AU: Playing With Your Food(Vampire AU) (Tag Finn/Rue)

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Jackson poked it with a stick. It didn't move.

"Heey, you dead?" He poked it again. "I'm not dooone with you yet," he whined in a voice that still held the cracks of adolescence. Jackson had been playing with this particular lump of flesh. It was one of his favorite things to do when feeding, and was amusing as hell. He grinned and giggled the whole time this human female bled herself out into his mouth, taking a sick pleasure in that twisted, ugly face of hers, crying as she did so as if that was going to make it not happen. Ha ha, humans were so silly sometimes, thinking that they could appeal to a vampire's sympathy with a few pathetic tears. If they made themselves look weak...well, that just made them more appetizing. "Heeey!" he whined again, getting more and more irritated by its unresponsiveness.

Well...it had slumped over itself, arm awkwardly held out with ribbons of red still streaming down. The head had dropped, letting masses of tangled hair fall over it's face. Jackson listened. There was no longer the faint sound of breathing, nor even a weak pumping of the heart. "Did you die?" he asked it. Already?

How rude!! "Hey, Finn! Finny, this bitch died on me!" Jackson turned his head to face his companion. "Isn't that rude!? I wasn't even half done messing with her." Jackson turned back to the corpse and continued to prod at it, as if that would somehow make it spring back to life so Jackson could finish having his fun. "I'm still hungry...." he mumbled, hand resting on his cheek as he crouched in front of it. He trilled his lips in boredom.

[Finn Eogeum]

One could hear Jackson's complaints from a mile away. Finn had, in the past, actually done so. It wasn't like the kid was quiet or anything - it was rather annoying - as was his habit of playing with his food. For hell's sake, the point was that you drained them and did it quickly, that's why you learned the exact right place to pierce the human artery when going in for the kill. You pierce the skin, maybe let them complain a little, drain their blood and you go. The point was survival. What Jackson did... it was almost painful how embarrassing and annoying it could be.

He turned around once called for, having been looking, searching for anything more entertaining that this escapade. The slightly older vampire (in years, not appearance - he was definitely older in appearance) sauntered over to peek at the blood drenched girl. "Well, I'd die on you too, if I were human," He commented, "I'm sure your stupidity would deal a killing blow." All his stupidity did to Finn in this state was give him a headache. That was a pain in and of itself. As his partner in crime kept poking the inanimate body pointlessly, Finn knelt down, feeling for a pulse, checking for breathing, but she was already going cold. "You killed her good, Jackson. She isn't coming back, no matter how magical that stick you insist to prod her with is." Which it wasn't. At all. Finn's fangs grew and he stabbed them into the woman's wrist. When a small amount of blood began to seep, Finn sighed and started sucking, draining any remaining drops, before standing up, shaking his head.

"You know, messing around with them might be fun, but you wasted so much blood." He signalled to the red staining the woman, "It's no wonder you're still hungry, you dropped half of your food on the floor." He chuckled, "You just like an infant." Folding his arms, he sighed. Jackson was a handful.

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What was wrong with having a little fun with your prey? It was too boring otherwise, too bland, they weren’t just a couple of animals. Vampires needed entertainment too! Jackson made a sour face to Finn’s comments. “I can have that arranged,” he taunted, baring his fangs at the older nos. A low growl escaped his throat. The boy held himself there a moment, his lips and teeth still stained with her blood, and listened to his partner’s chiding, until Finn decided to bypass the whole thing and bite into his meal.

“Hey!! That’s miiine!” he wailed, grappling onto Finn’s shoulders and giving him a good shake. “Thief! I’mma tell Master Rue!” Because that was mature. Any attempts to prove Finn wrong, especially about all those infant comments, was lost with his current child-like fit…which lasted all of about 10 seconds.

He continued to hang off Finn’s shoulders, though, and crawled so his chin rested on Finn’s shoulder. “Doesn’t matter, it was still mine! Doesn’t give you the right to take my food!” Jackson mumbled and grumbled and pouted in distain. “I was still gonna eat it…I was just….taking my time,” he lied, holding closing his eyes haughtily. He was just making excuses. “Didn’t wanna get a stomachache from eating too fast, y’know?” Yup. Jackson may be a handful now, but give him a tummy-ache, and you had a whole other kind of annoying.

