After being picked up from school by Callisto's assistant, it was past 5 pm in the evening. The tick tock sound that represented a consistency in the clock, in contrast to Val's lateness today, made the twins restless. Although Callisto reassured them Val's safety, he could still not be trusted.
Realizing their endless worry won't stop anything, Raul and Rune both sighed, evidently bored despite having their devices in front of them. The room felt more isolated than usual.
"Should we call Charles?" Rune suggested.
Charles Russel, a self-acclaimed assistant of the duke, was the one who picked them up today unlike the usual days where Callisto would personally fetch them.
Their first impression of him was awful. His long orange hair and the glasses that obscured his vision and cascaded over his shoulders was memorable to the twins who had only seen darker colors in their hair before. His formal attire was a mess. His coat was bigger than his size, his tie was loosely tied and lastly not all buttons in the shirt were fitted properly.
Therefore, the children evaluated that he was a heavy drunkard - not that he was stuttering - but a valuable worker since Callisto wouldn't accept laziness when things could be carried out much more efficiently.
The second time they met at the school was more pleasant than their first. Charles explained that he was advised by his colleagues to have dressed better, especially in front of kids who were brutally honest. After clarifying that matter, Raul and Rune lightened their guard and listened to him, occasionally remarking on his matters.
The third time they met, the twins were comfortable with seeing, conversing and texting Charles. They even came up with a nickname for Charles.
Lares, a guardian deity of agriculture.
Even though Charles wasn't fond of the name, the children who knew the true meaning behind the nickname - warm, generous and faithful - were more than glad to make a new acquaintance who wasn't boring to them.
And today marked the fifth day they met each other. From all their meetings, they could tell he was clumsy, an avid fan of the duke and very talkative about many things in life. At times, he was annoying but also comfortable to be with. They were taught valuable relationship tips which caught their attention to help Val and Callisto out.
"Do you trust him?" Raul confirmed with her. "We've only met him a few times."
"Of course, I have everything from his national IDs to his relatives' information." Rune retorted. "What do you think?"
"Haa...., I know you aren't that foolish to trust anyone you meet firsthand, but digital information doesn't prove solid evidence. The profile itself could be fake information by bribing someone in the government. Each person has different sides to them according to who they deal with."
"I know." Rune buried her head into the pillow. "Pft….Ahahahaha!" She bursted out into laughter seeing Raul cower at her unexpected reaction.
"What?"
"How on earth did you not notice I was trying to be sarcastic? You are as dense as the duke in that aspect."
"True. Your personality resembles more of our mom."
Rune was stunned. What Raul said was different from what she expected. "I didn't think you would mention her."
"Why not?" Raul shrugged. "It's not a sensitive topic for me. I just didn't want to remind dad of her. Besides, the duke wouldn't go over the surveillance cameras just to listen to what we are talking about."
The duke was doing exactly that. Every night, the duke would look over the CCTVs by himself and check any suspicious activity. After learning about it, Raul informed Rune, who decided to use this in their plans.
In a subtle gesture, Rune shushed him. Her idea was to make the duke think of Val as a pitiful single dad with difficulties raising their child. "I just didn't think you would because it's been a long time since you've mentioned her to dad."
Raul perceived what she was trying to do, but he wanted to derail her plans and take the roundabout route. "Since she's dead, what use would it be to cause more pain for dad? She doesn't deserve an ounce of his heart after abandoning him."
"Abandon?" Rune almost wanted to ask how their mum abandoned them when they only had a mum in the first place. "Is that what mum told you?"
At the word "mum", his eyebrows twitched. "How long are you going to call Val mum?"
"Until the end of time."
"You are really childish." Satisfied that he thwarted her plans partially, Raul was satisfied.
Although both were acting, Rune fumed in defeat. Still, she needed to salvage the last part of the conversation. "But mum didn't abandon us."
"What do you mean?" Raul continued with the acting.
"She…?!" Rune was about to explain the whole circumstances when the door burst open, enshrouding the room with darkness.
