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 Posted: Sun Oct 02, 2016 11:31 am
Liam watched Detective Kuroda until he'd disappeared behind the closing elevator doors. Only then did he turn to the young man waiting in the hall. "You have excellent timing," he said to Aleksy, and placed a hand to his larynx uncomfortably. "Come in, please," said Liam, holding the door open. "What can I do for you?" he asked. (The asking was a little unusual.)
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Posted: Tue Oct 04, 2016 3:12 am
"Your voice is weird," said Aleksy, who was never known for his tact and probably never would be. Being polite made him feel awkward. Like a beggar, rather than an equal. This was something that he tried to tone down around Liam, who was something of a father figure to him. Or at least a mentor. He shrugged uncomfortably, rolling his shoulders and ruffling his own hair. "I've been an a*****e, and I came to apologize and also, er, explain." The rain outside the window fell steadily. Aleksy glanced at it, almost nervous.
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Posted: Tue Oct 04, 2016 8:38 am
"Yeah," said Liam, forcing his hand away from his throat. " Things are weird. My voice is a... side effect of that." How to explain? He shut the door behind Aleksy and returned to his desk. "You've been an a*****e?" he asked, seeming confused. Had Liam been so caught up in his own personal dramas that he hadn't noticed? Or was he playing coy? "Even after my behavior..." He frowned, eyes narrowing. "You missed the tithe," he appraised softly.
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Posted: Tue Oct 04, 2016 9:56 pm
Aleksy blinked. Then he frowned, shook his head, and stared at Liam like the man was a puzzle to be solved. "Yes," he said. "I was otherwise occupied. Because I'm a vampire now." Aleksy was not going in for Cullen levels of melodrama here. He hadn't yet killed someone, after all. The glittery skin of a killer was not a trait Aleksy had yet developed. "Apparently there is a vampire coven. "So you already know about the other ashdown."
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Posted: Tue Oct 04, 2016 10:05 pm
Liam seemed to take this revelation in-stride. "It happens," he said. "Vampirism is an occupational hazard in your line of work. At least you don't have a cursed painting aging for you." He leaned forward, resting his chin in his hand. "I am one of the reasons the Other Ashdown exists," he said. "I thought that with your talents you would know by now."
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Posted: Tue Oct 04, 2016 10:17 pm
"Is that... That happened?" A painting of Liam would be an interesting endeavor, but he couldn't shake the feeling that he'd done more than his value sketches before. He'd never been able to settle on a way to depict his father figure. It's easy to imagine what a Portrait of Liam Noor would look like, though, now that the idea had occurred. He frowned harder and sat in the chair across Liam's desk. "You ********," he said, without heat, without hate. "I suspect. It was why I chose to come." Aleksy sighed. "So, no apologies necessary from either side. Is that right?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2016 12:00 am
"Of course," nodded Liam, straightening up. "You needn't apologize for becoming a vampire, and needn't apologize for slitting a girl's throat. It's all settled."
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Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2016 2:23 am
Aleksy gaped. Like, actually his jaw dropped and his eyes widened. "That is not same thing at all," he said, accent kicking into high gear. Maybe it was a weird American metaphor? Please let it be a weird American metaphor. " Liam."
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Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2016 8:22 am
"The responsibility of the tithe fell to me," said Liam. "As the democratically-elected guest representative proved himself utterly incapable." Was that a hint of disgust in his voice? No matter... "I did only what Adoelle asked of me," he said, "and in doing so... well, the cage has been shaken to its very foundation. Of course, some find that unforgivable..."
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Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2016 5:21 pm
Aleksy shook his head. "Could not have said earlier," he grumbled, but the revelation that the murder was basically not a murder was nice. "Do a spring on me like I am such a chicken, shock value a** hat." Which meant, okay, I understand and am not angry with you. "Renard is in on this too," he said. It wasn't a question.
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Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2016 11:44 pm
Liam sighed heavily. There seemed to be a great deal of shame weighing on his shoulders. "Renard is the reason we are in this whole mess in the first place," he said, "though I was certainly of assistance."
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Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2016 1:48 am
"Knew he was trouble," said Aleksy, but he still seemed unbothered. "If I do not need to explain my vampirism, and you don't need to explain killing someone, do you instead want to go get a coffee from the cafeteria. The rain won't let up just because you hide in here."
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Posted: Thu Oct 06, 2016 10:30 pm
Liam pushed back from his desk, nodding vigorously. "I think," he said, "That a day like today calls for hot chocolate. Whatever pleases you, I'll treat."
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Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 12:17 am
Hot chocolate? What kind of stupid three-day-old s**t was this? "Coffee," he said. Duh. Coffee. He was magic. Coffee magic. That was definitely what he needed. "How's Renard, then?"
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Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 6:25 pm
"Coffee, then," conceded Liam, and held the door open for Aleksy as they left the office. He paused momentarily to lock it behind them, and then caught up to Aleksy as he passed the university presidents' portraits. "He's as good as one might expect him to be," he said, "given the recent revelations made about his nature. I'm optimistic. Cautiously optimistic."
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