Echoes in my Mind
Chapter 15: Goodbye
Once again I found myself waking up in a strange place. It took a minute for me to come to my senses, but I suddenly felt a chill run down my spine as my thoughts began to catch up with me. As the events from last night replayed through my mind, I touched my neck gingerly, feeling the faint marks from where the Count's fangs had pierced my flesh…
I jumped in surprise when a knock sounded on the door before a lady mouse stepped into the room. I gulped nervously as she approached, afraid that she might be another one of Fane's ladies. However, she smiled at me reassuringly before introducing herself.
"Hello Miss Amber," she said in a soft delicate voice. "My name is Maria." No doubt noticing the look of fear in my eyes, she gently took my hand in hers. "Don't be alarmed, dear. I'm a friend."
As she smiled again, I nearly sobbed in relief as I saw that she didn't have fangs. It had been so long since I'd come into contact with a "normal" mouse. She was very beautiful, with lovely auburn hair and deep blue eyes, and wore a pretty light blue day dress with lace at the sleeves and collar.
"Now," she said in a more serious and sympathetic tone, "I know you're frightened, but I've been instructed to assist you in getting ready for… for tonight. Master Fane will be here soon, so we must hurry."
I merely nodded, my heart pounding as my gaze shifted to the window where the last rays of the setting sun filtered through. I didn't know exactly what was going to happen to me, but whatever Fane had planned, it was going to happen soon.
As Maria pulled a dress from the wardrobe, I glanced at the outfit apprehensively. "I'm supposed to wear that?" I asked tentatively.
Maria nodded with a sympathetic smile. "Master Fane selected it himself. I'm afraid he does have rather exotic tastes."
Exotic was putting it mildly. But it wasn't until I put the dress on and stared at my reflection in a full length mirror that I realized just what little fabric the outfit was made of. The top served mainly to cover my chest, and the sleeves were pretty much non-existent as they consisted of a sheer fabric draped about my shoulders, and my midriff was exposed through another layer of the sheer cloth. At the least the skirt was long and flowed all the way down to the floor, although there was a large split on the right side that exposed a good bit of my leg when I walked. It also had a short train dragging on the floor behind me. This, coupled with the materiel itself, which was a shimmery white silk, caused the outfit to resemble some sort of erotic wedding dress.
By this point I had begun to tremble slightly, admittedly afraid of what was to come. As Maria fixed a beaded headpiece into my hair, she glanced about furtively before speaking quietly next to my ear. "There's a rumor that the great detective Basil of Baker Street is on his way here. Is that true?"
"Yes, I'm sure he is," I replied, having no doubt that Basil would continue his search for me.
"Then there's still a chance," Maria remarked, her voice straining and eyes brimming with tears. "I'd just about given up hope of ever escaping this place. We all have."
"We?" I asked.
"I'm only one of many that Fane has captured over the years," she replied, a touch of bitterness in her voice. "We're nothing to the vampires except lowly servants… and a food source. It's a living nightmare, this life; trapped in this castle, forced to serve these creatures, separated from our loved ones."
My heart ached for this poor woman and the rest of the unfortunate victims in this castle. What horrors they must have faced…
"At least you have someone looking for you," she added quietly. "It's been five years since I was taken from my fiancé." Maria turned toward the window, tears streaming freely down her face as she clutched her hands over her breaking heart. "Alexander died trying to protect me…"
It was as if lightning had struck my brain. "You're that Maria?" I asked dumbfounded.
"What do you mean?" she asked, turning toward me with a look of confusion.
"Your fiancé was Alexander? Alexander Janssen?"
Maria's eyes widened in shock. "How could you possibly know that?" she whispered breathlessly.
I rushed forward and took her hands in mine, looking her straight in the eyes. "Because I've seen him!" It was all I could do to keep my voice down as my heart raced in excitement. "Basil told me about you! Maria, Alexander didn't die that night. He's alive! All these years he's been searching for you. I bet he's on his way here right now with Basil and Dawson and—"
Before I could go any further the door to the room squeaked open. Ali strode inside gracefully while the other three smirked at me from behind her.
"Time to go, dear," Ali said, beckoning me forward with a sharp claw. "Oh and uh, I suggest you come without a fuss. It would be a shame to ruin that pretty dress."
I looked to Maria frantically, begging her with my eyes not to reveal anything. Her eyes were still wide with shock at the news I had given her and she looked as if she might faint, but she bowed her head reverently to Ali and the others and remained quiet. I gave her hand one last squeeze before walking towards the others.
"Good girl," Ali remarked with a chuckle before shoving me out the door. The other girls grabbed me before I could fall and proceeded to half drag me down the hallway. I glanced behind me, but Maria had either remained behind in the room or just wasn't fast enough to keep up with the vampires.
