Thanks also go out to allegrita, who encouraged me when I first started this.
I hope you enjoy!
Usual disclaimer applies. I own nothing but my own original characters.
LOST AND FOUND
April 29,1956
“Happy birthday, darling.”
Josef toasted his empty study and tossed back the dregs of Glenfiddich he’d been nursing for the better part of an hour. The lights of Los Angeles shimmered before his unseeing gaze, distorted by a rare rainfall.
He shouldn’t be here. He should be in his brownstone in New York, Sarah burrowed under his arm as was her habit, celebrating the first year of her new life with a glass of blood-tinged champagne.
Strange how three centuries could pass in the blink of an eye, yet this past year had lasted forever.
A year since he’d made the biggest mistake of his existence.
He’d hated like hell to leave Sarah in New York, but the endless nights of waiting for his beloved to find her way back had become unbearable. The appearance of John Whitley and two policemen on his doorstep had cemented his decision to come back to Los Angeles. He’d left Sarah in the most capable and trusted hands he could find, with strict instructions to let him know immediately if her condition changed in the slightest.
In spite of himself, his thoughts continued to dwell on the the still figure laying in the house at Waverly Place. He’d Turned vampires before. What had gone wrong with Sarah? Why had she gotten trapped between life and death? Josef snorted and thought about having another drink, about a hundred more drinks. His punishment, he supposed, for several lifetimes of debauchery and darkness, and so like God to level His wrath at an innocent girl instead of the one who really deserved it.
All the scotch in the world wouldn’t drown out that agony.
“Mr. Konstantin?” His butler rapped discreet knuckles on the doorjamb. “You have a visitor.”
“No guests tonight, Simon.” Josef didn’t turn from his perch at the window. “Whoever it is, send them away.”
“Sir, I think you’re going to want to receive him.” Simon looked discomfited. “It’s Mr. St. John and he’s arrived unaccompanied. He looks...unhappy.”
Mick? Alone? I wonder what possessed him to come see me.
“Very well, Simon. Tell him I’ll be down momentarily.”
“Right away, sir.”
The beginnings of a smile flitted across the boyish face. He’d gotten the impression from the few times he’d had the dubious pleasure of Mick’s company, the fledgling didn’t care much for him. Of course, making his opinion known to Coraline regarding Mick’s Turning in the man’s hearing probably hadn’t won him any favors.
I can’t believe you Turned this cretin, Coraline. If anyone was less cut out to be vampire, I haven’t met them.
And now the man had come to his home without his hovering sire. He wondered how Mick had slipped his leash long enough to get here.
Josef came to a stop mid-way down the stairs when he saw the soaking wet figure hunched just inside his front door. Mick glanced up as Josef descended the rest of the way down the staircase, then went back to studying the tips of his ruined shoes.
“Mick.” Derision tainted the edge of Josef’s tone. “To what do I owe this pleasure? And why are you dripping muddy water all over my rug?”
“I’m sorry, I...I..” Mick stammered, cleared his throat and tried again. “It wasn’t raining when I started walking.”
“You walked here? From where?”
“From my...from Coraline’s place.” Mick ran a hand through his sopping hair.
Josef was taken aback. Even for a vampire, it was a considerable way from Coraline’s to his home. “And you didn’t drive or take a cab why?”
Mick raised his head and straightened his shoulders, looked Josef full in the face. “I left her. I’m done with her, done with what she did to me.” Mick’s expression was fierce. “I didn’t want to take one thing of hers with me. Not her car, not her money, not one damn thing.”
The beginnings of a grin played at Josef’s lips. So the lamb has a bit of a lion in him. “So why come to me, Mick? I’ve always gotten the impression that you don’t have much use for me.”
Mick’s gaze dropped again. “I...I didn’t have anywhere else to go.” When Josef continued to regard him like a newly discovered insect, Mick turned and reached for the door knob. “I’m sorry, Josef. I shouldn’t have come here. I’ll see myself out.”
“Wait.” Josef cursed himself for his momentary lapse of judgment. What transpired between Coraline and her miserable fledgling was none of his business, and it profited him nothing to take sides in their domestic dispute. Still, Mick’s declaration that he’d left not only his wife but his sire after just a few short years gave Josef pause and made him want to explore this situation just a bit further.
Perhaps this one had a spine after all.
“The least I can do is provide a shower, dry clothes and a drink before sending you on your way.” Josef gestured to the upper level of the mansion with a sweep of his hand. “Come on, Mick,” his smile was sly when Mick hesitated. “I don’t bite.”
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Josef watched from beneath hooded eyes as Mick finished feeding from the tiny redhead in his lap. After Sarah, Josef had sent away every donor that even remotely reminded him of her, but Mick had specifically requested a girl with red hair. After a momentary inner struggle, Josef had shrugged and contacted the agency. What kind of host would he be not to accommodate a guest?
