Being Undead

Chapter 11*

Laura didn't know what to do. It was like she was watching a movie starring herself but she wasn't allowed to actively participate in it.

First, she had been attacked; by ten undeads, nonetheless. Then she had fought- she still couldn't believe that she had lasted as long as she had- and then she had lost the fight- no surprise there really- and then she had been saved by Damian of all people, and then he had insulted her.

Okay, that last part, Laura believed undoubtedly, was just typical of Damian. But she still couldn't wrap her head around the fact that he had just killed the people who wanted to kill her when a few days earlier, he himself was the clamouring for her demise.

This has got to be one hell of a cosmic joke, she laughed inside of herself.

Just then, one of the assailants- apparently, Damian had missed him in his zoom attack- jumped out of the shadows, armed with a crossbow, and aimed at Damian. "Die!" he shouted as he made to pull the trigger.

But out of nowhere, a flash of blade suddenly sliced, first the guy's hand, and then his body before he could shoot; he crumbling to ashes with a priceless shocked expression on his face.

Frederick emerged out of the shadows, wiping a sword on his jeans; he was the one that killed the guy with the crossbow. "What happened?" he asked, directing the question to neither Laura nor Damian particularly.

"Well, your ill-luck of a newblood had a fit in the mansion today," Damian took up the response. "She punched me in the face and then ran away before I could punish her as she deserved. Then, she had a run-in with Anton's men and I had to save her; and now a year's worth of work has gone down the drain." He paused to sneer at Laura before adding, "You can tell her thank you anytime you feel like, brother."

Laura wanted to defend herself; Damian had grossly misrepresented the facts and she wanted to set it straight. But one look from Frederick dissolved whatever she had on her tongue.

Thing is, while Frederick didn't appear angry at her, especially with the damaging way Damian had painted her actions, he didn't look at all pleased by them either; and for the first time ever, Laura felt fear creep up in spine because of him.

"Frederick, I'm-"

"Let's go home, Laura," he cut in, very calmly, "more may still be on the way."

Federick turned immediately and walked away, but Laura knew without a doubt that the conversation was far from over.

I've always trusted in him to save me from the world, she thought as she watched him go, but who in the world can I trust to save me from him?

***

The walk back to the mansion was very tense to say the least. No angry words were actually said but even those unsaid words had a crushing weight of their own.

On the way, Damian had explained to Frederick that after Laura had left the way, he had gone after her to tell her he meant every word that he said about her not allowed to come back; Laura didn't buy one word of it but she didn't comment.

Anyway, just as he went out into the city after her, using her scent to track, he caught a whiff of Anton's men in the area.

Now, his initial presumption was that they had kidnapped Laura but as he caught up to them, and realised that they were still only tailing her. Not wanting to cause a scene, he kept his distance and watched the events unfold, stepping in only when it came to the point that she couldn't handle them anymore.

"I caught the scent of the both of you when I arrived in the city," Frederick explained his involvement after Damian was done, "and knowing what you thought of her, I was worried that you had taken her out to kill her. So, I came to stop you."

Laura had thought that Damian would be angry, or at least offended that Frederick had thought he was going to hurt her, or that his solution was to come looking for him sword swinging in hand.

But he didn't look bothered at all. In fact, he appeared rather pleased by the presumption; smirk at, presumably, the realisation that Frederick thought of him as a real threat after all.

Anyway, as soon as the trio arrived at the Undead Mansion, Frederick guided them straight to the study. "We need to have a serious discussion," he said the moment the door was shut behind them.

"I'll give you both space then," Laura made to excuse herself but Frederick blocked her path.

"The discussion's between you and I, Laura," he said, nodding for Damian to leave them.

"Call me when you're done," he said, opening the door. "And before I forget Miss Sunshine," he said, "next time you face an undead and you have no weapons, try pulling out his heart. Decapitation's the best way to kill an undead." Then, he finally took his leave.

Frederick sat down, placing the sword which he had used during the fight on the table in front of him. "Please sit, my dear," he said.

It took some thinking and rethinking for Laura to join him. Thing is, while he had called her "my dear," the way he had said it bordered on sinister; so unlike the previous times when he had nothing but jokes and smiles with her. He was upset, and she wasn't sure she could handle him upset.

Anyway, Laura sat down, her eyes immediately settling on the sword.

Try as she wanted not to, she couldn't help but think about the sword. She had seen Federick use it on that undead earlier; the adeptness with which he handled it, it was terrifying. One swing would be all it took for him to send her to heaven before she even realised he had.

Do undeads even have souls that could go to heaven? She found herself musing.

"Look, Frederick, I know-" He cut her off with a stern glare.

"Tell me, Laura, do you hate being an undead?" he asked, his voice surprisingly calm for the storm in his eyes.

"Frederick, I-" The raise of a finger cut her off this time.

"Tell me, does this life feel you with such hate that death is a better path?"

"Frederick, if you'lm just give me the chance to explain, you'll know that-" It was his hand that cut her off this time as he literally put them to her lips to stop.

"Tell me, would you rather be undead or something else?"

Federick stood up, took his sword, and then he faced the door. "These are not questions to be answered tonight my dear," he said as he opened the door. "Go to bed, ponder over them, and then you provide the answers when you're ready."

It wasn't until after Federick had shut the door behind him that Laura fully understood what he was driving at. Choices, she realised; he was giving her choices.

Thing is, Laura hadn't had the chance to choose when she became an undead; the moment and transition had just forced upon her and Frederick and they had to roll with it.

But now, he was giving her back that choice; and it was one that would affect both of them tremendously whichever way she choose.