Percy didn‘t quite know what he was feeling when he waited in front of his house, at the crack of dawn. Of course she was going to choose an early time to pick him up, his neighbors would have been suspicious. And yet, once a car parked in his driveway, Percy felt himself tense up. That was her, wasn‘t it? The driver‘s door opened and indeed, Nora Hanson stepped out of the vehicle. He was certainly surprised she was the one who was going to take him, but he wasn‘t complaining. At least she was a face he was already used to, and while he couldn‘t quite categorize her it was better than a ride with a stranger. His thoughts cut short when she approached him… visibly tired. Percy raised a confused eyebrow, it was daylight, why was she so tired? So a vampire? But her teeth didn‘t seem to end in fangs, so human but sleep deprived? But even then her movements were too sluggish to be simple sleep deprivation.

"I‘ve taken a larger car, that should fit all your stuff inside."

Percy nodded, taking the first of his three suitcases to swing it into the open trunk. "Sure. You don't have to wait outside the car." He heard her chuckle behind him as she handed him the second of his suitcases. "I like to greet people, thank you very much."

After handing him the last suitcase, Hanson vanished onto the driver‘s seat and let Percy be the one to close the trunk again, before he sat down next to her on the passenger seat. He had rarely been in such an expensive car, yet alone driven one himself, so he did feel a bit weird sitting in this thing.
"You're exhausted. Sure you can drive?"
"Absolutely. I'm just more of a night person and usually get up around early afternoon."

Hand resting on the keys to turn the engine, Hanson eyed Percy up once more, and said one responded her look nonchalantly. What was it now?
"...you‘re a human, aren‘t you?“

Percy paused, deadpanned for a second. What a stupid question. With a father who despised vampires from the bottom of his heart like this, who would assume he was a vampire? No. Gulp it down Percy. Not the right moment to be sassy.
"I was turned when I was little."
That wasn‘t exactly what not being sassy meant. But, who could blame him?
Hanson rolled her eyes a little and breathed out a soft sigh. Obviously she hadn‘t been as fond of his joke as he had been.
"Don't get sassy with me, if you get turned you're not ageing anymore. I was asking about other options. You could be a hybrid, for example. A daywalker. The possibilities are endless with modern technology to hide who you really are. But..."
She paused shortly, trying not to let her satisfaction about this show. Percy had to hold back from scowling at this, it was still more than obvious he was a human.
"You seem to be just a regular human. Good~ I don't like the thought of you jumping colleagues because you haven't figured out how things work at the base yet."
"Jumping colleagues. That's under my pride. But good thing you mention it... How do things work at the base? Where do your vampires get their... Food from?"

Percy watched her, carefully. Every word got weighed as he did not want to give her any stupid ideas. It would have been awful to become a walking blood donor for god knew how many vampires. Yet much to his surprise, the ravenette seemed unfazed, turning on the engine and taking quietly off. Eyes focused onto the road, she kept quiet for a second to try and formulate her work so far, then reopened her mouth.
"After a few... accidents... at the beginning... I've called a medical bay into life. Various workers of mine have signed up to donate blood every two weeks, as it takes that long to regenerate, while I've also organized a contract with a blood donation company to keep the sugar running for our vampires. Feeding happens every four days to keep the rations stable, where each vampire lines up and gets a pack of blood to take home. It's their decision if they drink it right away or save it for another time."
She paused for a second, flashing a glance at Percy to see wether he understood the procedure.
"Due to this procedure, vampires and humans have no problem living door to door with each other. There is a huge amount of trust involved but it worked for a while now, so I do not see any reason to change policy."

It was almost funny but Percy didn‘t know what he had expected anyway. Maybe slave cattle held in cages to feed the vampires? He knew as well as anybody that the Hanson family was big in dealing in slavery, and a known personality within the underground.
"I see... Sounds smart."

"It doesn't just sound smart, it is smart. The idea came from my brother, in all honesty. He's been doing his best in Mexico to establish proper feeding banks for vampires to keep public night attacks at a bare minimum."

"Huh... I wonder why our government is too stupid to do something like this. No, wait... with those people up there, I wonder about nothing."

Percy hummed, amused by his own comment. He wasn‘t particular fond of the government in the US, and he did not appreciate their way to deal with the growing vampire population either. Hanson next to him barked out a laugh and shook her head.

"What did you expect? Their solution is 'Extinguish all vampires' instead of adapting to the new situation and making sure life can continue as normal as possible. Plus, you gotta admit... Now that the propaganda isn't anymore 'Donate to save a life' but 'Donate to save your own life', people have become far more insterested in covering their own asses. Blood transfers have never been easier than now."

Percy couldn‘t help but smile just the tiniest bit amused. Well, at least on that topic he had the same opinion as her. He fell silent for a while before another thing came to his mind, and he spoke up once more.
"My new supervisor, uhm... Leon... Is he one too? And how am I to adress him?"

Hanson shook slowly her head, actually looking a bit relieved about that. A vampire Leon? An indestructable, not ageing Leon? God have mercy on those who cross his path if he would ever feel thirst for blood and no prey was nearby.

"Luckily not, he's a simple human. God have mercy on those who would cross paths with a vampire Leon... I don't wish to see the result. Just address him with sir or sir Leon, that's always fine for him. He is also donating blood, but not as much as the others, since he finds himself often in dangerous fights which could end his life if he was too low on blood."
Percy grinned amused. Was he such a monster? That new boss would prove to become very interesting.
"I see. If I have the time, maybe I should donate as well."

Hanson raised an eyebrow, then let out an acknowledging hum. Percy, donating as well? That guy seemed a little too invested in all of this. Not even one of her best men, Electrica herself, had been this ambitious about helping the base at the beginning. Yet she favored to keep quiet about this and just continued driving. Percy could see the suspicion manifest on her face and decided to dial a little down with his optimism.
"Leon is a good guy and my most valuable man of them all. He's... special. Keep your respect, don't make trouble, deliver good work, and you'll get along perfectly with him. And he isn't prude about helping anyone with anything, ask him whatever you want to have done and he'll do it if it's reasonable."

