(Re)turning (Mick/Josef; G) 2009

A place for Tam's G to PG-13 stories
Post Reply
User avatar
Tam
Logan's WoW nemesis
Posts: 797
Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2009 9:21 pm
Location: Talismen Office, Kostan industries

(Re)turning (Mick/Josef; G) 2009

Post by Tam »

Author's comment : This character insight could have never come to be without the RP with my friend Parker that inspired it.

Characters : Josef, Mick
Rating: G
Spoilers: Ep 13 of Moonlight, season 1
Summary : Standalone Snippet – Josef knows that after turning back to a vampire and saving Beth's life, Mick needs company to come to terms with his fate.
First posted : ff.net,February 2009

Disclaimer: The characters are not mine, no money is being made and no infringement is intended.

(Re)turning
It was done, almost effortlessly. The vamps at the clinic had been young and careless - not to mention stupid - and killing them had been simple. A call to the Cleaners afterwards wrapped up the deal. The bodies were burnt, the clinic immaculate. Hypothetically speaking, Josef pondered, the business-idea was excellent : taking blood from humans without them knowing and selling it on to vampires. But as always, greed had been their downfall; they took too much blood, so much their patients died of heart failure - and then made their final mistake when they kidnapped Mick's girlfriend. Josef had to admit that Beth's blood type was tempting - he had smelled it when they first met, had felt the serpent of desire uncoil itself in the pit of his stomach, and had made no effort to hide it - but out of respect for his friend, he had let her be. He knew she was more than a rare drink to Mick. So much more, that he even gave up that which he had searched for so long: mortality. With Coraline gone and the compound with her, Mick was back where he started; a vampire with a human girlfriend who did not understand him.

Josef knew his friend would need company right now. Though Mick was usually all right on his own (not like Josef, who needed people around him to bar out the voices of the past), he also had a tendency to think too much, and Josef wanted to make sure his best friend didn't fall into a deeper abyss than he would be able to climb out of on his own.

They had dropped Beth off at her apartment, after making sure she was okay, physically in any case. Without speaking, Josef drove them back to Mick's place afterwards, led his friend up and inside and poured them drinks. They had taken what blood reserves were left at the clinic before they left, as Mick wouldn't have any in his fridge. It was full of food that he would have no use for now - Orange juice, milk, something Josef couldn't quite place (why would anyone want imitation cheese from a spray can?). Not sure if Mick would want him to throw it out, he simply placed the bags of blood between a jar of chocolate spread and a glass of pickles. (Did one eat those together on a sandwich? he briefly wondered, or was there no system to Mick's shelves?). He walked over to Mick and held out the glass of blood without comment.

Mick accepted the glass and offered his friend a melancholic smile. Josef smiled back, relief washing over him. A part of him had been afraid that Mick would refuse the blood. Although both of them knew he could not exist on mortal food any more now, reverting back to blood must be awful for his friend.

As for Josef, it had been all he knew for the past 370 years. He did not recall the taste of meat or the texture of bread. He had never tasted the exotically colourful pieces of fruit that Mick kept in a large glass bowl on his kitchen aisle, which came from warm countries in the Southern hemisphere or even different continents, knowing only the fruits of the countryside where he grew up, and even those were a blur to him. But he didn't care about that, had no desire to try - blood was all he wanted, blood in all its variety. Freshies, they were like expensive wines, each of them special. Blood had character, a scent, a finish. The blood types, the temperature at which it was drunk -even body temperature varying per person and their environment, the vein from which it was taken, the blood pressure, the sugar- and iron levels, the free radicals. The emotions and moods of the donor, adding spice and flavour. It was all he needed. Bottled and bagged blood had hardly any of these qualities, which is why he could never exist on it. So often had he told Mick so, and had reminded him of the times where both of them took freshies. If only Mick could accept who he was, he could embrace it, and enjoy it the way Josef did.

"Thank you, Josef," Mick said. "For this-" he held up the glass, "and for staying."

"It's the least I could do, Mick. I did take your life," Josef said matter-of-factly, looking down on his drink. Cold, but at least it was AB-.

"With my consent," Mick reminded him. "I almost had to break your arm to make you."

Josef had refused at first, knowing how much his mortality meant to Mick, and how much he had hated Coraline for taking it away from him. At Mick's words, Josef couldn't hold back a laugh.

"Yeah, like you could have," he scoffed in jest, reminding Mick of the fact that, as a human, he could have never succeeded in breaking Josef's arm. Of course it was only an expression. Mick did, in fact, have to use a lot of persuasion for Josef to turn him. In the end, it was Mick's words that did him in, combined with the extreme need he could see in his friend's eyes. He has Beth. He has my Beth. So please...please, brother...

