It was early morning when Lucius got back to the Shallow Reapers' headquarters and he rubbed his eyes before walking inside, half limping due to his injured foot. What a night. He still wasn't quite sure how to process all of it but he certainly knew his plans for the next day. Or, later that day he supposed as he looked up at the orange dyed sky.
All he needed was a little rest. A couple of hours and hopefully without disturbing dreams, then he'd be up again. He had some preparations to do and he couldn't completely neglect his reapers either, so he'd need to check in with them at the harbor at some point during the day as well.
He frowned as he closed the door to the house behind him. It felt as though he'd forgotten something concerning his gang. In his defence, there were a whole lot of other things going through his head at the time.
"So let me guess," Telmo's voice called out as he entered the sitting room and Lucius jumped, hand automatically reaching for his knife. "I wager you were either with that Gashcrow floozy or your rich, new best friend of an angler."
Lucius sighed, giving her a tired look of annoyance as he spotted her sitting by the small table, carving something on the already ruined surface. He didn't feel like having yet another conversation from a needlessly offended Reaper.
"Who was my old best friend?" he therefore asked instead, genuinely curious. He didn't have many people he actively called friends.
Telmo let go of the knife and leaned back in the chair, possibly considering it.
"Phil, I suppose," she then replied, and Lucius' eyes narrowed into a scowl.
"Careful, Yanagi."
Telmo's eyes narrowed an equal amount as Lucius' before she folded her strong arms. She'd always taken a 'no sleeves because muscles gets the point across' approach to her clothes. Fashion disagreement aside Lucius could respect that.
"I told you, you can't call me that."
"And I wouldn't if you didn't push me." Lucius leaned against the wall with an unrelenting glare. "Leave my dead friends alone and your family stays safe from your little shady life."
Telmo's lip curled, but she obediently dropped the subject.
"Seriously though, what the Waste have you been up to? I think you even had Lorenzo worried."
"I would have thought all of you have been asleep, but I guess I'd be wrong." Lucius gestured at her. "Why would you—"
"Are you for real now?" Telmo raised her hands in frustration. "You actually don't even remember? Unbelievable. At first we thought something serious had come up and you couldn't make it, because I guess we're dumb like that sometimes, but then we concluded that you'd just ditched us for all these new things you're doing, but you... You just forgot about it?"
It finally dawned on Lucius, and he closed his eyes with yet another sigh.
"Right. Fisherman's..." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I... Yes, I forgot."
"And?" Telmo arched an eyebrow. "Where were you?"
Werewolf fighting and weird baths came to Lucius' mind, and he shook his head.
"You wouldn't believe me anyway."
"Wouldn't be the first time."
"Telmo, I'm really trying not to get mad at you."
"So get your act together." Telmo leaned over to rest her elbows on her knees, black hair falling over her shoulder. "I know you don't like him being brought up, but perhaps you shouldn't completely forget what fate awaited Ravi."
"Telmo..."
"Learn from his mistakes. Don't give them a reason to think you don't care about them."
Lucius hesitated. Despite her reluctance to listen to his threats Lucius found comfort in Telmo and her ability of usually being right and she probably had good intentions with giving him advice, but he wouldn't give her the pleasure of thinking she had the upper hand of their argument.
"So who's gonna train a dog to kill me?" He smiled, and Telmo smiled back, if a little reluctantly. Of all people Lucius was certain she'd figured it out. "Ravi had too many weaknesses, and he didn't care for any of us. Don't think I haven't learned anything from that."
Telmo chewed on her lip as if in thought.
"Better be more careful about your relationship with Gashcrow then."
Lucius stared, and Telmo stared back. He opened his mouth to object, but once again she was right. Adrian was a weakness. How had she found out though? He'd been so careful.
"I personally don't think anyone shouldn't get to..." Telmo's nose wrinkled. "... Be with someone they like... But it will far from do you any favors in your position."
"You know what?" Lucius had had enough. He'd only take so much criticism. "I'm too tired for this. So I'm gonna get some sleep, and I'll... I'll think of a way to make it up to you all some other day."