[Finn Eogeum]

Finn barked a laugh, although silently, he didn't doubt that Jackson could do some serious damage to him if he wanted to. He just found it amusing that the younger one felt the need to get all tense and aggressive from a little teasing. "You just try it." Like Finn was thinking, Jackson could deal bad damage, but that doesn't mean he could beat Finn. Just maim him slightly, maybe.

Finn rolled his eyes at Jackson's whining and his threats, keeping a good hold on the woman's arm, sucking every last drop to the best of his ability when he had a kid tugging at his body and having a tantrum about the situation. He only spoke once he was done, letting the empty corpse's arm fall to the ground, wiping at his lips with his arm, "Go ahead, go tell him how you let your guard down enough to let someone take your meal," He retorted, with a smirk, "I'm sure he'll be impressed with your impeccable ability of screwing up terribly." So friendly.

He hardly reacted to Jackson's leech-like clinging, standing up as if he wasn't even there, licking his lips, "It wasn't as if you were gonna finish eating her, smart guy." Finn knew that Jackson was going to have forgotten. May as well just take the remainder while it was fresh. "Oh really?" Finn said, no belief in his voice whatsoever, "Stomachache?" He gave a breathy laugh, "Well, she wasn't the last human ever. Just go get another." He said, casually, "It's not like it's difficult."

Oh, just in case Jackson was considering something, "And no, I won't catch another for you. Deal with it yourself. Now get off, my shoulder are numb. Think your idiocy is rubbing off on me, and I don't need to lose my intelligence and become like you."

[Deleted]

This was amusing.

Rue was lurking in the shadows nearby the two younger vampires, practically invisible with the darkness wrapped around and hiding his body from anyone who might look his way. It was a difficult trick, one he had learned in the later of his over-800 years, and one that he hadn't yet taught his younger subjects in his coven. Not even these two, who were his most trusted (if not his smartest, especially in Jackson's case).

Still, they were entertaining, and Rue had to hide his chuckles as he listened to the two bicker. He did this sometimes - watched from the shadows, not saying anything, just silently observing. Not everyone that lived in this place even knew he could do it. These two did, but he never told them when or where he would be, and didn't always reveal himself; sometimes he just watched them, silently, and moved on.

Today wouldn't be like that, though. When Jackson started hanging off of the other vampire and continued to act childishly, Rue chuckled audibly and let the darkness drip off of him like oil. "Jackson, you know better than to waste food, don't you?" he chided softly, his voice quiet but rumbling with suppressed power. "Even though there are plenty of humans to feed on, we don't want to kill too many at a time from wastefulness. The hunters might be pressured into getting bold, and I would rather not have that irritation to deal with."

He wasn't worried about being killed by them in the least; he spoke about the humans as though they were just a pesky pest he might have to deal with from time to time.

Rue wandered closer, making absolutely no sound despite his large, broad figure. His hand reached out to stroke through Finn's hair, and he smiled fondly at him. "You're acting just like a coven leader," he told him, feeling a touch of pride. "Good job." His dark crimson eyes traveled over to Jackson, where they sharpened slightly. "You, however, are acting like a child with no control. You must clean up this mess. Understand?" His voice stayed soft, but it was clear that it was an order that he expected complete obedience from.

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Was he laughing? How could he laugh!? Jackson was being serious! And yes, Jackson could do a hecka lot more damage than he looked. He was fierce and dangerous, rawr! Finn’d be wise to not underestimate the younger vampire(sheesh, they were only a century apart, he wasn’t that young!). Nor was he stupid. Finn was just being a big meany! Jackson growled even louder, but it was an empty threat, like Finn thought. Besides, Jackson was too hungry for a real fight.

