Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter One: Halloween

Armand had fond memories of spending Halloween with Daniel wandering the streets of New York. He remembered their first Halloween together when he had taken to giving the children running about shiny silver dollars, watching their eyes light up at the treat. 

Daniel had been surprised that Armand had such a fondness for children. He hadn’t known then where Armand had come from, about Arun or Amadeo or about the lives he wished Arun and Amadeo could have lived. 

He wondered if Daniel was taking his girls trick-or-treating, but then he remembered that those girls were grown now. Kate had to be nearly thirty - older than Daniel had been when she was born, older than Daniel had been when Armand had fallen in love with him - and Lenora was only a handful of years behind her. 

Armand found himself reminded of just how fast time went by for mortals.

Louis had asked for a divorce. 

Armand was well aware that their companionship, their marriage, had been dying a slow death from the moment it started. They had loved one another. He would never allow anyone to say otherwise. But that love was never enough to overcome what had happened to Claudia. Armand had only hoped to hold on to the affection, to the safety of a home, for as long as possible.

Daniel Molloy had been a complication, and thirty years earlier, Armand would have been tempted to be the one to leave his marriage to Louis, to choose Daniel over Louis. 

But it had all gone too far. 

Daniel became addicted to Armand’s blood. Armand could not bear to turn him much as he tried to make himself do it. Louis was safer for Armand and Daniel was safer without Armand. 

It was hypocritical to be standing before the door of Daniel’s apartment now. Nothing had truly changed except that Armand was currently deep in negotiations with Louis about dividing up intertwined assets and property. Armand was not technically homeless, but none of his properties were vacant and inhabitable at the moment. 

The building in Brooklyn that he had installed Daniel in the late 70s was the exception. 

Yes, it was technically occupied, but Armand was quite persuasive. 

He was sure that he could convince Daniel - one way or another - to let him stay. Certainly, he might have to tell him of the past, but perhaps that would be for the best. 

Vampiric powers made breaking and entering quite easy. He was easily able to manipulate the lock, to hear the cogs clicking into place. He let himself in, glad to see his sky mural still survived on the ceiling. He sat down in one of the chairs near a window, waiting for Daniel to return.

Daniel had thought it was a good thing that he got invited to Kate’s house to see his granddaughter in her Halloween costume. Sure, it meant trekking all the way to Westchester. Sure, he wasn’t actually that good at family fun, but he thought his granddaughter actually liked him (as much as a small child was inclined to like someone who only infrequently showed up, but who almost always arrived with presents).

But it was something. 

He was trying.

They were trying. 

Maybe it was just some weird worry about the possibility Daniel’s second divorce might throw him on the path of relapsing. It was sweet in a way. Daniel didn’t have the heart to tell them that he was pretty sure he’d never really loved his second wife enough to marry her, which made the divorce far less bittersweet. He wasn't exactly falling apart at the seams. He was just lucky he’d had the forethought of a pre-nup this go around. 

The apartment was lonelier than the place he'd shared with her, but even Daniel Molloy knew that wasn’t a good enough reason to stay married. Hell, the fact he hadn't sold the apartment when they'd gotten their own place together spoke volumes.

He put his key in the lock to his apartment, letting himself into the dark room. 

“Daniel Molloy.” 

Daniel flipped on the overhead light. He folded his arms, annoyed. 

“I know you must be startled to find someone in your apartment. We…”

“I’m startled to find an asshole who dumped me decades ago in my living room. I’m considering punching him in his big dumb face,” Daniel stayed where he was despite the inherent threat of being face-to-face with a vampire. Armand was an asshole, but he was an asshole that could kill Daniel. 

Armand just stood there for a moment. He tilted his head, big insect eyes blinking like he couldn’t process the information.

Good, Daniel thought. Glad I could throw you off your fucking rhythm.

“You remember,” Armand finally said. “How do you remember?”

“For a minute, I thought I could save my marriage if I quit smoking,” It had been a good five years earlier, a sad statement on the reality of how long his marriage had been failing. “Didn’t work, but the hypnosis I tried to get me to kick the habit shook a few things loose. Once it did, fucking floodgates opened.”

“You remember,” Armand’s expression went from quiet fascination to something sad and disappointed. “You remembered and you didn’t try to find me?” 

Daniel stared at him baffled at his fucking audacity. He fucked off, erased Daniel’s memory, didn’t even stop in for an occasional visit, and he had the audacity to stand there and look like a hurt little lamb because Daniel didn’t come find him.

“You’re a fucking vampire with no digital footprint or last name last time I checked.” 

Armand considered it. He could argue. He could point out that he was well aware of just how many informants Daniel had hunted down when he’d put his mind to it. Finding secret KGB agents wasn't so much more difficult than finding Armand, surely. He didn’t say any of that, though.

Instead he said: 

“Sometimes I use Molloy if Louis is not involved.” He paused. “So you did try to find me?” 

“Of course, I tried to find you. Fucking asshole,” Daniel couldn’t just stand there. He might go crazy. Or do something stupid like hug Armand and beg him never to leave again. So he walked into the kitchen instead. Sparkling water wasn’t exactly the same as an incredibly strong martini, but he was technically not drinking these days. “What are you doing here, Armand?” 

“I…was in need of a place to stay.” 

“And your plan was what? Walk in unannounced, tell me we used to date, and I’d just…give you the guest room?” 

“It’s technically my apartment.” 

“Fuck you,” Daniel walked back into the living room, stopping in front of Armand, but keeping at least six feet between them. “And the pesky problem of my memories that you thought I didn’t have?” 

“Easily managed.” 

“Return my memories and sweet talk your way into my home. Why?” 

“Louis and I have decided to consciously uncouple from each other.” 

“Fancy words for divorce,” Daniel smirked. “Did he kick you out? Word of advice for next time, get a pre-nup. Kelly sure did tell me to get the fuck out, but I had it in writing that she could only push me so far.” 

“We are still untangling our assets,” Armand demurred. “It was mutual.” 

“He’s fucking Lestat as we speak, isn’t he?” 

Armand stiffened, “I believe technically Lestat is fucking him, but yes.” 

Daniel laughed, “For the record, I’d be a whole lot more angry right now if I didn’t have my memories and I couldn’t enjoy you being as much a pathetic loser when it comes to marriage as I am.” 

“I have a room at the Waldorf,” Armand shrugged. “If you don’t wish me to stay…” 

“You don’t need to stay here, Armand,” Daniel pointed out. “Let’s get that straight. You got more money than Bill Gates ferreted away in accounts Louis probably doesn’t even know about. You could stay at the Waldorf forever if you wanted to.” 

“I…” 

“You don’t wanna be alone. You hate being alone. You need a companion,” Daniel understood it even if it pissed him off. “I’m always second best to Louis.” 

Armand considered his words. There was a part of him that thought he ought to grab his silly boy by the throat and remind him who was in charge here. But Daniel was not his silly boy anymore, was he? 

“Kelly has a new townhouse in Turtle Bay,” Armand said. “A pre-nup kept you from being taken to the cleaners as they say, but you still had to put her up somewhere. Her things are gone. Your closet is half empty. There’s no one hovering around, looking after you, giving a damn about you. I am not the only one who prefers companionship over solitude.” 

“It’s almost like some guy who liked me dependent gave me a complex,” Daniel sighed. “Why do you even wanna stay here? Bet you could buy a fancy townhouse in Turtle Bay, too, probably even pay for a companion.” 

“I do not pay for sex,” Armand cut in sharply. “You know better.” 

Daniel had the good sense to look chastised at that. He did know better. He wasn’t one for cheap swipes at Armand’s past when he was thinking straight. 

“Sorry,” Daniel offered honestly. 

“I did not want you dependent. Therein lay the rub that finally drove us apart,” Armand reminded Daniel. Did he know that now that he was not young and foolish? “If you do not wish me to stay, I will go.” 

“You can stay on two conditions.” 

“Name your price, beloved.” 

The endearment sent a shiver through Daniel. 

“One, you don’t even think of fucking with my memories this time.” 

“Very well. And the second?” 

“You don’t fuck off like last time. I deserve at least a forwarding address if you run back to Louis or whoever else.” 

“I will promise to say goodbye.” 

“That’s not the same thing.” 

“No, it isn’t.” 

Daniel sighed, “Fine. You can fucking stay. In the guest room.” 

Five years was a long time to process a relationship you had temporarily forgotten existed. The first year had mostly been spent on you were fucking a vampire and he didn’t kill you. Then there was plenty of time to go through all the stages of grief. He was angry for a long time. He tried to bargain with the universe if only Armand would come back to him. But somewhere along the way, he had accepted what happened. 

Maybe it was a sign of hard won maturity for old Daniel Molloy. 

He wasn’t blameless in what happened. Sure, he wasn’t the one who could erase memories and disappear, but he had been a dick to Armand. It had been a toxic relationship. It was going to end with Daniel in a body bag because Armand wasn’t going to turn him and Daniel was downright reckless.

But all the coping and processing and taking responsibility hadn’t actually prepared him for Armand to be living in his apartment.

The paintings came first. 

Daniel worked hard to convince himself that they were all just minor works or reproductions. He knew all too well who Marius de Romanus was. He could imagine those shitty paintings hadn’t been too expensive to buy legitimately. But he refused to let himself think that the actual Storm on the Sea of Galilee was the real deal (even if he casually thought maybe Armand stole it from the Gardner post-break up because he was sad and maybe he liked that visual a whole hell of a lot). 

He considered complaining about Armand reconfiguring the setup of Daniel’s copious collection of lamps to make wall space for his paintings, but he thought that might be tantamount to taking the bait. 

In the end, he moved only one of them - the only de Romanus painting that Armand had moved into the apartment that appeared to include a horribly whitewashed Armand in it. That thing could rot in the back of a fucking closet. 

Armand didn’t mention it, but it also didn’t reappear in the living room.

Then suddenly there was a new coffee table. 

Daniel walked in from going down to the bodega to find Armand rearranging his books on the new coffee table.

“That’s quite a piece of furniture,” Daniel pointed out after he’d come back in to sit on the sofa and Armand had just…not mentioned the table. 

“It is,” Armand nodded, sitting down next to Daniel. “I did not think you would mind me swapping out that cheap particle board monstrosity.” 

“Uh huh,” Daniel debated whether to take the bait, but it turned out he might have managed to avoid it when it came to the paintings, but he had a limit. “It’s 10:30 at night.” 

“It is.” 

“I left at 10 to go to the bodega.” 

“You did.” 

“So who delivered this and when?” 

“I paid well for an after hours delivery,” Armand explained. “It isn’t unusual with these types of businesses.” 

“Furniture stores?” 

“Funeral homes,” Armand frowned. “It is a coffin, Daniel.”

“Of fucking course it is,” Daniel rolled his eyes. “Since when do you need a coffin close at hand?” 

“I always had one close at hand,” Armand argued. “You simply were unaware given the one time I allowed you to lay with me in one during the summer of 1977 you had a panic attack.” 

“Apparently I had limits.” 

“It always surprised me that that was one of them,” Armand admitted. He leaned forward, carefully adjusting the angle of a stack of books. 

“You never slept in it besides that night when we were…” 

“I rarely sleep in it now,” Armand shrugged. “But it is a practical investment. It is one of the surest ways for a vampire to recover from illness or injury even at my age. It would be difficult to procure one once hurt if I were not proactive.” 

“Very practical,” Daniel sighed. He put his feet up on the edge. “I guess it is a pretty sturdy coffee table.” 

“Apothecary table.” 

“Excuse me.” 

“It is better described as an apothecary table.” 

“Apothecary tables have drawers,” This was an actual argument they were having apparently. 

“Exactly,” Armand said as if it should be obvious. “How better to explain the handles?” 

“Jesus…fu…” Daniel just held his hands up. “Fine. I forgot how much you enjoy arguing.” 

Armand smiled a little. For a moment, he caught his bottom lip between his teeth. He looked like he was going to say something, but then he simply found the remote control and turned on the television. 

They watched a bunch of old sitcom reruns on Nick at Nite. 

Daniel kind of remembered just how fucking old Armand was for a second. 

Sort of.

It was weird, especially now. Daniel wasn’t getting any younger. He had just sort of assumed he’d never see Armand again and it wouldn’t matter. 

Maybe it didn’t matter. 

Daniel tried to shut his brain off, half afraid Armand was listening, half wanting to be able to just focus on how much Armand liked I Love Lucy of all fucking things, rambling about the first time the episode aired and how humorous he had found it. 

And, hey, uncomfortable conversations about the past were easily pushed out of his brain by imagining his super hot gremlin, insect monster of an ex and Louis de Pointe du Lac watching tv. 

It was the little things.

Before Armand, Daniel had been flat broke and spending money he didn't have on drugs. Needless to say, he had lived with roommates before. He knew how to navigate that sort of thing. He knew better than to complain about the coffin or the clearly stolen paintings or whatever redecorating Armand was doing to the guest room too much. Maybe he was a little afraid protesting too much would chase Armand off. He didn't want that. He wasn't yet saying that out loud, exactly, but he didn't want that.

But a man also had limits.

A few days later, Armand reached one of them.

"What the actual fuck, Armand?"

"Did your poker game end early?" Armand didn't look up from what he was doing.

"Um, yeah," Daniel said. "That's not the surprising detail here. Why does our living room look like a fucking waiting room?"

"I had tried to plan things for an evening where you were apt to be out," Armand pointed out as if that was helpful in this situation. "It's a blood drive, beloved. An excellent way to ethically source blood."

Okay…

So the explanation was apparently not going to help Daniel feel better about the whole thing. There had to be ten more people milling around the living room, waiting to be brought into the kitchen where Armand was filling pint bags of blood from the apparent donors.

"You…you know how to draw and preserve blood? You're an amateur phlebotomist?"

"I suppose all vampires are amateur phlebotomists," He released the tourniquet from around the guy's arm. He was careful to disconnect the needle and cover the puncture wound with a cotton ball and piece of tape. "Send in number 12, please."

Daniel assumed the part where Number 11 wasn't phased by Armand mentioning vampires meant everyone was at least a little bit whammied. Armand was good at the mind fuckery after all.

"I took a series of classes at City College in the early 80s. You accompanied me to several of them," Armand labeled the bag and picked up another elastic band to use as a tourniquet. "Do you not remember that? Why would you not remember that?"

Armand frowned as another person came in and took a seat. Number 12, apparently.

"I thought that was a fever dream."

"It was not," Armand continued what he was doing, not looking up from his work. "Would you prefer I steal blood from a blood bank or a hospital? I assure you that I compensate them all with the going rate for plasma - $70 just so you are aware- and unlike a blood bank, I have no cap on how much you can donate for cash in a month."

Daniel was trying to find an in to make an argument against this. It wasn't like he was hurting anyone, but it was still, well, fucking weird, right? Even by vampire standards it was weird.

Was it weird by Armand standards?

Daniel remembered the whole I'm going to sit in a chair and watch you fuck people era of their relationship, but this was differently weird than a cuck chair setup.

"You used to sell your plasma," Armand clearly knew he was going to need to hedge off an argument. "You lied on the intake forms to ensure they would pay you despite your various risky behaviors. You were doing it to spite me, of course."

Armand checked that the bag was filling correctly.

"Selling what I so greedily wanted because I would not give you my blood in turn even though you did not need the money or the drugs the money purchased."

"A whore is a whore, I guess. I was shockingly entrepreneurial. Didn't draw the line at only bartering with desire," Daniel wasn't sure it had been spite, but maybe the practical aspect of it had been bolstered by knowing it would piss Armand off. "Are you a vegetarian now or something?"

"I'm simply used to this sort of sustenance."

"So it's a Louis thing?"

Armand didn't answer.

It was a Louis thing.

Daniel considered how to probe around that one, but he wasn't sure he wanted an answer to what the fuck that meant. He'd never known Armand to be squeamish about hunting. Yet, he apparently wasn't just hunting like a normal vampire. Was he worried Louis would find out?

Was it still like it had been in the 70s and eventually Louis would call out loudly enough that Armand would cut and run?

Daniel didn't articulate any of that.

Instead he said: "Well, on the off chance that someone who isn’t a vampire visits, we probably need some opaque storage containers to hide it in the fridge. You ever been to Ikea?"

Armand's entire face lit up, his eyes fever bright as he finished with Number 12.

"Everyone out!" Armand's eyes flickered just a little bit as he urged his willing blood donors to vacate the apartment. "I adore Ikea. It is an unparalleled experience. I have not been unleashed in one in a very long time."

So Louis didn't let Armand go full gremlin in Ikea? Okay.

"Well, you coulda bought an actual coffee table there if you hadn't insisted on the coffin, but…Did you know Brooklyn is home to New York City's only Ikea."

Armand glanced at his watch.

There was still time to get there tonight.

"Hurry, beloved. The blood must go in the fridge and then we must go."

Late night at Ikea was a trip.

The food court was riddled with broke college kids and stoners buying cheap meatballs and hotdogs. Daniel could have probably benefitted from such a place back in his own youth. The store was negligibly staffed given how close it was to closing time, but Armand was clearly on a mission as they wandered through the store.

It was kind of adorable.

It would probably be fully adorable if Armand wasn't a vampire and if Armand wasn't looking for the best product to keep his newly harvested blood freshest in Daniel's refrigerator.

"I forgot how you get."

"How I get?" Armand didn't look up from the set of containers he was in the process of analyzing.

"Yeah, the thirteen blenders we used to own. The decorating in Miami. It's fun."

Armand's lip twitched into a half smile even as he continued what he was doing.

"You always let me have a great deal of fun," Armand had let that sense of being seen go to his head back then. He had let it endanger Daniel. Still, he wasn't stupid despite some of his worst choices. He knew that the blenders and decorating weren't the problem.

Daniel was clean. Armand was not going to repeat his same mistakes.

Perhaps, they could still have the fun.

Vampire physiology was a puzzlement even to a very eager student such as Armand. Strictly speaking, it should have been impossible for a vampire to have a sense of an adrenaline rush or an endorphin spike, but then the circuitry of their brains still fired even when they were half-starved. Armand had always closely watched the coven members who had been sentenced to an eternity in the Wall to know full well that their deaths were not so unlike mortals.

So it was impossible to say with any real certainty what the myriad of emotions it was that he felt after his little romp through Ikea.

But he was certainly in a good mood.

When they were outside of the store, Armand grabbed Daniel by the hand. He pulled him into the dark corridor that ran alongside the store, shoving him up against the wall. They had done this many times. It was old and familiar. Armand crushed his lips against Daniel's desperately.

"Fuck," Daniel cursed under his breath. "Ikea gets you hot?"

"Apparently so," Armand smiled before capture Daniel's mouth again. He remembered this so well. He had missed it so much.

Daniel's arms around him, his hands that roamed over Armand's backside and to his thighs, the way he held the vampire close all strongly, strongly suggested that Daniel had missed this too.

"Stop…" Daniel muttered against Armand's lips. "Stop. Stop!"

The third stop was the more forceful. It was for Daniel as much as it was for Armand who stumbled back a step to put space between them. Armand liked a whole lot of fucked up stuff, but he usually drew a pretty hard line at Daniel saying no or stop.

In a more perfect world, Armand could probably unpack that along with a whole mess of trauma with a therapist.

Where was a good vampire therapist when you needed one?

"What is it?" Armand asked. "Did I forget that you must breath? It has been some time since I've been with a mortal."

Armand took a step towards Daniel again, but Daniel held him back.

"No, we can't do this."

"Why not?"

"Why not?" Daniel realized parroting that wasn't actually a reason. "Because of fucking everything that happened between us? Because on top of that, I'm still married."

Armand scoffed, "You were married for much of the first time."

"And that worked out great for everyone."

"You didn't love your second wife," Armand continued. "She was a convenience who made you feel young and virile as you looked toward the far side of fifty."

Well, that wasn't going to help.

"Fuck, thanks, man," Daniel shook his head, carding a hand through his hair. "You were with Louis 'til 5 seconds ago. You aren't hunting cos it'll upset him or whatever. You're not done waiting for your second chance with him."

"I came to you, beloved," Armand said firmly.

"Yeah? How long was the list of possible people to go to, boss? If Louis wants you back, will you choose him?" Daniel waited. There was silence from Armand. "It's okay. You're right. I didn't love my second wife, but…if Alice walked in, wanted me back…I'd probably want to go, too."

"Louis returning to me is as likely as Alice seeking you out for more than a discussion of your daughter."

"Probably," Daniel agreed. "But I don't want his sloppy seconds right now."

It was a cruel thing to say. Daniel knew it as surely as he knew a whole bunch of this was about him and not Armand and certainly not Louis.

Armand couldn't quite help but feel the sting of that particular choice of words. A vulgar sentiment no doubt, but one that cut him to the quick. Daniel had always been so very good at that, hadn't he? That was all Arun Amadeo Armand had ever been, wasn't it? Someone's sloppy seconds?

"Come, beloved," Armand adjusted his shirt. "I have a fridge to organize."

Daniel considered putting his foot down, demanding they finish this argument, but Daniel Molloy was much better at starting arguments over finishing them.

"You got it, boss."

Maybe they couldn't have fun.

Chapter Text

Chapter Two: Early Snow

New York City managed to avoid the horrors of Snowtober two years in a row, but snow still came early, falling over the city in the first week of November. It was enough to look pretty and not turn into grey, brown slush before melting away. 

Nevertheless, the cold seemed to have promptly settled in.

So much for fall. They were apparently going straight for winter.

“Are vampires cold blooded?” 

“Vampires are corpses,” Armand replied, not looking up from his laptop. 

“Is that a yes or a no?” 

Armand sighed, "A cold-blooded creature is one that cannot internally regulate its temperature. I suppose that is true on a technical level to a point when a vampire hasn't fed, but if I were to feed, the blood would warm me as surely as it does you. I cannot be sure that's true for lizards."

"Sooo, a solid maybe?"

"A solid maybe," Armand parroted with another put upon sigh.

"Hmm," Daniel considered that fact, turning back to his own work. Technically, he was working on an article that had absolutely nothing to do with vampires, but he was doing quite well at managing two Google Docs at the same time - one with his article, one with what he was calling vampire thoughts.

"What is that hmm?" Armand questioned.

"It's nothing."

"It is something or you would not vocalize it in my presence where you know I am apt to ask about it," Armand hit the space bar on his laptop, pausing whatever he was watching.

"You know we don't have to argue about everything."

"And yet," Armand smirked, glancing at Daniel before hitting the space bar on his laptop once more.

"When did you learn to use a laptop?"

"1989."

"You've come a long way from the seventies," Daniel pointed out. "I mean, I had to teach you the nuances of long-distance calling."

"Rotary phones were complex and foolish machines," Armand was smiling, though, perhaps in spite of himself. "Perhaps a bright, young reporter with a point of view helped me discover an interest in technology."

"Uh huh," Daniel leaned back in his chair, folding his arms. "And what are you doing over there?"

"Nothing," Armand shrugged and closed his laptop. "Watching the news."

Daniel suspected that was a lie, but he wasn't sure why Armand was lying or that he wanted to know what he was really up to. It was probably illegal. Daniel liked plausible deniability as much as the next guy.

Armand was partial to big cities. He imagined it was in part because it was easy to blend in, easy to hunt which would matter if he was letting himself hunt and convenient. He was sure that Arun had never lived in any sort of city before Venice, but Amadeo had been happy to rove through the markets, to feel protected by the sheer size of the city.

Some things stuck.

"You're such a packrat."

"What does that mean?" Armand was standing in front of a shop window looking at the jewelry sitting on various velvet lined displays.

"You like shiny objects."

"I am not planning to purchase anything," He shrugged. "I'm just fascinated with the modern jewelry market. I have found some fascinating information on the internet. I suppose I am just looking to extend my research."

"Are you thinking about giving up high end real estate and art for jewelry?" Daniel raised an eyebrow.

"It would not be the first time."

"I don't think scuba diving off the coast of Florida for sunken treasure counts as being in the jewelry business."

Armand smiled fondly. He remembered his little scheme in Florida fondly. He remembered how lovely it had felt to impress Daniel when Louis had not been impressed with Armand in ages.

"It was a very lucrative business," Armand pointed out. "I fear the modern age is moving past traditional piracy, but the market seems very hot for jewelry," He paused. "That was not the only jewelry I invested in at the time."

"I wasn't sure we were talking about that."

"I did attempt to retrieve it once my anger had faded," Armand admitted.

Daniel tried not to think too much about certain details of their shared past. He remembered it all. Armand knew he remembered it all, but things like Daniel's precious amulet filled with Armand's blood (and eventually thrown off a dock in anger) were perhaps nonstarters.

"Perhaps you are right, beloved," Armand admitted. "I have always liked shiny things. Rubies, amulets, bright young reporters with a point of view."

Armand looked away from the display over at Daniel. After a moment, they began to walk again.

"I remember being a young man, newly arrived into my master's home," Armand put his hands in the pockets of his trousers. He wasn't wearing a coat. Daniel's mind went back to the whole cold blooded thing. Did he need a coat? "My brothers took me to the marketplace. They purchased a pocket watch for me. I had never thought such opulence could exist, let alone be something that I could hold in my very hand."

"I guess jewelry isn't such a bad direction to go," Daniel offered. "Just, um, avoid blood diamonds."

Armand tilted his head, "I think I am more interested in pearls."

Well, that was specific.

Daniel considered whether or not he should push on that. Were pearls a Marius thing? A Louis thing? He knew they weren't a them thing. Maybe he needed to shut off his reporter brain and stop thinking that every single thing Armand said had a deeper meaning, but he couldn't shake the fact that this was Armand they were talking about.

As much as Daniel was reading into every little action and every little comment Armand made trying to figure out what exactly was going on with Armand being back in his life now, there was also a strange ease between them. It was the same ease that had existed between them in the 70s and 80s in between all the mess.

They could talk films and art and books with plenty of good natured debate. Daniel never complained about Armand simply wanting to wander, to explore. Daniel could over do it with questions, but he often accepted an eyeroll from Armand as a full sentence.

