The Return of the Order: Act 10

The evening of the ball soon arrived. Louisa readied herself for the evening ahead. Peter had continued to call on Lilith in the intervening weeks, and she had spent time with him, always under the watchful eyes of her brother or Louisa. Outwardly, Peter had continued to be the perfect gentleman. Still, there was an underlying arrogance and had only become visible since Louisa's return from the demon realm. His declarations of feelings for Lilith were empty, and while they may have fooled a human, the twins and Louisa saw straight through them. There was lust in his eyes whenever he looked at Lilith, it was cold and calculating, and Louisa hated him all the more for it; yet without proof, she could not act. Lilith felt it too, and while she could not lie, she could choose her words carefully when he asked how she felt in return.

As Louisa descended the stairs to meet the twins and Margaret, she smiled. The twins looked so grown up and serious, as they waited for her in their formal attire.

“Now remember to at least look as if you are having fun. Watch out for each other and don’t take any unnecessary chances.”

“Yes mother,” they chorused.

They headed into the waiting carriage and made the short journey to the manor. They were greeted on arrival by Peter, who after seeing them in and announcing them made straight for Lilith, whispering in her ear. Louisa watched cautiously as Lilith blushed, allowed him to kiss her hand and shivered as he walked away.

Lilith's perfect mask slipped as she reached her mother and brother. Her contempt and repulsion were evident as she gave them the highlights of the conversation, "empty compliments, a dance when his duties are done, and a request for me to meet him in the gardens later."

“I don’t want you anywhere alone with him.”

"Mother, he isn't going to give up his plans in front of a room full of people. Whatever the hell he is, he isn't stupid. If he were, he would have slipped up by now."

“I know, I just don’t want you putting yourself in danger.”

“In less than half a year, Raven and I will be fully grown and out in the world. I can do this, and you and Raven will never be far away. Your standing order from Margaret means you can act without the need for permission, so I am in no real danger, am I."

Louisa grinned, Lilith's argument was almost flawless; she had used much the same points when Malphas had been overly cautious with her safety. She shook her head in defeat, knowing she had raised them to be strong and independent and was now paying the price for that.

“You are right, but the minute you think you are in trouble, you reach out to your brother.”

“Yes, mother, I will.”

Raven simply nodded, knowing that Lilith didn’t even need to call. Their bond as twins was unshakable; he would feel if she were in danger and would be halfway there before any thought from her reached him. He patted the pocket of his jacket, feeling the silverware that sat waiting he felt more confident that they were ready for anything that may happen.

The evening wore on without incident. They danced and made small talk with the other local landowners. Louisa fended off questions about her husband's absence and the mysterious history of her land and home. She smiled and laughed at talk of curses and magic, all while fighting the urge to spread her wings and show them precisely what true magic looked like.

Late into the evening, Louisa watched as Peter approached Lilith, and asked her to dance. Lilith accepted, and Louisa watched as they moved gracefully around the dance floor. As she watched her mind drifted back to her first dance with Malphas at the Phantomhive manor, after they had despatched the pathetic Mr Sowton. The memory brought a smile to her face, but it was short-lived as she watched Peter guide Lilith from the dance floor and towards a closed door at the far end of the room. Louisa scanned the room for Raven, only to see him already moving discretely in their direction. Louisa's gaze found Margaret, who nodded and mouthed "go" to her. Louisa moved to follow the twins, only to be intercepted by Lord Dax.

“Ah, Mrs. Michaelis, I was hoping to speak to you.” He was sweating, his eyes darting across the room to the door where Peter and Lilith had just disappeared. Another member of his household was moving to intercept Raven.

"Lord Dax, I would love to stop and talk to you, but you have already answered one of the few questions I had for you. I believe others will be answered shortly." With that, she turned and walked away.

He stood there open-mouthed, not knowing how to stop her without causing a scene. He went to follow her only to be stopped by Margaret.

“Lord Dax, I was hoping for this dance?”

“I, er, I…” he spluttered.

"You would not refuse a lady now, would you? Not in front of so many guests." Margaret increased the pitch of her voice as she ended the sentence. It was just enough to gain the attention of those closest to them. Aware that his neighbours were listening, Dax gave in, bowed, and led Margaret to the dance floor.

Louisa walked through the door, closing it behind her as Raven sat the body of the servant up against the wall.

“Don’t worry, he is only sleeping, mother. He will have nothing worse than a headache by morning.”

Louisa grinned, and they moved following Lilith's scent. They stopped as they arrived at the top of a staircase that led downwards. Louisa motioned for Raven to stay still and silent. Despite her desire to rush down to her daughter, Louisa knew this may be their only opportunity to gain the information they needed.

"I really don't think this is the garden, Peter."

“You noticed. Well I could hardly do what I want to do with any chance of people seeing us, could I?”

“I think I will return to my mother now.” Lilith’s voice was emotionless, showing none of the anger that was welling up inside her.

“I think not.”

The cold bricks dug into Lilith’s back as Peter slammed her against the wall by her throat. “Demon whore. I just needed to know for sure, and opening the portal gave me the last information I needed.”

