Marcus would personally go get his mother since he knew exactly where to start looking. So when Damien obviously waited for him to leave, he kissed the top of his head and walked out of the room just as Arya entered with a bowl of warm water and a clean cloth. She didn't linger either though as she wanted to come with him to the village.

Wandering through the village, they only found one or two survivors and they were barely breathing so they were more like mercy killings than anything, but their minds were filled with pleasant memories while the vampires drained what little life was left in them. Marcus found who he was looking for and they brought her to the castle where he let Arya clean her up and dress her in own of her own gowns so Damien wouldn't have to see her all dirty from lying in the mud over night. Besides, he figured it would be better for the boy if Arya was the one doing the redressing, so he didn't think he'd dishonor his mother on top of everything else.

Returning to the room, he knocked on the door, patiently waiting for a response. "She's ready, if you want to say goodbye. We'll find them you know, if you want us to."

He watched Marcus leave and blushed some but got dressed anyway. He decided to just stay in the room and waited patiently till Marcus had returned and said they had brought her body back.

He jumped from the bed but stopped shirt at what he said next. They could find those pillagers? "I just want to see her first........" He said softly as he followed Marcus to where her body was.

She looked like she was asleep. He stood over her body and felt a tear run down his face."In sorry I didn't protect you...." He whispered low enough in hopes either vampire heard.

"Can she be buried?" He asked, looking at the other two.

Marcus didn't make any comments as he showed Damien to where his mother was all laid out on the table, looking peaceful and all prettied up again. Arya had done a great job making it look like she was asleep, she'd even braided the woman's hair and added some fresh flowers. Now it was time for the two of them to take a step back and let Damien say his last goodbyes.

"She can be buried anywhere you'd like around the area of course. We'll bury her right after sundown." This certainly wasn't ideal, nor was it how he'd wanted to start this life with Damien. The boy was supposed to be won over and turned into a pet, not accept his offer because he had nothing left to live for.

Returning to her native tongue of Greek, Arya asked Marcus exactly what his intentions were for the boy and when he didn't answer, that in itself was answer enough for her. He really had no idea what was in store, did he? This would be fascinating to watch as she had a feeling her new 'brother' was quite the defiant young man and Marcus wasn't too big on defiance.

"Welcome to the family, kid," she said highly amused and zapped him lightly in the arm. "I'm off to look for a witch for you while the two of you get better acquainted," she said still highly amused before she was gone. One moment she was there, the next she'd run off to do what her master wanted of her. He didn't even have to tell her what he wanted anymore half the time, and he loved it. Turning his full attention to Damien, he tilted the boy's head up so their eyes would meet.

"You're safe now, if the pain becomes too much, just switch it off." With that he let go of Damien and sat down in one of the armchairs in the room. This was not going according to plan at all.

He looked back and heard them speaking on some language. He didnt think anything of it and looked back to his mothers lifeless body.

"Okay.....I would like to bury her after sundown if that's okay." He said softly.

He blinked at what the blonde said, almost jumping at the light zap he received and watched her bound off, highly amused over something.

Damien thought he was just going to become this guys travel companion, it never occurred to him that the man really wanted him as a pet.

He froze when Marcus made him look up at him and told him that if it became to painful then to just switch it off. He watched as he walked over and sat down in a chair.

"So um....when exactly are we going to travel to.....you said I had to be your travel companion.?" He asked. Marcus did say that he wanted a travel companion, he didn't think that was so bad.

The benefit of having someone older around was that they could speak an older language that the present day people seldom knew. At least not fluent. Another benefit was that they had plenty of languages to choose from according to whatever place they found themselves next and could pretend for a little while to be exotic visitors.

Marcus merely nodded to what Damien said about a funeral at sundown, it would hardly seem fair if the older vampires just buried her without her son present, and sadly that was the only time he'd be available at the moment. He'd get Arya to make all the necessary arrangements as far as the boy's religion went to make it a proper burial. Priest, flowers, everything should be perfect.

"We're leaving for Italy as soon as we've made the necessary arrangements for you. I have an old friend waiting for us there and ironically both Arya and myself are happiest when we are by the Mediterranean." Looking up at Damien from where he was sitting, he decided to play a little trick on the boy. Standing up, he approached the boy and touched the side of his face, filling the boy's mind with pictures of white beaches and a palace like building rather isolated from the surrounding world.

