The next few mornings passed without any significant developments. Astarion continued his work and research while Luastra learned to be a homemaker. She was a poor homemaker she figured, but it was something new for her to do. However, her urge was starting to itch inside her. Something needed to be done before she blacked out and blew her cover.

Once the sun had set and Astarion retreated into his room, Luastra snuck out her window and prowled the streets. She headed for the lower city, near Heapside Strand. It was her usual hunting ground, and it had grown a reputation because of it. No one was surprised when people went missing off the streets. The Fist tried to track her down for years, but eventually, they gave up. They figured that the disappearances were unrelated as they had no evidence. Luastra would drag the corpse to the sewers before she gave into her urge.

Sticking to the shadows, she nearly ran towards the docks. Her hands and face twitched as she tried to keep it under control. She had watched it closely, so she wasn't near a blackout, but it worried her all the same. Once she was close to the water, she slowed and waited for movement. It was unusually quiet, but she was patient.

And her patience paid off when she heard the telltale sign of someone trying to be discreet. Her eyes widened as her lips stretched into a crazed smile. She loved it when people tried to sneak around as if they were playing a game. The hunt was on as she stalked her prey from behind. It was a thin man with average clothes, most likely a resident of the lower city. He seemed to be waiting for something, or someone, as he tried not to pace along the path.

Luastra drew her dagger and carefully advanced on the man, who was so deep in his own world, he hadn't the faintest clue he was in danger. Her urge grew stronger as she grabbed the man's jaw from behind and dug her knife into his neck, right through his vocal cords. There was a strangled gasp and then a gurgle, but no scream was let out. Her eyes fluttered closed as the scent of blood and viscera met her nose. The man clawed at her hands and knife, but she had an iron grip on him. She licked up his neck, catching the spurting blood on her tongue. She hummed as the man bled out, his movements slowing down significantly. Luastra then dragged him down to the sewers once again, tossing him down on the mossy cobblestone below.

Her urge purred in her as she saw the last life leave the man's eyes as she slit his chest open. She quickly worked, stopping for a moment or two to have a taste, and she created another offering for her father. The man's entrails were neatly aligned on the outside of his body as blood pooled in a near perfect circle around him. She molded his arms and legs almost into a prayer position while still on his back. Once everything was in place, she stabbed her dagger through the ribcage and took out his heart. She placed it carefully in the man's stiff hands, now looking like he was the one offering his heart to Bhaal.

Soon, the urge faded as the corpse grew cold and stiff. Luastra stared down at her victim, a mixture of emotions flowing through her. The urge was happy and sated, but she couldn't help but feel a modicum of compassion for the man. He was clearly searching for something, and she wondered if he was meeting someone there. Wiping her mouth, she realized that she would need to take the sewers back home in case someone had been meeting the man there.

It was nearly morning when she finally climbed back into her room. She groaned as she passed by her mirror. Her entire body was covered in dried blood and dirt. Realizing that her clothes were also in a terrible state, concern grew in her mind. She could easily clean the blood and dirt off in the bath, but her clothes would be stained. Astarion would undoubtedly have questions if he were to see the state of them.

She shucked off her clothes as she gathered them on her way to the bathroom. Astarion's door was still closed, meaning that there was a good chance he was still in the house at this hour. She stored the clothes in the back of the cabinet before she started the bath. Once Astarion had gone to work, she could try and wash the clothes. If anything, she could throw them away without him asking questions.

Still, her task was done, and the urge was satiated for at least another week. Now, she could focus on more interesting things. Maybe she could borrow a book from Astarion's study and pass the time like a normal person. She sunk into the warm water and hummed, happy for the comfort after being in the dank sewers.

~U~

Astarion woke from his trance with a start. He heard Luastra come in through the window and go straight to the bathroom, but the scent of blood drew his eyes open. His hunger responded first before his mind caught up, wondering if she had gotten injured. He heard the bath turn on as he stood and left his room. He knocked twice on the door.

"Are you alright?" he asked, trying to keep the concern out of his voice.

Wait, concern? Since when was he concerned about her? She was fine and back home. If she carried the scent of blood, she was at least alive. Shouldn't he only care about her usefulness? A moment passed as he was lost in thought.

"Oh, I'm fine, just woke up too early and thought I'd take a bath," Luastra answered with a shy chuckle. Astarion froze again. She lied to him. He could plainly smell the large amount of blood on the other side of the door, but he couldn't tell her that. He was lying to her too, in a way. There was no normal way to bring up his enhanced sense of smell without divulging that he was a vampire spawn. He wasn't even sure how she would react to that fact. He doubted she would fear him, but she would at least be wary.

