For a city as large as this one, the streets were suprisingly quiet. True the sounds of cars passing down the streets and the commotion of the night crowds could still be heard, but for the most part there wasn't much activity out at this time of night. Many of the buildings stood dark and silent, their doors locked with closed signs hanging from inside now that another day had come to an end. Only the nightclubs and a few restaurants were still open, and those were only frequented by the usual crowd that crawled out once the sun went down. For the most part not many people dared venture out during the night, because it was common knowledge that things other then humans stalked around in the darkness. Creatures that preyed on unsuspecting mortals, and would kill them without mercy should some unfortunate victim be caught. At least that was how most of the vampires, these so called night creatures, were viewed by society and there were many who lived to destroy as many vampires as they could find. Although there were a few who dared to help keep vampires protected from these hunters, but those humans were few and far between.

"Well, time for another night of work." Mikaila said to herself as she lit the dark red lantern and hung it just outside the door to her small house. To anyone just passing by it would look like just a regular lantern that kept the yard lit, making it easier to keep an eye on things or allow people to see should they walk by at night. However, for any vampire that happened by they would recognize it as a sign saying they were welcome here. In fact that's what Mikaila did most of the night, aside from the usual chore of keeping the less favorable types of people away from her house. She was all to aware of how frequently vampire hunters came through this town, and how ruthless they were in killing any vampire they found. Which made it even more fun for her when she outwitted them at their own game, mainly because a few hunters she knew personally and didn't have much favor for them in the first place. True she was well aware that offering assistance to these vampires could be dangerous, but she had lived through plenty of hell up until now so this didn't scare her much. Not only that but she knew how to bring down any vampire that tried anything with her, but not without a fair warning first.

After making sure the lantern would stay lit and locking her front door, Mikaila grabbed something that looked like a short black stick from where it was hidden in her closet. With one quick motion of her hand, a long sharp blade slid out from the end of the stick and she made sure to test how sharp it was before shoving it back down again and strapping the handle to her thigh where she normally kept it. That was her method of protection, and she was deadly with it when she was out to kill something. Although those instances were few and far between.

"Okay guess I'm set again, now to just hope I don't have a repeat of last night." She said with a sigh as she streached before placing her hands behind her head and glancing out the window. The last thing she wanted was another fight on her hands, and last night had been especially irritating. It took forever to get the blood stains off her clothes once that was over with, and she was lucky those hunters didn't come running in just to 'investigate' like they normally claimed they did. Oh well it could have been worse so in her opinion, she got out lucky when that was all said and done.

((OOC: Finally got it written. Sorry for the wait...))

“What is it?”

Kade looked up from his train of thought to see his sister, Kacy, walking into the otherwise still and silent library. He shook his head to her as he looked down to the book that sat on the table in front of him, his eyes scanning the same line that he had been reading over and over again for what seemed like hours now without taking in a word of it.

“Kade, you have been in here since the sun began to set. You’re distracted. What’s happened?” Kacy pressed on as she walked over to stand behind the couch that he was reclining on. Reaching out, she brushed her fingers lightly through his long black hair.

“Nicolas lost our new fledgling,” Kade responded after a moment of silence. He didn’t need to see the look on his sister’s face to know her reaction. Letting his hair fall down around his shoulders again, she instead walked over to take a seat beside him. Kade tore his eyes away from his book to look over at her, meeting her worried gaze with his own steady one, one pair of hazel eyes looking into another. Perhaps one of the few things they shared as siblings. Another was the gift and the curse of immortality that had befallen them after their younger sister’s death. For decades now, they have existed as vampires, Kade having taken the leadership of the vampire realm after having all but forgotten his childhood years.

“What happened to him?” Kacy asked quietly, almost as if afraid to anger Kade in any way but he merely shook his head to her before looking away again to watch the flames in the fireplace near-by.

“He was blood thirsty,” he responded in contemplation. His talk with Nicolas the previous night over the matter was playing over in his mind once more as if in hopes of producing new information that had been absent a few hours previously. “He somehow slipped away from Nicolas and a few hours later was found dead.”

