Chapter 11(Soft, hard and.... soft again)

Eloise woke up with a start. She sighed with relief, another nightmare. She sat up in bed with her face in her palms. One of these days she was going to go crazy.

She wondered if these dreams would ever end. Sometimes, when the scene began she had to scream at herself to wake up.

‘Keep it together, El. Keep it together” she whispered to herself.

She turned to find Wrath's side of the bed empty. It’s not like she was expecting him to come back or anything. But she wondered where he was at this time of the night. How she wished he was still Carmine at least he would have been here. She wrapped the heavy sheets around her body, shivering from the cold.

Thunder crashed loudly from the outside following a spark of lighting, illuminating the dark room. She slowly stepped down from the bed to the balcony door, watching silently as the rain trickled down the glass door.

She found herself thinking about Wrath. Worried even. Why on earth was she thinking about him?

She pulled out a black woolen cloth from the wardrobe, wrapped it around her body, and headed towards the door. She stepped out of their room into the dark hallway. The only sound that could be heard as she paced the hallway, was the sound of the rain thundering outside. She walked to a stop at Wrath's study. She raised her clenched fist to knock but hesitated for a second. She placed her ear to the door leaning in to listen.

She heard faint sounds coming from within. She couldn't make it out since the rain was too loud. She slowly pushed the doors open. She froze at the spot once she had a look inside.

Before her, was a naked blonde woman on the ground, dead. She was covered in fang bites and her eyes were hollow. On the desk was another naked blond, sprawled on the desk with her hands tugged on her head, moaning loud from pleasure. Her legs were wide apart with Wrath standing in between them. At his sides were two naked blondes, also covered in bites, kissing his beautiful body, yearning for his attention. Wrath glanced in her direction, his mouth dripping with blood from his sharp fangs. He suddenly pulled out of her the woman. His huge bulge fell to his thigh, with a viscid whitish fluid dripping down from its tip.

Eloise stood astounded as her eyes met with Wrath's golden ones. His face was void of any expression as he looked at her.

“Leave!” he said abruptly. The three women quickly grabbed their clothes off the ground. Eloise glared at them as they scurried off using the backdoor. She glared not because she was angry. No, anger didn’t cut it. All she felt was a stab of pure, unattractive, inappropriate jealousy.

That could’ve been her, she thought.

Right now.....

Eloise quietly looked through the carriage window, staring at Wrath. He was at the Valerian graveyard standing before a headstone, his mother's grave.

When he said they would be going out she didn’t know it was to the graveyard. She watched as he walked back to their carriage slowly. Once he entered the carriage, he sat next to her but kept his distance. They hadn’t said a word to each other since they left the manor in the morning. Neither of them made the effort to speak to the other. The uncomfortable silence continued throughout the ride from the cemetery to the Catholic church at Tussletown.

Eloise stepped down from the carriage with the coachman giving her a hand. She exhaled heavily, at one point she thought she was going to suffocate from the awkward silence. Wrath stepped in behind her and they headed for the stairs, side by side.

‘A church?' She asked in a questioning tone.

“A man has to confess his sins once in a while.” He said as he slowly walked in behind her. Eloise glanced over her shoulder with a chuckle.

“You never struck me as a religious type,” she said.

“You barely know me,” he said quietly.

“Oh, I know plenty alright,” she muttered with a sneer.

They entered the large church doors to find a few people seated in the long line of pews.

“Is there not strife between vampires and the church?” Eloise asked as she glanced around the large church.

“If there was, we would not be here, would we?” He asked turning to her with a small smile. Their eyes met and she averted her eyes.

‘Well, you are full of surprises, aren't you?’ She said sarcastically.

“Again, you hardly know me,” He told her. She was still uncomfortable around him. Last night's incident made it all worse.

He headed for the front row pew and sat down. Eloise sat next to him with a sigh.

‘I haven’t seen all of you but what I’ve seen so far, I don’t like. I'm not thrilled to know the rest either” she said indifferently.

“You are…” He opened his mouth to say something but stopped.

“My Lord Valerian, forgive me for keeping you” They both stared in direction of the voice. A woman in a white robe and white shawl walked towards them. Her blue eyes held delight upon seeing them.

“Mother Valerie” Wrath responded right before he embraced her. He had a warm look on his face. A look she’d only seen him with whenever he was with Corianne.

Mother Valerie sighed delightfully.

