#Danny: Oh my Ancients you don’t even have a name how are you an adult | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

five-rivers · 3 years

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Stars Aligned Chapter 3

(Please do not ask when the next chapter will be, I do not know. Links to AO3/FFN will be included in reblog.)

Here’s the thing. The very, very, stupid thing. Despite all his planning for this trip, Danny had no idea what his birth family looked like. Presumably, they also had no idea what he looked like.

As much as Danny would like to blame this on a wizardly aversion to the internet and photographs, he couldn’t. Danny could have sent them a picture of himself through the mail at any time. Even if wizard mail involved owls for some unexplained reason. But he didn’t. Because he was dumb.

And his equally dumb wizard family had also failed to send any pictures.

What were they thinking? Did they assume they’d somehow recognize each other on sight? Was that a wizard thing? Did they expect to spontaneously develop blood-relative telepathy? Was that a thing?

Danny did not know what to expect. He honestly didn’t know enough about wizards.

The end result was that Danny was standing in the middle of the wizarding world’s equivalent of an airport, which involved way more open fires than could possibly be safe, and people stepping into those open fires, which, again, could not possibly be safe. Of course, Danny had done it, as uncomfortable as it was for his core, and anything that used internal combustion was technically also using fire as a means of transportation, so Danny might have been a bit of a hypocrite, but still.

But, back to his dilemma. He, a dumb teenager, could be expected to do dumb, thoughtless things and make easily avoidable mistakes. It was basically a requirement. His actual family, who probably could have realized the error, didn’t want him to go and could be forgiven for any oversight. But dumb wizard birth family had at least one semi-competent adult in it. Supposedly.

Despite himself, his desire to kidnap his brother increased. Even though it would most likely cause an international incident.

He sighed. Maybe he should just follow the crowd and see if anyone stopped him. After all wizards might have magic blood-relative detection something or other.

He trudged along, pulling his trundle suitcase behind him. Silver lining was that whatever happened, he didn’t have to spend hours in a metal tube breathing recycled air. Silver lining. Silver lining. Silver—

Ah. Hm.

Danny blinked at his name written in large letters on a square of poster paper. His first and middle names, that is, and his bio-family’s last name.

He was highlytempted to turn around and go back home, but there was his twin, holding the card and looking fragile and hopeful, standing next to a tall woman with greying black hair.

He sighed. He was doing this, then.

“Hi,” he said, “you must be Draco. I’m Danny. And, uh, you must be Narcissa Malfoy?” He sort of held his hand out, feeling awkward.

“You can call me mother, Deneb,” said Narcissa. She sounded slightly tearful.

“It good to meet you, Deneb. Er. Danny.” Draco’s eyes flitted up to his mother.

“Yeah, um. Please don’t take this the wrong way, Mrs. Malfoy, but I don’t actually know you. And I’ve got a mom.”

“Yet,” interjected Draco. “You don’t know mother yet. That’s what this visit is about, right?”

“Right,” said Danny. “I’m… really looking forward to it.”

Draco looked relieved. “Excellent. Well, then, Looky can get your luggage and we can floo home.”

A very small, rather wizened person stepped out from behind Draco’s legs.

Okay. Danny had questions.

Danny did not particularly care for the answers to his questions.

Draco didn’t know why his twin had stopped talking to him before they’d even gotten home. He had, to some degree, expected rough spots. Merlin knew his family didn’t get along perfectly. But that didn’t mean he hadn’t hoped he and his twin would have a special connection. That they would mesh.

That… wasn’t happening. In fact, this was rather… awkward. Painful, almost.

He thought back to what they had been talking about. He didn’t think he’d said anything particularly objectionable. Had he hit on some chip on the shoulder those squibs had inculcated in him? Well, he thought, rather shamefacedly, he shouldn’t think of them like that. They hadn’t been the ones to abandon Deneb – Danny – just for not being immediately magical.

“Right,” he said, as Danny stepped (jumped, looking slightly disturbed) out of the fire. “Let me show you your room. We’ve had the house elves clean it out.”

Something on Danny’s face went dark, but he visibly controlled himself. “Thank you,” he said. “And, um, thank you, Looky. For your help.”

Draco frowned. He was confused, and he didn’t like feeling confused. He knew muggles didn’t have house elves, of course, but still. The concept wasn’t that hard to understand, was it? Although, it was possible Danny had never come across house elves at all, even second or third hand.

He supposed they might be unsettling if they were the first magical creature one came across. Ugh. He’d never tried to put himself in the position of someone learning about magic for the first time. Why would he? That was mudblood business, and he’d never associate with one of those.

But Danny was in that position, just about.

That meant it was Draco’s job to help Danny understand.

Danny was hoping he was misunderstanding something and that wizards did not, in fact, practice slavery.

This seemed to be a forlorn hope.

“So,” said Draco clasping his hands behind his back in the doorway of ‘Danny’s’ room, “er, house elves. You’ve probably not seen them before.”

“Can’t really say so, no.”

“Probably the first magical creatures you’ve seen.”

“Um,” said Danny. “Also no. I did have to go get a wand and stuff, and you’ve got to go to a wizard town to do that. I saw a bunch of different stuff there.” He didn’t really want to explain the ghosts, but… “Also, my parents study ghosts.”

“You mean, your adopted parents.”

“My parents, yes.”

“I didn’t know squibs could see ghosts. Well, they never seemed to have any trouble with it, so…” He shrugged.

“I… see.”

Danny doubted it, somehow. “But you were saying? About house elves?” Benefit of the doubt, he reminded himself.

“They’re servants,” said Draco. “Magically bound to serve certain families.”

“Magically bound,” repeated Danny, liking this less and less.

“Yes, it’s very old magic. An ancient agreement between our race and theirs, and the individual families and the house elves in question.”

“They can’t, like, opt out or anything?”

“That would defeat the point.”

“Okay,” said Danny. “So… Do they get, you know, paid at all?”

“Of course not,” said Draco.

Danny closed his eyes. “Okay. Um. Draco.” How to put this in a way that wouldn’t immediately alienate him. “Isn’t that slavery?”

“No,” said Draco, immediately. “They want to serve.”

“Well, they might say that to you, but human slaves used to say the same thing, because they’d get in trouble if they didn’t.”

Draco opened his mouth, closed it, and then said, confidently, “It isn’t like that.”

“Are you sure?”

“They aren’t human. They want to do this.”

Danny was no stranger to dealing with inhuman mindsets (but he most definitely did not have one himself). Even so…

“I think my point still stands. Like, are there very many house elves in this situation?”

“I don’t know,” said Draco. “I suppose so. Most families of substance and breeding have at least one.”

“Okay. Ah. Look. I’m not even sure where to start with this. Slavery is bad, right? We can agree on that.”

An annoyed expression passed over Draco’s face. “Yes, we can. That’s a given. But that’s for humans—"

“Great. Let’s start there. It’s bad for any human, right? Even, like, no-majs, or stupid humans, or—”

“Muggles,” corrected Draco. “No-maj is the American term.”

“When in Rome, I guess, sure. Muggles, then.”

“Yeah,” said Draco, uncomfortably crossing his arms.

Oh, Ancients, there was something there. Which Danny should have expected, given his birth father, whom he had yet to meet, threw him out of the house literally at birth.

Wizard supremacist weirdos corrupting his poor twin brother.

“Then what makes house elves so different?”

“Like I said, they want to do this. It’s in their nature. You wouldn’t, I don’t know, decide a dog was unhealthy because it barked instead of meowed, would you?” He spread his hands in frustration.

“I’ll give you that, but Looky looked actively afraid of you. And what was she even dressed in? That can’t be comfortable.”

“Giving them real clothes would free them – only if it’s their master, which in this case is Father.” He shifted slightly. “Except for Looky, I suppose, who is technicallymine. Great Aunt—Oh, you won’t know her. Why do you even care?”

“Why do I care about other people suffering? But otherthan that, what’s the difference between a house elf and a human servant? Like, would you treat a human servant like that? If you were a servant, wouldn’t you want to be treated with respect, even if being a servant was all you’d ever wanted?”

“But I’m not a servant.”

“But if you were. Can’t you just try to imagine it? A little? Please?”

“I… fine. But don’t bring this up to Mother and Father. They wouldn’t be pleased.”

“Okay. Deal.”

“Deal,” agreed Draco. “So. Do you like your room?”

Danny looked around. “Yeah, actually. It’s nice. Bit different from what I have at home, but, yeah. Good, um. Good floors. And wallpaper. And, um. Do all wizard paintings move like that?” He genuinely hadn’t noticed until just now, intent on the house elf problem.

“Yeah,” said Draco, seemingly relieved at the more normal topic. “It’s an enchantment on the canvas and paint.”

“Seems like it’d be hard to work with,” observed Danny.

“Well, the spell isn’t finished until after the actual painting part is done. At least, that’s my understanding.”

“I see, that would be easier.”

Silence.

“Would you like to see the peacocks?”

“Sure, why not?”

It took a bit of time to get bundled up in coats (cloaks in Draco’s case) because it was cold outside, but once they did…

“Wow. They’re albino peacocks.”

“Yes.”

“Wild.”

“No, they’re quite tame.”

“Oh, it’s, um, it’s an idiom. Like cool. Or wicked, I guess? Do British people use that?”

“I’ve heard some people use it. But Mother and Father are… not particularly enamored of slang.”

“Right,” said Danny. “I’ll remember that.”

They continued walking through the garden, towards the pond. Danny tried not to dwell on how much labor it would take to keep the grounds here so pristine.

“What do you do for fun in America?” asked Draco, out of nowhere.

Danny blinked. “Different people do different things,” he said. “Uh, a lot of things I usually do won’t work here because of the whole magic and electricity not getting along well thing. Have you ever heard about video games?”

“No,” said Draco. “Is it anything like quidditch?”

“I have only the loosest of understandings of what that is. It’s that broom sport, right? The one where you fly?”

Draco looked scandalized. “… Yes,” he said, finally. “I’m going to have to teach you how to use a broom before you have to go back to America.”

“The flying type of broom?” asked Danny, teasingly. Sure, he already could fly, but whatever.

“Merlin, yes.” Draco rolled his eyes. “I’m part of my house’s quidditch team. Letting you leave without some understanding of the rules would be a crime.”

“Draco, are you a jock?” asked Danny. “What is this world coming to. Related to a jock.” He shook his head dramatically. “I’ll never live it down.”

Draco nudged him slightly. “I’m not a meathead beater, at least,” he said. “I’m the team seeker.”

“I have no idea what that means.”

Draco’s smile slowly slid off his face.

“What?” said Danny.

“It’s just… you should. You should have grown up here, with family, as part of this world.”

“I did grow up with family,” said Danny. “Just not direct blood relatives. It kind of sucks that we didn’t get the chance to grow up together, but, like, I’m not really impressedby your parents so far.”

“Mother was very upset when she heard what Father did.”

“Sure, but she also kind of ditched us as soon as we got back here.”

“She has a delicate constitution? I’m sure she’s just trying to decide how to act… giving you space to make you feel more comfortable?”

Danny shrugged. “Well, we’ll see what happens. I’m going to be here until the end of the break, after all.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to Hogwarts, just for the rest of the school year? I’m sure they’ll be better than any alternative in America, when it comes to catching you up. Father has friends on the board of governors and the Ministry Department of Educational Oversight. It would be easy for you to go.”

“My friends are all back home,” said Danny, “and magic or not, what I really want to do with my life is become an astronaut, and I need ‘muggle’ grades and school for that.”

“A what now?”

“An astronaut?”

Surely, Draco had just misheard him.

“Is that some sort of muggle thing, then?”

“I- Do you not know what an astronaut is?” asked Danny, flabbergasted. “Really?”

Draco’s eyebrows were furrowed. “No, I don’t.”

“How about cosmonauts? Do you know about them?”

“No,” said Draco. “Is this related to the Argonauts, somehow? That Greek thing?”

“No,” said Danny. “I mean, the root word – But no. Not the same thing at all. How do I even… Do you know what outer space is?”

“Astronomy is a class at Hogwarts.”

“Not a very good one,” said Danny, “if you don’t know what an astronaut is. I think I’d die.”

“It’s a very good class. Hogwarts is the best wizarding school in Europe. And I know what outer space is. It’s the space up above the atmosphere, where the planets and stars are, and stuff.”

“Okay. I mean. I’m not trying to make you feel bad or anything,” reassured Danny, sensing that he had ruffled some feathers. “I’m just… an astronomy class should teach about astronauts. Astronauts are people who’ve been to space. Outer space.”

“That’s rubbish,” said Draco. “You can’t go to space.”

Danny refrained from informing Draco that he had, in fact, been to space. “Well, I want to go to space,” said Danny, “and other people have been there.”

“No one’s been to space,” said Draco. “Unless maybe someone apparated there by mistake, but how would you even do that?”

“I don’t know what apparating is,” said Danny. “Some kind of teleportation?”

Both of them stared at each other, each one probably at a loss for words regarding the other’s ignorance of things they themselves considered common knowledge.

“Yeah, more or less,” said Draco, finally. “But you can’t get to space. It’s impossible.”

“It isn’t. There are people up there right now,” said Danny. “On the International Space Station. Which is… it’s sort of a little house. In space.”

“There’s no air up there.”

“They bring the air with them.”

“Wouldn’t it explode?”

“They figured out how to make it so it wouldn’t explode. It’s very, um. Sturdy. Rigid. The space station is airtight.”

“And you’re saying that there are muggles in it. In space. Outer space. Right now.”

“As we speak. I mean, I guess some of them could be secret wizards, but considering your reaction, I’m doubting it.”

“Muggles. In space.”

“Yeah. We made it to the moon, too. But that was—”

“The moon?”

“Yeah?”

“In the sky?”

“That, uh.” He looked up, as if expecting to see the moon despite the thick cloud cover. “Yeah. The moon.”

“You’re telling me,” said Draco, in a hushed voice, “that there are muggles on the moon. Right now. As we speak.”

“No, that was before we were born,” said Danny.

“What.”

“Yeah, some people went, but it was really expensive, so they haven’t been back. Which I think is silly, because can you imagine the scientific advancements we could have made? The resources we could have brought back?”

“The moon.”

“You seem really hung up on this. Are you okay?”

“You- That- The moon. And muggles in space?”

“Yeah,” said Danny. He rubbed the back of his neck. “So, you see why I need to go back. I’m sure Hogwarts is great and all, but I really want to be an astronaut.”

“Can you see them through a telescope?”

“See what?”

“The muggles in space.”

“On a clear night, sure, if you know where to look.” Before the Accident (the Big One, the Unaliving, the Green Flash, the Knockoff Origin Story), Danny usually checked the internet for the times the ISS passed overhead. But he’d developed a ghost power that gave him a pretty good sense of where anything in the sky was, so long as he concentrated for a few minutes. “It orbits the Earth every ninety minutes or so, although it doesn’t always catch the light enough to see properly. You can actually see a lot of satellites.”

“There are more of these things?” hissed Draco.

“Not with people on them.”

“I’m getting my telescope,” declared Draco, starting to stride back to the house.

“We won’t be able to see anything now,” said Danny.

“It’s enchanted to see through cloud cover and ignore non-reflected sunlight. It’s top of the line.”

Danny had never wanted a physical object so much in his entire life.

“What? What? Magic can do that?”

#danny phantom #stars aligned #dp/hp crossover #dp/hp twin au #fic #fanfic #inspired by ladylynse

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phantomphangphucker · 3 years

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Wild Masters - Chap. 5: From Rags To Riches

Vlad shows his face, queue a lot of snark and an exasperated Flynn.

Danny turns to the lab stairway, “I’ll get it”, glancing at everyone as he starts heading up, “I’ll holler if it’s Vladdie!”. His dad gives an excited double thumbs up.

Sticking his head around the kitchen entryway into the living room confirms that it is indeed Vlad, in his pompous ass suit and now staring at him looking extremely supremely unimpressed. Danny snickers at him before walking into the living room proper, sticking his hands in his pockets, “sup, vampy. Come to see your brat? He’s twenty-four by the way so don’t bother trying to groom him into your prime villain protege or anything. Also-”, snicker, “-he doesn’t how to read, so there’s that”.

Vlad glares, “you must be joking”. Making Danny snort, “I fucking wish actually, he doesn’t know what a cellphone is. What twenty-something doesn’t know fucking cellphones? He’s probably never seen a meme before. The horror”. Vlad rolls his eyes as he steps in, “yes, that is certainly the biggest issue with that problem. I’m sure”.

Danny gives a very cheeky, “yup”, before turning his head to shout towards the lab door, “HEY YO FLYNN! IT’S VLADDIE! GET UP AND GREET YOUR POMPOUS-PAPPIE”. Turning to look back to Vlad, who has decided to grace him with a flash of his red ‘scary eyes’. Oh how rare and bless-ed he must be today to get a glimpse of those ruby reds. Note: he was being sarcastic as fuck there, green eyes are way better anyway. So there.

Flynn steps only halfway out from the doorway, leaving half of himself hidden but making his staff absolutely fully visible and just stares at Vlad. It’s actually vaguely creepy.

Vlad stares back.

And Danny just looks rapidly back and forth between them. “Whelp, this is just a touch awkward”.

Flynn huffs and continues staring.

Danny pulls out his phone and waves it around, “these things come with a timer, you know. So I can totally just start that up and you two can make this dick measuring contest genuine”, pointing at both of them, “or we can talk like good little adults”. Flynn glances at him, “shorty”; making Vlad smirk at Danny’s expense. Danny frowns in fake offence, “hey”. But at least that gets Vlad to tug on his suit jacket to straighten it and step forward to actually greet Flynn, so hey, it’s something.

Sure Vlad’s form of ‘greeting’ is looking the half of Flynn that he can actually see over and giving a snide, “well at least you’ve got some build on you”. Which Danny rolls his eyes and crosses his arms over, “wow, way to be a dick, frootloop”. Vlad side-eyes him, “I’m still debating your demise”. Danny throws back a very apathetic and unaffected, “mmm okay”. Resulting in him having to dodge a very half-hearted swipe from the man and bounce out of Vlad's easy arm reach, “gotta be quicker on your toes, old man”, smirking, “what? that old age catchin’ up to ya?”, vaguely dancing over to Flynn and grabbing his Minotaur shawl thing, yanking him fully into the kitchen, “and get fully in here you, and face your maker”.

Flynn glares and huffs at him. Expected. Half the sounds the guy makes seem to involve either huffing or grunting. Wonderful sign of some serious lack of socialisation right there. Vlad’s rich asshole circles are going to love him so fucking much. Just like how they love Danny. Once again, note the generous helping of sarcasm he is mentally pilling on there.

Turning to look at Vlad and holding out the photo of alternate Vlad with alternate Maddie, “anyway, proof ‘cause I know you just love that stick that you’ve shoved so far up your ass you might as well be a popsicle”. Vlad leans forward, inspecting, and blinks vaguely disbelievingly. Danny rolls his eyes at the man not touching the photo, “let me guess, this has been in my pocket and is thus too dirty for you to sully your hands with?”. Vlad nods at him quickly with a smug smirk before straightening back up, “though the atrocity that I’m wearing in that deserves to be surrounded by the filth that fills your pockets”.

Flynn blinks, “yah, yer rivals. Tho figured ya’d be evenly matched”, looking to Danny -though Danny’s pretty sure this guy is trying to just play off the whole ‘meeting my dad for the first time in fourteen years and instead of being a dad the guy shit talks my half-brother’- Flynn points at Vlad while speaking at Danny, “ya could end ‘im. Don’ end my pa tho”.