Smiling some when he dropped his hand, Marcus couldn't help but wonder what it would take to win the boy's affections. Control was one thing, but he'd never force himself on the boy sexually, he wasn't a rapist after all. "You're so young still, filling your mind with images is pretty easy, but it'll fade, don't worry. And you'll need some grooming to be able to replace Arya when the time comes. She didn't want to bring you in as she knows it means her time to leave is coming."

He thought it was odd that someone would go to those lengths just for a travel companion, but he decided not to argue with it.

At least his mother would have a proper burial. He looked to her body again and couldn't help but to be overwhelm with sadness. It had been just him and her for years since his father died when he was young.

He only nodded at what Marcus said about where they would be going and watched as the man stood up and walked to him, lightly touching the side of his face. His touch felt oddly cold, but it didnt make him shiver. Suddenly images started to go through his mind and his eyes widen. How did Marcus do that?

"How did you do that?" He asked and blinked."Grooming?" He asked and made a confused face.

Of course Damien was curious as to how he'd filled his mind with images like that. He had a feeling there would be a lot of questions from the boy in the future about absolutely anything he was curious about. "Placing images in the mind of a younger vampire is no different from how I made you trust me earlier. It takes great focus and a conviction, but it's no harder than placing images or suggestions in the mind of a mortal. You'll learn soon enough."

Ah, how was he going to explain the grooming bit without sounding like some sort of pervert? "I need someone by my side who knows what I want, when I want it. It's not like Arya's a mind reader, she just knows me well, and she knows that in return I give her what she needs."

Deciding to just show the boy exactly what he wanted from him, he kissed him briefly and stepped back. "What else do you want for your mother's funeral?"

Guess that made sense. How was he able to turn him into a vampire was just like how he could produce images in his head, it was just something that probably came along with being a vampire. He wondered if he would be able to have some powers later on.

He listened to Marcus explained what grooming meant and wondered if he was just going to be some errand boy but stopped with this thoughts when Marcus kissed him. He was about the pull away when the man himself broke it. He looked at the man stunned and opened his mouth to say something.

"She didnt want much.....just her loves ones there...." He answered.

"So you wanted me for sexual reasons?" He asked now.

Marcus didn't want to push Damien too far or make him run off because he was scared. He needed him to come around on his own, at least for the most part as he would just hate Marcus for it. He couldn't help but chuckle at the question though. "Why else would I want a pretty boy like yourself traveling with me? Not for your lack of etiquette, that's for sure." He was amused though. How naive could the boy possibly be? Did he think he'd get a free ride to eternity, no questions asked or prices to be paid?

"You're lucky I'm not like the lord of your castle or you'd already be in my bed whether you wanted to or not. As it is, I'm not a complete monster," he said with a slight smirk. No, he wouldn't force himself on the boy, he'd groom him and ease him into it. He needed to start by finding out exactly what the boy wanted so he could keep it from him until he yielded. Maybe he should make sure the boy only drank his blood for a while, that way he would have to get close.

This wasnt what Damien thought he was getting himself into. He glared at the man now."You said-" he stopped himself when he started to hear something. He looked confused for a moment and looked at Marcus, the voices were coming from him. Was Marcus meaning to do that?

"Why do you keep messing with me....first the images now I can hear your thoughts." He said.

Marcus was highly amused by the boy's reaction. Had he been so naive as to think there was no hidden agenda? Even Arya had known better when he'd picked her up from her hell of a life. She'd seen it for what it was, an opportunity to get ahead. Maybe Marcus was the naive one here, thinking he could take a boy who'd tasted such freedom and make him what he needed to be.

He felt strange though and it all made sense when Damien spoke. The moment Damien said he could hear his thoughts, Marcus grabbed the boy by his throat and pushed him backwards until his back his one of the stone walls. "If you know what's good for you, you'll learn to control that gift and stay out of my mind." He said, clearly angry with the boy for doing so, even if he hadn't known what he was doing. Letting go of Damien, he backed off, leaving the room for a moment.

On one hand, he was proud that the boy was talented, on the other he had far too many secrets to risk a newborn telepath finding out by accident. He'd be so easy to break for someone who wanted to get at Marcus and he couldn't afford that. Not even Arya knew most of his secrets as he only told her what she needed to know. He was mostly angry about his own reaction though, way to push the boy further away.

