Chapter Text
“Remember me y/n. I'll be waiting”
You frenziedly shoot up out of your bed, covered in sweat and breathing heavy, with the raven haired woman's voice ringing in your ears.
What the fuck is that supposed to mean?
Your head falls into your hands and you let out a deep sigh. You didn't have time for this shit today. No time to ponder the ominous last words of the woman in your dream and no time to linger in bed either, because you had a meeting with Mother Miranda today. Great.
Groaning at the thought, you stand and tiredly make your way to your bathroom to get ready for the day. You strip out of your night clothes and throw them in the hamper in the corner. Soon the bathroom fills with steam and the smell of your cherry and almond soaps.
Per her last letter, the other Lords would be present at what she called a “Family Meeting”, and she needed all of The village Lords to be in attendance. Which included you. Unfortunately. Unbeknownst to them and probably everyone else, there was a fifth Lord that The Priestess had taken under her wings nearly 2 and a quarter centuries ago now.
You. Lord Y/n Bogdon. The very first Lord. Now everyone always thought it was Lady Dimitrescu who was the first but she was a very close second. You both had been Lorded within months of each other.
When you joined her ranks, Mother Miranda had asked that you stay under the radar and that was just fine with you. You preferred not to see too many people almost one hundred percent of the time, seeing as you were not an extroverted person, and when she admitted she knew how jealous her ‘children’ could be, you knew you could never meet them and be just fine.
Your normal meetings have only ever been you and the priestess alone. She would give you your mission and upon your return you’d log it in, and receive a new mission. This meeting better be important if she's gonna have all her minions to meet at once. Other than you and the other four lords, there wasn't really anyone else that you had heard of working for the woman since you had known her, so she must be close to finishing her plan.
‘I hope so ’ you thought , ’ I may work for her, but that doesn’t mean I want to do it for as long as I'm immortal. You scoffed at the thought. Not like she would let useful underlings go. She’d probably keep you around to babysit the little chit she’s trying to shroom, or mould, or whatever she said. She sounds batshit most of the time. Thank god for files or you never would have completed any missions.
You finally finish your shower and wrap a towel around yourself. Making your way back into your bedroom, and towards your vanity. With practiced ease only centuries of habit could give you, you blowdry your long wavy hair, and pull it back into a half up half down look with small pieces of hair framing your face. You apply some light mascara, your full long lashes doing most of the work, then make your way to the closet and grab some wool leggings, a long black skirt, and a blood red long sleeve button up shirt. After laying the clothes on the dresser next to your bed, you grab a set of underwear from the top drawer and slip them on before doing the same with the leggings, skirt, and shirt.
A knock at the door interrupts you on your way to get your socks and shoes.
“I’m decent Helena, you can come in.”
The door opens and Helena, your head maid or rather your only maid, enters the room carrying a tray with tea, two cups, and a bottle of your blood wine. Your breakfast. It’s a special blend you get imported by the crate, it’s a wonderful wine and you’ve been drinking it for many years. Mother Miranda was actually the one who introduced you to it.
But Helena was a different story. Helena had come to you as a young girl of 18, fresh off the boat from Ireland, during one of the coldest recorded winters in Romania in 1988. Herself and her foal Titan had been seeking shelter on the way to the village and she had marched right up to your door, with the small foal strapped to her back, and had begged you to shelter them if only for the night.
You took pity on the two and welcomed them into your home. They were freezing when you had brought them in and after you both got Titan situated in the stables, you helped her get back on her feet with some hot food and a warm bath. Eventually an overnight stay turned into a week and you got to know each other better. During that time you realized she reminded you of yourself with her spunky and strong personality and you couldn’t have possibly asked her to leave after that realization. That same day you asked her to stay and work for you. Since then she has been your closest friend and confidant.
Back then she was a skinny little thing. Short and tiny, her head only coming up under your chest since you were 7’0. And the brightest auburn hair you had ever seen. Her eyes an icey blue that complemented her hair perfectly. Now, she’s a plumper woman and there are some streaks of gray in her hair and it has lost some of its vibrancy. Both a testament to the 30 plus years she had spent in your employ. She hasn’t grown at all but her eyes are still the same striking blue as they were then. Another thing that stayed the same was her sassy attitude that matched yours. There's never a dull moment at home and conversations seem more entertaining since you both liked to sass back at each other. Sometime between then and now, she had become family.
