Chapter 17: Chapter 17: That Bitch

It was a few more days of traveling before Van finally saw the outskirts of Luna's and Thea’s home. The castle and the town surrounding it was far larger than the one he grew up with. Kella who was riding with them told him that the population was at least six times that of their home, making Luna’s home more of a small city than just a large town. He watched on as the town grew closer, excited at what new sights he might see. Luna herself seems to be happy to be back home and was watching with him from the window seat, sitting on his lap. The zapper resting on the top of his head had decided to stay, despite being so far away from its home and colony.

It was mid-afternoon and the sun was overhead as they traveled through the gates and into the town. Slowly, their caravan got more and more attention as they continued deeper towards the castle in the center, and soon a crowd formed on either side of the road, similar to the scene of when they left Van’s home.

Van once more noticed things he wished he didn’t, and in greater quantity, it seemed that Thea's home was far more open about that kind of stuff than his was, probably reflecting the women herself and being upfront and honest with her wants. Fortunately, there were a lot of other things he could watch and see to distract himself from the ones he didn't.

The town seemed to be in a slight celebratory mood, it was apparent that they must have heard of what was to come, and had been waiting for them to arrive. Excitement filled the streets, and a small cheer went up as Thea opened the widow of her carriage and waved out of it. As the crowd continued to gather, the caravan moved slower, but eventually, they were able to enter through the gate that leads into the inner circle of the town, where the castle was.

As they entered the driveway, Van noticed that they weren’t the only ones there. Many other carriages seemed to be lined up, all from different houses by the looks of the emblem on the carriages, some with ornate decorations. He concluded that they must be from those that his parents invited to the celebration and had probably arrived early. He had been told that they would have the party in a few day's time, so it made sense, at least for him, that some would arrive early to make sure they didn’t miss it, considering how far their respective homes were.

As the carriage made its stop, Van and the others got out of the carriage, Luna already trying to pull him along so she could show him around. But both stopped in their tracks when they heard Thea’s yell. They turned to try and see what was wrong.

“WHAT IS SHE DOING HERE!” Thea roared, pointing at one of the carriages lined up amongst the many others. She had just gotten out of the carriage when her eyes landed on the house emblem of one of the carriages lined up with the others.

“That BITCH! Better know what she’s doing, coming to MY Home, without MY permission. Otherwise, it’s going to be the last thing she ever does!” Thea fumed, stomping towards the entrance with a look on her face promising bad things and her killing intent barely constrained. Alvaroz and Lillia rushed up to match her pace, trying to soothe and calm her down as Thea marched and literally kicked open her own doors without slowing down.

Van watched in shock at Thea’s outburst and the subsequent kicking of the door. He had never before seen the happy go lucky Thea, ever get mad or yell before. He turned to Luna to ask what that was all about, only to find her staring at the same carriage Thea pointed at with a pale face and fear in her eyes, her body starting to shake a little.

“Luna? Are you okay?” Van asked worriedly.

Luna froze in place, her body hunching forward a little as she looked left and right in fear, her arms holding onto herself. “I-I fine…” she said, not convincing anyone at all. She stood there, not looking at anyone or anything and definitely not looking at the castle in front of her. What was supposedly something she was excited to show Van, was now something she didn’t want anything to do with.

Van looked worriedly at Anna and Kella who were also concerned by the sudden change in mood of both Thea and Luna. “Hey, Luna?” Van said, slowly reaching out to her only for her to flinch. If he had to be honest, he was a little hurt by that, but steeled himself and decided to just give her a big hug all at once.

“I don’t know what's wrong, but I’m here for you. You don’t have to be afraid, you're not alone.” Van said, worried since he never had to comfort someone like this before and didn’t know if he was doing it right. Some of the Annas came by and also joined in giving Luna a hug to help calm her down. “See, you have all of us, we’ll protect you... promise. And you know, I keep my promises.”

Luna finally seemed to calm down. She returned the hug tightly, almost crawling upon him, and kept doing so to the point that Van ended up carrying her. Luna buried her face into his shoulder, her arms and legs wrapped tightly around him.