It was nice.

Daniel had forgotten that it could be nice just as much as it had been hot and passionate and messy as fuck.

"Arun."

"Maître…" The name slipped out of Armand's mouth before he could stop himself. It made Daniel frown. What the actual fuck was that?

Daniel remembered Louis just like he remembered Armand. Those nights on Divisadero Street were hazy in the normal drugs and trauma way, but he knew Louis had lured him to that apartment. He knew that Louis wanted to kill him right up until the point he decided not to.

Daniel wasn't so sure what Louis remembered about those nights.

"Thought you'd stay abroad."

"I do not believe we had any such discussion," Armand tilted his head. "I believe we agreed we would liquidate all shared property. I could not continue living there."

"And you're here of all possible places?" Louis narrowed his eyes. "With him of all people?"

"Thanks, man," Daniel really had no sense of self-preservation.

"It is good to see you, Daniel," Louis offered a little more softly. "But you've grown old. Maybe that is more in line with Arun's interests."

"Who the fuck is Arun?"

"I am," Armand's throat felt tight. "It is a name I once shared out of love. Now here it is being weaponized against me. How like your maker. Did he not fancy staying in New Orleans?"

"We're passing through."

"Yet you accuse me of some long game waiting to find you here?"

"Lestat has been very instructive lately about what long games you played in Paris. I know about the play."

"Do you imagine that changes anything? Does it absolve Lestat of his culpability?"

"Does being here absolve you of everything you did in '73. You were gonna kill him. Maybe that's still…"

"Fuck this," Daniel grabbed Armand's hand. "Didn't we have plans?"

They didn't. Not really. Their plans were wandering around and doing some random shopping. But Armand held tightly to his hand.

"Quite, beloved. Let us go."

Louis didn't say anything more as they turned away, walking the length of two blocks before stopping so Daniel could catch his breath. He wasn't that out of shape, but years of drugs and smoking hadn't done his fucking lungs any favors relative to a vampire.

"Did you know he was here? Did you come here because he was here?"

"Believe me, I would not have come if I thought he would be here."

And, ow, that hurt.

"If only Louis realized the joke is on him, as they say," Armand looked back in the direction they'd come from. Louis was long gone. He was certainly not following them. Armand didn't matter enough for that. "You don't want me either."

"Fuck that," Daniel snapped. "Wanting you has never been the goddamn problem and you know it."

"Whatever it is, it ends in the same place," Armand began to walk briskly again towards the subway. For a moment, Daniel worried he might go all vampire superspeed and ghost him.

"Hey," Daniel picked up his pace, reaching to grab Armand by the elbow, hoping he'd actually stop. Armand clearly considered continuing on, but he did stop. He turned to look at Daniel. "I'm almost sixty, Armand. We were apart more time than we were together."

"I am well aware of the passage of time," Armand shook his head. "You think I don't know how much time we lost down to the hour."

Well, Daniel did sort of think he didn't care, but okay, maybe that was Daniel's own insecurity talking.

"You show back up because he left you, not cos you left him," Daniel pointed out. "You strongly imply that you got one foot in and one foot out with your new found eating habits meant to cater to your vegetarian ex, and, yeah, I said something stupid. Cos I know how much it hurts when you go back to him."

"He doesn't want me back."

"But what do you want?"

The silence lingered heavy between them. Armand didn't answer, which Daniel couldn't pretend wasn't an answer. The wind picked up. Daniel thought it might snow again.

“I’m cold, Daniel.” 

“You don’t get cold.”

“And yet…”

"That's not an answer, babe."

"Please…"

And, well, Armand saying please like that was more than enough to make Daniel forfeit the mature conversation in favor of shrugging off his jacket and putting it over Armand's shoulders while they walked back to the subway.

Daniel sort of imagined that they would get back to the apartment and Armand would disappear into the guest room (or into the coffin in the living room). He wouldn't have blamed him, per se. He would probably wallow if he ran into Alice. Hell, he'd probably wallow if he ran into Kelly and they had already covered the part where he'd never really loved her.

It meant Daniel didn't think much of it when Armand disappeared down the hall. For his part, the mortal needed some food so he put in an order at the Chinese place down the block, catching up on a few emails while he waited for the food to be delivered.

He figured he'd spend this Thursday night, the way that he spent most Thursday nights: Chinese food and Dateline reruns in bed.

His rhythm was thrown off more than a little when he walked into his bedroom to find Armand curled up on his side in the dark.

So he was wallowing.

He was just wallowing in Daniel's bed.

"You look…I was gonna say comfortable, but you really fucking don't," Daniel admitted. He sat his food down on the side table. "You still cold?"

Armand gave a half-hearted shrug. Daniel sighed. He walked over to the dresser, pulling out an old sweatshirt and a pair of sweats.

"You used to steal my clothes without asking."

"I wasn't planning to steal anything," Armand sat up taking the clothes all the same. "I do have clothes."

"You have weird matching pajama sets and business casual outfits that probably cost more than my utility bills for the month," Daniel argued. "Go get comfortable then we can watch tv in here while you mope."

Armand considered simply stripping down in front of Daniel. It wasn't as if either of them were prudes. But Daniel didn't seem to be offering that. Perhaps Armand was not quite in his usual mood to argue. He walked into the bathroom to change his clothes.

Armand looked ridiculous in Daniel's clothes. He had always looked ridiculous in Daniel's clothes, but there was no pretending that they weren't a little bit bigger and baggier these days compared to when he was twenty and mostly consuming cocaine.

"Better?"

"What you lack in taste you make up for in comfort."

"Almost a compliment," Daniel laughed. "You act like you aren't the guy who once bailed me out of jail in a Canadian tuxedo."

"It was a different time."

"Yeah, yeah…" Daniel muttered opening one of the food containers and digging in with a set of chopsticks.

True crime was all the rage.

There was a whole goddamn channel devoted to a constant barage of Dateline episodes. Daniel really should have gone the true crime route. Or, fuck, maybe he should have figured out how to start a podcast. He'd be making bank.

And, sure, the cynical part of his brain found it exploitative and awful, but he also liked to pretend he was actually such a good journalist that he could solve a fucking murder while stuffing his face with lo mein.

"The wife did it," Daniel said between bites of food.

Armand was sitting with his back against the headboard, knees drawn up to his chest. He looked small and harmless in Daniel's oversized clothes.

"They are clearly quite in love," Armand scoffed.

"Eh, Josh Mankiewicz keeps saying that she seemed like a good wife and they seemed like a happy couple," Daniel shrugged.

"That seems thin proof, beloved."

"Yeah?" Daniel gestured towards the scene with a chopstick. "We also haven’t seen her on camera in the present. I'll bet you one of my Pulitzers this either ends with her dead or in a jumpsuit."

"I imagine such a wager would have a poor resale value," Armand grumbled.

It should not have been something that mattered. Armand was no child. He was nearly an Ancient One. He was an Ancient One compared to the company he kept - be it Louis or Daniel. He knew well that books and covers rarely matched, that what seemed lovely and sweet could be rotten at its core.

He also knew that he had been deemed used up before he was ever turned into the vampire. Marius had been warned when he bought him that he was already someone who had been picked over, like an old melon in the market. Marius had still wanted him, but it was surely inspite of that. Marius had nearly said as much to others - Amadeo was too young, perhaps, but already so well broken in. Had that not been a defense he had nearly heard him give to Mael and Bianca on more than one occasion?

It was hard to remember with absolute clarity, but the ache of the words he was sure he had heard were there.

If even Daniel could see it, it had to be true.

"You were right," Armand said softly as Daniel put his half eaten food container on the side table. "It was the wife."

"Yeah, well, you owe me something pretty as payment I guess."

"It is wrong that her husband couldn't see just how hard she was trying," Armand knew that didn't justify murder when you were mortal and such actions proved no practical purpose such as sustenance. "She wanted them to be happy."

Armand's eyes were red-rimmed when Daniel looked over at him, blood nearly spilling over his eyelashes from those big eyes. Armand sniffed, trying to compose himself when he realized Daniel was looking at him.

"I was not prepared to see him," He admitted. "You are right, much as I despise saying those words to anyone. Things are unsettled when it comes to myself and Louis, but you should not take that to mean…"

"I got it," Daniel saved him having to finish the sentence. "Look, um…let's just watch something else. Wanna watch more of that airplane show where they awkwardly kick drunk people of of planes?"

It was a stupid little reality show about people working at Southwest Airlines, but, man, did Armand enjoy people feigning cordiality with people who deserved to be punched in the face.

"Yes, please," Armand wiped his eyes on the sleeve of Daniel's sweatshirt. What were a few bloodstains between friends?

Were they friends? Were they lovers? Well, they definitely were lovers once. Daniel wasn't sure they were ever friends. Was their a statute of limitations on still being able to call someone a lover?

Did how fucking badly Daniel wanted Armand count for anything?

Daniel put the other show on. It would serve as a distraction. The first guy looked like a real asshole who was going to get real drunk and say some real stupid shit. That might even make Armand laugh. The very old vampire had a very low threshold for being amused by mortals as far as Daniel could remember.

Daniel wasn't sure what he was allowed to do. Armand had always been firmly in control of their relationship, but then 1980s Armand didn't usually start crying. He wasn't entirely without vulnerability, but Daniel had been the mess. Daniel was very good at being the mess.

His two ex-wives could fully attest to how not good at being the big shoulders in a relationship he was.

Still, he wasn't a total idiot.

He put an arm around Armand, letting him curl close and not saying anything about it. After about ten minutes of seeing if Armand bolted out of the room, Daniel moved to lay down, bringing a pliant Armand with him, letting him rest his head on his chest.

Daniel's fingers played gently with Armand's curls, savoring the closeness.

Armand couldn't remember the last time one of his paramours had been so gentle with him, had taken care of him.

Marius once, but that was long ago. That sort of care had faded as Amadeo grew into a man. It was still gentle at times, but Amadeo was not indulged.

Riccardo.

Armand had certainly not considered him a paramour when he was alive. They were brothers, but the warm affection between them, in hindsight, perhaps it could have been something. Of course, Armand destroyed that.

There had always been shades of Riccardo in Daniel, but now it seemed somehow different.

Armand wanted this whatever it was.

"I know you have said you feel old, beloved, but whatever you are, it's what I need," Armand peaked up at him, almost worried for his reaction. "Maybe you were too young for me before."

Daniel smirked, "Maybe."

He didn't let go. That certainly counted for something, right?

"I didn't come here because I had nowhere else to go. I came here because I thought I had been wrong to leave you."

"You were," Daniel knew there was more nuance to that, but he was still in a mood.

"I am here," Armand countered. "Whatever else might have been or could have been, I am here. Please let us try again."

"I'm holding you, aren't I?"

"You are."

Daniel knew it wasn't that simple.

But maybe Daniel and Armand could seem like a happy couple for a while.

Managing his personal life had never been something Daniel was good at. Hell, it had never been something he was even passable at. He got lucky sometimes and tangled himself up with people who were good at managing it for him including Armand to a point once upon a time, but in general, he was good at work and shit at relationships.

He'd thought that wouldn't apply to his daughters, but ultimately, you could only miss so many dance recitals and spring plays and tennis tournaments before even kids and teenagers started to lower the bar in terms of what they expected of you. Low expectations meant less disappointment, but it also meant that Daniel's own kids didn't really need or want him for anything.

Kate tried more than Lenora to have a relationship with Daniel. Maybe it was because he was actually worse when Kate was a kid. She'd had a lot less of him to start with and had an easier time making excuses for his shit behavior. Daniel might have missed some big milestone in her life, but he'd been a junkie. Now he was clean and nothing he did ever seemed as bad as the shit he did back then.

If there weren't eight years between her and Leni, maybe both kids would be more forgiving than Daniel deserved. Leni had actually had a somewhat stable father. The downside was that even when you added stability, it didn't make him a good father. If anything it showed how fucking inept he was.

Leni was content to see Daniel at most once a year.

Kate, she wanted the childhood dream she'd never had.

Daniel was trying really fucking hard to deliver.

It felt a little hard to deliver when his ex-vampire lover who was kind of his current lover without the sex was living at his apartment.

"I was starting to wonder where you were."

"Yeah, um, there was a hold up with the A Train," It was half true. The A Train had been fucked, but Daniel had already been incredibly late. It was a convenient excuse at least (and one that if Kate repeated it to Leni would check out).

"Well, luckily, this place serves brunch all day so technically you're not late."

"Thanks, sweetie."

Sometimes Daniel wanted to shake his eldest and tell her not to be so damn forgiving. But he also likely benefitting from her seemingly bottomless well of forgiveness. She had a tendency to spout some New Age-y motivational poster slogans. Daniel thought that might be why she was so quick to keep contact. Whatever it was, Daniel was grateful for it.

The brunch place wasn't especially fancy. Apparently brunch was just a thing now. Daniel felt like he could exhale a little bit. It was nice.

"Have you thought about what you're going to do for the holidays?"

"The, um…the holidays?" Daniel hadn't warranted an invite to the holidays in a longtime. Alice had been the de facto host. She was not going to invite Kelly to her house for the holidays no matter what the situation was with the kids.

Sure, when they were minors, Daniel was guaranteed a visit around Thanksgiving and Christmas, but he had never been a primary caregiver on a major holiday.

"Mom is officially retired from turkey duty," Kate explained. "Tom and I did a whole remodel last year. We're going to host Thanksgiving. I'm not sure if anyone is going to host Christmas. We might go to Tom's parents. It's not like Leni can host in her studio apartment. Anyway...do you…do you wanna come?"

It took a minute for Daniel's brain to catch up.

"You want me to come to Thanksgiving?"

"I wanna know if you wanna come to Thanksgiving."

"Is that not the same thing?"

Kate sighed, "I don't want you there as some kind of obligation because I asked you to. That'll just make us all very mad. But if you wanted to come…Hannah's getting older. It would be nice if she saw her grandfather occasionally."

"I was just there on Halloween," That was the wrong answer. Daniel could tell from the glare. "Right. I guess a three-year-old can actually remember how long its been since they saw their grandpa."

"So can a five year old which is how old your granddaughter is."

"…right."

Kate's phone vibrated on the table giving Daniel a blissful reprieve from his misstep. She smiled, quickly sending a message back to whoever she was talking to and then sat her phone back down - questions of her daughter's age thankfully forgotten.

The waitress gave him an extended reprieve from the other question on the table.

It was an easy yes, wasn't it? Kate and her husband lived in Westchester. It wasn't a big trip. He could probably slip in right before dinner and slip out right afterward even if that wasn't what Kate was really asking him to do.

Alice might murder him.

She'd definitely murder him if…

"I'm seeing someone," Daniel blurted out.

Kate was looking at her phone again. She looked up a little surprised, a little confused. It wasn't as if Daniel didn't date. It was that he was still mid-divorce. It was hard for Kate to recognize that divorce usually meant you were ready to move on.

Apparently quite quickly.

"Oh, that's…good for you, Dad. Really. You deserve to be happy."

"You don't have to humor me, Katie," Daniel rubbed that back of his neck. "You don't have to be happy. It's just there's a…guy."

"Oh…" Eyes went a little wider. Kate's phone buzzed again, but she sat it down on the tabletop this time. "You…I mean, Mom sort of…I knew there might be…you've never…"

"Take a breath, sweetheart," Daniel offered. "I know I've never…been like that…in front of you girls. Not that there is anything to be ashamed of about being…"

"Bi?"

And, okay, maybe Daniel needed to give himself this pep talk because hearing his daughter say bi just seemed weird.

"Yeah," He settled on. "But the person I'm seeing, I'd feel weird leaving him high and dry over the holidays."

It was just an excuse, Daniel told himself, a way to get out of family fun time on the worst day of the fucking year.

"Well, then…you should bring him."

It was Daniel's turn to come up short, for his eyes to go a little wider. There was no scenario where he thought that would be the case.

"I'll ask him," Daniel was left wondering what he had just done.

"You'll come, though, right?" Kate picked up her phone which was vibrating again.

"Yeah, I'll come," He watched as she grinned at her phone. "You need to get that? It seems important."

"Oh, sorry," Kate sat her phone facedown on the table. "I just have been having the best week ever. You remember when I told you I was going to start my own business?"

Daniel vaguely remembered. He remembered Kate telling him she was "starting a business" and clocking pretty quickly that it was a pyramid scheme. He'd blocked out the finer details of her multi-level marketing empire.

"Sure."

"Well, it was really, really sort of subpar," Kate admitted. "Then all of a sudden like two weeks ago, my engagement has been through the roof. There's someone commenting on all my lives and talking to other people and I don't know what their deal is, but I am selling so much stuff now. It's insane."

The waitress came over with their food sitting it in front of them.

"You sure it's not something scammy?"

"I told you before, Dad. They are business opportunities, and they are actually super conducive to being a stay at home mom."

Daniel settled for biting into his pancakes over his tongue, but it took all his will power not to point out that he had paid a very heavy price for a Communications degree from Bryn Mawr that she swore she wanted only for her to be selling crap to other bored housewives.

"And this one is so much fun. It's the first time I've really gone all in on social media. I have a Pearl Party every Friday night and people buy all this jewelry and…"

Daniel nearly dropped his fork.

"Wait, did you say pearls?"

Chapter Text

Chapter Three: Falling Leaves

"You son of a bitch."

"Excuse me?" Armand looked up from the book he was reading.

Fuck him for sitting there looking so damn innocent.

Armand sat the book down beside himself on the couch. He crossed his legs and his arms waiting for Daniel to explain himself.

"Are you stalking both of 'em or just Kate?" Daniel snapped. He slammed the front door behind himself just on principle. "Don't think I don't know that you used to see her when she was a kid."

"Only when I was seeing you, beloved," Armand straightened up a little bit. "I used to give her gifts and ensure she was alright when you were at your lowest. I apologize for attempting to keep her safe."

"Don't play that bullshit right now."

"It is the truth," Armand said firmly. "I never did anything when it came to your mortal family other than ensure they were not being harmed by your choices."

"Yeah? Some of those choices were your fault."

"It's always my fault, isn't it?" Armand made a point of enunciating every syllable of that sentence. He picked up his book once more, attempting to end the conversation.

"It's frequently your fault. Minimally, it's not always someone else's fault despite what you'd like to believe."

That got Armand to his feet. That got his fangs dropped and a literal apex predator hissing at Daniel while his book was long forgotten on the sofa.

"Insolent boy," Armand snarled through gritted teeth. "Your own insistence on being right is what fuels this and no action I've taken."

Daniel wanted to believe that this was all nothing. He wanted to believe that Armand had never fucked with his family like he'd fucked with Daniel's head. They had been doing a good job the last handful of weeks pretending the past hadn't blown up in their faces. He had meant it when he told Kate he didn't want to leave Armand alone on Thanksgiving (even if Thanksgiving likely meant absolutely nothing to him).

Now…

Now he was fucking scared of the monster he'd let into his guest room.

"You used to get jealous. I know you did."

Armand scoffed, "Of your sad little life in Fishkill? I bought this place because I found that tiny little village insufferable. So did you!"

"I was trying."

"You were failing. You were drowning in heroin and cocaine and self-loathing. I did not entice you away from your family. You begged me to take you," Armand paused. He considered leaving it there. He also failed. "I was the one who said no. I was the one who sent you back."

"Sure, you're so goddamn selfless," Daniel rolled his eyes.

"And you were a good father if only I hadn't been there, right? That is the lie you are telling yourself right now."

Their respective shots landed right on target. Armand was ready to draw blood. Daniel was ready to attempt to land a punch against the vampire who could definitely stop time and break his neck. They used to fight like this a lot. Daniel used to wonder how much worse his fights with Louis must have been to make him seem like the better option.

Maybe Armand really was the older and wiser one. He had the good sense to turn down the hallway, to start to walk away.

“Tell me you aren't stalking my daughter so you can get rid of her?"

Armand turned back, head tilted, "You honestly think I would harm your child?”

“Can you honestly tell me you've never hurt the kid of one of your boyfriends?” He knew the broadest strokes of what happened to Claudia de Lioncourt. She was a child compared to Armand, so was Daniel, so was Louis, so was…

“I don’t regularly feed on any of my paramour's children if that’s what you’re implying nor do I kill them. You do not know what you speak of when you vaguely bring up Claudia. I am a monster, beloved, but not one without a soul. I haven't been hunting at all.”

"Not hunting for sustenance doesn't mean you wouldn't hunt for sport."

"I am not hunting your children for sport," Armand growled. "Shall I leave, beloved? Is that what you wish?"

Silence was enough of an answer.

Again it was left to Armand to be the bigger person as it were. Was that not what he had made his life to be with Louis? With the Coven? With Marius? History repeating itself ad nauseum. Louis would deny it and Lestat would insist it a lie, but Armand was always the one to bend first in favor of not breaking, in hopes of the situation resolving itself.

Not that Daniel understood.

Armand loved him beyond words, but there had always been a great chasm between them when it came to what Daniel understood and what he did not.

He took a heavy overcoat - one that would look unseasonably warm to the mortals - and stormed out into the 3pm sunshine.

He was grateful for the darkness of the subway and the limited windows inside the Metropolitan Museum of Art when he arrived there. The sunlight didn't hold power over him, but it did not mean that it was terribly pleasant. It was sting of a thousand needles under his skin if left exposed - not unlike the quick work Daniel was still able to do to wound Armand to his core.

It was a foolish thing to be arguing about at all.

Daniel thought that Armand meant to hunt and kill his children? It was not even vaguely on the list of allegations he expected his beloved to make against him. If he wanted to manipulate Daniel into wanting him and only him there were far cleaner ways of doing it. What would killing them even accomplish? They barely cared about Daniel thanks to a lifetime of poor decisions by their father. Their unsolved murders would be far worse for Armand than oblivious coexistence.

It was a silly thing really.

There was a saying, Armand was sure there was, about curiosity and cats. It seemed especially pertinent right now. It had seemed wise to figure out exactly who Daniel was now, what his attachments were, what risk Armand might be taking on by re-entangling their lives.

Katherine Molloy had been a little girl once, a little girl who probably had memories of her father's stray needles and her mother's tenuous hold on sobriety. Alice found her way faster than Daniel did. The absence of her own version of Armand no doubt helped that along. Eventually Daniel - with Armand removed from his memory and his life - got himself together and things had seemed okay from a distance.

Perhaps Armand just wanted to see if Kate was still okay.

The internet certainly afforded a closer view than skulking outside her house even with as strong of a Mind Gift as Armand's.

He had only meant to look.

Arguably, he did only look.

He looked through her photos. He looked through her friends. She was a stay-at-home mother with enough money for a twice-a-month house cleaner and a one afternoon a week nanny.

All that to say, she was clearly a bored housewife.

Armand had been a bored housewife for the better part of the last sixty plus years. He had needed a vocation at the time. He had taken to using his computer to find bad men - some barely more than boys - and promising them money in exchange for a small, vampiric version of The Most Dangerous Game.

It had filled a hole even if Louis had frowned and chastised him and told him it was a waste of time and money.

Kate had her own version of hunting men for sport.

It was something called a multi-level marketing network.

And it was magnificent.

Day after day, Kate spent on her Facebook page shilling what were alleged to be genuine freshwater cultured pearls. Every Friday night, she would host a multi-hour Facebook Live event wherein people who had bought pearls got to watch her open them from oysters vacuum sealed in questionable little pouches. And, then, there was another round of shilling to buy the jewelry and accessories to go with your garish and in no way worth more than $50 no matter what the company might claim pearls.

Then Armand had discovered that the selling of products wasn't even the main goal. No, Kate needed to build out her downline - people who did the same thing she did but then had to pay her.

It reminded him strangely of Venice, of studio apprentices. In equal measure, it reminded him of catching unsuspecting prey in his claws, but in a way that had fairly low stakes. It was Louis' art market business on a different, fascinating and enthralling scale.

And, now, that interest in a silly mortal endeavor meant Daniel thought Armand was trying to murder his daughter.

Why did they always assume he'd want to murder their daughters?

Had Claudia died? Yes.

But her death was not because she was Louis' daughter, not because Louis had made vague promises of a life together if she was not in it. She died because of her own actions. Armand knew without being told that he could have stopped it. He didn't.

What did he owe Claudia de Lioncourt?

He had attempted to give her a place in his coven in good faith and it was thrown back in his face.

He could tell Daniel all of that, couldn't he? Would he understand any of it? His boy was smart, frighteningly and frustratingly so. But no one - not even Marius so many years ago - had ever truly understood the things Armand said.

Armand had gone to The Met with the intention of seeking out a particular painting. On the second floor, in the European Painting wing tucked into a small gallery space between one of sacred images painted in Italy and a display of work by the greatest Venetian masters was one small painting by Marius de Romanus. It was likely a cheap acquisition. He was no Tintoretto. Some nouveau riche robber baron had no doubt picked it up when the markets were flush and made a grand donation for at least momentary glory among New York society.

It was painting of a dark skinned boy in Venetian clothes, painted as though he were watching the boats sailing into the canals.

It was one of the few paintings Marius had made where Amadeo's skin had looked like his own. It was one of the few that Marius had painted outside of a few small studio works that was not a religious or mythological subject. The Met had a text blurb about how it showed Venice's growth and industry on the rise. Amadeo had thought it proof that Marius had loved him so very much. He must have to paint him in sunlight, to show him as he truly was even Marius knew Amadeo was a barbarous thing compared to himself.

Armand knew better.

He knew it had been a commission for some English lord that had taken a fancy to Amadeo. Marius had been more than willing to share him and the lord paid well for the painting in turn.

It wasn't a warm, kind gesture of love. It was simply that man's fetish for dark skinned boys.

Armand stood on the Great Hall Balcony with every intention of going to look at himself, but he didn't. He took a left at the gallery entrance and straight on to the 19th and 20th Century galleries, far away from his past.

It was dark by the time Armand left the museum.

Leaves were falling in earnest this time of year. It wasn't always obvious in the City, but as Armand crossed through Bryant Park, the orange and red leaves on the pavement were all too visible to a vampire in low light.

