Torture, As Scheduled (attn: Chris)

Christian wiped his face with a towel and sighed contentedly. The jet lag from the various plane rides to get back home had been exorcised with a good work out. His progeny had held her own with satisfactory skill and level headedness. It was good to see that she hadn't been lax while he was gone.

He regarded her thoughtfully for a moment before giving her a nod.

"I suppose you are. I hope your friend is grateful for your loyalty and silence."

Tossing the used towel in the hamper, he sat on a weight bench near Aishe.

"Shall we get a cup of coffee?" Scratching his head, he smiled somewhat sheepishly at her. He had been gone so soon after her change that he was not sure whether other transformations had taken effect. Sometimes it took a while to realize that certain human things no longer appealed to you the way they once did.

"Assuming you still drink such things?"

"Woohoo," Aishe said with mock-exhausted enthusiasm. Pak had better be grateful... slightly, anyhow, Aishe was now thoroughly convinced she might actually need to help Kiamhaat exact his revenge.

Christian's offer was met with a smile. "Never did like coffee much," she said, "but I hear there's a good cup of hot chocolate in most coffee shops nowadays."

She laughed softly at Chris's last comment. It hadn't occurred to her he might worry about things like that. She tried to put herself in his shoes... this whole time she'd been focused on how badly she'd missed him and how much she hoped not to disappoint him. She was worried he'd come back regretting his decision to turn her.

It hadn't occurred to her that maybe he shared similar worries. Chris was always so confident. "I don't think you're going to find big changes in me," she said, "as much as others."

She sat up, stretched forward and touched her toes, and finally stood. "I'm the same old me."

Except she and Chris hadn't had a lot of time to really get to know each other as well as she imagined they might. Maybe that would change. She was afraid to ask him how long he'd be in Nachton though.

"Good, I hear the stuff stunts your growth."

Somehow he managed the comment with a straight face. Christian wondered what was with him these days. It was probably long weeks with no one but Alfarinn for company; that man could find just about anything amusing or entertaining. It seems to have rubbed off, either that or he would have to credit his lighter humor to his delight at seeing his progeny well and seemingly happy.

At least she appeared to be content. He would have to find out over hot chocolate. It was probably polite to actually ask her such questions in conversation instead of going on a fact finding mission in stealth. Hopefully Aishe would be honest and even if she wasn't he would know. If she weren't happy then he'd be hunting down that tall boyfriend of her's and giving him a piece of his mind.

He nodded at her assertion that she was indeed the same person that he had left.

"That is good to hear." Standing he smiled over at her. Well let's go get that drink. I hope it isn't that Swiss chocolate. You just can't trust those people."

"I wouldn't know the difference," Aishe deadpanned back at Chris, able to poke just as much fun at her own height. He was tall, to her. Most people were.

His good humor was apparent and made her feel lighthearted. She floated along beside him as they headed for the elevators to go up to the mall. Humor or not, she jumped to defend Chris from himself without a thought.

"I don't know about the rest of them but I trusted one with my life and he didn't let me down. That's got to say something."

The ride up was short enough and soon they were seated comfortably at a table outside Barney's with their respective drinks in hand. As usual, Aishe carefully ate the whipped cream from the top of her chocolate before sipping it slowly.

Christian chuckled at Aishe's defense of his character, giving her a brief one armed hugged.

"So you did."

He was not so sure he hadn't let her down by not being here for the first years of her making but they had centuries yet to go. There were no doubt more challenges to overcome in the future and he hoped to be around for them. Assuming Alfarinn was done with his globe trotting quest. Christian was certain that the leader of their clan would have gone off on that dangerous adventure alone if someone hadn't caught him in time.

Pulling himself out of his thoughts as they sat down with their drinks, Christian watched Aishe's careful dissection of her hot chocolate.

"How very thorough of you." He smiled and then got right down to business, as it were. "So, what has been going on here? Are you happy? Still with the Egyptian?

Aishe didn't need encouragement to rest her head briefly on Chris's shoulder again when he hugged her.

"I was plenty happy before, and you've given me a reason to be especially joyful tonight," she said with typical honesty. She had no reason to hide the magnitude of gladness she felt at seeing her creator.

"'The Egyptian' is well," she said with a soft laugh at the label, "and of course, we're still together."

Kiamhaat was bound to be even better, perhaps, knowing that Alfarinn might be back soon as well. Aishe knew he'd not expected to find himself in the position of watching over a Clan and as if that hadn't been surprise enough, discovering werewolves in Nachton had tipped the scales against him.

"I've turned into something of a researcher," she said. "Not that that's a far cry from what I'm trained to do, but I've been looking into a lot of history lately. Some of it you might want to see a bit later."

Aishe wasn't sure how much Chris knew about werewolves; she was sure her creator knew everything, but then she remembered that even to the older vampires she knew, werewolves had been something of a myth. It was hardly a topic she could bring up here at Barney's though, and would have to wait until later.

