Second chance of the villainess

2

Black beast got up, while it's form was four legged is still was very tall, aroud 8 feet. Big black snout was so clouse to Ellaise face, she felt it's warm breath on her skin. She looked in creature's eyes but it looked down and didn't met her gaze. Instead it lowered it's head and waited.

Ellaise almost gulped again when she lifted her hand and touched soft fur on beast's head but she had to act naturally, as she still didn't knew that this quitly wimpering almost like a puppy creature will be sole reason of her death. She caressed soft wolfish ears. She remembered very clearly pure hatred inside Veran's eyes. Should she be grateful for that he only pointed his sword at her neck instead reaping it of by himself? Chills went down her spine.

"What are you doing in the main building? You have scared my maid" Ellaise said coldly. Maybe a little too much that she intended. But Ellaise couldn't helped it. 

Large beast lowered it's head even lower than before almost touching floor with it snout. Ellaise couldn't stop but think that all this obedience and loyalty was nothing but fake. All lies...

"What is your dog doing here?" Ellaise immediately looked where this hostile voice same from. Beast changed it's position to be exactly between her and the newcomer, deep growl started forming in it's chest.

Before Ellaise stood the second son of the Duke Kroudel, Eugene. Second bastard as she liked to call him in her thoughts. He looked a lot like his mother, late Duchess with light pink hair, that were short and a little bit messy. His facial features looked gentle and beautiful only golden ayes that he get from the Duke were sharp. He hated Ellaise from bottom of his heart and she hated him even more.

The only difference  was that he deserved the hate that she had for him. He worked for this for so so many years. She didn't wanted to replace the first Ellaise, she didn't even had a say in that one.

"Second brother" she greeted him coldly. The old her would corrected him about "her dog". Eugene knew well how to get under her skin, it was easy, all what it took was decline to reffer to Veran as a human being. But it didn't worked right now. No, now she knew that Veran realy is just a traitorous beast that will eventually kill her in one way or the other. The person she knew and trusted was dead for her, Veran that she trusted could didn't even exist in the first place. 

Nothing but lies.

Eugene was suprised at lack of cold remark. She looked back at beast near her.

"Go back. You shouln't be here". He looked at her almost askind 'You sure?' with his eyes. She didn't liked the idea of being alone with the second bastard but there was a maid in her chambers. Ellaise were supraised as she realised that she would rather be alone with this bastard than spend even one more moment near Veran. Funny...

Beast stopped growling nad took on step back watching Eugene closely. Ellaise heard craks as The Change was starting. Beast's muscles were shifting, shrinking as in transformed in more humanoid looking creature, still large and covered in fur, still kinda wolfish but human enough to formulate a sentence.

"YeS, MaStEr" Veran bowed to her, looked once more at Eugene and left without even the slightest bow.

Ellaise froze in place. Totally shocked... "Master"... What happend to "My Lady"? Veran didn't called her like that in years. He changed "master" to "my Lady" after some more than 5 months since she brought him to this mansion. Just by looking at her and Eugene's apearances alone she could have been brought back in time year at most. What happened? What was that sudden change? Especially when she told him specificaly to never adres her that way ever again.

She shook her head.

"Clever" Eugene uterred with a smug smirk on his lips and anger inside his golden eyes. "You knew I'll come here so you brought your dog with you. Unrelated man cannot enter here but a damn beast that could go rampant any moment is a different story" he mocked. But one is true.

No one dares to angry "Kroudel's Beast". Especialy when it is about to go rampant. Not even The Duke himself. There is... well... There was only one person that could talk through to Varen when "The Change" happened and the beast overtook him. 

Even so smug and full of fury Eugene froze in his steps moment ago when he noticed "Kroudel's Beast" upon her door.

"I ordered him nothing" Ellaise said with head up. She wasn't scarred of Eugene especially not now when she knew what is it all about and a big part of second bastard's fury flew away after very close encounter with Veran. "I don't have a reason to avoid you, brother, especially if I didn't even knew you would come." 'What you would thinkt I would hide from you? Don't make me laugh, you didn't deserved that' Yeah she didn't want to be alone with him but it wasn't something she couln't handle. She would long be gone if it was the case.

"Come in, brother. Don't stand like that in the hallway". 

Ellaise turned back and went to her chambers. She sat at a comfy sofa near the table. Enora, seeing Eugene entering the room after her Lady, quickly fetched some tea and stood in the corner of the room waiting for futhers orders.

Ellaise started sipping tea looking straight in Eugene's eyes. They battled at stares for a while. In the end it was Eugene who took out white envelope from his pocket but didn't avert his gaze.

"Do you know what is inside?" he asked angrily gritting his teath.

"How could I if I didn't had a chance to read it". It was a lie. She knew exacly what that was written in the letter. Ellaise took another sip. Eugene glared at her and tossed her envelope.

Ellaise remembered  a very similar scene, but that time Veran didn't enter the main bulding. Eugene stormed into her chambers without even knocking, tossed the letter at her face and started accusing her straight away.

She took letter out from the opened envelope and began read it's content once more.

"If you think you can bring whoever you want into the mansion you are wrong. There is no way one more beggar will enter Klousen family! I don't care if she is your sister or whoever or even if father had given you permision..."

"I don't have any relatives  on whoever sides" Ellaise cut in. Eugene wanted to say something but she cut in once more. "I also don't know about anyone called Fiona Resegrad. If you still think it is my doing I will personaly go with you, brother, to the Duke. I'm sure father will answer all your questions and clear all misunderstandings.