He was hungry.

That didn't usually matter. He had blood in Daniel's refrigerator. He was fond of testing himself - how long could he go without giving in? How long would it take for that hunger to serve some deeper purpose and make Armand feel better about whatever it was he wanted to feel better about?

Hunger was an excuse at the moment.

He wanted to rip something's throat out.

He followed a man - a boy, really - from the park to the subway and all the way to Queens only to kill him in an alley.

He told himself that the boy with green eyes and black curls and a stupid smile did not look like Daniel once had as he disposed of the body.

That Daniel had thought Armand was monstrous used to be the highest compliment Armand could receive. Daniel had reveled in it. Armand had destroyed that bond perhaps when he took Daniel's memories. Even with them returned, after so much time, he thought Armand would be cruel to him. All because Armand saved him and chose Louis.

And here Armand was with nothing now.

For a moment, he considered cutting and running. He didn't need anything he had brought to Daniel's apartment. He had his credit cards on him, cash. He could disappear into the night like the monster he was.

Then he remembered that Daniel was in Daniel's apartment. That inevitably made it all harder.

Armand and Louis had had a very specific way of handling their arguments. Armand had not, in that time, developed coping mechanisms that meshed well with Daniel's more confrontational style.

He was a coward in the body of a five hundred year old vampire, he thought, as he took a deep breath and opened the door.

Daniel's thoughts washed over Armand in a wave. It was usually a comfort to feel him so close. Now, at least for the moment, Armand felt something closer to repulsion. Daniel was scared. He was simply scared. He was scared of Armand, of what he might do, of who he might hurt. They were very far from 1976 now, weren't they?

"She has a public facing social media presence," Armand finally said, closing the door behind himself with no other greeting offered. He took off his coat and hung it up. "I was curious."

"About what?" Daniel's tone was testy, annoyed. He didn't like Armand hiding things from him just as much as he was frightened of what he would do. Armand had always been stingy with knowledge as far as Daniel was concerned. This felt like a new fight and an old fight wrapped up in one.

"Who she was now. What she thought of you. What her life was."

"Why?"

"I let you go to live your mortal life. I have always wanted that to mean something," Armand told him honestly.

"And? Does it?"

Armand shrugged, "I don't know. I don't know what a mortal life looks like anymore."

Daniel sighed. He kept his eyes on Armand. Something still wasn't adding up. He was sure that Armand wasn't telling him something. He just wasn't sure what. He also wasn't sure how bad it was going to be when it inevitably came out.

He shook his head and put his reading glasses back on turning his attention back to the book he had been reading.

"Maybe you can find out all up close and personal," He offered. "Like going to an aquarium."

"What do you mean?"

"An aquarium, a place you look at fish."

"I know what an aquarium is," Armand rolled his eyes. "We had three on Night Island."

"Yeah, I wonder what ecosystem we destroyed to get those fish," Daniel smirked. He looked up at Armand. "Kate wants me to have Thanksgiving dinner with her family. I got you an invite before I knew you were being a big old creeper about my daughter."

"Am I still invited?" Armand raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Daniel nodded. "Don't make me regret saying yes."

Katherine Molloy had been certain of only one thing her entire life - she was never going to measure up to who her parents wanted or thought she should be. Maybe in a world where Daniel and Alice had stayed together forever and not split before Kate reached middle school, they would have had a few more kids and someone else could have come along to disappoint their father, but that wasn't how things had worked out.

She got very little credit for what she had achieved, mostly because her mother preferred not to think about Kate's early childhood too much and because her father was Daniel. She didn't get a gold star for not drowning in the bathtub when Daniel OD-ed when he was home alone with her or for managing to make boxed mac and cheese by the time she was six because Alice forgot to make dinner.

Alice got her shit together first and, well, maybe Daniel never really got his shit together, but he got rich, rich enough for babysitters and nannies and extracurriculars. Alice ended up a big shot publisher. Daniel won two Pulitzers. By the time she was in high school, Alice was happily living in Westchester and the mess that was their early years tucked far away until Daniel pulled them out to write a memoir that at least as of now was unpublished.

And Kate could live with all of that.

Pretending they were some sort of happy, urban family instead of a mess was perfectly fine.

But there was also some feeling that Kate should have done more as a result of everything she had been given - as if she'd had some lovely, trauma free childhood, as if the one thing she wanted wasn't just stability.

Leni was Daniel's favorite for exactly that reason.

Leni fucking hated their shared father who had never married her mother, but she was the one Daniel thought was the best and the brightest. She was a music journalist. She was totally going to win a Pulitzer one day, Kate suspected. Who knew for what, but it would happen because she was Daniel Molloy's daughter, right? His pride and joy.

He loved Kate, too.

He loved Kate enough to point out that he thought her husband was boring and that her communications degree was useless and that marketing and copyediting wasn't real writing because it wasn't like a bunch of marketing people helped to sell his damn books. When she had Hannah and she stopped working because Tom made a lot more money and it was silly to just be working to pay for daycare and because Kate liked being a parent which seemed unfathomable to BOTH of her parents, Daniel had enjoyed getting to say he told her so on that communications degree.

Daniel rarely remembered saying those things.

He couldn't even blame it on booze or drugs.

No, it was worse, Kate realized. His little offhanded remarks about Kate's life didn't even matter enough to him to stick out in his brain as stuff that might hurt her.

She had laid all of this out for her shrink just the day before she invited him to Thanksgiving.

It would be good. It would be fine. No Leni or Mom. Just Dad, Tom, Hannah and Tom's folks - who luckily really, really liked Kate.

And Armand, apparently.

Armand who was Daniel's something.

Kate wanted to get one thing very straight - she loved the gays. She had also read a draft of her father's memoir that was both traumatizing and enlightening. She knew he had some weird closeted energy on the periphery.

It wasn't that he was some guy. It wasn't even that Kate had sort of gotten the impression he might be a young guy.

It was that he was another fucking person to look down his nose at Kate while thinking Daniel hung the moon.

"I think we got enough food," Tom was the kind of affable guy that Kate used to think only existed in sitcoms. His parents were liberal, progressive by boomer standards, but he'd grown up in a house with a picket fence and no one in his immediate family had ever OD'd at a Chuck E. Cheese. "It all looks great."

Kate adjusted a plate of hors d'oeuvres carefully on the table to make sure that it didn't interfere with the tablescape of pumpkins and pilgrims she'd put together after a long afternoon of watching and rewatching a saved party-planning show that had aired on HGTV.

"Well, turkey is in the oven. Everything else is in progress," Kate nodded. "Now we just need guests."

"Hey," Tom grabbed her by the wrist. "Relax. My mom is gonna be obsessed with this whole thing. She'll talk your ear off."

"It's not your mom I'm worried about," Kate shook her head. "Promise me you won't take the bait if he starts going on about dark money in hedgefunds. He wants you to be dick."

Tom laughed, "I know how to handle Daniel Molloy. Don't worry."

The doorbell rang.

Tom's parents didn't ring the doorbell. Tom's parents had a key. They were family. They weren't guests.

That meant it wasn't Tom's family arriving first, which Kate knew because they were going to be later since they had to swing by their daughter's place first.

Maybe she was just hoping Daniel wouldn't have more punctuality now.

Tom gave her a quick kiss to the cheek, "Don't. Worry."

Chapter Text

Chapter Four: Thanksgiving

"You know I am an excellent driver, beloved," Armand pointed out from the passenger seat. "I could have driven us there much more efficiently."

"Sure, Rain Man."

Armand rolled his eyes, "I have been driving all manner of motor vehicles since they were invented."

"My dad once told me he rode in a gen-u-ine Model-T. I wouldn't let that old man drive me around now either," Daniel retorted, looking pleased with himself.

"I have vampiric vision and reflexes. I do not think you wish to be suggesting I am too old to drive."

"Not too old. Too dead," Daniel settled on because yeah, better to avoid focusing on time's heavy drumbeat. Thanksgiving was depressing enough in that fucking regard. "Do you still have a motorcycle?"

The question came after a beat. It made Armand smile. He and Daniel had once had a great many good times on a motorcycle. It was '79 when Armand had first shown up with one.

"Why? Would you have let me drive us here on a motorbike?"

"I don't think I'd be too comfortable on the L.I.E. in a sidecar."

"But sitting behind me and holding on for dear life…" Armand let the sentence trail off. He sat back in his seat a little more, watching the scenery go by. Daniel was offering more than a few visuals in his surface thoughts. It was pleasing. "I have a few bikes, still. One could be brought to New York easily enough."

Daniel just sort of shrugged it off. He mumbled something about being too old, added in a detail about how he definitely wasn't going to die on the back of motorcycle an immortal idiot was driving around in winter weather.

Armand made a mental note to arrange for the shipment.

Things were in an unsettled holding pattern back in Brooklyn. Daniel was bordering on angry and certainly on edge about Armand's interest in Kate. Armand was hurt and angry at Daniel in return for being hurt and angry at him.

But Armand had taken to laying beside Daniel while he slept.

They spent their days and their nights together in something like companionship.

It was unspoken and under negotiated, which would no doubt prove a problem, but neither of them wanted to upset it.

Perhaps they were both aware that much hinged on how this little family holiday played out. If everyone was not on their very best behavior, Armand might have to start exploring one of those other options for residences that Daniel had mentioned before. He might have to leave Daniel behind once more. The boy couldn't even see how badly Armand did not want to do that.

Armand was well aware of what Kate's house looked like. He'd had the forethought not to mention any of that to Daniel, but he had seen photographs on her social media. The house had shown up in the background of more than one video she'd posted. It had been easy to find it on Zillow.

He was going to need to caution Kate on protecting her identity in some way that didn't make Daniel more nervous.

It was a sweet house. Armand had flipped a few places like it when he was bored and Louis was off being self-destructive. It had been a shorter period than the 70s, but in the early 90s, Armand found himself without Daniel for a distraction.

They were rather boring and mundane, but they sold well to people like Kate and her husband.

Armand reached for the doorknob.

"Jeez, are you some kind of gremlin? You can't just walk in," Daniel shook his head, ringing the doorbell instead.

"They are expecting us," Armand said under his breath with the same venom he sometimes called Daniel boy when he was annoyed.

"It's rude, asshole," Daniel sniped back.

Whatever was going to come next, Armand shut his mouth when the door opened.

"Daddy!"

Kate rarely called Daniel Daddy. He was lucky she still called him Dad. Leni definitely preferred to call him Daniel so this was something. But Daddy definitely meant Kate wanted something. That wasn't inherently a bad thing. It wasn't always a greedy thing by any means. It meant please, let this go well. Daniel decided that meant more than continuing to go at it with Armand.

There would be time for that later.

"Hey, sweetie," Daniel hugged Kate, putting thoughts about the fight he and Armand were definitely going to have - were maybe already having - off to one side. Surviving Thanksgiving was likely the most he could hope for right now.

"I'm glad you made it," Kate hugged Daniel back tightly. "And you're here first, but hors d'oeuvres are already out and Tom's got the game on. Don't ask me which one. I'm sure he'll tell you."

Kate stepped back and turned her attention to Armand suddenly realizing she had no clue what to say to him.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Katherine," Armand offered. Daniel had to admit - whether it was a vampire thing or just an Armand thing - he was fucking charming when he wanted to be. Daniel was kind of glad he'd decided he wanted to be today. "Armand de Romanus."

"Hi, right," She nodded, her smile more forced than it had been. "Kate. It's nice to meet you."

"I brought a bottle of wine. I believe that's customary."

Kate took the bottle from him, mildly flustered.

"Oh, great, thank you," Kate nodded. "Well, come in. Take your coats off. We're not formal around here or anything."

Kate called for her husband as Armand and Daniel stepped inside. Armand shrugged out of his coat silently, handing it to Daniel. He focused on the stream of Kate's thoughts, knowing he needed to keep an upper hand on this entire situation. She thought he was too young, but also that he was terribly polite. Armand had suspected he would need to use his carefully cultivated oh no, I'm just a small, meek little nobody routine that he had used frequently with Louis to win over Kate. He thought it might work.

"Honey, Armand brought a bottle of wine. Wasn't that nice of him?"

Kate handed the bottle to Tom who had walked out to shake hands with Daniel. He followed it up with a handshake for Armand. His thoughts were slightly less generous when it came to Armand, but only in so much as any mediocre white man of a certain age in modern America was apt to have some vague internalized homophobia with a dash of racism. Armand mentally classified him as…harmless.

"Holy shit," Tom cursed before he could stop himself. It made Kate jump ever so slightly.

"Is something the matter?" Armand asked. Daniel was watching him out of the corner of his eye. He looked very innocent, which made Daniel immediately suspicious.

"No, um, just…" Tom shook his head. "Everything's fine. Hun, can you show me where the good corkscrew is?"

"O…kay," Kate didn't realize they had a good corkscrew. She figured out that it must be code for something.

Kate and Tom walked toward the kitchen while Armand and Daniel stepped into the dining room. They looked over the array of food already laid out.

"I swear to fucking god, Armand."

"Given how Katherine just reacted to the word shit, I would watch my language, beloved," Armand smiled walking around the table trying to make sense of some of what was there.

It was quite the feast, though he was not sure he had seen this much human food laid out in some time. Party foods had come a long way since the 70s. There was a decidedly fewer items that seemed to use gelatin or mayonnaise (or some combination of the two) as its base.

"You did something. Tell me right now what you did."

"I brought a bottle of wine to your daughter's holiday festivities as is customary."

"Armand…"

"It's an excellent red wine," Armand continued. He was smirking. He was enjoying this. Daniel was torn between wanting to kiss him and punch him. Fucking hell, why was that how shit always felt these days? "I had to go into my own private wine cellar. I hadn't been there in years. A 1986 Château Lafite Rothschild Pauillac."

"I don't know what any of those fucking words mean except 1986."

"Tom knows," Armand looked up at Daniel. "You did warn me, beloved. Money and class conscious Tom. I think you used a less savory term for him, neoliberal capitalist pig who thinks he's progressive, was that it?"

"Uh huh," Daniel grit his teeth.

"I knew he would respect a bottle of wine that currently retails for just north of a $1,000," Armand shrugged. "Relax, darling, your heart is beating so fast. You don't want to make me do anything that might embarass us."

"I hate you."

"I know," He grinned.

Kate followed Tom into the kitchen. She felt on edge at already being pulled away. Tom was usually a good judge of character. If he thought something was wrong already, she had no idea how they were going to get through the day.

"You know where the corkscrew is," She folded her arms standing on the far side of the kitchen and talking in a hushed tone.

"Your father's boyfriend just casually handed you a $1,000 bottle of wine," Tom said in return. "Who is this guy?"

"I don't know! Dad just said he was seeing a guy. He didn't tell me anything about him," Kate shrugged. "I assumed it was a late mid-life crisis. At least he doesn't seem as dumb as Kelly."

And, okay, that was kind of mean, but Kelly had no business being with Daniel Molloy. Kate had almost felt bad for her and Daniel wasn't that nice to her about what he saw as her shortcomings either.

"He's loaded," Tom argued. "Because I know Daniel well enough to know he wouldn't have let him use his credit card to buy this."

Kate wasn't actually sure what to do with this information. Her dad's too young boyfriend was loaded and he'd brought a super fancy bottle of wine.

"Maybe he's the kind of rich where he doesn't realize how this looks," Kate offered. "Like your boss."

"Maybe," Tom nodded. "Or maybe he's trying to impress you."

"Shit," Kate cursed under her breath.

It wasn't that she had planned to be unkind to him. She'd made her peace with the idea of Daniel choosing significant others who were too young ages ago. He had a pattern. He'd married the last person in the pattern. Maybe he was going to marry Armand.

Fuck.

Armand kept a mental ear on the conversation happening in the kitchen. It had played out mostly as he had expected. It was true - though Armand doubted that Daniel would believe him - that he wanted Kate to like him for several reasons. He also wanted to alleviate any concern that Daniel was being taken advantage of by a younger, poorer paramour. He could not (and would not) tell them outright who and what he really was, but the wine was shorthand in the end, wasn't it?

"Stop sulking," He said to Daniel. "They're coming back."

"Honey, where's Hannah?" Daniel asked when Kate walked back in with a warming dish full of some sort of dip. Armand thought by the smell that it was, in fact, mayonnaise-based.

"Oh, we're having her nap which at five means she's watching a movie in her bedroom," Kate explained.

Should I thank him again for the wine? Is this the sort of thing that we should make sure he knows we know? Are we supposed to know?

Armand tuned the verbal conversation mostly out in favor of listening to Kate's thoughts. Daniel was fixing himself a plate of food. Armand was considering what he might do to give the appearance of eating without doing so. He could stomach human food, but he was hardly partial to it.

He's not eating. Yeah, Kate, 'cos your food is processed crap and I'm pretty sure everything is made of meat and he's probably Muslim, which Dad didn't mention. They don't eat cows, right? Or pigs? Shit. Not they. Motherfucker. He bought thousand dollar wine and I'm going to fucking offend him with the food and probably be accidentally racist. I'm not racist. I…

Armand picked up a tiny hot dog that was inexplicably wrapped in both pastry dough and bacon and put it in his mouth.

Kate's mind silenced, but Daniel's eyes bore into him.

"That is delightful," Armand said picking up a plate and putting a few more items on it before following Daniel into the living room.

"What the fuck was that?" Daniel whispered to him.

"Hors d'oeuvres."

Armand was like a house cat. Daniel thought that was what had him the most set on edge. Armand was always up to something. Sometimes, well, a lot of the time back in the day, those things were nice at least for Daniel if not for other people. Armand secretly became a pirate to fund an island for Daniel to have a safe enclosure for all his risky behaviors. But the problem with cats (and the problem with Armand) was that they were always up to something and you never knew about it until a vase in the other room crashed to the floor.

Daniel could deal with a lot of broken glass so long as that glass didn't involve his family. If he and Armand were playing some kind of game, he didn't want Kate caught in the crossfire.

It was also an all too real reminder of just how little he and Armand were actually saying to each other all the way around.

Armand was quite good at small talk. He used to thrive in society in a world before Louis and a world after Lestat. Whatever rules had lingered in the Coven about intertwined lives with mortals, no one had dared to question Armand's enjoyment of salons and clubs before Louis arrived in Paris. It had made Armand think of his distant past in Venice when his ability to charm had been part of what made him such a valuable investment.

But he'd be damned even more than he already was if he managed to find a way to chit chat about American football.

Daniel was enjoying himself.

Or, at least, Daniel had stopped thinking the worst of Armand in favor of thinking the worst of the Cincinatti Bearcats.

Kate was conversant in the sport. Armand imagined she'd cultivated that skill for the same reason Armand had learned to discuss trade back in Venice - it made her attractive to men. There was a part of Armand that considered pointing that out, but he didn't think it would be well-taken by her or by her father.

Armand excused himself. He imagined suggesting he needed a bathroom was the most mortal excuse he could make for going to snoop in the hallways. Daniel gave him a look - well aware that Armand had not had enough mortal drink to necessitate a bathroom - but he seemed to not want to create a scene over it.

Perhaps that was where matters were for the time being.

Armand had meant what he said. He wasn't very aware of what a mortal life was anymore. He had followed Daniel around for a short period of time in the 70s and 80s, but that had largely been predicated on making Daniel fit into Armand's idea of a life than the other way around. It was why it hadn't worked in the end.

He looked at the photographs on the walls. They looked to be a happy family. There were photos of Alice. She had aged. It was probably crass to think he looked better than her, but Armand had been called petty many times. It would have surprised no one that he had been painfully jealous of Alice.

Daniel was absent from most of the photos. Armand had not wanted it to be that way.

He was not responsible for it.

At the same time…

He was completely responsible for it.

He raised an eyebrow, inclining his head. There was a new heartbeat in the kitchen, fast and healthy. A child.

Someone had woken from their nap.

Armand walked into the kitchen finding the little girl standing on her tiptoes near the counter.

"Hello," He called from behind her.

She turned around. She had dark curls and green eyes. She was certainly from Daniel's gene pool, Armand thought fondly.

"Hi," The little girl lowered her feet back to the ground. "I'm Hannah. I'm five."

Armand walked over to her, "I am Armand. I am five hundred."

She giggled. "Are not!"

"Am too," He smiled, picking her up and placing her on the countertop. It put them closer to eye level.

"Hey!" She pouted. "Who are you?"

"Armand," He repeated. "I came with your grandfather."

"Uh uh, grandpa's not here yet. Mom said he and Grandma wouldn't be here 'til right before dinner."

"Your grandfather, Daniel."

"Oh…" Hannah said as if the thought had just dawn on her. "I guess he's grandpa, too."

"You guess?"

She shrugged. Armand saw in her mind that she didn't see him often enough to consider what she called him.

Armand reached in his pocket, pulling out a silver dollar. He had taken it from his things knowing a child would be present. He had not been sure he would be in a position to give it to Hannah.

"A gift," He held it between his forefinger and thumb letting it catch the light. Hannah looked at it, eyes a little wide. "It is only worth a dollar, but it is very bright and very shiny."

She reached for it taking it out of his fingers and analyzing it closely, flipping it over to get a better look. It made Armand smile, an old memory long buried that made his heart warm, however temporarily. He reached across the counter retrieving a chocolate chip cookie from a plate he imagined Kate had recently baked.

"And what you were trying to get. Our secret."

Hannah grinned as Armand picked her up to put her back on her feet. She hurried out of the kitchen, passing Daniel on her way who let her go in favor of staying with Armand.

"I was wondering where you went."

"You are wondering what I was getting up to," Armand's smile faltered a little. "Stop thinking I was trying to hypnotize your granddaughter. It's a coin."

"I remember you used to give them out on Halloween. I always thought it was weird," Daniel had been young at the time afte all. "Guess I forgot you're just an old man who likes to give kids weird, old timey trinkets."

It was not age that fueled Armand.

Or, at least, in this case, it was not only age that fueled him.

It was those few happy moments of his mortal life that made him fond of children. He was with Marius long enough to see many come and go from the palazzo. Many were like Amadeo had been, unfamiliar with the world that Marius meant to introduce them to. He and Riccardo had always made it their mission to show them kindness, to spoil them. Riccardo had done much the same for Amadeo.

What had Armand become that even this gesture had registered first as sinister to Daniel?

Oh, right…that.

Kate had labored over the seating arrangement for dinner. It made sense for her and Tom to be at either end. It also made sense for Hannah to be next to her so that Kate could help serve her. That left the question of where to put Armand. Now that she had met him, she wouldn't have been so concerned about him sitting with Tom's parents, but when she had thought he was just some guy she had decided it would be best that he sit next to her where she could manage him if need be.

Of course, Armand was nothing but polite and well-mannered to almost an eery degree.

Kate had a lot of questions about who he was and where he came from, but top of her list was: how the fuck had Daniel Molloy met and seemingly kept this guy? Daniel was smart, erudite about the things he cared about, but he was also a loud, dick more often than not.

So, respectfully, what the fuck?

"How's the jewelry thing going, sweetie?" Daniel asked after Tom had carved the turkey.

"Pearls, Dad. It's pearls."

"Is that not jewelry?"

"It's more about…forget it," Kate shook her head. "Good. It's going good."

Armand sat pensively for a moment, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together before he finally leaned forward.

"It is about the experience," He offered.

Kate looked over at him from where she was cutting Hannah's turkey into smaller pieces.

"Yeah," She smiled a little.

"I must admit I've been spending some time in your livestreams," Armand knew it was risky to admit to that. He could quite literally feel Daniel tense up at the admission.

"You have?"

"Yes, I use the RomanWeiss handle."

"THAT'S YOU!" The noise that followed could only be categorized as a squeal. Daniel wasn't a hands-on enough parent to know immediately that it wasn't some kind of horrific get out of my house right now noise. "I was going to ask you to start moderating chats for me."

"I will admit I first took a look because I was curious about Daniel's family, but I find the entire thing terribly fascinating."

And if there was one thing destined to keep Armand's attention, it was something he found fascinating.

Daniel realized that Armand was a super old vampire capable of many nefarious things. He knew he was capable of lying, of manipulating. But he also knew that the way he was talking to Kate now about her stupid pyramid scheme (because the one thing Daniel was sure of was that it was a pyramid scheme) was…genuine.

Well, shit.

Kate seemed set to spend the rest of the evening monopolizing Armand's time. She pulled out just about every Vandel Pearl product she had in the house. Daniel watched as Armand picked over it, commenting on the relative worth of the items and the best ways to set them, vaguely alluding to a past of jewelry restoration which most definitely was the part where he used to find sunken ships to fund Night Island.

"Armand and I have an annoucement to make!" Kate said finally coming back into the living room with Armand at her side near the endo f the evening.

"Quite," Armand nodded. "Kate and I have been discussing Christmas. Daniel and I would be honored to host the entire family at our property in Westport."

We have property in Westport.

I'll add your name to the deed.

"That's, um, really generous of you. I…" Daniel wanted to point out that he should have asked, that they should have discussed it, that it would never ever work, but he saw Kate's face. She was happy, excited. She wanted to see him again without six to nine months passing.

She wanted to celebrate Christmas with him.

Or at least Armand.

Right now, he'd take that.

"It's a great idea. Sorry I didn't think of it first."

As Kate threw her arms around him, Daniel found himself thinking he liked it better when he thought Armand wanted to kill his kids instead of finding out he wanted to entertain them.

Fuck.

Maybe Armand was trying to kill him.

Chapter Text

Chapter Five: Winter Weather Advisory

The world was a weird fucking place.

That was going to be Daniel's final takeaway. It wasn't his most astute observation, but it sure was true.

Apparently, Armand was, in fact, an excellent driver. Daniel didn't even have to warn him to slow down or to not follow other cars so closely (or risk breaking Daniel's fragile little mortal head).

Kate thought Armand was the fucking best. Who would have seen that one coming? Not Daniel. Not the man who knew how well Kelly had gone over when he'd introduced her to his kids.

Fucking weird.

