Chapter 28: A Little Explanation

"That's it?" Grey said.

"Not exactly," Dave said. He had settled on the arm of the couch while recounting his night. Heather was still unconscious with her head in Grey's lap. "I had to go see Lacroix and all… Are you sure she's okay?"

Grey looked down. "Her breathing is steady."

"Uh-huh…" Dave looked at the girl uncertainly. "I still think what you did is pretty fucked up."

"Just finish the story, please."

Dave began to pick at a frayed patch of his jeans as he continued. "Okay, so, I go up to Lacroix's offices, right? And naturally he just assumes I've got the sarcophagus. When I told him I didn't have it, and that it had been stolen, he flipped out. I mean, I seriously thought he was gonna lose it right there and just, you know…"

"That wouldn't be very becoming of him."

"Yeah, he got himself together, lucky for me. But then Lacroix's all like 'Gary…' And he goes on to explain how the Nosferatu were responsible for getting the keys to the museum and stuff, and they were they only ones that knew about it. So if anyone stole it, it was probably them, and it was probably Gary who was behind it, so…"

"I have a feeling I know where this is going."

"Yeah, he kinda got me on technicality since I didn't get the box in the first place. Now I gotta go to Hollywood. He said the Nosferatu live under it, and the, um…"

"The Baron."

"Right, the Baron, some guy named Isaac- Lacroix said he would know how to find them. Do you know him? Isaac?"

"We've met once or twice," Grey said. He traced the curve of Heather's cheek thoughtfully. "I'm fairly certain he's written me off as a babbling lunatic- one beneath his notice."

"Is that good?" Dave asked. "I mean, up until recently…"

"I know."

Dave swung his legs over the side of the couch so he was facing Grey. It made him look like a gargoyle. "So what gives?"

Grey shook his head and slid out from under Heather. "I'll tell you later. For now, it's getting early, and I really don't want to collapse in the middle of conversation again."

"Aw, come on!"

Grey started up the stairs. "Another time, Dave."

"Wait!" Dave awkwardly dismounted the couch to follow after him. "What am I supposed to do if she wakes up?"

Grey didn't pause in his ascent. "I don't know, convince her you're not as bad as you look?"

Dave remained standing at the bottom of the stairs. Heather, from the sound of it, was still out. Grey made it as far as the bedroom door before Dave called out again. He stopped and stared down at him from the railing. He was already beginning to feel sluggish. Dave looked nervous.

"You know that thing with Nines?" Dave said. "Well, it's official."

"Something else to deal with later." Grey said with a slow nod. He was too tired to care about the consequences. "Good night, Dave."

He continued on into the bedroom to find the bed, for the first time in weeks, was made. He collapsed on to it without bothering to pull back the covers. He was dragged off to sleep soon after, sparing him the thought of what complications Lacroix's task and the blood hunt on Nines would bring.

Grey had a strange dream that morning, which was especially odd as he never dreamed. Not while sleeping, anyway. At least not that he could recall.

He found himself sitting in the Seaside Diner again, in the same booth he had occupied the night he had the vision about Dave's embrace. The diner was deserted save for the man sitting across from him, and the sunlight pouring through the window somehow managed to obscure his face. Grey squinted, but could only make out the man's long blond hair. The way the light hit it made it appear he had a halo.

Grey looked down, a bowl of something that was too thick to be tomato soup was sitting in front of him. A cup of something too dark to be coffee was sitting in front of the man. He kept his eyes on the blood-filled bowl.

"Why won't you leave me alone?"

"I can't help but be concerned for your well being," the man said mildly.

"You abandoned me!"

"That doesn't mean I don't care about you," his sire turned his palms out. "There were simply other places I needed to be, and you couldn't follow."

"So why are you here now?"

"I feel I owe you an apology." The dark substance in his coffee cup was trying to crawl out. He paused long enough to hit it with his spoon. "Even the best conditioning can wear away over time, though I know you had a little help. I couldn't tell you this until it did."

"What are you saying?" Though he hadn't touched it, the amount of red liquid in Grey's bowl was gradually decreasing.

"I'm saying that everything I did was for your own protection. There were many who disliked me for whatever reason, but they were afraid to act upon that. If they knew our ties, they would surely strike against you as a way to get to me. That was why I had to make them see something of myself in you."

"I don't understand."

His sire folded his hands together. Grey couldn't see his face, but he knew he was smiling. "The mirror never cracks the same way twice, but it's possible to tinker with the mind enough to make everyone- even you- see faults that are not there. Your choice of words for the past five years, up until recently, was all my doing."

"What?" Grey's voice echoed loudly in the empty diner. "Why?!"

"Because those who knew of your lineage would fear you for it, and those who didn't would think you a harmless, raving lunatic… I'd be lying if I said it didn't amuse me just a little as well." His sire stopped to idly turn the coffee cup. The black stuff inside trembled. "The rest was all you, I promise."

Grey put his head in his hands. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because time is running out," his sire said.

The bowl was empty now. Grey looked up. "Then what happens next?"

"That I can't tell you," his sire smiled. "You'll just have to see for yourself. Ah, and speaking of bad dreams…" The light pouring through the window grew bright. So bright that it blotted everything else out. All Grey could see was white, but he could still hear his sire's voice. "Our time is up."

"This doesn't help anything, you know!" Grey shouted into the light, but the diner and everything in it was gone.