As we proceeded through the castle to wherever our destination was, I listened to ladies' conversation with interest.
"So you're the doppelganger, eh?" Nadya remarked to me. "At least now we know why Master Fane is so interested in you."
"She's all he's talked about lately," Acenith remarked mockingly. "How she's 'the one,' the one to 'free his true love' and 'break the spell.'"
"I thought I was his true love," Lulu said.
"He loves all of us," Nadya corrected.
"Not as much as her, apparently," Acenith sneered, her nails digging into my skin.
"Yes, before she came along," Nadya agreed, "we were most important to him."
"Doesn't he love us anymore?" Lulu asked worriedly.
"Do you idiots even hear yourselves?" Ali growled angrily, moving like lightning to bar the way, her eyes flashing like daggers. "Of course Master Fane loves us! How could you even let such a thought enter your mind after all he's done for us?! If he ever found out that you doubted him for one second..!"
The other ladies shrank back as Ali berated them harshly, their voices overlapping as they began to plead simultaneously while cowering before her.
"W-We never meant it that way, Ali, honest…!"
"O-Of course not! Never…!"
"Please don't tell him…!"
"Just see that it doesn't happen again," Ali threatened before continuing on her way. The other three followed quietly tugging me along with them. However, the silence didn't last long. They quickly changed the subject as we kept walking.
"Did they ever catch the intruders?" Lulu asked curiously.
"Only one," Nadya answered.
"But they can't hide forever," Acenith added reassuringly. "It's only a matter of time before the others are found."
"At least you and I got to have our fun with the one they caught," Nadya chuckled.
"Hey, why wasn't I invited?" Lulu said with a pout.
"Not your type, dear," Nadya said with a wink. "Definitely not the tall, dark, and handsome fellows you like."
"Although he was rather nice, wasn't he?" Acenith remarked with a devious smile.
"Mm, with that adorably messy hair and gorgeous emerald eyes…"
I couldn't stop his name from escaping my lips. "Basil?" I gasped.
"So that's his name," said Acenith with a smirk. "You know, he kept asking about you. So concerned for his beloved's safety. He's also rather stubborn fellow. I didn't think he'd ever give up. But don't worry; we took good care of him. Right, Nadya?"
"And he was delicious."
As their laughter filled the air, I shuddered in horror to think of what they did to him, what torture he must have been put through…
…..
Soon I was delivered to Fane and left alone with him. I felt my cheeks burning in embarrassment as his dark eyes took in my appearance. To my surprise, he seemed almost speechless.
"Doamne... Ești frumoasă," he remarked tenderly, touching a hand to my cheek softly. "You're beautiful."
I dared to glare angrily at him before turning my head away, still furious at him for the whole ordeal. Fane shook his head with a sad smile.
"I know you hate me for this," he remarked quietly, shaking his head with a sad smile. I looked up as he took my hands in both of his and was surprised to hear his voice take on a more quiet, somber tone. "But you must know that I am truly grateful to you," he continued. "Perhaps you can at least take comfort in the fact that your sacrifice will reunite two lost souls. Adrianna and I will finally be together again… and for that, I will be forever in your debt."
My heart began to pound rapidly again. Maybe he was right… in a sort of twisted way. However, his use of the word "sacrifice" terrified me to no end.
"I understand your motives," I said, choosing my words carefully. "I can't even say for sure that I wouldn't do the same thing if I in your position. But do you realize that in order to bring you together, you're tearing me and my…" I wasn't sure what to call him, so I quickly changed the wording. "…Basil and I apart?"
"Ah yes… your precious detective," Fane said with an evil smile. "Unfortunately, he is paying the price for daring to stand against me. But don't fret; he is alive... for now. In fact, I have great plans for him. An intelligent mind such as his could turn out to be incredibly useful, just as the Professor."
"Let me see him," I pleaded, clutching Fane's arm.
"I'm afraid that's out of the question, my dear."
"Please, I-I'll do anything—"
"You have but one purpose," Fane interjected abruptly, "and that will be fulfilled shortly."
"Then give me this one last request!" I shouted angrily, feeling the tears coming. As Fane glared down at me for the outburst, I took a deep breath, shaking as my fists were balled up into fists by my side. As much as I hated this humiliation, I resorted to begging. "Please Fane," I said, my voice quieter this time. "Let me tell him goodbye. Let me see him… o-one last time…"
I felt Fane's sharp claw on my chin as he tilted my face up to look into my eyes. For a moment, it seemed as if his gaze softened. "You really do love him," he remarked quietly.
I merely nodded in response.
After a moment of studying my face, Fane let out a small chuckle. "Adrianna always persuaded me with those same big beautiful brown eyes." He sighed wearily. "Very well, then. Come along. We must make haste."
