Velvet Room – Brand New Days
As always after guest's departure, the Velvet Room entered a period of stagnation. Since there was no need to reflect anyone's fate, this place returned to its original form, which only its residents were able to perceive.
"Hmm… How curious…" Stopping his work, Igor raised his nose from the desk and followed movements of the unexpectedly appeared blue butterfly. Flying around for a moment, it eventually dissipated into the mass of golden energy from which a man in a white suit stepped out. His hair was long and dark and tied up in a ponytail falling down on his back, while his face was hidden under a mostly white mask, reassembling golden butterfly wings at the sides. Crossing his hands behind his back, he spoke up in a calm tone. "Greetings, Igor. I pray you are well." "I am. Indeed I am. Hopefully, it's the same for you, Philemon." The master of the Velvet Room replied. "What brings you here, if I may ask?" "I have been wondering about something for a while. Regarding the recent guest of yours, that is." "Oh, does the late Miss Atkins interest you? How may I be of assistance?" "It is nothing special. Just a simple dilemma – what makes the happy ending happy in your view? Is the happiness of a successful protagonist a fitting criterion or perhaps, a greater good of a common goal?" "None of these. I believe it's something the said hero must decide on their own. Or in this case, the heroine." "I see. But what about fate? Certain individuals proved that it is possible to fight against it, therefore, was there really no other conclusions in this story but death?" Saying that, Philemon looked up and for a moment, the Velvet Room went silent.
Finally, Igor came up with an answer. "No. Death awaited Miss Atkins at all of the plausible routes, though not always hers. In the current scheme of things, she had chosen to sacrifice herself for the sake of others, however, she failed to face her own deepest feelings. Although, even if she were to be victorious, it would have been only a matter of time before this unfortunate soul would have fallen to an eternal sleep due to the exhaustion of life force." "My, how tragic… You mentioned some alternatives though. Could you elaborate, please?" Philemon gazed intently into Igor's bloodshot eyes. He might have been able to see all of this on his own, however, he had a specific goal in extracting it from his subordinate. "If Miss Atkins were to heed her partner's advice, there was a chance of surviving this ordeal, but on the other hand, it would have been paved in the blood of her comrades." "So, in the end, you claim that the current story has the best outcome?" "I never said that. If it wasn't for a certain grave mistake, conclusions would have been far more satisfying. For both parties…"
Philemon was content with what he heard, so he turned his back to Igor. But before he was about to depart back to his domain, there was one more business he wanted to take care of in the Velvet Room. "I assume that since you have lost your attendant, you are shorthanded." "Oh, do not worry. It's not like we're especially busy. Besides, Belladonna, Nameless, Demon Painter, Margaret, Lavenza and Theodore are still here…" "Nonetheless, allow me to compensate you for what happened." Saying that, Philemon smiled brightly and clapped his hands twice, creating two swarms of blueish butterflies, which eventually formed into humanoid shapes. The blue-haired boy in a velvet steward's uniform with a small black hat on his head on the left and a sandy-blonde girl in a heavy dark blue coat on the right. Both of them seemed surprised, however, they still remained motionless where they appeared. "Ufufu, what an intriguing choice." Igor chuckled and at that moment, the door of his office opened widely. In the threshold stood Elizabeth with her mouth agape. Tears began to fall down her cheeks.