Chapter 18

Ruki had been reading another book belonging to the mansion's large library; Karlheinz had generously invited him to take advantage of the presence of so many untouched and precious tomes, with mysterious and full of knowledge contents. Absorbed by the paper and the binding leather's scent, his ears had heard a noise coming from the door.

He had looked up, curious to see whoever had just interrupted him, but strangely there had been no one, though he was sure someone had to be there because of the scent: he had turn his eyes too much upwards; if he had lowered them, he would have notice a couple of about three-years-old children venturing into the library.

Then he had sighed, mentally calling himself a fool, and, standing up, he had headed towards the shelves on his right, near the staircase leading to the mezzanine where the most interesting and oldest books were kept.

On the rungs, he had seen one of the two intruders, a dark and ear-length haired boy, his face in his hands and elbows on his knees, bangs almost covering his dark and glassy eyes.

- Hey - Ruki had called him, approaching him a little and looking at him severely; the child had raised his face calmly towards him, as if he had expected his arrival.

It had been at that moment that the vampire had seen the emptiness in his eyes, not gazing at him directly: he was blind. He had sighed again.

- Are you the Glass Lady's children? - he had asked; the other had nodded - Why are you here? - he had asked again, looking around for the other child, sure that she was nearby.

- Aneki loves books... - he had replied with a gentle and fair voice – She is curious.

Ruki grinned, snorting.

- Curiosity killed the cat - he said, then he had felt hands clinging on his trousers' cloth.

He had looked down and met another pair of dark eyes staring at him intensely; the girl had her lips curled and her cheeks puffed, almost as if she had been sulking or offended.

- I can't take that book! - she had lifted her hand, pointing to the book that was actually on a very high shelf.

Before Ruki could have lifted an eyebrow and tease the little girl because she was still too short to grab objects from higher places, someone had abruptly entered, slamming the door and yelling:

- HEY BRATS! I KNOW YA'RE HERE!

Recognizing the voice, the vampire had sighed again, massaging hi nose bridge and preparing to reproach the grouchy brother who had reached them shortly after, gazing angrily at the twins hidden behind Ruki's legs, clinging to his trousers (to his slight annoyance).

- Yuuma, don't shout - he had told him coldly, glaring at him; the giant had rubbed the back of his neck, objecting.

- These two parasites were picking up the flowers in the garden!

- They were already dead! – the little girl had promptly replied, sticking out her tongue and causing his eye to twitch out of irritation.

Ruki had had his lips hidden by his hands, amused by the girl's reaction; in the meanwhile, he had perceived the other two brothers getting close to the library due to the racket the two had caused by arguing about the presumed death of those flowers.

The little girl's brother had remained behind legs, his gaze downwards and the expression mild and attentive, like a cat that was listening to any sound.

The vampire had once again sighed, stopping his brother and flicking with his finger the little girl's forehead, rubbed by her as she had mumbled and murmured a kind of "sorry"; Ruki had smiled, pleased, and walked to the shelf to grab and give her the book she had pointed at, cracking an amused smile at her grin as she had sat on the floor to browse through the volume.

He had wondered how she could have read, since it wasn't really possible for a three-years-old child; carefully examining the book from above, he had realized that she was going to focus on the illustrated figures, even though he had also noticed her first efforts to read the larger and uppercase letters. Kou and Azusa had come in, questioning and receiving explanations grumbled by the giant; the little boy, who had sat on a trunk after Ruki had left, had observed them, trying to memorize their voices and communicating at the same time with his sister.


Ruki bowed his head respectfully, greeting the woman in front of them; Kou cracked an embarrassed smile, remembering that time a glass of raspberry juice had slipped of his hand on her clothes, which he couldn't still forgive himself for; Azusa smiled happily and approached her to squeeze her hands, reciprocated to his great joy; Yuuma rubbed his neck, desperately murmuring some more correct and polite words.

- Good evening... ma'am...

- Good evening, Yuuma-kun – the Glass Lady replied with greater confidence, raising her face to his and keeping that proud and calm smile; she paused for a moment, observing his face and eyes' features, mysteriously – You're in a good shape!

With slightly reddened cheeks, the giant grinned and then frowned as soon as Kou hit his side with a playful elbow.

- My dear Azusa-kun, you're still cutting yourself off - she said with a slightly strict voice to the vampire who looked down, whispering that he couldn't help it – It'd be a good idea to learn how to bandage yourself neatly and cleanly, my dear - she caressed his hands, before approaching Kou.

- Unfortunately I hadn't had the opportunity to listen to one of your song yet, Kou-kun, I've been quite busy... I'm deeply sorry.

