Deirdre Evering's Story

She crossed the campus, coffee in hand and headphones in her ears. Her phone was stashed in her coat pocket and her music was loud in her ears. Deirdre had decided to go to her classes today. With two afternoon classes and no evening ones it was an easy day. Fridays were nice for that. She wasn’t working and no one would be going out until much later. She’d be able to catch up on the lectures, make an appearance where needed and still have time to go home and change before she went out.

She inhaled the crisp, cool air. Her eyes glanced up at the grey sky. The rain had stopped before she had left the house. How many days like this had she wasted in a studio, at a barre or in a rehearsal room with no windows at all?

Her hat,a grey beret held her hair down and the rest flowed long down her back like a waterfall.

“Black his hair as winter’s night,
White he rode as the summer snow,
Red his face as the morning light;
Cold he lies in the grave below.

My love is dead,
Gone to his death-bed,
Under the willow-tree.”

Deirdre sang along to the song as she headed to the student union building. She planned to kill the time before her first class by catching up on some long over do reading. Her messenger bag bounced lightly at her side as she pulled the door open.

She headed for a bank of comfortable couches and gracefully removed her bag, laying it on the seat. Her coat was removed, along with her scarf. Her hat remained. Deirdre sat down. Her posture was impeccable, almost regal from years of strict ballet training.

Taking a drink of her coffee her hands removed a book from her bag. She cracked it open and began flipping. A book for one of her history classes. They were discussing medieval poetry, specifically love poems. Deirdre always had a soft spot for this sort of thing. The ballets she loved to dance in the most were one with stories of tragic love. Giselle, La Sylphide and even Sleeping Beauty. Not that she had any experience with love herself. She had never had a boyfriend. Dance and lessons had always come first. There was no time for friends or boys.

”Things are going to be different now." University, no more dance classes and rehearsals and a life of her own. Deirdre was free for the first time in her life and she intended to take every advantage of it.

Her eyes scanned the poem.

Love me slou
And love me drou
And love me layde on bere
Love is my pes
For love I ches
Man to buyen dere

She frowned. ”And in English that means....” Deirdre’s eyes moved to right side of the page where the translation lay.

Love killed me
And love dragged me
And love laid me on the bier
Love is my peace
And for love I chose
To redeem mankind at great cost

”How can this be? I loved you both, how...” He was pacing and distraught.

Her chest hurt and she was crying. Beside her he was on his knee, at the feet of his king and friend. “Arthur, my king, my heart...” She stepped forward.

“How can you say such things to me?” There was a pain in his eyes that she could not bare to see and her eyes were cast down. In front of her was the man who was her heart and behind her was the man who was her soul. She stood between them.

Deirdre shook herself and looked around bewildered. ”Where the fuck did that come from?” It was vivid and very real, yet she had no idea where it came from and why it had happened.

Her eyes went to the words of the poem again but Deirdre shut the book. She took a drink of her coffee. ”Maybe I am hungry. Yeah that is likely it.” She knew it wasn’t but felt like if she kept saying it that she could convince herself it was just that simple.

She looked over at the boy on the next couch. “Do you think you could watch my things for me for a moment? I am just going to run and grab something to eat.”

He looked up. There was a momentary pause before he answered her. “Of course.” He gave her a slight nod.

Deirdre gave him a polite smile and nod in return. He was cute, dark hair and dark eyes. “I will only be a minute.”

He shook his head. “No trouble, really. I am at your service.” He chuckled and smiled.

Deirdre laughed lightly, “Why thank you gallant sir.” She turned and walked off. A shiver ran up her spine. ”Silly poem.”

She went to cafeteria area. By passing the salad bar and sandwiches, she immediately headed to the where the hot food was being cooked. “Bagel with cream cheese please.” Deirdre waited and was eventually handed her food. She made her way to the cashier, grabbing two chocolate bars on her way by.

Food paid for, Deirdre returned to her seat. “Have no fear, no one has accosted your things. I have preserved them for you.” Him smiled as he spoke.

“Why thank you and as a token of my appreciation for your service please accept this humble snack.” She held out one of the bars to him.

“I am unworthy but hungry so I’ll take it.” He winked at her. Deirdre sat down, laughing.

There was a moment of silence as she poked at her phone and ate her bagel. He opened the chocolate bar with a crinkling of the wrapper.

“My name is Tim by the way.” He was somewhat awkward and tentative. She looked over at him, her phone still in hand. “Deirdre, nice to meet you Tim.”

Again silence fell between them. The student union was busy and more and more people walked by.

“I have to go to class. Will you maybe be around later Deirdre?”

Again, she turned to look at him. “Well I am around most of the day but I do have classes. Hopefully we can run into each other again.” She smiled.

“Great! I hope to see you later then!” He walked off quickly, leaving her sitting there on the couch.

Deirdre smiled and poked at her phone again. ”I can get used to this.”

“Freedom means the supremacy of human rights everywhere. Our support goes to those who struggle to gain those rights and keep them. Our strength is our unity of purpose. To that high concept there can be no end save victory.”

Tim’s eyes were on his page, re-reading the chapter for his human rights and liberties class when the voice made him look up.

He had come to relax in the student union before class, he had caught a quick nap when he first arrived and now going over his notes and reading. He chose the student union because most of his buddies were either at one of the frat houses, hung over or just still asleep. He never expected to be interrupted.

“Do you think you could watch my things for me for a moment? I am just going to run and grab something to eat.”

At some point the couch next to his had become occupied by a rather pretty woman. Now she was talking to him, asking him a question. It took Tim a moment to process that she was speaking to him.

He was silent for a moment. “Of course.” He gave her a nod. His dark eyes looked her over. She was only a little shorter than he was, her hair very long and the grey hat set off her eyes. Tim felt like he knew her or had seen her before but he was sure that he hadn’t.

She smiled, a sweet small smile but it too seemed familiar. “I will only be a minute.”

He shook his head. “No trouble, really. I am at your service.” He laughed off the overly chivalrous talk and smiled back, a little wider. He wasn’t normally so formal with women but something about her made him sit a little taller and feel the need to be more than just polite.

The woman laughed, it was light and joyful. Tim frowned. He knew that laugh, he was sure of it. “Why thank you gallant sir.”

He watched her walk away, back straight and head high. “That was weird.”

Passing it off as nothing but an odd encounter Tim went back to his book. It wasn’t a great deal of time before she returned. Tim looked up as she sat down.

“Have no fear, no one has accosted your things. I have preserved them for you.” He smiled but inwardly he was rolling his eyes. ”You sound like you are trying to woo her. You sound like an idiot.”

“Why thank you and as a token of my appreciation for your service please accept this humble snack.” She held out one of the bars to him.

”But she is playing along so...”

“I am unworthy but hungry so I’ll take it.” He gave her a wink. For a moment there was silence between them. Tim opened the chocolate bar and took a bite. He looked over at her, bagel and phone in hand. She was pretty and Tim decided to find the nerve to speak to her more.

“My name is Tim by the way.” He was sure she was about to shoot him down, ignore him or worse. Instead he was met with a look from her blue eyes. Again he was struck by a sense of the familiar but he couldn’t place it.

“Deirdre, nice to meet you Tim.” She went back to looking at her phone.

Tim was pleased as he took another bite of the chocolate. He glanced at his watch. “I have to go to class. Will you maybe be around later Deirdre?”

He began to pack up his books, shouldering his bag.

“Well I am around most of the day but I do have classes. Hopefully we can run into each other again.” She was smiling at him again and Tim stood.

“Great! I hope to see you later then!”

He walked off, practically in a run in order to make it to his class. He hoped he would run into her again.

Tim took a seat at the back of the class just as the professor began the day’s lecture. Human rights were the backbone of places like legal aid. Tim focused, made neat and precise notes. He wanted to help people.

An hour later, Tim headed off across campus to another class though this was anthropology and not nearly as engaging. His mind wandered during the talk to Deirdre and the fact that he felt like he had met her before. He went through years and years of memories from highschool and hockey games but he couldn’t place her. He resolved to ask her if he happened to run into her again.

Deirdre finished her bagel. She ignored the book of poetry, apprehensive about opening it again and reading more of that poem. As much as she wanted to pass it off as hunger something about that whole 'dream' she had left her unsettled. The memory unsettled her like she was having deja vu from someone else's life. She focused instead on other textbooks, lesson notes.

She yawned. The freedom was nice but this whole school thing was dull.

Her phone beeped. Deirdre checked the text message. It was one of her roommates, Heather.

Going partying tonight? You in?

She smirked.

You have to ask? Hitting classes now, be back around 5. Grab some chinese and then get ready?

She waited for the response and began to plan her outfit in her head. She didn’t own much in the way of ‘club’ clothes but she didn’t care. Deirdre liked to dance and liked the crowd, the feeling of being lost in the push of people.

Sounds good to me. Rebel?

Deirdre stood and grabbed her coat.

Nah we were just there and I don't like the sticky floor. Galaxy?

They hadn't tried that club out yet but she heard the music was great and the bartenders were hot. She hit send and gathered her books into her bag. She headed for her classes, thoughts of dancing, the thrum of the bass and the crowd filling her head.

Deirdre was barely able to concentrate as she sat through lecture after lecture, taking notes and highlighting things. She retained none of it but didn’t matter she would just read it again later.

In her last class she sat, her phone out and was busy flicking through media sites when she overheard three girls in the seats behind her.

“Did you hear about the girl they found? Her throat was like slit or something.”

"I heard the guy took her eyes out and you know...."

Deirdre frowned she hadn't looked at the news yet. In fact she rarely did preferring fashion sites or social media. Sure there would things about some girl being killed but she had looked at that. Who wanted to be reminded the world was a messed up place? She had her own life to take advantage of there was no time worrying about what happened to some random stranger.

“Eww...some real sickos out there. Let me guess boyfriend did it when he caught her cheating.”

Deirdre felt wave of guilt come over her. She shook it off, confused at to what caused it. She had never kissed a boy let alone had a boyfriend. She certainly had never cheated on anyone.

“There is nothing about a suspect but apparently she had been out with friends before they found her.”

“So like every other girl over seventeen in this city. Nothing new, they will catch the guy and he will turn out to be some loner who wanted a girlfriend and she turned him down.”

Deirdre frowned. Her phone buzzed with a text. She thought it would be Heather again but instead sighed.

Hi sweetie! How’s our princess? Just wanted to say hello and to find out how you were doing.

Deirdre hadn't seen the news but clearly her mom had. She heard about the girl, about the murder and next would come the text about being safe, studying instead of going out, a good girl makes sure to keep her grades up. Deirdre did not want to try and spend time assuring her mother that she was safe. Avoidance was for the best.

Hi mom, in class. Can’t talk.

Deirdre waited for it.

Oh sorry honey! Just wanted to say hello and remind you to study hard, and stay safe. Daddy says hi to his little girl. Glad you aren’t doing like other kids and ditching classes to party. You are our princess. Love you!

She almost gagged. They would never stop, she knew it. They wanted her back in ballet, back under the careful watch of teachers and choreographers. Grueling hours that didn’t allow for her to have a life or friends. They didn't want her safe, they wanted her under twenty four hour watch. They wanted her in class and on stage. She wanted to breathe and to have experiences. She wanted to make friends and spend time having fun. Deirdre loved performing, hell she loved practicing but she also wanted her life to be more than just that.

Love you too.

She shoved her phone into her pocket and settled in as the professor arrived.

By 4:20 she was ready to go home. She hadn’t run into Tim again, despite detouring through the student union on her way to her classes. Hat on her head and coat done up, Deirdre slung her messenger bag over her body and headed out onto the campus. It had cooled down even more though the rain stayed away. Her finger hit a button on her phone and music began playing in her ears. It drowned out the other sounds.

"cause it was trapped
Trapped between two lungs
It was trapped between two lungs
It was trapped between two lungs

And my running feet could fly
Each breath screaming: "We are all too young to die!"

Between two lungs it was released
The breath that passed from you to me
It flew between us as we slept
That slipped from your mouth into mine
It crept between two lungs”

She hummed along as she headed home. Ti was all Deirdre could do not to dance down the stree. She was young and had the whole night in front of her. Friends, dancing and fun. She smiled.

Heather was waiting for her, containers of rice and stir fry on the small table. “No one else is home yet.”

The blonde handed Deirdre the bag with the egg rolls. She dropped her bag by the couch and undid her coat as she took the greasy bag.

“All good, not in a rush anyway right?”

She sat cross legged on the couch opposite Heather. Deirdre bit into the egg roll. “Mmm, thank you for grabbing dinner.”

Heather nodded a spoonful of rice on its way to her mouth. They ate in silence for a time.

“Did you see the news?” Deirdre put a container down, her stomach full. Heather nodded, “That girl? Yeah I saw. That is why we go out in pairs.”

Deirdre nodded, “Guess you gotta be careful. She was blonde like you.” She smirked a little at her roommate.

Heather laughed, “Right cause us blonde girls we get all the attention from the crazies.”

By 7:00 everyone was home though only Heather and Deirdre were up for a night out. They showered and dressed. Deirdre opted for tight black jeans and a loose red shirt over a lacy black tank top. Flats completed her outfit while Heather had chosen a tight skirt and low cut tank top.

"It's the blonde hair that gets the attention. Gotcha." Deirdre teased as she looked her roommate over.

By 9:30 they were making their way to the subway. Deirdre couldn’t wait to get there.

They walked up to the club, the line was stretched out, though not as long as at other clubs. Heather dragged Deirdre to the front of the line. The bouncer looked both girls over and smiling let them in.

The sound hit them hard as soon as they opened the door. Deirdre felt her heart pound with excitement, matching the vibrating of her ribs from the beat. They checked their coats and headed into the crowd. As promised the music was good and the place was packed. There seemed to be more women than men but Deirdre didn't care. She was here to dance. Heather would be disappointed but she came for different reasons.

It didn't take long for the girls to get separated. It happened all the time in the clubs though at the end of the night they always met up, even when Heather was not going home.

Deirdre made her way onto the dance floor and was instantly taken into her dancing. She moved with the music the way only a natural dancer did. Everyone around her was moving, some with partners and some on their own like her. Song after song Deirdre danced. About the fourth song in she felt an arm circle her waist and a body moved against her. Deirdre looked over her shoulder at the person. The man was good looking though he had obviously been drinking.

She continued dancing, not pulling away from him right away. A little dancing isn't a big deal. The song came to an end and as the next one began the man spread his fingers wide across her stomach. He pulled her hard against him. Deirdre frowned and stopped dancing.

“Let’s move off the floor.”

His voice was in her ear and as he leaned down to talk to her he left behind bit of spittle. She turned in his arm and he smiled at her.

Deirdre shook her head and put her hands up defensively.

“You, me and a dark corner. I’ll buy you a drink even.” He leaned down to kiss her.

Deirdre stepped backwards, bumping into a girl who was dancing. “Sorry”

Her attention was back on the man as he took a step towards her. He was smiling as if it was a game.

“Gotta go.” Deirdre gestured with her thumb towards the exit and then turning made a beeline into the thick of the crowd. She was glad there were so many people. There were faces she recognized from school, from various classes but no one she knew really well.

She began to skirt the edge of the dance floor looking for a place to dance where her previous accouster would not find her. Given his state it wouldn’t take long for him to forget about her and turn his attention to some other poor girl. She hoped the bouncer threw him out before he got too aggressive.

Deirdre found a spot and began to dance again. A couple of songs later she felt a bit guilty. With the girl in the news and the way the drunk man had acted she knew she should tell someone. She made her way to the bar and waited until there was space to get a bartender’s attention.

A man with dark hair, dressed in black came over to her. He had just finished serving a pair of women when she had stepped up to the bar. “What can I get you?”

Deirdre shook her head, “Nothing I just wanted to report a guy with really roaming hands in the crowd. He is pretty wasted.”

The bartender nodded. “Right, never fails. Always one jackass at the beginning of the night.”

He reached over and picked up a phone. It was only moments later when two men approached the bar. The came to where Deirdre stood and asked for a description. She told them about the man and the pair headed out into the crowd. The bartender went back to serving drinks and Deirdre began to slowly walk with her hand on the bar. Her eyes were on the moving crowd hoping to spot the man.

There were a few tense minutes where she feared they would not find him in the large crowd. The men approached. Mister drooly was between them and they brought him over to Deirdre. Her back was straight and she lifted her chin as she looked him over.

“This him?”

A simple nod was all she gave and they immediately began to usher him outside. Deirdre felt better knowing he wouldn’t be bothering anyone here for the rest of the night and headed back to the dance floor.

She danced and danced. Sometimes she stopped to get a glass of water. The dark haired bartender always seemed happy to hand her a fresh glass and she in turn was happy to thank him.

Hours went by and she lost herself in the crowd and in the music. Around one in the morning the crowd began to thin out. She was content to keep going and enjoyed having more room.

Less people meant less people at the bar. Maybe I should go talk to him. Her stomach went tight with nerves as she contemplated the dark haired bartender.

With a deep inhale she set herself the task to talk to him. She headed to the bar and was immediately disappointed not to see him. She looked up and down the bar but only saw one other man and it wasn’t him. Deirdre’s fingers drummed on the bar. Could just walk away or....

She raised a hand hoping to get the other bartender’s attention. He had dark hair as well but his was tinted purple at the ends. His right ear was pierced with what looked like a sword. She leaned on the bar and kept her hand up. “Excuse me...”

A number on a napkin. Arin had seen this a few times before. He or Shane often ended nights with a napkin like this. Yet, for Arin, this was a completely different feeling. Never was there a conquest comparison between he and Shane, like he’d seen with other barmen. Other women’s numbers always were viewed as a honour to receive. Yet, this seemed precious. Arin almost couldn’t bring himself to take it. As though he were taking something far more valuable. He was excited and humbled. Nervous and proud. He had proved himself but was afraid of making a mistake. Yet, he had to play it cool. He could not pass up this chance at getting this close and just missing it. He didn’t want to turn this into a missed opportunity. He hated those kind of stories.

He reached for the napkin, brushing her fingers as he grabbed it. Even though he was half expecting it the shock of familiarity took his breath away for a moment. Vivienne had taught him how to handle the flashbacks. How to let them play through without overwhelming. However, he had not had any contact with others yet. He had no experience with what a joint connection would be like.

Intense flashes of unquestioned loyalty, deep connection, comfort of being around each other, overcame him. A quick intake of breath and a tensing of his hand on the napkin were the outward signs of his flash. He hoped hers did not cause undue reactions. If she had one.

“Thank you Arey. I will call, soon. Hope you like motorcycles?”

Just then another group of patrons came to the bar. Shane was busy so it fell to Arin to accommodate them.

“I’m sorry, please excuse me. As much as I would love to continue with you, I do kind of want to keep my job,” he smiled and moved to take care of the new arrivals.

*

As the night went on and the crowd thinned, Arin had more idle time. He found his thoughts coming back to Arey and Guin. Finally, he had found her. He would have to tell Vivienne, but he wanted to get to know her first. He didn’t want Arey learning about her past life to cloud anything they might have naturally. Viv would be pissed, but he would deal with that later. Could he tell Kat? Would Kat help him or go right to Viv?

A voice interrupted his thoughts. He looked up and saw a pretty brunette waving him down. He hadn’t seen her tonight. She was certainly pretty. No doubt she had her share of attention this evening. Arin nodded at her and started to move toward her. Just then Shane walked out from the back room. He saw the woman and Arin starting to move. He gave Arin their sign for, ‘I got this.’ Arin smiled and let Shane handle it.

The other bartender was attractive enough and she might have been more interested in him if he had been helping her but he wasn’t. He nodded and started to come over. The dark haired one, the one who had helped her appeared and interrupted his action. He came over to lean on the bar in front of her.

“What can I get for you?”

He gave her a smile and Deirdre could not help but smile back. He seemed like the type at ease with charming the women who approached the bar. She was out of her element but that is what she wanted, the whole reason she had fought to go to school. Something new and exciting.

“Water please.”

He raised an eyebrow, surprised at her choice. “Wait a second. A college girl not using a fake i.d. to score a drink. I didn’t think they existed.”

Deirdre shrugged. “What can I say? I came to dance, not fall over drunk.”

As if to illustrate her point two stumbling girls came towards the bar. One tripped, bumping Deirdre and her friend tried to hold her up. All the while the two laughed.

The bartender glanced at them and shook his head before moving to get her water. He returned and placed the glass in front of her. He rested his elbows on the bar, leaning so that they were closer and conversation could be done at a more reasonable volume.

Deirdre took a drink and then stood there for a moment. She glanced to the dance floor as if thinking before turning back to face him.

“I wanted to thank you for calling the bouncers. The guy was being creepy and I was afraid he was going to get worse as the night went on.”

The man shrugged, “Part of the job is dealing with the jerks. Some guys don’t know how to be subtle.”

Deirdre nodded, “Or some girls.”

Her eyes moved to the people dancing. She watched as a girl in a short skirt ground herself against a guy. And they call that dancing... They weren’t even moving to the music, just dry humping each other on the dance floor.

She turned her attention fully to the bartender again. Deirdre took a drink, her glass now half empty. She was trying to kill the awkward silence. Deirdre put the glass down.

“Thanks for the water and thank you again.”

With that Deirdre turned and walked away. She felt like a fool. He didn’t seem very interested and she was terrible at flirting. Nerves and embarrassment mingled now and she couldn’t decide if she should try and leave or go dance. If she stayed, she vowed not to go back near the bar. A glance back saw another girl take her place and the bartender was making short work of talking to her. He was playing with her hair. Deirdre turned away from the bar.

The music was still good and the crowd had thinned a bit more which left more room for her to dance. It felt good to be back on the floor. The failed attempt at flirting was forgotten as Deirdre moved with the music. She danced for a few more songs before the water caught up to her. Deirdre headed to the ladies room. She was about two feet away when a man barrelled out of restroom door and right into her.

“Hey!”

They collided and he kept going while she barely kept herself upright.

“Asshole!”

She moved to the bathroom door just as a blonde girl came to the doorway and shouted for 911. Wasting no time Deirdre pulled her phone from her pocket and dialed 911. She ran in behind the blonde.

Another girl was laying on the floor. Deirdre’s eyes went wide and she slid to the floor as the blonde began CPR.

“911 What is your emergency?”

The phone was to her ear. “I need an ambulance at Galaxy. A girl is unconscious in the bathroom. A-another woman is doing CPR.”

She looked to the blonde. Deirdre watched her. She was scared but something about blonde made her feel better.

“An ambulance is en route. Stay on the line with me. Does she have a pulse?”

Deirdre looked to the blonde. She did not want to interrupt the CPR so she leaned in herself and pressed a hand to the unconscious girls neck.

“Yes but it is faint. She isn’t breathing though.”

The operator’s voice broke through the growing fear, “Okay keep doing CPR they will be there soon. Stay on the line with me.”

Deirdre looked at the blonde. “She says keep going. You are doing great.”

Arey recognized that someone had followed her back into the bathroom and was dialing 9-1-1, but she didn’t really pay attention to who it was, as her focus was all on the girl she was giving CPR to. This wasn’t the first time she encountered someone in immediate distress, it wasn’t even her first time giving CPR, but for some reason Arey felt panicked, and emotionally invested in saving this girl in a way that made little sense. No one wanted to watch someone die if they had to power to help, but the way Arey felt wasn’t natural. It was like her entire world revolved around saving this girl, and Arey couldn’t explain why. The very thought of failure made her feel like she might shatter.

Deirdre's eyes were on the blonde as she worked hard on the prone girl. She did not know what happened in here but she was sure it had something to do with the jerk that had run into her.

"Does the woman still have a pulse?"

The voice on the phone startled Deirdre. She was focused on the blonde as she worked so frantically. Something about her face, the distress and panic in her eyes that bother Deirdre a great deal. It pulled at her like a weight in her chest. She wanted to reach out and help, to do something but she also did not want to be in the way. Her fingers went to the victim's neck. The once faint beat was now gone.

Her voice cracked, "N-no...there is no pulse now."

Minutes passed, and Arey kept up the CPR, though the girl remained unresponsive. She couldn’t even find a pulse anymore, which was a very bad sign. What they needed was a bloody AED Arey thought cursing as she went back to pumping her chest, desperately trying to keep oxygenated blood flowing. Arey had basically dissolved into a mindless rhythm, tears flowing freely down her face, when paramedics finally arrived. One had to haul her off the girl, when Arey proved to be unresponsive to their orders, before they applied the AED. Arey broke down in sobs after the first failed attempt still left the girl unresponsive, and after the second, she felt inconsolable.

The bathroom was suddenly full of people. Deirdre had tears in her eyes. She watched as the paramedics pulled the blonde away. They began working. Deirdre backed off and hung up her phone not saying anything more to the operator. it was slipped into her pocket and she moved to be closer to the blonde. Not just move. She had the overwhelming urge to be close, to console her. The woman was sobbing as she watched the paramedics work. Deirdre's eyes were not on the scene but the anguish in the woman's face.

Deirdre wrapped her arms around the blonde and hugged her tightly. She was quiet. The sounds of the paramedics were overwhelming. The bathroom was small and suddenly felt claustrophobic. Deirdre put her head down towards the girl's shoulder and closed her eyes.

Suddenly everything went very quiet. Deirdre hugged the blonde a little tighter. Things felt odd, as if they two were apart from the entire scene. Almost like a dream. There was an odd feeling of comfort, her arms around the woman like this.

Rationally, Arey couldn't explain why she was this upset. Feeling bad that she hadn't been able to save the girl who had been attacked would be understandable. Being in shock and going into a funk would be normal. This wasn't normal, a very small and rational voice that she recognized as her own was chanting it like a prayer in her head, but that did little to console her. Arey felt overwhelmed by the feeling of crushing failure. Faces she didn't recognize seemed to flash across her mind, each like a dagger to her heart that brought on such unbelieveable guilt that all Arey wanted to do was crawl into a bawl and die.

Then Arey felt arms circling around her, and she felt such immediate comfort and safety that she felt shaken in an entirely new way. Her mind was whirling and chaotic, and Arey felt like she was suddenly competing for space in her own head as another, stronger presence reared up; a tidal wave of chaos that was once the calm waters of her mind.

All will be well, dear heart. Deirdre suddenly felt like her thoughts were not her own. Yet, it felt entirely right as she held the woman. The woman was taller than she by a few inches and Deirdre rested her head close to her shoulder. It felt natural. She felt like she had been here, in this position before and on numerous times. It also felt like there was more than just comfort in the embrace. She stepped a bit closer and one hand reached up to stroke the woman's hair. Deirdre's eyes closed.

She wanted to say something but there were no words that formed. Every fibre of her being wanted to comfort her, to make her believe that she had done all she could. Deirdre opened her eyes.

Gone was the bathroom. Gone were the body on the ground and the paramedics. Instead there were stone walls and a stone floor. A tapestry hung on the wall in front of her. There was the smell of dirt, blood and sweat. She was still holding the woman, the blonde but something was different.

"The war is not lost, dear heart. There will be many more battles to come. You are stronger than those that oppose you."

"I am just a man Guin. How can I be what they need me to be? I do not know how to be a king...be everything they say I'll be. I can't even lead my men to victory in battle, how can I lead a kingdom?" Arey's voice shook with self doubt and despair, except it wasn't her voice at all. It was a man's voice, completely strange and yet hauntingly familiar. A part of her drew immeasurable comfort from this vision, but there was also pain and an aching sorrow that lingered as well.

Her face moved slightly, snuggling in closer to his neck. She inhaled deeply. The smell of him, even under the coppery scent of blood was comforting. He had returned to her.

"My heart, you are a man and it is because you are a man that they follow you. There was victory today. Not in the battle but in what you learned of those you fight. Those men followed you into battle because they believe in you Arthur, as a man and as their ruler. Not because of what Merlin says but because your men trust in the man you are. A kingdom is not built on prophecies and predictions. It is built by the work of men and those that follow them. Those men learn from defeat and fight harder against those that would bring them down. That is why you are stronger than those who would see the kingdom fall. That is why your men swore their loyalty to you and follow you into battle. They believe in you as Arthur, the man. As long as you have faith in them and the things you hold dear, they will follow you. That is what makes you the king you are."

Her face lifted. "I believe in you Arthur."

They were not just words. She loved him. She also fiercely stood by him. Every part of her knew with a certainty that Arthur was a leader. She was not fond of Merlin, there was even rumour that the man had told Arthur not to marry her and that she should have been drown at her birth but she did believe him when he said that Arthur was destined to be a great king. Guinevere knew this to be true. She knew the man, knew that he was a leader and king.

"I would be lost without you." The man who was not Arey declared with such sincere emotion as he clutched the woman tightly, one large calloused hand gently cradling her cheek. Arey felt overwhelmed by him, his love and devotion to this woman so strong that she began to feel it as well. As he rested their forehead against that of the woman's, their lips meeting in a desperate mash, Arey felt stripped bare by the sheer intimacy of the moment.

Her body was crushed tightly against him. She met his eyes as the hand came to her cheek. Deirdre was overwhelmed. The kiss took her breath away and she desired to be closer.
Deirdre could think of nothing else.

"Clear!" The voice of one of the paramedics shouted as they tried for the third time to start the girl's heart with the AED. "I got a pulse, grab a respirator and get her on the stretcher!" Arey was brought out of the hallucination suddenly, by the sound of the AED, only to find herself lip locked with the girl who had hugged her after calling 9-1-1. Arey jumped back as if burned, feeling shaken and confused, and very much in shock, as she managed to do little except stare and offer a token apology that resulted from instinct than any real thought process. "Sorry, I'm really not gay..."

Deirdre was brought back to the bathroom. Gone were the stone walls and floor. She was still holding the blonde but they were kissing. The woman jumped away and Deirdre's eyes were wide, one hand on her lips. They were staring at each other. There were words, an apology but she did not really register them.

Arey couldn't really process what was happening, and she wasn't sure how much time had passed when once of the paramedics cornered her. "Jesus, those are goinging to be some serious bruises on your neck. Were you assulted too? Do you need medical attention?" Arey just blinked, feeling dazed. Words simply wouldn't form when she tried. "She's in shock. Joe grab her a blanket. You should really come with us to get checked out, I see blood. The police are going to want to talk to you anyway."

Deirdre stood there as a paramedic led the blonde away a short distance. They were treating her and Deirdre looked around. Everyone was busy and it was a good time to get away. She was confused and a little freaked out but she wanted to leave. She slipped out of the bathroom. It was easily done with paramedics and police more concerned with the body and the blonde.

The blonde Leaving felt wrong. A part of Deirdre wanted to go back to stand with her as she talked to the police but she shook this away. The club was emptying of dancers. It appeared only the staff and a few scragglers remained in the building. She took this as a cure to head out.

“D! Hey D!”

Deirdre’s head whipped around to look for the source of the voice. Heather stood in the crowd. They lined the street watching with morbid curiosity. Her feet carried her quickly to her roommate.

“Let’s go.” Deirdre grabbed her hand and began pulling her through the crowd.

“What the hell? Deirdre, what is with the rush? Did you see what happened? Come on slow down!”

Deirdre was on a mission to get out of there as fast as she could. Her lips still felt like she was being kissed. Her first real intimate kiss and she did not know what to think of the whole thing.

“Deirdre!”

The woman turned and looked at her roommate. “Heather I don’t want to talk about it right now okay?”

She dropped her hand and walked off. Her roommate’s heels clattered on the cement as she ran to catch up. “Okay, okay....”

They walked in silence to the subway and remained that way all the way home. There were short good nights and Deirdre closed the door of her room and sat on the floor with her back against it. Her face went into her hands and she began to cry. Her shoulders shook with the force of the sobs.

She felt guilty, sad, elevated, desired and simply overwhelmed by the crazy mix of emotions that were running through her. She did not understand what had gone on but she did know that what she thought she saw, the stone room and the man felt entirely too real.

The kiss was certainly real. The woman seemed as confused as Deirdre. Did she have the same vision?

The tears slowed and Deirdre pulled herself up and into bed. Maybe it was just adrenaline.... A weak reasoning to attempt to get herself to calm down. Not bothering to undress she laid down.

Sleep came out of exhaustion but her dreams were filled with the man, his arms around her, his voice and his kiss.

The ride to the hospital was mostly a blur for Arey. There were too many thoughts and emotions running through her head, but nothing to focus on. Trying to organize her thoughts at the moment felt like grasping at smoke; it was there, she could feel it, but she couldn’t grab hold. It didn’t take the doctors long to patch her up, considering how superficial her wounds were, and soon she was led to wait in the room with the other girl, who was apparently still unconscious, but stable. She spent the next half hour in a daze, replying to texts from her friends, assuring them she was alright. Probably condemned to wearing scarves for the next week or so, but alright just the same. She’d probably be out on the field again right as rain Monday morning, Arey thought fondly, though she wished she could dismiss the psychological trauma as easily.

It was probably just the stress of the situation she reasoned, or maybe the bloke just liked weird colored contact lenses. Who knew what kind of freaky stuff that guy had been into? The weird vision she’d shared during her hug feast with the brunette from the club however, was a little harder to write off, but she had just been assaulted and emotionally seemed to be all over the map, so maybe it was just a byproduct of the stress? Arey wasn’t left to stew for long however, as the detective she’d been told would want to talk to her arrived.

“Arianna Trescott? I’m Detective Velazquez. I’m here to ask you a few questions about your attacker.” The man who walked in had dark features, and looked vaguely Hispanic, though Arey couldn’t have told you from where. He was also handsome, and seemed pretty young to be a detective. He couldn’t have been older than twenty-five she guessed, but there was also an air of confidence and competence about him that also put her at ease.

“Shoot.” Arey replied quietly, arms crossing across her front. He asked her to describe the attack, and any details about the attacker she could. Arey recounted the story fairly calmly, tossing in her suspicions about the guy possibly drugging his victims as well.

