The Hidden Agenda (Alaric)

[Cristiana]

Becky returned to her with another note in hand. She read it over scribbling a reply quickly before returning to the screen in front of her. There was only so much time to finish up with the days work, but there was always tomorrow. She did not like to play catch up unless something happened or came along. Generally speaking, she didn't hold off. Tomorrow she planned on being away so she was doing as much as she could, while she could. Becky placed a hand on her shoulder. "I got this. I have been doing it for months, when you were away and were not able to get internet access." The girl sounded a bit unhinged about it. It was not that I didn't trust her and Mindy, I trusted the both of them. If I was going to have any fun on this trip, it was going to be knowing I had done as much as I could in the office.

"I know Becks, but it is me. You know how I am." The woman closed her eyes looking like she was mentally counting just to deal with her. I placed my hand over hers and looked up. "Just let me do this my way, you want me to have a good time right?" Again, counting mentally appeared on her face, her eyes closed.

"Yes, of course I do. And I want you to know that everything is taken care of here and all the businesses." She pulled away and walked across the room where the fireplace was left sitting unused. She looked into where the would be flames were and sighed. "Do you have any faith in me at all? Even after all this time it feels like you have no faith in my abilities. You second guess my choices when you return, 'fix' things that were not broken, and over ride my opinions." She spun to face me, "I've always stayed tried and true to you. Can you give me just an ounce of credit please?"

I sat back shocked, blinking at my assistant. She had really laid it out there. The problem was she was right. she was absolutely right. I had belittled her in front of other employees, and customers alike. I had underminded her every twist and turn. The businesses were running themselves, because I had her. The problem was, "Maybe I just feel like you do such a great job, I am no longer needed myself." It was her idea of a compliment, and Becky knew it. She also knew not to over react. She just nodded and took her leave with the final note.

The first note had been simple, a quick jot down of events. She'd not really even put a lot of thought into it.

Dear Mr. Alaric,

After our encounter, I find my thoughts wondering to you.

I was wondering if you would be up to a meeting? The club might not be the ideal place but I do know of somewhere that would, if you would indulge me.

I will send this note by hand from one of my assistants.

Please give her an answer (Probably Becky) before she leaves.
Time and place, and a little trust is all I ask.

Crissy

P.S. If you wear a tie, I am going to steal it by nights end. FYI

Did he really not know about my tie collection? Or my strange and unusual obsession with ties?
It wasn't common knowledge. I just.... couldn't help myself.

In fact it had surprised me that he had replied at all. He had no idea I was use to being set aside and brushed off. The last note, I thought more so was out of curiousity, he agreed to join me. I finished up the last bit and smiled to Becky. There. I am done and it's all yours. I should only be gone a few hours, one day at most. But I am not expecting to be gone for an extended period of time. They are all yours tomorrow because, I am taking the day off. And I will be unreachable."

She nodded, "Of course Crissy. I will see you in two days." With that she backed out of the office and headed out to the wedding shop. Becky was a creature of habit after all.

I went to the desk, slipped the cell phone into it and took the bluetooth out of my ear. These won't be needed where they were going. Two friends off on an adventure. Well, not a far one but one nonetheless. I closed up shop and headed out to the large apartment buildings across town. When I hit the grand lobby, with the all hard wood floors and red carpet spanning the length of the room, the empty building I shook my head. It was lonely in the place. Lonely and sad, it had been an amazing place filled with memories. Like getting married on the second floor. Twice over. The place had been used for parties and weddings, had a swimming pool, hot tub, movie theater, garden and even a helicopter pad on the roof. Now, it was a shadow of its former self. Much like I am. All of the electronics were pretty much shut off since no one bothered to use them. This place was nothing more than bricks. A fancy pile of bricks. Hidden places, all of it rendered useless. The place was meant for family, but that was gone.

The first night I called out, "Hello" . My voice echo'ed and came back bouncing off the walls. With the paper, in my hand that first night, it seemed more empty. I was getting use to the solitude. At any given point in time I could go knock on Zodiac's door, I could say please. After the one word, no more words would be needed. She knew it, but there was something I needed to learn to live with - myself.

