Empty Room With A Song

by death-in-the-orchard

Alexander Anderson, the high school senior, quarterback, rich kid; clashes with the withdrawn, troubled teen who goes by the name Hell Dog or Alucard on the streets and by Vlad at school...here is their struggle to survive. Note: This is not yaoi.

5. Chapter 5

please excuse the language

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"God fuck it all to Hell." Vlad murmured with a cough he didn't bother covering as he slunk into the shadows by the walls inside the police station, and pinned himself up against one, hoping to blend in like a chameleon. Anderson stood in the dead spotlight where he was in plain view of the stares the two were receiving. The green eyes narrowed into a glare at the disgusting new curse phrase Vlad had come up with. Vlad coughed again, muttering to himself crossly. "Damn it. I shouldn't have agreed to this…I need to get home, damn it. Who knows what's going to be left when I get there? The rent… Goddamn it all…"

"Shut up Vlad." Anderson shot off the end of the boy's sentence with his sharp words, earning a hiss. "Get away from the wall. You look like a…loon the way you are." He had almost said freak, but there was such a bitter aftertaste in the word that he couldn't spit it out.

Vlad grumbled something that Anderson couldn't make out and then darted further along the wall, aiming to follow Integra as he brushed off some dirt that still clung to his sweatshirt. Anderson sighed but caught up and walked beside the teen as they continued. The staring police officers were quiet, but they began to return to their festivities gradually as time went on and the tub of ice that was keeping the drinks cool began to melt. It started to rain outside, as the boy's heard it hit the roof and a nearby window. The clouds darkened the sky as stars began to appear.

"Do you want to get some food? You didn't eat lunch, did you?" Anderson offered, in an attempt to draw the dark haired teen away from the wall. His eye twitched at the abnormal behavior.

"Stupid fat ass, all you think about is food… You're a retard for taking me here…. And I still hate your guts for this." Vlad denied his suggestion, his eyes darting around cautiously as the shadows thinned out and he was left exposed in the raw light.

Anderson sighed when he saw that the boy was tempted to go backtrack just to remain in the wall's shadow. "Oh, come off it, Vlad. You're being stupid…" His mouth jerked up at the edges and he stealthily approached the unguarded back. "Enjoy the party." He smirked with these words, taking hold of the thin shoulders and steering the boy quickly into a darkened side office.

Vlad stiffened as he saw the collection of people playing a video game, and even though it was much darker in the room, he wished that he could go back into the bright part of the hallway. Anything but this small space with only one escape route.

*~*~::..+..::~*~*

Integra was pouring herself a little wine that had already been passed around amongst most of her officers. She swirled it in her stubby glass, eyeing the bottle before she decided to take a sip. But when the glass reached her lips the bottle was lifted from her desk by a familiar, pale hand, and she frowned, lowering her glass to look at the boy. "What do you think you are doing, Vladimir?"

The boy smiled wryly and swung the bottle in a tight circle, then stopped it to hear and feel the liquid move. "Can I have some?"

The frown deepened and Integra's blue eyes narrowed dangerously, but the boy just grinned as if his question was something pure and innocent. "No, of course not. You're underage."

"But it's just like Church, right? It's just wine."

The woman's eyes widened and then she snorted with amusement, sitting back in her chair and crossing her legs as she observed the gutsy boy who was behaving much more boldly than the night before. She set her glass on her desk. "You're horrible." Integra smirked darkly, despite herself. She had to admit, the boy was quite a character.

Vlad chuckled and swished the wine again. "All I want is a taste."

"No."

"No?"

"No." The woman ensured, flatly.

"Not even if I say please?"

"Not even if you were dying." Integra smiled warmly.

Vlad snickered at this and held the bottled by his side. "I just want to know what good wine tastes like."

"You're going to have to wait for a few more years…" Her gaze swept across the wall near the door where Vlad was standing in front of her desk. She blinked. "Where's my son?"

"Wii game. I don't know how to do it so I suck." Vlad's humor faded a little as he began to frown. "It wasn't fair."

"You lost?" The woman smirked at the frown that finally arrived on the boy's face. Vlad looked at the wall and made a move as if he was going to get the chair that was leaning against it to make himself at home in the office, and sit down. Integra caught onto the movement and shook her head quickly. "No Vladimir. You need to go back out there…" She pointed at the door. "…and learn how to play Wii."

Vlad delayed following the order until Integra scowled at him to leave so she could enjoy her wine and then go out to the party as well. When he slipped out through the doorway, she smiled and let her eyes fall to her desk where her glass was. When she took a sip and held the glass in her hands, she realized that the table was empty. But…it wasn't supposed to be empty. The wine bottle was supposed to be… The woman's face deadened and she gazed blankly at the desk. Mechanically, the woman's eyes rose to where Vlad had been standing. With a hasty curse, she got up and marched to the door, catching the frame in her gloved hand to swing herself around to stride down the hall so she could find the teenager that had stolen her wine. But she stopped at the doorway, surprised to find Vlad waiting for her with the wine bottle suspended before him in an outstretched hand. She scowled and snatched the wine away, then shook at finger at the amused face, annoyed by the smug look. Unable to speak, she decided to give the teen a final glare and then retreated into her office. Vlad turned as well, walking down the hall to find Anderson as he lifted a plastic cup to his lips and took a sip. He passed the refreshment table on the way, void of people, and turned into the next doorway. Anderson was leaning against the wall in the darkened room, watching as two cops played a gun and war video game, shooting at each other madly as a small crowd watched, entertained when the men reacted as their digital selves were shot, growling and cursing lightly, swearing to get revenge. It was all in the name of good, wholesome fun.

Green flashed with the light of the projector casting this image on the opposite wall when something blew up in the video game, and then dimmed when the eyes moved to Vlad who was waiting by the door, halfway out of the room. Anderson went to him and then followed the boy out as Vlad moved to a less lively location. They went outside. It was raining, but a generous ledge kept the two nice and dry while the wind was blowing into the back of the building, so it couldn't reach them. Vlad took another sip from his cup and he hummed contently after the liquid went down his throat. Anderson noticed and squinted at the drink curiously.

"I thought we were out of punch."

Vlad shrugged, only glancing at Anderson, and then he smiled to himself. "I'm not sure. I didn't check."

Anderson blinked, watching the cup as it rose again. "Then what are you drinking?"

"Mn?" Vlad swallowed and held the cup to the other teen with a brash smile. "I think it's some kind of grape juice."

"Grape juice? … I didn't see any grape juice…." A tan hand accepted the plastic cup and Anderson tilted it to peer down at its contents. It sure looked like it could be grape juice. He moved the plastic cup to his nose and he sniffed it. He started and tore the cup away from himself as if it was a toxic poison, and he gasped, sending round green eyes to Vlad's chuckling face. "Where…? Where did you get this? This is wine! Vlad! How in God's name did you…? Just where…?"

"I got it from the Chief…" He chuckled again. "…a.k.a., your mom." Vlad smiled and reached to take the cup back. He froze, surprised when Anderson moved it away from his hand and glowered at him.

"My mother did not give you alcohol, you lying runt."

The boy gave a crooked smile, watching Anderson's anger for a moment to see just how far he could push his joke. "Who ever said that she gave it to me?" Red glinted at Anderson's aghast expression.

Anderson gaped, astounded. "You stole it! You thief! You pistachio, wine stealing thief, Vlad! Not cool! Not at all, so stop laughing! I'm being serious!"

Vlad continued to laugh anyway and reached for the wine. "She was drinking it right in front of me…and she saw me pick up the bottle. All she didn't see was me pouring it. I gave her back the bottle with the cup in my hand, and she didn't care…or didn't notice. Either way, I only took a little and what she doesn't know won't hurt her."

Anderson moved it away again, switching it over to his right hand, furthest from Vlad. "No…" He shot back, a deepening simper weighing down his features. "But it can hurt you." He moved to the wet asphalt, where the ledge didn't stop the rain, and poured the wine out onto the parking lot where it splattered and was dissolved into a harmless puddle. Vlad's jaw dropped, desolate eyes gazing at the wine as if he was watching Anderson pour out his life's blood. He gawked as the irritated teen washed the cup out with the falling rain and then returned to the wall to throw the cup at Vlad's expression, real rage growing brighter in his eyes with his mounting disappointment. "You idiot, Vlad. You're an idiot!" He wiped off his wet hand with his other sleeve, glowering at it while his teeth grated together, unable to shake off his anger.

"No…!" Vlad snatched the cup from the ground with a growl and then chucked it at Anderson who jerked to dodge the attack, but was too slow. "You're the idiot! That stuff was good!"