Danny sputters and bends over wheezing while Vlad looks offended, “hear that vampy?!? He’s saying you’re weak!”.

Flynn instantly jumps to his defence, “‘s not that he’s weak. Ya’re jus... excessive”. Making Danny snicker, “can’t argue that”, because yeah Danny knows he’s over-fucking-powered. That’s kinda what happens when you’re the literal King of the entire Realm of the dead and all the ghosts therein. Regardless Danny keeps laughing and slaps his knee repeatedly. Which Vlad scoffs at, “get ahold of yourself, my boy”.

Danny can hear the raised eyebrow in Flynn’s voice, “‘my boy’?”. Danny looks up as Vlad huffs at Flynn, “yes I guess it would be rather rude of me to be calling Daniel that with you here”. Danny snorts, “like you care about rude, Mr. Plots Others Demise Directly In Front Of Their Faces”. Vlad waves a dismissive hand at Danny, “their intellect and worth is beneath me to care. Family has at least earned some level of attention from me. You should know that by now”.

“Still not your son”.

Flynn grunts, “an I am. Ya might be ‘ore stuck up than my ya”, then Flynn smirks and Danny has a feeling the guy is gonna say something that’ll piss Vlad off, “makes sense wit name like Plasmius”. Oh yeah, Vlad’s gonna be mad.

Vlad snaps his angry red eyes on Danny, sounding more than just slightly violently angry, “you told him”. Danny just bends over further and wheezes. Flynn pokes Vlad’s chest aggressively with the tip of his staff, “back back, no fightin’ in food room place”. Danny just wheezes more at that, “Ancients, it’s called a kitchen, man. Oh Zone”. Flynn grunts, glares, and removes his staff from Vlad’s chest to smack Danny over the head with it. “Ow”. Sure that didn’t actually hurt but it’s the point of the matter.

He can hear Flynn’s scowl, while the guy looks back to Vlad, “an ‘sides, I’d know what ya are any way”, gesturing the staff tip around Vlad’s body while Vlad quirks an eyebrow at him, clearly more curious about Flynn than pissed at Danny. “Can sense it ‘round ya an smell it on ya’s clothes. Yain’t all human. ‘Ore human than tha red one wit her suit on tho”.

Danny straightens up and brushes off his pants, snickering, “yeah he knows about Valerie too, surprise knowledge. Did you not notice his glowing green ass eyes?”. Watching Vlad squint and hum at Flynn, who just sits and lets Vlad stare at and analyse his eyes, “hmmm so you can see my ecto-field then?”. Flynn shrugs, “‘ore er less”. Danny chuckles, “you could say that that ‘bout sums it up”. Flynn looks to him and squints, “not addin’ anythin’”. Making Danny facepalm, “it’s another saying, man”. And Vlad actually has to turn to the side and sigh into his hand, it looks like the man is having a very hard time not insulting Flynn repeatedly and in ever-increasingly deeming ways; huh, guess he was willing to actually try to not be a complete and utter dick to his own son. That earns him a few points in the ‘not the definition of evil’ category.

Vlad looks back after a steadying breath, “be that as it may, I’d rather you not divulge my ghostly status to anyone. Flynn was it?”. Flynn squints, “that’s my name, ya”, looking to the side and huffing, though not letting Vlad out of his sights, “an I won’”, looking fully back to Vlad and sighing before just slowly poking the man with a finger. Both Danny and Vlad elect to merely watch and see what this previously non-existent Zone nomad will do next; Danny’s just glad his folks stayed downstairs or this entire meeting would be a bajillion times awkwarder. Danny wouldn’t be able to make such blatant jabs at Vlad, Flynn wouldn’t be able to discuss anyone’s ghostliness, Vlad wouldn’t be able to even be in the ballpark of honest.

Flynn pokes Vlad again, muttering, “yer real”. Alright, okay, the whole ‘here’s your father’ thing might have just hit the guy properly now. Vlad tilts his head ever so slightly, “indeed”; and Danny suddenly feels like he’s intruding on a very personal and private moment or something.

This is too much for Danny. Danny shoots both his arms out to the side and smacks both of the men on the back to smush them together, “ugh! Just hug already goddamnit!”. Both Vlad and Flynn sputter and cough, screwing up their faces; but they immediately separate and effectively turn their backs on each other.

“Don’ do ‘hugs’”.

“Neither do I for that matter”.

Danny practically growls, “oh for fucks sake”, and just telekinetically maneuvers them into forcibly embracing each other: which predictably and obviously gets him a pink ecto-beam straight to the face hard enough to send him crashing out the kitchen window immediately after he cuts it out. Flynn also pelts him with a rock, but that’s not exactly something that would cause Danny any notable kind of damage; though he is kinda curious where the rock came from.

At least they fucking hugged. Mission accomplished.

He can hear Vlad huff, “anyway. Now that Daniel’s finished being his insufferable self, I imagine you rather need legal documents. Since I doubt you exist in the legal system”. Flynn just huffs so Vlad continues, “right then”. Danny can’t help snickering to himself as he lies in a pile of rubble and some bushes when Vlad speaks up again actually sounding ever so slightly befuddled, “it would seem you already do”.

Flynn sounds slightly more befuddled, “what”. So Danny takes that as his queue to crawl back in through the shattered window, “oh yeah, blame Tuck. Dude probably preempted what I would have eventually asked him to do and just did it before I asked him to”, grinning smugly at the two men, “yeah my friends are awesome like that”, looking to Vlad specifically, “sure is nice to have genuine friends, eh Vladdie?”; Vlad points at him with a scowl and shoots a small ecto-beam. Danny doesn’t bother blocking or even moving and just lets himself get knocked back into the rubble/bush.

Flynn blinks, “... Red girl was ‘ight, do ya know tha word ‘dodge’ at all, shorty”. Vlad makes a sound that is almost a laugh.

“Hey”. Flynn shakes his head and Vlad smirks as Danny scramble crawls back in through the window, “I will have you know-”, grunt, “-I took that hit for comical effect”, landing on the floor with a not so graceful ‘oof’ before righting himself to be cross-legged and looking up at the two men, “and if anything is gonna get me hurt then it better be my terrible sense of comedy”.

Vlad rolls his eyes, “at least you know it’s terrible and unpleasant”. Danny points at him, “my name’s a literal pun, of course it’s terrible. Not unpleasant though. Also-”, holding up a finger and grabbing out his phone to quickly scroll through it, “-and yup! Tuck hacked the gov! Man my main man really should scare the government more or at least enough for them to properly put him on a watch list or two, geez”.

Flynn blinks, “ya lost me”, while Danny pockets his phone. Vlad also blinks. Okay wow there are similarities here and it’s kinda freaking Danny just a tiny bit, it’s creepy alright. Vlad shakes his head at Danny, “you can let your tech boy know that for once he has impressed me”. Danny grins slightly manically, whips out his phone, goes to the voice memos app, and holds it up ready to record, “care to repeat that?”, grin never faltering. Vlad sighs into his hand, sounding truly and exaggeratedly pained, “Tucker, you have impressed me”. Danny cheers, “yes!”, quietly to himself while double fist-pumping.

Flynn shakes his head and mutters, “ghosts”. Probably deciding that this behaviour is very befitting of ghosts, which yeah is probably true. Least Flynn just seems amused by it rather than annoyed like Danny’s folks would be. Vlad seems to agree as he sighs and side-eyes Flynn, “at least you seem unbothered by our more... ghostly behaviours, most humans get put-off just enough to make them rather unsuitable for any kind of close relations”.

That gets Danny to inhumanly quickly jump to his feet, startling Flynn enough to get that staff pointed at him as he near shouts excitedly, “did you just admit you can’t make friends!”, pointing animatedly at Vlad, “I’ve spotted character development!”. Vlad just glares at him, which is fair, while Flynn relaxes his stance. Danny sticks his hands back in his pockets and relaxes against the countertop, “anyway, since you’ve apparently given Flynn here your fatherly approval -congrats on the kid by the way, what should I bring to the baby shower?- you gonna stick him as your heir instead me now. Pretty please?”, and gives an overly innocent smile.

Vlad sighs, “I’m going to murder you”, and shakes his head, “you’re the High King, of course not, I’ve certainly got to keep you in my relations somehow”, grinning smugly, “I can certainly have two heirs. I don’t see why not. Try as I might, you know how I am quite a greedy man”. Danny snorts because that’s bullshit, Vlad absolutely doesn’t try to not be greedy; but well... when possession is your Obsession... Danny chuckles, “and try as I might, I just can’t keep that hero complex down. Guess I’ve just gotta keep an eye on your dealings with Flynn here, huh old man?”. After all, when protection is your Obsession...

Flynn promptly smacks both of them with his staff, “Obsession posturin’”. Danny rubs his head and grumbles incoherently. Vlad acts like nothing happened, instead insulting Danny’s behaviour, “well don’t you sound kingly”. Danny flips him off. Vlad looks to Flynn, ignoring Danny entirely, “regardless, you’ll definitely be my heir too. Whether you want to be or not”.

Danny snorts, “I don’t think you need to threaten the guy to be your son, vampy, geez. Would it kill ya to be nice?”. Vlad grins, “yes”; which Danny rolls his eyes at. Flynn huffs and shakes his head, “heir’s some money thing, he’s my pa not money loan”. Danny blinks, surprised the guy knows what a money loan even is. Chuckling, “eh heir’s kinda the best you get from old Vladdie here”, and jabs a thumb at Vlad.

Vlad scowls, “that is because you keep snubbing me and refusing to renounce your fool of a father, Daniel”, side-eyeing Flynn, “Flynn doesn’t seem to have that particular issue”, and then gives Flynn a truly stiff and awkward head pat. Flynn looks like he’s judging him heavily for that, “I’m stayin’ ‘ere. I don’ trust ya”. Danny coughs and laughs while Vlad jerks and looks like he just got stabbed clear through the heart and Core. Ouch Vladdie, looks like someone got snubbed again. Tough luck, try not being evil next time. Or maybe it was the awkward head pat that did it?

All three flinch or jump at Jack’s sudden excited, “yes!”, while popping out from the lab doorway, practically shoving Vlad out of the kitchen, and very quickly side-hugging Flynn who very obviously stiffens and shrinks away from the contact. Oh shit, how long have his folks been there?!? Fuck. His mom also giggles from the doorway and walks in giving Flynn a sweet smile while pulling Jack off him, “as we said, there’s definitely room for you here”. Flynn just nods slightly while slowly relaxing as Maddie pushes Jack out of the room to go clean the spare room upstairs with her. Danny, meanwhile, is busy side-eyeing Vlad as the man borderline flat-out snarls at Jack’s receding form.

Flynn stares at Vlad himself, muttering lowly at Danny, “he hates ‘im. He really really hates ‘im”. Danny sighs and watches the deep violent hatred shining in Vlad’s eyes, “yeah, yeah he really does”, frowning and probably sounding sadder than he really means to, “I wish that wasn’t how things were. Everything would be a lot different”; because really? If Vlad didn’t despise his father, the two only natural halfas in existence would probably get along. Maybe be genuine family or healthy rivals even. Instead of the weird toxic degrading bantering archenemy thing they’ve got going on and have been actively -and mutually, if he’s being honest with himself- fuelling. Maybe, maybe, that mentor/apprentice situation, that Vlad dreamed of and Danny had needed, could have became reality; but that ship has long since past. In Danny’s more introspective and thoughtful moments, he mourned that fact. Part of him hoped Vlad acknowledged and mourned that fact too, instead of just feeling bitter and ripped off. Maybe. Hopefully.

Flynn frowns at him, “yer ghosts an yer humans. Act like it”. Danny blinks at him, “uh, I don’t think you exactly know how humans act. No offence”. Flynn huffs at him, “am one, know ‘nough”.

“Uh, I’m not gonna agree with you on that one”, glaring slightly and whispering, “also, sssshhhh about the ghost shit, man”. Flynn rolls his eyes and promptly catches Danny off-guard, “an I’m keepin’ tha Masters name”. Danny chokes slightly, well damn; Vlad’s gonna get an ego boost from that.

Vlad, having of course heard -damn you ghost ears- snaps his head around and grins triumphantly at Danny then approvingly at Flynn. “Flynn Masters”, grinning smugly at Danny again, “might just have a better ring than Daniel Masters”.

Danny snorts and rolls his eyes, “if you’re trying to make me jealous it ain’t gonna work”, snickering, “but FM, like FM radio”. Now Danny’s wearing the smug look while Vlad glares at him. Danny finger guns at Vlad as he starts walking towards the steps, “now how about I let the Masters caspers not have to be actors due to me being one of the present factors while y’all deal with your family matters”, saluting, “so seeya later gangsters”. Vlad’s left eye twitches, “I will murder you, boy”.

Flynn blinks and looks to Vlad, “he always like this?”. Vlad sighs and nods, “unfortunately”, shaking his head, “he certainly has a taste for puns and word games, I think it’s born from some form of a sadistic side”. Flynn huffs, “dramatic”, huffing again, “an I need a drink aftar all yer ghostin’, pa”, and uncaps his liquor bottle for a swig. Earning raised eyebrows from Vlad and the same lean over sniff that Danny did, “ahh, you’re a fan of alcohol”.

“Make mine own”.

Vlad nods approvingly, “I've dabbled in the art of wine making myself in my spare time”. Flynn offers his drink earning him a quirked eyebrow from Vlad, who of course tries some. Leaving him humming to himself and tapping his chin, “you’ve been at this for a while. You might be a son of mine yet”.

Flynn huffs, “‘ere I thought we ‘ready established that. Yer my pa. Pas that”. They were, in fact, already past that. Vlad just rolls his eyes but pulls a flask out of his pocket and offers it to the guy, “here. Since you’re a Masters, you drink whiskey like a Masters”. And Flynn talking a swig from that is what Danny walks back downstairs to, “so what y’all talking about?”.

Vlad turns to him, “just how you were going to apologise for your years of abuse to me all in the name of brotherly love”.

“That doesn’t sound like me at all”. Danny then blinks at them, with Flynn lowering the flask and shrugging at. Danny throws a slight glare at Vlad, “really? I leave for what? ten minutes? and you start boozing the guy up? Really?”, muttering more so to himself, “I mean sure, Flynn started drinking after ten minutes, or whatever, of meeting me. But still”. Vlad smirks some, “yes, being around you for any prolonged period of time could drive anyone to drink. Why, the first thing I did after meeting you was drink”.

“That’s because dad assaulted your prized football, you going senile on me?”.

Flynn glares at Danny and takes another swig of the whiskey flask, which Vlad looks oddly triumphant over; especially considering Danny just insulted him. Flynn shrugs again and side-eyes Vlad, “eh, mine’s bettar”. Vlad waves him off, “you just don’t have a taste for it yet”, tapping his chin, “though yes, yours is quite good”.

Danny blinks, “did the Vlad Masters just genuinely compliment someone without it being backhanded or a thinly veiled threat? Shocked! Betrayed! Dismayed! The horror!”, tilting his head, wait a fucking minute, “wait, did you drink Flynn’s stuff? You know that’s ectoplasm in there, right?”. Flynn grunts, “well he does now”. Vlad blinks and Danny is detecting just a hint of shock there; Vlad is also clearly eyeing Flynn’s liquor hip bottle with a fair bit more appreciation now. Flynn making a disgusted face kinda cuts off Vlad’s appreciation though and Danny feels like he’s getting a flashback to that time Tucker had to eat all those blood blossoms. “Are you gonna throw up?”.

Vlad scowls, crosses his arms, and sticks his nose up in the air, “of course not, a Masters can handle his liquor”. Danny rolls his eyes while telekinetically moving a trashcan over to Flynn, “I don’t think that’s the problem here”.

Both of them look down as Flynn just kinda sits on the floor, puts his staff to the side, and throws up; at least he aims into the bucket instead of onto the floor. “Congrats Vlad, I think you just poisoned him”. Danny furrows his eyebrows a bit though when Vlad actually holds his hands out, bends down, and pats the guy on the back. Okay... guess Vlad’s being decent... Danny doesn’t actually know what to do with that. Ah the fact that he doesn’t know what to do with Vlad acting like a decent human being is probably actually concerning, come to think of it. So Danny does the logical thing and slaps himself across the face.

Vlad gives Flynn a not awkward head pat this time, “there there, just get it out of your system”, he hums, “I am rather surprised though, two sips isn’t exactly much”.

Danny sighs and taps his chin, “well when you consider the fact that he’s lived off nothing but ectoplasmic fauna and flora, makes sense that his body would kinda have forgotten how to fucking digest human food you stupid nutcase. Geez, for a guy who plays chess you’re not very smart”. Vlad looks back to him and glares slightly, “I’m surprised you know that. Did you actually pay attention in health class for once?“. Danny rolls his eyes at that particular jab, “one of my friends only eats plants and one only eats meat, what do you think happens every time some bull crap happens where they have to break their diets?”.

Regardless Danny sighs some and bends down next to Vlad and Flynn, joining Vlad in the back-patting/rubbing. Snickering at the guy some though because people taking you too seriously or being all nice ‘n shit when you’re throwing your guts up was more embarrassing than helpful, “maybe don’t eat or drink shit without ecto in it, yeah?”.

Flynn grunts, expected, “ßhût üp, ßhørtŷ”. Making Danny and Vlad blink, Vlad grins like an idiot while Danny chuckles, “huh, guess you speak ghost. Though talk about a thick accent there, Ancients”. Vlad shoves Danny head, which Danny let’s knock him over on the ground, “it’s͢ ͘q͟u͘i͜te͞ ͞a̕ ̧useful ̡sk̛i̡l̡l͜,̡ ͜why I̕ thi͡nk he̕’s m͏o͠re f͏l̴u̸e̵nt͠ tha͏n҉ ͜yo̶u, Dan̕i̵eļ”. Danny stays laying on the ground, “I’m̕ ̸a̡ na͏t͠iv̵e spea̡k̷ȩr, so̧ ̛I̕ ͠don̕’̡t͞ ̡th̶ink̷ so”.

Flynn leans back, pushes away the bucket, and puts his arms on his knees, “ÿæ ßtåŷįñ’ thërë¿“. Danny nods with a grin from the floor and gives a thumbs up, earning a head shake from Flynn.

All three snap their heads to the kitchen entranceway as feet pound down the steps and Maddie and Jack come barging in, everyone then looking to the lab door as Jazz pushes it open while dusting off her pants and grumbling, “I so do not envy Danny having to clean that all the time”, pausing and looking up around everyone before zeroing in on three people sitting/laying on the floor, “Flynn! Danny! What happened!”, and runs over while glaring at and obviously blaming Vlad, who stands and readjusts his suit like he’s embarrassed to be caught caring. Well get caught by anyone other than Danny anyway; which makes sense ‘cause Vlad would probably be all caring about Danny if Danny wasn’t, you know, not evil.

Danny rolls over onto his back, looking at Jazz, “guess who can’t stomach human stuff?”, and jabs a thumb towards Flynn while Maddie rushes over and helps Flynn stand. Well okay, Flynn mostly waves off said help and stands up on his own, but still; Flynn also promptly grabs up his staff again. That staff’s probably some kind of comfort item for the guy.

