Derek Fleitner's Story

Bored. So fucking bored. And it was only 8 pm! The redheaded vampire could hardly remember the last time she had been this bored. She licked a stray drop of blood from the side of her mouth and closed her unseeing eyes, breathing in the heady scent of blood and fear, but even that couldn’t quell her sense of boredom. The young female at her feet was no longer breathing, in fact she’d been dead for a while, but then, maybe that was exactly Helena’s problem; humans died too easily, so she didn’t get to play with them for long. Especially not when she was hungry too. And Kristof was… somewhere. She had told him to fetch an old friend of hers, a friend who didn’t own a shred of technology. Probably because said friend had been locked in a cave for the last couple of centuries, and he hadn’t really had a lot to eat, or… anything to eat really. But then, it was time she let Trey out of his cage.

Not that she really cared to, but she’d known his location for quite a while now… after she had tortured it out of the female vamp who had tricked him in there, of course, and it might be about time she put it to good use. It would put Trey in her debt, and considering her old… familiar… had been a coven leader, she knew he had strings to pull. Not that she didn’t have her own, but she had them precisely because she took her time and figured out how to get them. It was an artform she had perfected over the years. And Helena forgot nothing. Her memory, although her mind was in bundles, remained perfect. Point was, however, that without Kristof around, the fallen leader got restless very quickly. It was a bother, but she trusted no one else enough to carry this task out. She sighed, eyelids sliding open once more to reveal blood red, almost glowing eyes. With that, she put on her sunglasses, which complimented her outfit, and picked up the dead, dry body of her latest victim.

As Helena got rid of the dead girl, who had had a rather irritating voice to be frank, she pondered how to make her evening more interesting. Who to play with? She could stay out and see if she could find something… or someone… interesting, but it was doubtful, because once Helena was bored, few things could catch her interest properly. She needed entertainment. Pronto. And who was more fun than her little pet? She smiled widely at the thought, already on her way home when she made up her mind. And oh, she would make Dmitri watch! Her smile broadened as she reached the house. She hadn’t done that before, but it had recently come to her attention that her food had decided to… care for each other. Cute little blood banks, weren’t they? Oh, humans were so delightful sometimes, and Helena found she was in a better mood already. A much better mood. She opened the door, pausing in the living room.

Her nose had told her at a distance that both of her desired lovelies were home. Not that they were out a lot. Rather, it would be weird to her if any of them were out, since she did not like to have them out of her metaphorical sights. Helena had a sadistic, playful smile on her lips as she called out, her voice almost too sweet, which was never a good sign to anyone but her, “Dmitri, dear, come along. You too, little bird.” Little bird was a nickname Helena had always used to address her personal slaves, and it didn’t change when her slaves did. Everyone knew “Little bird” was Kaleigh, and everyone also knew you did not ignore Helena when she called for you. Things would only get worse. Right now she only wanted to have fun, and Playful Helena was a lot more pleasant than Punishing Helena. She had so many lovely ideas in mind! Oh, it would be so much fun!

The redhead took off her sunglasses, putting them on the coffee table as she waited, smile still in place. Humans were such slow creatures, so she instilled patience in herself even though she was determined to end this streak of boredom. Some might worry that the two humans would not find her, but Helena always called on people from the living room, because it was in the middle of the big house, and they had both been with her long enough to know that. “Hop little bunny, hop,” she murmured without any particular reason except her still present boredom.

---

Sometimes it sucked to be Derek. Sometimes it was pretty great, and at other times, it wasn’t so much himself and his situation, as it was… what he was. Derek had changed others, yes, and he had trained them too, but he had done that out of necessity, because if he was to be perfectly frank, he didn’t like being a vampire. Or, rather, he didn’t like the fact that he had to drink the blood of living humans. He could live on blood bags, yes, but his body could hardly choke the vile stuff down. He was terribly picky with his blood, and he was quite aware of that. It had been a problem many, many times, so he was grateful for the presence of Eva, for instance, even if he did feel guilty for using her like that. Or rather, using her feelings for him. But then again, he hadn’t been the one to invite her to become a blood pet. That had been Isaac, and Derek had not been happy with it, but in the end the advantages won out. To make up for it, though, he treated her nicely. Very nicely.

He never took from her without giving something in return. He could afford it. Which was why he was currently walking towards her room with a present, taking his sweet time, so much so that he was going at a human pace. It wasn’t far from his room to hers in the house, and he wasn’t in a particular hurry, even if he was in fact rather thirsty. Her tantalizing scent was in the air, beckoning him. It was a temptation he could not resist. One he wasn’t always entirely sure he wanted to resist. Why? Because it was so… good. Her blood was like being sent to heaven to him. He had always preferred B negative, but there was some flavor in Eva’s blood that made it all the more appealing, and at times he pondered if maybe the feeling she had for him made her blood all the sweeter. It was a possibility. He had never drunk from a girl who was in love with him before Eva though, so he had nothing to compare it to. Mostly because Derek never strove to make his victims fall for him. In fact, he never wanted any girl falling for him. Ever. He especially didn’t ever want to reciprocate those feelings. Feelings were bothersome, nothing else.

He was wearing dark jeans, and a black, v-neck, tight t-shirt which hugged his broad shoulders, showing off his impressive build, one you could only achieve through hard work. He was slim, but very well-muscled, and he towered over most, eyes intense. All in all, Derek had the kind of bad-boy, intriguing air that drew a lot of human females, and as much as he hated to admit it, he took advantage of it more often than not. Eva, however, was a pet and he wanted to keep her around, for numerous and wide-spread reasons, so he treated her in certain ways, even if he still charmed his way to her blood. As he reached her room, his knuckles rapped sharply against the door. “Eva?” he began, his voice always sporting that dark, sexy purr as he opened the door to her room. No one really bothered with modesty. Or at least, Derek never did. He was a very old vampire, and he’d seen what he needed to see. Merely watching a woman’s naked body could never get him going. After a couple of centuries, no female body ever really surprised you anymore. In fact, Derek hadn’t had sex in years; his body rarely stirred for anyone.

He smiled at her when he spotted her, closing the door behind him. She smelled so good, and he immediately felt his hunger growing just by being in the same room as her, and he knew his eyes had that slight glint of hunger in them. It was often mistaken for sexual hunger by humans, which was good, because his kind of hunger wasn’t quite as pleasant unless he chose for it to be. Which he more or less always did, releasing those toxins that made a feeding almost orgasmic to the human being fed on. Looking around, flowers were everywhere in her room, mostly orchids and roses, which Derek had gotten her. This time his gift was smaller, but much more expensive, not that that was an issue, considering how he made money by simply standing around. His little businesses more or less ran themselves by now. “Am I interrupting?” he added, his eyes landing on her once more. Not that he would leave if he was; a blood pet, or slave for that matter, should always be available. They were more or less paid to be. Which sounded so wrong, but it was true.

---

OOC note: It is 8 pm in the evening on the fourteenth of May. Also, the Forbearers have not yet moved onto the territory of the Fallen. Right now I'm letting each Coven have some calm interaction. Then the Forbearers move on after a slight time skip.

Alessa Fia Dattolo

Sweat beaded above her brows. The warm liquid trickled down the length of her face, stopping at her chin. Angrily, she ran the back of her hand over the line, swiping it away. Her lips curled back over her white teeth, and her fangs gleamed in the dim light overhead. Her body was positioned in a crouch, with her upper portion leaning slightly forward. A snarl erupted from her mouth, echoing throughout the small room. The bright brown eyes adorning her face formed slits, and she looked out at the dark figure in front of her from under her long, dark lashes.

Abruptly Alessa sprinted forward. She sprang out of her crouch, launching herself forward. Her arms pumped quickly. Her nails dug little crescent moons into the palms of her hands from the tight way she clenched her fists. The muscles in her long, bare legs bulged, straining. They pumped hard, and even harder as the vampire pushed herself. She had never gone so fast, for she never had a reason. Never had she been the prey, fleeing from an attacker. She was always too fast, and too strong. Wind blew through her hair dark hair which hung freely down her back. The long tresses flew in the breeze she had created. The speed was exilerating, and she would've whooped with glee if she wasn't so angry.

As she neared her target, Alessa placed her left hand on his right cheek. Her nails dug into his face, finding a hold. Satisfied that her grip was secure, the momentum carried the rest of her small frame upwards. Before spinning full circle, her left leg braced on the side of his neck, and she dug the heel of her sneaker into his broad chest. Grabbing the side of his head with her right hand, she dug her palm into his locks and grabbed a fistful of hair. The momentum of her run pulled her still, and as she flung the rest of her body away, her nails still dug into his head. A terrible rip sounded as the head of her target separated from his body.

Grinning, Alessa laughed as the head of her rubber boxing dummy tumbled to the floor and rolled down her long run way. Glee and pride filled her mind as she turned to stare at her now headless workout company. She was so successful this training. Her muscles were still aching from the straining during her long sprint, and she was positive that that had been her fastest time yet. How accomplished she felt, and how. . . powerful. All of her training sessions for the past however many centuries felt as if it finally paid off. All of this was to prepare her for the Fallen.

A scream broke through her train of thought. It was blood-curdling, and familiar. Living with the same people for centuries as Alessa had, she had grown to recognize the slightest murmur any of her coven made. And suddenly, she recognized this one. Adonis.

Not even bothering to slip her blade into a pocket of her workout ensemble, the vampire bolted out the door. She had been in a one-room gym she built years ago into into the surrounding woods of her home. It was five miles back from her house, but she could clear that distance in two minutes. The room wasn't wide, but it was long. There was a long runway in which she used to time her intervals included. Her training today definitely helped in her situation. Now, she ran just as fast as she had in training, trying to reach Adonis. He was a favorite of hers, despite his horrid attitude towards others. He was almost always kind to her. She also felt the need to protect him was like the need to protect a child. He was fragile to her, and she hated thinking of anything happening to him. She longed for the day when he gave in and permit them to change him.

Alessa reached the house in one minute and fifteen seconds. Slinking through the brush in the woods, she sensed more than one being by the home. This frightened her even further. Had it had been one person, Adonis would have been able to handle himself. How many would she have to go through to help him? She resented killing humans in any way, shape, or form, but she wouldn't think twice about to save her family. Family. That word had grown on her when she had met her coven. She became leader by accident, but they accepted her willingly, some more so than others. They had grown on her, too, and she loved them all.

At last she erupted from the brush, only to come to a screeching halt as she saw Adonis sitting alone and in one piece on the step of their home. She stood there, staring wide-eyed at the human, trying to catch her breath. He seemed to be fine, except that his arm seemed to be lying on his lap awkwardly. She thought about how she must have looked, probably frightening as she had arrived so quickly. She pulled her hair out of her face and tied in back with her bandanna headband. "Adonis," she said finally. "You're okay."

Walking to him, she sat next to him on the step. Her breathing slowed, and Alessa calmed herself. She pushed his hair out of his eyes, and leaned on his shoulder. How scared she had been. Never had she been so happy to see a human. Her eyes closed as she took in his scent. He smelled wonderful. The blood thundering through his veins intoxicated her, and took over her senses. Her eyes fluttered, and she briefly noticed the scrape on his arm. If she hadn't been resting on his shoulder, she would have swayed. Only then did she feel the all-too-familiar burn of her thirst make it way up her throat. Her eyes darkened at the feeling, and she brushed her tongue over her teeth. Involuntarily, she leaned closer to Adonis.

Immediately, she froze. Holding her breath, she stood and ran across the yard. She searched his face, looking for any sign of fright. She would never hurt him in the way she was just thinking. Though he was with the vampires to be a blood bank, Alessa would never risk drinking from him. As old as she was, she hadn't gotten the resistance to human blood as her fellow vampires had. Any smell of fresh blood - such a cut- could take her on a rampage. To this day, Alessa won't feed on her own. She was so close to Falling as a newborn, and fears that she is always that close when feeding.

