[IC] ~Bonsoir~

[Rogue Sloth]

In the sanctuary of his own room, Vail flipped through the pages of the tome he had read last night with Victoria. It was still early in the day, but he couldn’t sleep. Not after Peter had threatened to remove him from the Hygrace line if he refused to bow down to his rules. He had known from the start that he would eventually be pitted against his own family if he decided to be with Lady Crest, but the time had come sooner than he felt prepared to handle. If his father banished him now, he had nowhere else to go, and no one else to fall back on for protection from the Saints. A lone vampire was a dead vampire. It was common knowledge, and it was the reason why his kind operated in groups. He wasn’t ready to sever ties with the Hygraces, especially when he would only have a few decades at most with Victoria before old age or illness claimed her. After that, he would be truly and completely on his own. It was a depressing end to his long life.

He lifted his gaze from the book to the window, unable to focus on the words on the page long enough to get through a whole sentence without rereading it a dozen times. There had been a part of him that had hoped—foolishly, he now realized—that Peter would come around to his side. Perhaps the affection in his voice when he spoke of her or the determination he showed when his loyalty to her was questioned would persuade his father that she wasn’t as bad for him as he’d thought. Instead, Peter was steadfast in his beliefs and had proven that he would go so far as disown his only son to preserve the traditions he believed were best for their kind.

A knock on his door interrupted his musings, and he called out, “Come in.” At first, he thought the visitor was his father, come with the expectation of getting an answer from him already. However, the person who stepped inside was his mother, Katherine. Vail stared at her quizzically. Until now, the quieter vampire had kept to herself. She often deferred to her husband’s decisions, and as such, had allowed Peter to have full control over the situation with their rebellious son. She hadn’t stopped by when Victoria had been present, and he had assumed she wanted as little to do with the human woman as her partner. Her appearance now was unexpected.

“Can we chat?” she offered him a smile, closing the door behind her.

Vail hesitated for a moment longer before he nodded. Katherine stepped over to sit on the edge of his bed. Her hazel eyes lingered on the unmade sheets a half second too long, and he knew she had figured out what had happened between the couple overnight as well. “I don’t like it when you and Peter fight,” she said, looking away from the mattress to meet his gaze. There was a weariness to her tone that belied her exhaustion. “And I don’t like that he’s on the verge of disowning you.”

“Did you come here to convince me to take his side?” Vail asked dryly.

“Not necessarily,” Katherine shook her head, earning a look of surprise from her son. “I would prefer it if you did, but from what I understand, you’re quite fond of Alexander’s daughter.”

“I am,” he confirmed tentatively, unsure where his mother was going with this.

“Well, then I think you should be permitted to see where it goes,” she stated matter-of-factly. “I agree with Peter that getting romantically involved with a human is a mistake, but you’re capable of making your own decisions and learning from them. It will make you a better leader for having done so. It’s certainly better than forcing you to bend to our ways without giving you the chance to see why those ways are right, and if everyone is more transparent moving forward, we’ll be better equipped to keep you safe if something goes wrong. I’ve already spoken to your father about it, and he’s considering my words.”

“That’s shocking,” Vail muttered. His mother was slightly more reasonable than his father, but her choice of phrasing made it clear that she was still on Peter’s side. “He’s so terrified of conflict with the Wynters that I thought he wouldn’t budge on the matter.”

Katherine pursed her lips, “He’s still in denial, but I believe we’re beyond the point of avoiding conflict with the Wynters if they’re meddling with the Order. There’s nothing you could do to change what is already coming.”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell him,” Vail’s eyes widened as he grew excitable. “It isn’t my fault that the Wynters are moving. If we let them have Lady Victoria, we’ll be playing right into their hands. She’s a cog in their machine, and if I take her away from them, it might throw off whatever they’ve been putting together in the shadows. I don’t understand why father can’t see that.”

“Remember, Vail, they took his brother,” she said gently, though a mixture of sorrow and anger flashed in her bright eyes. “Peter has worked tirelessly to protect our family from another massacre, and he fears the day our enemies will try to overpower us again. By turning a blind eye to the Wynters, he hopes that they will lose interest in us altogether.”

“But they won’t,” Vail asserted. “All he’s doing is leaving us vulnerable to the attack that will inevitably come. We should be rallying our forces, not cowering like bugs beneath a rock in the hopes that our enemies won’t step on us.” Setting his book aside, he stood up from his chair. “If father won’t do that, then I will.”

[Angel Vicky]

And so, their training and strategy began. For the next few days Ray spent time teaching Victoria how to fight a vampire, what weaknesses to look for and what weapons to use in which situations. Meanwhile Gerald gathered every piece of intelligence he could on the current whereabouts of the Wynters and Spencer’s latest movements. Scouts sent carrier pigeons across the city with notes that the Wynters will arrive by boat to Southampton and take a train upto London within the next two weeks. They didn’t send over their clan in groups, it seemed one by one, they had crossed from France.

Lady Diana hoped her letter to the Moncourier clan in Paris would reach them in time to lend aid. It was time Victoria met her older brother. A half vampire they named James whom was taken away shorty after Diana gave birth. She barely survived the pregnancy, but Alex was there for her. She even had a C-section scar across her tummy where they had to cut the baby out, it was draining too much of her blood. Her second pregnancy came with complications too and they had to remove Victoria the same way, and then Diana was too badly haemorrhaged to have any more children. She was lucky to be alive. Thanks to the doctors of The Order with more advanced practices and teachings from ancient times being kept alive through their millions of tomes in their vast library. Something about transformation rituals had to be in there.

Victoria had a quiet moment to herself and perched herself at the piano to play something. She’d been afraid to touch the piano since her father died but it was time to pick up his mantle and honour his love of piano, of which he taught her well.