Thinking about absolutely nothing but the images he'd shown Damien earlier, he stopped in the doorway, leaning against it and not approaching the boy again. "Listen, mind reading is a rare talent, and I should be proud that you can do it, but I have many enemies and if they learn there's a way to get at my secrets they won't hesitate to take it. It's not only for my safety that you need to learn to control it, and fast, it's for your own as well. People can't know, and you shouldn't be burdened with things that can get you tortured for information. I overreacted, just get a grip on it." That was the closest thing he'd come to an apology at the moment, but it was true.

What happened next took him by surprised. He gasped when Marcus grabbed him by the throat and slammed him into the stone wall. It didnt hurt, but it honestly made him not only dislike but now feared the man. It wasnt his fault, he didnt even know that he could read minds. He felt tears sting the corner of his eyes once he was finally released and watched Marcus leave the room. He touched his neck and now wanted to leave more than anything.

He was going to just leave the room when Marcus came back. He quickly backed away from the man and listened as he explained his reasonings. He tried not to read his thought and concentrated and it seemed to have worked. His mind was quiet now, he looked down."Sorry." He mumbled.

"Wait why am I even saying sorry you lied to me! You said I was just going to be your travel companion not your sex toy!" He shouted angrily now. He'd never even had sex before, male or female. "I've never even had sex before what makes you think ill give myself to you!!" He added.

Marcus wasn't proud of how he'd reacted when he found out the boy could read minds. He was just so used to his secrets being his own, at least ever since he'd parted ways with his own maker and barely made it out of there alive. He didn't want the boy to be put in danger either, just because he couldn't control his new-found gift. It wasn't Damien's fault, Marcus would just need to find a way to make him understand that.

"Listen, I didn't mean to frigthen you or hurt you. Neither of us knew you could read minds, and I shouldn't have attacked you like that. I'm sorry, but now that we do know, if I catch you again, you won't get off so easily." He didn't move any closer to the boy though and listened to him rant about the 'lies' he'd told the boy.

"Never once did I lie to you Damien. I left that part out, yes, but I didn't say anything about what kind of a travel partner you'd be." He'd known the kid was inexperienced, just never knew how inexperienced before Damien was shouting at him. "You'll find that I can be very patient, Damien, especially when it comes to things I want. I'm not going to force you to have sex with me, I'm going to gradually work on changing your mind so you'll want to sleep with me. No tricks, no lies."

Like hell he would want to have sex with this guy. He kept his eyes on Marcus for a moment, clearly not trusting him. He looked behind him and saw that they were still in the same room where his mothers body was laying and knew it was disrespectful towards her to be shouting at Marcus on things as personal as sex. He just sigh and walked towards the doorway, keeping his head forward and pushed past Marcus.

Once he was outside the room, he leaned against the wall. "Your off to a terrible start on changing my mind on anything you know" He commented softly.

He felt like he was loosing his freedom now and that wasn't something that he wanted to loose. He just glared at the man for a moment before started to walk down the hallway, not really caring where he was going If it was nightfall and his mother wasn't dead, he would have taken off but for the moment he was stuck in this place with Marcus.

Sooner or later they all gave in. He'd smother the boy with affections, give him anything he ever wanted and outright spoil him. Find a way to break through his defenses rather than force his way through. He wasn't being arrogant, he just had a lot of experience with people and there was always something that would make them change their minds, he just needed to figure out what it was.

"I'm only just getting to know you, of course I'm off to a terrible start," he chuckled. He let the boy walk off and wander the windowless halls, watching him walk away and was lost in thought. It caught him utterly off guard when Arya tapped his arm to bring him back to reality and he didn't have to tell her how it had gone for her to understand. Kissing his cheek, Arya walked down the hall, determined to find Damien and make life easier for her maker at the moment.

Once she found him, she walked up to him and kissed him. She smirked at him when she pulled back, clearly hiding something from him. "What if I told you there was a way you could go to the village and collect a few things, but it would come at a price?" The blonde didn't need Damien to like her, so she could push him any which way she wanted. Caressing his cheek for a moment, she chuckled, awaiting his reply.