A familiar, yet ever so repulsive blend of odours hit Lucius like a wave as he entered The Entrails, and his lip curled as he looked down at the grime underneath his shoes. It had been the norm for him a few years back, but he'd quickly and happily accepted clean roads as part of his everyday life.

So what had brought Ethan down there in the first place? He wasn't a particularly high class person per se, but Lucius found it hard to believe any member of the Hargreaveses, alive or not, ever had to set foot there unless for a very good reason.

He looked around. His memories of the street was blurry, but from what Richard had told him, Ethan was supposed to be nearby.

Then someone tugged at his coat, and Lucius wrinkled his nose before even looking.

"No, I'm not lost, I don't want to buy anything, and I don't keep my valuables up for grabs in my outer pockets even at the best of times," he told the woman behind him. "Better try an actual angler next time."

"Could have fooled me," the gloomy-eyed woman muttered as he turned around, and she let go of his coat.

Lucius was equally as flattered as he was offended, and he leaned in closer.

"I'm not an angler," he hissed. "I'm just not a worm."

The woman was not impressed, and she imitated Lucius' crinkled nose before leaning forward as well.

"You're either an angler, or a worm. It's as simple as that."

In the end it was Lucius who wanted to back away. Not because her words intimidated him, but because her breath was really bad and he began to worry she was a spit-talker like Whitbrow.

He remained in the same position though, trying to think of a threatening comeback.

"Lucius?" a voice then said, and Lucius reluctantly broke eye contact to turn his head towards Ethan. "Didn't expect to see you down here making out with old ladies."

Lucius scowled, and so did the woman, enough to make Ethan flash an apologetic, close-mouthed smile.

"Not that you're that old, my lady. In fact, now that I look closer I'm rather certain I'm older than you."

"You don't say," Lucius mumbled under his breath, averting his gaze.

The woman still glared, but turned to stomp away and look for other rich people to steal from.

"I'm genuinely surprised to see you here though," Ethan said while still looking after the woman disappearing in the crowd. "Isn't Mr. Faal's orphanage closer to the outskirts?"

"I came to find you." Lucius crossed his arms and gave the vampire a judgy look. "And you're not exactly the person I'd expect to find here either."

Ethan scoffed.

"When you're me, you look for where there's life after sunset, and The Entrails serve me better than any other place in South Kerilia."

"I mean..." Lucius glanced around with a light frown. "... There are cases where I think staying inside would actually give you a better time."

"You don't have to be down here if it's so beneath you." Ethan's voice held a slight resemblance to his father's icy tone. "But I need to eat, and I only have so many options."

Lucius blinked. He hadn't even wondered about Ethan's usual food sources before.

"Oh, you have to find people down here?"

"Anglers aren't well known for their vampire friendliness." Ethan looked away. "People here are just happy for the money."

Lucius pursed his lips. As unlikely as it sounded, he supposed even he would have considered letting a supernatural stranger drain his blood if it paid well back in the day.

'Considered' being the important word.

"You seem off today." Ethan squinted at him. "What did you want to see me for?"

Lucius shrugged nonchalantly.

"I thought since you're out on the town anyway maybe you wanted to grab a drink?"

Ethan raised an eyebrow.

"Interrogate me more, huh?"

"Or just drink," Lucius suggested with an innocent smile.

Ethan nodded slowly, a smile joining his questioning frown as well.

"So you came all the way out here solely to ask a vampire to drink alcohol with you? You didn't stop to remember something in the time it took you to get here?"

Lucius, though disgruntled that such a casual offer had failed him, wouldn't acknowledge the mockery.

"I never said it had to be alcohol."

Ethan's eyebrows arched, fangs slightly visible as his smile widened.

"Oh, is that an invitation?" He raised his hand to trace a finger along Lucius' neck. "Last time wasn't so bad after all?"

Lucius groaned on the inside. Was it better to admit he was indeed there to ask questions, or to admit he'd forgotten about the blood-sucking aspect of a vampire?

He drew a silent breath, and then he locked eyes with Ethan.

