A New Day

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr drove almost as quickly home as he had to Mandy\'s apartment just a few short hours before. This time he was spurred on by concerns of a whole different nature, of course; he could feel the sun getting ready to blister the earth\'s crust and knew he wanted to be safely ensconced in his bedroom before then. When he pulled into the driveway and spied Ben\'s car, he remembered that he\'d left his guest in his bed and hoped that the mortal had gone undetected. It was also a priority that he\'d got some of his strength back (there would be no more feeding from him for a week, he resolved), especially if he had to work that day - Kerr had not thought to ask.
 
Parking the car, Kerr hurried inside, reset the alarm system and loped upstairs. The twins and Wyl were already dreaming and his door was still locked; he smiled as he let himself into the blackened room. He hesitated just inside, then decided to lock it again (leaving the key in the lock in case Ben wanted a quick escape) before striding quickly to his wardrobe. He kicked his shoes off, hung his coat up and pulled his T-shirt off as he stepped into the bathroom. His mind was still on Mandy as he flicked the overhead light on, but he made a token effort at closing the sliding door before stripping completely, dropping his clothes into the laundry basket and diving into the shower.
 
He was squeaky clean and out of the hot water within ten minutes, had dried and applied deodorant... then remembered that he needed clothes to wear, because he was sharing his bed. Holding the towel around his waist with his left hand, he walked out of the steamy little room to his dresser and opened the top drawer on the left, the light spilling from the bathroom making it easier to locate the cotton long pants he was searching for. He snatched them out from beneath the pile of underwear and strode back into the bathroom, hanging up his towel (he was a tidy creature of habit, after all) then pulling the red tartan-patterned pyjama bottoms on. Tying the drawstring that would hold them around his narrow hips and turning off the bathroom light at the same time, Kerr exited the bathroom and gave his curtains a look. It would be unacceptable for any of the four layers to have moved enough to allow any sunlight in.

Satisfied by the still-solid darkness, he crawled into his bed, his movements a study in care as he attempted not to disturb his sleeping companion. Fluffing his pillow and placing his hands behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling, it was at that moment he realised he wasn\'t as tired as he should be; and that the memories of recent erotic events weren\'t about to let him become sleepy yet, either.

[Trillian]

Ben was awakened by the shifting of the bed, sleepy but not so that he wasn\'t aware of where he was and who was with him. Using the fact that he was able to pass off as terribly sleepy and not fully aware, he turned so that he could press himself against Kerr\'s side and move an arm over the vampire\'s chest. The difference in body heat was apparent, and Ben smiled his secret smile, unable to keep his eyes closed, wanting to see Kerr\'s face, unable to see much because the darkness was almost complete.
 
It was right at that moment that he remembered that Kerr had gone on an outing with someone else, which was why he was coming to bed now instead of before. He felt foolish quite suddenly, but didn\'t want to pull away. They had the kind of sharing that whoever Kerr went out with didn\'t have.
 
He hoped.
 
"How was your outing?" he asked softly, discarding the pretense of sleep in favour of sating his curiosity.

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr chuckled and lowered his arm behind Ben, encouraging him by turning slightly to face him - accompanied by a few wiggles and gestures - to rest his cheek on his shoulder so that the blonde didn\'t have a freshly-bathed hairy armpit in his face (despite how nicely his deodorant made it smell, it wasn\'t polite). His hand curled back along the mortal\'s warm body, his hand cradling the blonde head and fingers smoothing across the forehead repetitively. The motion was exactly how he soothed and held Sawyl when the child visited his bed; it was calming to him and he assumed the same for his companion.
 
The proximity of mortal warmth did not have the same effect, however (luckily Ben hadn\'t reached any lower to find out the effect Mandy - and now this new source of warmth - was having on him) but he hoped the affectionate gesture would override all feelings of lust. He certainly owed Ben some considerate attention. Even though they\'d discussed the misunderstanding from a couple of nights ago (before he\'d fed from him earlier that evening), he still felt guilty.
 
