Megamind and Minion stood in front of the furnace built at the back of their property, watching as the thick smoke slowly climbed up into the night sky. The stench was horrible, that of rotted, diseased death that could choke a person if you took in too deep a breath. This was why burning a vampires remains in the city was never a good idea, it would alert far too many people to the burning and the last thing they wanted was to have the body discovered.

Even if a vampire was ripped apart and left for dead, it could put itself back together and heal over time. Burning the remains properly, in a blessed furnace is what really destroyed them. One myth that ran through the family was that a vampires body was burned, but its head had been left and would shout insults at anyone who got too close. Of course, that was just a silly story to scare little boys before bedtime.

Didn't stop Megamind from sleeping with the light on in fears of the vampire head rolling out from under his bed or out of his closet, though.

"So what do we do, Sir?" Minion asked.

Megamind, at first, said nothing. He watched as the smoke continues to curl upwards towards the stars, and he remembered what the vampire had said. The children took him. The children? The children of who? Surely not... And that there would be more coming, that they were coming for him and the Family. Was he truly going to live through an uprising, like so many had come before? He hadn't gotten any notices of such activity from other Family members across the globe, and why attack the American settlements first? To take out the 'big guns' before moving onto Europe, Australasia and the other continents?

"Sir?" Minion asked again, reaching out to touch Megamind's shoulder.

"We need to contact everyone in the city." Megamind said gravely.

"Everyone?" Minion blinked, eyes widening. "But that's at least one hundred people, easy!" he gaped.

"Yes. We need to relay this information onto all of them, that Father might be alive, that more vampires are moving in, and they're hunting us down. Send word to the Family. This just got serious."

"Vampire hunting is already a pretty serious business..." Minion mumbled as he walked away, back towards the house.

"Serious business." Megamind muttered to himself before finally turning, and followed Minion in towards the house. He pulled out his phone and pressed a button or two before putting his phone to the ear. Another answering machine. "Roxanne, Megamind again. Listen to me, do not answer the door to anyone. Do not invite anyone in. One of them can't come into your house unless you invite them, or allow them. Call me, please." he said, before hanging up and walked through into the house.

He dialed another number. "Wayne?"

"Megamind, hey! How you going?" Wayne asked. In the background, Megamind could hear music blaring. Was he at a club?

"Great. Look, get home as fast as you can." Megamind said as he shut the door behind him.

"What, what happened?" the older of the two obviously sounded worried. Megamind rarely told him to come right home unless something bad had happened.

"I got some information I rather tell you in person. See you soon?" he asked.

"Yeah sure I'll... I'll be there soon." and as soon as Megamind had hung up the phone, Wayne was in front of him. "What happened?" he asked.

Once upon a time Wayne's super speed would have freaked Megamind out, causing him to yell and scream like a little girl. Those days were long since gone, so when Megamind turned to see his brother standing there it wasn't a shock. "Father was alive when they took him." he said grimly.

"What?" Wayne demanded, eyes narrowing.

"I fought a voyeur tonight, and he was there in the forest when they jumped Father and me." Megamind said, "Said he knew Father hurt me to make me run, and that... that the children had taken Father."

Wayne stood there in his outfit in shock. "The children." he mumbled. "No... no, no..."

"It's what he said." Megamind said quietly.

"But there's not meant to be anymore. They were all killed in 1849! We have the documents, the remains!" Wayne was obviously in distress, the way his voice shook like that, since it never did so unless he was truly worried or scared.

"They must have made MORE." Megamind countered.

"But for that to happen-" Wayne started.

"They're back. That's why there's been an influx of vampires in town. They've made more children and they're coming, he told me the Family will fall." Megamind explained.

"They say that every time they try to overthrow the Family." Wayne frowned.

"I know but a war is coming. A war, Wayne."

Wayne turned away and gripped at his head with one of his hands. This was heavy news to take in. This would mean many, many meetings with the Family members and their connections. They might even have to gather the whole Family together again, to relay information and prepare for a battle he had hoped he would never, ever see. Even if his brother was very, very good at what he did every time Megamind came home with a dislocated arm, fractured ribs, and bruises to his body was an agony for Wayne. Why had he been the one to be gifted with such strength and invulnerability? Why not his brother, who goes out all nights to do this stupid task given to them?