"... Let's say it really is an invitation," he said, tilting his head to expose more skin. "Would you let me interrogate you in return?"

"About my family?" Ethan's attention was still fixed at Lucius' neck. "Don't you think it's better to just leave things be?"

"I can't figure Anthony out." Lucius lowered his gaze to the ground, rather ashamed to say so. "If I knew more, maybe I could, but he won't tell me anything."

Ethan's frown was more concerned than sceptical, and he sighed.

"And Damien?"

"I dunno." Lucius shrugged. "Might be easier to fuck with him if I have more dirt."

Ethan chuckled, but his frown wouldn't let up.

"We're not a happy family. You probably won't like what you hear."

"I'll take my chances," Lucius promised, though uncertainty grew in his mind. Perhaps Ethan was right, and it would be better to leave the Hargreaves past buried, but how could he?

Ethan still released a sorrowful sigh, but raised an arm to gesture forward.

"Let's go find somewhere to sit."

"There should be a tavern nearby if I don't remember wrong," Lucius pointed over his shoulder, and Ethan scoffed.

"I thought this place was too gross for you."

"And I know that because I've been here before." Lucius shook his head and walked before Ethan could judge him more.

"The Squirming Wyrm?" Ethan questioned, looking at a worn down sign above the door Lucius stopped by to wait for a bickering couple to leave.

"It's better than The Regal Seagull a couple of streets down," Lucius muttered before clearing his throat at the couple. "You mind?"

"What if I d—" the man started, but his words choked as his eyes fell on Lucius. "I— Uh... No, no we were leaving anyway."

Lucius thrived. What a wonderful dread in the man's eyes. For a moment he'd doubted people of The Entrails even remembered him, but he was more than happy to be proven wrong.

Ethan however, wore the same concerned frown as his brother usually did, but didn't ask follow-up questions as the couple hurried away and Lucius opened the door.

No one had even bothered trying to make the place welcoming. Squinting through the dim light, Lucius could barely make out the bar desk amidst the crowd of unpleasantly smelling people and brutally handled furniture. It was almost as though the garm-infected sewers had been more preferable, and perhaps even easier to navigate.

"Get a table." Ethan patted Lucius on the shoulder before bravely entering the chaos, only calling back to him once before disappearing. "I'm just gonna assume you're a whiskey person!"

Lucius accepted the assumption, not that he would have minded other drinks, and began his search for a place to sit.

"That's a pretty face you got," a man sitting at a table surrounded by a multitude of giggling people said and gestured for Lucius to come closer. "Why don't you sit here with us?"

Perhaps The Entrails wasn't such a bad place to be after all. Lucius was so tired of high class anglers and acting proper. How long would he have to wait before getting the chance to wrinkle his nose and tell a man to go fuck himself if he didn't do so now?

So up went his chin, and his nose wrinkled an appropriate amount before opening his mouth to unleash language befitting a blight.

Then someone shoved their way past him, and he stumbled forward instead.

"See, you can barely stand anyway," the woman next to the man who spoke first said with a laugh, unmoved by Lucius' scalding glare. "Sit here! We'll buy you a drink."

"Oh I'd love nothing more than accepting drinks from filth I don't know," Lucius hissed, cockiness fading as frustration took over, and he pressed forward through the crowd. "Be a fun surprise to see where I'd wake up in the morning, if I even would."

"What the Waste is wrong with that one?" the man asked the others, and another one huffed.

"Anglers."

Lucius was tempted to turn around and protest. He wasn't that ignorant to know what he looked like to people from The Entrails, but he would never stoop so low as to be called an angler and be fine with it. Fortunately for them, he had other business to attend to.

With some elbowing and withering remarks to penetrate confidence, he finally managed to sit down by a small table, only needing to sweep a number of empty glasses off to a table nearby when the current inhabitants weren't looking.

"Oh, perfect!" Ethan said, voice loud enough to overpower the crowd as he shoved his way to Lucius' table with six glasses of whiskey.

Lucius spared the drinks a blank stare before turning his eyes to Ethan.

"You think I'm gonna drink six of those?"

