It was around 10 AM when Erik awoke and found his breakfast laying on the table, still warm thanks to the hotplate on which it was rested. He glanced at the time and dragged himself out of bed to take a short bath, change clothes, and sit to eat his breakfast. By 10:40, he had sat down at the desk for another day of work that promised to be at least slightly more enjoyable than the others. At least now he could start working on something interesting, actual missions. He pulled out a file Alexi had seemed to enjoy writing up on the most despicable of his associates. 

“Gideon Grumblak, I think he mentioned that one,” the vampire muttered to himself. “Runs a slave trade and “training” company. Known for brutal methods on the slaves taken there, and known to boast about his successes on his own slaves. Sounds like a sadistic bastard. Should be fun to figure out how to take him down...” 

~*~*~

Elaria grinned and acknowledged that she and her friend would be there on time for the picnic.

Stepping out of the car Alexi does the meet and greet quickly, his neat little cue of slaves standing behind him like a mod of  “yes men” or something. Once that part is over he and his posse head inside. Another bout of handshakes made their rounds and as soon as he's given the okay he calls out, “Tweedles! Get to it!” A pair of Slaves snap to attention, one with flaming red shaggy hair down to her knees, the other a guy with slightly wavy blue hair of the same length.

“As you wish Master Alexi.” The two chime with almost identical voices and in a moment the two are off with the crew, doing a job they've done many times before. Occasional licks of flame dace around in the red head's mane as she invokes her magic on the strips while the occasional bubble rises from the boy's hands as he infuses the walls where the strip will go with a magical kind of adhesive. The twins are relatively new to Alexi's fold, the elementals born to slave parents and sold off as soon as they were weaned. Alexi was not the first to own them, a rotten woman who thought it was fun to pit her slaves against one another having found the idea of making them fight a most amusing one.

However she was never able to get them to fight right and when Alexi had made his offer for them four years ago she had happily let him take them off her hands. Her arena was famous and two slaves that refused to listen were not worth the trouble. Because breaking was long, involved, and made slave to pliant, she only uses strong control collars to both control and train her stock. However after coming to Alexi's the twins changed quickly from defiant to helpful. As soon as he realized how much the hated collars he made a whole new system just for them. A small gesture, considering they are still slaves, but it was enough to get them to open up a bit.

The job at the new shop goes fairly quickly and as a treat Alexi takes his crew out for lunch. The owner looked on disapprovingly however as Alexi paid half again the cost of the meal and is a very well known man he allows the slaves to eat in peace. Alexi sits at his own table, to keep up appearances, and once the meal is over they are out and heading back to the house as quite and as neat as you please. Once home The Tweedles head out to the shed to begin on their reports and Alexi contacts the kitchen to tell them to prepare a lunch. [i]'I ate, but only a little bit. I could eat with him, definitely'[/i] He sends another to Elaria on the way to his room to change to tell her to meet him outside in 20 minutes. Pressing the send button just as he walks into his room he sighs, ready to toss his phone, but then he recalls the orders about bathing and sends one last text to Joseph about a sponge bath. Tossing his phone on the bed he looks to Erik. “Care to join me for a bath? You look like you could use some relaxation.” Without waiting for an answer Alexi slips into the bathroom and start stripping.

Erik almost did not hear Alexi enter the room, he was so engrossed in the plan he was working on. But at the word “relaxation” his ears perked up and he nodded, putting his pencil down on the notebook and standing up to stretch. He had found time to write in his diary as well, to work through the new emotions from the second dose. 

Suppressing a grin, he shed his clothes, left them in a neat pile on the chair, and strode to the tub. Before Alexi was even finished stripping, he was already in the “first” tub, though his expression had not broken a single smile. The vampire leader did not want to admit how much he needed the break, or how much he truly enjoyed swimming.

“How was your morning?” he asked the lord of the house curiously.

As soon as he's sheds his last layer Alexi lets out a long sigh and collapses on to the bench by the wall mirror. Facing Erik he shakes his head and makes an 'I just smelled something foul' face. “Not my worst day, however all the time spent in the shop was definitely nerve wracking. I kept having flashes of doubt and feeling the urge to run around and double check things.” He sighs again, trying to pop his neck. “Then there was the bout of self loathing when I admired some of the more interesting designs on collar sets, and when one of the workers yelled at one of the Tweedles I felt the overwhelming urge to backhand him.” He smiles. “So over all, not a day I have ever had before, so it was interesting. Oh, and also, Riley talked me into a picnic in the back yard for lunch, so that was a good thing.” His smile stays in place as he gestures toward Erik. “And you?”