- Ah...! N-no, don't worry, Glass Lady, you don't have to apologize... - the blond stuttered, sincerely intimidated by her presence, albeit peaceful and benevolent; or perhaps he couldn't forget what he had done, since Karlheinz had reproached him harshly, even though she had forgiven him heartily.

At last, the woman turned to Ruki, repressing an amused huff at the sight of his book.

- Ruki-kun, thank you for hosting my daughter in your house. I hope there were no problems - she added, narrowing her eyes.

Mary was about to answer her, as the twin frowned, as if to say "No, little sister, don't do it": her mother turned to her before she could even utter a single letter.

- I'm not talking to you, Miss. It's rude to break into other people's speeches, my lavender flower.

His daughter kept quiet on the spot, with no surprised or frightened expression, and as soon as the woman returned to the vampire, she looked up to the sky, telepathically communicating her usual complaints to her brother: they had been bearing with their mother's good-manners mania since forever...

In the meanwhile, Kou was thinking about on the half-witch's nickname, realizing for the first time in more than three weeks that the girl's scent was really a lavender's one; if Yuuma could have read his thoughts, he would have made a sarcastic applause.

- Don't mention it - Ruki smiled politely – Don't worry, we didn't have any problems...

Ruki and Mary exchanged a look concealing a world war in their heads; the Glass Lady widened her smile, satisfied, and turned to her daughter, approaching and examining a curl of her hair after gently lifting it with her marble-like white fingers.

- Mary, there are so many things I still have to tell you... but we'll do all of this calmly. I saw Karl's sons nearby and I'd like to take the opportunity to speak with all of you.

The girl blinked, surprised: she never imagined that the Sakamaki brothers would have gone shopping together; surely wrapped in an completely different atmosphere than the one with the Mukami brothers...

Scent of dried flowers~...

And I'm walking through the fog~...

Walking through the fog~...

I missed "Labyrinth" by Elisa...

Want to talk about Jeff Buckley?

Please, oh my God, I become melancholy...

- Mary, Mark! – their mother called them back to reality after ten minutes she had been exchanging other pleasant dialogues with the four brothers, while Theo had been staring at the two friends lost in their thoughts.

- Sorry, Mum - they said in unison, turning to her at the same moment; she was the only person, besides the twin, whom Mark could rest his eyes on correctly (causing his poor father's great jealousy, even though it wasn't his fault).

The Glass Lady sighed and invited all of them to follow her, heading to the place to meet with the other vampires, whom she had promptly left a message to; the Mukami's could only wondered about how, Theo had swallowed, the twins... had broken in a cold sweat at the idea of the devices their mother would use to communicate, having literally tested them on their own skin.

Even if you're stuck in the bathroom, you'll get the message due to higher forces.

Disturbing.

And they're scared of me because I hear everything.

Because it's nice to hear the voices of the dead who want to keep on living while you're trying to sleep. Really nice.

Sleeping without you in the other bed was a torture.

Don't you say. I missed you, aniki.

Me too, aneki.

- Mark, Mary, if you entertain yourself again in your mental conversations I'll have to use more forceful methods.

Ruki snickered sadistically, enjoying the view of the half-witch that was obeying to her mother while sulking a bit at the same time; Mary glared at him.


Silence reigned on the Sakamaki brothers and Yui, sitting in front of the Glass Lady who had decided to have the Mukami's and her twins sitting on her sides; to be more precise, they sat in this order: Shu, Subaru, Ayato, Yui, Reiji, Kanato and Laito on one side, and Yuuma on the other side (in front of the blond whom he had turned an indecipherable look to), Kou, Azusa, the Glass Lady, Ruki, Mary and Mark.

Theo didn't join them, preferring to stand as a "guard", as he himself had said. He had always been used to keep away at such times: at school, he would always be the one tidying up the classroom before and after the lessons; at the house he was living with his friends in, he would either fix mechanical gimmicks or be busy elsewhere to carry out the same activity, as the others would gathered during meals or for short moments of leisure. Despite his big smiles and his cheerfulness, he was the most isolated of them all, and the twins were two of the few people who had the honour of spending more time with him.

- Reiji-kun, it's a pleasure to see you again... it's been about nineteen years since we last met, hasn't it? - the woman spoke softly, intensely staring at the vampire who swallowed, deeply irked by the effect she had on him.

- You're not wrong, madam - he said, trying to keep calm as much as possible - Your second and last visit dates back to the 20th of September, nineteen years ago.

Mary made a quick mental calculation: her mother had already been expecting them, at that time; her mother nodded and, before proceeding with her speech, she remembered...


