BACKDATED - Gale/Andre - After the date
Occurs immediately following This date
It was rare for Andre to be able to escape the house and just relax, but tonight he found himself outside in the garden, the gazebo shimmering in the moonlight.
/Dad?/ Gale reached out, not sensing his sire inside the walls of the house. The previous night's activities had taken a lot out of him, more than he anticipated.
Outside - gazebo Gale. Come join me? Leaning back against the support, he gazed at the house, waiting for his childe to exit.
Standing up from his bed, Gale's feet brought him out into what was probably the most beautiful garden had ever seen. "You know... I love this place. Who cares for it?"
"I have a gardener, lovely Scotsman," Here Andre smiled, making sure his own accent deepened, "man does marvelous work." Patting the blue and green striped cushion, he indicated the other man should sit.
Gale sat, shifting so that he was closer to his sire. "It is lovely."
"Peaceful." It was obvious that something was bothering his childe, but Andre knew Gale well enough to know the man had to sort his words in his mind before he'd speak them.
"Mmhmmm," Gale sighed, head tipped to lay on his sire's shoulder. "So... I had a date last night."
"Did you now? Good. Enjoy yourself?" Andre smiled gently at the younger man, pleased he was beginning to get out more.
"Yeah, he was... it was nice," Gale smiled at the memory, a little unsure of how much he should share with his sire. "He... Eliot said that he might seek you out..."
"Oh?" A wealth of questions in that one word, and Andre was intrigued. "This Eliot... you'd mentioned a Were, I presume this is him?"
"Yeah, Eliot is the were... a tiger," he smiled just talking about the were. "I... I almost acted my age and freaked out. He wants to understand how to handle being with a young vamp... take some of the pressure off of me by not accidentally puting me in a bad position."
Sitting up slowly, Andre stared at his childe, eyes inscrutable, "What do you mean... 'bad position'?"
Biting his lip, Gale hesitated in answering. He knew, however, that if there was anyone he needed tto be honest with in this life, it was his sire. "I nearly bit him..." his voice was quiet in his shame.
He nodded, eyes locked on Gale, "Bit him... because you wanted to or for another reason?" he'd get to the issue of possible addiction in a few moments.
"We were flirting... standing close," Gale sighed. "I barely caught myself before my teeth broke his skin. I just got caught up... his scent, the nearness..."
"The passion as it surged in your blood." Andre nodded, understanding. "Did you want to bite him for your pleasure, his or for some other reason Gale?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Gale answered the only way he could, "I'm not really sure... I just needed to taste him."
"We still need to work on your control." Sitting back, he watches as the shadows sway in the moonlight, "Feeding during sex is... fantastically intense - and you can get easily swept up in the moment."
Gale pulled his feet up onto the chair, arms wrapping around his knees. "I don't want to hurt him... I freaked out a little bit when it happened. Felt as if I had bitten him, I wouldn't have had the will to stop."
"Do you think you would have killed him?" Holding up his hand to stop any answer just then, Andre continued, "You'd feel him dying, do you think you'd have ignored that?"
"I don't know... but the potential for it scared me."
"Would it have bothered you?" He was deliberately pushing, wanting to see where Gale's 'edge' was.
"Killing a man?!" Gale pulled back and stared at his sire. His eyes were wide and his voice raised. "I don't want to kill... not him not anyone... not if I can help it."
"But he's not a man, not really."
"That doesn't fucking matter Andre"
"Why?" Head to the side, he studied Gale.
"Because..." Gale struggled to explain himself. "He's still a person... he still matters... I don't want to hurt anyone dad."
"So what do you think you should do?" Leaning back, Andre let the breeze ruffle through his hair.
"Fuck if I know... lock myself away so I do not harm the good people and weres of New Orleans?"
"Bit melodramatic, don't you think?" Andre swung around, the cushion moving under him as he did. "Think Gale; you're not stupid."
"No, I'm not," Gale huffed into his knee caps. "But I am confused and scared..."
"And above all else, what is the one thing a vampire needs to learn?" Patting his childe's knee, the elder smiled.
"Control..." he mumbled.
"Yes, control." Patting Gale's shoulder, Andre smiled. "Now, how old are you in vampire years?"
"Thanks, dad," Gale turned his eyes to his sire. "But right now I don't need the you'll get better as you get older, I need some advice on how I can work with what I've got..."
"The only thing you have right now is to learn to trust yourself. And trust your mu... your new friend."