Via Purifico

Diana came down the stairs and watched her with a smile, she held a paper in her hand, which Gerald gave to her. It held accounts of the Wynter’s movements. This copy was meant for Peter Hygrace himself. Sharing their information first and being forthcoming about any intel should be received as a token of a gesture of forming an alliance. Seeing Victoria would only anger him further, but Diana was the current head of the household.

“Beautiful, as always.” She commented and walked over to her daughter, who harboured more scratches and bruises than ever thanks to her hard training. As much as she ached, her determination to be a better fighter was more important than her health. If she couldn’t defend herself or fight, she was dead anyway. Victoria noticed the note in Diana’s hands. “Is that for Lord Hygrace?”

“Yes.” Diana kissed her forehead. “I’m going over there now to give it to them.”

“Say hello to Vail for me. If you see him…” Victoria’s eyes glazed over with sadness. Diana sighed. “I’ll try.” She knew how her daughter really felt about the vampire, which Diana admittedly didn’t like but she also knew how stubborn Victoria was. She knew she loved him very much, she found some sketches she made of his portrait from his image committed to her memory. Victoria couldn’t ask Vail to meet up with her when she sported so many injuries, it would worry him no doubt.

“Wish me luck.” Diana sighed and Ray was ready to escort her to the Hygrace manor.

[Rogue Sloth]

Katherine Hygrace’s petition on Vail’s behalf had been better received by Peter than the heir had expected. His father still forbade him from seeing Victoria again, but he had repealed his ultimatum. Peter had realized that Erasmus, Reginald’s oldest surviving son, was too easily manipulated to be charged with the protection of their entire family. If they were going to outlast the Wynters attempts to dethrone them as the ruling clan in England, they would need an unshakeable patriarch who wouldn’t bow down to their enemies after the very first threat. As much as the current leader loathed to admit it, his insubordinate son was the better choice between the two potential candidates.

So, Vail’s right to his inheritance remained intact. Peter continued to deny that the Wynters were moving though. He insisted that as long as they continued to keep their heads down, the rival clan would have no reason to attack them; and even if they rose up, the Order would put them back in their place, and there would be no need for the Hygraces to get involved. His insistence was baffling to Vail. He didn’t understand why his father was so averse to the thought of warring with a group that was clearly a threat to their dynasty. The patriarchs that had come before Peter had established their family as the strongest in England by putting their enemies in their place and garnering allies by offering protection from the Saints. His father seemed to be afraid that even stepping out of line would mean the end of their powerful clan altogether.

Vail disagreed with Peter’s approach. Neutrality had worked for them when the Wynters had been pitted against the Order, but now that their sights might soon be set on the Hygraces, they could no longer bury their heads in the sand and pretend like nothing had changed. If the rival vampires were going to strike, he intended to do whatever he could to ensure his family’s victory.

Over the course of the next few days, he spent evening suppers with his cousins and went hunting in the city every other night to replenish his strength. The effects of regular humans’ blood felt dulled after he had been spoiled by the richness of Victoria’s, but it still did its job. He also encouraged his relatives to feed at least once if they hadn’t done so recently, so the rest of the clan would be in peak condition whenever the Wynters made their move.

The first part of his plan went well, but the second turned out to be more troublesome than he had anticipated. It seemed that word had gotten around that the clan heir had been romantically involved with a human, so the other Hygraces no longer took him seriously when he tried to convey the impending risk that their rivals might try to kill them all again. They scorned and teased him for “playing with his food” and said that they would do nothing until Peter gave the word to prepare for a fight, since he was their leader. As hard as he tried to persuade them otherwise, it seemed that the rest of the Hygraces wouldn’t listen to anyone but his father, and his father was too stubborn to accept the possibility that his century-old method was no longer effective.

Frustrated by the dead end to his work, Vail gave up on rallying the clan and busied himself by rifling through the tome he had found in the archive. He had intended to put it away the night after Victoria had left, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him. He read through the genealogies with painstaking detail, finding some familiar names from stories he had been told orally by both Peter and Reginald. It fascinated him to learn about his ancestors, and the records provided a welcomed distraction from his failed endeavor to prepare his clan for battle. It also kept him from thinking too often about Victoria, whom he was beginning to worry about now that days had gone by without even a whisper from her.

Since she had told him she loved him, he knew she wouldn’t have stopped meeting with him unless something had prevented her from doing so. With each day that passed, he grew more tempted to seek her out to make sure nothing had gone wrong. This time, the temptation was too strong to resist.

Setting the book down on the table, he got up to put on his coat.

[Angel Vicky]

Just as Vail put his coat on, a knock could be heard coming from the door. One of the maidens answered it to find Lady Diana Crest standing there in a thick woollen cloak. Ray stood at the estate’s entrance down the driveway. He knew his presence was not tolerated and so kept his presence far away enough but not so far as he could not protect Lady Crest. She was little to do with the Order officially, but she only had them for protection right now.

“Is the Lord and Lady of the House available to speak with me? I am Lady Diana Crest. I come bearing grave news in the spirit of safeguarding our two families.” Diana explained with a serious expression. One could tell she was Victoria’s mother as they had the same eyes. Diana had aged gracefully, she easily looked in her thirties, not her forties. This meant Victoria would also age gracefully, if continued to do so.

“Hold just a moment, I shall enquire.” The maiden closed the door again leaving Diana to wait as she tapped her note in her hand. She peered behind her back to Ray, whom nodded in acknowledgement. He kept his silver gun concealed under his tailcoat.

