Ces was only gone for a moment. Although her instincts had warned her not to leave the two alone, she still prioritized cleansing the unwanted swamp-like odor from her body. It was unsuitable for a lady like to her to be associated with fishy and damp nastiness. Down it went in the drain.
She already knew they wouldn't get along but she wasn't expecting Ian would go so far to make her butler uncomfortable. From the outside, she could clearly see her brother's eyes pinned on Elios, watching his every movement and waiting for him to make a mistake. If he kept up with that, he would be drilling holes at Elios' nape any time now. Ian was acting like he owned the place, even more terrorizing than the madame herself. What does he want to get out of this? He was only going to disappoint himself.
Look now, the unbearable tension they brought upon themselves. Ces entered the living room with an atmosphere so antagonizing and suffocating. She intentionally clacked her heels to announce her presence, breaking the unseen cord of tension. She looked at how ridiculous they were behaving, like a growling dog on guard and a cat with its back arched, ready to lash out its claws.
"I have no time for this foolishness right now." She fanned herself.
"What foolishness?" A smile tugged at Ian's lips, feigning innocence.
Ces swore they were engaged in a heated conversation before she meddled in. She imagined what Ian told him while she was away getting oatmeal scrubs from Miss Anne. It could be a threat. That had always been the case for her suitors with Ian's snotty attitude involved. But Elios was her butler, not some erratic suitor who was dying to have a taste of her.
"Elios, you haven't washed yourself yet?" She noticed his clothes had naturally dried from the indoor heater. His hair looked sticky. "If you wanted to bathe together to conserve water, you should've told me so." If Ian wanted to create chaos in her peaceful household, she would gladly play along with his tantrums.
With a disgusted look on his face, Ian snatched his coat off the coffee table. "And I'm off to the main house." He made an unfashionable exit towards the door.
"I will go to the common bath." Elios hurriedly dismissed himself.
After that, Ces hadn't seen him all day. She was starving. Where in the world was her walking blood dispenser at this time when she needed him the most? She wasted her time restlessly pacing her room back and forth. Elios wasn't even answering his phones, considering he had two. What was it with men and their phones? Or could Ian have said something to scare him off?
All Elios did was save her from drowning and now she can't get him out of her head. It was like her thoughts had been poisoned with a half-blood.
Ces visited the library on a whim. It was empty except for a stack of open research books piled on one corner. She placed a finger across its titles and skimmed through the pages. Dust resurfaced from the crispy papers. She pinched her nose. It looked like Elios had taken her advice and began to read in his free time.
The library that stood inside her mansion contained the findings dated back in the earliest civilizations. Information, that weren't based on hearsay, on how vampires came around were even documented. Papyrus scrolls framed and coated in preservative wine were displayed behind its sturdy frames. These were the original copies. Her parents duplicated it and kept an exact replica of the library in their own manor just in case this one went up in flames.
They were wise in doing so. Ces didn't put much value in the library. From time to time, she caught her servants stealing books, which then were sold in the black market for a price triple their salaries. The lazy Ces didn't want to go through the hassle of reporting them. Instead, she gave them an option — to rot in prison or to lose their fingers. Just as she expected, they valued their freedom more than their fingers.
Buandiller's influence originated from this possession of knowledge. Her father was an old-school historian, believing in the notion that knowledge is power while her mother was a renowned scientist, always on the lookout for diseases that could pose a threat to them, vampires. As a matter of fact, it was her mother who had been monitoring the Empress' declining health.
Ces never touched the library as her father read her these books to sleep. Instead of children's fairy tales that began with 'once upon a time', these historical books filled with bloodshed were what her bedtime stories composed of. It sounded ridiculous but it was true. She even had nightmares about it, visualizing herself in wars despite not partaking it.
Today was an exception. She could use this time to read more about the Empress' seals. She was always curious about that. It wasn't included in her father's historical story-telling since the contract seals had been established around fifty years ago, before Lougrand City arrived at a peaceful setting. She can actually just ask the Empress herself, but she didn't want to disturb the resting queen with something so minor.
