Through the Blades Reflection

chapter 7

Chapter 7

I never really knew how many halls and rooms there truly were in the mansion, but I think after three and a half hours of searching for Veronique’s dragon, that I found at least half of the mansion, of course with the help of Shaun. We held hands as we walked along the hallways and throughout numerous rooms which right now I can’t even keep count of. I was always afraid of seeing the demon in one of the rooms, but to no avail. None of the rooms contained him, and the secret room never appeared. It was still bugging me though, how he escaped the room even though you are supposed to be trapped in it for centuries. It was even bugging me when Shaun pulled me away from one of the rooms and tried to persuade me to go somewhere else. I pulled away, trying to tell him about the demon, but it would only bring up bad memories.

“ guys!” Shaun and I spun around and quickly inspected our vicinity, only to find Veronique holding her dragon in her arms, her face fixed with a happy grin.” She was near the office. A close call too. We almost got caught by the director as she was walking out, but then she went back in with some man.

 I peered at her, transfixed and curious. Who was this man? It must have been the man from before, but I couldn’t be sure.” What did he look like?” Veronique held the dragon a bit closer to her chest, giving it a piece of meat before continuing,” well, he had a tailored black suit with slicked hair. He was VERY handsome, and he had this staff….” I looked back at her, my eyes nearly popping out.” Was the cane made of black obsidian and the head of it of jade?” she nodded, unsure of what I’m getting at. I fretted with her, making her tell me where he went. Veronique just kept staring at me, scared of my little outburst. “Tell me where he is! Or you will see what my wrath will really do! I am much worse than Anne Boleyn and those people you have deceived over the centuries, because I can go through you!” she shook with fear, and it was in her eyes. “ he went into the main hall or something”, she mumbled in a hurry.” Or something? What do you mean,’ or something’?” Veronique kept shuffling her hands and shaking her head furiously.” I thought I saw him make a detour to the front of the mansion, but he could still be in the main dining hall”.

I ditched them in the hallway, manoeuvring through the halls and going through doors and doors until I found the dining hall, where people bunched around the doorway, trying so desperately to get a peek inside. I drove through the crowd like a tractor through harvest, slowly but in the end making it to the end of the harvest.

I reached the middle of the crowd, and found myself watching my colleagues and friends, bunched around this man, everyone hailing and saluting him, everyone trying to get a glimpse or a handshake. People were even happy just being seen by him , but I wish he was gone from here. He shouldn’t be here, and he knows it. I walked through the group of fussy females and stood in front of him, my face a mask of anger.” WHAT are YOU doing?”, I queried to him. He didn’t seem fussed at all at my presence, in fact he seemed pleased about it.” Ah, Miss Seraphine I presume? I have heard great stories about you. Is it true that you actually slayed a bisar with seven heads at once?” I could not believe this. He was trying to make small chat with me. This was blasphemy. I would not be swayed by anyone, and especially a demon in nothing but a human suit, an empty shell of a handsome businessman who must have been down on his luck and chose to get luck from the wrong person.

“ Don’t you try and sway me dear sir, if I should even grant you that courtesy. I know what your main goal is…”. He wasn’t at all motivated by my temper or my attitude, but in return, flashed me a grin that only a trained businessman, or a conman could pull off. “ Miss Seraphine, my goal here is to give this academy a new start, as most would put it.” I queried,” as most would put it? I don’t care what you say, I know you for who you are, and so don’t you DARE lie to me!” I picked up the chair next to me like it was a delicate piece of porcelain, admiring its craftsmanship, before violently and expertly smashing it into the wall metres away. I looked back at him with a calm and cool expression.” And that is what shall happen if you stay much longer if you stay, so I would make a swift departure if I were you, my good man.” I walked from the room and through the crowd, making my way through disgruntled fans and colleagues, their heads shaking at me and obscenities spilling from their mouths like wildfire. I looked back upon them from the open doorway, and sighed at the sight of them. They were all fighting over this supposedly good man, who is helping the academy, but I knew better. I knew MUCH better the dangers than they would ever know.

I held my hand out in the doorway, and I muttered words to god, giving him thanks for my life and for the food and water laid before me day after day. I motioned to the so called man sitting in the chair in the middle of the room with love stricken girls crowding him.” Why don’t you pray dear sir along with us? We pray every day as to thank our most merciful god for everything we have, and of course our powers. Why are you not praying my good sir?”

He sat in the chair, his demeanour never changing once, his expression staying blank, until he replied,” I am not a religious man miss, so I do not pray to god. If I prayed to god I would not have what I have now you see. I am an extremely wealthy man, and in a way I have given myself to the ways of the devil whether I like it or not. Money is the root of all evil as they say? Well I sacrificed myself years ago, and I can never come back you see.”

Everyone was looking at me, looking into my face for any signs of my response to him. I only looked back at him, disbelief displayed clearly across my face.” Really? Because the director mentioned you being a holy man.” His face changed slightly and only for a second, but it was long enough for everyone to see including me. “I am not as holy as many proclaim my dear.” I interrupted him swiftly, seeing past his demeanour.” Don’t you call me ‘my dear’, you have no right to.”

He only peered at me, not caring about anything coming out of my mouth.” If you would like to prove that I am a demon, then go ahead.” I nodded gladly, finding fun and justice in bagging him out to everyone. Then everyone won’t think I’m nuts. They’ll believe me. “your cane belongs to the greater demon that attacked me.” He looked at his cane, admiring it while looking for dents and scratches, adding,” I bought it this very morning in the underworld district of the city. Anything else?” Yes, I did. “Demons can’t hold anything with an angelic presence, so grab that cross off the wall and face it towards me.” He did as I commanded, to please the crowd and myself. He held the cross perfectly, not a mark anywhere on him, or a single flame.” Is this what you wanted?” I was stunned.

“How can this be?” I looked at his hands. Nothing. This was stupid. I wasn’t getting anywhere with him or anyone else in this room. They were all shaking their heads and looking at me as if I was a time waster. I was. Just like the director said. My actions don’t just affect me, but everyone else as well.

“Seraphine, what on earth are you doing?” I spun around quickly and bumped into Shaun who was standing directly behind me in an orderly fashion alongside Veronique, who smartly hid her dragon in her room before arriving.” Is this him?” Shaun was beginning to go slightly red and his knuckles a pearly white. I grabbed his fist and pushed it away and whispered,” we can’t go for him until we have uncovered him, you know that.” I pushed back to where I was, trying for dear life to meet his eyes to make sure he got my message. He did, because he soon calmed down, and sweetly looked to me, and then looked over at the so called man.” Look at your eyes.” The man in the seat jumped from his seat as if a bee had just stung him, and he was rushing to the mirrors, checking the mirrors.” I don’t see anything. Why did you do that for?” we were all stunned at what we saw.” Trust me, we don’t see anything either.”

Shaun was a genius. Demons don’t have reflections. He had no reflection in the mirrors whatsoever. We were all gathering around him, pulling him out the door and towards the front of the mansion and towards the office.