Patreon LogoYour support makes Blue Moon possible (Patreon)

How to Care for Your Human [Degu x Kekse]

Shade nodded and quickly went to his study, putting down his paperwork and scythe before returning to the living room to join Eve. "Did you manage to have a pleasant day with the place all to yourself? I hope you found enough to eat. And I see you didn't tear open all the presents the moment I left. That's good, very good." The reaper smiled and sat down on the chair on the other side of the room, still allowing the human her space. "But I would hope that you are at least curious?"

He began picking up packages from underneath the tree and piling them on the couch next to Eve. Large ones, small ones, light ones, heavy ones...Most children would be jealous of the large pile of gifts that the reaper had purchased for his pet. Just because she hadn't been wanted didn't mean he had to be unpleasant, right? Besides, that obnoxious werewolf that served as his best friend would inevitably show up at some point to check how they were getting on, and he didn't want to appear as if he was neglecting his gift.

"Alright, I think that's all of them. Go ahead, open away. Hopefully I managed to guess what you might enjoy with at least some of these...if not, well. I believe you humans say 'it's the thought that counts'?" He offered Eve a cheeky smile and gestured to the presents, excitement managing to build in his belly. Part of him almost offered to take her to get other things if she didn't like these...but he remembered how much human money he had already spent in the last few days and kept his mouth shut. The brightly colored packages caught the light and the sound of paper ripping filled the air.

Shade watched with interest, earnestly searching Eve's face for a reaction with each gift. It was then he realized that despite his millennia of ferrying humans and reading their literature...he really had no idea about their body language. But she hadn't thrown any of them at him, so surely that had to be a good sign?
 
"A little curious." Eve was almost embarrassed to admit it as the reaper began to pile gifts onto the couch, her eyes going wide as she realized they just kept coming and coming. Had there been that many the last time she'd looked? Had she even bothered to look that closely, or had she been too busy ping ponging all over the place as she tried to adjust to her new life?

"Uh.. Yeah, I guess we do say that." She stared at the pile of presents nearly sliding off the couch beside her as he stood there watching expectantly, her cheeks heating up as she realized she needed to actually start opening them. What was wrong with her? She hastily grabbed one of the larger ones to try and create some room, working at the seam where he'd taped it and tearing straight down the package.

The notepad inside of it was huge, and she looked around for a minute before dropping the wrapping paper on the floor. She could just create a neat little pile and then clean it up after, right? The other large package turned out to be another, slightly smaller notepad, both full of blank pages that she could do whatever she wanted on. The smaller packages, well, he had wisely divided them up and wrapped each individual thing in its own paper to spread it out, and the more paper that ended up on the floor, the more art supplies sat beside her.

Pencils, pens, markers and colored pencils, then there were crayons, paints, and even a set of brushes! Eve found herself at a loss for what to say as she looked between the hoard of art supplies and the reaper who had purchased them, her cheeks reddening again as she realized she'd been grinning like a fool upon realizing everything was all hers. Had she been sitting there with a silly grin on her face the whole time?

"Thank you." She couldn't just sit there with a dumb expression on her face and say nothing, especially not when he'd gone out of his way to get her so much. When she had mentioned some supplies for sketching, she certainly hadn't expected half of the art department to come back with him! "It's perfect, I love it all."

The last three days couldn't have possibly prepared her for this. It was just one unexpected thing after another, from having a good, comfortable bed, to having the run of the house while Shade was at work, to having all the freedom she wanted as long as it was inside the house and she wasn't trying to reach out to people. She could eat, read, shower and sleep whenever she wanted, but this was entirely new. This was something she had enjoyed in her old life and she was being given the opportunity to return to some semblance of normality.

"Oh god, seriously?" She could feel the moisture on her face and wiped hastily at her eyes with an embarrassed expression. "Ignore that, I'm crazy. I didn't think anyone would do something this nice after how long I was stuck there." She made quick work of wiping at her wet eyes and laughed, picking up one of the notepads and cradling it to her chest.

