[OPEN: PLOT] KIDNAPPED BY VAMPIRES?!

[reticence]

There aren’t many narrow, dark alleyways in Richmond -- but there are some.

Lancelot only needs to walk down one to get in trouble.

He’s cutting through between houses on his way back from Tesco. He hadn’t meant to be long, just needed some fresh milk and a loaf of bread for next week, so he’s only dressed in a light t-shirt and some cut-offs. The air is still warm even this late, and he’s distracted -- half tapping his phone awake every so often wondering if he should say something. Faolan doesn’t normally stand him up, but it has been difficult lately. Then again what if something happened? Should he check? He doesn’t want to be clingy, after all…

His senses prickle, telling him something is happening, and he barely gets enough time to turn around before something is being swung at him. There’s a soft clack as his phone hits the ground and skitters away into someone’s front garden, and bread and milk get dumped unceremoniously into someone’s bin before the vampires vanish away.

All the lights are on in his flat, music still softly cycling through his library, but anyone who hops the fence into his back garden will realise Lily is pacing the kitchen all alone.

*************************************

Faolan is a man dedicated to his job, dedicated to his cause, and dedicated to finding an answer when a challenge presents itself to him. Which is why, when confronted with the issue of what to do about Raymond, he finds himself struggling with the dilemma. Of course the vampire is a maniac, a danger to the public, but he is also currently faction leader for Islington, which means that by proxy, he is creating a danger through his vampires as well.

It gives him a lot to think about, which is exactly what he's doing, going over various reports of vampire activity from the past month, taking note of the steady incline of injury or homicide at the hands of the Islington vampires, and correlating it with the changes in policy that the vampires have enacted since then. He's not sure exactly what he's looking for, but he knows he'll find it if he just looks hard enough. And in fact, he's looking so hard that he works straight through the time that he'd arranged to meet up with Lancelot, and a good hour beyond that point before he realizes what he's done and leaps to his feet to track down his mobile with a curse.

Lancelot's mobile rings out with no response and Faolan curses again before shooting him a quick text to apologize for himself. And then another to ask if he'd rather reschedule. While Faolan waits for a response he checks the time and clears up his desk for the night. Putting away the reports and locking them up in the bottom drawer of his desk. Grabbing his phone and impatiently waiting for a response as he slips on his jacket and jogs downstairs to the main floor.

Ten minutes pass and he tries calling again. The phone rings out. Faolan wonders whether Lancelot had just gone to bed at this point, but it's early yet. Maybe he's left it on vibrate? He calls a few more times in succession, all of them ringing out to voicemail. He leaves one, as he heads out to the train station, deciding he might as well head to Lancelot's flat to apologize for himself, if nothing else. Sending another text, asking him if he's alright with that. Waiting for a response as he makes the trip that never comes.

By the time Faolan's made it to Lancelot's neighborhood, he's made his way through feeling guilty, then angry at himself, then angry at Lancelot for reacting this way, then working his way increasingly through a state of concern. He's pulled far more stupid stunts than missing a planned get-together with Lancelot, and the other man had never purposely stopped talking to him then. He tries to reason out what might have happened, maybe he had a headache, maybe he'd gone to bed, but the fact is that until Faolan knows for certain he can't help but feel an increasing amount of dread building up within him.

A feeling that does nothing to dissipate as Faolan reaches the other man's flat to find the lights on, the doors locked, music quietly seeping through from the stereo, and no response to the door. Not even when he rings the bell several times. The fact that he can hear Lily pacing inside concerns him even more, to the point where he decides to pop over to Lancelot's neighbor's to beg the key off of her (on the pretense that he'd lost the one he'd been given, which earned him a wary once-over but he'd been over enough to be recognizable at this point, for better or worse).

It doesn't take long for Faolan to determine that he isn't home. Nor does it take him long to determine that there's more at play than the other man being angry at him at this point. Whatever Lancelot might be feeling about Faolan after he'd skipped out on him that night, Lancelot would never leave Lily alone like this.

After three hours, sitting in the other man's flat with his dog, calling his mobile with no response, Faolan knows without a doubt that something is wrong. That Lancelot is missing. And come hell or high water, he will find him, he will find who did this, and he will make them pay.

((ooc: there are three threads below -- feel free to tag into one or more as you like! planning for this plot began here, but if you hadn't tagged into that please don't let that stop you from participating in this plot! LET'S RESCUE LANCELOT YOU GUYS!!))

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[knightscode]

"Gently," Lancelot chides her, even as Lily lifts her paws to rest on his thighs. "Gently, gently --"

She's trying to restrain herself, but it's been so long since she saw Lancelot -- so long! Forever! She is so excited to see him!

