A Dream Within A Dream (Open)

[Deleted]

Icy blue eyes moved to glance at the light that the came in from the sun through the window, judging by the brightness just what position the orb of light held in the sky for a quiet moment. It seemed as though it was still pretty early on in the day, something that was pretty surprising seeing as it felt to the vampire as though the two of them had been speaking for much longer then they actually had and yet it wasn't an unpleasant feeling. His lips tilted up in a smile before his eyes turned away from the light to meet the gaze of the other male again. " It is no trouble at all for me to show you around. I have nothing to do other then patrol and I can very easily do that vhile I introduce you to Hogsmeade."

It was then that he slowly stood up from his chair, the movements fluid as he straightened his clothing as the other male gathered up his belongings. His eyes glanced up from his form just in time for him to see the other male inspecting his skin, calmly checking both the fronts and backs of his own hands for a moment in such a way that made him look as if the action had been programmed into him. Aleksandr watched him with a calculating gaze the gaze immediately changing to a friendly one a moment before Jamie looked up to see him again.

It seemed as though this male was more interesting then he had previously thought.

" There is no need for any sort of payment. I am not so greedy as to charge a person for my time when I know that I have more than enough of it to spare. No need to vorry about it. Shall ve move on?" He smiled before slowly making his way to the entrance of the shop and stepping outside, standing quietly in the saftey of the shadows before they began their small tour of the village, taking a small moment before they arrived at the first stop.

"This place right here is known as Madam Puddifoots. It is a tea shop that is very popular vith vomen and vith some young couples. It is known as a sort of date place of sorts and even if you do not have a person to go vith, it is a very nice place to go and grab a cup of tea and relax after a long veek."

[Jamie Rosenthal]

He was following behind him at a decent stride, and the instant he was back outside, the wind picked up his hair again. The scarlet tresses lit in the setting sun like a dancing fire and his eyes seemed to take on a warm glow with the position of the sun that also gave his skin sofe kisses of the healthy orange hue. Even now, however, Jamie was quiet, and it was hard to tell what he was thinking as the locks slid along the soft skin of his face. Pale lips were lose somewhere between a tentative smile and a contemplative smirk, it was obvious that the movement of his hair felt pleasant in the way that he did not make a move to sweep the stray tresses from his face.

Finally, he took a breath and spoke again in a quiet sort of voice, lost somewhere in an impending daydream.

"Sank you. I really do appreciate you showink me around. Zere are so many shops, I just see myself gettink lost."

That tended to happen with his dreamy nature. He would get lost in his throughts and wind up somewhere that he would not have tried to go otherwise. Once, he had intended to go to a shop in downtown Berlin and had been reading as he walked, and walked into a house of ill-repute by mistake. Oh, his sister laughed for days when he came running back into the house without the items he'd left to get and a furious blush that nearly matched his hair.

He didn't read while walking anymore.

As Aleksandr showed him the location of the tea house, he smiled. Tea was pleasant enough, but he did prefer a good scotch over tea most nights. The smell of the different teas mixing in the air reminded him of his mother. Oh, she loved tea. Especially one that smelled of vanilla and cherry, the name was lost to him now. Those scents always reminded him of her, along with that herbal blend. He missed her horribly, more than he would ever admit aloud.

"It looks like a quaint little place. Quiet and peaceful. I will haf to remember vhere it is in case I efer vant some tea. How about a place to get a good scotch?"

He had a decanter in the school with a well aged scotch in it, just in case he needed a nightcap. While his mind was active, it slid to his tour guide. This man was very graceful, and kept raising a hand to his mouth when he laughed. He seemed so fast in even simple movements. And, he stood in the shadows so...

If allowed to run wild with that, his mind might start comparing him to Lestat. Those eyes, that hair, the pull on his senses. The unearthly beauty. The charisma. It was as if the male stepped straight from the pages of The Vampire Lestat and stood before him. But, that was silly. There was no way that could happen. Vampires didn't really exist, did they?