He nodded slowly, but then froze. Help him? There was no way his former boss would have ever helped him with simple things, not even the important ones.
"...I can just ask him?"

The smile she gave him in return was surprisingly soft, and it caught Percy off guard for a bit.
"Yes. Leon enjoys watching people grow on their tasks. If you might need help now and he shows you how it's done, no matter how banal it is, you might do it next time just as good by yourself. In fact, ask anyone for anything you need... Most of them are good at heart and will help you around. However..."
She paused for a second, then shot a smirk over to him which he couldn‘t quite place. All Percy knew was that he did not like this one.
"Since I do have some kind of pity on your new situation, let me give you this piece of advice. Do not, and I repeat, do not ask anybody but Leon himself or a girl named Katie for directions. The entire rest will guide you towards the women bathrooms and shower halls, no matter where you wanted to go. And if you accidentally find yourself there, you'll find out about a whole new kind of jumping someone.“
She focused back onto the road, but knew she had to explain herself better on this, especially once she noticed Percy‘s horrified look. Could he be blamed? She was promoting rape culture in this way, and he did not like it.

„Oh, not like that. The women will amputate your balls if you ever show your face there, and the men use it as some kind of awful joke on newbies to watch them get beaten up. Remember, you‘re dealing with a nest of criminals, and murder is nothing for them.“

„You act as if this is less horrible.“
„In a way, it is. I prefer this much more as a test for newbies than them getting pushed around for months and being unable to prove themselves to their ranks. Everyone you see there, no matter how innocent they may look, have already committed some sort of crime and proved themselves to the people around them. Some survived the women bathhalls, some managed a bankrob on their own, some punched other individuals into dust, and some could never be intimidated no matter what. And some are batshit crazy.“

Percy fell silent upon hearing that, not quite sure what to answer on that. So he had to prove himself? He didn‘t quite know how to do that exactly, especially because a few of them knew his face quite well and despised him from the bottom of their hearts. His heart sank a bit. What could he do to prove himself?

Two hours later, she finally pulled over to a shabby old motel, yawning softly while parking the car in a small parking lot behind where a suspicious expensive looking car was also standing in the shade. Percy immediately noticed that one.
"I need a coffee... Want one too?"
Hanson got out of the car, almost immediately grimacing again but covering it up fastly. Playing with the car keys, she watched Percy with a thoughtful look on her face. She was honestly glad he wouldn‘t set foot into her base with his police uniform on, he would have been dead before making it past the elevator.
"Grab your stuff, we're there."
Percy nodded, looking around absentmindedly as he stepped out of the car and grabbed his suitcases. It looked interesting here. No, actually... Absolutely not interesting. Nowhere you would ever expect a base.
"Hm... Sure..."
Favoring silence, Percy quietly shuffled after his boss, entering the shabby motel where a bored receptionist sat behind a large desk, feet up on it, tv running next to him. Yet while this fellow did not make the slightest impression of being of importance, his eyes seemed clear and far more intelligent than most people would have noticed. His eyes lingered for a second on Percy, clearly evaluating his purpose here, then moved over to the woman next to him, waiting for an explanation. "I've brought a new one. Fetch Katie, and tell Jonathan to brew a new stash of coffee."

For a moment, the receptionist couldn‘t bring himself to say anything, just stared with wide eyes at Hanson, then at Percy, slowly lifting a finger to gesture to him.
"Him."
"Yes."
"Percy Parker."
"Absolutely yes."
Percy studied his surroundings as careful as possible, trying to figure out weaknesses, then turned to face his host with a greeting smile, eyeing the man up in return. The young lad leaned against his suitcase. Longing to say something sassy to the receptionist but restraining himself. No way in hell was he going to test out his boss‘ limits on his first day.
"Pleasure to meet you. What may I call you?"

The receptionist seems visibly surprised about Percy's friendliness and just shrugged, finally relaxing. As unbelievable as it was, he seemed to accept reality fairly easy.
"I'm good ol' Joe, just keeping the guard up in 'ere. If you need a motorcycle to go anywhere, just ask me, we've got like 50 in store. Just return it properly. Welcome, I guess.“

Percy nodded at him, watching with high interest as he pressed a button below the desk and almost effortlessly, a part of the wall next to him slid aside, revealing a modern looking elevator.
"I see. I'll remember that. Thank you."

He turned to follow his boss into the elevator, smiling to himself. While this lookout did seem nice enough, Hanson‘s words kept swirling around at the back of his head. Anybody he was going to see had committed a crime.

"You know, I could actually start to like you and forgive you the countless times you've ruined secret missions."

Startled out of his thoughts, Percy looked up at her, a little confused.

"You act like I did so much... In the end it was never me who did anything."
"But your input was the killer for everything. Even you shadowing detectives was just too much and I‘m honestly confused on how you figured out things half of the police could not.“

Percy shook his head, not wanting to argue against that but also not wanting to insult some of his future colleagues on their skills to hide traces.

„Hold onto the railing, this elevator is fast.“

Again, a mental note. Percy grabbed the railing and prepared himself to go down, yet felt the need to ask another question.
"How many people live here?"
"141. Katie was the latest member. Now it's 142."
The elevator doors closed and while Hanson next to him tensed a little, it suddenly rushed down. Immediately she relaxed again and looked back at Percy, now that the moment of horror was gone. He leaned against the elevator, seeming not to mind its speed.
"...how deep are we here..?"*
"About 200 meters down. So a bit close to the surface, but it makes it easier to evacuate if anything happens."

