Preliminary Investigation
POV: Derek
I was tasked with investigating what happened to the ward that Darren Batiste was given from the Seely Realm. Tyleesh had departed from Blackwood Manor when he was just seventeen years old. He had been missing for eighteen months and in that time, Darren had been investigating on his own. He didn’t get very far from the notes he gave me. Darren Batiste was brilliant in many things as he was a very well-read person. This was a trait he passed down to his son and granddaughter from my observation of the Batiste Family. I smiled at the thought of my friend being so lost in a book that she didn’t hear when someone called out to her. She loved reading Terre classics or that is what she called them. It did help that Teddy had brought the journals that Tyleesh had left at the Befent estate. I started with the journals to see if I could find any information from them. I decided to see if I could find anything from the very last entry in his journal:
“Today, I met with the mysterious man that I was learning a new magic from. He was able to show me how I could tap into the earth magic that I naturally had. Duchess Befent had a dead rose bush that I was able to revive based on the spellbook the mysterious man gave me. I loved that I could take a dead plant and make it new again. The Duchess was very thankful since this was a rose bush that her father-in-law had planted on the day the Duke was born. It had sentimental value to her and I am excited to share this news with Master Darren when I return next month. His granddaughter had a favorite tree in Terre that had burned down from an unfortunate accident that I am hoping to revive for her. I have not met Xan yet but I have heard so much about her that I feel like I know her quite well as my own sister by now. I just hope she is accepting that I am half-fae and I can be something of a brother to her as well. Master Darren also promised to take me to see Panshad upon my return. I am excited to see him again and to see my sister again. Regretfully, I was not able to say goodbye to our mother but I know that she was well cared for by His Highness Prince Blake. The Royal Family has been so kind to our House. Master Darren has also said that Master Reginald might give me the Blood Oath which would make me an official member of House Batiste. There is so much to look forward to next month and the year to come that I cannot wait to return home.”
Tyleesh seemed like he had a lot going for him so I don’t believe he left on his own. He did mention a mysterious man. I had wondered if this was a possible clue to his disappearance. I flipped through the journal and started to skim to find any mention of a mysterious man. Alexandra poked her head through my bedroom door, “Derek? Are you in there?” I looked up and shouted, “I’m here. What’s up?” She stepped into the room, she was wearing a long red dress with long sleeves but she was also barefooted, “I came to see if you need anything. Ash said you didn’t eat breakfast and had a very light lunch. Can I get you some tea or a snack?” I smiled at her, “That’s very thoughtful, Lex. I think I could use some tea and a little fruit.” She nodded, “Perfect. Jess is actually in the kitchen now cutting up some fruit. I can send her up with the fruit and tea if you’d like.” She winked at me knowing full well that she was trying to create a scenario where Jess and I could spend some time alone. I nodded, “That would be great. Thanks, Lex.” She nodded and looked at the journals sitting on my table, “So are you finding anything?” I sighed, “Well, your grandfather didn’t get very far in his investigation so it’s good that the pros are handling it now. Tyleesh mentions a mysterious man who gave him a spellbook and how he gained the ability to revive plants.” Lex nodded, “Grandfather said that Tyleesh had a knack for earth magic. He was also very good at water magic which is the perfect duo to grow plants. It doesn’t surprise me that he was able to gain such a power. Teddy said that he would grow jasmine in Duchess Befent’s garden all the time.” I didn’t know what jasmine was since this was not a plant that grew native to Vellum. I asked her, “What is jasmine and how did he know about it?” She looked taken aback, “Oh! I just assumed it was a native plant here since there are some in the garden here. They are the large vines on the wall out back with the fragrant white flowers.” I knew what she meant when she gave this description, “Oh the ones that perfume the air when it rains?” She smiled and nodded, “Yes, they are my grandfather’s favorite because of that. The humans use them for aromatherapy.” Again she confused me, “And what is aromatherapy?” She sighed, “Humans take certain scents like the musk vanilla plant native to Vellum and create oils out of them. They soak the plant in an oil to bring the scent out and then they burn the oils to create a mood-enhancing environment. Does Vellum have lavender?” I nodded, “Yes, the witches brought that plant with them when they immigrated to Vellum.” She smiled, “So the humans will make oils out of lavender to create a sense of calm in their environment. This is helpful when they are stressed out.”