“Her tox screen hasn’t come back yet, but we’ll keep that in mind.” Detective Velazquez said putting his pad away. The rape kit hadn’t been completed yet either, but he was fairly certain this wasn’t their guy. The captain had sent him sniffing on this one, seeing as their perp seemed to have a taste for pretty young college girls as of late. This wasn’t his M.O. though, too sloppy, and he never did his victims in the clubs. Those were his hunting grounds, not his place of action. The brass still wasn’t willing to call him a serial killer, partially due to his choice in victims being all over the place, and partially due to the panic that would ensue. A more concrete pattern was forming though, and that was bad news for the women of New York.

“Need a ride home?” David Velazquez offered the poor exhausted looking girl. The thought of her walking home alone left a gnawing pit in his stomach. Young, blonde hair and big blues eyes, his perp’s M.O. personified not five feet away. The worst part of working serial killer cases, was getting in their demented head space. Everywhere he looked, he saw potential victims, fitting them into behavioral patterns and analyzing the likelihood of them making the cut. It was exhausting to deal with, and more than a little disturbing for the young detective. Perhaps for this reason, David felt strangely protective of this girl. She agreed to the ride, and twenty minutes later, after being discharged, he drove her back to her dorm before calling his boss to give a status report.

Once Arey got home, the first thing she did was take a shower. She still felt numb, but the hot water helped. She felt drained emotionally, too much happening too quickly, and the only thing she felt like doing now was sleeping in, which was what she was planning on doing, falling into a restless sleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

The man was there. He had his arms around her. He leaned in to kiss her, just as he had before. It was hard and passionate. Her body leaned into him....

Deirdre gasped. Her dream, the kiss had left her breathless. She rolled to her back and stared into the darkness of her room. The evenings events had left her exhausted and feeling drained. Her clock said it was only forty five minutes she since had gone to bed.

She rolled to her side again and curled herself up under her blanket. She did not know who the man was but she knew him. Her very core knew him and wanted him. Deirdre felt shaken and raw. On top of that the woman, the blonde in the bathroom seemed to have something to do with it all. Deirdre could still feel her lips on her own.

Was I drugged? Were we hallucinating?

She knew the vision and the dreams weren’t real yet they were very tangible and very familiar, as if she were reliving things, events she had already done. It was not her though it was her. Deirdre was confused.

Her eyes slowly grew heavier. Her breathing slowed and grew even.

She stood at the window. The walls of the castle, the fortress were visible. She knew it would take a great deal for them to find her here. One pale hand slipped into her hair, brushing it from her face. It was tangled and dishevelled, falling from its stays but she did not care.

She placed her hands on the stone sill. It was cold under her palms.

She felt a fool for being caught off guard. She had wanted to see the dancing at the maypole, to see the festivities. The court routinely went though this year the king and his knights were gone away. She had put together the group who attended. She did not consider that anyone might come after her on this day. Her guards had not been enough to stop them.

Guinevere had gone with Meleagant to spare the slaughter of her men. She could not have them killed simply to defend her when they were so clearly outnumbered. She went but first gave one of the ladies in waiting her ring. She told her to get it to Arthur at any cost. To tell him what had happened and that she was safe.

Now she was in this room, in one of the towers of his keep. Meleagant had put her here and had no intention of letting her go.

“Dearheart worry not for me. I am safe.”

Guinevere stared out the window and imagined Arthur’s face as he was given her ring and told that she had been taken. It pulled at her heart to know that she would cause him such distress.

In her bed Deirdre tossed and turned. A light sweat broke out on her skin and she cried out softly.

The shouts for 911 shocked him. Galaxy wasn’t typically the kind of place that inspired violence. Arin looked up and saw the pretty brunette heading toward Arey. Arey, bloodstained, looking shocked and yelling for help. Arin barely resisted the urge to hurtle the bar and go to her. It seemed that brunette was taking care of it. He felt an unexpected sense of calm, “It’s taken care of. They have it.”

Arin shook his head. He wanted to talk to that brunette now, and he especially wanted to make sure Arey was okay, but he needed to keep the other patrons calm.

Eventually he saw Arey coming out with paramedics. He looked for the brunette and caught a glimpse of her as she snuck out the door. Obviously she didn’t want to deal with the the questions. Arin cursed his not approaching her faster when she waved him down. At least to find out her name. There was something about her that he wanted to know. He was distracted from those thoughts as he once again noticed Arey, looking a little worse for wear, being escorted outside. Of all the times to be tied to work. He wished he could easily walk away, but he did need the job.

Finally, after answering his own set of questions from uniformed officers gather routine eye witness statements, he was able to close up and go home. He talked with Shane but found out his co-worker did not get the brunette’s number either. She hadn’t even introduced herself, so Arin still didn’t know her name. With mixed feelings he headed home. Excited about meeting Arey, but vexed with the brunette.

He went up to his apartment, which was thankfully empty. It was even odds that Kat had decided to get some quiet time and fallen asleep on his couch. Tonight he had the place to himself. He briefly thought it was too bad Arey wasn’t able to come home with him, but remembered she was kind of occupied with other business. That memory brought back some worry and he took out the napkin with her number, considering if it was too late to call to see if she was okay. He decided to call her first thing tomorrow and placed the number by his phone.

He took a hot shower, trying to relax before heading to bed. It partially worked, as he fell asleep quickly, but his sleep was not uneventful.

He was gathered with other newly knighted men. His new lord, Arthur, stood as he received the Queen’s lady with a message. Lancelot heard the lady say that the Queen was being held prisoner. He watched Arthur blanch. Though he was newly sworn a knight he found it too difficult to stand by while his lord and king was distressed, “Your grace, tell us what you need. We will act as your right hand and ensure this villain knows the critical mistake he made by daring abduct our Lady.”

A few other knights nodded and agreed with Lancelot’s proclamation. Lancelot waited for his King’s order.

“Not quite.” The professor drawled, ignoring Martin’s snarky comments for the most part. He had come to associate such behavior from the boy from their brief association, and it wasn’t something he felt a particular need to correct. “I would advise however, you not let her touch you. Succubuses, nasty bottom feeders that they are, tend to be rather aggressive around individuals such as yourself.” He continued, not bothering to hide the distain in his voice.

“Tonight, you are going to learn how to break their thrall if approached. Then if we get around to it, we’ll cover how to torture one for information.” His smile was shark like, hungry but without malice. The hungry little unseelie inside had information he wanted; like what the new player on the scene looked like. He’d had his little birds out watching Vivienne’s errand girl for a while now, and it appeared they’d finally found one. Was it Arthur? There was really no telling, but it was enough of a possibility that he wanted to know exactly who this young man was, and what he looked like.

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Arthur had never before felt such rage; the need to draw blood and inflict pain never an urge so tempting. He wanted to hear the crunch of bone beneath his foot, and slash apart the man who dared to steal the light of his life. The urge to cause Meleagant pain was an all-consuming one, and for a moment Arthur felt a darkness trying to creep into his heart, but carefully he shoved it away. It would not help his love to act in rash anger, only to alleviate his own guilt and worry, which Arthur felt he did not deserve. When one of his newly sworn knights, Sir Lancelot, spoke, Arthur welcomed the distraction and listened. The man was charismatic and passionate as he spoke, and the young king felt a mixture of admiration and envy.

“Meleagant wishes to draw us into open warfare. His Cliff side fortress would give him the clear advantage in any battle we waged. We will need to outwit him if we are to rescue my Lady wife.” Arthur responded after a moment, quieting the call for blood that sang in his veins.

“Indeed.” Chimed in an old though sharp voice as the cloaked and wizened figure of Merlin appeared, and made his way to the king. “Fortunately for you my king the paranoia of kings past has left its mark through their masons.” The old wizard said smiling as he pulled out a roll of old parchment from his cloak. "There is another way to enter your foe's fortress."

Lancelot leaned in to watch the old man unroll the parchment. His eyes widened as the contents became clear. The entire layout of of this Meleagant’s fortress was laid out. Lancelot’s eyes scanned the information quickly. Lancelot thrust his finger toward the parchment, almost shoving aside the old man’s hand, “Here, Your Grace...”

The old man raised an eyebrow, “Yes. As this over enthusiastic young knight has astutely pointed out, there is a less than used ingress that would allow a means to extract the Lady. However, the fortress is well manned, and this is not the way for an army to enter.”

Lancelot had the grace to look chagrined as the old man rebuked him, yet quickly turned his attention back to the parchment. He pointed at an isolated room, “This is where she would be.”

Another raised eyebrow silenced Lancelot and he stepped back. He looked up at Arthur.

As Arthur gazed at the parchment, he was filled with a growing sense of purpose. The man within him wanted nothing more than to ride through the night and storm through the secret passage to rescue his captive love himself, and damned be anyone who stood between them. His inner tactician however, recognized how foolish a plan that would be. The best way to ensure his Lady’s safe escape from the fortress could not allow such reckless passion on his part. He needed to be smart, and keep his wits about him.

“I will lead a company of men toward the gates as if to do battle. By doing so Meleagant will focus all his attention there. He wishes to see me dead, and will be distracted by that goal.” Arthur began explaining, grabbing a stick from the ground and drawing up a crude map of their positions. “This will provide an opportunity for one knight to slip through the passage, rescue the queen, and take her back to the safety of Camelot.” He finished.

“The gate is where he wants you Arthur. By doing this you play to his hand. Do not forget that Meleagant is a practitioner of magic, and has proven himself to be a master of trickery and dishonorable conduct. He may try to curse you from his tower above without ever mobilizing his own men.” Merlin warned, as he was made uneasy by his King’s willingness to put himself in such a vulnerable position.

“No, he is also a man ruled by emotion and pride. He would not be satisfied with defeating me thusly. He would much rather run me through and watch; nothing else will temp Meleagant and his men from their fortress. There is no other way.” Arthur argued back, mind already made up. Merlin looked aggrieved with the decision, but spoke no more against it. Arthur turned to his knights, appraising them all as he tried to decide who to send through the passage. He did not doubt the intent or loyalty of any of his men, but he would need the knight who was the most tenacious and unyielding, to protect his wife. One among them stood out from the rest.

“Lancelot,” Arthur said solemnly as he turned to his young knight. “I would trust you with my most sacred treasure. Protect her with your life; bring her home.”

*

She sat, straight backed and hands in her lap. Meleagant had sent a servant with a tray for her but she refused to eat. Guinevere did not think he wished to hurt her but she was not willing to take chances. He himself, had not come to see her since he escorted her to the room but she knew at some point he would come to discuss what he wanted of her. She knew her guards were in a nearby room since she could hear them if she moved to the locked door. Guinevere took comfort in their still being alive and unhurt.

The queen knew that by now her husband had received her ring and was likely working out a plan for her rescue. Guinevere stood and crossed to the window again. The room was high up and the castle itself in a position of power. Any attack Arthur might wage would surely be for naught. Meleagant held the power here and while she knew Arthur to be a great leader and tactician she could not see how he could lay siege to such a fortress without losing many men. Her eyes lowered to the stone of the sill.

“Impenetrable....”

*

Lancelot made his way through the halls of the keep. He had found no resistance at the entrance. Other than avoiding a few servants there was very little activity. Meleagant had pulled all available resources to his battle with Arthur’s main force.

He found his way to the isolated section of the keep where he suspected the Queen would be held. Here, finally, he found some opposition. Two men left behind. The minimum to secure Meleagant’s prize. There would be no avoiding them and Lancelot would not attempt to back stab them. He would face them head on.

“Men, surrender your prisoner quietly. Arthur has come to reclaim what was stolen from him,” Lancelot stood, sword drawn, at the end of the hallway.

The two men turned, surprised to be challenged. After a brief hesitation to gather their wits they drew their weapons and charged.

Lancelot used the confines of the hallway to his advantage. Gracefully circling to keep the two men from being able to attack him simultaneously. He fought defensively in order to control the flow of the encounter. The clash of swords echoed in the hallway. Finally Lancelot found the opening he needed. A clumsy attempt as one guard attacked over the other. With a quick parry, Lancelot entangled the two men’s weapons and struck. With a quick reverse cut he was able to disable both men before either could counter. He quickly ensure neither man would be able to raise any alarm or report. Bloodied but unhurt he quickly found the first door and pushed it open.

Guinevere turned at the sound of a man’s voice stating that Arthur had come to reclaim her. She was positive however that it was not Arthur in the hallway. It was not his voice she heard nor was it the voice of any knight she recognized.

She moved quickly to the door. Outside in the hall there was the sound of swords clanging together. Men grunted with effort. Then it went quiet. Guinevere backed away from the door as someone undid the lock and opened the door. Her eyes quickly looked for something to defend herself with.

Guin darted to the tray the servant had left. She grabbed a chalice, silver and heavy. The liquid contents were dumped and she lifted it as if to wield it like a club.

Her eyes were on the door and the figure who moved inside. “Who are you and why do you use my lord husband’s name so freely?”

It was then that her eyes fell on the tabard. He was one of Arthur’s knights. Guinevere lowered the chalice as she looked the knight over. She did not recognize him which meant he was a newly appointed knight, someone from Arthur’s recent journey away.

“Your name good knight?”

Lancelot fell to one knee and bowed his head as the Queen addressed him, “My lady, you may call me Lancelot, if it pleases you. I use your husband, and my king’s name, as it was he who sent me here to assist your journey back to Camelot.”

Guinevere tilted her head, a smile gracing her lips. “Rise Lancelot. This is not the time for such formality.”

She placed the chalice haphazardly on the tray once more and crossed the room to him.

“Let us leave here.”

Guinevere looked down at him.

“There is always time for respect, my lady,” he rose as he said this, looking at her fully for the first time. She was beautiful, more so than any story could do justice. He found himself briefly lost in the blue depths of her eyes. With a cough, he blushed and moved further into the room.

“Yes. Leave. Are there others?” he tried to avoid being caught staring again, but found it quite difficult to keep his eyes off her.
Guinevere felt like time stopped briefly as he looked at her. Lancelot stood. She felt as if her heart might beat out of her chest. Her stomach tightened. Guinevere felt her cheek flush slightly.

“Yes.”

She watched him move away and felt as if she should move towards him but remained where she stood. Her head turned to look towards the door.

“Yes, my men are locked in a room close by. I surrendered to Meleagant’s demands to stop him from slaughtering them.”

Guin turned to look once more at Lancelot. Her eyes drifted over his form. Her eyes took in the blood. “Are you hurt?”

She crossed to stand in front of him again. Her voice was low and throaty as she drew near. She felt her pulse quicken once more. “If you are wounded we should tend to it quickly and then free my men.”

Lancelot resisted the urge to embrace her. Though he almost wished he was wounded if only to be attended to by her. He shook his head, “No, my lady. The men outside were not a challenge to a knight on a righteous and honourable quest.”

He could not bring himself to move away from her and yet the urge to reach out and touch her was torturous to resist, “Yes, your men. It would be good news indeed for Arthur to hear that the Queen’s guard were still alive as well.”

Though Lancelot could only imagine the blow to their honour they were feeling. The Queen captured and the guard without a loss.

Guinevere was relieved he was not hurt. There was more than relief there, though she could not name what it was for certain.

“Yes, good news.”

They were standing very close and she could smell the coppery scent of the blood. Despite it she could not bring herself to move away. Her eyes found his and stayed there.

“We should leave. Arthur shall be waiting.”

At the mention of his name Guinevere felt her blood drain from her face. “Where is Arthur?” She turned to look to the hall. “Where are the other guards? Meleagant?”

Fear gripped her and she reached out to grasp Lancelot’s arm.

“Have no fear. The king has engaged the villain’s forces, drawing them out of the keep to allow my furtive entrance. There is time,” He looked down at the hand holding his arm, stuck between willing it to release him or for it to run up his arm to his face.

Guinevere’s eyes were full of distress and concern. She knew that engaging Arthur, hoping to kill him is what Meleagant wanted.

“We should not delay any longer. The sooner we return to him, the better...”

She pulled her eyes from Lancelot’s to her hand that gripped him lightly. Her fingers relaxed and for a moment her hand lingered, gently on his arm. Guinevere let her hand slip from him. A faint blush stained her cheeks now and she looked away demurely.

“I will follow you Lancelot.”

Gathering his focus back to the task on hand, Lancelot found the Queen’s Guard, “Come men. We must escort the Queen back to Camelot. The King awaits.”

There was a general cheer and clattering as the men rose to Lancelot’s call. They quickly searched nearby rooms to find what equipment they could and Lancelot lead the way back. He attempted to stay as near to Guinevere as he could.

Outwardly, Kat merely shrugged at Tim’s compliment, but internally she preened at the positive attention. She really did like making him blush too, it was almost like a game, and one she was rapidly becoming addicted to. Kat contented herself with ogling some of Tim’s finer anatomy while he went about his business clearing his schedule and contacting his coworkers. Similarly she enjoyed watching his face as he tried processing all the information she’d thrown at him at once before diving in with his questions. Kat wasn’t entirely sure how to answer them all, but she’d try to be as honest as possible.

“Right, which is why finding him is so important. The city itself is crawling with Unseelie, but dark fae aren’t the only monsters crawling around in the shadows. There’s a whole other world within our own that most humans are never aware of, but it’s dangerous, and there’s no telling how the other supernatural creatures are going to react to him.” Kat began a bit cryptically. “He should be completely human, but a soul spending that much time in the Fae world has to do something to it, chosen or not, the same with all of you.” She continued, and a rather disturbing thought came to mind. “For all we know, you guys could be some kind of walking talking power boosts to these guys.” It was already becoming a more common occurrence to see rogue vampires try to drink fae blood to increase their own power or break a sire bond, and though successful cases of these abductions were rare, they weren’t unheard of. And that was just vampires.

Sometimes, the biggest monsters didn’t have fangs. From personal experience, Kat knew the human variety could be much more cruel. Hoping her face didn’t show just how disturbed that line of thinking made her feel, Kat jumped to his next question. “Honestly, we don’t know how many of you there are. It could be the whole court of Camelot, or maybe just the ones the Gleaming deemed necessary to help Arthur protect the world. We don’t really make the executive orders on this, we’re just the cleanup crew.” Kat tried to explain, though she felt she was probably just making this more confusing.

“Arin seems pretty sure Guinevere’s here, and given their past life history, that could mean a lot of things. Maybe he just really wants her to be here, so he sees and feels what he wants to convince himself that she is. Maybe you all actually do have the ability to sense each other on some level, I couldn’t say.” Kat tried to supply, feeling pretty useless on this end. “Arin will know more on that end than me, but even he doesn’t have a whole lot of experience with that, you being the first knight we’ve found and all.”
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Steel clashing, horses screaming, and pain, maddening and unbelievably all-consuming pain. She was in agony, as she felt every muscle in her body feel like they were being torn apart. She wanted to scream, but it felt like the air was being sucked from her lungs. She smelt horses and fire, saw darkness and trees, but she didn’t know where she was, stuck between her own conciseness and a hauntingly vivid memory that was not her own. There was a man there with a sword, his eyes dark and gleeful, looking drunk on victory. She was going to die, she couldn’t breathe and a maniac had a lethal looking sword pointed her way. She felt so confused, everything hurt, she didn’t know where she was, and a looming sadness pressed in upon her. This was it, she’d never see Guin again…

“AREY! AREY WAKE UP!” A voice screamed nearby. Somehow, amongst the fighting and the chaos around her it seemed out of place. Arey…she was Arey, and with that realization strikingly blue eyes snapped open and Arey began gasping desperately for breath, choking a bit on much needed air in the process.

“Thank god! Jesus Christ Arey, you scared the shit out of me!” Amanda blubbered, looking the most rattled Arey had ever seen her. “What happened?” Arey asked groggily, her voice sounding horse and gravely to her own ear. She felt sore all over, but it was quickly fading, more like a remembered pain than an actual injury. The feeling was bizarre.

“You just started screaming! I tried waking you up, but then you kind of…seized up or something and stopped breathing! I didn’t know what to do!” Amanda explained looking entirely lost and shaken up. “Should we go to the hospital? Oh god, I should have called 911. You stopped breathing and I just sat here shaking your shoulders like an idiot. Oh my god, Jesus Christ I’m stupid.” Amanda began rambling, and Arey reached out to grab her shoulder.

“Hey, it’s ok. I’m fine, just a bad dream.” Arey tried to reassure her friend, who countered with a disbelieving look. “A bad dream? Are you kidding me? Arey you looked like you were having a fucking seizer!” Arey just shrugged her shoulders, not really sure how to reply. It wasn’t like she had any clue what had just happened either.

“Was it about what happened last night?” Amanda asked gently, as if just remembering that her friend had been assaulted the night before. Trauma was known to do a lot of funny things to people after all.

“I don’t really remember what it was about.” Arey lied. She had no idea how to explain what had just happened, and she definitely didn’t want to talk about it. She’d been having a lot of weird dreams lately, but this was the first one she really remembered well, and she had no idea what it meant, much less how to explain it to someone else.

“Ok fine. I’m gonna go grab us some coffees. You try and move around and look less…traumatized alright?” Amanda finally said with a sigh before leaving the dorm. Arey could tell she needed to work off the tension, so she probably wouldn’t be back for about an hour, which left Arey alone with her thoughts.

Deirdre was shaking as she slowly woke. She wasn’t sick but everything felt off. Why the hell am I dreaming about Lancelot and Guinevere?

She slowly sat up in her bed. Her body ached as if she had been extremely active though it was only her mind that had been working overtime. Deirdre ran her hands across her face and then looked at them. They were shaking. I feel like a junky who hasn’t gotten high in days and needs a hit.

Deirdre shifted in her bed, placing her feet on the floor. When I was in the bathroom, when the blonde kissed me....the vision I called her Arthur...Why the hell am I hallucinating Camelot?

Even the thought of the blonde, of Arthur made her blood race. She was overwhelmed with guilt and desire.

“What the fuck is wrong with me?”

Her head hung in her hands as she softly cried. Her mind was a swirl of images. The woman in the bathroom, the man she called Arthur and the she called Lancelot. Deirdre stood and stumbled her way out of her room and into the bathroom. Her stomach heaved ridding itself of bile as the dizziness eased.

She leaned back against the cold, hard tub thankful for the solidness to help bring her back to the present.

“Hey D, you okay?” A knock on the door.

Deirdre closed her eyes. “I am fine. Just a stomach bug I think.”

“Okay, was worried maybe someone slipped you something..last night was pretty messed up.”

“I am fine, thank you for checking on me.” Go away, just go away. She was shaking again.

“Well I will be leaving in an hour for work if you need anything before then or when I head home just text.”

“Thanks.”

It took a great deal of effort to pull herself up and to the sink. Deirdre ran the water, washing her face and brushing her teeth. Her eyes caught her face in the mirror and she stared for a moment.

The face that looked back at her was not her own. She gasped and gripped the sink. The reflection gasped as she did, it’s face screwed up into an expression of confusion and fear just as hers did yet it was not her. Who are you?

Deirdre took a few slow breaths. Am I going crazy?

She turned and left the bathroom. She couldn’t look in the mirror any longer. She did not know who the woman was but if she had to guess it would be her mind’s version of what Guinevere would look like.

Her bedroom door was closed behind her as she grabbed her phone and laid down in bed. Why Guinevere? Why now? What the hell is wrong with me? I let that woman kiss me and it wasn’t like I didn’t enjoy it.

Deirdre pulled up her bosses’ number and texted her to say she was sick and wouldn’t be coming in. She offered to do a double shift the following week but she was too sick to leave her room today.

With a clunk the phone was returned to the bedside table and Deirdre began to change into more comfortable clothing. Her clothes were tossed into towards her laundry basket though most missed. She even took the time to run a brush through her hair as she sat on the end of the bed. Her mind wandered.

“My lady do you wish me to do that?” Holding her hand for the brush.

Guinevere smiled up at her lady in waiting. “No, it is alright I will do it. Thank you.”

“We are happy you are safe my lady. It must have been a trying time. Thank the stars the king had all those new knights with him. So very brave of them, especially Sir Lancelot. Going in alone to rescue you.”

A small smile appeared on her lips unhindered at the sound of his name. “Yes he was very brave. They were all very brave.”

“Look! Some of the men are sparring!” Another of her women was standing by the window. The women, the three that were attending her rushed to the see. Guinevere finished brushing her hair and then slowly stood.

Graceful steps brought her not to the window but to the balcony of her and Arthur’s quarters. She stepped out and placed her hands on the stone balustrade. Below her some of the knights were sparring as others watched on. She could see Arthur and she smiled down at him though his eyes were on the men who battled.

Another face looked up at her and their eyes locked. Guinevere’s heart jumped in her chest and she could not pull her gaze from Lancelot.

“Look my lady, the king is waving.”

The words broke the spell as Arthur stepped near Lancelot and looked up, now waving to her. Guinevere smiled and waved back to him. She kept up the facade of the calm queen though inside she felt undone and shaken.

Deirdre dropped her brush with a gasp. It hit the floor with a thud.

“You okay? You fall or something?” The voice at the door called out to her.

“I-I am fine.” Deirdre managed to choke out the words before the tears began. She laid out on her bed, pulling the blankets about her.

She felt trapped and alone. Her own thoughts were betraying her, making her confused and unsure.

She closed her eyes and willed the visions away. “No more. Please. No more...”

Her chest heaved as she began to sob into her pillow. Deirdre felt more like a captive here in her room, in her thoughts than Guinevere had in the tower.

She had a knight to save her...

Deirdre’s sobs slowed and soon she fell into an exhausted sleep.

The woman beckoned her closer. Deirdre knew her though she couldn’t place her. The face was the same as the one that looked back at her in the mirror. As she drew closer she felt a pull to the woman.

The medieval style gown she wore was blue with trim of white and silver. Her hair was long and part was pulled into a silver net. Her eyes were sad, her hands knotted together.

“They have not found you. We need to help them.”

Deirdre shook her head. “I don’t know what you are talking about.”

The woman closed her eyes, head turning away in annoyance. “Now is not the time for being coy. We feel it, don’t ignore it. He was close, he held you...it was....”

She looked at Deirdre once more.

Deirdre’s lip quivered. “I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you are talking about.” Even as she said it, a knife drove itself into her stomach.

“Yes, you do. You know it with every fibre of your soul though you refuse to see what is in front of you.”

The woman stepped closer and touched Deirdre’s cheek. She realized that it was her own that hand that brushed the skin there. “Do not hide. We are not in need of rescue though we do long for them to hold us. Never weak, never fragile but the guilt...”

The woman stepped even closer and Deirdre gasped as they became one person.

“D! Holy crap, breathe!”

A hand came down on her cheek and Deirdre inhaled. Her face stung.

“Oh my god, I thought...what the hell is the matter with you!”

Heather was staring down at her, her blue eyes wild with fear. She was lightly shaking her hand. Blonde hair hung slightly in her face.

Deirdre shook her head. “I-I don’t know.”

Heather grabbed her and hugged her tightly. “You scared the shit out of me. I came home from work and you were still in bed. I check on you and you are all opened eyes and mouth wide but not breathing. You were pale...fuck are still pale. I thought you were dead.”

Deirdre weakly hugged Heather back. “I’m sorry.” She began to shake and tears fell. The apology wasn’t really for Heather it was for the overwhelming sense of guilt that suddenly rushed over her. She remembered the man pacing asking her how she could do that to him. Another on his knee. It slowly dawned on her that the men in that daydream were the same in the others....the man who the blonde turned into in the bathroom and the one who rescued her...they were all the same people including her, the woman he called Guin.

Something was very wrong. Dreams of King Arthur, Lancelot and Guinevere seemed to taking over her life. Was it stress? Was it a brain tumour?

Heather let her go. “Look I am worried about you. I don’t want you cooped up here all day. Come out with me tonight.”

Deirdre flopped back on her pillow. “No, no nightclubs.”

Heather grunted, “No even better. Rave. Just think big crowd, dark room, lots of moving bodies. You can get lost in it for a while. You know how hard it is to see, no one will know who you are except that your body moves and maybe your clothes glow a little. What do you say? Let’s get lost.”

Deirdre looked up at her roommate. Lost. I already feel lost. The very idea of a crowd, a pounding bass and the ability not to see who was around her was appealing. She felt tired though not able to sleep anymore.

“Alright.”

Heather jumped up from the bed. “Shower and get dressed. We head out in an hour.”
***
She knew most people at the rave would be wearing hardly anything in the way of clothes. They tended to dress in as little as possible. Deirdre didn’t feel like being mostly naked and wanted more to disappear in them than stand out.

Pulling on dark jeans she added a black tank top that had a white skeleton torso decal. Her hair was simply pinned back from her face. In the black lights the skeleton would glow but the rest of her would blend into the darkness. Deirdre stepped into the living room.

“Really? Black to a rave? Good god woman when did you turn all goth on me?” Heather stood there in a mini skirt of neon green and a crop top of neon orange. Her stomach was loosely wrapped with neon ribbons and they adorned her arms as well. Her makeup too was done in neons that would reflect the lights. Her blonde hair was pigtails and curled into ringlets.

“You look like a maypole with all those ribbons.” Deirdre tilted her head as if inspecting her.

“What the hell is a maypole?” Heather asked as she slipped on a pair of running shoes, also neon green.

“For the May day celebrations a pole is erected and maidens dance around it weaving ribbons...”

Heather gave her a look that stopped her words. “Why do you know that?”

Deirdre paled. ”I was going to the May day celebrations while Arthur was gone looking for more knights. It was there that Meleagant ambushed us...remember?”

“And it was then that we met Lancelot.”

“I only wanted to watch the maidens dance, to enjoy the feasting with my ladies and the men...”

“Yet so much changed that day.”

“D, earth to D, I asked how do you know that?”

Deirdre shrugged. “I read about in the literature class. We were talking about poems and stories as they were written for special events.”

Her words sounded forced and hollow but Heather gave a small laugh. “Whatever. Let’s go.”
****
The floor vibrated under their feet as the music kept up its steady pounding beat. The crowd was moving,a thrumming of its own. Bodies gyrated against each other though you could barely make out who was male and who was female. The room was pitch black save for the black lights and other neon light that set parts of people’s clothing glowing.

She lost Heather to the crowd instantly. For a brief time she was able to follow where the glowing ribbons went but eventually the black, faceless crowd swallowed them. Heather became one with the thing that was the dance floor.

Deirdre wanted to forget about the woman. She couldn’t even bring herself to say her name though it was always there, a tickle on the back of her mind. She stepped into the crowd, all black save the glowing white bones and gave herself over to them.

Deirdre tried to move into the crowd. She had brushed near someone and it had felt odd. It was like she knew the person but she couldn't figure out who it was. With everything else that had gone on the fact that she had felt similar with the blonde when she hugged her, Deirdre didn't want to deal with what it might mean.

She lifted her hair from the back of her neck. She was warm. The crowd was pressing against her. She was trying so hard to forget, forget Arthur, forget Lancelot, to forget the blonde woman, she wanted to forget everything. Deirdre was ready to go. She looked around for Heather. She'd never find her in the crowd and she wouldn't want to leave, not this early.

Deirdre moved towards where she thought the bar was. She needed water. She pushed through some people. Her hands went onto someone's back.

Tim froze. There was a hand on his back. I know you... He wanted to turn but Kat's hands kept him facing her.

Deirdre panicked. That feeling came over her again. She pushed against the person's back and bolted, shoving people out of the way.

Tim looked side to side. "There again. Kat did you see them?"

Kat peered around Tim's shoulder catching sight of the retreating figure with the skeleton cut top. "Got it." She said with no more warning, releasing Tim's hips and launching herself into the crowd after skeleton girl. The one good thing about being small, was that it made it easier to move through a crowd, and Kat managed to quickly catch up to the other.

"Hey wait!" She called out, trying to get the girl's attention. If she'd had a flashback, she might be freaking out, and this was a bad place for that to happen. With that in mind, Kat reached her hand out to grab at her arm.

Deirdre couldn't her anything over the music. She wanted out of the crowd, needed to get out of the crowd. A hand grab her. She stopped dead and whipped her head around. She found herself looking down at a neon covered female. Deirdre didn't feel the same familiarity with her that she had with the other person in the crowd. She shook her head and tried to pull her arm away, unsure what the woman's intention was. "Let go."

Definitely freaking out, Kat thought quickly, taking in the girl's appearance. It was dark but the set of her shoulders was enough to give away her stress. "You okay? You kind of looked like you were about to barf." Kat asked, quickly releasing the other girl's arm and getting as close of possible while still maintaining personal space standards. "Do you need help finding anyone?" Here was probably not the place to spring this sort of thing on her, but if Kat could get her name, and a little background info on her, some recon and surveillance would be easy to make sure she was safe.

Tim looked around as Kat disappeared into the crowd. "Damn it." He hissed through his teeth and began to push his way through in the direction he thought she went in. If it was Arin they should have just tried to watch but Tim knew in his gut it wasn't Arin, it wasn't Lancelot. This one was different. "Kat! Kat!" He used his large frame to move people from his path.

Deirdre frowned. "Barf? How can you see anything in this place? I-" She shivered remembering the feeling that came over her when she put her hands on the person's back. The smaller woman had let her arm go and Deirdre crossed her arms about herself. "I am fine. My friend is around somewhere. Thanks."

"Good eyesight." Kat said casually, and to an extent it was true. Part of it was fae-blood (though anything attributed to that was nowhere near the enhancement Arin had), and the other part was just the amount of time she spent working in the dark. Sometimes trudging around in old graveyards for scrap iron at night came in handy.

She tried to smile but knew it was somewhat pointless in the sea of neon. Deirdre looked up as the crowd parted some behind the woman and larger body with orange framed glasses came closer. Deirdre backed away a step, only to find herself bumping into someone else. She sighed in frustration.

When Kat noticed Tim push his way through behind her, she almost sighed too. Kat felt confident in approaching the girl because she was not likely to cause any untimely, and if Tim's own reactions to them were anything to go by, freaky flashbacks. Hence her solo entrance. As it was, maybe they could still avoid it if they just avoided touching each other.

"Sure you don't want help getting toward the bar? Three people shoving through a crowd gets people to move easier than one?" Kat offered, seeing the other girl struggle to get through the crowd. "I'm Kat by the way." She said cheerfully in an attempt to be conversational and force a polite reciprocation.

