Disclaimer: Trinity Blood and its characters do not belong to me. This fanfic consists of monologues by the characters at their most alone. Not in chronological order. May contain spoilers for the anime. Rated for potential dark and mature themes.
I just realized that this is what Catholics refer to as the Holy Week. So it seems appropriate(?) to turn the focus back to the Vatican with Cardinal Caterina. You readers must be getting tired of Methuselah POVs anyhow.
In 21st century reality, there are no women in leading positions in the Vatican. There are no female Catholic priests, much less cardinals. Even if the Vatican of the Trinity Blood universe had equal opportunities for both men and women, it must have taken a very strong character for Caterina to achieve what she did. I have not read the novels, so I have no idea if Caterina did leave the Vatican.
Caterina: White Roses in Gethsemane
God forgive me, but my brother Francesco can go to hell for the damned blind fool he is! It took all of my self-control not to scream when Brother Petros of the Inquisition and Sister Paula escorted me to my chambers. Placing me under house-arrest indeed. He is such a jackass. I had to order my men not to do anything foolish at that point. Francesco has my agents all watched. Great, I can imagine Dandelion heckling the Inquisition and getting a trashing for his pains. Or maybe my sympathies are misplaced. Reliable old Vaclav will keep him in check. Wouldn't you, Vaclav? I peer out the window and see it there. Tall and black, standing in St. Peter's Square, the obelisk dear Uncle sent us as a peace offering.
I am right. That obelisk is the danger, a ticking time bomb in the very heart of the holy city. We know it. They will not let me see my agents. Will they be able to convince them of the danger before it is too late?
Not all my agents are under surveillance. Esther, the rookie is probably keeping a vigil at the chapel, praying for Sister Noelle. She is too inexperienced to be of much use, isn't she? Hugue is probably still on the road from Spain. Abel? Where are you? You surely weren't serious about leaving AX, aren't you? How are we going to continue without you? You have always been there…
I should've been more cautious. Dominus Canes, the other name for the Inquisition is the Hounds of God. And Francesco is the biggest bloodhound of them all, forever trying to find some chink in my armour, some flaw he could use against me. I fear I have handed dear Francesco a golden excuse this time to disband AX and have me stripped of my title. Then my brother and his hounds will have the free run of the holy city. Not a comforting thought.
What will happen to them? Will they honour the agreement I made with Dandelion? He has only twenty years more to go. He has truly reformed. All he wants is to be a good father to his daughter. I hope to pull enough strings to allow him to see his girl soon. No, I suppose if AX gets disbanded, Leon will be thrown back into prison to serve out his life sentence of 1000 years. What about Kate? I cannot imagine the Iron Maiden II under Inquisition command. And Tres? To be scrapped as junk? And Noelle's sacrifice would be for nothing… I will not stand for it. If they want to disband my AX, I will fight them all the way.
God give me strength to trust my men. Vaclav is not one to sit and twiddle his thumbs waiting for doom to befall Rome. I don't know if they have them detained. I pray not. William is intelligent. Surely he has found a way to neutralize the threat. Has Hugue arrived yet? He was in Barcelona when he last contacted Iron Maiden. Has he found anything we can use to save Rome from a similar fate? Twisting my lace handkerchief in my hands, I stride over to settee. A vase of wilting white roses sat on the side table next to the tea tray. The lemon meringue on its plate did not look appealing to me at all.
With a sigh, I pour myself a cup of tea of Sister Kate's lavender tea. I can swear to its effectiveness for calming my nerves. I sip at the tepid tea. Neither Vaclav nor Tres is around to help brew me a fresh pot. I close my eyes. Sister Paula can be heard pacing the corridor outside but I am not going to ask an Inquisitor to bring me a fresh pot of hot water. A few sips later, I collect my thoughts.
I do not have any means of contacting my people. All I can do now is to have faith in them. Trust William's brainpower, Vaclav's resourcefulness, Tres' firepower, Leon's guts and dumb luck. Don't forget Hugue's propensity for showing up when he is most needed… Sister Kate should be working on trying to locate Abel. Maybe she and Esther can talk him into bucking up.
