Katarina sighed as she fell back on the bed, her hands folded behind her head. Ever since she had been brought to Ai's palace, she had been confined to this one room. While she was certain this was meant to be a prison, she wondered exactly how it would fit that description considering the rather nice bed and living space. It even featured a study table and a small closet. Were it not for the guards surrounding the building, Katarina figured she could even call this home.
"It's the same thing when I got placed under confinement." Cassandra recounted. "Queen Ai even gave me a radio to play music with."
"Soft." Katarina scowled. "To think Queen Ai would actually be so lenient against her enemies. Does she even realize how much of an advantage I can take from everything here?"
"Well, I do admit that part is quite strange." Cassandra pursed her lips at the thought. "Still, you have to admit it is rather nice for a prison."
Katarina folded her arms at her sister's comment. "Emphasis on prison."
"Don't be so cold." Cassandra replied. "I'm sure Queen Ai just wants to ensure you a comfortable stay."
Katarina scoffed as she faced away from her sister. Too much had occurred to her over the last twenty-four hours. At first, she was told she was being relocated to a safer place so as to not put Cross Academy in danger, yet to also keep her safe, though she was more than certain it was because Queen Ai needed her to discuss the location of the Kraven clan's stronghold. Then after a heavily guarded flight and drive from the airport, Katarina was quickly ushered here, with assurances that she was allowed visitors and essentials. A day had passed since then, and only Cassandra had deigned to come into this place, bringing goodies from the town. Katarina really couldn't care less for the cakes and sweets Cassandra had brought in, but she wasn't in the mood to get rid of them either.
"Oh?" Cassandra chirped as she spotted something. "My my sister, did you perchance help yourself to the toffees I bought?"
Katarina sat up in alarm as she looked to the small dining table. Sure enough, the small packet of toffees that Cassandra had bought from the local sweet shop was laid there, tape used to seal the opened section by securing the rolled up bag. Also, if one was aware enough, they could see that the packet was rolled halfway, evidence of how many of the sweets had already been consumed.
"Goodness." Cassandra smirked. "I never knew you to like toffees. Perhaps that is your guilty pleasure?"
"Out!" Katarina screeched, though Cassandra could pick up a slightly embarrassed tone seeping in. "Out I say!"
"Come on sister!" Cassandra giggled. "You can share some secrets with me! It is so refreshing to actually know something else about you."
"Get out in five seconds or so help me!" Katarina now grabbed the pillow, aiming it at Cassandra. Her face was flushed for some reason, but Cassandra had a feeling it was not due to anger, something that made her start laughing out loud.
"Oh that's it!" Katarina growled, jumping off the bed and now starting to chase her sister. Cassandra stopped laughing long enough to react to Katarina's first swat, the pillow missing her by inches and toppling the chair she had sat on moment's prior. Cassandra now ran for the door, opening it just as Katarina made the choice to throw the pillow at her. Cassandra ducked, the pillow soaring over her head.
WHACK. The sound of the soft cotton smacking something echoed through the air along with the muffled gasp of shock and surprise. Something then fell over, the collision sounding an end to whatever hostility was present before. Cassandra and Katarina now looked sheepishly at the two guards outside. The guards in question had their eyes on the figure lying on the floor, a pillow burying her face. Similar to the guards, Akira Kuran stood behind the figure, his eyes unblinking as he stared at the one incapacitated on the floor. His gaze shifted to the two Kraven vampires, back to the fallen individual and back again.
"Um, is this a bad time?" Akira asked.
"Uuuuuuu…" Anju moaned from the pillow that smothered her head.
"We're really sorry…" Cassandra bowed to Anju, who had recovered enough to finally see straight.
"It's fine." Anju said as she rubbed her face. "But I have to admit, a pillow fight was not something I expected to walk into…"
Katarina scoffed as she looked away. A close inspection would reveal though an apologetic look on her face.
"Sibling fights hm?" Akira stared wryly. "I must say, that was something rather unexpected from you two, though not unwelcome."
"Blame Cassandra." Katarina scowled. "She is so immature at times I can hardly believe you actually made her head of your Night class."
"Now now…" Anju said sheepishly, trying to defuse the tension. "A little sibling banter never hurt anyone."
"Anju is right sister." Cassandra smiled. "Let's just put that all behind us shall we?"
"Tch." Katarina rolled her eyes in annoyance before settling on Anju. "I don't expect you to come here just for the heck of it. So say it. What do you want?"
"Oh!" Anju straightened. "Well, I was hoping we could take you around the town."