Tim closed the distance between them. He spotted the shorter Kat with another person. Skeleton shirt. HIs hand went lightly to Kat's shoulder. "Hey found you." He tried to keep his voice cheerful though he was trying to make out the person she was talking to.

Deirdre looked around herself. "I guess help wouldn't be all bad...he seems good for moving people." She gestured towards Tim. Her eyes moved over the pair, though really only taking in the glowing bits. "Deirdre, D...people call me D."

Tim frowned and leaned over Kat. I'll be damned. "We've met...well we looked a lot different. You didn't have a glowing torso and I wasn't dressed like some bizarre...I don't even know."

"You what?" Kat chimed in surprised. Weird coincidence she thought, but didn't comment further, letting them catch up grudgingly.

There was confusion in Deirdre's voice as she tilted her head and focused on the guy. "We've met?" The voice did seem familiar.

Tim leaned down to whisper in Kat's ear. He moved so his mouth was very close to her earlobe so she could hear clearly. "Think you got the wrong person. I go to the same school as her. We met in the student center. She isn't a knight." He followed it up with a chuckle.

Tim's lips on her earlobe made Kat shiver a little, but in a good way. His words however were not nearly as welcome. "So?" She hissed back. The was definitely the girl who'd touched his back, she was 95% positive on that. She pursed her lips as he went on with the conversation, an unpleasant sensation settling in her gut as the two continued on.

"Yes, student center. You bought me a chocolate bar for watching your things."

Deirdre laughed, "Ah yes my gallant knight. Tim right?" And just like that she felt cold and strange. "Hey, I should go...see you around, both of you." She tried to back away. Something felt off and she didn't want to get upset here in the large crowd.

That's totally my line. Kat thought moodily after this D person called Tim her gallant knight. Jealousy was a strong word, and Kat wasn't particularly fond of owning up to experiencing such strong irrational emotions, but she definitely did not enjoy hearing another girl call Tim that. Especially when it was too dark to properly size up the competition.

When D started to retreat, Kat shook off the irritation and moved in. "Cool, we'll just help you get to the bar then head back to the dance floor. This one's a real party animal if you couldn't tell." Kat said, forcing her normal cheer a bit before grabbing hold of Tim's hand (perhaps a bit territorially) and moving forward to help push aside the crowd.

Tim let Kat pull him forward. He used his size to make a path so that all three could get by easily. Deirdre was unsure and nervous. With everything that had gone on already she just wanted to vanish into the crowd. For a moment she considered it, turning and pushing her way into the dancers behind her but Tim knew her and it was rude. He was cute she recalled from that morning in the student center. Also has a girlfriend so his being cute is really a non starter.

Reluctantly she followed them. Tim looked over his shoulder and smiled at her. "So never thought I would run into you at a place like this!"

He moved them towards the bar where there was a bit more in the way of light. Tim pulled Kat close beside him, protectively. Deirdre followed and immediately got a bartenders attention. "Water please."

He looked at Kat and Tim. "What about you?"

"Gin and tonic!" Kat called out, eyes shining with mischief.

Tim looked down at Kat, "Two waters."

The bartender shrugged, which meant he was going with Tim's order whom he presumed would be paying. "You're no fun." Kat pouted.

"Says you." Tim resisted the urge to pat her on the head.

Deirdre leaned on the bar a little and brushed her hair from her face. "It is odd. You didn't seem like the rave type." Or the I have a girlfriend type... She looked him over once more and then let her eyes wander to Kat. She was shorter than Tim by a bit, shorter than herself and young looking though in the low light of the bar and with the get up everyone looked young.

"So you two like to dance?" It wouldn't hurt to be friendly. Hell it was better than feeling off and that thankfully had passed. She was sure it had nothing to do with Tim and more to do with her calling him a knight. With the whole Camelot visions she'd been having it made sense that words like that would make her feel not quite herself.

"This one? Oh yeah, can barely ever drag his fine ass off the floor." Kat chipped in, sensing an opportunity for passive-aggressive revenge for the booze-blocking, and shameless flirting in one go, sending a well placed smack to the before mentioned rear.

Tim's eyes went wide as Kat's hand came down on his backside. "Ha ha. Such a kidder this one."

Deirdre tilted her head a little, one eyebrow raising mischievously. "Kat are you kidding about how much he likes to dance or that his ass is fine?" She was relaxing, just a little.

"Oh I never kid about a fine set of glutes." Kat replied, eyes sparkling in her element.

Tim's jaw dropped a little, one hand rubbed the back of his head and that was when he remembered what Kat had done to his hair. He gave a small groan of annoyance and shoved his hand into his pocket.

"Tim, I never would have pegged you as bashful. He always like this? Kind of cute...." Deirdre smiled at Kat. Tim's shoulders hunched a little.

"You have no idea." Kat replied, grinning up at Tim and bumping her hip to his.

"Lucky for us he doesn't know just how cute he is. Otherwise he'd be off dating some supermodel by now. Still haven't figured out yet if you're a blonde or brunette kind of guy." Kat replied, sending a playfully inquisitive took up his way.

Tim was speechless. The bartender arrived with three bottles of water. He waved away Deirdre's money with a smile. He looked to Tim who fished a bill from his pocket. In truth he was glad for the distraction. Kat is fifteen, have to put an end to this teasing. His cheeks were hot.

He handed Kat her water. "Here, and I am an equal opportunity kind of man. I just don't get out much and don't really have a type thank you."

Deirdre frowned slightly as she took a drink of her water. "So it was really fun to run into you and to meet you Kat but you likely want to get back to dancing."

"Everyone has a type." Kat replied cheekily, though secretly satisfied with his response. "They just don't always know what it is."

"Likewise. Always nice to run into people with common interests." Kat replied with a wink thrown D's way.

Tim held out his hand. "Are you sure you don't want to stick around with us? For a little bit maybe, unless your uh…boyfriend is waiting?"

Deirdre smiled at Kat. "Well always good to know people with good taste." She moved to take Tim's hand. "It was good to see you and no, no boyfriend but three's a crowd. I'm fine."

Tim grabbed Deirdre's hand and with a small smile leaned down to kiss it but stopped. Both of them stiffened a moment and then pulled away. Deirdre's eyes were wide and the colour in her face, what little could be seen in the dim light of the bar drained away.

Tim looked at Kat. "Fuck."

"Shit." Kat agreed.

Deirdre backed away quickly, practically running. She turned and tried to make her way to the bathroom.

Tim was breathing heavy. "I have to go after her. I have..."

"What you have to do is stop hyperventilating." Kat said, pulling up a bar stool and practically shoving him into it as she watches D's form move toward the girl's bathroom. "Here, drink and breathe. I'll go check on her." Kat said handing him the bottle of water. "Try not to be anyone's snack while I'm gone." She said in parting, trying to break his tension with half-baked humor.

Pushing her way through the crowd, Kat tried following D into the girl's restroom. "Hey, wait!" She called ahead, trying to get her attention.

Tim sat and took the bottle of water but his mind was racing. How do those things work? If I am Ywain and she is the other person that makes her....but that can't be right because Arin... Everything was muddled and confusing. He took a drink of the water and began to look around. If Arin were here we could talk, figure this out. There can't be two and if she isn't...but... He put the bottle on the bar with a loud thud. "Kat she's..."

It was too late. Kat was too far away and the music too loud for her to hear him. Tim rubbed his thigh. This is bad. If she is who I think she is then who is Arin bringing tonight? What if one or both of them are fakes? Can you fake this kind of thing?

Deirdre stepped into the bathroom. Everything was steel and shiny. Here at least there was lots of light. She moved to the sink and ran the cold water. A few others milled about. She splashed cold water on her face and then again, letting the cold shock her. Can't be. Another vision of this...these people but who the hell was that? Why was he kneeling?

More cold water splashed her face. Her hands were shaking.

"What'd you take honey?"

Deirdre looked up. Another woman was applying a fresh coat of neon lipgloss. "Nothing."

"You want something?"

I wonder if this would go away if I... A voice drew her attention. She turned to see the door opened as some exited and Kat calling for her to wait. "No, no thanks. Maybe later."

Deirdre splashed another handful of water on her face.

As Kat finally managed to make it to the bathroom, she opened the door and entered in behind the retreating figure of a girl wearing neon lipstick. The bathroom looked empty enough, but she check to see the stalls were empty first before approaching D. "So what'd you see?" Kat asked calmly, subtlety not really being her forte. Direct and gentle might be the best approach right now anyway. This girl had looked ten kinds of shaken before they'd stumbled across her, she Kat could probably guess this wasn't the first incident she'd had.

Deirdre looked up at Kat in the mirror. "See?" She tried to play it calm and cool. "I don't know what you are talking about."

She turned and looked at the small woman.

"Tim's hyperventilating at the bar, and you're in here trying to stave off a panic attack. I know the signs ok. You don't have to tell me what you saw if it makes you uncomfortable, but we needed to make sure you were ok. Sometimes after that happens you're not." Kat replied smoothly, keeping her voice calm and unaccusing.

"It isn't the first time and I am fine." Deirdre shoulders slumped. "Been having them for a few days. Just odd things..."

She frowned. "Tim is hyperventilating? Did he...did he see something?"

"Yeah. He gets those too. From what we can tell, it looks like everyone deals with them differently. Tim for the most part starts looking like he just did an intense cardio set, though considering most of his have been about sword fights so far, I'm not really surprised." Kat replied.

"No swordfights this time...one time I watched one. Another time he..." Her cheeks flushed. "Rescued me and there was fighting. There was the one where Ar...He smelt of blood."

Deirdre lifted her eyes to look at Kat. "Why is this happening? How do you know about it? She...she told me I had to find them."

The more Deirdre told Kat, the more intense her eyes became. Shit buckets. It wasn't for sure, there were lots of Ladies who'd been rescued in Arthurs court at one point or another, hell it was practically a prerequisite, but deep in her gut she had a bad feeling that she knew who this was, which spelled trouble for Arin and whatever poor girl he was currently trying to charm the pants off of tonight. "Because you're special." Kat replied honestly. "I know about it, because I grew up with people like you. Did the woman by chance have a name?" Kat asked calmly, hoping not to hear the name Kat feared she'd give.

"Special..." Deirdre spat the word out. Her parents had always called her special and she hated it. 'I don't want to be special."

"Trust me, we never really get a choice in the matter." Kat replied evenly, letting Deirdre vent.

She paced. "The woman was me...but it wasn't me." She gave a shake of her head. "Camelot, King Arthur and my god…Arthur...." Deirdre shivered. "And Lancelot."

She stopped in front of Kat. "Guinevere. She…I...no it was, is...god. What is wrong with me!" She hit the bathroom stall door with her fist and immediately regretted it.

"Nothing is wrong with you ok, that's the first thing you need to accept right now. You are perfectly sane, and any emotional turmoil you're feeling right now isn't coming from you. You're just working through something right now that most people can't begin to understand." Kat dropped the bag from her shoulder and pulled out a business card that had the address for the Round Tablet and her emergency number on the back.

"I don't know if now is the place or time to go over all the details with you, but here's my contact info. If you want answers, or need someone to talk to about this, call me or swing by. You're not alone in this, that's the one thing I can promise." Kat said extending the card. The all at once approach had worked surprisingly well with Tim, but Kat had a feeling it might made D bolt. It might be better to let her come to them when she was ready rather than try and push it all on her now, especially with her being so shaken.

Deirdre stared at Kat. "No thanks. I just want to forget about all of this. It will go away, the sooner the better." She moved to the door. Her hands were fixing her hair. "Just bad dreams." She stood tall, back straight. "I do appreciate the offer but I'd rather not go to some 'special people' support group.

"It's more of a round table." Kat said dryly. "And ignoring what's happening isn't going to make it go away. I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to, but at least take the card. Just in case something happens to change your mind." Kat insisted holding out the card.

"Change my mind? No won't be changed. Nothing you can say is going to make me want to dwell in these bizarre hallucinations." She opened the door and stepped out. "Thanks again for checking on me but I am fine."

The thrum of the music filled the air.

Deirdre moved out into the crowd again. Round table, bah. Others like me? Whatever. This is ridiculous.

Tim was on his stool and getting anxious. Kat where the hell are you?

Kat watched Deirdre go before shoving the card into her pocket with a little too much force. Pissed at herself for not being better at this sort of thing, Kat stormed out of the bathroom and back into the crowd, trying to make her way back to the bar. It was slow going though, and before she'd even made it half way there, a cheerful voice behind her grabbed her attention.

"Hey, you look thirsty, want a shot?" The guy was older than her, but all things considered, that wasn't saying much. It was hard to tell in the dark too, but she supposed he was also good looking. Hard to tell under all the neon though. As tempting as the offer was, especially in the wake of failure once again, she didn't think Tim would appreciate it, and she was alarmingly swayable where Tim's opinion was concerned. She still wasn't sure if she liked that fact yet or not.

"No thanks, I'm not in the mood." Kat said, trying to wave him off nicely. And then he grabbed hold of her wrist.

"Let's see if we can fix that then." He said smiling, though up this close now she could see it didn't reach his eyes. It was like fire was extending from his hand and up her arm, making her feel numb and hazy and it was hard to think. Fucking fae... She though hazily, panic and arousal warring for dominance as she clutched at her neck, belatedly remembering she'd given Tim her iron necklace for this very reason, which meant her only iron weapon was in her bag...

"Why don't you have a drink sweetheart, you'll feel better, promise." He said smoothly, bringing the bottle up to meet her lips, helping her take the first couple drinks. It burned going down, but not as much as his touch and she whimpered slightly, barely able to remember her own name. There was nothing but him and her desire to please him, so she took big gulps even though it make her feel like choking.

Tim was annoyed. He stood. Screw that it is the girls bathroom. He started pushing through the crowd towards the bathroom.

"Kat? I think I might take that..." Deirdre came up behind her. "Oh." She frowned watching Kat drink.

Tim spotted the skeleton body glowing in the lights. "Deirdre? Is Kat with you?" He stepped up and saw her drinking. "Oh no! What do you think you are doing?" He pushed D out of the way and pulled Kat towards him. "Kat? What are you thinking?" He glared at the guy. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

Deirdre shook her head, confused and backed away slowly. "I shouldn't have come back..."

Tim was angry. He was beyond angry. He held Kat against him and bared his teeth at the man with the bottle.

The man's eyes flashed red for a moment as the girl he'd just acquired was suddenly yanked out of his grip. She started coughing immediately, looking more disoriented than anything and shook a little, suffering the withdrawal from his thrall. His eyes shot up to the boy she was with. Attractive, bright soul, and obviously pissed. Angry boyfriend he guessed. He was tempted to just thrall him too and just bring him along for the party, but another girl who had come up behind them caught his eye more.

"I have to say, you're probably the most beautiful woman I've seen here all night." He said with a bit of gravel in his voice, side stepping Tim entirely and stroking a hand through the girl's hair and down to her shoulder. Her soul was so bright and intense, and it excited him in ways he hadn't been in centuries.

Tim was breathing in hard, deep breaths. "Kat, what were you thinking? Drinking? I thought you were looking after Deirdre?" He looked down at her. "Kat?" She seemed off and he grew concerned.

Deirdre's breath caught in her throat as a hand moved through her hair. "Oh...I..." She gave a small moan. She felt weird but not like when she shook Tim's hand or when she hugged the woman in the bathroom but she felt cloudy.

Tim gave Kat a little shake. "Kat what's wrong?" And then it hit him, the air around them felt wrong. He didn't know what was going on but it wasn't right.

Rubbing both his hands now over her shoulders, the man leaned in to give an open mouthed kiss down her collar bone, laying it on a little more thickly. "Why don't you and me get out of here." He practically purred.

Deirdre's knees went weak as he leaned in to kiss her skin. She felt cold and hot all at once.

At the lack of attention from the man who was now her sun, Kat whimpered pathetically, reaching out her arm weakly in protest in Tim's arms. Chuckling lightly, the man reached back and ran his hand up her arm again, making Kat shiver violently and moan obscenely. "Don't worry, you can come too sweetheart." He promised, trying to draw her closer. He was more than game for a little double action tonight, feeling a bit greedy with so many bright souls at his disposal.

Kat shivered in his arms and with that Tim knew what was going on. "Oh no...no..." He had the same reaction to the woman. He took the iron cross out of his shirt and held it towards him.

"Back the fuck away from her." Tim pushed Kat behind him but held her arm with on hand. "Deirdre you need to move away from him right now."

Deirdre leaned against the man in front of her. She sighed.

The man eyed the iron with distaste, and glared pointedly back at the boy holding his appetizer. "Fine, you keep her. Seems like you two need to work on some of that sexual tension permeating off you anyway." He sneered, pulling Deirdre closer and projecting out a fresh wave of arousal toward Tim in hopes of creating a distraction. The couples around them, already dancing in a somewhat questionable manner were now looking down right obscene, and the Man grinned a bit with pride at his own prowess.

Tim growled and ignored the man. "Let her go. Deirdre come over here, now." His lip curled into a snarl. He was in battle, he could feel it. He shook off the feeling of desire that started to come over him. "You will not leave here with her."

Deirdre hung onto the man, her body laid against him and her arms draped around his neck. She looked over at Tim but she couldn't really focus on him. She wanted this man, she needed this man.

Tim reached out, "What's it gonna be? Let her go or I will make you let her go and in the end this won't go the way you want." Something came over him. He felt ready to fight, he needed to fight....everything that had gone on in the last couple of days culminated in this moment.

"I didn't realize you were her father." The man growled, not about to give up the tastiest looking meal he'd seen in weeks. "I think the lady's old enough to make her own decisions about who she goes home with. So why don't you scamper off there boy scout and mind your own business."

"She is my responsibility. I am pledged to protect her. You will not be leaving with her and your sway over her won't stop me." Tim stepped forward and grabbed Deirdre. He yanked her towards him.

"You and me...you want them, you fight me."

Deirdre whimpered as she was yanked away from the man. She gasped as if finding air for the first time.

"Pledged?" He snorted. "What are you from a medieval theme park now? It's the modern age boy scout, pledging is for Frat boys, and for the most part they are entirely unappealing. If you're feeling left out kid, you're more than welcome to join." He said suggestively. He wasn't really the fighting type, one didn't last eleven centuries outside the unseelie prison undetected and relatively unscathed without resisting that particular urge. He'd rather just have a romp with the three of them, fill up and skip out before morning, as was his usual M.O. Hell, even just one of them would be fine by him, though it didn't seem boy scout was up for that option.

Tim glared. "Yes I have to protect her and you...you abomination need to leave before I make you pay for this." He held both women back behind him. He felt the urge to hurt this man, to protect Kat and Deirdre.

Balthazar stared hard for a moment, weighing his options. His wasn't really a confrontation kind of guy, and considering the second girl was starting to come out of his thrall, and her guard dog was being persistently unreceptive, his odds didn't look good. The only one still really in a thrall-able position was the first girl he'd stumbled across, though he guessed it was the spiked Jack still making her so pliable. He decided to just cut his losses and back off, maybe he'd circle back later and snatch one up for the night he thought comforting himself.

"Whatever you say boy scout, don't strain yourself." Balthazar shrugged dismissively.

"You might try pumping some water into the little one though." He said offhandedly. "People have been putting all sorts of goodies in my drinks tonight. Can't imagine why..." He said in parting before shuffling off.

Tim growled once more. "Get out of here. Get out of the club. You are not welcome here and if I see you at all I will make you pay."

He turned to Deirdre and Kat. He picked Kat up and with her held in one arm, he grabbed Deirdre with a free hand. "Come with me." He dragged D as he carried Kat to the bathroom. He kicked open the door to the women's room and put Kat in front of a sink. He cranked the cold water and splashed her with it. "Kat come on."

"Wheeeee!" Kat said giggling as Tim picked her up in the air. With the incubus gone she just felt plain inebriated, without the killer lust factor going it. "Wow you're strong." She pointed out semi-lucidly. The cold water was like a slap to the face though, and she groaned, trying to cover her face.

Deirdre slumped against a stall. "I don't want to dream of her. Of Arthur or Lancelot. I want to just be normal. No dancing, no spotlight...no guilt..."

Tim was frustrated. "Kat damn it. Drink some of this." He scooped water towards her mouth with his hand.

Kat drank obediently, kissing his hand once she finished and smiled up at him goofily. "You're so nice..." She slurred going in for an uncoordinated hug.

"No, no...drink more water Kat." He pushed her back towards the sink. "Drink!" He kept trying to scoop more towards her mouth.

Deirdre was breathing deeply. "I need to go. I need to get out of here."

Tim barked. "Do not move! You stay there and just wait."

Deirdre pulled her knees to her chin. "I ruined Camelot. I hurt them..."

Tim didn't know what to do. "Deirdre just sit and Kat, drink!"

"I don't wanna, my tummy hurts..." Kat whined before unceremoniously barfing into the sink.

Tim sighed and held her hair away from her face. "Okay Kat. Just let it all out."

That continued for an awkward couple of minutes before Kat began running the faucet herself and rinsed out her mouth before splashing her face. "Fucking fae..." She groaned weakly, the last vestiges of the thrall finally wearing off, though she still felt shaky and a little off her center of gravity.

Tim sighed. "How you feeling?"

"Like I almost got date raped." Kat said bluntly.

Deirdre stood, "I will leave you two to it." She wanted towards the door.

"Don't you dare move! I didn't just go through all that for nothing." Tim stood. "My queen, stay here so I can ensure your safety." The voice that came out was not entirely his own.

"Oh fuck." Kat groaned, head pounding too much to deal with this right now.

Deirdre stopped dead, her back to him. "Don't call me that."

Walking wobbly toward the door, Kat pulled the latch to locked before turning her back toward the door and sliding down it slowly to the ground. "You two..." She said hazily. "Work it out." She finished lamely, leaning her head back against the door. It was smooth, and felt good against her head. She still didn't feel completely lucid, but she was trying. "Why does everything look purple..?" She mumbled absently.

Deirdre stared at Kat as she sat on the ground after locking the door. She couldn't face Tim.

He stood there waiting. "Please. I know who you are....were..."

Deirdre shook her head. "I'm not her." Her eyes welled up a little. "I don't want to be that. The cause of so much pain."

Tim looked uncomfortable. "I know but you are. I only just learned who I am. It is hard but we are who we are."

Deirdre shook her head. "I can't. I can't be that. I know what they went through."

Tim sighed. "I know my lady. I know. It will be different this time."

Deirdre's lip quivered. She turned to face Tim. "Different? I hurt Arthur. I loved them. I..."

Tim moved forward and wrapped her in his arms. "This time you aren't just Guinevere you are Deirdre."

He looked over at Kat.

Deirdre felt both odd and wonderful in Tim's arms. "It isn't enough. I can't do this."

Tim pulled back and knelt. "You are needed my queen. I don't know what will happen but we are here for a reason."

Deirdre was shaking. She looked down at Tim. "Stand up...." There was desperation in her voice. "Stand up."

Deirdre backed away until she was against the door. She sat down beside Kat. "I can't do this. I don't want to hurt them. I don't even know them but I dreamt of them. I can't do this again."

Tim was still kneeling. "We can let you meet Lancelot. Would that help?" You better be right on this Arin or this is going to be all kinds of fucked up.

"Aww man, Arin's gonna be piiiiiiiissed." Kat slurred with a snort.

Deirdre looked at Kat. "Arin?"

"He already thinks he's on a date with you, but you're you." Kat giggled pointing a finger at Deirdre. "He's Lancelot by the way, welcome to the family."

Her chest felt tight. "He has a Guinevere. He doesn't need me. I don't want to hurt him. Let me leave. Let me go." She was pleading now.

Tim looked at Kat and then back to Deidre. "You can't go. If you are here it means something...right?"

"Apparently not. They went all flashbacky and stuff on each other and he thinks she's you. I wonder who that Arey chick is then? You think Morgan La Fey? I'd put my money on that." Kat said groggily.

Deirdre looked at Kat. "A girl? The girl who kissed me was Arthur....but I think it was due to the stress not her in particular. But she turned into Arthur and we were kissing. Oh god I think I kissed her..." She put her head in her hands.

Tim swallowed hard trying not to picture Deirdre kissing another woman. "Maybe?" Was all he could weakly get out.

"I dreamt of them. Arthur and Lancelot. Lancelot rescued me...her...me...I don't understand this." Deirdre's hands ran through her hair. "Let him be happy. Arin I mean. Let him have her and be happy. I don't want to cause problems."

"Dude, he's like mildly obsessed with you, the minute he finds out she's not Guin, he's probably gonna drop that girl like a hot potato. He's nice and all, but he's a man on a mission...kind of like that Bourne Identity guy, but with cooler hair.." Kat said smiling while staring off into space.

Deirdre didn't like hearing that. It upset her to know that she was someone's mission and that someone else was going to get hurt because of who she was.

Tim felt terrible. He had told Arin that things might not go well and now he was looking at Guinevere who didn't want to be Guinevere. "Maybe there is a mix up? Maybe she, this girl Arey is Guinevere and you are just, I don't know caught up on accident? That can happen right?" He looked at Kat and wished desperately that she were sober. "They are going to be here soon, hopefully. We have to find them and sort this out."

"Instincts baby cakes, rule number one." Kat mumbled.

Tim sighed. "My instincts say you are Guinevere and that your presence here means something. I know you are reluctant but so was I."

Deirdre shook her head. "He thinks he has found her. Leave it be. If I am not present there will be no hurt." She bit her lip. "What of Arthur? Has he found...has he found his Guinevere?"

Her heart pounded thinking of both men. There was pain there, to give up Lancelot as she was, to ask about Arthur and knowing she should stay away, hurt a great deal. She needed to know.

"Fuck if I know..." Kat replied yawning with a full body shrug. "Haven't even finished the data sheets for him yet...too many variable, not enough eliminating factors..." Kat slurred, shifting to the side until her head was on Deirdre's lap. "You smell nice...Tim smells better, but you're good too."

Deirdre looked down at Kat. She caressed her hair. Her eyes drifted to Tim. "I am sure Tim smells very good. Rest now. All will be well."

Tim stood. "I should go out there, find Arin. He is coming here and it would be good if you met."

Deirdre lifted a hand, staying Tim where he stood. "Or it is best to return her to her home, to her bed and leave it for another time."

Tim shook his head "My lady I know you wish to spare him the hurt but you cannot hide yourself from him. Lancelot...Arin wishes to find you, to change what happened last time."

Deirdre looked sad. "If I could spare them both the pain of me I would. I would do anything to take that from them, to take the memory. I do not wish to..."

Tim winced. "You cannot hide. Moths to the flame is what we are. I swear I will do all that I can to protect you but I will not keep you secret. I cannot keep you secret."

Deirdre looked up with sadness in her eyes, "No I cannot hide but I do not need to give in either. If I-I keep my distance than my love for them cannot do the damage it once did. I tore a kingdom apart. I tore two friends, two brothers apart. Do you not understand the guilt I feel but I loved them."

Her hand still stroked Kat's hair. Tim hung his head. "I bear you no ill will for that which was done. We must overcome all of this."

Deidre raised her voice. "For what? What reason could there be for this, for this past life bullshit!"

"To save the world from dicks like roofie-dude..." Kat mumbled in her lap.

The bathroom was quiet. Outside the door people would knock or the music would vibrate through but inside it was still at the moment.

Deidre looked at Kat and then to Tim. "Than I serve no purpose. I do not fight. I am nothing but an obstacle for Arthur and Lancelot...for Arin and whoever Arthur is. I am a distraction.....let me go."

Tim shook his head. "I can't. I am sorry."

Deirdre was angry but with Kat in her lap she was remiss to move. "So you would rather them hurt and distracted? That...that man was not normal. They cannot win and if that is our purpose.....what use am I!"

Tim flinched as if her words were blows. "You wouldn't be here if you didn't matter. Arin needs to find you. He needs to fix things. He carries guilt as you do."

"So I am here to make him feel better. All the flashbacks, the guilt and tears are to make Arin feel better. Special my ass. I am a check mark on a to do list."

Deirdre looked away. "Go, find him. Hurt him now so that it will somehow be better later." Her tone was cold.

She began to shift from the door, moving Kat with her. "We will be here. I won't leave her alone."

Tim looked beyond uncomfortable. "I will find him and you will see. This all has a reason." He tried to sound more confident than he felt in that moment. He took two strides to the now unblocked door and opened it.

Two women bumped into him as they rushed to stalls. With a last look behind him he disappeared into the crowd once more.

Deirdre pulled Kat close as they sat on the floor. Her hand stroked Kat's head slowly. "Tell me about yourself. Tell me about Arin and the others."

If Kat hadn't been under the influence, she probably would had shrugged the question off and dug right into Arin, which was a far more comfortable topic. As it was, Kat was in the mood for oversharing. "Haven't you guessed yet? I'm the little orphan side kick with freak computer talking powers." Kat said bitterly. "A stupid fucking cult killed my parents and I spent three years in a fae supremacist re-education camp, the awesome perks of being a walking ATM. Saw a lot of bad shit and didn't do enough to stop it, so I think I got you cornered on the guilt thing." She plowed along, surprised at her own willingness to talk about it. "...Don't tell Tim okay, he'll look at me different. I think I actually have him deluded into thinking I'm cool." She said with a bark of laughter that was more to mask the flood of negative emotion welling up from those memories.

"Arin is good, fights with Viv sometime, but he's strong. Works as a bartender at Galaxy too, which is pretty cool. He doesn't treat me different ether, even though he knows...I think you'll like him." Kat continued, patting her shakily on the knee.

"You're not useless you know." Kat said after a beat of silence. "Even then you weren't. You're strong in other ways. You're mentally tough." Kat said gently poking Deirdre's forehead. "You make people want to be their best, that's why they need you..."

Deirdre stared down at the girl in her lap. It was a lot to take in and it was the last part that struck her the hardest at first. She shook it off and gave Kat a sweet smile. "Sounds to me like you are the one who is mentally tough. That is quite the life you have had. You don't look like a freak to me. Okay the neon is a bit much..." She smiled and gave a light laugh. "You seem very smart and very put together. I am sure Tim thinks very highly of you. He is certainly protective."

"If you knew half the things I've been a part of, you wouldn't want to touch me." Kat deadpanned, but shifted gears willingly enough when she mentioned Tim. Her grin was goofy but contagious when she replied. "Yeah, Tim's awesome. Sometimes he'll even act like I'm not some kid and flirt back. Not like other people, they're just patronizing about it. Talk to me like I'm a fucking puppy are something." Kat said making a face.

She brushed a piece of hair from Kat's cheek. She left the topic of what Kat had done alone for the moment. "A bartender at Galaxy you say? I was there last night. I wonder which one he was...Who is Viv?"

"Purple hair, hard to miss. I give him crap for it all the time..." Kat said grinning, remembering how hard she'd ribbed him for it when he'd first gotten it.

She didn't feel up to responding to the comment that she was mentally strong. The words were still very slowly sinking in and she couldn't quite bring herself to believe them. She didn't feel strong. She didn't feel needed in a way that was productive. She just was. She was there. Deirdre pushed thoughts of herself aside and focused on Kat.

"Tell me about Viv."

"She saved me." Kat said quietly. "I'm her resident charity case." Kat clarified. "Old fae, and powerful, or at least she used to be. She doesn't talk about it much, but I think she used to be a seelie court fae. She' s the Lady of the Lake now though, guards the sword."

Deirdre nodded slowly. She was listening but had a great deal of information to file away. Purple hair. He was there. I didn't talk to him. Maybe for the best...Tim, knight I know that. Treats her well. A kid but not immature or young. Age only. To be respected. Viv...Lady of the Lake. She felt like every part of her tensed with just the title on her mind. The sword.

"What is Kat short for?"

"Katrina...I think it was supposed to be after my grandma." Kat said numbly.

"It is a very regal name." Deirdre gently ran her hand over Kat's head. People came and went from the bathroom though no one said anything to them and those that stopped to look were waved away with a brief motion of her hand.

"You know, it sounds to me that you are not a charity case. It sounds like Viv is a smart woman and knew what she saw when she met you. I bet she never doubted for a second what sort of woman you'd turn into. You came here tonight, for what? To dance? Seems not quite right. We both know Tim isn't the cut loose and shake his hips kind of guy. I bet you are quite the force to be reckoned with. In fact I have seen parts of that myself."

There was some silence as she surveyed the girl in her lap. So young yet so much experience, so much pain. More than enough for a lifetime. The things she could show us...

She closed her eyes briefly. "I don't want to be useless but I don't think I am as strong as she was." The words were little more than a whisper. Deirdre was afraid and this was about the only time that someone would get her to admit it and she was only able to say it out loud because Kat was sharing so much and D was sure the girl might not remember it in the morning.

"Well you're not her, and you shouldn't try to be. It'll just make you crazy." Kat said reassuringly. "Your past life is the past y'know, experiences to draw on. Doesn't mean you'll make the same choices or feel the same things as she did. It's just a matter of filtering I bet."

"So ideally I won't have feelings for either man and I can crush Arin's dreams of fulfilling his mission...great so no matter what I do someone is getting hurt." She sighed a little. "I sound terribly pessimistic. What if he is great?"

"Some dreams are stupid." Kat said bluntly. " And you can't live for other people." Kat shrugged. "I think he's cool, but he's also like my brother, so what else am I going to think?"

"Tell me about him. Not that he is a bartender. Tell me about what he is like as a person." She was curious about this man though it concerned her that Kat had said he was a bit obsessed with Guinevere. She could see it from his side, a fulfilling of the past but there was a part of her that worried he would like her because of who she was then and not who was now. If she could know more about him it might help her.

Kat had to think about that for a moment. How did you accurately describe someone who was a constant and integral fixture in your life? "He's protective, but not in an overbearing sort of way. Gives people space when they need it, and will totally ninja hug you from behind if you're too proud to ask for one after a bad day. He's outgoing, one of those friendly types that can charm the pants off people without even trying y'know. He's also got this quiet confidence about him, and I think he'd rather show off than brag about anything." Kat explained.

