Rhoan's Story

Rhoan let out a soft chuckle at her mention of Captain Hook and the real world, and he turned slightly to glance at her. He pushed some thick red strands out of his face and bit at his lip some, a warm feeling washing over him for a moment as he admired her beauty. He drew in a deep breath an exhaled slowly before turning back around and starting out into the field. "Captain Hook's cab service, alright," he laughed out. There was something about her that just seemed all the more addicting every time she spoke. She was like the ultimate drug; you get just enough of her to make you feel really, really good, and then you just keep coming back because that overwhelming high is never enough. He chewed at his bottom lip a little as he walked, and offered a wide smile when he felt her hand caress his wist and slide into his pocket. He accompanied her gesture with one of his own, his arm sliding up the small of her back and towards her shoulder, where he then wrapped his arm completely around her neck and drew her close to him.

The vampire snorted and then pecked at her temple a couple times before giving her walking space. "Ehhh," he groaned at her statement about the penthouse, feeling as though her offer was a little too generous. "I don't need a place that large. I keep mostly to myself, so I'll just stay in the hotel, if you don't mind." His Aussie accent played its way into his sentence as his words rambled on at a fast rate. He leaned into her as she kissed at his jaw, and he nuzzled his cheek softly against hers for a second and then pulled away to focus on which direction they were walking.

---

It took longer to get back to the road than it did getting to the cabin when they first ventured from the bar, and that was probably because they were so high out of their minds, time wasn't necessarily a factor. The walk was tiring, and it didn't help that they had left the cabin in the morning, well before noon, which meant the sun was beating down with blistering heat. Rhoan kept his arm locked around Renée's neck as they walked together, and he made a point of keeping her close to him, even though he could feel pounds of sweat soaking his satin shirt.

When they finally reached the road, they had to wait a while before anyone actually drove by to pick them up. At this time of day, one would figure that transportation would be a common sight, but it seemed as though today was a slow day. It also made sense that not many people traveled out this far from civilization, seeing as how they were pretty much in the middle of a field miles and miles away from the bar. But alas, a cab finally made its way down the street. As soon as Rhoan noticed the bright car heading their way, he held out his arm to indicate a ride was needed. The cab driver pulled off onto the side of the road to allow the two to climb into the back seat. "Your carriage awaits you," Rhoan teased, sticking his tongue partially between his teeth and biting it some as a grin formed on his face.

Making a mental note to set him up in a nice hotel room instead of the suite, Renée grinned as they walked back to where civilization started. It was nice to be this close to Rhoan and she didn’t mind the long walk, though she was extremely pleased when they finally reached the road that would allow them to get a cab. She stretched her body out, making a few incoherent sounds just as a cab pulled up beside them. Hoping that the cab had air conditioning, the raven haired female tried to ignore how sweaty the two of them had gotten and ignored the overbearing desire to get him naked in the shower the second they got to the bar. Instead, she flashed him a grin and slid over to the backseat and after kissing Rhoan softly on the cheek, slid inside.

“Thank you kindly, sir!” She teased back, sliding all the way to allow him to sit beside her without having to go around to the other side.

Once he was in and the cabbie was instructed where to go, Renée busied herself with cuddling Rhoan and studying him carefully. She was still very much enthralled by him even now that she was no longer high and that pleased her. She knew it wasn’t a spell by him, but was true love and all that mushy crap. By the time the car had reached Gambit’s, she was once again thinking about taking him straight upstairs to shower with him and if other things happened, then they did. She definitely wouldn’t tell him no. When the vehicle came to a stop, she felt her body tensing up as it sensed a familiar life force it hadn’t felt in a very long time.

“…what the fuck…?” She muttered before clambering out of the cab, paying the man before waiting for Rhoan to join her. Maybe she was just imaging things. Yeah, that had to be it, right…?

Rhoan's grin widened as he leaned into her soft kiss to his cheek before she slid into the cab's back seat. He let out a light chuckle and joined her, sliding into the seat next to her and wrapping his arm around her, pulling her close to him. A soft sigh escaped him at the stickiness of his shirt, and the way it annoyingly stuck to his body. Using his free hand, he ruffed out his shirt a little to relieve some of the sticky feeling. He was very satisfied that Renée was so quick to cuddle against him. It was almost like they were a couple, but at this point, he's not sure what he'd classify their short relationship as. He'd only known her for a few days, but already his heart pounded for her. She was all he could think about - not like that was a problem or anything, though. She was a very nice thought to have in his head, and he smiled every time she entered his mind.

Rhoan's mind drifted to other places for a moment as he stared out the window while the scenery drove by. Thoughts of his past came creeping back briefly and he let out a soft huff at the memories, feeling as though he'll never be able to get over them. Trauma was a bitch, and it was sad to say that he was a heavy victim of its punishment. He closed his eyes and hoped that the ride would be over soon, so that he could continue on with his life instead of having to be shrouded with ugly thoughts of his past.

Luckily, the drive wasn't as long as he expected. In no time, the cab had pulled up on the curb side in front of the bar, and Rhoan opened his eyes, turning his head to Renée, who was quick to pay the driver and exit the vehicle. He honestly couldn't wait to get out of the car, himself, and head up to the room she would put him up in so that he could catch a quick shower and feel refreshed. He then thought of his clothes and rolled his eyes at how he'd have to pretty much strip down to his boxers to hand wash them. How frustrating, but it was necessary.

