Sean frowned. In the decade he'd known Orlando, he could count the number of times on one hand that Orlando had shown up at his office. "Clear my calendar for the next hour, Alex. And tell Orlando to come in." "Will do, sir." When Orlando stepped into the office, the first thing Sean noticed was that his tie was missing and the top two buttons on his shirt were undone. He watched as Orlando glanced around the room before dropping into a chair, long legs stretched out in front of him. "So I take it you are free for lunch then," Orlando said, flashing a wide, but false, grin. "Fantastic. My treat, mate." "And to what do I owe this abrupt pleasure?" "Just figured it would be nice. You know, a nice lunch between friends." "Do you honestly expect me to believe that?" "Well, no, but it didn't hurt to try," Orlando replied, with a slight shrug. Sean steepled his fingers in front of him, and gave Orlando a thorough, honest appraisal. What he saw didn't exactly reassure him. "You know, whatever it is you need, you have only to ask," he said after a moment, playing on a hunch. "There's no need to treat me like I'm Karl and ply me with smiles and flattery." Orlando glanced down, flicked a piece of lint off his trousers. Then he looked out the window before slowly swinging his eyes to Sean. "I'd like to talk to you about Harry," he said, after another moment of silence. "And I thought it would be nice if we could do it some place where work wouldn't interfere." Harry. He couldn't honestly say that he was surprised, but it was certainly unexpected. "Alright," he said, and pushed away from the desk. "Let's go." Orlando was out of his chair and halfway to the door before Sean had fully straightened. Sean didn't speak again until they were in the back of his car. "Where shall I ask Simon to take us?" he asked, motioning to the driver. "I assume you had a place in mind." "Gonpachi," Orlando replied, and Sean had to hide his grin at the quick response. Harry or Karl would have picked steak, but he could depend on Orlando to pick sushi every time. "Gonpachi it is," he said, leaning forward to talk quietly into the speaker. Then he settled back, observing Orlando in silence. It took three blocks for Orlando to start to fidget. Another two blocks and he glanced over, making a slight face. "What?" "I was just wondering why you're so nervous." "I'm not nervous." "No?" Sean lifted an eyebrow. "I know you have a hard time keeping still in the best of times, but you're twitchy, even for you." Orlando went completely still, and then he exhaled slowly. "You're right," he said, hands clasping his knees. "I'm sorry. It's just...well...I don't think Harry wants to go through with everything." "What do you mean?" "I..." Orlando sighed. "I mean, I don't think he wants to be my Sire." "Ah. That." Sean should have expected this would have come up sooner or later. "That?" Orlando kept his voice calm, and Sean studied him intently, pleased to see the calm wasn't an act. Orlando was upset, but it looked as if he was keeping it under control. "Did you know?" "He hasn't said anything to me, if that's what you're asking," Sean replied. "But Harry's never been truly comfortable with the idea of being a Sire to anyone. It's a decision that isn't made lightly. Not everyone can handle the gifts we have or being truly immortal." "I think I've proven I can handle the gifts," Orlando argued, then shook his head. "It isn't as if taking the Gift is my only choice for survival. I told him that this is something I want. I just...I don't think that really helped much, though. I mean, he said if it was what I wanted, then he'd be honored, but..." "Then you should trust him," Sean interrupted gently. "Has he given you reason not to?" "No!" Orlando looked horrified at the thought. "God no, you know that." Sean pressed on. "Has he ever said anything to you that he hasn't meant?" Once again, Orlando shook his head. "No." "Then trust him." Sean patted Orlando's arm as the car rolled to a stop. "He may have misgivings, but he won't do it unless it's something he wants." "I know. Harry never does anything he doesn't want," Orlando said, with a smile that looked more like a grimace. Simon came around to open the door, but Orlando just sat there, so Sean didn't move. "What is it, child?" The answer, when it came, was soft and low. "I don't know how to make him talk to me about it." Which was something entirely different, and changed things. "Simon, would you mind taking us to my place?" Sean asked, without looking away from Orlando. "Certainly, sir." The door shut and they were on the road again a couple of minutes later. Sean settled back against the cushions. He had a feeling both of them would be far more comfortable someplace more private. "So, what you really want from me is advice on Harry." "Yes," Orlando said, sounding so grateful (and a little pathetic) that Sean