"Empress' Magica." She bent down and pulled out a thick book from the shelf. It was heavily covered in dust and underneath the velvety covers were patches of stinky book molds. Ces committedly scanned through the pages but all it talked about was the origin of the Empress' powers and a list of her trange abilities. There weren't details about the relationships formed between a vampire and a half-blood upon administering the seal's completion.
"Now what?" She closed the book and impatiently tapped her fingers on the table.
With Elios gone, she felt lonely again. It used to be bothersome to have someone barking nonsense at her side. She managed to live more than a decade by herself but recently, she found comfort in his sole presence. Ces realized she'd grown attached to him, or to his blood rather.
It was useless to find him outside since the sun was still out.
Since she was doing nothing and the library only reminded her of her deprived childhood, it might be best to strike a conversation with the other servants.
Ces hopped from one room to another, in attempt to find someone on duty. And there happened to be one outside the library, sweeping the hallway.
The servant was startled to see her. Ces didn't even know her name. Starting a conversation with one was harder than she thought. The woman can't even look at her in the eye, her nervous gaze and stiff posture made it seem impossible to approach her.
"Hello there, what's your name?" Ces asked.
The young woman looked up. "A-are you talking to me?" She stuttered.
"No, I was talking to your broom." She rolled her eyes.
"Oh." The servant believed it.
"Can't you see we're the only ones here?" It was annoying. Doing that was out of character, she should've never done that in the first place.
Giving up, Ces returned to her room and collapsed on top of her bed. In the end, she couldn't even get a single name. She stayed like that until a knock came at her door. She ignored it, thinking it was Ian who couldn't get enough of what happened the other night.
"Ces?" It was Elios' voice. "I just saw your missed calls. I wasn't able to bring my phone with me."
Energy seeped back inside her as she bolted towards the door and opened it. Elios was dressed differently, reeking of smoke pollution. He looked warm wearing a white sweatshirt and dark jeans, and his neck was decorated with a plain scarf. His cheeks were rosy from the weather. The last time she had seen him wear casual attire was at the Foundation. Ever since then, it had always been the butler suit prepared for him.
"Where have you been?" Ces asked. Well, someone was in a terrible mood.
"I went to get my suit from your tailor just as you asked, since your grand party is in two days." He replied calmly, not wanting to be a special addition to her death list.
And here she thought Ian had rambled nonsense into him. "Next time, don't leave without telling me." She ordered, glowering at him.
"I thought you might be still asleep since it's still early noon."
"But I wasn't sleeping and yes, I am giving you permission to disturb my sleep."
"Also come down, I brought you a gift." Elios smiled sweetly.
"What for?" Ces shuddered at the word 'gift'. He couldn't probably have brought her a live human to feast on.
"It's a little late but I thought it would be appropriate to give you one."
How thoughtful of him. "What do you mean? I got you for my birthday. You are the gift."
"Is that so?" He chuckled.
"It's not a lot compared to what your family has given you." Elios said. Oh, he didn't need to worry about that. Ces didn't even receive a single present from her parents, let alone her brothers, especially Lucas who still too busy mending his broken affairs. As for someone who had it all, they stopped with the gift-giving eons ago.
Like an excited puppy, Elios opened the doors to the dining room, where the plastic roses had been replaced with real ones, the kind that could withstand extreme temperatures during the coldest season. It was like walking into a flower shop or a wake, a matter of perspective.
"Did Ian talk you into this?" Ces asked and rushed forward, surprised to see the abundance of live and fragrant roses that occupied the sides of the room.
“No, this is all me. I remember you saying that you love roses so I thought maybe—“ Elios peered to see her reaction.
Her face was horrified. That was not the expression he wanted to see. “Elios, you can do anything in this house. Steal my precious jewelry, I don’t mind at all but this...” She fumed. Even if she tried to hide her seething rage, he could feel it from her shaking voice. “It’s insulting like rubbing salt into an open wound.”
