{"sf1_id":782140,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Little Boy Blue","author":"StGeorgesHorse","words":2506,"posted_at":"2014-11-15T11:41:00.000Z","tags":["FAMILY","Human","Plot Development","Royalty","Story Progression","Werewolf","reunion","russia","tension"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/782140-little-boy-blue","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/782140","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=782140\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"#69 of The Moonrise Chronicles\n\nSince I was stuck off my feet, I pulled this next chapter out sooner than I expected.","content":"                Edward\nwasn't actually angry. He had rather figured on butting heads with the Russian\nmobsters who had entered the restaurant, so his response was more measured that\nemotional. What he had needed was a way of getting their attention. And even\nthen, he only needed one of them to notice him. That would be the smallest one\nin the bunch.                The\nhand on the mobster's head turned dark and gnarled while his other hand balled\nup into a fist. He stuck it down on the table and waited. The boy looked at the\nhand and the fist before looking up at the man they belonged to. Even as the\nrest of the gang were fumbling for their weapons, he halted them. \"Wait. I\nthink this gentleman wishes to have a discussion.\"                Edward\nnodded. \"That's generally more constructive that just firing randomly or\ndestroying bars and churches, now isn't it?\"                \"So\nthat was you I was after? That stupid priest was correct after all. Oh well,\ntoo late for him. Sit down my friend, for I see you have something I very much\ndesire.\"                Edward\nturned and waved the females away. He sat down and leaned in toward the youth.\n\"You've been angry for a very long time Alexei. I don't blame you, but did it\never dawn on you that you were going about this the wrong way?\"                The boy\nmade a face. \"What can you know of my life? For that matter, how do you know my\nreal name?\"                \"Is\nthat something you want to discuss with all of these men present?\"                He\nlooked around and shook his head. \"You're right. If you do know, there is no\npoint in telling everyone.\" He pointed to his men. \"Get. GO! Find another\ntable. And leave everyone alone, including the owner. I have a feeling that if\nyou even talk nasty, you'll be paying for it.\"                The men\ndrifted over to the tables closest to the entrance, a wise move, if not a\nbrilliant one. \"So friend, who am I to your eyes?\"                \"You're\na young man who never got the change to grow up and live a proper life.  And for that past fifty plus years, you've\nbeen on a vendetta that has gotten you nowhere.\"                \"You're\nguessing.\" The youth said with a straight face.                \"No I'm\nnot Alexei, youngest son of Tsar Nicholas the Second. You were bitten by\nRasputin, but the full transformation never took hold, did it?\"                The\nyouth bit his cigar in half. \"Who the hell are you?\"                \"I\nguess that depends. Who do you want me to be? I can help you, or I can kill\nyou. I'll leave the choice up to you.\"                \"You\ndare threaten me?\"                \"It's\nnot a threat Alexei, it's a promise. Right now, if I feel I have to, I can rip\nyour men apart like a drunk goes through vodka.\" He reformed his hand into a\nhuge werewolf claw. His nails raked the table.                The\nyouth looked at it and quailed. \"How can you help me?\"                \"What\ndo you want?\"                \"I\nwant... I want to be rid of this curse.\"                \"And\nwhich curse is that? Being stuck as the young man bitten by a werewolf, yet\nnever able to become one himself? Or that you've become a cynical asshole in\nyour old age?\"                \"How\ndare you...\"                Nails\nscraped the wood. He stopped.                \"Look\nAlexei, you've approached this problem the wrong way your entire life. I could\ngive you my ring and I think you'd finally change. But what good would that do\nyou? At this point you're as bad as your sister.\"                He was\njust relighting the stump of his cigar. The rolled mass of leaves fell from his\nmouth. \"Sister?\"                \"Well,\ntwo actually.\"                He\nstubbed out the tobacco and stood. \"What the hell are you blathering about?\"                \"Maria\nand Anna.\"                 \"They're\ndead you lying piece of shit.\"                The\nclaws came together in front of his face. \"Then who has the family rings? Or\ndid you think that I stole the one I'm wearing?\"                The\nyouth sat back down. \"Yes, I assumed that you had acquired it through nefarious\nmeans. It's obvious you know what it does.\"                \"I'm\nmore aware of what it can do that you ever will be. But it's safe to say, this\none is mine. It came to me through my family.\"                \"You\nlook American.\"                \"And\nyou look out of place sitting here with a cigar in your mouth, what's your\npoint?