Jack laughs as he comes to stand next to Vlad, “guess we’ll be cooking with a lot more ecto!”. Danny can practically feel malicious intent wafting of Vlad. Flynn grunting, “I’m ‘ine”. Which Maddie looks at him sweetly over and Jazz shakes her head at, “well let’s move into the living room anyway. Then you-”, glaring at Flynn, “-can sit down, and we can all hear what happened to you”. Vlad nods and hums, “yes I would like to know how I acquired a son from another timeline that’s been living nomadically in the Ghost Zone”.

Jack laughs as they all walk into the living room, “yup! Most we know is that some darn ghosty called Misery Vex took you at some point!”. Maddie and Jazz watching Flynn with slight worry as they walk. Danny just eyes Vlad to see if Vlad shows even the slightest amount of recognition regarding this ‘Misery Vex’, he doesn’t -fuck Danny’s luck- but Danny can’t exactly expect the man to know of every ghost ever. Regardless Danny skips over, puts his hands behind his back and sticks his face next to Vlad’s, “guessin’ you don’t know who that is either?”. Vlad scowls, “‘fraid not, but when I find them, and I will, I’m going to make them beg me to end them and then I’m going to find out how good ghost skin is at reupholstering my dining room chairs”.

Danny blinks, “I forgot there was a reason you and Skulker got along. Also, I doubt you have the skill set to be skinning anyone. Also also, I’m amazed you care that much”, and smirks.

“Must you mock me so, boy”.

Danny grins, “well.., how would you like me to mock you? I’ll hear your requests”, shrugging, “sure I might ignore them, but I’ll certainly hear them”. And finally flops to sit down on the love seat, Vlad sitting next to him with scowl. Jazz opts to sit with Maddie and Jack on the couch, while Flynn takes the chair; got to give the loner nomad his personal space after all.

Flynn huffs, “yeah, Vex’s is tha one that pulled me in ta tha Infinite Realm”. Jack doesn’t give him a chance to say more, tilting his head, “is that what ghosts call the Ghost Zone?!?”. Danny and Vlad both quietly sigh into their hands. Flynn squints at the large man, “ya nevar asked ‘em?”.; at least Maddie and Jack have the decency to look sheepish. Flynn squints more, “it’s what it’s called. Propar name”. Danny chuckles and waves Flynn off, “eh, then Zone can be slang”, ‘Zone’ was in fact common slang. Flynn rolls his eyes.

Vlad sighs quietly again, “linguistics aside, was there a reason Vex took you? And I’m just to assume you’re in this timeline purely due to your old one ceasing to exist”. Which Danny mutters, “duh”, at. Everyone ignores him as Flynn shrugs, “don’ know, like I’ve said ‘ready, ain’t stickin’ ‘round half spider creature-”. Danny’s wondering if the guy’s getting tired of explaining that. “-bark armour wasn’ friendly lookin’ eithar”.

Danny eyes Flynn’s bark armour, “guess yours doesn’t make you look all that approachable either”. With Maddie jumping in, “did you get that idea from It?”. Making Flynn blink at her before looking to Danny, “I did say Vex’s a lady, ‘ight?”. Danny nods but Jazz is the one to audibly sigh, drawing Flynn’s attention as she talks, “yes but-”, side-eyeing her parents, “-ghosts don’t get pronouns”.

Maddie rolls her eyes not unkindly, “now honey, we’ve talked about this, ghosts aren’t sentient or complex enough to understand gender and we don’t call plants ‘he’ or ‘she’-”. Danny coughs into his hand, “Sam does, you know”; which goes ignored. Maddie continuing, “-so why would we do so for ghosts? It would be like assigning gender to lightning”. Danny sighs internally, and he bets both Jazz and Vlad do as-well.

Flynn just stares at her for a while before blinking, “moron-”. Danny has the distinct feeling his folks are going to be hearing Flynn calling them ‘morons’ an awful lot. “-they have preferances. Blobs are no gendar, not tha Cored”. Vlad sighs dramatically, “what does gender have to do with my son's abduction”. Danny chuckles to himself faintly, guess Vladdie really grabbed onto the whole ‘I have a son’ thing with absolute confidence. Made sense. Ancients if Danny accepted him then the man probably wouldn’t stop using the word ‘son’ at every possible opportunity for a solid month.

Jack laughs almost awkwardly and scratches his head, “nothing! I guess”. Vlad scowls at him.

Flynn clears his throat, “well she-”. Nice passive-aggressiveness going on there. “-couldn’ ‘xactly follow me aftar I slippin’ inta some rock crag”, grunting, “ghost can’ go through rocks ‘n what not there”. Jack looks like he’s physically restraining himself from peppering Flynn with questions about that. Danny thinks this should be obvious though, since ghosts not being able to phase through ectoplasmic constructs/formations is literally how ghost shields worked. Like, duh.

Vlad just nods with a hum, “so you’ve been on your own since?”; which Flynn nods at. Maddie huffs, “I’m amazed the ghost didn’t chase you down”; Flynn shrugs, clearly not about to claim to understand why himself. Which yeah, abducting a kid through a portal seemed like a lot of effort to put in to just turn around and let the human run away; probably thought that this random human child wouldn’t be able to effectively avoid capture or survive on his own. Well surprise mother fucker! Flynn’s a Fenton -well a Masters too but whatever- being able to handle ghost shit is in his genes.

Danny decides to ask something that’s actually mildly important for him to know, “so bark armour and the lower half of a spider, anything else?”. His mom quirks an eyebrow at him so Danny elaborates/makes up an excuse, “wouldn’t it be good to know what a ghost that may come after him looks like?”. Earning an approving hum from her. Danny’s more interested in Vlad muttering to himself, “an Arachne then”; sweet, he’s got a species now.

Flynn grunts, “purpal skin, lotsa black eyes, bare bark crown-”. Danny almost chokes at that and he’s sure Vlad at least went slightly wide-eyed, because crown implied royalty. Which just great, that meant Danny was going to have to deal with whoever all kingly and shit. “-an clothes were shinebettle, I think-”. So basically shiny latex leather? Alright, that’s a look. “-an wendigo mane pelt ovar spidar half-”. Well that all but confirms Danny’s suspicions that Vex is from or at least frequents the FairLands. The only wendigo’s that didn’t just turn to ectoplasmic ash when destroyed were the faebeast ones. Hooray for having to probably go see Oberon. “-She had a fauchard ta”. Danny nods to himself.

Jack taps his chin, “that still doesn’t explain why though”, earning shrugs all around. Jack grinning, “we should hunt Vex down and find out!”. Which Vlad actually grins at, “yes, you go do that”. Danny kicking the man subtly and whispering, “Vlad no. Bad”, he knows the only reasons Vlad’s encouraging that is ‘cause his folks might torture the ghost and because the ghost might harm/kill Jack.

Maddie shakes her head and chastises Jack, “you’ll be doing no such thing, we don’t know the Zone is actually safe”, glancing at Flynn, “regardless of Flynn’s survival. Flukes happen”. Danny thinks it would make way more sense to guess it's safer than they thought than to just assume Flynn got lucky. But hey! At least he doesn’t have to worry as much that his folks are just going to run wild in the Zone anytime soon.

Vlad rolls his eyes though speaks somewhat sweetly, “dear Maddie, always being the voice of reason”. Maddie grimaces, and Flynn glances between them with a slight frown. Vlad digs in his pocket when his ringer goes off though. Speaking up after reading the screen, “seems some of the underlings are too moronic to deal with some problem alone”, looking up to everyone, “so I must be taking my leave now”, and stands up.

Jack jumping up, “well we can finish up Flynn’s room and he can join us after you’ve said your goodbyes! Wouldn’t want to interrupt that!”, and laughs. Maddie smiling sweetly and following him once again upstairs. Jazz sighs and moves to follow them, “I’ll make sure they didn’t get carried away”; while Danny just stretches and lounges out across the loveseat. Watching Vlad talk down at the still seated Flynn.

“I guess I’ll have to leave dealing with this Misery Vex in your and young Daniel’s hands. I don’t particularly have time to deal with petty ghost squabbles”, side-eyeing Danny, “he’s quite experienced with those though, so I doubt he’ll fail to be an effective meat-shield if needed”.

Flynn rolls his eyes, “I don’ care ta ‘deal with’ her at all. ‘Ine as is”. While Danny snorts at Vlad, “Ancients, you’re such a fucking pissant”.

Earning squinting from Vlad, “I’m the mayor and one of the richest people in the world”, huffing, “and I’m nothing to scoff at power-wise”.

“You are staying that... to the literal king... of death”. Danny smirks, “I’m fucking lucifer, bitch”. Vlad and Flynn blink and stare at him. Danny rubs his neck, “eh, too much?”. They both nod slightly. And there the similarities go being creepy again. Vlad shakes his head slowly, looking back to Flynn, “ignoring that, you can contact me for anything. Particularly if you decide being here isn’t worth the effort or annoyance”, and pats Flynn’s head, “you’ll want for nothing regardless”, making shooing motions at him, “now run along and help your mother and sister stop that imbecile from installing an anti-ghost auto-detection machine gun on your ceiling or some other nonsense”. Danny vaguely hates that his dad might actually do that. Though he’s surprised that Flynn actually does as he’s told with only a mild amount of suspicious squinting. Maybe he’s tired of Vlad’s existence? Doubtful but Danny can hope. Probably more likely the guy just wanted to get closer to being able to have some alone time, and room set up was an effective way to do that.

Danny waits till Flynn disappears upstairs to speak up, “hey Vlad?”. Vlad doesn’t even look back at him, instead just staring up the stairs, “hmmm?”.

“Don’t fuck this up. You know, like you always do”. Danny glares seriously at Vlad as he goes to stand up and Vlad actually looks to him with a quirked eyebrow, “but if you ever hurt him you won’t need to wonder where your god is anymore, because he’s coming for you and he’ll be fresh outta mercy”, squinting, “all these fucks will have flown off, never to return again. And you will be left crippled, withered, dried up and crapped on. At the bottom of a shitty little well where people will throw out their rotten fruit down on you and the remnants of your shitty little life”, glaring more, “we clear”. Vlad nods a bit stiffly; after all, when the king orders something or warns you, you fucking listen. Danny decides to really hammer it home though, “the fucking heat death of the universe will not be able to even approach the level of damage that the amount of fucks I will no longer give will cause you. What I’m saying is, I wouldn’t mind tearing out a length of your intestines, rolling it in a pan, sprinkling on some nice cinnamon and maybe some raisins. You know, for texture and a little added surprise. Then sliding it right into the oven for a nice little cinnamon bun”, chuckling meanly, “there’s even some icing pre-made in the fridge. So I’m all ready to go, bitch. Then I could use your hollowed-out torso to ride you like a meat toboggan. I’m sure your fucking intestines could be utilised as perfectly fine ropes to control my descent down the bloody snow-covered hill all the way into the depths of madness that you were birthed from years ago”.

“Daniel... you’ve made your point”, Vlad actually sounds slightly disturbed. Danny rolls his eyes and puts his hand in his pockets, “yeah well, so long as you don’t go making god sacrificing his only son look like a good parenting technique”.

“I... won’t”.

Danny pats Vlad on the arm, “good talk then”, and finger guns before heading upstairs, “and I’m still not your fam, frootloop”. Vlad just scowls at him and leaves, closing the door slightly louder than necessary. Return to normalcy achieved.

41 notes · View notes

jakes-eyebrows · 4 years

Text

Vampire AU

Pairing: Danny/Sammy

Word count: 4K

Warning: suggestiveness, brief mentions of blood, accidental death of a pet.

Tagging @imacrowcawcaw because we are Sanny buddies 💕

Gifs are from @edgeofgreta

The Kiszkas are a family of vampire hunters. They have been for generations. Kelly is their leader; his father was a hunter, his grandfather was a hunter, his great-grandfather was too and so on. His priority has always been to care for his family and protect everyone he knows from those inhuman creatures.

Josh, Jake and Sam are Kelly's sons; they grew up training to become professional hunters.

Danny is a pure blood, he was born a vampire. He's the youngest of the Wagner clan an ancient family, powerful and feared by everyone... except for Danny himself who doesn't necessarily follow all their rules.

Flashback

When Danny was still a very young vampire his only friend was his mentor Carlo. The man knew Danny got bored of his endless lectures, the boy was bored of living the same day every day. Carlo imagined how miserable that felt, so from time to time he allowed Danny to go outside on his own to explore, the young vampire liked to spend time in the woods. All of this against his parents’ wishes of course.

Danny wasn’t allowed to leave their property alone. His father insisted it was simply because he was a royal, and if he wanted to go out to hunt it had to be with the adequate “company” (his father’s loyal servants). Danny was smart beyond his years, he knew the real reason he couldn’t go wander outside by himself was because of the vampire hunters. He heard the stories told by the elders.

It was a cool autumn afternoon, the sky was gray, that day he came across a lady and her- son? They were collecting wood. Danny lived surrounded by adults so he was pleasantly surprised to see someone else who looked around his age. He climbed down from the tree he was spying from and quietly made his way closer to them but kept a decent distance.

He could see the lady and the boy talking and smiling as they filled a sack with logs, they looked happy. The young vampire felt strange after witnessing this, his own mother had never looked at him that way. He understood then they were different.

He was lost in thought when he clenched his fist and accidentally broke the branch he was holding, he panicked for a second thinking the noise would alert the strangers of his presence, luckily only the boy looked in his direction. When he spotted him he stared for a moment and smiled at Danny, the vampire smiled back when he saw the boy had warm brown eyes and rosy cheeks. Yeah, definitely not one of his kind.

Their silent exchange lasted only a few seconds...

"Sammy... Sammy, we got enough wood my boy. Let's go." The lady said.

Danny returned home. He had questions in his head, but he couldn’t go to anyone he knew for answers, not even Carlo and obviously not his parents. He was also confused; usually when they go hunting, the people they find to feed off always look terrified of them, as they should be. However, this boy had looked him in the eye and smiled at him. It felt nice. Danny figured he could go back the next day to the same place, in hopes of seeing that boy again.

“Boys, who’s coming with me? We need to go get more wood.” Asked Papa Kiszka.

“I wanna go!”

“Not you, Sam. You went last time with mom. It’s the twins’ turn.”

“Are we out? But mom went yesterday.” Said Jake.

“I did, dear. I let Gretna have the sack we had left, you know her husband’s been a little sick so he can’t go collect it.”

“In that case Jake wants to go.”

“Shut up, Josh!” Honestly Jake didn’t mind going but was irritated by Josh wanting to boss him around. It was always the same with them, they would start throwing punches at the littlest provocation. Sam knew that, so he tried to calm things down by insisting he could go again to help his father.

“Alright then. Let’s go, son. We need to come back before it gets dark.”

Danny was comfortably laying down by a tree, eyes closed hands behind his head when he heard someone approaching. He quickly got up to go hide behind the bushes. He stood there observing; he was once again pleasantly surprised to see the same boy from the day before, but he was accompanied by a man this time. The man had an ax with him, he started chopping some wood and the boy was helping him pile it.

“You know, I think I’ll just finish chopping all of it so we can leave some here for next time.” Danny heard the man say then he saw the boy kneeling to pick something up.

“Dad, look! A bunny!”

“Be careful, boy. You don’t wanna scare it.” Sam smiled as he held it in his arms and gently caressed its head.

Danny kept watching them closely until the boy put the animal down. The bunny hopped in Danny’s direction, he wanted to run when he saw Sam following it but he stayed in place. The bunny continued until it stopped right in front of Danny and Sam was walking behind it.

“There you are!” Said Sam picking up the bunny again. He saw Danny quietly standing there.

“Oh, you again. Is this little guy yours?” Danny shook his head no.

“I’m Sam. What’s your name?” Sam, Sammy- Danny remembered the lady calling him that. He wanted to answer but he also remembered the rules. He wasn’t supposed to reveal his name to a human unless he was planning to kill them. He looked at Sam, he opened his mouth and closed it again and just smiled instead of saying anything.

“Don’t be shy, here, you wanna hold him?” Sam offered. The vampire walked closer and extended his arms, Danny held it and they both smiled, it felt warm and fluffy so he tried to gently squeeze it against his chest but-

“Hey- be careful! You’re hurting him!”

Danny didn’t know how to properly control his inhuman strength yet, which made him accidentally kill the poor animal.

Sam started crying “Why did you do that? You- You’re a monster!” the boy yelled at him. Danny looked mortified, he felt terrible, not for killing the bunny but because he made the boy in front of him cry. He wanted to apologize but he didn’t get the chance.

“Sam!” His father came rushing to find his son crying. He saw Danny with the dead bunny in his arms. Kelly knew better than his son, with a quick glance at Danny he knew right away. “A vampire!” the man exclaimed and in the blink of an eye Danny was gone he had disappeared into the woods.

“We need to get out of here now!”

When they made it back to the village, Kelly immediately got together with the other hunters to inform them about what he had seen in the woods.

“A child you say? How is that possible?”

“If they fed from a child that kid wouldn’t survive. Those bastards.”

One of the hunters, visibly frustrated, kept listening quietly until he decided to speak up…

“Unless that child was never human.”

“A pure blood!” Kelly concluded. It seemed like the only logical explanation after all. “If there’s a pure blood vampire around, surely there’s more hiding near the area.”

“God help us.”

After what happened with the humans Danny ran away, he knew he had to go back to the lair before sunrise but he didn’t want to, he needed to be alone for a while. For the first time in his life, he understood what he really was and he hated it “You’re a monster!” Sam’s words kept repeating in his head. He sat on the ground and rested his head on his knees.

“Daniel is missing!” Carlo alerted Danny’s parents.

“Go find him then. I am sure you know where to look.” The mother responded coldly.

“And you better act fast. Sunrise approaches.” The father said, he didn’t look bothered in the slightest.

Carlo knew Danny better than anyone. Since the day Danny was born he had been in charge of teaching him, he had to guide him and prepare him to become a ruler among the undead just like his parents. And yes, he knew where to look for the young vampire.

He knew the spot in the woods Danny frequented to go relax, so he headed that way. There were only two hours left until sunrise.

The hunters had come up with a plan to find the vampire’s lair. They split in two groups of five, one of the groups headed back to the place Kelly had seen the kid vampire to track him and his possible companions.

Carlo made his way to the part of the woods he knew Danny liked to visit. He checked the trees until he arrived at a big ancient one and that’s where he noticed various footprints on the ground. He kneeled to inspect them, they looked small, they could be Danny’s but they appeared to be going in two different directions “Another kid?” then he realized there were adult footprints as well. He shrugged and decided to keep looking.

“There he is! Get him!” Ru shouted, he was one of the hunters.

Carlo had his guard down so he couldn’t act fast enough. He felt the pressure of multiple bullets entering his body from his back. He got up as fast as he could ready to fight back but he found himself outnumbered; sunrise was coming, he knew he had no choice but try to escape.

In order to kill a vampire they had to shoot them right in the heart and set fire on them before the body could regenerate.

The hunters chased Carlo but the vampire was much faster than them, he managed to lose them but he was also getting weaker after being shot many times. He found a place to hide and laid down on the ground, knowing he didn’t have enough energy left to make it back to a safe place. He accepted his fate and decided to watch the sun rise one last time, he admired the view as he felt the first rays of sunshine burning him.

15 years later

The hunters were still after them. They had been killing many more vampires in the past few years; mostly lesser range ones but still. Danny's been meaning to get back at them, so he’s come up with the perfect plan: He will kidnap one of them, knowing the rest will surely come after him. He will set a trap for the hunters and kill them all, kill the men who murdered his only friend. A nice revenge.

