Idolise, adore you

[skeggsismad]

“Oh! The countless times I’ve gotten lost here! I have quite the stories, darling, I really do. I’ve been here at least a dozen times and not been able to find the way out. Why, it’s as if they rebuild each and every visit. Certainly everything is rearranged and new pieces introduced- I don’t think I’ve ever seen the same piece twice,”

Emil’s voice echoed through the museum as they entered. At this hour there were few occupants, though it would be stretching it to say they were the only people in the building. Someone was somewhere deep within the thicket of this maze- Emil could sense it.  He hadn’t stopped chattering since they’d left the coffeehouse, but thankfully the walk hadn’t been longer than ten minutes.

As they entered the first exhibit room, Emil let go of Bill’s arm and looked to the only piece of artwork  that was huddled near, but not quite, in the center of the room.

Instead of being anything particularly ‘artsy’ in appearance, it was a mere podium with a set of expensive looking over-the-ear headphones. A sign beside it read,

Earthworm In Wet Grass
Jaqueline Stambough
Instructions: Put the headsets over your ears. Press the red button and listen.

He looked at it excitedly.

“This is one of those interactive pieces!” Eagerly the vampire neared it, ready to dive in. But he hesitated, deciding that since Bill had never been to an art museum he deserved to have the first shot.

“Go on ahead!” He said, gesturing at the headsets and waiting to see Bill’s reaction.

[Annalas]

Bill was enjoying himself immensely, art or no art. Emil was entertaining and funny, something that he basked in as they walked, allowing the other to ramble as much as he wanted. He throughly enjoyed Emil's company, especially since he didn't socialize with many people anymore. And Emil was willing to help him find Thomas! That was the important part.

"Do they have old stuff, too?" he asked as they approached the piece.

He was surprised that it was the only thing in the room…he had heard of using space, but he couldn't imagine why  there wouldn't be at least one other exhibit in the room. And the fact that it was a pair of headphones…why, he had never heard of an interactive exhibit before. He had always thought that people came to the museum to look at old paintings. He supposed he had a lot to learn.

"Thanks," he chirped, lifting the headphones and settling them over his ears.

He pressed the red button, his face scrunching up at the cacophony of noise that suddenly assaulted his ears. He managed to school his face to look more impassive and less like a…well, he managed to stop making the face, at least. He supposed some would call this art, but to be honest…he really wasn't much for modern art.

He listened to the entire minute-long clip, though, before sliding off the headphones and holding them out to Emil. A sheepish smile adorned his face.

"It's not really my style…too modern, I think. It reminds me of Stompers, though. I think that's what they're called. It's this band of people that go around touring and they make music with broomsticks and whatever else they have on them," he explained, trying to hide the fact that he really wasn't a fan of the music by mentioning something else entirely.

He wasn't sure Emil would let him deviate from the conversation like that, though…the vampire seemed to be able to pick up on small things that most people wouldn't notice about him, like his complete lack of money. Emil had paid for everything so far, after all. Surely he wouldn't be so generous if he thought that Bill could pay for himself.

[skeggsismad]

“Oh no, it’s mostly local artists’ work,” Emil managed to throw in before the boy slipped on the headsets.

With his impeccable hearing, he was able to listen as crisp and clearly as Bill. The sounds that came from the headphones as well made him feel inclined to scrunch up his face, but he kept a blank one, for he didn’t want to offend anyone. Perhaps the sort of art that Bill was interested in was the abstract gear-grinding sound type!

When the boy took the headset off, however, it was clear that wasn’t the case. It was adorable the way Bill so politely declined the piece of art that Emil couldn’t possibly stop himself; he was giggling again. It seemed, for some particular reason, this mortal gave him the fits.

“Oh, that was a tad…awful,” Emil spoke under his breath as he smiled at Bill, patting the mortal on the back.

“I won’t deny it being art, of course, but some things are  much too out there for me to understand!”

[Annalas]

Seeing that Emil had no intention of putting the headphones on, Bill replaced them, giggling himself at Emil's comment. He was glad that he hadn't offended the vampire or anything when he didn't like the music. It had been fairly awful, especially with no way to control the volume or how it had blared in his ears. Thomas was the one that appreciated loud music, not him. He didn't like anything loud, really.

"I have to agree," he smiled at Emil, happy for the small gesture of affection. He wanted so badly to hang off of the other's arm, but he didn't want to ruin the suit that the other was wearing…it was very nice, after all. In fact, it made him feel a bit underdressed, to be completely honest.

"I really prefer to look at it than to…interact," he explained, basing his opinion completely on the one piece he had seen so far. Or heard, in this case. He really didn't want to listen to another selection, especially if it was as loud as this one.