"He's also got this weight to him, that kind of sadness people get when they've been worrying about something their whole lives. Arin's Viv's son, so he's grown up knowing who he is, and I think that does something to a kid. Living with that kind of guilt his whole life, I think he's built up this fantasy in his head where he's gonna meet you and make everything right, that way maybe some of that guilt will edge off a bit. Try not to hold it against him okay, he doesn't know you yet, he just knows the idea of you."

Deirdre looked away, "He sounds wonderful." It made her sad to know that he was so complex yet had to live with the guilt longer than anyone. Was that a part of their punishment? It felt like it. To feel the guilt and worse to know that the man she had loved so strongly came back and could never escape it. At least she had been ignorant of it for a long time but not him. "It won't go away, the guilt just by us meeting. It is going to be worse when I am not someone he is interested in and he tries to pretend there is more there than there is."

She smiled down at Kat, "I don't hold anything against him. Don't worry. Maybe it will be different this time. Maybe this other girl is his Guinevere and I am just the part that will help him with the guilt and he can go off and be happy with her. Who knows. Maybe he meets me and hates me and just the fact that he has no feelings is enough to take the guilt away. He can do it right this time...for both of us...for all three of us."

"I think regardless of how you both end up feeling about each other, that it's more important that you guys forgive yourselves...or past selves. The only crime any of you committed was loving each other too much, and I mean if you're going to be villainized for something, might as well be for good reasons." Kat replied, before a more lucid and mischievous thought ran past her hazy head. "Y'know...I hear people now a days are more open that that whole threesome thing...If all else fails, I'm just saying..." Kat joked.

Deirdre started laughing. For the first time in days she openly laughed. "I will keep that in mind. If all else fails take them both to bed." She put her head back against the wall. "You know Arin might be in trouble anyway. I mean I did end up kissing this blonde woman in the bathroom at Galaxy and she turned into Arthur when I started hallucinating. Maybe in this life Lancelot and Arthur won't have a chance..." She chuckled again. Her mind drifted to the blonde and how she had been hugging her back, how intense the kiss was and the look on her face when she broke the moment.

"Maybe I am into women?"

A woman in the bathroom looked over at Deirdre. "Hey sweetie, let me know if you ever want to find out for sure. I can help." She gave Deirdre a wink.

"Oi! I got dibs on the role of bi-curious genie-pig!" Kat exclaimed cheekily. "It's part of my duty as the cheeky comic relief."

Deirdre bit her lips and smiled before looking down at Kat quickly. She wasn't sure if she should laugh or what. "Um, thanks I will keep that in mind." She gave Kat a look of amusement. "See?"

The woman looked over at the pair and with a bit of a scoff left the bathroom. Deirdre shook her head and giggled. "Bi-curious genie? Is that your nickname or something?"

"I don't know, I'm drunk...I think...my diction's all over the place tonight." Kat replied with a shrug. "I prefer equal opportunist myself...but Batman will also do." Kat chuckled. "If you want in on the montage, you're gonna have to be Batgirl though. I've already assigned Tim as my Robin, and I will not give up my dream of seeing him in tights."

Deirdre smiled again. "Tim in tights...I could see that. I have seen a lot of men in tights." She pointed to her chest. "Dancer. All the men wear tights when you are a ballet dancer." She frowned a little, "What's Batman? And before you go all shocked on me I was in a ballet school until this year. I didn't get out much or at all. I am only now just learning about tv shows and movies, hell a lot of music too. My parents were pretty careful when I was home to make sure I was still going to classes. Between that and sleeping, studying there isn't a lot of time for fun. Hell my first kiss was only like a day ago and it was a woman...and I ruined that by hallucinating and freaking us both out."

"Nice, men in tights..."Kat giggled as Deirdre explained. "Yeah, I can see that. You kind of look like a dancer." She didn't hear about ballet much, but then she didn't really run in the circles for that kind of thing either. She'd kind of skipped over that whole "I want to be a ballerina" phase of her life. When D said she'd never heard of Batman however, her mind went blank.

"I must save you!" Kat said looking up at Deirdre in horror. "A life without Batman is empty and sad...where do I even start with you?" Kat mused absently.

Deirdre shrugged, "Consider me a blank slate. There is a lot of my life that I have missed by trying to be perfect and the special girl my parents wanted me to be. I am game for anything. Only reason I come to things like this. It is so different than anything I know. And school…the freedom bit intoxicating honestly." She looked at Kat. "Oh, sorry."

Kat pursed her lips and gave a lopsided thumbs up sign to show she was cool. "S'ok, that's how life should be I guess. If nothing ever make you feel excited, what's the point?"

Deirdre nodded slowly. "Can you tell my parents that?" It struck her in that moment that Kat was a teenager but she spoke with the maturity and experience of someone far older. She wondered just what had happened to her before she was taken in. "They would have rather I was on stage, a pretty and perfect ballerina, safe from the horrors of the world." As if on cue her phone vibrated in her pocket.

"I bet that is my mother now. She wants to know that I am doing alright...it is Saturday night and she is worried I might get into trouble. I might be drinking or drugs or the worst, having fun."

"Sometimes the world's scary. Moms are supposed to worry right? The ones in those ABC Family movies always do." Kat added, not really sure what else to say. She didn't have a whole lot of experience with moms.

Deirdre pulled her phone out of her pocket. She held it up. There on the screen a text from her mother. Hi Princess! Just checking in.... "Ha. Predictable as ever."

She dropped her hand down. "Is Viv protective of you? What about Arin?"

"She gets on me if she thinks I'm being reckless I guess, and she helps out if I get into too much trouble on errands." Kat answered reluctantly. Viv was protective in her own way she supposed, but the Fae were pretty hard core proponents of tough love, and coddling wasn't really their thing. She was warmer with Arin though, it was hard to see sometimes, but Kat noticed it. She was a tough mom, but she was far more willing to idly touch him or give a random word or praise. It was natural motherly affect she supposed, but didn't voice that. "She's supportive." Kat concluded. "Tough but fair. She gives you what you need, even if you don't really appreciate it right away."

Deirdre nodded slowly. "She sounds like she trusts you to try things, to tackle problems but she makes sure you don't get in over your head."

When she asked about Arin, Kat snorted. "Not the way Tim is." She said with a goofy grin. Tim was kind of like a guard dog if tonight was anything to go off of, barking at anything suspicious that got too close. Arin was much more like Viv in that department. She knew he'd have her back if there was ever any real trouble, but he let her make her own decisions and work through the consequences herself.

"Arin sounds like he has a lot of faith in you too. Smart people. I know it didn't take much to convince me that you knew what you were talking about. I don't know how you knew to follow me but I am glad you did."

She went silent for a moment, her fingers played with Kat's hair. "I don't think I should be here when he bring Arin in. I don't think I should meet him. Not if he is with someone. Maybe in the future, a year from now...I don't know but..."

Deirdre looked pained. "I am scared. I know I should be asking more questions and maybe even freaking out more but this whole past life thing isn't so bad, it just makes this life more confusing and I really don't want to hurt them again. I don't want to be used to make him feel better. I-I don't want to do this."

Kat sighed heavily, not really sure what to say to that. She wasn't like Tim or Arin, she couldn't honestly say she understood the feeling because it would just be a lie. Feeling trapped with no control over your life though was something she got. "Then don't let him define your life, either of them. You're strong and independent, so don't let them dictate how you live. If you run though, it just gives them more power over you. When you do that, they're the ones dictating your life, so don't let them do that."

Deirdre frowned, "If I make the choice not to be involved, to just walk away how is that letting them dictate my life. I am making the choice to live my life without them. I don't need Arthur or Lancelot. I don't need this." She trembled a little. "What if I stay and I meet Arin and I like him? What if it turns into more than that? Then when I meet Arthur what if it happens again? What if I can't stop it?"

"I don't know." Kat said honestly. "But I do know that when you start running from the things that scare you, you never really stop, and then that's what really runs your life."

She shook her head. "I don't want to leave you alone but I am afraid of what will happen if Tim comes back and Arin is with him. Or the poor girl he is courting." She knew Kat was right, that running from them now wasn't going to solve anything. She only wanted to run because she was afraid, a large part of her wanted to stay and be with them again. They tugged at her and her other self had told her they needed her. Deirdre didn't honestly think she could make herself walk away from Tim and once she met Arin she knew it was going to be even harder.

"I won't go anywhere but when he doesn't like me it will be a relief."

She wanted to change the subject away from her fears. "So Tim...how did you meet him? When I met him he never said anything about being a reincarnated knight of the round table though he was very chivalrous."

"In a pizza parlor." Kat blurted, equally happy for the subject change. "I flirted him into submission and he was too tired to fight back." Kat said with a grin. "Then a succubus tried to eat his face and I had to rescue him. No biggy."

"Succubus?" Deirdre bit her lip to stop from giggling. The mental picture of Kat flirting with Tim that he ended up on his knees at her feet was just too amusing. "What's a succubus?" She tried to keep her attention on the more serious part of Kat's comment.

"The chick version of roofie-dude." Kat grumbled. "The feed on people by having sex. Make people so crazy for it that sometimes they stay that way, or just die. Sometimes people just wake up in a hotel room the next morning with a room bill and a body ache. They're not always predictable."

Deirdre gagged a little. "I would have had sex with him? Oh no...no...my first time with him, that...Thank god Tim knew what to do."

"We're lucky we were in a crowded place and he wasn't hungry enough to be bothered with a fight." Kat replied. "Besides the magic sex hands, those things are strong. The bitch we ran into last night chased us into a freaking law building before I could get us out of there." Kat grumbled. Remembering the succubus's hands on Tim, all claiming and manhandling-like made a little green eyed monster rear its ugly head.

"She sounds lovely..." Her tone was sarcastic. "So succubus that is what we are fighting? We stop sex crazed...what are they? Demons or something? And the world is saved?" I should be more freaked out by this. I should be laughing at the absurdity. None of it felt crazy to her.

"Pssht, I wish. Those things are just bottom feeders, low caste among the Unseelie, dark fae I mean. The light fae aren't much nicer, but at least they don't eat people and stick to their side of the vale for the most part." Kat replied. "They're not all bad, but it's not a good idea to trust one you don't know really well."

"I don't understand. If it isn't just them who else? What exactly is it we are supposed to be fighting against?"

Deirdre brushed a strand of hair from Kat's eyes. Three women came into the bathroom chattering away. They ignored the pair on the floor. Two of them popped something into their mouths while the other brushed her fingers through her hair to fix it. Their make up was running due to sweat and in the light of the bathroom they looked a mess. In dark of the club no one would notice.

"I'll get you the encyclopedia." Kat said dryly. There were just too many different kinds of fae to list out here.

"Oh goody, more studying." Deirdre sighed and looked to the bathroom door. "What if he doesn't find them? Can I take you someplace?"

"True enough. Nice thing about being on scholarship I guess. No parents trying to push you into their dream career." Arey conceded. The music had just changed over to a rare slow song, and Arey had shifted her arms up almost shyly to circle round Arin's neck. Arey hadn't slow danced since year 9, and that had been an awkward mess, but she figured she still knew what to do.

Not long into the song though, a shirtless man came pushing through the crowd and stopped when he saw Arin. Apparently they knew each other Arey thought in confusion. The guy seemed vaguely familiar, but Arey couldn't place him. A classmate maybe she reasoned? "Do you two need a minute?" Arey asked awkwardly, feeling like she was intruding on something.

Arin was enjoying the closeness when someone bumped and grabbed him. Exasperated he turned to brush off a suspected drunk or otherwise over served when he recognized Tim, "What? Why the hell are you here?"

Tim looked completely unsure and cut off anything else Arin might say, "I-Kat...." With a deep inhale he relaxed just a little. "Look, sorry I need you to come to the bathroom. Kat's not okay. And...." He looked over at Arey. "Things aren't what you think they are."

He gave Arin a look that asked him to trust him. He knew he had only just met him but he hoped that their past bond would count for something. "You can bring her too but...not sure that is a good idea."

"Kat? What?" Arin sighed, "I should have figured she wouldn't leave well enough alone."

He turned back to Arey, "Kat is that sort of sister I was talking about. Tim here is a friend. Apparently they must have got wind of my plans to come here and wanted to join the fun. You're more than welcome to come meet Kat. Despite what Tim says, it's probably fine," Arin had a sense of dread. He knew Tim wasn't going to speak lightly, but he really didn't want to desert Arey. He looked to Tim, trying to convey the spot he was in.

Why do I feel liked I've just been insulted? Arey thought taken aback. Wondering why Arin's friend seemed so put off by her. They hadn't even bloody met, and she was already getting pointed "ditch her" looks from his friends. She wasn't really sure how to respond to that, but at the mention of Arin's sister being in trouble, she back off from the issue mentally. Maybe he was just anxious was all.

Tim looked ill. "Nice to meet you, wish it was better circumstances." He held out a hand and braced himself. "I am Tim. Sorry about all this, really. Bad time here and all..." He felt terrible but he was incredibly certain that this was not going to go well.

"You too." Arey replied, reaching out to take his hand until she got a better look at his face, and reached her hand up to feel his forehead instead. "Bloody hell, are you alright?! You're burning up!" Arey asked concerned, the pre-med student in her kicking in as a strong urge to protect and take care of this man came over her.

Tim shook his head, eyes wide. "No. No things are not alright." He looked to Arin. How did he not know? How did he think it was Guin? Tim knew, the moment her hand touched his forehead. He saw it all. The kneeling as he was knighted, the discussions over maps, the laughing, the battles. His eyes moved from the woman to Arin and back again. He had to fight the urge to kneel at her feet. Oh Arin....

Oh fuck. Really? Arin inwardly winced as he watched the two react to each other.

Tim didn't know if she felt it too but he knew. Trust your instincts Kat said. Well I fucking win the prize now don't I?

"We need to go to the bathroom...." It was all he could say. He stared at Arey, the woman before him with admiration and respect in his eyes.

"I think you need some water." Arey replied, seeing the look in his eyes snapping her back to reality, and making her feel insanely uncomfortable. A little warning of trepidation flared up from somewhere deep inside, and something screamed at her that she certainly did not want to go anywhere near that bathroom.

Arin looked to Arey and half shrugged, "Maybe you should come. I think you might be interested in meeting Kat too. She's cool."

"You're friend said she wasn't feeling well, are you sure she'd want me there...?" Arey asked uncertainly. She trusted Arin, probably more than knowing him for two days warranted, but there was also a growing anxiety rising up that she couldn't put a name to.

Arin was feeling pressured. Obviously Tim and Kat have had some kind of event, happening or something. He couldn't just leave Arey here. Yet, Tim was quite insistent that her coming was bad. He knew Tim for less than a day but something in him was sure that Tim would not be frivolous about this. Arin needed some kind of assurance that Arey wouldn't just leave. Meeting Kat at a rave and getting it all laid out wasn't his plan. He needed to do something to make sure that Arey would be here when he came back, or at the very least, there would be a second date.

"I'm pretty sure things are okay. If you'd like to meet her now, shouldn't be a problem. If not, wait here, I'll be right back," Arin leaned in toward her, sliding a hand behind her head. He kissed her, gently, but fully. He was hoping for some kind of spark, flashback, something to convince her to stay. It was extremely pleasant. He quite enjoyed the kiss. However, it was a kiss. Nothing else.

He stepped away, "I... I'll be right back. Or... you know."

Tim froze. Oh not good...not good... He waited, holding his breath and frowned as Arin stepped away. No shock, no surprise. My instincts have been right. He’s deluded. His mouth formed a straight line. "You both coming or what?" Still not a good idea.

The kiss was unexpected, out of the blue really, but not unwelcome either. She didn't exactly have a lot of experience with the whole kissing thing, and she was pretty much forcefully blocking out the insident from last night completely, but this definitely hit the top of her list. A little unsurely, she kissed back, enjoying to feel of his surprisingly soft lips against hers as she tilted her head back for a better angle. It was over too quickly, and she felt a little breathless afterward, but she was smile once the broke away, a little confused but happy.

"Sure..." Arey said hesitantly, lacing her fingers through Arin's when Tim asked if she was coming or not. It didn't really feel right to just stay behind after sharing that, and he was asking her to meet his sister. It would be rude to not go she reasoned, pushing away the nervous feeling.

Tim sighed and led the way to the women's bathroom. How do I explain this to him. Shit this is going so beyond bad. What would Ywain...I mean I do? Tim didn't have a clue.

He pushed open the door and looked down at Deirdre and Kat who remained where he left them on the floor. "I found Arin but you should know I found out that..."

Deirdre looked up as they entered. She paled immediately. "I have to go."

Tim shook his head. "No you have to stay. We..." He looked at Arin. "Lock the door would you?"

Deidre was shaking, almost violently. She kept shaking her head.

Arin looked at Tim, confused by the request, "Huh? Why? And who's... oh, wait. I remember you. From Galaxy."

"No, no you don't." She gently moved Kat. "Arin is here. I have to go." She couldn't bring herself to look at the blonde woman.

Arey didn't notice the other woman at first, as she'd sent an odd look Tim's way when he said to lock the bathroom door. When she heard Arin say he recognize someone from Galaxy however, she turned her head to look at the other occupants in the bathroom before going as stiff as a board, and almost forget to breath.

ITS HER! a voice she didn't recognized in her mind screamed, though Arey certainly recognized her from last night. She wanted to leave, and Arey seconded the motion, suddenly overcome with the urge to flee.

Tim sighed, "You can't leave."

Deirdre's lip trembled. "Yes I can." She stood gently leaving Kat. Her eyes moved from the woman to Arin. "This is a big joke. That is why I am here. You want a reason? It is punishment for what I did. I am to watch them..."

Tim reached out to grab Deirdre as she headed to the door. She stopped dead in front of Arin who blocked her path. "Let me pass please." Her voice was full of sadness and pleading.

Tim shook his head. "If you do Arin you are making a big mistake."

Deirdre raised her eyes to meet Arin's, "Please."

The pain in the other woman's voice felt like a physical blow to Arey, and her hand dropped from Arin's as if burned. She was confused, felt jumbled. Part of Arey wanted nothing more than to pull the other woman into her arms and hold her until her pain went away, a deep voice that was not her own demanded it. The other part screamed at her to run, fast and far and to never come back. She started breathing hard instead, inching closer to the door as the other woman approached.

Arin's world flipped. He felt like he must do what this new woman asked, as though he should be only out to ensure her desires. Looking into her eyes as she pleaded with him to let her pass all the flashbacks with Arey replayed in his head. Every one of them included Guin. Yet, every one of them included Arthur. Arin felt the color drain from his face. His one chance to make it right. His whole goal in this new life, missed because he mistook the person in the vision. There she was and he had left her to Shane.

He turned to Tim, "I don't know what to do now. Help?"

He sunk to the floor.

Tim looked pained. "I-"

Deirdre watched Arin sink to the floor, she could hear the woman behind her, breathing hard out of anxiety. "I have done it already." There were tears in her eyes. She looked at Tim. "You should tell them. Help him."

She looked down at Arin and knelt beside him. Her hand brushed his cheek. "I am sorry...."

Tim was at a loss. He crossed to Arey. "Here, come get a drink of water..." He wanted to clear space, to give the three of them room and right now Arey looked in the most need of some sort of breather. "It's okay, it is a lot to take in."

Arey didn't know what had happened, couldn't explain it to herself in any way that made sense. Not five minutes ago she'd just had her first proper kiss with a boy she liked, and now it felt like the world had just flipped on its side. Arin sunk to the floor, looking as lost as she felt, and she didn't know what to do. Arin was hurting, that woman was hurting and she didn't know how to make it stop. The woman looked heartbroken, and she leaned down next to Arin, apologizing as she brushed his cheek.

And that was all it took. Like a flood gate had just been opened up, pain, anger, betrayal all felt fresh and new. She saw flashes of images, people she recognized but didn't, and then there was just pain. In the back of her mind she felt a presence, trying to crawl its way to the surface, trying to gently edge her back for control, and that, more than anything else, terrified her. With a will power she hardly knew she possessed, she beat back at it relentlessly until it finally slunk away.

"I don't want any water." Arey replied hoarsely brought back from the brink by Tim's voice. "I don't know what the bloody hell you're talking about, but this is...is..." Arey didn't finish that sentance. Instead she turned on her heel and launched herself at the door.

Deirdre stood and put her hand up to stop Arey. "Don't. Don't leave. You are scared and confused. We all are." She was surprisingly calm. Her eyes met Arey's. Their blue depths made Deirdre feel like she was drowning for a moment. "Please. Don't leave him, not like this. We all just need a moment."

Arin sat on the floor, looking straight down. His attention had been totally focused on Tim or the new woman until this point. Now, he noticed, out of the corner of his eye, Kat, laying on the floor. He turned to look at her. She did not look well. Arin shook his head and suddenly, the Lancelot part of him fell away. What had happened to Kat. He turned to Tim and almost growled, "Is Kat okay? What happened? Who did this to her?" He dragged himself over to where she lay.

"S'okay...I barffed up most of the drugs…I think." Kat mumbled, head still pounding too much to get up.

Tim inhaled. "Incubus. He got a hold of her as she was chasing Deirdre and got her drunk but I fought him off. She is okay just still a bit drunk. He got me as well, while I was trying to find you to tell you I found...well you know. She stayed with Kat but I think she needs to get home."

Deirdre looked at Arey, "You will be okay." She gave her a smile and squeezed her hand before turning for the door.

Arin stood up, a resolve coming back that had been missing for a time, "Don't." The soldier in him started giving orders, "There is no guarantee this Incubus has left. Or that it's the only one here. If you leave now, when they know you are here, you are unlikely to make it to the door. Now is not the time to play with the past. We need to focus on the present and get us all out of here, safe. Tim, that cross, it's iron?"

Arey didn't know what to think. This was the girl who had comforted her yesterday when she'd thought the world was crashing down around her. Her eyes were earnest and a part of Arey called out to go to her. She couldn't believe a words the woman way saying though, it just all sounded too insane.

"Don't yell at her." Arey practically growled. An anger rising up in her that was partly her own, but mostly not. "What the fuck are you talking about?" Arey felt like shouting, felt like punching someone, and a lot of that anger seemed highly directed for some reason.

Tim nodded slowly, his eyes on Arey's back. All kinds of fucked up now. "He warned me there were more out there."

"Perfect. I have a set of, well not brass knuckles obviously, but iron. You and I will cover the others," he turned to Arey. He knew what she would be feeling. He saw it in her face, but he didn't have the ability or desire to explain.

"I am not yelling. I am trying to ensure none of us end up as a midnight snack. Please, be pissed at me all you like, swear at me up and down, but do not go off on your own. If you are so pissed at me that you can't accept my help then accept Tim's. For her sake." He pointed at Kat.

"We need to get her home. She will explain it all."

Deirdre was still looking at Arey. She didn't move though she wanted to.

"Help from what?!" Arey exclaimed in frustration. No one was talking sense. Incubuses? What the flying fuck!? Was this just some kind of game? Get his buddies from Galaxy to pull some stupid prank on one of the girls who was fool enough to give him their number at the bar? That seemed a hell of a lot more plausible than anything they were telling her now.

"Help from those that would harm you, and them. I know it makes no sense and defies all reason but it is the truth. They will protect you even though you don't know that you need it." Her voice was calm and reassuring. There was a levelness to it that should not be there given all that had gone on. "There are things that are strange and unusual out there. Haven't you seen the crowd?" She offered Arey a reassuring smile.

Arey just stared hard, at each and every one of them in turn. "Do you have any idea how bonkers you sound?"

"Only every idea," Arin nodded.

"Yes" Tim said.

Deirdre nodded.

"Look, you said you were thinking about being a doctor? Think of it this way. This young girl needs help out of a rave and she's currently surrounded by a bunch of loons. Seems like it's the only reasonable thing for you to do. Help her get home safe," Arin knew there was no way he would convince her of the rest of it. So, he fell to something more mundane.

"I thought she was your sister? Or was that a lie too?" Arey asked eyes hard, though they softened a little when she looked at Kat. She looked dehydrated and definitely under the influence of something. Medical attention there would be wise.

"I always said, sort of sister. She's not directly related but she lives with my mother," Arin explained.

"She crazy too?" Arey shot back, though her eyes stayed with Kat, the overly morally compelled part of her being too easily swayed.

Tim moved to pick Kat up, cradling her in his arms. Nice play Arin. He gave the man a look of appreciation.

Kat gave an exaggerated cough, playing along. "Help me they're nuts..." She joked weakly giving Arey a wink. Arey just blinked, not sure what to say to that.

"Not helping Kat," Arin whispered to her.

Deirdre backed up very slowly to the door. She hoped to make an exit while they discussed. She stopped when she noticed Tim's eyes on her. The look he gave her made her pause.

Tim whispered to Arin. "Don't let Deirdre slip away. She is going to try, I know it."

Arin nodded, "Noted."

Arin looked to the woman Tim called Deidre, "It's really, really not a good idea to leave. You know that. Tim says you've experienced it. Nothing in this room is going to be worse that what one of those things will do to you," Arin spoke plainly. He wasn't trying to convince her, he was just laying it bare. Too many balls in the air and he was just barely keeping it together himself. The only thing going for him was the knowledge that Viv had given him. He knew damn well that, if what Tim said was true and there were more of those monsters out there, then the only way they had a chance was sitcking together.

Tim nodded, "Shall we then?" He hoped that it was settled because he wanted to be anywhere but right here, right now.

Deirdre looked away from Arin. She couldn't face him. "I am aware but I thank you to leave me to my own decisions. You have enough on your plate."

Tim crossed the bathroom, Kat in his arms. He passed Arey, "Come on. Stay close." He moved to the door, slipping past Deirdre. "Don't you dare disappear."

"I do have a lot on my plate. Yes. And you taking off will only add to that burden," Arin sighed.

Tim opened the door and exited the bathroom. He gave one last look over his shoulder to make sure they were all following.

Deirdre stepped out of the way, letting Arey move past. "You should stay close in case she gets sick again. There was more than just booze that he gave her."

She looked at Arin, "I will not add to your problems here. But I cannot stay once we are outside. I shouldn't be here."

"I will not tell you what to do outside of any threatening situation. However, I strongly advise you to continue with us to a safe place. We will then be able to arrange anything that needs arranging," Arin's tone was one of resignation. He didn't have the will to fight multiple battles. He just wanted to get everyone safe and be allowed to focus on that. It was the only thing allowing him to function currently.

Deirdre smiled. "I know who I am. I know who I was. I know what is out there...mostly. I won't interfere with what you were doing." She turned and followed out the door. Her chest hurt and she wanted to cry but couldn't. There would be time for that later.

Arin turned to Arey, "Please?"

Arey felt conflicted. They were obviously crazy, all of them, but they made it clear they weren't letting her leave the bathroom unless it was with them, and apparently the club to. Arin said safe place, which implied he was trying to take her somewhere. There was no way in fucking hell she was going to let that happen, but for now she'd play along until they got out to the streets. She could break away once they were out there, and she was confident she could outrun any of them of foot. It was survival mode now, so silently she followed along, tense, and waiting for her chance to bolt.

"Where'd your shirt go?" Kat asked absently to Tim, as if just noticing that it was gone.

Tim blushed, "Ugh well....Incubus took it off of me. He well...I fought but he managed to get close. Strong bugger."

"That code for he put the whammy on you?" Kat replied tiredly, but some humor played across her face.

Tim looked chagrinned, "A little but not because I wasn't trying. It was not easy for him."

"Never said it was." Kat agreed. "You're a strong bugger too."

"You are sweet Kat. I still feel like I failed and with..." Tim shook his head. "Never mind. You just rest sweetie." He hugged her a little closer, feeling very protective and overly aware.

"You didn't fail anything." Kat protested. "I'm the one supposed to be looking out for you noob." She gently patted him on the shoulder snuggling closer for reassurance. "Can't help your MVP gettin' KOed in the first quarter." She tried to tease.

Tim blushed. "Rest you." He looked up towards where they were going.

"Oh yeah." Kat challenged. "Make me." She finished sticking out her tongue.

"Careful there half pint." He smiled down at her.

"Are you really gonna make that a thing?" Kat whined at the nickname, but smiled back.

"Maybe. You gonna make me stop? Half pint?" Tim gave her a wink.

"Don't tempt me toots. I can be pretty creative when properly motivated." She grinned back, pleased.

Tim chuckled.

Deirdre walked, back straight and held slightly tilted. She heard Arin ask the woman to come along. She felt a twinge of guilt that she hadn't done enough to calm the woman down and still put up a resistance of her own. When she saw them walk in together it was like someone had stabbed her. She immediately knew who the woman was, no doubt. Maybe it is for the best. I won't have to be the thing that relieves his guilt. He will have Arthur, he will have her. No conflict, no hiding. They can have a bond that is as strong as it was before and there will be no worry that I might come between them. This is right. She tried to convince herself of that and her rational mind knew it but another part of her was heartbroken. She had hurt them by her mere presence. I told Tim he should have just let me go. If Arin had figured it out after they had been dating then I wouldn't matter, Guinevere wouldn't matter. She was lost in her thoughts as she followed Tim out into the club and to the door.

Tim moved through the bodies, Kat in his arms. He was not gentle as he shoved people out of the way. His eyes darted around, watching for signs of danger as well as behind him to make sure the women followed. He knew Arin would ensure it as well, he trusted him. He fought back his sense of dread, replacing it with duty and alertness. There was no time now to worry about what might happen once they got out of here.

The front door loomed ahead. Tim was almost holding his breath. He worried about what might be waiting for them out there. Not just now but in the coming days. What would happen with Arin and Arey? What of Deirdre? Could this be repaired enough that they could still win this battle that seemed to be coming or were they doomed before they really had gotten started?

Arin finally followed the rest out of the bathroom. There was no time to wallow in his self-pity, he had to make sure they were safe. He watched the crowd and the group in front of him. Deirdre walked just like Guin did. Proud, regal, beautiful. He shook his head. Stop, that's over now. Focus. He saw Tim and Kat exchanging grins. Good, she seems okay. Arin was just realizing that Kat meant more to himself, as Arin, than anything about Guin did to his Lancelot part. It was seeing Kat helpless on the floor that kicked him out of his stupor. Sort of sister? I think I can drop the sort of now. Finally he looked back to Arey. She looked jumpy, shocked and scared. No doubt, and she hasn't even been told who she was yet. Arin sighed. This beautiful woman, who he was actually finding himself attracted to and not as Lancelot, but as Arin, turns out to be his king and best friend ever. What's next? Merlin is some sort of skeptic that rails against any type of unexplainable anything? I can't imagine this becoming more awkward.

The shock of the cold as Tim opened the door refocused Arin's attention. Good job at keeping an eye out. he berated himself.

With a shove he opened the door. The cool air hit his bare torso but his concern was for Kat. He held her closer against him. "Cab?" He looked to Arin.

Alan hated night clubs. They were noisy, dirty, and attracted the wrong kind of people. Or not people at all, He thought grumpily. Why the professor had sent him here with the damn succubus he’d impressed into service, he had no clue. Matt would have been the better choice, he was the one who could use magic after all. Probably thought he’d get distracted with all the half-naked girls around. he thought unkindly.

“Do you…smell them?” Alan asked the succubus uncertainly, her presence mostly just making him feel uncomfortable. Being attracted to women was weird to him, and though he could rationalize why she could induce that reaction in his head, it didn’t make it feel any less weird.

Shaukar breathed in deeply. They were here. She’d had a taste of the lovely man already, she could track him now, follow his scent wherever he went. The fae girl’s smell she recognized too. They were here, and together. She wanted to rip out the girl’s throat for daring to burn her face with iron. Maybe she’d break the girl’s legs first; drag them both to a corner and make her watch while Shaukar drained the man dry. NOT ENOUGH! her mind screamed. She wanted vengeance, and she’d had her fill of energy last night, thanks to her new employer. She could afford to take her time with this.
“There, by the door.” She hissed, keeping them in her line of sight.

Alan looked at the group she pointed out. Two men and three girls. One he surprisingly recognized. "The one with the ponytail's in my chem class." Alan remarked. "Think she's one of them?"

Shaukar's eyes blazed as they landed on the girl, breathing in a ragged breath. "Yes." She practically moaned.

The door was in sight, and Arey tensed. It felt like someone was watching her, but she decided to chock it up to the watchful eyes of the loons she was currently walking with. She had to stop herself from walking on the balls of her feet, it was too much of a give away to her intention to run. She had to wait until they made it out of the door. Ahead, she heard Tim ask about a cab, and she took a deep breath, preparing to break away.

Arin stepped out the door and turned to Tim, "Absolutely. I have my bike here. I can't take everyone." Leaving Tim with the entire group was not a good idea. Deirdre seemed less likely to bolt currently. Arey seemed unpredictable and Kat needed attention. Having only one person in that group would ensure trouble. "I can leave my bike here and pick it up later."

Tim nodded, relieved that Arin wouldn't leave him to wrangle all the women. He wasn't sure he had the energy or willpower to fight them. "Good, okay...." He shifted Kat and made an arm free. He watched down the street for the first free cab. It wouldn't be hard to get one, not in this city and not outside of a club. One was coming down the road. Tim raised his arm and started waving it down.

Deirdre stood quietly. Her only purpose right now was not to spook the woman and not to make Arin's life more difficult. She'd already done enough by just being there. Once we get to a better place I will just take off. Maybe they will let me just take the cab home... She felt an odd shiver run through her. She didn't want to stay but the other part of her didn't want to be parted from them. You can't win this. I have to do what is best for everyone. Our punishment is I have to distance myself. You did that. Your mistakes have to be paid for and this is it. Deirdre chanced a glance to the blonde woman. She looked stressed and tense. Deirdre wanted to go to her, to hug her but the last time they had ended up in a passionate kiss. The memory made her cheeks flushed a little. She looked away. The universe can be cruel, you just have to live with it. Kat said you were mentally strong, prove it. Walk away without a fuss.