Anderson growled as well and retrieved the cup so he could throw it at Vlad. The boy got out of the way in time and the plastic cup rebounded off the wall with a dulled hollow sound. Both of the teens dove for the rolling cup, but Vlad was the one who got to it first and he raised his arm to throw the projectile again. Anderson retreated back, away from the armed individual, and he ended up in the rain, forced to stiffen with shock when the cold water hit him. With an evil laugh, Vlad threw the cup and nailed the other teen in the shoulder. He continued to laugh when Anderson went under the ledge again, humored by how wet the boy had gotten. The cup forgotten, Anderson grabbed the black sweatshirt and dragged Vlad out into the rain, almost ripping the it from his back as the skinny teen struggled. They fought to keep the other from a place that was dry, pushing and chasing and hissing, and at times, laughing. With time, they returned to their original place by the ledge and one of Vlad's converse crushed the cup, distracting him for a moment….which was long enough to allow Anderson to catch him in a headlock. The struggle ensued.

Vlad was still in a headlock when a gruff voice from the door told them that a cop had found out about their battle in the rain. They looked up as the man spoke. "What's going on here? Is there a problem?"

Vlad snorted at the familiar words, commenting on the limited vocabulary a cop has, or something along those lines, earning a good choke from Anderson that made him gag.

"Nothing. It's just for fun…I swear. Nothing's wrong." Anderson's earnest smile and truthful tone, along with his superior position in the fight with the delinquent, convinced the man to leave them alone and he went back inside without questioning them further.

"Dumbass cop. Take one look and it's obvious that a Neanderthal is trying to kill me." Vlad snickered weakly, but the humor turned into a broken cough when Anderson choked him again with an irritated growl.

"Stupid…stupid…!" He struggled to come up with an original insult that would rival Vlad's new name for him. Black hair was plastered to Vlad's face, and he spat out a few strands that made their way into his mouth. The pale teen tried to laugh as he fought with the constricting arms.

"Neanderthal Anderson…can't even think of something to say." He jerked to the side with a grunt of effort, but his slick shoes slid over the asphalt, forcing the boy to lose his footing, and he was left hanging from the headlock. The pale face was reddening as he struggled to stand again while his black converse continued to slip, pushing up waves of mucky water. Vlad realized, as spots appeared before his eyes, that he was in a puddle. The puddle where Anderson had poured out his wine…which was now seeping into his socks. …Fantastic.

"Alexander! You're suffocating the poor boy!"

Anderson jumped at the voice, dropping Vlad who collapsed to his knees in the water, and the green eyes searched for his mother. Integra stood before them under the shelter of the ledge after walking from the door, having been told of their fight/game in the rain. The woman glared at her son until he squirmed under her intimidating gaze. Then, he finally realized that he had dropped Vlad in the water, where the teen was still on his knees gasping and coughing.

Oops.

Anderson went forward to help Vlad to his feet and then walked with him to get under the ledge, holding onto his sweatshirt. "I didn't realize…that I…I swear I didn't mean to do that Vlad." The red eyed teen hissed at him and then was struck by a coughing fit. Anderson's eyes grew. "Hey, are you okay?"

Integra did not comment at first, but she glowered at the boys when she saw this ragged coughing fit. "Are you both IDIOTS?" A hand smacked her son in the back of the head, upsetting his already slipping glasses so that they went to the edge of his nose, and then slapped Vlad's forehead just as he began to straighten. "WHAT TYPE OF MORON DOES THIS IN THE RAIN? OR AT ALL?"

"I do it all the time." Vlad mumbled indignantly, refusing to rub his stinging red mark like Anderson had degraded himself to doing. "It's a guy thing, Chief."

"No. I've seen girls do it too…though, they were less…um…violent, I guess." Anderson added, hoping to save face.

Finding the extra information to be irrelevant, the woman frowned and then bumped Vlad on the shoulder with her fist, hissing between her teeth when it caused him to cough. "And now look at you!" The teen flinched when she gestured angrily towards him, expecting to be hit again. "Now you're SICK! You two are…idiots! WHO does THIS in the RAIN?"

Anderson hung his head in shame while Vlad coughed through a forming, slanted grin. He liked the Chief when she was mad. It was fun to watch.

"Now we'll have to go home. We can't have him here sick! Alexander? What was going through your mind? You should have forced a bowl of soup down his throat and shoved him into bed! Not take him here! Bed, Anderson! Not a party! Not Wii!"

As the woman continued to rant and berate her son, Vlad coughed with a content smile. Finally, he would get to go home. He snickered at her words. "So cruel, Chief. Stuffing down a whole bowl along with the soup would probably cure my sickness, yes…by killing me. Very nice strategy for healing a…" Vlad coughed when a shove was aimed at his ribs. He had to fall back a step to stay upright as Integra shook an impatient fist.

"I swear you boys will put me in an early grave. How could two people be born so equally stupid, is beyond me." Integra sighed as she turned, her hand going to her pocket. The police woman patted it and groaned when she found that she had left her keys inside. Never mind the keys, she thought, and turned a steady eye on her fidgety child that towered over her, yet feared her bark. The woman was humored by the sight. "Alex, take him home."

"My home. No more kidnappings… Not over the holidays." Vlad cut in, maintaining his mild grin as he looked at the vacant faces. "Anderson can drop me off at a street corner near my home…that'll be enough."

Integra bit her the side of her mouth, watching the boy. She closed her eyes and took a conceding breath. "Fine, Vladimir. Go home." She snapped, her eyes open, and threw a finger in his direction. "But I'll be by to check on you, and I better not find you passed out on the floor. You got that? Take care of yourself and contact us if you need something. There's no shame in needing assistance when you're ill."

Vlad gazed down at her, his face a blank mask. "I need to go home, Chief. I'm not your puppy…" The woman's mouth twitched, but she turned to go back inside. "…I still have my uncle."

That stopped her dead in her tracks for a moment. She struggled to compose herself with a poorly constructed cough and strode to the glass door. Integra yanked it open violently and then marched inside, letting the door close on its own. Her voice managed to squeeze out before it shut completely. "Go home Vladimir."

Anderson waited, distracted by the closing door, before he managed to stick his hand into one of his pants pockets. He pulled out his keys and tossed them in the air and caught them a few times, sighing. "Alright then. I guess I'll take you home, Vlad… Come on." He trudged through the layers of water that were scattered over the surface of the parking lot, with Vlad following behind him, and they made their way to the blonde boy's car. They didn't bother caring about the rain. They were already soaked through as it is.

*~*~::..+..::~*~*

"Turn here?" Anderson glanced at Vlad for a second to make sure he was listening, and then he shifted his eyes back to the road.

"Yeah." The hands that had so far remained in the boy's lap separated for a moment as Vlad pointed to Anderson's left. "Right down there…" The suspended finger bobbed a little as the car's tire dipped into a shallow pot-hole. With nothing to say or point to as the car turned, the hand returned to Vlad's lap. "Alright." One of his hands was already on the door handle as his gaze narrowed in on the street corner. "Let me out here." He unbuckled his seat belt, ready to get out of the car. It was drizzling at present, but the rain seemed to be dying away now and the clouds had thinned out so that glimpses of starlight could be spotted in the brief intervals of black sky.

Unwillingly, Anderson slowed to a stop, watching as Vlad got out and caught the door before it managed to close.

"Thanks for the ride…and for the rest, Anderson." Vlad shut the door and took a step back, waving a hand. "Bye." Came a muffled voice that Anderson frowned at. Vlad was beginning to frown as well when Anderson didn't leave. "Shoo, Anderson. Go on. Shoo."

Anderson's car didn't move, and the engine continued to hum.

With a glower brightening his eyes and twisting his mouth, Vlad's hand dropped by his side and clenched into a fist. "Go Anderson."

The blonde bit his lip, then took a breath and let it out. He rolled down the window by pushing a button, not caring about the flecks of rain that misted the interior of his car afterwards. "Why don't you want me to see where you live? You do have a place, right? With your uncle?"

"Yeah. I didn't lie, okay? Now go…" Vlad moved away from the curb in long, drawn out steps, headed towards the wall and the gloom that loitered lazily around its perimeter. "…Go home. If you park here someone's going to lift your hubcaps."

The blacked haired boy pivoted and began to stride down the sidewalk with his hands shoved into his pockets, never looking back at the car that lingered behind him. Anderson didn't leave though he did close his window, resting an arm on his steering wheel as he watched to see where Vlad was going. In the distance, Vlad turned at a corner and was lost from sight. Chewing on his cheek as he debated on whether he should snoop around in Vlad's business or not, Anderson drove down the street, slowing when he came to the corner Vlad had turned on. He wasn't anywhere is sight. Bit by bit the high school jock turned the steering wheel, doubtful of his decision. Anderson drove down the scantily lit street, keeping an eye out for a sign of the other teen. There were a few shady characters that passed him odd looks when they saw his car.