It was ironic, in a way, that the first time Mick had ever called him that, had ever appealed to the bond they shared in that way, was when he was as furthest from what Josef was as he was then: human, weak, dependent.
On the surface, they were as different as night and day. But there was a bond between them that went deeper than anything either of them was willing to admit except in that dark hour - and now it was sealed in blood. Josef sired Mick, took his life and then gave it back to him with his blood, re-turning him, and re-breaking Mick's heart in the process, fully aware that he was doing what Coraline had done years ago. He had asked Mick for forgiveness, had craved it, and Mick's small nod and the way he offered his neck had absolved him, though it hardly eased his conscience, nor his fear that he would not be able to do it. He went through with it before he could think, allowing himself to be led by the blood, before what happened to Sarah took a hold of his mind and stilled his actions. He would have never forgiven himself if it hadn't worked. The realisation of that only hit him afterwards, as he saw Mick rise, and he had cursed himself for risking the life of his friend.

The fact that Josef had enjoyed it didn't do much for his peace of mind. Thinking about it sent shivers down his spine. He remembered the bite, remembered everything in detail. As he had Mick trapped against the wall, proving to him that he was powerless against vampires, it took all of his willpower to let his friend go. He could not to do it at first. He wanted to sink his teeth into Mick's flesh, to taste that blood, now purified by the cure, to compare it with the taste of Mick's vampire blood that he remembered from so long ago. They had always been physically matched, despite their ages, their vampire powers equalling out physiques. To have Mick at his mercy, to hold his body captive and feel Mick struggle against him - it felt good for all the wrong reasons. He had to remind himself that this was his best friend, and finally, was able to let go. Only to have Mick begging him to drink his blood minutes later...

Mick seemed to feel the tension between them, and looked at his friend. "I don't regret what happened," he said firmly.

Josef swallowed, pushing the memory of Mick's blood to the back of his mind. At Mick's words, he closed his eyes and let out a breath he didn't even realise he had been holding. He had seen the truth in Mick's eyes and knew his friend meant every word he said. Mick really forgave him. Josef wasn't sure what he would do without his friend. Mick had saved him, cared for him, took him into his house and fed him. He went after Whitley's hired killer without a thought for his own safety, and dealt with it like he dealt with everything else Josef wanted him to do. Efficiently, and without demanding something in return. Except, perhaps, some common sense on Josef's behalf. He thought of Mick's outburst after he had invited freshies into Mick's apartment. The words that were spoken had hurt, but he knew they were said only out of love, fuelled by the fear of losing him, of losing their friendship. It wouldn't be fair to hold it against him, even if they had hit the core.

Mick raised his glass in a toast. "To immortality," he said.

"I'll drink to that," Josef replied, smirking, and touching Mick's glass with his own. "And to the first- and hopefully only- person who has ever told me I was being a selfish ass and lived to tell the tale," he said. "Well...sort-of lived, anyway," he added as an afterthought.

Mick grinned. They drank the blood down. The tension between them had broken, and it was almost like old times again - almost. They spent the rest of the evening together, sharing blood and small talk. Josef purposefully brought up old times, good times they had had together - as a vampire. Mick should remember that the extra time that was given to him, and all the possibilities of it, all the history, was all part of the Gift. Josef would leave it up to Mick's own judgement if he wanted to find Coraline, and research the compound further, but there was no harm in reminding him just how privileged he was being a vampire.
User avatar
francis
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 11556
Joined: Sat Jan 17, 2009 9:45 am

Re: (Re)turning (Mick/Josef; G) 2009

Post by francis »

I've read this one before and I still love it. Not enough stories deal with the aftermath of this traumatic re-turning. Josef has his friend back, but it was a close call and it wasn't easy for both of them. Great story.
User avatar
Tam
Logan's WoW nemesis
Posts: 797
Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2009 9:21 pm
Location: Talismen Office, Kostan industries

Re: (Re)turning (Mick/Josef; G) 2009

Post by Tam »

francis wrote: it was a close call and it wasn't easy for both of them. Great story.
Ta! There is *so* much to work with from what the actors give us in ep 13- so many unspoken words, intense looks and hesitation. That scene is heart-breaking.
jen
Cleaner
Posts: 6411
Joined: Mon Apr 20, 2009 12:11 am

Re: (Re)turning (Mick/Josef; G) 2009

Post by jen »

Wonderful, Tam.

There was so much here--thank you for exploring it and expanding on what we saw.

:flowers: :flowers: :flowers: :flowers:
Mick and Beth--two of the lovely faces of Moonlight
Image
Beautiful banner by the Fabulous Phoenix
Post Reply

Return to “Tam's Office”