The vampire took no time getting out of the cab, but was caught on part of the door that seemed to have taken a liking to his shirt. He struggled getting it off the door handle, having to unbutton his shirt almost entirely. As he messed around with getting his shirt untangled, he heard Renee cussing at something and let a frown dip at his ever lasting grin. He pursed his lips as he finally got the shirt undone from the handle and worked on buttoning his shirt back up, not bothering to turn around to face her just yet. "What's what's the matter?"

“Perhaps someone was looking fondly upon you and gave you a little boost and that’s how you did it.” Tayrn wasn’t stupid, she knew that it wasn’t probably that someone was looking fondly upon the kid. No, after what she saw with the nefarious figures, she was pretty sure that demons had something to do with it. Just what had Renée gotten involved with this time? Shaking her head at her thoughts, Tay walked around behind the bar and grabbed a bottle of vodka before moving back to her stool, starting to drink on it. Some habits just didn’t die hard.

“Renée always did what she wanted, which surprises me that she took you in. Just how did that happen anyways? Are you someone that will end up getting her killed because of what you are? You said you’re a Wiccan, but is there demon in you as well? Those things sure wanted you, that’s for sure.” Tayrn fired off her questions between swigs of the vodka. She didn’t figure Renée would show up, but if she was caring for him, then maybe she would come sooner or later. Gabby on the other hand, hardly ever came around, so she didn’t expect to see her before she vanished again.

“Did I catch your name? I don’t remember…” She frowned, rubbing her forehead.

--

Renée blinked at Rhoan, watching as his shirt got caught on the cab door. Tilting her head, she watched in amusement and hated the door for doing what it was she wanted to desperately do. Maybe he would just leave his shirt off? No, that wouldn’t look good walking into a bar, and the last thing she wanted was to have other female’s oogling her man. Wait, her man? Was that was he was now? She mused and decided that yes, if he would have her a girlfriend, then he was definitely her man. Chewing on her bottom lip at the notion of them in a dating relationship, Renée just grinned, though the familiar life force made its way back into her mind, which caused her to scowl a little.

“Nothing’s the matter, Rhoan… I’m just feeling something or someone I haven’t felt in over a year. As soon as you’re done teasing the cab door, we can head in.” She couldn’t help but grin, moving over to wrap her arms around his waist, slinking her hands forward to unbutton what he was buttoning up.

That whole boost thing he was sure wasn't serious, but given what he has been through he couldn't disclude it. Someone saved his life by binding him and Zamikar together when he tried to kill him and shatter his soul to prevent the apocalypse. Someone who could use Ancestral magic. He couldn't deny, it was intriguing.

"Well, it makes more sense if I answer your questions out of order by giving you the short story. I was forced to share my body with a demon for over a year. Our souls were fused together, apparently by ancestral magic. As I result, I was hunted by a variety of things for a variety of reasons. Eventually, I met Renée. She witnessed a...power struggle, between me and the demon, Zamikar. She adopted me, separated me and the demonic dousch, and has helped me ever since. Unfortunately, that....separation, it wasn't clean. I still have Demonblood in me, as well as a spark of ancestral magic left over from whatever bound us. It increases my power, but it has had its costs. But before you ask, my clothes and my room are all heavily protected by protection and cloaking runes. My attempt at resurrection had a better chance to bring you back permanently then any demon has to locate me. They can still see me plain as day, but they can't use anything to locate me".

He got some water and took a sip. "And my name is Liam Mitchell" he told her.

Continuing to play around with his shirt buttons, the vampire nodded at Renée's statement regarding a feeling she had. He let out a frustrated huff at the situation, and wanted to just get inside already to finally have a drink. "What, like a ghost or something?" He asked plainly, the tone of his voice monotone as he focused on one loose button that was apparently trying to fall off. This was so annoying. He sighed in relief, glad that he was nearly done with buttoning his shirt back up. He didn't want to be the one fool to walk into a bar full of horny, drunk strangers that would just gawk. He tried to not draw attention to himself on a regular basis, so it was best he looked presentable and plain.

Just when he was at his last couple buttons, he paused when his waist was accompanied by two hands smoothing over his body and wrapping around his waist. A grin replaced his frown, and he turned in her arms to greet her face to face. Rhoan bit his bottom lip at Renée's attempt to unbutton his work, and he groaned a little, pulling back a bit and tapping her hands down. "Come on now," he teased, a slight chuckle playing into his tone some.

"We should probably get inside. I'm sweatin' and could use a good shower." He proposed, and cupped her hands in his, leading her towards to doorway as the cab finally drove off to clear the road. Rhoan walked with her to the door and opened it slowly with his back, making sure she stayed latched onto him like a puppy.

Tayrn listened to his story closely, still finding it straight that her daughter had taken in someone that was so potentially dangerous. Then again, she always seemed to do something that would piss off her parents, so maybe it wasn’t so surprising after all. Shaking her head a little, she returned her focus upon what he was saying, interested that Renée had inherited the ability to separate demons from individuals from her. Sighing, she tried to believe him that he couldn’t be located and decided she would need to speak with her daughter away from him to make sure he wasn’t bewitching her.

“I see, Liam. Well, it’s nice to meet you and I hope you’re right that you can’t be found. I’d hate for something to happen to my daughters because Renée took you in.” She didn’t use the word adopt because in her mind, that hadn’t happened yet.

