@Eckhart_Von_Musel
The swift blur of passing trees and brush started to slow, and the carriage lurched to a stop. Vivianne DeGrance rocked forward, groaning slightly from the unforeseen movement. She braced herself, sitting up and seeing the carriage door open to the driver's concerned face. "Miss, this is where we part ways," he said.
"Zantaric is still almost half a mile away," the girl said with a frown tugging at her lips. "Why are we stopped?"
"I'm sure as shit not goin' into Zantaric. People get robbed bad, so you're on your own if you decide to go in."
Vivianne scoffed, shaking her head briefly. She winced, jumping down from the carriage. The fight with
Wasp had left her with some decent injuries, but she wasn't too worried. Nothing was fatal, and Alderon was a miracle worker - from what she remembered. The girl adjusted the bloodstained wrap around her left arm, touching the almost healed injury across her lips. Half a mile on her injured calf wasn't going to be fun, but she had to do what she had to do.
By the time she reached the city, Vivianne was limping pretty badly. She locked eyes with a young man in a green suit atop a horse. He trotted up beside her, claiming to simply want to help a pretty lady. He gave her a ride to Hildegarde's apartment building, then parted ways with her.
Nothing's changed... Vivianne thought to herself, not sure if it was a good thing or bad thing.
She opened the front door, preparing to make the climb, when someone stood in her way. A girl with green eyes and a good over her brown hair stood in her way. Vivianne looked the girl up and down, then furrowed her brows.
"Who are you?" She asked, holding her side, suddenly aware of the injury to her side that was mysteriously causing her pain. It was probably stress and anxiety, so she put it from her mind. "I'm expected, so if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to go in."
It was always something.
Joan O'Reilly stared at the trespasser sternly. A pair of arms materialized in front of her as she crosed her own, threatening to strike the woman. "Get lost, bitch." she said, completely deadpan. "Nobody comes in without a napkin."
"I traveled two weeks to get here from Serendipity," Vivianne started. "I was protecting Hildegarde's brother from the other gang's assassin. Not to mention, I fought that fucking assassin toe to toe, so forgive me if I'm not really willing to deal with a guard with attitude problems. Please, just tell Hildegarde that Vivianne is here."
She winced, straightening herself and narrowed her eyes at the other girl. I didn't think I was gonna have to jump through hoops to see Hildegarde again.
"Teenage Wasteland."
It happened so fast that it was hard to see. Joan's face remained expressionless as one of the arms struck a blow at Vivianne's injured side, bringing the girl to the floor. Were she to look up, Vivianne would see the hazy image of a hooded figure fading away behind the guard.
Joan blew a stray hair out of her eyes. "Watch your attitude, girl." she said calmly. "Just because Hildegarde wants you here doesn't mean you get to give me lip."
Crack!
A wave of agony surged through her body, as Vivianne was slammed to the ground by a blow she was certainly not in any shape to deflect or avoid. "Son of a... fuck!" It was more of a breathy cry than actually formulated syllables.
She turned onto her ride side, clutching her left side with her right hand. On top of the pain from the hit itself, Vivianne felt the warmth and wetness of her blood from the reopened stab wound. She squeezed her eyes closed, suddenly short of breath with an urge to throw up. Coughing not as violently as she felt, she saw splattered blood droplets and tasted her own blood. Fucking cunt, she thought, taking slow, stabbing breaths, you broke my fucking ribs.
Slowly, the girl moved to lean up, tucking her hair out of her face. Vivianne felt a little lightheaded, but she had fought in worse states than that, so she refused to show real weakness. "It's...been a long...few weeks," she said in separate breaths. "Sorry. Can I see...my old friend?"
The sound of bones breaking was interesting. It sounded a bit like a carrot being bitten into, or like a pile of autumn leaves being stepped on. Joan had personally loved the noise since she was a child- it relaxed her.
She stood over the assassin, eyes cold. "Much better." she said flatly. The hooded girl pointed to the flecks of blood on the ground. "I'll get some towels so you can tidy that up, it's rude to make a mess in somebody else's house."
A faint buzz in Joan's ear got her to pause briefly. Her eyes narrowed, until the light tug on her shirt alerted her to Terrence's presence. "Joan, I'll take it from here." The teenager said, scowling. "Thank you."
Joan nodded and leaned back up against the wall as Terrence glared at the visitor. "Stand up." he said bitterly. "Let's get this over with."
It took a great deal of effort to actually get to her feet. If she had been able to remain standing when she was hit, it wouldn't have been as big of an issue, but this one definitely hurt.