“You slept in longer than normal, do you really think the meeting will be that bad?”
As is the routine of nearly every morning, she sits the tray on the coffee table and takes a seat on one of the many lounge chairs that litter your bedroom, pouring the wine into one cup and tea into the other, getting ready to share her morning tea with you.
“No but anything can happen at those ‘meetings’ of hers, and it doesn’t help that I'll be meeting the other lords for the first time as well. I have no idea how they'll behave or how long this meeting will be. Don't wait for me at lunch. I most likely won't be home till dinner if it goes how I expect.”
Moving to sit across from her, you put your shoes on and take the offered wine with a soft ‘thank you’.
“If you say so deary. Make sure to-” she starts.
“Mind that sass of mine. Yes, Helena, I know.” you interrupt chuckling at her mothering. “Sometimes I think you forget that I'm nearly 2 centuries older than you. I know how to mind my manners, you know.” Now laughing outright when she shoots you a glare.
“You could have fooled me. We both know just how well you ‘mind’ .” she huffs. “Just promise me you'll be careful today. Like you said you don't know what the lords are like and I'd prefer it if you came home in one piece.”
“I'm a vampire Helena, I'm sure whatever they dish out I can take.”
She glares again.
“Yes mother.” you concede with a joking groan. Noticing it's nearing the time you need to leave, you finish off your glass, and rise to make your way back to your vanity to grab your signature jewelry; a ring and bangles.
The ring is a gorgeous thing, made of rose gold and hand crafted to resemble the pendant in your dream. It’s a smaller, slimmer version with the flowers wrapping around the sides like vines. You slip it onto your left ring finger and do the same with your bangles putting one on each wrist. They were gold instead of rose gold, and they were also handmade, but unlike the ring the bangles had been a gift to you a few years after you had been turned, by a village of shaman women. They were the oldest piece of jewelry you owned and you wore them every day. They were also quite the secret weapon to you seeing as they were imbued with the ability to help harness your magic but they looked just like any other day to day jewelry.
Finally you make your way to the door, grabbing your cloak on the way out.
“Goodbye Helena! I’ll See you at dinner!” you call out to the woman.
“Goodbye Dear!”
You’re Halfway down the hallway when you hear Helena once more.
“Please be careful!”
“Yes Helena!”
“Oh! And don’t let Titan go faster than a canter You know how he can get!”
“Yes Helena!”
“And you’d better bring me-“
“bring you some chocolates back yes Helena I know” you holler back at her, laughing as you finish her sentence. Before she can respond you’ve rounded the corner and made your way down the stairs and out of the main entrance.
The stables were nearby the front and off to the side of your home, and you quickly made your way to Titans stall.
“Good morning my friend.” You say to the black percheron horse, in greeting.
Tiitan became part of the family just as fast as Helena did. He was a scary looking horse, standing at 20 hands tall and wide as a house. He couldn't have been a gentler creature though. Like Helena, he was a little spitfire, and now that he's older hes mostly well tempered, unless of course you gave him room to run. That was when his fiery personality showed the most. You had wondered why he was able to stay so agile in his old age but you never questioned it, chalking it up to good breeding but you would enjoy his company as long as he was around regardless.
You give him an apple as payment for today before you brush him and put his tack on with an extra blanket for him later. The air is bitterly cold when you leave the stables and step outside. Romanian winters had always been harsh but this year was just an intense all consuming cold and you pulled your cloak around yourself tighter. Hopping up into the saddle with ease, you walk Titan to the gates of your home and urge him into a trot as you move past them, starting your journey towards the decrepit church where Mother Miranda demanded to have this popup meeting.
You make good time riding Titan and another half hour of riding finally brings you and him in front of the church.
You find a small shack off to the side that would keep your steed a little warm for a while, and also keep him hidden. Mother Miranda knew you were coming but that didn't mean The other Lords would know and you wanted to keep it that way until you absolutely had to show yourself. You throw the blanket you brought for him over the saddle to rest on his back and make your way out of the shack and towards the church.