Much as he wished they did, he could not will that to be true.

[Deleted]

Never in his lifetime did Aleksandr ever once think that he would be having fun while having a mere conversation with a human. Never did he think that he would ever find himself being kind to someone that he had just met, it was almost out of character for the vampire. Yes, he was nice to the people that he cared about [mainly his friends and his various blood donors] and yes he did try and help out mortals as often as he could, but never before had he found himself actually enjoying it! His eyes moved to glance at the other male as he walked in the sunlight with both his skin and hair a glow with the light of life while he himself hid in the shadows, hid in the darkness like the monster that he knew that he was.

It was but a moment before the silence between them was broken and his eyes moved from straight ahead of him to glancing at the male, listening to him as he was thanked. " Think nothing of it, for it really is not a problem. Like I said before I do not mind helping someone if and vhen they need me to do so. Hogsmeade is pretty big so I imagine that it vould be easy for anyone that is new to get lost."

When they stopped outside of the tea shop for a moment Aleksandr's eyes closed as his nose tingled from the different scents of the tea. His eyes opened again as Jamie asked if there was a place around there where he could get some good scotch and he smiled. " Da. Ve have two pubs here at Hogsmeade, though I highly recommend that you stick vith The Three Broomsticks if you vish to be sure that you are drinking something safe. The Hog's Head Inn is a questionable place to be seen on it's best days." While he was not one who enjoyed alcohol or the atmospheres of bars all that much, he was quick to recommend the one that he knew to be the lesser of two evils.

" Follow me this vay." Aleksandr swiftly turned on his heels as he made his way through the shadows further down into the village. He could feel the other man's gaze on his form as he stayed firmly in the shadows and a small smirk formed on his lips.

Had he already been found out?

It was a few moments later when they reached the pub and Aleksandr leaned against the side of the building with his arms crossed over his chest. " This is The Three Broomsticks. It is a very popular place for residents and students to gather and have a drink and as a result it is almost always filled with a mixture of both. The most popular drink of choice is Butterbeer, but that is usually for younger students and for those who cannot handle their liquor vell. They have much stronger drinks as vell and I'm sure that even the most picky of drinkers shall find something that they enjoy here."

[Jamie Rosenthal]

As Aleksandr moved through the shadows, he followed behind him with a quiet contemplation. His mind was slipping into a day dream in the possibilities of a living Lestat. There was a deep rooted desire that he would find someone like his deeply adored fictional character, and part of his mind wanted to make Aleksandr that person, though the realistic part of his mind knew that the idea was silly and that he was likely wasting his time.

Still, in the recesses of his mind, he could see Victorian lace and feel classical music around him. He could feel the yearning of Lestat deep inside of Alek, though it was something that he would keep to himself. Granted, he was little more than a modern, mortal Armand. Wanting nothing more than to feel the love he needed so badly, but often he did not see reason for such.

If he was an angel, he wanted to be painted with black wings.

When Aleksandr spoke again, it barely shook him from his reverie. But, as he realised he was being stared at with such a gaze, his head shook slightly and his hand moved to move the hair our of his face. Smooth move, Armand.

"I vill haf to remember zat. Efen zee name Hog's Head vants to leave a horrid taste in my mous (mouth)."

Green eyes studied the person in front of him for a moment before he took the opportunity to look about and study the buildings near them. It almost reminded him of a small village near Durmstrang and it made him feel a little more at home. Slowly, the sun slipped behind the buildings and the sky was growing dark now and in the inpending twilight and the caress of shadows, the fire within his eyes was far more visible. The shadows danced over his face as he studied the slowly glowing lanterns lighting in the store windows. It was almost something out of a book.

He took a long moment to study the layout of the town, before speaking again.

"Do you efer miss Russia now, or do you consider Hogsmeade your home now?"

The younger male was sincere in his question, almost appearing sorrowful under the shadows. But, the moment the moon began to light the world around them, his skin glowed like a porcelain doll's, unmarred and soft and those eyes illuminated in pale rings of soft green. He tucked his hair behind his ears softly before offering a quiet continuation.