--

“Maybe like a ghost, yeah…” Renée wasn’t sure still, frowning a little at who she thought it felt like.

Maybe her mother had come back as a ghost just to make her life hell. That seemed rather likely, especially since she had finally gotten happy. Despite the issues with Gabrielle, things were looking up for the eighteen-year-old, so it just figured that her mom would make an appearance now. Shaking her head, she couldn’t help but grin when he turned to face her, though that meant she couldn’t undo his buttons any longer. Grinning up at him, even when he whapped her hands away from their current task, she smiled coyly and wondered what he would do if she shoved him against the nearby wall and just made out with him. Shaking the thought out of her mind, she instead just nodded in agreement that going inside would be a good idea, but she was fairly certain she agreed for other reasons than what he was thinking.

“Mmm…. Alright, let’s go in and shower.” Renée smiled even wider and allowed him to pull her along as he walked backwards, the door opening as soon as his back made a connection. She was almost so lost in his eyes that she didn’t bother looking around until they had actually made it inside of the bar, the door closing behind her. In the corner there were individuals chatting and the ambience seemed to be pleasant for the moment. However, there was that sensation again and she shifted her gaze over Rhoan’s shoulder, her eyes falling first upon Liam and then over towards Tayrn.

“Oh, excellent, Liam is …” Renée stopped and glanced back at Tayrn again, her red eyes widening in disbelief.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!” She couldn’t help but exclaim loudly before quickly lowering her voice, her eyes narrowing towards Liam. “Liam! What did you do?!”

“…Hello to you too, Renée.” Tayrn spoke softly, quite bitter at how her daughter reacted. "Who is your male friend there...?" She questioned with a slight nod towards Rhoan.

Liam felt like what she had just said to him had a warning/threat in there somewhere, but he decided not to press it. "I would be more afraid of Renee hurting anyone who messes with people she cares for. Or Gabby punching Renee in the face again. I did evade demons for over a year using these Wards before Renee found me".

He then turned as soon as Renee entered. "Hi mom". He was about to explain, but he didn't even try to speak over Renee as she cursed very loudly and then gazed back at him, asking what he had done. Liam was about to explain when he noticed Rhoan. Liam could sense he was at least part demon. And Liam was suddenly very sure that Rhoan would be able to sense him, seeing as how he was so close. His cloaking Wards protected him from magical location and detection, but no matter how many Wards he used he could never hide it once someone was close enough. And he was sure Rhoan would therefore sense him and his Demonblood.

Liam wasn't quite sure what to do, because here was Renee, someone Liam cared about, standing next to a demon that was likely here to kidnap him and sacrifice him to start an apocalypse. But, given the way Rhoan was not immediately reacting, therefore giving Liam the time to react, Liam quickly considered he might not be here for him. Then it just occurred to him. He walked in with Renee. He is Renee's boyfriend. Liam decided NOT to start anything, and hope Rhoan just didn't realize who Liam really was.

"Well, you have been so nice, I wanted to return the favor, so after a lot of energy and some throwing up, I brought back your mother. At least temporarily. So....you can do what I couldn't, and say goodbye...." Liam had to start, and he wiped away a few tears. He never got to say goodbye to his original parents. And even though they were still alive, he still cant. Any communication and they would be in trouble too. He quickly refocused, and looked back at Rhoan. If any trouble did start, he had a number of spells on standby he could use. "So, yeah. Anyways, who is your friend here?"

It then occured to Liam that he accidentally ambushed Renee's boyfriend with a "meet the parents" situation, and hoped he wouldn't be in trouble for this. Provided Rhoan was Renee's boyfriend. If not, then he was here to kill him, and that still would be bad after all the effort he had just made to convince Tayrn he wasn't a threat.

He wasn't sure which was the worse scenario for him.

As usual, the bar roared with a variety of noise, each one different in its own way. Being back at the bar was like returning home after being deployed on a mission somewhere, and it was honestly one of the most refreshing feelings. Rhoan, at least, felt a little more at home when he was in this place, especially since he's made so many memories here over the years. In a way, he felt lucky that he was able to continue making memories here. After all, this place was where he met his previous lover, Savine, who was now deceased, and also where he met his new beau, Renée. It seemed as though Gambit's Bar was the ideal place for picking up quality women, but that was just the icing on top of the cake.

A smitten feeling washed over the vampire as he practically danced his way backwards into the bar. He was excited to be back here, sure, but he was even more excited to be here with Renée and have the opportunity to carry on a relationship with her. Their time together wasn't anything to count for yet, but he had a strong feeling he would be with her for a very, very long time.

"So after we're done showering together, I guess we'll check the place for ghosts?" Rhoan teased as the bar doors closed behind them. He gave her a quick smirk and leaned his face into hers, nuzzling his cheek against hers, and then pulled back to look at her curiously as she seemed to be looking over his shoulder now. He pursed his lips, figuring she was probably just observing the current scene, and he smoothed his hands against the small of her back softly.

"You alri--" He paused at her mention of Liam. The name struck instantly in his mind, and he recalled the recent conversation he had with Renée about the boy she took in. The vampire turned nonchalantly and looked over his shoulder. Everything made sense now; that's why she was looking so intently past him - Liam was here. "Oh," Rhoan started, but then stopped when he turned to look back at Renée who was now wide-eyed and obviously shocked.