Vivianne's attention was drawn to the boy when the other girl looked his way. She squinted her eyes, trying to figure out why he looked so familiar. Is that the kid who used to follow Hildegarde around like a puppy? She thought to herself. Timmy? Thomas? Whatever. Not important right now.
She breathed shallowly, giving the boy a short nod. "So, what should I be expecting in there?" She asked, trying to mask how nervous she felt to actually step into Hildegarde's apartment after the years they had spent apart.
Terrence turned away from Vivianne, scowling. He quickly began to ascend the stairs, not caring if the assassin was able to keep up with him or not. His eyes narrowed as she asked his question. "I don't know." he said darkly. "But if you try anything funny, you're getting gutted."
"Little late for that, if you ask me," Vivianne mumbled more to herself. This was probably the warmest welcome she would expect from Zantaric. Nothing had changed, though why would she expect it to have? She followed the boy in silence, keeping her eyes locked on him. If she remembered correctly, he tended to elude people pretty easily, so she didn't want him to just slip from her sight.
Reaching the apartment, the girl waited for...Trevor?...to open the door. Vivianne mainly focused her energy on not completely flipping out when she saw Hildegarde for the second first time.
"And you're sure about this?"
Hildegarde sat on her couch, playing with her hair nervously. Belladonna sat on the floor in front of her, ears pressed against her head. "Well, it's certainly not what he thinks it is." the cat meowed, the tip of her tail twitching slightly. "You forget, he's my second- Vanya showed me what the real thing looks like."
Hildegarde looked away, her face an odd cross between a grimace and a sneer. "Are... we sure he's not just, y'know..." She paused as she struggled to find the right word. "...Inept?"
Belladonna's tail swished angrily. "He's not inept." she hissed. "He's actually quite good, given he's essentially trying to hammer nails with a handsaw."
Hildegarde exhaled sharply. "Yes, yes, I know." she said shakily. "I... just don't want her to have been right, is all."
The cat's whiskers twitched. "Well, that's something you'll need to work out on your own. Personally, I think she was right about a lot of-"
Belladonna was cut off by a sharp rap on the door. Hildegarde froze, then gave the cat a dry look. "We can continue this later." she muttered as she stood up. Opening the door, she froze again- this time with a look of fear on her face. "Vivianne! Sweet Ansgar, are you okay?"
"Oh. Speaking of people your brother doesn't like." Belladonna meowed from inside the room. "I hope you realize how upsetting this will be for him."
Ignoring the cat, Hildegarde took her old friend by the shoulder and led her to the couch. "Terry, get Eckhart now." she said quickly. "This is an emergency I think."
"No, I-I'm fine," Vivianne sputtered quickly. She knew she was in pretty bad shape, but it wasn't like she was going to die from it. "I've had worse, really."
The girl smiled at Hildegarde, glancing around the apartment. She really doesn't change anything, she thought to herself. Curious.
Vivianne's eyes widened suddenly, shifting slightly on the couch and holding her ribs. "Wait, Eckhart?" She said pressed. "No, why? What about Alderon?" She pursed her lips for a moment. Someone probably killed him for running his mouth. Vivianne gasped before she could laugh. "I don't want to be a bitch when I just got here, but are you going to stay? If you wouldn't mind, I'd really kinda like to talk to him. We didn't leave on such great terms."
Hildegarde gave her old friend a dry stare. "Viv..." she said slowly. "...I gotta stay. Ecks is really scared of you, he'd have a meltdown if I left you two alone."
"Entitled, isn't she?" Bella meowed, jumping onto the arm of the couch. "You know, wanting to spend time with him alone provides a lot of evidence to my theory..."
Hildegarde shot the cat a look. "Bella, this is not the time to discuss how fuckable he is." she said flatly. "Knock it off." As the cat tried to contain her laughter, the gang leader looked back at Vivianne. "Sorry. I'm only bringing him here now because Alderon is on leave. I need him to feel safe."
'Ecks is really scared of you.' She didn't care about the cat's snide remarks. That sentence just played back in her mind.
Vivianne dropped her head backwards releasing a long, painful sigh. She looked at Hildegarde, forcing a half-hearted, understanding smile and nodding briefly. "I didn't want to lie to him," she said, a tone of guilt in her voice. "He saw me in the mirror, and I panicked. I wanted to tell him the truth, but I was afraid he would get rid of me, and I wouldn't be able to protect him."