Now back in the present, I looked around. A backpack had been shoved off into the corner in case he had said yes. The off handed miracle it would be in itself. I sat on the front lobby desk, right on the check in point and waited to see, if he would actually join her or leave me stood up. All in all it's not like it would be an utter shock. I was getting use to it at this point.

[Alaric von der Marck]

WEARING

Alaric had not known what to think of the exchange. Cristiana—whom he assumed would prefer he call Crissy—was at most an acquaintance. She was basically a stranger, and Alaric hadn’t wanted to appear too incompetent. It was not because he required her good opinion, but because he was wary, always paranoid, and slow to trust. If she knew that he did not know what a swimming suit was, then she would know there were other things he might be ignorant of, too. She’d be closer to figuring out his weaknesses. And he could not know what harm she might mean to his family in the future.

The telepathic conversation with Salvator had given Alaric a lot to think about. Salvator had suggested that if Alaric was uncomfortable being along with the woman that he instead invite her to a small gathering of friends. The trouble being, Alaric did not have many friends to call on. He had family, and he had Salvator. And Anne, who herself was still an intriguing acquaintance. For a minute or two he was distracted, thinking about the independent blonde. He pulled himself back to the here and now.

The elder was not fond of surprises, and it was a temptation to send a return note to request he be told what the surprise was, or else he would not come. Instead, he rolled his shoulders and donned his jacket, fingers smoothing the lapels. Salvator had also suggested Alaric populate his wardrobe with more modern clothing. Alaric frowned down at his suit and shook his head.

The note had not indicated that this outing would be more than a night, or a few hours. The fast travel, he could only presume, might have something to do with teleportation. Which he could handle. He took the stairs down to his rooms, to where he rifled through his clothing and at least tried to take Salvator’s advice. Someone had kindly been shopping for him back when he’d first returned; the suits he’d accumulated since then, preferring to wear them over the new fabrics and styles of today. Now, however, with a grumble, he retrieved a pair of blue denim jeans and a plain t-shirt; he could have left it at that but couldn’t help himself. A jacket was pulled over the ensemble. The shoes, though they looked odd to the elder, were at least leather.

There would be no tie. Nor did he own a swimsuit.

One hour later he would arrive where Cristiana had directed him; he’d had to find a shop from which to buy a swimsuit, and he’d ended up with something suited to a pro diver, head to toe coverage. It was in a bag that hung from the handle of the bicycle he’d bought, because he preferred them over motor vehicles, and could not drive, anyway. The ride to the location was not far from the Cherrydale train station, from which Alaric had come.

He reluctantly left the bicycle out the front as he wandered through the doors of the building, greeted by dark walls and rich, mahogany floors. ”Hello?” he called, his steps quiet even as his voice seemed to boom to fill the empty spaces.

[Cristiana]

To be honest with oneself is the utmost form of honesty. And right in this moment, honesty was shock. My facial expressions seeing him actually enter the castle like building with the large wooden heavy double doors showed not only shock but most likely that I was impressed he came. I looked around the room, it was loviler in its hay day when people were actually coming and going into the building. It was dormant, waiting for life to fill the halls once more.

I looked at him smiling, “Dressed down! Lovely. Perfect for what I have planned.” Noting his attire was nothing like the club, but also I wasn’t sure it completely suited him. He didn’t seem completely relaxed or at ease in the jeans and tee shirt. Much like me, he was not use to the dress down casual look. I jumped from the desk where my feet dangled over the edge swinging, onto the floor with a clump of the heels.

“Hello and welcome. Don’t worry this is not the final destination. And Mr. Alaric I will answer your curiosities when we get to where we are going,” I cast him a casual smile lifting the backpack over my shoulder walking closer to him. In the building most everything was shut down and unplugged. No use keeping it on when there was no need for it. Seems like I was the only one who used the apartments in here and even that was sparse when I wasn’t in the office.

“If you will enlighten me and reach out, touch my hand, I can take us there. However you might want to close your eyes unless the movement doesn’t bother you, I assure you it will be well worth the travel though.” Another brilliant smile cast to him hoping to put him at ease around me. We had the one encounter, at the Metronome Club, but he seemed to get the wrong impression of me like I only wanted to hop into some form of romantic encounter with him. He didn’t understand it was all too natural for me to be over zealously flirtatious with not only him but others, in a bar it was great for tips but everywhere else not so much. It was refraining like I was doing now that took concentration. It wasn’t him, I just longed to touch, to feel and know the body beside me was real. It was a comfort for me, for him it seemed it was not so much.

