Joseph was glad he and the staff made as much food as they did, because everyone was helping themselves to everything that was available. It was Thanksgiving after all, so it made sense for people to indulge in more food than usual. As he began to help himself, he couldn't help but overhear some people complimenting how good the food was, particularly the sausage Cassandra, Raphael, and the Duke had made. This made him smile as he knew the brunette would be happy that her hard work had paid off.

After Joseph filled his plate, he made his way out of the kitchen where he spotted his girlfriend sitting at the dining room table with Bela and Elena. They seemed to be having a nice conversation and were smiling and laughing. Hell, everyone seemed to be having a good time, and this warmed his heart to see. Things were indeed improving. It was slow, but steady.

Being careful not to bump into anyone, he made his way over to the table.

"Got room for one more?"

Cassandra turned and upon seeing Joseph, she smiled warmly.

"For you, always." She said.

Joseph smiled back and took a seat.

"So Elena. Are you and your father settling into your new jobs well? I know things have been hectic today so I wanted to check in." He asked.

Elena swallowed her food before responding.

"It's been going well for us so far. It definitely took some time for us to get used to, but this is a huge improvement from our old lifestyle. We make so much more income now, so it's taken a huge amount of pressure off of us."

"Not to mention, you guys stay in the castle now. So your living conditions are a huge upgrade too." Bela said.

"Absolutely. I always considered my old bed comfortable, but the ones you have here? Oh my, they're like a big marshmallow."

"You'll get no argument from me there." Joseph said. "It's just the best to relax in a nice warm bed on a cold day. Hell, maybe Cassie and I will get a TV for our room in the future."

The brunette chuckled.

"As much as I would love that, we really shouldn't. Otherwise, we'd never leave."

Her boyfriend laughed. She had a good point there.

They sat in silence for a few moments enjoying their food. All the while, Cassandra noticed the way Bela was looking at Elena, but the blonde looked too nervous to say anything. Smiling, the brunette decided to give her sister a helping hand.

"Elena, did Bela show you the grand piano we have in the opera hall yet?"

Elena's eyes widened.

"You have a grand piano? Oh, that's amazing! Do you play, Bela?"

The blonde blushed.

"Yeah. I try to practice on it at least once a day. It's a good way for me to take my mind off of things."

"What songs do you play?"

"Quite a few, but Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata is my favorite."

"Oh, you have to show me! Can we go?"

Bela's blush intensified.

"S-sure that sounds good to me, but can we finish dinner first?"

"Okay!"

Once they were finished, Bela and Elena excused themselves, the latter practically jumping with excitement to see Bela's piano skills. As they walked away, Joseph gave Cassandra a high five.

"Nice work, Cassie."

"Well, Bela helped us get together so I thought I'd return the favor."

After they themselves were done with dinner, they headed back into the main hall and began to chat with some people. At one point, despite their efforts, they ran into Mother Miranda, Joseph felt his body tense.

"You did a fine job with the meat Cassandra. In time, perhaps you yourself could become a chef." She said.

"Thank you Mother Miranda. That means a lot to hear that coming from you." The brunette said.

Miranda then turned to Joseph.

"Joseph, I can tell we didn't get off to a good start, and I want to apologize for some of the things I said when we first met. I could tell that it irritated you."

He was a bit surprised to hear The Priestess say this, but kept his composure.

"Well, the way you said how I 'tamed' the Dimitrescu family did anger me. You made it sound like they were animals and not people."

"I see. Perhaps I should have used my words more carefully."

She took a breath before continuing.

"To change the subject, Alcina was telling me how you encourage people to give others a chance. Would you be willing to give me one to tell you my story?"

Joseph sighed and nodded. It was only fair that he did.

"Thank you. I've never actually told this story in its entirety because of how painful it is, but I suppose it's about time someone heard it."

"Why suddenly tell it now, and why to me?" Joseph asked.

"I felt an interesting vibe come off of you when we first met. I could tell you're not like the other people in this village. You seem to be an open and understanding person. Someone who really knew how to help another in times of pain. Perhaps I see this as an opportunity to get my own off my chest."

Joseph paused for a moment. He had heard from Cassandra and her family about how Miranda experimented on them and used them. It was a cold thing to do and it angered him to no end. At the same time though, he didn't know much about The Priestess, and neither did anyone else. As he pondered this, he remembered something Alcina had told him. Miranda's work was dedicated to 'finding a suitable vessel for Eva'. Is this what The Priestess is talking about?

Now really curious, Joseph nodded.

"Yeah, you can tell me your story."

Miranda gave a small smile and nodded back.

"Thank you. First things first, this might surprise you, but I am actually over one hundred years old."

"You are?!"

"Indeed. It all started during the early nineteen hundreds when my daughter, Eva, fell ill with the Spanish flu. Despite the best efforts of me and my colleagues, I was sadly unable to save her."