He slides past her and drops to sit on a chair in the breakfast area, letting her fuss at him as much as she likes and smoothing her ruff.

"There were are, sit for me there's a good girl."

[knightscode]

Lancelot? Her ears perk toward Faolan at the sound of that name, and she wags her tail a little faster. Will he be coming back soon? Will they go to see him? She looks between the two of them, circling to examine Faolan then turning to step closer to Sirius and invade his personal space. Hello! Hello, Sirius! Where is Lancelot? Where is he? Will you show her? She wants to know!

[reticence]

Faolan glances down at the phone as she shows it to him before following her out. Slipping into the back of it with her before looking to her at her question and then at the driver. Giving him Lancelot's address in Richmond and then sitting back in his seat and letting the cab start to take them to their destination.

They're about halfway into the drive before Faolan really turns to her and says, slightly self-consciously, "Thank you. For... For volunteering to help me like this."

[reticence]

Faolan nods slightly. It's been a while, but he's been on bikes before. He's even driven one, although that was on far less busy roads than the roads of London here.

"Yeah," he confirms. "Alright. Lead on, then. It's been a while but I promise not to make a scene." He wonders whether Daryl is the type to wear a helmet -- whether he'll have an extra helmet if he does. He has sudden visions of attempting to ride to Lancelot's rescue only to fall off a bike and concuss himself on the way.

Suddenly he realizes that he's assumed that Daryl meant a motorized bike. He hopes he had meant motorized bike, at least. He has a hard time imagining himself riding on the back of a bicycle riding to the rescue, for that matter.

[reticence]

Faolan stands back for a moment to watch Lily fussing at Lancelot and Lancelot gently stroking her. He feels... Well, a lot of things. Above it all, he's just grateful that he could make this happen. That he could find him and bring him back home, as he had promised that he would.

"I kept an eye on her," he says, at last moving to stand straight and cross to join him at the table, setting his kit on the table itself. "While you were gone. I think she was a little cross with me every time I came back without you. But I promised her she wouldn't have to deal with me forever." He watches them for a few moments longer before starting to unpack the things he's brought, giving himself something to do as he talks. "I like to follow through on my promises, when I can."

He turns back to Lancelot and then gestures at his shirt. "Do you think you can get that off? If not, I can find some scissors..." He isn't sure whether it's worth saving it at this point.

[knightscode]

He hesitates at that, fingers still toying with Lily's ears. Part of him mentally recoils from the idea of having the shirt cut off him, but another part recognises that his trying to get it off on his own will hurt and might not ultimately be worth it.

"Not without help," he says finally, "moving my arms still... hurts."

To put it mildly.

[reticence]

Faolan isn't certain what Lancelot's reaction means, but he does recognize that whatever it does he isn't exactly happy about it. He looks up at the other man, trying to gauge what he should do from a response like that before deciding to just ask.

"I can help you get it off if you'd like to try and save it," he offers. "Or you can let me know where you've got a pair of scissors, to cut it off. I'm not about to tell you which choice to make. This shirt isn't actually doing too bad, but only you know how you feel right now..." And judging by the way he had handled the simple task of taking the medication earlier, Faolan is willing to bet that he isn't feeling all that great at all.

[anniesgonemad]

Annie's happy to sit in silence, looking out the window as the two of them ride through the streets. Faolan's voice gets her to look up, her brow softening.

"Oh. No- don't thank me. I just, ah- I like to help. When I can." Hopefully now was one of those times.

[constantprisoner]

Sirius jumps a little at the fact that he suddenly has a new friend wanting to say hello but recovers quickly and offers up a few pats.

"We're going to find him. Think you can help us?"

[knightscode]

Lancelot looks down at himself and lets out a slight sigh of resignation.

"There are scissors in the draw to the right of the cutlery," he offers finally. Where all the tape and batteries and other miscellany lives. He doesn't want to admit defeat, but he knows well enough that the amount of pain moving around to shrug off the shirt would cause probably isn't worth it for saving something that's already near enough ruined.

[reticence]

Faolan tries to do his best at wrangling Lily out of Sirius' face but he's not used to having to do this himself, and while he has seen Lancelot do so countless times, he isn't certain how he does it. Perhaps an inherent command that she has come to understand from only the man himself.

He glances to Sirius before back at Lily herself. "I suppose it couldn't hurt," he says, after a moment. "What do you think?" he asks her, still not certain whether she would be able to understand him or not, but making the effort despite himself. "Do you think you can help us find Lancelot?" He tries to emphasize the last two words. If anything, surely her doggy brain can understand that much?