At the sound of her screaming practically in his ear, the vampire winced at the ringing now painfully swarming in his ear and turned his head away from her. "Aghh, really?" He stepped away from her, allowing his hands to slip down her body and rest by his own sides. Rhoan then turned around completely to see who and what she was yelling at with such an upset tone. That's when it happened.

That scent. Immediately focusing on Liam for a brief moment, Rhoan narrowed his eyes and inhaled deeply through his nose, taking in an exceptionally sour scent that seemed to be a lot more potent than any other scent in the room. He adjusted his position and shifted his weight from his right foot to his left foot, and stood there completely still. Everything around him was silenced as his nose played tricks on him, the scent's strength weaving in and out of his nose. Something was definitely off about Liam.

After taking in the possibilities of a threat for just one moment, the vampire's nerves settled, figuring that there probably was nothing to be concerned about. Clearly, Liam was just a kid, and he was Renée's almost adopted son. What harm could he possibly be capable of inflicting? Rhoan shook the thought from his mind and relaxed himself, his stature becoming a little more sloppy as his tensed shoulders fell, relieved.

When Renée had first mentioned Liam, he didn't feel as though there would be anything to really be concerned about. If Renée was opting to take him in as one of her own, then Rhoan would have no choice but to do the same and accept the kid, especially since he had no intentions of leaving Renée. However, the only other issue he saw in the room was the woman standing near Liam who, along with the kid, was questioning his intentions with Renée.

Rhoan drew in a deep breath as the question hit him for the second time. 'Who is your friend?' they both seemed to word it. A small chuckle escaped him, and he licked his bottom lip, unsure of how to respond to the small interrogation. Well, it was better to be honest than naught, so he just went ahead with the only thing that came to mind. "Just an ordinary stranger who fancies this woman, here." He nodded his head towards Renée and then wrapped an arm around her neck, drawing her close to him. "Who the hell are you?" Rhoan said, his gaze settled on Tayrn for a moment, but then shifted it towards Liam once more. "You must be Liam..." He let his voice trail off, but his gaze stayed locked on the kid.

“Hnnn…”

Renée just stared at Liam while he explained; a million different thoughts starting to run through her mind. Despite being incredibly happy, she was also shocked and extremely angry that her mother was once again standing in front of her. Even with it being temporary, she was having a tough time wrapping her mind around the notion and she swore under her breath again, her fingers reaching up to slowly rub her forehead. Did she want to give her mom a proper goodbye? Yes, of course, but… now she was going to have to deal with things again. Shaking her head, she glanced over at Rhoan when both Tayrn and Liam asked who he was. She was absolutely fearful that he was going to bolt, especially with her mother questioning him. Chewing on her bottom lip at Rhoan’s slight chuckle, she tensed up, though the minute he wrapped his arm around her neck and tugged her close, her body relaxed against his. Damn, he knew how to calm her down without even realizing it and even when he asked her mother who she was, Renée remained snugged against him.

“Who the hell am I?” Tayrn repeated the question, her eyes narrowing angrily towards the man who thought he could be with her daughter.

“Oh hell, we’re not doing this, mother. Liam, I appreciate what you did, but next time ask…” Renée quickly interrupted her mother, trying to keep a fight from happening in the bar.

“Don’t interrupt me, Renée.” Tayrn snarled, her eyes still narrowed in on Rhoan.

“Oh for fuck’s sake, mother. Leave my boyfriend alone!” Renée blinked as the realization fell over her that she just called Rhoan her boyfriend. Shaking her head and refusing to focus on that notion, she shot her mom a look.

“I see. Well, Renée’s boyfriend, I’m her mother, Tayrn LeBeau. I suggest you talk to me with respect seeing as you’re wanting to be with my daughter.” Tayrn shifted her gaze over towards her daughter, studying her for a minute before scoffing. “My daughter that you’ve managed to get pregnant. I thought I raised you better than that, Renée.” Tayrn shook her head, disappointed.

“Wait, did you just say you thought you raised me better than that? When the FUCK did you even spend time raising me, mom? You were too busy killing people that were your assignments, getting drunk, and fighting with dad!” Renée growled softly, her eyes flashing bright red. She was on the verge of doing something stupid until what Tayrn had said finally sunk in. Pregnant? Wait, what? Snapping her gaze towards Rhoan, she just stared at him in fear of what he was going to say or do.

As the scene unfolded in front of him, Liam didn't know how to react. Hell, he still wasn't sure if Renée's companion was just using her to get close to Liam or not. So until further notice, Liam would remain very alert around him at all times. And when he mentioned he was in love with Renee, Liam really REALLY hoped that he didn't recognize who he was and if he did, he wouldn't try to sacrifice him. Especially if he actually meant that love. But out of everyone his mom could have fallen in love with, it had to be a demon? Liam made sure not to express this....concern.

He then looked back towards Renée. "Sorry. I wanted it to be a surprise, so you would be extra happy. But if it makes you feel better, I don't plan on making resurrections a casual thing". At that moment, likely in a part of his brain that Zamikar's Demonblood was affecting, Liam considered creating a business that for a large sum of money he would resurrect a lost loved one, one that died and the last moment you had with them was a fight, or something like that, so you could end things properly. Liam shelved this idea forever, particularly since he thought his Demonblood party is the reason he considered it.