"I think. You've been here before, right? What are your favorite pieces?"

[skeggsismad]

Emil shook his head no and then realized that Bill’s inquiry had been a two part question and a nonverbal response was certainly going to communicate the wrong idea.

“Oh, yes, of I’ve been here before. But they never have the same each time I’ve attended- or at least, I believe that to be the case. Actually, I’ve never seen them all. It’s treacherous, really; Often I’m so tangled up in the artwork that I never remember which way I came and it can take hours to find my way back to the exit!” He let out an embarrassed chuckle, shaking his head in self-mockery.

 “Speaking of which, we’ve got a decision to make to continue our great artistic adventure!” Emil proclaimed, shifting so that he was more towards the center of the room. He gestured an arm to the left and the other to the right, both pointing towards archways leading to other display rooms.

“I’d be delighted if you’d pick which direction we peruse next; for perhaps you may have better luck than I do and when the time has come, you may remember which doors to choose to get back to this room!”

The statement was followed by yet another chuckle.

[Annalas]

Bill was reminded of a maze as he looked at each doorway, trying to think of a good way to go about this. If they only made right turns, then it would be much easier to find their way out, as well. He smiled at Emil as he nodded towards the right hand doorway.

"How about just taking right turns?" he asked, smiling at the other. He wasn't sure how big this place was, but it must have been fairly big, if even Emil hadn't seen everything here.

The purpose of the question had been more to get a feel for what sort of art Emil liked, but he had a feeling that since Emil was such a 'jack of all arts', then perhaps he liked a great variety of art, too. Bill hadn't had as much exposure to any sort of art to know what he liked for sure, but he knew that whatever sound that had been was definitely out.

He slipped his hand into Emil's, tugging him gently towards the right doorway. The next room featured one painting on each wall, each with neon paint. These were much more to his liking, he found, as he stood in front of the first one, hand still linked with Emil's.

He hoped the vampire didn't mind, he really didn't. It was hard for him to get a feel as to what, exactly, was okay with this vampire and what wasn't. Sometimes he felt as though he could crawl into Emil's lap and all would be fine, yet others he was terrified of overstepping his bounds. What if he did something the other didn't like, and Emil simply went with it and didn't let Bill know? Then where would he be?

He wanted little touches like this so badly, though…and Emil did say that they were friends…friends held hands, didn't they? Was it too clingy, though? Thomas had said before that Bill was being too clingy, was he being too clingy now? But it felt so awkward, just walking through the place, not touching, barely speaking. He needed something.

"I like this a lot better," he commented, smiling shyly at the vampire. "It's so colorful and pretty…I'm afraid I don't know any of the artistic terms, though."

[skeggsismad]

“Mmm, clever boy!” Emil remarked at the right-turn-only suggestion. He didn’t think much of it when Bill went to hold his hand- for Emil, such gestures were casual rather than particularly intimate. He loved touching others and could be overly touchy at times. The warmth of Bill’s palm and the steady heartbeat of his wrist was oh-so-relaxing.

He was led to a painting of a gorgeous woman who was brightly painted in hues of red, green, blue and pink. Emil tilted his head to the side to examine it. He’d never been one to paint but he could enjoy other people’s works nonetheless.

“Yes, do you mean…oh, what are the words, they’re just on the tip of my tongue,” He said, making a bit of a thinking face and searching for what wouldn’t come to his mind.

“Do you mean….texture, form, space, value, size….that sort, darling? Ohh, they are rather difficult to recall and such and I’m sure once you know them it’s dandy to be able to apply it to the artwork you see. Now I don’t know the form of this painting at all, but I can say that the colors just take me over, doesn’t it seem? I’m absolutely in love with colors. Black and grey may be fashionable at times but it’s so bland. Color is the mood.”

He went on a long monologue once more and then shook his head. Honestly he was more interested in getting to know Bill more than he was at looking at the artwork. It was beautiful, but people always gained his attention first. He loved a good conversation better than the world’s best ballet.

“Do you mind if I ask how old you are, Bill?” He’d been rather curious about it for a while now. From appearance the boy looked like a teenager- he wondered if that’s why Bill hadn’t been drinking anything at the club, why he was ‘clean’ was because he was underaged.

[Annalas]

Bill smiled at the compliment, going back to look at the painting s he listening to the vampire's monologue. He was learning so much already, just from sticking around Emil. The jack of fine arts had so much expertise, and it seemed that, at least for the time being, he was willing to share that with Bill. It was almost like being in school again…and he didn't mind in the slightest.