It was Telmo's turn to look tired.
"... Some other day?"
"Yeah, we still have our work at the harbor. And then I have to make some preparations for this evening."
"What for? What kind of preparations?"
"Honestly?" Lucius asked as he began turning around, not sure if Telmo would take a joke in that situation but he'd give it a try. "Shopping."
Telmo's lip curled and Lucius awaited the scolding, but then she sighed in resignation.
"Don't expect me to come to your aid when the others lay into you about you ditching us."
Lucius glanced back at her a last time.
"Seems fair."
Then he headed off to his room for some well needed rest.
***
Light burst through the gloomy dark of night as the kitchen girl opened the door for Lucius the following evening. He grinned at her before stepping inside. It'd just been too easy. One would've thought the high and mighty smuggling organization would check their kitchen staff more carefully, but simple bribing let Lucius in without a question? He was almost disappointed.
"Think a lot of 'em are about to gather around this one guy," the kitchen girl said, voice monotonous and with a sloppy gesture towards the door. "You should be able to walk out there without much trouble."
Lucius nodded, still set on being cautious. He'd already paid the girl so why couldn't she rat him out? And what about the rest of the staff?
"I promise I'm not here to harm anyone," he assured her. "I just want to look around."
"Pfft," she said, tossing hair over her shoulder. "You could kill them all if you'd like. Why should I care?"
"You concern me a lot." Lucius smiled. "But I think I like you."
"Whatever." The girl shrugged. "Good luck out there I suppose, ma'am."
"Cheers to you," Lucius replied as he adjusted his wig and straightened his dress. He'd spent a lot of time on his disguise, making sure no one would recognize him but still look as pretty as before, so it had better work. Just to be sure stopped in the narrow corridor between the kitchen and the ballroom and looked into a mirror. The powder still managed to cover up his moles quite nicely despite him having worn it for a while, and he was pretty sure he'd stuffed the turquoise dress properly so it wouldn't suddenly give him away by moving around.
Sticking his head through the door he made sure no one was around to see him come out of there, and he walked out into the ballroom in an attempt at nonchalance as if he'd always been present there.
The kitchen girl hadn't been lying. Most of the crowd had gathered further away by a small scene to listen to some man giving a speech and he was rather sure he could spot Anthony in the crowd. Lucius weighed his options. Could it be an informative speech that he'd have use of listening to? Or was there a better chance at finding information by snooping through the rooms on the second floor?
He nodded to a couple as he passed by and they both arched an eyebrow, but seemed to shrug it off as they scanned his appearance. Lucius pursed his lips as he scurried further away as quickly as his injured foot would allow. Perhaps a nod hadn't been an appropriate greeting but at least he seemed to look fancy enough to belong there. The seamstress did say turquoise was a good color for the season.
Reflecting on how long he'd been away from society and not being certain what was passable for a young woman compared to the child he'd been last time he decided it was best to try his luck away from the crowd. The chances of him getting caught were smaller that way, and he adjusted his ruffled sleeves. Even Anthony shouldn't recognize him from afar.
As he passed by a group of men on the way out of the ballroom he just smiled. He didn't dare try out a curtsy and he was rather certain he'd say something unbecoming if he opened his mouth.
He soon found himself in the entrance hall and headed straight for the stairs. They were much broader and detailed than the ones in Anthony's house and even had a crimson red carpet all the way up, and Lucius figured being located outside of town had its perks what with the large rooms and even larger gardens.
Upstairs he was met with a corridor on each side, and to his dismay no rooms were labelled. His frustration grew as he glanced down yet another corridor when entering the one to the right. The place was a maze, and he rubbed his forehead. He wasn't actually going to search this place through keyhole spying, was he?
Trusting his gut however, Lucius decided to go for the door furthest away. A door on the far end was likely to contain a study of some kind, right?
It was, to his disappointment and surprising delight as he entered, an art gallery. He inhaled and stared in awe at the countless paintings, tapestries and sculptures on pedestals. And it wasn't just the art. The room had a gorgeous view out of tall windows on one side of the room, framed by silky, purple curtains.