She knew his intentions were clean, since he couldn’t have possibly known about that. It took so many years to build the walls around that memory, only to be left broken by a mere half-blood.
Elios didn’t understand but from what he could tell, his actions undesirably had awaken a past trauma. “I can throw them away if it displeases you.”
She stopped him and squeezed a handful of the full-bloomed roses. “Since you prepared this, I might as well show you the kind of monster I am.” The thorns pierced through her, boring holes into her palm. It made her bleed.
Ces made him watch the roses unsightly wither from her touch. Life seeped out of it, fading out from existence. The newly turned brown petals silently danced and swayed upon reaching the floor. Only its bleak stems and the sturdiest of the brown, half-dead petals remained attached. “Cursed. Not so pretty, isn’t it?”
But before Elios’ eyes, it was like witnessing magic. He felt like a child presented with a breathtaking magician’s trick for the first time. “Ces, how did you do that?” He was in awe. “It’s beautiful.”
“What?” She laughed. That butler of hers was out of his mind. “Do you think this is some sort of magic show? I was born like this, with a wretched hand that kills even the most innocent flowers.”
“Don’t you think winter is beautiful too?” He put away the withered bunch back to its vase and brought out a handkerchief to wipe the blood clean from Ces’ hand. “Winter isn’t beautiful just because spring comes after it.”
Ces was struck with bewilderment. “I don’t see how winter is related to any of this.”
“Even if it killed life on ground, the flowers and insects in your garden, you get to see a whole new side of it. A frosted wonderland. One that’s pure and as white as the quiet but deadly snow.” Elios said and let her hand go.
“You’re comparing me to winter?” Was she hearing things or was she being delusional at this point? Ces was about to laugh at him for his nonsense of a speech but she saw his eyes looked more serious than ever.
“And why not? Winter is beautiful.” The warm embers of his eyes did not change into something hateful. He truly meant what he said. “Here.” Elios handed her the other roses, implying that she give the rest their impending doom.
That was the second time her heart tightened because of him.
“You’re odd.” Ces gladly accepted it. She had cooled down. “I’ve never seen anyone so fascinated with death.”
And then Ces decided, if she was winter he would be summer, an abundant warmth she looked forward to. Staring into his eyes was like looking far onto sunrise itself, a mixture of bright amber hues. Little did she know such an innocent analogy would bring her harm later. Nothing good ever comes out of vampires being under the sun for so long, not in this lifetime.
Having their fun, all the roses he bought for her remained in their vases leafless and withered. With plants it was exceptionally different but Ces was certain that Elios wouldn’t be too considerate if he found out she did the same to humans.
"By any chance, did Ian say anything? I can't help but notice how ridiculous he was acting towards you," said Ces.
“Not much. I clearly understand where he’s coming from, though he’s extremely overprotective of you since you’re his only sister.” Elios slit his wrist as he prepared her favorite dish, blood fresh from his veins. “He did mention that Maximus will be arriving today and he’ll be living with us. How is he? Are there precautions that I should be aware of?”
“About that, you should be nice to Maximus. He’s actually a high-ranked hunter before Ian scouted him. He is the ultimate assassin, the best of the best.” Ces stuck out a straw on the chalice of blood set on the table. Drinking in this discrete manner wouldn’t require her to hide her bulging fangs.
“I’ve heard of him. He’s popular among the half-bloods. But his movements have decreased for the past few years.”
“That’s because he joined Ian in his eastern travels. He’s one of the those unique cases that isn’t sealed to a master. He’s also the youngest butler to ever serve the Buandillers, starting his service at the age of fifteen. Don’t be intimidated by his youthful vigor.” She said in between her sips.
Elios counted using his fingers. “So he was a minor when he was out killing rogues?”
“Surprising isn’t it? To be trained at such a young age.” She commended. “He’s pretty handy.”
He was bandaging his wrist. It was a lousy piece of work. After all this time, he never learned.