At first glance, the outside of it looks like any other church from the village. Run down, tiny, and surrounded by mountains but it's the inside that sets it apart. Immediately as you step through the arched wooden doors all you can see is the bright light of the sun coming through a gaping hole in the roof. You look to your left and right and on each side there are balconies full of lycans. These ugly assholes are failed experiments of Mirandas. They, like the four other lords, were ‘gifted’ the cadeau by Mother Miranda, but they didn’t take to it well like the lords did. They became mindless, zombie-like creatures that the blonde woman could barely control.
Thank god she never made you take the cadeau. With your luck you’d have probably ended up a Lycan.
Continuing on further into the church, you see that it's insanely dirty, with wood chips and debri everywhere littering the lower level. There are ropes hanging from the part of the ceiling that's still intact and a rug hangs off the side of the right balcony. In the center of the room there's a short stage that the hole in the ceiling shines down on. On the left side of the stage there's a worn wooden chair and an even larger chair sits in front of it on the ground level. It looks like it's made for a giant. It's terribly tall, with the arm rests of it easily coming up to your stomach.
Directly across from it on the right is what looks like a church pew sitting slightly turned towards the stage but still mostly facing the middle of the room. Candles are in small groups all around the darker parts of the room and near the chairs, to brighten up the places the sun doesn't shine on.
You find a set of stairs off to the right leading to the first balcony and make your way to them, deciding on hiding on the steps rather than going all the way up to the second floor. From here, you can see everything. It’s the perfect spot to be until you have to show your face. As you sit down, you hear the sound of a horse coming down the path outside. By the sound of it the horse is large and the hoofbeats sound almost metallic as they hit the cobblestone outside.
The sound of footsteps makes their way to the door so you take a deep breath and sink into shadows effectively shrouding you in the shadow realm. Your bangles release a low hum, as they allow you to call upon your magic. Yes, your bangles were very important indeed.
As soon as you're hidden the doors burst open and in comes a man in a brown trenchcoat and what looks like a dirty fedora. In one hand is a chain and an unconscious, bloodied man is on the end of it, his wrists bound by cuffs. The man drags him to the center of the room and leaves him there. In his other hand he’s carrying a large hammer and you notice that he's wearing some very fashionable black circular glasses. His hair is silver and comes down to his chin, with a matching scruffy beard. There’s a smell of smoke that fills the air as he passes by and you can see that he’s smoking a cigar while he makes his way to the bench on the right. This must be Lord Karl Hiesenburg. If all the times the blonde woman bitched to you about his habit of smoking ‘those disgusting cigars’ didn’t give you a clue the hammer he wielded also gave you a pretty good idea as to who he was.
You watch him set said hammer down off to the side of the pew and take a seat. At the same time you hear the sound of more hoofbeats. These sounds are coupled with the creaking of a carriage or maybe two. You believe the rest of the Lords have finally arrived.
Finally. Let’s get this shit show on the road.
A minute or so passes by before you hear 3 sets of feet making their way to the entrance.
The door opens and another man walks in. He’s wearing a black hood and black pants with a crown made of bones and twine holding the hood against his head. You notice that he’s slightly hunched over and limping, and a trail of a shiny, slimy looking substance follows him since his feet are bare. When you look at his face you have to hold back a gasp. His eyes are black and face is covered in boils and bumps. They are completely taking over his chin and flow down to his chest. You can’t imagine what the rest of his body looks like. You want to assume this creature is Lord Salvatore Moreau. ‘The fish’ as Miranda likes to call him. She was always going on about how useless he was but his undying devotion for her seemed to make her want to keep him alive. Instead of finding a seat he just stands next to the bench where Lord Heiseburg sits.
The last ones to enter are the ladies.
In front, a black clad body wearing a black veil enters before her counterpart. Almost her entire body, save for her hands, were covered in a long sleeved black dress that was also beautifully embroidered in black. In her arms she carried a wooden and old looking doll wearing a wedding dress. A stark contrast from the black that the woman holding it wore. The doll's dress was only slightly dirty at the bottom but the doll itself looked cracked and worn. Like a well loved childs toy that’s starting to show its age. Despite the crack in its face, the veiled woman holds the doll close as she makes her way completely silent to her seat in the chair on the small stage. Going off of what Mother Miranda had said about how much she ‘abhorred that piece of floating driftwood’ that the veiled woman carried with her. You assume the pair must be Lord Donna Beneviento and her doll companion.