"I have a confession to make."

"You don't actually have a driver's license?"

"One doesn't need a license when one can simply ensure no one asks for such documentation," Armand rolled his eyes.

"Babe, I don't think I can take much more today," Daniel laughed scrubbing a hand over his face. "So whatever it is…"

"You have not called me that since our reunion," He smiled a little.

"Maybe I don't…Maybe I'm not clear on what I'm allowed to call you," Daniel admitted. "Boss feels safer."

"Anyhow," Armand wasn't ready to unpack that, not by a mile or more. "I should have been more honest about my virtual interactions with Katherine. I was intrigued by what I saw. I have spent much of the time we were apart managing Louis' large portfolio of businesses. Perhaps I needed an occupation. Perhaps I got carried away. I am sorry."

Daniel looked over at Armand with an eyebrow raised, "Did that physically hurt to say?"

"I would not hurt them," Armand added firmly, not commenting on his apology.

"I know. I think I know. It's just…a lot, okay?"

Perhaps that was all Armand could hope for.

Perhaps it was enough.

If Daniel still had questions and doubts about a lot of Armand's motives, he at least felt more settled in thinking his sort of vampire boyfriend wasn't plotting ways to murder his daughters.

Progress.

That didn't make the reality of the situation any less weird. It made it all about 300% weirder if Daniel was being completely honest.

Armand and Kate were on the phone with each other constantly.

Sometimes, it was even worse.

Sometimes, it was fucking Facetime.

"Katherine, darling, I think the party was lovely," Armand assured her. "It was well watched. You had to turn people away, you sold out so fast."

"I know. I just feel like I should be making more money for how many people are watching."

"You have the names of everyone who was turned away, yes?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, a private party for them as soon as you're restocked. Just them and anyone they want to invite," Armand suggested. "Then once you sell out to them invite them to your team."

"That's a great idea."

"Once your downline is more robust, you will be making money cash over fist as they say."

Daniel rolled his eyes as Armand and Kate said their goodbyes.

"Lovely pyramid scheme you're encouraging my daughter to build."

"It is a multi-level marketing organization."

"Uh huh, and those levels have quite the pyramidal shape to them."

"It's perfectly legal."

"Always the best defense for a business," Daniel laughed. He wasn't really that put out by it. He thought it was fucking stupid. He thought the people who fell for it were stupid. He wasn't going to say that to Kate.

Or even Armand.

"I am curious why Katherine seems so hesitant to spend money. Tom clearly has it," Armand pointed out. "She wouldn't sell out if she invested in more stock. I've also given her ample suggestions for how to make purchases all the more enticing. I must send her a gift certificate for a regular manicure. She won't even spend money on that."

"I know she feels some kind of way about being a stay-at-home mother."

"That's foolish," Armand said dismissively. "Managing a household should be a highly respected occupation. It takes tremendous skill. When I…well, there was a time when I thought that might well be an excellent outcome."

Daniel could guess whose household he wanted to manage.

"Different times, babe," Daniel shrugged. "Plus, I mean…there were times when she was very young that money wasn't always readily available. I'm guessing she remembers when the electricity got shut off or we lived off shitty canned foods for weeks on end 'cos my royalty checks were shit back then and most of it was going in my arm. With Kate, there's a decent chance it was my fault."

"Well, I will send her the gift certificate anyway," Armand insisted. "A more manicured nail will be enticing to the eyes. It will exude elegance."

"You and your acrylics could help out."

"I do not have acrylic nails."

Daniel laughed. He reached for Armand's hand, "I meant these little razor blades."

"That doesn't sound lovely."

"Nah, but they are. Hot and dangerous."

That was enough to get Armand to smile.

"How'd you learn all this shit? Did you take an advertising class at City College right after the phlebotomy course?"

Armand waited a moment before speaking, "My master. He liked…He preferred when he could see my ankles. I learned how to ensure that he would see just what he wanted so that he might smile on me with more favor. It almost always worked and not only with him."

Armand braced himself for an argument. He knew how these conversations often went. Instead, Daniel just leaned over, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead.

Once upon a time, Armand had forced Daniel into a nearly nocturnal existence, insisting that the nights belonged to him. Tempting though that still was, he knew it was not a sustainable life. Mortals needed daylight, needed human connection, and Daniel needed his work.

So Armand let himself live in a sort of liminal space between nocturnal and fully functioning during the day.

He still required far less sleep than Daniel, but he found ways to occupy his time both with Kate's business and with other things.

He'd picked up A Shadow on the Skin forcing himself to read it at a natural, mortal pace.

He'd never read Daniel's books.

He was well aware of them. He read the press releases and watched the interviews and monitored Daniel's success, but he hadn't read the books.

There had been arguments between them long ago that Armand couldn't understand what Daniel was doing, couldn't understand the plague killing Daniel's friends. It was true that Armand had suggested Daniel leave San Francisco behind, but it had not been indifference. Daniel had spiraled as the bodies stacked up. Spiraling didn't breed self-care. Armand had feared the day he would drink from Daniel and taste the same death sentence in his blood.

Armand knew plagues intimately. He had survived at least one epidemic in Venice. All of his brothers had not fared so well. In a world where his master had not been a vampire, he would have succombed to another, one that in Daniel's time was treated with a pill as if it were nothing at all.

A braver Armand would have told Daniel that, told him how it had ravaged his mind as much as his body.

Armand was a survivor, but he was not brave.

He wouldn't risk Daniel and his ever sharp tongue being the one to say as much out loud.

"I missed a lot on that one," Daniel pointed out gesturing towards the book as Armand turned the page.

"What do you mean?"

"I dunno, just in retrospect, there was a lot I got wrong, a lot of details I shoulda followed up with," Daniel shrugged. "Not saying it woulda turned the tides faster or anything, but…it is what it is."

"I believe in these situations well-meaning people are still appreciated even if they do not singlehandedly save lives."

Daniel did wonder if things might have been different if Armand had not been in his life. Armand was a beautiful, wonderful distraction in an extremely dark time.

Armand closed the book. He looked over at Daniel pensively for a moment before speaking.

"I need to step out for the evening, beloved. I will be back by midnight."

Daniel frowned, "Is everything okay?"

"Yes," Armand forced a smile. The fact that Daniel could tell it was forced did little set his mind at ease. The fact that he knew Armand could read his thoughts and still hadn't changed his facial expression told him all the more. "I agreed to a meal with an old…well, a friend."

"Is it Louis?"

"No."

"Lestat?"

"No."

"Well, I'm outta vampires that I know by name and who aren't dead. Claudia's not walking around somewhere, is she?"

"Very much not," Armand shook his head. "It is nothing. No one of importance. There are matters to settle, you know that."

Maybe Louis had a vampire lawyer. Maybe Armand had a vampire lawyer. It made sense, Daniel told himself.

"Does a meal mean you're going hunting or…"

"We will pretend to dine as mortals do for the sake of the ambiance," Armand amended. "Would you like me to bring you anything? I believe it is an Italian place."

"Order whatever they say is good. I'll eat it," Daniel offered. It felt weirdly like old times. Armand ordering an entire menu of food to watch Daniel, who at the time was underfed and frequently trying to stretch his cash, scarf as much as possible down.

"I will bring you something," Armand nodded.

American interpretations of distant lands were always rather fascinating. As Armand entered the small, quaint Italian restaurant, he imagined it had minimally been owned by Italian immigrants once upon a time.

It was meant to be authentic enough while being exactly what an American public expected an Italian restaurant to be.

Seeing Marius de Romanus sitting in the midst of that was amusing. There was no way around that.

"I was not sure you would come."

"I have never said no before," Armand pointed out. "I was surprised to hear from you."

"Well," Marius lifted his hand, shrugging in a vague non-commital gesture. "I was worried about you. Lestat informed me that your companion has returned to him."

"Companionships end," Armand did his best to keep his voice level, to not show how hurt and lost he was. Marius couldn't read his mind. It let Armand believe he could maintain the upper hand. "You know that. After all, here I am and there you are."

"Indeed."

"And Pandora? Where is she as of late?" Armand didn't doubt that Pandora was still very much in touch with Marius, but he knew his point would be well taken.

"She is not cohabitating with an aging mortal."

"Is age the issue, padrone? If he were a boy perhaps…" Armand lifted his eyes to meet Marius'. He had been avoiding that since he sat down. A part of him feared his resolve. Damn his soul for still loving him.

Marius clicked his tongue disapprovingly.

"I am worried about you, Amadeo."

"Of all of the things that have become of me since you made me, I cannot imagine anything happening to me currently is that terribly concerning."

"Why must you be this way? Can we not have a pleasant evening?"

Armand was torn between emphatically saying no and wishing to stay. Was that not always the problem with Marius?

In the end, he stayed.

The candles on the table burned down as they talked. It was barbed and short in places, but also fond and pleasant in others. They talked about the art that had survived the fire. Armand admitted to the ones that he had bought. Marius smiled in a way that had once made Armand feel so terribly special.

There was a part of Armand that wished the night could go on and on until morning and the next night still.

But Armand checked his phone and saw the time. He called over the waiter, placing an order for Daniel.

"You're bringing food to your mortal boy?"

"You used to bring me food from your grand parties," Armand pointed out. "You would have it taken to the kitchens if I was indisposed with my duties."

"Be careful, Amadeo," Marius warned. "I know all too well what attachments to mortals can lead to."

Armand laughed a little, "I know your regrets well, padrone. Please let Lestat know he need not interfere in my affairs further."

Daniel was an extremely secure person. He was so goddamn secure that he was frequently an asshole to people just because. He was right. Everyone else was wrong. Daniel had suffered from many things in his life, but not low self-esteem.

Armand was the exception to that. Armand was always the exception. With Armand, Daniel inevitably felt like an idiot twenty-year-old. How could he not when dealing with a five-hundred-year old vampire who could fuck with his head if he wanted to?

Would he do that again if he decided to leave Daniel? He said he wouldn't, but would that hold?

"The waitress recommend parmigiana di melanzane," Armand walked into the bedroom just after 10 :30pm. Daniel had gone in there 15 minutes prior thinking it would look less like he had been staring at the door waiting for Armand to come home.

"I like when you go all Giada de Laurentis and way overemphasize Italian words."

"It is the correct pronunciation," Armand pointed out holding the bag out to Daniel.

"Smells good," Daniel admitted taking the bag from him. He began to take it apart finding plastic utensils and paper napkins inside. "How was dinner?"

Armand slipped his coat off and toed off his shoes before sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"A slightly shabby restaurant with cheap drippy candles and linens that had seen better days," Armand laughed softly. "It reminded me a bit of Paris, the places I used to haunt."

He was with Louis. Has to be. Has to be a Louis thing making him all nostalgic for Paris.

"Beloved, I've told you and you've seen with your eyes that Louis does not want me."

Daniel had seen it, but they wouldn't be the first couple to reconcile against all logic.

"Your book made me think of old friends. I agreed…" Armand hesitated. "It was Marius. I had dinner with Marius."

Well damn.

It made sense.

Nostalgia. Italian. Thinking about Paris. Everything in between.

"How long has he not been dead?"

"I was informed he lived in the early 60s," Armand admitted. "Lestat informed me. He had known since the 18th century that he lived. He did not deign to tell me until he wished payback for Louis."

"God, you schmucks really do live in a fucking soap opera," Daniel shook his head. "You always implied to me he was dead."

"I frequently wished he was."

Daniel genuinely didn't know what to say to that. He was grateful that the food served as distration. He had no idea if he should say more. What did you even say to this sort of thing?

"May I sleep here with you?"

Daniel looked up at him. Armand had mostly been sleeping in Daniel's bed (or at least he had been sort of sitting there while Daniel slept).

"Yeah, boss, of course."

"I may sleep through the day."

"You should. If you, um, if you wanna skip the reading tomorrow night, that's fine."

"I am sure I'll be awake then."

"Yeah, but if you wanna just stay in and fuck around with Kate's shit, you can," Whatever the fuck Armand was getting out of being part of a MLM, it made him happy. Daniel thought perhaps he needed that.

"I would like to take a shower."

Daniel thought it was perhaps wrong to suggest that Armand ever asked Daniel's permission for anything, but Daniel knew that his language choices right now certainly harkened back to a time when he needed to ask permission for likely everything.

"It's all yours. Should have a full tank of hot water," Daniel nodded. "Hurry back. I Love Lucy is on in thirty."

There were many things that one could say were lacking in Daniel's apartment, but copious amounts of hot water and strong water pressure were not among them.

Armand turned the water up hot enough for the steam to fill the bathroom and fog up the glass.

Marius had always set a premium on cleanliness as if enough baths in enough perfumed water could remove whatever taint was below the surface of Amadeo's skin. Santino had felt quite the opposite about bathing. Armand had found ways around that in Paris, but the filth had seemed to show outwardly what Marius had suspected of him all the same.

Armand let the water warm him almost to the point of burning.

He was sure Daniel was beginning to see what Marius and all the other had eventually seen in him. It was inevitable.

There were two bags of blood sitting on the bed waiting for him when he returned.

"It's the start of the California episodes. Fucking classic, man."

Armand returned to bed and curled up close to Daniel draining one of the bags before putting his head on Daniel's chest.

He wanted to be here with Daniel so badly.

Why was it so hard to say? So hard to make Daniel believe him?

He closed his eyes, eventually finding sleep close to the soundness fledglings reached. He had not been sleeping enough.

Royalty checks were a nice thing to have now that Daniel was, well, Daniel Molloy. They'd been shit back when he was still a junkie, but now they were a nice little boost.

Daniel had hardly stopped his output of new work, but he'd certainly been doing more guest work, more short-form stuff, in recent years. A feature in The Atlantic or a quick, old-school interview in Esquire was a perfectly nice payday, but until he got off his ass and wrote a new book, readings and book signings were a good way to drive up short-term sales and royalty checks.

It was a little jarring to read from A Shadow on the Skin and realize half the room hadn't even been alive back then and that they sort of didn't get it. They understood it was bad. They weren't lacking in empathy per se.

But it might as well have happened a hundred years ago.

This must have been how time felt to be Armand, he found himself thinking.

It is the burden of all of us who are brought into the Blood. We all carry that with us.

Armand had never been very good at staying out of Daniel's mind. Daniel knew what it was like when a vampire spoke directly into his fucking brain.

It wasn't Armand.

It wasn't Louis.

It didn't sound either cunty or French enough to be Lestat.

Daniel looked down the line. Two-thirds of the way down, he saw a tall Roman statue looking asshole.

And, yep, vampire world was fucking small, wasn't it?

"Shall I just make it out to Marius de Romanus or have you gone with a name change in the last four hundred years."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Daniel Molloy."

"Don't expect me to say likewise."

Marius ignored that comment, "I am surprised Amadeo is not here."

Daniel was fucking glad that Armand had stayed away. Well, he was a tiny bit concerned this was a fucking ambush, but still.

"Gotta keep the line moving, buddy. Thanks for coming," He held the signed book out to him. He'd just barely stopped himself from writing fuck you very much in the inscription.

"I would like the opportunity to speak to you. May I buy you a drink?"

"I don't drink alone and you don't drink."

"I imbibe from time to time. Please. I shall wait for you at the bar across the street."

Daniel was aware as Marius walked away that there was an expectation that he would show up. He wanted to pretend he wouldn't, that he wasn't foolishly curious about what Armand's maker would have to say.

He should go home.

He didn't.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that Armand would fall for a boy such as yourself sooner or later."

"I'm pushing sixty, pal. I stopped being a boy quite a long time ago."

Marius laughed, "Charming."

The waitress brought Daniel's drink over to their table. Marius was true to his word, sipping on a glass of wine. Daniel hoped it tasted real bad.

Marius idly flipped through the pages of the book Daniel had signed.

"Quite the book. You are very talented, indeed," Marius gave a slight nod. "It made me think of my sweet Amadeo."

Daniel tensed up, "How so?"

"He was very ill in his last years," Marius admitted. "An illness not unlike the one in your book. The French Disease. I believe the name today is syphilis."

This was fucking news to Daniel. Daniel knew Armand had been sick. He'd just sort of assumed it was the flu or something. Armand must have known he was ill. He must…

"I healed the outwards signs as long as I could, but eventually it began to ravage his mind. I had hoped to spare him the Dark Gift and yet…"

Daniel's stomach turned. He reached in his pocket and threw some stray bills on the table.

"So you let him suffer for, what, a decade knowing he was sick?"

"If I believed I could turn him sooner, I would have, but young vampires have short lifespans. I had such high hopes for him then."

"How fucking noble," Daniel stood. "Enjoy the book. Get out of our fucking city."

Daniel realized he was fucking lucky to have walked away from that conversation. He was even luckier to make it back to his apartment without getting murdered by an ancient vampire.

"What's wrong?" Armand could tell the moment Daniel came in that something was wrong. "Your heart is pounding like a drum."

"Guess who's still in town and stopped by my signing?"

Armand's expression immediately darkened, "Did he harm you?"

"No," Daniel shook his head. "He harmed you."

"I am quite well, beloved."

"Yeah? And the decade or so he let you die slowly of syphilis?"

Armand's heart dropped into his stomach. That. Of everything Marius could tell Daniel, it had to be that.

"There is nothing he could have done. Medicine was not what it is now. You know how badly medicine can fail."

"No? Is this what you fucking meant about well-meaning people? Were you talking about your fucking pimp hiding outward signs that you were dying?"

Armand stepped away, putting distance between them.

"Bite your tongue, beloved. I beg you."

"Why? So you can defend that asshole."

"You think it a moral failing that I loved him," Armand snapped. He was angry with Daniel for his tone and angrier still at Marius for approaching him at all.

"Yeah, I do. Not your moral failing, but his."

"But I am the one that must listen to it, to be made small by your insistence on explaining how I was wronged," Armand argued.

"You were wronged!"

"I know!" The mirror in the hall rattled a little at the sound. "Do you think I do not know? Do you think after five hundred years that I am such a child that I am not clear-eyed on what I had and what was done to me. I have not had the benefit of being a child in more years than I can count. I chose him."

"He bought you! You told me that much!"

"Yes! He bought me. He bought me from a Venetian brothel who bought me from a ship's captain who had grown bored of me, who traded me for a woman who I am sure met an insidious end, and who bought me from my parents," Armand was not unaware of his own history. Why did Daniel insist on attempting to know it better than he already did? "What life expectancy do you think barely pubsecent male prostitutes had in Renaissance brothels? Do you think in a world where Marius did not purchase me that I lived a long happy life? I chose him. I chose to commit myself to him, to do all that was asked of me and more because it was better than dying of syphilis in an alley."

"Yeah, he let you nearly die of syphilis in his bed."

"He was not the source of the infection," Armand snarled through gritted teeth.

"Of course he was," Daniel rolled his eyes. "You know that it's far more likely you got it from one of the assholes he passed you to than from the brothel. The timeline speaks for itself. It was his fault. One way or another."

Armand's eyes burned with angry tears, "One way or another."

"Armand…" Daniel took a step toward him.

"No."

Daniel had wondered once if Armand was capable of saying that word. Clearly he was. He let Armand leave for the bedroom. He had the good sense to stay out of there for a good hour. He assumed that Armand didn't mind him coming to bed when he found him lying there. They laid there together in silence, Armand barely exhaling until Daniel fell asleep.

They passed a week like that - barely saying anything to one another, barely touching.

The shockingly cold November was apparently giving way to an early Winter thaw. A spike in the temperature meant frequent snow showers had been replaced with tepid rain and a threat of thunderstorms in the wake of Daniel's run in with Marius.

Daniel's building was old. It had plenty of character and had been renovated recently enough not to be a complete disaster. Still, wind and rain had a tendency to bang off the windows. They had been replaced a couple years back, but that hadn't stopped the wind from rattling more than a bit during a storm.

Daniel found it annoying more so than anything else.

Armand…

Well, Armand had forgotten just how loud it could be especially when it thundered.

It was a visceral reaction, muscle memory of something he didn't even consciously recall, but which his mind and body reacted to all the same.

Strangely, it was a problem that had always been more easily hidden when Armand was with other vampires. Their sleeping habits were different. Certainly with Louis, the limitations of their relationship played a role in what Louis did or didn't see.

But with Daniel beside him, it was quite another story.

"Babe…"

Armand was quite literally not breathing. He had thought ceasing an activity that was more cosmetic than necessary would hide his current condition, but it was futile. He was shaking, tears stuck to his eyelashes.

He and Daniel were in the midst of a fight still, weren't they?

Armand was sure that Daniel would see this as a ploy.

"Oh, fuck," Daniel reached for his glasses. "The storm. I forgot. Been a while."

It had happened a few times in the 70s. Armand had never told Daniel much about the why, but Daniel had just liked being able to take care of Armand for a change.

Daniel couldn't pretend that he didn't sort of find it interesting that Armand could have a panic attack. It raised all kind of questions about how living and how dead vampires were. But he was quite aware that it was also another example of Armand getting the fucking short end of a stick.

He wished Armand could see that. Maybe then they wouldn't in a fucking fight as it was.

Daniel could feel that Armand was shaking. In general, helping Armand meant doing the opposite of what he might do for a frightened child. Instead of turning on the light, he reached for the blanket pulling it over Armand's head. The coffin might be a better option - shut light and sound out - but Daniel had no idea how to get him out to it. His back wasn't what it used to be.

"It shouldn't last long. Tell me if you want me closer or farther away."

Armand didn't know. He was breathing again, but that did little to stop the shaking. Another loud crack of thunder, and he latched on to Daniel.

Daniel could work with that.

Armand knew without really knowing that the memory, such that it was, was from the ship. He had traveled by boat since and knew how rough the seas could be, how difficult a storm could be to weather. How small had he been then? How little had anyone cared about him?

"I got you," Daniel promised glad that Armand preferred being held over the alternative. Daniel didn't exactly thrive when he couldn't do anything (even if his help wasn't always ideal in the end).

The shaking got a little worse as the adrenaline ran down, but Daniel was pretty sure the tears had stopped. The wind and rain was still an issue, but the thunder had passed.

He pressed a kiss to Armand's hair deciding he shouldn't be the one to break the silence further, at least not yet.

Something seemed to snap into place the next morning.

Armand had stayed tucked against Daniel while the mortal slept, but when Daniel woke and reached for his phone to check the time, Armand's eyes suddenly seemed to come back into focus. He pulled away, sitting up.

"Hey…"

"Forgive me for the disturbance," Armand glanced back noticing the red stains on the pillowcase. "I will…I will have replacement linens purchased. I…"

Daniel caught Armand's wrist, "Fuck that. Just come back here. Don't run away."

"It is morning. You are rising," Armand argued. "I will find some place dark…"

"Fuck. That. It's not exactly sunny out there. Keep the curtains closed and stay here," Daniel shook his head. "You've got fuck all to do and an eternity to do it in. I'm pretty sure you can spend a day rotting in bed if you want to. What'll that be? Two whole days of rest in the last century?"

Armand considered arguing. It was foolish. Yes, Armand was a vampire of leisure in many ways, but he had never really been afforded the time to simply lay in bed doing nothing. Some of that was down to messes of his own making, but it was still true.

"I need coffee and then I'll be back."

Daniel wasn't sure that he could actually convince Armand to just stay in bed. He worried just the tiniest bit that he might walk back in the bedroom to find Armand gone (and gone in a way where he didn't come back).

He resolved as he ran a cup of coffee followed by just a mug of hot water through the Keurig that if Armand ran off, he'd fucking find him.

He had no fucking clue how, but he would.

The fight, the panic, the worry - Daniel knew that it was about having Armand back and fearing losing him.

Daniel took a breath. He grabbed a blood bag from the fridge, barely managing to balance it with the two mugs as he made his way back to the bedroom.

"I, um, I wasn't sure if I was allowed to heat blood without inadvertently killing you so you get hot water to hold and cold blood to drink."

Armand's emotions were still painfully close to the surface. The tiniest gesture was apt to hurl him back to tears.

"It was wiser not to attempt it, beloved," Armand settled on a safe topic - the relative safety of heating blood in a microwave. "It can easily coagulate. I fear vampires are not terribly fond of such things, though I would survive."

"Glad to hear I made the right choice. Option B was hit the popcorn button and hope for the best."

"Blood must be mostly alive."

"Mostly alive?"

"Mostly alive," Armand sat the blood aside, preferring to keep ahold of the mug. He liked the warmth. He liked the comfort of the bed and the care Daniel still showed him.

When Marius of all people showed such disregard for him…

"Just so you know," Daniel started cautiously. "If you wanted the fully alive blood and started hunting on the regular, I don't give a shit. I'm not Louis."

"I know," Armand said softly. He looked down at the cup of water, watching the steam roll off of the top of the mug. "I am Arun."

"Huh?"

"You asked who Arun was when we ran into Louis," Armand explained. "That is what I believe my name was, the one my parents gave me before they sold me. But I do not even know for sure."

"And you let Louis call you that?"

"I thought it would mean that he knew who I truly was. I was mistaken, but I could not take it back, then," Armand wasn't sure Louis could even fully be blamed for the situation. Armand allowed a great many things to happen.

"And you never told me."

Armand looked down at the mug again.

"…I wanted to, but I had long been betrayed by Louis when it came to that name. I could not stand it weaponized against me once more, not from you. Regulating your reactions was hardly your strong point in the 70s."

Daniel had no argument there. He would gladly and passionately argue how much he had loved Armand in the 70s, but it hadn't always been wisely or well.

He had been a dumbass kid and acted accordingly.

"I haven't really been sure why you came back," Daniel confessed. "It's felt like a ticking time bomb counting down to you fucking off or fucking me over. And not for nothing, you were fucking weird at Thanksgiving."

Armand sat the mug aside, "I knew that I was not trusted, but I did not know how to fix it. I was meant to have some control over matters. How you remembered. What you remembered. In what order. But then…"

It wasn't a great defense, but it felt like an honest one to Daniel.

"I need to hear you say that you won't go back to Louis," Daniel knew he had come close to saying it before, but it still felt unsettled. "And now Marius."