Then, Renée actually called Rhoan her boyfriend. Liam mostly withheld his desire to laugh at what was going on. He really did feel bad about this, he honestly did, and he had made that clear with his tone. But what was happening right now was priceless. It then occured to him WHY he found it funny. He managed to spit out "I am...really...fucking Zamikar's Demonblood. Sorry" he managed to get out. He took some deep breaths, and managed to regain his composure. "Sorry. I don't mean to laugh. I am ninety percent certain its Zamikar's residual energy".

Of course, this didn't last long as he was taking another drink of water, Tayrn dropped the pregnancy bomb, causing a spittake. "Umm...Okay, did I hear that right? I am going to have a..." Liam took a moment to consider wordings. "A....step...half...brother? Or sister. I got that right, right?" He then looked at Renée. "Wait, did she just break the news to you as well". And then, he looked at Rhoan. "Wait, did you JUST get my mom pregnant?!"

Everything was still. Every noise in the bar was lowered to a dull hum, and realization was settling in. A lump formed in the vampire's throat as a chill crept up his spine. The situation was intense, and Rhoan could feel the stress weighing down his arms and legs. His gaze bounced back and forth between Liam and Tayrn as they spoke, but mostly, Rhoan was speechless. It was almost like he was standing completely still in a quiet room where everything around him was racing by. His mind was jumbled so much, he couldn't even really form a clear thought, so he just continued to stare.

He observed silently, breathing heavily as Tayrn and Renée went back and forth, but when the word 'boyfriend' rang in his ears, suddenly everything was loud again. The second the word sank in, Rhoan broke his gaze from the foreign two and darted it to Renée. He drew his head back from her a bit, but figured it would be best to try and stay relaxed. He couldn't help but feel trapped by her words, and also by the situation at hand. What was he even going to do? The past couple days were so wonderful, is there a chance to just rewind and start over? Maybe swallow his words before back-talking Renée's mother?

Rhoan let out a frustrated sigh and leaned heavily on his left foot, pushing his foot into the ground to give some steadiness to his leg that felt like it was about to snap in half. The vampire then shot a mild glare towards Tayrn while she mocked him, and then proceeded with nodding his head slowly to her words. "Sorry.." was all he could manage to choke out through his trepidation. The woman was down-right frightening. No one had that impact on Rhoan since he met his sire many years ago, and it was a scary feeling to be in the pressence of someone who basically mirrored that demeanor. Still, he kept his composure, trying to make sure that, even though he was being cornered, Renée still felt safe in his arms. After all, that's what you do for someone you love - you make them feel safe.

The entire situation felt like something from a comedy hour at a pub. Especially since kid wonder Liam was over there spouting off some strange words about a guy named Zamikar, and some demon blood, and now he was laughing. 'What the fuck is even going on?' Rhoan thought as a puzzled expression plastered his face. This whole thing was so much to take in, and it was exhausting. But then that's when it happened.

When those perfect mocking words came dancing at his face, shoving their daunting little letters into his ears, it felt like he had just been punched in the face. Not to mention, the anger that came with them was an even greater punch in the face. 'My daughter that you've managed to get PREGNANT,' she said. Wait, what? WHAT?

Misty green eyes widened as the words sunk in, and instantly his entire body was on fire. How was that even possible? But - they - ? What? It took a few moments for the vampire to actually settle his nerves and gather some coherent thoughts so that he could actually respond to the situation without sound like a complete fool. This kind of nervousness wasn't something that Rhoan felt often, and he was a little relieved to know that even though Tayrn was extremely pissed, Renée at least had his back and was defending him. That was pretty much the only thing that was keeping him from walking out. She really was something else, and at that moment he was very thankful that it was her he had been running around with.

Rhoan then turned his attention towards Liam who had taken the words right out of his mouth about the pregnancy. His reaction was pretty spot on, but it wasn't something that the vampire really wanted to portray at the moment. His goal was to get out of this as easily as possible, so he considered his next sentence for a while before actually responding. He rubbed his hand along Renée's shoulder as a means of comforting her, and he also shot a few glances at her stomach, and then he focused on her face.

"I need a shower. You need a shower. We... We need to shower." Practically stumbling over his words as he spat them out, Rhoan then allowed his hand to slip down Renée's arm and then he drew his arm from her, releasing her from his hold. "It was nice to meet you," he nodded towards Tayrn and Liam and then glanced back at Renée. "Hotel? Heh."

“I would hope not, Liam. Next time, talk with me before you do something that reckless.” Renée just shook her head, trying to keep calm and not punch her mother in the face. The LeBeau females seemed to have massive anger control issues. Tayrn crossed her arms against her chest, displeased that not only was her oldest not happy to see her, but was also pregnant with someone that more than likely wasn’t good enough for her. It was quite apparent that Remy hadn’t taken part in his children’s lives since she was murdered. Both Renée and Tayrn arched their brows when Liam started to laugh, deciding not to comment, though Tay was ninety-nine percent sure that he was a bad person despite being just a kid.

“Damn it, I can’t handle this right now…” Renée muttered as Liam freaked out about her being pregnant and the only thing the female wanted to do was turn around and walk right back out the front door and disappear to Neverland with Rhoan again. She just shot Liam a look before squeezing the bridge of her nose once again as she released a few incoherent swear words.