\"                \"I was\nasking what family you are from.\"                \"Bourbon.\"                \"As in\nthe Beast?\"                \"Ah, so\na few people know about that. I'm glad I'm not dealing with a fool. That gives\nme hope. Now, I have something to show you.\" He turned and waved the girls over\nto the table.                He was\ngoing to introduce Maggie, but he knew that Maria, the tsarina, needed no\nintroductions. She came up to the table and nearly collapsed. \"Alyosha?\"                \"No one\never called me that except for... Oh my God! Maria?\"                She\nrushed to him, causing a few of the mobsters to stand, fingering their weapons.\nEdward let out a growl that shook the windows and threw everyone for a loop,\neven the youth. He looked over to his men. \"Sit down and don't disturb us.\" He\nturned back to his sister. \"I thought you dead. When the government said they\nfound your bodies, I figured I was alone in the world.\"                \"They\nsaid they found yours too baby brother. But how have you not aged?\" Then she\npulled back. \"And why have you trying to kill me all these years?\"                Edward\ntapped the table, motioning for them to sit. \"Incomplete transformation. That\nboy I'm told I bit at the village was apparently stuck in one form only. I got\nthinking that he might have been older than he looked. Aging varies in the\nKind, as I have seen, and so it made sense that if , as you said I said, he was\na youth and yet not a youth, then he must be old, but looking young. And here\nhe is.\"                \"Yes, I\nget that. But Alexi, why were you trying to kill me?\"                He\nactually looked contrite. \"Because I did not know it was you sister. Forgive\nme. I assumed, after my agents saw you once with the ring, that you had somehow\nstolen it. After all, a few of the eggs went missing, as did the original box,\nso what was I to think?\"                She\npulled out the box which Maggie had gotten from the priest. \"It was hidden away\nin the old Winter Palace. As for the ring, I have had it ever since Gregori\ngave it to me.\"                \"What?\nThat old fool gave you the ring? I suppose he dug you out of the pit and sent\nyou on your way too.\"                \"Yes.\ndidn't he help you?\"                \"No one\nhelped me,\" He said bitterly. \"Only I helped me. I dug myself out from under\nseven feet of dirt and rock. I guess he didn't think I was worth saving.\"                \"Nonsense!\nYou were the first one he helped.\"                \"It\nstill doesn't explain why he left me there to rot!\"                \"I'm\nsorry brother, but I can't answer that. Gregori told me so little when he\nrescued me. Perhaps he though you truly dead. He did not bite us until after he\nhad saved your life, and he told us to tell no one. Even mother and father did\nnot know. If not for that simple thing, we would not be here talking today\"\nThen she got a concerned look on her face. She turned t Edward.                \"You\nknew he would be here, didn't you?\"                \"Who?\nMe? What were the chances that he'd come into here when we were here eating our\nmeal? I mean of all the places in St Petersburg he could eat at, who knew he'd\nchoose this one?\"                Alexei\ncleared his throat. \"This is one of the few places I trust to eat at my friend.\nBy the way, do you have a name? And what of your little ...daughter?\"                \"My\nname is Edward Peterson. This is Maggie, my adoptive daughter and your great\nniece.\"                He\nstood up, staring at her features. \"The line is diluted, but I think I do see\nAnna's features mixed in with her own.\" He reached across the table and stuck\nout his hand. \"Glad to meet you my dear.\"                \"Likewise\nI'm sure sir.\"                He\nlaughed right from the belly. \"Sir? Do I look like a sir to you?\"                \"No you\ndo not, but it doesn't mean I'd treat family with so little respect as to\nremark upon it.\"                \"Wise\nwords. Kind words. I'm not used to them. I surround myself with paid meat. No\nbrains and fewer emotions.\" He sighed. \"This feels good.\"                Edward\neased back in his chair. \"So then, would you like a ring?\"                \"Will\nit help me to shed this awful body?\"                \"Yes, it\nwill help you to shed it. It will still be you inside, and you will still have\nto wait for it to mature.\"                \"Which\nmeans I will live on for another century or more. I don't know that I find that\nidea tolerable.\"                Maggie\ngrinned from across the table. \"But you have family now. Don't you want to make\nthe most of it?\"                \"I\ndon't know my child.\" He chuckled. \"Me calling you a child! But you are,\ncompared to me. I am of a much older generation. I have seen more years than I\ncare to remember.\"                \"I'm\nsure you have. And from the looks of the goons you have, I'd say you dabble in\nthings not within the scope of the law.