Armand considered how best to answer. Simply saying it would not be enough.

"Beloved, Louis leaving me was the excuse I had been waiting for to come home to you," Armand reached for Daniel's hand. He lifted it to his lips kissing his knuckles. "You were always gentle with me. Not with anyone else. You were a horror to so many others, but not me of all creatures."

Daniel smiled a little, "Maybe whatever part of me is a complete monster can relate to the less fantastic choices you make."

Armand caressed Daniel's cheek gently. He pulled him close to kiss him. It felt different. It felt better. It felt like it used to.

"I need to say one more thing," Daniel wrapped an arm around Armand. "I hate Marius cos he hurt you. We don't have to get into morality. Fuck morality. Even if everything he did to you was okay to do, you got hurt in the end. I hate that. Okay?"

"Okay."

Silence lingered between them.

"It wasn't okay what he did to me, but I don't know how to survive it if I say it out loud too frequently."

"Okay," Daniel nodded. "But you are home now?"

"I am home, beloved. I swear."

Chapter Text

Chapter Six: Herald Square & Bryant Park

A pre-nup made a divorce easier.

It didn't necessarily make it faster.

First came a series of mediations to put the pre-nup into effect. The assets that needed to be divided were divided. Kelly got her new place. Shared property got sold.

Now all of the paperwork just needed to be signed to make it official. Apparently the fastest way to get that done in early December, slotted between holidays, was for Daniel and Kelly to do so at the same time in the same office with the same notary.

"I heard you're seeing someone," Kelly broke the silence in the conference room. They were waiting for their lawyers and the notary to come in. They were promised that it would be soon. Daniel thought it felt like a lifetime already.

"Yeah? Who'd you hear that from?" He asked as if the list wasn't exceedingly short.

"Leni texted me after Thanksgiving. She said you're with some guy who is near her age."

Funny, Daniel thought, Leni hadn't texted him.

"Well, Leni wasn't there so I'm guessing she's just quoting something Kate said," Honestly, Daniel imagined Leni was editorializing because Kate liked Armand too much to be trash talking him behind his back.

"Do whatever you want, Dan, but you're gonna be sixty. It's okay to have some shame."

Daniel knew this was bait.

He was not adept at not taking it.

"Which part am I supposed to have shame about, Kel? Hmm? The guy part or the age part?"

She tilted her head "The part where you started this while we were in the middle of divorce proceedings."

"We both know there was no world where we reconciled," Daniel pointed out. "Just be glad to be rid of me, yeah?"

This divorce was different than when he split from Alice. Kids changed things. Daniel wondered if he would ever see Kelly again after today. Maybe by happenstance. Maybe if she was Leni's new best friend.

Daniel signed the papers. He didn't feel much different. It was just another Tuesday apparently.

"You're sweet to have suggested this, you know?" Kate looped her arm through Armand's. Her other hand was holding Hannah's who was also tethered to her by a leash. Armand was fascinated by the leash as a concept. "And with a migraine on top of it."

Armand had needed a convenient lie when it came to his sunglasses on such an overcast day.

"I wish for him to be happy. We both know how deep his sadness can run," Armand did not think Daniel was running headlong towards a relapse, but Armand did not want him to lose his connections to his mortality what with his marriage over and Armand fully restored to his life. Such a debacle could lead to begging for the Blood again.

Armand wasn't sure he had the strength to refuse nor did he think it wise to turn Daniel as things currently stood.

"It's funny. You talk like you were there back in the day," Kelly shook her had. "Pretty magnanimous of you given the circumstances."

"I will not pretend to have any warm feelings for Kelly," Armand admitted. "Or that I am disappointed with the outcome he now faces, but I know he had high hopes for this marriage once."

It was clear from Kate's thoughts that she thought Armand was terribly naive.

Well, that was a better cover than the truth, perhaps.

Armand's weird relationship with Kate meant that Daniel was somehow much more securely in the fold with Kate and her family than he ever had been before. He knew that was inherently a good thing. They had been trying before Armand. If a charismatic vampire could do what a slew of therapists couldn't do before him, well, great!

Daniel tried not to think about the other shoe that would eventually drop. How long could Armand make everyone believe he was aging naturally? Long enough for Daniel to meet his own mortal end? Even if they stayed together and Armand faked his own death or whatever, it would break Kate's heart.

They were going to have to deal with those logistics eventually.

Daniel let himself remember that eventually didn't have to be right now, standing outside of Macy's in Herald Square.

"Hey," Daniel walked over to Kate, Armand, and Hannah. The store was only a few blocks from the crazy expensive lawyers that had been overseeing the divorce. He hugged Kate and then kissed Armand's cheek.

"I hate when you two are cute with each other," Kate was smirking, though.

It made Armand smile. It all made Daniel feel pretty damn good about himself for a minute which was all the more miraculous for coming on the heels of signing his divorce papers.

"Grandpa Dan!" Hannah bounced on her toes until Daniel (and his less than pleased back) picked her up.

"Hey, kiddo," He wasn't just grandpa. Apparently that was going to be the name reserved for Tom's douchebag father, but at least she was calling him something now. Progress. "You ready to meet Santa."

"Uh huh!" Her eyes lit up. "And then Mom said we can go to the American Girl store so I can make a list in case Santa does get me what I want, which he will because I'm a really good kid."

"And if she keeps saying it, it will definitely be true," Kate laughed, taking Hannah from Daniel and putting her feet back on the ground. "You're welcome to come with us," She glanced at Hannah who was distracted by a horse pulling a handsome cab. "In case you want hints."

"So she's been a good enough kid, then?" Daniel smirked.

"Please," Kate rolled her eyes. "You think I'm crazy enough not to have already bought her gifts on Black Friday?"

"I'm quite fond of the appliance sales on Black Friday," Armand chimed in.

"Let's get inside. I've heard the lines are a nightmare," Kate admitted.

Daniel put an arm around Armand's shoulders as they walked into the massive department store. Armand quite happily looped his arm around Daniel's waist. It reminded him of Paris in the 70s, the moments when Daniel had felt safe enough to be openly affectionate. Armand wasn't sure if it was the times that had changed now or Daniel, but Armand was pleased with it all the same.

"Hey, Katie, I do have one question," Daniel asked as they got on the first escalator. It was going to take seven to get to Santa. Fuck Capitalism, man.

"Mm?

"Since when are Leni and Kelly texting buddies?"

"Dad…"

Armand tilted his head, pretending as though he wasn't listening at all, as he zeroed in on what Kate was thinking.

Since I decided I like Armand, and she needed to bitch at someone. Her mom won't let her and I wasn't bitchy enough.

"I was just a little blindsided at the whole divorce paper signing that she had a bunch of details from Thanksgiving," Daniel shrugged.

She is trying to spare my feelings, beloved. Let her. It's good for us.

Good for us?

It is generally a boon when people think I'm a tiny little thing who is too pure for the world.

Yeah, you're neither of those things.

Hush.

"I'll tell Leni that Kelly told you," Kate offered as she unhooked Hannah's leash at the top of the escalator letting the little girl run into the incredibly long line to see Santa. "I don't think she planned for that."

"I don't think she'll be all that disappointed about it either," Daniel sighed as they settled into the line.

Armand was quiet, leaning against the wall and taking a quick little tour of Daniel's short-term memory to see what exactly Kelly had said.

"Do whatever you want, Dan, but you're gonna be sixty. It's okay to have some shame."

Armand told himself he did not care for the petty squabbles of divorcing mortals. Kelly was nothing in comparison to him. He was going to do everything in his power from here on out to ensure that he lived in a world where Daniel chose him - every time, no matter what.

But a tiny shard deep inside of Armand was still Amadeo, and Amadeo had heard others whisper about shame (and the lack thereof) for such a long time.

It was not always said so plainly, but the meaning was there.

Mael, the first vampire that Armand had ever met besides his Maker, had warned Marius on more than one occasion that he invited danger in keeping Amadeo so close. He had told him that he lived amongst mortals and Amadeo was very young.

Marius had brushed such concern off, of course, but it was there, the thought that Amadeo was something to be ashamed of.

Bianca had said quite similar things about Marius' house full of boys.

And, yes, Armand knew they were faulting Marius, but it was impossible not think Amadeo shared the guilt and shame of it all. If he had not tempted Marius so…

Did he tempt Daniel now?

Practically, he knew that he did. He believed it was mutual admiration all the same. He tempted Daniel. Daniel tempted him. It was desire, surely. There was nothing wrong with the love that existed between them. Armand silenced the internal voice that reminded him how frequently he had said that about Marius.

Armand knew Daniel was an adult. He knew he was old, and if anyone were robbing a proverbial cradle, it wasn't Daniel. His only fear was the possibility that there was something inately wrong with him that Daniel would soon see. The arm currently slung over his shoulders was nothing like those that had held him in Venice. Yet the fear lingered…

For the moment, it was quite clear that Daniel's thoughts were far more amused about the situation than put out. If Armand was concerned Daniel would care about optics, he did not. His boy had rarely been lacking in self-esteem. Peering into his mind, Daniel had only one reaction to her comment: eat your heart out. Danny Boy Molloy's still got it.

"Beloved?" Armand spoke in a hushed tone.

"Yeah?"

"If you should ever consider referring to yourself aloud as Danny Boy Molloy, I may need to excise that nickname from your brain."

Daniel laughed. He glanced ahead of them at the very long line of kids and parents.

"Stay out of my head, babe, or you might start something you can't finish."

"Never," Armand did smile at that. Daniel was his and he was Daniel's. That made it unlike anyone that had come before in and of itself.

This whole little excursion had been Armand's idea, which Daniel realized was weird. Of all the shit, he had on his bingo card for his life, it didn't include your vampire boyfriend works overtime to ensure you have a relationship with your daughter. Armand had made it clear that his friendship with Kate was just that and something that Armand needed for whatever reason, but it also seemed clear he was invested in Daniel being, well, a mortal.

Daniel was a little peeved by the fucking line. It was bullshit that you had to register for a spot on a specific day at a specific entry time and yet, it was just a giant fucking line. And for what? Because once upon a time, they made a movie where the fake Santa at Macy's on 34th Street was really Santa?

Hannah still seemed excited. Daniel wasn't sure how long her attention span was apt to last, but so far so good.

For his part, Daniel took to leaning against the wall. He took out his phone, still thinking about Kelly's little dig about Armand. It was whatever. Daniel doubted there was a person on the fucking planet that he could be dating right now that Kelly would be pleased about. That didn't matter. The part that mattered, the part that stung a whole fucking lot was that the information had come from Leni.

It wasn't like Daniel thought shit was good between himself and his youngest. He just hadn't thought it was so bad that Leni was buddying up with her stepmother.

Arguably, on paper, Leni had been a mistake.

Daniel wasn't such an asshole to ever say that outloud, but he had no real business having a kid when she came along. And, yeah, he got the irony of saying that when he had been an active junkie when he had Kate. He was clean when Leni was born. That wasn't the problem.

Daniel had been barely a minute out of rehab when he'd hooked up with Leni's mother. He'd had the good sense not to marry her, and they had coparented okay for a while. But both Leni and her mother had expectations that Alice and Kate had long since lowered. Daniel was good for cash. Leni had everything she wanted. His ability to show up for her was spotty at best, and he never earned any points for doing the bare minimum.

He also knew that Kate thought he liked Leni more than he liked her.

And, well, it was true.

Now, Daniel loved both of his daughters. He would give either of them a kidney. He would (and had) write any number of checks for them. Daniel would stand by the reality that father's loved all of their kids, so, yeah, he loved both of them. He liked Leni. Leni did not like him. That's where they were.

He hesitated before typing the text.

Hey kid. Kelly and I are official kaput. I think you already know that. She told me you and her have been chatting. If you're in town anytime soon, I'd like you to meet Armand.

Maybe he was hoping that would prove something. Prove that Daniel was thinking about her. Prove that he cared about where she was and what she was doing. Prove that Armand was a real thing and important, not some hookup or whatever she told Kelly.

Daniel watched as the three little dots popped up indicating Leni was typing. After a second, they disappeared with no message coming through.

Yeah, well, figured.

Daniel tucked his phone back in his pocket. Suddenly, the line was moving much faster than it should have been. He watched as several parents led kids away. Strangly, none of the kids were melting down or anything.

He glanced over at Armand, whispering low to him.

"Did you Mary Poppins all the other kids away?"

"I don't know what that means."

"Please, you love movies. You love technology. You saw Mary Poppins in a theater somewhere in 1964," Daniel pointed out. "Don't lie."

Armand considered his answer, "I was intrigued by the technology. If I had still been artistic director of a theatre at that point, I would have liked to replicate much of it."

"Uh huh," Daniel smirked. "And the kids?"

"Urged them to return slightly later," He shrugged. "You were getting restless. It seemed wise to keep things moving before you let it show."

Daniel laughed, "I ever tell you that you're far better at managing me than any of my previous exes?"

"I am well aware," He smiled in return.

At least it meant that Hannah got to sit on Santa's lap and Kate got her dream photo to stick in a frame. It was a win and wins were good.

Armand was a capitalist above all else. It had grated on Daniel in his youth. Armand imagined Daniel would still wish to have any number of fights about that now save for the fact that he too had sizable assets these days. Armand was not ashamed of his preferences. He had lived in much different times. There were worse alternatives to capitalism.

Perhaps that was why he liked blenders so much.

They were a testament to automation of tasks that Armand could remember taking hours of his time with far greater consistency than his once mortal hands could manage.

The American Girl Store was the opposite of a blender. It served no practical purpose. It made nothing especially easier, but it was an absolute monument to consumerism.

What a world to live in where children could buy extremely expensive, if quite intricate and historically accurate, dolls and accessories and then eat with said dolls in a cafe where food was bought for the inanimate doll with actual money.

Amadeo would not have been able to understand such leisure. He had found the excesses of the Renaissance magnificent. He would not know what to make of such a thing.

"I'm guessing there aren't a lot of firsts I get to introduce you to," Daniel smirked. "But Louis sure as shit never took you to a fucking doll store."

Armand glanced away from a display to Daniel.

"It is quite an endeavor," Armand smirked. "The craftsmanship is rather inspired. I am no expert on American culture prior to 1961, if I am being honest, but they seem quite historically accurate."

"Why am I not surprised the King of Pearl Parties is also enamored of American Girl dolls?" Daniel teased. "Should I buy you one? Maybe a custom deal - Venetian Renaissance?"

"Very funny, beloved," He motioned to Kate and Hannah. "I am making a mental list of items we should purchase."

"The Mind Gift comes in handy for a change."

"The Mind Gift always comes in handy, beloved," He rolled his eyes.

Daylight Savings Time was a blessing to those disinclined to be in the sun. By the time, Kate and Hannah were safely deposited at Grand Central Station, the sun had dipped low behind the tall buildings in the city.

"Shall we get dinner before we head home?" Armand suggested. He did enjoy treating his boy to a night on the town as it were.

"I'm getting close to my limit on Manhattan. Let's just hit up Bryant Park and I'll grab something at a street vendor."

Daniel grabbed a hot dog, a cup of coffee, and one of those bags of hot nuts that somehow was only a thing near Christmas. His cardiologist would probably bitch at him for the lack of a vegetable and the amount of salt.

Oh well.

He and Armand settled near the ice rink, Daniel using the ledge of the rink as a makeshift table.

Armand watched the tourists as they glided past.

"You ever learn to ice skate?"

"No," Armand confessed. "That is an experience that has alluded me. I am not sure I am meant to have giant knives strapped to my feet."

Daniel laughed, "Guess there wasn't a lot of ice skating during the Venetian Renaissance."

"I did befriend an English Lord for a time. He did speak of the great rivers freezing and the wealthy putting sharpened cattle bones on their shoes to dance on the ice," Armand watched the people skating past. "It sounded quite romantic at the time. I imagined the canals in Venice freezing."

He imagined his master and himself gliding on the delicate surface. It had been a lovely dream.

"Is that an invitation for me to teach you?"

"I think I am too old to learn this particular new trick, beloved," Armand smirked. "We would make quite the pair out there, I'm sure."

"Oh, you mean the part where everyone thinks I'm a cradle robber and you're a golddigger?" Daniel raised an eyebrow. Armand looked mildly scandalized that Daniel was aware of such thoughts. "Babe, I don't have to have psychic vampire powers to know the optics. But fuck 'em. I'll gladly have a dick measuring contest with anyone who would say that to my face."

"Probably literally knowing you," Armand paused. "It does not matter?"

"Not to me," Daniel shrugged. "If they think I'm hot shit for getting you, good for them. Not giving a shit about what other people think served me well for this long."

It was unusual for Armand to not think of the optics of a situation, but he did like that Daniel was not especially fussed by the world's interpretation of them.

"I certainly wouldn't let it stop me from teaching you to skate if you wanted to learn."

"I do not."

"Well, fair enough, then," Daniel finished his hot dog and tossed the wrapped in a trash. He took a few sips of his coffee before reaching for Armand's hands. "You should be wearing gloves. It's cold. Your hands are freezing."

"You know they aren't cold because of the windchill," Armand reminded him even as Daniel held his hands. "That won't work either."

"Shut up and let me hold your hands," Daniel rolled his eyes. "It's been nice having you here like this. It's kind of fucking normal, ya know? Hannah loves you. Wouldn've have imagined that. You and kids. What's that about anyhow?"

Armand looked mildly horrified, almost pulling his hands away. "It's nothing untoward if that's what you're about to suggest."

"Hey, I definitely didn't think that," Daniel wasn't shocked that Armand might think he thought that.

Abused kids often became abusers, and Daniel and Armand were only just starting to communicate somewhat appropriately. It wasn't like accusations of who thought what about who was very far from where they stood right not. Daniel had said a lot of shit to Armand since their reunion and probably deserved Armand's mix of fear and anger at a seeming slight, but that was not what Daniel thought here at all.

"I just meant…you're good with kids," Daniel tried again, gently, still holding Armand's hands in his. "I had kids and wasn't good with kids."

Armand considered that. He considered the value in telling Daniel the truth. He knew it wasn't really a best practice to weigh the benefits and consequences of telling the truth before simply doing it, but for the moment, it was a net positive.

"Marius had a large studio," Armand explained. "Some of the boys were quite young. Newly removed from their parents or orphans who had litte affection. They didn't all share my origins per se where they had learned…well, what I had learned. They needed kindness."

So they didn't all come from brothels, Daniel filled in mentally. They weren't all slaves. They didn't all learn how to behave to ensure they were fed and clothed and cared for. Daniel was inclined to assume they weren't all expected to let padrone fuck them either, but he kept his mouth shut. This wasn't about him. He let another beat pass waiting for Armand to continue.

"Before that, in a time I can barely remember, I think I had siblings," Armand confessed. "An older brother. A younger sister. It blurs. What little research I've done…it would be quite odd if I were my parents' only child, especially given my fate. One child is a mouth to feet, but also hands to work. A boy no less. My father's legacy…There is value there unless I was not the only son and not a daughter. What price could they get for me..."

Armand cleared his throat not wanting to linger on those thoughts. "Then there was Riccardo, of course."

Armand fell silent then. His eyes went distant. The broad strokes of Riccardo had come up before. There was no need to dwell on that.

Daniel cupped his cheek, "Well, I think you might technically have a grandkid now."

Armand laughed softly, "I would have liked a mortal life with you. You mentioned the optics. I do wonder if I were mortal now if we would be as we are. I don't simply mean because of the unlikelihood we would be ourselves, but…I was catamite in the only mortal life I had. If my past were the same but in these times and I was mortal, I do not know that it would look so very pretty from the outside."

"Well, like said, fuck 'em," Daniel didn't give a shit what anyone thought even in this vague hypothetical. "I'm gonna go on record right here and right now: if what happened to you then had happened to you in some other version of now, I'd see it all the same way I see it now."

"Those are nice words to say," It was clear Armand had doubts.

Daniel didn't want to do this. There were wounds and fears that were not so easily plastered over. For the moment, he was just aiming not to fuck it all up.

"I'm gonna focus on just one fucking part of this hypothetical."

"Yes?"

"I'm imagining you going grey like me. It'd probably be hot, but I like what we got."

"Yes."

Daniel downed the rest of his coffee.

"C'mon, let's go home."

Apparently Daniel co-owned a house in Westport now.

By house, he meant McMansion.

In fucking Westport.

Daniel wasn't an idiot. He was a hypocrite in a lot of ways. He still wanted to be the bright young reporter with a point of view who barely had a dime to his name. His 401(k) would beg to differ with any bonafides about being a poor, salt of the Earth writer anymore. Not that he wasn't still pro-eating the rich. He just also knew he was sort of…the rich.

And Armand was definitely the rich.

"There are six bedrooms," Armand offered as he let Daniel inside. "It should be more than enough. Each bedroom has a full bath. There are an additional two fulls baths and three half baths."

"Do I wanna know what you paid for this place?"

Armand smiled, "Knowing you as I do, you certainly do not."

Daniel rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"There is an outdoor pool and hot tub, but I spoke to Kate and she agreed that the indoor facilities should be more than enough."

"Glad to know she's got a good head on her shoulders," Daniel smirked. "An indoor pool?"

"And hot tub," Armand reached for Daniel tugging him close. "And very far from the bedrooms where we would certainly not be bothered."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Armand smiled before taking advantage of the moment to kiss Daniel.

Armand enjoyed the opportunity to show off for Daniel. He knew such things meant little to Daniel in some ways, but Armand remembered what it had meant to impress Daniel when he was young. Armand wanted to believe he could still do that to Daniel, still be something worth his admiration.

"Fucking hell," Daniel muttered as they rounded a corner in the basement. "That's a fucking bowling alley. There is a bowling alley in this place. When the fuck did you bowl?"

"It was already installed when I purchased it. Same for the tennis courts and basketball court outside," Armand shrugged.

"And the indoor and outdoor pool?"

"I only put in the entertainment room. You know how I feel about films."

"How many copies of Blade Runner do you have?"

"Several including the laserdisc release which we all know is the superior format."

"Motherfucker…"

"You like it, though, yes?" Armand smiled. He did think from the edges of Daniel's thoughts that he did (while also planning to make Armand make some kind of charitable donation to offset the extravagance of it).

"It's pretty fucking great," Daniel conceded. "And, hey, I bowled a lot in the 90s. Maybe I'll take it up again."

Armand grinned as Daniel wandered around looking out the large windows. A moment later, he was distracted by his phone vibrating. He looked at it and frowned before answering.

"What do you want? We agreed to handling things through intermediaries. No…no…We agreed. I want the Sausalito house."

Daniel turned back to face Armand, coming to stand in front of him.

"Hang up," He recommended, but Armand waved him away. It only earned an eye roll from Daniel.

"It is the only thing I want and that is why you wish to have it," Armand snapped. "Let us not pretend that I don't know where more than enough bodies are buried to make all of this far less pleasant for you, Louis. This is because Lestat is back in your ear guiding you towards your worst decisions. I will not. No. Absolutely not. No. I…"

Armand growled - actually fucking growled, Daniel noted, - before taking the phone from his ear.

"He hung up on you, huh?"

"Yes," Armand's fangs were on full display.

"You wanna hug or wanna go break something? There's at least one vase we passed on the way in that I could do without."

Armand just stood there. Daniel decided if he hadn't psychically broken any shit, a hug was probably okay (if not preferred). He managed to give him a tight squeeze even though Armand still didn't move. Daniel got it. He'd been there before when he and Alice split.

"You wanna tell me what it is about some house in Sausalito that you decided it should be the hill you die on with Louis?"

Armand was silent. For a moment, he looked like it might literally hurt him to say out loud why he wanted it. Daniel had a feeling that was because he thought Daniel wouldn't like the answer.

"It's the closest property I still possess near where we met," Armand admitted. "I know you are unlikely to have romantic thoughts about those five…"

"Six," Daniel corrected.

"Six days, but I would not have had you if not for San Francisco. It is near the places we went together in the aftermath."

"Sure," Daniel did think it was a little weird, but it was romantic in a fucked up way, which was very on brand for them. "I've never been there, you know that, right?"

"I am aware."

"And you're also aware that we could just…get another place in Sausalito?" Daniel added. "Or literally anywhere. Somewhere that actually mattered more to us. Go back to Florida or…I don't know…fucking Pompeii."

"I do not think we can buy property in Pompeii that would be fitting."

"You know what I mean," Daniel rolled his eyes. "Plus, we're literally standing in a fucking mansion with a bowling alley in it. Louis ever live here?"

"No."

"Then we got our place," Daniel shrugged. "And the apartment and whatever creepy abandoned malls are left on Night Island. Let him have it."

Armand's jaw twitched a little, "It was mine. It wasn't his. He acts as though it was all his. It wasn't. It was mine, too."

Daniel sighed. Well, there it was.

He reached for Armand, tugging him close.

"Tell me about it. Divorce blows, babe," He grinned. "Let's go bowl. You can pretend the pins are Louis. Or Lestat. Whichever makes you feel better."

It was weird watching Armand engage in the world sometimes.

Similarly to watching old tv shows and hearing Armand talk about the state of the world and his life when some random episode of I Love Lucy aired or some movie came out, it was weird to realize that vampires didn't just sort of live in dark mansions and sit in shadows for eternity. Of course, Daniel had experienced it first hand, but that didn't mean there weren't still plenty of moments where he was like well, damn, Armand knows how to bowl.

"You're doing that with your powers," Daniel grumbled as he wrote down Armand's latest score. "I'm giving you some kind of vampire handicap."

"I rather thought I had explained many times that not everything I do involves utilizing my powers. You are simply being a sore loser as they say," Armand looked sufficiently smug.

"Maybe I thought I had to let you win because you were having a bad day," Daniel walked up, ready to take his next shot.

"By all means, show me how you are letting me win, beloved."

Daniel grumbled again as he picked up his ball. He did manage to knock some pins down. It just wasn't the precise power move that Armand was capable of (which Daniel was still very sure involved vampire reflexes at a minimum).