She had entered the sumptuous abode, reaching the living room where Beatrix, Christa and Karlheinz's sons had been waiting for her according to a butler's indications - thank God that he hadn't been there as usual, otherwise she'd have committed a homicide.

Heading into the wide hall, she had been warmly welcomed by Christa, who had looked to be in perfect mental health at the moment; unfortunately, centuries ago, the Glass Lady had witnessed her first manifestation of mental imbalance.

- Onee-sama! - the female albino had exclaimed with a smile full of enthusiasm and eyes shining with joy. After all, they hadn't seen each other in years.

What a cutie my Christa, she still considers me a big sister, the woman thought smiling affectionately, holding her hands.

- Christa, what a pleasure to see you again. How are you, my dear?

The female albino, as it rarely happened, had begun to chat heartily with the demon, perfectly at ease and almost forgetting about what was around them.

The Glass Lady had noticed in the shadows her son's lurking figure, who had been looking at her with an indecipherable expression, with a certain incredulity in his eyes; she had thought that probably his mother wasn't used to behave that way so and felt deeply sorry for the young man.

A few minutes later Beatrix had entered the room, followed by Reiji, with an elegant and proper attitude, and Shuu, who was clearly bothered.

- Beatrix, what a wonderful expression - the woman had teased her, giving her an understanding look; the blonde had sighed.

- Your irony is always welcome - she had murmured, not quite convinced with her own words, but the Glass Lady's personality was a cure-all to Cordelia's pestering - It was very kind of you to come specifically to visit us, despite your errands.

- Oh, let's not talk about the... after all, I've been disowned by my family - she had smiled at her; the blonde's eyes had been veiled with bitterness, soon returning inexpressive.

In the meanwhile, her sons had looked somewhat surprised: they had never heard their mother talking in a so... serene way?

- You are Shuu-kun and Reiji-kun, right? - the demon had turned to them, observing them with mysterious eyes; the second son had made a slight but respectful bow.

- Yes madam; it's a great pleasure to make your acquaintance.

The blond had just nodded, earning a scornful look from his brother and a reproach from his mother, who hadn't looked at her second son even once. The Glass Lady had mentally taken note of this.

- It seems like you've split yourself in them, dear Beatrix - she said jokingly.

The blonde had stared at her intensely, imitated by her sons, making her let out a laughter; then the demon had turned to Christa.

- Dear Christa, you haven't introduced your son to me, yet.

- Right away, Onee-sama! - the female albino had smiled, at first a little lost in her thoughts (the woman had feared for a moment a crisis) - Subaru? Come closer...

The son had come out of his hideout, keeping away from everyone in the room and nodding his head to the demon, whispering a faint "nice to meet you"; the woman had given him a sweet smile and got closer to him, who had jolted and looked around in search of an inexistent escape route.

She had grabbed his hands between her own, squeezing them.

- Look at me when you talk to me and when I talk to you, Subaru-kun.

Subaru had widened his eyes, stiff, feeling an abnormal fear awakening in his soul's depths. Had she just... threatened him?!

The Glass Lady had smiled satisfied and turned away.

- Where are the triplets? – she had asked, turning to the door where those three had appeared, pleased - Perfect timing, Ayato-kun, Laito-kun, Kanato-kun.

The first one had sneered, exclaiming:

- Of course it's perfect, what do you expect from the Great Me!

- Nfu~ That again, Ayato-kun... Nice to meet you, anyway, Glass Lady~! - Laito had said winking, with a theatrical bow.

- It's a pleasure to meet you... this is Teddy... - Kanato had greeted her, staring at the woman hesitantly. Was this woman really their...

- Auntie, huh? Nfu~ - the older brother had whispered, watching her attentively.

The Glass Lady had waited a few seconds before speaking again, immersed in her thoughts, starting a conversation with some of them, while others had kept silent and listened, or ignored and looked disinterested; she had noticed certain moments of tension, particularly while interacting with the young vampires.

Subaru had felt deeply uncomfortable, though relieved to see his mother in a good shape for once; annoyed, Reiji had felt inferior to the demon, who had pointed out several times some mistakes about his manners; Shuu had thought she was too much cheerful to be a several hundred years old woman; Kanato had had nothing to complain about, happy with the sweets his aunt had brought; Ayato had finally felt appreciated, thanks to the relative's attention; Laito... couldn't figure out what to think about her... she had looked so different from...

... her, who had come half an hour later, addressing her sister with a glare full of hatred which her sons had never seen before.

- You - she had whispered with despise.

- Cordelia! My little sister... – the other had smiled; her eyes filled with other emotions.


Sorry for the late update, I had been busy with University!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, thanks for reading! ^^