Angel Wings

Chapter 5

You sit beside Tessa in the carriage on the way to de Quincey's manor. You can feel how nervous your sister is so you squeeze her hand and she calms slightly. You stare off into space to prepare yourself as Will and Tessa converse. You plan to stay silent although in retrospect you have to be silent. Subjugates do not speak to their masters unless spoken too first. You see Will look out the window causing you to become concerned.

"You might be thinking of vampires as feral monsters, but these vampires are not like that. They are as cultured as they are cruel. Sharpened knives to humanity's dull blade." The line of his jaw is set hard in the dim light. "You will have to try to keep up. And for God's sake, if you can't, don't say anything at all. They have a tortuous and opaque sense of etiquette. A serious social gaffe could mean instant death."

You close your eyes as the two quietly converse without you. You're starting to think that maybe you should have been the one to change into Camille. You just have to pray that your sister does everything right. You don't want to die just yet. What worries you though is her adamant belief that she isn't a warlock. The quicker she realises what she is the easy it will be for her. Only you can't force her to believe what she doesn't. You're broken out of your thoughts when the carriage stops. You grab your katana and hide it in the back of your dress. Will helps you down from the carriage and you walk over to Thomas.

"Stay safe (Y/N)."

"I believe I am more of a danger with my katana, but thank you Thomas. You stay safe as well."

Will turns to you and you stand on one side of Tessa while he stands on the other. You all walk up the steps as you begin thinking. You've noticed yourself drifting closer to Thomas and your heart as well. Something about him just captivates you and you know Will has noticed. It's only a matter of time before he asks you about it. Suddenly Tessa chucks you underneath your chin causing you to see a man coming your way.

"They are so hard to train, aren't they?" The ma inclines his head toward Tessa. "Human subjugates, that is," he adds looking at Tessa. "And then once you have them properly trained, they die of something or other. Delicate creatures, humans. All the longevity of butterflies."

The familiarity that he speaks with means he must be de Quincey. You keep your eyes staring at Tessa much like a subjugate would hoping you look the part. You can't imagine what they would do to you if they found out the truth. A shiver tries to run up your back, but you fight it back down. Suddenly you realise de Quincey is staring at you and Will.

"And new subjugates as well, I see. They are quite fetching." He says reaching out a thin pale hand, and drawing his forefinger down the side of Will's cheek to his jaw watching you out of the corner of his eye. "Such unusual colouring," he muses. "And these eyes."

"Thank you." Tessa responds to him.

You and Tessa both watch him carefully as he leans close to Will. You see his fangs come out and fight the instinct to push him away from Will. If you do that the three of you would surely be dead.

"You wouldn't mind, Camille, would you, if I just had a bite..."

Tessa's hand whips out, faster than you thought she could, and catches de Quincey's wrist. "My darling, no," she says, a wheedling tone in her voice. "I'd so like to keep him to myself for just a little while. You know how your appetite runs away with you sometimes."

You tune out trying to calm back down. Seeing Will like that causes your heart to beat slightly faster. After a bit de Quincey leaves and you calm your heart down. Your muscles are tight from having to not leap into action. It must have killed Will to just stand there without reacting. Will taps your hand and you follow behind Tessa who is following who you guess in Magnus Bane. You all enter what you guess is a library and once the doors close you relax your muscles. You help Will look for what you need to find and vaguely listen to Magnus and Tessa's exchange.