Still Breaths [Closed]

[Lucyfer]

Viktor was far more interested in the bloody scene then he was Nell, and so he disengaged without so much as a farewell. Amenset released an unnecessary breath, “Sorry about him,” as if she had any right to apologize for Viktor, “I’m not sure what that was about….” A few ideas came to mind. Viktor did like to run a tight ship. If he didn’t like a vampire, he did usually go to the source to dish out punishment, and let the hapless childe watch.


Or in this case, perhaps a very happy childe.


Then again, sometimes he’d deal the punishment to the childe and let the sire watch.


Amenset then turned her attention, wondering if Dawn was going to need any help with her own mess.


Trevor was shaking in fury as he heard Dawn’s comment about poison. Yes, it was poisoned, and he wouldn’t deny it. He was furious it didn’t work. The poison he’d chosen was slow so that she wouldn’t die here, but she’d noticed it!


“What is the meaning of this?” Viktor stepped onto the scene, with Lucius just a step behind.


Dawn tossed the cup, missing Trevor on purpose though his flinch was amusing. “He tried to poison me. I returned the poison.”


Trevor felt words on his tongue, but he bit it to keep them within. Blaming Viktor would not get him anywhere. When Viktor looked to him, he found himself able to shake his head, to attempt to deny it, “I—I didn’t, maybe the blood was j-just bad.” His shaking was now from fear rather than anger.

 

[phantompierrot]

Charlotte watched Viktor disappear from them, still feeling threatened and wary. She wondered what sort of threat a handful of nails was meant to be. If he means to nail him inside his coffin, he should know that he doesn't sleep in one. Her subconscious had meant it to be humorous, but it did not tickle her in the least. Whatever they were for, they weren't good. She made a note to herself to ask later.


Nell was noticeably relaxed once Viktor had left them, his staunch demeanor softening with much relief. Pushing away the odd questions and threat that would certainly peck at him later, he turned to Amenset and asked, "what exactly is happening over there?" He noticed Viktor reappear with Dawn and Trevor, who now cowered like a stricken dog. He was baffled, unsure if he should be concerned.

 

[Lucyfer]

“Do you wish to press charges, Lady Hesperus?” Viktor inquired, and watched as Trevor’s jaw dropped at the question.


“YOU—” and Trevor stopped himself before he could dig himself into a very deep hole.


“No,” Dawn had learned one thing from her father. Mercy often gave one’s enemies an opportunity to hang themselves, “It might be as he said—bad blood. That, or there’s a human in here who thought to poison one of us,” she gave a dismissive wave, though that idea seemed to still a few vampires close enough to hear. They gave their own beverages a wary glance.


Amenset wasn’t close enough to hear, but she deduced, “Trevor did something stupid,” since Trevor was the one who looked foolish, and he was the one to raise his voice, “And thought he’d have Viktor’s backing,” since he looked betrayed.


Which really only proved the point that Trevor did something stupid. Trusting Viktor was stupid.

 

[phantompierrot]

"Well," Charlotte commented. She definitely agreed that it must have been something stupid, and kept to herself that it must have been far stupider than his hair color. But what it was that was done, she could only imagine. Nell only nodded in response, suddenly getting the odd feeling that something was off, and it wasn't Viktor - or at least, it wasn't now. He pondered it a bit, watching without really paying attention, and then it hit him that someone was missing.


"W-Wherever did that Antonius fellow go?" he asked, noticing that no longer did he accompany Dawn. He was missing the small ruckus over yonder.

 

[Lucyfer]

“Good question,” Amenset noted when Nell asked after Lucius. She didn’t note that Lucius would have appreciated the use of Antonius by him, and briefly wondered where he picked up the idea to refer to Lucius by that name. ‘Think like a soldier, think like a…ah. Yes.’


Amenset’s eyes moved up, and she found Lucius leaning against the railing on the second floor near the stairs, clearly prepared to drop down on Trevor if any issues arose. “He’s up there,” Amenset motioned with one finger, “Being the dutiful soldier. Honestly, I don’t think he does anything else,” she crossed her arms, shaking her head a bit at that.


Viktor accepted Dawn’s decision, “Go clean yourself up, Trevor,” he directed coolly. Trevor huffed, but stormed off to do just that. He was covered in blood, after all. Viktor’s eyes shifted back to Dawn, reassessing her for a moment. As others started to return to their own conversations, he asked, “It was poison, wasn’t it?”


She smiled, and she nodded. “Your father’s methods got him killed,” Viktor decided to remind.


“By humans.”


“You believe that?” His eyes shimmered with mischief, and when he saw the question enter into her own eyes, he laughed, “Yes, of course. Humans. Like the whelp that poisoned that glass of yours.” And he clapped his hands twice, drawing the attention of many as he strode forward and to the center of the room.


The music ceased.


Viktor spoke, “Someone fetch me the ones in charge of beverages, immediately.”