“Do you know who did it?” Kacy asked, sounding horrified at the idea of it. Kade nodded but instead of elaborating on it he got up from the couch. Kacy was on her feet in an instant, following him out of the library. “Who was it?” she asked as they headed down the hallway of the mansion and down the stairs to the main hall.

“Someone I’ve been wanting to meet,” was all that Kade said as he crossed the hall, putting on his trench coat as he went, and in an instant was gone from sight to Kacy’s mild aggravation.

For about a year now Kade had watched this particular girl help vampires and for the last few months he had also watched her kill those who presented true danger to the humans. But never someone who happened to reside in Kade’s own household. This time was different somehow. He wanted to talk to her at last. His mind was made up before the sun had set fully and now that night had fallen and that red lantern hung over the door he stepped up onto the porch of the small house. Knocking on the door, he simply waited for a reply.

Just to keep herself occupied, and hopefully ward off any boredom that might try and set in, Mikaila had dug out one of her old books and was currently curled up in a corner of her chair while reading again. However, her thoughts were soon broken by the unmistakable sound of someone knocking on her front door.

"Now who could.....oh wait it's either a vampire or another hunter that's all there is to it." Mikaila thought to herself as she placed her book on the table and silently stood up from her seat. Before even going close to the door she checked to make sure her weapon was still within grabbing distance, and with that assured she walked over and quickly unlocked the door. True she never knew what to expect when someone came here at night, but she had come to learn how to be prepared for anything. Although at a first glance she was fairly sure the man she was now facing had to be a vampire, but she still kept up her guard until she knew for certain.

"Good evening, what brings you here?" She asked politely while stepping to the side, leaving the doorway open in case he decided to walk inside. Now that she had the chance to get a better look at this stranger she was almost certain he had to be a vampire. She knew more about hunters then most anyone because of her first hand experience in that area, and there was nothing there that would say he was a hunter. Unless they had gotten smarter somehow, and that seemed very unlikely.

Kade let slip a small smirk when he heard the sudden footsteps inside come to a halt for a moment before continuing towards the doorway. He was quite certain that the girl who answered the door had paused to check something. Perhaps some form of protection. He knew she was quite capable of killing when provoked. Last night was only an example of that. He had heard of what had transpired only after the fact but it didn’t stop him from becoming angry. First with Nicolas for letting the fledgling out of his sight, then with the girl who did it – Mikaila as he had heard her called – and lastly with himself for not being near-by at the time to perhaps prevent the kill.

It wasn’t long before the door opened and Kade lifted his head slightly, his long hair falling back to allow the light from the lantern to illuminate his face better. For a moment he remained silent, watching Mikaila, as if contemplating whether to talk or attack her. He had known of her for a while but had chosen to never approach her. In his opinion it was better to leave those such as her to their own unless they needed help themselves. But as he saw it, this was a special case.

“Good evening,” he replied finally with a slight bow of his head as he stepped inside, his hands folded in the pockets of his trench coat for temporary comfort. Calmly, he stepped aside to allow her to close the door while he took a moment to look around the room that he found himself in. “I’ve come to speak to you about what happened last night. I am curious as to what really happened,” he said. Turning back to face her he watched her with an expression of calm.

What appeared to be a humorless smirk appeared on Mikaila's face, as if she had anticipated this before he even mentioned it. Oh she was well aware of how her killing of vampires would not go unnoticed forever, even though she only killed in self defense. That vampire had been so insane with bloodlust that he wouldn't have thought twice about killing her, and as much as she regretted it she'd had no choice but to kill him instead. Still even if it was in self-defense there was a chance her actions could be viewed as a serious crime, and she was well aware of the possible consequences that could come of it.

"There's not really much to tell." Said Mikaila as she walked over to her small, run-down couch and sat down before turning her grey colored eyes on him. They held no expression whatsoever, giving a sense that she was all to aware of what direction this conversation might take.
"The vampire came here asking for help, and I offered it. I thought he was on the run from hunters and I would have allowed him to stay for as long as he needed. However he was already driven insane by his bloodlust, and I didn't realize it until he tried to attack me. I gave him a fair warning that I would defend myself if it came down to it, but despite my warning he still tried to kill me. So I retaliated and you know what happened next."

