“No, that’s not what I meant. My body is more so used as bait to draw them in. Holy water in the veins shortly before we fought normally keeps them grounded after they’ve ingested it. That’s just the way my mother’s family worked and that’s how she taught me. Though Lady Lily is trying other methods, she dislikes it as much as you do.” It was ingrained in her and would be a much harder thing for her to break.

She moved over to the maps and looked them over. “It’s a lot worse than what was described to us. If we need a patrol that can be arranged easily enough. I can have a squadron ready in less than thirty minutes if we really needed it.” She was thoughtful as she watched over the maps. “Or, we could simply lure them here. It depends on the quickest way to do it. They might not even come the way the map says if they hear about this little fiasco.”

She took the scrolls offered to her and smiled. “No, Echo-Rose is my first name. I’m under the Rose family as a Duchess nothing more nothing less. I’m not nearly as important as they are. To put it like my mother has several times, we’re expendable. My family is a combination of two high ranking mage families. My father is from an elven line and my mother a Rosenite one. No relation to the Roses. Lily Rose did name me though, as is tradition.”

It was then that he noticed one minor detail. “I’d hardly call those minor.”  Blood rushed into his cheeks from Minasé’s words and he dropped the maps, all but one, and opened it quickly to cover her bare torso.  How had he not noticed she was topless?!  Was he that focused on work?  Maybe he really did have a problem.  Embarrassed lips silently moved, but quickly, trying to find the right words to say, “Y-Yes, well.  That many extra bodies on patrol would definitely be a great help to start.  Though I still don’t think we should hack and slash any of them that make their way here.  Some could be innocent…these were not.”
 
Being sure to keep his eyes up and away, he knelt back down and gathered up the fallen maps before moving out of the tent.  For now she needed bandaged and they would be wise to drop themselves through his still opened portal to the outside. “It would be best for you to send word to your employers, I’ll be sure to do the same with mine.  An underground migration of vampires is valuable information.”

Keeping his eyes out to the now empty pit, he recalled back to something she had said inside the tent and his eyes slowly lowered without him realizing it.  He didn’t like that word: expendable.  His focus remained on the ash and blood of their fallen foes, “Well, I don’t know your life or what you’ve been through, but that amount of talent and determination can be described by many words.  Expendable is not one of them.”

Echo was quick to notice his blush and took time to torment him. “Oh please, have you never seen breasts before? They work like this.” She smacked the map out of his hands and took his hands so he was groping her. “No big deal. Jeesh for someone who can attack vampires like nothing you sure are squeamish around breasts.”

Letting his hands go she took back up her maps and left with him. “The extra bodies will be called for don’t worry. I wouldn’t hack and slash just anyone but they would attack the patrols if they were dangerous.” She reminded him.

She moved through the catacombs and looked around a bit more. “Expendable might not be a liked term but Mother lived and died by it. She got caught in an ambush outside in the desert. I’ve never seen my father so happy before. To be as miserable as we were with her to think her death would bring happiness? She was still my mother but the danger she has done is not something that can be forgiven. Expendable is what she makes me think I am and I’ve yet to break the vicious cycle of hate towards myself.”

Taking a moment she calmed her. “You aren’t good enough. We should just have another child she’s worthless. She can’t hold her posture right. She let too many demons bite her this time. She might as well be dead or damned. How can she be our heir? Those are things I’ve lived with my whole life. Things my mother had drilled into me as soon as I could walk. Years of damage that my father tries to undo with all of his might, but he can’t. No one can.”

His eyes saddened as she spoke about her mother and father.  His own parents had been strict, but he’d never heard such horrible things from them.  No matter how many times he fell, they always made sure he was able to stand back up.  As a child he hadn’t realized that, but hindsight was always crystal clear.  And no matter what he knew that they’d always loved him.  Even after finding out that they’d hidden the truth of where he’d come from, that he wasn’t truly blood related to them…they loved him.  As angry as he was about the fact they’d hidden something so big, their love had never been lacking.  Right now he didn’t even care that she was topless, he looked over at her, the green of his eyes softening as he took her in much differently now.

