Hush (ManxMan)

7: More Than You Can Eat

                   

I found myself sitting at the dinner table wishing that I was instead diving head first off of a cliff, though it was unsettling that sitting at the dinner table felt like that anyway.

It was a long table, and I noticed that it was made of chestnut. If it was like anything else Franz owned, probably very antique too. The twins were sitting on the opposite side of the table from me. It was strange and awkward how they weren't talking. They had brought me here early, despite their claims that we were going to be late. Anyway, why would they feed me if I was supposed to be joining them for dinner? Wouldn't it be rude if I didn't eat?

"When papa comes in we have to stand." Erste informed me, and I welcomed the shattering of the silence.

I simply nodded my head as I observed the pot of flowers in the center of the table. They were daisies, which was very uncommon as a table flower and contradicting to the supernatural setting of it all: what with the dark room, velvety and red dining chairs and wood paneled walls. The pot was made of copper and looked old, but old in a way that made me think of children's stories of girls and boys skipping down a hill with a pail.

Zweist began rocking impatiently, ticking back and forth in his chair like the pendulum of a clock, come to tell us how long we all have been waiting. "Ugh, how can he tell us not to be late if he's going to be late anyway?" He complained.

"Just shut up. You know how he gets."

I quirked an eyebrow. "So who's Wilhelmus anyway?" I interjected.

Erste rolled his eyes, "Our grandfather." He replied nonchalantly.

"Basically." Zweist added.

Why did I have to meet their grandfather? And basically? Before I could ask Zweist to elaborate, a door opened and in came Franz. His small body was engulfed in gray fur and only his pale little hands were visible. His blond hair was pulled back into his ever present pony tail, and tied with a black bow. He came to and stood by the head chair on my left. It was taller than mine and the brother's, accented with gold and phenomenally plumped with cushion. More like a throne than something you sit on to eat.

It was then that I realized I wasn't standing and looked to the brother's hoping that we had all messed up, but I was alone in my mistake yet again. Hastily, I stood up just as the door opened again and a very dapper older man came in.

I was stumped by his handsomeness, very. If only we could all age like that. His hair was as white as the clouds and seemed at light as them too. It was around the same length as Heinz's hair, and he dressed very dapper. His face was surrounded by his slightly salt and pepper beard. He was donned in a crisp white, and slim fitting suit. However, his look was the only think nice about him because his face was cold and stony. It was as if as soon as he stepped into the dining room, his eyes immediately found my face and he hasn't let it go since.

We continued standing until Franz and presumably Wilhelmus sat down. Once we did, servers came around and filled all of our glasses, except for me and the twins. We got a special server who I assumed poured me actual wine instead of... well, the alternative. For a while we all just sat and sipped quietly. I looked around and Franz, for once, was only looking in his lap. When Zweist noticed that I had noticed that he began to smirk and I suspect he was going to chuckle but Erste jabbed him with his elbow.

"So," Said a deep and commanding voice. It crashed down on the silence like tumultuous waves on a bed of rocks. It was Wilhelmus. "This is your new toy?" He commented. He too, like Franz and Heinz, had a German accent and I should have expected that with a name like Vil-Hel-Mus.