Red Riding Hood | BoyxBoy | COMPLETED

The Madame

Fawkes' POV

When I set out, the first few places I check don't give me anything. But I had yet to complete the list that Lord Jacob provided, so I move on to the next when my search doesn't pan out.

Only once I find an inconspicuous building called 'The Harem', my mind flashes with a crowd of extremely alluring people standing before me. I know, then, that I've found the right place.

It's still light, so the pub front is quite empty and devoid of the usual patrons. But that matters not. I am here to speak to the Madame, so I ask the solitary bartender.

He maintains an unreadable expression, not driving me away but not heeding my request either. Even so, he must have some way to alert her, because the place quiets and I turn to find her standing right behind me.

"Your thoughts are loud," the Madame told me. "And I am not she. I am Them." A veil shrouded the top half of their face.

I dip into a low bow. "My apologies. How may I address you instead?"

They smirk. "Cute. My harem will eat you up. Call me Madame."

I nodded. "Yes, Madame."

They press a hand to their flat chest with a pleased smile, the black lace at their wrist fluttering at the movement. "Come with me, you handsome charmer," they say in their low, lilting voice.

A sudden apprehension grips my chest, but it fades just as quickly. I follow them.

They lead me to a darkly luxurious living room and proceed to lounge on the settee while l stood awkwardly by the door.

"Sit down," they said. I obeyed. "What do you want to know?"

I sit on the edge of my loveseat because I want to avoid getting swallowed by the cushions, which I believe is the intention of such pieces of furniture. "I'm looking for information on an incubus," I told them. "I'm hoping for your aid with an incident about two seasons ago."

They hum to themselves. "Which incubus? I have many in my harem."

"The one that was killed at the festival."

"Why do you want to know?" they ask sharply.

"I have reason to believe that the incubus was working with someone else to target a member of the royal family."

They laugh humourlessly. "Is it your reason to believe or the royal family?"

My chin tips up and I meet their eyes. "Both."

We sit in silence for a moment, neither of us willing to give in. I am fully aware that they can throw me out anytime. It is perhaps this thought that lets them soften; they offer me a piece of information. "None of mine was involved," they say.

It is a warning and a clue. I nodded my acknowledgement. "Thank you," I said. "With your permission, may I speak to some of your...harem, to see if they know anything about the foreign incubus?"

I let them study me, sitting as still as I can. From behind a curtain that must conceal a doorway comes two ladies and a man. No, they are part of the Madame's harem. I was looking at an incubus and two succubi.

My head was blessedly painless since I stepped foot into 'The Harem'. The Madame was unpredictable, and it was refreshingly so. Standing quickly, I introduced myself to the three newcomers.

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentleman. I am Captain Fawkes."

The incubus snaps open a fan and hid behind it, but not before I catch a glimpse of an amused smile. The succubi, one in a feathery robe and the other wearing a slip dress, both curtsy to me. I ignore the flare of arousal at being near so many creatures whose livelihoods depend on sex.

"Ask them your questions, Captain." The Madame goes to stand behind their people. They are almost a half a head taller than their people.

"Please, have a seat," I tell them. They occupy the settee that the Madame had vacated. "Did any of you recognise the incubus at the festival two seasons ago?"

The incubus shakes his head, fan fluttering as he watches me over the edge. "There are many who come to visit when we have our festivals. It is too lucrative to turn away foreigners," said the robed Succubus. The other one simply nods her agreement.

"I see. Let me be more specific," I continue. "Did any of you recognise the incubus who was killed at the festival?"

Both succubi shake their heads. "No," said the incubus, fanning himself with sharper strokes. "But he should not have come."

It was that sudden outburst that had my attention. "Why do you say that?" I asked.

He snaps the fan shut. It is the first time I have seen his face properly and my breath catches at the delicate jawline. "Edenis is a safe haven for our kind," he says. "But when a foreign demon comes in and attacks the Prince of Nasales, I'm sure you can imagine how damaging that would be for our reputation."

"You knew the Prince was here?" I was under the impression that they were not officially visiting. Only Lord Jacob and Lady Sarah should have known.

The Succubus in the slip dress says, "We heard he had come for the festival, but we didn't try for his attention once we realised that he hadn't come alone."

"A pity," the robed one murmurs. "Werewolves have so much vitality."

"Yes, it was very unfortunate for us," the incubus muttered. "That the only two werewolves in Edenis were taken."

My eyebrows raised. "Who was the other werewolf?"

He shrugs. The robed succubus answered my question instead. "We do not know. He was wearing so much glamour and only interested in talking to one incubus." She pouts delicately. "And he didn't even feed on the wolf."

A fan snaps open again. "Captain," he says demurely. "Would it please you to know what I heard?"

I smile wryly, my attention on him once more. "I'm sure it would."

"I must warn you, Captain, that I have no context of the words and it could simply be my active imaginations." I gestured for him to continue and he did. "I passed by on one of my rounds and heard the wolf say "out of the way" to the foreigner. Of course," he carried on, "that could have been to the foreigner since he left immediately after."

"Who left immediately after?"

His fan flutters. "Both. The foreigner left and just as I was about to approach the wolf, so did he."

"And how do you know all these?"

"Because they were in my tavern," said the Madame from behind. I jumped, having forgotten their presence. "Are you satisfied, Captain Fawkes?" they asked.

"May I return if I have more questions?" I replied to their question with one of my own.

They nodded. I was reminded of a queen gracing her subjects. "Then I am satisfied." I stand. "Thank you for your cooperation," I say with a bow.

The Madame touches my cheek with a faint smile on their face. "Go now."

Four of them watch as I step out into the afternoon sun. Immediately, I stumble from the splitting pain in my head. Though my eyes are closed, I see refracted light much like being underwater. There's water, so much water. Someone catches me before I could fall, and the sudden vanishing of my pain is so much relief that my vision darkens completely.