"Thank you."
 
Eve's reaction was exactly what Shade had hoped for. Well...at least, it was as happy as he had hoped for. It felt a little bit strange; he was used to humans crying around him, but usually it was out of fear or sadness. This was the first time someone was crying out of genuine happiness. Not gratefulness for finally being out of pain or the end of suffering; no, this was actual happiness. He felt a smile spreading across his own face. "You are quite welcome. It's my job to keep you safe, comfortable, happy, and well taken care of after all."

"Would you like help carrying those to your room? And did I forget anything you might need? I think I got all the basics, but I can't say I'm super familiar with the art methods of this century. The last time I attempted it was back in the renaissance. It was all the rage, you know." The reaper chuckled softly and continued sitting on the couch until Eve gave him a yes or a no. The last thing he wanted was to upset her again.

Especially since something strange was happening. He felt...a strange new emotion. It was completely illogical and he didn't even know reapers could feel such a thing. He felt what he could only describe as "fondness." Shade looked at Eve and felt a warmth spreading through his chest where a human would keep their heart. It was such an odd feeling that he wasn't entirely sure what to do. Was this normal??? Even with friends like Howl, he had never felt such a strong emotion.

But it was so pleasant that all he could think about was finding ways to continue feeling this way. He watched Eve with soft eyes as she sorted through her gifts, racking his brain. Would she even want him to get closer to her? Or would she be happier if he just let her continue doing her own thing in the house? There wasn't really much of a way to know, short of asking...so he took a deep breath, looked Eve in the eyes, and began to speak.

"I have tomorrow off. Was there anything you might like to do? With me? I mean, if you'd rather have the day to yourself to enjoy your art supplies that's totally fine. But if you wanted to go out or something we totally could." Shade didn't realize he was rambling; his brain was so scrambled from this turn of events within himself that he was barely cognizant of anything other than the human in front of him.
 
"No, I can do it myself." It would take her multiple trips, but she wanted to treasure holding them, touching them and knowing they were hers. She had just started to get off the couch when he spoke again, catching her off guard with the question and making her freeze in place. He was asking what she wanted to do during the day? Well, it wasn't like he needed to sleep to have it suddenly throw off his sleep schedule, but what on earth would she want to do when given the actual choice and freedom? Well, as close to freedom as someone who was owned could get, but it was still a drastic change from the lack of it in her previous dwelling.

"I don't know..." She hesitated, gripping the notepad tighter and frowning. "I haven't been out in so long I wouldn't even know. I'll think on it, though. For now, I'll get everything put away so I don't leave a mess out here." She finally stood from the couch and leaned down to pick up the other notepad before disappearing into her room with them, setting them down carefully against the wall before returning to scoop up another armful of supplies and repeat the process.

Once everything was put away she scrambled for all of the wrapping paper she'd left laying around, gathering it up and disposing of it in the trash before grabbing herself a drink. She stood in the living room uncertainly with the glass of water, taking a sip before daring to look at Shade and offering a small smile.

"I don't.. I don't even know what humans are allowed to do around here, honestly. I don't know what there is to do around here period."
 
Shade watched as Eve reverently moved each of her gifts to her room, a smile still lingering on the corners of his mouth. He sat back on the couch and lightly rested his ankle on his knee, foot bobbing softly. He considered her response to his inquiry, pleased that she hadn't outright declined. "Well, it depends on what you like to do. And as long as you don't break anything, you're allowed to do anything that anyone else in our city can do. Plenty of residents present as human, anyway, so it's not like anyone is going to question you."

The reaper's mild eyes met Eve's and lingered there. "We have art galleries, museums, sports, parks, arcades, shopping, movie theaters...just about anything you could find on the human side of creation. And honestly, if you think human artists and athletes are good, you should see the skill of someone who has been painting for centuries. Or someone who has played the sport since it was invented. There are some beautiful human-created things, but I don't feel like I'm too biased saying we have even better."

