(not me writing fanfiction about my ocs, gurl-)
Pairing : Baron Vultur (oc) x Pontifex Vulgora
Fandom : The Arcana visual novel
Warnings : blood ; gore ; cannibalism
What time was it? Whatever. The sun wasn't up yet, so it didn't matter much. Vulgora laid there, unable to close their eyes. They'd just woken up, and for some reason, couldn't go back to sleep. It's not like they had a nightmare, or a burst of energy, no they just... couldn't close their eyes. They laid motionless, staring at the ceiling for a while, until they got bored and decided to take a walk in the Palace's corridors. They knew there wasn't much else to do, sadly. No possibility to let off some steam, no people to annoy, no action, no fights, nothing... Gods, they really weren't a night person. They got dressed, even if they knew probably no one else would be awake right now. Or at least, no one would be walking in the corridors. Maybe Lucio's ghost. But it's not like he was entertaining, always whining like that. He was worse than Volta.
Only the sound of their steps echoed down the dark, barely lit halls as they walked around, growing increasingly annoyed and bored. They knew that if nothing happened right now, they'd be in one foul mood in the morning. It's not like they could yell their frustration either, they'd probably be scolded by the Countess immediately. Their pace accelerated as they grew frustrated by this late night's so far unfruitful excursion. The Palace may be boring at times, but right now? It's as if everyone was dead ! The grumbled as they walked to the library, pulled the familiar books that unlocked the secret passage and went down the pitch black dusty corridor, to the metallic elevator, before getting inside and pulling the lever, down to the dungeons. Maybe Valdemar was awake with a bit of chance. Maybe they would be doing something interesting. The Pontifex found their way to the infamous dungeons, the smell of rot, blood and iron hitting their nostrils. They found the Quaestor working at one of the operation tables. They smiled and approached them.
"Vulgora. What are you doing, up so late?" Valdemar asked, without even turning around, the attention fully on the dissected corpse they were working on.
"Thank gods you're awake !" The Pontifex replied with a heavy sigh as they leaned on the table "I couldn't sleep."
"Oh? why?" they asked, their eyebrows rising ever so slightly
"I've no idea ! I just... laid there, and my eyes wouldn't close!"
"So not a nightmare, then?"
"Oh please, a nightmare?" Vulgora laughed "it's been decades since I had one of those ! No, I'm just.... bored !"
"ah. I see." Valdemar paused, though their hands continued to work "I'm afraid I won't be of much help. I've got work to do. I'd like to finish this experiment before sunrise."
"As always, huh? I guess no one will disturb you at that time..." Vulgora whined "But can't you let me punch one of your corpses? please?"
"I would, but this time I need their bones intact. I'm testing a new acidic solution, and I want to see if it attacks the bone marrow." the surgeon replied (knowing that they wouldn't have lend them a corpse anyway).
The Pontifex groaned "oh, come on ! What am I supposed to do for the rest of the night ?!"
"Maybe you can sit, and reflect. Exercising your mind isn't as boring as you think it is."
"Ugh, no thank you ! Sitting without moving and thinking ?? Thinking about what?" Vulgora replied, rolling their eyes.
Valdemar wasn't annoyed easily. And if they currently were, it wasn't showing. They didn't speak for a moment, but suddenly mentioned : "Say, I've run into Baron Vultur on my way here."
The Pontifex raised an eyebrow "Oh yeah? In the middle of the night?"
"Seems like it. I asked him where he was heading and he simply told me he was going to get a "midnight snack"... He doesn't strike me as the type of person to do that. Isn't it strange?"
Vulgora grinned, and walked quickly towards the dungeons' exit "ooouh, what could he possibly be up to? something mischievous I hope!" they chuckled, the sounds of their loud footsteps progressively disappearing, as well as the distant gears of the metallic elevator once it was activated.
Valdemar's grip on their instruments ever so slightly tightened as their hands briefly stopped moving ; their lips pursed into a tiny, annoyed pout "....You're welcome, Vulgora." they mumbled, before focusing back on their work.