"May I?" Armand asked handing Daniel a ball for his second shot. "Just a few tips."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Daniel took the ball and turned to face the alley once more. Armand stood behind him. He was pressed up against Daniel's back, his hand covering Daniel's as they effectively both held the ball. "Get on with it or I'll think you were just trying to get handsy."

"I rarely have to work this hard to get handsy," Armand smirked, but made a point of nipping at Daniel's ear. "Not that I would be opposed to stopping, of course."

"Stop distracting me," Daniel turned his head, but it was clear he was perfectly happy to be distracted. Armand positioned his lips right beside Daniel's ear.

"Aim for the space between the first and third pins," Armand instructed. "Follow that target arrow and curve just the tiniest bit before letting go."

With every fiber of his being, Daniel wanted to ignore his advice just on fucking principle, but in the end, he tried it and of course, it worked.

"And how'd you learn to do that?"

Armand moved away from Daniel, "Louis and I returned to the US in 1954. Automatic pinsetters were a new technology. I was fascinated and there were…there were moments when it was best I occupy myself."

"Have I mentioned in the last hour how fucking shitty your marriage was?" Daniel gave Armand a sympathetic look. "I know it was probably both of your faults - Lord knows mine were - but man…you make me and Alice look almost functioning."

"I do not know if I would go that far."

"Well, I guess I owe Louis a thank you or some bullshit," Daniel reached for Armand's hand tugging him close again. "I actually made the spare."

"Bravo, beloved," Armand teased, stealing a kiss. "You will just need to repeat it in every frame now in order to stand a chance of beating me."

"I mean, I'm sure I can serve as a distraction at a minimum. Do what you did," Daniel turned Armand around his arms still around his waist. "Whisper in your ear while you're trying to bowl."

"I think you overestimate how committed I am to the game when you hold me as such," Armand laughed. "It is you that I will always want more than anything else even beating you here, which I would do if we continued."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Armand did use his vampire reflexes then, spinning around and lifting Daniel into his arms, bridal-style.

"This is humiliating."

"I'm quite fond of it," Armand grinned. "I will have to carry you over the threshold should we buy a new place together."

"Put me down or I'll call it all off."

Armand chuckled. He kissed his cheek.

"Very well," He put Daniel back on his feet. He stepped back towards the alley to take his final turn.

Daniel walked over to the score table picking up his phone. He frowned looking down at it.

"Shit…"

"What is it?" Armand was still laughing as he turned around to look at Daniel. His smile faltered a little when he saw Daniel's grim expression. "Beloved?"

"Um," Daniel rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "It's Kate. Leni's coming for Christmas."

"Oh," Armand didn't think that was nearly as dire. "Well, we shall charm Lenora as I have done with Katherine. There really is no reason to worry. We will give her the best room and…"

"So's Alice."

Armand would have found suddenly waking up on his own funeral pyre less unpleasant than that revelation.

Chapter Text

Chapter Seven: Haul Out the Holly

Lenora Molloy thought her sister was stupid.

That wasn't a very nice thing to say, but it was kind of a fact.

Scratch that, it was totally, completely a fact.

If it helped, Leni was pretty sure Kate thought she was a shrill, ice queen most of the time so it wasn't like anyone was a saint in this equation. Leni would also be perfectly clear that thinking Kate was stupid had absolutely nothing to do with intelligence. Kate was an intelligent woman.

She just used her intelligence for stupid fucking shit.

Like pearl-based MLMs.

God, Leni wished she wasn't somehow included on every Facebook Live invite and text message chain.

She wasn't such a bitch to publicly call out her sister's participation in a horrifically predatory process. Maybe she deserved a pat on the back for that one. But she sure as hell didn't need to be included either.

Her relationship with Kate had always been sort of weird. She was her sister. Daniel had made a point of seeing them on the same weekends to try to make them be sisters and because it was way easier to pack all his fatherhood requirements into one weekend instead of two. It worked in a way. She knew Kate pretty well. Kate knew her pretty well. But they were also just different people in a way that actual siblings probably wouldn't be.

They only had one thing in common - Daniel Molloy.

They had different mothers who didn't even know one another aside from what Leni assumed was a few terse conversations here and there, and they'd had different lives. Sure, Leni kind of felt bad for bitching about Daniel when she knew Kate had it worse, but sometimes she just wanted to be able to bitch about Daniel. The fact that he didn't bother to call her a million times fucking sucked. Not showing up at her Sweet Sixteen? Fucking sucked. Paying for college but missing graduation? Fucking sucked. But you didn't get a moral high ground to stand on and bitch about your absentee father when your half sister could throw out fun factoids like well, if you think that's bad, we had to take him to get his stomach pumped on my 8th birthday or he passed out and shit his pants at my grandmother's funeral.

Yeah, those things were worse.

But the worst part right now - right this fucking second - was that Kate whose childhood had been a fucking shit show was palling around with the twink Daniel was currently fucking like he was her best goddamn friend.

That was not how Thanksgiving was supposed to go down.

The post-holiday conversation had gone something like this:

Leni, Armand is very sweet and nice and loaded.

Sweet, nice, loaded guys don't date our train wreck of a father.

Kate hadn't wanted to hear it. Leni had vented to Kelly, which also sucked. It wasn't like she had any love lost for her. And - what a shock! - it got back to Daniel.

No one could be trusted apparently.

Then she actually saw the guy.

He was apparently involved in Kate's pyramid scheme, which - the reddest flag of them all.

Then one of those please join my Facebook Live. I'm oh so desperate and sad invites just so happened to mention extra special guest star Armand.

And, well…

Leni cleared her calendar real fast.

The guy was weird.

He was really weird.

Really, really, really weird.

And Leni was making her living as a music journalist. She knew a fair number of weirdos. A lot of them were harmless. She was convinced this guy wasn't.

Best case scenario, Armand was some kind of goth, theater kid.

He looked weird and maybe that was a bullshit thing to say out loud, but Leni was just thinking it and she fully stopped herself from writing anything in a comment. He had fucking acrylic nails. Leni was pretty sure he was wearing weird colored contact lenses. He was charming - and okay, she could see why her dad would go for a hot guy who was also charming. She had eyes. She got it.

He also looked extremely young.

Maybe it was just a filter on the camera. Kate also looked especially dewy in whatever lighting setup she had to scam people out of their money.

There was a moment, however, where his eyes very much looked like they were shaking. It was fucking weird. Maybe it was just the contacts slipping in a weird way. Or maybe Daniel's new boyfriend was a tweaker of some sort and Daniel was about to fall right off a sobriety cliff.

Whatever it was, it reinforced that the whole thing was fucking weird.

So here they were.

She was going to family Christmas to save her dad and her sister from themselves.

It wasn't like she planned to skip Christmas entirely beforehand. She would have at least Facetimed with Kate and her father. She would absolutely have done that just like she was still totally going to respond to Daniel's text about Kelly narcing on her.

But after watching that fucking travesty, she needed to see this motherfucker in person. Maybe her dad would even thank her for making sure he didn't get scammed by some loser. Maybe he and Kate would actually see that she wasn't just some pain in their ass, that she actually knew what she was doing and what she was talking about.

Maybe Daniel would give a shit about her like he clearly gave a shit about Kate and her family.

When everything was normal again and they'd figured out they'd been fucking morons, she'd come clean about her original Christmas plans.

Christmas had never really been a thing for Daniel.

He liked it fine, especially when he was a kid. When he'd gotten clean, he had also managed to make sure that he showed up where and when he was told to most of the time.

Still the whole idea of a big family Christmas felt more like a premise from an 80s movie than something he envisioned himself doing.

It made sense to set up shop in Westport through Christmas. While it was commutable from Brooklyn, the house did need a little work to feel lived in. Armand also kept getting this look in his eye about decorating. It was silly to commute back and forth when they didn't have to. Daniel had already carved out a space for an office in the fucking mansion. He really couldn't complain.

Armand seemed happy.

He certainly seemed to be making himself comfortable even if that fact was leaving Daniel a teeny tiny bit baffled.

Vampire physiology was still kind of a mystery to Daniel. He had a feeling that it was kind of a mystery to Armand. Like he'd told Daniel early on in their reunion, he didn't think he was cold blooded. He was a corpse. That was a fact. Daniel realized that whatever bullshit makers told fledglings, it probably didn't include a deep dive on the biology of all of it. Questions of how hot, cold or otherwise Armand naturally felt he was versus how warm or cold he could get via outside means was up for debate.

What Daniel did know was that amidst all the silk button up shirts and designer coats Armand had moved into his closest, Armand also had a whole bunch of sweaters.

Long story short, apparently Armand owned a cable-knit sweater.

And, sure, it was probably a super expensive one, but it still felt mildly baffling that some of Armand's clothes were just clothes and not what you assumed a fancy vampire would wear.

"You think I am fancy, beloved?"

"You in my head?"

"I don't have to be in your head when you are shouting your thoughts so loudly," Armand grinned, pleased with himself. "Do you not like my clothes?"

"It's not about liking them. I think I'm just in some kind of vampire culture shock."

"Explain."

Daniel just sort of shrugged at first, but he could tell from the look on Armand's face that Daniel had opened this can of worms and couldn't just brush the whole thing off.

"Vampires wearing normal boring clothes," Daniel offered. "You not looking like something that came out of a designer's wet dream or a goth's teenage fanfiction, looking all spooky and mysterious."

Armand tilted his head.

"I wore denim on denim more than once in the 70s in your presence. That was neither spooky nor mysterious. I may be a vampire but I am no more knowledgable on what trends will age well or poorly than you are," Armand pointed out. "I did occasionally wear a black cape, but I assure you only when such things were the fashion."

"You gotta stop pretending anyone ever really thought that denim on denim was the fashion," Daniel smirked. Armand threw a pillow out him. It was earned.

"Lies," Armand rolled his eyes. "Is something troubling you? We are meant to be improving our communication."

"No, no," Daniel brushed it off. "Troubling is way too serious a word."

"What then?"

"Just thinking."

"I believe this is the moment where I repeat asking you about what, but perhaps you could simply tell me so that I do not begin to spiral."

And, okay, Armand actually was doing better at communicating.

Well, damn.

"Is this you making yourself fit in some perfect mortal world with my kid and some part of my life just like the whole learning to show your ankles to Marius?"

"I've owned this sweater for ten years," Armand offered. "I did not buy a brand new wardrobe when we moved here or when I came to you. I did not do any of this for you."

"Okay," Daniel nodded.

"You are unconvinced," Armand tilted his head. "Or you have some other concern?"

Daniel hesitated because the reality was that things were great. He was happy. He was excited. Things were way better than they had ever been with Kelly. Things were even better than they were with Alice most of the time.

Maybe it was low self-esteem. Maybe it was less low self-esteem and more a penchant for self-sabotage.

"The sex has been fantastic."

"Yes," Armand nodded.

"It's also been…" He paused again. "Did we ever have missionary sex back in the day?"

Armand frowned, "I did not keep a list, beloved."

Daniel sighed, "I just mean…I don't know…once upon a time you used to like watching me fuck people and get fucked while you sat in your special little chair."

"You always looked very beautiful from every vantage point," Armand agreed. "I don't know what this has to do with my sweater?"

"We're not doing that now."

Was the spark going out this fucking fast? Was that how it worked for vampires?

"We are not," Armand repeated. He was quiet a second. His mind needed the time to catch up to what Daniel's concerns were exactly. "I didn't love you then, beloved, not as I do now. I could not share you so easily today, and I do not find that I wish to so I had not thought to suggest it. I did not realize that you were thinking of such things. I do stay out of your mind from time to time."

"So…" Daniel considered his next words. "It's not because I got old."

"Do you think escorts and prostitutes would discriminate? If you wished to do it, we could discuss it."

"It's not the escorts and prostitutes I'm thinking about."

"Beloved," Armand looked somewhere between annoyed and concerned. "If I have not been amorous enough, it has nothing to do with your age or appearance," Armand was very certain of that.

"It's just we're a lot more…vanilla than I remember 1977 being."

Armand did get a wistful smile at that.

"1977 was…fascinating," He agreed. "I would not suggest either of us or our love was very healthy in those moments, though. I like what we have now. I like looking in your eyes while I fuck you and vice versa."

"And you didn't trade life in a fancy penthouse with what I imagine were a lot of sex toys and whips for a life in the 'burbs?" Daniel paused getting to perhaps his biggest concern. "You're not trying to be what you think I want you to be?"

Armand sighed. That was definitely more annoyance than concern.

"We have discussed this. I like living a life. I was trying very hard to live one with Louis. It was a fiction, but it had its comforts and its fun. With you, it feels like it could be real and still come complete with comforts and fun. It is as I told you - I would have liked to live a mortal life with you."

"Just to be totally clear - you're the old man in the relationship?"

"Always, lover," Armand grinned. "Always. Now, if you would like to fuck a pretty stranger, male or female, while I watch, I could surely arrange it, but perhaps after your family has departed. If we stain any of the duvets, we will need to go to Pottery Barn again, and I was really hoping we were finished with basic furnishings."

"I was really hoping we were finished the first time we went to Pottery Barn. The third was more than enough."

"It is not my fault that I disliked the thread count on the sheets."

The truth was they didn't have time for another Pottery Barn trip. Daniel was pretty sure Armand had other plans for shopping that needed to be done.

Armand liked to feed Daniel.

Not in a weird way, Daniel would be quick to point out. In a normal, sort of vaguely housewife like way. He rarely if ever cooked. The number of blenders he liked to experiment with had little to do with food being prepared. But he had great taste in eying a catering menu and making choices. It was all the more impressive since Daniel was well aware that he had never tasted a tomato, potato, or piece of corn before he had vampire tastebuds.

"Do you think this food would be received well at Christmas?" Armand had ordered a sampling of dishes from a local restaurant he was considering to serve as their Christmas caterers.

"Yeah," Daniel said around a mouthful of food. "It's good."

"Yes, but imagine how people who didn't drench their tastebuds in cigarettes and liquor over the years might describe it," Armand clearly wanted more detail.

Daniel just sort of glared at him, "They would also think it was good. Also, you smoke like a chimney."

"And mortal food tastes of sawdust to me. Shall I rest my case?"

Daniel chuckled, "Sure."

It was actually really good. Daniel was pretty sure if the caterers rolled up with food they just had to pop in the oven to reheat, it would go over extremely well with his family. He wasn't really sure how to convince Armand of that who took a bite of a green bean and looked more perplexed than convinced.

"You know what this whole spread makes me think of?"

"Hmm?" Armand sat the fork he had used to spear the green bean down. He leaned forward on the table with his arms folded.

"Boston."

"The Copley?"

"No, the other time we went to Boston and you stuffed me full of fancy food."

"Very funny," Armand smiled warmly. "You were so angry. You also were still wondering if I would kill you. I had long realized I could never. You were already my beautiful boy."

"Eh, I got a feeling your glasses are the tiniest bit rose colored there, babe. Love you madly, but I was an asshole and easily could have pissed you off enough to be a snack."

"Think of all I would have missed of that sharp tongue."

"Few other things I do decently well with my tongue," Daniel smirked.

"Charming," Armand was pleased that Daniel was increasingly sexual again after their heart to heart. It made him feel as if their relationship was on steady footing even if they had only a few truly intimate encounters as of late. Armand did not desire sex like some maniac - despite what past paramours may have tried to suggest - but he certainly enjoyed it and he did think it mattered that Daniel enjoyed it based on their previous discussion of age and sexuality.

"I, um, I was actually thinking," Daniel sat his own fork down. "Why don't we go up to Boston for New Year's? Revisit an old haunt or two? Maybe crash hard after being put through the ringer of a family fun Christmas?"

"I'll book us a suite."

"How about something that's not super fancy, and it'll be my treat?"

"If you wish," Armand nodded.

Nostalgia could be a tricky thing. Armand did think the trip sounded lovely and romantic. Their memories of Boston were happy ones, among some of the very best of those years. But he did worry that the nostalgia might be brought on by regret or uncertainty. Did Daniel wish to relive the past because he was discontented with the present? Armand pushed the thought away for now, but he knew it would linger.

"Are we in agreement on the caterers?" Armand stood beginning to clear plates away. Daniel nodded wiping his mouth on a napkin. "Wonderful, then tomorrow we will place the order and then you may accompany me to purchase the rest of the decor."

"I may? What makes you think I have any eye for decor? I wasn't super helpful with the whole sheets, thread count, duvet excursion."

Armand rolled his eyes, "You simply need to sign off on it and assure me that it is appropriately festive."

"You know I never let Alice or Kelly take me decor shopping."

"It is quite lucky then that I am neither of them," Armand smirked.

Daniel was coming to terms with the fact that he was kind of a Stepford Wife.

Okay, that was an exaggeration. If he was going to be reductive and suggest that either he or Armand was a wife in this scenario, Armand was definitely more in keeping with traditional gender role of a wife. But Daniel was a progressive Boomer so he was a) never going to say that out loud and b) aware that Armand was funding their lifestyle in most fucking ways.

Still, Westport might as well have been Stepford.

Technically, it sort of was.

Well, neighboring Wilton was the inspiration for the Stepford Wives. Daniel didn't think 10 minutes up the road made a big difference when it came to vibes.

"Tell me again why we can't or at least aren't hiring people to just do the decor for us?"

"If your daughters or Alice suspect a lack of authenticity, they may doubt our relationship being something of merit," Armand explained. "And I have told you of the Talamasca before. I would not trust that they would not use it as an excuse to invade our home and plant surveillance equipment."

Daniel didn't really give a shit about an agency that wanted to know shit about vampires, but he sure as hell didn't want to be spied on.

"Okay," He sighed. "You realize I'm just going to agree with everything you want."

"I will accept that and find it an appropriate story to tell Katherine and Lenora."

Of all the things Daniel had not known existed in the world, Christmas tree showrooms definitely made the list. Apparently, the store sold camping gear and other seasonal nonsense in the spring and summer, but currently, it was a very fancy showroom of very fancy trees where very fancy people could custom build their ideal synthetic tree. 

Creating an ideal synthetic anything was right up a certain gremlin's alley.

Daniel mostly hung back. He had no real opinion on things like flocking or depth of the greenery. He did know how to make sure that Armand felt that his opinions were being supported.

And, hey, Armand had good fucking taste!

Alice was going to lose her mind when she saw this tree. Everyone was going to be well aware that it wasn't Daniel's doing, but Armand would gain some points in all likelihood.

He watched as Armand made decisions about garlands and ornaments. It was all far classier than what Daniel had grown up with, but it all felt very Armand (and honestly, that made Daniel happy). Armand deserved good things.

"And lastly, we do have some floral picks and arrays," The attendant led them over to a series of shelves. "The poinsettias are perhaps the most popular, the traditional option, but we also see more and more folks choosing the magnolia flowers."

"Magnolia flowers?" Armand looked up at that. "Let us look at those."

"Of course," The attendant nodded. "Here, we have several size and color options. With your other choices the red or burgundy would likely look best, but we also have champagne, ivory, and ice blue."

"Hmm…" Armand looked pensively at the options. Daniel walked over to stand beside him sensing a slight shift. The attendant had the good sense to walk away for a moment. She wasn't going to blow a sale when he might be thinking about splashing out on super expensive flowers.

"You like 'em?"

Armand considered it. He was rubbing the thumb and forefinger of one hand together. Daniel knew that was a preferred nervous tick of his.

"Yes, I…" Armand lifted his head to look at Daniel. "I had a magnolia tree. I had been growing it from various clippings for the better part of a century. I suppose it is Louis who has it now."

Daniel had lost things in his divorce, especially his divorce from Alice. Sometimes they were quite literally things. He got it. He put an arm around Armand, giving his shoulder a squeeze.

"Well, I have no fucking clue how all this shit is going on that tree, but we should go with the magnolia flowers. Champagne, maybe?" He motioned to the flowers.

"You mean red, yes?" Armand's expression shifted to slightly more amused, slightly mischievous.

"Yeah, babe, I said champagne, but I meant red. Must be old age," He rolled his eyes. "Get the red."

They headed back to the house with two trees - a large and small for separate places in the house - a shitload of ornaments and tabletop decorations, something called a swag, and a bunch of garlands that looked like an absolute bitch to loop around bannisters and light fixtures of all things.

It was very clear that Armand thought it was best that Daniel stay out of the way while he took care of placing all of the decorations and, well, Daniel was pretty good at staying out of the way in these kinds of situations.

Besides he thought he might have a mission for the short-term.

He was running low on time to finalize Christmas gifts especially for Armand. Having him distracted for a hot minute would at least help him get some stuff done without Armand reading his mind and knowing what he was up to.

There was at least one gift that was going to take some doing and he didn't need Armand to be freaking out about it until Daniel had gotten it.

Armand thought that the house looked perfect.

It wasn't as if he said those words lightly, but he was not lacking in self-esteem when it came to his interior decorating skills. He had made houses homes for himself and Louis often in spite of Louis (sometimes in spite of himself). He had loved art and aesthetics above all else as long as he could remember. Being allowed to express himself, it was a gift unto itself.

And he knew that Daniel would be nothing but lovely about the choices and let Armand rattle off all the reasons that he had made the choices he had made.

It made it all feel all the more special.

"Beloved?" Armand walked into Daniel's office. "Come, I have much to show you."

"Just two seconds, boss," Daniel typed a few more sentences before looking up. "Okay, I'm all yours."

Armand tilted his head, "Have you started something new? A book?"

"Nah, well, maybe," Daniel wasn't sure. He was doing some light research. He probably needed to start something or else end up back to debating what the fuck to do with memoir. "It's not really anything yet. Just some notes. I only just opened it. I was doing some Christmas shopping for most of the time you were decking the halls."

"What are these notes about?"

"Nothing, it's…" Daniel could lie, but he knew getting cagey would just result in Armand buying one way to ticket into looking directly into Daniel's brain. "Slave trade," He offered. "In Venice. During the Renaissance."

"Please…" Armand shook his head. "We are having such a lovely day, and I want to show you the house."

"Okay, good, we don't have to talk about it. I just…I do want you to know that I…I don't think your parents knew what they meant to do to you."

"What they meant to do to me…" Armand whispered.

"I just mean," Daniel realized there was no good or easy way to do this. "I think they thought they were giving you a chance."

"It does not matter. They are gone. They are dust somewhere," Armand cleared his throat. "And I want to show you the house."

"Okay," Daniel nodded earnestly. He knew when not to push. "Show me everything. Show me what a swag is."

Armand smiled once more, but it didn't quite meet his eyes.

"We must go outside," Armand said. "For the full effect, you must experience it walking in."

He wanted to tell Daniel that there was nothing to be gained from dredging up the distant past, that looking too deep would mean that Daniel saw too much of who Armand had been.

But that would require talking about it at all.

It was much easier to explain what a sconce and a swag were to his beloved than to explain what it meant to be a Venetian slave.

Chapter Text

Chapter Eight: Advent

Daniel really underestimated how much it sucked to miss the last express train out of Grand Central to Westport. He was pretty sure at least three of the stops - Cos Cob, Noroton Heights, and Rowayton - were just not real places. They were just train stations designed to inconvenience him.

Twelve stops.

The train had somehow managed to make twelve stops between Manhattan and Westport.

That was at least seven stops too many.

It would be worth it if he managed to surprise Armand. That was no small feat when Armand could just jump into Daniel's brain and see exactly where he had been and exactly what he had been doing. The good news was that Armand didn't actually snoop around on the regular. He only took a little tour if Daniel was acting weird.

So Daniel just had to act perfectly fucking normal.

He was in the City to see Elaine, his agent.

There was a possible speaking tour in the New Year and a new book he wanted to write.

It was easier to negotiate in person.

Daniel was not at their apartment for an extended period of time waiting for a delivery that never came. He was not picking up packages that had been delivered from the doorman. He was not hiding Armand's gifts in the City.

And, man, he really needed Armand to slip into Westchester to see Kate at least one more time so he could bring the gifts to Westport.

Daniel wondered if maybe one or both of his marriages would have lasted longer if he'd ever tried this damn hard to surprise them with some heartfelt gift-giving.

"Beloved?" Armand's voice was coming from the living room. Daniel slipped off his coat and toed off his shoes before making his way in.

"Honey, I'm home," He leaned over the back of the sofa to kiss Armand's cheek.

"Come, come," Armand gestured for Daniel to hurry up and sit with him. Daniel glanced at the television screen. The Turner Classic Movies logo appeared on screen followed a few moments later by Ben Mankiewicz introducing a film. "You're just in time. It's The Bishop's Wife."

Armand supplied the information before Ben Mankiewicz could. Daniel had gotten used to Armand's affinity for films that were older than Daniel was. Armand also liked most of the output of the 1980s, but Daniel was always pleased for a break from Blade Runner or Time Bandits. Much like watching old tv shows, old movies tended to come with quite a few bits and pieces of memories from Armand.

It was informative even when the movies were boring as hell (which Daniel had learned to never, ever say out loud. Citizen Kane is a masterpiece, Armand, I promise). Daniel had sort of figured out Armand liked some boring shit. That was okay. Daniel didn't mind. Not when his eyes lit up the way they did.

"Yeah?" Daniel sat down. He put an arm around Armand which meant he immediately got a full-on gremlin snuggle, which was very nice, absolutely no complaints.

"Mm, it is a delightful seasonal classic. Have you never seen it?"

"Uh, pretty sure I saw the one with Denzel and Whitney with Kelly at some point."

"A worthwhile if underwhelming facsimile," Armand nodded. He buried his nose against Daniel's shirt for a moment. "You smell like the City and like a myriad of trains."

"I can go shower."

"You'll miss the film."

"Then you're gonna have to deal with the fact I stink. What happened to the Chipmunks?" When Daniel had left Armand was powering through a marathon block of 80s & 90s Christmas specials.

"Alvin learned the spirit of the season by giving a poor, sick child his gold harmonica. It appeared to cure a terminal illness," Armand explained. "That was hours ago. We have made our way through the entirety of Rankin and Bass's output while you were gone. I am extremely fond of those films. You know, Shirley Booth plays Mrs. Claus in one. She was a revelation in Come Back, Little Sheba," He frowned. "Whatever took you so long? Were the contracts Elaine presented so very intricate?"