Erik raised an eyebrow as the slave owner mentioned admiring the collar designs, but he said nothing. [i]At least he is overcoming those impulses,[/i] he thought. [i]And at least he felt appropriately shitty about it.[/i] 

“Me? Nothing so interesting. I was locked in here all day, remember?” Erik pointed out with more than a little resentment. “But I made some good progress, gathered and organized the information into something resembling a system, and separated the files I needed for the first three heists. I even got started planning the first one. I figured I'd start with that bastard Grunblak you mentioned. Who are the Tweedles?”

Alexi doesn't even blink at the obvious resentment, even though it dies trigger a sick feeling inside him. He's begun learning that what he does, no matter the reason, is just going to piss the vampire off, and he's just going to have to deal with that. [i]'I know what needs to be done, and I can not let his emotions influence me. He may be absolutely right and I be a horrible person, but that will never change my mind'[/i] He blinks slowly at Grunblak's name. “If you take him down, your very next stop should be the home of Elsa Selan. She is his primary customer and she keeps a lot of slaves in cages on her estate. If he gets taken down, she may very well flee and leave them to die. That is if she survives at all. She does not have many slaves in her actual house, since she specializes in making magicals violent, she does not trust them. She would rather pay an arm and a leg for human servants.”

He smiles gently. “I took the Tweedles from her recently. They are twin elementals who are specialists like Elaria. In fact, they work for her. They have a real talent, and though you may hate the sound of this, a rel fondness for me. . .” He doesn't know why he put it like that, unsure of a lot of things lately, however that is how it came to his mind, so true to form, it's what came out of his mouth.

“I remember Elsa,” the vampire mused. “Reading her dossier left a really awful taste in my mouth. She was definitely on our radar, but I had no idea just how horrid she was. And I don't mind that your slaves like you. It's obvious it's out of your kindness for them and not because you've lobotomized their minds. I imagine the worst of the work done to Joseph was before you even were born. Even so, you guys clearly love and respect each other, far beyond breaking.” 

Erik realized that he felt Alexi's ill feeling and swam to the side of the pool, just in case it got worse.  “What happened?” he muttered, “Was it something I said or are you just not feeling well?”

“I am fine. Just another wave.” Alexi offers up a half smile. “I may not understand emotion personally all that well, but I can recognize certain things. They don't like me for my kindness, they like me because I am not mean. To be kind, I would have to be able to care for them, and honestly, I find it hard to care for anyone. Joseph is like a father, in fact he is more a father to me than my own father. He cares for me a lot, you are right, and because of that, I care for him. Mois is the same, except he is my brother.”

He looks down, almost afraid how Erik will take what he hast to say next. “I can not say this for sure, but what you call kindness from me is the same feeling I would suspect one would have for a pet. I know it is not right, and that they are not, but I can not help my lack of compassion. They are mine, and I care for them, because they are mine, as evil as that sounds. I imagine them free and I can only speculate on this mind you, and all I can think to feel is happy they served me so well, and hope they move on to better lives eventually. But that feeling will fade, unless I see them again. I do not carry feelings for long. . .” He shrugs. “As for them caring for me. . .It is, in it's own way, a form of taking advantage of a fragile mental state. By being not mean and giving them freedoms they never thought they had, they look up to and admire me even though I am simply giving them small freedoms they should have anyway. . . .”

At first, Erik had a slight surge of anger at Alexi's comparison, but as he listened, his anger changed to concern. He realized that Alexi was speaking the way he was because of his own inability to feel, not really any sort of prejudice towards slaves. 

“We should be judged by our actions, not our feelings. Even though you cannot feel for them, if you are kind for them, then you are showing caring for them. And by freeing them, you will be showing immense love. Love is not just an emotion, it's the actions that surround it. It's a verb. For you to have come this far despite the way you were raised, and whatever is wrong with that crazy head of yours, it impressive.”