“Umm… okay?” Van said, taken aback by Luna’s action. Slowly he started to gently stroke her head. “There, there. It's going to be okay.” he said, along with a bunch of other soothing words in the hopes of calming her down. “Perhaps we could go to your room?” he asked, hoping a familiar safe place will help her calm down.

Luna hesitated, not wanting to let go.

“Don’t worry, I won’t leave your side for a second, promise. And if you show us where your room is, maybe next time I could carry you there?” Van said, making Luna blush a little. “You can do it, I know you can.”

Luna hesitated once more but ultimately decided to let go.

“Thank you Luna.” Van said, reaching out to hold her hand. “Can you show me the way to your room? And perhaps tell me what's going on?” he asked.

Luna looked around with worry. “Not here,” she said, then started to pull him towards the door into the castle keep.

Van looked back at Kella and Annas and nodded to them. They got the message and with some hesitation on their part, started to do their own things, leaving him and Luna alone. One of Annas thought looked worried but ultimately decided to stay behind and help with the other workers. The zapper, already flying off to do its own thing.

(“Do not worry”) Van mentally said to the Annas. (“Just give me some time alone with her, if something happens, I will call on you.”) and with that, he turned and allowed himself to be pulled by Luna into the castle.

Luna pulled Van in many different ways and down many different corridors, always looking both ways before she decided on a route. Van had a feeling they were not going directly towards her room, but the long scenic route, probably in hopes of avoiding whoever Luna didn’t wish to meet. Soon, instead of being inside the castle, they were outside of it, following a path that was right next to a lovely garden, Luna walking fast to cross.

“Is your room on the first floor or something?” Van asked, confused.

“No. It's higher up” Luna replied quietly, still holding on to his hand tightly. “There is a staircase that most people don’t use that we’ll take up.” Van looked worriedly at Luna, wondering if she wasn’t losing it.

Just then as they were halfway across, two strangers appeared in front of them from the other end, turning in from another corridor. The two strangers looked like they were eighteen or nineteen, but considering that vampires stopped aging around the nineteen to twenty mark, they were probably older, and like most vampires, they had black hair and blue eyes.

One had hair similar to Luna, long and flowing, she wore a simple but elegant dress that was clearly well made by an expert and with the stitching to prove it. Her face was kind, and her hands were clasped in front of her. She carried herself humbly but her back was straight and her every step moved with purpose and confidence. When noticing them, she gave a kind and welcoming smile. She was pretty in a way that you would expect of some sort of noble lady.

The other one on the other hand was practically the complete opposite of the first one. She was slightly shorter than her friend and had short hair. The dress she wore was layered and gaudy, filled with too much jewelry as if screaming for attention. She moved about with an arrogance that acted as if she owned the castle rather than just being a guest in it, waving a fan in her hand. Her face one of smug confidence, perked up with interest at seeing them, then turning into a joyous sneer once her eyes laid upon Luna.

Luna blanched when her eyes met the gaudy woman.

“Well hello there cousin. What a nice surprise to see you again. My have you grown, I almost didn’t recognize you.” said the gaudy woman.

Van was surprised by that revelation, as far as he knew, Luna and Thea had no extended family. But at the moment that didn’t much matter as he saw the look at Luna’s and the gaudy woman's face and already figured out that that was the person that she didn’t want to meet. Still holding on to her hand, Van moved a bit to partially cover Luna and introduce himself to get the attention of the women on him rather than his fiancé.

“Hello. My name Vanris Vran Solis.” Van said, a mixture of politeness and defensiveness. “Or Vanris Solis Vran, depending on perspective or desire. Might I inquire as to who you two are,” he said, giving a shallow but polite bow, while still partially standing in between them and Luna.

The gaudy woman looked at him like he was a puzzle, before smiling and introducing herself. “ My name is Karen Farsied Moonshadow. You may call me ‘Duchess’ Moonshadow if you wish. My guest here is Katherine Manon Umbra.” she said, not giving a return courtesy and saying her guest's name with some emphasis as well.

The kind-looking woman though, now Katherine, gave a small courtesy when she was introduced.

“Moonshadow?” Van asked, surprised “I wasn’t aware that Luna and Thea had extended Family?”