Her face became more somber.

"I was absolutely devastated, and I just couldn't fathom why my daughter was taken from me at such an early age. I went into a horrible depression and began sleepwalking through life, alive, but with no reason to be. That changed however when I arrived in this village. It was here that I discovered the Megamycete, and the incredible things it could do."

Joseph gave a confused look.

"What is the Megamycete?"

"In short, it is the reason I was able to create the Cadou, and the mold that I used for my research. Once I discovered its true potential, I dedicated my life to finding a way to bring back my beloved daughter, and give her a second chance at life. As you can no doubt tell though, I haven't been successful yet, even after all these years. I must admit, it's been incredibly frustrating, but I won't give up. A mother never gives up on her child."

Joseph nodded. He was surprised to say the least. He was expecting to start losing his temper again like his first encounter with The Priestess. But now, he was actually beginning to understand what she was about. She was a grieving mother, and he actually was starting to feel sorry for her. Maybe she wasn't as cold as he originally thought.

With this new knowledge, he decided to be bold and confront her about the things she had done. It was a gamble, but if he played his cards right, he might be able to help The Priestess.

"I completely understand what you're saying, Miranda. I am truly sorry for the loss of your daughter. No parent should ever have to bury their child. I want to ask you something though. With the research that you have done over the years, did this thought occur to you with the people you experimented on?"

"Joseph, don't…" Cassandra begged him, but he either didn't hear her or ignored her.

"Do you think you were justified to bring that pain onto others? Do you think it was justified to mutilate people's bodies to the point where others were horrified by them?"

Miranda paused. These questions surprised her. Some of the people who were close by were now watching as they had heard Joseph talking.

She adopted a more serious face.

"I don't appreciate you using that tone with me, Joseph. Surely you understand the love of a parent to her child don't you? How can you question my motive?" Miranda said with an authoritative tone, but it was clear it wasn't completely confident.

To her surprise, Joseph didn't back down. In fact, he didn't look intimidated by her at all.

"It's not your motives that I question, Miranda, it's your methods. I would question the actions of anyone who would let people suffer like that, even if their intentions were pure. I understand your pain of loosing your child, but that doesn't give you the right to force it onto others!"

By now, the confrontation had caught the attention of everyone in the room, but Joseph didn't notice. Once he started, he couldn't stop.

"And here's another thing. Let's say you were able to successfully revive your daughter. How do you think she would feel if she saw what her mother had become, and all the things she'd done?"

Miranda froze now. That question caught her completely off guard.

"I…I…"

"You haven't thought of that, have you? You were so focused on bringing back your daughter that you didn't pay any mind to the pain and suffering you caused around you, including inflicting the same pain that you were going through! How is that fair? Do you think Eva would want that?! No! She would be terrified to see you this way!"

Silence. Dead silence. So silent that one could hear a pin drop. Miranda was as stiff as a statue. Her brain had completely short circuited from Joseph's rant, because it was true.

In all of her years of research, she never once paid any attention to how her experiments were affecting others, because it was never on her mind. All that mattered to her was Eva. Nothing else mattered, and no one had ever been brave enough to confront her about it.

Until today.

She slowly began to look around her to everyone present. The villagers, Alcina and her daughters, and the other lords. All of these people who she never gave much of a thought to over the years were fully getting her attention for the first time, and all she could focus on were how her experiments had affected them.

Alcina's height and worsened blood disease, Donna's facial tumor, and Moreau, oh god Moreau. His body hardly looked human anymore, and she had mentally manipulated each and every one of them into being obedient to her so she could further her research.

There were also the villagers who probably all at some point lost loved ones to them. She may have not killed those people directly, but she had created the people that did.

Joseph was right. Everything that was around her, all the pain, all the suffering, was her doing. She was just too focused on Eva to really notice or care. But now, it was like the blindfold had been ripped from her eyes.

And the more she looked at the results of her work, the more she realized another thing. Eva truly wouldn't have wanted this to happen. She truly would be terrified, as this person wasn't her mother anymore. She was a monster.

This stabbed Miranda;s heart more than anything. She had dedicated the last century to reviving her daughter, but now she was realizing that it wouldn't have mattered if she succeeded or not. She had again failed her child, but this time in a debatably worse way.

She could only form a single sentence in her mind.

What…What have I done?

She suddenly burst into tears and sprinted out of the main hall. Everyone was still frozen in shock by what had just transpired.

But after a moment of pause, Joseph finally took off after The Priestess. He understood now. He realized that he had been wrong about Miranda.

She was never evil. She was a mother who had been overcome by grief, and as a result, became desperate to see her child again by any means necessary. And while Joseph knew this didn't justify her actions, he at least understood her. Nobody deserved to go through that kind of pain. Not even her.

And now, just like Cassandra and her family, he wanted to help The Priestess. He didn't know if he could, but he knew he had to at least try.