And now that he thought about it, he hadn\'t even taken the time to check that Ben had enjoyed what they\'d done this time \'round. "Sorry I woke you," he murmured, smiling down at the top of the blonde head, mostly visible to him in the darkness. "My outing was... good," he responded, the word more a sigh of longing than a succinct summary of events. Best not to dwell, he decided and cleared his throat softly. "Apparently an armed drug addict came into the emergency room at the hospital and held them up. He took Mandy hostage; she has a few nasty bruises but she\'s remarkably cool about it all. How have you fared in my absence - plenty of rest, I assume? I do hope you don\'t have to go to work today," he hinted, knowing that he was bombarding the mortal with information and questions but unable to stop himself in his happy state.

[Trillian]

With the accommodating shifting, Ben\'s smile widened and he settled himself against Kerr in a manner that was both comfortable and intimate. It was a lover\'s embrace they were in, though they had not consummated such a relationship. Ben feared one night soon he would make it known to Kerr what he was beginning to want from him (beyond what they had) and that the vampire would halt any further progress by casting Ben away.
 
The woman, the damned woman; he didn\'t want to hear about her, yet he did. He didn\'t want to ever see her face, yet he did. He didn\'t want to say a single word to her, yet he did. He wanted to know what held Kerr\'s attention in such a manner. He wanted to know if he drank from her.
 
A darker part of him had wished that she\'d come to a fatal end with the hostage situation, but this horrified him so he pushed such a thought away and changed the subject.
 
"I don\'t have to go into work today," he said, answering the last question asked of him. It was an interesting answer considering it happened to be a work day, and he figured if he wanted to keep his job he probably had to go into work today, but the job wasn\'t a priority, not when he was bundled so nicely against Kerr. It was a dead end job anyway, he justified.
 
"Are you able to stay awake during the day?" he asked. Strange that this question hadn\'t cropped up until now, but then, there were many other things to ask.

[Existentially Odd]

He raised his eyebrows at the ceiling, finding the subject a surprising one - it certainly distracted him from being pleased by the thought that he would wake up with the mortal still beside him because he didn\'t have to work. Sawyl was the only person he\'d ever spent the day with (or even the night, for it wasn\'t the done thing with his trysts when he was mortal, either) and that was really only because there were a lot of years where panic and grief had wracked the tiny body, needing to be soothed away with hugs and kisses and promises of being there when the sleeping had passed. They had been hard times, in the beginning.
 
"I\'ve never tried, to be honest," he mused. "I suppose, since the sun is just about up now, that I can, but I\'m beginning to feel sluggish. Just not tired," he added, and giggled conspiratorially. He calmed himself with a descending noise of contemplation, the noise would be akin to a sigh, were he able to breathe. He bit his tongue stud thoughtfully, then gave a slight shrug as he added: "I\'m sure I\'ll fall asleep soon enough, I just... it\'s... my mind won\'t stop working!"
 
He cringed to himself once the words were out, knowing it had nothing to do with his mind and everything to do with his hormones. He shuffled his feet beneath the blankets, dragging the covers down off his hips and then kicking his legs free entirely. It felt constricting to be wearing clothes and be under blankets when he was unused to the sensation. That, coupled with the tantalising warmth coming from his bed partner made him want to wriggle and squirm and either push it away completely or (ironically) roll over and press himself fully atop it and bury his...
 
The hand that wasn\'t stroking Ben\'s forehead reached up to brush his hair back harshly in an attempt to distract himself. Then he swept the hand under his head and grabbed the wet strands out (contemplating a futile haircut), before smoothing them back, his head rising and falling a couple of times from his pillow. It really didn\'t work, so he subtly twisted his lower half away from Ben, raising his right leg as a slight barrier, foot flat on the mattress. It swayed a little, then fell to rest comfortably against the mortal\'s thigh, the cotton pants blocking the sensation of warm skin, thankfully - if the sensation was there to be felt, of course. The thought made him wonder what the youth was wearing, as he\'d left Ben fully clothed and sitting on the side of his bed, only removing his shoes. Kerr raised his head yet again and peeked over the blonde curls to slyly see what had come off (or stayed on) as he continued speaking.
 
