Rell and The Rose

Ch. 41, Royal-Pompous-Ass

Rell

Several hours later Bastien, Lorcan, Cat and I all sat cross legged on the carpet of the library, on the side with the plush carpets and armchairs. Lorcan might have been an even worse high school student than me, which was saying something. He stood up anytime a woman did, and the idea that he had to sit, and raise his hand, or ask permission to leave the room was so utterly foreign to him it was almost funny. Even Cat had to fight not to laugh when he asked the lunch ladies if they had roasted pig or midnight grapes. But we'd all left together after the final bell had rang, and all came to Bastien's house, that was blessedly free of adults. I didn't mention to Lorcan that there was another, darker side to the library room. Just that we all needed to talk and catch up.

"Bastien found something that might help to find..." I trailed off, suddenly unsure how much Cat knew.

"The Blood Rose?" Cat finished with a smile fit for a fox. I shot Lorcan a dirty look. Like a typical Prince, he didn't even look embarrassed.

"I found her on the edge of The Dark Realm, I could hardly not tell her the truth after I cut off a gargoyle's head right in front of her." Lorcan said with a dismissive hand wave. "Besides, you said yourself we need to blend in here, who else to help us than some humans that already live here?"

I glared at him. Right, and the fact that Cat is gorgeous has zero influence on needing her help? And Bastien wasn't just 'some human', he was... Right, I definitely couldn't explain what Bastien was to me. I didn't even know myself.

Bastien interrupted my thoughts. "Why do you need the Blood Rose?" There was something standoffish in the question, directed only to Lorcan.

Lorcan gave Bastien a tight, cold smile. "I am Prince of the Dark Realm, it is my blood right to return the rose to its rightful place." He cleared his throat, "Now, perhaps if you let me examine the book, we can move past this pointless conversation." He held out a hand, and there was a tense moment where no one moved, each of them glaring at each other. I cleared my throat and moved in between them.

"Lorcan, this is Bastien's father's book. You could at least say please." I gave him my best can-you-please-stop-acting-like-a-royal-pompous-ass look. Then I turned to Bastien, and set a hand on his arm, my voice gentler, "Bastien, no one knows more about the Dark Realm then Lorcan. If anyone can find the Blood Rose, it's him."

He stared at me for a moment, then his eyes warmed, "Of course. Anything for you." I didn't miss the way his hands covered mine, or the way Lorcan eyes had gone a hard, glittering cold at our interaction.

Still, it was with some relief that Lorcan cracked open the book, and the tension between him and Lorcan diffused. But then I realized Bastien, Cat and I suddenly were suspended in an awkward silence.

Poxel leapt from my pocket, transforming into a creature somewhere between a fox and a raccoon. He leapt into Cat's arms, who shrieked, and Bastien smiled, and scratched him between the ears as he wandered over to Bastien.

"Oh, Cat, meet Poxel, my pet," I said.

PET!? How DARE you! I set this room on fire and then we see who's pet I am!

"You have a magical red panda as a pet?" Cat asked incredulously. She seemed to have gotten over her fear, and crept closer to Poxel who was wriggling upside-down on Bastien's lap, like some overeager puppy.

"Well, he's not actually a red panda..."

Cat had picked up the fluffy, adorable form of Poxel, and in the blink of an eye Poxel switched back to his true form, smiling up at her with a whole mouth of pointed teeth, his red scales gleaming in the fire light. He blew a puff of smoke into her face.

She shrieked again and dropped him back into Bastien's lap and Bastien and I both laughed.

A sudden ringing rang out through the house, breaking our eye contact.

"That'll be the pizza," Bastien said reluctantly, and stood. "I'll go get it." Cat jumped up as well. "I'll go to the kitchen and get some cups and plates. And some wine."

Bastien looked like he wanted to stop her, but she was already off. He hesitated and then turned and left, leaving Lorcan and I alone.

When the door creaked shut, the sound of the rain pounding and fire cackling filled the silence. I curled my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them.

"We need to tread carefully about what we tell them," Lorcan said when the sound of their footsteps receded. I resisted the urge to shoot him a dirty look. "They both already know too much. More than is wise. "

"Lorcan," I began slowly, "You said you found Cat, in the forest. How did she say she got there?"

He paused. "She said she got lost."

"And it was the same forest that the Carter was lost in?"

He paused. "Yes."

"Do you think there's any chance that..." I trailed off, and it took Lorcan a moment before his eyes widened.

"You think Cat could be the Beast?"

"Well, how much do you really know about her?"

He paused, his eyes staring into the fire, lost in thought before he finally said. "We can't rule out any possibility. The Beast could be right in front of us." He lifted a brow.

It was my turn to be confused. "Wait... you don't mean, Bastien?"

"Had he ever given you cause to doubt him?"

I'd opened my mouth to say no, when I suddenly stopped. There was something. "The first night I got here, Bastien was out in the forest, and he came back with a wound on his stomach... it was like he'd been tramping out in the forest. He also knew Carter... maybe he was out looking for him."

"Or maybe he became the Beast without knowing," Lorcan whispered.

A shiver ran down my back. "Is that possible, for someone to become the Beast and not know? The book said the full moon..."

Lorcan's eyes were dark as he shook his head. "We don't know anything about how someone becomes the Beast. The Blood Rose is powerful magic. Magic enough to hide the truth from those who serve it. There's a chance we've already found the Beast."

My eyes flicked up to the rainstorm overhead, my voice soft beneath the chaos outside. "Then what do we do?"

The voices of Bastien and Cat sounded on the staircase, and Lorcan dropped his voice one last time. "We keep them both close. And we keep our eyes open."