The party went on for several hours and soon, it was dusk. The event had concluded and the guests begun to leave one after the other, leaving only a handful of people, including the family and a few other politicians.
"I hope you enjoy the yatch, lady Aurelie," a man said, before bowing slightly
Aurelie smiled and curtsied. "I will. Thank you for the gift, your Highness," she said
"Haha, please don't refer to me as that. I do not wish to offend your mother, just call me uncle," the man muttered with a wry smile, and began to take his leave.
Aurelie nodded and waved at the man as he left, she sighed in relief and looked around the hall, looking for her mother.
"Wow, you get to call the great king of Saudi Arabia by 'Uncle', how lucky," Naomi chuckled, walking over to her cousin.
"Well, I guess it's one of the many perks of being my mother's daughter," Aurelie stated with a cute giggle
Naomi laughed. "That does have some certain perks, and more. Like, rigging the Grammys," she said with a mischievous grin
Aurelie's eyes widened in shock. "How did you know about that? Did Kyra tell you? I knew I shouldn't have trusted that little nerd," she clicked
"Hahaha, no she didn't. Have you forgotten I work for the CIA? I know things," Naomi said with a smile
"Why would the CIA concern themselves with something as irrelevant as the Grammys?" Aurelie asked with a suspicious gaze. "Besides, I... I couldn't afford to lose the bet with Ron. I had to make my girl win that award no matter what," she stated with a nervous but resolved expression.
Naomi only laughed harder. "Haha! Don't try to act tough, gurl. I can see how terrified you are," she snickered
Aurelie was panicking and at the same time conflicted, why would her cousin try to rat her out on her big day? That's just cruelty. "You can't tell mum, she doesn't exactly approve of me compelling humans for foolish reasons," she said with a pleading expression
"Fine, I won't tell. But only if you promise to tell me where you got your dress, it's very lovely," Naomi replied with a smirk
"Huh?" Aurelie was confused, all that for a dress. She was already planning on running away for a few months as her mother's punishments weren't exactly light. In other words, Naomi had frightened her just for the fun of it.
"You're so cruel," she cried. "Even now, you still prey on the emotions of weak little me. I really thought you would tell,"
Naomi burst into laughter, she had successfully pranked the young woman. "First, Richard's the one who takes pleasure in toying with emotions. Mine is more on the mental level, playing mind tricks and stuff. And second, I would never break the code," she said with a smile
Aurelie's eyes brightened. "Awwn, you remembered the code. I figured, now that you're a mum, you'll forget about it so you can look tough," she giggled
"What do you mean? I'm always tough, but my daughter loves me all the same," Naomi replied with a proud smile
"Really? Last time I checked, Kyra wanted to become an astronaut so she would go to the moon... Where you won't be," Aurelie chuckled
Naomi sighed. "It looks like I might have to tell your mum afterall," she said with a mischievous smirk
"Haha, I was just kidding. Let's not be too hasty, dear cousin," Aurelie muttered with a nervous smile. "Hey, where's Winter? She promised me she'll come," she asked, quickly changing the topic
"You know, I've been asking myself the same thing, it's unlike her to not attend an event like this. Heck, she visits me and Kyra almost every christmas," Naomi replied with a worried expression
"Hm, that's weird," Aurelie said softly, looking like a detective about to crack a case.
"It is weird, or maybe she plans on coming solely for the dinner," Naomi said
"Well, she'd better show up, she owes me a gift. And this party was her idea in the first place," Aurelie muttered with an impatient expression. "And speaking of dinner, it's almost dark. Have you seen mum?" she asked
Naomi nodded. "Yeah, she escorted Michelle Obama out of the hall a few moments ago. Apparently those two have a lot in common, and you know your mum never passes an opportunity to make a new friend," she chuckled
Aurelie sighed. "Yes, she does have that habit. Why don't we check on the food arrangements," she said and began walking, motioning for Naomi to follow her.
Naomi sighed lazily and followed behind her, she wasn't the type that liked stress in any form.
"Hey, where's Michael and Richard? Don't tell me they left already," Aurelie asked with a concerned look
"Relax, there are still in the chateau. They just went for a walk to shake off the whiskey they've had, and catch up on old brotherly times. Whatever that means," Naomi replied, and they walked out of the hall.
In the Chateaux,
Outside the main castle, on the vast, neat field. Two men stood on opposite sides, glaring fiercely at one another. It wasn't a glare of hate, neither was it that of love.
This was Michael and Richard, and their current demeanour didn't look like that of good ol brothers. Infact, it looked like they were about to battle it out, right there, on the spot.
"Well, come on brother! Don't tell me you've lost your touch from spending time in the lecture halls and eating too much biscuits," Richard scoffed, trying to stimulate the fight, by arousing Michael's anger.
But Michael was calm, he wouldn't give in to his brother's persuasion. "I know what you're tryinge to do Richard, and it won't work. I won't fight you with anger," he voiced out
"Oh, then it must be those English women. Don't worry, I don't like them either. But, tell me brother, when last did you have sex?" Richard asked with a smirk
Michael frowned, Richard's words seemed to have hit him for some reason, but he still remained at ease. "I won't give in, you should know that by now. You're going to have to find someone else to emulate," he muttered
Richard grinned, he already knew the exact words he needed to say to push his brother over the edge, but he refrained. Afterall, the day was meant to be a joyous event. "Oh well, I guess you win this time. We'll do it your way then, a simple friendly spar," he said and began to do a few stretches.
"Good, and remember the rules. No going overboard," Michael stated
"Sure, sure. We wouldn't want to incur the wrath of the red queen," Richard chuckled
"And no switching during the fight, whatever you begin with is what you must end with," Michael added
Richard sighed. "Speak for yourself, brother. We both know that without the right emulation, I only have access to one race, unlike you," he clicked his tongue in disappointment.
"Very well, let's begin," Michael said and almost immediately, his eyes changed from silver to red, his skin became paler, and he grew fangs.
Richard smiled with excitement. "Let's see how you fight after centuries of zero combat, Michael," he voiced out and looked up into the night sky. His gaze landed on the full moon shining brightly on the earth
A smirk immediately grew on his face. "Perfect," he muttered to himself, and his eyes started to glow intensely with a yellow hue. His fingernails transformed into long, sharp claws and he also developed a set of fangs.
_________
Quick trivia! (Note, we would be doing this a lot)
So crew, all i need you to do is guess what creatures Michael and Richard turned into respectively. Your captain promises to reward you with some golden blues if you get it right.
Thanks for reading!