Images of outings began running through Shade's mind. Sunny days in the zoo, the scent of popcorn and the roar of a crowd in a stadium...the loud music of a concert and the smile she would surely have on her face. Fondness continued to grow as he considered all the things they could do. Never before had he had any desire to explore the entertainment side of society; truth be told, his entire existence had been work and sitting at home with his individual hobbies.

But having a companion (as reluctant as she may be) to explore life with made things sound much more fun. Was...was Howl on to something when he said that Shade needed to spend less time alone? He sighed to himself and shook his head. "If there's something you really like, I'm sure we can figure something out."
 
"Someone that's painted for centuries?" That sounded like something worth seeing. The part of her that fawned over art demanded that she see such skill, see the artwork of someone who had honed their skills over hundreds of years. Why was he looking at her like that while he described everything, though? Was he looking to try and see which subjects caught her interest? Was there something on her face that she wasn't aware of? He had been smiling just before, if the glance she'd snuck while cleaning up had seen correctly.

"That depends..." She spoke cautiously, uncertain if it was even worth bringing up the possibility of an art related outing. "Do the art galleries require that you dress up super fancy and act proper just to attend?" While her curiosity demanded she see this work, the other part of her brain rebelled at the thought of having to dress in formal wear just to get in the door, let alone reign in her commentary to appease the surrounding audience.
 
The question made Shade laugh, though he quickly regained his composure. "Only if we went to the fancy ones on the other side of town. Sounds like you'd be more comfortable at the art museum on 24th. It's mostly copies and replicas while the originals are in the gallery, though." His smile returned and he pulled a phone from his pocket.

"Looks like they have tours that begin every hour starting at 11am. It's about a 45 minute drive, give or take. Would you like me to purchase tickets?"
 
"Tomorrow morning?" That was fast, but it seemed like a better alternative than sitting inside his home all day... Right? He was offering her more freedom than she'd ever had in the last year, giving her choices on what she wanted to do. Not just allowing her out of the house with him, but allowing her to choose the activity they'd do... Right after he'd showered her with an entire pile of gifts just because he could. Was this how pets felt?

"I wouldn't mind going, if I can dress normally, yeah. I'm not going to get poked or prodded by any of your curious friends that happen to be there, am I?" Having her introduction to any of his friends be the wolf of all people had not left a good impression, and between her "training" and brief encounter with Howl, she wasn't sure what to expect from acquaintances of the reaper.
 
"Yes, tomorrow morning. Since that's the day I have off." Shade chuckled softly and confirmed his purchase. "There we go. I chose a tour later in the afternoon so we wouldn't have to rush. You can wear whatever you want and while I can't make any promises about anyone else in the museum, it's not really that much different than you being unable to promise that nobody in a regular human city is going to do something rude or idiotic." His eyes seemed to linger on Eve, however, as if he was carefully considering something. There was one sure-fire way to make sure she blended in with the rest of the museum attendees...but was it too soon?

While it seemed he was looking at the girl, his eyes were actually focused on the collar around her neck. Even though he had never needed it (and honestly hadn't even touched the remote for it since Howl handed it to him), he still wasn't quite sure if taking her out in public without it was asking for trouble. Then again, where was she going to go in a city full of what she deemed 'monsters'? The reaper sighed and decided to make a proposal.

"Shall we make a deal? The easiest way to ensure that everyone leaves us alone (aside from the fact that reapers aren't exactly the most well-loved citizens anyway) is for you to blend in. And the only thing keeping you from blending in...is that collar. If you promise not to run off or attack anyone at the museum, I would be willing to leave it in the car."
 
"I know, there are idiots everywhere." She sighed and shook her head, wondering why he was looking at her like that again. He was staring an awful lot now that he'd given her gifts and was offering her some freedom in the form of entertainment. Was he watching her so closely because this was a test, and she needed to answer very carefully lest she fail?

"Hm?" The mention of a deal caught her interest, and she gave him her full attention as he went on to propose the absolute last thing she had expected. A small noise left her mouth as she dropped the glass, cursing and immediately crouching down to snatch it up and survey the mess she had made. The glass itself hadn't broken, but it was now completely empty and the floor was soaked where it had landed.