"Perhaps it is zat I haf not been here long, but I ahm razer homesick still. I vanted to distance myself from zee memories of my parents, and lif avay from my sister, despite lofink her as I do. I know zat Germany has no future for me, saf for vhat I already had, but I still feel as if somesink has alvays been missink. It must seem silly, but I had dreamt of beginnink my life here ant it beink vhat I needed to become vho I ahm to be. I haf alvays been such a dreamer, ant I hope zat I did not dream so big zat it does not happen and I disappoint myself. Zen again, I could be sinkink about it too much."

He needed to get out of his head! More often than not, it was his prison as well as his refuge.

[Deleted]

The man behind him seemed so lost in his thoughts that the vampire was convinced that this was a normal occurrence with the young man. He could still feel that gaze piercing into the back of his form, staring at him with such an intensity that he could almost swear there was a hole beginning to be burned into his clothing. He was almost positive that either the male either knew what he was and was afraid to confront him, or at the very least he was beginning to get an idea of what it is that he truly was.

" Yes please be sure to do so. It vould be terrible it something vere to happen to you because of their neglect." Seriously, it was a miracle that the pub was still open to begin with! As they continued their walk, Aleksandr was more than happy to see the fact that the sun had faded from the sky and it was now growing dark. He was finally free to move about freely without worrying about being severely injured or even killed, something that made him visibly relax as he moved out from his hiding place, moving openly into the street now.

The moon began to shine brightly from it's place in the sky, casting a gentle light upon the world beneath it. It's light shone down on the immortal almost seeming to make his own pale skin glow as well. His icy blue eyes seemed to glow in the light, becoming even more piercing then they already were in the day. His eyes moved over to glance at the younger male again before speaking calmly. " Nyet, I do not miss Russia at all. It vas the one place that I never truly saw as my home, if anything it vas a prison. My parents vere overbearing and cruel and those memories that I do have of Russia are not pleasant. Vhen I graduated from Hogwarts, I never returned to Russia. I stayed here and became an auror. This place is more my home than Russia could ever hope to be. I feel free and I do not feel obligated to do things that do not appeal to me."

He watched that sorrowful gaze with a small frown before calmly listening to his detailed story. " Dreaming of a better life, dreaming of finding the very thing that makes your life whole is never a silly thing. I know how you feel, I know because I vent through that myself. There is no dream that is too big in this vorld if one is villing to vork to make sure that it comes true."

[Jamie Rosenthal]

Jamie chuckled softly, lifting his eyes up to gaze at the nearly etherial glow of the other male's eyes. For a moment, he seemed lost inside those eyes and lost inside his gaze. Then he smiled and uttered a quiet phrase.

“We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.”

The pull to speak to this male was stronger than he had ever felt in his life and the soft glow of his skin seemed to make his heart surge with a press of hope. His rational mind screamed that all of these things were imple coinsidences and that vampires did not exist. But, he was not entirely convinced at this rate. There were so many things within the magical world that existed that did not in the mortal realm. He gazed at him for the longest moment before the words started to come out far faster than he ever antcipated them to.

"Forgif me...I hate to ask on zee off chance zat I am completely off base, but...do you know if vampires exist visin zee magical realm?"

The instant the question left his lips, his throat felt like it might close and the words kept coming, just like a bad dream.

"I ahm sorry. I know it is a strange question to ask. Call me overly romantic, but vhen I sink of zee perfect form of adoration, I ahm sinkink of zat kind of lofe. Truly nefer endink, somesink zat time can not touch nor tarnish, and...vell...vith all zat I haf read, you almost seem to fit all of zee lore. I'm sorry if I ahm being inappropriate."

This question was off base, by far. And surely, it would chase the man away. If it didn't, however, he could find the compelling urge to keep talking with him and continuing to pass hours so easily. It was as if the world stopped during their deep talks, but rushed to overpower them with time when pauses were made.