“Oh, I missed you too’ She cupped his face with a smile. “And you must be Eloise. I am Mother Valerie, I hope my Carmine has not been giving you a hard time” she said with a smile.

“Nothing I can’t handle. It’s a pleasure to meet you” Eloise said with a smile.

‘Ah, a fierce one, just like I heard. Lovely, to meet you too, child’ Mother Valerie hugged her.

"I understand why Carmine…”

“I came for what we spoke of earlier.” Wrath interrupted her.

Mother Valerie sighed. “Always right to the point. I will be back in a minute.” She told them before heading off. She walked across the hall towards a small room.

“Carmine. Why not choose that over Wrath?’ Eloise asked him.

“You do not like it?” He asked in turn.

“I think Carmine is subtle and nice. Wrath just puts you out there,” Eloise said with a shrug.

“It is decided then, my name joins the list of one of the many things you do not like about me,” He said with a sigh and Eloise chuckled.

“Wait here” Wrath suddenly said to her before he headed across the hall. She watched him as he walked over to Mother Valerie. They had a brief conversation and she handed him a black file. He quickly placed the file in his coat and headed back to her.

“That didn’t look shady at all,” Eloise said in a tone of sarcasm, once they were back in the carriage.

Wrath chuckled.

“So… you didn’t seem scared of the cross around her neck,” Eloise said and he burst into laughter. Somehow the rich sound of his laughter made eased the awkwardness between them.

“Do not be silly, Eloise. There is no way vampires are terrified of crosses” He told her.

“Well, not in movies” Eloise blurted. It was after she said the words that she realized it. Movies weren’t invented until the 19th century.

‘Movies?’ He asked with a raised brow.

“Err, plays” She replied quickly. He raised his brows in surprise.

“You like plays?” he asked.

“I do,” She replied with a small smile. She used to watch movies back at home all the time. Especially on Saturday nights, with a large bowl of popcorn with some wine. Lying on her favorite couch with Cole. They used to fight over the remote or the movie they should watch...

Cole. God knows how much she loved that man. He was her first love and probably the last.

Wrath watched as that sweet smile of hers slowly turn into a sad one.

“Vampires are an evolving predator species. Our eyesight is extremely different from that of witches, wolves, or other creatures. Any geometric shape close to a field of vision can confuse our brains and cause a reaction of panic. But as I said, we are evolving species. We have learned to overcome such absurd religious iconology and now we leave with it.” he explained, quickly disrupting her thoughts.

“So, your theory is due to physiology as opposed to religion?” She asked.

He nodded in response.

“Hmm… I didn’t know you were that smart.” Eloise muttered with a chuckle.

“Would I have come this far, if I were some random idiot?” he said bluntly.

“You make a good argument. I mean it would take more than power to keep all creatures together under one rule. It takes a genius to do that” she told him.

“Look at that, you called me a genius,” he said smugly. Eloise rolled her eyes with a peal of laughter escaping her lips.

Wrath found himself smiling too.

“So, where are we going?” She looked at him and for the first time since morning, their eyes met.

“I thought we would stop at a place to eat,” he said to her. He glanced at his golden pocket watch and it was already noon.

“Where?”

“Here?” Eloise muttered, staring at the small inn before her.

“Yes. Did you expect something else?” Wrath turned to her asking. They stood before a small inn on the outskirts of Valeria, The Pride Inn.

“Yes,” She said in earnest. He was a king, she expected him to dine at luxurious places.

“We can go somewhere else if you are not comfortable” he suggested. Eloise's stomach grumbled, responding quickly.

“No, won’t be necessary,” She replied.

He offered her a hand and Eloise stared at his hand hesitantly.

“I am harmless, Eloise” she heard him say. She looked up to find him with a smile. She slowly took his hand and together they walked towards the inn. They stopped at the entrance to find a small grey haired man sitting at the door.

“Good evening, Ole Den” Wrath greeted.

“Holy me! Lord Valerian. It is you!” Ole Den said excitedly. He jumped off his chair, laughing heartily as he hugged Wrath. Wrath wrapped a hand around the small man laughing too.

“You look good, Den. Shay has been treating you well, I see” Wrath said with a laugh. Eloise watched the two laugh and chatter as old friends did.

“Pardon my rudeness. You must be Lady Valerian. Goodness, you are so much more lovely than I heard. Den Haggis, people round these parts call me Ole Den” He said as he took off his dusty hat and bowed lowly.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ole Den” Eloise replied with a smile.