[reticence]

Faolan nods slightly and moves to stand and fetch them. He can understand to some extent why the other man might be hesitant about it but at the end of the day it's just a shirt. And it's not worth the pain that Lancelot had demonstrated earlier just to try and salvage it.

He has a fair understanding of the other man's kitchen, and as such locates the scissors quickly, returning with them in hand and attempting to figure out how best to proceed. Finally reaching for the front hem of Lancelot's t-shirt, his eyes flicking up at Lancelot's face before down to his hands on the fabric, holding it away from the other man's skin.

"This will only take a moment, try to hold still," he says, before taking the scissors to Lancelot's collar and in one swift strike, running them most of the way down the length of his shirt. What he doesn't manage to get with the scissors in the first go he reaches to tear the rest of the way with his hands, until Lancelot's shirt is hanging open before him.

He takes a moment to survey the damage the vampires have done to him, before sitting forward and moving to run the scissors down the back of his shirt as well. "Here," he says, making the final tear and then moving to slide the two separate pieces of Lancelot's shirt down and off of his arms. "The worst part is going to be putting something back on after I've got all this cleaned up, you know."

[knightscode]

He winces slightly at the sound of the fabric ripping, glances at Faolan's hands slipping the fabric away then up at his face uneasily.

"I know," he murmurs, and he does -- although he'd rather not dwell on it honestly. It's going to hurt, and there isn't much he can do about it. It's simply a fact. Even if he goes to sleep without a t-shirt or anything he only delays having to put one on, and it might hurt more tomorrow.

[knightscode]

Oh, yes!! She would love to help! She is a good helper, Lancelot always says so!

To prove this fact she squirms free of Faolan and pads over to her bed, returns a moment later with a toy which she presents to them expectantly. See! She can find things! She is a good finder of things! Is she being good? She wags her tail helpfully, because she thinks she is!

[reticence]

Faolan glances back up at him, supposing it isn't the sort of thing he would want to talk about no. But it needs addressed. And Faolan will be there to help, for as long as Lancelot can stand him to. He figures for at least tonight, he has the excuse to stay by the other man's side. To guard him, and keep him safe. Maybe Lancelot even welcomes the company, given his display in the taxi. Maybe that's just wishful thinking on Faolan's part.

He moves to sit back and take account of the other man's wounds. There are quite a few bites, some of them more vicious than others. He reaches for his gauze and disinfectant to begin cleaning the other man up, before glancing up at him in turn. "Tell me what happened?" he asks softly. He suspects Lancelot doesn't want to talk about it, doesn't really want anyone to know the specifics. But Faolan had been nearly out of his mind with worry. He needs to know. He needs to be certain he is doing everything right. Everything that he can, anyway.

[knightscode]

Tell him what happened? Lancelot frowns slightly at the question and drops his eyes again.

"Forgive me Faolan but I think you can see what happened."

He can see the bites, can't he? The bruises? What else does he need to know? Lancelot was kidnapped and held and drunk from. He'd really rather not talk about it, given the choice, and isn't about to start relaying the story willingly.

[dirtyredneck]

Luckily for Faolan, Daryl was, in fact, referring to a motorcycle. His motorcycle was obviously cobbled together from spare parts. But as Faolan would find out when he got on to ride it, it ran superbly. And yes, there was a helmet for Faolan to wear. Daryl had one, too. City traffic laws were almost entirely obeyed by the southerner. He didn't want a blemish on his record when he was aiming for citizenship. ...A three year work visa at the very least.

Daryl gets the bike ready and hands Faolan said helmet, then climbs on, "Gonna need an address. Or at least an idea of what part of the city we're going to."

[constantprisoner]

"Well, it's a start," Sirius says, stifling a laugh and giving her a pat on the head. "But it's not quite what we're looking for. Do you have something of Lancelot's? Or do you know which way he went?"

He makes eye contact with her as he speaks, hoping that maybe he'll have some effect.

[reticence]

Yes, Faolan can see what happened to Lancelot physically. But he doesn't know the full extent of what Lancelot has been through in the past few days. And if the other man does not want to share, then perhaps he will never know. Faolan doesn't want to push him, but he does wonder if Lancelot might feel better for sharing. Perhaps not in the moment, but at a later time. To have unburdened himself on someone else.

That choice is for Lancelot and Lancelot alone, and so after a moment Faolan nods mutely and continues his preparations. Sufficiently soaking the gauze before glancing back up at the other man and frowning slightly himself.