Gale's nod was limited by the proximity of his knees. "I was never a patient man... not with myself anyway..."
"Trying dealing with that for an eternity." Andre sighed, his childe needed to learn how to be patient, how to control himself and let things unfold of their own accord. "Gale, you are my childe and I love you and will put you before all who would do you harm. But the way you're going, you'll be the one doing yourself harm."
"I've always been my own worst enemy."
Sliding his hand into Gale's hair, Andre gently shook his head, "Most humans are - it's we vampires that need to learn how to change and grow from it."
"Father knows best?" Gale asked wryly.
"Father knows from experience of over six hundred years."
"Yeah, yeah..." he cracked a smile.
Andre looked at his childe, an expression of 'cheeky devil' showing in his eyes. "Headed for a smacked bottom are we now?"
"Thats a bit kinky, dontcha think pops?"
"And back to the cheeky, disrespectful fledgling we go." Grinning, Andre lightly tapped Gale's cheek. "Gale, we need to work on your control, to teach you how to use your mind."
Nodding, Gale agreed. "I'm sick of feeling weak."
"You're not weak, just uncertain. Self assuance will come with each day, it'll grow as will your ability to control yourself." Gale was a not even year old vampire in an adults body. "Gale, as a human, you were an adult, but when you were first born, could you walk and talk right away?"
"Again with this?" Gale huffed, acting like a petulant child. "I get it, ok! But understanding that I'm a fucking vampire baby doesn't do me any good in trying to make a life for myself."
"Oh, but it does." Nodding emphatically, Andre smiled.
"Not seeing it right now," he huffed before standing, his posture a mix of defeat and frustration. "I think I'm going to turn in early, Andre."
"You have a chance to start over, to change or adjust things you didn't like as a human."
Gale huffed at that, steps leading him down the steps of the gazebo. "I got all the time in the fucking world after all." But would the time he needed to come to terms with his new self force him to miss out on something great?
Andre sighed, sometimes the young ones just weren't ready to listen. "Gale, what do you want from me? What do you want me to say?"
"Not sure that anything can be said right now," Gale gave a lack luster smile to his sire. "Thanks though, one thing I do know about this life is that I will have one person who will always be here for me."
Pushing off the cushions, Andre moved to his childe, "I will... and will do what I can to help you acclimate into your new life."
It was rare for Andre to be able to escape the house and just relax, but tonight he found himself outside in the garden, the gazebo shimmering in the moonlight.
/Dad?/ Gale reached out, not sensing his sire inside the walls of the house. The previous night's activities had taken a lot out of him, more than he anticipated.
Outside - gazebo Gale. Come join me? Leaning back against the support, he gazed at the house, waiting for his childe to exit.
Standing up from his bed, Gale's feet brought him out into what was probably the most beautiful garden had ever seen. "You know... I love this place. Who cares for it?"
"I have a gardener, lovely Scotsman," Here Andre smiled, making sure his own accent deepened, "man does marvelous work." Patting the blue and green striped cushion, he indicated the other man should sit.
Gale sat, shifting so that he was closer to his sire. "It is lovely."
"Peaceful." It was obvious that something was bothering his childe, but Andre knew Gale well enough to know the man had to sort his words in his mind before he'd speak them.
"Mmhmmm," Gale sighed, head tipped to lay on his sire's shoulder. "So... I had a date last night."
"Did you now? Good. Enjoy yourself?" Andre smiled gently at the younger man, pleased he was beginning to get out more.
"Yeah, he was... it was nice," Gale smiled at the memory, a little unsure of how much he should share with his sire. "He... Eliot said that he might seek you out..."
"Oh?" A wealth of questions in that one word, and Andre was intrigued. "This Eliot... you'd mentioned a Were, I presume this is him?"
"Yeah, Eliot is the were... a tiger," he smiled just talking about the were. "I... I almost acted my age and freaked out. He wants to understand how to handle being with a young vamp... take some of the pressure off of me by not accidentally puting me in a bad position."
Sitting up slowly, Andre stared at his childe, eyes inscrutable, "What do you mean... 'bad position'?"
Biting his lip, Gale hesitated in answering. He knew, however, that if there was anyone he needed tto be honest with in this life, it was his sire. "I nearly bit him..." his voice was quiet in his shame.
He nodded, eyes locked on Gale, "Bit him... because you wanted to or for another reason?" he'd get to the issue of possible addiction in a few moments.
"We were flirting... standing close," Gale sighed. "I barely caught myself before my teeth broke his skin. I just got caught up... his scent, the nearness..."