The snooping could wait for just a bit.
He quickly spotted a golden sculpture of a three horned tiger. The animal symbolizing Rarin, the Archon of justice, Lucius acknowledged. He stopped to wonder if it was really made completely out of gold or if it was simply plated with it. Seeing how big the place was, maybe the people living there could actually afford the first option.
Next to the tiger was a white swan with four wings stretching out, and Lucius admired the beauty of it. There were no more animal sculptures as far as he could see, which was a pity. He would've liked to see more of them, but he dropped it and turned to look at other pieces of art instead.
Some of the paintings were huge, one picturing a woman with curly hair and a white dress standing in a field of flowers almost stretched from floor to ceiling. Other, smaller paintings mostly featured still life or overdramatic battle scenes, but Lucius' gaze was eventually drawn to the five portraits hanging on the middle of the wall furthest away.
"Huh," he uttered as he spotted Anthony on one of them. Presumably all five of the portraits featured people of the organization then. His eyes scanned each one of them, smiling at a stunning lady with vivid, red hair and a knowing smirk and moved on to a striking man with dark blond hair and grey eyes whose smile was rather crooked. At closer inspection, weren't all of the people pictured there very attractive?
The smiles seemed to end with the two aforementioned however, and Lucius glanced over at Anthony's unsurprisingly serious looking portrait. It was a shame. Lucius really liked his smile.
Just as Lucius was about to move on to the other two portraits however, a man cleared his throat behind him and Lucius jumped out of shock as he turned around. No one snuck up on him. His ears were too good for that.
He instantly recognized the man. He'd just seen him before turning around. He was part of the portrait collection. What the portrait had failed to show was the man's height. He was likely just as tall as Anthony, but with an even sturdier body. His dark blond hair was pulled back, revealing ivory skin and grey eyes that seemingly pierced through Lucius' soul.
Had Lucius had a soul, that was.
"Oh," was all he could utter in his shocked state, and he turned around to look at the painting of the man before turning back to face the man again while pointing at it. "That's you."
"That is me," the man said with a crooked smile, though as Lucius viewed him in person he noticed it wasn't the smile that was crooked but rather the man's mouth in general. "And you are?"
Lucius wouldn't blow his disguise by hesitating.
"Lucia," he said. "Lucia Cromwell."
It had seemed ridiculous at first. Choosing a name that close to his real one sounded like a transparent lie at best, but if he was to convince others of his heritage he'd have to pull out all of the Cromwell cards, and Lucia along with Lucius were both family names.
The man clicked his tongue.
"... Lucia Cromwell?"
"Indeed." Lucius tried his most beaming smile. "But I don't believe we've met, Mr...?"
"Derek Kilgrave," the man replied. "Though one would think someone in this place would know that."
"Well, I'm rather new to this. That's, uh... Why I came in here. I heard there was an art gallery and I just had to see it."
"Yes, it is quite lovely," the man agreed but didn't look away from Lucius, eyes narrowing as if in thought.
"And what are you doing up here Mr. Kilgrave?" Lucius decided to turn the questioning around. "Since you're on the wall here I assume you play an important part in this organization?"
Derek grinned again.
"You could say that. I suppose I'd be called someone who does the more hands-on kind of work around here." His expression, though still maintaining its smile, turned into one of pity. "... Though for tonight I'd probably be closer to the kind of person who makes sure the attendants aren't bothered by... Non attendants."
Lucius grew cold, but he refused to show it. Instead he matched the other man's expression.
"That's a mouthful. There ought to be a better title for that."
"You're right." The man nodded, folding his arms. "So how about... Pest control?"
Lucius laughed as genuinely as he could.
"That's funny," he said in a not so convincing way, and he tried smoothing it over. "I take it you're the fun one of the group."