The dream that he was a vampire was burning in his overactive inagination and it was begging an answer louder than any rational mind that he could summon. Certainly, if they did not exist, he could move off of that dream and find another overly romanticized dream to chase until it lit the sky ablaze. At least, it should work that way, right?

[Deleted]

His head tilted to the side in curiosity as the male seemed to stare deeply into the vampire's eyes lost for a moment in his gaze just as he was lost in the other's listening and watching as he uttered yet another phrase that the vampire agreed with before asking the one question that caused the blood that ran within his veins to go cold for a minute. He wanted to know if their kind existed. He wanted to know if their kind shared the world with him and his fellow humans. For a moment he stared at him with those sharp blue eyes, carefully analyzing him as he tried to determine just what it was he wanted to say before deciding to just answer the boy honestly.

" You are not completely off base, though I do have to admit that the question that you have asked me is random. Da. I do know if vampires exist in this vorld and the answer is a simple yes, they do. Vampires are as real as you are, though they tend to hide in the shadows unless they are able to blend in vith society vell and control their urges to feed." Another closed mouth smile was given to Jamie, though his eyes seemed to glow with mischeviousness.

" It is not a strange question, merely random. Not many people are interested in the exsistance of vampires. I have to say, that is a very unique vay of looking at things, though you are not alone. I have always believed that to have a Vampire's love is something that is truly special, for it is the vampires that know the truest most pure type of love that there is. Their's is a love that truly lasts forever, for it is something that vill vithstand the strains of time. A vampire's love is one that vill last forever."

When he heard Jamie say that all of the lore of vampires seemed to suit him, his head tilted to the side in curiosity as he gave him a closed eye smile. " It is not inappropriate, though now you have made me curious. Tell me Jamie. Do you believe that I am a vampire? Is that vhy you asked me that question?"

[Jamie Rosenthal]

When the other male did not lash out at him, he could not help but feel his head tilt to one side and he watched him with quiet contemplation. He was asking flat out if he believed that he was a vampire, and Jamie was almost afraid to answer that question. He gazed at Aleksandr, whose eyes had closed, yet he still remained with a smile across his lips. If he really had to answer this question, he had better answer truthfully. His hands caught in the ends of his hair, smoothing over the locks that did not sway with the wind.

"I...vell...zee sought dit cross my mind..."

He looked down, almost embarrassed that his too passionate interest in vampires had managed to become the central point of the conversation that had been going so well until this point. That over-active imagination of his so loved to run rampant with the strange ideas that slipped inside of his head. At least Aleksandr was being a good sport about it!

"I...I'm sorry, Aleksandr. It is one of zose soughts zat nefer leaf my mind, ant if I did not ask, it vould haf blurted out at an avkvard moment."

There were times that he felt like a child still, with the way that he almost had to ask questions that popped into his head. Those bloody questions would plague him until they were asked! The younger male's lean frame stood almost rigidly, ashamed of the constant obsession that managed to alienate him from so many others in the past. Despite the fact that he did not run or tell him off, he had a feeling that his prying was going to wind up pushing him away.

Good going, Armand.

He shivered slightly, looking up at the taller male with a curious expression before taking a moment to admire the structure of his face. His features were so sharp, yet he still managed to look so beautiful. That was a gift, and he admired it silently before speaking again.

"You...cofer your mous vhen you laugh, you mof vith such grace...your eyes...are zee most unearsly shade of blue zat I haf efer seen. You move srough zee shadows as if you haf lifed in zem all of your life. It could all be coinsidence, of course, and my mint simply chooses to ofer romanticize simple sings..."

He bit his lip gently, at least he hoped it was, and finally exhaled and gazed at him from his distance away. He had not been completely off base with his question on if the creatures really existed, so perhaps that meant that he was one step closer to finding the person that haunted his dreams with soft promises of eternity.

It was those promises that made him seek to know the answer. Always the same dream would haunt him in the comfort of the night. A gentle touch, a needful caress, and then a promise of eternity.