Tayrn scoffed again when Rhoan apologized, her angry eyes narrowing towards him before glancing over towards Liam with another glare. The little boy was trouble and she needed to get rid of him, especially if Renée was pregnant. Shaking her head, she flicked the tip of her tongue against her teeth and tisked lightly. In her eyes, Rhoan was reacting just how she imagined, which only made her want to kill him off too. Her arms crossed angrily against her chest and she tapped her fingers against one of her appendages, her jaw clenching in immense irritation and rage. How dare this … creature get her baby pregnant?! At least she had her precious Gabrielle to bring honor to the family with her squeaky clean life and modeling career. Nothing bad ever happened to the youngest and she decided that all her hope would be on Gabby.

Renée felt her whole world crumbling, but somehow for some reason, Rhoan hadn’t left. Instead, he moved his hand against her shoulder in what she assumed was an attempt to comfort her and it wasn’t long before she was relaxing, but not entirely. Growling at the looks her mother was giving, she just nodded at Rhoan, agreeing with his statement. The air was stifling and suffocating where they were at and she needed to be able to breathe and think. Even as he was saying it was nice to meet her mother and Liam, Renée was already moving towards where the keys were at, grabbing him a key for the eighth floor. Pausing, she glanced at her oddly silent mother and sighed.

“Mom, I love you, I really do, but I can’t take you pretending to be something or someone you aren’t or ever was. Maybe things will go better with Gabrielle, but right now Rhoan and I have a lot of talking to do.” Shaking her head, she moved back around the bar and latched onto Rhoan’s hand, leading him to the stairs.

“You are a disappointment, Renée. Not even married and you’re pregnant. I bet you drink and do drugs too. Pathetic. At least Gabrielle is perfectly innocent and virtuous.” Tayrn tisked again and made her displeasure known, something she did all the time when the girls were young.

“Nothing ever changes.” Renée sighed and disappeared with Rhoan into the stairwell, heading to the eighth floor. Sure, they could’ve taken the elevator, but she needed to walk.

Liam really did feel sorry about that. His body was...out of balance, after what he did this morning. So, feeling as bad as he did, Liam did the one thing his Wiccan blood wanted him to. Peacefully negotiate the situation non-violently. However, Tayrn somewhat scared him right now, and that small part of Zamikar's soul that remained in him wanted to get back. He withheld that. But, it felt like something else had compelled his earlier laugh. Had Zamikar...rubbed off on him? He shuddered at the thought, and focused on the matter at hand.

"Listen, everyone. I think, if we all take a deep breath, and think about what we should be saying right now, that would be best. Sorry about the laughter thing, not sure what got over me. Well, okay, I know exactly what got over me. I used a lot of energy to ressurect someone, making me both very tired and very sick, and its a bit hard to suppress a nasty side affect of being stuck to a demon for over a year. And because I feel like this needs saying, thank you again Mom for removing that son of a bitch. Now, what I think we need, is to think about the happy things. I am getting a new, hopefully not backstabbing siblings. Tayrn, you now know you have one..." Liam thought for a moment, realizing something, and fixed his statement. "...two grandchildren. Your daughter, my mom, has found love, which means she isn't going to get really depressed and do drugs and shit and run her life into the ground because she has obviously found several things to live for. And you..."

Liam turned to Rhoan, and blinked. "Sorry, I just met you. You are on your own with your defense. Just, uhhh....well, prove to her that your better then what she thi...."

At that point, he went quiet as Tayrn and Renee had some very choice words regarding pregnancy before marriage and drugs and what not. He looked around him, waited for them to finish, and then had one simple question. "Okay, I don't mean to be rude or anything, but I have this one question to consider. Did this bar open after they grew up and moved away, or did you raise them here, in a building with its own bar? Cause, while I am sure my mom doesn't do drugs, you yourself immediately got Vodka".

Liam made sure to slowly put distance between himself and everyone in case he needed to slink away. He did look towards Rhoan though, and mention "And before I forget, you hurt my moms feeling, I will come for you" he said in the most threatening tone he could. Which, honestly, was not threatening at all. Actually, it sounded kind of cute, but Liam refused to accept that himself.

This was incredible. Renée's entire family was absolutely incredible. If it wasn't her mother threatening him, it was her soon-to-be-adopted son threatening him in such a charming little way. Rhoan didn't have much of a reaction to anything at this point other than to stand by and listen to the situation as it took place. Rhoan crossed his arms about his chest as Renée moved away to retrieve the keys for the room, and he continued observing the scene.

It was odd watching all of this take place, not to mention uncgomfortable and just bizarre. He felt bad for Renée having to deal with so much all at once, but he also understood it and was proud that she was at least able to maintain her composure. She seemed like a strong woman, and that's what he liked the most about her. A woman who can hold her own, especially against her own terrifying mother was the right kind of woman to be with. However, it concerned the vampire some. When he originally got involved with Renée, he hadn't in a million years imagined he'd meet her family quite in this way, or be subjected to judgment so early on. Then again, it was kind of expected, because what family wouldn't judge the person their child brought home?

Rhoan's gaze shifted back and forth between Renée, Tayrn, and Liam as they all spit out their comments. He didn't really have anything to say or contribute to the conversation at hand. What was he going to say, anyways, that wouldn't wind up aggravating someone and leaving him in a situation that was far worse than the one that was already happening? He could tell just by the looks on their faces and the tone in their voices that he wasn't exactly welcome, and that it would probably take a whole lot of effort to gain their trust - if that was even an option. It seemed more likely that Rhoan was going to gain Liam's trust before he would even make the smallest impact on Tayrn, and that's what bothered him the most. As much of a charmer as he was, it was going to be difficult to get on Tayrn's good side. How was that even supposed to happen, exactly?

