Speech = ``...´´
Thoughts = [... ]
ºº
``What are you doing?´´
The question was uttered with both crippling disdain and annoyance in the echo of a youthful voice, the words slipping through the stern lips of the girl standing before him as if the mere effort to direct her voice at him was as much of a burden as it was necessary.
Curious thing, wasn't it? The way something so small and brittle would stand up and bark so loudly? Clearly bitter at the way its poisonous words and over dramatic entrance had been ignored.
Not like he cared in the slightest as he remained holding the sheets of the newspaper between him and her after he had taken a sip of the cup of tea. He couldn't really taste the thing, but the meaning was clear..
If only she had enough brain-cells to get the hint….
He sighed internally, berating himself for having such high hopes about a child by his past experiences with the likes of Alpha. Now, the only thing standing between them was a wall of paper thin distance, an old sheet of paper and the cool air soon to be electrified air hovering over their shoulders.
In a metaphorical way given that the girl barely had a spark of magic in her blood to actually try to zap him out of existence.
``Sooooooo?. What is it..?´´
``..´´
``You forgot how to speak or what?´´
``…´´
``Don't make me ask twice...´´
Of all the souls to cross his path, fate had seemed right to put her at the helm of it all...as if having to deal with both ghosts and the living was not enough.
He fought the almost involuntary desire to scoff or laugh in the girls face at the sheer arrogance that he oozed from each pore of her body. The smaller they were, the louder their barking...
He pitied the fool who would end up marrying her.
``Reading...´´
He simply replied, knowing full well the sour like expression that had now warped on the child's features as a response. The way her teeth started to grind against one another like whetstones, letting out sparks would have been lost to anyone in his position...but he could still hear it like one would hear a yell in a small room.
A peculiar song those teeth were making, sadly...he had heard better.
``Is that so…?´´
``Yes, do you perhaps need glasses to picture the situation?´´
``Don't get smart with me, brat..! I know what I said and I will not be denied..´´
``Actually, I am older than you little miss….´´
``I am not little!´´
``Your size and attitude speaks otherwise..´´
``Don't patronize me..!´´
She snapped back, wailing her arms around her while she stomped on the ground.
He lowered the newspaper a little bit, not completely as if he was about to pay his full attention to the ever attention seeker that the blue haired girl was, but at least allowing for his silver eyes to peek over the white and black sheets.
His face still stuck in an expressionless mask carved directly into the flesh he bore. Had someone painted with a crayon a smile on it they would have added more emotion to his demeanor than he could have mustered on his own given his present disposition.
He just could not care to try..
``Nice lungs..´´
The two words seemed to throw the girl off balance in an instant, her face however was not one to be left with an expression of bafflement as anger started to swell underneath those gray like eyes of hers..
Stretching one of her hands forward and snatching the newspaper from his grip before throwing it over her head in an act of pettiness. One that did not end right there and there when she pointed a trembling accusatory finger at him.
``You..you dare take this..take me as a joke? Mark my words, I will have my vengeance...´´
Sometimes he wondered whether it was the full blown results of a lack of decent parents that had silver spoon the brat nature to rot and act like a little shit…., or just in the blood.
Perhaps that explained why he had caused purges in the nobility until they were as rare as a good nights rest for him.
Always nagging everyone about the blood that, the tittle here…..my lands are here not there.
…
…
``Now you are keeping quiet? Don't you know who is talking to you..!?´´
``Are you quite finish..?´´
``A-uuuuuuug..h!´´
``I take that as a yes….´´
``Where do you even learn manners? In a barn..!?´´
``Asking for directions?´´
In retrospective, perhaps he should have held his tongue right there...as a second later he found himself immediately ducking to the left and right in a heartbeat as the little girl started to grab the cups of tea and thrown them at him.
The poor things flying and shattering apart when they collided with something sturdier than the feeble porcelain.
She only stopped once she realized that she had ran out of things to throw at him.., though by the looks she was giving off the matter was far from being settled. However he was more interested in looking at the now broken shards of porcelain that laid all over the place.