"And why in the blazes would I agree to something as pointless as that?" Katarina's eyes narrowed.
"Well, you have been cooped up in a cell recently before today." Anju said. "So I thought it would be good to have a change of pace for you."
"You would allow me to roam free?" Katarina arched an eyebrow. "Me, a prisoner who could likely cause a fair amount of trouble? Really?"
"Queen Ai has approved! Though she did tell me that I had to bring a few people along. So as to make it comfortable, I believe Akira and Cassandra will be the best company on our little excursion." Anju said. "Besides, you are still in one of the most fortified cities in the world, so you escaping is very miniscule."
"Where in the world do you even find the rationale for that confidence?" Katarina deadpanned.
"Considering that three Pureblood ranked individuals will be following you, I'm sure you understand!" Anju smiled.
Katarina was now seriously contemplating ripping her hair off her scalp. She couldn't fathom why she was currently being bothered so vehemently by this girl. She had heard of Anju Cross and how idealistic she was when it came to human-vampire coexistence. She had no idea that it would be this annoying. "Do what you want." Katarina said. "Just leave me out of your messes."
"C'mon Katarina!" Anju said. "You know what humans say, the more the merrier!"
"Did you not hear a single word I just said!?" Katarina glared back.
"It'll be fun!" Anju said again with a smile. "And we won't force you to do what you don't want to!"
"And yet you force me to get out of this place?" Katarina interjected exasperatedly. "The one thing I currently do not want to do!?"
"It's in your best interest to go out!" Anju countered.
"I agree. It would do you no good to remain isolated." Cassandra said, earning a glare from Katarina. "All living beings need to socialize in some way after all. Not doing so is too unhealthy."
"Not to mention that frustration is supposedly the bane of a woman's beauty." Akira nodded, thus receiving her glare in return. "And don't mind me saying Katarina, but I'm certain no one would want the features of such a fiery spirit to become marred."
Katarina watched as all three of them smiled at her. "Well?" They said simultaneously.
For her part, Katarina could definitely say this moment was the most flabbergasted she had been ever. Here were three of the most powerful individuals known in the world, though their current attitudes and facial expressions did not show it. Annoyance filled her brain to the brim as every reasonable aspect of her wanted to deny everything they had said. Yet for some reason, the same reasonable aspects told her that while Katarina was loathe to even entertain their ideas, she felt they wouldn't go away even if she had denied. Sighing in defeat, she stood up.
"Let's just get this over with already…" She scowled.
"Wow, the blueberry cheese cake looks so yummy!" Cassandra gasped. If one looked closely, it may have been possible to see her mouth begin to water.
"This is a patisserie I occasionally enjoy." Akira nodded. "Why don't we go in and get some takeout for breakfast tomorrow? I'm sure mother wouldn't mind."
"Yay!" Cassandra cheered, immediately running in. Behind the whole scene, Katarina stood with a frown upon her face.
"I honestly fail to comprehend why you imbeciles even find such joy in these little things…" Katarina grumbled to the other person beside her.
"Relax Katarina!" Anju smiled beside her, the dark coat flowing in the wind. "Just enjoy the town! There is so much to see here!"
"So far all I have seen are boutiques and cafés lining every corner." Katarina replied with deadpan boredom. "What else would you present to interest me, a playground next?"
"Funny you should say that…" Anju chuckled.
A few minutes later, the small group had walked over carrying the small cake toward a playground where children laughed as they ran around, playing on rocking horses or slides and monkey bars. Katarina stared blankly at the scene, her brain cells trying very hard to understand why it was that her prediction was so spot on.
"Slowly. Slowly." Cassandra said as she watched out for a girl swinging on the monkey bars, her hands just below the child's dangling feet. At another corner, Akira helped with playing tag with another group of children.
"I swear you'd better not be here to make me babysit." Katarina scowled.
"C'mon! It'll be fun!" Anju grinned as she stepped forward to watch some kids playing hopscotch. The children for their part seemed overjoyed to have older playmates. With stress finally catching up to her, Katarina decided she needed a rest, propping herself down on one of the benches available. She tilted her head back, looking up to the sky in annoyance.
Something then tugged at her pants. Katarina looked up to see a little girl in a pink dress holding a teddy bear in one hand as the other pulled on her. As soon as they made eye contact, the girl held the bear up to Katarina. "Mr. Scruffy asks if you want to play." The girl said.
Katarina stared in complete silence as she observed the scene. The girl did not move, her hands still slightly raised, allowing the teddy bear to face Katarina with its button eyes. Katarina then turned away. "I don't want to. Find someone else." She huffed.