“You don't need your vehicle where we are going and it is safe around here. Rarely do visitors come nearest the building. And those that do are merely curious.” I wasn’t going to jump to any conclusions, simply left my hand extended to him so we could leave when he composed himself. I wasn’t about to sit around inside here and take up precious time when the two of us could be having fun. Or at least getting him to relax some since he seemed tense at the club.

I planned to take us both well out of the city, as it was far too clustered and busy. I wanted to take him as far back into a time frame when civilization was slower, less technical. A cabin in the woods off the lake where there was no electrical outlets, no computer, no cars. A vast mountain scenery over the large lake where someone could hide there for many years in content blissful peace.

The log cabin was well kept but did not even have electricity going thru it. Candle light and fire were the only ways to illuminate the room. There were a few contemporary things in the place, like the board games I had placed in the large main room. Or the furniture. There was a couch and chair that was more modern but fit the room with the style. Plush and rustic, obviously it was handcrafted very specifically for this room. It was a tan plaid material that covered the plushness of the seating. There was an open loft with one bed showing up the ladder to where the room was big enough to walk around the bed. In the ‘kitchen’ area there was no fridge, no stove and the sink was an old pump that you needed to work to get the water from. There was a latch in the floor where a small room was, a colder room that was bare and empty. All the windows had thick coverings. A dining table made of the same wood as the cabin sat off by what should be the kitchen, but it seems the extra large fireplace was where the main cooking was done.

Outside there was a small unkept garden off to opposite side from the lake. A dock with a rowboat sat outside on the edge of the lake. It wasn’t a place easily found, very hidden away, and nothing about the place screamed contemporary. Behind the cabin sat two smaller buildings, one being an outhouse. Not quite needed for them, but the other looked like a miniature barn and stable. Empty, of course, since there was no one here to tend to animals. The barn looked like it contained tools, perhaps even the tools that built the house. It was a speculation.

The only tell tale sign that someone had been here recently was the walkway of natural slate stones. The path was not over run, none of the place was over run. Even the grass had been cut to show a perfectly manicured lawn. It was the only give away this place was not abandoned, and cleanliness of the interior. No dust or grime anywhere to be found in or around the house.

[Alaric von der Marck]

A lot was said and yet Alaric hadn’t the opportunity to respond. Though there were no questions, so there was no need to respond. His own curiosities could indeed wait, though his eyes did lift to survey the building they’d met within. It was lacking the same kind of buzz a fully occupied building would emanate. It didn’t appear that there were people living there in other rooms, using the internet or watching TV or even just using their electric lights. The hum of the modern age was minimal.

Crissy mentioned visitors – or lack thereof. Alaric might have proffered that even curious people could be thieves, but he kept that comment to himself. Actions spoke louder than words, so he made sure his bicycle was inside and out of sight of the street before he would allow himself to reach out and take Crissy’s hand. Physical touch that was invited and warned, and thus didn’t bother him as much as it could.

The elder wasn’t as familiar with teleportation as he could have been. It wasn’t his first time traveling in such a fashion, but it had been a while. It was disorienting at first, but the sensation didn’t last. As soon as he got his bearings, he did indeed relax. It was a subconscious thing, his mind constantly barred tight against the barrage of modern technology. Even at the estate, which had been fitted out with all the contemporary amenities, he could never fully relax. Here, he could detect nothing. He took a deep breath in and released it in a contented sigh.

”This is wonderful,” he said. ”It is yours?” he asked, gaze shifting over the furnishings and the interior of the cabin before wandering over to the door so that he could open it and peer outside. As expected there was nothing out there but wilderness, though the yards were tidy and cared for. As ensconced as they were in the depths of the mountains, he assumed, he had to wonder. ”Do you have trouble with the Fae…?” he asked, wondering if it might not be best that they try to stay indoors, just in case.

Still, curiosity got the better of him. The cabin wasn’t huge, by any means. He could see only one bed, and the windows were all covered in thick barriers. He did not yet know Cristiana, nor whether her word could be trusted. The conversation he’d had with Salvator was still running circles in his mind and he was wary. If Cristiana thought that they would spend the day here, Alaric would insist that she take him back to the city. He could not sleep above ground, lest anyone wish to be confronted by the temper of a man who’d end up feeling like he’d not slept for a month.