He shook the thought from his head and looked toward Liam who was still going on about the pregnancy and now talking about multiple babies, and it took every ounce of self control to not snap back. Rhoan clenched his teeth together, grinding them inside his mouth as he bit back every comment floating through his mind. He was aggravated as all hell, and his head was pounding. He shifted his gaze to Renée as she accompanied him, taking him by the hand, and leading him to the stairs. Without hesitation, he followed along, scoffing silently at Tayrn's comments about Renée's situation.

As soon as they entered the stairwell and the door was closed behind them, Rhoan finally had a moment to speak up. "How did this even happen? And how can it be detected so early? Maybe something's wrong...." Rhoan had every doubt in his mind that Renée was pregnant, but that was just a common side effect of nervousness. It was that, and excitement, and fear all built up in the middle of his gut, and it was not a pretty feeling. "Which floor are we going to?" He asked after realizing they'd been walking up flights of stairs for a long while now.

Tayrn shifted her gaze over to Liam, narrowing her eyes angrily towards him. She felt her rage boiling and knew that the child definitely needed to be taken care of. It amazed her how quickly she fell back into her old assassin ways, but perhaps it was something that never truly left her. Well, until she was shot in the back of the head. Shaking her head a little as Renée continued to walk off with that creature Tayrn exhaled deeply and tried to remember what it was like when the family wasn’t as fractured as it currently was. Perhaps that was her fault. If she hadn’t spent so much time trying to make a living and take care of things while her husband was off promoting new bars the family might have been stronger. Scoffing at Liam, she got close to him and resisted the urge to point at him.

“Listen here, Liam. You are not my grandchild no matter what you may think. Renée is making huge mistakes in her life and while I am grateful that you risked your life to bring me back, I do not believe you have any right to say anything about our family. It’s clear that things have gone downhill since I was murdered and I intend to fix that while I am here.” Tayrn crossed her arms against her chest, her dark brown eyes narrowing even more at the child. It was about that time that Liam decided to question her parenting skills and she moved quickly across the room to where he was standing and raised her hand to slap him before stopping herself. Her jaw clenched and she grabbed a hold of Liam’s shirt in an attempt to jerk him off the ground.

“You DARE question how I raised my children?! Of course they were raised here in the bar! But, it’s not like I drank around them or anything! I got vodka when I first came in because I have been dead over a year. I am perfectly capable of drinking whatever I want, Liam and I’ll not have some orphan telling me how to live my life or raise my children!” Tayrn was beyond pissed off and she moved out of the bar. “I’m going to find my precious Gabrielle! I know SHE isn’t a disappointment.” Tayrn slammed the door behind her with a growl.

--

Renée frowned at Rhoan’s questions, her eyes filling up with tears. She stopped moving and turned around to face him, looking at his face for a few seconds before dropping her gaze down to the floor. She didn’t have answers to his questions and that bothered her, but not as much as the fact that he seemed to desperately want what her mother said about the pregnancy to be a false alarm. When asked what floor, she glanced towards the nearest door and realized that they were on the eighth floor already.

“This floor…” Choking back the sobs that seemed to want to escape, she turned back around and headed down the hallway, pausing in front of room 834. Using the key, she opened it up and pulled him inside, closing the door behind her and locking it up.

“Rhoan… I don’t know. I… I’m sorry. I’m sorry for my mother, for Liam, and for everything. That wasn’t fair of you to be thrown into… and if I would have known if my mom was here… I wouldn’t have brought you here. She never approved of me anyways, so don’t take offense in what she said. As for the pregnancy… I’ll take a test for sure, but not for a week.” Renée moved away from him, crumpling down onto the floor, her knees tugging up against her chest as she wrapped her arms around her legs. Burying her face into her thighs, she started to cry, everything in her world seeming to fall apart.

Liam wasn't sure exactly how to react. He asked that more inquisitively, and hadn't actually meant any harm by it. Then again, so far this entire thing felt like a mistake. But what Tayrn had said to him stung really bad. So he just sat there, with some tears going down his cheek. He felt like erupting. He felt like running away. He felt like hiding in some dark corner. He felt like causing someone pain. He felt so many different things at once, and none of them were good. Fire started to appear in his hands as Tayrn left. Anger. Hatred. Sadness. Misery. Despair. He felt all of them right now. All he wanted to do was do something extremely nice, and this was the result.

"I told you they would betray you" the voice of Zamikar's dagger told him. "They do not really care about you. See how Renée's mother reacted? She doesn't really love you, she is just using you to insult and defy her own mother. Come now. Isn't it time to speak up for yourself, to do what you want?"

Liam was conflicted. On one hand, he knew the dagger would only tell him what he wanted to hear. That it would lie and trick him. But on the other hand, Liam wasn't sure if he cared or not. Even with Zamikar gone, it seemed like everyone who looked at him only saw a demon. They never saw the real him, the original him. They never seemed to see the innocent who needed help. All they saw was a monster, a freakshow. Even when he did something nice.

Liam's anger was building, rapidly. He took Tayrn's vodka, took a large sip. He didn't care what anyone though. Tayrn's words hurt him so much he was pretty sure nothing could make him feel worse. Hell, even Zamikar never made him feel this bad. For what Liam basicly understood, Tayrn said that he would never be a part of their family. She reminded him of every time someone kicked him in the face. Only, this wasn't when he was on the streets. Now, he had something. He had a family. So when Tayrn said that, it felt like she had basicly ripped that away from him. He hadn't felt this upset and this angry since his sister had him exiled. First his own sister ripped him away from all his family and friends, and now it felt like Tayrn had just done the same thing to him. Again.