They were outside. Tim held Kat in his arms while he and Arin looked to call over a cab. Carefully Arey looked both ways down ether side of the street. Right would take her toward a main road she guessed, and decided she'd bolt that way. She caught the other woman staring at her for a moment and held her breath. She looked away and Arey turned, sprinting to the right to get away. She couldn't look at those eyes anymore. Run run run...

Deirdre wasn't shocked when she caught the motion of the blonde running away out of the corner of her eye. She licked her lips. Do I slip away? Do I stay?

Tim whipped his head around. 'Fuck. Arin she is running." Tim held Kat but couldn't run after her. "Are you just going to let her run?" He looked to Arin with concern.

Kat glanced over to watch Arey's retreating figure and sighed, wishing she was up to snuff and could chase after. She'd been afraid that blondey might bolt. Instead, she reached her hand out shakily toward Deirdre, trying to look as pathetic and pitiful as possible. "D, will you hold my hand? I feel cold...?" She whimpered like a champ, sending her puppy eyes. Kat wasn't about to watch two of them bolt on her tonight, and she kind of like D anyway.

Arin felt odd. Something wasn't quite right here. There was something else nearby. When Arey bolted Arin didn't react immediately, being distracted by the sense of dread, "Shit! No, Arey, wait!" He turned to follow then stopped as he heard Kat.

Deirdre felt guilty for considering leaving. Kat reached out to her and despite her own discomfort and rationale that she should vanish from Arin's life now, she couldn't just leave. She didn't have it in her to simply walk away when someone needed her reassurance. She liked Kat. The young woman was everything that Deirdre never was. Blunt, confident, independent and just spunky. She reached out to take Kat's hand gently. "Of course I will hold your hand. We will get you home and everything will be okay."

Tim felt bolstered by Deirdre's words though he knew it was more for Kat than anything. Something about her struck a chord in him. He stood taller, more sure that they would be okay than before. His doubts faded slightly.

Arin looked back to Tim, carrying Kat. He wouldn't be able to fight anything like that, "Deirdre, can you take Kat? Let Tim get his arms free? There's something here... I... Why the fuck did she have to run?"

Tim took a deep breath. Arin's words caused him to pay attention the weird itch at the back of his mind that he had been ignoring. He looked at Deirdre. "Well?" He handed Kat off without waiting for an answer.

Deirdre couldn't hold the girl like Tim could. She grabbed Kat but immediately sank to the ground with her. "I-I...Go. Don't worry about us."

Tim turned and looked at Arin. "So?" He looked for the cause of his danger sense.

Arin grinned, "Remember. Keep your off hand guard up. Like I've been trying to tell you for centuries. You'll be fine."

"Funny man. You going to get her or what?" Tim readied himself.

Arin was torn, leave Kat, Tim and Deirdre to fend off almost certain danger. Chase Arey, Arthur, so she would come back with them. If Viv found out they let Arthur leave while there were known threats around she would implode. He looked around for that cab, "Look, can we all get to the main street first? Then I'll come back and chase her down on my bike. I should be able to find her. She's only on foot. And she's not been marked yet. You all are known to the unseelie. I don't feel comfortable leaving without assuring you are at least in view of many others and a cab."

Tim set his mouth into a line. "Go. Go now and get her. We will take care of this. Deirdre get a cab."

On the ground Deirdre awkwardly shifted with Kat's body on her. "You know you are heavy for such a little thing. I am not built for lifting people. I usually get lifted." She grunted a little and tried to get to her feet. "Can you stand at all?" It was then that she felt it too, something dangerous was nearby. "Kat? Kat I need you to stand." Her voice was slightly commanding though gentle.

Deirdre looked up at Tim. She said nothing but kept up her effort to get Kat off the ground.

Tim looked at Arin. "Go before they find her. I have this." A part of him, the part that wasn't Tim was far more sure and took control at that moment.

Arin looked up and down the street, "They aren't looking for her, they are here. Where's a fucking cab when you need one. Kat? Kat, can you stand? I need to know you'll be okay too."

"Yeah yeah." Kat grumbled as she began shakily getting to her feet. "Been playin' the cripple enough for one day." Her vision blurred for a few second as she got to her feet, but after that felt surprisingly ok. She shifted her shoulder bag off her arm and opened up the drawstring, pulling out her iron rod. "Fae bitches be crazy if the think they're puttin' hands on my boy toy." She drawled jokingly, sending a wink Tim's way.

Tim blushed a little but kept his attention on the door behind them. He could feel it.

Deirdre looked at Arin, her eyes meeting his as he asked Kat to stand. "We will be fine. Worry not."

Arin took some comfort seeing Kat stand and arm herself. He found himself looking into Deirdre's eyes as she reassured him. Calmness over took him and he smiled, "God damn but you sound just like her."

Arin shook his head, "Right, look, I see a cab heading this way. A couple blocks. I can't let Arth--- Arey get away. Can you imagine what Viv would say, Kat? Shit... Just... don't split up for any reason. Backs to a wall if threatened and Tim, give 'em hell."

"Go." Deirdre stated before turning away and closing her eyes. She raised her arm to flag the cab down. His words left her both happy and extremely sad. Tears stung her eyes and she willed them to stop. You don't get to be hurt. You did this. Every compliment, every look your way is a punishment. Not in this time...now is the time for facing your mistakes.

Tim looked at Kat. "Nice to see you looking more like yourself. Let's kick her ass this time okay? Like really kick her ass not just a little bit." He gave her a smile.

Arin nodded and turned toward his bike and jogged over. He quickly unlocked and geared up. The engine growled to life and he revved it a few times to warm it up. He headed off in the direction Arey fled. The bike would let him be nimble enough if she chose back alleys, he just needed to find her trail again.

"They've separated." Shaukar growled, the urge for blood over taking her as she stalked toward the door and watched them from the shadows.

"Hey, we're just supposed to track them remember." Alan glared, not liking the look that came over her eyes.

"I want him, want to make her paaaay!" She hissed eyes flicking red. The stronger one had chased after the girl who had fled, her soul so strong it was almost blinding. Shaukar wanted her too, but she was too far away...

Blood, she wanted blood she remembered. She'd soak in the seelie-girl and drain the boy. Or maybe she'd keep him, she couldn't decide. A thrall slave might be nice, she hadn't had one in centuries. She sensed another succubus behind her, drawn by the scent of their souls as well. Her hair was a fiery red that matched her eyes, and she looked on ravenously toward the group beyond the door. "Join me?" Shaukar husked with a smirk as the other fae wet her lips.

"Fuck..." Alan grumbled pulling out his phone to call Matt as the two succubi walked out the door, practically blasting him with enough pheromones to bring him to his knees on the way out.

As the door opened, Kat was blasted with pure unadulterated need and tensed as she gritted her teeth. "Fuck..." She growled, gripping the rod more tightly in her grip.

"They're all so beautiful..." The red head said breathily, almost in wonder, her eyes scoping the three." How do we pick?" She asked softly looking to Shaukar, as if Christmas had just been delivered.

Tim was instantly on edge. He held the cross out in front of him. "Two. There are two of them..."

"I know..." Kat gulped nervously, one of her hands slipping from the rod. Why...were they fighting again? It was getting hard to think.

Deirdre kept waving down the cab. At first she didn't sense the new arrivals. She was focused on the task of getting the cab. One seemed to notice her and edged to her side of the road though still half a block away. "I have a..." She turned and froze at the sight. "What are they?"

Almost too quickly to see, the redhead came up next to Deirdre, gently moving some hair from her face as if examining her. "You have such a beautiful soul..." She sighed, bringing her lips up to brush against her forehead.

Tim growled and Deirdre whimpered as the woman kissed her forehead. With less than two steps Tim was on the succubus. He grabbed her, making sure the cross touched her. "Don't you fucking try it." He pulled her from Deirdre. "Kat! Cab's coming let's back it up."

The car was closer now.

Deirdre was confused. She wasn't sure what was happening but she knew that she should get away though couldn't make her feet move. Tim put himself between her and the redheaded woman and she frowned a little. "But...but..."

The redhead cried out as the iron touched her skin, the little piece of jewelry burning her flesh as it it had been sitting on a bed of coals.

Tim had never hit a woman but he resolved himself that this was no woman. Iron cross in hand he decked the redhead.

Shaukar heard the younger succubus struggle, but with the beautiful man distracted, her eyes were only for the seelie whelp. With impressive speed, Shaukar rushed Kat, grabbing her by the neck and lifting her in the air with one hand. Kat tried to bring the rod down on the bitch, but this time she grabbed the right wrist, squeezing until Kat was forced to drop it. "You and I have unfinished business." Shaukar growled, squeezing her hand to block off the air and practically blasting her point blank with pure unbridled lust. Kat's body couldn't figure out whether to choke or moan, and Shaukar's grin was practically feral with victory.

Tim felt a rush of anger. He saw Kat, the rod falling and the succubus gripping her by the neck. A battle cry, a yell of rage burst forth and he barreled through the redheaded succubus intent on the other. His foot came down on something but he didn't stop. He ran, landing a full body check that his hockey coach would have been proud of into Shaukar.

Behind them the cab pulled up. Deirdre was confused. Cab...need to go...but...no... "The.." She shook herself. "Cab, its here!" A moment of clarity pushed forward and as her eyes surveyed the scene she wasn't sure she fully grasped what was going on. "Kat! Tim!" There was fear in her voice now.

Shaukar flew back, hissing like a snake as Kat fell from her grip, landing on the ground in a shaking heap. The red head had already begun to retreat, not having signed up for such violence from her meal and fled back inside.

"You're next!" Shaukar shrieked smugly, reaching out for the man blindly.

Tim landed on the thing. She was clawing at him. He pressed the cross into her and raised his other hand in a fist. Tim began punching her, over and over again in a blind rage.

Deirdre saw Kat fall to the ground. She bolted forward and grabbed the girl. "Come on!" She tried to pull her up and towards the cab. "Tim!"

Kat babbled incoherently, sighing breathily in contentment at the feel of contact against her skin, needing more.

As Tim laid into her, Shaukar began laughing hysterically, high on victory. Even the sting of iron couldn't take away the joy that the sounds coming from the seelie whelp was making. Maybe I drove her crazy! Shaukar thought aloud with glee. It was not an uncommon occurrence after all after too much direct exposure, and she was not being gentle.

Tim was making noises that no 'man' would make. He was beyond anger. He took the cross, ripping it from his neck and in an effort to stop the succubus' noises shoved it forcefully into her mouth. He wanted her to pay.

Deirdre pulled at Kat. "Get up. This instant. We must leave." She took a harsh tone. She knew Kat was not herself but she had no time to play this game. She also had no ability to carry her. With a noise of frustration she ran to Tim.

A hand grabbed his arm and with a snarl Tim turned to strike out at the one who grabbed him. He pulled up just short of punching Deirdre. "I need your help."

He gasped slightly at what he had almost done to Deirdre. She was calm. He stood and followed her. With a large step he was above Kat and quickly scooped her up. Deirdre grabbed the iron rod, Kat's bag and ran to the waiting cab. Tim put Kat over his shoulder and made for the cab as well.

Shaukar was slow getting to her feet, but was ready to follow them when she was stopped by an icy voice projecting from the doorway.

"Who said you had permission to hunt on my territory?" Balthazar's voice rang out with icy calm. Shaukar turned slowly, her eyes filled with terror as she back away slowly, head bend down slightly.

"I-I didn't know this was your territory sir..." She struggled to get out. How had she not noticed his scent?

"I've already marked that lot." He remarked, eyes hard and unyielding. "Run along and pass on that little tidbit through the ranks dear." His voice was dismissive, but final, and Shaukar took the opportunity to flee for what it was. One did not cross the Underking often and live to tell about it.

Kat squirmed in Tim grip, trying to maximize the contact with their skin. She was on fire, and the smooth touch of skin her only balm. She whimpered and needed, but couldn't form the words. Instead she tried ripping at her own shirt, needing to be rid of it NOW!

Tim climbed into the cab, a squirming Kat pulled down into his lap. Deirdre climbed in after them. For a moment the only noise was Kat's whimpering. Tim didn't have an address for Kat's place.

"Round Tablet please."

Tim gave Deirdre a grateful smile and then turned his attention to Kat. She was pulling at her shirt. "Stop that." He pinned her arms to her sides, hugging her tightly to him. It was not right, the way she was whimpering and moving. He looked up at the roof of the cab.

Deirdre inhaled slowly. "It will wear off but it is a matter of when. We can't let her do anything."

Tim nodded slowly. "Tell her that."

The cab drove off.

Kat protested incoherently as Tim pinned her arms. Didn't he understand she burned?! Tears were welling up now, she needed, so badly and she didn't know why. The feel of Tim's naked chest helped a little, even with her own layers in the way, and she splayed herself against him as close as possible, rubbing in an erratic mindless rhythm in an attempt to find relief.

Tim was beyond uncomfortable. Kat was rubbing against him and his only defense was to hold her tighter so she couldn't move. He didn't want to hurt her but he also didn't want her doing things that she shouldn't with her body. He also didn't want his body to react in ways it shouldn't. He was in a very tough spot. Blood, fighting, gore, Viv yelling at you... He was doing everything in his power to focus on anything but the writhing body in his lap.

Deirdre looked on with concern. "I do not know how to help. I am sorry."

Tim didn't look at her, his eyes on the ceiling, "It is fine. We just have to wait this out or get her home so we can lock her in her room, tie her to the bed...Viv will know what to do."

He wanted to apologize but now was not the time. When they got back he would, he would take her aside and say how sorry he was for almost hitting her.

"Hurts..." Kat managed to grit out, the first coherent word she'd managed since suffering the blast. She clutched tightly to Tim, but after a few minutes she'd managed to stop herself from rubbing mostly. The Round Tablet wasn't that far away by cab, and soon they were dropped off in front of the door, Kat still clinging to Tim's chest.

Tim felt bad that Kat was in pain. "I'm sorry..." He was at a loss. Deirdre walked behind him as he approached the door. He banged, solid fist on the door. She contemplated leaving the bag and slipping away but one look at Kat's face and she knew she couldn't just go. I don't belong here.

Tim kept banging. Viv where the hell are you? He didn't have a key, he didn't know how to get in, hell he had never been in the front door before.

"Panel..." Kat struggled to get out, reaching her hand out toward the password protected computerize lock next to the door.

Tim moved, letting Kat get closer to the panel that she reached for. He still held her, afraid of what would happen if he let her go even for an instant but he loosened his grip just enough to let her do what she needed to do.

Deirdre looked around at the neighborhood. I'll go in, drop the bag, make sure Kat is okay and then go home. I can walk till I can find a cab. Heather wi- She looked at her feet, her hands tensing on the bag. Oh no! I left Heather at the club! I left her, I didn't even check to see if she messaged or text her to say I was leaving. Shit, shit....

Her hands fumbled for her phone in her pocket. The message from her mother sat still unread and she pulled up Heather's text messages. Nothing new which meant her roommate was still dancing and not leaving in the short term. Ignoring Tim and Kat she turned her back to them and began to type furiously. Not feeling well. Leaving now. Text when you leave so I know you are okay.

She didn't feel right lying to her but she had no idea how she was going to explain that she left with people she knew but didn't know.

Kat reached out toward the panel, running her hand down the smooth side. "Doug..." She whined to the screen. "Tell...Viv..." She had to stop to reorganize her thoughts. "We're coming in." And with that, the door clicked open. "Mirror..." Kat mumbles, trying to point to the full sized mirror in the far back corner of the shop.

Tim pushed the door open and headed towards the mirror that she had somewhat pointed to. He focused on the fact that his sole task was to get her home and safe. Viv will know what to do. He didn't even look back to see if Deirdre followed.

Deirdre stepped inside. She intended to leave the bag and go back out but she watched as Tim approached the mirror. She froze as he didn't stop and simply kept walking.

"Viv! I need help! Succubus, nasty ones. Incubus too, powerful bugger. Kat...well she...." Tim called out hoping the woman would hear him.

Deirdre approached the mirror slowly. A lot of this whole thing she was coming to terms with but some of it still defied her rational mind. Nope...not walking into a mirror....nope, not happening. She dropped Kat's bag.

"I hope you are okay. I should go!" She called out to no one in particular.

"D!" Kat groaned out reaching back toward the mirror as Tim walked them through. She didn't want Deirdre to leave, but unless she came through the mirror, she couldn't reach out to her.

Deirdre heard Kat call for her and as much as it bothered her she couldn't bring herself to walk through. Glass. I can't walk in there. She stood there staring at her reflection. She shook her head. I am not strong. Deirdre to a step away from the mirror. "I'm sorry..."

"You always are." A strangely accented voice replied, closing the front door to the shop. Vivienne was wearing a fashion forward coat, and her hair was perfectly curled, but despite the ageless beauty she possessed, there was a kind of ancientness to her that was hard to miss to those who cared to look. "I receive Douglas's message, and find myself perplexed." Her voice was even, cordial but cool. "I suppose I have no choice then, If I find you here now it's for a purpose." Vivienne said almost more to herself.

Deirdre shook her head. "No, I shouldn't be here. Kat and Tim...they are in there. They need you. I need to leave. Arin is bringing Arthur and they need each other. They found each other. I was a mistake. Let me go, let me leave and they can do what needs to be done. They will have each other. She...Arthur, she is what he needs."

There was pain her voice but also a resolve as she did what she felt was necessary. "I already caused damage, I do not need to do more." Deirdre stared at the woman both in awe and in fear.

"You know very well I do not refer to our physical location." Vivienne's voice was clipped and precise. "The Gleaming does not make mistakes, and you are here to fulfill a purpose. Every one of you who was reborn has."

When the girl referred to Arthur and Arin having found each other Vivienne's shoulders tensed, but her resolve did not waver. "Then the damage cannot be undone, but your lack of presence will only make that wound fester. Their souls cry out for you as much as it does each other. Only bitter resentment will come from your absence." Vivienne predicted while unbuttoning her coat.

"You are wrong. I am here to show them that they only ever needed each other. I saw it. It is right this time. I am here as a reminder of what I have done and how they do not need me. They will have a bond that will go further than ever before. My presence is a reminder of pain. I saw it in her eyes. I saw it in his. I can't do that to them again. I can't bear to have them look at me like that. They are not just their souls, they are themselves. A man and woman who will have a connection stronger than any. I am just here...." Only then did Deirdre waiver. She didn't want them to resent each other or her. She wanted them to be happy, to fight side by side and to have what they deserved. All she had was guilt and love. "I should go before Arin gets back. He will have her with him. It is hard enough for her without me here."

"Has she already accepted her identity then?" Vivienne asked flatly. She had been momentarily surprised to learn their Arthur was a woman, but she didn't see the point in dwelling.

"I don't think so. It was shoved on her without any explanation. She only knows something is odd. I felt Arthur...the eyes...I...." Deirdre shook her head. "No she is struggling, afraid and confused. I won't make that worse."

"Then she may need you to convince her. Whatever you may think, your souls share an intense bond that surpasses nearly all others. You have already accepted what you are, so help her to do the same. Otherwise the dangers she and the rest of your world will face are innumerable." Vivienne countered.

"Or Arin can do that and they can share a past and a present without the complication of....me..." Deirdre looked to the floor, feeling a lack of confidence about her position in all of this for the first time. "Accepting who I was, who is a part of me is better than thinking I am insane. This feels logical and right. I am sure you can all help her find that place without making her relive the pain of what I did."

"I don't know what to do. There is pain if I stay or leave. Is it not just better to let them have each other?"

"Should you not allow them to decide that for themselves?" Vivienne replied softly, almost reluctantly. A part of her wanted nothing more for her to go, but Vivienne knew better than to ignore the Gleaming and what it sent. This girl would have a role to play, whatever that may be, and letting her leave now, when the difficult task of ushering in the new King was upon them, would not be wise.

"I will stay even if it is just to push them together. I deserve that for what I did. They deserve to be happy." Deirdre lifted her face to look at Viv once more. She was right, Deirdre owed them the chance to make the decision. She was there for them to cast aside as needed. Kat told her she was there to make people do better, that she inspired. Deirdre felt that she was there to take the blame and guilt. If she could take Arthur's hurt and Lancelot's guilt it would mean in this life she had done something right.

"Come along then." Vivienne drawled as she walked toward the mirror, gesturing with her hand for Deirdre to go first. "It's just a water portal. You'll feel refreshed on the other end." Vivienne remarked, and those who knew her well might believe she was jesting. It was usually hard to tell.

"You say that like everyone has one lying around." Deirdre tried to keep the majority of the sarcasm from her voice. It was hard to read the woman but she got the sense that she didn't like her. With an inhale Deirdre stepped into the mirror and to the other side.

Tim had sat Kat down and he looked anxious. "What kept you? Where's Viv?"

Deirdre gestured behind her and moved off to find an out of the way spot. She didn't feel like she belonged here at all.

Gracefully, Vivienne stepped through the mirror and took stock of the chamber. Among the surprised was to see Tim Shirtless and riddled with anxiety, and Katrina strung out on the floor. She raised and eyebrow, not sure she wanted to ask, but did so regardless. "Explain."

Tim looked up. "We followed Arin to the rave where he was taking the woman he thought was Guinevere. We ran into Deirdre and it was very clear who she was. We ran into an incubus who gave her booze laced with god knows what, we had a chat, I fought the incubus again...though I could have done better. I found Arin, met Arey, figured out who she was and the shitstorm that was to come...said shitstorm happened. We left, Arey bolted, we were attacked by two succubi, one of whom really throttled Kat with well their whatever. Arin went to chase down Arey and we are all here."

He nodded hoping that he hadn't rambled too much but knew that he was coming off his adrenaline high and that it was entirely possible that none of that made sense. He took a few deep breaths.

Vivienne attempted to stay calm, but her patients tonight was beginning to wear thin. Lips pursed in a straight line, Vivienne approached Tim and sniffed the air around him. Good God, Balthazar she thought in irritation. She would have to check the others for it as well, but she suspected it was the same there as well. Balthazar had always been a possessive bastard with a contemptible sense of humor. Repeating the process with both Deirdre and Kat, whom she lingered over longer to feel her head, Vivienne sighed tiredly.

"Congratulations, you've all been marked by the Underking." She announced vaguely. She'd determine later whether or not that could be used to their advantage, but for now, Kat needed attention. "Theo!" She called out, waiting for the Brownie.

"Put on the kettle and bring me my herb box if you would. Our Katrina is in need of a detox." Vivienne directed before bending down to pick Kat up with ease. She might have weighed ten pounds for all the effort Vivienne seemed to exert.

Theo huffed in disappointment toward Kat, be rushed to do his Mistress’s bidding. "Honestly Miss, I thought we'd finally gotten past all that." He mumbled as he waddled off.

Kat groaned when she heard the word detox, knowing full well the faery hoodoo crap she was gonna have to swallow. "That stuff's gross...." She whined.

"Indeed." Vivienne replied without sympathy, but there was a bit of a twinkle in her eye as she carried Kat off to her room

Deirdre pushed herself into the nearest shadow. Her back was against the wall. She closed her eyes, relieved that Kat was being taken care of and would be okay but disappointed with herself.

Tim kept looking over at where Deirdre stood. I should say something...I don't know what to say... He sat in a chair and looked at his feet.

"You took very good care of her. You fought bravely." He looked unhappy with himself and Deirdre felt the urge to say something to make him feel better. "Have you fought many of them?"

Tim looked up and smiled weakly. "Only learned who I was and what they are last night. No, I haven't fought. I'm sorry. I almost..."

Deirdre raised a hand, "But you didn't. Even if you had you were in the heat of battle."

Tim felt better but not like himself just yet. "I am glad you came with us."

Deirdre looked away, "I did not have a choice now did I? I did not wish to make his or your task any harder and once here she did not exactly make it sound like I had many options since all of them led to making things worse. I don't think she likes me."

Tim gave a small smile, "I don't really think she likes me either but I think that is more her personality than general dislike."

Deirdre shook her head, "No, it radiated off of her when she talked to me. She doesn't like me. Doesn't matter. I am not here for people to like. I am here to make sure Arin and his Arthur get together. I am here to watch their happiness grow so that I can finally be taken out of the story. You know...I remember...well she remembers hearing that Merlin told Arthur that I should have been drowned at my birth. Perhaps once they find each other it will be like I don't exist anymore. For now I will continue to be the villain."

Tim frowned. "I thought the other woman, the other witch type was the villain?"

Deirdre shrugged, "It is about perspective. No story show Guinevere as having truly loved both men, though differently. She is just the bitch who wanted both men, got them and tore everything apart because of it. She is always a cold and shallow character. I won't be that. I won't be what people want and expect. I will do this right. I will show that she loved them and loves them enough to spare them from ever caring. You head the way Arin spoke to me. I will always be her, always be Guinevere to him. Who I am won't matter. Who she is, who Arthur is outside of Arthur will, it has to. I have had enough years of people making me into the person they want and not asking me. I will do what I can so that isn't an issue."

Tim frowned. "That sounds stupid and like you are being a martyr. 'Oh poor me, people thought I was a terrible person well I will show them, I'll go sulk in a corner all alone and act like I am being selfless.' No I think you are just too scared of what might happen that you intend to make the wound first under the guise of being gentler."

He crossed his arms over his bare chest. He wanted to shower. He felt gross and disgusting, not just from the dancing. "Look. Maybe Arin likes you, maybe he doesn't. Maybe he falls in love with Arey and they end up together and you have to watch it. Maybe he doesn't like either of you, hell he just met her and it was only one date. He isn't proposing. How about you wait and see?"

Deirdre was on the verge of tears but she bit her cheek to stave them off. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing he had hurt her. His words stung.

About five minutes later, Vivienne returned to the main chamber with Timothy and their new Guinevere. "She'll sleep it off now." She announced vaguely. "The tea will take care of most of the toxins for her." Vivienne's eyes then shifted toward their newest addition. "I believe introductions are in order." She said flatly, walking forward. "I am Vivienne, mother, guardian, and entrepreneur." She introduced. "I know what you are, but not who." She elaborated.

Both looked up at Vivienne returned. Tim nodded and relaxed visibly. Deirdre swallowed. She was afraid of this woman. She trembled a little. "My name is Deirdre. Deirdre Evering. I know you don't want me here and you wish the..." She tried to remember what Vivienne had called it. "The Gleaming hadn't decided I needed to be here. I will do my best to try and stay out of your way, out of everyone's way."

She felt cold and scared.

It bothered Tim to see Deirdre seemingly shrink in on herself. Where was the poise and grace that the Queen always had. She never waivered. You are doing it now. You are treating her like she is Guin and nothing more, faulting her for being Deirdre. He frowned. He vowed to protect her, not just because of who she was but because she needed it.

Vivienne's eyes were piercing, calculating. They were eyes that gave the kind of gaze that weighed and measured, both potential outcomes and people. It was not a comfortable experience to receive that gaze and be found wanting, but there was a degree of pride in store for those that came away deemed passing.

"What I wish," Vivienne began as Theo came out with a fresh kettle a five tea cups. "Is irrelevant. I only expect you to do what is necessary in the coming time to protect your king.' She finished as she poured both Tim and Deirdre a cup and handed them off. "Drink. You'll feel better with something warm in you."

Deirdre looked down as Vivienne spoke. My king. She found herself wondering if that woman wanted the role that she was about to be given. She took the cup but couldn't bring herself to drink it. Feel better. Tea isn't going to make me feel better.

Tim took the tea and sipped it. "How do we explain to this woman that is she king Arthur?"

"That, will depend a great deal on her." Vivienne replied taking a sip from her own cup. "You both have met her. What is your estimation of her so far?" Vivienne asked, first looking at Tim and then Deirdre.

Tim took another drink. He swallowed and thought it over. "She is Arthur. But....she is scared. And confused. Very confused. It is in her though, everything about Arthur is in her. She is strong, she is brave and she will run if she is too freaked out."

Deirdre remained silent, holding her cup. It was warm in her hands and it made her feel calmer. She had nothing to say about the woman who was Arthur. She barely knew her. Other than an impromptu kiss she had barely looked at the woman, let alone spoken to her.

"That is a very common reaction." Vivienne agreed taking another sip. "We had best hope my son has the sense to bring her here then once she's found. Running will not be an issue then." She replied matter of factly as she moved toward one of the shelves and began rummaging.

"I assume that you both have begun experiencing flashbacks now that your contact with one another has increased." Vivienne more stated than asked. "How are you feeling? The tea should help, but I should know if I need to change the dosage."

Tim frowned. "Dosage? I don't-"

Deirdre looked up and then to her cup. In that moment she was glad she hadn't taken a drink, only warmed her hands with it. She was breathing slowly but deeply. What is going on? She looked for a place to dump the tea out.

"Yes flashbacks but...Viv what did you give us?" Tim looked confused. "Why?"

"Nothing to be concerned over." Vivienne replied absently as she finished digging out a few dusty looking books. "It's an old concoction your previous mother taught me actually." She supplied giving Tim a pointed look. "Helps to calm the mind and body. It will also help with some of the more physical symptoms from your forays into the past. Morgan really was quite a gifted practitioner of the healing arts when she put her mind to it." The compliment was offhand and without much emotion, but there was a lingering bitterness there that was hard to hide.

"Daily consumption will be mandated from now on. Think of it like medicine. If the negative symptoms continue, I'll simply up the individual dosage. Your individual reactions to these flashbacks may well be different. Arin, as you may have gathered, is half-fae, so his natural resistance to these side effects is higher." Her voice did not leave much for debate on the matter.

"Mother? Right…other witch..." Tim looked at his cup. "So medicine...." He wasn't sure what to think. He took another sip. "Sure, medicine. Was kind of hoping you'd say it would get rid of them."

Deirdre still couldn't bring herself to take a drink. Arin is half-fae? What does that mean? Her eyes looked around and wondered how she could get out of here. Once again the urge to disappear, to get away and not face Arin or the woman was overwhelming.

"Morgan La Fey, yes." Vivienne corrected without heat. "It will minimize the effects only, convince your body not to compensate to what the brain believes is happening. Nothing can take the visions away, but over time they may become less frequent."

Tim nodded slowly. "Morgan." The name brought a wave of sadness followed by a feeling of detachment. He shook his head. "I could do with less impactful flashbacks. What about you Deidre?"

She looked up at the sound of her name. "Oh, I yeah sure..." Deirdre still didn't know what to do. "Is there a bathroom I could use?"

"Attached to Katrina's bedroom." Vivienne pointed toward the residential side of the cave. "Have you had any of your first mother then?" Vivienne asked Tim calmly before taking a sip of her tea. She was still unsure whether or not the gleaming would deem it wise to bring her back, but the fact she had been unable to find even a trace of her had the old fae worried. She would not have called herself Morgan's friend, but respected adversary and occasionally colleague might be accurate. "I have a few distinct memories of your former self in swaddle on her knee." Vivienne said fondly, her tone in her own brand of light teasing.

Tim frowned and looked down at his feet. "Just one, just a glimpse of standing there wanting her to hug me." He kept his voice low. "Tell me about her, that woman."

Deirdre put her tea down, undrunk. "Thank you." Tim was talking about a mother he didn't know and just the name made Deirdre uncomfortable. She walked in the direction that Vivienne pointed. She found Kat's room. It took a bit to get over the shock of seeing it, everything on the walls and ceiling.

Tim waited unsure why he was nervous to hear what Viv might tell him. It wasn't his real mom, his real family but it felt like it.

Deidre moved to the bathroom and splashed water on her face. Stay....I have to stay. I have to stay. She could feel panic building. No, just don't drink the tea. Stay out of the way and when it all works out for them you can fade away and finally have a life. Her hands ran through her hair to smooth it out.

"She was a complicated woman." Vivienne began slowly, sensing his nervousness. "She dealt with hardship and persecution in her youth which made her a hard woman with her own set of morals. Being married to a man she could barely be civil with did not help her disposition either." Vivienne conceded, preferring to list the bad before the good. "She was also capable of great compassion toward those she felt in need of it, and she would often help those she loved in little ways, and never take the credit for it. “

"She doted on you as a baby you know." Vivienne's smile was genuine with that memory. Perhaps nothing melted the hearts of hard women like them quite like babies. It was an odd similarity, but one none the less. "But as you got older it became harder for her to express her affection. More dangerous as well. She was a woman with many enemies, and those enemies tend to strike at the ones you love." Vivienne continued sadly.

"A nursemaid working for one of those enemies tried to whisk you off once when you were just a small child. She was stopped, but Morgan purposely distanced herself after that, to appear as if she did not love you. I believe it came at a very high personal cost." Another sip of tea followed, but the smile had left her eyes. "I won't pretend Morgan was a saint, because she was not. She did many morally questionable things, and she would never apologize for them, but she did love you. More than your former self may have ever known."

Tim was frowning. Ywain, a deep part of him balked against Viv's words. To think that Morgan had doted on him, loved him seemed impossible. Tim nodded. "I am sure she had her reasons for doing what she did. Will she appear? Like the rest of us?"

Tim wasn't sure if he wanted to meet Morgan in this life.

Deirdre made her way back to the cave. She moved to stand in the shadows, her back against the wall. When will they get here? When can we get this over with?

"Any attempts to locate her reincarnation have been...concerning unsuccessful." Vivienne began vaguely. "There is really no telling for sure whether or not she has appeared as well. She was never truly Arthur's alley, but she did not openly oppose him either. I am unsure where her instinctual loyalties might lie regardless."

Tim frowned. "More out for herself than anything else?" Tim finished his tea in one final drink. "I do hope that I am not the one to find her. I am not sure how those flashbacks will go over." Placing his cup down Tim looked to Deidre and then back to Vivienne. "What's the plan when Arey and Arin get here? Assuming he gets her here. Do we just tell her and hope for the best? Have her sit at the table? I just want to know how we are going to do this without really, really freaking her out."

"That...may be unavoidable." Vivienne said slowly. "If she has begun to experience some of her past life, or run into some of the creatures that hunt her, perhaps she will be more receptive."

"If she is not, then making her accept who and what she is takes precedence. We will keep her here until she comes to terms with that and try to persuade her." Vivienne finished casually. She disliked the term "winging it" but until she met the girl and got a read on her, she could not very well create a strategy.