For what felt like hours after she had explained herself, Mikaila said nothing else. The silence that hung in the air was an almost tense silence, heightened only by the words she spoke next.
"However, if I'm still guilty of any crime then I'll take full responsibility for my actions. I regret what I was forced to do, and if there is a price for it then I'll pay it without question." She said, the serious tone of her gaze proving she had not spoken lightly when she said that. True she knew killing was sometimes necessary, but she never took pleasure in it. She tried to avoid it whenever possible, but circumstances had made it impossible just the night before. Now it looked as if her actions were going to catch up with her, and surprisingly that didn't scare her.

Kade had barely looked at Mikaila since she had taken a seat on the couch, instead taking the time to look around the place a little bit more. While she was explaining the events of the previous night he walked over to inspect the various parts of the small place as if expecting to find something that was not apparent at first glance. By the time she was done speaking it seemed as if he had tuned her out completely. At least until he spoke, breaking the second silence that had fallen over the little house.

“Such a brave soul to offer yourself up for a punishment,” he said, his tone of voice contemplating but otherwise quite emotionless. Slipping a hand out of his trench coat pocket he reached up to pull aside the curtains, looking out to the street beyond. A brief glint that passed across his index finger showed a curved, sharp armor piece sitting around it. Lowering his head once again, Kade let the curtain fall back into place and turned to look at the girl on the couch with a calculating gaze. She was a smart one, that was for sure.

“The fledgling should have never been able to make it this far out into the city. There are others responsible for the outcome of the night,” he spoke quietly after a while. “Now if you are finished jumping to conclusions, perhaps we can let go of some of this… tension, shall we?”

Walking forward, he took a seat across from her, his eyes fixed on her to gauge her reaction to his words. “I have heard that you protect those in need. What I have never understood is why. What does one have to gain from hanging that lantern by the door and inviting us in?” he asked. He had always imagined that earning favor with the vampires would seem appealing to any human but had never received a definite answer to confirm his theories. “And what…” he added after a moment as he lifted the hand that was free of his pocket to inspect the finger armor, touching the tip of it with his thumb as if to check the sharpness, “would drive such a protector into killing those who she protects?”

Something close to defensiveness, or irritation, flashed in her grey eyes before vanishing just as quickly.
"I told you I take no pleasure in killing. All those past incidents have been because I was forced to either fight or let myself be killed. As for why I even choose to help you and your kind, my reasons are my own."

"Besides, maybe I am trying to prove I'm not like them....." Mikaila thought to herself, as if she were mentally finishing her statement without speaking a word. She didn't need him asking more questions then he already was, especially if they involved her own past story. She would much rather forget those times and leave them buried in the past, digging them up would only add more salt to still healing wounds.

Still just from her earlier statement it was clear Mikaila was much tougher then she may look, but at the same time didn't use that against others. In fact she acted more like she would rather avoid confrontations all together, but on the same note knew that in her line of work that was impossible. She'd come across a few individuals that wanted nothing more then to start a fight, and she was perfectly capable of looking out for herself when such things happened. She didn't even seem fazed by the fact that right now, she was talking to a vampire that could most likely kill her before she could scream for help.

Then again, she had been around enough vampires that they no longer frightened or intimidated her. Actual she had never been scared of them, despite the usual dark tales she had been told about them in the past. Maybe it was her differing views that drove her to offer them help whenever they needed it, or maybe it really was her attempt at proving she wasn't the person her so called 'family' had wanted her to be.

Kade smirked at the confidence that this girl had. She acted as if she was talking to a simple human, not afraid at all of the consequences that her words might bring. He was almost tempted to thicken the tension just to get some fear out of her. It tended to amuse him somewhat, he was a vampire after all. But he refrained for the moment, instead choosing to keep in mind why he had come here in the first place. Lowering his hand he looked back at her. “Oh, I can assure you there are ways to defeat a vampire other than killing,” he replied before sitting up a little straighter and leaning forward.

“We do not take fledglings in lightly, Mikaila. If a human is turned, there is a good reason behind it. As you can imagine, there are some who do not take well to their fledglings being killed,” he said, his tone of voice taking on a hint of seriousness to it. “I know that you help those of us who are in need of it but I must caution you that some do not see it this way.”