"But you know, if you get bored or fully rested enough and want to leave before I wake up, you\'re more than welcome to. I left the key in the door to make it easier for you. There\'s food downstairs in the fridge but I can\'t guarantee it\'ll be anything you like, so if you want to- ah fuck, I set the alarm." He scrubbed his roaming hand restlessly across his face, frustrated by the security habit superceding his considerations of his guest\'s needs. Really, he\'d have to figure out what to do on such an occasion, if Ben was likely to become a frequent visitor... Well, there was nothing for it but to tell him now.
 
"Alright, at the end of the hall outside my room - just at the top of the stairs - you\'ll see a code panel. Before you go downstairs, key in 2, 4, 6, 8, OK, OFF, OK, right? Then you won\'t set off the motion sensors and you canwander wherever you like down there, or even exit the house. Just leave through the kitchen and reset the system when you go - hit OK, ON, OK after 2, 4, 6, 8 instead - if you wouldn\'t mind. I have keys hanging by the door, each set has a front and side door key if you wish to come back... uh... have I... is that too much to remember?" he winced down at Ben.

[Trillian]

As Kerr shifting in a manner that removed Ben slightly from their embrace, the mortal was all too aware of the rejection.  He told himself it hadn\'t been a conscious movement, that the vampire was just moving blankets off himself with his legs, that he wasn\'t used to wearing pyjama pants.  Ben himself couldn\'t sleep while clothed either, but he\'d kept on his briefs, if only to be a little conservative.  It wasn\'t his modesty he was wanting to protect, so much the thin shell of his relationship with Kerr.  Somehow he figured sleeping naked would cross the line.
 
"It\'s surprisingly easy to remember," Ben said wryly about the alarm, thinking that a code really should be off that kind of pattern.  He supposed 1,1,1,1 would be worse.  "I won\'t leave the house," he added, tagging it on almost as an afterthought, but he\'d very carefully said this to let Kerr know he wasn\'t going anywhere.

[Existentially Odd]

At the teasing remark, he found himself giggling again - his mood quite giddy at hearing the youth demonstrate a bit of humour.  And confiding that he wouldn\'t leave.  Something about that made him feel calm and secure within; companionship such as this he hadn\'t felt in too long.  There was a marked difference between Ben and Mandy, too - no doubt because Ben knew so much more about him - and even though he hoped to bridge the same divide with her it was... different.

"Well, at least you know how to - if you want to.  I know the alarm code is simplistic but... Sawyl doesn\'t have a lot of patience for difficulties.  Or patience at all, really.  Plus, he can\'t read the numbers, so the pattern is something he bothers to pay attention to," he imparted with a smile, his hand falling away from Ben\'s forehead to his shoulder, trailing his fingers along the length of the well muscled upper arm ruminatively.

Kerr\'s thoughts shifted to the child then, and he wondered if he would try to come in and snuggle as the sun set, as he often did.  Not every dusk but... frequently.  Especially when he\'d been very bad and wanted some sort of absolution.  He would no doubt be extremely upset to find his spot taken by Ben; Kerr could only hope that it would not be one of those nights when he came to visit, tonight.  He brushed his cheek softy against the crown of the mortal\'s head, his jaw working as he chewed on his stud, doubting that his luck would hold once Sawyl awoke and sensed the other still in the house.

[Trillian]

At the light laugh and then the smile, Ben responded with a smile of his own, finding his lips close to the cool skin in the crook of the vampire\'s collarbone.  He turned his head only slightly to brush his lips against the skin, rubbing their sensitive softness against the marble cool of Kerr\'s well-preserved body.  Snuggling up with Kerr felt so comfortable, so right, that he didn\'t question the ease of how he did it.
 