It was only then he realized he was taking another sip of the vodka. He put it back behind the bar, not because of what other people thought, but because he still had some sense of mind still. To be honest, he wasn't a big fan of the taste, but he also didn't care. After all? Why should he?

Why should he care about anyone, when it seemed like no one cared about him? Maybe Zamikar wasn't so wrong after all...

At that thought, he snapped out of his anger trance by a fear. For a moment, he was afraid he was becoming like Zamikar. And while he was still upset, this shock made him coherent enough to start walking towards the stairs. He only stopped at the stairs when he was considering if she wanted to risk running into Renée or not. He was about only seconds away from erupting into tears, and he wasn't sure what seeing Renée would do to him right now, or what she might do to him. Part of him wanted comfort and advice, the other part just wanted to be alone.

Rhoan continued following her up the stairs until they reached the eighth floor. At least she understood his extreme want for privacy, considering they were up so high in the building. He nodded at her mention of the floor and raised his arm above her to hold open the door to the stairwell so that she could walk through before him. As the door shut behind them, he followed her down the hallway to the door that said 834 on it, and he paused, remaining silent as we waited for her to unlock it. He studied her for a moment, his eyes tracing her expression; a slight sorrow feeling washed over him as he noticed she seemed disappointed. It was probably something he said, so that wouldn't be surprising.

The vampire continued inside, allowing her to pull him along. He let out a soft sigh and turned to her as she went on about her mother and her almost-adopted son Liam. He bobbed his head slowly up and down in a nodding fashion as he took in her words, listening as carefully as he could. He honestly felt bad for her, and for how this situation was turning out. She was practically bombarded with an unexpected family reunion, so it was no wonder her emotions were flying through the roof. She seemed upset, and bothered, and overall just exhausted from the argument, but nevertheless she always looked beautiful. It was just something about her...something about the way she carried herself that made her seem graceful even in the darkest of situations.

Rhoan let out another sigh as she mentioned the pregnancy and that she would take a test next week to be sure. "Renée....If this test comes back positive, what does that mean for us?" He asked as delicately as he possibly could, making sure to keep his tone low and his words precise so he didn't come off as condescending. As she curled up on the floor, the vampire joined her, sitting down next to her with his legs stretched out, and his arms now wrapped around her in a tight embrace. "Either way, I'll still be here," he ensured her, and placed a soft kiss against her temple. "You'll be okay, baby."

Deep down, Renée knew that leaving Liam downstairs with a pissed off Tayrn wasn’t a good thing, but she needed to get away from her mother. She made a mental note to make it up to him later on so that he didn’t feel neglected. Then again, she had no idea how he was truly feeling. They needed to sit down and talk, just the two of them, but first, she needed to deal with this issue. Even as she thought about Liam and what he might be thinking, she continued to cry. How could one’s world crumble in such a short time? She definitely had terrible luck and that was putting it mildly. Sighing heavily amidst her sobbing, Renée kept tucked up in a ball, rocking back and forth.

When asked what she would do if the test came back positive, the eighteen-year-old looked up at Rhoan and just stared at him. What would it mean for them? She honestly had no idea and that scared her immensely. Curling herself up against him as soon as his arms were wrapped around her frame, Renée was grateful that he went on to say that he would be there for her, though she wasn’t so sure if she was going to truly be okay. After a few minutes, she glanced back up at him again and sighed softly.

“If I’m pregnant… I guess we’ll just deal with it. I … I am hoping you’ll want to be the father. I don’t want us to rush and get married just because of the baby. I… I don’t know what to do. I need to talk with Liam… I left him down there with her and she might have said stupid hateful things towards him because she’s so upset with me.” She paused for a couple of minutes before slowly relaxing against Rhoan.

“What are your thoughts about all of this…?” She questioned softly.

The air was thick now with the stress of the situation, and all of the millions of mixed feelings floating about. Rhoan let out a soft sigh as Renée relaxed against him. He swallowed hard at her words regarding the pregnancy, and was growing nervous as time ticked on. What was he even going to do? Was he ready to be a father? Would he marry her if the test turned out to be positive? He chewed on his lip some glanced around the room, thinking of what he could say to her that would even remotely make her feel comfortable. The thickness of the air was almost enough to choke him, and the situation was pressure enough to make him feel like he wanted to get the hell out of there. But he couldn't. He couldn't, and he wouldn't leave her. What kind of man would he be?

The vampire licked his lips some and adjusted himself a little, working his shoulder more around her body so that he could pull her closer in an attempt to comfort her more. "My thoughts...erm..." he started, his nervous eyes bouncing around the room from object to object. It was probably obvious, how nervous he was, but he tried to ignore it. He cleared his throat and looked down at her, worry showing in his expression. "What ever happens, happens. When we find out next week what the test says, we'll go from there. Can't really make a decision right now anyways, right?" His voice trembled as he forced out the sentence.

What was he going to do when the test actually came back positive? How would he react? Rhoan drew in a deep breath and broke his gaze from Renée, and stared up at the blank wall for a while, silent. And if the test did come back positive...what would her mother do to him? Rhoan let out a soft huff at the thought and swallowed again, this time trepidation coursing through him. What a mess.