Spice and Sparkles ((Closed RP- Baron Harkonnen, Jasper, and the Raptor))

[i_am_harkonnen]

((Many thanks to A-mun for coming up with the thread title. It is my area of extreme FAIL.))

Although he couldn't claim to be satisfied, the Baron had finally gotten his rooms in order. He was still irritated that rooms was really one large room, with a closet and a semi-acceptable bathroom, but didn't plan to put up with it forever. What he'd

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[j_whitlock]

There was a lot weighing on Jasper's mind lately, and while he hadn't been avoiding others entirely, as he'd originally planned to, he was still spending more time alone. Whenever he allowed himself to be near people he was in a state of uncomfortable hyperawareness, especially with his human roommate and family-watching for the slightest hint of what Alice had warned him about. Thus far he'd found nothing, but was convinced he was simply missing the signs, wasn't looking hard enough. It was beyond frustrating

[j_whitlock]

He certainly agreed about Hogwarts needing the organisational effort-during his rather illuminating conversation with the woman from Divination, Maddie Magellan, he'd also started to deliberate taking on a leadership role. Not as a professor, but in forming something like a students' union, a group equipped and willing to deal with the miscellaneous murderers and rapists who viewed the school as their playground, its inhabitants their sport. The old order of the school was very obviously no longer being upheld by anyone else, especially not the faculty, so it really fell to the students to take control and look out for one another.

"Seeing as there are only two classes being actively offered, you may have your choice of subjects. But I believe there are more than two professors still here, who may not take kindly to a newcomer invading their unused turf, as it were." He was smiling thinly, his cynicism apparent. "But if you're better suited for the job-and you'd have to be, if you're actually willing to do the job-hopefully you'll be

[i_am_harkonnen]

"If you're interested in helping without teaching, I could appoint you as my personal assistant once I find a job." He grinned at Jasper, and although sounding slightly teasing, he was part serious. "You would be good at it. You've already touched on a point I wanted to discuss." Bereft of a mentat, Vladimir had decided to bring up a few topics with Jasper, hoping he might prove helpful in a similar capacity

[j_whitlock]

"Conditioning sounds about right. A and another boy, B, were being raised together as possible replacements for a detective of considerable renown in their world, someone called Ryuuzaki-better known as L. I've been told those who oversaw their training allowed B to repeatedly rape A without intervening." There he paused, his expression darkening, as clearly that was the aspect of A's past he found most disturbing. "I'm unsure why they thought abuse of that kind would be conducive to their experiment. Here, at Hogwarts, A was offered the chance to retaliate, and relieved B of his index fingers."

He'd been absently fingering his wand, and, realising so, tucked it back into its place in his sleeve. "For what my thoughts are worth, I suspect aspects of that trauma may always be with him, as deeply ingrained in his psyche as it seems to be," he said. Which he knew mostly through careful observance of A's emotional state, but he also knew he could be wrong. "Whatever his original potential was is now lost, but, in overcoming his trauma,

[i_am_harkonnen]

"So, it was conditioning." It was hard to keep his eyes from wandering to Jasper's hand as he fingered his wand, naturally wondering just what those lovely hands would feel like, but he had a disciplined focus and managed to stick to the subject. "What the hell kind of conditioning is that? I'm not sure how that would be conducive to training a detective. Perhaps they rationalized it as experimenting." The distasteful way he said the word suggested he didn't approve of it if so. It sounded wasteful,and reminded him of Piter and Tleilax. Even though everyone in the Imperium purchased their products, they weren't popular.

Some might argue that Vladimir was being hypocritical with this view. He'd repeatedly had his way with many slaves, not always with their enthusiasm. But, Vladimir was from a different culture, and they were slaves. A disposable commodity, like livestock. His mentat was twisted by Tleilaxu conditioning, but he was a ghola, a genetic duplicate of a dead man pre-inclined to take the conditioning properly. Piter had

[j_whitlock]

((I really can't guess how spice would affect something like a vampire, so... Jasper gets a nice trip and perhaps this is a glimpse of what will happen if he ever tries to eat Vlad. XD Wow, I keep hitting the character limit and have to delete paragraphs and edit everything. Argh.))He nodded solemnly in response to Vladirmir's conjecturing that it was nothing more than an experiment for whatever vile organisation had been training A, presumably since birth. "As I understand it, L was a highly specialised sort of detective in their world, requiring anyone in his position to be extraordinarily intelligent and possess abilities normally thought to be beyond human capacity. I can't imagine anyone being forcefully trained to replace him would have had a very enjoyable life, even without the physical abuse

