Youth, Snuffed Out

Once the girl was handed off to Ivy, who immediately proved herself to be much more capable of having emotions than Irene, Aoric sighed and rubbed his chest. "That girl's nails are something else." He grumbled. Six small tears on his shirt corresponded with six shallow scratches on his chest.

"What are you waiting for?" Irene's voice startled him. He shot her a confused look. "What do you mean?" he asked, though he already had a guess.

"Find the statue!" She pointed towards the cathedral, almost as if she were ordering a dog. "Before the authorities arrive, hurry."

Aoric rolled his eyes. "I already know where it is. I used that spot to get to the rooftops many times." He paused for a moment. "I can show you," He suggested. She had put on her coat and gloves. She was clearly getting ready to leave.

She seemed hesitant, but then nodded. "Quickly." She added. "I'll follow you, so hurry."

Aoric shrugged. It wasn't surprising that she didn't want to be seen walking together with him. To be perfectly honest, he wanted that even less than her, especially considering today's events. He hastened his steps as he left the mansion, and made his way over to the plaza, making sure to pull his hood down to cover his face in its shadows.

The angel statue with spears going through her wings. It was in a rather wide, but long alleyway not far from the cathedral. The alleyway wasn't lit at all, and the ground was still wet with the previous night's rain.

Aoric slowed his steps as he arrived in the alleyway. His gaze scoured his surroundings. Irene reached the place not long after he did. "What are you waiting for?" She asked with annoyance in her voice.

"I was trying to see if there was anyone hiding somewhere, but even if there was someone, they would be gone by now, no thanks to you." His snide comment was met with an even more annoyed look. He rolled his eyes and walked further ahead.

"The statue is at the very end of the alleyway." He explained. "But there are no other ways out of here, it makes no sense that they would even come here." His voice faded as the statue of the angel entered their view.

The body of a young woman lay face first by its feet. There was a single cut on her beck, right on her spine. Aoric stopped in his tracks. "… yeah." He mumbled, averting his gaze.

"Oh, poor Ava…" Irene whispered softly. She stepped closer to the young woman's body. "They dared harm you, they dared kill you." Irene snarled. She clenched her fists. "I will have revenge!"

Aoric looked away. The pain of death was not one he was familiar with. He never had anyone die on him, not that he had many people who could do that, but still. He had no idea on what to do or say. He didn't know what Irene felt right now after all.

"Thief!" She called out. He flinched and raised his gaze to look at her. "This is why I need you to steal that blood." She said with a low, but clear voice. "To put an end to these senseless murders. To protect my people." She looked at him over her shoulder. "And that is why I won't hesitate to kill you if you don't do as I said. Am I clear?"

Aoric nodded. "Crystal."

Her grand purpose meant less to him than it did to her. Yes, the death of a young girl who hadn't even experienced her life yet was heart breaking, but Aoric was only capable of so much. He wasn't some altruistic person who would give up everything for a chance to top someone he didn't even know.

He bit his lips. He did feel bad for the little girl though. Seeing her cry like that reminded him of the kids back at the orphanage. But time healed all wounds, even though it left the scars behind. Eventually, she was going to be able to look back on her memories with Ava, and smile. Just not yet, not for a few years at least.

He sighed. He wasn't sure how some blood in the cathedral connected with these murders, but at least now he knew just how determined Irene was.

"Let's go back." The woman said after a while. "The authorities will soon arrive, and I'd rather not deal with them."

Aoric nodded, being seen by the city guard by the corpse of a girl who had just been killed wouldn't really be a good idea. They left the alleyway, and headed back to Irene's mansion, though once again, the woman followed him from quite some distance.

Once they were back, Aoric was told to go back to his room, and feeling awfully tired, he didn't disagree. He laid down on his soft bed, hoping to fall asleep soon, but whenever he closed his eyes, the image of the dead girl came to his mind, and the cries of Maria rang in his ears.