Watching her regain her composure again was a little amusing to the former policeman who only knew this woman as a sassy nuisiance, yet that feeling of superiority vanished instantly the moment those doors opened again. A small entrance hall became visible, busy people running from here to there, some of them criminals Percy recognized too well while some of them look like everything but belonging here. A white tile floor spread to the right, a soft wooden floor extended straight ahead while a marmoric floor lead to the left.
"This is one of my main bases throughout the country. It's easy to get lost in here, so don't wander off without a map... Katie should be here, soon. I propose we go to the kitchen, first. I need something to drink..."
Percy scanned the area and eyed everyone up, tensing a little. Nervousity crept up. He tried to keep it down. Straightened his back and took a deep breath. Sent a prayer that no one would kill him in his sleep.
"Okay."
Following her, he clenched a fist hidden in his pocket.
"Coffee is a good idea indeed."
Hanson seemed satisfied and led the way quietly into the marmoric hallway, descending a bit deeper into it.
"As you can see here, the base is built in a semi round way. The large dining hall is at the end of this way, the kitchen on the right hand side. If you are in the mood to train anything, the entire left side is dedicated to training, thus our people here were more than creative in naming it 'The training wing'."
A little bit of sarcasm flew into the last sentence while she continued her way, finally stopping in front of a larger door, simply opening it to reveal a huge kitchen, quite a lot of cooks running around further in the back while the front was filled with coffee machines.
"I don't have my own office here since I'm rarely coming to stay longer, and if I do, I always take some coffee from here."
Hanson quickly fixed two cups of coffee, and Percy did one hell of a good job of watching her every move while she did so. She handed a full cup to him before pouring her own, immediately taking a sip.
"Milk and sugar is over there, I prefer it black."
Finally, he took his attention off of her and proceeded to peek into the kitchen, a bit overwhelmed by the sheer size of everything around him. And that had been hidden underground just outside the large metropolis he had called his home? A quiet mumble escaped his lips.

"My god... Huge..."

He took a sip and grimaced. Bitter. Strong. Better than the cheap stuff at work. Actually no, not better. Just different.
"Maybe I'll take a bit of milk."
He walked over to the milk, actually tensing the moment he was more than five metres away from Hanson. This was going to be tough, he knew it. As he returned, Percy stared expectedly at the woman.
"Anything else I need to know? Here are quite many people that surely would love to see me dead. Or worse."
She shook her head, enjoying another longdrawn sip of my coffee. Strong. Hanson seemed to need that. Was she living on coffee?
"Not really. Katie is going to show you around, she'll meet you as soon as you got your room. We have different heads for different departments of the base. An inu woman named Naomi is responsible for the training wing, she's making sure everything goes its way. Jonathan-"
She gestured to a small japanese man running around from left to right inside the kitchen, shouting orders and keeping his cooks together.
"-is the chief cook. His food is absolutely delicious. Various other leaders are Electrica, responsible for the laboratory wing, her younger brother Stefan, responsible for any kind of clothes you would want to have, an elderly woman named Bronya is reponsible for the housing wing you've seen straight ahead while coming out of the elevator, and we have an extern company responsible for the bathrooms at the end of housing, together with a large spa and pool area. If you need some relaxation on your days off or after your shift, you could try test it out. The pool is obviously free of charge but spa itself does cost a small fee, but I doubt this is absurd since it's another branch."
Percy didn‘t seem to pleased how much more comfortable he was around Hanson than on his own, yet it made sense since she seemed the only one not on the verge of beheading him instantly. He remained standing, shifting his weight from leg to leg. In fact, the longer they stayed in this break room, the more nervous he seemed to get. He turned his head and watched Jonathan, eyeing him up. That guy didn‘t seem dangerous to him but once again, he heard Hanson‘s voice in his mind. They all had committed crimes.
"Yes, it makes sense. Anything else I might need money for? Do you have some kind of pharmacy here maybe?"

"The medical bay. I only have a single doctor here who's able to help you if anything is happening, however, a hospital is only five minutes down the road per motorcycle and they've signed a non-disclosure agreement with me. Gets suspicious after a while when so many criminals visit you."

Percy soon started to drum a bit on the cup, looking around. Who here really knew him? Who knew him well enough to hate him? And it was so painfully obvious how much Hanson was enjoying him being uncomfortable. He wanted to leave but knew he was dead once he ran around on his own. Fully using the situation, she only got up again when her cup was empty and eyed Percy up, savoring the moment a bit longer.
"Shall we find you a room? Of course you may choose at hand, we have a list in Leon's office with every free and occupied room listed, together with the occupant."

„Yes. Ah, by the way... Do you need any information about me? Mr Granger does not keep everything on his PC since he noticed some hackings recently. Since then, everything very personal and deadly allergies or traumas are not listed anymore so no one can use them to their advantage."
"Unnecessary. I know everything there is to know about you and Leon has a thumb-thick file about you in his documents. Though it would be good for you to tell Jonathan in advance if you're having any food allergies he needs to know about."

A sinister smile hushed over her face as she revealed that information to him, instantly getting replaced again with her normal expression. Did he even know they kept files about every single policeman? Did he even know Leon used to break in so many times not only into his but also his father's and Granger's house to learn any outline of it? After all, Percy is one of the top dangerous policemen... well... was. Percy froze and stared at her, now nervous once again. Yet he was glad both of them got to move again as she led the way out again.

"...I would love to know what it says in there... No food allergies."

"If you've got the guts to try and search for it in Leon's office, I'm not going to scrape up your remains." Her voice had turned challenging, almost daring, and Percy felt a shiver running down his back. No way was he going to risk touching anything in Leon‘s personal office without his permission… God knew what that man would do to him.

Instead, he tried his best to memorize his surroundings. Left, left, right, straight ahead. Careful where to go, the base was big. He had absolutely no intention of landing in the ladies bathroom.

Hanson walked about half of the way back again and stopped in front of a smaller door. First a knock, then entered, a white haired man with stinging ice blue eyes and a nothing saying smile waiting behind. He was wearing glasses, obviously because he had been working the entire day on his laptop.
"Hi Leon~ Say, where's the paper about the room situation again? We've got a new one."

Percy‘s eyes grew as he recognized Hanson‘s right hand, Leon. As a tall man, he wasn‘t used to feeling so small next to someone. It confused him since Leon didn‘t even stand, but something about his appearance creeped him out, made him shrink in size.
"..good morning, sir."