This was a young woman who took those acid laced words and turned them to armor.  No, more than that, she tipped her weapons with those words.  It was admirable.  Every psychologically abused child should be so lucky.  Maybe it was time for the serious buzz in the air to go down, “I’m sure it feels much cooler against your skin, but it might be best for us to find something to wrap you up in.”  He smiled, “There are plenty of tents, though they’d swallow those thin limbs whole.”  He chuckled and moved over to one of the unexplored tents, stepping in just enough to see if there was anything in here that could be worn.

Echo tilted her head. “I’m from the desert, everything out here feels cool to me.” She chuckled at him as she nodded and tossed her tattered shirt. She looked around with him and found a corset. “This might have to do… Everything else is much larger.” It was nice that the air was light now between the two of them.

She held up the corset to her chest and looked back at him. “Can you? You might have to move my hair.” After he helped her she got really curious, acting her age really. “You know an awfully lot about the Rose family, do you know them?” She never ran into outsiders who knew about the royal family. 

After he tied the corset for her she turned around and took a good look at him. “Are you from this continent or the next? You know where I am from obviously.” She put strands of her white hair behind her elven ears and took another long look at his softened green eyes, her wild amber were always so warm even if she was upset or angry. 

“They never did like how she did things with me. In a way, I suppose Lady Lily spends everyday trying to make up for letting it happen. She is my godmother after all, another tradition. My father is an even bigger mess about it. He really does love me, but he is rather gentle. He wouldn’t have known how to handle my mother. He didn’t even want to marry her, it was a political marriage.”

That was something he couldn’t argue: everything felt nice when compared to the desert heat.  If there hadn’t been so many lit fires around them then it would have been even colder…something he was hoping for now.  It didn’t take much to get him hot lately, but he certainly wasn’t going to take anything off like he would have had he been alone.  He rose up from his kneel and gently brushed her white hair over one of her shoulders, careful not to scratch.  There were so many scars, some faded and some fresh.  The bites from earlier were still red on her arms, even under bandaging, and he was urged to touch them, heal them, but he refrained from doing so.
 
Instead he gently but tightly laced up the corset.  Even if it was the smallest thing she could find, she was still so slight that he knew there was no way it could get tightened enough to hurt her.  At least it wouldn’t slip off. “As a matter of fact I do know that family.  Without going into too much detail, I was close to one of Angela’s daughters.  That started many decades ago and our lives have branched in different directions since then.”

He gently smoothed her hair back from her shoulder so that it hung down her back and took a good step away from her. “I’m from Ataiyo, my family’s main house is just outside of Nisshoki.”  As he spoke, he moved closer to the portal but paused just at the edge of it, “I’ve personally never been a fan of arranged marriage…sometimes they work themselves out into happiness.” He turned his head, looking back at her, “We should step through, get out of this place.”

The corset was still not as snug as it should have been against her. She knew she was real petite compared to most women, she wondered if it had anything to do with what her mother had done to her as a girl but she decided against saying anything. “That doesn’t shock me. Many of Angela’s daughters are very beautiful. I would kill to attract men like they do but sadly most men want curves and.. well more developed bodies than mine.”

She smiled over at him as he took her hair back over her shoulders. “I’ve always wanted to go to Ataiyo but duties over here have always kept me from going.” She gave a smile. “I’ve hear Nisshoki is beautiful, especially this time of the year.” Not that anything was nearly as beautiful as Sularia was.

“My mother and father were put in an arranged marriage to become the most powerful mage family the Yellow Court had. It had little to do with if they liked each other, hell Father says they barely liked each other enough to conceive me.” She was one step ahead of him as she pulled him through the portal into the less than cool air. “It’s muggy out here.” She sighed a bit as she smiled up at him.

She whistled and Brynn came over. “Nightmares are what Sularia breeds. This is Brynn, she is the fastest Nightmare in all of the Yellow Court. I’ve trained with her since I was real young. Nightmares live a long time.” She pet the Nightmare’s mane and even took Naota’s hand. At first the horse’s mane was real hot but at Echo’s command the heat died down and he was able to pet her. “She is a real skiddish mare.” A blush came to Echo’s cheeks finally as she let his hand go.