"Tragically," was the response as the man walked closer, and Lucius fought the urge to back away. "But I'm actually curious about you, Miss Cromwell. Me being here isn't surprising, but you?" He grabbed Lucius' wrist, much to the latter's dismay as he didn't even have time to bring his knife out. "Your presence here doesn't make sense, does it?"
Lucius refused to falter.
"As you can feel though, Mr. Kilgrave, I'm very much here. Solid human, I assure you."
Derek laughed.
"That's funny," he said, and if Lucius wasn't mistaken both the laugh and the sentence imitated the way Lucius had said it earlier to an impressive extent. Unfortunately the man's smile turned sinister after that and he twisted Lucius' arm as he pulled him closer. "Pleasantries aside, I'm going to ask you once again... What's your business here? And I'd recommend you don't dodge my question this time."
"Of course," Lucius said, panic rising on the inside as the man's tone chilled his spine. He'd really wished it wouldn't need to come to that, but it was the best shot he had if things would go wrong. "I'm here with Lord Hargreaves."
The two men stared at each other in silence for a moment. Lucius wouldn't avert his gaze. He never did. It was impossible to read Derek's expression.
Or, at least until he suddenly laughed through his nose.
"Lord Hargreaves?"
Lucius' eyes darted around briefly in confusion.
"... Yes?"
"Which one?"
"I... Beg your pardon?"
"Which one of the Hargreaveses?"
Lucius had questions, but he figured he'd save them for later.
"Lord... Anthony Hargreaves."
The man laughed again.
"Seriously?" He shook his head. "I know we were faking the fun earlier, but this? This is hilarious."
"I don't see—"
"I mean, of all the Hargreaveses I know I certainly wouldn't expect Anthony to bring, well... You."
Lucius frowned at this. What was so wrong about him? Was it his clothes? Perhaps he wasn't fancy enough after all. Or was Anthony in a relationship so Lucia being there would look really bad for him? He wasn't, was he? Though Lucius supposed he hadn't known Anthony for that long, but enough so he'd know if he had a partner, right?
The idea bothered him for some reason, likely because he hadn't had the chance to know Anthony more than he did and now it backfired in his face.
"Well, let's not keep him waiting then," Derek continued and pulled Lucius along before he could fight back. The latter grimaced as his right foot screamed in protest. "I'm sure he's dying from your absence."
Lucius gritted his teeth. Seemed like there'd be no information gathering for him that night, or ever, depending on what Anthony would have to say.
"Oh, if it isn't the man in question himself," Derek suddenly called out, and Lucius let out a silent breath as he spotted Anthony just at the foot of the stairs.
"Damien's looking for you, Derek," Anthony said, voice suggesting annoyance. "He wanted me to get you."
"Looking for me when you've clearly misplaced your own company?" Derek grinned once again as he pushed Lucius forward, and Lucius was certain it was out of malice. "Miss Cromwell here was upstairs all alone."
Anthony's eyes went dead as he processed the words and he slowly glanced over at Lucius, who batted his eyelashes endearingly. He then pursed his lips. To his advantage Derek had already mentioned Lucius' last name so Anthony wasn't as unprepared for the situation as he could've been.
He opened his mouth but paused, most likely considering the options as well, before speaking.
"I told you to wait for me," he then said, followed by a resigned sigh, and Lucius cheered inside his head.
Yes!
"But you were taking so long listening to that boring speech." Lucius made his voice sound innocent and Anthony seemed to fight back a scowl. "And I really wanted to see that art gallery."
Derek arched his eyebrows at the two of them, but his smile soon returned.
"Oh, so you really are here with her?" He chuckled. "And here I thought she was lying. I mean, you never bring company, and this—"
"Well, this time was different," was all Anthony said as he hooked arms with Lucius and pulled him away from there.
Lucius waved back at Derek with a smug grin. To his disappointment the man waved as well, smile untiring.
"So that worked out pretty well," he whispered as Anthony pushed him into what looked like a dining hall.
"Apology and a thank you," Anthony said with a cold voice. "Now."
"That seems excessive. How about a nice compliment on your waistcoat?" Lucius suggested instead, but Anthony didn't smile.
