symbiosis » levi ackerman

chapter twenty ; unloved.

Fallan

I stood in the grand hallway, nervously playing with a loose thread from my dress as I awaited my parents. I felt the various portraits of my brother that hung on the walls staring at me, making my anxiety at the situation grow. Of course, there were no portraits of me. I'd wondered for many years if my parents often wished I'd died instead of my brother. It certainly seemed that way.
"Miss Reid, they're awaiting you in the dining room."
I jumped at the voice, and saw it had emanated from a small bald man in a tuxedo.
"Sorry, who are you?" I asked, slightly alarmed by the strange man's sudden appearance.
"I am Bruno, the butler of Master and Mistress Reid." Bruno replied politely.
"By the walls," I cursed under my breath and smoothed down the creases in my dress. I was aware my parents had employed various people to work at the house, including chefs, cleaners and groundskeepers, but a butler? Now that was new.
"Right this way, Miss." He smiled, and gestured towards the end of the hall.
"Thank you, Bruno." I returned his smile, albeit tightly. I bit back the urge to make a comment about already knowing where the dining room is in the house I grew up in, but knew my parents had probably requested him to come and collect me. Greeting their own daughter at the door with a hug and a smile was far too improper.
I followed Bruno down the hall, and stepped through the large double doors. Home, sweet home.
My parents were sat at opposite ends of the obnoxiously large dinner table; my father was reading a newspaper and my mother was sipping a glass of red wine. One chair was positioned in the middle. The room was completely silent, and tension hung thick in the air. The scrape of the wooden chair legs against the floor sounded almost deafening as Bruno pulled the remaining chair out for me to perch on. As I settled into my seat, I cleared my throat.
"Hello." I attempted to say cheerily, but failed miserably.
"Not dead yet, I see." My father muttered disapprovingly.
Hugo Reid was a stern man. To be frank, in all my years I'd only seen him smile on 3 occasions. Once, at my brother's violin recital, then again when Edward won his first game of chess, and lastly when my mother forced him to muster a grimace during a family portrait.
"You would've thought so," My mother said through pursed lips, "How long has it been since we last heard from her? One could only assume she'd died."
Rosalind Reid was Hugo's perfect match - both as sociopathic as each other. My mother, on the other hand, was only like that in the comforts of her own home. To the rest of the world, Rosalind was a social butterfly - the kindest soul Mitras had ever seen.
"6 weeks since we received a letter," He paused to turn the page of his newspaper, "And 6 months since she last visited."
"Father, please. I've been quite busy, Hanji's had me conduct-" I began, but was silenced by one piercing glare from him. I'd forgotten talk of the Scouts was banned in this household.
"Sorry." I mumbled, dropping me head and playing with the loose thread again.
"That dress looks like a rag on you darling." My mother cooed, swirling her wine about in her glass, "And your hair is disgusting."
God, this was going to be a long night.

After about half an hour of awkward silence interrupted by a few rare snide comments, Bruno flung the doors open and a stream of three young waitresses carrying plates of food scurried out. I internally groaned at my parents' lavish ways. I was grateful for the luxurious life I'd been provided with, however, the journey through the poverty-ridden village of Trost had really been an eye opener. It almost felt wrong to sit here and enjoy a cooked meal while they slept on the streets.
The meal was as painful as our family catch-up - silent aside from the sound of my father chewing at a ridiculous volume and making various grunting sounds in appreciation for the meal. It seemed like the richer you got - the more your table manners decreased. The kitchen staff had definitely upped their game since my childhood; the food was incredible. Although perhaps I'd become so conditioned to the same stale bread rolls and unsalted butter that a decent meal was far more appreciated now. I gazed out of the window at the slowly darkening sky. I hadn't asked what time the meeting had finished, and suddenly felt terrified at the idea of keeping the Commander and the Captain waiting too long. My father clearly read my mind however.
"Right well," Father began, clearing his throat, "You best be off."
Well that's certainly one way to say farewell to your own daughter.
"Bruno!" My mother screeched, and the short man scuttled in promptly after, "Show her out will you?"
Bruno nodded, and I made my way towards the door.
"A pleasure as always." I sighed, smoothing out my dress as I stood. I followed Bruno out through the hallway and to the large double doors.
"Bruno," I began slowly.
"Yes Miss?"
"A word of advice - run. Run as far as you can from this family." I grinned at him, patted his shoulder and left, breathing a sigh of relief.

A/N
well hello :) sorry for the lack of updates I've been sooooo busy but I promise next chapter will be JUICY
also I finally found reference pictures for my OC's, I've posted them in the updated introduction but I'll post them here as well :) this is just how I imagined them when I was writing them but if you thought any differently lemme know I'm curious ;)

I KNOW the Azumabito clan are supposed to be the last of oriental decent but the references just fit the characters so perfectly and I'm NOT using white references for oriental names SORRY don't come for me