Chapter Text
Luke ignored the annoyance he felt when he saw Joffrey eating the egg and bacon he had cooked for him at a snail’s place, all because his little brother couldn’t put the damn phone down, even at breakfast.
‘’Joffrey’’, he called for the umpteenth time in a firm voice, ‘’You’d better hurry or the school won’t hesitate to give you detention, even if it’s your first day.’’
He only received a hum in response- well, as audible as a hum could be with a mouthful of food, just chew for Seven’s sake, how hard can it be- making him roll his eyes.
As annoyed at he was the slug movements- his sibling was not a morning person- he couldn’t help the proud feeling which emanated in his chest as he looked at his baby brother, who wasn’t a baby anymore, but a boy of sixteen about to experience his first day of High School.
He drank another sip of his coffee as Jace made his way out of his room, clad in a business suit- a very unusual sight from his regular jeans, T-shits, and sweats, but not an unexpected one.
His brother was aiming for an internship at the branch of Velaryon Co. In Kings Landing.
It was quite early- a whole year early in fact- for him to apply for a job, he hadn’t even completed his degree in business management yet.
But times were dire, they needed the money, which made any and all opportunities worth a try, no matter how hopeless all of it seemed.
They just needed to hold on, make it through the rough patch.
It would all be fine, eventually.
Hopefully.
‘’How do I look?’’, Jace asked while straightening his tie and smoothing down the half updo he had managed to put his hair into.
The rogue brother spoke up with his mouth still full before he could.
‘’Like an old man.’’
Both of them just watched him with blank expressions, giving up with a sigh once Joffrey busied himself with his phone again.
He walked over to this brother, giving him a reassuring smile.
‘’Just be confident and yourself,’’ he straightened his blazer, ‘’I’m sure they’ll like you.’’
Joffrey spoke up again.
‘’Say, isn’t that company owned by the purebreds? What are they called? Targaryens?’’
‘’Velaryons’’, Jace amended, moving to put on his coat, which hung by the rack, ‘’there’s more than one family of pure-blooded vampires.’’
‘’Isn’t that dangerous?’’, Joffrey questions-finally swallowing down the egg, seriously how many bites doe it take-,’’I’ve heard some of them are mad, ya know? Cuckoo in head.’’
Jace sighed.
‘’Good Luck.’’, he wished, gods knew his brother needed it.
They all did.
‘Good luck to you too, you’re gonna check out that night cafe tonight, yeah?’’
‘’Yeah.’’, he lied through his teeth, fully aware that his brother would have a heart attack if he knew the actual place he was going to.
He looked at Joffrey’s figure again, the sight making him ache- for a very good reason- as he stepped towards Jace in the small apartment, whispering words which were only meant for the two of them.
‘’Hey,’’ he ensured his little brother wasn’t paying attention, ‘’Any idea when’s the social worker going to visit?’’
Jace took a deep breath, just as troubled as him.
‘’I don’t know, the best thing we can do is prepare, and hopefully be employed as soon as possible.’’
Luke nodded, fully aware of the gravity of the situation.
‘’All right, I’m off now,’’ His elder brother put on his gloves- just another curse of being a warm-blooded creature- before walking out.
Luke rolled his eyes.
‘’Jace!’’ he managed to call out just before his brother could leave, ‘’Keys.’’ he reminded exasperatedly, Jace’s habit of forgetting things looking like something which couldn’t be fixed anytime soon.
The eldest walked back in sheepishly- just enough to reach for the keychain, hooking it in the knuckles of his fingers before he disappeared.
He clapped his hands to get the teenager’s attention.
‘’Off with you too, lazy bones, I’ve gotta clean up and head out.’’
Joffrey yawned before following the same path Jace did-swinging his bag over his shoulder, in true high schooler fashion-flashing a peace sign before making his exit.
‘’Adios!’’
Luke sighed once again and rolled up his sleeves-ready to attack the dishes soiled from breakfast.
**
The university he attended (School of Law- Kings Landing University) was one which had long adapted the hybrid system.
The hybrid system representing the fact that it was occupied by humans during the day, and vampires during the night.
He wondered-quite often- how this place filled with cheer, laughter and carelessness looked like during the dead of the night.
Were the vampires as cheerful as them?
Did they laugh?
Did they worry about their future as much as humans did?
Or did they possess a more serious persona?
The famous immortals in positions of power certainly seemed like it.
Though he supposed living for centuries on end will do that to a person.
The mortals couldn’t comprehend the perspective of a boundless existence, and in return, the immortals couldn’t reconcile the short lives humans lived- at least by vampire standards.
‘’What’s cooking?’’
He jolted and nearly stumbled in his walk in the hallway when he heard that familiar voice-too close to his ear-barely surviving as a cold hand caught his arm, breaking his fall before he fell on the harsh tiles.
‘’Seven hells!’’, he looked up to see an expected sight, a man with pale skin and the hair on his head totally covered with a black hoodie while his eyes remained hidden behind his sunglasses, ‘’You gave me a heart attack, Addam.’’
The culprit only shrugged, falling into step with him as they walked to their class of constitutional law.
