Miyuki ran her finger along the table mindlessly, feeling the freshly cleaned lenin. When she felt the cold metal of a fork handle, she brought it up to her face to inspect. It shone like if it was brand new-which it most likely was-and it had an unnecessarily fancy design engraved onto it.
Funny enough, the fork was made out of pure silver. In human society, silver cutlery was considered a sign of wealth. In vampiric society, it was a sign of a very brazen host. Miyuki imagined very few people could get away with this, and her Grandmother was one of them.
The weight of silver in her hand grew tiresome, so she put it back down and took a look around the ballroom. The servants were working tirelessly to put up the rest of the decorations to prepare for the party. It was barely sunset and they've been working for nearly three hours now, it was amazing they didn't show a hint of their exhaustion.
Miyuki, on the other hand, had a sour look on her face. After spending morning and night trying to figure something out, Miyuki found herself short on options on how to avoid that silver haired idiot from trying to ask for the impossible of her. 'How am I supposed to explain to Grandmother that I want to leave without her figuring out what happened? There's no way!'
If she were to get picky about the favor she knew he'd lash out and try to get back at her somehow, probably, that's the impression she got from him anyways. She couldn't guess how he'd lash out but she knew it would be more than annoying. If she were to get what she wanted she'd have to make it seem like it was fair-even by a little-so that he couldn't complain about it later.
She could only brainstorm a couple of suggestions to try and offer instead of "stay away from me forever"-seriously how old is this guy? But she wasn't even that committed to those ideas. So, her best bets were to either find something during the party that could persuade him, or just have him killed later in a way that wouldn't be traced back to her…
With that, she got up from her seat. The only reason she came down here was so that the servants could report to her Grandmother that Miyuki was actually leaving her room. The last thing she needed was her Grandmother assuming that her granddaughter was turning into a hermit. That would only invoke her to barge into her room more often.
Just as she was making her way to the door, deciding to read something to settle her mood before the party, a wretched stench intruded her senses. Immediately she stopped and stiffened, but she refused to shake under this presence. Instantly, it felt like every cell in her body chilled up in disgust, and she made it a point to not turn around to face the person that she knew was behind this reaction.
She didn't have to wait long before she heard him clear his throat, indicating for her to turn around and face him. 'Like if this bastard has any right to ask anything of me.' With a coy smile, she looked over her shoulder and her eyes met with a pair brown ones. "Oh my, have you been there the whole time? How crude of me to not notice." 'How long have you been stalking in the shadows you damn parasite?'
The man that stood before her looked like he was a young adult. He had a youthful face that didn't really match the monotone expression he wore. Like his clothes, that dark red hair of his was perfectly well kept without a single thing out of place. He looked like he was in his early twenties, but he dressed like he was middle aged.
His tone matched his atmosphere, cold and without any real heart. "I just got here. I was going to check up on you after making sure everything was going smoothly down here, but you've saved me the trouble." As he spoke he looked down at his watch, as though he only had so much time to spare.
Still refusing to fully face him, Miyuki crossed her arms together, never dropping her smile. However, her eyes did narrow down coldly, but she knew it wouldn't bother him, not really-not like how she wanted it to. "Well lucky you. What is it that you need then, sir?"
She noticed the way one of his brows ever so slightly twitched up at the way she addressed him, and it didn't satisfy her at all. He quickly cleared any emotion from his expression, back to his usual routine. "Just to let you know that Tatsu-sama has prepared a dress for you. She'll be expecting you to wear it tonight."
'Grandmother always buys me a dress for social occasions you dumbass, I was already expecting the maids to bring it to me when I was going to start getting ready. There was no reason for you to tell me yourself!' "How sweet of her~. I'll be sure to get dressed in it later."
With that, she looked forward and went back to trying to exit the room-where the servants quietly continued to work as though they couldn't hear a single damn thing they were saying.
Then, to her dismay, she heard his footsteps follow after her. "Miyuki." She didn't even have a second to half-ass facing him this time before he grabbed her by the shoulder and turned her to face him properly by force.
Instinctively she felt sick, she felt worse than sick, but she refused to ever let him see what his touch did to her. So, she settled with coldly staring back up at him. Like the vermin he was.
Just a tiny bit, she could see something behind those dead eyes. She could see the mild frustration at her, and it still didn't satisfy her. "Your grandmother wouldn't approve of your attitude right now. If someone is speaking to you, it's common courtesy to properly face them."
'Of course you'd throw Grandmother's approval in my face, it's the only damn thing you have on me.' A heartless smile made its way back to her face as she crossed her arms over abdomen, feeling discomfort by his grip. "My mistake, whenever she's not around I guess I forget how to respect people."