She straightened herself, fingers nimbly undoing the clasps in the front of the corset she wore over her shirt. The girl leaned back slightly once it was off and turned to the side. The left side of her shirt was stained with blood, and she lifted the shirt off of her stomach. She didn't care that Hildegarde was there when she did this, especially since the two of them had seen more of each other than just their sides.
On her ribs, a reopened gash was oozing blood. "Son of a bitch," Vivianne mumbled, breathing heavily. She forced a chuckle, which make her start coughing again. She undid the fabric wrap from her left arm, revealing the three healing slashes from the fight. Quickly, she covered her mouth when coughing to avoid getting too much blood in the apartment. Looking back, Vivianne shook her head at Hildegarde. "That elf bastard picked a wonderful fucking time for his damned vacation!"
Hildegarde smiled gently. "She's hurting as much as he is..." she thought sadly. "I gotta fix this, or it'll blow up in my face..."
The gang leader sighed. "I know why you did what you did." she said reassuringly as Vivianne took off her shirt. "But you need to understand just how- oh holy fuck, what happened to you?" Blinking, Hildegarde swallowed nervously. "You're right, this is the worst time..."
"Wasp happened," Vivianne said with a gentle shrug. "I went to talk with her to get her to stop hunting your brother. Thought it was going well, but she changed her mind. Both of us walked away with..." She made a circular motion, gesturing to the visible injuries. "Bottom line, she said that Eckhart wouldn't be in danger from her as long as you leave her alone and he stays out of Ketra."
She winced, inching to sit upward a bit more. Vivianne pressed her right hand against the gash, trying to keep as much pressure on it as she could. Wasn't exactly an easy feat when simply breathing was difficult. Her vision was blurring and it felt like staying awake was taxing, as time went by. She started thinking, calculating the time that had passed since her injury had reopened. Though she was cold, there was sweat on her brow and palms, though her hands might just have been from the blood.
Glancing down at her exposed stomach, she huffed. No bruising, so I'm not bleeding internally. Swallowing nervously, Vivianne took slow breaths to keep herself calm. "He has to get here a minute ago, or you have to get me whiskey, a needle, thread, and preferably a clean wrap." She squeezed her eyes shut momentarily. "And a field of oxygen, if you wouldn't mind?"
Hildegarde's eyes narrowed. "I'll do you one better Viv." she said with a grimace. "Hold tight, kay?"
Standing up, Hildegarde slammed on the wall twice with her fist. "CHRYSANTHEMUM!" she yelled. "GET YOUR FREAKSHOW ASS IN HERE RIGHT NOW!"
After a few moments, a blonde woman with sunken in eyes poked her head into the room. "Uhm..." she said slowly, seemingly frightened. "You... you need some-"
"Fix." Hildegarde said angrily, pointing to Vivianne. "I don't have time to pretend to like you today."
"Wow." Belladonna meowed dryly. "Feeling forgiving today?"
Chrys swallowed nervously, and stepped inside the room. "You..."
"Now, Chrys."
Visibly sweating, the woman stepped foward. She gingerly touched the assassin's injury, which immediately disappeared- as if it had never been there at all. Hildegarde looked at the no-longer-injured girl, and then at Chrys. "Good. Now, get out."
As the midwife hurriedly left, Hildegarde gave her friend a half smile. "Feeling better?"
Vivianne took the first unlabored breath in what felt like a month. Her eyes widened, and she looked at Hildegarde, touching where her injuries had been. After the other woman had left the apartment, she narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Hildegarde.
"Who was that?" She asked, still touching her ribs. "Why did she look so afraid?" The girl smirked, looking at the ground briefly. "Thank you, by the way. Does she owe you money or something?"
"She's..." Hildegarde struggled for a moment, trying to think of how to best describe Chrys to someone unfamiliar with her. "She's our Wasp... if that makes sense."
"Ooh, not going to tell her about the childfucker yet?" Bella mewled pointedly. "She's gonna find out eventually you know."
Hildegarde gave the cat an exasperated look. "She literally just got here, fluffmuffin. She can get... properly introduced later." Looking back at Vivianne, the pink-clad woman grinned. "That's right, you haven't met everybody yet..." She tapped on her chin, happy to change the subject. "You know my Friend circle has, like, doubled in size, right?"
"Okay okay, but real talk." Bella said, whiskers twitching. "You do know that I could have healed her, right?"
Hildegarde doesn't play well with active assassins... Vivianne thought, keeping a smile to hide what she was trying to piece together. And Wasp sure as fuck doesn't heal, so that means this Chrys girl does some kind of serious damage. I'll figure that out later.