"Just wanted to make sure," he replied politely before he went back into his room. He closed the door and sat on the edge of his bed.

He needed to get his priorities straight. As soon as he had the Necromancy of Thay, Luastra would be out of the picture, and this sham of a marriage would be over. Not that it had even started. Luastra's mother had approved of the courtship, and Luastra had even mentioned that she was already planning the wedding. Astarion had passed that along to Cazador as well in case he wanted a say.

No matter how long it took, this arrangement had an expiration date, and while that date wasn't set in stone, Astarion couldn't let himself get attached. Cazador was already planning on Luastra's death, given that he had teased Astarion with the idea of draining her blood. He needed to distance himself a little. It did little to get attached to a dead woman.

With a sigh, Astarion got dressed and ready for the day. He had done all the research he could at the court's library, and now he needed to get a new plan in motion. The cult of Bhaal was reclusive and paranoid, as they had every right to be. The likelihood that the location of the book was common knowledge among the cultists were slim. He would need to find the leader somehow and go from there, which would be extremely dangerous.

The last known leader was a Bhaalspawn named Saravok, but he had been dead for nearly a century. With the new resurgence, there were no leads on how to get in contact or even find where the cult was. He had looked through the city's architecture and blueprints, but nothing alluded to a large temple in the center of the city. He surmised it was underground somewhere, but searching the tunnels underground would take ages. He needed at least a lead to start.

Astarion left his room, still deep in thought, as Luastra emerged from the bathroom wearing nothing but a towel around her torso. They both froze as they made eye contact in the hallway. He expected her to blush or fluster, but she remained collected.

"Off to work then?" she asked, turning to face him.

"Yes, I just have a few things to wrap up, but I should be home early," he shrugged.

"Then would you like me to make dinner tonight? You usually get home after I've eaten, it might be nice to have a chat," she offered. He thought of giving an excuse, but it had been a minute since he had a chance to sit down and relax.

"Sounds great," he agreed as nodded. "Have you heard from your mother recently? I haven't seen her around lately."

"She sent a letter addressed to you. I left it on your desk."

"Must've missed it. I'll grab it on my way out," he replied as he walked towards the steps. "Oh, did you ever ask your father about this arrangement? You mentioned that you lived with some of his friends."

"Oh, yes, he's given his approval on the arrangement," Luastra replied, following him down the stairs. "We just need to get my mother on board. What about your parents?"

"They hardly care about what I do with my life," Astarion replied almost bitterly. Luastra tilted her head to the side.

"I thought your father said he wanted you to get married," she reminded. Astarion forced a smile, forgetting his trivial lie.

"What I mean to say is that he doesn't care who I marry or what I do so long as I don't embarrass him," he answered as he reached for the door. She went to ask another question, but Astarion held up his hand. "I would love to answer all your questions over dinner tonight. I'll be late for work otherwise."

"Right," Luastra smiled. "I'll see you tonight then."

"See you tonight."

~U~

Astarion carried on at work as he usually did. His research into Bhaal had stagnated when he finished the last book available to him. He knew that there was a temple somewhere in the city, and he guessed that it would be in the sewers. However, none of the maps or blueprints of the layout gave any hints on where that would be. He had hoped that he might be able to follow Luastra down to the temple on a few occasions, but she usually snuck out to either walk around the city or to shop for groceries.

She was an odd one, and he guessed that the friends she had been staying with were Bhaalists. Her interactions with the shopkeepers were always strange, and she was lucky that she had nobility as an excuse. The rich tended to be eccentric after all, which started to make Astarion nervous. If she had started to cut off her ties with the temple, then he would be back to square one. He needed to get an in to find the Thay tome before she left her cult behind.

Astarion drafted another letter to Cazador, wondering if he would be able to pull one of the other spawn to monitor Councilwoman Gallanth. Maybe if Luastra wasn't in the cult anymore, tailing her mother might bring a better outcome. He leaned back in his chair after one of his aids left to send the letter.

He groaned when he remembered he had left the councilwoman's letter on his desk in the study. Luastra even tried to remind him, but he was in a hurry to get out the door. She had been asking to many questions while standing in the hallway with nothing but a towel to clothe her. He didn't want to admit it, but he had found her rather distracting then. Of course, he could guess what the letter said. It was a response to his original courtship proposal.

A knock on the door frame brought him back to the present. Just another politician, looking to make some of their problems go away. He dealt with them quickly, negotiating a higher price than the politician initially gave. Once the man got what he wanted, he left quickly, leaving Astarion to his planning.

