Chapter 41 - Sibling love
After staying outside for a while longer, and having mostly calmed down from her trait-induced anger issues, Scarlett eventually returned inside. From earlier, she had been planning on finding Evelyne, meaning to talk to the younger woman about her current plans as well as see if there were any updates on the business side of things. Walking through a hallway on the second floor of the mansion, she spotted Rosa looking at some large paintings that hung off of the wall.
As she approached, the curly-haired woman turned her head away from a vibrant landscape painting in front of her to look at Scarlett.
"You seemed to have fun earlier," she said with a glint in her eye, before shifting her gaze to a large portrait next to the painting she'd been looking at. "Don't mind me, just sightseeing. Not often you get a free pass to go around fancy places like this, so you gotta take the chance when you can, right? Find some of that artistic inspiration, if you know what I mean."
"...I see," Scarlett mumbled as she stopped next to her. She'd met enough of the creative sort in her life to know that they came in all kinds.
She looked over at the portrait Rosa was studying now. It showed a beautiful woman with dark black hair standing in a scarlet dress with golden filaments across it, staring straight ahead with an almost imperious expression.
"So, who's this supposed to be?" Rosa asked.
Scarlett examined the painting for a short while. "This is Mireya Liana Hartford," she eventually answered. "She was the head five generations back, as well as an accomplished mage." There was a family tree of the Hartfords that was recorded on one of the walls in the library back in Freybrook. During the last week, Scarlett had spent some time familiarizing herself with the different previous family members on it, and Mireya Hartford had been one of the more notable ones.
Rosa looked over the painting for a few seconds. "She sure looks...imposing."
"I believe that was the intent."
"Well, your ancestor sure got their money's worth then," Rosa mused. "It's good. Although maybe a bit avant-garde."
Scarlett arched an eyebrow, ignoring the odd use of a decidedly non-English phrase as she looked closer at the painting. "How so?" She couldn't find anything odd. It was just the portrait, with the background mostly being a blurry brown to emphasize the likeness itself.
"I get she wanted to try and appear all serious and menacing—and I'm not saying it doesn't fit with the color scheme—but, the blood is a bit much, don't you think?"