"No touching."
Aisha whacked his hand, leaving a black smudge across it. "You are going to wrinkle it, and I spent two weeks hunting for that."
Bell grabbed the hem of the skirt, struggling to pull it further down. The damn thing barely came down to his knees, and his bathroom was cold.
"I look stupid. Why am I wearing a skirt?"
Aisha's hands returned to dying his hair as she hummed behind him. In his opinion, that hum sounded entirely too happy.
"It's Haruhime's birthday, so if she wants you to look stupid. You will look stupid, and you be happy about it. Also, it's called a kilt." Aisha chuckled as she spun him around to face the full-length mirror in the bathroom.
He did indeed look stupid. He couldn't imagine anyone had ever looked this stupid before in their entire life. A bright green kilt, orange deep V-neck shirt, an amethyst necklace, and dyed black hair.
"I can't believe this is how Odysseus dressed," Bell grumbled.
"I don't make the stories, kid. On the bright side, she might faint as soon as she sees that shirt," Aisha busted out laughing. Her outfit wasn't much better. Striking purple parachute pants with a red leather jacket adorning a yellow undershirt. "What did this hero do anyway? Cause his enemies to die laughing?"
"Odysseus and his party were performers before they were heroes," Bell replied. He had never spent too much time thinking of the heroes' outfits. Bell knew a good outfit made a good impression. The appearance of this outfit was memorable for sure, but definitely not in a good way.
He followed Aisha through the manor. Typically the manor was quiet with everyone getting ready for the evening's events. But not tonight. No, it seemed every female inhabitant of his familia was walking through the mansion's hallways. Every time they passed him, they looked at him and Aisha and then quickly walked away, their hands covering their mouths. The tinkling sound of laughter echoing behind him made his cheeks burn.
They finally emerged into one of the old ballrooms. The giant chandelier was glowing brightly above the long tables full of food dominating the back of the room. The center had a cleared dance area with a raised stage in the corner where several of his familia members played instruments. Everyone dressed in similar garish colors as himself.
Making their way over to Haruhime, the Renard looked like a princess. She was dressed so normally that she stood out in the hall. Her typical red Kimono was replaced with a pearl white one, a little tiara sparkling in her hair.
"Bell- what are you wearing!" Haruhime swayed in her seat as she stared at him. Her cheeks turning a bright red.
"He's Odysseus! Does our little Bell match your favorite hero?" Aisha spun Bell around like a ballerina in front of Haruhime. Bell scowled; the damn Kilt almost came up when she did that!
"Aisha… I think you flipped Odysseus and Circe," Haruhime stammered. Bell whirled to glare at the grinning Amazon. He knew it was a skirt and not a kilt!
"Whoops! Well, Bell, you do make a lovely Circe."
Bell grumbled, grabbing a seat between the two women. The party was starting to get into full swing. The wine flowed and the band picked up the music, getting faster and wilder as the night continued.
"I didn't know there were this many men in the familia."
There were almost fifty men in the room. Bell was confused, as he hadn't seen a single male besides the one who had been following Ishtar before in the manor. Many of the men were dancing or drinking with an Amazon or two.
"Ever since that Toad left, many men have been coming back. Some of the girls have boyfriends now, and several have even joined our familia so they can stay in the district," Aisha replied. Haruhime nodded, her own eyes flickering up and down Bell's chest.
"My children."
Ishtar's silky voice cut through the crowd. The band stopped playing, and everyone turned to watch her descend into the room.
"It is a memorable day today. Our very own Haruhime is now the age of majority."
Cheers broke out, several people slamming their mugs against the table. "Crane's third month with us, and our average level has advanced to almost four! Now drink to celebrate your success but keep it inside our district. We absolutely cannot have a repeat of the Blue Oyster incident."
Bell watched as most of the amazons seemed to recoil and shiver.
"What's a Blue Oyster?" he whispered as Ishtar left the band picking back up.
"A bar and slang for a medical condition combined into a disaster," Aisha replied. "Now, my Circe, I believe I will take this dance." Aisha took his hand, firmly leading him to the dance floor.
Slipping into the mass of bodies, he struggled to lead the much taller woman. He didn't like the look on Aisha's face. She was up to something with if the small smirk and the way her eyes were looking over his shoulder were any indication.
"Haruhime, would you like a dance?" Aisha asked as she was spun by Bell. As he wasn't tall enough to turn Aisha, she turned herself, making for quite a comical scene.
"Bell, may I?" Haruhime asked, shifting awkwardly in the middle of the dance floor.
"It would be my pleasure."
Bell gave a half bow, enjoying the way red crept up onto Haruhime's cheeks. The music slowed as the band switched songs at some unseen signal.
His arms wrapped around her waist as they slow danced. Around them, Amazons rested their hands on their partner's shoulders, slowly spinning in circles, the sounds of conversation lowering into gentle whispers as the lights dimmed
"Are you enjoying your birthday?"
"I am. It was very kind of you to dress up for me," Haruhime replied with a soft smile.
"Even though I am the princess?" Bell joked back, nodding down at his outfit. She giggled, her eyes boring into his own.
"It's the thought that counts," she whispered, slowly drawing nearer, her breath warming his nose. Bell's eyes widened as she pressed her lips against his gently. She drew back, closing her eyes, and laid her head silently against his chest as they continued to spin slowly.
The song finally ended, the band leaving the stage to raucous applause. Haruhime was as red as a tomato as they returned to their table.
"A little tip, loverboy," Aisha said. "Next time, don't kiss with your eyes open."
Bell's face flushed but the butterflies in his stomach jumped at the words next time.
Phryne sneered down at the latest report. When she first went into hiding, she had no less than thirty Amazons feeding her information. Aisha was an upstart, and the boy was a nobody, a level one. They had understood what a mistake it was to make Aisha the captain. Her most trusted lieutenants had helped her set up camp in the basement of one of the old empty brothels. Now, she could only count ten that still responded to her. When she saw them next, she would remind those ugly hags why she was the best.
Bending down, Phryne picked up the tiny purple orb that was included with the report. Barely the size of her closed fist, the sheer power it held was ludicrous. She would correct Ishtar's mistake.
A clang of metal brought her eyes to the chained-up male. His skin was covered in bruises, and his shoulders sagged. Combined with the blank look on his face, it spoke volumes of his broken spirit.
"You want to go again with this body?" She asked, licking his face.
"Please, no more! I'll do anything!"
A grin split her face as she pulled out a milky white solution, cutting her palm and dropping several drops of her blood into it. The Mentos Imperious was an illegal potion. It bent the mind making anyone who took it pliable to the order of the one whose blood was mixed in. Once he had drank all of it, she unshackled him, dragging him across the stones by his ankles.
Opening a large wooden door, she tossed him into the pitch-black room. The appearance of light caused the men inside to scurry to the corner like spiders fleeing a boot. She threw her latest man in. She would need to drag them into the dungeon shortly. She needed to beat Aisha to the middle floors and take her out.
"I'm going to take everything from you," Phryne thought, slowly rubbing the killing stone.
AN
: A huge thank you to the Beta Readers who assisted with this chapter. I can say without a doubt they made this chapter what it is so a huge thank you to Eurille and Gogo2015
An2: The next chapter is almost done, I am hoping to have it released by Tuesday at the latest.