He was seeking the love of what should have been a figment of his imagination. He did not know who it was, and at times he could not ever have the hope of knowing at all. If that was the case, he would always live within his dreams when he was able to. At least in his dreams, he did not have to be so careful and be treated like a snowdrop in the rose bush, ever mindful of thorns, and then he had his faceless, nameless, promises.

What was not to desire there?

[Deleted]

The eyes that had been closed slowly began to open as he heard his own question being answered. So he had honestly thought about the possibility of him being a vampire but doubt still lingered and fogged up his mind, shielding him from the answers that should have been obvious at this point. Even Aleksandr, who tended to hide just what it is that he was for reasons that were seemingly obvious was surprised that he had not yet been figured out.

" I see, so the thought has crossed your mind has it? There is no need to apologize to me Jamie. Your question did not bother or upset me in any possible vay. You vould be surprised how very few things are capable of upsetting me."

His eyes were locked on the curious expression that seemed to be locked on his face before that shocking blue moved up to meet that beautiful and soft green with an intense gaze.

" Yes, it all may very vell be one of the strangest coincidences that you vill ever find in the vorld. However, there is also the possibility that you may very vell be right so you should never fully doubt vhat it is that your mind is telling you. I have told you about vampires' exsistance in the vorld as vell as have given you a very detailed description of vhat I believe their love to be like. I may very vell be one of the sons of the darkness that you seem to be fascinated in and yet there is also a chance that I might simply be an inquisitive mortal that has gone to seek out vampires in the past in order to get my answers. I could either be one of them or I can be a human. Vith me, I choose to leave the identity of vhat I am to the person who questions me. I vonder if you can guess correctly? So I suppose I vill ask you the question. Do you believe that I am a mortal or a vampire?"

[Jamie Rosenthal]

Faced with a choice, Jamie found himself re-evaluating all that he had seen and studying what he knew of lore. At least he didn't anger the blonde male and he seemed so very entertained by the way that Jamie apologized for his normally outlandish ideas. He never once thought that he would have asked this question and honestly think he might be correct, or even entertain the thought that he might be right.

"Ja, but I ahm usually met vith a less zan varm velcoe vhen I start askink questions such as zose. Not many vish to sink of such outlandish sings."

Good, Merlin, that stare pierced right through him and made him feel as if his soul lay bare and exposed beneath it. Jamie had experienced feeling the intensity of gazes before but he had never fels so bare by such a gaze before. It made his skin crawl, but his skin also heated in the depths of a crimson blush that was hidden beneath the moonlight.

So, he really wanted his honest thought on the matter? Time to bite the bullet and see how right or wrong he was.

"If I hat to choose, I vould say zat you vere a vampire."

As much as common sense said to second guess himself, he left the statement at that. Their eyes were suck, fixated on the other with curiousity, granted he could see his own reflected with the appearance of vague hope and the appearance of being fully focused on the person in front of him. Even though his mind had periods of time where it checked out, he was fully focused on the blonde male with the intense and beautiful eyes without a second thought and without regret.

"Just, zee vay zat your eyes seem to distance vhen you spoke of zee eternal lofe...it vas as if you haf been searchink forefer, tearink countries apart, just lookink."

Perhaps it was his frailty speaking, but he had picked up on feelings in most forms of communication that most people chose to ignore. Body language, voice intonation, and the deeper meaning within someone's eyes. Nothing went unnoticed, for the sake of his own safety. The metamorphmagus felt his desire to mirror those eyes again and soft green eyes borrowed the glow and the intense gaze that was fixated on him, though his posture was easily read as truly curious and his head was canted to the right, ever so slightly in the vague air of hope.

Was he correct?

[Deleted]

" I cannot see vhy you vould be. If things such as vizards, Vvtches, flying brooms, verevolves and magic exsist is it really such a a stretch for vampires to valk the vorld as vell? It does not seem like such an outlandish question to me." But then again Aleksandr was also a vampire, one of the creatures that were in question. Perhaps the things that he himself did not find to be outlandish were to someone who was afraid of the legends that surrounded his kind. He knew that there were those who preferred to stay ignorant rather then face the truth even when it stared them directly in the face.

