Warnings:yaoi, lime, mush! all that good stuff.
may I remind you...Anton and Thad are Cassandra's! other than that...enjoy!

Priceless Heart chapter 3
When Anton awoke, there was a split second that he couldn't remember where he was. Then he remembered Thaddeus. The memory of their lovemaking flooded over him. He opened his eyes. He was facing a white wall, the day was warm, and he wore only a pair of leggings.

"Thaddeus?" he asked with a bit of concern in his voice. He heard wooden chair legs move over the wood floor.

"Here, always."

He felt Thaddeus climb into the bed with him, and Anton rolled over to see him. Thaddeus kissed him gently. "Good-morning, Anton."

"Hmmm, hi. How long have I been asleep?"

"Only a day."

"That would explain why I feel so stiff." He stretched and Thaddeus slipped his hands under Anton's back, brining them closer together. Their lips met, kissing gently, not at all like the kisses before. Thaddeus broke the kiss, much to Anton's dismay, and moved off the bed.

"You should be hungry."

"Yes…for you."

Thaddeus paused at the edge of the bed, looked back at Anton and smiled. "You must eat first before we can do more…pleasurable things." He dug through the bed covers and pulled Anton out of bed, Anton groaning and protesting the whole time. He sat him down at the table and threw back a napkin that covered a tray of food.

"Eat. After you finish, we're going to go out shopping for you. I want to buy you clothes and jewelry and anything that is your heart's desire," said Thaddeus.

"Anything? Anything at all? Whatever I want," he sounded unsure.

"Yes, you shall have only the best. I love you, if I could I'd give you the sun, the moon, and the stars, I would."

"You have already given me that. All I want is your love. All I need is your love. Your love is everything to me now. I love you, more than anyone else in the world. It isn't saying much, but…"

"It says everything to me." Thaddeus leaned over and kissed Anton, his hand moved to Anton's cheek. His tongue found its way back into Anton's mouth. Thaddeus would have loved to take him right there, his own passion surprising him, but he knew that if he took any more blood from Anton that day or even that week, it would seriously hurt him. He couldn't do that, he loved Anton too much. He had to restrain himself.

Anton was moving his lips down Thaddeus's neck and his hands were finding their way into Thaddeus's shirt.

"Anton, no," Thaddeus gently pushed Anton away. "We can't. I can't."

"Why? You love me…"

"It isn't about love. Oh, God help me, I love you so much and I could take you right now," Anton's eyes lit up with hope, "but I don't want to hurt you. I could, right now, if we went any further. We have to restrain our emotions. I love you more than I have anyone else in a long, long time. These blood exchanges will have to few and far between. My blood could kill you, Anton. As well as save you. Too much of mine and to little or too much of yours could make you into a monster. It wouldn't be a vampire, it could be an eater of flesh. I won't let that happen to you, my love. Never."

Thaddeus wrapped his arms around Anton, kissing him fully and deeply in the mouth. Anton wrapped his arms around Thaddeus, letting himself be lost in the kiss.

"Tonight?" asked Anton when the kiss had ended.

"No, tomorrow maybe. It will depend on how well I think you are then."

Anton sighed in frustration, but began to eat the food.

Thaddeus stood, walked over to the wardrobe and pulled out a white shirt, green over coat, white stockings and green shoes. "This is all I have for you to wear, for now."

Anton nodded, because he had his mouth full. He finished as quickly as possible and Thaddeus called to have the carriage prepared. Thaddeus dressed him and combed his hair for him. "Now," said Thaddeus. "When we are out in public we must not hold hands or kiss or do anything that would give away our romantic relationship. I wish that we were back in ancient Greece or Rome. Back then homosexuality was not a crime or considered indecent. It was fine; men loved men and women love women. No one thought anything of it. But then the Christian came and their God condemned it, calling us sinners and such. People were burned at the stake, crucified, killed. They caught me once, and they crucified me. I managed to cut myself down, but it hurt. I couldn't save my lover then…" Thaddeus trailed off, lost in the memories of the past. Shaking his head after a minute, he brought himself back to present times.

A servant came and said that the carriage was waiting for them.

"What was your God like when you were alive?" asked Anton.

"Gods, Anton. We had gods and goddesses. Our main god was called Zeus. He was very…shall I say, promiscuous? He liked to come down from Mount Olympus, where most of the gods stayed…and impregnate mortal women. His wife, Hera, would throw a fit. They were the king and queen of the god's back then. When the Romans came, they had similar gods too. Oh, there is so much I want to teach you! You shall have fencing lessons, and I will teach you history, reading, writing, arithmetic, etiquette--."

"What's et-eti-cate?"

"Etiquette, good manners, how to be a proper gentleman. To know how to address a king or a lord. How to dance, how and when to use the proper silverware, etc."

"Oh, well, I don't know about that. I used to be able to read, a little. Pa made sure to teach me how to write and spell my name. Silverware? All you need is a spoon and a knife, and your hands."

"I'm afraid that you don't use your hand when you eat, at least not when we go to gathering and parties. People would think it horrid. Come to think of it, it might be good for a laugh, but I need these people as allies and I don't want to offend them. Can you ride?"

"Not very well, I don't think I could stay in the saddle once the horse was galloping, but I can when it trots."

