There was a chill hanging in the air after Gilbert left. Kuro and Yao were escorted out by Vasch and Ludwig. Yao's clan went with him so he wouldn't feel any more humiliated than he already was. Wendy fidgeted in her seat as they left and whispered to her brother Jett, "is it really over?"

"'Fraid not, there's a lot more to come. Just not here. Somewhere a bit more fright'nin...." Jett said in a hushed voice.

Alfred ordered everyone to clear from the room and prepare for Anna's initiation, he combed his fingers through his hair in distress and came to speak with Antonio, Francis, Wendy, Jett, Elizabetta, Roderich, Lucille, Michelle, Philip and I, who remained in the room. My support team wasn't willing to leave me, and I was still a bit in shock, glued to my chair.

"So...that went well?" Alfred sighed, and Francis shook his head.

"Non, next time, don't look up court proceedings on judge Judy!" He scolded and tugged on Alfred's ahoge. Alfred blushed and furrowed his brows together, slapping away Francis's hand and angrily defending his beloved show, "don't you dare judge, Judy."

"Was that a pun?" Antonio asked.

"Quiet, churro-man," he snapped.

Antonio put his hand over his heart like he was genuinely offended and got back up from his seat to stand by Francis.

"Dammit, Kuro got us into a whole lot of shit," Alfred growled.

"Whenever something 'appens it's always us...I think zhey may soon become suspicious of us," Francis worried aloud.

"Well, we do have a few..." Alfred glanced at me and sighed, "interesting...members."

"Antonio and I were 'er Knights she listens to us. You managed to flirt with 'er and get out of it alive...Arthur she...knows....probably one of the downsides actually..."

"How many of y'all have gotten in trouble with the Queen?"

They began silently counting off their fingers.

Oh lord...

"Well, ...we've certainly gotten her attention. It hasn't always been bad-" Alfred mumbled in his defense.

"You accidentally funded a rebellion-" Antonio interrupted, and Alfred glared at him.

"Unknowingly!" He insisted, stomping his foot.

"There was the red night incident before this coalition was even founded, yet for some reason, you let Gilbert in. We also let in that hell-raising boy, Vlad, and the two mercenaries Torvald and Julius. I feel like the queen is more relieved to have all the trouble makers in one gathering rather than spread out..." Antonio theorized, and Francis shrugged.

"Well...what do we do now? Zhat was a lot to 'andle, and now we 'ave an initiation and zhen normal activities...but everyzhing feels different some'ow..." Lucille commented, and the silence amongst us confirmed we all agreed.

Of course, none of these routine activities were normal for me.

"We'll let you have the time to speak with Gilbert first and calm down, and then we will move forward with the night. This trial isn't something we need to dwell on immediately, I as the association leader, will notify the council with your clan's signatures and seals after the night is done with, and then we will wait. I have business with her anyways on Patient zero." Alfred decided firmly.

Francis nodded.

Patient zero? Is there some kind of vampire virus? Doesn't matter if it doesn't affect me. I need to focus on Gilbert. It doesn't matter how I feel right now, because I've lost all emotion. My mind goes numb in times like this; it won't allow me to feel so much hurt so many days in a row. One blow to my heart is enough, and then it freezes over.

Francis and Antonio follow me as I stumble in a blind haze to the door, fake smile on my face. Kuro is dealt with for now, but I'll have to see him again in the future and that's what I was ignoring. It wasn't safe to feel so much hatred at once; I could break....again.

I opened the door to the same room I'd been in earlier, and I was right in my assumption Gilbert would be there. I walked in on him curled in a ball, eyes wide open, faced away from the door, perfectly still, perfectly quiet.

"Giiiiil..." I tried to say sweetly.

"Hmm."

"Art thou, okay?"

"Mpff." He responded lazily.

"Okay I'm not sure what to do," I gave up and let Francis and Antonio stride past me gracefully and sit on either side of Gilbert, who didn't respond to their presence. They looked at me and then each other with "yikes" faces. Gilbert has been through enough; lately, the poor man needs a break.

"I think we should let him absorb this," I decided, and they agree.

"Si...but Anna's initiation is soon, and we need his blood."

"That sounds fun," I said very sarcastically.

"It is, we each give a bit of blood into a vase which, Anna, will drink from. She takes a blood oath basically," he explained.

"Ah, so like a cult."

"We are not a cult," Francis insisted.

"You most certainly are a cult."

"But-"

"Do you chant?"

"....Si?"

"Yep, you're a cult."

"Cults have religious aspects," Antonio tried to argue.

"The venom inside you is demonic."

There was a pause, and Gilbert turned over and stared at the wall. "Shit, we're a cult."

"Non. Stop zhat ___; Gilbert is ex religious 'e doesn't need so much to deal with right now on top of zhinking he's in a cult."

"Okay...but he doesn't think he's in a cult, he is in a cult."

"Okay, bye-bye Chica," Antonio gently pushed me into the hallway and closed the door behind me.

"Hey," I snapped at them and knocked on the door. Then I heard a "Hey" behind me that sent shivers throughout my body.

I spun around and saw exactly who I expected. "H-Hey, Heracles." My face was flushed pink, and as soon as his name left my lips, the door opened back up, and I was yanked back inside.

"One second. Not even one second. This is why we can't leave you alone." Antonio breathed.

He sat me down in a chair in the room as he, Francis and Gilbert, spoke too quickly and silently for human ears.

"I mean, personally, I wouldn't mind..." I said under my breath, and they ceased their whispering to stare at me seriously.

"Chica, please no thirst-jokes, were going to take those seriously."

"Fine." I sighed and rested my chin in my hands.

Antonio sat next to Gilbert on the bed, and Francis slid his back down the wall next to me. He let out a long sigh, and when I finally looked away from Gilbert, I saw he was staring daggers at my bandaged wrist.

"There's no wound to be ashamed of," I reminded him.

He paused but sighed, "but zhere should be, and zhat's even worse."

"We'll make an appointment with Ludwig after zhe gathering is over. Zhat much venom inside you should be influencing your actions."

"How so?"

"Like...you'd be stronger."

That checks out.

"Faster."

That too.

"More lustful."

Possibly.

"And....violent....or violent urges. Something inside of you snaps just like your Venus flytrap...."

Images of my fight with Dedric surfaced, and I shuddered.

Francis quickly wrapped an arm around me, "I didn't mean to trigger any memories, my apologies mon amour."

Gilbert turned over to face me, still curled in a ball.

"We're really going through the wringer vhis month, aren't ve?" He asked me, half-smiling like a cute dork trying to lighten the mood.

"Indeed we are," I sighed for the fiftieth time that night and stared up at the ceiling.

"We should get going to the initiation," Francis interrupted the silence, and Antonio and Gil nodded.

Antonio double-checked the hallways for any lurking Greeks and took my hand, walking me to the All too familiar set of stairs.

"Am I not taking part in the initiation?" I asked, slightly let down.

"Not unless you have a death wish."

"I-"

"Never mind, don't answer that."

"So, what am I doing instead?"

"Making friends," I said with fake enthusiasm and gestured to the gathered dhampire/vampire friend group.

"___!" Peter cheered excitedly.

I smiled in relief.

Something nice for a change.

A little bit of time with some sweet kids before my life is dragged back to hell.