Seven Deadly Sins PG-13 Champagne Challenge #171
Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 5:18 pm
I do not own any Moonlight characters, no copyright infringement is intended.
1982
Josef stepped into the sleazy freshie club Midnight Snack. Mick was gulping away on three girls who would be using the money he paid for heroin before the sunrise.
Josef cleared his throat and tossed a few hundreds on the table. “Ladies, you’re dismissed.”
One girl glared at Josef. “You can’t do that. He’s the one who picked us.”
The other girls shushed her and grabbed her arm. “We’re sorry Sir. She’s new in town.”
“New girls shouldn’t be mouthy.” Josef snapped his fingers and the three of them fled the bar.
Mick stood up. “What are you doing here? I’m not going home to the little woman.”
“I don’t care about that. I care about Coraline interrupting my dinner because she’s afraid you’re going to suicide.”
Mick laughed. “Suicide? What am I going to do? Cut my own head off. Sit in the desert for a few days? Look, I just told her the truth.
“What truth?” Josef asked
“That vampires are inherently evil and will eventually go to hell. I don’t want to spend my nights with a demon from hell.
“Those girls you were with had more personal demons in twenty years than Coraline has had in two centuries. What is all this nonsense about hell?”
Mick frowned. “Nothing.”
“Does it have to do with your mother dying last week? Do you think she’s in hell?”
Mick leaped up and shoved Josef against a wall. “Don’t ever talk about my mother. Of course she’s not in hell but…..I’ll never see her again because that’s where I’m going.”
Josef knocked Mick’s hands away from him. “Touch me like that again and you will know your final destination. “You’re not going to hell. You’re too sanctimonious for hell.
“I’m a vampire. I’m evil.”
“You’re not even in the top thousand. You used to be Catholic, right?
“There is no “used to be” Mick grumbled. “You practice or you don’t but the sacraments make you Catholic forever unless you renounce.
“Have you renounced? Are you an atheist? Josef asked. “If so there is no point in the story I’m going to tell you.”
Mick frowned. “No, I haven’t renounced. I know God hates me for being a vampire.”
Josef rolled his eyes. “Shut up and listen. “Once upon a time, a handsome, brilliant young man got cut down in the prime of life. He was fortunate that he moved up the food chain instead of down to worm food.”
“His sire was a very devout Christian. Well, to be honest if you weren’t devout in the 1600’s you had more trouble than it was worth. He talked to me about the seven deadly sins. The actions that separate humans from God. He told me how they pertained to vampires.
“Vampires commit all seven every day and twice on Sundays.” Mick mumbled.
“Not if you want to live a long life.” Josef countered. "Now listen."
“Envy – If you envy what someone else has you have to either be strong enough to take it from them, earn it for yourself or die trying. If you spend your life or unlife dreaming about what others have it’s a waste. What do you envy, Mick?”
“Humans.”
“You can take their humanity but it doesn’t give you back yours. You can’t earn it because vampirism is irreversible. You can kill yourself but you seem to think that will send you to hell and since you’d be guilty of envy….maybe you’re right.
“Josef, leave me alone.”
“No. I’m just getting started. Next is greed. “Greed is a problem. Not in the modern sense, accumulating money, securing a future, that’s not greed that’s being intelligent. True greed is someone keeping all the food, all the money, all the land for themselves and harming others. I knew a guy like that in Hungary, he almost died for greed. Are you greedy Mick?
“No….I don’t think so.”
Next is Wrath. My sire said if you were going to engage in Wrath make sure you win. If you didn’t have the best weapons, the best army or knew for a fact you could take your enemy don’t unleash the beast. If you aren’t sure you can win….you lose. You have a lot of self-loathing and you can’t win because you’re fighting yourself.
Lust comes next. Lust is dangerous because it makes you stupid. You lust for Coraline even when you hate her. When it burns out and eventually it will, you’ll stop being an idiot.”
“Josef, I don’t need your abuse.”
“If you think this is abuse, you’ve lived a charmed life.
“Gluttony, I like to have more than my fair share of food, clothes, things. But I don’t take from anyone else to get them. I use my hard earned wealth to make my life comfortable but I can say I’m guilty of this sin from time to time. Let’s say it’s a lesser version of Greed.
Sloth, my sire never tolerated sloth. From sundown to sunrise he had me working. A lazy vampire is a dead one. You’re not lazy.
Pride, my sire taught me not to be proud until I accomplished things beyond every man I ever knew. It took me almost a century to be proud. You’re not proud, you wallow in shame.
“Vampires are shameful.” Mick said
“No, they aren’t. Actually smart ones obey more of God’s commands than humans because if your enemy can live for three hundred years, there is no escape, they will eventually find you. So you have the opportunity to take the high moral ground as a vampire and you don’t appreciate it.”
“Josef, living longer just makes you worse, not better.”
“You’re wrong. You’re going on a trip with me. You’ll meet a better class of vampire than the missus.
“I don’t know.”
“It wasn’t a request. I’m going to introduce you to someone who can knock some sense into you.
“Josef.
“Or would you rather wallow in dumps until Coraline seduces you back? It’s your choice.”
Mick hated that he knew Josef was right. “Fine. I’ll go with you.”
“Do you have a passport?’ Josef asked.
“No.”
“You’ll have it within the hour. Let’s go.
1982
Josef stepped into the sleazy freshie club Midnight Snack. Mick was gulping away on three girls who would be using the money he paid for heroin before the sunrise.
