Caught

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Warning(s): possibly bad characterisation, weird metaphors, references to a cat eating a mouse, and oh yes - questionable actions taking place in a church. Self-edited very hurriedly, so typos be here.

A/N: Written for springkink. All criticism accepted.

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Churches were supposed to be buildings that were the very epitome of sacredness. An unblemished spot where sin and the plagues of evil were far out of reach, an invisible barrier keeping the outside evil from soiling those holy grounds. Nothing would come in and nothing came out.

(Here the mouse was safe, guarded from harm by the guiding light that shone warm and bright).

Charles had always loved visiting churches as a child: the quietness as well as the sombre atmosphere soothing him when he had felt upset or lonely. The coolness of the marble floor, the gentle flickering of the candlelight and the smell of holy water made his uneasy, restless heart and mind be at momentary rest.

Or so it would have been usually.

Yet, under usual circumstances, Charley would been alone and not taken his Master with him. Not because he didn't desire his Master's company, but because he knew that his Master had no understanding of proper decorum.

But this time, Johnny had insisted on his going so very fervently, batting his eyelids and pouting his mouth in such an obscene manner - Charley would have rather stripped naked than admit that he thought it was cute - that he had caved in. It had been either that or subsequently deal with an upset Johnny for the rest of the week (which, despite Charley's vast experience of dealing with his Master's various antics and moods, was still something he could not handle quite well).

But gosh, was Charley thankful it was late at night and that no one could see them. He was quite sure that Johnny would have caused quite an uproar, otherwise. And, as far as Charley was concerned, he really didn't have the time to deal with that. Life, as it was, was already difficult enough.

Indeed more than complicated enough, Charley thought, throwing a look at Johnny's garments. He sighed and tapped his fingers against the edges of his open Bible.

That movement did not pass by unnoticed, of course.

"Why are you staring at me like that, eh Cherry?" Johnny asked innocently, as if he didn't know that his behaviour was testing his beloved Chris' patience. Then again, he'd always had a talent for pretending to be innocent, even though he was very far from being so.

(The cat, seeing a tasty meal, slowly crawled out of the shadows).

"Your clothes," Charles said between gritted teeth, closing his eyes and pressing a gloved hand over his throbbing temples,"are hardly appropriate for this occasion. Didn't I tell you to put on something less ... emoffensive/em?"

"This is offensive?" Johnny asked, pointing at his clothes - tight leather pants and unbuttoned shirt revealing more than it hid - and then chuckled, shaking his head. "I think this is very fitting."

Charles opened his eyes and stared incredulously at Johnny, not understanding a word of what was being said to him. Either his Master was growing senile or - which by far was the more likely option - he was trying to piss him off. Somehow Charley just never seemed to escape being teased: he didn't know what it was that made him such a victim of verbal abuse. After all, he was always trying his utmost to appear serious and intimidating.

But, what Charley didn't know was that it was this prim and proper attitude of his, which made Johnny love teasing him so much. Moreover, he wasn't half as scary or intimidating as he deemed himself to be.

Indeed, Johnny would have said that Charles was anything but intimidating.

Johnny laughed - the laughter disrupting the tomb-like silence within the building. "It's just that if you felt the overwhelming need to feed all of a sudden, I've decided to wear clothes that are easily removed for that case. After all, you have this tendency to undress me completely. Sometimes I really do wonder how you've managed to keep your virginity intact for so many years."

He licked his lips and waited for Charley's reaction, knowing that he'd pushed the right buttons. Oh, Charley just didn't know how adorable he was when he blushed! And the more he blushed, the more it made Johnny want to tease him some more: it was the only time when Charley behaved like the little boy he'd once known.

"I -," Charley started, cheeks burning red from humiliation," would never succumb to such lowly, demeaning behaviour in a church."

"Sure you wouldn't," Johnny said, but his tone was so mocking that he could have just as well as said "it's raining pigs and that's why I've decided to lead a life of abstinence."

If Charley had regretted bringing his Master along with him, he now swore to himself that he'd never be fooled by Johnny's battling eyelids or pouting mouth ever again. Because it were those very eyes and that very mouth that were putting dangerous thoughts into his head. Johnny was doing it again and Charley couldn't stop staring.

Though anger was flaring up inside of him, there was also something else building inside of him. Something like hunger - only stronger and harder to suppress. Charley swallowed and tried to return to praying, but his gaze flickered back to his Master - and his clothes.

(His Master's tight pants, the red satin shirt that was only held together by two buttons - showing off a pale chest and pink nipples that --)

Charles coughed and clenched his fist. He hated himself.

Johnny felt nearly guilty; he knew what he'd done. Then again, he couldn't be blamed. It was true that Johnny had picked this outfit for practical reasons - those clothes were easily removable. And they were an eye-catcher, useful for seduction. Yes, as much as Charley denied it, Johnny knew that his eyes wandered; he knew that - no matter how hard he fought against it - Charley was attracted to him.

So things between them should have been easy and clear: there should have been no necessity for this cat and mouse game, which always had them running in circles and marked no progress in their relationship at all. Indeed, it was nearly as if they had been been sitting in the same merry-go-round for years - spinning and spinning without coming to any halt.

Despite being centuries old, Johnny didn't possess an infinite amount of patience. His feet were beginning to feel like lead and he felt his breath coming short. He needed a break. And if Charley wasn't going to give him what he wanted, he'd use whatever method he could to have his wish granted.

Even if it went beyond pride, dignity or goodwill - but then, as a vampire, he didn't require such qualities.

So, he climbed on top of Charley's lap, bared his neck to him and waited - knowing perfectly well that he'd gotten Charley cornered like a mouse. It was only a matter of a heartbeat, a flicker of a second, a single tick of clock -

(- and the cat, claws extending from its paw, caught its prey).

Charles could have pushed him away easily: he had more than enough strength. And yet, he couldn't. Didn't want to.

His teeth sunk down into Johnny's neck, draining blood.

(And so, the cat ate the mouse).