"Fuck!" Standing and disappearing into the kitchen with another curse and hands that were beginning to shake, Eve set it on the counter and hurriedly grabbed a small towel to take back out and dab at the puddle. "I'll clean it up, I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to make a mess." That was the last thing she should have done, made a mess after he'd made an offer that seemed too good to be true.

"What, like take it off when we're inside and put it back on when we leave?"
 
Though Eve's reaction seemed to be positive, the sound of the glass striking the floor and the water spreading made him uncomfortable. Before he could get up to get a towel to clean it up, however, the human rushed away. "It's not a big deal. It's just water," he called after her, concern creasing his brow. The reaper took the towel from Eve and spread it over the puddle to allow it to soak it up, stepped on it a little to speed up the process, and tossed it back in the general direction of the kitchen. He would pick it up later...

He nodded at her question. "Yes. And if it goes well, we can see where we go from there. I mean, we haven't really used it at all up to this point so I'm not sure how much of a purpose it really serves. I know it's a risk, but it's a risk I'm willing to take. If the museum goes well, perhaps we could put the thing away when we're at home." Shade honestly wasn't quite sure why he was suddenly so willing to remove the only thing that was supposed to keep an unruly pet under control. And she certainly had been unruly when she arrived...

But she had been spending all day home alone ever since she arrived, and she hadn't broken anything or attempted to run away. And she hadn't been nasty to him in days...so perhaps that was giving him the courage to give her a little bit of rope. Worst case scenario he enlisted the assistance of security to subdue her and snapped the collar back on, right? It's not like a human could do that much damage to the citizens of the city.
 
That seemed a bit confusing. Test her reaction and behavior in public, and if that went well then she wouldn't have to wear it at home, just in public from then on out? Did that mean that she would always be required to wear it when they were in public and their dynamic needed to be established, or that she would eventually not have to wear it at all? Technically none of that was going to matter until he actually took it off for the first time and she knew he was serious. For all Eve knew, he could back out at the last minute and leave it on her for their entire trip. The only upside to that possibility was that he'd at least made her a padding so that it didn't rub her neck raw anymore.

"Yeah, that's fine." She stood and cleared her throat, glancing toward where he'd thrown the towel before shrugging. "I, uh, think I'm gonna make something to eat and settle in for the night. Maybe play around with the stuff you got me." So long as she didn't make a mess of the walls or floors, she doubted he cared if she was up late playing around with paints or pencils.

"So you like... Don't eat or drink at all? I'm just going to be eating by myself whenever I do it?"
 
"I don't technically have the same type of physical body that you do, so I don't need food or water, no. I can eat if I so choose, but it doesn't have any benefits." Shade settled into his chair and picked up a book that he had been reading while Eve slept, thumbing through until he found his page. "I suppose if eating alone bothers you, I could join you." His voice was mild and contained a bit of a smile. "I'd love to see what you make with your art supplies, if you feel like showing me."

He gave her a physical smile this time and settled into his book, allowing Eve to do again as she wished without feeling like she had to include him in her plans if she didn't want to. As an independent being for so long, he felt it necessary to ensure that she got as much alone time as she wished. It didn't really cross his mind to ask if she actually wanted him to leave her to her own devices, but from her reaction when he arrived, he figured it was a safe bet.

The night was quiet; Shade finished his book and retired to his office when Eve disappeared into her room. He spent the dark hours of the night researching the museum, the art it contained, and what other activities were nearby. They had the entire day, after all, and there wasn't really a reason to come directly home afterward. Unless Eve had a fit or something...But at the very least, he should plan on feeding her since the museum would probably take at least a couple of hours to go through and see everything. By the time the morning sun rose, he had a list of possible activities written on a scrap of paper in his pocket and a wad of cash in his wallet for any expenses.
 