The information told him though, made him pause and lift his head to study Kerr\'s profile in the darkness. "All this time, and he hasn\'t bothered to be literate?" Ben asked, astonished.
 
If Ben had eternity, he would\'ve used it to study every language he could, take in every culture, learn every item of interest.  Most certainly reading would be a large factor of such education.  Time was all that was needed for such knowledge.  Wisdom was all about time spent learning and understanding.  Did that mean Sawyl was not wise?

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr shivered slightly as the lips brushed his skin and briefly clenched his eyes shut as the innocent kisses stimulated a fresh wave of desire. He could understand Ben was merely fascinated with the sensation of his dead skin against warm, live lips but

Ah fuck, he doesn\'t know, calm down, he knows not what he does, he\'s just curious. Never mind the fact that you have the urge to send those hot, soft lips lower, he doesn\'t... fucking... know and that would be so (good) wrong!  And forget the tongue thing too!  You\'re too aroused for your own fucking good - go and have another shower or something!

it took him a moment or two to register the mortal\'s face directed at him in the dark. He cleared his throat self-consciously, offering a small chuckle and reaching out to playfully press the pad of his index finger to the blonde\'s chin.

When he felt new stubble, it was another distraction and he was intrigued enough to turn the finger into a whole hand, cupping and massaging the cheek in wonderment, remembering almost longingly what it was like to have new growth after being clean-shaven (even though shaving had never been a pleasant task and he\'d avoided it by growing a beard if he could - which was occasional at best, with his family\'s status and his parents\' insistence that he keep up tidy appearances. Literally).

The tickling on his hand was enough to draw him back to face Ben a little more (though his knees were pushed forward slightly so as to hinder any accidental leg movements that would lead to the discovery of his excited state), his hand twisting almost reverently over the fine hairs so that they pressed against his knuckles and the back, as well as his palm. It was nothing like the soft, aged texture of his sparing jaw/chin beard and moustache - which would be with him for eternity, unless he shaved it off.  And then he would never have facial hair again. Ben\'s hairs were scratchy, new but somehow... very pleasant to the touch and arousing in Kerr a feeling of nostalgia (along with a distinct desire to experience a few new other sensations... that he quashed). Ah, to be young and burdened with new growth - in so many forms - every day.

"Heh, it\'s been so long since I grew new hair," he mumbled wistfully, realising that he was straying well off topic and probably making his guest feel uncomfortable with his sudden fascination with sensory stimulus. He dropped his hand reluctantly - thinking Ben would find him odd if he didn\'t - and pressed his hand down between his knees (all the better to block discovery with) so that he could concentrate on an answer. He cleared his throat again.

"W-well, you have to remember his background; how shunned his family was. Plus, it wasn\'t like there were schools on every corner like there are now - education only went with money and determination. Sawyl lacked both. And since he was embraced, he\'s not had a need to learn to read because if he wants to know what something says, he either asks someone - no-one assumes it odd that such a sweet, small child can\'t read things for himself - or he forces them to look at it and reads their mind. It\'s sort of like reading... vicariously," he explained with a chuckle, having overcome his initial scattered thinking enough to warm to his topic. "He\'s very strong mentally.  Be careful around him if he ever gets really upset."

The last sentence was said softly, hesitantly.  He wasn\'t sure he should be telling Ben such blatant things... but he had grave concerns for the mortal\'s safety around the temperamental child vampire. He really should have a sense of the power harnessed by the supposedly-smaller mind.

[Trillian]

The cool and gentle touch on his face caused him to nuzzle against the palm that eventually pressed upon his cheek and jaw, brushing those new hairs against Kerr\'s skin, not knowing the effect he had on Kerr but rather hoping for something akin to it.  He half-listened to Kerr\'s words, paying more attention to the lilt of his voice and accent rather than the content.  It was nice to be touched in such a way.  His fingernails trailed a light path down Kerr\'s chest in response, to his stomach.
 
