Forever or Never

Forever or Never: 08

Lowering the steaming mug, Igor shifted in his seat and watched as Victor seemed to begrudgingly move away from Mercy's side. "Who's likely to come for her?"

"Hm?" Victor looked at him with a confused look. He was going to go down to the basement and attempt to do some form of work. Yet hearing Igor's voice caused him to pause in his retreat. Mercy didn't need to be watched over by him if Igor was up here.

"You said that 'they'll' come for her. Who is this 'they'?" Igor asked hesitantly. Truthfully he was sceptical about who this mysterious 'they' were, and if they were likely to be hostile. His mind couldn't help but immediately turn to the worse case scenario.

Victor ran a hand down his face with a hum. Rubbing his chin in thought, his fingers got scratched by the facial hair growing there before he walked at last over to the chair opposite to the one Igor was in. All the while Igor was fixing him with a patient look, he even tentatively drunk some of the boiling drink as he waited for an answer. To be honest, the lack of an immediate response wasn't filling him with confidence. His earlier reasoning of whoever was coming to get her to be problematic seemed to double.

"If this was an ideal world, a servant, perhaps?" Victor mused as he leant his forearms against his knees and entwined his hands together. He glanced from the roaring fire, the racing, arching flames to Igor who was thinking over the reply given to him. He could see that the younger man had a response in return. Of course he did. Victor had rather promptly discovered that his new friend was in possession of endless curiosity.

"In an unideal world?"

"Her father." Victor's face turned to one of annoyance.

"That's...that is a bad thing?" Igor frowned worriedly as he fidgeted in his seat.

Victor let out a laugh, it wasn't one of humour but one of spite. "Yes, Igor. Yes, that's a bad thing." He nodded slowly and leaned back in the chair, stretching his legs out. "And to think, you were close to possibly meeting the man in question." Victor rested his head back against the chair and smiled somewhat cynically in Igor's direction.

He gulped and drunk some of the tea, as if that'd do anything for his sudden nerves. "How...how did you know I was escorting her home?"

"Because you seemed quite out of breath earlier. It's not that far to the hospital, and even if you ran you wouldn't have looked as frantic as you did." Victor replied and shut his eyes. Maybe doing some work could wait. He squeezed his eyes shut before opening them, or not. Pushing himself upright he placed his hands on the arms of the chair and drummed his fingers. He felt rather restless, which wasn't totally out of character, but he felt more so now. Maybe – like Igor – the possible onset of meeting the father was settling in him strangely.

"What's he like?"

"For pity's sake, Igor, you won't have long to wait to find out yourself." Victor said shortly. Truthfully, the less time spent talking about Mercy's father the better. There was just something with fathers and him that didn't mix. He stood quickly and moved away only to sigh and hang his head, he glanced from the content, peaceful form of Mercy to Igor over his shoulder. Turning he moved back to the chair and sat slowly down. "He is strict. He is blunt. And he is honestly rather hostile. He is perhaps the most unbearable person I've ever met." Igor's eyes widened. "I never said that you'd like what I had to say, yet you asked and I'm answering." He pointed out with a crooked smile. "He doesn't like me, never has done, doubt he ever will. And it seems to pain him constantly that Mercy continues to wish to spend time with me."

"What did you do to him?" Igor frowned slowly.

Victor scoffed. "Apart from save his daughter from a possible slow agonizing death? Nothing. I had never crossed paths with the man until that point in time." He shrugged slowly in thought. "I suppose though," he looked to the fire and was silent for a few moments. "I suppose though he may dislike any medical figure seeing as how his son couldn't be saved."