The Kiszkas still have a camping spot outside the village to protect the people from the vampires in the surrounding areas. Danny's been observing them for weeks looking for a vulnerability, perhaps a weak link. But he quickly came to find the hunters had no weak link. He needs to be smart about his first move.

The group of hunters consistently remains with 10 members. When an elder retires, gets sick or dies they are replaced by one of the young apprentices. Danny knows their current leader is a man named Kelly, his two sons are part of the group too, along with other seven men.

Danny has seen one of the young hunters with the same girl many times. He can tell they are pretty close so she must be his lover. The weak link he needs. So one night, the vampire sneaks into the girls house while everyone’s asleep. He finds her in bed sleeping peacefully; she’s wearing a thin white night gown that leaves her arms, her neck and part of her chest exposed. Her skin looks delicate and soft… Danny’s instinct tells him to just take her right then and there, it would be so easy to get lost in her warmth and the taste of her blood. He must resist the temptation for now, he needs her alive for a bigger purpose.

The vampire sits down at the end of her bed, he waits but she doesn’t move. He scoots closer and as soon as he puts his cold hand on her leg she immediately gets up, she’s sitting straight now with a dagger in her hand, pulled it out of nowhere and is now pointing it do Danny’s chest.

No weak link Danny sighs.

“Who the fuck are you?”

“Careful, flower. Don’t want to hurt yourself, do you?”

“You’re-” she stops talking when they stablish eye contact. Danny’s eyes are literally hypnotizing. He plays with her mind and plants a seed in her brain that will help the vampire with his next move.

“You will bring him to me.” He seals the spell with a kiss on her lips.

And that’s how Jake found himself in this situation. The couple arrived at a beautiful valley outside the village to be alone when suddenly a vampire appeared before them. Jake tried to fight but Danny was faster, he grabbed the girl by the neck and held her between the two before Jake could shoot him. The vampire offered him a deal and promised him he would let his girlfriend go unharmed if the hunter came with him.

When she came back to her senses, she remembered what happened and ran to find Jake’s father and the other hunters. “It’s all my fault.” She sobbed in Sam’s chest… she didn’t feel strong enough to look at Josh, terrible guilt eating her up. “I’m so- I’m so sorry, Josh” she told the older twin when she felt his hand on her shoulder.

“We’re gonna get him back.”

Josh made it his mission to save Jake and kill the vampire. Sam too even if he wasn’t a member of the group of hunters. Everything he knew in terms of hunting and fighting he had learned from his father and his brothers.

The truth was Sam never really wanted to become a vampire hunter. He had different interests, in his mother’s words he’s a science man. Sam believed in the power of reason rather than in chasing and killing. However, he would never turn his back on his family so he prepared to join Josh and their father in Jake’s rescue. If he had to kill a vampire so be it.

“What’s your name?”

“Brave of you to ask me that, mister. You know what happens when a vampire reveals his name to a human?”

Jake smiles cheekily “He shows his good manners, and I’m Jake by the way.”

“Well, Jake. Sorry about the lack of commodities but don’t you worry, you won’t be staying for long.”

“Are you gonna kill me?”

The young man didn’t look scared at all. Danny could easily sense the fear in humans, he could practically smell it so he was certain this Jake guy wasn’t pretending. This was not entirely surprising for the vampire maybe just a little odd. Jake must have felt confident, he knew the other hunters would come searching for him, which also served Danny’s plan.

“Not tonight. Goodnight, Jake.”

Back at the camp, the hunters had their plan set and were ready to commence the search of the vampire’s lair. Danny had been spying on the hunters long enough to know some of their tactics, he had learned they usually split in two groups of five when they were on a mission. He wasn’t wrong. The hunters did split in two groups, the plan was as follows: the first party will go searching for Jake, if they didn’t make it back in 24 hours the other group will go looking for them.

It was easy to follow the vampire’s tracks this time, the hunters realized there could be a catch so they had to be prepared.

“When we get there, Josh, Ru and me are going after the creature. Sam, you will stay behind and wait for my signal. You will go get Jake while we handle the rest. Understood?”

“Got it.”

30 minutes passed and still nothing. Sam was starting to get really worried, what if the others were in danger? Or hurt? He followed his gut and decided to sneak into the vampire’s lair. From outside it looked like an abandoned castle, it appeared to be old and decadent. However once inside the place he came to find it was clean, spacious and luxurious with paintings on the walls and extravagant décor everywhere. He carefully roamed the halls with his weapon in hand.

“Did you lose something?” The vampire’s voice echoed at the end of the hallway. Sam knew it was useless to run, he had to be smart.

“I was just talking a walk, I got lost and I ended up here.”

“Really?” the voice was approaching. Sam attempted to use his weapon but a very cold hand on his wrist stopped him from doing so. Danny grabbed Sam from the shoulders to turn him around to face him and enveloped the human in his arms.

Sam’s heart skipped a beat when he was in front of the vampire. They stood so close Sam could feel his cold and hard body pressing against him. He experienced real fear for a second, then decided to look up to face his captor who was only a couple inches taller than him, he wanted to look him in the eye before the vampire took his life.

He was face to face with a very handsome man. Sam unconsciously held his breath, eyes full of wonder. The vampire had luscious black hair and the most stunning dark eyes. His skin was perfectly smooth and pale, and his lips, looked ripe red, fleshy and dare he admit… desirable? This was probably the most beautiful person Sam had ever seen. His face looked familiar too, but why? All these thoughts went through his head, it was as if time had stopped just for the two of them or maybe just for Sam who was mesmerized.

Danny was no better. He held Sam’s gaze for a moment then couldn’t help but admire all of him, his pretty long hair, a mix of light brown and golden streaks, his skin almost as perfect as his own but with a natural blush to it, he looked healthy, alive. His eyes were framed by elegant arched brows, his nose long and thin and finally his pink lips looked so… kissable. Danny felt warmth spreading in his chest, longing, he wanted to kiss this man, he wanted to taste his skin, he wanted-

“You really are a monster, huh?” Sam interrupted Danny’s train of thought.

“What?”

“That day in the woods, you killed a bunny right in front of me… but I won’t let you kill my brother now.” Sam said as he pushed a knife in the vampire’s stomach. Danny arched in pain, it hurt like hell it felt as if the knife was burning him when it entered his body.

Sam knew that wouldn’t kill the vampire so he ran, screaming for Jake, hoping his brother would hear him, he hoped his screams would alert the others of his whereabouts too.

“Up here! Sam, I’m here!”

Sam ran up the stairs following Jake’s voice. He found him in an empty room chained to a wall.

“Jesus Christ! We need to get you out of here.”

“Where is he? The vampire.”

“I barely managed to get away from him. The knife dipped in holy water, it worked!”

“It won’t kill him though.”

“I know I know we better hurry up.”

When Jake was set free they hurried out of the room. “Where are the others? Where’s Dad?”

As soon as Danny recovered his breath and got up he pulled the knife out of his stomach, it burned him again. He noticed the wound wasn’t closing as fast as usual. He hated himself for aborting the mission but he had to go lay in his coffin, that was the only way to fully recover. A coffin filled with natural soil from his motherland.

The other three hunters were trapped in a dungeon, the vampire had poisoned them. Danny’s plan was to let them die and rot in there.

When Jake and Sam found them they feared the worst, they were laying on the floor unconscious. Ru had a huge wound on his neck, Josh and Kelly looked bruised and bloody but there were no significant wounds in sight. Sam got to them to check their pulse, they were still breathing.

“Fuck! He’s dead.” Said Jake after checking on Ru.

“We don’t have much time we need to get Dad and Josh back to the village now!”

Sam felt relieved once they stepped outside the castle and it was sunny, he took another look back, deep down he knew the vampire would be coming back for him.

Weeks passed and Sam’s fear came true. The vampire came to visit him one night, but this time he wasn’t looking for revenge.

“Are you gonna tell me your name?”

“I’m Daniel.” He said sitting next to Sam on the bed, the vampire looked curious as he grabbed the human’s hands, he carefully inspected them. Sam flinched a little at the cold contact but didn’t move his hands away, his heart started beating faster out of… fear? The nerves in his gut increased when he realized he felt attracted to the vampire.

“Your hands are soft, you’re not a hunter.”

“I’m not.”

“Is that why you’re not trying to get away? Because you know you can’t win?” Danny asked as he started kissing Sam’s hand. He gently pressed his lips to the knuckles then turned it to kiss his wrist as well. Sam quietly gasped and bit his lip.

“I- I’m not afraid of you.”

Danny looked up visibly pleased. He didn’t need to use his mind controlling powers to keep Sam close.

“Good.” The vampire said standing back up and made his way to the window.

“Where are you going?”

“I’ll let you go back to sleep, Sammy.”

After that night, the vampire started visiting his room regularly. Sam always had questions for him and Danny was happy to entertain him, he liked having a friend. Sam talked to him about his inventions, his plans and how he wished to move out to see the world.

Danny understood how Sam felt, he opened to him and talked about his parents going away, moving to a different land when the hunters started killing their clan one by one.

“I didn’t want to live their life, live by their rules, so when they decided to leave I just… stayed.”

Sam noticed the sad look on his face, he wasn’t completely sure about his feelings for the vampire but he knew he didn’t like to see him down. Daniel’s presence made him happy and Sam hoped he could make the vampire happy too.

Daniel, Daniel, my Danny… he liked the sound of it… wait, no. Sam shook his head.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I was just thinking… I’m glad you stayed.”

They were standing close to each other. Danny put his hands on Sam’s slim waist to bring him closer and Sam let him. He delicately brushed his lips against Sam’s neck before he started kissing him. Sam’s pulse increased when he felt the vampire opening his mouth to gently suck on his tender skin, then he soothed the area with his tongue. Sam let out a moan and put his arms around Danny’s shoulders to keep him there, the vampire continued to kiss and suck on his neck. Sam panted when he felt the fangs scratching him. Never in his life had he experienced such an erotic moment, his hips pushed against Danny…

“Are you gonna do it?” that stopped Danny.

“Do you want me to?”

“I want you to kiss me.” Danny kissed his throat again then moved his hand behind Sam’s neck, he pressed his lips to Sam’s and for the first time ever, he felt it all. It started with a gentle peck then Danny began to move his lips against Sam’s sensually, he responded kissing back and opening his mouth to let his tongue poke Danny’s lips, deepening the kiss. Danny sucked on Sam’s tongue softly and the younger gasped. Their heated make out session continued until Danny felt his instincts wanting to take over, he stopped and pulled away from Sam’s embrace. Sam looked away embarrassed.

“I’ll be gentle with you, Sam.”

Sam bit his lip and nodded, still not looking back at Danny. Danny didn’t want him to feel rejected so he grabbed his hand. “We could go out for a walk.”

Epilogue

“You warm up when I touch you, interesting.”

“You expected me to be ice cold.”

“Yeah but I used to eat snow, so I’m used to it.”

“Are you comparing my dick to snow?”

“Your dick tastes better though.”

#gvf fic #sam kiszka #danny wagner #sanny #greta van fleet

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gearsforyears · 7 years

Text

Mafia!DP and Avengers?

I really like this idea; one of my friends suggested I try this out, and I couldn’t stop writing it ;w;

An adolescent leaned back in his chair, swirling the wine in his cup as he looked upon the people before him. The wine was a sinfully dark red that contrasted greatly with the bright white hair and aura surrounding the mafia boss, and it smelled bittersweet. Glowing green eyes pierced through the darkness towards his ‘guests’, and a sly grin appeared on his face, “So, I hear you have been looking for me?”

Tony Stark grit his teeth, already annoyed with having to deal with the crime lord, “I know it was someone beneath you that hacked the computers and stole the information. Where is it?” His team stood behind him, al wearing equally frustrated faces.

“Hm, I apologize, but I have no idea what you are talking about,” Danny took a long sip from his glass and motioned to the two standing next to his chair. One was a beautiful young woman with dark hair reaching her shoulders, a dark purple blouse and black dress pants gracing her. She’d be the epitome of innocence and beauty if not for the gun in her hand. The other was a dark-skinned teenager with a dark suit on, his hair pulled back underneath a fedora and a bulge in his pocket that looked like a large phone or a small tablet. His glasses blocked the Avengers from seeing his face. Danny leaned over, letting his slicked back white hair fall forward on his neck a bit, “Sam? Tucker? Do you guys know what’s going on with them?”

Sam gave a small smile, “Not at all, Phantom.”

“Yeah, man,” Tucker sighed, lifting his arms above his head and stretching, “No clue.”

A toothy grin spread across Danny’s face, looking more threatening than pleased, “See? I do believe you have the wrong mafia boss, Mr. Stark, Avengers. Please see yourself out.”

“I know it was you!” Tony growled out. To say he was pissed was an understatement; the Phantom Mafia had stolen valuable blueprints and information about weapons for the Tesseract from a long time ago. Tony was told by Fury that those files were deleted once the Tesseract was back in Asgard! “And I know it was someone in your mafia because it had your symbol all over the files!”

An eyebrow raised on Phantom’s forehead, and he reached up to twist the DP symbol Sam designed on his tie clip. The white gold shone in the office, and Danny ‘accidentally’ shined the light in Captain America’s eyes, relishing in the small flinch Steve made in the act, “No need to raise your voice, Mr. Stark. We’re all adults here, are we not?”

Clint Barton muttered under his breath, “You’re barely an adult.”

“Would you like to speak louder, Mr. Barton?” The sly grin stayed put on Phantom’s face, but one could see the growing anger behind the young man’s glowing eyes, “I don’t think your teammates heard your blatant disrespect.” The archer opened his mouth to speak again, but Natasha nudged him, keeping him quiet, “Ah, yes. Obey the little spider, Mr. Barton. You know it will do you good.”

That got a rise out of the team. Stark frowned and narrowed his eyes at the young and seemingly regal man, “We’re a team! No one bosses anyone around, not like you do!”

A snort escaped the dark-skinned right hand man of Phantom, “By the Ancients, can you believe these guys? First they come in yelling about us stealing files, and now they’re accusing you of bossing people around.”

“‘S pretty funny,” Sam smiled, watching the Avengers with careful eyes. Her lilac irises set some of them on edge, the unnatural color reminding them that even she may be a ghost, “Especially since they don’t know what they’re talking about, huh Phantom?” She reached over and rested a hand on the white-haired man’s shoulder, and he grinned back up at her. Phantom leaned back and placed a light kiss on her arm.

A breathy laugh escaped him, and he whispered to the bodyguard, “Sam, Tucker, I order you to call me boss.”

“Nah, dude.” Tucker laughed, a hand clutched to his stomach, “Are you really trying to pull off the ‘I’m the only one in control’ vibe?” Another giggle left his mouth, and his glasses shifted so the heroes could see his green eyes. Tucker stood up straight and nudged his hat in the Avenger’s direction, “You can’t really mess with three bosses over here, friends.”

Steve narrowed his eyes at the three of them, “The name of your mafia is Phantom’s mafia. Shortstack over there is obviously the boss.” If the statement angered the white-haired male, he didn’t show it. Danny merely stood up and took another sip of his wine before handing the glass to Tucker, who drank out of the cup as well.

“The naming was mutual, I assure you,” The shit-eating grin was still plastered on his face, and it set the Avengers on edge somehow. It looked animalistic and feral, as if he could pounce any time and rip them to shreds. The sharpened canines spilling over the edges of his lips didn’t help that fact at all. He stood in front of his leather chair now, and rested one hand on the front of his desk and the other on the blazer of Tucker, “Now, about those files you have accused us of stealing. What were on those documents that have you in such a tizzy as to break into my office?”

Natasha had a feeling that the easiness of them getting into his office wasn’t coincidental. Phantom led them there and most likely ordered his associates to let them come in without much a fight. But what was his end goal? The assassin decided that honesty here had to be the best policy, “Weapon blueprints for high energy cartridges. What are planning on doing with them?”

“Oh please, Phantom has enough toys as it is,” Sam grinned, her finger tapping on the trigger of her gun. The warmed metal gave her a sense of assurance, boosting her confidence, “We don’t need more weapons at our disposal.”

“True, true,” Tucker mused, tapping his chin with his free hand. The Avengers took notice of the watch on his wrist, that not only looked expensive, but also seemed to be too high tech to buy on any normal market, “But money is money, you must know that, Mr. Stark. We may have no need for the blueprints if we hypothetically had them, but what if certain employers decide to pawn them off of us? Hypothetically, of course.”

Tony glowered, “How were you able to hack into Jarvis’ system?”

Phantom grinned once again, “My tech crew specializes in infiltrating, acquiring, and destroying files without leaving a trace. Hypothetically, it was easy to hack into your mediocre system.”

“Not easy enough, apparently,” Steve stepped forward, seeming to challenge the evidence of the mafia leaders, “You left your symbols behind. We were able to track your location. Your tech crew isn’t as smart as you claim it to be.”

Now a frown, the first one of the night, fell on Phantom’s face, and his eyes glowed harsher, the green attacking the white until anything that anyone could see was the unnatural radioactive color. A soft growl escaped his lips, “Questioning the intelligence of my team? And I thought you were the ‘family man’, Captain.”

Tucker laughed and set down the wine on the desk before wrapping an arm loosely around the half-ghost to calm him down, “Little crumbs for you to follow, I assure you. How else were you supposed to find us, Mr. Rogers? We only wished for you to be intelligent enough to understand when we ask you to come, government dogs.” The bite at the insult showed Tucker’s anger through his cool persona.

Glares were shot across the desk, no one saying a word in fear of starting a fight no one could finish. Thor looked clueless as to what was going on, but understood the insult well enough, and he clutched his hammer tighter in his fist. The amount of draugrs in the place was putting him on edge, and he hated it. Clint and Natasha both were sliding into fighting stances, not wanting to take chances with the three in front of them. Tony was furious, seeing as the three of them were children, and Steve seemed appalled that ‘government dogs’ was all that they thought of them.

A boisterous laugh broke out, and all eyes turned to Sam, who held her gun loosely in her hand, watching the tense scene with joy, “God, you guys are cute. Just like us when we were little-” Her eyes suddenly went alert, and a hand flew up to her ear, covered by her hair, and she listened to the device stationed there.

Phantom sat down once again with a huff, “What is it, Sam?”

“Nothing too terrible, but Desiree needs some help at the docks. Should I send in Skulker to help?” The Avengers (or at least, those who were present) watched in shock as the tense atmosphere all but disappeared at the calm conversation the bosses were having.

Tucker shook his head, “Send in Youngblood. He’s already stationed near there.”

“I’ve put him near the warehouses, but he can be moved out while Skulker watches the shipments,” Phantom mused, waving at her. His face was contemplative, and he looked at the heroes in front of him with disdain, “I’d go myself, but my hands are tied. Just go and send Youngblood. Maybe Wulf while you’re at it.”

Then a frown set on his face, like a permanent mask. It didn’t seem as if he was truly angry with the team, but the frown was almost like that of a disappointed parent, or a teacher who realized they had to fail a student, “This would go much faster if you just offered me money for your weapons back.”

“So you did steal the files!” Tony grumbled out, “I’m not striking any deal with a megalomaniac like you!”

