25 How wars are started

The two just lay there now. There remained a small bit of tension between them, but for now they mostly were just happy to relax. They were both coming down from the high that blood drinking gave, and it left both of them feeling languid and content. Valentina was coming to realise that this was likely the most relaxed she'd been in ages, but she felt far from lazy and instead was quite happy to revel in this impromptu vacation.

They were mostly remaining quiet, happy to just coexist within the comfortable silence, but as Valentina thought about her day off she then began to think of things she needed to do. And that eventually led her to remember something rather important.

"Love, I need to go grab something but I'll be back in a couple minutes"

She ruffled Dahlia's hair as she said it, all while trying to coax the girl's vice-like hug to loosen. Eventually Dahlia relented with a little bit of a grumble, and once the Archduchess pulled away, she basically just curled up into a ball under the bed covers. The vampiress chuckled at the display, but quickly left before she got tempted to join the girl again.

Dahlia listened as the sheets ruffled and Valentina left her side. She knew they wouldn't be able to stay close to each other constantly. She knew that, but… being separated so soon left her feeling empty. She got stuck in her own thoughts after hearing the woman leave. Already she felt lonely and lost and fears of being abandoned repeatedly chiselled away at her psyche.

But what Valentina had said wasn't just a fake promise and after about seven minutes she returned. The sound caught Dahlia off guard and she squinted her eyes to try and see what was going on. It was only when the bed shifted and a warmth pressed against her that she let out a sigh and relaxed.

"So you didn't abandon me? What did you need to get?"

Valentina looked down and smirked at the blatant neediness. At one point maybe something like this would get annoying, but for the moment it was simply endearing. She kept one arm wrapped around her partner as she pulled a basket up onto the bed.

"Now, I know you can't see properly yet, but this is a basket your mother left behind for me to take. Don't scrunch your eyebrows like that, I'm almost certain she didn't have any weird intentions."

Dahlia wasn't buying it. 'Weird intentions' practically defined her mother and this was likely no exception. Nonetheless, she asked what was inside and listened attentively.

"Right, so I haven't properly looked through everything either. There are some files that seem to be from some kind of intelligence report, a few notebooks and sheafs of paper, a couple larger books, and then a pair of plants."

Each item mentioned grabbed Dahlia's attention. What kind of information would her mother want to share with her? Are those notes and books something else, or will she have her schema back? But above all, when the plants were mentioned she perked up immediately.

"Plants! What are they? How many? What do they look like? Oh… and uh, yeah, the contents of the notes and books and stuff are important too I guess."

Valentina just laughed at the little excited display. She didn't fully understand why the plants were worth celebrating that much, but she was thankful to the Baroness for including them.

"Well, seeing as I can clearly tell what your priorities are, I'll tell you this first. There's only two plants; one is in a red clay pot and is a tiny ball of leaves while the other is in a blue ceramic and looks like a type of lily. Does that narrow it down?"

Dahlia just did a couple quick little nods and blindly reached towards the basket. Slowly and gently, her hands located both plants and then she smiled and immediately began to pet the little round shrub.

"I raised plants back in the barony. They were all special and became my best friends. I figured I'd have to leave them all behind if I ran away from home but this is better than I had hoped. These two are Mr. Lily and Kitty. Beyond being small and portable, I'd say they're also my favourites."

The Archduchess couldn't help but smile. The girl was gently touching and holding the two plants like they were her precious children. The softening in her face as she handled them with care was almost mesmerising. It was like these two plants alone were able to ground her and make her feel more at peace.

"Alright, I'll need to take care of them later but for now let's move on. If there's a table around here, just leave them there and I'll find a way to keep them healthy."

After a quick repositioning of the pots, Valentina huddled closer to Dahlia and then began to look over what was left in the basket. She was curious about the intel files, but what caught her attention the most was a giant worn down book. With a bit of effort, she pulled it out and placed it on her lap in the bed. It had a distinct smell of old paper and ink and she could see Dahlia's nose twitching and then soon breaking into a smile.

"What? You know what it is from the smell alone?"

"Hehe, yes! I'm particularly well acquainted with this book but, well, feeling the weight as you placed it down was a pretty big giveaway too. Now go on and open it!"

Considering she already knew what was inside, Valentina didn't understand why she was so excited for her to open it. The girl was wiggling in anticipation as if she had a surprise planned or something. Sighing and shaking her head, the Archduchess finally cracked open the book and almost immediately her jaw went to hit the floor.

They both remained silent, but in the corner of her eye she could see Dahlia still grinning beside her, beaming with pride. Honestly, something about her looked like a little puppy wanting praise and Valentina could see why. She continued to flip through pages one after the other. In some cases trying to understand what she saw, and in other cases just flipping quickly past, simply marvelling in the sheer quantity of content within the book.

"Dahlia, this… where did you get this?"

The girl was giggling to herself at this point, clearly enjoying herself and getting to witness her reaction.

"Hmmm? Where did I get it? I'll tell you~" She pointed up and tapped her head. "All up here! It took me ages to write that schema, almost a literal decade of work! So? So? What do you think?"

Other than her parents and her plants, this was the first time Dahlia ever got to share her schema with anyone. There was certainly some nervousness that came with it, but more than anything she was just excited. Meanwhile, a very shocked vampire was reading it right next to her.

"You wrote this? How?! Dahlia, my family's schema has been handed down, refined, and improved over the course of a millenia and our schema is an eighth this size!"