He didn't like his train of thought so he got off at the closest station and turned to look at his brother. "Is Minion sending word?"

"As we speak. I've called Roxanne to tell her not to answer the door to anyone, and Bernard already knows the basics."

"Bernard. Yes." Wayne mumbled as he looked away.

Megamind watched his brother for a moment, before frowning. "What is it?" he asked.

"Uh? Nothing." replied Wayne quickly.

"Don't give me that. I know that look. You're worried. I know you are, I mean. War is Hell. And it looks like they're going to be choosing Metro City to be the war ground." Megamind said.

"Funny thing is, I'm... not worried over that. Not as much as I thought I would be." he admitted.

"So what are you worrying about?" Megamind asked. "If not the lives of countless innocents who could die because of this stupid war?"

Wayne sighed, and gave his brother a look that would to some, be completely lost. Megamind however, understood. He stared back at his brother, before sighing and sagged forward. Minion had been right, they were so much alike in some aspects. Damn his fish for being so perceptive of people and their habits!

"...I'm scared for her, too." he mumbled quietly.

"And I'm scared for him." Wayne said.

"And I'm scared for BOTH of you!" Minion suddenly hurried in on the two and threw his gorilla arms around the two, pulling them into a sudden embrace. "A war, really? Is that what this is escalating to?"

"Minion it's already been an ongoing war for thousands of years." Megamind said, trying to catch his breath back since Minion's hugs were known to be back breaking for him.

"Come on Minion, let the boy breath." Wayne said, easing the arm looser on the blue man. "There."

"So what are we doing, what are we going to do?" Minion asked.

"We've done what's right so far. We've alerted the Family, and our contacts. Now we wait for information to relay back from the Family and hope for the best." Megamind said.

Wayne nodded, before looking at his watch. "I better get back before the guys begin to wonder why I'm in the bathroom for so long."

"Where were you anyway?" Megamind asked.

"Celebratory club visit for being hired as a fireman. Job starts tomorrow." Wayne shrugged. "But you call me if anything major happens. Right?" he said, pointing at Megamind.

"Right." Megamind replied.

And with that he was gone.

"He's getting quicker every year." Minion commented.

"I know." frowned Megamind.

~*~

"Honey, I'm home." Bernard pushed the door open to his apartment and walked through, before dropping his shoulder bag onto the floor. He stood there momentarily, before sighing. "Oh that's right. I'm not married." he said before turning the lights on, and made his way down the hallway into the entertainment area of his apartment.

It was small, but to his liking. The kitchen, dining, and entertainment room was pretty much just one whole room. Through one door way it lead to his bedroom where a Queen sized bed waited eagerly for him to climb into. Another door went into the bathroom where his washing machine and washing line hung.

Bernard made his way into his bedroom, shedding his blazer and pulled his turtle neck off to pull on a simple t-shirt after a long day's work. He was just pulling his pants off when he heard a knock at the door. Quickly he pulled on some loose baggy pants before making his way into the dining room. He sniffed at the air, and knew who it was right away without needing to ask.

He pulled the door open and was surprised to see Wayne was wearing half a fire fighter's outfit. And standing at his door. Even if he knew it was him since he knew his smell so well and it wasn't being over powered by any library smell unlike earlier that day. "Wayne." he said slowly, eyeing the clothing he wore since it was especially tight looking in some areas that Megamind, naturally, hadn't paid any attention to. "Have you become a strip-o-gram?" he asked. Hopefully. But a quiet kind of hopefully.

"Hah, no. No. Sorry." he shrugged before Bernard let him through into the apartment, closing the door behind him.

"So to what do I owe the pleasure of your company twice in one day?" Bernard asked as he followed the Greek God bodied man. "Do you want a drink? Sandwich?" To lick cream off of my body?

Wayne shook his head before he turned to look at the shorter man with a look of worry on his face. "No, thank you though. I just thought it better to... to just talk to you for a while."

"Uh okay?" Bernard asked, unsure of how to feel about this. He'd never had Wayne in his apartment before; how had he found it? Oh, duh. No doubt he has all his contact details within easy access.

