Once again, Jack stood before the large gate leading up to Benoit's house. He pressed the call button and waited, squeezing his elbow as he stared at the ground. He had hoped to get away with a simple phone call, but Benoit had essentially insisted he visit and hung up on him.

While he appreciated someone actually wanting to see him and kind of hang out, he could do without feeling like he was bullied into it. Even if the promise of cake was an unusual bullying tactic.

In the end, Jack had to admit that Benoit deserved to have the upcoming conversation in person. There was also a part of him that hoped Augie would be there. He wanted to witness the fallout to Augie's actions firsthand.

"Come in, dear flame!" Benoit's voice crackled through the speaker, and the gate buzzed as it pulled open.

Jack took a fortifying breath and quickly headed up the drive to the front door. The butler held the door open for him, and he nodded his thanks. He shrank under the assessing gaze running over him. He had the feeling he would never measure up to whatever standards he was being held against.

The same as the last time he'd been there, he was led to the cozy room with the fireplace, and he sat in the same chair as before. Was it too early to think of it as his chair? Did he want to return enough times to even claim it? He already had his side of the couch at Kieran's, so why shouldn't he start staking a claim on random furniture in another vampire's home?

He eyed the fireplace, Kieran's offer to look into a house with one slamming into his thoughts. It was a nice setup, and it had him yearning for his little fantasy. He looked up as Benoit entered and sat across from him, smiling and looking him over from head to toe in approval.

"What brings you this time, dear flame?" Benoit asked as her maid served tea and brought out a small cake. "I understand O'Byrne was showing you off the other day."

Jack slouched further into the chair in a bad attempt to hide his embarrassment. The way Benoit spoke hinted at her disapproval of the tactic, and Jack couldn't bring himself to mention that it had been his idea. He watched as the maid cut a slice of cake and set it on the table beside him. He murmured his thanks, and she nodded in return before leaving.

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"What has he done this time?" Benoit asked. She raised her teacup and breathed in deeply.

"Not him. No, this is, uh…" He chewed on the inside of his lip as Benoit stared at him curiously. She liked him, but was it enough for him to point out how fucked up her kinda-kid was without incurring her wrath? He had to take a chance and at least put it on her radar. "So, uh… So Augie."

Benoit tilted her head in question. "You've met Augustin? He's spoken little of what he's been up to other than mentioning running into O'Byrne at the park. The poor dear was so distraught. He's been rather put out as of late."

Jack's heart sank. If Benoit was so deeply rooted in Augie's corner, was he about to go on her shit list as well? She hadn't mentioned a "Kyle" being with Augie, so he hoped he could use the lying by omission as proof that Kieran wasn't the absolute worst vampire out there. "Yeah, about that. Lindsey said it best, so… What is his damage?"

She sipped her tea and shook her head with a small smile. "As far as all of our kind are damaged, or do you mean in another way?"

He grabbed up his own tea and tapped his nails along the porcelain. "I mean in a 'why is he showing up at my boyfriend's apartment in the middle of the night uninvited' kind of way."

Benoit quickly straightened up and narrowed her eyes. "He has taken to trespassing?"

"Yeah. Kind of. More than kind of." Jack kept his eyes on the floor as he shrugged. At least she wasn't calling him a liar. "It was kind of a wake up call. Literally, for me. Kieran gave me his credit card, and it's up to me to install extra security. He's way too into having my birthday as a code, so I'm just gonna go with motion detectors for now. I don't wanna deal with not remembering a code."

"I see," she said in a clipped tone. She set her cup down with a loud clink, and placed her hands in her lap as she stared Jack down. "I don't believe you would be here if all he did was trespass. What else has he done?"

Jack had wanted to get Augie in trouble, and he had succeeded with little effort. He wished he felt more triumphant about it. "You don't need to set him on fire or anything. I already broke his neck. On accident. Does that…does that count? As murder?"

"How does he feel about it?"

"He brushed it off and acted like nothing happened," he said, almost spilling his tea as he gestured widely. He gulped it down to save himself from future embarrassment.

"I see."

image [https://i.imgur.com/eZY0YUq.png]