wanted to ruffle his hair. "That's exactly what I want. You know him better than anyone." "No one knows him better than Karl," Sean corrected. "But I don't blame you for not going to Karl with this. He's not always the best person to articulate what's going on in Harry's mind." "That's putting it mildly," Orlando agreed, with a small laugh. "I swear, I think they share a brain." "In many ways, you're not far off. They've been together longer than any other vampire couple I know." "Harry said...uh, y'know...that our bond is a little bit comparable to what he has with Karl," Orlando said, the words coming out in a rush. Interesting, but not entirely surprising. There was a reason why Harry and Karl had reacted so strongly to Orlando all those years ago. "And you're worried that he might not want to add to that bond?" "No. Yes. I don't know," Orlando mumbled. "Maybe." This wasn't good. He played another hunch. "You do realize it's not a competition between you and Karl, yes?" "Yeah, of course." "Good. Harry certainly doesn't think of it as one. What he has with Karl is unique and theirs. Just as what he has with you belongs only to the two of you, regardless of your respective relationships with Karl." Orlando nodded. "I know. And I don't want them to be the same," he said, and Sean believed him. "I want that uniqueness, with both Harry and Karl." "There's a 'but' in there," Sean said, glancing out the window as the car turned up into the hills. "Well, Josh and I both think there's a lot more to it than either of them has said. Josh thinks they're more worried about the unmaking than they've let on." "I can't say I blame them. I'm worried about it myself." "You are? But..." "And I worry that you're not taking this as seriously as you should," Sean added, stopping Orlando before he could get started. "I admire your tenaciousness and your conviction, but this is a dangerous undertaking, even in the best of times." "I know. Liv was quite graphic in explaining all the things that could go wrong." "Good," Sean said. "Because you need to be aware of all of them." "Believe me, I am," Orlando said, with a small twist of his lips that Sean thought was supposed to be a smile. "I know that dying is the least of it." "Then it shouldn't surprise you that Karl and Harry would be understandably worried," Sean answered, as the car rolled to a smooth stop in Sean's driveway. "Feel like a drink?" "At least one." "Come on, then." If they were going to have this talk, Sean intended to be as comfortable as possible. He led Orlando into the house, thankful that Dom was tied up in meetings for the next few hours. He had a feeling that Orlando wouldn't be as forthcoming if anyone else was around, even if it was Dom. Once they were settled in the library, Sean sat quietly, watching Orlando toy with his glass. The last thing Sean wanted to do was push. He knew Orlando too well to do that. Instead, he sat and waited. Only a few minutes had passed when he was rewarded by Orlando taking a deep breath and squaring his shoulders. "Tell me the truth," he said, softly. "Do you think I'm making a mistake?" "I think that's up to you to decide." When Orlando's eyes narrowed, Sean held up a hand. "Hear me out. Either way, it's not an easy decision. If you continue as you are now, you'll still have that connection to Dave and you won't have to go through the rehabilitation process. If you do go through with this, then you're gaining an extra bond with Harry, but you have a long, hard recovery ahead of you, provided you even survive. The question isn't are you making a mistake, but is what you're gaining worth that risk? Especially now that you have a full and complete bond with Harry." "I..." Orlando paused. "I think so," he finally said, slowly, dragging out each word. "If...if the bond had been complete before...I still would have asked him for the Gift." "Fair enough. But you can't base this decision on a what if." "I know, I just..." Orlando shook his head. "I just need to talk to Harry, huh?" "Yes, but you knew that already," Sean smiled, saluting Orlando with his glass. "You don't have to be afraid of him, you know. Or that what you have won't withstand dissension. You should have been around for some of Karl and Harry's fights." "You mean, the two weeks Harry was blocking Karl wasn't bad enough?" Sean had to chuckle at Orlando's incredulous tone. "Not even close. There were times when I genuinely thought they'd kill each other." "Hopefully they've mellowed a little in their old age," Orlando muttered into his glass, and Sean had to laugh. If the child was able to make jokes, then he was going to be alright. A small part of Sean wanted to be there when Orlando finally managed to corner Harry for their talk. He had a feeling it was going to be eye-opening for both of them. Onto Part Fifty-Eight
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