A pair of heavy footsteps rushed inside, stopping near them. Raul heightened his senses in wariness for the foe to approach them.
A snap of fingers illuminated the nine candles on top of a cake.
"Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you…" A harmonious happy birthday song was chanted. Val's delicate tone in match with Callisto's low, deep voice let out a pleasant melody unfitting of the childish lyrics in the song.
Raul and Rune clapped at their performance while Callisto was going around the room, switching the lights back on. After thanking the both of them for preparing the surprise, Rune snatched away a few slices of the raspberry cake and some chocolate pieces as soon as Val finished dividing them. Raul meanwhile waited patiently to receive a slice from Val.
It was coated with vanilla - Raul's favorite flavor - and topped with chocolate - what Rune likes - and a few raspberries.
"Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?" Rune asked.
"What do you mean?"
Everybody, even the duke, knew that usually when it comes to sweets, Raul wouldn't hold back his desire, but this time he was strangely quiet. Raul didn't like raspberries. The reason Val only remembered now was because he let this matter go when Raul, not wanting to show any childish behavior, hid his dislike for it.
He wanted to slap the him a few moments ago. He should have kept the twins's preferences in mind when he bought it, after all, their level of pickiness was more or less the same as his.
"I….I just …" Raul was struggling to give an answer.
Val cuts in before his question is answered. "Can I have your slice? It has more raspberries on your slice than the others."
Raul meekly handed over the plate while Rune, who realized his weakness, had in mind her future plans to tease him. "Thanks, dad."
"No, no. Thanks to you, I got to eat many delicious raspberries."
The twins knew Val didn't hold particular dislike or preference for any food. Raul was embarrassed. Though Val tried to help him by hiding his weakness, Rune was sharp. She would have probably realized by now what he was doing this for.
Raul sighed in despair for the times he was about to be teased by Rune. Defeated, he trudged back into the bedroom after chugging down a glass of cold water. Rune followed him.
"Anyways, Lis, I didn't know you could sing well." Val turned to look at Callisto who was obviously dreary from his day at work.
"Me neither." Callisto massaged his throat. Seeing Val baffled over what he meant just now, Callisto explained. "It's because I haven't sang for so long. If I remember right, the last time I sang was 10 years ago."
Val realized that time was when his wife left him. Not wanting to make the situation awkward,
"Should I give him the gift now?" Val asked Callisto, missing his timing to surprise the twins with a few birthday gifts in his bag.
"Give it to him later." Callisto informed Val as he got up from the sofa. "Take the twins with us as well. We are going now."
"To where?"
"Into my domain." Callisto announced. "For preparation of the ball, occurring 2 days later, hosted by Lecter."
"I see." Val contemplated whether it would be safe for the twins to tag along.
"There's no problem." As if Callisto read his mind, he reassured him. "The portal is along the road, besides we are taking a shortcut which no one knew of before."
After dressing the kids out of their school uniform into something casual, they headed for a bustling location, less crowded since it was the afternoon. Times Square shopping center.
Not saying a word, the children only peeked a glimpse at the shops, which caught their eye and followed Callisto obediently. Down the staircase, they stopped in front of the level 2 exit door. They could feel the presence of the portal.
"You know the procedure right?"
The twins nodded before unhesitantly biting into their fingers. Lifting Raul and Rune in one swoop, he led them close to the switch, which recognized their blood and allowed them to enter.
"Are we…?" Rune asked for permission. She took his silence as an affirmation and went ahead with Raul.
Val was worried for them. Would they be okay?
"The knights from my castle are awaiting us only a few meters ahead of the portal. I have already informed and sent a picture of what the twins looked like."
Val calmed down, hesitant to bite off his own skin. Unlike his children, his powers of regeneration had grown weaker while his control over his illusion ability had gotten better. Despite quite a long time, looking at his hand, nothing happened. "..."
"Are you that scared to hurt yourself?" Callisto reached forward for his right hand, which he gently stroked and felt the sensation of his palm.
"It's not that…it's just…" Val caught off guard from his question was flustered. Right. At this age, how could he be afraid of pain when his children could bear it better than him?
