italics – denotes text from a book

Angelus lounged on the plush velvet sofa with a glass of fine whiskey and a book of minor spells. Young William was relaxing on the floor before the fire, his feet swinging idly in the air behind him as he read from his own book.

Angelus had been known for his ability to mould and shape each of his special projects into being exactly what he wanted. Whatever Angelus desired. Each of his Childer had been chosen for a special purpose, for their unique talents, just as he had been chosen by Darla, and approved of by the Master himself. Their vampire family was an old one and therefore each Childe sired had an obligation to uphold the family name. The turning of a Childe would become a family affair and the Sire had to be extremely careful lest his new fledgeling be deemed unworthy and summarily put to death. Angelus had appeared to have a special knack for choosing just the right victims.

Penn had been an interesting choice for his Puritan beliefs. It must have been quite a challenge to change a man who had clung so tenaciously to his strict religious precepts into a ruthless, vicious killer. A vampire whom Angelus gleefully created in his own image with a remarkable amount of success. Angelus had looked on with pride while Penn had been swiftly and easily accepted and highly approved of by the rest of the family. So, was it any wonder that Penn, who had never gotten on with his human father, considered Angelus to be his true father?

The lovely Drusilla had been a more obvious choice. Not only had she been quite beautiful but her unique ability to see what might come to pass had the potential to become an extremely valuable asset to the Aurelius family. And there was the added pleasure of corrupting all that innocence and purity. Something Angelus, in all his evil glory, could no doubt have resisted. Of course, Angelus, being the total bastard that he was, had to push too hard and go too far. Poor Drusilla's mind had cracked and it was only her unique gift which had swayed the family to spare her.

It is not entirely sure why William had been chosen or if, in fact, Angelus was indeed his sire at all. There are several theories, the most popular being he had been chosen to care for the unstable Drusilla. His malleable personality making him easy to train for the simple, yet time consuming, task. The young fledgling had obviously proven his worth to some extent as proven by his continued existence.

William looked up from his book with a small frown on his face. "Sire? Why..." he trailed off to worry at his lower lip with his teeth.

Angelus set aside his book and turned his full attention to his obviously troubled Childe. "What is it William?"

William turned to face his Sire, one leg tucked over the other. "Why did you sire me?"

"Well..." Angelus began, surprised by the question. "Because I wanted to."

William fidgeted, fingers absently worrying at the pages of the book in his lap. "I know but why? I'm not special or anything."

"And where do you get these ideas from?" Angelus became suspicious when William glanced down guiltily. "What do you have there?"

"Just a book." Angelus glared. "Sire."

Angelus nodded in approval at the correction. "I can see it's a book William." He held out his hand. "Give it here."

"Yes, Sire," William responded, rising from the floor.

"Ah, I see," Angelus said, noting the name of a Watcher on the spine. He took a moment to skim the page William had been reading, then looked up at his Childe feeling a mixture of annoyance and concern. "So you believe all this rot then?"

William stared pointedly at the carpet between his shuffling feet. "No?"

"Are you answering me, my boy, or is that a question?" Angelus asked, ducking his head to get a peak at William's expressive features.

William looked up, worrying at his poor lip again. "I-I'm sorry."

"Come here Childe," Angelus instructed, holding out a hand. He settled William comfortably against his side. "It is true that I chose Penn for the challenge and to make him over in my image and that I chose Drusilla for her beauty. 'Tis a shame her mind became fractured and Penn became too brutal. I made mistakes young Will. Mistakes I learned from and made sure I didn't repeat. Besides, the Watchers obviously know nothing if they meant to imply you were easy to train."

"Yes, but...but I'm not sure I understand."

"I chose far more carefully when I chose you. You are strong like Penn and beautiful like Drusilla. I knew enough not to push too far this time. And you are perfection and you are mine."

"All yours?" William asked, peering up through his lashes and smiling.

"All mine Childe. All mine."

~ Mòran taing ~