Hey Mr Bloodsucker, Sucks To Be You

Chapter 28

Joanna ~#~

Our best chance was Dimitri and Dante accidently killing each other. I growled low in my throat and muttered curses, scrunching up balls of paper and tossing them into the wastepaper basket at the other end of the room. Cappa had gone to see Mai, Robert was...God only knew. Probably skulking somewhere in the library or archive, digging through a load of ancient records.

And in the meantime, all we had to hope on was the slim chance that Dimitri didn't come back.

"Goddammit." I sighed.

I knew I should be doing something or over-seeing something, but the truth of it was I couldn't have cared less.

This had all got so complicated since we brought Cappa and Mai here. And not just for the obvious reasons. I rubbed a hand over my forehead and got to my feet, deciding to go and see Chris. I found him down in the weaponry, furiously sharpening something at a table, sitting in the semi-darkness creating sparks with his tools. 

"Hey." I wrapped my knuckles lightly on his shoulder, and he winced. Not healed totally yet then. "You okay?"

He shrugged a response, and I huffed another fed up sigh and sat down opposite him. I didn't speak for a while, I just watched him work, relentlessly running his tool along the shaprening stone. The clock ticked quietly hidden somewhere in the dark deep at the back, if you turned on the light down here the armoury seemed to go back miles, not that many people ever came down here.

When he first got here Cappa had loved it, but recently he'd been spending so mich time with or avoiding Mai he hadn't come down in a while.

After about ten minutes of silent sharpening, Chris released his tools with a loud clang and clapped his hands over the top of them, bringing his face up to glare at me.

"What do you want, Joanna?"

I folded my arms. "To know what's got you rattled."

Eyes to the floor. "It's nothing."

"Is it 'cuz he stabbed you?"

"No!" He raised his voice, but it wasn't quite a shout. At least I knew I'd struck a nerve.

"God, Chris." I snapped. "Get your act together. Come on, that can't be the only thing that's really bothering you. It isn't, is it?"

He said nothing.

"You can talk to me, Chris." I pushed. "You know there's nothing you can say to me that'll lower my standards of you. You've got nothing to worry about-"

"Argh, it's Mai, alright?!" Now he yelled, then seemed to realise what he'd said and looked like he wanted to bite his tongue off. 

Woah. Didn't see that one coming.

"Mai?" I asked carefully.

He was picking at his fingers, looking infuriated with himself. He has a thing for Mai? He likes her? Of course, it would explain why he got so angry when Cappa stabbed him. Kind of like rubbing it his face.Or is he just mad because of the way she's got Cappa acting?

"Oh." I had no idea what to say to that. "Chris-"

He didn't want to hear anything I came up with. Robert scooped his things off the table and stood up in one fluid motion, pushing the chair back with a loud squeak. He didn't look at me as he stalked out, storming up the steps and slamming the door at the top for extra effect.

What the hell is wrong with everybody? Nobody was acting like themselves at the moment, and Chris was the last person I expected to throw a tantrum.