T E N
Messy Thoughts
THERE WERE TIMES in which I wondered to myself with all of my heart: 'how did I get myself into this mess?'
Well, this was one of those times.
While Dimitri still had his usual smirk-that-hid-endless-sinister-ideas hung on his face, Calvin had a much softer school-boy grin accessorizing his. On the other hand, Wilhelm looked positively grumpy from the prior argument while Fabian looked straight up murderous.
It was times like this in which I began to wonder if the four brothers had their identities mixed up at birth, seeing that Dimitri looked the least likely to kill me at the instant.
After Calvin had not-too-gentlemanly pulled me into the main sitting room using his voodoo magic, we had since sat together on these posh velvet couches in silence as two out of three of the boys stared at me with a goofy grin on their faces, the other two silently plotting my death in their minds.
"So, Addison," Calvin trailed off with a mildly excited grin still high upon his lips. "I see that my brother had finally charmed you to stay in our very own Hotel Transylvania."
I chuckled slightly before disguising it with a cough when Dimitri jutted his elbow against Calvin's stomach, causing the latter to groan in pain.
"She came here on her own free will. To see her friend." Without much hesitation, Dimitri explained my circumstances with a dismissive wave of his hand.
"Ah yes. The very attractive ginger." Breaking his tough facade, a small smirk (a trait that was obviously passed down in the family) curved the corners of Wilhelm's lips as well. "Your loyalties stand strong, Miss Pilediah. That is admirable, especially considering your past judgment in men."
It had been a mistake of mine, but my eyes had immediately flickered over to Dimitri for a short span of a second just as he caught my gaze. Turning the brightest shade of crimson humanely possible, I could only turn my head back sharply as the man's lazy grin widened even further. Apparently, this man had the wildest effects on me. Be it making me absolutely breathless from his soul-sucking demonic powers or making my insides flutter from those indiscrete unintentional smiles that held a whole universe of stars within.
Undeniably, the man was an artwork so fine that famous artists of the past would be put to shame by his creator.
This attraction in which I harbored for a man that had made an attempt on my life was pure insanity; a delusional mix of stockholm syndrome and a drop or two of love potion. What I had in my mind was not normal, in every sense of the word.
I kept my chin up as highly as I could, trying desperately to regain the proud look in which I had accessorized myself with during my early teenage years. That same tilt of my chin and scrutinizing gaze was a part of what made me the queen above everyone else -- by pretending that I was on top simply because everyone else was below me.
However, this wouldn't be too easy to replicate, especially when I was trying to show my worth in the presence of four kings while still in their domain. I am basically courting death itself.
But you know, not literally courting.
"My loyalties lie where they belong; in the hands of people who deserve it."
Calvin, seeming to be somewhat satisfied with my answer, simply flashed me a calm smile before placing the edge of a glass against his lips. He calmly sipped the golden whiskey inside before sighing in satisfaction, placing the glass gently back on the table. His calm actions cause a flurry of nerves within me but I pushed them as far into the back of my mind as possible.
"Stop stressing her out, Calvin. She isn't going to be another of your conquests."
At Dimitri's words, a scowl found its way onto Calvin's face as his forehead wrinkled. "No harm trying," he said.
"There's all the harm in the world when you are trying to woo his girl." Wilhelm gestured to Dimitri before leaning back against the couch comfortably.
"Hello? I'm still here you know. I can hear every single word you're saying."
"The girl's a burden," Fabian muttered under his breath. For a split second, I was met with his scowl before his dark eyes narrowed back to his brothers, particularly the grinning Dimitri. "Get rid of her before Lucius brings havoc trying to get her back."
"Well, he is going to bring a war with him nevertheless." Unable to hold my tongue, I blurted out the words before slapping my palms over my lips. It was too late, though. I had caught the attention of all four of them as Dimitri's grin dropped from his face.
"What war?"
"I.."
"What war, Addison?" Dimitri borderline growled before pushing himself up into a standing position. He moved quickly and silently, steps barely even grazing the ground before he stood in front of me.
He was dangerously close, and I could breathe in waves of his never-disappearing cologne before his face was lowered to meet mine, so close that our breaths mingled with each other and our line of vision was colliding violently.
With a staggered breath, I began to retell what I've heard back at the angel camp. "I've overheard Lucius talking to another angel about some..some war or bait they were going to set up back at the camp before you kidnapped me here. It sounded like.. like as if they were planning for a battle and already preparing with trainings. They've got so many angels at camp and it didn't seem like they were refugees. They were fighters."
The man took a deep breath before taking a step back, staring at me with slight disbelief on his features. With the other brothers silent as well, the air was thick with tension before Wilhelm broke in.
"I knew we should've killed them. A small scaled battle was what I expected but a full out war.. That's them attempting to commit suicide. There is no such thing as angel refugees. Their domain is Heaven, and Paradise is an in between that separates our worlds. If they were at Paradise, it meant that they were bringing something to us. And I doubt it's a fucking gift basket with a sweet note card after our eon-long disagreements."
Dimitri stood without a word, looking deep in thought as his eyebrows furrowed slightly. It felt like forever before he opened his mouth again. "The three of you, get some rest. We'll start practice first thing next sunrise. Fabian."
The last brother straightened up, his soulless eyes suddenly full with life and attention.
"Get some intel and see if what Addison said is true. If it is, we need to gather the soldiers. We have a majority and it could be an easy win. But I am not taking any chances."
Fabian nodded once before disappearing in a cloud of black smoke. The other two brothers stood up slowly, offering Dimitri a brief nod before strolling off back in the direction of what I assume are their rooms.
Once Calvin and Wilhelm curved the corner and disappeared out of sight, Dimitri turned back to me. This time, there was no smirk on his face. And yet, it wasn't the stern look he had worn just now when handing out orders. It was a soft smile, one that reminded me very much of a face in which I could swear on my life I've seen before in a distant dream-like memory. His hand reached for mine, enclosing it before nodding his head towards the door.
"Today's been hectic. What do you say to exploring Hell with me?"
I couldn't even begin to fight the smile that had spread across my features as I nodded once. Most of the animosity that had developed within me had long melted away the second I stepped into the castle. This hatred that I had kept boiling for Death disappeared the very second I met Dimitri. They were the same person, and yet totally different at the same time.
Besides, disagreeing with an all-powerful spirit would have been suicide.
"I say 'yes please'."
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