Lord Theodore's Favorite Ritual
Chapter 90: Lydia Being Lydia, His Love.

Chapter 90: Lydia Being Lydia, His Love.

Evening.

Parlour, Theodore Mansion.

Critic Arley, Critic-Ishire.

***********

"The box" Helena reminded Lydia about the gift box from her husband. Helena was a lover of gifts.

"You are right" Lydia took the box from the side table and placed it on her lap.

Helena perked up. "What is it?"

"Come closer" Lydia invited as she took off the first cover.

"It is... Red" Lydia’s sentence cut short when she felt a nudge and a purr, she looked down and it was her white bundle of cuteness.

She dropped the box and picked Red up with a smile, he seemed heavier today she thought but it was nevertheless cute and hers.

"Helena meet Red, my cat" Lydia introduced, placing the fluffy let on her lap.

Helena nodded with a smile but as she met the cat’s golden eye her smile froze.

This was not an ordinary cat, she thought.

This must be the beast.

He exists.

She had felt it, almost had a vision of it, but he was too strong she couldn’t watch him. He transforms too. She looked at Lydia and wondered if she knew the pet was a beast.

It had a soft glow around its fur and was glaring at her.

"It is indeed cute, but I think it is glaring at me," Helena said.

The cat snarled when Helena tried to touch and that is when Lydia confirmed Red was being moody.

"I think he is shy, you know, strangers and pets" Lydia tried to explain Red’s behaviour.

Helena laughed it off. "No, my energy must be triggering him" she confessed.

She wanted to pick it up, he would be harmless if she was.

Lydia looked lost. "Energy?"

She noticed her slip-up. It seems Lydia is clueless about a lot of things. "Never mind, do you want to give it?"

Helena’s arms were stretched as she asked but Lydia was wary.

"But what if it scratches you, he had once" she said, talking about the day Red had scratched Joyous.

Helena laughed softly again. "He would not dare, let me" Lydia handed the cat.

"Hello, Red" Helena whispered as she took the snarling cute cat and ran her palm through its head.

It merely needed to be introduced to the witch, if she had intentions towards Lydia Red would’ve been transforming already.

Helena smiled at the now purring cat while Lydia shook her head going ahead to see the contents of the box.

"Oh it is a fan" Lydia muttered still unravelling the gift.

"A bunch of fans" Helena pointed out, her pupils exited.

Lydia didn’t know how to feel. "But the weather is changing soon" she commented, it was soon to be winter and then the fans would have to be kept for the next season.

"The last months are always hellish" Helena reminded as they were now in a new month.

"This is such a thoughtful gift" she added at Lydia’s silence.

"I should share with you" the lady of Critic Arley announced.

Helena appeared stunned. "A husband’s gift to his wife? I wouldn’t dare" she confessed.

Lydia resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "You are silly, what colours do you care for?"

There were some ridiculous rules about never sharing a gift from one’s husband but that was just greedy women speaking, she thought.

Helena shrugged. "You should pick yours first" she offered.

"I like every colour," Lydia said with a frown.

Helena cracked up. "No wonder he got you every colour" she noted. "There are so many of them" she pointed out.

Every damn colour.

"For every dress, he would say," Lydia said trying to mimic her husband’s voice.

Helena swooned.

Lydia decided to be precise, so Helena could pick. "I especially like blue, green, and red" she

"I like black, white, and sometimes yellow or pink"

"And there are the extra colours" Lydia added, she really did like every colour and it was hard choosing those colours but the blue of Theodore’s eyes will always be her favourite.

"We’re so different yet alike," Helena thought out loud.

They laughed and chatted and soon Dorothy started to set the table, the friends could go to the dining hall but Helena was a rebel who persuaded Lydia they eat wherever they wanted.

The table was adorned with a sumptuous spread of delicacies made by Hound and the girls.

Among the offerings were dainty cucumber sandwiches, their crusts meticulously trimmed, filled with thinly sliced cucumbers and perhaps a hint of butter.

Alongside, were trays of delicate finger sandwiches filled with smoked salmon, egg salad, or thinly sliced ham, all served on fine white bread.