~U~

Luastra tried washing the blood stains out of her clothes, but nothing seemed to get them out. She thought about tossing them out before she decided against it. It wouldn't be her last murder spree while living with Astarion, and it was better to continuously ruin one outfit than to explain why she kept replacing her clothes. Instead, she stashed them in the back of her dresser behind the drawers. After changing into something presentable, she went downstairs, pausing by Astarion's study. He had left the letter from her mother on his desk. She sighed, realizing that she had practically chased him out the door with her questions.

She had already gone through the letter before resealing the envelope, but he didn't need to know that. It simply stated that her mother accepted the courtship, among other niceties that Luastra skipped over. She stepped into the office and lifted the letter off his desk, glancing over it again. Her mother was overjoyed that she found her daughter a life partner, and Luastra almost felt bad about sham engagement. Almost.

Something else caught her attention as she returned the letter. There were some notes on the scattered pages detailing an old book. She went over them as one page was titled The Necromancy of Thay, which was followed by several different places it could be. Luastra smiled to herself as she kept reading.

She knew that book well, as she had tried to read it a few times. The spirits possessing it kept her out of its secrets. The cult had kept a close eye on it, thinking that its secrets would interest Bhaal. After many failed attempts to get into it, it began to collect dust on her chamber wall. If Astarion wanted it, it would make a fine wedding present.

Although the notes didn't explain why he was looking into it. Luastra smiled, wondering if he had a few dark secrets of his own. She would happily help him explore ways to unlock the knowledge. She put the notes down before she headed towards the kitchen.

Luastra had never seen Astarion eat other than a few bites here and there. He always claimed he had already eaten when she prepared a meal but would try a little to encourage her. She wasn't entirely sure if it was because of her inexperience or if he was just very set in his routine. Now, he had promised her that he would have dinner with her. And she had no idea what she was going to make.

The pantry had changed over the last tenday. When she first moved in, it was filled with unopened staples and root vegetables. After she went to the market a few times, the pantry had summer vegetables, breads, and sweet things. Honey had been her favorite snack with a little bit of butter on bread. She had no idea that bread could be so soft and delicious.

Luastra reached for her standard cookbook, flipping through the pages. While Astarion never ate in front of her, she had noted the things that he did eat and seemed to enjoy. He had tried the rare steak she tried to make, which she learned was undercooked, but Astarion said he wouldn't change a thing. He also humored her with her stews and baked goods, but he only seemed to savor the meats.

With a quick decision, Luastra grabbed her basket and coin pouch to make her way to the markets. She had found a recipe for a rack of lamb, and she believed she could cook it just raw enough that even he would enjoy it.

She also did a quick survey, thinking about the quickest way down to the temple and back. She wanted to retrieve the book before the Bhaalists got any innovative ideas for it. She also needed to be in and out within an hour. The quicker she was, the fewer questions Astarion would have. She also had no intention of engaging with her sister.

Once the door was locked, Luastra made her way down to the markets, enjoying the early afternoon air. She greeted her neighbors with a wave, doing her best to be cordial and welcoming. However, they only seemed to give her strange looks before they quickly went on their way. Maybe her smile was too wide? It was possible they weren't used to seeing a drow in the daytime.

As she perused the stalls, she stayed deep in thought, just going through the motions. She wondered why she had offered to make dinner for Astarion. At first, she thought it was convenient as she had to eat anyway. Now, she wasn't so sure. She was excited to cook for him, and that thought startled her. She had even made a plan to get him a wedding present, and one that only she could give him.

The worst part was that she didn't care that he had taken over her thoughts. Their cohabiting had been nice, and Luastra enjoyed that he wasn't out to kill her. She never let her guard down around him, but he never poisoned her food or left a boobytrap in the hallway for her to find. Traitorous thoughts invaded then. Could she let her guard down around him? Could she go so far as to trust him?

Her father would be furious if he could hear her thoughts now. He taught her people were made to be slaughtered in his name, but that she needed to be careful not to get caught. Love was less than useless in his eyes.

She openly scoffed at herself. Love? Not only was she being traitorous, but now she was delusional? Her father said she was incapable of love and being loved. That wasn't her purpose. A moment passed as she walked toward an alley. A new feeling settled in her heart as she was reminded of the reason for her creation.

Sadness.

Luastra felt sad that she wasn't built to love or be loved. But maybe… Maybe she could decide to love. She wasn't sure if it was love or a different feeling she had for her future fiancé, but she wanted to explore whatever it was. And now, she could, away from her father's ever watchful eyes.