``That was a waste of good tea and a perfectly functional set of cups..´´
``Like I care..´´
``If that is what you wish…´´
``Stop it..!´´
``Stop what?´´
``That?´´
``That what?´´
``Shut up..!´´
``Well, if that is all...I bid you farewell..´´
``You cant do that..´´
For a moment Koldarrd was thinking whether he should kill her right there and there and just create a clone of her. The end result would surely be far more pleasant than any of this…
It would only take a thought if he didn't deign himself to blemish the hands of his puppet with her sinful flesh.
The thought was all too much appealing, especially when he started to visualize the way her neck would break and the swift sound her last pathetic breaths would slip past her throat while she stared at him in adjacent horror were something that he could almost picture with vividly.
It nearly made his body feel a throb in the cavity that he had once called a heart.
…
…
Thinking about it, perhaps it was not that bad of an idea. Besides, who would ever want for such a pathetic, shrieking animal for company..? Not him.
And with that thought in mind he stood up from his seat.
ºº
Sarisha had everything.
Power..
Beauty…
And the out-most attention of both servants and her parents alike.
That was how things were meant to go.., that was her life, that was how it was meant to be from here on out the end of time.
And then he came.
A boy she had never seem before, someone that appeared to be a cousin from her fathers line of the family that hailed from Velgata, in a county that she had not heard about nor really cared off. Regions of foreign nations were not really of her interest, dresses and parties however were a different story.
Raven black hair falling down his shoulders in a neatly cascade of darkness, his face set in a cold expression, silver eyes looking with a predatory glance.
She had been curious at first, but as the reason of his presence in her home was revealed she believed that would be the last time she would see him.
It seemed that the Velgata empire had made another blind purge of nobles and that his parents had been taken out of the picture. And though he had managed to survive and reach Midgard all on his own, he had nothing else but the clothes on his back.
In the world of nobles, he was now just an over qualified peasant.., and so, she was sure what the outcome of his fathers decision would be. She was surprised however, in a bad way when her father instead of pushing him away, welcomed him with open arms.
That was not meant to happen…
He was not meant to share the same space than her…
It was not that it was impossible, it was inconceivable….!
But that was not the worst of it. In a few days what she felt as annoyance became full bloomed hostility as she came to witness him day after day. The way he spoke, he walked, he acted were exceptional, perfect….too perfect in fact..and that troubled her to no end.
There was something foul, something wrong about it. At least, to her..
But those thoughts were not truly heeded when her mind became more focused on seeing her parents and even her grand father regard with a hidden sense of pride at the wayward son of her fathers distant brother was sickening.
They didn't say it, but it was clear to her that they were not as troubled as she was about this development. In fact, she had seen the way their eyes glimmered with hidden intentions, planning…
Why? Why would they even needed to do that when they had her? Wasn't she good enough?
It made her heart ache, but pain turned into anger as the image of her now present problem took form. Damn him! Damn him forever! He had stolen her thunder...and he treated it like nothing!
What!? Because he thought that he shared a connection with her fathers bloodline did he thought that made him her equal? That he could parade on the same ground she trod over..?
Was that supposed to make her laugh, as if I would ever allow that!] And so, she tried to eliminate him..
Besides, what was noteworthy of him to be part of her home? His looks? He was not ugly, much to the contrary in fact.., but the way he acted felt like an old man. His eyes? He shared an ever more purer hue of Grey than hers, turning into silver, but it had no glimmer or warmth to them, they were two cold rocks. He was not worthy of been a Pendragon…, and if her parents were not gonna do anything to kick him out, then she would gladly take take mantle of responsibility of it.
First by breaking things here and there and blaming him for it…, it had served her well to take out some pesky servants who did not know their place, but it didn't work. The things that should have been splattered on the ground in a million pieces appearing to be fixed before she even managed to draw the attention of her parents or the servants.
She tried to spike his drinks with non savory condiments to make him act foolishly, but nothing happened.
She kicked him under the table time and time again when they were either alone or eating together at the dining hall, but she did not manage to draw not even an ounce of expression.
She tried to steal thing from him, only for them to disappear in a moments notice and return magically into their proper place.
She tried to make rumors go and spread through the servants about the boys true nature, but for some reason no one seemed to pay them much heed.
What was going on..!?
