God, I feel such a troll... anyways, bet you didn't see these developments coming :D
I'm so sorry about the late update, this chapter was suppossed to come out for Christmas, but then some serious shit hit the fan in the form of my exams, so I postponed it to New Year, but at that time I had exams too, so I postponed it to Valentines Day, but then I got ill, so yeah... D: Have I ever mentioned that I have the most rotten luck of all mankind? No seriously. =(
This chapter contains my friend's theory that she came up with back in 2010 about Lacie. Her idea was that if Glen could transfer his soul to other bodies then he could do it to his beloved Lacie too. And what better new body he could use then their daughters? As for me, I would be totally and unreversably brainfucked if her theory fully came true (and that would have a destructive effect on my future fics/chapters/etc =S) so yeah. I personally don't support her theory (or any other one right now because of lack of information as how exactly Jack intend to bring back Lacie aside from causing the Tragedy of Sablier one), but it looked interesting enough and I was practically forced to put it in XD
Two of my friends also made me a website for my birthday... or intended to. Exactly 73 days after my birthday and 293 days before my next one they called me and I received this half-assed, half-finished thing... probably as a revenge for cutting out the i.b. part. Yeah, yeah it will be in the next chapter, happy? *goes back deleting crappy site I don't really need because every information is posted here*
BTW anyone ever got tired of fighting people waiting for the other to finish their ridiculously long speech or waiting for them to pay attention to the fight before attacking him/her? XD
If anyone wants to complain about the crappy fight scene: feel free to do it. I'm not very good at writing these kind of things even though I learned some kendo from my boyfriend (and annoyed the hell out of him with always using the exact same attack until he slacked off and then BAMMM! attack from a completely different way ~good times, good times~) but that's not important now! :)
As for the awesome people who reviewed:
To Vivace: Glad you liked that chapter, I hated its start, but whenever I tried to fix it, it became more and more horrible so I just stuck with Version 1.0 D: I really like your questions (and reviews) because I get some insight about what my readers are thinking (since I'm not one of those writers with the most awesome reply stats) and what is unclear to them. =) I consider Marie and Anne main characters too (though it could be only me) as they will stay for most of the story. But aside from that yes, there will be new characters (at least in Part II). =)
What can I say, I have an insane amount of practice with vague answers for I have a wifey (my best friend) who is the one person I would never ever lie, but there is some things that is needed to be kept a secret from her for a while (like her birthday gift or that I'm her secret Santa) so yeah. =D Keep asking questions if you have some, I like 'em! =)
And to ObitoU.4evrYoung: Thanks! I'm glad you liked it! =)
I hope everyone had happy holidays! I thank all of you for reading, faving, alerting, reviewing and all the support and advice I got from you the last year! They mean a lot to me. And please stay with me for this year too!
Recently I'm surrounded with friends who are the type to ask for the whip from life. =D (This is a Hungarian saying about people whose every trouble was brought on them by themselves) It's kind of amusing somethimes. =)
Also, all kind of reviews and constructive critique greatly lifts my mood (which in turn helps me to write more quickly), so don't be stingy with them! =D