My heart sinks at the memory of him surrendering his gun and holster, turning and walking away from me and AX. Poor Abel. His spirit must be crushed by Noelle's tragic death. Earlier, I may have berated him for being a coward, for breaking his promise to me. The truth is I am no longer the little girl who needed his protection. Our roles have reversed. I often find myself bailing him out of trouble like a mother with a wayward child. Still, this time I was unable to heal his broken spirit…
Someone is knocking, no, pounding on my door. Francesco has new orders regarding my house arrest, obviously. I hope it is not the Inquisition cells. I cannot abide rats.
I have been ordered to the basilica for reflection. I give a quick glance at the AX building as we marched across the square. For a moment, I think I glimpse a face at a window. Vaclav? Leon? It may be a simple trick of the light. It is a bright afternoon. A flock of birds soars across the cloudless sky.
See the magpies flying high,
They tell your fortune in the sky
One is for sorrow
Two is for joy…
Funny how that childhood rhyme pops to mind. I used to count birds with Mama when I was a little girl. We used to sit on the balcony on those lazy summer days and watch the sky. Mama was often too ill to go out into the gardens, so we simply watched the birds flying by amid the bittersweet scent of blooming white roses. What is the number for a miracle, Mama? I count seven. How appropriate. Seven for a secret, not to be told…
Francesco may slam this as pagan superstition. However, he has not experienced what I did. Like most of the Vatican, he has no idea of the truth about Crusniks, Contra Mundi or the Orden. All he sees is the unending conflict between vampires and humans that he takes upon himself to perpetuate. He is that stubborn. If he knew the secret I harboured all this time…
The inside of the basilica is cool and dark, another world from the bright day outside. The basilica of St Peter's. This building has miraculously survived the flames of the Armageddon. If you look up at the ceiling, you can still make out the faded outlines of a painting of the Heavens. Under this floor lie the bones of the Apostle Peter, the first Pope. May he watch over and guide his current successor. I wish Alessandro has more backbone at times. If he could stand up to Francesco for once, maybe I wouldn't be so worried about Francesco seizing control of the Church.
They would expect me to repent. I kneel piously in the middle of the large annex. I reach for my rosary beads. The beads are cool and soothing to my gloved hands. My mother gave them to me. I imagine her smiling down at me from Heaven. They say I take after her. I know better. Mama was weak, not just physically from her illness. I cannot afford to be weak. I stopped being a child that blood-soaked night. Abel, my silver-haired knight, had saved me from those vampires who killed my mother but he cannot cope with the likes of Uncle and Francesco. I fought my own battles. This time will be no different.
The empire has sent out her tentacles, seeking the possibility of negotiating peace. I am grateful they have sounded me out instead of Francesco. The notion is appealing but the difficulties huge. One slip on my part and I'm done in the Vatican. My reputation and standing will never recover… Maybe it is too late for that. I can imagine those senile coots in the College of Cardinals questioning my sanity over yesterday's fiasco.
It doesn't really matter, if we fail to stop Uncle's plot. There will not be a Vatican left when all of Rome is reduced to rubble. God, please protect the city from harm… I close my eyes and pray fervently. I cannot rely on a silver-haired, black-winged angel to come to the rescue all the time.
My knees start to ache. How long has it been? I have lost track of all time. Is it time for the evening Mass already? I hear footsteps approaching. Is that you, Francesco? Come to pass your sentence on me? My heart sinks even as I struggle to my feet. They say it is darkest before the dawn. I must keep hoping, because, hope is the last to die.
Author's Notes:
This one is based on the anime's Silent Noise arc. The magpie counting rhyme is based on a childhood rhyme. I do not know if the basilica in Trinity Blood is the St Peter's Basilica. I hope I managed to bring out Caterina's strength of character as well as her fragility, frustration and conflict at this crucial time. Dominus Canes is Latin for God's Hounds. This is actually taken from history. The Inquisition was part of the Dominican order during the Middle Ages.
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Gethsemane – the Biblical garden where Jesus prayed after the Last Supper.