His grip on her tightened for just a moment before relaxing again. "Then make it a habit to imagine she's always around."
'I already do. That's why I haven't gouged those damn eyes of yours out.' "I'll keep that in mind."
She waited for him to drop his grip on her, because she knew only trouble would come out of her forcing him away. She was meant to act poised and composed within these walls. That was her role.
Then, his expressionless mask began to crack. He looked her over, up and down, and she felt her skin crawl under that look. His cold and serious looks were always annoying in their own ways, but she preferred them far more than what was hiding under the mask. Right now, there was a glimpse of the real him, and it was the worst sight of all.
His eyes locked with hers, and she forced herself to not let it show how much she wanted to run away right now. He didn't deserve that much. Audaciously, he even leaned a little closer to her, and she felt his thumb give her shoulder a small stroke that made something inside her retch. "The more you grow up, the more difficult it becomes to keep all those suitors away from you. And it's clear to see why."
… She held her tongue, because she knew there was no way for her to force out dismissive words. There was no way for her to say anything right now that wouldn't have an intentional bite to it…
Thankfully, he finally removed his hand from her, and once again that disgustingly fake mask fixed itself. "I'll be checking on the kitchen and the garden if you need me. Make sure you wear that dress."
He did her the favor of walking past her, meaning she didn't have to speak anymore. She heard the door open behind her, and she heard him pause. Once again, she refused to look back at him.
"I saw it too, it looked like it would suit you." Then the door shut.
…Even now she couldn't let her emotions expose themselves. Even now she was being watched carefully. To be watched by the servants meant she was being watched by her Grandmother. So, she couldn't let an ounce of her abhorrence show.
. . .
For what felt like the hundredth time, he tried and failed to tie the damn thing. This time, he nearly ripped it in half. So he figured it'd be better off just thrown over his coffin. He managed to put on everything else, what was the point to one little piece of cloth anyways. 'Ayato's probably going to half ass his, so what the hell does it matter if I wear one?'
With a sigh he practically fell down into his chair, and opted to just glare daggers at nothing in particular.
He woke up this morning ready to run off so that he wouldn't have to go to the damn party, ready to find any kind of excuse possible. However, like if there was some kind of camera inside his head, he got a message from the last person he ever wanted to speak to.
Subaru tightened his grip on the arm rest, willing himself to not break it but in desperate need to break something. Everything inside him felt seething and it only made him more frustrated that there was nothing he could take it out on.
Just as he was putting his shoes on and trying to think of a good rock to hide under, he heard his phone go off. He rarely got messages, so to hear that he got one was more than a little confusing. Then he saw what it said and who sent it.
"You are to attend the party today and behave yourself. Otherwise you'll only be stressing your mother."
Subaru knew a fucking threat when he saw it, and that man definately had to power to go through with it. 'How fucking important could this party be for you to drag her into it?' His teeth clenched and arm rest whimpered under the pressure of his stress.
Left with no other choice, he just got dressed in the clothes that the servants had laid out for him. What else was he supposed to do? How could he possibly run off now? It was just a stupid party anyways. He'll just suck it up and deal with it.
Behave? Fine. Fine, he'll behave. If that's what everyone wanted out of him so badly that she had to be dangled over his head like a damn bargaining chip. He'll make sure not to hit anyone. That's what everyone wanted wasn't it. To not lash out and cause a scene like he tends to. Just shut up, sit down, and not say a damn word! Right?
…He let out a deep breath and let his rest in the palm of his hand-the arm rest now showing a noticeable hand shaped dent.
As he tried to calm down, a face flashed in his head. Those black eyes that looked at him desperately to listen to them. For a moment, he felt another hot flash in him, and he let out a humorless chuckle. 'You happy? You're getting what you want, and you didn't even have to bring up that whole "deal" thing of yours.'
. . .
The maids were putting the final touches to her outfit for the party tonight. It was a dress her grandmother had picked out in the demon realm, it was a white satin dress with accents of deep red lace around the V neckline and the hem of the skirt that hovered just above the floor. There was also a satin ribbon in the same color as the lace that tightly wrapped around her waist. 'A neckline that almost shows cleavage without actually, and a fitted look that shows off my figure. Grandmother's probably planning on showing me off today. The dress is even sleeveless.'
"I saw it too, it looked like it would suit you."
