"You should have told Marion that these shoes were not your size." Demetri said with a small pout, as if he was upset with her for not saying anything.
"It did not bother me." Scarlett replied, truthfully.
"Now that your foot is like this does it bother you?" Demetri inquired, with a scolding look at the girl, causing her to shake her head side to side. With a heavy sigh, he continued, "Sleep. You have been walking in the garden all day. You are tired."
After hearing his instructions, she got off the bed to retrieve her shoes and made her way towards the door, with the thought of heading back to her own room in the servant quarters. Meanwhile, the man continued to sit on his bed, watching the girl's actions, irritatingly. Letting out an annoyed sigh, the man began walking towards Scarlett.
"Eh!" Scarlett let out a sound of surprise as Demetri lifted her up in his arms, returning her to his bed.
"I said you are tired. Go to sleep." Demetri repeated more sternly this time.
"But this is your bed." Scarlett replied.
Marion had not said anything to her about the sort of relationships the master has with his servants, but as a single woman, she knew it would not be appropriate for her to be sleeping in the bed of a grown man who is not her husband.
"Sleep with ease. I promise I will not do anything to you." Demetri said assertively this time. Scarlett knew he was serious this time and chose not to argue with him anymore. Slowly sliding down to rest her head on the soft pillow, she pulled the covers over her and slowly drifted off to sleep.
Sitting on the couch in his room, Demetri waited for the girl to fall asleep. After a while, Demetri let out a small sigh of relief as he heard the soft but steady breathing coming from the petite figure that hid underneath the covers of his bed. Making his way to the bedside, he brushed away the few strands of hair that tickled her forehead.
This is the same face. She had the same nose, the same eyes, the same scarlet red hair. But she was not her. Was not the same woman he had dreamed about at night when he fell asleep or during the day when his mind was restless, reminiscing about her. The moment he touched her, he knew she did not have her soul. She was not his woman.
The man stayed in deep thought, silently soaking in the image of the girl before him. After savoring the moment for a long while, the man made his way to the garden.
—
"Are we going to talk about it?" Marion spoke to the man sitting in the garden.
"Talk about what, Marion? Do you not have chores to do?" The cold man said with a light scoff.
"Your cut last night, I thought you were at the Crawford's Fall Ball. Why did you return with a slash?" Marion inquired, scoldingly.
"When have you become so nosy?" The man asked, sarcastically.
"Since your mother died." Marion replied, emotionlessly, as she continued, "So stop avoiding my questions and answer me." The woman's response caused the man's jaw to tighten as anger rose in his chest, his fingers clenching into a tight fist.
"You have overstepped your boundaries." The man replied through clenched teeth.
"Demetri, your mother's last request was for me to take care of you. I have tried to complete my quest for many hundreds of years, but how can I do so when you do not communicate with me? You keep too many things hidden away in your heart." Marion replied with a defeated sigh.
She had watched the man before her, during his innocence, his growth, his loss, and as the man waited in eternity, she watched as the man grew cold and detached. If she could bring back the little warmth the man may have left in his body, she would do it. Even if it meant she had to have mercy on someone she promised herself she would never forgive.
"Where did you find her?" Demetri questioned, staring intently at Marion, as if he were demanding for an answer.
"I have been following the lady around for a while now." Marion answered, nonchalantly.
"It's not her." Demetri replied with a disappointed sigh.
"But you are not sure?" Marion questioned with a knowing smile. Being with Demetri for so many centuries, she found that at times, she knew him more than he knew himself. The man is not disappointed because Scarlett is not the person he thought she was, but because he is simply uncertain.
"I am not." Demetri replied, his gaze sharpening as if he were in deep thought.
"And why not?" Marion continued to inquire.
"There is something I am missing. Although I feel that she has a different soul, everything about her is the same. If Scar's soul had descended and her body perished, where did Scarlett's body come from?" Demetri questioned.
The more he thought about the situation, the more he was sure there is more than meets the eye. "Why does her body still exist? It should have been destroyed after her soul was put to rest." The man continued rambling on. His thoughts scattered and his mind confused. None of this made any sense. Looking at Marion, he continued to say, "For now, treat her as if she were the same person. She will be Scar until I can get to the bottom of this."
Just then, he felt the presence of an unwanted person. Using his psychokinesis abilities, the man levitated the rocks in the garden and struck them towards the pillar the person hid behind.
"Sorry master! I just want to let you two know that dinner is ready." The girl said, begging for mercy.
"Emelia! Have you not caused enough trouble today already? First you almost caused all the servants to starve by nearly burning their lunch. Now you are courting death in the presence of the master. What are you up to?" Marion replied as she scolded the young lady.
"I am sorry master! Please do not be angry with me. I only came out here to announce that dinner is prepared. I never expected to be greeted with flying rocks." The girl responded with a pout, as if she had been done wrong.
"You dare to…"
"Drop it Marion. I do not have the time for this today." Demetri responded coldly as he got up from his seat. Slowly but swiftly making his way back inside the manor.
"You are lucky to not lose your head today." Marion said scoldingly.
"Well, aren't you glad that I didn't? Else you would have to go and find another cook!" Emelia replied cheekily.
"And if you keep up this attitude of yours, I'll be replacing you with someone else myself." Marion replied threateningly, causing the girl to smile with amusement. She knew Marion was threatening her, and that was as far as it will ever get. A threat.
"Also, it seems like Scarlett is awake. You should go and prepare a second plate for the dining room." Marion said with a soft sigh.
"Is the master having a guest over?" Emelia asked with curiosity.
"If you consider the little lady sleeping in his bed to be a guest, then I suppose you could say he is expecting a guest." Marion replied with a satisfying smirk, causing the girl's eyes to widen with surprise.
Emelia had been working at the manor for a while, and she had never seen the master bring a woman home. Surprise and excitement flowed through her body, as she thought to herself, what scandalous news. She wondered which girl was unfortunate enough to catch the attention of such a monotonous man.