Anger Management

Frankenstein stepped out of the elevator just in time to see Regis rush past him. A scowl gripped his face, twisting it in anger, and the boy did not even deign him a sole glance as he passed. The behavior was discourteous, but that wasn't what caught his attention; under the ire lay a hurt expression in Regis' eyes. For a moment, he considered calling out to the young noble, but he was aware of the man standing at the other end of the hallway. Regis would not be able to face him right now. An expression far more irate than Regis' masked M-21's face, and it slowly turned into confusion when the boy didn't return. Whatever had been said, this time the enhanced human seemed to have gone too far.

"M-21, a word." Frankenstein met his eyes, holding his gaze and sealing any chance to escape. He walked past M-21, through the living room, and only when he reached the door did he turn back to his subordinate. "Come with me."

M-21 followed him without asking for the destination; he never asked anything. But Frankenstein could see that the other man uncomfortably glance at him on occasion, and it seemed like he was asking himself if he was in trouble.

Frankenstein wove through the streets for a long time before he decided to speak. "Your temper has been worse than usual lately." With that he stopped outside of a building and turned back to face M-21. "It needs improvement."

"If it's about Regis, I fully intend to apologize to him."

Frankenstein wondered shortly what exactly had been spoken between the two of them, but that wasn't important right now. He was sure that the enhanced human and the young noble would be on speaking terms in the course of the evening. But that didn't change the fact that M-21 needed to behave. "That the incident happened at all concerns me."

"It wasn't that bad." M-21 swallowed, uncertain how true those words were. Regis had looked shocked and angered and disheartened all at the same time. It was difficult to describe the betrayal in his eyes. M-21 followed Frankenstein into the building and tried not to admit to himself that this may be a bigger problem than he had realized.

Frankenstein didn't even honor M-21's words with an answer, leaving the younger man to his own thoughts as he lead the way down corridor. By the looks of it, Frankenstein had been here for quite a few times and knew exactly where he had to go to. M-21, on the other hand, was still trying to figure out what he would find at the end of the road. It didn't take long until Frankenstein stopped in front of a door, and the enhanced human saw a sign outside the room. "Course: Anger Management"

"You're kidding." M-21 growled but restrained himself enough not to upset the boss.

"You need to learn to control your temper." Frankenstein pushed open the door and began to arrange the chairs into a circle. "This class is designed to teach you just that."

"I'm not doing it."

Frankenstein stopped arranging chairs for just an instant to send him a measuring glare. M-21 sighed, and his shoulders dropped. He didn't manage to live this long without knowing when he was defeated. He would just sit here and listen to whatever would be taught. That much was safer than angering Frankenstein. Satisfied, the older man nodded to the chairs. "Just sit down until the others arrive."

M-21 obediently dropped into a chair and leaned forward so that his arms rested on his knees. He nervously glanced at the door then back to Frankenstein. "So, you actually take anger management courses?"

"Of course not!" Frankenstein answered indignantly, finally content with the way the chairs were settled. "I give them."

"You?" M-21 smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. Frankenstein of all people wanted to show others how to take care of their anger issues? "You need them more than I do."

"Pardon me?" Frankenstein asked politely, but M-21 didn't need his enhanced sensory perceptions to feel that the atmosphere had changed.

"Yeah." M-21 grinned, rubbing it in just a little. "You lose your temper the second someone mentions your master."

Frankenstein's eyes narrowed into thin slits as they turned toward his victim, and his lips twisted into a threatening smile. "What are you saying about my master?"

"Nothing. I said nothing about him." M-21's words alone would have been innocent, but he said them with a smirk playing around his lips. He didn't think that he would be able to win this verbal power struggle in the long run, but it was entertaining at the moment and kept his thoughts from the forced anger management course.

"Perhaps you mean me personally." His voice took on an edge, and any answer at this point would not pacify him. Flecks of power sparked from his fingertips as it began to manifest.

M-21 gulped, but he had come too far to back down now. So he straightened his back, trying his hardest to seem unimpressed by the oppressive aura coming from the other man.

The door behind them cracked open, and Frankenstein immediately transformed into another man. "It is good to see you again! We have a new student today."

M-21 nodded awkwardly to the newcomer and returned his eyes to the boss. It wasn't that Frankenstein couldn't control his temper; it was that he controlled it too well. Maybe he could learn something from that man.