[ P ] family

Father. It was such a strange word for an orphan from the streets to use and especially for a man old enough to be his ancestor. There was a quiver in his step when Cecil Calyx walked. He played it off as excitement to greet his new son, but there was no warmth in his eyes when he touched noses with Mutt. "You cannot be named Mutt now that you are my son," he beckoned one of his servants closer and exchanged whispers. Mutt's odd ears were keen enough to catch the words. Your name? Good enough for him. The servant seemed reluctant, but bowed and murmured in agreement. "Valther. That is your name now." Mutt seethed that the old man had chosen something without consulting him. He forced a smile and thanked his new father for the gift of a name.

All his plans were coming together yet he didn't feel satisfied. Valther didn't feel like him. He'd been Mutt all his life and ignorantly thought he'd die as Mutt. He never considered it a name to be looked down upon, but a statement to rub in the faces of others when they did. His mood improved when he got permission to be the one to announce the good news to Eleanor himself. He asked the servants to prepare something special for dinner and they were eager to please their new young master. With a grin of satisfaction he perched himself at the table, awaiting the arrival of Eleanor.

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Had Eleanor known what awaited her when she stepped inside the Calyx manor, she might have reconsidered Freyja’s offer to join her crew and sail away from Rionna forevermore, as if physical distance was the only solution. Maybe it was. She had tried to scorn Mutt out of their lives, then kindness when that didn't work, hoping her complaints would then be taken seriously by her uncle if he saw her making an effort instead of acting like a spoiled brat that didn't want to share her favorite toys. Both of those measures only proved that Mutt was more persistent than she first thought. Did it speak too of Cecil's desperation to improve his own image?

The Calyx princess entered the home to a medley of tantalizing scents and the strangely avoidant eyes of her favorite servant. Valther always doted on her and told her stories in his familiar rasp, and his was the gaze she could read best. That he kept it downcast on his paws and did not greet her in their typical fashion set off alarm bells that made Eleanor hesitant to go further inside. It would not be unprecedented to find her uncle had ordered a feast for her imminent return to the college, but a little voice mocked her foolish optimism. Steeling herself, she stepped around the corner into the dining hall. “What is all this for?” Eleanor asked, voice tight with suspicion.

@Mutt

The newly named Valther sauntered around the dining table, snubbing the seat he had picked earlier for one more fitting of his noble rear. Shamelessly the place he chose himself was at the head of the table where the Lord of the manor feasted. Servants cast nervous glances at each other, bustling around and clattering at the table as dinner was served. They wanted to speak up at the audacity of the young master, but held their tongues and looked away meekly. They had been the first victims to become ensnared by his web and like puppets they danced along upon silky strands doing as he bid. ”We’re celebrating,” he let out a bark of laughter. ”We’re officially family. Father finally made it official,” Valther announced, heartily slamming a massive paw on the table in good cheer.

”He even picked a name out for me. Valther Calyx. It has a nice ring to it doesn't it? Very noble and lordly,” he chattered on, ignorant of the name’s lowly origins nor the fact that it wasn’t his alone. The arrogant yearling had finally accepted the new name that was given to him without his input and held himself with pride as if it was a golden crown sitting upon his head. Dirt brown eyes watched Eleanor expectantly for her reaction now that he had set the bait.

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Nope. Eleanor did not spare the imposter charading as a Calyx even a single second more before she turned on her heel and stormed away. ”Cecil!” Her call ricocheted off the immaculate white walls, hot with righteous fury. She did not call her uncle by his name often, reserving that for special occasions – like when she was certifiably pissed off.

The head of House Calyx was not a meek man. A lifetime of being surrounded by snakes offering poisoned apples made him immune to fear. He did not cower at court. It was his name being snarled through the home that struck him with the sensation now, eyes widening and tail curling between his legs. There was no use in turning tail and running. He knew there was no corner of this world where he could hide from the condemnation awaiting him. It was better to face his niece and atone for his sin, of which he knew was a grave misstep that was too late to fix.

”Valther? Of all the names in this godforsaken house, you chose Valther’s? You’re just going to take his name like it’s purchasable and give it t-to that creature you mistake for a son? Knowing what he means to me? Knowing he’s been more of a father to me than you’ll ever be to that thing?” Anger pulsed insidiously through Eleanor’s veins, beckoning her to lash out at Cecil, at Mutt, at everyone. She devoted so much of herself to trying to exterminate the rat that her uncle kept inviting in to eat their food and sleep in their beds only for him to repay her in this way, by giving the name of someone she loved to someone she loathed. The destruction that she would leave behind in her outrage was well-worth it if it would cause him a fraction of the pain he’d just exacted on her. The Calyx heir’s meticulously polished porcelain facade was cracking, exposing the savage animal beneath her domesticated etiquette.

@Mutt

The Calyx Cuckoo awaited her meltdown with the gleeful excitement of a pup being given a new toy to play with. A wicked grin adorned his face, muddy gaze holding a satisfied gleam. His smug expression was practically begging her to yell at him and when those haughty gemstone eyes dismissed him he felt insulted. It was Cecil's name that shook the house and his name died in the silence like the nothing that he was. The bitter self loathing that he watered down with faux arrogance was choking his ego with its toxicity again. Inside he became that worthless wretch of a pup again, snivelling and sobbing for his father.