[Cristiana]

The chuckle was one of glee, it was worth it to see the look on his face. I loved my cabin in the woods, high up where man doesn’t tread. No people or face, the only smell is that of the earth. For miles and miles, the valley below was covered in trees so thick you couldn’t see the ground except in sparse spots. And that was blue from what reflection of the sky off the water, not green and plush but that was what was hidden in the blanket of trees. It was in fact one of the loveliest places I owned around the world. So lovely it was my favorite, not solely for the solitude it offered, or when the town and club became too overwhelming, it was my favorite because I bought it as a plot of land and broken down house that I myself restored to its fullest glory.

The specialty furniture was of my own creation. It was not something one could simply buy in an Ikea or Rooms to go. No this was all, with the help of internet tutorials and a lot of failed attempts, was my own creation. I loved the colors of rustic reds, orange and greens to tie in all seasons of nature and the feel it gave the room was homely. I even rebuilt and seared in fragments the wood mantle around the fireplace. Every piece of decor was meticulously made by me, down to the littlest pieces of all wooden, real wood, tables sanded and lacquered by hand. It had taken a long time, so long. Years in fact. But without a husband to keep you occupied, this is the productivity.

A smile plastered my face, as I felt that creeping sensation of home and comfortable here, looking at him, “I’ve never had a fae bother me. Perhaps it is because I respect the land, or even more so because when I redid the house, I did it the proper way and used the handcrafting tools in the shed and nothing that would impede on the land in ways of electrical devices.” With that I headed toward the dressing room off the side of the kitchen, less a bathroom and more an area to change in private, grabbing a towel from a closet near what would be the kitchen area. “I respected the land and used the land to create everything in this wonderful house. It's too bad it sits alone so often. It is my most desired location for peace and quiet. But yes, I own it and down the mountain as well. If you want privacy, you have to invest in it.” That one statement was awashed with a minor grief but gone as soon as the sentence was finished. ”I also make sure no one ruins any of the land.”

I finally looked back at him, hugging the towel to my chest like it would offer some comfort. “Excuse me but the lake out there is beautiful and warm still from the sunlight. The lightning bugs and moon will only provide so much light before it gets too dark to see up here. Care to join me?” If he joined me or not there was at least some chairs to bring, modernish plastic and metal like chairs but they would be easy to carry, he could sit while I swam. I never bothered with fishing here, because heaven only knows what would be caught. “After swimming maybe we could play a board game or discuss a few things while we play if you like.” I was of course just getting him to be at ease, around her and around the place. He seemed uptight but also a dedicated business man, and it was just what I needed for my plans. But, I would ease into that which normally wasn’t the case with me at all.

Thomas Kinkade would be jealous of how bright the moon reflected off the lake. The fireflies flew all around. The tail ends flickering bits of light in the air like twinkling stars. In a small red bikini bathing suit with little white polka dots all over the two piece and a lacy see thru shirt over on top of it, a quick change, I grabbed the two seats for them to sit by idly and talk later, I slowly made my way to the lake, lingering to take in just how beautiful it really was. With an off handed comment I spoke softly to myself unsure if he had even followed or was still soaking in the house yet, “It’s like you can see every star in the sky here.” And I was right. This was about the closest you could get without being able to reach out and grasp a star. The moon looked so huge hung up in the sky. Still unaware if she was talking to him or just herself, “It looks like the moon was placed in the sky for nights like this. Just to think, we all look at the same moon all the time, no matter where you are on the earth. There it is. The same moon you look at from here is the same one you see in the city.” I sighed a soft content sigh before taking a running leap off the deck, towel dropping at some point along with the chairs off my shoulder. I drove into the water, head first. It was best to dive right in and not wade in. The warmth of the water made me feel like I was wrapped in a warm blanket and I could just stay there for hours under the water fully submerged. I didn’t, but could have, instead i came to the surface floating on the lake watching the ripples distort the reflections.

I thought to myself, "Soon I would ask him and hope it doesn't spoil the trip that I wanted to..." in my own head my thoughts traveled off.