"I'm. . . . I. . . I'm so sorry." Alessa spoke through gritted teeth, while trying to tuck her fangs back into their hiding places. Now, her eyes were pitch black, frightening against her wind-blown look. "I. . .I've got to go." Turning away from Adonis, she ran around the house, and slammed through the back door. Derek. Her protector. He was the only one she trusted enough to take her hunting. She sensed people upstairs, and caught Derek's scent mingled with Eva's. No doubt that he was feeding. Alessa didn't bother calling him. Anyone in a mile radius could have heard the door slam, and Derek would definitely recognize the reason for it. She hadn't told any of her other family members about her issue. She didn't want them to think less of their leader.

Sprinting, Alessa went up to her room to change. When hunting, she mostly flirted with her victims, stole blood from a bank, or looked for lonely stragglers. Nightclubs were good places for hunting, for the alcohol in a blood stream always added extra flavor. Blood banks were easier, for she could manipulate the employees to get what she wanted. The stored blood never tasted as good as fresh blood, and it didn't settle well in her stomach. Lonely victims were her favorite. They weren't always healthy or clean, but they didn't seem to have a destination, meaning that no one would be looking for them if they didn't make the meal.

In her hunting gear, Alessa waited in the garage on the side of the house. She sat in the driver's seat or her black Lamborghini Murcielago. The car was a favorite of hers, and she rarely let anyone else drive it. The speed was like nothing she ever experienced besides running herself. Her nails dug into the leather of the steering wheel as she tried to control her breathing. The burning had gotten worse, and she felt as if her insides were consumed by the fire. Her head throbbed, and she leaned it against the wheels. Where was Derek?

She knew she shouldn’t have started reading the book as soon as she started it, but so many people were talking about it. 50 Shades of Grey had to be good with all the buzz it was getting right? But the more she read it, the more her mind wandered. Lately she couldn’t read any sort of romance without her mind conjuring more desirable images, replacing the described male lead with Derek. She found herself at a particularly simple scene. The main character Anastasia Steele had gone out drinking with her friends only to get totally wasted. Drunk, she had called Christian Grey, the broken, dark and mysterious main man. He had shown up and they had squabbled a little but now she was puking into a small group of bushes outside a bar and he was holding her hair. Eva sighed, sitting on her bed with her back against the wall. Her knees were bent, and she held the book with one hand against her legs while her free hand moved to tuck her hair behind her ear, chewing on her lower lip. It was boring to her. She was almost fifty pages in and nothing more than steamy glances had been exchanged.

Normally she never flipped forward through a book but she couldn’t help it in that instant. She closed the book, reading the back cover before opening it again to a random page closer to the middle. Her eyes scanned the words and widened instantly. A deep flush crept over her cheeks and she shifted uncomfortably. She swallowed, ready to turn the page to keep going when a knock loudly interrupted her. Eva blinked twice and looked up at the door, finding herself still in her room and not the red room of pain described in the book so aptly.

“Eva?” Derek asked. Her eyes widened more so. The brunette looked down at the book in her hands and as he opened the door she chucked it across the room. It slammed into the wall and slid behind her laundry basket, which fortunately was filled and hid it nicely. Eva straightened herself out in the seconds she had before he opened the door. Her dark brown hair was pulled into a side pony tail, curling nicely. She was dressed in a simple outfit, aiming to be more cozy than sexy. It was not an outfit she would wear were she expecting Derek. Fact was, she felt plain. Her room was outfitted with seven dozen roses of various shades. Most were pink or red but last week he had found her blue roses, which stood out in a tall vase on the corner of her windowsill. Fairy lights were plugged in around the window itself to add more light – the room had come with only one floor lamp – and made them look beautiful. Added to that were various other favors from Derek – orchids mostly, of various colors and sizes. Her favorite was the smallest one, and by far the most delicate. It could fit in her hand and was the darkest shade of pink with nearly a dozen flowers. It was on her nightstand, so she could wake up to it. It was hard not to think of Derek when she was surrounded by his gifts. He never left her mind now.

When he entered she inhaled sharply. Eva felt herself tense, a wave of goose flesh running over her arms. She watched him scan the room momentarily before his gaze landed on hers. It was brooding and serious and dark all at once. She curled her toes in her socks, moving her legs so that they were crossed instead, her hands clasping one another tightly. His stature still caught her off guard whenever she saw him. She could never look at him enough. As he crossed the room she noticed the small gift in his hands. Another one? Every time she saw him he gave her something. But what did it mean? Did he like her the way she loved him? Oh there was that word again. Love. She couldn’t deny it. She felt it so strongly. He gave her gifts, he made her feel things she had never felt and so heatedly! Yet Adonis and Angel had both mentioned once or twice…that he might not…it wasn’t possible. He had to! She looked into his eyes and felt reassured that he had to feel something for her. He looked at her with desire, need. She felt it grow more intense as he stepped closer and she shivered.

“Am I interrupting?” he asked her. Eva immediately shook her head. “No, I was…reading. It wasn’t that good,” she struggled to reply, her voice soft and gentle. She knew she was in front of him, wide eyed and flushed. Stupid book already had her going. Now he was really in front of her. As she closed her eyes she could see him striding across the room, his legs discounting the space and his vampire speed making the movement take a split second. She could just hear him in her head. “I need you,” he would tell her, taking her hand and pulling her to stand. His strength would make her stumble into his chest…that strong and muscled body would catch her. He would bring his hands to her cheeks, running his thumb absently along her jaw and look down at her with a smile. “You’re so beautiful…” he would mutter and she would flush and then he would kiss her…

Except she didn’t know what that would feel like.

Derek shifted his weight and the floor creaked. The noise startled her, and Eva blinked rapidly again, clearing her throat and shifting so that she could sit at the end of her bed and put her feet on the floor. Part of her leg was numb from sitting cross-legged on the bed, even for a short time. “Sorry,” she murmured, looking up at him and moving to pull at the scarf she had on around her throat. Intuition had her prepare herself. It had been some time since Derek had fed on her. He had only nine times in the few months that she had been with the Forbearers. She would never forget the first time, how he had stirred her with his look, the feel of his lips against her skin. She shifted again at that memory too, squeezing her thighs together and staring at the floor. "How are you?" she managed to ask, trying to get him to speak, trying to stop fumbling with her words. I hope he doesn't think that I'm a fool.

---

She was vibrating with fear and he loved it. Oliver stalked towards her, watching the blond woman shake and stare at the ground. She was backed into the corner of the bathroom stall, the loud music of the bar beyond blaring and echoing across the dark tiled floors. “Please,” the woman whispered. Oliver cocked his head to the right, running his tongue over his teeth. He had ensured that the door was locked. No one was coming, a cleaning sign was on the door and a bouncer was watching the hall to prevent people from storming in. Now he had his prey, a woman he had been hunting all night. She was young and he smelt it on her, the purity of her blood. Her friends were druggies but she wasn’t and she was glorious, glowing skin and white blond hair with carefree red and pink streaks. Dark eye shadow, boy shorts, a ripped black tank top and a glorious throat. Exposed and lovely. He could see her carotid artery racing, the pumping of her head was so loud in his ears. It raced with the bass of the rock concert outside, intoxicating him, egging on the monster inside him. He felt his fangs extend as he stepped into the bathroom stall and closed the door behind him, locking it.

“Please what?” he taunted her, hearing his smooth male voice run across the tile floors. She shivered at the sound, her skin erupting in goose flesh. She continued to shake however. Her friend was dead by the door after all, drained in an instant. The other girls’ blood was still dripping from his chin and onto his shirt, the indecent taste bitter on his tongue. Heroin was never pleasant and today it made him want to cleanse his palate all the more. And now that opportunity was before him.

“Please don’t hurt me,” she begged. It made him chuckle as she tried to squeeze herself further into the corner of the bathroom stall, cowering and shrinking as she bent her knees and tried to shield herself. As if she could.

“Oh I won’t hurt you darling,” he promised her. “You see, I can make this...orgasmic for you.” His explanation drew her glance, a small peak over her arm as his charm flowed and she found herself curious. That was all he needed. He reached out and grabbed her left arm, pulling her towards him sharply. She screamed but Oliver clasped a hand over her mouth, pulling her back to his chest and wrapping his hand around her, holding her hands with his one and locking her to him. He tilted her head back and drew his nose along the length of her neck. He couldn’t help but kiss her, drawing his lips along the sweet spot below her ear where it met her jaw. She tensed beneath him and he felt her tears run to his hand. She was vibrating with fear which was excellent. After all, he liked his blood shaken and not stirred.

“Hush,” he cooed, leaning his face into her cheek, feeling the warmth of her friends blood between them as it smeared from his face and onto her unblemished cheeks. “Stay still,” he ordered. Oliver tested her, releasing his grip from her hands to draw his fingers up her side, diving below her shirt to draw a nail up her ribs, cutting into her. The scent of her blood was immediate and his eyes dilated. His fangs extended and he swooned, drunk on the smell all at once. He moved to bite her, sinking his teeth into the meat of her throat. She moaned as his hands moved to coddle her body while he took what he wanted. The blond spasmed beneath his hands and in seconds she was dead, pleasure lacing her face as he stepped back and dropped her without an ounce of sincerity. The blonde’s body bounced off the toilet, spraying the porcelain with blood, before rolling off onto the floor.

“So good, see,” Oliver proclaimed to the girls’ corpse. “That didn’t hurt.”

He stepped out of the stall and caught a glimpse of himself in the vanity mirror. The music kept playing but his hearing zoned out when he saw himself. The front side of his outfit was drenched in blood, the blue fabric of his shirt crimson while his jeans were drying brown. His face was coated, the blood of his prey smeared and sprayed across his face. It was that sight that made him glance back at the bodies of the two women on the floor. It came so quickly he screamed. The raw guilt hit him harder than a stake to the heart.

He looked back at the bodies again, and he felt his knees buckle slightly. Oliver caught himself on the sink, but his strength was so much so that it ripped the thing clean from the wall. A jet of water sprayed out at him and he hissed, ducking away from it and watching as it rushed like a geyser at he bodies. It did nothing to help him. He moved quickly to the windows to the top part of the ceiling. He punched it out of the frame and lept with practiced grace through it. He found himself tumbling into a fire escape, the metal snarling as much as he was as he rolled and stopped when his back slammed into a corner of the rusty stairs. His head slammed into it, hard enough to send an irritating reverberation through his skull. For a moment he sat there, breathing deeply, looking down at himself. He brought his hands into view, seeing the residual flesh beneath his nails, and blood caking his knuckles, running in places where it was fresh or wet. His fingers shook momentarily before he clenched them into fists, standing and jumping from the escape to the building’s rooftop. It was time to go home.

The house was smaller than they normally stayed in. Oliver knew it was likely temporary, a good thing considering he had drained some fifteen people in their short stay in town. He knew another two to the spree would likely draw attention. And tonight he had left the two of them in a public space. He’d broken for the first time in months. He was still in that frame of mind as he entered the Fallen stead. The living room was abuzz as Helena was seated with two of their pets present. He slammed the door behind him and cast a glance over them all, knowing he was still covered in blood, knowing that his eyes were warmer than normal, knowing moreover that he looked tormented. And he was. Oliver brought his sleeve to his face and wiped it, kicking off his shoes before he walked without a word up to the upstairs bathroom.

When Eva told him she had merely been reading, he nodded absentmindedly. It explained the thud he had heard upon entering her room. It seemed she had hidden her book quickly, which only made him wonder what she had been reading. However, he was by far more focused on the hunger burning in his throat by now, and the sound of running not too far from the house. It smelled like Adonis, but the scents following him were more or less unfamiliar to Derek. Quietly and in no time he moved to Eva’s window, looking in the direction of the sound. Trees were everywhere, though, rendering him unable to see Adonis. He was wary. This seemed like trouble, although they were all humans. Humans could easily hurt Adonis, though, as he was no more than a fragile human himself.