Well aware of how Mikaila might react to his words, Kade let himself sit back once again, making himself comfortable. “You have a choice, girl,” he said after a moment. “You can stay here and continue opening the door to vampires and hunters alike or you can take a small break and come with me for a few nights.” It didn’t seem as if he was going to explain himself in any way for the offer, for the next moment he stood up from his seat, slipping his hand back into his pocket. “What will it be?”

Mikaila just looked at him as with that same expressionless stare, but in her mind she was thinking over what he had just said. She knew all to well that not all vampires saw her actions as helpful, in fact there were many who would just rather kill her on sight then ask a human for help. Still that had never fazed her much, and apparently he found something amusing in that. So then what was really behind his offer? What could he possibly gain by asking her to come with him?

"And what, would you get out of it if I came with you? Although I have a feeling I don't have much of a choice in the matter even if you say that I do." She said as she stood with her arms crossed in front of her. Just the way he had spoken made her believe that one way or another, he would get her to come with him. That alone set off a few alarms in her mind, and lead her to think that he probably had some ulterior motive for his offer. So either way she wanted at least some kind of explanation for his actions, even if it wasn't much of one. Anything was better then nothing in her opinion, and in a case like this it could tip the scales drastically. Not that she was necessarily looking for an advantage, but neither was she to keen on running into something completely blind either.

It came as no surprise that she was asking questions. He hadn’t taken her to be someone who would follow without demanding for some form of an explanation first and on that account he hadn’t been let down. Turning his head to look out of the window he thought for a moment on it before he extracted his armor-free hand from his pocket, holding it out to her. Although he couldn’t help but let slip a chuckle at her prediction of not having any choice in the matter. One that was, in fact, quite wrong but he chose to not correct her, finding that her current train of thought was far too entertaining for him to run it off the tracks.

“Perhaps simply to return the favor,” he replied instead as he looked back at her to see that she had stood up. Already he could smell that familiar scent drawing near, another vampire was coming. He wasn’t surprised in the least bit at this. He simply awaited to see if Mikaila would come with him as he had asked or let her stubborn side win out and attempt to refuse. Either way he would not argue with her on it and could not be held responsible for the outcome of either of the two decisions.

"Simply to return the favor? Or is there more to it then that?" Mikaila thought to herself as she stared at his outstreached hand, then back up at him again. The same feeling that he was up to something still held onto her with a powerful grip, but her own curiosity as to what he really wanted from her was proving to be much stronger. Like it or not, there was something....intriuiging about this vampire. She couldn't really explain it, but she found it almost difficult to form any solid excuse as to why she should refuse his offer. Maybe she was just going crazy, or maybe there was a logical reason for her actions. Either way she found herself, almost hesitantly, placing her hand in his own.

"Then I'll take my chances." She said, her voice holding the slightest hint of unease despite it's steady tone. Despite her desire to know more of what he really wanted from her, the suspiciouns that she was getting into something much deeper then before was still prevalent. Here she was, a human, letting a vampire take her to who knew where for any number of reasons so there was no real shock that she wasn't totally confident in this situation. For all she knew he could end up taking her and changing her into a vampire in exchange for the life she herself took, but would that be any worse the life she currently lived? Then again either choice presented its own set of problems.

Despite all that Mikaila had made her choice, and she was one to stick by her decisions no matter what. If this did end badly then so be it, she would face whatever happened next the same way she had done countless times before. Her choices were her own, and the consequences belonged to no one else but her.

The slight smirk grew on Kade’s face when he felt her take his cold hand. Her skin was warm, fragile as he might call it. A living presence was always fragile. It was only too easy to snuff it out, only a very delicate balance keeping a heart beating.

With a swift movement, Kade’s fingers closed around hers and he stepped forward, pulling her closer to him. It was at that moment that a knock sounded on the door and Kade paused, his smirk giving way to what appeared to be a slightly mischievous smile, his eyes flashing a deep red for a moment before they returned to their normal hazel color.

