The Red Guard: Vampire Hunters of Vatican City

Chapter Eight - Oath of Reparation

Chloe looked at herself in the mirror one last time before she opened the door for Gregory. She looked absolutely bizarre. The nun's habit fell all the way to the floor, covering the matronly shoes that had been provided for her. Her hair was completely covered with the covering Catholic nuns typically wear. She held the cross from around her neck in her hands for a moment and rolled her eyes. For someone who had not been raised in the church, this all seemed sacrilegious.

She opened the door and looked at Gregory. He smiled in return. "You look good as a nun," he said.

"Ha," she replied without humour. She looked back to her friends who were sitting on the love seat. "Wish me luck," she muttered.

"Good luck," they said in unison.

With a deep sigh, Chloe followed Gregory down the hall. He slowed down so that she could walk beside him. "I will warn you that His Holiness is not in the best of moods this morning. There have been some more tourists slain in the last couple of days. It is, truly, bad for the nation. It makes him feel unwell. He worries about the people." Chloe muffled a snort, but not very well. Gregory looked at her with questioning eyes. "Are you okay?" he asked.

Chloe marvelled at the fact Gregory clearly had no idea what was going on. Or, perhaps he did and didn't have a problem with it. She hoped his views originated from ignorance and not apathy for the poor in this world. "I'm fine," she lied. She was not fine at all. She worried that the pope would see through her empty promises. She would have to work hard to convince him that she was one hundred percent on his side. "Hopefully I will be able to help His Holiness feel better," she said as sweetly as she could. She felt a little bit better herself when she saw Gregory smile at her with appreciation.

"That's very nice. He is approaching his twilight years and it would be wonderful if he could rule peaceably," Gregory said. Chloe nodded with a smile, but she thought he chose interesting words. They were almost a warning. She made a mental note that, while Gregory was her saviour with respect to her personal comforts, she would have to watch what she said around him. He was obviously a devout Catholic servant. Completely loyal to the Pope.

They climbed several flights of stairs and Chloe noticed she made it up without losing her breath at all. Gregory started to breathe a little bit harder as they approached the top. "It never fails," he said, "my muscles always start to burn by the top." He glanced over at her, waiting for her to agree.

"I know what you mean," she said. And a week ago, she would have felt the burn in her legs for real. But she didn't feel it anymore. She felt like she could climb stairs forever and not get tired at all.

Finally they reached a very fancy door. It was an intricately carved door made out of wood with what appeared to be golden highlights. She marvelled at the wealth on display. In any direction she looked there was gold and attention paid to the smallest little details. Vatican City was an amazing place to behold.

There were Swiss Guards standing outside the Pope's chambers. They looked smart in their billowing uniforms. They nodded to Gregory as friends would, and proceeded to open the doors. They stood aside and watched Chloe carefully as she walked through.

Upon entering the grand room, Chloe saw the Pope sitting at an ornate table with piles of papers surrounding him. He appeared to be reading over some sort of manuscript before signing it. He glanced up when he heard her feet shuffling along the ground. He frowned a little bit as she approached. "You look different in a nun's habitat," he said gruffly.

"Doesn't everybody? I mean, tucking your hair away can really change a girl... uh, Your Holiness," Chloe tried to keep things light. It was probably inappropriate, but it was also who she was, most of the time.