---

Meanwhile Victoria bathed in her room by the fire, and only lit by four small candles. She soothed her aching joints and muscles in warm water also filled with crushed jasmine petals for a fragrant scent to fill the air and infuse into her skin and long brunette hair. As she played with her locks, twisting them in and out of a braided pattern, she couldn’t help but think about Vail. How his lips tasted against hers. How his eyes shone brightly in candlelight. How his voice sounded when he whispered in her ear. His hot breath upon her neck just before he fed on her succulent blood.

She sighed softly and began to hum gently. She now felt emptier what felt like heartache without the vampire she had fallen in love with. It seemed nothing else was worth it unless she had him in her life. If she did not have this vengeance to hold onto, and if she were denied by Peter as his son’s chosen suitor, she didn’t have anything. Her goal was a means to both ends – to teach the Wynter’s what happens when you mess with the Crests and The Order, and to gain approval from the Hygrace clan for helping them destroy their arch enemies. She just wasn’t aware of how stubborn Peter was and how adamant he was about doing literally nothing at all like a sitting duck.

[Rogue Sloth]

At the sound of a distant knock on the front door, Vail paused in what he was doing and turned curiously toward the hall. As far as he knew, no one among his family was expecting any visitors. Deciding it was probably a vampire from another clan who had come to seek sanctuary with the Hygraces, he resumed fastening the buttons on his coat. His mother always took care of the refugees who needed them, and he didn’t need to stay to help her. This evening, the only matter on his mind was finding out why Victoria had yet to reach out to him. He wasn’t entirely certain how he would get ahold of her when she was probably still among Saints in the Crest manor, but he was determined to try.

As soon as he was dressed to leave, he stepped over to his bedroom door and then halted again. There was a new scent in the air, but it didn’t belong to another vampire. Rather, it almost smelled like Victoria. He wavered with one hand on the knob, momentarily shocked as he wondered if the Crest heiress was really bold enough to show her face at the Hygrace manor after Peter had expressed his rabid dislike of her. However, his initial surprise faded when he realized the spoor wasn’t identical to the Crest heiress’s. It was merely similar, denoting a blood relative.

Intrigued and perplexed by the appearance of a Crest whom was not Victoria, he made his way downstairs to find out what was going on. Faintly, he picked up Ray’s familiar cologne as well and set his jaw, put off by the return of the Saint who had sent a bullet through his shoulder. The Lord’s return wasn’t unexpected though, and he seemed to be further away than the individual who had knocked on the door. He was probably just here to offer protection.

Vail reached the foyer just as the maid closed the door and walked off to fetch Peter. He tracked her with his eyes until she disappeared from sight and then turned back to the portal. The visitor had obviously come to speak with the head of the clan, but it would take a minute before his father came downstairs to speak with her. He opened the door.

On the other side was a middle aged woman who reminded him instantaneously of Victoria. He studied her face, snared by the blue in her eyes that made him envision the Crest heiress’s more youthful visage. Her name had slipped his mind currently, but he knew he was gazing upon Victoria’s mother, Lord Alexander’s widow.

“Lady Crest,” he greeted her after a moment of silence, coming back to himself. “To what do we owe this visit?”

[Angel Vicky]

Lady Diana regarded the young Hygrace heir with some surprise. She recognised him from dancing with Victoria at her birthday, she could see why she was captivated by the lad. "Lord Vail I presume? My, my...Victoria really had captured your eyes when she drew you." She was astounded at how likened she'd gotten him. One of her creative talents she was proud of. It seemed his vampiric pheromones had an instant affect on her, but then she remembered Ray's technique. Pinching her little finger with her hand until it just about hurt, to get her mind off the vampire's entrancing eyes. Pain was a good inhibitor of focus.

"I'm here on behalf of us all, actually. For the greater good and safety of our families." She held up her scroll. "We've been watching the Wynter's movements and they're headed our way. And Spencer knows about you and Victoria. I think they'll be gunning for you too when they arrive..in about two weeks or so. I came to give your father the warning so he can prepare for their attack. We are preparing on our end." By we she meant the Order and her daughter having joined forces.

She knew that Vail was going to ask her about Victoria's welfare, since her departure from here. Her daughter told her everything. Well not everything that happened between her and Vail, she held the confines of between the bedsheets in confidence between just her and Vail. ""From what I heard from my daughter, you've treated her very kindly and looked after her. I thank you for that, Lord Hygrace." Diana expressed with a smile.

"I presume you were just on your way out?" She enquired, noting his dress coat. "And before you ask, she's fine. She has been training very hard in preparation to fight the Wynters. She is at the manor right now." She leaned in and whispered. "And the Order isn't there right now...." She leaned back and smiled coyly with a little wink. She knew young's love dream. She had felt it herself with Alex over twenty years ago.

[Rogue Sloth]

Vail raised a brow when Lady Crest spoke his name, intrigued that she had picked him out among all his relatives in the manor. He didn’t recall ever meeting her before, but it seemed like Victoria had been drafting sketches of him during their time apart. The realization that he entered her thoughts so often was as endearing as it was flattering. He made a mental note to ask her if he could take a look at her work sometime, since she must have been a talented artist if her mother could recognize him after merely seeing his likeness on parchment.

Holding the widow’s gaze, he could tell by the dilation of her pupils that she could feel the effects of his pheromones on her psyche. However, to his interest, she seemed to compose herself before his eyes, shrewdly explaining the reason for her appearance. He would have lingered on the detail, curious to know how she had overcome her human weakness for his kind, if not for the disheartening news she had brought with her. Apparently the Wynters were moving, and fast. He set his jaw as she described what sounded like a small war between the Order and the other vampire clan, one that would certainly bleed over to ensnare his family as well. It was what he had been warning his father about for days, yet the leader of the Hygraces continued to willingly turn a blind eye.