He heard Eva apologizing behind him and heard her moving, but he paid no attention to her. He was busy. Folding his hands behind his back, his stature straight and primed for battle, Derek waited for Adonis to run into view, not that he couldn’t have gone to help him in the forest; he could’ve followed the sound, but he would much rather have a better advantage, and Adonis seemed to be keeping himself at a distance from these intruders. People being in danger was not foreign to Derek. In fact, he was very used to it, and it was his job to make sure everyone within his coven was safe. And so, he knew he would have to leave his meal if it came down to it.

However, when Adonis pushed through the trees, the other humans right at his heels, Derek heard Isaac moving and soon the younger vampire was in the lawn in front of their house, taking care of the humans, which meant Derek didn’t need to. To Derek, Isaac was a child, so seeing him all threatening and on top was a little amusing if nothing else, but he would admit the kid was useful at times like these. Eva spoke again behind him, and as the fight ended downstairs, he relaxed his stance slightly and glanced at the human girl who looked more or less uncomfortable at this exact moment. He didn’t blame her. He had ignored her for a while as he looked outside, registering everything but her, and it had a tendency to unnerve people. Apparently he was very intense.

He cast her a brief smile before moving towards her once more, his senses finding Alessa close in that same instant. It seemed his family had decided to invade his senses all at the same time and all while he should be feeding. Timing, timing, timing. How many times had this not happened to him? Derek’s eyes were on Eva once more, however, and he was focused on her. No one was in danger anymore, and he was hungry. Eva’s scent was all around him, mixing with the flowers in her room and her subtle perfume. It was seductive to his hungry senses, and he couldn’t help but move towards her as he finally replied, his voice smooth and deep; a sexy purring as always. It wasn’t conscious on his part; it was just how his voice sounded. “Mostly…” he began, his eyes intense on hers as he added “I’m hungry.”

With that, the tall male moved quickly, having picked her up and pinned her against the wall in the next instant. His manners had a tendency to be neglected a little once his hunger was burning in him like this, and Eva was too delicious to resist, so he leaned in, his lips already against her bared neck when he spoke again, his voice a husky murmur, “and you smell amazing.” Derek let his hands slip from her wrists which he had used to capture her against the wall and moved them towards her hips, one settling there while the other cupped her jaw, his palm against the side of her neck he wasn’t murmuring against, thumb on the opposite side of her chin.

His grip on her jaw was firm yet gentle as he tilted her head to the side, baring more of her glorious, smooth neck to him. He would give her his present once he had sated his thirst, he decided as his fangs extended, folding out like those of a rattlesnake. He scraped them gently against her neck, almost in a caress, waiting for a sign of approval before digging in. He didn’t wish to overwhelm her, and he knew his fast movements were confounding to her as it was. That was when he heard the door slamming. Alessa was hungry, it seemed. Ah, fuck. Was Adonis bleeding? He’d hardly noticed, too focused on Eva’s tantalizing scent.

Derek sighed quietly. This meant he had to hurry his feeding on Eva, which was incredibly frustrating as she was an especially delicious treat and he’d rather enjoy her blood than gulp it down greedily. “I apologize for this,” he whispered then before simply digging in. Mostly he was apologizing for the way this feeding would go down. Usually he took his sweet time with her, doing all he could to make it amazing for her. This time he simply didn’t have the time, but he hurriedly released the proper amount of toxins, knowing that even then, it wouldn’t be as pleasurable to her. He would make it up to her, he soon decided as he gulped down the amazing, thick, sweet substance that was Eva’s blood.

Eva couldn’t focus on anything else but the tall and brooding vampire before her. Derek’s presence stole all of her attention. She watched him and wrestled with her own hands in her lap as he momentarily looked out the window. She heard a scuffle and then Isaac shouting. The brunette watched Derek with parted lips and mild concern. Was something serious happening outside? Then his lips pulled into a wry smirk and she exhaled a sigh, knowing that if it was really bad – whatever was happening that is – he would have left her there and gone to help. He turned back to her and she went rigid the moment his eyes landed on her. She curled her toes involuntarily, wrenched by the power of his gaze.

“Mostly…” he told her, replying to her earlier question as to how he was, “I’m hungry.” His voice was jagged and sharp, the slight rasp causing another wave of goose flesh to tear up her arms. She shivered and as she shook he suddenly moved towards her and almost like her daydream, he pulled her to stand. Only with the force and momentum of his inhuman speed, Derek pinned her to the wall. Eva was immediately breathless, her body heaving with air as her senses were suddenly driven wild by his touch. He held her hands at her waist, but not too tightly. Never too tightly. He was gentle and yet forceful. Just like that damned book. It made her moan lowly.

“I know,” she breathed lowly, looking into his eyes in flashes. She looked up at him and then down at the floor several times, somewhat baffled by how fast he moved. Still, the proximity was driving her mad. She wanted him to be this close. But most of all, she wanted him to be doing other things. He leaned in then, and Eva tilted her head away from him, leaning her forehead into his shoulder, feeling his lips graze her throat. Her fingers tensed into fists. She was pinned and could do nothing but feel what he wanted her to feel.

“And you smell amazing,” Derek added. The low tone of his voice so close to her body sent vibrations through her torso. Eva straightened all at once, sighing with a groan, knowing she shouldn’t be enjoying this so much but she did. She loved this. She would die to have this happen every hour of every day with this man…this vampire. He made her feel like she was on fire, his cold touch like flames to her skin, igniting something so passionate and heated in her core. It had to be real. This feeling, this was what all the books talked about didn’t they? When you just knew you couldn’t live without something or someone.

His hands released her wrists, pushing her closer to the wall. His body leaned into hers and her legs were locked between his. While her hands were free, she could do nothing but reach out to brace herself by holding onto his sides. He held her head steady and she leaned her chin towards the support he offered with his palm. She closed her eyes then, softly, her hands squeezing him. She hummed lowly, a sign she had developed in the time he had been feeding on her – as if to say I’m ready. Derek ran his fangs along her throat and she felt her skin react as if tickled.

Then it came – hesitation. Eva felt him stop moving and she flickered her eyes open, batting her lashes as if dazed. She was high from having Derek so close, from having his hands on her. She wanted him to bite into her, to feed. She wanted that release. But he was delaying it and he sighed then and she began to wonder. That momentary lapse in thinking led to surprise.

“I apologize for this,” he whispered. “Wha--?” Eva began to mumble. Then it came. The bite was vicious, like nothing before. She couldn’t suppress the natural squeal of surprise that came from her throat. Eva’s eyes widened and she groaned, feeling the discomfort of his fangs before the natural numbing proceeded. Isaac had explained once that vampires dosed humans with toxins before drinking, making the moment pleasurable or horrific. Normally, Derek would spread that orgasmic good feeling throughout the whole of her body but something was off in this instance. He pulled back quicker than any time before and suddenly was drinking. And quickly. The normal numbness, the high, the sensual orgasmic feelings that had accompanied the nine previous times were almost absent. She felt him pull the blood from her veins and it was uncomfortable. Eva clenched her teeth, tightening her grip on his hips. He kept going, so quickly she was rapidly light headed. “Derek…” she whispered, urgently. The numbness came in her feet quickly and within seconds she knew that if he pulled back she would collapse.

She knew she had had enough suddenly. Eva had never hit the point before but her body began to resist him even though her heart and mind were more than willing to let him keep going. Her hands released his sides, her left slapping the wall. Eva tried to move her feet again, fidgeting. Any heat, any excitement she had felt before was gone. She felt raw and sore all at once, numb in places but above all just plain loopy. When she opened her eyes again, Eva saw stars. The bedside lamp on her nightstand suddenly seemed ten times brighter. His voice was louder in her ears. She felt like she was falling when she suddenly reached out to grip his shoulders, to hold on while her heart felt like it was racing for dear life in her ears. She had never felt like this before. "I feel sick," she struggled to tell him. Her hands were shaking by the time he pulled back. Eva felt jarred when she heard someone move loudly past her bedroom door. The steps loudly continued up to the attic staircase beyond her room. She knew at once it was Adonis and sudden crashing noises had her concerned. Yet just as suddenly as it happened, she forgot about it, her focus on Derek and what he was doing, listening for...anything.

---

Scarlett lingered on Oliver’s mind as he moved back to the room he had claimed as his own. The blonde’s fresh scent remained heavy in the halls, taunting the monster within him. Oliver subdued his desire to drain the pet with another wave of images of his most recent victims. So many blondes came to mind. All young women. All eerily like Scarlett. His subconscious was speaking for itself. He was angry as he dropped is towel and dressed himself in clean clothing. Why did he want this girl so bad? Why didn’t he just go through with it, as he always had? What was so special about her that he almost wanted to keep her alive. Well obviously he did. Was he actually able to control himself around her and prevent himself from drinking? He had never, ultimately, been able to keep himself away from a human he had wanted. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized that he had never made it more than six weeks without finally killing that person. Scarlett had been with the Fallen coven for months – no…years!

Oliver paused as he ran a hand through his hair, his eyebrows furrowing with the thought. How had he failed to recognize this? This was good wasn’t it? But how long had it been since he had been able to think this rationally? Years? Had he lapsed that long just to please Helena? Was he really enjoying the power of being a vampire for such extended periods of time now? It shook him up and he felt his lips twitching as he moved to take in his personal space. One wall was exposed brick. His double bed backed onto it, the frame simple. The bedding was still astray from when he had tried to lay still the day before. His unrest had led him to hunting, and to killing again. He hadn’t been able to occupy his mind lately. Today he was about to pull an old leather bound diary from a small dresser when the old groaning sound of the house’s beat up piano filled his ears. Oliver tilted his head, feeling the frustration ebb slightly. The song was light and smooth. His mother had used to play the piano, when he was human and had hated them all. But the sound felt like home and suddenly he was closing the drawer and moving away from his bedroom to the hall, following the noise like a butterfly to flame. He found himself in the doorway to the large upstairs loft area, his eyes raking in Scarlett’s back. He should have known.

For awhile he stood in listened as the song gained intensity. He watched as her fingers danced over the keys, how her head swayed with the song and how her body seemed to curl over the keyboard, moving from one stretch to another, lost in the song. The smell of her was tantalizing and he could feel his fangs extend, releasing pleasure toxins into his mouth. The venom gathered on his tongue bitterly and he swallowed, recognizing that he needed to leave, to clean up his mess as Helena called it. He sighed, walking away from the blonde without a word. He moved quickly, knowing that if he hesitated he wouldn’t leave. He forced himself down the stairs and out the door. He was there long enough to hear Kaleigh begging between sobs. It was enough to send him running back to the bar, stopping only to collect a few important things.

He hadn’t truly been away that long. An hour and a half tops. Surprisingly the bouncer he had persuaded to bar the bathrooms was still at his post. No police cars, ambulances or other human organizations were present. No one had been discovered yet it seemed. He leapt up the fire escape, unemotional as he returned to the bathroom window he had broken through. He looked inside, the bodies where he had left them, water still streaming out of the broken sink. It was almost knee deep and the dead women floated earlier, their blood swirling ominously. He crawled through, wading through his mess to claim their bodies. The water was doing enough to remove evidence of his presence, and of them. Still, he wasn’t stupid enough to leave traces of their blood. He hauled the two corpses over his shoulder, kicking in the broken faucet to bend it closed. He hauled them out onto the escape before he withdrew a bottle of gasoline from his coat, stolen from a campfire stove in the neighbors shed. He tore the cap off the canister, splashing it up the walls and bathroom stalls before crawling back through again, standing close enough to light a match, hissing at the flame before chucking it through. The water mixed with the gas to burn brilliantly. The heat flashed through the window, one blast enough to sear the back of his neck. It healed quickly as he hoisted the bodies onto his shoulder, his face grim as he jumped onto the rooftop and moved to a conservation area behind a local park. It was closed at night and he was able to do what he needed to do, disposing of the two women as Helena had requested. He moved fast, not wanting to spend more time than he needed looking at their faces, still it was time consuming. In a good way, however, he was focused on the task at hand and not the situation at home. Or Scarlett.