Lilith’s laugh was met with a stinging slap across the face, and a tightening of his hand on her windpipe. “You will learn respect.”

She felt his hot breath on her neck as he pressed against her and licked her face. His free hand fumbled with her skirts, trying to find entrance through the layers of petticoats. "Be a good little whore, and I might even save you until last; you'd make an excellent plaything while I finish off the rest of your kind."

Hearing the stairs to the basement creak, Lilith stopped struggling. She felt his grin widen. "There, see? Not such a dangerous demon after all, not when your brother isn't around."

“Oh, but I am around.”

The voice caused Peter to spin around, he kept a tight hold on Lilith’s neck while he strained to see where the voice came from. “Come any closer and I will snap her neck,” he warned.

Laughter surrounded him. Blood dripped from his nose as the pitch reached the edge of his hearing, and he fought the need to cover his ears. A whistle came through the air, and a sharp pain in his hand caused him to let go of Lilith's throat. He looked at the hand to see a butter knife protruding from it, "You, you demon scum, you have no idea who you are messing with. You will pay for that."

"No, it would seem that it is you that has no idea who you are messing with," said the voice in the darkness. The owner of the voice moved closer, and together with Lilith, it spoke.

“We are the children of Malphas and Louisa, the grandchildren of Typhon, and it is you who will pay.”

“That’s not possible. That line was ended by the Order. That bitch didn’t escape a second time.”

"Be careful how you speak about our mother," said Lilith, her eyes turning pink. Bile rose in Peter's throat, and his stomach knotted as her voice vibrated through him. He raised his uninjured hand to call his weapon, and as he did an ice shard pierced it, pinning it to the wall behind. He screamed as a second went through his shoulder. Lilith readied a third, contemplating where best to send it.

"Well done, children."

Peter’s fear intensified at the sound of the new voice. He had heard no one else enter the room. As the figure moved forward to stand with the children, his eyes grew wider and what little colour he had left his skin. He stared as the figure extended its wings, its black eyes and sharp teeth now manifest in the dim light. "No, it’s not possible,” he mumbled.

“I’m afraid it is. Reports of my demise were greatly exaggerated. Now before I let my children enjoy their first kill, maybe you would like to explain yourself a little?”

“You can’t, you can’t kill me, they won’t let you.”

"Who won't?" asked Louisa, moving closer to the pinned and bleeding figure. As she reached him, she grabbed his head and pulled it back. His features had changed, showing his true nature, and his emerald green eyes met her gaze.

A new presence entered the room unseen. “Yes, I’m afraid he is one of us, which means I cannot allow you to kill him. It is against company policy.”

“He was attempting to rape my daughter, William. Where is that covered in company policy?”

William took off his glasses. He cleaned them, ignoring the pitiful pleas that were emanating from the figure on the wall. "You can't. I had orders." Peter's whimpering was cut short as the back of William's hand connected with his face.

Sensing Louisa’s growing agitation, William replaced his glasses. “I can assure you that the orders did not emanate from me. As his most recent actions fall outside any of our policies, I can allow you to take the offending item from him.” William motioned to the hand pinned to the wall. “Will that and his subsequent investigation and punishment for his more general crimes against your kind suffice?”

“For now, yes. But if the threat is real, I need to know. I need to know what is at stake.” The visions that had been plaguing Louisa ran through her head; they were so real, the blood, the fear, the never-ending darkness. Shaking the thoughts from her mind, she realised that William was addressing Lilith.

“As the wronged party, maybe you would like to do the honours, miss?”

Louisa watched as something unspoken passed between the two of them. She had never seen William look at anyone as he now looked at her daughter. Louisa smiled as Lilith accepted the chance to show her skill and exact at least a little revenge.

Lilith’s eyes flashed pink as she focused on the ice shard that impaled Peter’s hand. The ice spread, reaching slowly from the shard to the tips of his fingers and down to his wrist, burning the blood and tissue that it touched. Peter whimpered, begging her to stop, but his pleadings only caused her to work more slowly, inflicting the pain for as long as possible. When she was satisfied, she shattered the shard, causing the hand to blow apart. Bits of frozen flesh sprayed across the room, sticking wherever they landed.

Horror and fascination flickered across William's face as he watched Lilith work. As his gaze settled back on Lilith, Louisa fleetingly saw the same adoration Malphas had shown when he had first seen her exploring her powers.

Moving over to Lilith, William raised his hand and plucked a quickly defrosting lump of flesh from her shoulder. Shivers ran through Lilith at his touch, and her cheeks flushed. William's eyes widened momentarily before he regained his composure and bowed to the family.

He removed the remaining shard from Peter’s shoulder, and blood poured from the wound. “I will be taking this now. I will secure answers, I promise.”

“And, Lord Dax?” Louisa enquired.

“His record shows his soul, such as it is, is due to be reaped tonight. His continuing existence and the manner of his death are of no interest to me.”

And, with that, William and the whimpering Peter were gone.