“I appreciate that you came all this way to tell us,” he expressed, eyeing the scroll in her hand. As grateful as he was for Lady Crest’s efforts, he had a feeling Peter wouldn’t be quite so enthusiastic. His father’s method had only kept them safe when the Wynters hadn’t been actively trying to overthrow their clan. Keeping their heads down wouldn’t work if their enemies began pursuing them intentionally. Unfortunately, the clan leader was bullheaded, and had yet to listen to anyone who had told him that he needed to change his strategy. He doubted Victoria’s mother would have better luck.

At the widow’s following words, Vail blinked in surprise. Unlike his own parents, there was no sign of frustration in her voice and no hint of anger on her smiling face. “It was my pleasure,” the response formed automatically on his lips while he pondered her unusual reaction. After enduring nothing but disapproving reactions to his unorthodox relationship with the Crest heiress, receiving anything even slightly more congenial felt like a mirage.

What was more astonishing was that it sounded like she was giving him subtle permission to seek Victoria out while the Saints were away. He parted his lips to respond but didn’t speak a word before another voice said behind him: “Vail, what are you doing?”

The Hygrace heir turned to find that Peter was descending the staircase, followed shortly by Katherine. “I was just leaving,” he answered taciturnly.

“Hunting again?” his father frowned, walking to the door. “Careful you don’t overdo it. You’ve been going out quite a bit lately.”

“I’ll make it quick,” he assured the clan leader, stepping out of the manor before his father could attempt to convince him to stay. As he passed Lady Crest, he offered her a subtle, appreciative nod and then turned away to head to the wrought iron gate. His posture was stiff when he neared Ray, but he knew the Saint couldn’t touch him without inciting the vengeance of the Hygrace clan, so he said nothing to the other man on his way into the city.

Behind his back, he could hear Peter’s faint voice on the wind, inquiring what Lady Diana Crest wished to speak with him about.

[Angel Vicky]

Diana nodded back to Vail as he acknowledged her as he left. She knew he’d be heading straight to Crest Manor. As did Ray, he watched him pass by with a scornful eye. He didn’t think Vail was good for the Lady Victoria, she was far too delicate to get involved with him and his dangerous world. Ray concluded that Vail Hygrace would be the death of her, and it would be a damn shame to waste such a precious life on a vampire that would just use her for her blood. Although he didn’t know the extent of Vail’s feelings for the human. It was unheard of in their ranks.

Lady Diana turned to Peter and Katherine. “Good evening, My Lord and Lady. I’m Diana Crest. Alexander’s widow and mother to Victoria. I know that things are tense between our two families, but I am sure you can appreciate we have one thing in common. We love our children and want the best for them. And as such, their safety is on the line.” She then presented them with the scroll of information. “I have here information regarding the Wynter’s movements. I was told they are your arch nemesis. And now I believe Lord Spencer is not happy with your son for pursuing my daughter….I think they will target him an your family when they get here within the next two weeks. It isn’t just Crest Manor and The Order that’s in danger, its everyone in London…” She sighed as Peter seemed unimpressed.

“I did hope to continue the truce between our families that Alex struck up with you before his death. By extending a hand and offering this information freely.” She looked at them both sadly. They were lucky, they still had each other’s companion and life mate. She had lost hers and nearly lost her only daughter with the man she loved. She was the only thing she had left from his legacy. “I’m also grateful that you helped my daughter to recover her injuries that Spencer gave her.”

---

Victoria was enjoying the silence in the house for once. Only listening to the roaring fire beside the porcelain tub. It was nice to have The Order outside on patrols or scouting for information. Now they were officially working together to stand up to the Wynters, she felt the tension had gone, finally. She wondered how her mother was getting on with the Hygrace clan leader and sighed as she knew he’d never accept her, even if she were turned into a vampire even. She lay back and closed her eyes, tying to rest her aching muscles. Although it would require an ice bath to reduce her bruises and swelling and she hated the cold.

[Rogue Sloth]

Peter had deduced Diana’s identity before she introduced herself to him. The familiar Crest scent, the similarity between her appearance and Victoria’s, and distant mentions of her name during his encounters with her late husband had all pointed him to the conclusion that she was the widow of Lord Alexander Crest. He remained quiet as she explained the reason for her visit, silently irked by yet another mention of the Wynter clan. The only targets the rival vampires would swoop down on were those who were going out of their way to incite their rage. He had kept his family safe for the last century by keeping to his own territory and leaving the other clan be as long as they didn’t actively hurt any Hygraces. There was no reason to alter his method when it had served its purpose thus far.

In the corner of his eye, he could see Katherine observing him keenly. Like their son, it seemed that she had been deceived by the claim that they needed to go out of their way to stop the Wynters from conducting an attack that he doubted would ever come to pass. He usually took his wife’s thoughts into consideration, but for this matter, he was unwilling to compromise. Since Reginald’s death, it was he who had kept their family safe and cooled tensions between the Hygraces and the Wynters. He couldn’t risk sacrificing all of his hard work when all this talk of their enemies was nothing more than rumors.

“Lady Diana, I welcome the continuation of the truce between our families, but the agreement I made with Alexander never entailed that the Hygraces would take up arms alongside the Crests,” his words were firm and unwavering, indicative of his resolution to stay out of the others’ affairs. He hadn’t budged when the issue had been brought to his attention by Vail, Victoria, or Katherine, and he wasn’t going to change his mind now. “If the Order has provoked the Wynter clan, then it is their problem to solve, not ours. We will not get involved in their conflict. I’m sorry.”

--

As the Crest manor came into sight, Vail could already feel himself beginning to salivate at the prospect of tasting her blood again. He was eager to find out how Victoria was doing since the last time they had seen each other, but he couldn’t help his nature. During the days they had been apart, he had gone back to hunting in the streets of London to satisfy his bloodlust and replenish his strength to prepare for the inevitable strike of the Wynters. However, the humans he fed upon couldn’t compare to Lady Crest. He longed for the unique substance that flowed through her veins and made him feel rejuvenated like nothing else.