“Time to go,” he spoke merely above a whisper to her and in an instant the floor of the small house seemed to vanish as he took off with lightning speed through an open window, taking Mikaila with him. There was a single moment when the rushing cold night air seemed to press down a heavy blanket around them as the cityscape disappeared and a black cover took to the night. But even that soon gave way to a bright light as they came to a stop and Kade placed his free hand on Mikaila’s back to help steady her if need be. They were back at Kade’s mansion, standing just inside the doorway of the entrance hall and Kacy, her long brown hair hanging loosely around her shoulders and the black dress she was wearing trailing on the floor behind her, was hurrying down the left side of the main staircase that led to the second floor.

“Kade! Where have you been?! You have to go find Nicolas, now!” she demanded of him, making him chuckle quietly to himself at the irony of the temperament that she shared with Mikaila.

“I was picking up our new guest,” Kade replied simply. Kacy paused on the bottom step when she caught sight of the girl and from there preceded toward the two in a calmer manner. “Kade, I need to speak with you,” she said with a brief glance to Mikaila before she turned to look at him once more.

“I know about Nicolas. I am ordering a lock down on the mansion. He is not allowed in until I say so myself,” Kade said. “You know the rest,” he added and it seemed that Kacy didn’t need any further explanations for she sighed, nodding her head to him before she hurried out of the entrance hall. Kade turned his attention back to Mikaila as he proceeded further into the room. “You must excuse my sister. She has been worried over those who reside here as of late,” he told her.

It went without saying that Mikaila was still somewhat disoriented from the whole trip, but she managed to hide it rather well. Instead she focused more on these new surroundings she had found herself in until she was sure she could talk again without sounding like she'd had a few to many drinks.

"So....where are we?" She asked, clearly confused as to where she had now found herself. She could tell it was some kind of mansion, and apparently most of the people who lived here were vampires. So with all that in mind she could guess this was probably one of those 'coven mansions' she had heard about growing up in a clan of hunters. Any vampire hunter would pay good money to find a location of one of these places, but to bad Mikaila couldn't be bought off that easily.

Although what truly had her confused was what they meant when he and his sister were talking about this other vampire. Apparently something was up, that much she could tell but as for the rest she could only make out a few theories. Then again she was fairly sure it had something to do with her having to kill that last vampire, and if that was the case then she was almost sure she wouldn't be very welcome here. Which made her wonder why this vampire had brought her here in the first place.

“We… are at the home of some of the most powerful vampires of the world,” Kade replied to her simply as if it was every day news. With a glance back to her he proceeded through a doorway off to the side with a brief pause to motion for her to follow.

“I do not wish to give away our exact location, you understand. Besides, I believe that you would not want such knowledge in case of interrogation in the future,” he continued, walking through a dining room where two vampires were talking in hushed tones near one of the tall windows. They both turned to look at the two of them, stopping mid conversation and bowed their heads politely. It wasn’t until Kade disappeared beyond the second doorway when they returned to their own discussion.

Meanwhile Kade walked into a sitting room where a fire was burning in the fireplace. Various black couches and armchairs stood around to allow for comfort. Taking off his trench coat, Kade draped it over the back of one of the armchairs and took a seat, making himself comfortable before he turned to look at Mikaila. Without the trench coat he was left in a simple pair of black pants and a white dress shirt. “Make yourself at home,” he said, motioning an armored finger to the couch that stood near-by.

Mikaila couldn't really say she blamed him for not telling an exact location, but then again the information he gave her was enough that at least she was a bit more familiar with these new surroundings. Although she still felt uneasy, especially now that she knew some powerful vampires lived here and she had no doubt they would not think twice of trying to make her their next victim. However she hid her unease very well as she took one last glance around the room before sitting in the chair closest to her.

"So, now that you have me here what was you're real reason for asking me to come?" She asked him, deciding she might as well have what was on her mind out in the open. There had to be more to it then just a simple 'return the favor' thing, that just sounded to easy. Then again maybe that was the entire reason she was here now, but still it sounded a little crazy in her opinion. Mainly because she couldn't understand why he would bring her somewhere like this considering he wasn't the only vampire who lived here.

Kade chuckled quietly at the girl’s persistence. Although he could understand why she would question him on the matter, the unease that he could smell on her seemed to amuse him somewhat. Never the less he looked away to the flames. “The vampires here won’t lay a hand on you,” he said after a moment, evidently deciding that letting her go on thinking that she was in some form of danger and possibly attempting to leave was not a part of his plans.

