Red Fang II

Chapter 26 (M/G Arc): A Favor For Me

We last read Chapter 25, in which Mavis Ladair a.k.a. Red Fang and her husband Garson are brought to Boripedes's underground island base by the prince himself, and are given a tour of sorts before the trio settle down for dinner later that evening around a hastily-made campfire. Before said "dinner", however, Boripedes stealthily sneaks a non-fatal medication into Garson's serving that gradually makes him more weak, sleepy, and lethargic the more he eats it, with Boripedes's end goal being to make Garson simply fall asleep so he can chat with Mavis alone.

While waiting, he makes small talk with Mavis regarding the Vermillion Enclave's current state, the rest of the royal family, and the vampires' ever-persisting blood curse; as a cruel ironic twist, he also questions whether or not a cure could ever be found for it one day, while keeping his own discovery of a cure secret from everyone else. Soon, Garson's drug takes effect and he complains of fatigue, suggesting he may need to sleep it off; though Mavis initially suggests sleeping with him, both Garson and Boripedes deny her, albeit for completely different reasons. Taking them at their word, Mavis tucks Garson into Boripedes's bed—with Boripedes himself preparing it beforehand—and continues conversing with Boripedes by herself.

Not long after the two of them sit back down, Boripedes finally reveals, much to Mavis's surprise, that his full designation is actually Prince Boripedes.....and that he is Mavis's uncle.

This time, we find out what happens next, even as Mavis and Boripedes's interaction starts to become a little sketchy.....

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"......Pardon me?" Mavis inquired flatly. "Would you care to run that by me again?"

"I'm your uncle, Mavis. .....And the younger brother of Lord Balfort Ladair, technically," Prince Boripedes reinforced. "It's part of why I was so interested to have you tell me how the Enclave's been doing. I was very close with the royal family once upon a time, and even though I've been away for a while.....I've always held them close."

Mavis chuckled. "You simply cannot be family," she denied. "I have never even heard about you until this evening, and my father, Lord Balfort, tells me everything."

This remark made Boripedes seethe inwardly even more; Balfort had not only "betrayed" him by using the Compulsebloom spells to compel him to try to steal the Bloodstone many centuries ago—resulting in his banishment and allowing Balfort to marry Amber, thus starting the Ladair Royal Family as we know it—but Balfort had also apparently turned Boripedes into a non-entity among the other members of the royal family; it was as though Balfort was trying to pretend that Boripedes never even existed following his exile.

Still, Boripedes found Mavis to be extremely useful in his last-minute addition to the revenge plot he had concocted against Balfort, and in order to potentially get her on his side, he needed to show to Mavis that he was Balfort's younger sibling.

So, he reined himself in once more.

"Ahhh.....it's like that, is it?" Boripedes asked, clearly annoyed. "Fine, then.....allow me to prove it to you. Ask me anything about Lord Balfort Ladair, and I shall answer it as best as I can."

Mavis exhaled. "Very well. Name one skill that Mother is well-known for."

"Amber? This is about Balfort."

"She is married to Balfort, is she not?" Mavis pointed out, inadvertently reminding Boripedes of the former love triangle he had between Balfort, himself, and Amber. "So this inquiry should be no trouble for you if you really are part of our family."