With a mask of composure, he approached the front door and knocked. Had he known the layout of the interior, he would have attempted to enter through her bedroom window to avoid alerting the staff of the manor to his presence, but since he’d only seen the ballroom, this was the next best option.

He waited for the door to open and then flashed a smile at the maid who appeared on the other side. “Evening,” he greeted her, easily making eye contact as she looked up at his face. “I’m here to see Lady Victoria. May I come in?”

[Angel Vicky]

Diana frowned as Peter made his opinion heard, it wasn’t the reception she’d hoped for but had kind of expected from him. She sighed and nodded as he expressed his thoughts. “Then our truce shall continue forthwith as it had done so in the past. However, I have given you all the information to hand that you require…I beg you heed the warning we come with. The Order has done no such provoking. The Wynters sent Lord Spencer over to get his foot into the territory and now he has access to my daughter’s blood. He took so much of it to empower the Wynters. I do not believe they will stop at just London and forcing The Order’s hands.” She sighed and shook her head. “I just pray they do leave you alone, for your family’s sake.” She glanced at Katherine and bowed to them both. “I bid you a good eve.” She left it in their hands, it was their decision to fight or flight. At least she could say she tried to help them gain the upper hand.

---

As Victoria rested her head back in the tub, she heard the doorbell chime. She wasn’t expecting anyone. She listened out with her keen hearing and kept as silent as she could. She heard a maid open the front door and then heard a familiar voice. “Vail..” She almost gasped with joy. She leaned up in the bathtub, her long brunette curls cascaded down over her breasts to cover her modestly sized bosom.

The maid flustered at his pheromones. “I um…I will just check with My Lady. Wait here.” She gestured just inside the door and she ran up the stairs to Victoria’s room. She knocked on and Victoria replied. “Enter.” She expected the maid’s presence and before she could ask. “Send Lord Hygrace up would you, thank you.” She ordered the servant girl and she nodded, bowing before leaving the room. Victoria lay back down and awaited Vail’s arrival, she had no qualms about him seeing her bathe. He had seen her uncovered twice before.

The maid ran back down and permitted Vail to go upstairs. “My Lady is awaiting you in her chambers.” She pointed up the grand staircase. His keen nose would light his path right towards his human lover’s bedroom where she awaited his presence with a nice surprise waiting for him.

[Rogue Sloth]

“Thank you,” Vail said politely, stepping inside the manor and closing the still-open door that the maid had neglected in her fluster. As he waited, he looked passively over the room, finding it quite different when the floor wasn’t crowded with guests dressed up for a masquerade ball. The elaborate decorations were gone, but the space was just as impressive to him as it had been the first time he’d gazed upon it. His eyes lingered on a portrait of the Crest family, specifically on Victoria’s late father. Peter had been the only Hygrace to interact with Alexander, so he had never seen what the former patriarch of the Crests had looked like. He could see traces of his likeness in the heiress.

At the sound of pounding footsteps, he turned away from the painting and nodded as the maid permitted him to go upstairs. Eager to make up for lost time, he strode up to the second level of the building and headed down the hall. Victoria’s scent was dulled by the aroma of floral perfume, but he was still able to find his way to her bedroom without any trouble. Since she knew he was here, he didn’t bother knocking on the door before he stepped inside.

Right away, he guessed that she had at least drawn a bath due to the fragrant smells in the air, so he turned to approach the washroom to find her and then halted. Single mindedly focused on satisfying his thirst for her blood, he hadn’t prepared himself for the possibility that Lady Crest might be nude upon his arrival. His heartbeat hastened reflexively as he stared, captivated by the sight of the alluring woman in the tub. Her figured wasn’t perfectly clear to him submerged beneath the bathwater, but since he had seen what she looked like before, his memory filled in the gaps for him.

“I take it you’re feeling better?” he said when he found his voice again, walking over to the adjoining chamber. Inside the room, her scent was stronger, and he swallowed as his mouth began to water again. He had enough self-control not to lunge without warning though, so instead of giving in to his predatory instincts, he picked up the chair by her vanity and set it down by the edge of the tub to sit.

[Angel Vicky]

Victoria peeked behind her when the door opened, and she saw Vail let himself in. He didn’t knock but that didn’t bother her. He was welcome in her room. She smiled at his presence and settle back down further into the hot water, surrounded by flower petals to give her that sweet fragrance. She then heard his footsteps enter the washroom. The air was filed with a slight haze of steam emanating from the hot water mixing with the colder air above.

“Vail.” Her voice chimed melodically with a surprised tone but still delighted to see him. She turned somewhat in the tub to place her arms over the sides and then leaned her chin atop her forearms as they crossed over one another. “What a nice surprise visit!” She mused with a bright smile as he picked up the chair and sat it down next to the tub.

“I am feeling a lot better. Although, I am sporting new injuries.” She showed off some bruises on her arms and thighs. “I’ve been training hard to prepare for the Wynter clan’s arrival.” She explained so he wouldn’t get too worried about her injuries. They were self-inflicted in a way, nobody had intentionally harmed her on purpose.

“Did you just come from your manor? My mother has just gone to see your father.” She asked inquisitively as she leaned back and resumed bathing and relaxing in the fragrant water. She lifted one of her legs and let the water down over her smooth skin as she seemingly played in the tub. Whether it was just for Vail’s benefit was remained to be seen but she was usually playful in the bath tub in her usual mannerisms. “Although I am doubtful, he will change his mind even to her persuasion…” She sighed softly and leaned her head back, exposing her damp neck to him. She wondered if he wanted to taste a drop of her sweet life essence or had genuinely came to see her because he missed her company.