The Pontifex was back in the Palace's corridors, this time much more excited. They made their way into the Palace, wondering where Vultur would be : it could be the kitchen, the pantry, or the cave if he'd felt like getting some cheese or whine with his snack. They eagerly went to the kitchen first, not caring if their footsteps would be heard. Sadly, they found it empty. The casseroles and knives hadn't moved from their designated place, and everything was clean, meaning the Baron hadn't stopped by at all. They quickly recovered from their initial disappointment as they headed over to the cave. It was farther than the pantry, but they just wanted to check it first. Their brows furrowed when they found it empty, only endless stacks of wine bottles before them. They'd half expected to see Valerius passed out drunk somewhere, but hey. Vulgora went back to the main hall, with one place left to check : the pantry. They inhaled and went in that direction. Oh, if Valdemar had lied and said that just to have them walk around the Palace like they were lost in a maze, they swore, they'd have that doctor's head on a st-
As they turned around the corner, the Pontifex's train of thought was interrupted by the sight of the pantry's door slightly open, and presumably a candlelight flickering from the inside. That, and noise. They were rather unfamiliar to them... It wasn't exactly like bones getting crushed, it was too... wet and quiet for that. It sounded like something being torn, but what? certainly not fabric. It wasn't something getting punched, there weren't enough thuds... Then what was it...? Their curiosity piqued, they approached the pantry, making sure to keep grazing the wall as to not alert whoever was in there. the noises got clearer, and Vulgora managed to hear something that sounded like chewing and panting. It sounded frantic. They blinked a few times, both confused and increasingly curious, as they dared to approach further, and finally peer into the pantry. Oh.
Their eyes widened as they saw Baron Vultur standing there, in their nightly cream cotton attire, hands clasping, clawing even, at the wooden table on which laid a huge, bloody, and beyond recognition piece of meat. The poor thing was getting torn to shreds, Vultur's form hunched over it as his sharp teeth ferociously bit, tore, shredded, gnawed at the flesh and muscle, accompanied by the sound of blood splattering on the floor. Each bite was more vicious than the last, and Vulgora could swear he'd heard him growl once or twice. Their jaw hung slack as they couldn't help but watch, standing in the pantry's doorway, unnoticed of the Baron yet. It wasn't long before Vultur's hands went to hold the meat in place, it not being heavy enough to stay still on its own as his teeth violently dug into it. It was like staring at a starved wolf finding a stray dead deer, eating its meal with nothing but primal hunger. They watched him tear apart tougher pieces by swinging his head to the side, said pieces getting chewed more loudly. Soon, the flesh came down to... not much, and the Baron's assault progressively ended. He stood there for a moment, panting, half-lidded eyes looking down at what was left of his meal, and the mess that went along with devouring it. It's only then that he noticed Vulgora, and turned to them.
The Pontifex did not move one inch. They hadn't even noticed their jaw was still hanging slack. They looked at Vultur, how he was panting, and the copious amount of blood staining his attire, his chest, his hands, his arms, his cheeks, his chin and his neck. This morbid spectacle of violence certainly wasn't something they'd expected. They looked back up at his clear blue eyes, which were still not fully open, at those teeth, bits of flesh and blood staining them, which they could see behind his parted bloody lips. Teeth that were made to tear into flesh, and nothing else. They gulped when they realized that they were staring, and averted their gaze, though they would glance at the Baron drenched in blood once or twice more. Vultur sighed, uselessly wiping his chin, and only splattering more blood onto it. He took a few steps towards Vulgora, and leaned down to their level, noticing the Pontifex's gaze flicker between the slight part of his chest that was exposed by his nightly attire and his face. His finger lifted Vulgora's chin slightly. "Let's keep this between us, yes?" He said. His voice was still slightly breathless, and felt something like velvet in the Pontifex's ears. The Baron then stood straight again, letting his hand linger on Vulgora's cheek briefly before he walked off, his fingers slipping off of them, leaving there a stain of blood. The courtier simply watched him go
After several minutes of staying in the pantry's doorway, they went back up to their quarters, laying flat on their bed again, and pacing once or twice in the room, letting all that... sink in.
They'd only uttered one word for the rest of the night...