"Can we sit?" Wayne asked, pointing to the couch.

After confirmation both men moved to the couch and sat. "You just caught me changing." Bernard admitted. "Just got in."

"Sorry." Wayne apologized.

"No it's fine. So what is it?" he asked. "What's wrong, and who do I have to bite to fix it? Granted, you'll have to wait until the next full Moon for me to do some real damage but I'd still bite a guy. Or girl. I'm fine with biting girls."

Wayne gave a weak laugh, and shook his head. "No, no. Thanks though, that's really... sweet?"

"I try." Bernard shrugged.

"Look. You've been a great help, and friend, a really good one of them, for a while now. You know I really appreciate that, right?" Wayne asked.

Bernard wasn't sure where this was leading, and the way Wayne's heart was beating faster or the slight dose of sweat on his forehead was matters for concern. But he was a genius when it came to masking his emotions, so he just sat there, waiting. "Yes. I do." he confirmed since, in a way, he knew. Even if Megamind and he rarely saw eye to eye on matters, he knew the vigilante respected him to some regard.

"Things might be getting more dangerous." admitted Wayne. "Megamind, tonight, was told our... our Father was alive when he was attacked. And not only that but they'll becoming for us, the Family and... our friends." he said, looking at Wayne now. "You might be in danger."

"I'm not weak." Bernard said flatly. "Megamind taught me how to handle a stake, and I'm not exactly frail. Even if that bastard who gave that blood did screw my life over he also gave me a lot of strength. You know that."

"I know that, I know. But you're not like me. You can get hurt." Wayne said. "And I don't want you to get hurt in a war that was never yours to begin with. I couldn't..." he hesitated, before looking at his hands. "I couldn't really stand to see you get hurt. You or, or anyone." he added.

Bernard blinked in surprise, before enjoying a small, private smile to himself. This was actually quite touching, if misplaced.

"I appreciate that." he said before daring himself to reach over, to touch the man's large hand. He wanted to, he had wanted to do something like this for so long but never knew how the other would react to something like that. This was an important part of their life, a point in their knowing each other, and he wasn't going to allow it to rush past him. So he did it. He reached over, and placed his hand on Wayne's. "I do. But what is it that you're really saying?" he asked, tilting his head forward to peer up at Wayne's face who was angled away from him. "Do you want me to stop helping you?"

"I don't... No. I don't know..." Wayne said, eyes on the hand suddenly on his own. It brought both calm, and panic. Bernard had never been the touchy feely type, so this was a surprise.

"Because it sounds to me like you want me to stop helping you so I'd be safe." Bernard pointed out, now rubbing Wayne's hand before trailing his hand up the man's wrist and forearm as he slowly shifted himself closer to him on the couch. "And I'm afraid I can't do that."

"Why not?" asked Wayne, turning his head to look at Bernard now.

"Because if I do, I run the risk of you or your brother coming to me and erasing my memory." Bernard said flatly.

"What, no! I wouldn't- Megamind wouldn't-"

"He would. I know he would. You know he's never been fond of me because of all I am." Bernard explained. "And it's because that's the law. Any ally who has run out their usefulness has their memory wiped, and altered, so they don't remember."

Wayne sighed. However much he hated it, Bernard had a point. "I know. I know, you're right. You're always right when it comes down to fine details."

"I'm a librarian. It's kind of my job." Bernard smiled slightly before sighing. "So. I'm sorry but I'm going to have to turn down your offer to stop helping you because it would mean forgetting you. Plus, I'd have to find a whole new safe room to suit up and do you know how expensive metal bars, leather, and chains are?" he asked.

This got a grand laugh out of Wayne, and it was one of those highly contagious ones. It was one of the many, many things Bernard found enchanting around the massive man with a huge heart, and super strength. No matter how hard he tried not to laugh whenever Wayne did, he always lost in the end. It happened again here, since he was soon chuckling, and then laughing along with Wayne. Their laughter had to end eventually, and they soon petered into a silence that was actually quite pleasant, and not at all awkward.

"I really did mean it." Wayne said, afterwards.

"Mean what?" Bernard asked.