He listened, like the outsider he was on the fringes of the family, to the argument unfolding. The name Valther was not inherited from an impressive ancestor and bestowed upon him as a gift. It was a lazy, afterthought, taken from the nearest servant and dumped on him to save Cecil Calyx the embarrassment of having a child named Mutt. Niven had called him a mutt as an insult and rejected him. He had made that name his own and wore it with pride to piss on the scorn that man showed him. He would do the same as Valther. It would become his name, one whispered with dread and reverence, when he finally achieved his dream. Everyone that looked down upon him would suffer. Cecil would pay for insulting him with the name of a servant and Eleanor would be punished too.

Valther feigned hesitation before he joined the quarrelling pair, intruding upon their argument without invitation. "I told you she was bullying me, Father. I've tried to be a good brother, but she hates me," he lied, sounding so convincingly heartbroken that he almost felt sorry for himself. "I'll go if that's what you want," he offered, knowing that Cecil Calyx would be reluctant to allow that. He would have told everyone by now of his new ward and if word got out that he had kicked him out it would damage his reputation. After some coaxing from Cecil to stay he made a big show of finally relenting and then looked back at Eleanor, eyes shining with crocodile tears. "Maybe Eleanor should go back to the dorms for a while. She's obviously not comfortable here and I'd hate to be a burden," he suggested as if it were for her sake and not merely a means of getting her out of the way.

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Cecil's silence was betrayal. He didn't seem keen to make any attempts at salvaging what he broke, instead it was to Mutt he looked for aid instead of Eleanor. She tried not to show how that open rejection stung her but her despondent features looked stricken. The anger she used to protect herself dissolved. Even on the day she lost her parents, her uncle had stepped into the space their deaths had created so she'd never had to experience the loneliness and isolation he was imposing on her.

"Maybe he's right." It was another test that Cecil failed when he said nothing to object to Mutt's suggestion that Eleanor should leave. He didn't defend her right to her home, couldn't even meet her eyes, but steadily looked at Mutt, seeking guidance from the false Calyx. It was more than she could stomach. "At least when I'm back at the dorms, there won't be any infestations to worry about."

Leaving now felt like surrender, but what more could she do? Mutt's claws were embedded into Cecil. Bicolored eyes leered at him from where she stood on the other side of the line she'd drawn in the side while they stood together as one. "He'll get bored of you too," she warned Mutt, hoping she might sow the seeds of fear in his heart as her last act before she left. "Once it becomes old news, your adoption will mean nothing to him. I'd so hate for you to end back up on the streets again," sarcasm twisted her falsetto so much that the true voice of Eleanor Calyx came forward, vile and wicked.

@Mutt

A triumphant gleam shone in Valther's muddy brown eyes revealing the truth behind his morose smile. He enjoyed watching Cecil turn his back on the girl he had claimed to cherish, all for the sake of his reputation. His vanity was his weakness. If a newly adopted son ran away from home just days after his good deed was announced to the world it would reflect badly upon him and Valther used that to his advantage. He pretended to be the victim and painted Eleanor as a bully. It was easier to let her go than let his newest golden goose leave the nest. She had served her purpose. Praise had been heaped upon the selfless uncle who had taken in his brother's child. Now that she was grown and independent she was no longer the darling little rose that his guests could ooo and ahhh over. His altruism had to reach new heights and Mutt was his answer. ”I’ll be sure to send letters. Don't forget to write back,” he retorted sweetly with passive aggressive kindness.

”Father loves me. He would never abandon his precious son. I’m his lucky charm,” he boasted, using his greater height to look down upon her. ”He needs me,” he said firmly, letting his words hang between them. He doesn't need you.

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Mutt's unspoken words hit her squarely in the chest. The only indication was the tension around Eleanor's eyes, creased at the edges, because she remained otherwise curled defensively, a snake ready to strike and flee. "He needed me once too," she reminded him, spitting venom at both the Calyx men, real and fake. The line between which was which was beginning to blur.

Eleanor blinked away the tears before they could fall. Unwilling to cry in front of them, she raised her chin. "Well, if you've nothing left to say, I can see myself out. I hope you enjoy being the lord of falsehoods and fleas," she addressed her uncle, barely deigning a parting glance at Valther. If she looked at him, she was scared to see the triumph in his eyes - and for him to see the heartbreak in hers.

It hurt her deeply to turn her back on Cecil when he was all she had left to hold onto, but he'd made it clear that her importance to him had been temporary. He'd been the first to turn his back yet it still tore at her insides to do the same. Suddenly the manor she grew up in felt cold and unwelcoming to her. The walls did not offer to house her confessions and secrets; anything she whispered into them now would slide off, unwanted. Eleanor hurried through, pausing only long enough to nuzzle Valther's muzzle in silent goodbye, but no matter how far she went, she still felt Mutt's victorious gaze branding into her skin.

- exit

@Mutt