Ignore them, Anderson told himself, though the hair on the back of his neck was standing on end when he passed an obvious crack user, who, for her clothes, could possibly also be a…an…individual who…. No, he didn't want to think about that. Anderson cleared his throat and then took a deep, calming breath. He stopped abruptly, surprising the few eyes that were still watching him, and the green gaze shot to a specific building, to the stairs where he could see a rather familiar teen conversing with a short, middle-aged man. They appeared to be arguing, or at least the little man was. Vlad was standing perfectly still and Anderson couldn't see their expressions, though he heard the man's disruptive, one sided, dispute without understanding what he was saying. Then a hand shot out from the man and it jabbed Vlad in the chest, unsteadying the boy when he flinched. Because of their position on the stairs, it worried Anderson….especially when the man did it again and stepped closer to Vlad, obviously trying his best to intimidate the tall teenager. The voice became louder, but Anderson couldn't hear what it was saying…still.

Without thinking, the boy took his keys from the ignition and pushed open his door, then rounded the back of his car, oblivious of the stares that were locked onto him and the needling cold that seeped into his damp clothes. As he got closer he could make out the heated words.

"You ungrateful punk! You disappear for that long! Of COURSE I would know that you're trying to skip out on your damned rent! You're late! Again! … AGAIN! I should get the police on your sorry ass! Seize all of that crap you have stored in there and, maybe, if I sell it I can make half of what you owe me this month! And what about last month, eh?" A hand caught Vlad's sweatshirt, but the boy's expression remained unchanged and he did nothing to oppose the false accusation, there was more truth than falsehood in the man's words. "Ya still owe me most of that too! Filthy…ugh!" He pushed away from Vlad, realizing how wet he was. "God! Disgusting! How can a human being live like this? Wet and filthy and doesn't even pay the rent! Scum! That's what I say! Destined to be trailer trash, scum!"

Anderson was standing at the bottom stair, inspecting the situation like he had just discovered it. He leveled his voice, making it as hard and sure as he could manage. "Hey… Is there a problem?" His hand was on the thick wooden rail, so he tapped it casually with his fingers, to feign forming impatience. The little man was staring at him, too puzzled to find a way to confront the stranger, while Vlad shot the boy a look full of contempt, one that resembled the way Vlad had looked at Anderson's friends at school. He was quiet while the short man squinted at Anderson and then Vlad, then Anderson again as he pointed at Vlad.

"Ya know him? Do ya? Cuz, that'd be great!" He sneered and the pointing hand opened, indicating Vlad as the boney, sun browned man laughed. "He owes me money, you know. You got money to pay for this punk? Eh?"

Anderson didn't say anything and his hand stilled on the railing. The little man's face deadened. Then he snarled.

"THEN GET OUT OF HERE! GET YA ASS, OUT!" The back of the man's hand patted Vlad on the arm, belittling the boy as he continued to glare at the blonde stranger. "You either pay for him, or you mind your own business!"

"Stop yelling at him." Anderson narrowed his eyes and squeezed the railing, blood draining from his knuckles.

The man paused, taken aback momentarily, and then he let out a low, wheezing howl of offensive hilarity, cackling to himself. "It's my business to yell at my tenants, buddy. They don't pay, I don't get paid." He smiled an oily, leering smile and patted Vlad's arm friendlily, smug as he was able to do this without so much as a frown or a complaint from the pale teen. "This is my business. None of yours…got that?"

Anderson kept his glare, staying where he had planted his feet in front of the stairs. Humor faded from the man and he stuffed his hands into his pockets, throwing Anderson a good hard look. "Hey, punk…you know this guy or is he a total wack-job I should call the cops on?" He spoke to Vlad while he kept his squinting eyes on Anderson, frowning as he took notice of the stranger's height.

"…Don't know him…" Vlad responded dully and turned to go up the rest of the stairs. Anderson stiffened for a moment and then clenched his teeth, watching the back ascend the stairs.

"Vlad. You know you can just come back with me…you don't have to stay here if you don't want to." He called up to the figure that stopped in mid step and didn't turn around.

The little man was peering curiously up at Vlad as he observed this response. Then he grinned. "Oh yeah? I didn't know you had a name, punk… Still rather call ya Street-shit, ya know? No hard feelings, punk?" He snickered and swung around to look down at Anderson's wide expression, his grin stretching to a disgusting length. He ducked his head and then threw it back, laughing madly.

Suddenly the man left his amusement and lunged up the stairs, catching the back of the black sweatshirt. He yanked on it as hard as he could. Vlad's shoes slipped and he staggered down a few steps, until he was two below the man's current position. They were almost at eyelevel now as the little man snarled at the pale face. "Ya don't make rent! Ya smell like filth! And now ya lie to me! Punk! Give me one reason why I shouldn't get the cops down here RIGHT now!" He shook Vlad the best he could. It was a pathetic attempt, but he did not see this as he continued. "Why'd you lie to me, Street-shit? Why, you ungrateful, worthless punk! EH? GONNA SPEAK NOW?"

"Hey!" Anderson went up a few steps, but he stopped when Vlad twisted away from the hands and snarled down at him.

"Get out of here! I told you to go! Just leave!" Vlad hissed, his eyes shining with rage, masking the self mortification that was battling to beat down his remaining pride. "GO HOME!"

The man was taken aback by the show of aggression, but then he smiled and clapped his hands, delighted with the entertainment. "That's the most I've ever gotten out of you. Where'd ya learn to talk so good all of a sudden, eh?" He snickered again and patted the boy on the back, leaving him to go down the stairs. He passed Anderson a wide smile, but he spoke to Vlad. "I'll be getting my money sooner or later, punk…you can't go anywhere without your crap, now…can ya?" He laughed and walked around Anderson who couldn't do anything else but glare at the man. When the teen looked up the stairs, he found that Vlad had disappeared. There was the sound of a door slamming, then it was quiet. Gradually, voices and other sounds made themselves known from the different rooms. Anderson lingered there, unable to figure out what he should do. There wasn't anything that didn't have consequences attached to it, so the teen turned and walked back to his car, his hands buried deep in his pockets as he bit his lip and scowled at the ground. He kicked a piece of litter into the street and then got into his car. As he left, the empty bag moved a bit over the surface of the puddle before it sank as water climbed over its side, tipping it down into its murky depths.

*~*~::..+..::~*~*

Anderson went back the next day, driving his mother when she announced that they were going to check on Vlad to see how he was managing his cold. They got up to the second level, and then paused as they looked down the length of the cement walk way. Their eyes swept from window to window, door to door as they passed by them and reached the end. They stopped again, and turned, looking at the doors. "You know for a fact that he lives up here?"

Anderson didn't look at his mom, but he nodded. They were quiet for a time.

"Vladimir!" Integra waited, ignoring the flinch that came from Anderson, glaring up and down the line of doors. She sighed, scowling when she knew that they couldn't do much more on their own. "Do you know where the land lord is? Who's in charge?"

Anderson's mind went back to the night before and he shook his head. "I didn't see where he went. It was dark."

The woman gave a harder sigh and went down the hallway, then descended the stairs as Anderson followed behind her. "I'll find out who that guy is and I'll get him to show us where…"

"No." Anderson interrupted her, dreading another conflict, especially one where his mother was involved. He knew his mother would have a hard time controlling her temper. "Don't cause trouble... I did enough of that last night."

They were quiet when they reached the bottom of the stairs, sharing the single thought. Without a word, they returned to Anderson's car and left.

*~*~::..+..::~*~*

Integra sighed, muttering something about her stupid children drinking all of the eggnog as she got out of the car with Anderson apologizing behind her. He closed the door and tried to catch up with her long strides. "I didn't finish it off! I promise! I left you some!"

Integra shrugged. "Sure, Alex."

"No. Really! I did!"

She ignored him this time and walked up to the grocery store, leaving the parking lot behind. The ringing bell of the donation collecting Santa sounded in her ear, causing her to wince but at the same time wonder if she had any extra change in her pockets. No. But she would if she paid for the eggnog in cash. She pulled on her jacket as she suppressed a shiver. It was getting pretty cold at night.

Anderson walked by the ringing bell, glancing up absently. Then he paused, slowing as he saw the sun glasses that seemed rather out of place, given the time and the person's uniform. He gazed at the thin Santa with the extremely white skin and the red gloved fist that jerked up to cover a cough. Anderson stopped and stared, dumbfounded.

"Vlad?"

Integra started and turned around as the glass doors slid open when she stepped on the black mat sitting in front of them. The Santa had become rigid, bell in mid air, mouth hanging open in horror as the sunglasses reflected Anderson's expression of amazement.