Having watched them enough you quickly turn your head back to the door to watch the last Lord enter. Or, well, start to enter. All you can see is the top of a very large black brimmed hat passing under the doorway, blocking the view of the person wearing it completely. That's when you realize she has to bend over to fit through the door. Even if the other lords weren't already here you would still have no choice but to assume this was Lord Alcina Dimitrescu. The Priestess seemed to speak down on her the most, calling her ‘ her biggest failure’ because of the way her body responded to the cadou. You can't take your eyes off her as she steps the rest of the way into the room and you gasp as she rises to her full height. It feels like time stops as you take her in.
She is stunning. Her bright golden eyes peek at you through the shadow that her hat creates over the top of her face. Her lips are covered in a striking red lipstick, and her cheekbones are high and defined. You can see short black hair curling under her ears, slightly hidden by her hat as well. She had to have been over 9 feet tall. That must’ve been what Mother Miranda was talking about. You couldn’t help but think that her height was actually a win. You had never met another person that could challenge your height and here she was almost an entire 2 feet taller than you.
Definitely not a bad thing.
She’s wearing a white dress that flows all the way down to her feet, barely touching the floor. It had pleats under her breasts, the ones that had you blushing and rushing to move on and take in the rest of her. It had long sleeves that reached to her wrist, and the edges of the white fabric met the black leather gloves that covered her hands.
Moving your eyes upward again you see that Pearls encircle her neck and in the center of them lays a golden crest. You can’t see all the details from here but it’s diamond shaped and very shiny. You can’t help the second blush that covers your face when you look slightly down and catch a glimpse of her breasts again. Your eyes move quickly away and you try to control it but to now avail.
‘Take a breath you raging homo.’
Following your own advice, and moving on, you finally see the 3 flowers pinned to her neckline closest to her heart. They’re all black and completely identical in every way.
Lady Dimitrescu finally takes her seat and her entrance is overshadowed as mother Miranda appears in front of you all, standing in the dead center of the small stage, commanding all of your attention.
Not a word is said as The Priestess begins the meeting.
….
The first 4 hours of the meeting were quite boring. Miranda takes an hour per lord to catch up on their progress with their respective tasks and give them more that they need to complete, not bothering to tell you yours. Your tasks had been completed and logged for a while and if another mission came around, you knew that she trusted you enough to get it finished in a timely manner. You were nothing if not punctual. She finished it all by telling us that the ceremony was soon to be completed and that we should expect another addition to our ‘family’ soon.
Family my ass you crazy bitch. You might have those four under your spell but not me. No fucking how.
And finally she answers the question that you had been wondering since you saw the man that Hiesenburg dragged into the center. She explains that the man is Ethan Winters and his daughter is the reason why the ceremony is so close to being done. It turns out that the child is the perfect candidate for the cadeou, and will help Miranda in her endeavor of bringing back her late daughter from centuries ago. Miranda took the child from him and his wife when she found out and since then he’s been trying to get her back. But seeing as he’s laying on the floor, right in the lion's den so to speak, it looks like he didn’t get very far.
“Now, I need him to be monitored until the ceremony is complete, and there’s no need to be gentle.” She says to the group with a sickening smile. Waving her hand towards the sleeping man on the floor. “Who shall do the job?”
Lady Dimitrescu is the first to step up to the task. “The man is of no real use to anyone else, and my daughters do so love entertaining foreigners. Furthermore, I can assure you if you entrust the mortal to house Dimitrescu, my daughters and I shall deliver to you the finest cups of his slaughtered blood upon your victory.”
While she speaks you see that Angie and Lord Moreau are in front of the man, trying to get a good look at him as though they’ve never seen a person before. What was so special about him? He’s a mere mortal. Then Angie’s screeching voice echoes throughout the church.
“He’s awaaakkkkeee.” She singsongs and claps her hands, so much more excited now that the man is conscious. Lord Moreau also makes twin sounds of glee but before the duo can get rowdy Lord Heisenberg hollers “BOTH OF YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP!” In a fast cadence that almost has you laughing out loud.
They stop cold, and rush back to their respective seats while Hiesenburg then turns his ire to Lady Dimitrescu.
“You mean you’ll screw around with him in private and where's the fun in that?” He says hotly.