"You don't have to eat with me, it's okay." She shook her head, giving him a hesitant look as he brought up the art supplies and her future art. "Yeah, maybe sometime, if I finish anything." For all Eve knew, she might have lost what artistic talent she'd had before, after spending all of that time locked away for "training" purposes. She certainly hoped not, because not only would that be incredibly depressing, but then Shade would have wasted all the money he'd spent on supplies for nothing. At the very least, things could be returned if it turned out she'd lost any artistic flair, right?

Once she had gotten some food in her belly she skittered off to the other room, sorting through the different supplies and trying to determine what she wanted to start with. One would think she would have dove right in after so long of being without, but Eve stared at them with a frown for some time as she went back and forth between different choices.

In the end, she spent some time sketching. Or trying to sketch, really, but the first few turned out terrible and she spent some time scrubbing an eraser across it before giving up and crumpling up the one paper entirely. Clearly that wasn't going to go well, and she didn't feel like getting the paints out in the middle of the night. Maybe she could just scribble random nonsense until she got tired enough to sleep, see if anything came of it or she could concoct a doodle that would be useful later.

The night passed without incident, albeit without any success either, but Eve finally got some sleep before the sun came up. She woke groggily, stumbling out of the bedroom with her hair a mess and half mumbling to herself. There was a brief moment of confusion when she saw Shade not dealing with anything work related, then she shook her head and continued into the kitchen to start making coffee.

"I didn't oversleep, did I?"
 
Shade nodded and turned the page of his book. "Art isn't always about the finished product. As long as you're enjoying yourself, then the supplies were money well spent."

When Eve stumbled out into the kitchen, Shade looked up from yet another book and shook his head. "Nope, it's still fairly early. We don't have to leave for another two hours or so. Did you get some sleep?" His voice was mild and inquisitive, his eyes strangely soft. "I looked up a few other things we could do today, if you wish. Including a few restaurants. But I realized I don't exactly know what foods you prefer yet, so I made a list and what they serve so you can tell me what sounds good."

He waved the list casually and set it on the side table for Eve to check out at her leisure after she had her cup of coffee. Shade swapped his book for a tablet and scrolled through BooTube, his eyes flickering over the lines of videos before settling on some documentary style video about vampires in ancient Babylon. The soft, slightly droning voice filled the room with a low level hum. The reaper only half paid attention; he was still quite interested in Eve's actions. She was so much different than Howl, despite him being 'human' all but one day a month.
 
"Some sleep." She nodded absently and watched the coffee beginning to drip into the pot with a yawn. Next time she needed to set it ahead of time so she didn't have to go through all the effort when she was barely awake. "More things?" Eve definitely needed to wake up more for a conversation about doing more things together, but she made a small effort to acknowledge him and the paper he was waving around before he turned to the tablet.

He'd made a list?

She might have expected him to write down some essential information for himself, but not to make a list for her. Did he mean he'd made a list of possible activities period, or just of places they could eat? Wouldn't be it awkward sitting there with someone who didn't need to eat, or did that mean he was going to do it for the appearance just to make her feel more comfortable? There were so many questions, and she wasn't nearly awake enough for them yet.

Once the coffee was finished and she'd gotten a couple sips out of the cup, only then did Eve go out to the living room to pick up the paper he'd waved at her before. It seemed to mostly list restaurants she hadn't even heard of before, but he'd gone so far as to list some of their specialties which helped to immediately rule some of them out. She hadn't even had breakfast, why was she looking at possible lunch or breakfast options?

"Are you watching something about vampires?" She finally spoke up from the far end of the couch, leaning just slightly in his direction to try and peer at the screen. "Are they really immortal?"
 
Shade nodded and tilted the screen so Eve could see it better. "Yup, I am. But as for whether or not they're immortal, well...that depends on how you define it. Left to their own devices, their bodies will never fail like most 'living' things do. But that doesn't mean that they cannot die. For example, the radiation from the sun disrupts their cellular structure and unbalances their system, causing their bodies to fail. They also struggle when their organs are sufficiently damaged. That's why humans have the half-myth-half-truths of how to beat them."