"Oh shit!" Santa spun and ran into the immediate wall, then pushed away and made to dash down the sidewalk, but Anderson caught up with him only after a few yards. The skinny Santa was forced against a pillar as he fought desperately to get away, cussing and hissing. Integra walked around the wall Vlad had run into, and watched as the struggle against the rough plaster covered pillar intensified and then died down. She stared as she came up to the pillar and stood next to the snarling red figure. "Hey!" Santa called to a random person that had stopped to watch. "Hey you! Can't you tell Santa's gettin' killed here? Hey! No! Don't go inside, damn you! Freaken bastard!"

"So Vladimir…you work at the North Pole now?" Integra smirked at her lame joke as well as the frown she received. She took off the sunglasses, revealing the aggravated red eyes.

"I'm trying to get a job here…if they see this they'll never consider giving me a job." He muttered and shook off Anderson as the tan hands eased their grip. Vlad brushed off the red uniform, checking for any wear and tear he might have caused on the cloth. Nothing was found, so he relaxed, fixing his red hat as he composed himself, and then returned his attention to the smug looks he was receiving. "What?" He grumbled and stubbornly went back to his post by the donations stand, still holding his bell which was turned upward to prevent it from making a racket as he moved around. The two followed, and Anderson laughed a little as he stood before the pissed off Santa while his mother played smugly with the dark sunglasses in her hands. Vlad scowled at his feet, trying to muster some motivation to ring the bell again.

"I can't believe you're dressed up as Santa." Anderson chuckled while the boy glowered at him. Suddenly, the bell starting ringing in Anderson's face, the sound piercing his ears and forcing him back. Vlad stopped when Anderson had been effectively punished and he switched his attention over to Integra.

"Can I get back to my community service, Chief? Or do you feel like staring at me until I get fired from something I volunteered for?" He remembered the glasses in her hands and growled, sticking out his hand. "And give me those!"

Integra smiled as she handed the sunglasses over, chuckling lightly. "Have to keep your identity a secret?"

Vlad grumbled, fixing the glasses on his face. He finished and got ready to ring the bell. "Yeah…but they aren't mine. I'm borrowing them from the store…" So I wouldn't scare away customers. "…nobody else wanted to do this at night…" The bell rang once and Vlad paused as he left it by his side. "What are you two doing here so late?"

Integra glanced back at Anderson who quietly moved his feet towards the door. "Alex here drank all of my eggnog."

"I didn't and you know it." Anderson countered bitterly, casting a grimace at the black mat he was stepping on. Vlad looked at the muttering teen and smirked, beginning to ring his bell again. He didn't say anything as the two went inside. Several uneventful minutes went by before they reemerged. Integra smiled when she saw Vlad. She walked over to the donation box and stuffed a few dollars into it, stopping before they had all fallen into the container. She kept a dollar in her palm and gave it to Vlad.

"It's a tip for the wonderful…bell music and for the amusement I received from seeing you wear a Santa Claus costume."

Vlad glared at the insulting hand, but he accepted the money and held it as he saw that it was a one dollar bill. Without warning, he jammed the dollar into the donation box and rung the bell by his side as his rebellious, steady gaze went to Integra's unanimated features. "Thank you for your donation. All donations will go towards a homeless shelter…or an animal shelter…." The bell stopped as Vlad's eyes unfocused and he rolled his shoulders when he felt a chill. "…one of the other…I don't remember which."

Integra's eyes marked the path of the bell, moving up and down while Anderson waited quietly behind her. Blue eyes blinked when the boy Santa coughed. "What are you doing for Christmas, Vladimir?"

The bell continued while the red eyes flowed towards the store windows. "Work, probably." The bell rang out a few times. "I'll be busy, Chief."

Integra watched the pale face, seeing the windows' distorted reflection in the sunglasses. "I'll give you our number so you can call us if you have a change of plans." The woman started to take out her cell phone but Vlad's cutting tone stopped her.

"I don't have a phone to call you with, Chief. And I'm pretty booked up. I'm not going to have a change in plans." The bell sounded in the crisp air as Integra took her hand from her jacket's pocket. It was a while before she spoke again, staring at the boy with partially narrowed eyes.

"Vladimir…don't lie to me. I work with liars too often to be fooled by your sorry excuse for a fib, boy." She frowned at the sunglasses that refused to reflect her. "You're looking for a job. That means you're still trying to fill up your time. If you don't get a job here you won't have any plans at all going for you…" Vlad licked his lips and shifted from one foot to the other with a stubbornly set mask of indifference for her words.

"I'm busy, Chief. I've got things to take care of."

Anderson took a breath that he held for a while, watching Vlad. He could tell that he wanted them to leave, he was restless with impatience. "Did you get the rent problem under control?"

"Yessss." The hiss replied and Anderson found himself staring at his own image in the glasses. "Now go Anderson. If I'm talking to people no one will donate to the damn hungry people or their dogs…now get. I'm supposed to be a responsible future employee right now."

The two blondes watched Vlad look away and move to the other side of the donation box. Integra turned and pulled on her son to get him to come with her. They didn't say anything as they walked through the parking lot and dumped their eggnog into the back of the car and drove home. It bothered Integra, as she looked out the window. She had only seen Vlad wear the same set of clothes every time she met the boy… that black sweatshirt was more of an off grey…and it looked pretty thinned out…bad for cold weather, especially for a scrawny kid with a cold. She should've bought him some coffee or hot chocolate.

Anderson didn't say anything, but he was having the same thoughts. He asked a different question that was hanging on the fringe of his mind.

"Do you think he'll get a job there?" Anderson broke the silence. Neither of them looked at one another. Integra focused on her window, eyes keeping track of the trees they passed.

"No."

And she was right.

*~*~::..+..::~*~*

Vlad shut his eyes as he felt his stomach vibrate as it growled. The fussing was drawn out…and annoying. Vlad wrapped his arms tighter around his stomach and dropped his head to his knees as he reclined, touching his back to the wall behind him. His bare feet were buried in the comforter he was sitting on, surrounded by the dark sea of blue fabric. It was warm and comfortable on his futon. It was cold everywhere else.

He couldn't plug his heater in, as he had yet to pay his rent so his electricity had been shut off. He couldn't boil hot water without power either, and his stomach complained loudly about this. The sink was useless now as well. The water had been cut out too. His tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth, making him wonder if he had accidentally eaten paste when he was dozing by the wall. Because his mouth tasted of like he had, as he tried to move his tongue around to wet it. The boy stayed like this for a time, then his head turned on his knees so that his cheek was pressing against them now and his eyes could wander over the stacks of things that slopped like a range of mountains, filling the room. He closed his eyes again and pressed them into his knees as he took a deep breath, keeping it so that he could let it out a little bit at a time.

He hated selling his uncle's stuff, but he wasn't able to get a job. No one would hire him when there were 'better' kids out there searching as well…adults even…who needed the money to help their families. The delinquent couldn't even get hired to do chores. Others had already grabbed and scheduled to do all of them… No more cars to wash…no sheds to paint. No more newspapers to steal and resell…people had caught on that someone was stalking the paper 'boy' (a man who drove a car by houses and chucked the bagged papers out his window), and had begun to take the newspapers inside earlier in the morning, or they had lengthened the chains of their dogs so that they could bark at any trespassers or steal the newspaper themselves, just to rip it up and snuggle in the scraps. Anything was better than allowing some crazy person to steal them…no one considered how desperate a person would have to be in order to feel compelled to do such a degrading thing. Vlad chewed on his lip, his stomach gurgling loudly.

"Alright." The employer would look Vlad up and down and then pause, noting his pale skin and crimson eyes. A hand would rise and gesture to them. "Take out the contacts fist, kid. Then I can take you seriously and consider giving you the job."

Vlad would keep quiet until the demand was made again. "They aren't contacts."

That's usually when people got rid of him. They thought he was a common druggy…or that he had tattooed his eyes like the other 'freaks' were doing now adays…getting cat irises, horns, and whiskers…they wanted nothing to do with those type of people. It made them uncomfortable…it would make their customers uncomfortable, if they had any. Then his clothes…and his willingness to work for less than minimum pay…and his tall stature… His shifty eyes and quick fingers made him suspicious…like he was going to rob them blind when he got the chance. Or maybe he had some strange illness? Maybe he was mentally disturbed? Who knew? It would be best to see him to the door, and remember to make sure to watch those hands. Don't let him steal anything on his way out.

Vlad sighed. He would have to sell some stuff…again…before his land lord was actually tempted to give in to his threats to call the police to come pick him up. Vlad shuddered at the thought of going to jail. He'd heard stories…

Jail food sucked…and the beds were uncomfortable. The boy curled up to keep warm for a while longer…a while longer before he would have to move some of this stuff to the nearest pawn shop. That was the worst part. Vlad gritted his teeth together, dreading the awful 'move'.

He would have to throw away his dignity again today.