“Give him to me, and I’ll put on a show everyone will enjoy.” He continues confidently, now to Mother Miranda.
Lady Dimitrescu huffs at the silver haired man’s words. “Oh so gauche. What do we care for bread and circuses? The man-things suffering is assured regardless.” She quips.
Not one to not get the last word, he speaks again now in a mocking tone.
“Yack yack- and if a man’s dick is cut off in the castle blah, blah, blah.”
You can see it in her face that she wants to reply back, but Miranda’s authoritative voice cuts through their argument and all ears are ready to hear her verdict.
“Silence! I’ve heard all your arguments. Some of you were more… persuasive than others but, I’ve made my decision.”
The room falls quiet at her pause.
“Heisenburg! The man’s fate is in your hands.” She says, her hand waving to the man in question.
The tension in the room lets you know that you’ll definitely be having a migraine soon.
5
Lady Dimitrescu stands from her chair quickly, clearly upset.
“Mother Miranda I must protest! Heisenburg is but a child, and his devotion to you is questionable.” She steps towards The winters man and looms over him. Heisenburg mirrors her movement and also stands
“Give the mortal to me, and I will unsure he is ready.” Lady Dimitrescu’s voice sounds confident and taunting as she watches Heisenburg grab his hammer and take a step towards her.
4
“Shut your god damn mouth and don’t be a sore loser! Go find your food somewhere else, you super sized bitch!” The hammer wielding man growls out.
His comment sparks a chain reaction.
Lady Dimitrescu immediately goes on the defensive and she starts to shake with rage.
“Quiet now child! Adults are talking.”
3
You notice that Lord Moreau is shaking as well, but with fear, obviously reacting to the raised voices of his siblings.
“Oh I’m the child? You’re the one arguing with Miranda’s decision!”
“You wouldn’t know responsibility if it was welded to that horrendous hammer!”
With each comment you can see Angie’s little body buzz with excitement, and she climbs down from Lady Beneviento’s lap and starts clapping and jumping up and down.
2
“Oh keep growing, maybe one day your head might actually fit your ego!”
Then Angie decides jumping wasn’t enough and starts to egg the two on.
“FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!
1
And, ah yes, there’s the migraine
A growl of annoyance leaves your throat. Hoping to get everyone to shut up, you choose now to be the best time to make your entrance. Your bangles hum and you let your magic reveal yourself and walk down the stairs, interrupting the two bickering idiots.
“As much as listening to family disputes is a favorite pastime of mine,” you say in a sarcastic tone “I believe I have a third, better, solution to your… Man-thing problem, Mother Miranda.” You finish and step out fully from your hiding spot.
And for the first time since the meeting started, all eyes were on you. Great. Removing your hood, and letting your hair flow down your back, you make your way to the center of the church.
Heisenburg reacts first.
“You think you can take him from me, little bitch?” he growls out. And immediately he falls to his knees as a black vine takes him by the throat and chokes him. Your eyebrows raise slightly and you look at Mother Miranda who is staring intensely at Heisenberg.
“Karl,” she said mockingly sweet, “if you're going to act like a dog with a toy you won't share, then I’ll treat you like one.” And with that he falls on his hands, taking large gulps of breath. “Perhaps Alcina was the better choice to watch the mortal.”
When he catches his breath, his voice is hoarse as he asks “And who the fuck are you?” You meet his eyes and you realize they’re filled with rage.
Maybe because his ‘mom’ embarrassed the fuck outta him in front of you and you practiclly gave his sister his toy.
Oh yeah.That.
You clear your throat and say clearly “I am Lady y/n Bogdon.”
You can feel Lady Dimitrescu bore holes in your forehead when you introduce yourself and you sneak a quick glance at her. She’s oddly quiet as she stares. Watching you like a hawk, with her eyes not leaving your face for a second. Odd. Very odd.
You glance at the other two lords, who are enraptured by the show being performed in front of them. Well you think Lady Beniviento is, her body is still but her veil shakes slightly. But that could possibly be because the doll she was holding was practically vibrating in her lap, so excited to watch the scene unfold. Perhaps she only came for the entertainment.
As for Moreau, well, you didn't want to look at him for too long, poor thing. He seemed very uncomfortable in this situation, and if he had any more attention on him he might just combust. But yes, he was watching too.