Even though the girl wasn’t one of his exclusives, Josef was on alert as Mick fed. Given who sired and taught the fledgling, Josef wasn’t taking any chances Mick would go too far. A raised brow was the only indication of his surprise at Mick’s finesse. The auburn brow inched higher when Mick gave the girl a kiss on the cheek and thanked her before sending her on her way. The man certainly hadn’t learned that kind of gentleness and courtesy from Coraline.
That sort of panache wasn’t taught. It was in the blood.
Josef waited until Simon helped the redhead make her unsteady way out of his study. “Well done, Mick. I wouldn’t have expected such skill from someone so young.”
Defiant, Mick lifted his chin. “I may have to drink blood, but I don’t have to hurt people to do it.”
“Except when it suits you.” The corner of Josef’s mouth lifted as Mick fidgeted in his borrowed clothes. “Honestly, Mick, do you think I don’t know what goes on in my territory? I know Coraline’s taught you to hunt, in spite of the needlessness of it. I also know you’ve learned your lessons well. Griffith Park’s your favorite hunting grounds, yes?” As Mick opened his mouth to protest, Josef rose. “Don’t. Arguing my point will only make you look foolish.” He headed to the polished bar in the corner. Head cocked in inquiry, he swept a hand towards the bottles nestled in neat rows along the wall. “Drink?”
Chastised, Mick nodded. Josef reached under the bar, set out two snifters. “So,” he began as he unstopped a bottle of Remy Martin, “let me summarize. You’ve left your wife - and your sire - without so much as two nickels in your pocket and no plan.” He offered Mick his drink. “If you’re going to survive longer than five minutes on your own, you’ll need to be a little less impulsive.”
Mick scowled, accepted the fat-bellied glass Josef handed to him. “I just wanted to get away from her. I didn’t think much beyond that.”
“That much is obvious.” Josef settled in an opposite chair, crossed his legs. “What isn’t obvious is why you chose to come here.”
Mick started into the amber depths of his glass. “I had a family once, and friends. Now, I’ve got nobody, nobody except Coraline and she makes me do things that...” He took a gulp of liquid bravado and plunged forward. “She made me a monster. She likes it when I kill and--” Mick’s voice dropped to a whisper, “I like it, too.”
Mick raised his head, haunted hazel meeting troubled brown. “I hate that I like it. It’s wrong, it goes against everything inside me that I know is right. But when I hunt, when I let that part of me take over...God, Josef, it’s like nothing I’ve ever felt before. I crave it, feel like God when I take someone down, smell their terror as they try to get away. And the blood....” Mick shuddered, closed his eyes. “The way it feels when it slides down my throat, it’s so warm and sweet...I want more and more.” The snifter thudded to the carpet, a slow stain of brandy spreading from its broken depths, as Mick dropped his head in his hands. “I never wanted this, Josef. There’s nothing left for me except Hell. I wish she’d killed me instead of turning me into...this.”
As the tangy scent of saline misted the air, Josef tamped down on the urge to put a stake in Mick’s sire and leave her for the sun. Not only had Coraline taken Mick’s life against his will, she’d broken his soul. She’d neglected to take Mick’s overwhelming sense of right and wrong into account when she Turned him and the moral compass of the man warred with the pure predatory joy of the vampire. If Mick wasn’t shown how to balance the two halves, it would drive him mad and make him dangerous.
There’s still hope for this one. The thought came unbidden. You can save him, if only from himself.
On this day, the first anniversary of one of the greatest losses of his long undead existence, hope planted a seed in his heart, sent its tendrils throughout him. He’d lost his Sarah because of his actions. Perhaps he could find salvation for his sins in the form of Mick.
Josef sighed, downed the dregs of his drink and set his glass aside. Rising, he moved to Mick and laid a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Come. I have something for you.”
**************************************************************************
“Jesus Christ.” Josef bit back a grin as Mick took in the opulence of his private quarters. He stood back, let Mick take a few steps into the room, then do a slow spin on his heel. “This room is bigger than the apartment I shared with the guys before I was...before I met Coraline.” His eyes widened as he looked across the room. “ Holy shit, is that...is that a Rembrandt?”
“It is indeed.” Josef’s smile was indulgent. “I’m impressed, Mick. I would have never pegged you for an art lover.”
Mick’s spine stiffened, his eyes flashing vampire blue. “I did go to school, Josef,” he growled. “I also did a tour through Holland during the War. I know what a Rembrandt looks like.”
A temper to go with the spine. Interesting. “Alright, alright...tuck in your fangs. I didn’t mean to insult you.”
Mick’s eyes faded back to their customary hazel. He moved closer to the painting, reached out a hand. “Where’d you get it?”