"So...did you miss me?" She smirked with mischievous intent at asking him the question.

[Rogue Sloth]

Victoria’s bright smile coaxed a similar expression out of Vail as he sat down beside her, though his was characteristically more subdued. Although his bloodlust remained at the forefront of his mind, it was good to see her enchanting face again. His eyes swept over her features, from her blue irises to her high cheekbones to the shape of her soft, upturned lips. It had not been objectively long since the last time they had seen each other, but to be with her in person rather than in his occasional idle thoughts was something he had missed. He was also pleased to know that she was in good enough condition to sport a cheerful mood.

As she presented the injuries on her fair limbs, he nodded slowly. While he was supportive of her intent to better defend herself against the Wynters, part of him was mildly concerned that she would become too cocky and bite off more than she could chew when the rival vampires attacked. After they had first met, she had confronted him more than once with nothing more than a silver weapon that she didn’t know how to use. Her bravery was both inspiring and worrisome, since he knew it could also get her into trouble if she wasn’t careful.

“Yes, I saw her at the door when I was leaving,” he replied to her question, leaning forward to rest his forearms on his knees with his hands clasped loosely in front of him. As he spoke, his gaze tracked the motion of her glistening legs and the loll of her exposed neck in a wolfish fashion. The Crest heiress may not have had the ability to captivate him with pheromones, but her seductive body still hypnotized him like a snake to a charmer. Behind closed lips, he traced his tongue hungrily over the edge of his teeth.

“Hell will freeze over before my father changes his mind,” he confirmed her suspicion, reaching out to caress her tantalizing neckline with the backs of his fingers. The longer he stayed by her side, the harder it became to ignore his urge to make her his prey. He couldn’t help grooming her for the bite as his willpower began to slip.

At her following question, a wicked smile crossed his lips. “Of course I did, my lady,” he purred, sliding down from the edge of the chair to kneel beside the tub. With one hand, he brushed her hair aside so he could press a kiss to her cheek before he murmured in her ear, “Did you miss me?”

[Angel Vicky]

Victoria watched Vail’s movements as his pheromones began to wash over her and she became entranced at his every word and action. It was easier than ever to submit to the vampire lord after forming more of a bond and affection for the lad during their days spent in each other’s company. She knew he wouldn’t have liked to see her injuries but what other choice did she have? Was she to sit back and wait for her inevitable fate at the hands of the Wynters? Or would she defy them til the very end? Her father showed her that she could overcome any obstacle if you worked hard enough…to an extent.

She swooned as Vail drew nearer to her proximity, feeling her heart quicken. She frowned when he confirmed his father’s stubborn opinions on the situation at hand. She knew that on some level his eyes looked over her with hunger as his fingers traced her neck as if grooming her into his prey once again. He wouldn’t admit to her but he was rather addicted to her blood. She wondered if his attraction to her would diminish if she did become a vampire?

Still, his fingers mixed with him nearing to brush her hair aside and his lips brushing against her soft cheek, caused a shiver to run down her spine. She cooed as he said he had indeed missed her, she blushed and bit her lower lip as he whispered into her ear. All she could muster was a trembled nod and a slight moan of acknowledgement as his pheromones washed over her and seduced her into submission. She would have to be on guard around other vampires and not let their seduction techniques win over her willpower. The difference here was that she was in love with Vail Hygrace. Hopefully, that in itself will deter her from a wandering eye, as they say when you are in love that you forsake all others.

“Like the flowers miss the sun…” Her breath escaped from her delicate ruby lips. She wouldn’t admit it but since meeting him, she had been feeling ‘loved up’ as it were. Feeling creative as to write poetry and draw him, which he knew from her mother disclosing to him minutes earlier. Diana didn’t think it was a secret but Victoria would feel embarrassed if she knew that Vail knew about that. She would feel foolish, as it was bad enough his father disapproved of her and would probably even burn such parchments if he saw them.

[Rogue Sloth]

Sensitive to Victoria’s responses, Vail smiled against her cheek as he noticed the tremor in her movements and the spike in her pheromones. It was the same reaction he coaxed out of all his prey, but he took special pleasure in knowing that he could so easily commandeer the state of mind of the woman he loved. Unlike any other humans, he treated her affectionately and had become fond of far more than just the taste of her blood. Whether he would always be able to feed from her or not was of little concern to him, as was evidenced by his willingness to turn her into one of his own kind. Right now, however, with his primal instincts behind the wheel, he was drawn to indulge himself while the opportunity was still there.

“Good,” he mused, rocking back on his heels to undress the top half of his body. His father believed he had gone hunting in the city, so he didn’t want to return to the manor with water stains on his sleeves. To do so would have been to invite unwanted questions from the paranoid head of the Hygraces, since there were no rainclouds in the sky that eve. So, to avoid that confrontation, he hung his coat over the back of the chair and slipped out of his shirt and vest, placing the rest of the discarded articles in the same spot until he was left in nothing more than the trousers on his lower half.

No longer at risk of soaking his clothes, he leaned forward again to resume what he had been doing. His hands slipped into the warm water on either side of Victoria to stroke the soft skin of her chest and midriff, and he pressed his lips to her neck, inhaling her familiar scent. He had been honest when he’d said that he had missed her. After spending nearly a week apart, the anticipation of seeing her again had built up quite a bit, and even kneeling beside her now felt like a reprieve from withdrawal. He was glad that he had found her in the bath, because while discovering her naked had been a treat, the fragrant water would also mask her scent from Peter when he returned to the Hygrace manor.