The girl chuckled lightly, giving a shrug. She combed her fingers briefly through her bangs, adjusting them to make sure her forehead was hidden, then bent down and picked up her corset. "I'd love to meet everyone," she said, putting the corset back on to cover the blood-stained shirt. The woman might've fixed her body, but the evidence of former injuries was still very visible.
When the corset was on, Vivianne looked around quickly and sighed a small breath of relief when she saw her satchel sitting next to the couch. She grabbed it and slung it across her chest, patting the bag and smirking at Hildegarde.
Opening the bag, Vivianne pulled out one of the mirrors with a small crack in the corner. "These are my treasures, so sorry if I'm a little paranoid about them." Putting the mirror back, she clapped her hands once. "So, I already met your new security! Who else have you added to your Friend circle?"
"Oh, you met Joan?" Hildegarde said, standing up and smoothing out her dress. "I hope she didn't give you too much trouble, she can get a bit rowdy."
"By 'rowdy' you mean 'she will literally throw you through a wall if you annoy her', right?" Belladonna said, stretching. "Sarah told me about that, I would have loved to see it."
"Eckhart doesn't wanna do it." Terrence soft voice signaled his return. The teenager leaned against the doorframe, smirking. "He says- and I quote- 'get the pedophile to do it, she's a better healer than I am anyway.'"
Hildegarde frowned. "How could he even compare himself to her..." She shook her head. "Bullshit, go tell him that he's way cooler than Chrys will ever be. Stroke his ego, kid needs it."
The teenager disappeared, and Hidegarde gave Vivianne a pained look. "Ha, sorry you had to hear that..." She frowned. "You still want to talk to him? I think he needs space."
"Only broke my rib," Vivianne muttered, "so I guess not too much trouble."
Upon Terrence's return, Vivianne nearly choked. In all honesty, she didn't fully believe Eckhart was going to come to her aid, but it was a small hope. Keeping a pediphile on a leash, Vivianne thought, arching her eyebrow. There's clearly more to this, but bow's not the time.
She shook her head, pursing her lips. "We'll talk about this pedophile business later because now you definitely have me intrigued. Anyway, yes. I'm sorry, but I have to. Plus," she took a long breath, glancing at the ground, "I have to give him something." Opening her satchel, Vivianne pulled out a coin purse. "To settle a debt."
"Huh?"
Hildegarde tilted her head to the side, visibly confused. "Wait, you owe him money? He never told me that..."
"That's because he doesn't go to you when he wants to vent." Belladonna said. "He's been bitching about it to me and Porcelina for weeks."
Hildegarde gave the cat a disgruntled look. "I didn't know he hung out with Porcelina, either..." she thought bitterly, squeezing her eyes shut. The gang leader took a deep breath, then clapped her hands together. "Well, it's good that you remembered the money, that might get him to warm up to you again." Hildegarde smiled as she held the door open for her friend. "He's probably with Taza, so we should head down to her room."
"Oh, terrific!" Vivianne said with a smile, leaving the apartment. "I'd like to see Taza again." She started walking, waiting only for Hildegarde to come with her. "And yeah, I'm afraid I owe him quite a lot of money. When I told him I was trapped in the mirror, he paid twenty suns. Only right that I repay him for that."
Don't sound too guilty, Viv, she told herself. Feeling bad is one thing, but you still have your pride.
She subconsciously put her hand over her ribs where her injury had been. After two weeks of doing it, the action had become something of a habit when she got nervous. Vivianne swallowed slightly uncomfortably.
"Um, how many people should I expect to be there when I speak to your brother?" She asked with a half-hearted chuckle. "Just so I can prepare myself."
Hildegarde pursed her lips. "Twenty suns?" she thought, a wave of understanding washing over her. "So that's why he's so bitter- he dropped a small fortune because he thought he was saving her."
"If he hadn't stolen Kaida's wallet, would he have stolen the mirror?" asked a smaller voice in her head. "Or would he be too scared of getting caught?"
Pushing the question out if her mind, Hildegarde began to decend the stairs. "Luckily for you, Eckhart gets antsy around large groups, so it will prob'ly just be him and Taza." The woman turned to look at Vivianne, grinning. "I'm like, ninety percent those two have a secret thing together."
Vivianne chuckled, raising her left brow and nodding subtly. "Yeah, he's skittish even when it's just a few people," she mused aloud. "I'd hate to see him in the middle of a festival!"