He placed the tablet on a stand on the table so Eve could watch with him if she chose. The narrator discussed the rise and fall of the Babylonian vampire coven, how they managed to coexist with the humans there, and what happened when Babylon fell. "A few members of the original coven are said to still exist somewhere, but they have chosen to remain hidden away from the rest of their kind. While the modern vampire has found a way to integrate into human society (favorites being overnight hospital, morgue, and blood bank shifts), the old family struggled with societal change. The last reports of a member of the Vaughn coven being seen occurred in 1453. Perhaps someday they will be rediscovered and we can learn more about this elusive and ancient family."

The closing theme of the show played and Shade turned off the tablet, glancing at the clock on the wall. They had about an hour or so left before they needed to leave. Shade stood and headed for his room. "I'm going to go take a shower and find something suitable to wear. Get your breakfast and whatnot and we'll go whenever you're ready." He flashed her a smile and disappeared into the mostly-unused bedroom, rifled through the assortment of clothing he had acquired throughout the centuries (truth be told he'd only kept his favorite outfit from each century and did his best to maintain a current wardrobe), and headed in to the shower.

It didn't take long for the reaper to wash away the grime that stuck to his physical form and change into a casual t-shirt and shorts. He glanced in the mirror and shrugged, wondering how the clothing peasants wore in medieval Europe had come back into style, albeit a bit less worn out and much more colorful. When finished, he slid his keys and wallet into his pocket before sitting back down on the couch to again scroll through the day's news.
 
"Huh, okay. That's weird, but okay I guess. Good to know I could technically kill a vampire if I had to." Not that she really had a specific reason to, but it was worth knowing the weaknesses of creatures far stronger than her in case of self defense. Then again, she couldn't imagine Shade allowing someone to harm her, if only for the fact that she was his property to care for and it would reflect badly on him.

"I'm not going to cry about not seeing a bunch of ancient vampires, I'll tell you that. All the ones I met at the shelter were assholes." She scowled slightly as the show ended but made no effort to further complain about the night dwelling species. "You don't eat, but you shower?" That seemed a bit weird, but who was she to judge the man that was about to take her out to something she would hopefully enjoy?

"Alright, take your time." With the tablet off and the reaper in the bathroom, Eve set to making herself something small and simple to eat before they started their day. She had no idea how long the tour was going to last, where they may end up after that, or if anything else was planned without her knowledge. Better to fill her stomach somewhat so she didn't starve for the remainder of the day until their return.

By the time Shade came back out dressed and settled on the couch, she was eating her food and wandering around to get dressed properly for the start of their day. Jeans and a plain shirt seemed like a good enough outfit considering he wasn't dressing up for their trip, and once she was satisfied with her appearance she approached the reaper slowly.

"I'm ready."
 
Shade chuckled, finding it oddly endearing that Eve was pleased with her new knowledge of vampire slaying. "You certainly could. But I wouldn't care about seeing them, either. Let's just say that the undead don't exactly have a soft spot in their hearts for my kind. I'm sure you can imagine why." He couldn't help another chuckle from slipping through his lips before he disappeared into the bathroom. When he returned, he nodded approvingly at her breakfast and choice of outfit.

"Looks good to me. I've got the keys, so let's go." He jingled the keys, to which he had added the little silver key to her collar, and headed for the garage door. Once both of them were through, he closed it behind them and locked it securely. The reaper sported a similarly casual outfit; a pair of khaki pants and a polo with sunglasses tucked between the buttons. Honestly he could have passed as a stereotypical mid-30s dad getting ready for a day at the zoo. He unlocked the car and opened Eve's door for her, closed it behind her, and climbed into the driver's seat. The garage door rumbled open behind them and when it reached the top, Shade smiled. "Off we go."

As before, Shade gestured to the book of CDs on the floor by Eve's feet as he turned onto the main road and began heading away from their house. "Choose whatever you like. It's not too far to the museum." A strangely comfortable (to the reaper, at least) silence fell while Eve made her decision on the music and Shade began thinking about how much his life had changed in just a few short days. When had been the last time he went out on his day off to do something just for fun? He honestly couldn't remember. It was...nice.
 