"Yes, that's it," he agreed, clutching the man's hand as he meandered over to the next painting, again with bright fluorescent colors.

Black and grey were indeed fashionable, classic. They even had their place in art, especially where charcoal was concerned. But as far as museums went…he really did like the color. No one painted in neon colors, it seemed, at least while he had been in his art class. Perhaps that was for the more advanced, aspiring artists, he thought to himself.

Bill looked up at the topic changed, giving Emil a smile. It was touching, how the vampire even cared to ask how old he was. Of course, he supposed it was just because he wanted to make sure the human wasn't just some kid trying to play in the big leagues, if that made sense. Andi had been sneaking into clubs and offering himself for a feeding since he was seventeen, and Bill had a feeling that it wasn't a singular event, either.

"Nineteen," he answered simply, as if that was all that Emil needed to know. After a moment, though, he continued on, figuring that the vampire would want a bit more background than just a simple age, if he had bothered to ask.

"I live with my dad," Bill explained, giving a small shrug as he let go of the vampire's hand. "Thomas is a year older than me. We both lived with him 'til…'til he disappeared. Now it's just me."

In most cases, he knew, the father was the one that would typically take care of the children…but it hadn't been that way in a long, long time. The year Thomas had gotten his first job, at sixteen, marked the return of stability in their lives, and it hadn't been long before his brother had become more reliable than their own father at taking care of his younger brother.

[skeggsismad]

Emil gave a nod; it was both an acknowledgement and with a undertone of grief to it. The more time he spent with Bill the more glad he was he’d spontaneously offered to help him so soon. It was clear the boy needed his brother in some sort of form. Emil had no idea how things would turn out, whether they’d fine the brother or not and if it did if it would be a pleasant reunion, but what he did know was that Bill needed closure.

“Well, sweet pea, I’m sure you’d like to know my age now! Isn’t that the way things go? Oooh but first, I want to know what you think. Don’t be shy. I won’t be mad at all!” He gave a mischievous smirk to the boy. He mainly was trying to shift his own mood and make things light and playful again. Emil was well aware that thoughts tended to carry certain ‘feels’ to them on the outside and as long as he was thinking negatively, Bill might ‘feel’ the negativity.

Too, he wondered in the back of his mind what had happened to Bill’s mother. Had he never had a mother? Had the mother left? Worst of all, was she deceased? The possibilities kept him from asking and he was sure in time if Bill trusted him enough such a thing would be revealed. There was a huge difference in intimacy level between asking someone their age and asking about someone’s mother if they’d glossed over that part of their life.

[Annalas]

Don’t be shy? But Bill was the epitome of shy! True to his nature, the mere thought of telling the vampire what he really thought was causing him to flush madly. What if he guessed way too old? What if he didn’t guess old enough? Did vampires pride themselves on living so long or were they as vain as humans, wanting to look younger than they were?

“Um,” he started, biting at his lip thoughtfully as he tried to not think of his brother and his living situation for once. “I um…kinda thought the 1500s, maybe? ‘Cause you like art so much and there was so much art during that period. I don’t want to offend you or anything,” he rapidly blurted out, knowing that if he didn’t get it out, he would spend all night just trying to find a polite way to say that he didn’t really know.

He hadn’t really thought about it, either. Well, he had a little, but he had already made up his mind that Emil was that old, so much so that it was almost fact in his mind. He certainly hadn’t known any vampire to offer up their age as Emil had, but then Emil did a lot of things other vampires didn’t, he had noticed.

“I always thought it was rude to ask a vampire how old he is,” Bill admitted, tugging a lock of his own hair nervously.

[skeggsismad]

Emil let out a dramatic, offended gasp as he thrust his hand at his chest and widened his eyes.

“You think I look that old, darling!” He exclaimed, holding the emotion for a moment before easing the tension and letting out a chuckle. He rolled his eyes to indicate he’d been joking and rubbing his hand up and down Bill’s back, giving him a good pat before stopping.

“Mmm, no, I’m only pulling your leg, sweetie. But I must say! You have great etiquette.”

Indeed, he wondered if someone had trained Bill how to behave in the vampire community. It seemed the boy didn’t have a ton of knowledge about the community but he had picked up a few ‘rules’. Had he taught himself what was a good idea and bad idea based on experience alone? Emil wondered, even, if he was looking on further guidance on how to interact with the supernatural community. Not wanting to mislead the boy, he added,

“You’re quite right though, Bill. It’s not proper to ask questions like that. How we communicate is utterly different from the standards- does that make sense, pumpkin? I’m not like the others and it’s likely not wise to treat others the way you and I converse,” He advised, without saying the word ‘vampire’ or letting on to his true nature, considering that they were indeed still in a public place.