[i_am_harkonnen]

((Sorry to be a bit slow on the tag back here. Yeah, the comment length limit's been a challenge with this thread. I've had to play editing a lot too. But it's been a great thread. =D Yay for the wrongness!))The Baron nodded agreement with Jasper's further assessments of A. He was determined that A would recover from his past incidents, but, it wasn't the sort of thing that could be rushed to succeed. It was still very confusing to be cultivating a paternal sort of interest in someone for no specific reasons, but, for some reason Hogwarts seemed to be bringing out Vladimir's better traits. He was the sort of individual who reacted to situations as necessitated by the situations themselves. Although he'd spent most of his career focusing on the heavy-handed side of politics and mastering the art of cruelty, he was no longer in the same situation. It was true that he missed his position, and his home, and his family, but, he knew this wouldn't make any difference to the situation. And so he was trying to view it with an open mind

[j_whitlock]

((It has been a lot of fun. :D I just obviously need to cut down on some of the more tedious TL;DR. The narrative seems choppy to me upon rereading my comments because of all my editing.))

"You may call me what you wish," he assented, and though he was still smiling, his manner had become markedly more somber. He had allowed himself to become distracted and far too comfortable, between the effects of the spice and more notably the Baron's exceedingly pleasant presence, and he'd somehow forgotten one very important factor. He was not human, would never be human again. He could play at being mortal all he liked, but it wouldn't change anything; it would only deceive others. Once Vladimir knew this truth, Jasper rather doubted his kind offer would still stand-and he wouldn't blame the Baron, any more than he'd blame the stag for fleeing before the wolf. It was simply the natural, logical reaction. No human would ever be truly safe around Jasper. What Vladimir was proposing was just inviting disaster. Much like rooming with Satou. Like

[i_am_harkonnen]

((Yeah, trying to cram a bit less in at once would probably lead to less editing- but whatever's necessary is necessary, and I'm enjoying it all. =) ))

"If I may call you what I wish, I'd prefer to call you Jasper." He was feeling relaxed, and pleasant with the slight edge of spice, and the exceptionally enjoyable company. It was of course not in his nature to admit Really, I'd just like to keep you close, and enjoy your amazing company. And to call you a friend, and perhaps a very good friend, eventually. Had he known the truth about Jasper, this in fact may have been easier to admit, as bizarre as that was- at the moment, he was seeing himself as the wolf, and Jasper as the stag. Had he known that they were both more like the wolf, he'd have been somewhat more comfortable with the strange developing feelings he appeared to be forming for Jasper. As it was, he couldn't quite explain his fascination, beyond an inexplicable liking that somehow went beyond simple lust

[j_whitlock]

((Hope you don't mind the liberties I took with the 'massage'... XD))

"So you've changed your mind about wanting an assistant?" He smiled faintly. "And I wouldn't have offered if I didn't want to," he lightly pointed out, and, though it remained unspoken, the rest of his thought was clear enough: Nor could you force me. Vladimir's answer hadn't been particularly helpful, but he didn't mind; it hadn't escaped his notice, both heard and felt, that the Baron had also perceived some essence of his mood and was concerned.

It was increasingly strange, this little meeting with Vladimir-fear would have been much more rational than concern. He didn't even appear to mind that Jasper had him in a fairly vulnerable position. Perhaps one day he would look back on his encounters with Jasper and realise exactly the sort of risk he'd taken inviting such a being into his private quarters, and even allowing the vampire to touch him. Not death, obviously-but the potential of experiencing a pain so excruciating death would have been a great kindness

[i_am_harkonnen]

((Not at all. *g* And now it's time for things to start getting even weirder. XD Sorry about length again =/ .))"Not at all- but I do think 'assistant' sounds rather mundane for one like yourself. Advisor, perhaps, would be closer, if still imperfect. I can't say that there would be a lot of actual work, which I hope wouldn't disappoint. You've already been more helpful than you realize, I think." He wasn't sure why he was being less guarded, and almost admitting that 'assistant' meant 'a good excuse to see you more frequently'. But it didn't seem like the wrong choice. The fact that Jasper seemed to be acting according to his own will pleased him- it was partly this that made him so magical. Even exiled tyrants liked to feel wanted. And Jasper almost made him feel wanted in the way he'd most prefer

[j_whitlock]

((No worries. And oh dear. XD There is something very amusing about a vampire being more freaked out by a human than vice versa.))

