Apologies if this seems to end abruptly, I thought it was a good place to stop the chapter. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Young Dracula.
Robin walked into Vlad's throne room to find Bertrand and the Chosen One sitting morosely at a small table in the corner, drinking soy blood and playing a mediocre game of cards. Something was wrong; they were both better players than that. Still, at least neither of them appeared to have slain the other.
"Hey. Did you guys talk about… you know?" He realised it probably wasn't the best timing for Vlad, but it was important.
"Yes, we talked about it." Vlad left it at that, and the way he glanced sympathetically at Bertrand made Robin wonder what he'd missed. The older vampire dropped his cards onto the table and stood.
"Do you still want to talk to Robin now, or would you rather…?" Vlad nodded.
"Now would be best, I think." Bertrand didn't seem too happy, but he bowed stiffly and left, Robin barely catching him in time to kiss him on the cheek. Vlad's top advisor didn't even react to the gesture, just kept walking. Robin rounded on the Grand High Vampire.
"Why's he so upset? Did you throw him at a wall again?"
Vlad shook his head and gestured wearily for Robin to take the seat Bertrand had just vacated.
"He asked me for a Bite License, Robin. For you." Robin nodded.
"I know. Didn't he give you my note?"
"Yeah, he did. And I didn't throw him at anything. But Robin, I need to know… Was this your idea?"
"Yeah, of course."
"And you're not under any pressure to go through with this?"
"No! Of course not."
"And you're sure?" Robin was getting fed up with the constant questioning.
"Yes, and Bertrand's insisting on waiting six months anyway so it's not like I won't have time to change my mind. We just need a Bite License, and then we can start sorting things out. Can you do that for us, Vlad?"
Vlad regarded him thoughtfully for a moment.
"You really do love him, don't you?" His tone was wistful, but he pulled himself together sharply. "You know asking him to bite you is like-"
"Practically a proposal, yeah. I didn't mean to be so unromantic about it. I want to ask him properly, though, before he… you know." Vlad narrowed his eyes at him.
"Can you actually even bring yourself to say it?" Robin frowned and took a deep breath.
"Before… I want to ask him properly before he bites me and turns me into one of you." It came out in a rush, but he'd said it all the same. It felt more solid now, like it was actually going to happen. But he'd sounded so much like his younger self, that part of him that was still fourteen years old, deep down, and desperate to be a vampire, that it was almost reassuring. Some of the enthusiasm he would have had back then was beginning to bleed through.
"I'll think about it. The two of you have things discuss, too, I'm sure. You should go home and talk to him." Robin had been hoping for a more definite answer, but you didn't just ignore a dismissal from the Grand High Vampire. Besides, he wanted to know what was wrong with Bertrand.
Bertrand was definitely just lying in the coffin for a rest. It had nothing at all to do with the fact that the blanket smelt of Robin, and it certainly wasn't an attempt to recapture the good mood of earlier that morning. Yes, he'd been worried about biting the boy, but he hadn't had to worry about why he was lying to him, or when he was going to leave, or if he was ever going to leave rather than letting Bertrand sweep him along to a destiny he couldn't bear the thought of.
He heard the front door open and close and then footsteps on the stairs. He considered moving, or pretending to be asleep, but in the end both of those options sounded like a lot of energy expended for very little gain, so on the whole it was probably more efficient to stay put. When Robin walked in, he merely looked up at him and waited for his boyfriend to join him.
Robin seemed confused by the lack of greeting, but he kicked his shoes off and climbed in beside him, wrapping an arm around the vampire he'd asked to bite him less than twenty-four hours before. Bertrand waited for him to speak, but it seemed Robin was content to wait him out.
"I heard you talking to Erin." The reaction wasn't as extreme as he'd expected it to be.
"Oh. Yeah. Vlad must be pretty cut up about the whole not-biting thing." Bertrand frowned at him.
"He's not thrilled, but it's better than pretending to be alright with something you really don't want."
Robin stared for a moment, as if he was trying to work out the reason for the intensity of his boyfriend's gaze, and Bertrand couldn't help but continue.
"Sometimes… you just have to walk away while you still have a chance at a normal life. It's alright, Robin, I understand if you want to leave, or just… not do this. I'd never want to mak-" He stopped abruptly as Robin burst out laughing.
"Leave you? That's hilarious. Blood, B, I thought you were really upset! You had me worried…" It took a moment for his boyfriend to realise he wasn't joining the laughter. "You didn't think I meant me?"
"I understand," Bertrand frowned, concentrating on keeping his voice even, "I should never have put you in a position where you might feel you had to give up your whole life for me, we should never have started this. I… I'll be alright, I'll have fond memories, and-"
"Bertrand, could you stop being so bloody noble and listen to me for a minute?" He complied, waiting for the words he was dreading. I have to go. I can't stay with you. "I'm getting the bite, I'm staying with you."
"But you said-"
"Erin. Erin needs to get away. It wasn't my idea, and it's gonna crush Vlad, but I can see why she has to do it. Me? I'm staying here. With you."
Bertrand hardly dared to believe it.
"You're really not leaving?" Robin snorted.
"And miss out on the coffin antics?" He seemed to see the doubt in Bertrand's eyes, and his expression softened into warm sincerity. "No, B, I'm not leaving you. Not ever."
Bertrand couldn't help himself – within seconds he'd rolled them both over so that he was straddling Robin's hips, nipping at his lower lip until Robin writhed beneath him. He went to pull away, but Robin's hand in his hair kept him close as the boy murmured a half-hearted protest.
"Really, B, again?" The vampire made as if to move off of him, but Robin clung still tighter. "You're insatiable." There was a smile in his voice to match the one on his face as he ran his tongue over Bertrand's lower lip and allowed his wrists to be pinned to the base of the coffin by Bertrand's strong, cool hands.