“Please, please follow me, everyone will be glad to meet you” Ole Den took the lead while the too followed.

“He’s a witch” Eloise whispered to Wrath quickly.

Witches had a spirit known as the humming. Whenever witches met, it buzzed a ringtone. With the humming, a witch could identify her kind from a mile away.

“Yes, everyone here is” he replied.

“Everyone? But I thought there were no witches in Valeria?” she asked him.

“There are but not many, my Lady” Ole Den said over his shoulder.

“These are the last of us in these parts” he added right before he pushed the old double doors open. All eyes suddenly turned towards them and every movement in the room ceased. Eloise cringed and she absently gripped Wrath's hands tighter. He let gripped her hand and gave her an assuring smile when she looked up at him.

“Look everyone, it is the Lord and he finally brought the Lady!” Ole Den yelled. The crowd yelled raising their cups and cheering. Several people rushed towards them to greet them.

“Carmine” a feminine voice called. A woman in her late fifties with a brown apron tied around her waist pushed through the crowd.

Wrath laughed pulling the woman into a hug. He looked happier than she'd ever seen him.

“And you must be Eloise. I am Alda, welcome to the Pride Inn. You must be hungry. Come on now, give me your coat, and let the lads fetch you a hot meal” Alda offered. Eloise slowly pulled off her coat to reveal a bruise on her arm.

Alda's eyes wavered for a second. She looked at Wrath to find him speaking with a group of men.

Eloise wrapped her blue shawl around her arms with a nervous smile. For a second, she forgot about these bruises. Scenes of the previous night replayed in her head. She fought with Wrath after she discovered him and his lovers at the study. They exchanged words and Wrath grabbed her in anger, right before he walked out on her.

“It is alright, I have something to help it heal faster,” Alda said to her, disrupting her thoughts. Eloise nodded with a small smile.

“Oi, you lads leave him be. Carmine, come along now. Let us get you two a place to sit. Let us go” She turned to Eloise with a smile.

Minutes later, at a small round table, perched at the visible corner of the inn, a feast was served for the two. Mostly for Wrath who seemed to have an enormous appetite. He finished several dishes in minutes. Eloise finished two bowls of stewed lamb and an apple pie.

A teenage boy brought them two tall cups filled with ale after they finished their meal. Their table was cleared afterwards and Wrath left to the centre of the room. He was instantly surrounded by people, who sought his attention.

He seemed interested in what every single person had to say. He paid close attention and indulged anyone who spoke to him. He seemed like an entirely different person now amongst these people. She heard him laugh hard at something one of them said. The loudest she'd ever heard him laugh. He looked happier amongst these commoners than he was amongst the elites.

“Full of surprises, is he not?” A woman said, catching her attention. She turned to find three women dressed in simple clothes and cheap shawls. Amongst them, she looked like an overdressed turkey, with her expensive bodice and shawl.

“Every day comes with a different charm. Unexpected…”Eloise said hesitantly. She furrowed her brows as she looked in Wrath's direction. He was a different person from the violent man she saw last night.

He was speaking to a group of children with their parents. He had a little black haired girl in his lap, who seemed obsessed with his long blonde hair. This was a different side to him, a side she didn’t expect. He was kind, friendly, polite, and surprisingly fun.

Right now, he was everything Corianne told her about. She wondered if it was all for show.

“It is not every day you get to see, witches gathered in one place peacefully, not harassed or hunted. The Lord has made it so” the blonde woman amongst them started, earning her attention.

“Pride town is the only place in Valeria, we witches can be free to be whatever and say whatever we want without fear. It has been so for a hundred years” The black haired one told her.

“So imagine our joy whenever he visits town,” The short brown haired said with a smile.

Eloise noticed more people enter the inn, mostly heading Wrath's way.

“I didn’t know, there were witches in these parts,” She told the three.

“Not many people do. The first of us who were able to cross the sea settled here a hundred years ago after the purge. At a point, our numbers dwindled drastically due to mass witch hunts. But we can live freely in these parts now” the shortest one amongst them said.

“Those were terrible times. I did not see it but, according to my grandfather, those times were horrible times to be a witch”

“But that is all in the past now. You can imagine our delight when we heard the Lord had married you, Suprema” the black-haired said in delight.

“Finally, one of us in the upper echelon of the Imperium” the blonde added.

