Fragile Things

Chapter [Five]

Feelings …

Albedo stared hard for long moments at the people sat at the table, Red immediately turning her head. He wasted none of his sight upon her and looked to Gaignun, before smirking ever so slightly as he approached, his large hands moving in time with his feet. Red continued to stare down at her food, taking in where all the crumbs had fallen off the toast and the colour of her tea; nothing was left unnoticed as she took photos in her head. She heard one of the Victorian chairs that were painted a deep purple, almost brown looking shade carved with spirals along the top. The cushions were a dark grey, or a light black if you wanted to call it that and it all matched the table itself along with the bland, yet interesting, black walls lined with silver patterns of flowers. Everything in the room matched together, even the chandelier and the silverware and underneath all the food she new the plates had a similar pattern to the walls. As usual, the crisp winter light seeped through the slightly dusty windows, providing some light for them as they ate. The chair creaked under Albedo's weight as he sat down, clearing his throat. She hunched her shoulders as she felt Gaignun's eyes gaze on her. She wanted to turn to him and tell him she didn't like Albedo – a strong urge in her veins told her it was the right thing to do; that it was the only thing to do to avoid anything bad happening.

But instead she ignored the voice in her head and lifted her fork lightly, picking up another piece of egg to fit in her mouth. Her stomach suddenly felt full however and even when she placed the food inside she chewed slowly, dreading the feeling of swallowing it. It was as if she would burst. Conversation was going on around her; the two wolves speaking polite words to one another. Rubedo and chaos were too making conversation and the words made no sense to Red's ears. She didn't bother trying to understand as she tried to swallow her food, her attempts in failure. Turning her eye, she saw Albedo on the opposite side of the table looking down at her with his frightful purple eyes. They were such an eerie shade that reminded her of the hues she had first seen in the woods, how eerie and empty she had felt at that moment. Helpless was a good word to describe it, as if she had been isolated from the rest of the world just as she felt while looking into the depths of his gems. A shudder, stronger then ever ran through her spine and she swore she saw a flash of joy in his eyes. He was enjoying ever bit of fear he gave to her, and being a werewolf he could pick up on ever single one of her emotions.

Of course, sitting at the table he was not the only one that could smell human feelings, feel fear lurking about in the veins. But the other who could didn't enjoy these coming from her flesh like a bad smell. Again, she felt emerald gems burning on her head as she lowered her eyes, finally swallowing her egg. Her throat began to feel immensely dry and she reached out for the floral teacup, holding the handle with her shaking fingers. Red could still feel Gaignun's eyes set on her, hearing a laughter belonging to Rubedo in the back of her mind. All that she could think of was Gaignun watching her, Albedo's frightfulness and the cup of tea she was thirsting for. Slowly, she pulled the cup up from the wooden table and brought the rim to her rosy lips.

"It's rude for the lady of the table to be so silent," the voice of Albedo ran through her ears as clear as crystal – the only sentence she had been able to understand in the last few minutes. Her eyes widened suddenly as she felt a fear wrap around her heart that began to beat quickly, as if to push it away or to warm it so it melted. Her fingers trembled and then without her permission they let go of the teacup.

Rubedo and chaos both turned their heads quickly the second they heard a smash against the wooden table soon to be followed by a cry from Red as the scolding hot tea ran onto her thigh. She had dropped the tea cup just on the edge of the table, sending the pieces of china and the boiling hot liquid all over her right thigh. Albedo's elbows were set on the table as he brought his hands up to his face, covering his sniggering lips behind his bone thin, white fingers. As usual Gaignun's eyes widened as Red cried out, pushing back suddenly in reaction to get away from the hot tea that had seeped through her dress and was quickly burning her skin.

For a split second he turned to his brother, glaring sharply at Albedo who was watching as Red shot up to her feet, pushing the chair even further behind her as she stood. The scraping echoed through the walls, the noise soon to be followed by the smaller pieces of china breaking on the floor as she wiped them from her dress. Her breathing was fast, her leg stinging like hell. Gaignun took no time to stand to his feet, picking up a black and white check tea towel as he did as such, almost thrusting it into her hands. She grabbed hold of it with her fingers that were shaking from pain and began to wipe her thigh, ignoring the stinging pain. A few airy moans left her throat before Gaignun grabbed her wrist.

"Come, let's go to the bathroom and have this sorted out," he told her, pulling her chin up with his spare hand. Kindly, he smiled at her, taking a few steps foreword. Her feet twisted against each other slightly as he did, shocked by the move but soon she was walking properly as he led her towards the still open doors to the main hallway. "A bit of cold water should take away most of the pain and help with the swelling. Unfortunately, there isn't much I know of burns and I do not have a Doctor here. Would you like me to call for one?"