"This will sting," he says, softly. It's a mild solution, but he's going to need to make sure everything's thoroughly cleaned. These are vampire bites after all, and Faolan knows better than to simply let them fester. He reaches for Lancelot's hand, turning his wrist over gently, making a mental note to put some bruise cream on the rings around his wrist as he starts on a mark on his inner arm just above it. "Let me know if you need me to stop at any point and I will," he says, glancing up at the other man to try and get a good sense of how he's handling the whole thing.

[knightscode]

He flinches slightly the first time it makes contact, but that's about as much reaction as Lancelot gives -- eyes drifting over to Lily who is surveying the whole thing with atroubled sort of expression. If she could help, she would! She does not know how to help here, though! What should she do?

There's something calming about the simplicity of her response to it all, at least. Lily doesn't judge or pity, she only knows that they are good friends and all she ever wants is to help or play or eat. Lancelot knows what to expect from her.

Faolan is a little more complicated, even though he always does mean well.

"Can you -- get me a drink?" He prompts finally, at least fighting the urge to get up and get it himself. "See if there's -- apple juice left?"

Or just something other than water, something with some degree of sugar and flavour to keep him going as the adrenaline begins to fade.

[reticence]

Faolan has started to wonder how the other man is doing, equally as concerned about the fact that Lancelot wasn't giving much of a reaction as much as he might be if he were grimacing in response to it instead. He's almost relieved when the other man stops him as he does.

"Ah..." he says, "of course. I think there should be." A comment which speaks perhaps of the fact that Faolan has been spending his last few nights here at the other man's flat, keeping Lily company. He puts the gauze down for a moment and moves to push himself up to fetch a glass and then wandering over to the fridge to fill it up. The juice seems to still be alright so he pours a drink out for the other man and pads back over to sit with him. Tentatively holding it out to the other man once he's seated, knowing this isn't going to be comfortable for the other man. "Here..."

[knightscode]

Ah, yes. He hadn't really thought ahead to the drinking part. The realisation makes him press his lips together unhappily as he slowly takes the drink, gathers up his courage before quickly taking a sip and putting down the glass with a wince.

Maybe he should buy straws. Does he have straws already? Maybe, he isn't sure.

"Thank you," he manages, and tries not to think how many actions involve lifting and lowering his arms in his life.

[reticence]

Faolan is thinking much the same himself really. Is there anything he can do to help? He needs to be able to drink. Maybe there's something he can do, something he can get for him. A straw...? Faolan thinks hard for a long moment about whether he would have one. Lancelot must not, otherwise he would have requested it too. Or maybe...

He glances over towards the kitchen counter, realization dawning on him. Well, it's already in the bin but. Given how much pain the other man is in, he doesn't think he'd mind too much? And he'd wash it off. Moving to stand, Faolan crosses the kitchen to the bin where he has thrown away a late night takeaway container complete with cup and straw for the drink he'd ordered. With a glance over his shoulder at Lancelot he grabs the straw out and moves to the sink and gives it a thorough rinsing off before crossing back to offer it to the other man.

"Here, use this if you like," he says. "I know what it looks like, but. It's clean, I promise." It was at the top of the garbage in the bin after all. "Unless you have a fresh one..." He adds, coloring slightly as he realizes that he's done all that assuming not without even asking.

[reticence]

Faolan huffs out something of a laugh, shaking his head at her but he reaches out to scratch her to reward her for her efforts nonetheless. He glances aside at Sirius before raising to stand straight again.

"This is his flat," he replies. "Let me see if I can find something that might help her get the picture," he offers, before stepping back and, after a moment's pause, crossing the front room and disappearing into the bedroom before reappearing with a tshirt of Lancelot's. It's obviously been worn already -- Faolan has fished it out of the other man's laundry, at that. But it should also smell like the other man. And hopefully help them them on their mission here.

"Here," he says, moving to crouch by the dog again, before showing it to Lily. "We want to find Lancelot," he tells Lily, holding out the shirt towards her, before looking at the other man again.

[reticence]

"Well, thank you then. For helping," Faolan says. And turns back to the window to keep looking out it for the rest of the journey, just as he had done before. Probably in more awkward a silence he had had before, but that is neither here nor there.

Once the cab arrives at Lancelot's address, Faolan awkwardly stands by and lets Annie handle the bill, feeling as though he should be arguing but not really having the heart to do so. Instead turning to make his way up the path and dig the spare keys out of his pocket to unlock the door as she steps up to join him.

"Watch out for Lily," he says, as he opens the door and starts to let them in. "I can't say for certain how she'll take to having a stranger in the house. But we certainly don't want to let her out, if we can help it." He doesn't need two missing cases on his hands.