Eloise glanced at the woman with a narrowed look. She was the wife of the Lord, that was true. But a member of the upper echelon of the imperium, not so much. She'd never bothered to delve into the political aspects of this alliance. In her defence, she was still new to this world and had her crisis to attend to.

“Because of you, Spell Casters are allowed over the border every month from France," the black-haired said.

“Spell Casters?” Eloise asked.

“Yes, witch guards sent in to protect the less powerful,” The black haired replied with a raised brow.

“We would not require them if it was not for that bloody prick, Hoffman Stratton,” The short one said with disdain.

As if sensing her confusion, the blonde woman explained.

“He is the governor of Holend. Pride town is on the outskirts of his territory. Although the Lord has ruled, Pride town be a neutral region, Hoffman keeps poaching the small lands we have”

“He has men, stealing and raiding our farms. Yet none of them has been caught or identified. You can imagine the relief when the Spell casters arrived from France. They protect the docks and the borders. Now we can sleep soundly at night” the black haired woman told her.

The short woman signalled Eloise over with a hand. She glanced sideways to check if anyone else was listening in. Eloise leaned in to listen as the woman's voice dropped into a whisper.

“Rumor has it, Hoffman is trying to gather forces to evade Pride town. Not directly but through other means” she whispered.

“Dana Hold, our town head suspects it is only with time until he makes a move” the black haired whispered.

“Does the Lord know about this?” Eloise asked.

“I believe he suspects it, as he has heard the rumours too," The shorter woman said.

“But if they are just rumours then you need not be worried,” Eloise said slowly wondering what these three were heading with this.

‘That is where you are wrong. The last we heard, rumours like these were circling in Oaken town. A witch town on the wolf border of Thornton. Governor Holstein disliked Oaken town as Hoffman does us. The town was massacred overnight and left with an unidentified and incomplete witch sigil” the blond told her.

“They made it look like the town folk did it to themselves. How convenient for witches to butcher themselves? A dead town with a cursed sigil left behind. Hmm, but we gain nothing from killing each other” the shorter woman said with dread.

“The disappearance of the fairies in Furrfold was just hush news. Our kind has been massacred and kidnapped way longer than these fairies” the shorter woman continued.

“Foul play, if you ask me. Spell casters or none, these rumours are causing unrest here in Pride town. What if we are the next Oaken town and Hoffman plot's is as…..’

“Tattling as always, aye!” They turned to find Alda with a frown.

“It is not tattling when it is true, Alda,” the blonde woman said with a frown.

“They are rumours you troublemakers have been circulating. Pride town is not the next Oaken town, now hush your foul mouths and ran along” Alda told them.

The three scurried off and Alda settled in next to Eloise.

“Ignore them, those three have been known to gossip way before they could speak,” She told her.

“Let me have a look at them arms, aye” Alda offered, holding out her palms.

Eloise took off her shawl to reveal her bruised arms.

“Oh curse Carmine and his absurd temper….’ Alda muttered with a sigh.

“I never said he did this” Eloise said.

“You do not have to. I see one of his deeds when I see it?” Alda said to her. She placed a hand on her arm. A pale light glowed as her hand hovered and the bruise started healing slowly.

Eloise gasped softly.

“You’re a healer,” she said in awe.

“Ah, yes. I am the last of the Hallan coven in these parts” Alda replied.

The Hallan coven was a coven made of healers and doctors. They were the only coven amongst the four that practised light and healing magic.

Eloise massaged her arms when she was done. It didn’t hurt anymore and felt good as new.

“Thank you” she let out with a smile.

“You are welcome, child” she responded softly.

“Is there any truth to what those three said?” Eloise asked, her brain still buzzing with the newly acquired information.

Rumour or not, these theories were too grave to be taken lightly. Witch towns being massacred, fairies disappearing, she wondered what else was going on out there.

She noticed the fine wrinkles on Alda's forehead deepen with worry.

“What happened in Oaken was very unfortunate but it is nothing new. We witches for no good reason, have been dying in masses for as long as I can remember. We have always been living, looking over our shoulders. Insecure and afraid. Nowhere is safe for us…. Not entirely” she said hesitantly.

“Not even France?” Eloise asked.

Alda was stunned at how little she knew. For someone who was supposed to protect the race, she had no clue as to what was going on.

“No, child. Not even in France” Alda replied.

Eloise marvelled at how little she knew. No matter the era she found herself in, witches were never safe.