She saw a smug face form on her partner and she just shook her head. Everything in this book was absurd. Considering it was only the first iteration, there were certainly unnecessary complexities. If it had gone through the rigours that her family's schema went through then the size would certainly shrink, but… even then the sheer volume in this schema's foundation was inhuman.

The more she saw the more she came to realise something. Dahlia was a genius. Sure, she had a ton of issues socially and it wasn't like she was able to do everything perfectly in the way some people imagined geniuses to be, but without a doubt she had the intellect to define a generation. Maybe even an entire era if she really put her mind to it.

As she was coming to terms with how remarkable her new partner actually was, she felt her head spinning.

'I just thought she was lovable when we first interacted. Now, between her being a prodigy, having an absurdly complex schema, and having that secret bloodline her mother mentioned, I'm beginning to think that I might not even deserve her. Don't get me wrong, I'll do anything to have her, but… she really is incredible.'

She was still flipping through and trying to understand what everything even meant when she finally began to comprehend it, at least a little. The underlying structure was still so complicated that it was almost impossible to decipher, but the overarching themes started to fall into place.

"This is beautifully made. I don't know a single person who would be able to even compete with you. Honestly, my sweetheart is so talented I just want to brag to everyone now!"

Dahlia enjoyed the moment, happily receiving the Archduchess' pampering and praise. She snuggled in tight and sighed in contentment. What she said next though made a little bit of her anxiety come back.

"So… what do you think? I mean, I know you said it's technically impressive but, well… It's going to be my schema. Not just in theory but in practice. Are you sure that's going to be ok with you?"

Valentina tried to understand what she was getting at. It was an incredible schema so why shouldn't she use it with pride? Then she clued in. The tattoos. Not just one or two either, but a whole bunch all over her body. Geometric constellation looking patterns mixed with more typical imagery. If she went through with this, her body would become a conduit for magic, but also a piece of art.

Thinking it over, she understood why Dahlia might be concerned. Some people just didn't enjoy tattoos, especially in higher quantities. It ended up being a matter of taste and preference and considering they planned to be together, it was fair for her to worry that her partner might not like her future aesthetic.

Fortunately for Dahlia, she wouldn't have to worry. As Valentina imagined the girl's body she immediately recalled her soft pale skin and supple tantalising curves. Although 'cute' was the word she most often associated with Dahlia's personality, her body was a different matter. 'Seductive' was a far more accurate descriptor.

If she hadn't been told about her bloodline already, she would have assumed the girl has succubus blood in her or something. All the eyes that were eyeing her up like a piece of meat at the debutant weren't only because people lacked common decency. It was also because Dahlia was knockout gorgeous.

So as Valentina imagined that mouth watering beauty then wrapped in dark tattoos and contrasting with her alabaster skin, she just about went feral. The image in her head made her imagine some kind of sexual goddess and it got her far too excited. She would go to war for that woman! Adding on the contrast between the appearance and adorable personality and Valentina wanted to see that schema on her body as soon as possible. Without even noticing, a new kink may have formed in the back of the vampiress' head.

Clearing her throat and trying to maintain a semblance of calm, Valentina nodded a bit as if she were thinking seriously about this rather than on the verge of begging Dahlia to get it as soon as possible.

"I think you'll be gorgeous. You already are and no matter what you'll always be stunning, but if you're still worried, don't be. I think this will suit you just fine and besides, I would be upset if you put in all this hard work and didn't even get to use it. You deserve to enjoy the fruits of your labour."

Hearing that the Archduchess wasn't repulsed, Dahlia quickly brightened up. Honestly, she wanted to get her schema implemented as soon as possible. Magical tattoos didn't need the same processes that mundane tattoos needed and they could be made quicker as a result, but it was still a time consuming process.

The issue was that until she finalised her schema's specifier and adapted it to her aspect, she wouldn't be able to begin the tattooing process. Apparently, this is something that Valentina noticed too as she continued to skim through the giant grimoire.

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask, but what exactly is your aspect? I think you brought it up briefly at the debutante as something I may have taken interest in, but I never found out why or what it was. Depending on what you got, it may make a pretty big difference on how you want to fine-tune the schema."

She was saying it casually but Dahlia felt her stomach drop. She was well aware of the issues she'd have with adapting to her aspect. Balancing three different attributes was an absolute mess.

"Right. So don't freak out but my aspect is 'Lost in the Dark Forest.' It's primarily focussed on nature but has sub attributes of dark and space. It's a super rare aspect, but unfortunately it doesn't pair well super easily with my schema."

Valentina blinked in absolute bewilderment.

"Wait, so you're telling me that in addition to everything else, you have an aspect like this? I'm almost certain you should be a national treasure. You're lucky I got my hands on you, otherwise a literal war could have started to try and capture you. And don't scowl at me! I'm not exaggerating, what I just said is true. I think you might be undervaluing yourself here, and that's not just me trying to make you happy."

Dahlia was smiling but was shaking her head, still not entirely sure why the Archduchess was putting her on such a high pedestal.

"I really think you're exaggerating things. I've read plenty of history books, and I'll tell you right now that there are plenty of people like me. I'm not special or anything like that. Based on what I read, I'd say I'm pretty average."

For a moment Valentina just looked at the girl stupidly. Was she being serious?

"Sweetheart, those are history books. If you were judging yourself as average based on what you read there, then you're putting yourself in the same category as people who defined entire periods in history."

There was a bit of a silence as the Archduchess struggled to hold back laughter. Dahlia's face was scrunched up in thought as if she was trying to compute what was just said.

"Oh damn. Yeah, ok, I take back what I said. I'm particularly grateful that you whisked me away before I accidentally started a war."