Jackson whined pathetically, watching the color fade from his dinner as Finn sucked away every last drop of it. He could cry, she was delicious! Jackson raised his head sharply and snapped his teeth at Finn. “Oh, yeah? Well…you don’t play fair! My guard was not down, you just stole it like the meanie you are!” Great defense there Jackson.

Finn was right though. Jackson had no intention of finishing her. They tasted best when the heart was still beating. That’s why he liked to take his time and savor the taste, while at the same time satisfying his sadistic tendencies. “That’s right! A Stomachache!” That was Jackson’s story and he was sticking to it! He felt his shoulders slump when Finn told him to go find another. Ughh….that was the part he didn’t like….catching them. Bleeeeh…

But before Jackson could say anything(yes, he was going to suggest Finn come with him and let him do all the work), Finn quickly declined. “Ahh! W-why not? And I’m not stupid!” he asserted. He was all set to climb up on Finn’s shoulders even further when a familiar, dark voice came from the shadows. If Jackson had a pulse, and had something resembling circulation, then his face would have paled to it’s current shade just now. He quickly slid off Finn’s shoulders and turned to face his approaching Master. “Master Rue!” he exclaimed. He dipped his head at the scolding. “I-I was gonna….” Nope he had no excuses.

He stood there, resenting the compliments he was giving to the older Finn. Jackson could feel the Master’s sharp gaze switch to him, however, and he stiffened. “Y-yes Master!” he said with a fierce nod. Master Rue’s orders should be carried out immediately, he told himself. So immediately, Jackson went to the corpse and carted her away. With a quick leap and jump, the body had been tossed in a nearby river, and Jackson was back with his companions. He stared at the pool of blood spilled across the ground. Ugh…Jackson grimaced. This blood was old, and dirty, already thickening from it’s contact with the air. It was going to be disgusting. But it was Master Rue’s order, so he sighed and got to his knees. He’d be lapping it up and glaring up at Finn every so often as he associated with the coven leader.

[Finn Eogeum]

"Your guard was down." Finn repeated, solidifying his point, "Otherwise, you'd be in my place, protecting the body. Oh, or it'd have been drained before I got my hands on it." He wanted to make sure it was abundantly clear that he, Finn, was right, therefore making Jackson in the wrong. Eheheh. "And by the way, the world isn't fair. If there's food, you eat it. Dog eat dog world, etc. etc." It was true. People just wanted to survive.

Finn was still chuckling, "The only 'stomachache' you might get is from hunger, moron." And who's fault was that? Not Finn's, no - he had been teaching a lesson. This was all on Jackson.

He was going to retort, mentioning things such as responsibility and that yes, Jackson was stupid, but he was interrupted by the appearance of none other than Rue, so he kept quiet, as the younger vampire slid to the ground, as Rue spoke (though he did nod along silently in agreement) and even as he referred to Rue as 'master'. He couldn't get over how sniveling the boy sounded, and kept himself from shaking his head.

Finn looked up as he felt Rue touch his head, and his smile deepened and widened, closing his eyes for a second to cherish the moment, "Thank you, sir. I only want to make sure things are being run as you would like them." He sounded a bit like a suck-up, and he pondered this, but if Jackson was in his position, he would be pining for affection and exclaiming to the heavens. At least, that was what Finn imagined. And he wasn't doing that, so he was fine. He stayed relaxed as Rue moved on, turning to witness the scene, very happy with what Jackson would be having to do. Finn noticed the pool of blood as the body was moved and made a knowing expression, rolling his eyes, "Told him he was wasting it..." He mumbled, before turning to Rue, as Jackson returned, "Is everything alright, sir? Need our assistance with anything?" His eye caught on the suck-up licking the floor, and he couldn't help smirking, holding back small laughs at how ridiculous he look, "Or maybe just my assistance, Osiris seems a bit busy."

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Ahh… Jackson’s sniveling was like music to Rue’s ears. Never had he had such an obedient, submissive servant before he’d acquired the boy, and never had he had one since. Despite his child-like behavior, Rue knew he was loyal and productive, and that was why his ‘punishment’ was far less than it would have been for someone who didn’t have such favor with the coven leader. He smiled as the youngest vampire began cleaning up his mess without protest. “Good boy,” he purred, still stroking Finn’s hair absent-mindedly. “I’m sure you’ve learned your lesson and I won’t be needing to talk to you about this again. Correct?”