“I told you of my reason. I’m simply returning the favor,” he spoke after a moment with a glance to her once more as he shifted in his seat to pick up a glass full of red liquid that was brought to him by a young blonde woman. She bowed to him before placing another glass on the table in front of Mikaila. This one containing water. With that she left the room and left the two of them alone once more. “And as such I am afraid I will have to take my leave soon to go and take care of some business before the sun rise,” he added, holding up his glass as if in a toast before he drank some of the blood, watching her as if awaiting for more questions

"Well, since you seem so confident that no one will try and go after my blood I do have a few final questions. Just for the moment that is." Said Mikaila as if telling him she may have more questions later, but for now she was fine with what information she had.

"First, how long am I going to stay here and am I free to go anywhere here or are there some places that are off limits?"
Mikaila was almost sure that there would be some areas of the mansion she was not allowed to enter because she was human, but as long as she knew the boundaries then she could make herself scarce if necessary. In other words she could make it seem like she wasn't even there to anyone but him, although how she could pull that off was anyone's guess. As for her first question, it's not that Mikaila was in any rush to leave but having some idea of how long her stay here would be was helpful in some respects. Not only that but she was curious to know a bit more about this vampire who brought her here, and knowing how long she would have to find out as much as she could would definitely be to her advantage.

Although she had to admit, why she found him so interesting was beyond her. She just had this weird feeling that kept drawing her to him, like a moth to a flame. While she knew just being around him like this could be dangerous, at the same time she didn't really feel like she was in any immediate danger and that felt very very stupid. Just being here could be a threat to not only her, but to anyone who lived here on many different levels. Not that she would go attack anyone unless it was to defend herself, but still she had that gut feeling that her very presence could cause trouble if she wasn't careful.

The few lights outside in the back garden and the front pathway turned off, throwing the mansion into darkness. The curtains on the windows, that had been opened for the night, showed nothing beyond the windows other than pitch black darkness now. Kade turned his head at this, taking a moment to scan the room before he turned his attention back to Mikaila.

“For starters I do not suggest you go outside,” he advised her. “It can be hard to see out there tonight. Otherwise, if a door is open, you’re welcome to enter. As far as for your time of stay…” he added as he stood from his seat, finishing the blood in the glass and setting it down on the table. “Should not be more than a week.”

As he picked up his trench coat he turned back to Mikaila. She was cautious but still reckless to have come with him so willingly. Perhaps in time she would learn but for now at least he knew that he wasn’t the one who presented danger to her. “Now let me ask you a question,” he said as he put on the coat, folding his hands behind his back. “Do you trust me?” As odd as the question was he seemed to be rather serious about it.

Mikaila seemed taken back by that question, and in all honesty she wasn't quite sure how to answer. Did she trust him? Well she never would have come with him if she didn't, but was that really trust or just her doing something completely crazy? She didn't dare take that question lightly because from the serious tone to his voice, she knew she had to give him as honest of an answer as she was capable of.

"To an extent yes, I trust you won't harm me seeing as you've had plenty of chances to do so and haven't. Other then that, well I can't say for sure."

That was about as good of an answer as he was going to get, because that was the best way Mikaila could think to describe the whole thing. She honestly did believe he wouldn't harm her, and that he would prevent others from doing the same but as to more then that well that would take time. After all she knew very little about him or his motives for bringing her here, even if it had been her free choice to come with him in the first place. Then again maybe it was more her own reckless streak coming to light, but either way she had given him the best answer she could come up with.

Kade nodded to her. The answer seemed good enough for him for he turned, heading to the doorway. Though he paused for a moment to glance back to her over his shoulder for a brief moment. “Before I forget. The king’s room is off limits,” he added. Offering her a single nod he turned and was gone from sight without awaiting a reply.

He didn’t have much of an intention or an incentive to let her in on who he really was. As far as he was concerned, once some matters were attended to, he would be able to let her go back to her normal life. Although after meeting her after all of this time he figured that he would keep an eye on her even after she left to make sure that she wouldn’t get into any more trouble that she wouldn’t be able to handle on her own. He couldn’t very well let her walk out of his house and be killed, after all.