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Louis De Pointe Du Lac (brokendarkangel) wrote in valloic, @ 2022-10-25 21:07:00

The last several days had been very confusing for a teenage Henry. He’d woken up in a strange apartment and found himself in a place that was very much not the little town in Maine where he was supposed to be. It was all very scary and confusing. But the people he’d managed to get into contact with using the phone he found assured him everything was fine and that he’d be going home soon.

Paige had been nice, but Henry knew his grandparents would be worried about him and he didn’t want that. He was afraid that if he tried to leave, Revy might stop him. He wasn’t sure how, but he knew that it wouldn’t be pretty - certainly not a stern scolding.

He waited until it was night and it seemed as though Revy was asleep before he snuck out. He had woken up here without anything - no bag, no clothes - so he didn’t have anything to lug around with him. For some reason, though, he took the cell phone he’d found. Just in case…if things got weird….

He made it outside and down the street, but he hadn’t thought about what he was going to do next. Anxiously he tried to dial his house, but the number wasn’t working. Henry made an anxious noise and looked at the phone and then around him. What was he going to do?

To say Louis felt confused and out of place was an understatement. He’d never heard of a place called Vallo, let alone a magical island. And the welcome movie he’d watched? It wasn’t very helpful. The people at the DOA assured him they would help him settle in, but he wasn’t so sure about that. Why should he trust these people? They seemed to think he was crazy when he said he had to have a coffin to sleep in. Also, it didn’t sit well with him that vampires were open here? Humans knew about them and weren’t trying to kill them or consider them evil? It was far too much to deal with and for once, in a very long time, he wished Lestat were with him. Kind of.

For now he was in the same forest he’d been found in. Why was he here? He didn’t understand any of it. He needed to eat though. For that reason he moved silently through the forest until he found what he was looking for. When he had his fill he made his way back to his new home? Apparently he couldn’t leave. He didn’t understand that either. Though it wasn’t like he had much to go back to. His thoughts briefly went to Claudia before he pushed them from his mind.

As he walked down the sidewalk toward Morningside he became aware of a human making his way down it as well. He could hear the other’s heart beating a little quicker, sense there was some fear, some uncertainty as he looked around. Not wanting to cause him further fear he approached slowly. “Are you okay?” He saw the other was young. “Do you need some help?” Louis didn’t know how he could help, but that wouldn’t stop him from trying.

Henry stopped dead in his tracks when someone spoke to him. He wasn’t from the city. He was from a tiny New England town where everyone knew everyone else. But, he had been told to never talk to strangers! It probably wasn’t cool to still think that way at 15, but nothing that Henry was going through could be considered cool.

Henry clutched the phone tighter in his hand. He took a step backwards. As he did he got a good look at the man in front of him. He didn’t look threatening. He had long hair and a fancy suit. His face looked a little pale, but that was probably due to the street lamps. He looked very posh. Posher than anyone Henry had met before.

“Uhm,” he said, hoping he didn’t sound as scared as he felt. “I’m looking for the…uh…bus station?” That was convincing, right? Maybe?

Louis came to a stop when the kid took a step back. He didn’t want to frighten him anymore than he seemed to be. He glanced at the phone in his hand which looked like the one he’d been given that he wasn’t sure how to use. Who would he call anyway? The longer he stood there the more scared the kid looked.

“I mean you no harm,” he assured the other. Bus station? Louis had been told there was no way to leave the island. Unless you were pulled out from some unknown force apparently. Which according to those he’d talked to no one knew what it was or why it did that. Some magical island. “Are you new here? I just arrived myself.” He paused. “I don’t think you can leave. That’s what I was told. I can’t say I understand it. I came from San Francisco.” Not that he considered it home. He traveled around a lot, but spent more time in New Orleans than any place else.

Henry’s eyes widened. “I can’t leave?!” He squeaked. “But…but, I have to get home! My grandparents are going to lose their shit!” Granma had probably called the cops already. They’d probably already looked all over town and obviously he wasn’t there. Or maybe the cops wouldn’t even care? Teens ran away all the time, right? One of his classmates was constantly threatening to go to Boston whenever things didn’t go her way. Would they assume that’s what he’d done? Would his grandparents think that too? Henry could already picture them speeding down I-95 and knocking on every door in every town between Main and Boston.

He made another anxious noise, his hands going to his head. “Shit, shit, shit!” He winced. “What am I going to do?”

It was obvious Louis wasn’t helping to soothe any of the boys' fear or panic. “That’s what I was told, but it’s okay.” He took a step forward then stopped. “Are your parents here? Other family?” Obviously he wasn’t alone, right? Who would send a kid to a place like this on their own? To anywhere? “Maybe we…you could talk to someone at the DOA? That’s where I was taken when I found myself here.” He made a slight face. How did he get here? Or the kid for that matter. And why couldn’t they leave?

“Look, don’t worry. We’ll get you some help. Where did you come from? Did you just get here?” Hadn’t he seen the movie or talked to those apparently in charge? Louis didn’t have the answers or any that really seemed to help.

Henry looked back up at the man in front of him. He seemed concerned and again, he didn’t look as though he meant any harm. Henry lowered his hands from his head and took a deep breath. “I don’t have any family here,” he said. “But there are a couple of people who kinda act like they know who I am? It’s all wicked weird, but they’re taking care of me.” When the other man made a face and said he just got here too, Henry tilted his head. “You got taken from your home too? D’you know who did it?”

“You have someone who is looking after you?” Was he running away for some reason? “Maybe you should talk to them? I mean, do they treat you well?” He couldn’t see why the kid would be here in the middle of the night talking to a stranger otherwise. Louis wasn’t sure what to do. He didn’t feel like he was helping much and that weighed heavily on him.