“But,” He said lowering his voice, “I was born in 1804 in Warsaw, Poland! So how old does that make me, exactly? Oh, I always say something around two hundred, but I’ve never been particularly good at doing the exact math.”

Truthfully keeping track of his age made him feel a bit old.

[Annalas]

Bill's eyes widened, afraid that he truly had offended the vampire by accident. The hand on his back soothed him, though, letting him know that he hadn't entirely made a faux pax. He really had overestimated, but he personally thought that it was a pretty good estimate, considering what little he knew about Emil.

"Thank you…and I know," he smiled softly, relaxing a bit. "Andi told me to treat all of you like royalty, so that's what I try to do. He's the one that actually introduced me to everything to help me found my brother."

He hadn't brought up his accomplice before, because he honestly had a hard time seeing Andi as such anymore. At first the other human had helped immensely, introducing Bill to places like Risk and explaining the ground rules for him, even introducing him to a few vampires and making sure he wasn't too traumatized after his first feeding.

Now, though, it seemed as though his brother's friend had practically abandoned him in favor of being the vampire groupie he had always wanted to be. And as much as Bill appreciated the help, he wasn't about to fall into a life of feeding vampires for fun. He would find his brother, and then they would figure things out from there. But he would find Thomas, one way or another.

"Poland?" he echoed, trying to think of what he knew about Poland in the eighteen hundreds. The answer to that, naturally, was nothing at all. All he knew for sure was that Emil was almost as old as the Constitution, and definitely not as old as Shakespeare.

"I don't really know much about Poland," he admitted, fiddling with the edge of his shirt. "I never really got into the history part of art history…or the art part, for that matter. That's by Germany…right?"

[skeggsismad]

Emil nodded his head at the query.

“It is next to Germany! Though I must say that the city I lived in, Warsaw, is closer to Belarus and Ukraine than it is to Germany. That’s the other side of the country.” He gave the boy a wink and then linked his arm into the mortals, deciding to guide him into the next room. They reached the doorways where there was a choice of left and right.

“Right turns only, isn’t that how we’re doing it?” He confirmed verbally before he guided them both through the door.

The first statue of several in the room caught Emil’s attention rather quickly. A person-sized marble carving sat on a podium and it was rather phallic. There was really no denying that it was a statue of a penis. Art was sometimes erotic, wasn’t it? Oooh, but to just carve a penis! He was suppressing giggles just thinking of what it must have been like for the artist when he was creating it.

“Well,” Emil spoke, searching for words to comment on the piece. The plaque read simply, “Athena’s Spear”.  Emil began to giggle but turned it into a gentle cough. He shouldn’t have been amused by the thought of a mythical God using a penis as her sphere…but somehow, it was hilarious. 

[Annalas]

Well, at least he somewhat knew where the country was. Warsaw sounded familiar, too, now that he thought about it. Where had he heard it before…? Ah, the Warsaw Pact, of course. Something to do with the second world war, if he remembered correctly. That was far after Emil had been born, though, and it was likely that he hadn’t even been there at the time. Europe hadn’t been a very nice place then.

He nodded at the question, giving Emil a bright smile in return as they walked into the next room, arm in arm. To William’s surprise, he found a large statue of a…yes, it really was what he thought it was, in all its marble glory. And the name!

“Athena’s Spear,” he quoted the plaque, eyes roving down the large phallus. “There are so many puns involved in that name, I can’t even begin to think of them all. Wasn’t Athena one of the virgin goddesses?”

There had been three that he could remember, Artemis and Athena being two of them. The last one, however, completely escaped him, though he was sure that he would have been able to name the entire pantheon a year or two ago. It seemed the longer he was out of school, the more he forgot…and the more he was with Emil, the more he remembered the history and literature parts, at the very least.

[skeggsismad]

Once it was clear that even Bill found the whole statue a bit silly, Emil allowed himself to laugh some about it.

At the end of his snorts he tilted his head in affirmation.

“Mmm. I do think so!”

He’d never had much interest in history unless it had to do with literature, particularly the works of great playwrights. Many a thing were written about Greek mythology so naturally he knew a thing or two.

“Athena, Artemis and Hestia.” He offered the piece of information, eyes scanning the rest of the room to see a variety of other erotic art displays. It was an awkward feeling only because he was with someone that he perceived as being so young. Nineteen certainly was the age of sexuality and he didn’t doubt that Bill dabbled in his own fair share of it, but it didn’t make the whole thing any easier. Although sexuality wasn’t something to be shameful of, Emil still felt to a degree it wasn’t something to be paraded around. Modesty was of importance even in these modern times.