*~*~::..+..::~*~*

Cloudy skies, grey and smoke-colored, without rain. Anderson drove under them, stopping occasionally at stop signs that allowed other lanes to go before him. The teen was quiet, fixing his glasses to make them more comfortable. He pushed on the gas and moved away from the stop sign to continue roaming through the town to find a place to finish the Christmas shopping. He hated shopping especially with…

"Alex! Alex, Alex!" A hand yanked on Anderson's jacket, pulling a sigh from his lungs as he consented to responding.

"What?"

The girl pointed at the window…or rather up ahead, at the sidewalk. "Pull over. I want to give the homeless man some money."

Anderson grumbled but drove up to the curb where he saw the grungy figure pulling a cart with part of a green tarp draped over it, to keep out any rain that might start to fall. He draped an arm over his steering wheel and rested his chin on it, thrumming his fingers as he waited for the girl to take a few dollars from her purse. She lowered her window and smiled at the dark figure that looked at her from his shadowed hood. She waved the money out the window. "Here. Merry Christmas."

Anderson muttered something about giving the man some food. Who knew what he would do with the money? The teen jumped out of these thoughts and stared blankly at his gas meter when he heard the homeless man snarl at the money.

"I'm not a hobo you bitch!"

Green eyes rotated to the window and Anderson leaned down so he could get a good look at the man's face. He couldn't see it very well, but he recognized the worn sweatshirt immediately. He sat there, mute for a moment, while the girl gasped an apology and then stammered angrily.

"D…Don't call me a…that word! I was only trying to give you some money!"

"Feh." The man lurched, pushing on his cart while the two watched. Anderson blinked calmly, his mouth a dead line on his face.

"Hey Vlad."

The man and the girl jerked in unison. Vlad went rigid, the tendons on his hands straining as he tightened his grip, popping a knuckle or two. He was paralyzed as the curious girl gawked at Anderson and then the hobo that wasn't really a hobo. "You know this homeless man?"

Anderson frowned at the girl while Vlad didn't hear her, too horrified of his position to do anything other than stand where he was. Anderson opened his car door and got out, then leaned with an arm on the roof of his car and peered across it to watch the teen. "What are you doing with that cart?" He waited for a response, not really expecting to get one. "I thought you told me that you had a place to stay…or did that guy throw you out? What are you doing?"

Vlad's hands shook with anger and hatred, reserved for himself. In his passion, he ripping his hands away from the cart and faced Anderson, tearing off his hood to allow his black hair to spill out and the gloomy sky to brighten his eyes. "I'm doing stuff Anderson. Leave me alone." He glared at the green eyes while the girl gazed up at his face, shrinking back into her seat for a moment, before pulling away from it to get a better look at the red eyes and this rather young 'homeless man'. She saw his wretched stand for human dignity in this position, and the girl bit her lip, eyeing the pocket on his sweatshirt as she flipped the edge of her money with her finger, listening to the sound as the two boys didn't speak.

"What are you doing with a grocery cart? You know those aren't free…" Anderson's bare features never moved from their untelling expression.

"This looks worse than it is, Anderson." A pale hand moved to touch the cart. "I don't have any other way to move this stuff. I'm selling it down there." The hand traveled with the words as Vlad looked down the sidewalk to find the shop he was trying to get to, in the distance. He looked at Anderson as the other teen continued to search for the place Vlad had pointed to. "It looks bad… But I don't have a car…so how else am I supposed to move this stuff?" A heel bumped the wheel of the cart. As Anderson held his silence, Vlad noticed a hand emerge from the car, attempting to slip the money into his pocket. He growled and moved out of the girl's reach, hissing fiercely at her disappointed face. "I'm not a hobo, bitch, and I don't need your God damned money!" He glared over the top of the car at Anderson when he saw that he was scaring the girl. "And you! You and your girlfriend should just go! Do whatever it was you were going to do and let me and my business be!"

The girl gasped while Anderson's lips parted, his eyes widening as a weak laugh came from the car. Vlad glared at the girl, a bit confused now. She smiled at him and threw a thumb back at the blonde teenager behind her. "That's my little brother, not my boyfriend."

"Oh." Vlad stepped back to get a better view of the blue-eyed, blonde haired girl. She wore her hair in two pig tails at the back of her head…and her pink sweater made her look like one of those teenage dolls girls like to dress up and push around in pink convertibles. Vlad frowned, tilting his head a little and slipping a hand into his pocket as he observed the girl. "You look a little like the Chief… No, never mind. It's just the hair and the eye color. You're too cutesy to be like her."

Baffled, Anderson's sister blinked but smiled at what she took as a compliment. "Aw." She beamed at Vlad, making his face lose its expression. "You called me cute? Thank you." She laughed to herself and looked back at the dark jacket that was all she could see of her brother. "Hey Alex. Your friend thinks I'm cute."

Vlad's screwed up face made Anderson smirk and he looked down at the top of his car, pulling back the blind for the sunroof with a blind hand that went though his window, so he could see his sister's face. She was smirking back up at him. Then his eyes went back to Vlad who was currently trying to sneak away. "Hey, wait! Vlad!" The boy ignored him so Anderson left his car and marched up to the now hooded head and grabbed it. "I can take the stuff there in my car. How about that? Is that okay?" Anderson demanded gruffly, considerably less patient than before. Red was staring over a black shoulder, mulling the offer over.

Vlad pulled free from Anderson so he could turn the cart around to go to the back of the car. "Fine." He passed the blonde girl. "But no kidnapping, got it? I don't have time for that shit right now, Anderson."

Blue eyes flinched at the curse word, but Anderson let it pass as he went to his door to pull the lever that would pop the trunk. He helped Vlad, who had already pulled off the tarp, unload the cart. The jock paused once in a while to look at the odd objects, and he held on to a bottle that had what looked like a baby great white shark sitting in some clear liquid. He moved it around and around in his hands, mesmerized by the shark. Vlad noticed as he unloaded the last thing and he left his hand on the top of the trunk, watching Anderson and the fish. He recalled all the time he himself had spent looking at the unfortunate creature, sometimes imagining, when he was a kid, that he would go to the beach and break the bottle open with a rock and then carry the little shark out to sea where it would swim away and be happy and free, coming back to visit little Vlad once in a while just to tell him thank you. Vlad shook his head to get rid of these thoughts, and he slammed the trunk closed, startling Anderson who looked up and stuttered about having one more thing to put in.

Vlad looked at the shark, ignoring the teen, and then turned to get into the car. "Keep it Anderson. I've decided not to sell it." His hand went to the door where he paused, seeing the blue eyes that blinked up at him. Slowly, he moved to the back door and got in since he considered it wouldn't be very productive to sit on Anderson's sister. Anderson sat down after he did, and a tan hand gave him the baby shark before going to the steering wheel. The girl replaced him, big blue eyes watching the mysterious, red-eyed boy. Vlad scowled at her, but she didn't care.

"My name's Seras. Seras Victoria Anderson….you?"

Vlad stared at her, unused to such friendly people…more specifically girls…he had a hard time with girls. He had nothing against them, well…hell…he liked girls, you know, for their perks, but they seemed to have something against him. The teen's eyes went to the mat on the floor as he buckled his seat belt. "I'm Vlad." He replied automatically.

Seras paused, mulling over the name while Anderson shot her a look of warning, which was wasted on the back of the blonde head. "What's your whole name? I like knowing people's whole names…usually tells you a lot about them." She smiled brightly.

Vlad hesitantly replied. "Vladimir…A. Dracula."

Seras blinked, dissatisfied with the middle initial. "Dracula…like drake, a dragon?" Surprised, Vlad's shoulder's flinched and he nodded as his eyes flicked to her face. She was frowning now, her gaze considering his holey black converse. "What does the 'A' stand for? Hm?"

Vlad refused to tell her as she hounded him for a block or two. Then the girl pouted and asked Anderson if he knew what Vlad's middle name was. Anderson told her to leave Vlad alone, so she turned around and asked a new question, one of her pink sleeves hugging her headrest as she smushed one of her cheeks into it. "How old are you?"

Tired of this, but seeing that he owed Anderson, and even the girl, for giving him a ride, he answered. "Seventeen."

Seras gasped, causing Vlad to jerk a little. "Whaa? Really? I thought you were way older! You're a baby!"

"I'm a what?" Vlad shot back as the girl giggled at his anger. She calmed with a comfortable sigh, swiping back some hair from her eyes.

"You're younger than Anderson and I always think of him as the cute chubby baby he was when my Mom brought him home." She smiled when she knew that Anderson was glowering at her out of the corner of his eye. "So…you're in high school? Junior? Senior?"

"Senior."

"When do you turn eighteen?" Seras moved about in her seat, searching for a more comfortable position while Vlad was getting ready to jump out of the car as it began to slow.

"June."

Seras watched Vlad as the boy looked out the window, waiting for the buildings to stop moving past it. "You don't say much, do you? You're pretty quiet."