"No, that all took about a minute, but I wanted to check on the apartment, make sure the mailbox wasn't overflowing. Add in a shit load of subways and trains - there was a lot of waiting," Daniel shrugged, but he was internally bracing himself. "Hopefully, you aren't getting too comfortable here. I'm too old for the commuter lifestyle once the holidays are over.

Daniel was trying to keep Armand distracted, trying to keep the conversation flowing even as he feared the worst.

This was going to be it.

Armand would pluck the details from his mind and know the truth. Any chance of surprising him would go down the drain.

Thank fuck that Ben Mankiewicz decided to shut his mouth and the film started, thoroughly distracting Armand.

Daniel managed to disentangle himself long enough to order a pizza and go change. The movie was fun, if a little hokey. He wasn't surprised that people still liked it. He was maybe a little surprised to find it was somehow near the top of Armand's holiday film list. Daniel wasn't going to complain that loudly. By the time Cary Grant was magically decorating Loretta Young's Christmas tree (not a euphemism), Daniel was not only full of delicious pizza, but he had Armand's head resting in his lap.

How could he complain about that?

If Daniel didn't know better, he almost would have thought Armand had fallen asleep by the time that the credits rolled and Ben Mankiewicz was back on screen.

Then Mankiewicz said something that made a few details click into place for Daniel.

"The film, released in 1947…"

"1947, huh?" Daniel said softly.

"It did not reach Paris until 1949," Armand responded.

Daniel didn't know everything about Armand's companionship with Louis, but he knew the broad strokes - meet cute in a park in 1945, death of Claudia in 1950.

1949, it didn't mean nothing.

"Did you and Louis see this one together?" It wasn't quite an accusation, but Daniel couldn't hide that he was fishing for whether Armand's current mood was about Louis.

"Louis found films to be low art at the time," Armand rolled his eyes. "Or at least those shown in the cinema were. I went alone."

Things had already been failing. It would be less than a year before it all went to hell.

"Why this movie?" Daniel asked, fingers playing with Armand's hair as he kept his head in Daniel's lap. "You must've seen hundreds. Probably even alone in Paris that year from the sound of it."

"Perhaps I just find Cary Grant rather charming," Armand sat up. He faced Daniel on the sofa, sitting cross-legged. He looked so young when he did that, small even though he wasn't. For some reason, that made Daniel a little sad. He wasn't sure why.

"That where your accent came from? Yours is almost as hard to place," Daniel laughed.

Armand shrugged, "It was time for a change after Paris. I couldn't risk sounding American…"

He pulled a face at that and Daniel took advantage of the moment to tug him closer and steal a kiss.

"Perhaps," Armand sat back, returning to the original question. "I was not so unlike the mortals in Paris, the ones sitting beside me in that cinema. I was ready for an escape. It was magical."

He paused there. Daniel didn't speak knowing that giving Armand some time to cook was usually the right thing to do.

"The war - both wars - had been exhausting," He admitted. The coven was well protected, though bombs inevitably bring fire, and we could never be sure how safe our days might be, especially the few young ones amongst us where sleep was nearly impossible to avoid. Someone coming to burn the safety of my home to the ground was not a memory I had buried as well as I had thought. I slept little in those years. It was wonderful when the world began to wake up, brand new once more. Sometimes I wonder if that was why I felt such a tremendous pull to Louis…"

Armand trailed off. Daniel sort of wondered if that was the case. Nothing against Louis. He seemed like a bad fucking match for Armand, but Daniel remembered enough of the interview to know he wasn't the worst guy in the world. But Daniel hadn't exactly thought he was the most exciting guy he'd ever met - except for the vampire part and that was hardly going to impress Armand.

"Come here," Daniel was a good listener. Maybe that wasn't entirely true. He would frequently interject to call bullshit, but when the time called for it, maybe especially when it was Armand, he knew how to listen. "You know, you still don't sleep enough."

"I don't need it."

"Sure," Daniel wrapped Armand up in his arms.

Armand sunk into the hug. When his body relaxed in these moments, Daniel was very aware of just how much fucking tension he was constantly carrying around.

"I am wary of being confronted with Alice," Armand confessed.

"Babe…"

"It will bring the past so much closer to our present."

"I mean, Marius already gave me a jumpscare. I don't think the past can come much closer just 'cos we spend three days with my ex-wife," Daniel certainly felt the shadow of Marius more sharply than he imagined Armand could possibly feel Alice.

It was true, Armand knew, that Alice was hardly perfect. She had been a junkie once. She had not been, in his estimation, cut out for keeping up with Daniel or for managing him as well as Armand managed him.

But Armand also believed she had been loved by Daniel much in the same way that Louis had loved Lestat or Marius had loved Pandora, once upon a time - better and more fully than anyone could ever love Armand, someone who was loved above all others. Armand could be second. He had tried to make Louis see that, but failed. He feared failing once more. He could be second.

He could not lose Daniel now.

"It is as you said at Ikea when I first arrived. She is your first love, your true love."

"I…don't think that's quite what I said," Daniel chose his words carefully. "It's true. Alice is sort of my white whale of a relationship. I wish I had done it right for a lot of reasons. I wish I could have been the husband and dad and all that other shit that would have signaled something beyond being a good writer. A part of me would have liked it to somehow have still worked out once. But let's be clear - wanting that was always predicated on your absence."

"I wanted you to have those things, too," Armand said softly.

"I know," Daniel nodded. "Frankly, I'm scared, too."

"You are?"

"Uh huh, absolutely scared shitless that the prospect of you two in the same room," Daniel smirked. "I didn't anticipate you and Kate getting on like a house on a fire. I have no fucking clue how I'll survive if you and Alice are buddies."

Armand did laugh at that.

"Besides, I'm sure Leni's gonna last like four minutes before starting in on something. If we're real lucky, Kate and Alice will put all their energy there," Alice might not be Leni's mother, but she would likely want to keep Kate calm and happy by helping to manage Leni. "And it's a giant house. If you gotta go hide somewhere, you go hide somewhere. This is my mess."

Armand thought that he might prefer it to be their mess, but he did not want to push too hard. Instead, he put his head back in Daniel's lap.

"Holiday Inn is on next."

"Wanna take bets on whether they cut the blackface scene or not?" Daniel buried his fingers back in Armand's curls. Armand nodded.

For better or worse, it would all be over in another week.

Kate didn't love confrontation.

That was probably another reason she had always felt like an outsider in her family. The rest of the Molloys thrived on conflict. That didn't just go for Daniel. It was true of Alice and of Leni.

Kate realized that the family Christmas that she and Armand had planned could easily turn into just one giant conflict now that Leni and Alice were both joining them. Technically, Kate was the one who said they ought to come, but they weren't supposed to say yes.

"I'm not going to trash Armand with you," Kate rolled her eyes.

She glared at the arrivals screen as if that would somehow make her mom's plane land so that they could get out of here. The longer they were standing around, the clearer it became that Leni was interested in one thing - putting on her investigative reporter hat to bitch about their dad's boyfriend.

"You sound crazy," She added.

"I do not sound crazy," Leni scoffed. "The one of us running a pyramid scheme —"

"I do not run a pyramid scheme."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say," Now it was Leni's turn to roll her eyes. "I'm not the one doing that with my dad's boyfriend."

"Are you going to be like this for the whole time we're here?"

"Like what?"

Kate sighed, "Like you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I mean not everything has to be an interrogation. You could occasionally trust my opinion. You could not be so much like…like Dad."

Leni folded her arms across her chest, "That's the meanest thing you could have possibly said to me."

Kate smirked, "I know."

She glanced down at her watch then back at arrivals.

Well, at least Alice's plane had landed now.

"Why did you even come? I'll be honest. I wasn't expecting it based on everything Dad had said."

"I forgot you two are spending time together again," Leni huffed. She'd seen pictures on Kate's carefully curated Facebook page.

"Oh, do we wanna talk about who you were chummy with? Do you know how many questions I got about you chit chatting away with Kelly?"

Leni scoffed at that.

"I came 'cos of the twink," She shrugged. "Why else would I come?"

Before Kate could say more on that subject, her mother rounded the corner. She'd never been so happy to see her mother. She even stayed happy as Alice made a less than great comment about Kate's outfit.

Merry Christmas, everybody!

The only thing Alice Molloy had kept from her marriage to Daniel Molloy besides her daughter was his last name. By the time they had finally put their marriage out of its misery, Alice was established enough in the publishing world that suddenly dropping Molloy would have been a pain in the ass. She had decided Daniel had fucked her over more than enough that the least he could do was give her a last name.

Kate was the best thing that they'd done together even if it had been in the worst possible way. They never really talked about that. It would feel wrong to talk about it, but Kate was not born into good circumstances. She did not have the most competent parents for much of her early life. Alice had fully realized it far more quickly than Daniel had. She hoped she'd made up for it to a point.

This Christmas? Well, it was another attempt to make up for everything they had done wrong.

Alice had been planning to spend the holiday with Kate. When Daniel's boytoy boyfriend became part of it, Alice didn't really know how to backout. Kate certainly hadn't registered how bad of an idea it was so here they were.

When they pulled up at the house, Alice couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

"I wonder how your father is managing to still pretend he hates the rich when he lives like this."

"Mom…" Kate figured it was best for Alice to get it out of her system in the car, but still!

"I know, I know," She held up a hand. "It's just…interesting. I thought Kelly would be the low point of his personal life."

"Armand is really nice."

"I'm sure he is," Alice unhooked her seatbelt.

Kate hated when people said shit like that. Her father was the same way. Hell, Alice and Daniel Molloy were practically the same person in more ways than Kate wanted to acknowledge. People were allowed to just be nice. Things were allowed to be nice. It didn't all have to be deep psychologically scarring bullshit.

She did not say that. She wasn't an idiot.

Armand was over five hundred years old.

He was an apex predator.

He had lived through untold horrors that most mortal men could not fathom.

He was not under any circumstances going to be bested by a convection oven and a tray of appetizers that seemed set on not heating through before Katherine returned with the rest of Daniel's family.

"It is baffling that mortal chefs have not determined a way to heat all items at the same temperature to ease this sort of problem."

Daniel gave Armand a sympathetic look, "I'm not sure it works that way. Don't stress. Everything is fine. You don't even have to do that, you realize? We could just throw it all in a microwave and call it a day."

"Much as I admire the microwave as a concept, that would never do in these circumstances."

"Okay…okay…" Daniel held up his hand. "Just breathe."

"I do not need to."

"Maybe do so anyways, just in case."

Daniel paused for a moment then reached for Armand, tugging him away from the stove to kiss him.

"Hey…" He said softly, holding Armand close. "I know you're doing all of this for me, for us, for Kate, whoever you wanna count. But you're not on the hook for anyone enjoying themselves and you're not on the hook to make sure the mini-quiches are the perfect temperature. As long as they're not in danger of killing anyone and no one will need their stomach pumped, we're already above a few past Molloy Family Gatherings. Okay?"

Armand nodded, "Okay."

He kissed Daniel again, lingering near his lips until he heard the sound of the front door and Kate announcing her return.

"Oh my god, the centerpiece looks amazing!" Kate passed through the dining room and right into the kitchen.

Daniel was well aware that it was her centerpiece, something she and Armand cooked up together. He was happy for them even if he thought it was incredibly unnecessary.

Kate hugged Armand first then her father. That surely summed things up didn't it. Armand first, but Daniel still got a hug. She was also all too happy to push both of them out of the way to finish putting various brunch items on the table.

"Armand, this is Kate's mother, Alice," Daniel motioned towards Alice trying to read her expression. She looked amused, but that might have been annoyed. He wasn't positive. "And my youngest, Lenora. She prefers Leni," He looked at Armand then over at Leni. "He'll probably call you Lenora."

"It's nice to meet you both. I've heard much about you," That was true even if the circumstances of how he had heard those things were far different than anyone would have thought.

No one else made an attempt to hug anyone. They exchanged pleasantries, eventually Armand followed Kate into the dining room. Daniel recognized that left him mildly cornered.

"I'm glad you came, both of you. I know this is a lot. I think it means a lot to Kate," He shrugged. "Armand, too."

"Armand, too," Alice smirked. "You never change."

"What's that mean?"

"I mean I remember all those boys back in the 70s," Alice rolled her eyes. "You certainly have a type."

"Jesus, Mother," Kate shook her head. "He can probably hear you."

"Yeah, it's not his fault Daniel has a type," Leni laughed. "We all know it."

Daniel frowned, "All?"

"Forget it," Leni shook her head.

"You've been here for five seconds, and I need a Bloody Mary just to survive," Kate rifled through a few cabinets.

"Merry Christmas, everyone," Leni was still amused. "I'll pass on the liquor at 10am, thanks."

Armand lingered in the dining room even as Kate had walked back into the other room. Daniel had wanted him to breathe. Breathing didn't help Armand. Breathing was a terribly mortal coping mechanism. Armand preferred listening to the blood in their veins, the cadence of their heartbeats, and the murmur of their surface thoughts.

It let him remember he was in control.

It let him remember that he knew more than they did.

Far more helpful than breathing.

"Katherine helped with the table arrangements," Armand offered walking back in. It was very clear to all of them that he had likely heard everything they'd said as Kate had warned. "You must be very proud of her talents, Alice."

Alice tilted her head. She sensed a slight challenge.

"I'm very proud of all of her accomplishments including my granddaughter who I hope is around here somewhere."

Kate handed Armand a Bloody Mary. At least, it looked edible. Perhaps that could trick his mind into thinking it was actual blood. He thought perhaps blood would go well with the mixer involved once he took a taste.

"Are you feeling quite well, Lenora?"

Leni frowned, "Yeah, why?"

"You aren't partaking."

"Like I said, it's 10am," She glanced at Daniel. "You really do have a type."

Leni left the room at that.

Daniel looked over at Alice.

"I think that was a swipe at both of us and probably Kelly and maybe her mother."

Alice's face softened some, "Well, I never said your type was limited to men or that you were the only one who made bad decisions in this family. It's good to see you, Dan."

"Yeah."

At least Daniel still let himself drink because he really needed a drink right now. He certainly didn't care that it was 10am.

Daniel had never had to be in the same room as Kelly and Alice at the same time. He and Leni's mother had never been together in any way where there was an expectation of a mixed family holiday. He wasn't entirely sure what to expect from Alice and Armand interacting. A part of him felt like he was watching a lion enclosure. The possibility of someone pouncing seemed high.

He didn't think either of them would start a physical altercation, of course. They were both too classy for that.

But he had a feeling a battle of wits could go on for a good long time.

Nevertheless, Alice seemed focused on small talk and Hannah, which meant Armand had little reason to get his own hackles up. Leni was seeming far more standoffish. It wasn't really a surprise, but she had a lot of Molloy in her.

She might start a physical fight.

She might win.

Even against a vampire.

They had just about finished cleaning up the brunch dishes when Daniel's phone rang. He stepped into the hall to take it, talking in a hushed tone.

"Yeah? Huh?" He frowned. "TODAY? I have to sign for it today. You're really screwing me over with this, man. I have family here," He sighed. "Yeah, great, wonderful."

Daniel scrubbed a hand over his face.

This was going to be a problem, he thought as he slipped his phone back in his pocket and went to talk to Armand.

"Hey, babe, don't freak out."

There were no words in any of the languages that Armand spoke more likely to get him riled up. It was a one way ticket straight into the head of whoever was speaking to him to find out what he should not be freaking out about.

"You are leaving," Armand's expression went a little stony.

"For a few hours," Daniel held up a hand trying to keep him calm. "It's the book deal."

Armand balled his hands into fists. His nails almost broke the skin.

"The book I don't especially want you to write," Armand added.

"I'll be back by dinner. All you gotta do is hang out with Kate for a few hours."

"And Leni and Alice," Armand pointed out.

"And Tom and Hannah. I trust you not to eat them," Daniel kissed his cheek. "You know I wouldn't go if it weren't important. Okay?"

Armand hesitated, but nodded.

"If I do eat them…"

"Don't," Daniel pressed another kiss to his cheek. "Back by dinner."

Daniel said the fastest goodbye to the rest of the family, giving them the same assurances that he had given Armand before hurrying out the door to catch a train.

"He's really ditching us already," Leni snorted.

"He is doing no such thing," Armand scoffed sitting down on the sofa. In truth, he was quite afraid Daniel might be doing just that. "His agent required a signature before the holiday. He is writing a new book."

Leni huffed, "There's always a new book."

"He will be back by dinnertime," Or Armand might well freeze time until he was home just to ensure he was not made to look the fool.

Kate had the forethought to immediately put the television on to avoid the need for too much chatter about Daniel's shortcomings. Alice was mostly distracted by Hannah, which Armand was grateful for. He doubted she would interrogate him in any way - she had made her feelings well enough known - but Armand did not trust himself to keep his temper if he was ganged up on.

"This film is baffling," He said with a frown as The Santa Clause neared its conclusion a good 90 minutes later.

"Your mind's blown by mid-90s kids fare?" Leni raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you're that young?"

"It is not the age of the film," Armand countered. "Why is it that the adults have such disbelief of Santa Claus? If we see him as an actual entity in this film, every child is waking up to presents the adults didn't purchase for them. That should be empirical evidence," He tilted his head. "And why does it seem to have such an odd agenda against psychotherapy? The stepfather is not so out of pocket to suggest the boy need help given the premise. Daniel has long said I would benefit from intensive therapy."

Leni laughed, "Yeah? Well, wait for the next part. The cops bust Santa and Tim Allen makes a point of refusing to name names of anyone helping him or where the kid is."

"I do not see why that is of note."

"Oh, um, once upon a time Tim Allen got arrested for trying to sell a bunch of coke. He flipped on all his suppliers to get himself out of jail. My theory is this is him trying to prove he's no snitch," Leni grinned.

"Fascinating," Armand considered that information. "I wonder if your father ever purchased drugs from him."

Leni's smile fell.

Well, that was a moment gone.

"Armand, sweetheart," Kate leaned over the back of the couch between Leni and Armand. "I think Tom is going to permanently move into that bowling alley."

Armand laughed, "He's most welcome."

"Mom's playing with Hannah," Kate added. "Think we could go film some quick videos around this place. People will go absolutely bonkers."

And if people went crazy for the house and realized Armand was loaded, they'd probably want to buy some pearl jewelry or join their team. They could end up being just as rich.

"You're insufferable," Leni rolled her eyes.

"Hey, it's good for business. I'm an entrepreneur."

"That's one word for it," Leni sighed. She turned her attention back to the TV screen. Armand began to stand up. "Suit yourself. You're going to miss Year Without a Santa Claus. Shirley Booth plays Mrs. Claus. She was a revelation in Come Back, Little Sheba."

Armand stopped, turning to glance at her, "Quite."

"Yeah, I don't know what any of that means," Kate grabbed Armand's hand. "C'mon, that upstairs balcony with all the trees in the backyard will be a perfect place to start."

All things considered, Daniel thought the day had gone…okay. It would have been better if he hadn't had to slip out, but he'd needed to grab Armand's last gift and it had only just arrived. He was sure they'd all get over it. That approach had served him well for the last three decades, right?

He didn't have the benefit of being able to read minds, but Armand hadn't freaked out yet so that had to mean no one was thinking anything way over the top. Kate, Tom, and Hannah were already Team Armand so that was the easiest part. Whatever Alice and Leni were thinking about the whole thing, they hadn't said much past their arrival comments.

It would be wrong to think Alice's relative reticence wasn't making Daniel a little antsy, but he was trying not to focus on it too much. If anything was going to get said, it would likely get said tomorrow.

"I was wondering if you were gonna come to bed."

Armand had slipped out after everyone had dispersed from dinner. Daniel figured he'd gone to get a snack. He wasn't going to kill any of the neighbors, just have a few little sips from a few folks out walking their dogs. They had bagged blood tucked away in a fridge in the basement with a lock on it just to be safe, but it was easier to pretend he was running out for a few minutes than to risk him getting caught with a juice box of blood.

"And potentially have Alice thinking I don't lay beside my beloved every single night?" Armand walked into the room. He tossed his coat over the back of one of the chairs before sitting down on the foot of the bed to remove his shoes. "I would never dream of it."

"Good. I woulda been lonely."

Armand smiled. He crawled up on the bed, putting his head down on Daniel's chest and wrapping his arms around his waist.

"This is probably a lotta mortal interaction for you," Daniel played with Armand's hair. Armand hummed in agreement. "I would remind you that it was your idea, but I still appreciate it."

"I am fine. I have survived far more than a day with mortals," Armand closed his eyes for a moment. It was quiet enough that Daniel almost thought he had decided to go to sleep right there and then. "We might have the smallest of problems on our hand."

"Huh?" Daniel frowned.

"It is nothing. It may not even be worth mentioning."

"Yet, you're mentioning it…" Daniel started to sit up, forcing Armand to do the same. "C'mon, spill. What's the problem? Did you drain the asshole who lives next door? 'Cos that's not a problem. He's an asshole."

Armand sat up. His finger traced over the pattern of the duvet for a moment before he finally spoke.

"There is the slightest possibility that Lenora remembers me."

"Remember you? Remember you how exactly?" Daniel questioned. "Did you run into her while she was chasing a story?"

It was a reach, but Daniel knew Armand had been in the art world until recently. It wasn't insane that Daniel's music journalist daughter might cross paths with him and Louis. Or maybe it was just wishful thinking.

"Of course not. I avoid journalists at all costs save for one," Armand sighed. "From her childhood."

"What?!"

"You said it yourself when you first accused me of harming Katherine that you knew I saw her when she was a child," Armand looked offended that Daniel was so surprised by the revelation. "Well, your parenting problems changed shape when Lenora came along, but they didn't cease. I…checked in from time to time. Maybe a few were near Christmas."

"I don't love how carefully you chose those words," Daniel folded his arms across his chest.

Armand rolled his eyes.

"One problem at a time, yes? I will consider how to handle this," Armand noticed immediately that Daniel was about to interject. "WITHOUT touching anyone's memories or thoughts, beloved. In the meantime, simply…let her think you have a type and I am not the first South Asian twink - her words, not mine - that you've dated."

"I really don't want to discuss that with her period."

"There's always a memory wipe."

"I will suggest I'm a dirty old man reclaiming my youth with vaguely racist undertones, if need be" Daniel agreed wanting to avoid a worse situation. "Just for you."

"As always, you say the sweetest things," Armand sighed. "Will you please lay down so I can return to cuddling you?"

"It's not fair of you to offer that sort of thing to distract me."

"Perhaps I am just meaning to distract myself."

Daniel laid back down with the tiniest bit of reluctance which faded as soon as he had Armand wrapped around him once more.

Leni had a sort of recurring dream. She thought it was a memory from when she was a kid, but she'd been to enough therapy over the years to realize it might have been less of a memory and more of a fantasy. Kid brains were weird and retained things in weird ways. Fact and fiction got conflated and given it wasn't a harmful memory as far as any shrink could tell, it was okay to just…let it be.

Leni wasn't good at let it be.

Somewhere around 1995, Leni had gotten absolutely obsessed with A Little Princess. Not so much the book, but very much the movie that came out that year. She had daddy issues and the whole plot revolved around a girl with some pretty serious daddy issues.

Her mom hadn't really put that part together.

But she got her the VHS tape that came with Sara's locket and the whole nine yards. Leni wore that thing for years.

And, look, it was probably a little silly to play the poor little rich girl. She'd been shuttled between two pretty fancy apartments her whole life, best schools, best everything. She wasn't Sara sleeping in a shitty attic (but, man, wasn't that attic so fucking cool in theory?).

She had been lonely.

While her A Little Princess fantasies came in many shapes and sizes, the dream she remembered, the dream she sometimes still had was always the same.

She was alone when she wasn't supposed to be alone. She was too young to be left alone in a Brooklyn apartment. She knew it would be bad if she called her mom. It would be a whole thing. If there was one thing a child of two single parents knew, it was that whole things were bad.

It was raining, and the rain and the wind echoed through the apartment.

She was alone.

Then she wasn't.

There was a guy there - a guy who to her kid brain looked a whole lot like the servant guy from A Little Princess. As an adult, she realized that meant South Asian (and, yeah, maybe it was a tiny bit racist of her at her young age to assume he was the same ethnicity of the movie, but in her defense, she was a kid).

It's a dreadful noise, but nothing will harm you, Lenora.

In her dream, the guy sat by her bed until she fell asleep. He wasn't there when she woke up, but just like in the movie, she walked into the other room to find breakfast all laid out for her. All of her favorites.

It was a nice dream.

She was safe and happy and taken care of just like she wanted to be.

But in the present, it didn't feel so nice.

She woke with a jolt. The guy from her dream sure did look and sound like someone she suddenly found herself face to face with in his fancy mansion where he lived with her father.

But that was impossible.

Chapter Text

Chapter Nine: Christmas in Connecticut

"You want a word of advice?"

Daniel Molloy almost never wanted advice from anyone who wasn't himself. He rarely trusted other people as much as he trusted himself. He'd had too good of a career interviewing too many fucked up people to think otherwise.

"Not really," Daniel smirked turning the coffee pot on in the kitchen. "But in the entire course of our marriage that never stopped you as far as I remember."

Alice leaned against the counter, "Well, it's a major holiday. I'm on my best behavior."

"Yeah," Daniel laughed. "What's your advice, hmm?"

"Between you, me, and the coffee pot that I'm guessing your lover boy spent some crazy amount of money on, I'm gonna give you a hard truth, and I want you to listen."

"I'm listening," Daniel confirmed.

Alice smirked, "You've never stuck out a difficult interpersonal relationship in your life."

"Hey, I…"

"No, I mean it," Alice pressed. "Sure, drugs were part of it. Work was part of it. You had a bad habit of choosing the wrong people - all valid excuses. But last time I checked you weren't even talking to your parents, your brother, or your sister. You were barely talking to Kate before recently, and I'm no expert on your relationship with Leni, but I've got eyes. Doesn't seem great. You get the picture?"