Letting out a small whine Alexi looks at his feet. He does his best to keep the wave from showing, and other than the noise, he manages to do just that. When the harsh feeling slips into one he can recognize and relate to the human lets out a sigh, even managing a smile. [i]'He is worried about me. That makes me feel good'[/i] He focuses on that thought so he can be more attentive to Erik as he speaks up. “Thank you. That is kind of you to say. However I think kindness should be judged on both. Give food to a starving army to prolong a war, while a kind act, is an unkind purpose. In that scenario, the cruel outweighs the kind. And for me, perhaps my kind action outweighs the fact that I am doing this for a selfish reason, but that has yet to be proven to me.” He smiles vaguely, finally sorting out the wave from before and settling it down. He wonders idly what's keeping Joseph, and if he should go check his phone.

As if he could read Master Alexi's thoughts, Joseph entered the room and retrieved a small basket of bathing supplies from the closet. Bowing, he greeted Master Alexi, and Erik also said hello.

Soon enough, Erik turned back to the conversation, rolling his eyes “Well, I'm not here to convince you of your own morality. Why am I here exactly?” the vampire tried with the slightest hint of a mischievous smile, though he did not really think slipping the question here would work.

Alexi smiles a little brighter as Joseph appears as if his thoughts had been made flesh. “Hello Joseph, how was your day?” Looking over at Erik he adds, “You are here because I offered relaxation and you accepted?” He smiles his little brat smile and hums softly as Joseph gets to work.

Joseph could not help but smirk just slightly at Erik's failed attempt to get information out of Alexi. But in truth, Erik was smirking a bit himself, even if he was rather annoyed at the smug look on the human's face. Rolling his eyes, he lightly jumped back into the water to swim some more. 

The elder vampire's voice was appropriately calm and respectful when he answered, “My day has gone well, Master. I have accomplished much. I do have a confession to make, however.”

Alexi quite visibly perks up, whipping his head around like an eager puppy. His feelings become light and fluffy as he smiles at Joseph. “Confession?” If he were a dog, Alexi's tail would be wagging.

Joseph looked away as he gently scrubbed the human's back, as he knew that his confession was neither good enough nor exciting enough to warrant such a response. 

“I have passed on some of my chores, those that could be done by others at least, to the other slaves. It's spread out so no one will really notice the burden of increased work. I am somewhat ashamed, but it is that I was becoming too anxious over maintaining my normal workload with my new responsibilities these last few days, and I wanted to be certain that I could serve you to the best of my ability, Master.” The elder vampire bowed lightly at the end of his explanation, and began working on scrubbing Master Alexi's neck and arms.

Alexi's smile widens. “I am glad you will be less stressed now, and I am sure the others will not mind. They all look up to you a lot and as you wish to help me, I am sure they would love to help you.” He takes the vampire's hand just as he finishes scrubbing one of his arms. He gives it a squeeze and murmurs, “No need to be ashamed, you are not a god after all. You have your limits, which you tend to try and exceed regularly.” He chuckles at this. “But it is good to give in every once in a while. . .And breath.” Dropping his hand to his side he sighs softly. “You are a kind vampire Joseph. . .” His gaze locks on a point far away as he begins integrating the earlier conversation with the gentle feeling inside him now, trying desperately to decipher it all.

“Thank you, Master Alexi,” Joseph replied, appreciating the comforting touch of his master's hand. Next, he knelt down to sponge off the human's legs. 

Looking for all the world like a mer-man, rather than a vampire, Erik swam up to the pair. “The water is lovely, you know. You ought to try avoiding getting yourself sliced up in the future, so that you can actually join me in here.” He allowed himself a grin. “You're not such a horrible captor, you know. If I had to choose a cage, it would certainly be this one. A lovely swimming house, all the gourmet food I can eat, and more intel than we could have gathered in two years without your connections. Yeah, I could get used to this if I weren't such a restless person."

Alexi is very much off in another world until Erik addresses him again. This time it actually takes him a minute to come back to reality, all the feelings roused inside him not going back to sleep quietly. When at last his mind is his own again he mulls over the vampires words carefully before responding. “I do not suspect I will get many if any new slaves over the next month or so, and I also doubt that if I do I will get such a one again that I would risk myself. . .” He smiles lightly. “I am glad this is not hell for you. I hope the good, in time, will take away that bitter taste, as you only have to stay here a short while. . .” He does not seemed bothered at all with Joseph washing him, not even a flicker of the embarrassment he felt with Erik.