 

[phantompierrot]

"Oh, so he is." Nell glanced at him near the railing, noting that he did indeed hold the stance of a guarding soldier. Well, I suppose being that way all the time is better than being useless, he thought. His attention then diverted to Viktor in the center of the floor, feeling quite sick of seeing him already. Some of the faces around the room were perplexed, looking to one another in questioning.


"What is he doing now?" he asked. Viktor acted as though it were his own soiree, knocking Trevor aside like a troublesome moth. It was almost funny.

 

[Lucyfer]

‘What is he doing now?’ Amenset repeated the question as she gave Nell a hopeless look. He really was that naïve. Amenset didn’t answer, because she didn’t want to give voice to her own fears. She knew what he was doing.


Most of the vampires knew what he was doing as the waiters went scurrying to do as commanded. From within the kitchen area, a few humans were brought forward, each one looking more and more anxious. Five, in total, were brought to join Viktor in the center.


Trevor had returned in cleaner clothes by then, and paused on the upper portion to ask Lucius, “What’s going on?” He hadn’t heard Viktor’s command.


Lucius shot Trevor a dirty look, but then turned his attention back to the problem at hand. “Since you’re not getting blamed for what you did,” Lucius wouldn’t even humor that Trevor wasn’t behind it, “Someone else is going to take the blame.”


“It seems that killing Lord Hesperus was not enough for the rebels,” Viktor announced to the crowd, “Someone here has either purposefully tried to kill Lady Hesperus,” he made a motion back towards Dawn, not seeing the fierce glare at his back although he felt it. “Or someone here is simply unfit for their duties as they managed to send out bad blood. That cannot be tolerated so,” his eyes went over the kitchen staff brought before him, “Does anyone wish to confess, or do you all wish to have the same fate?” Humans didn't get trials.

 

[phantompierrot]

Charlotte's eyes went wide. "Poison her?" She looked over the five humans that stood nervously together, each sharing the same expression that contained much more wary and uncertain than guilty of such an evil deed. Watching them, she remembered her position in this society that wasn't hers and felt fear on the behalf of those five, realizing what was coming to them.


It hit Nell at the same time. He felt awfully sorry for them as well, but what could he do? Nothing that wouldn't cause more trouble, surely. And it wasn't as though he were in any position to stop Viktor anyway. H remembered the man's threats about humans before, and felt sick. "Oh no" was all he could think to say.

 

[Lucyfer]

No one was going to confess. Viktor knew that, and Dawn knew that as she tried to think of how to prevent this. This was her fault for not just blaming Trevor. Now other lives would suffer.


“None of you?” Viktor mocked. “Then I suppose you were all in it together. I—”


“I’ll deal with it,” Dawn interrupted.


Viktor looked over his shoulder, and she spoke quickly, “It was me that they tried to harm, so it is I that should figure the punishment, no?”


His eyes narrowed. He was all too aware that no punishment would happen. “It may have been more than you.”


“No one else has complained.”


“Perhaps the cup was intended for Trevor, or Lucius.”


“I’ll discern that, then.” Dawn insisted.


Viktor didn’t have any ground to stand on. That was the precedent, after all, so he grit his teeth and said, “Very well.”


Dawn looked up, as if she knew where Lucius was the entire time, and motioned for him. She stepped forward to be besides Viktor, “If you don’t mind, then, we shall take our leave to deal with this,” Lucius was soon at her side, “I do hope Trevor is able to find some replacements for the rest of his party.”


Amenset glanced to Nell and Charlotte in their hopeless gazes, and wondered if she ought to do anything. She was stuck, like the rest of the crowd, and she didn’t like it. Dawn spoke up, though. Amenset wasn’t sure what Dawn had in mind, and she imagined Dawn didn’t know, either. “I should go,” she spoke softly to Nell.


She was a part of the household while she was here, and shouldn’t get left behind.

 

[phantompierrot]

"Go?" Nell echoed. He felt confused. Not by Amenset, but by everything. In only a short matter of time, everything had become peculiar and different and a whole other world entirely than what he knew, and he had suddenly been dumped in with people and come across problems he probably could have done without, and he was puzzled by all of it. Goodness, what exactly had Charlotte gotten him into?


"W-well," he said, "I suppose I shouldn't keep you." Despite not being in the way, he stepped back. Though he was not much of a social gathering type of person, he declared for himself that this party had been sufficiently terrible and decided that there was little else to do here other than feel quite out of place.

 

[Lucyfer]

The rules of society, once known, allowed the others to accept what had happened much easier. In too-long lives, vampires were accustomed to these sorts of games. Few would have thought it smart to play with Viktor, and so many were resigning themselves to the thought of Dawn and Lucius’s death.


The stranger to it was Kichiro, who volunteered himself, “I’ll help to escort everyone,” and though Dawn shot him a curious look, she gave a nod to allow it.


Lucius and Dawn strode out, and Amenset gave a quick wave to Nell before rushing to catch up with them.


She grabbed Dawn’s arm as the dhampir walked, “What were you thinking?” Amenset hissed.


“I couldn’t let them die for what Trevor did,” Dawn answered lowly. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do with all of these humans, but she’d figure it out on the walk home. Hopefully.