Chapter 17: Chapter 17.

Vanitas sat perched on the roof of the manor, his golden eyes following Lucius and Claudia as they disappeared into the garden. He touched his lips, his fingers lingering there as the memory of the kiss replayed in his mind.

Vanitas' smirk wavered as he stared at the garden below. His fingers brushed over his lips, the ghost of a kiss lingering there. 'I can still feel it.'

"Absurd," he muttered, his voice tinged with annoyance as his tongue instinctively brushing over his lips. "Why does it feel like she's branded me?"

"Lord Vanitas!" a sharp voice called out, breaking him from his thoughts.

Vanitas sighed dramatically, glancing over his shoulder. "Is this about my impeccable aim with rooftop perching again?"

"No," Caelan snapped, arms crossed, his expression stormy. "It's about your idiocy."

"Ah," Vanitas said, turning back to the horizon. "So we're back to that."