“And you're here because?” Heisenburg spits angrily, having found his voice now.
“Because I invited her.” and just like that all eyes are no longer on you. Thank God.
The Hammer wielding man scoffs loudly at that revelation.
“I think that's enough from you Karl, unlike you, dear y/n here is actually providing to the conversation.” Mother Miranda said, in a tone that said don’t fuck with me right now.
Turning back to you she says, “Speak.”
“Mother Miranda, I am more than willing to watch over the Winters boy until the ceremony,” you reply, giving him a quick glance. “My home has a small cell but it is reinforced enough to hold even the strongest of beasts. I have no doubt that I can easily watch over him.”
“Thank the stars that there is Lord amongst you all that doesn’t let petty rivalry’s come between following orders. Why didn’t you speak earlier, dear Lady Bogdon?”
You shiver at her pet name. And not in a good way. There was a downside to following Mother Miranda’s orders well. She loves it when underlings exceed her expectations and based off of the way she complained about your “siblings” as much as she did, you came to the assumption that you were her favorite.
Yuck.
You look around and see the confusion that flashes across the faces in the room. You’d be confused too if you heard your normally cruel and cold leader call another person that you didn’t even know existed ‘dear’. Twice!
“Simply because what you say goes, your excellence, and I would never want to challenge your authority. But now seeing how my siblings are behaving, I wish to offer a third and reliable solution.” Mother Miranda eats up the half fake bullshit you speak.
It was true that you wanted to offer a reliable solution, but you didn’t give two shits about Miranda’s Authority. If ass kissing got you what you wanted, so be it.
“You always are reliable aren’t you Lady Bogdon. You speak the truth. The Lords have been behaving rather childish and I’ve grown tired of their bickering.”
Heisenburg growls lowly, and Lady Dimitrescu is also in a similar state of anger. Lady Beneviento and Lord Moreau are silent as they watch.
“I’ve changed my mind.” She opens her six wings to their full length to further show her authority over the situation. “Lord Bogdon will watch over Ethan Winters. If there are any that disagree,” the priestess looks to both Lady Dimitrescu and Lord Heisenburg now and her voice turns ice cold.
“Hold your tongue, lest I rip it from your mouth.”
Her tone chills you to the bone and you hold back a shiver.
And with that she turns into, are those fucking crow?!!? and vanishes through the hole in the roof, the meeting now clearly adjourned.
Then once again, all eyes turn to you.
Shit.
“It's so good to finally meet you all, after all these years.” You say to the group cooly, deciding to just break the ice. More like ripping off a band aid really. Before this meeting you had no interest in meeting the other Lords that Miranda always spoke about. But now that you’re here, you might as well try to get along with them.
“I’ll ask again,” Heisenburg says lifting his hammer to line up with your chest, “who the fuck are you?”
“As kind as ever Lord Heisenburg '' you reply dryly, your face a mask of stone. Placing your index and middle fingers on the side of his hammer with your left hand, you push it away from yourself and extend your right to shake his hand. “To truly answer your question, My name is Y/n Bogdon. I've been working for Mother Miranda for quite some time now. I would say it has been a pleasure to meet you but fortunately my mother taught me the importance of not telling lies.” You say, smirking slightly. He hums in conceit and with a tiny smirk on his face, takes your hand in a firm grip, shaking it once then letting go.
You turn to face Lady Dimitrescu but her back is turned to light a cigarette, so you move on to Lady Beneviento.
“Lady Beneviento.” You greet the woman, and stick your hand out. Instead of the soft human hand you were expecting, a smaller wooden one is thrust into your palm.
“Nice to meet ya, toots. I'm Angie and you!” she says looking you up and down, “Are smokin’ lady.” Her high pitched voice ringing in your ears.
Ever the gentlewoman, you bring her wooden hand to your lips and reply, “It's lovely to meet you Lady Angie.” Her jaw falls open wide in surprise and you swear you hear a soft squeak come from under the veil of the woman the doll sits on. “ You are much too kind to me, Lady Angie. I'm not sure “smokin” would be a word I've been described as before.” You say while giving her hand back.