He chuckled softly, “Don’t envy them, after all, I’m sure it’s irritating for them to have so many suitors.  Not all men and women are pleasant.  I’ve heard enough horror stories of that.”.  Seeing as there would be no one here to tend the fires, he brought earth up from the ground to smother out the embers before going with her through the portal; his fingers curling gently around hers for stability.  When they made it out the other side he was happy to see that what he’d thought had been true: the sun had finished them off.  If any others made it here before they could get a patrol started then with any luck it would drive them away.  Of course, that would only leave them to scatter…at least it would be random, they’d be easier to hunt down, and it’d be even easier to pick out the good from the bad based on how they would react.
 
When he saw the Nightmare his lips parted and his eyes widened with awe.  He’d heard of this breed but had never actually been so close to one.  As a child he’d dreamed about having one of his own, travelling the world with one…but that was many years ago when he couldn’t even see over the kitchen counter.  She brought his hand closer to the flaming mane and he nearly drew his hand back before realizing that she’d made sure he wouldn’t be burned.  It was interesting, feeling fire but not being burned by it, especially when it wasn’t being maneuvered by himself.  A youthful smile spread as he moved his hand more comfortably.

“She’s beautiful is what she is.”  He looked over at her, keeping his hand on her dark fur even as Echo moved her hand from his.  It was then that he realized he’d failed to even introduce himself as of yet, “My name is Naota Uharu.  And you’re right: Ataiyo is lovely this time of year.  With any luck I’ll be able to go back there for more than a day before the season is up.”

Echo blushed a bit more and laughed. “I would like at least one.” She looked away from him. “Men that tend to go after Rosenites look for ass and breasts… sadly I’m lacking.” She put her hands on her breasts and frowned a bit in his direction before laughing.

Once she introduced him to Brynn she watched his eyes light up. Nightmares were incredible creatures and were well loved in the Rosenite community. She helped him pet her horse and smiled when he finally did it. “Aye, they are the national horse of Arri. We breed them for the rest of Revaliir though they might be bred elsewhere too.”

She chuckled at his name. “My name is much longer but I should introduce myself as well.” She gave a smiled as she cleared her throat. “I was given the name Echo-Rose Ellisiana La Reine Victoria. La Rein and Victoria are my parents last names. Ellisiana was given to me by Willow and Echo-Rose was given to me by Lily.”

She chuckled a bit more. “We live in a manor where we help breed Nightmares. I got pick of the litter so to speak. I chose Brynn, she is going to be bred soon as well. I would like to pair her with a nice stallion. She deserves it for all the work she does.”

He chuckled as he watched her fret about her size. “Don’t worry young miss.  I’m sure if for some reason we were ever lost at sea, you’d make a promising oar.”  Of course he was teasing her and his smile showed it, “Though seriously, you should be proud of what you have.  Though you may be lacking in what others have, it’s clear that you are a lovely young woman.” With a gentle pat to the mare’s neck, he stepped back and removed his belt from his pants, using it instead to wrap around his own bundle of maps so that they would stay safe during travel.  Normally the job would be done by now, but this particular hire was turning into a small quest.
 
Her name was impressive and his fingers slowed and his eyebrows rose as she gave her full namesake. “Quite a mouthful.  Unfortunately, two is where my name ends.”  His eyes lifted up to the sky, taking in the position of the sun.  It was passed midday by now but the heat was still prominent against the back of his neck.  There was still a good deal of work and travel ahead of them, and even though they would need to split off to go their different ways, there were still things they needed to discuss with this case before doing so.
 
“Well with you as her guardian I’m sure she’ll get nothing less.”  He looked back down at her from the sky, a reassuring smile on his face, “For now though, I think it would be best if we found a place to recuperate.  Food, drink, a nice grove of shade if possible though I know that there aren’t any establishments within immediate distance.  What say you?” It wouldn’t surprise him if her mare could withstand heat, given her mane, but they’d just come from a quick paced battle.  If nothing else they’d need water and shade.