Erik grimaced weakly. “Perhaps it will. Are you going to have more work for me once I get through this batch?”

Alexi shakes his head. “For now, that is the solid stuff. As I planned on gathering until the last day before your release there is a lot of speculation I could give you, but that is not as reliable. As it is, there is most likely only a good armload left of stuff I could scrounge up.” He nods. “However you have a good fifty targets in there at least. I assume you have not planned for all of them yet, no?”

“No, alas, I'm good, but I'm not that good,” Erik replied, smirking slightly at Alexi as he jumped out of the pool. “I just wanted to figure out how many sleepless nights I was in store for in the next month.” 

Alexi drops his gaze on impulse. “You should sleep. Do not turn into Joseph and not sleep just because you feel you do not have enough time, or any other silly reason.” He murmurs this, groaning lightly at the feeling of having his feet washed. 

Erik looked back into Alexi's eyes. “It's not a big deal for me. I hardly had time to sleep as Leader. Why should this be any different?” 

Joseph suppressed an annoyed look at his beloved master's comment about him and continued washing the man's feet. Skipping the lotion for fear of aggravating the wounds, he began re-bandaging the human up. “These are just for added protection. You should be able to swim again in the morning.”

“You enjoy everything else, at least the good parts, about you gilded cage, why not the ability to get a full night's sleep?” Alexi shrugs under his new bandages, stretching them slightly so they fit more comfortably. “Thank you Joseph.” Alexi stands and gives the elder vampire a hug before letting him help him into a robe and heading to his room to pick out what he wants to wear for the rest of the day.

“I will return in a few minutes with a light lunch for you both,” Joseph announced before bowing and heading towards the exit.  Erik sighed and changed back into his normal clothes. “Thanks for that Alexi, I needed the break. But I have fifty preliminary missions to plan in a month. Do you have any idea how much work that is? It would be nearly impossible even if I could be up 24-7.”

“A moment Joseph.” He smiles “Just for him please as I have a picnic to attend in the back garden.” He chuckles. Little Riley, Elaria, and her new friend will be joining me. I already have to cooks on the job.” He smiles wide. “Thank you anyways.” Stripping out of his robe he carefully picks out something light and comfortable and would be at home at Woodstock. Jangling the beads a bit he smiles at Erik  giving him the “Peace” sign. “If you know it is impossible, then trying is crazy right? Set a goal you can achieve, and use the rest of your time on staying healthy.” He gives the vampire a soft smile. “Also, no thanks necessary. It is fun having someone to talk to. . .”

“Oh, great... The guy wearing tacky ancient hippie clothes, the guy who seems completely insane most of the time, is talking to [i]me[/i] about crazy. Irony much? But, I suppose you're right. In a month, the best I could do is about fifteen to twenty of these.” A wave of quiet sadness washed over the younger vampire as he thought about how he missed the outdoors, even if he primarily left at night. But he quickly shook it off and waved Alexi goodbye.

Joseph nodded and left to retrieve Erik's lunch, and returned in only a few minutes with a delicious meal. Erik sighed, “Thank you, Joseph,” he muttered, caught between appreciation for the meal and continued resentment towards his imprisonment.

With a chuckle Alexi heads out, tipping into the wall opposite the door after closing it as the wave triggers a rush of emotion. Humming to himself he manages to get upright by the time he reaches Riley's room and with a soft smile he check for the remote in his pocket, then opens the door to Riley's room. Surprisingly he is standing quite quietly in the middle of the room, facing the door, waiting. Alexi smiles warmly at the little creature and with a small motion to follow, heads out into the hallway. Riley latches on to his arm, unwilling to let Alexi go even to walk down the stairs. His head is whipping this way and that until at last his eyes settle on a small slice of the outdoors he can see through a window.

Coming around the bottom of the stairs Alexi flinches as the magical's grip tightens. From where they are standing the glass doors leading to the garden ar easily visible and Riley can not contain his excitement. Alexi notes that just beyond the doors is a familiar shadow and with a nod he moves swiftly towards the doors. As soon as the doors are open Riley lets go of Alexi and vanishes into the foliage. Elaria moves behins him, apparently able to see him though he is camoflaged, and makes sure he doesn't go far. “Good afternoon Elaria.” Alexi says softly, making his way towards the red and white check blanket in the distance.

