Sedsha: Heart's Day

Vaesha shot upwards from bed, her arms high in the air,

“Happy Heart’s Day!” she exclaimed “or as we say in the Shivering Isles, Valentine’s Day!”

Sedric groaned beside her, his peaceful sleep disturbed by the Insane Vampire’s unneeded shouting.

“Go back to sleep, Vaesha,” he grumbled as he draped his arm over his eyes.

“But I can’t!” she exclaimed “I have to prepare for the holiday!” with that she twisted to shake Sedric to rouse him from the remaining half of his slumber.

“Stop that you mixed blooded mongrel!” Sedric hissed as he slapped her hands away, moving to rest on his side.

Vaesha let out an annoyed huff of air, but continued to prod the Vampire Lord who was getting angrier as the minutes passed. After about the twentieth time Vaesha had poked him, he reached out and gave a harsh poke to her ribs, making her squeak in surprise and slight pain.

“See how you like being poked in the ribs?” Sedric asked as he sat up, Vaesha rubbing the spot where Sedric had poked her with a glare mixed with a pout on her face.

“That wasn’t nice!” Vaesha said as she threw her arms into the air “I wasn’t poking you that hard!” Vaesha crossed her arms over her chest.

“That is what they felt like to me after the tenth poke, you bloody mongrel!” Sedric hissed “You can run along and prepare for this wretched holiday on your own!” Sedric then laid back down, his back to Vaesha.

Vaesha let out a frustrated huff of air as she turned to rise out of bed. She knelt down to pick up her boots and cloak before leaving the room, giving an over the shoulder sneer towards the grumpy Vampire Lord.

“I saw that…” Sedric rumbled.

Vaesha sighed harshly in response.

******

When Sedric finally roused from bed he was taken by the amount of hearts decorating the main hall of the manor.

“What in the name of Molag Bal is going on here?” He asked as he stepped into the main hall, eyeing his work table covered in hearts of all shapes, sizes, and colors.

“It’s Heart’s day!” Vaesha exclaimed from the back room.

Sedric picked up a heart from the table and examined it,

“Yes I know that,” Sedric said with a sigh “This is the day where people revel in love, not actual hearts…” Vaesha handed him a goblet of blood, picking up the strong aroma of mead, marking his morning meal as Nord.

Vaesha chuckled,

“I know that, but in Dementia, this is how we celebrate it,” Vaesha took a long sip from her goblet of what Sedric guessed to be Dunmer blood “many Demented also choose this day to bind themselves to each other as well…” she added.

“I am not proposing to you!” Sedric growled “Besides, how did you get all these hearts, there is no way you could have killed,” Sedric paused to count the hearts “thirty-five people without getting noticed…”

Vaesha burst out into laughter,

“I used my personal stash from Dementia,” Vaesha explained “I mainly use these for Alchemy or when Sheogorath forbids me from leaving the Isles…” Vaesha finished off her breakfast, placing her goblet on the mantle above the fireplace.

“So you are telling me, you went out, had yourself killed just so you could collect some hearts?” Sedric asked before finally taking a sip of his breakfast.

Vaesha chuckled,

“No, because you would have to wait two months for my return and it would have been a waste to go in the first place,” Vaesha replied “I asked Lòki for help… He is the prince of the Isles after all…” Vaesha picked up a heart with a Telekinesis spell, Sedric raising a brow in astonishment.

“Seems you are getting better at Illusion…” Sedric commented.

Vaesha smiled,

“That is because of the extra Magicka I have,” Vaesha replied as she gestured to the ring on her right index finger.

Sedric brought his goblet to his lips to hide his slight smile, watching as Vaesha tossed the heart around in the air with Telekinesis. When her Magicka ran low, the heart suddenly dropped, landing on Fluffy who raised his head in confusion.

“Sorry boy,” Vaesha muttered as she picked up the heart and held it out for him “Here, a treat…” she muttered as she placed the Heart on the stone floor, Fluffy devouring it the moment Vaesha’s hand was out of range.

“Please don’t make my hound fat,” Sedric said as he saw Vaesha reach for another heart.

Vaesha raised a brow,

“I wasn’t, I was going to eat it myself,” she said as she brought the heart to her lips, taking a bite out of it as if it were an apple “This is an Altmer heart, it is loaded with Magicka, beats having to take several bitter mana potions…”

Sedric rolled his eyes and sighed, chuckling slightly,

“You Demented and your weird traditions…” he commented.

“Don’t act like you never ate a heart before!” Vaesha exclaimed “I could have sworn I’ve seen several hearts on platters in Castle Volkihar when it was still active…” Vaesha took another bite from the heart.

“You’re right; I did eat a heart, but…” Sedric paused to pick up a bright red heart “Those hearts were for the Death Hounds, which is why they were left on the platters and not devoured…” Sedric tossed the heart in the air a few times before deciding to take a bite form it, he shuddered slightly, “Argonian heart… Lovely…” Sedric grumbled as he reluctantly swallowed.

Vaesha laughed,

“The look on your face when you realized the race!” Vaesha slapped her legs as she doubled over “I don’t think I seen such a disgusted expression on our face before” If Vaesha were mortal she would be blue in the face and on the brink of passing out from the amount of laughter she just let out.

“Why don’t you give it a try,” Sedric said as he held out the heart “If you think Argonian blood is bitter, wait until you take a bite out of this!”

Vaesha ceased her laughter and eyed the organ,

“Eeew!” she exclaimed “It has Sedric germs on it!” Sedric rolled his eyes and sighed.

“It’s hard to believe that you are two-hundred and twenty-six years old…” he grumbled as he tossed the heart to Fluffy, grabbing another, sniffing it before taking a bite from it.