She heard Dmitri shuffling along to grudgingly obey her orders, and as he sat, she uttered her order for Kaleigh, listening as the girl slowly took off her clothes. The vampire could practically smell as comprehension dawned on her, her human mind finally grasping the concept of Helena’s game this night. Her smile grew as Dmitri’s bristling anger filled the room. Oh, yes, this was going to be fun. Then again, Helena could change her mind half way in and leave both of them tied up to do something more fun. She’d forgotten about Kaleigh a couple of times in the past, merely leaving the girl tied up in the basement, because she’d become distracted. It wasn’t really that unusual.

After a while she’d recall her little human because she’d get a little hungry and then be reminded of Kaleigh’s scent under her nose, but it could take hours. One time she’d gone hunting elsewhere and completely forgotten the little redhead in her basement for almost a day. Since no one else was allowed down there, unless she expressively told them to, no one had come to get her, and she’d been a little hungry and thirsty once Helena thought of it. She’d felt bad for a while about it, cooing at her pet, taking care of her like a mother would a babe. That was the other side to Helena. Her moods and her personality swung back and forth, not really consistent at any way, and sometimes she would get very motherly with Kaleigh.

A disturbingly amused smile grazed her lips when Kaleigh then began begging her to make Dmitri leave. Oh, this was simply joyous! She crouched down in front of the girl, her right hand moving to gently caress the young girl’s cheek, wiping away the tear. “Now, little bird,” she cooed, “what would be the fun in that?” Her smile grew as she stood and she clapped her hands in excitement, spinning around to move to Dmitri in the chair, binding him to it with heavy chains, one wrapping tightly around his neck and the chair to keep his head completely steady, and his eyes pointed towards Kaleigh.

Then she let a few nails run down his neck, almost in a caress as she purred into his ear “it’s no fun if you don’t watch. Close your eyes and I will cut off your eyelids. Hers too.” This was as much an experiment as a game to the female Fallen leader. She wanted to break Dmitri entirely, to diminish every bit of fight he had left in him, choking it out of him like sand would a flame.

She wanted to figure out just how much Kaleigh meant to Dmitri, because he was astoundingly good at withstanding pain, even when she tortured him. Sometimes it was a fun challenge, and she always won it, but at other times she got bored with him halfway through. However, if Kaleigh was who she thought to him, well, then Helena could pride herself on having found a lovely little weakness in the stubborn human. She grinned up at Kaleigh, her eerily red, unseeing eyes focused on her, even as Helena’s cheek remained against the side of Dmitri’s face, her body bended downwards slightly. She knew her touch was nauseating to Dmitri, and she loved it. She loved the effect she had on him, just as much as she loved the one she had on Kaleigh.

She straightened herself then, one finger twirling in Dmitri’s hair, the nail scraping against his scalp without breaking skin. “I believe Dmitri and I would like you to remove all of your clothes, little bird.” Helena then purred before stalking towards the small, frail thing, a hand quickly unclasping her bra then, nail slicing through the sides of her panties, effectively removing the fabric. “Hmm,” she hummed then, smiling once more as sadistic light lit up her eyes. Yes, this would be a fun game.

---

The male could easily feel Eva fidgeting beneath him, and he knew she had to confused, a little hurt, and probably shocked too at how this felt as oppose to the other times he had taken her blood as his life force. He hated this. He hated that he needed to do this. Hated Alessa’s timing. Hated that he was forced to behave so unlike himself. Her whispering of his name registered, but he didn’t pay it much mind. In fact, Derek knew exactly when a human wouldn’t be able to take any more, and he had an impressive amount of self control in… well, all that he did. He felt really bad about doing this to her, though. She deserved better; most humans did, sure, but her in particular. Eva was a sweet, caring, and helpful type of girl, and generally he’d have wished her more than this life…

But, he hadn’t had much of a say in the matter. She had been insistent and though Derek had since berated Isaac on the matter, telling the kid never to make coven decisions without his or Alessa’s counsel at least, he had let Eva stay. And the taste of her blood reminded him why. It was heavenly, his senses sent into a intoxicating spiral as he sucked from her, his tongue lapping up any stray blood. He was in a hurry, but he didn’t need to be messy. He moved the hand on her hip around her when he felt her growing weaker, steadying her against the wall as he selfishly stole her blood. How was he going to make this good again? How could he possibly explain his situation to a human?

Generally, Derek wasn’t your open, talk-about-whatever kind of vampire. In fact he detested small-talk, and he despised explaining himself to anyone. He would have to with Eva, however; he knew that much. When Eva finally whispered to him that she felt sick, he pulled back simultaneously, carefully sliding his fangs out of her neck, gently licking the small puncture wounds, almost like tending to a wounded loved one in regret. “I’ll make this up to you,” he promised her quietly, moving to scoop her into his arms like you would a bride and as he cradled her, he pecked her forehead sweetly, giving her a vague smile, his fangs back in hiding at this point. He gingerly placed her on her bed and sighed, putting his small gift on her bed, next to her pillow.

It was a small thing, but it made him feel at least a little better about the whole situation. He would have said “sorry” if he were the type to. But he wasn’t. Not even when he genuinely regretted his actions, and sometimes that bugged him. He hadn’t uttered a proper apology in all of his life. The closest he got was “I apologize for…” and that was really more of a kind warning than an apology to him. He hadn’t missed the sound of Adonis, but had more or less ignored it, much like he was currently ignoring both Angel and Jasper downstairs. He gently brushed a hand through Eva’s hair, murmuring “just rest. You’ll feel better soon.” Or, in about an hour or two anyway. That was the usual coping time when he had fed on a human this way.

Then he left her room without another word, closing her door behind him, a slight sigh escaping the male. Fucking Alessa and her lack of control. It still stunned him, how you could be 1601 years old, and not have mastered the art of self control. She was worse than Lucan and Angel had been when they were new. Of course he was there for her, and he supported her, but he didn’t understand her. He couldn’t.

Soon, the tall vampire was inside Alessa’s car, riding shotgun, although he hated it, his movement nothing but a blur in the wind. He looked at her then. He had fed on Eva in only a minute’s time, total, so she hadn’t had to wait for long. He gave her a brief nod, gaze turning out the window in the next instant. “Let’s go,” he told her, saying nothing else. He was still a little upset with her timing.

Derek pulled back immediately after her comment. Eva sighed. She didn’t know if it was relief, content or delight, but it certainly was not the near orgasm she typically felt. It was nothing like what she usually felt. For the first time, her body was rejecting him. Instinct was telling her to get away from him. She wasn’t hurt but she didn’t feel right. Eva felt loopy and she clung to him, and he to her. She felt Derek tighten his hold on her, bearing more of her weight. She shifted and her head lolled into the hollow of his throat.

“I’ll make this up to you,” Derek whispered, sincerity bleeding with his tone. It was the closest thing to a sorry he had ever given her. He seemed as unhappy as she was, but even more so. Eva ran her hands down his arms, allowing herself to grip his biceps, to feel the tension in his body, the petrified muscle hard as solid marble. Her fingers could barely ply at his skin. As he stepped away from the wall, she fell slightly but he knelt and swept her into his arms. The motion was so fast she felt her stomach churn and the loopiness in her head rapidly degenerated into a wave of vertigo. “Woah,” she said in surprise, her hands shifting to bring herself closer to his chest. What other chance did she have for him to carry her princess style? Eva gasped and inhaled sharply, looking at his face so close. Staring into his eyes, he leaning forward. Her entire body shivered in anticipation, a flush running up the length of her cheeks before fading back to the pale tone associated with her lower blood level. Her lips were parted, and she tilted her chin ever so slightly, bringing her mouth closer to him. Then he bypassed her face entirely, pressing his cold lips to her forehead, just below her hairline. Eva didn’t feel capable of hiding her disappointment. He pulled away and she turned her face into his shirt. God damnit. Does my face not scream kiss me?

Derek moved quickly then, setting her back down on her bed. “Just rest. You’ll feel better soon,” he told her vaguely. Eva laid on her side, pulling her hands under her pillow after adjusting the collar of her sweater to cover her neck. He leaned over her briefly, allowing himself to run a hand through her hair. She squeezed her eyes shut then, feeling her body respond to his touch while an odd numbness seemed to spread through her arms and legs. When she opened her eyes, Derek was closing her bedroom door. It seemed that just as fast as he had come, he was gone.

The brunette was confused. Her eyes shifted as she looked at the clock on her nightstand, past the small bright mini orchid. The small silver box containing his latest gift caught his eye. Eva didn’t want to open it for the first time. It was just so weird. She felt so…used and even a little dirty? Was this what a one night stand felt like?

Eva tried to sleep. She rolled so that her back faced the door, sliding her legs under her comforter. A chill ran up her spine, making her shiver. The sweating came shortly after and she knew immediately that her blood sugar content was probably low, meaning she needed to eat and have some juice. Just like when any person went to a blood bank, she needed her drink and cookie. Slowly she sat up. When she moved too fast the light headed feeling returned and she felt dizzy. She had walked into doors and fallen down the stairs before and didn’t want to do that today. Eva wrapped a smaller fleece blanket around her shoulders, gripping it in her hands under her chin. Conscious of where she stepped, she left her room and slowly walked down the stairs, gripping the banister for balance.

When she hit the landing she smelt Jasper’s cooking. It was comforting to know that she would likely not have to try and make something by herself. Fashion was her talent, not the kitchen. As she entered the kitchen she couldn’t help but hum her delight, moving to the fridge to open it and grab the bottle of orange juice. Using her left hand to grip it, she turned to set it on the counter only to feel her hand slip as the numbness of blood loss hit her hands. “Crap,” she gasped, trying to grab it. The plastic jug hit the floor with a thud, skidding over to Jasper by the stove. Eva tugged the blanket around her shoulders tighter to her body, clasping it with one hand while she retrieved the juice. As she stood she felt the dizziness hit her and she wavered in her position before looking at Jasper with a weak smile. “Didn’t mean to interrupt you like this,” she apologized, looking at the typically sullen man who was also a pet to the forbearers. She knew that Derek’s bite mark on her neck was likely still pink and healing. She knew that Jasper would know right away what she was dealing with. Still, she didn’t want to ask him for his help because all she wanted something to eat and some orange juice so that she could crawl back into her bed and stop feeling the way she was feeling. Maybe she did need to take a bath now. She felt a little dirty. Then she realized Angel was also present, the female vampire standing close to Jasper. She was dressed...a little oddly. Eva swallowed. "Didn't mean to interrupt you either Angel," she murmured.

He didn't understand. He didn't understand why Annie had come down here. That was good, right? That had been what the female vampire had wanted. Not to show him how she truly felt about him. She couldn't; it would make things far too complicated. Still, there was a part of her that shriveled up a little when she saw that he gave an angrier response back. Ahe really did need to talk to someone about how she felt. She was smart, granted, but feelings? That was a whole different ball park. Maybe she'd talk to Angel about it, the female vampire was like a sister to her. Annie searched for Angel's scent, locating it not too far away. It mixed with the smell of cooking.. and Jasper. Ah, perhaps now wouldn't be the best time.

She smiled, accepting Isaac's apology; she secretly marveled in the way that she was able to make him turn around and say sorry so quickly.. She shoved the thought to the back of her mind. She didn't want the male to feel he shouldn't hurt her. She could see it in his eye every time she looked at him and she hated it. Isaac's abrupt departure left her a little shocked, had she done something wrong to upset him? Of all the people in the covern, Isaac was the one whose opinion truely mattered to her. 'Hey,' She called, a softer, more playful edge to her voice, 'Try not to get into any fights this time.' She smiled to herself as she watched the handsome vampire walk away.

