Min Yu cocked his head to the side. He had never seen the birth of a watcher. He was surprised by how relatively clean and easy it had been. Min Yu had seen vampire’s awakenings and they tended to be long and messy affairs. He supposed it was just another difference that separated watchers from the mass of other blood suckers. A smile danced across Min Yu’s face as he watched Caleb get up all on his own. Not that Min Yu would have offered any help. Caleb’s quip didn’t deter Min Yu’s amusement with the entire situation. He was aside himself with pride and dark entertainment, his dark eyes wide with it and his delicate mouth stretched into a grin.<br/><br/>He’d done it. He’d really done it. Min Yu didn’t really feel any different. He assumed he was supposed to feel different. More mature, more powerful, more – something. But he didn’t feel different. Maybe it was like losing your virginity. Everyone hyped up how it would change you, but in the end it just wasn’t really anything all that special. Or maybe, Min Yu thought, this was just another sign that something was wrong with him. Shouldn’t he have felt some sticky sugar sense of guardianship and love for the creation of flaxen haired delicacy before him? Min Yu didn’t feel that, but he was sure he probably should have felt the strength of someone sort of authoritative or caretaking role for the fledgling he had made. Min Yu was positive sires were supposed to have that instinct – why else would Frederick put up with him?<br/><br/>Min Yu glanced over at the vampire that was desperately trying to crawl away. He was blabbing away about something, how it should be<em>possible</em>. Min Yu gave Caleb a graceful roll of his slim shoulders as the young watcher asked if they could play with the meal before they ate. Who was he to say no?<br/><br/>“Sure. Why not?” Min Yu said with a pleased smirk and launched himself towards the vampire. The watcher gave him a swift kick to the side and forced him onto his back despite the vampire’s protests. He planted his foot firmly on top of the vampire’s chest and kept him there with only half his weight. It wasn’t difficult. Underneath his foot the vampire growled and cursed. Min Yu kept him in place. Even though he had told Caleb he could play with the vampire, some inner sense told Min Yu to keep the vampire pinned so his fangs couldn’t reach Caleb. Fledglings were weak – especially watcher fledglings. And the vampire between them was mature, probably at least a hundred years. Min Yu had worked hard for the outcome of this night and luck had really favored him. He didn’t want to lose Caleb.<br/><br/>“What have you done?” the vampire asked with wide, terrified eyes as his eyes switched between the two watchers. “You’re a fledgling! You can’t make fledglings of your own!”<br/><br/>“Looks like I can,” Min Yu mumbled as he reached into his pocket and took out his smartphone. It was probably one of those<em>shouldn’t</em>things, instead of a<em>can’t</em>. Manners and rules, that sort of social order obligation; Min Yu wasn’t very good at those. And it wasn’t like Frederick had ever explicitly told Min Yu that he couldn’t have his own fledgling. The subject had never come up between them. So, how could Min Yu be breaking a taboo that he didn’t know about in the first place? Frederick’s fault, really, he thought as he licked his fangs.<br/><br/>“Hey.” Min Yu said in a neutral tone as he tapped out a few text messages. His thumb had the barrage of messages typed and sent in seconds. Usually when Min Yu texted Frederick he purposely used abbreviations, smiley faces, and misspelled words to annoy his sire. But Min Yu had done a good job of that already tonight, so he spelled everything out and used the correct punctuation. It was difficult to refrain from littering it with frowning faces and hearts, but he managed it.<br/><br/><em>I really miss you</em>.<br/><br/><em>I’m sorry</em>.<br/><br/><em>Please come home tonight</em>.<br/><br/><em>I hope you’re having a good time with her but –</em><br/><br/><em>It makes me crazy when you’re out with others</em>.<br/><br/><em>I need you here with me</em>.<br/><br/><em>I want to talk about things</em>.<br/><br/><em>Please</em>. He sent them all to Frederick, even though he knew his sire would be busy with Sorcha and the opera. And then Min Yu sent the most enticing text message, so subtle and simple and raw. He’d never said this word to his sire.<em>Yes</em>.<br/><br/>“Hurry up and rip him real good, okay?” he told Caleb as he looked up from his phone.