North American Vampire Council & Past Calling (Hypernaturals 12 & 13)

Lover, Not Sex'er

Angel has a different plan than the one Jessica and Morgan cooked up in the woods.

After our frolic in nature, I went back to the Crew HQ and set myself up at a desk. We may use the shower later, but I like having the reminder of Morgan and Jessica on my skin. One nice thing about being Vampire-sensed is not merely that I have the scent of sex on me, but that I can tell who it was with. It does not take my hyper sense upgrades either. Any Vampire has that. Jessica has remarked to me in the past she likes smelling like us too. We eventually have to shower because oxidation makes scents go off. Become musty. The old joke about never washing your hand because you just shook hands with an idol has a unique flavor at this intensity of sensorium.

Love is a lather, rinse, repeat operation. Given our tendencies, we are very good with that. It does occasionally make me wonder what Vampires of a million years ago were like. Did they love, jump in a creek, love?

Alone in the office, no protector in sight, I read a summary report about construction issues with the bunkhouse: Nothing major. A construction review. A report by someone not involved in the actual building of the facility looking around for easy to overlook items. Things like 'Upon review, we found a spot on a handrail in the hall that required the paint being touched up' or 'Furniture installation accidentally gouged a portion of the drywall in the hallway. Mudded, sanded, repainted' and 'The door seal on room 27 was found to have been installed incorrectly. Replaced rather than repaired due to some rubber tearing.'

All BS I could have read back home. Nothing I am going to get involved with, but Denise and Anne always feel like they have to tell me this kind of stuff. I am here, so I might as well check this stuff off now.

It is trivia like this that makes being Crew Secretary so rewarding. Anne and Denise already read this stuff. I keep telling them that they are the Leads. They keep telling me that I am the boss. I'm stubborn, and so are they. On average, the work on the bunkhouse was pretty good. A Vampire construction Crew, which is to say a company, owned and operated by Vampires, staffed by Vampires, and even a Siren or two. Even with pretty much the most powerful workers on the planet, fully equipped with extra keen senses, things are overlooked. The Bunkhouse is a big building with lots of build-out details.

A Vampire woman from the Czech Republic reported that the door handle to the bathroom door came off in her hand. This caused a re-review of ALL the door handles, and a re-specification of the part because it is too builder grade for Vampires in a hurry to get into the restroom.

In her case the urgency was she needed to get done with her call of nature, because she had a boy Vampire in her bed, waiting. She was so thrilled: A Vampire for over one hundred years, but never experienced a boy Vampire. Someone that might not be delicate! So: Broken door handle.

I like that women get in a hurry for sex sometimes. I know that is an echo of poor societal messaging about men versus women in that area, and that I bought into it. I know from my family it absolutely is not true. I know from Anne inviting Denise and me to her bed with Nico, or Victoria telling me I am welcome any time in her bed that female interest exists outside my family. That we are not the exception.

Having such a tangible demonstration of eagerness is still oddly reassuring.

Angel poked her head in the exterior door. "Got a second?"

Oh, thank all the gods! "Always. Come on in."

Angel came around and perched on the desk, and looked down at me in the desk chair. I am going to be giving her my full attention. "I want to make a change."

"Wow. That would be new because nothing in my life has changed in years." I replied, softening the sarcasm with a warm expression.

I touched the place where Catori is growing. Said nothing. Wondered who this little girl is going to be. Vampire/Astral mix. Angel for her mama. All my kids are different from each other. Who is this?