It was then that she heard another slam of the front door, looking up she saw the broken form of Adonis. Annie hide herself in the shadows, not wanting to startle or frighten the human. She watched as he stumbled across the hall, obviously quite hurt. Somebody should check if he was okay. She searched the house for the scents of her covern. Only Angel, herself, Isaac and the humans. Derek and Alessa must have gone out. With the other two vampires in the house currently preoccupied, although what Isaac was up to she had no idea, the blonde decided she had better go and check on the human. After all, they were pets, not slaves; they needed looking after.

Just then, Isaac came back. He looked a little upset. What the hell had distracted him so and then made him like this? For once, the female vampire let a little concern seep into her expression as she looked at him. She came within a second of asking Isaac what was wrong, but then he spoke, asking her if she wanted to grab something to eat. 'I'll join you in a minute, i'm just going to and check on Adonis, he looked in a pretty bad way when he walked past a second ago..' She said quietly, staring into the eyes of the handsome vampire before casting her eyes downward, turning around walking away at human speed. ' Oh and Jasper's in the kitchen, making food, however I think Angel got their first.' She gave Isaac a small smile, before running at vampire speed to find Adonis.

Within seconds she was at is room. She knocked on the door firmly 'Adonis, it's Annie. Open the door please?' She spoke softly but clearly, not wanting to scare the human on the other side of it.



Jasper was making brunch. In normal human life's, this would have been dinner time, but this wasn't a normal human life. The humans didn't really sleep in the night time, they slept more in the day; much like vampires did. So the meal Jasper was making was more across between breakfast and lunch. Bacon, Eggs, sausages and beans. A hearty meal. He liked cooking it soothed them male greatly to have total concerntration on what he was cooking. Jasper espeically enjoyed cooking for others, it gave the male a great deal of satisfaction to see others enjoy something that he had created.

It was then that the male heard a thump on the desk, he stepped back from the counter, startled by the sound. It was then that he saw Angel. It was instantly apparent to the male that there was something different about the female. She was dressed in an extremely short dress that showed all her assets of..quite nicely actually. Not that Jasper cared; she looked good, just not as good as Robyn did. There was something in the female vampires eyes that was scaring him. She looked..almost manic. This meant only one thing in Jasper's head. It was feeding time for Angel.

The male was aware of somebody entering the room as Angel spoke. She told me how hungry she was; he suspected it wasn't just for the food he was cooking. Angel was regular company of his; when she wasn't feasting on his bloody was actually ok to be around; however at this moment Jasper knew he had to comply with what she said; for his sake. 'Angel' He began softly, before he was interrupted by something falling to the floor behind him. He turned to see an extremely weak looking Eva staring back at him, the two of them now standing in a pool of orange juice. He knew she'd been feed on almost instantly. There was something in the male that didn't like that. Not one little bit. He know, of course, that it was her choice to be here as much as it was his, the two of them had discussed, at length their reasons for being here. However, there was something about the weak female standing opposite him that didn't sit right with the South Africian. He almost resented the vampires for doing to her.

'That's quite alright, there's another carton in the fridge,' smiling at her as he brushed past her, opening the fridge and pouringo out another cup full for Eva. 'Go and sit over there,' He said soothingly, pointing to the sofa's not ten yards away from them, 'I'm about to dish this meal up, sit and eat it here. That way I know you've eaten.' He told her simply. Jasper was an extremely calm person, he always cared about those who were close to him. He had become quite good friends with Eva, she reminded him of his old self in a way. Well when she wasn't recovering from being feed on at the very least.

The male then turned back to Angel; the vampire was still crouched on the desktop, watching the whole scene like a hawk. 'Why yes, Angel, you may have some of my meal, please sit down and I'll bring it over.' He told her quietly, completely ignoring her obvious lust for his blood as he began to serve the meal.

Alessa Fia Dattolo


Dark, matted hair fell into her face, dragging across the stone. The nails on her slender fingers were sharp, long. The soft but sickeningly frightening sound of her bare footfalls echoed in the silent night. Her body was positioned into a half crouch as she crawled down the alley. These traits combined were all but welcoming, though none of them made the young man at her feet truly shudder.

Her face was breathtakingly beautiful, and the man gave a silent gasp at the sight of it as he crawled slowly backwards down the alley. No creature he had ever seen could surpass her beauty. The smoothness of her olive skin, the gentleness of her jaw line. But when he dared to look into the eyes of the monster, he turned to stone. Her dark lashes lifted and stared forward. Though the whites of her eyes were visible, the pupils weren’t. The irises were as black as the night sky above her, blending in with the pupils. The midnight of her eyes was everything but dark, however they shone brighter than the full moon.

The man at the end of the alley was still locked into place against the stone wall as the woman came closer. She was on top of him in lightning speed, not giving him any time to defend himself as she attacked. She gripped his face and lunged her head into his neck, digging her fangs into his flesh. The blood curdling scream of her victim shrilled through the air before he felt the pleasure of her feeding. The monster was too overwhelmed to care, swimming in the blood that flowed freely out of his neck into her mouth.

“Let’s go.” Alessa jumped when she heard the low purr of Derek’s voice. Her painful reminiscing had restricted her from hearing or sensing his approach. Her hands still trembled as she turned the key in the ignition and drove smoothly out of their garage. The memory had been horrible, though she barely remembered the experience. The event had taken place long ago, and she hadn’t been conscious through most of it. It had been her first feeding as a Fledgling, the feeding that turned her into a newborn vampire. Going so long without feeding had turned her crazy, sending her on a rampage that nearly killed a man, and nearly made her fall.

Alessa shook her head, shaking away the memory of the first night. Now wasn’t the time to think of such things. She had to focus on the road, not that it was necessary. She could be facing backwards in the driver’s seat and still drive better than most humans.

Turning briefly, she noticed the stone expression on her protector’s face. Derek gazed out the window, not bothering to look at her. She sighed. “I. . . apologize – to both you and Eva. This came suddenly, and it wasn’t polite of me to not respect your feeding and Eva’s wellbeing. I’ll make sure that when we return I will apologize immediately, and explain to her that her sore experience had been of my fault.” She gripped the wheel tightly, hoping Derek would understand that she was sincere. She wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t take her apology. She didn’t feel like she deserved it.
T
he drive was quiet for the most part; neither of them felt like talking. Alessa didn’t blame her passenger. She would’ve been upset, as well, if she had hurt and maybe traumatized someone she truly cared about. Eva must feel horrible back at home, sick after the fast feeding. Alessa resolved to make it up to the girl, later. She hated feeling responsible for the girl not feeling well. And what had been wrong with Adonis? The Forbearers’ other pet didn’t seem in good spirits after Alessa had let his side. Well, anyone would feel sour after having been almost murdered by someone you thought of as a friend. What had he been mumbling about in his room? The female vampire picked her brain as she tried to remember Portuguese. Kissing. He had said something about kissing. Is that what his earlier fight had been about? Had he kissed some guy’s girlfriend and gotten chased by a goon? Alessa sighed. Adonis was always getting into trouble. She couldn’t stay mad at him though, she would talk to him later. She loved him, and wanted to make sure he was okay.

Love? Alessa thought about the word that had appeared in her mind. Love, she repeated. Never before had she questioned which love she had felt. Surely she loved all of her coven members, but she loved them like family. Adonis didn’t really count as a coven member – did he? – so family love might or might not apply here. Sure, the leader favored him, but was this the reason why?

Alessa snapped out of her train of thought when Derek asked out their hunting venue. She pondered this quickly while he patiently waited. She thought a nightclub was best, and wanted some alcohol flavor in her blood tonight. She suggested this, and drove onto another road. This road was long and mostly deserted, except for a lone bar that sat halfway down the road. It was a bar, nightclub, and a truck stop. Drivers came here to take a break from driving long hours on the road. It was an ideal feeding place for Alessa, because if something did go wrong during her feeding, no one would notice a truck driver missing from out of state.

She drove off the road and into the dirt parking lot, parking around back. She stuck her keys into the glove compartment, and pulled out a blade. It was six inches long with a leather bound hilt. She slipped it into the sleeve of her jacket, and motioned for Derek to take any of the other weapons in the compartment. Alessa pulled out a shiny revolver and stuck it the waistband of her pants by the small of her back.

After Derek closed and locked the compartment, they stalked into the club. It was small, but not claustrophobic. The darkness was welcoming, and it seemed like others had the same feeling as the club was crowded. Smoke flowed through the air, and the
crowd stared awestruck at the vampires in the doorway when it cleared.

Vampires, being predators were perfect in human eyes, and this feature came in handy when looking for a meal. Already, Alessa spotted several men who would do, and sent a smile their way. She spoke softly in Derek’s ear, telling him that he was free to feed if he wished. The female vampire said that she would talk to the men in the corner and wait for him while he took his time feeding on a female in the room. Several of them were eyeing the protector, already. Alessa could hear the giggles as they appraised him.

When her vampire chuckled in response to her words of Kaleigh and Dmitri, it was a clear message that he had understood her, not that she was surprised. Kristof always understood her. Even when she hardly made sense to herself. She grinned, satisfied with his reaction. This was why Kristof had been perfect for her. Not the sex, not the good looks, nor the devotion… but the cruel, violent, unrelenting side to him. Even as a human, he had torn into his enemies with viciousness rivaled only by her own. She had loved watching him; simply looking on from the shadows as he hacked and swayed, his technique impeccable. He was the most magnificent human warrior she had ever laid eyes on.

However, as Kristof then sighed, Helena’ face whipped up, her unseeing eyes on his face instantly. It was most likely more of a habit than anything, though, because really, she could be directing them anywhere and it wouldn’t matter one bit. Well, that, or maybe she did it for Kristof’s benefit, although that would be exceptionally unselfish of her, and most wouldn’t consider her the type. Maybe Kristof was different. Well, that much was a given, but no one knew how much. Not even Helena herself. She had no clue how important the male was to her sanity and generally… life. But he was. Important, that is. More than anyone, Kristof was the thing she could not exist without.

Not anymore, anyway. He had grown too close to her, and she depended on him too much, which was probably why two days without him was like an eternity to her, which was funny, because she sorta had lived an eternity. She realized how much she needed him when he wasn’t there, but then promptly disregarded it when he was back, because hey, would never leave her. She felt secure in that belief. They were the perfect fit, always had been. Well, once he had been properly introduced into life as a vampire, as it was.

Before Helena had decided to say something, Kristof shook his head… and then his lips were on her, scorching her cool skin, his hands clasping her hard enough to break bones had she been human. She moaned into the forceful, hungry kiss as she responded instantly. This, she had longed for. This, she had missed. This… she needed. Her hails dug deeper, puncturing the skin on the back of his neck, little trickles running down the steely skin, as his mouth began nicking her, drawing blood in little doses. And Helena… well, she was mad for him already, her head thrown back against the wall as her body pushed itself as close to his as possible.

He had her pinned though, and in the throes of ecstasy, she even tended to forget she was the stronger of the two. Then his fangs were suddenly deeply buried in her neck, and Helena groaned right along with him, the pleasure almost too much after two days without him. Her blouse had bloody holes in it by now as Kristofs fangs had torn through the fabric to get to her breasts. She didn’t even care. Not for a second. As he fed, Helena’s one hand, the one in his hair, guided his teeth deeper by pushing down his head, causing another moan to escape her. It was so good.

Kristof would not draw back from her this time. She knew that, and so Helena let herself go, not caring if anyone else heard or saw. Hell, they should be used to it by now; Helena and Kristof never gave a fuck about things being public to the rest of their coven. They never had.