Her eyes were searching around the main hall as he spoke his words, still mesmerized by the extreme extravagant elegance of his home. The main hall held the largest double doors – two of them. One would lead you outside to the front courtyard. Passing down the courtyard would lead you to the main gate to the woods. There were a few courtyards, the main one and a side one along with a back one. These were all separated by large oak trees and other trees she didn't know the name of. There were other trees along with beautiful black fencing to cut off the difference of his home and the wood, though the land around the Castle could have been called a wood in itself. At the back of the Castle there was a large garden, well a huge garden. There was no fencing between it and the woods and passing down the large array of flowers would soon find you surrounded by the trees, in the thick of the woods. In the gardens were roses of all colours, tulips, orchids, and all sorts of flowers of many different colours that even bloomed in the winter months surprisingly. There were herbs as well, many different ones with all sorts of colours and smells and tastes and effects. She had yet to explore the courtyards and the gardens properly and planned to soon; hopefully with Gaignun. There was one thing she knew about them though.

If she were to get past the large gate she would never know the direction to get to Grandmother's house again. She was trapped with them, with the werewolves that most likely lusted for women and blood.

The main hall itself was higher then she could imagine; all three floors visible thanks to the beautiful spiral staircases made from white marble with gold banisters. Sculptors of men and women had been placed here and there, the walls were blood red with orange flower patterns on them, spirals and all sorts of things to catch ones eye. There was an unbelievably large chandelier hanging above their heads that would be alit during the night and how someone could reach it to light it was beyond Red. There were other doors leading to different rooms of the Castle and of course there were other staircases in other areas; different ways to get to higher floors. The main stairs in the hall wouldn't always take you to the area you wanted to be. For example, for Red to get to the hallway with the bedrooms that held her own and chaos' she would have to go up the main stairs to the second floor and go all the way to the end of the hall and walk up the black staircases to get to her hallway. It was so confusing and intricately made, the way the Castle was. Even the attic wasn't an easy place to get to. She was sure there were two other staircases at the third floor until the attic. And there were of course secret rooms from the olden days to hide Priests. These always interested her and one day she planned to find at least one of them. Still, she planned to find Gaignun's bedroom first. It was on the third floor, like her own, but which hallway was beyond her. Soon she'd find it. Soon.

Eventually, a few seconds after she realized Gaignun had asked her a question she widened her eyes in further panic, shaking her head furiously. "N-No," she stuttered, stopping in her footsteps on the tiled floor. "No Doctor. I'm fine. Fine."

He eyed her carefully, before pushing a door open close to the stairs; the knob of the white door made of pure gold with diamond pieces on the edges. He held the door open for her, leading her into a normal hallway with white walls and silver spiral patterns. On the first floor all the halls were identical, with the floorboards a dark brown. They passed a few doors, Gaignun still clinging onto her arm with his hand, before turning to one. Turning the knob, he led her into one of the many bathrooms. The tiles were white along the walls along with the floors; the bath, sink and toilet that shade too. The window showed them the view of one courtyard; the trees swaying in the strength of the wind; a sign of an approaching storm. Far into the distance, she could see tendrils of colour running through the air. It was peculiar but the different colours and hues had become her reality – an interesting, beautiful reality.

Finally, he let go of her, putting his hand on the small of her back to push her more into the bathroom. Nodding towards the bathtub, he gestured for her to sit, which she did once shutting the door. As she sat on the edge of the bathtub, she stared down, hearing the tap of the sink spray on. Searching around the cabinet beneath it, Gaignun finally pulled out a red flannel and put it under the cold water, letting the fibres soak it all up for her. "I'm going to need you to take off your tights, please, Red Rose."

Her head shot up at his request, her eyes wide once again. The pain on her thigh was wild and she dyed to remove her tights and feel the cool liquid on her burning skin but still she could not allow him to see her legs. They were bruises slightly with cuts here and there. She could always pretend she had decided to climb a tree but why weren't there any cuts on her hands? And what excuse would she use when he asked why hadn't she told him? She could always say she didn't want him to worry, yes, that would be a good one. That would work. Her eyes glazed back to her stick thin legs and she slowly began to slip her hands up her short dress, feeling the band of the back tights that were around her hips. Wincing, she put her thumb under the material and slowly began to slide them down off her legs, her eyes blind to what she was doing. Her underwear was quickly covered by her dress, and she had finally pulled her tights down to rest at her ankles in a small pile. Lifting her head once more, she watched Gaignun wringing out the leftover water before he turned to her.