The girl's eyes dipped slightly, her expression becoming more sullen. "There's no one else who wants to play with Mr. Scruffy, or me…"
Katarina stared at the girl again. Every thought vehemently decided it was not worth her time and to just ignore the girl. Yet, the girl just stood there unmoving.
"Why are you here alone?" Katarina asked. "Aren't your parents around? Go play with them instead."
"My parents are busy, so they told me to play here while my babysitter comes over." The girl replied. "But I haven't been able to find anyone. Since you are alone too, I thought…"
"Ugh…" Katarina growled. "Will you just get lost kid? I'm not in the mood."
"Please?" The girl pleaded. "Just five minutes?"
Katarina's eyes flashed red at this comment. "What part of no did you not understand?"
The girl's eyes finally fell to the floor as she turned and walked away. Katarina spotted a few tears at the corner of the girl's eyes before she turned her gaze skywards again, hoping to forget the incident. As she closed her eyes, her thoughts finally drifted to a memory from long ago. It was clear as day to her as she recalled how during her younger years, she and Cassandra had gotten into a fight which ended up with one of her dolls becoming broken. She could never forget how much Cassandra cried that day and how sorry she had felt for doing such a thing to her younger sister. While the feelings had mellowed, they were still there. And the recent incident finally brought it to the forefront of her mind.
What the hell am I doing? Katarina sighed as she stood up and walked to the little girl. As soon as she neared, the girl looked up at her. "What does Mr. Scruffy want to play first?" Katarina said in a strained voice.
Whether the girl could detect it or not, it didn't seem to matter. Her eyes lit up and she excitedly got off the bench. "Um, Mr. Scruffy wants to play Hide and Seek!"
Katarina breathed heavily. "Who is going to be it?"
The girl looked to the bear. "Who should it be Mr. Scruffy? Us, or the big lady?"
"Hey, calling me 'big lady' is pretty rude." Katarina said. "I have a name. It's Katarina."
"Ms. Katarina." The girl replied. "Ok then! You can call me Felise! And Mr. Scruffy says because I was rude earlier, we will be 'it' first." Felise now walked over to a lamp post and braced herself on it, covering her eyes. "We will count to twenty. Ms. Katarina, go ahead and hide somewhere." Felise now began to count, and Katarina decided now was a good time to pick a hiding spot. Looking around, Katarina spotted a pile of bushes that would be high enough to hide her should she remain squatted down. Deciding it would do, she went and hid behind it.
Katarina pondered why she was even doing something as pointless as this when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and was genuinely surprised to find Felise standing beside her.
"Found you!" Felise giggled as she hugged the teddy bear. "You were right Mr. Scruffy!"
Katarina sighed. "Well, I guess I'm it now, right?"
"Yup!" Felise said. "Close your eyes and count to twenty! And no peeking! It's against the rules!"
"I know…" Katarina groaned as she closed her eyes. Slowly, she counted to twenty, standing up once she was done. She looked around and noted that Felise was nowhere in sight.
Well then, might as well show this kid what I'm made of. Katarina now tapped into her vampiric sense of smell, tracing Felise's scent through the area. She slowly made her way to the playground, underneath one of the slides. She bent down and sure enough, the girl was there.
"Wow!" Felise exclaimed as she looked to the teddy bear. "She found us really fast, didn't she Mr. Scruffy?" Felise now looked to Katarina. "Hey, you're a vampire, aren't you Ms. Katarina?"
Katarina's eyes widened. "You knew?"
"No one is that pretty." Felise said. "But more than that, no one can find someone so fast! Right Mr. Scruffy?"
"You'd willingly play with a vampire?" Katarina said.
"I have a babysitter who is a vampire." Felise replied. "She helped put Mr. Scruffy together!"
Katarina was taken aback by how nonchalant the girl was about talking to a vampire, surprise crossing her face. "You should know vampires can be scary…" Katarina said.
"True, there are some scary vampires…" Felise nodded. "But Greta isn't like that! She's really nice, and she buys sweets for me whenever I'm a good girl."
Does this kid seriously believe that? Katarina frowned. She watched as Felise turned around, seeming to look for someone. Then, Felise's eyes widened.
"There she is! There is Greta!" Felise pointed and Katarina's gaze followed her finger to a teenage girl with blonde hair wearing a green and white dress. True enough, the girl was a vampire. She had to be a regular vampire as her appearance was not too striking. Still, Katarina felt bewildered that she could not tell at first glance. In all honesty, Greta could have passed as a human.