Sam leaned down and whispered something in Danny’s ear who waved her off. A dark grin came across her face and she left quickly, her boots making large thuds behind her, showcasing the power she held. To do what, the team didn’t know, but Phantom simply smiled at the heroes as she left, “Me? A megalomaniac? You obviously haven’t met my godfather.” He grabbed the half-empty wine glass from the desk, stained at the edges from his and Tucker’s lips and took another sip, “And yes, you will strike a deal with me before I sell them to others across the globe. I’d say a good three million should cover the profits I’m losing by giving these back to you?”

“Three million should work,” Tucker mused, tapping his chin, “But considering how much we could sell it to a certain government agency… You better up the price, Phantom. Hydra is becoming more and more desperate and have already offered up a nice 4.7 million.”

Phantom’s eyebrows rose, revealing more of his bright green eyes to the heroes. He gestured his glass to Thor, “You hear that shit, tough guy? Do you know how much monetary value that is on Earth?” Thor simply sneered at the draugr, angry at it questioning his own intelligence, “Is that frown a no, or can you not understand me?”

A hand was placed on his shoulder from Steve, making him back down before starting anything with the mafia boss. Captain America wanted nothing more at this point than to wipe that smug look off the teens’ faces, but knew that they’d only cause havoc around the world if he did. As ghosts, they had this uncanny knack to destroy everything they came across. Though his suspicions of Samantha and Tucker being spirits were slowly dissipating. Clint spoke, a glint in his eyes at his friend being insulted, “Do you really want to be on the bad side of SHIELD, Phantom? How about the Avengers?”

Tucker laughed this time, snatching the wine back from Phantom before he could take a drink, earning himself a glare, “You guys aren’t that threatening. And trust us when we say all we do is for the benefit of everyone here.” He took the last sip of the red wine, much to Phantom’s displeasure, before speaking again, “Everything is as it should be, right Phantom?”

The white-haired male sighed before nodding, “At least you got the quote right. Please don’t misunderstand my intentions, Mr. Stark. Although I’m giving back your blueprints at a price, the money is needed for other ventures that will further help not only us, but you as well.” At the disbelieving looks he was being given from the heroes, Phantom sighed before simplifying, “You help me, give money, we do good thing, save future, woohoo.”

His unenthusiastic voice washed over the team, who listened to the sarcastic explanation with confusion. Stark almost wished Bruce was there to beat the information out of Phantom. Hey, Phantom was a ghost! Surely getting the shit beat out of him wouldn’t be too detrimental. A low groan threatened to leave his throat but he held it back by pinching the bridge of his nose. Phantom seemed to smile at the fact that he had made the billionaire annoyed with him, as if he had some vendetta against rich people, when he was in fact a rich person, “So you want about 5 million dollars is what you’re saying.”

“That’s what we’ve been dancing around for the past ten or so minutes, Mr. Stark.”

“Done,” He muttered, angry with himself. He knew that if he wanted, Phantom could order in ghosts at anytime to destroy anything he wanted, already been proven that fact when SHIELD had ticked him off, and Phantom sent a legion to destroy a private training base. Five million wasn’t too much to the billionaire, but it was enough to seriously piss him off, “Anything else you want, Casper?”

Tucker smiled, “Well, I have been wanting this new game that’s coming-”

“That will suffice, Mr. Stark,” Phantom smiled, this time it was almost genuine. Almost. There was still some sort of predatory glint in his eyes, like he finally had captured his prey who were quivering beneath him. Tony didn’t like the look at all, “I’m sure the five million from you and the ten million from SHIELD should cover our expenses, don’t you think so, Tuck?”

Natasha narrowed her eyes, the new information processing in her brain. She had never knew that SHIELD would give Phantom money; and what for? “What do you mean, SHIELD’s giving you cash?”

“Simple,” Phantom’s smile spread, and Tucker’s even widened. They seemed to be sharing an inside joke that the Avengers weren’t in on, and Phantom stood up, casually pressing a button on his keyboard as he did so, “I think ten million dollars for the release of their precious Avengers would be quite the bargain, yes?”

Before anyone could react, the double doors to the office opened, revealing several ghosts who all smiled menacingly at the heroes. Phantom laughed to himself at the shellshocked expressions on the heroes’ faces, “Don’t worry, we don’t need to resort to violence. They are just here in case you… misbehave while I’m negotiating.”

“Yeah, and besides,” Tucker smiled, looking at his watch proudly, “We seem to be right on time! Man, CW is always right.” He looked over at the team, who were all slipping into fighting stances, ready to fight their way out of the situation, “Hey guys? Can we not break the office? This will all be over soon anyway, so enjoy this while you can.”

Thor looked warily at the human before a blanket of darkness seemed to wrap around him. He could see his fellow members falling one by one as a shadowy figure encased them, mumbling sweet nothings in their ears. The god faintly heard Phantom’s praising voice in the background as he, too, began to lose consciousness, “Keep watch over them, Nocturne. Make sure they’re comfortable.” The voices continued on until Thor couldn’t hear anymore, slipping into sweet dreams that made him not want to wake up.

#DP!AU #DP #Mafia!Danny #Danny Phantom #Samantha Manson #Tucker Foley #Avengers #Crossover #i like writing these so much

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kc-anathema · 7 years

Text

Blood is Thicker

Disclaimers: Don't own these vampires, Anne Rice does. I make no money off of this.

Spoilers: Queen of the Damned

Warnings: Adult situations, slash

Daniel slowed his pace a tiny bit as Armand fumbled a few items around in the shopping bag. Usually his maker had no problem keeping up, but with his mind pre-occupied, he had not yet noticed that his slightly shorter gait was making him fall behind a little, and Danny didn't like to get too far ahead. It tended to make Armand feel bad, and that would make him irritable and cold again, and Daniel loved having him at least comfortable enough to where he would speak to him. It was a miracle in itself that Armand had agreed to come shopping at the mall.

"Wait a moment," Armand said suddenly.

Danny pulled to a halt right in front of a Bath and Body Shop. "Um, I'll wait for you here, Boss," he said, taking a step back from the stench.

Armand smiled wryly and handed him his bag. "My poor Danny, still too much of a fledgling to handle strong smells."

Danny rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall, several feet away from the door. "Yeah, rub it in, why don't you?"

Armand laughed and entered the store, disappearing behind the rosy colored shelves. Daniel just sighed and closed his eyes, crossing his arms. He loved Armand, but the little runt could be damned insufferable at times.

I wonder if I could get him in chains, Danny thought, tilting his head for a moment. Or at least I could get strong enough to pin him down. Or maybe I could--

"Danny? Daniel, is that you?!"

Daniel opened one eye lazily, but when he saw the speaker, his eyes opened wide in shock. "Janet?" he whispered. "No..."

The girl in front of him, with dirty blonde hair and violet eyes just like him, ran from the opposite store and wrapped her arms around him. He held himself back from returning the embrace.

"Oh, Danny, it's been ages since we've seen you! Why haven't you written, why don't you call? Mom and Dad've been worried so much about you!"

Daniel didn't say anything, wishing she would disappear and Armand would come and take him home.

"How long have you been down here?" she continued. "Are you okay? Damn, feels like you've been working out. Danny?" She realized that he wasn't answering, and she took a step back. "Danny?"

"What are you doing here?" he asked finally.

"We're all here," she smiled. "Mom and Dad and me and John, we're all here on vacation. Come on, they're in here somewhere!" She tugged his hand, surprised that he wasn't moving. "Daniel?"

He shook his head and pulled his hand away. "No, Janet, I'm not going anywhere."

"But don't you want to see them?" she asked in a very small voice.

"They kicked me out," he tried to explain. "Dad beat me up and sent me away. Why would I want to see him again?" He looked inside the store nervously. "Look, you'd better take off. It's not safe for you here."

"What? Danny, are you in some kind of trouble?"

"No, but you have to leave." He could just imagine what Armand might do to her. His fledgling could run away by himself, and Armand knew Danny would return, but when mortals showed any kind of threat of stealing him away, real or imagined, Armand saw nothing wrong in killing them.

"Danny, if you need help--?"

"Look, damn it, will you just leave me alone?!"

"Daniel, what is wrong?" came a soft voice to his right.

Daniel turned and faced Armand, terrified of what might happen. "Nothing, she was just leaving."

Janet stared almost in shock at her brother's companion. This boy couldn't be eighteen, no way! Maybe not even sixteen. And Daniel seemed to be afraid of this stranger, even though he was much smaller. Danny was a few shades from blindly obeying him. Her jaw set and she put her hands on her hips.

"No, I wasn't. Who are you?"

"Armand," he replied smoothly. "And you would be?"

"Janet," she snarled, almost daring him to try anything. "His sister."

"Ah, that explains the resemblance."

Janet shifted feet. Armand disturbed her. He sounded weird, older than he looked.

"Danny, please come with me," she turned back to her brother, pleading with her eyes. "Dad really feels sorry for what happened, I know he wants to see you again. And Mom, too, we all want to see you again."

"Sorry, Janet," Daniel shook his head. "I can't go back. I can never go back."

Armand gave his new shopping bag to Daniel and pulled him easily away, turning him from the mortal. "Danny, it's time to go. We have other business to attend to, remember? Go wait for me in the car, and I'll be right there."

Daniel was about argue, but Armand gave him his don't-you-dare-disobey-me-right-now look. His fledgling sighed and nodded. "Sure, boss." He took off immediately.

"Danny, wait!" Janet called after him, but Armand stepped in front of her. "Get out of my way, you little freak!" she growled.

"Daniel is no longer who you once knew," he said softly. "And he does not have my permission to see you."

"What?"

"He knows this," Armand continued. "He understands what will happen if he speaks with you again. I suggest that you stay away from him from now on."

"He's my brother," she fumed. "Part of my family!"

"No. He has a new family, one who loves him and would never cast him out. One who would keep him safe and take care of him when he needs it. One who does not obsess about his sexual orientation or religious preferences." He laughed at her astonished face. "Oh, yes, my little Danny has told me all about you, after a little encouragement. He told me all about how your father beat him and sent him out all alone into a cruel and unforgiving world. You should thank me for taking him in." Armand turned and started after his fledgling.

"Just who the hell are you?" she said, a cold tone in her voice. "What are you?"

Armand chuckled and looked over his shoulder at her. "Me? I am his lover." And on that note, he disappeared from her sight.

Daniel was sitting in the back of Armand's limousine, leaning his head back against the seat, wondering what was going on. Was Armand killing his little sister? She had always given him a hard time back home, but still, she was family. He glanced back the mall, wanting desperately to go back inside and make sure she was all right, but he shook his head and looked away again. Armand had told him to go to the car. He sighed and pounded the seat with his fist, this not-knowing was eating at him. Finally he worked up enough courage to go back, but as soon as he turned toward the door, Armand was already climbing in next to him.

"Back home," he told the driver, giving his lover a harsh glare.

Daniel settled back down in his seat, staring out of the corner of his eye to see if Armand had any traces of blood on his fangs or fingers. Armand noticed the poorly-hid scrutiny and rolled his eyes.

"No, I didn't kill her," he snarled. "Should I have?"

Danny shook his head quickly. "I...I'm sorry, I didn't even know she was here...I would've gone into the shop if I'd seen her...I won't go back, I promise--!"

Armand put his hand on Daniel's thigh, quieting him instantly. "I know. That is why she is still alive." He chuckled humorlessly. "Aside from you, all of the coven's relations are dead or distant. I forget sometimes that you still have living family who know you intimately."

Daniel shook his head. "No, they don't. They didn't know me then and they sure as hell don't know me now."

"And they won't get the chance. Daniel, when we get home, you will write your sister a letter explaining as vaguely as you can why you cannot go back. Send whatever else you want to her, I don't really care, as long as she knows she cannot have you as a brother again. I will make certain they can't find out where you are now."

Daniel nodded slowly, giving a little sigh. Armand noticed and narrowed his eyes.

"What's the matter? Do you want to go back to them now? Do you miss human sensations?"

Daniel smiled and glanced at his lover. "No...not a bit. But I do miss something..."

"Oh?" Armand asked, curious. "And what is that?"

"A lover's touch," Daniel whispered. "Gentle and kind, without the need to control or subjugate. I miss that."

Armand looked out the window, intentionally avoiding his fledgling's eyes. "I...I...I expect that letter finished before the night is out, understood?"

Daniel lay his hand on Armand's. "I understand. I can wait. I have all of eternity to wait for you."

"What?"

Daniel just rolled his eyes and shook his head. "I'll have the letter done in a couple of hours."

Armand didn't answer.

Daniel sat down at the mahogany desk and took out the expensive stationery he used on rare occasions. The paper was made up to look like ancient parchment, with ornate scrollwork down the side. He gave himself six or seven sheets to use, although he was sure he wouldn't use more than two. He picked up the erasable ink pen and held it over the paper.

"Dear Sister," he muttered aloud. "No, better just write Dear Janet. No...not that either."

Janet,

I know you won't be able to understand this, but I'm never going home again. I couldn't even if I wanted to, and believe me, I don't want to. You said Dad's sorry about what happened. Do you even remember that night? I can't, at least not clearly. I remember the names Dad called me just before he punched me. I remember how Mom kept saying I was unnatural and unfit to be her son. After the fourth or fifth punch I blacked out, and when I came to, I was outside in the middle of January, no money, no family and certainly no friends.

You've never been homeless, Janet. You've never been rejected by your family. You don't know what it's like. I don't know how I survived as long as I did. It sure wasn't with any help from you. But I found another world out here, a better one. I found friends and a family, a real family. One who loves me. It wasn't easy, but they took me in, and once you're in this family, you can never leave or be thrown out like garbage.

And now that I've found them, you want to waltz back into my life and take me with you? Why? So a dying old man and his stupid bitch can say they're sorry and make a cheap repentance before they die? So they can go to their fascist version of heaven? So my damn big brother can have me back to look down on again, and he won't look so pathetic in comparison? So we can all be one big happy family again?

No.

I'm happy where I am, and I'm not leaving. I love Armand, and he loves me. My coven--

Daniel broke off and erased that bit. Sometimes things had a habit of popping out of him.

My family will always take care of me. Don't try to find me. I don't want to know any of you anymore.

Daniel

P.S. If the old man is anything like he used to be, the enclosed ten thousand should buy him off my ass.

Daniel counted out the thick wad of hundred dollar bills, then wrapped a thick rubber band around them and tossed them into an envelope. He reached for the letter, but before he could touch it, a smaller hand slipped it out from under his grasp. Knowing better than to complain, he glanced up as Armand held the letter and read over it.

Armand's eyes went side to side as he glanced over the letter, chuckling now and then. "Ten thousand?" he asked derisively. "Is that all you're worth?"

"To them," Danny nodded.

"Poor Danny-boy," Armand sighed, folding the letter up and putting it in the envelope. "I'll make sure this is hand-delivered to wherever they are now, so they can't trace it." He looked outside through the window, then back at his fledgling. "It's getting early. Get in bed. I'll join you shortly." He briefly lay his hand on Daniel's cheek, stroking the soft skin as if it belonged to him, then turned sharply and disappeared.

Daniel obediently undressed and slid into bed, turning on his side. Why now? Why did they have to find him now, when everything was going great? He'd almost been able to forget about them and what had happened before.

"You're no son of mine," she screeched, jerking back from his touch. "The devil must have made you. You're unnatural and sinful and God will strike you down for your blasphemy!"

He closed his eyes and a single tear squeezed out. As he started to cry in earnest, he felt Armand slide in behind him and put his arms around him. There was an inhumanly gentle kiss on his throat, and then the hot sting of fangs piercing into him. He groaned in ecstasy as Armand drank down his painful memories.

"You won't go back to them," Armand whispered as he withdrew. "I won't let you. You belong to me now."

"Yes, I do," Daniel agreed, vaguely nodding his head. "Don't let them find me again...please...don't let them...want to stay here...love you..."

Armand smiled at the confused plea. "My fledgling, my first-born, do you think I would let you out of my grasp so easily? If I have to, I'll put a collar on you and leash you to the bed."

Daniel grinned and adjusted to his other side, his eyes still red but no longer bleeding. "Will you do that anyway?"

Armand gave him one of his rare smiles and kissed his eyelids. "Danny, I simply do not understand why you enjoy these fetishes of yours."

"I like to know I belong to you," Daniel answered readily. "I like to know you want me enough to cage me up and punish me if I try to go." He wrapped his fingers around Armand's wrist and pulled it closer to his mouth, and he licked the skin shielding the veins. "Mmm...your blood..." he whispered faintly, just before he bit down and started to sip at the steady stream.

Armand smirked and allowed Daniel to feed, filled with a loving feeling that he was taking care of his fledgling. Before too much had been drained away, though, Armand took his wrist away, spilling drops of blood over Daniel's lips. He licked them away before Daniel could.

"Your blood...so sweet," Daniel sighed. "You know I love you?"

Armand nodded. "I know." He lay down next to his fledgling and stretched his arm over his lover's chest, as if he was staking a claim. With a final kiss on his cheek, Daniel fell asleep. Armand watched him breathe softly, his chest barely rising enough for an immortal to see, let alone a human. Every mortal doctor in existence would bet his life that Daniel was dead, but Armand could feel his warm breath on his cheek. His fledgling was so vulnerable now.

Armand cuddled against his taller lover, nestling his head on his shoulder as he closed his eyes. Tomorrow night he would take his fledgling somewhere that would take his mind off of this. Yes, one of the casinos, their lights always made Daniel happy. And he could give him plenty of coins and dollars to drop inside the sparkly machines, and then they could watch a few of the laser shows...

Armand smiled to himself. Yes, tomorrow night, I'll keep him amused, and he'll forget all about those mortals. And when he no longer cares or remembers, I'll kill every last one of them. No one will take my fledgling away.

Daniel stared in mute fascination at the flashing lights plastered on the outside of the casinos lining the street. It was like a miniature Las Vegas, each casino had a theme. One of them has a space-age theme, with white stars and moons flickering on a blue background and a rocket ship that blasted off from the roof and crashed into the pond below every fifteen minutes. Another had gone tropical with a Save the Earth theme. A dense layer of real plants and flowers covered every square inch of the ground outside and the walls, growing along the green tracklights and brightly lit plastic flowers. Realistic wild animals like jaguars, pythons, crocodiles and monkeys were scattered sparingly in the plants. The Oceanic casino had taken it a step farther, putting their money machines inside a tropical aquarium with thousands of colored fish swimming around. And yet another, the Firebird, looked like it was simply glowing in red and orange lights.

Armand laughed at his lover's look. "Lost in fledgling heaven, are you?"

Daniel grinned and tugged him forward. "Let's go in here first!"

Armand allowed Daniel to pull him into the Galactic, ignoring the rocket as it crashed into the pond beside them until they, along with several other mortals, were caught in the tidal splash of water that crested over them and soaked their clothes. Daniel looked down at Armand and couldn't repress his giggle. His maker's auburn hair was dripping past his eyes and he was glowering at his fledgling.

"Let's go dry off," Daniel suggested, "inside their heated casino."

Armand predictably perked up at the word "heated" and walked in with Daniel, and they broke away from the main casino to disappear around a corner. They found a small broom closet and ducked inside. Daniel almost bumped his nose against the wall moment later.

"Boss, this room is awfully small," he complained, turning around carefully. He didn't want to upset the metal shelves and the cleaners there, or the chair in the corner.

"Perfect," Armand whispered, locking the door behind himself. He lay his hand on Daniel's chest and pushed him up against the wall, dragging his clawed finger down the front of his fledgling's shirt and tearing it down the middle. Blood followed after from the cut in Daniel's flesh, and he stumbled into the chair so he wouldn't faint. Armand's touch was always hot enough to make him light-headed.