Smiling gently as he always did, she found it amazing that he could transform into the most frightening creature – a wolf. He was so kind to her though, never once laying a finger on her fragile skin. He smiled constantly and over the past week had treated her with the most respect she had ever gained in her entire life. She felt special to him, to say the least. Of course she was. What werewolf would bring a woman into his home and treat her so well after watching her for years? Yes, it did sound like some sort of trap, like something you would tell you children with an unhappy ending to get them to stop talking to strangers but she felt no danger from Gaignun. She felt a danger from the other werewolf, Albedo.

"Wow, this looks sore …" he uttered gently, on his knees to the side of her. He placed a hand on her knee as he set the flannel down on her red, tender skin. She hissed in pain as he applied pressure, trying to take her mind off it. She imagined the colours of the woods, what mystical creatures could lay within it apart from the werewolves. The cooling feeling was soon doing her work and she smiled, feeling his thumb moving against her skin. She looked down and soon realized what he was doing touching her – distracting her from any pain she had.

So sweet. He was so utterly and completely sweet. A blush formed on her face as she looked away, hiding her smile as best she could under the covers of her bright red hair. The searching eyes of Gaignun were soon hovering over her legs gently, his fingers still pressing against the burn delicately to keep her cool. He honestly had no idea what else to do to soothe her pain apart from apply some cream that he hoped he could get Rubedo to find somewhere. Or chaos; it would be better if he went on the look for it, knowing how organized he was. As Gaignun's eyes continued to search he didn't notice the bruises on her legs or the odd cuts here and there but he noticed the thick outlines of scars embedded in her skin. In horror, his eyes widened. He never remembered his Red Rose carrying such scars.

"R-Red …" he uttered through the back of his throat, gaining her attention. She turned to him and followed his gaze before freezing. They were across her other thigh, at least half a dozed in a vertical line going inside of her thigh from the outside. Each scar carried three lines that reminded him of a razor blade. Another few were on her knees and shakily, he looked up to her. "What are these?"

"Nothing of your concern," she answered harshly, turning her head. He glared slightly, moving higher as he did. With his hand that wasn't pressing the material into her skin; he put his finger beneath her chin and twisted her face to look at these.

"Who did this to you?" he questioned. She could see the rage beneath his eyes contained from the wolf side of him. The urge to kill the man that had laid a finger on the woman that belonged to him. Sorrowfully, she looked at him and shook her head. "Tell me, Rose."

"No," she replied airily, looking deeper into his gems, looking straight into the human side of him, trying to make him catch her feelings. "We look not into the past but into the future. What has happened has happened and there is nothing we can do of it. Talking of the past only causes it to resurface, when we should talk of the future and what it holds. You shall let go of this conversation, won't you, and talk of other things. Please."

For long moments he stared at her, clouded with mystery as to where her strong, mature words had come from. Suddenly, his respect towards the woman had grown incredibly, and his thin lips curled into a wondrous smile that made her heart skip a beat. An urge lingered within his chest as he reached over, flattening his tongue out. She had yet to notice Gaignun was hovering over her legs and her eyes widened suddenly as she felt the warm organ run down her thigh, going across her scar. A wondrous shudder ran down her spine as a soundless bolt of electricity passed between them; something she had never felt before. Her cheeks grew as bright as blood itself and she parted her lips, putting her hands on the edge of the bathtub as she looked at him nervously, feeling her heart pound.

"G-Gaignun …" Red stuttered, watching him go from one scar to another quickly, his own eyes shut. "What are you doing?"

"Making these scars mine so you will not think of pain but only of this moment," he purred as he began to kiss each one he licked delicately, as if her skin were made of glass. Every time he touched her a sharp crack of thunder ran up her spine and she shuddered, shutting her own eyes. The moment seemed to last forever; his warm breathing on her skin, his lips pushed against it. She remembered his tender kiss upon her lips, which was similar to the ones he planted on her flesh. Her hand slipped from the edge of the bathtub and straight into his raven locks, a gesture that even shocked him. He looked at her in the corner of his eye; her hair covered her face so he couldn't see her emotions. She stroked his hair, even when he pulled away from her legs.

