Deep Breaths | RE8 Harem [1]

Chapter 3

You have no idea how long it's been.

But you know that you're falling victim to Lady Beneviento's hallucinations.

She moves around gently, almost as if she's scared to break you, but you've heard her voice, and you've seen her controlling nature.

So you hate that you've come to like the tea she makes.

You hate that you're fond of the way Angie casually threatens to scoop your eyes out while talking to you.

You hate that you find yourself admiring Lady Beneviento's hands and the skill in which they make everything.

You hate it, you hate it, you hate it.

Because you can't trust it.

You don't know if she's breaking your mind, or if these feelings are true. You don't know if when you see her the butterflies are affection or fear.

You don't know.

It makes you re-evaluate what you've heard about her. Everyone acknowledges that she must be of some danger - she is a lord after all - but mostly assume that she's a recluse who wants nothing to do with the world.

You're considered lucky when you have a run-in with her because Lady Dimitrescu (Alcina) if you're a man you die. If you're a woman you're sent to the castle to die at a later time. Lord Heisenburg will kill you either way and turn you into one of his monsters. Lord Moreu....well...he'll try to befriend you but you're more likely to die a horrifying death through accidental shift, acid, or well-

Let's just say he has a high DIY mortality rate.

But Lady Beneviento?

She's considered a good scare, a lesson learned, but otherwise, you'll live.

Maybe that's what she wants, to be underestimated.

It's easy to write her off because she twists your emotions against you, uses your fears.

She's not the brawn.

She's the brains.

She's smart, too smart, scarily smart, and dangerous enough that you have a terrible feeling every time you even think about running.

You're pretty sure you recognize an acquaintance from the village as a doll.

So you stop considering running as a true option, more of an ideation.

(That's what you tell yourself when you catch yourself thinking that you'd quite like to stay here forever. You know the difference between her manipulations and your own thoughts. If she was manipulating you, you'd be talking about playing with Angie forever. You don't particularly enjoy Angie's do or die games, you would rather read a book while Lady Beneviento works on another doll.)

You find yourself aimlessly wandering the halls (but never the basement as instructed very very carefully by Angie, which was enough of a warning to tell you some shit is happening in the basement, but it's definitely something you don't want to see) avoiding her second workshop (the first mentioned in passing on accident by Angie).

But of course, she almost doesn't even need her dolls to spy for her to know you're not in your room, or the small library she keeps. She - per usual - appears with absolutely no warning or noise, and you only slightly startle.

Before it was a two feet high jump of ' literally what the fuck, knock or something '.

"Lady Beneviento." you greet, careful not to somehow disrespect her.

"Donna." a familiar scratchy voice cuts in.

You look down at Angie, your head tilted, "What?"

"She wants you to call her Donna."