"That's amazing, Garrick! You can talk to all the animals like Snow White!" Lily exclaims with glee as I hand her another piece of cake I made for her.
"Not necessarily like Snow White. I can only talk with ravens, the bird I can turn into." I clarify and take a sip of my tea.
After negotiating with the ravens for information about my family in return for their multiple pair of eyes to watch over Galvin for me, I returned home with Damian and found my brother Luka caring for Lily. He told me that his contractor doesn't need him for today and when he came home, our parents were on the verge of leaving for another meeting. As for the twins, Luka only said that they left just a few minutes before I arrived.
Since we were the only ones at home, I made a tea party for Lily as well as inform Luka and Kang-Dae of my newfound abilities. They were both impressed and shocked by the news while Lily seems to be ecstatic that I could speak to animals like in those fairy tales she's reading. All that's left is to tell my parents about this ability of mine once they returned from that meeting of theirs.
"But, it's like Snow White. . . It's not fair, I want to talk to animals too!" Lily whines, her bottom lip jutting out to form an adorable pout. Chuckling, I lean over and peck her cheek.
"Lily, there's so many things you can do that Snow White can't. You can run faster than any animal, jump as high as the trees, smell better than a bloodhound, and see better in both the daytime and nighttime." I assure her while I lift her from her seat and set her down on my lap.
"I know I can. . . B-but, Luka gets to play with lightning and Aidan has fire and Jasmine can make snow! Then, Kang-Dae can be a bunny! What can I do, Garrick?" Lily ponders as she rests her head against my chest.
"You can be the world's oldest child." Damian declares which only brought low growl from her.
"Lily, it's not nice to growl at someone. Or Damian, even if he deserves it." I scold lightly and reach over to my teacup, sipping some tea.
"I'm glad you defended me so well, Garrick." Damian deadpans at the same time Luka laughs.
"Alright, Garrick. . . May I have another piece of the chocolate cake?" Lily asks, her mood quickly changing to a joyful one.
"You haven't finished the one you have on your plate." I chuckle as I take her fork and pick up a small piece to feed her.
"If you're done spoiling your sister, we still have an important issue to bring up like where everyone is going nowadays." Damian announces. Looking up at him, I see him with his arms crossed and a brow raised higher than the other.
"I already told you that our parents went on a business meeting and the twins wanted to hunt or train." Luka reprimands, glaring at him.
"What kind of business does your family conduct in the first place?" Damian inquires as he ignores Luka's glare.
"As we are members of the nobility, we deal with a variety of businesses. From jewelry to weaponry. At least, as far as I'm aware of." I reply, recalling one conversation I've had with Father about our place in England.
"Mother did say she witnessed the Anglo-Saxons settle in Britain when she was a child." Luka adds as he finishes his slice of cake.
"How come none of you are ruling this country?" Damian asks with a tilt of his head.
"Our mother arranged a deal with the monarchy. They'll be ruling the country in front of all the humans so long as the Gastrell family does not draw attention from the other nobles nor should we ever be betrayed in exchange for the success Great Britain has achieved." I explain then sip my tea.
"I thought there was something off about the way Great Britain had so many colonies. Still, why are you never involved with those meetings they go to?" Damian questions while I set my teacup down.
"I'm not of age yet and I never really gave much thought about it. I honestly didn't think I would have any need for including myself in their business affairs." I admit since there was never once a time when I gave particular interest in my family's business.
Surely they don't expect me to take over in the future? There wouldn't be a reason for me to do so. We're going to live forever and we haven't been sought out by either the vampire monarchy or the demons my mother mentions. The only demon I've seen is Damian and he doesn't pose any threat to my family.
"Why not? You never planned on leaving your family one day to see the world? Or be self reliant at the very least?" Damian badgers and picks up another slice of cake.
"At the moment no. I have no desire to leave my family yet. Not until I have mastered the new spells I'm able to cast." I answer as I wipe some crumbs off of Lily's mouth.
"That reminds me, Garrick, have you ever tried using magic since the test?" Luka asks to which I shake my head. "Why not?"
"I didn't have time to nor reason to try. Acantha doesn't know if I had passed or not and I rather not risk it." I confess, lifting Lily up only to set her back on her seat.
"Garrick, in this long eternal life of ours, there's nothing that should scare us. You three are practically as invincible as me!" Damian exclaims with a wide grin.