Gaignun's hand slipped from her burned thigh, letting go of the flannel that fell weakly to the tiled floor. He slipped a hand up her side, resting it on the small of her back. Pushing his back up, even on his knees he was easily taller then the girl and lowered his head; his forehead almost touching hers. Quietly, Red uttered his name beneath her breathe as his own hand slipped into her hair. The kisses, the touching was so much more loving then what Albedo did to her. A cloud of shadows overcame them both as he edged closer to her to the point she could feel his breath upon her face. Parting her eyes she looked into his, seeing the usual hints of want and something else she couldn't quite recognise. Her heart pounded against her ribcage as she felt her neck strain to get her closer to him. These were feelings she didn't understand and fear was quickly overcoming her. His lips were close to her rosy ones, just like they had been the first time they met. He breathed heavily as she felt jolts of electricity move through her from his hand in her hair. Just as he was about to push his lips against her tenderly, the door to the bathroom was abruptly pushed open.

Ignoring the visitor, he pulled his head away from Red's, smiling gently as he did so. Moving his hand in her hair to her face, he curled some of her bright red locks around her ear, smiling at her bright red cheeks. "White roses would look beautiful clipped into your hair …"

A smirk was heard by both their ears, making Red lift her eyes up to the door to see the pink headed Deviant Vliet stood there. His hair was parted on the left, with a shade of pink with a few white streaks within it. His hair was just underneath his chin, choppy with no bangs across his forehead; they had been pushed out of his way, a few strands moving to cover his eyes. His skin was the most peculiar shade; something she could have sworn was a light pink. Patterns of cherry blossom flowers were on his forehead almost like unusual scars and these too were a deep pink, thanks to his skin colour. His face was pale, with his small nose pointed and his eyes in the shape of almonds. The shade of his eyes was a deep earth green, his thin lips always curled into a contagious smile. His lips were dark purple thanks to a lip gloss she had helped him pink out. He wore dark blue jeans, with black trainers and a black and white stripped, knitted and thin jumper that highlighted all of his muscles, surprisingly. On the shirt was a picture of a white panda and wrapped around his neck was a light pink coloured, knitted again, scarf. She loved his collection of scarfs; they were so beautiful. His nails were painted pure black and whenever she smiled she could see two pointed teeth. Vampire, she knew the extremely feminine looking man was defiantly a vampire. But a kind one, she knew that. God, in this house she was just bait. The first women and a human woman … There would be two things on their minds, apart from Gaignun's and she didn't want to think of them.

"Oh how lovely! Though, Nigredo, it would be better if she had black," without permission, he walked straight into the bathroom, clasping his hands together in excited joy. She smirked as Gaignun pulled away from her, picking the flannel back up. A few of the people in the home like Rubedo, Albedo and a few of the butlers called Gaignun Nigredo. She found both the names to be fine and wonderful but because she knew him first as Gaignun she would stick to that name.

As Gaignun went to the sink to put more cold water in it, Deviant moved up to Red, taking a seat beside her. Joyfully, he began to play with the ends of her hair, smiling happily as he did so. "You see, her hair is red and what looks better with red then black? Oh sweetheart!" he gasped dramatically, looking down at her thigh. "Oh, Alby was right! You've such a terrible burn!"

"Deviant don't you have somewhere to be?" Gaignun asked almost impatiently as he went back onto his knees, placing the flannel on her thigh once more and again she hissed. Deviant stared at Gaignun, completely bewildered by his sharp tongue before his eyes widened and went bright and he smiled.

"Ah right, time alone with lovely Red?" he smirked, putting his hand in his back jean pocket. "Oh Gaignun, you little dog you," he ignored the glare Gaignun gave to him and pulled a small tube from his pocket, dangling it in front of Red's eyes. "Here darling. Chaos told me to give you this. It'll help the burn."

With a smile, Red Rose thanked him gratefully and smiled as he planted a goodbye kiss on her forehead. Standing up, Deviant playfully blew a kiss to Gaignun who was eyeing the tube carefully; reading the instructions like it was something foreign. He wished them a good day and they wished him one before he shut the bathroom door, once again leaving them in peace. Red looked down at Gaignun's puzzled face as he stared at the tube and she giggled slightly, grabbing his attention. Reaching out for it, she took it from his fingers and began to unscrew the top.

"You don't seem to be very used to medicine," she smiled politely at him as he moved his hand. She applied the cream to her burn and gently began to rub it into her skin. "I take it that you rely in herbal remedies to heal?"

"Yes," he answered with a nod. "We have a Doctor that relies on human technologies but we only call on him for emergencies. For most of the time we stick with bandages and herbs, hence the garden outside that isn't just for the food."

She smiled at him and once she had done she pulled her tights back up to cover her thin, pale legs, feeling Gaignun's eyes upon him. When she had dressed properly, she stood in front of him, looking up at him. "Thank you … You treat me well."

"You deserve well," he purred. "More then well, my dear Red Rose."