Helena was blissfully naked in the rubble that had once been their livingroom. Now it was… well, a mess. The walls had holes in so many places they might as well just put up new ones. All the furniture was in pieces, lying around in different places. A couple of windows had been broken, and… well, Helena herself had puncture wounds… everywhere. So did Kristof. A lot of blood had been exchanged, but that was how it worked. It was a pleasure drug, and none of them actually lost any blood, because they’d just take it back from the other after losing it in the first place. She was grinning up at Kristof, who was still on top of her. They would both be fully healed in minutes. Even the deep scratches on Kristof’s back, caused by her nails.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, guiding his face properly to hers and she licked some stray blood from his chin. “Mmm,” she murmured, satisfied after two thorough, rather rough rounds. “I will never know how the others avoid breaking their human sex toys.” She added on a thought, the splinters of the broken wood poking at her naked back as a reminder of how Kristof had thrown her around, passion ruling both of them. And just like that, she wanted another round.

However, her ears perked at the sound of the humans in the forest. They were all still alive, but finally divided. However, they were calm now, more or less, feeling like they had lost their monstrous captors. If they only knew… the hunt had yet to begin. It would take only one death to get the other two running again, but they were tired. However, the survival instinct in humans was sometimes extraordinary. That was what made them fun; their unrelenting wish to live. Helena’s hands trailed over Kristof’s broad shoulders and onto his collarbones, adding a playful “I do believe our fast food slowed down.” With that, she turned them both around in a blur, grinning as she pinned him, the spark in her eyes now also sexual. “Let’s hunt naked.”

---

---

The forbearer protector was watching anything but his leader and sister. Instead, his thoughts were on their home, and their humans. Eva was a centerpiece at current. He pondered the ethics of even keeping humans the way that they did. Sure, their humans wanted to be with them, but what happened when they didn’t anymore? In the past, Derek had killed humans because of this purely to protect his coven. That was another part of his job. The hard tasks always fell into his lap, and so he had emotionally distanced himself. It was better that way. While the humans were there, however, Derek was civil, albeit usually rather removed and cold towards them. Eva was different though. Perhaps because he felt guilty for the emotions she harbored.

It wasn’t that he felt any actual romantic feelings towards her, but perhaps he had grown to care for her in his own way, in spite of his wish not to. Last time he had cared for one of their humans was 600 years ago, and he’d had to kill a girl he had come to view as a younger sister, because she had wanted to leave. He had warned against it; told her it would not be safe, that he would have to take steps. However, she hadn’t cared. She wanted more out of life, being a woman of only 22. And so he had ended her life. It still got to him now, but the uncertainty had been too much of a risk. How was he to know hunters wouldn’t sniff her out and torture her for information, or what was just as bad, the Fallen would?

No, the risks had been too great. He was pulled out of his own world, when he felt Alessa’s eyes on him and her voice traveled towards his head. He glanced at her, granting her a curt nod, his eyes traveling to the wheel she was clenching. “Don’t break the wheel.” He merely noted, seeing no reason to make a comment towards her apology. Not that he particularly cared, since he would merely have it fixed, but his nod had told her he accepted it, and that was simply that. Derek merely had to simmer a bit more and he’d get over it. Guilt was a powerful thing, however. Especially to a man like Derek.

Soon, Alessa pulled into the parking lot of one of her regular hunting grounds, and Derek merely watched as she armed herself. She motioned for him to take his pick, but he merely snorted and shut the thing, glancing at her revolver with disdain. He shook his head, getting out of the car. The protector hated guns. He always had, and he probably always would. They weren’t honorable, nor did they take any particular amount of skill to handle. They were easy, and too… human. Way too human. Especially since a bullet wouldn’t do shit to a vampire, so what was the point? It wasn’t like he was worried about the humans.

As for the other weapons, Alessa should simply know better. Derek always carried throwing stars, knives and various other little trinkets; things that could actually hurt a vampire if thrown hard enough. And Derek definitely threw hard enough. He followed her in silently, though. This was Derek when he was irked about something; he got a little moody, and he didn’t bother hiding it from Alessa. She would know he merely needed a little time to figure out how he wanted to deal with the situation before he could officially move on.

The protector took a quick, but thorough look of their surroundings, all of his senses helping him register every blind angle, every unclear patch. Nothing was unknown to him once Alessa spoke to him. He sighed in reply, shaking his head. Firstly, none of the women appealed to him in any way. Probably because he had just fed on the most amazing blood, and he didn’t like gorging on blood. Ever. He never fed even twice in a day. Well, unless he had lost blood in battle or the like, but on a normal day, Derek didn’t drink much. Not compared to his fellow coven-members. For some reason everyone seemed to need more blood than he.

“Ally, I just fed. And ruthlessly so. I’m not really in the mood for... slutty humans.” He told her quietly, using the nickname only he had ever called her to show her he wasn’t angry with her. He knew she was offering because she felt guilty about him feeling guilty. Geez, they were a nice pair, eh? He rubbed his neck, sending a vague smile her way. She needed to feed... now. He could practically feel her hunger. “Just get it over with, please.” For some reason, the male wanted to get home and be with Angel.

It was just one of those times where Derek felt like being sociable, and unlike most others, Angel was perfectly comfortable with his silence. He'd leave explaining things to Eva, up to Alessa. Hell, she'd offered, and he was more than happy to accept if it meant he'd get out of it.

Alessa smiled and looked at her protector when he used her nickname. No one ever used a nickname with Alessa other than Derek. It made her smile; she couldn’t help it. Derek always found a way to stick it into a sentence during their arguments. He knew she couldn’t stay mad – or hungry – when he used it.

“Just get it over with please,” Derek muttered. Alessa nodded. She still felt guilty about what had happened earlier, though Derek seemed in good spirits now. She eyed the men in the back corner in her peripheral vision. They still looked her way, smiling and winking. Turning back to her protector, she took a deep breath. She looked up at him; he was so much taller than she was. “I’ll meet one of those guys and talk to him. I’ll take him through that door. Promise me you’ll be close.” She paused. “Just in case.”

Fright was something Alessa wasn’t used to, but it seemed to be showing its ugly face a lot lately. First, in the scare with Adonis. Her frozen heart nearly broke in two when he was in danger. She couldn’t stand the thought. Right after she realized he was alright, she nearly stuck her fangs into his neck. She was so close to doing so she was scared being in the same house with him.

Scared. There was that hated word again.

Alessa took a deep breath. She gagged slightly, for the smoke was very overwhelming. It did well, though, in hiding the all too mouthwatering scent of the humans. She could barely smell them. The small dose of the wonderful perfume did get to her, however, and she stalked briskly to the back of the bar.

There were three men at the table. One was stocky and short. He wore a burly beard covered with dirt, sweat, and crumbs from his previous snack. Donuts, Alessa realized. His biker jacket was wrinkled and in it was stitched plenty of patches. They all stood for different things, and Alessa wasn’t interested. The second man looked much like the first, wearing an almost identical jacket, except for the fact that his nose seemed incredibly disfigured. Looking closer, the vampire saw the bones were broken in several places. His eyes formed slits, and an angry or distrusting look was plastered on his face. Alessa didn’t notice, though. It was the last man who caught her attention.

He stood up when she neared. What a gentleman, Alessa thought to herself. He stood much taller than she did; slightly taller than Adonis, but shorter than Derek. His blue eyes gazed at her longingly under his dark eyebrows as he gave her a long look up and down her body. Dark hair fell lazily into one eye, and he brushed it back absent-mindedly. He smiled crookedly, mischievously. His attire was nothing like his companions’. Dark work boots stuck out at the bottom of faded jeans. His shirt was long-sleeved but rolled up to under his elbows. It matched his eyes.

Alessa smiled back at the handsome man. She noticed his boldness when he took her hand and ducked his head to kiss it. “Hello,” he purred in a thick accent. “My name is long and Italian, and I won’t ask you to remember such a mouthful.” The man smiled again, looking down at Alessa. “Call me Luca.” Smiling, Alessa feigned the girly giddiness produced by females when speaking to foreign men. “I’m Nikki,” she lied smoothly. “It’s nothing special.”

Luca sat down in his seat, and motioned for the vampire to join him. Blushing falsely, Alessa arranged her small frame on his lap. The man looked gravely at his buddies, and motioned for them to hit the road. He didn’t want company when he hit on his new girl. He stared at the backs of the bikers until they left, and smiled back at the woman on his lap when they closed the door behind them.

The young man took Alessa’s hands, and put them around his neck. Again, the vampire noticed how bold this man had been. What’s his deal? Must be Italians. . . “So, honey. How about we skip the talking and get moving. We both know that you didn’t come here just to hang with the lonely boyfriend of yours.” Alessa looked at his face, searching for any signs of a hidden plan. She didn’t recognize anything, but she had a feeling that something wasn’t right. “Aw, he’s no boyfriend of mine. I’m single,” she purred, rubbing her thumb on the back of Luca’s neck. Apparently he enjoyed her flirting. The vampire leaned down to kiss him, but he put his large hand on her cheek gently, stopping her. “Not here.” Luca scooped on arm under Alessa’s legs, and another on her back. He carried her to the back of the bar, opened the door, and closed it quickly behind him.

In the safety of the incredibly narrow hallway, Luca cupped his hands around Alessa’s face and kissed her. He kissed her passionately, wanting something back. The vampire acted surprised, not kissing him back at first. Soon, giving in, she kissed him back. The kiss didn’t last as long as Alessa had expected. The Italian man quickly shifted his grip from her face to her shoulders and threw her down. Too surprised to react, the vampire hit the ground, and rolled down the hall.

When she came to a halt, her gaze was directed to the concrete floor. Blood dripped from her nose and down her mouth. The impact had broken her nose, and her right fang had pierced her lower lip. Her dark hair spilled onto the floor, and was pulled roughly from above. Luca pulled the woman up by her long locks, and she feigned confused innocence. “Why, Luca?” she coughed.

The man slapped her face, and it took all Alessa had to rip his head off. “Why?” The “Italian” now spoke without his think accent, and laughed. “I was bored. No one to play with, but now I’ve got you.” His blue eyes attempted to bore into her bright brown ones, trying to make her cower. Alessa scolded herself for not catching onto his plan. Why hadn’t she? The whole thing had been a hoax from the start, and she was only realizing this now. She mentally shook her head, discouraged. “What are those for?” she whispered.

Luca laughed quietly, and responded without looking at his capture. “This,” he began, “is to make sure you can’t leave me.” He looped the zip-ties onto her hands. With one of his large hands, he held both of hers firmly. With the other, he reached into his back pocket and retrieved an old bandana. He put it over the woman’s smoldering brown eyes, not noticing her fiery glare. Satisfied that Alessa was properly bound, he quickly slung her over his shoulder. “Ready to get moving, sweetheart?”

Just then, Alessa wrapped both of her legs around Luca’s torso and squeezed. He gasped lightly from either shock or air-deprivation. She looped her tied arms around his neck, and rammed her forehead into his temple. The man was strong, though, and only staggered. Grunting, Alessa swung around him, braced her feet on his back, and tightened her grip on his neck. Luca gasped again, clawing behind himself. Acting quickly and too hungry to wait for her prey to pass out, Alessa lunged into his neck, sinking her fangs into his flesh.

She pushed Luca into a wall, and held him there, giving her more support. He slumped to the ground before they made it, and the vampire went down with him. She barely noticed the fall. Her mind screamed Blood! too loudly for her to hear the feeble call of her conscience, shouting at her to stop. She groaned, swimming in the blood that flowed from her prey’s neck. A whisper escaped Luca’s lips. “Monster.” Who was the monster?