Leon cocked his head to the side, before he bowed it towards Percy as a greeting. Seemingly unfazed, he returned his gaze towards his laptop, simply pointing towards a wall with a clipboard on it.
"Good morning, milady Hanson. It is quite early for you to be awake. Good morning to you too, Percy Parker. A pleasure to finally meet you in person."
His voice sent a shiver down Percy‘s spine. It was weird, he seemed so normal within this office, yet the last time he had been able to take a look at his work had caused him sleepless nights over it. While Hanson marched over to the billboard to search for the list, he had enough time to eye the man in front of him up. After all, it wasn‘t often that he had ever gotten a closer look at him beyond photos of him and the massacres he had left behind.

Leon Sebastian Jessen, a thirtytwo years old man. Quite the tall figure, Percy had guessed him as nearly 2 meters tall. Yet he looked far younger than his actual age… was it the training? He was quite broad and while most of his stature was hidden behind his suit, he seemed more than athletic. Percy swallowed down his nervousity as best as he could. That guy could surely punch him into the dust before he could have ever dreamed to lift a finger against him.

The most significant feature about him was his hair, without any doubt. White as snow, his trademark sign. It was long enough at the front to be able to nearly cover one of his eyes constantly, yet the man usually seemed to style it back in a soft wave to the side. It was rumored that this was his actual hair colour and not a dye, yet Percy found it hard to believe. Maybe a genetic effect?

Ice blue eyes glanced up and through glasses stared a hole into Percy, immediately having him tense up once again. Shit.
„May I help you in any way, Mr Parker?“

„N-no thank you, sir.“

Percy turned away, feeling awkward, just to see Hanson approach with a long list inside her hands.
"Here it is. This base has room for a 150 people, thus you can choose from 8 different rooms. They all look the same and are more like tiny flats, but it's up to you to decorate them and do whatever you want with them. Some are a bit further away... Some are closer to the entrance hall... There's room next to vampires and humans the same, so you just gotta trust your neighbor not to jump you."
Percy only bothered to look at the neighbors of the free rooms, then breathed out a soft sigh, That could become amusing.
"Dad gets regular death threats from her, him and him and already got one from her, so I'd prefer a place not close to them. How about here?"
He pointed at a flat rather in the middle of the base, a little confused about the following amused grin. Was she hiding anything?
"Sure. But I guess I need to have a talk with them... Your father's mine and if anybody pisses him off or sends any threat to him, it's me."
The last two words dropped into a quiet icy tone, sending shivers down Percy‘s spine. She was actually serious about this? Nevertheless, she flashed another glance to where Percy had pointed at before snorting.
"Ah... Good choice~ Katie will bring you there. I'll take my leave now... Business business~"
Obviously keeping quiet about something, Hanson turned around and left the office, and with that Percy just behind. Instantly, the man felt nervous. How could she have left him alone with Leon like this? Yet his thoughts got interrupted by said one addressing him quietly.
"You may sit down anywhere you like and wait for miss Kathrine. I must admit, I am fairly surprised." "...m-may I ask why..?" Damnit. Why on earth did he stutter?
He flashed a glance at Percy, before typing in his name into the new room.
"Choosing a room right next to Electrica is quite abnormal for someone like you."

Looking absolutely horrified, Percy‘s eyes jumped back towards the list, trying to figure out who of his neighbors was her. Of course, a pseudonym. How could he have been that unlucky?!
"...that was not my intention. Which one is hers..?"
Leon's right eyebrow raised barely visible yet he didn‘t look up from his laptop. A Parker, nervous in his presence... Nervous... Nervous... Scared... Scared? Leon glanced up to Percy, and while his face said nothing, he relaxed a bit again. Percy seemed to have a face of stone. Good.
"Electrica is merely a pseudonym for her name, Ginger. She is a troublemaking woman, but very skilled. She is, however... a vampire. Caution is advised, young sir."

"Ginger... Why caution? Miss Hanson told me there are no vampire attacks anymore…"

Percy made sure to keep a pokerface, in no way was he going to make a fool of himself right before this man. Leon cocked his head to the side, white hair falling gently into his face. Why wasn‘t he following his trail of thought? This was illogical.
"You have been the 'enemy' for far too long, young sir. Long enough to step onto some people's nerves. She might be a bit... cold, around you. But as far as I know her, she will treat you like everyone else, but I would still advise you to not meet with her if she has been doing alldayers. Electrica is a woman who forgets to eat and drink, and will suddenly fall asleep at her desk because she worked too much on a project she couldn't part from. In other words... She might as well forget to feed." A lightbulb went off above Percy, he seemed to understand.
"...And she would have no hesitation to feed on me rather than everyone else if need be. Thank you for the warning."

Suddenly, there was a soft knock on the door, yet when nobody followed suit and entered, Leon raised his voice. Percy was immediately attentive, yet kept his eyes also on Leon. In no certain universe would he turn his back towards that man.
"You may enter."
The door crept a slit open and an adorable girl with fire red hair in two curly pigtails appeared, clutching a clipboard. She seemed very nervous yet had a warm, kind and cute smile.
"I-I'm so sorry for the disturbance s-sir Leon, but I'm searching for Percy Parker... The boss said he should wait here."
Raising himself, Percy stretched a hand out to Katie with a smile. A cinnamon roll. Probably optimist, friend of the world, a bit too naive. Or maybe that was just a mask?
"I'm Percy Parker. Nice to meet you."
Katie let out a gasp and jumped to shake his hand, relaxing almost immediately. That was Percy? He looked far friendlier than she had thought and it confused her a bit, yet she welcomed that with open arms.
"It's so nice to finally meet you! I've heard a lot about you already, from so many people here... I-I'm kind of a fan, actually..."
She laughed sheepishly and played a bit with one of her curls, looking a bit embarassed that she actually said that now.
"A-ah, I'm sorry, my name is Kathrine Weger, b-but everyone calls me Katie. I've been hired as trainee mechanic and guide for others. How about I'll show you your room, you drop off your stuff and I'll show you the base? Or do you prefer exploring by yourself? Ah, in any case, here is a map. Everyone carries one."
Smiling sweetly, she held out a neatly folded map to Percy who took it without hesitation, quickly skimming over it. Perfect, now at least he wouldn‘t get lost.
"A fan? I doubt you heard many good stories about me..."
He gave her a reassuring smile. The more people he pulled to his side, the better. It was going to help him overthrow Hanson sooner.
"Pleasure to meet you, Kathrine. Call me Percy."
Katie let out a soft giggle and shook her head. Percy wondered, was she always this bubbly around others?
"Ah, no, you misunderstand. Our family tells all kinds of stories at dinner, about various encounters, and so many people have told us about encounters with you as well."
An amused smile appeared on her lips as she eyed Percy up.
"Mainly, they call your deduction skills a pain in the ass, but everyone speaks highly of those who deserve it, including you. I've been very excited to meet you... Ah, it must be weird for you to hear all this, I'm so sorry, I don't want to make you uncomfortable. Shall we?"