Both the Doll maker and the Doll are silent in shock at your response so you bow at the waist and then turn to your right again and face Moreau. The first thing you notice is the intense smell emanating off the man creature, and your sensitive nose is filled with the smell of rotting fish and blue cheese. Your nostrils flare, but you push back the urge to vomit and stick your hand out to him. You’re taken aback when he wails and then grabs your hand with both of his, shaking it profusely.
“Nice Lady Y/n,” he says to you, wailing even louder now. “So nice to me, so so nice.”
Poor man has never been shown even a little kindness , you think sadly. You feel for the man, truly you do but you already had a migraine from the screaming match you heard earlier and his cries were making it worse so you quickly pat his hand and let go with a small smile.
Finally you turn to her.
She’s facing you now, and she’s even taller upclose.
Her height has her looking down at you but you can tell she’s looking down on you as well. Her face is neutral but you can see the dislike that burns for you in her eyes, and something else that you can’t quite place.
‘Lady Dimitrescu,” you say, brushing off her stare. You extend your hand towards her and she sniffs. She stares at your hand as if she touched it she would burst into flames but she eventually extends hers as well and just like with lady Angie you bring it up to your lips and gently rest them against her knuckles over the leather of her gloves. Her body tensed for a millisecond as your lips made contact. You must’ve let the confusion you felt show on your face and she pulls her hand back quickly. She recovers fast though and soon she finally speaks her first words to you.
“So.” She drawls. She takes a drag from her cigarette attached to a very classic looking quizelleir and moves to sit back in her chair a few steps away. Sitting in a way that belays some sort of noble upbringing. Her spine is straight and her chin high, making the dilapidated and dirty chair look like a throne. You’d have to ask her how she does that some time.
“ Mortal .” She chuckles as she says it. You almost do too because that couldn’t be farther away from the truth, but you only raise your eyebrow at the term not wanting to give yourself away.
“How do you expect to carry out such an important task?” The lord questions with a smug look on her face.
It urks you but this isn’t the first time someone has underestimated you so you don’t let it get to you.
Instead you reply “Just like the other thousands of missions I’ve completed for Mother Miranda.” Living for dramatic effect you pause.
Until that moment you had tunnel vision on the woman before you. Not noticing the others watching the entire conversation between you and the other lord but now, you can feel all eyes on you. Their attention was unbroken.
A mischievous smirk makes its way onto your face.
The tall lord growing tired of your antics growls quietly, and presses you for an answer.
“And how would that be?”
Your smirk turns into a smile. You had a hunch and if you were right, this conversation would end in your favor.
“Perfectly. Countess.”
Her impenetrable mask of confidence falls for a split second at the title, and surprise flashes across her face. It had been a complete guess on your part but obviously you had hit the nail on the head.
100 points to Lady Bogdon.
You do everything in your power not to full on grin at her silence.
“I should take my leave.” You say to the group, turning around to make eye contact with the rest of The lords and bowing your head slightly in respect.
“Please do.” The Countess quips, lighting another cigarette at the same time.
You shoot her a sparing glance and make your way to the prisoner you’re to be watching and notice that he’s sleeping. How he fell back asleep you didn’t know but all the better for you anyway. You wouldn’t want him to see the way you got home. You notice the blood on his pant legs and figure that Karl must've done something to them to stop him from getting away as easily.
Shit.
Well that removes dragging him from the equation. You were wanting to keep your superhuman abilities to yourself for a while longer but Mother Miranda wants him alive and an infection could kill him. Especially in the freezing cold that’s just a few feet away.
The lords are still watching you. Lady Dimitrscu more so than the others if that was possible. Every and any small movement you made was seen by her golden eyes.
Like she was trying to size you up, since her original take of you was completely thrown off by your conversation.
Sighing softly, you bend down and hoist his body over your left shoulder with ease. Like he was a small bag of grain and not nearly 200 pounds of dead weight.
You hear Hiesenburg laugh loudly, and clap his hands while Angie squeals.
“AND SHE’S STRONG TOO!!!” You hear her yell.
You laugh heartily and make your way towards the doors of the church, but as you walk by the Countess you take a moment to look at her reaction and she has an eyebrow raised in confusion. It’s practically painted across her face.
It makes you feel confident, or dare you say a little arrogant and your walk becomes a strut for the last few steps towards the doors.
This is going to be interesting
you think and the doors open to let in the cold of winter.