"Come! You should say hello!" Felise said, grabbing Katarina's hand. Instantly the warmth of the girl's hand enveloped her fingers. Still, Katarina was apprehensive. It wouldn't be long before someone would recognize her as a Pureblood. She'd rather not chance it with some random vampire, and neither was she going to cause a scene with the knowledge of who she was.
"No need." Katarina answered. "I don't think we'll be meeting again after this. Besides I have a rather, complicated background. You shouldn't hang around me so much…"
Felise blinked, and Katarina registered disappointment on her face. "Well, I hope we can play again sometime. Thanks a lot Ms. Katarina!" Felise now let go of Katarina and ran to the vampire, who was all smiles as she picked the little girl up. Soon enough, both of them began to talk to the bear, Mr. Scruffy. And as she looked on, Katarina felt something in her heart loosen, like a cold knot had been undone.
"Nuts, isn't it?" Katarina turned to see Anju standing beside her. "How even a child can so casually call to an older vampire like it was nothing."
Katarina huffed at the sight. "Was this really it? You just wanted to show me that coexistence isn't as bad as it looks? That it is possible?"
"Maybe." Anju nodded. "Lots of people say I'm an optimist in that regard. And I'm not going to deny, it isn't the easiest thing to do. Despite what you've seen here, plenty of terrible things happen all across the world to humans and vampires. What happened to your mother isn't the only one."
Katarina gritted her teeth, and now her hair began to glow slightly. "Did you really have to bring that up now?"
"I'm sorry." Anju said. "I didn't pick my words well. But, needless to say, I'm still sure that despite all the division between humans and vampires, I believe it is also possible for us to live together in peace."
"Really?" Katarina frowned.
"Well, at the very least, that girl considers you her newest friend, wouldn't you agree?" Anju stated as she looked to Felise and Greta. Katarina turned to the two of them to see Greta bow toward her before turning and walking off, holding Felise by the hand.
Katarina sighed. "I suppose I'll consider…"
Anju smiled as she turned back to Cassandra and Akira, who wore smiles on their faces themselves, knowing that perhaps in some small way, Katarina's views were being changed.
The sun had finally set by the time they had returned. Katarina frowned again as she looked at the immense amount of goods that Cassandra and Anju had brought back, wondering exactly how unchecked their spending had to have been.
"Oh? Do you want something from this pile of sweets sister?" Cassandra asked as soon as she caught her gaze.
"No thank you." Katarina said curtly. "I'm already stunned enough at how irresponsible you are with money."
"Well then, more for me!" Cassandra chirped as she went off, skipping down the hallway.
"That little sister of mine can be such an airhead." Katarina huffed.
"Still, it is better than she was before right?" Anju said.
Katarina stared down the hallway. "I suppose… It is rather nice to see her smile out of her own volition."
"Yup." Anju nodded. "And she says it is nice of you acting like you normally would when she was a kid."
Katarina turned to her sharply, only for Anju to shrug. "She told me that you playing with that girl was how you normally would be with her when she was younger. She was hoping to see that side of you again."
Katarina did not reply. She merely rubbed her head in an attempt to comprehend Cassandra's feelings. She herself wondered now if she had been so caught up in trying to make things better for her family that she had forgotten the truly important things.
"I can't understand what being an older sister is like." Anju nodded. "But, I doubt your mother would have wanted the four of you to become so distant from each other. She did tell you to take care of your sisters after all."
Katarina frowned. "How did you know all that?"
"I still have memories from the time I was harbouring Yuki Kuran." Anju said. "She shared plenty of them with me from the time she made contact with Cassandra. I hope at least you remember what she wanted for the four of you."
"You should know I still don't completely trust the things she says." Katarina said.
"It's fine." Anju said. "At the very least however, I hope you've found something that is more important than anything you've had before. And perhaps learned a few things too." She now looked to the darkening sky. "I'd like it if you could join us for dinner. Queen Ai apparently has a world-class cooking team here. And you know what they say, food tastes better when you do it with friends and family."
Katarina watched as Anju left. Slowly, she went back into her room, closing the door behind her. As she lay on the bed, pondering the events of the day, her attention drifted to the hand that the little girl, Felise, had held. For some reason, there was still a lingering sense of warmth.
Author's Note:
And that is it for this chapter! I'll be doing my hardest for the next one, hopefully to upload it within 3 weeks. Currently I have days where I'm working from home so hopefully it saves me more time in that regard!
Do read and review, and I ask for your patience for the next chapter!
Jdbl00d