„It's okay. It's cool to be praised for something I did for once, not something about my father. I'd love to take your offer and have you show me around. Miss Hanson already warned me about the little game they play with newbies here and I do not intend to participate."
Katie froze when Percy said that, surprise clear as day on her face. Even Leon glanced for a brief moment from his work at Percy, silence falling over the room. Finally, Katie spokeup, almost hesitant.
"Did she... did she tell you about the women bathrooms...? I... huh... wow... She never told anyone new about that. Never. In fact, she's one of the people who laugh the hardest if someone gets lost there. ...She seems to like you, I guess. Heads up! That's a good sign!"
She shrugged to herself as if to end this topic now, then opened the door again and winked happily at her new friend.
"Let's go."
"Young sir, not so fast."
Leon watched Percy closely through his glasses, almost seeming to stare into his soul. Percy spun around. Awaiting orders. "Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. I will expect you punctual in my office."

He nodded slowly, staring right back. He knew that expression. Finally something he can deal with. He saluted, straightening his back. Of course.

"Of course, sir."

Percy slowly retreated from the office, then turned to Katie… only to see her release a puff of air the moment the door closed behind them, slumping a little together. Percy was surprised, nevertheless they continued on.
"O-oh god he is making me nervous... W-whatever you do, don't get on sir Leon's wrong side. People say he's a monster…" "I'm used to that. As a leader of criminals he probably has to be. The legal ways of punishment won't always show effect."

She gulped, hugging her clipboard and shaking quickly her head, obviously getting rid of some not so nice mental images.

"T-the last guy who messed up a mission had his arms broken by him. Both of them! I-I'm glad that was before my time... I'm so so scared of him... Even Electrica is nervous around him, but those two are a dream team if it comes to missions."

"See it from his view. He has to lead murderers, many criminals went under torturous procedures. Especially the older ones, back in the day when police used torture legally. They don't give a flip about being grounded or a lecture. You know what I mean?"
Percy rested his hand on her shoulder, trying to show some support at least. She probably wasn‘t as equipped as he was with dealing with supervisors like that.
"But I'm sure he won't break your arms."

Taking a deep breath, the girl tried to calm down. Relax. You're greeting a newcomer, not diving in fears about your supervisor. She flashed another gentle smile at him, looking somewhat impressed.

"But you have a great pokerface... I'm sure the boss handed you to sir Leon on purpose. Boss always says he needs people with a face of stone around him, people who don't show fear towards him." Percy raised his eyebrows. Interesting. "Do you know why?"

Katie narrowed her eyebrows, falling into deep thoughts. Yeah, why exactly?
"Don't take it for granted, it's just gossip, but... People say they overheard the boss explaining a few emotions to sir Leon. Happiness... sadness... anger, regret. There's a rumor going around that his face of stone is actually not a mask but... that he really hasn't got any emotions. All that's confirmed is that he can't deal at all with someone being emotional around him, he always hates that and turns you away from his office if you're too emotional."

She shivered a little and Percy decided not to question her about Leon any further. She seemed genuinely scared of that man, something Percy did understand very well.

"...well, he might. That would make him a sociopath. Or a psychopath. It's not as uncommon as we think it is. But that doesn't answer the question... Hm..."

He tried to reassure her a little, only to have her instinctively leaning a bit against Percy. Protective boy in her age? She needed that bit of comfort, especially since she was the youngest of them all. Percy looked surprised at her. Immediately, his big brother instinct took over. He wrapped his arm around her, trying his best to sooth her a little. In a bit, she reminded him of his younger brother.

Finally, she looked up at Percy.
"Is there anything you want to know so far? I-I'm sure I can help! We're nearly the same age, are we? I hope we'll become good friends!“
She gave him a sunny and adorable smile. Percy found himself smiling back. How did this adorable human being end up in here? It didn‘t seem to be a mask, but he couldn‘t be sure about that.
„No, no questions... I guess so. How old are you?"

Now fairly cheerful again, Katie smiled, bouncing a little with every step. For her age, she seemed quite bubbly, yet that made her only more sympathetic in his eyes.
"I'm seventeen years old. I've come to miss Hanson because I'm able to help so many people under her. I'm getting trained by Electrica to become a mechanic and help lots of people with my projects. And you... you were a policeman. But... why did you come here?"

"Then I'm a little older than you." He paused for a second, not quite wanting to answer on that.

"I wasn't happy with what I was doing."

Katie puffed poutingly her cheeks, then breathed out a soft sigh. Why even make herself hopes, it was the same every time.
"I'm kinda sad I'm the youngest here…" Percy, glad that she wasn‘t drilling, chuckled. "Well, I'm sure it has advantages."