"We will of course try to ease her in gently if possible. Do not make physical contact unless necessary or prompted until we've given her some 'tea'. We'll try to not overwhelm her with visions of her past, especially as some of it is quite painful." Vivienne replied, hinting they not mention there was anything but tea in the 'tea'.

"So no kissing her like before...." Deirdre joked quietly. Tim looked up. "You what now?"

Deirdre shrugged. "I told you I ended up kissing a woman who was Arthur and it was her...the girl Arin brought to the bathroom."

He blushed a little as the image of the women popped into his head. "Right, no physical contact. Tea first and see if we can talk it out. Got it."

She didn't want to drink the tea, she wasn't entirely sure she believed Vivienne that it would do nothing but help with the effects of the flashbacks. Deirdre picked up her cup and eyed it again. It wasn't nearly as warm as before. She can't make me drink though I know she wants us to but she can't make me... Her eyes darted to the woman. Deirdre immediately reconsidered her rebellious notion and slowly sipped the lukewarm liquid. Rather be drugged than see what she is capable of.

Tim stood and began to pace. "What do we say to her? Oh so you are Arthur and we have to stop all these weird things from happening? I don't think she is going to believe us, hell I still barely believe us sometimes."

"I believe a bit more tact than that would be wise." Vivienne remarked, brow raised. "If you feel that way Timothy, I will gladly extend your lodging here until you feel differently." The comment was offhand and followed by a dainty sip of tea, but the threat there was sharp and clear. No one was leaving here without her leave, and there wasn't much they had in the way of say about it.

Tim looked over at Vivenne. "You gotta admit it sounds pretty crazy. Without all the flashbacks, without seeing the guy and those women." Tim shivered, his face twisted in disgust. "It is pretty hard to wrap your head around."

Deidre shook her head, 'No it isn't. I'd rather believe this, believe my dreams than think I was going crazy. For a bit there I thought I was. It wasn't until you found me in the club, well Kat stopped me in the bathroom. It makes a lot of sense when you read the clues. Then again I don't know how many of you have had your former self tell you that you had to help..."

Tim looked at Deirdre, "Have to admit you've taken this better than me."

Deirdre looked away with a slight shrug.

He sighed and looked at Vivienne. "So you are saying though as long as I believe you I can go home now? No more crashing on the lower bunk?"

"I am saying regression is unlikely to help your case." Vivienne countered smoothly. "Not fond of Katrina's decor are we?"

Tim blushed. "I am an adult in a teenaged girl's room. Not so much fond of her decor as well...I am not a teenaged girl. Some of my own clothes would be nice too."

Deirdre looked up, "I don't have to stay though do I? I have a roommate and a job, classes...I thought once we tell Arey who she is I could leave."

"For your own safety, I would not repeat that statement around Katrina. She is not overly fond of being reminded of her age." Vivienne's eyes shone with amusement. "If I deem you are not a flight risk, than we will discuss your options. No one however, is leaving here tonight."

Deirdre sighed and sat down on the floor, her back against the cool wall. She remained in the shadowy corner of the room. Not going home tonight great. I have to think of something to tell Heather when she texts. I could just say I went home with a guy. She gave a small, sarcastic laugh to herself.

Tim sat back down. "What's keeping them? This is hard, not knowing where they are and if he found her."
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"Portal?" Arey said skeptically. It looked like a mirror to her. Could this night get any weirder? In for a cent in for a penny, Arey thought tiredly, reaching a tentative hand out toward the mirror. She was ready to feel her hand touch the surface. It went through it instead. That fact did not freak her out as much as it should have. Yep, I'm in shock...

She kept moving forward, face blank, until she came out in what looked like some professor of medieval history's wet dream...in a cave. "This is bizarre..."

Arin watched her tentatively reach out toward the mirror. He was impressed by her acceptance and immediate movement through the portal. Nodding to himself, and mentally preparing for Vivienne's questions he followed.

He took in the situation, searched the room and saw Deidre in the shadows, but didn't see Kat, "Is Kat okay?"

Tim stood as Arey appeared, Arin behind her. Deirdre stayed in her seat on the floor in the shadow but her breath caught in her throat.

"Yeah Viv gave her stuff to take care of the junk in her system. Glad you made it back safely, both of you." Tim smiled as he spoke. He looked to Arin for some sign of how things went. Is she freaked out? Angry? She looks okay...

Arin nodded at Tim's words, an unspoken thank you apparent in his face. He looked over to Deirdre and smiled thankfully at her as well, "I was told I needn't worry. I'm not surprised I didn't have to."

Deirdre gave the briefest of nods. Arin was looking at her and it left her feeling very unsure. She looked away from him.

Arin finally addressed Vivienne directly, "Hi mom. So, kinda busy night. But look who I managed to find in all this. Even if it took a little extra convincing."

"Why does everyone keep speaking about me as if I'm some kind of lottery ticket?" Arey remarked, a tired kind of annoyance lacing her voice as she crossed her arms. They'd found her? What did that even mean?

Tim looked hurt. "Hey I just said I was glad you both made it safely. Things weren't exactly happy go lucking leaving the club."

Arin looked at Arey, "I dunno. I think I was pretty lucky to find you."

Deirdre said nothing but looked down at the floor. It felt like someone had drained all her blood, leaving her cold and empty as she heard the annoyance in Arey's voice and Arin's comment about being lucky he found her.

Tim looked at Vivenne, "So?"

She was in shock, and he was flirting, this date was definitely ending on a weird note. When the boy named Tim spoke, her eyes shifted first to Deirdre, drawn by some unknown force. She looked...not upset, but definitely not ok either. Everyone was sitting around some posh looking woman, defering to her like some kind of Queen, and that thought put her on edge.

"What did you do to her?" The suspicion already there, Arey acted on instinct, not rational thought, moving toward Deirdre and standing between Vivienne and her like a shield. Her eyes shone with accusation and her shoulders were stiff, as if preparing for a fight.

Deirdre looked up and looked unsure of what to do as Arey approached her. "Me? I am fine." The words were quiet. She was trying so hard not to bring attention to herself and now things felt tense. She wasn't sure if she should stand or not. Vivienne had made it clear there should be no contact, not till she fed her tea. "Really. I am okay."

Arin watched as Arey immediately became protective of Deirdre and inwardly nodded, "Hey mom, I'm just going to check on Kat then, okay? Let me know if you need me." He started to walk toward Kat's room.

Arey looked back toward Deirdre skeptically, and though she nodded her head slightly toward the other girl, she didn't move from the protective position either. Somehow, Arey could sense Deirdre's anxiety, it was rolling off her in waves, and that made her feel incredibly angry.

"We have yet to be properly introduced. My name is Vivienne, I believe you've already met my son. And you are?" She intoned levelly as she stood up and approach with an outstretched cup of tea. Arey ignored the cup. She already felt like she'd drank the Kool-Aid, she wasn't about to try it literally.

"From the way you all have been talking, it seems you know bloody well who I am." Arey griped, arms crossed again. "and I didn't come here for tea and pleasantries, I came for answers. What was that thing in the alley, and how do I get rid of it?" Arey's tone was direct and commanding, and totally unlike herself, but she was too irritated to really care. Something about this woman put her on edge, and she didn't like it.

Arin stopped, without turning completely, a slightly bitter tone to his voice, "Yeah, meet the parents, first date. Moving a bit fast?"

"Yes well if I recall this wasn't my idea, so no complaining if I don't get on with your mum." Arey snarked back with a sarcastic tight lipped smile.

Deirdre's breathing increased as Vivienne drew closer and Arey balked at the tea. She didn't know what to do. Arin seemed like he was leaving. Tim stood silently simply watching. Do something? Why aren't you two calming her down? Her hands balled into fists and her eyes flickered between the two men. You are supposed to be brave men. Say something! She wanted to scream at them, command them to fix this and yet she felt too afraid of Vivienne to say anything. Too afraid to go near Arey.

Biting her lip hard Deirdre slowly stood up behind Arey. She was careful not to touch her and kept her back to the wall. "Maybe we should all sit down." Her voice was soft and just loud enough to be heard. She tried to sound calm and sure though she didn't feel that way.

Arin shrugged, "You getting on with mom isn't my primary concern. Just happy you all met, really. Is Kat in her room then?" Arin wasn't quite ready to sit down with Deirdre and Arey. He didn't even know Deirdre, but felt oddly compelled to do what she asked. He knew why, of course, but was now having a harder time with the concept. He was enjoying himself with Arey but now they seemed to be connecting on a level he hadn't, with either of the women.

"Yes, Theo is also in there with her." Vivienne answered Arin first before looking back at Arey and Deirdre. "That...is an excellent suggestion." Vivienne announced, silently ushering them all toward the dais, which held both the round table and a cozy sitting area by the fire place. Arey followed along reluctantly, but stood unsurely on the dais with the others. She was getting pretty tired of people constantly telling her what to do tonight without proper explanations, and in a subtle act of defiance decided to stay standing.

Tim looked at Arin as he left. How can he just leave at a time like this? How can she just let him? He was angry and frustrated. He followed and sat down in a chair though he was not impressed with Viv. He crossed his arms. Arey stood there and though she looked angry a deep part of him wanted to kneel and pledge himself once more as Arthur's knight. He grit his teeth, angry at the situation.

Deirdre stood where she was as the others walked away. She turned her head to watch Arin leave. She wanted to say something but there was something in his body language that told her it was best to stay quiet.

She very slowly made her way to the dais and gave Vivienne a look that asked permission to be there. She knew she didn't want her around but had to tolerate her. Deirdre was just trying to stay out of the way and do what Vivienne asked.

She chanced the smallest look to Arey, her eyes losing their fear when she did. "We haven't actually met. I mean…we well...but I'm Deirdre." She gave her the smallest of smiles though it tugged at the corners of her mouth wanting to be more than such a meager thing. Deirdre looked away, waiting for Vivienne to tell her to sit, anything to break the moment.

"Yeah...I remember." Arey's cheeks lit up in flames at the memory of their lips tangled in a desperate mesh, a flash of heat flying through her stomach that didn't help with that much either. "Arey." She introduced simply, outstretching her hand for a more formal greeting with an almost shy smile.

Deirdre saw the outstretched hand. She bit her lower lip slightly, trying to hold back a smile as she lifted her face to Arey's again. "Nice to have a name to go with the…well..." She knew Vivienne said no touching but the temptation was too great. Take her hand. It's Arthur. Do it. A voice in her head called out to her.

Tim saw it coming, Deirdre leaned a little about to take Arey's hand. "So how about that tea ladies?" He practically shoved D out of the way to move past them for the tea. "I'll grab it Viv, how about you sit and chat with the ladies?"

Deirdre gave a small noise of distress as Tim pushed her aside.

"Be more careful!" Arey's head whipped around toward Tim, eyes hard as he practically shoved Deirdre out of the way. Like a hawk Vivienne swooped in, ushering Arey toward a chair without ever actually touching her. How the woman managed that Arey wasn't entirely sure, but she didn't like it. "We have much to discuss."

"Yes well I've been waiting for an explanation since I got here, and I'd wish someone would just come out with it, because there's obviously something you all know and aren't telling me." Arey shot back. What ever it was, they were all tripping over themselves not to be the first one to say it, which was never a good sign.

Tim jogged off and returned quickly with the tea. He balanced the tray carefully and gave Deirdre an apologetic look as he passed her. "Here you are. One for you Arey, one for you Viv and Deirdre this one is yours." He placed them down on the small table in the middle of the seating area. He picked his up and sat down.

Deirdre picked her cup up and with a slight sigh sat down. She kept her eyes on her lap. Viv scared her and she couldn't look at Arey knowing that they were about to tell her who she was. There has to be a gentle way to do this. There just has to. It is so unfair. She took a sip of the tea. It is Arthur and once she comes to terms with it all will be well, you will see. You are here to help bring him home. We need him. Deirdre wished that Guin's voice didn't sound so sure and confident.

Tim looked at Deirdre then Viv wondering who had the unlucky job of telling Arey. Viv better do it, not like we can really explain shit.

"No thank you." Arey tried to decline as politely as possible, but there was an edge to her voice. She wasn’t drinking anything until she knew what the bloody hell had happened to her world. The one where the most complicated thing in her life was her relationship with her father.

"Drink it." Vivienne replied, eyes unnervingly intense. “I insist.”

“And I already said no. I want answers, not cozy beverages." Arey replied back, digging in her heels. She could out stubborn anyone when she put her mind to it, now damn sure she didn’t want to be drinking that tea. Vivienne’s eyes were hard, her hand twitched involuntarily and her lips were pressed in a hard line. And then she began talking, for the moment seeming to concede.

"As you may have witnessed tonight, there are things of a rather dangerous and…perhaps you’d call it supernatural nature that lurk about in the shadows." Vivienne began, and Arey nodded.

Deirdre flinched at little at the hard edge that Arey's voice had. She remembered that and the hurt that followed. She remembered times when his voice made it clear that he would have his way. Her mind drifted to Arthur standing before his men. So confident. He was not angry but commanding. Those men looked at him with such respect that it had made her tear up.

She shook herself from her thoughts and took another sip of the tea.

Tim held his breath as Vivienne began speaking. "Some nasty things out there that aren't human." He shook his head a little. "Seems downright unreal but they exist."

"I got that." Arey replied slowly. "How do I keep them away? What are they exactly?"

"Fae." Vivienne replied simply. "Iron is your usual catch all, but different fae have different specific weaknesses, but iron will always burn them."

Tim smiled, "They hate it when you touch them with it so be warned they can get mighty pissed off."

Arey nodded slowly, her brow furrowed. "That thing in the alley...it made itself look like my mother..." For a moment, Arey's eyes looked lost, remembering back to the run in. "She's been dead for five years. I knew that, but I couldn't...I just...I don't know why I couldn't just run..."

Vivienne tried to explain it softly. "Shades are a particularly nasty caste of fae. They feed off of painful memories, and are particularly difficult for their victims to resist."

Deirdre could hear the slight pain in Arey's voice as she spoke of her mother. "Excuse me..." She stood and left the dais. She needed to be away for a moment, to breathe. Vivienne unnerved her so much. Arey made her both uncomfortable yet so comforted. Tim was taking it all in stride, Kat was hurt and Arin had disappeared. She felt alone yet suffocating.

Deirdre moved to the hallway, the one between Kat's room and the cave. It was quiet and darker than the rest of the place. She sat with her head against the wall. Just a moment to breathe and collect myself then I will go back.

Tim watched D leave but immediately turned his attention back to Arey. "I haven't seen one of those. Must have been a bit freaky. Also...upsetting."

"Yeah..." Arey replied vaguely as she watched Deirdre go, fighting the urge to follow after her.

"They are also, far more attracted to individuals with strong, powerful souls, which is why at this moment you are not safe." Vivienne continued, trying to get to the main event.

"Why? What does any of this have to do with me?" Arey asked

Tim looked at Vivienne. He waited for her to spill the beans. He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"You carry the soul of another in you. Just as Tim does and Arin." Deirdre appeared on the dias. "And me. Reincarnations some call it. We are apparently not just ourselves. When we kissed in the bathroom, what did you see?" She was calm and collected. Her eyes were gentle as she looked at Arey.

Arey's eyes shot up to look at Deirdre when she began talking. A feeling of foreboding ripped through her at those words, and it was like there was a faint ringing in the back of her head. "I..." Memories of what she'd seen in that bathroom trickled back. A man, a woman, overbearing guilt...and a kiss. "It doesn't matter. It was just a hallucination or-or shock." Arey said standing up abruptly. "I think this was a mistake ok. I'm just going to go. Good luck with...all this." Arey didn't want to hear anymore. Her head felt too small again, like someone else was there, and she was terrified by that.

Deirdre looked hurt. "Doesn't matter? I didn't matter?" It wasn't her voice, it was Guinevere. Her eyes met Arey's as she stood and made to leave.

"That's not what I meant!" Arey cried back unbidden before clamping her hand over her mouth. Visions of walking through field of wildflowers and lazy kisses ran across her mind. On horseback, stolen behind the training yard, and in bed as the first rays of light filtered through the window pane. You always matter...[/i} A voice in her head called out, bidding her to do the same. Arey beat back at it savagely like she would a stick. "I'm not doing this. I'm right you all are crazy." She was hyperventilating, the only conscious thought she could manage was to leave, NOW before it was too late.

"You and I, you held me after telling me that you couldn't be who they wanted. That you couldn't be that person. I told you that you were their king. Dearheart you know who you are and who I am. Please don't say it doesn't matter." Her voice waivered just a little. Her lower lip trembling though she held her head high. "Not crazy but we need you with us. I can't....Lancelot can't do this alone. Ywain needs his king to lead him."

Tim felt frozen, unable to say or do anything. He looked to Vivienne [i]Help her! Help show Arey!

Deirdre looked as if she might break down, as if the weight of it was getting to her. "Please do not fight it, just listen and remember."

"Please!" Arey begged. "I don't know you!" She felt light headed, she wanted to run, run before this woman made the other one stronger than she could keep at bay. "I'm Arey, I can't lead anybody!" She screamed.

Deirdre shook her head, "Please don't say that. Arthur.....please...." She crossed to Arey and grabbed her hand. "Don't leave me to do this alone."

One word, and Arey was gone. There were memories, battles and swords, fields and friendships, doubt, love, sorrow, friendship, betrayal, all sharp and consuming. For a moment, Arey just stopped breathing.

Tim stood and bolted down the dais. 'Arin! Arin! A little help might be good right now!" He looked back to where Deirdre, almost in tears was holding the hand of one panicked Arey. "Seriously man!"

There stood a woman, and there was love, so powerful, so consuming that the last vestiges of Arey's consciousness that had hung on threw the onslaught folded to its power. She was crying, upset because of him, and that was unacceptable. In three quick strides he was at her side, pulling her into his arm. "You always matter! You always will, never forget that."

The force of it all overtook her. Deirdre wasn't sure she could even remain on her feet any longer. She was crying, the slow tears turning into faster ones. She looked up into the blue eyes. "Please don't leave."

Arin looked up at the sound of Tim's shouts, "Oh boy. Take it easy Kat. Let Theo help." He stood up without waiting for a reply and headed out the door. He was almost bowled over by Tim as he stepped out.

"Whoa. What's the problem?" Arin asked.

Tim looked a bit wild. "She...Deirdre...I...just come!" He ran off down the hall. "Arey didn't want to listen and I don't know where Deirdre got the...balls? to do it but well...I think Arthur is back."

Arin had started rushing after Tim but held up as he finished, "Oh. Well... they don't really need me there then. I think it's best they figure it out on their own. Bad enough I'm going to have to teach them how to fight later."

Tim skidded a little and looked back at Arin. "You aren't going to come and help? You know how to deal with this better than any of us! You can't be a fucking coward now!"

Arin flushed and pushed Tim into the wall, "Coward? Do you know how hard it is right now to not rush in there and comfort both of them? Do you really think MY presence, when they are already confused as hell, is going to assist? I'm pretty sure if I go in there right now neither of them will be super happy to see me, or, they will be VERY happy to see me which will just fuck them up more. Coward? You try living as me for your whole life, dreading this very moment. I envy you and your just learning about this."

Tim grunted as he hit the wall. "You sound like D. Being a martyr, I'll stay away because it is just better this way. You are seriously delusional if you think there is only a couple of ways that this works out. They could both hate you, both love you who the fuck cares? Right now they are both in a world of trouble. D is going to fall over and Arey is...broken I don't even know. But I don't want to be alone to pick up the pieces."

"You're absolutely right. Who the fuck cares what they think of me at the moment. Don't fool yourself and try and pigeon hole me. I'm not concerned about me. They are going through enough right now. I will be here when they come to some sort of terms."

"So Lancelot in this time is just a selfish asshole who is looking out for himself. Good to know. You couldn't get the girl first so the rest of it...well what does it matter. Your terms right?" He shoved Arin away.

"You know, fuck you Tim. You want to see how this goes? It's on you." He brushed Tim away and started back toward the round table room.

"HEY!" Kat shouted angrily from the doorway of her bedroom, clutching the side as she moved her way down the hall, a rather pissed looking Theo shouting at her to get back into bed on her heels. "Both of you stop acting like testosterone fill dimwits before I come over there and kick both your asses myself!" Kat growled as she inched her way closer. "Do you think shoving each other around is going to help anybody?"

Arin stopped, "I think Tim needs to stop playing other people because he's afraid to step up himself. He wants to fling around labels so easy, but who came running for whom when the shit hit the fan?"

Tim looked at Kat, "Get back to bed." He turned to look at Arin, his face in a snarl. "You are a part of this, you can't hide just because it is a rough spot. Would be nice not to have to do it alone but hey, isn't the first time right? You always were fond of taking off and leaving the rest of us to clean up the mess."

"Fucking make me." Kat growled as she continued moving down the hall. "Let me know when you two want to start acting like fucking adults. Until then, someone aparently needs to be helped." Kat said limping past them both toward the main room.

Tim was angry but lowered his head. Kat was right. The whole thing was too overcharged and he let it get to him. He felt like a kid who got caught fighting in the school yard over a ball. He looked at Arin. "Look Arey's not handling it well and I don't know that Deirdre is strong enough to do it alone. Viv isn't helping and I only just learned who I was yesterday. I don't know how to help them. We are supposed to be in this together." He lowered his voice, the anger stripped away.

Arin sighed, "Let's get one thing straight. You don't know me. I am not Lancelot. And you holding me to things he did in the past does not sit well. I will help. Not because I think you're right. Not because I think it's the best idea. Only because it's the only choice I have, apparently."

He continued to move into the main room. Though Kat made some good points it was not enough too cool him off entirely. This will not end well.

He stepped into the room and looked over at Vivienne, "So, this happened. Why couldn't you have a least made it easier on these two, of all of them?"

Tim nodded and moved back into the main room and up the dias. "Kat, you really should go back to bed or at least let me carry you..."

Arthur didn't notice any of the new additions. There was only Guin, and the promise she wanted from him. He'd hang the moon for her, this was both so much easier and so much more difficult. He would never want to leave her, but he wasn't the only one she needed and that tore him up inside. He also wasn't the only one making decisions anymore, which made things infinitely more complicated. "I won't, I promise." He croaked, slating his mouth over hers desperately trying to convey the emotions he could never express with words. In the end, Arthur would always be ruined for Guin, there was just no way around it.

"Ain't missing this show." Kat drawled tiredly, though it lacked her usual saucy humour to it. "If you wanna carry me to the coach though I won't say no."

Tim scooped Kat up in his arms and jogged with her the rest of the way. He stopped dead at the sight before him.

Guinevere's breath hitched as his mouth found hers. Her eyes closed and the world was nothing but the two of them. He was back, no longer lost to her. No longer a glimpse only to be ripped away. He had returned and now the others would have their king. Her knees gave way beneath her. She felt suddenly drained and exhausted. "Arthur..." She managed to breathe out as the world swirled.

Arin watched Arey and Deirdre kiss. There might have been something interesting to see there, but he was quite angry. At Tim for pushing all the wrong buttons. At his mother, for putting them through all this. At Kat, for not just staying in bed and getting better. Everyone seemed caught in their own agenda. He realized the irony, having just failed to keep his agenda, but that didn't actually help, either.

He looked to Tim, "They seem quite fine to me? You think I should go over there and break them up? Maybe join in?" He looked to Kat.

Tim growled, "No I want you to notice that Deirdre is about to collapse, that Arey is going to likely be freaked when she comes out of that. That Viv hasn't done anything and I am one person to the two of them. So I need you to either help keep Arey calm or grab Deirdre. Pick your poison." There was a look of sadness in his eyes as he looked over to Arin.

"I get it, not easy. None of this is. I have it better than you, I know it but don't ignore where you can help. Deirdre was going to try that too. Figured it would be easier to hide, push you and Arey together so she could fade away. You really think any of us hiding is going to help. Hurt now or hurt later."

Arin just shook his head, "No. You really don't understand. You can't. But I'm not holding you to some standard that says you can. You seem to think that I needed to see all of this. To be here for all of this to be able to help. Fine. I could have helped after this." He turned back to the two women and moved toward them.

Arey came back to herself fast and hard, like the snap of a rubber band. Deirdre was slipping, Arey felt like she was about to pass out or puke, but neither of those options bodes well, and she stumbled back. Vivienne was suddenly there, barely catching Deirdre in time. "And that, is why you drink the fucking tea." She seethed unsympathetically as Arey fell to her knees and began hyperventilating.

Tim looked upset "I didn't know they were gonna..." He put Kat on the couch and approached the women quickly.

Arin, sadly, "I was going to let them have their moment, before I had to ruin it. Far from being selfish."

Tim "Sorry..." It didn't feel like enough.

Arin stood near Arey, watching, with a twinge of envy as Vivienne caught Deirdre. Better for Arey to see that. Arin was ready to help Arey stand, "Arey... are you okay?"

Tim grabbed a cup of the tea. "Arey, here. Can you take a sip?" He knelt down with her. Looking up at Arin. "Maybe take Deirdre to lay down? Or want me to? I don't know which is easier..."

Arey didn't really respond right away. She heard voices in the background, but it was like they were far away. She couldn't process anything. "Why...why does this keep happening?" She felt on the verge of a break down. Her fucking head had just been hijacked. Again. She felt out of control and her thought were racing a a mile a minute, nothing coherent really sticking.

"Because you are King Arthur. Want some tea now?" Tim offered weakly.

Arin continued to avoid contact with either woman, "I don't think it would be a good idea to physically help either one of them currently. I'm not sure they'd be able to take another flashback so quickly." He leaned down to Arey, "Tea is a good idea. It will help you refocus your thoughts."

He stood back up and moved over to Vivienne and Deirdre, "What do you need me to do?" He resisted the urge to lower himself to one knee when asking the question.

"I can't breathe...." It felt like something was smothering her face. Deirdre felt like she was caught in cobwebs. Her legs barely worked, there was no energy to stand but a voice pulled her away from the unconsciousness. "Help me..." She gasped slightly and tried to stand up. Someone held her. Her eyes opened slowly. The sight of Vivienne made her heart stop. She whimpered in fear. Hers was not the voice she'd heard. Where was Arey? Arthur...he was here! The voice in her head screamed. "I need water." Deirdre managed weakly while trying to stand on her own.

Arin nodded and went to get a glass of water. He also carried a cup of the tea back with him. "Water and tea. They both should help."

Deirdre stood, slowly and shrunk away from Viv. She found the first seat she could and sat. When Arin returned with the cups for her she gave him the slightest look before nodding. "Thank you." She whispered.

Shaking hands grabbed the glass of water first and she swallowed most of it before placing it back down again. Her eyes found Kat, "Why are you here?" She gave her a weak smile.

"Someone had to be the adult of the family." Kat said flatly, but returned the smile and gave her a hug from the side.

Arey took the tea with trembling hands, but she could barely get the stuff down her throat.

Tim tried to smile. "I know tastes terrible but it makes the effects easier to take."

Deirdre accepted the hug but it didn't take much for her to start shaking. "I'm cold. Kat will she let me go home now?" She whispered to the girl.

Her eyes opened and she looked over at Arin. He looked so helpless, as if he wanted to help but couldn't. It hurt to see him like that. "Why hasn't he helped her? He should go to her. She needs him." She whispered into Kat's ear.

"He's afraid he'll trigger one of you." Kat whispered back. "The emotional bond you all have is pretty intense."

Arin noticed Deirdre shivering next to Kat as he stood by, feeling lost. He realized he still had his riding leathers on. He took off his jacket and offered it to Deirdre, "It's not a blanket. But it should help. I'm afraid to leave the room now, else I be accused of cowardry a second time."

Deirdre reached for the offered coat. "Thank you." She slipped it over her shoulders. It smelt of leather and him. She looked at Kat. "Intense yeah...." She swallowed as the smell of the coat brought a wave of emotion over her. She reached out and gripped Kat's hand. Her eyes were on Arin. "Cowardry?" She shook her head. "Not a word I associa-would associate with you."

Deirdre looked to Arey and then back to Arin. "Will she be okay? I mean did it work? I don't...I don't know where it came from. I know where..." She was talking nonsense. She took the cup of tea and took a drink.

"I'm Deirdre. Deirdre Evering. We haven't met." She spoke to the floor, her head down.

Tim looked Arey over carefully, "Want to sit in a chair? You took quite a whammy of a flashback."

Arin shrugged, "It was an attempt to help. I should get over it. I will, but it might take me hitting him with a wooden sword a couple times." He looked up at Tim and chuckled.

"Hello Deirdre. Nice to finally, officially, meet you. I'm Eärendil Ablach. But you can call me Arin. Also, please don't look at the ground. I would much rather see your face when talking to you." Arin replied, crouching down so he was at eye level with her.

Her hand, the one that held Kat's hand tightened. Her other hand almost released her cup of tea. Arin crouched in front of her, his eyes level with her own. "I have heard a lot about you..Arin." She wanted to look anywhere but his face. Her cheeks flushed slightly. "I am sorry I just didn't think...given what I-I mean she did that you would want to risk that again. I don't...I don't know how to do this."

Her breathing grew slightly quicker. Her hand on Kat's was like a vice grip. "You should go make sure she is okay. Don't worry about me. She needs you." Deirdre blinked back tears and looked down at her feet.

Arin couldn't understand why Deirdre was always so eager to get rid of him. He sighed, "Tim is taking care of Arey. I doubt, given what she just learned, she's all that eager to speak with me. Don't worry though. I won't risk anything you don't want. I'm just here to protect you all. But Kat probably needs that hand."

Deirdre's head snapped up. She frowned at Arin and dropped Kat's hand like a hot potato. She bit her lower lip. "Sorry."

"Risk anything I don't want?" She tilted her head slightly trying to read his face to get an understanding of what he meant. "I am not worried. She made mistakes in past and I won't hurt either of you in this life. I don't know what you think your job is but the mistake is mine to fix." She reached out to touch his cheek but stopped part of the way. "Sorry, I shouldn't...."

Arin closed his eyes, anticipating, yearning, for the contact. He released a breath he didn't realize he had held when she stopped. "The past mistake was Lancelot's. You did not make any mistake. And the only mistake Guin made was falling for someone who should have known better." He opened his eyes, "I had hoped to meet the person in whom Guin was coming back. I wanted to see, to prove, that Lancelot and Guinevere should have been, not Guinevere and Arthur. I realize I was wrong. I won't make the same mistake he made." Please, don't let me make the same mistake.

He looked at her hand, so close to his face, "No... it wouldn't be good for you to do that now... And, you don't want Arey to get the wrong idea before you both can get your thoughts settled."

Tim looked to Vivienne for some sort of guidance in all of this. Arey was trying to choke down the tea, he wanted to get her to a chair but was worried now about touching her. Deidre was on the couch with Kat and Arin was talking to her though it didn't seem overly mushy, in fact they looked downright uncomfortable. This night just keeps getting better.

Deirdre stared at Arin. His words crushed her, not just her but Guinevere. Her lip trembled. her hand outstretched to caress his face came across in a slap. The sound of it hitting his face echoed a little. Deirdre stood and ran down the dias. She was angry and hurt. She couldn't explain why fully, everything was such a jumble but she was and hearing him say the things he did was like a knife in heart.

Tim was shocked. "Okay....not how I saw that going...."

Arin closed his eyes again. The sting on his face only a small pain to what he felt inside. Finally he stood. He looked at Kat sadly, "Not today." He turned to Tim, "I've done enough damage tonight. Would you excuse me now?"

Tim rolled his eyes a little, "The two of you even talk the same." He sighed, 'You know you two keep living in the guilt and we are all going to drown in it before we ever get started. You try talking to her tomorrow. And I'm sorry this isn't going smoothly."

"I never said I was finished. Just for tonight. You know, after they can collect their thoughts. This is the kind of smooth I was trying to avoid." Arin shook his head in annoyance, "I thought you were a lawyer, not a pychologist."

Tim wiped a hand over his face and looked at Arey, "Yeah well not sure what the fuck I am anymore."

"Finally, something we can agree on." Arin gave a half hearted grin. Arey wasn't looking like she was recovering well though. He wasn't sure he should make a second attempt. Also, he just realized Deirdre took off with his jacket. How was he going to explain that?

"Kat... uh, advice? Or... you need help back to your room? Give me an excuse to leave?"

"King Arthur..." Arey huffed out a humorless laugh. It almost sounded delirious. "Then why the fuck am I a girl?" She glanced over to see Arin with Deirdre, wondering how she'd never seen it before. Lance and Guin. It was like seining the world in Technicolor for the first time, and mostly overwhelming. The sight of them together brought a numb kind of pain. The kind that people who've accepted defeat have when they go looking for a bottle of Jack. "The universe's biggest 'fuck off' that's what it is." She babbled.

Tim winced. He didn't have any answers for her. "Chair? Do you want to sit?"

"I'd have to agree. Not the best sense of humor. This universe could take lessons." Arin tried to add his own humor. Something other than the intensity that had been flowing around.

"Bringer her over here." Kat suggested. "She ain't gonna go all freaky flashback syndrome on me."

Arey looked between Tim, Arin and Kat, unsure really what she should do next. She figured standing up would probably be a good start, so she did, albeit shakily.

Tim nodded, "Good idea. I'd help but..." He watched Arey stand. His eyes moved to Viv. He wondered why she hadn't helped in all of this. She stood back, cold and detached like an observer. He shook his head. She gave the same feeling of distance that Ywain remembered from his mother. He moved to sit in another chair.

Arey wasn't really sure where to sit, but followed the persistent beckoning of the girl on the couch. Kat she remembered foggily. The sort-of-definitely little sister of the boy she was currently crushing on. Or maybe not anymore. Who the hell could keep track with so many people's different competing emotions. Remembering the kiss from the club was like a shot of herself though. Nothing tainted by some dead king who'd now dumped all his personal emotional bullshit on her.