Why nothing was working!? Who or better yet, what the hell was him…!? The lack of understanding made this feeling of helplessness all the more bitter.
With all resources and choices spent, she decided to confront the origin of her vexation directly..
Hoping to yank away the answers from the source of it all.
She had failed.
She had come with a thousand different scenarios of how to respond and act in his presence to get what she wanted, to strike him from the ebony tower he stood over and bring him low…., only for each and every last one of them to come undone under the scrutiny of a soul that did not care a single cent about her, her prestige and her words.
Like an old man sitting over a rock and gazing a slow movements of the waves, ignoring the way the crabs tried to poke at his boots as he slowly fell asleep. If she was not fuming then, she was definitely now.
And yet, her lips refused to convey any more scathing remarks. Her hands trembling after throwing all those cups at the vexing boy…, yet refusing to continue on in her futile attempt to lash out.
Why?
Why nothing ever worked with him..?
Why was he able to act so superior? So much capable? Were the gods laughing at her? Was this their way to punish her greatness..?
Unbeknownst to her, Koldarrd, the boy that she had considered her number one foe started to stand up form his seat. A scene that coincided with that unnerving sensation of feeling something crawl behind her back.
A feeling of wrongness that started to grow stronger and heavier as the boy rose to his full high. Silver eyes glaring with nothing of life behind them, the two orbs sunk into flesh that was turning pale and sickly, his black raven hair loosing its hue and shades as spots of whiteness started to appear here and there.
She tried to speak, yet only air slipped past her lips. He however was not deterred as she was, taking one step forward while she took a step back.
His face started to darken, his features sharpening as he tilted his head forward. His face an expression of distaste carved into stone, a far-cry from the usual simple and bored like expression that he used to wear.
``W-what are you doing?´´
He did not answer, he took four more steps. His hands balling into fists, the air growing cold and cool to the touch that she could not help but shiver a little at that.
``You..you are not really thinking on hitting me, are you? Y-you would not get away with it..!´´
She warned with all the strength that still remained, her voice trying to challenge him, to show that she was not afraid…, but this new him was too terrifying.
Once again, there was no response. His form continued to grow bigger and bigger as he approached even as she tried to put some distance between them, but once her back collided with a wall, she realized that she was trapped.
By the time she looked again, he was standing barely a meter away from her. Towering over her, his forms projected a shadow over her.
Had he been so big..? So..huge? Threatening? She had troubled remembering any other moment he appeared as anything but a remarkable passive toy. In fact, she had trouble remembering when had he last blinked since he had stood up from his seat.
Those cold eyes still open wide, still glaring at her without pause, relent or mercy...
…
...
Yes, she was starting to miss that part of him, this new face scared her.
The fact that she had not fallen to her knees already even though tears were already streaming down her fair skin and down her cheeks, smearing the mascara that had once adorned her features and given them a much better depth was because they refused to even bend. Paralyzed by the sheer fright that was coursing through her like a the winds of a whirling through a small empty window.
However, either by luck or misfortune her mouth remained functional enough..
``W-what are y-you...what are you going to d-do..?´´
Her voice was weak, shaky and ghastly at best. Nothing that a noble born like her would be proud of…, yet her mind was unable to realize it.
``….´´
He tilted his head to the side, his expression unchanged, the mood in the room becoming even more tense as she was regarded by those eyes that were completely devoid of any emotion and flickered in..red?
No, not red...no even crimson or scarlet like blood..but burning flames that promised nothing good to anyone unfortunate enough to find themselves under their gaze
He could not be human..
This thing...could not be human!
Then something broke loudly at her side, her entire body flinching at the sudden brush of air and rock being pulverized into dust. And though her head and neck remained locked in place looking forward, her eyes took a side glimpse to her left, realizing that there was and arm stretched barely brushing her, and that the fist that should have been there had tore through the wall like it was made out of paper.
``Fools talk, cowards are silent, the wise...listen´´
The sound of the boys voice drew her attention back to him, making her miss the way he pulled his hand out of the wall and let it land softly over her shoulder. Fingers stretched forward as if prepared to grab her neck..
The words were cold with a sense of dread dragging with them.
They were almost echoing, not through the air, but inside her skull. Reverberating like someone whispering through a long tube. Terrifying, and yet so mesmerizing..
