This is my answer to the 'Silver' challenge (161).
As always, I don't own any of the characters, but do so love to play with them.
The quote from 'BC' is reproduced with respect for Ron Koslow & Trevor Munson who wrote the episode.
Please, enjoy!!
Silver Screen Siren
The room grew still, the film credits of those long dead and mostly forgotten finally finished. Two people sat quietly, one filled with questions, the other lost in memories.
Beth’s curiosity ultimately broke the silence. “Jean Harlow was something special, wasn’t she, Josef?”
A wry smile, then affirmation. “Yeah, she was a talented actress and even better friend.”
“You knew her?”
“Mick didn’t tell you? I’ll be damned. I guess the man can keep a secret.”
Interest piqued, Beth hoped she wasn’t getting too personal; Josef was still something of an enigma to her, and a dangerous one at that. “So just how well did you know her?”
“Let’s just say in the biblical sense. Totally unexpected, since I thought she was out of reach, you know?”
“Even for you?”
“Especially for me. I was a Hollywood outsider when we first met. Damn, has it really been eighty years?” Josef shook his head in disbelief. “Jean was already a major star of the silver screen, having made over two dozen movies in less than ten years. Only death kept her from making more.”
“So, other than the obvious sex appeal, why were you attracted to her?”
“Jean was a kindred spirit, someone wanting to make the most of every minute while not worrying about what others thought.”
“Was there a matching ego as well? O God, did I really just say that?”
“Yes, you did and no, not really. Jean was more of an optimist than opportunist. That woman could find the silver lining in any cloud that darkened her life.” Josef’s voice grew soft. “God knows there were enough of them.”
“I know she died young, but she must have had a glamorous life.”
“To some degree, yes, but back then, stars’ lives were controlled by the studios. They worked them like dogs, churning out as many movies as possible, regardless of quality. Even their so-called ‘private’ lives were anything but.” Josef scoffed. “Did you know the studio even pressured Jean into marriage once, just to avoid a scandal? Twenty-two, and already three times a bride. Like the others, that marriage didn’t last long.”
“I’m assuming you didn’t have anything to do with that.”
“You wound me, Beth. No, I met her after the divorce.”
“Did she know what you were?”
“Eventually, yes. Funny story. A few years earlier, Bela Lugosi put vamps on the cinematic map, showing the undead in a scary, yet sexy kinda way. Jean said the first time she saw ‘Dracula’, she was terrified. After being with me, she found the movie so hysterical she couldn’t look at Legosi without cracking up. Gave the poor man a complex.”
“So what happened with you two? If that’s ok to ask, I mean.”
“The usual. Something came between us, in this case, her career. Her overbearing mother didn’t help either. Mother Harlow recognized me as dangerous, so Jean and I had to meet secretly. Not even the Hollywood gossips found out.”
“Did you know Jean was dying?”
“Not at first, but I knew something was wrong. Her blood was becoming bitter. When I finally realized how sick she was, I offered to turn her.”
“Why’d she say no?”
“Catch-22. By turning Jean, I’d not only kill her, I’d kill her career as well. The silver emulsion film used back then would have blurred her image, and hers alone. Without some rational explanation, she’d have been dumped by the studio. Movies were Jean’s passion, so she put her faith in medicine, hoping she’d get well again.” The sadness in the old vampire’s voice was unmistakable. “The truth is that Jean loved the silver screen more than she loved me.”
“I’m sorry, Josef.”
“Don’t be. Kindred spirit, remember? No strings, no promises. I didn’t think we’d be together forever, but I wanted more time with her. The things we could have done ….” Josef glanced at the screen. “Ironic how the career that came between us actually gave her what I couldn’t, eternal youth and beauty. Her movies keep her alive, long after death took her.”
Beth eyed her host warily; Josef’s invitation to spend an evening together while Mick was out of town was something she faced with both curiosity and apprehension. Perhaps this was his way of getting better acquainted, now that she and Mick were in a relationship, or perhaps the bill for dispatching Dean Foster had finally come due. With Mick out of town, now would be the perfect time to collect. Still, this intimate trip down memory lane was completely unexpected, making Beth all the more suspicious of the vampire’s motives.
“Sharing something so personal isn’t like you, Josef. Why me? Why now?”
“I’ve been a vamp for 400 years. Beth, and if I’ve learned nothing else, I know that love never dies. Only the people you love die, leaving you with a heartache that never quite goes away.”
When Beth blushed and looked away, Josef sensed he’d succeeded in raising the specter of Josh Lindsay. “When Jean died, I told myself I’d never get attached to a human again. I may be many things, but masochistic isn’t one of them, at least not in that sense.”