As Kerr\'s throat was cleared on multiple occassions, it was the last that sobered Ben from his lazy acceptance of the delicate touchings between them and brought him to the topic of Sawyl.
 
Ben frowned as he thought over Kerr\'s explanation of how Sawyl lived, how his mental skill in pilfered thoughts made him strong, according to Kerr.  Ben disagreed, however, his point of view vastly different to the vampire that lay beside him.  "I think it makes him weak," he said carefully, then explained himself.  "He relies on the knowledge of others to impart him information.  What if he\'s unable to get others to do things for him, forced or otherwise?  He\'s... turning himself into his own deception."

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr frowned slightly as he silently watched the mortal through the darkness, considering his summation. He was trying to decide whether it was worth expanding on Wyl\'s abilities and scaring Ben unnecessarily... or, conversely, warning him in detail, to prepare him. It raised questions along the line of how long Ben expected to come calling, what part he expected to play in their household. Kerr knew the mortal wouldn\'t say no to immortality, but he also believed his youthful assurances that he wouldn\'t actively campaign and the information would suffice. For now. But for how long?  And would the youth really need protection from Sawyl, or would he grow tired of being drunk from long before the child had good reason to work up a vendetta and force his ostracism from their lives?

The vampire wasn\'t prepared to give voice to such ponderings, not so early on. He was happy with the casual way things were progressing, relishing the sharing of his (boring) life with someone else. Ben was almost like a secret, and even the prospect of Wyl ruining it didn\'t deter him from wanting to keep it sacrosanct for as long as possible.

The touches that made him clench his abdominal muscles \'til they stood out like mountain ridges weren\'t objectionable, either. If the curious exploration of his body didn\'t slow up though, Kerr knew his other secret would soon shock the innocent boy. He worked the stem of his tongue stud into the dip between his top two front teeth and bit down on it as he glanced furtively at the body his bedmate had on display, wondering... oh, so many things.

When the steady thud, thud, thud of his teeth banging rhythmically against the metal permeated his thoughts and the silent air of the bedroom, he realised he should certainly make up his mind and respond to Ben.

"What I mean is that he\'s not weak in the sense that his mental abilities far outstrip all but those of ancient vampires. He\'s worked at them \'til they\'re that strong and he had a lot of natural talent to start with, thanks to his mothers. As you may - or may not - know, all vampires have the potential for numerous powers but the development of them depends on practise as much as anything. Excellence is achievable only with the gift of basic aptitude - in my opinion - and Sawyl just happened to be one of those lucky individuals. Physically, he\'s able to be overpowered easily - his telepathy and ability to suggest and dominate are his only defenses, so he\'s honed them. He\'s able to manipulate without even triggering conscious thought in a mortal - in me too, might I add. I don\'t know about his own deception... but he can deceive anyone, if he decides he wants to. Just... just don\'t underestimate him, no matter your opinion on him relying on his mental abilities, alright?" Kerr implored softly, his right hand reaching out to brush against Ben\'s shoulder to enhance his point, the back of it swinging back and forth across the bunched muscle in appeal.

[Trillian]

The hand rubbing his shoulder empowered Ben to reply quickly, without the weight of his thoughts preceding his comments as per usual.
 
"I understand," he said with brevity.  "I know it\'s easy to underestimate Wyl\'s talents because of how he looks.  I\'m sure he\'s very powerful.  What I meant is that he can\'t appreciate the strength in others, that even though they\'re weak, they\'re strong in ways he doesn\'t appreciate.  You don\'t do that."  A grin appeared somewhat akin to a shy smile.  "By what I\'ve seen so far, I think you\'re unappreciated."
 
As he spoke this last, his hand lowered further in one stroke beyond Kerr\'s naval and so his palm brushed against the reaching tip of Kerr\'s physical secret.  Ben\'s mind registered immediately what it was and a decision was made at a moment.
 