He smirked slightly as the boy even began to lick the blood off the floor with his tongue. Rue hadn’t demanded that exactly, but he supposed it would be the most efficient method of cleaning. “If you are still hungry after that, perhaps I can scrounge up a snack for you,” he mentioned nonchalantly. “I don’t want you starving, after all.” Rue wasn’t entirely ruthless, despite the appearance he put on for all but those closest to him. But he could be when he needed to be, and everyone knew that.

He turned his attention back to Finn, whom he was still very pleased with. “You’re doing an excellent job of that,” Rue praised him, reaching down to stroke his large thumb over the two small cross-marks on the younger vampire’s neck. “If you keep this up, I might have you start doing some of my control work with the fledglings for me.” There were many young vampires to teach and keep an eye on, and Rue needed people he could trust to fulfill the roles that he couldn’t always fill with all of his other duties (and distractions). “What do you think?” Finn would do nicely, he believed; he was sharp, and had a commanding presence when he wanted to. And Rue was certain he wouldn’t hesitate to scare disobedient fools into their place.

“Everything is fine, but thank you,” he went on, chuckling and finally pulling away from Finn. “I was just doing the rounds, and happened upon the two of you. I was amused by your behavior.” Of course, Rue had an imprint on the two of them that allowed him to track them wherever they went, but that wasn’t why he’d come. “I sense we’ll be having visitors soon, however,” he went on. “I felt an unfamiliar presence on the outskirts of the territory earlier. I don’t think it was an accident.” He had considered sending a party out to investigate, but the duo’s (there were two of them) aura hadn’t been strong enough to be a threat, so he was waiting for them to come to the coven. “We will need to greet them soon.”

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“I could’ve….I let you have it!” And now Jackson was changing his story. He had to if he wanted to be right. “If I really wanted to, I’d’ve ripped your throat out before you could take a step towards my dinner!” Grr grr grr….!

So what if Finn was right, Jackson wasn’t going to give in to him just like that! “That’s not true!” he retorted with genius. Whatever lesson Finn had been trying to teach was lost on the younger vampire. Besides, Finn wasn’t the boss of him, he didn’t have to do anything that wanna-be Master wanted, nyeeeeehh!

Jackson nodded furiously. “Never again, Master!” Nobody was a great as Master Rue!

That was why only for him would Jackson do something so….so…disgusting!! Ugh!! But he wanted to do a good job, and this was the fastest, most efficient method he could think of! When Master Rue offered a snack, Jackson lifted his head and beamed at him with the bright eyes of a puppy. He’d be wagging his tail if he had one. “Okay!” he said brightly and promptly went back to work. Hmph, Finn would never have the guts to do something so thorough like this, he’d probably just make someone else do it anyway. Lazy Finn, Lazy Finn! he wanted to taunt. But he wouldn’t, not in front of Master Rue.

“Don’t call me that!” he snapped, his mouth and chin still dripping with the blood he was sucking up from the ground. Geeeze, Jackson hated that name, that’s why he changed it some couple hundred years back. And Finn had to go and call him that embarrassing thing in front of the Master. He’d get him back later for that, just you wait…

As he lapped, though, Jackson was paying attention to what the Master was saying. Something about intruders? “Are they vampires?” he asked, wiping the blood casually from his face and standing to his feet. Jackson scampered over, now interested in the topic their leader was talking about. He was (mostly) finished cleaning anyway.

[Finn Eogeum]

"You keep convincing yourself of that," Finn said, a demeaning tone lingering in the way he spoke - because clearly Jackson hadn't wanted to give Finn his prey. They both knew that very well by now. And Jackson would never lay a hand on Finn like that - one reason being that Finn wouldn't allow it, but the main one being that Jackson wouldn't want to disappoint his Master Rue by killing one of his people. That would be a poor move.