"Bartender said I had to order at least three each." Ethan raised his hands apologetically after putting the tray down. "And I don't need people staring at me for not drinking."

"But you won't," Lucius whispered with his frustration growing stronger. "And it's not like he would have refused your order just because it was 'too little', he just wanted to make more money."

Ethan blinked.

"Uh, yeah? That's what he's supposed to do. I'm supporting him."

Lucius responded with an eye roll, but grabbed one of the glasses.

"Maybe I'll need it."

"I feel like you're getting your hopes up." Ethan tied his hair up into a bun, avoiding the risk of locks landing in sticky spills on the table "But who knows."

"I'm counting on that you do."

Ethan pinched his lips together, but grabbed a glass as well only to place it down in front of him.

"Guess we'll see."

"So, once and for all..." Lucius sipped his whiskey. "... How old are you?"

"Is it that important?" Ethan wanted to know with a disapproving look. "You know it's a rude thing to ask."

"Well Catherine says there are centuries between you and Derek." Lucius would have none of the judgy stares, and Ethan made a face.

"Sure loves bringing that up, doesn't she? Well if she wants to be literal about it, I guess."

"So?" Lucius cocked an eyebrow.

"Guess I'll be around twenty soon, or something." Ethan shrugged with a lighthearted smile, and Lucius returned the smile while his palm slammed the table.

"Try again."

Ethan's smile turned sheepish.

"Three-hundred and twenty, that is."

"See, was that so hard?" Lucius shook his head, masking the uproar going on in his mind. He'd tried preparing for as much after what Catherine said, but having it confirmed by nearly exact numbers still horrified him.

"Was it for you?" Ethan asked accordingly, and Lucius clicked his tongue.

"And I guess Anthony's around the same age then? If you were both mortal at the same time?"

"Five years older."

"Can't seem like that much of a difference by now." Lucius' smile was weak. "Not even between the two of you and Damien, I suppose."

"Father's been a grumpy, old man since his sixties, so he always feels older still." Ethan grimaced with a shrug.

"Not surprised."

"I'm guessing that's not all you wanted to ask," Ethan said, pushing Lucius' glass forward before leaning back in his chair, and Lucius obediently raised it to his lips again.

"I just..." He hesitated, lowering his glass with a frown. "... Has Anthony... Been in relationships before?"

Ethan only looked at him for a good moment.

"He's over three-hundred—"

"That doesn't necessarily mean something."

"Well then yes." Ethan's eyes looked skywards. "Yes, he's been in relationships before. Multiple."

"Right..." Lucius stared down at his glass, choosing to drink again, and Ethan continued with a sigh.

"What's wrong?"

"Dunno, guess I just..." Lucius shrugged, gaze refusing to leave his glass. "... I thought we were getting somewhere. At least he implied as much before, but... After the kiss it's like— Like he changed his mind or something. He barely talks to me when we're around others."

It wasn't hard to spot the pain in Ethan's eyes, so Lucius pressed forward.

"There's something, isn't there? Is it about me? About what happened at the sanctuary? I mean, I know he's part of the BBT but he's not actually like Damien, is he?"

Ethan shook his head, opening his mouth to say something but then closing it again.

"Could—" Lucius' eyes narrowed, and he stared down at his hands. "Could it be about my... Problems around intimacy? He knows that I don't— Well... Want to... Do things like a lot of people do, so..."

Ethan blinked.

"... Sex?"

Lucius nodded in silence before emptying the glass in front of him to hide his embarrassment, only realising too late that there had been a lot more left than he'd thought.

"Can't imagine that would change anything..." Ethan made a sympathetic face as Lucius grimaced from the generous swig of alcohol. "... I'm actually pretty certain this is more of a he-problem than a you-problem."

"Really?" Lucius wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, still not looking at Ethan. It had been some time since he'd let insecurity take over, but the subject of his trauma ruining relationships was tearing open old wounds at a rapid pace. "How so?"

From a brief glance, it seemed as though Ethan had some troubling thoughts as well, and he eventually sighed through his nose.

"Well, it's..." He paused as Lucius grabbed his second glass. "... It's just that Anthony's relationships never end well."