Eve eyeballed the tiny, additional key on the ring as she followed along, resisting the urge to touch the collar and risk him rethinking his offer. Until the thing was actually removed from her neck, she wasn't going to consider it any kind of success, and she very much wanted to have it off of her neck, even for a small period of time. Just the thought of any kind of freedom was tantalizing.

She stepped around Shade and slipped into the car, giving him a small nod as thanks for opening the door but finding it difficult to continue to thank him verbally. The entire situation was strange, and although she'd thanked him for things before, it was taking some getting used to to admit that the person that technically owned her wasn't all that bad.

"Decisions, decisions." Of course he told her to pick, and she spent a couple of minutes mulling it over before pushing a CD into the player and settling back in the seat. The music that broke the silence was almost a relief, really, the silence was becoming uncomfortable and awkward for her as she scrambled for something to say when she didn't know where to even start! The music gave her an excuse not to talk for now, but what was she going to do when they got to the museum?
 
Shade chose not to break the comfortable peace that existed between the pair and the music. If Eve didn't have anything to say, he wasn't going to force her. Silence wasn't anything new to him, anyway. He'd lived alone for centuries with only the monthly intrusion of Howl to spice things up. His fingers tapped softly against the steering wheel in time with the music and his head bobbed slightly. He had been around from the time music was invented and had to say...it only got better as humanity progressed. Until the last couple of years, he supposed. The current thump and bump garbage with little more than noise paired with percussion did nothing for him.

The music provided enough of a distraction to keep the pair entertained until the car pulled up in front of the museum and stopped. Shade killed the engine and withdrew the keys, holding them thoughtfully in his hand for a few moments while eyeballing Eve. He had made a promise that he would remove the collar for the trip, and she had been absolutely no trouble for a few days now...the reaper shook his head and chuckled slightly as he pinched the little silver key between his fingers. He was a man of his word. Why was he even thinking rather than acting? "I'm going to get closer to unlock your collar, okay? I won't be in your personal space for too long."

He waited a moment for Eve to give some sign of permission before reaching in and sliding the little silver key into the lock. It turned easily with a distinct click, allowing Shade to slide the clasp open and pull the collar away. A twinge of nervousness pinched his gut as he awaited Eve's reaction. Would she try to run away? Attack him, like she had tried to attack Howl the first day? He doubted both, but prepared himself mentally just in case.
 
Why was he just sitting there so quietly? Eve glanced at him from the corner of her eye but made no effort to speak or leave the car, waiting patiently until she realized what he was doing. So he was going to follow through on it as long as she behaved. She took a deep breath and nodded her head, holding still as she listened to the click of the key in the lock before she felt the metal pull away from her neck. Even with the padding to cushion the way it had rubbed at her skin, nothing compared to the feeling of nothing around her neck, and she froze for a very long moment before lifting her hand to her bare throat.

"So that's what it feels like." Her fingers brushed lightly over the healing skin, still slightly irritated from so many months of wearing the damned thing. Only once she'd gotten a good feel of her own skin did she drop her hand and take another deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment to steady herself before she nodded slowly.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to do something stupid." The better she behaved, the longer they could stay out on their trip, which meant the longer she was able to go without wearing the collar. "I'll behave." Her hand hesitated on the inside of the door for a moment before she opened it and slid out of the car, squinting for a moment to adjust to the light before turning and waiting for Shade to lead the way.
 
"I know you will," Shade replied with a soft smile. He exited the car and left the offending collar sitting on the floor without so much as a backwards glance. The happiness in her eyes made him feel emotions that he didn't even know he was capable of feeling. Joy, pride, fondness...a venerable soup of warmth poured comfortingly over his heart and he averted his eyes to avoid Eve seeing him going soft. "Alright, I think the front door is this way." The reaper pulled two sheets of paper from his pocket and handed one to his companion. "This is your ticket. It's easiest to hold our own, I think."