A long keynote bursting through the room disrupted her thoughts. She turned to find Wrath at the centre of the room, seated by an old piano, playing a song. He sang along as he played in his rich baritone voice. The gathered crowd clapped, sang, and danced along.

As if noticing her gaze, he turned to her waving her over. Her smile wavered for a second. She absently pointed a finger to her chest in question. She wondered if he was talking to her. Two women pulled her towards the circle, while Alda sat back laughing. Wrath turned the piano over to Old Den and moved into the circle. He held her hand and twirled her around. Eloise burst out laughing, she was surprisingly enjoying herself.

“I'm a terrible dancer” She yelled over the loud crowd singing.

“Follow my lead,” He told her. He took her hands and they danced around the circle. Mostly footwork, more clapping and twirling around. Several people joined in, dancing around them in pairs. The song ended on a loud cheerful note, followed by applause and laughter.

Eloise laughed hard. Never in her life has she enjoyed herself this much. Amidst the loud cheers and laughter, her eyes settled on Wrath’s golden ones. He had on that warm smile he only gave to Corianne. She returned it with a warm smile of hers.

He was quickly taken back to the piano for another song by a group of children.

“Play the Summer angel by Mad Harv,” the little girl obsessed with his hair told him. Her little fingers were still touching his tawny strands as he sat at the piano.

The noise in the room died down as Wrath began playing the slow melodious tune. As Wrath sang his eyes lingered on Eloise. For a second she felt he was singing to her alone. Everyone joined in at the chorus. Eloise's heart sank as she watched him sing amidst the other voices. The song was beautiful and so was he. At least this part of him.

Eloise hummed the Summer angel song softly to herself. Her eyes were glued outside the window as the carriage rode off. The Valerian manor came into view ahead. Pride town was miles behind them now, leaving a good memory in her mind as well.

“You have a beautiful voice” she heard Wrath say.

“You have the voice of an angel as well. A devil with the voice of an angel that is, the irony, huh?” Eloise said with a chuckle.

Wrath chuckled softly following the silence. Not awkward but comfortable silence.

“Eloise, about last night” He started quietly. Eloise turned to meet his eyes.

“I never intended to hurt you and you were not supposed to see that either. But that is no excuse for how insulting it was and for that, I apologize” He told her, his voice full of sincerity as he spoke.

Eloise let out a sigh she doesn’t know she'd been holding.

“Thank you for acknowledging that. I understand we are still strangers and we are getting to know each other better. But this is a marriage, if this will work, we have to respect each other and know our boundaries” she told him.

“And thank you for today. I had a great time” she said before stepping out of the carriage. She took slow strides up the stairs to the entrance where Lucy and Elric stood. Wrath followed in quietly behind her. Eloise abruptly turned towards him and they both spoke at once.

“Eloise I….”

“Wrath I….”

They both chuckled. “Go on, first” Eloise insisted hurriedly.

“No, you first” Wrath replied softly.

“I wanted to tell you… you can sleep in our room tonight. If you want to?” she said hesitantly.

“I would love to. Thank you” he said politely.

Eloise nodded with a smile. “What did you want to say?” she asked him.

“Your arm. I hope it is better?” He asked while placing a hand on her right arm. Eloise flinched at his touch but didn't pull away.

“It is, Alda healed it after showering you with curses,” She told him with a chuckle.

“I am thankful to her then,” He told her.

“Good night, Wrath,” she told him.

“Good night, wife” Wrath responded quietly and watched her as she headed for the doors.

“Welcome back, my Lady” Elric and Lucy bowed, greeting her.

Wrath watched as Lucy led Eloise inside. Elric walked towards him with a smile.

“How was it, Master?” she asked him, taking his coat as they walked inside.

“The best time I have had in a very long time of my tired life,” he told her with a smile.

“You should have seen her, Elric. One minute she was soft, hard… and soft again. She is… different” his tone was uncertain as if he found it hard to believe his own words. He slowly burst out laughing heartily. Elric smiled at the sound of his laughter.

“I am pleased, Master. Let me make you some tea while your bath is prepared. Your hair is a mess, that little Sarah again huh?” Elric said with a chuckle.

Wrath nodded with a small smile. He turned away and headed up the stairs. Elric watched him as walked up the stairs toward his chambers.

He looked happy, it was better to save the bad news for tomorrow then, Elric thought with a sigh.