Work Text:
EYE OF THE BEHOLDER
If my friend's taught me anything, it’s that everybody deserves your respect,
Regardless of how different they are from you…
--MM
The man that sat at the table of the bar and grill with them was in his fifties. His curly hair was peppered with gray, but his friendly blue eyes twinkled with youthfulness despite his age. He was the picture of an open, honest man. He was also the new assistant district attorney, a man they would have to deal with now that Josh Lindsey was gone. A background check by Josef's people had said that was divorced, had a teenage son and lived in Malibu. Had gotten into some trouble with the law in his youth and done time, but turned his life around and now served the city of L.A. From all accounts, not someone who freaked out by the idea of not going by the book or using unconventional methods to get the job done. Who was he, though? That’s what Josef was here to find out. You could only tell so much from reading a file.
As feared, Josh had found it hard to look the other way when he needed to and had never been able to reconcile himself with the existence of vampires. Oh, he never did anything to threaten their exposure, he kept his part of the agreement, but the personal toll was great. Beth had watched, in concern and guilt, as he struggled to keep himself afloat. The brief relationship he’d had with a female vampire that they’d hoped would help didn’t last, and he started stopping for cocktails more and more after work. He was on the fast track to becoming a liability, and even Shane had warned that he would have to be eliminated if it kept up.
Then, a light appeared in Josh’s life just when he needed it most. His college sweetheart had come to town for a visit. They hooked up again, rekindling their love affair. In the end, he did what he most wanted to do; he moved to Colorado with his new bride to start a new life and forget vampires had ever existed. Josef still kept an eye on him of course, just in case. It was for the best, and they were all happy for Josh.
They had no plans to let the new guy in on their secret, but whether he’d turn out to be an alley or enemy was in question. The way that Mick and Beth tended to attract the attention of the district attorney’s office in their pursuit of truth and justice, they were bound to cross paths with him frequently. That’s why they’d decided to be preemptive and get to know Mark in less delicate circumstances.
Right now those circumstances were a basketball game on the big screen TV in the bar, and quite a few drinks. The vampires were still clear-headed of course, but Mark was definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol. Which is how they'd manipulated it, they wanted him open and loose-lipped.
Turned out not quite the way they'd expected, though.
“Well, I lost a bundle,” Mark commented as the game finished with his team losing.
“Are D.A.’s supposed to bet on sports?” Mick asked teasingly.
“I don’t know, are they?” Mark said as he finished his beer.
“I won, myself,” Josef told him.
“You bet on the Knicks? Where’s your loyalty?” Mark demanded jovially.
“My loyalty is with the winning team,” Josef told him with a smile. “And I always win.”
“I can attest to that,” Shane added wryly, earning an elbow in his side from Josef.
“Shane’s a nice Irish name,” Mark told him. “Are you Irish?”
“My mother was.”
“Did you guys know,” Mark began, leaning back in his chair and regarding them solemnly. “There are leprechauns among us?”
The silence was complete as the three vampires looked at each other and then back at Mark, trying to figure out whether he was kidding or not.
“Seriously. I met them. Of course, they were pretending to be gypsy trapeze artists from the Soviet Union. Can you believe that?!” Mark snorted. “One of ‘em confessed to me though. That was, god, must be almost twenty-five years ago now.”
“O…kay,” Mick said.
“Maybe it’s time to go home,” Josef suggested. “Let us drive you.”
“What, you think just because the existence of something seems unbelievable, it’s not true? There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio. I have my proof. My car was in pieces in the shop – literally, and I was told it would take a few months to rebuild. It was magically in the driveway the next day, good as new. See, I let them go and didn’t tell anyone the truth, so that was their way of thanking me.”
“Is a delusional D.A. better or worse than Josh?” Shane whispered to Josef.
When Mick burst out laughing, the other two looked at him inquiringly. “Doesn’t strike you as funny? Us, scoffing about the existence of creatures from folklore?”
“That’s it,” Josef announced, having had enough of the weird conversation. “Time to go home.”
XXX
Mark directed Mick to an address in Malibu, and soon they were pulling into the long winding driveway of an estate.
“Does being a D.A. pay enough to afford a place like this?” Josef commented, taking in the scene and wondering if Mark was all that honest after all.
“I sort of inherited it,” McCormick explained. “C’mon in, I’ll show you around.”
As they got out of the car, Mark tripped into a garbage can, sending it crashing over. “Shh!” he scolded the wayward can with a finger to his lips. Mick grabbed and righted him before he could fall with it. “Thanks.”
They trailed Mark up to the door. He unlocked it, and they followed him inside.
“This is some place,” Mick commented, glancing around the entryway.
“Yeah, you could say that. We have to be a little quiet though, because—“
Before he had time to say anything else, a loud blast shook the walls. Their heads whipped towards the direction of the noise to see an old man who looked to be at least ninety standing in the doorway in his underwear, a shotgun in his arms.
“That’s the judge,” Mark said to their frozen astonishment at the sight before them.
“McCormick!” the old man bellowed, and his voice nearly shook the rafters as much as the shotgun blast had. “You know better than to slink around here like that. I thought you were a prowler!”
“He’s a bit senile, but I love him anyway,” Mark confided.
“I heard that!” the Judge barked.
“Did you find your hearing aid’s again?” Mark asked him in a sweet, slightly condescending (but definitely playful) voice. He turned to the others. “I hide ‘em but he keeps finding them.”
“Uh, maybe we’ll go now,” Mick decided.
“Thanks for the ride, Mick. See you around.”
“I have a feeling that’s inevitable.”
“This should be interesting,” Shane commented as they were heading out the door.
“I think I like him,” Josef proclaimed. “In fact, I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
The end