Ever since Nicholas had been by to tell Neil of the dangers to Phoenix, Vincent hadn't left the boy's side, watching him much more than he should with how attached Phoenix had become. As one of the dead, Vincent hadn't planned to spend this much time with his grandson, but Phoenix's safety was more important than anything else. Whenever Neil was afraid to leave his grandson, Phoenix would remind him that 'grandpa was there', and the relief it gave Neil perplexed Vincent still.

Why did his son find his presence reassuring at all? Vincent had expected fear, anger, or resentment once Neil had shaken off the initial shock. Instead, Neil seemed calm as he went about his days, as calm as he could be before he'd learned of the danger to his children. Now even with the stress, when Neil spent time with Phoenix, he'd often look to the empty air behind him with that same smile or say things to him even though he couldn't see him.

Vincent had thought his son hated him so much that he'd have been disgusted to wake up anywhere near him, so Vincent had left his son to his grandson after reading the little glutton his stories. Phoenix hadn't liked his departure, and Vincent had worried about him until he'd tucked himself away in Neil's arms. It was essential that Phoenix leaned on his father, so Vincent didn't want to fill that position of a guardian to Phoenix, but Fiorello de Fleur and Dev Zehir were giving him little choice.

Juliana had been right. He should have kept himself distant from the children once he realized they could see him. Something selfish had driven him to Phoenix, perhaps a desire to be a parent to Neil where he'd failed before.

"Neil, we can't leave," Damien said as they prepared to depart in one of the back rooms. Doing so in plain sight was a bad idea.

That damnable mage, Darc Aurion, had literally been the death of him, even if he agreed with the man. Seeing Damien in those mage clothes even after his change made Vincent want to strangle the man. Darc had always favored an oriental fashion that dragged fabric down between his legs but cut up the hips, leaving his arms and legs free for mobility but flaunting his damn Aurion pride all over himself with the black and greys of his house. The man even had the high collar that closely hugged his neck to keep it covered from vampire attention.

"Damien, the Copses have several solid reports that vampires are slipping in on the borders," Neil countered, tugging on his Arc suit as he settled into it. They were a vision in black together, but Neil's breast was adorned with wisps on wind in silver and white embroidery. "They aren't all immune to allure, and they requested help. I can't leave them to death or capture for selfish reasons. They are as much my blood as my people. They are Silvia's family."

"Then at least leave me," Damien insisted. Of the men here, Damien was the strongest vampire the Arcs had for protecting Phoenix, but Ares was a close second. The issue with Ares was that his magic needed a pair to flourish, but it was moot to mention. There were many who would fight alongside Ares if need be.

"And what if this is a lure to capture me, weaken our house, and get at the children, Damien?" Neil asked, and his concern was just as valid. It was highly plausible for either Dev Zehir or Fiorello de Fleur to take out Neil.

Damien opened his mouth to protest again, but Neil raised a hand to silence him.

"I know you're worried about Phoenix, Damien. I'm worried about him as well, and it breaks my heart that we've had to split Isis and Silvia off so that they can't find us all in one predictable place. You and I are two of the strongest, so it's best we go together. Ares and my house are competent enough to protect my son. If anything happens here, we will return."

"It will take seconds to steal Phoenix, Neil," Damien replied, though his conviction had wavered. The man would go with his house head and protect him. "Protect him with your life, Ares." Damien turned to Neil's first general

Ares' copper eyes darkened at Damien, but the old general bowed his head in respect to Neil, his mahogany hair trailing the ground in its thin tie behind his head. Such words of request from Damien were pointless, as it was assumed Ares would give his life before allowing the child of his house head to so much as trip. Damien had a lot to learn about vampire etiquette, but at least he was loyal. Ares clearly shared Vincent's distaste for Damien's lineage, but he heeded him where his house's safety was concerned.

"I trust you with my family, Ares," Neil said, giving his general a bow back that was untold of from a house head to a general. With how Ares was more experienced and older, Neil respected him, and Neil's dealings with the mages had eased him from the rigid positions vampire houses held.

"Be safe, Neil," Ares replied, a gracious, tepid smile displaying on the man's normally war-hardened face. Vincent liked that Ares loved his son even if he'd barely tolerated him during his reign.

Neil knelt to give Phoenix a hug, and the tiny boy ran into his arms and jumped up on his shoulders. His dark hair flew through the air unkempt, unlike Neil who had his sheen of silver hair tied up because of its length.

"If you need help, it's okay," Neil said to his son, sliding a hand gently on Phoenix's cheek.

Neil had instructed Phoenix never to pull Vincent from the void without asking him fist, and Neil had yet to tell Damien and Ares that Phoenix held such power. Things were progressing too quickly, and Vincent knew Neil didn't want to stress his generals out. In saying the words to Phoenix, Neil was giving him permission to lean on his grandfather despite their agreement.