She moved her fingers around the coin purse, just feeling the money inside of the velvet purse. It wasn't that giving up the small fortune would be difficult for Vivianne - she absolutely had the funds to repay him three times over with a lot to spare - but that she wasn't sure what would come next. She'd already met with Hildegarde and things seemed to be going well, but if Eckhart didn't accept her, it could potentially drive a significant wedge between her and the Friends.
Vivianne tuned out some of what Hildegarde said, lost in thought. She came back in when her old friend mentioned Taza and Eckhart together. The girl smirked slightly deviously. "Oh, really?" She asked. "Didn't see that coming!"
Hildegarde giggled. "Neither did I!" she confessed excitedly. "But I like it! I think she'd be really good for him, y'know?"
"He'd never actually go for it." Bella meowed cynically. "He's too big a prude."
"Oh, shut up cat." Hildegarde scoffed as she reached the second floor. "It's gonna be cute." Striding to Taza's room, the gang leader knocked on the door. "Hey guys, I'm coming in!"
***
"Do I
have to wear it?"
Randal stood in front of the door, swaddled in a large coat. He was wearing a knit hat with a pair of rabbit ears sewn to the top. Taza knelt in front of him, buttoning his jacket. "Yes, you have to wear it. The tempurature has been getting lower each day, I'm afraid you'll freeze."
"But
Tazaaa!" the boy whined. "Ewan's gonna laugh at me when he sees the hat! It's-"
Taza shot Randal a stern look, shutting him up. She was about to scold him, but hearing Hildegarde's voice from outside stopped her.
"I got it!" Randal said excitedly, opening the door. He looked up at Hildegarde and beamed, then shot a grin at the woman who was with her. "Aww, do we have a new Friend? Sweet!"
"Oh, gods," Vivianne said with a smirk.
He's adorable. The girl knew better than to say it aloud. The boy who opened the door looked old enough that he could get offended by someone calling him 'cute' or something of that nature.
Hesitantly, she waved at Taza with a small smile. Never had Vivianne been a timid person, but it took a lot out of her to simply be back there again. Surely, Taza and a few others knew what went on between the two women years ago, so it wasn't exactly an easy feat to enter their lives a second time and expect to be welcomed.
When the boy mentioned having a 'new Friend,' Vivianne swallowed. She smiled at the boy and shook her head. "Actually, I'm an old Friend," she said much more calmly than she felt. "Just came back after a long trip. My name's Vivianne. What's yours?"
Upon seeing the assassin, Taza instinctively stood up, resting her hand on her trowel. Walking behand Randal, she placed her other hand on the boy's shoulder. He smile, while warm, seemed to lack something. She nodded politely, eyes boring into Vivianne's skull.
"My name is Randal!" The boy said, bouncing on his heels! I think I remember hearing the old assassing was coming back, is that you? Do you really live in a mirror? Have you met Sarah yet? Oh my god, this is so cool!"
"It's good to see you again Vivianne." Taza said, chuckling. "Would you like a cup of tea? The water's still hot..."
"We were actually looking for Eckhart." Hildegarde said. "I thought he might be with you guys."
Taza shook her head. "Sorry, I haven't seen him since breakfast..."
"I'm fine, Taza," Vivianne said, smirking at the eager boy. "Thank you." The girl had a hunch that answering all of the questions Randal had ready would take ages, so that would have to be done another time.
Since breakfast, Vivianne pondered momentarily. Her dark eyes widened, and she looked at Hildegarde with a curious astonishment. Did Eckhart stay at a girl's place overnight?
Hildegarde caught Vivianne's gaze, then grinned slyly at the drug dealer. "Breakfast, eh?" The girl shifted her wieght, crossing her arms casually. "So, how was it?"
"Good!" Taza said. "His flapjacks are amazing! I hope you're making him cook for you, because that guy has a gift."
Hildegarde's face fell. "Oh." she said flatly. Behind her Belladonna began to cackle, but she ignored it. "Well, he always was decent with food I guess..."
"He didn't really just stop by to make them breakfast, right?" she mused. "They've gotta be banging by know, they've known each other two weeks already!"
Randal peered behind Hildegarde curiously. "Is that Miss Bella?" he asked, smiling. "Maybe she knows where he is?"
"Yeah, I do." the cat meowed. "He's in his room."
Hildegarde threw back her head, groaning. "Cat, really?" The gang leader would take Vivianne's hand and begin to lead her down the hall. "Thank you Taza!" she called out behind her. "Sorry we wasted your time."
Vivianne chuckled, shaking her head slightly. Of course Eckhart would stop by to make breakfast. Only him, she thought with a grin.
