Colin woke the following night ravenous, and his stomach rumbled as he put on his dark suit to go out for the night. Hearing Ben's door open, he dashed to his doorway and stepped into the hall to face his young friend.
"Good evening, Benjamin."
Colin stroked his chin in slow, even strokes with his forefinger and thumb, as he stared across the hall at his fidgeting, uncomfortable neophyte. Ben rocked from foot to foot, back and forth, swaying as if the floor grew hot beneath his soles. The longer Colin stared the more Ben squirmed until, without saying a word he turned and bolted down the hallway to escape Colin's scrutiny.
Colin laughed to himself and darted around him, using all his centenarian speed to beat the young one to the back door. When Ben rounded the corner, Colin stood waiting, leaning against the doorframe, nonchalantly studying the label on the laundry soapbox. He heard the muttered oath that slipped from Ben's lips and he felt the nervousness laced with a touch of fear emanating from his pores. Fear of him? But why? He had never been cruel to his young companion.
In a soft friendly voice he asked, "How is it that you accumulated so much extra poundage while you slept this day, Benjamin?" He let the corners of his mouth lift just enough to let Ben know that he was not angry with him, but just curious. What could that boy be up to this time?
"Uh, Creator..."
Ah, he uses 'creator' when he fears displeasing me even though he is aware that I dislike the overuse of that word almost as much as I loathe the word vampire.
"Yes, Ben?" His eyes traveled up and down the nervous blonde's padded figure.
"Creator ... It's just that..."
Colin interrupted by clicking his tongue on the back of his teeth.
"Remove your outside layer of clothing, Benjamin."
He heard another muttered oath from his obstinate pupil despite his attempt to muffle it.
"What was that, Ben?"
"Nothing." Ben stared at his wing tip shoes, unwilling to look into Colin's face again. With reluctance, he unbuttoned his pressed black slacks and let them drop to the floor, then glanced back up at Colin.
Colin leaned back, his feet crossed at the ankles, hands in his pockets, a picture of tranquility, watching Ben with half closed eyes. Ben was not blind to the slight heightened color in his creator's cheeks that belied his calm appearance and he decided he'd better hurry and comply with Colin's demands before he grew angry with him.
With arms as weighty as granite, he pulled the dark blazer off his shoulders and started to throw it on the floor in a fit of annoyance. But when he glanced up and saw Colin's stern expression, those dark eyebrows drawn together, he changed his mind and just tossed it over his forearm. He prayed that Colin wouldn't notice what he had under his shirt but after meeting his eyes, he knew he wouldn't be so lucky. Why did his creator have to be so damned observant?
A blue t-shirt with red lettering was visible through the thin material of Ben's white dress shirt, but Colin couldn't quite make out the words behind the row of buttons on his outer shirt. Ben's discomfort over his small disobedience was quite amusing and Colin found himself enjoying this confrontation. Raising his eyebrows and widening his eyes, he stared at the row of buttons until Ben groaned and unbuttoned then removed his white shirt.
"There! Are you satisfied, Creator?" Defiant, he stood before Colin, a perfect foil to his black power suit clad, dark-haired, dark-eyed creator.
"Benjamin, you know perfectly well I prefer you wear proper formal garments during the week of the full moon, and yet here you stand in your faded jeans and t-shirt. I am not going to even mention the words printed on that shirt. I believe it goes without saying why you must remove it at once!" After his stern command, he spun around on his heel to hide the smile he could not suppress. Only his neophyte could discover a t-shirt stating, BLOOD DONORS NEEDED. He did not want Ben to know he found it so humorous.
Without turning around, he spoke. "Why do you defy me, young one?"
"Colin, I didn't mean to defy you, I intended to wear your definition of proper attire to hunt, but uh ... I..."
Before he could utter another 'uh', Colin spun around, moved to within inches of him and stood staring down at his reddened face, his all-seeing eyes radiant with an inner glow.
"You what?" Colin's voice was no more abrasive than the scratch of an owl's wing through the air, but his words rasped across Ben's eardrums like coarse sandpaper and he couldn't help but wince.
Backing away from his powerful maker, he stumbled over his discarded clothing like an intoxicated human, then struggled to right himself and bolster his courage to face Colin's wrath as he gave his explanation.
Ben drew a deep breath, held it, then released it in a rush. "I'm going to see a girl."
It was a relief to get it off his chest and he smiled wide enough to flash his dimples at Colin.
"A pretty one." Ben raised his right hand, index finger up and shook it back and forth ... "But not to kill ... to play with."
He searched his mentor's face for some sign of emotion, but as usual Colin's features remained frozen into an expressionless mask, only one eyebrow twitching for a moment.
Colin moved to exit the house then stopped, with his hand still on the doorknob and his eyes met Ben's. "Step lightly, my friend, for I will not bear my rules to be tread upon." Then he was gone, a blur even to Ben's keen eyes. Colin sure said strange things ... it wasn't so much what he said, but the strange way he said it.
Ben sighed, relieved. Smiling to himself, he made his way back to his room to change out of the offending t-shirt. He should've known he wouldn't be able to sneak by Colin, but at least he didn't explode and throw him across the room when he saw it. Lucky for him Colin remained in a good mood!
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