"Assistant, advisor, friend. I'll leave the choice of title up to you." He had no doubt he would be referred to in different manners depending on whom the Baron may mention him to, and assuming the Baron would still want to remain in contact at all once he knew the truth. It mattered remarkably little to Jasper what he was called, so long as he was treated with respect and not as a servant. "I do like to keep myself occupied, my mind busy. With things that interest me, not necessarily the work of others," he said with some amusement. No, he wouldn't mind not having much actual work to do.

He couldn't know that he was hurting the Baron, and the fact he seemed to be enjoying the massage only convinced Jasper he was somehow doing it right. When it eventually became enjoyment of a different variety he flinched and struggled not to pull his hands away. This wasn't entirely unexpected, but it was still

[i_am_harkonnen]

Oddly, even with the realization that Jasper was definitely not human in any typical sense of the word, his unusual eyes and pallor still hadn't formed any sign for Vladimir that he should be anything else. He was familiar with a wide range of drugs that that had physically altering affects, such as the orange tint of elacca, or the blue-in-blue eyes of spice addiction, or the no-longer-human mutations of the Spacing Guild who hid within spice tanks and were never seen by anyone outside of the Guild. And there the Facedancers of the Tleilaxu, who had obviously started as something human, but were now a race that was definitely not human in any normal terms. These were creatures who could mimic any other person, take on any shape and mentality. And despite this ability, they were used most commonly for entertainment. Which said a great deal about Vladimir's civilization- it had outgrown a great deal of fear. Probably thanks to the Bene Gesserit breeding programs, an influence which had in fact caused some alteration in the exact

[j_whitlock]

"Did I hurt you?" he asked, his concerned dismay apparent. "I'm sorry. I have no experience with... touching humans like that." Touching them without the intent to kill, he was going to say, but knew it would be better to explain everything first lest Vladimir get the wrong ideas. "Before I tell you, it's important that you know I haven't forced you to do or say anything. Although I do confess to influencing your mood, in order to help you relax. But I promise that was all."

This was a conversation better had comfortably face to face, without him looming over Vladimir, and so he returned to the gold sofa, sitting beside the raptor rather than disturbing him yet again by moving him. Despite his growing anxiety he had no obvious nervous tics, made no fidgeting gestures. He simply laid a hand on the raptor's snout, as much to comfort himself as anything. For the moment he actually forgot to continue making even those occasional small movements, to shift positions, blink, and breathe as a human would, instead remaining entirely too still

[i_am_harkonnen]

His slight smile turned reassuring. "It would depend upon one's definition of hurt, I suppose- I would not suggest practicing on less substantial humans. There was some pain, yes, but, there was a great deal more pleasure, especially since it's been effective. Of course, now I'll be wanting another one soon."

It wasn't all too surprising of news that Jasper had some sort of telepathically calming influence. The pet was a pretty loud beacon, and, he'd been aware of his own inexplicable pleasure in the man's company. This influence did seem to be causing an inclination towards honesty with him, but, he wasn't actually doing anything that he didn't want to. If anything, this influence was actually very helpful, as a relaxed mood did lead to better decisions most of the time. And thus far, things were not going badly in his opinion. Jasper hadn't run off yet

[j_whitlock]

Vladimir's reaction to everything very much astonished him, and he stared with a neutral expression for several long moments, considering how this could be. He wasn't sure he could trust such an easy acceptance of what he was, even if the future apparently did count the living dead as viable members of society. It was just so deeply ingrained in him, that humans were the enemy even as they were also like cattle to his kind-there were many perfectly valid reasons why vampires of his sort were normally forbidden from revealing themselves to humans. And to form ongoing friendships with any? Unfathomable. Brief liaisons of the sexual variety weren't entirely unheard of, which was how the succubus and incubus myths evidently got their start, at least in his world, but the human partners were never privy to the truth. Better to think they'd been seduced by imaginary demons than to realise factual vampires were living among them