William Holloway

I'm a devil in disguise

It was amazing, truly, what the simple sensation of hot water upon William's skin could do to the Dark Hunter. The dirt and blood that caked his skin were all too apparent to the man now that he'd stepped into the glass lined shower, that adrenaline filled ignorance to his own body having faded entirely away. The Englishman was well aware now of the bruises and cuts that lined his battered, weakened form. He knew now of his own aches and pains, his exhaustion and his hunger. It was the first time in nearly two centuries that the immortal man felt... mortal. It was an odd feeling for the Hunter. He was so used to the easy way he could push his own body, how he was so typically faster, stronger, better than his human form. But after months and months of being held in captivity, William was weak. He doubted he would have been able to take on a human at this point, let alone the supernatural beings that his body was meant to fight.

The Duke could have held his body underneath that water forever, simply letting it run down the aching muscles of his back. But that need to be with Sebastian forced William to pull his forehead back from that cool marble. It took a great deal of scrubbing with those luxurious soaps to rid his body of the blood that had dried there. For a long time that hot water ran a dirty brown down the drain. William's skin felt raw by the time he finished, the rapidly cooling water very nearly making the man shiver by the time he reached to turn the knob to the off position. The sudden realization that he didn't have a towel was enough to bring a rapid flush to William's cheeks. Still, William allowed his voice to call out to his friend, the man shivering as he waited for Sebastian to return to the bathroom.

William's gaze lifted up rapidly as the door creaked open, the vampire stepping into the brightly lit bathroom. William was aware that the steam on the shower wall barely hid his bare form. Normally, the man would have hardly cared that Sebastian's gaze fell upon him, but with the bruises and cuts upon his form, William couldn't help but wonder what the vampire was thinking. It wasn't the first time that Sebastian had seen William, but there was such a dramatic difference now between his body now and his formerly muscular form. Still, if Sebastian was repulsed by the difference in the man, he didn't show it. William was well aware of the way that his gaze traveled lower and lower still, the Duke wanting nothing more than to pull the other man into the shower with him, to feel the comfort of Sebastian in the most intimate of ways. But William was hardly given time to ask for that before Sebastian moved to place the clothes in his arms upon the counter and to hand William a soft white towel.

William ducked his head then, his cheeks a flaming red at the intimacy of the motion. The promise that he'd be out in a minute seemed to satisfy the Earl, the man stepping away from him and out of the bathroom. William's eyes watched him, though he was more aware of the way that the door latched behind him. William moved immediately to cross the bathroom, his hand wrapping around the cool metal of the door knob. He turned it quickly, a breath of relief escaping the Duke as he was able to push the door open. He left it open an inch or two, William satisfied simply by knowing that it would open. That he wasn't trapped again. William stepped back then, allowing himself to dress in those crisp, clean clothes. The clothing was too big on him, the pants surely hanging low on his hips. But they were clean clothing that felt almost like the way he typically presented himself. The shower and clean clothes were almost enough to make him feel himself once again.

With shaggy, towel dried hair, William left the bathroom. He paused in the doorway, silently observing the way that Sebastian lounged upon the plush, King sized bed. William crossed the room then, curling up on the bed beside the vampire. He laid his head so effortlessly on Sebastian's thigh. He didn't get to hear the words that had almost left his companions lips. Sebastian remained silent as William laid upon the bed with him, the vampire only moving slightly to position himself in that easy, comfortable position on the bed. He could have laid there forever in the comfort of Sebastian's presence, but he knew his companion well enough to know the assortment of questions that he was holding back from him. That soft utterance that he had missed his friend was what came first from the Duke, those dark brown eyes of his meeting the dark navy of Sebastian's. William felt as though his chest was full of butterflies when those four words were returned to him, a gentle smile spreading across his features.

Sebastian leapt at the opportunity that William presented him with, asking the question that William fully anticipated would come first. Though he tried not to, William visibly winced at the question, a shaky breath escaping his lips. How he had avoided this very conversation with his friend since the very moment they'd ran into each other in that dark alleyway. How scared William was to reveal the truth of his past, the man completely unable to consider that Sebastian might equally have secrets from his past. "It's a bit of a complicated story," William said quietly. "But, after... after we were attacked, a Dark Hunter found me. John was too far gone, I supposed, and I thought you were dead - I think he did, too - but he took me and changed me. And I..." His voice trailed off, the memories of waking up with the realization that his friends were dead nearly too much for the man to handle. Even knowing that Sebastian was breathing next to him, William was well aware of everything that he'd lost that night.

"He gave me a choice then, before I really realized what he was asking. He told me I could have gone back to my life, pretended everything was fine, held my titles... But I couldn't do it. John was dead. You were dead. So I took his surname and dropped the Cavendish name and legacy and let him train me. I'd... I'd inherited his power and..." William trailed off then, pushing himself to a sitting position. The Duke rubbed his temples then. "I can create blades out of nothing. And they can cut through anything. Bodies, metal, glass, stone... anything. It... sounds great, except I can't... control it. When I use it, I can't control myself. I wake up later with no memory of what I've done at all. When I use it, I'm an absolute monster. A madman. I wake up feeling insane for days at a time." He didn't look at Sebastian then, unable to see the reaction of his best friend as he discussed the worst parts of his life. "I killed my maker with it - I guess that one might have been on purpose. And I went home to London in 1888. I discovered that my parents were dead. My sister was dead. Our land, our titles... all passed on to some bloody cousin. And I just... I lost control. I killed eleven people then, absolutely lost control for months."

William could remember it like it was yesterday. Waking up with the blood on his hands, the newspapers detailing the mysterious killings and the evasive "Jack the Ripper". How horrified he had been by it then, how horrified he remained by what he'd done now. "I swore after that I wouldn't use my power. I'd hunt, but with daggers and real, steel blades. I'll... admit that I targeted vampires... after what happened to you and John. But that wasn't enough for the Council, I guess. I'm 'dangerous', is what they told me. If I can't control myself or my power, I can't be free. So I've been on their most wanted list since those killings. It's why I've been on the run for so long. But then... I was leaving your home and they attacked me. Took me captive... They've been forcing me to use it daily ever since in the hope that they can control it. To control me. They told me they had you, as well. That if I didn't do exactly as they said, they'd kill you. And I couldn't let that happen, so I've been obeying ever since." William looked up then, the deep brown of his gaze finally meeting his companion's.