“Good afternoon Mater Alexi. How are you feeling?” Her eyes never leave Riley as she speaks, ready to pin him down gently should he make a break for the wall.

“I am doing quite well. And yourself?” His smile never leaves his lips as Riley moves in the general right direction to get to the meal.

She shrugs in response. “I am feeling good. Tui and La game me their reports. Everything is in order, I have a bunk mate whom satisfies me, and I get to have a picnic with you, so, I would say I am doing very well.” Alexi chuckles again but says not more, trying to see what Elaria sees as they walk.

Elaria watched Riley closely, just in case he tried to run off, but he seemed remarkably content for the moment. She allowed her power to sense his, to gain a glimpse of the special connection the M'Tinak had with nature. It was unique, with a different feel than even the understanding that the drake had with everything in the universe. 

She held her lover's hand gently, and took in the sunlight and the gardens through an echo of the M'Tinak's senses, and found herself somehow even more content. Turning towards the manor, she caught sight of a figure in the window of Alexi's bathroom. The windows were a one way mirror, but she could sense through them, although she could not tell for certain exactly what the figure looked like. She could tell that he was looking down at them. 

“Your ward is watching us from your room,” she announced quietly to Alexi, mostly as a point of conversation.

In truth, Erik was watching them, and ignoring his scrumptuous lunch, though he was unsure why. A wave of irrational jealousy washed over him, as he felt that he missed the companionship of others, and the outdoors. Of course, he could never be out during this time of day. But, for a moment, he thought that perhaps he would brave the burns if it meant that he could be free from this gilded cage.

[i]'I have no reason to complain, not really. Rebels have died to get a small fraction of the intel Alexi has given me. Imprisonment, and certainly imprisonment in the lap of luxury, is an insignificant price to pay,'[/i] he thought. But that did not stop the irrational envy, or the loneliness, and certainly not the desire to leave this damn room.

Other than the odd rustle of a leaf or shifting of a branch Alexi is unable to see the passage of the little M'Tinak, however as Elaria seems relaxed it is clear the little one is not trying to wander far. He watches her face go from concentrated to content and he worries slightly that she may take her attention off the beast and risk him getting away. His fears are realized a moment later and he is about to reprimand her, however her words instead cause him to turn on the spot and follow her gaze. The motion seems to draw all eyes in the garden to him, but as no one else there can see the way Elaria does they soon dismiss it as just another one of their lord's oddities.

He stares at the window for a long moment before turning his head and whispering, “Do not take your eyes off Riley, and do no even mention such like that again in such a setting.” His voice is calm but none the less Elaria feels the sting of his disappointment.

[i]'I let the little one's feeling overwhelm me and distract me from my duties. I should never have done that. . .'[/i] The male drake whines softly but she does not respond, instead watching Riley skitter up to Alexi and climb up his back. The human almost seems not to notice, his gaze locked on the bathroom windows, however he does shift a little to keep his balance. 

Riley coos loudly, trying to get his attention and Alexi reaches up absentmindedly to pat his head, but for a long moment the human is unable to draw his gaze away from the mirrors high above. [i]'I know what I am doing is right, and I feel no real shame in keeping him locked up like this, but somehow. . . Somehow I sense that if I were him, I would feels shamed. . .I would. . .'[/i] He does not understand these stray thoughts, nor the faint flickers  inside him, however from behind Elaria notes them and a flash of worry flickers across her face. When at last he's able to tear his eyes away he motions for them to continue and like an Olympic diving champion Riley launches off Alexi after climbing to his shoulder and lands right next to the food.

Elaria darts after him, making sure he does not get too far away, and Alexi smiles as he notes that the actual picnic spot will be out of sight of the windows. [i]'At least he will not have to sit and watch up out here the entire time, not that I expect he would even if he could see us'[/i] He sighs softly, glancing back at the window one last time before vanishing beneath the swaying tendrils of a weeping willow.

Elaria had retracted her attention from Riley's happiness in order to focus better and not let anything else slip. She was still content, but she had more of her wits about her. Smiling just slightly, she sat down and guided her friend with her, snuggling into him. Naturally, she still kept an eye on Riley, but he was not roaming far.