Lucius had a growing feeling of discomfort in his chest, and not from the veins.

"Never end well, how?"

"He doesn't talk about it." Ethan had his eyes fixed on the table. "It's just from what I've seen over the years. I guess he had a couple of decent partners in the past, but it's been in between some not so great ones, and it's not like the good ones lasted for too long anyway."

"Wh— Why not?" A chill went through Lucius, and he took another sip.

"I mean, they die." Ethan gestured vaguely in the air, probably uncertain how to put it delicately. "Immortality paired with mortality will do that, after all."

"Oh..." Lucius pursed his lips, having pushed that thought away before.

"Just that alone was enough to cause him a lot of harm, but then it got even worse." Ethan shook his head in confusion. "Several of them just left him all of a sudden, and some just disappeared. Some even died while still young."

The chill turned into a lump of ice in Lucius' stomach.

"... But you don't think...?"

Ethan actually snorted.

"No. He may not want to talk about his lovers, but Anthony doesn't kill just anyone. That much I know." His smile soon faded into a serious expression again. "But... I guess that's why I think the issues concerning you lie with him. That his relationships just kind of... End up hurting him."

Lucius pondered it, gradually emptying the second glass as they sat in silence for a while, not without some queasiness involved.

"For what it's worth, I'm not planning on going anywhere, with everything I got going on here to boot," he finally concluded, chill fading from his chest as his body warmed up. If it was Anthony being afraid of getting hurt, it wasn't because of a lack of affection. "And I'm sure not dying any time soon."

"Don't think the dead ones thought they would either," Ethan mumbled under his breath and looked away. "And I... Guess I shouldn't make things harder for you two, and he's my brother and all, but... People usually leave for a reason, don't they?"

Lucius hummed, swallowing some discomfort bubbling up in his throat..

"Well... How do people usually react to immortality? Gotta be pretty harrowing for some, if not most."

Ethan chewed on his lip, eye twitching as a fang stabbed it.

"Suppose that's a good point."

"And people do fall out of love," Lucius argued. "It happens. Maybe Anthony's reluctance caused by past heartache has damaged recent relationships until they leave."

"What about the disappearances, then?" Ethan asked with a frown, suddenly seeming more concerned than Lucius had been. "Deaths can happen, even if it being several cases sounds alarming, but why have some just up and vanished?"

"Maybe they're part of either of the other two reasons, but he doesn't want to say." Lucius dismissed it with a flimsy wave, voice having reached the state of slurring some words. "You said he doesn't want to talk about it."

Ethan's frown had taken a turn towards the annoyed.

"Listen, sweetie, I get that you're relieved, but that doesn't mean what's been going on with him isn't concerning."

"But now that I know a little more about it I should be able to talk to him," Lucius reasoned with an unusually content grin, and Ethan groaned.

"But he doesn't want to."

"Not with you."

"Oh for the love of rainy days—"

"Wait," Lucius suddenly said as his gaze fell on the two glasses next to him, still untouched. "I've already finished one of them, and I'm holding one now."

He narrowed his eyes, and looked over to Ethan's side of the table where there were two empty glasses as well, only now noticing how the room was swaying around him.

"Ethan—"

"I have to make it seem like I've been drinking as well," Ethan defended himself, and Lucius let out an offended gasp.

"Ethan, how much have I been drinking? You've just been refilling my glasses with yours all this time?"

"Well what was I supposed to do?"

"Pour them somewhere else!" Lucius gestured towards the table full of empty glasses next to them, having to adjust his pointing slightly after looking twice. "Or give them away! Or don't order them in the first place!"

Ethan hushed him.

"Alright, my bad, but don't change the subject now. Feels like you're reaching some concerning conclusions with the information you're given."

"I'm mostly relieved I'm not the one fucking up agai—" Lucius shut his mouth, squeezing his eyes together in regret. He'd been over it so many times. Adrian's betrayal had nothing to do with him. "Never mind. Just... I'll talk to Anthony. Not much else to do about it now, right?"

"I guess..." Ethan shrugged. "... Happy to be of service."