She did not know what it was..
She did not know the way her heartbeat started to slow down..
She did not even realized the way her body became numb and her world became fuzzy and murky as the darkness consumed her.
The only and last thing she saw were those merciless eyes.
ºº
There had been many things in his mind as he had taken those steps. Great things, terrible yes…, but great nonetheless about the many uses he could give his soon to be puppet. Sure enough it would certainty be an upgrade from the little shit that continued to pester and make noise like an insect and bullied everyone around her.
He had killed children by the hundreds back in his time, what would another be to the mountain of corpses that rested behind his back..?
But..he didn't.
It was not mercy which had stained his hand, not a wrong timed sense of sentimentalism or humanity still left in some forgotten hole in his heart or just the terrified face she had shown as terror took an iron grip on her heart that had stopped him from ending the useless and bratty thing and remolding the girls body to his liking…
No, such things were not at play here…
The answer were that wayward thought of hypotheticals that had crossed his mind just in the nick of time. A question about: what would Alpha think of this.
Would she approve and say that it was in his right? Would she not care in the slightest and consider it as just another necessity? Or would she abhor it? He believed he knew the answer, but believing was not the same as knowing...
She was a child.
She desired vengeance and justice.
And would follow him to the ends of the earth either in utter blindness or merely sheer stubbornest, believing that he was the avatar of both. She had shown enough of those traits when she had refused to stand in the sidelines and join the fray...
Something that galled him as much as it amused him.
The matter however remained the same.
Could killing a child who had nothing to do with the cult be considered "good" by her standards..?It was a good question, and...fortune have it..had given him something to consider to "Test" the girl once he returned to her side.
After all, he had no need for sycophants who would grovel and kneel before him. If he had wanted, he could just mass produced the undead or just release the souls of those he had devoured from within the depths of his cold body.
Looking at the still unconscious form of Sarisha, he could not help but scoff with distaste at the droll slipping through her lips as she remained face down onto the cool wooden frame of the floor.
Useless as she was, she really had seemed able to grant him a realization for later use.
The brat really had been lucky, though he doubted something like this would happen again. Still, that did not mean that he had not done something. There had been changes, just not in the "replace the individual" kind of type.
"And here I thought that you were gonna do something drastic.."
The sultry voice of a certain witch came around the corner.
He did not needed to turn to regard Aurora who now was descending from the ceiling of the library, the place she had turn into her temporal nest for fun and games.
He had known she had been observing the entire thing from there, perhaps thinking that he was not going to notice as long as she kept quiet and not hovered just down right the middle of the conversation as usual...
Her eyes glimmering with playfulness and her lips once again wrapped in that kind expression that would probably been consider motherly as she slowly made her way into the floor, landing over it, even though..as a ghost she should not be able to touch the ground.
As always, Aurora seemed to be a lighthouse of chaotic positivism...something that he had tried, and failed to adapt to.
However, her voice denoted both her relief and tenseness that still lingered in her body. He almost frowned at that. It seemed that she too had thought that he was about to murder the girl right then and there.
Well, for once in her lief she was not wrong...
``I was about to..´´
"You know..you were not suppose to admit it so easily..…"
He finally turned around, his face still questioning his past choices...
``Why?´´
"I don't know...I thought that you were gonna say something to deny it. Like when the protagonist catches the villain red handed and they tried to worm their way out with a speech...or something.."
Even though what she said most of the time was just empty air that need not to be taken serious, at least she should try to not make any sort of foolish and silly mannerism while she spoke with him. It made the entire conversation from casual, to a bloody circus.
Once again, he found himself regarding the foolishness of not having drop her spirit down a well instead of having kept it by his side until now. Who really was the fool then..?
He shook his head. ``I don't make excuses.., and you are reading too many fantasy books..´´
"Annoyed about something so minor? My, so blunt...Shouldn't you try to put a more stoic face in front of a girl?"
``….´´
"Oh, don't be like that..besides, I didn't say I dislike that frank side of you."
``Good for you..´´
She smiled back, hovering just over his right, her violet hair falling gracefully like a purple cascade over her shoulders and then his when she placed her weight or in this case weightless body onto of him.
