Work Text:
Usually this was a comforting shade of red that the room was bathed in. Their fathers favorite, it always reminded them of him. But tonight... it had this sinister feeling to it they couldn't explain. They almost wanted the oil lamps off, instead. But the dark might be worse...
Since the lights were on they stared up at their father's portrait. It was magnificent. Its only flaw was the red stitching near the jaw, and on various places along the body, it was like someone had cut through it at some point- in a different way than the eyes had been torn through on the others. The eyes were intact on this one.
Normally this painting was a comforting sight, the perfect picture of strength and protection in an unfamiliar environment... but what frightened them about this painting lately, was that it seemed to BREATHE. If you got too close to it, or put your hand over any of the stitched markings, you could feel the wind pass through from somewhere. Maybe from outside... But there was something wrong about the air near the painting, they just couldn't explain it.
They tried very hard to get to sleep, but once they started hearing unexplainable whispers they quickly made their getaway, deciding not to bother Rosamund, who was snoring softly.
They ran and ran alllll the way to Nadia's wing, but stopped at her door when they heard her breathing evenly. This was the first time all day when Nadia hadn't seemed stressed out of her mind. They decided, with a heavy heart, not to disturb Nadia any more than they already had today.
That said, they couldn't bear to be alone in that room.
None of the servants were awake, either... But you know who might be awake at this hour?
They made their way through the empty hallways instead. Usually there was a servant or two bustling around, but not at this hour. This might have meant the library would be locked... But, as luck would have it, someone had left the door ajar.
︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹
Getting to the dungeon was no problem at all, from there. They knew which books to pull, even if it was hard to reach, they knew how to navigate the tunnels by heart at this point, and they even had a key to the elevator from their papa. (They were put in charge of these keys in case they needed access to the magic shop over the summer... But for some reason, the keychain a matching black key to Valdemar's.)
When they arrived to the dungeon, itself, they heard Valdemar humming. They must be cleaning up for the night... they approached from behind and tugged on Valdemar's lab coat.
Valdemar's head spun around in surprise, though their body did not. "Oh. It's just you." Their head cocked to the side. "This is an unusual hour for you to visit. I'm afraid there's nothing left for you to help with. Do come earlier, next time." They spin their head back around and go back to wiping off the surface before them, before discarding the rag into a bucket. They did not continue their humming, their routine disrupted.
Reise watched Valdemar maneuver carefully around them to a supply closet. "So you're not busy?"
"Not at the moment! The town would be quite dead right now, you see, and I do not like dealing with the intoxicated, so there would be no point in searching for new patients right now." They sighed. They knew they had all the time in the world to waste, but they couldn't help but feel like they weren't doing as much as they should be.
"So..." Reise hesitated. "Um, could you help me with something?"
Valdemar was peeling off their gloves for the night to switch to clean ones. Reise caught a glimpse of their black, blunt fingernails. "I suppose I could." Valdemar hummed. "The better question is why I should?"
"I knew you'd be awake... I didn't know who else to go to."
It was clear from their tone that they were sleepy, and that something had frightened them.
Valdemar blinked at them. Paused. Let out a long sigh. "All these caregivers of yours and not one of them is competent. Very well then. I shall help you." It was in their best interest to keep this child alive, after all, where others neglect to do so. If they recalled correctly, humans could die from a lack of sleep.
︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹
Ah, but this old wing brought back memories. They could almost smell the death still in the air. They saw the most of this room at the height of the plague... it was nostalgic.
Valdemar stopped in front of the large painting of Lucio at the end of the bed. They took it in as Reise looked up at them curiously from behind, clinging to their coat.
Valdemar spoke. "Your fathers paintings do not usually capture my interest, but I have to say, this has always been a favorite of mine." The desolate landscape... the snowy mountains... Their eyes move to the boot on top of the horse skull. A triumph over death. It's one they could always relate to.
"Do you feel it too?"
"You'll have to be more specific." This snapped them out of their appreciation of the painting. "What was the purpose of requesting my assistance?"
Reise brought one of Valdemar's hands to the painting in one of the spots where it had once been ripped. "It's breathing. Like there's a monster behind it or something." They whispered, as if afraid the imaginary beast would hear.
Valdemar did indeed feel the stale air coming through the cracks of the painting, but it didn't concern them. "Oh, there's no... ahem... "monster" behind this painting, there hasn't been in years."
Reise's eyes widened in horror and they squealed.
Valdemar was at a loss. "It isn't there anymore. What is it you're so afraid of?"
Reise's stutters were hard to decipher, but it was clear telling them there ever was a monster at all was the wrong choice. Children could be so obnoxious.
"I will simply show you. Then you will see how irrational you are being." With no further hesitation, their hands found the mechanism at the bottom of the painting. They guided Reise backwards as the painting opened up to reveal a staircase.
A very dusty, spiderweb-decorated staircase. They couldn't quite see the top, except for a red glow. That's where the awful feeling was coming from, they just knew. Reise, for once, didn't rush headfirst into something. In any others circumstances they would've been up the stairs by now, but they just hid behind Valdemar and stared at the glow.
Valdemar gently scooped them up with the tentacles on their back, and cradled them close to their back, allowing them enough height to see over their shoulder.
They stepped in the corridor of the staircase. "Now. Do you see how silly you were being? There was no monster breathing on you. It was merely this drafty corridor."
"So... no monster?"
"Well, excluding myself, affirmative."
"...Can I see the top?" Reise looked fearfully at the blurry red glow.
"I'm afraid not." Valdemar exited the corridor and started to close the painting again. "With the host in his... condition. I'm afraid there's no telling what effects that room may have on a mortal. For all I know you could age to dust in a second! No, I'll have to test it on a less important mortal, first. Though, suffice to say, no harm will come to you if you simply avoid it."
Valdemar lowered Reise carefully down onto the count-sized bed and made quick work of tidying up the area with their extra limbs. "Now. Was that all it was?"
Reise looked around. The room felt safe and warm again. They nodded with a big grin.
Valdemar gave a quick nod in return, and quickly tucked the child in. They put the blanket over their face, as if preparing a body. Reise giggled.
Valdemar waited for Reise to fall asleep before leaving. They weren't sure why, maybe they just didn't have anything better to do. But, it didn't take very long. They were out like a light.