Phoenix nodded understandingly before skittering back behind Ares, just in front of where Vincent stood against the wall. Neil stood then, giving the air behind Phoenix a quick glance that Vincent knew was for him before Neil and Damien departed on a spell to the southeastern regions of the Copse borders.

"Double the border patrols, but pull them in," Ares instructed to Idus who waited in the back of the room. "I don't want anyone getting near this castle without notice."

Idus was known as the general of the black waters, using his magic to drag mages and vampires alike into a pool of his own magic and drowning them. Idus was also oldest among the generals Ares had personally sired and raised up, and the man sank into the corner like a shadow when he was still, dark from his short hair to his deep navy eyes. The only light that gave the man away was his light pallor, one much of the Arc house shared.

There was no one more competent to command in Ares absence, and Idus headed off to his task as Ares ushered Phoenix with him deeper into the castle. As they walked, Ares frowned at the new toy Phoenix had found to hang onto. It was a pillow, one Vincent had instructed the boy keep on him for safety. Ares didn't like it, knowing the thing had been Vincent's personal possession, but Ares was powerless to take it without Neil's permission.

It wasn't so much a comfort item, as it was a weapon, but Vincent saw no reason to tell Phoenix that. The boy liked hugging the fabric to his side, keeping it with him as he walked like a friend. It was certainly of size to be a companion compared to Phoenix, but the boy had no difficulty dragging it along. The once pearl fabric had faded to beige, and pressed to Phoenix's dark hair and attire, it brought out the crimson in his eyes.

The moment Neil returned, Ares was going to demand it be returned to the storage room again. Why it hadn't been trashed was still beyond his general. Ares had demanded they throw out the old tapestries, linens, and relics from Vincent's rule, but Neil had given in on only some.

The tapestries hung from the high ceilings to the floor, black and grey embroidered densely with silver thread from the point at the bottom to the top where the Arc standard shined on each. It was customary to change the tapestries, since no house held an emblem to represent them that lasted more than a house head's reign, but Neil had left them up until they had time to fashion ones in his image. It was better than open windows on vampires, and Ares had agreed, though distastefully.

So they walked between halls of long black fabric adorned with a silver-embroidered seven-pointed star on each. How many points it had hadn't been important to Vincent, as long as it used silver thread, a lot of silver thread. Silver was Vincent's calling after all, and Phoenix was no safer then surrounded by the fabric and hugging a pillow full of a similar dust, hidden away in a sealed bag beneath all the stuffing.

As much as Ares needed to protect Phoenix, they kept to his normal schedule to maintain a sense of calm. It was the best they could do to give Phoenix some peace, and the boy enjoyed the classes they held each afternoon with the lesser generals. They learned everything from Arc histories and ruling practices to house lineage and territory boundaries. They were all classes to prune a future ruler, but Phoenix ate all the information up, often bouncing and showing off his work to Vincent when the generals weren't too focused on him.

They didn't make it to the classroom before Ares stopped, however. Vincent sensed the intrusion just as Ares did. It was from a Copse transportation spell, which was why Ares hadn't initially paid it mind, but only a moment later, the aura of the Fleurs filled the halls. Not a one of the Copses would have willing brought them here knowing the situation, which meant they'd used allure to control a human. That was something Lorenzo was hardlined against, but getting the children was worth compromising his morals, it seemed.

The Fleurs came on them like a storm, Lorenzo's presence pushing ice into the room that would have any human's eyes freezing on contact. It crawled the walls in jagged spikes, covered the floor in a slippery sheen, and had the glass in the windows groaning from the temperature drop.

Phoenix was primarily human, and Lorenzo using his power in such a wanton way forced Ares to cast a shield spell around the boy. It was all the instant it took. Damien was correct. Vampires moved like lightening, killed in seconds, kidnapped in moments. That single spell to protect Phoenix used Ares focus long enough for Asmodeus de Fleur to slip up behind him.

Asmodeus took form out of illusion of water that had hid him from sight, and the Fleur general bound Ares body and extremities with a water spell that solidified into ice as Lorenzo de Fleur stepped into the room. It wasn't the ice that held Ares so much as the magic within it. Ares could fight Asmodeus head on easily, but not Lorenzo. They'd used the Copses' comfortable magic and Phoenix's safety to gain the seconds they'd needed to detain him.

The Fleurs were brutally tactical in execution, even if they looked like a bunch of idiots with that blue hair. Ares eyes neared crimson as he flared his power and growled in agony. Phoenix was alone and unprotected save for a shield spell that was meant to keep him warm, and Ares was powerless under a house head's power. Lorenzo was as powerful as any of them even if he chose not to fight often. It was his power that gave him the luxury to abstain from fighting without appearing weak. 

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