“Don’t touch it.” Josef’s voice was sharper than he intended and Mick jerked back as if the painting was on fire, and jammed his hands in his pockets. Josef cursed himself and gentled his tone. The fledgling was still skittish and Josef didn’t want to spook him “Vampires don’t have the same oils on their skin as humans, but that painting is still very fragile.” Josef moved to stand beside Mick and admire the painting. “In answer to your question, I...have it on loan from the Rijksmuseum.”
Mick’s brow arched as a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “On loan.”
“Alright...I stole it,” Josef conceded. “I prefer ‘borrowed indefinitely’. It was 1885, the museum was in the process of moving to its new home, and no one paid attention to just another worker. If they had, this would be under guard and I would have spent a short time in a jail cell.” Josef clapped Mick on the shoulder, gestured toward the leather sofa that ran the length of the far wall. “Make yourself comfortable and I’ll explain why I didn’t call your loving wife to come and pick up your sorry ass and drag you back home.”
Mick nodded and took a seat. Josef pulled the painting away from the wall, exposing the small safe behind it. “It’s no secret I consider Coraline’s decision to Turn you a colossal error in judgment,” he tossed over his shoulder as his sharp hearing listened to the lock tumblers clack into place. “However, the damage is done and you’re going to have to adapt better. You can’t exist on blind instinct, Mick. You and your sire are attracting the wrong kind of attention.”
Mick did his best to make himself part of the sofa. “I...I don’t know what else to do.”
“I know.” Josef pulled a black velvet box out of the safe and swung the door closed. Seating himself so he faced Mick, he held out the box. “I’m going to teach you.”
Mick sat up straighter, plucked the box from Josef’s palm. “What’s this?”
“Open it, Mick.” Fumbling, Mick flipped up the lid with his thumb and goggled at what was inside. Almost reverent, he lifted the heavy white-gold ring from its velvet nest.
“This is a beaut, alright.” Mick tried for levity. “Who’d you steal this from?”
“It was given to me, by...someone I admired.” Josef’s uncharacteristic seriousness was unnerving, and the lopsided grin slid from Mick’s face. “It’s yours now.”
Mick’s eyes widened “No. Hell, no.” Face grim, he shoved the ring back in the box. The lid slammed shut with a muffled thunk before he tossed it on the couch and leapt to his feet. “The last time a vampire put a ring on my finger, I ended up like this.” Mick made an angry gesture at himself. “I’m not letting you take whatever I have left.”
As Mick paced and muttered to himself, Josef felt the tendrils of an emotion he hadn’t felt since he’d given his Sarah over to the darkness. Hope. Mick was broken, but some broken things could be repaired, given enough time and effort.
And caring. The realization he actually cared about what happened to this reluctant vampire crept into his consciousness and came as somewhat of a surprise. It had been centuries, but…
“Mick, take a seat.” When Mick ignored him and continued to wear a path in the rug, Josef put a little more authority behind his request. “SIT.”
Responding to a fledgling’s automatic desire to please an elder, Mick sat and dropped his head in his hands. Josef scooped up the velvet box and stuck it in his pocket. Running a hand through his hair, he began to follow Mick’s route on the carpet as he collected his thoughts and debated on how much to tell the tormented vampire seated on his couch.
From what he knew about Mick, what you saw with the man is what you got. Mick would accept nothing less that complete honesty before he would accept Josef’s help.
“I’ve been a vampire for a long time, Mick. I’ve existed longer than I thought I would, and certainly longer than I deserved, and I didn’t get where I am by being stupid.” He stopped and gave Mick a penetrating look. “Vampires like you don’t usually live long enough to learn that lesson.”
Mick’s head shot up, his eyes glowing silver. “Are you calling me stupid?”
Josef bit back a satisfied grin. That got a reaction out of you, didn’t it? “No, not stupid, Mick. Careless. But,” he lifted a finger as Mick opened his mouth to protest, “you’re not entirely a lost cause. You knew enough to come to me. Now let’s see if you know enough to accept what I offer you after you hear my story.”
Mick settled back, his eyes fading back to hazel. “Ok, Josef. I’m listening.”
Josef cleared his throat, clasped his hands behind his back as he resumed his pacing. “Unlike you, I was anxious, even eager to be Turned. To live beyond my years, see what the future would hold, become stronger than ten men was too tantalizing to pass up. Unlike you, my Turning was well thought out by my sire, and relentlessly planned in advance. Unlike your sire, who shouldn’t be allowed to sire a cat, mine was patient, kind and happy to guide a rebellious young man who lived to defy authority.”