"Thank you," I sighed before taking his offered arm, surprised and relieved that he actually agreed.
And so, not long after, I found myself being escorted down to the dungeons, a musty disgusting place smelling of dust and decay. As we went down the long hallway, I was horrified to see wide frightened eyes staring at me from behind some of the bars. Were these the victims Maria had told me about?
I didn't have much time to think about it as we suddenly came to a stop at one of the cells.
"Make it quick," Fane ordered sternly as he unlocked the door. "I have waited long enough for this."
I hesitated briefly before peeking around him into the dark cell. However, as soon as I saw the figure propped up against the far wall, I practically sprinted inside and fell to my knees beside him.
"Basil…" I breathed, throwing my arms around him. At first he appeared to be unconscious, but he soon stirred and groaned painfully as he opened his eyes and turned his head to me.
"A-Amber?" he asked weakly. He tried to sit up, but was hindered by the chains, and he winced in pain.
"No, no, no, don't try to move," I instructed, placing my hand behind his head for support. His shirt had been ripped open, and I gasped at the various wounds covering his body. Bite marks on his neck, shoulders, arms, and even his torso, along with long bloody scratches, probably from where their nails had dug into his fur as he struggled in their iron grip. "What have they done to you?" I whispered, embracing him carefully.
"I-I'm alright, darling," he insisted, although he suppressed another groan into my shoulder. I blushed as he looked up and suddenly seemed to notice what I wearing. "Why… why are you dressed like that?" he asked, his own cheeks turning a slight red as he tried not to stare.
"Fane insisted," I answered shyly. "It's for the ritual."
"Ritual?" Basil asked in confusion. I quickly told him about Adrianna, how I was her doppelganger, and that somehow Fane was going to use me to bring her back. When I finished, Basil let out a growl, glaring at Fane and straining against his bonds. "I swear, if you harm one single hair on her head—"
Fane's laughter echoed around the room. "Why on earth would I harm her? She is the key to my plan. I wouldn't dream of making her suffer."
"You're making me suffer by doing this to him!" I retorted.
"I'm doing you both a favor by even allowing him to live," Fane reprimanded harshly. But he directed a smirk at Basil. "You will still be together. Granted, she won't know who you are anymore…" I gasped in horror, tightening my arms around Basil waist while he let out a low growl. "But you—and the Professor as well—" he added with a laugh, "can take comfort in the fact that you will be privileged to spend an eternity as her faithful servants."
Basil's eyes widened as Fane's meaning sunk in, and I felt my own horror growing. He was going to change Basil into a vampire and control his every move… just as he did Ratigan.
"Now finish your goodbyes before I change my mind," Fane ordered, the smile disappearing just as quickly as it had appeared.
I turned away from Fane's glare and buried my face into Basil's neck, hearing the rattle of chains as he attempted to reach me. "I'm so sorry, Basil," I whispered, wrapping my arms around him.
"This isn't your fault, Amber," Basil replied softly into my hair. "If anyone should be sorry, it's me." He strained at the shackles binding him to the wall again, grunting as they cut deeper into his skin. "If it weren't for these bloody chains—"
"Don't," I insisted. "You'll hurt yourself worse." I took a shaky breath, unsure of my next words. Tears were brimming in my eyes as I took his face in my hands, our foreheads touching. "There's so much I want to say…" I said quietly, trailing off as a lump formed in my throat.
"Me too," Basil admitted, his own voice shaking slightly. "I wish we had more time—"
"Unfortunately, your time is up," Fane interrupted as he stepped forward and held his hand out to me. "Come along."
I let out a soft cry as I clutched him close to me one more time as our lips met in a kiss; one that was over all too soon. "Goodbye, Basil," I whispered before Fane pulled me off the floor away from him.
"No!" Basil shouted, still trying to reach me with his bound hands. "No, let her go! Fane, you can't do this…! Amber!"
I cried softly as the door shut behind us, trembling uncontrollably. If it weren't for Fane's arms wrapped around me, I would have collapsed to the floor. Basil's voice carried after us as we returned down the long hallway and emerged from the dungeons. It was just like what had happened six months ago at Ratigan's castle. Only this time, there was no hope of escape for either one of us.
….…
Author's Note: Phew, that was a difficult (and incredibly depressing) chapter...
Fane, you gorgeous evil monster -_-
I had a hard time describing Amber's dress, so if you want a better idea of what it looks like, I've got a few sketches of it in my deviantART gallery.
The Great Mouse Detective and characters (c)Eve Titus and Disney
Bloody Ali (c)~Cellenia
Lulu (c)~LuluCalliope
All other characters and story (c)Me