"And what about my honored and beloved creator?" she asked. "How is Arin? And how are you?" Her face grew serious for a moment. "We were worried about you. You both left so suddenly,"

... and I thought I might never see you again, was the unfinished part if that sentence. It carried no self-pity but rather concern. Chris had plenty to offer this world. It would be a far better place with him in it.

Christian enjoyed his coffee while listening to Aishe give him a status update. She confirmed she was happy and that she was still with Kem. That was good news; Christian doubted Alfarinn would have been very pleased if he had locked his friend in a closet somewhere for a few hundred years.

He raised his eyebrows slightly at her mention of becoming a researcher. The fact that it was into history was no surprise given her specialty before she was turned. Christian sensed there was more she wished to say on the matter but they were in the wrong place for it. At least this time it appeared he would indeed get to hear this story, eventually.

Laughing, he sat down his coffee.

"Your honored and beloved creator has some remnants of jet lag but is otherwise fine. Arin is..." Christian paused for a moment to consider the best choice of word: insane, crazy, mental. "Determined but otherwise in perfect health. I am sure he will be back into town shortly. He went to visit Thaddeus who is in South Carolina."

He really couldn't blame Alfarinn for wishing to visit with his partner that he had not seen in a long while. Christian knew that they were still close despite the distance; Alfarinn and Thaddeus were bonded and therefore always in touch. However, Alfarinn felt near desperate to renew the bond between them by seeing the Anantya in person. Once he had done that then he was likely to be a slightly more sane and level headed leader. For this reason, Christian condoned going first to South Carolina and only then coming back home. There would be a lot to tell and a lot to be told; no doubt there would be things Alfarinn would not even care to mention. These years have not been easy and some of them were downright brutal.

((OOC: I figure he picked up the -more- to the story part from her aura but since you weren't online to ask I left it vague. ))

"Oh, I'm glad he did," Aishe said. She remembered Thaddeus fondly and thought he and Alfarinn made a beautiful couple.

"Kem will be glad to know he's all right. It was tough for him, with you both gone."

People had wanted direction, answers. Without Chris or Alfarinn around they had looked to the people who seemed like they might have both. Aishe wasn't sure Kiamhaat had ever figured out what qualities of his inspired people to ask him for direction, but she knew.

Chris didn't ask her to elaborate on her research which was good; but then, he was always observant. She hadn't volunteered further information for a reason. He must have understood her unspoken words. Business could wait for a little while. She had him to herself for the moment and she was enjoying that. Soon she would have to share him with the entire Clan again as was entirely appropriate.

"Let's see," she said, trying to dig up ways to sketch around the fact that their days and nights had been filled with endless werewolf research. "Oh. My father had several heart attacks last year that my parents didn't tell me about."

Then she added, "They moved back to Egypt also, having decided I was in good hands with Kem. We went to visit them last summer and I discovered everything you and he told me initially was true."

It was hard to let go, and watch people you cared about die. But, Aishe reasoned, her parents would have gone before her anyway. Having the ability to change that didn't mean it was right. She and Kiamhaat had worked through that in spite of her brief moments of insecurity on the topic.

"We got through it though," she said, looking up into Chris's blue eyes. "It's all right."

Christian listened to the situation with Aishe's father and reached out a comforting hand to her across the table. He should have been there for advice and support. Its hard to see your relatives grow old and die when you have the power to change that. Not the right, but the power and that is always one of the first tough choices for a young vampire.

"I know that it was a difficult time. I am glad that Kem was there with you. I should thank him for that."

Though she went through this change, in large part, for Kem. In some ways, Christian felt like an awkward addition to an already tight knit couple. Her love was a vampire, every bit as old as himself; no doubt Kem expected to be the one Aishe turned to for advice and council. Christian sometimes wondered if she really needed him at all. Ah well, he supposed every father worried and wondered over such things. Was he useless, now that she had grown up and moved away?

He smiled at her assurance that they had gotten through it alright and that she was fine.

"That is good to hear. I do have something for you but I will bring it by later. So tell me, do we have any interesting new additions to Nachton's finest clan?"

"He was a rock," Aishe said, remembering their trip to Egypt and smiling her thanks as Chris's hand found hers, adding his own silent support. "I was so preoccupied with what was going on I didn't pay any attention to details. He had it all worked out and planned from start to finish. Everything I forgot, he'd remembered."

She glanced at Chris. "I think he took a page out of your book."

That was doing Kiamhaat a disservice though. He was good at long-term planning and had employed that skill to its fullest when they'd traveled.

Christian's next words had her eyebrows raising. "You brought something... for me?"

Aishe didn't know what to say about that. It made her happy; not because it was a gift, but because it meant Chris had thought about her while he was gone. She hadn't had any reassurance that he'd done so, or even that he'd be back. Practical as ever, she'd gone forward with things. She'd always wondered, though, why Chris didn't contact her. Or send to her. Anything.

