Easily, Petra was less stressed. She had honestly expected a lot more resistance from the guys than what had been given her. They wanted her happiness, and she wanted theirs. By no means was the relationship going to be without it’s issues, but she felt sure that overall, they’d be fine.
She especially liked Vince’s idea of forming a pack. They’d make a strong one, she knew. Could they benefit from a slightly larger pack? Maybe. But she wouldn’t trust joining into any pack other than her sire’s, and that was a decision she, Claude and Vince had to make together before she could broach it with him.
Still….it was a discussion she wanted to have with Brandon. Or someone, at the very least. She sighed a little but smiled as she drove. She thought about talking to Jett, but as of late she had been wanting to give them time to hopefully talk more..to give Brandon time to admit to his feelings, to himself, and to Jett.
She pondered things a minute, and thought to call Michael. She could see if he felt like training and, if he were busy, she’d find something else to do.
==================
Jesse sighed. She was going to have to contend with the loss of David, it seemed. Didn’t mean she had to like it. She’d been given some thought to the favors that were owed her, and decided to use some of them to help her get started in a new line of work. She hadn’t decided on what yet, but she had to earn a living somehow.
She examined her nails before filing them a little and used that time to think. Perhaps there was a way she could work with the man who was taking care of David now…Donovan, she thought his name was. She wasn’t going to count on a business partnership by any means, but maybe she could learn what pies he did have his fingers in so she didn’t make a mess in the proverbial kitchen.
Well, why not? She decided. She picked up the phone and decided to try and get ahold of him.
==================
Mandy had been working on her lab, looking over a spell while wondering if there were a way she could store it to release later should she have the need. Specifically, she were wondering if technomancy were a thing, and if she could store something that took a huge long ritual to complete in app form.
On occasion, she would divert her attentions to her playthings. The docile humans Endrik had collected for her seemed little more than puppets to her anymore, so she tended to forget their humanity on occasion until she tried to do something that elicited a significant amount of pain, then she usually stopped.
The two subjects were so conjoined in her head at present that she found herself doodling a spell circle design she might implement for a new spell onto the back of a subject with a splinter of bone when she was brought out of her reverie by the sound of Liam Neeson saying “What I do have are a very particular set of skills.” coming from her phone. She laughed and stuck the bone splinter into a shoulder and gestured for her puppet to go back to it’s placeholder while she wheeled over and picked up her phone to check and see what her Dad had sent her.
Reading over it, she had some mixed feelings. She worried about him, of course, but he was capable of taking care of himself. So, she responded, reading the message she sent over before pressing send, making sure it was cautionary but encouraging.
Daddy,
I’m happy you aren’t upset with me for pushing you away. I love you so much, and I want you to have a happy existence, even if it means less of me in it. I don’t know your sire, but I hope they’re treating you well, and willing to work with you – favorably, of course. I love you. When you’re more settled into your new life, we should get together, ok? And I don’t mean years from now, either :p
Love ya!
Mandy
==================
David was going through his business email in the guest room at Donovan’s when a personal email came in. He sighed, a part of him worried it might be from Jesse. With a slight case of nerves, he opened it, but saw only a new mail from his son. Curious as to why Michael would write rather than call, he opened the mail and scanned it, reading it a few times to ensure he had absorbed it properly. Figuring his son must have had a reason to email rather than to call or text, he responded in kind.
Michael,
Let me say first and foremost that your knowledge of the firearms in and of themselves is rather top notch. You’ve studied the makes and models with me over the last couple of years, so you know guns – what you lack is training with them. I know Claude offered to teach you, but with him having a new…job and all, it’s going to be difficult, so I suggest you find a new teacher before you decide to go all John Wick.
Of secondmost on my mind, is I am proud that you want to protect Mandy so fiercely. A small part of that may be the new connection the two of you share, but I know a large part of it is because she’s your friend. I’m happy to hear that you’re dedicated to “growing up”, but don’t forget to live as much as you can as well, ok? As much as I love the man like a brother, don’t become your uncle – don’t let it be all that defines you.
We can get together and talk modifications later. Obtaining a carry conceal shouldn’t be too difficult since you know safety protocols. Ammunition is going to take time to get, but I can work on getting some specials. It’s going to take time for the work and the ammo, but I’ll get it done for you. Even if I expedite, it’s still going to take time, so have patience and remember, don’t go all gung-ho. You can be a master of gun-fu if you want – just don’t let it define you.
Love,
Dad
He sighed. He had wanted Michael to get into the business, yes…but he’d never entertained the idea Michael would ever get entrenched in it…or the vampire world, either. Yet here were both realities staring him in the face. With a vague growl he got up, stretched and moved through the house to get a cold shower.
Again, there was stress upon stress piled on top of him, it seemed, and this time, none of it was the business. No – this time it felt more like teenage stress. The fear of one woman, the desire for another…the fear for his son and best friend and what life would bring moving forward.
He banged his head on the shower wall a couple of times in an effort to drive out his worries. Part of him, and not a small part either, wanted to go out and find a coping mechanism in drugs or alcohol, but he knew that was a dangerous slope, even if he were a ghoul. Instead, he turned up the water temperature and worked on getting clean and then getting dressed, intending to head down and absorb himself in work instead.