“But then you met Sarah…”
“Yes. I told you I wasn’t looking for love, but sometimes, love comes looking for you.”
Beth grew thoughtful. “From what I read in her diary, Sarah seemed quite a bit different from Jean. Less worldly wise, I’d say.”
“Sarah? Worldly wise? Innocent is more like it, at least until she met me.”
“I.. I didn’t mean any offense…”
“None taken. Both women were young, beautiful and full of life, but that’s where the similarities end. Jean wasn’t a one-guy kind of gal. Even before we broke up, Powell was waiting in the wings to take my place. Sarah, however, loved only me. When she told me she wanted to be turned, to be with me forever, that was the moment I realized what true love was.”
“There’s still hope…”
“I keep telling myself that because it would destroy me to lose the love of my life.” Josef paused, silently gauging Beth’s reaction before continuing. “You and Mick, you belong together, even I can see that. But you two don’t get a happily ever after, not if you stay mortal.”
Beth got an uneasy feeling about where this conversation was headed. “You know I don’t want to be turned…even if I did, I can’t see Mick agreeing.”
“Yes and that’s why you’re here tonight.” Brandy eyes locked with bright blue ones. “I told you once that Mick’s secret would be in danger if you continued working for that electronic rag. You were wise enough to take my advice and change careers, although working with the DA might not be the best of alternatives.”
“You know I love Mick. I’d never do anything to hurt him or put him in danger.”
“Yes, but how much do you love him?” Josef put his hand up, forestalling the indignant reply. “Words don’t cut it with me, Beth. Actions do.”
A hint of fear crept into Beth’s voice; perhaps the bill for services rendered really had come due. “Are you telling me I have to be turned to be with Mick? Is that why I’m here?”
“Relax. Turning someone against their will never ends well. Mick, for example. Maybe if Coraline had clued him in ahead of time, things might have worked out differently. Besides, Mick would have my head if I ever harmed you. Which, I’m sure you know, I wouldn’t.”
Confusion edged out concern. “So what’s the point of all this?”
“I’m just trying to give you some insight into your future, based on my own past experiences, perhaps saving you some grief. If you stay human, you’ll die eventually, leaving Mick alone. Mick may be strong, but he’s stubborn. If he loves you as much as I think he does, my bet is he won’t move on after you’re dead.”
“Mick wouldn’t destroy himself, would he?”
“Not in the sense you mean. But there will be an emptiness inside, one he won’t fill by loving someone else. Decades of loneliness wear on a soul and harden hearts. I should know.”
“So what do you want me to do?”
“I want you to think about how your decisions affect others. If you’re adamant about staying human, maybe it would be better for you both if you walk away from Mick before things get too serious.” Seeing his guest blanch, Josef continued. “However, you don’t have to make that decision tonight. Take some time, get to know us a little better. Maybe you’ll change your mind.”
Beth took a few calming breaths; while annoyed with Josef’s subterfuge, she knew he was right, nor was he alone in his counsel.
‘You're young, but in a year or two, when he stops coming around and you look in the mirror, I know you've looked at him and wondered, what does it feel like to move through the night so powerful, nothing can touch you?’
Lola may have been goading her at the time, but Josef seemed sincere in his desire to keep Mick from getting hurt.
“OK. I’ll think about it, I promise.”
“Good. That’s all I’m asking.” Josef extended his hand, drawing Beth to her feet. Searching her face, he was pleased that she hadn’t rejected his request outright. “Thank you for coming tonight. If you don’t mind, let’s keep this conversation between just between us, at least for now.”
When he returned from walking Beth to her car, a silvery wisp of cigarette smoke indicated the presence of another. Josef smiled and joined his guest. “Well? What do you think?”
The platinum blonde woman laughed. “What I think is that after all these years, you’re still a smooth-talking, silver-tongued devil. You’d have made one helluva an actor, my love.”
Josef drew the woman into his arms. “Tell me something I don’t know.”
“If that human loves Mick as much as you say she does, I think you just might have won her over.”
“That was the intent.”
“What happens when she finds out you lied to her?”
“I didn’t lie, I just didn’t tell the entire truth. You did refuse my offer to be turned.” Josef kissed his guest deeply. “The first time.”
Lovely take on the challenge, and I agree that this rings utterly true to the personalities of Beth and Josef. Brava, bravissima! 
Glad you all loved the little twist at the end. 
This story was inspired by a 30 second exchange between Josef and Mick about 'mostly staying in with Harlow'. I did a little digging on her and sadly, at the time she was ill, there really wasn't any treatment that would have cured her, so I had Josef step in.
Glad you enjoyed the story!