[Alaric von der Marck]

Alaric didn’t voice his doubt. All the dealings he’d had with the Fae worldwide were cultivated from hate. Not from his part, but from theirs. As a human he’d heard about them; the farmers that worked his estate back in Germany had talked about them and though Alaric had listened to their stories it was with the ear of a reader, a learner, someone interested in history and mythology, a landowner wanting only to understand his workers and to help them in whatever way he was able. He’d put no faith in their stories. Not until he’d been turned and had tried to return home.

To avoid trouble he’d wanted to hunt the wild land outside of the estate. He’d wanted to hunt only animals, to sate his hunger so that he would not be tempted by the human morsels that lived both on the estate and within his own home. A few weeks he’d lasted at home with Anja and the boys, who at the time had only been young children and babies. But he’d been driven out of the forest by the fae; he’d asked one of the farmers about it one night, about what these ‘spirits’ in the forest hated. He discovered that they loathed anything unnatural. This was why the farmers liked working for mister Alaric von der Marck, because he was not greedy. The land that they tended was not done so all for profit, but to feed the people in the village nearby. The produce was sold locally, and much of the money Alaric made selling to the cities nearby was filtered into the town coffers, to help pay for new roads and mend the churches. He respected the land, and he respected the animals he farmed.

Alaric couldn’t get much else out of the farmer, but his line of questioning was not confined to only one person. These spirits, apparently had issues with other ‘spirits’, evil things. Undead things. Such as the nachzehrer. In the end, this line of questioning was Alaric’s downfall. He was soon suspected—the master of the estate who was never seen during the day. One of the farmhands had admitted to seeing their master enter the stables at dawn, only to come out again at dusk looking dirty and worse-for-wear. During the day, the young boy had explored the stables and had found the crude cavern that Alaric had dug for himself, hidden behind the bales of hay with a door that had no handle.

Just like the fae had chased him out of the forest, the farmers accused Alaric of being a nachzehrer—a creature who preferred to feed on the blood of his family. They were afraid for the safety of Alaric’s wife and his young children. Paranoia had set in. This, among other things, was why Alaric had left his family, only to return after his wife had died.

In the interim he had travelled the world, and he’d always got the same story from those willing to talk to him about the ‘spirits’ in the forest. And whatever forest he tried to explore, he faced the same issues. Fae attacked him, and the wounds were not small. They were serious, and he knew if he spent too much time there, they’d surely kill him.

Long story short, he assumed that the fae would hate vampires no matter what they did, or how much they respected the land. They didn’t attack humans for building cities in their way. More research might be required, but it might just have something to do with the structure – that it wasn’t wild.

And he could respect that she may have built this house with her own two hands. Alaric had done that, too, back when he’d first migrated to New France. But, back then, there’d not really been any other option. The trucks and cranes and machinery available to the modern builder were not available to Alaric back then. It could be done regardless. Though, he’d had help from his sons.

It wouldn’t matter if he’d wanted to respond, either to her statements about the fae or about the house and her hand in creating it. Before he could offer anything she’d disappeared to change and then on her way out, had grabbed a couple of contraptions (that Alaric did not know where chairs, yet) and started to head for the lake. Looking behind him and at the plastic bag still hanging from his arm, he followed, not having the chance himself to change into anything. Though, given how see-through that lace top was, and the bareness of Cristiana’s legs, Alaric wasn’t sure he wanted to change into anything. This was a thing that a man and woman did with each other? Given all the stories he’d been told by the women in his family, he had to accept that yes, perhaps they did go frolicking in lakes together, half naked.

Trotting along behind Cristiana, Alaric glanced up at the moon as she mused about it, waxing lyrical with a romanced sigh. To Alaric, it was just a moon. To him it signified nothing but the cold depiction of the sunlight he would never again feel touching his skin. It didn’t mean anything to him. Before he could even comment on that, however, Cristiana was gone; whatever it was she’d been carrying dropped to the dock and with a further flash of skin she had launched herself into the water.

Alaric stood motionless as he watched her. He was still dressed in the clothes that he’d arrived in, the plastic bag with his swim suit useless as it dangled from his fingertips. It was heavy. And, noting the way Cristiana had dressed, he now realised, completely inappropriate. But then, nor did he think that her attire was appropriate. Old and new were at odds. Rather than find some dark place among the trees to go change, Alaric instead sat upon the grass of the shore. He would wait for her to finish her swim. Perhaps a more civilized conversation could be had once they were back inside and she was properly dressed.