==================
Marcus was idly thumbing through a discourse on the life of the Marquis de Sade when a distraction came in the form of an audible notification from his phone. Setting the tome down,he checked over it, noting that it was an email. He set the phone aside for a moment so that he could finish the section of book he was on and properly mark his place before tending to it. Once that had been accomplished, he set the book on a nearby table and pulled over his laptop. While the phone could be useful when on the go, he found it distasteful to use when he had a laptop more readily at hand.
The message was brief, but he raised an eyebrow, and could not help but smirk. For all intents and purpose, it appeared as though King High on His Horse was asking a favor. It amused him that, for the first time since he could remember, the man seemed to be at a complete loss, because he might be in love. He chuckled to himself and then pondered…had the former Senator ever truly loved before? He struggled to recall previous long-term lovers of Brandon’s from Rome, and eventually ceased. He could not recall anyone of significance, though that did not mean it never happened. He had, after all, been a general and fought a number of battles in their breathing days, so the possibility was there.
Poising his fingers over the keyboard, he thought of how to respond. It wasn’t that he was inherently against the idea, but he was worried about Jett. He had felt a responsibility toward him since the child was born, a burden he didn’t dare ignore for fear of retribution from an unhappy deity. Or perhaps it was more that he wanted to erase some of the red from his ledger and even out karma. Whatever the case, he wanted to ensure the best for Jett. He was less likely to endure any suspicion if he asked for some form of compensation, so he thought on that, then began to write.
Your Eminence,
I must say, I am rather surprised by your admission to me. I would not have thought you to admit a potential weakness in any form to one such as I, but I feel flattered just the same. I am pleased to hear that you enjoy my ward’s company, and I hope things work out amicably. Truth be told, I feel I may trust you with him. As for compensation, it’s really quite simple.
I’ll not bother with the usual boon. I ask only two things of you. For the first, I request – no, let me correct myself. I demand that you give him the opportunities he deserves. I have seen potential within him since his birth, and I have been striving to give him the experiences and education I can, hence the shifting around to domitors, but ensuring I have control. I will willingly relinquish this control if you can provide him what he deserves.
The second thing is something I don’t think anyone has asked of you before. You are crafty and most capable of handling any boons you owe in any manner of capacity. Monetarily speaking, you can change the stock markets at the snap of a finger. Politically, you have no small amount of sway over countries, being part of the United Nations. What I wish from you is more…personal.
You see, I am struggling to recall the last time you had feelings for anyone at all. I imagine you must be at a loss as to how to handle yourself right now. What I would like then, in your own words, is an account of times you may have cared before, if there were any. I am simply curious and would like to satisfy my curiosity. This is hopefully not a difficult task, and as such I am going to give it a deadline of one year. That should be plenty of time, though my curiosity hopes for something much sooner.
I hope these terms are amicable to you. Felicitaciones*, my old friend.
Marcus looked over his words before sending. Things were going to get more intriguing, he felt.
~~
Note: *congratulations
==================
Robert bit his thumb as he paced the length and breadth of his hotel suite. He was grateful to his Elder for supplying it, and truly had no ulterior motive other than to assist in his endeavors, even if it was largely out of a sense of boredom he’d been going through lately. He hadn’t been going out much – he usually preferred to keep to himself as it was, though was quite well aware enough of his situation to not hermit himself into a corner he couldn’t paint his way out of.
If the Cobweb whispers were anything to go by, interesting things were happening all over, but he tried only to focus on key words or thoughts, even images and emotions, that were relevant to where he was now and the people he had already seen himself tied to with that mystical silver cord that New Agers liked to speak of. There were cords both thick and thin, that all formed a web every bit as beautiful, delicate and deadly as a spider’s. This was all fine. He wasn’t trying to build a deck of cards with the threads, so things weren’t going to tumble down on him, but there would be a butterfly effect, he was sure.
He hadn’t heard from Lord Darkess after having introduced himself, but there were whispers in the madness of him entering his chrysalis. But would he emerge a mother or a butterfly? That remained to be seen. He stopped mid pacing and threw up his hands. Tonight, apparently, was one in which the voices did not want to leave him be. They were determined to be heard, and so he quit brushing the webs away to listen.
Moving over to his laptop, he pulled up a playlist and put on music for background. He had found that listening to instrumental soundtracks to games like Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy were especially useful for focusing on what the madness wanted to teach him. The volume at a low but reasonable level, he pulled up his email account and fired off one letter of note that seemed quite important at that moment.
Dear Señor de las Sombras*,
I wrote to you with information most prudent, I feel. The spiders and butterflies are at work, and its important to inform you that the date you have selected for your magnam concertos** is an inauspicious one. Firstly and foremost, the weather will be highly uncooperative that night. May I suggest a day before at least? Most importantly, I feel an outdoor venue is extremely importante^. While I cannot predict what, if anything, will occur, I strongly feel that if an indoor venue were chosen, there would be a horrific catastrophe, and many hermanos y hermanas^^ could be lost. I urge you to not fall into the fly’s trap.
Humbly,
Robert Carson, Connoisseur of Madness
He sat back and nodded for a moment, then read over his missive, conducting the track for Liberi Fatali from Final Fantasy VIII as he did so. “And thus the games begin, let it spin, ever spin.” he muttered as the song finished. Time was a commodity they all had, provided no one dashed the web to bits.
~~
- Note:*Lord of the Shadows
- **grand concert
- ^important
- ^^ brothers and sisters