"Yeah."

"Let's not repeat history."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Daniel glared.

"It means stop leaving in the middle of the family fun time your hot, young boyfriend planned for you to make our daughter happy. Do better."

"How the fuck are you on his side, too?!" Daniel grabbed the now full coffee pot angrily pouring himself a cup of coffee. He wasn't sure whether to be annoyed or happy. Everyone liked Armand, apparently.

"The kid's charming," Alice shrugged. "And you'll be pleased about it in an hour, I'm sure. He's too young for you, but he seems good for you and, weirdly, for Kate so…"

She made a vague gesture with her hand before taking the coffee pot from him.

Daniel sighed, "It wasn't like before. I didn't leave because of work. I…It was a gift, okay? I'm giving it to him today because it's…it's a private thing."

Daniel realized that might sound ominous. It was just going to be hard to explain in front of everyone.

"I had to sign for it to get it delivered and some asshole screwed me over. It all ended up last minute despite my best efforts," Daniel shook his head. "Don't tell him?" He paused. "Don't even think about it for like an hour."

Alice frowned. That was an extremely odd request, but clearly this really meant something to Daniel.

"Okay," She nodded. "I'm glad. Like I said, he seems strangely good for you especially if he's managed to get you thinking about heartful gift giving."

"Hey, once we had money, I got you some decent stuff."

"Sure," Alice nodded. "But I don't remember big lies to hide them from me. I remember nice sweaters."

"Very funny," Daniel picked up the mug. "I should go wake him up."

"Good luck."

There wasn't enough coffee in the world to make up for the shitty night's sleep Leni had managed to get.

Armand had somehow wheedled his way into her brain.

She was annoyed that she was annoyed. She shouldn't care this much about who her father was dating. None of it should have mattered enough to invade her dreams and taint something that had always felt warm and nice.

So why did it?

Why was she pissed that this guy might remind of her some dude she had a dream about?

It was bullshit.

Merry fucking Christmas.

Armand really was the cutest corpse.

That was a very fucked up thing to think, but he had a feeling Armand wouldn't be opposed to the suggestion if he said it to his face. The stillness of a vampire sleeping was as beautiful as it was jarring when said body was clearly not breathing or moving. Armand looked gorgeous in perfect stillness, and Daniel appreciated that it probably meant he felt safe especially after his stories about war-torn Paris.

Daniel sat down on the edge of the bed and brushed a few of Armand's curls away from his ice cold face. If he were a younger vampire, such an action would be insufficient to wake him, but within a moment Armand's chest began to rise and fall in a semblance of mortality as he opened his eyes.

"Mornin'."

"Good morning," Armand smiled up at Daniel. He had not meant to sleep, but it had been a taxing day and the pull of the sun had taken him down, however briefly.

"Snuck this outta the basement before I ran into Alice in the kitchen," Daniel produced a blood bag from his pocket. That was enough to get Armand to sit up, a fang quickly piercing the plastic.

Daniel sipped his coffee, watching Armand devour his snack.

"I know it's only Christmas Eve morning. I also know you like to stand on ceremony about some shit, but, uh," Daniel sat his coffee mug on the side table. "Can I give you one of your gifts now?"

"I am fond of gifts," Armand smiled. "I imagine I have one for you that would be better given privately."

"Well, coming from you that could be concerning," Daniel teased. "Gimme five. I'll be right back."

Armand rose from bed, slipping on his robe and retrieving a small box from one of the walk in closets. He had known it would be easy to hide Daniel's gifts amongst his designer clothes. Daniel kept most of his things in the dressers. He was more impressed that Daniel had managed to be so secretive that Armand had not noticed in his thoughts his plans.

His clever boy.

"This isn't the sort of thing I could wrap so…" Daniel rounded the corner from the hallway back through the door to their room. "I had to sneak it in a backdoor yesterday."

Armand's mouth hung open the tiniest bit as he saw what Daniel was carrying. Score one for Danny Boy Molloy.

"I have warned you of that nickname," Nevertheless, Armand was on his feet, hurrying over to Daniel. "You bought me a magnolia tree to plant?"

"Gimme more credit than that, babe," Daniel laughed. "You told me that Louis had your tree now. I got him to send me a clipping. I sure hope it takes 'cos he did tell me he was gonna burn the rest after he was done."

Armand swallowed, trying to process what Daniel had done.

"You…How did you possibly contact Louis? He could have harmed you!"

"I'm an investigative journalist, Armand. He's an art dealer," Daniel shrugged. Armand simply stared at him. "I found his business number and I called him like a normal person. I'm pretty sure I was talking to his lawyer or financial advisor or some bullshit. He just mentioned the burning it thing in a note - promise. Oh, and he's the asshole who had the thing delivered yesterday of all fucking days so I had to run out."

Armand found himself at a loss for words. Was it right to say no one had ever done such a thing for him before? Marius had purchased him from an almost certain death sentence and yet, Daniel reminded him yet again what it meant to actually show care for him. It was so much different from anything he had before.

How had he almost let this go all of those years ago?

"I love you so," Armand said softly, blood tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. "Have I said that as of late?"

"I'm pretty fond of you saying it so you can say it again," They sat the tree clipping aside and Armand hugged Daniel tightly. "I love you, too, for the record. Now, stop crying or people are going to think you have Ebola and that would really undermine Christmas."

Armand leaned out of the embrace and wiped his eyes carefully. Daniel was right, if terribly glib. Blood on his face would raise a myriad of questions. He picked up the small wrapped box that he had retrieved from the closet.

"For you," He held it out to Daniel. "I hope it will be as well met as your gift was."

"Babe, there's nothing you could buy that would be anything other than great."

Armand was sure that wasn't true, but he recognized the sort of thing that one was supposed to say.

If Daniel were being honest, he was sort of expecting something extravagant. It was the right size for a Rolex. Armand had bought him Rolexes before. He hoped it wasn't anything that had cost the equivalent of a mortgage. He pulled the lid off, looking down at the contents.

"Not to sound like a dick, but I'd honestly kind of forgotten about this."

"I thought you might have," Armand nodded. "It is not the original. I threw that into the water and never did retrieve it, but I purchased it from the same jewelry maker. I hoped it would be passable."

Daniel picked the amulet up removing it from the box. He didn't have Armand's eye or knowledge of jewelry. To him, if Armand hadn't said otherwise, Daniel would have thought it was the original.

"May I?" Armand reached for it, taking it out of Daniel's hands. He put it around Daniel's neck, latching the chain. "You should be able to tuck it in your shirt if you choose to wear it."

"Choose to wear it?" Daniel looked over at Armand. "You think I'm taking it off?"

Armand cupped Daniel's cheek with his hand, "It is not 1982 anymore. I want to be clear that I will not insist on it. I won't force your hand. I don't intend to be separated where the danger is real. I won't…"

"Hey," Daniel said softly, lifting his own hand to cover Armand's. "You're not making me do shit. I want it. I want it on for the rest of my fucking life because you're here again and I don't know what the fuck I did to deserve that, but I'm so fucking grateful."

It hurt. Not Daniel's words. His words were lovely. It was only one thing that pricked a little too close to Armand's heart. The rest of my fucking life. It would have to be faced, wouldn't it?

For now Armand simply kissed him.

"Still, perhaps inside your shirt unless you wish Katherine to accessorize the chain or Lenora to question what is inside of it."

Daniel laughed, "Fair enough. This chain better not have come from a MLM."

"It certainly did not," Armand smiled. "I have another gift for you, but you will need to be patient for that one."

"Is it a sex thing?"

"It is not a sex thing."

"We should probably give each other a sex thing, too, though just for fun."

"I believe we can certainly arrange that especially if it continues to distract you from what I told you about Lenora."

Daniel groaned, "I'm putting a pin in that against my better judgement."

"Good, I will handle it," Armand nodded. "I hope you are also aware we will need to winter in Westport."

"Why?"

"The clipping can't be planted until after the last frost. I will need to be very vigilant in the meantime."

"Great," Daniel smirked. "Guess I'll have to get used to being a Stepford Wife, huh?"

Daniel had kind of imagined that church was going to be part of the holidays for someone. He and Alice had never really been all that into organized religion, but Kate had been married in a Catholic church. Apparently, Tom was semi-practicing. Semi-practicing seemed to mean we go on big holidays. Daniel could cope with that level of religiosity.

He didn't expect to participate.

He really didn't expect Armand to participate.

"Babe, we don't have to go. You know that right?"

"I wish to go," Armand pointed out. "It is rather convenient that they are attending a midnight mass. I do not even need to withstand the sun to go."

"You…want to go?"

"Yes," Armand frowned. "Or I would not be going."

Daniel was a little baffled. Maybe it was a Louis thing. Louis had been Catholic, right?

"Louis had not stepped foot in a church in many years to the best of my knowledge," Armand pointed out. "I believe he and Lestat desecrated one the last time he spent any time in one."

"Gross."

"Quite," Armand turned his attention back to his appearance in the mirror as he dressed. "You need to wear a tie."

"Do I?"

"Mm," Armand nodded.

He turned his attention the assortment of ties that were available as options. Daniel sat down on the bed knowing it was best to let Armand dress him at this point.

"Can I ask a question?"

"You can," Armand confirmed. "I will decide whether or not to answer."

"Sure," Daniel chuckled. "Were, uh…were you Muslim? Hindu? Do you remember?"

Armand considered the question, comparing a tie to a shirt. He shook his head.

"Did you ever practice either since…"

"No," Armand settled on a tie and a shirt, bringing them over to Daniel. "It would feel silly. While in the Middle East, I learned some of the customs from the household staff, but…it did not mean anything to me. I suppose there must be something out there if monsters such as myself exist, but the notion of God has felt hollow since…since Marius."

It always came back to Marius, didn't it?

Maybe it wasn't even sinister in this case. Daniel recognized it was just a fact. He hated the guy. He hated what he did to Armand, but he also hated that everything was worse after Marius for Armand.

Armand was quiet as he waited for Daniel to dress. Daniel didn't break the silence even as he started to change. He knew Armand might still be cooking, that he might want to say more.

"When I died," He said softly, busying himself with putting the hanger back in the closet just to keep himself from being too still. "I thought I saw something, a light beckoning me on. I have taken enough classes at City College now to know it was likely the dying embers of electricity in my brain, but I believed in it then. I think it was that belief that Santino and the Coven were so readily able to manipulate. I think I would have preferred to have no belief in salvation, then."

Daniel didn't think he believed in all of that, but he did wonder what would have been better - no hope in a hopeless situation or at least the semblance of hope.

Who could even answer that?

"Tell me what it was like with Marius," Daniel asked. Armand immediately gave him a skeptical look. "Just the god part," He clarified. "I'm curious. I'm not gonna pick a fight. Tell me what it was like in Venice for Christmas."

"Catholicism was compulsory regardless of our individual origins," Armand explained. "Marius accompanied us at times, but he rarely journeyed out during the day."

Armand knew now that at Marius' age, even then, the sun likely posed only a mild inconvenience, but perhaps his master had been unaware of that fact. He could not be sure. Marius had not been as forthcoming as Armand often wished he had been.

"Riccardo and I were often tasked with ensuring the younger boys attended Mass. It would have opened Marius up to scandal if we were seen to be heathens."

"The Renaissance really was an era of Enlightenment."

"It was better than some eras that preceded or followed it," Armand told him truthfully. "Especially for one with my complexion."

Daniel realized he probably didn't need to lecture Armand on how racist the fucking world could be.

"When Riccardo was first made to take me to a Church and ensure I was baptized, my concept of the language was still weak at best. His patience was infinite in coaching me," Armand smiled fondly. "I did find the churches very beautiful. I still do. I imagine that is why I will enjoy this evening."

Armand considered the shirt now that Daniel had put it on. It would do.

"Christmas was a magnificent feast and work at the palazzo was nearly at a standstill save for a few necessary tasks," Armand explained. "I was free to be with my friends even into the evening. There was wine and food and small gifts. The break from work was always welcomed."

“I forget you weren’t…I mean, you had to work.” 

“I’m quite aware that despite your modern sensibilities you assume my job only entailed laying on my back.” 

“I don’t…”

“It’s alright. You do and I understand why you do, but no, there was real work. In the studio. Cleaning and maintaing things. We were well cared for, but we were…household staff.”

They were slaves.

“Don’t,” Armand saw the edges of Daniel’s thoughts. “It is Christmas. Let us not rehash old things.” 

The biggest part of Daniel's brain did want to rehash old things, but the part of his brain that wanted Armand to be happy mercifully won out.

"You wanna tie my tie for me so I don't fuck it up?"

"Very much so."

Armand and Daniel were certainly earning points with Kate for agreeing to attend church with her, Tom, and Hannah. Alice and Leni both refused. Daniel didn't blame them. He sure as shit would have done the same if Armand hadn't had other thoughts.

Still, Daniel was in a position where all points were good points so he'd take it.

The church itself was…fine.

Daniel would hardly call it a thing of beauty. There was no way that it could compare with the bullshit that must have existed in Venice back in Armand's day.

The church Kate had dragged them to had one of those weird, dingy green rugs that every Catholic church on the East Coast of the United States seemed to have. The Jesus-themed artwork all had a decided BeeGees quality about it. It all screamed we were founded in the mid-70s.

"The stained glass is lovely," Armand pointed out as they slid into a pew. "It isn't quite the luxury item it was in Venice, but it is still a difficult and wholly exquisite art form. Viewed with my eyes, it is…magnificent."

And Daniel wasn't going to argue with magnificent.

The mass seemed to go on and on and on. It was already late and little surprise that Hannah fell asleep where she was sitting between Armand and Kate. Armand gently smoothed down her hair and when the Mass ended, he lifted her in his arms with ease. Daniel realized that vampiric strength probably meant a five-year-old weighed nothing to him, but it was still sweet.

"Tom can take her," Kate offered.

"I have her. It is no trouble."

Armand rubbed small circles on Hannah's back. He wasn't using his powers to keep her asleep, but he was prepared to do that if she began to wake and was disoriented. He was under the impression that sleeping on Christmas Eve was important to children believing Father Christmas owed them a visit.

The entire scene as they walked to the car and then into their home reminded Armand of how Marius used to live. Not what he did. Not what he spent his money on. But a life among mortals where he took part in their revels and their pass times.

Louis and Lestat had lived that way.

Armand had thought he was living that way with Louis.

But this felt real.

It felt like he was giving Daniel the life he had wanted him to have at long last.

He would be sure that it held. Daniel's other gift might help.

Leni started for bed after she heard the others come back in. She was in the middle of turning off lights when Armand walked in on her.

"I thought you were helping put Hannah to sleep."

"She's asleep," Armand assured her. "She was already asleep when we returned home."

"Okay, well….goodnight," Leni offered before taking a step to brush past Armand.

"There is something that I wanted to discuss with you before you retire for the evening," Armand had been pleased that Leni had stayed up . It made his wish to talk to her easier to fulfill.

"If this is gonna be some big talk about how much you love Daniel, I'm way too tired to have that discussion," Leni just wanted to go to bed. She didn't want to make nice with Armand.

"I have no reason to discuss that with you," Armand shrugged. "It is true. He is well aware of it. He is also not the sort of man to ask your permission so befriending you for that reason serves very little purpose."

Leni frowned, "Thanks? I think."

"I wish to share something far more personal with you than my feelings for Daniel," Armand explained. "We met once, you and I, a long time ago. I believe you were eight."

"What are you talking about?"

"It was near the holidays. You were staying with Daniel. He left you home alone to go speak to a source for some article he was writing at the time. He promptly got arrested for trespassing," Armand explained. "I found you in his apartment. There was a storm. I hate storms in that apartment. They are so very loud. We watched holiday films until you fell asleep. I was the one who told you Shirley Booth was so terribly fantastic."

Leni swallowed. It was her dream, but Armand spoke as if he knew about it, as if it were real, as if he were there.

"That's not…you're like twenty."

"Physically, I am twenty-seven."

"What the fuck does that mean?"

"It means I look to be twenty-seven, but I am rather quite a bit older," Armand said. "I am a vampire."

Leni just stared at him. He was crazy. He was crazy and Daniel had told him shit about Leni's childhood that he was weaponizing.

"I am not weaponizing anything."

"How…"

"I am a vampire. Reading your mind is rather par for the course," Armand told her. "And I am a very old vampire so…"

Leni narrowed her eyes still not convinced this wasn't bullshit.

"How old?"

"Five-hundred and two."

Leni laughed. It was the only reaction she could think to have. This was insane. It couldn't possibly be true. It was some trick like how TV psychics managed to make it seem like they knew shit when they didn't.

"I'm going to bed," Leni held up both her hands. "I'm…

Armand stayed standing in front of her. He opened his mouth letting his fangs drop.

"Jesus…fuck!" Leni stumbled back, landing on her ass in a chair. She was probably lucky she hadn't passed right out.

"Keep your voice down. I mean for this to be a conversation between us."

"This is…" Leni shook her head. "Why tell me this? Just to fuck with me? What's to stop me from calling the cops?"

"What will the police do? Plus you and Daniel both hate the police," Armand imagined the police were the last ones she would call. "I can make you forget what I told you. I could make the police unsure of why they were summoned. It is quite easy to protect myself. Besides, most people would just assume you are the one who is mad," He paused. "Except your father. I imagine he'd like to discuss this with someone after all."

"So he knows?"

"Yes," Armand nodded. "Your father doesn't have a type despite what you have all been whispering about. Your father and I have had an on-again, off-again relationship since 1973."

"Of course you have. Of course Daniel would somehow have a stable fucking relationship with a monster."

"You have no idea," Armand smirked. "I am hopeful that if I am trusting you with this information, perhaps you can trust me."

"Why tell me and not your bestie, Kate?" Leni was sure Kate was unaware of this situation. There was no way she'd be this chill about Armand if she wasn't oblivious to this revelation.

"It would frighten her."

"It's frightening me."

"Not as much as it is intriguing you," Armand pointed out. "You're too much like your father."

"I'm real tired of people saying that."

"There's another reason that I am telling you. I can hear heartbeats very clearly. I do know your secret. I know your choice not to drink yesterday had little to do with the time of day."

"Fuck," Leni cursed. "I don't want that being common knowledge."

"I will not tell anyone, but you should know that he will help you. He will not do so grudglingly. Besides which, we do have plenty."

"I noticed the mansion," Leni swallowed.

She had only barely found out she was pregnant. She hadn't decided if she was keeping it. She had thought seeing family might help or that maybe Kate would have some words of wisdom or she'd be reminded just how shitty being a kid was and she'd know what to do. She wanted to keep it, she thought, but there was the Daniel factor. What if she was just as bad at all of it as he was? Plus, Armand was obnoxiously not wrong. She did okay, but not raise a baby okay. She would need money.

"Speak with your father tomorrow. I will ensure that he knows what you know about me. You decide what he knows of the rest."

Leni nodded, "I might need you to prove this actually happened in the morning."

"I am used to that. Your father needed to see the fangs quite a few times to be convinced."

"Great."

There was a part of Leni that wished she could go back to not knowing this, but here they were. It was going to be a long ass night.

Armand returned to Daniel's side shortly after his discussion with Leni. He was aware that Daniel might not be as thankful for this particular gift as he had been for the amulet.

"You need to have a discussion with Lenora in the morning but only once she approaches you."

"Um…why?" Daniel frowned. "Did you do something?"

"Just now? No," Armand assured him. "But I have handled her memories of me."

"Handled how?"

"I revealed my true nature to her and told her the complete truth."

"You WHAT?!"

"You are angry," Armand fought the urge to roll his eyes. It was such a silly, obvious reaction. "This is the sort of thing you normally say you'd prefer from me."

"Yeah, when it's about you and me. Not Leni. You know I don't want them hurt."

"Have I ever hurt them?"

"I don't know! Because I've been wracking my brain trying to tell how and when you saw Leni back then. It sure as hell wasn't with me or I'd remember now."

"You were arrested and Lenora was alone in your apartment," Armand pointed out. "I posted your bail and stayed with her until your arraignment."

"Wait, no," Daniel shook his head. "My lawyer posted my bail."

"Meet your lawyer, beloved," Armand smirked. "It was not the first time I pretended to be your lawyer."

"And that's what she remembers?"

"Yes," Armand nodded. "And now she knows how it could be that I was there. All you have to do is speak to her tomorrow and all be well."

"You sure about that?"

Armand hesitated, "Reasonably sure. It is your other gift."

"Not the best odds."

"Not the worst either, beloved."

There was something fun about Christmas morning with a small kid who still believed in Santa ripping into their gifts. It warmed even the cynical hearts of Daniel, Leni, and Alice. It also kept Leni from saying anything to her father immediately. Daniel wasn't mad about that. Daniel was kind of grateful for whatever time he was being given before he had to talk about his vampire boyfriend with his daughter.

There was a stack of gifts from Armand.

Daniel wasn't shocked that most of them were designer clothes. They weren't fancy per se. They were just pricey and nicer than the shirts he bought in bulk at Target, which fair.

It helped that one of the gifts he gave Armand was the train tickets to go up to Boston. Not looking like a slob was probably a good thing and it would make Armand happy.

"I got one more thing for you," Daniel said handing one last package to Armand. "I thought it might help you and Kate take her business to the next level."

"Is a bonus gift you saying that sentence without it killing you?"

Daniel smirked, "Maybe."

Armand tore the paper off of the package. He looked down at it.

"It's an iPad," Daniel explained. "Does all the fancy shit your laptop does, but more mobile. You can shoot video on it that looks better than your phone. Guy at the Apple Store said they're gonna be all the rage soon."

Armand smiled, "I adore it. I imagine it will take many lovely photos as well when we are in Boston and you are wearing your new clothes."

Armand leaned over to kiss Daniel gently. When they pulled apart, Leni was walking past.

"Uh, Daniel? You got a minute?"

He kissed Armand's cheek one more time. It was now or never.

"Yep," Daniel got to his feet and followed Leni into the dining room.

Leni paced around a little bit when they were both in there. Daniel wondered if he should break the ice. He wondered if this was about to go very, very badly.

"He's a vampire."

"Yeah."

"Like an actual vampire."

"Yep."

"He kills people."

"Well," Daniel considered it. "He doesn't really do that these days, but yeah…in theory."

"He drinks blood."

"Yes."

"Okay."

Leni stopped talking and went back to pacing. Daniel glanced over his shoulder just to make sure no one else was coming their way.

"He's not dangerous."

"How is that possible?" Leni stopped pacing, turning to glare at Daniel.

"I mean, okay, he could be dangerous," Daniel conceded. "But also if he was gonna hurt me or you or Kate or Hannah or anyone else, he would've done it already. He almost did kill me when we first met, but he got it out of his system."

"That's not super comforting."

"It was kind of romantic."

"Not helping."

"Okay."

There was silence between them. Leni folded her arms, thinking about what to say next.

"Did he tell you the rest?" She asked.

"The rest?" Daniel shook his head. He shrugged. "He told me that he looked after you that time I got arrested. I do want you to know we have a very firm no memory manipulation rule since we got back together."

"Not that," Leni shook her head. "Fuck."

Leni scrubbed a hand over her face. She didn't have to tell him the rest. She didn't really want to tell him the rest, but here they were.

"I'm pregnant."

"Oh, that's…"

"I don't know that it is great," Leni said before he finished. "I don't know…and your stupid vampire boyfriend knew and called me out on it so now I can't even just slink away to make my own decision."

"Armand is not going to judge you for making your own decision. Neither am I," Daniel added. "If you don't want to have it…"

"I'm going to have it," Leni had decided that somewhere between finding out vampires were real and this conversation. Maybe she was mildly confronting her own mortality. "But…what if I suck at it? What if I'm too much like you? Everyone says I'm too much like you and I don't even think you like me, which…"

"Whoa, hey, I like you," Daniel pointed out. "I hope you know I love you."

"You have a daughter who is somehow the perfect daughter who doesn't even get pissed at you for fucking up her childhood when you were a literal junkie at the time. I'm not the favorite kid."

"Okay, well, please don't tell her this, but you are definitely my favorite," Daniel laughed. "Look, sweetie, we are very, very fucked up and we were before I brought a vampire home and before you got pregnant."

"Tell me about it," She sighed.

"But whatever you need, I'm here for it. You need a check? Tell me how much. Or tell Armand and Armand will write it and you don't have to talk to me," Daniel offered. "You are too much like me, but loving my kids was never the problem and I could have easily done better. That's how I know you will."

Leni nodded, "I probably need a check."

"We'll take care of it."

She paused, "I'm still freaking out about the vampire thing."

"That's probably normal," Daniel admitted. "It'll be okay. All of it. Even the vampire."

"I hope so," Leni nodded. "I'd like to not hate you."

"I'd like that, too."

They weren't going to totally get there today, but maybe they were on the right track. It was a start.

"Hey, Katie," It was a good hour after Daniel's heart to heart with Leni, but Hannah had crashed and Daniel saw an opening to talk to Kate.

"No one has called me Katie in about twenty years," Kate turned to look at her father. "Is something wrong?"

"One day you're going to stop assuming something is wrong every time I talk to you," Daniel laughed softly. "I wanted to say thanks."

"For what?"

"Being nice to Armand, being his friend," Daniel explained. "He has surprisingly few friends and family, and I'm glad he's got you especially since you had every reason not to be even vaguely nice to him."

"Well, we have a lot in common. I like being friends with him. Believe me. It shocked me, too."

"Yeah," Daniel rubbed the back of his neck. "It came to my attention that you might think that I like your sister better. I just wanna make sure you know how much I love you and that I'll always be sorry for how much it used to suck."

Kate considered his words. It actually did mean a lot to hear him say it out loud. She stepped closer to Daniel and gave him a tight hug and kiss on the cheek.

"I'm glad we did this. It might be the best Christmas I've had."

"Me too," Daniel admitted.

He realized he actually meant it.