This aromatherapy thing that she was talking about was fascinating to me but I didn’t want to keep her much longer. Jess lived in Terre for a time so I figured I could ask her about it. Lex smiled, “I think I will grab Jess to bring you snacks. Sit tight.” I nodded and smiled, “Thanks, Lex.” I went back to skimming the journals and stopped when I found the first mention of the mysterious man. He talks about how he was working out in the garden of the Befent Estate. He told him that he had a unique type of magic that needed to be cultivated. He goes on to talk about how the man would visit him once or twice a week bringing him new spells to try out. From what I can tell, this man was testing out his abilities. I have a feeling that he was possibly abducted by this man but this was a mere theory. I would have to go out to the Befent Estate and question people out there. I would head out there tomorrow since that is when the Duke and Duchess were expecting me. They offered a place to stay for a few days while I conducted my investigation. They were more than grateful that I was going to investigate the disappearance of their son’s mentor.
Jess knocked on my door and brought in a tray with some cut-up fruit and some green tea with honey. She smiled at me as she placed the snack and tea in front of me, “How goes the investigation so far?” I sighed, “I really can’t say that I’ve solved the disappearance. What I can say is that he didn’t leave on his own. Here, look at the last page of the journal and you tell me that is someone that ran away from their life.” I handed the journal to Jess, it was opened to the page with the last entry. She sat and read it. As she read on a crease formed in between her eyebrows, “That is troubling. Do you think this mysterious man had something to do with his disappearance?” I nodded, “That’s my hunch but I want to go out there to ask around to see if anyone there saw anything suspicious. Perhaps we can then determine what happened to him from there.” She looked out the window, “I hope you can find him for Darren. He’s such a sweet old man and I know he is awfully worried for him. I don’t want him to leave this world not knowing what happened to his ward. If they were going to adopt him into House Batiste, he had to have been very precious to Darren.” I shrugged, “I don’t know about all that. From what I understand of Darren, he welcomes the wayward souls with no other family. I can only guess Reggie has inherited that bleeding heart from his father.” She giggled, “If Alexandra is any indication, I would say that was a strong possibility. She always has to solve the world’s problems. Her determination is both admirable but also exhausting to watch.”
I placed the pen that I had in my hand to write down notes and sighed, “It’s kind of amazing to watch this family work though. They are very tight-knit, even Ash. My family isn’t anything close to that. My father seemed rather disinterested in the fact that I was going to be doing my first guard job. He was only interested when I said who it was. He told me not to fail the name Chalshin and to gain favor with House Batiste. I sometimes wonder if House Chalshin is really so different from House Maigny.” I looked out the window to the setting sun where the sun stained the clouds with a beautiful pink hue. I felt a hand on my hand, “Your house is nothing like that of the Maignys. Every house in Vellum wants more power or at least be one protected by the house with the power. It’s only natural for a parent to tell their child to gain the favor. My father told me the same when he sent me off to stay with the Batistes. He was friends with Reggie in university but he wanted to make sure we continued to foster the friendship. My father had a feeling, also, that Alexandra would be part of the Royal Family one way or another. Gaining favor with House Batiste would only be natural to them. To us, it is just being friends with a naturally kind sort of people. I know we cannot choose our family but we can choose to raise our own families to be better than the generation before us.” I looked at her beautiful blue eyes and placed my other hand on top of hers, “Do you ever think of the future? Who would you marry and have kids with? Er, I guess I forgot to ask if you ever wanted kids.” She blushed, “I think about my future all the time. I have someone in mind and I would definitely want kids with him.” She stared into my eyes and she leaned over then pecked me on the cheek, “I think I need to go though. Xan and I are going to be fixing dinner tonight as a sort of send-off for you.” My eyes widened, “What are you making?” She smiled and shook her head, “Nope, I’m not saying. It’s a surprise.” She started to rush out of the room, giggling as she went but I grabbed her hand before she could. I twirled her around into my arms and I kissed her gently on her lips.