[Cristiana]

Some time had passed, I had fun like there was no tomorrow. Between splashing the bugs or reaching up to catching the bugs but releasing them back into the air. At one point I went under the water, like a duck with my rear suspended in the air legs sticking up out of the water. The reward for this was holding up a fish! “Alaric!! Look I caught one.” I yelled out to him proudly. But it wasn’t for food or pride that I caught the fish, just to see if I could and now that I had, and had some fun, I released it and swam toward where the waters edge met the water and walked out. My fingers ran along the crease of the backside putting it back in place. Looking at him oddly, I took the chairs and set them out sitting side by side from each other. “I’m sorry if I took a while, but I love to swim.” Offering him a smile, and a seat in the chair while I wrapped a towel around myself.

“I’m sorry you are not having fun. I thought you would love it out here where the earth touched the sky. Listen, I am not all innocent in having you come out here. I really do wanna be friends with you. I think people in this town could stand to have a few more friends instead of enemies. Or worse frienemies.” I looked at him, a genuine look.

There was many of reasons to have a man out here in the middle of nowhere with no one around. It wasn’t like there was a romantic interest, I had no romantic interest for this person at all. Friendship was the goal, there was many reasons to be friend with someone. A mutual goal, per say, was one. Like maybe a business venture that would be both mutually beneficial and growing for the community. The community did need to grow, from the looks of it, the city was all but dead. It needed fresh blood, something new to shake it up but also something to help people that were already there. Something great needed to be done to not only boost morale but it couldn’t be done alone. There was going to be a change needed and soon.

She thought back when to she first woke up in the city. In the cold dark alley. The city seemed so large, and I seemed so tiny against the shade of the building. The shadow of the man disappeared in a blur, I hardly had a moment to ask questions before he was gone. I felt alone. It took months before I met anyone who could help me in the city, now there was things in place to help newcomers in the city. But what then? When the family that they were bitten into, like me, was gone or sleeping? A bite and run? What then? I remembered those lonely nights but worse that I didn’t know who I was except a name, I had no clue who the man was. Things were scary, and the sun… it burned. So many times I had to duck into a business, luckily for me the business beside the transit was welcoming. They didn’t mind me sleeping in the booth as long as my computer was on and head was down making it look like I was working. I remember those nights when it took me a day to figure out I was a vampire.

I looked to Alaric, pretty sure he had some questions for me about this place, or me or why he was here. There was probably so much going through his mind, and as much as I wanted to be the most wonderful host I loved to swim and play in the water. Hopefully, he could forgive my rudeness. I just wanted to get some time to release and have a moment of freedom away from the desk, the chair and computer screen. Something I hoped I pulled him away from as well.

[Alaric von der Marck]

While Cristiana had her fun, Alaric contented himself with looking up at the stars. They hadn’t changed much in two centuries, if at all. The constant was a comfort, knowing that if he were to die again, if he were to wake again in another two centuries, at least the sky would still be the same. That was what mattered to him, rather than the moon that might be seen by someone else across the globe at the same time, or even in the city. Age had weathered the elder; sentimentality was lost on him, like so many other things.

Soon, Cristiana swam toward the shore and Alaric made sure to avert his eyes as she sauntered up to meet him. He only watched out of the corner of his eye as she grabbed the contraptions she’d dropped by the dock and unfolded them. They were chairs! Now, Alaric felt a little foolish. Once Cristiana was seated, with a towel wrapped around her, he felt a little more comfortable unfolding his limbs to stand and settle in the chair near her.

”I do like it,” he confirmed. ”Just because I do not swim, does not mean I am not enjoying myself,” he said. ‘Fun’ was a strange word, and Alaric … well, some might consider that he was far too serious and ‘fun’ was not in his vocabulary. Truth was, he still felt so severely out of place and habit was, indeed, a hard nut to crack. He shook his head.

”I do not know what you mean by the term ‘frenemie’,” he said with a frown. ”Otherwise, I tend to agree. However, friends do not often stay,” he said. There were some whom he might have considered friends, but circumstance had drawn them apart. He had his family, and they could be considered friends. And there was Salvator, of course. Alaric’s group was small, but no less meaningful.