"So..." She said awkwardly, nothing better to say coming to mind as Kat wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and snuggled close. It was kind of weird. She didn't exactly know this girl and Arey like her personal space, but it was kind of a relief that the physical contact did bring back any weird memories to make Arey get to know her either.

Tim looked at Arin and then to Arey. "So...ugh welcome?" He shrugged. "Arin has been doing this longer than me, I only have you beat by a day. Not sure about D. Though we only found her last night. So questions should be directed to Arin or better yet Vivienne." There was a hardness in his eyes when he looked at Viv.

For precaution's sake, Vivienne had been avoiding physical contact as well. She, unlike the others, did not just echo with the soul of someone Arthur had known in a past life. She was a person he had known, and more than a few of those memories involved violence and pain for Arthur. If she triggered a flashback, it was hard to tell what Arey might experience. It could be something victorious like the first time he pulled Excalibur from her Lake, or when she'd attended his wedding. It could also be a memory of the time she'd had to use Fae magic to save Arthur's life after his battle with Melegant, or worse, when she'd stood over his dying body while his soul was being ushered across the veil from Avalon.

She approached carefully with a fresh pot of tea that Theo had had the foresight to brew, and refreshed her cup. "Drink up, you need it." Arey looked up at her almost looking grumpy, but this time drank the damn tea almost meekly. She didn't have any fight left in her to say no.

Arin watched sympathetically as she cuddled up with Kat, "I'm sorry Arey. I couldn't prevent that. I tried to give you as much warning as I could...." He trailed off. He realized he sounded like he was making excuses.

"I don't know if it made much difference, but thanks for trying I guess." Arey replied numbly. How exactly was that supposed to go more easily. "I'm a bit of a stubborn blighter when I dig my heels in." Arey admitted absently. "I'm not sure I've got my head around this whole thing...but I'm willing to concede you may not all be crazy. My second running theory is that it's contagious, but we'll see which one wins out."

Tim smirked a little. He relaxed for the first time that night. His body was tired and he stifled a yawn. "Crazy is relative."

"There is a third option. The combo of both of your original theories." Arin grinned. The grin turned to a slight frown, "Someone should check on Deirdre. I don't think I made her too happy."

"So go find her. You pissed her off, go talk to her. She is calmer I bet." Tim looked at Arin hopefully. "I am sure it was just leftover from everything else. You know emotions running high..." He did his best to sound confident and positive.

Arin chuckled at Tim, "First you thought it'd be a bad idea for me to talk to her. Now you're sending me off? I don't think I could be more confused about the best approach to any of this..." He looked over at Arey again, "You know who we are now... I don't want to do anything that seems permanent before everyone gets a chance to let things settle down. I don't want Deirdre to be left by herself tonight, but I'm not the one that should go to her, am I?"

"Yeah you are." Arey replied tiredly. The feeling inside herself that knew Deirdre needed Arin right now wasn't her own, and it wasn't pleasant, but the thought of that girl alone and upset made her feel worse. She didn't feel great about Arin being cozy with another girl either, but Arey sucked it up. They'd gone on one date, and apparently under false pretenses, so she didn't have the right to start acting like a jealous girlfriend. "Just go." Her voice sounding too wary to be completely her own.

"Hey look I think you could just leave her alone. If it is that much of an issue, which I understand just leave her to herself tonight." Tim felt a twinge of regret but he knew if he went he would have no idea what to say to her. He didn't even really know what happened but he wasn't doing well in the comforting or understanding department tonight. "We can all just sleep on it and in the morning back to ourselves with some new things to tackle."

"Arey, then what about you? You think I want to see you alone tonight? Look, you both went through a traumatic experience. You are both upset. I don't think either of you should be stuck without someone to talk to." Arin was torn. He wouldn't feel right leaving either of them to themselves.

"I would volunteer Kat's room. The three girls. Like a slumber party, right?" He tried to grin.

"I'm beginning to think D was right with this whole get Arey and Arin together plan. Be easier on us all..." Tim grumbled a little. "Sounds like a plan Arin. Come on Kat I will carry you to your room and you can decide who takes my place as Robin. Arey can you walk alright? We will get Theo to set up...I don't know an extra bed or something." Tim was quite terrible at being comforting. This whole thing felt awkward and he wanted nothing more than to go to bed and forget about it, even for a little bit.

"Or we could do that and you can graduate up the the Batman bunk with me." Kat said grinning cheekily.

"Is she always like this?" Arey mumbled. A little shocked by that insinuation as she glanced awkwardly between the two.

Tim turned red, "Nice Kat, nice. And yes she loves to do that. The more she can put me on the spot the better."

"Actually, that was quite tame." Arin agreed.

Tim nodded, "True. I am shocked she didn't go for something along the lines of a threesome. Off her game tonight. Right half pint?" He gave Kat a wink and scooped her up from the couch.

Arin sputtered.

"Well Arin's like my brother so that's be weird, but say the word baby cakes and I'm up for a blondie sandwich. What about you baby blues?" Kat said winking up at Arey, who blinked awkwardly as her face turned red.

Tim chuckled, "Oh thank god someone else she can make blush. I will not be the only victim." He adjusted Kat in his arms so it was comfortable. "Come Arey, let's get you to a bed so you can sleep, been a long hard day." His voice was sincere.

"She's joking right?" Arey asked cautiously, but got up to follow regardless.

"Nope." Kat smirked as she made herself comfortable in Tim's arms. She needed to make this happen more often. "You either toots. I'm traumatized remember. I need batman bed sheet cuddle time."

Tim blushed as he carried her down the dias and down the hall. He didn't see D anywhere and he frowned but kept moving. "Hey now I think cuddles need to wait for a bit. We are all a bit traumatized by tonight's activities. Besides girls only slumber party."

"Boo." Kat pouted. "I like a nice rack as much as the next bi-curious girl, but our little camp out needs some sausage."

"I don't know how to respond to that..." Arey mumbled, not sure whether to be awed or horrified by her ballsiness.

"You don't have to say anything, blush and she is satisfied." He shook his head a little. "Nice and crude, way to end the night half pint." He entered her room. "Okay here is where I leave you ladies to it." He kissed Kat's forehead gently. "Take it easy okay? You had us freaked out." Tim gently put her down.

He looked at Arey. "Try and sleep. Things are always a bit clearer after you've slept on it."

Arin shook his head as they left, "Traumatized..." He turned to Vivienne, "What's next? What would you like me to do about all this? Should I be expecting a 'told you so'?"

Vivienne looked at her son. There were a thousand things she wished to convey in that moment. Her anger, disapproval of his actions, her relief that he had gotten himself and Arthur...Arey she mentally corrected, home safely. He'd found both Arthur and Guinevere, and the results we predictably explosive. She wanted him to understand why she had the position she had, that she didn't want to see his heart torn to shreds again in the same love triangle that tore all three of them apart originally. But she also wanted him to be alright, and right now, emotionally, he wasn't.

In a rare show of motherly affection, Vivienne pulled him into a tight hug, rubbing his back soothingly. "Go to sleep. Take Timothy with you, I think he needs a break from Katrina's pawing. I'll handle the preparations for the morning." She said gently. "We can't change what has come to pass, we will deal with the ramifications of it in the morning."

Arin slumped in her embrace, releasing the tension of the past few hours. He whispered, "Thank you..." After a moment he pulled back enough to look at her, "I'll save Tim. I owe him that. I don't think I treated him very well either. Batting a thousand, really. Someone has to find Deirdre and set her up for the night and I think she's quite intimidated by you."

"I appear to have that effect on the women you fancy." Vivienne said dryly. "Except perhaps Arey. She was quite determined to be disagreeable." There was a slight amusement in her voice when she said that. "Take Timothy with you when you look for her then. His presence may buffer any lingering effects for you both." She suggested.

"I was thinking the same. And I think that's the curse/blessing of all mother's. They only want to protect their sons." Arin shrugged, "Just a might more complicated in our case."

Arin lingered for a last moment before breaking the embrace and heading out to find Tim. "See you in the morning, mom."

Tim walked down the hall. It had taken a bit to extract himself from the room but they were both exhausted so in the end he won out. Not that Arey was doing much but looking shocked at Kat but still...

He rubbed his face as he walked. Damn I don't know where I am sleeping tonight....

Arin turned into the hallway and saw Tim, "Looks like you can bunk with me. I've got a place above the garage. No threesomes required. But let's find Deirdre first? Get her settled, okay?"

Tim blushed, "Oh yeah...no I was teasing....D? Oh." He looked uncomfortable. "Just she seemed pretty upset and she has some pretty interesting ideas on her job in all this. She kind of wants to fade out of the story, thinks it is best for you and Arey to be together. She didn't like it very much when Kat said you were on a mission to find Guin. That whole obsessed thing. She seems kind of...I don't know....I mean she is Guinevere, don't get me wrong but she isn't that strong. Not Deirdre anyway. Don't you think it best we just leave her alone?" The thought of seeing her upset at Arin or worse, being there if something happened that didn't involve anger made Tim very uncomfortable. "Maybe try and remember that she is a woman you don't know, sure a second soul or what not but still a woman."

Arin leaned against the wall as Tim was talking, "Nice lecture." He grinned. "I got it dad. Let her alone cause she's someone more than I think. I figured that one out already though. Kinda hard not to notice the lesson." He rubbed his face. "That said, you, the person who came running in for my help, now think it's okay to let this woman who is scared and confused, wander around a not entirely welcoming, strange place, by herself?"

Tim shrugged, 'No but if she feels like we are forcing her to do something it might make it worse. She honestly has it in her head that she needs to just make sure you and Arey are a couple. Viv told her she couldn't leave. She has been frightened out of her mind and not left alone since Kat and I found her. I don't know what is going to happen when we find her and I don't want to see her upset." He looked at his feet. "I don't do well when women are upset and last time I yelled at her to stay in the bathroom. I even called her my queen and she got pretty upset. Kat had to lock her in the bathroom." He grumbled to his feet.

"Hmm. I would recommend not doing that anymore. Nor should you call Arey, my king, your grace, your majesty... that kind of thing. Just like I wouldn't want you calling me Sir, either. I'm Arin." He chuckled.

Tim shuffled his feet, "Wasn't really me, you know. I was just under pressure. I didn't mean to...Kat was puking and she tried to run and I knew you were coming. She didn't want to meet you, you know...she is scared she is going to hurt you and Arey again."

"Yeah, I got that too. I guess we all have that going. It's a great ice breaker. 'So, you know, in the past when I stole your wife, fun times eh?" Arin shrugged, "The complications are there. Absolutely. I've had a lifetime to work them through in my head. I knew what I was getting into when you made me go into that room. But that's not the item in question. Deirdre has been marked. She is known to some pretty nasty things. You think it's the best move to just let her leave? I think it would be the worse thing we could do to her. She'd quickly end up a thrall."

Tim sighed and started walking down the hall, "I know that. Make her believe it." Tim glanced over as he walked. "Do you think of yourself as a bad guy in all of this? You know for what happened?"

Arin followed Tim. At the question he did a double take, "I consider myself Arin. My good or bad hasn't been decided yet. Do I consider the actions of Lancelot to be bad? Not really, no. He made a mistake but for reasons he couldn't avoid or change. Did I have a chance to change the repeat? Maybe. Do I still? God, I hope so. But what he did isn't me."

Tim frowned. "Do me a favor, when things are calmer explain that to Deidre? She called herself the villain. She said that...just explain to her that it wasn't a bad thing, she isn't the bad guy that she seems to feel like she is. She really is hanging on to a lot of guilt and it sucks to see. In her eyes..." Tim shook his head.

Arin nodded sincerely, "I think I understand better than most. I'll do what I can. I can't promise she'll want to hear anything I say. I am also wary of too closely identifying." He trailed off.

"So you don't want to have any feelings for her in this life? Is that your goal, to keep a distance?"

"I don't know the woman. I just met her tonight. I know that there is a deeper connection that I cannot let control my actions otherwise I'm doing us both a disservice. Hence, I don't want to identify too closely because that biases Arin and Deirdre's relationship." He looked at Tim, "You sometimes seem to understand, but you still can't get past the point of boxing in my reactions? I hope you'll learn to trust me, at least a little bit."

Tim sighed, "Hey hard to understand motives when there are two of you in you...just making sure...As for trust, I just met you. The part of me that knows you, trusts you. The Tim part is just starting to get to know you."

Arin smiled, "Exactly. Notice I said learn to."

Tim nodded, "Just making sure you haven't pre decided things like she has."

"All I have pre decided is, it's my job to help you all learn about the dangers and how to defend yourself. I've trained all my life to fight these things. Now I finally get to try and teach you all. That's my predetermined position. Mostly because I have the experience to do it. Not because it was pre-ordained."

Tim was looking around the main hall now as they talked. "You are gonna hit me with a wooden sword aren't you?"

"Oh, so, so many times."

Tim laughed. "How the hell do we find her in here? I mean there are boxes and junk everywhere and she is a slip of a thing. Tall...great legs but slim. She could be anywhere."

Arin raised an eyebrow, "Hmm, looks like there are more people interested in Deirdre?" He grinned.

He walked around looking for some sign of Deirdre. "No, she is beautiful don't get me wrong but no spark between us. I tried. Sweet and all but more...I don't know....just don't see it. Doesn't mean I can't look though."

"Fair enough. I'm not cupid either. This place isn't that big. She can't be far. She wouldn't have known how to get to my apartment from here. And I didn't see her go back through the portal."

Tim shook his head, "Sure but where then? Use the spidey sense." He grinned at Arin.

Arin looked over at him, "You can too, you know. Not a bad time to try it. No pressure."

Tim rolled his eyes, "You are messing me up. You have a better connection with her. All I am getting is 'he is gonna bruise my ribs' vibes. Yeah can you tell I am looking forward to sword practice?" He chuckled and walked away a little trying to 'feel' out where she might be.

Arin smiled, "Fair enough. So... stop thinking about me. Find a memory of her. Focus on that."

Tim, "My spidey sense has gotten me a whole lot of trouble tonight...you sure you don't just..." He stopped and looked to his right. He walked slowly in that direction. There were a few boxes and Tim shifted two. Deirdre was sitting on the floor, her head on her knees and tucked into Arin's coat as much as she could. "Go away Tim. I am not deaf you know and this place has amazing acoustics."

"Then you know why we don't want to let you leave right now."

"And you know I can't get out of here plus Vivienne told me I couldn't and she doesn't like me so I hate to think what she would do to me if I tried. I am not going anywhere I am just keeping to myself. Safer this way."

"Deirdre, if she didn't like you, she would have let you leave. Left you to fend for yourself against the incubus."

She looked up at him. "No she couldn't let me leave because she said if the Gleaming decided I needed to be here it didn't matter what she wanted. So she didn't have a choice either. She wasn't entirely pleased to know I existed in this life. Guess you know all about that though."

"That's her lovable, gruff exterior. You probably don't realize yet, but the fact that she's here, been here for so long, kinda shows that she only puts so much stock in what the Gleaming wants. Push comes to shove, she does what she damn well pleases."

Tim looked at Arin and shook his head slowly. "No man...I don't think Vivienne likes Guinevere at all..." He tried to keep his voice low.

"I know all about what?" Arin barely registered Tim's comment.

"Just leave me alone. I can't do any damage if you just stay away. When things are put right I can go away and you won't ever have to see me again. Hell you don't even know me...I am so sick of people telling me what to do, who to be. I can't make her stop talking in my head, I can't make you stop looking at me like you are just waiting for me to tear your heart out and Arey...the look in her eyes when she saw me in the bathroom. I can't...I didn't do anything but there it is and all I feel is guilty."

Tim looked at Arin and shook his head. He had no idea what to say to her.

Arin took a breath. Watching Deirdre struggle with the same pain and guilt he had his whole life was harder than he thought. He knew where he stood now, but it took him awhile. Seeing her just start. He knew she was in for a long struggle, "Deirdre... Can I call you D? I've heard that a few times tonight." He paused.

She looked up, "Sure, its easier to say." She looked back down at her knees.

Arin moved over, keeping a respectful distance, not trying to avoid her, he sat, "It probably doesn't mean much right now. But hopefully, one day, it will help. I know exactly what you're going through. I have been held to the standard of Lancelot since I was born. I have had to live with the idea that I was responsible for tearing down a great man and causing an amazing woman to turn her back on him." He paused again, "The thing is... I'm not actually Lancelot. I'm Arin. I think we've met" He grinned, again trying to interject some levity.

"It took me a long, long time to come to terms with that. You... you are Deirdre. I would love to get to know Deirdre. But I can't do that if you feel like you aren't her. I'm sure Tim would love to get to know Deirdre as well."

Her heart pounded in her chest. "I don't know Deirdre. I have been living the life my parents wanted me to live for the last eighteen and a half years. I was just learning how to have a life that belonged to me and now I have this woman, she is strong and independent but god damn is she commanding. And she wants me to find Arthur, find Lancelot. Vivienne expects me to do what needs to be done to make Arthur return. So I am right back to no choice, no options and no Deirdre. So when this is over with, when you and Arey are together and I can't hurt anyone and Vivienne tells me I did my duty then I can go figure out my life."

Her eyes met his. She was angry and hurt. She was terrified.

Arin nodded, "You say how it made you feel when Arey looked at you in the bathroom, when I look at you... You know, when you look at me..." He shook his head, "Right now, you need to find Deirdre. That is your duty. I'll give you a hint. Part of Deirdre is Guinevere. She is not you and you are not her, however together you are what you will become. I'm not Lancelot but I'd be foolish to not recognize his influence."

"Trust me I know her influence well." She looked away, unable to focus on him any longer.

"You know some of it, yes. But she was a force of peace. She was diplomacy incarnate. And she could inspire the most out of the least of us. But that is just what she did. What you will do with that influence is still to be determined. But don't limit yourself to what you think she did or didn't do."

Tim shuffled his feet, he felt like he was witnessing something far too private. I could just pick her up and carry her, not like she could fight me off.

Deirdre put her head down, 'Your words makes sense but I still just want to be alone where I can't do anything wrong when I am not needed. It is the in between that will do the most damage. Guinevere is a small part in a big story but she had a big impact with her mistakes. I will just stay here until you need me." She sounded defeated.

"I can seriously just pick her and carry her to Kat's room if you want..." Tim whispered.

Arin shook his head, "Weren't you just lecturing me on ensuring I gave her choice?"

"Yeah but she is being unreasonable and we are going in circles. She needs to go to bed, we need to go to bed." Tim inhaled slowly. It was very uncomfortable to see Deirdre like this.

"No, she is being confused and feeling lost and unwanted. Those are unreasonable states to be in. Only fair for her to respond in kind." Arin turned back to Deirdre, "D, I will not make you leave. You have full choice on where you want to stay tonight." He shifted slightly to lay down further, "As do I. I choose to stay here with you."

She looked up slowly. "Why would you do that? Just go. Tim said it, you need to go to bed. You guys have a lot to do in the morning and god help me it sounded like your mother intended to kill me...yes I could hear all that. I will just stay out of the way. Besides,she is really hurt right now and it isn't helping my being unreasonable." She glared at Tim. 'Acoustics, amazing in here remember?"

"More reason for me to stay then. I don't plan on letting you be killed. If someone is hurting, they shouldn't be alone. I didn't have a peachy night. I could use the company. Tim, follow this hall, then right. There's another mirror. Through it are stairs. You'll find my apartment there."

Tim shuffled his feet and turned red. "Okay…you sure?" He looked at Arin questioningly.

"No. I would much rather D chose a place a lot more comfortable. But, it is her choice."

Tim started backing away, the look at Deirdre face frightened him a little. "Well, right...." He backed off further.

"How dare you." Her eyes were full of anger and hurt. "How dare you try and make me feel guilty for you staying here. I didn't ask you to. You aren't bound by any oath to stay here. You have no right to make me feel guilty because you will not be comfortable." Her voice was low but there was a tremor to it. "That is low."

"You are correct. I have made no such oath. So, why do I stay? Not for the comfort, as you say. It really wasn't an attempt to make you feel guilty. It was to point out that you have other choices."

"Yes to make you comfortable or not. It isn't about me at all. You know damn well I don't want you uncomfortable and will go off to bed like a good girl so that you don't have to lay on the floor." Deirdre stood. "Fine, have it your way and you can report back to your mother that I am good at doing what I am told."

"No. It wasn't about me and my comfort. I have an apartment, maybe you heard? Tim and I were going there. I had company. I wasn't looking for a reason to stay on the floor. Instead, I was looking for a way to show you that I did, in fact, care about what you wanted. That I do in fact care about you not having to deal with this alone. I wanted to show you that there were people here who will be there for you when you need it. By your choice."

"By pointing out you'd rather be somewhere more comfortable? Saying it is my choice if you are or not? That doesn't say you care that says your job was to find me, get me to bed any way possible."

"Now who's playing the guilt card? You know damn well that's not why I came to find you. You heard it. Acoustics, remember?"

Tim was beyond uncomfortable now. "I-I am just gonna..." He backed away.

"You are just going to sit your ass down and wait. You aren't deserting her either. Look, we really can't stay in the hallway, you know that. Obviously my point was misplayed. D, you have to realize no one here is trying to make you something you are not. Unless it's you. And in that case, all we want to do is help you be who you are and not let you limit yourself."

Deirdre started to cry, she sunk back to her knees. Her face was in her hands. Her shoulders shook with the force of the sobs. Tim looked at Arin, "Really man? You made her cry..." Tim started towards her but Deirdre looked up like a caught animal. She stood. "Fine done, defeated."

Arin stood, "It isn't all a competition. We're not out to get you. Honestly."

"No but you don't pull punches when it comes to hurting someone. A mistake...she won't let me forget that you know." She moved to Arin and took his jacket off. "Thank you for this." She held it out a short distance. "Don't worry I won't touch you." She looked away and waited for him to take it.

Tim shook his head. "Didn't think it possible for someone to have that much guilt or sadness in them."

Deirdre glared at Tim before looking to the floor.

"What do you mean, mistake?" Arin made no move to accept the jacket.

"You said it was a mistake. Loving her was a mistake that you won't repeat. It isn't that you don't want to repeat it it is that you feel that it was a mistake to begin with."

Arin recoiled in shock, "No... no, no. Loving her was the best thing that ever happened to him. He never thought that a mistake. The mistake was acting on it when he knew that his best friend was already in love with her. He would never want to repeat that part. But he, I, wanted to repeat the love. It was perfect. If Lancelot loved her first, Arthur wouldn't have been hurt. It would have been perfect."

"Yeah well...sure as hell didn't sound like you believed that and she wasn't perfect or blameless and the more you make it solely about you the worse it is for her." Deirdre looked at Arin, her eyes locking on his. "If the love is meant to be it doesn't matter who was first. That is the point. The hurt can only be stopped if that love isn't there. If you and Arey get together than there is no hurt." She tried to sound confident.

Arin shook his head sadly, "That time has passed as well."

"You have given up before you even tried. You never failed with me, you hadn't hurt Arey. Nothing had happened except you talked to the wrong girl first. Like Tim said it was one date. But hey you give up, you give up."

Arin smiled gently, "When I saw her face in the bathroom, I knew that was not true."

"No Lancelot knew it was true. What does Arin think of her? You just lectured me on being myself. What about you? You are giving up on a girl you just met, why because she is Arthur reincarnated? She could end up head over heels for you and you'd hurt her by ignoring it."

Arin shook his head again, "You both are developing a habit of putting me in a box you think fits. I didn't say Lancelot knew anything. I said, I knew that the hurt was already accomplished. At that moment. In her eyes and yours, it was done."

"That was ME! I did that by being present! If I hadn't been there...If Tim had just let me leave. I did that!" She walked towards him till they were almost nose to nose.

"No. You don't understand. It was at that point that I realized there was no avoiding the hurt. We were all brought back here. It had to happen. Hence, my failure wasn't in the lack of execution of the plan, it was in the plan itself. There was no chance of success. Before you interrupt, there was no chance of success at that plan. That doesn't mean I've given up anything."

"So no matter what I do I am going to hurt you both again?" She whispered, the will to fight leaving her.

"No. It means that we've established the past hurt and relived it. Now is the time we get to figure it out as Arin, Arey and Deirdre. And whoever else might be involved." Arin looked at Tim briefly.

"Well Arin, you and Arey make a great couple." She held out his jacket. "Or you and whoever. I wish you nothing but happiness and perhaps if I can figure out who I am outside of all this we can get to the point of not being afraid to shake hands."

"Oh my god, you can be obtuse at times. You think I'm afraid to touch you?"

Arin laughed, "You have just been through a quite traumatic flashback. I saw no reason to put you through another at that time. But..." He couldn't see a reason any longer. She was hurting and she needed some kind of comfort. He pushed the jacket aside and gathered her fully in his arms and held her close.

Tim saw it coming, Deirdre didn't and he knew that too. "Arin I don't think...right..."

She was shocked and stiffened as arms pulled her in. The smell of him was overwhelming and the feel of his arms so familiar that she immediately relaxed and melted against him. The emotions came in strong waves and she felt like she was drowning in his presence. Her arms wrapped around him, dropping the jacket. Her hands clung to him like she was drowning and she began to cry. It was in anger and relief. Deirdre wanted to push him away but couldn't bring herself to let go.

Arin knew it could be overwhelming. He focused on the feelings of comfort and friendship that Guinevere and Lancelot had. He wanted to help calm her, not cause more confusion. He hoped Kat was right that they could direct flashbacks and intensity.

Deirdre felt it coming and knew that if she didn't break the contact it was going to come and it wouldn't stop. At first it was calm, safety, trust. Then there was more, it was building, the voice inside her reaching out to him. Doing so would open a set of floodgates she didn't think she wanted or were helpful. She struggled in his arms. "I can't....I don't want to feel how much she loved you....don't make me..."

"Never will I make you." Arin broke the contact immediately, but not forcefully. He stepped a half step away and bent to pick up his jacket.

She looked at him. "Why?" She wanted to beg him to hug her again, she wanted to feel safe and wanted. She had never experienced anything like that in her life. The love, the overwhelming love and desire that was about to swallow her was scary, it felt right but frightening.

"Why? Why won't I make you? Because I have no desire to force either of us to relive something we're not. D, I don't know you. Arin can't yet possibly love you like Lancelot loves Guinevere. Maybe, one day? Who knows? But I know that before that can happen I really want to know Deirdre. Maybe we don't work out that way. But using some ancient feelings as an excuse would be a major disservice to us both."

"Why did you hug me?" She choked out the words.

"Oh..." He looked chagrined, "That's a much easier question. Because you looked like you could use the comfort and it seemed like you thought I really didn't like you. Two birds, I hope?"

Deirdre frowned but approached Arin slowly. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him. "Next time warn me." She closed her eyes and very briefly put her head on his chest. "I don't know how to understand it but...thank you."

"If I was sure you wouldn't have hit me again, I might have warned you. Next time, I'll know better. And, you're always welcome."

She looked down at her feet. "You aren't going to let me just stay here are you?"

Arin smiled, "Finally figured that out eh?"

"Was more trying to gauge how serious you were now that you've yelled at me and what not. I don't mind just being alone. I don't think being with Arey is a great idea."

"There are things you two will have to resolve. As much as there are more things for us, as well. But, no, being with her is likely just as overwhelming as being with me. Tim, can you take D to my apartment?"

Tim turned red, "Well uh, where will you sleep?"

Arin grinned, "One, I don't mean like that. I trust your chivalry there Tim. Plus, there's a room with a door and a pull out couch. You two figure that out. Me, there's a futon in the shop upstairs. Wouldn't be the first night I slept there."

Deidre shook her head. "No, I can suck it up. Vivienne will be angry that you went out of your way to do something for me. She is looking out for you." She wrapped her arms about herself. "Good night guys. I am sorry you had to come looking for me and that I was so unreasonable."

Arin stopped her before she could leave, "Who said I'm doing it for you? I'm doing it for Tim. He needs to get used to being around you too. He has foot in mouth disease something fierce. Help him out, okay? Viv won't care where I sleep. And you're still cold. Take the jacket. Finally, we covered the unreasonable thing already, so no more of that."

Deirdre looked extremely confused. "Foot in mouth?" Tim rolled his eyes. She took Arin's jacket. She felt bad for taking it from him but the weight of it was comforting. She slipped her arms in and pulled it about herself. Deirdre felt instantly warmer and calmer. She realized it was the smell, the leather and Arin's scent. It brought back flashes of horses, saddles and a man leaning down to kiss her from horseback. She shivered a little.

"Yeah, he was telling me how he almost called Arey, your grace. Kinda funny, really."

She looked at Tim. "You do know the next time you call me my queen I will have to hit you."

Tim threw his hands in the air, "It wasn't me and it wasn't like you gave me a choice!"

"See, lots to figure out. Apparently Tim likes to be hit. We'll try with swords next time. So, keep him on his toes."

Tim groaned, "Let's go D before he keeps going."

She gave Arin one last look. "Are you sure? I can deal, honest I am not that weak." The sudden thought that he might think her weak or fragile made her feel ill.

"Not even a consideration. I just think you should get to know Viv a bit more before you see how she handles mornings. You know, for all concerned parties."

Deirdre looked wary, "Good night then."

Arin winked, "It will be now."

Arin nodded and went into Kat's room. He saw Theo attending to her, "She asleep for a bit?" He looked over at Kat. He could see the marks on her neck where she was grabbed.

"Theo, do you know what happened? Who did this to her?"

Theo looked up from the bottom bunk where Kat was laid out. She was groggily tired, but awake, looking almost grumpy as Theo continued to force feed her cups of treatment tea.

"From what I’ve been told, a rather vengeful succubus Sir." Theo replied matter of factly.

"I'm right here y'know." Kat grumbled quietly.

Arin smiled at her voice, "Great to see you Kat. I was worried there for a bit. I haven't seen something knock you down like that yet."

He nodded at Theo, "Thanks. More succubi. I'd like to get my hands on the one that keeps after you Kat. You know where I can find them?"

"She's just pissed I got her good across the face with an iron rod." Kat croaked out, managing a lopsided satisfied grin. "I'd love to help you out with that, but I was kinda out of it when Tim dragged us out of there."

"Yeah. That one was the incubus that did that. Quite the target you are out there. What's it like to be so popular with the guys and girls?" Arin winked.

"I'll let you know when I get laid." Kat croaked dryly.

Arin chuckled, "Yeah, those details I might not be nearly as interested in." He moved to sit down next to her on the bed. "So, big show in there right now I expect. I managed to get Arey back here."

"Even if it's Tim?" Kat joked. "I might try cuttin' in on your bromance action there." She was both kind of joking and also not. "That's good. How you think she's gonna take it? Hell, how are you taking it?"

Arin grinned, "Especially if it's Tim."

He shook his head, "I'm not sure how she'll take it. Depends on how much she fights Arthur's influence. She's already shown a lot of his tendencies." He paused and shrugged, "I don't know what I expected, but I didn't get the chance to even meet Deirdre. I thought Arey was cool, even when I found out she wasn't Guin. Yet, she seems to hate me now and Deirdre's done all she could to avoid me. I guess I just try and ride it out. My plan failed. I didn't get to Guin first. I didn't stop hurting Arthur."

"Don't beat yourself up over it." Kat tried to placate lamely. "They're new, they'll get over it eventually right?"

"And if they do? Then I have to try and resist any feelings I might have for Deirdre as Lancelot and additionally resist any feelings I have for Arey as Arin. I'm in a double bind. It's pretty much the worse way this could have went." Arin replied bitterly.

Kat attempted to sit up a little bit as she patted Arin gently on the shoulder. "I'm gonna give you the same advise I gave Deidre back at the club." Kat began seriously, making eye contact. "Threesome." Somehow, she managed to say it with a straight face.

Arin raised an eyebrow at Kat, "Mock a guy when he's down, eh? Tell you what, you go ahead and convince them that it's a good idea and I'll not complain. Somehow, Lancelot approaching Guin and Arthur offering his presence in their relationship seems a little less likely to be met with enthusiasm." He chuckled.

"Can't help y'all used to be vanilla prudes." Kat said attempting to shrug. "But if y'all have the hots for each other, why not dude. Get it out of your systems and then go fight monsters. Seems like a solid plan to me."

Arin laughed, taking some of the gloom he'd felt away, "Thanks Kat. At least a good chuckle cheers me up a bit. But I'll take your advice under consideration. To me, it sounds like a good solution."

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The next morning-Sunday

He had slept well. He was so used to being up early that Tim couldn't sleep in. He was careful to be quiet as he moved from the pull out couch and slipped out of Arin's apartment. His head felt clearer than yesterday and now he was angry with himself. He had panicked, he had called for Arin's help without thinking what it might to do him. Tim was disappointed. He hadn't stepped up, he hadn't done the smart or compassionate thing. He had let Deirdre do the hard part, let her approach Arey. He had made Arin come help when part of him knew damn well that it wasn't fair to make him see any of that and in the end what could he really do? Touching them would have meant another intense flashback and who knows how much worse that would have gotten.

Hands in his pockets he walked down the hall to the main cave area. He wished he had a shirt but he wasn't about to go swipe one from Arin's drawer and going in there would have meant possibly waking Deirdre. He shook his head. After the accident he had so much determination, he wanted to walk, he wanted to regain the life he had, to be strong and independent once more. He had felt ready to tackle anything and wanted to help others. So what had happened last night? He balked at helping Deirdre when she was upset. At the club he had taken charge but once they were here he had simply panicked.

No more of that. We have to fight. I can't go running to Arin every time something seems overwhelming. Come on they have way more to deal with than you do. They are facing a life where their past lives want each other and are so connected it is intense. In this life they just want to have a life that isn't tied to the past. You aren't helping.

There was no one else up yet so Tim stripped down to his boxers and began a series of pushups. He needed the physical push to bring him back to focus on what was important. Protect them, help them, be there for them. Have to be the strong one when they have to face the emotional baggage. Can't run when there are tears. Think more before you talk. He was pushing himself, arms moving, breath coming in big puffs as he strove to push past the anger.