Now that Daniel was a bit lower, Armand started to peel the wet cloth from his body, revealing the long scratch. Blood trickled down the cut and he lapped it up for a moment. He pushed the shirt down and off, and glanced around the shelves surrounding them.

"Just what I wanted," he said to himself, picking up the coil of nylon ropes.

"Boss, someone might come in," Daniel started to protest. Having sex was one thing. Being tied up and helpless was quite another.

"I know," Armand replied, crossing Daniel's wrists and binding them tightly. There was an exposed beam above them, obviously where the maintenance crews entered between floors, and Armand tossed the rope around it, using it to haul Daniel's arms up. He sat down on his lap to make sure he didn't get up, and once his lover was drawn fairly tight, he tied the other end back around Daniel's throat, forming a snug noose.

"If you struggle," he whispered in his fledgling's ear, "you'll strangle yourself."

"What a temptation," Daniel grinned.

Armand got off of him and knelt down so far that he could have put his head on Daniel's lap. He undid the black jeans and pulled them off of his fledgling, tossing them unceremoniously on the floor. "And once again, my fledgling goes about without anything underneath," Armand playfully scolded him. He glanced up at his bound lover and smiled wickedly. "How long can you go before you scream?" he asked.

Daniel gave him a confused look. "I don't--"

Armand interrupted him abruptly, bending down and taking him firmly into his mouth, which was a bit too small for the job, so he used one hand for the rest of Daniel's length. Daniel bit down on his lip to stifle his groans, and his hands clenched tight over his rope for support. Armand finished him off once, but he didn't stop, and Daniel's vampire stamina kicked in, keeping him going unwillingly. Twice. Three times. Five. Eight.

Armand smiled as he worked, amused at his fledgling's plaintive whimpers. Each one was higher pitched than the last, louder and stronger...wouldn't be long now. He started to use more strength to hurry it up.

Finally with the last climax Daniel couldn't hold it in anymore. He opened his mouth and took a deep breath, about to let the entire casino know what was going on in the broom closet, but Armand quickly swallowed the blood he shot and leaned up to roughly kiss his fledgling, silencing him. Daniel made a strangled sound as his voice shut off, panting even as he pushed his lips against his maker's. He tried to lean forward, but he noose started to cut into him and he had to relax again, relinquishing all control to Armand.

"There, now wasn't that fun?" Armand breathed in his ear.

"That...was...torture," Daniel said between gasps.

"I'm glad you liked it," was his reply.

Suddenly the doorknob started to turn, then shake. They both looked to the side as whoever was behind it tried to fight the lock.

"What the hell--?" the thin mortal voice said. "Who locked this?"

"Look, the light's on in there!" another said, looking at the crack beneath the door. "Someone's in there!"

Armand wasted no time with fumbling over the knots. Instead he slashed the ropes apart with his fangs and helped Daniel up. He pointed silently up at the maintenance shaft above them, then started climbing up nimbly. Daniel slipped into his pants as fast as he could and grabbed his tattered shirt, turning off the light before he followed his maker.

Well hidden in the dark ceiling space, they watched as the humans finally found a key and unlocked the door. Two men dressed in the casino's maintenance uniforms came in and looked around, picking up the shredded rope.

"Damn," one of them whistled. "You think we got a wild animal in here somewhere?"

Daniel grinned and kissed Armand, but in the dark he missed and nailed his nose. "He's got that right," he whispered.

Armand ignored the comment.

"Yeah, I'll bet it's a feral cat. Probably went into the roof space. I'll get the ladder if you tell the supervisor."

"What? You wanna go up for that?"

"Hey, you want a dead cat hanging around in the ceiling? Hell, with our luck it'd be a Florida panther."

"Oh, fucking wonderful. Yeah, you damn right I'll tell the supervisor. Have fun roaming around up there."

"Smart ass."

Armand and Daniel took off through the darkness, quickly drying off the rest of the moisture from their clothes in the hot air.

"We'll have to find you a new shirt," Armand said softly. "We can drop down into the bathrooms and find someone there."

"Boss, doesn't the casino have cameras in the bathrooms?" Daniel asked, following behind Armand as they crept through the ceiling.

"Not here, they don't," Armand whispered back.

"How do you know?"

Armand stopped and looked back. "I just do," he said with a grin. "Now hush and keep crawling."

"Sure thing, boss," Daniel said amiably as they continued. "I absolutely love the view back here."

Armand paused again. "What do you mean?"

Daniel crawled over Armand's smaller body, wrapping his arms around his maker's waist and holding him obscenely close. "You have a cute rear, Armand. It's fun watching it wiggle back and forth when you go on all fours."

Armand growled low in his throat and kept moving, wrenching himself out of Daniel's grasp. "I do not wiggle," he hissed.

"Of course not," his fledgling giggled, and he put his hand out to feel Armand up.

"Cut that out!"

"Mmm...but you're so soft!"

"We're here anyway, so stop that."

Daniel reluctantly watched Armand remove one of the rectangular ceiling tiles beneath them and set it aside. With a final warning to his fledgling to be quiet, Armand jumped down into the over-sized handicapped stall. Daniel slipped as he went through and landed on top of his lover, making them both collapse in a pile.

"Daniel!" Armand whispered furiously. "You are so damn lucky this place is empty! Get up!"

Daniel chuckled and adjusted himself so that while he was still on top of Armand, now he was facing him properly. He put his hands on Armand's wrists and used his greater weight to hold him down, stealing a kiss before Armand had the presence of mind to throw him off.

"And you," Daniel smiled, "are so damn lucky this place is clean!" He pressed his lips against the smaller mouth, forcing another kiss. Armand snarled and managed to sink his fangs into Daniel's cheek, drawing blood and making Daniel break away with a startled cry.

"Get off of me!" Armand yelled, pushing him back against the wall. "You little fool, how dare you force yourself on me? Get up!" He turned and left the stall, ignoring the muffled whimpers that echoed behind him.

Daniel grabbed a few squares of tissue and wiped away the tears that were mingling with the blood oozing from his face. He'd gone too far, he knew that, but it had felt so good...he sighed and flushed the tissues away.

"Sorry, boss," he mumbled in a tiny voice as he came out.

Armand ignored him, instead smoothing his hair back in the mirror. Daniel was about to kneel down in front of Armand and try to make amends, when someone abruptly entered. Daniel ducked into a stall, waiting for his prey to come close enough to make a quick and silent kill, when the man walked up to Armand.

"Kinda young to be in here, ain't ya?" he asked in an authoritative voice.

Armand looked up at him, pretending to be an innocent teen. The mortal had pretty black hair and blue eyes, but he was too old for his liking. Still, now he had the perfect chance to get back at his fledgling.

"Well, no one said anything before," he said softly. His torn jeans and loose shirt made him look even younger than he normally did. "I didn't think anyone would notice."

"And you're just running around with your friends?" the man said, his smile getting a little bigger.

"No, I'm by myself." At that point Armand acted as if he was getting nervous, and he walked back to the large stall. Just as he was turning to close the door, the human rushed forward and pushed him back, locking the door behind. He put one hand on Armand's back and slammed him against the wall, intending to knock him senseless for a moment. Armand played along and groaned as he allowed his arms to fall limply into the man's hold.

The mortal put him on the floor and took a pair of handcuffs out of his jacket, then grabbed Armand's wrists and locked them above his head to the metal bar on the wall. Once his captive's upper body was immobilized, he produced a ball gag from the same pocket and shoved the red ball deep into Armand's mouth, fixing the straps behind his head.

Geez, this guy came prepared, Daniel thought, watching from the next stall. He had to stand carefully on the toilet, he didn't want to step into the water like he had done before. This was one of Armand's favorite games, but it always upset Daniel.

Now Armand started to play, acting as if he was struggling to escape. He tugged on the handcuffs and shook his head, trying to dislodge the gag, and then kicked his legs around. The human reached back and slapped Armand viciously, bringing a flush to his cheek.

"Hold still, or you'll get worse," he sneered. He reached up under Armand's shirt and caressed his nipples, but soon tired of that. His hands went down to Armand's jeans and undid the buttons, pulling them off quickly. Armand groaned again, closing his eyes and turning his head while the man fondled him.

Daniel cursed to himself and jumped over the partition, landing silently as the mortal continued. Armand glared at him, but Daniel ignored the look. He bent over and lightly tapped on the man's shoulder.

"Hello," he grinned sweetly.

"What the fuck--?"

The human whirled, but not fast enough. Daniel brutally tore into his throat and drank his blood as if he was a shot glass. Sealing such a massive rip in the skin took a few seconds, and afterward he positioned him on the toilet, as if he had died that way.

Daniel turned around and took the gag out of Armand's mouth before he bit through the straps. "How can you let them do that to you?" he asked, kneeling.

"I happen to like playing with my food," Armand smiled. "You didn't have to finish him so fast, though. I would have shared."

Daniel didn't reply. Knowing he wouldn't be able to get a kiss out of his maker, he started at his chest and lightly kissed his way down the abdomen and navel, finishing between Armand's legs before putting his mouth around him. Armand moaned and grasped the handcuffs for support, finding none when he accidentally broke them. He put his hands on Daniel's shoulders, biting back his cry as he climaxed once. He didn't stop Daniel as his fledgling kept going.

"Danny..." he sighed with a smile.

Daniel put one hand on Armand's side and gently squeezed, knowing exactly how it would affect his maker. He wasn't trying to make Armand scream his name in a fit of ecstasy, he was only doing his best to improve his mood. Armand tensed at the new sensation, then relaxed and surrendered momentarily to his lover's ministrations. Five minutes later, he pushed Daniel away.

"That's enough," he whispered, grabbing his pants. "Get his shirt."

Daniel tilted his head and flashed the puppyish grin Armand always said he liked, then stretched his arms back and snagged the black t-shirt from the corpse beside them. The clothing fit a little too snug, but at least it kept Armand's attention on him.

"Wanna go make a few bets?" he asked.

Armand grinned dryly and buttoned up his jeans. "Don't forget his wallet. I prefer losing someone else's money when I'm gambling."

Daniel searched out the wallet and looked through it eagerly. The thrill of going through someone else's property never left him, no matter how many times he did it. "Wow, he must have had a lucky streak," he said, showing the mass of bills to Armand.

The elder took the wallet and looked through it, pulling out a slip of paper from between the money. "No, he'd just completed a minor transaction between his customers. I had no idea the price of cocaine was up."

"Oh no, I drank a junkie?" Daniel whined. "I hate cocaine!"

"Silly fledgling, he wasn't a user," Armand smiled. "You'll learn the tastes drugs leave in the blood in time. Come on, I'll make a few piles at the blackjack table, and you can sit and watch the pretty slot machines spin."

"Meany," Daniel grumbled.

Daniel popped a nickel in and pulled the handle. Apple...lemon...five...two...cherry. Darn it. Another nickel. Apple...apple...apple...lemon...two. Two nickels back. Cool. Cherry...cherry...cherry...cherry...cherry! Hooray! Dozens of pretty bright coins clinking down like church bells into his little plastic cup. Daniel grinned and looked over at Armand, sitting coolly at the blackjack table with a large stack of chips in front of him and surrounded by irate looking gamblers. Half of the cameras in the casino had been aimed directly at Armand as the security personnel did their best to find out how he was cheating, but of course the cameras couldn't pick up his little trick.

"Hit me," Armand said softly, and he mentally cued all of the other players to either overdraw or underdraw.

I wish I could, one of the mortals thought a moment later, as Armand swept his next winnings into the larger pile. The vampire noticed his fledgling's stare and stood, quietly leaving the table amidst muttered cursing.

"Hey, boss," Daniel gave him his customary greeting. "How come you always win so much? It looks like you cleared the entire table."

Armand smiled secretively as they walked to the cashiers. "I'll show you how to do this sometime. It's really not so difficult, once you get the hang of the game." He dumped his chips on the counter and waited as the hundred dollar bills came out. "You have to be entirely calm, though, so I think it might be a few years before you're ready."

"Aw, come on..." Daniel started to whine, trying to get a rise from his maker.

Armand knew his fledgling too well, though, and didn't respond to the challenge. He counted his winnings and tucked the amount away for later, when he would drop Daniel safely in a casino while he destroyed his family.

"Are you hungry? You're still young yet."

Daniel shook his head. "I'm fine, I just want head over to the beach now."

"The beach?" Armand asked. They both headed over to the front doors, finding their way easily through the confusing maze of lights and sound. "Why?"

"I thought we could go skinny dipping," Daniel admitted with a wry smile.

"Skinny dipping?" Armand repeated, brow furrowing in confusion. "What's that?"

"Promise to let me show you?" Daniel said, his smile turning into a grin.

"Danny..." Armand growled in a warning voice.

"Have I ever told you how much I love it when you call me Danny?"

"If you are trying to trick me into--" Armand started, but his fledgling interrupted him.

"It's nothing bad, I swear!" Daniel giggled. "You'll like it. When we get down there I'll--" he fell silent all of a sudden, as if his voice had been strangled off.

Armand glanced up at his lover, then followed the frightened gaze across the room. Dozens of people blocked his view, but halfway across the casino floor, standing next to one of the slot machines, was Daniel's sister. She was watching over two people, with her hand on the shoulder of a third.

"Janet..." he whispered softly, barely loud enough for Armand to hear.

While Daniel was frozen, Janet looked up with a sigh, staring around the casino. By wild chance, she just happened to spot Daniel in the crowd. Her eyes lit up and she jostled the younger man beside her while yelling at the two older people in front of her, obviously the Malloy parents. They all started to look up.

"Daniel, let's go!" Armand ordered, but Daniel didn't move. "Danny, now!" He pushed his fledgling fiercely, forcing him out of his trance.

Daniel turned and ran for the exit, followed close by Armand, but once they were both across the street, they stopped and turned. Hundreds of humans hurried by them, and they were right in the middle of the street display of the Tropicana.

This false forest should keep us hidden, Armand told himself, glancing around at the animatronic jaguars and crocodiles.

"Armand...please, let's go--" Daniel begged, tugging on his hand.

"Wait!" Armand snapped, without meaning to sound so coarse. The thought that Daniel's human relations were so near agitated him, but he wondered if they had really seen his fledgling at all.

Suddenly Janet appeared in the brightly lit doorway, flanked by her brother and her parents. They all glanced around wildly for a few moments until the brother became impatient and yelled something at his sister. He disappeared back inside with the father, but just as she was turning, the mother caught a glimpse of Daniel. Her eyes opened wide and she dropped her purse.

"Damn," Armand hissed. "Daniel--"

His lover needed no further encouragement, breaking into a run down the sidewalk and disappearing into an alley. Armand, startled at how fast Daniel was moving, took off after him. He caught a glimpse of him turning a corner, and a few seconds later, Armand only spotted a dark blur dashing away down the street and out from under the lamplights.

Waves lapped softly against the fine sand along the shore, steadily droning in a consoling rhythm. The sky was uncommonly clear, but the light from the island obscured most of the dim stars so that only the brightest were visible. Still, the moonlight made the ocean sparkle.

Sitting quietly on the sand, knees drawn up to his chest, Daniel didn't move when he heard light footsteps coming towards him. Armand knelt beside him, trying to stare into his face. There were no harsh scolding words for his fledgling, no reprimands for running away. Not now. He put one arm around Daniel's shoulders and hugged him close, allowing him to lean against his small body. Tears ran down his cheeks as Daniel turned and flung his arms around Armand.

"Why?" he whispered. "Why do they have to be here now? Things were so good..."

"These things...just...happen," Armand said clumsily, not used to comforting anyone. "It's all right, I'm sure they'll leave and never come back."

Daniel shook his head obstinately. "You don't know them. When dad wants something, he doesn't care who gets hurt. And mom...and then that bastard..."

"Your brother?" Armand nodded.

"I hate him," Daniel hissed through his tears. "He's so cruel..."

"Like me?" Armand said in a small whisper.

"No!" Daniel all but shouted, looking up into Armand's eyes. "Never like you! I mean, not like that...you're not cruel...not really...you're just..."

"Just what?"

"Sad...and maybe...a little scared..." Daniel murmured. He held his maker tight against him. "I love you. You know I love you, right?"

Armand smirked and ran his fingers through Daniel's hair. Only when his fledgling was crying and insecure could Armand could show affection. Even though he was making himself vulnerable, he was still stronger than his lover at that moment.

"Yes, I know. You would never leave me, would you?"

"Never," Daniel repeated.

Armand leaned back, satisfied. "Well?" he asked expectantly.

Daniel gave him a confused look. "Well what?" he asked.

"Aren't you going to show me what this 'skinny dipping' is?" Armand surprised his lover with a genuine smile. Better to see him happy than miserable, he thought. I hate to see you cry, my love.

Daniel's tears evaporated, and he grinned at his lover. "I almost forgot." Still sitting, he reached over and toyed with Armand's shirt. "You've got to get undressed first."

"What?" Armand looked up and down the beach to make sure they were alone. "Right here?"

"No one's around," his fledgling nodded. "C'mon, you promised."

"I did not," Armand muttered, but he removed his shirt anyway. Before Daniel could start on his own clothes, however, Armand pounced forward and pressed him down into the sand. "Hold still," he whispered.

"What if I don't want to?" Daniel challenged, placing his hands on Armand's shoulders to push him back.

Armand gripped both of Daniel's wrists and forced them above his head. "Makes no difference." He forced a rough kiss from his fledgling, then put one hand on his chest to hold him still while he used his other hand to tear Daniel's pants apart. Daniel writhed in delight as he was pinned down, and when Armand sat back up, he tore his lover's shirt off.

"Not fair," the younger vampire grumbled. "You're supposed to strip, too."

"And then what?"

"And then we go for a swim."

"Swim?"

Daniel nodded, sand getting in his hair. "Trust me, it's fun."

Armand reluctantly slid his own jeans off and tossed them a few feet away. "Now what?"

Daniel grinned and stood, helping Armand up at the same time. "Now we find out if there are any sharks nearby."

"That is not helping any," Armand grumbled.

"I'm just kidding," Daniel laughed, tugging him along into the surf. The normally frigid waters were warmer on the summer nights, so at least he wouldn't have to worry about the water irritating Armand. Cold temperatures had a habit of making Armand touchier than usual. Salt water slowly rose past their ankles and calves to their waists, and then they were floating a few meters from the shore.

"C'mon, boss, can't we go a bit farther out?" Daniel begged.

"I know you, Danny," Armand responded, shaking his head. "You want to see how far out you can swim, and then I'll be forced to haul your weary body back to the beach."

"So you don't want to hold my exhausted, helpless body?" Daniel whispered in what he thought was most alluring voice.

To his credit, Armand didn't laugh. He knew it would hurt his fledgling's feelings, and besides, the idea of having Daniel helpless in his arms was rather appealing.

"Oh, I do," he admitted. "But not miles out at sea. I'd prefer having you in the comfort of our bed."

"Or the kitchen table?" Daniel giggled.

"Not like we use it for anything else." Armand glanced back at the city lights. "Or maybe I could lock you outside in a dog house..."

"You wouldn't dare..." Daniel pretended to growl, daring his lover to do it.

"I just might!"

