AN – Wow, thank you soo much for all the positive feedback on the last chapter! Sorry the update was slower than usual (especially sorry Aimless and Cailin!) I'll promise that they'll be another chapter along very soon. To Shady Lady, no Rich won't get sick. I have something entirely different in mind for him (evil grin) and to everyone else, don't you know by now that the only reason I torture Richie is so that Duncan can make it all better!!
French bits – Le pauvre, the poor thing.
***
"Mac, I can explain." Richie said anxiously.
Duncan took in his wide eyes and pinched, white, expression and realised that the lad had entirely misunderstood.
"Richie, I'm not angry with you."
The teen cast him a wary glance.
"You don't look very pleased." He observed.
"Well, no," Duncan agreed. "But then, I've never taken it kindly when someone lays a hand on one of my own."
Richie looked up in surprise.
"I thought .. I mean .. I cut class and everything."
"Rich, you gave me your word you would do your best, so if you cut class, I'm assuming you had a very good reason," Duncan allowed. "Am I wrong?"
Richie looked up at him. Hope warring with uncertainty in his eyes.
"I really can explain." He said earnestly.
"First things first," Duncan decided. "Do you have any other bruises, I should know about?"
"I didn't even realise I had those ones." Richie muttered sourly.
"Alright. Let's get you out of those wet things and then we'll talk."
Duncan couldn't decide if the way Richie meekly allowed him to help him out of the rest of his clothes was a promising sign, that the lad trusted him to take care of him. Or a worrying indication that he was still too cowed by his show of anger to say him nay.
"I'm not wearing those." Richie looked at the flannel pyjamas with flat denial.
Duncan bit back a grin. Not that cowed then.
"They're warm and they're comfortable." He pointed out.
"So are Tessa's pink woollen dance tights, but I don't see you wearing them." Richie shot back.
"No one will see you." Duncan reasoned.
"You'll see me. And Tessa. And worse, Tessa will think I look cute, and then there'll be photographs and soon the whole world will know," Richie crossed his arms. "I'll be on billboards before you know it."
"If you put these on, I'll let you wear my dressing gown," Duncan bargained. "No one will even be able to see what is underneath."
"Promise?" Richie still looked uncertain.
"My word on it." Duncan assured him.
***
"Will you keep your voice down?" Duncan hissed. "You'll wake him."
"But he looks so adorable," Tessa declared. "Just let me fetch my camera."
"I heard that," Richie murmured sleepily from the couch. "I am not adorable."
"You're certainly not looking your best," Duncan peered critically at the teen. "Are you sure you're warm enough? Shall I put another log on?"
"Only if you want to burn down the barge." Richie eyed the blazing fireplace nervously.
"Do you need another blanket? A drop more soup mebbe?" Duncan worried.
"I knew I should have worn one of those hats Tessa bought." Richie muttered.
"You'd rather I left you to take sick I suppose?" Duncan scoffed.
"And the gloves, I should definitely have worn the gloves."
"What you should have done, is you should have come home." Duncan scolded.
"I thought you weren't mad at me?" Richie looked away.
"I'm not." Duncan took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair.
Silence reigned for a full thirty seconds before Richie said in a small voice.
"You look mad."
"I'm not mad, Rich. I'm hurt," Duncan admitted. "You run away from trouble, you run to me. You don't take a sightseeing tour in the worst rainstorm to hit Paris in living memory, you come home."
"But I did," Richie protested. "I'm here, aren't I?"
Duncan paused. The lad had a point. He hadn't run away. He had run home.
Eventually.
He supposed that was progress. Of a sort.
"Did you have to take the scenic route?"
Richie looked up at the conciliatory tone.
"I was afraid," he admitted quietly.
Richie hadn't thought it was possible for an Immortal to look so pale. Not unless they were actually dead.
"Ye were afraid of me?" Duncan asked hoarsely.
***
"Mac, will you calm down?" Richie protested at the pacing Immortal. "I didn't mean it like that."
"Exactly how many ways are there to mean it?" Duncan demanded. "You're afraid of me."
"Oh let me count," Richie shot back. "Am I afraid that you will behead me whilst I sleep? No. Am I afraid that you will throw me out onto the street with nothing more than the shirt on my back? No. Am I afraid that you will take my take my fears and weaknesses and use them against me? No. Am I afraid that you will beat me until the blood runs down my legs? No. Am I afraid that you will come into my room at night and want to prove how much you love me? No."
Duncan had stopped pacing and was looking at him, horrified.
"I'd no more dream any of that than .." he trailed off.
"I have had foster fathers who have done all of those things, at one time or another." Richie confirmed.
"All of that?" Tessa stood in the doorway, her hand to her mouth, the camera hanging forgotten from her arm, "Oh Richie .."
"Well, apart from the beheading, obviously," Richie shrugged. "But the rest, yeah."
"Why have you not spoken of this before?" Tessa came and sat by him on the arm of the couch.
"Because I didn't have to," Richie admitted. "And .. I was afraid .. of what you would think of me, if you knew."
"Oh," Duncan realised.
"Now he gets it," Richie groaned. "I swear Mac, how you ever lasted 400 years…."
"So why now?" Duncan needed to know. "Why tell us today?"
Richie shifted in his seat. "The priest said .."
"You spoke to Darius?" Duncan blinked.