Tim worked his arms until they shook so much that he couldn't hold himself up. He rolled over and began to do some crunches. He needed this, the routine. He needed to do as much of his normal everyday stuff as he was allowed. If he didn't he worried that he might lose Tim and let Ywain take over. Course he wondered if that would actually be all that terrible. Ywain seemed much better with this shit than he was. I have already been through it. I had to watch it the first time. It hurt to watch Lancelot, knowing he was so in love with her and she him. To know that she loved Arthur but couldn't be stronger for him. Not this time. This time we ensure they are all stronger.

Tim wished that the voice made him feel better yet it didn't. It felt like there was going to be more hard times before things settled into the 'normal.'

Kat had gotten up early as well, tired of feeling like a cripple, and she's never really been able to sleep for long periods of time anyway. She'd left Arey to sleep in the bottom bunk, she looked exhausted, and who knew what she was dreaming about, but she looked peaceful enough when Kat left. She figured the girl would also appreciate the privacy. From there, Kat took a quick shower before getting dressed and heading to her Kat corner. She needed to cancel some of her search programs (which would be pretty useless now) and open up the space for other projects.

She hadn't been working long when she was lured out of her office by the sounds of exertion, and decided to take a peak. What she saw made her mouth go dry, and she contented herself with quietly watching from the entryway, not about to disturb this show. This is definitely making my fictional dvd...

Tim finished his crunches and rocked to sit up. He stood and hopped lightly from foot as if skipping. He was trying to steel himself up, exhaust the body and re-energize it once he ate. The day was going to be a long one. If she won't let me go home permanently maybe just to grab few things. Clothes, basics, she can't be that heartless not to understand we need clothes. He also needed a shower. He felt gross from the man touching him yesterday and the club in general.

He stopped moving and bent over, elbows on knees taking deep breaths.

"So you're a boxer kind of guy huh?" Kat's voice rang out as it looked like Tim had finished his set. He looked pretty exhausted by now, which considering the routine he'd just finished, it made sense. So she decided to throw a softball his way, unable to avoid a comment all together. Just wasn't in her nature." Totally called it." Kat said with a shit eating grin.

"Morning Kat." Tim gave her a small smile. He was not in a joking mood. "How are you feeling? Arey still asleep?"

"Yeah, figured she deserved to sleep in after last night." Kat replied un-fazed. "You smell super manly and everything, but I think you could use a shower." Kat hinted offhandedly. "There's one over by the room Arin's sleeping in if you want. It's not as fully stocked, but it's got hot water and soap."

"At Arin's place? No Deirdre is sleeping in his bed. Arin is in the store on a futon. Last night..." He huffed. "Love to shower but I have no clothes to put on once I do. Nothing." He was frustrated. "Kat I fucked up. I turned into this...I don’t' even know who I was but it wasn't me and it wasn't Ywain. I wanted to leave her. She was crying and I wanted to just leave her there. I went to Arin for help without even thinking how he might feel about what was going on!"

Tim balled his jeans up and tossed them at the nearest box. "I have to figure out the best course of action. The three of them are not a good thing. It isn't good for us. I don't think Deirdre is strong enough to be Guin, I mean she did what no one else could and got Arey to know who she was but everything else? I have to make sure she doesn't hurt them again or get in the way. We have to succeed. Someone has to look out for her."

Even saying that made him feel worse. Did he really think Deirdre wasn't strong enough? He wasn't entirely sure but he was still very angry with himself.

-----

Deirdre woke with a start. She was not in her own bed. She didn't recognize the room. Disoriented she sat up and looked around. Like a slap to the face the previous evening brought her back. Arin's. She was breathing heavy, her hands gripping the bed. He had gone to sleep in the shop so that she could have space from both him and Arey. She remembered Arey's face and Guinevere taking over and calling out to Arthur. What have I done? She...oh god poor Arey.

She laid back down, pulling the blankets over her head. The bed smelt like him. God this is sick. You can't do this. Get up. You can leave. It is an apartment which means a front door. She sat up again and slipped out of bed. Just put your pants back on, grab your phone and go. They don't know where you live. She grabbed her jeans and slid them on. Her skeleton shirt lay on the floor and she pulled it over her tank top. Her hands frantically sought her jeans for her phone. Her eyes darted around. No coat, can't take his. The blue orbs landed on Arin's leather jacket. So you make do, a couple of blocks and get a cab.

Deirdre pulled her phone out and made a face when she saw the date. A Sunday meant there won't be as many cabs so she might have to walk a bit further. Suck it up princess. She thought bitterly.

With a last look around she made her way to leave. Her eyes were on her phone. No text from Heather. That's weird...

Her feet carried her to the bed where she sat and pulled up her friend’s text history. The last message was the one she had sent to Heather saying she was going home and to text when she left the club. No response last night, nothing this morning. Nothing. She felt a chill run through her body. It wasn't like Heather. She was glued to her phone. She would have checked as soon as she was out of the club.

Deirdre began to type. "Hey! You didn't text? What's up with that? lol" She waited for the angry, "You woke me up, I'm hung over" response. She waited and waited. "Why aren't you answering me?" Her hands were shaking. Something wasn't right and she was going to kill Heather when she saw her for making her worry like this. Go. I have to go find her. I will go into her room and.... She had a knot in her stomach.

With a twinge of guilt, a feeling she was becoming very used to Deirdre wondered if she should leave a note, something to explain. She felt odd snooping for paper and a pen in Arin's home but leaving with no explanation felt worse.

It struck her in that moment that she had woken up in a man's bed. She had slept there, in her underwear and tank top, alone but it still felt like a big deal to her. In his bed... She shook her head. Sorry not this morning. He is just a guy I don't know, that happened to be really nice to me and let me crash there. No point or reason to get all sentimental. Means nothing but a friendly gesture.

Deirdre found a pen and the back of an envelope. "Arin, I need to go. I did my job. You needed Arey to know who she was and I did that. I can't face her this morning or you. I know incubus or whatever. So I get attacked, die...I don't know. Friend is in trouble and I have to go help her. I can't stay. My story is done."

She knew leaving was a bad idea. In her gut, in her head and in her heart Deirdre knew leaving was the worst thing she could do. It was stupid and dangerous. A very small, dark part of her hoped that the incubus got her and killed her but she pretended that didn't exist and focused on Heather. That was her justification for doing something so insanely stupid.

The note was signed quickly and she pocketed her phone. Still no message from Heather. Fingers ran through her hair in and effort not to look like a drunk who woke up on the street. Deirdre tried to make her feet move to the door. Go. Have to go.

Somehow out there felt much bigger and much scarier than it had yesterday. Heather is in trouble.

You do not know that or sure and they would help you if she were.

Deirdre stared at the door. Okay four deep breaths and then I leave.

-----------------------

Arin woke up on the futon at the back of the shop. It was a little less comfortable than his bed, but he had gotten used to it. Occasionally Kat would try and sneak out of the house and would use his apartment to crash in when he was working late. They had come up with a system of signals so he would know when to use the futon. She paid him back by covering the times he tried to find Guin and kept it hidden from Viv.

I guess that's not going to be needed anymore. I wonder how Kat will handle not having that leverage next time she tries to hide out in my place. he smiled at the thought.

He rolled over to the side of the futon and put his feet on the floor. Sitting up, he rubbed his face and ran his hands through his hair, smoothing out the morning mess. He grabbed his clothes off the floor and dressed. He longed for a shower but knew he'd have to wait until Tim and Deirdre cleared out of his place. I should probably offer my shower to them as well. Otherwise there'll be one big lineup for the one in here.

After a quick stretch he folded up the futon and headed to the mirror. He expected to step through to some activity, but the room was empty. He frowned. Hmm, I guess it was a late night. Maybe everyone's sleeping in.

He walked into the hallway, heading to the entrance to his apartment. As he turned the corner he heard a commotion from Kat's room. [i]What's she done now? he wondered, amused.

-----------------------

He saw her from the middle of the crowd, eyes drawn unbidden to watch her dance. The club was dark, and the room was crowded. His catching sight of her statistically was completely by chance, but then, John didn’t really believe in chance. It was destiny, and watching the bob of her blonde ponytail occasionally catch the light as she danced made the itch inside him start up again, sooner and more urgent than usual. The last one had barely taken the edge off, but this girl was better. He could feel it in his bones. He inched closer in the crowd to watch her more closely, already fantasizing the noises she’d make once he had his hands around her neck. Would she cry? He hoped so, he loved watching their big blue eyes well up right before the tears spilled down. He could see in the dark, but somehow he knew her eyes were blue. He was so eager, that he felt downright giddy, an anticipation that surpassed the others growing inside.

She wasn’t alone. The man she was with drew an equal sense of familiarity, but he only felt irritation for him. He stood between John and his next target. He wanted her, was going to have her and play until she broke. The vial in his pocket would insure her compliance, at least for a short time, but he had to get close enough first.

Something was happening. More people, and suddenly they were all moving into the bathroom. John watched; vexed but waiting for his opportunity. It never came. It was like they’d expected him, and the girl was being ushered out of the club with a virtual entourage. There were too many of them around her to whisk off without notice, but he managed to touch her in passing. Hardly noticeable in the club, but for a witch it was all the connection he needed to establish as he came away with a stray hair. He could find her again.

There was satisfaction in that knowledge, but the itch was still there. So he adjusted his plans for the evening and once again surveyed the club. This time, his eyes landed on a girl dancing around in blond pigtails done up with ribbon. She had blue eyes too he noted, as there was a passing resemblance. She’d do.
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The sounds of swords clanging together in battle could be heard in the background, but Arthur couldn't seem to focus on his surroundings. He could barely focus on the fight at hand, but all of his movements felt wooden. Everything was falling apart, and here he was fighting his own son in mortal combat. He hadn’t even known Mordred was his son until now, but he had always treated him as a beloved nephew. Arthur could not understand this blind hatred directed at him, not from someone he had always cared for and trusted. But then a judgment of character from King Arthur was apparently not worth much. Hadn’t the two people he had admired and loved above all others just betrayed him as well? Everything he had ever believed in, everything he had ever cared about, it was all a lie. How could he believe otherwise after all that had happened?

This is a dream…I’ve had it before…


The moment’s stray thought proved costly, and Arthur could not move in time to avoid Mordred’s blade completely. The gash to his middle was not incapacitating, but deep, and as he clutched the bleeding wound, Arthur knew it was a fatal blow.


“Don’t worry father, I’ll be sure to retrieve that pretty wife of yours and keep her company. Perhaps I’ll even drag the corpse of her lion lover in to watch when I bed her!” Mordred taunted, sensing his victory was near.

Arey didn’t want to see this, she needed to wake up!

Arthur didn’t know why the insult stirred such anger in him. Lancelot and Guinevere deserved ever slander thrown their way, but somehow, especially from Mordred, he couldn’t stand to hear it. A part of him would always love Guin he supposed. Her love was the reason he’d strived to be the King Merlin foretold he would be. Somehow, when the old man had said it to him, it had always sounded ridiculous, but when she smiled at him with her lips curled back in just the right way that he knew it was for him, Arthur felt like he could do anything if it would make her proud to be his wife. As for Lancelot, it felt more complicated than that, but once he had been Arthur’s greatest friend, they had saved each other in battle more than once, and he would never tolerate such open disrespect of Lancelot in his presence, at least not from Mordred!


With a surge of passion induced strength, Arthur unleashed a powerful assault, the ferocity of which took them both by surprise. It was a steady rhythm of parry strike, parry strike, until at last Arthur found his opening. With one quick strike, the tip of Arthur’s blade made it under Mordred’s helmet, slashing open his throat. It was finally done…

Yes it is, Arey thought in relief. She’d had this dream enough times to know when it would end. This time it didn’t though. Instead it just kind of shifted, and now she was staring at a scene that made her stomach turn. She wasn’t Arthur this time, she wasn’t anybody. She was just there, watching.

There was a girl there, mostly naked and looked beat to hell. She was tied to a crappy looking motel bed, and her mouth was taped over with duct tape that someone had used red marker to draw lips on. Her hair was still in lopsided pigtails, and though one eye was swollen half shut, there were still tears leaving out of her blue eyes.

“You honey, have been such a good sport.” A man’s voice rang out cheerfully, and the girl whimpered. The sound made Arey bristle, whatever was happening she needed to make it stop. She couldn’t see the man clearly, it was like his face was a blur, but his voice made a sharp chill run down her spine. He had a knife in hand, and it looked like he was carving strange letters into her skin.

“Better than I could have hoped really. You, are quite the creative beggar, and trust me I’ve seen quite a few.” He announced cheerily as if paying her a compliment. “If I wasn’t in such a hurry, I might have even extended out our little rendezvous here sweetheart, but I think this is where you and I are going to have to say adios.” He had moved to her stomach now, carving out one large symbol that the trail of smaller ones on her limbs connected to.

The girl was openly sobbing now, though the sound was muffled by the duct tape, and the blurred man brought the knife up to her face. Arey wasn’t sure why she knew what was about to happen, but she screamed and thrashed. Anything to make him stop. In one quick motion, the blade was slit across the girl’s neck, and she gurgled pathetically in a futile attempt to breath.

Arey screamed in protest, and suddenly it felt like a pair of hot piercing eyes were staring at her, drinking in her very soul. I found you… The same voice sing-songed as sharp pain bloomed across her abdomen. Arey couldn’t tell what was real and what was in her head. She was stuck somewhere in the middle and didn’t know how to find her way out, but a very real scream echoed throughout the bat cave.

The scream broke him from his present ranting. Not thinking he ran. Didn't matter that he had just done some working out. Nothing matter. Tim ran, barefoot and in his boxers down the hall and burst into Kat's room. He was at the bed in a flash. "Arey! Arey!"

He grabbed her shoulders, gripping her tightly. "Arey wake up!"

Arey's eyes flew open, wild and disoriented. The image of the motel was still burned into her eyes, it was all she could see as she began to thrash when she felt arms around her. "He killed her! HE KILLED HER!" She screamed over and over like a chant.

Kat rushed in behind Tim, taking in the scene with wide eyes. "Shit, she's bleeding!" Kat spotted the blood seeping through Arey's shirt first, and rush out and toward Arin's apartment to grab the med kit he kept in there.

Tim was glad he was strong but the way Arey was fighting him it was like she had superhuman strength. "Arey! Look at me!" He was concerned that she was bleeding but he was more concerned that she would try and get out of the bed before they could help her or she was more coherent. "Arey, it's Tim. Look at me! You have to stop moving!"

In Arin's room Deirdre could hear someone in the main part of the apartment. She shrunk away from the door and waited for them to be done and leave again. She didn't want anyone to know she was trying to leave. She held her breath and waited. They sounded frantic but Deirdre needed to leave, there was no time to worry about anything else.

"Kat! Where did you go? " Tim tried to hold Arey down, "You are hurt! Please Arey hold still!" He didn't want to hurt her but her thrashing wasn't doing her any favors. Tim also wanted to get things under control before Arin got there. If he could keep them apart for just a little, judge what sort of feelings were actually there, if any he might be able to make a plan. Plus he could prove that he didn't need Arin's help.

“Had to grab the med kit, look at all that blood.” Kat explained after she’d come crashing back in. She didn’t know what to do or how to help. She’s never seen a flashback like that before, and definitely not one that actually left someone bleeding. She also wasn’t sure how to help, Tim was holding Arey down while she thrashed, looking thoroughly out of her mind. The only time she’d ever seen anything remotely similar to this has been at the compound, when Nox was punishing someone for rebellious behavior.

“What’s happening?” Vivienne demanded from the doorway, dropping the duffle bag she’d pilfered from Tim’s apartment on the floor as she strode in, trying to examine Arey while Tim held her down.

“Katrina, fetch the talisman box off the shelf.” Vivienne commanded, calm but firm. “This isn’t a flashback.” Vivienne observed out loud, her eyes narrowing as Kat rushed off to fetch the requested items.

Tim looked at Viv. "What is it? If it isn't a flashback what is it?" He was holding Arey. "She is bleeding."

"I noticed." Vivienne replied, lifting up Arey's shirt to better look at the wound. It was smeared with blood, but there was clearly a symbol there that looked like it had been carved into her skin.

Tim's eyes went wide. "Where did that come from?"

Vivienne ignored his question for the moment as Kat came running back in with a box filled with what looked like coins etched with strange symbols as well. Vivienne dug through the box until she found what she was looking for and pulled out a silver one and placed it on Arey's forehead. Vivienne then place her hand over the girl's eyes, forcing them shut as she chanted softly in a language neither Kat nor Tim were likely to understand.

Slowly, the motel room and the dark eyes faded from Arey's vision, and she stopped thrashing, just laid there panting and shaking. "Someone was using blood magic." Vivienne exhaled once she'd stopped.

Tim let out a big exhale as Arey stopped thrashing. He shook his head. "Blood magic?" He looked concerned. "Is she okay?"

"Very potent, very dark magic." Vivienne explained as she hiked up the girl's shirt to begin cleaning the wound. "Using runic spells with blood magic is also very rare and dangerous. I don't know a witch in the city who would even try it." Vivienne said looking disturbed. "Physically yes, she will be fine. She just had someone rooting about in her head however, and they did not seem to be showing her pleasant things. We will have to wait and see are far as the psychological damage goes."

Tim looked down at Arey. His hand brushed the hair from her forehead. She looked peaceful but he knew it had come at a price. "We will be here for her. We have to be. We need her and someone is attacking her. Who could have done this, who would attack her? Who else knows who she is?"

Deirdre waited with baited breath. The noise from the apartment stopped meaning she was alone again. Okay I can do this. I can leave. Heather why haven't you texted back? She wanted to leave but couldn't even bring herself to leave the bedroom.

"That is a disturbing question that I currently have no answer to." Vivienne replied, her gaze intensely gazing down at the rune before she pulled Arey up into a sitting position and had Kat assist her with the bandaging.

"H-he killed that girl...I saw him do it, I couldn't make him stop..." Arey croaked out her eyes were coming back into focus, but she was still shaking. "He looked so...so happy doing it. Like it was b-bloody Christmas!." Arey bit out in disgust, and suddenly she was pushing herself out of the bed and toward the bathroom, relieving herself of the contents of her stomach.

Tim moved a little away to let the women take care of Arey. "What girl? He, who? Arey..." He moved again so that she could get to the bathroom. He looked to Vivienne, concerned. "What's happening?"

Arin stepped into the doorway of Kat's room, "Yeah, what exactly is going on?" He looked around the room, taking stock of who was where. He could hear someone being sick in the bathroom and could only assume it was Arey, "And... Tim? Where's D?"

Tim looked over at the door. "Morning to you too. Arey had a nightmare, Viv says blood magic, Arey says some guy killed some girl. She was screaming and moving around. She is throwing up now. Some symbol is carved into her stomach." He looked at the bathroom door. There was worry in his eyes. "We are waiting to see if she is okay."

He took a deep breath. He frowned and shrugged. "Deirdre is likely still sleeping." There was an edge to his voice and his mouth moved into a straight line. "Right now the only thing we have to worry about is Arey. Her stomach is cut up. Someone is targeting her and we don't know why. Everything is calm at the moment, Viv came at the perfect time and took care of it." He shrugged. "See I can handle things without calling for you."

He tried to smile but there was a bit of edge to it. Anger, though not directed at Arin.

Arin nodded, "I knew you could. Kind of why I was surprised last night." He looked over to Vivienne preparing. "Are there more preparations required? Should I get Deirdre so we can all figure this out? Wait, did you check on D at all? Are we sure it was only Arey that was targeted?" He was worried about Arey, but Vivienne's calmness kept the edge off. He knew Deirdre would be less likely to come to the group if she had a problem.

Tim shook his head. "I came when Arey screamed. When I left the apartment was quiet. I didn't go in and check. Plus with the screaming and what not there was no time. Do you really think....?" He huffed. "Look I got Arey, she isn't going anywhere, plus Viv is here in case it happens again. Maybe we should get D....you know so we can all be together." There was a bit of worry now in his voice. He hadn't thought to look in on her. How was he to know something like this was going to happen? He also hadn't considered there might be more trouble at all and easily dismissed D as a nonissue when Arin brought it up. He felt a pull of guilt. Hey I had Arey to worry about. I can't be in two places. Can't beat myself up. "Yeah check on her and bring her here. We shouldn't be apart right now. Arey needs protecting."

Arin nodded, hearing the worry creep into Tim's voice, "Look, no big deal. I'm sure she's sleeping soundly. Someone screaming and blood magic has a certain way of gaining one's attention. But yeah, if things are under control... and you're sure Arey's okay?" He paused. He wanted to go in and check on Arey, but knew he'd be in the way. Plus, he wasn't really sure he was who Arey would want to see right now. Maybe getting Deirdre down here would make Arey feel better. "I'll go get D. Just... make sure Arey gets anything she needs, okay?"

Tim nodded and looked to the bathroom, "She is as good as one could expect at the moment given everything. Viv says we have to wait and see what the damage is. I got her man, not going to let her out of my sight. She..." He remembered how she looked thrashing around under his hands and then the bit of peace that came to her face when Viv chanted and finally was able to help her. "I got her, get Deirdre. Anything Arey wants I will make sure she gets, anything." Tim looked back towards Arin. Bring her back here. She isn't strong and if she is in trouble... Tim swallowed now a bit worried at what Arin might find. "I am sure it is all good, with D I mean."

"Right. Okay. I'll be right back with her then..." He nodded at Tim and after a last look toward the bathroom, he turned and headed to the apartment.

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Deirdre still stood in the bedroom. She gripped the envelope with her note in one hand, her phone in the other and was bordering on tears. She couldn't get her feet to move. You are not this weak. Come on don't let them tell you what to do. You want to go, so go. She took two steps to the door and gripped the handle. Turning it she paused. But if you leave and that incubus finds you he will.... She gagged a little remembering what Kat had told her. She did not want her only sexual experience to be at the hands of that man.

The handle was let go. Deirdre closed her eyes. If you don't go and Heather is in trouble it will be your fault that you didn't do anything. You know, you know because she didn't text you. You might be the only one. Her hand wrapped around the handle once more. Two breaths and open the door.

Deirdre took two very deep breaths and opened the bedroom door to step into the main part of the apartment. She stopped and stared toward the front door. Okay so out, go out. She took a deep breath.

Arin stepped into the apartment quietly. No reason to wake her up in a panic if she is asleep. He moved toward the door when he saw the handle turn. He waited for the door to open, but the handle returned to it's original position. Odd. He stopped, and sat down on the couch, watching the door. After a few moments the door finally opened and out stepped Deirdre. She had her back to him as the door was on the same wall as the couch. She seemed to be focused on the front door. She took a breath, as if preparing herself. Arin wondered if she still thought of leaving. He waited a moment to let her make the decision on her own.

Her hands balled into fists, crushing the envelope. She took one step and stopped. Why can't I go? The feeling in her stomach told her she knew why. It was wrong to leave but staying carried so many issues. Arin said I should be myself. I know what will happen if I stay I see it in all their faces I should just go.

She exhaled forcefully and shook her head.

Arin could see she was struggling with something, "Good morning D. Anything I can help with?"

Deirdre jumped and turned, wide eyed to look at the couch and the person who sat there. "Why are you here?" Did he know? Did Vivienne send him to stop me? "I-I mean good morning. I didn't expect to see you...I mean here...I know it is your place but...." Her eyes dropped to the floor.

Deirdre moved towards him and held the scrunched up paper out, careful to keep space between them. "Here." She waited for him to take it, unable to look at him at all.

Arin smiled, "Don't worry, I didn't come to spy or anything. Actually, I was worried. Arey's had some sort of magic cast on her and I was concerned that whoever was targeting her might also try to get at you. I wanted to be sure you were okay." He stopped when she approached and held out the paper.

"Oh... I see." He looked up at her, "Look, if you can look at me, with confidence, and say you believe you are making the right decision then fine. But I'm not taking a good bye letter. That's not cool."

"Arey?" Deirdre looked up at him. "Why are you here if she is in trouble? You should be with her."

Arin nodded, "You're right. We should all be there for her. We should all be there for each other right now. Obviously there are things out there that are looking out for us. We could all be in trouble." Arin cocked his head, looking at the paper still in her hand, then at Deirdre again, "So, you want to go check on her with me then?"

Deirdre shook her head slowly. "Arey won't...I mean I don't think she will want me to be there. I made him come back even though she fought it. I did that and I don't know how she took it all. What if she hates me?" She held the paper out a little more. "My part is done. Vivienne told me I had to do what it took and I did. I did what none of the rest of them including her, were going to do. I stepped forward and let Guinevere take over, I brought Arthur back to you and I am done. My friend is in trouble and I should go."

Arin frowned, "Weren't you just telling me last night that I shouldn't jump to conclusions about how Arey might feel about me? If you really want to know how she took it, let's go ask her."

Arin shook his head as she tried to rationalize her role in all this, "I really doubt your role was simply cupid. And even if that is the complete impact you're intended to make in this part of the story, you're still not done. Arey and I aren't nearly more than people who know each other's names. Lots of work still to be done. But if you really think you have a friend in trouble and are intent on leaving, take me with you. It's your decision, but I would like to accompany you so I don't have to worry about something getting you while we're distracted."

Deirdre took out her phone and sat next to him on the couch. "My friend, my roommate she never not texts me back. I messaged her last night when we left, I left her at the club all alone. We joked about the killer, you know the one in the news and how she is like the victims. She never replied last night. Nothing. I texted her again and still nothing. Not even an angry text." She held her phone out to him and then paused realizing how close they were. "I-I should stand." Her voice was shaky. She held both the phone and the note towards him.

Arin frowned as he looked at her phone, "Okay, yeah, I get it. We should definitely go check on your friend. Tell you what, come back down with me and we'll let them all know what's up. We can make sure that there's nothing else Arey needs and maybe even get more backup from Tim." When she held the note out again to him he shook his head, "Look, I'm really, really not going to take that note. I don't want to read it. So, you can get rid of it, or pocket it, or whatever. But I'm not reading it."

She looked down. "I can't. I wrote it on the back of one of your bill envelopes. You kind of have to take it at some point." Her voice was very quiet. "You can't come with me either, or Tim. Or anyone. Vivienne won't like it."

Arin chuckled, "Right, well, I'm unlikely to mail that letter then. I'll find another way."

He sighed at her continued fear of Vivienne, "She may or may not care what we do about your friend, but if it means that much to you that you are willing to desert us, I don't care what she thinks. We will be going with you. And I would prefer to have Tim along. The others will be safe here."

Deirdre lowered the paper and the phone into her lap. "You don't get it. I don't want to leave. I mean I do but I know I shouldn't. Hell I have been in the bedroom for a while trying to get up the nerve to open the door. You can't do anything to help me. You can't come near me. Vivienne knows that I am the villain. I am the bad part of all of this. It was in her eyes and the way she talked to me when she found me in the store. It was in the way she pointed out that Arey was the only woman you fancied that didn't cringe under her presence. She doesn't want me here. She doesn't want you near me and god knows I have one job and that is to do what it takes for the king. I did that. I didn't see her or Tim or you stepping up to show Arey who she was. That really, really sucked but I did it. Vivienne doesn't want me to mess things up and you know it. You don't want me to mess things up. It was in your eyes when you saw me in the bathroom, when you realized who I was. You didn't want me here anymore than she does. You wanted Arey. She wants Arey, they need Arthur."

Her eyes were on her lap. She couldn't look at him. She was having a hard enough time sitting next to him. The voice in her head wanted her to do things, longed to touch him, to move closer, she called for his touch and the longing Deirdre felt was leaving her unnerved. "I-can't be near you. I can't hold her back...I don't know how to handle this feeling....trying not to let it cloud anything."

Arin sat back, trying to follow the flow of Deirdre's thoughts, "Wait, hold on. Too many things at once... Can we take one thing at time? I'm sorry, I will move if it's too hard. I... I don't mean to..." He resisted the urge to just tell her to let it go, just follow the voice in her head. Not only was it a bad idea, it really wasn't the right time. She had a friend she was concerned with. Arey was hurt and being attacked by magic, and all he could think about was bringing Deirdre, no, Guinevere, back into the bedroom.

"I don't want this to be between Lancelot and Guinevere. I really don't." He forced himself off the couch. He didn't move too far away though. He wasn't trying to avoid Deirdre and did not want to make her think that. Instead he sat a foot or so away from the couch, on the floor.

"Look, you have to understand where Viv is coming from. She's the only one who witnessed the original. She saw directly what happened. Now, I'm her son. She may come across as cold and domineering, but she does actually care about me. You can understand that she doesn't want her son to get hurt like Lancelot was. I don't think you intend to do that at all, but I'm willing to take the risk and she isn't as willing. It doesn't mean she doesn't like you. She doesn't like what you might represent. So, prove her wrong. It'll be satisfying to see her have to change her opinion of you." He grinned.

"As for not stepping up and telling Arey anything. I knew I wasn't the right person to do it. You saw what happened when I tried to talk to you about it. Hell, I felt it. I wanted to wait so I didn't have to cause anything like that until you two had come to some sort of terms with who you were. But yes, I'm sure it was incredibly difficult. It was quite difficult to come in and witness you two in that embrace so, I have some idea." He shrugged.

"That's what I was thinking when you saw me in the bathroom. That realization I came to, right then, that there was no preventing the pain that would be caused by our first meeting. I tried. I thought I had the perfect way to do it. Then I saw you and Arey and watched as we all recognized at some level and knew... I don't know if I want Arey. I don't know if I want you. I know Lancelot does want Guin, but he also doesn't want to betray Arthur again. But that's him. That's only a part of me and I refuse to let it define our potential friendship or anything that might grow from that."

He sighed, "Sorry for the rant."

Deirdre looked up and smiled a little. "It's okay. We both sort of have a lot all pent up. Thank you for moving. The things I feel are very foreign to me. Never had a boyfriend so being overwhelmed with what she feels for him is a bit difficult." Her cheeks reddened a little. She echoed his sigh. "I can't leave. I should, something is wrong with Heather but I can't do it." Her arms wrapped around her body, her knees folding in. "I am scared Arin."

Arin watched Deirdre curl up. His heart wrenched in sympathy. For once he felt in sync with Lancelot as they both just wanted to go hug the woman in front them to comfort her. Yet, he held off. The last thing she needed was any kind of flashback right now, "Yeah, D. No doubt. I won't give you false platitudes. But, my experience, any fear is best met head on, sword drawn, ready to fight. Don't shrink away from it. You have people who will help. Hell, you will be hard pressed to prevent them from helping. So, let's take this on. You, me, Tim, Arey, Kat... whoever. No more running away, no more hiding. Step up, be strong. Show Viv and everyone else that you are not going to be trapped in a role you didn't ask for."

Deirdre's eyes locked on Arin's. "All I wanted was to choose for myself. My whole life someone has told me what to do. I-I don't want to be patted on the head and told I am a good girl or perfect. I am not any of those. I mean I am good I..." She blushed and looked away. "I don't fight though...not with swords."

She stood and put a hand out to him. "It's okay I have it controlled. Don't worry I won't try and do anything to you. I mean not that I don't think you aren't good looking..." She looked away, feeling warmer. "No running, let's go find out what Arey needs. She is what is important. Maybe I will call my friend and if not maybe Viv will let me go."

Arin smiled gently as she fumbled with explaining how she felt. He understood, there was no easy way of putting any of this in words, "I'm sure you are a great person. As for swords, well, that will be the one time that you will have to let me tell you what to do. I'll make sure you're at least able to competently defend yourself."

He watched her stand and hesitated to take her hand. He grinned with pleasure as she complimented him, "Thank you D. It's flattering you think so. Trust me, I have no arguments with Lancelot's choice when it comes to appearance. Though I appreciate the sentiment you intend." He grabbed her hand, trying to repress any effects as he boosted himself to his feet. Even with his best efforts he couldn't completely avoid the deep memories of holding her hand as he pulled her into bed with him. No, not me and not her. He let go of her hand gently and shook the image out of his head, "Sorry."

Her lips were parted, breath slightly ragged. "It is strong." She swallowed though her mouth was dry. Her body felt like it was vibrating at his touch. Her eyes were on his face. Arin let her hand go. "Please don't apologize. I appreciate the division, I really, really do but I have to learn to get a handle on the attraction. Hers and mine." Her voice dropped lower. "We should go."

Arin nodded, "Yeah, it's not that easy to just dismiss the deep feelings there. Especially hard when the attraction makes sense in this time as well. Though I can't imagine how it feels for you and Arey. Still, the flashbacks do get a bit easier to control and recover from. I know."

"Yes, we should go. And don't worry about Viv letting you go. We will go and check on your friend."

"Makes sense..." She gave a small sad smile. "Don't worry about me. Arey, think about her. Focus on her."

She turned, "Thank you Arin. For this...for the bed...and if we can go find my friend without getting into trouble I would really appreciate it. Something doesn't feel right."

Arin shook his head at her stubbornness, "Of course I'm going to worry about Arey too, but stop trying to get me to forget about you. One, that's impossible and two, I don't want to. But you're welcome. I'm glad I did come to check on you. You weren't in the same kind of trouble but I'm still happy I could help. And I will do my best to ensure we get out there to check on her."

Deirdre shrugged a little trying to dismiss the comment about not wanting to forget about her. "You will have to tell me at some point what your name means." She let him lead the way back out. Tim had led her here, she had been upset and she wasn't sure she remembered where to go.

"Ah yes. Traditionally it's lover of the sea, or devoted to the sea. Not surprising when one's mother is the lady of the lake." Arin shrugged. He had long ago come to terms with the obviousness of his name. Yet he always felt a little silly explaining it to new people. He led them back down the hallway toward Kat's room.

"I like it." Deirdre smiled. She went quiet as they walked. "Is Arey okay?"

Arin shrugged, "I hope so. Let's find out." He indicated Kat's room and followed her in.

Deirdre stepped in and looked at Tim. She resisted the urge to take Arin's hand. She was nervous and his presence, even if it was just because of Lancelot, made her feel better. She didn't think it was all Lancelot. Arin had a way of talking that made her calmer, more level when she felt so overwhelmed. His presence just made things better.

"Is Arey okay?"