Richard and Michael, still reeling from the effects of their sister's cry, slowly got to their feet. Their beastly sides had completely disappeared, reverting them back into their human forms. While the claw marks on their body along with the other wounds began to close up and heal at an alarming rate. They stood naked before her, their heads bowed in respect, their chests heaving with exhaustion.
Naomi's gaze swept over them, her eyes burning with a fierce, protective energy. She raised a hand, and the air seemed to shimmer with energy as she spoke.
"You will not fight again, not today atleast," she commanded, her voice firm and unyielding
"Relax sister, we were just having a friendly spar," Richard said with a smile, stealing a glance at Micheal
Naomi ignored Richard and turned to face Michael. "I know he can be quite vexing at times, but I expected better from you," she scolded
But Michael remained silent, he could only take the chastity of his sister without retorting. He dared not, she was the one with the cry of death. And she was right, he was older, which automatically meant he was at fault.
"My dear canary sister, please do not blame Michael. It was I who suggested we had a test of strength, blame me instead," Richard muttered with an apologetic expression, acting like a saint
But Naomi saw through him, she folded her arms and stared at him. "Oh, I know it was you. But that brawl was more than just a little spar, you looked like you wanted to rip each other apart," she retorted, and her hair began to revert back to the usual golden colour. Her eyes regained the purple colour and the aura of death surrounding her vanished.
"You're both lucky it wasn't Carmilla that caught you, she would do more than just make your ears bleed," she added
With that, Naomi turned and walked away, her long hair flowing behind her like a river of night. Richard and Michael followed, their footsteps quiet as they walked behind their sister, the tension between them dissipating with each step.
...
Few moments later,
In the main castle, inside a large dining room. The grand dining hall was filled with the warm glow of candelabras and the soft murmur of conversation. The long, wooden table was laden with an assortment of dishes, each one more exquisite than the last. The aroma of roasted meats and freshly baked bread wafted through the air, making everyone's mouth water in anticipation.
Naomi, Richard, and Michael entered the dining hall, their presence drawing the attention of the other occupants. Aurelie, who was already settled, looked up from her seat at the far end of the table, a mischievous glint in her eye.
"About time you showed up, some of us are starving," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I was even thinking about starting without you."
Naomi shot her a warning glance, but Aurelie just smiled innocently. She looked into the eyes of the person sitting next to her, seeking comfort and back up.
The person, who looked to be a man in his early thirties, sighed and faced the trio standing. "Come on Cuz, cut her some slack. It's her big day," he muttered with a smile. He had a medium length, red hair that was slicked back neatly, with a chiseled jaw, charming face and bright strawberry eyes. He had pale skin and had a striking resemblance with Marie-jeanne and Aurelie.
Naomi chuckled and walked forward, towards the man. Micheal following closely behind her, while Richard took his seat and sighed in exhaustion. He and Michael had freshened up and put on some elegant clothes, erasing any trace of a scuffle between them.
"Well, even with that. We can't begin the dinner without the red queen of the damned, can we?" Naomi said, arriving in front of the man. His smile grew and he stood up to embrace her warmly.
"It's good to see you again, cousin," he muttered, before releasing Naomi from his hug, and welcoming Michael into it. "Mike, I believe we have an unfinished game of chess?"
Michael smiled and nodded. "Indeed, why don't we finish it after dinner," he said, breaking free from the hug and taking his seat right next to Naomi.
Then the man turned to face Richard, who put on a bored expression. "Come on, Richard. Won't you atleast give me a hug? It's been a long time mate," he muttered with a sad expression
"What are you talking about, Ron? We spoke about four weeks ago and we met in Dublin just a few months back. I think I'll reserve the hugs for Adrien, or Winter," Richard said sharply, his gaze focused on a bottle of wine seated on the table.
"Haha, you're quite right. There are no need for reuniting hugs between us, we see each other often," he replied.
Richard shrugged and waved at him in dismissal, his attention still fixed on the wine. But on the other hand, Michael and Naomi were stunned, their eyes widened in shock.
"Wait, Ronald. You two see each other often?" Naomi spoke first, having quickly recovered. "Why?" she asked, staring at the man deeply
Richard furrowed his brows. "Must there be a particular reason I should have before I can hang out with my cousin?" he retorted sharply
"Well, I mean... Surely something must have caused you both to meet up with each other," Naomi replied. "And considering the fact that you don't even write to, talkless of even meeting up with any of your actual siblings ever since we went our separate ways. So something must have definitely brought you both together," she stated
Ronald sighed. "Well, you're actually correct, Naomi. Richard and I have indeed been meeting quite often, but that is because I require his... Skills, during some of my missions," he stated
Michael had a look of realisation and understanding, he crossed his arms and spoke. "Oh, I almost forgot you work for an organisation that keeps balance between the other races or something like that," he muttered
"Well, if you put it that way, then yes I work to maintain balance. But it's not an organisation, it's a shadow agency. One that is responsible for making sure there is balance and order between all the major races. And having an Immortal by my side is a really big deal, I even got promoted after a mission to Instabul, a few months back," Ronald explained
"And ofcourse I helped," Richard added
Michael scoffed. "Oh, surely it wasn't out of the goodness of your heart," he muttered
"You're half correct, Michael," Ronald said. "You see, a few years back, our agency needed to take the show of force approach on an emerging race. A small civilisation of cranky faes. But the faes weren't intimidated by any of our forces, so we needed to be decisive." he explained.