"Not unless he's lost a few centuries and gained a few pounds," Richie shook his head. "There are other priests in Paris, Mac."
"I know that," Duncan told him. "I just didn't know you knew any of them."
"I didn't," Richie shrugged. "Until today."
"What happened today Richie?" Tessa asked gently.
***
"I thought he was dead," Richie said quietly. "No, screw that, I knew he was dead. That car crash was the lead story on the local evening news."
"Yet you saw this man today?" Tessa cast a concerned look at Duncan.
"I'm pretty sure it was him, what with him looking exactly the same and all." Richie agreed.
"Exactly, the same?" Duncan blinked.
"Well, he'd ditched the sideburns and the 70's sports jacket. But otherwise. Yeah." Richie nodded.
"He had not aged?" Tessa spoke with dawning realisation. "Then, he is like you?" Tessa looked at Duncan.
Duncan hid his frown. If this man was Immortal, he would have known what Richie was. What he would be. Even if he had died a mortal death, what was he thinking, to abandon the child to be found by the likes of Slan Quince – or worse?
"He may be Immortal. But he's not like Mac." Richie vowed darkly.
His tone brought Duncan's head up sharply.
"How do you know him Richie?"
"He teaches French History at the College," Richie said blithely. "And get this, he's Marc's Dad. I mean, what are the odds?"
"And how did you know him before?" Duncan insisted.
Richie took a deep, shuddering, breath. "He was my foster father." he admitted quietly.
Duncan sat up a little straighter. It was clear that Richie did not have very good memories of any of his foster fathers.
"Was he good to you?" Tessa was asking hopefully
"He made me eat broccoli," Richie hedged. "I hate broccoli."
"You told me you were allergic to it!" Tessa protested
"It makes me feel sick, if that's not an allergic reaction I don't know what is." Richie retorted.
"Did you speak to him?" Duncan wanted to know.
"Yeah," Richie rubbed absently at his arm. "He wasn't too pleased to see me."
"That's how you got the bruises?" Tessa realised.
"I guess he wanted to make an impression," Richie made a face. "Apparently, he's been keeping tabs on my life, I don't know why, its not like he could send me a birthday card or anything. Anyway, seems I've managed to live down to all his expectations."
And suddenly, Duncan realised, beyond all doubt, exactly who this man was.
Still, best to be sure.
"Richie, how old were you when you were in his care?" he asked carefully.
"Fourteen," Richie said hollowly.
"This is the man who said no father could ever be proud of you?" Tessa realised.
"The very same." Duncan growled.
***
"No, Mac!" Richie was on his feet. "You told me you wouldn't do this. No reaping vengeance down to the third generation. Remember?"
"And you told me, he was dead," Duncan shot back, picking up his sword. "Guess we were both wrong."
"He was dead," Richie protested. "It just wasn't permanent."
"I can change that." Duncan shrugged into his coat.
"Whoa, Mac. Chill," Richie held up his hands. "You don't gotta do this. Its just a few bruises. I've had worse."
Richie gulped at the look of thunder Macleod sent his way. Clearly that had not been the right thing to say.
"Stay here." Duncan ordered.
"Mac, please, I don't want you to do this. Not on my account." Richie begged.
"He hurt ye before," Duncan reminded the teen. "I won't let him near you again."
"Could we not speak to the Police?" Tessa suggested. "Get him to stay away from Richie?"
"No!" Richie vetoed that sharply. "No Police."
"And tell them what?" Duncan demanded. "I want to report this man for something he did in a previous life?"
"So, you're just going to off this guy? For what? Because he's a jerk?" Richie tried.
"Richie, is right," Tessa put in. "Would this be your solution if this man were mortal?"
"If he were mortal, he'd already be dead." Duncan said curtly.
He looked hard at Richie.
"Don't follow me."
***
"Damn, Damn, Damn." Richie swore as soon the door closed behind the Immortal. "I can't let Mac challenge him, he'll tell him." Richie voice cracked.
"This man will kill him?" Tessa misheard, and her voice rose in panic.
"No, Tess. He'll tell Mac," Richie repeated, throwing off the dressing gown and starting to force first one and then the other bare foot into his battered sneakers, drying by the fire. "And then Mac'll think I lied to him and he'll never trust me again."
Duncan's mid-length leather coat covered the worst of his night attire. Stripy pyjama bottoms were still plainly evident on his lower legs. But hopefully he wouldn't actually get arrested.
"Slow down Richie," Tessa protested. "Tell him what?"
"He said, that if anyone found out about him and me from before, he'd make sure the whole world knew the truth about me."
"But surely this is dangerous for him?" Tessa reasoned. "He cannot tell people who you are, without explaining how he knows this?"
"He could tell Mac." Richie said flatly.
"But we know who you are." Tessa didn't see a problem.
"Tess, he knew stuff about me that even I'd forgotten," Richie swallowed and looked at the floor. "I kinda went off the rails a bit after he .. dumped me. There are things I haven't told you guys."
"You know that nothing this man can say will change the way Duncan feels about you, don't you?" Tessa asked gently.
"Are you sure about that?" Richie swallowed.
"You are not?" Tessa looked up sharply.
"When I was fifteen, I spent nine months in Juvie." Richie said flatly. "I'm not even sure how I feel about that."
"Nine months?" Tessa looked shocked. "Whatever for?"
Richie swallowed hard and added the unbearable bit. "Armed robbery, I shot someone."