“Like you, however, I was left to my own devices much too soon.” Josef hesitated briefly, surprised at how difficult it was to tell the tale even centuries later. “My sire was betrayed by one of his creations, jealous I had supplanted him in the old man’s favor. My sire’s home was overrun by townsfolk, and the whole place burned to the ground. I barely escaped with my life, however, my sire was not so lucky. I found myself adrift, with no boundaries and no one to guide me.”
Josef stopped, looked over his shoulder at Mick. The younger vampire leaned forward, rapt, his full attention on Josef and the story he told. “Like you, my rage was uncontained, my grief inconsolable. I had been taught not to kill to feed, yet I began to kill, and took great pleasure in it. Like you, I brought unwanted attention to myself and to our kind, and soon I found not only the humans wanted my head. The Community was hunting for me as well.”
As Josef fell silent, Mick couldn’t stop the questions. “What happened? How did you get away? I can’t imagine you killing anyone. You seem so...controlled.”
“Patience, Mick.” Josef let a smile ghost across his face. “Control is learned, and I wasn’t ready to learn it just then. After a decade or two of raging across the continent, I ended up in what is now the south of Spain. I had been alone for so long, and what was left of my soul was empty and hollow. One night I stumbled into a small church and collapsed, certain I would burst into flames and Satan would come claim me. To this day, I can’t explain it, but the priest...he knew what I was and chose to counsel me anyway.”
Mick’s jaw dropped. “You mean...I can - I can go to church? I won’t die?”
Josef rolled his eyes. “Christ, Mick, has Coraline taught you nothing? Contrary to popular belief, you won’t be struck by lightning if you enter a holy place. Stop watching the movies and actually learn something about yourself. Now, stop interrupting.”
“Sorry,” Mick mumbled and sat back.
“The priest, it turned out, was a follower of St. John of The Cross, a priest whose main course of study was the growth of the soul. He kept me in his basement, and we spent many hours discussing whether or not I still had a soul, and the condition of said soul. He was as far away from a vampire as one could be, yet I learned more about my state of being from this lowly priest than I ever did from my sire. He taught me how to work through my loss, how to control my...baser instincts. Before I left, he gave me this.” Josef reached into his pocket and pulled out the box.
“He told me this ring was given to him by St. John himself, as a reminder that the soul cannot be imprisoned, that only God has the power to take the soul from a person. That only I could make the choice to accept my loss and choose my path, or to succumb and be lost. Mick.” Josef waited until troubled hazel met determined sable, then held out the box. “This and my help are my gift to you. You’re lost, but you can be found. You’ve suffered a loss, but you have the choice - to embrace what you’ve become and make the best of it, or to be lost to it."
Mick stood, his hand slowly reaching for and taking the box from Josef. He flipped open the box, took the ring and slipped it on his index finger. “I...I don’t know…”
“Take it, Mick,” Josef urged. “Think of it as something you can hang on to when things get bad. St John’s faith was his light in the darkness, and he chose the moonstone for this ring to represent there is light in the darkness - even the perpetual darkness we live in.” Josef’s lips twisted. “Since you’re a religious man, I trust the cross needs no explanation.”
Mick chuckled. “No, it sure doesn’t.” He extended his hand, the one that wore the new bond between him and the older vampire. “Thank you for this, Josef. I can’t guarantee much, just that I will try.”
“Make no mistake, Mick.” Josef’s voice hardened. “If you become a danger to me, yourself, or this Community, I’ll put you down personally - am I understood?”
Mick nodded. “Understood.”
“So be it.” Josef brushed his hands together, then buttoned his jacket. “Now. What are we going to do with you?”
Mick smiled, the first genuine smile Josef had seen on the man’s face. “There’s nothing to be done with me, Josef.”
“Oh, I think there is,” Josef disagreed. “You’re half-taught in our ways, you have no home, no job and no money, and no way to acquire those things in your...current state without assistance. Thus, you’ll be given a training schedule and you will adhere to it, or I’ll know why. Until you can support yourself, you’ll be given a position on my security staff.”
Mick bristled. “I don’t need your charity.”
“It’s not charity, Mick. You’ll work and work hard. Once you’re on your feet, you’re free to find your own way, but until I’m assured of that, I’ll be watching you very closely. Don’t disappoint me. It’s getting close to daylight,” Josef checked his watch, “so Simon will show you to a guest freezer.”
“Thank you, Josef.” Mick glanced at the door as Simon appeared in the doorway. “For everything.”
“Don’t thank me just yet, Mick. You may come to regret the day you fell in with the likes of me.”
Like Sarah.
As Mick made his way to the guest wing of the house, Josef poured himself a fresh drink and resumed his spot in front of the window. Sarah would have been proud of him for what he’d done for Mick..
Perhaps by reaching out to the lost, he found himself.
A very thought provoking angle indeed. And not just on how he got the ring, but the start of the whole friendship between Mick and Josef. 