"Magic has its fair share of unpredictability as well, Damian. I can't take this as lightly as you." I berate while a low growl resonates deep in my threat.
"I don't mean it as taking lightly of magic, I don't want you to die either. Otherwise, who else is going to put up with me for the rest of time?" Damian responds which bought a small smile on my face. That would be his biggest concern.
"There's always Luka and Kang-Dae." I banter, my smile transforming into a smirk.
Damian's expression shifts from concern to horror and takes in an exaggerated gasp. "But Luka can't stand me and I don't know Kang-Dae well! Except that he turns into a little bunny!"
"Spend more time with him." I suggest and finish sipping the rest of my tea when I heard a faint tapping sound behind me.
Rising from my seat, I walk towards the window where I see a raven pecking its beak against the glass. I press down on the hatch then push the window open, the raven flying inside. Lily releases a short giggle as I return to my seat and stare at the raven standing in front of my plate. The raven has its head tilted up facing me with its black eyes trained on me while I thought to it, "What news do you have for me?"
"The human we have our flock trailing has found him returning to his nest. We overheard him wanting to head to bed. Will that be all you need from us tonight?" The raven replies inside my head.
"If it is not too much of a bother, would you watch over his nest until he leaves from there?" I request politely.
"Certainly. Anything else?" The raven agrees, shaking my head as my response.
"No, that would be all for now. Thank you for all of your help. I appreciate it." I thank before the raven nods his head once and flies out to the window.
"What did the bird want, Garrick?" Damian asks as I got up to close the window.
"To tell me that Galvin went home. He's done for tonight, but I had asked that they keep an eye on him until he leaves his flat. By then, he'll summon me for a rendezvous." I declare, shutting the window.
"How is your investigation coming along? Have you two made any progress?" Luka questions while I return to my seat and pour myself another cup of tea.
"The investigation is still slow coming, but I can confirm that the killer is a vampire. The human we interrogated had some lost time that could only be from a vampire's hypnosis." I inform as I add cream and sugar into my cup.
"A vampire. . . I didn't think they would be brave enough to make such a mess in London. Have you seen how this vampire looks like?" Luka ponders with a raise of his right brow.
I shake my head in response then look over at Lily who looks close to falling asleep from the yawn she released. Chuckling, I walk over to her and lift her into my arms. She gives a sleepy smile and nuzzles into my chest, "Can we go to sleep now?"
"Of course, Lily. It is almost four thirty in the morning, a little past your bedtime." I note while I stroke her hair.
"Do you want me to clean this up, Master Garrick?" Kang-Dae asks despite already gathering the empty teacups together into a stack.
"If it's not too much trouble, then yes. Damian, Luka. I'll return shortly. Wait for me in the parlor." I state as both Luka and Damian nod their heads in agreement.
Without much delay, I carry Lily up to her room where I changed her into her nightgown then tucked her into bed. She requested that I sing her to sleep and did as she asked. I sang to her a lullaby our mother used to sing to me while I watched her drift to sleep. When she did, I gave her a goodnight kiss on her forehead and silently crept out of her room. Not wanting to keep Luka and Damian waiting, I use my accelerated speed to reach the parlor faster.
"What's left to talk about, Garrick? I would've thought you'd use this small break to finally get some sleep." Damian ponders meanwhile I take a seat next to Luka.
"I plan to do that as well, but there are some things I want to go over with Luka with the investigation." I announce and turn to look over at my brother. "Have you sensed the presence of any vampire where you are? Or have encountered vampires in the Yard?"
"No, I haven't. Only humans." Luka responds, causing me to nod my head.
"You're not going to see any vampires around here. Their king won't let them associate themselves with humans unless he allows it. Though, I'm quite certain that you'll find them within the nobility. They do like power after all. I think one of them is actually the King of the Vampires in the North America section." Damian informs from across me.
"How do you know that?" I ask in suspicious tone. From what I know, vampires and demons don't get along so well. If anything, vampires hate demons more than they hate werewolves.
"I hear things from my subordinates. Like how the royal family are somewhere in London, England. We demons also make some negotiations of our own with those in power." Damian adds while helping himself to another slice of cake.
"Why haven't you told me any of this?" I inquire, lifting my right brow higher than the left.
"Because I didn't have an exact address to give you. I wanted to wait until I hear if they were out in public rather than have you run all over London looking for them." Damian briefly explain and takes a bite of his cake.