When someone took charge of Vivianne, like by grabbing her hand, the girl's first instinct was normally to rip away from them. The familiarity and history that she shared with the pink-clad woman just made it much more natural, so she didn't think twice about hurrying along with Hildegarde holding her hand.
"Wait, where is he?" She asked, furrowing her brows.
"In his room." Hildegarde said, rolling her eyes. "Kitten-mittens over here was just gonna let us wander aimlessly."
"Hey, as soon as Eckhart sees her his anxiety is going to spike up." the cat said as they began to decend the second staircase. "I can feel his mental state, when he's stressed I get stressed."
Hildegarde grit her teeth. "If that's the case, then why wouldn't you want to just get it over with?" she asked angrily. "Postponing it doesn't make it go away! He has to talk to her
someday!"
***
Porcelina Juarez sat on her couch, a swirling a glass of wine in her hand. Eckhart Von Musel sat next to her, hands in his lap. The boy had been visiting her more and more frequently as of late- not that Porcelina minded at all, she enjoyed his company.
"It's just..." Eckhart said, looking at his hands. "I don't get why she's kept around. Sarah explained the "joke" and it's not funny."
Porcelina sighed, swirling the wine in her glass. "Your sister is a..." She paused, glancing to the side.
"A bitch?" the boy offered helpfully.
"Well yeah, but that's not what I was gonna say!" Porcelina said, laughing. "No, your sister likes to feel powerful. It's like, a rush for her or something, I dunno."
"Yeah, tell me about it..." Eckhart said softly. "I was her punching bag for a long time. Feels wierd getting replaced with that...
thing."
The two were quiet for a moment, unsure of what to say next. Finally, Porcelina broke the silence. "You know, I still have no idea if my painting will teleport somebody if I throw one at them."
Eckhart looked up, confused. "What does that have to do with- oh." He stopped when he saw the grin on the Dwarf's face. "Ohhhhh..."
Vivianne followed, partially being dragged along behind Hildegarde. She felt her chest tighten as they approached the door.
Clearly Bella didn't want the girl to speak to - or even be near - Eckhart, so Vivianne started questioning whether or not it was the right thing to do. Either way, she knew that backing out wasn't really an option now. Hildegarde was involved, and they were basically outside of the door, so might as well get this over with.
Slowly down as they came to the door, Vivianne pulled away from her old friend. "So, um," she started, realizing just how nervous she really was. "You're gonna talk first, right? Or should I? Like, how mad should I expect him to be?"
Hildegarde sighed, and knocked on her brother's door. "Start by giving him the money." she said, sounding almost unsure of herself. "If the first thing he gets is what he wants, he'll probably warm up to you."
"Yeah right." Hildegarde thought privately.
"Ecks is gonna get mad, then cry, then Bella will get mad and throw something at us, and we'll be back at square one." After a few seconds, Hildegarde knocked on the door again. "Ecks?" she called. "It's me, we need to talk about something." There was no response, and the gang leader grimaced.
"I don't smell him in there." Belladonna meowed innocently. Upon seeing the look Hildegarde gave her, she flattened her ears against her head. "Hey, he
was here! I don't know where he went!"
Hildegarde groaned, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Well, he's gotta be here
somewhere, or else Terry wouldn't have been able to find him so quickly!"
***
"Are you, uh, really gonna do it?"
Porcelina stood in front of Room 312, a framed painting in her hands. "Yup." she said quietly, eyes narrowed. "Her being near Taza's brat was bad enough, but now that the annoying wizard kid is here..."
Eckhart swallowed nervously. "But- but what will Hilda-"
Porcelina knocked on the door, cutting the boy off. After a moment, footsteps could be heard from inside. "Coming~" said Chrys in a singsong voice, and the door opened to reveal the midwife in a flower covered apron. "Oh! Why hello you two!" she said with a smile. "I was just- wait!"
Porcelina had chucked the picture frame at the woman, who covered her face with her hands. In a flash of blue light, Chrys seemed to get pulled inside the watercolor, which fell onto the floor with a loud clatter. "Alright, good." the dwarf said as Eckhart covered his mouth with his hand. "About fucking time we got rid of that kiddy-fiddling creepazoid."
Eckhart let out a timid laugh. "Oh.. oh Ansgar..." he said breathily. "What... Um, what are we going to tell my sister?"
Porcelina gave the boy a sly smile as she picked the painting up off the floor. "Nothing."