When Jamie stated that he knew the other male was a vampire that he was sure of it, Aleksandr simply smiled, though this time it was not the closed mouth one that he normally gave. His smile shone in the moonlight and for a small moment four canines that were a slightly longer and much sharper then the rest of his teeth were revealed. Two on the top and two on the bottom. It was a mere moment before his mouth closed again and his eyes continued to stare at the German.


" I vonder vhat you vill do now that you now the truth. Da, I am a creature of the night, a monster that lurks only in the darkest of shadows. I drink the blood of the living and I hide away from the light."

His eyes shone mirthfully for a moment when the other male spoke of the way that his eyes distanced themselves when Aleksandr spoke of true love, making him seem as though he had been searching forever and tearing countries apart.

" I have searched only but a few so far. Russia, China and Japan were the ones that I chose before coming here and settling down for the time being. If I do not find vhat it is that I am looking for here than I shall eventually move on to France and the other European countries. I vill tear this very vorld apart if need be for the idea of spending an eternity alone does not much appeal to me."

[Jamie Rosenthal]

" I vonder vhat you vill do now that you now the truth. Da, I am a creature of the night, a monster that lurks only in the darkest of shadows. I drink the blood of the living and I hide away from the light."

The phrases held in the air for a moment, but Jamie didn't appear afraid, he didn't appear upset, he actually held a slight expression of wonder. However, he found the strangest reaction to come out of his mouth.

"Vhat vould you haf me do? Run? Shy avay? Cower? If you inteded to hurt me, you vould haf done so by now."

He smiled softly, lightly, and chuckled. Granted, he couldn't really feel the hurt if it came. But, that was something that need not be exposed for now. No need to test fate in hurting himself.

"So, you spoke from experience? You haf been so many places, searchink for one sing...I commend you. If I had the time on ears to do so...I sink I vould do zee same. However, my time here is limited, so I ahm fated to vait...ant pray...visout hope to be fount, visout hope to be lofed, my life vould be only deticated to my work. Zat is all I haf. But, I vould vait until my last breas for zee feelink of completion."

His hands moved beneath the Durmstrang cape and he looked up at the position of the moon and gave a low gasp.

"Gracious...it is late, I need to get back to zee castle. Zee good Madame is vaiting for me. I vould not vish to keep her vaitink all night for me to return. If you vish, I vill return vhen I can so vee can talk more. Is zat acceptable?"

The young man's face read of hope. He enjoyed talking to the vampire, and time was only rushing through the conversations.

[Deleted]

This man was certainly surprising him more and more with each passing moment. He had just revealed to him what it is that he was, that he was a monster that could very easily kill him if he so desired and yet instead of running off, or even reacting negatively he just stood there across from him staring at him with an expression of pure wonder, it was almost as if he had just told the boy that he was something else. When Jamie asked him what it was that he would have the other male do, he just stared at him with one brow raised. " Forgive me, but it is not everyday that I reveal just vhat it is I am. I do not know vhat reaction is common amongst people."

When Jamie asked if he spoke from experience, he was greeted with a nod. " Yes, the life of a mortal is extremely limited however, I vill share this bit of information vith you. If there is someone out there that is villing to love me for vhat it is that I am, then I am sure that there is someone out there for you. Yes, I have the gift of time and I have the chance to go and find them myself. However you are lucky in the sense that you vill more than likely find yours before I find mine. It is easier for mortals then it is for vampires to find their own mates. As long as you don't give up, you vill find them."

When the mortal said that he had to return back to the castle before asking if they could meet up and talk again some time in the future he was given a smile. " Da. If you come here and vish to see me I vill be here vith very few exceptions. Now go and start heading back towards the castle. I vill be seeing you later." He watched as the male started all but running back towards the castle with an amused smile before he spun around and began heading back to his home to retire for the night.

This was certainly going to be interesting.