Tudor Rose [BoyxBoy]

Chapter 12 - Eyes

Eyes.

There were dozens upon dozens of eyes watching them. The portraits that lined the walls of the expansive room were beginning to make Henri uncomfortable. He had fallen asleep on Michael's chest for what might have been hours. Michael's body was almost as cold as the floor, and Henri battled with the conflicting desires to put on clothes or remain naked with him.

"You'll meet them all soon enough," said Michael. "We hardly ever see our parents, so every semester there is a ball where all the pureblood families gather here to see their children, though its really just a formality."

"I don't want to meet them," Henri whispered. He still wanted to go home and be done with vampires forever, but now he had this, and this was all he had ever wanted.

"Henri, look at me," said Michael, and Henri turned his head up so he could see the glimmering firelight in Michael's burgundy eyes. "If you stay by my side, I will protect you, forever."

"How can you know you'll want me by your side forever?" Henri asked, smiling lazily.

"I've seen your dreams, I know your emotions and your thoughts, and you are the only person I've ever wanted," Michael whispered, staring at the ceiling. "I was nothing but hatred before I met you, and when we met something grew inside me. At first it was your beauty, and your blood, that attracted me to you... but I think I fell in love with your purity, something no one I have ever met has so much of as you do. You make me want to change things. I would have lived for an eternity doing nothing but serving the wicked and suffering every moment that I let myself please those whom I despise. But now, if you'll let me, I'll change this world for you, to keep you safe."

"You're just saying that," Henri said, holding back tears. He knew Michael was being genuine, but he did not understand any of this. There was electricity between them, sparked by the intense emotions they were feeling for each other, a love Henri did not know how to accept.

"How can I prove it to you?" Michael asked, sitting up. Henri took in his body hungrily. Though he was too tired to make love again, it was all he could think of.

"You don't know what you're saying, Michael."

"Promise me, Henri. Say that you will stay by my side."

Henri could not promise anything, he thought he loved him but he knew he did not trust him. Michael must have known this, as his facial expression became more emboldened. He pulled Henri close to him and kissed him gently on the lips.

"I want you to teach me how to defend myself," said Henri.

"What?" Michael stood up and Henri had to look away, feeling his face get hot. He stood as well and then looked up into Michael's eyes.

"With the spear," he said. "Can you teach me how to fight with it?"

"Why?"

"Who knows how long it will be before I become a full pureblood. I can't just rely on you or anyone else. I want to learn."

Michael seemed confused, though he smiled. "Henri," he said softly. "Tonight, in the forest where we buried it, I'll teach you." He began putting on his clothes. "I have some business to attend to, but I'll be in the forest at 11 PM, I promise you that." He said this and was gone, the wind cause by his movement blowing out the candles in the room and leaving Henri in the darkness.

Henri felt around for his clothes and haphazardly pulled them on before leaving the room. He could see through the windows that it was already dark outside.

He intended to go straight back to Gates to write his mother a letter telling her he wanted to go home, but he realized now how badly he needed a to bathe after the events of the past twenty-four hours.

He went directly to the bathhouse and exchanged his filthy clothes for a towel. The pool was virtually empty, there were only a few boys using the tubs, and no one in the showers. He decided the pool felt the most private, as he was obscured by the heavy steam and cloudy green water. He threw his towel down onto a bench and climbed the stairs into the pool.

The warm embrace of the water was a welcome sensation after having spent so long being extremely cold. He scrubbed himself vigorously everywhere with a fresh pumice stone and he felt so much better as the hot salty water cleansed his pores. He dipped his head beneath water and scrubbed his head as well. When he reemerged and cleared his eyes, he opened them to find Radu staring down out him with a hungry grin. He immediately jumped back against the wall of the pool and sunk lower into the water, as if trying to hide. Radu burst into laughter, running his fingers through his own inky black hair.

"Are you always here?" Henri asked.

"I like to be clean," said Radu.

"How did you know I was here?"

"I could smell you the moment you walked in. You smelled like sex," he said this with a bright toothy smile and a perverted arrogance that reminded Henri of Andrea. "Oh, I can also read your thoughts."

Henri rolled his eyes, deciding to get out and leave. He turned to find the steps and Radu grabbed his wrist, much like the last time they were here. "Tell me, who was it?" he asked. Henri could not control the images that came to his mind then and he watched as Radu's eyes widened in horror. He let go of Henri's arm and Henri felt nothing but the instinct to escape. He did not look back as climbed from the pool and found his dirty clothes in the locker, pulling them on quickly.

He walked so briskly to his dorm that he was almost running. When he got there, he found Andrea studying at his desk. Studying, after all they had gone through that night, like nothing had happened at all.
"Where have you been?" he asked.

"We buried the skull, like we said," Henri answered.

"Where? In Germany?"

"Doesn't it bother you at all what just happened? We covered up the murder of three people."

"One of those people was a rogue vampire, and the other two were vampire hunters. We did the world a great service tonight. We're going to be honored."

"We are?"

"I don't know exactly what's going to happen, but Adali thinks we'll get some sort of praise for remedying the situation. She has to be right. No one else took the initiative to stop that vampire."

"We didn't stop anything!"

"Oh would you shut up," Andrea said. "No one thinks your whining is cute."

Henri sat down at his desk and pulled out a sheet of paper and a pen. He wrote to his mother, telling her he was not quite ready to give up on Tudor Rose, but asking her to explain their family history so he could better understand what was going on. He took the letter to the basket on the ground floor where student letters were taken to be mailed out, and felt a sense of relief wash over him. That was until he turned around to find Radu cel Rāu standing on the staircase, staring at him with a grim expression.