"No no." Lucius reached over the table and patted Ethan's shoulder a little too hard. "We haven't talked about Damien."

Ethan made a face of deep discomfort, but nodded slowly, so Lucius continued.

"Why are you so obsessed with him, anyway?"

"I'm not obsessed," Ethan protested. "You're the one bringing him up all the time."

"Because he's a toe-sucking asshole trying to ruin my life, but your problem is definitely bigger." Lucius unthinkingly took another sip of his drink. "There are some serious father issues at work here."

"I mean, he's my father and he ignores me," Ethan muttered. "Is it so odd to be upset about it?"

"Well, kind of?" Lucius grimaced. "He seems like a pretty shitty father."

"But he wasn't before," Ethan snapped, only to clear his throat and lower his voice again. "I... He used to be great, and— And we got along and were close, but... Then after I died it all changed."

"That is what usually happens when family members die though," Lucius remarked, unable to hold back a needlessly long time of laughing at what he deemed to be a damn good joke.

Ethan only gave him a reprimanding stare the whole time, and Lucius finally clicked his tongue.

"Listen," he said, continuing to consume his drink as he couldn't quite feel the taste anymore. "Why is the whole blood-relation thing a thing, anyway? If he's an asshole, he's an asshole. And you don't need assholes in your life."

"It's not that easy," Ethan said while staring down at the table. "He's family. I— I can't just forget about that?"

"I would absolutely kill my brother if I got my hands on him," Lucius countered, not even bothered by bringing Seth up in casual conversation, or talking about murdering him for that matter. "See if the Waste would have him."

Ethan grimaced, clearly unsettled by the claim.

"I know Father can change," he insisted. "I don't think his beliefs are that deeply rooted, and... Since I was his son before, it shouldn't be impossible to be so again."

Lucius tried giving him a sympathetic look but it looked more condescending than that.

"You're setting yourself up for disappointment."

"Maybe." Ethan leaned back in his chair again. "But so are you."

The corner of Lucius' mouth twitched, and the discomfort from their earlier topic returned.

Actually, it was a growing discomfort. More like nausea.

"Yeah I should've seen it coming," he mumbled before standing up from the table, and Ethan looked taken aback.

"No, I— I mean, I don't think you should give up or anything—"

"It's not that." Lucius grimaced as he turned towards the door. "I feel sick."

"Sick how?"

Lucius looked over his shoulder with an accusatory glare before nodding towards the empty glasses.

"The drinks?" Ethan blinked as he looked at them as well. "Were they too much?"

"'Were they too much?'" Lucius imitated him with an unflattering voice. "Yes, they were."

"Oh, I didn't think—" Ethan hastily stood to follow, only stopping to take the glasses with remaining contents over to the group of people Lucius had talked to earlier, adding a charming smile. "Here you go, it's on us."

Lucius was already outside when Ethan caught up to him. Not a moment too late, Lucius thought as he staggered to the side and over an uneven cobblestone, requiring Ethan to catch him.

"The squir—" Lucius tried to read the sign above the door, eyes now falling on the serpent-like creature carved below the words, and he let out a loud gasp. "Wyrm!"

Ethan blinked, and looked up at the sign as well.

"Uh..."

"I'm not an angler, or a worm!" Lucius declared with a voice befitting soggy gruel. "I'm a wyrm!"

"You're... A worm, not a worm?" Ethan asked, stroking hair away from Lucius' sweaty forehead, grimacing as he received a disapproving stare. "Sure. That sounds... About right."

"They're powerful, and wise, and majestic, and— And powerful," Lucius counted, increasingly annoyed by Ethan's worried frown. "Rich, but not in an angler way, and clever like a worm but in a better condition."

His speech choked with a retch, and he pulled away from Ethan to stumble away.

"Pardon."

"So... My bad, uh... Again," Ethan said as Lucius turned around the corner into an alley. "I guess I don't drink with mortal humans that often, or... Not at all, really. I don't know how much is too much."

"Even if it hadn't been a while since I drank last, I don't have the frame for all that." Lucius leaned against the cold wall and stifled a retch. "Haven't eaten a lot either."