"The passion as it surged in your blood." Andre nodded, understanding. "Did you want to bite him for your pleasure, his or for some other reason Gale?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Gale answered the only way he could, "I'm not really sure... I just needed to taste him."
"We still need to work on your control." Sitting back, he watches as the shadows sway in the moonlight, "Feeding during sex is... fantastically intense - and you can get easily swept up in the moment."
Gale pulled his feet up onto the chair, arms wrapping around his knees. "I don't want to hurt him... I freaked out a little bit when it happened. Felt as if I had bitten him, I wouldn't have had the will to stop."
"Do you think you would have killed him?" Holding up his hand to stop any answer just then, Andre continued, "You'd feel him dying, do you think you'd have ignored that?"
"I don't know... but the potential for it scared me."
"Would it have bothered you?" He was deliberately pushing, wanting to see where Gale's 'edge' was.
"Killing a man?!" Gale pulled back and stared at his sire. His eyes were wide and his voice raised. "I don't want to kill... not him not anyone... not if I can help it."
"But he's not a man, not really."
"That doesn't fucking matter Andre"
"Why?" Head to the side, he studied Gale.
"Because..." Gale struggled to explain himself. "He's still a person... he still matters... I don't want to hurt anyone dad."
"So what do you think you should do?" Leaning back, Andre let the breeze ruffle through his hair.
"Fuck if I know... lock myself away so I do not harm the good people and weres of New Orleans?"
"Bit melodramatic, don't you think?" Andre swung around, the cushion moving under him as he did. "Think Gale; you're not stupid."
"No, I'm not," Gale huffed into his knee caps. "But I am confused and scared..."
"And above all else, what is the one thing a vampire needs to learn?" Patting his childe's knee, the elder smiled.
"Control..." he mumbled.
"Yes, control." Patting Gale's shoulder, Andre smiled. "Now, how old are you in vampire years?"
"Thanks, dad," Gale turned his eyes to his sire. "But right now I don't need the you'll get better as you get older, I need some advice on how I can work with what I've got..."
"The only thing you have right now is to learn to trust yourself. And trust your mu... your new friend."
Gale's nod was limited by the proximity of his knees. "I was never a patient man... not with myself anyway..."
"Trying dealing with that for an eternity." Andre sighed, his childe needed to learn how to be patient, how to control himself and let things unfold of their own accord. "Gale, you are my childe and I love you and will put you before all who would do you harm. But the way you're going, you'll be the one doing yourself harm."
"I've always been my own worst enemy."
Sliding his hand into Gale's hair, Andre gently shook his head, "Most humans are - it's we vampires that need to learn how to change and grow from it."
"Father knows best?" Gale asked wryly.
"Father knows from experience of over six hundred years."
"Yeah, yeah..." he cracked a smile.
Andre looked at his childe, an expression of 'cheeky devil' showing in his eyes. "Headed for a smacked bottom are we now?"
"Thats a bit kinky, dontcha think pops?"
"And back to the cheeky, disrespectful fledgling we go." Grinning, Andre lightly tapped Gale's cheek. "Gale, we need to work on your control, to teach you how to use your mind."
Nodding, Gale agreed. "I'm sick of feeling weak."
"You're not weak, just uncertain. Self assuance will come with each day, it'll grow as will your ability to control yourself." Gale was a not even year old vampire in an adults body. "Gale, as a human, you were an adult, but when you were first born, could you walk and talk right away?"
"Again with this?" Gale huffed, acting like a petulant child. "I get it, ok! But understanding that I'm a fucking vampire baby doesn't do me any good in trying to make a life for myself."
"Oh, but it does." Nodding emphatically, Andre smiled.
"Not seeing it right now," he huffed before standing, his posture a mix of defeat and frustration. "I think I'm going to turn in early, Andre."
"You have a chance to start over, to change or adjust things you didn't like as a human."
Gale huffed at that, steps leading him down the steps of the gazebo. "I got all the time in the fucking world after all." But would the time he needed to come to terms with his new self force him to miss out on something great?
Andre sighed, sometimes the young ones just weren't ready to listen. "Gale, what do you want from me? What do you want me to say?"
"Not sure that anything can be said right now," Gale gave a lack luster smile to his sire. "Thanks though, one thing I do know about this life is that I will have one person who will always be here for me."
Pushing off the cushions, Andre moved to his childe, "I will... and will do what I can to help you acclimate into your new life."