And then he woke up.

When he stepped out of the bedroom, feeling particularly strange after the dream, Grey found Heather sitting on the couch with an unfamiliar man. Heather had changed clothes, though it was just another variation on college student casual. Grey couldn't make out much of the man from behind, though his voice sounded strangely familiar.

"So there I was, a whole pack of bodyguards on my tail, and who do I run into as I round the corner?"

It didn't click until Grey was near the bottom of the stairs. "Dave?"

Dave turned around, "Oh, hi Grey."

"Dave was just telling me about what he used to do," Heather said. She sounded apprehensive, as if Grey could suspect anything else. Hell, if Dave wanted to fool around with her he could care less. His only concern was how normal Dave suddenly looked.

Normal was probably stretching it. Dave's posture was still terrible, but it looked more like a bad slouch than the result of a twisted spine. His skin still had a sallow look to it, but it was free of boils. His teeth still looked bad, but they no longer appeared to be trying to flee from his mouth. Even his fingers, though still long and thin, were nowhere near as bad as they looked before. Ugly as he was, he could still pass for human.

Grey gestured vaguely at him. "How?"

He already knew how, in a way. Those more skilled in the art could move beyond hiding to influencing others into seeing them as whoever they wished. Rumors circulated that more than a few celebrity impersonators roaming LA were really Kindred of one clan or another in disguise. What surprised Grey was that Dave had picked up how to do it so quickly.

Dave shrugged in response to his question. "I dunno, it just sort of happened. I didn't want to freak Heather out anymore than I had-" He gave Grey a hard look for that. "So… Well, it's pretty much the same as hiding. I mean, the other way it's just making people not see me. This way it's making them see what I want… But I guess either way they kinda see what I want. Does that make sense?"

"Sure," Grey said. In the silence that followed he noticed the whispering over the cobweb was back. It was faint, so much so that he couldn't make out any of what was said, there was only the general undercurrent of tension. It was as if the whispering was to keep from drawing too much attention, but attention from whom? Of his own personal chorus there was no sign. He tried to tell himself he should be happy, but he still missed them.

"This should make things easier, right?" Dave said. "I mean, since we've gotta go to LA. I mean, not necessarily we. You could stay and-"

"No," Grey said, a little too quickly. "I'll go. I owe it to you to go."

The truth was the last thing he wanted was to spend quality time at home with his new ghoul. Even if he stayed behind and sent her away, he'd have the unnerving quiet within his own mind to deal with. He desperately needed a distraction. Hollywood would have to do.

"What about me?" Heather said.

"You'll stay here," Grey said.

Heather leapt up from the couch. "But I can be useful! I could protect you! I could give you money, look-" she dug into her pocket and shoved a small wad of cash at Grey. "That's all I've got, but it should help, right?"

"Yes," Grey said. He pocketed the money without a thought. "But it's still better if you stay behind. I'd feel much better knowing you were safe."

Heather looked crushed. "Okay… If you say so."

"Here," Grey said. "Let me make it up to you."

The last thing he needed was Heather running off or going into withdraw while they were away. He raised his wrist to his mouth and bit down. Blood welled slowly into the wound, and as he held his bleeding hand up to Heather the look of disgust the act had inspired was quickly chased away by desire. Grey lightly stroked her hair as she pressed her lips to the wound. There was nothing sensual for him in the act, not when Heather was merely human. As he silently counted to ten, he noticed Dave was watching him with wide eyes.

"I'll explain later," Grey said. He pried Heather off him and held her until her senses returned. "Now, Heather, will you be a good little ghoul why I'm away?"

"Of course," she sighed. "Anything you want. I… I think I need to sit down. I feel so… Everything's so intense."

"I have that affect on people," Grey said. He glanced to Dave, who looked utterly confused. "We should get going."

"What was that all about?" Dave asked once they were in the Taxi. It was the same car as before, as well as the same driver with the tacky sunglasses. He dutifully ignored their conversation as he drove.

"Ghouls have to be fed regularly," Grey said. "Otherwise they become regular mortals again. The transition period and the withdraw that goes with it are… Well, let's just say it could get very messy. The second drink reinforced her bond to me." He smiled as he watched the scenery melting past. "By the third, she'll be utterly devoted. Hopelessly."

"Does the same thing happen if one Kindred drinks from another?"

"Yes," Grey said. As soon as the word left his mouth he was reminded of the incident in the sewer. He quickly added, "But one drink wouldn't be anywhere near as potent as a full bond."

Dave was watching him closely. "But what effect does it have?"

Grey shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "It's just a… vague feeling of fondness. Very vague. Infinitesimal."

"Right…" Dave fell silent for a moment. "Sooo… All the stuff you've done for me before, including this… It's not just cause you drank my blood, is it?"

"Of course not!" Grey said. He wasn't all that certain, and it showed in his tone. He glanced to the rear view mirror, but it was impossible to tell if the driver was watching, or if he even cared. "I… We're still friends, Dave. And besides that, I was in a similar situation when I was embraced, but back then I didn't have the Camarilla to worry about. I didn't want you to go through… all that… alone."

"One night you're gonna have to tell me what the hell happened to you."

"I will," Grey said. "But for now we've got to see a man about a rat."

Dave nodded and finally turned his attention away from him. "This'll be the first time I've been in Hollywood since all this started."

"Well, it's not like anyone's going to recognize you."

"Yeah…"