"Where are we going?" her laughter was like music to his ears, a joy he enjoyed to hear. Life for him had taken a turn for the fantastic. The girl he had watched grow up, with an urge inside of him to take her as his own, to kiss her and treat her well – to give her anything she wanted, was now living with him. Her hair shimmered under the light of the stars and moon, her skin pure white. She was shivering slightly, even under her warm, thick brown coloured dress he had told her to wear. It was the warmest one he had brought for her but it was more then obvious it wasn't good enough. Still, she refused to complain about it. She hadn't even said a word all day about the burn on her thigh and each time someone asked if she was okay she'd flash her angelic smile and nod.

"You'll find out," he grinned back at her, still clinging tight to her wrist. He was pulling her down one of the Courtyards, not the main one, through the darkness. She could barely see under the faint light but he on the other hand could see perfectly – one of the huge ups of being a werewolf. Happily, he led her between dozens of tress, feeling his feet crush a few flowers through their run. She was laughing behind him, enjoying ever single moment they shared together. He too was dancing with joy, never having shared a moment in his life with a woman before or even someone he cared so much about. He pulled her through a few more trees before they suddenly came to a stop.

There was a small opening, only a small one mind you, surrounded by a few jagged boulders. On these boulders he had stuck wax candles on them, more then two dozen were there to light the area for her to see. Already, the scenery looked amazing, the roses lit up by an orange and white light; the trees having parted at the perfect place for them to gaze up at the twinkling stars planted in the blanket of black space. In the centre of the opening Gaignun had set out three thick blankets on the floor, all made from thick material with pure silk wrapped around it. They were thick blankets to sit upon with immense comfort and there were a pile of three more folded up neatly in squares beside them. She noticed a bottle of red wine leaning against one of the boulders with two crystal wine glasses. Beside that were a large hamper and two plates. On each plate were a fork, knife and spoon along with a napkin folded into a swan. Red's eyes widened and a hand went up to over her lips as she gasped.

"What is this?" she whispered, feeling her heart pounding quickly. He slipped a hand from hers and went to the wine, picking up the bottle. He pulled it open and smiled at her, pouring the two glasses. Once he had done, he put the bottle on the floor and handed her one of the glasses.

"A treat from me to you," he answered her gently, toasting her glass. "Now, please do drink and take a seat with me. We shall eat and drink surrounded by the beautiful candle light. I shall light you a fire if you wish for it and we shall rest under the beauty of the stars."

Red's lips parted as she stared at him. All she could think about was the wonder of his actions and the fact she was going to spend a night out of the Castle with no Albedo. Smiling widely, shaky with nerves and shock, she moved to sit down on the blankets, taking a sip of her wine as Gaignun began to open the hamper, sorting out the food for the both of them. Her blush was as bright as could be. What were the feelings fluttering about in her stomach like wild butterflies?

"You treat me so well," she whispered as he handed her a plate covered with delicious foods. She thanked him for that and took a sip of her wine. He reached down and planted a kiss on her forehead delicately. They were no couple, as far as she was aware but she had such an urge to kiss him, to touch him and whisper words deep in his ear. She wanted to rest in his arms, to hear his heart beat and feel the gentle rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. Whatever the feeling was that she had she didn't know nor did she understand.

"That's because I care for you in ways you could never understand," he said, taking a seat on the blankets in front of her. She smiled as she began to eat, looking up at him through her blushing face every now any then. His eyes wouldn't leave her face at once and her heart pounded happily. "Red Rose, you have not told me much of yourself. Do tell. I'm most fascinated by you …" A spare hand of his moved to rest on her stomach, feeling her muscles contract in nerves as her cheeks once again flushed.

// Comments – Omg I love writing this chapter!~ I really do love this couple and its pretty fun to put in all the love tension without there being a relationship in it though its quite obvious that they both have really strong feelings for one another. Let's just hope one of them is brave enough to actually admit it XD Anywho, it was such a bunch of fun to write and I am really proud of it – its defiantly one of my favourite pieces of work, especially because this is more concentrating on the present rather then the past, like in Bitter Sweet. Oh, I hope you like Deviant btw XD I couldn't think of another character from Xenosaga to add that was a male, though I am thinking it could have been Ziggy or … meh I dunno XD I was trying to go for the friendly, hyper kind of guy that's always going to be at Red's side and oh my gosh you won't believe how many times I've actually typed Faith in this rather then Red or Rose. Whenever I think of Gaignun being with someone my mind flashes "Faith, Faith, Faith," and now I've gotta be like "RED ROSE!" so yeah XD If I have typed Faith please don't kill me for it and I really hope you enjoyed this as much as I did writing it~~~ xxx