alcuin | Aaron

Aaron

Between rumors that Hannibal had heard and snatches of thoughts that Alcuin had gotten, they had a good idea that the Church was up to something. Something that could be bad for vampires.

The problem with the Church's hunters, of course, was that they were difficult to spot unless they were hunting you. Most of them were priests. A handy day job, good cover. And so Alcuin's background task was being on the look out (and listen-out) for tales of priests acting strangely.

When Alcuin heard about a priest who'd been spotted in a gay bar, Hannibal had been delighted, and Alcuin had asked around. Found out he was more of a regular at other bars in the area. Paid off a bartender to call him the next time the priest came in.

He was easy to spot, at least. It seemed rather careless to Alcuin, for the guy to keep his collar on while he nursed a whiskey at the bar. Though priests were allowed to drink... maybe the gay bar was a fluke?

He came in and stood at the bar not far from the priest, as if getting the bartender's attention. He did an intentional double take as if surprised to see him, and then smiled as if a little embarrassed. Listening for his thoughts.

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Aaron had returned from a mission of his own; a mandatory visit to the archbishop to explain himself, obtain forgiveness and receive new instructions.

It was why he needed a drink.

If the church was right, there was an infestation of vampires coming to London. A problem that needed to be fixed.

A pretty young man smiled, embarrassed. He was used to that kind of reaction and lifted his glass in greeting.

In the moments before Aaron noticed him, Alcuin got a glimmer of his thoughts, though they were a bit jumbled. Often when people weren't thinking about something in particular, random musing or memories just sort of bubbled through. And Alcuin definitely got a hint of 'worry' and 'church' and 'vampires' which was more than enough to let him know he'd ended up in the right place.

He took the gin and tonic he'd ordered and sat down on the stool beside him. "I'm sorry if I was staring," he said apologetically. "I suppose you get that reaction a lot. It's rather like as a child seeing your primary school teacher at the grocery store. It's hard to imagine them in another context."

Aaron smiled kindly. "Quite alright, my son," he said, fully in the role as priest. "I'm quite possibly not supposed to be in this context. But I do enjoy a scotch from time to time."

Not just insanely pretty, but as he sat closer, Aaron noted he smelled really good as well. God had certainly put effort in this one.

"So do I," said Alcuin. "Well, I prefer gin, but..." He ran a finger along the rim of his glass and then said, "I had a bit of a rough day. And I try not to drink alone, so here I am."

This must have indeed been the priest spotted at the gay bar as well, Alcuin thought as Aaron's admiration for him slid into his thoughts. This was going to be so easy that he almost felt bad about it.

"Well, if you want to talk about it... I'm a good listener," Aaron said, pleasantly.

Alcuin was, of course, an exceptionally good liar. It came from years of practice where he knew immediately if someone suspected he was lying. Also, frankly, Hannibal was a good teacher.

He also knew just the sort of things he wanted to accomplish with this lie.

He looked down at his drink again. "Oh, I... ran into my ex. We didn't exactly part on the best terms, and he's a little, um. Scary."

Translation: I'm gay. I'm single. I'm a little damaged. I might need rescuing.

"Scary?" Aaron asked gently, not wanting to seem like he imposed, but very curious to know.

"He wasn't very nice to me," Alcuin said, with just enough hesitation in his voice to imply exactly what he wanted it to imply, and took a drink. "It's why I left."

Aaron nodded quietly. "Good that you left, my son." He added the son mostly for his own benefit. To remind himself to keep his mind clean.

Alcuin nodded, his expression schooled into the perfect expression of fear and resolve.

Then he smiled a little. "Also... my name is Alcuin. I suppose I should introduce myself if I'm going to dump my problems on you."

"Well, you don't have to, but... nice to meet you, Alcuin. I'm Aaron," he said and offered a hand.

Alcuin took his hand, paying attention to how Aaron reacted to the touch. And his own smile warmed. The sort of smile you would offer if a handsome stranger is being kind to you. "Pleasure."

Well, Aaron was only human and Alcuin was exceptionally beautiful, so... yes, there was a reaction there. "The pleasure is all mine."

The confirmation that Aaron was attracted to him was nice to have. Alcuin pulled his hand away and smiled prettily at him. "I'm not bothering you, am I?" he asked. "I know I said I prefer not to drink alone, but many people do."

"You're not a bother," Aaron said. "And if you need an ear, I'd be happy to. No need for a chur h for that."

"I mean, I probably would have sat down beside you anyway," Alcuin confessed, and then laughed a little, embarrassed. "If you weren't a priest I'd be flirting."

This priest was starting to regret wearing his collar. He chuckled. "I'm flattered, I'm sure."

"I will try not to be too disappointed," Alcuin said lightly. And then he looked at him in a subtle but intentional way. Just give me the word, his body language read. And I'm yours.

"What brings you here though?"

God, he was insanely beautiful, Aaron involuntary thought. "Sometimes a change of scenery helps a bit. And... well, I needed a drink that wasn't the blood of Chirst," he joked lightly, already failing his priesthood.

Alcuin thought that seducing a priest was one of the more interesting challenges he'd had recently, and he was fairly determined now, especially knowing how pleased Hannibal would be. In fact, he probably would be even if Alcuin didn't get any useful information out of him. He would probably find it highly amusing.

"Well lucky me," Alcuin said lightly. Then - "I thought perhaps you'd had a bad day, too."

Aaron hummed. "But I won't bother you with Church politics."

“You don’t have to tell me the specifics,” Alcuin said with sincerity. “But sometimes it can be helpful to talk.”

He wanted to get him talking to get him thinking. Possibly about vampires.

"A taste of my own medicine?" Aaron wondered with a chuckle. "It's nothing, really. Someone blabbed about seeing me having a drink in a bar."

And the new mission, of course. 'Since you're apparently not opposed to sin, you'll infiltrate the seedier part of London and handle the lowlife vampires there'.

It was beneath him. He was better than that. He was their best. And now tasked with cleaning up the gutter.

To his credit, Alcuin did not react to this. But the wheels in his head were spinning. He needed more information. A lot more. Which meant that he needed to figure out the right levers to pull to make Aaron think about it. And he also needed to keep talking to him. Because whatever this was, it had just started.

His expression became sympathetic. "That's unfortunate," he said. "I can't imagine how much pressure your job must be. Too much pressure, not to be... Human. But of course you are. And you deserve to be."

Why did he have to be so impossibly beautiful? "I am..." He agreed.

He always was sent on dirty jobs. He was good at them, but he didn't like being considered low for... being human. "Hence the drink."

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