Karen gave a small smile at that. “That’s only because we are ‘very’ distantly related. A long time ago, her family was nothing but a branch family of ours. And served us until for some reason they decided to split. We still share the same last name, but for all intents and purposes, ‘We’ are the true Moonshadows.” she said, referring to herself and her family. “And they are the servants.” she finished with a self-important attitude.

“I see…” Van said, already disliking this woman and having a hard time from showing it on his face.

“Now that introductions are done with, you may dismiss yourself,” Karen said, giving a wave of her fan as if to shoo him away. “Luna and I have a lot of catching up to do.” she then looked at Luna like a snake looking at a mouse. “ And a lot of quality time to spend together.”

Though Van didn’t know what face Luna was making, but he could tell by the shaking he felt through her hand it wasn’t a happy one. He then resolved to not back down from this woman and protect his fiance.

“I’m sorry, but Luna had already promised me a tour of her home,” Van said flatly. “You see, I’m somewhat of a guest myself here… and her fiance.”

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“Oh?” Karen’s eyes narrowed, her fan coming up to hide her frown. “ I thought your name sounded familiar. You must be that child. The son of that ‘Minor’ baron, who for some reason, is the heir of both houses.” She then tried to act all sympathetic. “It must be horrible to have to grow up in such a small family, never knowing who your grandparents or aunts and uncles are. You have my condolences...” she then snapped her fan together and gave a smile. “At least together you might have a quarter a family! Now isn’t that wonderful?”

Van was beginning to realize that when Thea shouted ‘That Bitch’ it was probably the person in front of him that she was talking about. He tried not to glower at the women in front of him with little success.

Katherine, for her part, was looking back and forth, a worried crease on her brow, as if this was not what she was expecting when coming here.

Seeing the look on Van’s face, Karen decided to continue with her jabs, bringing her fan back up to hide the sneer that was forming on her own. “You’ll be happy to know that I helped Luna be the perfect little wife. I taught her how to serve tea, how to sew, how to clean. Of course, she did make some mistakes along the way,” her eyes gazed into Van as if gauging his reaction. “but I made sure she learned not to ‘Repeat’ those mistakes again. ‘Thoroughly’.”

Van was no idiot to not realize the implications of what that bitch just said. It sounded like she treated Luna as some sort of servant and abused her whenever she wanted. He glared at the bitch, her name already partially forgotten by him.

“We played so many games together and had so much fun. Would you like to hear about some of the games we played?” The bitch continued.

Van’s face went slack, a decision already made, and returned to a neutral and polite expression. “By the way, have you heard of, That Bitch?” Van asked, cutting her off before she could talk anymore.

Karen blinked a few times, taken aback by Van's sudden change in demeanor and question. “I...wha-?” she replied confused brow furrowed.

“You see. There was some talk amongst the people and guests that we’ve been passing, about a person called ‘That Bitch’ and I was wondering if you knew who she was. The only descriptors we had to go by was that she is arrogant and wears a gaudy dress. Do you perhaps know who they are talking about?” Van asked innocently, lying through his teeth but convincingly.

Karen narrowed her eyes and brought up her fan again. “No... I do not,” she said pointedly.

“Really? I was sure you would know who they were talking about. After all, you are a duchess and you must know a lot of people.” Van said acting in mock surprise, then pretending to be in deep thought. “But then again, someone who barges into others homes acts like they own the place, and crashes a celebration they were not invited to. Well… I can see why you wouldn’t know of such a person, after all, how can someone of your high standing be associated with someone who acts like that?”

Now it was Karen's turn to glare at Van, her face still partially masked by the fan but one of her eyes twitching. “Indeed… I know no one like that. I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help. I hope whoever it is, is found soon and dealt with appropriately.” she said. “Now I-”

“Oh, I hope she isn’t found.” Van interrupted, throwing Karen off.

“I-....what do you mean?” Karen blinked, somewhat confused.

“Well, you see, even if I have never met her, even I wouldn’t want what’s about to happen to her on my worst enemy.” Van said, leaning forward and in a loud whisper.” you see. Thea said that once she catches ‘That Bitch’ she’s going to kill her. She said she’ll swear by her blood if she has to if only to make a point.” he continued lying through his teeth.

“Sh-she did!?” Karen paled.

