Errand Boy (Open)

[Volker Van Hasselt]

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   Just how did he get roped into this anyway. 'Onkel Gunnar has likely been too busy to keep up with German literature' Kristian had said. Kristian had, in fact brought quite a few books that he thought their Onkel might like to have in the collection he had. Some were a bit academic, but most of them were for the simple pleasure of enjoying a good story. Well, Kristian said they were good stories, he hadn't really read them.  Now, add to this the fact that apparently Kristian had sent a text to their Onkel that he would be coming later in the week once he had tended to settling his room and getting to the point that their Vati remembered that yes, he did know they needed time to themselves (though no doubt Kristian said it in much nicer terms). Yet, for reason, and the Mistress only could guess why, it was just 'so important' that the books be delivered as soon as possible. 

    With a sigh, Volker settled the large box of carefully packed books, on a near by chair and contented himself to waiting. He had refused to allow whatever slave had offered to take the thing off his hands, not about to let Kristian down, as he had promised to take 'good care' of the books.  Onkel Gunnar liked his books to be kept in excellent condition, and Kristian said it was essential that the books arrive in that fashion. So, now it was for him to just wait, not really sure how long it would take the slave to inform his master that someone was here to see him.

    Indeed, he had pointedly refused to give his name, not seeing any need to give his name. Either his Onkel was busy or he wasn't.  It wasn't like the ancient would be pleased to see him, and Volker didn't care to invoke familial obligation to get the other to drop whatever he had been doing to see to his well being. Crossing his arms loosely over his chest, his gaze remained on the box, lashes lowered slightly.

    Truthfully, he had mixed feelings about seeing his elder kin. He and Gunnar didn't get along well as a general rule. Oh sure, sometimes things didn't escalate too badly, but that seemed to be the exception rather than the norm. He was already anticipating that things would go badly between them, if the other chose to show up to see who was here. Still, it had been a fair amount of time since he'd last seen his Onkel, and Volker found that he did want to see the other. If only Kristian's room could have been as sparse as he kept his own, then his older brother would be here.  Then, maybe, he could have just let them do the talking so he could just be around, and maybe manage not to get into it with Onkel Gunnar. 

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Word Count: 497
Tags: N/A
Notes: beep

[Gunnar Helgison]

It was curiosity more than the prospect of a box of new (to him) books that had Gunnar moving so swiftly from his office to the library. Blonde and Germanic - those were the only two descriptors he'd managed to get out of a rather bland-faced slave - and in monotonous servile tones too. Truthfully, though, he felt that there was little time to allow himself to become irate merely because a slave had spoken to him carefully. Everyone seemed to speak to him carefully these days, and though it was irritating, it was just something he'd have to get used to. Especially since a good portion of his household staff were leftovers from the old regime when Hetepheres had still walked these halls and were used to having to practice such caution. 


Gunnar's shoes scuffed quietly along the floor - the man in a suit for once as he'd just finished up his nightly video conference with one of his ships' captains. The weather was holding, the boat was on course and the shipment should arrive at the docks on schedule. This was all good news, so the clan leader was - of course - in decent spirits because of it. But he was still in a suit, and he hated the things, and on top of that...the slave had spoken to him like he were afraid Gunnar might just break his neck because he felt like it. And now, there was this odd and unexpected guest. 


His first thought was that it might be Vesperes, and that in itself was enough to cool his irritation down to a low, chilling crawl. Their last encounter, it hadn't ended well, and he didn't relish facing him so soon after treating the elder vampire so poorly. But judging from the size of the shadow cast out into the hall, it certainly couldn't have been as this person had to be at least six feet tall, and Vesperes was only a single inch superior when it came to height. 


A slight frown marred his brow as he finally came around the corner and swept into the room, his head tilting to the side as he studied the figure from the back. It looked like...Volker, but no, that was someone it certainly couldn't be. Last he'd heard, Volker was safely back in Germany with the rest of the Van Hasselt children - which was where they belonged for now. At least until things could be put to rights in America again. Still, there was that faint familial feel to the energies pouring off of him, and the color of that hair was rather distinctive. Saying the other's name aloud, however, could certainly make him seem the fool if it wasn't in fact the person whom he suspected. So rather than move to greet the man as family, he merely stepped in closer with a subtly raised eyebrow. "Guten Abend. Kann ich Ihnen helfen?", he asked quietly, a single cautious note of question in his tone as he waited for a reply.

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Word Count: 506

[Volker Van Hasselt]

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   Volker, of course, was quite young for a vampire, and Gunnar was an ancient. As such, those silent steps hadn't really alerted him to the approach of his elder. When Gunnar was near and spoke, he nearly jumped just a bit, in part because he hadn't heard the other, but mostly because of being anxious. He was, after all, already anticipating trouble. Swallowing before he spoke, Volker supposed the other likely didn't know that they were in the country.  Kristian had only just texted him this night, and likely Gunnar had been busy doing... whatever it is he did as a clanmaster, probably had some conference call, or was giving orders to his clanmembers or something. 

