The walk down the hall is silent, neither Will nor myself choosing to take a glance at the other. I'm sure in someway he is mildly upset by my outburst, good leaders are not generally known for such things and in the event of him being incapacitated I would be the pack leader. We continue to walk until we finally arrive at my office door.
"You know," Will finally speaks, his voice quiet, "That was a bit…. excessive."
I choose to remain silent until the door opens. Will passes through the door, I follow politely after him, ensure the door is shut and securely locked. "Perhaps it was," I answer, "but perhaps it was needed to drive the lesson home. He had a good three inches of neck remaining before it became excessive in my opinion."
As Will sits in a leather armchair, I move towards a dresser. Years ago I realized that having extra clothes at work is a good thing, especially when one is prone to becoming sliced, spattered and covered in bits of gore. Everything in the dresser is black; black shirts, black pants, black sweaters. Everything matches everything else, making a clothing change easy. I select clothing identical to what I am wearing and move behind a dressing screen set up in a corner. It gives me a moment of privacy to collect myself, to focus my thoughts. For so many years I have been able to remain celibate, to focus only on my skills and training. After 200 years, I thought I was free of wayward thoughts, thinking my youthful miscreant ways would supply my soul with more than enough wickedness to last a lifetime. Instead it seems my chaste life can only span a certain amount of time before my mind forcefully wanders where it wants. It only made me appreciate monks and nuns more. Lately my mind has been more apt to wander when around Will. Logically it's understandable, he is exactly what I was attracted to in my younger days. I sigh heavily as I slip my shirt and camisole over my head.
"Are you alright back there Ash?" Will intones, his voice smooth, seeming to fill up my ears.
I can feel my cheeks flush a hot red as I manage to peer around the screen. "Uhh…yeah…just…" A quick excuse is needed. "This was one of my favorite shirts." I manage to sputter out. Paired with a half-assed smile, I'm sure the delivery and the statement do nothing more than make him wonder what exactly is wrong with me. Before he can further question I pull my head back behind the screen, but not before feeling the afterglow from gazing at Will.
Tonight he was wearing a dark red dress shirt; the material was slightly iridescent and looked soft to the touch. His hair is loose tonight, allowing it to just brush his jawbone in dark, jet-black waves. Sometimes he wore it back in a loose, low ponytail. I much preferred it down. It perfectly framed his face, although his face needed nothing added to it to increase its appeal. The structure of his face was almost as if a classic Roman sculptor chiseled it from marble; perfectly oval, a strong but not overly developed nose, full but not obscenely so lips and smooth, pale skin. In fact, a sculptor could have carved his whole body. He stood just over five feet eleven inches and was muscular enough you didn't doubt he was a male, but not to the point you began wondering how much time he spent in the gym. Yes, in my younger days he was exactly the kind of mark I was drawn to, was fascinated with, and sometimes even obsessed with. I quickly returned to dressing before my actions caught his attention.
"Oh hey, I forgot something." As I move from behind the screen Will stands, reaching in his pants pocket and producing a small, black velvet pouch. Grinning slightly he hands it to me. "I saw this the other day."
Opening the pouch, I slide its contents onto my hand. A silver Celtic knot charm attached to a silver chain.