Masked Butler - Masque of the Red Death

1. Scarlet Letter

 A soft tapping was heard at the door.

Nico sighed, "Come in, Erik." A skeleton of a man opened the door and walked in, closing the door behind him as a spirit moaned through the halls. "Come to save me from boredom?"

Erik gave him a smile, "Perhaps, the final decision is up to you, of course." He tossed a letter onto Nico's desk. Nico raised an eyebrow at it before picking it up. It was a blood red envelope with the insignia of a skull set upon the flap. Slowly, he peeled it open and took out the letter, deep red rose petals falling out of the envelope as he did so. His eyes widened as he slumped back in his chair, and Erik knew he had guessed rightly as to who wrote it. Erik stepped forward and gently took the letter from Nico's trembling hand.

"Read it," Nico muttered pleadingly. Erik nodded and straightened out the letter.

He cleared his throat before beginning, "To my only son, Nico, I am sending you a mystery, per se. As you may know, the Red Death has ravaged a few towns close in proximity to the village of Catania, but I have heard it shall go no further. But I have also heard that the Red Death was released to punish a certain Prince Prospero, the lord of those towns, it would seem. The mystery is why this prince must be punished as well as who released the Red Death. I have sent several messengers to the Red Death, asking him why Prince Prospero is his target, but he has given no reply. I have even sent a few to the prince's castle itself to figure out why, but they cannot gain entry. I must warn you, the castle is giving all of my messengers eerie feelings, a rare occurrence, to be sure, seeing as how we are the epitome of eerie. I only ask this of you as you seem to be the only one who can get some answers, but please, allow Erik to scope out the place upon your arrival. If he deems it unsafe, even for you, then leave at once and we shall let this matter disappear. If it is safe enough, then please proceed with caution, I know not what kind of a man this Prince Prospero is, nor what he is capable of, and I would hate the idea of you in serious danger and in a place where I cannot aid you. So please, my dear son, handle this carefully, cautiously, and always rely on Erik's good judgement. Your godly father, Hades. P. S. Also included in the envelope are several rose petals, keep these on you at all times and hand them to whoever you can on your journey, keeping one for yourself and one for Erik. The presence of those petals lets the Red Death know that you are not to be touched. My messengers, thankfully, were able to procure them for you as a reassurance. Good luck my son, may you return to your home safely." Erik folded up the letter and returned it to Nico. Nico took it, his hands still trembling. "What do you say, my liege?" Erik picked up the envelope and returned the rose petals that had fallen before placing one in his vest pocket. "Shall we discover why the Red Death has such an interest in an illustrious prince, especially one with such an obvious name?" Nico stared into space as he absentmindedly unfolded and refolded the letter. Erik waited a few minutes before Nico finally spoke, and in a shaky voice.

"I-I guess we could take a look at this . . ."

"To please your father?" Nico nodded. "Very well, I shall get everything set up for us to leave first thing in the morning. A change of scenery will do you some good."

A grin tugged at Nico's lips, "You mean I can sleep in for once?"

"Now, now, young master, you should not attempt being awake at all hours of the night and sleep during the day, it's not good for your health."

Nico scoffed, "I'm a son of Hades, what does worrying about my health do?"

"The fact that both your father and I agree on this, that we would like to see you live a long and prosperous life."

"If you consider riches and friendlessness prosperous."

"My liege, I said we want you to be, did I say that you are?" He picked up the letter, "Maybe Prince Prospero thinks along those lines, perhaps that is why the Red Death was released, but then that means he is blinded by greed and gold. Being so close to death, we see things far more clearly than most. Besides, between the two of us, you're more likely to make friends than I ever could."

"Erik . . ."

Erik stopped him, "No, do not argue with me on the matter, you know as well as I that it is true. I am honored to serve you, it is there that I find my happiness. At least one person does not shrink from my touch." Erik patted his shoulder before walking off. He paused at the door, "Would you like to help me, my liege? It should pass the time quite pleasantly."

"But I am the master of this house."

Erik opened the door and grinned at him, "Hasn't stopped you before."

Nico shrugged as he rose from his chair and walked out of the room, "Whatever, I expect a good song after dinner."

Erik smiled as he closed the door after them, "As you wish." With Nico's help, the packing went fairly quick, and the two left first thing the next morning.