   "Ich wurde gesandt, um einige Bücher an Sie zu liefern.", he offers neutrally, trying to ignore the mix of emotions.  Turning around, he crossed his arms loosely, as this was a position he felt more confident and guarded in, still he tried to keep his arms loose so he wasn't too defensive.  "I promised Kristian I wouldn't let anything happen to them."  His gaze slipped over the other to take in the sight of him. Unlike most gazes that would consider Gunnar's form, there was nothing sexual about it, no desire or admiration of the other's attractiveness. It was, rather, the looking over of one given in regards to a family member one hasn't seen in quite some time. 

  It did feel like it had been a long time. It was a bit disconcerting to Volker that he was taller than Gunnar, well that was actually true for Vesperes also. The pair of them were older, and for a fair portion of his life had been not only larger than life, but bigger than himself as well. As the difference impressed itself upon him once more, he realized he didn't know what to say now, or if he should say anything. Kristian had hinted he should really try not to bring up anything about Gunnar's change in status... like he didn't already know that. Not that he could blame him though, Volker had a rather nasty habit of saying things he shouldn't, only made worse by the fact that he usually didn't mean them.  "... Have you... been well Onkel?", he asks a bit cautiously, but no less gruffly. It was always safest to keep the softer emotions from being conveyed... even if it didn't help him feel any less defensive about things. 

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Word Count: 417
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Notes: N/A

[Gunnar Helgison]

A curious glance was given to the books mentioned, all neatly packed away into their box so that not even a single well-cared for spine showed, and a hint of a fond smile briefly flickered at the corners of his lips. Kristian, of all the Van Hasselt offspring, was the most thoughtful of the bunch - especially, it seemed, when it came to him. A hand reached out, slipping fingertips idly along the top of the box, searching for the seam so that he could begin to carefully open it, and then quickly pulled back as if he only just realized what he was doing. Volker, after all, was not the only one in the room with a problem displaying 'softer' emotions...and for some reason that Gunnar couldn't fathom, he only felt that showing the younger vampire how very much he enjoyed his unexpected gift would somehow give him fodder for when he was angry later. Like himself, the youngest of Vesperes's known children had a rather fiery temper, and a penchant for employing it in the most hurtful ways, and Gunnar would like to avoid his books paying the price of a gesture made in error. 


"Danke." He offered quietly, lashes still lowered as he spoke. It was awkward as far as 'family reunions' went, but Gunnar feared it was likely the best that would ever exist between them. More of that 'sameness' to blame, he supposed. After all, it wasn't that he wasn't fond of Volker - because he was. He actually cared for every single one of the Van Hasselt children very deeply. It was just...Volker and he barely seemed to get along in person when there was no one there to mediate for them, and Gunnar was not looking forward to things degrading. 


"So, I see that Kristian is in America as well?" He finally asked, the Norseman's gaze finally shifting to meet Volker's with a rather cautious casualty. "When did you arrive? I assume your Vati is aware of your being here? And Klaus?" He asked these questions calmly, and easily - and yet kept a keen eye out for any sign that Volker might be trying to talk around this. After all, Gunnar knew Volker could be impetuous in his decisions at times...and he'd hate to ruin a surprise accidentally, or worse - to leave Kristian and Volker unprotected in this country as they tried to 'hide'. Of course his questioning was drawn to a quick halt at the other's inquiry as to whether or not he was all right.

Now, his first thought was to simply brush the question off. Admitting weakness wasn't an easy thing, even when that moment of weakness was passed, but it was especially difficult in front of Volker. But the question had been offered without him prompting in any way, which must mean that he was at least somewhat interested in whether he was or was not all right...so after a moment, Gunnar finally sighed and shrugged. " I suppose it depends on what you mean by 'all right." A faintly rueful smile curved his lips and then he finally motioned to a nearby chair. "Please, sit for a bit, yes? And then when you are ready to leave I can arrange for a driver to take you back to the Ankharu Matum..."  

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Word Count: 556

[Volker Van Hasselt]

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   Gunnar's behavior often didn't make much sense to Volker, not his behavior in general but the weird little things he did.  For example his, abrupt shift in interest from the books.  Oh well, it wasn't like he can Gunnar spent enough time together that it would matter if he understood his eccentricities or not. 

   "Yes, Kristian is here.  We haven't been around that long, just long enough for me to get settled in to my quarters.  Kristian is still getting his things in order...Vati and Onkel Klaus both know we're here."  Business was taken care of, and that only left one thought in the younger vampire's head. 'Now what'.

   If things weren't bad enough, Gunnar than asked him to sit. Doing his best not to fidget, Volker shrugged and selected a chair in whatever direction the other male indicated. "  Thank you... that is appreciated", he finally adds, at least figuring he should thank the other for his offer... and then he drew a blank.  What else could he possibly say?  The awkwardness felt heavy to the younger vampire, but at least thankfully, he wasn't yet considering trying to irritate the other to get him to put an end to this.  "You.. have been able to spend time with Onkel Klaus?"  He really hated small talk, mostly because he never knew what to do with it, but at least he'd come up with something. 
   

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Notes: N/A