Day 4: Shopping
"Hey, Tesla!" Kate straightened from where she was bending over the clearance rack. "I found the perfect gift for you to give to Magnus."
Nikola turned, taking an effort to avoid touching any of the numerous clamoring shoppers around him. This place was a nightmare: a huge mall downtown filled with loud annoying people from top to bottom, all of them buying the cheapest and most ridiculous things to give to their loved ones for Christmas.
Why on earth they were stopping here during their shopping trip through the city, Nikola didn't know. Surely Helen had better taste than anything sold by this… establishment.
"Check it out," Kate said, and pulled out a very battered stuffed vampire, felt fangs grinning. "I think it fell back here after Halloween and no one noticed it."
Nikola sneered. "As if I'd ever give Helen – " He was interrupted by a middle-aged man jostling him, and hissed at the man's retreating back.
"Hey, don't vamp out at the mall," Kate urged. "I already had to promise Magnus I'd keep you away from anything you could brag about inventing."
"What, you mean the whole store?"
"Oh man, here we go," Henry muttered as he came over. He brightened when he saw what Kate held. "Dude, I'm gonna get that and put it where Tesla has to look at it all day."
"I'm right here, you know," Nikola said, annoyed.
Kate poked the vampire. "He's a little beat up. Look, his cape is all wrinkled." She held him up. "Don't be ridiculous, you children wouldn't know good tailoring if it beat you over the heads!" she said, wiggling the vampire at Henry. "Did I mention I'm sleeping with your boss?"
Even Nikola had to admit the impression wasn't too far off, but that didn't stop him from hissing again and making a grab for the toy, intending to shred it to pieces.
"Hey!" Kate protested, shielding it. "Keep your claws to yourself."
"Yeah, come on," Henry chimed in. "After all, you know what the doc says…"
"Sanctuary for all is not an empty motto," they finished together.
Nikola growled before spinning on his heel and stalking out. Behind him, he heard Henry and Kate collapse into a fit of laughter.
Close proximity to Nikola proved rather dangerous to the little stuffed vampire's survival, so a few weeks later, Helen rescued it and transferred it to a shelf in her private office. Nikola would have preferred it be stuck away someplace in a dusty attic, but Helen seemed so amused at the whole affair that he didn't complain.
After all, he was still her favorite vampire.