His next action which didn\'t hesitate lest Kerr\'s reaction was to pull away, was to run his finger up the thick length hidden by the cloth of Kerr\'s pyjama pants.  (If progress was not halted, he would travel his finger back and forth, gently).  His gaze, even in the solid darkness of the room, was fixed unblinking on Kerr\'s profile, adjusted eyes imagining the expression there more than actually seeing it.  Ben was seeing what he wanted to see.
 
It was very obvious he was not shocked by Kerr\'s state.  It was also very obvious that he wasn\'t quite the innocent Kerr had believed.  Ben hadn\'t wanted to come here so quickly, for fear of rejection - funny how things turned out.
 
His heart beat rapidly, both in anticipation of how things would turn out, and also in response to the stimulation he was giving and where it might lead.

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr swallowed hard, frozen initially by humiliation and then by surprise as a bold finger stroked up and down his length.  It took him a moment to process that Ben hadn\'t shied from him - didn\'t seem embarrassed in the slightest - yet what could the mortal be thinking?  The vampire reached his left hand out from between his knees (fat lot of good it had done, anyway) and fumbled for the edge of the huge headboard behind him.  At the side of it was an array of switches that operated numerous lights placed discretely across the carved, wooden expanse looming above his head.

He flicked one on that was connected to a golden light directed along the side rail of Ben\'s side; it lit the room softly and was at the mortal\'s back so that he wasn\'t blinded.  Kerr\'s face was thrown instantly into relief, his eyes - with their enormously dilated pupils to accommodate his night vision, turning them almost completely black - slowly going back to their normal brown as he looked for clues in his bedmate\'s expression as to what he was thinking.

"I\'m... sorry about that," he told the mortal thickly, accent rich as the sensations began to shimmer through him.  He didn\'t know if it was an appropriate thing to say or not, but he had the feeling he should say something about it.  What could Ben be thinking of him, indeed?

[Trillian]

Ben didn\'t reply to the apology, and he didn\'t mind the light because that meant he could see that Kerr wasn\'t upset with him, merely watchful.  He took the fact he was not being pushed away as consent or approval of the motions he was making with his hand and so he continued along this vein, though more of his hand rested upon Kerr\'s erection - now the palm of his hand rubbed with fingers trailing up either side, pressing a little more firmly now so there was more friction.
 
Drymouthed and with thickened breathing, Ben moved forward so that he could nuzzle and then press lips against the cool skin of Kerr\'s jaw, instead of working towards the vampire\'s mouth he moved to the sensitive area of his neck, a place that was mirrored from where Ben had been drunk from three times now.  His bare chest pressing against Kerr\'s and rubbing in a way Ben found most delicious.
 
He licked and kissed at Kerr\'s neck, dragging his teeth and suckling, the scent of lavender from the soap Kerr had washed with filling his senses and making him extra heady, his hold upon Kerr\'s length now firm and milking pleasure.

[Existentially Odd]

The vampire was entirely lost. His eyelashes fluttered, he frowned at the ceiling, his mouth opened and closed as he tasted, tested and rejected seemingly hundreds of phrases... but he tilted his head away to give Ben better access and marvelled at the sensations that that deliciously warm body was able to cause.

When it boiled right down to it, there was not all that much difference between Mandy and Ben, if he kept within the realm of receiving, but... there were some marked variances should the the mortal expect the tables to be turned. Could he want that? Kerr was stunned by the notion that he would; he\'d never suspected it. Well, in truth, he\'d never given it any thought. Not given anything about sex any thought, for centuries!

Kerr licked his lips and eased Ben away from his throat via one hand pushing him back onto his elbow. His other hand reached down and covered the mortal\'s, not removing him from his hardness, but forcing the actions to cease so he could concentrate long enough to speak.

"Ben... you don\'t have to do this, you know. I\'m just... excited from earlier, don\'t feel you have to... well, but you..." he frowned, seeing desire burning brightly in those stunning eyes, "you like... men?  Sexually?"