Derek didn’t even bother answering Alessa when she asked him to stay close. Instead he regarded her with an almost dignified look, as if to say “when have I ever not been close?” but no words came out of his mouth. He then watched as she made it over to a group of males, and he himself walked to the bar, taking a seat that gave him perfect view of everything Alessa was doing. Then he ordered a whiskey and merely listened, his eyes straying to the group unnoticeably once in a while.

When his sister met up with the only one of them who seemed to ever look himself in the mirror, Derek was aware, and he snorted at the guy’s “Italian” accent. It was so fake, the male vampire had to force himself not to roll his eyes. Seriously? What the hell was even up with that? If men had to resort to cheap little tricks like that, they probably weren’t the types you should hang with. They were never good company. Why were so many humans so unbelievably stupid? It was completely beyond Derek’s substantial comprehension. Besides, just… the words he spoke made Derek want to get up, stalk over there, and rip the guy’s head from his neck.

It was just so obvious that he was no fucking Italian, and Derek was almost embarrassed that Ally bought it. But then, she had this odd tendency to be rather… naïve, considering she was his age. All of a sudden, “Luca” was telling his goons to leave him alone with Alessa, which made Derek pay more attention. Something was up. He took a sip of his Whiskey; however, seeming like nothing at all was going on in his mind. He paid attention to their exchange even as a blonde woman made her way over to him, seating herself next to him. He barely spared her a glance, not at all interested.

Apparently that only made her more interested though, and she leaned over, her generous breasts only just kept in by her shamelessly revealing red dress. Again, he wished himself home. Angel would make better company.
“Hey there,” she began, Georgia accent gently rolling off of her tongue as she let her eyes dance up his body. Derek couldn’t help a wry smile. Women of this time had this tendency to go for the guys who were the least interested. Why was that, exactly? In reply, Derek took a swig of his whiskey and calmly said “hello to you too.” He had no intentions of letting her think he was the least bit interested.

“I’m Ariadne,” she then added, smiling at him, doing the whole eyelash bashing move and everything. “But ya’ll can call me Ade. What’s your name, darlin’?” He couldn’t help but think her slightly amusing, but still, he longed for home. He really wasn’t in the mood for these… frankly, slutty humans. He gave a brief nod, emptying his whiskey as “Luca” began carrying “Kikki” towards the door behind the bar. He’d have to get up and go with, for Ally’s sake.
“Name’s Derek,” he told her coolly, smoothly sliding into a standing position as he regarded little Ade with a polite smile.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me…” he trailed off with at that and promptly left her, sliding into the shadows as he stalked Alessa and her prey. He moved into the hall, but turned around a corner, watching the pair out of the corner of his eye, out of sight himself. He watched the happenings, hands clenched into fists. What the hell was she waiting for here? He was a fucking human. Well, now he was a dead human, granted. It might be that Alessa could easily overpower the guy, but no one touched a member of his family like this. Derek was officially tempted to hand him over to Helena, just because he knew the female vampire would either change or kill him. A change would take away his guilt of killing a human. The kill, well, it’d be well deserved.

When the human slung the woman Derek considered a close sister over his shoulder, the vampire growled under his breath, the instinct to protect those dear to him, forever ringing clearly. He was about to moved when Alessa finally took charge of the situation. About fucking time, if you asked this vampire protector. When she latched onto his neck, Derek moved out of the shadows and watched her silently, knowing he would have to pull her off of this one. She had been too hungry, too desperate, and too pissed at the human… which were all pretty good reasons for her to lose control. Which she would. Derek didn’t doubt that one second.

After a little while of her sucking furiously, the male’s heartbeat slowed too much for it to be healthy anymore, and ignoring the guy’s murmured comment, he took a single step, bringing himself closer to Alessa, and he crouched down, one hand placed at her jaw to force it open, another at the back of her neck, as he powerfully pulled her head, and thereby her teeth, from the human. “Ally,” he murmured soothingly, turning her head to look into her eyes. “No more. You’re taking too much.”

The human was whimpering, scared and weak as he remained horizontal on the ground. Derek was focused on Ally right now, however, and his eyes bored into hers until the bloodrush had calmed and then he leaned in, kissing her forehead. “Did you have enough, or are you still hungry? You were starving when we arrived. You really need to stop pushing yourself so far.” He shook his head, sighing before finally glancing at “Luca”, still trying to decide ultimately what to do with the guy. He wanted to kill him, so badly, but he knew it could potentially be dangerous. Many had seen him go back there with Alessa.

---

---

When Kristof asked her whether she was sure she wanted to start now, she wasn’t quite certain what he meant. Hadn’t she just told him that she wanted to hunt now? Naked, too. Did he need more than that? She’d stated what she wanted. However, then Kristof’d hands were wandering on her body, caressing her in all the right places, and just as expected, Helena purred in pleasure, her body softening in his hands, her own palms wandering up his chiseled chest. Her nails scraped gently against the hardened skin, his muscles flexing beneath her.

He really was the most delicious thing she had ever touched. Then he pulled her down onto him completely, and she giggled, one hand moving into his hair, the other coming to rest on his muscular shoulder. She wanted him. Again, and again, and again. Apparently Helena really didn’t take well to being away from Kristof for days. When she had been younger, before changing Kristof, she had been lonely, but not desperate like this. Why it was different with this male, she didn’t ponder, mostly because she hadn’t really thought to ponder it. It wasn’t important to her brain why she apparently couldn’t be without this vampire, only the fact that itself.

Besides, she could feel him wanting her too… again. A shiver went down her body at the thought of him taking her once more. “You feel so good,” se purred softly, her slender body curving to his wants as always. Just like that, she was distracted from the hunt. One would think sex ought to have gotten boring between them after all this time, but with a man like Kristof, one didn’t simply grow bored. It was too amazing, and in fact, it had only gotten better over the years. They knew exactly what the other liked, and doing those things had become instinctual.

Kristof was about to penetrate her once more, starting another round, which she was anticipating with glee, but then he paused and she responded with a pout, her lips trailing kisses up his neck, until his words caused her to stop instantly. She sat up, her blind eyes narrowed, fangs immediately bared as she hissed. There would be no touching of Helena’s man. None. Her nails dug into his chest as her body tensed, ready to burst into the forest at any point. She would die painfully for this. Helena saw red, and red alone, anger coursing through her at an alarming rate, her possessiveness causing her reaction to be rather exaggerated by normal standards. “I’ll tear her apart, limb by limb,” she half sneered half purred.

Kristof was hers and hers alone. No one else was to touch him. The word mine kept drumming in her head and she subconsciously dug her nails even deeper, a low growl emanating from her the more she thought about it, but Kristof still had his hands on her. When he got up though, and put her down, she was bristling with fury and she set off after him, however heading in a different direction. She quickly picked up speed, bypassing Kristof in seconds as she ran, no clothes to hinder her speed in any way, and so Helena let go of inhibitions. Oh yes, she was filled with the need fro vengeance. The human had no idea what she had gotten herself into.

The second Helena reached the girl, she burst through the brush, hand shooting out to grab the girl’s throat, slamming her into the nearest tree, which bended back, groaning in spite of its great size, the whole thing hardly even a blur to the human, and so she blinked, confused. It didn’t take her that long to register that Helena’s fangs were bared in a soundless sneer as her red eyes glared into the girl. And so, panic spiked, Adrenaline kicking in. Helena didn’t care. Fear had stopped being the point. Now pain was all she wanted this girl to experience. So. Much. Fucking. Pain.

“Mine,” she growled, nails digging into the girl’s throat. She didn’t pay attention to the whimpers and she sobs. She wanted screams, and begging and thrashing. Helena was mad with anger now that she was far from Kristof too, every sense of logic taken over by her fury. “You will suffer,” she then added in ancient Greek, the language smooth and almost sexual, if it hadn’t been for her deadly expression. She was too far gone to recognize any other language, or the fact that the girl wouldn’t understand a word.

She threw the girl down onto the ground, which wrenched a scream from her, and Helena grinned, a cold, angry grin. No amusement. Not really. This was strictly revenge.
“P-please,” the redhead stuttered, tears already running down her cheeks as she tried to scramble away from Helena, “d-don’t hurt me… p-please.” Helena laughed, the sound so filled with cruel anger, it made cold sweat break on the girl’s orangey skin. She was still laughing when she told her “no one touches Kristof,” in ancient Greek once more. Which the girl of course didn’t understand.

Helena grabbed a hold of the girl’s ankle when she tried to move without the vampire noticing, which was of course impossible in all. And then she twisted, the ankle breaking with a loud crunching sound. The human screamed, throwing her head back onto the bed of leaves behind her. Helena’s cold smile became satisfied as she broke the other ankle too. “No more running, little lamb,” she told the human in a sing song voice, the Greek still being her choice of language. But of course, the girl’s loud scream and subsequent whimpering sort of drowned the words.

Annabelle knew all too well what she had let herself in for as she stood at the door to Adonis's room. He was a hard one to control, she would never deny that, but she found him interesting; ironcially enough like the rest of the men in the covern. Of course, the whole process was purely objective and scientific; Annabelle wasn't curious because she wanted them. Well in most case at least. After observing Adonis for a while, the blonde vampire had concluded that the person he put on to most people, was in fact, an act. But what was he like inside and what was he trying to hide?

She stood with a hand on her hip, a dismayed looked on her face as Adonis opened the door; only letting a single eyeball show as he asked what she wanted in her business was in Portuguese. She raised an eyebrow; he'd never be that forward with Alessa, why to her? The boy needed learn a little respect for the people he lived with. 'I came,' She began coldly, ' To check how you were. That was quite some chase you had in the woods earlier. Oh and please don't speak in Portuguese to me, I much prefer Spanish.' The blonde smiled as she fondly remembered the little experiment she had conducted a few hundred years ago. Ah Oiliver, what a lovely reunion that would be.

Annie was also acutely aware that she had probably just offended Adonis; but eh what did she care? The male seemed to have no appreciation for the fact she'd come to check on him. She sighed, 'Look, there's food in the kitchen, I believe Jasper's making something... I'll see you later.' She ended the brief encounter; fully satisfied that the male was healthy enough. Annie didn't show a lot of compassion, when she did it only came out as anger; like with Isaac earlier. Right now the blonde wished she stayed with the brown haired male rather than and find Adonis.

Turning on her heel, Annie searched for Isaac's scent. Traces of it still lingered in the hallway and it the basement for some reason. However, it was strongest in his bedroom. Annie gathered her thoughts for a second. She had done an awful lot of tracking him down lately. What if that came across as desperate? She snorted at herself inwardly. What was this? A seven hundred and nine year old vampire weak at the knee's of what, in vampire terms, was a boy. This could be dangerous for her, she needed to talk to Derek or Angel; most probably Derek, just because the conversation would be a more sane level, even if it was on a more objective and cold one.

For now though, Annie traveled to Isaac's room. He was the best company the blonde had expierenced for a long time. She loved her covern, of course she did and she was grateful for everything they had done. But never had she felt so comfortable around anyone as she did Isaac. Of course, she loved Angel like a sister, but there was just something about Isaac that turned her world upside down and made her feel safe at the same time. Quickly, she knocked on Isaac's Door;

'So, the rude little so and so didn't need my help... Can we go for a run before I self conbust' She said plainly.

Alessa Fia Dattolo



Thump, thump, thump. Blood! More and more, as much as possible. Alessa drank hungrily. Thump, thump, thump. The dark liquid flowed down her throat easily, each drop making her crave more and more. Thump, thump. So thirsty. When was the last time she fed? Last week? Yesterday? Two years ago? The woman couldn’t remember. It seemed like so long ago. The craving was so strong. Thump, thump. What was that? The sound bothered her, thundering loudly in her ears. Thump. Blood! The short mantra rang in her mind again, louder and louder. She drank again, groaning at the wonderful taste in her- thump. Stop! Alessa yelled to no one in particular. The thundering was ticking her off, ruining the pleasure of feeding. Thump. Mentally growling, the woman began to think the sound was getting quieter. Finally. . . .