Fingers tugging onto his clothes and broad chest. Soft lips parting ways, whispering into his ear.
"Good indeed, but I have the feeling that you did not say that with the best of intentions…, perhaps you would like to share what is in your mind"
``The only thing I may share is the migraine you are giving me if you are so fucking inclined..´´
Far from bothered of disappointed Aurora started to chuckle immediately, almost as if she had found out a peculiar joke he had not heard about.
"Fine, fine..I know when I am beaten, but this wont be the end of it...after all, I have an eternity to make that sturdy iron bend here and there.., no need to be hasty"
The only response that she got was a stern glare which she seemed to shrug off with ease as she started to poke at his cheek with one of her fingers.
He swore that one of these days she would be punish accordingly.
"Still... if it makes you feel better...I think that she deserved that scare. She really can get on someones nerves.., and I am already dead as it is!"
Well, on that regard he agreed.
That little girl really could easily annoy a grown man, even him...which was not that much of an accomplishment if he thought about it.
It was by then that Sarisha started to stir up from her sleep, the girl slowly opening her eyes and looking around with clear confusion about how she had landed on the ground with no previous recollection of it. Her movements were sluggish, uncoordinated..., until they found him.
He offered a hand, and though she initially refused it, she ended up graving it and using to stand back up anyway.
After all, why would he now refused his offers..?
``W-what happened..?
``You were talking with me and then you lost consciousness ´´
``That's dumb, you are dumb…, I could not have fallen unconscious. I am the heir of the Pendragon family, my health is iron clad..!´´
``You would be surprised how wrong that statement is..´´
``And why is that?´´
``Because you are a useless, stupid, waste of breath….that's why..´´
Sarisha stared at him in shock, utter bewilderment taking over her expression...but just as she was about to speak, her lips closed and the glimmer of her eyes died out.
``Yes, I am…´´
``When I speak, you must listen..´´
``I will..´´
``You will go to your "father" and tell him that whatever problems you had with me are gone and that you are sorry about it.., also, you are tired so you will retreat to your quarters to rest´´
``Now?´´
It was almost funny to see that a part of her real self had managed to resurface only to say that..
The brat had some shrewd priorities.
``Now..´´
"So this was one of the things you were doing when she fell down, eh? Scary….., remember me never to get in your bad side.."
``You already did, remember?´´
"That was once..! And it was not intentional.."
``It damn well was...´´
And with that said he snapped his fingers, and the heir of the Pendragon family came out of her trance. Rubbing her forehead, mewling to herself..
``W-what was that?´´
``Nothing, you seemed to doze off again..´´
``W-what? That doesn't make sense...´´
``Then how do you explain the fact that you were literally kissing the floor..´´
``I..well…´´
``That is enough of it, leave now that our business are concluded, I am sure that you will have to clean yourself up now that your clothes are wet..´´
``Business? Ah.., r-right...I came here to speak with you..´´
``And we just finished..´´
``And we finished yes, though I don't remember well what we spoke..´´
``You were angry and were making a lot of noise..´´
``That makes sense, wait, what do you mean by wet? Why does my head hurt..? Urrgh..´´
The blue haired mdiget tried to say, only to find herself taking a step back and holding onto her head as pain started to flare out inside her feeble skull.
``Why yes...haven't you notice?´´
`` What are you talking about?´´
``Where do you think you decided to take an emergency nap?´´
He said, pointing a finger at her clothes which now presented several stains of tea, the very same one she had thrown at him.
It was not much though…, but to someone like the brat it may as-well have been a killing blow.
The horror that followed in her face was monumental, though only second to her wailing. For such a small body she really had some strong vocal cords..
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A/N
Here comes another chapter, I hope you like it. I apologize if there are things that are hard to understand and for any other grammatical error you may find. Don't be afraid to share your opinions about the story for any feedback is accepted (unless you start spamming about obscenities or just being a dick, so...that), anyway, I hope to see you next time.
Have a great time
:)
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(Last thing, do you think that this story should show nsfw stuff like sex among other things, or you think that the story should be kept sfw and I create another series with all the steamy scenes? I ask..given that I saw lately some authors who choose to do that for their own fics.)