"And I thought I was the pervert," the youngster laughed, splashing water over Armand's head. He was surprised when Armand playfully splashed back, and Daniel eagerly lunged at his maker. Armand quickly leaned out of reach so that Daniel went face first into the water, and he dunked him ever farther down. When he allowed his lover back up, Daniel gasped and shook his hair out, spraying Armand inadvertently. Armand reached out and seized his fledgling's shoulders, pulling him close.

"I should punish you for trying that," Armand whispered with a smile.

"I'd like to see you try," Daniel challenged.

"All right," Armand nodded. "Back home, now."

Daniel knew that tone. He followed Armand out of the water and watched as his lover dressed, but when he looked around, he cried out in shock.

"My clothes!" he gasped, picking up the shredded shirt and pants. "You tore them apart!"

"I was wondering when you would notice," Armand laughed. "I'm sure no one will see you. Come on, it's a short walk to the mansion."

"No fair," Daniel muttered.

Armand laughed even louder. He slipped his hand into Daniel's and walked beside him down the beach. "Don't worry, you can always make a meal of any voyeurs."

"Oh, well, that makes it all right," Daniel growled sarcastically.

Part 2

Armand slumped down in his sofa, groaning in exhaustion. It had been nearly a week since Daniel had last seen his parents, and Armand was wearing himself out keeping his lover distracted from remembering. They had gone to amusement parks, movies, plays, outdoor concerts, indoor concerts, comedy clubs, and Daniel had even managed to drag him to a rave, although Armand had made him agree to one opera after that.

How did my little fledgling get so much energy? he wondered. Even I'm having a hard time keeping up with him. There really is nothing like a child to show you how old you're getting, even if you are immortal. Maybe I should ask Louis to lend Lestat as a babysitter.

"Armand, did you get the mail?" Daniel yelled from down the hall.

"No," Armand called back, then tried to shut his mouth. Too late! He jumped up from his seat and ran down the hall, pouncing on Daniel. They both fell to the floor, Armand on top.

"Damn, boss, all you had to do was ask!" Daniel laughed, hugging Armand.

His maker indulged him in a brief kiss, then stared deep into his eyes. "I'll get the mail," he whispered. "You go upstairs and get undressed."

"You just wanna see if our toys are in before I do," Daniel smirked.

"Hush," Armand snapped playfully. "Now go upstairs and wait for me."

"But boss--"

"Now, Danny."

"Boss--"

"Daniel, I said now."

"Boss, you gotta get off of me first."

Armand paused, then looked down at their bodies. "Oh, right." He grinned, then stole a quick kiss. "I suppose I'll have to let you go."

"You'll never let me go," Daniel smiled, one of his hands reaching up under Armand's shirt.

"Danny," Armand said, pushing his hand down, "not now. Upstairs."

"Aww..." Daniel groaned. He got up when Armand slid off of him, and he pretended to sulk as he took off to the bedroom.

Armand watched him go, staring appreciatively at the way Daniel's body moved, the way his clothes clung to all the right spots, how his hips swayed just so. Delicious. As soon as his lover disappeared around a corner, Armand went to the front door and gathered up the day's delivery.

He looked over the two packages, examining the nondescript labels. These must be the supplies we ordered. Setting them aside for the moment, he shoved the catalogues and magazines into a small rack and flipped through the stack of envelopes left. Bills, charity requests, the ubiquitous letter from Lestat listing all his hostile takeovers of Armand's companies...

He ripped that one open and looked through it. Five, this time, Armand smirked. He's going to furious when he sees I grabbed six of his. Poor Louis, Lestat's always insatiable when he's angry. He shook his head to himself. As if he minds. The letter went into the trash.

He flipped through the rest of the envelopes, more junk mail, like analog spam, a Navy recruitment postcard for Daniel, that went in the trash...and then the letter he was looking for. Making sure it was the only one, Armand forgot the mail and took the letter with him to a small drawing room where Daniel wouldn't find him if he came back down.

Armand tore open the envelope and started to read, easily deciphering the scrawling handwriting.

Daniel,

Come on, Danny, write me back. Please? Everyone wants to know you're all right. Are you all right? At least tell us that much. Are you happy? Could we see you, maybe?

Mom would really like to talk to you. When we saw you at that casino, she broke down into tears. She hasn't been the same since you took off. And Dad's been hitting the bottle, too. I know, he always used to drink, but it got worse when you left. John dropped out of college, he's working as a bartender now.

Daniel...the rest of the family doesn't know, but when I looked over your letter, I noticed you'd erased something. You wrote coven instead of family. Danny, are you in any trouble? Are you in some kind of cult? I saw an Oprah about kids in vampire cults and that wiccan stuff, are you caught up in that? That Armand guy said he was your lover, is that true? You have to admit, this isn't normal.

I know I've asked you before, but you never write back. We know you're in there, why don't you come out? Please write back and answer me. We're all worried sick about you, and you're not telling us anything.

Sincerely,

Janet

Armand snarled and crumpled the letter, then ignited it in his hand. It was the fourteenth letter she'd written, and she always said the same thing. His poor little Daniel...Armand made sure his fledgling never saw the letters.

"Once he's forgotten about you," he hissed, "when he no longer remembers to look over his shoulder and see if you're watching, then I'll rip you throats out, tear your bodies into pieces and scatter you across Miami." Once the letter had dwindled to cold ashes, he headed upstairs, taking one of the newly delivered packages with him.

Daniel was waiting for him in bed, reclining beneath the thin sheets that were too thin to be called a covering. He smiled when he saw the small box in Armand's hands. "So the toys came in?"

Armand grinned wickedly and set the package down on the nightstand. He closed the door and drew the curtains, making the room as dark as possible, then lit the tiny lantern in the corner just so his fledgling would be able to see. Daniel still wasn't that practiced at moving through total darkness.

Not that he needs to move much right now, Armand smiled. He looked back over his shoulder at his lover, whose eyes reflected the firelight. Simply mesmerizing.

"Hold you hands out," he murmured, opening the box.

Daniel obediently put his hands out, wrists close together. Armand fished the first prize out of the box, a pair of thick leather manacles, and clasped them over Daniel's wrists, buckling them up tight. He reached back for the accompanying chain and tethered his lover's hands to the headboard, and Daniel willingly lay back so that his body could be stretched out. Once Armand had locked the manacles down, he bent and stole a kiss, chewing on the soft lips. He lay one hand on Daniel's chest and let it drift down the smooth side, fondling his nipples and stroking his throat. Fighting to keep himself from biting, Armand licked at the spot he'd pierce later on, and Daniel squirmed beneath him.

"Do it," he whispered harshly.

"Not yet."

"Please!"

"No." Armand laughed at his fledgling's frustration and gathered another set of manacles. He tossed the sheet off of Daniel's body and grabbed his ankles, forcing them out at a wide angle and buckling them down to the corners of the bed. Daniel struggled to lift his head and watch, but he had to lay his head back down when his neck got tired. Armand removed his own clothing, then slowly started to climb onto the bed, moving farther up between Daniel's legs. Unable to see what was happening, Daniel only felt Armand's hot mouth swallow him up. Each flick of Armand's tongue, every cruel motion of his fangs, made his captive shudder and pull viciously at the leather. The buckles were too strong, though, holding him down in his prone position. Armand stayed there for the better part of half an hour, tormenting Daniel until his lower body went numb.

"Well, now that you can't feel anything below," Armand giggled, "let's work on the top."

"Finally," his fledgling sighed happily.

As Armand started up, though, Daniel groaned in frustration. His maker was kissing every inch of exposed skin from his hips, to his stomach, and farther, taking his time. Daniel squirmed beneath him, especially when he reached his chest. Armand attacked one nipple at a time, sucking at them, biting them gently. He pierced one and lapped up the resulting trickle of blood, hanging on as Daniel bucked against him.

"Boss, please, finish me off!" he begged, fighting to free himself. "Do it!"

"Do you really want it?" Armand teased.

"Yes," Daniel nodded frantically.

Deciding to draw this out, Armand lay down on top of his lover and stared into his eyes, occasionally kissing him but mostly just stroking his hair and caressing his cheeks. He traced Daniel's hands with his fingers, tugging on them mischievously.

"Do you love me?" he asked.

"Yes, you know I do."

"Are you my pretty little prisoner?"

"Always."

"Will you do anything I tell you?"

"I'm your slave." Daniel smiled when he admitted that, even though he knew Armand was just as much his slave. Armand's life revolved around his fledgling. It was a wonderful feeling. "Use me."

"You sweet creature," Armand sighed. "You're all mine."

Before Daniel could respond, his maker drove his fangs deep into his throat and began to drink. While his fledgling lapsed into a fit of ecstasy, Armand roamed around in his mind, searching for any evidence that Daniel might try to return to his family. He spotted only awful memories and disoriented remembrances, and a deep desire to remain with his lover.

Daniel felt the random probing in his head and a dreamy smile spread over his face. "I...won't go..." he mumbled through his high emotions. "Love you...never leave...hate them...belong to you..."

Armand withdrew and stared into Daniel's eyes. "You will stay with me throughout eternity?"

He nodded. "I love you...I need you...nothing will ever make me leave you."

That was all he needed to hear. Armand gave him a relieved smile and lay down alongside him, covering him back up with the blankets. The window was sealed safely and the doors were all locked. He blew out the candle, then cuddled up against Daniel and closed his eyes.

"Um...boss?"

"Yes, Danny?"

"It's gonna be dawn pretty soon."

"So?"

"Could you please untie me?"

"Hmm...no, I think not. You look rather nice this way."

"Aww...boss!"

"I'll let you go tomorrow night."

"Hold me?"

Armand grinned and put his arms around Daniel, resting his head on his fledgling's chest. "Of course."

Normally I might make Danny beg to be freed, Armand thought to himself, reaching up to undo the manacles still around his lover's wrists. But keeping him here would give him too much time to think. Better to leave him in a casino while I take care of business.

"Danny...wake up, Danny...the sun's gone down..."

Daniel groaned and kept his eyes shut. "No...lemme sleep in, huh, boss?"

Armand smirked and rose up on one elbow, watching Daniel slip back to sleep on the pillow. His slight breathing made his chest rise and fall, and Daniel turned his head a bit to the left, baring his throat to Armand unintentionally. The sight made Armand smile in anticipation. He pressed his lips softly on his fledgling's, stealing a kiss. He drew back, then stole another, enjoying the taste of taking these by force. Daniel started to wake up during the third kiss, instinctively trying to back away, but he only pushed into the pillow. Disoriented, he brought his hands up to push his assailant off, and he was easily pinned back down by his lover.

Armand finally released him, laughing derisively when Daniel sat up in a huff. "I told you to get up, Danny. You can't say I didn't warn you."

Daniel smiled after a moment. "Yeah..." He reached out to touch Armand's hand, to caress the soft skin. Instead Armand drew back as if he was afraid he'd be burned.

Daniel sighed and looked away. "I guess I'd better get dressed." There was no bitterness in his voice, only mild disappointment. Armand had never let himself be touched like that. Armand had to be the only one in control.

The smaller vampire lowered his eyes as Daniel rose and fished out an outfit from the walk-in closet. It was unnerving to feel emotions after so many years, they felt like a loss of power. "You know I love you, Danny," he whispered in a voice so small he couldn't hear himself.

Inside the closet, Daniel smiled and picked out a dark top. "Yes, I know," he said just as softly. And I'll wait as long as you need to hear you say it.

Once he'd finished dressing, he headed for the door. "I'm going out to hunt," he told his maker. "I should be back soon."

"Unless some pretty lights catch your attention," Armand said knowingly.

"Not tonight," Daniel assured him. "Promise. There's a marathon of bad horror flicks on cable, and I want to catch it."

"I'll wait for you," Armand nodded.

"You don't have to--" Daniel started, but Armand interrupted him.

"Do not worry, I'll be eating later on." On four sick and selfish humans. Just as soon as you're distracted in front of the television.

Daniel wandered down the long driveway, hands stuck in his pockets, head down. The wind was blowing in fiercely from the ocean, carrying a salty scent to it. A storm was probably on its way in. Hopefully he'd be back in by then. After a minute, he looked back over his shoulder at the mansion. Sometimes he didn't like living up here just for the simple fact that it took forever to walk down to the main streets.

Pretty dark out tonight, he thought to himself. The moon wasn't any help, only a slim crescent obscured by dark clouds. He walked under several street lamps, barely illuminated by any of them. Each bulb flickered and faded if it wasn't already burned out. Little shops had closed for the night, so there were no lights from the windows. Didn't matter. Daniel could already see his chosen prey two blocks away. A man in street clothing leaned through a limousine handing a baggie to someone inside. Money exchanged hands. Daniel smiled and quickened his step. He could almost taste the blood already, coursing through his mouth, blocking out his other senses--

"Danny?"

Daniel froze when he heard that voice. No no no, don't let it be her, let me be imagining things, please, don't let it be her. He turned slowly to his left.

Janet tentatively stepped forward, one hand out to grasp his. "Danny, please don't run," she started.

"What are you doing here?" he snarled, backing away.

"We just want to talk to you," she insisted, "we just want to help you."

"I don't need any help," he said. "I'm happy where I am. Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"Danny, haven't you gotten any of my letters?"

"Letters?" he repeated in confusion. Armand must have thrown them away. He's been protecting me. "I don't want anything to do with you, so go away!"

"Come on, Daniel, you know you're in trouble," she said, coming closer. "What did you mean by coven?"

"What?"

"Your letter, you said your coven takes care of you. Is it some kind of cult?"

"It's not a cult, it's my family," Daniel snapped. "My real family."

"That Armand kid, he's hurting you, isn't he?" she said firmly.

"He loves me," he argued. "He takes care of me!"

"I don't believe that."

"No, you don't want to believe I have a male lover! Damn it, you never change, do you? You still won't accept me! You just want me to fit what you think I should be!"

There was a sudden rush of emotion and movement behind him, and he turned, hands out to defend himself. The mortals behind him moved so fast that it surprised him. Something sharp pressed into his hand, piercing the skin, and he could feel warm liquid rushing into the muscle. He jerked away and tried to get a good look at his attacker. His brother John he recognized, but there was a middle-aged man that he didn't recognize gripping a hypodermic needle.

"Why can't you let me go!" Daniel hissed, backing away again.

"Daniel, this isn't right for you," Janet said. "You're not acting normal."

"Don't worry, kid," the man said, "we'll get you out of this cult."

Daniel felt his eyes getting heavier and heavier. What had they injected him with? Without waiting to find out, he turned and ran, disappearing down an alley. He heard their footsteps behind him and knew he was going slower than he should, his body was already weakening. Daniel used his knowledge of the island streets, though, taking different twists and turns that it would be awhile before they found him again.

Once he was certain he'd lost them for the moment, he found a payphone and dug out a few coins.

"Please pick up, Armand, please," he begged, dialing the number. The phone rang once, then twice..."Come on, please!"

"Hello?"

"Armand, it's me, Daniel!"

"Danny? What's wrong?"

"Boss, you gotta help me...they're trying to take me back...boss, they shot me full of something, I'm...getting so tired...fast..."

"Daniel, can you get home?"

"Too tired...wouldn't make it..."

"Where are you?"

"Corner...of...Bush...an'...Turner..." the phone started to slip out of his hand. "Armand..."

He collapsed to the ground as John came around the corner. "He's over here!" the mortal yelled.

Armand heard Daniel's family collecting his body, not even bothering to see who was on the phone. With a enraged snarl, he slammed the phone down, then dialed another number. There was no airport, and Daniel's family wasn't wealthy, so their only way off the island was by ferry. After a quick call, though, he had the ferry halted so that each and every person would be accounted for. The workers there knew and liked Daniel, he always bought them beer even on the job. They'd help him if he was taken there. Armand had the roads closed at certain points so that the cars could be checked, the name of Daniel's family put on the list of those to check for. Money certainly had its uses.

"I don't get it, why can't we just take him off the island?"

"Are you nuts? Armand Romanov probably has the police searching every road and boat for your brother. It's safer to keep him here for awhile."

"But why'd you tie him up?"

"You saw how fast he moved. I'm not risking him taking off again."

The voices blurred into each other, making Daniel's head throb. He opened his eyes just enough to see between his lashes. He was sitting up, and he could spot the thick ropes binding his arms to the chair. He tugged on them, but either they were too strong or he was still weak. They wouldn't budge. He sighed.

"Hey, he's awake!"

Daniel glared at the three people in front of him. His siblings he recognized, but this strange man...he closed his eyes again and concentrated hard, listening to his thoughts. Even in his drugged state, it wasn't difficult.

Ten thousand...break this kid down...de-program him...three days, tops...

Daniel growled inwardly. They really thought he was in a cult...bastard was gonna try to deprogram him, whatever that meant. Armand will find me, he'll find me somehow...

"Danny, are you hungry?" Janet asked softly.

"Not for anything you want," he whispered.

"He can eat when he starts cooperating," the stranger said sternly. "Now, both of you, out."

"But--!" Janet and John started.

"Out! I can't have you interfering with this. Who knows what they've brainwashed him into thinking? This could get violent."

"Well...you are the expert..." Janet sighed.

"We'll be right outside if you need us," John said, taking her hand and leading her out.

The stranger went to the door and closed it behind them, then locked it. Once he was certain it couldn't be opened, he pulled the other chair in front of Daniel and sat down, staring into his eyes.

"Daniel, my name is Roger," he said smoothly. "I don't want to hurt you. I just want to help you."

Yeah, right, Daniel thought. He glared at this mortal, looking into his thoughts. That's not even his real name. "Liar," he spat.

"Daniel, please don't try to resist. This is for your own good. Don't you want to get better?"

"I'm not sick, Alan," he protested, laughing when the man jerked back at hearing his name. "That's right, Alan, I know you're a liar. What are they paying you? Whatever it is, I'll double it."

Alan regained his composure and smirked. "Now, Danny, don't be a bad boy. I know that cult leaders never give lower members money."

"I'm not in a cult!"

"This would go a lot easier if you would admit that you have a problem," Alan said in a sickening voice. "Your family's sacrificing a lot to help you. They want to see their boy grow up normal and settle down."

"Stop treating me like a child!"

"Daniel, you've got to let go of this aggression. You have psychological problems that need to be cured. You're acting in a perverted manner. Your wants, your desires, your beliefs...they're not natural."

Daniel leaned forward. "I'm gay," he said firmly. "Homosexual. You can't change that. I don't believe in their version of God. You can't change that, either."

"You'll see," Alan smiled, standing up. "I'll make it all better for you." He crossed the room to a table and picked up a covered bowl, bringing it back to his prisoner. "See, I've made you something to eat." He lifted the cover to reveal some kind of soup. "You are hungry, aren't you?"

"Screw yourself."

"No no no," Alan responded. "That's not the right way to speak, you know that. You don't get anything to eat until you learn some respect." He set the bowl aside and stared back at Daniel. "Now, tell me about your cult. That Armand person, he's the leader, right?"

"He's my lover," Daniel corrected him.

Alan didn't miss a beat. "Lover, huh? Does he make you do things for him? Do you perform sexual acts for him?"

"That's what you do with a lover," Daniel said as if it was obvious. "We make love in bed, and he holds me while we sleep."

"Daniel, two men do not 'make love'." Alan sighed and shook his head. "So many of my clients have told me the same thing, but it's never love. It's only about power."

"What would you know?" Daniel mumbled. Had he been injected again? He was feeling faint again. "You've never been loved that way."

"Danny, homosexual sex is about power. One man on top of the other. Only one can get any sexual satisfaction while the other is in pain, submissive. There's no love in that."