After a bit of walking, Katie stopped in front of a room with the number 49, nodding towards it.
"That's yours. The key is on the nightdesk. I'll wait outside, yes?"
Percy stopped alongside her and nodded, a little excited opening the door. Wow. The door gave a free view onto quite a large looking room. A large flatscreen television on the right hand side, a quite comfy looking couch before it, and on the left hand side a wardrobe with a bed right under a... window? Upon closer inspection, it was a small wallpaper of a forest that had been glued in front of the window with a light source shining from outside against it, making the impression as if actually living above the ground. On the left side was also a closed door, to which Katie helpfully pointed out "Over there is your own bathroom."
Percy looked around. Surprise covered his face. He dropped the suitcases next to the bed, then turned back to Katie. Bathroom. He walked up to the door and opened it. The place was smaller than his flat, but that had to be expected. The bathroom looked as if it had been cleaned thoroughly every day, not a single speck of dirt is visible anywhere. There is a small toilet, a sink, two smaller drawers to store things, a large mirror... even a shower and a bathtub together. Percy walked back into his room and flashed a glance at his bed. A curtain in front of the bed would be nice. But he could definitely see himself living here. Katie couldn‘t help but smile a little and close her eyes for a small second while she continued to wait for Percy. Yes, she could get used to that, having someone finally in her age around her.
"I'm so glad you're close to my age... It's not easy being the youngest at all."

Katie reopened her eyes and watched him with a satisfied smile. Percy didn‘t seem displeased about his room, and that already eased her a lot.
"Ah, before you ask... The windows have been built because some people are claustrophobic and the idea of living underground gets quite to them... The boss found out this method seems to ease people a lot."
Percy nodded to himself, lost in thought, yet satisfied. Perfect. Just how he liked it. Especially after a few trips to a furniture store. He turned to the window and smiled.
"It looks very good. Makes the room feel more complete."

"I've thought the same thing when I moved in."

Percy flashed an amused smile back at her, eying her up. „Then you seem to have good taste.“

Katie blushed a little and grinned happily from ear to ear, obviously that compliment made her really happy.

"Thank you!"

Awwww. She was adorable. The more time he spent with her, the clearer it seemed to become: she truly was the cinnamon roll she seemed to be. He stretched himself, then turned back to her.
"Any restrictions I need to consider? I guess a small grill and all this stuff won't be allowed, but what about a coffee machine or water cooker?"
"Miss Hanson has a simple rule for that. If it's not paid by her, it's not her problem. Fill your room with whatever you like, that's why its so empty but the necessities. The only restriction she has is about cooking... because the smoke would set the fire alarm off. Else everything is fine. So sadly no grill... H-however, you can always use a grill inside the kitchen! I'm sure if you ask nicely Jonathan leaves you a space to work."

Percy nodded slowly. Sounds good. He'll be able to remember that.
"That won't be necessary, I was just curious.“
A sheepish grin came onto his lips as he nodded towards his bags.
"How much of your time can you spare for me? Mind helping me with all my clothes?"
Katie froze and smiled sheepishly. Yeah... about that... how does she tell him she was so excited about meeting him she willingly came to greet him on her day off?
"Actually... It's my day off. So... I've got time the entire day."

"It's your day off?! I'm sorry for taking your time…"

Opening his mouth, Percy wants to go on an apology rant, yet Katie cut him off before he could have done that. She was wagging her arms, pale as a sheet of paper, sputtering. It actually caught Percy so much off guard he just silenced.

"N-nononono don't apologize!"

Percy blinked surprised and looked at her. Impossible. It actually looked so hilarious he started laughing. He caught her arms, used to doing that with his best friend John.

"Don't worry."

Katie eeped softly and looked surprised for a second, especially when he laughed, then whined but wrapped her arms instead around him, contently hugging him like she would normally do with other people. Who was she to ever say no to an opportunity to hug?
"Are you sure...?"

Percy hugged her back. She was just like John. He smiled a bit painfully, but overplayed it quickly.
"I am sure."

Katie took a deep breath and parted, now finally closing the door and putting her clipboard down.
"Where do you need help?"
"You can leave whenever you want, just saying. Could you help me put these shirts onto the coathangers? I took some with me."
Katie nodded smiling and grabbed slowly each shirt, putting each and every one onto the coathangers, yet when she saw the entire package, she froze a bit. Why these colours...?*
"Uhm... Percy... I-I don't want to offend you at all, I promise! I just... why did you buy those colours...? They don't suit you at all..."
Percy meanwhile got the pants out into the closet, then furrowed his eyebrows. What did she mean?
"Oh uhm... I'm not really into fashion. I just buy what I think looks nice or might be practical."

Katie slowly tilted her head, staring at the shirts with some kind of indescribable expression. She almost looked... sad. Percy was so confused.
"But... you're handsome and they don't show even a quarter of how good you could look with the fitting stuff. L-look, I'm not suggesting throw your entire wardrobe away, but... ah... I-I'm sorry, I'm so rude!"
She lowers her head, chewing on her bottom lip. "...maybe we could pay Stefan a visit...?"
"...nono, it's fine. I like criticism, if I can learn from it. Is it really that bad..?"
Percy looked down on himself. How was he looking right now? And moreover, how will he look to a professional?
"...can I go there like this..?"
Katie bit her lip, nodding slowly at the question. Yes, it was this bad. Horrible. She was seriously questioning how someone could have let Percy run around with clothes like this.
"This looks actually better than anything you've brought... Ah... Uhm... We could make a stop at Stefans at the end of the tour. He always has clothes."

"...maybe we shouldn't fill the wardrobe yet then. I don't want to look like a fool. Thanks for your honesty. My former friends weren't so thoughtful." Why had no one told him before? Katie paused, looking at the clothes she had already put on a hanger. "True..."

Hesitation overcame her. Former friends? As in... not friends anymore? It didn‘t take a genius to figure out he meant friends at the police station he used to work at, and it made her quite sad. Quietly, she asked "...do they know you've come here?"

Percy turned just slightly bitter, watching her expression change. Did he have to mention that now? What a moodkiller he was sometimes.
"...No. I just told them I'm going away."

Katie bit down onto her lip, slowly looking down as well. She didn‘t want to dig around the point but she had to speak it out because this, this was just her... just wanting to help.*
"The boss... won't mind. She'll need a bit to trust you but... she won't mind the contact to your friends, you know? As long as you'd keep her a secret, she absolutely wouldn't mind."