"I told you not to do this. I told you specifically." Anthony poked his chest. "This is a very private party and you were not invited and Rarin knows what the Waste Derek could've done to you!"
Lucius scrunched up his nose in displeasure.
"I was being nice. That waistcoat is dreadful."
"Mr. Cromwell!"
Lucius reached out to cover Anthony's mouth, having to take a couple of steps as Anthony tried to back away and he hushed him.
"It's actually Miss Cromwell right now," he informed the man. "Lucia Cromwell, to be exact. And you really need to relax, Lord Hargreaves. It was just one man, and I know you'd probably be upset if I hurt him but you know, still... If I would have had to I could have."
Anthony finally laughed, and Lucius glanced around in confusion, trying to maintain his smile. Had he said something funny or had Anthony just been really slow at appreciating his waistcoat comment?
"Look, Mr. Cromwell," Anthony said as his laughter died down and he regained his composure, walking closer to Lucius in order to keep a rather intense eye contact. "I know you don't listen to anything I tell you, but trust me on this. Do not make an attempt to get involved with this organization, do not snoop around trying to get information out of it, and most importantly, do not give Derek a reason to want to hurt you."
Lucius arched an eyebrow.
"Think he'd kill me?"
"If he's nice." Anthony ignored Lucius' eyebrows dipping down into a frown and instead backed away to take a look at his appearance with a sigh. "And... When I suggested you reclaim your last name I didn't mean like this. Mr. Featherstone already knows a man called Cromwell, so this will just cause confusion."
"It's easier to use a proper disguise," Lucius argued with a shrug. "Changing my name won't cause the people who know me to forget. Besides, this way I don't have to give up on anything. I'll be Lucius to my Reapers and I'll be Lucia to the anglers."
"I would have thought you'd give up on your gang business entirely. Double identities is risky, not to mention you're probably gonna tire yourself out when you have to be in two places at once constantly." Anthony scrunched up his nose. "And you had better stop with that angler talk quickly or your cover will be blown in an instant."
"Well... I'm not giving up on either identity. I'll make it work somehow. Besides..." He brought a fan with the same seashell patterns as his dress out, fanning Anthony's face rapidly enough to make Anthony's face scrunch up. "... I have one of these now! Fancy, isn't it?"
"Very." Anthony grabbed and closed it. "Fancy and stubborn, that's you."
Lucius smiled.
"Seems like you're getting to know me better, Lord Hargreaves."
Finally, Anthony smiled back, and to Lucius' surprise he grabbed his hand.
"So... Shall we then?"
"... Shall we what?" Lucius asked as Anthony led him towards the ballroom.
"Dance."
Lucius' eyes widened in horror.
"Dance? No. No, why would we—"
"It's a ball, Miss Cromwell." Anthony's smile was mischievous at that point and Lucius grimaced. "You didn't actually come here thinking you wouldn't have to dance, did you? I for one can't be known to have brought company without dancing."
"Well I wasn't actually intending on being your company!" Lucius hissed. "It was my last resort!"
"And you don't plan out your last resorts?"
Lucius refused to answer that. Instead he looked around for ways to avoid the horrid event, but Anthony's grasp on him was firm and he supposed he at least owed him a dance for having him stick his neck out.
"I just... Don't really remember a lot of it," he muttered as they joined the others on the dance floor. "I wasn't even good at it when I was younger. Not to mention my foot is injured."
"You'll be fine. I'll walk you through it," Anthony assured him. "... Somewhat."
Lucius glared.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Well I'm not going to rat you out, but having people know of you as a poor dancer doesn't bother me as much."
"Lord Hargreaves, this isn't—"
"It's very funny."
Lucius opened his mouth to object but froze on the spot as the music started, and Anthony nudged his hand to make him walk forward.
"I have so many regrets," he admitted as he tried mimicking Anthony's movements without shifting too much weight onto his right foot, realizing it wouldn't work on all steps.
"Good."
Refusing to feel more embarrassed than he currently did, Lucius tried changing the subject, lifting part of his skirt a little.