“I’ve been meaning to tell you something,” he breathed, wrapping his arms around her in an embrace from behind. As strong as his cravings for her blood had become, there was one other reason why he had been so eager to seek her out that night, and he wanted to address it before he lost himself in the feed. Holding her as close to himself as he could with the edge of the tub in between, Vail touched another kiss to her neck and then whispered in her ear, “I love you, Victoria.”

[Angel Vicky]

The sound of his voice roused her from her dreamlike trance as he declared his pleasure in knowing she had missed him. Although his actions caused her to become curious as she watched him step back and take his shirt off. Was he joining her in the bathtub? She would not object to that. It would be the first time she shared an intimate bathing session with a man. But her hopes were short lived when he only removed his torso clothes and resumed his stance by kneeling on the floor. She’d be lying if she didn’t feel a little disappointed.

As Vail’s hands slid into the water to caress her body, she exhaled deeply at his touch. She felt very lucky indeed that he had already declared to his own father how he wanted her and not some other vampire female as a mate. His lips against her neck was intoxicating, she couldn’t stop him from priming her for a bite even if she wanted to. It was all up to him to show her he had self-restraint or face the fear of pushing her away by letting her think he only wanted her for her blood.

And then he revealed his inner most secret to her. She felt her heart leap out of her chest. Never before had she heard a man declare his love for her. She genuinely thought it was purely infatuation for her and her unique blood. She almost gasped with delight the moment his voice uttered those four words into her ear. She shuddered. If she were standing, her legs would have weakened and given way beneath her. She turned toward him and took his cheeks in both of her wet fragrant hands and planted her lips upon his firmly. She didn’t have the strength to drag him into the tub with her but she had the energy to show him just how much it meant to her that he admitted he loved her.

In fact, Victoria was so happy to hear it that tears wept from her eyes as she kissed him. Tears of joy. She slowly released his lips and stared into his hazel eyes. “You do?” Whether she didn’t quite believe it at first and had to hear it again, or if she just wanted to hear it again out of pure revelry, she had to question him for confirmation. “What about your father? He said he would disown you if you keep seeing me...” She remarked sadly with a saddened gaze. Her violet blue eyes glinting in the candlelight. “You said it yourself, he is stubborn and won’t change his mind about me. And…we agreed that turning me is just too risky.” She gripped onto his hands like a vice, never wanting to let him go again.

[Rogue Sloth]

As Victoria’s lips met his, Vail closed his eyes and sank into the kiss. He didn’t care what his parents thought. She may have been human, but she was the most special woman he’d met in all his long life, and he had fallen for her head over heels. He hoped that one day Peter and Katherine would realize that what they had wasn’t any different than what he would have if he had chosen a vampire as his lover, but regardless of their opinion, he knew with growing certainty that he wouldn’t take back his actions even if he could. She gave him a reason to exist, and that was a priceless enough gift to endure all the pushback from his family for however long they could be together.

When she pulled back, he could see the shine of tears in the corners of her eyes. “I do,” he confirmed, leaning in to touch a short but tender kiss to her soft lips. “I’ve loved you for a long time now. You’re more than just prey to me, and you’re even more than just a woman. You’re the one I want to be with, Victoria.” As he spoke, a hint of a blush crossed his features. He still wasn’t used to opening up to anyone about his innermost feelings, so telling her now made him squirm a bit, even though everything he said to her was the truth.

As she brought up his father, Vail held her gaze without wavering. In the beginning, he had been extremely concerned about losing Peter’s favor, even to the point of fighting back against his budding affection for the Crest heiress. However, his priorities had shifted. While he still desired his father’s approval, he wasn’t going to let the clan leader force him into submission any longer. He respected Peter’s station as the patriarch of the Hygraces, but he wanted the freedom to start making some more personal decisions without pandering for permission. As long as he wasn’t doing anything to jeopardize the safety of his family, he saw no reason for his father to continue controlling his life.

“He did threaten to disown me,” the vampire heir admitted impassively. “But he and I both know that he can’t follow through with it. I’m his only son, and my uncle’s oldest doesn’t have the fortitude to lead the clan. If he tries passing the inheritance off to any of my other cousins, it could cause them to feud over who deserves it the most, because there’s no clear prerequisite outside of the birth order.” Peter could spit daggers all he wanted, but since he had no other children, he was stuck with his ‘rebellious’ son whether he liked it or not.

“I know,” Vail murmured when Victoria brought up the turning ritual. He still wished they could have used it to make her immortal, because the thought of parting on her deathbed tormented his heart. If only half of the humans who attempted it survived, though, he preferred to hold onto the few decades they had for the remainder of her human life. He didn’t think he could forgive himself if he was the one to cause her frail heart to stop beating prematurely, and the thought of losing her now rather than in two or three decades was even more painful than waiting for old age to claim her.

Upon imagining their pitiful future, his possessive streak flared, and he held onto her more tightly. In such close proximity, he was also tempted to sink his fangs into her neck again, and he took a slow breath to control the urge, not wanting to catch her by surprise when it hadn’t been that long since she began to recover from what Lord Spencer had done. He wanted to be even closer to her, but it seemed like she wasn’t going to be getting out of her bathtub anytime soon. His hazel eyes drifted down to her sultry body beneath the water, her bare skin stirring a different kind of primal hunger inside of him.

He cleared his throat, “Do you have a spare towel?” Since he had lied to Peter about hunting in the city, he couldn’t return to the Hygrace manor soaking wet, but he was growing irritated with the icy porcelain bathtub that prevented him from closing the gap between them as much as he would have liked. If he dried himself off before he left, it was less likely for his father to realize where he had been though.