She looked down at her cup and fidgeted a little. "I thought maybe... you'd regretted what you did for me."

As soon as she said it she regretted it. Chris wasn't the type. He worked for Evenhet and for Alfarinn; if their Clan leader needed him then he would be there. She offered Chris an apologetic smile. Surely he understood. Aishe knew she was lucky that Chris was her creator. She loved him for it and looked up to him. Kiamhaat was her love but Chris was her mentor.

Dropping the subject, since it did no good to make him feel bad about being gone and it wasn't her intention, she shook her head as she thought about his next query.

"No new faces. But a couple of older ones."

She briefly described one or two of the Clan members she'd seen coming and going, and then after a moment added Eiryk, the blonde she'd met just a night or two ago.

Christian rewarded Aishe with a dubious look but said nothing in response to her flattery. It seems Kem was indeed doing a much better job of being supportive than he was and that his presence wasn't really required.

On the subject of gifts, he shrugged.

"It is nothing to warrant much excitment I am afraid. We weren't exactly able to go shopping or send postcards." Christian sighed and picked back up his coffee cup. Taking another sip, he then added, "As you may have noticed."

Christian's eyebrows rose nearly up to his hairline and he choked on the next sip of his drink. Setting it down gently with both hands, he watched Aishe closely for a moment.

She had gone on to describe the comings and goings of various people, and some new blonde as well. He was still concerned with the statement it appeared she was determined to push past.

"Wait a moment. I had plenty of time to consider my choice. I found your determination,bravery and hope inspiring. I know that over the long years these qualities may change but I do intend to help see that you have the chance to enjoy your youth and see life through the eyes of the living for as long as possible."

Looking at his coffee cup like it might hold the answers to the universe, Christian continued.

"I know too that you are a good soul. No matter how age matures you and the years change the inside while nothing changes the outside I know that you will still be a shining light to whoever is lucky enough to know you. So don't think for a minute I regret anything between us...except perhaps not being here."

That was probably the longest emotional speech to come out of him in several hundred years. Christian took another bracing swallow of coffee.

"Now what was this about another blonde? Perhaps I should dye my hair. Think blue is my colour?"

Aishe tilted her head at Chris, shaking it slightly. She was happy that he'd been thinking of her at all... what he'd brought back with him mattered not a bit. "You brought you back," she said with a smile. "That's all I could have hoped for."

She was forced into silence by the longest period of speech she'd ever heard from her creator, caused as much by sheer shock as the fact that she was listening carefully to him. She knew her face was red as he attributed to her qualities which she wasn't sure she truly possessed but if that was how he saw her, she would be doing her best to live true to that image for a very long time.

When he finally wound down there was a distinctly awkward moment. "Chris, I..." Aishe wanted to pounce on him all over again, hug him until he turned blue, and quite possibly need to be pried loose, but she wouldn't embarrass him up here in front of the many night-time mall-goers. Tackling him in his office was one thing but he had a professional reputation to maintain in public. So she settled for saying, once again, "I'm glad you're home."

Maybe someday she'd tell him she cared about him in those words or more accurate ones. Aishe thought she was the one who was lucky to know Chris. Not the other way around. But she gamely let the moment pass and moved with him to another subject.

"Blue is definitely your color," she said, smiling into his clear blue eyes, "but maybe you should keep it where it is. Although the shock factor is tempting. I will admit, if you ever did something so drastic I'd want to be behind you with a video camera all night."

Christian hoped that Aishe understood how much he meant what he said but now was not the time to elaborate. Not to mention it was not his nature to be so expressive. He smiled at her when she said she was happy that he was home. They would get a chance to spend more time together later

Letting the moment pass, he was amused to hear that blue was his colour but he should probably refrain from any bold style choices. The idea of trying to do his job with everyone staring at him and Aishe following him around with a video camera was enough to make him agree that such a drastic change was a bad idea.

"I think in the case I will bow to your greater fashion knowledge. We will stay away from the blue."

Finishing his coffee, he stood up and tossed the empty cup in the recycle bin.

"I am glad to be back as well. I have some catching up to do but I am sure we will be seeing each other agin soon."

((OOC: Christian out, let's see what other mischief we can get into.))

"My greater fashion knowledge," Aishe laughed with wide eyes. "Oh, my, You're in trouble Chris."

She grinned at her creator. "Maybe a vibrant purple."

Their brief time together was over far too soon and Aishe felt a little hitch as Chris rose to go. What if he disappeared again tomorrow night, and she didn't see him again for years?

She forced herself to remain smiling in her chair, sipping at her chocolate and giving him a confident little wave. He had a lot of catching up to do, she understood the truth of that. She wished he'd asked for her help, but maybe he would do so shortly.

Besides, he said he'd see her soon. Aishe trusted Chris implicitly. Bearing those facts in mind, she watched him go. Sighing to herself she finished her drink and practically ran downstairs to tell Kiamhaat the good news. Some things were too good to send for.

((ooc: Aishe out))