She grimaced sourly as that voice played in her head. 'Of course you'd say that.' She felt like running away from this. It wasn't the fact that her Grandmother was most likely planning to flaunt her around as her precious possession, she was used to that. In this moment, she couldn't even bother giving that single celled idiot a second thought. She just didn't feel like having those bastard's eyes glazing over her…
No, no she had to pull herself together. This was just like any other event. She would have to smile nice and wide, she would have to converse lightly and coyly with the guests, she would have to suck up and deal with however the room looks at her, and she'll have to make sure nothing goes wrong. There won't be any commotion at this party, and everyone will go home more or less the same as when they got there.
And in order for that to happen, she needed to get into character…
"Young Mistress, we're done." A monotone voice drew her out of her thoughts and she waved a hand to dismiss the servants.
Looking over herself, she really wasn't surprised with her grandmother's decision. She loved to dress her lavishly but with some modesty. A simple design compared to what other guests will be wearing tonight; to state that Miyuki didn't need to fancy herself up to look beautiful. That was always something her grandmother loved to subtly hint to others when she was showing off her granddaughter, especially since everyone knew that the Shiki Tatsu wasn't planning on letting anyone have her hand anytime soon.
Despite not really being her taste, Miyuki still liked this dress better than the last one, at least this one had some color to it. The last one was pure white and silver. Everyone joked that Miyuki looked like a bride without a groom-and they "cleverly" tried to cover up the jab by saying such a beautiful bride didn't need a groom.
It seemed no one was aware of the fact that her Grandmother almost always picked out her dresses for these events. And the theme of white and silver was completely intentional. Her grandmother dressed her in white for one simple reason; it was so that she could easily spot any stain or smudge on the dress. It was just another way of keeping tabs of whatever Miyuki was up to at all times.
"That's just grandmother for you." Miyuki muttered to herself as she fidgeted with the silver choker. Her fingers itched to put on her usual necklace with the deep blue gem, but there wasn't any way to wear it without her grandmother noticing it. She knew it was safest in the jewelry box.
Then, in the blink of an eye, Miyuki saw her grandmother in the reflection of her mirror standing right behind her. That familiar face smiling sweetly at her, it caused Miyuki's heart to immediately drop.
"...Grandmother, you nearly gave me a heart attack." She gave a half-hearted complaint as she spun around to smile up at the woman. With her hands behind her back, she put all her effort into not reacting; thanks to the mirror, her grandmother could observe her from both the front and the back.
A hand went up to her Grandmother's lips as she chuckled lightly. Then, that very hand reached out to cup Miyuki's cheek, and she made sure to stay calm as her blood ran cold. "A little fright every now and again is good for the body, don't you think?"
She ran every possible response in her head quickly before going for the one she thought her grandmother would like the most. "You make a good point, almost nothing else gets my blood pumping enough these days. Especially since you've been gone." Thinking it over, she decided to place her hand over the one holding onto the side of her face.
Thankfully, her Grandmother looked pleased with that response and once again chuckled lightly. "Oh my sweet child, and I thought you'd be used to me coming and going by now."
"Never, family should always stay close." 'Smile, don't stop smiling.'
"Right you are. But my followers insist on knowing everytime I move somewhere new. You know how restless they can be if they can't find me." With that she moved her hand down to Miyuki's exposed shoulder and gave her a look over. She looked pleased. "White really is your color isn't it? It always makes the darkness of your hair and eyes stand out more. Always so lovely." She twirled a strand of Miyuki's hair with her fingers slowly-which was probably why her Grandmother told the servants to keep a few strands loose.
"You always know what looks best on me afterall. Thank you for the new dress Grandmother."
"Let's just hope no one gets any ideas when they see you."
She gripped Miyuki's shoulder-just a little too tightly-and spun her around to face herself in the mirror again. Miyuki stared into the mirror and met her grandmother's gaze through it. As always, it felt like those eyes were trying to drill into her and hold her down by force. Miyuki always thought it was unnecessary, her grandmother already owned every inch of her, why must she go the extra mile to try digging her claws in?
Her arms wrapped around Miyuki's chest and "hugged" her close without breaking eye contact. "I can't blame the world too much for being enchanted by my little Doe-Eyed-Raven, but I've never seen anyone that comes close to being worthy of you. It's such a shame isn't it?"
The question wasn't really a question. It was a command. Because her Grandmother didn't actually want to hear whatever Miyuki thought, she only wanted to hear one thing.
Knowing fully well what was expected of her, knowing fully well what her role was, Miyuki wrapped her fingers around her grandmother's arms and smiled brightly into the mirror. "All I need in this world is this family, everyone else doesn't matter."
A look of pure approval blossomed in those pitch black eyes, and with that Miyuki knew she'd played her role correctly. Now she had to keep the game going, she had to make sure this woman stayed pleased.