Not looking for an answer, Callisto pulled him, their bodies stuck closely to the other. With one hand wrapped around his waist and the other gently touching his neck, Val couldn't escape his strong grip. His hug was warm and tight, at the same time, it was terrifying.
"What are you doing?" Val tried to push him away.
Callisto didn't bulge. "Helping you." His eyes were less indifferent than when he last saw him. It seemed he had grown softer after spending time with the twins.
Leaning towards his neck, Val could feel his hot breath on his shoulders. Callisto's sharp fangs, which slightly brushed against his sweater, made him ticklish at his chest. It was better to get this over with quickly. Feeling Callisto pull down the turtleneck, he clenched his fists nervously and closed his eyes in brace for the pain.
Baffled that he felt nothing, as soon as he opened one of his eyes, Callisto's fang pierced him shallowly in the neck. It was less painful than tearing off the skin, but still, it was unfair! Why did he have to bite when he was mentally unprepared?!
Just as Val thought the fiasco was about to end, Val backed him into the wall, gently cuddling his head and pushing his fangs deeper inside Val. This pain was better than tearing off the skin and bearing the skin's cry of pain for a whole minute before it would start to heal.
'On a vampire's will, their fang would release a substance inside the victim, who would feel ecstasy and pleasure instead of pain. This allowed them to be dominated easily.' was what he read in a book in one of Callisto's studies. Does this mean Lis wanted to dominate him? Why?
"Mnn…Hnghn…" Val held his voice back, trying to glance at Callisto. What on earth was Callisto doing?...! The duke's eyes were hazy, and he himself didn't seem to be aware his body's instinct, overcome with his desire for blood, was taking over.
Oh no. Val had a feeling he had to do something or else…something irreversible would happen.
Instead of provoking the duke by pushing him away abruptly, Val stayed still, leaning against the wall for support. Excited to see Val's submissive response that was unlike the usual him, he pushed his fangs further and nibbled around his neck teasingly. After Val looked satisfied, he pulled his fangs out of his neck, and planted kisses around the wound to make sure it didn't hurt.
"Umm…hngh…" Every area his lips left was burning and ticklish. Callisto didn't think Val would be this sensitive. Exciting. Amusing. Delightful. These were the feelings he had when he saw Val, a cold, distant man everybody wanted to get hold of, shivering to his every touch and his eyes, burning with desire, rationally anticipating his next move.
How delightful that he could easily see his mark on his pale skin. Callisto thought as he brushed past his lips. But he shouldn't scare Val too much, lest he ran away again. Seeing Val's knees quivering, he propped him up and sucked the blood, licking the rest of the blood on his neck clean.
Val, aware that the duke was in his right senses now, calmly told him to stop since he had already done more than enough. After imprinting his blood on the switch, he headed into the portal, beckoning the duke to come over quickly.
Heeding to Val's wishes for him to act normally, Callisto bit deep into his own skin and applied his blood from the thumb on the switch, which activated the portal once again.
The name plate read "Revenant", indicating a person who had returned from death. Certainly, this name suited his cheerful and bountiful territory much more than the dirty likes of him and all the evil in the world. To get rid of all those dirty scums, today's meeting with his vassals had to go smoothly first.
As he passed through the portal, this sense of nostalgia was comforting to him. Though three months was a short span for vampires, he had great desire to.
Val was already seated in the carriage, which was tightly guarded by the knights, opposite the kids. Confirming that the guards were properly doing their job, Callisto commanded the knights to remain as vigilant as today and ordered the coaches to take off to the Larcena Castle.
Inside the carriage, there were two contrasting moods. Raul and Rune were devastated after hearing they weren't able to use Wifi until they got nearer to the castle while the duke and Val didn't exchange a single conversation, not even greetings. They noticed something had gone amiss between the two of them.
Rune noticed a red mark on Val's neck which he covered up with a shawl. Rune internally screamed out of joy. They finally made some progress!