Percy couldn‘t help but chuckle, causing the small girl next to him to shiver. He sounded so bitter towards her, Katie regretted even mentioning it.
"They are policemen. They will ask questions. THEY will mind."

"I'm... so sorry... I-I'm sure you'll find a whole lot of more friends here. W-we can't and won't replace your friends but... y-you're home now, here, with us. And if you need anything, all of us will be there for you."

"Thanks a lot, Katie. Sorry to ruin your day. You really are a lot of help."

Katie shook quickly her head, giving him a reassuring pat to the back.
"Y-you weren't ruining my day, I had a lot of fun, I-... you seem like a good person."
Percy raised himself. With an excited look,he marched towards the door. She was quite forgiving, and he was glad he hadn‘t ruined her mood at all.
"Ready to go?"

Katie exhaled, relieved about the shrinking tension inside the room and nodded, quickly following him behind, clipboard already at hand.
"Since we're already in the housing wing, I'll show you the spa first, then go over to the training wing just to show you the hall, and afterwards the laboratory wing with the medical bay upfront. How does that sound?"
"Perfect idea."

Katie had the time of her life leading her first newcomer around. After all, she had been the latest before Percy. Said one asked holes into her belly, the most stupid questions, just to be sure. He felt pretty content with her near. It was good to have someone like her in his near who wasn‘t dangerous and could help him find his way around… The first not-scary perosn he had seen so far. In any case, he hadn‘t ever figured that someone as innocent and sweet as her could have ever committed a crime, and yet that forced him only more into keeping up his guard at all cost. If he had to be honest, he did wonder… what exactly was it that she had done?

Finally back in the entrance hall, he smiled down at Katie, expecting her to lead him towards the small study this socalled Stefan owned here.

"So... Now, where is this Stefan person?"
Katie froze, brown eyes darting past Percy to a man casually chilling in one of the chairs the entrance hall had to offer. He was almost next to Percy, almost in reach to touch him, and that made it only more awkward to the lad as Stefan spoke up, amusement lacing his tone.
"Right next to you."

Percy flinched and spun around, glaring at him a bit colder than intended. He had been startled, after all. The first thing he noticed was the shining, incredibly sharp looking fangs of this guy that poked out of his mouth. Percy tensed almost instantly. Vampire. Even if he knew this was bullshit, his alarm bells went off as he had been taught by his father since early childhood. On the second glance, he did know that guy, and Percy did not feel any better about this fact. He had no idea it was this Stefan Katie had meant.

His messy styled hair was far beyond any normal hair colour, masterfully shining in orange, blending into light blue, purple, pink and going round his head to blend back into orange. He had a piercing inside his lip and one on his left eyebrow, and small earrings. Percy frowned, eying him from head to toe. Stefan was the younger brother of Electrica, an even more terrifying woman. His trademark, beyond his colourful appearance, were the large underarm-lengh scissors in gold that he carried around all the time, as sharp and dangerous as the best dagger mankind could have ever forged. Stefan himself, on the other hand, did not seem to recognize him.

He tilted his head, eying Percy up and down. New blood? He did not recognize that scent of blood, he hadn‘t tasted it yet. A newby. But who? His gut screamed at him he had seen this guy somewhere.
"I don't recognize the scent of your blood... haven't tasted it... so you must be new. Huh... I feel like I know your face but I can't pinpoint it. Who are you?"
Stefan smiled a little, showing off his fangs. His vampiric traits were showing quite a bit, making it obvious he hadn‘t fed in a while. On a second look, he was carrying a blood pack in one hand, thus he must have gotten his share of blood just now from the medical bay. Percy took a deep breath, calming his nerves. His first vampire of the day.
"I'm Percy, nice to meet you. You are the infamous sewer?"

Hopefully Stefan wasn‘t going to notice the way his gut twisted upon those bared fangs of his. John used to tell him vampires could smell certain feelings like nervousity, and it made so much sense it was terrifying. And a bite was all it took to track down their prey for a lifetime… Percy had to pay attention not to let any of these vampires get a drop of blood from him. Once he would enact his plan, he wasn‘t going to be safe anymore until every single vampire of this clan was down.
Yet the way Stefan reacted surprised him a little.

Said one let out an amused whistle, taking a step closer much to his distaste. A Parker? Percy Parker, here, right in front of him, joing the gang? For a moment he remained speechless before letting out a soft laugh.

"If anybody would have told me you're gonna join us I'd have thrown them into our jail. Welcome to the family."
Stefan paused, predatory eyes flickering back to him. Nervousity? Fear? Since he hadn‘t fed in a while, the smell of Percy‘s untouched blood was only more potent to him.
"...you smell nervous. I'm so sorry you have to see me like this-"
Stefan covered his mouth to try and hide the fangs peeking slightly out below his upper lip, smiling sheepishly.
"Normally I look more human but I haven't fed since five days and- ah, I'm not making it better, am I? How about you two accompany me to my study and tell me what you need?"
Still a little hesitant yet confused about the utter lack of hostility, Percy shook his head in denial.

"...Don't worry, I don't mind. I have nothing against vampires. Just, the only time I really see those features is behind the cells since they don't get fed as often. Never so little its torture of course, but... You know."

Stefan frowned softly, then sighed and lowered his hand slowly again.
"In any case, it only gets critical for me after six days, and I've gotten myself some. So I'll have to excuse myself for a minute then... I don't like being watched during it. I‘m sure you can respect that. So… what exactly is it that you need?“

Percy looked down at himself, then over to Katie.

„I... Need a new wardrobe."

Tilting his head, Stefan eyed him up, then decided that yes, he did need a new wardrobe. He turned around, beckoning Katie and Percy to follow behind, former already happily walking after him. Stefan led them to a large study full of clothes, neatly organized, and in the middle a huge desk with sewing utensils and designs everywhere. A bit further into the study, the sewer finally stopped and motioned back and forth between two shelves.
"This should fit. I'd advise you to try those colours over there... and those kind of pants have deep pockets to fit a whole lot but still look good on you. Do you need new shoes as well?"
"Shoes are fine, he's perfect at that~!" Katie chimed in from behind and Stefan chuckled.
"Good. Well, pick anything from here you like, this all suits you. I'll be further ahead."
Stefan turned his back and left, fidgeting a little but trying to cover it up. He had been trying his hardest not to stare at this exciting new source of blood but now that he had finally a moment to himself, he checked to see wether he was unseen, then lifted the package and sank his fangs into it, tearing the plastic apart and letting the blood flow slowly into his mouth.