Finn could have gagged with how Jackson was acting. It was painful to watch. Whatever. Along with that, it was pretty sickening to see the boy licking the floor, and it looked ridiculous, but Finn wasn't about to say anything on the matter. If Jackson wanted to actually make himself ill, he could do just that.

Finn's smile widened again at Rue's compliments, bowing his head slightly, "I'm glad, sir." He replied respectfully, basically ignoring Jackson for the time being now. He hummed and closed his eyes as Rue touched the coven marks, his smile softening as he let out a more relaxed sigh of content, especially after hearing the coven leader's ideas for Finn. Fledglings, or babies, as Finn preferred to call them, because that was what they were, were a little difficult to cope with, and the possible prospect of that responsibility was... mildly concerning, but Finn kept this from overtaking his thoughts, nodding as he was asked his opinion, "I think I'll keep up my good streak then," He said confidently, "Wouldn't want to disappoint you, sir." He'd seen what happened when you did that, and it wasn't always as mild as licking blood off the ground.

Finn raised an eyebrow at Jackson's loud complaint, having said his old name for the illicit purpose of upsetting him further, though he wouldn't say that out loud. Finn became a little sheepish as Rue explained why he was there, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, "As long as it was amusing, sir." He was glad to hear things were alright, though. What interested the most was the news of visitors, which could mean numerous things, but he couldn't help licking his lips at the thought of possible fresh meat. However, instead of blurting out like Jackson had, Finn considered the facts. Rue didn't seem concerned enough by the news, though he did cover up a lot if his expressions, so Finn couldn't be certain. If they weren't worrying, there wouldn't be many, or they would all be human. Not hunters, they were too intelligent to try something like this. He looked to Rue, "If they are vampires, they must be young, right? Otherwise you wouldn't just let them walk in here..." He thought a little more, "And they know there's a coven here, if it wasn't on accident, as you say." He was thinking out loud, but he did that a lot. "...so they're here for us." He tilted his head a little, "You think they want to become part of the coven, sir?" He was intrigued about these intruders now. Everyone had a story, though most were similar, and most Finn didn't care about for long. He just wondered what was going on with these people and why they felt they now needed a coven.

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Aw, look at that expression on Jackson’s face. Rue grinned broadly as the boy excitedly responded to his generous offer of a snack. “I’ll see what I can find, then,” he promised. Ah, he spoiled the younger one so much. Was he going soft? No… He still had plenty of hardness left reserved for those who didn’t obey as well. He chuckled as Jackson snapped at Finn, and clucked his tongue at the later. “Now now, no need to purposefully rile the child up,” he chided, reaching down to stroke his fingers under Jackson’s chin as he lifted his head, just like he was petting a kitten. Mmm… They so loved his touch. It was thrilling to have such an effect.

He smiled at Finn, a hand still on him as well. Rue was standing between the two now, a large, solid barrier between them so they would both only focus on him and not each other. “Excellent,” he purred, content with his answer. He considered the older of the two followers for a moment. “If you’re still hungry as well, I can look into getting you a small vial of Fae blood for your obedience,” he mused. It was a very rare treat, and one even his two favorite children had rarely tasted. Rue hadn’t been able to secure another source of the stuff ever since that bastard Oriel stole his Fae from him, so he only had a limited stock. Once it was gone, he would have to go searching if he wanted to find a new source. And he’d been incredibly lucky that Phoenix had had amnesia, otherwise the old creature could have overpowered him without trouble. It would be a miracle to find something like that again.

Anyway…

Rue looked back at Jackson as he asked about the visitors, and dipped his head slightly. “One of them is,” he answered. “The other is human, presumably his pet. They are both very young.” And absolutely no danger at all, which Finn was right about with his musing aloud. “I believe that is the case, yes,” he nodded, looking up and away as though listening to far-off footsteps. “They should be here by early morning. I will send a party out to greet them when they are close.” He blinked and considered the two of them. “If I sent the two of you together, would you be able to do the job without bickering the entire time?” he asked with a small smirk. “Or should I find someone else to meet them?”