He strolled up to the front door of the museum, grasped the bar handle, and held it open for Eve to enter. The inside of the building was very quiet and white; the ticket counter stood directly to the left of the door with the first few exhibits directly ahead. Shade went directly up to the woman behind the counter and handed her his ticket, which she scanned and handed back. "Can I see your ticket too, my dear?" the lady asked, leaning slightly over the counter to look Eve in the eye. She smiled broadly and held out her hand before looking over to Shade. "Your girlfriend is absolutely adorable, by the way. Definitely a keeper!"

Shade flushed a deep shade of red and shook his head. "Oh, no, she's not my girlfriend! She's-" He paused, remembering their trip to the store for Christmas decorations, and panicked to find an appropriate relationship label that wouldn't upset Eve and ruin their entire trip before it really even had a chance to start. The ticket lady, however, seemed to find this quite amusing and nodded knowingly.

"I see, I see. First date, am I right? Well, you better be a gentleman because this little lady is a cutie. If this guy doesn't treat you right, you let one of my boys know, okay? They'll straighten him out." She giggled slightly and scanned Eve's ticket before waving the pair of them forward. "Go enjoy yourselves! If you wish for the self-guided tour, you can find the headsets over there." She pointed toward a shelf to the left where multiple one-ear headsets hooked to small tablet-like devices waited to be used.

"Thank you," Shade replied, stepping deeper into the room and hovering near the headsets. For the self-guided tour, simply choose the name of the exhibit on the touch screen and enjoy the pre-recorded history of the piece. If you wish for a more interactive tour with one of our tour guides, speak with one of our hosts about our rent-a-guide program! read the plaque. Shade gestured toward them with a questioning look. "Do you want either of the tour options, or do you just want to wander?"
 
Eve glanced briefly at the ticket before taking it from him, keeping fairly close to the reaper's side but neglecting to create actual physical contact. Just close enough to assure him she wasn't going to bolt the moment he looked away, but far enough that she didn't have to be uncomfortable with an accidental brush against him. That effort was almost made moot when he held the door open and she had to slip through carefully, but nothing prepared her for the awkwardness that would follow quickly after.

"Oh, right." Of course the woman needed to scan the ticket. Eve held it out just in time for the woman's words to register, and her face turned a brilliant shade of red that mirrored Shade's own embarrassment. It wasn't entirely unreasonable for the woman to assume they were on a date, considering she wasn't wearing her collar and they were standing close together.

"Um, okay." Eve wasn't sure what else to say to the woman as she retreated, her head turning slightly to glance at Shade before she took a moment to observe their surroundings. Which option did she want to choose? Walking around with something playing in her ear didn't sound very appealing, but neither did selecting a rented guide who might make the very same assumptions the first woman had.

"I guess we can just wander around."
 
"Wander it is." Shade smiled and headed deeper into the first display, slightly surprised that Eve didn't take the option of the self-guided tour. He'd thought it would give her an excuse to ignore him without feeling guilty. Truth be told, though, he wasn't sad in the least that she hadn't taken it. He strolled over to a statue of a young man holding a sword, so lifelike that one could believe they saw a pulse in the marble neck. His delicately carved hair drifted in a non-existent breeze and his eyes glistened with purpose. "The Enemy Approaches," read a small placard at the base of the wooden pedestal that held the statue. "Replica, 1592CE. Original is found in the Italian Centre for the Eternal Arts, Italy. Original dated 1235CE. André Bellini carved this statue of his good friend Elán at the age of 573 after the young man died in battle."

And a good replica it was. Not quite as impressive as the original, Shade mused, but quite good. He leaned in and ran his eyes up and down the marble grain, nodding at the fine workmanship. "Pity they don't list the replica artist. I feel like they are just as good as some of the masters, but get none of the praise." The reaper shook his head and stepped out of the way to allow Eve closer access to the statue should she wish to see it and moved on to another Italian piece right next to the statue, a painting this time.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom