[Open] I'll be here after midnight wearing my beleaguered frown

[killedthesnake]

Neville wasn't a celibate hermit by choice, despite the fact he'd lived like one much of his first year at the Mansion. No, he'd been attracted to a few of the men he'd met, but he hadn't pursued it. When he'd first arrived, the sting of his last relationship was still too fresh; the betrayal by his lover had cut him deep

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[blackjewelmale]

At some point, Saetan will wander into the kitchen, looking to see if there's any red meat in the "cold box": the old codger's been busy keeping the library habitable and orderly, but he's happy for any company, and since he's nocturnal anyway,

"Don't mind an old man looking for his lunch," he says, with a stately self-deprecating lilt.

((Want me to punt any others of mine??))

[killedthesnake]

Neville is at the stove top, gently rolling a few cups of milk around in the bottom of a pan, over one of the burners. He glances up to the other man, having no idea who he is, not that that is so unusual here at the Mansion. He nods in greeting, and actually considers saying nothing more unless asked, but he begins to feel rude after a few long minutes of silence. He's really in no mood for small talk, but manners must be maintained. "I don't believe we've met. I'm Neville." He doesn't sound as jovial as he usually might, not that Saetan would know any different.

[blackjewelmale]

Saetan is accustomed to less than jovial, even surly: his sons can be quite grumpy, even aggressive. "I am Saetan SaDiablo: I was at work in the library, but even light work like that can work up a man's appetite," he says.

[killedthesnake]

"Do you normally work during the middle of the night?" Neville asks curiously. He'd have moved to shake the man's hand, but he doesn't want to scald his milk.

[blackjewelmale]

"Yes, the daylight tires me out, and so I'm up and about during the night," he says.

[killedthesnake]

"If I ask if you're a vampire, will that seem rude?" Neville asks. He's met and heard of all manner of residents here, and so little surprises him any longer.

[blackjewelmale]

He'll chuckle a bit, gently. "No, not in the least: I am one of the Blood, one of a race of beings, sometimes human, sometimes animal, who are gifted in magic and who store their extra power in the Jewels that we wear." Neville might notice the pendant with what looks like an especially bright ruby about the older man's neck. "But more specifically, I am one of their demon-dead, what happens when one of our kind die, but their power is so great that their spirit is still linked to their body. I suppose it's a bit like being a vampire, but we don't actually hunt the living for the blood we need to sustain ourselves, and we don't have fangs."

[killedthesnake]

"I've heard references to the Blood in my time here, but I'm not personally familiar," Neville admits. He does look to the ruby when Saetan refers to Jewels, but makes no comment. "Well, it's nice to meet you. Neville Longbottom," he introduces himself with a formal nod of his head.

[blackjewelmale]

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Master Neville -- or would you prefer that I address you as Mister? There's a wide range of titles here, but that's the nature of this place, given the wide range of people here," he says, bowing his head to Neville.

[killedthesnake]

"Actually if you'd like to call me simply Neville, I wouldn't mind," Neville suggests with a quick smile. "What would you prefer I call you?"

[blackjewelmale]

"I'm Saetan SaDiablo, but, well, since we're on first names, you may call me by mine," he says, with a gentle, even fatherly smile.

[killedthesnake]

"That somehow seems disrespectful," Neville murmurs. His Gran had drilled manners into him, but even without that, this man seems --powerful.

[blackjewelmale]

He shrugs gracefully. "I'm not one to stand much on ceremony, but if you're more at ease addressing me by my last name, I shan't keep you from it."

[killedthesnake]

"My Gran wouldn't approve," Neville chuckles, sounding both bemused by and fond of the woman. "You're a powerful wizard," he adds, as if to explain.

[blackjewelmale]

"But I am also a gentleman of many years who is enjoying something of a retirement in this place," he says, casually, and perhaps a tiny bit amused at Neville's insistence.

[killedthesnake]

"Yeah, my Gran is retired too, but she still commands respect," Neville grins. "If you insist, I'll call you Saetan. Otherwise I'll be rude and disrespectful." He chuckles again.