‘’Oh, please, like a measly heart attack would be enough to put you down,’’ he nudged him with his elbow, lips breaking out into a meaningful grin, ‘’strong boy.’’
He only sighed at the remark while ignoring the plethora of people making no attempt to hide the way they cowered or went out of their way to clear a path for them.
He didn’t blame them, as horrifying as a normal vampire was, purebreds existed on an entirely different plane of existence.
He still couldn’t believe it, the fact that he was friends with a vampire, it felt completely normal on some days and absolutely surreal on others.
But Addam wasn’t the usual sort of vampire-though, admittedly his experiences with other immortals were few and far in between- he didn’t prefer hanging out with his own kind, he didn’t prefer the company of humans either, as far as he knew, he was an exception.
The purebred didn’t attend the night university-though he couldn’t understand why, coming out during the day was a hassle for his kind- instead using his family connections to secure a place in the day classes.
Their friendship had bloomed in an unexpected way when Addam had saved Luke from a group of bullies who wanted him to give up his assignment to them-simply because those lazy fucks couldn’t be bothered to write original content. Seriously, how did they even get into law school? Fire the person who did that, it would do the world better.
Everyone had known better than to bother him after that, the vampire’s friendship was a shield that granted him immunity from other bullies and any other potential friends he could make if they weren’t scared shitless of him- or more precisely, the man who had styled himself as his guard dog of sorts.
It didn’t bother him, he didn’t require friendships, all he needed was to get independent as soon as possible, for the sake of his brothers- especially Joff.
‘’Shall I run us there?’’, Addam suggested.
‘’Absolutely not,’’ he could almost feel the nausea creeping in his throat, ‘’I threw up everything I ate for breakfast the last time you did that.’’
The vampire chuckled.
‘’I still don’t know how you guys do it,’’ he put his hands in the pockets of his hoodie, ‘’I don’t know how I’d live my life without super speed.’’
Luke shrugged.
‘’Can’t miss what you don’t have.’’
Addam put a hand around his shoulder, pulling him close as they continued their long march, the cold seeping him from his jacket where the vampire’s skin touched him.
**
Luke walked with languid steps along the pavement at 10 pm that night.
The street wasn’t desolate, perse, but there was a distinct lack of people at this time of night.
It was expected, the dark was filled with dangerous creatures, and the humans preferred to conclude their matters before the light fell.
The days were theirs.
The nights belonged to them.
He wasn’t supposed to be out either, he had always been in the comfort of his home by now.
But tonight was different, it was an opportunity.
If he was lucky enough, that is.
He swallowed, looking at the map on the app he had opened on the screen, confirming the fact that he was heading in the right direction.
The directions lead him to a mansion- the architecture modern and new-where he stood outside for a couple of minutes, rethinking his decision of responding to the advert.
The advert, which had appeared on the paper when he had been browsing for part-time jobs.
The position was for a paralegal, nothing unusual- a role he could easily fulfill, plenty of law students worked side jobs, whether it be for experience or just money in general.
What was unusual was the fact that it had been offered by a vampire- a lawyer- who worked alone from the solitude of his home-mansion apparently- and was looking for extra assistance.
He could hardly believe the last line on the piece of paper.
Humans and vampires both welcome to apply.
What he also couldn’t comprehend was how generous the payout was-almost double the usual salary for paralegals.
It wasn’t a wise choice to mail his CV.
It wasn’t wise to respond to the follow up- which asked him to walk in for an interview anywhere between sunset and sunrise.
It was all sketchy and too good to be true, he knew that.
But he was desperate at this point.
He needed the money.
The only facts he knew about his would-be boss were follows:
1.He was a vampire.
2.He was a lawyer.
3.He needed help with grunt work.
And the fact that he didn't even know his name did nothing to ease his anxiety about the whole situation.
Seriously, was his sense of self-preservation currently on a break? A long vacation in Essos?
He only hoped the man in question wasn’t a purebred.
Working for a vampire is neither smart nor safe.
Working for a purebred vampire, however......
You might as well dig your grave now, save everyone the trouble.
Their reputation was anything but good. People called them volatile, mad, mysterious and accused them of being involved in shady stuff.
They were all rich too, for some strange reason.
Scratch that, they were rich because they had more than enough lifetimes to lay considerable funds at their disposal.
He bit the bullet and walked in the front yard; his steps heavy over the cement path which cut the grass.
The mansion was eerie, quiet, and dark with not a single light in sight.
Nothing surprising.
The vampires didn’t need them for visibility anyways, they could see in the dark.
He took one last breath before pressing his finger on the doorbell.
All while repeating the same prayer in his head.
Please don’t be a purebred, please don’t be a purebred, please don’t be a purebred........
A few moments passed in silence as he stood there, his heart beating in equal parts of trepidation and anticipation, the smoke leaving his mouth from the cold as he exhales.
The door opened to reveal a tall and lean stranger who wore an eye-patch, his lone violet eye shining in the night as the darkness of the place behind him seemed like an endless black hole.
He had silver hair.
The unequivocal proof of being a pure-blooded vampire.
Luke gulped.
Seriously?
Fuck his luck.