Percy who had remained tensed the entire time Stefan was around them, relaxed again the moment the vampire had vanished around the next corner. Now with his heart acting up less than before, he finally proceeded to let his eyes flow over the study. Quite big, with mannequins everywhere, half finished designs scattered around a large desk with a sewing machine on top of it, and wardrobes over wardrobes with clothes.

"...I'll look into it. Can you help me, Katie..?"

Katie nodded with a gentle smile, quietly searching through the large amount of clothes. It didn‘t last long until Stefan‘s voice startled the ex policeman right behind him, and Percy whirled around with his face twisted in startlement.

„Did you pick anything yet'?“

Katie deflated a little and shook her head, looking up at the man only to turn slightly paler. There was a bit of blood leftover on his bottom lip. He had just fed, hadn‘t he? She couldn‘t help but keep staring a it, getting a bit green around the nose. Percy, while quickly taking his distance from him, flashed a concerned glance at the redhaired girl.
"Are you okay?"

„Y-yeah…“ She turned away, holding her stomach a little, „I-I‘m just not good with seeing blood.“

Green eyes darted back to Stefan, and while he did lose the overly animalistic appearance- skin rosy, the predatory glim in his eyes gone, his fangs had reduced themselves a little- Percy noticed the blood on his bottom lip. Should he tell him?

„Stefan, you have blood on your lips.“

The sewer froze, pink tongue darting over his bottom lip before he looked back at Percy.

„Gone?“ „Gone.“

Pause.

„Well, do you need help? I‘m busy, and I‘d like to get on with that.“
„Perhaps a bit.“ Percy didn‘t like to admit that but there was no use denying it, and with Katie making a expression as if about to throw up, he couldn‘t quite count on her any further. Stefan chuckled amused, well, Percy was right and selfadmittance was the first step to bettering oneself.
"Don't be so harsh with yourself. I'm sure along the training your parents just missed to give you a fashion sense, you just haven't been raised that way."

Almost immediately, a frown took back its place on Percy‘s face. Well thank you very much, butthole, that jab had not been necessary. Yet he favored silence, not wanting to make enemies just now, and he couldn‘t quite categorize this guy either. At least just yet. He was suspiciously friendly, and Percy did not know what to read into this.
Stefan stepped forward, almost immediately starting to go through colours and shapes, pulling shirt after shirt, pants after pants out until he even grabbed one and two new jackets Percy hadn't even asked for, putting it bit by bit onto Percy's arms who just stood there like ordered and left.
"Here you go. Do you want to try it on? I'm absolutely sure it'll fit but a test can't hurt. You can keep everything, see it as a welcome to the family gift from me."

...Well, that had been even more unexpected. A bit caught off guard, Percy blinked twice, green eyes going back and forth between the weirdly content looking Stefan and the pile of clothes, in his arms, then finally set up a smile. That… was generous.
"Thank You..! I'd like to try some of them on if thats okay... Are you sure you don't want me to pay..? This all must have been much work..."

Stefan laughed, shaking his head. Not quite. He designed for fun, there was no need not to give out anything.
"I get paid a salary, and all my fabric expenses are covered by the boss. I sew because it's fun. If it's necessary, I always give out free clothes. Despite that, you belong to the family now."
Stefan gently patted Percy's shoulder in a friendly and welcoming gesture, then pointed over to two different cabines. Much to his own surprise, Percy did not find himself flinching at the sudden closure to this vampire.
"Over there are two changing cabins. Pick one and try on whatever you like."
Baffled, the male just quietly turned around and walked into one of the changing cabins provided. Family? Just like that? Utterly puzzled, he slowly picked out a shirt and a pair of pants, changing patiently into them. This was a weird guy, he had to admit that. He could not remember anyone in his close circle that had ever accepted an enemy so easy. Or was Stefan really that naive? He had to look further into this. But the entire day, he hadn‘t been threatened by anyone so far, and he had most likely gone EVERYWHERE with Katie.

"I like it."

Percy watched himself inside the tall mirror, quietly inspecting every side. He actually really liked it. Stefan set up a smirk, crossing his arms, a smugly satisfied look spreading over his face.

"Perfect. You‘re a new man.“
„You look soooo good, Percy!“ Katie tackled him into a hug, laughing. She loved it just as much? Percy blushed. Was it really that great? Did he run around like a clown before?

"..Thanks..."
Stefan had a hard time wiping that grin off of his face. Was that Parker boy getting sheepish? He could really make it into something here. Stefan couldn‘t help but feel glad they weren‘t on opposite sides anymore. Maybe he could even get to like that guy.
"...Well, are you off now? You could enjoy the area a bit."
„I'd first like to unpack a bit, but then I'd have time." Percy had no problem agreeing to spend some time with this vampire… as long as Katie was coming along, that was. He had to look further into Stefan.

He quietly bid his farewell to the man, heading out of the study with Katie in tow. Unpacking his clothes was going to take some time… organizing things even longer. Percy was glad Katie wanted to help him on this one. His thoughts got cut short the moment he was about to open his roomdoor, only to have the neighboring one open up as well.
God beware, not her. Not right now.

Percy could feel his body tense up almost instantly as he watched a woman with cyan-blue hair emerge from the depths of the dark room. She looked animalistic, just like her brother. Pale as snow, sharp fangs visibly poking out of her mouth, a hungry and predatory look in her eyes… her nails seemed sharper, nearing claws, and she froze in the same second as he had spotted her as well. Percy tried to swallow down the nervousity, vividly remembering the last time he had clashed with this woman in an attempt to arrest her. It hadn‘t ended well for him that day…

Electrica.