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Jackson had lost this argument. The only things he could think to throw at Finn were nothing but adolescent insults. Well, he could still use those. “Stupid Finn! Ugly Finn! Smelly Finn!” He stuck out his tongue like the immature child he was. Jackson was definitely going to get him back for this. He was gonna…gonna…do something! Like leave tacks in his shoes or something devious like that!

Yes, he could do it like that and Finn would never know it was him! Nope!

No, Jackson was not jealous that Finn seemed to gain so much favor with the Master by just standing there being a creepoid. He was boring and had all of one expression on his face ever(well, so did Master Rue most of the time, but at least he didn’t look bored, more like evilly amused).

Well, Jackson supposed he could forgive Finn(maybe), since Master Rue gave Jackson plenty of attention too. He raised his chin when the Master’s fingers started stroking it’s underside. Mmmm…Jackson was practically purring under his touch, and swooning so much, he’d do pretty much anything the Master asked of him right now without the slightest complaint. Master Rue did well in calming the cranky child-vampire.

Fae blood? The thought of it had Jackson’s mouth watering. If he wanted some too….okay, Jackson could stand to play nice with Finn for a bit. Even if Finn was showing off with all that ‘deductive reasoning’ he was blathering on about. He could’ve done that too! Jackson just…didn’t like making assumption before he knew what was going on! That’s all! At least the Master didn’t seem to mind his questions. “Vampire and human pet,” he said, showing off his fangs in a sneaky, amused smile. Jackson raised his finger to the side of his face. “Sounds fun.” But ewww, Jackson would have to work with the smelly Finn if he wanted to go play with them? Oh, well, no biggie. Jackson would rather go with Finn than literally anyone else in the coven, save for the Master himself. They’d had each other’s backs for a few hundred years now anyway without any (big) problems. Jackson gave the Master a salute. “You can count on us Master Rue!” Followed by a bright, toothy smile.

[Finn Eogeum]

Those 'insults' of Jackson's were amusing, at best. His behaviour, the lack of maturity... kind of gave off the message that he was done trying to stand his ground. Finn smirked to himself, giving no other reply. Another victory for the better vampire.

He couldn't help rolling his eyes a little as he was 'told off'. Yes, he was respectful, and yes, he knew where his loyalties lay, but that wouldn't remove his attitude. He still had a personality, unlike the little boy basically wagging his tail over there. Finn sighed, but gave nothing in the way of an apology, figuring that Jackson was distracted enough by now anyway.

The first response to Finn's words was one the vampire expected, some kind of praise for his determination, his will to succeed. However... being offered Fae blood was something way off his radar of expectations. It left the cool-mannered vampire blinking, processing gradually, having lost some of that cool for the time being, from the temptation of what was almost literally liquid gold. He beamed, "Wow, um... if you would let me, I'd be... extremely grateful, sir." He said, still quite amazed, "...thank you."

So a young vampire and his probable pet. Well... they were probably misguided, if they were young. The human was most likely only still there from fear, it wasn't like a baby could keep a decent hold on one of those rats otherwise. Mmm... another walking blood sack. How enticing. He nodded as his suspicions were confirmed, clearly thinking about the situation ahead, and ignoring any comments from Needy over there. At the offer, he considered it, and was about to speak when... oh, Hell, was he saluting? Finn was slightly dumbfounded at how... dumb that idiot looked, but he couldn't pass up this opportunity, as much as he wanted to wipe that dopey smile off Jackson's fucking face. He close his eyes, "One moment," He said quietly, turning away from the situation and taking a nice, long, slow, deeeeep breath (which was unnecessary, considering that his lungs were basically pointless now, but it was calming all the same). He let it back out gently as he turned back around, opening his eyes again and smiling softly, "I'm good. I think we'll be fine, sir." He wasn't giving that impression now, but he would be fine, as long as he kept his cool. He'd probably feel better and more in control after that Fae blood, but he wasn't going to push it and risk losing the opportunity.

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Aww… These two were like kitties under Rue’s touch. It never ceased to amuse him how they responded to his stroking, especially of the marks on their necks. Those were the spots where he had first drank from both of them, and he’d made certain to mark their place with a certain symbol from the shadows that gave him all the more control over them. Not that they would really know that purpose – all they knew was that it felt good to be touched. Rue hadn’t told them anything else, unless they had figured it out on their own… Which he felt only Finn was probably really capable of.

He smiled, fangs flashing, as Finn thanked him for the treat. “Good,” Rue rumbled. “… One of these days, I’m going to find another pet Fae,” he sighed dreamily, momentarily letting his guard down as he thought nostalgically about how perfect his last one had been. So sweet… So naïve… And, most importantly, amnesia-prone, which helped Rue immensely in keeping the more powerful creature under control. How was he ever to find something like that again? “…. Perhaps you two could help with that little project as well,” he mused, increasing the pressure and length of his stroking on both of them. They would obey him until death…. Rue knew they would.

But for now…. Yes, focus on these visitors. These weak, pitiful visitors that he would more than likely have to take in if he didn’t want to worry about them making a mess with the local hunters. He didn’t need that on his territory. Rue chuckled and smiled at the youngest vampire as he saluted at him while announcing his acceptance; always amusing, yes he was. He didn’t say anything until Finn had finished… Calming himself, and also accepted. “Excellent,” he purred, petting them both once more before letting his hands slip back down to his sides. “I expect you both to keep watch at the main entrance until they arrive. That is where they will go.” He’d purposefully put a homing presence on that entrance so anyone who was looking for the place would go there automatically. At the same time, it warded off hunters. Any lone human who stumbled upon it were just unlucky and usually ended up as food. “Report to me once you have determined who they are and what they want. I will be waiting in my chambers. Finn, you will receive your reward then.” And with that, the elder vampire was gone like smoke, having melded back into the shadows without another word.

[Deleted]

“Just give the word, and we’re on top of it, Master Rue!” It really had been a long time since he’d had Fae blood. The idea of tasting it again was tantalizing and Jackson was lost in his memories of the last time he got to drink it. He could easily inebriate himself silly from just one drop. It never occurred to him that the offer was meant only for Finn. Ahh, well, if it got Jackson on board and doing his best, he’d only be a little disgruntled about it later. Besides, Master said he was going to scrounge up a treat for Jackson as well, as a reward for being so obedient, so Jackson wouldn’t be upset or long with that offer still waiting for him. And working with Finn wasn’t so bad, not as much as he was complaining about(note: he wasn’t complaining at all, actually).

And besides, bothering Finn was half the fun of working with him. Jackson may act like an idiot and a child much of the time, but he was in no way stupid. Or incapable. Or ignorant. There was a reason why he’d lived over 400 years. Jackson had lied, cheated, and manipulated his way through survival. It certainly helped that he still had the figure of a young teenage boy.

So maybe Finn was more on point than he seemed when he accused Jackson of being a suck-up. Of course Jackson was a suck-up, he liked rewards and you only got those by pleasing the Master. Even so, Jackson wouldn’t go out of his way to suck-up to just anybody. Master Rue was special, and Jackson owed him as much suck-up as he could suck!

Not that Finn could understand such loyalty. He was the Master’s child, turned by Master Rue himself. Of course he would blindly follow their Lord. Jackson had no blood obligation to Master Rue. He came into the the Master’s service by his own will. That had to give him more points than someone born to be a drone, right?

Well, either way, the two vampire rivals/comrades/friends/enemies knew how to work with one another and would put pleasing the Master as their highest priority. “You bet, Master Rue!” he confirmed with their Lord, his orders to wait for the visitors by the main entrance. Jackson would be lying in wait, all right. “We’ll give them a greeting worthy of our coven, and exalted Master.” This time, Jackson gave him a chivalrous bow and held it there until their Master had vanished into the shadows. When he straightened, Jackson turned to face his partner. “I’ll race you,” he challenged the older vampire with and evil smirk.