Ethan looked genuinely remorseful.

"You gonna be alright?"

"Probably, eventually."

"Maybe you just need to eat something," Ethan suggested, looking around as if there'd be food available in an empty alley.

"Not necessary." Lucius covered his mouth with a weak laugh. "It's not gonna stay down anyway."

Ethan wrinkled his nose, but sighed as well and awkwardly patted Lucius' back.

"We should get you back to Anthony's place," he said. "I'll find someone else to eat."

Lucius laughed again, blinking a couple of times before his gaze focused on Ethan.

"That sounds so gross."

Then he frowned.

"What happens if you do suck blood from someone drunk? Do you get drunk?"

"For a while, I guess." Ethan shrugged, having gone from patting backs to holding a grip on his swaying friend's shoulder. "Not that long though, I think. I don't know, I don't usually drink from drunk people. Doesn't really... Feel right."

"I wanna know," Lucius protested. "Let's try it. If nothing else, it should sober me up, shouldn't it? Get some alcohol out, or something."

Ethan wrinkled his eyebrows.

"I'm... Not sure that's how it works."

"Shouldn't it?" Lucius insisted, more curious than certain he was right. "Come on."

"I..." Ethan hesitated, but relented with a sigh and looked around, then back to Lucius. "... If you puke on me I'm gonna tell Anthony your blood tastes like rotten fish."

"What does it taste like?"

"Blood."

"I knew it," Lucius mumbled, and began removing his coat.

"And you're sure about this?" Ethan's mouth twitched as he eyed Lucius' neck. "We'll stop the bleeding and all, but your condition is not great."

Lucius gave him a weak smirk.

"Aren't you curious as well?"

Ethan opened his mouth to say something, but seemed to change his mind and turned his head away with a flustered look.

"... I guess."

"Figured." Lucius grinned. "Would've been dumb if all three of you were gloomy killjoys."

"Thought you liked my brother," Ethan said as he went to check the surroundings.

"I do!" Lucius rolled his eyes. "Everyone has flaws."

"Only people nearby seem occupied with their company, so let's hurry."

"Look who's eager now," Lucius mocked, but tilted his head to the side.

"I don't need people panicking whenever I eat." Ethan brought out the cloth strips. "Ready?"

"Of course."

It wasn't as uncomfortable as the first time, Lucius concluded. Perhaps because he'd been through it once before, or because of his intoxicated state. Either way, it didn't bother him that much.

Until a few seconds later.

Nausea overwhelmed him again, but he resolutely held it back. He was not about to have his blood compared to rotting fish. Absolutely not.

Then, in a surprising turn of events, it was Ethan who pulled away with a retching sound, and he spat out blood on the muddy ground between them, enough to make Lucius step to the side to avoid his shoes getting even dirtier.

"What the fuck are you doing?" his voice was more accusatory than he'd intended, and he pointed a finger at the ground. "I don't have that much to spare, you know."

"I—" Ethan convulsed, covering his mouth to swallow the contents back. "I don't know, I— It's just..."

"If you're gonna make fun of my blood's taste anyway—" Lucius slurred before covering his mouth as well, and Ethan shook his head.

"It shouldn't taste like that. It's like you're—" He paused, partly to spit on the ground again, but also because he'd seemingly remembered something, and he groaned. "Oh, for the love of—"

Another gagging sound, and Ethan covered his mouth again.

"What?" Lucius swallowed and looked away from the slimy blood-mixture on the ground that was certainly not improving his condition.

"The veins," Ethan managed to whisper. "I forgot about your veins. Your blood is—"

"Fuck's sake." Lucius managed to groan through the nausea. "I can't even be eaten properly now?"

"Not with those," Ethan coughed, eyes widening as he looked to the side of Lucius. "Shit."

In the midst of everything, both of them had forgotten about the blood-stopping, and Lucius gagged again as he noticed the large, red spot spreading over his neck and shoulder.

"Lucius, your—" Ethan's body convulsed again, and Lucius drew a weak breath.

"Unbelievable," he muttered.

Then they both threw up.