Vivianne glanced between Hildegarde and Bella, a small smirk on her face. The girl flipped open her satchel and lifted her brow, pulling out her mirrors. "Call me crazy, but I don't think your boy toy actually went to your brother." She pulled her hair away from her face and sat with her legs crossed. Her her hands on the mirrors and the mirrors on her legs, Vivianne looked at Hildegarde with a nod, then her eyes gazed over with the mirror-like veil.
She darted through the different reflective surfaces, searching for Eckhart. It was a strange feeling... The last time she was looking for Eckhart was to prevent him from being killed. This time, she was just hoping he would speak to her.
It didn't even take thirty seconds to locate him. She jumped into a pair of glasses and saw him walking next to a short person carrying a painting. Before either of them would be able to get a clear view of her, Vivianne left the glasses and came back to her body.
"Uh, do you have a painter in your building?" Vivianne asked, putting the mirrors back in her satchel and standing up. "He's with a painter with glasses."
Hildegarde nodded at Vivianne as she sat down with her mirrors, mind preoccupied. "Did Terry lie to me?" she thought worriedly, eyes on her feet. "I know he doesn't like Viv, but but would he really stoop to that?"
"You didn't let him sit in on your first meeting with her." a small voice in her head said. "You didn't even invite him to stay with you today. Of course he lied, he thinks Vivianne's a threat to our relationship."
The pit forming in Hildegarde's stomach grew heavier as Vivianne spoke up. "Dear lord." she groaned, running her hand through her hair. "Since when did they hang out?"
"I told you they did." Belladonna meowed, following Hildegarde as she walked back towards the stairs. "He vents to her and she teaches him about art."
Hildegarde merely groaned in response, beckoning for Vivianne to follow. Today was going to be a long day...
Vivianne, lost as to what was really going, started after Hildegarde with a slight frown tugging at the corner of her mouth.
"Hey," she said, reaching to touch Hildegarde's shoulder. "What's so bad about him hanging out with an artist?" If anything, the girl thought the arts would be a good thing for him!
Hildegarde sighed, gently removing Vivianne's hand from her shoulder- she knew Terrence could be watching them. "Look, don't get me wrong." she started as they passed the second floor. "I like Porcelina, I really do, but man is she unpleasant."
An image if Eckhart covered in paint with Porcelina's glasses on flashed through Hildegarde's head, and the girl visibly shuddered. "I just hope she doesn't rub off on him..."
The girl narrowed her eyes slightly when Hildegarde moved her hand away. They had been apart, but it wasn't like she was moving in with her! Either way, she kept her mouth shut about it, deciding it wouldn't be right to press the issue.
They continued towards what Vivianne assumed was Porcelina's apartment. It was odd... Even though she hadn't been back for very long, it felt right to once again be in Zantaric. Regardless of the circumstances, Zantaric was home.
Vivianne rubbed behind her ears, a shrill voice beginning to echo through the halls. She sighed audibly. "That voice belongs to Porcelina, doesn't it?" She asked, not wanting the answer she knew was more than likely.
Hildegarde sighed. "Yep. That's them up ahead."
"Alright, I'll go warn him." Bella said, scampering ahead. "We can't just spring it on him."
***
"Where did you even send her?"
Porcelina threw back her head to look at Eckhart, grinning. "The middle of the Adelan plains!" she laughed, feeling happier then she'd been in a long time. "She's probably getting scalped by those savage horse people right now! God, this feels good..."
The younger Von Musel smiled nervously, going red in the face. "Y-you know..." he said, looking at his feet as he walked. "It's really brave of you to do this..."
Porcelina scoffed dismissively. "Please. It was nothing." She said condescendingly, cheeks flushing ever so slightly. "Part of being an adult is-"
A meow from below her signaled that Eckhart's mangy cat had arrived. Looking at her friend, Porcelina was shocked to see how much the boy had paled. "What is it?" she asked. "What did fleabag say?"
Eckhart shook his head, then looked down the hall. Porcelina squinted, and saw Hildegarde approaching with a woman she's never seen before. "Porcelina?" the boy said softly. "Stay with me, okay? I need you here now..."
A small smile tugged at the corner of the girl's lips, as Vivianne followed Hildegarde's gaze. She put her hand again over her corset where her injury had been, not really positive of what she was going to do.
Part of her wanted to just walk over and say hi, but she knew that would be foolish - to say the least. Vivianne glanced at Hildegarde, then back at Eckhart and the dwarf walking next to him. She made sure to stay next to Hildegarde, not taking a step ahead partially as a way of making sure she didn't seem threatening or anything.
