Dinner with a Werewolf

[IamLEAM1983]

The mention of video games intrigued him. "I'd have thought that electronic amusements would have seemed trivial."

Of course, Archie had never expressed the slightest interest in gaming's more immersive qualities and titles. For all the progress he'd done in a single night with the werewolf, it'd be a while before he took to tabletop games, much less video games. He still had problems moving his mouse around without double-checking between his hand and the screen, so he still had a ways to go before growing even slightly interested in today's multimillion juggernauts.

[TennyoCeres84]

"Well, in some ways, yes. My wolf spirit still prefers to hunt over all other activities, but video games do in a pinch," Crystal admitted. "I'd say it's a bit like the DVDs they have for indoor cats. Footage of a bird or mouse making sounds to pique the interest of the inner hunter. The urge to stalk, pounce, take down your prey. Again, it's not the real thing, but it helps to manage the instincts."

[IamLEAM1983]

"I'll admit to watching young Aidan host the occasional networked match during our lunch hours," he explained, "and I can't quite seem to understand the appeal of some of the titles he selects. Modern military fantasies seem woefully out of touch with reality to me, having more in common with the Right Wing's obsession with safeguarding the Free World from perceived threats than anything else. When light historical revisionism is suggested and the medium dips its toes into my story, I usually find myself scoffing. How little people have learned from Anastasius' defeat and re-integration within polite society astounds me. I could say the same of mister Kirilov's political and social redemption. For all of his efforts, some still relentlessly accuse him of being un-American."

He sighed. "What else is required, hm? We've both been naturalized, we've both sworn oaths to your Constitution - if I see myself as being unworthy of grandiose hero treatments, then my former villains and current allies should be deserving of proper acceptance. As for my somehow not being sufficient of a Christian, then I would have to shake my head and chuckle, as I was raised in the Anglican faith! I've seen married pastors and women give sermons, for Heaven's sake! I can't help that some of us are progressives while others would still rather drag Andrea's name through the mud because of something she had no say in, for instance."

The Clank then set his utensils aside. "And - why. That's what I would like to know. Honestly, why. I saw Oscar Wilde in his prime and watched as he tore down the establishment I represented and snogged fellow poets under the cover of moonlight! Andrea and Kate's teenage titterings and doe-eyed stares at one another are the least offensive things I've seen in my time, and I'd go so far as to say seeing them happy warms the cockles of my cynical heart."

[TennyoCeres84]

The werewolf shrugged. "We're messy, contradicting sorts, whether we're made of copper and wood or flesh and blood, I'm afraid. Andrea's faced taunts from students or glares from a teacher who viewed her as an immoral individual. All I know is that she is my daughter, and I love her. I accept who she brings into her life, as long as she isn't hurt by them. If there were to happen, the wolf would have some say in the matter," she said, sipping her tea.

[IamLEAM1983]

Archie shrugged. "Besides, it isn't as though adoption hasn't flourished as a means for non-traditional couples to start a family. Couple this with the Karthians' contributed advancements in gene mapping and you're left with quite a few things where a more rigid conservative sort than I would have had an attack. Man on man, woman on woman, woman on alien man or woman... The monocle-droppers of this day and age had better give up entirely, as their cause is lost."

Swallowing, he raised a finger. "Not that I am attempting to suggest anything, but there are even means for couples like us to have mostly natural children. There are still quite a few things that carry my DNA around this manor, or so I've been told. Place my genes in a blank carrier, let nature do the work and, well, there you go."

He smirked. "Granted, said child wouldn't have its father's mechanical magnetism," he said, feigning a snobbish streak, "but nobody is born perfect."

[TennyoCeres84]

Crystal snorted and broke of a piece of her toast, playfully tossing it at the aristocrat. "Don't let it go to your head," she joked. "Even with fertility clinics, are you up for changing diapers and burping? I'm getting on in years, so that is a concern for birth defects. And children with werewolf blood are a handful, even Andrea was. You think I had energy? Try seeing a furry toddler nibbling at your favorite cravat in defiance."