Oddly enough, he has a point. Without having any form of location, I would have spent every night searching through every flat for Alexandru. Knowing that he's somewhere in London is a relief since it narrows down my search by a ton. All I have to do is hope I run into him.
"But, since you passed that test, we don't need an address! Recite that tracking spell and you'll be able to see your prince soon!" Damian exclaims with a grin.
"Haven't you been listening to Garrick? Magic is unpredictable, then Acantha doesn't know if Garrick actually passed the test." Luka objects sternly.
"It wouldn't hurt to try. Besides, tracking someone isn't a difficult spell to conjure. Novice level really." Damian counters and shrugs his shoulders.
Luka releases a sigh and turns his head to face me, "What do you think, Garrick? Do you want to enlighten Damian or do what you normally do?"
I don't respond right away since there's many things that can occur. If I choose to stay on the safe side, it would mean that I'll have to tell Galvin to search for a list of all the nobility in England that reside either within London or somewhere near London. He might ask a few questions, but he doesn't have to know the exact details. Our contract never stated that I had to tell him why I need him to investigate something for me.
Yet, when will I ever use my magic? How long will I allow this fear of its unpredictably to prevent me from finding Alexandru? If what Damian said about it being an easy spell, I could try and locate him. The risks wouldn't be so monumental as that of time traveling.
"It's a simple spell, Damian?" I question cautiously as Damian nods his head.
"Yes, it's simple. You would excel at it on your first try." Damian assures me.
"What do I have to do?" I ask while he claps his hands once as though to express his happiness before walking over to me.
"All you need is the name of the person you're looking and focus on his location." Damian instructs as I nod my head, thinking of Alexandru's name appearing to me the first time I met him.
"Then?" I prompt after taking a moment to allow the memory of first meeting Alexandru engrave into my mind.
"Then you focus on his name with your magic and you should be able to see him for a second before the nearest address or country appears." Damian finishes which doesn't sound necessarily difficult. It's the same concept as summoning a portal.
With that being said, I close my eyes to better concentrate on Alexandru's location. There was a stinging sensation on my left eye as a rush of power flows from the center of my chest and spreads throughout my body. A rushing image of trees appears on my mind as if I were running out in the woods with my surroundings becoming a blur.
The blurring stops and I see Alexandru storming into his room, slamming the door behind him. Even though I know I wasn't in the same room as him, I felt my heart pound against my chest that I thought it would burst out. My breath was literally taken away just from the sight of seeing Alexandru again after so many years. Only Alexandru can bring these feelings into me.
What made Alexandru upset? I ponder as I watch him sit on his bed and his right hand hit his pillows. His body is visibly shaking from what I'm presuming is anger or rather, controlling it.
"Damn Lucius. . . Why does he always get what he wants? It's not fair. . ." I overhear Alexandru mutter to himself. I wanted to know more about Alexandru's current mood, but vision turns red and an intolerable form of pain appears on my left eye a second afterward.
I was brought back into the parlor room, kneeling on my knees, while I hear the others yelling at me. I couldn't understand what they were saying other than my name. Someone was screaming as well, but that could've been me. The pain in my eye was as if something lodged itself into my eyeball and I had to reach up to see if that was the case.
Fortunately, nothing was in my eye. However, when I bring my hand away, there was blood on my fingers. The sight of my blood on my hand was the last thing I saw before everything turns black.
*Nickole's Note*
Hey, guys! I did it! I updated this semi long chapter for you guys! You're welcome! I have some Fun Facts for you so let's get it out of the way, shall we? Here we go!
1. The original title for this was "Chapter 31: Magic Has It's Limitations" but since the actual magic part wasn't until the end, I changed it to fit with what this chapter was about.
2. The Anglo-Saxons settled in Britain from 5th century, according to Wikipedia. I added this little tidbit to kind of give you guys an idea of Violet Gastrell's age.
That's actually it. I briefly mentioned the whole Anglo-Saxons in "Chapter 28: Trust Must Be Earned" but I got a little more detailed. At least why it was relevant. Anyway, since I don't have any announcements for you guys today, I'll get on to my usual farewell. As always, I hope you guys liked the chapter and I'll try to update the next chapter as soon as I can. If you guys have any questions about why I'm taking so long in updating or just to see how this story is coming along, check out my activity page for more information. Until then, I'll see you guys next time! Enjoy~