The car stopped and Vlad undid his seat buckle and pushed open the door, hurriedly, almost hitting an old woman walking near the curb of the sidewalk. The old lady squawked in alarm, swinging her beaded, white purse to reclaim her balance. Vlad caught a hold of it, along with her arm, to steady the woman. The wizened eyes widened and the old woman gasped, jerking away weakly.

"No! Don't take my purse! I need to buy gifts for my grandchildren, you beast! Oh! Help! Help!" Vlad cursed and let go of the old woman so that she, in her confusion, tripped over her own feet and fell down, still calling for help. Seras was hanging outside her window, unable to open the door because the old lady was collapsed in front of it. She waved her arms, trying to fix the misunderstanding as people were drawn in by the commotion.

"No! No! He's not stealing your purse! Ah! Please! Quiet…!"

Vlad was backing away, surrounded by glares as grown men and fearless women approached. Anderson appeared and was helping the old woman to her feet, also trying to calm her. Once she was on her feet and fit to listen, Vlad had taken refuge on the other side of the car, closest to the street. A few cars honked at him to get out of the way, some giving him a few curses or a lovely hand gesture, making use of their prominent middle fingers.

"He didn't mean to scare you." Anderson ensured the woman, aware of the group that was watching them. "He didn't want you to fall…right Vlad?" He turned back and it took him a moment, and another honk from a car, to find Vlad. The boy was watching all of the people warily, glowering back at a few. Anderson didn't agree with this so he ordered Vlad to get away from the street. Vlad moved to the trunk and stopped there, reluctant to get his stuff out now that he had such a large audience. When he took the cart and kept his hood up instead of accepting offers like this, he blended in easily with the crowds…and nothing like this ever happened. The boy chewed on his lip and looked down at the rain stained car.

Little by little, the crowd was moving on, but a few gifted Vlad with a few sharp remarks.

"Get some respect punk." Or "The least you could've done was help her up." And "Kids just have no common sense anymore. Jesus Christ, what a look that boy gave us too!" "Damned freak."

When they were gone, Anderson opened the trunk and Vlad pulled out a few things without looking to see what they were and he went into the shop, asked the guy to watch his stuff because he had a lot more outside, and went back to the trunk. Anderson started to help and Seras joined in, though Vlad frowned at her when she dropped a book. "Don't drop stuff in front of the guy…he'll mark down the price if you do that."

Seras' eyes grew as Vlad passed by her to make another trip, and when she went into the shop, she stared at the shop keeper until he grinned at her suggestively. The girl squeaked and ran off to join the boys again, coming back in with nothing in her hands as Vlad carried in the last stack of books. The front counter was covered in his uncle's least favorite possessions. Vlad kept his eyes from them and instead watched the man behind the counter, his glare glinting dangerously to tell the man that he would not stand to be ripped off, though Vlad knew that this was going to end up happening anyway. He turned to the first blonde he saw, found that it was Seras, and then turned to the other one. "Thanks Anderson…that's it…" Go now! His eyes screamed, but Anderson didn't pay them any mind, interested in what was going to happen next. Vlad cleared his throat. "Goodbye Anderson."

"I want to watch."

Seras chirped in when Anderson said this. "Me too. This is interesting." She leaned over the counter to look at the odd trinkets and books. The man smiled as the pink cloth tightened about her chest.

He lifted up a book with an air of expertise, and then sighed dramatically and passed Vlad a practiced compassionate look. "I'm sorry kid, but I can't offer much for such well used books. The binding is wearing, already…see?" Instead of showing this to Vlad, he leaned forward to push it near the blue eyes. Seras looked closely at the binding and saw that it was worn and scuffed a little. Was this the one she had dropped?

"Oh, sorry! My fault!" She took the book and used her sweater to rub off the scuff marks, fading them. "I dropped this one on the way in. The rest are still good, right?" She handed the book back to the man as the boys watched his eyes glint over a little. He seemed to like the girl's sweater a lot. Anderson growled, about to say something, but Vlad pulled him back, analyzing the two. His eyes realized that there were two very significant sources of exploitation hidden beneath the girl's innocent, pink sweater. They ought to make the price go up.

Thank God for magic pink sweaters.

Seras continued to worry over the trinkets, remarking on how cute some were, polishing them with her sweater when she found dust on them. When she asked how much it would sell for, the man would puff up and complement her before naming a price Vlad had only dreamed off in the past. "Ten dollars for that pretty little trinket. Sparkles like your eyes, girly."

Vlad hid a smile at the mouth watering price, and he went forward to snatch up the deal when Seras began to speak. If he got ten bucks for a few more trinkets…he'd be set for months.

Seras smiled, then worked her mouth into a pout. "Only ten dollars? I would have thought it was a lot more. My mom has some stuff like this at home and they were…hm…about…in the fifties. One was a hundred, now that I think about it."

Vlad froze by the counter, in a dumb stupor as he looked at the girl and then the little figurine. His uncle must have swiped this from a pretty well-to-do place… To the shop keeper, Seras' chest had suddenly lost its charm and he coughed and then turned on Vlad, irked to find the boy in such a state of hope and disbelief. The man's head jerked towards the girl and her brother. "Al…what's up with these guys? The girl's not yours…way out of your league." He sneered and plucked up a book. "Get rid of them before I do, Al."

Vlad's mouth twitched and he lost the thrill he had just experienced, turning to tell Anderson to go with a dimmed, tacit look. Seras, flustered by the rude remarks and the unfamiliar reference, had to be dragged from the shop by Anderson, who understood that they had only made things worse for Vlad now, as the shop keeper grunted out ridiculously low prices. The figurine was in his hand as green eyes watched from the door.

"This is crap, Al." He shook his head and moved the glass angel figurine through the air carelessly "Crap. Maybe… twenty-five. That's decent."

Vlad's eyes grew a little and he caught his breath before he could speak. "Twenty-five dollars?"

The man jolted, and gaped at Vlad. His face puckered in a look of disdain, as if Vlad has spat on his shirt. "No! What…what…? Where did you get such garbage into your head, Al? It's that girl! Christ!" He glowered at the door where Anderson's eyes were watching from the car. He glared at the teen, then looked at Vlad. "Twenty-five cents! Jesus! This is something a mom might pick up on the side for her whiney brat! Jesus!" He set the angel down and moved on to the next stack of books. "Ninety-five. Ninety. I'll be generous, cuz it's Christmas, and give you this ratty one for thirty." The man paused and jabbed a book in Vlad's direction. "Cents, Al. I gotta make a living here too, you know. No one else is going to give you more for this stolen shit."

"I told you…it's my uncle's stuff." Vlad spoke, eyes straining to remain calm and confident as the man jeered and laughed at him, flipping open a cover to look at a neatly scrawled name, one that had nothing to do with Walter. He slammed the cover closed.

"Al. You're uncle was a bastard! He was a regular dirty thief!"

"He isn't and has never been a regular thief, Greg. Don't talk bad about him… and don't use past tense. He's not dead."

The man grumbled, sifting through the objects. "Yet."

Vlad's eyes widened, shaking with untamed fury as they swirled with a sudden storm of animosity. His hand shot out, claimed the angel figurine from the counter, and threatened to throw it on the ground, to shatter it into a million pieces as he lifted it wildly above his head. The man gasped before he could stop himself, and the pale hand froze as a sparking glare went to him. "You're a fucking thief, Greg, and I know it as well as you do!" He put the figurine in the pouch of his sweatshirt, but sold the rest of his uncle's stuff for the price that Greg gave them. All of the other shops assumed that the stuff was stolen and refused to pay one cent, or even the gum stuck to the bottom of their shoes, for it. Well..it was probably stolen... But he wasn't the one who had done the stealing.

When Vlad left the shop, Anderson and Seras were gone. "Good." He muttered before throwing himself into the Christmas crowds.

He snuck up into his room and stashed away most of the money before leaving to go find the little man to pay him for the previous month's rent as well as part of this month's. The man complained, and Vlad took the heat, allowing it to die down. He knew that his room was actually a large storage area, a janitor closet…or a laundry room that had never been completed. Vlad wasn't sure, he had only heard rumors…but what was sure of, was that there wouldn't be many other bidders that would want to pay the money he was putting out to stay in it. Soon the man cooled down and Vlad was able to return to his room. In a few hours he expected the power switch on his heater and the tap for the sink to be in working order, so he settled down to wrap himself up and nap, buried under the comforter, coughing once in a while as he dozed.

He looked forward to his Cup Noodles.

*~*~::..+..::~*~*

Anderson was in less of a shopping mood than he had been in before, so he could barely endure the time his sister spent buying gifts. Luckily it was a short shopping trip. He stored the three gifts he had bought in the back seat while his sister got in the passenger side, having finished piling her gifts into the trunk. Anderson was still turned around when she buckled her seat belt, so her blue eyes peeked at the back seats as well.