"That I appreciate you." Wayne clarified as he turned in his seat so he was now facing Bernard properly on the couch. "I wasn't joking when I said that."

"I... no?" Bernard was suddenly painfully aware how close they were now sitting on the couch.

"No. I wasn't. When I first saw you I didn't see a monster, like you think of yourself. Don't try to interrupt; I know you still think that way. Like I said, I didn't see that. I saw somebody who needed my help. Somebody who was lost, and when you came to, naked and half blind without your glasses the next morning, it only cemented more to me how much help you needed. Turns out though, that... I think I needed you more than you needed me." Wayne explained as he found his hand covering Bernard's this time, and he was incapable of breaking eye contact with the other man.

"You've been a great help to our cause, yes. Your nose is brilliant, and you are strong but you're worth more then that to me. You make things seem so more... interesting? Calming? You do everything for me by doing so little and that really means the world to me." Wayne paused, before frowning slightly. "Wait. Let me rephrase that." he tried again. "You mean the world to me. Without you, I don't know what I'd be like. And I've wanted to say this to you for ages but I've never found the right time or place to do it, so I guess in a way you should be thankful a war's coming or else I probably would never have spilled the beans like this. So..." he trailed off into silence momentarily as he read Bernard's blank expression as best as he could.

"...What do you think, about that?" he asked.

"Are you telling me that you like me? A lot?" Bernard asked.

"Yes. That's what I'm saying." Wayne nodded.

"That you've wanted to say this for a while, and only just how grew the galls to tell me?" pressed Bernard.

Wayne flushed, and nodded. "Yes, that's... that's it."

"And now you're asking me, now, what I think about the whole thing or just how you feel about me?" asked Bernard.

"Just... how I feel about you. I can understand if you don't feel anything back I mean, I'm not sure I'm not exactly what-"

His rambling, since that's what it clearly was, found itself interrupted when Bernard all but threw himself onto him. While it was common knowledge to those who really knew Wayne that he was incredibly strong and the type of man who could topple a building if he so wanted to, he found himself falling backwards against the couch by Bernard's weight, and strength, pushing down against him. It was this alone that startled him at first, but when Bernard's mouth covered his own in a heated, unexpected kiss, all but blew his mind away.

And then it was over before he had a chance to even participate properly. But he probably needed the opportunity to breath, and stare at Bernard in silent shock.

"You talk too much." Bernard said as he trailed one hand down Wayne's chest, smiling faintly. "As you no doubt have become painfully aware of... I feel the same way about you too. So how do you want to do this, do you want to date me or just sleep with me?"

"What?" Wayne asked, shocked.

"Do you want to do the dating scene, or just get physical with me? I just want to know." he sat up slowly, adjusting his glasses since they had become skewed during the kiss.

"I... I'd like to date you?" Wayne asked, unsure if that was the answer Bernard was after.

Bernard observed him for a moment before he smiled at him softly, and sighed heavily. "You know. I never thought I'd have a chance to do either of those things. Despite my incredibly confident ways, I'm pretty pathetic when it comes to this sort of thing. After becoming what I do, I thought nobody would ever see me past the monster I am. Don't tell me I'm not a monster, because I am. Every month for a night I become a monster, and for a while that was all I thought I was but you..." he prodded Wayne's chest with his finger. "...You saw past that and saw me as a person. You were the first person to do that, and that pretty much cemented my feelings for you. So. Yeah. I've liked you for a long time but thought you'd never be interested seeing what I am."

"That doesn't matter to me." Wayne said as he reached up and adjusted Bernard's shirt collar since it had become a little displaced. "You know that by now, right?"

"I know that now. But I always thought..." he trailed off and scoffed before waving a hand in front of his face, as if clearing the air of a bad smell. "You know what, forget the past. It's past. What's happening now is far more interesting."

"I agree." Wayne smiled up at him before glancing at the man, his... what. Boyfriend? Lover? It was all suddenly so exciting, he was glad he had ditched the party and came around here to speak to Bernard instead of heading back there.

Probably the best decision he had ever made in his life, and that was confirmed all the more when he gently tugged Bernard back down on top of him, and kissed him this time, just to even the odds.

to be continued