“Yes, I was taken from my home. I don’t know who did it. One minute I was walking down the street and the next thing I knew I was in the middle of the forest here.” He took another step forward then stopped. “Look, it’s late and cold out. Can I walk you somewhere or if you have nowhere to go then you can come back to my place until we figure something out.” He didn’t expect the boy to take him up on his offer even if it was genuine.

Suddenly Henry felt guilty for running out on Revy. She wasn’t the most nurturing of people, but she had (eventually) made it clear that she was going to look out for him. “Ye-ah,” he admitted almost sheepishly, his hand rubbing the back of his neck as though the man had caught him doing something he knew he shouldn’t be. Which, in a way, was true. “A couple of people have been lookin’ out for me since I got here. An’ they’re tryin’ to help. They said I’ll go home eventually, but they don’t know when.” His expression turned even more sheepish. “I didn’t want to wait, but…I don’t have any money for a bus ticket.” If what the man said was true, a bus wasn’t going to help anyway.

Then Henry had an idea. “Hey, does your phone work?” He asked. “I tried calling my grandparents, but the call wouldn’t go through. Have you tried calling anyone?”

A small smile and a feeling of slight relief came over Louis when he heard that there was someone taking care of the boy. Go home? He was confused. He was told there was no way to leave. Had he been lied to? Tricked? He took a moment to look around with his vampire eyes but saw nothing out of the ordinary. “I’m glad there is someone to take care of you. I think you should go back to the. You shouldn’t be out here alone.” It simply wasn’t saf for a human kid.

His phone. The thing he’d been given along with some other device and money. “My phone is in my apartment.” Louis didn’t want to admit he had no real idea how to use it. “No. I haven’t tried calling anyone.” He had no one to call. Well, there was one person, but he wouldn’t call them until he knew more about what had happened and perhaps not even then. “Do you want to try using mine?”


The man was probably right, Henry shouldn’t be out on the street alone. He wasn’t a city kid. He was lucky that he hadn’t run into some weirdo. In fact, he was incredibly lucky to have run into someone who was concerned and wanted to help. He did think it was kind of weird that the man didn’t have his cell phone with him. Most people Henry knew always had their phones. Henry himself didn’t actually own one. Granma said he was too young. She’d probably think differently if she knew where he was. Then again, if she knew where he was then he probably wouldn’t still be there…

Henry shook his head to refocus his thoughts. “I don't think it’ll work,” he said. “Someone said that this all has something to do with magic. I don’t know if you believe in any of that, but it kinda explains it?” Henry didn’t believe in magic himself, but that’s what Paige had told him. Maybe it was all true. He looked at the man in front of him hopefully, as though he’d tell him that of course he believed and that it really did explain everything.

Magic. He figured there were many who didn’t believe in it unless they had those gifts or saw it for themselves. “I do believe in magic and many other things.” It would make some sense if this was tied into magic, but why bring him here? He was no one special. A relatively young vampire who had already seen and experienced enough sorrow and regret to last a thousand lifetimes.

“You may be right, unfortunately.” If the others didn’t work to call out to family or friends why would his? “Is there anything else I can do for you? Do you live here in Morningside? He asked, gesturing toward the building in the distance.

“I don’t live there,” Henry said, shaking his head. “But I am staying there. Revy is there too. She’s the person who’s, uh, taking care of me, I guess.” Saying that Revy was ‘taking care’ of Henry sounded off. “Well, she’s watching out for me. Making sure I eat and stuff.” He looked over his shoulder back at the apartment building. “She’s gonna be pissed if she finds I’ve run off.” Which was not something Henry really wanted to see. “I should probably get back.”

Henry looked back at the man, his brows furrowed together in concern. “You said earlier you just got here from…wherever. But you have a place to stay, right?” Henry thought the man had mentioned something bout going to his place earlier. Plus he didn’t have his phone with him, so he must have left it somewhere. Still, Henry wanted to be sure. This man had been very nice to him. It would be a pretty dick thing to do to just go back to the apartment without making sure this guy had a place to go too.

It wasn’t home. Louis understood that. “I think that’s a good idea. I’m sure she would be worried if she woke up and found you weren’t there.” Most likely upset and scared as well. As anyone would find someone they cared for missing.

“Yes, I’m fine,” he smiled. “I have somewhere to stay. An apartment in Morningside.” It was nice enough he supposed, but he would have to work on completely covering the windows when he returned. He wished he had his coffin. Not only would it be where he could sleep safely, but it would be something familiar in a place where nothing felt that way. “Don’t worry about me, Henry. May I walk with you back to the building?” To ensure he got there safely.

Henry figured that would be alright. He’d already told the man he was staying there. Plus, if they were both just magicked here and wanted to get home, maybe they could help each other? It’d be easier knowing that they were both in the same building. Henry wondered about that. Was it something about the building itself that made people just teleport there?

“Yeah,” he nodded. “Sure. Uh, what’s your name? Maybe we can help each other get back where we’re supposed t’ be?”

Louis gestured for Henry to go ahead then he moved to walk beside him. “My name is Louis. It’s nice to meet you Henry.” He slipped his hands behind his back as they walked and thought about what the other said. He wasn’t sure there was anything either of them could do. “Perhaps we can,” he replied as they made their way into the building.

“Have a good night, Henry. If you ever need anything I’m in apartment 610.” They rode the elevator together with Louis nodding at him after they stepped off the elevator. He watched until the other safely entered the apartment he was staying in before making his way to his own. It was going to be a long night.