[Angel Vicky]

Victoria was delighted when Val confirmed his love for her. And it didn’t feel like he was just saying it to gain her favour into letting him feed on her blood and be his prey or just to get her into bed. The way his eyes met hers, told her he felt the same as she did. But what she didn’t realise for how long he had loved her for. Which by his words, was for a long time apparently? This caused her eyebrows to raise slightly in surprise. At his proclamation that she was more than just his prey, she scoffed lightly under her breath, thinking she would certainly hope she was! However, she still smiled as he continued and explained she was more than just some random woman he’d met, he actually wanted to be with her as his chosen mate.

She nodded slowly as she noticed his blush. Which was rare for Vail Hygrace, a man of mystery and suspense. She managed a soft chuckle out of excitable joy at hearing such a declaration from the vampire. “You might live to regret that…” She half warned him as her eyes sparkled gently in the light as they looked into his with warmth. Then she brought up the subject of his father, Vail was his rebellious son indeed, he still came here against Peter’s orders.

The lady nodded when Vail minded them both that he was threatened to be disowned. Victoria frowned somewhat. “That’s not…ideal.” She expressed with a sad sigh. She knew how important family were, especially after losing her father, she wouldn’t wish that on Vail. Yet, Vail remained steadfast in his decision and concluded that he and Peter both knew he couldn’t really disown him. And that gave the Hygrace heir power. Victoria grinned as she felt they were victorious in this situation after all. As far as their love being accepted was concerned. They were no way out of the woods by far yet. It was too early to celebrate, instead it was important to cherish as much time together as they could before the inevitable…

She then felt him pull her closer, her body being pulled into the hard porcelain, slightly winding her in the ribs. Sometimes Vail forgot his own strength it seemed. If all he wanted was to hold every inch of her as close as possible, all he had to do was ask and she would be out of the tub in no time at all. Yet he seemed to have a different idea when he asked her for a spare towel. A small mischievous curl of a smile appeared on her lips. “We have many towels….” She giggled as she gazed into his hazel eyes with unconditional love.

[Rogue Sloth]

Chary by nature, Vail’s first instinct hadn’t been to climb into the bathwater with Victoria, but his solution of kneeling beside the tub was quickly proving to be unsatisfactory. Even if he merely tried to feed on her from where he sat on his heels, he disliked the cold porcelain that prevented him from enveloping her lithe body in his arms. So, when she revealed that there were indeed other towels that he could use, he nodded and rose to his feet to remove his shoes and trousers, eager to close the distance between them.

He pushed the garments aside with his foot to keep them from being splashed by any stray water droplets as he joined his human lover in the warm, scented bath. The temperature made his skin tingle pleasantly, and he settled down comfortably across from her, taking a moment to enjoy the pleasant sensation. In a tub designed for just one person, there wasn’t an excess of space for both of them, but he found a way to overcome the issue. Beneath the water, he slid his hands along her shapely legs, following the contours from her ankles to her thighs, and met her gaze with a sly smirk just before he pulled her by the hips up onto his lap.

“That’s better,” he said decidedly, leaning in to close the gap that remained between them. The feeling of her legs around his waist made his heart race, but even more exciting was the proximity of her neck to his mouth. He could feel the urge to bite her pluck at his willpower again, and he licked his lips hungrily. Since she had been ill whilst staying with his family, he had abstained from drinking her blood, and before then, her blood had been too thin to provide him the nourishment it usually did. Despite the few times he had gone out to feed on other humans recently, he had a particular craving for the Crest heiress that hadn’t been satisfied in over a week.

“You are far more than just prey to me,” he murmured again, snaking his arms around her bare shoulders and lower back. “But I trust you won’t mind if I indulge myself a little…” Holding her close, he didn’t have the patience to wait for a response as he chased the statement by trailing his tongue over her supple neck. He’d managed to cling to his composure long enough to express his feeling to her, and now that he had, there was nothing pressing enough to convince him to keep fighting against his impulse to feed. His hazel irises shrank down to the size of thin rings against his dilated pupils as his bloodlust took over and he primed her soft flesh for the bite.

[Angel Vicky]

Victoria couldn’t help but watch Vail undress. Feeling a little spoiled since they weren’t even married yet indulging in each other as if they were. This was not the social convention. If anyone had not known better, it looked as if she were a common woman of the night that the Lord had paid for the privilege of spending the eve with. Yet they would not have Peter’s blessing to wed either. He made it clear that a vampire was not supposed to take their prey as lovers or wives. No matter how much Vail protested.

Victoria giggled delightfully when he entered the bathtub with her. She always secretly wondered what it was like to share the bath with a handsome man. She shuddered as he touched her and returned his smirk with a mischievous smile of her own. “Vaaail…” She cooed as he pulled her by her hips so she could sit on his lap. Her heart raced as she felt his skin against hers. The warm water helped the natural chill on his skin not feel so cold against her. She snuggled against him comfortably and leaned against his chest. She could see that he licked his lips.

He had indeed not drunk from her in a while, due to her weak condition. He had done well during their week together during her recovery not to indulge. She could understand his cravings had resurfaced being so close to her neck. At least he didn’t come here only to feed on her blood. He came to say how he really felt. As he repeated that she was more than just prey to him, she looked up into his eyes with a warm smile. When he semi asked if she didn’t mind him indulging, she didn’t exactly say no...not that she could stop him. She sighed softly as he primed her neck for his fangs, numbing the flesh in readiness for the pain.

“I...suppose.” She said reluctantly. He did save her from dying in the cold and gave her sanctuary. How could she deny him a reward? He did love her so why deny him pleasure, she wanted him to be happy because she loved him back. Yet since Spencer had drained her so badly, any thought of losing anymore blood made her feel dizzy and lightheaded. So when Vail took his bite, she whimpered anxiously and started to shake in fear. It wasn’t her usual response to his feeding of her. She had some sort of trauma deriving from her previous torture. She could only hope it was over fairly quickly before her heart burst from shock.