Van tried not to smile. For a vampire, swearing by one’s blood was a testament to saying you are going to do something, or die trying, fuck the consequences. Vampires didn’t use it lightly, and it took a great deal to convince a vampire that they should undo their oath on their blood. Though it is possible.

Katherine on the other hand seemed to have figured out what's up and looked on amused. She raised an eyebrow when Van said that Thea was threatening a blood oath.

“You should have seen her face, she was furious! I never felt a killing intent like that before!” Van continued, partially telling the truth. “Last I saw her she was stomping all over the castle trying to find ‘That Bitch’ and giving orders that if any of the servants find her to tell her immediately!” again partially telling the truth.

Karen looked worried, her eyes looking around for any telltale signs of a servant who might report back to Thea. “I see… well, it seems that I should wait to introduce myself when she has calmed down somewhat. It was nice talking to you but we must excuse-” she paused as she took a closer look at Van, who was having a harder time hiding his expression. Her eyes narrowed in anger as she realized what just happened.

“What? No. Why leave? I want to hear more of those stories you were about to talk about.” Van said realizing he had been caught and not bothering to hide it anymore. As he tried to hide a grin.

Karen glared angrily at Van, some of her own killing intent leaking out. “You must think you're Really cute, don’t you...” she said growled menacingly.

“...Bitch...I’m Adorable.” Van couldn’t help but reply with a large smile on his face.

Katherine tried not to laugh and politely hid her mouth with her hand. Thoroughly enjoying the exchange between the two.

Karen fumed. “I am the heir of a duchy! We have many connections with the right people and many vassals. We became so important that even house Umbra has started to take notice and has decided to invite us to their faction. You are nothing but an heir to a minor barony and county that even both together will only reach a modest-sized county. Still weak in the grand scheme of things. You should know your place!” she said self importantly, pointing her fan at Van. “Perhaps I should teach you the difference between you and I ‘thoroughly’...” she emphasized with menace.

Katherine frowned when Karen used her last name, but said nothing on the matter. But largely remained silent to see what would happen next.

Van’s own eye twitched at that word but then he gave her an evil smirk “Oh, I would love to learn from the experience you no doubt have.” he said mockingly. “But unfortunately it seems our time together is up. For it seems someone else requires your attention.” he finished, giving a nod to the corridor behind them.

Confused, both Karen and Katherine turned their heads to look down at the empty corridor behind them. A few seconds later, Anna appeared, turning into the corridor, dragging by the hand a perplexed Thea.

When Thea looked up her eyes practically glowed with anger when she saw Karen “You!” she half growled, half-shouted.

Karen paled “H-How!?” she panicked.

Anna let go of Thea, essentially letting Thea on the loose. Who then proceeded to glare at Karen and walked straight to her, when she did, she saw the scene of Van standing in between Karen and Luna and her anger spiked as she realized what ‘That Bitch’ tried to do. Making Karen shiver in fear.

(“Good work Anna.”) Van said mentally to her (“It went, exactly like planned,”).

Anna gave a mental thumbs-up back and decided to hide behind the corner, her head sticking out with excitement at what might happen next.

Soon Thea was face to face with her cousin, a furious visage on her face as she glared daggers directly into Karen's eyes.

Karen for her part did her best not to shrink any further and gave furtive looks towards Katherine as if calming herself down with her presence.

Katherine largely ignored these looks and continued to watch on in silence, interested in how things might turn out. Giving a glance towards Van, as if trying to commit his face to memory.

Thea temporarily turned her gaze away from Karen, much to her relief. “Van, Luna, would you two please leave so I may have some alone time with’ Karen.” she went back to glaring at her in the eyes. “We have some adult things to talk about,” she growled.

“Of course, you take as much time as you need.” Van then gave a mental command to Anna who pouted but left to meet them up on the other side. He then tightened his hold on Luna's hand, which he had never let go of from the beginning, and gently guided her away. Just as they were about to turn into another corridor and lose sight of Thea. he turned to give one last look. His eyes met Karen’s, who was being grabbed by Thea roughly by the collar and pushed to the wall, when she noticed him she gave him a look that promised retribution.

For a split second, Van was unsure, that look worried him, but he decided to push it off, figuring that Thea would take care of things and that he wouldn't have to worry about her for a long time to come.

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