"Not, bad, not bad. Once I teach you the ways of the world, I'll show you it. We will go sailing, to England, Egypt, Greece, and India…the places go on and on. I want to show you everything there is. No secrets."

"Sailing? On a ship?"

"Uh, huh."

"I've never been on a ship before. I heard people get sea-sick and I've heard stories of men lost at sea and pirates!"

"Anton, hush. Don't worry about these things, they are out of you control and are months, maybe years away. Don't fret over them."

"All right."

A servant came knocked on the door and when Thaddeus answered it, was told the carriage was ready. Anton followed Thaddeus down the hall and a pair of stairs and out the main door into a black and silver carriage. Thaddeus told the driver to head down to the main shops, and helped Anton inside. Inside the carriage, the windows were all covered, an oil lamp burned from the ceiling, incased in glass, giving off a pale light. The carriage began to move and Thaddeus made the mistake of looking into Anton's eyes. Anton's eyes were full of mischief and were daring Thaddeus to do something. And Thaddeus knew he couldn't resist him, and he knew that Anton knew this too. Thaddeus gave a sigh of defeat and Anton gave him a devilish smile. Thaddeus grabbed Anton by the front of his jacket and kissed him hard on the lips. Anton's eyes widened in surprise, this was much more rough then he had anticipated. Thad lowered Anton down onto the bench and straddled him. He knew what Anton wanted, but couldn't give it to him, not there. But Anton had a terrible hard-on that would be pretty noticeable to the populace. What a dilemma.

"Once," Thaddeus said as he unbuckled Anton's pants. It didn't take long, much to Anton's credit he clenched his teeth and didn't scream when he climaxed.

"Now," Thaddeus said playfully, "Stop thinking about sex."

They took a few minutes to regain their composure, when the carriage stopped and they climbed out, they looked like to proper gentlemen. Anton did his best to not think of him and Thaddeus rolling around in the sheets together. He bit his lip and concentrated on the tailor's comments and questions. Thaddeus bought Anton 3 whole wardrobes, or so it seemed to Anton. "What am I going to do with 12 pairs of shoes? I don't need that many jackets, honestly! Don't you think that's enough?" Thaddeus whisked him from store to store, a seeming endless day of walking and shopping and buying. The money never stopped coming out of Thaddeus's pocket. It made Anton wonder where it was all coming from. Does he steal or take it from his victims? Anton wondered, wide eyed at all the riches around him.

They went from the stores to a fencing studio. Anton would get private instructions from the master himself. When asked why Thaddeus wouldn't be giving the lessons himself, he replied: "I only want the best for you. I fear there would be less swordplay practice and more time spent in bed if I taught you." Anton would have two-hour lesson every Tuesday and Thursday in the early afternoons.

Next it was the stables where Thaddeus bought him a fine stallion and all the ridding equipment Anton would ever need. He would have lessons on every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday in the early to late mornings.

The rest of his time Thaddeus would be schooling him. Anton groaned at the work schedule. Thaddeus wouldn't hear it; "You are going to have a proper education, even if it kills me!" And so began Anton's new lifestyle, rising just before dawn and going to bed well after sunset. Thaddeus taught him first his reading and writing. It was hard for Anton and he got frustrated easily. The words didn't stick into his head and he would sometimes throw the books down and stalk off.

Thaddeus was easy on him, understanding that it was hard to learn. Anton's fencing and horse trainer were not so lenient. If Anton didn't perform just right, his teachers would be furious at him. They never beat him, Thaddeus made sure of that, but if left Anton feeling down and disappointed in himself.

It took many months, but finally both Anton and Thaddeus were seeing results. Anton was able to decipher and write at a medium level. He was nowhere near society's expectation, but he was pleased none the less. With his confidence on the rise, his abilities in fencing and horsemanship increased too.

"Are you happy?" Thaddeus asked him one night as they lay in bed.

"Yes, why wouldn't I be? I've learned so much…I've got so much more self-confidence that I never even knew I could have."

"Soon, I'm going to start you on arithmetic. It is harder then reading and writing. You need it to barter and purchase things."

"Can we for once, stop talking about my education?"

"Yes, you deserve a break. You are having the next week off. I'm talking you on a trip, nothing big, just to Paris-."

"Paris! You mean, Paris, Paris! Oh my God! I've wanted to go there forever!"

"I'm glad you approve. We'll go next week, it's going to take that long just to get ready. I've delayed your studies until we get back. While we are in Paris, I am going to teach you a verbal lesson in History. Nothing to fear, it won't be that bad! I'll show you art and theater and stuff like that. Won't be too boring, I hope."

"I'll hang onto your every word."

"I'll bet," Thaddeus snuggled closer to Anton. "When was the last time I told you that I loved you?"

"Not long."

"I love you." Thaddeus kissed him tenderly, their tongues briefly touching.

"I love you too," Anton sighed, falling asleep in Thaddeus's arms. He felt so protected in his embrace, like nothing in the world could ever harm him again. Complete and utter trust had grown between them.


Beauuuuutiful mush! b'gesus I'm a sap. 'Sandra-chan says part four ain't quite finished yet. So we all have to wait...I'm dying here!
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