Large hands gripped her face and neck. Strong hands pulled her away, retracting her fangs and making the pleasure stop. Blood! Her mind still screamed. She pushed and pulled her fangs in and out of their hiding places, trying to find the warm flesh again. Where was it? Sniffing the air, Alessa caught a scent of blood. She tried to reach for it, straining, but the hands held her back. Who was doing this? The vampire growled softly. Who would take away her precious blood?

She was pulled away, away from the scent of the blood. Why? Her mood transitioned from anger to sadness. She was just so hungry; what was so wrong with feeding yourself? Did they want her to go hungry? Several questions flashed through her mind when a voice broke through her thoughts. “Ally,” it purred. Ally. That name struck a nerve in the vampire’s mind. It was familiar, and she liked the sound of it. The nickname had a certain ring to it. Ally.

“No more. You’re taking too much.” Too much. She was sure she had heard those words before. For an unknown reason, they made her stomach twist in knots. She felt suddenly sick; guilty. The feeling grew worse and she took deep breaths. She was vaguely aware of another set of lungs breathing in and out. The sound was different than humans; as if it wasn’t needed at all. There was only one other creature she knew of that had no reason to breath. Vampires. That also explained the strength it took to pull her away from her blood. Blood.

Alessa opened her eyes, becoming fully aware of herself and her surroundings. She sat in the dark, narrow hallway of the bar. Her body was splayed on the floor, leaning heavily on the concrete wall. Another body was writhing on the floor, twitching uncontrollably. “Luca”, as she remembered him, mumbled nonsense to himself, cringing away when she met his gaze.
The young man at her feet wasn’t the source of the odd breathing. His breaths didn’t sound stable, though they were nothing like the other sounds she had heard. Turning, Alessa met the eyes of her protector. Derek. She stared at him incredulously, shocked to find that he had stopped her from feeding. His large hands cupped her face, forcing her to stare at him. As hard as she tried, she couldn’t help but look into his eyes.

He didn’t seem at all frightened by the bloodthirsty vampire he held in his clutches; instead he looked concerned, and a bit annoyed. The longer Alessa looked at him, the more she realized what she had done. Again, she had nearly killed a man. Again, Derek had stopped her from Falling. Again, she owed him. How many times did she owe him now?

Sighing, Alessa stopped resisting. Her dark eyes brightened, finally adjusting to the tremendous amount of blood she had just taken. The knots in her stomach gradually weakened until she could feel them no more. The burning was gone; the flame extinguished. Derek leaned in and kissed her forehead, noticing the absence of the bloodlust. “Did you have enough, or are you still hungry? You were starving when we arrived. You really need to stop pushing yourself so far.”

The woman took shaking breaths, hesitating before answering. “I – I’ll be fine. I don’t want anymore.” She stole a quick glance at ”Luca”, still quivering on the ground. “He can’t give me anymore.” Alessa swallowed thickly, feeling slightly guilty for nearly killing the man who wanted to kill her. Looking back up at Derek, she questioned, “What do we do with him. We can’t kill him.” The woman slid away from her victim, leaning up against the opposite wall. Leaving him alone in the hall wasn’t an option. She didn’t want to kill him; no, she couldn’t. He was too scared now, and the guilt was rising in Alessa’s chest.

“What if we knock him out? We can take him out back and leave him by the bikes. He’ll think he got into a fight with some bikers when he wakes up.” The vampire’s brows furrowed as she thought of way’s to escape safely and keep the young man at her heels alive. She leaned forward, putting her elbows on her knees, rubbing her temples. Her head was stilling spinning, and she leaned back again when the scent of human blood was in the air.

“You could throw him onto the bar floor, and make the people out there think he beat me up. He won’t leave if they gang up on him. They won’t believe him if he tries to explain what really happened. It will also explain all of this blood,” Alessa murmured. The idea was a long shot, but how else could “Luca” leave alive?

Derek watched intently as his sister for all intents and purposes took several deep breaths. For some reason, the human habit had always had an oddly calming effect on her. He supposed it was because it was so far from vampiric that it had come to be a sort of reminder that she wasn’t a monster. He didn’t miss the slight hesitation before she replied to him though, and Derek, being the man he was, didn’t doubt for one second that she wasn’t being entirely truthful when she spoke.

He sighed, looking her over. She had definitely quelled the bloodlust, but he knew she would feel much better if she had a bit more. Hmmm. He would force her to drink a bloodbag or two when they got home. Which reminded him that they were low on stock. He sighed, taking out his blasted phone. He hated these devices, but he couldn’t deny that they were useful, and he’d definitely gotten used to them. He typed in a text to Isaac, the forbearer procurer:
To: Isaac
“How’s the O negative stock? I’m taking Alessa home and she’s having two. I hope you made sure we have enough.”

Derek was always rather strict with always having O negative in the house. The bloodbags weren’t exactly delicious, but they did what they were supposed to, and they were important to have when they were really in dire emergency. Alessa’s control had a tendency to slip. It was a good thing he cared as much as he did, because a lesser man would’ve probably taken over. He could do it. He was only a little younger than her, far superior in every fighting class, and he had control in bunches. Fact of the matter was, Derek loved his sister and he would never let her fall. Besides, he didn’t actually want the position as leader.

He felt comfortable where he was. Well, except when he was forced to feed on Eva like he had today. The thought still made him inwardly cringe. Regardless, Derek spoke to Alessa. “Are you sure?” His voice was skeptical, and she followed it by explaining that the human couldn’t give her anymore. He shook his head, seeing the guilt painted on her face. “Ally, please don’t feel guilty about this. He’s a spineless bastard who preys on innocent women.” His voice was cold at the next sentence and he subconsciously flexed his fists, recalling a male many years ago.

He had been human too, this man. But instead of Alessa, he had been trying his luck with the newly changed Angel. She had been not even a day old – as a vampire – when he had walked into the room Derek had rented for her. Derek himself had been away to buy her clothing, and had only just walked in when she was about to kill the man. He had pulled her off, yes, but he had wanted to rip the man’s head off himself. Well… once he’d found out why his presence caused his new fledgling to break down entirely. He had held her in his arms as she sobbed, and the memory still made him livid.

As Derek returned to the present, Alessa was leaning on the wall, and asking him what they should do with the human. He almost smirked. Almost. Why would he want to be leader? She already looked to him on most things. He didn’t like how she was fighting to keep the bastard alive though. Derek himself wanted to leave him dead in the streets. Of course he couldn’t, but he wanted to. Next time he tried this with a woman, she might be human, and she would have no way of escaping. Hell, how many women had he already mistreated? Maybe even killed? His protective instincts were demanding he kill the male.

And he was going to. Oh yes, he was going to. Point in case was that Derek did not like uncertainties. Leaving this man alive, they could not know whether or not he would remember anything, and Derek didn’t need him leaving descriptions around as he rambled. Some hunter might pick up on it, and then his family would be in danger. No, none of that. He couldn’t have that. See, that was the reason he always grabbed his prey from behind. Ever careful, Derek never let the victims see his face.

That way, he could leave them alive, and they would ramble about vampire, maybe, but they wouldn’t even have a scar to prove it, because the male always fed them a little of his blood afterwards and they’d heel right up. This, however, had been messy and complicated, and he didn’t like it. And so, Derek shook his head at all of Alessa’s suggestions and straightened, looking down at the human with determined eyes. “I don’t like the doubts – there are no guarantees any of it will work.” He told Alessa, although his eyes were on the human. “Let’s just kill the bastard.”

It was rather unlike Derek to be so callous about the life of a human, but he was nothing if not determined to protect his coven, and this scum could potentially jeopardize them. He continued, his plan spilling forth in calm, collected tones. “We’ll knock him out, place him out back, and then wait until someone comes out and sees him asleep. We will be cleared of any suspicions as he was now last seen alone. Then we’ll snatch him up and kill him. We’re moving soon in any case.”

The smell of the paint was strong, but Isaac didn't mind. I always loved the smell of wet paint.. came Marie's taunting voice. Isaac smiled and looked at the middle of his painting. There she was, sitting there with her legs crossed, her long dark hair falling carelessly over her laced shoulders. "Annie, " Isaac said, much to the dismay of Marie, who presently disappeared into the glistening paint. Confused, Isaac looked around. Just as soon as he was going to open the door, Annie knocked and it swung open, seeing as it was only cracked to begin with. Isaac must have smelled her, and confused what he was imagining and sensing. Imagining.. the voice disappeared and the young vampire scrunched up his nose, rubbing his temple.

'So, the rude little so and so didn't need my help... Can we go for a run before I self conbust' Annabelle asked him. Isaac frowned at his friend.

"Annie you can't let him get to you like that," Isaac said. He figured she wasn't that upset, she annoyed. He knew exactly how Adonis could be. He tapped her forehead with his pointer finger gently, then gave her a warm smile. "I would love to go for a run with you, as long as we can get something to eat as well," he said and smiled, showing his teeth. Out of his peripheral vision, he saw his phone light up on his night stand. He always kept it on silent because the ring tones and vibrating always made him jumpy. He jumped back and landed on his bed. He reached up and grabbed his phone, unlocking it quickly and looking at the text Derek had sent him. He typed back;

To Derek:
"There is just enough. Annie and I are going out, so I'll pick some more up before returning."

"And," he said, sitting up, "I need to stop at the blood bank. Alessa's having dinner tonight and there are only two bags, so we'll be out of O negative. Are you up to making this a run to the store, and then a dinner date for two afterwards?" he asked her, going to his closet and pulling on a pair of boots. Isaac took his time with these things. While he was thinking clearly, and Marie was gone, he often chose to do things at a human pace. He had all the time in the world, so what was the rush? By date, he wasn't necessarily asking her out. He didn't need to. She was his best friend and he knew she would eat dinner with him. He often over used the word date. If he and Jasper ever went out, he referred to it as a date as well. That was one of his many quirks. It was small, but he had never really noticed it. A few people pointed it out to him, but he didn't think much of it and kept using the words that pleased him. "Does that sound okay, Annie?" he asked her, offering the blonde woman a cute smile.

As Jasper heard Angel's meanicing threat in Italian; it made his inside's run cold. He was aware that he was running on borrowed time. He, of all people, knew that the vampire wasn't a very patient person. He seemed to be a particular favorite of his. What could be more wonderful, being the flavor of the month with a psychotic vampire? Jasper rolled his eyes; was this price he was paying for the one he loved? He supposed it wasn't all bad, Eva made it slightly more bareable as did some of the others in the covern. However, when they were hungry, there was no stopping them.

After he had dished up the food he had just prepared, the male looked up at Angel as she spoke. She was actually quite attractive. Then agian, Jasper supposed that was part of the lore. She was meant to be beautiful. Her repeated question was venous and caused the man to do something out of character for just a split second; he let fear fill his eyes. He was scared, he annoyed Angel by playing games. Now, the male wasn't sure whether he was going to enjoy this experience or not.

Almost as soon as he let his fear show in his eyes, Jasper turned away from her to look at the fellow human in the room. Now there was a sign of true beauty. Eva was beautiful, Jasper had no denying that; even when she was recovering from being bitten. He was still a little angry about that, as he always was when he saw her in that state. However, he knew the whole thing was completely pointless. She was totally... enthralled by Derek, she was more than willing for him to take from her, as was the dark haired male standing in the kitchen. He blinked and shook his head, aware that he hadn't spoken for quite some period of time. 'Eva, your meal's on the side here.' He began, giving a small smile. He didn't want to be fed on here. Not in front of Eva. The poor girl had expierenced enough without watching that sort of event. 'Will you excuse us for a few minutes?' He asked Eva before gesturing to Angel. 'After you my dear.' They'd probably go to her bedroom, she may even do it in the corrider if she was that desperate. Jasper gulped. He was genuinely scared.