They both stared at the baby great white in the bottle. Seras blinked and looked at her brother. "He gave it to you."

Anderson didn't say anything, but he turned around and put his keys in the ignition. Seras reached for the bottle and brought it to her lap before they left the parking garage. She played with it curiously, her face reflected in the glass. "Kinda cute, I guess."

Anderson grunted a 'that's nice', and was quiet. Seras lost interest in the fish and watched her brother instead. Finally, his patience gave out and he snapped at her to stop staring at him.

"Is Vlad your friend from school, Andy-Alex?"

"Don't call me that." Anderson kept his eyes on the road, watching the traffic. "Yeah…he's a friend of mine from school."

Seras focused on the shark again. "Is he poor or something, Alex?"

"Obviously." He growled.

"Aw." She played with the shark, making it turn in the bottle. "That's sad. He was a nice boy."

The green eyes froze on the bumper before them, and Anderson took too long to move at a stop sign so other cars honked at him. He hurried forward after missing his turn to go the first time. The two siblings were quiet as they continued on their way.

Seras blinked, gazing out the window when she saw that they had made a wrong turn. She told Anderson this.

"No. We're going to see Vlad."

Seras gazed at her brother's face, seeing how much it had changed from the drooling, chubby cheeked baby face it had once been. She watched the buildings and people as they drove, not commenting on the sudden change of plans.

When they pulled up to the right location, Seras was looking around while Anderson got of the car. Her eyes found a familiar figure heading for the stairs and she got out to get a better view of the boy. "I found Vlad…over there." Anderson followed the finger that showed him where Vlad was, at the bottom of the stairs. He rounded the back of his car, passing his sister to move to a tree situated in front of the stairs, yet far enough away that Vlad would not notice him there. Seras came to his side, easily hiding behind him. "I'm too old for hide and seek, Alex. What's…?" Anderson shushed her and pointed at the figure that had just reached the walkway on the side of the building. They watched Vlad as he passed out of sight, cut off by the angle the two were watching from. When they heard a door close, Anderson led the way as they cautiously went to the stairs and ascended them.

Then they were lost. They still did not know which door was Vlad's and when they knocked on one a voice threatened to 'knock' their 'lights out' if they 'tried that shit again', so the siblings hesitated. Finally they resorted to asking random people if they knew which number Vlad's room was. No one knew, though a few promised to tell if Seras did them a favor. Anderson easily scared these individuals away, and their search continued. Then, the little man from before emerged and Anderson saw him just as Seras caught his attention to ask him about Vlad. The man looked her over with a deepening frown.

"Vlad?" He thought, finding the name familiar for some reason. Anderson's appearance helped him remember, and he sneered at the tall jock. "Oh! You again, I see. Here for Street-shit?"

"What?" Seras gasped, drawing the man's eyes to her again.

"Hey sweetie, so how bad you want to find 'Vlad'? Eh? Why ya wanna find him anyway?"

Flustered, Seras frowned at the man and her hands formed fists. "Are you going to tell us? …And if you look down one more time I'm going to have to hit you."

The man sniggered and put his hands in his pockets. "Guess ya don't wanna find him. Fine by me." He strolled away, ignoring Seras when she yelled after him.

With a sigh, the girl traveled back to the stairs and walked up them. Anderson stood beside her as they readied to knock on all of the doors to demand to know where Vlad's room was. But a set of steps coming up the stairs behind them made the two turn and watch as a man appeared. He stopped and watched them as well, taking in their well kept clothes and the girl's modesty. He crossed his arms, still on the stairs, when he saw that they were going to talk to him.

"Do you know which room Vlad is in? Do you live here…on this floor?" Seras asked, a bit timid now that she saw that this man, who was only a few years older than her, was rather large and mean looking. The man glanced at Anderson and then kept his eyes on Seras.

"Vlad?" He asked. The girl nodded, her cheeks coloring a little as she pushed down her apprehension, which was building as she looked at the dark eyes.

"Vlad, Vladimir…we heard someone call him Al… Last name…Dracula?"

The man's demeanor changed abruptly, his eyes growing and then easing as he realized who they were referring to. "Hell Dog?" He offered, waiting for their response.

Seras stared, wrinkling her forehead at the name, but Anderson stepped forward, uneasy now about this new character. "Yeah…Hell Dog. Do you know where his room is?" Seras watched her brother and then the man as they looked at one another. She slunk closer to her younger sibling, hiding in his shadow.

"You come here to fight him?" The man asked. Anderson paused, then shook his head.

"I'm a friend."

"Oh? Really…" Eyes roamed over the two again, doubting the claim. "Alright… What'd the punk steal from you? Or was it W.C.D. who done it?"

Anderson hid his disturbance and shook his head. "I don't know who W.C.D. is, and Vlad hasn't stolen anything from me. I want the information, that's it. Maybe I'll talk to him, nothing else."

The man sighed, scratching the back of his head, thick fingers running through his short hair. "Walter C.D. is his uncle. But fine…I'll show you where he lives." He walked up the last two stairs, making Anderson wince when he saw that the man wearing a dark blue jacket that was only partially zipped and didn't cover most of his black shirt, was actually taller than him….and he was built like a tank. A tank, for God's sake. He moved passed them in a lumbering kind of step, akin to the giants of fairy tales. Fe Fi Fo Fum….ran through Anderson's mind as he followed the man down the walkway to an unnumbered door. A large hand pounded on the door, not in a hostile manner, but in one that was made acceptable and to be expected because of the man's size. "Yo Alucard, you in there?"

Anderson and Seras were quiet, keeping some distance from the man as he referred to the skinny teen by this name. Alucard…Anderson might have heard of it at some other time…along with the name Hell Dog. For some reason, they were surprised when the dark head of messy hair poked out of the door and looked up at the man. Vlad didn't notice Anderson or Seras down the hall. "Yeah." He aimed to close the door again, but the big man scowled and grabbed it with a vice-like grip. Vlad didn't seem to realize their difference in size and weight as he smirked up at the giant. He leaned on the seized door as if it was a wall. "Am I in trouble for something, Jack-bean?"

"Shut up, Alucard. Call me Jake like you're supposed to." The man sighed out of habit, already used to the name.

Vlad nodded. "Okay Jack-bean." He grinned as his eyes finally left the giant to go to the people he could sense down the hall. Once his eyes saw Anderson, all humor fell from the boy's face. Vlad leaped into the room and then went back to yank and pull on the door, unable to budge it. "Close the door, Jake! Close it before they get in!" He tugged, succeeding in installing the fear of breaking the door into his mind. "Damn you! CLOSE IT!"

Jake smiled as the scrawny teen worked himself into a coughing fit as he fought in vain. "They said they were you're friends, Alucard. Why are you hiding from them? You don't hide." Vlad left the doorway and tried to push instead of pull the door close.

"Just close the God damned door, Jake! Close it now before I kick your ass!"

A deep, throaty chuckle came from the giant as he laughed at the absurd threat. The man let go of the door and it slammed shut. Vlad also smacked his head against it and sank to his knees, cursing furiously. He punched a tree-trunk leg to get revenge. "I'm going to get you one of these days, Jack-bean."

"In your dreams…" The dark brown eyes of the giant went back to Anderson and Seras. He watched Seras for a while as he waited for Vlad to get to his feet. "Who's the girl? I thought you were a natural girl repellent, Alucard. This one's got jugs bigger than my hands, which is saying something."

Seras stammered something and hid behind Anderson, shielding her burning face. Anderson frowned at the distasteful remark, but kept his temper. "I don't appreciate you talking about my sister like that, Jack-bean."

Vlad sniggered and then laughed outright at Anderson's words, while Jake blinked and worked his jaw, assessing the blonde. "How old are you, Blondie?"

Anderson's mouth twitched and he hid his hands in his pocket, slouching back a bit to make it seem like his age was irrelevant. "Eighteen."

The man blinked again. "You're pretty big for eighteen…you'd be good for football."

"I play quarter back for my high school team."

The man nodded, holding some respect for the well-off teenager now. He saw that Vlad had managed to stand up, and he ruffled the black hair, then cocked his head as Vlad hissed and batted his hand away. "You're fluffier than normal, Hell Dog. Not as…matty. You been to the groomers lately?"

"Stuff it Jack-bean….and don't call me that." Vlad leaned against the door, a red mark throbbing on his forehead as he crossed his arms. "Anderson and female Anderson, what are you two doing here? I'm sure as Hell that I didn't invite you over for a play date."

Female Anderson? Play date? "Um…yeah." Anderson moved his weight from one foot to the other and he cleared his throat. Why had they come? "You're sick, how are you managing that?"

