Nobody is stupid enough to venture into unknown territories, except for Ilya. Don't get him wrong! He never meant to enter that mysterious village.
Fate led him there to save, or be saved.
"Peekaboo!"
Beast is a cruel creature that used to be human...
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"Here, honey," the lady said, pulling a chair for Ilya. "Come. Join us for a lovely family dinner."
Ilya slowly got on his feet, once Martha was shackled away from him, and took careful footsteps toward the dining table.
Martha was still growling at him, but a little bit quieter now.
"Maggie!" the lady shouted up the stairs. "Time for dinner!"
Ilya was scared shitless but managed to compose himself around those people. He was unsure how to handle this new situation he was thrown into. He was invited to a family dinner with a family that was too far gone to be called such a thing. One member was a walking corpse, another was a nun in denial, then came a third member just when Ilya was settling down at the table.
A girl older than Martha and about the same age as Ilya descended the stairs while tying he long colorful hair in a ponytail. Her attire was different from her mom's and sister's, more Gothic than Victorian. Ilya assumed she was related to them since they all had blue eyes and dark hair. The natural color of her hair was showing through her roots, but she dyed it in rainbow colors.
"Who's this?" the girl said in a non-friendly way, sneering at Ilya.
"Behave," the lady whispered with a threatening tone. "He's a poor boy who lost his way in this storm." She turned to apologize to Ilya. "Oh, sorry. I didn't even introduce myself. I'm Anne." She placed her hand so gracefully on her chest, then waved it toward the girl. "And this is Maggie." Then she waved at the chained girl. "And you already met Martha."
Martha sneered showing deadly teeth then barked suddenly, causing Ilya to jump.
"Oh," the last let out a small laugh while covering her mouth. "I think she likes you."
There was a brief pause which Ilya filled by saying, "Nice to meet you."
Maggie had her arms crossed over her chest the whole time. When Ilya talked, she gave him a look then scoffed and walked away.
Anne, on the other hand, was a bit offended by Ilya for not introducing himself. She waited for him, but when he didn't talk, she covered her irritation with a smile.
Ilya didn't want to share his name, since Charlie warned him not to say it in this village, but he couldn't come up with a name right away.
When Anne was heading to the kitchen, Ilya suddenly announced, "John."
Anne turned and said, "What?"
"My name. It's John." The most American name he could think of.
Maggie stared at him for a second then chuckled. "Sure it is. And I bet your last name is Smith?"
"Shh. Maggie, stop it." Anne was surprised at first, but then she smiled. "Well, it is lovely to meet you, John."
Martha growled, she must have smelled the sweat coating Ilya's face when he lied.