“You’re doing it all wrong.” Setting her drink aside, Ces helped him tend to his wound, even though her appetite was the main cause of it. As she undid the poorly done bandages, she was caught off guard. Seeing it up close, the wound was still fresh, begging to be drank clean as blood magnanimously sprung from it. She felt a throbbing lump stuck at her throat. It was supposed to be fine as long as she didn’t bite him right? Drinking this way would lessen her impulses.
“May I?” Ces slowly met his eyes, their gaze locking as she brushed her tongue across the wound. Blood rolled inside her mouth. Elios wasn't even scared. "Just say stop or whatever works," said Ces.
"What—" Taking in a deep breath, he instinctively placed a hand on his face to hide the pain.
And then she started to suck, her eyes closed. It wasn't gentle. It felt like a vacuum, a leech clinging to his skin but her lips were soft and cold. At this moment, Elios knew why Ces was always adamant on covering up when she feasted. She looked so erotic right now that his own heartbeat was clogging his thoughts.
He didn't want to stop her but if this went on any further, he would lose consciousness. "Ces, stop. It hurts." She didn't stop. Her mind was lost at the euphoric taste of his blood. Elios carefully yanked her hair, breaking her away from him. Still half-intoxicated from her drinking trance, Ces looked up bearing the face of an angel who emerged triumphantly from a battlefield.
Snapping back into reality, she moved away from him and wiped the smeared blood off her lips. Ces began to finish what she actually came to him for, wrapping his now swollen wound in a new set of bandages. "Very well." Ces said after knotting it. "I appreciate your cooperation. Where were we?"
Elios acted like he wasn't the slightest aroused. He wanted to quickly dismiss himself but that would be too obvious. "About the flowers," That was the best he can come up with, "who else knows about it?"
"Not a lot." Ces returned to her seat and the unfinished drink on the table didn't look as appetizing, especially since she had the taste of it from the actual source. "Before I was taken outside to the real world, I was only kept inside the mansion where I was treated with utmost respect. Everything revolved around me. I was special and perfect, being the youngest child and only daughter of the Buandiller. Then from that, I became the black sheep. When I went out for the first time, human children found out and you could guess what happened."
"They called you a monster." Elios guessed.
"Not only that, I killed them all. Those poor souls." She said without remorse.
He was astonished to hear those words casually flow out of her mouth, yet she had difficulty in saying simple phrases such as 'thank you'.
"What? I didn't have a straight moral compass back then. Our first kill should always be special. It had always been arranged. It was royal tradition, but I was the only one who missed it." She sighed, "And that's why even with Lucas' scandalous affairs, I'm still the black sheep." That wasn't the only reason, but she couldn't just blatantly tell him that she was a murderer, enslaved to her appetite and to her venomous fangs.
"You seem doing well for a 'black sheep'." Elios smiled.
"Right. After that small accident, mother hired a private tutor and I was homeschooled for the rest of my years. It was a hundred years ago. Besides I was ten. I didn't know any better."
"Ten?" He exclaimed, "When I was ten, I didn't even know what killing was."
"Really?" Ces scoffed, "You must be raised in a closeted household."
"I guess you can say that. Actually I was raised in—" Elios was cut off by the persistent doorbell that had been ringing nonstop. Whoever was behind the door was terribly impatient. "That's probably Maximus. I'll get that."
"I will greet him with you." Ces said.
Maximus arrived along with Ian's luggage. He stood on the doorway in his thin stature. His dark brown hair complimented his black eyes, those were the eyes who killed for a living.
"You look the same from when you were two years ago," Ces inspected the guest. He looked tired, a haggard fix on his bony face.
But his voice was lively as always. "It's good to see you again, Miss Cecilia." Maximus took off his hat and bowed, revealing a large scar that extended from the middle of his eyebrows towards his right jaw.
"I'll help you with that." Elios guided him towards the servants' chamber.
Now that there was a special addition to the household, Elios was going to be busy assisting this new butler.