”I apologise if my behaviour is not normal. I can assure you that I would not have come had I not wanted to, and I came despite knowing I might be out of my zone of comfort,” he said. Truthfully, he knew that he needed to push those boundaries a little if he was every going to be accepted into the modern world, and vice versa. ”Cristiana, this is not my century. I did not know what a swimsuit was. If you will look in that bag, you will find that I have purchased something highly unsuitable, because it is what I know. Your attire—I do know it is acceptable, in this time—but to me it is still highly inappropriate. I am not accustomed to it,” he revealed. He’d not wanted to reveal so much of himself in the club, though now he realised that it would be detrimental if he were to keep the reasons for his peculiarities to himself.

[Cristiana]

"Al, my I call you Al?" She sympathized with him, to the point that so few actually knew this but she was about to reveal it. "I got the that feeling about you, that this was not a place or a time in place that you are use to. In fact, quite the opposite. You see, I felt that way for many of years since I awoke a vampire. I had dreams of being something... older. It took me time to adjust to the new world, the new way of thinking and even gain on it. Technology isn't that bad, a bit of flesh isn't bad. It may not be what you are accustom to but letting it weigh on your mind does not hurt me. I am having a grand time never the less you, Mr. Grumpy Gills, do not LOOK to be enjoying yourself. I get this isn't your time, as in it wasn't in the past but the past is over and all we have is the future to look forward to. So instead of pondering on what is inappropriate and not accumstomed to it, why not just for the sake of sake try it out. Clothes, even in your century came off. As I recall from a book or two in private moments such as these fewer clothes were worn by people." She grinned a cheeky grin. "And that for the record was not me hitting on you. If I did, you wouldn't know what hit you."

"A frienemy is a friendly enemy. One that you have a respect for in a manner of speaking. You know you two are nothing that would be friends but you also will not allow anyone else to ruin them because there is a mutual respect there." She tilted her head watching him, "That is where I see us two headed. I have no need for more friends, or well any at all. I have enough lovers should I want them or they want me. I need contacts in business in this new aspect of business in town. After my marriage broke up, I left the town. This place I returned to, is not as it once was, it is different.." Her voice trailed off, "Instead of getting sucked into a mad stream of insanity, I have several businesses thriving yet stale in the city that I wish to revibrate and make the talk of the city. This is where you come in. To start with I have a charity to open, with that the business names to help. Would you care to tender your hat in that corner? Aid the humans that feed us and they will look upon us as more than heathens that rip their necks open for sating the blood lust."

[Alaric von der Marck]

Alaric arched a brow. He wondered which books she could have been reading that gave her such an impression of the past. He even managed something of a laugh. “Ja, I do recall a moment or two by a lake where less clothes were worn by myself an a female companion. But said female companion was my wife. Perhaps in some circles of society less decorum was adhered to, but those were not the circles I associated with,” he said. For all intents and purposes, he was trying to let go of the past and grow accustomed to the present, but it was far easier said than done.

As he peered at Cristiana, as he listened to her explanation of ‘frienemy’ and her suggestion for a business partner, he could only nod. He understood that his behaviour and his ‘grumpy’ attitude was off-putting. He could only assume it was the reason why, though he had been awake more than a year, perhaps almost two, he still had not shared a bed with anyone. He would be lying if he said he didn’t crave that kind of company – but he was out of practice. And seemingly more suitable to remain…

Well, he wasn’t sure he approved of the term ‘frienemy’, nor did he particularly want to be one. It seemed a complication. Why not just business partners? ‘Frienemy’ sounded too close to ‘enemy’ and, though Cristiana had suggested that those in such a relationship respected each other and might protect each other from outside attack, did it mean that she intended to be his enemy, in some way? It was confusing.

“I have put in motion ventures of my own, regarding creating good relations with humans. I have started with my own company, providing better health care and childcare for those who require it. I would not be averse to providing more charitable work,” he said, slowly. “Though you do confuse me. You say that ‘frienemies’ are worse than enemies, and then you propose that that is what we become, rather than friends – it is a shame you wish for no more friends, as I find I am in dire need of some. I apologise if my behaviour as offended you in some way, that you might now regard me as an enemy, in some way.”