"You're wrong," Daniel groaned. "You're so wrong...in so many ways..."

Suddenly Alan slapped him viciously, leaving a light bruise. Daniel gasped in surprise.

"No," Alan said in a stern voice. "I am never wrong. Lesson number one, boy, you disagree with me, you get punished. Understand?"

"Prick."

There was another slap.

"Say it."

"Asshole."

This time the bruise started to deepen.

"Say it!"

"You're a fool!" Daniel yelled. "You have no way of knowing what you're talking about!"

Alan slapped him one more time, unknowingly broadcasting his emotions. Daniel reeled back more from the force of his thoughts than from the hit.

"You sick bastard..." he gasped out, trying to flinch from the mental transmissions. "You get off on this...you like tying kids up and slapping them around."

"Shut up!"

Daniel pulled against the ropes, but he couldn't get up. Please, Armand...hurry...find me...

After an hour of scouring the island, with no sign of Daniel, Armand finally came to rest near a street lamp, leaning against the rusted metal. If Danny could see me now, he'd say I was running around like a chicken with its head cut off, he thought sullenly. Where the hell is he?

He sat down on the curb and started to think. He called from that street corner. I had the island locked down a minute later, and the police were out in force in five minutes. That means they couldn't have gone far. Even using a car, they could only have gone a few blocks before they'd have to hide.

He looked around the streets. These are apartment buildings for the workers. Half of them have security alarms on them. They couldn't have gone into those, but the other half don't have alarms. But they're still apartments, and from what Daniel's said about his family, they wouldn't even think about spending that much money. They'd prefer a hotel. Or a motel.

Armand got up and started moving again, keeping to a tight radius and looking out for every motel he saw. It would have to be cheap, he said to himself, instantly dismissing a handful of hotels. And secluded. Where no one would care that he was drugged. So it's either that shoddy Day's Inn or the Knight's Rest. Knowing there was no way to narrow his choices further, he picked one and went inside.

Alan sat back down in front of Daniel, pulling an oblong object from his pocket. There was a scratch of metal on plastic, and Daniel felt a sharp point press against his throat.

"Your sister said you're about thirty or so," he smiled, dragging the flat of the blade over Daniel's skin. "But you look younger. Twenty five, maybe."

"Nightly sex routine," Daniel quipped. "Keeps me in shape."

"No kidding," Alan nodded, placing one hand on Daniel's arm. "Feels like you work out."

"Get off me." Daniel tried to shrug him off. The knife point pressed harder into his flesh.

"I thought you liked this power play," Alan laughed. He put the tip against Daniel's cheek, then slowly pushed it in. Blood spilled out as the metal sank deep into him.

"Stop!" Daniel cried.

Instead, Alan pulled the knife out and slashed his captive's arm. As more blood pooled onto the floor, Alan made several other cuts to join the first one. He accidentally severed a vein, and Daniel moaned as the blood loss became acute. His vision blurred and his body went numb.

I'm just a fledgling, I can't take too much of this, he whimpered. Armand...it hurts...

Just as he was about to black out, he heard a loud banging on the door. At first he was certain Armand was here to rescue him, but after a moment he realized it wasn't his lover. Armand would never knock. The door would be on the ground by now.

"Alan, let us in! I can hear him yelling!" Janet shrieked.

"You shouldn't come in now!" Alan responded, getting up. He folded the knife again and hid it away.

"Alan, either you let us in or you won't get the other five grand!"

Other...? Daniel wondered. The ten thousand I sent...that's how they bought him...isn't that ironic?

"Coming!" Alan grumbled, releasing the bolt on the door. Janet and John burst in and stared in amazement at their brother.

"Shit, what did you do to him?" Janet yelled.

"It wasn't me," Alan lied. "He got loose and hurt himself with his own knife. I had to tie him back down again."

"Damnit, Alan," Janet cursed, "we're paying you to fix him, not kill him!"

"I dunno," John smirked. "Looks like an improvement to me."

"Son of...a bitch..." Daniel gasped, trying to catch his breath. With all this blood still draining away, he felt like he couldn't breathe.

"Well, you'd better stop the bleeding, or else he's gonna bleed to death!" Janet ordered.

"All right, all right," Alan muttered like a bratty child. He went back over to Daniel and wiped away the blood to see the extent of the damage. When he didn't find the cuts, he cleared away more blood. Still nothing. Finally he used a rag to mop it all up, but there were no cuts. "What the hell...?" he barked. "I know he was cut!"

Daniel grinned defiantly at him, flashing his fangs. "What's the matter? Do I heal too fast for you?"

All three of them jerked violently away, terrified by the sight.

"Danny," Janet stuttered, "what's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," Daniel chuckled. "I'm a vampire, that's all. Drink blood...sleep during the day, kill virgins...sleep with other vampires..."

"Then...your coven," John started.

"Older vampires," Daniel nodded. "Stronger than...I am. They find out what you've done...and they'll tear you to shreds. Armand...he'll find me..."

Alan took a step forward, keeping his eye on his prisoner. "It's not real. That's just their brainwashing. He's the newest initiate, so he'd be the lowest in rank."

"But...those fangs," John argued. "The cuts healing..."

"It's just a trick," Alan insisted.

"Would you like another demonstration?" a smooth voice came from the doorway.

They all turned toward the door and stared at the boy in front of them. In the harsh fluorescent lighting his skin was noticeable pale and his eyes sparkled like amber. He smiled reassuringly at his fledgling, who laughed in relief.

"Boss...you found me..."

"These idiots were broadcasting their emotions so loud I am ashamed I didn't notice sooner. Too worried at first, I suppose."

"That's him!" Janet said, pointing at him. "That's Armand, the one I was telling you about!"

"So you're the queer!" John yelled, and without any hesitation, he charged Armand.

The vampire smiled in amusement and held still until the mortal was within arm's reach, when he pushed him away firmly. John flew back into the wall and slumped to the ground, amazed that he was still conscious. Janet and Alan backed away rapidly, trying to get out of his line of sight.

Armand glared at them. "The only reason you are alive is to spare my fledgling the sight of your deaths. I suggest you run away now, before I change my mind and kill you all now."

Daniel didn't see the humans run. He couldn't hold his head up. Instead he heard their footsteps pound down the hall while Armand sat down in his lap.

"Boss...aren't...you gonna...untie me?"

Armand smiled and put his hands on Daniel's face, holding him up for a gentle kiss. "Just a moment, Danny." He bent over and began to lick away the blood still covering his fledgling's skin.

"Weird..." Daniel groaned.

"What's that?" Armand asked, pausing just a moment.

"I feel...like a kitten...getting cleaned..."

Armand chuckled and lapped the thick stream of blood from his lover's throat, using it as an excuse to steal another kiss. "I suppose I'd better get you home, before you pass out again."

Daniel watched almost disinterestedly as Armand untied his hands.

"Do you think you can walk?"

"N'way..." Daniel whimpered, trying not to move. Bad enough he was close to falling asleep. Now each tilt of his head, every sway of his body, made the pounding in his head worse. "Feel sick..."

"All right, I'll call for the limo."

Daniel looked up as Armand dialed the number on his cell phone, but the light started to go. His vision became darker and blurrier until Armand disappeared altogether, and Daniel blacked out.

Daniel opened his eyes to find himself tucked securely into his bed, the blankets up to his chin. His hair felt damp, Armand must have bathed him when they got home. A lingering taste of blood hung in his mouth, he must have been fed, too. Briefly he wondered if Armand had killed Alan, or his siblings, to feed him, but he decided that he didn't care.

"Armand...?" he called out, wondering if his lover was nearby.

"I'm right here," Armand answered. "How do you feel?"

Daniel turned his head to the right and spotted Armand sitting on the edge of the bed. "All right, all things considered." He sat up slowly, one hand pressed against his head. The wave of dizziness hit, then passed away. "Boss...I'm tired of this."

"Of what?" Armand asked, terrified for a moment that Daniel no longer desired their relationship.

"Of having my family so nearby," Daniel answered.

"Oh, that!"

Daniel looked up in surprise. "Yeah, that. What did you think I was going to say?" He smiled when Armand turned away. "No, Armand, I'm never going to be tired of you. I love you." He frowned suddenly. "But I hate them. I don't want to worry all the time that they're near. I want them...gone," he admitted.

"I don't want you to see that," Armand whispered. "No one should see their family like that, even if they hate them."

"They aren't my family," Daniel insisted. "And I don't care about them. I want to get rid of them, Armand. I know you're going to, just let me come with you."

"Do you truly believe you can do this?" Armand asked. "Can you kill these people? Before you did not want me to kill your sister, and now you want to do it yourself."

"She tried to tear me away from you," Daniel said coldly. "Please, Armand."

Armand smiled to himself. How wonderful, to be the last straw on Daniel's back. "Very well. Shall we do this now?"

Daniel nodded. "I still haven't fed tonight."

"Then you shall have a feast."

Half an hour later they stood at the doors one of the least expensive hotels in the tourist trap. "They're in here," Armand told Daniel, walking with him through the lobby and into an elevator. "Third floor, room 318. Do you still want to do this?"

Daniel took a deep breath to steady himself. "Boss...can you let me...talk to them..."

"Talk?"

"Just for a few minutes," Daniel begged. "Maybe I can get them to leave without trying...anything..." his voice trailed off when he saw Armand's glare.

"You aren't ready to kill them," Armand said firmly. "You will stay here and wait--"

"No, please Armand, just a few minutes, just five minutes, please! I don't want to hurt them now--"

"You did a few minutes ago."

Tears started to form in Daniel's eyes, threatening to spill over. "Boss...just let me give them one last chance...please?" One tear trickled slowly down his cheek, making its way to his jaw.

Armand cringed inwardly when he saw that, Daniel had no idea how much his tears affected his maker. He reached his hands behind his fledgling's neck and pulled his head down a few inches, just enough to lick the tear away. "Fine. You have minutes. After that, if they won't leave, I'll kill them myself."

Daniel nodded in a rush, knowing how lucky he was to get even that kind of concession. The elevator stopped, opening up to a long hallway. They stepped out, then halted suddenly. At the far end of the hallway was an open door and a lot of shouting in familiar voices.

"Dammit, you promised me five thousand more!"

"If you managed to get Daniel back!"

"That wasn't my fault, now pay up!"

"Get the hell out of here!"

Armand looked up at Daniel. "Alan," he whispered slowly. "That mortal is mine. He dies no matter what."

Daniel didn't argue. They both went down the hall, coming closer to the door. Just a few feet away, Alan seemed to realize that he wasn't alone and whirled around. When he saw who it was, his face paled and he backed into the hotel room, forcing his way toward the window. The two vampires followed him inside and found Janet and John already there, standing on one side while the two mortals Armand recognized as Daniel's parents were near the other wall.

"Danny?!" Janet cried. "Oh, I knew you'd come back!"

Daniel shut the door, locking it. "We have to talk," he said in a stone voice.

"Not much to talk about," his father snarled. "I've heard all I need to know about you. Well, I'm personally sick of it. You're coming home so we can get that shit out of your head."

"My home is here, with Armand and my family," Daniel argued. "Why can't you understand that?"

"That Armand person is the problem," his mother muttered.

"Shut up, woman, I'm talking here. Look, boy, you're acting like a damn fag, and I won't have that in this family! Running around in cults, pretending your some kind of Count Dracula, it's stupid! But then you've always been stupid, so what else can I expect?"

"Will you shut up?" Daniel hissed angrily. "I'm not here to argue with you. You have to leave. You have to leave and never come back."

"What?" Janet gasped. "You don't mean that."

"Yes, I do. You have to leave and forget all about me."

"Wish I could," John mumbled.

"You trying to order me around?" his father demanded.

"If you don't go, Armand and I are going to kill you," Daniel said lowly. "I'm warning you now."

"Watch out for that kid," Alan all but yelled, not realizing that the window was locked as he kept trying to ram it open. "He's some kind of super strong freak!"

Armand, appearing to be bored with things, stalked across the room and seized Alan, throwing him against the wall and pulling him down so he could reach his neck. Not caring if the mortals saw, he bit savagely into the skin and took a few sips, not nearly enough to kill. He let him fall to the floor, then sat down on his prone body and picked up a hand. He smiled coldly at Daniel's mortal family, took one finger and snapped it back. Alan screamed.

"What the fuck?" Daniel's father yelled, moving to stop him. Daniel grabbed his shoulder and pushed him to one side, startling him with his sheer strength.

"If you don't leave, Armand and I will kill you," he warned them one more time. "You have to leave."

"Now," Armand added, punctuating his brief statement with a swift snap of Alan's arm.

Apparently they didn't need to tell Daniel's brother again. John raced out of the room wildly, his chest still hurting from where Armand had shoved him before. The older man wasn't so easy to convince, however. He picked up the single chair in the room and threw it at his son. Daniel rolled his eyes and easily caught it in one hand, finally allowing his fangs to show.

"You aren't our son," his mother shouted suddenly, startling all of them. "You're some kind of demon! My boy was sweet and good! He wasn't a queer monster!"

"Danny," Armand said almost sympathetically, "I really don't see why you're trying so hard. They aren't listening, and the only one who left is the one I know you wanted to kill. Finish them off and let's go home." He dropped the mangled arm and moved on to the ribs.

Daniel shrugged with a sigh. "Yeah, boss...I just thought...damn." He stared around the room, at the three humans gaping at him. They all appeared so alien to him...he didn't know any of them. "Where you ever my family?" he wondered out loud. "Why have I tried to hold onto you?" He gazed forlornly at his maker. "You do this, Armand. You were right. I can't do it."

"Then wait for me outside."

Daniel nodded and disappeared, abandoning the humans to him. Armand grinned and stood up, stomping his foot on Alan's back to snap it. Leaving the writhing bloody mass on the floor, he curled his fingers into claws.

"My little fledgling has told me much about you," he whispered, staring mostly at the parents. "Things he could tell me, like the beatings every day. Being locked out in the cold at night. Going without eating for days because he happened to upset you." He struck first the chair beside him, rending it into pieces, and picked up a long shard of splintered wood.

"But I learned other things," he said. "Drinking from him, reading his mind...you hurt him in ways that would probably make even Lestat shudder." He shot a scathing glare at the mother. "You used your children like sex toys. And you..." he shifted his attention at the father. "You used your children like punching bags. And while I normally take the blood of evil doers--"

At that point he suddenly stepped up to the father, reached his hand back, and rammed the splintered wood deep in the fleshy stomach. He ignored the guttural screech and stabbed him again, and again, and again, until the blood poured from the wounds and pooled around them, soaking the cheap carpet.

"--I can't bring myself to touch you."

Janet, broken out of her shocked silence, started to scream at the top of her lungs. Armand winced at the loud noise, but he didn't move toward her. She was just a stupid child, and the only one Daniel had cared about. I'll just tell him she ran off, he decided. He's always better in bed when he's happy.

He glanced over at the old woman, who was starting to back away for the door. Down the hall, he could hear frantic yelling and footfalls as the token security guards took their time approaching.

"I'm afraid I have no time to draw this out," he mocked her, then took his bloody stake and pushed it firmly through her heart. "I figure the real monster here deserves the traditional death, don't you think?"

He calmly unlocked the window and left the room, making sure to step on Alan's other hand just before he vanished into the alley. He came around the front, not a drop of blood on him, and found Daniel leaning against the wall, waiting for him. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah, boss." Daniel didn't ask anything as he slipped his hand into Armand's. "You know, boss, I've been thinking."

"Oh?"

"I've been trying to dig up any emotions I had for these people, and...I can't find any. Why the hell did I make such a big deal about them?"

"A few last vestiges of humanity?" Armand asked. They started to walk back home.

"Maybe...but I couldn't even bring up any hatred, either. It's like...now that they're here, I don't feel anything."

"They aren't the powerful monsters in your nightmares," Armand said knowingly. "They were just mortals."

"Yeah."

"Even your brother?" Armand wondered. "The one that got away."

Daniel smirked. "Found him across the street. That reminds me, I just fed, so we can go home now."

Armand smiled. "Good. As I recall, there was a certain movie marathon you wanted to see."

The End

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Slowly the lights come up, the music fades into the background, and the curtain closes. Footsteps echo across the stage, in front of the movie screen. The Author nervously glances around her audience, the entire vampire coven. "Um, so did you like the spec show?"

The blond vampire in the front row sighed. "A weak ending, a weak beginning--"

The dark haired vampire beside him gasps at his manners. "Lestat, really!"

Lestat smiles. "But quite an entertaining show, in between. For seventy-two episodes, you had quite some staying power."

Far up in the back row, Armand looks up from Daniel's loving kisses. "I still think I should have gotten more time with Louis than just a few scenes."

"You got that big scene in Fresco!" the Author defends herself. "Besides, you love Daniel. You two were meant to be."

"Mmm, got that right," Armand grins, and slips back into Daniel's hold.

"I really am going to miss these little journeys of yours into Rice's work," Marius calls from the middle of the seating area. "Some of the shows were marvelous."

The Author blushes.

"I especially liked Cartoon Heroes and The Vampire Legion," Eric adds.

Santino smacks him upside the back of the head. "You weren't even in those!"

"Exactly, monkey-boy."

"So what are you going to do now?" Lestat asks, throwing popcorn at Jessica, who throws some back. "Another vampire show?"

Author nervously looks away. "Well...actually, you know how you noticed this last spec was kinda weak...?"

"Yeah?"

"Last spec?" Pandora asks. "I thought you said that was 'The Last Vampire Story', but then you wrote this one afterwards."

"I know, I know, it's just...I think I've lost my drive for you guys. You've been great, really, and it's not your fault, I only...I can't write you guys anymore."

Louis nods knowingly. "I should have known this would happen when you starting seeing those other fandoms."

"But why have you stopped loving us?" Daniel asks.

"I haven't, I swear," the Author promises. "I'll still drop by and catch up on specs, or maybe say hello on the boards, even. I might even pen another short story or two with you guys, who knows? But...my time with you guys is pretty much done."

Benji shrugs disdainfully. "Oh, well, I guess Sybelle and I won't have anyone to blow us up anymore!" Sticks his tongue out along with Sybelle.

Merrick folds her arms angrily. "At least you got to be in her stories. She wouldn't even write about me."

"Let's not go into that," the Author says hastily. "Now, I'm going to miss all of you, but I really do have to go. I have other stories to write in other fandoms, and my homework is backed up something awful. I was supposed to write a class paper right now." She picks up her pen and paper, symbolically taking up her writing tools. "I promise I'll drop by every now and then." A door magically appears before her, and when it opens, a brilliant light shines through. Characters from other fandoms appear, beckoning her.

"Aren't you going to leave us with one last wild sex scene?" Louis asks. "One last comic laugh?"

The Author smiles softly. "I thought I wouldn't...but, what the hell, you only live twice!" She waves her pen at the empty aisle, and suddenly massage oils, handcuffs, ropes, chains, leather straps and costumes appear, along with other sex toys. "Have fun, guys!"

"Woohoo!" Danny yells, dragging Armand towards the pile. "Dibs on the whip!"

The Author watches them take off, then decides to give them the final privacy she's never allowed them before. "I'll see you around! Don't forget to visit me! Adios, mis amigos! I'll never forget about this year with you. Seventy two stories and a handful of poems in one year," she murmurs. "Gotta be some kind of record." Waves one last time, bows with a little flourish, and without looking back once, the Author walks into the light.

#vc

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