Small cakes and pastries, intricately decorated with frosting and edible flowers, graced the centre of the table, tempting the new friends with their sweet aroma.

A pot of freshly brewed tea stood at the ready, its fragrant steam rising gently, while crystal glasses held sparkling elderflower cordial.

The food reflected the refinement and elegance of the mansion and Hound’s cooking inviting the friends to indulge in a leisurely repast amidst the beauty of their surroundings.

They talked as they ate prompting them to eat a lot and soon the table was cleared by the maids.

"Your mansion is daunting" Helena commented, stifling a yawn.

Lydia looked around as though unaware. "I agree, It is warmer than it had been, I could tour you around it" she offered with a smile.

Helena’s eyes water as she stifled another yawn. "No, I feel too full, perhaps another day," she said softly.

"You are supposed to walk around if you feel too full"

She laughed softly. "Conan never told me that, and I normally just get sleepy after eating"

Lydia suddenly looked concerned. "Are you going to get sleepy soon?"

Helena yawned this time. "Yes, I shall have to leave" she confessed.

She hated herself for this sometimes but she had been carried away by the gist and bonding she forgot she was stuffing different delicacies into her body. The unmistakably delicious meal too made it impossible to stop eating.

"Dorothy package this and please get Conan" Lydia told the maid her eyes landed on.

Dorothy bowed. "Yes lady Theodore," she said before leaving to carry out the task.

She returned with the packing satchel but before Lydia could ask where Conan was Helena spoke. "Thank you for being so nice Lydia" she whispered.

"Thank you for coming to deliver it, it was lovely of you" Lydia returned with a small smile.

"Oh stop it" Helena said with a laugh.

They were like lost sisters who fate had found a way to bring together making them click and settle like correct puzzle pieces.

*

* *

*

Evening.

Office, Theodore Mansion.

Critic Arley, Critic-Ishire.

***************

The friends and lord with his right-hand man had stepped inside the office for a while now but Theodore hadn’t said a word still.

A maid had entered to drop a jug of chilled lemonade but Conan wasn’t relaxed enough to pick a glass.

"Theodore" he called out the man who had been spacing out since despite holding a glass.

He faced the knight. "Conan who is that?"

He knew who Theodore was referring to so he answered quickly. "A friend"

"What is she doing in your house?"

Conan looked like he was contemplating his reply before he asked too. "Living off me?"

"Where did you get her from?"

Conan remains silent, staring straight into the Lord’s eye, without bulging.

Theodore sighed. "Conan she looks almost exactly like my wife, I need to know who she is," he said. The coincidence is too unimaginable, he needed to know what was happening.

"Who is the witch you are looking for?" Conan asked instead, he had been curious.

Theodore’s spine straightened. "Is she a witch?"

Conan shook his head. "I am unaware of that fact"

"Have you tried to find out?"

"She is not evil" Conan defended her.

Theodore narrowed his eyes before agreeing. "Yes if she used the gates and bore no ill intention, she should be safe" he pinched the space between his brows.

Conan then frowned. "So why are you so disturbed?"

"Lydia calls her soul mate" Theodore snarled, genuinely pissed.

"Are you jealous, Lord Theodore?" Conan asked with a chuckle.

"She is my wife" he growled.

Conan shrugged, finally relaxed. "Helena is not at fault, they understand each other"

"I am very suspicious of her" Theodore admitted.

"Does the resemblance make you uncomfortable?"

Theodore doesn’t reply to Conan’s question, he had thought he had this life planned and was ready for the enemy but destiny is messing with him.

"You should relax, Lydia is Lydia" Conan assured him.

Theodore gulped, his eyes distant. Despite Conan not knowing about the situation what he has said

Lydia is Lydia.

Only Lydia.

There might now be a lady with features like Lydia but he had felt it with Lydia.

His heart was eager, his memories clearer and she had a scar he had caused there right under her hair. On the back of her neck was a sign of a previous cut, a birthmark, and that was why he loved to gather her hair in a bun so he could gaze at it sometimes. She was his love.

Also, his love could never be born a witch.

He believed.

Little did he know.

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