Jake watched Vlad as black bangs hid the teen's expression. "I'm fine Anderson."

"My mom's worried about you."

This caused the giant to arch an eyebrow, but he didn't interrupt them. Seras was also surprised, and she reappeared from behind Anderson, remaining close to him and flinching when Jake decided to test her out by sending her a friendly wink.

"Go home Anderson…and take female Anderson with you before Jack-bean takes her up the beanstalk."

Anderson, more comfortable now as he considered Jake to be something of a gentle giant as he harmlessly teased his sister…and from what interaction he had seen between Vlad and the giant. He began to relax. "I wanted to see what you're trying to hide, Vlad."

"That's nice. Now go home. You're not seeing anything today."

"What's in there, then?" Anderson pressed. Jake took the initiative to speak up.

"He's hiding the Amazon jungle in there." He chuckled and tapped on the door, upsetting Vlad who moved to cover the door handle with his back. "He stole the Rocky Mountains."

"Now you know. Mountains." The red eyes were unable to hold up against the strong green gaze, and the weight forced them to the ground. "Now go Anderson." Vlad's hand gripped the door handle behind him, hoping to hear their departing footsteps. He heard footsteps, but they were approaching, not leaving. His expression fluidly slipped into a regretful scowl. "It's none of your business, Anderson."

"I want to see what you're hiding."

"Get lost." Vlad moved to face the teen when he felt a hand try to coax him away from the door with light tugs. Green eyes went to the window, but found that it was covered, so Anderson continued with the door. He reached for it. Vlad pushed him away. He grabbed Vlad. Vlad grabbed him. And everything deteriorated into a contest of shoves and a wrestling match as they fought for the door or to keep it away from the opponent. Vlad managed to trip up Anderson's footing so that he stumbled back, away from the door. Panting a little, Vlad triumphantly pointed down the hall and ordered the blonde to leave.

Vlad was suddenly struck by a solid wall of force. Jake held the door open, trapping the protesting teen on the other side while Anderson crept forward and peeked into the room. His jaw fell a bit as he gazed at the tiny room, made smaller by the amount of stuff that was stacked and organized so meticulously, planned and laid out to supply the greatest measure of free space. Jake was right. It was like a forest or a mountain range in there… Anderson flicked on the light to get a better view of the layout of this man-made geographical replica. But the light didn't turn on. He stared at the switch and tried it a few times, and then looked though the space made by the hinges of the door, where Vlad was glaring at him.

"You don't have electricity?" He demanded with a cool air that sparked with storming outage.

"I will in a bit. I paid the rent…it was only out yesterday and part of today. Nothing big." The boy tried to downplay whatever effect this was having on Anderson, but to no avail.

To Vlad's displeasure Anderson went into the room and had a good look around, turning on the currently useless sink. Vlad heard the creak of the knob being turned for the water. "Water will be turned on when the power's back. I paid for the rent today, like a said." Anderson still didn't come out. "Jack-bean, move your big ass." He muttered, and was allowed to go around Jake to get into the room as well…or at least stand in the doorway. Anderson was glaring at the futon he had found when he lifted up the mass of comforter.

"This is not okay, Vlad." He dropped the comforter and glared at the covered window.

Vlad watched him calmly. "It's okay. It's not like I'm living on the streets."

"Shut up! This is not okay!" The boy stalked over to Vlad and then stood close, glowering down at him with bright green eyes. Then his hand gripped the black sweatshirt and pulled Vlad out of the doorway and into the hall as Anderson attempted to drag him. "I'm taking you back to my house."

"No!" Pale fingers tore at the hand attached to his clothes. "You stupid fat ass! Let me go!"

"You're coming!" Anderson yanked on Vlad and managed to move him a few more feet until a heavy hand caught his wrist. Jake pulled Vlad away and shoved him towards the open door. It was quiet as Anderson read into the blank look on the giants face, and he remembered what kind of situation this really was. Jack-bean wasn't a gentle giant. He was a man-eater with a sense of humor. The big hand pushed Anderson towards Seras, causing him to come close to falling.

"Alucard's not going anywhere, Blondie. You said you would look, maybe talk, but not do anything else." A thick finger pointed at Vlad as the man continued to look down at Anderson with his blank, dark eyes. "There are people worse off than this stray mutt, Blondie. He's surviving on his own. He doesn't need rich ass kids like yourself trying to adopt him like he's a pet you found out in your back yard… Now, I got business with him tonight anyway. He's busy, so come back to play some other time."

Anderson stood with a stiff and determined posture. "I'm not scared of you, Jack-bean."

The brown eyes became pitch black as the giant looked down upon the blonde head and the defiant green eyes. He worked his jaw and then spat out over the ledge of the walkway, into the tops of some trees. Moving his arms from his sides to cross them over his chest, he allowed his eyes to narrow. "You should be, kid."

It was quiet, and Vlad watched the giant carefully, looking for signs that would suggest that Anderson was in danger.

Jake jerked his head back at the red eyes. "I've known this brat behind me since he was ten, eleven years old, and I've known his uncle all my life. The only man my father ever served under… I think I have more say about what's going to happen to him than you do, a kid who doesn't even know who his uncle is. There's a reason why people know Hell Dog and W.C.D., Blondie. You're out way over your head here."

Anderson didn't move, not intimidated by the man before him. "Move Jake…you seem like a descent enough guy…." Anderson was cut off when Seras kicked him, giving him a dead leg so he staggered to stay on his feet.

"Let's go Alex. We know where to find him, that's good enough. You can't take the boy by force." She looked at Vlad and waved without a smile, then turned and went to the stairs. Anderson couldn't deny her words, and he couldn't meet Vlad or Jake in the eye, so he followed Seras quietly. They both disappeared down the stairs.

The two remaining presences were silent. Faces that had appeared in nearby windows, left them. Jake turned around and found Vlad staring at his converse.

"Punks got into our territory…spray painted one our walls…and claim not to fear us anymore since Hell Dog's gone soft and W.C. 'dead', so the rest of 'us' are weak now too… You got responsibilities…a name to uphold cuz of your uncle, Alucard. You're somebody people recognize, someone they remember… No more rumors like this or that's only going to mean more trouble for everyone, got it?" Vlad looked back over the ledge at the end of the second level's hall, and he watched the wind that was ramming into a tree. Jake watched the pale skin and then moved his eyes to an idle hand.

"You skipped out! What the Hell were you doing? Nothing? Nothing ain't an answer, Hell Dog!" Someone yelled at the skinny teen that stood in the middle of the alley, standing before a jury of his peers. The oldest of the Junior leaders, the son's of Senior leaders, stood against the brick wall, facing Vlad, watching for his response. The teen refused to answer.

"We told everyone, Alucard! They noticed that you weren't there! This was a big deal!"

"Not like anyone died because I wasn't there." Vlad moved a foot as he spoke, and then looked up coolly at the forming glares. "I don't see the big deal."

"You fucking brat!" Jake snarled and moved to the boy, close enough to tower over him. Vlad smirked up at his face.

"So you think it was a big deal, Jack-bean? I thought you were the biggest thing around here…nothing's big to you…"

"Damn it!" He grabbed the boy's arms and shook him, sick of the mouthing off. "This is a big deal! If you do this then others will do this! They look at you and see a leader, now you better start acting like a goddamn leader or…"

"You plan on stepping on me until I turn into jam for your bread, Jack-bean? Or will you swallow me whole?" Vlad snickered and pulled away from the stilled hands, and moved back, like he was planning on taking his leave.

"Get back here!" Jake grabbed at a pale hand, catching only the fingers, and he wrenched Vlad over to him again. The pale teen gasped, and then swallowed a cry of pain as he felt his fingers pop out of their sockets, and then was pulled by them again. Jake crushed them in a fist, sending Vlad to his knees with a hiss. Jake had felt the fingers pop, and he knew what he was doing now, though he hadn't planned on it. He kept Vlad there, on his knees. "You're a dense little bastard, Alucard… I have to do this just to get you to listen." Vlad didn't respond, and he was quiet as he received his lecture from the others by the wall. When they were done, they began to leave while Jake pulled Vlad to his feet and took his hand. He forced one of the fingers back into place, a jolt of white hot agony searing through Vlad's nerves as he threw his head back, biting down on his tongue. "Sorry about that…" Another finger was pushed back into place as a whine climbed up Vlad's throat. He shook his head to dislodge it, and gasped.

"Don't worry about it…Jack-bean. They'll…heal fine…right?"

"Yeah. I've done this loads of times." Jake muttered, finishing off with the third finger. Vlad had to sit down for a while and Jake let him stagger off on his own, to go to the wall. When he saw that Vlad would be fine on his own, Jake left.

With the end of the flashback, Jake touched a thin shoulder with his knuckle, to get the teen's attention. "Let's go."