"Hi..." Vivianne said, seeming to trail off slightly. She glanced at Hildegarde, then opened her satchel, pulling out a burgundy velvet coin purse and lifting it momentarily for the younger Von Musel to see. "I know we didn't part on the best of terms, Eckhart, but I want to make things right. If you'll give me a chance?"
Eckhart remained frozen in place, glancing at his sister, Vivianne, and the coin purse in turn. "What do I say?" he thought bitterly. "Is she even being sincere? Or is she only doing it to make amends with her?"
"Are you seriously trying to buy his forgiveness?" Porcelina asked angrily, hands on her hips. "Who the fuck do you think you are?"
Hildegarde smiled worriedly. "Porcelina, could you-"
"No!" the dwarf snapped. She grabbed the boy by the arm, lips pursed. "Eckhart asked me to stay, so I'll stay."
Eckhart looked at his feet, muttering a quiet thank you. Belladonna rubbed against his leg. "See? Even if Mirror-bitch sticks around, you'll still have friends here to stick up for you." she mewled comfortingly. "It's fine. Everything will be okay."
Vivianne glanced at Hildegarde briefly, then looked back at Eckhart and his...friend. She could see why Hildegarde didn't want Porcelina rubbing off on her younger brother, but that wasn't important at the moment.
She shook her head. "Porcelina, you're misinterpreting what I'm doing," she said. "It's twenty suns. I'm not trying to buy your forgiveness, Eckhart; just repaying a debt." Vivianne swallowed nervously. Taking a breath, the girl took off her satchel and put it on the ground, then twisted her body to each side, showing that she didn't have any weapons on her.
She can't keep answering for him, Vivianne thought, shooting a quick glare to the dwarf.
"I want to talk, Eckhart, but I want to talk to you," she said. "I don't mind if Porcelina stays if that's what makes you feel better, but please... Can you answer me?"
"Don't look at me like that!" Porcelina chided angrily, stamping her foot on the ground. "I'm only- hm?"
Eckhart squeezed the dwarf's hand gently, and she went silent. Sighing, the boy looked Vivianne in the eyes. "Let's not talk about it." he said quietly. "I don't care why you did it, or how sorry you are." The boy broke eye contact, looking away. "Everything's turned on it's head recently... seems pointless to hold a grudge now."
Hildegarde's eyes widened, and she gave Vivianne a sympathetic glance. "So... will you two be cool now, or...?"
Vivianne was slightly taken back by Eckhart's lack of anger. It was pretty clear that he wasn't happy, but he didn't yell or walk away or anything, so it definitely could've been worse.
The girl simply nodded to Hildegarde, then took a step towards the younger Von Musel with the coin purse extended. "Please," she said quietly. "It belongs to you. I hope I can eventually make it up to you, so at least let me repay the money you put into my lie." There was a hint of guilt in her voice at the mention of the lie, so it should've been pretty clear that she was genuine. Whether or not Eckhart was willing to forgive would be an obstacle for another time!
Hildegarde watched uneasily as her brother gingerly stepped forward and took the coin purse. He peered inside of it, wincing- as if he expected something to jump out out him.
"How much is in there?" Porcelina asked caustically. "It had better be enough to repay him, you-"
"Porcelina, it's the right amount." Eckhart said, smiling slightly. He looked at Vivianne and bowed his head slightly. "Thanks..."
Still latched onto his arm, the dwarven woman began to drag the healer behind her. "Alright, that's enough stress for you today." she grumbled. "Come on, I promised I'd show you brush strokes." Together the two would begin down the hallway once more, Eckhart giving a hurried wave goodbye to his sister s he did so.
After waving back, Hildegarde gave her friend a concerned look. "Hey." she said, placing a hand on Vivianne's shoulder. "If it helps, he was like this with me at first too. He'll warm up... hopefully."
Vivianne gave Hildegarde a short smile, watching the younger Von Musel retreat with the dwarf on his arm. She shook her head slightly with a small shrug, showing that she was at peace with whatever would happen next.
"Worst case scenario," the girl started, "we don't fully reconcile. Even if that's so, I know that I'm no longer in his debt and he's safe here."
Taking a breath, she spun on her heel and put her satchel over her shoulder with a smirk. It wasn't worth dwelling on because there was nothing she could do at the moment.
Vivianne lifted her right brow and spread her arms. "So, tell me what you've been up to!" She said happily. "Clearly, you've done wonderfully for yourself, so I want details. How'd you expand so quickly?"