Josef cleared his throat and tossed a few hundreds on the table. “Ladies, you’re dismissed.”
One girl glared at Josef. “You can’t do that. He’s the one who picked us.”
The other girls shushed her and grabbed her arm. “We’re sorry Sir. She’s new in town.”
“New girls shouldn’t be mouthy.” Josef snapped his fingers and the three of them fled the bar.
Mick stood up. “What are you doing here? I’m not going home to the little woman.”
“I don’t care about that. I care about Coraline interrupting my dinner because she’s afraid you’re going to suicide.”
Mick laughed. “Suicide? What am I going to do? Cut my own head off. Sit in the desert for a few days? Look, I just told her the truth.
“What truth?” Josef asked
“That vampires are inherently evil and will eventually go to hell. I don’t want to spend my nights with a demon from hell.
“Those girls you were with had more personal demons in twenty years than Coraline has had in two centuries. What is all this nonsense about hell?”
Mick frowned. “Nothing.”
“Does it have to do with your mother dying last week? Do you think she’s in hell?”
Mick leaped up and shoved Josef against a wall. “Don’t ever talk about my mother. Of course she’s not in hell but…..I’ll never see her again because that’s where I’m going.”
Josef knocked Mick’s hands away from him. “Touch me like that again and you will know your final destination. “You’re not going to hell. You’re too sanctimonious for hell.
“I’m a vampire. I’m evil.”
“You’re not even in the top thousand. You used to be Catholic, right?
“There is no “used to be” Mick grumbled. “You practice or you don’t but the sacraments make you Catholic forever unless you renounce.
“Have you renounced? Are you an atheist? Josef asked. “If so there is no point in the story I’m going to tell you.”
Mick frowned. “No, I haven’t renounced. I know God hates me for being a vampire.”
Josef rolled his eyes. “Shut up and listen. “Once upon a time, a handsome, brilliant young man got cut down in the prime of life. He was fortunate that he moved up the food chain instead of down to worm food.”
“His sire was a very devout Christian. Well, to be honest if you weren’t devout in the 1600’s you had more trouble than it was worth. He talked to me about the seven deadly sins. The actions that separate humans from God. He told me how they pertained to vampires.
“Vampires commit all seven every day and twice on Sundays.” Mick mumbled.
“Not if you want to live a long life.” Josef countered. "Now listen."
“Envy – If you envy what someone else has you have to either be strong enough to take it from them, earn it for yourself or die trying. If you spend your life or unlife dreaming about what others have it’s a waste. What do you envy, Mick?”
“Humans.”
“You can take their humanity but it doesn’t give you back yours. You can’t earn it because vampirism is irreversible. You can kill yourself but you seem to think that will send you to hell and since you’d be guilty of envy….maybe you’re right.
“Josef, leave me alone.”
“No. I’m just getting started. Next is greed. “Greed is a problem. Not in the modern sense, accumulating money, securing a future, that’s not greed that’s being intelligent. True greed is someone keeping all the food, all the money, all the land for themselves and harming others. I knew a guy like that in Hungary, he almost died for greed. Are you greedy Mick?
“No….I don’t think so.”
Next is Wrath. My sire said if you were going to engage in Wrath make sure you win. If you didn’t have the best weapons, the best army or knew for a fact you could take your enemy don’t unleash the beast. If you aren’t sure you can win….you lose. You have a lot of self-loathing and you can’t win because you’re fighting yourself.
Lust comes next. Lust is dangerous because it makes you stupid. You lust for Coraline even when you hate her. When it burns out and eventually it will, you’ll stop being an idiot.”
“Josef, I don’t need your abuse.”
“If you think this is abuse, you’ve lived a charmed life.
“Gluttony, I like to have more than my fair share of food, clothes, things. But I don’t take from anyone else to get them. I use my hard earned wealth to make my life comfortable but I can say I’m guilty of this sin from time to time. Let’s say it’s a lesser version of Greed.
Sloth, my sire never tolerated sloth. From sundown to sunrise he had me working. A lazy vampire is a dead one. You’re not lazy.
Pride, my sire taught me not to be proud until I accomplished things beyond every man I ever knew. It took me almost a century to be proud. You’re not proud, you wallow in shame.
“Vampires are shameful.” Mick said
“No, they aren’t. Actually smart ones obey more of God’s commands than humans because if your enemy can live for three hundred years, there is no escape, they will eventually find you. So you have the opportunity to take the high moral ground as a vampire and you don’t appreciate it.”
“Josef, living longer just makes you worse, not better.”
“You’re wrong. You’re going on a trip with me. You’ll meet a better class of vampire than the missus.
“I don’t know.”
“It wasn’t a request. I’m going to introduce you to someone who can knock some sense into you.
“Josef.
“Or would you rather wallow in dumps until Coraline seduces you back? It’s your choice.”
Mick hated that he knew Josef was right. “Fine. I’ll go with you.”
“Do you have a passport?’ Josef asked.
“No.”
“You’ll have it within the hour. Let’s go.
I want to know where they're going! 
This is all kinds of wonderful. Mick has so much to learn, and Josef is just the man to give him vampire lessons. (He's still got a lot to learn about being comfortable as a vampire, but hey--vamps live a long time. 
)
Someone has to knock some sense into Mick, and Josef is the one to do it. Now, I want to find out where they are going and who they are going to meet, too. 