\"                \"A\ndelicate means of calling me a crook if there ever was one. But you are correct\ngrand niece. It is not a proper profession, but the only one where I can hide\nmy identity and my age. It is very difficult to be taken seriously when you\nlook like this.\"                \"Yeah,\nthat has to suck. You're probably one of the oldest guys in town and no one would\nbe the wiser of it.\"                \"The\noldest, or I was until my dear sister returned. Now I think she has the honor.\"                \"Alexei,\"\nthe tsarina started, \"what shall we do now? I mean, after all these years,\nwhere do we begin?\"                Edward\ntook off his ring and slipped it on the boy's finger. \"I think he has some\ngrowing up to do.  Once he's done with\nthat, I think you'll find something to make of your life.\" He stood up and made\nas if to leave.                \"Sit!\"\ncried the youth. \"You drop into my life unexpectedly and now you think you can\njust give me this valuable gift and leave?\"                \"Yes, I\nthink just that. At this point, you need it more than I do.\"                Maggie\ntugged on his arm. \"I don't mind your generosity, but how can you say that you\nwon't need that ring? His men already put a bullet though your skull.\"                Alexei\nblanched. \"So it was you at the bar. I was told there was a werewolf that\ntrashed the place. My sole remaining man said that he was only protecting\nhimself.\"                Maggie\nwas furious. \"We were in there having a good time, bothering no one. Your men\nfired upon us for no god damn reason.\"                \"I'm\nsorry grand niece. I did not know who you were. Since you came from the\nVatican, I assumed you were under the pay of Cardinal Medici.\"                \"You\nshould be sorry! We killed that creep in France!\"                \"What?\"\nThe youth sat in stunned silence. Then he recovered himself. \"That man has been\na menace for decades. It almost makes me feel sorry for the priest. I think he\ndidn't know who was the lesser of two evils. It's too bad he didn't trust me\nmore, but then again, I'm a criminal. And the Cardinal was his superior.\"                \"An\nevil, horrible man. He nearly killed my father and I suffered under his power.\nIn the end it took, the combined might of...\"                \"..others.\"\nEdward said quietly.                 There\nwere multiple stares, and for different reasons. \"Alexei, right now, the less\nyou know of me and of Maggie, the better. You really need to catch up with your\nsister and maybe make plans on visiting the United States to see Anna.\"                Maggie's\njaw dropped. \"But you don't remember saying she was alive!\"                \"No,\nbut you said I did. So all we need to do is to get back and find her.\"                \"And\nyou intend to leave your ring here?\"                \"It'll\nbe in good hands. Besides, if your grandmother has one, then perhaps it is\nmeant for you. That would mean that we would have a spare ring, and that would\ndo no one any good, now would it?\"                \"Your\nlogic sucks...\"                \"My\nlogic is perfect.\"                Maggie\nstuck her tongue out. \"Which is why it sucks!\"                Alexei\nslid the ring off and attempted to hand it back. \"It seems that I owe you much\nalready. I cannot possibility take this from you. I'm sure my sister would be\nglad to lend me hers.\"She smiled and nodded.                \"No, I\nthink that for now, you had best keep it. \" Maggie was suddenly struck with\nsomething, some random thought, and she turned to Edward.                 \"I\ndon't like this. I just got a funny feeling about this place.\"                \"Yeah,\nthat can happen. Don't let it worry you. The best way to avoid an explosion is\nto defuse the bomb right off the start.\"                She\nstared long and hard at him. \"What the hell does that mean?\"                \"Shush.\nSit down and think on it.\" He turned to Alexei.                \"Keep\nthe ring. If you really want to be of use in returning a favor, then maybe you\ncan find a way for us to get back out of the country. I have a feeling our\nfalse documents from the Vatican may be worth a tin dime right now.\"                \"I\nreally would rather have you stay my friend, but I cannot make you. I have my\nown jet, and I'm sure I can smuggle you on board. Where are we going?\"                \"I'm\ngoing back to Rome. Maggie is coming with me. You had best stay here.\"                The\nyouth stuck another cigar in his mouth. \"On no! Where you go for now, I go. We\nare family, and family should not be separated. There has been too much time\napart. We will travel together and catch up on our pasts.\"                Edward\nsat in silence for a few moments. \"Ok. But I pick the flight plan.\"                \"Whatever\nyou wish my friend, whatever you wish. Make it the longest way possible for all\nI care. I have not had such a light heart in many years. I wish for this moment\nto never end!\"                \"A nice\nsentiment Alexei, but we all know that everything will come to an end\neventually.\"                \"Dah!\nBut not today my friend, not today!\""}