11. Chapter 11 (1/1)

here we go, part 11... at least one more chapter to come, probably a couple more and maybe an epilogue, i dunno, i'm making it up as i go. enjoy!

disclaimer: not miiiiiiine.

recap, for those who need it:

then he was gone, and bertrand regarded robin silently as he digested vlad's offer. then his eyes snapped back up to bertrand's and he nodded firmly."guess we need to talk."

bertrand returned the nod, slowly, steeling himself for what he knew had to be said. it seemed bizarre that it would take the threat of being stuck with bertrand permanently to make him realise what a monster he was… but if the boy had finally seen sense then bertrand would have to accept it. he would accept it. he just hoped his acting skills hadn't completely failed him, so robin wouldn't see that it hurt. trying to act casual, he lowered the bottle of blood vlad had

ought him carefully to the floor, tucking it into an alcove and out of the way.

"what you said before," robin continued, and bertrand winced. really, did they have to go into the whys and wherefores? better to just end it – they both knew why – and go on with their miserable existences. but the boy was still talking, drawing out the inevitable. "you… you called vlad because you didn't think you could stop?""i could have killed you. i almost did." his tone, he knew, was far too a

upt to be even slightly conciliatory, but there was no reconciliation to be had here – he had tried to kill robin, and robin was ending it, and there was no point trying to convince the

eather that he was a decent person given that all that would achieve was making robin feel guilty."and you asked vlad for help. to save my life. even though you hate

eathers – erin told me – and i know you hate asking for anything. you're amazing, you know that?"

what? this was not what bertrand had expected. robin reached up to trail a hand down bertrand's cheek, the tutor's eyes closing involuntarily for a moment at the gentle touch."but we need to talk about the other thing you said." the boy must have seen the confusion in his eyes. "that i didn't want you, that i wanted a vampire. any vampire." bertrand really, really didn't want to hear this. he didn't want to listen as robin told him he was right.

robin could see the defeat in bertrand's eyes, his rigid stance betraying him as he tried to play it cool. the vampire had obviously leapt to the wrong conclusion… again."you're an idiot." well, that got his attention. "i told you before, i'm surrounded by vampires.""you needed one who'd b-""bite me? i'm not letting you bite me." bertrand looked as if he didn't know whether to smile or curl up in a tiny ball and sob – the latter seemed unlikely, but robin was sure the tutor could find an equivalent he found more palatable. what was that about? it took a moment before bertrand noticed his questioning look."you understand what that means. for… us." he was still thinking of them as an 'us', then? that was a good sign, at least."b, let me finish. i'm not letting you bite me, now. you don't think we're going to get enough funny looks for the next few years? if we make it that far without you getting sick of me, that is." bertrand was frowning, about to speak, and robin held a finger against the vampire's lips to make sure he was allowed to finish. "you're not biting me until someone looking at us together wouldn't see an age difference to complain about. or, you know, report to the police."

"but i am so much older, and so… i've done awful things, robin, and you can't possibly-""love you anyway?" he hadn't meant to say it. it was way too soon, and besides, what was he, a little girl, now? talking about love? still… "maybe i can. give me a chance." the tutor blinked."you mean that, don't you?" robin nodded, moving closer, running his hand over bertrand's shoulder and down his arm so he could link their hands.

"do you want me to move schools? so we can see each other?""it's your choice. of course i'd be glad to see more of you, but you have a life in stokely, friends…" robin laughed out loud at that, drawing a curious look from his boyfriend."i've got to tell you about stokely grammar some time." he glanced down at their entwined fingers, smiling at the way bertrand was letting him hold him or, as he suspected bertrand would see it, allowing him to temporarily impair his fighting abilities. he couldn't help smirking a little as he sneakily worked his other hand up under bertrand's shirt, marvelling once more at the muscles he found there. bertrand, though, caught his hand.

robin's hand was snaking up inside bertrand's shirt again, creeping up towards his chest, and he had to move fast to stop him. the boy looked surprised – wounded, even, for a moment – before his expression turned apologetic. bertrand ran his hand gently through robin's hair to reassure him."my body's not… i don't let people…" he didn't know how to express his unwillingness to expose his scars to robin without defeating the object completely by telling him about them. the boy would be disgusted either way."you're worried about your scars." bertrand's jaw dropped.

he was dimly aware of robin's hand – the one he'd swatted away, the one not still firmly wrapped in bertrand's own – tracing the outline of his top button."you… if you want more stories, i'm not…" robin shushed him and he stopped, stunned by the

eather's audacity, and how little he minded it."your scars aren't a bad thing, b." the boy spoke with a lot of confidence for someone who'd never seen them, but there wasn't time to think about that, because robin was suddenly very close and looking into his eyes with a sincerity bertrand didn't think he'd seen on anyone else in a good few centuries. "let me prove it to you."

as if to make his meaning clear, robin undid the top button he'd been playing with and ran his finger down bertrand's chest to the next. his throat felt more exposed than it had in a long time, and the vampire realised it was time to trust the boy the way robin had trusted him.

he swallowed hard, and nodded.