But their reactions looking so unpleasant must mean the duke must have forcefully taken his blood. After all, even after little exposure to Val's blood, it would drive the vampires crazy, taking over the desire to possess his blood exclusively for themselves. She just hoped the duke wasn't the same as those mindless ones or else…
"Rune?" Val's kind sound woke her up from her thoughts.
"What is it?" She asked Val, grinning ear to ear.
"Here are your presents." Val handed three gifts each to the children, pointing out which gift was given by whom. "This small packaged box is from me, this big one here is gifted by the duke and the last one is from Charles to you guys. I guarantee that every present we chose is different. Go ahead and open it."
Although opening presents were always part of their tradition, somehow seeing two more presents add up this year, Val's decision to give them the present now choked her with laughter as well as sadness. Tears dripped down her cheeks silently. Raul looked at her, understanding the fact that they felt much lonelier than they thought.
Val was stunned, unsure what brought this change of mood to Rune. To release her pent up emotions and stress, he hugged her tight on his lap while Raul snuggled close to him. Callisto looked away, in confusion at this sight. Callisto never realized the children were fragile because they were putting up a strong facade in front of him. They behaved just like Val.
Tenacious and powerful to strong and kind and generous to the weak.
After their tears dried up, Val encouraged them to open their gifts. This feeling of excitement before opening a present would always be an emotion they weren't used to despite the eight years they had constantly received presents.
It was because Val always came up with unexpected gifts for them. Rather than a surprise party, for them, their biggest delight in birthdays was when Val would bestow a gift to them according to their contributions to the household. Depending on the extent of chores they did, they would be given gifts from the range of the most expensive ones to the crappiest ones, such as an empty makeup box, a cup with a simple design and an alarm clock.
Mostly Rune would get the lowest priced ones because she was either too lazy or forgetful to carry out her share of the chores.
But this year, she was hoping to make a rare comeback against Raul, a long standing champion of this contribution competition. Gulping down her nervousness, she proceeded to unwrap Val's present first. It was a pair of cute pink wireless earphones that she had been eyeing on for a long time. It was too expensive to plead Val for the product, therefore, she just decided to save up enough money to buy it.
Unexpectedly, when Val bought it for her first, she almost wanted to burst into tears. Callisto reminded her. "Aren't you going to open mine too?"
It was a limited edition figurine of a blue, long haired boy with a katana tied to his waist and a white haired girl in a fantasy robe. Both of them let out the aura of pure strength, which was an attribute of character she absolutely loved. Her eyes lit up, accepting whatever result she had from the competition. But, she still couldn't help but wonder what Raul's gift was like?
Rune had her hopes up that Raul finally got a …. !
Nah. Rather than a lousy, cheap gift - which Rune expected, he received a video game, along with a white keyboard and mouse set - from Val. He loved them both immensely. Rune yielded this round, she learnt to be humble and be content with what she got.
Finally, it was time for Charles' present. They had great expectations for it since it was the last one, however, those hopes shattered as they were given a plain red envelope stuffed with money. Was he Chinese? This red envelope tradition is definitely Chinese. But, whenever they had a conversation, he sounded Russian more than Chinese.
Callisto told them that Charles was half Russian and half Chinese, however, he preferred his nationality of China more due to their beautiful culture and food. "Is he rich?" Rune asked in her hand, counting the money carefully. It added up to a total of ten thousand dollars.
"Yeah." Callisto didn't say further as he was fed up of talking about him. Though his expression was as bland as usual, his eyes clearly showed his boredom.
Not reading the room, Rune asked. "Enough to afford a mansion?"
Callisto gave a nod, not even bothering to speak a word. Just as Rune was about to suggest something outrageous, Raul shut her mouth once again and laughed awkwardly.
It was the trigger to their endless bickering.
Val smiled peacefully. There was never a moment of tranquility between them. Though Val was used to it, Callisto probably wouldn't be familiar with this type of chaos. He pitied the carriage driver outside and Callisto's ears, which had to hear the twin's ear piercing brawl the rest of the way to Larcena Castle.