♠ *a smile tugs at his lips, considering his responses* 

*writing:*“By now, after decades of his antics, he hardly has any new tricks to pull, just variations on the old ones. And I know how to firmly put him in his place when necessary. So, I’d say, not terribly hard.”

*Louis stretches, glances at Lestat across the room* “It has been a learning experience, shall we say? I had to learn his noises, his expressions. He doesn’t always say what he means, or mean what he says. He also knows how far he can push me before I’ll snap. Still, he has to test that boundary.” 

“One might think that needing to learn his language renders him unlovable. On the contrary, I understand now that his pestering about my fashion choices, and the like, it isn’t simple berating, it’s more that he wants my attention, like a puppy nipping at the fingers of his human companion. No harm is actually intended, it’s merely a less vulnerable means of begging for attention and care.”

“ ‘Putting up with’ also includes the situations he hurls himself into despite my advice, and I do fear for his safety more often than I’d like. Strong as he is… I don’t want to think of him truly in peril. Yet. He insists on testing those boundaries, too. That’s when it’s the most hard, for me.”