"So? How do I look? Your feelings about my disguise aside you have to admit I look damn pretty."
Anthony scanned his appearance once again, agreeing with a brief nod.
"It's a pretty dress. Blue suits you."
Lucius shook his head, pitying the man's ignorance.
"Turquoise."
Anthony arched his eyebrows in confusion and Lucius continued.
"It's turquoise, not blue. It's a bit on the greener side."
"But it's... Blue."
"Your deplorable waistcoat is a shade of blue too," Lucius countered.
"Yes, there are many kinds of blue." Anthony rolled his eyes.
"And it's easier when they all have a name, isn't it?"
"Yes, fine," Anthony gave up. A wrinkle formed between his eyebrows as he hesitated to continue. "... Though in all honesty, while the dress is nice and all I'm actually fonder of your usual attire."
Lucius arched his eyebrows.
"Really?"
Another nod, and Lucius couldn't hold back a faint smile. He'd always be weak to flattery.
Then it suddenly occurred to him where Derek's surprise at his appearance had come from.
"You don't... Like women, do you?" he asked as Anthony spun him around. "Not in the company kind of way. That's why Mr. Kilgrave was confused."
"I could have brought you along for other reasons." Anthony shrugged. "Business purposes, probably. I'll think of something."
"Oh so that's fine, but bringing Lucius along wouldn't have worked?"
"Derek's surprise wasn't just about the way you look at the moment," Anthony explained, quickly grabbing hold of Lucius as he almost tripped while turning around. "I don't... Bring company around these people."
Lucius' eyes scrunched up.
"Is it... Because others might see it as a weakness?"
Anthony frowned at first, but eased up after some thought.
"I... Suppose, in a way..."
"I get it," Lucius said, nodding rapidly. "I—I have that issue as well. Feelings being thought of as a weakness that is."
"You have someone?" Anthony asked.
"Ah, well... Yes, I do."
"Huh."
Anthony looked troubled. A reminder of love being undesirable in their positions wasn't very welcome, Lucius figured. Especially not during a festive occasion.
Lucius couldn't quite let go of the thoughts either, and they both danced in silence for a while. It was, to Lucius' relief, not a dance where one changed partners.
"What are you doing?"
Lucius flinched as the voice of the Scourge appeared in his head, and Anthony's grip hardened, likely thinking Lucius was about to trip again.
"Are you forgetting who this man is? You're supposed to take him down, not flirt."
I wasn't. Besides, this is how I get close to him. Making him drop his guard and all that.
"We both know that's not true."
Lucius gritted his teeth. The Scourge wasn't entirely wrong. For a moment there he'd forgotten his actual motive of being at the ball, and the purpose of getting to know Anthony better in the first place.
Perhaps...
He hesitated.
Perhaps we could find a way to get me that position and still... You know, spare him? He's gone out of his way so many times to get me places so a little gratitude might be in order? And he might just keep giving me further opportunities if I'm lucky.
"There's that weakness shining through, my little game." The Scourge's voice grew louder, almost drowning Lucius' own thoughts. "This is why emotions are bad for you."
Once again with the emotional weaknesses. Lucius was growing tired of it, especially for the night.
"You look uneasy," Anthony said, having lowered his voice. "Is it your foot?"
Lucius tried shaking the recent thoughts with a grimace.
"It's not exactly comfortable."
Anthony put on an understanding smile.
"Perhaps I've had you suffer enough." He smoothly danced Lucius out of the crowd and let go of him. "If you really want to, you can go. It may not look too great if I get ditched but I can handle a couple of pitying stares."
"Not gonna complain, but... Seems like I'm getting off the hook pretty easily."
"That's what you think, but while you've failed to gather information tonight I've found out that the man in front of me is a lousy dancer, and he will never live it down."
"Not the worst I could've thought of, but fair enough." Lucius nodded in approval before gazing out over the crowd. He really could get used to the glamor and disgustingly rich company, so he supposed staying for a while longer couldn't possibly hurt.