[IamLEAM1983]

Archie rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. Mab's forces sent multitudes of agents to claim my head during the War of Secession, and you expect me to surrender to one little child? I would solve that issue diplomatically, once said progeny of mine has reached something approaching the age of reason: you destroy one of Daddy's cravats for the sake of teething, Daddy gets to purchase you one and you get to wear it."

He smiled defiantly. "I haven't a care as to what others may think of my sartorial style; I know some vampires who still affectionate the occasional quilted gambeson, men's Elizabethan stockings and felt slippers with big buckles! That hypothetical tie-wearing child of mine would have to wear its shame to class, for all its friends to see, for at least one day! Oh, and rest assured, that tie would come with an assorted suit!"

Still, the spy sobered quickly. "Not that there is any need for us to consider this; I would be more than happy to settle with your love, along with Andrea's friendship and trust."

The spy's smile grew a tad more tender. "Truth be told, I've grown to be as fond of her as I am amorous of you. The Flower Power years are barely a blur for me, so she essentially stands as the first truly independent young woman I've seen. She is so amazingly unlike the daughters of my day, with her projects and activities and her tangible hopes and dreams, her career prospects..."

He pouted slightly. "In my day, marriage qualified as a career prospect for most women. A rather gloomy notion I'm glad to see that the modern day has parted with. You would be bored to tears as a housewife, of that I am sure."

[TennyoCeres84]

The policewoman nodded in agreement. "Very much so. It's one thing to raise a child or keep a house clean, but that's not for me. I prefer your company and the love of my daughter. No more, no less." Crystal then smirked and eyed the Clank curiously. "Is there anything you do miss about women from yesteryear that you don't find in women today?" she asked.

[IamLEAM1983]

Archie scoffed, a grin playing on his lips. "Not much, I'm afraid. I do miss the attention to manners, however, even if I am well aware that standards of etiquette have changed since my time. I miss the nods as you would walk along the street, the tipped hats and the whispered honorifics; the ways in which nobody seemed intent on forcing their own foul mood down anyone's throat, at least within the boundaries of polite society."

He gave it more thought. "I have some nostalgia for the ways in which the proverbial secret garden encompassed nearly everything, in women of quality. Speaking with someone of the fairer sex was even more of a gamble than it is now, personality traits emerging at the rate of about one per meeting. You never knew who you were going to meet in some of the soirées I attended, nor what they would be like.

In fact, I daresay this applied to both genders. My associates all appeared to be uniformly stolid when I first met them, and then things would creep through: notions, hopes, dreams and personal foibles that added dashes of color slowly and steadily. Perhaps it's the snoop talking, but I miss the secrecy, the assurances that good behavior would be rewarded with ever-strengthening relationships.

If you gave it time, you ended with something not unlike what it seems we've forged in a single evening: common courtesy hiding a treasure trove's worth of affinities and delightful points of convergence. We were all gray and uniform in our poise out in the street, variants of the same facial hair stylings or floral hat designs - but visiting a friend felt like discovering something unique, being made privy to something precious or becoming a part of it."

He shrugged. "Now, everything is online. Everything is published and displayed and made as widely available as possible. In fact, you allowed me to rediscover some part of my old social passions. We talked, we did a bit more than simply talk, as well; and we found ourselves to be compatible."

Smiling, he took a bite. "This is quality time, in my book. Is it any wonder, then, that I've always neglected mister Kuhn's offers of videoconference? Person-to-person is the only way to get things done, and to get them done well."

[TennyoCeres84]

Crystal chuckled after munching another piece of her breakfast. "From what I have heard, drinking with Mr. Kuhn is an event all in its own. Very few can out-drink a Wyrm. Then I'm sure you'd see plenty of person-to-person interaction and very colorful personalties," she joked, breaking into laughter.