Re: [Tea: Daniel/Claire]
Daniel had strange ideas about hope. He believed everyone else except vampires should have it. When Sam changed, it caused a rift that had never quite healed, Daniel's self-prejudice being such that he couldn't conceive of the idea of Sam's life having anything like a happy ending, his own bitterness being as much of a foregone conclusion as Claire's concentration on fate. Characteristically, Daniel never noticed his own hypocrisy.
"I have always been a romantic," Daniel said sagely, without a hint of self-reproach. "I am told it is in my blood, and there is no point resisting." He showed his front teeth in a faintly aggressive gesture, as if he was talking to someone else entirely. "Your amour can come and destroy me if he likes. Such is always the case. I am in one place for some time, the hunters always come eventually." He gave her a faint smile with little humor, jet black eyes strangely cold. "I have a good chance of killing them first on my ground. Even the best trained ones make mistakes."
Then, as if they had been gossiping of their neighbors, Daniel tapped his cup back down onto the table again. The touch of wine made him strangely thirsty, a dry thirst he recognized quite well and pretended to ignore. "Well enough then." He patted her shin and then leaned back thoughtlessly. "I ask if I wish to."